cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The olive industry of California

In 1947 about 40,000 tons of olives were harvested in the State, to be canned, crushed for oil, shipped fresh, chopped, brine-cured or otherwise prepared.
The Phe-X-Glu DNA binding motif of MutS. The role of hydrogen bonding in mismatch recognition.

The crystal structures of MutS protein fromThermus aquaticus and Escherichia coli in a complex with a mismatch-containing DNA duplex reveal that the Glu residue in a conserved Phe-X-Glu motif participates in a hydrogen-bonded contact with either an unpaired thymidine or the thymidine of a G-T base-base mismatch. Here, the role of hydrogen bonding in mismatch recognition by MutS is assessed. The relative affinities of MutS for DNA duplexes containing nonpolar shape mimics of A and T, 4-methylbenzimidazole (Z), and difluorotoluene (F), respectively, that lack hydrogen bonding donors and acceptors, are determined in gel mobility shift assays. The results provide support for an induced fit mode of mismatch binding in which duplexes destabilized by mismatches are preferred substrates for kinking by MutS. Hydrogen bonding between the Oe2 group of Glu and the mismatched base contributes only marginally to mismatch recognition and is significantly less important than the aromatic ring stack with the conserved Phe residue. A MutS protein in which Ala is substituted for Glu38 is shown to be defective for mismatch repairin vivo. DNA binding studies reveal a novel role for the conserved Glu residue in the establishment of mismatch discrimination by MutS.
Achievement of long duration methotrexate exposure with concurrent low dose thymidine protection: Influence on methotrexate pharmacokinetics

Abstract Thymidine protection was evaluated as a technique for increasing the concentration × time exposure with long duration-high dose MTX infusions. Thymidine was infused at 2.0g/m2/day concurrently with MTX 3.375g/m2/day. The elimination half-life of MTX from the serum ( T 1 2 β ) increased linearly with duration of MTX infusion, suggesting that long duration exposure to 5 × 10−5M MTX resulted in storage of a pharmacokinetically significant amount of MTX in tissue reservoirs. Seventy-two-hr infusions were tolerated without major toxicity, despite the 75% reduction in thymidine dose rate and 76% increase in MTX dose compared to previous studies. The results indicate that even low doses of thymidine partially protect normal tissues in vivo, and suggest that differences in uptake and release of MTX from tissue deposits must be considered as a source of variation in MTX pharmacokinetics.
Genetically modified food labeling: The impacts of message and messenger on consumer perceptions of labels and products

Abstract We analyze responses to a survey designed to elicit consumer reaction to various approaches to labeling genetically modified (GM) foods. Consumers were shown sample labels that differed with respect to claims concerning the presence and potential effects of GM ingredients and the agency that certified these claims. A sample of 1898 US consumers rated 3681 labels with regard to the credibility and adequacy of the information content, with regard to perceived health and environmental impacts of the product and with regard to purchase intent. Simple claims that a product contains GM ingredients are viewed as most credible while simple claims of no GM content are viewed as most adequate. Label claims certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are, in general, viewed as most credible and adequate and products with FDA certified claims are perceived to have fewer long-term health problems. Several practical policy implications of the results are discussed, including how different label messages may impact consumer reactions in markets involving GM products.
Molecular Crowding Favors Reactivity of a Human Ribozyme Under Physiological Ionic Conditions

In an effort to relate RNA folding to function under cellular-like conditions, we monitored the self-cleavage reaction of the human hepatitis delta virus-like CPEB3 ribozyme in the background of physiological ionic concentrations and various crowding and cosolute agents. We found that at physiological free Mg2+ concentrations (∼0.1–0.5 mM), both crowders and cosolutes stimulate the rate of self-cleavage, up to ∼6-fold, but that in 10 mM Mg2+ (conditions widely used for in vitro ribozyme studies) these same additives have virtually no effect on the self-cleavage rate. We further observe a dependence of the self-cleavage rate on crowder size, wherein the level of rate stimulation is diminished for crowders larger than the size of the unfolded RNA. Monitoring effects of crowding and cosolute agents on rates in biological amounts of urea revealed additive-promoted increases at both low and high Mg2+ concentrations, with a maximal stimulation of more than 10-fold and a rescue of the rate to its urea-free value...
Insulin and Glucagon Release in the Diabetic Chinese Hamster: Differences Among Inbred Sublines

Release of insulin and glucagon from perfused pancreases in vitro of 40 normal male and female Chinese hamsters (from one inbred subline) and 110 male and female diabetic hamsters (from three inbred sublines) was measured in response to glucose plus arginine, theophylline alone, or potassium alone, in order to determine if differences in hormone secretion exist among different diabetic sublines. Glucose plus arginine and potassium produced subnormal insulin responses in all three diabetic sublines, whereas theophylline induced 'normal' or above normal insulin responses. Excessive glucagon release was consistently seen in only one diabetic subline. The female normal animals showed greater insulin release than the male normal hamsters in response to glucose plus arginine. This sex difference was not seen in the diabetic animals.
A case of maxillary necrosis.

