cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mechanism and Cellular Applications of a Green Fluorescent Protein-based Halide Sensor

We report the application of a targetable green fluorescent protein-based cellular halide indicator. Fluorescence titrations of the purified recombinant yellow fluorescent protein YFP-H148Q indicated a pK(a) of 7.14 in the absence of Cl(-), which increased to 7.86 at 150 mM Cl(-). At pH 7.5, YFP-H148Q fluorescence decreased maximally by approximately 2-fold with a K(D) of 100 mM Cl(-). YFP-H148Q had a fluorescence lifetime of 3.1 ns that was independent of pH and [Cl(-)]. Circular dichroism and absorption spectroscopy revealed distinct Cl(-)-dependent spectral changes indicating Cl(-)/YFP binding. Stopped-flow kinetic analysis showed a biexponential time course of YFP-H148Q fluorescence (time constants SCN(-) > NO(3)(-) > Cl(-) > Br(-) > formate > acetate) indicated strong binding of weakly hydrated chaotropic ions. The biophysical data suggest that YFP-H148Q anion sensitivity involves ground state anion binding to a site close to the tri-amino acid chromophore. YFP-H148Q transfected mammalian cells were brightly fluorescent with cytoplasmic/nuclear staining. Ionophore calibrations indicated similar YFP-H148Q pH and anion sensitivities in cells and aqueous solutions. Cyclic AMP-regulated Cl(-) transport through plasma membrane cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator Cl(-) channels was assayed with excellent sensitivity from the time course of YFP-H148Q fluorescence in response to extracellular Cl(-)/I(-) exchange. The green fluorescent protein-based halide sensor described here should have numerous applications, such as anion channel cloning by screening of mammalian expression libraries and discovery of compounds that correct the cystic fibrosis phenotype by screening of combinatorial libraries.
A Comparison of Proton and Self-Calibrating Rubidium Magnetometers for Tectonomagnetic Studies

A network of 27 proton magnetometers (PM's), designed to detect stress related magnetic events of crustal origin, has been operating near active faults in California for the past decade. We present here comparative magnetic difference field data from PM's used in this net with that obtained from new self-calibrating rubidium magnetometers (SCR's). The instruments were first compared over a 50-m baseline in an aseismic and magnetically quiet region in Colorado. For PM's having either a 0.25-nT or a 0.125-nT least count, the observed difference variations were 0.2-nT and 0.17-nT rms, respectively. For SCR's having a 0.001-nT least count and a 100-second averaging interval, the difference variation was 0.002-nT rms. Power spectra of these data indicate that the noise for the PM's is close to their least count limit. However, the SCR noise decreases at about 20dB per decade until it approaches its least count limit 40dB below the PM limit, for periods less than 30 minutes. A similar experiment was conducted using collocated SCR and PM pairs separated by 13km along the San Andreas fault. Power spectra indicate that both systems are equivalent and are dominated by external noise at periods greater than 4 minutes. Below 4 minutes the PM noise approaches its least count limit while the SCR noise continues to decrease at about 20dB per decade until it is 20dB below the PM limit at a period of 30 seconds. Improved discrimination of magnetic transients caused by fault activity with periods of several minutes to perhaps an hour appears to be possible with higher sensitivity magnetometers.
Arguing about innateness

This paper lays out the components of a language acquisition model, the interconnections among the components, and the differing stances of nativism and empiricism about syntax. After demonstrating that parsimony cannot decide between the two stances, the paper analyzes nine examples of evidence that have been used to argue for or against nativism, concluding that most pieces of evidence are either irrelevant or suggest that language is special but need not invoke innate ideas. Two pieces of evidence – the development of home sign languages and the acquisition of Determiners – do show not just that language is special but that the child has innate syntactic content. The existential claim that nativism makes – there is at least one innate syntactic idea – is an easier claim to verify than the universal claim that empiricism makes – there are no innate syntactic ideas.
Analysis of Behavioural Responding across Multiple Instructional Conditions for a Child with Childhood Disintegrative Disorder.

The effects of multiple instructional conditions on self-injury/aggression and on-task behaviours were assessed with a 9-year-old boy diagnosed with childhood disintegrative disorder. Behavioural responses were assessed as part of an educational evaluation to determine the occurrence of target behaviours in relation to varying degrees of educational support. Self-injury/aggression and task engagement were assessed across baseline conditions and instructional conditions involving pre-session access to preferred items, followed by systematic presentation of work tasks with contingent reinforcement and auditory cueing. Results indicated an increase in task engagement and a decrease in the target behaviours from baseline across subsequent conditions. This study lends support for directly assessing the efficacy of specific potential instructional support as a means of developing individualised treatment packages for learners with childhood disintegrative disorder.
Formation of high-pressure metabasites in the southern Appalachian Blue Ridge via Taconic continental subduction beneath the Laurentian margin

