cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Who Is Responsible for the Common Good? Catholic Social Teaching and the Praxis of Subsidiarity

If there is an overlapping consensus emerging from our attempt at a dialogue, it is that the common good is both more prominent and more problematic than it may have seemed to previous generations. For a long time I have shared David Solomon’s concern over its fragility (Solomon 2013), although I suspect that the arid atmosphere generated by modern analytic philosophy—to which he attributes this fragility—is a reflection of far deeper fault lines in our ideological conflicts and culture wars. My own attitude is closer to that of Lo P.C. (Lo 2013), who regards these same symptoms as an opportunity for mutual learning and renewed efforts at consensus-building, given the uncanny convergences in the ways in which the common good is being rediscovered as well as undermined in both China and the USA. Our hope for further progress in dialogue, apparently, is not shared by Tristram Engelhardt, who believes that the “moral pluralism” that surfaces in any attempt to achieve a common understanding of the common good is intractable, unless we accept a “God’s-eye perspective” and obediently conform our own ideas about what is right and good to God’s own revealed preferences (Engelhardt 2013). To be sure, invoking a “God’s-eye perspective” risks scuttling any possibility of a Sino-American dialogue, for all of our Chinese colleagues who identify with one tradition or another of classical Chinese philosophy are agreed that Judeo-Christian or biblical understandings of God simply do not mean the same as what Chinese traditions mean by gods, or the Great Ultimate, or the will of Heaven.
Patient Safety Planning and Emergency Management

This chapter provides practice guidelines and resources for patient risk evaluation and emergency response when providing clinical videoconferencing (CV) services to clinic-based and nonclinic-based settings. It contains information regarding provider preparation for both behavioral and medical emergencies. Additionally, this chapter provides information regarding the identification of suitable patients for CV services.
Clinical Phase I investigation of intravenous oil attached mycobacterial components as immunotherapeutic agents.

Nonspecific immunostimulation with mycobacterial agents, especially BCG, have been widely utilized (1) in an effort to increase host resistance to malignancy. Crude viable and/or killed mycobacterial agents are heterogenous preparations (2, 3), which have a significant incidence of morbidity. From an immunotherapeutic viewpoint, BCG has been shown (4, 5), in high doses, to cause splenic suppressor cells in mice, and has been implicated in causing tumor enhancement (6). Because of these problems, major interest has centored on the purification and use of microbial components.
Abstract 4502: Cxcl-12-cxcr4 inhibition enhances immune response in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Introduction: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, one of the most aggressive malignancies and is refractory to Immunotherapy. This, in part, is mediated by the fibrotic stroma, creating an immune-suppressive microenvironment. CXCL12/SDF-1 has been shown to act as a chemo-repellant in several cancers. Therefore, we evaluated the role of stromal CXCL-12 in mediating an immunosuppressive phenotype within the pancreatic tumor. Methods: Pancreatic cancer cells harvested from KPC, a genetically engineered mouse model for PDAC, were either injected or alone or co-injected with pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) extracted from WT (C57/BL6) mice to induce tumors. SDF-1 expression levels were detected by IF and q-RT PCR in tumor sections. An SDF-1 inhibitor, AMD3100 (2mg/kg), or vehicle was administered i.p for 21 days in tumor bearing mice and tumor growth and immune infiltration were assessed as an end point by flow cytometry. To evaluate the T cell migration in vitro, PSCs were pre-treated with SDF-1 neutralizing antibody, educated with KPC cancer cells and further co-cultured with splenic CD3+ T cells extracted from KPC mice. Results: In vitro results showed markedly increased secretion of SDF-1 by PSCs and neutralization of SDF-1 led to increased T-cell migration when cultured with cancer cells alone. We also evaluated the effect of inhibition of SDF-CXCR4 axis on tumor growth. Co-injection of KPC with WT PSC formed larger tumors with increased section of CXCL-12 as compared to when KPC cells were injected alone. Interestingly, Inhibition of SDF-1-CXCR4 interaction with AMD3100 led to reduced tumor growth with increased infiltration of activated CD8+ cytotoxic T cells as compared to the saline-treated mice. Conclusion: Our results indicate that stromal cells contribute to tumor progression by blocking the infiltration of cytotoxic T cells via secretion of CXCL-12. Targeting CXCL-12 could pave the way for designing better therapeutic interventions against pancreatic cancer. Citation Format: Bharti Garg, Anthony Ferrantella, Bhuwan Giri, Shrey Modi, Vrisketan Sethi, Saba Kurtom, Sulagna Banerjee, Ramakrishnan Sundaram, Eli Gilboa, Ashok Saluja, Vikas Dudeja. Cxcl-12-cxcr4 inhibition enhances immune response in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4502.
A flexible likelihood approach for predicting neural spiking activity from oscillatory phase.

