cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Determinants of backbone dynamics in native BPTI: cooperative influence of the 14-38 disulfide and the Tyr35 side-chain.

15Nitrogen relaxation experiments were used to characterize the backbone dynamics of two modified forms of bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI). In one form, the disulfide between Cys14 and Cys38 in the wild-type protein was selectively reduced and methylated to generate an analog of the final intermediate in the disulfide-coupled folding pathway. The second form was generated by similarly modifying a mutant protein in which Tyr35 was replaced with Gly (Y35G). For both selectively reduced proteins, the overall conformation of native BPTI was retained, and the relaxation data for these proteins were compared with those obtained previously with the native wild-type and Y35G proteins. Removing the disulfide from either protein had only small effects on the observed longitudinal relaxation rates (R1) or heteronuclear cross relaxation rates (nuclear Overhauser effect), suggesting that the 14-38 disulfide has little influence on the fast (ps to ns) backbone dynamics of either protein. In the wild-type protein, the pattern of residues undergoing slower (micros to ms) internal motions, reflected in unusually large transverse relaxation rates (R2), was also largely unaffected by the removal of this disulfide. It thus appears that the large R2 rates previously observed in native wild-type protein are not a direct consequence of isomerization of the 14-38 disulfide. In contrast with the wild-type protein, reducing the disulfide in Y35G BPTI significantly decreased the number of backbone amides displaying large R2 rates. In addition, the frequencies of the backbone motions in the modified protein, estimated from R2 values measured at multiple refocusing delays, appear to span a wider range than those seen in native Y35G BPTI. Together, these observations suggest that the slow internal motions in Y35G BPTI are more independent in the absence of the 14-38 disulfide and that formation of this bond may lead to a substantial loss of conformational entropy. These effects may account for the previous observation that the Y35G substitution greatly destabilizes the disulfide. The results also demonstrate that the disulfide and the buried side-chain influence the dynamics of the folded protein in a highly cooperative fashion, with the effects of removing either being much greater in the absence of the other.
Determination of relative permeabilities for the constant field equation from experimental data

Abstract The general physical significance of the constant field equation is briefly reviewed, and a new derivation based on absolute rate theory is presented. Least squares procedures can be used to gain reliable estimates of a parameter that under some experimental conditions represents relative ionic “permeabilities”. The variance of the estimator can be calculated for a single set of experiments, and the bias in of the estimator is, under common conditions, negligible. Tables for use with desk calculators are given. The procedures are illustrated in obtaining alkali metal ionic selectivity values from data for the isolated frog skin.
Strongly UV Absorbing Bifunctional Azoalkanes

[structure: see text] Two new anthracene-containing azoalkanes (1 and 2) absorb UV light 600 times more strongly than simple azoalkanes. Intramolecular energy transfer from excited singlet anthracene to the azo group is nearly complete, but despite the close proximity of the two chromophores, 1 and 2 continue to exhibit anthracene fluorescence. Thermolysis of these compounds in the presence of monomers affords fluorescent labeled polymers. Compounds 1 and 2 are the first azoalkanes to undergo induced decomposition in solution.
Goal setting and goal pursuit in the regulation of body weight

Abstract This article reports the results of a field investigation of the self-regulation of body weight goals. In part 1, a longitudinal study is presented of the following processes: predecisional phase → goal intention → preaction-al phase/action initiation → actional phase → action outcome. By use of structural equation models, goal intentions were shown to be a direct function of desires and indirect functions of goal efficacy, subjective norms, and attitudes toward success, failure, and the process of goal pursuit. Goal intentions, in turn, influenced activities of trying to reach one's goal and the initiation of various instrumental acts (i.e., instances of dieting and exercising). The latter behaviour then determined the degree of goal attainment. One hundred and seventeen students participated in this month long study. In part 2, 197 students took part in a study of the bases for goal setting. The cognitive schemas of respondents were elicited and found to consist of 12 superordinate pals arrange...
Design of an equilibrium core 1000 MWt Sodium-Cooled Heterogeneous Innovative Burner Reactor

Abstract In this research a sodium-cooled fast reactor is designed for the transmutation of minor actinides (MAs). The equilibrium core was designed in ERANOS 2.1 and verified in MCNPX 2.6.0. The design is innovative in the use of moderated and unmoderated heterogeneous MA targets in the core. Additionally the driver fuel uses a Np-Pu-U oxide to further help reduce the radiotoxicity of wastes from used nuclear fuel (UNF). The core design improves the transuranic feed rate of the burner by 27% while maintaining low assembly peak-to-average power. All of the major core design parameters are similar to the homogeneous design and the maximum clad damage for discharged fuel is expected to be less than 120 dpa.
Reduction of acetate accumulation in Escherichia coli cultures for increased recombinant protein production

