cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Le syndrome oublié du muscle petit pectoral : 100 interventions pour syndrome du muscle petit pectoral seul ou associé à un syndrome du défilé thoracique neurogène

Rationnelle Depuis 2005, quand nous avons ete informe du syndrome du muscle petit pectoral(SMP), plus de 75% des patients diagnostiques avec un syndrome du defile thoracique neurogene (SDTN) avaient egalement un SMP neurogene (SMPN), et environ 30% avaient seulement un SMPN, sans SDTN. Methodes Le diagnostic etait fonde sur l’anamnese, l’examen physique, des blocs a la lidocaine du muscle petit pectoral (PP) et du muscle scalene. La section du muscle PP etait realisee en ambulatoire, sous anesthesie locale avec la sedation profonde, par une incision axillaire de 5-7 cm. Resultats Le tableau clinique incluait une douleur ou sensibilite de la paroi thoracique anterieure et axillaire, ainsi qu’une sensibilite a l’examen physique au-dessus du tendon du PP. Les autres symptomes etaient une douleur, une faiblesse, et une paresthesie des extremites, semblables aux symptomes de SDTN. Chez 76 patients, 100 interventions ont ete effectuees : 48 pour SMPN combine avec SDTN et 52 pour SMPN seul. Les elements distinguant le groupe PP-seul etaient des maux de tete occipitaux moindres, moins de douleur cervicale, et peu de resultats physiques positifs. En preoperatoire, 85% du groupe PP-seul avaient encore un emploi compare a seulement 57% du groupe combine (p = 0,01). Les taux de succes apres un suivi de 1 a 3 ans pour le groupe PP-seul etaient a 90% bon ou excellents, 2% moyens, et 8% mauvais ; pour le groupe combine les taux de succes etaient a 35% bon ou excellents, 19% moyens, et 46% mauvais. Tout sauf un des echecs etaient immediats, seulement un seul a ete tardif. La seule complication a ete 3 infections de cicatrice. La plupart des patients sont retournes au travail en quelques jours. Dans le groupe combine de SMP/TOS, la plupart des patients ayant recidive ont ete plus tard operes pour un SDT. Conclusion Le SMP s’accompagne generalement d’un SDTN et existe frequemment de facon isolee. Son identification est importante d’autant que les patients avec un SDTN suspecte peuvent etre traites avec succes avec une section simple peu invasive du PP. Si cette intervention echoue, la decompression du defile thoracique peut toujours etre realisee ulterieurement.
Pyrrolysine encoded by UAG in Archaea: charging of a UAG-decoding specialized tRNA.

Pyrrolysine is a lysine derivative encoded by the UAG codon in methylamine methyltransferase genes of Methanosarcina barkeri. Near a methyltransferase gene cluster is thepylT gene, which encodes an unusual transfer RNA (tRNA) with a CUA anticodon. The adjacent pylS gene encodes a class II aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase that charges the pylT-derived tRNA with lysine but is not closely related to known lysyl-tRNA synthetases. Homologs of pylS and pylT are found in a Gram-positive bacterium. Charging a tRNACUA with lysine is a likely first step in translating UAG amber codons as pyrrolysine in certain methanogens. Our results indicate that pyrrolysine is the 22nd genetically encoded natural amino acid.
Super-absorbency and phase transition of gels in physiological salt solutions

IONIC gels with the ability to absorb many times their dry weight of water have found widespread use as absorbents in medical, chemical and agricultural applications1. The dramatic swelling power of these super-absorbent gels results from both the electrostatic repulsion between the charges on the polymer chains, and the osmotic pressure of the counter-ions2. In salt solutions such as saline, urine or blood, however, excess Na+ and Cl− ions screen the polymer charges and eliminate the osmotic imbalance, effectively changing the properties of the material to that of a non-ionic gel3: this greatly diminishes the swelling power, and hence the utility of these materials under physiological conditions. Here we report the development of a system combining a non-ionic gel with ionized surfactants, which shows super-absorbent behaviour even in the presence of salt. In water, the hydrophobic gel facilitates the formation of spherical surfactant micelles, which mimic the charged sites of an ionic gel. As the salt concentration is increased, the micelles become rod-like, maintaining the electrostatic repulsion along the polymer chains and thereby preserving the swelling power of the gel.
Effects of insulin and cytosolic redox state on glucose production pathways in the isolated perfused mouse liver measured by integrated 2H and 13C NMR

