cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of do-not-resuscitation orders on quality of care performance measures in patients hospitalized with acute heart failure

Background Heart failure (HF) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among Americans. Despite increased interest in end-of-life care, the implications of do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders in acutely ill patients with HF remain unclear. The goals of this observational study were to describe the use of DNR orders and their impact on treatment approaches in residents of a large New England metropolitan area hospitalized with acute heart failure. Methods Use of HF performance measures, including assessment of left ventricular function, use of angiotensin receptor blocking agents, anticoagulation, smoking cessation counseling, and use of nonpharmacologic strategies, was examined through review of the medical records of 4,537 metropolitan Worcester (MA) residents admitted to 11 central Massachusetts hospitals with acute HF in 1995 and 2000 according to the presence of DNR orders. Results Patients with DNR orders were less likely to have had their left ventricular function assessed (31% vs 43%) as well as receive renin-angiotensin system blockade (49% vs 57%), anticoagulation (65% vs 78%), or nonpharmacologic interventions (87% vs 92%) as compared to patients without DNR orders. Patients with DNR orders were significantly less likely to have received any quality assurance measure for acute HF (adjusted hazard ratio 0.63, 95% confidence interval 0.40-0.99) than patients without DNR orders. Conclusions The use of quality assurance measures in acute HF is markedly lower in patients with DNR orders. The implications of DNR orders need to be further clarified in the treatment of patients with acute HF.
Ontological implications of being in immersive virtual environments

The idea of Virtual Reality once conjured up visions of new territories to explore, and expectations of awaiting worlds of wonder. VR has matured to become a practical tool for therapy, medicine and commercial interests, yet artists, in particular, continue to expand the possibilities for the medium. Artistic virtual environments created over the past two decades probe the phenomenological nature of these virtual environments. When we inhabit a fully immersive virtual environment, we have entered into a new form of Being. Not only does our body continue to exist in the real, physical world, we are also embodied within the virtual by means of technology that translates our bodied actions into interactions with the virtual environment. Very few states in human existence allow this bifurcation of our Being, where we can exist simultaneously in two spaces at once, with the possible exception of meta-physical states such as shamanistic trance and out-of-body experiences. This paper discusses the nature of this simultaneous Being, how we enter the virtual space, what forms of persona we can don there, what forms of spaces we can inhabit, and what type of wondrous experiences we can both hope for and expect.
Passive and active mode-locking of quantum-dot lasers for ultrashort, high-power, and low-noise optical pulse generation

Quantum-dot lasers have shown remarkable properties, such as temperature-insensitive operation, low loss, efficient carrier recombination, ultrafast gain recovery time, suppression of beam filamentation, reduced sensitivity to optical feedback, etc. These excellent performances will contribute to open new cost effective and improved lightwave communication systems. We exploit the performance of mode-locking of quantum-dot lasers for ultrashort, high power, and low noise optical pulse generation using two-section mode-locked laser diodes and a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA)-based ring laser cavity.
Development of a single aptamer-based surface enhanced Raman scattering method for rapid detection of multiple pesticides.

The objective of this study was to develop a simple and rapid method that could detect and discriminate four specific pesticides (isocarbophos, omethoate, phorate, and profenofos) using a single aptamer-based capture procedure followed by Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS). The aptamer is a single stranded DNA sequence that is specific to capture these four pesticides. The thiolated aptamer was conjugated onto silver (Ag) dendrites, a nanostructure that can enhance the Raman fingerprint of pesticides, through Ag–thiol bonds. It was then backfilled with 6-mercaptohexanol (MH) to prevent nonspecific binding. The modified SERS platform [Ag–(Ap + MH)] was then mixed with each pesticide solution (P) for 20 min. After capturing the pesticides, the Ag–(Ap + MH)–P complex was analyzed under a DXR Raman microscope and TQ Analyst software. The results show that the four pesticides can be captured and detected using principal component analysis based on their distinct fingerprint Raman peaks. The limits of detection (LODs) of isocarbophos, omethoate, phorate, and profenofos were 3.4 μM (1 ppm), 24 μM (5 ppm), 0.4 μM (0.1 ppm), and 14 μM (5 ppm) respectively. This method was also validated successfully in apple juice. These results demonstrated the super capacity of aptamer-based SERS in rapid detection and discrimination of multi-pesticides. This technique can be extended to detect a wide range of pesticides using specific aptamers.
Paying for High- and Low-Quality Teaching.

