cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Anesthetic Care for the Post-concussive Patient: There Are More Questions Than Answers

This review informs the practicing clinician regarding the pathophysiology of mild traumatic brain injury and its implication on the anesthetic management of patients presenting for surgery. It highlights several areas where data is sparse that might spark the interest of researchers. It proposes a broad guideline for managing patients who present for surgery. The post-concussive brain has a vulnerable window of risk in which secondary insult might worsen long-term outcome. Scheduling elective surgery beyond this window of vulnerability might be beneficial. Several biomarkers may prove to be helpful in determining the timing of elective surgery and in risk stratification for the patient undergoing urgent or emergent surgery. Mild traumatic brain injury is common. Patients often present in the acute care setting for surgical procedures unrelated to their head injury. The care of these patients may influence the natural history of their intracranial pathology and may impact long-term outcomes. In this review, we provide a brief synopsis of the pathophysiology of this disease. We discuss potential anesthetic interactions, offer broad guidelines for anesthetic management based on available data, and suggest areas of future research.
Generating Realistic Ride-Hailing Datasets Using GANs

This article focuses on the synthetic generation of human mobility data in urban areas. We present a novel application of generative adversarial networks (GANs) for modeling and generating human mobility data. We leverage actual ride requests from ride-sharing/hailing services from four major cities to train our GANs model. Our model captures the spatial and temporal variability of the ride request patterns observed for all four cities over a typical week. Previous works have characterized the spatial and temporal properties of human mobility datasets using the fractal dimensionality and the densification power law, respectively, which we utilize to validate our GANs-generated synthetic datasets. We also validate the synthetic datasets using a dynamic vehicle placement application. Such synthetic datasets can avoid privacy concerns and be extremely useful for researchers and policy makers on urban mobility.
WATCHER: in-situ failure diagnosis

Diagnosing software failures is important but notoriously challenging. Existing work either requires extensive manual effort, imposing a serious privacy concern (for in-production systems), or cannot report sufficient information for bug fixes. This paper presents a novel diagnosis system, named WATCHER, that can pinpoint root causes of program failures within the failing process ("in-situ"), eliminating the privacy concern. It combines identical record-and-replay, binary analysis, dynamic analysis, and hardware support together to perform the diagnosis without human involvement. It further proposes two optimizations to reduce the diagnosis time and diagnose failures with control flow hijacks. WATCHER can be easily deployed, without requiring custom hardware or operating system, program modification, or recompilation. We evaluate WATCHER with 24 program failures in real-world deployed software, including large-scale applications, such as Memcached, SQLite, and OpenJPEG. Experimental results show that WATCHER can accurately identify the root causes in only a few seconds.
Clinical Characteristics of Patients With Pancreatic Cancer and Pathogenic ATM Alterations.

The Ataxia-Telangiesctasia, mutated (ATM) gene is involved in a number of DNA damage repair pathways and confers an increased risk for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). In this retrospective study, we identified and profiled 22 patients with PDAC and a known somatic or germline pathogenic ATM alteration (case patients). These patients were matched 2:1 by age, stage, and year at diagnosis to patients with PDAC without known ATM alterations. The median overall survival in patients with ATM alterations was 40.2 months compared with 15.5 months in the control population (hazard ratio = 0.14, 95% confidence interval = 0.04 to 0.47, 2-sided P = .001). In multivariable analysis, these findings persisted after adjustment for receipt of platinum therapy and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group status. These findings suggest that pathogenic ATM alterations may be prognostic for improved outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer.
Robotic Repair of Vesicovaginal Fistula: Step-by-Step Technique for Complex Scenarios

Abstract Introduction: Vesicovaginal fistula is a devastating condition often occurring as a complication of surgery or radiotherapy in women. Complex vesicovaginal fistula represents a challenge f...
Ambipolar Gate Modulation Technique for the Reduction of Offset and Flicker Noise in Graphene Hall-Effect Sensors

There is a constant need for Hall-effect magnetic sensors with lower noise and lower offset for the high accuracy analog applications driven primarily by industrial and automotive markets, for example, high dynamic range current sensing for battery management in electric vehicles. Graphene-based Hall sensors (GHSs) demonstrate low thermal noise due to their high carrier mobility but suffer from large low-frequency flicker noise and offset limiting the prevalent low-frequency applications. In this paper, we present the results of a recently proposed gate modulation scheme for GHSs that uses dynamic ambipolar operation to up-convert the input magnetic signal to higher modulating frequencies while the offset and flicker noise remain spectrally unchanged and thus enabling thermal noise limited performance. We implement a prototype GHS using a scalable fabrication process with CVD graphene transferred on to silicon-oxide and followed by standard thin film and subsequent photolithographic processes. The measurement results confirm the effectiveness of dynamic ambipolar gate modulation technique in producing low offset of $- 524\,\,\mu \mathrm{T}$ in conjunction with three orders of magnitude estimated improvement in the low frequency noise performance.
AIDS Drugs For All: Institutions to stabilize the market

