cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prediction of Organic Reaction Outcomes Using Machine Learning

Computer assistance in synthesis design has existed for over 40 years, yet retrosynthesis planning software has struggled to achieve widespread adoption. One critical challenge in developing high-quality pathway suggestions is that proposed reaction steps often fail when attempted in the laboratory, despite initially seeming viable. The true measure of success for any synthesis program is whether the predicted outcome matches what is observed experimentally. We report a model framework for anticipating reaction outcomes that combines the traditional use of reaction templates with the flexibility in pattern recognition afforded by neural networks. Using 15 000 experimental reaction records from granted United States patents, a model is trained to select the major (recorded) product by ranking a self-generated list of candidates where one candidate is known to be the major product. Candidate reactions are represented using a unique edit-based representation that emphasizes the fundamental transformation fro...
Extreme magnetoresistance in the topologically trivial lanthanum monopnictide LaAs

The family of binary lanthanum monopnictides, LaBi and LaSb, has attracted a great deal of attention as it displays an unusual extreme magnetoresistance (XMR) that is not well understood. Two classes of explanations have been offered for this: the presence of nontrivial topology and the compensation between electron and hole densities. Here, by synthesizing a new member of the family, LaAs, and performing transport measurements, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations, we show that (a) LaAs retains all qualitative features characteristic of the XMR effect but with a significant reduction in magnitude compared to LaSb and LaBi, (b) the absence of a band inversion or a Dirac cone in LaAs indicates that topology is insignificant to XMR, (c) the equal number of electron and hole carriers indicates that compensation is necessary for XMR but does not explain its magnitude, and (d) the ratio of electron and hole mobilities is much different in LaAs compared to LaSb and LaBi. We argue that the compensation is responsible for the XMR profile and the mobility mismatch constrains the magnitude of XMR.
Long QT syndrome type 5-Lite: Defining the clinical phenotype associated with the potentially proarrhythmic p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 common genetic variant

Background Long QT syndrome (LQTS) genetic test reports commonly exclude potentially proarrhythmic common variants such as p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1. Objective The purpose of this study was to determine whether a discernible phenotype is associated with p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 and whether relatively common KCNE1 variants underlie transient QT prolongation pedigrees with negative commercial LQTS genetic tests. Methods Retrospective review was used to compare demographics, symptomatology, and QT parameters of individuals with p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 in the absence of other rare/ultra-rare variants in LQTS-susceptibility genes and those who underwent comprehensive LQTS genetic testing. Results Compared to the Genome Aggregation Database, p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 was more prevalent in individuals undergoing LQTS genetic testing (33/1248 [2.6%] vs 1552/126,652 [1.2%]; P = .0001). In 19 of 33 patients (58%), only p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 was observed. These patients were predominantly female (90% vs 62%; P = .01) and were less likely to experience syncope (0% vs 34%; P = .0007), receive β-blockers (53% vs 85%; P = .001), or require an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (5.3% vs 33%; P = .01). However, they exhibited a similar degree of QT prolongation (QTc 460 ms vs 467 ms; P = NS). Whole exome sequencing of 2 commercially genotype-negative pedigrees revealed that p.Asp85Asn-KCNE1 and p.Arg36His-KCNE1 traced with a transient QT prolongation phenotype. Functional characterization of p.Arg36His-KCNE1 demonstrated loss of function, with a 47% reduction in peak I Ks current density in the heterozygous state. Conclusion We provide further evidence that relatively common variants in KCNE1 may result in a mild QT phenotype designated as "LQT5-Lite" to distinguish such potentially proarrhythmic common variants (ie, functional risk alleles) from rare pathogenic variants that truly confer monogenic disease susceptibility, albeit with incomplete penetrance.
The Legal Boundaries of Informed Consent

An explanation of the legal origin of informed consent, the key court decisions in establishing the principle of consent to treatment, and the knowledge of risks and benefits necessary to inform the consent process adequately. virtual mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
RefRef: A Tool for Viewing and Exploring Coreference Space

We present RefRef, a tool for viewing and exploring coreference space, which is publicly available for research purposes. Unlike similar tools currently available whose main goal is to assist the annotation process of coreference links, RefRef is dedicated for viewing and exploring coreference-annotated data, whether manually tagged or automatically resolved. RefRef is also highly customizable, as the tool is being made available with the source code. In this paper we describe the main functionalities of RefRef as well as some possibilities for customization to meet the specific needs of the users of such coreference-annotated text.
OCD Genomics and Future Looks

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) has been studied using various genetic analyses over the years. It has been of interest to identify potential risk genes that point to the susceptibility of the disorder. Segregation analyses were the initial methods to study these genes. Linkage analyses were then used and slowly replaced segregation analyses in the genomics field. Now, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and meta-analyses are commonly used to study OCD, as well as other psychiatric disorders. All previous research on OCD has focused on common variants, and the hope is to shift toward studying rare variants in the future. This chapter discusses each of these methodologies in the context of OCD, as well as a look into what the future of OCD statistical analyses may hold.
Age-Related Changes in Inferior Vena Cava Dimensions among Children and Adolescents with Syncope

