cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of palm oil, margarine, butter, and sunflower oil on the serum lipids and lipoproteins of normocholesterolemic middle-aged men

Abstract Twenty-nine healthy middle-aged men participated in a Latin square-designed study containing six dietary fats: butter; crude palm oil; hard margarine; refined palm oil; 80% refined palm oil + 20% sunflower oil blend; and sunflower oil. Each diet period was 6 weeks in duration followed by 6 weeks of habitual diet. Test fats were consumed in ice cream, milk, cookies, and as spreads and represented 50% of the total fat energy (38%) on all diets. Serum lipid responses to the high level of test fats in the diets were small relative to habitual diet values. Large changes in quantity and type of fatty acids consumed daily were not reflected in the fatty acid composition of the total serum lipids. Butter did not elevate total serum cholesterol or low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol relative to habitual diet levels, but these values were significantly higher than sunflower oil-diet and palm oil-diet values. The sunflower oil diet produced the most dramatic changes: total serum cholesterol was reduced significantly relative to all diets except margarine, and apolipoprotein B values were the lowest of any diet. Unfortunately, the desirable high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 were also reduced on the sunflower oil diet. Diets containing either crude or refined palm oil did not elevate total serum cholesterol relative to habitual diet values or LDL cholesterol or apolipoprotein levels relative to any diet. Unexpectedly, the refined palm oil diet HDL-cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 levels were the highest of all diets and significantly higher than sunflower oil diet values. The hard margarine diet, containing 26% trans fatty acids, reduced apolipoprotein B values relative to habitual diet levels, but HDL cholesterol was reduced significantly relative to the refined palm oil diet values. Comparison of the diet's fatty acid compositions suggests the decrease in the HDL cholesterol on the hard margarine diet is attributable to the trans fatty acids. The data indicate that the trans fatty acids, produced during the partial hydrogenation of fats and oils, are not neutral and adversely affect serum lipid profile.
From Animal Abuse to Interhuman Violence? A Critical Review of the Progression Thesis

This paper reviews evidence of a progression from animal abuse to interhuman violence. It finds that the "progression thesis" is supported not by a coherent research program but by disparate studies often lacking methodological and conceptual clarity. Set in the context of a debate about the theoretical adequacy of concepts like "animal abuse" and "animal cruelty," it suggests that the link between animal abuse and interhuman violence should be sought not only in the personal biographies of those individuals who abuse animals but also in those institutionalized social practices where animal abuse is routine, widespread, and socially acceptable.
Taking a Break in Schooling: Why Community College Students Stop Out.

When 399 nonreturnees from one community college were asked about their educational goals and plans, 300 said they had originally intended to complete a degree or certificate program or to transfer...
Dynamic cleavage in ductile materials

Ductile materials are found to sustain brittle fracture when the crack moves at high speed. This fact poses a paradox under current theories of dislocation emission, because even at high velocities, these theories predict ductile behavior. A theoretical treatment of time-dependent emission and cleavage is given which predicts a critical velocity above which cleavage can occur without emission. Estimates suggest that this velocity is in the neighborhood of the sound velocity. The paper also discusses the cleavage condition under mixed mode loading, and concludes that the cleavage condition involves solely the mode I loading, with possible sonic emission under such loadings
Physics of magnetospheric emission in soft gamma-ray repeaters

Soft gamma-ray repeaters appear to be relatively young, strongly magnetized neutron stars embedded within plerions. The observationally inferred presence of teragauss fields and energetic outflows in these sources provides some support for a model in which the bursts results from crustal disturbances that load and energize the magnetosphere with the ensuing generation of sheared Alfven waves. We here determine accurately the structure of the particle efflux and calculate the spectrum of the resultant radiation, incorporating the key effects due to mildly relativistic magnetic bremsstrahlung, a frequency-dependent photospheric radius and angle-dependent boosting of the intensity for emitting elements at different inclinations. We find that the average photospheric radius during the transient event is approximately 4 stellar radii and that the particles attain a Lorentz factor approximately 13.2 by the time the gas becomes optically thin. The calculated spectrum is a weighted integral over the boosted intensity determined from the physical conditions (i.e., magnetic field, particle density, and temperature) at the photospheric radius corresponding to the relevant frequency. When applied to SGR 1806-20, this procedure yields a distance D approximately equals 10 kpc to this source, which appears to be consistent with the range (approximately 8-17 kpc) inferred from its apparent coincidence with the supernova remnant G10.0-0.3.
Covalent Binding of Xenobiotics to Specific Proteins in the Liver

(1997). Covalent Binding of Xenobiotics to Specific Proteins in the Liver. Drug Metabolism Reviews: Vol. 29, No. 1-2, pp. 39-57.
The Influence of Dietary Energy and Amino Acid Levels on Abdominal Fat Pad Development of the Broiler Chicken