A great deal is known about hepatic glucose production and its response to a variety of factors such as redox state, substrate supply and hormonal control, but the effects of these parameters on the flux through biochemical pathways which integrate to control glucose production are less clear. A combination of 13C and [2H]water tracers and NMR isotopomer analysis were used to investigate metabolic fluxes in response to altered cytosolic redox state and insulin. In livers isolated from fed mice and perfused with a mixture of substrates including lactate/pyruvate (10:1, w/w), hepatic glucose production had substantial contributions from glycogen, PEP (phosphoenolpyruvate) and glycerol. Inversion of the lactate/pyruvate ratio (1:10, w/w) resulted in a surprising decrease in the contribution from glycogen and an increase in that from PEP to glucose production. A change in the lactate/pyruvate ratio from 10:1 to 1:10 also stimulated flux through the tricarboxylic acid cycle (2-fold), while leaving oxygen consumption and overall glucose output unchanged. When lactate and pyruvate were eliminated from the perfusion medium, both gluconeogenesis and tricarboxylic-acid-cycle flux were dramatically lower. Insulin lowered glucose production by inhibiting glycogenolysis at both low and high doses, but only at high levels of insulin did gluconeogenesis or tricarboxylic-acid-cycle flux tend towards lower values (P<0.1). Our data demonstrate that, in the isolated mouse liver, substrate availability and cellular redox state have a dramatic impact on liver metabolism in both the tricarboxylic acid cycle and gluconeogenesis. The tight correlation of these two pathways under multiple conditions suggest that interventions which increase or decrease hepatic tricarboxylic-acid-cycle flux will have a concomitant effect on gluconeogenesis and vice versa.
The prevalence of impaired glucose metabolism in Hispanics with two or more risk factors for metabolic syndrome in the primary care setting.

Purpose: The purposes of this observational prospective study were (a) to identify the prevalence of undiagnosed impaired glucose metabolism (IGM) including impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in 55 Hispanic subjects with two or more risk factors for the metabolic syndrome, (b) to examine the association between glucose metabolism and cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRF), including metabolic syndrome components, and (c) to identify predictors of IGM. Data sources: Subjects underwent a physical examination and a 2-h 75-g oral glucose tolerance test. Data were analyzed using SAS v9.1 with p ≤ .05 considered significant. Nonparametric tests were applied including Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon test and Spearman correlation coefficient. Stepwise logistic multiple regression was used to predict IGM. Conclusions: Twenty-five patients (46%) had IGM (18% IFG, 15% IGT, and 13%T2DM). Normal fasting glucose was found in 48% of subjects who had IGM. Lipid abnormalities were present in 98% including elevated triglycerides (TG 66%), total cholesterol (48%), low-density lipoprotein (68.8%), and low high-density lipoprotein (67.9%). Twenty-nine percent had body mass index (BMI) >25 kg/m2 and 62% had BMI >30 kg/m, hypertension (24%), and elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (63%), and mean number of cardiometabolic risk factors (#CMRF) was 4.5. Mean values for each risk factor were no different between groups except for #CMRF (p = .0001) and TG (p = .0001). Total #CMRF was the best predictor of IGM. Implications for Practice: The prevalence of IGM is extremely high in Hispanics with metabolic syndrome. Screening for IGM with fasting blood glucose alone underestimates the prevalence of IGM in this population. In subjects with multiple CMRF, screening at lower levels of BMI is warranted.
Synthesis and Excited State Dynamics of μ-Oxo Group IV Metal Phthalocyanine Dimers: A Laser Photoexcitation Study

The synthesis of two metal phthalocyanine monomers, GePc[OSi(n-C6H13)3]2 and SnPc[OSi(n-C6H13)3]2, and two μ-oxo-bridged dimers, (n-C6H13)3SiOSiPcOGePcOSi(n-C6H13)3 and (n-C6H13)3SiOSiPcOSnPcOH, are described. The ground-state absorption spectra and excited-state dynamics of these compounds together with those of (n-C6H13)3SiOSiPcOSiPcOSi(n-C6H13)3 have been measured. The absorption spectra of the dimers are blue shifted with respect to the monomers and whereas the latter exhibit a strong fluorescence in the visible, the dimers show only a weak emission in the near-IR. These observations are characteristic for the presence of exciton interactions in all three dimers, as had been reported earlier for the Si−O−Si dimer. Subnanosecond laser flash photolysis experiments on all five compounds yielded triplet−triplet absorption spectra, triplet lifetimes, triplet quantum yields, and bimolecular rate constants for quenching of the triplet states by O2. The triplet quantum yields and lifetime for the monomers and...
Misfortune, welfare reform, and right‐wing egalitarianism

Abstract A close look at the rhetoric in America's recent welfare‐reform debate has both surprising and important implications for political philosophy. Political philosophers typically presume that opponents of redistribution are motivated by considerations other than equality. Recent arguments for welfare reform, however, have been formulated in a manner consistent with most contemporary egalitarian theories. This result should make us question either the political relevance of egalitarian ideals or the adequacy of those theories of equality.
A Selection of Lower Bounds for Arithmetic Circuits

Polynomials originated in classical mathematical studies concerning geometry and solutions to systems of equations. They feature in many classical results in algebra, number theory and geometry e.g. in Galois and Abel’s resolution of the solvability via radicals of a quintic, Lagrange’s theorem on expressing every natural number as a sum of four squares and the impossibility of trisecting an angle (using ruler and compass). In modern times, computer scientists began to investigate as to what functions can be (efficiently) computed. Polynomials being a natural class of functions, one is naturally lead to the following question:
Response to Letter by Mysak et al