A 51-year-old white man presented with a 6-week history of exposed bone on the buccal aspect of the left maxilla (Fig 1). He has no underlying disease process and is in good health and taking no medications. There is no recent history of trauma or dental treatment. An office biopsy has shown only necrotic bone. Computed tomography scan (Fig 2) showed the left maxilla to be involved in a destructive pathologic process. Arrangements were made to carry out further biopsies under general anesthesia. When the patient presented 10 days later for biopsy, the clinical appearance was as shown in Figure 3. The upper left first premolar had exfoliated spontaneously during sleep about 3 days earlier. A number of deep biopsy samples were taken, and a histopathologic result is shown (Fig 4). The histology showed only bone necrosis with superficial fungal invasion. Laboratory tests for any hemopoietic or immunologic process were negative. Serologic tests for syphilis were negative. Despite the absence of a definitive diagnosis, in the presence of an increasing region of bone necrosis in the left maxilla, a left inferior hemimaxillectomy was performed to remove all necrotic tissue and to reach healthy bleeding tissue. The specimen that was removed is shown in Figure 5. Again, definitive histology showed only bone necrosis with superficial fungal infection. The patient declined to wear an obturator, and over the succeeding 3 months the palate healed over completely with soft tissue and even appeared to form new bone (Fig 6). He has since been restored with an upper removable partial denture with no signs of recurrence (Fig 7).
Use of a transposon with luciferase as a reporter to identify environmentally responsive genes in a cyanobacterium.

Abstract Anabaena, a filamentous cyanobacterium, is of developmental interest because, when deprived of fixed nitrogen, it shows patterned differentiation of N2-fixing cells called heterocysts. To help elucidate its early responses to a decrease in nitrogen, we used a derivative of transposon Tn5 to generate transcriptional fusions of promoterless bacterial luciferase genes, luxAB, to the Anabaena genome. Genes that responded to removal of fixed nitrogen or to other environmental shifts by increased or decreased transcription were identified by monitoring the luminescence of colonies from transposon-generated libraries. The Tn5 derivative transposed in Anabaena at ca. 1-4 x 10(-5) per cell and permitted high-resolution mapping of its position and orientation in the genome and facile cloning of contiguous genomic DNA.
HELMINTH LIFE CYCLES.

Although classical work continues, particularly on the trematodes, for the most part the basic life cycle patterns must be regarded as worked out. Helminthologists are increasingly turning attention to the mechanics of the life cycle with the result that parasitology is becoming an experimental science. Worms are now under study from the biochemical, physiological, and behavioral points of view. As a result, ideas of specificity have been altered, new physiological races of parasites discovered, and a number of new human helminthiases recognized, chiefly zoonotic and involving larval forms. The number of parasitic worms successfully adapted to laboratory propagation in animal hosts steadily increases, providing new and fruitful models for investigation. Even more striking is the great breakthrough in the last decade involving in vitro culture. Several cestodes and a variety of nematodes can now be reared through various stages, if not their entire life cycle, in partially defined media, and progress is being made with trematodes and acanthocephalans. Behavioral studies are beginning to shed light on how parasites find their hosts and how they locate each other inside the host. And in spite of long-held views to the contrary, evidence increases that certain activities of helminths may be under hormonal control.
Unusual heating events at about 250 km altitude at very low latitudes seen by AE-E

Abstract Simultaneous in situ measurements were made by a number of instruments on board the Atmosphere Explorer E (AE-E) satellite of the densities and temperatures of neutrals and ions and wind velocity transverse to the orbital direction. In a near circular orbit inclined 20° and at about 250 km altitude in 1977, during periods of magnetic activity, perturbations were observed at very low latitudes for a limited range of longitudes in the distribution along the orbit of oxygen, nitrogen, helium, argon and electron density and temperature, neutral and ion temperatures and the north-south winds. These perturbations appear like those seen in auroral regions in the thermosphere at the some altitude where heat is deposited due to precipitation and currents. The explanation is that localized heating was occurring by some means. Possible sources for this heating are considered.
Activation of c-erbB-2 and prognosis in ovarian carcinoma. Comparison with histologic type, grade, and stage.

