cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Morphogenic and Histologic Patterns among the Posterolateral Glands of Microtine Rodents

The posterolateral scent glands of voles and lemmings (Rodentia: Muridae: Microtinae) were recognized early as species characters (Miller, 1896) and were thought to occur in discrete body regions (Quay, 1968). But a pharmacological dose of testosterone induced posterolateral glands on two species not usually possessing them (Jannett, 1975), and posterolateral glands occur among species, as a group, in an essentially continuous zone of glandular responsiveness between flanks and rump (Jannett, 1990). Three populations of Microtus pennsvlvanicus, a species not characteristically possessing posterolateral glands, have recently been found (Tamarin, 1981; Boonstra and Youson, 1982; Jannett, unpubl.). Scent producing characters can be used to combine the evolutionary and population approaches to the study of a chemical communication system (Schluter, 1989).
On Correlating ISP Topologies to Their Businesses

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have different growth or decline patterns in terms of topological and economic characteristics. While some ISPs may have a significant correlation between their topological and business properties, others may not show such strong techno-economic dependence. In this paper, we examine the relationship between the network topology characteristics of the ISPs and their stock market values. We analyze data collected from two different datasets of inter-ISP relationships of various types, i.e., customer, provider and peer. Then, we correlate these topological relationships against the ISPs performance on the stock market. In particular, we examine the correlation between the stock market values as well as revenue of each major ISPs operating in the United States to their degree (i.e., the number of connections they have to other Autonomous Systems) and customer cone size (i.e., the number of customers they are serving).
Cost Effectiveness of Early Treatment with Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapy in Adolescent Patients with Hepatitis C Virus Infection.

Objective To evaluate the cost effectiveness of early treatment with direct-acting antiviral therapy in adolescent patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection compared with treatment deferral. Study design We constructed a Markov model to assess the cost effectiveness of treating a hypothetical cohort of 30 000 adolescent patients with chronic HCV at age 12 years compared with deferring treatment until adulthood from a societal perspective. Model inputs for transition probabilities, HCV treatment and medical care costs, and quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) utilities were derived from the literature and wholesale acquisition estimates. Deterministic sensitivity analyses varied parameters for non-HCV medical care and treatment cost, reinfection rates, treatment uptake, disease progression, liver transplant survival, and treatment with recently approved pangenotypic direct-acting antiviral agents. Discounted costs and total QALYs per person were quantified after 30 years. Cost effectiveness was evaluated as the incremental change in total medical costs per QALY gained. Results The incremental cost effectiveness of early treatment initiation compared with deferred treatment was approximately $27 000 per QALY gained after 30 years and considered cost effective. In a scenario analysis, hypothetical treatment initiation with currently available pangenotypic agents would be even more cost effective, ranging from $10 000 to $21 000 per QALY gained. Cost-effectiveness estimates were sensitive to variations in decompensated cirrhosis progression in adolescence, adult reinfection, and treatment uptake in adults. Conclusions Early treatment in adolescent patients with chronic HCV infection with currently available direct-acting antivirals seems to be cost effective compared with deferred treatment. Future efforts to control the HCV epidemic should include increasing the number of children treated.
An Analysis Method for Capacitive Micromachined Ultrasound Transducer (CMUT) Energy Conversion during Large Signal Operation

With Capacitive Micromachined Ultrasound Transducers (CMUTs) increasingly being used for high intensity, large signal ultrasound applications and several drive methods being proposed, the efficiency of these devices in this operation regime have not been quantitatively evaluated. Since well-known frequency and capacitance-based coupling coefficients definitions are not valid for large signal, nonlinear operation, an energy-based definition should be used. In this paper, an expression for mechanical energy in a CMUT is obtained based on the assumption that CMUT is a linear time varying capacitor in all regimes of operation. This expression is evaluated by the help of an experimentally verified nonlinear CMUT model to define an energy conversion ratio (ECR) which can be considered as a coupling coefficient valid for all regimes of operation. This parameter is validated in the small signal regime and then used to evaluate CMUT performance with various large drive signals. The quantitative modeling results show that CMUTs do not need DC bias to achieve high efficiency large signal transduction: AC only signals at half the operation frequency with amplitudes beyond the collapse voltage can provide efficiencies (ECR) above 0.9 with harmonic content below −25 dB. Based on these results, ECR variation with membrane geometry and parasitic capacitance are given as examples for device optimization. The overall modeling approach is also qualitatively validated by experiments.
New directions in treating peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCL): leveraging epigenetic modifiers alone and in combination.