Abstract The extensive research on teacher quality has led to two conclusions. First, there are large and significant differences among teachers in terms of their capacity to improve student achievement. Second, these differences are not captured by common measures of teacher qualifications (E.A. Hanushek, Teacher quality, in: L.T. Izumi, W.M. Evers (Eds.), Teacher Quality, Hoover Press, Palo Alto, CA, 2002, pp. 1–12). We present the argument that in order to improve teacher quality, one must focus on teacher performance. By creating teaching standards and performance rubrics, rating teachers against those standards, and then employing a multivariate multilevel mixed statistical model to attribute students’ achievement gains to teachers, we both designed and provided preliminary validation evidence for a system to judge teachers based on performance. Our results demonstrate that teaching performance as defined by our standards and rubrics is highly predictive of student academic progress across the elementary grades. Implications for our research to improve teaching through implementing performance pay systems are discussed.
Efficient Isolation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Type III Secretion Translocators and Assembly of Heteromeric Transmembrane Pores in Model Membranes

Translocation of bacterial toxins or effectors into host cells using the type III secretion (T3S) system is a conserved mechanism shared by many Gram-negative pathogens. Pseudomonas aeruginosa injects different proteins across the plasma membrane of target cells, altering the normal metabolism of the host. Protein translocation presumably occurs through a proteinaceous transmembrane pore formed by two T3S secreted protein translocators, PopB and PopD. Unfolded translocators are secreted through the T3S needle prior to insertion into the target membrane. Purified PopB and PopD form pores in model membranes. However, their tendency to form heterogeneous aggregates in solution had hampered the analysis of how these proteins undergo the transition from a denatured state to a membrane-inserted state. Translocators were purified as stable complexes with the cognate chaperone PcrH and isolated from the chaperone using 6 M urea. We report here the assembly of stable transmembrane pores by dilution of urea-denatured translocators in the presence of membranes. PopB and PopD spontaneously bound liposomes containing anionic phospholipids and cholesterol in a pH-dependent manner as observed by two independent assays, time-resolved Forster resonance energy transfer and sucrose-step gradient ultracentrifugation. Using Bodipy-labeled proteins, we found that PopB interacts with PopD on the membrane surface as determined by excitation energy migration and fluorescence quenching. Stable transmembrane pores are more efficiently assembled at pH <5.0, suggesting that acidic residues might be involved in the initial membrane binding and/or insertion. Altogether, the experimental setup described here represents an efficient method for the reconstitution and analysis of membrane-inserted translocators.
Rheumatologic manifestations of the “MonoMAC” syndrome. a systematic review

MonoMAC syndrome is characterized by monocytopenia with susceptibility to nontuberculous mycobacterial infections. First recognized in 2011, it is caused by GATA2 mutations and can manifest as disseminated mycobacterial, fungal, and viral infections. While mortality rates for this disorder have been high, it has recently been successfully treated with haploidentical allogeneic stem cell transplant. Since approximately one third of patients may have rheumatologic symptoms, such as erythema nodosum, panniculitis, or arthralgias, rheumatologists may expect to encounter this newly described entity with increasing frequency.
Prodrugs of Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone and Related Peptides as Central Nervous System Agents

Prodrug design for brain delivery of small- and medium-sized neuropeptides was reviewed, focusing on thyrotropin-releasing hormone and structurally related peptides as examples. We have summarized our most important advances in methodology, as well as assessed the benefits and limitations of bioreversible chemical manipulation techniques to achieve targeting of the parent molecules into the central nervous system. The value of prodrug-amenable analogues as potential drug-like central nervous systems agents was highlighted.
Systemic Therapy of Disseminated Myeloma in Passively Immunized Mice Using Measles Virus-infected Cell Carriers

Multiple myeloma (MM) is bone marrow plasma cell malignancy. A clinical trial utilizing intravenous administration of oncolytic measles virus (MV) encoding the human sodium-iodide symporter (MV-NIS) is ongoing in myeloma patients. However, intravenously administered MV-NIS is rapidly neutralized by antiviral antibodies. Because myeloma cell lines retain bone marrow tropism, they may be ideal as carriers for delivery of MV-NIS to myeloma deposits. A disseminated human myeloma (KAS 6/1) model was established. Biodistribution of MM1, a myeloma cell line, was determined after intravenous infusion. MM1 cells were found in the spine, femurs, and mandibles of tumor-bearing mice. Lethally irradiated MM1 cells remained susceptible to measles infection and transferred MV to KAS 6/1 cells in the presence of measles immune sera. Mice-bearing disseminated myeloma and passively immunized with measles immune serum were given MV-NIS or lethally irradiated MV-NIS-infected MM1 carriers. The antitumor activity of MV-NIS was evident only in measles naive mice and not in passively immunized mice. In contrast, survivals of both measles naive and immune mice were extended using MV-NIS-infected MM1 cell carriers. Hence, we demonstrate for the first time that systemically administered cells can serve as MV carriers and prolonged survival of mice with pre-existing antimeasles antibodies.
The evolving role of MRI in the assessment of coronary artery disease

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods are positioned to make a major impact in the care of patients with ischemic heart disease. Further advances are to be expected in the area of myocardial perfusion imaging and noninvasive MRI coronary “angiography.” Work also continues in determining quantitative flow via MRI. Although expensive, the unique ability of MRi methods to provide multiple pieces of information in a single examination may make this technology cost effective. The concept of a “one-stop shop” is progressing steadily toward a clinical reality.
Is the renin-angiotensin system really unnecessary in patients with severe chronic heart failure: The price we pay for interfering with evolution*