Author(s): Johnson, Teryn D; Coleman, Todd P; Rangel, Lara M | Abstract: BackgroundThe synchronous ionic currents that give rise to neural oscillations have complex influences on neuronal spiking activity that are challenging to characterize.New methodHere we present a method to estimate probabilistic relationships between neural spiking activity and the phase of field oscillations using a generalized linear model (GLM) with an overcomplete basis of circular functions. We first use an L1-regularized maximum likelihood procedure to select an active set of regressors from the overcomplete set and perform model fitting using standard maximum likelihood estimation. An information theoretic model selection procedure is then used to identify an optimal subset of regressors and associated coefficients that minimize overfitting. To assess goodness of fit, we apply the time-rescaling theorem and compare model predictions to original data using quantile-quantile plots.ResultsSpike-phase relationships in synthetic data were robustly characterized. When applied to in vivo hippocampal data from an awake behaving rat, our method captured a multimodal relationship between the spiking activity of a CA1 interneuron, a theta (5-10 Hz) rhythm, and a nested high gamma (65-135 Hz) rhythm.Comparison with existing methodsPrevious methods for characterizing spike-phase relationships are often only suitable for unimodal relationships, impose specific relationship shapes, or have limited ability to assess the accuracy or fit of their characterizations.ConclusionsThis method advances the way spike-phase relationships are visualized and quantified, and captures multimodal spike-phase relationships, including relationships with multiple nested rhythms. Overall, our method is a powerful tool for revealing a wide range of neural circuit interactions.
Natural Killer-derived exosomal miR-186 inhibits neuroblastoma growth and immune escape mechanisms.

In neuroblastoma, the interplay between immune cells of the tumor microenvironment and cancer cells contributes to immune escape mechanisms and drug resistance. In this study, we show that natural killer (NK) cell-derived exosomes carrying the tumor suppressor microRNA (miR)-186 exhibit cytotoxicity against MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell lines. The cytotoxic potential of these exosomes was partly dependent upon expression of miR-186. miR-186 was downregulated in high-risk neuroblastoma patients, and its low expression represented a poor prognostic factor that directly correlated with NK activation markers (i.e., NKG2D and DNAM-1). Expression of MYCN, AURKA, TGFBR1, and TGFBR2 was directly inhibited by miR-186. Targeted delivery of miR-186 to MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma or NK cells resulted in inhibition of neuroblastoma tumorigenic potential and prevented the TGFβ1-dependent inhibition of NK cells. Altogether, these data support the investigation of a miR-186-containing nanoparticle formulation to prevent tumor growth and TGFβ1-dependent immune escape in high-risk neuroblastoma patients as well as the inclusion of ex vivo-derived NK exosomes as a potential therapeutic option alongside NK cell-based immunotherapy.Significance: These findings highlight the therapeutic potential of NK cell-derived exosomes containing the tumor suppressor miR-186 that inhibits growth, spreading, and TGFβ-dependent immune escape mechanisms in neuroblastoma.
AAV2.7m8 is a powerful viral vector for inner ear gene therapy

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) has been successfully used to deliver gene therapy to improve auditory function in mouse models of hereditary hearing loss. Many forms of hereditary hearing loss have mutations which affect the cochlear hair cells, the mechanosensory cells which allow for sound detection and processing. While most conventional AAVs infect inner hair cells (IHCs) with various efficiencies, they infect outer hair cells (OHCs) and supporting cells at lower levels in the cochlea. Here we examine the infection patterns of two synthetic AAVs (AAV2.7m8 and AAV8BP2) in the mouse inner ear. AAV2.7m8 infects both IHCs and OHCs with high efficiency. In addition, AAV2.7m8 infects inner pillar cells and inner phalangeal cells with high efficiency. Our results suggest that AAV2.7m8 is an excellent viral vector for inner ear gene therapy targeting cochlear hair cells and supporting cells, and it will likely greatly expand the potential applications for inner ear gene therapy. Adeno-associated virus is used in gene therapy in mouse models of hearing loss. Here the authors compare vectors and find AAV2.7m8 can infect cells in the inner ear with high efficiency.
Low-cost fast photoacoustic computed tomography: phantom study

Photoacoustic tomography (PAT) is an emerging modality for imaging living biological tissue. Being label free, non-invasive, and having comparable resolution to ultrasound, PAT has many medical translations. This paper demonstrates our development of a low-cost 16 element transducer array for rapid imaging (1 frame per second) of biological samples. For the first time we demonstrate quality images obtained with a completely low-cost system. A rotatable platform houses our 16 equidistant Technisonic transducers, which is rotated 22.5° to acquire a full 360° field of view. We use Ekspla NL200 series Q-switched laser at 532 nm illumination wavelength with coupled optical fiber for overhead illumination. Our transducers send data to a National Instrument data acquisition system, triggered by the previously mentioned laser for efficient detection of photoacoustic signal. We have characterized this system through the imaging of complex optical absorbing lead phantoms. Thin lead has been imaged to demonstrate the spatial resolution of the system using the point spread function. Characterization of this system will allow us to move to ex-vivo imaging. We aim to develop this system as a platform for quality small animal functional brain imaging.
Neuromusculoskeletal simulation reveals abnormal rectus femoris-gluteus medius reflex coupling in post-stroke gait

