cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cell-type specific codon usage and differentiation.

Abstract This paper presents evidence derived from the selective use of codons in ca. 40 eukaryotic genes (or messages derived from them) that codon usage is one of the most conserved features of messages for specific cell products . The theory has been developed by several investigators that the kinds of products of many if not most kinds of differentiated cells is determined by the pattern of translation abilities each cell possesses as it differentiates. A correllary of this thesis is that the groups of code words used for products of specific cell types, INDEPENDENTLY OF THE SPECIES INVOLVED, should exclude specific kinds of code words in one cell type and not another. To test this thesis, the specific frequency of codon usage and non-usage has been collated from the recently published literature and subjected to appropriate computer analysis. We find that: (1) certain codons are not used at all in any message for globins; (2) the pattern of codon usage is characteristic of specific products from specificembryonic derivatives, e.g. erythrocytes; (3) that certain code words are discriminated against generally in nearly all vertebrate cell messages evaluated; and (4) that the cell type from which a message is derived can be identified, at least in the case of 9 globin messages derived from species separated by millions of generations, purely on the basis of codon usage. From these studies it can be inferred that some evolutionary factor prevents the use of “forbidden” code words in specific kinds of cells. We propose that this factor derives from the fact that a “silent” mutation to a code word which is untranslatable by a differentiated cell will be lethal in the homozygous condition and that the thesis that so-called “codon restriction” is an important determinative factor in limiting what differentiating cells can synthesize in many kinds of developing cells explains the available evidence more adequately than alternative theories.
Benefits associated with harmonic tissue imaging in the obstetric patient

Abstract Objective: We sought to determine the impact of harmonic tissue imaging on image resolution and visualization of fetal structures during obstetric ultrasonography. Study Design: Patients with singleton second- or third-trimester fetuses were recruited. Prospective comparisons of conventional fundamental imaging and harmonic tissue imaging were made. Visualization rates and frequencies of improvement in resolution were calculated. Discriminate function analysis evaluated determinants of improved visualization. Results: Harmonic tissue imaging improved resolution of at least one fetal structure in 51.4% of patients studied. Differences were most marked for 4-chamber views of the heart with improvement in resolution in 30.5% of patients and change in ability to visualize in 9.5%. Maternal weight and gestational age had a significant influence on whether improvements were noted with harmonic tissue imaging, accounting for 27% of the variance. Conclusions: Harmonic tissue imaging offers significant improvements over fundamental imaging in image resolution and structure visualization in obese patients during the second trimester of pregnancy. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2000;182:1620-2.)
Non-Genetic Data Supporting Genetic Evidence for the Eastern Wolf

Two schools of thought dominate the molecular-genetics literature on Canis spp. (wolves) in the western Great Lakes region of the US and Canada: (1) they are hybrids between Canis lupus (Gray Wolf) and Canis latrans (Coyote), or (2) they are hybrids between the Gray Wolf and Canis lycaon (Eastern Wolf). This article presents 3 types of non-genetic evidence that bears on the controversy and con- cludes that all 3 support the second interpretation.
Distribution and Elimination of Ingested Mercuric Oxide in Mice

Neutron-activated mercuric oxide was administered by gavage to female BALB/c mice. Counts of /sup 197/Hg and /sup 203/Hg in the whole body, urine, and feces were followed for up to 36 days. Elimination of mercury fitted a 3-compartment model. Nonpregnant mice eliminated approximately 87.5% of the dose at a fast rate (t/sub 1/2/ = 9 hours), 12% at an intermediate rate (t/sub 1/2/ = 2days), and 0.5% at a slow rate (t/sub 1/2/ = 15 days). Each half-time was approximately 7 times shorter than the corresponding half-time fitted to published data on rats. Mice were also faster than humans in eliminating the ingested mercury. Pregnancy slowed down the intermediate rate of elimination. The total administered dose was recoverd for feces and urine in a 9:1 ratio. Organ weights and mercury burdens were measured after serial sacrifice. Peak concentrations were reached within two days, with highest levels in kidneys followed by placentae and livers. In brains, peak concentrations were delayed and low. Subsequent losses of mercury differed widely in rate constants, with fastest overall rates in the brain, intestine, and integument, followed in order by whole body, liver, and kidneys. Ten days after dosing, mercury concentration ratios of placenta to 17-daymore » old fetus were 20:1, 11 days after dosing, and with less than 2% of body burden remaining, while body concentration ratios of mother to neonate were 4:1. The data indicated that mice eliminated mercuric salts faster than had been reported for rats or humans, and that rapid elimination coupled with a placental barrier shielded fetuses from equilibrating with the peak concentrations of mercury found in dams after a single dose.« less
Multigrid computations and conservation law treatment of a sharp interface method