Inhibition of the angiotensin-converting enzyme has become an established approach in the management of patients with severe chronic heart failure (1,2). Both captopril and enalapril produce shortand long-term hemodynamic and clinical improvement in these patients (3), and both drugs have been shown to be more effective than placebo in randomized double-blind clinical trials (4-9). The most recently published trial documenting the efficacy of enalapril in ambulatory patients with heart failure by Creager et al. (9) appears in this issue of the Journal. Other studies (I) suggest that the benefits of long-term treatment with captopril are greater than can be achieved with other vasodilator drugs, particularly hydralazine and prazosin. Furthermore, converting enzyme inhibition may reduce the frequency of ventricular tachyarrhythmias in patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction, perhaps by reducing circulating levels of catecholamines or preserving total body stores of potassium (6). By these favorable hemodynamic and antiarrhythmic actions, long-term therapy with captopril and enalapril may prolong survival in selected patients (10,11). This accumulated evidence creates a compelling case for a direct deleterious effect of the renin-angiotensin system in severe
New Dual N-Point Functions

As an example of the group-theoretical approach to the construction of new dual amplitudes, we discuss a model pion $N$-point function in which the $\ensuremath{\pi}$ trajectory lies \textonehalf{} unit below the leading ($\ensuremath{\rho}$) trajectory. The model is completely factorizable, contains a natural $G$ parity, and obeys the Adler condition approximately. The degeneracy of the spectrum and the ghost problem are essentially the same as in the conventional Veneziano $N$-point function. In a separate section, we discuss a dual interaction of an $\mathrm{SU}(3)$ nonet of scalar mesons with mass splitting.
Regional brain structural dysmorphology in human immunodeficiency virus infection: effects of acquired immune deficiency syndrome, alcoholism, and age.

Background Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and alcoholism each carries liability for disruption of brain structure and function integrity. Despite considerable prevalence of HIV-alcoholism comorbidity, few studies examined the potentially heightened burden of disease comorbidity. Methods Participants were 342 men and women: 110 alcoholics, 59 with HIV infection, 65 with HIV infection and alcoholism, and 108 healthy control subjects. This design enabled examination of independent and combined effects of HIV infection and alcoholism along with other factors (acquired immune deficiency syndrome [AIDS]-defining events, hepatitis C infection, age) on regional brain volumes derived from T1-weighted magnetic resonance images. Results Brain volumes, expressed as Z scores corrected for intracranial volume and age, were measured in 20 tissue and 5 ventricular and sulcal regions. The most profound and consistent volume deficits occurred with alcohol use disorders, notable in the cortical mantle, insular and anterior cingulate cortices, thalamus, corpus callosum, and frontal sulci. The HIV-only group had smaller thalamic and larger frontal sulcal volumes than control subjects. HIV disease-related factors associated with greater volume abnormalities included CD4 cell count nadir, clinical staging, history of AIDS-defining events, infection age, and current age. Longer sobriety and less lifetime alcohol consumption were predictive of attenuated brain volume abnormalities in both alcohol groups. Conclusions Having HIV infection with alcoholism and AIDS had an especially poor outcome on brain structures. That longer periods of sobriety and less lifetime alcohol consumption were predictive of attenuated brain volume abnormalities encourages the inclusion of alcohol recovery efforts in HIV/AIDS therapeutic settings.
The technology of sanitation in colonial Delhi.

I. Sewage Under CapitalismThe preservation of the wealth and welfare of nations, and advances in culture and civilisation depend on how the sewage question is resolved.(von Liebig, 1850s).Delhi is a very suggestive and moralising place—such stupendous remains of power and wealth passed and passing away—and somehow I feel that we horrid English have just ‘gone and done it’, merchandised it, revenue it, and spoiled it all. (Emily Eden, 1838).Veena Oldenburg argues that after the Rebellion of 1857 British colonial officials inaugurated a process of urban reconstruction following three imperatives: safety, sanitation and loyalty. To make the cities of India safe, clean and loyal, the colonial regime exerted a measure of ‘social control . . . In an era when tinkering with the structure of society had been officially and unambiguously forsworn.’. If the highest offices of the colonial regime proclaimed its remove from society, she argues, the ‘lowest levels of decision making and action’, intruded effectively to reconstruct the social fabric of urban life. In this essay, we will examine this lowest level of the colonial regime in the local government of Delhi (the Delhi Municipal Corporation [DMC], the commissioner's office, the army, the Public Works Department [PWD], the railway officials) and its relations with the local nobility (the rais and amirs), the merchants, and working people.
Expression of a human cDNA encoding a protein containing GAR synthetase, AIR synthetase, and GAR transformylase corrects the defects in mutant Chinese hamster ovary cells lacking these activities.