Background. Prior reports suggested that measuring c-erbB-2 activation in ovarian carcinomas might be valuable in predicting prognosis. The authors attempted to confirm these studies while specifically excluding tumors of low malignant potential. Methods. The clinical and pathologic significance of c-erbB-2 oncogene activation was assessed in 56 ovarian carcinomas, none of which met histologic criteria for tumor of low malignant potential. Results. By using an immunohistochemical technique previously validated in molecular studies, c-erbB-2 oncogene overexpression was identified in 10 of the 56 carcinomas but did not correlate with histologic type, histologic grade, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage, or prognosis. Adverse prognostic factors included histologic type (serous carcinoma), high grade, and high stage (FIGO Stages III and IV). Grade and stage were highly correlated with each other and were more important prognostic indicators than histologic type. Conclusion. Measuring c-erbB-2 activation in ovarian carcinomas may not be of practical value in predicting prognosis when tumors of low malignant potential are excluded. Cancer 1994; 73:1460–6.
Inclusive Leisure and Individuals With Intellectual Disability

Abstract This article contains information about issues associated with the inclusion of people with intellectual disability and their participation in leisure within their communities. Concepts id...
Modulation of p53 binding to Holliday junctions and 3-cytosine bulges by phosphorylation events.

Recognition of certain types of DNA lesions by the tumor suppressor protein, p53, represents one of the several downstream functions of this protein in response to DNA damage. This binding property is regulated by several factors including posttranslational modifications and interactions with other proteins. Phosphorylation by several stress-response kinases activates p53 by increasing protein stability as well as transactivation properties. Here we examined the effect of phosphorylation events on the sequence-independent binding properties of p53 using two DNA substrates: One resembling Holliday junctions and the other containing extra base bulges. Gel retardation assays showed that dephosphorylation of serine 392 in the C-terminal domain of p53 greatly reduces Holliday junction and lesion recognition. In contrast, sequence-specific binding is disrupted by the removal of some N-terminal phosphates but not serine 392. Rephosphorylation of p53 by certain kinases can restore p53 recognition of Holliday jun...
Chylothorax After Internal Thoracic Artery Harvest

Chylothorax is a rare complication following coronary artery bypass graft surgery. We report a case of chylothorax that complicated a left internal thoracic artery harvest and review the literature regarding this subject.
A new prostatic cancer model: Systemic induction of prostatic cancer in rats by a nitrosamine

Weekly intragastric application of N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl) amine (BOP) at a dose of 10 mg/kg body wt induced prostatic cancer in 5 out of 15 MRC rats. Hyperplasia and metaplasia of the prostatic gland were found in 13 rats with or without cancer. All tumors had developed in the dorsal lobe, had reached a size of up to 20 mm and were invasive. Distant metastases were not observed. Although hyperplastic lesion were of a glandular type, all carcinomas had squamous cell character. All cases of prostatic cancer were associated with papillomas or carcinomas of the urethral epithelium, which had initially developed in the colliculus seminalis. The induction of prostatic cancer for the first time by a systemic application by a nitrosamine provides a promising model for understanding basic principals of prostatic cancer.
Advance Deposits on Imports

HE GOLD AND FOREIGN EXCHANGE reserves of small or poor countries are often not large enough to make it easy to operate foreign exchange markets virtually free from quantitative restrictions.' Furthermore, it may not be desirable on other grounds for such countries to invest a large proportion of their assets in foreign reserves, when there are other claims upon savings which deserve priority. There are, however, positive advantages for such countries in maintaining liberalized exchange markets, so that they have a direct interest in carrying out the international commitments into which they have entered, by joining the International Monetary Fund, to avoid the use of restrictions on the making of payments and transfers for current international payments. Many of them also wish to maintain certain controls to influence the rate of growth or the income distribution of their economies; and in these circumstances the maintenance of balance of payments equilibrium without recourse to exchange control measures requires a flexible, well-timed, and skillful management of monetary and/or fiscal controls of a kind for which the experience of more highly developed countries may not give adequate guidance. Some countries have relied upon a floating exchange rate with the support of domestic measures to cope with any external disequilibrium; but if a floating rate is permitted, it is usually thought desirable to keep it as stable as possible. Thus, even with a floating rate, monetary and/or fiscal controls are still necessary to correct not very strong expansionary or contractionary movements. In principle, a large number of instruments of monetary control are available for the use of central banks in underdeveloped countries; however, for a variety of reasons, many of them are not in fact, or cannot be, used. There may be serious doubts about their efficiency for the purposes for which they have been used in other countries. Deeply
Observations of Territorial Breeding Common Ravens Caching Eggs of Greater Sage-Grouse

Abstract Previous investigations using continuous video monitoring of greater sage-grouse Centrocercus urophasianus nests have unambiguously identified common ravens Corvus corax as an important egg predator within the western United States. The quantity of greater sage-grouse eggs an individual common raven consumes during the nesting period and the extent to which common ravens actively hunt greater sage-grouse nests are largely unknown. However, some evidence suggests that territorial breeding common ravens, rather than nonbreeding transients, are most likely responsible for nest depredations. We describe greater sage-grouse egg depredation observations obtained opportunistically from three common raven nests located in Idaho and Nevada where depredated greater sage-grouse eggs were found at or in the immediate vicinity of the nest site, including the caching of eggs in nearby rock crevices. We opportunistically monitored these nests by counting and removing depredated eggs and shell fragments from the...
Medicare's disproportionate share adjustment and the cost of low-income patients

We investigated whether or not hospitals have higher costs for inpatient care provided low-income Medicare patients, after controlling for other cost differences already accounted for by Medicare payments. We estimated differences in Prospective Payment System-adjusted costs and outlier-adjusted length of stay for low-income patients relative to matching non-low-income cases from the same hospital in 85 high-volume diagnosis-related groups (N = 1,247,670). Low-income Medicare patients do not have costlier hospital stays, although their stays are 2.5% longer. We conclude that disproportionate share payments are not justified on grounds of higher treatment costs.
The pregnant patient: considerations in dental care.