Objective To test the hypothesis that increased venous compliance manifested as inferior vena cava (IVC) dilation is an important substrate for syncope in children. Study design IVC diameters were measured in 191 children and adolescents with syncope and in 95 controls. Subjects were divided based on age Results In the syncope group, the mean age was 12.9 ± 3.6 years, mean weight was 54.7 ± 23 kg, and mean BSA was 1.5 ± 0.4 m2. Among controls, all IVC dimensions varied linearly with BSA (P .05 for all). Conclusions The IVC is enlarged in teenagers with syncope compared with controls, suggesting that venous capacitance and resultant pooling play roles in the pathogenesis of syncope. In contrast, younger children with syncope do not demonstrate IVC dilation, suggesting that their syncope arises from a different mechanism.
Prevalence of Coronary Endothelial and Microvascular Dysfunction in Women with Symptoms of Ischemia and No Obstructive Coronary Artery Disease Is Confirmed by a New Cohort: The NHLBI-Sponsored Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation-Coronary Vascular Dysfunction (WISE-CVD).

Objective. In a separate, contemporary cohort, we sought to confirm findings of the original Women’s Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE). Background. The original WISE observed a high prevalence of both invasively determined coronary endothelial and coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) that predicted adverse events in follow-up. Methods. We comparatively studied the WISE-Coronary Vascular Dysfunction (CVD) cohort (2009-2011), with signs and symptoms of ischemia but without significant CAD, to the original WISE (1997-2001) cohort. CMD was defined as coronary flow reserve (CFR) ≤2.5, or endothelial dysfunction as epicardial coronary artery constriction to acetylcholine (ACH), or <20% epicardial coronary dilation to nitroglycerin (NTG). Results. In WISE (n=181) and WISE-CVD (n=235) women, mean age in both was 54 years, and 83% were white (WISE) vs 74% (WISE-CVD, p=0.04). Use of hormone replacement therapy was less frequent in WISE-CVD vs WISE (46% vs 57%, p=0.026) as was presence of hypertension (40% vs 52%, p=0.013), hyperlipidemia (20% vs 46%, p<0.0001), and smoking (46% vs 56%, p=0.036). Similar rates were observed in WISE-CVD and WISE cohorts for CMD (mean CFR 2.7±0.6 vs 2.6±0.8, p=0.35), mean change in diameter with intracoronary ACH (0.2±10.0 vs 1.6±12.8 mm, p=0.34), and mean change in diameter with intracoronary NTG (9.7±13.0 vs 9.8±13.5 mm, p=0.94), respectively. Conclusions. This study confirms prevalence of CMD in the contemporary WISE-CVD cohort similar to that of the original WISE cohort, despite a lower risk factor burden in WISE-CVD. Because these coronary functional abnormalities predict major adverse cardiac events, clinical trials of therapies targeting these abnormalities are indicated.
Comparative Measures of Naiveté

We propose nonparametric definitions of absolute and comparative naivete. These definitions leverage both ex-ante choice of menu to identify individuals' projections of their future behavior and ex-post choice from menus to identify their actual behavior. Their main advantage is their independence from any assumed functional form for the utility function representing behavior. An individual is sophisticated if she is indifferent between choosing from a menu ex post or committing to the actual choice from that menu ex ante. She is naive if she prefers the flexibility in the menu, reflecting a mistaken belief that she will act more virtuously than she actually will. One individual is more naive than another if she is both more optimistic about her future behavior while actually being less virtuous. In the case of Strotzian preferences, absolute naivete implies that beliefs are a convex combination of virtuous and temptation utility, while comparative naivete implies that the more naive individual's beliefs puts more weight than a more sophisticated individual on her virtuous utility, while her actual behavior puts more weight on the temptation utility. In different specifications of the underlying Strotzian preferences, such as quasi-hyperbolic discounting, the definitions impose further intuitive restrictions, such as inequalities on believed and actual present-bias factors. We propose suitable definitions for random choice. Finally, we discuss the implications of naivete for welfare and the design of commitment devices.
MCNP6 Study of Fragmentation Products from 112Sn+112Sn and 124Sn+124Sn at 1 GeV/A

Abstract Isotope production cross sections from 112Sn + 112Sn and 124Sn + 124Sn reactions at 1 GeV/nucleon, which were measured recently at GSI using the heavy-ion accelerator SIS18 and the Fragment Separator (FRS), have been analyzed with the latest Los Alamos Monte-Carlo transport code MCNP6 using the LAQGSM03.03 event generator. MCNP6 reproduces reasonably well all the measured cross sections. Comparison of the MCNP6 results with the measured data and with calculations by a modification of the Los Alamos version of the Quark-Gluon String Model allowing for multifragmentation processes in the framework of the Statistical Multifragmentation Model (SMM) by Botvina and coauthors, as realized in the code LAQGSM03.S1, does not suggest unambiguous evidence of a multifragmentation signature.
Student-Designed Green Chemistry Experiment for a Large-Enrollment, Introductory Organic Laboratory Course.

