cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biopsychosocial Model of Health and Healing

Abstract This article discusses a biopsychosocial model that explains health as the interactions of the person's genetic and psychological make-up with the environment. Along the lines of a multi-focused theory, the psychological influences of the mind on the body are treated with a multidisciplinary approach including medicine, psychology, sociology, social work and religion. An introduction to the history of the mind/body connection is presented based on an empirical literature review. Neuropeptide network, neurotransmitters and psychoneuroim-munology are discussed in relation to health, mental health, healing and implications for social work practice. A biopsychosocial perspective is presented as the model of choice for researching and addressing health related illness conjunctive to social work practice. This article discusses cognitive outlook and healthy lifestyle, those who “get better” versus those who do not, perception of health outcomes (placebo effect, illusions of control and positive mental ...
Gender and Social Work Education: Directions for the 1990s.

Abstract This article suggests directions for moving beyond the incomplete curricular reform that has characterized much of the compliance with the CSWE curriculum policy standards on women. Drawing upon the insights of contemporary interdisciplinary feminist scholarship, it argues that the epistemological frameworks of social work education, and its pedagogical styles, must be deconstructed and reformulated if a gender-inclusive curriculum is to be achieved. This comprehensive process goes beyond the addition of women as a new topic in the core curriculum to include changes in the knowledge base, teaching strategies, and the departmental practices of educators.
Capturing user interface events with aspects

User interface events, resulting from the normal operations of a window-based application, provide crucial information for usability evaluation. Since user interface events are extremely voluminous and rich in detail, automated capture tools are required. With the intent to support usability evaluation in early development phases, such a tool must meet two basic criteria: acquiring relevant usability information at the desirable level of abstraction and adaptable to continuous changes in the user interface. Here, we propose an aspect-oriented approach to capturing user interface events. As the user interacts with an application through its user interface, user interface events occur in various components across the application. Aspects allow capturing select user interface events in a self-contained fashion without imposing undesirable constraints on the target application. We demonstrate in this paper that our approach is a suitable one for early usability evaluation.
Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics

The bestselling introduction to bioinformatics and functional genomicsnow in an updated editionWidely received in its previous edition, Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics offers the most broad-based introduction to this explosive new discipline. Now in a thoroughly updated and expanded Second Edition, it continues to be the go-to source for students and professionals involved in biomedical research.This edition provides up-to-the-minute coverage of the fields of bioinformatics and genomics. Features new to this edition include:Several fundamentally important proteins, such as globins, histones, insulin, and albumins, are included to better show how to apply bioinformatics tools to basic biological questions.A completely updated companion web site, which will be updated as new information becomes available - visit www.wiley.com/go/pevsnerbioinformaticsDescriptions of genome sequencing projects spanning the tree of life.A stronger focus on how bioinformatics tools are used to understand human disease.The book is complemented by lavish illustrations and more than 500 figures and tablesfifty of which are entirely new to this edition. Each chapter includes a Problem Set, Pitfalls, Boxes explaining key techniques and mathematics/statistics principles, Summary, Recommended Reading, and a list of freely available software. Readers may visit a related Web page for supplemental information at www.wiley.com/go/pevsnerbioinformatics.Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics, Second Edition serves as an excellent single-source textbook for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate-level courses in the biological sciences and computer sciences. It is also an indispensable resource for biologists in a broad variety of disciplines who use the tools of bioinformatics and genomics to study particular research problems; bioinformaticists and computer scientists who develop computer algorithms and databases; and medical researchers and clinicians who want to understand the genomic basis of viral, bacterial, parasitic, or other diseases.Praise for the first edition:"...ideal both for biologists who want to master the application of bioinformatics to real-world problems and for computer scientists who need to understand the biological questions that motivate algorithms." Quarterly Review of Biology" an excellent textbook for graduate students and upper level undergraduate students." Annals of Biomedical Engineering"highly recommended for academic and medical libraries, and for researchers as an introduction and reference" E-Streams
Understanding Neural Complexity: A Role For Reduction

Psychoneural reduction is under attack again, only this time from a former ally: cognitive neuroscience. It has become popular to think of the brain as a complex system whose theoretically important properties emerge from dynamic, non-linear interactions between its component parts. ``Emergence'' is supposed to replace reduction: the latter is thought to be incapable of explaining the brain qua complex system. Rather than engage this issue at the level of theories of reduction versus theories of emergence, I here emphasize a role that reductionism plays – and will continue to play – even if neuroscience adopts this ``complex systems'' view. In detailed investigations into the function of complex neural circuits, certain questions can only be addressed by moving down levels and scales. This role for reduction also finds a place for approaches that dominate mainstream neuroscience, like the widespread use of experimental techniques and theories from molecular biology and biochemistry. These are difficult to reconcile with the anti-reductionist sentiments of the ``complex systems'' branch of cognitive neuroscience.
A method for the determination of the hydraulic properties of soil from MODIS surface temperature for use in land-surface models

