cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Crystal structure of the epithelial calcium channel TRPV6

Precise regulation of calcium homeostasis is essential for many physiological functions. The Ca2+-selective transient receptor potential (TRP) channels TRPV5 and TRPV6 play vital roles in calcium homeostasis as Ca2+ uptake channels in epithelial tissues. Detailed structural bases for their assembly and Ca2+ permeation remain obscure. Here we report the crystal structure of rat TRPV6 at 3.25 A resolution. The overall architecture of TRPV6 reveals shared and unique features compared with other TRP channels. Intracellular domains engage in extensive interactions to form an intracellular ‘skirt’ involved in allosteric modulation. In the K+ channel-like transmembrane domain, Ca2+ selectivity is determined by direct coordination of Ca2+ by a ring of aspartate side chains in the selectivity filter. On the basis of crystallographically identified cation-binding sites at the pore axis and extracellular vestibule, we propose a Ca2+ permeation mechanism. Our results provide a structural foundation for understanding the regulation of epithelial Ca2+ uptake and its role in pathophysiology. The X-ray crystal structure of rat transient receptor potential channel TRPV6 at 3.25 A resolution is reported, providing new insights into its assembly and calcium-selective permeation. The transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are a superfamily of cation-permeable ion channels that act as transducers of sensory modalities, including temperature, taste, olfaction, vision, hearing and touch. TRPV5 and TRPV6 are TRP channels that are highly selective for Ca2+, and they play vital roles in calcium homeostasis. In this manuscript, the authors report the X-ray crystal structure of rat TRPV6 at 3.25 A resolution. Although the overall architecture of TRPV6 is fairly similar to that of TRPV1, this new structure reveals that exceptionally high Ca2+ selectivity is achieved via the direct coordination of Ca2+ by a ring of aspartate side chains in the selectivity filter. This work provides a structural foundation to understanding the regulation of epithelial Ca2+ uptake and its role in pathophysiology.
Risk Management in Endoscopic Practice

All physicians who perform endoscopy should be mindful of the tenets of risk management and how they apply to their endoscopic practices. This article addresses how retrospective review of individual endoscopic practice habits, quality assurance committees, and a commitment to physician education can minimize risk in the practice of gastrointestinal endoscopy.
Finding a solution to the organ shortage.

Few topics have attracted so many authors writing with such remarkable verve and conviction to no substantial effect as the question of what to do about the shortage of organs available for transplantation. For the better part of four decades, supply has not kept pace with demand. The shortage has
Segment Morphogenesis in Artemia Larvae

Development in brine shrimp nauplii includes the sequential formation of segments in the growing thorax and abdomen beginning at the anterior end[1,3]. After nineteen instars the segments are complete. In each segment two ventro-lateral thoracopods, segmental and intersegmental muscles, segmental ganglia, and peripheral nerves are formed over a period of three to four molt cycles[2,4,5]. This type of development is typical of primitive crustaceans and may mimic the embryonic development of the higher crustaceans[6].
A clue, the cash, the commitment, and the courage: the keys to a successful simulation project

While the technical approach to creating a simulation project is understood, there are very important aspects of the process that are not often discussed but which are critical to the success of the project.This paper aims to discuss four key elements imperative to conducting an effective simulation study and how they impact the progress of the study.• The Clue: determining when and why to use simulation and what issues will be addressed• The Cash: understanding the financial costs and the impact of the project• The Commitment and the Courage: the importance of having a team committed to the endeavor and having the courage to make hard decisions so that the project will be successfulEach of these key factors are critical to starting a successful project and keeping it on track towards proposing effective solutions for the problems the model was designed to address.
Equity-based sustainability and ecocentric management: Creating more ecologically just sport organization practices

Abstract Recognizing the shared responsibility all entities with a vested interest in keeping the Earth habitable possess, the authors propose ways in which sport organizations can take action by incorporating ecocentric management principles within their organizational practices and thus become more ecologically just. First, by drawing upon the tenets of the systems thinking paradigm and the four levels of thinking model, the underlying beliefs and values guiding current practices within sport organizations are identified. Next, the authors offer a series of propositions to suggest that by adopting an equity-based perspective, recognizing the interdependent relationships between humans and the natural environment, and acknowledging the manner in which sport organizations hinder the opportunities of the natural environment to thrive, sport organizations can contribute to the health of the planet and all of its inhabitants through their own organizational practices. Additionally, sport organizations can also serve as ecologically just exemplars for organizations in other industries to emulate.
Two-Level Fractional-Factorial Designs

We continue our examination of two-level factorial designs with discussion of a design technique that is very popular because it allows the study of a relatively large number of factors without running all combinations of the levels of the factors, as done in our earlier 2 k designs. In Chap. 10, we introduced confounding schemes, where we ran all 2 k treatment combinations, although in two or more blocks. Here, we introduce the technique of running a fractional design, that is, running only a portion, or fraction, of all the treatment combinations. Of course, whatever fraction of the total number of combinations is going to be run, the specific treatment combinations chosen must be carefully determined. These designs are called fractional-factorial designs and are widely used for many types of practical problems.
Role of gp130 in basal and exercise-trained skeletal muscle mitochondrial quality control.

