cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Food for Gut: Microbiota Fuels Immune Reconstitution after BMT

The host factors that modulate hematopoietic reconstitution after bone marrow transplantation are poorly understood. In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Staffas et al. (2018) demonstrate that gut microbiota play a critical role in immune reconstitution after bone marrow transplantation, partly through dietary energy harvest and uptake.
Genome Editing of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Decipher Cardiac Channelopathy Variant

Abstract Background The long QT syndrome (LQTS) is an arrhythmogenic disorder of QT interval prolongation that predisposes patients to life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias such as Torsades de pointes and sudden cardiac death. Clinical genetic testing has emerged as the standard of care to identify genetic variants in patients suspected of having LQTS. However, these results are often confounded by the discovery of variants of uncertain significance (VUS), for which there is insufficient evidence of pathogenicity. Objectives The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that genome editing of patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be a valuable approach to delineate the pathogenicity of VUS in cardiac channelopathy. Methods Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from a carrier with a novel missense variant (T983I) in the KCNH2 (LQT2) gene and an unrelated healthy control subject. iPSCs were generated using an integration-free Sendai virus and differentiated to iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs). Results Whole-cell patch clamp recordings revealed significant prolongation of the action potential duration (APD) and reduced rapidly activating delayed rectifier K + current (I Kr ) density in VUS iPSC-CMs compared with healthy control iPSC-CMs. ICA-105574, a potent I Kr activator, enhanced I Kr magnitude and restored normal action potential duration in VUS iPSC-CMs. Notably, VUS iPSC-CMs exhibited greater propensity to proarrhythmia than healthy control cells in response to high-risk torsadogenic drugs (dofetilide, ibutilide, and azimilide), suggesting a compromised repolarization reserve. Finally, the selective correction of the causal variant in iPSC-CMs using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing (isogenic control) normalized the aberrant cellular phenotype, whereas the introduction of the homozygous variant in healthy control cells recapitulated hallmark features of the LQTS disorder. Conclusions The results suggest that the KCNH2 T983I VUS may be classified as potentially pathogenic.
Medical Countermeasures to Biological Warfare Agents

For nearly 50 years, NATO nations have developed biological weapons or countermeasures to biological weapons [1], both efforts pursued in response to the threat of possible first use of biological warfare agents against the alliance. Prior to the termination of the biological warfare programs of NATO members in the late 1960s, an offensive capability was considered the best defense or deterrent against Soviet use of biological warfare. The focus of biological defense programs, then and now, has been protection of military forces. The major world powers developed field detectors, masks and protective clothing, vaccines, drugs and diagnostics to eliminate or reduce the potential threat. Although it is now known that the US, Russia, the UK, Canada and other nations possessed biological weapons, the threat has not been realized on a modern battlefield.
Introduction to Microwave Cavity Optomechanics

In this chapter, I introduce the concepts of electromechanical superconducting resonant circuits, a topic known as microwave cavity optomechanics. As part of that introduction, I will provide: a review of the field’s development, a discussion of its relationship to “optical” cavity optomechanics, and a description of its current progress. In addition, I derive in pedagogical detail the classical dynamics of a mechanical oscillator parametrically coupled to a resonant circuit. Finally, I show that the cavity optomechanical Hamiltonian is the quantum description for a such an electromechanical circuit.
Epigenetic Mechanisms in Learning and Memory

In this chapter, we describe exciting recent findings implicating epigenetic molecular mechanisms in adult CNS function and experience-driven behavioral change. We parse our discussion of recent discoveries concerning the important role for epigenetic molecular mechanisms in behavioral learning and memory into four main sections. In the first section, we discuss the identities of the epigenetic molecular marks proposed to be involved in regulating learning and memory. In the second section, we describe how the epigenetic marks may be read out in neurons at the molecular level in order to drive functional change in the CNS. In the third section, we briefly discuss epigenetically based human disorders impacting learning and memory. In the final section, we discuss a theoretical framework for a role for epigenetic molecular mechanisms in learning and memory; how the marks are maintained and subsequently affect memory function at the cellular, circuit, and neural systems levels.
Personality, Leader-Member Exchanges, and Work Outcomes

Cumulative research has found leader-member exchange (LMX), the quality of the relationships between supervisors and subordinates, to be a significant predictor of a number of important outcomes. However, relatively minimal work has been performed on variables that predict LMX, with even less attention paid to subordinate personality serving as an antecedent. This study tested the relationship between a number of personality variables and LMX. It further examined the potential for LMX to mediate the associations between different personality variables and organizational outcomes. We tested our hypotheses in a sample of 136 lottery workers and found support for the majority of our predictions.
Addressing Racial Health Disparities: Looking Back to Point the Way Forward:

