cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Expression of c-Myc in glucocorticoid-treated fibroblastic cells.

Abstract Glucocorticoids inhibit proliferation of L929 fibroblastic cells in culture. Inhibition of proliferation is reversible and is not associated with changes in the plating efficiency of the cells. Flow cytometric analysis indicates that glucocorticoid-treated cells exhibit a decrease in the percentage of cells with DNA content >2N. Thymidine kinase expression is inhibited as cells with 2N DNA content accumulate. These observations indicate that glucocorticoids arrest proliferation of L929 cells in the G1 phase of the cell cycle. The abundance of c-Myc mRNA does not decrease in glucocorticoid-treated cells, and c- Myc protein content in dexamethasone-treated cells is approximately the same as that detected in mid-log phase cells. Nuclear run-on transcription of c- Myc is not inhibited by glucocorticoids. These observations indicate that glucocorticoid regulation of fibroblastic cell proliferation does not involve inhibition of c- Myc transcription. Although regulation of c- Myc expression is central to the mechanism whereby glucocorticoids regulate proliferation of lymphoid cells, it is clear that different mechanisms must be involved in glucocorticoid regulation of fibroblastic cell proliferation.
Delayed Pituitary Hormone Response to LRF and TRF in Patients with Anorexia Nervosa and with Secondary Amenorrhea Associated with Simple Weight Loss

The qualitative and quantitative responses of LRF-induced LH and FSH release and TRF-induced TSH and Prolactin (PRL) release were evaluated in 21 patients with anorexia nervosa, 19 patients with secondary amenorrhea associated with simple weight loss (SWL) who did not fulfill the psychologic criteria for anorexia nervosa, and 7 normal women in the early follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. Basal plasma LH and FSH were significantly lower in the anorexia nervosa group compared to the SWL group and normals (P less than 0.05). The LRF-induced integrated LH responses, however, were the same in the 3 groups and the integrated FSH responses were greater in the underweight groups when compared to normal. The time of the peak LH response (mean+/-SE) was signifantly delayed (P less than 0.01) in both the anorexia nervosa (49 +/- 6.1 min) and SWL (28 +/- 2.5 min) groups when compared to normal (17 +/- 2.3 min). The time of the FSH response was significantly delayed (P less than 0.05) in anorexia nervosa (95 +/- 9.6 min) when compared to normals (35 +/0 7.9 min) and SWL patients (62 +/- 11.7 min). Normal basal TSH and PRL and normal peak TSH and PRL responses to TRF were found in anorexia nervosa. The time of the TSH and PRL peak (56+/-8.9 and 36+/-3.6 min,, respectively) in anorexia nervosa was significantly later than normal (26 +/- 1.7 and 36 +/- 3.6 min respectively) (P less than 0.01). It is concluded that despite normal quantitative response to releasing hormones, there are abnormally delayed responses in both anorexia nervosa and SWL patients. The SWL responses were intermediate between those of the anorexia nervosa group and normals. The constellation of normal quantitative but abnormal kinetic LRF and TRF responses supports the hypothesis that the endocrine changes seen in anorexia nervosa are consistent with hypothalamic dysfunction.
ASPECTS OF HIERARCHICAL GALAXY FORMATION INVOLVING GAS DYNAMICS

We try to test the viability of hierarchical structure formation theories, e.g., cold dark matter, through numerical simulations that include gas dynamics. Gas dynamics is crucial to obtaining realistic results to many problems in galaxy formation. We consider applications over the range from individual galaxy features (polar rings) to spiral and elliptical galaxies to quasars and clusters. Frequently we find that the common wisdom on many aspects of hierarchical galaxy formation is upset by the inclusion of realistic gas dynamics.
Quantification of Pulmonary Arterial Wall Distensibility Using Parameters Extracted from Volumetric Micro-CT Images

Stiffening, or loss of distensibility, of arterial vessel walls is among the manifestations of a number of vascular diseases including pulmonary arterial hypertension. We are attempting to quantify the mechanical properties of vessel walls of the pulmonary arterial tree using parameters derived from high-resolution volumetric x-ray CT images of rat lungs. The pulmonary arterial trees of the excised lungs are filled with a contrast agent. The lungs are imaged with arterial pressures spanning the physiological range. Vessel segment diameters are measured from the inlet to the periphery, and distensibilities calculated from diameters as a function of pressure. The method shows promise as an adjunct to other morphometric techniques such as histology and corrosion casting. It possesses the advantages of being nondestructive, characterizing the vascular structures while the lungs are imaged rapidly and in a near-physiological state, and providing the ability to associate mechanical properties with vessel location in the intact tree hierarchy.
Long-term temporal estimation in humans