[1] Soil hydraulic properties (SHPs) play an important role in land-surface models, but their spatial distribution is poorly known, and it is not feasible to make field measurements of SHPs everywhere they are needed. In addition, the scale SHPs are measured on (10 cm) is substantially smaller than the scale at which land-surface models are run (>1 km). As a result, land-surface models need landscape hydraulic properties (LHPs), not SHPs. We present a method for identifying LHPs from MODIS surface temperatures. We calibrated LHPs in the Noah land-surface model using MODIS surface temperatures in 2005 at 14 sites from the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) using locally observed forcing data from 2005. We then used observed flux data during this same time period for model verification. Next, we determined LHPs from MODIS surface temperature at five sites using High Resolution Land Data Assimilation forcing data from 2002. We then used these LHPS to run Noah with 2005 ARM forcing data and compared the output to the same observed 2005 fluxes. Fitting LHPs to MODIS data decreases the error in modeled latent heat flux from 98 W/m2 to 67 W/m2. Fitting LHPs to these same latent heat flux measurements decreases the error to 50 W/m2. Therefore, two thirds of the parameter estimation improvement from calibration to in situ flux data can be achieved using remotely sensed surface temperature. These results are insensitive to errors in other parameters. For example, changing albedo by 0.1 changes the saturated conductivity (Ks) by 10% and the van Genuchten “m” parameter by 1%. However, changing minimum canopy resistance by 40 s/m produced a significant but mutually compensating change in both Ks and “m.”
Regulatory functions and pathological relevance of the MECP2 3′UTR in the central nervous system

Methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2), encoded by the gene MECP2, is a transcriptional regulator and chromatin-remodeling protein, which is ubiquitously expressed and plays an essential role in the development and maintenance of the central nervous system (CNS). Highly enriched in post-migratory neurons, MeCP2 is needed for neuronal maturation, including dendritic arborization and the development of synapses. Loss-of-function mutations in MECP2 cause Rett syndrome (RTT), a debilitating neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a phase of normal development, followed by the progressive loss of milestones and cognitive disability. While a great deal has been discovered about the structure, function, and regulation of MeCP2 in the time since its discovery as the genetic cause of RTT, including its involvement in a number of RTT-related syndromes that have come to be known as MeCP2-spectrum disorders, much about this multifunctional protein remains enigmatic. One unequivocal fact that has become apparent is the importance of maintaining MeCP2 protein levels within a narrow range, the limits of which may depend upon the cell type and developmental time point. As such, MeCP2 is amenable to complex, multifactorial regulation. Here, we summarize the role of the MECP2 3' untranslated region (UTR) in the regulation of MeCP2 protein levels and how mutations in this region contribute to autism and other non-RTT neuropsychiatric disorders.
Sound transmission through gypsum board walls - Effect of shear membranes and framing details

An overview is given on trends observed in the sound transmission results from a research project that studied both sound and fire resistance of wall assemblies intended for multi-family residential buildings. Focus is on factors controlling airborne transmission and structure-related aspects.
Long-term medical therapy for leiomyomata uteri: a prospective, randomized study of leuprolide acetate depot plus either oestrogen-progestin or progestin 'add-back' for 2 years.

Treatment of women with leiomyomata with gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonists (GnRHa) for > 6 months is not recommended because of concerns regarding adverse sequelae of prolonged hypoestrogenism. It has been postulated that addition of low-dose sex steroids to GnRHa treatment, i.e. 'add-back' therapy, may avert some of these adverse effects (accelerated bone resorption, vasomotor flushes) without altering the efficacy of GnRHa therapy. To evaluate the effects of long-term GnRHa therapy on uterine size, bleeding patterns, bone mass and lipids, 51 pre-menopausal women with leiomyomata were treated with the GnRHa leuprolide acetate depot, 3.75 mg every 4 weeks for 2 years. After 3 months of leuprolide therapy, the women were randomized to receive either low-dose continuous oestropipate, 0.75 mg daily, plus cyclic norethindrone, 0.7 mg on days 1-14 each month (the oestrogen-progestin add-back group) or higher-dose norethindrone, 10 mg daily (the progestin add-back group), for the remaining 21 months. Mean uterine volume decreased by 40% in both treatment groups during the first 3 months on leuprolide treatment. There was no significant change in uterine size following oestrogen-progestin add-back. However, mean uterine volume in the progestin add-back group increased to 87% of pre-treatment size by treatment month 12 and 95% of pre-treatment size by treatment month 24. Mean bone density of the lumbar spine as measured by dual X-ray absorptiometry decreased significantly by 2.6% during the first 3 months in all patients, but did not change significantly following steroid add-back in both treatment groups during the final 21 treatment months.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions of 5-vinyl-1,3-cyclohexadienes.