Abstract A study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary energy and amino acid content on the weight of the abdominal fat pad of broiler chicks. Diets containing 2970, 3190, and 3410 ME kcal/kg were formulated to contain 70 to 120% of the 1977 NRC amino acid requirements. These diets were fed to broiler chick s for 57 days. After slaughter in a commercial processing plant carcasses were evaluated. Through the dietary manipulations it was possible to produce carcasses of widely varying abdominal fat pad size. Although total fat pad weight was directly influenced by the dietary energy level of the diets, covariance adjustments for differences in body weight markedly reduced the influence of dietary energy. The degree of fatness could be significantly reduced by increasing the dietary amino acid levels within a given energy level.
Cerberus Fossae, Elysium, Mars: a source for lava and water

Cerberus Fossae, a long fracture system in the southeastern part of Elysium, has acted as a conduit for the release of both lava and water onto the surface. The southeastern portion of the fracture system localized volcanic vents having varying morphology. In addition, low shields occur elsewhere on the Cerberus plains. Three locations where the release of water has occurred have been identified along the northwest (Athabasca and Grjota' Vallis) and southeast (Rahway Vallis) portions of the fossae. Water was released both catastrophically and noncatastrophically from these locations. A fluvial system that extends more than 2500 km has formed beginning at the lower flank of the Elysium rise across the Cerberus plains and out through Marte Vallis into Amazonis Planitia. The timing of the events is Late Amazonian.
Clarifications on miRNA and Cancer

The News Focus article “A new cancer player takes the stage” (4 Nov. 2005, p. [766][1]) by J. Couzin on miRNAs and cancer has a quote from me that has been taken out of context and conveys exactly the opposite meaning of my unedited comments. To clarify, some of the miRNAs induced during cell differentiation may down-regulate cell division programs. Because miRNAs down-regulate target mRNA genes through complementary sites in their 3′ UTRs, oncogene targets with mutations in miRNA-complementary sites might escape miRNA regulation to generate dominant activating oncogene mutations. Such gain-of-function mutations are seen in plant genes that regulate cell division at the meristem. Other miRNAs are overexpressed or amplified in animal tumors, suggesting that these miRNAs negatively regulate tumor suppressor or proapoptotic genes. Many dominant oncogenes have been revealed by cell transformation assays over the past 30 years. If miRNA negative regulation of oncogenes is a key element in cancer etiology, I am surprised that 3′ UTR mutations in oncogenes were not detected in such transfection experiments. In addition, I would have expected the miRNA genes that target tumor suppressor genes to have been recovered in such transformation experiments. These RNA genes may not have been recognized as encoding miRNAs and the oncogene 3′ UTRs may not have been recognized as miRNA targets, but I would have expected the oncogene canon of today to have included more regulatory RNAs and mention the importance of 3′ UTRs as sites of oncogene regulation. I expressed to Couzin my belief that “I just find it hard to believe that the cancer people were that lame” to have missed such mutations in 3′ UTRs by only sequencing open reading frames of oncogenes, or to have missed regulatory RNA genes because they dropped the study of oncogenes without open reading frames. The quote in this context has precisely the opposite meaning to its use in the article. The more likely reason why so little evidence for miRNAs emerged from previous oncogene genetics is that the fibroblast cell transformation techniques used to detect dominant oncogenes systematically failed to detect miRNA-based regulatory defects, for example, because the 3T3 fibroblasts may be deficient in components essential for miRNA-based regulation, because the miRNA-based gene activations are not strong enough to bypass other cell cycle controls, or because miRNAs are modulatory to oncogenes but are not central to tumor initiation or progression. [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.310.5749.766
Site-specific microtubule-associated protein 4 dephosphorylation causes microtubule network densification in pressure overload cardiac hypertrophy.

In severe pressure overload-induced cardiac hypertrophy, a dense, stabilized microtubule network forms that interferes with cardiocyte contraction and microtubule-based transport. This is associated with persistent transcriptional up-regulation of cardiac α- and β-tubulin and microtubule-stabilizing microtubule-associated protein 4 (MAP4). There is also extensive microtubule decoration by MAP4, suggesting greater MAP4 affinity for microtubules. Because the major determinant of this affinity is site-specific MAP4 dephosphorylation, we characterized this in hypertrophied myocardium and then assessed the functional significance of each dephosphorylation site found by mimicking it in normal cardiocytes. We first isolated MAP4 from normal and pressure overload-hypertrophied feline myocardium; volume-overloaded myocardium, which has an equal degree and duration of hypertrophy but normal functional and cytoskeletal properties, served as a control for any nonspecific growth-related effects. After cloning cDNA-encoding feline MAP4 and obtaining its deduced amino acid sequence, we characterized by mass spectrometry any site-specific MAP4 dephosphorylation. Solely in pressure overload-hypertrophied myocardium, we identified striking MAP4 dephosphorylation at Ser-472 in the MAP4 N-terminal projection domain and at Ser-924 and Ser-1056 in the assembly-promoting region of the C-terminal microtubule-binding domain. Site-directed mutagenesis of MAP4 cDNA was then used to switch each serine to non-phosphorylatable alanine. Wild-type and mutated cDNAs were used to construct adenoviruses; microtubule network density, stability, and MAP4 decoration were assessed in normal cardiocytes following an equivalent level of MAP4 expression. The Ser-924 → Ala MAP4 mutant produced a microtubule phenotype indistinguishable from that seen in pressure overload hypertrophy, such that Ser-924 MAP4 dephosphorylation during pressure overload hypertrophy may be central to this cytoskeletal abnormality.
Evaluation of growout diets with varying protein and energy levels for red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus).

