cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analysis of HLA-DQ molecules with a monoclonal antibody detecting a DQ polymorphism absent from DQW1 homozygous cells☆

We have produced a monoclonal antibody detecting an HLA class II determinant absent from DR1,2,W6, and W10 (DQW1) homozygous B lymphoblastoid cell lines (BLCL). The antibody, SFR16-PI.2, immunoprecipitates molecules with electrophoretic mobilities of DQ (DS/DC) molecules from DR7 homozygous cell lines. SFR16-PI.2 binds more sets of class II molecules from internally labeled DR7 homozygous cell membranes than from externally labeled extracts from the same cell line. Depletion of DR molecules from internally-labeled membranes indicates that SFR16-PI.2, in addition to reacting with DQ molecules, also reacts with an epitope on a biosynthetic intermediate of DR molecules, which is lost on the mature DR molecule. SFR16-PI.2-reactive molecules were examined on a DR5 homozygous cell line, where they could be compared to those isolated by two other monoclonal antibodies with DQ specificity, namely IVD12 and Leu-10. All three monoclonal antibodies isolated two sets of DQ molecules with varying degrees of affinity for one of the molecules. The serological and biochemical data presented suggest that SFR16-PI.2 detects the alternate alleles of the locus encoding DQW1.
Efficient and timely jamming detection in wireless sensor networks

Wireless communication is vulnerable to jamming attacks, where an adversary injects strong noise to interfere with the legitimate transmissions. Jamming can easily disrupt a sensor application such as border monitoring. Since the area being jammed often tells the location of adversarial activities, e.g., illegal border crossing, it is critical to detect jamming efficiently and timely. It has been shown that the packet delivery ratio (PDR) is an effective indicator of jamming attacks. However, energy efficiency and detection timeliness are two conflicting requirements in existing PDR-based schemes. This paper proposes a novel jamming detection approach that is both efficient in terms of the additional overhead and timely in terms of the detection latency. The idea is to conduct two-phase detection. The first phase identifies the sign of jamming quickly and efficiently without adding any extra communication or requiring any special hardware or infrastructure. Any sign of jamming will trigger the second phase detection, which performs a short burst of channel probing to make an accurate decision. The benefits of the two-phase approach are analyzed in the paper. In addition, this paper also presents the detailed evaluation via experiments on a network of TelosB motes.
A comparison of tests of equality of variances

Seven tests of equality of variances are compared in terms of robustness and power in a simulation experiment with small-to-moderate sample sizes. The data are assumed to come from a location-scale family with unknown means, variances, and density functions. The tests considered are the Levene test, the Bartlett test with and without kurtosis adjustment, the Box-Andersen test, and three jackknife tests. The bootstrap versions of these tests are also compared. It is found that the Levene test and one of jackknife test, as well as the bootstrap versions of the Levene test, the Bartlett test with kurtosis adjustment, and two jackknife tests are robust. Among these, the bootstrap version of the Levene test tends to have the highest power.
Preparation and characterization of nickel substituted Fe5C2

Abstract Nickel can be substituted into Fe5C2 to the extent of 20 atomic percent. Samples were prepared by codecomposition of mixed nitrates followed by reduction at 290°C in a 9:1 H2:CO atmosphere. Confirmation of the limit of substitution was made by both magnetic and x-ray analysis.
A Distributed Vision Infrastructure for Multi-Robot Localization

Localization is one of the critical issues in the field of multi-robot navigation. With an accurate estimate of the robot pose, robots will be able to navigate in their environment autonomously with the aid of flexible path planning. In this paper, the infrastructure of a Distributed Vision System (DVS) for multi-robot localization is presented. The main difference between traditional DVSs and the proposed one is that multiple overhead cameras can simultaneously localize a network of robots. The proposed infrastructure is comprised of a Base Process and Coordinate Transform Process. The Base Process receives images from various cameras mounted in the environment and then utilizes this information to localize multiple robots. Coordinate Transform Process is designed to transform from Image Reference Plane to world coordinate system. ID tags are used to locate each robot within the overhead image and camera intrinsic and extrinsic parameters are used to estimate a global pose for each robot. The presented infrastructure was recently implemented by a network of small robot platforms with several overhead cameras mounted in the environment. The results show that the proposed infrastructure could simultaneously localize multiple robots in a global world coordinate system with localization errors within 0.1 meters.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Patient preferences for the management of high-grade dysplasia in Barrett's esophagus.