This article investigates the influence of family back-ground and neighborhood conditions during childhood on health later in life, with a focus on hypertension. To document the proportion of current adult racial health disparities rooted in early-life factors, I use nationally representative longitudinal data from the PSID spanning four decades. The results indicate that racial differences in early life neighborhood conditions and family background characteristics play a substantial role in explaining racial disparities in hypertension through at least age 50. Contemporaneous socioeconomic factors account for relatively little of the racial disparities in this health condition in adulthood. Second, I match the Panel Study of Income Dynamics data to county-level data on Medicaid expenditures during these cohorts' childhoods, and provide new causal evidence on the long-run returns to childhood Medicaid spending: Medicaid-induced increases in access to public health insurance led to significant reductions in the likelihood of low birth weight, increased educational attainment and adult income, and reduced adult mortality and the annual incidence of health problems.
State Tax Actions 2004

The report details legislative tax actions taken by the states in 2004. Ten states raised taxes by more than 1 percent. Three states cut taxes by more than 1 percent.
Bad bootstrapping: the problem with third-factor replies to the Darwinian Dilemma for moral realism

Street’s (Philos Stud 127:109–166, 2006) “Darwinian Dilemma” is a well-known epistemological objection to moral realism. In this paper, I argue that “third-factor” replies to this argument on behalf of the moral realist, as popularized by Enoch (Philos Stud 148(3):413–438, 2010, Taking morality seriously: a defense of robust realism, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2011), Skarsaune (Philos Stud 152(2):229–243, 2011) and Wielenberg (Ethics 120(3):441–464, 2010, Robust ethics: the metaphysics and epistemology of godless normative realism, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2014), cannot succeed. This is because they are instances of the illegitimate form of reasoning known as “bootstrapping.” The phenomenon of bootstrapping has been discussed in detail, most notably by Vogel (J Philos 97(11):602–623, 2000) and Cohen (Philos Phenomenol Res 65(2):309–329, 2002), in a different context as an objection to reliabilism and related theories of knowledge. I introduce four different characterizations of the error of bootstrapping from the epistemic literature in order to argue that the form of reasoning exemplified by third-factor replies would be deemed illegitimate by every one of them. I conclude that the moral realist should abandon third-factor replies, or else suggest a novel diagnosis for what goes wrong in bootstrapping cases that does not apply equally to the realist’s form of argument. However, I am not optimistic about the prospects for this latter strategy.
Dual culture of atoxigenic and toxigenic strains of Aspergillus flavus to gain insight into repression of aflatoxin biosynthesis and fungal interaction

Application of atoxigenic strains to compete against toxigenic strains of Aspergillus flavus strains has emerged as one of the practical strategies for reducing aflatoxin contamination in corn, peanut, and tree nuts. The actual mechanism that results in aflatoxin reduction is not fully understood. Real-time RT-PCR and relative quantification of gene expression protocol were applied to elucidate the molecular mechanism. Transcriptional analyses of aflatoxin biosynthetic gene cluster in dual culture of toxigenic and atoxigenic A. flavus strains were carried out. Six targeted genes, aflR, aflJ, omtA, ordA, pksA, and vbs, were downregulated to variable levels depending on paired strains of toxigenic and atoxigenic A. flavus. Consistent with the decreased gene expression levels, the aflatoxin concentrations in dual cultures were reduced significantly in comparison with toxigenic cultures. Fluorescent images showed fungal hyphae in dual culture displayed green fluorescent, and contacts of live hyphae were seen. A coconut agar plate assay was used to show that toxigenic A. flavus colony produced blue fluorescence under long UV exposure, suggesting that aflatoxin is exported outside fungal hyphae. Furthermore, the assay was applied to demonstrate the potential role of thigmo-regulation in fungal interaction.
Mass spectrometry analysis of K63-ubiquitinated targets in response to oxidative stress.

The data described here provide the first large-scale analysis of lysine 63 (K63)-linked polyubiquitin targets. Protein ubiquitination is a prominent post-translational modification, and a variety of ubiquitin chains exists, serving a multitude of functions [1]. The chains differ by the lysine residue by which the ubiquitin monomers are linked. We used yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae subjected to oxidative stress as a model to study K63 ubiquitination. K63 ubiquitinated targets were pulled-down by the K63-TUBE system (Tandem Ubiquitin Binding Entities) and analyzed by SILAC-based mass spectrometry [2]. The data are associated to the research article ‘K63 polyubiquitination is a new modulator of the oxidative stress response’ [3]. The mass spectrometry and the analysis dataset have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange Consortium (http://proteomecentral.proteomexchange.org) via the PRIDE partner repository with the dataset identifier PXD000960.
The life-threatening eruptions of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy

Abstract Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPi) have emerged as a new frontier of cancer therapy. Although monoclonal antibodies to cytotoxic T-lymphocyte associated protein 4 (CTLA-4), programmed cell death 1 (PD-1), and programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) have revolutionized oncologic management, these agents may result in a spectrum of immune-related adverse events (irAE) of which dermatologic toxicities are among the most frequent. Prompt recognition and management of irAE is essential for dermatologists caring for the expanding population of cancer patients exposed to these drugs. Cutaneous toxicities range from mild cases to severe and life-threatening presentations that may cause significant morbidity and mortality. This review provides an overview of severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs) that may develop during ICPi therapy, including Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS), and acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP). In addition, immunobullous disorders, erythroderma, neutrophilic dermatoses, and cutaneous eruptions associated with systemic manifestations are discussed.
Habituation and dishabituation to a heat stimulus by woodlice, Armadillidium vulgare (Isopoda: Armadillidiidae)

