cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Host-specific subtelomere: Genomic architecture of pathogen emergence in asexual filamentous fungi

Several asexual species of filamentous fungal pathogens contain supernumerary chromosomes carrying secondary metabolite (SM) or pathogenicity genes. Supernumerary chromosomes have been shown in in vitro experiments to transfer from pathogenic isolates to non-pathogenic ones and between isolates whose fusion can result in vegetative or heterokaryon incompatibility (HET). However, much is still unknown about the acquisition and maintenance of SM/pathogenicity gene clusters in the adaptation of these asexual pathogens to their hosts. We investigated several asexual fungal pathogens for genomic elements involved in maintaining telomeres for supernumerary and core chromosomes during vegetative reproduction. We found that in vegetative species or lineages with a nearly complete telomere-to telomere genome assembly (e.g. Fusarium equiseti and five formae speciales of the F. oxysporum species complex), core and supernumerary chromosomes were flanked by highly similar subtelomeric sequences on the 39 side and by their reverse complements on the 59 side. This subtelomere sequence structure was preserved in isolates from the same species or from polyphyletic lineages in the same forma specialis (f.sp.) of the F. oxysporum species complex. Moreover, between some isolates within F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, the mean rate of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a supernumerary chromosome was at least 300 times lower than those in core chromosomes. And a large number of HET domain genes were located in SM/pathogenicity gene clusters, with a potential role in maintaining these gene clusters during vegetative reproduction.
Taiwan’s path to universal health coverage—an essay by William C Hsiao

Who could pass up a chance to redesign a society’s healthcare system, no matter how challenging it may be? William C Hsiao describes how he responded
Anti-M-Induced Delayed Hemolytic Transfusion Reaction.

Background Anti-M is most often assumed to be naturally occurring and can be comprised of a mixture of predominantly immunoglobulin(Ig)M with a lesser IgG component. Anti-M-antibodies usually do not react at 37°C and therefore are considered to be of little clinical significance. Methods A 28-year-old man presented with hemorrhagic shock from numerous injuries sustained in a motor vehicle collision. The patient received several units of red blood cells (RBCs). The antibody screen, the direct antiglobulin test (DAT), and the RBC genotype were sent for laboratory evaluation. Results A total of 12 days after the first antibody screening result was negative (7 days after transfusion), the lowest hemoglobin value was 5.5 g per dL, and we observed a positive antibody screening result and DAT with immunoglobulin (Ig)G anti-M identified. After transfusion of 4 units of M antigen-negative RBC, the post-transfusion hemoglobin level increased to 8.9 g per dL. Conclusion Obtaining M antigen-negative compatible RBCs is necessary in patients demonstrating IgG anti-M in plasma.
Cyber Physical Systems in Transportation: Traffic Management With Connected and Autonomous Vehicles

This chapter summarizes the state of the art on transportation CPS, and presents an overview of research related to traffic management with connected and autonomous vehicles (CAV). The chapter discusses the principles, applications, deployment, and challenges for CAV CPS from a highway transportation systems management perspective. It presents traffic management strategies for CAVs including signal control optimization, freeway merge and weaving algorithms, and roundabout operations. The last sections discuss CPS challenges for transportation applications, and conclusions and recommendations for future research.
Bayesian CRLB for Joint AoA, AoD, and Channel Estimation Using UPA in Millimeter-wave Communications

We derive non-random and Bayesian Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) for pilot-aided joint estimation of angle-of-arrival (AoA), angle-of-departure (AoD), and small scale channel gain in millimeter-wave (mmW) communication networks, in which transmitter and receiver are equipped with uniform planar antenna (UPA) arrays. Numerical results reveal that Bayesian CRLB decreases with an increase in Rice factor. Furthermore, using the derived Bayesian CRLB, we also observe that uniform design of beamforming and beamcombining codebooks, in which the angles are uniformly quantized, yield better performance than other types of codebook design.
Users with spinal cord injury experience of robotic Locomotor exoskeletons: a qualitative study of the benefits, limitations, and recommendations

Persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) may experience both psychological and physiological benefits from robotic locomotor exoskeleton use, and knowledgeable users may have valuable perspectives to inform future development. The objective of this study is to gain insight into the experiences, perspectives, concerns, and suggestions on the use of robotic locomotor exoskeletons by civilians and veterans living with SCI. Participants reported their demographic characteristics and the extent of robotic exoskeleton use in an online survey. Then, 28 experienced robotic locomotor exoskeleton users participated in focus groups held at three regional hospitals that specialize in rehabilitation for persons with SCI. We used a qualitative description approach analysis to analyze the data, and included thematic analysis. Participants expressed that robotic exoskeletons were useful in therapy settings but, in their current form, were not practical for activities of daily living due to device limitations. Participants detailed the psychological benefits of being eye-level with their non-disabled peers and family members, and some reported physiologic improvements in areas such as bowel and bladder function. Participants detailed barriers of increased fatigue, spasticity, and spasms and expressed dissatisfaction with the devices due to an inability to use them independently and safely. Participants provided suggestions to manufacturers for technology improvements. The varied opinions and insights of robotic locomotor exoskeletons users with SCI add to our knowledge of device benefits and limitations.
Managing the Changes to the Oath or Declaration Requirement: The Effect of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act Oath or Declaration Change on Corporations