Abstract The culture of Escherichia coli for the commercial production of recombinant proteins has increased significantly in recent years. The production of acetate as a byproduct retards cell growth, inhibits protein formation, and diverts carbon from biomass to protein product. Our approach to reducing acetate accumulation was to disable the phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system (PEP–PTS) by deleting the ptsHI operon in the wild-type E. coli strain GJT001. The mutation caused a severe reduction in growth rate and glucose uptake rate in glucose-supplemented M9 minimal medium, which confirmed the mutation, and eliminated acetate accumulation. The mutant strain (TC110) apparently metabolized glucose by a non-PTS mechanism that we are currently investigating, followed by phosphorylation by glucokinase. In complex medium such as 2×LB broth with 2% glucose, TC110 was able to grow quickly and still retained the phenotype of significantly reduced acetate accumulation (9.1±6.6 vs. 90.4±1.6 mM in GJT001, P
The Influence of Social Capital on Mathematics Course Selection by Latino High School Students

This study examined the processes involved in high school mathematics course selection among Latino students. Of particular interest in this study were an investigation of how parental involvement affects these processes. The findings in this research generally provide evidence to support the notion that social capital is associated with more informed educational decisions. Introduction of ethnicity and socioeconomic variables complicate the findings by showing that aspects of parental involvement may be effective for White students but not for Latinos. Although social capital is effective for upper socioeconomic Latinos at increasing the likelihood of algebra and advanced mathematics enrollment, it tends to be less effective for lower socioeconomic Latinos. Future research should point toward a continued examination of the nature of our stratified society and how social capital varies across social class groups. Future initiatives should be directed at schools to develop programs, interventions, and part...
Error-locality-aware linear coding to correct multi-bit upsets in SRAMs

High-energy cosmic radiation is the major source of soft errors in SRAMs that can cause multi-bit upset around the location of the strike. In this paper, we generalize the coding problem for error detection and correction of both local (burst) and global (random) errors. We suggest using error-locality-aware codes for SRAM memories to correct single-bit or multi-bit upsets as well as physical defects. Solving the coding problem with a SAT-solver, we have found codes to correct double global or multiple (>=3) local errors for 8, 12, 16, and 24-bit memories. For 16-bit memories, we propose a code that corrects two global or four local errors. With the same cost, our proposed code provides extra reliability than double-error-correcting BCH code. For 12-bit memories, we suggest a code that corrects two global or five local errors and has the same cost as triple-error-correcting Golay code but provides better reliability against multi-bit upsets. For memories of other widths, using syndrome analysis, we demonstrate the possibility of designing codes to correct any arbitrary number of local and global errors.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae Cdc42p GTPase Is Involved in Preventing the Recurrence of Bud Emergence during the Cell Cycle

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae Cdc42p GTPase interacts with multiple regulators and downstream effectors through an approximately 25-amino-acid effector domain. Four effector domain mutations, Y32K, F37A, D38E, and Y40C, were introduced into Cdc42p and characterized for their effects on these interactions. Each mutant protein showed differential interactions with a number of downstream effectors and regulators and various levels of functionality. Specifically, Cdc42(D38E)p showed reduced interactions with the Cla4p p21-activated protein kinase and the Bem3p GTPase-activating protein and cdc42(D38E) was the only mutant allele able to complement the Deltacdc42 null mutant. However, the mutant protein was only partially functional, as indicated by a temperature-dependent multibudded phenotype seen in conjunction with defects in both septin ring localization and activation of the Swe1p-dependent morphogenetic checkpoint. Further analysis of this mutant suggested that the multiple buds emerged consecutively with a premature termination of bud enlargement preceding the appearance of the next bud. Cortical actin, the septin ring, Cla4p-green fluorescent protein (GFP), and GFP-Cdc24p all predominantly localized to one bud at a time per multibudded cell. These data suggest that Cdc42(D38E)p triggers a morphogenetic defect post-bud emergence, leading to cessation of bud growth and reorganization of the budding machinery to another random budding site, indicating that Cdc42p is involved in prevention of the initiation of supernumerary buds during the cell cycle.
Wavelet Packet Analysis of DNA Sequences

The wavelet packet method is a generalization of wavelet decomposition that offers a richer signal analysis. A wavelet packets decomposition is represented by a subtree of the complete decomposition tree which is given by all possible dyadic decomposition of a signal with two filters fulfilling the power complementarity condition. We performed wavelet packet analysis on a FASTA-formatted sequence by using biorthogonal wavelets.
Controlled pauses at the initiation of sodium nitroprusside- enhanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation facilitate neurological and cardiac recovery after 15 mins of untreated ventricular fibrillation

