cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Use of synthetic peptide libraries and phosphopeptide-selective mass spectrometry to probe protein kinase substrate specificity

To search for peptides which serve as substrates for protein kinases, an approach based on peptide libraries has been developed. These peptide libraries are chemically synthesized by a modified "divide-couple-recombine" strategy. After reaction with the kinase of interest, the most highly phosphorylated substrate (selected from the library) is identified using on-line liquid chromatography-electrospray mass spectrometry (LC-ESMS). Negative ion LC-ESMS with stepped collision energy is used to identify phosphorylated peptides in the enzyme reactions. As predicted, the cAMP-dependent protein kinase is shown to preferentially phosphorylate Kemptide (Leu-Arg-Arg-Ala-Ser-Leu-Gly) in a library consisting of 19 variants of Kemptide substituted at position 2. Additional experiments have been carried out on the nonreceptor tyrosine kinase v-Abl using a peptide library based on the v-Src autophosphorylation site (Arg-Arg-Leu-Ile-Glu-Asp-Ala-Glu-Tyr-Ala-Ala-Arg-Gly). These results indicate that Ile is the optimal residue at the position N-terminal to tyrosine. Individual peptides containing the Glu-Asp-Ala-Ile-Tyr motif have Vmax/Km values 6-fold higher than the peptide based on the autophosphorylation site itself, confirming the results of the library experiments. This motif has been identified in several tyrosine kinases at a position in the sequence not previously reported to serve as a phosphorylation or autophosphorylation site.
Autoregulator-dependent control of extracellular polysaccharide production in phytopathogenic bacteria

Extracellular polysaccharides (EPSs) likely provide phytopathogenic bacteria a selective advantage both inside and outside plants. Despite the relatively scant knowledge about EPS biosynthesis in phytopathogenic bacteria, it clearly is a well controlled, complex, energy-intensive process. Unexpectedly, three phytopathogenic bacteria have been found to autoregulate EPS production in response to extracellular signal compounds (pheromones) that they produce. Like many bacteria, Pantoea stewartii subsp. stewartii produces a N-acyl-homoserine lactone (AHL) autoinducer. However, unlike most AHL-dependent autoinduction systems, that in P. stewartii subsp. stewartii somehow represses EPS production in the absence of autoinducer. Instead of an AHL-dependent system (which it also has), Ralstonia solanacearum uses a novel autoregulator identified as 3-hydroxypalmitic acid methyl ester to regulate EPS biosynthesis. A lack of this autoregulator in R. solanacearum results in repression of EPS biosynthesis by a complex two-component sensor/response regulator signal cascade. Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris has two partially overlapping autoregulatory systems. The autoregulators are incompletely characterized, but one diffusible signal factor (DSF) is thought to be a fatty acid derivative and the other diffusible factor (DF) may be a butyrolactone. The autoregulation pathways in X. campestris pv. campestris are essentially unknown, but EPS production is controlled by both the DSF and DF systems, whereas production of extracellular enzymes and pigment production are regulated independently. In a confined micro-environment, population density and intercellular concentrations of an autoregulator will increase in parallel, so autoregulation is one way that bacteria can coordinate gene expression to synthesize EPS only at high cell density. However, because there is often limited evidence that it is actually cell density that is being detected, researchers should not assume a priori that autoregulation must function for quorum sensing. Some possible reasons for why phytopathogenic bacteria would benefit from delaying EPS production are discussed.
Medicinal Foods: Cross-Cultural Perspectives

SUMMARY Knowledge of medicinal herbs and food products and the use of plants for healing date back to many ancient civilizations. Today the medicinal use of plants and foods, which is based, in part, from the knowledge of trial and error use over thousands of years in various cultures, has become incorporated into virtually all human societies. In fact, some foods and herbs have shown contemporary medicinal promise and value for their potential health promoting and protective effects. In this paper we review the literature on the medicinal value of green tea, soybean, garlic, ginger root, and Gingko biloba, and provide an overview of ginseng, echinacea, and St. John's wort.
In-circuit self-tuning of clock latencies

Random manufacturing variations and changes in operating conditions can alter the relative timing of data and clock signals and cause timing violations. Increasing relative magnitude of manufacturing variations and accommodating a wide range of operating conditions necessitate large design margins and decrease circuit performance. In-circuit tuning of clock latencies allows recovering some of the performance loss. In this paper, we introduce self-tuning adaptive-delay sequential elements (SASE) that use PMOS floating gates to tune clock latencies of individual flip-flops. SASE are capable of concurrent, in-circuit optimization of clock latencies under varying operating conditions. We use an explicit-pulsed flip-flop to present the SASE operations and tuning. Our experiments with fabricated prototypes show that SASE can tune their clock latencies with picosecond resolution over one half of the clock period. Our experiments also show that SASE sensitivities are comparable to non-adaptive flip-flops and do not pose any practical limitations. We also present a tuning procedure for pipeline circuits that tunes SASE clock latencies to maximize performance.
3.0 Ga Olondo Greenstone Belt in the Aldan Shield, E. Siberia

