cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Morphogenesis in the fetal rat proximal colon: effects of cytochalasin D.

Two major morphogenetic events, epithelial conversion and fold formation, occur in the proximal rat colon during the last week of gestation. To evaluate the role of actin microfilaments in these two developmental processes, explants from the proximal colon of 19 day fetal rats were cultured in the presence of vehicle (0.1% dimethylsulfoxide), 0.1, 1.0, or 10 μg/ml of cytochalasin D (CD) for 24–48 hr. Explants as well as 19, 20, and 21 day in vivo controls were prepared for light, fluorescence, and electron microscopy. The distribution of actin filaments was determined by rhodamine-conjugated phalloidin binding and ultrastructural analysis of tissue fixed in the presence of tannic acid. Prior to fold formation, phalloidin binding was enhanced along the entire epithelial-mesenchymal interface. At the onset of fold formation, focal areas of intense fluorescence appeared at irregular intervals along the base of the stratified epithelium. Within 1 day, these focal intensities were localized at the apex of small forming folds. Additional changes occurring at the epithelial-mesenchymal interface in association with fold formation included: (1) ruffling of the previously smooth basal lamina, (2) a shape change in the subjacent mesenchymal cells from elongate to cuboidal along with the appearance of numerous processes abutting the basal lamina, and (3) a unique orientation of the associated collagen fibrils in some presumptive folds. Fold formation was inhibited in > 93% of explants cultured in the presence of 1.0 μ g/ml CD. These explants appeared to be arrested precisely at the onset of fold formation. Epithelial conversion was also incomplete in these explants. These findings indicate an active role for actin in both fold formation and epithelial conversion. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Disabilities due to injury in the military.

Abstract Introduction: Disability is a major health and economic issue in the Armed Forces associated with increased use of medical care, the loss of active duty time, and substantial compensation costs. Methods: The role of injuries in physical disability from the early 1980s to 1994 was assessed by reviewing administrative data from the U.S. Army Physical Disability Agency, the Naval Disability Evaluation Board, and the Air Force Physical Disability Division. Information on the number of disability cases reviewed in 1994, the leading causes of disability, and the disposition of each case were examined most closely. Also, information from the Department of Defense on the cost of compensating disability cases was reviewed. Results: Disability generally appears to be significant across the services, ranging from 10 to 30 events per 1000 personnel per year depending on the service. Evidence from the data reviewed indicates that 30% to 50% of disability cases may be due to injury. The leading conditions that bring about board reviews and lifetime compensation appear to be lower back and knee conditions, both commonly thought to be due to injuries. Total direct costs of compensation reached $1.5 billion for fiscal year 1990. Conclusions: While current disability data systems are maintained for administrative and not research purposes, the information available may be valuable for injury surveillance and research and suggests that injury-related disability is a major health and economic burden for the Armed Forces.
Stable and Sensitive Electrochemical Detection of Phenolic Compounds at Carbon Nanotube Modified Glassy Carbon Electrodes

Carbon-nanotube modified glassy-carbon electrodes are used for enhancing the stability and sensitivity of voltammetric and amperometric measurements of phenolic compounds. Cyclic voltammetric experiments indicate that the redox process involves the formation of a surface-confined layer that promotes (rather than inhibits) the phenol oxidation. The amperometric response of the coated electrodes is highly stable, with 85% of the initial activity remaining after 30 min stirring of a 2×10−4 M phenol solution (compared to complete inhibition of the redox process within 6 min at the bare surface). Similar stability improvements were observed for different phenolic compounds and different concentrations of such compounds. The modified electrodes display greatly enhanced current signals in cyclic voltammetric and amperometric experiments.
Neglect following damage to frontal lobe or basal ganglia

Abstract Though neglect is often thought to be a sign of parietal lobe damage, particularly of the non-dominant hemisphere, there is evidence that lesions in the frontal lobes and in the basal ganglia can produce neglect also. We present five patients, with lesions in both the mesial and dorsolateral aspects of the frontal lobe, and in the basal ganglia, as examples of “non-parietal” neglect. It is possible that all of these structures belong to an anatomically inter-connected system subserving selective attention and that lesions in each of the components are capable of producing neglect although with slightly different characteristics.
A hyperbolic-parabolic system modelling the thermoelastic impact of two rods

The dynamic thermoelastic impact of two rods is modelled by a coupled system of two quasivariational inequalities and two equalities that reflect a bilateral contact condition and a radiation condition for the temperatures. The existence of a weak solution is established using a penalization method that employs Galerkin approximations and a priori estimates.
Subcellular and polypeptide distributions of slowly transported proteins in the garfish olfactory nerve.