Surgical esophagectomy, intensive endoscopic surveillance, and mucosal ablative techniques, particularly photodynamic therapy (PDT), have been proposed as possible management strategies for Barrett’s high-grade dysplasia (HGD). Each option has advantages and disadvantages, and no firm consensus exists for the preferred strategy at this time. The purpose of this pilot study was to gain insight into patient preferences in Barrett’s HGD management. Twenty patients with Barrett’s esophagus were enrolled in a questionnaire study. The three possible management options for Barrett’s HGD including each option’s potential benefits and harms were presented to the subject in a formalized presentation that was designed to be easily comprehendible by patients. The subjects rated each strategy using a health-related quality of life instrument and chose one of the management strategies assuming they were found to have HGD. The average feeling thermometer rating scale values for the management strategies were as follows: endoscopic surveillance, 79; esophagectomy, 46; and PDT, 60. When asked to choose a strategy, 14 (70%) chose endoscopic surveillance, 3 (15%) chose esophagectomy, and 3 (15%) chose PDT. These findings were statistically significant (P = 0.0024). The patients who chose endoscopic surveillance felt “comfortable” with endoscopy, while the most common concern about esophagectomy, and PDT was the risk of death and the unknown risk of recurrence, respectively. In summary, when patients with Barrett’s esophagus were presented with three options to manage HGD, the majority chose endoscopic surveillance. Familiarity with endoscopic surveillance was the predominant reason for the choice.
Effect of Copper Sulfate on Egg Production and Shell Thickness

Abstract Copper sulfate supplementation at 0.2% or more of the diet depressed feed intake and body weight and decreased egg production and egg shell thickness. No significant effect on egg parameters was observed at the 0.1% level of supplementation.
Actual 5-year survival of patients with stage IIIB breast carcinoma: phase II trial of methotrexate, vinblastine, adriamycin, cisplatin, and folinic acid.

AbstractPatients with stage IIIB breast carcinoma represent only a small proportion of women with breast cancer in western countries but may constitute up to 50% of cases in underdeveloped countries. The prognosis remains poor despite aggressive treatment. Nineteen patients (11 with inflammatory breast carcinoma) received at least three courses of neoadjuvant chemotherapy of methotrexate, vinblastine, adriamycin, cisplatin, and folinic acid (MVAC/FA) followed by mastectomy. Six months of cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and 5-fluorouracil were given after surgery. Radiation therapy followed chemotherapy. Seventy percent of patients achieved complete and 14% partial response afrer MVAC/FA chemotherapy alone. Eleven patients (58%) survived 5 years, and 30% survived at least 8 years. The addition of cisplatin in combination chemotherapy used as first-line treatment for stage IIIB breast carcinoma was well tolerated, resulted in higher response rates, and appeared to have an effect on overall survival.
Dynamic generation of a Health Topics Overview from consumer health information documents

Online health information use is increasing, but can be too difficult for consumers. We created a system that dynamically generates a health topics overview for consumer health web pages that organises the information into four consumer-preferred categories while displaying topic prevalence through visualisation. It accesses both a consumer health vocabulary and the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS). We evaluated its ability by calculating precision, recall, and F-score for phrase extraction and categorisation. We tested pages from three different consumer web sites. Overall, precision is 82%, recall is 75%, and F-score is 78%, and precision between sites did not significantly differ.
Multiregional cohort enrolment projections: matching methods to enrolment policies

School districts throughout California are struggling with uncertainty in primary school enrolment levels. Some areas of the state are witnessing soaring enrolment levels due to immigration and internal migration, while other areas with expensive housing stock and ageing populations are expected to decline. State-level budget problems, the increasing popularity of home/private schooling, and school choice laws at the local level have resulted in extreme uncertainty about the expected enrolment levels at individual schools in some districts. Santa Barbara city schools provide an excellent example of enrolment instability and the costs associated with poor enrolment forecasts. The associated costs include consternation among employees due to last minute hires or reassignments, community unrest as school closures are threatened or carried out, and ineffective capital planning/allocation. This research uses student-level records from the Santa Barbara city schools to evaluate the nature of the instability in past enrolment forecasts. The primary objective of the paper is to propose and to evaluate a Multiregional Cohort-Enrolment projection model that we believe is better suited to prevailing enrolment policies. Although the model as proposed still requires further refinements, it appears promising as a forecasting and policy evaluation tool in districts that are increasing the level of school choice. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Distributed Drug Discovery, Part 2: global rehearsal of alkylating agents for the synthesis of resin-bound unnatural amino acids and virtual D(3) catalog construction.

Distributed Drug Discovery (D3) proposes solving large drug discovery problems by breaking them into smaller units for processing at multiple sites. A key component of the synthetic and computational stages of D3 is the global rehearsal of prospective reagents and their subsequent use in the creation of virtual catalogs of molecules accessible by simple, inexpensive combinatorial chemistry. The first section of this article documents the feasibility of the synthetic component of Distributed Drug Discovery. Twenty-four alkylating agents were rehearsed in the United States, Poland, Russia, and Spain, for their utility in the synthesis of resin-bound unnatural amino acids 1, key intermediates in many combinatorial chemistry procedures. This global reagent rehearsal, coupled to virtual library generation, increases the likelihood that any member of that virtual library can be made. It facilitates the realistic integration of worldwide virtual D3 catalog computational analysis with synthesis. The second part o...
FSH suppression during short term HCG administration: a gonadally mediated process.