On March 16, 2013, the requirements for an inventor’s oath or declaration filed with a U.S. patent application changed. Unlike non-continuing applications filed after March 16, 2013, these changes to the oath or declaration require assignees to contact inventors of previously-filed applications and ask them to execute a new oath or declaration that meets the new requirements when filing essentially all continuing applications for applications filed prior to March 16, 2013. This Article examines the impact of this change on patent applications assigned to corporations. The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) became law on September 16, 2011. This statute has introduced many substantial changes to patent law. The most widely recognized change was the United States switching from a first-to-invent system over to a first-inventor-to-file system, thereby more closely aligning with the first-to-file system followed by the rest of the world (note that the United States still allows a limited grace period for some early disclosures prior to filing that are not allowed in first-to-file jurisdictions). Under the first-inventor-to-file system, all new applications filed after March 16,
Status of current medicolegal reform in the United States: a neurosurgical perspective.

Objective There are approximately 85,000 lawsuits filed against medical practitioners every year in the US. Among these lawsuits, neurosurgery has been identified as a "high-risk specialty" with exceptional chance of having medical malpractice suits filed. Major issues affecting the overall medicolegal environment include tort reform, the formation of medical review panels, the increasing practice of defensive medicine, and the rising costs of medical insurance. In this study, the authors provide a concise update of the current medicolegal environments of the 50 states and provide a general guide to favorable and unfavorable states in which to practice neurosurgery. Methods Data were acquired related to state-by-state medical review panel status, noneconomic damage caps, economic damage caps, and civil suit filing fees. States were placed into 5 categories based on the status of their current medicolegal environment. Results Of the 50 states in the US, 18 have established a medical review panel process. Fifteen states have a mandatory medical review process, whereas 3 states rely on a voluntary process. Thirty-five states have tort reform and have placed a cap on noneconomic damages. These caps range from $250,000 to $2,350,000, with the median cap of $465,900. Only 8 states have placed a cap on total economic damages. These caps range from $500,000 to $2,350,000, with the median cap of $1,050,000. All states have a filing fee for a medical malpractice lawsuit. These costs range from $37 to $884, with the median cost for filing of $335. Conclusions Medicolegal healthcare reform will continue to play a vital role in physicians' lives. It will dictate if physicians may practice proactively or be forced to act defensively. With medicolegal reform varying greatly among states, it will ultimately dictate if physicians move into or away from certain states and thus guide the availability of healthcare services. A desirable legal system for neurosurgeons, including caps on economic and noneconomic damages and availability of medical review panels, can lead to safer practice.
High-Dose Thyroid Hormone Replacement in Bexarotene-Induced Central Hypothyroidism

Background: Central hypothyroidism is a rare disorder characterized by a defect in thyroid hormone production by an otherwise normal thyroid gland due to decreased stimulation by TSH. Medications are an uncommon cause. Case Presentation: A 72-year-old man was referred for evaluation of a low TSH. He had a long history of hypothyroidism, euthyroid on levothyroxine, and was diagnosed with cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL). Due to disease progression on dapsone, PUVA and TAR baths, he was started on bexarotene. Soon after, he developed recurrent symptoms of hypothyroidism including fatigue, cold intolerance, dry skin, and myalgias. Workup revealed a TSH of <0.01 ulU/mL (0.27-4.20) with a free T4 of 0.6 ng/dl (0.9-1.7). After evaluation, his levothyroxine dose was increased. Repeat labs 3 months later showed a TSH of <:0.01 with a free T4 0.8 ng/dl and T3 43 ng/dl (80-200). Over several months, levothyroxine titration to a supraphysiologic dose of 800 mcg daily was required, despite optimal administration, to normalize FT4. Given persistent hypothyroid symptoms and a low T3 level, liothyronine 5 mcg BID was added and resulted in clinical and biochemical euthyroidism. Clinical Lessons: Unlike in primary thyroid disorders, the TSH assay is unreliable in central hypothyroidism since values can be low, normal, or even mildly elevated; regardless, TSH has subnormal bioactivity. Ineffectual TSH leads to a low T4, which is a required for diagnosis. Bexarotene, a derivative of Vitamin A, is a retinoid X receptor (RXR) selective ligand approved for the treatment of CTCL. The exact mechanism of bexarotene-induced thyroid dysfunction is not clear, although it involves both central and peripheral effects. Bexarotene inhibits TSH gene expression by decreasing the activity of the thyrotropin β subunit gene promoter in a dose-dependent and thyroxine-independent manner; TSH levels drop as early as 4-8 hours after exposure. Bexarotene also directly lowers T4 and T3 levels, even in athyreotic patients, by negatively impacting deiodinase activity and hepatic conjugation. Stopping bexarotene is often not possible given its effectiveness in CTCL. Therefore, thyroid hormone should be initiated with the goal of achieving a normal FT4, although as the current case demonstrates, massively supraphysiologic doses and/or the addition of liothyronine may be necessary to achieve clinical euthyroidism.
Audit Quality and Overvalued Equity