Although the ability of subjects to judge the duration of a temporal interval has been investigated using a variety of paradigms, most of the studies have used very short intervals ranging from a few hundred milliseconds to several seconds. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to examine the psychophysical relationship between judged and actual durations of longer intervals ranging from months to years. In Experiment 1, college students were asked to estimate the ages of 12 major news events which had occurred during the previous 5 years. Analysis of median estimates of each item showed that subjects underestimated the ages of the oldest items and overestimated the ages of the most recent items. To determine whether this regression effect was due to a response bias or to the context effect produced by other items on the questionnaire, Experiments 2 and 3 systematically varied the range of allowable response alternatives and the age of the background items that formed the context in which the experimental items were judged. Although the range of allowable response alternatives had a significant effect upon the estimates, no evidence was obtained for an item context effect. The data are interpreted in terms of a memory-based hypothesis which suggests that the subjects were attempting to recall the time of occurrence of the items and then deriving elapsed time rather than directly judging duration.
A mobile tryptophan is the intrinsic charge transfer donor in a flavoenzyme essential for nikkomycin antibiotic biosynthesis.

The flavoenzyme nikD is required for the biosynthesis of nikkomycin antibiotics. NikD exhibits an unusual long wavelength absorption band attributed to a charge transfer complex of FAD with an unknown charge transfer donor. NikD crystals contain an endogenous active site ligand. At least four different compounds are detected in nikD extracts, including variable amounts of two ADP derivatives that bind to the enzyme’s dinucleotide binding motif in competition with FAD, picolinate (0.07 mol/mol nikD) and an unknown picolinate-like compound. Picolinate, the product of the physiological catalytic reaction, matches the properties deduced for the active site ligand in nikD crystals. The charge transfer band is eliminated upon mixing nikD with excess picolinate but not by a reversible unfolding procedure that removes the picolinate-like compound, ruling out both compounds as the intrinsic charge transfer donor. Mutation of Trp355 to Phe eliminates the charge transfer band, accompanied by a 30-fold decrease in substrate binding affinity. The results provide definitive evidence for Trp355 as the intrinsic charge transfer donor. The indole ring of Trp355 is coplanar with or perpendicular to the flavin ring in “open” or “closed” crystalline forms of nikD, respectively. Importantly, a coplanar configuration is required for charge transfer interaction. Absorption in the long wavelength region therefore constitutes a valuable probe to monitor conformational changes in solution that are likely to be important in nikD catalysis.
INTRODUCTION TO SPECIAL THEmE ISSUE ANTHROPOLOGY, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY AND DISABILITY STUDIES: COLLABORATIONS AND PROSPECTS

A profession exists that shares interests with medical anthropology and applied anthropology to promote health and well-being through everyday activities, meaningful routines, and social participation. The profession is occupational therapy. Increasing numbers of anthropologists have professional credentials as occupational therapists, or work with occupational therapists, and collaborate also with disability studies scholars and activists. They share a mission is to define and clear new pathways to health, well-being, and social justice.
HST NICMOS Imaging of z ~ 2, 24 μm-selected Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies

We present Hubble Space Telescope NICMOSH-band imaging of 33 ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) at z ~ 2 that were selected from the 24 µm catalog of the Spitzer Extragalactic First Look Survey. The images reveal that at least 17 of the 33 objects are associated with interactions. Up to one-fifth of the sources in our sample could be minor mergers, whereas only two systems are merging binaries with luminosity ratio ≤ 3 : 1, which is characteristic of local ULIRGs. The rest-frame optical luminosities of the sources are of the order 10^(10)-10^(11) L⊙ and their effective radii range from 1.4 to 4.9 kpc. The most compact sources are either those with a strong active nucleus continuum or those with a heavy obscuration in the mid-infrared regime, as determined from Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph data. The luminosity of the 7.7 µm feature produced by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules varies significantly among compact systems, whereas it is typically large for extended systems. A bulge-to-disk decomposition performed for the six brightest (m_H < 20) sources in our sample indicates that they are best fit by disklike profiles with small or negligible bulges, unlike the bulge-dominated remnants of local ULIRGs. Our results provide evidence that the interactions associated with ultraluminous infrared activity at z ~ 2 can differ from those at z ~ 0.
Functional redundancy of EGF-CFC genes in epiblast and extraembryonic patterning during early mouse embryogenesis

During early mouse embryogenesis, multiple patterning and differentiation events require the activity of Nodal, a ligand of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGFbeta) family. Although Nodal signaling is known to require activity of EGF-CFC co-receptors in many contexts, it has been unclear whether all Nodal signaling in the early mouse embryo is EGF-CFC dependent. We have investigated the double null mutant phenotypes for the EGF-CFC genes Cripto and Cryptic, which encode co-receptors for Nodal, and have found that they have partially redundant functions in early mouse development. Expression of Cripto and Cryptic is non-overlapping prior to gastrulation, since Cripto is expressed solely in the epiblast whereas Cryptic is expressed in the primitive endoderm of the late blastocyst and the visceral endoderm after implantation. Despite these non-overlapping expression patterns, Cripto; Cryptic double mutants display severe defects in epiblast, extraembryonic ectoderm, and anterior visceral endoderm (AVE), resulting in phenotypes that are highly similar to those of Nodal null mutants. Our results indicate that both Cripto and Cryptic function non-cell-autonomously during normal development, and that most if not all Nodal activity in early mouse embryogenesis is EGF-CFC-dependent.
Rising STD Rates