Post-stroke gait is often accompanied by muscle impairments that result in adaptations such as hip circumduction to compensate for lack of knee flexion. Our previous work robotically enhanced knee flexion in individuals post-stroke with Stiff-Knee Gait (SKG), however, this resulted in greater circumduction, suggesting the existence of abnormal coordination in SKG. The purpose of this work is to investigate two possible mechanisms of the abnormal coordination: 1) an involuntary coupling between stretched quadriceps and abductors, and 2) a coupling between volitionally activated knee flexors and abductors. We used previously collected kinematic, kinetic and EMG measures from nine participants with chronic stroke and five healthy controls during walking with and without the applied knee flexion torque perturbations in the pre-swing phase of gait in the neuromusculoskeletal simulation. The measured muscle activity was supplemented by simulated muscle activations to estimate the muscle states of the quadriceps, hamstrings and hip abductors. We used linear mixed models to investigate two hypotheses: H1) association between quadriceps and abductor activation during an involuntary period (reflex latency) following the perturbation and H2) association between hamstrings and abductor activation after the perturbation was removed. We observed significantly higher rectus femoris (RF) activation in stroke participants compared to healthy controls within the reflex latency period following the perturbation based on both measured (H1, p 0.05) when the perturbation was removed. The RF-GMed coupling suggests an underlying abnormal reflex coordination pattern in post-stroke SKG. These results challenge earlier assumptions that hip circumduction in stroke is simply a kinematic adaptation due to reduced toe clearance. Instead, abnormal coordination may underlie circumduction, illustrating the deleterious role of abnormal coordination in post-stroke gait.
Prepectoral implant reconstruction in the setting of post-mastectomy radiation

Prepectoral breast reconstruction after mastectomy is a more commonly performed technique in recent years due to its numerous advantages over subpectoral breast reconstruction. This study reviews the current state of clinical outcomes for patients undergoing postmastectomy radiation therapy (PMRT) after prepectoral breast reconstruction. A comprehensive search of the literature was performed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses guidelines to identify all relevant studies. Outcome measures included demographics, mean follow-up, and complication measures. Three studies for a total of 175 breasts were identified. Average age was 49.3 years and BMI was 27.7 kg/m2. Mean follow up was 18.1 months. A total of 3 (1.7%) hematomas and 4 (2%) seromas were reported. Surgical site infection was the most common complication reported with an overall reported 32 breasts with infections (18%). A total of 9 (5.1%) cases of wound dehiscence were reported. Mastectomy flap necrosis was found in 10 (5.7%) breasts. A total of 22 (12.6%) tissue expanders or implants required explantation. The review of the literature suggests that prepectoral breast reconstruction with acellular dermal matrices in the setting of post mastectomy radiation therapy is a safe and successful surgical option resulting in excellent clinical outcomes. Furthermore, there may be a reduction of capsular contracture and implant migration in this setting, relative to traditional submuscular techniques with PMRT.
New Arab Maids: Female Domestic Work, “New Arab Women,” and National Memory in British Mandate Palestine

The “new Arab woman” of the early 20th century has received much recent scholarly attention. According to the middle- and upper-class ideal, this woman was expected to strengthen the nation by efficiently managing her household, educating her children, and contributing to social causes. Yet, we cannot fully understand the “new Arab woman” without studying the domestic workers who allowed this class to exist. Domestic workers carried out much of the physical labor that let their mistresses pursue new standards of domesticity, social engagement, and participation in nationalist organizations. This article examines relationships between Arab housewives and female domestic workers in British Mandate Palestine (1920–1948) through an analysis of domestic reform articles and memoirs. Arab domestic reformers argued that elite housewives, in order to become truly modern women, had to treat maids with greater respect and adjust to the major socioeconomic changes that peasants were experiencing, yet still maintain a clear hierarchy in the home. Palestinian memoirists, meanwhile, often imagine their pre-1948 homes as a site of Palestinian national solidarity. Their memories of intimate relationships that developed between elite families and peasant maids have crucially shaped nationalist narratives that celebrate the Palestinian peasantry.
Biased collective memories and historical overclaiming: An availability heuristic account

People tend to overclaim historical influence for their own ingroup, in a phenomenon called ingroup inflation. Although this overclaiming has been empirically demonstrated in the USA and other nations, the cognitive mechanisms underlying it have been largely conjectural. We test one such proposed mechanism: the application of the availability heuristic to a biased collective memory. Collective memories in the psychological sense are shared memories held individually by members of a group that pertain to their group identity. Using measures of retrieval fluency, we show that asymmetrical accessibility for collective memories favoring ingroup - versus outgroup - relevant historical events is correlated with overclaiming, and that reducing this asymmetry through targeted retrieval of outgroup-relevant events reduces overclaiming (Experiments 1 and 2). We also suggest that ingroup inflation arises because of retrieval fluency per se, rather than more stable asymmetries in knowledge or event-specific judgments of importance (Experiment 3). Together, these studies suggest some cognitive bases of collective overclaiming and cognitive interventions that might attenuate these biased judgments.
Fairness evaluation experiments for multicast congestion control protocols