[1] Tectonic models that account for the occurrence of eclogite, retrograde eclogite, peridotite, and migmatitic basement gneisses in the southern Blue Ridge invoke closure of a small ocean basin between the eastern Blue Ridge (EBR) and western Blue Ridge (WBR). In this “obducted ophiolite” model, Franciscan-type, eastward subduction of oceanic crust beneath the Piedmont arc occurred prior to obduction of the arc onto the Laurentian margin. The discovery of kilometer-scale eclogite bodies near the EBR-WBR boundary are cited as evidence for obducted ophiolite/accreted island arc models. However, thermobarometric estimates based on mineral chemistry from HP metabasites of the western, central, and eastern Blue Ridge indicate that eclogites and granulites are medium-temperature type (550–900°C), inconsistent with the obducted ophiolite model. Mid-ocean ridge basalt subducted beneath continental margins and island arcs rarely reaches temperatures in excess of 550°C. Thermobarometric comparisons of the present study and a reexamination of deep seismic profiles from the Blue Ridge allow for a model of westward subduction of continental material beneath Laurentia during the Taconic orogeny that produced a megamelange now preserved in the central and eastern Blue Ridge tectonic provinces. P-T paths determined from Blue Ridge HP metabasites are similar to P-T paths determined previously from Caledonian and Variscan eclogites. Thermobarometric similarities imply a common tectonic history of continental collision, subduction of continental crust to depths of 50–65 km, followed by rapid eduction.
Biquasitriangularity and spectral continuity

In [6] Conway and Morrell characterized those operators on Hilbert space that are points of continuity of the spectrum. They also gave necessary and sufficient conditions that a biquasitriangular operator be a point of spectral continuity. Our point of view in this note is slightly different. Given a point T of spectral continuity, we ask what can then be inferred. Several of our results deal with invariant subspaces. We also give some conditions characterizing a biquasitriangular point of spectral continuity (Theorem 3). One of these is that the operator and its adjoint both have the single-valued extension property.
Messenger RNA is a functional component of a chromatin insulator complex

Chromatin insulators are DNA protein complexes situated throughout the genome capable of demarcating independent transcriptional domains. Previous studies point to an important role for RNA in gypsy chromatin insulator function in Drosophila; however, the identity of these putative insulator-associated RNAs is not currently known. Here we utilize RNA-immunoprecipitation and high throughput sequencing (RIP-seq) to isolate RNAs stably associated with gypsy insulator complexes. Strikingly, these RNAs correspond to specific sense-strand, spliced and polyadenylated mRNAs, including two insulator protein transcripts. In order to assess the functional significance of these associated mRNAs independent of their coding function, we expressed untranslatable versions of these transcripts in developing flies and observed both alteration of insulator complex nuclear localization as well as improvement of enhancer-blocking activity. Together, these data suggest a novel, noncoding mechanism by which certain mRNAs contribute to chromatin insulator function.
The Extraordinary Categorical Imperative

Many political theorists assume that Kant’s categorical imperative can only present itself to politics epistemologically—that is, as a test or procedure for acquiring more certain knowledge of duti...
Micromachined millimeter-wave module for power combining

A fully micromachined millimeter-wave module for power combining is proposed and demonstrated. The proposed module consists of a monolithic-microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) RF sources, a finite ground coplanar (FGC) line-to-micromachined waveguide transition, and a section of micromachined waveguide, and thus can be fabricated cost-effectively using modern micromachining techniques. The module is tested with two types of GaAs monolithic frequency doublers as the RF source and shows excellent performance with an RF power efficiency of up to 25% at the output frequency of 72.2 GHz.
Why we need ethical oversight of quality improvement projects.

The jury is still out on whether ethical oversight is needed for quality improvement projects. Many quality practitioners argue that as long as the quality improvement project is not primarily research, ethical review is unnecessary. In this editorial, I would like to defend the opposite view, that ethical oversight is indeed desirable for most initiatives to improve the quality of health care. Let us redefine the nature of health care. Much of health care would amount to reckless endangerment or even to bodily harm if it were not covered by the tacit covenant between patient and doctor (think of surgery or chemotherapy). Under this covenant, the doctor is allowed to perform potentially dangerous treatments as long as she or he acts solely in the interest of the patient. If the doctor served any master other than the patient’s welfare, his or her actions would be unlawful. This is why strict oversight by an external body is needed when doctors perform research, an activity that aims to produce knowledge for the benefit of society, and not necessarily to help the patient. Clearly, the rule should be: for anything the patient requested you do not need external ethical oversight, for anything else that affects patient care you do. Unfortunately, the rule that is prevalent today has perversely shifted to this: for medical research you need ethical oversight, for anything else you don’t. Several authors have endeavoured to define ‘research’ to delimit the jurisdiction of ethics committees [1–3]. …
Relevance of Ground-based Electron-Induced Electrostatic Discharge Measurements to Space Plasma Environments