Although the IL-6 family of cytokines has been implicated in the regulation of skeletal muscle protein turnover and metabolism, less is understood about its role in mitochondrial quality control. W...
Non-Anti-Neutrophil Anti-Cytoplasmic Antibodies Associated Methimazole-Induced Nephritis: Case and Review of Literature

Current anti-thyroid therapy is rarely associated with adverse effects such as vasculitis or nephritis. Historically, vasculitis associated with anti-thyroid therapy is associated with anti-neutrophil anti-cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA). Here, we report a rare case of ANCA-negative interstitial nephritis secondary to methimazole, resulting in end organ renal failure. A 27-year-old male with a history of Graves’ hyperthyroidism on methimazole anti-thyroid therapy presented to the hospital with shortness of breath and chest pain, complicated by a pericardial effusion and acute kidney injury (AKI) requiring emergent hemodialysis. The diagnosis of drug-induced ANCA-negative vasculitis was based on the temporal relationship between clinically evident vasculitis and treatment with methimazole, after excluding other causes of vasculitis. The lack of ANCA-associated positivity should not deter clinicians from considering stopping the offending agent and pursuing more definitive therapy (radioactive iodine or surgery as appropriate). J Endocrinol Metab. 2018;8(2-3):47-51 doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/jem505w
Similar Intrapatient Blood Glucose Variability with LY2963016 and Lantus® Insulin Glargine in Patients with Type 1 (T1D) or Type 2 Diabetes, Including a Japanese T1D Subpopulation.

LY2963016 insulin glargine (LY IGlar) and Lantus® (IGlar), both with identical primary amino acid sequences, were compared in two phase 3 studies for intrapatient blood glucose variability. ELEMENT-1 was a 52-week study in patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), which included Japanese patients, and ELEMENT-2 was a 24-week study in non-Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). In ELEMENT-1, 535 patients with T1D were evaluable (268 LY IGlar and 267 IGlar). Of these, 100 were Japanese patients (49 LY IGlar and 51 IGlar). In ELEMENT-2, 756 patients with T2D were evaluable (376 LY IGlar and 380 IGlar). We evaluated and compared intrapatient blood glucose variability of LY IGlar and IGlar in these studies from three different perspectives: intrapatient between-day fasting blood glucose variability, intrapatient between-day daily mean blood glucose variability, and intrapatient within-day blood glucose variability. Overall, evaluations of all three indices showed that intrapatient blood glucose variability was similar between LY IGlar and IGlar throughout the study periods both in the overall populations of patients with T1D and T2D and also in the subgroup of Japanese patients with T1D. Intrapatient blood glucose variability between LY IGlar and IGlar was shown to be similar in patients with T1D or T2D. NCT01421147 (ELEMENT-1) and NCT01421459 (ELEMENT-2). Eli Lilly and Company (Indianapolis, IN, USA); Boehringer-Ingelheim (Ridgefield, CT, USA); Eli Lilly Japan K.K. (Kobe, Japan) and Nippon Boehringer Ingelheim Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan).
Antifungal photodynamic inactivation against dermatophyte Trichophyton rubrum using nanoparticle-based hybrid photosensitizers

Trichophyton rubrum is one of the most common dermatophytes, which can cause fungal nail and ringworm infections. Infections associated with T. rubrum have become a global phenomenon. Herein, we report the antifungal photodynamic inactivation of T. rubrum (ATCC 28188) using the mesoporous silica-coated silver nanoparticle-based hybrid photosensitizers without involving antifungal drugs. Results show that the hybrid photosensitizers display low cytotoxicity under the experimental conditions where significant killing (∼3 orders of magnitude) against T. rubrum is observed. These results demonstrate the potential applications of the nanoparticle-based hybrid photosensitizers in antifungal photodynamic therapy against T. rubrum.
Refactoring, Refinement, and Reasoning

Refactoring of code is a common device in software engineering. As cyber-physical systems CPS become ever more complex, similar engineering practices become more common in CPS development. Proper safe developments of CPS designs are accompanied by a proof of correctness. Since the inherent complexities of CPS practically mandate iterative development, frequent changes of models are standard practice, but require reverification of the resulting models after every change. To overcome this issue, we develop proof-aware refactorings for CPS. That is, we study model transformations on CPS and show how they correspond to relations on correctness proofs. As the main technical device, we show how the impact of model transformations on correctness can be characterized by different notions of refinement in differential dynamic logic. Furthermore, we demonstrate the application of refinements on a series of safety-preserving and liveness-preserving refactorings. For some of these we can give strong results by proving on a meta-level that they are correct. Where this is impossible, we construct proof obligations for showing that the refactoring respects the refinement relation.
Applications: Asynchronous Transfer Mode and Synchronous Optical Network