The augmentation of nutrient retention and subsequent reduction of effluent waste generated by aquaculture production facilities are important factors in lowering production costs while simultaneously minimizing pollution and environmental impact resulting from intensive growout culture. Consequently, the present study was designed to evaluate the influence of dietary protein and energy levels on growth and nutrient utilization of the red drum in the initial stages of growout culture. Four practical diets were formulated to contain 44, 40, 36, and 32% protein with practical energy:protein (E:P) ratios. Additionally, the E:P ratio of the 44% protein diet was increased and the E:P ratio of the 32% protein diet was reduced. Each diet was fed to juvenile red drum (mean initial weight 50 g) to apparent satiation in triplicate tanks containing 670 l of seawater at 35‰, 28.8±1.4°C for 13 weeks. Significant differences (P<0.05) in final weights, protein consumption, feed efficiency (FE), protein conversion efficiency (PCE) and intraperitoneal fat ratios (IPFR) were observed due to the dietary treatments. Weight gain and FE generally increased with protein and energy content of the diet. Increasing the lipid content of the 44% protein diet resulted in significantly higher FE values but also doubled the amount of fat deposited in the peritoneal cavity. Reduction of digestible energy from 335 to 279 kcal/100 g diet in the 32% protein diet did not significantly influence body composition or feed consumption. Based on regression analyses of feed consumption data, consumption rates appear to be primarily influenced by the weight of the fish and not the energy content of the diet. Consequently, reduced growth rates of fish offered the low protein feeds appear to be due to reduced protein intake and not imbalances in E:P ratios. These data indicate that red drum reared in seawater require at least 44% dietary protein (dry weight basis) for maximum growth and FE.
Southeast Asian Immigrant Parenting Practices And Perceptions of Parent-Adolescent Conflicts

Abstract The study explored the perspectives of 36 Southeast Asian immigrant parents concerning their parenting practices with adolescent children. The study is based on the conceptual framework of the National Extension Parent Education Model (NEPEM) that included six parenting categories: care for self, understand, guide, nurture, motivate, and advocate. The transcripts of focus group discussions were analyzed by the analytic induction method to examine their correspondence with the NEPEM framework. The results revealed several meanings, parenting practices, and parent-adolescent conflicts based on the six parenting categories in the National Extension Parent Education Model. The study recommended several ways to effectively design family education programs to serve Southeast Asian immigrant families.
Squamous cell carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract. A case comparison analysis.

Although the etiologic importance of tobacco in risk of upper aerodigestive malignancies is unquestioned, quantification of subsite-specific risks is less well delineated. Risk estimates from this case-control study are derived from self-administered comprehensive risk factor questionnaires distributed to newly registered patients at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston. Cases included 185 white patients with histologically confirmed squamous cell carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract. An equal number of age-frequency and sex-frequency matched patients was randomly selected from the same patient population excluding only patients with diagnoses of squamous cell carcinoma of any site. A statistically significant dose-response relationship for three categories of cigarette pack-years was evident for both males (odds ratios [OR] = 1.8, 4.0, and 7.5) and females (OR = 1.5, 9.0, and 12.0). Highest risks were documented for laryngeal cancer (OR = 15.1) and lingual cancer (OR = 14.5). There was interaction between alcohol use and smoking among men, but no independent effect of alcohol consumption among either gender. After 15 years of smoking abstinence, males no longer exhibited increased risk (OR = 1.0) whereas the risk for females after 15 years of cessation was 1.5. There were also significantly increased risks among men associated with snuff dipping, cigar, and pipe use (OR = 3.4, 2.8, and 1.8, respectively). The differences in the magnitude of the risk estimates and dose-response curves by subsite and by sex suggest a variable susceptibility to carcinogenic action.
Effects of nifedipine on the venodilatory response to nitroglycerin

