cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fieldwork and Family

This chapter contains both a description of the circumstances under which this ethnographic research was conducted and an exploration into the class dynamics of Tunisian gender and sexuality ideologies and norms. The normative and queer constructions of femininity are explored here, with a focus on female masculinity. In this chapter, the author introduces readers to important activities and rituals in girls’ and women’s lives. The author provides ethnographic portraits of engagement and marital rituals, beauty ideals, and beautification, and an ethnographic portrait of women’s interactions in the public bathhouses. All of this ethnographic detail provides a depiction of the context in which women’s waged labor takes place.
Abstract B36: TGFβ blockade and epigenetic modulation for cancer treatment: Efficient breast cancer targeted therapy with TCR-T cell transfer

Introduction: The cancer testis (CT) antigens, such as NY-ESO1, are considered ideal targets for immunotherapy as they are highly immunogenic and their restricted expression malignancies and not normal tissue except testis. However, the expression of CT antigen is downregulated in many tumor types, including breast cancer due to DNA methylation. DNA methylation is a common epigenetic mechanism to regulate gene expression and phenotype and maintain DNA integrity and stability. DNA methylation inhibition can induce NY-ESO1 expression on tumor cells and sensitize them to NY-ESO1 specific T cells. NY-ESO1 targeted T cell receptors (TCR) have been successfully used to engineer T cells for adoptive T cell therapy (ACT). We hypothesize that incorporating a dominant-negative TGFβ receptor II (dnTGFβRII) into the NY-ESO-1 TCR construct to transduce T cells combined with epigenetic modulator treatment may improve T cell effector function in immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Methods: Seven different human breast cancer cell lines were treated with epigenetic modulators at different doses and analyzed by flow cytometry to check the increase in expression of NY-ESO1 antigen and HLA-A2.1. Eight-weeks or older NSG mice were inoculated with HLA-A2.1+, NY-ESO negative at baseline breast cancer cells subcutaneously. PBMCs from healthy donors were transduced with a HLA-A2.1 NY-ESO1 TCR with/without dnTGFβRII two day after activation with OKT3 antibody plus IL-2. The transduction efficiency was confirmed by flow cytometry prior to ACT. Equal numbers of TCR+ cells were injected 10 days after tumor inoculation. Mice were then monitored for tumor growth till endpoint. The spleens and tumors were collected for further analysis of immunophenotype and function. Results: The expression of NY-ESO1 was inducible with epigenetic modulation in the majority of breast cancer cell-lines tested (5/7). More than 60% of Vβ+ (marker for surface expression of specific TCR) cells were observed after retroviral transduction to PBMCs. The transduced NY-ESO1 TCR/dnTGFβRII cells with epigenetic modulator were successfully able to infiltrate into tumor microenvironment in higher numbers and control cancer growth of inoculated tumor significantly (p Conclusions: Epigenetic modification enhances the cytotoxicity of TCR engineered T cells with dnTGFβRII. Our results demonstrate the feasibility of combined epigenetic modulation and TCR-T treatment for breast cancer patients. Citation Format: Satoko Matsueda, Kunle Odunsi, Richard C. Koya. TGFβ blockade and epigenetic modulation for cancer treatment: Efficient breast cancer targeted therapy with TCR-T cell transfer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy; 2018 Nov 27-30; Miami Beach, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2020;8(4 Suppl):Abstract nr B36.
A radiomics approach to artificial intelligence in echocardiography: Predicting post-operative right ventricular failure

Abstract In this study, we describe a novel ‘radiomics’ approach to an echocardiography artificial intelligence system that enables the extraction of hundreds of thousands of motion parameters per echocardiography video. We apply this AI system to the clinical problem of predicting post-operative right ventricular failure (RV failure) in heart failure patients receiving implantable circulatory life support systems. Post-operative RV failure is the single largest contributor to short-term mortality in patients with left ventricular assist devices (LVAD); yet predicting which patient is at risk of developing this complication in the pre-operative setting, has remained beyond the abilities of experts in the field. We report results on testing datasets using a standard 10-fold cross validation. The AUC for the AI system trained using the Stanford LVAD dataset was 0.860 (95% CI 0.815-0.905; n = 290 patients) using pre-operative echocardiograms alone. We further show that our system outperforms board certified clinicians equipped with both contemporary risk scores (AUC 0.502 - 0.584) and independently measured echocardiographic metrics (0.519 – 0.598).
Focus of Attention Verbalizations in Beginning Band: A Multiple Case Study