Armadillidium vulgare is a terrestrial isopod that defends itself by conglobation, or rolling into a ball. Conglobation was elicited by placing woodlice on a platform heated to 40°C, the lowest temperature that elicited a response yet did not harm the woodlice. Woodlice were examined to determine whether habituation to heat occurred. This was accomplished by testing whether conglobation would decrease after exposure to heat over a series of trials. Each control woodlouse was exposed (n = 50) to a heat stimulus. Two trials per woodlouse were conducted, with a 38 min interval between trials. Each experimental woodlouse (n = 50) was exposed to the heat stimulus over a series of 20 consecutive trials with a two min interval between each trial. The variable was presence or absence of repeated trials. Control woodlice showed no significant difference in the frequency of conglobation between the first and the last trial. However, conglobation significantly declined in successive trials of experimental woodlice, indicating that habituation occurred. Dishabituation was examined by presenting the heat stimulus in intervals ranging from four to twelve min, extending each successive interval by two min. Control woodlice continued to respond every time they were exposed to heat. When the interval was lengthened to twelve min, 96% of the experimental woodlice recovered the conglobation response. Experimental woodlice still conglobated significantly (p 0.348). The ability to habituate to innocuous stimuli is adaptive in nature where stimulus filtering allows animals to respond to biologically relevant stimuli. The data show that woodlice are able to habituate to a stimulus and then dishabituate, thus demonstrating non associative learning in crustaceans.
Are You One of Us?: Current Hiring Practices Suggest the Potential for Class Biases in Large Tech Companies

To better understand how we can broaden participation in computing, this exploratory study examines the interview process for elite internships at established technology companies. Through conducting 36 interviews with evaluators at technology companies, we find that in addition to technical competence, evaluators often assess internship applicants based on explicit and implicit signals of industrial fit, organizational fit, and individual fit. These evaluative criteria are reminiscent of prior literature linking biases in hiring to social class background. By reflecting on how our findings relate to previous studies, we suggest that evaluators? assessments of fit are potentially linked to social class background, and this might be an invisible factor contributing to hiring biases at technology companies. Given that hiring only culturally similar employees can have negative individual, organizational, and societal consequences, we propose strategies for evaluators to broaden their evaluation perspectives and to enact inclusive interviewing practices. We conclude with a call for further research on the role of social class background in the hiring process.
Book Review: Edwin E. Etieyibo and Odirin Omiegbe, Disabilities in Nigeria: Attitudes, Reactions, and Remediation, Lanham: Hamilton Books, 2017

A review by Shu Wan of the first comprehensive monograph discussing the issue of disabilities in contemporary Nigerian society, Edwin E. Etieyibo and Odirin Omiegbe’s Disabilities in Nigeria: Attitudes, Reactions, and Remediation, Lanham: Hamilton Books, 2017.
Finding ‘common ground’ on shifting sands: observations on the conflicts over product regulation

Recently I have been sent several papers taking up the challenge of trying to resolve the current clashes within public health about the proliferating range of newer and novel nicotine and tobacco products (NNNTPs). The conflicts are real and can be hostile, provoking distress among long-time tobacco control researchers, advocates and observers and exacerbating already-existing philosophical schisms within the tobacco control movement. Hence, there is call for finding common ground, settling on an approach and ceasing the attacks on public health colleagues. Whether this is now (or has ever been) possible is somewhat doubtful, particularly on a global level, and far beyond the scope of an editorial. I offer just a few observations about the situation in which we find ourselves now as we fight on into the second decade of the 21st century to end the tobacco epidemic: how the conflicts illustrate existing tensions in public health discourse, common assumptions that may limit the possibilities for partial resolution, and some speculation as to why these conflicts are so intense at this historical moment. I am appreciative of all the colleagues with whom I have shared these discussions to date and of all those attempting to wrestle productively and authentically with these challenges. And I am profoundly unappreciative of the tobacco industry’s efforts to wedge itself into the conversation and exploit the existing disagreements for its benefit. Public health has long been subject to tensions around how to balance coercive actions by governments to protect collective well-being against the importance of individual autonomy, particularly for adults. In the case of NNNTPs, the introduction of multiple new products with unknown risk profiles, some of which were clearly being marketed to youth, created concerns that the products could prove to be a ‘gateway’ to smoking and thus undo progress made on tobacco …
Unresponsive postoperative patient