The venodilatory effect of nifedipine 10 mg orally and the venodilatory effect of nitroglycerin 0.8 mg spray after pretreatment with nifedipine were assessed in 15 healthy men aged 22 to 41 years. Compared to placebo, nifedipine caused arteriolar dilation but did not venodilate (control VV[30] 3.67 +/- 0.24 [mean +/- standard error of the mean], after nifedipine VV[30] 3.41 +/- 0.22 cc/100 cc arm). The venodilatory effect of nitroglycerin was not altered by pretreatment with nifedipine. VV[30] increased by 0.72 +/- 0.14 cc/100 cc arm after nitroglycerin in subjects pretreated with placebo compared to 0.70 +/- 0.09 cc/100 cc arm in subjects pretreated with nifedipine. These results suggest that, at a dose of 10 mg, nifedipine does not venodilate and the venodilatory effect of nitroglycerin is not altered by pretreatment with nifedipine.
The Benchmark Error Problem with Global Capital Markets

the University of Notre Dame at the time h s article was written. D uring the late 1970s and early 1980s, Richard Roll in several articles voiced concern with the testing of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), as well as with use of the model to evaluate investment performance (Roll [1977, 1978, 1980, 19811). Roll referred to t h s latter problem as a benchmark error, because the practice has been to compare the performance of a portfolio manager to the performance of an unmanaged portfolio of equal risk. The benchmark typically has been a security market index adjusted for risk, where the risk measure is the one implied by the CAPM (i.e., beta). Roll shows that if the benchmark employed in this evaluation is mistakenly specified, you cannot measure the performance of portfolio managers properly. An inappropriate proxy for the market portfolio (benchmark) can have two effects. First, the systematic risk measures (beta) computed for individual assets and for alternative portfolios will be wrong, because the betas are derived using an inappropriate proxy for the market portfolio. Second, the security market line (SML) derived to measure the relative risk-adjusted performance of alternative portfolios d be misspecitied because the SML. is then the line h m the risk-free return through an improperly specified proxy for the market portfolio. Roll shows that, assuming the proxy used to represent the market portfolio of risky assets is not as mean-variance efficient as the “true” market portfolio, it is possible that the performance of a portfolio using the inappropriate SML would be considered superior,
Walleye pollock respond to trawling vessels

The potential for fish to avoid survey vessels is a major source of uncertainty in stock-assessment surveys. Although walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) are the subject of a substantial commercial fishery in the North Pacific, their behavioural responses to approaching survey vessels remain poorly understood. As a first step in an effort to determine if walleye pollock avoid survey vessels engaged in trawling operations, we made pairwise comparisons of acoustic backscatter recorded by survey vessels while free-running and while trawling. Results are presented of acoustic backscatter recorded from NOAA's RV “Miller Freeman”, which used a midwater trawl during the 1996-2002 eastern Bering Sea surveys, and a chartered commercial fishing vessel, which used a bottom trawl during a survey in 2003 in the Gulf of Alaska. In both cases, average backscatter from a vessel-mounted echosounder was significantly higher when free-running than when trawling. These decreases in backscatter are consistent with increased vessel avoidance while trawling. There were no differences in the vertical distribution of backscatter when free-running and trawling, indicating that pollock do not exhibit elevated diving responses when approached by a trawling vessel rather than by a free-running vessel. Although the study indicates that pollock respond to trawling vessels, the nature of the behavioural response cannot be determined with the methods used in this study. Future work should evaluate potential stimuli produced by trawlers to which pollock may react, and should document changes in behaviour that may occur in their presence.
Non-anemic homozygous beta(o) thalassemia in an African-American family: association of high fetal hemoglobin levels with beta thalassemia alleles.

We have studied a four-generation (23 subjects) African-American family with beta(o) thalassemia and high fetal hemoglobin (HbF) levels. The beta(o) thalassemia in this family is due to the splicing site mutation, beta IVS2+1G-->A, that leads to aberrant mRNA processing and the absence of beta globin. Two members of this family are homozygous for beta(o) thalassemia and are non-anemic. All family members who are heterozygous for the beta IVS2+1G-->A mutation have elevated HbF, with the exception of two individuals who also have severe alpha-globin chain deficiency. We excluded linkage with the hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin loci on chromosomes 6 and X. We also excluded the presence of all previously described determinants in the beta globin gene cluster associated with elevated HbF production. One thalassemia allele is in the Cameroon-like (HS2)/Benin-like beta globin gene cluster haplotype, and the other is in the Senegal-like (HS2)/Benin-like beta globin gene cluster haplotype. We speculate that in the homozygotes, those erythroid cells that express low to absent levels of gamma globin are selectively destroyed. In contrast, in the heterozygotes, the presence of the normal beta globin allele would ameliorate the globin chain imbalance and thus allow survival of erythroid cells that express the abnormal transcript, leading to a typical beta(o) thalassemia phenotype. Thus, the heterocellular gamma globin expression together with in vivo preferential survival of HbF-containing erythroid cells ameliorates Cooley's anemia in the beta(o) thalassemia homozygotes. It remains to be determined what sequences linked to each thalassemia allele and what trans-acting factors contribute to high HbF levels.
Predictors of Depressive Symptomatology in Family Caregivers of Women With Substance Use Disorders or Co-Occurring Substance Use and Mental Disorders