Objective—A multi-pronged approach to improve vital organ perfusion during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) that includes sodium nitroprusside (SNP), active compression-decompression (ACD)-CPR, an impedance threshold device, and abdominal pressure (SNPeCPR) has been recently shown to increase coronary and cerebral perfusion pressures and higher rates of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) versus standard CPR. To further reduce reperfusion injury during SNPeCPR we investigated the addition of adenosine and four 20-second controlled pauses (CP) spread throughout the first 3 minutes of SNPeCPR. The primary study endpoint was 24-hour survival with favorable neurological function after 15 minutes of untreated ventricular fibrillation. (VF) Design—Randomized, prospective blinded animal investigation. Setting—Preclinical animal laboratory. Subjects—32 female pigs (4 groups of 8) 32±2Kg. Interventions—After 15 minutes of untreated VF isoflurane anesthetized pigs received 5 minutes of either standard CPR, SNPeCPR, SNPeCPR+adenosine or CP-SNPeCPR+adenosine. After 4 minutes of CPR all animals received epinephrine (0.5 mg) and a defibrillation shock one minute later. SNPeCPR-treated animals received SNP (2 mg) after 1 minute of CPR and 1 mg after 3 minutes of CPR. After 1 minutes of SNPeCPR, adenosine (24 mg) was administered in two groups. Measurements and Main Results—A veterinarian blinded to the treatment assigned a cerebral performance category score of 1–5 (normal, slightly disabled, severely disabled but conscious, vegetative state, dead, respectively) 24 hours after ROSC. SNPeCPR, SNPeCPR +adenosine, CP-SNPeCPR+adenosine resulted in significantly higher 24-hour survival rate compared to standard CPR (7/8, 8/8, 8/8 versus 2/8, respectively p<0.05). The mean CPC scores for standard CPR, SNPeCPR, SNPeCPR+adenosine or CP-SNPeCPR+adenosine were 4.6 ±0.7, 3±1.3, 2.5±0.9 and 1.5±0.9 (p<0.01 for CP-SNPeCPR+adenosine compared to all other groups).
A Streamlined Metabolic Pathway for the Biosynthesis of Moenomycin A

Summary Moenomycin A (MmA) is a member of the phosphoglycolipid family of antibiotics, which are the only natural products known to directly target the extracellular peptidoglycan glycosyltransferases involved in bacterial cell wall biosynthesis. The structural and biological uniqueness of MmA make it an attractive starting point for the development of new antibacterial drugs. In order both to elucidate the biosynthesis of this unusual compound and to develop tools to manipulate its structure, we have identified the MmA biosynthetic genes in Streptomyces ghanaensis (ATCC14672). We show via heterologous expression of a subset of moe genes that the economy of the MmA pathway is enabled through the use of sugar-nucleotide and isoprenoid building blocks derived from primary metabolism. The work reported lays the foundation for genetic engineering of MmA biosynthesis to produce novel derivatives.
A Comparative Study of Leading American, Japanese, and Korean Corporate Strategy and Financial Performance

This study examines the association of corporate strat- egy with multiple criteria of financial performance across national boundaries. Using data over a four-year period from Japan, Korea and h e United States, the study presents a multidimensional definition of corporate strategy. These dimensions are then modeled as predictors of three corporate performance criteria. The results show that corpo- rate strategy explains a significant portion of fmancial performance. In addition, corporate strategy relates differently to different perfor- mance criteria within and across the three countries.
Ursula Delworth Making a Difference

In a long and varied career, Ursula Delworth has been the embodiment of the multidimensional counseling psychologist. In this interview, Ursula recounts her experiences as an educator, clinician, model builder, supervisor, consultant, editor, and administrator. The author examines her significant influences, personal development, and professional work, as Ursula offers her perspectives on the current as well as future directions of professional psychology. It is apparent that through her numerous contributions, Ursula Delworth has made a difference in the lives of her students, colleagues, and the field of professional psychology.
Network adiabatic theorem: an efficient randomized protocol for contention resolution

The popularity of Aloha-like algorithms for resolution of contention between multiple entities accessing common resources is due to their extreme simplicity and distributed nature. Example applications of such algorithms include Ethernet and recently emerging wireless multi-access networks. Despite a long and exciting history of more than four decades, the question of designing an algorithm that is essentially as simple and distributed as Aloha while being efficient has remained unresolved.In this paper, we resolve this question successfully for a network of queues where contention is modeled through independent-set constraints over the network graph. The work by Tassiulas and Ephremides (1992) suggests that an algorithm that schedules queues so that the summation of `weight' of scheduled queues is maximized, subject to constraints, is efficient. However, implementing such an algorithm using Aloha-like mechanism has remained a mystery. We design such an algorithm building upon a Metropolis-Hastings sampling mechanism along with selection of `weight' as an appropriate function of the queue-size. The key ingredient in establishing the efficiency of the algorithm is a novel adiabatic-like theorem for the underlying queueing network, which may be of general interest in the context of dynamical systems.
A fast and accurate first-order algorithm for compressed sensing

This paper introduces a new, fast and accurate algorithm for solving problems in the area of compressed sensing, and more generally, in the area of signal and image reconstruction from indirect measurements. This algorithm is inspired by recent progress in the development of novel first-order methods in convex optimization, most notably Nesterov's smoothing technique. In particular, there is a crucial property that makes these methods extremely efficient for solving compressed sensing problems. Numerical experiments show the promising performance of our method to solve problems which involve the recovery of signals spanning a large dynamic range.
Toward power-sensitive network architectures in wireless communications: concepts, issues, and design aspects