Publisher Summary The Olondo greenstone belt is a unique structure lying in the Aldan Shield. The Aldan Shield is the largest basement salient in the Siberian craton. The Subgan granite-greenstone complex includes sedimentary, volcaniclastic and volcanic rocks of greenstone belts, which have undergone polyphase greenschist to amphibolites facies deformation and metamorphism. The Olondo synform is characterized by a rather symmetrical distribution of various volcanic rock types with respect to the axis of the V-shaped structure. Contacts between the supracrustal rocks and the surrounding tonalitic–trondhjemitic gneisses are tectonic. Numerous tonalite plutons intruded along the contacts between the TTG and the greenstone sequences. Mafic and ultramafic plutonic rocks constitute a substantial part of the Olondo complex. Ultramafic plutonic rocks are mostly represented by large dunite–peridotite bodies that have clear tectonic relationships with the country rocks. The presence of high-Mg lavas such as the Western komatiites and Eastern komatiitic basalts with boninite-like geochemical and isotopic signatures indicates greater degrees of mantle melting above a subduction zone induced by fluids from a downgoing slab having lowered the melting point.
Teamwork in health care in the U.S.: a sociological perspective.

Reactions to team work whether in health care, science and research, or in other areas are seldom neutral. While some see in it a panacea that will help solve many stubborn organizational problems, others condemn it on a variety of grounds. To borrow Homan’s expression, it seems that team approaches are viewed as matters of morals rather than matters of strategy. In spite of those strong attitudes, or perhaps because of them, literature on this topic remains more descriptive and prescriptive than analytical. The attempt in this paper will be to clarify the place of team work in health care, to review the thrusts of current studies and the important findings, and to point out some neglected dimensions that warrant research attention.
Visual Research at the Crossroads

The author argues that visual methods are at the crossroads. They can remain in a niche or move into the mainstream by also addressing all people using visual materials. In the social sciences, visual methods encompass photography, video, and graphic representations. With respect to the visual, one has to note that all interpretations that are ontologically dependent on photography require more interpretation. "Looking at" means "being framed by," and this means also the picture maker who is also considered to be a viewer. For the social sciences, pictures provide us with personal insights as well as with a personal record of spatial and social relationships. On this basis one may raise questions like "how pattern variations occur over time?," "how are social processes organized?," or "what is the role of emotion in social life?" These are issues, the author continues, to which visual data can contribute. It may be added that methodological discussion should, however, besides the areas of visual data generation, analysis and interpretation also include solutions for the problem of communicating research findings. Some of these questions can be approached via controlled photo-observation, photo-elicitation techniques and imagery provided by the subjects themselves. Finally, the author turns to the question of what remains to be done? Here, he delineates three main areas: (1) evaluating the theoretical and conceptual basis of visual research; (2) creating public databases for the development and testing of theories; (3) defining "best practices" for visual research.
Arginine vasopressin potentiates natriuretic effect of atrial peptide

We investigated potentiation of atrial peptide (AP)-induced natriuresis by vasopressin in anesthetized rats. Increasing doses of vasopressin potentiated AP-induced natriuresis in a dose-dependent manner, e.g., sodium excretion during AP administration (290 ng/min) was 0.66 +/- 0.16, 2.02 +/- 0.68, 5.21 +/- 1.38 and 7.08 +/- 1.96 mu eq/min during infusion of 0.00, 0.78, 1.56, and 3.12 ng.kg-1.min-1 of vasopressin, respectively. Vasopressin alone had no effect on sodium excretion. In a second experiment, vasopressin (1.56 ng.kg-1.min-1) potentiated AP (128 ng/min)-induced natriuresis similar to that seen in the first experiment. In this experiment, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and mean arterial pressure were monitored. Mean arterial pressure was no different between the groups treated with AP plus vasopressin and AP alone. Glomerular filtration was actually reduced in the group treated with vasopressin plus AP, suggesting that neither changes in GFR nor blood pressure were responsible for potentiation of the natriuresis. A third experiment compared the ability of 1-desamino-8-D-arginine vasopressin (dDAVP), a nonpressor analogue of vasopressin, to vasopressin in enhancing AP (145 ng/min)-induced natriuresis. The nonpressor analogue did not potentiate AP-induced natriuresis, whereas vasopressin had the same effect as in the first two experiments. These are the first studies to report a functional interaction between AP and vasopressin. They show that vasopressin potentiates AP-induced natriuresis without altering mean arterial pressure or GFR.
Nitrobenzo[a]pyrene-induced DNA amplification in SV40-transformed Chinese hamster embryo cells.