Summary Although definitely not a disease, pregnancy poses a unique set of circumstances and necessary precautions for the dentist. The hormonal and anatomic changes produce effects that must be accounted for in providing dental care. As pregnancy is a transitory state, many elective dental procedures can be scheduled for completion after the baby is born. Pregnancy, however, does present the potential for dental problems that will require preventive strategies or actual treatment during pregnancy. Many medications commonly used in dentistry are acceptable for use by pregnant patients, particularly in the last two trimesters, but care must be exercised in their selection.
Localization and Post-translational Processing of the Wound-induced Leucine Aminopeptidase Proteins of Tomato

Leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) is induced by wounding and bacterial pathogen infection in tomato. DNA blot analysis of XbaI-digested λlap genomic clones demonstrated that LapA1 and LapA2 cDNAs were encoded by two different LapA genes in the tomato genome. The coding and untranslated regions of LapA1 and LapA2 mRNAs shared more than 93% identity. The deduced amino acid sequences of LapA cDNA clones and in vitro translation of LapA1 mRNA indicated that LAP-A was synthesized as a 60-kDa precursor protein. The processing of a 60-kDa preLAP-A into the mature 55-kDa LAP-A was demonstrated in vivo by expression of the full-length LapA1 cDNA in insect cells. Sequencing of a single LAP-A form isolated from a two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel indicated that LAP-A proteins had two different N termini that were separated by two residues. The LAP-A presequence had features similar to chloroplast transit peptides. Comparison of LAP-A levels in chloroplast and total protein extracts from methyl jasmonate-treated leaves indicated that a small proportion of the LAP-A proteins was detected in the plastids. Inspection of the LAP-A presequence indicated the presence of a dibasic protease (Kex2/furin) processing site motif 6-8 residues upstream from the LAP-A N termini. Its potential role in LAP-A precursor biogenesis is discussed.
Draft Whole-Genome Sequences of Nine Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli Strains.

ABSTRACT Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is an important food-borne pathogen. Here, we report the draft whole-genome sequences of nine STEC strains isolated from clinical cases in the United States. This is the first report of such information for STEC of serotypes O69, H11, O145:H25, O118:H16, O91:H21, O146:H21, O45:H2, O128:H2, and O121:H19.
Impurity buildup in tokamak with radial electric fields

Abstract Fusion-product alpha-particle ash in a tokamak is not effectively controlled by a divertor, and hence may represent a limiting impurity in reactors. The capacity of a radial electric field to control ash buildup is investigated. Inward-directed fields of 5 kV/m are shown to result in a 30% enhancement of fusion energy output for a representative ash-fraction-limited burn. This output enhancement is traced to differences between the damping of toroidal rotation and resulting differences in cross-field conductivities for fuel ions and for alphas.
Decision Making in Diverse Swift Teams: An Exploratory Study

In the digital age swift teams are becoming the new norm. These work groups are ad-hoc and have very little knowledge or previous interaction with other group members. Dynamics of these groups are complicated because of the group member's diversity and short duration of the projects. Diversity studies have focused on categorization such as ethnicity, gender, culture, sexuality differences on one hand and functional diversity which relates to task-related knowledge, skills, opinions and perspective on the other hand. This paper goes a step further and studies group productivity in term of social diversity of group members in the context of face-to-face groups. The members of a typical swift group are different in race, gender, nationality and backgrounds, different in relation to task-related expertise and initial familiarity with each other. Groups in face-to-face classes mimic diversity that is often related to real life swift teams. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, we can learn from groups used in face-to-face courses and extend those experiences to swift groups. Our research revealed that diversity is associated with decision making in swift groups. We also found evidence that social diversity creates sub-groups which is associated with group decision making. Future research areas are also discussed.
Escape Depth for Excited Photoelectrons in KBr Films

Attenuation length of excited photoelectrons in evaporated potassium bromide films by measuring quantum yield as function of film thickness
Optimal FIR Filter Design based on Curve Fitting Approximation for Uncertain 2–1 Sigma–Delta Modulator

Uncertain components in the integrators of 2–1 Sigma–Delta modulators cannot eliminate the first stage quantization noise completely, and the signal-to-noise ratio in analogue-to-digital converters is not reduced perfectly either. In order to solve the matching problem, older filter designs based on convex optimization are mathematically complicated, computationally intensive and not so efficient in application. In this paper, we propose a design method based on curve fitting approximation for uncertain linearized model of the modulator which is simple in principle and practical in application. Simulation results show that the optimal filter has better performance on multiple validations when compared to other modulator filters.
Dark matter detection with electron neutrinos in liquid scintillation detectors