Electron-induced electrostatic discharge (ESD) can lead to severe spacecraft anomalies. It is crucial to the success of space missions that the likelihood of ESD occurrence is understood and mitigated. To aid in predicting ESD occurrence, a model for electric fields above and below the charge layer inside an electronirradiated dielectric material was developed. An instrumentation system was also designed to induce and detect ESD events. Because ESD events with a wide range of maximum current values can occur over a range of time intervals, multiple simultaneous detection methods were employed as charge was accumulated on a sample surface; these included monitoring of sample current and optical emissions from the sample surface. Data from ESD experimentation for James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) materials was used to verify that the instrumentation system was effective in inducing and observing ESD. Two types of discharge events were observed during JWST testing: a sudden-onset, decaying current accompanied by luminescence in the optical data, and an arc or flash in optical data. JWST test results were applied to the electric field models developed to determine the threshold electric field for luminescence onset. The models were also applied to the JWST materials in five different space plasma environments to determine the accumulated electric field as a function of time, and to thereby predict the likelihood of sample luminescence in each location.
Mortality Among Marathon Runners in the United States, 2000-2009

Background:As participation in marathon running has increased, there has also been concern regarding its safety.Purpose:To determine if the increase in marathon participation from 2000 to 2009 has affected mortality and overall performance.Study Design:Descriptive epidemiology study.Methods:We used publicly available racing and news databases to analyze the number of marathon races, finishing race times, and deaths from 2000 to 2009 in marathons in the United States.Results:The total number of marathon finishers has increased over this decade from 299,018 in 2000 to 473,354 in 2009. The average overall marathon finishing time has remained unchanged from 2000 to 2009 (4:34:47 vs 4:35:28; P = .85). Of 3,718,336 total marathon participants over the 10-year study period, we identified 28 people (6 women and 22 men) who died during the marathon race and up to 24 hours after finishing. The overall, male, and female death rates for the 10-year period were 0.75 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.38-1.13), 0.98 (95%...
Sentinel Lymph Node Dissection for Penile Carcinoma: The M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Experience

AbstractPurpose: We determined whether an extended sentinel lymph node dissection is effective for staging penile squamous carcinoma associated with clinically negative inguinal lymph nodes.Materials and Methods: A retrospective review was done of 20 consecutive patients who underwent extended sentinel lymph node dissection between 1985 and 1994.Results: Of the patients 14 underwent bilateral extended sentinel lymph node dissection, and 6 underwent ipsilateral extended sentinel lymph node dissection plus contralateral inguinal or ilioinguinal lymphadenectomy. All lymph nodes included in the extended sentinel node dissection were negative for metastases. Five patients had inguinal metastases at a median of 10 months (range 3 to 21) after negative extended sentinel lymph node dissection.Conclusions: Although it is a more extensive procedure than sentinel lymph node biopsy, extended sentinel lymph node dissection is still associated with a significant false-negative rate (25 percent). Thus, its routine use c...
Implementing a shared file system on a HIPPI disk array

Shared file systems which use a physically shared mass storage device have existed for many years, although not on UNIX based operating systems. This paper describes a shared file system (SFS) that was implemented first as a special project on the Gray Research Inc. (CRI) UNICOS operating system. A more general product was then built on top of this project using a HIPPI disk array for the shared mass storage. The design of SFS is outlined, as well as some performance experiences with the product. We describe how SFS interacts with the OSF distributed file service (DFS) and with the CRI data migration facility (DMF). We also describe possible development directions for the SFS product.
[2‐(Dimethylamino)methyl]phenyl Dimethyltin Hydride

[149002-08-4] C11H19NSn (MW 283.98) InChI = 1S/C9H12N.2CH3.Sn.H/c1-10(2)8-9-6-4-3-5-7-9;;;;/h3-6H,8H2,1-2H3;2*1H3;; InChIKey = FYFWTUCVKVEYJR-UHFFFAOYSA-N (reagent used for the reduction of alkyl halides, ketones, and xanthates) Form Supplied in: clear colorless oil. Analysis of Reagent Purity: IR (C6D6, cm−1) 2800, 1820, 1500; 119Sn NMR δ: −30.2 vs Me4Sn (C6D6). Handling, Storage, and Precautions: long-term storage at −15 °C is recommended.
Collective modes of chiral kinetic theory in a magnetic field

We study collective excitations in systems described by chiral kinetic theory in external magnetic eld. We consider high-temperature weak-coupling plasma, as well as high-density Landau Fermi liquid with interaction not restricted to be weak. We show that chiral magnetic wave (CMW) emerges in hydrodynamic regime (at frequencies smaller than collision relaxation rate) and the CMW velocity is determined by thermodynamic properties only. We nd that in a plasma of opposite chiralities, at frequencies smaller than the chirality-ipping rate, the CMW excitation turns into a vector-like diusion mode. In the interacting Fermi liquid, the CMW turns into the Landau zero sound mode in the high-frequency collisionless regime.
Differential effects of amitriptyline on perception of somatic and visceral stimulation in healthy humans

Tricyclic antidepressants treat chronic pain both in patients with somatic illness and with functional bowel disorders. We compared the effects of amitriptyline on perception of cutaneous and gastr...
Quality of Life Assessments, Cognitive Reliability, and Procreative Responsibility