The sharp interface method (SIM) utilizing the Cartesian grid and cut-cell approach can solve fluid flow problems involving multiphase and/or complex geometry with second-order accuracy. Due to the algorithm and data management requirements, the SIM is computationally intensive. In this study, two issues are investigated to help further advance the SIM. First, the conservation-law property at the interface is examined in detail; an artificially assigned interface inside a single-phase, homogeneous fluid domain is devised to examine SIM's performance. Second, an interface-averaging multigrid method, accounting for the presence of irregularly shaped moving boundaries, is developed to speed up the pressure solver. The present work has demonstrated that the SIM satisfies the conservation laws numerically and has identified ways to reduce the computing time.
Ligands to the integrin receptor αvβ3

The vitronectin receptor vβ3 is a member of the integrin superfamily of membrane bound glycoprotein receptors that is responsible for cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and shares the same β subunit as the fibrinogen receptor IIbβ3 (also known as GPIIb/IIIa). Both these integrins recognise extracellular proteins that express the peptide sequence arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD). Non-peptide RGD mimetics that bind with high affinity and selectivity to IIbβ3 were previously prepared as anti-thrombotic agents. More recently, medicinal chemistry groups have modified these non-peptide fibrinogen receptor antagonist lead structures to impart potency and integrin selectivity for vβ3. Numerous patent applications and issued patents have appeared throughout the last decade claiming structurally novel vβ3 antagonists as agents for the prevention and/or treatment of osteoporosis, cancer, diabetic retinopathy and rheumatoid arthritis. This review encompasses those issued patents and published patent applicati...
Particle—fluid interactions with applications to solid-stabilized emulsions Part III. Asphaltene adsorption in the presence of quinaldine and 1,2-dimethylindole

Abstract The adsorption of asphaltic matter from shale oil onto clay particles renders these particles hydrophobic. Such hydrophobic particles have been known to stabilize undesirable emulsions of water-in-oil. The effect of two organic compounds, quinaldine and 1,2-dimethylindole, on the adsorption of asphaltenes on sodium montmorillonite was investigated. These additives were added to an oil mixture of heptane and toluene in order to simulate the properties of shale oil. The three-phase contact angle and zeta potential were measured. There was some reduction in the contact angle in the presence of the two organic compounds. While the presence of a surfactant in water showed no further improvement in hydrophilicity; pH modifications did help to some degree.
Color Stability of a Pigmented Elastomer for Maxillofacial Appliances

The color stability of a series of eleven maxillofacial pigments was determined after accelerated aging using reflection spectrophotometry. The results indicate that seven of the pigments demonstrated good to excellent color stability, while four of the pigments were less promising for clinical use.
The maternal lifestyle study: cognitive, motor, and behavioral outcomes of cocaine-exposed and opiate-exposed infants through three years of age.

Objective. To evaluate the direct effects of prenatal cocaine exposure and prenatal opiate exposure on infant mental, motor, and behavioral outcomes longitudinally between 1 and 3 years old. Methods. As part of a prospective, longitudinal, multisite study, the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II were administered to 1227 infants who were exposed to cocaine (n = 474), opiates (n = 50), cocaine and opiates (n = 48), and neither substance (n = 655) at 1, 2, and 3 years of corrected age by certified, masked examiners. Hierarchic linear modeling of the 1-, 2-, and 3-year scores was conducted using cocaine and opiate exposure as predictors with and without controlling for covariates. Results. Overall retention was 88.4% and did not differ by cocaine or opiate exposure. Overall (at 1, 2, and 3 years), cocaine-exposed infants scored 1.6 Mental Development Index points below infants who were not exposed to cocaine. Opiate-exposed infants scored 3.8 Psychomotor Development Index points below infants who were not exposed to opiates. Neither the cocaine nor the opiate effect remained significant after controlling for covariates. Neither cocaine nor opiate exposure was associated with the Behavioral Record Score during the examination. Low birth weight and indices of nonoptimal caregiving were associated with lower Mental Development Index, Psychomotor Development Index, and Behavioral Record Score scores for all groups of infants. Conclusions. In the largest at-risk sample observed longitudinally to date, infant prenatal exposure to cocaine and to opiates was not associated with mental, motor, or behavioral deficits after controlling for birth weight and environmental risks.
[Ag2(C33H26N2O2)(H2O)2(SO3CF3)2]·0.5C6H6: A Luminescent Supramolecular Silver(I) Complex Based on Metal−Carbon and Metal−Heteroatom Interactions

A novel fulvene-type bidentate ligand 1 has been synthesized by an aroylation reaction of cyclohexyl-substituted cyclopentadienyl anions. Compound 1 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1, with a = 7.0419(5) A, b = 11.9360(8) A, c = 15.6470(11) A, α = 85.1440(10)°, β = 78.1140(10)°, γ = 74.5360(10)°, V = 1239.76(15) A3, and Z = 2. The coordination chemistry of 1 was investigated, and a novel Ag-containing coordination polymer (2), linked by both Ag−heteroatom and Ag−carbon interactions, has been synthesized. The coordination polymer has been fully characterized by infrared spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Compound 2 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1, with a = 7.1654(5) A, b = 15.7277(11) A, c = 18.8157(13) A, α = 73.5150(10)°, β = 89.0410(10)°, γ = 89.0970(10)°, V = 1355.19(14) A3, and Z = 2. The solid-state structure of 2 features a one-dimensional double-chain motif. These double chains are in turn cross-linked to each other via strong interchain...
Entropy of Mixing of Distinguishable Particles