The emergence of a market for generic ARVs was shaped by public policies, notably the provision of donor funding for treatment and the creation of an international regulatory structure for drug quality approval. Anne Roemer-Mahler, 2010. Until the Global Fund for AIDS, TB, and Malaria was created in 2002, if you were diagnosed with HIV, your fortunes were largely dependent upon where you were born. If you were born poor in Africa, you almost certainly were going to die. Access to ARV drugs was determined by market prices and your ability to pay. By contrast, if you were HIV+ in an advanced industrialized country, chances are that, by the late 1990s, you could get access to ARVs through national health systems or private insurance. Even the United States, which lacked a national insurance health scheme, provided poor Americans access to ARVs through programs like the AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, which came into being when the Ryan White CARE Act was passed in 1990. Of course, rich and middle-income countries did not develop these programs overnight in pragmatic response to the AIDS pandemic. With AIDS initially viewed by the “mainstream” as a disease of the deviant, the community most immediately threatened by it had to mobilize to help create the political momentum for extending access to AIDS drugs to all who needed them. However, in most of the leading countries, the market and medical institutions required to diagnose, counsel, procure, dispense, treat, and pay for this access were already present and extensive. While many programs to test and treat the disease were new or even experimental, the broader edifice of health systems was in place.
Detection of Type E Botulinal Toxin in Cultures by Fluorescent-Antibody Microscopy

Vegetative cells of toxigenic Clostridium botulinum type E cultures were stained with fluorescent antitoxin prepared against purified toxin. The staining seems to be specific.
Growth and poverty in rural India

Unlike most developing countries, consistent poverty measures for India can be tracked over a long time. The authors used 20 household surveys for rural India for the years 1958-90 to measure the effects of agricultural growth on rural poverty and on the rural labor market and to find out how long it takes for the effects to be felt. They found that measures of absolute rural poverty responded elastically to changes in mean consumption. But agricultural growth had no discernible impact - either positive or negative - on the share of total consumption going to the poor. For the rural poor, the authors attribute the long-run gains from growth to higher average farm yields, which benefited poor people both directly and through higher real agricultural wages. And the benefits from higher yields were not confined to those near the poverty line - the poorest also benefited. The process through which India's rural poor participate in the gains from agricultural growth takes time, although about half of the long-run impact comes within three years. The long-run elasticity of the head-count index to farm yield was over 2 - of which 40 percent came through wages. Short-run elasticities were far smaller. Inflation adversely affected the rural poor by eroding their real wages in the short-run.
Assessing the Effect of Pesticides in Agricultural Runoff on Aquatic Life in the Sangamon River Near Monticello, Illinois

Stream-water samples collected from a midwest stream, following a thunderstorm during May 1991 were toxic to water fleas ( Ceriodaphnia dubia ), but not fathead minnows ( Pimephales promelas ), or a bacterium ( Photobacterium phosphoreum ) or green alga ( Selenastrum capricornutum ). It was unlikely that the toxicity to the water fleas was caused by herbicides, but it may have been caused by insecticides.
International E-Banking: ICT Investments and the Basel Accord

This study investigates how the Basel Accord and Information and Telecommunications Technologies (ICT) investments affect the commercial banking industries across countries. We employ the stochastic frontier approach to explore a data set composed of commercial banks from 51 countries. We find that telecommunications investment reduces, and the Basel Accord proxy enhances, the cost efficiency of commercial banks under study. Moreover, it is found that ICT investments improve cost efficiencies of commercial banks for countries in which the regulations are consistent with the international supervision.
Transport, metabolism, and effect of chronic feeding of cholylsarcosine, a conjugated bile acid resistant to deconjugation and dehydroxylation

Abstract To test the effect in rodents of chronic ingestion of a bile acid resistant to deconjugation, cholylsarcosine was synthesized and its transport, metabolism, and effect on biliary bile acid and biliary lipid composition were determined in rabbits, hamsters, and rats. Cholylsarcosine was shown to be well absorbed from the ileum but underwent little absorption from the jejunum or colon. When cholylsarcosine was administered in the diet at 140 μmol/kg · day, it was well absorbed and underwent little biotransformation during enterohepatic cycling; however, both bacterial deconjugation and dehydroxylation (without deconjugation) occurred to a small extent. With chronic feeding, cholylsarcosine accumulated to compose 24%–29% of circulating bile acids in all 3 rodent species. It was rapidly lost from the enterohepatic circulation, with a daily fractional turnover rate of 75%–150%, depending on the species. Cholylsarcosine caused no change in liver tests or hepatic morphology and did not influence biliary lipid secretion. When cholyltaurine was fed, it was also absorbed, but, in contrast to cholylsarcosine, was rapidly deconjugated and dehydroxylated to form deoxycholic acid. The deoxycholic acid accumulated in the enterohepatic circulation, as evidenced by a slow fractional turnover rate of 26%–40% per day, depending on the species. It is concluded that cholylsarcosine is absorbed from the ileum, has an enterohepatic circulation, does not undergo appreciable deconjugation or dehydroxylation in these rodents, and is nontoxic. In the rodent, the circulating bile acids can be somewhat enriched when a bile acid resistant to deconjugation is ingested; but the effect on the steady state biliary bile acid composition is less than that obtained when cholyltaurine is administered because cholyltaurine is biotransformed to deoxycholic acid, which in turn is absorbed and has its own efficient enterohepatic circulation.
MATERNITY NEST OF AN AMAZON RED SQUIRREL IN A BROMELIAD

