cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A receptor for the immunosuppressant FK506 is a cis-trans peptidyl-prolyl isomerase.

THE structurally novel macrolide FK506 (refs 1,2) has recently been demonstrated to have potent immunosuppressive activity3–7 at concentrations several hundredfold lower than cyclosporin A (CsA). Cyclosporin A, a cyclic peptide, has found widespread clinical use in the prevention of graft rejection following bone marrow and organ transplantation8. The mechanisms of immunosuppression mediated by FK506 and CsA appear to be remarkably similar, suggesting that these unrelated structures act on a common receptor or on similar molecular targets, perhaps the CsA receptor, cyclophilin9–11, which has recently been shown by Fischer etal.12 and Takahashi etal.13 to have cis–trans peptidyl-prolyl isomerase activity. We have prepared an FK506 affinity matrix and purified a binding protein for FK506 from bovine thymus and from human spleen. This FK506-binding protein (FKBP) has a relative molecular mass (Mr) of ∼14,000(14K), a pi of 8.8–8.9, and does not cross-react with antisera against cyclophilin. The first 40 N-terminal residues of the bovine and 16 residues of the human FKBP were determined; the 16-residue fragments are identical to each other and unrelated to any known sequences. This protein catalyses the cis–trans isomerization of the proline amide in a tetrapeptide substrate and FK506 inhibits the action of this new isomerase. The FKBP and cyclophilin appear to be members of an emerging class of novel proteins that regulate T cell activation and other metabolic processes, perhaps by the recognition (and possibly the isomerization) of proline-containing epitopes in target proteins.
Exploiting CRISPR-Cas nucleases to produce sequence-specific antimicrobials

Antibiotics target conserved bacterial cellular pathways or growth functions and therefore cannot selectively kill specific members of a complex microbial population. Here, we develop programmable, sequence-specific antimicrobials using the RNA-guided nuclease Cas9 (refs.1,2) delivered by a bacteriophage. We show that Cas9, reprogrammed to target virulence genes, kills virulent, but not avirulent, Staphylococcus aureus. Reprogramming the nuclease to target antibiotic resistance genes destroys staphylococcal plasmids that harbor antibiotic resistance genes and immunizes avirulent staphylococci to prevent the spread of plasmid-borne resistance genes. We also show that CRISPR-Cas9 antimicrobials function in vivo to kill S. aureus in a mouse skin colonization model. This technology creates opportunities to manipulate complex bacterial populations in a sequence-specific manner.
The ethics of polyvocal ethnography: empowering vs. textualizing children and teachers

Polyvocal approaches allow researchers and informants to interact on a more equal footing and informants’ voices to be heard in the final text. But research methods intended to empower informants also can be a source of unanticipated authorial power ‐ the power to confront informants with unsolicited self‐reflections and to textualize people's lives and words. The authors reflect on those ethical dilemmas in this article.
An investigation of Hartree-Fock calculations on some d 8 and d 10 transition metal nitrosyls

Ab initio Hartree-Fock calculations have been performed on some systems involving a metal atom and a single nitrosyl group. These reveal a large splitting of the d-orbital energies. The importance of these in influencing the bonding picture is discussed and a method is introduced for the analysis of the contributions to individual Fock matrix elements. The source of the energy splitting is found to have its origin in the distribution of electron density on the metal atom rather than the electrostatic ligand field.
Laminar flame speeds of moist syngas mixtures

This work experimentally investigates the effect of the presence of water vapor on the laminar flame speeds of moist syngas/air mixtures using the counterflow twin-flame configuration. The experimental results presented here are for fuel lean syngas mixtures with molar percentage of hydrogen in the hydrogen and carbon monoxide mixture varying from 5% to 100%, for an unburned mixture temperature of 323 K, and under atmospheric pressure. At a given equivalence ratio, the effect of varying amount of water vapor addition on the measured laminar flame speed is demonstrated. The experimental laminar flame speeds are also compared with computed values using chemical kinetic mechanisms reported in the literature. It is found that laminar flame speed varies non-monotonically with addition of water for the carbon monoxide rich mixtures. It first increases with increasing amount of water addition, reaches a maximum value, and then decreases. An integrated reaction path analysis is further conducted to understand the controlling mechanism responsible for the non-monotonic variation in laminar flame speed due to water addition. On the other hand, for higher values of H{sub 2}/CO ratio the laminar flame speed monotonically decreases with increasing water addition. It is shown that the competition between the chemical and thermalmore » effects of water addition leads to the observed response. Furthermore, reaction rate sensitivity analysis as well as binary diffusion coefficient sensitivity analysis are conducted to identify the possible sources of discrepancy between the experimental and predicted values. The sensitivity results indicate that the reaction rate constant of H{sub 2}+OH = H{sub 2}O+H is worth revisiting and refinement of binary diffusion coefficient data of N{sub 2}-H{sub 2}O, N{sub 2}-H{sub 2}, and H{sub 2}-H{sub 2}O pairs can be considered. (author)« less
Testing the Nation's Healthcare Information Infrastructure: NIST Perspective