We consider the prospects for liquid scintillation experiments (with a focus on Kamioka Liquid Scintillator Antineutrino Detector [KamLAND]) to detect the flux of electron neutrinos arising from dark matter annihilation in the core of the Sun. We show that, with data already taken, KamLAND can provide the greatest sensitivity to the dark-matter--proton spin-dependent scattering cross section for dark matter lighter than 20 GeV. It is also possible to probe the dark-matter--nucleon spin-independent scattering cross section for isospin-violating dark matter lighter than 10 GeV. KamLAND can thus potentially confirm the dark matter interpretation of the DAMA (DArk MAtter) and CoGeNT signals, utilizing data already taken.
Lack of Tolerance to Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol in Chimpanzees

Five chimpanzees were given Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ 9 THC): 1.0 milligram per kilogram of body weight for 21 days and 4.0 milligrams per kilogram of body weight for 42 days. Although accuracy and speed of performance on a delayed matching-to-sample task were significantly affected by both doses, tolerance to Δ 9 THC did not develop. No long-term behavioral effects of Δ 9 THC were observed after termination of the drug regimens.
Biogenic amine regulation of glucagon secretion

Norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin directly stimulated glucagon secretion by isolated perifused hamster islet. Propranolol blocked norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin-stimulated glucagon release, suggesting that norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin may modulate glucagon secretion via a beta-adrenergic mechanism. Dopamine and serotonin may exert their action directly via the beta receptor, stimulate residual adrenergic nerve terminals, or the release of other islet biogenic amines. We conclude that part of the stimulating effect of norepinephrine on glucagon release is beta adrenergically mediated and that dopamine and serotonin may affect glucagon secretion either directly or through the release of neurotransmitters that lead to glucagon release. Thus the intra-islet released dopamine and serotonin may contribute to the islets paracrine system by stimulating intra-islet adrenergic neurons.
Theoretical bounds on control-plane self-monitoring in routing protocols

The distributed routing protocols in use today promise to operate correctly only if all nodes implement the protocol faithfully. A small insignificant set of nodes have, in the past, brought an entire network to a standstill by reporting incorrect route information. The damage caused by these erroneous reports, in some instances, could have been contained since incorrect route reports sometimes reveal themselves as inconsistencies in the state-information of correctly functioning nodes. By checking for such inconsitencies and taking preventive action, such as disregarding selected route-reports, a correctly functioning node could have limited the damage caused by the malfunctioning nodes. Our theoretical study attempts to understand when a correctly functioning node can, by analysing its routing-state, detect that some node is misimplementing route selection. We present a methodology, called Strong-Detection that helps answer the question. We then apply Strong-Detection to three classes of routing protocols: distance-vector, path-vector, and link-state. For each class, we derive low-complexity self-monitoring algorithms that take as input the routing state and output whether any detectable anomalies exist. We then use these algorithms to compare and contrast the self-monitoring power ofthese different classes of protocols in relation to the complexity of the irrouting-state.
Time-Sharing Based Rate Adaptation for Multicast Over Wireless Fading Channels in Mobile Wireless Networks

We propose a time-sharing based rate adaptation scheme for reliable multicastings over the fading channels in mobile wireless networks. Specifically, the proposed scheme aims at achieving high system throughput/spectral-efficiency by dynamically adjusting the transmission rate according to the variations of channel state information (CSI) of all multicast mobile receivers. First, we formulate the time-sharing based spectral-efficiency optimization problem to obtain the adaptive rate policies. Also, we apply a concatenated error-correction model for reliable mobile multicast. Then, we derive the solution for the optimization problem when the fading channels of multicast receivers are independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.). Also conducted is a set of simulation evaluations which show the performance superiority of our proposed adaptive rate policy over the worst-case SNR-dominating policy and the best-case SNR-dominating policy.
A paper economy of faith without faith in paper: A reflection on Islamic institutional history

This article contributes to the literature on Islamic institutional history by examining how the discounting of documents in Islamic legal practice constrained the organization of early modern Muslim trade. It is argued that the reliance on literacy, on the one hand, and an Islamic legal framework, on the other, gave early modern Muslim traders a comparative advantage in economic organization, but the lack of faith in paper as documentary evidence in Islamic law posed fundamental constraints to the development of Muslim economies.
Ab initio investigation of the synthesis of (3-(2,3,4,5-tetramethylcyclopentadienyl)propoxy)titanium dichloride