Plasma and urinary follicle stimuulating hormone, plasma estradiol, and plasma testosterone were measured prior to and after a 4-day hCG provocative test (4000 IU/day) in 6 normal men and in 5 patients with deficient gonadal steroidogenesis (“agonadal”). Plasma and urinary FSH decreased significantly (p < .01) after hCG treatment in the normal men but did not change in the “agonadal” subjects. Mean plasma estradiol rose from 33.4 pg/ml to 73.4 pg/ml and mean plasma testosterone rose from 492 ng/100 ml to 971 ng/100 ml in the normal men; no steroid changes were demonstrable in the “agonadal” group. Additionally, the concomitant administration of clomiphene with hCG prevented the hCG induced FSH suppression in 3 normal men. FSH suppression during shortterm hCG administration to normal men is probably due to negative feedback by testicular steroids.
Problem solving and diabetes regimen adherence by children and adolescents with IDDM in social pressure situations: a reflection of normal development

Investigated problem-solving ability and reported regimen adherence among children, early adolescents, and middle adolescents with IDDM in response to hypothetical social situations where a choice between diabetes regimen adherence and peer desires must be made. Sixty-seven 8- to 17-year-olds with IDDM from two distinct U.S. geographical areas participated. Results indicated that compared to children with IDDM, adolescents with IDDM had better problem-solving abilities in response to social pressure situations, possibly reflecting their greater cognitive maturity. However, adolescents were also more likely to choose behaviors that are less regimen adherent. Differences in levels of problem-solving ability and adherence between the two regional subsamples were also found. Similar developmental patterns were found in both groups, showing the robust nature of the observed age-related trend of decreasing adherence in social situations despite increasing problem-solving abilities. Findings were interpreted in the context of normal adolescent development. Results are conceptually important for those interested in the transaction between peer and social influences and adherence for children and adolescents with IDDM, as well as other health behaviors.
Identification and action of juvenile hormone III from sexually mature alate females of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta

Abstract Analysis of extracts of hemolymph obtained from sexually mature alate females of Solenopsis invicta from monogyne colonies resulted in identification of juvenile hormone III (JH III). The average amount of JH III was 0.32±0.04 pmol/μmolof hemolymph. Topical application of 0.038 pmol of JH III was sufficient to stimulate alates to shed their wings in the presence of the queen. The time in which alates were induced to dealate decreased linearly with increasing concentrations of JH III from 0.038 to 3.8 pmol. However, higher JH III concentrations deviated from linearity and did not reach dealation times comparable with those that occur after mating flights. Thus, it appears that the mechanism of dealation that occurs when female alates are out of the influence of their queen is different from the one associated with mating flights. Application of 0.42 μmol of precocene II inhibited dealation of alates in queenless colonies. However, this inhibition was reversed after applying 38 pmol JH III to precocene-treated alates. The sizes of corpora allata (CA) from sexuals treated with JH III did not differ from those of controls. However, the sizes of CA were reduced in alates treated with precocene II. The results indicated that JH was important to dealation.
Fine structural characteristics and synaptic connections of trigeminocerebellar projection neurons in rat trigeminal nucleus oralis.

In order to classify the presynaptic terminals contacting trigeminocerebellar projection neurons (TCPNs) in rat trigeminal nucleus oralis (Vo), electron-microscopic examination of sequential thin sections made from TCPNs located in the border zone (BZ) of Vo, labeled by the retrograde transport of horseradish peroxidase, was undertaken. The use of BZ TCPNs, labeled in Golgi-like fashion so that many of their dendrites and axons were visible, allowed for the determination of the distribution of each bouton type along the soma and dendrites, as well as for the characterization of the morphology and synaptic relations of the labeled axon and its terminals. Three types of axon terminals contacting labeled BZ TCPNs have been recognized, depending upon whether they contain primarily spherical-shaped, agranular synaptic vesicles (S endings); predominantly flattened, agranular synaptic vesicles (F endings); or a population of pleomorphic-shaped, agranular synaptic vesicles (P endings). The S endings represent the...
Interactive semantic camera coverage determination using 3D floorplans

Emerging applications like smart environments and observation systems can benefit significantly by making use of semantics provided by floorplan of the environment. Cameras in the system can be calibrated with respect to the floorplan which allows their coverage to be automatically labeled with semantically meaningful regions like walls, floors and doors. Calibration with respect to floorplan requires establishing correspondences between 3D features (corners, edges) and their 2D images. In the absence of reliable methods to establish these correspondences automatically, a human is often involved in the loop. This task of specifying correspondences manually is both tedious and prone to specifying redundant correspondences. This work attempts to make the task easier and intuitive for the user by identifying which 3D features are best to specify correspondence for. We propose a new measure to rank 3D features according to the amount of information they can provide for calibration, and develop a smart algorithm to determine the importance of 3D features based on this measure. This leads to an intuitive interface to guide the user in correspondence specification task. Results on simulated and real data look promising and closely follow the ideal behavior.
Beyond the Ivory Tower: critical praxis in medical anthropology.