Purpose – Audit quality studies document that accruals decrease when the audit firm is large, or the audit firm is an industry specialist, or the audit-client tenure is long. The purpose of this paper is to posit that incentives related to highly-valued equity mitigate these results, as managers use income increasing accruals to augment earnings.Design/methodology/approach – To test this assertion, the authors regress discretionary accruals on: controls, a highly valued equity indicator variable equal to 1 if the client’s lagged price-to-earnings ratio is in the highest P/E quintile, indicator variables equal to 1 for alternative measures of audit quality, and interaction terms between the highly valued equity indicator variable and audit quality indicator variables.Findings – Results of tests show positive and statistically significant coefficients for each of the highly-valued equity-audit quality interaction terms, suggesting that when a firm is highly valued the accruals’ decreasing effect of high quality auditors is reduced.Originality/value – Beginning with Jensen’s article regarding the agency costs of overvalued equity, a stream of research examining factors associated with highly priced firms has developed. The paper extends these findings, as well as the considerable body of audit quality studies, by examining the ability of a high quality auditor to attenuate this result.Keywords Auditing, Equity capital, Price earning ratio, Audit quality, Highly valued equity,Discretionary accruals.
Utilization of Machine Learning Algorithms for Thyroid Disease Prediction

Thyroid diseases are not so uncommon in our society. Normally, thyroid diseases are diagnosed by various tests and the following symptoms. But it can be predicted more efficiently by using machine learning. In this paper, we compared a number of ML algorithms and measured their performance in predicting thyroid diseases. We found out that the support vector machine (SVM) works best among the other ML algorithms. The research can be extended by including more advanced machine learning techniques and measuring their performance.
Strategies towards safer opioid analgesics - a review of old and upcoming targets.

Opioids continue to be of use for the treatment of pain. Most clinically used analgesics target the mu opioid receptor (MOR) whose activation results in adverse effects like respiratory depression, addiction, and abuse liability. Various approaches have been used by the field to separate receptor mediated analgesic actions from its adverse effects. These include biased agonism, opioids targeting multiple receptors, allosteric modulators, heteromers, and splice variants of the MOR. This review will focus on the current status of the field and some upcoming targets of interest which may lead to a safer next generation of analgesics.
A Reference Grammar of Modern Standard Arabic

A Reference Grammar of Modern Standard Arabic is a comprehensive handbook on the structure of Arabic. Keeping technical terminology to a minimum, it provides a detailed yet accessible overview of Modern Standard Arabic in which the essential aspects of its phonology, morphology and syntax can be readily looked up and understood. Accompanied by extensive carefully-chosen examples, it will prove invaluable as a practical guide for supporting students' textbooks, classroom work or self-study, and will also be a useful resource for scholars and professionals wishing to develop an understanding of the key features of the language. Grammar notes are numbered for ease of reference, and a section is included on how to use an Arabic dictionary, as well as helpful glossaries of Arabic and English linguistic terms and a useful bibliography. Clearly structured and systematically organised, this book is set to become the standard guide to the grammar of contemporary Arabic.
Development and validation of a novel platform-independent metastasis signature in human breast cancer.

Purpose The molecular drivers of metastasis in breast cancer are not well understood. Therefore, we sought to identify the biological processes underlying distant progression and define a prognostic signature for metastatic potential in breast cancer. Experimental design In vivo screening for metastases was performed using Chick Chorioallantoic Membrane assays in 21 preclinical breast cancer models. Expressed genes associated with metastatic potential were identified using high-throughput analysis. Correlations with biological function were determined using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery. Results We identified a broad range of metastatic potential that was independent of intrinsic breast cancer subtypes. 146 genes were significantly associated with metastasis progression and were linked to cancer-related biological functions, including cell migration/adhesion, Jak-STAT, TGF-beta, and Wnt signaling. These genes were used to develop a platform-independent gene expression signature (M-Sig), which was trained and subsequently validated on 5 independent cohorts totaling nearly 1800 breast cancer patients with all p-values 2 in three different cohorts. Conclusion M-Sig is strongly prognostic for metastatic progression, and may provide clinical utility in combination with treatment prediction tools to better guide patient care. In addition, the platform-independent nature of the signature makes it an excellent research tool as it can be directly applied onto existing, and future, datasets.
Occurrence of Enterococci on Plants in a Wild Environment