In the garfish olfactory nerve proteins labeled with [3H]leucine are transported by slow axonal flow as a well-defined crest of radioactivity. At 21°C slow flow moves along the axon with a velocity of 0.92±0.02mm/day. It has been possible to analyze 4 subcellular fractions (soluble, mitochondrial and 2 membranous) as well as their polypeptide composition, in areas of the nerve containing (1) the slow moving crest, (2) the material remaining in the nerve behind the crest, and (3) the labeling present in front of the slow crest. Analyses were done 70 and 110 days after isotope deposition. The crest of slow moving radioactivity is characterized by a close parallelism between labeling and protein concentration in the subcellular fractions as well as among the polypeptides constituting these fractions. The radioactivity is mainly associated with mol. wt. of 14, 000, 30–45, 000, 58, 000 and 68, 000. This last peak corresponds to a protein not labeled by fast transport, present only in the light membranous fraction. The composition of the moving crest remains essentially constant during the 40-day period investigated. Most of the slow-moving molecules remain in the axon behind the moving crest. This deposited material appears to be redistributed and/or to be turning over more rapidly than the molecules still moving in the crest. A large amount of radioactivity was recovered in front of the moving crest. This might be produced by molecules deposited by fast transport and by material released from the cell body at rates intermediate between the fast and slow phases of transport. The subcellular and polypeptide compositions of this area of the nerve remain constant and are intermediate between the compositions of fast and slow flow. The slowly transported labeled polypeptides in the mitochondrial fraction are of low molecular weight, and were found to be similar in the various areas of the nerve and at the two time points studied, and were even similar to the polypeptide distribution determined for fast transport.
How Can Employment-Based Benefits Help The Nurse Shortage?

During a labor shortage, employment-based benefits can be used to recruit and retain workers. This paper provides data on the availability of benefits to registered nurses (RNs), reports on how health care leaders are approaching the provision of employment-based benefits for nurses, and considers what nurses have to say in focus groups about benefits. Because of the ongoing nurse shortage, many employers are trying to enhance the benefits they offer to support recruitment and retention efforts. We offer recommendations for health care leaders that follow from our findings about the current state of nurses’ employment-based benefits.
Epidemic Lymphogranuloma venereum during epidemics of crack cocaine use and HIV infection in the Bahamas.

Since the early 1980s the Bahamas has experienced sequential epidemics of freebase/crack cocaine use genital ulcer-inguinal adenopathy disease (GUD) and heterosexual HIV infection. This study aimed to prospectively define the etiology of GUD in patients at the Princess Margaret Hospital during outbreaks of crack cocaine use GUD and HIV infection in the Bahamas. In Nassau 47 consecutive patients with GUD underwent serologic testing for syphilis and for infections with HIV simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and Chlamydia trachomatis. Genital ulcer specimens were tested by culture and/or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay for Hemophilus ducreyi; by PCR and/or antigen assay for HSV; and by PCR for C trachomatis. Lymph node aspirates were tested by PCR for C trachomatis and H ducreyi. 20 patients (43%) had HIV infection; 8 had lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) confirmed by PCR detection of C trachomatis sequences consistent with the L2 serovar; and 9 others had possible LGV on the basis of serum microimmunoflourescent C trachomatis antibody titers >or= 256. Inguinal lymphadenopathy or bubo was present in 15 of 17 patients who thus met the laboratory criteria for definite or possible LGV and in 7 of 30 who did not meet such laboratory criteria (P < 0.001). 13 patients had confirmed genital herpes seven had confirmed chancroid and four had probable or possible primary syphilis. The epidemic in the Bahamas of crack use heterosexual HIV infection and GUD apparently included epidemic transmission of LGV. (authors)
Trap array configuration influences estimates and precision of black bear density and abundance.

Spatial capture-recapture (SCR) models have advanced our ability to estimate population density for wide ranging animals by explicitly incorporating individual movement. Though these models are more robust to various spatial sampling designs, few studies have empirically tested different large-scale trap configurations using SCR models. We investigated how extent of trap coverage and trap spacing affects precision and accuracy of SCR parameters, implementing models using the R package secr. We tested two trapping scenarios, one spatially extensive and one intensive, using black bear (Ursus americanus) DNA data from hair snare arrays in south-central Missouri, USA. We also examined the influence that adding a second, lower barbed-wire strand to snares had on quantity and spatial distribution of detections. We simulated trapping data to test bias in density estimates of each configuration under a range of density and detection parameter values. Field data showed that using multiple arrays with intensive snare coverage produced more detections of more individuals than extensive coverage. Consequently, density and detection parameters were more precise for the intensive design. Density was estimated as 1.7 bears per 100 km 2 and was 5.5 times greater than that under extensive sampling. Abundance was 279 (95% CI=193–406) bears in the 16,812 km 2 study area. Excluding detections from the lower strand resulted in the loss of 35 detections, 14 unique bears, and the largest recorded movement between snares. All simulations showed low bias for density under both configurations. Results demonstrated that in low density populations with non-uniform distribution of population density, optimizing the tradeoff among snare spacing, coverage, and sample size is of critical importance to estimating parameters with high precision and accuracy. With limited resources, allocating available traps to multiple arrays with intensive trap spacing increased the amount of information needed to inform parameters with high precision.
Minimum inhibitory concentration quality-control guidelines for biapenem, DU-6859a, FK-037, levofloxacin, grepafloxacin, and ceftizoxime when using various National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards susceptibility test methods