Introduction: The peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCL) are a rare and heterogeneous group of non-Hodgkin lymphomas originating from mature T- and NK-cells. They are aggressive diseases often resistan...
Tumor Genetics and Cytogenetics: Solid Tumors

Recurrent chromosomal translocations have traditionally been associated with leukemias/lymphomas and sarcomas. Translocations cause either formation of chimeric proteins (such as BCR-ABL) or abnormal protein expression (such as overexpression of c-Myc as a result of translocation into Ig promoter sequences in Burkitt lymphoma). In contrast, carcinomas generally have complex karyotypes with no recurrent translocations. Instead, carcinomas typically have activating mutations in proto-oncogenes (e.g., KRAS) or inactivation of tumor suppressor genes (e.g., TP53). In recent years this paradigm has shifted, and an increasing number of carcinomas are being recognized as having recurrent translocations. Notable examples are salivary carcinomas, pediatric renal cell carcinoma, thyroid carcinoma, and some lung adenocarcinomas.
Evaluating mechanisms of plant-mediated effects on herbivore persistence and occupancy across an ecoregion

Contemporary climate change is rapidly creating one of the greatest challenges for management and conservation during the 21st century. Mountain ecosystems, which have a high degree of spatial heterogeneity and contain numerous habitat specialists, have been identified as particularly vulnerable. We used data from multiple years across sites spanning a >40 million ha ecoregion to test hypotheses regarding how community‐level characteristics of vegetation may affect a mammalian generalist herbivore, the American pika (Ochotona princeps). We examined patterns of pika persistence across sites in the hydrographic Great Basin, and occupancy within a subset of these sites. We used mixed‐effects logistic regression models to compare evidence in support of competing explanations for each pattern within an information–theoretic framework (using Akaike's information criterion). Models reflected four hypothesized classes of mechanisms related to nutritional ecology, ecosystem function, indirect indication of climatic effects, and (synergistic) combinations of these three classes. At the site level, models reflecting synergistic effects received the most support. At the within‐site level, support appeared to be split equally among hypotheses containing predictors related to either nutritional ecology or indirect climate effects. Well‐supported predictors included cover of invasive plant species, cover of more‐xeric plant species, species evenness, and proportion of graminoid species. Our results both (1) identify important aspects of vegetation communities that may influence herbivore distribution in mountainous areas across a large, diverse geographic region, and (2) contribute to an improved understanding of how mountain ecosystems may be affected by ongoing climate change, more broadly.
Closed-loop modeling of the heart-rate reflex for improved diagnosis and monitoring of Mild Cognitive Impairment

Analysis of beat-to-beat spontaneous cerebral hemodynamic data has yielded predictive dynamic models of cerebral hemodynamics and has shown previously that patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) exhibit significantly reduced cerebral vasomotor reactivity to CO 2 relative to cognitively normal control subjects [1]. The present work examines the heart-rate reflex (HRR) dynamics of 46 MCI patients compared to 20 control subjects, using closed-loop modeling of HRR under resting conditions of spontaneous variations of arterial blood pressure (baroreflex) and end-tidal CO 2 (chemoreflex). These subject-specific predictive dynamic models are obtained via the methodology of Principal Dynamic Modes [2] and allow the computation of model-based markers of baroreflex and chemoreflex function. We found that the chemoreflex gain is significantly weakened in MCI patients relative to controls (p=0.0086), while the baroreflex is not significantly affected. These findings offer another tool for diagnosis and monitoring of MCI (via model-based markers), when used in conjunction with current methods.
Flowback fracture closure of multi-fractured horizontal wells in shale gas reservoirs

Abstract In multi-fractured horizontal wells (MFHW), fracture properties such as permeability and fracture half-length significantly deteriorate during production, which negatively affects gas production from shale reservoirs. Therefore, it is crucial to evaluate the temporal changes in fracture properties using production data. This paper presents two multiphase flowback models for gas and water phase under boundary dominated flow (BDF) condition by considering gas influx from matrix. In addition, a workflow is proposed to quantitatively evaluate hydraulic fracture closure and fracture properties using both water-phase and gas-phase flowback data. A material balance equation (MBE) is derived to obtain average pressure in the fracture by calculating gas influx from matrix under variable bottomhole pressure (BHP) condition based on Duhamel's principle. The flowback models, average pressure calculation method, and workflow are validated against numerical simulations and applied to an MFHW drilled in Marcellus Shale. The results show that the developed models are capable of predicting fracture properties, and MBE could accurately calculate average pressure in the fracture. Furthermore, the proposed workflow provides quantitative insights into the performance of stimulation jobs by accurately predicting fracture half-length, fracture permeability, and permeability modulus using flowback data. By reconciling flowback analysis with long-term production data analysis, a significant decrease in fracture properties due to fracture closure is observed in the Marcellus MFHW.
Semi-Rationally Designed Short Peptides Self-Assemble and Bind Hemin to Promote Cyclopropanation.

