cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chapter 8: In Flo Jo Fashion; The Cultural Appropriation of Sportswomen’s Apparel

Florence “Flo Jo” Griffith Joyner, the Olympic track star known for fashion, fortitude, and being the fastest women in the world, spurred the birth of the fashion trend “athleisure” while subsequently contributing to the cultural appropriation of one of the greatest athletes.
Evaluating Documentation of Prescribing Training Experiences in Pharmacy Residency Programs.

Clinical pharmacist specialists are ideal candidates to reduce healthcare costs and manage chronic disease states. However, it is unknown whether residency programs document prescribing training. The aim of the study was to evaluate whether programs document prescriptive authority training in pharmacy residency programs. To evaluate whether California residency programs document prescribing training, we conducted a systematic review utilizing the key search terms to examine residency information resources: American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) residency program information and PubMed query. Primary outcome for documentation of prescriptive authority training was based on a defined search criterion. Out of 128 residency programs, 110 met criteria for evaluation. A total of 47 residency programs (13 institutions) met criteria for prescribing training. Most programs did not define which specialty clinics offered prescribing training. Based on search criterion, less than 50% met criteria for documentation of prescribing training in residency programs. With that said, there are limitations given a strict search criterion, so additional research is needed to further investigate whether prescribing trainings are offered. Given the limited amount of residency programs documenting prescribing training, it is essential to define standards and expand documentation of prescribing training.
Corporate social responsibility and capital budgeting

Abstract Using an experiment, I examine whether managers have preferences for corporate social responsibility (CSR) in a capital budgeting setting and the factors that influence the extent to which they act on these preferences. I find that managers have and act on preferences for CSR by reporting to implement higher cost CSR investments that reduce firm profit even when they have financial incentives not to do so. I also find that when managers need to misreport to act on their preferences for CSR, their willingness to act on such preferences is decreased due to a desire to be honest. Conversely, an opportunity to create slack for personal benefit increases managers’ willingness to act on their CSR preferences, offsetting the decrease resulting from honesty concerns. Together these findings demonstrate that managers’ preferences for CSR investments can influence behavior even in the presence of competing economic incentives and social norms. Finally, an analysis of firm profit shows that firms may be better off financially with managers who act on preferences for CSR investments rather than managers who have strong preferences for wealth. This result obtains because managers with strong CSR preferences do not create slack to the same extent as managers with strong preferences for wealth. These results have implications for both theory and practice because they show that managers’ reports used to make investment decisions are influenced by their personal CSR preferences.
The Effects of APOBEC3G's Cytidine Deaminase Activity on Retroviral Evolution

Apolipoprotein B editing complex (APOBEC3/A3) genes are found in mammalian cells. In primates, there are 7 APOBEC3 genes, namely, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3DE, 3F, 3G, and 3H. Previous research has shown that A3 proteins help to inhibit viral infection via their cytidine deaminase activity. However, it has also been found that A3 proteins could also lead to viral evolution, where viruses such as HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) instead gain beneficial mutations that enable them to overcome the antiviral activity of A3 proteins, gain resistance to certain drugs used for treating viral infections and escape recognition by the immune system. This paper is a review article summarizing the role of A3G on viral infection and evolution, and the potential impact viral evolution could have in treatment of retroviral infections such as HIV.
Neck fat and obstructive sleep apnea in obese adolescents.

STUDY OBJECTIVES Increased neck circumference, a surrogate for the neck fat that can narrow the upper airway in obese individuals, is a risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) in adults, but the association between neck fat and OSAS in adolescent males and females is unknown. We hypothesized that obese adolescents with OSAS have more neck fat than controls, females more neck fat than males, and that neck fat correlates with obesity and OSAS severity. METHODS Obese adolescents with OSAS and obese and normal-weight controls underwent upper airway magnetic resonance imaging, polysomnography, and anthropometrics, including neck circumference measurement. Intra-neck and subcutaneous neck fat measurements were manually segmented and compared among the three groups using ANOVA and between males and females using t-tests. The relationship between polysomnographic parameters and neck fat measurements was assessed in adolescents with OSAS using Pearson correlations. RESULTS One-hundred nineteen adolescents (38 females) were studied: 39 obese with OSAS, 34 obese controls, and 46 normal-weight controls. Neck fat was not greater in adolescents with OSAS compared to obese controls (p=0.35), and neck fat volume was not related to OSAS severity (p = 0.36). However, obese adolescents had more neck fat than normal-weight controls (p < 0.001), and neck fat volume correlated with neck circumference (r = 0.53, p < 0.001). Females had significantly greater cross-sectional neck fat than males (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS While neck fat is associated with obesity and neck circumference in adolescents and is greater in females versus males, it does not appear to correlate with presence and severity of OSAS.
Purpose-built transcatheter cavopulmonary anastomosis device requirements: Multi-modality imaging evaluation.