A 3-week module incorporating the principles of green chemistry was developed for a large-enrollment, introductory organic chemistry laboratory course. An emphasis was placed on students planning their own experiments with the goal of obtaining a greener reaction (week 1). Students executed their designed experiments in week 2 and were given an opportunity to repeat the experiment or further optimize the reaction conditions to improve the yields during week 3. A postlab writing assignment as well as pre- and postsemester surveys were used to evaluate student learning and confidence. These data revealed an increase in students’ understanding of green chemistry concepts as well as their confidence in their ability to modify a reaction to improve the results. We anticipate that this overall framework can be adapted to other large- and small-enrollment laboratory courses.
A Cost Analysis of Traditional Professional Development and Coaching Structures in Schools

Current achievement data indicate a public health concern, whereby the majority of students are not proficient in reading or math. Teacher professional development is frequently the preventive mechanism schools utilize to improve instruction, student achievement, and subsequent long-term economic and health-related outcomes. This study used the ingredients method to examine the costs associated with two common structures of professional development: traditional workshops and coaching. Results suggested that the cost per educator per contact hour ranged from $138.29 to $158.45 for workshops and was $169.43 for coaching, in 2017-2018 US dollars. The distribution of costs indicated that local districts incurred the majority of the costs for traditional workshops (i.e., range of 74.76% to 81.03%), whereas regional providers incurred the majority of the costs for coaching (i.e., 58.75%). Marginal costs, or the costs for one additional participant at one traditional workshop, ranged from $663.64 to $1132.78 and were $441.32 for coaching an additional peer teacher within one school building. Marginal costs increased to $2060.21 when coaching an additional peer teacher in an additional building. Implications for practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Então Ela é Escrava? Escrava Isaura, Popular History and National Identity

Este artigo analisa a novela Escrava Isaura, transmitida pela Rede Globo entre 11 de outubro de 1976 e 5 de fevereiro de 1977. Adaptacao do romance de Bernardo Guimaraes (1875), a novela teve grande repercussao na midia e um alto indice de audiencia, durante um periodo de profunda transformacao da televisao no Brasil. A narrativa e a estetica presentes em Escrava Isaura configuraram um discurso historico intricado, estabelecendo uma leitura peculiar do passado e das relacoes raciais contemporâneas a novela. Escrava Isaura gerou debates acirrados na imprensa da epoca em torno da escravidao, patriarcado e identidade nacional, em tempos de ditadura militar no Brasil.
Injectable Sodium Bentonite Inhibitors for Corrosion under Insulation

AbstractCorrosion under insulation (CUI) presents a significant threat to the safe and economical operation of insulated metallic structures. This paper explores the use of sodium bentonite to inhi...
High-Crystallinity Epitaxial Sb2Se3 Thin Films on Mica for Flexible Near-Infrared Photodetectors.

The V–VI binary chalcogenide, Sb2Se3, has attracted considerable attention for its applications in thin film optoelectronic devices because of its unique 1D structure and remarkable optoelectronic properties. Herein, we report an Sb2Se3 thin film epitaxially grown on a flexible mica substrate through a relatively weak (van der Waals) interaction by vapor transport deposition. The epitaxial Sb2Se3 thin films exhibit a single (120) out-of-plane orientation and a 0.25° full width at half-maximum of (120) rocking curve in X-ray diffraction, confirming the high crystallinity of the epitaxial films. The Sb2Se3(120) plane is epitaxially aligned on mica(001) surface with the in-plane relationship of Sb2Se3[210]//mica­[010] and Sb2Se3[001]//mica­[100]. Compared to the photodetector made of a nonepitaxial Sb2Se3 film, the photocurrent of the epitaxial Sb2Se3 film photodetector is almost doubled. Furthermore, because of the flexibility and high sensitivity of the epitaxial Sb2Se3 film photodetector on mica, it has been successfully employed to detect the heart rate of a person. These encouraging results will facilitate the development of epitaxial Sb2Se3 film-based devices and potential applications in wearable electronics.
Experiential Learning, Inter-Firm Imitation, and Advice-Seeking During Corporate Restructuring

Advice-seeking is an integral part of decision-making for upper echelons and has important implications for firms’ strategic actions and performance. However, factors leading to firms’ advice-seeki...
Influence of dietary calcium and vitamin D3 on cholesterol deposition in tissues and conversion into biliary cholesterol and bile acids in young pigs