The self-assembly of short peptides gives rise to versatile nanoassemblies capable of promoting efficient catalysis. We have semi-rationally designed a series of seven-residue peptides that form hemin-binding catalytic amyloids to facilitate enantioselective cyclopropanation with efficiencies that rival those of engineered hemin proteins. These results demonstrate that: 1) Catalytic amyloids can bind complex metallocofactors to promote practically important multisubstrate transformations. 2) Even essentially flat surfaces of amyloid assemblies can impart a substantial degree of enantioselectivity without the need for extensive optimization. 3) The ease of peptide preparation allows for straightforward incorporation of unnatural amino acids and the preparation of peptides made from d-amino acids with complete reversal of enantioselectivity.
Raman Gas Mixing Measurements and Ramanography

Application of Raman scattering as a gas dynamics diagnostic tool has been under development at Sandia since 1969. The early stages of this effort were directed toward developing a capability to measure transient mixing phenomena over a l second time interval. Transient concentration measurements of nitrogen injected into helium were obtained using an AVCO 100 pps N2 laser1. More recent Raman gas mixing studies were aimed toward examining the effect of pressure level on mixing of H2, D2, N2, and He2. These experiments collected Raman scattering from a l mm sample volume inside a closed vessel. An on going effort to measure Raman scattering from steady state turbulent flows is shown in Figure 1. In this effort, direct measurement of Reynold’s stresses are being attempted by P. 0. Witze at Sandia.
Pediatric Cardiology Specialist's Opinions Toward the Acceptability of Comfort Care for Congenital Heart Disease.

In order to evaluate physicians’ willingness to seek legal action to mandate surgery when parents refuse surgery for various congenital heart lesions, we surveyed pediatric cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons at 4 children’s hospitals. We asked whether physicians would support parental refusal of surgery for specific heart defects and, if not, whether they would seek legal action to mandate surgery. We then analyzed associations between physicians’ willingness to mandate surgery and national operative mortality rates for each lesion. We surveyed 126 cardiologists and 9 cardiac surgeons at four tertiary referral centers. Overall response rate was 77%. Greater than 70% of physicians would seek legal action and mandate surgery for the following lesions: ventricular septal defect, coarctation of the aorta, complete atrioventricular canal, transposition of the great arteries, tetralogy of Fallot, and unobstructed total anomalous pulmonary venous return. Surgery for all of these lesions has reported mortality rates of < 5%. Physicians were less likely to seek legal action when parents refused surgery for Shone complex, any single ventricle lesion, or any congenital heart disease accompanied by Trisomy 13 or Trisomy 18. Among experts in pediatric cardiology, there is widespread agreement about the appropriate response to parental refusal of surgery for most congenital heart lesions, and these lesions tended to be heart defects with lower surgical mortality rates. Lesions for which there was greater consensus among experts were those with the best outcomes. There was less consensus for lesions with higher mortality rates. Such surveys, revealing disagreement among expert professionals, can provide an operational definition of the current professional “gray zone” in which parental preferences should determine treatment.
The Rainbow Knapsack Revisited: Being a Gay Teacher in a World of Heterosexual Privilege

Peggy McIntosh published “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” in 1989. Thirty years later, I revisit McIntosh’s seminal work on White privilege to reframe her discussion to one invol...
Vagueness and Abstraction

An abstraction principle is any proposition in the form $$ \left(\mathrm{ABS}\right)\kern2em \forall a\forall b\left({\displaystyle \Sigma (a)}={\displaystyle \Sigma (b)\equiv E\left(a,b\right)}\right), $$ where a and b are variables of a given type (typically individual objects or properties/sets of objects); Σ is a higher-order operator, denoting a function from items of the given type to objects; and E is a relation over items of the given type. In any standard, non-free logic, it follows from (ABS) that the embedded relation E is an equivalence relation: it is reflexive, symmetric, and transitive. In ordinary, nonmathematical discourse, concerning ordinary physical objects, we sometimes invoke what look like abstraction principles (in the form (ABS)). For example, we speak of the weights of individuals, indicating whether those are the same or different. We might say that Harry has the same weight as Sarah, but not as Joe. This seems to involve the following, which we may call the Weight Principle: (W) The weight a is identical to the weight of b if and only if a and b are equi-weighted, where a and b are variables ranging over physicals objects or people. However, on a plausible reading of this, in line with ordinary usage, the right-hand side is not an equivalence relation, since being equi-weighted is not an equivalence relation due to vagueness. The purpose of this essay is to develop an account of such “quasi-abstract” objects as weights.
The New Legal Realism: Translating Law-and-Society for Today's Legal Practice Volume I: Table of Contents

This is the Table of Contents for The New Legal Realism: Translating Law-and-Society for Today's Legal Practice Volume I.
Identification of Active Surface Species in Molten Carbonates Using in situ Raman Spectroscopy

Here we report the results of a study on active surface species of a pristine and modified (Li-Na)2CO3 eutectic using in situ Raman spectroscopy technique. The effects of gas compositions, temperature, time and alkaline earth have been systematically studied. The species of CO42-, HCO4- and C2O52- are identified as the three major active species on the surface of (Li-Na)2CO3 eutectic by a combined Raman spectroscopy and theoretical density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results further reveal that CO42-, HCO4- and C2O52- are preferably formed in the presence of O2, H2O, and high CO2 concentration. With the addition of Ba to the pristine (Li-Na)2CO3 eutectic, the Raman CO42-/HCO4- shifts become more pronounced.
Acanthamoeba Keratitis: an update on amebicidal and cysticidal drug screening methodologies and potential treatment with azole drugs.