The isolation of a human cDNA encoding the multifunctional protein containing GAR synthetase, AIR synthetase, and GAR transformylase by functional complementation of purine auxotrophy in yeast has been reported. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell mutant purine auxotrophs deficient in GAR synthetase (Ade−C) or AIR synthetase plus GAR transformylase (Ade−G) activities were transfected with this human GART cDNA subcloned into a mammalian expression vector. This restored 49–140% of the activities of GAR synthetase, AIR synthetase, and GAR transformylase in transfected cells when compared to wild-type CHO K1 parental cells. Study of one stably expressing transfectant, AdeC2, revealed that the human GART cDNA was incorporated into the CHO genome. The enzyme activities appear to be associated with an expressed protein of 110 kDa, very similar to that of purified human GART trifunctional enzyme. The Ade−C mutant shows reduced amounts of GART mRNA compared to CHO K1 and a protein of apparently reduced size, results consistent with the purine requirement and enzyme deficiency observed in the mutant. These experiments provide definitive evidence that the human GART cDNA encodes and can direct the production of active human GART trifunctional protein in mammalian cells. They also provide important evidence that the Ade−C and Ade−G mutants of CHO cells are defective in this gene.
Samuel Pierpont Langley and his contributions to the empirical basis of black-body radiation

In this paper I deal with an early phase of the history of research on black-body radiation. In this phase, from 1880-1900, the American astrophysicist Samuel Pierpont Langley (1834-1906) invented and used a key instrument, the bolometer, to measure for the first time radiation curves that displayed the characteristic features of asymmetry and of a shifting of their maxima to shorter wavelengths with increasing temperature. I emphasize the complex development of the construction of the bolometer and the early experiments performed with it. I also discuss how these developments became important for theoretical research on the black-body radiation formula. My aim is to show that the often-neglected experimental part of the history of research on black-body radiation represents an important precondition for the theoretical developments that followed.
Mental Spaces: Aspects of Meaning Construction in Natural Language

This book offers a highly original, integrated treatment of issues that play a central role in linguistic semantics, philosophy of language, and cognitive approaches to meaning.It is based on the idea that expressions of language are not interpreted directly via truth conditions; rather, at a certain cognitive level they help to build up mental spaces, internally structured and linked to one another. Because the construction of spaces is typically underdetermined by the expressions, simple principles yield multiple possibilities and apparently complex ambiguities.Focusing on the mental constructions that can be associated with expressions rather than merely on the expressions themselves, Fauconnier reveals a general, uniform, and elegant organization that is responsible for superficially diverse and complex phenomena. A finding that challenges several traditional and widespread views on meaning and natural language, with far-reaching implications: adequate theories of truth and reference cannot bypass the cognitive space-construction process, and standard linguistic arguments for hidden structural levels are invalidated.Gilles Fauconnier is director of studies at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales and Professor of Linguistics at the University of Paris VIII.A Bradford Book.
Synthetic studies on pyrrolizidine alkaloids. II: Intramolecular additions of radicals and electrophiles to allylstannanes as methods for ring closure

Abstract The simple pyrrolizidine alkaloid (±)-isoretronecanol was efficiently constructed by a route involving the attachment of an allylstannane moiety to succinimide followed by appropriate reduction, activation, and cyclization by either “one-electron” or “two-electron” protocols.
A Design Quality Learning Unit in OO Modeling Bridging the Engineer and the Artist

Recent IS curriculum guidelines compress software development pedagogy into smaller and smaller pockets of course syllabi. Where undergraduate IS students once may have practiced modeling in analysis, design, and implementation across six or more courses in a curriculum using a variety of languages and tools they commonly now experience modeling in four or fewer courses in at most a couple of paradigms. And in most of these courses their modeling decisions focus on acceptable syntax rather than principles representing and communicating concepts of quality in information systems. Where learning design quality may once have been an osmotic side effect of development practice it must now be a conscious goal in pedagogy if it is to be taught at all. This paper presents a learning unit that teaches design quality in object-oriented models. The focus on object-oriented models allows the learning to permeate analysis, design, and implementation enriching pedagogy across the systems development life cycle. The quality perspective presented is more expansive than that usually found in software engineering, the traditional “objective” notion of metrics, and integrates aspects of aesthetics, the more subjective phenomena of satisfaction. This learning unit is intended as an adaptable framework to be tailored to the coursework and the overall objectives of specific IS programs.
Synaptic vesicle fusion

The core of the neurotransmitter release machinery is formed by SNARE complexes, which bring the vesicle and plasma membranes together and are key for fusion, and by Munc18-1, which controls SNARE-complex formation and may also have a direct role in fusion. In addition, SNARE complex assembly is likely orchestrated by Munc13s and RIMs, active-zone proteins that function in vesicle priming and diverse forms of presynaptic plasticity. Synaptotagmin-1 mediates triggering of release by Ca2+, probably through interactions with SNAREs and both membranes, as well as through a tight interplay with complexins. Elucidation of the release mechanism will require a full understanding of the network of interactions among all these proteins and the membranes.
Oversampled Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing in Doubly Selective Fading Channels