The National Institute of Standards and Technology is enabling the development of an integrated healthcare information infrastructure by developing test tools and techniques that will facilitate seamless exchange of information across the healthcare enterprise.
The Occurrence of Breast Engorgement

This study describes breast engorgement during days 1-14 postpartum of 114 first and second time vaginal- and cesarean-delivery breastfeeding mothers. Most mothers reported experiencing their most intense engorgement after hospital discharge. Previous breastfeeding experience of the mother is a more critical variable than parity in predicting engorgement. Second time breastfeeding mothers experienced engorgement sooner and more severely than did first time breastfeeding mothers, regardless of delivery method. Anticipatory guidance by the care provider is discussed in an effort to enhance the experience of the breastfeeding dyad.
Oncofertility program for adolescents and young women with cancer: early experiences and trends in a unique population

OBJECTIVE: To describe the characteristics of a population of adolescent (AD) and young women with cancer electing to pursue fertility preservation (FP) within our oncofertility program and identify trends in their decisions regarding methods of preservation and disposition of stored reproductive tissues. DESIGN: Retrospective. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We identified 34 post-pubertal AD and young women between 15-25 y seeking FP at our center prior to undergoing gonadotoxic therapy. RESULTS: The mean age of our cohort was 22 3y. Cancer diagnoses included: 14 hematologic, 8 ovarian, 4 cervical, 3 breast, 3 neurologic, 1 thyroid, and 1 rhabdomyosarcoma. Pts with malignancies related to women’s health represented 44% of the population. 64% of all pts described themselves as single, 27% partnered but not married, and 9% as married/engaged. 82% selected oocyte cryopreservation (OC) alone, 6% both oocyte and embryo cryopreservation (EC), and 12% EC alone as their FP treatment. Single (P 21 opted to donate their tissues for research.
A cumulative impact management plan for a forested wetland watershed in the Mississippi River Floodplain

A management plan using a watershed-scale approach was devised to limit loss of wetland functions in the one million ha Tensas Basin, Louisiana, U.S.A. Proposals to develop wetland areas are evaluated for their potential to affect the structure and function of the landscape as a whole. The plan required two prior steps. First, we assessed the structural and functional status of the landscape through time. Second, using the assessment, we formulated a set of environmental goals. The assessment indicated that the landscape is severely degraded; of the original forest, 85% has been lost, and the deforestation has negatively affected water quality and biota. Specific goals were devised to conserve remaining wetland resources and to restore functional integrity to the basin as a whole. On the basis of these two prior steps and principles of landscape ecology and conservation biology, we devised a plan that would establish two large tracts of bottomland forest (BLF) totaling 102 000 and 63 000 ha. These tracts would be established by reforesting about 1000 ha of corridors, primarily along streams, linking existing forest patches. In addition, set-back levees and man-made diversions would be incorporated to restore natural flooding to certain areas of remaining BLF. Existing wetlands would be prioritized on the basis of size and density of patches and placed in one of three management categories. Implementation of such a plan is possible under the present regulatory authority of U.S. federal government programs administered by regulatory agencies responsible for wetland protection.
From Food Justice to a Tool of the Status Quo: Three Sub-movements Within Local Food

The local food movement has been touted by some as a profoundly effective way to make our food system become more healthy, just, and sustainable. Others have criticized the movement as being less a challenge to the status quo and more an easily co-opted support offering just another set of choices for affluent consumers. In this paper, we analyze three distinct sub-movements within the local food movement, the individual-focused sub-movement, the systems-focused sub-movement, and the community-focused sub-movement. These movements can be combined within any particular campaign or within the goals of any particular organization or individual activist, but they are nevertheless quite different from each other, and come out of different conceptualizations of what food, people, and locality are. We argue that most of the critiques leveled against local food are actually directed against the individual-focused sub-movement, which is most compatible with the current industrial food system, and perhaps not surprisingly receives the most mainstream attention. Further, we argue that while each movement has its own strengths and weaknesses, it is the community-focused sub-movement that has the most potential to radically transform the global food system.
SU‐FF‐T‐422: The Influences of Detector Energy Dependence and Perturbation On the Determination of Small Field Output Factors