Transmitter power control can be used to concurrently achieve several key objectives in wireless networking, including minimizing power consumption and prolonging the battery life of mobile nodes, mitigating interference and increasing the network capacity, and maintaining the required link QoS by adapting to node movements, fluctuating interference, channel impairments, and so on. Moreover, power control can be used as a vehicle for implementing on-line several basic network operations, including admission control, channel selection and switching, and handoff control. We consider issues associated with the design of power-sensitive wireless network architectures, which utilize power efficiently in establishing user communication at required QoS levels. Our focus is mainly on the network layer and less on the physical one. Besides reviewing some of the developments in power control, we also formulate some general associated concepts which have wide applicability to wireless network design. A synthesis of these concepts into a framework for power-sensitive network architectures is done, based on some key justifiable points. Various important relevant issues are highlighted and discussed, as well as several directions for further research in this area. Overall, a first step is taken toward the design of power-sensitive network architectures for next-generation wireless networks.
The intensity and variation of surgical care at the end of life: a retrospective cohort study.

Summary Background Although the extent of hospital and intensive-care use at the end of life is well known, patterns of surgical care during this period are poorly understood. We examined national patterns of surgical care in the USA among elderly fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries in their last year of life. Methods We did a retrospective cohort study of elderly beneficiaries of fee-for-service Medicare in the USA, aged 65 years or older, who died in 2008. We identified claims for inpatient surgical procedures in the year before death and examined the relation between receipt of an inpatient procedure and both age and geographical region. We calculated an end-of-life surgical intensity (EOLSI) score for each hospital referral region defined as proportion of decedents who underwent a surgical procedure during the year before their death, adjusted for age, sex, race, and income. We compared patient characteristics with Rao-Scott χ 2 tests, resource use with generalised estimating equations, regional differences with generalised estimating equations Wald tests, and end-of-life surgical intensity scores with Spearman's partial-rank-order correlation coefficients. Findings Of 1 802 029 elderly beneficiaries of fee-for-service Medicare who died in 2008, 31·9% (95% CI 31·9–32·0; 575 596 of 1 802 029) underwent an inpatient surgical procedure during the year before death, 18·3% (18·2–18·4; 329 771 of 1 802 029) underwent a procedure in their last month of life, and 8·0% (8·0–8·1; 144 162 of 1 802 029) underwent a procedure during their last week of life. Between the ages of 80 and 90 years, the percentage of decedents undergoing a surgical procedure in the last year of life decreased by 33% (35·3% [95% CI 34·7–35·9; 8858 of 25 094] to 23·6% [22·9–24·3; 3340 of 14 152]). EOLSI score in the highest intensity region (Munster, IN) was 34·4 (95% CI 33·7–35·1) and in the lowest intensity region (Honolulu, HI) was 11·5 (11·3–11·7). Regions with a high number of hospital beds per head had high end-of-life surgical intensity (r=0·37, 95% CI 0·27–0·46; p Interpretation Many elderly people in the USA undergo surgery in the year before their death. The rate at which they undergo surgery varies substantially with age and region and might suggest discretion in health-care providers' decisions to intervene surgically at the end of life. Funding None.
Linearly many faults in 2-tree-generated networks

In this article we consider a class of Cayley graphs that are generated by certain 3-cycles on the alternating group An. These graphs are generalizations of the alternating group graph AGn. We look at the case when the 3-cycles form a “tree-like structure,” and analyze its fault resiliency. We present a number of structural theorems and prove that even with linearly many vertices deleted, the remaining graph has a large connected component containing almost all vertices. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, 2010
Arthrogryposis multiplex congenita. Case due to disease of the anterior horn cells.

Introduction Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita is a syndrome which is characterized by congenital fixation of multiple joints. A number of associated neuromuscular and skeletal defects have been reported in affected individuals. The syndrome is not rare, and the clinical aspects have been described previously. From the few autopsy studies reported in the literature, it is clear that arthrogryposis may occur in a setting either of anterior horn cell disease or of primary disease of muscle. However, very few critical postmortem studies have been made, and the relationship of neural and muscular abnormalities to the manifest joint deformities poses many intriguing problems. We have had the opportunity to study pathologically a newborn infant with the neural form of arthrogryposis multiplex congenita. We wish to present our case partly because of the scarcity of well-studied autopsy material, but especially because our findings may provide a clue to the relationship between central nervous system
Stochasticity overrules the "three-times rule": genetic drift, genetic draft, and coalescence times for nuclear loci versus mitochondrial DNA.