Response: We appreciate the thoughtful comments from Drs Mysak and Tulloch. We agree that the definition of hypertension used in the PROGRESS trial was a systolic blood pressure ≥160 mm Hg or a diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mm Hg.1 Those with blood pressures below this threshold were classified as nonhypertensive based on older definitions. As correctly pointed out by Drs Mysak and Tulloch, the mean blood pressure in this “non-hypertensive” group of 136/79 mm Hg is in the “pre-hypertension” range (120 to 139 mm Hg systolic or 80 to 89 mm Hg diastolic) as defined by JNC-VII.2 Although …
Community-Based Cognitive Radio Architecture: Policy-Compliant Innovation via the Semantic Web

The pace at which cognitive radio innovations can be deployed depends on the speed with which policy makers, technical standards committees, and technology implementers can negotiate and share conceptual blueprints describing policy and specifying policy-compliant radio behavior. By using formal representations, semantic web capabilities facilitate this form of collaboration, while simultaneously providing technologies for implementing related cognitive radio functionality utilizing the same representations, thereby streamlining the development process. This paper proposes a "cognitive radio community architecture" development process that takes advantage of the formal representations provided by semantic web technologies in order (1) to enable dynamic (cognitive) spectrum access compliant with policy and (2) to enhance system development and interoperability through common, shared concepts. The proposition is illustrated in relation to a case study of current interest, namely, cognitive radio enhancements to a simple form of dynamic spectrum access known as dynamic frequency selection (DFS). The case study shows how this architecture lays the foundation for a general type of capability, defined as knowledge-driven differential response, which could advance the state-of-the-art in cognitive radio research.
Design, Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of New Generation Taxoids

Novel second-generation taxoids with systematic modifications at the C2, C10, and C3’N positions were synthesized and their structure-activity relationships studied. A number of these taxoids exhibited exceptionally high potentency against multidrug drug-resistant cell lines, and several taxoids exhibited virtually no difference in potency against the drug-sensitive and drug-resistant cell lines. These exceptionally potent taxoids were termed “third-generation taxoids”. 19 (SB-T-1214), 14g (SB-T-121303), and 14i (SB-T-1213031), exhibited excellent activity against paclitaxel-resistant ovarian cancer cell lines as well, wherein the drug-resistance is mediated by β-tubulin mutation. These taxoids were found to possess exceptional activity in promoting tubulin assembly, forming numerous very short microtubules similar to those formed by discodermolide. Taxoids 19 and 14g also showed excellent cytotoxicity against 4 pancreatic cancer cell lines, expressing 3–4 multidrug resistant genes. Moreover, taxoid 19 exhibited excellent in vivo efficacy against highly drug-resistant CFPAC-1 pancreatic as well as DLD-1 human colon tumor xenografts in mice.
A role for KATP+-channels in mediating the elevations of cerebral blood flow and arterial pressure by hypoxic stimulation of oxygen-sensitive neurons of rostral ventrolateral medulla.

Reticulospinal sympathoexcitatory neurons of rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVL) are selectively excited by hypoxia to elevate arterial pressure (AP) and cerebral blood flow (rCBF), that are elements of the oxygen-conserving (diving) reflex. We investigated whether KATP+-channels participate in this. Tolbutamide and glibenclamide, KATP+-channel blockers, microinjected into RVL in anesthetized rats, dose-dependently and site-specifically elevated AP and rCBF and potentiated responses to hypoxemia. KATP+-channels may mediate hypoxic excitation of oxygen-sensing RVL neurons.
Neuropeptide Y and somatostatin inhibit insulin secretion through different mechanisms

Pancreatic β-cells regulate glucose homeostasis by secreting insulin in response to glucose elevation and G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) activation. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) and somatostatin (SST) a...
From interactive applications to distributed laboratories

Distributed laboratories let scientists and engineers access interactive visualization tools and simulation computations so they can collaborate online, regardless of their geographic location. This article reports on efforts at Georgia Tech to improve the technologies that make this possible.
Neuronal nitric oxide synthase control mechanisms in the cutaneous vasculature of humans in vivo.