Purpose: In radiotherapy, accurate dose determination requires accurate measurements of output factors. The employment of small field size cones in radiosurgery imposes significant challenges for such accurate measurements, since the detector perturbation and its energy dependence, along with the detector size, may introduce significant errors in the output factor determination. This study investigated the impacts on the output factors introduced by the detector perturbation and energy dependence. Method and Materials: Output factors were measured on a Varian Trilogy™ linear accelerator for various collimator defined small square fields and twelve radiosurgery cones that were shipped with the machine. The measurements were performed by using four different detectors, namely, a pinpoint ion chamber, Koda EDR2 films, a stereotactic diode detector, and a pinpoint diode detector. The energy dependence was also evaluated for the ion chamber and diode detectors. Results: Both perturbation and energy dependence present non‐trivial effects in the determination of the output factors. The impact of detector perturbation was more pronounced for the small fields, while that of energy dependence was evident for all the field sizes investigated. For a cone of 5 mm diameter, the perturbation introduced by using a PinPoint ionization chamber could result in almost 30% reduction in the output factor value. The deviations caused by the energy dependence varied from 3% to 6% depending on field sizes.Conclusions: The output factor measurements of small fields must not only account for the size of detector but also its perturbation and energy dependence to ensure the measurement accuracy for stereotactic radiosurgery.
The pathogenic role of annexin-V in the antiphospholipid syndrome.

The antiphospholipid antibody syndrome is an autoimmune condition in which venous or arterial thrombosis and recurrent pregnancy losses occur in patients having serologic evidence of antibodies against anionic phospholipidprotein complexes. The pathophysiologic mechanisms of this syndrome have not yet been established. Annexin-V, an anionic phospholipid-binding protein with potent anticoagulant activity, is necessary for maintenance of placental integrity and may play a thromboregulatory role at the vascular-blood interface by forming two-dimensional crystals which shield anionic phospholipids from complexing with coagulation proteins from circulating blood. We propose that thrombosis and pregnancy loss in the antiphospholipid syndrome may be caused by disruption of this Annexin-V shield by antiphospholipid (and cofactor) antibodies, thereby increasing the net quantity of thrombogenic phospholipids exposed to the circulating blood. The data accumulated from tissue immunohistochemistry, trophoblast and endothelial cell culture studies, coagulation studies using noncellular phospholipids, and competition studies on artificial phospholipid bilayer are consistent with the hypothesis that interference with the binding of Annexin-V to anionic phospholipid surfaces is an important mechanism of thrombosis and pregnancy loss in the antiphospholipid syndrome.
Foxk1 recruits the Sds3 complex and represses gene expression in myogenic progenitors.

Previous studies have established that Foxk1 (forkhead box k1) plays an important role in skeletal muscle regeneration. Foxk1 regulates the cell-cycle progression of myogenic progenitors by repressing the cell-cycle inhibitor gene p21. However, the underlying mechanism is not well understood. In the present study, we report the identification of Sds3 (suppressor of defective silencing 3) as an adaptor protein that recruits the Sin3 [SWI (switch)-independent 3]–HDAC (histone deacetylase) repression complex and binds Foxk1. Using GST (glutathione transferase) pull-down assays, we defined the interaction between the Foxk1 FHA (forkhead-associated domain) domain and phospho-Thr49 in Sds3. We demonstrated that the transcriptional repression of Foxk1 is dependent on the Sin3–Sds3 repression complex, and knockdown of Sds3 results in cell-cycle arrest. We further identified the protein kinase CK2 as the protein kinase for Sds3 Thr49 and demonstrated that the protein kinase activity of CK2 is required for proper cell-cycle progression. Analysis of CK2 mutant mice reveals perturbation of skeletal muscle regeneration due to the dysregulation of cell-cycle kinetics. Overall, these studies define a CK2–Sds3–Foxk1 cascade that modulates gene expression and regulates skeletal muscle regeneration.
Free amino acid pool of a sea anemone: exposure and recovery after an oil spill.

A number of laboratory studies on marine invertebrates have shown changes in free amino acid (FAA) pools in response to various pollutants. During a nineteen-month field study to determine the effects of natural environmental parameters on the FAA pools to the Gulf Coast sea anemone, Bunodosoma cavernata, an oil tanker collision occurred about 8 miles off Galveston Island. The initial spill from the tanker Burma Agate occurred on November 1, 1979 with large leakages continuing for several weeks. There was no visible sign of oil on the first collection date 13 days after the spill, but 11 days later the anemones were covered with an oil sheen. As a result of this natural exposure to the oil, the authors decided to monitor the sea anemones for changes in the FAA pool during the oil exposure and recovery period.
Kinetics of the chymotrypsin-catalyzed condensation of N-benzoyl-L-tyrosine with glycylanilide.