The intramolecular Diels−Alder reaction of 5-vinyl-1,3-cyclohexadienes affording substituted tricyclo[3.2.1.02,7]oct-3-enes is studied.
The social computing room: a multi-purpose collaborative visualization environment

The Social Computing Room (SCR) is a novel collaborative visualization environment for viewing and interacting with large amounts of visual data. The SCR consists of a square room with 12 projectors (3 per wall) used to display a single 360-degree desktop environment that provides a large physical real estate for arranging visual information. The SCR was designed to be cost-effective, collaborative, configurable, widely applicable, and approachable for naive users. Because the SCR displays a single desktop, a wide range of applications is easily supported, making it possible for a variety of disciplines to take advantage of the room. We provide a technical overview of the room and highlight its application to scientific visualization, arts and humanities projects, research group meetings, and virtual worlds, among other uses.
War Chests for Deterrence and Savings

I present a model of fund-raising in repeated elections where funds are raised to deter the entry of strong challengers, and to increase the probability of winning through campaign spending. The equilibrium relationship between war chests and incumbent strength is non-monotonic, because incumbents of moderate strength have an incentive to raise enough money to deter strong challengers and to save a large fraction of those funds for use in subsequent election, while stronger incumbents have less incentive to save. Thus, the savings behavior can mask the entry deterrence effect.
Investigation of Warm Prestress for the Case of Small ΔT During a Reactor Loss-of-Coolant Accident

Abstract : An experimental investigation was conducted to characterize the benefits of warm prestress (WPS) in limiting crack extension in the wall of a nuclear vessel during a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) followed by introduction of relatively cold water by the emergency core cooling system. The present research emphasized material behavior under conditions of a small delta T between the temperature of WPS and the failure temperature as might occur during a LOCA. The results have demonstrated that fracture will not occur during a simultaneous unloading and cooling of the crack-tip region following WPS even though the critical K sub ic of the virgin material is achieved. The results also demonstrated that, for the conditions investigated, fracture will not occur unless the level of WPS has been exceeded. It is concluded that WPS produces an 'effective' elevation in K sub ic and that this elevation will limit crack extension in the vessel wall so as to retain the coolant. (Author)
Nondestructive evaluation of damage accumulation processes in composite laminates

Abstract This paper presents results from several interdisciplinary studies of the mechanical response of composite materials, in which mechanics and materials science were used in concert with nondestructive evaluation (NDE) to investigate the damage accumulation process. Specific examples are cited for the initiation and growth of damage in notched and unnotched laminates subjected to cyclic loading histories. The process of damage accumulation in composite materials involves a number of damage modes, including matrix cracking, delamination, and fiber fracture, which initiate, grow, and interact to form a complex network of damage details called the damage state. Nondestructive techniques, including replication, light and electron microscopy, X-ray radiography, ultrasonics, stiffness change, and thermography, are used to detect and monitor the progressive development of damage throughout the fatigue life and to evaluate its effect on fatigue response of the laminates.
Revolutions in Science and Refinements in the Analysis of Causation

A sufficient condition for a revolution in physics is a change in the concept of cause. To demonstrate this, we examine three developments in physical theory. After informally characterizing a theory in terms of an heuristic and a set of equations, we show how tensions between these two dimensions lead to the development of alternative theoretical accounts. In each case the crucial move results in a refinement of our account of cause. All these refinements taken together result in the emergence of a new conceptual framework in which ‘causation’ is evolving in a manner unrelated to the common sense understanding of the concept. Science has advanced in the past precisely because, when things happened whose causes were unknown, it was assumed that they had causes nevertheless. (1)
Inelastic interactions of electrons with surfaces: application to Auger-electron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Abstract Electron-based probes of surface properties are used frequently in surface science since strong inelastic scattering for electron energies between about 50 and 2000 eV ensures high surface sensitivity. An overview is given of developments in the understanding of inelastic electron scattering in solids with emphasis on important surface properties. Auger-electron spectroscopy (AES) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) are the two techniques most commonly used for measurements of surface composition. We give a brief description of the development of AES and XPS and then proceed to describe the role of inelastic electron scattering in AES and XPS. Attention is given to the measurement of electron attenuation lengths, to the calculation of electron inelastic mean free paths, and to intensity measurements for quantitative AES and XPS.
Angiotensin II type 2 receptor regulates ROMK-like K⁺ channel activity in the renal cortical collecting duct during high dietary K⁺ adaptation.