Several multilaboratory collaborative studies using broth microdilution and agar dilution (gonococcal tests only) methods of susceptibility testing were performed to establish quality-control (QC) giudelines. Replicate dilution tests with multiple lots of media were performed with National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards recommended QC strains (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213) by using the following antimicrobials: biapenem, DU-6859a, FK-037, levofloxacin, and grepafloxacin. In addition QC MIC ranges, using appropriate medium modification for Haemophilus influenzae ATCC 49247 and Neisseria gonorrhoeae ATCC 49226 were reported on four (DU-6859a, FK-037, levofloxacin, and grepafloxacin) and two (ceftizoxime and FK-037) antimicrobials, respectively.
Intra-atrial reentrant tachycardia after palliation of congenital heart disease: characterization of multiple macroreentrant circuits using fluoroscopically based three-dimensional endocardial mapping.

Catheter Mapping of IART. introduction: The anatomic substrate of intra-atrial reentrant tachycardia (IART) following congenital heart surgery is poorly understood, but is presumed to be different than common atrial flutter. Methods and Results: To study the mechanisms of IART, we used a new technique for high-density endocardial mapping using recordings from a multipolar basket recording catheter (25 bipolar pairs). For each recording, biplane fluorographic reference points were digitized to obtain the spatial locations of electrode pairs, and activation times were calculated using temporal reference points from the surface ECG. Using custom software, data were combined to create three-dimensional atrial activation sequence maps, which were displayed as animated sequences. Using this technique, recordings were made in induced and/or spontaneous IART in 8 patients following congenital heart surgery (5 Fontan, 2 tetralogy of Fallot repair, 1 ventricular septal defect repair), and in 3 patients with normal intracardiac anatomy (I with type I atrial flutter). Ten discrete IART activation sequences were recorded; 2 patients had 2 sequences each. IART maps were constructed using a median of 108 electrode positions (range 27 to 197) from a median of 6 recordings/sequence (range 3 to 11). Sinus or paced atrial rhythms were also recorded, and maps were created in a similar fashion. Visual analysis of activation sequences of sinus and paced rhythm were anatomically concordant with known mechanisms of atrial activation. IART sequences revealed diverse mechanisms; only 1 IART circuit was similar to that associated with common atrial flutter. Activation wavefront emergence from presumed zones of slow conduction, lines of conduction block, and apparent bystander activation were observed. Conclusions: High-density atrial activation sequence maps demonstrate that IART following congenital heart surgery utilizes diverse circuits and is distinct from common atrial flutter. The technique used to create these three-dimensional activation sequences may improve understanding of these complex atrial arrhythmias and assist in the development of ablative therapies.
Mercury Removal from Air by a Fiber-Based Bioreactor

A partial removal of metallic mercury from air by fiber-based trickle-bed bioreactors was observed. Up to 50 to 65% of the inlet mercury concentrations of 35 to 70 µg/m3 were removed by immobilized live Pseudomonas bacteria for up to 275 hours at a residence time of 1 min. Ninety to 125% of the adsorbed mercury was recovered by a direct assay after dismantling the bioreactors, thus confirming that the observed mercury removal was due to its adsorption by biomass rather than wet scrubbing followed by evaporation. However, mercury removal at a lower inlet concentration (23 µg/m3) was negligible, with a poor material balance. The adsorbed mercury at higher inlet concentrations was not removed from the biomass by a 2-week washing after conclusion of the mercury adsorption experiment, which indicates a strong mercury binding by bacteria. The volatile organic compound removal efficiency was not affected by the presence of up to 70 µg/m3 of metallic mercury in the air.
The influence of insulator properties on the electro-optical performance of flexible ZnS:ErF3 alternating current thin film electroluminescent devices