This study utilized a stress-process model to examine the impact of having a female family member with substance use or co-occurring substance use and mental disorders on family caregivers' depressive symptomatology. Participants were 82 women receiving substance abuse treatment and the family member providing the most social support for each woman. Greater caregiver depressive symptomatology was predicted by greater care recipient emotional problems, less care recipient social support, and poor caregiver health. Implications of findings for treatment and future research are discussed.
A Clinical and Histologic Study of Healing following the Excisional New Attachment Procedure in Rhesus Monkeys

Experimental suprabony periodontal pockets were established around the incisors of Rhesus monkeys and subsequently were treated by the Excisional New Attachment Procedure. Healing was evaluated clinically and histologically for up to 6 months. Clinical examinations demonstrated an overall mean pocket depth reduction from 5.02 mm to 2.82 mm, of which 0.57 mm was recession and 1.59 mm (73.6%) was clinical new attachment. Histologic evaluation of experimental sites consistently revealed a long, thin junctional epithelium with a minimal amount of inflammatory infiltrate in the subjacent, densely fibered, lamina propria. Control areas demonstrated the classic histologic picture of periodontal disease and tended to be progressive in nature clinically.
Optical phase-shift dynamics in surface-modified transparent polymers: Application of wavefront distortion analysis to refractive index (RI)-based sensor development

Abstract Optical sensors which are based on slight changes in refractive index (RI) resulting from interaction of an optical substrate with some target species utilize a variety of techniques to quantify the RI modification. Detection schemes based on light propagation within optical fibers measure RI changes by transmission efficiency and/or interferometric techniques. Ellipsometry measures changes in surface RI through amplitude and phase changes for the p- and s- components which alter the angle of reflection for polarized light. An alternate method of relating RI variation to surface adsorption in transparent polymers has been explored using a wavefront sensor of the Shack–Hartmann type. The basic concept has been demonstrated by passing a collimated laser beam through a thin film of polystyrene on glass and analyzing the transmitted wavefront for optical phase-shift of the film relative to the glass in the presence of volatile organic compounds. Changes in magnitude of the overall distortion could be related both to the concentration of the vapor and the solvent/polymer solubility parameter match.
The large-scale manufacturing of electronic and electrical components in space

Abstract The large-scale manufacturing of electronic and electrical components in space is discussed in detail. The system constraints are: the use of non-terrestrial raw material, the processing techniques must be compatible with zero-gravity requiring no processing gases or liquids, the processes should be continuous, automated and easily maintained, and finally existing technologies should be utilized to minimize R&D costs. The manufacturing of silicon solar cells, discrete and integrated semiconductor devices, fiber optics and transmission lines are discussed. The refining and growth of crystalline silicon for semiconductors and silica for fiber optics is covered as is the doping, metallization and lithography of semiconductor silicon. It is shown that the most mass intensive electrical components can be fabricated with the aforementioned limitations.
Improving Attitudinal Frameworks to Predict Behaviors in Human–Wildlife Conflicts

The goal of this study was to improve the understanding of the attitude–behavior relationship in the context of wildlife management, specifically an urban human–wildlife conflict scenario. A survey was used to explore the attitude–behavior relationship of a university community, in response to proposals to manage the campus's squirrel population. The data suggest that beliefs and attitudes modified by variables shown to increase accessibility correspond better to behavioral intentions than unmodified attitudes and beliefs. The data also suggest that the inclusion of a measure of previous behavior shows a strong relationship to behavioral intentions and will increase the predictive ability of models within different theoretical frameworks, including the theory of reasoned action. Most importantly, for the advancement of a comprehensive theoretical framework, this study illustrates how composite models combining components of the theory of reasoned action and attitude to behavioral process models outperform...
Parameter and prediction uncertainty in an optimized terrestrial carbon cycle model: Effects of constraining variables and data record length

[1] Many parameters in terrestrial biogeochemical models are inherently uncertain, leading to uncertainty in predictions of key carbon cycle variables. At observation sites, this uncertainty can be quantified by applying model-data fusion techniques to estimate model parameters using eddy covariance observations and associated biometric data sets as constraints. Uncertainty is reduced as data records become longer and different types of observations are added. We estimate parametric and associated predictive uncertainty at the Morgan Monroe State Forest in Indiana, USA. Parameters in the Local Terrestrial Ecosystem Carbon (LoTEC) are estimated using both synthetic and actual constraints. These model parameters and uncertainties are then used to make predictions of carbon flux for up to 20 years. We find a strong dependence of both parametric and prediction uncertainty on the length of the data record used in the model-data fusion. In this model framework, this dependence is strongly reduced as the data record length increases beyond 5 years. If synthetic initial biomass pool constraints with realistic uncertainties are included in the model-data fusion, prediction uncertainty is reduced by more than 25% when constraining flux records are less than 3 years. If synthetic annual aboveground woody biomass increment constraints are also included, uncertainty is similarly reduced by an additional 25%. When actual observed eddy covariance data are used as constraints, there is still a strong dependence of parameter and prediction uncertainty on data record length, but the results are harder to interpret because of the inability of LoTEC to reproduce observed interannual variations and the confounding effects of model structural error.
Reproducible, high-throughput synthesis of colloidal nanocrystals for optimization in multidimensional parameter space.