The kidney adjusts K+ excretion to match intake in part by regulation of the activity of apical K+ secretory channels, including renal outer medullary K+ (ROMK)-like K+ channels, in the cortical co...
Resonance neutron capture in 181Ta(n, γ)182Ta

Abstract The γ-ray energies and intensities of the high-energy (Eγ >4.7 MeV) γ-rays emitted from neutron capture in tantalum for nuetron energies less than 350 eV are measured with a Ge(Li) detector. The distribution of γ-ray intensities over seven capturing states is consistent with a χ2 distribution with one degree of freedom and the γ-ray transitions are uncorrelated with each other. The limitations of the values of the spins and parities of the final states populated by primary γ-ray transitions from the capturing states are inconsistent with previous spin assignments.
THE IMPACT FATIGUE PROPERTIES OF PEARLITIC PLAIN CARBON STEELS

— A literature search has revealed that the most extensive study of impact fatigue reported is still that of Stanton and Bairstow (1908) who were the first to work on this topic. Their results, which were on pearlitic plain carbon steels, have been reanalyzed in an attempt to deduce from them the effects of chemical composition on impact fatigue in this class of materials. The results show that when the number of impacts to failure, Nf, is greater than about 103, Nf and the energy absorbed per impact, Ei, are related by the equation: Ei, =Eo+EkNf−p, where Eo appears to be the impact endurance limit. It is suggested that Ek and p be named respectively the “impact fatigue parameter” and “impact fatigue exponent”. Ek is independent of composition except that it is lower by a factor of about four for two materials which probably failed by an intercrystalline rather than transcrystalline fracture; p has a value of 0.6; and Eo increases monotonically with silicon content but does not vary systematically with the carbon, manganese, sulphur or phorphorus contents. The significance of these results is discussed.
Durability of the Accretion Disk of Millisecond Pulsars

Pulsars with pulsation periods in the millisecond range are thought to be neutron stars that have acquired an extraordinarily short spin period through the accretion of stellar material spiraling down onto the neutron star from a nearby companion. Nearly all the angular momentum and most of the mass of the companion star is transferred to the neutron star. During this process, wherein the neutron star consumes its companion, it is required that a disk of stellar material be formed around the neutron star. In conventional models it is supposed that the disk is somehow lost when the accretion phase is finished, so that only the rapidly spinning neutron star remains. However, it is possible that, after the accretion phase, a residual disk remains in stable orbit around the neutron star. The end result of such an accretion process is an object that looks much like a miniature (about 100 kilometers), heavy version of Saturn: a central object (the neutron star) surrounded by a durable disk.
Die Stress Variation During Thermal Cycling Reliability Tests

Thermal cycling accelerated life testing is an established technique for thermo-mechanical evaluation and qualification of electronic packages. Finite element life predictions for thermal cycling configurations are challenging due to several reasons including the complicated temperature/time dependent constitutive relations and failure criteria needed for solders, encapsulants and their interfaces; aging/evolving material behavior for the packaging materials (e.g. solders); difficulties in modeling plating finishes; the complicated geometries of typical electronic assemblies; etc. In addition, in-situ measurements of stresses and strains in assemblies subjected to temperature cycling are difficult because of the extreme environmental conditions and the fact that the primary materials/interfaces of interest (e.g. solder joints, die device surface, wire bonds, etc.) are embedded within the assembly (not at the surface). For these reasons, little is known about the evolution of the stresses, strains, and deformations occurring within sophisticated electronic packaging geometries during thermal cycling. In this work, we have used test chips containing piezoresistive stress sensors to characterize the in-situ die surface stress during long-term thermal cycling of electronic packaging assemblies. Using (111) silicon test chips, the complete three-dimensional stress state (all 6 stress components) was measured at each rosette site by monitoring the resistance changes occurring in the sensors. The packaging configuration studied in this work was flip chip on laminate where 5 × 5 mm perimeter bumped die were assembled on FR-406 substrates. Three different thermal cycling temperature profiles were considered. In each case, the die stresses were initially measured at room temperature after packaging. The packaged assemblies were then subjected to thermal cycling and measurements were made either incrementally or continuously during the environmental exposures. In the incremental measurements, the packages were removed from the chamber after various durations of thermal cycling (e.g. 250, 500, 750, 1000 cycles, etc.), and the sensor resistances were measured at room temperature. In the continuous measurements, the sensor resistances at critical locations on the die device surface (e.g. die center and die corners) were recorded continuously during the thermal cycling exposure. From the resistance data, the stresses at each site were calculated and plotted versus time. The experimental observations show cycle-to-cycle evolution in the stress magnitudes due to material aging effects, stress relaxation and creep phenomena, and development of interfacial damage.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Tax-Aware Investing: Implications for Asset Allocation, Asset Location, and Stock Management Style