A 53-year-old man was admitted to hospital for elective repair of a descending aortic dissection and type B intramural haematoma. He had a history of stage 3 chronic kidney disease and took aspirin for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. At 07:00 on the morning of the operation he was awake, alert and moving all limbs. His surgery began at 09:10. He received various anaesthetic medications, including rocuronium 50 mg (0.5 mg/kg); last dose at 17:20. The surgical repair ended at 16:15, and left the operating theatre at around 20:00 after an uneventful surgery. At midnight, he was still unresponsive despite receiving naloxone. His observations were: temperature 37°C, blood pressure 158/100 mmHg, heart rate 80/min, intubated and breathing at set respiratory rate 14/min, and oxygen saturation 100% on pressor support of 8 cmH2O, tidal volume 580 mL (8 mL/kg of his ideal body weight), FiO2 45%, and positive end-expiratory pressure of 5 cmH2O. He was not on sedation. His pupils were …
Mitigating injection-induced seismicity to reduce seismic risk:

Over the past decade, parts of the central United States have experienced elevated number of earthquakes and seismic damage to buildings and infrastructure. These earthquakes are caused by undergro...
Control Interlayer Excitons in 2D Heterostructures with Acoustic Waves

Propagating acoustic wave on the piezoelectric substrate carries strong piezoelectric field which can interact with the exciton in the MoSe 2 /WSe 2 heterostructures. We observe GHz acoustic wave modulates the intensity of interlayer exciton’s photoluminescence and induces a blue shift of exciton emission energy.
An Education in Contrast: State-by-State Assessment of School Immunization Records Requirements

Objectives. We reviewed the complexities of school-related immunization policies, their relation to immunization information systems (IIS) and immunization registries, and the historical context to better understand this convoluted policy system. Methods. We used legal databases (Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw) to identify school immunization records policies for 50 states, 5 cities, and the District of Columbia (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “grantees”). The original search took place from May to September 2010. We describe the requirements, agreement with IIS policies, and penalties for policy violations. Results. We found a complex web of public health, medical, and education-directed policies, which complicates immunization data sharing. Most (79%) require records of immunizations for children to attend school or for a child-care institution licensure, but only a few (11%) require coordination between IIS and schools or child-care facilities. Conclusions. To realize the full benefit of IIS investment, including improved immunization and school health program efficiencies, IIS and school immunization records policies must be better coordinated. States with well-integrated policies may serve as models for effective harmonization.
Torsion of Nonhomogeneous Solid

A solution is given for the Reissner-Sagoci problem for a nonhomogeneous half-space and semi-infinite cylinder in each of which the shear modulus is assumed to vary with the depth. The formulation is reduced to Fredholm integral equations of the second kind. Numerical results have been presented for the physical quantities of interest. Some of these results indicate a marked difference from the corresponding response of a homogeneous isotropic solid. The analysis also reveals that the classical square root singularity in the shear stresses retains this order in the nonhomogeneous solid under consideration in contrast with a material possessing a modulus, in which the singularity is a function of a constant.
Living with Gay and Lesbian Identity and Community, Dreaming of Utopia

Cherry Grove, Fire Island: Sixty Years in America's First Gay and Lesbian Town. Esther Newton Children of Horizons: How Gay and Lesbian Teens Are Leading a New Way Out of the Closet. Gilbert Herdt and Andrew Boxer Lesbian Mothers: Accounts of Gender in American Culture. Ellen Levin
Analysis of leisure time profiles of four age groups of adult males.

Abstract Initially an inventory was constructed to measure certain configurations of leisure behavior to include the frequency of participation in 70 commonly practiced leisure time and recreational activities. After pretesting, the inventory was submitted to 120 males who had been randomly selected from the City Directory for Austin, Texas. The 75 responses which were completed and returned were sorted into four major age groups. The responses were subjected to a multiple discriminant analysis procedure to determine whether the groups could be distinguished from each other on the basis of the entire profile. Significant discrimination between the four age groups was demonstrated. Three discriminant functions were obtained and 14 of the 70 inventory items were found to be the highest contributors to the three derived discriminant functions.
Stochastic Risk Aversion, Behavioral Over-Reaction, and the Role of Informed Investors

A subset of investors, termed “behavioral investors”, are subject to random risk aversion shocks, the distribution of which is assumed to be beta. A second investor cohort, termed “arbitrageurs”, attempts to exploit the risk aversion shocks of behavioral investors. Arbitrageur presence is shown to have a stabilizing effect on the distribution of prices, not only in terms of variance but also skewness. Specifically, prices become less negatively skewed as the proportion of the market comprised of arbitrageurs increases. Finally, arbitrageur entry is endogenized under a fixed cost of entry assumption. It is shown that arbitrageurs are more likely to enter the market in response to large price declines compared to large price increases, and that the extent of entry is inversely related to entry costs.
Adaptive Stabilization of Multimachine Power Systems Through Decentralized Eigenvalue Estimation and Assignmen

This paper will investigate the possibilities of decentralized modal (eigenvalue) control of multimachine power systems. An adaptive power system stabilizer will be used for local electro-mechanical eigenvalue estimation and assignment. The coordination of the adaptive controllers will be realized through the continuation method of decentralized pole placement in a multimachine environment. A three machine system example will illustrate the developed concepts.
The Great War and the Origins of Humanitarianism, 1918–1924: Human disasters: humanitarianism and the transnational turn in the wake of World War I