Introduction: Acanthamoeba encompasses several species of free-living ameba encountered commonly throughout the environment. Unfortunately, these species of ameba can cause opportunistic infections...
Comparative Analysis of Localization Techniques Used in LBS

In the past two decades, there has been rapid growth in the number of mobile devices. Most of these mobile devices can sense different types of wireless signals (e.g., GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.). Therefore, a mobile device can obtain its own location fix in different ways. Location capable mobile devices led to applications that utilize user location, which are known as Location-based services (LBS)s. LBSs have grown rapidly with the increase in the number of mobile devices and are expected to grow more in the future. In order to have A LBS, the user’s location is required. User location can be obtained using different localization techniques. This paper reviews the localization techniques used in LBS. Then, a comparative analysis has been performed by discussing the strength and weaknesses of each of the localization techniques. Consequently, this research work discusses the type of applications that appropriately fit each localization technique.
'Diplomatic Wallop': Nixon and the Return of Counterforce

In the early 1970s, US nuclear posture—the combination of weapons and war plans that comprised US nuclear capabilities—took a durable and confusing turn towards counterforce. This paper explains how and why. It was in the early 1970s that that the US began to work hard, persistently, to improve its first strike counterforce capabilities. At the same time, it abandoned its pursuit of missile defense technologies that could have augmented offensive counterforce. This was odd. On one hand, nuclear hawks could argue that despite its counterforce investments, the US was not serious about fielding forces that were useful for anything but retaliation. Having abandoned defenses, American threats to use nuclear weapons first, or in a limited way, rang hollow. Nuclear doves, on the other hand, were equally unhappy about counterforce. Not only was it wasteful, but insofar as it created first strike incentives, it was also dangerous. Consequently, Washington’s pursuit of ‘half throttle counterforce’—where offensive forces were not backstopped by defenses—from the early 1970s onward is a puzzling thing. The vast majority of academic writing on US nuclear posture seeks to explain this odd behavior by blaming pathologies inherent in the US military bureaucracy. In this paper, I show that ‘pathological posture theory’ fails to explain the US turn towards counterforce in the early 1970s. Instead, I show that President Nixon was the primary driver behind the United States’ embrace of ‘half-throttle’ counterforce. Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and even Clinton followed in his footsteps, but it was Nixon who led the charge. Nixon’s decision-making was a product of his beliefs about nuclear weapons and foreign policy. In Nixon’s mind, the nuclear balance was an indicator of national strength that could boost or diminish US resolve and influence a wide range of diplomatic outcomes. Some inchoate conception of nuclear advantage, Nixon believed, permitted the US to walk tall in the world, and get its way, even if that advantage was not in fact militarily usable.
Psychopathology and personality functioning

Abstract Studying the interface between personality and psychopathology has generated significant insight into the nature of individual differences. Because personality disorders are the clearest point of convergence, much of this literature originates from contention surrounding how to define personality pathology. Shifts in how personality disorders are conceptualized, diagnosed, and treated illuminate fundamental issues for psychological science such as how to bridge theory and research, the importance of matching measurement to construct, and how to integrate diverse intellectual traditions. In this chapter, we contextualize these issues in historical and ongoing efforts to understand personality pathology. We emphasize how pathological personality processes have been simultaneously inextricable and elusive throughout these efforts; clinical theories have emphasized dysfunctional, within-person dynamics but lack scientific operationalization, and formal taxonomies have focused on describing between-person differences that obscure the underlying processes. We suggest a comprehensive model that mechanistically links nomothetic structure to contextualized processes is necessary for advancing our understanding of personality and psychopathology.
Pyridine N-Oxide vs Pyridine Substrates for Rh(III)-Catalyzed Oxidative C-H Bond Functionalization.

The origin of the high reactivity and site selectivity of pyridine N-oxide substrates in O-pivaloyl hydroxamic acid-directed Rh(III)-catalyzed (4+2) annulation reactions with alkynes was investigated computationally. The reactions of the analogous pyridine derivatives were previously reported to be slower and to display poor site selectivity for functionalization of the C(2)–H vs the C(4)–H bonds of the pyridine ring. The N-oxide substrates are found to be more reactive overall because the directing group interacts more strongly with Rh. For N-oxide substrates, alkyne insertion is rate-limiting and selectivity-determining in the reaction with a dialkyl alkyne, but C–H activation can be selectivity-determining with other coupling partners such as terminal alkynes. The rates of reaction with a dialkyl alkyne at the two sites of a pyridine substrate are limited by two different steps: C–H activation is limiting for C(2)-functionalization, while alkyne insertion is limiting for C(4)-functionalization. Consist...
PREVENTION OF PROBLEM BEHAVIOR BY TEACHING FUNCTIONAL COMMUNICATION AND SELF-CONTROL SKILLS TO PRESCHOOLERS