Although the effects of focus of attention (FOA) on the performance of gross motor skills are now well understood, less is known about the role of FOA in naturalistic classroom settings where learn...
Linking nutrient sensing and gene expression in Plasmodium falciparum blood‐stage parasites

Malaria is one of the most life-threatening infectious diseases worldwide, caused by infection of humans with parasites of the genus Plasmodium. The complex life cycle of Plasmodium parasites is shared between two hosts, with infection of multiple cell types, and the parasite needs to adapt for survival and transmission through significantly different metabolic environments. Within the blood-stage alone, parasites encounter changing levels of key nutrients, including sugars, amino acids, and lipids, due to differences in host dietary nutrition, cellular tropism, and pathogenesis. In this review, we consider the mechanisms that the most lethal of malaria parasites, Plasmodium falciparum, uses to sense nutrient levels and elicit changes in gene expression during blood-stage infections. These changes are brought about by several metabolic intermediates and their corresponding sensor proteins. Sensing of distinct nutritional signals can drive P. falciparum to alter the key blood-stage processes of proliferation, antigenic variation, and transmission.
Point The Supreme Court’s Statutory Interpretation in Gitlitz: A Failed Approach to Interpretation and a Bad Decision

The Supreme Court’s decision in Gitlitz v. Commissioner is an irresponsible decision disrupting the logic of tax for the benefit only of abuse. In Gitlitz the Supreme Court gave the equivalent of a double deduction, both an appropriate exclusion of cancellation of indebtedness income for an insolvent Subchapter S corporation and also an inappropriate increase in shareholder basis. The combination of the exclusion and shareholder basis generated a tax loss that had no economic substance, a loss that in Judge Posner’s wonderful phrase “did not impinge on the world.” ... The approach in Gitlitz allowing an absurd tax deduction shows a hostility to the tax system that is inappropriate for a court in its role as a faithful servant. There are fundamental principles underlying the tax law, including antagonism to double deductions and deduction of phantom losses. The Supreme Court has a duty to interpret tax law in favor of coherent principle, and Gitlitz violates fundamental principle. A court must defer to a Congressional tax policy, even if they disagree with it. But tax policy is easily distinguished from error or absurdity where Congress never debated the issue nor saw the result now obviously absurd. Gitlitz is on the error or absurdity side of the line, akin to 2 +2 = 5, and both Court and Administration needs to correct such errors as expeditiously as possible. If I tell my babysitter to teach my children some games, it does not authorize teaching craps or strip poker.
Impact of a novel project management course sequence on innovative thinking in pharmacy students.

Abstract Background As healthcare continues to become more complex, pharmacist innovators have worked to advance the profession and expand the role of the pharmacist on the healthcare team. Accreditation standards for schools of pharmacy recognize the importance of developing future pharmacist innovators capable of making positive change in the profession, but there are limited resources available on how to best instill innovative thinking in student pharmacists. Educational activity A two-semester elective course sequence was created for third-year doctor of pharmacy students requiring completion of a longitudinal quality improvement project at a partnering health system. Students collaborated with key stakeholders to design a project plan and charter, identify deliverables, and deliver project results. Innovative thinking was assessed using a mixed methods approach including questionnaires with forced choice and open response items, focus group data, and semi-structured interviews. Each questionnaire item mapped specifically to an element of a validated model for employee innovation. From the beginning to the end of the course sequence, there were significant improvements in student-perceived project management self-efficacy and innovative thinking. Critical analysis of the educational activity Student learning outcomes and the course structure mapped closely with a validated model of innovative behavior, demonstrating the effectiveness of utilizing project management to instill innovative thinking in student pharmacists. These findings support the concept that innovative thinking can be taught in pharmacy didactic curricula by situating students in the environment of real-world pharmacy practice.
Cholesterol Synthesis Disorders