The Great War in Europe was an unprecedented catastrophe. By mid August 1914, the devastated cities of Dinant and Louvain had already come to symbolize the horror of industrialized warfare. The first reports of the German Army's atrocities in Belgium and France, of massacres, rapes, deportations, and the destruction of hospitals and historic monuments, soon followed. These reports were only confirmed by the brutal military occupations on the western front, in the Balkans, in Central and later in Eastern Europe. From the standpoint of humanitarian law, then, in its infancy, the Great War was nothing but a series of bloody affronts to human dignity. The year 1915 marked a turning point, with its increased violence against civilian populations and the beginning of the Armenian genocide. Even the Armistice brought no relief. In Europe and in the Near East, refugees fled revolutions, civil wars, and persecution. Hundreds of thousands of families suffered famine and epidemics. Meanwhile, millions of wounded and disabled soldiers struggled to return to their civilian lives. And yet in the end, the Great War did more than create disaster. It fostered deep and long-term pacifist feeling among a substantial population, and it made the protection of all the war's victims, civilians and soldiers alike, an absolute necessity—a project that drew to it a surprisingly large and talented group of activists and their supporters. The timid steps taken in this direction during the peace negotiations were short-lived. In June 1919, Germany acknowledged the Allies’ right to prosecute, before military tribunals, those accused of committing “acts in violation of the laws and customs of war.” But the Reichsgericht or Supreme Court established in Leipzig in 1921 was a mockery of justice: of the initial list of more than 800 accused “war criminals,” including the German generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff, the tribunal in fact prosecuted only 45—all of whom were mid-level German Army officers.
Sex comparisons in muscle sympathetic nerve activity and arterial pressure oscillations during progressive central hypovolemia

Increased tolerance to central hypovolemia is generally associated with greater sympathoexcitation, high-frequency oscillatory patterns of mean arterial pressure (MAP), and tachycardia. On average, women are less tolerant to central hypovolemia than men; however, the autonomic mechanisms governing these comparisons are not fully understood. We tested the hypothesis that women with relatively high tolerance (HT) to central hypovolemia would display similar physiological reserve capacity for sympathoexcitation and oscillations in MAP at presyncope compared to HT men. About 10 men and five women were exposed to progressive lower body negative pressure (LBNP) until the presence of presyncopal symptoms. Based on our previous classification system, all subjects were classified as HT because they completed at least −60 mmHg LBNP. Muscle sympathetic serve activity (MSNA) was measured directly from the peroneal nerve via microneurography and arterial pressure (AP) was measured at the finger by photoplethysmography. LBNP time to presyncope was less (P < 0.01) in women (1727 ± 70 sec) than in men (2022 ± 201 sec). At presyncope, average MSNA in men (50 ± 12 bursts/min) and women (51 ± 7 bursts/min) was similar (P = 0.87). Coincident with similar stroke volume (SV) at presyncope, women had similar MAP and heart rates. However, women had less physiological reserve capacity for SV, AP-MSNA coherence, and oscillations in the high-frequency (HF) components of arterial pressure compared to men. Contrary to our hypothesis, lower tolerance to central hypovolemia in women was not associated with sympathoexcitation, but can be explained, in part by lower physiological reserve to elicit oscillatory patterns in AP, maintenance of AP-MSNA coherence and SV when compared to men.
An efficient method for band structure calculations in 3D photonic crystals

A method for computing band structures for three-dimensional photonic crystals is described. The method combines a mixed finite element discretization on a uniform grid with a fast Fourier transform preconditioner and a preconditioned subspace iteration algorithm. Numerical examples illustrating the behavior of the method are presented.
Synthesis of 1-Boraadamantaneamine Derivatives with Selective Astrocyte vs C6 Glioma Antiproliferative Activity. A Novel Class of Anti-Hepatitis C Agents with Potential to Bind CD81

A variety of amine complexes with 1-boraadamatane were synthesized and subsequently evaluated for an antiproliferative effect on CD81-enriched cell lines to provide evidence for binding and activation of CD81. CD81 is a member of the tetraspanin family of membrane proteins found in all cell lineages in the liver. CD81 signals for antiproliferation when bound by antibodies. It is known that the HCV-E2 envelope glycoprotein binds to the CD81 protein. While it is unclear whether virus entry into host cells is directly linked to virus attachment via CD81 for HCV, this step in the viral life cycle has recently proven to be an effective point of attack for other viruses including HIV and rhinoviruses. The aim of the current study concerns the synthesis of amantidine analogues by appending primary amines to 1-boraadamantane to evaluate such compounds for CD81-dependent antiproliferation of CD81-enriched cell lines (astrocyte) vs CD81-deficient cell lines (C6 glioma). If the antiproliferative effect of these amantidine analogues proves to be an effect of binding and activating CD81, then these compounds may have the potential to prevent or treat HCV infections. Each compound's potential for preventive and therapeutic activity stems from the compound's potential to block viral attachment, virus-cell fusion, or virus entry into host cells or to counter potential mechanisms of HCV immune evasion. Out of a library of over 500 compounds, including randomly selected small molecules and rationally designed small molecules, only the 1-boraadamantaneamine compounds and structurally similar analogues display a significant antiproliferative effect on the CD81-enriched astrocytes relative to the CD81-deficient cell lines. In fact, 1-boraadamantane.l-phenylalanine methyl ester complex (5), 1-boraadamantane.ethanolamine complex (8), and (S)-2-[(adamantane-1-carbonyl)amino]-3-phenylpropionic acid (15) show a dose-dependent, astrocyte-selective antiproliferative activity in the concentration range 0.1-10 microM. This is consistent with the binding and activation of CD81 and represents a 2-fold improvement compared to the clinically prescribed anti-HCV agent, amantidine, in the same concentration range. Consequently, the 1-boraadamantaneamine derivatives present a promising lead in the development of small molecules with potential to bind to CD81 and treat HCV infections.
Solution of a linear diophantine equation for nonnegative integers