Abstract Initial rates at pH 6.5 and 23 ° of chymotrypsin-catalyzed condensations of N-benzoyl- l -tyrosine (NBT) with glycylanilide (GA) to yield N-benzoyl- l -tyrosylglycylanilide (NBTGA) show marked induction periods despite the insolubility of NBTGA. Scratching to provide crystallization nuclei shortens the induction period, and inclusion of an NBTGA suspension in the reaction system eliminates the induction period. The effect of initial concentrations of reactants on initial rates of synthesis was determined by following disappearance of the amine moiety, NBTGA being included in the reaction system. Inital rates show a Michaelis-Menten dependency on NBT concentration with KNbt 0.08 M and Vmax 1.5 × 103 mole/l./mole enzyme/mole GA. Initial rates are linearly dependent on GA concentration. These results are interpreted as indicating the synthetic process is the reverse of the accepted scheme for chymotrypsin-catalyzed hydrolysis.
President Reagan's defensive discourse on the Iran‐Contra affair

This essay develops a preliminary synthesis and extension of approaches to defensive discourse articulated by Burke, Ware and Linkugel, and Scott and Lyman. This formulation is applied to President Reagan's discourse on the Iran‐Contra affair. Three phases emerge using different strategies. Reagan's defense is then evaluated. We argue that Reagan's defense developed through three distinct phases and that the final phase, in which he admits making a mistake and takes decisive action to prevent its recurrence, is the most effective.
An Emic Approach to Distinguishing Facts from Values

In the presentation of scientific information, we assume that people can distinguish between facts and values. An experiment with four populations of students shows they can emically identify factual statements from ones judged to be statements of values. The emic definition of facts is based on judgments by members of the study population. On a population basis, clear distinctions were made between factual and value statements. The students own values toward environmental considerations and their experience studying ecological issues are correlated with the identification of factual statements. Values statements tend to have stronger language, while factual ones have more qualifiers.
Changes in N-acetylaspartate and myo-inositol detected in the cerebral cortex of hamsters with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

The levels of several low-molecular-weight metabolites were measured in 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of extracts of Syrian hamster brain infected with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Metabolite levels were determined in cerebral cortex in CJD-infected and age-matched controls at defined times (40, 65, 85, 105, and 135 days) during the 130- to 135-day incubation period to terminal disease. At 135 days, CJD-infected hamsters showed a significant decrease in N-acetylaspartate of 32% (p < 0.05) and an increase in myo-inositol of 67% (p < 0.001) from age-matched controls. At earlier times (40 to 110 days) levels of N-acetylaspartate and myo-inositol were not significantly different from controls. No significant changes were detected in the cortical levels of glutamate, aspartate, or GABA between 40 and 135 days. The late changes in N-acetylaspartate and myo-inositol in CJD-infected hamsters are similar to those observed in magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies of human CJD. Because they also correspond to the changes found in other dementias, including Alzheimer's disease and HIV dementia, these changes indicate converging pathogenetic pathways involved in many neurodegenerative diseases.
Successful Aging: Definitions and Prediction of Longevity and Conversion to Mild Cognitive Impairment

Objectives To examine alternative models of defining and characterizing successful aging. Design: A retrospective cohort study. Setting Olmsted County, MN. Participants Five hundred sixty community-dwelling nondemented adults, aged 65 years and older. Measurements Three models were developed. Each model examined subtests in four cognitive domains: memory, attention/executive function, language, and visuospatial skills. A composite domain score was generated for each of the four domains. In Model 1, a global z score was further generated from the four cognitive domains, and subjects with mean global z score in the top 10% were classified as "successful agers," whereas those in the remaining 90% were classified as "typical agers." In Model 2, subjects with all four domain scores above the 50th percentile were classified as "successful agers." In Model 3, a primary neuropsychological variable was selected from each domain, and subjects whose score remained above — 1 standard deviation compared with norms for young adults were labeled successful agers. Validation tests were conducted to determine the ability of each model to predict survival and conversion to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Results Model 1 showed 65% lower mortality in successful agers compared with typical agers and also a 25% lower conversion rate to MCI. Conclusion Model 1 was most strongly associated with longevity and cognitive decline; as such, it can be useful in investigating various predictors of successful aging, including plasma level, APOE genotype, and neuroimaging measurements.
Effective Community Treatment of the Chronically Mentally III: What is Necessary?

This paper reviews research on the community treatment of the chronically mentally ill, in order to determine what services are necessary for deinstitutionalization to succeed with this population. Residential services, assistance in meeting basic needs, crisis intervention services, somatic therapies, problem-solving outpatient contacts, and comprehensive psychosocial treatments are found to be necessary in order to achieve a number of commonly cited goals in the treatment of the chronically mentally ill. Furthermore, the way that services are delivered may be of equal importance to what services are made available. To be effective services must be delivered in a highly individualized manner, be made assertively available, be structured to maximize the provision of continuity of care, and be provided in an ongoing rather than time-limited fashion. While clearly more services are needed than currently exist for the chronically mentally ill, it is suggested that treatment can be improved by altering the way in which existing services are delivered to this population.
Taking the Plunge: Teaching the Microeconomics of Entrepreneurship

Despite the importance of entrepreneurship in market economies, it is seldom given extensive coverage in undergraduate economics courses. Authors documenting its limited treatment in textbooks call for more in-depth, microtheoretic analyses that go beyond definitions and descriptions. The present paper represents an initial attempt to fill this gap in our pedagogy by describing a simple model of the entrepreneur “plunge” decision that is appropriate for intermediate microeconomics (and related) courses. The model, an extension of Scitovsky’s classic theory of the owner-managed firm, provides a formal analysis of the choice between paid employment and entrepreneurship that is based on utility maximization and takes into account the pecuniary and non-pecuniary benefits/costs of the two options. The intellectual origins and classroom presentation of the model are also discussed.
Differential effects of nongenotoxic and genotoxic carcinogens on the preneoplastic lesions in the rat liver.