A new oversampled orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OOFDM) scheme is proposed for doubly selective fading environment. The proposed OOFDM scheme employs oversampling in the time domain and linear processing in the frequency domain, both at the receiver without changing the structure of conventional orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) transmitters. The time-frequency processing enables a two dimensional Doppler-frequency grid of the fading channel, such that each data symbol is modeled equivalently as being transmitted at multiple subcarriers and various Doppler spreads simultaneously, while retaining the same spectral efficiency as conventional OFDM systems. Optimum combining ensures coherent combining of the data samples spread over the Doppler-frequency grid and non-coherent combining of inter-carrier interference (ICI) components caused by time varying fading. Theoretical error probabilities of the OOFDM systems are derived by analyzing the statistical properties of Doppler-frequency fading coefficients and noise sample correlations. Both theoretical analysis and computer simulation show that the new system with an oversampling factor of two outperforms the conventional OFDM system by as much as 7 dB.
Seasonal and spatial patterns of mercury wet deposition in the United States: Constraints on the contribution from North American anthropogenic sources

Observed wet deposition fluxes of mercury in the United States show a maximum in the Southeast, and a consistent seasonal variation (maximum in summer, minimum in winter) that increases in amplitude from north to south. We simulate these patterns successfully with a global 3-D chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) including our best estimates of sources and processes. We attribute the high wet deposition over the Southeast in summer to scavenging of upper-altitude Hg(II) by deep convection. Seasonal variation at higher latitudes is attributed to a combination of enhanced summertime oxidation of Hg(0) and inefficient scavenging of Hg(II) by snow. Scavenging of Hg(II) from above the boundary layer contributes over half of wet deposition to the US in the model. Even within the boundary layer, we find that most of Hg(II) originates from the global mercury pool. Wet deposition in the model accounts for only 30% of total mercury deposition in the US, the remainder being from dry deposition, including 42% from Hg(0) uptake. North American anthropogenic emissions contribute 20% of total mercury deposition in the US (up to 50% in the industrial Midwest and Northeast).
Upper bounds on error probability of serially concatenated convolutional codes and MSK in AWGN and fading channels

Serial concatenation of convolutional codes and MSK through an interleaver has a similar structure as turbo codes. Although the union bound, which is an analytical tool to estimate the bit error probability of such systems, is tight for high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), it diverges for low SNR where the performance of our system is the most appealing. For this reason, we apply improved upper bounding techniques to our system to estimate the performance, at low SNR. We show that by applying these techniques, it is possible to obtain about 0.5dB or more improvement over the union bound in AWGN channel and 1dB or more improvement in fading channels.
Incidence of peripheral neuropathy in high-risk early-stage breast cancer patients receiving dose-dense paclitaxel in central Pennsylvania

e11595 Background: Paclitaxel (P) is an important part of chemotherapy regimens for early breast cancer. Breast cancer survivors may be left with iaotrogenic peripheral neuropathy which can affect ...
An energy recovery linac upgrade for the advanced photon source located in the storage ring infield

Recently physicists at the advanced photon source (APS) have begun to explore a revolutionary upgrade based on emerging energy recovery linac (ERL) technology. In an ERL, the energy of the 7-GeV, 100-mA beam is recovered after the beam passes through user beamlines by decelerating the beam back through the same superconducting linac cavities that accelerated it. The main constraint on this upgrade is that the existing APS beamlines must not be disturbed. This requires that the APS storage ring be used as a single-pass transport line in the overall ERL beamline layout. A natural place to locate the ERL is inside the existing APS storage ring "infield" area, which has unoccupied space south of the existing APS injector complex. Other important constraints include minimal disturbance of existing buildings and injector beamlines. The existing injector complex should be preserved so that stored beam operation can be continued throughout and beyond ERL construction and commissioning. In this paper we describe a layout that satisfies these constraints. We also estimate the amount of emittance increase the beam will experience before it is de livered to user beamlines.
Staining protocols for human pancreatic islets