Abstract The two-step synthesis of [η5:η1-C5Me4(CH2)3O]TiCl2 from [C5Me4(CH2)3OMe]TiCl3 is investigated through molecular orbital calculations. Results of ab initio, restricted Hartree–Fock calculations at the 6-311G(d) basis set level are reported for the reactants, products, and an intermediate, [C5Me4(CH2)3OMe]TiCl2(CHPPh3). These results provide insight into the mechanism of the second reaction, which is found to be a charge-controlled intermolecular nucleophilic attack. The nature of the titanium–ylid bond in the intermediate complex is also reported.
Cost, quality, and risk: measuring and stopping the hidden costs of coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

Purpose. Blood conservation programs have been successfully implemented in hospitals in which an overarching commitment to the reduction of the number of blood transfusions existed. This review will describe the rationale and some of the considerations involved in starting such a program. Summary. Management of a hospital’s blood supply is a high pressure area dominated by a resource shortage, increasing costs, a medical community that has been trained to use transfusion, public awareness and concern, and to a lesser extent an increasing body of evidence suggesting that transfusions are often deleterious. The implementation of new techniques and protocols to conserve blood during surgery can be facilitated if a physician champion addresses the medical staff and the hospital administrators clear political and budgetary issues. With a team approach and an understanding of the clinical and economic evidence supporting less blood use, many of the hurdles can be overcome. Conclusion. Blood conservation programs offer a solution to the multiple problems that surround blood use. When successfully implemented, such initiatives reduce safety concerns, hospital spending, and the dependency of hospitals on the national blood supply and improve clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction.
Antepartum care in the twenty-first century

Major factors impacting on antepartum care in the twenty-first century were reviewed in this article, including the impact of managed care and collaborative health care teams, the malpractice crisis, antepartum visits and the quality of care, increased use of the Internet and computer technology, the increasing age of childbearing, advances in genetic and prenatal diagnosis, the importance of evidence-based medicine, the goals of Healthy People 2010 [11], the Safe Mother Initiative, and the use of complementary and alternative medicine. Recommendations for antepartum care in the twenty-first century include; the formation of integrated collaborative health care teams to deal with the effects of managed care; development of a more sensitive health care system to assist all parties involved with medical malpractice; increased expertise in the use of the Internet and computer technology; acknowledging and preparing for the increased population of older gravidas; becoming aware of advances in genetic and prenatal diagnosis; increasing the ability to critically evaluate research and incorporate well-founded study findings into clinical practice; incorporating the goals of Healthy People 2010 [11] when providing care to antepartum patients; contributing resources and manpower to the Safe Mother Initiative to decrease maternal mortality in developing countries; becoming knowledgeable, obtaining adequate training, and utilizing or performing evidence-based studies to validate the use of complementary and alternative medicine in antepartum practice; and finally to find a balance between the factors impacting on prenatal care and the ability to continue to provide safe, high-quality, continuous, sensitive, and humane antepartum care.
Quantitative analysis of protein-RNA interactions by gel mobility shift

The gel mobility shift assay is routinely used to visualize protein-RNA interactions. Its power resides in the ability to resolve free from bound RNA with high resolution in a gel matrix. In this chapter, we review the quantitative application of this approach to elucidate thermodynamic properties of protein-RNA complexes. Assay designs for titration, competition, and stoichiometry experiments are presented for two unrelated model complexes.
Neurocognitive performance and symptom profiles of Spanish-speaking Hispanic athletes on the ImPACT Test.

This study documented baseline neurocognitive performance of 23,815 athletes on the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) test. Specifically, 9,733 Hispanic, Spanish-speaking athletes who completed the ImPACT test in English and 2,087 Hispanic, Spanish-speaking athletes who completed the test in Spanish were compared with 11,955 English-speaking athletes who completed the test in English. Athletes were assigned to age groups (13-15, 16-18). Results revealed a significant effect of language group (p < .001; partial η(2) = 0.06) and age (p < .001; partial η(2) = 0.01) on test performance. Younger athletes performed more poorly than older athletes, and Spanish-speaking athletes completing the test in Spanish scored more poorly than Spanish-speaking and English-speaking athletes completing the test in English, on all Composite scores and Total Symptom scores. Spanish-speaking athletes completing the test in English also performed more poorly than English-speaking athletes completing the test in English on three Composite scores. These differences in performance and reported symptoms highlight the need for caution in interpreting ImPACT test data for Hispanic Americans.
Gene targeting using randomly inserted group II introns (targetrons) recovered from an Escherichia coli gene disruption library