GlutathioneS-transferase placental form (GST-P) positive foci development and its expression in liver exposed by nongenotoxic carcinogens phenobarbital (PB) and clofibrate (CF), and genotoxic carcinogen 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f] quinoline (IQ) were investigated as a measure of carcinogenic potential of these chemicals. Male F344 rats were initially given a single intraperitioneal injection of diethylnitrosamine (200 mg/kg), and 2 weeks later, animals were fed diets containing 0.03% IQ or 0.5% CF or 0.05% PB or basal diet as a control for 6 weeks. All rats were subjected to two-thirds partial hepatectomy (PH) at week 3. Sequential sacrifice of rats was performed at 8 weeks or 52 weeks, and liver tissues were examined for immunohistochemical staining of GST-P positive foci. The numbers (No./cm2) and areas (mm2/cm2) of GST-P positive foci were increased by IQ or PB, but were decreased by CF compare to the control. Consistent with the development of GST-P positive foci, a time-related increase in the expression of GST-P mRNA was found in the rats treated with IQ, whereas CF decreased it. The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma at 52 weeks was increased by all three chemicals. These results show that PB and IQ induced GST-P positive foci, but the peroxisome proliferator CF did not, which suggest that the prediction of carcinogenic potency based on the development of prenoplastic foci may cause false negative in a particular category compounds like peroxisome proliferators.
Photolytic manipulation of Ca2+ and the time course of slow, Ca(2+)‐activated K+ current in rat hippocampal neurones.

1. Experiments were performed on hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells to investigate the time course of a slow, Ca(2+)-activated K+ current that follows a burst of action potentials. At a temperature of 27-30 degrees C, this current rises to a peak 200-400 ms following the cessation of Ca2+ entry before decaying to baseline in 4-8s. 2. Intracellular recordings were made using electrodes containing the photolabile calcium buffers nitr-5 or DM-nitrophen loaded appropriately with Ca2+. Under these conditions, photolysis of the compound using an ultraviolet flashlamp caused an instantanous increase in cytoplasmic Ca2+ throughout the cell. The response to flash photolysis was a membrane hyperpolarization with an onset limited by the membrane time constant. Multiple (up to twenty) flash responses could be generated. 3. The postspike slow after-hyperpolarization (AHP) and flash-induced hyperpolarizations showed a common sensitivity to the beta-adrenergic receptor agonist isoprenaline. 4. Following a burst of spikes, the current underlying an AHP in progress could be terminated or reduced by photolysis-induced production of calcium buffer from diazo-4 within the cell. This action was rapid (within the setting time of the flash artifact, i.e. < 10 ms) despite the fact that the manipulation occurred 400-500 ms following the end of Ca2+ entry. 5. Partial block of the slow AHP by buffer production was accompanied by an increase in the time to peak of the event. 6. The time to peak of the slow AHP could also be manipulated by experiments which altered the spatial distribution of Ca2+ entry, such as production of calcium spikes or dendritic depolarization by glutamate in the presence of tetrodotoxin. 7. The Ca(2+)-dependent K+ current responsible for the slow AHP responds immediately to increase or decreases in cytoplasmic Ca2+. It seems likely, therefore, that the slow AHP is controlled solely by changes in free Ca2+ and that the time course is governed by the redistribution of cytoplasmic Ca2+ following activity-induced entry through voltage- or receptor-operated channels.
Genomic Mapping of Direct and Correlated Responses to Long-Term Selection for Rapid Growth Rate in Mice

Understanding the genetic architecture of traits such as growth, body composition, and energy balance has become a primary focus for biomedical and agricultural research. The objective of this study was to map QTL in a large F2 (n = 1181) population resulting from an intercross between the M16 and ICR lines of mice. The M16 line, developed by long-term selection for 3- to 6-week weight gain, is larger, heavier, fatter, hyperphagic, and diabetic relative to its randomly selected control line of ICR origin. The F2 population was phenotyped for growth and energy intake at weekly intervals from 4 to 8 weeks of age and for body composition and plasma levels of insulin, leptin, TNFα, IL6, and glucose at 8 weeks and was genotyped for 80 microsatellite markers. Since the F2 was a cross between a selection line and its unselected control, the QTL identified likely represent genes that contributed to direct and correlated responses to long-term selection for rapid growth rate. Across all traits measured, 95 QTL were identified, likely representing 19 unique regions on 13 chromosomes. Four chromosomes (2, 6, 11, and 17) harbored loci contributing disproportionately to selection response. Several QTL demonstrating differential regulation of regional adipose deposition and age-dependent regulation of growth and energy consumption were identified.
Instructional Time Research in Physical Education: Contributions and Current Issues