Nitrobenzo(a)pyrenes (NBaPs) are ubiquitous environmental pollutants that produce mutations in Salmonella typhimurium and Chinese hamster ovary cells. In this study, l-, 3-, and 6-NBaP induced amplification of SV40 DNA sequences in an SV40-transformed Chinese hamster embryo cell line which is sensitive to DNA amplification by various known carcinogens. Of the three isomers, 3-NBaP produced the highest level of gene amplification, which was 4.8 relative to untreated controls at a dose of 5 [mu]g/ml. Considering the relationship between gene amplification and tumorigenesis, it seems prudent to carry out a more exhaustive analysis of the carcinogenic potential of these agents.
Ultra-Low-Power Sensor Signal Monitoring and Impulse Radio Architecture for Biomedical Applications

Remote diagnostics of patient’s vital information and initiation of necessary actions have resulted in the development of wireless body area network (WBAN). For almost zero maintenance of each sensor node within a WBAN, each node must work with a power consumption less than 100μW which can be achieved employing impulse radio architecture. In this work a low-power transmitter has been presented. The unit manifests a Data Generator Block, an Impulse Generator Block and a Buffer. The Data Generator Block converts any electrochemical sensor current in the range of 0.2μA to 2μA to digital data. The circuit can operate with a supply voltage of 1V and consume a power in the range of 0.427µW to 3.5µW. The Impulse Generator Block utilizes a RC network to generate impulses of approximately 110ns duration. Finally a Buffer circuit is used to drive a standard 50Ω load which could be an external antenna. The peak current consumption of the impulses is 2.81mA with peak output voltage of 140.2mV that makes it extremely suitable for short range wireless communication. The entire system has been designed and simulated using 0.35-μm standard CMOS process. The average power consumption of the system is only 68.30μW.
A graphical database interface for casual, naive users

Abstract This paper is concerned with some aspects of database interfaces for casual, naive users. A “casual user” is defined as an individual who wishes to execute queries once or twice a month, and a “naive user” is someone who has little or no expertise in operating computers. The study focuses on a specific group of casual, naive users, analyzes their needs and proposes a solution. The proposed interface consists of a graphical display of a model of a database and a natural language query language. One of the unique properties of the database interface is that it allows the user to see local item names within the context of a global structure. The interface was then tested to determine whether it was acceptable to the user population and to discover the level of graphical model that the users would find most comfortable.
Interactions between body mass and water temperature cause energetic bottlenecks in juvenile steelhead

Across taxa, it is generally accepted that there are fitness advantages to rapid growth early in life. For stream-dwelling salmonids, however, high temperatures and associated energetic costs during the summer growing season might offset or even prevent the competitive advantage of large body size. Our overall objective was to understand the relative importance of factors that can cause variation in growth rates in an age-0 cohort of wild steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in Idaho, USA, where temperatures approach, and temporarily exceed, their tolerance level. For individually tagged fish inhabiting the same stream reach, we found that growth rates were negatively related to fish mass (slopes of the two best approximating models were both −0.024). Comparing growth rates from 16 different stream reaches throughout the watershed, we found that temperature-induced metabolic cost was the single best approximating model (AIC wi = 1.0) of the variation in individual growth rates. The bioenergetic model showed that mass-specific metabolic costs decreased with mass, but the absolute energetic demands increased over the same size range. Because temperature had a multiplicative effect on metabolic cost, our results suggest that the effect of food limitation increased with fish size. We conclude that high water temperatures pose energetic bottlenecks and can be a potentially strong mechanism limiting growth in juvenile salmonids in summer, particularly as streams in the region experience warming trends.
Retrograde Endopyelotomy: A Comparative Study of Hot-Wire Balloon and Ureteroscopic Laser

Purpose: This study compared the immediate and long-term results and complications of hot-wire balloon endopyelotomy and ureteroscopic holmium laser endopyelotomy. Patients and Methods: Between March 1994 and January 2002, 64 patients with a primary (N = 52) or secondary (N = 12) ureteropelvic junction obstruction underwent retrograde endopyelotomy using either a fluoroscopically guided hot-wire balloon incision (N = 27) or a ureteroscopically guided, direct-vision holmium laser incision (N = 37). This study group included 46 women and 18 men aged 13 to 79 years (mean 38.9 years). The indications and contraindications to a retrograde approach were identical in each group and included documented functionally significant evidence of obstruction, no upper-tract stones, obstruction <2 cm, and no radiographic evidence of entanglement of crossing vessels at the ureteropelvic junction. Immediate and long-term outcomes were obtained from a prospective registry, with success defined as resolution of symptoms and r...
Immunoreactive myelin basic protein in the cerebrospinal fluid in neurological disorders

Cerebrospinal fluid from 582 persons was analyzed by a double-antibody radioimmunoassay for the presence of material cross-reactive with peptide 43-88 of human myelin basic protein (BP). In a group of 104 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), 23 of 33 individuals clinically judged to have had an exacereation within two weeks prior to the time CSF was obtained had detectable material ranging from 2 to 200 ng/ml. In the remaining 71 MS patients who either were stable or had had an exacerbation more than two weeks before, only 1 patient had a marginally elevated level of immunoreactive material. CSF from 53 persons with cerebrovascular disease was studied, and 13 of 29 with recent infarctions had values of 2 to 540 ng/ml. The degree of elevation in strokes generally paralleled the predicted volume of the lesion, but the amounts detected did not correlate quite so closely temporally with onset as they did with the periods of active disease in MS. Of the remaining 425 patients, 29 had immunoreactive material of 2 to 400 ng/ml in their CSF. Most of these patients with detectable material had acute diseases known to affect the myelin sheath. Eight of 10 persons with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis had no detectable material. The presence in CSF of material cross-reactive with BP peptide 43-88 does not have diagnostic specificity for MS but can be used as a means for determining recent myelin injury. The type of BP peptide formed and mechanisms for clearance of BP and BP peptides may be important in determining the biological consequences following release of this potentially immunogenic material from the central nervous system.
Mast cell disease associated with acute myeloid leukemia: Detection of a new c‐kit mutation Asp816His