The molar entropy of mixing yields values that depend only on the number of mixing components rather than on their chemical nature. To explain this phenomenon using the logic of chemistry, this article considers mixing of distinguishable particles, thus complementing the well-known approach developed for nondistinguishable particles, for example, ideal gases and solutions. The result is a simple quantitative treatment based on the Boltzmann distribution using the Gibbs paradox as a case study to define a macroscopic thermodynamic criterion of distinguishability. It is the presence of nonzero, albeit often small, ΔH(mixing) in a reversible process—due to a change in the energy of intermolecular interactions, Δe—that is responsible for the nonzero entropy. Temperature in the Clausius equation, dSsystem = đqrev/T, normalizes the heat—different in various processes—to yield the same entropy of mixing per mole, as long as this temperature, T = Θ′(mixing), that of the reversible process, is linked to the Boltzm...
Perioperative Use of Inhaled Nitric Oxide in Complex Cardiovascular Lesions: Effect of Underlying Anatomical Disorder on Survival

Perioperative Use of Inhaled Nitric Oxide in Complex Cardiovascular Lesions: Effect of Underlying Anatomical Disorder on Survival
Localization of actin in human, bull, rabbit, and hamster sperm by immunoelectron microscopy

Mammalian spermatozoa have previously been shown to contain actin, but its subcellular localization and function have not been elucidated. In this study, actin has been localized at the ultrastructural level in human, bull, rabbit, and golden hamster spermatozoa by a monoclonal antiactin antibody and a preembedding immunogold labeling technique. Specific labeling was localized 1) around the connecting piece in the neck region of sperm from all four species, although a species-specific pattern was evident; 2) on the external surface of the fibrous sheath of human sperm; 3) in the perinuclear space underlying the postacrosomal sheath of bull and rabbit sperm; and 4) between the plasma membrane and outer acrosomal membrane along the concave margin of the hamster sperm head. SDS-PAGE and Western blots immunostained with the monoclonal antibody confirmed the presence of actin in SDS extracts of Percoll-purified sperm from each species.
Energetics of methyl branches in hydrocarbon crystals

Abstract Semi-empirical energy calculations are reported for methyl branched hydrocarbon molecules in orthorhombic and monoclinic crystalline arrays of linear molecules. The 19 molecules in the array are flexible and twenty methylene units long. Two modes of packing the defect molecule in the crystals are found and for each the mechanical relaxation criterion of there being two or more sites available to the molecule is met. However, there is no significant relaxation strength because the differences in site energies are too large. This result holds for all cases because the unfavourable orientation of the molecular stem in one of the sites makes the energy much greater than in the other for which the stem has a favourable orientation. For the case with the lowest defect energy, the unit cell dimensions are comparable to those found experimentally for the same methyl group concentration. Drawings showing the molecular distortion are presented.
Nanomechanical behavior of MoS2 and WS2 multi-walled nanotubes and Carbon nanohorns

Nano-objects have been investigated for drug delivery, oil detection, contaminant removal and tribology applications. In some applications, they are subjected to friction and deformation during contact with each other and their surfaces on which they slide. Experimental studies directly comparing local and global deformation are lacking. This research performs nanoindentation (local deformation) and compression tests (global deformation) with a nanoindenter (sharp tip and flat punch, respectively) on molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs), ~500 nm in diameter. Hardness of the MoS2 nanotube was similar to bulk and does not follow the “smaller is stronger” phenomenon as previously reported for other nano-objects. Tungsten disulfide (WS2) MWNTs, ~300 nm in diameter and carbon nanohorns (CNHs) 80–100 nm in diameter were of interest and also selected for compression studies. These studies aid in understanding the mechanisms involved during global deformation when nano-objects are introduced to reduce friction and wear. For compression, highest loads were required for WS2 nanotubes, then MoS2 nanotubes and CNHs to achieve the same displacement. This was due to the greater number of defects with the MoS2 nanotubes and the flexibility of the CNHs. Repeat compression tests of nano-objects were performed showing a hardening effect for all three nano-objects.
Caring in the gym: Reflections from middle school physical education teachers

Caring has been discussed as foundational to developing quality physical activity settings that promote social and personal responsibility and are synonymous with effective teaching practice in phy...
Design of low-emission and energy-efficient residential buildings using a multi-objective optimization algorithm

The improvement of energy efficiency and environmental performance of buildings is considered a major priority worldwide. New building regulations have an explicit orientation toward low-emission and energy-efficient designs. However, the optimal design of residential buildings should consider multiple, and usually competitive, objectives such as energy consumption optimization, financial costs reduction and decrease of environmental impacts. This makes it a challenging multi-objective optimization problem. The aim of this work is to develop a novel method to tackle the problem. A multi-objective optimization model based on harmony search algorithm (HS) is presented. This model is developed to minimize the life cycle cost (LCC) and carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-eq) emissions of the buildings. Several building envelope parameters are taken as the design variables. To demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed approach the performance of the model is tested on a typical single-family house. For the case of such a house, the model proves to be efficient, and a set of optimal combinations (Pareto optimal solutions) is obtained.
Coordinated increase in activities of the signal transduction enzymes PI kinase and PIP kinase in human cancer cells.