Enterococci were obtained from 14% of nearly 2,200 flowers, 3.4% of non-floral structures of angiosperms, and from 8.3% of samples of soil, water, and lesser plants of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, an area little influenced by the presence of man. The enterococci were recovered from one or more flowers or flower clusters of 1,515 samples in 47 taxa, but not from flowers of 67 taxa with 654 samples. The per cent of recovery was influenced adversely by dense forest cover and by increase in elevation, as compared with recovery from flowers in sunny locations in the lower elevations. The per cent recovery increased directly with rising seasonal temperature, with the maximal per cent of recovery occurring in September. In no instance did all samples of a species of flower or plant yield enterococci on culture, and with only three genera, Cacalia, Delphinium, and Mitchella, were the bacteria obtained from more than 50% of the samples. Approximately 11% of the cultures isolated were identified as Streptococcus faecalis, 64% as the soft curd producing, caseolytic variant of S. faecalis, 4% as S. faecalis var. zymogenes, and 20% as S. faecium. The per cent distribution of these species on plants was reasonably similar to the distribution within wild animals in the same environment. It was concluded that the enterococci occurring on plants arise commonly from the wild animals, and that they do not represent plant-specific species or variants of the enterococci.
Analyzing and Specifying Reusable Security Requirements

Abstract : A system cannot have high assurance if it has poor security, and thus, requirements for high assurance systems will logically include security requirements as well as availability, reliability, and robustness requirements. Unlike typical functional requirements, security requirements can potentially be highly reusable, especially if specified as instances of reusable templates. This paper discusses the value of reusable parameterized templates for specifying security requirements, provides an example of such a template and its associated usage, and outlines an asset-based analysis approach for determining the appropriate actual parameters to use when reusing parameterized templates to specify security requirements.
Control Rod Trip Failures; Salem 1, the Cause, Response, and Potential Fixes

The objective of this paper is to address the systems and reliability analysis of recent nuclear reactor control rod failure-to-trip (or scram) events that have been experienced in the U.S. commercial nuclear industry. This viewpoint will introduce the operational factors of hardware, procedures, and the human into the analysis of transients without scram.
MOTIVES OF SOCIAL RAPISTS

This paper examines the self-reported accounts of61 incarcerated criminals who admit to serial rape. Respondents were interviewed using a methodology employing other convicted felons as interviewers. Results Show that lust and "righteous rape" were the most salient objectives of these experienced rapists. These findings reveal, too, that physical violence was selective and used sparingly. In light of these findings, additional research should be conducted addressing rape avoidance.
SENSORY AND MECHANICAL ATTRIBUTES OF GEL TEXTURE

Sensory texture attributes of firmness (manual, oral, shear and compression), elasticity and type of breakdown of gelatin, sodium alginate, and kappa-carrageenan gels at two concentrations, were evaluated by 18 experienced judges. Nine of the judges also evaluated oral temporal responses to firmness and sourness. The Instron Universal Testing Machine (IUTM) was utilized to measure compression and shear at 200 mm/min at varying deformations. Gelatin was the firmest and most elastic of the three gels. During mastication it broke down into a few large pieces. Carrageenan produced the least firm and least elastic gel which failed into a large number of small pieces. Time-intensity recordings demonstrated that more oral manipulation time was required to break down carrageenan and alginate gels in contrast to thermally-degradable gelatin gel. Whereas perceived oral firmness reached a maximum in less than 5 s after placement of a gel sample in the mouth, maximum sourness was not perceived until 13-18 s. Greater discrimination between gel concentrations was obtained by sensory than by mechanical measures, and beyond rather than below the yield point. Estimates of sensory firmness by shearing were highly correlated with each other and with mechanical shear and compression force. Manual compression correlated only with surface rupture force, while oral compression correlated only with shear maximum force.
Enhanced Potency of Nucleotide–Dendrimer Conjugates as Agonists of the P2Y14 Receptor: Multivalent Effect in G Protein-Coupled Receptor Recognition

The P2Y(14) receptor is a G protein-coupled receptor activated by uridine-5'-diphosphoglucose and other nucleotide sugars that modulates immune function. Covalent conjugation of P2Y(14) receptor agonists to PAMAM (polyamidoamine) dendrimers enhanced pharmacological activity. Uridine-5'-diphosphoglucuronic acid (UDPGA) and its ethylenediamine adduct were suitable functionalized congeners for coupling to several generations (G2.5-6) of dendrimers (both terminal carboxy and amino). Prosthetic groups, including biotin for avidin complexation, a chelating group for metal complexation (and eventual magnetic resonance imaging), and a fluorescent moiety, also were attached with the eventual goals of molecular detection and characterization of the P2Y(14) receptor. The activities of conjugates were assayed in HEK293 cells stably expressing the human P2Y(14) receptor. A G3 PAMAM conjugate containing 20 bound nucleotide moieties (UDPGA) was 100-fold more potent (EC(50) 2.4 nM) than the native agonist uridine-5'-diphosphoglucose. A molecular model of this conjugate docked in the human P2Y(14) receptor showed that the nucleotide-substituted branches could extend far beyond the dimensions of the receptor and be available for multivalent docking to receptor aggregates. Larger dendrimer carriers and greater loading favored higher potency. A similar conjugate of G6 with 147 out of 256 amino groups substituted with UDPGA displayed an EC(50) value of 0.8 nM. Thus, biological activity was either retained or dramatically enhanced in the multivalent dendrimer conjugates in comparison with monomeric P2Y(14) receptor agonists, depending on size, degree of substitution, terminal functionality, and attached prosthetic groups.
Remote sensing of particle backscattering in Chesapeake Bay: a 6-year SeaWiFS retrospective view