Mast cell disease (MCD), a proliferation of mast cells (MC), is occasionally associated with hematologic malignancies. Neoplastic MC have activating c-kit mutations. c-kit is a receptor tyrosine kinase required for the development, proliferation, and survival of MC. Interaction of c-kit with its ligand stem cell factor induces dimerization, receptor phosphorylation, and signal transduction. The most common c-kit mutation detected in neoplastic MCD is Asp816Val, which results in ligand-independent autophosphorylation of the receptor leading to MC proliferation. We describe the rare occurrence of MCD associated with acute myeloid leukemia, report a novel c-kit mutation Asp816 His, and discuss the pathogenesis of MCD associated with hematologic malignancies.
Safety-focused medication therapy management: A randomized controlled trial

Objective To evaluate the effect of a medication therapy management (MTM) intervention on adverse drug events (ADEs), health care visits, and drug-related problems (DRPs). Design Randomized, controlled, clinical trial. Setting Academic medical center community pharmacies and family medicine clinics at three U.S. sites between December 2007 and January 2010 Patients Individuals aged 65 years or older with three or more chronic illnesses, six or more prescription medications, and at risk for a DRP. Intervention At 0 and 3 months, pharmacists conducted comprehensive medication reviews and screened for and resolved DRPs through patient education and recommendations to physicians. Main outcome measures Frequency of ADEs reported by patients and confirmed by clinical algorithm, health care visits at 3 and 6 months, and number of DRPs, pharmacist recommendations, and medication discrepancies. Results 637 participants enrolled. No differences were observed in potential ADEs or health care visits among the usual care and MTM groups. DRPs declined in both MTM intervention groups over time. Physicians responded to 54.6% of pharmacist recommendations. Enhanced MTM patients had fewer medication list discrepancies than basic MTM patients (33.8% vs. 47.1%, P Conclusion This specific design of MTM was associated with reduced DRPs but did not reduce potential ADEs or health care visits.
Using the NSLS for Introducing Synchrotrons into the Classroom (InSynC)

In 1996, the National Academies of Sciences established a set of guidelines for science education in primary and secondary schools in the United States known as National Science Education Standards [1]. The goal of these guidelines was to set forth a coordinated path for U.S. education that would allow all students to achieve scientific literacy in the twenty-first century. In these Standards, the National Academies recognized that the central strategy for teaching science should include inquiry into authentic questions generated from student experiences, strategies being further validated as part of the Next Generation Science Standards initiative being developed now. That is to say, students should be encouraged to formulate their own scientific questions and devise methods to answer them; they should collect data and decide how to represent it; they should organize their data to reveal insights and gain knowledge; and they should then test the reliability of the knowledge they have acquired. However, t...
SU‐GG‐J‐16: A Physiologically Gated Micro‐CT Scanner for Dynamic Small Animal Imaging Based On a Carbon Nanotube X‐Ray Source

Purpose: Current commercial micro‐CT scanners have the capability of imaging objects ex vivo with high spatial resolution, but performing in vivo micro‐CT on small animals is still challenging because their physiological motions are at least ten times faster than those of human. The purpose of this research is to develop a respiratory and cardiac gated micro‐CT scanner with both enhanced spatial and temporal resolutions, and more versatile imaging capabilities for in vivoimaging of small animal models. Method and Materials: A physiologically gated micro‐CT scanner was constructed based on a carbon nanotube micro‐focus x‐ray source. The scanner consists of a carbon nanotube x‐ray source, a flat panel x‐ray detector, and a rotation sample stage aligned in cone‐beam geometry. The dynamic gating was achieved from a small animal physiological monitor system plus some home‐made gating electronics. The spatial and temporal resolutions of the scanner were evaluated by MTF analysis and temporal analysis, respectively. Cardiopulmonary gated micro‐CT images were collected and analyzed on several anesthetized free‐breathing mice to evaluate the system's performance. Results: The scanner was found to have 50 microns spatial resolution and ∼20 milliseconds temporal resolution. Imaging sequences were readily synchronized and gated to non‐periodic physiological signals of free‐breathing mice. Quantitative physiological measurements can be obtained from the four‐dimensional micro‐CT results for the cardiopulmonary organs of the mice. Conclusion: We have developed a physiologically gated micro‐CT scanner based on a carbon nanotube micro‐focus x‐ray source. The scanner can easily acquire images at the desired cardiopulmonary phases with fast temporal resolution and minimized delay. The high spatial and temporal resolutions of the micro‐CT scanner make it well suited for in vivoimaging of small animal models. The system performance can be potentially enhanced through further development of a carbon nanotube micro‐focus x‐ray tube with higher flux.
S1P1 signaling just keeps going and going and going...