This chapter illustrates the fundamental characteristics of telecommunications and data networks and the resulting requirements on integrated services networks. Integration of these two applications initially started in wide-area networks, where economic considerations dictated that data networks use existing telephony infrastructures. However, the increasing use of digital media types promises that integration can reach both the corporate office and home or consumer networks in the future. Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) refers to an enabling network technology that supports broadband-integrated services. ATM essentially defines a common layer of interoperability called the ATM layer, on which various services ranging from telephony and video conferencing to TCP/IP data networking and multimedia can be delivered. The ATM layer defines a common format used for switching and multiplexing bit streams from one end of an ATM network to another. ATM can be implemented on variety of physical layers. It also supports a variety of different services and traffic classes by providing different adaptation layers to higher network levels.
Seeding of Transformations

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the seeding of ceramic reactions and kinetics of seeded transformations. Seeding of ceramic transformations has been demonstrated in a variety of systems. Homoepitaxy, in which the seed and desired phase have identical lattice parameters and crystal structures, is the most likely prospect for nucleation manipulation in ceramic systems. In some cases, the seed surface is sufficiently different from the bulk crystal so that its potency for initiating nucleation is diminished. Besides selection by seed crystal structure and lattice parameter, it is also essential to know the intrinsic nucleation density of the system being seeded. Nucleation and growth transformations of unseeded systems are characterized by S-shaped kinetics preceded by an incubation period of no reaction. When seeded and heated at the same temperature, the transformation is almost instantaneous and the transformation temperature is significantly lowered. It is found that by changing the diffusion path to a liquid or vapor, the enhanced rate of diffusion relative to solid-state diffusion can cause the lowering of the α-alumina transformation temperature by an additional 200°C.
A Critical Methodological Review of Mixed Methods Designs Used in Mindfulness Research

There is growing recognition of the importance and value of integrating quantitative and qualitative research in the same study to provide a better understanding of a research question, to capture the complexity of an experience, and for generating more questions of interest for future studies. As the interest in adopting a mixed methods approach in mindfulness research continues to grow, details can be lacking in terms of how a study was conducted and the procedures used to analyze and interpret the data. In an attempt to understand the pattern of how mixed methods research was used in mindfulness research, we conducted a critical methodological review using content analysis. Specifically, mixed methods articles related to mindfulness research were evaluated in terms of how the articles included key components of mixed methods research designs. From our sample (N = 35), none of the articles included all of the recommended components (explicitly state the mixed methods design, the mixed methods research question(s), the rationale for mixed methods, the priority of the strands, and cite mixed methods literature) in a published mixed methods research study. Findings reveal the growing acceptance of mixed methods studies in mindfulness research and the need for more rigor when using mixed methods designs. Researchers are encouraged to clearly outline the reasons for their design and their research questions. This article provides recommendations and can serve as a reference for mindfulness research using mixed methods designs.
Life Stress and Human Disorder: Conceptualization and Measurement of the Disordered Group

Since the publication of the Dohrenwends’ classic book a decade ago (Dohrenwend & Dohrenwend, 1974), substantial improvement in the conceptualization and measurement of life events and social support has occurred. New, improved inventories appear regularly, more complex models are proposed, and advances in statistical sophistication are particularly noteworthy. In spite of these efforts, Rabkin and Struening’s (1976) conclusion, in reviewing the pre-1976 research, that life events account at the very best for 9% of the explained variance in predicting human disorder(2) still holds true. Although the evidence on social support is less extensive, recent studies which control for other input variables suggest that support is also a weak predictor of outcome status (e.g., Monroe, 1983; Williams, Ware, & Donald, 1981). In almost reflexive style, social scientists have viewed the poor predictive power of these input variables as due to inadequacies in measurement, research design, and theory. Such inadequacies may indeed prove to be limiting factors, but the possibility that other factors may account for the limited predictive power of event and support variables seems worth entertaining.
Extending the Applicability of the Community Multiscale Air Quality Model to Hemispheric Scales: Motivation, Challenges, and Progress

The adaptation of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system to simulate O3, particulate matter, and related precursor distributions over the northern hemisphere is presented. Hemispheric simulations with CMAQ and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model are performed for the year 2006 using identical projections and grid configurations. The ability of the model to represent long-range transport of air pollutants is analyzed for selected cases through comparison with available surface, aloft and remotely sensed observations. These demonstrate the feasibility of extending the applicability of the CMAQ modeling system to hemispheric scales to provide a conceptual framework to examine interactions between atmospheric processes occurring at various spatial and temporal scales in a consistent manner.
Heterozygous mutation of Sonic Hedgehog receptor (Ptch) drives cerebellar overgrowth and sex-specifically alters hippocampal and cortical layer structure, activity, and social behavior in female mice

Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling is essential for the differentiation and migration of early stem cell populations during cerebellar development. Dysregulation of SHH-signaling can result in cerebellar overgrowth and the formation of the brain tumor medulloblastoma. Treatment for medulloblastoma is extremely aggressive and patients suffer life-long side effects including behavioral deficits. Considering that other behavioral disorders including autism spectrum disorders, holoprosencephaly, and basal cell nevus syndrome are known to present with cerebellar abnormalities, it is proposed that some behavioral abnormalities could be inherent to the medulloblastoma sequalae rather than treatment. Using a haploinsufficient SHH receptor knockout mouse model (Ptch1+/-), a partner preference task was used to explore activity, social behavior and neuroanatomical changes resulting from dysregulated SHH signaling. Compared to wild-type, Ptch1+/- females displayed increased activity by traveling a greater distance in both open-field and partner preference tasks. Social behavior was also sex-specifically modified in Ptch1+/- females that interacted more with both novel and familiar animals in the partner preference task compared to same-sex wild-type controls. Haploinsufficency of PTCH resulted in cerebellar overgrowth in lobules IV/V and IX of both sexes, and female-specific decreases in hippocampal size and isocortical layer thickness. Taken together, neuroanatomical changes related to deficient SHH signaling may alter social behavior.
Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Antioxidants for the Treatment of Schizophrenia: A Role for Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants have important physiological functions in the brain including energy storage and production, gene expression, and cell signaling. Myelin is formed from the membranes of oligodendrocytes and phospholipid bilayers of these membranes which contain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Reactive oxygen species are created as part of the normal metabolism of oxygen within the cell and are important for cell signaling and homeostasis. Enzymes such as superoxide dismutase and glutathione are antioxidants that protect against free radicals that can damage cellular structure. Further, although the use of polyunsaturated fatty acid and antioxidants as potential therapeutic agents to treat individuals with or at risk for psychosis has generated considerable enthusiasm given their relative safety, minimal side effects, and low cost, clinical studies have yielded inconsistent evidence regarding their efficacy. The use of magnetic resonance imaging techniques such as diffusion tensor imaging and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy, however, could provide information regarding the mechanism(s) of action for these compounds. For example, several studies have demonstrated a consistent relationship between peripheral omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid levels and fractional anisotropy, a putative measure of white matter integrity obtained using diffusion tensor imaging. Magnetic resonance imaging studies may also provide information about whether there are subgroups of individuals with psychosis who may be responsive to intervention with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and/or antioxidants. This approach could hold promise for better understanding how these compounds affect brain structure and function to elucidate possible targets for treatment intervention that can benefit patients.
13 – Inverse Problems

Publisher Summary This chapter presents an overview of the inverse problems. The field of inverse problems is filled with specialized theorems that are useful for specific applications. There are theorems that are used to determine which inverse problems may be solved. The chapter considers a eigenvalue problem −u′′ + q(x)u = λu, for 0 ≤ x ≤ 1; u(0)cosα + u′(0) sin α = 0; and u(1)cos β + u ′(1)sin β = 0 where λ is a complex parameter, q(x) is a real-valued function that is integrable on the interval [0,1], and α and β are values in the interval [0, π]. One common technique to show uniqueness for an inverse problem is to investigate a mapping between the solutions of two equations with different values for the parameter(s) of interest. The chapter also highlights that the numerical methods used to solve inverse problems tend to result in ill-conditioned systems
Chapter 81 – Chlamydia trachomatis

The obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis is arguably the most common sexually transmitted bacterial pathogen worldwide and a major cause of blindness in underdeveloped countries. Urogenital chlamydial infection is mostly asymptomatic or exhibits very mild symptoms. However, if left untreated, it can result in devastating complications, with tubal factor infertility and pelvic inflammatory diseases being the most common outcomes, and ectopic pregnancy being the most dangerous consequence. Like other chlamydiae, C. trachomatis has a unique developmental cycle, which consists of two distinct cellular forms, and is accompanied by a temporal expression pattern of genes and small non-coding RNAs. C. trachomatis strains display strikingly different tissue tropisms, which correlate with a small number of genes differentially existing in their genomes. A conserved plasmid has been identified as a critical virulence factor. A long-awaited transformation system developed on the basis of the plasmid is anticipated to greatly facilitate the understanding of chlamydial biology in coming years.
Multiple shifts in gene network interactions shape phenotypes of Drosophila melanogaster selected for long and short night sleep duration