Recent discussion in critical medical anthropology has turned to the issue of application beyond the academy. Building on Gorz's notion of "nonreformist reform," that is, applied work that unmasks rather than mystifies the sources of social inequality and ill health, this article argues for the possiblity of an applied critical medical anthropology, suggests concrete opportunities for such work in health settings, and identitfies problems and social conditions that affect the development of a critical health praxis. These points are illustrated by revieving case studies of anthropological work with the Farm Labor Organizing Committee in Indiana, the United Farm Workers Union in California, and the Hispanic Health Council in Connecticut. The article concludes with an examination of the skills and resources critical medical anthropology has to offer systemchallenging movements in health care. [critical medical anthropology, health praxis, Farm Labor Organizing Committee, United Farm Workers Union, Hispanic Health Council]
The influence of fear appeals, message design, and masculinity on men's motivation to perform the testicular self‐exam

Abstract Despite the significant threat men face for contracting testicular cancer, most men remain completely unaware of this risk. Moreover, men are not regularly performing the testicular self‐exam (TSE) in order to detect this form of cancer in their bodies. The current study attempted to assess whether fear appeals targeted at men will motivate them to begin regular performance of the TSE. Additionally, the influence of message design and masculinity was also tested. Results indicate messages that follow the direction of Witte's (1992, 1994) Extended Parallel Process Model and promote both high threat and high efficacy are successful in increasing men's intentions to perform the TSE. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Cytotoxicity with antibody‐glucose oxidase conjugates specific for a human colonic cancer and carcinoembryonic antigen

Rabbit or goat antibodies to a human colonic cancer cell line (HT-29) and to carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were studied with respect to their ability to cause complement-mediated and enzyme-mediated cytotoxicity. IgG fractions of normal sera and antisera to CEA and HT-29 were prepared and conjugated to glucose oxidase, an enzyme which permits specific iodination of cell membranes in the presence of glucose, iodide, and lactoperoxidase. Cytotoxicity was evaluated with several established tumor-cell lines in vitro by measuring the uptake of 125 I-iododeoxyuridine after 24 h in tissue culture. Specific iodination and cytotoxicity were observed with both enzyme-antibody conjugates, but the enzyme-antibody conjugate specific for CEA was much less effective than that for HT-29. Complement-mediated cytotoxicity was obtained with both antibodies, but with anti-CEA antibody effects were obtained only at high antibody concentrations. The attachment of enzyme to antibody produced manifold enhancement of the inherent cytotoxicity of the antibody.
Efficacy of a dating violence prevention program on attitudes justifying aggression

Objectives: The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate a five-session dating violence prevention curriculum in terms of its effect on attitudes justifying the use of dating violence. Methods: The curriculum was implemented in all health classes in a Long Island, New York, school. A total of 193 students participated (boys, n = 106; girls, n = 87). A quasi-experimental design was used to evaluate change in attitudes justifying dating violence, with health classes randomly assigned to the treatment or no-treatment conditions. Results: Pre- to postprogram assessments indicated that there were significant decreases in overall attitudes justifying the use of dating violence as a means to resolve conflict among students exposed to the curriculum material, whereas those who were not exposed did not show attitude change from pre- to postprogram evaluation. Conclusions: The curriculum shows promise as an effective tool for changing attitudes condoning dating violence. Future research is needed to determine whether the observed attitude change is also linked to reduction in aggressive behaviors.
A View of Danish Pediatric Care

The Danish social system provides competent, accessible, continuous, and coordinated medical care to the pediatric population. The pediatri cian does not deal with the routine aspects of well-infant and child care but is rather hospital based and acts on consultant to the generalists in his district. The generalist has the primary role in providing health care to the population in a program where everyone is obliged to partici pate and no one is excluded or ineligible for any reason.The American obsession with frequent, periodic examinations for infants, children, and young adults does not exist under the Danish pediatric health system. Hospital emergency rooms are used for truly emergent circum stances and not for episodic care.
Stent-grafts in the treatment of emergent or urgent carotid artery disease: review of 25 cases.

PURPOSE: To report the authors' initial experience with carotid artery stent-grafts in a comparatively large patient series for the treatment of acute bleeding and impending rupture or the prevention of distal embolization. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was approved by the institutional review boards and performed according to HIPPA standards. Twenty-five patients were treated with 27 carotid artery stent-grafts (Gore Viabahn, n = 10; Bard Fluency, n = 9; polytetrafluoroethylene-covered Palmaz, n = 5; and Wallgraft, n = 3). Thirteen stent-grafts were placed in patients with carotid blow-out syndrome (including three patients with carotid-airway fistula), 12 in patients with either pseudoaneurysm (n = 9) or true aneurysm (n = 3), and two in patients with intractable high-grade bare stent restenosis. RESULTS: The technical success rate was 100% (27 of 27 cases). No acute procedural transient ischemic attacks or strokes occurred. Procedural dissections occurred in two of the 27 cases (7.4%). Short-term complications occurred in three of the 27 cases (11%) (repeat hemorrhage, n = 2; common carotid artery occlusion, n = 1). The overall patient mortality rate was 36% (nine of 25 patients, all with carotid blow-out syndrome). Six-month follow-up in 15 of the 16 living patients demonstrated widely patent stent-grafts. Two patients with pseudoaneurysm also demonstrated patent stents at 18- and 33-month follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Stent-grafts may be useful in the treatment of carotid artery bleeding syndrome, aneurysm, and stenosis, with a high procedural success rate in selected cases. The results of mid-term follow-up are encouraging, but results of long-term follow-up must be evaluated in future studies.
Prospective randomized trial of venous angioplasty in MS (PREMiSe).