Cholesterol has several essential functions in normal cell physiology. In addition to being a major component of cellular membranes, cholesterol serves as the precursor of bile acids and steroid hormones and plays an important role in embryonic development. For many years, mevalonate kinase deficiency (MKD) was the only known genetic disorder of the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway. However, the discovery in 1993 of increased levels of 7-dehydrocholesterol (7DHC) and hypocholesterolemia in patients with Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (SLOS) heralded the emergence of a new group of metabolic disorders – inborn errors of post-squalene cholesterol biosynthesis. To date, human disorders have been identified for all but 2 enzymes involved in cholesterol biosynthesis: HSD17β7, a ketosteroid reductase that is part of a C4 demethylase complex, and TM7SF2, a sterol 14-reductase. The discovery of the biochemical bases of these rare genetic disorders has not only provided biochemical methods for their diagnosis but also allowed the delineation of the spectrum of their clinical and biochemical phenotypes.
WKB Theory for Internal Gravity Waves

The buoyancy frequency is never really constant. Indeed, in the ocean there is a significant variation of N from top to bottom. Figure 9.1 (next page) from the Levitus Atlas (1982) shows the distribution of N of the zonally averaged global ocean.
Civil Discovery in Oklahoma: General Principles

I. INTRODUCTION Thirty years ago Professor Vilet noted that a surprisingly large number of lawyers in Oklahoma did not seem to understand what was meant by the term "discovery procedure."' This is certainly no longer the case, as is indicated by the Foreward to a recent issue of Litigalion which proclaimed, "In an important sense modem American litigation is discovery." 2 The past thirty years have seen the development and increasing use of discovery procedures so that today these procedures are the primary means attorneys utilize to ascertain the facts which are presented at trial. In fact, through skillful use of discovery procedures, lawyers can in most cases avoid the time and expense of trial and resolve their lawsuits through settlement. 3 This article is the first in a series of three articles dealing with civil discovery in Oklahoma to be published in this journal. This article addresses the general principles that are applicable to all discovery procedures in Oklahoma. The purposes of discovery procedures and the types of proceedings where discovery is available are examined. The relevance standard which determines the scope of discovery is ana
An integrated approach to workflow mapping and task scheduling for delay minimization in distributed environments

Many scientific applications feature large-scale workflows consisting of computing modules that must be strategically deployed and executed in distributed environments. The end-to-end performance of such scientific workflows depends on both the mapping scheme that determines module assignment, and the scheduling policy that determines resource allocation if multiple modules are mapped to the same node. These two aspects of workflow optimization are traditionally treated as two separated topics, and the interactions between them have not been fully explored by any existing efforts. As the scale of scientific workflows and the complexity of network environments rapidly increase, each individual aspect of performance optimization alone can only meet with limited success. We conduct an in-depth investigation into workflow execution dynamics in distributed environments and formulate a generic problem that considers both workflow mapping and task scheduling to minimize the end-to-end delay of workflows. We propose an integrated solution, referred to as Mapping and Scheduling Interaction (MSI), to improve the workflow performance. The efficacy of MSI is illustrated by both extensive simulations and proof-of-concept experiments using real-life scientific workflows for climate modeling on a PC cluster. We study workflow execution dynamics in distributed environments.We formulate an optimization problem on workflow mapping and task scheduling.We propose an integrated solution to maximize workflow performance.The proposed solution is evaluated through simulations and experiments.
Remarks on DiPerna’s paper “Convergence of the viscosity method for isentropic gas dynamics”