Estimates of islet area and numbers and endocrine cell composition in the adult human pancreas vary from several hundred thousand to several million and beta mass ranges from 500 to 1500 mg 1-3. With this known heterogeneity, a standard processing and staining procedure was developed so that pancreatic regions were clearly defined and islets characterized using rigorous histopathology and immunolocalization examinations. Standardized procedures for processing human pancreas recovered from organ donors are described in part 1 of this series. The pancreas is processed into 3 main regions (head, body, tail) followed by transverse sections. Transverse sections from the pancreas head are further divided, as indicated based on size, and numbered alphabetically to denote subsections. This standardization allows for a complete cross sectional analysis of the head region including the uncinate region which contains islets composed primarily of pancreatic polypeptide cells to the tail region. The current report comprises part 2 of this series and describes the procedures used for serial sectioning and histopathological characterization of the pancreatic paraffin sections with an emphasis on islet endocrine cells, replication, and T-cell infiltrates. Pathology of pancreatic sections is intended to characterize both exocrine, ductular, and endocrine components. The exocrine compartment is evaluated for the presence of pancreatitis (active or chronic), atrophy, fibrosis, and fat, as well as the duct system, particularly in relationship to the presence of pancreatic intraductal neoplasia4. Islets are evaluated for morphology, size, and density, endocrine cells, inflammation, fibrosis, amyloid, and the presence of replicating or apoptotic cells using H&E and IHC stains. The final component described in part 2 is the provision of the stained slides as digitized whole slide images. The digitized slides are organized by case and pancreas region in an online pathology database creating a virtual biobank. Access to this online collection is currently provided to over 200 clinicians and scientists involved in type 1 diabetes research. The online database provides a means for rapid and complete data sharing and for investigators to select blocks for paraffin or frozen serial sections.
Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha-Mediated Reduction of KLF2 Is Due to Inhibition of MEF2 by NF-κB and Histone Deacetylases

Activation of the endothelium by inflammatory cytokines is a key event in the pathogenesis of vascular disease states. Proinflammatory cytokines repress the expression of KLF2, a recently identified transcriptional inhibitor of the cytokine-mediated activation of endothelial cells. In this study the molecular basis for the cytokine-mediated inhibition of KLF2 is elucidated. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) potently inhibited KLF2 expression. This effect was completely abrogated by a constitutively active form of IκBα, as well as treatment with trichostatin A, implicating a role for the NF-κB pathway and histone deacetylases. Overexpression studies coupled with observations with p50/p65 null cells support an essential role for p65. A combination of promoter deletion and mutational analyses, chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, and coimmunoprecipitation studies indicates that p65 and histone deacetylases 4 cooperate to inhibit the ability of MEF2 factors to induce the KLF2 promoter. These studies identify a novel mechanism by which TNF-α can inhibit endothelial gene expression. Furthermore, the inhibition of MEF2 function by p65 and HDAC4 has implications for other cellular systems where these factors are operative.
Recovery of motor and cognitive function after cerebellar lesions in a songbird – role of estrogens

In addition to its key role in complex motor function, the cerebellum is increasingly recognized to have a role in cognition. Songbirds are particularly good models for the investigation of motor and cognitive processes but little is known about the role of the songbird cerebellum in these processes. To explore cerebellar function in a songbird, we lesioned the cerebellum of adult female zebra finches and examined the effects on a spatial working memory task and on motor function during this task. There is evidence for steroid synthesis in the songbird brain and neurosteroids may have an impact on some forms of neural plasticity in adult songbirds. We therefore hypothesized that neurosteroids would affect motor and cognitive function after a cerebellar injury. We found that cerebellar lesions produced deficits in motor and cognitive aspects of a spatial task. In line with our prediction, birds in which estrogen synthesis was blocked had impaired performance in our spatial task compared with those that had estrogen synthesis blocked but estrogen replaced. There was no clear effect of estrogen replacement on motor function. We also found that lesions induced expression of the estrogen synthetic enzyme aromatase in reactive astrocytes and Bergmann glia around a cerebellar lesion. These data suggest that the cerebellum of songbirds mediates both motor and cognitive function and that estrogens may improve the recovery of cognitive aspects of cerebellar function after injury.
An infrastructure to support meta-differencing and refactoring of source code

The proposed research aims to construct an underlying infrastructure to support (semi) automated construction of refactorings and system wide transformation via a fine grained syntax level differencing approach. We term this differencing approach meta-differencing as it has additional knowledge of the types of entities being differenced. The general approach is built on top of an XML representation of the source code, specifically srcXML by J. Maletic et al. (2002). This representation explicitly embeds high level syntactic information within the source code in such a way as to not interfere with program development and maintenance. Because both the source code and the difference are represented in XML, the transformational language, XSLT, can be used to model these changes. We propose to develop an environment (development/maintenance) that automatically generates XSLT programs based on changes to a program.
Antiprogestins in gynecological diseases