Fifty-four crossbred, castrated male pigs with an average initial weight of 10.2 kg were fed diets containing either 1 or 3 times the daily requirement of calcium and 1, 5 or 25 times the daily requirement of cholecalciferol in a 2 X 3 factorial design. During week 6, pigs were fitted with femoral artery, coimnon bile duct and re-entrant duodenal catheters. Eighteen pigs died during or after surgery, giving a mortality rate of 33%. Causes of death included intestinal blockage, euthanasia after catheter failure, gastric ulcer, infection and death during surgery. Body weight of pigs at weeks 7 and 8 were greater (P<0.10) than week 6 weights, indicating that the pigs were growing after surgery. Body weight gain from week 6 to week 8 was greater (P<0.10) for pigs fed excess calcium than for pigs fed the recommended amount of calcium. Concentrations of plasma triacylglycerol were decreased at week 8 for pigs fed excess calcium (P<0.05) or excess cholecalciferol (P<0.10). Concentrations of plasma phospholipid decreased after week 6 (P<0.10) and continued to decrease at week 8 (P<0.05). Concentrations of plasma cholesterol decreased after week 6 (P<0.10) but were not different between weeks 7 and 8. Pigs fed excess calcium had decreased (P<0.10) plasma cholesterol concentrations at week 8 compared to pigs fed the recommended amount of calcium. Concentrations of LDLand HDL-cholesterol did not show significant calcium or cholecalciferol effects at the three weeks sampled. Concentrations of HDL-cholesterol were less (P<0.01) at weeks 7 and 8 but week 7 was not significantly different from week 8. After week 8, bile was collected for 48 hours from the 36 remaining pigs (six per
Rejecting the idea of rejection as a measure of parental alienation: Comment on Bernet, Gregory, and Rohner, and Reay (2020)

Bernet, Gregory, Rohner, and Reay (2020) proposed that an assessment of children’s beliefs about whether a parent accepted or rejected the children would help identify the children as showing “pare...
Electronic Band Structures of Solids

The property that distinguishes semiconductors from other materials concerns the behavior of their charged carriers, in particular the existence of gaps in their electronic and photonic transition spectra. The microscopic behavior of charged carriers in a solid is most conveniently specified in terms of the electronic band structure. The metals are good conductors with overlapped conduction and valence bands, while insulators such as ionic crystals have large bandgaps of over 8 eV. The semiconductor crystals have a finite energy bandgap between metals and insulators. The purpose of this chapter is to develop the basic understanding of energy bandgap formation in solids. We start our discussion by first developing the free electron theory based on quantum theory in which the Fermi–Dirac statistics are used instead of the classical Boltzmann statistics. Then the spatial periodic potential of a solid is introduced according to Bloch’s theorem. Finally, the interference at Brillouin zone boundaries leads to constructive and/or destructive interferences of electron waves forming the energy bandgap.
The BAFFling persistence of memory B cells.

Although BAFF/BLyS and its receptor, BAFFR, play critical roles in naive B cell survival, the pathways involved in the persistence of memory B cells are largely unknown. In this issue of JEM, two groups, Muller-Winkler et al. (https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20191393) and Lau et al. (https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20191167), take complementary approaches to identify an essential role for BAFFR in the survival of memory B cells.
A Modest Proposal Regarding Scholarly Impact: Burn It Down

When it comes to the metrics of calculating scholarship impact, it is important to differentiate between the things that are possible to change and the things that are not. There will never be a perfect system, but it is entirely possible to make the current system more equitable. This article proposes three changes: citing to all authors, adopting persistent identifiers, and requiring diversity in citation. While it may appear that these are changes that scholars should take on, in order to guarantee implementation, these changes would need to be embraced, adopted, and enforced by the publishers, namely law reviews, law journals, and the law schools that support them. All three of those areas were important to address prior to 2020, but with the fallout from a global pandemic, these changes need to be implemented as soon as possible to avoid additional harm to scholars.
Climate Denial Fuels Climate Change Discussions More Than Local Climate-Related Disasters

Most scientists agree that climate change is the largest existential threat of our time. Despite the magnitude of the threat, surprisingly few climate-related discussions take place on social media. What factors drive online discussions about climate change? In this study, we examined the occurrence of Reddit discussions around three types of climate-related events: natural disasters (e.g., hurricanes, wildfires), political events (i.e., 2016 United States Presidential election), and policy events (i.e., United States' withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement, release of IPCC report). The objective was to understand how different types of events influence collective action as measured by discussions of climate change. Six large US cities were selected based on the occurrence of at least one locally-relevant natural disaster since 2014. Posts (N = 4.4 million) from subreddits of the selected cities were collected to obtain a six-month period before and after local natural disasters as well as climate-related political and policy events (which applied equally to all cities). Climate change discussions increased significantly for all three types of events, with the highest discussion during the 2016 elections. Further, discussions returned to baseline levels within 2 months following natural disasters and policy events but continued at elevated rates for up to 4 months following the 2016 elections. The findings suggest that collective discussions on climate change are driven more by political leaders' controversial positions than life-threatening local natural disasters themselves. Implications for collective action are discussed.
Intracanopy CO2 and light interactions on Humulus lupulus L. net canopy carbon gain under current and future atmospheric CO2 concentrations