We evaluated the effects of the preschool life skills program (PLS; Hanley, Heal, Tiger, & Ingvarsson, 2007) on the acquisition and maintenance of functional communication and self-control skills, as well as its effect on problem behavior, of small groups of preschoolers at risk for school failure. Six children were taught to request teacher attention, teacher assistance, and preferred materials, and to tolerate delays to and denial of those events during child-led, small-group activities. Teaching strategies included instruction, modeling, role play, and differential reinforcement. Six additional children randomly assigned to similarly sized control groups participated in small-group activities but did not experience the PLS program. Within-subject and between-groups designs showed that the PLS teaching procedures were functionally related to the improvements and maintenance of the skills and prevention of problem behavior. Stakeholder responses on a social acceptability questionnaire indicated that they were satisfied with the form of the targeted social skills, the improvements in the children's performance, and the teaching strategies.
Architecture of the XL C++ browser

In this paper we describe the high-level architecture for a distributed static analyzer for the C++ programming language. Key features of this technology are its support for semantic queries -- queries that make use of the C++ semantics to interpret information about programs; its use of rules for describing the relations between the program symbols; and its capability to browse remote databases across a network.
On Having Your Cake and Eating It Too: Econometric Problems in Estimating the Demand for Health Services

Abstract ‘On Having Your Cake and Eating It Too: Econometric Problems in Estimating the Demand for Health Services’ discusses certain methodological problems in the economics literature related to the demand for medical care. Two principal problems are examined: misspecification of how insurance affects demand and aggregation across services or across individuals. The article shows that in both cases estimates contained in the literature are inconsistent. Where possible, the direction of the inconsistency is obtained a priori. The article also makes estimates of the magnitude of the inconsistency; the demand elasticities estimated in the economics literature may be overstated by a factor of three or more.
The two water worlds hypothesis: ecohydrological separation of water between streams and trees?

Recent work in ecohydrology has shown that in some forested watershed systems, streams and trees appear to return different pools of water to the hydrosphere. Thus far, evidence for this has come exclusively from wet Mediterranean climates. This short opinion article outlines the hypothesis and a research agenda for future work. The most pressing issue is the need to gather more data points whereby dual isotope-based studies in forested catchments compare samples of plant water and tightly bound soil water as well as mobile waters (soil, groundwater, and streamflow) in the catchment. New work is needed to test the hypothesis across different climates and vegetation regimes, especially places that contrast with the Mediterranean climates and forest types where two water worlds have been found. These include, but are not restricted to humid areas where plant water use and precipitation input are in phase, wetter zones where seasonality of precipitation is low, and drier zones where water stress is higher. Of equal importance to these basic research issues are the practical issues surrounding the sampling methods of plant and soil waters. Studies are needed to compare extraction techniques for low and high mobility soil waters and to understand the effect of sampling protocol on water isotope composition. Once these issues are resolved, high frequency sampling of soil and xylem waters will be especially instructive in development of mechanistic models of ecohydrological interaction—and an explanation for the hypothesis that is still wanting. WIREs Water 2014, 1:323–329. doi: 10.1002/wat2.1027 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. Conflict of interest: The author has declared no conflicts of interest for this article.
Risks of serious complications and death from smallpox vaccination: a systematic review of the United States experience, 1963-1968.

Background The United States (US) has re-instituted smallpox vaccinations to prepare for an intentional release of the smallpox virus into the civilian population. In an outbreak, people of all ages will be vaccinated. To prepare for the impact of large-scale ring and mass vaccinations, we conducted a systematic review of the complication and mortality risks of smallpox vaccination. We summarized these risks for post-vaccinial encephalitis, vaccinia necrosum (progressive vaccinia), eczema vaccinatum, generalized vaccinia, and accidental infection (inadvertant autoinoculation).
After autonomy: the zapatistas, insurgent indigeneity, and decolonization

In 2014, the Zapatistas (EZLN) celebrated the twentieth anniversary of their 1 January uprising in Chiapas against the Mexican state and the imposition of the North American Free Trade Agreement. T...
Intervention Strategies for Victims of Sexual Abuse: A Model for Building Self-Esteem

This article begins by explaining the devastating effects of child sexual abuse on the self-esteem of its victims. Intervention strategies are discussed with a focus on a self-esteem model — the SE...
A challenge to modern museum management: Meshing mission and market

(1988). A challenge to modern museum management: Meshing mission and market. International Journal of Museum Management and Curatorship: Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. 151-157.
Diurnal variation of the human auditory evoked potential