Abstract Background/purpose Patients with a functional single ventricle undergo multiple, palliative open-heart surgeries. This includes a superior cavopulmonary anastomosis or bidirectional Glenn shunt. A less-invasive transcatheter approach may reduce morbidity. Methods/materials We analyzed pre-Glenn X-ray contrast angiography (XA), cardiac computed tomography (CT), and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) studies. Results Over an eleven-year period (1/2007 – 6/2017), 139 Glenn surgeries were performed at our institution. The typical age range at surgery was 59 – 371 days (median = 163; IQR = 138 – 203). Eight-nine XA, ten CT, and ten CMR studies obtained from these patients were analyzed. Cephalad SVC measurements (millimeters) were 7.3 ± 1.7 (XA), 7.7 ± 1.6 (CT) and 6.9 ± 1.8 (CMR). RPA measurements were 7.3 ± 1.9 (XA), 7.4 ± 1.6 (CT) and 6.6 ± 1.9 (CMR). Potential device lengths were 10.9 ± 6 – 17.4 ± 6.4 (XA), 10.1 ± 2.1 – 17.7 ± 2.4 (CT) and 17.3 ± 4. - 23.7 ± 5.5 (CMR). SVC-RPA angle (degrees) was 132.9 ± 13.2 (CT) and 140 ± 10.2 (MRI). Image quality of all CT (100%), almost all XA (SVC 100%, RPA 99%), and most MRI (SVC 80%, RPA 90%) were deemed sufficient. Parametric modeling virtual fit device with 10 mm diameter and 20 – 25 mm length was ideal. Conclusions Ideal transcatheter cavopulmonary shunt device for the typical patient would be 10 mm in diameter and 20–25 mm in length.
Household Search and the Marital Wage Premium

We develop a model where selection into marriage and household search generate a marital wage premium. Beyond selection, married individuals earn higher wages for two reasons. First, income pooling within a joint household raises risk-averse individuals' reservation wages. Second, married individuals climb the job ladder faster, as they internalize that higher wages increase their partner's selectivity over offers. Specialization according to comparative advantage in search generates a premium that increases in spousal education, as in the data. Quantitatively, household search explains 10–33 percent and 20–58 percent of the premium for males and females, respectively, and accounts for its increase with spousal education.
Stability Analysis to Derive and Regulate Homeostatic Set Points for Negative Feedback Loops

The dynamics of mutual excitation has been neglected by neurobiologists in comparison to studies of negative (homeostatic) feedback, perhaps because of a widespread misconception that negative feedback systems are intrinsically stable, whereas positive feedback systems with regenerative excitation are intrinsically unstable. Mutual excitation is widely believed to be responsible for epileptic seizures, and therefore to be avoided or suppressed in brain systems. On the contrary, each form of feedback can be stable, and with sufficiently high gain each can be destabilized to give respectively monotonic or oscillatory outputs. Feedforward excitation was proposed by Ramon y Cajal (1955) to exist as “avalanche conduction”, by which the axon collaterals of a small number of mitral cells might excite other mitral cells and these yet others, in the recruitment of a large number of cells to amplify a weak olfactory stimulus (Nicoll 1971), but he did not intend by invoking this “snow-ball” effect to allow feedback, because he believed that a neuron could not function properly if it were unable to distinguish input of other neurons from its own output (Freeman 1984). The work of Cajal’s student Lorente de No (1934) demonstrated the likelihood of feedback among cortical neurons, leading to theories of neural networks by McCulloch and Pitts (1943), and of nerve cell assemblies by Donald Hebb (1949). However, the resulting concept of “reverberatory circuits” was roundly criticized as epileptogenic, and was rejected as a basis for steady state neural activity or memory.
Pelican: a building block for exascale cold data storage

A significant fraction of data stored in cloud storage is rarely accessed. This data is referred to as cold data; cost-effective storage for cold data has become a challenge for cloud providers. Pelican is a rack-scale hard-disk based storage unit designed as the basic building block for exabyte scale storage for cold data. In Pelican, server, power, cooling and interconnect bandwidth resources are provisioned by design to support cold data workloads; this right-provisioning significantly reduces Pelican's total cost of ownership compared to traditional disk-based storage.Resource right-provisioning in Pelican means only 8% of the drives can be concurrently spinning. This introduces complex resource management to be handled by the Pelican storage stack. Resource restrictions are expressed as constraints over the hard drives. The data layout and IO scheduling ensures that these constraints are not violated. We evaluate the performance of a prototype Pelican, and compare against a traditional resource overprovisioned storage rack using a cross-validated simulator. We show that compared to this overprovisioned storage rack Pelican performs well for cold workloads, providing high throughput with acceptable latency.
Characterization of the cytochrome P-450 monooxygenase system of hamster liver microsomes: Effects of prior treatment with ethanol and other xenobiotics☆