Objective: We report the results of the investigation of safety and efficacy of venous angioplasty in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) with findings of extracranial venous anomalies, considered hallmarks of chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI), in a 2-phase study (ClinicalTrials.govNCT01450072). Methods: Phase 1 was an open-label safety study (10 patients); phase 2 was sham-controlled, randomized, and double-blind (10 sham procedure, 9 treated). All study patients fulfilled venous hemodynamic screening criteria indicative of CCSVI. Assessment was at 1, 3, and 6 months postprocedure with MRI, clinical, and hemodynamic outcomes. Primary endpoints were safety at 24 hours and 1 month, venous outflow restoration >75% at 1 month, and effect of angioplasty on new lesion activity and relapse rate over 6 months. Secondary endpoints included changes in disability, brain volume, cognitive tests, and quality of life. Results: No perioperative complications were noted; however, one patient with history of syncope was diagnosed with episodic bradycardia requiring placement of a pacemaker before discharge. Doppler evidence-based venous hemodynamic insufficiency severity score (VHISS) was reduced >75% compared to baseline in phase 1 (at 1 month) but not phase 2. In phase 2, higher MRI activity (cumulative number of new contrast-enhancing lesions [19 vs 3, p = 0.062] and new T2 lesions [17 vs 3, p = 0.066]) and relapse activity (4 vs 1, p = 0.389) were identified as nonsignificant trends in the treated vs sham arm over 6 months. Using analysis of covariance, significant cumulative new T2 lesions were related to larger VHISS decrease ( p = 0.028) and angioplasty ( p = 0.01) over the follow-up. No differences in other endpoints were detected. Conclusion: Venous angioplasty is not an effective treatment for MS over the short term and may exacerbate underlying disease activity. Classification of evidence: This is a Class I study demonstrating that clinical and imaging outcomes are no better or worse in patients with MS identified with venous outflow restriction who receive venous angioplasty compared to sham controls who do not receive angioplasty. This study also includes a Class IV phase 1 study of safety in 10 patients receiving the angioplasty procedure.
Inferring Queue Sizes in Access Networks by Active Measurement

Router queues can impact both round-trip times and throughput. Yet little is publicly known about queue provisioning employed by Internet services providers for the routers that control the access links to home computers. This paper proposes QFind, a black-box measurement technique, as a simple method to approximate the size of the access queue at last mile router. We evaluate QFind through simulation, emulation, and measurement. Although precise access queue results are limited by receiver window sizes and other system events, we find there are distinct difference between DSL and cable access queue sizes.
Development and Evaluation of Functional Gene Arrays for Detection of Selected Genes in the Environment

To determine the potential of DNA array technology for assessing functional gene diversity and distribution, a prototype microarray was constructed with genes involved in nitrogen cycling: nitrite reductase (nirS and nirK) genes, ammonia mono-oxygenase (amoA) genes, and methane mono-oxygenase (pmoA) genes from pure cultures and those cloned from marine sediments. In experiments using glass slide microarrays, genes possessing less than 80 to 85% sequence identity were differentiated under hybridization conditions of high stringency (65°C). The detection limit for nirS genes was approximately 1 ng of pure genomic DNA and 25 ng of soil community DNA using our optimized protocol. A linear quantitative relationship (r2 = 0.89 to 0.94) was observed between signal intensity and target DNA concentration over a range of 1 to 100 ng for genomic DNA (or genomic DNA equivalent) from both pure cultures and mixed communities. However, the quantitative capacity of microarrays for measuring the relative abundance of targeted genes in complex environmental samples is less clear due to divergent target sequences. Sequence divergence and probe length affected hybridization signal intensity within a certain range of sequence identity and size, respectively. This prototype functional gene array did reveal differences in the apparent distribution of nir and amoA and pmoA gene families in sediment and soil samples. Our results indicate that glass-based microarray hybridization has potential as a tool for revealing functional gene composition in natural microbial communities; however, more work is needed to improve sensitivity and quantitation and to understand the associated issue of specificity.
Therapeutic Effects of an Anti-Myc Drug on Mouse Pancreatic Cancer