Abstract Photosynthetic light response curves were measured in four cultivars of Humulus lupulus L. (hop) at CO2 concentrations of 415, 500, 600, and 700 μmol CO2 mol−1. Short-term elevated CO2 increased net photosynthesis (An), light-saturated rates of photosynthesis, and quantum yield and decreased the light compensation point and leaf respiration. To illustrate the effects on canopy carbon gain, we used a rigorously validated physiologically-explicit canopy process model (MAESTRA). The cultivar-specific leaf-level physiological response parameters at 415, 500, 600, and 700 μmol CO2 mol−1 were extrapolated throughout the canopy to reproduce the cultivar-specific carbon gain under current and future atmospheric CO2 conditions. Under sub optimal light conditions, the initial CO2 increase of 415 to 500 μmol CO2 mol−1 resulted in the highest relative carbon gain increase (∼18%), whereas enrichment from 500 to 600 and 600 to 700 μmol CO2 mol−1 resulted in an additional carbon uptake of ∼16% and ∼12%. Ratios of An to increased CO2 indicated that shaded leaves benefit more from elevated CO2 than light saturated leaves. Estimated daily canopy carbon uptake increased ∼24% from 415 to 500 µmol mol−1 CO2. Daily carbon uptake increased by ∼17% from 500 to 600 µmol mol−1 CO2 and ∼18% from 600 to 700 µmol mol−1. Thus, in comparison to leaves exposed to direct sunlight, hop canopy carbon gain in shaded diffuse light lower canopy layers may contribute a greater proportion of total canopy carbon in future atmospheric CO2 conditions.
Theoretical Study Of Gas-Puff and Laser Irradiated Gas Jet M-Shell Xenon Experiments Radiating Between 9-14Å

X-ray spectroscopy is an indispensable tool in the study of highly ionized high-Z plasmas. A new non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) model for M-shell xenon was developed, encompassing the 9-14 A wavelength range. We present comparison of this new M-shell xenon model to experimental data from reversed polarity gas-puff Z-pinch 1 and laser-irradiated gas-puff 2 xenon experiments. The model matches experimental spectral features which provides estimates of useful plasma properties, such as electron temperature, density, and presence of hot electrons. Specifically, the new M-shell xenon model is compared with x-ray spectra produced from the SHOTGUN-III device at Nihon University- Japan and from the Titan laser at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Notably results include a robust description of ionization stages from Zn-like to Ar-like xenon and evidence of the effects of hot electrons in the reversed polarity gas-puff Z-pinch experiment, highlighted by the comparison of both experiments. Future applications of this model are discussed.
Chronic central vascular expansion induces hypokalemia in conscious primates

Central vascular expansion maintained for four days in conscious squirrel monkeys reconciles the apparently conflicting short-term fluid and electrolyte responses to water immersion and atrial balloon distension, with those described for prolonged weightlessness during space flight. The monkeys are subjected to an increased lower body positive air pressure (LBPP) of 20 torr which produces a 3 cm water increase in the central venous pressure. Results show a marked increase in the urinary excretion of sodium, potassium, and water during the firxt six hours of LBPP, and the diuresis is maintained throughout the period of LBPP, although the levels of sodium and potassium excretion decline after 24 hours of exposure. Plasma aldosterone transiently drops within the first three hours of LBPP, and then regains normal levels within 24 hours, after which time these levels are maintained despite the continued LBPP stimulus. It is suggested that the normal plasma aldosterone levels observed in the experiments, as well as during space flight, might, epresent a relative hyposecretion in terms of volume homeostasis and a relative hypersecretion with respect to plasma potassium regulation. Thus, kaliuresis and marked natriuresis is confined primarly to the first 24 hours of central volume expansion, a period for which comparable data from space flights are lacking.
Customer Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction

Customer satisfaction constitutes the conceptual centerpiece of marketing thought and practice. Research on customer satisfaction is briefly reviewed from three distinct perspectives: the philosophical, the psychological, and the managerial. From the philosophical perspective, customer satisfaction is seen as the fundamental objective and purpose of a business. The psychological perspective has been dominated by the disconfirmation of expectations paradigm, and a broadened conceptual framework for psychological models of satisfaction is needed. From the managerial perspective, customer satisfaction is seen as a fundamental requirement for realizing the benefits of retaining current customers. Managerial research on customer satisfaction has demonstrated linkages with an array of financial performance metrics and provided validation for the philosophical idea that delivering satisfaction is the fundamental purpose of a business. Keywords: customer satisfaction; customer orientation; market orientation; expectancy disconfirmation; customer experience; customer loyalty
Immunologically Privileged Sites

Publisher Summary This chapter deals with the immunologically privileged sites. Genetically alien grafts of a wide variety of both normal and malignant tissues have repeatedly been transplanted to anatomically unnatural sites in the body—that is, transplanted heterotopically—for many different though frequently interrelated purposes. The chapter presents a critical account of the status of the known or suspected privileged sites in the body and evaluates their significance from both the immunologic and therapeutic viewpoints. The chapter focuses on following considerations of privileged sites: (1) privileged sites can be created artificially, (2) it is recognized that better understanding of the modus operandi of privileged sites may lead to improvement in the results obtainable with therapeutic allografts, and (3) naturally occurring privileged sites afford important “experiments of nature” pertinent to critical evaluation of the theory of immunologic surveillance against neoplastic disease. Finally, the chapter concludes by highlighting nude mice because their basic congenital athymic status renders them “immunologically privileged” hosts that sustain on an indefinite basis both allografts and xenografts from a wide spectrum of vertebrate donors.
Characterization of DNA primases.