Animal-plant interactions are important in the life history of many animal and plant species but our knowledge is often limited. We documented a maternity nest of the poorly studied Amazon red squirrel. The nest was located in a bromeliad and contained two young, a male and a female. We measured nest and forest characteristics and also documented a predation attempt on the adult female while we observed the nest and squirrels.
Beneficial Effects of Aldosterone Blockade in Heart Failure

The authors describe the use of spironolactone, an aldosterone receptor blocker, in a patient with heart failure refractory to conventional therapy. The clinical importance of this case is that not only does spironolactone improve symptoms, but its use also improves survival in patients with severe heart failure. Clinicians should be aware that this therapy has to be added to the medical armamentarium for patients with severe heart failure. In addition, it is important to point out that the use of the aldosterone receptor blockers and their beneficial effects in morbidity and mortality in heart failure has helped to understand more clearly the relationship between aldosterone and its importance in the pathophysiology of heart failure.
On meromorphic approximation

Let G be a bounded N-connected domain, the boundary Γ of which consists of closed analytic Jordan curves. We assume that 0eG. For any nonnegative integers n and m, denote by ℳ n,m the class of all meromorphic functions on G that can be represented in the form h=p/qz m , where p belongs to the Smirnov class E ∞(G), q is a polynomial of degree at most n, q≢0. Theorems giving necessary and sufficient conditions for a function belonging to the class ℳ n,m to be an element of best approximation to a continuous function f on Γ in the space L ∞(Γ) by functions in the class ℳ n,m are proved. Some questions concerning orthogonal polynomials and the theory of Hankel operators are also considered.
Fundamental stratigraphic problem of the Cambrian in the Holy Cross Mts.

The only existing stratigraphic scheme of the Holy Cross Cambrian (S. Orlowski, 1975) and its later modifications (Figs. 1-7) are critically reviewed, Lithostratigraphic units in these subdivisions are informal because the majority of them do not meet the requirements of National Stratigraphic Code. Their biostratigraphic position is in most cases disputable. The author presents his own stratigraphic subdivision (Fig. 8). The Czarna Shales are of Holmia and Protolenus age. The Osiek Sandstones belong most probably to the lowest Middle Cambrian. The Gory Pieprzowe Shales represent not only the upper part of Middle Cambrian but are also the time equivalent of various Middle and Lower Cambrian units. Ichnozones in Middle and Uppe( Cambrian are of low stratigraphic value. The determinations of trilobites yielded by Middle and Upper Cambrian rocks must be revised.
Diastolic dysfunction precedes hypoxia‐induced mortality in dystrophic mice

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a progressive striated muscle disease that is characterized by skeletal muscle weakness with progressive respiratory and cardiac failure. Together respiratory and cardiac disease account for the majority of mortality in the DMD patient population. However, little is known regarding the effects of respiratory dysfunction on the dystrophic heart. The studies described here examine the effects of acute hypoxia on cardiac function. These studies demonstrate, for the first time, that a mouse model of DMD displays significant mortality following acute exposure to hypoxia. This mortality is characterized by a steady decline in systolic function. Retrospective analysis reveals that significant decreases in diastolic dysfunction, especially in the right ventricle, precede the decline in systolic pressure. The initial hemodynamic response to acute hypoxia in the mouse is similar to that observed in larger species, with significant increases in right ventricular afterload and decreases in left ventricular preload being observed. Significant increases in heart rate and contractility suggest hypoxia-induced activation of the sympathetic nervous system. These studies provide evidence that while hypoxia presents significant hemodynamic challenges to the dystrophic right ventricle, global cardiac dysfunction precedes hypoxia-induced mortality in the dystrophic heart. These findings are clinically relevant as the respiratory insufficiency evident in patients with DMD results in significant bouts of hypoxia. The results of these studies indicate that hypoxia may contribute to the acceleration of the heart disease in DMD patients. Importantly, hypoxia can be avoided through the use of ventilatory support.
Astronomical image manipulation in the discrete wavelet transform domain

Traditionally, processing an image stored in the compressed form requires decompression first. Following manipulations, the processed image is recompressed for storage. Manipulating images in the semicompressed or transform domain appears to be an effective way to reduce processing time. In this paper, new algorithms for image interpolation in the Haar transform domain are proposed. These algorithms perform interpolation by computing a new subband using two different approaches. Experimental results indicate that in addition to running faster in the transform domain, the new algorithms produce images with qualities comparable to those in the spatial domain. Applications are seen in conjunction with Haar-based transforms such as the HCOMPRESS which is commonly used for compression in space science imagery.
Non-Agential Permissibility In Epistemology