Recent work in the psychology of happiness has led some to conclude that we are unreliable assessors of our lives and that skepticism about whether we are happy is a genuine possibility worth taking very seriously. I argue that such claims, if true, have worrisome implications for procreation. In particular, they show that skepticism about whether many if not most people are well positioned to create persons is a genuine possibility worth taking very seriously. This skeptical worry should not be confused with a related but much stronger version of the argument, which says that all human lives are very bad and not worth starting. I criticize the latter stance, but take seriously the former stance and hope it can be answered in future work.
Long-term aspen cover change in the western US

Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) is one of the most important tree species in the western Uni- ted States due to its role in biodiversity, tourism, and other ecological and aesthetic values. This paper provides an overview of the drivers of long-term aspen cover change in the western US and how these drivers operate on diverse spatial and temporal scales. There has been substantial concern that aspen has been declining in the western US, but trends of aspen persistence vary both geographically and tem- porally. One important goal for future research is to better understand long-term and broad-scale changes in aspen cover across its range. Inferences about aspen dynamics are contingent on the spatial and temporal scales of inquiry, thus differences in scope and design among studies partly explain varia- tion among conclusions. For example, major aspen decline has been noted when the spatial scale of inquiry is relatively small and the temporal scale of inquiry is relatively short. Thus, it is important to consider the scale of research when addressing aspen dynamics. Successional replacement of aspen by conifer species is most pronounced in systems shaped by long fire intervals and can thus be seen as part of a normal, long-term fluctuation in forest composition. Aspen decline was initially reported primarily at the margins of aspen's distribution, but may be becoming more ubiquitous due to the direct effects of climate (e.g. drought). In contrast, the indirect effects of recent cli- mate (e.g. forest fires, bark beetle outbreaks, and compounded disturbances) appear to favor aspen and may facilitate expansion of this forest type. Thus, future aspen trends are likely to depend on the net result of the direct and indirect effects of altered climate.
A decision support system for green data centers

In this paper, we propose a decision support system for green computing in data centers on campuses. Green computing aims at the development of technologies for a greener and more sustainable planet. In this work we focus on the greening of data centers that house servers on campuses. It is known that servers consume a huge amount of power and incur other costs in cooling and related operations. It is challenging to meet the demands of efficiency and accuracy in data centers while yet promoting a greener environment along with cost cutting. Our work proposes a decision support system based on decision trees and case-based reasoning that mines existing data in order to assist decision-making for better management in data centers. We consider various aspects of the data from an environmental management perspective such as carbon footprint, thermal profiles and virtualization. Issues such as efficiency and accuracy are taken into account here, In this proposal paper, we outline the need for our work, the challenges involved, the proposed approach for building the system, preliminary evaluation and future plans. This work would be of interest to the data and knowledge management community as well as environmental scientists and researchers in related areas.
Education and Coronary Heart Disease Risk Associations May Be Affected by Early Life Common Prior Causes: A Propensity Matching Analysis

Purpose Education is inversely associated with coronary heart disease (CHD); however whether this is attributable to causal effects of schooling rather than potential confounders existing before school entry (eg, childhood intelligence, childhood economic circumstances, childhood chronic illness, parental mental health) remains unknown. We evaluated whether education is associated with 10-year CHD risk independent of 21 prospectively assessed childhood conditions, in participants ages 38–47 years. Methods Using linear regression analyses, we evaluated associations of education with 10-year CHD risk, the latter calculated by use of the validated Framingham risk algorithm incorporating diabetes, blood pressure, total and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, smoking, age, and sex. Propensity score matching incorporated 21 early-life potential confounders. Results Regression analyses demonstrated college graduation was associated with −27.9% lower (95% CI, −36.2, −18.6%) 10-year CHD risk compared with ≤high school after matching on propensity score that included age, sex and race (n = 272); addition of 21 early life potential confounders resulted in effect size of −13.1% (95% CI, −33.4, 13.4; mean n = 110). Conclusions Participants with college degree had substantially lower risk of CHD (27.9%) after accounting for demographics; the addition of early life potential confounders resulted in a moderate effect size (13.1%), suggesting potential importance of early life factors in explaining observed associations between education and CHD risk.
Social foraging in Bufo americanus tadpoles

Animals can find food using information from the food itself or from conspecifics that are also looking for food. Social information can be actively communicated or based on unavoidable by-products of feeding activities. We present three experiments that explore the relative importance of odour gradients and social information as Bufo americanus tadpoles locate food sources. In the first experiment, tadpoles rapidly aggregated at food patches and discriminated between the qualities of two food patches spaced 15 cm apart in the field. In a second experiment, the initial presence of tadpoles at one food patch enhanced aggregation for 1 h, compared to an identical food patch without tadpoles spaced 114 cm apart. In a third experiment, the time required to initial contact with a single food patch did not change over a 16-fold range of food concentration, suggesting that B. americanus tadpoles have a limited ability to locate food from a distance using information from the food itself. Finding food and discriminating food patch quality from a distance is probably a major adaptive advantage of sociality in B. americanus tadpoles, although the presence or absence of active signalling remains to be determined.
Electromagnetic absorption in the human head and neck for mobile telephones at 835 and 1900 MHz