The physiological roles of constituitively expressed nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms in humans, in vivo, are unknown. Cutaneous vasodilatation during both central nervous system-mediated, thermoregulatory reflex responses to whole-body heat stress and during peripheral axon reflex-mediated, local responses to skin warming in humans depend on nitric oxide (NO) generation by constituitively expressed NOS of uncertain isoform. We hypothesized that neuronal NOS (nNOS, NOS I) effects cutaneous vasodilatation during whole-body heat stress, but not during local skin warming. We examined the effects of the nNOS inhibitor 7-nitroindazole (7-NI) administered by intradermal microdialysis on vasodilatation induced by whole-body heat stress or local skin warming. Skin blood flow (SkBF) was monitored by laser–Doppler flowmetry (LDF). Blood pressure (MAP) was monitored and cutaneous vascular conductance calculated (CVC = LDF/MAP). In protocol 1, whole-body heat stress was induced with water-perfused suits. In protocol 2, local skin warming was induced through local warming units at LDF sites. At the end of each protocol, 56 mm sodium nitroprusside was perfused at microdialysis sites to raise SkBF to maximal levels for data normalization. 7-NI significantly attenuated CVC increases during whole-body heat stress (P 0.05). These diametrically opposite effects of 7-NI on two NO-dependent processes verify selective nNOS antagonism, thus proving that the nNOS isoform affects NO increases and hence vasodilatation during centrally mediated, reflex responses to whole-body heat stress, but not during locally mediated, axon reflex responses to local skin warming. We conclude that the constituitively expressed nNOS isoform has distinct physiological roles in cardiovascular control mechanisms in humans, in vivo.
Sick Building Syndrome: is mould the cause?

Moulds are responsible for diseases in humans through the three pathogenetic mechanisms of infection, allergy, and toxicity. Fungal infection is especially a risk factor for immunodeficient patients, but it occurs in immunocompetent patients as well. Fungal allergy is manifested as bronchial asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, or allergic fungal sinusitis. Mycotoxicosis is almost exclusively the result of ingestion of mould-contaminated foodstuffs. In each case there is specificity for the etiologic mould. There is controversy regarding the ability of indoor airborne mould spores to cause human disease through non-specific toxicity via the inhalation route. Pulmonary mycotoxicosis is an established, although rare, occupational disease of farmers who inhale enormous quantities of mycotoxins, endotoxins, and other toxic chemicals from contaminated silage. Other conditions attributed to indoor airborne mycotoxin are unproven. These include infantile pulmonary hemosi...
Prevalence of Darunavir Resistance-Associated Mutations: Patterns of Occurrence and Association with Past Treatment

Eleven protease mutations have been associated with reduced susceptibility to darunavir (DRV). We examined the prevalence and covariates of these mutations in 2 populations. Thirty percent of 1175 Northern California patients and 24% of 2744 non-California patients in the Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database had viruses with 1 or more mutations associated with resistance to DRV. In multivariate analyses, the number of DRV resistance-associated mutations depended on the number of previous protease inhibitors (PIs) administered and on amprenavir/fosamprenavir treatment. Most PI-treated patients should respond favorably to DRV-based salvage therapy.
Audience Construction and Culture Production: Marketing Surveillance in the Digital Age

This study melds “contextualist” and “resource dependence” perspectives from industrial sociology to explore the implications that audience construction by marketing and media firms hold for the core assumptions that are shaping the emerging media system of the twenty-first century. Marketers, media, and the commercial research firms that work with them are constructing contemporary U.S. audiences as frenetic, self-concerned, attention-challenged, and willing to allow advertisers to track them in response to being rewarded or treated as special. This perspective, a response to challenges and opportunities they perceive from new digital interactive technologies, both leads to and provides rationalizations for a surveillance-based customization approach to the production of culture.
The Natural History of Men Treated With Deferred Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Whom Metastatic Prostate Cancer Developed Following Radical Prostatectomy

Purpose: We report on the natural history and factors influencing the prognosis of a cohort of hormone naive, prostate specific antigen era patients in whom metastatic prostate cancer developed aft...
Industrial suburbs and the growth of metropolitan Pittsburgh, 1870–1920

Abstract In 1907, the Pittsburgh Survey team recognized that dispersed industrial development had created a metropolitan area stretching 30 to 50 miles from downtown Pittsburgh. Traditional interpretations of metropolitan formation fail to account for the crucial role of industry in this process. Beginning in the 1870s, the transformation from small, craft organized factories to integrated mills, mass production, and modern management organization in steel and other industries led many manufacturers to search for large sites with railroad and river accessibility. They purchased land, designed modern plants, and sometimes built towns for workers. Other firms bought into new communities begun as speculative industrial real estate ventures. Some owners removed their plants from the city's labour politics to exert greater control over workers. The region's rugged topography and dispersed natural resources of coal and gas accentuated this dispersal. The rapid growth of steel, glass, railroad equipment and coke industries resulted in both large mass-production plants and numerous smaller firms. As capital deepened and interdependence grew, participants multiplied, economies accrued, the division of labour increased, and localized production systems formed around these industries. Transportation, capital, labour markets, and the division of labour in production bound the scattered industrial plants and communities into a sprawling metropolitan district. By 1910 the Pittsburgh district was a complex urban landscape with a dominant central city, surrounded by proximate residential communities, mill towns, satellite cities, and hundreds of mining towns.
Using Creativity Assessment Experience to Nurture and Predict Compositional Creativity

The purpose of this inquiry was to examine students' assessments of musical creativity in relation to their ability to function creatively as composers. Compositions collected from 54 nonmusic majo...
A Comparative Study of French and British Decolonization