Publisher Summary DNA primases polymerize ribonucleoside triphosphates into short oligoribonucleotides on single-stranded (ss) DNA templates. The short oligoribonucleotides are used by DNA polymerases as primers to initiate the synthesis of Okazaki fragments during bidirectional DNA replication. In some bacteriophage systems, DNA primase initiated leading strand DNA synthesis. DNA primases are encoded by plasmids, bacteriophages, viruses, and prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. All DNA primases catalyze the synthesis of oligoribonucleotides. However, the role of DNA template during primer synthesis, the size of RNA products, and the enzymatic activities associated with primase vary drastically from system to system. The assays described in the chapter are guidelines for the biochemical detection and characterization of DNA primases. A more thorough enzymatic characterization of the primase includes descriptions of the influences of other proteins associated with the primase activity, including helicases, DNA polymerases, and single-stranded DNA binding proteins.
Automated Laboratory and Field Radionuclide Analysis Systems

Automated laboratory radionuclide analysis systems greatly simplify the human component of processing and can offer greater reproducibility while saving time and effort. Automated field radionuclide analysis systems can provide more timely data reporting than previously available while reducing the costs associated with shipping field samples to a laboratory for analysis. This chapter describes general aspects of automating these systems and presents a number of examples.
The mystery ingredients: sweeteners, flavorings, dyes, and preservatives in analgesic/antipyretic, antihistamine/decongestant, cough and cold, antidiarrheal, and liquid theophylline preparations.

Objective. Pharmaceutical preparations may contain a variety of excipients ("inert ingredients"). These excipients are generally inactive; however, rare adverse effects caused by excipients have been reported. Information about the excipients in a particular preparation is not readily available. Methods. The information about sweeteners, flavorings, dyes, and preservatives for the chewable and liquid preparations of over-the-counter and prescription products of antidiarrhea, cough and cold, antihistamine/decongestant, analgesic/antipyretic, and liquid theophylline medications was collected. Results. Information about excipients in 102 chewable and liquid preparations was compiled. An average preparation contained two sweeteners. Saccharin and sucrose were the most common sweeteners found—each was present in 52 preparations—followed by sorbitol, glucose, fructose, and others. For 36 of the 102 preparations, type of flavoring was not specified. In the remaining preparations, cherry was the most common flavoring, followed by vanilla and lemon. Twenty-one different dyes and coloring agents were used. Red dye No. 40 was the most common (42/102), followed by yellow No. 6 (27 02). Of the eight preservatives used, sodium benzoate and methylparabens were present in 42 and 27 of the preparations, respectively. Tables detailing these excipients and adverse effects reported are presented. Conclusions. The tables should be helpful to physicians in selecting preparations containing different excipients when an adverse reaction occurs. The mandatory labeling of excipients in all pharmaceutical preparations is the only way that physicians and patients can be fully informed.
Blockade of phosphodiesterase Type 5 enhances rat neurohypophysial excitability and electrically evoked oxytocin release

Phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) acts specifically on cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) and terminates cGMP-mediated signalling. PDE5 has a well established role in vascular smooth muscle, where specific inhibitors of PDE5 such as sildenafil correct erectile dysfunction by augmenting cGMP-mediated vascular relaxation. However, the role of PDE5 outside of the vasculature has received little attention. The present study tested PDE5 inhibitors on the cGMP-mediated modulation of K(+) channels in the neurohypophysis (posterior pituitary). Photolysis of caged-cGMP enhanced current through Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channels, and this enhancement recovered in about 2 min. Sildenafil essentially eliminated this recovery, suggesting that the reversal of K(+) current enhancement depends on cGMP breakdown. Activation of nitric oxide synthase during trains of activity in pituitary nerve terminals enhances excitability. When trains of stimulation were applied at regular intervals, sildenafil enhanced the excitability of neurohypophysial nerve terminals and increased the action potential firing probability. T-1032, a compound with high specificity for PDE5 over PDE6, had a similar action. Voltage imaging in intact neurohypophysis with a voltage sensitive absorbance dye showed that T-1032 reduced the failure of propagating action potentials during trains of activity. This indicates that PDE5 activity limits action potential propagation in neurohypophysial axons. Immunoassay of oxytocin, a neuropeptide hormone secreted by the posterior pituitary, demonstrated that sildenafil increased electrically evoked release. Thus, PDE5 plays an important role in the regulation of neurohypophysial function, and blockade of this enzyme can enhance the use-dependent facilitation of neurohypophysial secretion.
Properties of 3 hydroxy 3 methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase solubilized from rat liver and hepatoma