Averaged auditory evoked potential (AEP) waveforms were computed during morning and evening sessions from human bipolar scalp recordings. Pure-tone stimuli were presented binaurally at 10 intensity levels at each time of day. Linear amplitude-intensity functions were obtained at both sessions. There was no relative change in the amplitude-intensity function. The difference between residual variances at the two time periods and the difference between regression coefficients were nonsignificant. However, waveform amplitude significantly decreased during the evening. The results demonstrated a negative shift of the AEP amplitude-intensity function from morning to evening.
A diels-alder approach to trans-fused, angularly methylated decalins

Abstract The title structures can be prepared by Diels-Alder cycloaddition of activated acetylenic or olefinic dienophiles tethered to a proximally-methylated butadiene unit.
A short and efficient synthesis of 1,5-anhydro-d-glucitol 6-phosphate

Abstract The important d -glucose and d -glucose 6-phosphate analogues 1,5-anhydro- d -glucitol and 1,5-anhydro- d -glucitol 6-phosphate were prepared from methyl- d -glucoside in high yield and purity. Protecting of the hydroxyl groups as their allyl ether followed by reductive cleavage of the glycosidic linkage with triethylsilane formed the protected anhydroglucitol. No ring rearrangement or ring contraction was observed during the reduction step. Using the PdCl 2 –CuCl 2 –activated charcoal system, the allyl ether bond was cleaved with a low loading of the catalyst (0.0025 equiv per allyl group). 1,5-Anhydro- d -glucitol 6-phosphate was prepared by the phosphylation of 1,5-anhydro- d -glucitol.
The Calculation of Dirac Sea Effects on Finite Solitons

Abstract The effects of polarization of the Dirac sea on finite solitons in a simple theory in which fermions interact with a single scalar field are studied. The mass shift for a given background scalar field is computed numerically and compared to approximations arising from expansions in inverse powers of the effective fermion mass and in powers of derivatives of the background scalar field. The conditions under which such approximations succeed are discussed. When such approximations work one can derive local equations of motion for the soliton fields which include the effects of polarizing the Dirac sea. These new equations are studied and energy minimization is used to explore the effects of the Dirac sea on the structure of the soliton. Calculations for a typical Friedberg-Lee soliton are presented, and it is shown that, while the approximations do not work well for fields employed to model the quark structure of nucleons, they do provide an upper bound for the mass of the soliton. A scalar field typical of those used to model 16O in quantum hadrodynamics is also studied, and it is shown that, when the effective potential is supplemented by the next term occurring in a derivative expansion, the renormalized shift in the energy of the Dirac sea is well approximated.
Repeated nicotine injections decrease operant ethanol self-administration.

Abstract Nicotine and alcohol are two of the most used drugs in the United States. However, it is not clear whether the co-use of these drugs is due to pharmacological or environmental reasons, or perhaps related to both. Although results from previous studies in animal models seem to indicate that nicotine has an effect on ethanol consumption, little has been done to determine how nicotine affects appetitive and consummatory phases of ethanol self-administration. In this study, we examined the effect of repeated treatment with nicotine (0, 0.35, and 0.7 mg/kg, s.c.), given 30 min before a daily operant session, on appetitive and consummatory phases of Long–Evans rats self-administering 10% (vol./vol.) ethanol in a sipper-tube model. Ethanol intake (consummatory phase) decreased at both doses of nicotine tested, and lever pressing (appetitive phase) decreased after injection of the high dose of nicotine. These results support the suggestion that nicotine affects ethanol self-administration. However, in this model, the findings demonstrate a reduction in drinking, rather than the enhancement that has been shown in findings obtained from other studies.
An empirical investigation of the determinants of the supply of bank loans to less developed countries

Abstract The Third World debt held by private financial institutions has created a number of controversies in international finance. One of them revolves around the ability of LDCs (less developed countries) to attract hundreds of billions dollars of loans at a relatively ‘low’ spread over the last decade. Some general explanations have focused on, for instance, error of judgement by banks and the ‘herd effect’, i.e., ignorant followers rushing in while the more knowledgeable have already gotten out. An intriguing explanation of the size of the sovereign loans has been offered by Agmon and Dietrich (1983) in terms of political factors pertaining to the lender's country: loans to LDCs are in effect global taxes imposed by LDCs on industrialized nations in terms of the nature of their political relationship. Unfortunately, the Agmon-Dietrich study was not subjected to any emphirical test. The purpose of this study is to extend the Agmon-Dietrich framework and examine the impact of the political relationship (between the borrowing country and the lending bank's government) on the supply of loans by commercial banks in recent times.
Interactions between polymer containers and parenteral solutions: the correlation of equilibrium constants for polymer-water partitioning with octanol-water partition coefficients