Abstract The steady-state activities of the first two enzymes of the phosphatidylinositol (PI) phosphorylation pathway, PI 4-kinase, EC 2.7.1.67 (PI kinase) and PI 4-phosphate 5-kinase, EC 2.7.1.68 (PIP kinase) as compared to human normal ovary are elevated in human ovarian carcinomas (4.1- and 2.7-fold) and in human OVCAR-5 cells in tissue culture (31.2- and 8.9-fold). Compared to normal human breast parenchymal cells, PI kinase and PIP kinase activities were increased in breast carcinoma MDA-MB-435 cells grown in nude mice as solid tumors (7.3- and 2.3-fold, respectively) and in MDA-MB-435 cells grown in tissue culture (95.8- and 15.5-fold, respectively). When the human carcinoma cells were plated and expressed their neoplastic proliferative program in the log phase, in the MDA-MB-435 breast carcinoma cells the PI and PIP kinase activities coordinately increased 11-fold; in ovarian carcinoma OVCAR-5 cells 5.8- and 4.5-fold, respectively. These studies provide the first evidence in human cancer cells of an increased capacity for the operation of signal transduction. This is indicated by the markedly elevated activities of PI and PIP kinases in the phosphatidylinositol phosphorylation sequence which leads to production of second messengers, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP 3 ) and diacylglycerol (DAG).
Financial models and productivity controls in clinical engineering

A description is given of the steps taken to design a financial model of, and to install productivity measurements and control within, the clinical engineering department of a large teaching hospital. Motivation for this project involved both preparation for going 'for profit' and the need to resolve an over-budget condition of labor cost. The project steps, in chronological order, included: assessment of current hospital management reports, determining database adequacy, implementing supervisors' time log, designing computerized budget spreadsheets, testing changes on a financial simulation model, developing labor task standards, and installing departmental labor performance reporting. The project yielded significant positive results for the department's performance versus budget and also led to growth in supervisory and management skills. >
Automatic recognition of biological particles in microscopic images

A simple and general-purpose system to recognize biological particles is presented. It is composed of four stages: First (if necessary) promising locations in the image are detected and small regions containing interesting samples are extracted using a feature finder. Second, differential invariants of the brightness are computed at multiple scales of resolution. Third, after point-wise non-linear mappings to a higher dimensional feature space, this information is averaged over the whole region thus producing a vector of features for each sample that is invariant with respect to rotation and translation. Fourth, each sample is classified using a classifier obtained from a mixture-of-Gaussians generative model. This system was developed to classify 12 categories of particles found in human urine; it achieves a 93.2% correct classification rate in this application. It was subsequently trained and tested on a challenging set of images of airborne pollen grains where it achieved an 83% correct classification rate for the three categories found during one month of observation. Pollen classification is challenging even for human experts and this performance is considered good.
Cryogenic Diamond Optics For High Power Lasers

Two concepts have been proposed for using transmissive diamond optics in the laser cavity of an FEL in order to reduce the cavity length: (1) a resonant reflector stack and (2) an intracavity divergent lens. The limitations of both designs will be discussed. Diamond was selected as the optical material for its low coefficient of thermal expansion, low thermal optic coefficient, low optical absorption coefficient, and high thermal conductivity at liquid nitrogen temperatures.
One Hundred Million Frenchmen: The “Assimilation” Theory in French Colonial Policy

During World War II, Jacques Stern, a former French Minister of Colonies, wrote almost lyrically of the “patient labor of assimilation” by which France had been “consolidating the moral and material ties which bind together forty million continental Frenchmen and sixty million overseas Frenchmen, white and colored” in the French Empire. When the Brazzaville Conference met in 1944 under the auspices of the Free French government to consider the postwar future of that empire, its final resolution declared that the aims of the work of colonization which France is pursuing in her colonies exclude any idea of autonomy and any possibility of development outside the French empire bloc; the attainment of self-government in the colonies even in themost distant future must be excluded.
Molecular Imaging of Experimental Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms

Current laboratory research in the field of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) disease often utilizes small animal experimental models induced by genetic manipulation or chemical application. This has led to the use and development of multiple high-resolution molecular imaging modalities capable of tracking disease progression, quantifying the role of inflammation, and evaluating the effects of potential therapeutics. In vivo imaging reduces the number of research animals used, provides molecular and cellular information, and allows for longitudinal studies, a necessity when tracking vessel expansion in a single animal. This review outlines developments of both established and emerging molecular imaging techniques used to study AAA disease. Beyond the typical modalities used for anatomical imaging, which include ultrasound (US) and computed tomography (CT), previous molecular imaging efforts have used magnetic resonance (MR), near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF), bioluminescence, single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and positron emission tomography (PET). Mouse and rat AAA models will hopefully provide insight into potential disease mechanisms, and the development of advanced molecular imaging techniques, if clinically useful, may have translational potential. These efforts could help improve the management of aneurysms and better evaluate the therapeutic potential of new treatments for human AAA disease.
Appendectomy for appendicitis in patients with schizophrenia.