Abstract We have developed flexible ZnS:ErF 3 alternating current thin film electroluminescent devices on molybdenum foils, and quantified the effect of insulator properties for the case of alumina (Al 2 O 3 ) and barium tantalate (BaTa 2 O 6 ) on the device electrical characteristics, and infrared emission. The inverted, full-stack structures could be flexed in tension and compression without mechanical failure or deterioration of optical output, and flex radii of a few centimeters are routinely achieved. Thus, the feasibility of a flexible, inorganic, large area electroluminescent emitter has been demonstrated. Compared to the Al 2 O 3 devices, the numbers for structures employing BaTa 2 O 6 represent a 29% increase in flux density at 980 nm, a 36% increase at 1540 nm, an 18% increase in conduction charge, a 10% increase in phosphor field and a 14% increase in threshold voltage. Our interpretation of the data is as follows: in the case of BaTa 2 O 6 , the interface states from which electrons are sourced into the phosphor are deeper, requiring a higher voltage for field emission. As a consequence, electrons are injected into the phosphor when the phosphor field is higher, resulting in better excitation efficiency and improved optical generation. The increase in conduction charge is interpreted as a higher density of interface states, which appear to have a narrower energy distribution based on the more abrupt threshold behavior observed.
Sentinel lymph node--why study it: implications of the B-32 study.

Surgical removal of the regional lymph nodes by a level I and level II axillary dissection remains the standard of care for patients with surgically resectable breast cancer. Axillary dissection provides accurate pathologic staging and excellent regional disease control, and likely provides a small benefit in patient survival. Axillary dissection, however, is associated with significant patient morbidity. Sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy procedures have been found to provide very accurate pathologic staging when compared to axillary dissection; however, their effect on regional disease control and patient survival is not yet known. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has sponsored a Phase III prospective, randomized clinical trial (the B-32 trial) through the National Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP), to compare results of patients treated with SLN biopsy alone vs. SLN biopsy with completion axillary node dissection in patients with clinically node-negative breast cancer. Results of this trial will provide evidence of the safety of SLN biopsy procedures in the management of patients with breast cancer.
Activation of complement by hemodialysis membranes: polyacrylonitrile binds more C3a than cuprophan.

Activation of complement by hemodialysis membranes: Polyacrylonitrile binds more C3a than cuprophan. Conventionally, complement activation by hemodialysis membranes has been determined by measuring fluid phase C3a. Based on such measurements, polyacrylonitrile (PAN) membranes have been classified as weak activators compared to cuprophan. Previous studies have demonstrated, however, that PAN adsorb fluid phase C3a. Based on that observation, we hypothesized that complement activation by PAN might be artifactually underestimated if relatively large amounts of C3a remained membrane bound. In the present study, a method that allows the simultaneous quantification of both fluid phase and membrane bound C3a was used to assess complement activation by PAN and cuprophan. Pieces of membrane were incubated with C3-depleted serum that had been repleted with radiolabeled C3. Subsequently, the supernates and membranes were subjected to SDS-PAGE, and complement activation was quantified by determining the radioactivity of the C3a bands in the gel. The results showed that while the serum exposed to cuprophan membranes contained almost five times more C3a than that exposed to PAN, approximately 80 times more C3a was bound to the PAN membranes. Consequently, the total amount of C3a generated in the presence of PAN was higher than that generated in the presence of cuprophan. We conclude that assessment of complement activation by hemodialysis membranes using fluid phase C3a measurements alone may be misleading.
Thermo-spectrum of benzene at 7456 Å☆

Abstract A new thermo-spectrum of benzene recorded at the wavelength of 7456 A is reported. A double spectrum is obtained as with the 8050 A line. The data are coherent with the previous reports.
Epistemic Uncertainty Analysis: An Approach Using Expert Judgment and Evidential Credibility

When dealing with complex systems, all decision making occurs under some level of uncertainty. This is due to the physical attributes of the system being analyzed, the environment in which the system operates, and the individuals which operate the system. Techniques for decision making that rely on traditional probability theory have been extensively pursued to incorporate these inherent aleatory uncertainties. However, complex problems also typically include epistemic uncertainties that result from lack of knowledge. These problems are fundamentally different and cannot be addressed in the same fashion. In these instances, decision makers typically use subject matter expert judgment to assist in the analysis of uncertainty. The difficulty with expert analysis, however, is in assessing the accuracy of the expert's input. The credibility of different information can vary widely depending on the expert’s familiarity with the subject matter and their intentional (i.e., a preference for one alternative over another) and unintentional biases (heuristics, anchoring, etc.). This paper proposes the metric of evidential credibility to deal with this issue. The proposed approach is ultimately demonstrated on an example problem concerned with the estimation of aircraft maintenance times for the Turkish Air Force.
Properties and applications of amino acid based surfactants

Abstract Amino acid based surfactants, which have an amino acid residue as a hydrophilic moiety, are reviewed with respect to their properties and applications. Salts of N α -acyl amino acids have an amino acid side chain radical in the hydrophilic moiety, an amide linkage and a chiral carbon atom, and show different characteristics when compared with fatty acid salts. Salts of N -acyl-L-glutamic acid, N α -cocoyl-L-arginine ethyl ester, N ϵ -lauroyl-L-lysine, and N -lauroyl-L-glutamic acid α,γ-dibutylamide are detailed.
Stimulatory and inhibitory effects of manganous and ferrous ions on epinephrine oxidation.