Paul Silva has recently argued that doxastic justification does not have a basing requirement. An important part of his argument depends crucially on the assumption that doxastic and moral permissibility have a parallel structure. I here reply to Silva's argument by challenging this crucial assumption. I claim that moral permissibility is an agential notion, while doxastic permissibility is not. I then briefly explore the nature of these notions and briefly consider their implications for praise and blame.
A candidate target for G protein action in brain

An effector candidate for G protein action, GRIN1, was identified by screening a cDNA expression library with phosphorylated GTPgammaS-G(z)alpha as a probe. GRIN1 is a novel protein without substantial homology to known protein domains. It is expressed largely in brain and binds specifically to activated G(z)alpha, G(o)alpha, and G(i)alpha through its carboxyl-terminal region. The protein KIAA0514 (GRIN2) is homologous to GRIN1 at its carboxyl terminus and also binds to activated G(o)alpha. Both GRIN1 and G(o)alpha are membrane-bound proteins that are enriched in the growth cones of neurites. Coexpression of GRIN1 or GRIN2 with activated G(o)alpha causes formation of a network of fine processes in Neuro2a cells, suggesting that these pathways may function downstream of G(o)alpha to control growth of neurites.
Osteoinductivity of calcium phosphate mediated by connexin 43.

Recent reports have alluded to the osteoinductive properties of calcium phosphate, yet the cellular processes behind this are not well understood. To gain insight into the molecular mechanisms of this phenomenon, we have conducted a series of in vitro and in vivo experiments using a scaffoldless three dimensional (3D) dental pulp cell (DPC) construct as a physiologically relevant model. We demonstrate that amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) alters cellular functions and 3D spatial tissue differentiation patterns by increasing local calcium concentration, which modulates connexin 43 (Cx43)-mediated gap junctions. These observations indicate a chemical mechanism for osteoinductivity of calcium phosphates. These results provide new insights for possible roles of mineral phases in bone formation and remodeling. This study also emphasizes the strong effect of scaffold materials on cellular functions and is expected to advance the design of future tissue engineering materials.
A Survey Experiment of Women's Attitudes about Intimate Partner Violence against Women in Rural Bangladesh

According to the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in poorer countries, 50 % of women of reproductive age report that wife hitting or beating is justified. Such high rates may result from structural pressures to adopt such views or to report the perceived socially desirable response. In a survey experiment of 496 ever-married women aged 18–49 years in rural Bangladesh, we compared responses to attitudinal questions that (1) replicated the 2007 Bangladesh DHS wording and portrayed the wife as transgressive for unstated reasons with elaborations depicting her as (2) unintentionally and (3) willfully transgressive. The probabilities of justifying wife hitting or beating were consistently low for unintended transgressions (.01–.08). Willful transgressions yielded higher probabilities (.40–.70), which resembled those based on the DHS wording (.38–.57). Cognitive interviews illustrated that village women held diverse views, which were attributed to social change. Also, ambiguity in the DHS questions may have led some women to interpret them according to perceived gender norms and to give the socially desirable response of justified. Results inform modifications to these DHS questions and identify women for ideational-change interventions.
Eucalyptus oil poisoning in childhood: 41 cases in south‐east Queensland

Forty-two cases of oral eucalyptus oil poisoning in children under 14 years of age were identified in a defined population between 1 July 1984 and 30 June 1991, and 41 were subjected to retrospective case note analysis. Thirty-three children (80%) were entirely asymptomatic. This group included all of the four children reported to have ingested more than 30 mL of eucalyptus oil. Only two of the remaining children had symptoms or clinical signs on presentation to hospital. No child required advanced life-support. There was no correlation between the amount of eucalyptus oil taken and the presence of symptoms. If the estimated volume ingested is large, or symptoms are evident, on presentation at hospital gastrointestinal decontamination should lead to a good outcome with few clinical problems. Eucalyptus oil may be a less toxic compound than has previously been believed.
Challenges Associated with Physicians' Usage of Electronic Medical Records

Using the Theory of Planned Behavior, institutional and diffusion theories as theoretical foundations, this study investigates physiciansâ€™ attitudes towards and usage of electronic medical records (EMR). Interviews with seventeen physician-residents enrolled in a Family Practice residency program and eight attending physicians in the same clinic showed that most physicians held rather negative attitudes regarding the EMR system. EMR was often times seen as an intrusion in the patient-physician interaction. Other findings relate to how EMR impacts physiciansâ€™ time, expertise, and learning, as well as the length (and sometimes the accuracy) of clinical notes. Challenges associated with behavioral control issues such as availability of computers and the physical positioning of computers are shown to be very important in the context of this case. In this organization, physician-residents are required to use EMR because of its mandatory nature, however, if they had a choice or the power, the majority of them would use the paper chart.
Molecular orbital study of the ring expansion of cyclobutylidenylcarbene to cyclopentyne: Thermal formation of a lumomer