The authors have used the finite-difference time-domain method and a new millimeter-resolution anatomically based model of the human to study electromagnetic energy coupled to the head due to mobile telephones at 835 and 1900 MHz. Assuming reduced dimensions characteristic of today's mobile telephones, the authors have obtained SAR distributions for two different lengths of monopole antennas of lengths /spl lambda//4 and 3/spl lambda//8 for a model of the adult male and reduced-scale models of 10- and 5-year-old children and find that peak one-voxel and 1-g SARs are larger for the smaller models of children, particularly at 835 MHz. Also, a larger in-depth penetration of absorbed energy for these smaller models is obtained. The authors have also studied the effect of using the widely disparate tissue properties reported in the literature and of using homogeneous instead of the anatomically realistic heterogeneous models on the SAR distributions. Homogeneous models are shown to grossly overestimate both the peak 1-voxel and 1-g SARs. Last, the authors show that it is possible to use truncated one-half or one-third models of the human head with negligible errors in the calculated SAR distributions. This simplification will allow considerable savings in computer memory and computation times.
Characterization of midgut trypsin-like enzymes and three trypsinogen cDNAs from the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae)

Protein digestion in the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae), results from the action of a complex of serine proteinases present in the midgut. In this study we partially characterized trypsin-like enzyme activity against N-α-benzoyl-l-arginine p-nitroanilide (BApNA) in midgut preparations and cloned and sequenced three cDNAs for trypsinogenlike proteins. BApNAase activity in R. dominica midgut was significantly reduced by serine proteinase inhibitors and specific inhibitors of trypsin, whereas BApNAase activity was not sensitive to specific inhibitors of chymotrypsin or aspartic proteinases. However, trans-epoxysuccinyl-l-leucylamido-(4-guanidino) butane (E-64) inhibited BApNAase activity by about 30%. BApNAase was most active in a broad pH range from about pH 7 to 9.5. The gut of R. dominica is a tubular tract approximately 2.5 mm in length. BApNAase activity was primarily located in the midgut region with about 1.5-fold more BApNAase activity in the anterior region compared to that in the posterior region. Proteinases with apparent molecular masses of 23‐24 kDa that were visualized on casein zymograms following electrophoresis were inhibited by TLCK. Three cDNAs for trypsinogen-like proteins were cloned and sequenced from mRNA of R. dominica midgut. The full cDNA sequences consisted of open reading frames encoding 249, 293, and 255 amino acid residues for RdoT1, RdoT2, and RdoT3, respectively. cDNAs RdoT1, RdoT2, and RdoT3 shared 77‐81% sequence identity. The three encoded trypsinogens shared 54‐62% identity in their amino acid sequences and had 16‐18 residues of signal peptides and 12‐15 residues of activation peptides. The three predicted mature trypsin-like enzymes had molecular masses of 23.1, 28, and 23.8 kDa for RdoT1, RdoT2, and RdoT3, respectively. Typical features of these trypsin-like enzymes included the conserved N-terminal residues IVGG 62‐65 , the catalytic amino acid triad of serine proteinase active sites (His 109 , Asp 156 , Ser 257 ), three pairs of conserved cysteine residues for disulfide bridges, and the three residues (Asp 251 , Gly 274 , Gly 284 ) that determine specificity in trypsin-like enzymes. In addition, RdoT2 has both a PEST-like sequence at the C-terminus and a free Cys 158 near the active site, suggesting instability of this enzyme and/or sensitivity to thiol reagents. The sequences have been deposited in GenBank database (accession numbers AF130840 for RdoT1, AF130841 for RdoT2, and AF130842 for RdoT3). Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.
The adsorption of Ni(cyclam)+ at mercury electrodes and its relation to the electrocatalytic reduction of CO2

Abstract The adsorption of Ni(cyclam)2+ and Ni(cyclam)+ (cyclam = 1,4,8,11-tetraazacyclotetradecane) at mercury electrodes from aqueous solutions was examined in the potential range between 0 and − 1.6 V versus saturated calomel electrode (SCE) using single- and double-potential-step chronocoulometry. A detailed analysis of the chronocoulometric data is presented. Ni(cyclam)2+ is only weakly adsorbed over a limited potential range, and in quantities substantially less than one monolayer. In contrast, Ni(cyclam)+ is strongly adsorbed over a wide potential range, and substantial adsorption occurs at potentials much more positive than those where the complex can be generated by reduction of Ni(cyclam)2+ in solution. The adsorption occurs in two distinct stages. At potentials between − 0.6 and − 1.2 V up to half a monolayer can be adsorbed. At potentials between − 1.2 and − 1.3 V, a change in the structure of the adsorbed layer appears to occur which enables a full monolayer of the complex to be adsorbed at potentials negative of − 1.3 V. The adsorption of Ni(cyclam)+ at potentials where it cannot be generated in solution is not diffusion controlled; the adsorption appears to require a rearrangement of the cyclam ligand. The kinetics of this process control the rate of adsorption. The altered ligand configuration in the adsorbed complex persists when the complex is oxidatively desorbed to generate a form of Ni(cyclam)2+ that can be reductively readsorbed at a diffusion-controlled rate. The role that the altered configuration of the adsorbed complex may play when it serves as a catalyst for the electrochemical reduction of CO2 is discussed.
Health or Agricultural Development: Boundary Objects and Organizations in a Soya Project in Western Kenya