Disturbing trends are revealed in the CDC Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance 2006. Rates of gonorrhea (GC), chlamydia (CT), and syphilis increased in 2006. Since the 15e24 age group bears the highest disease burden for GC and CT, this trend is worrisome and deserves some examination of possible causes. Gonorrhea rates increased in 2006 for the second consecutive year. As in previous years, the South had the highest GC rates of the four regions of the USA. For many years the GC rates in the South had been declining, but in 2006, the GC rates rose by 12.3%. In contrast, the GC rate in the Northeast declined by 21.2%. The trend is similar for African Americans. After ten years of declining rates of GC, in 2006, the GC rate for African Americans increased by 6.3%. While the rate of GC among African Americans has always been greater than that of Caucasians, recent trends demonstrate that the disparity has gotten smaller. For the second consecutive year gonorrhea rates among women are slightly higher than among men, which has not been the case historically. In 2006, the GC rates continued to be highest among adolescents and young adults. The highest rates were among 15e19 year old females. This age group of females also has the distinction of having the highest rates of CT. African American women are disproportionately affected, having rates of CT more than seven times that of Caucasian females. GC and CT are major causes of PID in young women. Since the rates of CT are so high in young women, CDC now recommends annual CT screening for all sexually active women under age 26. Repeat testing in 3 months is recommended because the re-infection rate is high. For this reason, it makes sense to treat partners for CT, which can be done even in services that routinely treat only females. If getting the male partner in for treatment is unsuccessful, a prescription for azithromycin 2 gm in the partner’s name can be given to the female patient. That represents a more serious effort to reduce CT rates.
AN ALGORITHM FOR CONVERTING CONTOURS TO ELEVATION GRIDS

Some of the test questions for the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) deal with the site, including drainage, regrading, and the like. A site is described by its shape and by contours shown on the plan view. Existing structures may be shown on the site. Some questions are most easily scored by examining contours, such as determining if, in regrading the site, the student changed a contour, causing it to pass through an existing structure. However, water flow questions are best scored from a grid of elevations. This document describes a method for creating an elevation grid from a set of contour lines.
Innovation and productivity in R&D: associated individual and organizational variables

The relationships of organizational variables with innovation and productivity of scientists and engineers in R&D laboratories were explored. Peer ratings of innovation (original and useful output) and productivity (quantity of output) were utilized as criteria. Information was obtained on 154 scientists/engineers in 35 work groups in three Air Force R&D laboratories, Significant relationships found between organizational variables and innovation and productivity included: rewards for innovation, communication on technical matters with other scientists/engineers within the work group, and an age-education demographic group of variables. Level of participation in goal setting and group leader's level of empathy were also consistently related to level of productivity.
Attribute Augmentation with Sparse Coding

This work proposes a novel sparse coding based approach for augmenting attributes in both object recognition and facial expression recognition applications. Attributes are a set of manually specified binary descriptions of visual objects. Though playing an important role in different applications like zero-shot learning, image description and recognition, the manually specified attributes suffer from the incomplete capturing of the original image data. In this work, we propose to augment the original manually specified semantic attributes with the augmented attributes which are also sparse, based on the minimization of the reconstruction error between the original image and the concatenated semantic and augmented attributes. We propose to iteratively learn the dictionaries as well as recover the augmented attributes in the optimization. For our applications of object recognition and facial expression recognition, the augmented attributes combined with the predicted semantic attributes can improve the overall recognition rate. Also, our learned dictionaries show certain meanings captured by the attributes.
Feeding of Lygus Bugs (Hemiptera: Miridae) on Developing Carrot and Bean Seed: Increased Growth and Yields of Plants Grown from That Seed

To determine the effect of lygus bugs, Lygus hesperus Knight and L. elisiis Van Duzee, feeding on developing carrot seed on the plants grown from that seed, adult lygus bugs were caged on carrot umbels. Some of the seed was then germinated and growth of the shoot was measured. Other seed was planted in the field, growth of the plants was measured, and weight of the roots was determined. Bean seed was sorted as to the number of lygus punctures per seed, then weighed and planted. Growth of the plants and seed yields were determined. Shoot growth from carrot seeds exposed to feeding by lygus bugs during development is reduced and varies inversely with the bug population. Plants grown from such seeds later surpass plants from seeds protected from lygus bugs during development and produce heavier roots. Bean plants grown from seeds with lygus bug punctures surpassed plants from seeds not fed on by lygus bugs. Although bean seeds were significantly lighter in weight when fed on by lygus bugs, they produced plants which grew significantly faster and yielded significantly heavier amounts of seed. Three possible explanations are discussed: (1) destruction of an inhibitor (possibly dormin) present in the seed; (2) injection of a plant auxin (possibly beta-indolyl acetic acid) into the developing seed during the feeding process; and (3) change of the protein-carbohydrate ratio in the seed as a result of feeding by lygus bugs.
Current problems in establishing quantitative histopathologic criteria for the diagnosis of lymphocytic myocarditis by endomyocardial biopsy.