Abstract Palumbi et al. (2001) proposed a “three-times rule” that uses mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences to predict probabilities of monophyly for nuclear loci (i.e., whether the alleles within a taxon coalesce with one another before they coalesce with alleles from a sister taxon). They use neutral coalescent theory to infer these probabilities from the ratio of interspecific divergence to intraspecific variation of mtDNA. We show that the estimated probabilities have very wide confidence intervals because of the inherent stochasticity of the mtDNA coalescent process. Under neutrality, the true probability of monophyly can be much higher, or much lower, than predicted by the three-times rule. We also review recent empirical and theoretical studies that refute neutrality-based predictions concerning mtDNA variation and divergence. We conclude that the three-times rule is neither a useful test for neutral molecular evolution nor a reliable guide to genealogical species.
Blind carrier frequency offset estimation for OFDMA-based wireless networks

Orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) is a promising multiuser access scheme. In this paper, we develop a low-complexity blind carrier frequency offset (CFO) estimator/or OFDMA-based wireless networks. A random frequency hopping/user permutation scheme is adopted to mitigate the effects of multipath fading and multiuser interference. The performance of this novel CFO estimator is tested via simulations and compared with existing blind CFO estimators.
Commentary: Intersubjectivity, interobjectivity, and the embryonic fallacy in developmental science

Traditional research adopts the embryonic fallacy: the assumption that as soon as life begins, the individual becomes the source of psychological experiences. The embryonic fallacy has resulted in intersubjectivity being treated as ‘a problem’: how can each individual, the source of private experiences, understand the private experiences of ‘self-contained’ others? This ‘problem’ disappears when we recognize that intersubjectivity is regulated through interobjectivity: how individuals understand others arises out of the cultural collective in which they are socialized. The source of our understandings of others is ‘out there’ in the social world.
An azophenine radical-bridged Fe2 single-molecule magnet with record magnetic exchange coupling

One-electron reduction of the complex [(TPyA)2FeII2(NPhL2–)]2+ (TPyA = tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine, NPhLH2 = azophenine = N,N′,N″,N‴-tetraphenyl-2,5-diamino-1,4-diiminobenzoquinone) affords the complex [(TPyA)2FeII2(NPhL3–•)]+. X-ray diffraction and Mossbauer spectroscopy confirm that the reduction occurs on NPhL2– to give an S = 1/2 radical bridging ligand. Dc magnetic susceptibility measurements demonstrate the presence of extremely strong direct antiferromagnetic exchange between S = 2 FeII centers and NPhL3–• in the reduced complex, giving an S = 7/2 ground state with an estimated coupling constant magnitude of |J| ≥ 900 cm–1. Mossbauer spectroscopy and ac magnetic susceptibility reveal that this complex behaves as a single-molecule magnet with a spin relaxation barrier of Ueff = 50(1) cm–1. To our knowledge, this complex exhibits by far the strongest magnetic exchange coupling ever to be observed in a single-molecule magnet.
The reported and revealed importance of job attributes to aspiring information technology: a policy-capturing study of gender differences

Although information systems practitioners recognize the importance of diversity in recruiting efforts and offer advice on targeted recruiting, IT researchers have not provided empirical research findings to support these efforts. In the absence of research demonstrating group-level differences in what employees want from their work, any attempt at targeted recruitment strategies is at best based on anecdotal evidence and at worst on mistaken premises and potentially invalid stereotypes. In this study, we examine gender similarities and differences in job attribute preferences among prospective IT professionals. Participants evaluated a series of multi-attribute job descriptions in a policy-capturing design. Although male and female aspiring IT professionals gave the same average importance ratings to work values and desired the same types of job attributes, there were some subtle gender differences in the weights they place on these factors in evaluating potential jobs. In some cases, observed results were contrary to gender differences reported in research suggesting that commonly accepted stereotypes do not necessarily apply. For instance, men were actually somewhat more averse to lengthy work weeks than women, and women did not place any less weight on income than men.
Relationships Between Fish Parasitism and Pollution Exposure in the White Croaker, Genyonemus lineatus (Sciaenidae), from Los Angeles Harbor, Southern California, U.S.A.

The white croaker, Genyonemus lineatus, occurs in degraded habitats like Los Angeles Harbor, California, U.S.A., and has been used as a target species for pollution monitoring studies in the Southern California Bight. Sampling of croaker from several sites within Los Angeles Harbor and a reference site, Dana Point, was done to assess the relationship between endohelminth parasitism and pollution in this fish host. Prevalence of Anisakis sp., Stephanostomum spp., and Lacistorhynchus dollfusi varied significantly by site. Only for Anisakis sp. was mean intensity significantly different between the less polluted site, Dana Point, and the site in Los Angeles Harbor closest to the outfall pipe of a sewage treatment plant. Anisakis sp. appears to be useful as an indicator of pollution exposure in white croaker populations from Los Angeles Harbor.
The SDF-1 receptor CXCR4 enhances metastasis in neuroblastoma