Abstract The cytochrome P-450 monooxygenase system of hamster liver microsomes and its response to prior treatment with ethanol and other xenobiotics have been examined. Male Syrian golden hamsters were administered ethanol (ETOH), phenobarbital (PB), 5,6-benzoflavone (BF) or isoniazid (INH). Each treatment resulted in a moderate increase (20–60%) in the specific content of liver microsomal cytochrome P-450 along with a unique hemeprotein ferrous carbonyl Soret maximum. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis of liver microsomes revealed distinctive changes in protein banding patterns in the cytochrome P-450 (45–60 kDa) region with each treatment. NADPH : cytochrome c reductase activity was increased by both PB and INH, whereas cytochrome b5 content was increased by INH only. Microsomal oxidation of ETOH and aniline p-hydroxylation (expressed per nmol cytochrome P-450) were enhanced dramatically by ETOH and INH, whereas PB and BF had no effect on these enzymatic activities. Both ETOH and INH also increased zoxazolamine 6-hydroxylation but, in contrast to other rodent species, this drug-metabolizing activity was decreased in hamster liver microsomes after treatment with either PB or BF. Microsomal benzphetamine N-demethylation was decreased by ETOH, INH and BF administration and was only modestly enhanced after treatment with PB. ETOH and INH had no effect on the O-dethylation of 7-ethoxycoumarin, and enzymatic activity increased by BF but decreased by PB. These results demonstrate that the cytochrome P-450-dependent monooxygenase system of hamster liver microsomes responds to treatment with ETOH and other xenobiotics in a manner that is quantitatively and, in certain respects, qualitatively different from that reported for the rat, rabbit, and mouse.
Emergency Psychopharmacology in Childhood and Adolescence

Emergencies in child psychiatry settings are not uncommon and call upon the clinician to assess, form a differential diagnosis and devise treatment strategies in rapid succession. Few studies in the literature offer guidelines as to the management of the various types of psychiatric emergencies in the child and adolescent population. Very little has been written about psychopharmacologic approaches, in particular. The author divides psychiatric emergencies in this group into three categories: those that are drug treatable, those that are drug induced and those in which drug treatment is less likely to be useful. She outlines basic management of such common emergencies as acute psychosis, acute agitation, acute suicidality, and acute school refusal; commonly prescribed drug toxicities such as anticholinergic crises, extrapyramidal syndromes, and Lithium toxicity are reviewed. Finally, common drug intoxications and withdrawals frequently seen in the adolescent population such as alcohol, marijuana, and coca...
Editorial: Mining in a Sustainable World

Humanity has reaped great benefits from mining. Over the millennia that humans have practiced mining, there have been many obvious improvements in mining’s environmental and social impacts. However, some aspects of mining still involve an element of ecological violence and, in Australia, there is a growing amount of conflict concerned with mining. These two related issues – ‘ecological violence’ and ‘conflict’ – were explored at the ‘Mining in a Sustainable World’ conference on 13 to 15 October 2013 at the University of New England campus in Armidale, Australia. The conference was a joint initiative of the University of New England’s Peace Studies and Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law. Specifically, conference delegates were interested in exploring the work being done to reduce ecological violence and conflict. Articles in this special edition of the International Journal of Rural Law and Policy arose from that conference. This editorial provides an overview of the rationale for the conference and the issues explored.
An Alternative Approach to the RESPA Versus Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Unpaid Pre-Petition Escrow Amount Debate

Under the terms of the parties’ loan documents, a lender may collect escrow funds to make the borrower’s future tax and insurance payments. Understandably, when a borrower misses escrow payments, the escrow account may not contain enough funds for the lender to make the tax and insurance payments. Outside of bankruptcy, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”) and Regulation X provide the lender procedures to collect the missed payments. When a borrower files bankruptcy, however, an automatic stay takes effect. The courts that have addressed this issue make lenders claim these unpaid pre-petition escrow amounts, allowing Chapter 13 debtors to pay these missed payments over the life of the bankruptcy plan and treating the escrow account as current for post-petition calculations. This Note argues that creditors should not be denied their RESPA rights for all unpaid pre-petition escrow amounts in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The courts have not fully considered the effects of their decisions. Because lenders must treat post-petition escrow accounts as current, lenders are forced to make involuntary loans to debtors. This Note proposes an alternative approach: Courts should evaluate tax and insurance escrow obligations separately to balance the parties’ interests and avoid related arguments.
The Prototropic Behavior of α‐Chymotrypsin and Chymotrysinogen in Water and Formaldehyde

1 A careful study of the ionic behavior of α-chymotrypsin and chymotrypsinogen has shown that all the α- and ɛ-amino groups of these proteins are capable of their normal ionization. 2 The ionic difference between chymotrypsinogen and α-chymotrypsin is that expected from the known route of activation and these may be attributed to two C-terminal carboxyl groups (pK′ 3.8 ± 0.2) and two N-terminal α-amino groups (pK′ 7.8 ± 0.2). 3 The two N-terminal amino groups react with formaldehyde to form hydroxymethyl derivatives with pK′≃ 5. 4 All the amino groups of the proteins examined react quantitatively with formaldehyde to form hydroxymethyl derivatives and this reaction appears to be complete in 15–30 sec. 5 α-Chymotrypsin is catalytically active in 3.1 M formaldehyde with: (a) diminution of the catalytic rate, (b) retention of all active sites, and (c) a bell-shaped kcat/Kmvs. pH profile similar to that obtained in water. These data coupled with the present findings appear to be inconsistent with the postulated involvement of the α-amino group of the N-terminal isoleucine residue in the catalytic activity of α-chymotrypsin.
An Open Domain-Extensible Environment for Simulation-Based Scientific Investigation (ODESSI)