Both the clinical and the biopsy diagnoses of myocarditis are prone to false-positive and false-negative interpretations. False-positive clinical diagnoses probably most commonly result from a failure to recognize other disorders, such as cardiomyopathy and myocardial infarction, that may mimic myocarditis. False-negative clinical diagnoses may occur in patients with myocarditis in whom the signs and symptoms are atypical, absent, or misinterpreted. The two most common errors made by pathologists that produce false-positive tissue diagnoses appear to be a failure to recognize the number of lymphocytes that occupy the normal myocardial interstitium and a misinterpretation of noninflammatory interstitial cells as lymphocytes. Sampling error may be the most usual cause of false-negative tissue diagnoses. Since myocarditis is characterized by leukocytic and reparative responses, the most important features to evaluate in endomyocardial biopsy tissues are the type, distribution, and extent of the inflammatory infiltrate and the presence and extent of interstitial and endocardial fibrosis. Although no single histopathologic criterion is both sensitive and specific for myocarditis, it appears that quantitative evidence of an interstitial leukocytic infiltrate is currently the best available hallmark for myocarditis in biopsy specimens. It is suggested that amean lymphocyte count greater than 5.0/high-power (× 400) microscopic field be considered indicative of lymphocytic myocarditis and that amean count less than this be interpreted as myocarditis only if discrete clusters of lymphocytes are identified, since differentiation of low-grade diffuse infiltrates from expected normal lymphocytic populations is problematic at levels less than 5.0.
Magnetic field effects on the beat heating of a plasma

The excitation of electron plasma waves by interaction of two opposed electromagnetic waves in a magnetized plasma is examined. A beat frequency wave may be resonantly generated as either of two natural modes which have frequencies small compared to the sum frequency of the source waves. An analysis is based on Maxwell's equations and the electron-gas moment equations with the pressure tensor neglected. A formula is derived for the power absorbed per unit volume of plasma in a uniform, static magnetic field. The effects of the magnitude and direction of the magnetic field on the plasma heating rate are studied numerically.
Student, Librarian, and Instructor Perceptions of Information Literacy Instruction and Skills in a First Year Experience Program: A Case Study

Abstract As more and more academic librarians have adopted the practice of teaching information literacy in first year experience programs, there has been a growing number of studies assessing this practice. However, few studies have compared the views and assessments of students, librarians, and instructors. Through survey methods, this case study was conducted to understand student, librarian, and instructor perceptions of information literacy instruction and students' information literacy skills in two different types of courses at the Catholic University of America. The results indicate that notable differences are associated with the respondent's role as well as the course involvement of the respondent. Students who were involved in a course with consistent inclusion of a substantive information literacy-related assignment tended to rate the effectiveness, importance, and impacts of information literacy instruction, and their own information literacy skills, higher than those in a course with an inconsistent level of engagement with information literacy. Students' assignment grades were positively correlated with their self-ratings of information literacy skills in both courses. In addition, students rated their own information literacy skills higher and rated the importance and impacts of information literacy instruction lower than librarians or instructors did. Implications and recommendations are also addressed.
A goodness-of-fit test of the errors in nonlinear autoregressive time series models

This paper considers the problem of fitting an error density to the goodness-of-fit test of the errors in a nonlinear autoregressive stationary time series regression model. The test statistic is based on the integrated squared error of the nonparametric error density estimate and the null error density. Without knowing the nonlinear autoregressive function, we can show that the test statistic behaves asymptotically the same as the one based on the true errors.
Results of limited initial periodontal therapy in smokers and non-smokers.

Eighty-seven adult patients (54 non-smokers and 33 smokers) with moderate to advanced periodontitis were treated with 1-hour full-mouth subgingival scaling and root planing, with no maintenance recalls, during this 9-month study. Clinical parameters assessed at target sites included probing depth, clinical attachment level, bleeding on probing, gingival index, and plaque index. Data were collected at baseline, and 3, 6, and 9 months. Baseline probing depth for non-smokers was 5.46 +/- .46 mm and for smokers 5.70 +/- 0.66 mm. Data analysis (t test) revealed that both non-smokers and smokers had a statistically significant decrease (P < 0.05) in probing depth at 3 months which was maintained throughout the study. At 9 months non-smokers maintained a mean decrease in probing depth of 0.60 mm and smokers a mean decrease of 0.65 mm. Both smokers and non-smokers displayed a significant gain (P < 0.05) in clinical attachment level after initial therapy when compared to baseline readings. At 9 months the mean gain in clinical attachment level for non-smokers was 0.47 mm and 0.59 mm for smokers. Plaque index scores remained consistent for smokers and non-smokers for the duration of the study. The gingival index at baseline was significantly (P < 0.05) lower in smokers (1.32 +/- 0.45) than non-smokers (1.45 +/- 0.40). By 9 months only the gingival index of non-smokers decreased significantly compared to baseline (1.26 +/- 0.37). Bleeding on probing was a prerequisite for target sites at baseline. At 9 months both smokers (0.67 +/- 0.39) and non-smokers (0.78 +/- 0.30) had a significant decrease in bleeding on probing compared to baseline. At 9 months there were no significant differences between smokers and non-smokers comparing probing depth, clinical attachment level, plaque index, bleeding on probing, and gingival index. The data have shown that smokers and non-smokers responded similarly after 9 months to the limited amount of initial therapy provided.
DNA-directed assembly of nanocomponents for nanoelectronics, nanophotonics, and nanosensing