Abstract AM1 molecular orbital calculations of the reaction path for ring expansion of cyclobutylidenylcarbene (1) show that this process affords a lumomer of cyclopentyne (2). Invocation of this species rationalizes the known of [2+2]-cycloaddition previously ascribed to 2.
GFAAS determination of ultratrace quantities of organotins in sea-water by using enhancement methods

Tributyltin in sea-water is preconcentrated by extraction into toluene and determined by enhanced graphite-furnace atomic-absorption (GFAAS) at ultratrace concentrations (as low as 1.0 mug l .) equal to or lower than the toxic limits for aquatic organotins. Toluene is preferred to MIBK, chloroform or hexane as the solvent. Sea salts, in concentrations as low as 0.1%, critically interfere with GFAAS tin determinations, and must be removed by washing the extract with demineralized water. Signal enhancement effected by inserting L'vov platforms in the graphite furnace tubes or by adding ammonium dichromate to the analyte solution is nearly additive when both methods of enhancement are combined.
The effect of context on information seeking across the span of initial interactions

The level of uncertainty within a context was investigated as a possible influence on information seeking in interactions where subjects are forming first impressions of others. Analysis of types of questions asked others over the span of interactions in an ambiguous context revealed significantly more requests for demographic information than any other type of information. Over time, requests for demographic information decreased, while requests for opinions and attitudes increased. These trends were not as distinct in specific contexts. The effects were attributed to the increased need for uncertainty reduction in ambiguous contexts.
Comparison of the mode of action of oxytocin and lysine-vasopressin on the isolated rat uterus.

Ein der Rezeptorentheorie zugrunde liegender Vergleich der Dosis-Wirkungs-Beziehung zwischen Oxytocin und Lysine-vasopressin an der isolierten Rattengebarmutter hat gezeigt, dass wahrend der Evolution die Oktapeptide der Neurohypophyse sowohl ihre Affinitat fur den Rezeptor als auch ihre maximale Aktivitat bei Absattigung des Rezeptors, «intrinsic activity», verandert haben. Weiterhin wurde gefunden, dass Magnesium-Ionen in einer Konzentration von 0.5 mM nicht nur, wie bisher angenommen, die Affinitat der Hormone, sondern auch ihre maximale Aktivitat bei Absattigung des Rezeptors beeinflussen.
Temporal and spatial variability of reduced sulfur species (FeS2, S2O32−) and porewater parameters in salt marsh sediments

Porewater species and solid inorganic sulfur speciation were measured before and after the spring tide (which occurs over a 6–7 day period) during a portion of the summer seasons of 1987, 1988 and 1989 in Great Marsh, Delaware. Samples were taken from two locations in the marsh (near creek and mid-marsh) inhabited by the short form of Spartina alterniflora. In 1987, pyrite and thiosulfate decreased over the spring tide. Other porewater species also underwent large changes in concentration — in some cases order of magnitude. However, in 1988 and 1989, there was no evidence for short term changes of pyrite. In 1988, drought conditions were prevalent throughout the sampling whereas in 1989 wet conditions were prevalent. Porewater parameters demonstrated that oxidation was extensive during the sampling period in 1988 and related to dessication. Both climatic and spring tidal flooding conditions have a pronounced affect on the chemistry of the system.
The results of nocturnal visual surveys are influenced by lamp properties

We conducted standardized visual searches at night for brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) and geckos, where we alternated between spotlight and floodlight lamps. Floodlights rendered us 25% more snakes and 71% more geckos than did spotlights. We show data on searcher variability and discuss what might affect the relative benefit of different lamp types.
Origins of microfossil bonebeds: insights from the Upper Cretaceous Judith River Formation of north-central Montana

Abstract Microfossil bonebeds are multi-individual accumulations of disarticulated and dissociated vertebrate hardparts dominated by elements in the millimeter to centimeter size range (≥75% of bioclasts ≤5 cm maximum dimension). Modes of accumulation are often difficult to decipher from reports in the literature, although predatory (scatological) and fluvial/hydraulic origins are typically proposed. We studied the sedimentology and taphonomy of 27 microfossil bonebeds in the Campanian Judith River Formation of Montana in order to reconstruct formative histories. Sixteen of the bonebeds examined are hosted by fine-grained facies that accumulated in low-energy aquatic settings (pond/lake microfossil bonebeds). Eleven of the bonebeds are embedded in sandstones that accumulated in ancient fluvial settings (channel-hosted microfossil bonebeds). In lieu of invoking separate pathways to accumulation based on facies distinctions, we present a model that links the accumulation of bioclasts in the two facies. We p...
Collagen synthesis during the cell cycle of chick embryo chondroblasts; evidence for two distinct chondroblast populations.