In scientific domains where discovery is driven by simulation modeling there are found common methodologies and procedures applied for scientific investigation. ODESSI (Open Domain-extensible Environment for Simulation-based Scientific Investigation) is an environment to facilitate the representation and automatic conduction of scientific studies by capturing common methods for experimentation, analysis, and evaluation used in simulation science. Specific methods ODESSI will support include parameter studies , optimization , uncertainty quantification , and sensitivity analysis . By making these methods accessible in a programmable framework, ODESSI can be used to capture and run domain-specific investigations. ODESSI is demonstrated for a problem in the neuroscience domain involving computational modeling of human head electromagnetics for conductivity analysis and source localization.
Velocity changes in a model study of propagation in a ring of stretched ventricular myocytes

The mechanical state of the intact heart alters the electrical properties of the underlying tissue. The activity of stretch-activated transmembrane ion channels is believed to be the driving mechanism behind this mechano-electric feedback effect. Previous investigations have established that myocardial stretch reduces action potential amplitude and prolongs action potential duration, effects that may promote arrhythmias in the heart The effect of stretch on propagation velocity, however, has not been systematically investigated. In this numerical study, action potentials propagating on a one-dimensional cable model of a ring of myocytes were analyzed for morphology changes in stretched and unstretched regions along the cable. Changes in the rest potential and action potential duration and amplitude were quantitatively similar to those observed experimentally. Propagation velocity in stretched regions was reduced by as much as twenty percent compared to the velocity in unstretched regions. This reduction in propagation velocity may play an important role in the onset and maintenance of arrhythmias induced by myocardial stretch.
Quantitative analysis of regional myocardial performance in coronary artery disease

Findings from a group of subjects with significant coronary artery stenosis are given. A group of controls determined by use of a quantitative method for the study of regional myocardial performance based on the frame-by-frame analysis of biplane left ventricular angiograms are presented. Particular emphasis was placed upon the analysis of wall motion in terms of normalized segment dimensions, timing and velocity of contraction. The results were compared with the method of subjective assessment used clinically.
Towards a Communication Dialectic: Embedded Technology and the Enhancement of Place*

Communication literature traditionally divides interaction into two forms : mass media and interpersonal communication. These ideal types are unquestionably useful heuristic tools. Yet their conceptual utility is often undermined when researchers place them at opposite ends of a linear, historical transformation in which mass media technology is believed to supplant interpersonal communication and the locations in which it occurs. This article abandons the polar, historical relationship in favor of a communication dialectic that recognizes the synthesis of ideal types into composite forms of interaction. Embedded technology demonstrates the dialectic by exploring how electronic media fixed within a physical location can combine with the interpersonal communication taking place there to enhance group interaction. The resulting hybrid defies the assumption that mass media simply displace interpersonal interaction, pointing instead to a dialectic relationship in which ideal types continually challenge and transform one another
Resilience: a new integrative approach to health and mental health research

Abstract We know from anecdote and research, science and art, that human resilience is a powerful, seemingly ubiquitous force. What is needed is a better understanding of the properties, variations, and applications of that concept to health and well-being. In this paper we put forth two definitions of resilience: Sustainability of purpose in the face of stress, and recovery from adversity. We review current thinking in the social sciences on the nature of biological, psychological and socio-community processes that may confer resilience. In doing so, we encourage greater attention to aspects of biopsychosocial resourcefulness as a dimension of influence on health and mental health distinct from measures of risk found in standard models of public health inquiry. Multi-level, longitudinal, and intervention methods are advocated for research and applications of the concept with conceptual guidelines for the examination of laboratory, diary, and community indicator data on manifestations of resilience across...
Mitigation of catastrophic interference in neural networks using a fixed expansion layer

In this paper we present the fixed expansion layer (FEL) feedforward neural network designed for balancing plasticity and stability in the presence of non-stationary inputs. Catastrophic interference (or catastrophic forgetting) refers to the drastic loss of previously learned information when a neural network is trained on new or different information. The goal of the FEL network is to reduce the effect of catastrophic interference by augmenting a multilayer perceptron with a layer of sparse neurons with binary activations. We compare the FEL network's performance to that of other algorithms designed to combat the effects of catastrophic interference and demonstrate that the FEL network is able to retain information for significantly longer periods of time with substantially lower computational requirements.
The Inhaled Bronchodilators Ipratropium Bromide and Metaproterenol in Adults with CF

Ten patients with CF who were more than 18 years old, participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluating the efficacy of inhaled ipratropium bromide and metaproterenol as bronchodilators. The mean FEV1 of the group improved 17.1 percent after treatment with ipratropium bromide, 12.5 percent after metaproterenol treatment, and 16.6 percent after treatment with both of these medications together. There was no significant difference between these responses and patients who responded to one treatment tended to respond to the others. The side effects with these medications were minimal. When compared with patients in previous studies, our patients, who were much older as a group, demonstrated a greater degree of bronchodilation with ipratropium bromide and metaproterenol, as well as a greater degree of bronchoconstriction with placebo.
Individual and structural explanations of poverty