Abstract Low concentrations of manganous ions stimulate the oxidation of epinephrine to adrenochrome by rat liver microsomes, or by isolated NADPH-cytochrome c reductase, 4 fold. In contrast, much higher manganous ion concentrations are required for the chemical oxidation of epinephrine. Whereas the microsomal manganese stimulated epinephrine oxidation is inhibited by Superoxide dismutase, as is the nonstimulated enzymatic oxidation, Superoxide dismutase has no inhibitory effect on the oxidation of epinephrine in the absence of enzymes. Ferrous ions inhibit the manganous ion stimulated chemical oxidation of epinephrine more effectively than the similarly stimulated enzymatic oxidation of epinephrine. Based upon these observations different mechanisms for chemical and enzymatic manganous ion-induced epinephrine oxidation are suggested. Furthermore, possible implications of the metal ion-stimulated or inhibited oxidation of catechols in vivo are discussed.
Effect of multiplication-stimulating activity on DNA and protein synthesis in cultured fetal rat calvaria

Multiplication-stimulating Activity (MSA), a peptide closely related to somatomedin, was examined for its effects on bone formation and sulfation activity in vitro. To study the effect of MSA on bone formation, we examined its effects on the incorporation of3H-thymidine into DNA,3H-uridine into RNA, and3H-proline into collagenase-digestible (CDP) and noncollagen protein (NCP), as well as DNA content in 21-day fetal rat calvaria cultured for 24 h periods.
A ten-year experience of thyroglossal duct cyst surgery in children.

We discuss a 10-year experience of all the thyroglossal duct cysts (TGDC) removed at our institution, assessing whether management was appropriate and to compare our outcomes and success rate with current literature. We performed a retrospective review of TGDC surgery at our institution from 2000 to 2010. During the study period, 93 children were identified as having had a TGDC excision at an average age of 6.1 (1.1–15.3) years. Seventeen cases (18 %) were found to have not had their hyoid bone removed and of these 10 (59 %) were proven on histology to be non-TGDC. A total of 19 cases were confirmed TGDC on histology but received a non-Sistrunk’s procedure and 12 (63 %) of those recurred requiring a more definitive procedure (i.e. Sistrunks). Of the 76 (82 %) that did have their hyoid bone removed 13 (17 %) suffered complications of which 3 were recurrences (3.9 %), which is comparable to the literature (3–5 %). Of the complications that occurred 11 out of 13 (85 %) were infected cases at or around the time of procedure. Our experience, being the largest described in the United Kingdom supports the use of Sistrunk’s procedure with recurrence rates comparable to that within the literature.
Exploring the Relative Influence of Biotic Interactions and Environmental Conditions on the Abundance and Distribution of Exotic Brown Trout (Salmo trutta) in a High Mountain Stream

In the Logan River, UT, USA, exotic brown trout demonstrate a strong allopatric distribution and occur at high densities at low-elevation sites and in tributaries, and in low densities at native trout dominated, high-elevation sites. Summer temperatures and discharge do not appear limiting for growth; adult growth rates were high overall and were greatest when fish were held experimentally at high elevation where they do not occur naturally. Brown trout are superior competitors; competition for space or food was stronger with their own con-specifics than with other species. Evidence of density dependence was not observed at the juvenile life stage; no consistent relationships were detected between brown trout density and age-1 condition or lagged, age-0 weight (g). In contrast, adult brown trout demonstrated density-dependent effects on condition and growth when reared experimentally. Field estimates of adult growth rates (gAEday )1 ), although variable, declined subtly with increasing density, and annual survival was significantly greater in the mainstem sites (mean = 52%) relative to a high-density tributary site (mean = 22%). Annual predicted age-0 brown trout growth potential was four-times greater at the lowermost site, compared with the highest elevation site, although fish lost weight over winter months at all sites. While adult density dependence may influence population abundance at some sites, extreme spring-winter conditions may ultimately limit the upper elevational extent of brown trout in this system. With changing climatic conditions and the potential for habitat degradation in the future, these results have important implications for native fish conservation.
Deferred Corrections Software and Its Application to Seismic Ray Tracing