A scheme for programmable nanoscale self-assembly that allows the precise arrangement of components in 2D or 3D geometries would have a wide range of applications. The ultrasmall size and programmability of the nucleotide subunits in DNA offer a versatile basis for such a scheme. In this paper, I discuss recent steps toward nanocomponent assembly by 2D DNA scaffolding, including 1) incorporation of 1.6-nm Au nanoparticles in a 2D DNA scaffolding, 2) in situ assembly of 5-nm metallic nanoparticle arrays with precisely controlled dimensions and 3) sequence-encoded assembly of different sized nanocomponents in a common scaffolding. In the near term, this ability to precisely assemble nanocomponent arrays could enable the study of electronic, magnetic and plasmonic interactions among particles in a regime where quantum confinement, Coulomb blockade, and magnetic effects play important roles. Eventually, such self-assembly techniques could lead to a manufacturing technology for nanoelectronics, nanophotonics, and nanosensing.
Resolution Enhancement Optimizations for Hyperspectral and Multispectral Synthetic Image Fusion

Many sensor systems are available for sensing the earth surface from satellites as well as airborne and mobile platforms. Thus, fusing data from multiple sensors is becoming a common theme in earth remote sensing. A major goal of remote sensing image fusion is resolution enhancement. In this paper, optimization techniques are presented and discussed in order to help make an image fusion process a practical method for not only spectral signature based image analysis but also for algorithm development in remote sensing of water. The technique described and explored in this paper includes the identification of feature areas, stratified random pixel selection, singular value decomposition model building for synthetic image generation, and optimization of the 2D Butterworth filter cutoff and order coefficients in a spectral and spatial resolution enhancement protocol. The process is also called spatial sharpening of hyperspectral imagery as presented in this paper. Examples of methods for estimating errors in the data fusion process are also described using coastal littoral zone remote sensing imagery with an emphasis on weathered oil scenes. The optimization and testing of a data fusion methodology or protocol described utilizes image to image georeferencing methods, nearest neighborhood and linear remapping of multi-resolution spatial and spectral imagery. The central optimization procedures entails random selection of pixels from feature areas in simultaneously acquired multispectral and hyperspectral scenes in order to build multiple "SVD" singular value decomposition models and optimized selection of these image models for each hyperspectral channel based upon the non-parametric K-S p-statistical test. The model synthetic imagery is then used with the 2D discrete cosine and inverse cosine filters, a 2D Butterworth filter. Optimization of the 2D Butterworth filter cutoff and order coefficients are conducted for each hyperspectral band and these coefficients are optimized using the same K-S based tests. The above optimization protocol results in synthetic reflectance hyperspectral cube where minimization between observed and synthetic hyperspectral signatures has been performed for each hyperspectral channel. Results indicate the synthetic hyperspectral resolution enhancement methodology is most sensitive to (a) the pixels selected (from feature areas) for use in the SVD model building process and (b) the 2D Butterworth cutoff frequency selected.
An Economic Model of Product Quality and IT Value

We use an economic model to formalize the complex relationships among IT investments, intermediate performance measures (e.g., product quality and output levels), and economic performance (e.g., productivity, profits, and consumer surplus). We demonstrate that a profit-maximizing monopolist invests in IT (modeled as changes in parametric characteristics of the firm) to design a better-quality product and charge a higher price. While this profit-maximizing adjustment generates more consumer surplus, it also increases production costs in a way that adversely affects productivity. In contrast, a simple model extension shows that when a firm is unwilling or unable to improve product quality, then IT investments result in suboptimal improvements in profits, an increase in consumer surplus, and an increase in productivity. Together, these models highlight the way in which product quality moderates the relationship between IT investments and economic performance. We also demonstrate that these relationships are robust to the socially optimal case in which a social planner chooses price and quality to maximize social welfare. In addition, we demonstrate that the results of the monopoly model hold when considering the design and development of products offered free of charge (e.g., free online content), but that provide indirect benefits to the firm (e.g., more advertising revenues).
The in vitro interactions of candida albicans with nonspecific serum proteins