This article illustrates the difference between individual and structural accounts of poverty in the U.S. Some of the correlates of poverty among individuals are job loss, low skills, female family head, discrimination against blacks and hispanics, family size, and age at marriage. The structural factors producing a high rate of poverty are the reproduction of the class system, macroeconomic policies, the vicious circle of poverty, the structure of the electoral process, the structure of the economy, institutionalized gender discrimination, and institutionalized ethnic discrimination. Thus, the variables accounting for each phenomenon are different. A theoretical rationale for the relationship between social structure and rates of events is presented, and similarities between the approach used here and research in other disciplines are noted.
Critiki: A Scaffolded Approach to Gathering Design Feedback from Paid Crowdworkers

Feedback is important to the creative process, but not everyone has a personal crowd of individuals they can turn to for high-quality feedback. We introduce and evaluate Critiki, a novel system for gathering design critiques on crowdfunding project pages from paid crowdworkers. Stemming from previous research on crowdfunding project creators and their need for early-stage design feedback, we design and build a working system which fits the need of this population: rapid and inexpensive feedback. To solve issues with critique quality we describe a scaffolding technique designed to assist crowdworkers in writing high-quality critiques. We evaluate Critiki with two field deployments: 1) A randomized controlled experiment with 450 crowdworkers to evaluate the efficacy of the scaffolding technique and 2) A user study with 31 crowdfunding project creators to determine usability and user satisfaction. We contribute to research on Creativity and Cognition by demonstrating a working creativity support system, empirically evaluating the system, and describing how scaffolding approaches can be designed for other crowdsourced tasks
The ultrastructure of Helicodictyon planctonicum (Chlorophyceae)

Abstract Helicodictyon planctonicum (Whitford) Whitford & Schumacher (Chlorophyta) is a rare freshwater alga usually assigned to the order Chaetophorales but also reported to show features resembling members of the order Chlorococcales. In order to help clarify its phylogenetic position, an ultra-structural study was performed. The filamentous branching pattern and absence of a perinuclear envelope of endoplasmic reticulum during mitosis in H. planctonicum resemble features found among members of the Chaetophorales. However, the first and second cell divisions are perpendicular to each other as is common among chlorococcalean algae (Biebel, 1968). Additional chlorococcalean features exhibited by H. planctonicum include pyrenoids traversed by thylakoids, centrioles at the division plane following mitosis, and cytokinesis by furrowing. Therefore, it appears that H. planctonicum may be more closely allied with the Chlorococcales. However, failure to observe a phycoplast suggests Helicodictyon should be exami...
Factors Influencing Household Recycling Behavior

To investigate factors encouraging or deterring recycling, telephone interviews were used to study recycling behavior, attitudes, and knowledge of 221 randomly selected adults in a suburban city th...
A lab-on-a-chip for rapid blood separation and quantification of hematocrit and serum analytes

In this work, a new lab-on-a-chip for rapid analysis of low volume blood samples was designed, fabricated and demonstrated for integration of serum separation, hematocrit evaluation, and protein quantitation. Blood separation was achieved using microchannel flow-based separation. A novel method for evaluating hematocrit from microfluidic flow-separated blood samples was developed using gray scale analysis of a point-and-shoot digital photograph of separated blood in a micochannel. Protein quantitation was subsequently performed in a high surface area-to-volume ratio microfluidic chemiluminescent immunoassay using cell depleted serum produced by microfluidic flow-based separation of whole blood samples. All three steps were achieved in a single microchannel with separation of blood samples and hematocrit evaluation in less than 1 min, and protein quantitation in 5 min.
Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, EEG and behavior: The importance of adaptation to the testing milieu

Abstract Δ 9 -Tetrahydrocannabinol ( Δ 9 -THC) in doses of 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mg/kg, i.v. was administered to adult rabbits previously adapted to the testing chamber. Additionally, a group of rabbits not adapted to any part of the testing regimen was administered 1.0 mg/kg Δ 9 -THC. Cortical and hippocampal electroencephalographs as well as postural and activity behaviors of the unrestrained animals were recorded. In the adapted rabbits, there were dose-related increases in cortical voltage output, disruption of hippocampal theta rhythm and cortical polyspike bursts. Behaviorally, there was a dose-related tendency for standing and exploration to decrease, and at 0.5 and 1.0 mg/kg, Δ 9 -THC produced sprawling. In the nonadapted rabbits, administration of 1.0 mg/kg of the drug caused EEG and behavioral stimulation followed by depression of both. The results suggest that the behavioral actions of cannabinols are largely dependent upon the animal's existing state of arousal.
Corneal Lymphatic Valve Formation in Relation to Lymphangiogenesis