This study has three major sections. The first section examines how management style affects the share of returns received by and risk borne by the investor when stocks are held in a taxable account. One good management strategy is to manage stocks passively, ideally until the capital gains qualify for a step-up in basis at death or are used to fund a charitable contribution. The second examines the optimal location of assets in a portfolio comprising both taxable and tax-exempt pockets. It concludes that, to the degree possible without violating the target asset allocation, stocks should be passively held in taxable accounts and bonds should be held in retirement accounts. The third section examines dynamic tax-aware investing. Predictably, a good approximation to optimal behavior for a tax-aware investor is to realize all losses and let capital gains grow unrealized.
A novel approach for cancer outcome prediction using personalized classifier

Cancer patients can be classifier into different subtypes but an obvious question can ask, whether these predefined subtypes can be helpful to detect the risk of disease in advance which is a well known problem in cancer biology. In this article we address these issues of using subtypes for disease outcome prediction and propose a personalized classification approach by relaxing the predefined subtype idea. Finally, we find that our proposed method is helpful to develop prediction model which can be useful in clinical practice to predict disease outcome. Thus the idea proposed here has better accuracy and application than conventional approaches for cancer outcome prediction.
Social documentary and personal investigations in contemporary South African photography: Tracey Derrick’s “One in Nine” series

A shell of white gauze floats against a split background in Tracey Derrick’s 2009 photograph, Inhabit – Habergeon – middle English, piece of armour to protect the neck and chest (Inhabit), both autonomous and materially frail. The shadowed wall lifts the calcified gauze towards the viewer, as its lithe body hovers above the vertical divide that separates light from dark. This position apart from the edge may be read as a passage missed or overcome. A year of invasive treatment following her diagnosis of stage two breast cancer in March of 2008 led South African documentary photographer Tracey Derrick to create a photographic series that combines her humanist sensibility with personal reflections on illness. Derrick represents meditations on her trajectory through illness in “One in Nine: My Year as a Statistic,” a collection of reposeful digital colour photographs – including Inhabit – that features the cast Derrick made to obtain accurate measurements for her prosthesis. This body of work complicates a w...
Using a Facet Design to Assess the Effects of the Form, the Source, and the Frequency of Information Necessary to Answer ESL Reading Comprehension Questions.

Determining what reading comprehension questions actually measure is difficult to ascertain objectively. Facet theory and design suggest a means to define operationally what a given item measures by studying how an item is related to textually or nontextually based information. Three facets or structs (the form of information [explicit or implicit], the source of information [text or nontext], and the frequency with which the information appeared in the text) were entered into regression equations to determine how much variance the structs accounted for in the item scores from ESL reading comprehension tests from different levels of proficiency. The results suggested that the facets were differentially related to the item scores at different levels of proficiency. Further true experimental research is suggested using the facet design to study the effects of the structs and to provide useful diagnostic information in terms of a typology of items that readers answered correctly and incorrectly.
Intestinal adaptation: structure, function, and regulation.

After massive small bowel resection (SBR), the remnant intestine undergoes an adaptive process characterized by increases in wet weight, protein and DNA content, villus height and crypt depth, and absorptive surface area. These changes are the result of a proliferative stimulus that increases crypt cell mitosis and augments cellular progression along the villus axis. Functionally, there is upregulation of the Na + /glucose cotransporter, Na + /H + exchanger, and other enzymes involved in intestinal digestion and absorption. These physiologic events are a compensatory response to the sudden loss of digestive and absorptive capacity by the remnant intestine. A major consequence of inadequate intestinal adaptation is lifelong dependence on parenteral nutrition, which results ultimately in cholestatic liver dysfunction. Furthermore, adaptation may be associated with changes in intestinal permeability and an increased risk of bacterial translocation and sepsis. Several mediators thought to be integral to the postresection adaptive response have been proposed, including luminal nutrients, gastrointestinal secretions, and humoral factors. A thorough understanding of intestinal adaptation will be essential in the rational development of new and innovative therapies that amplify this complex but important process.
EEG coherence in unmedicated schizophrenic patients.

Abstract We have recently shown that electroencephalogram (EEG) coherence data recorded with common reference methods, including those obtained from schizophrenics, are confounded by power and phase effects. Three published reports using bipolar recordings found that EEG coherence was higher in schizophrenics; however, only medicated patient s were studied. To extend these findings, we measured EEG coherence from bipolar EEG recordings in unmedicated schizophrenics ( n = 10), affective disorder patients ( n = 8), and normal controls ( n = 13) during resting and task conditions. Seven schizophrenics were restudied after a period of neuroleptic treatment. Schizophrenics had higher acrosstask interhemispheric ( p p coherence in the theta band and tended to have higher intrahemispheric alpha coherence ( p Medication treatment was associated with clinical improvement and increases in spectral power , but not with changes in coherence values. These results confirm those obtained by earlier investigations and suggest that increased coherence reflects the presence of anomalous cortical organization in schizophrenics rather than medication effects or transient states related to acute clinical disturbance.
Forecasting the daily federal funds rate