Iron has a pivotal role in serum inhibition and filamentation. That there may be an inverse relationship between inhibition and filamentation is suggested by the observations that free serum iron abolishes inhibition and stimulates filamentation. Evidence indicates that filamentation results from the interaction of substrates, growth conditions, and temperature, rather than from a single factor. Filamentation occurs during clumping and appears to be necessary for the manifestation of this later process, but any further relationship is unknown. Opsonins seem to be a part of the complement system or their function at least is dependent upon complement activity. Their interaction with surface antigens form chemotactic stimulants but their contribution to the phagocytic destruction of C. Albicans is unclear. All of these serum-Candida interactions are in vitro observations. Although opsonization and phagocytosis probably play a vital role in the in vivo defenses against invading Candida, the contribution of these other interactions to host resistance remain unknown.
Biological activity of cannabichromene, its homologs and isomers.

Abstract: Cannabichromene (CBC) is one of four major cannabinoids in Cannabis sativa L. and is the second most abundant cannabinoid in drug-type cannabis. Cannabichromene and some of its homologs, analogs, and isomers were evaluated for antiinflammatory, antibacterial, and antifungal activity. Antiinflammatory activity was evaluated by the carrageenan-induced rat paw edema and the erythrocyte membrane stabilization method. In both tests, CBC was superior to phenylbutazone. Antibacterial activity of CBC and its isomers and homologs was evaluated using gram-positive, gram-negative, and acid-fast bacteria. Antifungal activity was evaluated using yeastlike and filamentous fungi and a dermatophyte. Antibacterial activity was strong, and the antifungal activity was mild to moderate.
Stability Analysis of a Droplet Pinned in Channel Under Gravity

The stability of a two-dimensional, incompressible droplet, with two cylindrical-caps that is held in a channel under gravity, is investigated through the development of an analytical model based on the Young–Laplace relationship. The droplet state is measured by the location of its center of mass, where the center of mass is derived analytically by assuming a circular shape for the droplet cap. The derived analytical expressions are validated through the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). When a droplet is suspended under no gravity conditions, there is a critical droplet volume Vcr where asymmetric droplet states appear in addition to the basic symmetric states when the drop volume V > Vcr. When V Vcr, the symmetric states are unstable and the asymmetric states are stable. With gravity, the pitchfork bifurcation diagram of the droplet system changes into two separate branches of equilibrium states: The primary branch describes a gradual and stable change of the droplet from a symmetric to asymmetric state as the droplet volume is increased. The secondary branch appears at a modified critical volume Vmcr and describes two additional asymmetric states when V > Vmcr. The large-amplitude states along the secondary branch are stable whereas the small-amplitude states are unstable. There exists a maximum volume on each of the primary and secondary branch where the droplet no longer sustains its weight and where the maximum volume on the primary branch is smaller than the maximum volume on the secondary branch. There is a critical value for the strength of the gravity force, relative to the capillary force, that provides the condition at which a droplet state exists only at the primary branch; the secondary branch is unstable. Analytical solutions show good agreement with CFD results as long as the circular shape assumption of the droplet cap is approximately valid.
Bootstrapped MRMC confidence intervals

The multiple-reader, multiple-case (MRMC) paradigm of Swets and Pickett (1982) for ROC analysis was expressed as a components of variance model by Dorfman, Berbaum, and Metz (1992) and validated by Roe and Metz (1997) for Type I error rates. Our group proposed an analysis of the MRMC components of variance model using bootstrap (Beiden, Wagner, and Campbell, 2000) experiments instead of jackknife pseudo-values. These approaches have been challenged by some contemporary authors (e.g. Zhou, Obuchowski, and McClish, 2002). The purpose of the present paper is to formally compare the models and to carry out validation tests of their performance. We investigate different approaches to statistical inference, including several types of nonparametric bootstrap confidence intervals and report on validation and simulation experiments of Type I errors.
The impact of link-layer retransmissions on video streaming in wireless mesh networks

Link-layer retransmission is a feature of IEEE 802.11 standard protocol that aims to increase the reliability of data communications. However, when successive retransmissions fail, they add to the traffic congestion, raise the collision probability, and increase the end-to-end delay. Using our 4-hop wireless mesh network testbed, we evaluate the impact of link-layer retransmissions on the performance of video streaming in wireless multi-hop environment. Our experimental results show that when the traffic load is near or exceeds the network capacity, retransmissions cause erratic video quality and increase the end-to-end delay tremendously. When the best-effort traffic coexists, increasing the number of retransmissions degrades the goodput of best-effort traffic and increases the end-to-end delay of video streaming. Retransmissions add reliability and increase the video streaming quality only when the traffic volume is far below the network capacity limit.
TRANSPLANTATION OF TOOTH GERM ELEMENTS AND THE EXPERIMENTAL HETEROTOPIC FORMATION OF DENTIN AND ENAMEL