We solve the 3-variable problem: find integers x ≥ 0, y ≥ 0, z ≥ 0 that satisfy ax + by + cz = L for given integers a, b, c, L, where 1 < a < b < c < L. The method of solution is related to the one for the Frobenius problem in three variables, which has been solved by Selmer and Beyer and by Rodseth (J. Reine Angew. Math.301 (1978), 161–178). These methods take O(a) steps, in the worst case, to find the Frobenius value. The method here, for the Frobenius value, is shown to be rapid, requiring less than O(log a) steps. The diophantine equation is then solved with little extra effort to result in an O(log a) method overall.
Generation and Kinetic Studies of Xe(5d[3/2]1) Resonance State Atoms

Two-photon, pulsed-laser excitation of the Xe(4f[3/2]{sub 2}) level with concomitant amplified stimulated emission has been used to prepare the Xe(5d[3/2]{sub 1}) resonance state atoms in a few Torr of Xe. Observation of the vacuum ultraviolet emission at 119.2 nm from the Xe(5d[3/2]{sub 1}{r{underscore}arrow}5p{sup 6} {sup 1}S{sub 0}) transition permits direct monitoring of the decay rate of the concentration of the Xe(5d[3.2]{sub 1}) atoms, and the bimolecular quenching rate constants were measured at room temperature for Ar, Xe, CF{sub 4}, H{sub 2}, N{sub 2}, CO, CH{sub 4} CC;{sub 4}. and C;{sub 2}. The decay rate in Ne was too slow to measure and the decay mechanism in Kr was complex. The magnitudes of the quenching constants for Xe(5d[3/2]{sub 1}) atoms by molecules resemble those for the Xe(6s'[1/2]{sub 1}) and Xe(6p[1/2]{sub 0} or [3/2]{sub 2}) states. In addition to introducing a slow quenching rate of the Xe(5d[3/2]{sub 1}) atoms, the addition of Ar to the cell containing a few Torr of Xe seemed to enhance the 119.2 nm emission intensity.
The development of interpersonal communication theory

Any attempt to examine the development of theory in interpersonal communication is confronted at the outset with one rather striking and fundamental problem. The research literature and textbooks fail to reveal a clear, concise, and well‐developed conceptualization which distinguishes interpersonal communication from other forms of symbolic interaction. Several scholars have noted this problem, but systematic and constructive responses have been slow in developing. It will, therefore, be the purpose of this essay to provide one method for distinguishing interpersonal from other forms of communication and to draw out some implications of this conceptualization to the development of interpersonal communication theory. The attempt to provide a conceptualization of interpersonal communication will be divided into three parts: (1) the stipulation of criteria for evaluating such a conceptualization; (2) the explication of one method of conceptualizing interpersonal communication, and (3) the evaluation of our c...
Neighborhood social environments and the distribution of low birthweight in Chicago.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the socioeconomic precursors of disparities in maternal health by measuring the associations of nine neighborhood-level indicators of social phenomena with low infant birthweight. METHODS: Vital records and census data for the Chicago metropolitan area in 1990 were merged (n = 112,327); a logistic regression model predicting low birthweight was estimated by backward elimination. RESULTS: With individual-level variables held constant, six neighborhood-level indicators predicted low birthweight, together contributing to a variation in rate of 5.5%. Community economic hardship and housing costs were positively associated with low birthweight, while community socioeconomic status, crowded housing, and high percentages of young and African-American residents were negatively associated with low birthweight. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal health inequalities should be explored in the context of historical segregation, social stratification, the dynamics of social support, and resource shar...
Lentigo Maligna: Review of Salient Characteristics and Management

Lentigo maligna is a melanocytic neoplasm, often regarded as ‘melanoma in situ,’ which may progress to lentigo maligna melanoma. Lentigo maligna clinically presents as a pigmented, asymmetric macule that originates on the head and neck and spreads slowly. The preferred method for diagnosing lentigo maligna is excisional biopsy. Histology shows proliferation of atypical melanocytes at the epidermal–dermal junction in small nests or single cells. The differential diagnosis includes solar lentigo, seborrheic keratosis, lichen planus-like keratosis, pigmented actinic keratosis, and melanocytic nevus. Stains used in diagnosis include hematoxylin and eosin, HMB-45, MART-1/Melan-A, Mel-5, and S-100. Surgical excision is the preferred treatment for lentigo maligna. Second-line techniques include medical (topical imiquimod) and destructive therapy.
Field Experimental Study of Dynamic Smagorinsky Models in the Atmospheric Surface Layer.