BACKGROUND Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is frequently driven by oncogenic KRAS(KRAS*) mutations. We developed a mouse model of KRAS*-induced PDA and, based on genetic results demonstrating that KRAS* tumorigenicity depends on Myc activity, we evaluated the therapeutic potential of an orally administered anti-Myc drug. METHODS We tested the efficacy of Mycro3, a small-molecule inhibitor of Myc-Max dimerization, in the treatment of mouse PDA (n = 9) and also of xenografts of human pancreatic cancer cell lines (NOD/SCID mice, n = 3-12). Tumor responses to the drug were evaluated by PET/CT imaging, and histological, immunohistochemical, molecular and microarray analyses. The Student's t test was used for differences between groups. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS Transgenic overexpression of KRAS* in the pancreas resulted in pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia in two-week old mice, which developed invasive PDA a week later and became moribund at one month. However, this aggressive form of pancreatic tumorigenesis was effectively prevented by genetic ablation of Myc specifically in the pancreas. We then treated moribund, PDA-bearing mice daily with the Mycro3 Myc-inhibitor. The mice survived until killed at two months. PET/CT image analysis (n = 5) demonstrated marked shrinkage of PDA, while immunohistochemical analyses showed an increase in cancer cell apoptosis and reduction in cell proliferation (treated/untreated proliferation index ratio: 0.29, P < .001, n = 3, each group). Tumor growth was also drastically attenuated in Mycro3-treated NOD/SCID mice (n = 12) carrying orthotopic or heterotopic xenografts of human pancreatic cancer cells (eg, mean tumor weight ± SD of treated heterotopic xenografts vs vehicle-treated controls: 15.2±5.8 mg vs 230.2±43.9 mg, P < .001). CONCLUSION These results provide strong justification for eventual clinical evaluation of anti-Myc drugs as potential chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of PDA.
Changing Provider Practices, Program Environment, and Improving Outcomes by Transporting Multidimensional Family Therapy to an Adolescent Drug Treatment Setting

Effective interventions for drug abusing adolescents are underutilized. Using an interrupted time series design, this study tested a multicomponent, multi-level technology transfer intervention developed to train clinical staff within an existing day treatment program to implement multidimensional family therapy (MDFT), an evidence-based adolescent substance abuse treatment. The sample included 10 program staff and 104 clients. MDFT was incorporated into the program and changes were noted in the program environment, therapist behavior, and in most (e.g., drug abstinence, and out of home placements) but not all (e.g., drug use frequency) client outcomes. These changes remained after MDFT supervision was withdrawn.
Location coding by opponent neural populations in the auditory cortex.

Although the auditory cortex plays a necessary role in sound localization, physiological investigations in the cortex reveal inhomogeneous sampling of auditory space that is difficult to reconcile with localization behavior under the assumption of local spatial coding. Most neurons respond maximally to sounds located far to the left or right side, with few neurons tuned to the frontal midline. Paradoxically, psychophysical studies show optimal spatial acuity across the frontal midline. In this paper, we revisit the problem of inhomogeneous spatial sampling in three fields of cat auditory cortex. In each field, we confirm that neural responses tend to be greatest for lateral positions, but show the greatest modulation for near-midline source locations. Moreover, identification of source locations based on cortical responses shows sharp discrimination of left from right but relatively inaccurate discrimination of locations within each half of space. Motivated by these findings, we explore an opponent-process theory in which sound-source locations are represented by differences in the activity of two broadly tuned channels formed by contra- and ipsilaterally preferring neurons. Finally, we demonstrate a simple model, based on spike-count differences across cortical populations, that provides bias-free, level-invariant localization—and thus also a solution to the “binding problem” of associating spatial information with other nonspatial attributes of sounds.
Measuring floristic homogenization by non‐native plants in North America

Aim To determine if non-native plant species are homogenizing species composition among widely dispersed plant communities. Location Twenty localities in North America. Methods Species lists among localities were compared to measure the influence of non-native species richness at each locality on the Jaccard Index (JI) of similarity between localities. Results After removing the effects of distance, because shared native species decreased with distance, three (nonexclusive) lines of evidence indicate that non-native species promote homogenization. First, pairs of sites with a high combined total of non-native species tend to have higher similarity than those with a low total of non-natives. Second, for a given distance, more non-native than native species tended to be shared among localities. Third, whereas most of the site comparisons with high total non-native richness have a non-native/native JI ratio greater than 1 (often much greater), only half of the comparisons with low total non-native richness have a ratio greater than one. Main conclusions These findings provide quantitative support for the widely held, but rarely tested, notion that non-native species tend to homogenize biological communities because they are more commonly shared among communities. Such testing is important as non-native species could theoretically have no impact or even reduce homogenization among communities, if non-native colonizers consist of different species pools.
The Infectious Dose of Coxiella Burnetii (Q Fever)

Quantitative estimation of an individual's risk of infection due to airborne pathogens requires knowledge of the pathogen's infectious dose, in addition to estimates of the pathogen's airborne conc...
Ethnic Favoritism, Regionalism, and the Provision of Public and Private Goods in Kenya