Synthetic agonists of sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor subtype 1 are able to generate long-term signaling that persists for hours after ligand-induced receptor internalization. These signals are independent of agonist potency, can be reversed after receptor internalization by specific antagonists, and show a distinct acyl-chain-length structure-activity relationship.
Telemetric intraventricular pressure measurements after third ventriculocisternostomy in a patient with noncommunicating hydrocephalus.

OBJECTIVE: To examine and document intraventricular pressure (IVP) dynamics in an adult after endoscopic third ventriculocisternostomy performed as treatment for hydrocephalus associated with aqueductal stenosis. METHODS: A 30-year-old man who had undergone ventriculoperitoneal shunting at age 21 years for aqueductal stenosis caused by a tectal mass presented with symptoms and imaging studies consistent with shunt malfunction. He underwent urgent ventriculoscopic third ventricular ventriculocisternostomy, which resolved his symptomatology. The existing shunt was not revised. At the time of surgery, a catheter connected to an intracranial pressure TeleSensor device (Radionics, Burlington, MA) was inserted into the ventricular system. Postoperatively, the patient's recovery was assessed by IVP recordings. This system allowed us to record IVP in an awake patient with a functioning third ventriculocisternostomy. RESULTS: We observed an initial postoperative IVP of 17 cm H 2 O in the supine position, which decreased to 0 cm H 2 O at 90 degrees of head elevation. The IVP decreased during the first 48 hours postoperatively to 0 to 2 cm H 2 O when supine. By 1 week postoperatively, the patient's IVP had returned to a baseline of 15 to 17 cm H 2 O when supine, with a gradual decrease to 0 cm H 2 O at 30 degrees of head elevation. Three months postoperatively, the patient's IVP in the supine position was 8 cm H 2 O, with IVP decreasing to 0 cm H 2 O at 45 degrees of head elevation. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging performed at that time revealed evidence of flow through the third ventriculocisternostomy. CONCLUSION: We conclude that after an initial period of adjustment, the IVP in this patient returned to an unremarkable baseline despite the novel fluid pathway into the prepontine cistern. This may represent maturation of the breach through the third ventricular floor or brain recovery from a period of high pressure. Also, the shape of the postural IVP curve closely resembled that observed in patients who are not hydrocephalic. These data represent the first documentation of the intraventricular pressure response to ventriculocisternostomy and suggest possible intracerebral responses to this alteration in cerebrospinal fluid flow.
Temperature-dependent mid-IR absorption spectra of gaseous hydrocarbons

Abstract Quantitative mid-IR absorption spectra (2500–3400 cm−1) for 12 pure hydrocarbon compounds are measured at temperatures ranging from 25 to 500 °C using an FTIR spectrometer. The hydrocarbons studied are n-pentane, n-heptane, n-dodecane, 2,2,4-trimethyl-pentane (iso-octane), 2-methyl-butane, 2-methyl-pentane, 2,4,4-trimethyl-1-pentene, 2-methyl-2-butene, propene, toluene, m-xylene, and ethylbenzene. Room-temperature measurements of neat hydrocarbon vapor were made with an instrument resolution of both 0.1 and 1 cm−1 (FWHM) to confirm that the high-resolution setting was required only to resolve the propene absorption spectrum while the spectra of the other hydrocarbons could be resolved with 1 cm−1 resolution. High-resolution (0.1 cm−1), room-temperature measurements of neat hydrocarbons were made at low pressure (∼1 Torr, 133 Pa) and compared to measurements of hydrocarbon/N2 mixtures at atmospheric pressure to verify that no pressure broadening could be observed over this pressure range. The temperature was varied between 25 and 500 °C for atmospheric-pressure measurements of hydrocarbon/N2 mixtures (Xhydrocarbon∼0.06–1.5%) and it was found that the absorption cross section shows simple temperature-dependent behavior for a fixed wavelength over this temperature range. Comparisons with previous FTIR data over a limited temperature range and with high-resolution laser absorption data over a wide temperature range show good agreement.
Combustion and pollutant emissions from light duty diesel engines: the influence of mixing process and transient operating conditions

Abstract The influences of transient operating conditions and mixing process on exhaust emissions of the direct injection (DI) diesel combustion system are pointed out. With the use of a transient dynamic facility the combustion process was characterized and the combustion parameters when employed in order to explain the emission behaviou of the engine. With the joint use of three dimensional modeling and field experiments two different combustion system were compared and the emission behaviou was fully explained. Finally a mixing parameter was defined allowing a more useful use of 3-D calculations to the design of the combustion system.
USING rbcL SEQUENCES TO TEST HYPOTHESES OF CHLOROPLAST AND THALLUS EVOLUTION IN CONJUGATING GREEN ALGAE (ZYGNEMATALES, CHAROPHYCEAE)