The Lactococcus lactis Ll.LtrB group II intron retrohomes by reverse-splicing into one strand of a double-stranded DNA target site, while the intron-encoded protein cleaves the opposite strand and uses it to prime reverse transcription of the inserted intron RNA. The protein and intron RNA function in a ribonucleoprotein particle, with much of the DNA target sequence recognized by base-pairing of the intron RNA. Consequently, group II introns can be reprogrammed to insert into specific or random DNA sites by substituting specific or random nucleotide residues in the intron RNA. Here, we show that an Escherichia coli gene disruption library obtained using such randomly inserting Ll.LtrB introns contains most viable E.coli gene disruptions. Further, each inserted intron is targeted to a specific site by its unique base-pairing regions, and in most cases, could be recovered by PCR and used unmodified to obtain the desired single disruptant. Additionally, we identified a subset of introns that insert at sites lacking T+5, a nucleotide residue critical for second-strand cleavage. All such introns tested individually gave the desired specific disruption, some by switching to an alternate retrohoming mechanism targeting single-stranded DNA and using a nascent lagging DNA strand to prime reverse transcription.
Current regulation in complex vector notation

Current regulation is a fundamental building block for fast torque response motor drives. It is extremely important for high-speed motor drives, due to their high speed operating ranges. At high-speed operation, significant coupling components exist in the plant model. This paper presents a thorough investigation on current regulation approaches for RL load in complex vector notation. It analyzes theoretical foundation of various current regulators; advantages and disadvantages of those approaches are pointed out. This paper provides simulated and experimental results, and it also discusses factors that will be used to explain different parameter settings between simulation and conducted experiments. A compensation approach is provided for practical implementation of current regulation for lab test.
Die Logik der chemischen Synthese: Vielstufige Synthesen komplexer „carbogener”︁ Moleküle (Nobel‐Vortrag)

«Chemical synthesis is uniquely positioned at the heart of chemistry, and its impact on our lives and society is all-pervasive.» Elias James Corey expresses this opinion in his Novel Lecture, in which he discusses the origin and development of his contributions leading to the award of the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1990. His concept of retrosynthetic analysis revolutionized both the practice and teaching of organic chemistry. His application of computers to synthetic planning was pioneering. The numerous synthetic methods developed by him and his co-workers have proven invaluable in organic synthesis. Finally, the total syntheses carried out in his laboratories− for example, the synthesis of gibberellic acid and of ginkgolide B− are milestones in the breathtaking development of organic synthesis over the last thirty years
Classification of fMRI Time Series in a Low-Dimensional Subspace With a Spatial Prior

We propose a new method for detecting activation in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. We project the fMRI time series on a low-dimensional subspace spanned by wavelet packets in order to create projections that are as non-Gaussian as possible. Our approach achieves two goals: it reduces the dimensionality of the problem by explicitly constructing a sparse approximation to the dataset and it also creates meaningful clusters allowing the separation of the activated regions from the clutter formed by the background time series. We use a mixture of Gaussian densities to model the distribution of the wavelet packet coefficients. We expect activated areas that are connected, and impose a spatial prior in the form of a Markov random field. Our approach was validated with in vivo data and realistic synthetic data, where it outperformed a linear model equipped with the knowledge of the true hemodynamic response.
Chiral transition in lattice gauge theories with Higgs and fermions

Abstract Analytic and numerical studies of the lattice gauge theories with both Higgs and fermion fields are reported. A chiral transition is found in a wide class of such theories, both abelian and non-abelian. This transition separates each phase diagram into two regions, one with spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking and the other with explicit chiral symmetry. The transition is second order where probed. In models where Yukawa couplings are present, there exists a critical value of this coupling below which chiral transition still occurs. Some physical implications are noted.
An Index of Fluidity of Judicial Coalitions

We propose an index that measures the relative degree of coalition voting by Justices on different supreme courts in tightly split opinions, an index of fluidity of judicial coalitions. We show that a linear index is inadequate and then develop a quadratic index that reveals differences between the voting patterns of the United States Supreme court when Justice Powell was the junior Justice compared to the period when Justice Breyer was the junior Justice.
β2-Adrenergic Receptor Signaling in Osteoblasts Contributes to the Catabolic Effect of Glucocorticoids on Bone

The sympathetic nervous system is a physiological regulator of bone homeostasis. Autonomic nerves are indeed present in bone, bone cells express the β2-adrenergic receptors (β2AR), and pharmacological or genetic disruption of sympathetic outflow to bone induces bone gain in rodents. These recent findings implied that conditions that affect β2AR signaling in osteoblasts and/or sympathetic drive to bone may contribute to bone diseases. In this study, we show that dexamethasone stimulates the expression of the β2AR in differentiated primary calvarial osteoblasts, as measured by an increase in Adrβ2 mRNA and β2AR protein level after short-term dexamethasone treatment. Isoproterenol-induced cAMP accumulation and the expression of the β2AR target gene Rankl were also significantly increased after dexamethasone pretreatment, indicating that dexamethasone promotes the responsiveness of differentiated osteoblasts to adrenergic stimulation. These in vitro results led to the hypothesis that glucocorticoid-induced bone loss, provoked by increased endogenous or high-dose exogenous glucocorticoids given for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, might, at least in part, be mediated by increased sensitivity of bone-forming cells to the tonic inhibitory effect of sympathetic nerves on bone formation or their stimulatory effect on bone resorption. Supporting this hypothesis, both pharmacological and genetic β2AR blockade in mice significantly reduced the bone catabolic effect of high-dose prednisolone in vivo. This study emphasizes the importance of sympathetic nerves in the regulation of bone homeostasis and indicates that this neuroskeletal signaling axis can be modulated by hormones or drugs and contribute to enhance pathological bone loss.
Full-fidelity flexible object-oriented XML access