Abstract Traditional field techniques to monitor water quality in large estuaries, such as boat-based surveys and autonomous moored sensors, generally provide limited spatial coverage. Satellite imagery potentially can be used to address both of these limitations. Here, we show that satellite-based observations are useful for inferring total-suspended-solids (TSS) concentrations in estuarine areas. A spectra-matching optimization algorithm was used to estimate the particle backscattering coefficient at 400 nm, b bp (400), in Chesapeake Bay from Sea-viewing Wide-Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) satellite imagery. These estimated values of b bp (400) were compared to in situ measurements of TSS for the study period of September 1997–December 2003. Contemporaneous SeaWiFS b bp (400) values and TSS concentrations were positively correlated ( N = 340, r 2 = 0.4, P b bp (400) values served as a reasonable first-order approximation for synoptically mapping TSS. Overall, large-scale patterns of SeaWiFS b bp (400) appeared to be consistent with expectations based on field observations and historical reports of TSS. Monthly averages indicated that SeaWiFS b bp (400) was typically largest in winter (>0.049 m −1 , November–February) and smallest in summer ( −1 , June–August), regardless of the amount of riverine discharge to the bay. The study period also included Hurricanes Floyd and Isabel, which caused large-scale turbidity events and changes in the water quality of the bay. These results demonstrate that this technique can provide frequent synoptic assessments of suspended solids concentrations in Chesapeake Bay and other coastal regions.
Pilot testing the DigiQUAL TM protocol: lessons learned

The association of research libraries (ARL) is developing the DigiQUALtrade protocol to assess the service quality provided by digital libraries (DLs). In 2005, statements about DL service quality were put through a two-step validation process with DL developers and then with users in an online survey.
Timed loaded standing: a measure of combined trunk and arm endurance suitable for people with vertebral osteoporosis.

Chronic back tiredness or fatigue is a common complaint of people who have a history of osteoporotic vertebral fracture. Trunk muscle endurance has not been studied in people with vertebral osteoporosis, partly due to the lack of assessment tools. We developed a measure of combined trunk and arm endurance suitable for people with vertebral osteoporosis, timed loaded standing (TLS). TLS measures the time a person can stand while holding a two-pound dumbbell in each hand with the arms at 90° of shoulder flexion and the elbows extended. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for same day inter-trial and six to ten day test-retest reliability were 0.89 (lower bound 95% confidence interval [LB 95% CI] 0.79) and 0.84 (LB 95% CI 0.68), respectively, in a sample of 21 older women with no known osteoporosis. In 127 women with vertebral fractures, the ICC for same day inter-trial reliability was 0.81 (LB 95% CI 0.75). In a sub-sample of 30 of these women with vertebral fractures, the six to ten day test-retest reliability was 0.85 (LB 95% CI 0.75). Moderately strong and statistically significant (p≤0.05) correlations were found between TLS and sixteen of eighteen measures of physical impairment and function. Functional reach distance, gait velocity, MOS-36 Physical Function Subscale, shoulder flexion strength, and six minute walk distance were most strongly associated with TLS time. Women with vertebral fractures who endorsed having back tiredness when standing and working with the arms in front of the body, sitting to rest because of back tiredness or pain, and planning rest periods because of back tiredness or pain had significantly lower TLS times. TLS is a simple, safe physical performance measure of combined trunk and arm endurance that demonstrates acceptable reliability (inter-trial and test- retest) and concurrent validity.
Mechanism by which uptake inhibitors antagonizep-chloroamphetamine-induced depletion of brain serotonin

The mechanism by which uptake inhibitors antagonizep-chloroamphetamine (PCA)-induced depletion of brain serotonin has been suggested to involve: (1) blockade of PCA uptake into the serotonin neuron by means of the membrane carrier, or (2) blockade of the efflux of released serotonin from the neuron, this efflux also requiring the membrane carrier. According to either mechanism, antagonism of serotonin depletion by PCA would provide a valid index of inhibition of the amine uptake system on serotonin neurons in vivo.
Variation in Radiocarbon Ages of Soil Organic Matter Fractions from Late Quaternary Buried Soils

Radiocarbon dating of three organic matter fractions (total, humic acid, and residue) isolated from late Quaternary buried soils of the central Great Plains reveals that there often are considerable differences among, but no consistent order to, the ages of fractions. For late Holocene soils, the residue fraction or the total fraction generally produces the oldest age; for late Pleistocene soils, however, no fraction was consistently the oldest. The absence of a consistent sequence of fraction ages is attributed to postburial contamination of soils. When bulk samples from the same soil were split and sent to two laboratories, different radiocarbon ages were usually obtained. The variability in radiocarbon ages of soil organic matter confirms that caution should be taken when using radiocarbon ages obtained from different laboratories to make regional stratigraphic correlations.
Studies of sulfate utilization by algae 13. Adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (APS) as an intermediate in the conversion of adenosine 3′-phosphate 5′-phosphosulfate (PAPS) to acid-volatile radioactivity

