cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of gossypol on thyroid hormones in young female rats

Abstract The study was designed to examine the effect of gossypol on thyroid function in young female rats. Forty young Sprague-Dawley female rats were randomly assigned to four treatment groups. The dosages of gossypol acetic acid (gossypol) used for this experiment were 1, 5 and 10 mg/kg body weight/day in 0.5 ml potassium phosphate buffer subcutaneously started from day 34 of age for 15 consecutive days. The control group was treated with vehicle alone. Animals were sacrificed 15 days after gossypol treatment. Blood samples and sera were collected and prepared for measurement of thyroid hormones by radioimmunoassay. The levels of free thyroxine (T 4 ), 3,5,3′-triiodothyronine (T 3 ) and 3,3′,5′-triiodothyronine (reverse T 3 , rT 3 ) in control rats at age 49 days averaged 55.90 ± 7.7, 670 ± 90, and 71.7 ± 5.7 pg/ml of serum, respectively. Fifteen days after gossypol treatment at 5 and 10 mg/kg/day, the free T 4 levels significantly decreased to 21.96 ± 2.1 and 11.12 ± 1.5 pg/ml of serum, the T 3 levels significantly decreased to 430 ± 89, 359 ± 90 pg/ml of serum and the rT 3 levels were significantly decreased to 37.20 ± 7.3, and 24.20 ± 6.0 pg/ml of serum, respectively. However, the serum levels of free T 4 , T 3 and rT 3 in the 1 mg/kg/day of gossypol-treated animals were not significantly different from the controls. Five to 15 days after initiation of gossypol treatment, both body weight gain and food intake appeared to be significantly reduced at 5 and 10 mg/kg/day of gossypol treatment. This trend continued to the end of the 15-day gossypol treatment. The results provide new evidence that gossypol might have exerted its antithyroid function by an unknown mechanism that triggered an interference in body metabolism, thus causing the loss of food intake and body weight gain in young female animals.
Fault structure, wear mechanisms and rupture processes in pseudotachylyte generation

Abstract Fault-generated pseudotachylyte is found within both cataclastic and mylonitic host rocks suggesting that rapid catastrophic displacements have occurred at a variety of depths within paleoseismogenic zones. Pseudotachylyte-bearing fault zones represent a composite of structural features associated with the process of earthquake rupture propagation and coseismic slip. The development of multiple pseudotachylyte veins in fault linkages, duplexes, sidewall ripouts, en echelon arrays and brittle zones suggests repeated rupturing during a series of characteristic earthquakes. Each earthquake, as a coseismic slip event, can be subdivided into initial rupture, acceleration, stable sliding and final deceleration stages. These evolve through distinctive sequences of wear and deformation mechanisms that vary with sliding velocity, duration of slip, total displacement and the hydrodynamics of the developing fault zone. Slip is thought to proceed toward surface refinement and possible frictional melting following the propagation of leading shear fracture process zones. The passage of the initial process zone of oblique fracturing would be followed by linkage to a throughgoing structure with asperity reduction through brecciation, comminution and refined cataclastic flow for frictional melting in an abrasive wear-dominant model. At greater depths in the presence of mylonitic anisotropy, slip would proceed through initial layer-parallel surfaces and duplex linkages with rapid surface refinement through plastic smearing and laminar flow for frictional melting in an adhesive wear-dominant model.
DMCTCP: Desynchronized Multi-Channel TCP for High Speed Access Networks with Tiny Buffers

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Purification and characterization of rat liver microsomal thiol methyltransferase

Abstract Thiol methyltransferase ( S- Adenosyl- l -methionine:thiol S- methyltransferase , EC 2.1.1.9), an enzyme which catalyzes the transfer of a methyl group from S -adenosylmethionine to the sulfhydryl group of a methyl acceptor, has been solubilized and partially purified from rat liver microsomes. The enzyme methylates xenobiotic sulfhydryl-containing compounds (e.g. β-mercaptoethanol), but not physiological sulfhydryl-containing compounds (e.g. homocysteine, cysteine, etc.). This thiol methyltransferase was inhibited by N -ethylmaleimide and p -chloromercuribenzoate, suggesting the existence of sulfhydryl groups on the enzyme essential for catalytic activity. The enzyme activity was also inhibited by S- adenosyl- l -homocysteine , a product of the enzymatic reaction. Using amino acid, base and sugar modified analogs of S- adenosyl- l -homocysteine , the specificity of this protein-ligand interaction was examined. It was observed that thiol methyltransferase exhibits a very high specificity for the structural features of S- adenosyl- l -homocysteine . Only analogs of S- adenosyl- l -homocysteine having minor base modifications exhibited inhibitory activity (e.g. S-tubercidinyl- l -homocysteine and S-3- deazaadenosyl- l -homocysteine ). The specificity of the enzyme for the methyl donor, S- adenosyl- l -methionine , was also examined. Radiolabelled ( Me - 14 C) analogs of S- adenosyl- l -methionine were tested as substrates, whereas the unlabelled analogs were evaluated as inhibitors of this enzymatic transmethylation. Consistent with the results observed for the analogs of S- adenosyl- l -homocysteine , the enzyme exhibited a high specificity for the structural features of S- adenosyl- l -methionine , both in its ability to donate a methyl group and in its ability to bind to the enzyme.
Infrared and Raman spectra of the condensed phases of hydrogen bromide