Improving global health and agricultural development have been identified as two of the most important objectives in fighting global poverty. However, the two approaches come at development from different perspectives and can actually undermine each other in practice. Successful management of the competing demands of health and agriculture through organizations and technologies is crucial to advancing sustainable development. The turn toward local procurement of agricultural products in the administration of global food aid is evidence of attempts to bring these approaches together at the global scale, but has not delivered the promised benefits at the local level. This article presents a case study of a small Kenyan community based organization (CBO), Community Action for Rural Development (CARD), as it has attempted to negotiate between nutrition and agricultural development in global and local networks. Specifically, the case study addresses CARD’s experience with a small scale soya beans project as a part of a World Food Program (WFP) local procurement program and a transition toward developing a local soya bean project.
How Voters Respond to Paramilitary Violence Against Civilians

Terrorist or paramilitary groups waging an armed campaign against the state face a number of important challenges. One of the most crucial is engaging in the tactical use of force without alienating their support base. This study asks what effects, if any, a paramilitary organization’s use of force has on its true support base. Drawing upon an original dataset which combines census, conflict-related violence, and local election data at the district electoral area level for the years 1982-2005 as well as qualitative sources for Northern Ireland, this paper examines the effects of IRA violence on Sinn Fein’s performance at the polls. I show that although the IRA’s use of violence often sparked international and internal condemnation even by moderate Nationalist voters, the organization’s use of violence had little effect on the organization’s genuine support base.
Focus on “Regulation of transferrin-induced endocytosis by wild-type and C282Y-mutant HFE in transfected HeLa cells”

hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) is a common inherited disorder of people of Northern European descent, affecting some 1 in 400 people. HH is a disorder of iron metabolism characterized by iron overload in many organs, particularly in the liver, pancreas, heart, and pituitary, leading to multiorgan
Simplified Dynamic Wake Distortion Model for Helicopter Transitional Flight

A new model for the dynamic wake distortion effects for maneuvering and transitional flight from hover, involving the wake skew, the wake longitudinal and lateral curvatures and the wake spacing as additional states, has recently been developed. The associated time constants of the model have been extracted from the vortex tube analysis. The new model is integrated with a generic helicopter flight simulation model. Correlations with the Black Hawk helicopter flight test data are used to study the effect of the wake curvature parameter on simulation fidelity for maneuvering flight. Also, analytical and numerical comparisons are made between the new model and the augmented dynamic wake distortion inflow model proposed by Keller et al.
Inflammatory bowel disease in pediatrics.

Crohn’s disease (CD) Crohn’s disease (CD) Crohn’s disease (CD) Crohn’s disease (CD) Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are chronic diseases characterized by unpredictable periods of disease activity and quiescence. Some patients suffer from almost continuous symptoms, others, only rare flares of disease activity. In addition to affecting the daily lives of patients, these diseases can dramatically alter family functioning and the patient’s opportunity for becoming a productive adult. As difficult as it may be to manage adults with the disease, the problem of managing childhood disease is made more challenging by children’s growth, their emotional and social development, and the knowledge that even after 30 years of complications of the disease and therapies, pediatric patients may just be entering the prime of their productive years. The difficult task of eventually transitioning the adolescent to adult health care providers presents additional challenges. Current management practices are based on the use of old and new medications neither rigorously tested nor approved for use in children. In an effort to better define the contemporary natural history of IBD in children and augment current management practices, the Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research Registry was established in 2002. Initially a collaboration of 21 centers in the US and Canada, this registry has produced several important advances in our understanding of IBD in children. Much of that research is reported in this review. The focus of this paper is to review current advances in pediatric IBD and to emphasize the need for more prospective research.
Influence of CD36 gene suppression induced by RNA interference on L-TGF-β_1 activation derived from macrophages in rats after bleomycin treatment