We explore the idea that a government indulging in ethnic favoritism can target private goods to in-groups while excluding out-groups, but it cannot easily exclude out-groups from using public goods provided to in-groups. The implication is that out-groups living in areas where in-groups are preponderant, will benefit from ethnic favoritism in public goods provision (ethnic free-riding), but not from ethnic favoritism in private goods provision. Conversely, in-groups living in regions where out-groups are preponderant, will benefit from ethnic favoritism in private goods provision, but not from ethnic favoritism in public goods provision. Previous research has not sufficiently distinguished or tested these differing implications for in/out groups and public/private goods (eg, Frank and Rainer, 2012; Posner and Kramon, 2012; Burgess et al, 2011). We do so for the Moi and Kibaki administrations in Kenya using data from multiple rounds of the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), besides also exploring a limited set of variables for the Kenyatta administration.
Pi Sigma Alpha: The Honor Society's Role in Student Education and Professional Development

This presentation provides information on professional development programs available for undergraduate students through Pi Sigma Alpha. In particular, the presentation emphasizes opportunities provided by the Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal of Politics.
Discrimination of steady state and transient state of dither extremum seeking control via sinusoidal detection

Abstract A major class of extremum seeking control (ESC) is based on the use of periodic dither perturbation of plant input for extracting the gradient information. Presence of the dither input into the steady state operation is undesirable in practice due to the possible excessive wear of actuators. It is thus beneficial to stop the dithering action after the ESC reaches its steady state. In this paper, we propose a method for automatically discriminating between the steady state and the transient state modes of extremum seeking control process using the sinusoidal detection techniques. Some design guidelines are proposed for the parameter selection of the relevant sinusoidal detection scheme. The proposed scheme is validated with simulation study on dynamic virtual plant of two building HVAC systems.
A Diagnostic Algorithm for Children with Low Alkaline Phosphatase Activities: Lessons Learned from Laboratory Screening for Hypophosphatasia

Objectives To explore the role of laboratory screening for hypophosphatasia and propose a diagnostic pathway for children with low serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities. Study design A retrospective hospital-based study over an 8-year period was conducted to identify children younger than 16 years of age with low ALP activity ( Results Of 323 064 analyzed samples, 1526 had ALP activities 100 U/L. Eighteen were identified as study-positive. Of the 15 surviving children, 13 were traceable. Four had persistently low ALP activity on retesting, of whom 2 had raised pyridoxal-5′-phosphate and phosphoethanolamine concentrations and were subsequently tested for ALPL gene mutations; a 4-year-old asymptomatic girl with a novel homozygous ALPL missense mutation and a 23-year-old female with a heterozygous mutation. There was significant overlap in ALP activities between study-positive and 11 current patients with hypophosphatasia. We propose a diagnostic algorithm for children with low ALP activities based on clinical and biochemical variables. Conclusions Patients with persistently low ALP activity require further clinical, biochemical, and radiological assessment for hypophosphatasia, even in the absence of clinical symptoms. The proposed diagnostic algorithm for children with low ALP will facilitate early detection of cases of hypophosphatasia, which, with the availability of enzyme replacement for hypophosphatasia, can be life-saving or avoid years of undiagnosed morbidity.
Factors influencing farmers’ willingness to participate in water allocation trading. A case study in southern Spain

This study aims to uncover the factors that influence farmers’ attitudes towards water allocation trading. In the study, we simulate two water availability scenarios, an average year and a drought year, in a contingent valuation experiment with 241 farmers. A survey was held in the spring of 2012 in the Guadalquivir and Almanzora River Basins. First, we estimated a multinomial logit model to determine the factors that influence farmers to decide to participate in our hypothetical market. We then analysed the structural and socio-economic factors determining the monetary value of traded water using Heckman’s two-step model. Our results indicate that those farmers who are more innovative and have had agricultural training show a higher willingness to participate in water trading. Additionally, low water-supply guarantee and appropriate information about seasonal water availability increase the probability of participation. Higher willingness to pay (WTP) for water is found in horticulture and among farmers who grow citrus and other permanent crops; lower water selling value (WTA) is found in farms with extensive annual crops and traditional olive groves. However, monetary values (WTP/WTA) are strongly dependent on the current cost of irrigation water services. While findings of this research seem to support the idea of diffusion innovation theory, the existence of ethical concerns that might influence farmers’ acceptance of irrigation water markets needs further analysis.
Assessing early childhood social and emotional development: Key conceptual and measurement issues

Abstract This concluding paper takes stock of key issues that have emerged across the papers of this special issue on measuring early childhood social and emotional development, as well as in the broader literature anchoring these papers. While we include separate sections focusing on conceptual and measurement issues, it quickly becomes clear that the two are intertwined. The field lacks conceptual and definitional clarity, thus hindering our understanding of the focus and utility of specific measures. Indeed, our overarching conclusion is that the greatest progress will be made when measures of young children's social and emotional development are clearly mapped onto an agreed upon conceptual framework that both distinguishes social and emotional development from other broad domains (such as cognitive development), and includes carefully delineated and defined subdomains (broad areas within social and emotional development, such as emotional competence), constructs (specific aspects within subdomains, such as emotion knowledge), and corresponding behaviors.
Histology of the Labellar Glands in the Black Blow Fly, Phormia regina