While colloidal nanocrystals hold tremendous potential for both enhancing fundamental understanding of materials scaling and enabling advanced technologies, progress in both realms can be inhibited by the limited reproducibility of traditional synthetic methods and by the difficulty of optimizing syntheses over a large number of synthetic parameters. Here, we describe an automated platform for the reproducible synthesis of colloidal nanocrystals and for the high-throughput optimization of physical properties relevant to emerging applications of nanomaterials. This robotic platform enables precise control over reaction conditions while performing workflows analogous to those of traditional flask syntheses. We demonstrate control over the size, size distribution, kinetics, and concentration of reactions by synthesizing CdSe nanocrystals with 0.2% coefficient of variation in the mean diameters across an array of batch reactors and over multiple runs. Leveraging this precise control along with high-throughput...
Induction of insulin receptor expression of human leukemic cells by 1α,25 dihydroxyvitamin D3

Abstract The HL-60 and U-937 leukemic cell line and explants of fresh human leukemia cells were differentiated in vitro by incubation with 1α,25 dihydroxyvitamin D 3 (Vit D). Morphologic change to monocytes was demonstrated in the promyelocytic (HL-60) line but not in the U-937 line and four of five leukemic cells. One patient with chronic granulocytic leukemia in the myeloid blast phase had incomplete morphologic change with Vit D treatment. In all cells studied, an increase in specific insulin receptor binding was independent of morphologic maturation. An increase in insulin receptor expression by Vit D was an early monocytic membrane marker dissociated from morphologic and functional alterations.
Disjoint spine phenomena in certain contractible n-manifolds (n⩾5)

Abstract If M is a compact PL manifold with boundary containing a subpolyhedron K in its interior, then K is said to be a PL spine of M provided M collapses to K ( M↘K ). Guilbault [Topology 34 (1) (1995) 99–108] has shown that certain nontrivial contractible manifolds possess disjoint spines. His results stem from a standing conjecture regarding disjoint spines in contractible 4-manifolds constructed by Mazur. More to the point, there is a dimensional requirement introduced by his techniques; Guilbault produces such manifolds in dimensions n⩾9. We shall provide techniques which allow the construction of examples in dimensions n⩾5 following the path laid out by Guilbault. The new techniques will provide a slight strengthening of some other Guilbault results as well.
Fracturing and diking in incompletely crystallized granitic plutons

Abstract Dikes in granitic plutons commonly have mineralogic and textural characteristics indicating a genetic relation to their host. The contact between the dike and the host is marked signifcantly by interlocking unfractured crystals rather than by truncations and overgrowths, although megascopically the contacts between dike and host pluton may be exceedingly sharp and planar. An explanation of these relationships by fracturing an incompletely crystallized host, rather than by entirely post magmatic fracturing with subsequent diking, is postulated to be consistent with experimental date and certain petrologic observations. Published experimental research indicates that fracturing of crystal-melt systems may occur if there is at least 70% crystals in the system at which point the system is capable of transmitting compressive and shear stresses via a crystalline framework. Dilatancy pumping of melt into fracture zones and subsequent hydraulic fracturing is thought to be one possible way late-stage fluids of granitic systems evolve into dikes in granitic plutons such as leucogranites, aplites and pegmatites. Interlocking textures between dike and host may also develop if magma from some distant source is interjected along the plane of fracturing in crystal-melt systems.
Further studies on regeneration in Asterias vulgaris

1. Out of a total of 1914 star-fish examined, 206 or 10.76% were regenerating under natural conditions. One or more arms were growing out from the disc in all cases excepting one in which the distal portion of an arm was being restored. 2. Single arms of Asterias vulgaris live from two to three weeks whether the digestive coeca be removed or not. They are not able to regenerate the rest of the animal. 3. If a piece of the disc containing only the madreporite and the stone canal remains attached to an arm, regeneration of the missing parts occurs in exceptional cases. 4. The disc alone will regenerate all of the missing arms. One-half of the disc does not regenerate owing, doubtless, to the great extent of cut surface. 5. If a vertical cut be made across the disc from the intersection of two arms to the mouth, one or two extra arms grow out from the wound in the disc in a small per cent of the experiments. In a great majority of cases the cut edges come together and unite completely, no extra arms being formed. 6. The madreporite has no fixed position in the new disc. 7. If the arms of Asterias vulgaris are mutilated by cutting wedge-shaped, semi-circular or rectangular pieces from them, the missing parts are regenerated and the normal shape of the arms is completely restored in the course of three months.
"Lies, damned lies ..." and observational studies in comparative effectiveness research.