In hepatomas, the activity of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase, the rate-controlling enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis, is not normally suppressed by cholesterol. To examine the biochemical mechanism of this loss of feedback control of cholesterol synthesis, a comparison was made of the properties of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase after solubilization and partial purification from microsomes of normal rat liver and of a minimal deviation rat hepatoma. The solubilized enzyme from the two sources behaved identically with respect to substrate kinetics, heat inactivation, cold inactivation, and gel filtration. By the use of a new method that permits assay of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase activity after polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, it was shown that the solubilized hepatoma enzyme and the normal liver enzyme had similar electrophoretic mobility. It is concluded that the failure of hepatomas to suppress 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl coenzyme A reductase activity is not due to the production of an altered form of the enzyme.
The Oak Ridge relativistic isochronous cyclotron Addendum. Some recent results of orbit studies

Abstract Recently developed analytic expressions for the focusing frequencies and other parameters of orbit motion make interpretation of magnetic field data more meaningful and calculations with small- N machines more precise.
An efficient fault location algorithm for Shipboard Power Systems

This paper introduces a method to generalize the Active Impedance Estimation (AIE) fault location method for Shipboard Power Systems (SPS.) In the proposed method short-duration high-frequency voltage sources are employed at selected buses and voltage/current measurements are taken at specific shipboard power system busses and the effect of the applied sources are observed for the purpose of fault location. The goal is to obtain the minimum number of voltage sources and measurements that observe all the faults of interest that occur in the SPS. In contrast with the conventional AIE method, the proposed approach in not restricted to lateral branches and can be applied to interconnected SPSs. The fault location method does not interfere with the system's normal operation due to the applied high frequency(s) and thus superposition is used in the analysis. This approach reduces the number of measurement devices for fault location in the SPS which results in significant cost reduction. The proposed method is then applied to a SPS in simulation using MATLAB/Simulink to show the effectiveness of the approach.
Aliens on the Bench: Lessons in Identity, Race and Politics From the First "Modern" Supreme Court

Every time a Supreme Court vacancy is announced, the media and the legal academy snap to attention. Even the general public takes note; in contrast to most of the decisions issued by the Court, a majority of Americans are aware of and have opinions about the men and women who are nominated to sit on it. Moreover, public opinion about the nominee has a strong influence on a senator's vote for or against the candidate. If the confirmation hearing held before the Senate Judiciary Committee is largely an empty ritual, why do so many people seem so enthralled by it? Obviously, who sits on the Court matters, but why is the hearing itself important? The premise of this Article is that the confirmation process-or, more precisely the confirmation process of nominees perceived as racial outsiders-matters in part because such confirmations provide a high profile arena in which we as Americans fight to constitute our national identity. While all Supreme Court confirmations provide a platform for our ongoing debates about constitutional values, confirmations of racial outsiders do more. They provide a forum in which a more fundamental, and certainly more visceral, question arises: just who are "we the people"? I open my examination of these issues by looking at the confirmation of Felix Frankfurter. Frankfurter's was our first truly modem confirmation hearing: it was the first at which both the nominee and the witnesses provided unrestricted testimony, in an open session, exposed to the full glare of a highly-interested media. It also, perhaps not coincidentally, involved a nominee who was perceived at the time as a racial outsider.
Transmission reliability and security under open access

In this paper the author suggests that many of the challenges presented are direct result of the institutional dichotomy within the once vertically integrated industry. Namely, while the generation portion of this industry has made major progress toward becoming for profit, value-based industry, both the delivery (transmission) and the end user (distribution) remainders are left without any clear institutional support to adjust and provide their value to the end users in the changing industry. Moreover, since the efficient and reliable operation of the electric power grid is very complex, the engineers have relied heavily over the past 20-30 years on on-line system monitoring (including state estimation), and computer methods for decision-making and system automation. These tools are difficult to develop and use for supporting efficient generation, delivery and consumption without bringing the system closer to the limits of what is possible. The lack of real economic incentives to push the system operations to its limits for efficiency reasons combined with the complexities and risks of operating close to the system stability margins has resulted in the predictable situation the industry is currently facing. Also, the she suggested that in order to move forward and provide some more natural ways of valuing generation, transmission, distribution and customers' willingness to respond to the changing system constraints, several issues must be solved. In this presentation we introduce some possible institutional and technological approaches to solving the system reliability problems in the changing industry.
High-throughput automated luminescent magnetic particle-based immunoassay to monitor human exposure to pyrethroid insecticides.