Abstract Vertebral chondroblasts from 11-day chick embryos were synchronized in order to determine when, during the cell cycle, collagen is synthesized. Only partial synchrony was obtained by applying a double thymidine block and this poor synchrony appeared to result from the presence of a subpopulation of cells which were slower to recover from the block. With this method of inducing synchrony it was found that collagen synthesis was greatest during the S period. A an alternate method for obtaining synchrony, mitotic cells were selected by colcemid wash-off. During a 27 h period following release from colcemid 4 waves of DNA synthesis and 4 waves of collagen synthesis occurred. These results suggested that these chondroblasts actually consist of two discrete subpopulations of cells. One of these populations has a generation time of approx. 13 h with a very short G1 period. This group synthesizes collagen preferentially during the short G1 or early S. The other population has a generation time of approx. 16 h, with a G1 period of 7–8 h. This population synthesizes collagen preferentially during the S phase.
DNA Fingerprinting of Mycobacterium leprae Strains Using Variable Number Tandem Repeat (VNTR) - Fragment Length Analysis (FLA)

The study of the transmission of leprosy is particularly difficult since the causative agent, Mycobacterium leprae, cannot be cultured in the laboratory. The only sources of the bacteria are leprosy patients, and experimentally infected armadillos and nude mice. Thus, many of the methods used in modern epidemiology are not available for the study of leprosy. Despite an extensive global drug treatment program for leprosy implemented by the WHO1, leprosy remains endemic in many countries with approximately 250,000 new cases each year.2 The entire M. leprae genome has been mapped3,4 and many loci have been identified that have repeated segments of 2 or more base pairs (called micro- and minisatellites).5 Clinical strains of M. leprae may vary in the number of tandem repeated segments (short tandem repeats, STR) at many of these loci.5,6,7 Variable number tandem repeat (VNTR)5 analysis has been used to distinguish different strains of the leprosy bacilli. Some of the loci appear to be more stable than others, showing less variation in repeat numbers, while others seem to change more rapidly, sometimes in the same patient. While the variability of certain VNTRs has brought up questions regarding their suitability for strain typing7,8,9, the emerging data suggest that analyzing multiple loci, which are diverse in their stability, can be used as a valuable epidemiological tool. Multiple locus VNTR analysis (MLVA)10 has been used to study leprosy evolution and transmission in several countries including China11,12, Malawi8, the Philippines10,13, and Brazil14. MLVA involves multiple steps. First, bacterial DNA is extracted along with host tissue DNA from clinical biopsies or slit skin smears (SSS).10 The desired loci are then amplified from the extracted DNA via polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Fluorescently-labeled primers for 4-5 different loci are used per reaction, with 18 loci being amplified in a total of four reactions.10 The PCR products may be subjected to agarose gel electrophoresis to verify the presence of the desired DNA segments, and then submitted for fluorescent fragment length analysis (FLA) using capillary electrophoresis. DNA from armadillo passaged bacteria with a known number of repeat copies for each locus is used as a positive control. The FLA chromatograms are then examined using Peak Scanner software and fragment length is converted to number of VNTR copies (allele). Finally, the VNTR haplotypes are analyzed for patterns, and when combined with patient clinical data can be used to track distribution of strain types.
Selective Adsorption in Ultrasound-Assisted Oxidative Desulfurization Process for Fuel Cell Reformer Applications

Alumina has been used as a selective solid adsorbent for a scaleup test of a jet fuel and diesel fuel desulfurization technique. The oxidative process with ultrasound assistance has been improved f...
Tissue Culture and Tissue Culture Technologies at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research: Roots of Regenerative Medicine, 1910–1950

Alexis Carrel’s and Keith Porter’s accomplishments at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, 1910–1950, were fundamental to the creation of the field of tissue culture.
A guide to developing and implementing safety checklists: Plant steam utilities†

Steam generation is an integral part of most chemical process plants; however, the steam plant often is or can be overlooked in the area of hazard analysis. The reasons for this oversight are obvious: steam generation is considered to be an old and well-understood process, and steam boiler systems are often not considered to pose the same hazards as other plant units. However, modern steam boiler systems are fueled with natural gas, pulverized coal, and/or fuel oil; each of which poses significant fire and explosion hazards. For example, a moderately sized chemical plant's boiler house may have two or three boilers operating at 240 MMBTU/hr, with each using approximately 11 ton/hr of subbituminous pulverized coal feed. Chemical plants rely on equipment design and installation, maintenance practices, operating procedures, and programmable logic controllers to operate safely. Steam plants rely on these same safety mechanisms. Thus, the same process safety management objectives may be applied to these systems as to the balance of the chemical plant. Several hazard analysis techniques can be applied to existing designs, management of change, and new designs of steam power plants in chemical facilities. A method that we have found useful to apply to these systems is that of a safety checklist based on relevant standards and good engineering practice. More than just identifying the hazards and required safeguards for such a system, if implemented effectively, the checklist will enhance training and staff knowledge of boiler operation and safety systems. This paper aims to provide guidelines for when it is appropriate to implement a checklist and for reasonable alternatives for developing such a checklist. We will also discuss typical hurdles in implementing such a hazard analysis program for existing boiler systems. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2011
Osteoporosis after cranial irradiation for acute lymphoblastic leukemia