All but the simplest phenotypes are believed to result from interactions between two or more genes forming complex networks of gene regulation. Sleep is a complex trait known to depend on the system of feedback loops of the circadian clock, and on many other genes; however, the main components regulating the phenotype and how they interact remain an unsolved puzzle. Genomic and transcriptomic data may well provide part of the answer, but a full account requires a suitable quantitative framework. Here we conducted an artificial selection experiment for sleep duration with RNA-seq data acquired each generation. The phenotypic results are robust across replicates and previous experiments, and the transcription data provides a high-resolution, time-course data set for the evolution of sleep-related gene expression. In addition to a Hierarchical Generalized Linear Model analysis of differential expression that accounts for experimental replicates we develop a flexible Gaussian Process model that estimates interactions between genes. 145 gene pairs are found to have interactions that are different from controls. Our method not only is considerably more specific than standard correlation metrics but also more sensitive, finding correlations not significant by other methods. Statistical predictions were compared to experimental data from public databases on gene interactions.
Trait Self-Control, Inhibition, and Executive Functions: Rethinking some Traditional Assumptions

This paper draws on work in the sciences of the mind to cast doubt on some assumptions that have often been made in the study of self-control. Contra a long, Aristotelian tradition, recent evidence suggests that highly self-controlled individuals do not have a trait very similar to continence: they experience relatively few desires that conflict with their evaluative judgments and are not especially good at directly and effortfully inhibiting such desires. Similarly, several recent studies have failed to support the view that self-control capacities are constituted, at least in part, by excellent inhibitory executive function ability. I propose an alternative “indirect harmony” hypothesis about trait self-control. According to this hypothesis, if there is a character trait of being highly self-controlled, it consists in motivational harmony within the mind that is brought about through the effective use of indirect resistance strategies that prevent occurrent motivational conflict from emerging in the first place. If this hypothesis is correct, high trait self-control in actual humans does not fit neatly into the traditional categories of either continence or temperance. I conclude by drawing out several implications this hypothesis has for future research on trait self-control and its relation to executive functions.
Tail bounds for empirically standardized sums

Exponential tail bounds for sums play an important role in statistics, but the example of the $t$-statistic shows that the exponential tail decay may be lost when population parameters need to be estimated from the data. However, it turns out that if Studentizing is accompanied by estimating the location parameter in a suitable way, then the $t$-statistic regains the exponential tail behavior. Motivated by this example, the paper analyzes other ways of empirically standardizing sums and establishes tail bounds that are sub-Gaussian or even closer to normal for the following settings: Standardization with Studentized contrasts for normal observations, standardization with the log likelihood ratio statistic for observations from an exponential family, and standardization via self-normalization for observations from a symmetric distribution with unknown center of symmetry. The latter standardization gives rise to a novel scan statistic for heteroscedastic data whose asymptotic power is analyzed.
Struggles Pre-Service Teachers Experience When Taking a Pre-symbolic Algebra Content Course

Pre-symbolic algebra has been advocated for as a mathematics topic elementary students should experience to better prepare them for middle and high school algebra. However, most elementary pre-service teachers have little to no experience with pre-symbolic algebra. The study reported here analysed the struggles that ten elementary pre-service teachers experienced when learning about pre-symbolic algebra in a mathematics content course. Three types of struggles emerged, struggles with changes in the artifacts of algebra, the objects of algebra, and pre-service teachers’ role while doing algebra. This study could inform efforts to better support elementary PSTs in preparing to teach pre-symbolic algebra.
Sonication strategies toward volumetric ultrasound hyperthermia treatment using the ExAblate body MRgFUS system.

Purpose The ExAblate body MRgFUS system requires advanced beamforming strategies for volumetric hyperthermia. This study aims to develop and evaluate electronic beam steering, multi-focal patterns, and sector vortex beamforming approaches in conjunction with partial array activation using an acoustic and biothermal simulation framework along with phantom experiments. Methods The simulation framework was developed to calculate the 3D acoustic intensity and temperature distribution resulting from various beamforming and scanning strategies. A treatment cell electronically sweeping a single focus was implemented and evaluated in phantom experiments. The acoustic and thermal focal size of vortex beam propagation was quantified according to the vortex modes, number of active array elements, and focal depth. Results Turning off a percentage of the outer array to increase the f-number increased the focal size with a decrease in focal gain. 60% active elements allowed generating a sonication cell with an off-axis of 10 mm. The vortex mode number 4 with 60% active elements resulted in a larger heating volume than using the full array. Volumetric hyperthermia in the phantom was evaluated with the vortex mode 4 and respectively performed with 100% and 80% active elements. MR thermometry demonstrated that the volumes were found to be 18.8 and 29.7 cm3, respectively, with 80% array activation producing 1.58 times larger volume than the full array. Conclusions This study demonstrated that both electronic beam steering and sector vortex beamforming approaches in conjunction with partial array activation could generate large volume heating for HT delivery using the ExAblate body array.
Lowest-Order Weak Interactions