Antiprogestins constitute a group of compounds, developed since the early 1980s, that bind progesterone receptors with different affinities. The first clinical uses for antiprogestins were in reproductive medicine, e.g., menstrual regulation, emergency contraception, and termination of early pregnancies. These initial applications, however, belied the capacity for these compounds to interfere with cell growth. Within the context of gynecological diseases, antiprogestins can block the growth of and kill gynecological-related cancer cells, such as those originating in the breast, ovary, endometrium, and cervix. They can also interrupt the excessive growth of cells giving rise to benign gynecological diseases such as endometriosis and leiomyomata (uterine fibroids). In this article, we present a review of the literature providing support for the antigrowth activity that antiprogestins impose on cells in various gynecological diseases. We also provide a summary of the cellular and molecular mechanisms reported for these compounds that lead to cell growth inhibition and death. The preclinical knowledge gained during the past few years provides robust evidence to encourage the use of antiprogestins in order to alleviate the burden of gynecological diseases, either as monotherapies or as adjuvants of other therapies with the perspective of allowing for long-term treatments with tolerable side effects. The key to the clinical success of antiprogestins in this field probably lies in selecting those patients who will benefit from this therapy. This can be achieved by defining the genetic makeup required – within each particular gynecological disease – for attaining an objective response to antiprogestin-driven growth inhibition therapy. Free Spanish abstract A Spanish translation of this abstract is freely available at http://www.reproduction-online.org/content/149/1/15/suppl/DC1.
An FDTD near- to far-zone transformation for scatterers buried in stratified grounds

The finite-difference time-domain (EDTD) technique is being used with increasing frequency for modeling the scattering characteristics of buried objects. The FDTD has, for some time, been able to model the near-zone scattered fields of buried objects due to near-zone sources. This is adequate for modeling the scattered returns of ground-based ground-penetrating radar, but not for airborne radar. This paper describes an FDTD-compatible technique whereby far-zone scattered fields of objects buried in a stratified ground can be calculated. This technique uses the equivalence principle to model a buried object in terms of equivalent electric and magnetic currents. The fields radiated by these currents in the presence of a stratified ground are then calculated using the reciprocity theorem and the well-known field equations for plane waves in a stratified media. Numerical results are presented that show excellent agreement between this technique and both analytical and numerical results.
The United Nations: before, during and after 1945

The 70th anniversary of the signing and entry into force of the United Nations Charter provides a good moment to revisit the conditions under which Allied governments decided to establish the second generation of intergovernmental organization. The wartime commitments to defeating fascism and multilateralism made the establishment of the world organization a logical outgrowth of the wartime origins and the best guarantee of peace and prosperity. Ironically, the ideals of Immanuel Kant were found to be essential to the Hobbesian objective of state survival; multilateralism was a powerful strategy and not merely liberal window-dressing. That historical backdrop is complemented by two largely invisible variables from that time—the role of ideas and of non-state actors—which have since been driving change in the world organization. A future research agenda suggests ways to lift the UN from its current doldrums. Many of the debates and operational activities in the United Nations beginning in the 1970s reflected two topics—interdependence and the proliferation of actors—which profoundly affected what, since the 1990s, we have come to call ‘global governance’. On the positive side, these preoccupations helped us move towards a better understanding of a very complex world. On the downside, they also tend to celebrate unduly the ability of non-state actors and ignore the crucial role of intergovernmental organizations
Sixty-Seven Consecutive Resuscitative Thoracotomies by A Single Surgeon.

Background:Resuscitative thoracotomy is a dramatic operation performed in otherwise unsalvageable trauma patients. Analysis of its efficacy is based mostly on institutional series compiling the experience of multiple surgeons. This study aimed to report more consistent information by describing the resuscitative thoracotomy practice of a single surgeon and its evolution during more than two decades.Methods:A retrospective review of consecutive patients who underwent resuscitative thoracotomy in July 1990 to December 2012. Demographics, mechanism of injury, signs of life, injuries, and outcomes were analyzed. Comparisons were made between penetrating and blunt trauma patients and between pre- and post-introduction of a selective resuscitative thoracotomy protocol.Results:Sixty-seven resuscitative thoracotomies were performed. Most patients were males (84%), and mean age was 38 years. Mechanism of injury was stab wounds (54%, 36), blunt force (25%, 17), and gunshot wounds (21%, 14). Survival was 22% (8/36),...
Learning Communities in Classrooms: Advancing Knowledge For a Lifetime:

The learning-communities approach fits with the growing emphasis on lifelong learning, which can naturally be extended beyond the classroom walls. There is every reason for a learning community to ...
Factors Associated With Surgeon Referral for Physical Therapy in Patients With Traumatic Lower-Extremity Injury: Results of a National Survey of Orthopedic Trauma Surgeons