PURPOSE We have recently provided evidence showing that luminal lymphatic valves are formed right after the onset of corneal inflammatory lymphangiogenesis (LG). The purpose of this study was to further characterize the long-term time course, spatial distribution, directional orientation, and functional implications of the valve formation in relation to corneal LG. METHODS Corneal LG was induced in normal adult BALB/c mice by a modified suture placement model with equal distribution in the nasal and temporal side. Whole-mount corneas were harvested every 2 weeks for up to 8 weeks post suturing for immunofluorescent microscopic assays. Quantitative analysis on both lymphatic vessels and valves was performed by using National Institutes of Health ImageJ software. Corneal lymphatic live imaging was performed to show functional drainage of the valves. RESULTS Lymphatic vessel invasion areas at 4, 6, and 8 weeks were significantly less than the peak at 2 weeks post corneal suturing. In contrast, the ratio of lymphatic valves to vessel invasion area was at its lowest at 2 weeks with a peak approximately at 6 weeks post suturing. Lymphatic valves were more localized in the nasal quadrant at all time points studied, and most of the well-formed valves were directionally oriented toward the limbus. The lymphatic valves function to guide lymphatic drainage outside the cornea. CONCLUSIONS This study presents new insights into corneal lymphatic valve formation and function in inflammatory LG. Further investigation on lymphatic valves may provide novel strategies to interfere with lymphatic maturation and function and to treat lymphatic-related disorders.
Conjunctival Melanocytic Lesions in Children

Abstract Seventy-one conjunctival melanocytic proliferations in patients 20 years of age or younger were examined. Sixty-five (91.5%) were nevi; there were three cases (4.2%) of racial or acquired melanosis, and three patients were identified who had malignant melanoma of the conjunctiva. The melanoma patients are presented in detail, and additional cases of conjunctival melanoma in children and adolescents reported in the literature are reviewed to determine factors that might influence prognosis. The number of cases is so small, however, that factors cannot be identified with confidence. Follow-up data are presented. Conjunctival nevi are relatively common in children, and appear to carry no risk for the development of melanoma during childhood. However, conjunctival melanomas do occur rarely in children and have a variable prognosis.
204 SYSTEMIC CARNITINE DEFICIENCY PRESENTING AS FAMILIAL ENDOCARDIAL FIBROELRSTOSIS (EFE)

Familial occurrence of EFE suggests an inborn error of myocardial metabolism. We studied a family in which 4 of 5 sibs had EFE, apparently due to systemic carnitine deficiency(SCD). 3 of 5 died suddenly before age 3 with EFE at autopsy. Abnormal mitochondria were found in skeletal and cardiac muscle of the 3rd. The surviving 4th sib with EFE, without muscle weakness had a plasma carnitine level(PCL)of 4.8mcM/L(Nl,50±10), skeletal muscle carnitine level(MCL)of 30nM/gm(Nl,5000). On oral L-carnitine,(L-carnitine supplied by Sigma-Tau, Rome, Italy) PCL rose to 43.7mcM/L, exercise tolerance improved, mitral insufficiency resolved, ST-T changes partially reversed. Retrospective study of the 3rd sib's tissue found a serum CL of 4.5mcM/L, MCL of 30.9nM/gm, cardiac CL of 56.8nM/gm(Nl,5000), liver CL of 120.7 nM/gm(Nl,400). A 5th sib and the parents have low Nl PCL. Cardiac metabolism is almost entirely aerobic, with mitochondrial oxidation of fatty acids providing over 65% of energy supply. Carnitine is required for fatty acid transport into mitochondria. Deficiency causes fatty deposits in cytoplasm and depressed mitochondrial function. EFE may result from lowered cardiac mitochondrial activity with inadequate oxidative phosphorylation causing-poor myocardial contractility, compensatory dilatation and hypertrophy, subendocardial ischemia and fibrosis. PCL and muscle biopsy are indicated in EFE to exclude SCD, a treatable cause of cardiomyopathy.
Tryptophan 60-D in the B-insertion loop of thrombin modulates the thrombin-antithrombin reaction.

In a recent study it was demonstrated that thrombin des-PPW reacts with antithrombin (AT) very poorly. In this study it is shown that a Trp to Ala (W60A) mutant of thrombin also reacts with AT at a lower rate than thrombin. The inhibition kinetics were studied by the slow-binding kinetic approach. In both the presence and absence of heparin, the pseudo-first-order rate constant of thrombin inhibition (kobs) increased linearly with AT concentration, indicating that inhibition, in the concentration range covered, conforms to a bimolecular reaction E+I-->K assn E-I. Only the second-order association rate constant (kassn) for thrombin can be estimated [6.8 +/- 2.7) x 10(3) M-1 s-1 in the absence of heparin and (4.1 +/- 1.2) x 10(6) M-1 s-1 in the presence of heparin]. With W60A and des-PPW, the kobs of inhibition increased hyperbolically as a function of AT concentration, indicating that the inhibition is a two-step process according to E+I K init E.I-->k2 E-I. The kinetic constants for W60A were estimated to be Kinit = 13.6 +/- 3.3 microM and k2 = 0.007 +/- 0.001 s-1 in the absence of heparin and K init = 13.6 +/- 3.1 nM and k2 = 0.008 +/- 0.002 s-1 in the presence of heparin. AT inhibited des-PPW very slowly [K assn = (2.9 +/- 0.7) x 10(1) M-1 s-1], but heparin accelerated the reaction approximately 20,000-fold and made it possible to demonstrate a two-step reaction mechanism for des-PPW with K init = 10.4 +/- 2.3 nM and k2 = 0.006 +/- 0.001 s-1. In contrast to thrombin, an active AT-binding pentasaccharide enhanced the inhibition of des-PPW approximately 15-fold. These results indicate that (1) in contrast to thrombin, the heparin-induced conformational change in AT is required for optimal inhibition of des-PPW and (1) Trp60 is essential for normal thrombin-AT reaction. On the basis of these results, a modified model for thrombin-AT interaction is proposed.
Boundary layers for the upper convected Maxwell fluid