Abstract A temperature-dependent study of the infrared and Raman spectra of the liquid and solid β, γ and δ phases over the range from 100 to 190°K has been carried out. Of particular interest is the fact that band maxima in the infrared and Raman spectra have identical frequency values in the liquid phase but attain a separation of 12 cm−1 in the δ or plastically crystalline phase at 120°K. A qualitative explanation of the behavior of the δ crystallise phase is presented.
A Distributed evolutionary algorithmic approach to the coverage problem for submersible sensors

Untethered, underwater sensors, deployed for event detection and tracking and operating in an autonomous mode will be required to self-assemble into a configuration, which optimizes their coverage, effectively minimizing the probability that an event in the target area goes undetected. This organized, cooperative, and autonomous, spreading-out of the sensors is complicated due to sensors localized communication. A given sensor will not in general have position and velocity information for all sensors, but only for those in its communication area. A possible approach to this problem, motivated by an evolutionary optimization technique, Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is proposed and extended in a novel way. A distributed version of PSO is developed. A distributed version of PSO is explored using experimental fitness to address the coverage problem in a two dimensional area.
Emerging role of nuclear protein 1 (NUPR1) in cancer biology

NUPR1, or p8 or com1, was first identified from rat pancreas during acute pancreatitis and later as a gene whose expression was upregulated in metastatic breast cancer cells. NUPR1 is a molecule whose expression is upregulated in response to stress and is hence influenced by the host microenvironment. While NUPR1 has been implicated in several diseases, there is no singular biochemical pathway that can be attributed to its role in cancer. NUPR1 has been found to aid the establishment of metastasis and to play a key role in the progression of several malignancies including those of breast, thyroid, brain and pancreas. NUPR1 has been implicated in inducing chemoresistance in pancreatic and breast cancer cells, protecting them from apoptosis and making tumor cells genetically unstable. In prostate cancer, however, NUPR1 appears to have tumor suppressive activity. Understanding the mechanism of action of the multifaceted functions of NUPR1 may open up new dimensions towards creating novel therapies against cancer as well as other pathologies. This review draws on several published studies on NUPR1, mainly in cancer biology, and assesses NUPR1 from the perspective of its functional role in making cancer cells resistant to the action of conventional chemotherapeutic drugs.
Meson production and chiral SU(3) ⊗ SU(3) phenomenological Lagrangians

Abstract In order to obtain a general chiral SU(3) ⊗ SU(3) phenomenological Lagrangian, we generalize Weinberg's covariant derivative technique for multiple softpion processes. Using this Lagrangian, we describe meson-meson and meson-baryon scattering, as well as single meson production (PB → PPB). We note that this model gives the well-known, completely specified current algebra predictions of π-N and KN scattering. In contrast, we show that all the mass-shell amplitudes for meson-meson scattering and single meson production depend on a single unknown parameter ξ. An analysis of the single pion production data indicates that −1 ⪅ ξ ⪅ 0, in accordance with Weinberg's formulation of π-π scattering. We also explore our model's usefulness in explaining the double pion production process, π−p → π+π−p.
Postpartum Body Satisfaction and Intimacy in First-Time Parents

Research on postpartum body satisfaction and intimacy focuses almost exclusively on mothers. Furthermore, much of the research tends to be descriptive in nature. As a consequence, little is known about the association of postpartum body satisfaction and intimacy in first-time mothers and fathers. The current study interviewed 85 heterosexual married/cohabiting couples from all over the U.S. 9 months following the birth of their first child. New mothers reported significantly less postpartum body and intimacy satisfaction than new fathers. Using an actor-partner interdependence model approach, we found that fathers’ self and partner body satisfaction are both directly and indirectly (through his perceived partner rejection) linked to his intimacy satisfaction. For mothers, partner and self-body satisfaction were only indirectly linked to her intimacy satisfaction through perceived partner rejection of sexual advances. Finally, fathers’ perceived partner rejection was related to both his and his partner’s intimacy satisfaction. These results suggest that body and intimacy satisfaction following the birth of a child is not only relevant for mothers but also for fathers. In order to better understand how the transition to parenthood impacts couples and their relationship, future theory and research needs to incorporate fathers and their understanding of their bodies and its connection with postpartum intimacy.
The effect of halothane on in vitro human neutrophil chemotaxis.

Increasing concentrations of halothane were shown to sequentially inhibit directed (chemotactic) and random movement of human peripheral blood neutrophils. No influence on neutrophil movement was apparent at clinically important concentrations, halothane may effect neutrophil microtubule and actomyosin microfilament systems.
Regulation of plant form: Identification of a molecule controlling cell expansion

The form of higher plants is largely dependent upon cell division and expansion patterns. Taking a genetic approach, Takahashi et al.(1) have identified a regulatory molecule in Arabidopsis thaliana called DIMINUTO (DIM), which is involved in determining the degree and direction of plant cell expansion. Their extensive characterization of a dim mutant suggested a direct involvement of the DIM gene in regulating cell elongation, perhaps by modulating the expression of structural genes which determine the orientation and elasticity of the cell wall.
Oscillatory bifurcation with broken translation symmetry.