Developers need to programmatically access persistent XML data. Object-oriented access is often the preferred method. Translating XML data into objects or vice-versa is a hard problem due to the data model mismatch and the difficulty of query translation. We propose a framework that addresses this problem by transforming object-based queries and updates into queries and updates on XML using flexible, declarative mappings between classes and XML schema types. The same mappings are used to shred XML fragments from query results into client-side objects. Information in the XML store that is not mapped using the mapping language, such as comments and processing instructions, are also made available in the object representation.
Needles in the Haystack: Identifying Individuals Present in Pooled Genomic Data

Recent publications have described and applied a novel metric that quantifies the genetic distance of an individual with respect to two population samples, and have suggested that the metric makes it possible to infer the presence of an individual of known genotype in a sample for which only the marginal allele frequencies are known. However, the assumptions, limitations, and utility of this metric remained incompletely characterized. Here we present empirical tests of the method using publicly accessible genotypes, as well as analytical investigations of the method's strengths and limitations. The results reveal that the null distribution is sensitive to the underlying assumptions, making it difficult to accurately calibrate thresholds for classifying an individual as a member of the population samples. As a result, the false-positive rates obtained in practice are considerably higher than previously believed. However, despite the metric's inadequacies for identifying the presence of an individual in a sample, our results suggest potential avenues for future research on tuning this method to problems of ancestry inference or disease prediction. By revealing both the strengths and limitations of the proposed method, we hope to elucidate situations in which this distance metric may be used in an appropriate manner. We also discuss the implications of our findings in forensics applications and in the protection of GWAS participant privacy.
Diet affects ejaculate traits in a lizard with condition-dependent fertilization success

Sexually selected traits are often driven to costly extremes by persistent directional selection. Energy acquisition and allocation can therefore influence variation in traits subject to both precopulatory and postcopulatory sexual selection, though the later have received much less attention. We tested the condition dependence of sperm morphology, sperm count, and fertilization success in a promiscuous lizard (Anolis sagrei) by 1) collecting sperm samples from wild males that varied naturally in body condition, 2) experimentally altering the body condition of captive males through dietary restriction, and 3) analyzing genetic paternity data from competitive mating trials between captive males that differed in body condition. In both wild and captive males, the length of the sperm midpiece decreased with body condition. Experimental food restriction decreased sperm production, decreased length of the sperm head, increased length of the sperm midpiece, and increased variance in sperm morphology within individuals. When restricted to a single copulation, males on high-intake diets exhibited a slight but nonsignificant fertilization advantage. Reanalysis of a previous experiment in which high- and low-condition males were sequentially allowed to copulate ad libitum for 1 week revealed a significant fertilization bias in favor of high-condition males. When controlling for mean treatment effects on the proportion of offspring sired and on sperm phenotypes, multiple regression revealed negative correlations between fertilization success and sperm head length, midpiece length, and sperm count. Collectively, our results suggest that condition-dependent fertilization success in A. sagrei may be partially mediated by underlying condition dependence of sperm morphology and sperm count.
Price Stability: The Conflict Between Growth and Control of Inflation

It is the purpose of the ensuing analysis to consider the connexion, which may be positive or negative, between money creation and economic growth. The focus is upon conditions in under-developed countries, both in the general a priori analysis and in the presentation of concrete evidence. Economists have expressed divergent convictions upon this issue, it scarcely needs to be said. Perhaps the most profitable first step in seeking a solution is a careful review of the opposing positions.
What's new in vascular surgery?

Vascular surgery continues to be one of the few surgical specialties for which there is no accompanying medical specialty. While I recognize the emerging specialty of vascular medicine, its orientation is almost exclusively toward research and its numbers are small. To date, it has had little impact on vascular practice patterns. Thus, the vascular surgeon must be familiar with the broad body of literature which refers to the entire vascular system, and by no means be limited to the technical aspects of surgery alone.
Reassurance or reason for concern: Security forces as a crisis management strategy

Abstract This paper examines effects of the deployment of security forces to a popular winter migrant destination faced with a unique humanitarian crisis situation. The study surveyed past winter migrants to the region to evaluate their perceptions regarding sociocultural, economic, and psychological impacts of security forces deployed to the region. In addition, this study evaluates the deployment's impact on satisfaction with life in the region, return intention and likelihood of recommending the region to others to find that perceived safety from the security forces significantly affected community factors and that satisfaction with life fully mediated community factor effects on destination loyalty. These finding significantly add to the limited research in crisis management response effects and substantiates the use of signaling and signal crimes perspective in managing crises.