A new federal initiative has allocated $1.1 billion to comparative effectiveness research, and many have emphasized the importance of including observational studies in this effort. The rationale for using observational studies to assess comparative effectiveness is based on concerns that randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are not “real world” because they enroll homogeneous patient populations, measure study outcomes that are not important to patients, use protocols that are overly complex, are conducted in specialized centers, and use study treatments that are not consistent with usual care, and that RCTs are not always feasible because of a lack of equipoise, the need to assess delayed endpoints, and concerns that they take years to complete and are expensive. This essay questions the validity of each of these proposed limitations, summarizes concerns raised about the accuracy of results generated by observational studies, provides some examples of discrepancies between results of observational studie...
Mobile technology: a synopsis and comment on “mobile phone-based interventions for smoking cessation”

Mobile phone use in healthcare continues to expand as technology becomes a ubiquitous component of everyday life. Thirty-one percent of cell phone owners have used their phone to look up health information [1]. Internet and mobile phone-based interventions are increasingly used by healthcare providers to assist patients in healthy lifestyle behavior interventions [2]. Specifically, smoking cessation programs have begun to adopt mobile phone interventions as a treatment delivery option as part of internet-based or in-person coaching programs. Mobile phones offer benefits such as: ease of administration of the program to a large population, low cost, ability to tailor interventions to individuals, and the ability to send just-in-time messages. This article summarizes the findings of a recent systematic review of the efficacy of using mobile technology interventions in the pursuit of smoking cessation.
Regulation of Na+ channel β1 and β2 subunit mRNA levels in cultured rat astrocytes

Abstract Using quantitative competitive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), we found an increased level of Na + channel β 1 (Na β 1) mRNAs in spinal cord astrocytes and in the B50 neuroblastoma cell line after exposure to 1 mM dibutyryl cAMP. In contrast, the calcium ionophore (1 μ M A23187) did not affect Na β 1 mRNA levels in these cells. Further, we amplified full length coding region of Na + channel β 2 (Na β 2) mRNA from rat optic nerve and cultured astrocytes using RT-PCR. It appeared that the Na β 2 mRNA level was increased by dibutyryl cAMP, but not by A23187, in spinal cord astrocytes. These findings suggest that the Na β 1 and Na β 2 mRNA levels in spinal cord astrocytes are influenced by increased cAMP but not by calcium.
Surfactant therapy failure identifies infants at risk for pulmonary mortality

• Objective. —To characterize the clinical features of infants who do not respond to surfactant therapy. Design. —Patient series, chart review. Setting. —Academic referral neonatal intensive care unit. Patients/Selection. —Ninety-nine consecutive infants with respiratory distress syndrome who received surfactant therapy and 107 infants from the 2 years prior to initiation of surfactant therapy matched for birth weight, race, sex, gestational age, chronological age, and disease severity. Measurements/Results. —Oxygen index was used to quantitate response to surfactant therapy. A 25% decrease in oxygen index 6 hours after the first surfactant dose was significantly different from that of the matched historical cohort ( P =.04). Oxygen index decreased 25% or more in 49 infants, the response group, while oxygen index decreased less than 25% or increased following therapy in the remaining 50 infants, the nonresponse group. Pulmonary interstitial emphysema occurred more frequently in the nonresponse group. The only deaths from pulmonary causes at 10 days of age or younger occurred in the nonresponse group (n=11). Conclusions. —Pulmonary processes unresponsive to surfactant therapy contribute to morbidity and mortality in newborn respiratory distress syndrome. Classifying respiratory distress syndrome as "surfactant responsive" or "surfactant unresponsive" offers a scheme by which to investigate alternative explanations and interventions for newborn respiratory distress syndrome. ( AJDC . 1993;147:665-668)
Cryptomonad biliproteins - an evolutionary perspective.

Each cryptomonad strain contains only a single spectroscopic type of biliprotein. These biliproteins are isolated as ≈50000 kDa αα'β2 complexes which carry one bilin on the α and three on the β subunit. Six different bilins are present on the cryptomonad biliproteins, two of which (phycocyanobilin and phycoerythrobilin) also occur in cyanobacterial and rhodophytan biliproteins, while four are known only in the cryptomonads. The β subunit is encoded on the chloroplast genome, whereas the α subunits are encoded by a small nuclear multigene family. The β subunits of all cryptomonad biliproteins, regardless of spectroscopic type, have highly conserved amino acid sequences, which show > 80% identity with those of rhodophytan phycoerythrin β subunits. In contrast, cyanobacteria and red algal chloroplasts each contain several spectroscopically distinct biliproteins organized into macromolecular complexes (phycobilisomes). The data on biliproteins, as well as several other lines of evidence, indicate that the cryptomonad biliprotein antenna system is ‘primitive’ and antedates that of the cyanobacteria. It is proposed that the gene encoding the cryptomonad biliprotein β subunit is the ancestral gene of the gene family encoding cyanobacterial and rhodophytan biliprotein α and β subunits.
Pesticide Exposure during Greenhouse Applications, Part II. Chemical Permeation Through Protective Clothing in Contact with Treated Foliage