Fairness to current Internet traffic, particularly TCP, is an important requirement for new protocols in order to be safely deployed in the Internet. This specifically applies to multicast protocols that should be deployed with great care. In this paper we provide a set of experiments that can be used as a benchmark to evaluate the fairness of multicast congestion control mechanisms when running with competing TCP flows. We carefully select the experiments in such a way to target specific congestion control mechanisms and to reveal the differences between TCP and the proposed multicasting protocol. This enables us to have a better understanding oft he proposed protocol behavior and to evaluate its fairness and when violations can happen. To clarify our experiments we carry them on a single-rate case study protocol, pgmcc, using NS-2 simulations. Our analysis shows the strengths and potential problems of the protocol and point to possible improvements. Several congestion control mechanisms are targeted by the experiments such as timeouts, response to ACKs and losses, independent and congestion losses effect. In addition, we evaluate multicast mechanisms such as the effect of multiple receivers, group representative selection, and feedback suppression when there is network support.
Principles of Hypothesis Testing

This chapter is devoted to some serious aspects of the hypothesis testing problems, including both the simple and composite cases. These consist of the fundamental lemma of Neyman-Pearson, in its abstract version due to Grenander, and a few of its applications as well as a technique in reducing composite hypotheses by means of weights. The latter contains a detailed Bayes methodology with iterated priors and some uniformity conditions that admit extensions to stochastic processes. Some of these considerations are classical, but they are seen to allow sharper analysis, in contrast with a use of the general (decision) theory, and these are examined carefully in the first four sections which also contain vector analysis approaches. It may be noted that this work demands an employment of deeper mathematical tools in solving some fundamental questions such as the Behrens-Fisher problem, and this is detailed in the fifth section. The last one is devoted to complementing the the preceding results, as exercises often with hints.
Primary hyperparathyroidism. A personal experience with 242 cases.

Abstract Two hundred forty-two patients with primary hyperparathyroidism operated on at Akron City Hospital are reviewed. The importance of the association of peptic ulcer and pancreatitis with primary hyperparathyroidism is stressed. Nineteen percent of the patients had associated peptic ulcer or pancreatitis. The mechanisms involved in the production of these diseases in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism are emphasized. The two deaths occurred in the small but challenging group of patients with acute parathyroid crisis and carcinoma. The decision concerning the extent of parathyroidectomy should be made by the surgeon for each patient, based on the number, location and gross appearance of the identified glands. Removal of a single enlarged gland, if the other three glands are normal, is all that needs to be done in most cases. A recurrence rate of 1 percent and an appreciable decrease in postoperative tetany support this conservative approach. Subtotal parathyroidectomy should be reserved for patients with diffuse hyperplasia.
IFNγ, and lymphocytes prevent primary tumour development and shape tumour immunogenicity

Lymphocytes were originally thought to form the basis of a 'cancer immunosurveillance' process that protects immunocompetent hosts against primary tumour development, but this idea was largely abandoned when no differences in primary tumour development were found between athymic nude mice and syngeneic wild-type mice. However, subsequent observations that nude mice do not completely lack functional T cells and that two components of the immune system-IFNgamma and perforin-help to prevent tumour formation in mice have led to renewed interest in a tumour-suppressor role for the immune response. Here we show that lymphocytes and IFNgamma collaborate to protect against development of carcinogen-induced sarcomas and spontaneous epithelial carcinomas and also to select for tumour cells with reduced immunogenicity. The immune response thus functions as an effective extrinsic tumour-suppressor system. However, this process also leads to the immunoselection of tumour cells that are more capable of surviving in an immunocompetent host, which explains the apparent paradox of tumour formation in immunologically intact individuals.
A Review of “With culture in mind: Psychoanalytic stories”

Through illuminating stories, With Culture in Mind explores clinical moments in which therapist and client encounter the powerful effects of the psychic and the social, of an individual's inner and...
I Can Stomach That! Fearlessness About Death Predicts Attenuated Facial Electromyography Activity in Response to Death-Related Images.

Objective measures of suicide risk can convey life-saving information to clinicians, but few such measures exist. This study examined an objective measure of fearlessness about death (FAD), testing whether FAD relates to self-reported and physiological aversion to death. Females (n = 87) reported FAD and disgust sensitivity, and facial electromyography was used to measure physiological facial responses consistent with disgust while viewing death-related images. FAD predicted attenuated expression of physiological death aversion, even when controlling for self-reported death-related disgust sensitivity. Diminished physiological aversion to death-related stimuli holds promise as an objective measure of FAD and suicide risk.
Three-dimensional multi-fluid simulations of Pluto's magnetosphere: A comparison to 3D hybrid simulations

[1] Results from 3D multi-fluid simulations of the solar wind interaction with Pluto are compared to 3D hybrid simulations of the same interaction. The results from the multi-fluid simulations are similar to the hybrid results in both the overall size of the magnetosphere as well as predicting pick-up of ionospheric ions by the solar wind. The results from the multi-fluid simulations also show how an increase in the mass of the pick-up ion leads to a larger pick-up region and an asymmetric bow shock. When the solar wind speed is doubled, but its dynamic pressure is held constant, the size of the magnetosphere more than doubles and the asymmetry of the bow shock and pick up region are enhanced. This effect is not present in MHD simulations since ion cyclotron effects are neglected. The results illustrate the ability of the multi-fluid technique to capture ion cyclotron effects, like the hybrid technique.
DEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOME OF VERY LOW BIRTHWEIGHT (VLBW) CHILDREN WITH CEREBRAL PALSY. † 2279