We give first a historical account of the various stages of development of iterated deferred corrections software, mainly for ordinary two-point boundary value problems, but mentioning also some work on partial differential equations. Then we describe the latest code on the PASVA series (No. 4), which extends the earlier one to problems with discontinuous data and mixed systems of differential and algebraic conditions. Finally, an example of application of this code to two-point ray tracing on piece-wise continuous media is given.
Teaching strategic management with a business game

The practice of teaching strategic management using management games is growing throughout the world. Games are used to assist in teaching students to integrate the functional areas of business and...
Could removing arsenic from tobacco smoke significantly reduce smoker risks of lung cancer

If a specific biological mechanism could be determined by which a carcinogen increases lung cancer risk, how might this knowledge be used to improve risk assessment? To explore this issue, we assume (perhaps incorrectly) that arsenic in cigarette smoke increases lung cancer risk by hypermethylating the promoter region of gene p16INK4a, leading to a more rapid entry of altered (initiated) cells into a clonal expansion phase. The potential impact on lung cancer of removing arsenic is then quantified using a three-stage version of a multistage clonal expansion (MSCE) model. This refines the usual two-stage clonal expansion (TSCE) model of carcinogenesis by resolving its intermediate or "initiated" cell compartment into two subcompartments, representing experimentally observed "patch" and "field" cells. This refinement allows p16 methylation effects to be represented as speeding transitions of cells from the patch state to the clonally expanding field state. Given these assumptions, removing arsenic might greatly reduce the number of nonsmall cell lung cancer cells (NSCLCs) produced in smokers, by up to two-thirds, depending on the fraction (between 0 and 1) of the smoking-induced increase in the patch-to-field transition rate prevented if arsenic were removed. At present, this fraction is unknown (and could be as low as zero), but the possibility that it could be high (close to 1) cannot be ruled out without further data.
Rapid metabolic pathway assembly and modification using serine integrase site-specific recombination

Synthetic biology requires effective methods to assemble DNA parts into devices and to modify these devices once made. Here we demonstrate a convenient rapid procedure for DNA fragment assembly using site-specific recombination by ϕC31 integrase. Using six orthogonal attP/attB recombination site pairs with different overlap sequences, we can assemble up to five DNA fragments in a defined order and insert them into a plasmid vector in a single recombination reaction. ϕC31 integrase-mediated assembly is highly efficient, allowing production of large libraries suitable for combinatorial gene assembly strategies. The resultant assemblies contain arrays of DNA cassettes separated by recombination sites, which can be used to manipulate the assembly by further recombination. We illustrate the utility of these procedures to (i) assemble functional metabolic pathways containing three, four or five genes; (ii) optimize productivity of two model metabolic pathways by combinatorial assembly with randomization of gene order or ribosome binding site strength; and (iii) modify an assembled metabolic pathway by gene replacement or addition.
Stereotactic radiosurgery for single brainstem metastases: the cleveland clinic experience.

Purpose To assess the imaging and clinical outcomes of patients with single brainstem metastases treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). Materials and Methods We retrospectively reviewed the data from patients with single brainstem metastases treated with SRS. Locoregional control and survival were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Prognostic factors were assessed using a Cox proportional hazards model. Results Between 1997 and 2007, 43 patients with single brainstem metastases were treated with SRS. The median age at treatment was 59 years, the median Karnofsky performance status was 80, and the median follow-up was 5.3 months. The median dose was 15 Gy (range, 9.6–24), and the median conformality and heterogeneity index was 1.7 and 1.9, respectively. The median survival was 5.8 months from the procedure date. Of the 33 patient with post-treatment imaging available, a complete radiographic response was achieved in 2 (4.7%), a partial response in 8 (18.6%), and stable disease in 23 (53.5%). The 1-year actuarial rate of local control, distant brain control, and overall survival was 85%, 38.3%, and 31.5%, respectively. Of the 43 patients, 8 (19%) died within 2 months of undergoing SRS, and 15 (36%) died within 3 months. On multivariate analysis, greater performance status (hazard ratio [HR], 0.95, p = .004), score index for radiosurgery (HR, 0.7; p = .004), graded prognostic assessment score (HR, 0.48; p = .003), and smaller tumor volume (HR, 1.23, p = .002) were associated with improved survival. No Grade 3 or 4 toxicities were observed. Conclusion The results of our study have shown that SRS is a safe and effective local therapy for patients with brainstem metastases.
Promise of computational systems biology for cancer clinical trials: the voyage to be realized?