Abstract We discuss boundary layers arising in the high Weissenberg number limit of viscoelastic flows and the scalings that arise in analyzing them. Two quite distinct mechanisms for the formation of viscoelastic boundary layers exist: One mechanism is analogous to that of the Prandtl boundary layer and is linked to the enforcement of the no-slip boundary condition. The other mechanism has nothing to do with the no-slip condition, but is linked to long memory which manifests itself in different stresses near the wall versus some distance from the wall. In certain situations, these stress boundary layers may be embedded within Prandtl type boundary layers.
Lipid metabolism in kidney undergoing compensatory hypertrophy.

SummaryThe increased P32 uptake of the various phosphorus-containing fractions during hypertrophy in liver and prostatic tissue is not exhibited during renal hypertrophy. It is suggested that the P32 increases seen in the liver and prostatic tissue during hypertrophy are associated with subsequent mitotic activity found in these tissues.
Issues relating to the UN system of national accounts and developing countries

Abstract The recent revision of the United Nations System of National Accounts (SNA) represents improved harmonization of the international trade, balance of payments, government finance and monetary data collected by national and international statistical agencies. Although such harmonization is welcomed by the developing countries, a number of other major unresolved issues remain. Specifically, the SNA has not solved problems relating to (1) delineation of the formal and informal sectors of an economy, (2) appropriate treatment of market and non-market production, and (3) satisfactory analysis of sector saving and capital formation and (4) harmonization of household sector macrodata with household survey microdata.
cAMP-dependent Phosphorylation of Two Sites in the α Subunit of the Cardiac Sodium Channel

The voltage-sensitive Na+ channel is responsible for generating action potentials in the heart which are critical for coordinated cardiac muscle contraction. Cardiac Na+ channels are regulated by cAMP-dependent phosphorylation, but the sites of phosphorylation are not known. Using mammalian cells expressing the rat cardiac Na+ channel (rH1) alpha subunit and site-specific antibodies, we have shown that the alpha subunit of rat heart Na+ channel is phosphorylated selectively by cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) in vitro and in intact cells. Analysis of the sites of phosphorylation by two-dimensional phosphopeptide mapping and site-directed mutagenesis of fusion proteins revealed that the cardiac alpha subunit is phosphorylated selectively in vitro by PKA on Ser526 and Ser529 in the intracellular loop connecting homologous domains I and II (LI-II). These two residues were phosphorylated in intact cells expressing the rH1 alpha subunit when PKA was activated. Our results define a different pattern of phosphorylation of LI-II of cardiac and brain Na+ channels and implicate phosphorylation of Ser526 and Ser529 in the differential regulation of cardiac and brain Na+ channels by PKA.
Relation of Smoking, Drinking and Physical Activity to Changes in Vision Over a 20-Year Period: The Beaver Dam Eye Study

Objective To describe the relationships of lifestyle characteristics to changes in vision and incidence of visual impairment (VI) over a 20-year period in the Beaver Dam Eye Study (BDES). Design Longitudinal, population-based cohort study. Participants A cohort of 4926 persons aged 43 to 86 years participated in the baseline examinations in 1988–1990, and 3721, 2962, 2375, and 1913 persons participated in follow-up examinations in 1993–1995, 1998–2000, 2003–2005, and 2008–2010, respectively. Methods Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) measured by a modified Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study protocol. Main Outcome Measures Change in number of letters read correctly and incidence of VI based on BCVA in the better eye assessed at each examination over a 20-year period. Results The 20-year cumulative incidence of VI was 5.4%. There was a mean loss of 1.6 letters between examinations, with a 20-year loss of 6.6 letters. While adjusting for age, income, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) severity, being a current or past smoker was related to a greater change in the numbers of letters lost. Persons who had not consumed alcoholic beverages over the past year and sedentary persons had higher odds of incident VI than persons who drank occasionally or who were physically active. For example, in women with early AMD and annual household income less than $10 000, the estimated 20-year cumulative incidence of VI in those who drank occasionally and were physically active was 5.9% compared with 25.8% in women who had not consumed alcoholic beverages over the past year and were sedentary. Conclusions Three modifiable behaviors—smoking, drinking alcohol, and physical activity—were associated with changes in vision. Further evidence that changes in these behaviors will result in less loss of vision is needed because of the expected increase in the burden of VI due to the aging of the population.
Investigating Social Support and Network Relationships in Substance Use Disorder Recovery