The study of instructional time in classrooms and in physical education has a long history with several modifications along the way. Tracing this history, starting with its roots in models of the classroom teaching process, helps to explain why instructional time has gained the interest of so many in physical education. Instructional time is generally studied with the goal of learning more about and improving the teaching process. The historical perspective increases awareness that research on instructional time will be most valuable when integrated with findings from the study of other variables affecting the teaching/learning process in the physical education setting.
99mTc-pyridoxylidene glutamate, a gall bladder imaging agent: Chemistry of preparation and comparative animal studies with 131I-Rose bengal

Abstract The optimum conditions for the preparation of 99m Tc-pyridoxylidene glutamate were investigated and the effect of pyridoxal on the pertechnetate ion was determined. It was found that a molar ratio 3:1 of pyridoxal to glutamic acid at pH 8.5 produced the best labeled compound and that 99m Tc was reduced by pyridoxal during the preparation. Electrophoresis was used to check the radiochemical purity of this 99m Tc hepatobiliary agent. Comparative biodistribution studies of 99m Tc-pyridoxylidene glutamate with 131 I Rose Bengal indicated faster clearance from the blood and rapid hepatobiliary concentration of the 99m Tc-radiopharmaceutical.
Prediction of the Critical Micelle Concentration of Nonionic Surfactants by Dissipative Particle Dynamics Simulations

Micellization of surfactant solutions is a ubiquitous phenomenon in natural systems and technological processes, and its theoretical description represents one of the cornerstone problems in the physical chemistry of colloidal systems. However, successful attempts of quantitative modeling confirmed by experimental data remains limited. We show, for the first time, that the dissipative particle dynamics with rigorously defined soft repulsion interaction and rigidity parameters is capable of predicting micellar self-assembly of nonionic surfactants. This is achieved due to a novel approach suggested for defining the interaction parameters by fitting to the infinite dilution activity coefficients of binary solutions formed by reference compounds that represent coarse-grained fragments of surfactant molecules. Using this new parametrization scheme, we obtained quantitative agreement with the experimental critical micelle concentration and aggregation number for several typical surfactants of different chemica...
Detection and Integration of Genotyping Errors in Statistical Genetics

Detection of genotyping errors and integration of such errors in statistical analysis are relatively neglected topics, given their importance in gene mapping. A few inopportunely placed errors, if ignored, can tremendously affect evidence for linkage. The present study takes a fresh look at the calculation of pedigree likelihoods in the presence of genotyping error. To accommodate genotyping error, we present extensions to the Lander-Green-Kruglyak deterministic algorithm for small pedigrees and to the Markov-chain Monte Carlo stochastic algorithm for large pedigrees. These extensions can accommodate a variety of error models and refrain from simplifying assumptions, such as allowing, at most, one error per pedigree. In principle, almost any statistical genetic analysis can be performed taking errors into account, without actually correcting or deleting suspect genotypes. Three examples illustrate the possibilities. These examples make use of the full pedigree data, multiple linked markers, and a prior error model. The first example is the estimation of genotyping error rates from pedigree data. The second—and currently most useful—example is the computation of posterior mistyping probabilities. These probabilities cover both Mendelian-consistent and Mendelian-inconsistent errors. The third example is the selection of the true pedigree structure connecting a group of people from among several competing pedigree structures. Paternity testing and twin zygosity testing are typical applications.
A characterization of robust test-pairs for stuck-open faults

Tests for stuck-open faults in static CMOS circuits consist of a sequence of two input vectors. Such test-pairs may be invalidated by delays in the circuit. Test-pairs that are not invalidated by delays in the circuit are known as robust test-pairs. We present a six-valued logic system Ω = {0, 1, r, f, 0h, 1h}. We show how Ω differs from a number of other logic systems that have been proposed for test generation. This logic system abstracts the important aspects of the transition behavior of the circuit, on application of an input pair, that is necessary to characterize robust test-pairs for stuck-open faults. This characterization of robust test-pairs is used to derive:
Making sense of mucin-producing pancreatic tumors

ver the past several years, mucinproducing pancreatic tumors have become a much more widely recognized entity. With increasing awareness has also come an evolution of concepts and nomenclatures regarding this set of pancreatic neoplasms. Understandably, this maturation process has led to confusion over categorization, management, and prognosis. This article will propose a unifying view of these mucinproducing tumors and provide imaging examples for illustrations. Mucin-producing pancreatic tumors should be considered when cystic lesions of the pancreas are found. Most pancreatic “cysts” are nonneoplastic, usually inflammatory pseudocysts. Approximately 5‐15% of these cystic masses will be neoplastic [1]. Until 1978, the term “cystadenoma” was used to describe cystic neoplasms of the pancreas [2, 3]. At that time, the mucinous tumors were subdivided from the serous cystadenoma. More recently, the mucinous tumors have been further subclassified into two major groups: intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm and mucinous cystic neoplasm. These two entities share a common array of epithelia that ranges from adenomatous, to proliferative ductal epithelium, to invasive carcinoma. These different epithelia may be present within a single tumor or may evolve toward the more aggressive form, similar to that of colon carcinoma [4]. Most consider both mucinous lesions as at least premalignant if not a low-grade malignancy [5]. In general, both lesions are associated with a better prognosis than the more common ductal carcinoma. However, the intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm and mucinous cystic neoplasm differ sufficiently in clinical presentation, anatomic location, radiographic appearance, and patient demographics (Table 1) to justify their division. Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasm
Ideology and Political Control in North Korea