Sunil Badve Author for correspondence: Signature Center for Systems Biology & Personalized Medicine, Departments of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine & Internal Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Clarian Pathology Laboratory, CPL-4050, 350 West 11th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA Tel.: +1 317 491 6417 Fax: +1 317 491 6419 sbadve@iupui.edu Promise of computational systems biology for cancer clinical trials: the voyage to be realized?
A Practical Comparison of Viability Models Used for Management of Endangered and Threatened Anadromous Pacific Salmonids

Abstract This study considered whether different population viability analyses give similar estimates of extinction risk across management contexts. We compared the performance of population viability analyses developed by numerous scientific teams to estimate extinction risk of anadromous Pacific salmonids listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and challenged each analysis with data from 34 populations. We found variation in estimated extinction risk among analytical techniques, which was driven by varying model assumptions and the inherent uncertainty of risk forecasts. This result indicates that the scientific teams developed techniques that perform differently. We recommend that managers minimize uncertainty in risk estimates by using multiple models tailored to the local ecology. Assessment of relative extinction risk was less sensitive to model assumptions than was assessment of absolute extinction risk. Thus, the former method is better for comparing population status and raises caution about...
'True Wit' and Feijoo's 'Chistes de N'

et certe veritatem magis exprimunt tormenta quam risus, nisi quod facilius creditur, quod aut fictum libenter auditur aut non fictum, ut fingatur, inpellitur.1 In the eighteenth century, laughter, and especially laughing out loud, were often subjects for concern among scholars.2 Perhaps one of the best known—and most emotional—diatribes on the subject is that of Lord Chesterfield, who in a letter to his son dated 9 March 1748, gave the following solemn advice concerning the evils of laughter and the virtues of what he called true wit: Having mentioned laughing, I must particularly warn you against it: and I could heartily wish that you often be seen to smile, but never heard to laugh while you live. Frequent and loud laughter is the characteristic of folly and ill manners: it is the manner in which the mob express their silly joy at silly things; and they call it being merry. In my mind there is nothing so illiberal, and so ill-bred, as audible laughter. True wit, or sense, never yet made anybody laugh; t...
Productivity Gains from Rice Genetic Enhancements in West Africa: Countries and Ecologies

Abstract Many critics claim that public research in West Africa has failed to develop technological innovations to improve productivity and stimulate economic development in the agricultural sector. Using Griliches’ method of estimating the impact of a research induced supply shift, this study finds that rice varietal improvement generated a producer surplus gain of approximately US$360 million in 1998 in the seven most important rice-producing countries of West Africa. Eighty-one percent of this gain has occurred in the irrigated and rainfed lowland ecologies which occupy just 12% and 35% of total regional rice area respectively. By contrast, approximately US$5.6 million is invested annually in regional varietal improvement research.
A Randomized Comparison of the Terms Estimated Average Glucose Versus Hemoglobin A1C

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that using estimated average glucose (eAG) while instructing patients yields better knowledge retention than using the term hemoglobin A1C (A1C).MethodsPatients with diabetes who had poor baseline understanding of A1C (determined by a 4-question survey) were randomized into 1 of 2 groups: A1C or eAG. Depending on randomization, providers discussed patients' current status and personal targets for glycemic control using either the term A1C or estimated average glucose. Patients had a telephone survey 3—4 weeks later, assessing change in knowledge of glycemic control.ResultsThe 80 participants who completed follow-up had similar baseline characteristics, including poor understanding of A1C and poor recall of previous A1C values. At the 3—4 week follow-up, average score for each survey question improved significantly in both groups, with mean composite score increasing in the A1C group by 32% and in the eAG group by 33%. There was no suggestion ...
Educational technology for collaborative virtual environments

3D information systems for education must be investigated and adopted for a more involving form of learning. It is in this context that we propose the use of Second Life as an environment for collaborative learning and generation of new educational content. Second Life is a simulator of real life and relationships, an entirely three-dimensional virtual world. There, besides interacting with users from the whole world in real time, it is also possible to create one's own objects and businesses, and generate new alternatives of content, exchange of information, and learning.
Managing the image generation of large datasets

At the ARL MSRC, datasets resulting from scientific visualizations and conceptual animations continue to grow in size and complexity as our computing capabilities expand. While visualizing these datasets and building the animations are a challenge, so is the overall oversight of the image generation process and long-term management of the resulting voluminous data sets. We have developed a tool to handle the management of the image generation process. By automatically monitoring the rendering process, we can improve overall throughput and image quality. This tool automatically distributes the rendering load, and detects and resolves problems in the image generation process including missing frames, excessive noise, and other common rendering problems.
Alternative Measures of American National Identity: Implications for the Civic‐Ethnic Distinction