A prospective study was conducted to investigate the possibility of osteoporosis after treatment for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Forty-two survivors of ALL had the trabecular bone density of the spine evaluated by quantitative computed tomography, 6 to 98 months (mean 42 months) after completion of chemotherapy. The ALL survivors had significantly lower bone density than age-, gender-, and race-matched nonleukemic control subjects had (10% less, p p
Hydrophobic polycationic coatings inactivate wild-type and zanamivir- and/or oseltamivir-resistant human and avian influenza viruses

Glass slides painted with the hydrophobic long-chained polycation N,N-dodecyl,methyl-polyethylenimine (N,N-dodecyl,methyl-PEI) are highly lethal to waterborne influenza A viruses, including not only wild-type human and avian strains but also their neuraminidase mutants resistant to currently used anti-influenza drugs.
MNC strategies, exogenous shocks, and performance outcomes

This paper examines the effect of international diversification on multinational corporation (MNC) performance in the face of exogenous shocks in the global business environment, and the extent to which MNCs' internationalization aids or impedes post-shock performance. We use the September 11, 2001 attacks as a research setting to investigate the relationship between international diversification and MNC performance after a sudden change in the environment. The empirical tests on a sample of 191 U.S. MNCs and a matched sample of non-U.S. MNCs indicate that the level of pre-September 11 international diversification is negatively correlated with immediate cumulative abnormal returns to shares, but positively correlated with longer-term performance. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Sacrificial Symbolism in Animal Experimentation: Object or Pet?

AbstractBased on ethnographic research in biomedical laboratories, this paper argues that sacrifice is an ambivalent notion in the culture of animal experimentation, requiring both objectification of and identification with the animal. Because of this ambivalence, laboratory animals are not accorded a single, uniform, and unchanging status but seen simultaneously as objects and pets. Animals are objectified by incorporation into the protocol, by deindividualization, by commodification, by isolation, and by situational definition. At the same time, laboratory workers develop pet-like relationships with the animals, which may be treated as enshrined pets, liberated pets, saved pets, or martyred pets.
A bubble detection circuit for spacecraft applications

Low power dissipation, compactness, and reliaability are attributes of a bubble detection innovation for NASA's Bubble Memory Module. Heart of the design is a detector selection multiplexer[1] which connects a chip in an addressed cell to one of two sense hybrids. By using diode selection, expensive, bulky, and high power components such as those used for sensing are shared between cells. Eight sense amplifiers serve 64 chips.
Toward Personalizing the Use of Androgen Deprivation Therapy to Maximize Benefit and Minimize Harm

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) plays a tremendous role in relieving suffering and extending life for men with unfavorable risk and locally advanced prostate cancer. Among men with locally advanced disease treated with radiation, addition of ADT reduces the risk of death by half [1]. However, there has also been simmering concern in the oncologic community that ADT might be contributing to excess cardiovascular events or even cardiovascular death. Much of this concern about ADT and cardiovascular harm has come from observational studies, the first of which was by Keating et al [2], who found that in a US SEER-Medicare population, ADT was associated with increased diabetes, coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction (MI), and sudden cardiac death. Since then, several more observational studies have been published on this topic, some ofwhich supported this finding and some of which did not [3,4]. In this issue of European Urology, Bosco and colleagues [5] provide us with the first meta-analysis of observational data exploring the association between ADT and either nonfatal or fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes. From the eight studies ultimately fitting their inclusion criteria, the authors found strikingly consistent associations between ADT and CVD across studies, including a 38% increase in nonfatal CVD for men on gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists versus no ADT, a 57% increase in nonfatal or fatal MI, and a 51% increase in nonfatal or fatal stroke. These studies represent a broad international collection of studies, including studies from Danish, Swedish, US Medicare, US Veterans, and UK registries. The authors should be congratulated for adding this important information to the literature.
Impression formation and role fulfillment: A “holistic reference” approach

Abstract Previous approaches to impression formation from verbal information are discussed. A “holistic reference” approach is presented which proposes that a person first calls to mind the reference of the verbal description as a whole, and then evaluates that reference. To predict how the reference of a trait-role description (e.g., “immoral priest”) is evaluated, a “role fulfillment” model is presented which proposes that the evaluation of the role interacts with the degree to which the trait fulfills the expectations of the role. In order to compare this holistic role fulfillment model to elementistic models, which propose that the independent evaluations of the trait and role are combined, trait-role combinations were tested where the desirability valence (positive or negative) of the trait alone was opposite to its role fulfillment valence (e.g., “casual surgeon”). The results supported both the “holistic” and interactive features of the role fulfillment model. Evidence is also presented that suggests that the evaluation of the role may be an important independent factor in the overall evaluation. The implications of the holistic reference approach for the issue of “change-of-meaning” are considered.
Arteriohepatic dysplasia (Alagille's syndrome) : unusual hepatic architecture and function