The effect of distant endwalls on the bifurcation to traveling waves is considered. Previous approaches have treated the problem by assuming that it is a weak perturbation of the translation invariant problem. When the problem is formulated instead in a finite box of length $L$ and the limit $L\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$ is taken, one obtains amplitude equations that differ from the usual Ginzburg-Landau description by the presence of an additional nonlinear term. This formulation leads to a description in terms of the amplitudes of the primary box modes, which are odd and even parity standing waves. For large $L$, the equations that result take the form of a Hopf bifurcation with approximate ${D}_{4}$ symmetry. These equations are able to describe, qualitatively, not only traveling and "blinking" states, but also asymmetrical blinking states and "repeated transients," all of which have been observed in binary fluid convection experiments.
ORAI1 Deficiency Impairs Activated T Cell Death and Enhances T Cell Survival

ORAI1 is a pore subunit of Ca(2+) release-activated Ca(2+) channels that mediate TCR stimulation-induced Ca(2+) entry. A point mutation in ORAI1 (ORAI1(R91W)) causes SCID in human patients that is recapitulated in Orai1(-/-) mice, emphasizing its important role in the immune cells. In this study, we have characterized a novel function of ORAI1 in T cell death. CD4(+) T cells from Orai1(-/-) mice showed robust proliferation with repetitive stimulations and strong resistance to stimulation-induced cell death due to reduced mitochondrial Ca(2+) uptake and altered gene expression of proapoptotic and antiapoptotic molecules (e.g., Fas ligand, Noxa, and Mcl-1). Nuclear accumulation of NFAT was severely reduced in ORAI1-deficient T cells, and expression of ORAI1 and a constitutively active mutant of NFAT recovered cell death. These results indicate NFAT-mediated cell death pathway as one of the major downstream targets of ORAI1-induced Ca(2+) entry. By expressing various mutants of ORAI1 in wild-type and Orai1(-/-) T cells to generate different levels of intracellular Ca(2+), we have shown that activation-induced cell death is directly proportional to the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration levels. Consistent with the in vitro results, Orai1(-/-) mice showed strong resistance to T cell depletion induced by injection of anti-CD3 Ab. Furthermore, ORAI1-deficient T cells showed enhanced survival after adoptive transfer into immunocompromised hosts. Thus, our results demonstrate a crucial role of the ORAI1-NFAT pathway in T cell death and highlight the important role of ORAI1 as a major route of Ca(2+) entry during activated T cell death.
Safety Conferencing Toward a Coordinated and Inclusive Response to Safeguard Women and Children

To reach out to women from different backgrounds, the battered women's movement needs to place women and their informal supports at the center of a coordinated response. This article shares the views of domestic violence survivors, staff, and supporters on how to create such a coordinated and inclusive response, lays a conceptual foundation for a decision-making forum called safety conferencing, and sets forth guidance for its practice. Safety conferencing is proposed as one means of building the individual and collective strength to reshape connections, make sound choices, and promote the safety of women and children from diverse cultures.
Laparoscopic partial nephrectomy.

Background and Purpose: The technique of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy has matured significantly over the past decade and is emerging as an oncologically sound procedure for the management of small renal tumors. Methods of tumor excision as well as parenchymal reconstruction in a hemostatically controlled field have evolved to make this procedure safer. Improved techniques to minimize warm renal ischemia are being developed. Finally, methods to prevent positive surgical margins during laparoscopic surgery are crucial to a satisfactory oncologic outcome. These important technical issues, as well as the current results of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy, are discussed. Materials and Methods: The urologic peer-review literature related to nephron-sparing surgery was reviewed. Controversial issues with respect to the surgical approach, methods of hemostatic control, acceptable time of warm ischemia, and cooling techniques were reviewed and collated. Perioperative results from larger series of laparoscopic...
OC3 Effects of 8 weeks of Resistance Training on Functional Autonomy and Muscular Strength in Elderly

Demographic data indicate that the populations of most nations are growing older. A deterioration of skeletal muscle function is the main consequence of ageing. Muscular strength and power gradually decrease with age and this decline accelerates after the age of 60–65 yrs (Hakkinen et al ., 1995, EJAP , 70 , 518–527). Resistance training improves muscle force production and contributes for maintaining functional autonomy in elderly. The aim of our study was to analyse the effects of an 8-week resistance training program on muscle force production and functional autonomy in older individuals. Forty-seven elderly (69 ± 4y) volunteered for the study and were randomly assigned into two groups: Experimental Group (EG: n = 27, 10 males and 17 females) and Control Group (CG: n = 20, 9 males and 11 females). Before and after the training intervention all participants performed tests of functional autonomy in accordance to GDLAM protocol and 1RM estimation. EG performed a personalised and individualised training (three times weekly; 60–80% 1RM, 3 sets of 6 to 15 reps) in a circuit. A related samples t-test was used to analyse functional autonomy and 1RM performance pre-post 8-wk training intervention and independent t-tests and 1-way with repeated measures ANOVA to compare differences between EG and CG groups. There was no difference before intervention between groups. After completing the 8-wk intervention, autonomy GDLAM index and 1RM performances improved significantly for EG (as males as females participants) group, respectively (p
Aging and the Liver: An Update