Abstract This paper compares two alternative one-day-ahead forecasts of tomorrow's federal funds rate. The first forecast is a simple random walk forecast in which the forecast of tomorrow's federal funds rate is taken to be today's federal funds rate. The second forecast is an ARIMA model forecast that was allowed to vary with changes in the Federal Reserve System's operating procedures. These two forecasts are compared in terms of their general forecast accuracy and the decision support they provide to a financial institution hypothesized to be borrowing $7 million a week in the federal funds market. Even in cases felt to be most favorable to the ARIMA forecasts, the degree of forecast accuracy and decision support superiority of the ARIMA forecasts is found to be quite small.
Thirty years of blackouts: a case report of swallow syncope

Deglutition syncope has been demonstrated in isolated case reports, the first being described over 50 years ago. It is thought to be caused by a hypersensitive vagotonic reflex in response to esophageal dilation after swallowing. It can cause syncope due to complete atrioventricular (AV) block and acute reduction of cardiac output. Although rare, its lethality is worthy of discussion, as early recognition can offer complete treatment with placement of a pacemaker. A 54-year-old man presented with 30 years of lightheadedness and syncope, followed by disorientation and tremors, after eating sandwiches or drinking carbonated beverages. He initially was evaluated by a neurologist. Work-up included cardiac 2D transthoracic echocardiogram, electroencephalogram, swallow stud, pulmonary function tests, electrocardiogram, and cardiac stress testing. All tests were within normal limits, and it was determined that he was suffering from convulsive syncope and deglutition syncope. Referral to the cardiac electrophysiology department with tilt-table testing accompanied by swallow evaluation was then recommended. The tests demonstrated marked vagal response resulting in sinus bradycardia with second-degree AV block and pauses up to 3.5 seconds. Patient experienced near syncope. A rate-responsive, dual-chamber Boston Scientific pacemaker with DDDR programming was implanted. Patient has remained asymptomatic at follow-up. Keywords: AV block; deglutition syncope; vagotonic hypersensitivity; dual chamber pacemaker; tilt-table; electophysiologic testing (Published: 17 April 2013) Citation: Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives 2013, 3 : 20323 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/jchimp.v3i1.20323
Localization of Lutheran, a novel laminin receptor, in normal, knockout, and transgenic mice suggests an interaction with laminin α5 in vivo

Laminins are major components of all basement membranes. One laminin that has garnered particular interest, due to its widespread expression pattern and importance during development, is the laminin alpha5 chain. In vitro studies have suggested that the Lutheran blood group glycoprotein/basal cell adhesion molecule (Lu), an Ig superfamily transmembrane protein, is a receptor for laminins containing the alpha5 chain. However, there are no in vivo studies showing that these proteins are capable of interacting in tissues. We have isolated the mouse ortholog of Lu and characterized its expression and localization in mouse tissues. Lu was primarily found on the basal surface of epithelial cells and on muscle cells adjacent to basement membranes containing laminin alpha5. In addition, there was both a dramatic reduction in the basal concentration of Lu in mice lacking laminin alpha5, and a significant increase in Lu protein in transgenic mice overexpressing laminin alpha5. Together, these data provide the first in vivo evidence for an interaction between Lu and laminin alpha5 and support the hypothesis that Lu is a laminin alpha5 receptor. We propose that laminin alpha5 is involved in concentrating Lu on the basal surface of epithelial cells. This may be one mechanism by which basement membrane signals are transmitted to the cell.
Regularity of functions smooth along foliations, and elliptic regularity

Abstract We produce two sets of results arising in the analysis of the degree of smoothness of a function that is known to be smooth along the leaves of one or more foliations. These foliations might arise from Anosov systems, and while each leaf is smooth, the leaves might vary in a nonsmooth fashion. One set of results gives microlocal regularity of such a function away from the conormal bundle of a foliation. The other set of results gives local regularity of solutions to a class of elliptic systems with fairly rough coefficients. Such a regularity theory is motivated by one attack on the foliation regularity problem.
Alterations in coelenterate malic dehydrogenase isoenzymes during temporary anaerobiosis.

Abstract 1. 1. Acrylamide gel electrophoresis of whole extracts of the anemone Diadumene leucolena revealed three major and four minor malic dehydrogenase isoenzymes. 2. 2. No qualitative difference in isoenzyme bands was apparent between normal and starved, algal-free animals under high or low oxygen tensions. 3. 3. Quantitative changes of isoenzyme bands did occur between normal and algal free anemones. Subjecting the animal to low oxygen tensions produced further quantitative changes in the isoenzyme patterns. 4. 4. Quantitative changes in isoenzyme ratios during periods of low oxygen tension may be correlated with changes in malic dehydrogenase specific activity.
Hydralazine causes nonspecific binding of antibodies to human lymphocytes in vitro.