Concerns have been voiced about the correctness of certain technical points in DiPerna’s paper (Comm. Math. Phys. 91 (1983), 1–30) related to the vacuum state. In this note, we provide clarifications. Our conclusion is that these concerns mainly arise from the statement of a lemma for constructing the viscous approximate solutions and some typos; however, the gap can be either fixed by correcting the statement of the lemma and the typos or bypassed by employing the finite difference methods. In [Di], DiPerna found a global entropy solution of the isentropic Euler equations for the following exponents in the equation of state for the pressure: γ = 1 + 2/(2m+ 1), m ≥ 2 integer. (1) He divided his arguments into the following two steps. 1. Compactness framework Assume that a sequence of approximate solutions (ρ (x, t),m (x, t)), 0 ≤ t ≤ T , satisfies: (i). There exists a constant C(T ) > 0, independent of > 0, such that 0 ≤ ρ (x, t) ≤ C, |m (x, t)/ρ (x, t)| ≤ C; (ii). For all weak entropy pairs (η, q) of the isentropic Euler equations, the measure sequence η(ρ ,m )t + q(ρ ,m )x is contained in a compact subset of H −1 loc (R× [0, T ]). If γ satisfies (1), then the sequence (ρ (x, t),m (x, t)) is compact in Lloc(R× [0, T ]). The reason for the restriction on the number γ is that, in such a case, any weak entropy function is a polynomial function of the Riemann invariants (w, z). This is the key step in DiPerna’s arguments and is also his main contribution to the compensated compactness method in this aspect. Received by the editors May 16, 1996. 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 35K55, 35L65; Secondary 76N15, 35L60, 65M06.
Relational risk and its personal correlates in strategic alliances.

In this study we focus on the perception of one particular type of risk in the context of strategic alliances—relational risk. Perceived relational risk refers to the degree to which decision makers are concerned with the partner's opportunistic behavior in cooperative efforts. We develop a measure of relational risk in strategic alliances, and empirically examine some of its personal correlates. Based on a survey of senior executives of corporations and MBA students, we found partial support for the principal hypothesis that the perception of relational risk for prospective strategic alliances is related to an individual's age and trust in people.
Culturing captures members of the soil rare biosphere.

The ecological significance of rare microorganisms within microbial communities remains an important, unanswered question. Microorganisms of extremely low abundance (the ‘rare biosphere’) are believed to be largely inaccessible and unknown. To understand the structure of complex environmental microbial communities, including the representation of rare and prevalent community members, we coupled traditional cultivation with pyrosequencing. We compared cultured and uncultured bacterial members of the same agricultural soil, including eight locations within one apple orchard and four time points. Our analysis revealed that soil bacteria captured by culturing were in very low abundance or absent in the culture-independent community, demonstrating unexpected accessibility of the rare biosphere by culturing.
Genital mycoplasma infections

Abstract Three different species of mycoplasmas— M. hominis, M. fermentans , and Ureaplasma urealyticum —have been found to infect human genitalia. In the man, mycoplasmas appear to play a role in the etiology of nonspecific urethritis and prostatitis. Mycoplasmas repeatedly have been cultured from the tubes of patients with acute salpingitis and a significant antibody response to the organisms during recovery has been reported. Obstetric infections and puerperal sepsis occasionally seem to be caused by mycoplasmas. These organisms also appear to induce spontaneous abortion as well as cause infertility in a small proportion of couples.
Infrared Interferometry from Satellites

The infrared spectroscopy experiments (IRIS) on Nimbus 3 and 4 measure the thermal emission spectrum of the Earth between 400 and 1600 cm−1 with a resolution of 5cm−1 and 2.8 cm−1, respectively. Spectral radiances are interpreted to derive the vertical profiles of temperature, humidity and ozone, as well as for studies of radiative transfer in the atmosphere and of the emissive properties of the Earth’s surface. A precision of approximately 0.5 to 1 erg cm−2 s−1 ster/cm−1 has been achieved. The interferometer on Nimbus 3 operated 3 1/2 months continuously and the instrument on Nimbus 4 recorded more than one million spectra during the first year in orbit.
Prepared to care: adult attachment and filial obligation.