The formation of dentin and enamel in the abdominal wall in young pups was achieved by transplantation of the soft tissues of the developing tooth germ. An interesting finding was the cytomorphosis of the epithelium of the enamel organ. When this was transplanted so that the ameloblasts were in contact with the odontoblasts the cylindrical character of the epithelial cells was preserved and enamel was produced; otherwise the cylindrical shape of these cells was lost and a stratified epithelium resulted, resembling the gingival and certain tumors (the adamantinoma) of the jaw and related structures. This degenerated epithelium did not produce enamel and had an important characteristic of not forming cysts in a closed connective tissue space, instead forming islands and cords of cells with epithelial pearl formation. Thus the influence of mesodermic connective tissue derivatives on the form and function of epithelium is presented. The odonto-blasts were found capable of survival as such and readily formed new dentin in transplantation; the stellate cells of the pulp were inert from the standpoint of inducing calcification.
Isoflavones As Potentiators of Antibacterial Activity

Isoflavones isolated from Lupinus argenteus were found to potentiate the antibacterial activity of alpha-linolenic acid, also found in the same plant. The isoflavones also potentiated the activity of the natural plant antibiotic berberine and the synthetic fluoroquinoline antibiotic norfloxacin. The isoflavones increased the uptake of berberine into Staphylococcus aureus cells, indicating that they may be inhibiting a multidrug resistance pump (MDR). Thus, L. argenteus contains a weak antibacterial and also MDR pump inhibitors, which increase its potency.
Vitamin D Deficiency in Children and Its Health Consequences

This chapter reviews data on the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, risk factors that predispose children and adolescents to this problem, and current approaches to routine vitamin D supplementation and treatment of vitamin D deficiency. The increasing world-wide prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among otherwise healthy pediatric patients is explored. Risk factors for vitamin D deficiency have been identified and include, among others, northern geographical location, dark skin pigmentation, female gender, lack of supplementation, and diseases associated with malabsorption. While supplementation strategies to prevent vitamin D deficiency have not been standardized for infants, children, and adolescents, previous studies comparing different doses have been tested in both healthy youth, as well as those with chronic disease. There is even less consensus on the appropriate treatment doses for young patients identified to have this deficiency. Health outcomes data are critically needed to provide guidance regarding the most appropriate supplementation and treatment regimens for the pediatric age group.
Deep dopamine extravasation injury: a case report

We report the case of a 3-month-old girl with Down's syndrome, who sustained a deep and massive extravasation of dopamine, resulting in segmented, full-thickness skin necrosis and transient brachial plexus palsy of her left upper extremity. The patient was managed conservatively, including wound care, de-bridement of necrotic tissue, secondary wound healing and intensive physical therapy. The patient showed a satisfactory outcome with complete secondary closure of her wounds and full brachial plexus recovery after 1 year of follow-up. The mechanism of action of dopamine in the deep soft tissue, the difficulties of an adequate diagnosis of a deep dopamine extravasation and alternative treatments are presented in this article.
Effector memory T lymphocytes in renal disease.

recent studies have demonstrated that the immune system plays an important pathophysiological role in diseases of the kidney and the vasculature. In particular, the role of T lymphocytes in the development and maintenance of renal ([1][1], [3][2], [4][3], [5][4]) and cardiovascular disease ([3][2
ABO Blood Type and Longevity

To assess the observation that blood type B might be a marker for longevity, we reviewed the records and determined the ABO blood types of all patients who died in our hospital in 2004. Age was stratified by decade of death, and linear regressions were calculated by ABO percentage. ABO survival curves were compared. In 2004, 906 patients died; 35 were excluded (stillborn infants). Of the remaining 871 patients, ABO types were available for 772 (88.6%). The percentage of patients with group B blood declined with age (P < .01). None of the other blood type percentages had a statistically significant increase or decrease. The group B survival curve was statistically worse than non-B groups (P ≤ .01); there were no differences in survival among groups A, O, and AB (P =.47). In our patient population, the percentage of patients with group B blood declines with age. The survival curve in group B was worse than that in groups A, O, and AB. These findings suggest that in our patient population, blood group B is not a marker for longevity but may be a marker for earlier death.
Trial of a psychoeducational eating disturbance intervention for college women: a replication and extension.