Abstract Background Anecdotal evidence suggests that schizophrenia patients who require surgery have a high rate of adverse outcomes. We searched the Department of Veterans Affairs national datasets to determine the clinical course of schizophrenia patients with appendicitis who underwent appendectomy. Methods The Patient Treatment File (the nationwide inpatient database for the Department of Veterans Affairs) and the Beneficiary Identification and Records Location System were searched to identify all patients with International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnostic codes for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder diagnosed with appendicitis during fiscal years 1995 to 1999. Computer-based information was supplemented with chart-based data. We sought data on six common preoperative risk factors and 25 specific adverse outcomes, including death. Results There were 55 patients identified. The mean age was 49, and 96% were men. The median time from symptom onset to diagnosis of appendicitis was 3 days. A history of substance abuse was obtained in 16 (29%). Disruptive behavior was documented in 16 (29%). Restraints were used in 9 (9%). The appendix was perforated in 36 (66%) and gangrenous in 9 (16%). Thirty-one (56%) had ≥1 complication; there were 2 in-hospital deaths (4%). Conclusions This is the first report on this topic in the medical literature. Appendicitis is typically diagnosed late in schizophrenic patients. Adverse patient behaviors are frequent. The complication and death rates are high.
Vaginal Odors: GLC Assay Method for Evaluating Odor Changes

A GLC assay technique, previously applied to the evaluation of the influence of nitrofurazone on pathological vaginal odors, was refined and tested in a study of vaginal secretion odors in normal women before and after administration of a suppository. The principal methodological refinements included considering changes in the concentrations of seven frequently encountered malodorants and testing results for their statistical validity. The technique was sufficiently sensitive to indicate statistically significant (p < 0.05) changes in a group of 10 subjects.
Cyclic Scheduling for a Multi-product, Single-facility Production System Operating Under a Just-in-time Delivery Policy

Sarker and Parija have developed a model for obtaining the optimal batch size for a single-product manufacturing system operating under a fixed-quantity, periodic delivery policy. In this work, the model is extended to a multi-product situation and a single-facility scheduling scheme is developed for the system. Two situations are considered—one with fixed setup cost and the other with variable setup cost. It is observed that setup cost variability is beneficial to the system under certain conditions.
Thrombolytic Therapy in Acute Myocardial Infarction

Recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rt-PA), streptokinase (SK), and anisoylated plasminogen-streptokinase activator complex (APSAC) have salutary effects on mortality when administered to patients with evolving acute myocardial infarction (MI). Studies suggest that intravenous rt-PA is more effective in reperfusing occluded infarct-related arteries than SK, and the results of ongoing studies directly comparing the influence of SK and rt-PA on mortality are awaited. The clinical role of agents such as APSAC, urokinase, and pro-urokinase, used alone or in combination, remains to be determined. It is evident that a variety of thrombolytic agents will be effective, and variables such as ease of administration, pharmacokinetics, fibrin specificity, effects on blood viscosity, and incidence of adverse effects need to be assessed to determine which agents are the most suitable for clinical use. There is an increased risk of bleeding at vascular puncture sites with all thrombolytic agents. Current indications for thrombolytic therapy include ischemic chest pain of at least 30 min duration that is unrelieved by nitroglycerin and is associated with ST-segment elevations of at least 0.1 mV in two contiguous electrocardiographic leads. Such therapy is usually reserved for patients less than 75 years old who are not at increased risk for bleeding and whose chest pain began less than 4-6 h prior to treatment. Trials are under way to determine whether patients with shorter pain duration, transient ST-segment changes ( ie , unstable angina patients), chest pain associated with ST-segment depressions or T-wave inversions ( ie , non-Q-wave infarction patients), or patients whose pain began more than 4 to 6 h earlier will benefit from early thrombolytic therapy. Other factors such as patient age, the likelihood of the diagnosis of MI, and the estimated risk of bleeding should also be considered. The findings of available major randomized trials indicate that early invasive procedures are generally unnecessary and that meticulous care must be exercised in the selection and management of patients subjected to thrombolytic therapy.
Projections from the cochlear nucleus to the cerebellum