Abstract An intermediate, identified as adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (APS), has been found in the enzymatic conversion of PAP 35 S to acid-volatile radioactivity by enzyme fractions “A” and “S” from Chlorella pyrenoidosa . “A” was found to be a Mg 2+ -dependent 3′-nucleotidase specific for 3′5′-diphosphonucleosides which converts adenosine 3′-phosphate 5′-phosphosulfate (PAPS) to APS. Authentic AP 35 S is a substrate for “S” and yields acid-volatile radioactivity in the presence of Mg 2+ and a thiol. This is of some interest since Chlorella is an assimilatory sulfate reducer and APS has been reported as a substrate only for dissimilatory sulfate reduction. PAPS production is undoubtedly concerned with providing a source of active sulfate for esterification reactions, but since fraction “A” can convert PAPS to APS, this may be yet another mechanism for forming APS despite the unfavorable equilibrium of the ATP sulfurylase reaction.
Glycerol metabolism and triglyceride-fatty acid cycling in the human newborn: effect of maternal diabetes and intrauterine growth retardation.

Kinetics of glycerol metabolism and triglyceride/fatty acid cycling were quantified in 12 healthy, normal, appropriate-for-gestational-age (AGA) infants, eight small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants, and five infants of insulin-dependent diabetic mothers (IDM) at less than 48 h of age. Stable isotope-labeled [2-13C]glycerol and [6,6-2H2]glucose in combination with indirect respiratory calorimetry were used. The tracers were used as constant rate infusion and steady state isotopic enrichment of glucose, glycerol, and bicarbonate was measured by mass spectrometric methods. After a 7- to 9-h fast, the plasma glucose, glycerol, and FFA concentrations were similar in the AGA and IDM groups. In the SGA group, the plasma glucose concentration was significantly lower than that in the AGA group throughout the study, but plasma FFA and glycerol concentrations were not different from those in the AGA infants. Plasma betahydroxybutyrate concentration was significantly elevated in the AGA group compared with IDM and SGA infants (AGA 0.59 +/- 0.39, SGA 0.35 +/- 0.09, IDM 0.33 +/- 0.21 mmol/L; mean +/- SD). The rate of appearance of glycerol was significantly elevated (p less than 0.05) in SGA infants (AGA 9.47 +/- 2.11, IDM 9.55 +/- 2.14, SGA 12.15 +/- 3.87 mumol/kg.min). Between 80 and 90% of glycerol turnover was converted to glucose, accounting for 20% of glucose turnover with no significant difference in the three groups. Approximately 35% of glycerol carbon was recovered in the bicarbonate (CO2) pool. Less than 5% of CO2 carbon was derived from glycerol. Estimation of triglyceride-fatty acid cycle revealed that the triglyceride energy mobilized was increased in SGA infants.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The reproducibility of resting and post exercise plasma β-endorphins

Abstract This investigation examined the reproducibility of resting and post exercise plasma β-endorphin levels. Twenty subjects (10 men and 10 women) had their resting endorphin levels measured under controlled conditions on four separate occassions. Concomitantly, the endorphin response of eight trained runners completing three similar ten mile runs was also determined. For the resting data, there was no significant overall variation among trials, but the intra-subject variability was substantial; the within subject variance was 6.16, and it corresponded to an intra-class reliability coefficient of r = 0.239. No gender effect was noted for the average β-endorphin values for the four occasions (men = 4.6±1.7; women = 4.4±2.1 pM/I); however, the males' within-subject variance of 8.548 (r = 0.080) was significantly larger than that of 3.719 (r = 0.485) for females. Of the runners, one outlier subject had a uniquely high average β-endorphin level of 85.67. Analysis including and excluding the outlier subject yielded within-subject variances of 29.61 (r = 0.960) and 34.47 (r = 0.176), respectively; variances for differences in confidence limits for random variation, they must exceed 7 pM/I at rest, 17 pM/I post exercise, and 20 pM/L difference from rest to post exercise.
Selection, access, and control in a library of electronic texts.