The issue of whether or not liver function is compromised in the elderly population remains unresolved. Numerous age-related changes in hepatic structure and function have been described, but many of these observations are qualitative, were made under suboptimal experimental conditions, or are simply contradictory. Changes in hepato-cellular structural parameters, e.g., increased hepatocyte size, increase in the number of binucleated cells, altered mitochondria, and endoplasmic reticulum, have been reported. However, quantitative morphological analyses have refuted many of these observations. There are few functional data that correlate with structural changes. Serum and biliary cholesterol appear to rise, predisposing elderly people to increased incidences of coronary disease and gallstones, respectively. The rate of liver regeneration declines in old animals, but the regenerative capacity remains unchanged, perhaps reflecting an age-associated reduction in the response to hepatotrophic factors. This senescent change has important clinical implications with regard to surgical intervention for liver disease, e.g., resection or transplantation. Nevertheless, most outcomes studies suggest that age alone should not be a determining factor in such clinical decisions. Geriatric patients exhibit a decline in the hepatic clearance of certain drugs and a marked increase in the frequency of adverse drug reactions, reflecting an increase in polypharmacy regimens and declines in liver volume and blood flow rather than reduced Phase I metabolism. Although the livers of elderly subjects are characterized by a decline in adaptive responsiveness and reduced reserve capacity, clinical tests suggest that liver function is well-maintained in this age group.
Longitudinal changes in overactive bladder and stress incontinence among parous women

AIMS To describe longitudinal changes in symptoms of overactive bladder (OAB) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI) among parous women.
Estradiol 17β inhibition of LDL oxidation and endothelial cell cytotoxicity is opposed by progestins to different degrees

Abstract Progestins oppose the effects of estrogens in many biological systems, but it is not known if progestins oppose the antioxidant effects of estrogen and to differing degrees. To test these questions, the effects of various sex steroids on LDL oxidation and cytotoxicity were studied in the absence or presence of endothelial cells. Freshly isolated LDL was incubated in the presence of Cu ++ in the absence or presence of cultured bovine aortic endothelial cells in phenol red-free medium and without or with hormones in 0.5% ethanol. The hormones included 17β-estradiol (E 2 ), progesterone (Pg), norgestimate (NGM), levonorgestrel (LNG), and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA). LDL oxidation was measured as formation of conjugated dienes, lipid peroxides, and TBARS, and cyotoxicity by tetrazolium salt reduction (MTT reduction). Progestins diminished conjugated diene lag phase, accelerated lipid peroxide and TBARS production in the absence and presence of cells and accelerated cytotoxicity. When E 2 and progestin were incubated with cells at a molar ratio of 1:5, lipid peroxides were reduced from baseline by E 2 alone 31%, E 2 /Pg 29%, E 2 /NGM 16%, E 2 /LNG 9% (all P 2 /MPA 8% (ns) (E 2 or E 2 /Pg>E 2 /NGM, E 2 /LNG and E 2 /MPA [ P 2 /NGM>E 2 /LNG or E 2 /MPA [ P 2 alone, least with E 2 /MPA. Conclusions: Progestins promote LDL oxidation and, conjointly, endothelial cell cytotoxicity. Progestins oppose the antioxidant and cytoprotective effects of estrogen when given in combination. MPA and LNG have the strongest prooxidant and cytotoxic effects, which may limit the cardiovascular benefit of estrogen during combined administration in vivo.
A multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction assay to diagnose Epiphyas postvittana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

A molecular assay for diagnosis of light brown apple moth, Epiphyas postvittana (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), in North America is reported. The assay multiplexes two TaqMan real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) probe systems that are designed to target DNA segments of the internal transcribed spacer region 2 (ITS2) and 18S rRNA gene. The RT-PCR probe designed for the 18S target recognizes a DNA sequence conserved in all of the moths included in the study and functions as a control in the assay. The second probe recognizes a segment of the ITS2 specifically found in E. postvittana and not found in the other moths included in the study, i.e., this segment is not conserved. Inclusion of the two markers in a single multiplex reaction did not affect assay performance. The assay was tested against 637 moths representing >90 taxa in 15 tribes in all three subfamilies in the Tortricidae. The assay generated no false negatives based on analysis of 355 E. postvittana collected from California, Hawaii, England, New Zealand, and Australia. Analysis of a data set including 282 moths representing 41 genera generated no false positives. Only three inconclusive results were generated from the 637 samples. Spike experiments demonstrated that DNA contamination in the assay can affect samples differently. Contaminated samples analyzed with the ITS2 RT-PCR assay and DNA barcode methodology by using the cytochrome oxidase I gene can generate contradictory diagnoses.
Photoregeneration of rhodopsin and isorhodopsin from metarhodopsin III in the frog retina.