The connections between the brainstem auditory system and the cerebellar auditory area in the posterior vermis (VI, VII, and VIIIA) were studied using the horseradish peroxidase technique. Injections also were made in the cerebellar hemispheres, the paramedian and the vestibulocerebellum (VIIIB, IX). Labeled cells were found in the cochlear nuclei bilaterally, but not in the superior olivary complex or the inferior colliculus. As the injection sites moved more laterally from the vermis area to the paramedian and the cerebellar hemispheres, the number of labeled cochlear nucleus neurons decreased progressively. This observation suggests that the terminals of the cochlear-nucleus-cerebellum projection tend to concentrate in the vermis auditory area. In the cochlear nucleus, labeled cells did not appear to belong to a single, homogenous cell type, nor did the cells group into a single area in the cochlear nucleus. The total number of labeled neurons in one cochlear nucleus did not exceed 200 in our largest injection.
Group differences in proneness to inflammation

All humans are primarily descendants from a diaspora out of Africa approximately 50,000 years ago although there are some indications of admixture with local populations of archaic humans outside Africa. The burden of infectious disease is greater in tropical Africa than elsewhere on earth in historic times, and it was less outside Africa, especially in the New World where passage through the Beringian filter kept many Old World parasites from entering the New World with humans. As a consequence we expect that the immune system, especially susceptibility to inflammation, will be "tuned up" in people with recent tropical African ancestry, intermediate in people of European and Asian ancestry, and perhaps "tuned down" in people of Native American ancestry. We suggest that evolved responses to different pathogen burdens among geographic groups may contribute to higher rates of inflammatory disease in modern people.
Preterm birth and the role of neuroprotection

Preterm birth remains a common complication of pregnancy and causes substantial neonatal morbidity and mortality. As improvements in the care of preterm neonates have outpaced efforts to prevent preterm birth, the numbers of survivors with neurologic sequelae that affect quality of life have increased. The main strategies to reduce the impact of neurologic complications of prematurity include prevention of preterm birth and protection of the developing fetal brain through antenatal administration of drugs. These strategies rely on a basic understanding of the intertwined pathophysiology of spontaneous preterm labor and perinatal brain injury, which will be reviewed here. The review will outline current methods for the prevention of prematurity and neuroprotection. The use of magnesium sulfate as a neuroprotective compound will be discussed, including concerns over its association with increased pediatric mortality and abnormalities in bone density.
Structural Analysis of a Sampling of Tesserae: Implications for Venus Geodynamics

Abstract Understanding the nature and timing of tessera formation is fundamental to Venus tectonic and geodynamic models. Tesserae are commonly considered to exhibit complex deformation histories, to represent the oldest global stratigraphic unit, to have formed during a global phase of tesserization, and to require weak lithosphere for their formation. Although these characterizations of tesserae are gaining widespread mention in the literature, they are essentially unsupported by an assemblage of data, yet they figure prominently in the way we frame and address questions about Venus tectonics. Thus they are quickly becoming accepted paradigms despite a lack of scientific foundation. Open discussion of these hypotheses or assumptions is crucial because of their implications concerning geodynamic models of the surface evolution and planetary dynamics of Venus. We examined tessera terrain in Ishtar Terra, crustal plateaus, and as inliers within the plains using high-resolution Magellan radar imagery. We describe several types of tessera terrain that record a wide range of structural histories. Fold and S-C terrains are found only in Ishtar Terra; ribbon, lava flow, and basin-and-dome terrains reside within the interior of crustal plateaus, whereas folded ribbon terrain and extended folded terrain comprise margins of crustal plateaus. Inliers are divisible into fracture-dominated and graben-dominated tesserae, although some inliers host early contractional fabrics. The range of deformation histories recorded by the various tessera types indicates that tesserae should not be considered a single map unit. Tessera deformation records local to regional surface strain patterns, and reflects near-surface rheology at the time of deformation. Progressive deformation fabrics in some tessera terrain record changes in shallow crustal rheology through time. Thus structural analysis of individual tessera types and tessera provinces will allow us to better understand the tectonic processes responsible for tessera formation. Tesserae likely formed in several tectonic environments, including (1) as a result of subsurface flow in Ishtar Terra, (2) as sequences of surface-layer extension and contraction in crustal plateaus, (3) as flooded crustal plateaus, and (4) as densely fractured surface layers—fractured as a result of corona and chasma formation.
BRST quantization of the superstring in background fields.

We study the superconformal algebra of the Neveu-Schwarz-Ramond superstring in the back-ground of graviton and antisymmetric tensor fields. The classical Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin charge is obtained and the gravitational Ward identities are presented using the invariance properties of the S-matrix generating functional.
The experience of violent injury for young African-American men: the meaning of being a "sucker"

OBJECTIVE: To explore the experience of violent injury among young African-American men with gunshot or stab wounds to better understand violent injury.
COMMUNICATION SCHEDULING WITH RE-ROUTING BASED ON STATIC AND HYBRID TECHNIQUES