Despite the historical significance of European decolonization after the Second World War, there has been no serious interpretive account of it as an overall process. A number of excellent case studies exist analyzing specific policies or periods in the imperial capitals or in the colonial territories, and there are several chronologically complete surveys of the decline of European rule overseas. These have neither been directed nor followed, however, by studies attempting to conceptualize synthetically the entire period. In default of a wide-ranging debate over the character of decolonization as an historical movement, a kind of conventional wisdom has grown up attributing the differences in the British and French experiences to a combination of their respective imperial traditions and the governing abilities of their domestic political institutions. As yet, there has been no systematic attempt to separate carefully the chief variables to be analyzed, to assign them weights of relative importance, and to coordinate them in an historical and comparative manner. This essay hopes to open discussion of these questions.
Straight and White Talking With My Mouth Full

By using straight and white teeth as a metaphor for a straight and White identity, the author reflects on how this identity is performed, maintained, and often problematic. Using literature about identity performance, three different voices speak to and from straight and White identity. Using irony by blending arrogance and ignorance in the voice of the straight and White author, these voices illustrate the cracks in straight and White performance by taking the extreme positions that these performances often rest on. These voices illustrate how education, religion, and hygiene make and maintain (often) arrogant and ignorant straight and White identities. These three voices speak to each other to demonstrate how a methodology that foregrounds our bodies provides space to understand the visibility of identity performances and the politics of writing about with that visibility.
VEGFA splicing: divergent isoforms regulate spermatogonial stem cell maintenance

Despite being well-known for regulating angiogenesis in both normal and tumorigenic environments, vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) has been recently implicated in male fertility, namely in the maintenance of spermatogonial stem cells (SSC). The VEGFA gene can be spliced into multiple distinct isoforms that are either angiogenic or antiangiogenic in nature. Although studies have demonstrated the alternative splicing of VEGFA, including the divergent roles of the two isoform family types, many investigations do not differentiate between them. Data concerning VEGFA in the mammalian testis are limited, but the various angiogenic isoforms appear to promote seminiferous cord formation and to form a gradient across which cells may migrate. Treatment with either antiangiogenic isoforms of VEGFA or with inhibitors to angiogenic signaling impair these processes. Serendipitously, expression of KDR, the primary receptor for both types of VEGFA isoforms, was observed on male germ cells. These findings led to further investigation of the way that VEGFA elicits avascular functions within testes. Following treatment of donor perinatal male mice with either antiangiogenic VEGFA165b or angiogenic VEGFA164 isoforms, seminiferous tubules were less colonized following transplantation with cells from VEGFA165b-treated donors. Thus, VEGFA165b and possibly other antiangiogenic isoforms of VEGFA reduce SSC number either by promoting premature differentiation, inducing cell death, or by preventing SSC formation. Thus, angiogenic isoforms of VEGFA are hypothesized to promote SSC self-renewal, and the divergent isoforms are thought to balance one another to maintain SSC homeostasis in vivo.
Talk amongst yourselves: getting multiple autonomous vehicles to cooperate

This paper would describe our efforts to define a common control language (CCL), its interpreter/compiler integrated with an optimization planner using kQ-search. The objectives for this language is to provide the representation of missions, real-time mission re-directs and task allocation between an operator and multiple vehicles to support cooperative autonomous behavior.
Evaluating Bias of Liquefaction-Induced Settlement Methods for Performance-Based Design

Liquefaction-induced ground settlement can control the foundation design in seismic areas. SPT and CPT-based semi-empirical methods to estimate such settlements primarily use post-liquefaction volumetric strain as measured in cyclic triaxial or simple shear tests. While a good understanding of laboratory measured post-liquefaction volumetric strain has evolved within the past two decades, predicted settlements show a significant scatter from observed settlements. A database of ground performance data from past earthquakes, including cases with observed ground settlements and cases with no ground settlement, has been complied for the purpose of this study. A good number of cases in this settlement database have been investigated for first time. Cases with significant lateral spreading or excessively large settlements were excluded in order to focus on the small to medium settlement range where performance-based design is feasible. This data shows that the semiempirical methods consistently overestimate ground settlements for the practical settlement range of less than 0.2 m. The total error of settlement prediction model is presented in a probabilistic manner.
Effect of Cream of Tartar Level and Egg White Temperature on Angel Food Cake Quality

The effects of amount of cream of tartar, time of cream of tartar addition, and egg white temperature were evaluated with angel food cakes. Two replications of each of 12 treatments were used: factorial combinations of three levels of cream of tartar (representing 1/12, 1/8, or 1/4 tsp per egg white), two times of cream of tartar addition (before beating or at foamy stage), and two egg white temperatures (2° or 22°C). Increased cream of tartar decreased pH; increased specific gravity, cake slice area, and tenderness; and caused whiter interior crumb and darker exterior crust. Cakes made with 22°C (vs. 2°C) egg whites had increased exterior yellow color, decreased specific gravity after flour addition, and decreased preference. Cold egg whites did not decrease cake quality, eliminating the need to warm eggs with attending bacterial risk and decreasing preproduction time.
C-Reactive Protein-Mediated Vascular Injury Requires Complement