Objective. The purpose of this study was to explore the influence of physician and practice characteristics on referral for physical therapy in patients with traumatic lower-extremity injury. Design. A cross-sectional survey was conducted. Methods. In 2007, a Web-based survey questionnaire was distributed to 474 surgeon members of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association. The questionnaire measured physician and practice characteristics, outcome expectations, and attitude toward physical therapy. Referral for physical therapy was based on case vignettes. Results. The response rate was 58%. Surgeons reported that 57.6% of their patients would have a positive outcome from physical therapy and 24.2% would have a negative outcome. The highest physical therapy expectations were for the appropriate use of assistive devices (80.7%) and improved strength (force-generating capacity) (76.4%). The lowest outcome expectations were for improvements in pain (35.9%), coping with the emotional aspects of disability (44.1%), and improvements in workplace limitations (51.4%). Physicians reported that 32.6% of their patients referred for physical therapy would have no improvement beyond what would occur with a surgeon-directed home exercise program. Multivariate analyses showed positive physician outcome expectations to have the largest effect on referral for physical therapy (odds ratio2.7, P.001). Conclusions. The results suggest that orthopedic trauma surgeons refer patients for physical therapy based mostly on expectations for physical and motor outcomes, but may not be considering pain relief, return to work, and psychosocial aspects of recovery. Furthermore, low referral rates may be attributed to a preference for surgeon-directed home-based rehabilitation. Future research should consider the efficacy of physical therapy for pain, psychosocial and occupational outcomes, and exploring the differences between supervised physical therapy and physiciandirected home exercise programs.
Pushing the Limits: Cognitive, Affective, and Neural Plasticity Revealed by an Intensive Multifaceted Intervention

Scientific understanding of how much the adult brain can be shaped by experience requires examination of how multiple influences combine to elicit cognitive, affective, and neural plasticity. Using an intensive multifaceted intervention, we discovered that substantial and enduring improvements can occur in parallel across multiple cognitive and neuroimaging measures in healthy young adults. The intervention elicited substantial improvements in physical health, working memory, standardized test performance, mood, self-esteem, self-efficacy, mindfulness, and life satisfaction. Improvements in mindfulness were associated with increased degree centrality of the insula, greater functional connectivity between insula and somatosensory cortex, and reduced functional connectivity between posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and somatosensory cortex. Improvements in working memory and reading comprehension were associated with increased degree centrality of a region within the middle temporal gyrus (MTG) that was extensively and predominately integrated with the executive control network. The scope and magnitude of the observed improvements represent the most extensive demonstration to date of the considerable human capacity for change. These findings point to higher limits for rapid and concurrent cognitive, affective, and neural plasticity than is widely assumed.
Interfertile Sibling Species In The Willistoni Group Of Drosophila

Amiong the wild species of Drosophila found in neotropical America, the willistoni group has attracted the most attention. Drosophila zvillistoni itself has a natural distribution which extends from Florida to Argentina (Townsend, 1952; Pavan, 1952) and over much of this range it is the most abundant species of the genus in collections. The overwhelming biological success of this species appears to be correlated with the occurrence in its chromosomes of an extraordinary amount of naturally-occurring polymorphism due to the presence of inverted sections (da Cunha, Burla and Dobzhansky, 1950). Interest in this species is furthermore greatly enhanced by the fact that, within its general geographical range, there co-exist at least three "sibling species" which cannot be easily separated from D. willistoni 'on morphological grounds (iBurla et al., 1949). Isolation between these four entities is nonetheless absolute, both in nature and in the laboratory. Perhaps because of preoccupation with the many problems presented by the existence of this tetrad of morphologically very close species of which D. willistoni is a part, the other neotropical species belonging to the willistoni group of the genus have not been intensively studied. These more distantly related species include D. fumipennis, D. capricorni, D. nebulosa, D. sucinea and D. bocainensis. Except for the work of Pavan (1946) and da Cunha, Brncic and Salzano (1953) on D. nebulosa, no quantitative studies of the population genetics of these forms have been made. In order to begin the closing of this gap in the knowledge of this most significant group of flies and in order to provide a basis for comnparisons of evolutionary patterns within the willistoni group as a whole, the present study was undertaken. Quantitative data on populations of Drosophila bocainensis Pavan and da Cunha 1947 are presented. Within this older taxonomic designation, it will be shown that there exist three reproductively isolated Miendelian populations. Evidence for the specific distinctness of these three entities is given. Two of the three, although they are partially syi-ipatric and essentially indistinguishable morphologically, show no crossing under natural conditions. This isolation, however, breaks down strikingly in the laboratory; under these conditions, the two species hybridize freely and produce abundant fertile offspring.
Thiocyanate effect on sodium excretion in normotensive and hypertensive subjects.

SummaryA small but highly significant sodium diuresis accompanied short-term thio-cyanate administration to uncomplicated hypertensive subjects on constant dietary regimens. Although slight but insignificant differences were observed between the mean responses of normotensives as compared to hypertensives, it was suggested that the similarity was attributable to the presence of a few hyperreactive and perhaps apre-hyper-tensive individuals in the normotensive series. The conversion of thiocyanate to cyanide in vivo was confirmed. Thiocyanate-induced sodium depletion was suggested as a possible factor in the depressor action of this agent, mediated either directly or through derived cyanide.
Results of the neuroradiology fellowship match for July 1, 2002 candidates.

The selection of fellows in radiology subspecialties has not been a well-organized process and has led to a high degree of dissatisfaction among all parties. The granting of positions in subspecialty training programs proceeds by means of an interview process that is not centrally organized,