Objectives: Past work found that close adult attachment dimension scores predict caregiver preparedness. Theory and past research suggests filial obligation (FO) may mediate the relationship between attachment and caregiver preparedness. The goal of this study was to test that hypothesis.Method: The sample, collected using Mechanical Turk, included 165 women between the ages of 45 and 65 years who were not providing care to an aging parent. Participants were reimbursed $0.75 for completing an online survey assessing response validity, dimensions of adult attachment, depressive symptomatology, FO, and caregiver preparedness, among other variables. The mean participant age was 52.2 years (SD = 5.5).Results: The sample was predominantly White/Caucasian (82.6%), and Black/African American (7.3%). With respect to education, 14.5% completed high school or general education development (GED), 32.7% completed some college, 36.4% completed a Bachelor's degree, and 15.7% completed graduate degrees. The three atta...
Extending the mutual information measure to rank inferred literature relationships.

Within the peer-reviewed literature, associations between two things are not always recognized until commonalities between them become apparent. These commonalities can provide justification for the inference of a new relationship where none was previously known, and are the basis of most observation-based hypothesis formation. It has been shown that the crux of the problem is not finding inferable associations, which are extraordinarily abundant given the scale-free networks that arise from literature-based associations, but determining which ones are informative. The Mutual Information Measure (MIM) is a well-established method to measure how informative an association is, but is limited to direct (i.e. observable) associations. Herein, we attempt to extend the calculation of mutual information to indirect (i.e. inferable) associations by using the MIM of shared associations. Objects of general research interest (e.g. genes, diseases, phenotypes, drugs, ontology categories) found within MEDLINE are used to create a network of associations for evaluation. Mutual information calculations can be effectively extended into implied relationships and a significance cutoff estimated from analysis of random word networks. Of the models tested, the shared minimum MIM (MMIM) model is found to correlate best with the observed strength and frequency of known associations. Using three test cases, the MMIM method tends to rank more specific relationships higher than counting the number of shared relationships within a network.
Group IIa sPLA2 inhibition attenuates NF-κB activity and promotes apoptosis of lung cancer cells.

Background/Aim: Group IIa secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2 IIa) has been implicated in the regulation of metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and the present study investigates its contribution to lung cancer growth and progression. PLA2s initiate signaling in several pathways that mediate cell survival including phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-AKT (PI3K-AKT), p38 mitogen- activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), extracellular-signal- regulated kinase (ERK) and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain- enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB). Materials and Methods: Human NSCLC cell lines (A549 and NCI-H358) were treated with a specific sPLA2 IIa inhibitor. Cells were assayed for apoptosis, viability, proliferation and changes in cell morphology. Effects on AKT, p38 MAPK, ERK1/2 and NF-κB signaling pathways were investigated. Results: sPLA2 IIa inhibition reduced proliferation and increased apoptosis. NF- κB activity was attenuated, whereas AKT, ERK1/2, p38 MAPK were variably affected by sPLA2 IIa inhibition. NF-κB inhibitor-associated apoptosis confirmed the dominant role of NF-κB. Conclusion: sPLA2 IIa attenuates growth and promotes apoptosis predominantly via its effects on NF-κB activity. The activation of the phospholipase A2 (PLA2) family of enzymes plays a major role in the formation of eicosanoid lipid mediators that regulate the progression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (1-3). Within the family of PLA2 enzymes, the isozyme group IIa secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2 IIa) has recently come to light as a potential biomarker and regulator of invasive potential in lung cancer (4, 5). Its specific role in lung cancer growth has yet to be examined. In fibroblasts, overexpression of sPLA2 IIa can produce an apoptosis-resistant phenotype that can be
Menopause, micronutrients, and hormone therapy

Micronutrient and herbal/phytochemical supplements are of increasing interest as potential alternatives to using estrogen therapy in treating menopausal symptoms. This article provides an overview of the questionnaires that assess menopausal symptoms and research efforts to better standardize symptom assessment. The reported rate of symptoms varies by ethnicity, stage of menopause, hormonal therapy and the measurement method. The use of estrogen therapy has declined sharply after the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Hormone Trial was stopped early because the potential risks outweighed potential benefits. There is a limited research base that addresses the efficacy of supplements in controlling menopausal symptoms. The generalizability of several studies is limited because the study participants experiences menopause as the results of treatment for breast cancer. The article concludes with a review of guidelines and of issues that need to be addressed in future research studies with emphasis on questions related to clinical practice.
Using the Saccharomyces Genome Database (SGD) for analysis of genomic information