Abstract Polymer-water equilibrium binding constants ( E B ) were determined for twelve organic solutes in contact with a composite polyolefin polymer. The polymer studied is a proprietary candidate parenteral product container material. Excellent correlation between these binding constants and solute octanol-water partition coefficients ( P o-w ) was observed for all solutes examined that are not effective hydrogen bond donors. For donor solutes, octanol, which has an appreciable hydrogen bonding character, poorly models the essentially non-bonding polyolefin polymer. However, an expression that accounts for both octanol-water type partitioning and the hydrogen bonding ability of the solute (on the basis of experimentally determined hydrogen bond formation constant, E HB : log E B = 0.80log P o-w − 0.203log E HB − 4.42 adequately models the behavior of all solutes studied ( r 2 = 0.983). The bivariate linear relationship between E B and P o-w plus E HB also effectively models polyolefin: solute interactions reported in the literature. This relationship, coupled with typical intravenous container configurations, permits the estimation of the fractional partitioning behavior of solutes in container-solution systems.
Non-enzymatic ATP-mediated binding of hydroxymethyl derivatives of aromatic hydrocarbons to DNA

Abstract ATP mediates covalent binding of hydroxymethyl derivatives of aromatic hydrocarbons to DNA. This non-enzymatic reaction has been studied with 6-[ 14 C ] hydroxymethylbenzo [a] pyrene ([14C]BP-6-CH2OH) and 7-[ 14 C ] hydroxymethylbenz [a] anthracene ([14C]BA-7-CH2OH) at 37°C in Tris buffer (pH 7.0). While ADP mediates the reaction 25–50% as well as ATP, six other possible phosphate donors including AMP were inactive as cofactors. A complex response to ATP occurred in which low binding of BP-6-CH2OH or BA-7-CH2OH was observed at concentrations of ATP below 2.5 mM, but a greater than linear response to higher concentrations of ATP was observed until ATP was saturating. Binding of the substrates to RNA was much lower than to DNA. Fluorescence spectra of BP-6-CH2OH bound to DNA were almost identical to the spectra of 6-bromomethylbenzo[a]pyrene bound to DNA and free 6-methylbenzo[a]pyrene, indicating that ATP-mediated binding of BP-6-CH2OH to DNA occurs at the 6-methyl group. The fate of ATP and ADP in the binding reaction of BP-6-CH2OH was examined by thin layer chromatography. Loss of one phosphate group occurs during the reaction. With ATP the rate of loss is about 100-fold greater than the rate of binding of BP-6-CH2OH to DNA. This implies that the binding reaction proceeds through formation of a presumed reactive and unstable phosphate ester intermediate which then inefficiently binds to DNA.
On Being Native and Homeless on the Streets of Montréal

Film: No Address, Time: 55 minutes, 58 seconds, Director: Alanis Obomsawin. Producers: Alanis Obomsawin. Marrin Canell. Distributor: National Film Board of Canada
THz commensurate echoes: Periodic rephasing of molecular transitions in free-induction decay.

We report the first study of coherent transients excited by ultrafast pulses of THz radiation. Using a newly developed optoelectronic source of well-collimated beams of subpicosecond pulses of THz radiation to excite ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}$O vapor, we have observed the subsequent emission from the vapor of coherent THz pulse trains extending to as long as 1 nsec. The origin of these subpicosecond THz pulses is a periodic rephasing, during the free-induction decay, of the more than fifty coherently excited rotational lines with commensurate transition frequencies. We term this new coherent phenomenon ``THz commensurate echoes.'' The echo repetition rate is equal to the frequency spacing between adjacent lines. From the decay and reshaping of the echoes the coherent relaxation time ${\mathit{T}}_{2}$ and the anharmonicity factor for the ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}$O molecule are evaluated.
Small C-terminal Domain Phosphatase Enhances Snail Activity through Dephosphorylation

Down-regulation of E-cadherin plays an important role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which is critical in normal development and disease states such as tissue fibrosis and metastasis. Snail, a key transcription repressor of E-cadherin, is a labile protein with a short half-life and is regulated through phosphorylation, ubiquitination, and degradation. Previously, we showed that GSK-3β phosphorylated two stretches of serine residues within the nuclear export signal and the destruction box of Snail, provoking its cytoplasmic export for ubiquitin-mediated proteasome degradation. However, the mechanism of Snail dephosphorylation and the identity of the Snail-specific phosphatase remain elusive. Using a functional genomic screening, we found that the small C-terminal domain phosphatase (SCP) is a specific phosphatase for Snail. SCP interacted and co-localized with Snail in the nucleus. We also found that SCP expression induced Snail dephosphorylation and stabilization in vitro and in vivo. However, a catalytically inactive mutant of SCP had no effect on Snail. Furthermore, we found that Snail stabilization induced by SCP enhanced snail activity in the suppression of E-cadherin and increased cell migration. Thus, our findings indicate that SCP functions as a Snail phosphatase to control its phosphorylation and stabilization, and our study provides novel insights for the regulation of Snail during EMT and cancer metastasis.
Conservative surgery and chemotherapy for breast carcinoma during pregnancy