Sequences for the Rubisco large subunit (rbcL) gene were used to test hypotheses about the evolution of chloroplast shape and thallus type in genera of two families of conjugating green algae (Zygnematales): the Mesotaeniaceae (saccoderm desmids, mostly unicellular) and the Zygnemataceae (strictly filamentous). Unicellular (u) and filamentous (f) genera exhibit a series of three similar chloroplast shapes: ribbonlike (e.g. Spirotaenia [u], Spirogyra [f], and Sirogonium [f], laminate (e.g. Mesotaenium [u] and Mougeotia [f]), and twin-stellate (e.g. Cylindrocystis [u] and Zygnema [f]. Two conflicting phylogenetic hypotheses have been proposed: 1) families are polyphyletic constructs drawn from three lineages, each with unicellular and filamentous taxa characterized by a specific chloroplast shape; or 2) unicells form one monophyletic lineage (Mesotaeniaceae) and filaments form another (Zygnemataceae), with some chloroplast shapes independently derived. The rbcL data strongly refute hypothesis 2 (monophyly of the two traditional families) and support hypothesis 1 in part. Parsimony, maximum likelihood, and neighbor-joining analyses of the rbcL data strongly support monophyly of a clade containing taxa with ribbonlike chloroplasts and, to a lesser extent, monophyly of a second clade of the four genera with the other two chloroplast shapes. Two saccoderm genera (Roya, curved laminate chloroplasts; Netrium, “cucumber”-shaped chloroplasts) are not members of either of these clades, but they are included in a monophyletic Zygnematales.
Sensitivity of the Large Blood Vessels of the Rabbit to l-Epinephrine and l-Norepinephrine

Some of the pharmacological properties of the smooth muscle of 17 anatomically different vessels of the adult rabbit have been compared using helical strips under in vitro conditions. Using the median effective dose and the slope of the logarithm dose-probit response curve for l-epinephrine and l-norepinephrine as criteria, these vessels may be divided into two groups. The vascular muscle of the thoraeic and abdominal aorta, the femoral, main pulmonary and lobar pulmonary arteries, some preparations of the renal arteries and the inferior vena cava exhibit, within 95 per cent confidence limits, identical characteristics. They are more sensitive to l-norepinephrine than l-epinephrine, and the slopes of thc dose-response curves to these amines are the same. The muscle of the common carotid and saphena arteries and the external jugular vein is very similar to this group, but not identical. The vascular muscle of the common iliac, brachial, facial, anterior and posterior mesenteric, and celiac arteries, and th...
The Question of International Competitiveness

International competitiveness is advanced whenever the economic welfare of a nation is enhanced through an increase in the flow of trade or through an alteration in the conditions of trade starting from a presumed initial equilibrium. In order to describe the processes involved in securing and maintaining international competitiveness, the conventional models of international trade theory are used, namely the Ricardian, Heckscher-Ohlin, contemporary standard trade, and industrial organization models. Then, the role of the commodity terms of trade as they are manifested in exchange rates, which are affected by both short- and long-term international capital flows, is considered. Finally, possible implications regarding economic policy are briefly addressed.
Restaurant Customers’ Perceptions of Noise and Their Satisfaction and Loyalty Behaviors

This exploratory study expands the current literature on servicescapes by examining the total noise environment in restaurants and the impact of ambient noise levels and general restaurant attributes on customer satisfaction and loyalty behavior, defined as the customer's willingness to return to a restaurant and motivation to recommend it. The researchers surveyed guests at one casual dining restaurant in the Southwestern United States. The results showed that services, physical attributes, and quality of food and beverage had significant impact on overall satisfaction, overall atmosphere, and loyalty behaviors. Noise level factors such as effects of noise and appropriateness of noise levels, influenced overall satisfaction, but not loyalty behaviors.
A direct proof that vwb processes are closed in the\(\bar d\)-metric

As defined in the literature, a process is very weak Bernoulli if a certain propertyP(e) is satisfied for everye>0. By means of an easy proof, it is shown that givene>0, there existsδ>0 such that given any two stationary processes whose\(\bar d\)-distance is less thanδ, if one of the processes is very weak Bernoulli then the other process is “almost” very weak Bernoulli in the sense that the propertyP(e) is satisfied. Using this result a direct proof can be given that the very weak Bernoulli processes are closed under the\(\bar d\)-distance, and also that a finitely determined process is very weak Bernoulli. Relativized versions of these results are also considered.
Psychiatrists' evaluations of emergency involuntary hospitalization