ABSTRACTBackground: Social support and characteristics of one's social network have been shown to be beneficial for abstinence and substance use disorder recovery. The current study explores how specific sources of social support relate to general feelings of social support and abstinence-specific self-efficacy. Methods: Data were collected from 31 of 33 individuals residing in 5 recovery houses. Participants were asked to complete social support and social network measures, along with measures assessing abstinence from substance use, abstinence self-efficacy, and involvement in 12-step groups. Results: A significant positive relationship was found between general social support and abstinence-specific self-efficacy. General social support was also significantly associated with the specific social support measures of sense of community and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) affiliation. Social network size predicted abstinence-related factors such as AA affiliation and perceived stress. Conclusions: These results ...
Discriminating among alternative production functions in Polish industry

Large scale econometric models for both market-type and socialist centrally planned economies generally specify production relationships in the form of an aggregate production function. This paper addresses the problem of specifying the functional form of the production function for a socialist centrally planned economy: Poland. Three production functions, Cobb-Douglas, CES and VES, are estimated and a non-nested test for functional form is performed using a pooled cross section-time series regression technique. The estimates of the Cobb-Douglas specification are slightly superior to those of the CES and VES specifications, but the latter provide important detail for historical analysis and interesting implications for growth.
Medullary carcinoma of breast, fourteen years without recurrence: Scirrhous carcinoma of opposite breast

Abstract 1. 1. Cases of adenocarcinoma of the breast with axillary involvement living fourteen and one-half years after operation are rare. 2. 2. In this case no recurrence was noted, nor were metastases found, fourteen and one-half years after removal of the left breast for adenocarcinoma with extensive axillary metastases. 3. 3. A second tumor, also carcinoma but of a different structure and without axillary involvement, was discovered in the opposite breast. 4. 4. The pathologic slides of the first tumor fortunately were available for comparison with the slides of the second growth, thus facilitating the proof of two independent neoplasms. 5. 5. There is no evidence to show that either tumor developed on the basis of chronic cystic mastitis.
A Circadian Sleep Disorder Reveals a Complex Clock

Circadian rhythms are established by transcription of clock genes and autoregulatory transcriptional feedback loops. In this issue, Xu et al. (2007) characterize mice expressing a human Per2 mutation identified in patients with familial advanced sleep phase syndrome. Their results reveal that PER2 phosphorylation, by CK1δ and other kinases, is surprisingly complex and has opposite effects on PER2 levels and period length.
Shifting of the Kosi River, northern India

The Kosi River shifts laterally over the Himalaya foreland plain by continual minor cutoffs and bank cutting and by episodic major shifts across watersheds, by moving into and then out of preexisting, adjacent, less actively aggrading streams. Migration is unidirectional because after a channel is filled to instability, floodwater will drain preferentially into a new adjacent low rather than across it to the next watershed or back to the last abandoned channel. Major shifts seem stochastic and autocyclic; they do not correlate with the many severe quakes and floods that undoubtedly helped prime the system for shifts.
Suspended particulate organic material from hydrothermal vent waters at 21° N

Ocean floor spreading centres described recently consist of several sites with chemical and biological features unlike any oceanic sites previously known1–4. The high-pressure and warm-temperature regimes at these sites, coupled with dynamic hydrothermal water circulation, support biological communities that utilize a source of primary production which appears to be non-photosynthetic5. A detailed biochemical analysis of the suspended matter at a biologically-active site has been undertaken, with the goal of describing the relationship between microorganisms, benthic organisms and suspended particulate material within these hydrothermal systems. Suspended particulate matter from warm hydrothermal vent waters (5–38°C) of the East Pacific Rise1–4 (21° N, 106° W) was sampled on the OASIS expedition with an in situ pumping system in April 1982. Particulate organic carbon (POC) and nitrogen (PON) as well as individual organic compound classes from the lipid fraction were analysed to ascertain the sources and composition of the organic matter in this highly productive area. We show here that the particulate organic material (POM) of the vent water was both quantitatively and qualitatively different from the non-vent bottom water. The POC and PON measured within the vent and non-vent waters vary by a factor of 2–5, the higher values being in warm water. The organic matter in the non-vent water was found to be more resistant towards degradation or remineralization than in the vent water, as shown by the C:N ratio and the total lipid:POC ratio. Contributions to the lipid class compounds were assessed using well-known organic compound source biomarkers such as hydrocarbons, fatty alcohols, sterols, triacylglycerols and steryl and wax esters.
A Simplified Method for the Occlusion of the Venae Cavae During Cardiopulmonary Bypass

The method of caval occlusion during cardiopulmonary bypass using snares is at times cumbersome. An alternative technique of caval occlusion around venous cannulas using elastomer tape is described.