Cerebral palsy (CP), the predominant neurologic problem of VLBW (<1.5 kg) children, occurred in 50/839 (6%) of our VLBW inborn singleton survivors during 1983-1991.
Treating Anxiety Disorders in Inner City Schools: Results from a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing CBT and Usual Care

Background The effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) in inner city schools, when delivered by novice CBT clinicians, and compared to usual care (UC), is unknown.
Predictors of fecal occult blood screening among older socioeconomically disadvantaged Americans: a replication study

Abstract Socioeconomically disadvantaged elderly are less likely to participate in fecal occult blood testing (FOBT). A quasi-experimental design was used in this operational replication study to determine predictors at baseline of subsequent participation in FOBT. Sixty-five percent of the 211 participants in the replication study participated in FOBT, and 47% of the 171 participants in the original study participated in FOBT. Predictors for FOBT in the replication study were male gender, age of 65–75 years old, ability to go places without assistance, history of having had a digital rectal examination and FOBT. This replication study supports targeting socioeconomically disadvantaged populations for FOBT as well as females, persons 85 years and older, persons who need assistance in travel, and persons who have not had FOBT before. The results show that socioeconomically disadvantaged persons will participate in FOBT when effective educational interventions that include adaptation for aging changes are used.
Comparison of three intracellular markers for combined electrophysiological, morphological and immunohistochemical analyses.

Abstract Hypothalamic paraventricular and supraoptic neurons were recorded intracellularly in coronal slices and injected with Lucifer yellow, ethidium bromide or biocytin. Electrical properties, morphological staining and neurophysin immunohistochemistry were compared among the 3 markers. Lucifer yellow electrodes had a high resistance and frequently blocked during experiments. Neurons recorded with Lucifer yellow electrodes had low input resistances and low-amplitude, broad spikes. Lucifer yellow labeling in whole mount was highly fluorescent, revealing distal dendrites and axons. Of cells injected with Lucifer yellow, 64% were recovered but were faint after immunohistochemical processing. Recordings with ethidium bromide electrodes were similar to controls, although electrode blockage sometimes occurred. Only somata and proximal dendrites of ethidium bromide-filled neurons were visible in whole-mount. Forty percent of cells injected with ethidium bromide were recovered after immunohistochemical processing; these were invariably faint. Recordings with biocytin-filled electrodes were similar to control recordings. Biocytin-filled, HRP-labeled cells showed distal dendrites and often dendritic spines and axons in 50–75-μm sections. Seventy percent of biocytin-injected cells labeled with fluorescent markers were recovered and remained strongly labeled after immunohistochemical processing. Biocytin had the best electrical and staining properties for combined electrophysiological and anatomical studies.
The structure of a molecular motor

Two proteins, actin and myosin, together form a molec- ular motor that produces the work performed by mus- cle tissues, as well as many of the movements seen in all eukaryotic cells. IJntil recently, high resolution struc- tures of these two proteins have not been available. One obstacle in determining these structures has been the dif- ficulty of obtaining crystals suitable for X-ray analysis. In the case of actin, crystallization was hindered by the ten- dency of the protein ~to polymerize. In the case of myosin subfragment 1 (Sl), the head of the myosin molecule, crystallization was prevented by heterogeneity produced by both proteolysis and the presence of a number of dif- ferent myosin isoforms. Now, however, after a scientific odyssey of Homeric iscale involving more than ten years effort on each protein, these problems have been solved by Rayment, Holden a.nd coworkers [ 1 I, working on myo- sin Sl, and by Holmes, Kabsch and coworkers, working on actin [2]. The tendency of actin to polymerize is inhibited by DNase 1, which forms a tight complex with actin. This was ex- ploited by Kabsch, H:olmes and coworkers, who crystal lized a complex of actin with ,DNase 1 [2]. In the case of myosin Sl, crystallization was achieved by a com- bination of innovative protein modification and careful biochemistry [l]. Isoform heterogeneity is exhibited by the essential myosin light chain, one of the Sl small sub- units. In many previous attempts to crystallize Sl by other investigators, these isoforms were separated, a process that requires removal of a second subunit, the regulatory light chain. Rayment and coworkers, however, retained both subunits, along with their heterogeneity. From the crystal structure of Sl, it is clear that retention of both sub- units was essential to produce a well-defined, crystallizable molecule. However, the crystallization required another crucial step. The solubility of the protein was changed by dimethyla- tion of essentially all the lysine residues; the modified, but not the unmodified, protein was capable of being crys- tallized. Although lysine dimethylation alters some of the kinetic constants of the actinS interaction, the modified Sl retains activity [3]. Dimethylation of the lysines of an- other protein, lysozyme, was shown to have little effect upon its structure [4]. It is noteworthy that this protein modification may be of general utility for inducing other recalcitrant proteins to crystallize. The structures of crystallized actin and myosin Sl have been determined to 2.8A resolution [ 1,2]. These structures alone answer many questions and provide fascinating insight into the functions of actin and myo- sin. However, research has proceeded beyond this step at a dizzying speed. The structures of these two proteins have now been fitted into macromolecular complexes to
bcl-2 over-expression delays radiation-induced apoptosis without affecting the clonogenic survival of human prostate cancer cells.