The Electronic Text Center at the University of Virginia has been mounting SGML full-text databases on-line since 1992, and actively building a user community around this Internet resource. Conceiving of what we do as firmly a library operation, we have sought to integrate the electronic text databases into the training, cataloging, preservation, and collection development areas of our library. Central to our selection criteria is the desire for software- and platform-independent texts- if it's not SGML, it's ephermeral- and central to our cataloging endeavors is on SGML bibliographic record such as the Text Encoding Initiative header.
Design of hardware efficient selftimed circuits

One objection to selftimed circuits has been the overhead of hardware required to implement the control circuitry. In the Letter an alternative approach to the implementation of selftimed circuit elements is proposed. By using an alternative CMOS logic family, the enable/disable CMOS differential logic (ECDL), instead of the dynamic cascoded voltage switch logic (DCVSL) to build selftimed blocks, the amount of overhead is reduced. Moreover, because ECDL is static, there is no minimum timing constraint to satisfy in comparison with selftimed systems that use DCVSL. An example of a first-in first-out (FIFO) memory is used to illustrate the technique.
Highly strained InxGa1−xPGaP quantum wells grown on GaP and on an Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy

We report gas-source molecular beam epitaxial growth of highly strained InxGa1−xPGaP quantum wells on GaP and on an Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer. High-resolution X-ray diffraction and photoluminescence (PL) have been used to characterize the material quality. Satellite peaks up to ±2nd order are observed from a 50 period InxGa1−xP(50 A)GaP(50 A) multiple quantum well (MQW) grown on an Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer, whereas only the 1st-order satellite peak is observed for the same structure grown directly on GaP under the same growth condition, which indicates better-quality InxGa1−xPGaP MQWs can be achieved by using an Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer. Furthermore, an increase in the X-ray satellite peak intensity of the InxGa1−xPGaP MQWs grown on the Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer has been observed as the period of the MQW increases, suggesting no structural degradation and an increase of the critical layer thickness of the MQWs. PL measurements also show that an Inx2Ga1−x2P buffer layer is effective in improving the optical quality of the InxGa1−xPGaP MQWs.
Telemedicine or Telephone Consultation in Patients with Acute Stroke

The advantages of telephone consultations for patients with acute stroke syndromes are history of use, simplicity, availability, portability, short consultation time, and facile implementation. The favorable aspects of telemedicine consultations are high accuracy, reliability, efficacy, and effectiveness, the growing technological sophistication of the offerings and features, and the high grade of recommendation. Between the two modalities, telemedicine is optimal for assessing patients with acute stroke and superior to telephone-only evaluations. Telephone consultations can serve as an adequate ancillary, adjunctive, supplemental, or back-up modality for a telestroke network. With recent advances in one-way/two-way video and teleradiology features adapted to Smartphones, the dividing line between "telephone" and "telemedicine" consultations for acute stroke is indistinct. Telestroke providers prefer a figurative "tool belt" of technologies available to adapt to individual consultation requirements.
Increasing Research Self-Efficacy Among Students in Professional Academic Programs

Gains in research self-efficacy for 60 Social Work and 75 Speech-Language Pathology students were compared. Our interest was to investigate whether students enrolled in both research and practice courses made greater gains in research self-efficacy over a semester, as compared to students enrolled in practice courses only. Findings indicated that Speech-Language Pathology students taking both research and practice courses showed the greatest gain. Examination of the Speech-Language Pathology curriculum suggested that when research courses were augmented with opportunities to apply research learning outside of class, greater gain in student confidence was achieved. We discuss implications for curricular development and interdisciplinary discourse on curriculum matters, and these implications reach beyond the two specific disciplines.
Developmental changes in the neurotransmitter properties of dissociated sympathetic neurons: a cytochemical study of the effects of medium☆

Abstract Sympathetic principal neurons were dissociated from the superior cervical ganglia of newborn rats and grown in several culture conditions shown previously to affect the transmitter status of the neurons. In three of these conditions the neurons are known to develop adrenergic functions over a 3- to 4-week period; in a fourth condition, they develop predominantly cholinergic functions. In this ultrastructural study, the transmitter status of the neurons during development in the several different media was examined after permanganate fixation which causes a granular precipitate in synaptic vesicles containing norepinephrine (small granular vesicles or SGV). It was found that as early as 4 days after plating, synapses and varicosities were present. In all four conditions, all of the terminals contained numerous SGV, indicating that the neurons both synthesize and store norepinephrine. Under “adrenergic” growth conditions, the terminals remained adrenergic in appearance during further development. Under “cholinergic” conditions, terminals of cholinergic appearance were present as early as 7 days and their incidence increased with time. Although the cholinergic terminals contained little or no endogenous norepinephrine, many were initially able to take up and store exogenous catecholamine. These results indicate that the dissociated sympathetic neurons of newborn rats which survive in culture acquired adrenergic transmitter functions early. Under “cholinergic” culture conditions, the neurons lose the ability to synthesize detectable quantities of norepinephrine; the ability to take up and store detectable quantities of exogenous catecholamines disappears more slowly.
The Preferred Structure of the Interannual Indian Monsoon Variability