In massively parallel systems, the performance gains are often significantly diminished by the inherent communication overhead. This overhead is caused by the required message passing resulting from the task allocation scheme. In this paper, techniques to reduce this communication overhead by both scheduling the communication and determining the routing that the messages should take within a tightly-coupled processor network are presented. Using the recently developed Collision Graph model, static scheduling algorithms are derived which work at compile-time to determine the ordering and routing of the individual message transmissions. Since a priori knowledge about the network traffic required by static scheduling may not be available or accurate, this work also considers dynamic scheduling. A novel hybrid technique is presented which operates in a dynamic environment yet uses known information obtained by analyzing the communication patterns. Experiments performed show significant improvement over baseline techniques.
Guest Editorial: Introduction to the Special Issue on Resilient Control Architectures and Systems

Modern societies depend on complex and critical infrastructures for energy, transportation, sustenance, medical care, emergency response, communications security. As computers, automation, and information technology (IT) have advanced, these technologies have been exploited to enhance the efficiency of operating the processes that make up these infrastructures. Where commonalities exist between different infrastructures or elements of a common infrastructure, such as in the electric power grid, the potential for even greater efficiencies has fueled the desire to integrate intelligent sensing and control architectures and methods over a large region. The results of this integration are the highly interconnected and interdependent control systems of today. However, as we have observed over recent decades, natural disasters, and terrorist attacks can produce failures in complex systems such as utility and transportation infrastructure the consequences of which resulting enormous losses to economy and security. To minimize the impact of these crippling events, society requires control system architectures and methods that maximize the resilience of the complex systems upon which society depends. By “resilience” we mean the capacity of a control system to maintain state awareness and to proactively maintain a safe level of operational normalcy in response to anomalies, including threats of a malicious and unexpected nature [1] . Threats are those elements that counter normalcy and destabilize control system networks, including human error and malicious human attacks, complex latencies and interdependencies.
Multinucleon removal in the 27 Al + 28 Si reactions

Abstract The evaporation residues from reactions of 72 MeV 28 Si ions with 27 Al have been identified by γ-ray spectroscopy. Experimental relative production cross sections are compared with evaporation-model estimates.
Factors affecting alcohol–water pervaporation performance of hydrophobic zeolite–silicone rubber mixed matrix membranes

Abstract Mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) consisting of ZSM-5 zeolite particles dispersed in silicone rubber exhibited ethanol–water pervaporation permselectivities up to five times that of silicone rubber alone and three times higher than simple vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE). A number of conditions resulted in the deterioration in pervaporation performance of these MMMs. Long-term exposure to simple binary ethanol–water mixtures resulted in slow declines in ethanol permeability, water permeability, and selectivity. Treating the particles by quenching them in linear short-chain alcohols immediately after calcination protected the MMM against this performance decline. In addition, rapid and dramatic reductions in both ethanol permeability and selectivity occurred when the MMMs were exposed to a centrifuged yeast fermentation broth. Exposure to a clarified acetone/n-butanol/ethanol (ABE) fermentation broth also resulted in marked reductions in performance, albeit less severe and not as rapid as with the yeast broth. The effect of the broths was not easily reversed. The most effective regeneration scheme was soaking the MMM in 100% n-butanol, which fully recovered the original performance. Zeolite pore blockage due to adsorption of minor constituents in the broths, including organic acids, esters, alcohols, and esterification reaction products was identified as the likely cause of performance changes.
Nasal immunization with a dual antigen anthrax vaccine induced strong mucosal and systemic immune responses against toxins and bacilli.

Abstract Anthrax-vaccine-adsorbed (AVA), the only anthrax vaccine licensed in the U.S., suffers from many major drawbacks. Therefore, there is a need to develop new generation anthrax vaccines that can be easily administered and induce strong immune responses not only against the anthrax toxins, but also against the toxin-producing vegetative anthrax bacilli. In the present study, we evaluated the feasibility of inducing strong mucosal and systemic immune responses against both anthrax toxins and bacilli after nasal immunization using a synthetic double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), polyriboinosinic–polyribocytidylic acid (poly(I:C) or pI:C), as the adjuvant. We have shown that the capsular poly-γ- d -glutamic acid (PGA) from bacillus was immunogenic when conjugated to a carrier protein and dosed intranasally to mice. We further demonstrated that nasal immunization with the PGA–carrier protein conjugate in combination with the anthrax protective antigen (PA) protein induced both anti-PGA and anti-PA immune responses in mouse sera and lung mucosal secretions. The anti-PA antibody (Ab) response was shown to have anthrax lethal toxin neutralization activity; and the anti-PGA Abs induced were able to activate complement and kill PGA-producing bacteria. These findings demonstrated that it is feasible to develop a novel dual-action nasal anthrax vaccine.
Attack-resilient minimum mean-squared error estimation

This work addresses the design of resilient estimators for stochastic systems. To this end, we introduce a minimum mean-squared error resilient (MMSE-R) estimator whose conditional mean squared error from the state remains finitely bounded and is independent of additive measurement attacks. An implementation of the MMSE-R estimator is presented and is shown as the solution of a semidefinite programming problem, which can be implemented efficiently using convex optimization techniques. The MMSE-R strategy is evaluated against other competing strategies representing other estimation approaches in the presence of small and large measurement attacks. The results indicate that the MMSE-R estimator significantly outperforms (in terms of mean-squared error) other realizable resilient (and non-resilient) estimators.
Fifteen-year minimum follow-up of a prostate brachytherapy series: comparing the past with the present.