Abstract Debate continues over the ethics, constitutionality, and therapeutic benefit of emergency involuntary hospitalization of the mentally ill (EIH). Critics of EIH have been concerned not only with the adequacy of treatment afforded to patients so hospitalized, but also with the fundamental abridgement of liberties they regard as inherent in the practice itself. 1,2 Whereas most defenders of EIH admit that the quality of care received by such patients is far from adequate in many state hospitals, they continue to argue the case for EIH as a necessary and indeed humane management option for the treatment of gravely disabled and/or dangerous persons. 3 Much of the debate over EIH has come from persons whose claim to speak for organized psychiatry is in doubt. Surprisingly, in spite of the social significance of and professional interest in the controversy, little is known about the attitudes of the broad spectrum of practicing psychiatrists. What little data exist suggest that psychiatrists do support the continued availability of EIH. In an interview study of 30 hospital staff psychiatrists, Kumasaka and Stokes 4 reported that approximately 80% regarded this option as indispensable in psychiatric practice. The reliability and generalizability of such data must be ascertained through study of larger and more representative groups of practicing psychiatrists. Whether their views are representative of the range of editorial opinion expressed about EIH remains uncertain, as does the potential differentiation of opinion across the subdisciplines of psychiatric practice. In an effort to address these questions, this paper presents findings of a survey of psychiatrists' evaluations of EIH, both in principle and in practice. Data were gathered from psychiatrists practicing in Connecticut and Washington, D.C., to determine the generalizability of attitudes across two jurisdictions that differ in statutory criteria and procedures for EIH.
DDT in human milk. What determines the levels

In a study of fifty-five human milk samples from eastern Pennsylvania, the total DDT derived products exceeded the DDT content of cows milk and canned infant formula. Total DDT in human milk exceeded the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's tolerance for total DDT in cows milk in 47% of the samples. Four factors were identified statistically as accounting for 54% of the variance on total DDT levels in human milk. These factors are: (1) number of children nursed; (2) number of cigarettes smoked per day; (3) use of non-persistent pesticides; and (4) diet in calories.
Androgen regulation of ornithine decarboxylase and S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase gene expression.

The action of androgenic steroids in their target tissues occurs in a receptor-mediated fashion similar to that of other steroid hormones (1–3). Over the last several years, a number of gene products regulated by androgens have been characterized and their induction kinetics in vivo elucidated. The best defined genes fall, with regard to the tissues of their expression, into three main categories: (i) α2u-globulin and the major urinary protein genes are regulated by androgens in rodent liver; (ii) prostatein and seminal vesicle basic protein genes are controlled by androgens in rat accessory sex organs; and (iii) ornithine decarboxylase, β-glucuronidase, RP2, and kidney androgen-regulated protein genes exhibit androgen regulation in murine kidney.
Adolescent Pregnancy: A Webliography

Although rates have declined since the early 1990s, adolescent pregnancy remains a public health concern in the United States. Adolescent pregnancy and childbirth have various adverse health, social, and economic effects on mother, father, and child. Comprehensive sex education including discussions of abstinence and birth control are effective in modifying sexual behaviors and opinions in adolescents. The web sites reviewed in this article are designed for use by the layperson and may be used by adolescents and their parents and educators to promote safe and healthy sexual relationships.
Differentiation of epithelial cells on microporous membranes

Microporous membranes support the differentiation of a variety of cell types including the Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cell line and normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK). Coincident with culturing these cells on microporous membranes is a change in the cytoskeletal architecture of the cells to a more in vivo-like morphology and the secretion of a basal lamina-like structure, the latter not being apparent when the cells are grown in conventional cell culture plates. The potential regulatory role of the cytoskeleton in basal lamina formation was investigated using both transmission electron microscopy and immunoprecipitation of the extracellular matrix component, laminin. Disruption of the MDCK microtubular network with nocodazole caused the early formation of an electron-dense structure resembling a basal lamina. Disruption of the microtubular network of both MDCK and NHEK cells caused an increase in synthesis or retention of beta laminin or both. Disruption of the MDCK microfilament network with cytochalasin D also increased the synthesis or retention of beta laminin or both, but in addition resulted in different laminin-immunoreactive proteins secreted from the cells. Thus both ultrastructural evidence and biochemical data suggest that altering the cytoskeleton of epithelial cells might affect basal lamina formation. Our data suggest that the cytoskeleton be considered one of the possible regulators of basal lamina deposition.
Metabolic Engineering of Escherichia coli To Enhance Recombinant Protein Production through Acetate Reduction

Genetic and metabolic engineering provide powerful and effective tools for the systematic manipulation and fine tuning of cellular metabolic activities. In this study, successful application of such techniques to enhance recombinant protein production by reducing acetate accumulation in Escherichia coli is presented. The alsS gene from Bacillus subtilis encoding the enzyme acetolactate synthase was introduced into E. coli cells using a multicopy plasmid. This newly introduced heterologous enzyme modifies the glycolytic fluxes by redirecting excess pyruvate away from acetate to acetolactate. Acetolactate is then converted to a nonacidic and less harmful byproduct acetoin, which appears in the broth. Furthermore, comparative fermentation studies show that the reduction in acetate accumulation leads to a significant improvement of recombinant protein production. The expression of a model recombinant CadA/beta-galactosidase fusion protein, under the control of a strong pH-regulated promoter, was found to increase by about 60% for the specific protein activity (to a level of 30% of total cellular protein) and 50% in terms of the volumetric activity in a batch fermenter. In fed-batch cultivation, the engineered strain achieved a volumetric recombinant protein yield of 1.6 million units/mL (about 1.1 g/L of beta-galactosidase), which represented a 220% enhancement over the control strain. In the meantime, acetate excretion was maintained below 20 mM compared with 80 mM for the control, and the final cell density was improved by 35%.
A digital control unit for a repetitive analog computer