Alagille's syndrome, also called arteriohepatic dysplasia, is a congenital anomaly consisting of hepatic, ocular, skeletal, and cardiac anomalies. The abdominal imaging findings were reviewed in eight patients with biopsy-proven Alagille's syndrome. One patient also had coexistent hepatocellular carcinoma. Seven right upper quadrant sonograms, six hepatic CT studies, five hepatobiliary imaging studies, two hepatic MRI examinations, and two sulphur colloid liver spleen radionuclide studies were reviewed. The most striking abnormality was gross distortion of hepatic architecture. Five patients (63%) had marked external hepatic contour abnormalities, usually with either the entire liver or lobe having a predominately spherical shape. The portal vein was displaced by the spherical parenchymal component in four cases. Three other patients demonstrated marked hepatomegaly with no external contour abnormality. Hepatobiliary imaging studies demonstrated markedly prolonged excretion of the radiopharmaceutical in three of four patients examined. A diagnosis of Alagille's syndrome is suggested when a large, deformed and somewhat spherical liver is encountered, especially when hepatobiliary imaging studies demonstrate delayed excretion of radio pharmaceutical.
Evaluation of Urinary Retention in Women: Pelvic Floor Dysfunction or Primary Bladder Neck Obstruction

Urinary retention in women is a condition resulting from various etiologies. Pelvic floor dysfunction and primary bladder outlet obstruction are two relatively common causes of bladder outlet obstruction (the major treatable cause of urinary retention). These two entities are treated in drastically different ways, making accurate diagnosis paramount. Urodynamic testing with fluoroscopic imaging remains the gold standard to accurately complete this evaluation. In this article, we review these conditions, their evaluation, and treatment.
Introgression between invasive saltcedars (Tamarix chinensis and T. ramosissima) in the USA

Saltcedars (Tamarix ramosissima and T. chinensis) are native to Asia, but since introduction into the USA have become common and invasive in many western riparian habitats. Recent molecular analysis of a single locus nuclear DNA sequence marker has shown that in their native range the two species are genetically distinct, but within the USA populations many of the plants (23%) are novel hybrids. Here, we used multilocus DNA markers (amplified fragment length polymorphisms) to determine the levels of introgression in USA plants. Species-specific diagnostic markers, principal coordinates analysis, and a Bayesian model-based clustering analysis all indicate a much higher incidence of hybridization (83–87%) than was revealed by the single locus marker, with USA plants forming a genetic continuum between the two parental types. Additionally, the level of introgression toward Tamarix ramosissima or T. chinensis was strongly correlated with latitude. Concordance of level of introgression was highest between principal coordinates analysis and the Bayesian analysis. The high percentage of novel hybrids may have implications for classical biological control efforts.
Jewish epitaphs from Białystok, 1892–1902: embracing the spirit of Dubnow

In the early twentieth century, Polish historian Mejer Balaban delivered a most telling condemnation of Jewish epitaphs as “blatantly baroque,” “overloaded with epithets” and difficult to understand. In the late nineteenth century, the maskil Simon Dubnow had delivered a plea to the maskilim (intellectuals) and mithnagdim (traditionalists) of his day to engage in documenting and writing the woefully lacking past history of Yiddish civilisation as a means to unite past history with emerging nationalistic inclinations. Dubnow specified gathering epitaphs as part of this documentation. Despite Dubnow's plea it is Balaban's condemnation that has held sway in American and English-speaking European academies and which has not yet been fully reversed in the scholarship of the century since then. In the spirit of Dubnow, the current paper examines the first decade of extant epitaphs from Bagnowka Beth Olam in Bialystok, Poland, dating from 1892 to 1902, as an example by which we can move towards establishing the ...
SECONDARY OSTEOPOROSIS: A REVIEW OF THE RECENT EVIDENCE

Objective: To review several causes of secondary osteoporosis as well as screening recommendations for underlying disorders. Methods: We conducted a review of the literature on many of the causes of osteoporosis that have been published during the past 15 years, focusing on those sources available from 2000 through the present. Indeed, more than two-thirds of the articles that we reviewed were printed during the past 6 years. These reports examined secondary osteoporosis in general, as well as many of the specific causes. Results: Secondary osteoporosis occurs in almost two-thirds of men, more than half of premenopausal and perimenopausal women, and about one-fifth of postmenopausal women. Its causes are vast, and they include hypogonadism, medications, hyperthyroidism, vitamin D deficiency, primary hyperparathyroidism, solid organ transplantation, gastrointestinal diseases, hematologic diseases, Cushing’s syndrome, and idiopathic hypercalciuria. These causes have their own pathogenesis, epidemiologic features, and effect on the skeleton. Conclusion: The causes of secondary osteoporosis are numerous, and an understanding of their characteristics with respect to bone density and potential fracture risk is essential in the management of osteoporosis. A heightened awareness of the possibility of their existence is necessary to provide optimal care. (Endocr Pract. 2006; 12:436-445)