Abstract Protective clothing performance during greenhouse high pressure handspray applications was evaluated with particular reference to the hazard of contact with wet or treated foliage. A fluorescent compound was added to the applicator's spray tank prior to work and served as a surrogate for the pesticides being sprayed. Video-imaging analysis was conducted to determine deposition patterns of the fluorescent tracer on skin, and a modified patch technique was employed outside and inside the protective garment. Four garments constructed of nonwoven, chemical-resistant fabric were tested in an initial study (TyvekTM, Saranex 23-P TyvekTM, ComfortgardTM II, KleenguardTM). All garments exhibited chemical breakthrough after a 1-hour application period. Garments with special treatments to enhance chemical resistance exhibited relatively low levels of breakthrough, whereas garments without such treatment allowed substantial breakthrough. These results prompted an additional study aimed at determining the bre...
Mass of 146Gd and 147Gd and shell closure at Z=64

Abstract The heavy ion reactions 144 Sm( 12 C, 10 Be) 146 Gd and 144 Sm( 12 C, 9 Be) 147 Gd have been used to measure the masses of 146 Gd and 147 Gd. The results show that the proton gap at Z =64 for 146 Gd is approximately the same size as the N =82 neutron gap in this nucleus.
The structure of the equal-time anticommutator of the baryon current in neutral pseudoscalar-meson theory

Equal time anticommutator structure of baryon currents in neutral pseudoscalar meson interactions
Functional versus organic knee pain in adolescents A pilot study

Psychologic factors, usually assessed with the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, have been reported by various researchers as significant in certain groups of adult orthopaedic patients--most notably those with low back pain. Much less is known about children and adolescents or other orthopaedic complaints. We did a pilot study to determine how significant nonorganic factors are in adolescents presenting with knee pain and whether a brief screening protocol conducted in the waiting room can predict which adolescents do not have organic etiology for the knee pain. Twenty-eight consecutive adolescents were given the Junior-Senior High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ), and information on other variables was obtained prior to their first orthopaedic visit. Followup after six to eight months revealed that over a third of the patients had significant or predominant psychologic factors associated with the knee pain. The HSPQ and other individual variables were found, overall, to be of little help in differentiating between the functional and organic groups.
Relationships of age to uterine function and reproductive efficiency in mares.

Abstract The uterine function and reproductive efficiency of 31 nonlactating pony mares were compared for two age groups: young (5 to 7 years, n=9) and old (≥15 years, n=22). For pregnant mares, differences between age groups were not significant for the diameter of the largest follicle, cross-sectional area of the corpus luteum, growth profile of the embryonic vesicle or embryo mobility characteristics. Uterine contractility scores were lower (P
Collective excitations in a spin-polarized quasi-two-dimensional electron gas

The dispersion relations of the collective modes of an optically created two-dimensional spin-polarized electron plasma, treated as a confined spin-polarized electron gas, are calculated. These exhibit many significant qualitative differences from their spin-unpolarized counterparts, such as emergence of the intrasubband spin wave and splitting of the intersubband spin waves and the longitudinal spin-density oscillations.
Intestinal absorptive transport of the hydrophilic cation ranitidine: a kinetic modeling approach to elucidate the role of uptake and efflux transporters and paracellular vs. transcellular transport in Caco-2 cells.

The mechanism of intestinal drug transport for hydrophilic cations such as ranitidine is complex, and evidence suggests a role for carrier-mediated apical (AP) uptake and saturable paracellular mechanisms in their overall absorptive transport. The purpose of this study was to develop a model capable of describing the kinetics of cellular accumulation and transport of ranitidine in Caco-2 cells, and to assess the relative contribution of the transcellular and paracellular routes toward overall ranitidine transport. Cellular accumulation and absorptive transport of ranitidine were determined in the absence or presence of uptake and efflux inhibitors and as a function of concentration over 60 min in Caco-2 cells. A three-compartment model was developed, and parameter estimates were utilized to assess the expected relative contribution from transcellular and paracellular transport. Under all conditions, ranitidine absorptive transport consisted of significant transcellular and paracellular components. Inhibition of P-glycoprotein decreased the AP efflux rate constant (k 21) and increased the relative contribution of the transcellular transport pathway. In the presence of quinidine, both the AP uptake rate constant (k 12) and k 21 decreased, resulting in a predominantly paracellular contribution to ranitidine transport. Increasing the ranitidine donor concentration decreased k 12 and the paracellular rate constant (k 13). No significant changes were observed in the relative contribution of the paracellular and transcellular routes as a function of ranitidine concentration. These results suggest the importance of uptake and efflux transporters as determinants of the relative contribution of transcellular and paracellular transport for ranitidine, and provide evidence supporting a concentration-dependent paracellular transport mechanism. The modeling approach developed here may also be useful in estimating the relative contribution of paracellular and transcellular transport for a wide array of drugs expected to utilize both pathways.