In vitro incubation of human lymphocytes or a continuous human Jurkat T cell line with hydralazine (1-hydrazinophthalazine), a widely used antihypertensive agent, produced a nonspecific binding of various antibodies to the cells. This phenomenon was found to produce increases in staining of mitogen-stimulated and mitogen-unstimulated human lymphocytes and Jurkat cells with a variety of antibodies recognizing T and B cell antigens. The increase in nonspecific binding was greatest at 10−2 m hydralazine, but was seen with concentrations as low 10−7 M, which is comparable to the serum concentrations of patients prescribed hydralazine. The binding of antibodies is not connected with significant decreases in the cell viability. This property of hydralazine may cause misinterpretation of certain immunological tests employing the antibodies.
Cochrane corner commentary: Do funding sources create bias? Cochrane database of systematic review: Industry sponsorship and research outcomes

More than a hundred randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are published daily, thus it is costly and labour-intensive to collate all the relevant information to ensure that clinical or policy decisions are evidence based. Relevant sources including the Cochrane Collaboration [1] provide valuable summaries as they address both the strengths and limitations of reviews and included studies. The assessment of individual studies requires the reader to evaluate the validity of the reported findings. The major threat to validity is bias, which may be due to systematic or random or biological error. Whilst random error identified by tests of statistical significance are well reported, systematic errors may be poorly described and biological flaws are rarely addressed [2]. Bias is the most pernicious methodological flaw. For instance, although it is generally accepted that antidepressant medication is effective, a systematic error called publication bias has been demonstrated. Turner et al. [3] found that whilst 94% of the published trials were positive, only half (51%) of all the studies (including the unpublished studies) were positive. This information might alter clinical practice or policy in relation to the perception, use, and warnings required for antidepressant medication. The Cochrane Collaboration strives to improve methods to assess bias by examining empirical data for assessing the quality of studies. An editorial questions whether sponsorship and funding should be included as a source of bias [4]. This was based on a Cochrane Review [5] that examined the association of funding source with clinical outcomes in pharmaceutical studies. The review defined studies as ‘favourable’ when they showed greater efficacy or less harm for the sponsor’s product than for the comparator. The review found that pharmaceutical industrysponsored studies were more likely to have favourable efficacy and safety results than studies not sponsored by industry. For the sponsors product, the chance of a favourable outcome was one third higher (RR 1.32, 95% CI 1.21–1.44) and the chance of a harmful effect was almost halved (RR 1.87, CI 1.54–2.27) in industry-sponsored as compared to unsponsored trials [5].
Dynamics and fragmentation of thick-shelled microbubbles

Localized delivery could decrease the systemic side effects of toxic chemotherapy drugs. The unique delivery agents we examine consist of microbubbles with an outer lipid coating, an oil layer, and a perfluorobutane gas core. These structures are 0.5-12 /spl mu/m in radius at rest. Oil layers of these acoustically active lipospheres (AALs) range from 0.3-1.5 /spl mu/m in thickness and thus the agents can carry a large payload compared to nano-scale drug delivery systems. We show that triacetin-based drug-delivery vehicles can be fragmented using ultrasound. Compared with a lipid-shelled contrast agent, the expansion of the drug-delivery vehicle within the first cycle is similar, and a subharmonic component is demonstrated at an equivalent radius, frequency, and driving pressure. For the experimental conditions explored here, the pulse length required for destruction of the drug-delivery vehicle is significantly greater, with at least five cycles required, compared with one cycle for the contrast agent. For the drug-delivery vehicle, the observed destruction mechanism varies with the initial radius, with microbubbles smaller than resonance size undergoing a symmetric collapse and producing a set of small, equal-sized fragments. Between resonance size and twice resonance size, surface waves become visible, and the oscillations become asymmetrical. For agents larger than twice the resonance radius, the destruction mechanism changes to a pinch-off, with one fragment containing a large fraction of the original volume.
Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better: Finding Expert Teams by CrewScout

CrewScout is an expert-team finding system based on the concept of skyline teams and efficient algorithms for finding such teams. Given a set of experts, CrewScout finds all k-expert skyline teams, which are not dominated by any other k-expert teams. The dominance between teams is governed by comparing their aggregated expertise vectors. The need for finding expert teams prevails in applications such as question answering, crowdsourcing, panel selection, and project team formation. The new contributions of this paper include an end-to-end system with an interactive user interface that assists users in choosing teams and an demonstration of its application domains.
Dysfunctional attention in autistic savants