T he political annals of mankind are studded with events and empires moved in large part by the ideas and actions of a single leader. Looking at the contemporary world scene, one is impressed by the persistence of this familiar phenomenon: In Communist China one sees a fifth of mankind idolizing and professing to be guided solely by the sacred words of their aging leader-the "thought of Mao Tse-tung." Not so prominent but nonetheless puzzling is the drama that is unfolding in China's neighbor and cultural protege, North Korea. In that increasingly pugnacious country an estimated 13 million people are frantically pursuing the twin goals of "economic construction" and "national defense construction" under the firm guidance of the "revolutionary thought of Comrade Kim Il-song." When an ideology purports to move a nation, no matter how small, it commands attention, no matter how shallow it may turn out to be. It is the central aim of this article to delineate the main contours of Kim's political thought and to throw some light, however dim, on the manner in which it purportedly or actually serves as the primary instrument of political control in that country. The principal questions that I shall attempt to answer are:
Probing wind-turbine/atmosphere interactions at utility scale: Novel insights from the EOLOS wind energy research station

Despite major research efforts, the interaction of the atmospheric boundary layer with turbines and multi-turbine arrays at utility scale remains poorly understood today. This lack of knowledge stems from the limited number of utility-scale research facilities and a number of technical challenges associated with obtaining high-resolution measurements at field scale. We review recent results obtained at the University of Minnesota utility-scale wind energy research station (the EOLOS facility), which is comprised of a 130 m tall meteorological tower and a fully instrumented 2.5MW Clipper Liberty C96 wind turbine. The results address three major areas: 1) The detailed characterization of the wake structures at a scale of 36×36 m2 using a novel super-large-scale particle image velocimetry based on natural snowflakes, including the rich tip vortex dynamics and their correlation with turbine operations, control, and performance; 2) The use of a WindCube Lidar profiler to investigate how wind at various elevations influences turbine power fluctuation and elucidate the role of wind gusts on individual blade loading; and 3) The systematic quantification of the interaction between the turbine instantaneous power output and tower foundation strain with the incoming flow turbulence, which is measured from the meteorological tower.
On the importance of distinguishing shame from guilt: Relations to problematic alcohol and drug use

Previous research has demonstrated that shame-proneness (the tendency to feel bad about the self) relates to a variety of life problems, whereas guilt-proneness (the tendency to feel bad about a specific behavior) is more likely to be adaptive. The current analyses sought to clarify the relations of shame-proneness and guilt-proneness to substance use problems in three samples with differing levels of alcohol and drug problem severity: college undergraduates (Study 1 N=235, Study 2 N=249) and jail inmates (Study 3 N=332). Across samples, shame-proneness was generally positively correlated with substance use problems, whereas guilt-proneness was inversely related (or unrelated) to substance use problems. Results suggest that shame and guilt should be considered separately in the prevention and treatment of substance misuse.
Ultrasonic NDE techniques for the evaluation of matrix cracking in composite laminates

Abstract Experimental methods for detecting matrix cracking in composites specimens are often costly and time consuming. In an effort to maximize the information obtained from experimental tests and to establish a correlation between the experimental and nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques, a series of investigations have been undertaken. To evaluate the progression of matrix cracks in BMI composite laminates, three NDE techniques were selected and compared as to their relevance and accuracy: acoustic emission, ultrasonic C-scans, and ultrasonic polar backscattering methods. While traditional C-scans are sensitive to delaminations but not to matrix cracks in the specimen, polar backscattering scans are evaluated for the detection of crack initiation, location, evolution, as well as crack density. These results are compared with the results obtained from acoustic emission techniques and through optical microscopy.
"Adging up" to "beef on sight": a qualitative study of the perceived causes of interpersonal conflict and violence among African-American girls in an urban high school

This qualitative study examined perceptions of the causes and nature of conflicts and violence among African-American girls in an urban high school. In-depth, iterative interviewing was used to explore the perceptions of these girls, male students, teachers, and other school personnel. Ethnographic observation was also used. Conflicts and violence among girls were produced by an insult or accusation made by one girl against another which by group norms required a commensurately aggressive response. Peers actively pressured girls to fight and those that did not were scapegoated by others. However, a mediation service was used by girls to end conflicts successfully.
Still looking at people