In this study we evaluated the effect of over-expression of the bcl-2 gene, a potent apoptosis suppressor, on radiation-induced apoptotic cell death in 2 human prostate cancer cell lines, androgen-independent PC-3 cells and androgen-sensitive LNCaP cells. Cells were transfected with the bcl-2 gene and bcl-2 transfectant clones isolated under neomycin selection; bcl-2 gene integration and level of mRNA and protein expression in the cloned transfectants were examined by Southern, Northern and Western blot analyses, respectively. Parental, neo control and bcl-2-expressing cells were exposed to single or fractionated doses of ionizing irradiation, and the cellular response to radiation was determined at 24, 48 and 72 hr post-irradiation, on the basis of: (i) loss of cell viability, (ii) clonogenic survival and (iii) induction of apoptotic DNA fragmentation. At 24 hr post-irradiation all cell lines, i.e., parental and bcl-2 transfectants, failed to form colonies, though the majority of bcl-2-expressing cells did not exhibit apoptotic morphology; bcl-2 over-expression in both cell lines reduced apoptosis 48 hr post-irradiation from 20–25% to 5% at a dose of 2,000 cGy. By 72 hr, bcl-2 over-expression afforded a 3-fold protection from radiation-induced apoptosis. There was no significant difference, however, in the clonogenic survival of the parental and bcl-2-expressing cells. Furthermore, there was a 24 hr delay in induction of the apoptosis marker gene SGP-2/TRPM-2 in the bcl-2-expressing cells, co-incidental with the delay in apoptotic DNA fragmentation. Int. J. Cancer, 70:341–348, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
In Vitro System for Applying Cyclic Loads to Connective Tissues Under Displacement or Force Control

Overuse is thought to be the primary cause of chronic tendon injuries, in which forceful or repetitive loading results in an accumulation of micro-tears leading to a maladaptive repair response. In vitro organ culture models provide a useful method for examining how specific loading patterns affect the cellular response to load which may explain the early mechanisms of tissue injury associated with tendinopathies and ligament injuries. We designed a novel tissue loading system which employs closed-loop force feedback, capable of loading six tissue samples independently under force or displacement control. The system was capable of applying loads up to 40 N at rates of 100 N s−1 and frequencies of 2 Hz, well above loads and rates measured in rabbit tendons in vivo. Loading parameters such as amplitude, rate, and frequency can be controlled while biomechanical factors such as creep, force relaxation, tangent modulus and Young’s modulus can be assessed. The system can be used to examine the relationship between each loading parameter and biomechanical factors of connective tissues maintained in culture which may provide useful information regarding the etiology of overuse injuries.
Electroencephalographic sleep correlates of episode and vulnerability to recurrence in depression

The study of electroencephalogram (EEG) sleep in depressed patients before and after treatment with psychotherapy can distinguish episode-related and persistent biological features. With longitudinal follow-up, we can also assess whether EEG sleep measures are associated with recurrence of depression. In the current study, we examined EEG sleep during the depressed state and during symptomatic remission after treatment with interpersonal psychotherapy in 42 outpatients with major depression. Analyses included both visually-scored and computer-analyzed measures. Patients showed significant increases in sleep latency (p = .01) and rapid eye movement (REM) latency (p = .04) from baseline to remission, as well as a decrease in REM sleep percent (p = .03). Total delta EEG counts decreased from baseline to remission (p = .03), specifically in the second nonrapid eye movement (NREM) period (p = .03); as a result, the relative distribution of delta activity shifted toward sleep onset (i.e., increased delta sleep ratio; p = .03). Automated REM counts also decreased from depression to remission (p = .006). Compared to patients who remained well through one year of follow-up, those who suffered a recurrence of depression had less delta EEG activity at baseline and remission (p = .01), particularly in the lowest delta frequency band of 0.5-1.0 Hz. Specific components of sleep (total delta activity, delta ratio, REM activity) constitute episode-related biological features. Other components (slowest delta activity) may represent vulnerability factors for recurrence.
Hankel operators and Toeplitz operators on the Bergman space

Abstract We consider in this paper the question of when the semi-commutator T fg − T f T g on the Bergman space with bounded harmonic symbols is compact. Several conditions equivalent to compactness of T fg − T f T g are given. As a consequence we prove a conjecture of Axler that for bounded analytic functions f and g on the unit disk, T fg ∗ − T g T f ∗ is compact iff either f or g is constant on each Gleason part P ( m ) except D .
The behavior of various antivitamin B6 in Saccharomyces carlsbergensis.