FEW SITUATIONS IN MEDICINE provoke a greater emotional response in patients and their families than the diagnosis of breast cancer during pregnancy. The incidence of pregnancy-associated breast cancer is thought to be increasing because an increasing number of women are delaying pregnancy until later in life. The conventional surgical treatment for pregnancy-associated breast cancer is radical or modified radical mastectomy. Breast conservation therapy for breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy has generally not been accepted because of the risk of fetal radiation exposure. To avoid this risk, radiation therapy can often be delayed until after delivery. Concern has also been expressed that excellent results achieved with breast conservation therapy for early-stage breast cancer may be difficult to achieve because of the associated anatomic changes in the breast during pregnancy. Systemic therapy is generally indicated in the treatment of high-risk breast cancer. In women with high-risk breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy, the potential adverse impact on maternal survival associated with delaying initiation of chemotherapy must be balanced with the unknown long-term risks associated with fetal chemotherapy exposure. We have previously reported that chemotherapy for treatment of breast cancer can be administered during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy with minimal risk of maternal and fetal complications.1 There have been no published reports on the outcome of breast conservation therapy and chemotherapy during pregnancy for treatment of pregnancy-associated breast cancer. The purpose of the current report is to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of women treated with breast conservation therapy and chemotherapy during pregnancy and to alert surgeons to this potential treatment option.
Differences in bulk damage probability distributions between tripler and z-cuts of KDP and DKDP at 355 nm

Over the course of testing a substantial number of KDP and DKDP crystals from rapid and conventional growth processes, we have discovered that there is a consistent difference in the value of the damage resistance between z-cut and tripler, x-cut and y-cut crystals for a given test fluence. This increase in damage probability for tripler, x and y-cut crystals is consistent for both conventional and rapid growth KDP and well as DKDP. It also holds for unconditioned (S/1) and conditioned (R/1) tests and has values of 2.1+/- 0.6 and 1.5+/- 0.3 respectively. Testing has also revealed that there is no sensitivity to incident laser polarization. This is in direct contradiction to models based on simple, non-spherical absorbers. This result plus new information on the size and evolution of bulk damage density (see Runkel et al., this proceedings) has led to a reinterpretation of the growth parameter data for rapid growth NIF boules. It now appears that variations in impurity concentration throughout the boule do not affect the damage probability curve as dramatically as previously thought, although this is still a topic of intensive investigation.
Selective neck dissection and the management of the node-positive neck

Objective To assess the oncologic effectiveness of the selective neck dissection (SND) in patients with both clinically and pathologically proven regional metastases. Methods A 4-year retrospective medical chart review was conducted in an academic tertiary care referral center. Twenty-nine patients with a newly diagnosed upper aerodigestive tract squamous cell carcinoma, and both clinically and histologically proven cervical metastases who underwent 36 SND, had their records reviewed. Minimum follow-up was 2 years. Results Regional metastasis were staged N1 in 13 patients, N2A in 1, N2B in 8, and N2C in 7. Seventeen supraomohyoid and 19 lateral neck dissections were performed. Extracapsular spread of tumor was present in 11 patients. Postoperative radiation therapy was administered to 20 patients. Actuarial disease-specific survival at 4 years was 47% overall, 67% in N1 patients, and 41 % in N2 patients. Only 1 failure in the treated neck occurred for a 4-year actuarial regional failure rate of 4%. The actuarial local failure and distant metastasis rate were 36% each. Conclusions In carefully selected patients with clinically and histologically apparent regional metastases, the selective neck dissection can be an oncologically effective procedure.
Empirical Antibiotic Therapy for Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia

Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most common infectious complication in the intensive care unit. It can increase duration of mechanical ventilation, length of stay, costs, and mortality. Improvements in the administration of empirical antibiotic therapy have potential to reduce the complications of VAP. This review will discuss the current data addressing empirical antibiotic therapy and the effect on mortality in patients with VAP. It will also address factors that could improve the administration of empirical antibiotics and directions for future research.
The polymerization of acrylates using a combination of a carbonyl compound and an amine as a photo-initiator system

Abstract Photo-initiator systems for the polymerization of acrylates, based on a mixture of an aryl ketone and an α,ω-diaminoalkane, have been investigated. Rate constants for the photoreduction of fluorenone by α,ω-diaminoalkanes have been evaluated: it was found that CH3N groups are more relative than CH3CH2N groups. The relative rates of photo-oxidation of α,ω-diaminalkanes sensitised by benzophenone have been determined. Surprisingly, little correlation exists between the susceptibility of an amine towards oxidation and its ability to reduce excited carbonyl groups. Several mixtures composed of an aryl ketone and an α,ω-diaminoalkane were found to initiate the polymerization of methyl methacrylate. The efficiency of initiation appears to be related to the efficiency of reaction of the triplet carbonyl compound with the amine. The efficiency of a particular combination of an aryl ketone and an amine to cure films of acrylate oligomers is also governed to some extent by the efficiency of reaction of the triplet carbonyl compound with the amine. However, the structure of the amino alkyl radical produced in the initiation reaction appears to be of greater importance in determining the efficiency of polymerization. Radicals of the type R2NĊHCH2OR were found to be highly efficient.