Analysis of genomic data requires access to software tools that place the sequence-derived information in the context of biology. The Saccharomyces Genome Database (SGD) integrates functional information about budding yeast genes and their products with a set of analysis tools that facilitate exploring their biological details. This unit describes how the various types of functional data available at SGD can be searched, retrieved, and analyzed. Starting with the guided tour of the SGD Home page and Locus Summary page, this unit highlights how to retrieve data using YeastMine, how to visualize genomic information with GBrowse, how to explore gene expression patterns with SPELL, and how to use Gene Ontology tools to characterize large-scale datasets.
Insulin Therapy for Maximal Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is on the rise, yet glycemic control continues to elude patients-and their physicians. During the past decade, the use of insulin monotherapy has decreased while the use of oral antidiabetic agents (either alone or in combination with insulin injections) has increased. The continued prevalence of the disorder, changes in prescribing patterns, and recent data indicating that only one third of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus achieve glycemic control underscore the need for physicians to reevaluate the clinical management of this now common disorder. Insulin analogs provide flexibility in the delivery of insulin therapy for this population. Although potential barriers and complications to initiation exist, patients should understand that achieving and maintaining glycemic control reduces the risk of long-term complications as a result of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Physicians are encouraged to actively identify and address patient concerns about this treatment modality.
HSP16.6 is involved in the development of thermotolerance and thylakoid stability in the unicellular cyanobacterium, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.

The low molecular weight (LMW) heat shock protein (HSP), HSP16.6, in the unicellular cyanobacterium, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, protects cells from elevated temperatures. A 95% reduction in the survival of mutant cells with an inactivated hsp16.6 was observed after exposure for 1 h at 47°C. Wild-type cell survival was reduced to only 41%. HSP16.6 is also involved in the development of thermotolerance. After a sublethal heat shock at 43°C for 1 h and subsequent challenge exposure at 49°C for 40 min, mutant cells did not survive, while 64% of wild-type cells survived. Ultrastructural changes in the integrity of thylakoid membranes of heat-shocked mutant cells also are discussed. These results demonstrate an important protective role for HSP16.6 in the protection of cells and, in particular, thylakoid membrane against thermal stress.
Stabilization of the Unliganded Glucocorticoid Receptor by TSG101

The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) has been shown to undergo hormone-dependent down-regulation via transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and posttranslational mechanisms. However, the mechanisms involved in modulating GR levels in the absence of hormone remain enigmatic. Here we demonstrate that TSG101, a previously identified GR-interacting protein, stabilizes the hypophosphorylated form of GR in the absence of ligand. We found that a non-phosphorylated version of GR (S203A/S211A) showed enhanced interaction with TSG101 as compared with the wild type GR, suggesting that TSG101 interacts more favorably with GR when it is not phosphorylated. A significant accumulation of GR S203A/S211A protein is detected in the absence of ligand when TSG101 is overexpressed, whereas no increase in the wild type phosphorylated GR or phosphomimetic GR S203E/S211E was observed in mammalian cells. In contrast, down-regulation of TSG101 expression by siRNA renders the hypophosphorylated form of GR unstable. We further show that TSG101 stabilizes GR by impeding its degradation by the proteasome and extending receptor half-life. Thus, in absence of a ligand, TSG101 binds GR and protects the non-phosphorylated receptor from degradation.
A cellular basis for functionally releasable pools in somatotropes