Abstract Objectives. To report the overall survival for 126 patients more than 15 years after iodine-125 interstitial therapy; to report the biochemical progression status for those alive and clinically without evidence of disease for longer than 15 years; to document the upward migration of grade by date of grade assignment; to compare the tumor stage and grade profile of this mature series with our current experience; and to clarify the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) data when this series is used as a historical comparison. Methods. The records of 126 patients who underwent interstitial therapy more than 15 years previously were reviewed for assessment of the current TNM stage and Gleason grade and the current PSA level for patients clinically free of disease. The tumor grade and stage of these patients were compared with those of the first 126 patients treated by transrectal ultrasound-guided brachymonotherapy at our center between January 1995 and January 1999. The methodology of our 1993 publication was also reviewed. Results. Of the 16 patients clinically free of disease (13 still alive and 3 dead of other causes more than 15 years after therapy), a review of the initial diagnostic needle biopsy was unable to confirm the presence of tumor in 3 patients. Of the remaining 13, 4 had a PSA level of 0.2 ng/mL or less, 4 a PSA level between 0.21 and 0.9 ng/mL, and 5 a PSA level between 1 and 2.5 ng/mL. Re-evaluation of the histopathologic findings using current criteria increased the Gleason score and World Health Organization grade. Patients currently selected for brachytherapy have a lower Gleason grade and TNM stage than recorded for patients treated in the past. The actuarial progression probability curves using the 0.5 or less cutpoint published in 1993 represented the best possible outcome and cannot serve as a historical control for current series comparisons. Conclusions. For patients who were alive and clinically free of disease longer than 15 years after therapy, the biochemical PSA levels were low. This may be attributed to the therapeutic radiation effect. Whether the improved technology of current transrectal ultrasound-guided implants can extend these favorable results from a small minority to a significant majority and whether it can approach the therapeutic results of radical prostatectomy may be partially answered with a longer follow-up of the current series. The histopathologic criteria have been refined, and upgrading from the initially assigned grade is common. In some cases, a prostate cancer diagnosis could not be confirmed. These findings limit the ability to match patients across time and institution. The results of our 1993 report of biochemical chemical progression-free probability 10 years after iodine-125 implantation cannot be used as a comparator for current studies. Ultimately, a valid comparison between treatment options will only be achieved through a randomized controlled trial.
Wnt Signaling Promotes Pacemaker Myocyte Specification of Differentiating Cardiac Progenitor Cells

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can give rise to cardiomyocytes, but mechanisms of cardiac subtype specification to either pacemaker cells or chamber (atrial/ventricular) cardiomyocytes remain little understood. Canonical Wnt signaling plays a key role for ESC maintenance and becomes inactivated during differentiation. We hypothesized that control of Wnt signaling by Dkk1, an endogenous secreted protein inhibitor of canonical Wnt signaling, may impact cardiac subtype specification during ESC differentiation. Mouse ESCs were treated with activin-A and BMP-4 for 40 hours to initiate cardiac differentiation. Flk-1+/PdgfR-α+ cardiac progenitors were FACS-purified and seeded as monolayers (day-4). The monolayers were either treated with a saturating level of exogenous Dkk1 (“exo-Dkk1", 150 ng/ml), or cultured in the endogenous level of Dkk1 (“endo-Dkk1", 3.2 ng/ml). At day-8, ∼50% of cells were positive for cTnT, a pan-cardiac myocyte marker, in both groups. Endo-Dkk1 group exhibited significantly higher levels of cardiac pacemaker cell markers (Tbx18 and Shox2), but lower levels of chamber lineage markers (Nkx2.5, Isl1, Scn5a and Cacna1c, p<0.01). At day-10, endo-Dkk1 group began to beat faster compared to exo-Dkk1 monolayers, and the superior automaticity became more accentuated upon further differentiation (161.5±11.5 vs. 48.0±2.9 bpm, endo- vs. exo-Dkk1, week-3). Endo-Dkk1 monolayers yielded more cells with spontaneous intracellular calcium oscillations compared to exo-Dkk1. Single, spontaneously-beating cells isolated from the endo-Dkk1 monolayers were frequently spindle-shaped, exhibited robust HCN4 proteins and I(f) currents, and fired rhythmic action potentials (288±51 bpm, n = 5). Analogous results were attained with two other endogenous Wnt antagonists, Sfrp1 and Sfrp5. Our data demonstrate that the endogenous Wnt pathway of differentiating ESCs promotes specification of cardiac pacemaker cell, rather than chamber cardiomyocytes. Our findings provide a control point to enrich either pacemaker cell or chamber myocyte population.
“It Actually Made Me Think”: Problem-Based Learning in the Business Communications Classroom:

We advocate for problem-based learning (PBL) as a rhetorical pedagogy for business communication. Briefly put, classic PBL inverts the typical instructional sequence; rather than presenting concept...