Objective To study the influence of CD36 gene suppression induced by RNA interference on transforming growth factor-β1(L-TGF-β1) activation derived from bleomycin-treated macrophages in rats.Methods The three groups including bleomycin(BLM) group,BLM+Lv-shCD36(a lentiviral vector expressing shRNA specific against rat CD36) group,and BLM+Lv-shCD36-NC(non-silence control lentivirus) group were set for the experiment.The cells in each group were incubated with bleomycin and then collected for detecting the interference effect with real-time PCR and western blot,and the supernatant was collected for detection of TGF-β1 by CCL-64 mink lung epithelial growth inhibition assay.Results The expression of CD36 mRNA in the Lv-shCD36 group was significantly lower than in the BLM group and control group.Compared to the control group,the efficiency of interference was 83%.The expression of CD36 protein in the Lv-shCD36 group was also lower than in the BLM group and control group.The quantity(91.82±36.79 pg/10μL)and percent(19.80±7.98%)of active TGF-β1 in the Lv-shCD36 group were significantly lower than those in the BLM group and control group(P0.05 for all).Conclusion Suppression of the CD36 expression by RNA interference could inhibit the activation of L-TGF-β1 derived from bleomycin-treated macrophages in rat.
Simulation of "2007.7" Heavy Rainfall Case in the Changjiang-Huaihe Valley Using the WRF Model with Different Land Surface Schemes

The new generation mesoscale model WRF is used to simulate heavy rainfall in the Changjiang-Huaihe valley during 7-8 July 2007,and the precipitation sensitivity to land surface parameterization schemes is tested.All sensitivity simulations are initialized with NCEP-FNL data(1°×1°).The results show that the simulated precipitation patterns from the WRF model generally agree with the observations,and the sensitivity of the precipitation simulation to the land surface physical process is distinct.Coupling the surface process parameterization scheme can improve the precipitation simulation significantly.However,the simulated precipitation with different schemes is lower than the observed precipitation,and details of simulated precipitation patterns,amount,diurnal variation and precipitation types are different among the land surface parameterization schemes.Comparing all results of precipitation simulation with different land surface parameterization schemes,NOAH scheme gives more reasonable results than the others,and when the simulated domain is urban,UCM scheme is superior to the others.Sensitivity experiments indicate that understanding and appropriately using land surface parameterization schemes are necessary to enhance the modeling capability.
Hand Involvement in Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease 1A

Hand strength, function and disease-related symptoms were determined in 84 children, aged 2-16 years, with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A (CMT1A) at University of Sydney, Children’s Hospital at Westmead, and Royal Children’s Hospital, Parkville, Australia.
The Falsely Positive Gonadal Venogram: Presence of a Pampiniform Plexus Without a Gonad

AbstractTwo men with 3 non-palpable testes underwent gonadal venography, which in each instance demonstrated a typical pampiniform plexus. No gonadal tissue was found surgically or pathologically. The clinical significance of these findings is discussed.
Neural substrates of orthographic lexical access as demonstrated by functional brain imaging.

Objective: To delineate regions involved in visual word recognition. Background: The processes and regions involved in visual word recognition have been somewhat controversial for over 100 years. Methods: This study used regional cerebral blood flow as assessed by functional magnetic resonance imaging to study normal subjects (N = 9) on an individual within-subject basis while they were actively engaged on-line in a visual lexical decision task. Standard analysis techniques were used for identifying regions of activation. Results: Across subjects, the task activated a number of regions, including the occipital pole, lateral and basal occipitotemporal (including lingual and fusiform) regions, superior and middle temporal gyri, and supramarginal and angular gyri. Typically, these regions were activated bilaterally; when activation was unilateral, it was on the left. Some of the areas activated (e.g., inferior parietal regions) have not been previously reported to be involved in such types of processing by activation studies but have been implicated in lesion studies. Conclusions: These results broaden the areas known to be involved in visual word recognition. The bilateral activation associated with visual word recognition is in some respects analogous to the what system in visual recognition described in subhuman primates. In addition, the study raises several methodologic issues. The within-subject analysis showed variability in the specific regions activated when subsequently comparing across individuals, raising implications for future functional imaging studies.
Computer-Based Performance Monitoring and Productivity in a Multiple Task Environment

Computer-based performance monitoring (CPM) provides managers with the ability to continuously, and unobtrusively, monitor the work performed by their employees. This paper examines the impact that CPM has on productivity when people are monitored on only a portion of the work that they perform. In a simulated work setting, subjects worked on two computerized tasks, and were led to believe that their work on one, both, or none of the tasks would be electronically monitored. People who were monitored only on a relatively simple task tended to work at a faster rate on both their monitored and non-monitored tasks, in comparison to people who were not monitored at all. People who were monitored only on a task that was more moderate in level of difficulty did not work any faster or more accurately than people who were not monitored. The results of the current study suggests that under certain conditions, employees may not discriminate between monitored and non-monitored work. Recommendations are offered to managers who are considering implementing CPM in their workplace.
Molecular Breast Imaging: Role as a Screening Modality

This review provides a summary of the current state of molecular breast imaging (MBI), its applications in breast imaging, and potential use in breast cancer screening. MBI is a novel nuclear medicine technique that uses a dual-head dedicated breast gamma camera and technetium-99m sestamibi as a radiotracer. In this review, the basic concepts of molecular breast imaging will be described and clinical studies on MBI and breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI) will be summarized. Based on the present literature, MBI is one of the best supplemental imaging modalities to mammography and has the potential to become a screening modality if the radiotracer dosage can be reduced.
Skeletal Scintigraphy in Radiation-Induced Fibrosis With Lymphedema.