Weak interactions are responsible for the radioactivity of nuclear elements as well as the decays of most of the stable elementary particles. A perturbation-theory phenomenological approach to low-energy weak interactions is even more successful than it is for strong interactions because the coupling is weak. But it is on an even less firm theoretical footing due to the “nonrenormalizability” of the current-current weak hamiltonian. Nevertheless, such a perturbation theory again reveals the fundamental role of (weak) currents—both of the lepton and of the hadron type. Accordingly, we discuss weak leptonic, semileptonic, and nonleptonic decays in the language of currents and lowest-order covariant (Feynman) diagrams. As a consequence we shall be able to extract the weak-interaction scale or coupling constant, along with the scales of hadronic currents which we exploited in the last chapter. We also attempt to unify strangeness-conserving and strangeness-changing weak hadronic transitions by introduction of the Cabibbo angle. Finally we look into the nonleptonic weak transitions, which are complicated by strong- as well as weak-interaction dynamics. We shall use the tools of hadronic currents, isospin, and Feynman pole graphs to analyze such nonleptonic decays.
Experimental evaluation of portable electronic flight progress strips

Air traffic service providers are increasingly embracing electronic alternatives to the traditional paper flight progress strip (FPS). However, most development of such electronic systems, and of decision support tools (DSTs) in general, has centered on radar-based en route or terminal-area facilities, rather than the airport air traffic control tower. Based on an analysis of the unique human factors requirements of the control tower environment, a prototype portable electronic FPS has been designed that also serves as an interface to a DST for departure operations. The portable electronic FPS has been implemented using a system of networked, handheld computers as prototype hardware. A study has been conducted to evaluate the usability of the portable electronic FPS. The study consisted of a human-in-the-loop experiment that simulated the tasks an air traffic controller performs at a major airport. Three issues were explored: the importance of FPS portability, the appropriateness of departure sequence DST advisories distributed onto each portable electronic FPS, and the advantages of interaction mechanisms enabled by an electronic interface. Test subjects used multiple versions of the portable electronic FPS as well as a current-day paper FPS. Quantitative measures of departure sequencing efficiency and traffic monitoring ability were recorded for each test subject, as well as subjective FPS preference rankings. This paper reviews the final design and prototype implementation of the portable electronic FPS, presents the design and results of the usability study, and suggests future research that should be pursued in order to create an operationally deployable portable electronic FPS system.
Maggot therapy: A rapid method of removing necrotic tissues

Abstract Maggot therapy is useful not only in the treatment of osteomyelitis but in any other wound containing sloughing tissue which can be exposed by adequate incision. Experience in the treatment of 13 cases of osteomyelitis, 8 carbuncles, 6 sloughing ulcers of the leg, 7 cases of gangrene and 13 other soft tissue lesions has been detailed with the hope that others may recognize this rapid method of removing necrotic tissue. Successful use of maggots demands adequate exposure of the necrotic area. Discomfort may be largely avoided by preventing overcrowding. Simplified forms of dressings for use with maggots are described.
1B1075: a brain- and pituitary-specific mRNA that encodes a novel chromogranin/secretogranin-like component of intracellular vesicles

The rat 1B1075 mRNA encodes a 533-residue novel chromogranin/secretogranin-like acidic protein that contains an apparent secretion signal, several pairs of tandem basic residues, and internally repeated sequence elements. 1B1075 transcripts are detected, by blotting and in situ hybridization, at the highest levels in the neocortex, hippocampus, cerebellar cortex, selected pontine and diencephalic nuclei, and presumptive pituitary corticotrophs, at lower levels in specific nuclei in most other brain regions, but in none of several other tissues. Utilizing antisera to several nonoverlapping synthetic peptide fragments of the predicted protein sequence, we detect a brain- and pituitary-specific 57-kDa protein in cellular processes and fiber tracts, generally consistent with axonal transport from the cell bodies identified by in situ hybridization. Ultrastructural studies demonstrate that this protein is a component of intraneuronal vesicles in axons and vesicle-like structures in dendrites. Based on these data, we suggest the name Secretogranin III for the 1B1075 gene product. In related collaborative studies, a mouse deleted for the 1B1075-homologous gene has been produced that should allow assessment of its physiological role.
Solutions with Shocks for Conservation Laws with Memory

The equations of motion of a one-dimensional body with unit reference density and zero body force, in Lagrangian coordinates, read $$\left\{ {\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {{{\partial }_{t}}u(x,t) - {{\partial }_{x}}v(x,t) = 0} \\ {{{\partial }_{t}}v(x,t) - {{\partial }_{x}}\sigma (x,t) = 0} \\ \end{array} } \right.$$ (0.1) where u is deformation gradient, v is velocity, and denotes σ stress.
Global-scale temperature patterns and climate forcing over the past six centuries

Spatially resolved global reconstructions of annual surface temperature patterns over the past six centuries are based on the multivariate calibration of widely distributed high-resolution proxy climate indicators. Time-dependent correlations of the reconstructions with time-series records representing changes in greenhouse-gas concentrations, solar irradiance, and volcanic aerosols suggest that each of these factors has contributed to the climate variability of the past 400 years, with greenhouse gases emerging as the dominant forcing during the twentieth century. Northern Hemisphere mean annual temperatures for three of the past eight years are warmer than any other year since (at least) ad 1400.
Mapping of Class II Promoter Sites Utilized In Vitro by T7-Specific RNA Polymerase on Bacteriophage T7 DNA