We have developed a sensitive, automated, competitive chemiluminescent immunoassay for the detection of 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA), a metabolite common to many pyrethroid insecticides. The system uses a competitive hapten−protein conjugate that has been labeled with an acridinium ester as the chemiluminescent probe and secondary antibody-coated paramagnetic particles for the separation. After the immunoassay reagents and samples are combined for the competitive incubation step, a fully automated system is used to load the postincubation mixture into a delivery cuvette, facilitating the subsequent magnetic separation of the immunocomplex and the measurement of chemiluminescent signal for quantification. The immunoassay format described here supports the requirement for high throughput necessary for monitoring large numbers of samples in population-based studies. The optimized immunoassay was more sensitive than the conventional enzyme immunoassay in buffer (IC50 = 0.1 and 2 μg/L, respectively). The mixe...
Intermittent cold water stress-analgesia in rats: cross-tolerance to morphine.

Abstract Continuous cold water swim (CCWS, 3.5 min, 2°C) induces a non-opiate type of analgesia since 14 mg/kg of naltrexone or 20 mg/kg of naloxone only partially antagonize this stress-induced analgesia (SIA) and since there is no cross-tolerance between CCWS and morphine-analgesia. Intermittent cold water swim (ICWS) analgesia is significantly antagonized by naltrexone (14 mg/kg). These studies suggested that CCWS-analgesia is mediated by non-opioid systems, while ICWS-analgesia acts through a system that also mediates morphine analgesia. The hypothesis that ICWS-analgesia shares a common opioid pathway with morphine-analgesia, but not with CCWS-analgesia, was further tested by cross-tolerance studies in rats. The results showed a complete cross-tolerance to morphine analgesia in ICWS-tolerant animals, but no cross-tolerance to ICWS-analgesia in morphine-tolerant animals. This suggests that morphine- and ICWS-analgesia partially share a common pathway, ICWS acting probably at levels “downstream” from the opiate-sensitive sites, while CCWS induces analgesia by acting on a different system which is not mediated by opioids.
Global trade and the future of national health care reform

As a result of economic globalization, health care reform is no longer strictly a matter of domestic health policy and politics. This paper argues that international trade agreements impose institu...
The emerging role of PDE5 inhibition in heart failure

Background Heart failure (HF) is frequently associated with dysregulation of nitric oxide-mediated vascular tone. In HF patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD), right ventricular (RV) performance is an important determinant of exercise capacity and prognosis. Abnormal regulation of pulmonary vascular tone in these patients can lead to an increase in RV afterload and diminished function at rest and with exercise. The increased pulmonary vasomotor tone in HF patients is responsive to nitric oxide (NO), as administration of inhaled NO to patients with LVSD reduces pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and increases cardiac index (CI). As these beneficial effects of inhaled NO persist only briefly after cessation of its administration technically challenging to administercontinuously to ambulatory patients, the hydrolysis of its second messenger in vascular smooth muscle cells, cGMP, is an alternative target for pharmacologic augmentation through inhibition of phosphodiesterases (PDEs) responsible for its catabolism. Selective inhibition of Type 5 PDE, the predominant PDE isoform responsible for hydrolysis of cGMP in the lungs has been shown to lower resting PVR and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) and increase CI without causing systemichypotension in LVSD patients
Quantitation of absorbed dose produced at high and low potentials.

Abstract A study was conducted to compare the tissue absorption of x-rays from two dental x-ray machines, one operated at 50 KVP and the other at 90 KVP. It was found that 5.6 times more of the low-energy beam was absorbed within the cheek than was absorbed from the high-energy beam. This is consistent with calculations using the third power of the wavelength.
Fire, floods and woody debris: Interactions between biotic and geomorphic processes

Fire and floods interact in the riparian zone as processes that structure plant communities and landforms. Although much of the immediate impact of fire is on the vegetation, fire-related changes in runoff, sediment supply, riparian vegetation, and woody debris volume have ongoing geomorphic impacts on the valley floor. Consequent hydrogeomorphic changes, in turn, affect the composition and distribution of vegetation. This paper reviews these interactions, and provides an example of how fires and floods intersect to supply burnt trees as woody debris. Because the temporal and spatial distribution of woody debris is initially controlled by patterns of tree mortality, ecological disturbances, like fire, can be an important source for pulses of woody debris in riparian systems. To understand these interactions, we examine woody debris inputs 3 years after a wildfire in the riparian gallery forests of the western Transverse Ranges, California. Within our sample of 339 burned stems, snags fell in distinctive patterns: species were variable in susceptibility to falling, and fell at greater rates at sites with greater subsequent flooding. Discordance between the species composition of fallen snags and that of overall burned stems indicates that variability in forest composition must be considered in predicting post-disturbance inputs of woody debris. Variation in snagfall timing among species suggests that woody debris inputs are likely to occur in multiple, sequential pulses after wildfire. The role of flooding is superimposed on this ecological influence, as the timing and spatial variability of floods affect the recruitment of woody debris from the supply of snags created by fire.