Abstract In an attempt to define the celluar basis for the phenomenon of releasable pools, we compared the effects of two growth hormone (GH)-releasing peptides which differentially influence the dynamics of GH release. Monodispersed anterior pituitary cells from neonatal male rats were subjected to reverse hemolytic plaque assays for GH in the presence or absence of GH-releasing peptide (GHRP-6, an enkephalin-like hexapeptide) and rat GH-releasing factor (GRF). GRF increased the rate of plaque formation (an index of the rate of hormone release) from almost all somatotropes, whereas GHRP-6 influenced only half of these cells. Analysis of plaque sizes (which provides a relative index of the cumulative amount of hormone released per cell) revealed that GRF produced a bimodal frequency distribution of plaque sizes, demonstrating that some somatotropes released more hormone than others after treatment with a maximal dose of this secretagogue. This pattern contrasted with those of untreated and GHRP-6 treated somatotropes which each produced unimodal frequency distributions that were skewed to the left (toward smaller plaques) and were virtually superimposable at the end of a 4 h incubation. However, GHRP-6 greatly accelerated the rate at which the final size distribution pattern was attained. Taken together, these results suggest that GHRP-6 causes the immediate release of a limited pool of GH which is present only in a discrete subpopulation of somatotropes that respond to GRF. This pool may be identical to that which is released over a more prolonged period under basal conditions. Moreover, GRF appears to access a more substantial pool of hormone which is not released by GHRP-6. This pool is present in a small minority of somatotropes but probably accounts for a larger portion of the GH released by pituitaries stimulated with GRF.
An improved method for staining cell colonies in clonogenic assays

Clonogenic assay is a widely used experimental approach to test for the effects of drugs/genes on the growth and proliferative characteristics of cells in vitro. Accurate quantitation of treatment effects in clonogeneic assays depends on the ability to visualize and count cell colonies precisely. We report a novel method (referred as ETeB) for staining cell colonies grown on plastic and specially coated substrates like collagen. Using colon cancer cell lines grown on plastic and collagen, we compared the colony staining efficiencies of the widely used methylene blue, and Ethidium bromide (ETeB) stains. Results show that the ETeB protocol works well on plastic and is extremely effective for staining colonies on collagen when compared to methylene blue. The key features and advantages of ETeB technique are; (a) reduction in background for colonies grown on collagen and possibly other substrates, (b) the whole procedure takes less than a minute, (c) no post-stain washing step is required which eliminates colony losses for cell lines that are loosely adherent, (d) colony visualization and counting can be done immediately following the staining procedure using a standard UV illuminator and software, and (e) the method works across a wide variety of cell lines. The simplicity and robustness of this procedure should warrant its usage in both small and large-scale clonogenic experiments.
Classification of human B-ZIP proteins based on dimerization properties.

B-ZIP transcription factors (98) are exclusively eukaryotic proteins that bind to sequence-specific double-stranded DNA as homodimers or heterodimers to either activate or repress gene transcription (34). We have examined both of the recently published DNA sequences of the human genome (51, 95) and identified 56 genes that contain the B-ZIP motif. Three sequences were identical, giving a total of 53 unique B-ZIP domains with the potential to form 2,809 dimers. This creates the possibility for a tremendous range of transcriptional control (23, 50, 52). While significant effort has been directed at identifying dimerization partners of B-ZIP proteins, the full complement of dimerization partners remains to be elucidated. This review highlights two topics: (i) the known structural rules that regulate leucine zipper dimerization specificity and (ii) experimental data addressing mammalian B-ZIP dimerization partners. We have annotated the leucine zippers of all human B-ZIP domains, highlighting amino acids in the a, d, e, and g positions that appear critical for leucine zipper dimerization specificity. These data were used to group B-ZIP proteins into 12 families with similar dimerization properties: (i) those that strongly favor homodimerization within the family (PAR, CREB, Oasis, and ATF6), (ii) those that have the ability to both homodimerize and heterodimerize with similar affinities (C/EBP, ATF4, ATF2, JUN, and the small MAFs), and (iii) those that favor heterodimerization with other families (FOS, CNC, and large MAFs).
Polarized Targeting of Peripheral Membrane Proteins in Neurons