An analysis of dynamic Smagorinsky models is performed based on the Horizontal Array Turbulence Study (HATS) dataset. In the experiment, two vertically separated horizontal arrays of 14 three-dimensional sonic anemometers were placed in the atmospheric surface layer. Subgrid-scale (SGS) and resolved quantities are derived from 2D filtering at a filter scaleD and differentiation of filtered velocity fields. In a previous study the Smagorinsky coefficient was computed directly from these data and found to depend on atmospheric (D) cs stability and height above the ground. The present study examines the scale-invariant dynamic model of Germano et al. and the scale-dependent dynamic model of Porte ´-Agel et al. and tests their accuracy in predicting and (D) cs its dependencies on stability and height above the ground. The Germano identity uses a test filter at aD (in this study a 5 1.75 is used). The coefficient is derived from various data test-filtered at this scale assuming that the Smagorinsky coefficient is scale invariant. The results show that the scale-invariant dynamic model severely underpredicts the coefficient and its trends whenever D is similar to, or larger than, the large-scale limit of the inertial range (typically the smaller of the height above the ground z or the Obukhov length L). The scaledependent dynamic model uses a second test filter at scale a 2D to deduce dependence of on the filtering (D) cs scale. This model gives excellent predictions of and its dependence upon stability and height. (D) cs
Separation of concerns in software product line engineering

A software product line consists of a family of software systems that have some common functionality and some variable functionality. A better understanding of the product line can be obtained by separating the concerns of the common software, in terms of common features, components, and source code, from the variable software. This paper describes an approach and prototype tool support for separation of concerns and automatic customization of target applications, which are members of the software product line.
Basic meanings of you know and I mean

Abstract Although you know and I mean are frequent in spontaneous talk, researchers have not agreed on what purpose they serve. They have been thought by some to be used similarly and by others to be used differently. Similarities of uses at a surface level encouraged historical discussions of these two markers in the same breath. The current synthesis details how both the apparent multifunctionality of you know and I mean and their surface similarities can arise out of each discourse marker's basic meaning, with you know 's basic meaning being to invite addressee inferences (Jucker, A.H., & Smith, S.W. (1998). And people just you know like ‘wow’ : Discourse markers as negotiating strategies. In A. H. Jucker & Y. Ziv (Eds.), Discourse Markers: Descriptions and Theory (pp. 171–201). Philadelphia: John Benjamins), and I mean 's basic meaning being to forewarn upcoming adjustments (Schiffrin, D. (1987). Discourse Markers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).
Effect of dimethylnitrosamine concentration on its demethylation by liver microsomes from control and 3-methylcholanthrene pretreated rats, hamsters and guinea pigs.

Summary The effect of dime thylnitrosamine concentration on its demethylation by liver microsomes from control and 3-methylcholanthrene pretreated (100 mg/kg body wt. 24 h before sacrifice) rats, hamsters and guinea pigs was investigated. At low substrate concentration (2 mM), liver microsomes from pretreated rats and hamsters showed 30–50% lower demethylation activity than their respective controls. No such difference was found in the guinea pig. At high substrate concentration (100 mM), all 3 pretreated species showed 50–100% higher enzyme activity than their respective controls. Enzyme activities among the 3 species showed the following order of activity: hamster > guinea pig > rat.
Attenuation of apoptosis and enhancement of proteoglycan synthesis in rabbit cartilage defects by hyperbaric oxygen treatment are related to the suppression of nitric oxide production

Proinflammatory cytokine, nitric oxide (NO) and localized hypoxia-induced apoptosis and proteoglycan (PG) degradation are thought to be correlated to the degree of cartilage injury. This study evaluated hyperbaric oxygen (HBO)-induced changes in joint cavity oxygen tension, antigenickeratan sulfate (KS) content, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression, PG synthesis, and cell apoptosis in full-thickness defects of rabbit cartilage. The HBO group was exposed to 100% oxygen at 2.5 atm for 2 h daily, 5 days per week. Meanwhile, the control group was kept in housing cages with normal air. The joint cavity oxygen tension was determined with an oxygen sensor. Blood serum KS was quantified by competitive indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). After sacrifice, specimen sections were sent for histological and histochemical examination with a standardized scoring system. In situ analysis of iNOs expression and apoptosis detection were performed using immunostaining and TUNEL staining, respectively and quantified by a computerized imagine analysis system. This study demonstrated that HBO treatment increased joint cavity oxygen tension but decreased blood KS content. Histological and histochemical score results showed that HBO treatment significantly increased the cartilage repair. Moreover, immunostaining and TUNEL staining showed that HBO treatment suppressed the iNOs expression and apoptosis of chondrocytes, respectively. Accordingly, HBO offers a potential treatment method for cartilage injury.
Native oxide and hydroxides and their implications for bulk AlN crystal growth