The University of Arizona's repetitive-computer control unit combines a 10 kc crystal oscillator with inexpensive preset decimal counters and simple digital circuitry to generate accurate timing pulses which perform the following functions:1. Reset a repetitive analog computer at 100 cps, 50 cps, 25 cps, 10 cps, or on external triggering.2. Actuate external equipment (statistical averaging computer) during a preset number of 1000 to 10,000 successive computer runs.3. Furnish sampling pulses to sampling readout devices at push-button selected sampling times t1 and t2 (or t1 +τ) seconds after the start of each individual computer run.4. Furnish variable-brightness oscilloscope timing markers at 1000 cps, 500 cps, 250 cps, and 100 cps. In addition, markers are available at the computer repetition rate and at times t1 and t2.For statistical experiments, the 10 kc clock oscillator will be detuned slightly, so as to produce sampling rates not harmonically related to the 60 cps line frequency.
Efficient adaptive tiling for programmable rendering

In this paper we explore strategies for screen-space tiling in programmable rendering pipelines on modern GPUs. The need for tiling arises from the inherent unpredictability of workload size in many rendering pipelines. While it additionally also reduces the bandwidth demand of the rendering operations and increases locality of memory accesses, we focus on meeting resource limits in programmable rendering. We show that by ensuring load balance, dynamic tiling in a modern programmable GPU pipeline delivers performance improvements over traditional static tiling techniques. We explore prediction and splitting algorithms for adaptive tiling schemes and demonstrate that even approximate estimates of tile bounds can reduce tiling overhead. We evaluate the above optimizations by implementing them for a three GPU-based tiled renderers while keeping our observations general enough so that they are applicable to other forms of rendering as well.
Behavior of test anxious students across time

Abstract The study investigated the stability of the internal dialogue and self-reported arousal of test anxious students during an actual college examination. Based on procedures and measures developed by Galassi, Frierson and Sharer (1981) data were collected during a psychology exam and again 1 week later. It was found that high test anxious students have more negative thoughts and report more arousal during an exam than less test anxious students. Further, negative thoughts and self-reported arousal were found to be consistent across time, while positive thoughts were unstable. Results were consistent with those previously reported and support cognitive models of test anxiety.
United States coral snakes

Coral snakes, the New-World members of the Elapidae family, belong to the genera Micrurus, Leptomicrurus and Micruroides. There are over 50 species of these snakes inhabiting Northern, Central and South America. The clinically important coral snakes in the United States are Micrurus fulvius fulvius (Eastern coral), Micrurus fulvius tenere (Texas coral), and Micruroides euryxanthus (Arizona or Sonora coral).
TKO'ed: Lox, stock and barrel

The generation of panels of mutant mice by homologous recombination has greatly increased the ability to assess the function of particular gene products in vivo. The ability to control the developmental stage, the tissue and the nature of the mutation would be an important innovation. A recent report demonstrates that the conservative site-specific recombination of bacteriophage P1, namely Cre-lox, can be used successfully in combination with homologous recombination to generate temporal- and cell-restricted mutations in vivo. This technical advance allows a greater flexibility in gene targeting and will have a significant impact on how complex gene functions are studied in vivo.
Paper: Dual adaptive control and uncertainty effects in macroeconomic systems optimization

A method is presented for the quantitative assessment of the effects of uncertainty in macroeconomic policy optimization problems. Both parameter and measurement uncertainties are considered. The method derives from an application of adaptive dual control theory which decomposes the optimal loss function into three components: deterministic, cautionary, and probing. This characterizes the welfare loss due to uncertainty and permits the study of the relative importance of caution and probing in selecting the optimal policy instruments. An interesting illustration of the method is given for two macroeconometric models derived from the same data, but each with a different level of uncertainty.
Activation and suppression of shivering during septal and hypothalamic stimulation

Abstract In acute experiments on thirty-eight lightly anesthetized cats, the septal region of the forebrain and the hypothalamus were explored for loci, activation of which by electrical stimulation produced, suppressed, or failed to affect shivering. Shivering was consistently and repeatedly produced by stimulation of the dorsomedial region of the posterior hypothalamus, and sometimes by stimulation of the ventrolateral region of the septum. A greater intensity of stimulus was needed to produce more latent and less intense shivering during septal than during hypothalamic stimulation. Similarly, more intense stimulation was necessary to suppress shivering during ventromedial septal stimulation than during anterior, or ventrolateral posterior hypothalamic stimulation. The most effective stimulation frequency for both activation and suppression of shivering was 50 pulses/sec, i.e., five times the evoked or suppressed limb-tremor frequency. It was concluded that septal influences on shivering were secondary to a primary hypothalamic modulation of this tremor. Such modulation appears to be more concerned with initiation and maintenance than with the rhythm of shivering.