Abstract Calculations based on the accumulation of rhodopsin and isorhodopsin during irradiation of metarhodopsin III (M III) show that taking the quantum efficiency of isomerizing rhodopsin at 1.0 the relative efficiencies of photoconverting M III to rhodopsin and isorhodopsin are 0.4 and 0.3 respectively. This suggests that the chromophore of M III is all- trans retinal, probably still attached to the chromophoric site. A similar conversion is observed during irradiation of a long-lived 470 nm photoproduct in frog retinal extracts. An analysis of published data suggests that low temperatures decrease the relative amounts of isorhodopsin produced by photoconversion of various photoproducts.
Regulation of hyaluronan synthase-2 expression in human intestinal mesenchymal cells: mechanisms of interleukin-1β mediated induction

Elevated levels of hyaluronan are associated with numerous inflammatory diseases including inflammatory bowel disease. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a cause and effect relation...
Education… A Must in All Levels of Pharmacy Practice

Public perception of a profession is extremely important, but even more vital is the actual worth the profession provides to those who partake of its services. As pharmacy recreates itself as a consultative profession, many changes are occurring in the college of pharmacy students' education. The onset of the Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE), the continued rotations in the Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE), and the proposal to have mandatory residencies occurring by 2020 show the steps that pharmacy will take to move forward. But pharmacy continues to miss the first rung of the ladder as the profession climbs to its future success by not addressing the mandatory education of the primary workforce in day-to-day activities: that of standardized education and training of pharmacy technicians. While IPPE, APPE, and residencies will strengthen the pharmacy "dwelling," its foundation does not have solid ground. A deadline needs to be established for mandatory education, training, and certification for all technicians entering the profession today and, only after achieving these goals, should the pharmacy technicians be licensed to practice. With even more forethought, pharmacy might require that potential college of pharmacy students, as well as those not fortunate enough to be admitted to a college of pharmacy, become pharmacy technicians first. Only then can the pharmacy profession conquer the top rung of the ladder in a strong, upright fashion.
Clam-associated vibriosis, USA, 1988–2010

Infections with Vibrio spp. have frequently been associated with consumption of bivalve molluscs, especially oysters, but illness associated with clams has also been well documented. We describe the 2312 domestically acquired foodborne Vibrio infections reported to the Cholera and Other Vibrio Illness Surveillance system from 1988 to 2010. Clams were associated with at least 4% (93 persons, ‘only clams’) and possibly as many as 24% (556 persons, ‘any clams’) of foodborne cases. Of those who consumed ‘only clams’, 77% of infections were caused by V. parahaemolyticus. Clam-associated illnesses were generally similar to those associated with other seafood consumption. Clams associated with these illnesses were most frequently harvested from the Atlantic coastal states and eaten raw. Our study describes the contribution of clams to the overall burden of foodborne vibriosis and indicates that a comprehensive programme to prevent foodborne vibriosis need to address the risks associated with clams.
The Psychiatric Witness and the Insanity Defense

When a layperson pictures a psychiatrist in court, the most likely image is that of a doctor testifying about the nature of an offender’s mental condition at the time of committing a crime. The legal question of what should be done with a person who commits an offense when he is mentally ill and seemingly out of control of his actions has perplexed and fascinated the civilized world for centuries. Over two thousand years ago the Greeks and Romans accepted the notion that an individual must have free choice if he is to be held morally and legally responsible for his actions. In both ancient cultures, individuals who were mentally ill were sometimes viewed as deprived of free choice and, therefore, unable to have the requisite mental state (guilty mind or criminal intent) to be held responsible for criminal behavior. In Anglo-American law, proof of a mental element of criminal intent is required before a person can be found guilty of a crime, and the absence of such intent has been used to exculpate certain mentally ill people since the eleventh century. Historians are fond of commenting on the manner in which treatises on the insanity defense are characterized by a consistent focusing on the same issues regardless of the century in which they are written.1Apparently the insanity defense has captured the imagination of legal scholars, the public, and doctors in identical ways at different times throughout history.
Bacterioopsin-Mediated Regulation of Bacterioruberin Biosynthesis in Halobacterium salinarum

Integral membrane protein complexes consisting of proteins and small molecules that act as cofactors have important functions in all organisms. To form functional complexes, cofactor biosynthesis must be coordinated with the production of corresponding apoproteins. To examine this coordination, we study bacteriorhodopsin (BR), a light-induced proton pump in the halophilic archaeon Halobacterium salinarum. This complex consists of a retinal cofactor and bacterioopsin (BO), the BR apoprotein. To examine possible novel regulatory mechanisms linking BO and retinal biosynthesis, we deleted bop, the gene that encodes BO. bop deletion resulted in a dramatic increase of bacterioruberins, carotenoid molecules that share biosynthetic precursors with retinal. Additional studies revealed that bacterioruberins accumulate in the absence of BO regardless of the presence of retinal or BR, suggesting that BO inhibits bacterioruberin biosynthesis to increase the availability of carotenoid precursors for retinal biosynthesis. To further examine this potential regulatory mechanism, we characterized an enzyme, encoded by the lye gene, that catalyzes bacterioruberin biosynthesis. BO-mediated inhibition of bacterioruberin synthesis appears to be specific to the H. salinarum lye-encoded enzyme, as expression of a lye homolog from Haloferax volcanii, a related archaeon that synthesizes bacterioruberins but lacks opsins, resulted in bacterioruberin synthesis that was not reduced in the presence of BO. Our results provide evidence for a novel regulatory mechanism in which biosynthesis of a cofactor is promoted by apoprotein-mediated inhibition of an alternate biochemical pathway. Specifically, BO accumulation promotes retinal production by inhibiting bacterioruberin biosynthesis.
A comparison of 2D and 3D techniques for the determination of normal pediatric running kinematics