There is a great need for programs that can describe what people are doing from video. Among other applications, such programs could be used to search for scenes in consumer video; in surveillance applications; to support the design of buildings and of public places; to screen humans for diseases; and to build enhanced human computer interfaces. Building such programs is difficult, because it is hard to identify and track people in video sequences, because we have no canonical vocabulary for describing what people are doing, and because phenomena such as aspect and individual variation greatly affect the appearance of what people are doing. Recent work in kinematic tracking has produced methods that can report the kinematic configuration of the body automatically, and with moderate accuracy. While it is possible to build methods that use kinematic tracks to reason about the 3D configuration of the body, and from this the activities, such methods remain relatively inaccurate. However, they have the attraction that one can build models that are generative, and that allow activities to be assembled from a set of distinct spatial and temporal components. The models themselves are learned from labelled motion capture data and are assembled in a way that makes it possible to learn very complex finite automata without estimating large numbers of parameters. The advantage of such a model is that one can search videos for examples of activities specified with a simple query language, without possessing any example of the activity sought. In this case, aspect is dealt with by explicit 3D reasoning. An alternative approach is to model the whole problem as k-way classification into a set of known classes. This approach is much more accurate at present, but has the difficulty that we don't really know what the classes should be in general. This is because we do not know how to describe activities. Recent work in object recognition on describing unfamiliar objects suggests that activities might be described in terms of attributes -- properties that many activities share, that are easy to spot, and that are individually somewhat discriminative. Such a description would allow a useful response to an unfamiliar activity. I will sketch current progress on this agenda.
Stable Complexes Formed by HIV-1 Reverse Transcriptase at Distinct Positions on the Primer-Template Controlled by Binding Deoxynucleoside Triphosphates or Foscarnet

Binding of the next complementary dNTP by the binary complex containing HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) and primer-template induces conformational changes that have been implicated in catalytic function of RT. We have used DNase I footprinting, gel electrophoretic mobility shift, and exonuclease protection assays to characterize the interactions between HIV-1 RT and chain-terminated primer-template in the absence and presence of various ligands. Distinguishable stable complexes were formed in the presence of foscarnet (an analog of pyrophosphate), the dNTP complementary to the first (+1) templating nucleotide or the dNTP complementary to the second (+2) templating nucleotide. The position of HIV-1 RT on the primer-template in each of these complexes is different. RT is located upstream in the foscarnet complex, relative to the +1 complex, and downstream in the +2 complex. These results suggest that HIV-1 RT can translocate along the primer-template in the absence of phosphodiester bond formation. The ability to form a specific foscarnet complex might explain the inhibitory properties of this compound. The ability to recognize the second templating nucleotide has implications for nucleotide misincorporation.
Likelihood analysis of earthquake focal mechanism distributions

In our paper published earlier we discussed forecasts of earthquake focal mechanism and ways to test the forecast efficiency. Several verification methods were proposed, but they were based on ad-hoc, empirical assumptions, thus their performance is questionable. In this work we apply a conventional likelihood method to measure a skill of forecast. The advantage of such an approach is that earthquake rate prediction can in principle be adequately combined with focal mechanism forecast, if both are based on the likelihood scores, resulting in a general forecast optimization. To calculate the likelihood score we need to compare actual forecasts or occurrences of predicted events with the null hypothesis that the mechanism's 3-D orientation is random. For double-couple source orientation the random probability distribution function is not uniform, which complicates the calculation of the likelihood value. To better understand the resulting complexities we calculate the information (likelihood) score for two rotational distributions (Cauchy and von Mises-Fisher), which are used to approximate earthquake source orientation pattern. We then calculate the likelihood score for earthquake source forecasts and for their validation by future seismicity data. Several issues need to be explored when analyzing observational results: their dependence on forecast and data resolution, internal dependence of scores on forecasted angle, and random variability of likelihood scores. In this work we propose a preliminary solution to these complex problems, as these issues need to be explored by a more extensive statistical analysis.
Reduction of Total Parenteral Nutrition-Induced Urinary Calcium Loss by Increasing the Phosphorus in the Total Parenteral Nutrition Prescription

Hypercalciuria and negative calcium balance are potential complications of total parenteral nutrition (TPN). Dietary phosphorus has been observed to have an hypocalciuretic effect. The present study evaluates the effects of administration of increasing intravenous phosphorus (P) loads on urinary calcium excretion in TPN patients. Urinary calcium exceeded daily calcium intake by 50 mg/d when 700 mg/d P was administered, was equal to intake at 1000 mg/d P, and was 30 mg/d less than calcium intake when 1300 mg/d P was given. These findings suggest that TPN-induced hypercalciuria can be attenuated in the short-term by intravenous phosphate. Reevaluation of the phosphorus requirement in patients receiving long-term TPN should be considered. (Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition 10:188-190, 1986)