Restriction endonuclease Bgl II cleaves T7 DNA at a unique site (28.76% on the standard T7 map), yielding two fragments of molecular weights 18.9 x 10(6) (A) and 7.6 x 10(6) (B). Fragment B, representing the leftmost portion of the genome, has been purified by zone sedimentation. Transcription of fragment B by T7-specific RNA polymerase gives only r-strand-specific RNA. Analysis of the products by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis reveals four major RNA species which have apparent molecular weights of 2.1 x 10(6), 1.36 x 10(6), 0.85 x 10(6) and 0.125 x 10(6), respectively. Each of these RNAs is reduced in size when transcription is carried out with fragment B, which has been shortened by treatment with Escherichia coli exonuclease III. Therefore, each of the transcripts must be terminated at the right end of fragment B. Analysis of the molecular weights of the four transcripts produced from whole and from exonucleolytically shortened fragment B suggests that these transcripts are read from promoters located at 13.5, 18.9, 22.6, and 27.9%, respectively, on the standard T7 map. Hence, there are at least four promoters governing the transcription of the class II region. Transcripts initiated at these promoters on intact T7 DNA appear to read through the class II and part of the class III genetic region and terminate at the strong terminator for T7-specific RNA polymerase near 61%. Transcription of fragment B which has been cleaved with the restriction endonuclease Hpa I seems to activate a fifth promoter for T7-specific RNA polymerase. This promoter appears to be identical to the promoter previously described by Oakley and Coleman (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 74:4266-4270, 1977) that maps near 15% on the standard T7 map. Little or no RNA is read from T7 Bgl II fragment B, which has a mobility expected for a transcript read from this promoter. However, upon cleavage with Hpa I, this promoter is utilized approximately 10-fold more efficiently than the other class II promoters. The mechanism of this activation is not yet known.
A Generic School Improvement Program: Tailored for Any School:

Although literature about effective schools abounds with suggested models for school improvement, schools must develop their own pro grams, based on their own needs and expectations. However, the generic program described here can provide a basis for a tailor-made program for school improvement.
Impact of levetiracetam on mood and cognition during prednisone therapy

Abstract Purpose Corticosteroid excess is associated with impairment in declarative memory and hippocampal changes. In animals, phenytoin blocks the effects of stress on memory and hippocampal histology. Levetiracetam also shows neuroprotective properties in some animal models. This report examines whether levetiracetam prevents mood or cognitive changes secondary to prescription corticosteroids. Materials and methods Thirty outpatients given systemic corticosteroid therapy for asthma were randomized to either levetiracetam (1500 mg/day) or placebo given concurrently with the corticosteroids. Mood was assessed with the Hamilton rating scale for depression (HRSD), Young mania rating scale (YMRS) and activation (ACT) subscale of the internal state scale, declarative memory with the Rey auditory verbal learning test (RAVLT), and attention and executive functioning with the Stroop color and word test at baseline and after approximately 7 days of corticosteroid plus levetiracetam or placebo therapy. Results Levetiracetam and placebo groups showed significant improvement from baseline to exit on RAVLT total words recalled with a non-significant change on other outcomes. No significant between-group differences were found. Initial prednisone dose showed a significant correlation with change in some cognitive domains. Conclusions Levetiracetam was well tolerated when combined with prednisone. Significant between-group differences in mood and cognition were not found.
Using Literacy Assessment Results to Improve Teaching for English-Language Learners

This article focuses on how data from early literacy assessments can help teachers to better instruct English-language learning students. Data from 52 high-risk schools are used to compare the progress of English learners and English-only students on a variety of literacy assessments. Results reveal that a much higher percentage of Spanish-speaking students remain at the beginning reading level throughout the primary grades. A close-up look at the responses of two of these Spanish-speaking beginning readers provides teachers with insights into what is difficult for English learners, what they grasp more easily, and how they may use background knowledge in Spanish to tackle literacy tasks in English. While similarities in the students' results show they will profit from some of the same developmental activities, the samples also point out how their instructional needs vary. This analysis models the way in which literacy assessments can support a deeper understanding of the strategies and needs of English learners. Educators are encouraged to use literacy assessments to identify individuals and groups of students that require additional support, and provide enriched learning opportunities at their developmental level that build on students' background understandings.
An ergonomics program designed to reduce the incidence of upper extremity work related musculoskeletal disorders.