Abstract The antagonistic functions of ten representative antivitamin B 6 have been studied with the aid of Saccharomyces carlsbergensis (A.T.C.C. 4228), which requires vitamin B 6 for its growth. The results seemed to indicate that 4-deoxypyridoxine competed with vitamin B 6 in a manner which was different from that of 5-deoxypyridoxine, 4,5-bisdeoxypyridoxine, 4,5-dithiopyridoxine, pyramin, 5-deoxypyramin, 5-ethoxypyramin, and 2-methylthiopyramin. Indirect evidence implies that the direct involvement of the 5-hydroxymethyl group of the pyramin molecule in its inhibition mechanism is questionable. The cells which were resistant to 4-deoxypyridoxine, 4,5-bisdeoxypyridoxine, 5-ethoxypyramin, and isonicotinoyl hydrazide were isolated. The cross-resistant patterns appeared to indicate that the first three compounds were probably the antagonists specific to vitamin B 6 , and the toxicity of isonicotinoyl hydrazide to S. carlsbergensis was partly due to its ability to block the function of vitamin B 6 and partly due to an undefined function. The behavior of d -4-amino-3-isoxazolidone seems to be comparable to that of isonicotinoyl hydrazide.
The Efficacy of Written Screening Tools in an Inner City Hospital: Literacy Based Limitations on Patient Access to Appropriate Care

Purpose: Appropriate patient treatment necessitates patient literacy due to the increasing use of written screening tools in medicine. We evaluated the frequency, predictors and impact of poor understanding of the American Urological Association symptom index on patient care.Materials and Methods: This prospective cohort study included 300 male patients older than 40 years who completed the American Urological Association symptom index twice, as self-administered and then as interviewer administered. These 2 responses were compared by calculating correlation coefficients and weighted κ statistics to assess patient understanding of the American Urological Association symptom index. Multivariate logistic regression analyses examined the association between patient characteristics and poor understanding of the symptom index, defined as understanding fewer than 4 questions, by calculating the OR and corresponding 95% CI.Results: Of the 7 symptom index questions 16% of patients understood all, 38% understood m...
Optical and electronic properties of HgTe-CdTe superlattices

Abstract A survey of current issues concerning the electronic and optical properties of HgTe-CdTe superlattices is given. The superlattice has been conjectured to provide certain advantages relative to the HgCdTe alloy for infrared detectors. A comparison of theoretical predictions with recent measurements is made. The conduction electrons are expected to be partially localized near the HgTe-CdTe interfaces, to a degree dependent on the superlattice band gap. The valence band offset between HgTe and CdTe is still not determined precisely. Measurements of the optical absorption coefficient as a function of photon energy indicates that expected structure due to energy subbands does occur, indicating the presence of abrupt interfaces. Recent measurements of resonant tunneling currents through double barrier structures also imply abrupt interfaces, and may help in determining the valence band offset.
Complex lipid synthesis in hamster intestine.

Abstract 1. 1. Three enzymes engaged in complex lipid synthesis, diglyceride acyltransferase, cholinephosphotransferase and lysolecithin acyltransferase were studied in nonfasting hamster intestinal mucosa. 2. 2. The specific activities of diglyceride acyltransferase and lysolecithin acyltransferase were greatest in the proximal intestine in villous tips correlating with the physiological and morphological site of lipid absorption. The specific activity of cholinephosphotransferase did not vary either between tip and crypt preparations or in the proximal as compared to the distal intestine. 3. 3. When comparison was made between the 2 pathways of lecithin synthesis studied, the specific activity of lysolecithin acyltransferase was 2-3-fold greater than cholinephosphotransferase in villous tips, no difference was observed in crypts. The data suggests that, in villous tips, lecithin is predominately synthesized via the lysolecithin acyltransferase pathway and, in toto , the enzymatic studies further suggest that it is this pathway which provides the lecithin associated with intestinal triglyceride transport. 4. 4. Competition for the common substrate, diglyceride, in villous tips was examined by determining the specific activities of diglyceride acyltransferase and cholinephosphotransferase using either an aqueous dispersion of diglyceride or microsomal membrane bound diglyceride synthesized from glycerol 3-phosphate. In each instance, triglyceride was the predominant reaction product suggesting that diglyceride, in villous tips, is chiefly distributed into the triglyceride synthetic pathway.
Impact of Daily Assessments on Distress and PTSD Symptoms in Trauma-Exposed Women:

As more advanced methodologies are developed for symptom assessment in traumatic stress studies, it is important to examine how these methodologies can exacerbate distress or contribute to symptoms among study participants. Using a sample of 202 female college students, we examined the changes in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and general psychological symptomatology among groups of trauma-exposed and non-trauma-exposed women randomly assigned to complete 30 days of daily monitoring of traumatic symptoms and substance use behaviors using personal digital assistants (PDAs). These two groups were compared with a trauma-exposed sample of women who did not complete daily monitoring assessments and only completed pre- and post-monitoring online assessments. While trauma-exposed participants in the monitoring group reported more distress from the daily assessments than those in the monitoring group with no history of trauma, this distress level was relatively low. Online surveys delivered pre- an...
Redox dependence of papain enzyme activity on charged kaolinite surfaces and in solution