Background— We previously demonstrated that vascular injury-induced neointima formation is exaggerated in human C-reactive protein (CRP) transgenic (CRPtg) compared to nontransgenic (NTG) mice. We now test the hypothesis that complement is required for this effect. Methods and Results— CRPtg and NTG with a normal complement system versus their counterparts lacking expression of complement component 3 (C3) protein (CRPtg/C3−/− and NTG/C3−/−) underwent carotid artery ligation. Twenty-eight days later, the injured vessels in CRPtg had thicker neointimas and more immunoreactive C3 in the surrounding adventitia compared with NTG. In CRPtg/C3−/−, there was no increase in neointimal thickness compared with NTG or NTG/C3−/−. Decreasing human CRP blood levels through administration of a selective antisense oligonucleotide eliminated the depletion of serum C3 associated with vascular injury and reduced immunoreactive C3 in the resultant lesions. In injured vessels, C3 colocalized with F4/80 (macrophage marker), and in vitro, human CRP elicited increased expression of C3 by bone marrow-derived macrophages. Conclusion— Human CRP exaggeration of neointima formation in injured mouse carotid arteries associates with decreased circulating C3 and increased tissue-localized C3. C3 elimination or pharmacological reduction of human CRP prevents CRP-driven exacerbation of the injury response. In the CRPtg model system, mouse C3 is essential for the effect of human CRP.
SURFACE OXIDATION OF A QUASICRYSTALLINE AL-CU-FE ALLOY : NO EFFECT OF SURFACE ORIENTATION AND GRAIN BOUNDARIES ON THE FINAL STATE

We have used x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Auger electron spectroscopy to examine the characteristics of oxides on two types of quasicrystalline Al–Cu–Fe samples. One type was formed by consolidation of powders, resulting in multiple grains with random surface orientations. The other was a single grain, oriented to expose a fivefold surface. Both were oxidized to saturation in a variety of environments at room temperature. We measured the elemental constituents that oxidized, the extent of oxygen-induced Al segregation, and the depth of the oxide. Under the conditions of our experiments, there was little, if any, significant difference between the two types of samples. Hence, surface orientation and bulk microstructure played little or no role on the final state of the oxide under these conditions.
Medical radionuclide impurities in wastewater

NCRP report No.160 states medical exposures constituted nearly half of the total radiation exposure of the US population from all sources in 2006 [1]. Part of this increase in exposure is due to the rise in nuclear medicine procedures. With this observed growth in medical radionuclide usage there is an increase in the activity being released into wastewater after medical procedures. Often medical radionuclides are not 100% radionuclide pure, but meet a certain standard of purity. Of particular interest are the longer lived impurities associated with these medical radionuclides. The longer lived impurities have a higher chance of reaching the environment. The goal of this study is to identify radionuclide impurities associated with some of the more common radiopharmaceuticals Tc-99m and I-131, locate and quantify the levels of these impurities in municipal wastewater, and make a determination as to the potential long-term impact.
The Economic Value of Estimated Portfolio Rules Under General Utility Specifications

This paper addresses the economic value of estimated portfolio rules under general utility. Incorporating estimation risk magnifies errors associated with mean-variance approximations to the economic value of portfolio rules. In fact, for some preference specifications, including CRRA utility, the approximation error can be unboundedly large. The paper proposes two methods designed to curb the effects of estimation risk in a general utility setting. The first involves constraining portfolio weights to reside within the unit simplex. The second involves forming combinations of estimators and characterizes optimal combining weights using standard portfolio formulas. Both approaches dramatically improve portfolio performance in simulation and out-of-sample environments.
The Political Economy of Forgiveness

The turn of the century witnessed the emergence of several new democracies wrestling with the past of oppressive state regimes that committed atrocities on their own citizens. In East and Central Europe, the former Soviet Union, Latin America, South Africa, and the Middle East, new governments and their citizens are determining precisely how to balance past and present. In the mid-20th century, Germany and Japan had to negotiate a similar political terrain. Our paper is focused on past injustices perpetrated by totalitarian regimes and using basic economic reasoning we attempt to clear a path for reconciliation and thus hope for a future of peace and prosperity.
Software Design Space Exploration for Exascale Combustion Co-design

The design of hardware for next-generation exascale computing systems will require a deep understanding of how software optimizations impact hardware design trade-offs. In order to characterize how co-tuning hardware and software parameters affects the performance of combustion simulation codes, we created ExaSAT, a compiler-driven static analysis and performance modeling framework. Our framework can evaluate hundreds of hardware/software configurations in seconds, providing an essential speed advantage over simulators and dynamic analysis techniques during the co-design process. Our analytic performance model shows that advanced code transformations, such as cache blocking and loop fusion, can have a significant impact on choices for cache and memory architecture. Our modeling helped us identify tuned configurations that achieve a 90% reduction in memory traffic, which could significantly improve performance and reduce energy consumption. These techniques will also be useful for the development of advanced programming models and runtimes, which must reason about these optimizations to deliver better performance and energy efficiency.
Family Resilience and Parenting