Two methods used for the computation of joint rotation angles associated with running are compared. The first is a full 3-D technique which allows for the determination of up to three axial rotations at each lower limb segment joint. This method is used as the basis for comparison with a relatively straightforward 2-D computational alternative. In this way, the validity of the 2-D approaches typically employed in the examination of limb rotation patterns associated with running is examined. With respect to pediatric running, this preliminary investigation indicates that 2-D kinematic approaches may adequately represent the sagittal plane motion of the hip and knee, but be insufficient for describing ankle plantar/dorsiflexion. >
Raman studies of lanthanum cuprate superconductors

Raman-scattering studies of the high-Tc superconductor La2−x(Sr, Ba)xCuO4 are briefly reviewed. A detailed analysis of the phonon-mode symmetries is given along with a discussion of the effects expected from the orthorhombic-to-tetragonal phase transition, which is known to occur in these materials. Survey spectra are given for powders, ceramics, and single crystals, and an oxide of Cu is identified as the primary impurity phase. Extensive spectra are given from oriented single crystals of La2CuO4 and La1.85Sr0.15CuO4, and several mode assignments are made. Spectra for the high-temperature tetragonal phase and the low-temperature orthorhombic phase are given for each material. The soft phonon associated with the phase transition is seen in La2CuO4 as is a broad peak arising from two-magnon scattering. Neither of these features is seen in the Sr-doped sample.
A summer programming workshop for middle school girls

Westminster College runs a math, science, and computing summer camp for middle school girls called AWE+SUM. Core to the camp is a set of workshops that allow for creative hands-on experiments and exploration. One of the most popular workshops is called "Programming with Alice'" where we introduce the girls to programming concepts through Carnegie Mellon University's Alice software. This paper describes our experiences in running this workshop five times over the past three years.
A near-optimal heuristic algorithm for single-flow routing

The authors obtain a tighter lower bound on the street congestion of optimal realizations. Then a heuristic algorithm based on necessary and sufficient conditions of optimality is proposed. Although it cannot be guaranteed that this algorithm always generates optimal realizations, it indeed generates optimal realizations for all the 60 test instances with which they experimented. This algorithm is also shown to be time efficient. >
Heterogenous glycosylation of ICAM‐3 and lack of interaction with Mac‐1 and p150,95

Intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, ICAM-2, and ICAM-3 have been identified as counter-receptors for the leukocyte integrin lymphocyte function-associated antigen 1 (LFA-1). The other leukocyte integrins, Mac-1 and p150,95, also interact with ICAM-1. ICAM-1 and ICAM-3 are highly homologous, and an undefined ligand for Mac-1 is present on neutrophils where ICAM-3 is well expressed. In addition, glycosylation has been shown to affect the interaction of ICAM-1 with Mac-1. We therefore sought to characterize ICAM-3 heterogeneity and determine whether ICAM-3 was a ligand for either Mac-1 or p150,95. Despite extensive differences in N-linked glycosylation, ICAM-3 purified from lymphoid cells and from neutrophils supports adhesion of LFA-1-bearing cells equally well; however, neither supports adhesion of Mac-1 or p150,95-expressing chinese hamster ovary cell transfectants. Similarly, purified Mac-1 does not support adhesion of ICAM-2 or ICAM-3-expressing L cell transfectants. ICAM-3 on neutrophils does not participate in Mac-1-dependent homotypic aggregation. Thus, ICAM-3 is not a counter-receptor for either Mac-1 or p150,95.
On characterizing population commonalities and subject variations in brain networks