Objective We conducted a controlled trial of a psychoeducational eating disturbance intervention to replicate the positive findings observed in the preliminary evaluation of this intervention and to determine whether the effects persist for a longer follow-up period. Method College women who took the psychoeducational class and a matched control sample of students (N = 95) completed pretest, posttest, and 6-month follow-up surveys. Results Intervention participants showed significantly greater reductions in thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, dieting, and eating disorder symptoms, as well as significantly less weight gain, relative to matched controls over the study period. Intervention effects tended to be larger at 6-month follow-up than at posttest. Conclusion These findings suggest that the intervention effects for eating disorder risk factors and eating disorder symptoms, as well as the weight gain prevention effects, are reproducible and persist over time. This intervention has both mental health and public health significance. © 2006 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc., Int J Eat Disord, 2006
La traduction qui n’en est pas une : la traduction des nouvelles et ses enjeux

Le present article parle de la traduction dans trois sens du mot : l’acte de traduire, le produit de cet acte et les mots qu’on emploie comme outils pour accomplir cet acte. Il examine les rapports entre ces trois sens pour decrire trois paradoxes touchant a la traduction journalistique. Le premier : la traduction des nouvelles (c’est-a-dire l’acte lui-meme) ne produit aucune traduction comme telle (c’est-a-dire aucun texte cible). Le deuxieme : la traduction semble servir d’outil qui permet aux journalistes d’etre « objectifs », mais en fait, elle introduit la perspective dans leurs reportages. Le troisieme : dans la sphere publique, et surtout dans l’arene politique, les « traductions » de mots surcharges de connotations (leur soi-disant « equivalents ») ne sont pas equivalents.
A comparison of transaction restart techniques in a distributed database environment

The authors present the results of a simulation study carried out to compare the effects of different restart techniques on the overall throughput, number of restarts, average response time, and average communication delay in representative distributed database environments. The performances of the following transaction restart methods are compared: (1) restart with random increase of timestamp, (2) restart with random delay, (3) data-marking method, (4) data marking with random delay, and (5) restart with a substitute transaction. The substitute transaction method is shown to perform well under all loads, except for the case in which all transactions are update-only. In this case, restart with a random delay performs better. The data-marking method introduces a very high communication overhead owing to the fact that the transactions keep sending messages requesting operations when an item is not available. This results in high response times and in an erratic behavior of the system under higher loads. >
An Enhanced CPA Algorithm for Real-Time Target Tracking in Wireless Sensor Networks

Real-time tracking of moving targets using wireless sensor networks has been a challenging problem because of the high velocity of the targets and the limited resources of the sensors. CPA (closest point of approach) algorithms are appropriate for tracking fast-moving targets since the tracking error is roughly inversely proportional to the square root of the target velocity. However, this approach requires a specific node configuration with reference to the target trajectory which may not always be possible in randomly deployed sensor networks. Moreover, our mathematical analysis of the original CPA algorithm shows that it suffers from huge localization errors due to inaccuracies in sensor location and measured CPA times. To address these issues, we propose an enhanced CPA (ECPA) algorithm which requires only five sensors around the target to achieve the reliability and efficiency we want for computing the bearing of the target trajectory, the relative position between the sensors and the trajectory, and...
Clinical Diagnosis at the Crossroads

There is widespread dissatisfaction with the existing diagnostic system articulated in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The current DSM system is atheoretical, cumbersome to use, and plagued by the problems of comorbidity and heterogeneity. We explore two possible alternative approaches: (a) reorganizing the diagnostic classes and (b) the implementation of fully dimensional schemes. We then discuss the possibility that DSM-V will be a hybrid system, with Axis I remaining categorical and Axis II becoming dimensional. We conclude with a discussion of the merits—as well as the disadvantages—of creating two different taxonomic systems, one designed for psychopathology researchers and the other for practicing clinicians.
Adaptive linearization of hybrid step motors: stability analysis

An adaptive linearization scheme for torque-ripple cancellation is presented, and the stability and robustness are established. By taking a new approach in parameterizing the motor dynamics, the number of adapted parameters is reduced by a factor of two relative to the standard approach. This parameterization and the unique periodic property of the motor enable the authors to find conditions on exogenous signals which guarantee persistency of excitation. The authors develop a robustness result which, roughly speaking, shows that the allowable model perturbation does not decrease in size as the adaptation rate is slowed. This is accomplished with a unique dual-Lyapunov-function technique. The kinds of perturbation considered include nonlinear dependence on state and parameter error. This nonlinear adaptive control scheme has been successfully implemented. Experimental results demonstrate over 30 db reduction in torque ripple. >
Signal processing with near-neighbor-coupled time-varying quantum-dot arrays

The Nano-Devices Group at the University of Notre Dame proposed a new device that encodes information in the geometrical charge distribution of artificial (or natural) molecules. Functional units are composed by electrostatic coupling. In these units, processing takes place by reshaping the electron density of the molecules, and not by switching currents. Signal processing potential of next-neighbor-coupled cellular nonlinear networks (CNNs) has been recently explored with the conclusion that local-activity of the cells is necessary to exhibit complexity. It will be shown that Coulomb-coupled time-invariant artificial molecules behave like nonlinear locally passive devices, thus signal-power-gain or multiple equilibria cannot be achieved by integrating them. However, the signal input-output relation of strongly nonlinear molecules can be varied in time by adiabatic pumping, called clock control. It will be shown that strongly nonlinear time-varying molecules can transform the necessary amount of clock energy into the signal flow, thereby enabling the network of molecules to perform signal processing.