In Phormia regina (Meigen) the labellar glands are 2 clear sac-like structures found in the distal portion of the haustellum, on either side of the elastic ligament (Fig. 2, 3). These glands have been described in Calliphora erythrocephala (Meigen) (Lowne 1890-5, Graham-Smith 1930), Drosophila melanogaster Meigen (Miller 1950), and Musca domestica L. (Hewitt 1910). Fig. 1 shows position of the glands in the proboscis of the house fly (after Hewitt 1910), and Fig. 2 shows the similar situation in P. regina. Apart from Miller, the authors called these structures labial salivary glands. Snodgrass (1935), however, applied the term labial or salivary gland to the lingual salivary glands and reported no such structure comparable to the labellar glands in higher Diptera. In Phormia the lingual salivary glands are large compared to the labellar glands and extend through the thorax and well into the abdomen. In this study of the histology of the labellar glands of Phormia , the terminology of Miller (1950) is followed.
Deuteron Magnetic Resonance Spectrum and Relaxation in K D 2 P O 4

The electric field gradient (EFG) tensor at the site of the deuteron in the hydrogen bond of K${\mathrm{D}}_{2}$P${\mathrm{O}}_{4}$ and the relaxation times of the deuteron have been studied. The measured quadrupole coupling constant is 119 kc/sec, the asymmetry parameter is 0.049, and the major principal axis of the tensor is along the bond direction. None of these features of the EFG tensor change appreciably with temperature over the entire range studied, which range includes the ferroelectric Curie point ${T}_{c}$. An interesting additional splitting in the spectral lines below ${T}_{c}$ is observed however. The thermal relaxation time of the deuteron has been studied carefully only at room temperature. One obtains ${T}_{1}=6.5$ minutes at a particular orientation of the crystal decreasing by a factor of 2 at other particular orientations. ${T}_{2}$ is of the order 5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$ second. All deuterons have the same relaxation as a function of crystal orientation although falling into distinct categories from the point of view of relative orientation of electric field gradient tensor and applied magnetic field. This interdependence of deuterons in different environments and the possible causes of relaxation are discussed.
Recent Advances in the Thermal Decomposition of Cyclic Nitramines

The effects of physical properties and molecular conformation on the thermal decomposition kinetics of several cyclic nitramines are examined and compared to the decomposition of RDX. The compounds used in the study are: octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro- 1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX), hexahydro-l-nitroso-3,5-dinitro-s-triazine (ONDNTA), 1,3,5- trinitro- 1,3,5-triazacycloheptane (TNCHP), and 2-oxo-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazacyclohexane (K6). The decomposition pathways of HMX in the liquid phase are similar to the four parallel decomposition pathways that control the decomposition of RDX in the liquid phase. The products formed during the thermal decomposition of ONDNTA arise from multiple reaction pathways. The identities and temporal behaviors of the ONDNTA decomposition products are discussed. TNCHP is thermally stable in the liquid phase. The decomposition products from TNCHP are formed via multiple reaction pathways. One decomposition pathway for TNCHP is through its mononitroso intermediate. TNCHP does not form a stable product that is analogous to oxy-s-triazine (OST) formed in RDX or the smaller ring fragments formed in the liquid-phase decomposition of HMX. K6 is less thermally stable and the decomposition mechanism is much simpler than that of RDX, HMX and TNCHP. The thermal decomposition of K6 occurs between 150 and 180 °C. The products formed during the decomposition of K6 are mainly CH 2 O and N 2 O with minor amounts or HCN, CO, NO, and NO 2 .
Comparison of amplitude-decorrelation, speckle-variance and phase-variance OCT angiography methods for imaging the human retina and choroid

We compared the performance of three OCT angiography (OCTA) methods: speckle variance, amplitude decorrelation and phase variance for imaging of the human retina and choroid. Two averaging methods, split spectrum and volume averaging, were compared to assess the quality of the OCTA vascular images. All data were acquired using a swept-source OCT system at 1040 nm central wavelength, operating at 100,000 A-scans/s. We performed a quantitative comparison using a contrast-to-noise (CNR) metric to assess the capability of the three methods to visualize the choriocapillaris layer. For evaluation of the static tissue noise suppression in OCTA images we proposed to calculate CNR between the photoreceptor/RPE complex and the choriocapillaris layer. Finally, we demonstrated that implementation of intensity-based OCT imaging and OCT angiography methods allows for visualization of retinal and choroidal vascular layers known from anatomic studies in retinal preparations. OCT projection imaging of data flattened to selected retinal layers was implemented to visualize retinal and choroidal vasculature. User guided vessel tracing was applied to segment the retinal vasculature. The results were visualized in a form of a skeletonized 3D model.