Brain networks based on resting state connectivity as well as inter-regional anatomical pathways obtained using diffusion imaging have provided insight into pathology and development. Such work has underscored the need for methods that can extract sub-networks that can accurately capture the connectivity patterns of the underlying population while simultaneously describing the variation of sub-networks at the subject level. We have designed a multi-layer graph clustering method that extracts clusters of nodes, called 'network hubs', which display higher levels of connectivity within the cluster than to the rest of the brain. The method determines an atlas of network hubs that describes the population, as well as weights that characterize subject-wise variation in terms of within- and between-hub connectivity. This lowers the dimensionality of brain networks, thereby providing a representation amenable to statistical analyses. The applicability of the proposed technique is demonstrated by extracting an atlas of network hubs for a population of typically developing controls (TDCs) as well as children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and using the structural and functional networks of a population to determine the subject-level variation of these hubs and their inter-connectivity. These hubs are then used to compare ASD and TDCs. Our method is generalizable to any population whose connectivity (structural or functional) can be captured via non-negative network graphs.
Eccentric Exercise Versus Eccentric Exercise and Soft Tissue Treatment (Astym) in the Management of Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background:Eccentric exercise is commonly used in the management of Achilles tendinopathy (AT) but its effectiveness for insertional AT has been questioned. Soft tissue treatment (Astym) combined with eccentric exercise could result in better outcomes than eccentric exercise alone.Hypothesis:Soft tissue treatment (Astym) plus eccentric exercise will be more effective than eccentric exercise alone for subjects with insertional AT.Study Design:Prospective randomized controlled trial.Level of Evidence:Level 2.Methods:Sixteen subjects were randomly assigned to either a soft tissue treatment (Astym) and eccentric exercise group or an eccentric exercise–only group. Intervention was completed over a 12-week period, with outcomes assessed at baseline, 4, 8, 12, 26, and 52 weeks. Outcomes included the Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment Achilles-Specific Questionnaire (VISA-A), the numeric pain rating scale (NPRS), and the global rating of change (GROC).Results:Significantly greater improvements on the VISA-A ...
Investor Sentiment, Profitable Trading Strategies, and Short Sale Constraints

I investigate whether the relation between investor sentiment and profitable trading strategies is due to short sale constraints. I find that the average security in these strategies is not hard-to-short. Furthermore, the short leg does not appear to be harder to short or more overvalued than the long leg. However, I find that these strategies are more illiquid and have higher institutional ownership following low sentiment. Additionally, I find that the long leg has a positive liquidity beta, while the short leg has a negative liquidity beta. These results imply that the relation between investor sentiment and profitable trading strategies could be due to illiquidity and institutional trading, rather than short sale constraints.
Evolution of Silver Nanoparticles within an Aqueous Dispersion of Nanosized Zeolite Y: Mechanism and Applications

Stable aqueous dispersion of silver ion-exchanged nanozeolite Y was reacted with the three common dihydroxyphenols, hydroquinone, catechol, and resorcinol. With hydroquinone and catechol, there was rapid reduction of the intrazeolitic silver to form metallic silver with complete destruction of the zeolite framework. Resorcinol, the weakest reducing agent among the group, behaved differently. The formation of metallic silver was considerably slower, and the zeolite framework was mostly intact. This made it possible to examine the evolution of silver cluster formation with optical spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. In the first 135 min of reaction, extinction/fluorescence spectroscopy indicates the formation of Agn 4 clusters. The smaller clusters disappear more rapidly with time. For the 1 h reduced sample, transmission electron microscopy showed uniform distribution of 1.4 nm Ag particles throughout the zeolite. After 2 h of reduction, the average size of the particles was 2.5 nm...
Determination of Residues of Carbamates and Their Metabolites in Ginger by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

A new multi-residue analytical method was developed for the determination of 27 carbamate pesticides and their metabolites residues in ginger by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry( LC-MS/MS). The samples were homogeneously extracted with acetonitrile,desalted with NaCl, and then cleaned with NH2solid-phase extraction column. The extracts were redissolved in a mixture of acetonitrile-water( 1 ∶ 1),separated on an Agilent Eclipse Plus C18column and analyzed by LC-MS / MS under multiple reaction monitoring mode via positive electrospray ionization. The quantitation was carried out by the matrix-matched external standard calibrations. The method showed excellent linearities( r2 0. 99) for all compounds in a certain concentration range. The limits of detection and the limits of quantitation were in the ranges of 0. 05-2. 0 μg / kg and 0. 2-5. 0 μg / kg,respectively. The recoveries at three spiked levels of 10,30,100 μg / kg ranged from 70. 9% to 119. 1% with relative standard deviations of 1. 0%-10. 8%. The method showed the advantages of simplicity,rapidness and sensitivity,and could meet the requirements for the determination of carbamates and their metabolites residues in ginger.
MIMO radar and communication spectrum sharing with clutter mitigation

We address the co-existence of MIMO radars and a MIMO communication system. Unlike previous works, we consider a scenario in which the radar system operates in the presence of clutter. Both the radar and the communication system use transmit precoding. Initially, spectrum sharing is formulated as a problem that maximizes the radar SINR subject to the communication system meeting certain rate and power constraints. Due to the dependence of the clutter on the radar precoding matrix, the optimization with respect to the radar precoder is a maximization of a nonconvex function over a nonconvex feasible set. Since solving such problem is computationally intractable, we propose to maximize a lower bound of the SINR. In the resulting alternating maximization problem, the alternating iteration of the communication TX covariance matrix reduces to one SDP problem, while the iteration of the radar precoder is solved by a sequence of SOCP problems, which are more efficient and tractable than SDP. Simulation results validate the effectiveness of the proposed spectrum sharing method for scenarios with clutter.
Measuring urinary N-acetyl-S-(4-hydroxy-2-methyl-2-buten-1-yl)-L-cysteine (IPMA3) as a potential biomarker of isoprene exposure.