The leading empirical orthogonal function (EOF) of the June-Sept. mean, rotational horizontal wind at 850 hPa and 200 hPa (over the region 12.5°S–42.5°N, 50°E–100°E) from 56 years (1948–2003) of reanalysis (from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction) shows strong anti-cyclonic circulation at upper levels, strong Indian Ocean cross-equatorial flow and on-shore flow over western India at lower levels . The associated principal component (PC) is correlated at the 0.75 level with the seasonal mean observed Indian Monsoon rainfall (IMR). Composite differences of vertically integrated divergence (surface to 800 hPa) and vorticity (surface to 500 hPa) between ``strong'' years (PC-1 exceeds one standard deviation σ) and ``weak'' years (PC-1 less than − σ) suggest increased rising motion and storminess over the Bay of Bengal and central India. Composite difference maps of station rainfall from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) between strong years and normal years (weak years and normal years) are statistically significant over central India, with strong (weak) years associated with increased (decreased) precipitation. In both cases the maps of rainfall anomalies are of one sign throughout India. The correlation of PC-1 with global seasonal mean SST is strong and negative over the eastern equatorial Pacific, but positive in a surrounding horse-shoe like region. Significant negative correlation occurs in the northwestern Indian Ocean. The lag/lead correlation between the NINO3 SST index and PC-1 is similar to but stronger than the NINO3/IMR correlation. Modest (but significant) negative correlation is seen when NINO3 leads PC-1 (or IMR) by one-two months. Strong negative correlation is seen when PC-1 (or IMR) leads NINO3. The projections of running five-day means of horizontal rotational winds at 850 and 200 hPa onto EOF-1 (after removing the seasonal mean for each year) were pooled for strong, normal and weak years. The strong and normal year probability distribution functions (pdfs) are nearly indistinguishable, but the weak year pdf has more weight for moderate negative values and in both extreme tails and shows some hint of bi-modality.
A rigorous inequality for the specific heat of an Ising or φ4 ferromagnet

Abstract For a class of models including the Ising ferromagnet and the φ 4 lattice field theory, I prove a rigorous upper bound for the specific heat in terms of the susceptibility and the magnetization. This bound implies the critical-exponent inequalities α ⩽ max (0,( 2 − d 2 )γ), α′ ⩽ max (0,( 2 − d 2 )γ′, γ′ − 2β), and α c ⩽ max (0, ( 2 − d 2 ) (δ − 1), δ − 3) for lattice dimension d ⩾ 2.
Commentaries on the placebo concept in psychotherapy.

This editorial note introduces the next five commentaries on the placebo effect in psychotherapy. These commentaries follow the July, 2005 publication of a special series of articles in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, entitled “The Placebo Concept in Psychotherapy.” © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 371–372, 2007.
Colon Flattening Using Heat Diffusion Riemannian Metric

We propose a new colon flattening algorithm that is efficient, shape-preserving, and robust to topological noise. Unlike previous approaches, which require a mandatory topological denoising to remove fake handles, our algorithm directly flattens the colon surface without any denoising. In our method, we replace the original Euclidean metric of the colon surface with a heat diffusion metric that is insensitive to topological noise. Using this heat diffusion metric, we then solve a Laplacian equation followed by an integration step to compute the final flattening. We demonstrate that our method is shape-preserving and the shape of the polyps are well preserved. The flattened colon also provides an efficient way to enhance the navigation and inspection in virtual colonoscopy. We further show how the existing colon registration pipeline is made more robust by using our colon flattening. We have tested our method on several colon wall surfaces and the experimental results demonstrate the robustness and the efficiency of our method.
War Time Rations for Laying Hens

Abstract Last November we started ten new pens of thirty pullets each on new rations to see if we could cheapen costs and also to determine the suitability of some of the high protein feeds of vegetable origin for egg production. Leghorns, Reds, Orpingtons, Plymouth Rocks and a new breed which we are developing, were used on these tests. Half of the beef scrap in a normal mash was replaced by a high vegetable protein feed, using a mash of nine parts corn meal, by weight, 5 parts middlings, 4 parts bran, 2 parts beef scrap and 2 parts of either cottonseed, peanut, soybean, or velvet bean meal, and a scratch mixture of 2 parts cracked corn and 1 part oats. We endeavored to have the fowls consume about equal parts of dry mash and of the scratch mixture throughout the year, but there is a tendency to feed a slightly …
Loading Rate and Temperature as Variables in Amalgam Bending

Three commercial dental amalgams of known dissimilar clinical properties were evaluated in pure blending at widely different loading rates and temperatures. Comparative data of fracture stress at 140 F rank these alloys according to their clinical fracture resistance; the phenomenon of creep may account for early marginal fracture prior to corrosion-induced fracture.
Subculture, Social Reform and the "Culture of Poverty"

This essay addresses a set of issues involved in applying the concept of subculture to social problems in general and to the problems of low-status populations in particular. The approach embodied in the "culture of poverty" concept developed by Oscar Lewis is characterized as inadequate on both conceptual and ideological grounds. An alternative approach is outlined, centering on the concepts of status class, focal concern, prime and nonprime subcultures, and elemental and compound subcultures. The process of deriving explanations for customary forms of behavioral practice is approached through the concept of subcultural conjunction. The "culture of poverty" concept is characterized as insufficiently differentiated, failing to provide a systematic basis for comparative analysis, confused with respect to a "crucial element," and infused with unexamined and evaluative elements involving simple derogation, hidden reference standards, special-systems assumptions, and speculative inferences concerning subjecti...