AACR Annual Meeting-- Apr 14-18, 2007; Los Angeles, CA 521 The homing of cancer cells to metastatic sites has been shown to involve the expression of the chemokine stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1/CCL12) secreted by many tissues, in particular hematopoietic cells and the expression of its receptor CXCR4 by metastatic tumor cells. In neuroblastoma, the role of SDF-1/CXCR4 has been the subject of conflicting reports. Whereas some investigators have shown that SDF-1 produced by bone marrow-derived cells promotes the migration of CXCR4 expressing neuroblastoma cells (Geminder et al ., J. Immunology, 167: 4747-4757, 2001), other investigators have demonstrated that CXCR4 in neuroblastoma is not functional and that SDF-1 does not stimulate their chemotaxis in vitro (Airoldi et al ., Clin. Cancer Res. 12: 77-82, 2006). These studies, however, have not tested the effect of CXCR4 on metastasis in animal models. To address this issue, SCID mice were intravenously injected with CXCR4 positive CHLA-255 human neuroblastoma cells engineered to express the firefly luciferase reporter gene and their metastatic potential was monitored by luciferin-induced bioluminescence. Several metastatic lesions in the bone, lung, liver, kidney and adrenal gland were identified and cells from these lesions were grown and subcloned. Cells growing from a bone metastatic lesion (CHLA-255-BM2) were found to express high levels of CXCR4 (44 ± 9.4% positive) whereas cells derived from an adrenal lesion (CHLA-255-KM2) expressed low levels of CXCR4 (3.9 ± 4.4% positive). In vitro , high CXCR4 expressing CHLA-255-BM2 cells migrated in the presence of SDF-1 (300 ng/ml) and this effect was partially blocked in the presence of the CXCR4 inhibitor AMD3100 (10 µg/ml) and completely blocked in the presence of an anti-CXCR4 blocking antibody (100 µg /ml). In contrast, SDF-1 had no stimulatory effect on the migration of low CXCR4 expressing CHLA-255-KM2 cells. When injected in the tail vein of SCID mice, CXCR4 high expressing cells formed rapidly growing metastases in the lungs, bone and also in the adrenal gland after 29 to 37 days, whereas CXCR4 low expressing cells failed to form detectable metastases within the same time frame. The data thus suggest that SDF-1/CXCR4 may be an important factor promoting the homing of neuroblastoma cells to metastatic sites.
De Finetti’s Methods of Elicitation

De Finetti (1974) uses payoffs through promissory notes, bets, or scoring rules in the elicitation of an expert’s probabilities and introduces his “hypothesis of rigidity” to argue that as long as the payoffs are small, nonlinearities in the expert’s utility function can be ignored for practical purposes. In an analysis considering not just the elicitation-related payoffs, but all uncertainties related to the expert’s fortune, we find that the hypothesis of rigidity is not sufficient to eliminate the impact of the utility function in probability elicitation. We propose an “extended hypothesis of rigidity” that adds an extra condition to de Finetti’s hypothesis. The extra assumption is that, ignoring elicitation-related payoffs, the fortune of the expert is independent of the events for which probabilities are being elicited.
In Vitro Response of Rabbit Utero-Ovarian Ligament to Catecholamines *

The response of the rabbit utero-ovarian ligament to catecholamines has been studied in vitro, with contractile activity being recorded isometrically from whole rabbit ligaments obtained under various hormonal conditions. Both the catecholamines norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (EPI) produced dose-dependent (10 −2 μg/ml threshold; 10 2 μg/ml maximum) tetanic contractions of rabbit ligament. There was no difference (P
Macho Posturing in For Whom the Bell Tolls: The Role of Andrés of Villaconejos

(1996). Macho Posturing in For Whom the Bell Tolls: The Role of Andres of Villaconejos. ANQ: A Quarterly Journal of Short Articles, Notes and Reviews: Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 27-31.
The Morphology, Taxonomy, and Sexuality of the Rice Stem Rot Fungus, Magnaporthe Salvinii (Leptosphaeria Salvinii)

A morphological study of Magnaporthe salvinii gen. nov., comb, nov., the cause of stem rot of rice, disclosed that it had unitunicate, shortstalked, thin-walled, deliquescent asci with a light-refr...
The sustainable development of grassland resources and livestock husbandry of Xinjiang

Xinjiang is one of the main pastoral areas in China. Grassland that can be used for animal husbandry accounts for 16% of national total. But the excessive grazing and everlasting ruin of pastoral resources led to the devastation of pastures, the reduction of fine pastural output, the deterioration of ecological environment. As a result, there are many calamities and contradictions between pastoral resources and the sustainable development of stock breeding in Xinjiang. In order to implement sustainable animal husbandry, we must enhance understanding of natural resources, change old conceptions, enact powerful measures to fit local conditions, strengthen pastoral administration and construction, try to get better use of pastoral resources and popularize advanced technology, etc.
Using ratio analysis for financial accountability.