The concept of resilience has been studied for decades at both individual and family levels. When examining the concept of family resilience, the question arises as to what makes some families face difficult circumstances and come out stronger while others fail at this task? What we know is that families are constantly faced with multiple challenges (e.g., divorce, violence, economic hardship, mental and physical illnesses, immigration) that impact not only individual family members but also the family system as a unit. The dynamic nature of family functioning also impacts the development of resilience. What remains unclear as our understanding of the developing area of family resilience increases is the role of parenting.
Improved technique of double valve replacement

Double valve replacement in the aortic and mitral positions continues to present significant morbidity and mortality rates. At present, the replacement operation is performed with the use of either ischemic arrest or coronary perfusion. In this report, we describe a new method whereby the anterior portion of the mitral valve and the aortic valve are replaced with the aid of ischemic arrest, and then the posterior portion of the mitral valve and left atrium are repaired while the myocardium is being perfused through the native ostium. This technique has been used in 33 patients with one operative death in the last 4 years and has significantly reduced our mortality rate in this time.
Flip the classroom

Given the huge expansion in medical knowledge it is both practical and expedient to make better use of students' time with aids for effective learning, rather than by increasing the length of time it takes to earn a medical degree. Embracing a 'flipped classroom' approach is a way to free-up classroom time to promote active learning through opportunities such as case-based and team-based exercises.
Cytochrome P-450-dependent HETEs : profile of biological activity and stimulation by vasoactive peptides

The cytochrome P-450 pathway is capable of metabolizing arachidonic acid to omega- and subterminal hydroxylase metabolites, 16-, 17-, 18-, 19-, and 20-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids (P-450 HETEs). We have quantitated, by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), endogenous HETEs exiting the rabbit isolated perfused kidney elicited by hormonal stimulation. Kidneys were perfused with Krebs-Henseleit solution containing indomethacin (2.8 microM) to prevent further metabolism of HETEs by cyclooxygenase. Phenylephrine (2-3 microM) was added to the perfusate to raise perfusion pressure to approximately 80 mmHg. Angiotensin II (ANG II), arginine vasopressin (AVP), and bradykinin (BK) were injected into the renal artery and perfusates collected throughout the vasoactive response. After addition of an internal standard, deuterated 19-HETE, perfusates were extracted and purified and P-450 HETEs were derivatized for GC/MS analysis. Under basal conditions, 16-, 18-, 19-, and 20-HETEs were released (range: 50-270 pg/ml), 19-HETE being the highest and fivefold greater than 16-HETE, the lowest. Injection of 50 ng ANG II increased by two- to sixfold P-450 HETE release associated with an increase of 40 +/- 11 mmHg in perfusion pressure. An equipressor dose of AVP (50 ng) did not release P-450 HETEs nor did a 5-micrograms dose of the vasodilator peptide BK, which decreased perfusion pressure by 22 +/- 6 mmHg. Authentic 19- and 20-HETE isomers resulted in dose-dependent dilation, as did 18(R)- and 16(R)-HETEs, whereas their enantiomers and 17-HETE isomers were without effect on perfusion pressure. The vasodilator effects of 18(R)- and 16(R)-HETEs, like 20- and 19-HETEs, were inhibited by indomethacin. Furthermore, P-450 HETEs exhibited both regio- and stereoselective inhibition of proximal tubule adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity. The (S) enantiomers of 16- and 17-HETE potently inhibited activity, whereas their (R) isomers and other P-450 HETEs had negligible effects on ATPase activity. The quantity of HETEs released from the kidney, either under basal conditions or when stimulated by ANG II, and their biological profile suggest that subterminal HETEs may participate in renal mechanisms affecting vasomotion and tubular transport.
The effect of imprisonment on recommitment: an analysis using exact, coarsened exact, and radius matching with the propensity score

This study examines the effect of prison versus community sanctions on recommitment to prison and compares two levels of community supervision, community control (house arrest) and probation, evaluating whether the findings are contingent on the type of matching methods used in the analysis. Logistic regression was conducted on unmatched and matched samples. Exact, coarsened exact, and radius-matching procedures were used to create a selection on observables design. Matching variables included current offense, demographics, criminal history, supervision violations, and a rich set of Florida Sentencing Guidelines information culled from an official scoring sheet. Florida judges use this instrument to sentence offenders within the framework of the state determinate sentencing system. The results show that with exact matching, there is no effect of imprisonment on recommitment, while the other procedures suggest a specific deterrent effect of imprisonment. All four analysis methods showed that offenders under community control are more likely to reoffend than those under normal probation. Analyses between the matched and unmatched prison observations demonstrate that the matched set of prisoners is composed of offenders who have less extensive criminal records and less serious conviction offenses than unmatched offenders regardless of the matching algorithm. Contrary to a prior analysis of these data, which found a criminogenic effect of prison, a null effect was found using exact matching. Comparing the matching procedures, the more precise the match the less likely there was an effect of prison. However, community control was criminogenic regardless of the matching procedure.
CURRENT CONCEPTS OF THERMOPHILISM AND THE THERMOPHILIC FUNGI