AbstractDespite increasing reliance on CT, MRI, and FDG PET/CT for oncological imaging, whole-body skeletal scintigraphy remains a frontline modality for staging and surveillance of osseous metastatic disease. We present a 54-year-old woman with metastatic breast cancer who received palliative exter
Abstract A52: Eradication of large established tumors with combination immunotherapy engaging innate and adaptive immunity

Checkpoint blockade against CTLA-4 or PD-1 has demonstrated that an endogenous immune response can be stimulated to elicit durable regressions in advanced cancer, but these dramatic responses are currently confined to a minority of patients. This outcome is probably due in part to the complex network of immunosuppressive pathways present in advanced tumors, which are unlikely to be overcome by intervention at a single signaling checkpoint, requiring a counter-directed network of pro-immunity signals. Here we demonstrate a combination immunotherapy that recruits a diverse set of innate and adaptive immune effectors, enabling robust elimination of tumor burdens that to our knowledge have not previously been curable by treatments relying on endogenous immunity. Maximal anti-tumor efficacy required four components: a tumor antigen targeting antibody, an extended half-life IL-2, anti-PD-1, and a powerful T-cell vaccine. This combination elicited durable cures in a majority of animals, formed immunological memory in multiple transplanted tumor models, and induced sustained tumor regression in an autochthonous BRrafV600E/Pten-/- melanoma model. Multiple innate immune cell subsets, CD8+ T-cells, and cross-presenting dendritic cells were critical to successful therapy. Treatment induced high levels of intratumoral inflammatory cytokines and immune cell infiltration, enhanced antibody-mediated tumor antigen uptake, and promoted antigen spreading. These results demonstrate the capacity of an elicited endogenous immune response to destroy large, established tumors and elucidate essential characteristics of combination immunotherapies capable of curing a majority of tumors in experimental settings typically viewed as intractable. Citation Format: Kelly Dare Moynihan, Cary Opel, Gregory Szeto, Alice Tzeng, Zhu Eric, Jesse Engreitz, Williams Robert, Kavya Rakhra, Michael Zhang, Adrienne Rothschilds, Sudha Kumari, Ryan L. Kelly, Byron Kwan, Wuhbet Abraham, Kevin Hu, Naveen Mehta, Monique Kauke, Heikyung Suh, Douglas A. Lauffenburger, K. Dane Wittrup, Darrell J. Irvine. Eradication of large established tumors with combination immunotherapy engaging innate and adaptive immunity. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy; 2016 Oct 20-23; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2017;5(3 Suppl):Abstract nr A52.
App-guided exposure and response prevention for obsessive compulsive disorder: an open pilot trial

Although effective treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) exist, there are significant barriers to receiving evidence-based care. Mobile health applications (Apps) offer a promising way of overcoming these barriers by increasing access to treatment. The current study investigated the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of LiveOCDFree, an App designed to help OCD patients conduct exposure and response prevention (ERP). Twenty-one participants with mild to moderate symptoms of OCD were enrolled in a 12-week open trial of App-guided self-help ERP. Self-report assessments of OCD, depression, anxiety, and quality of life were completed at baseline, mid-treatment, and post-treatment. App-guided ERP was a feasible and acceptable self-help intervention for individuals with OCD, with high rates of retention and satisfaction. Participants reported significant improvement in OCD and anxiety symptoms pre- to post-treatment. Findings suggest that LiveOCDFree is a feasible and acceptable self-help intervention for OCD. Preliminary efficacy results are encouraging and point to the potential utility of mobile Apps in expanding the reach of existing empirically supported treatments.
Antenna Orientation and Range Assignment Algorithms in Directional WSNs

Consider a set $S$ of nodes in the plane such that the unit-disk graph $G(S)$ spanning all nodes is connected. Each node in $S$ is equipped with a directional antenna with beam-width $\theta = \pi / 2$ . The objective of the directional antenna orientation (AO) problem concerning symmetric connectivity is to determine an orientation of the antennas with a minimum transmission power range $r=O(1)$ such that the induced symmetric communication graph is connected. Another related problem is the AO and power assignment (AOPA) problem whose objective is to assign each node $u \in S$ an orientation of its antenna as well as a range $r(u)$ such that the induced symmetric communication graph is connected and the total power assigned $\Sigma _{u \in S} r(u)^{\beta }$ is minimized, where $\beta \geq 1$ is the distance-power gradient (typically $2 \leq \beta \leq 5$ ). In this paper, we study both problems by first proving that they are NP-hard. We then propose two algorithms for the AO problem that orient the antennas to yield a symmetric connected communication graph where the transmission power ranges are bounded by 9 and 7, respectively, which are currently the best results for this problem. We also propose constant-factor approximation algorithms for the AOPA problem where our constants are smaller than Aschner et al’s. Finally, we study the performance of our algorithms through simulations.