Studies of national identity distinguish between ethnic and civic nations and have sought to identify these alternative conceptions of national identity in public opinion. The standard measurement technique is to assess the normative content of American national identity by asking survey respondents to rate the importance of particular traits for making someone a “true” American. We argue that such measures are problematic, chiefly because of the impact of nonrandom measurement error. We explore the influence of using ranking measures instead of ratings, using a survey experiment conducted on a nationally representative sample of Americans in 2008. The ranking method is superior for distinguishing between ethnic and civic conceptions of nationhood and, therefore, for predicting preferences on issues such as immigration policy. We develop a new statistical method that effectively “converts” ratings into scores that approximate rankings, resulting in the creation of more valid measures of both ethnic and civic national identities.
Origins of the American Tobacco Company

During the 188's and 1890's, the innovations of James Buchanan Duke first disrupted and then rationalized the American tobacco industry. Duke's career and the early history of his American Tobacco Co. serve as case studies in both the history of business administration and in the coming of “big business” to the United States.
RELAP5-3D transient modelling for NGNP integrated plant

The High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) is designed with outlet temperatures ranging between 750°C and 800°C. These high outlet temperatures enhance the power production efficiency and facilitate a variety of industrial applications. The objective of this study is to understand the response of the primary system to potential transients in the secondary system. For this analysis, the transient condition originates in the Intermediate Heat Exchanger (IHX) or Steam Generator (SG) of the HTGR-integrated plant. The transients analysed are: a loss of pressure; loss of feedwater flow; inadvertent closure of main steam valve; decrease in returning gas temperature and heat load step change. The results show a large dependence on the negative reactivity added to the fuel as a function of increased temperature. The returning gas temperature decrease transient resulted in the highest fuel temperature (1361°C). Fuel temperature was shown to be less than the 1600°C fuel limit for each case analysed.
Development of an Automated Platform for High-Throughput P1-Phage Transduction of Escherichia Coli:

Synthetic biology depends on the ability to rapidly produce strains with improved phenotypes but is limited by the ability to rapidly produce strain collections with directed mutations. Here, we present a system capable of overcoming this limitation through automated P1-phage transductions of Escherichia coli. By combining the Keio collection of single-gene deletion E. coli mutants with P1-phage, it is possible to generate an engineered host-strain collection consisting of every possible gene deletion mutant. This strategy was tested by transducing 355 genetic markers from the Keio collection into five different host strains, and it achieved a 98% success rate. This method offers an improved mechanism for rapidly engineering collections of microbes and provides one method for rapidly deploying a broader synthetic biology effort.
Hubble: an advanced dynamic folder system for XML

Organizing large document collections for finding information easily and quickly has always been an important user requirement. This paper describes a flexible and powerful dynamic folder technology, called Hubble, which exploits XML semantics to precisely categorize XML documents into categories or folders.
Impact of Deep-Trench-Isolation-Sharing Techniques on Ultrahigh-Speed Digital Systems

In the past, the large area of heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) in silicon germanium (SiGe) bipolar complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (BiCMOS) processes has prevented them from being widely used in ultrahigh-speed digital systems. The consequent longer interconnects among HBTs also offset the speed advantage of HBTs. In this brief, four deep trench isolation sharing (DTIS) methods are proposed to significantly reduce the HBT layout area. The 2 t 2 HBT layout area can be reduced by 20%-42%, and large-scale HBT system layouts can be reduced by 24%-48% or even further. Two IBM 0.18- mum SiGe 7HP chips based on Xilinx 6200 digital configurable logic blocks (CLBs) and logic cells were fabricated for verification. The maximum difference between measurement and postlayout simulation is 6.1%. Compared with the traditional layout implementation, the DTIS layout improved the system speed by 22% due to shorter interconnects among HBTs.
Personality: Its Impact on Attitudes Toward Classroom Activities1

This study investigated the degree to which students' personality characteristics influence their attitudes toward various learning activities in the language classroom. The research study was conducted with a group of 125 students of Spanish at the university level. The hypotheses of the study were that: 1) Language Class Risktaking positively affects attitudes toward activities involving relatively free language use; 2) Language Class Sociability positively affects attitudes toward activities involving the sharing of ideas or “performing;” and 3) Language Class Risktaking and Language Class Sociability negatively affect attitudes toward highly-structured grammar practice. Multiple regression analysis provided partial confirmation of the hypotheses. The findings suggest the importance of taking personality into consideration in language instruction.
1-Alkyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium [NTf2] ionic liquids: synthesis and properties

Abstract A series of 1-alkyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [NTf2] ionic liquids were prepared synthetically using azide–alkyne ‘click’ cyclization chemistry and their physicochemical and thermal properties were determined. Increasing the alkyl chain length resulted in increased viscosities and higher thermal transitions (Tg or Tm) with depressed molar conductivities. Walden plot analysis indicated that the ionicity of 1-butyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium [NTf2] was comparable to the analogous imidazolium system and higher than the 1,2,4-triazolium equivalent.