A dysfunctional attention hypothesis of the basis of savant skills was tested with a series of computerized tasks that assessed the ability to divide, shift, direct, and sustain attention. Ten healthy men with pervasive developmental disorders and unusual calendar-calculating skill, and 10 age- and sex-matched controls were tested. There were four general findings. First, the savants and controls did not differ on a measure of visual sustained attention. Second, the savants failed to detect rare auditory targets significantly more than did the controls. Third, the savants were unable to efficiently divide their attention when required to detect both visual and auditory targets simultaneously. Finally, deficient orienting or a deficit in shifting selective attention from one stimulus location to another was evidenced in overall slower reaction times for the savants across tasks requiring shifts and redirecting of attention. This deficit was attributed to an inability to disengage attention as a result of deficient orienting and overselectivity.
Metalloprotein and Metallo-DNA/RNAzyme Design: Current Approaches, Success Measures and Future Challenges

Specific metal-binding sites have been found in not only proteins but also DNA and RNA molecules. Together these metalloenzymes consist of a major portion of the enzyme family and can catalyze some of the most difficult biological reactions. Designing these metalloenzymes can be both challenging and rewarding because it can provide deeper insights into the structure and function of proteins and cheaper and more stable alternatives for biochemical and biotechnological applications. Toward this goal, both rational and combinatorial approaches have been used. The rational approach is good for designing metalloenzymes that are well characterized, such as heme proteins, while the combinatorial approach is better at designing those whose structures are poorly understood, such as metallo-DNA/RNAzymes. Among the rational approaches, de novo design is at its best when metal-binding sites reside in a scaffold whose structure has been designed de novo (e.g., α-helical bundles). Otherwise, design using native scaffol...
Cardiovascular Disease Among Alaska Native Peoples

Although Alaska Native peoples were thought to be protected from cardiovascular disease (CVD), data now show that this is not the case, despite traditional lifestyles and high omega-3 fatty acid intake. In this article, the current understanding of CVD and its risk factors among Alaska Native peoples, particularly among the Yupik and Inupiat populations, will be discussed, using data from three major studies funded by the National Institutes of Health: Genetics of Coronary Artery Disease among Alaska Natives (GOCADAN), Center for Native Health Research (CANHR), and Education and Research Towards Health (EARTH). Data from these epidemiologic studies have focused concern on CVD and its risk factors among Alaska Native peoples. This review will summarize the findings of these three principal studies and will suggest future directions for research and clinical practice.
Esophageal stenosis with esophageal atresia

Esophageal atresia with tracheosophageal fistula may be associated rarely with distal esophageal stenosis. Three patients are reported with this combination of esophageal anomalies. In addition the clinical and radiologic features of 24 patients previously reported in the literature are reviewed. Careful evaluation of the distal esophagus during postoperative contrast studies in patients with esophageal atresia should be obtained to exclude distal stenosis. The presence of unrecognized distal esophageal stenosis may lead to complications of postoperative anastomotic leaks, poor healing of the anastomosis, aspiration, and impaction of a solid food bolus proximal to the stenosis.
Magnetic Anomalies on the Reykjanes Ridge

THE symmetrical magnetic anomaly pattern1 over the axis of the Reykjanes Ridge has been interpreted2,3 as evincing seafloor spreading during the past 10 m.y., and Talwani et al.4 have used magnetic survey data of the Reykjanes Ridge to revise the reversal time scale for the past 10 m.y. They were also able to show that the magnetization of basement within the axial anomaly is 0.03 emu, three times greater than the value assigned to the magnetization of basement underlying the flank anomalies, 0.01 emu.
A study of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene inhibition of benzo[a]pyrene uptake and activation in a microbial mutagenicity assay

A number of in vitro and in vivo studies have determined that binary and complex mixtures may interact to produce a toxicity that could not be predicted based on the individual chemicals. The present study was conducted with a binary mixture of model compounds to investigate possible interactions affecting their mutagenicity. The compounds included Benzo[a]pyrene (BAP), a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon that is an indirect-acting mutagen of great environmental concern, and 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT), a nitro-aromatic compound that is a direct-acting mutagen frequently found as a soil contaminant at munitions sites. This study indicated that a binary mixture of BAP and TNT failed to induce the positive mutagenic response in Salmonella typhimurium strain TA98 characteristic of either compound alone. Spectrofluorometric analysis of BAP, and kinetic analyses of 3HBAP uptake in the presence or absence of TNT using TA98 cells that were treated or untreated with activated rat liver microsomes were performed. In cells preloaded with BAP, cellular BAP fluorescence was rapidly suppressed in the presence of TNT. Mass spectroscopy of BAP and TNT mixtures revealed a number of products, believed to be the result of complexation and nitration, that may account for the antagonistic action of TNT on BAP-induced mutagenicity in TA98 cells. Further, kinetic studies indicated that TNT inhibited the incorporation of BAP into cells.