Isoprene, the 2-methyl analog of 1,3-butadiene, is identified as a possible human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Isoprene is ubiquitous in the environment with numerous natural and anthropogenic sources. Tobacco smoke is the main exogenous source of isoprene exposure in indoor environments. Among smoke constituents, isoprene is thought to contribute significantly to cancer risk; however, no selective urinary biomarkers of isoprene exposure have been identified for humans. In this manuscript, we measured the minor isoprene metabolite IPMA1 (mixture of N-acetyl-S-(1-[hydroxymethyl]-2-methyl-2-propen-1-yl)-L-cysteine and N-acetyl-S-(2-hydroxy-3-methyl-3-buten-1-yl)-L-cysteine), and we identified IPMA3 (N-acetyl-S-(4-hydroxy-2-methyl-2-buten-1-yl)-L-cysteine) as a major isoprene metabolite and novel isoprene exposure biomarker for humans. Urinary isoprene metabolites were measured using ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization triple quad tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/ESI-MSMS). The detection rates of IPMA1 and IPMA3 are <20% and 82%, respectively. The selectivity and abundance of IPMA3 make it a useful urinary biomarker of isoprene exposure. The limit of detection of IPMA3 in urine was 0.5 ng mL−1. IPMA3 was stable under different storage temperatures and following ten freeze-thaw cycles. The average recovery of urine spiked with IPMA3 at three different levels was 99%. IPMA3 was measured in urine samples received from 75 anonymous subjects; the median (25th percentile, 75th percentile) IPMA3 level in smokers was 36.2 (18.2, 56.8) ng mL−1 and non-smokers 2.31 (2.31, 4.38) ng mL−1. Application of this method to large population studies will help to characterize isoprene exposure and assess potential health impact.
Descriptive Metadata: An Introduction to Terminologies

A Terminology is a set of phrases (or terms) that are used to categorize or index (tag) content in a particular field of knowledge (for which I’ll use the term knowledge domain or domain for short). This tagging facilitates its subsequent organization, categorization, retrieval and analysis.
Assessment of Test Behaviors with the WISC-III

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews qualities that may impact a child's test performance and discusses in detail those qualities found through research to have a measurable influence on the performance. An examiner's observations are critical to all features of test use. Their observations enable them to accurately record children's responses to test items. Moreover, information obtained through observations enables examiners to better understand the manner in which children arrive at their answers and to identify cognitive and other personal strengths and weaknesses, thus facilitating test interpretations. Examiners are responsible for ensuring that the testing room provides a comfortable and distraction-free testing environment. Furniture should be of appropriate height and comfortable to the children. Their attention and concentration should not be attenuated by auditory and visual distractions. Language qualities also figure importantly. Most measures of cognitive abilities rely on language to form a bridge between the examiner and examinee, enabling them to communicate. Although the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) is not intended to assess language directly, the quality and nature of children's language can facilitate or impede test use.
Gamma Spectra from 233U, 235U, and 239Pu During Thermal Neutron Irradiation

The gamma spectra from three fissionable isotopes were measured during neutron irradiation in the thermal column of the Omega West Reactor. The measurements were preceded by a neutron irradiation of at least 20000 s to build up a near-equilibrium concentration of the shorter half-life fission products. The measurements provide the total gamma spectra and do not distinguish between photons emitted following neutron capture, fission, or by fission products. The thermal neutron flux of 6 × 1011 n/cm2s has a 350°K Maxwellian energy distribution.
A headspace-gas chromatography method for isopropanol determination in warfarin sodium products as a measure of drug crystallinity

Coumadin® a nd s everal generic products of warfarin s odium (WS) contain the crystalline form (clathrate) in which WS and isopropanol (IPA) are associated in a 2:1 molar ratio. IPA is critical in maintaining the WS crystalline structure. Physicochemical properties of the drug and drug product may change when the crystalline drug transforms to amorphous form. A headspace-gas chromatography (HS-GC) method was developed and validated for IPA determination in the WS drug product. n-propanol (NPA) was used as internal standard and the method was validated for specificity, system suitability, linearity, accuracy, precision, range, limits of detection and quantification, and robustness. The method was specific, with good resolution between IPA and NPA peaks. Chromatographic parameters (retention time, IPA/NPA area ratio, tailing factor, theoretical plates, USP symmetry, capacity factor, selectivity and resolution) were consistent over three days of validation. The analytical method was linear from 2-200 μg mL-1 (0.1- 10 % IPA present in the drug product). LOD and LOQ were 0.1 and 2 μg mL-1, respectively. Accuracy at low (2 μg mL-1) and high (200 μg mL-1) IPA concentrations of the calibration curve was 103.3-113.3 and 98.9-102.2 % of the nominal value, resp. The validated method was precise, as indicated by the RSD value of less than 2 % at three concentration levels of the calibration curve. The method reported here was utilized to determine accurately and precisely the IPA content in in-house formulations and commercial products. In summary, IPA determination by HS-GC provides an indirect measure of WS crystallinity in the drug product. Nevertheless, it should be confirmed by another analytical method since IPA from the drug substance is not distinguishable from IPA that may be present outside the drug crystals in a dosage form when prepared by wet granulation with IPA.