Abstract The relative activity of an SH dependent enzyme, papain, is decreased by increasing the ratio of oxidizing disulfide to reducing thiol in solution. The same applies to papain adsorbed on negatively charged clay particles, but the effect is more pronounced if positively charged disulfides can be formed in the thiol-disulfide exchange equilibrium. Disulfides with a double positive charge are apparently more strongly attracted to clay than are singly charged, neutral, or negatively charged products of exchange. Preferential attraction of oxidizing disulfides to the particulate surfaces increases local, microenvironmental oxidizing potentials.
Feature sequencing in the rapid design system using a genetic algorithm

This paper addresses the feature sequencing problem in the Rapid Design System (RDS). The RDS is a feature-based design system that integrates product design and process planning. An important issue in feature-based process planning for machined parts is the order in which material is removed to form the resultant part. The order, or sequence, is partially dependent on the geometric relationships between features. The sequence affects the safety, the time it takes to machine the part, and the quality of the finished part. The sequence of material removal depends on two types of relations between features: (1) intersections and (2) interfeature associations. Both types of relations compound the search for an ‘optimal’ sequence of material removal. Therefore, the research problem has been the discovery and development of a genetic algorithm (GA) that efficiently searches the solution space for all possible sequences and identifies the best sequences in terms of safety, time and quality.
The use of vision by the little brown bat, Myotis lucifugus, under controlled conditions

Abstract Two groups of little brown bats ( M. lucifugus ), one with auditory impairment and one untreated, were scored as they flew through a vertical string maze under three light conditions: full room light, very dim light, and total darkness. A total of 960 test flights was scored. Both groups collided most often with the maze in the presence of full light. On flights in dim light when the contrast between maze and surround was high, the ‘deafened’ animals collided significantly less with the maze than they did in total darkness. When the contrast in dim light was low, collision scores were similar to those in darkness or higher. The impairment of obstacle avoidance in full light is discussed in relation to previous failures to demonstrate pattern vision in these animals. The enhancement of obstacle avoidance in dim light and high contrast is interpreted as evidence that these animals can use pattern vision while in flight and is discussed in relation to current research on longdistance navigation and homing by bats.
Experience with Anastomosis of Superior Vena Cava to Pulmonary Artery (Glenn Procedure)

Fifteen children with uncorrectable cyanotic heart disease were treated with the Glenn procedure. The hospital mortality was 20 per cent. Total and partial body perfusions were used in two cases to accomplish the anastomosis. The indications for perfusion have been discussed. Modifications in anesthesia were presented to reduce the high incidence of hypotension, bradycardia, and cardiac arrest.
A biogeochemical model for metabolism and nutrient cycling in a Southeastern Piedmont impoundment

Abstract While non-point nutrient loads are important determinants of biological productivity in Southeastern Piedmont impoundments, productivity can be attenuated by concomitant sediment loads that reduce the biological availability of these nutrients. A biogeochemical model is proposed that explicitly accounts for the effects of sediment–nutrient interactions on multiple components of phytoplankton metabolism dynamics, including algal photosynthesis and respiration, pH, carbonate speciation, dissolved oxygen, and biochemical oxygen demand. Sediment–nutrient interactions relate nutrient uptake and release to pH, sediment oxygen demand, sediment organic matter, and iron. pH is a state variable in our model, affects sediment–nutrient adsorption, and constrains model parameters. The model replicates water quality observations in a small Southeastern Piedmont impoundment and suggests that pH-dependent sediment–nutrient adsorption dominates both orthophosphate and ammonium dynamics, with phosphate adsorption being controlled by ligand exchange to iron oxides, and ammonium adsorption being controlled by the cation exchange capacity. Sediment organic matter accumulation and decay also affects nutrient availability, and may explain the long-term increase of hypolimnetic dissolved oxygen deficit in Lake Lanier, a large Southeastern Piedmont impoundment.
Knowledge entails dispositional belief

Knowledge is widely thought to entail belief. But Radford has claimed to offer a counterexample: the case of the unconfident examinee. And Myers-Schulz and Schwitzgebel have claimed empirical vindication of Radford. We argue, in defense of orthodoxy, that the unconfident examinee does indeed have belief, in the epistemically relevant sense of dispositional belief. We buttress this with empirical results showing that when the dispositional conception of belief is specifically elicited, people’s intuitions then conform with the view that knowledge entails (dispositional) belief.
Outcome of liver transplantation in Hispanics versus non-Hispanics: Is there a difference?

IN THE PAST DECADE 10% of orthotopic liver transplant (OLT) recipients in the United States have been of Hispanic origin. Little has been reported regarding OLT outcomes in reference to recipient ethnic origin. Differences in outcome have been shown in renal transplant graft survival of African-American recipients when compared to Caucasians. Differences in outcome of other organ transplants relative to ethnicity have never been clearly proven. At our center more than 50% of OLT recipients are from Hispanic origin, and it is of our particular interest to establish any ethnic difference in graft or patient survival if present. To determine the differences in outcome of the Hispanic (H) group versus the non-Hispanic group (NH), we analyzed our experience for the past 5 years.