In 1992, the johns Hopkins Hospital and University initiated a program aimed at the early diagnosis and treatment of potential upper extremity work related musculoskeletal disorders (UEWMSDs), ergonomic assessment and abatement of work areas where individuals with UEWMSDs are employed, as well as the identification and correction of areas throughout the hospital and university where UEWMSDs could possibly occur. The program resulted in an initial increase in the number and cost for the treatment of UEWMSDs. Subsequently, there was a significant decrease in the number of UEWMSDs reported and virtual elimination of the need to use surgical procedures to correct these conditions. This article suggests that a coordinated program of medical care, ergonomic assessment, and intervention can be efficacious in the primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of UEWMSD.
Silicon wedge-trap detector for optical fibre power measurements

We have designed and built an optical fibre power detector based on a large-area silicon PIN photodiode and a concave mirror in a wedge-trap configuration. The detector was designed as a high-accuracy transfer standard for near IR (835-865 nm) optical fibre power measurements with multimode fibre-ribbon cables in a manufacturing-production environment. Additional requirements were that the detector be insensitive to the input beam geometry, and able to accommodate different optical fibre connector types, collimated laser light, and highly diverging light from optical fibres. Four identical copies of the detector were evaluated at the NIST Laser Sources and Detectors Group calibration facility and one was tested in the manufacturing environment. The spatial and angular responsivity was highly uniform and varied less than 1% for angles of incidence ranging from to . Absolute spectral responsivity measurements, for collimated and diverging light input wavelengths ranging from 672-852 nm, showed quantum efficiencies as high as 99%. Linearity measurements from a few nanowatts to a few milliwatts indicated a nonlinearity of only 0.05%.
Effectiveness of interferon α-2b and ribavirin combination therapy in the treatment of naive chronic hepatitis C patients in clinical practice

Abstract Background & Aims: Studies in many diseases have shown that efficacy in clinical trials often does not translate into effectiveness in clinical practice. The aims of this study were to determine the rate of sustained virological response (SVR) and the factors associated with SVR in therapy naive chronic hepatitis C patients treated with interferon α-2b and ribavirin combination therapy at a university outpatient clinic. Methods: The medical records of 153 consecutive chronic hepatitis C patients treated between June 1998 and May 2001 were reviewed. Results: The mean subject age was 44 years, 64% were men, 85% were white, 56% had HCV genotype 1, and 21% had cirrhosis on biopsy. The overall SVR rate was 42% (29% in genotype 1/4; 65% in genotype 2/3). Side effects resulted in interferon or ribavirin dose reductions in 22% of patients and premature termination of treatment in 10%. The SVR rate was significantly higher in the 102 patients who received >80% of the recommended dose and duration of therapy compared with the 51 patients who did not (53% vs. 20%, P = 0.00008). HCV genotype, subject race, and adherence were independently associated with SVR (P
A leavable bounded-velocity stochastic control problem

Abstract This paper studies bounded-velocity control of a Brownian motion when discretionary stopping, or ‘leaving’, is allowed. The goal is to choose a control law and a stopping time in order to minimize the expected sum of a running and a termination cost, when both costs increase as a function of distance from the origin. There are two versions of this problem: the fully observed case , in which the control multiplies a known gain, and the partially observed case , in which the gain is random and unknown. Without the extra feature of stopping, the fully observed problem originates with Benes (Stochastic Process. Appl. 2 (1974) 127–140), who showed that the optimal control takes the ‘bang–bang’ form of pushing with maximum velocity toward the origin. We show here that this same control is optimal in the case of discretionary stopping; in the case of power-law costs, we solve the variational equation for the value function and explicitly determine the optimal stopping policy. We also discuss qualitative features of the solution for more general cost structures. When no discretionary stopping is allowed, the partially observed case has been solved by Benes et al. (Stochastics Monographs, Vol. 5, Gordon & Breach, New York and London, pp. 121–156) and Karatzas and Ocone (Stochastic Anal. Appl. 11 (1993) 569–605). When stopping is allowed, we obtain lower bounds on the optimal stopping region using stopping regions of related, fully observed problems.
Insulin‐like growth factor‐I (IGF‐I) and IGF binding protein‐5 in Schwann cell differentiation

Schwann cells (SCs) are the myelin producing cells of the peripheral nervous system. During development, SCs cease proliferation and differentiate into either a myelin-forming or non-myelin forming mature phenotype. We are interested in the role of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) in SC development. We have shown previously SCs proliferate in response to IGF-I in vitro. In the current study, we investigated the role of IGF-I in SC differentiation. SC differentiation was determined by morphological criteria and expression of myelin proteins. Addition of 1 mM 8-bromo cyclic AMP (cAMP) or growth on Matrigel matrix decreased proliferation and induced differentiation of SCs. IGF-I enhanced both cAMP and Matrigel matrix-induced SC differentiation, as assessed by both morphological criteria and myelin gene expression. Cultured SCs also express IGF binding protein-5 (IGFBP-5), which can modulate the actions of IGF-I. We examined the expression of IGFBP-5 during SC differentiation. Both cAMP and Matrigel matrix treatment enhanced IGFBP-5 protein expression and cAMP increased IGFBP-5 gene expression five fold. These findings suggest IGF-I potentiates SC differentiation. The concomitant up-regulation of IGFBP-5 may play a role in targeting IGF-I to SCs and thus increase local IGF-I bioavailability.