(1973). Current Concepts of Thermophilism and the Thermophilic Fungi. Mycologia: Vol. 65, No. 5, pp. 1171-1198.
A Practical Approach to Curriculum Development: A Case Study

Curriculum development can be an awesome task that requires many faculty hours and huge piles of paperwork. However, all hospitality programs must do it if they are to remain current with industry and educational trends. This article outlines a step-by-step process for curricular change. It will be especially useful for faculty and administrators who desire to lead the process, and it provides a practical “how to” approach for getting the curriculum beast under control. This article is presented in a case study format using the curriculum development process employed by the University of North Texas.
Contribution of tactile dysfunction to manual motor dysfunction in type II diabetes.

Introduction Changes in sensory and motor functions of the hand in type II diabetes (T2D) patients have been reported; there is speculation that these changes are driven by tactile dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of tactile feedback on manual function in T2D patients. Methods T2D patients and healthy controls underwent median nerve blocks at the wrist and elbow. All participants underwent traditional timed motor evaluations, force dynamometry, laboratory-based kinetic evaluations, and sensory evaluation. Results Tactile sensation in the T2D group at baseline was found to be equivalent to tactile function of the control group after median nerve block. Traditional timed evaluation results were negatively impacted by anesthesia, but more sensitive kinetic measures were not impacted. Conclusions These data suggest that mechanisms outside of tactile dysfunction play a significant role in motor dysfunction in T2D. Muscle Nerve 54: 895-902, 2016.
Crawling Toward a Diagnosis: Vesicles and Thrombocytopenia in a Neonate

A previously healthy 25-day-old boy presented to a tertiary children’s hospital with a diffuse vesicular rash worsening over the previous 2 weeks. Per parental report, the rash was not accompanied by any other symptoms and did not appear to be pruritic or painful; specifically, he had no history of fever and was formula feeding well. The infant was the product of a full-term pregnancy, complicated only by a maternal diagnosis of pruritic papules and plaques of pregnancy at ∼34 weeks of gestation. There was no known maternal history of herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection, and the mother denied any recent personal or family history of rashes or other skin lesions. The infant did not have any known allergies and no offending topical agent could be identified from the parental interview. He was not taking any medications. This differential includes both relatively benign conditions and diseases associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Key history points include pertinent birth events, maternal health status, onset timing of the rash, presence of systemic symptoms, such as fever or poor feeding, location of rash, potential allergen exposure, contacts with similar rashes, trauma to the skin, and family history of skin diseases. The duration of the rash is important because a well-appearing infant with a rash of 2 weeks’ duration is less concerning than a febrile infant who developed vesicles 24 hours prior. On physical examination, the infant was fussy but consolable when held. He was afebrile with vital signs within the normal limits for his age. Examination was otherwise unremarkable except for vesicles on an erythematous base and pustules on the face, torso, extremities, soles, hands, palms, and occipital scalp (Fig 1). There were no interdigital lesions, and his mucous membranes were lesion-free. Neurologic examination showed no focal abnormalities. FIGURE 1 Vesicles and pustules on an erythematous …
Tax Court S Cases: Does the 'S' Stand for Secret?

This April 1998 article discusses the U.S. Tax Court's then-existing practice of making the opinions and files in small tax cases unavailable to the public. It argues that that practice violated Internal Revenue Code provisions that make Tax Court documents public records.
Using Inner-Ear Cadherins to Test High-Throughput Thermal Screening Assays for Protein-Protein Interactions

High-throughput thermal screening (HTTS) has generally been used to analyze the stability of libraries of mutant proteins, as well as stability changes for proteins with a battery of ligands or a plethora of buffer conditions. In all cases, an environmentally sensitive fluorescent dye (SYPRO orange) is used to monitor melting temperature shifts under various conditions. HTTS has also been used to characterize protein-protein interactions, but its general applicability to protein complexes remains to be tested. Here, we use the complex formed by the N-terminal fragments of Protocadherin-15 (pcdh15) and Cadherin-23 (cdh23), essential for inner-ear mechanotransduction, to test modified HTTS assays that evaluate protein-protein binding affinities. By mixing cdh23 and pcdh15 at different ratios, we observed increased thermal stability of pcdh15 caused by shifts in chemical equilibrium towards the complex. In addition, protein fragments carrying missense mutations known to cause deafness and reduce binding affinity lack these shifts. These results suggest that HTTS can be used to qualitatively evaluate cadherin protein-protein interactions. We further validated our HTTS results using surface plasmon resonance-based affinity measurements. Surprisingly, we found that in some cases thermal stability shifts correlate well with koff rather than Kd. Our modified protocols might be applicable to any heterodimeric protein complex with affinities ranging from ∼ 1 nanoM to 100 microM.