Financial accountability is now a fact of life for nonprofit as well as profit-making organizations. This article describes the useful ratio analysis technique, provides relevant examples, discusse...
A strategy for deploying a seismological network for global studies of Earth structure

Because of the nonuniform distribution of earthquake epicenters, a uniform distribution of seismological stations is not necessarily optimal for sampling the Earth in order to determine global Earth structure. Taking into account the already existing digital long-period seismological stations (GDSN, IDA, and GEOSCOPE), we propose a strategy for the siting of additional stations. Here, we shall develop a criterion designed to optimize global resolution of upper mantle structre using mantle wave observations; other kinds of seismological studies will lead to different criteria, which should, however, be amenable to a similar treatment. For an Earth model developed in spherical harmonics up to a high degree M , and for a given distribution of epicenters and stations, the variance of the solution expanded to some lower degree L ≦ M is obtained at each point of the earth surface by use of averaging kernels, the width of which depends on L . Two measures of the efficiency of an additional station are the reduction of the mean variance and the reduction of the variance oscillations over the Earth's surface; these measures of “new station efficiency” are mapped as a function of the location of the new station (Figures 8 and 9) for the averaging kernels corresponding to L = 8. Considering the reduction of variance oscillations as the main aim, we find that a new station added in south east Africa, in the eastern Pacific, or in Pakistan is up to 6 times more efficient than a station added randomly, and many times more effective than a station added in the Central United States, the Philippines, or Japan.
PD-1/PD-L1 blockade in renal cell cancer

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Immunotherapy using checkpoint inhibitors is providing significant benefit to patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC), both in overall survival and tolerability of treatment. Given the recent approval of the first checkpoint inhibitor in RCC, this review discusses the background and clinical data for checkpoint inhibition in RCC.Areas covered: This review introduces and discusses the basic biologic mechanisms of checkpoint inhibitor function and focuses on the current evidence in clinical trials for the use of immunotherapy in RCC.Expert commentary: Immunotherapy has been a mainstay of therapy in RCC, but the recent approval of nivolumab with ORR of 25% and durable responses has provided a transformative new therapeutic option.
Knockdown of Plakophilin 2 Downregulates miR-184 Through CpG Hypermethylation and Suppression of the E2F1 Pathway and Leads to Enhanced Adipogenesis In Vitro

Rationale:PKP2, encoding plakophilin 2 (PKP2), is the most common causal gene for arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. Objective:To characterize miRNA expression profile in PKP2-deficient cells. Methods and Results:Control and PKP2-knockdown HL-1 (HL-1Pkp2-shRNA) cells were screened for 750 miRNAs using low-density microfluidic panels. Fifty-nine miRNAs were differentially expressed. MiR-184 was the most downregulated miRNA. Expression of miR-184 in the heart and cardiac myocyte was developmentally downregulated and was low in mature myocytes. MicroRNA-184 was predominantly expressed in cardiac mesenchymal progenitor cells. Knockdown of Pkp2 in cardiac mesenchymal progenitor cells also reduced miR-184 levels. Expression of miR-184 was transcriptionally regulated by the E2F1 pathway, which was suppressed in PKP2-deficient cells. Activation of E2F1, on overexpression of its activator CCND1 (cyclin D1) or knockdown of its inhibitor retinoblastoma 1, partially rescued miR-184 levels. In addition, DNA methyltransfer...
Fast-Food Unionization

Social inequality has been directly tied to the decline of labor unions. In an effort to reverse the trend, recent attempts have been made to unionize fast-food workers, one of the largest segments in the country, and, at the sametime, raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. The article examines the tactics employed to do so including framing, resource mobilization, and the use of social media. Although the movement has met with success in raising the minimum wage, the actual unionization of workers remains elusive.
Conclusion: Airports, Cities, and the Jet Age

The conclusion summarizes the major arguments Bednarek made in the book. First, airports are places with multiple layers of history—national and international as well as distinctly local in scope. Second, airports are also problematic producers of noise pollution. Third, airport terminals replaced the train station as the “front door” through which visitors first enter a city. Fourth, though airline companies have emphasized the freedom that comes with flight, airports have emerged as places where both first and fourth amendment rights have been challenged and curtailed in the name of security. Finally, overall, airports are the multi-layered products of, among other factors, a particular ownership and management structure, responses to new technologies and an expanding airline travel industry, economic development dreams, and security nightmares.
Multivariate family factors in lifetime and current marijuana use among American Indian and white adolescents residing on or near reservations.

Abstract Background Rates of marijuana use are consistently high among reservation-based American Indian adolescents. The roles of family are unique in this ethnic group and can serve as sources of both risk and protection for substance use. Purpose To assess the relationships between distal and proximal family factors and lifetime and current marijuana use among American Indian and white middle and high school students who attend the same schools on or near reservations. Methods In-school surveys were administered to 3380 American Indian and 1562 white students from 35 middle schools and 17 high schools regarding levels of marijuana use and family characteristics. Three logistic regression models (Control, Control + Distal; Control + Distral + Proximal) estimated effects of multiple family variables on lifetime and current marijuana use.Results: Strong effects were found for family structure, parental monitoring, family conflict, and family sanctions against marijuana use. Weaker effects were found for family participation in school events, and no relationship was found for family communication about marijuana. Anumber of similar results were found across ethnicity and middle and high school students. Conclusions Family variables exert strong and largely consistent effects across reservation-based American Indian and white youth on lifetime and current marijuana use. Interventions that include a broad range of targeted family components may serve to both limit uptake and forestall increases in adolescent marijuana use in these two groups.
What Patients With Behavioral-Variant Frontotemporal Dementia Can Teach Us About Moral Responsibility