Oxygen degrades the properties of AlN, thus produci ng bulk single crystals with low oxygen concentrations is an important goal. Most of the o xygen in bulk AlN single crystals grown by the sublimation-recondensation method originates fr om the hydroxides and oxides that spontaneously form on the surfaces of the AlN sourc e powder. For a typical AlN powder with an average particle size of 1-2 microns, a 1-3 nm t hick oxide and/or hydroxide can account for most of its oxygen (generally on the order of 1.0 w t%) and hydrogen (200-300 ppm). Heating the AlN powder source at 1950 °C for 10 h in a nitrogen atmosphere reduced its surface area by a factor of 160 (due to sintering), the oxygen concen tration by 16, and the hydrogen concentration by 67. The difference in these reduction factors s uggests some of the oxygen is dissolved into the bulk AlN with this heat treatment. By first an nealing the AlN powder at a low temperature (950-1000 °C) for several hours before sintering at 1950 °C, the oxygen and hydrogen concentrations were reduced to lower levels. The l ow temperature treatment is effective eliminating oxygen and hydrogen from the surface of the powder, while high temperature sintering reduces the specific surface area of the source. The combination of heat treatments produced a source with oxygen and hydrogen concentrations as low as 0.015 wt% O (1.9 x 10 19 atoms O cm -3 ) and 1.7 ppm H (3.4 x 10 18 atoms H cm -3 ). Annealing becomes less effective at removing oxygen and hydrogen with longer heat treatments, suggesting there is a minimum oxygen concentration that can be produced with this method.
The 'inverted' gain-levered semiconductor laser-direct modulation with enhanced frequency modulation and suppressed intensity modulation

A gain-levered semiconductor laser has enhanced efficiencies in both intensity modulation (IM) and frequency modulation (FM). It is shown that by inverting the bias points of the gain and modulation sections, a mode of operation referred to as 'inverted' gain-lever, the FM efficiency is suppressed. The large FM-to-FM ratio makes it a desirable source for an FM optical transmitter. >
Effect of brightness of preexposure and surrounding field on breadth and shape of the color fields for stimuli of different sizes

These factors affect the results of field studies made at different times on the same person, or those upon different persons. They make the color stimulus seem lighter or darker, more or less saturated according to the induction by the surrounding field and the after image left by preexposure. Impressions on the periphery of the retina are particularly affected by these factors. The effect is very greatly influenced by the size or visual angle of the stimulus. This work has been done in the Department of Psychology, Bryn Mawr College.
Information Cells on Intensity-Modulated CRT Screens

The distribution of current within the beam of a cathode-ray tube has a Gaussian variation. Consequently, if the wave form of a pulse of beam current is known, it is possible to determine the excitation of an intensity-modulated screen surface. In this report the nature of the excitation is discussed for an intensity-modulated sweep for both rectangular and triangular current waveforms. The results are extended to indicate what may be expected of an actual mapping radar set. The theoretical constants which arise in the development are evaluated from data obtained by the shrinking raster method of measuring spot size, which is termed line width in this paper for purposes of clarity. This permits determination of the size of an information cell on the screen as a function of pulse duration, sweep speed and line width. Then the number of information cells available on a tube may be determined. As a consequence, we find that there is no significant difference in the number of information cells available on the standard 5FP7, 7BP7, or 12DP7. Furthermore, the reduction of the over-all receiving-system frequency response by some radar displays may be estimated. In such a case the video bandwidth may be reduced.
FURTHER MEASUREMENTS OF MAGNETIC FIELDS IN INTERSTELLAR CLOUDS OF NEUTRAL HYDROGEN.

A new series of measurements of the Zeeman splitting of 21-cm spectral lines has revealed strong (> 10−5 G) magnetic field effects in several neutral hydrogen clouds in the direction of HII regions. Low limits have been set to the line-of-sight field components in six other regions of space.
Role of Adenine in Thymine-Dimer Repair by Reduced Flavin-Adenine Dinucleotide

We present a study of excited-state behavior of reduced flavin cofactors using femtosecond optical transient absorption spectroscopy. The reduced flavin cofactors studied were in two protonation states: flavin-adenine dinucleotide (FADH2 and FADH−) and flavin-mononucleotide (FMNH2 and FMNH−). We find that FMNH− exhibits multiexponential decay dynamics due to the presence of two bent conformers of the isoalloxazine ring. FMNH2 exhibits an additional fast deactivation component that is assigned to an iminol tautomer. Reduced flavin cofactors also exhibit a long-lived component that is attributed to the semiquinone and the hydrated electron that are produced in photoinduced electron transfer to the solvent. The presence of adenine in FADH2 and FADH− further changes the excited-state dynamics due to intramolecular electron transfer from the isoalloxazine to the adenine moiety of cofactors. This electron transfer is more pronounced in FADH2 due to π-stacking interactions between two moieties. We further studie...