Moral and legal responsibility is diminished in neuropsychiatric patients who lack the capacity to use reasoning to determine morally appropriate behavior. Patients with behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), however, develop immoral behaviors as a result of their disease despite the ability to explicitly state that their behavior is wrong. In order to determine whether bvFTD patients should be held responsible for their immoral behavior, we begin by discussing the philosophical concepts of free will, determinism, and responsibility. Those who believe in both determinism and free will are called compatibilists. We argue that reason-responsiveness, a specific type of compatibilism, cannot fully determine responsibility in bvFTD patients if reason-responsiveness is considered to be a single, unified concept. Instead, we argue that several different neuropsychological capacities, including many that are impaired in bvFTD patients, contribute to a patient's ability to respond to certain reasons i...
Reservoir Construction After Low Anterior Resection: Who and What?

The two key major outcomes after surgical treatment of rectal cancer are oncologic and functional. Improved understanding of tumor biology and advanced surgical techniques have led to improved oncologic results and also increased rates of sphincter-preserving procedures for low rectal cancers. This trend, however, has brought to light the functional consequences following low anterior resection (LAR) with total mesorectal excision (TME) and coloanal anastomosis (CAA). Many patients who have undergone sphincter-preserving low or ultra-low anterior resections with a straight CAA experience defecatory symptoms that can include frequency, urgency, clustering, incomplete evacuation, constipation, diarrhea, and incontinence [1]. This collection of symptoms, also known as low anterior resection syndrome (LARS),is partially attributable to the loss of the reservoir function of the rectum.
Experimental Behavior and Design of Steel Plate Composite-to-Reinforced Concrete Lap Splice Connections

AbstractSteel-plate composite (SC) walls can be anchored to reinforced concrete (RC) foundations or connected to RC walls using lap-splice connections. These lap-splice connections consist of steel...
Three-dimensional hydrodynamic lake simulations of avalanche-generated impulse wave dynamics for potential GLOF scenarios at Lake Palcacocha, Peru

This paper studies the lake dynamics for avalanche-triggered glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range in Ancash, Peru. As new glacial lakes emerge and existing lakes continue to grow, they pose an increasing risk of GLOFs that can be catastrophic to the communities living downstream. In this work, Lake Palcacocha is used as a case study to analyze the upper watershed processes that typically comprise a GLOF event, specifically the lake dynamics when an avalanche produces a large tsunami-like wave that might overtop and erode the lake-damming moraine. Dynamics of avalanche-generated impulse waves were investigated through three-dimensional hydrodynamic lake simulations of potential GLOF scenarios at Lake Palcacocha, Peru. Wave generation from avalanche impact was simulated using two different boundary condition methods. Representation of an avalanche as water flowing into the lake generally resulted in higher peak flows and overtopping volumes than simulating the avalanche impact as mass-momentum inflow at the lake boundary. Three different scenarios of avalanche size were simulated for the current lake conditions, and all resulted in significant overtopping of the lake-damming moraine. The lake model was evaluated for sensitivity to turbulence model and grid resolution, and the uncertainty due to these model parameters is significantly less than that due to avalanche boundary condition characteristics. Although the lake model introduces significant uncertainty, the avalanche portion of the GLOF process chain is the greatest source of uncertainty. To aid in evaluation of hazard mitigation alternatives, two scenarios of lake lowering were investigated. While large avalanches produced significant overtopping waves for all lake-lowering scenarios, simulations suggest that it may be possible to contain waves generated from smaller avalanches if the surface of the lake is lowered.
The Fears and Futures of Boy Victims of Sexual Abuse: An Analysis of Narratives

ABSTRACTQualitative analysis of boys’ narratives about child sexual abuse revealed several themes, including memories of the abuse, the disclosure and subsequent events, the healing journey, and a meta-theme titled “fear and safety.” In this article, boys’ (N = 19) experiences related to fear and safety and the healing journey are explored. The narratives provided a unique look at boys’ road to recovery, perceptions of counseling, and hopes for their futures. Recommendations for counseling boy victims are discussed.
Turkish Reduplicative Adjectives and Adverbs

This research examines a partial (emphatic) reduplication process in Turkish that forms intensified adjectives/adverbs with one of four linkers m , p , r , and s (e.g., bem.bejaz , ip.i ri ). This study goes beyond earlier works by investigating the responses of native Turkish speakers to intensifying nonce words without limiting them about the choice of linkers. The results indicate although this reduplication process is influenced by phonology, the selection of linkers is lexically determined in existing Turkish adjectives/adverbs. With nonce words, native speakers appear to adopt secondary strategies that include using a linker copied from the base, omitting a linker, and dissimilation of the linker and the initial consonant of a C-initial base.