Differential targeting of neuronal proteins to axons and dendrites is essential for directional information flow within the brain, however, little is known about this protein-sorting process. Here, we investigate polarized targeting of lipid-anchored peripheral membrane proteins, postsynaptic density-95 (PSD-95) and growth-associated protein-43 (GAP-43). Whereas the N-terminal palmitoylated motif of PSD-95 is necessary but not sufficient for sorting to dendrites, the palmitoylation motif of GAP-43 is sufficient for axonal targeting and can redirect a PSD-95 chimera to axons. Systematic mutagenesis of the GAP-43 and PSD-95 palmitoylation motifs indicates that the spacing of the palmitoylated cysteines and the presence of nearby basic amino acids determine polarized targeting by these two motifs. Similarly, the axonal protein paralemmin contains a C-terminal palmitoylated domain, which resembles that of GAP-43 and also mediates axonal targeting. These axonally targeted palmitoylation motifs also mediate targeting to detergent-insoluble glycolipid-enriched complexes in heterologous cells, suggesting a possible role for specialized lipid domains in axonal sorting of peripheral membrane proteins.
Effects of adrenergic drugs on aqueous cAMP and cGMP and intraocular pressure.

The following variously selective adrenergic agonists were tested for their effects on the concentration of adenosine 3′, 5′ cyclic monophosphate and guanosine 3′, 5′ cyclic monophosphate in the aqueous humor of treated and fellow eyes of rabbits one hour after topical unilateral application (2 mg, base): Epinephrine (α,β1,β2), phenylephrine (α), isoproterenol (β1, β2), tazolol (β1) and terbutaline (β2). All drugs produced a significant increase in cAMP in the treated eyes and all but terbutaline produced a significant increase in the fellow eye. Terbutaline alone caused an increase in cGMP although a similar dose of pilocarpine, a cholinergic agonist, was ineffective in changing cGMP levels. We conclude that (1) diverse adrenoceptor stimulation can increase cAMP, but (2) not necessarily in direct relation to an agent's hypotensive activity and (3) that the hypotension induced by pilocarpine is not accompanied by an increase in aqueous cGMP.
Evaluation in chimpanzees of vaccinia virus recombinants that express the surface glycoproteins of human respiratory syncytial virus.

Abstract The immunogenicity and protective efficacy of recombinant vaccinia viruses that express the two major protective antigens of human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the F and G glycoproteins, were evaluated in chimpanzees. In previous studies in rodents and monkeys the F and G proteins expressed by the same recombinants were highly immunogenic and induced high levels of resistance to RSV replication following subsequent challenge. In contrast, in chimpanzees, a single intradermal immunization induced only moderate levels of F and G-specific serum antibodies as measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and these antibodies did not efficiently neutralize RSV infectivity in vitro . This poor antibody response in chimpanzees to the F and G glycoproteins occurred despite efficient replication of the vaccinia virus vector as evidenced by lesion size and serum antibody response to vaccinia virus. Upon intranasal RSV challenge, it was observed that prior immunization with the F and G recombinants effected only a marginal reduction in the magnitude and duration of RSV shedding from the nose and trachea and did not reduce illness. However, the RSV challenge induced a strong secondary antibody response, resulting in very high titres (> 8000 reciprocal mean titre) of serum neutralizing antibodies. The poor protective efficacy observed here is discussed with regard to the permissiveness of the chimpanzee to RSV replication, the general requirements for effective immunization against RSV, and the limitations of experimental animals for evaluating candidate RSV vaccines.
Reliability-Aware Energy Management for Periodic Real-Time Tasks

Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) has been widely used to manage energy in real-time embedded systems. However, it was recently shown that DVFS has direct and adverse effects on system reliability. In this work, we investigate static and dynamic reliability-aware energy management schemes to minimize energy consumption for periodic real-time systems while preserving system reliability. Focusing on earliest deadline first (EDF) scheduling, we first show that the static version of the problem is NP-hard and propose two task-level utilization-based heuristics. Then, we develop a job-level online scheme by building on the idea of wrapper-tasks, to monitor and manage dynamic slack efficiently in reliability-aware settings. The feasibility of the dynamic scheme is formally proved. Finally, we present two integrated approaches to reclaim both static and dynamic slack at runtime. To preserve system reliability, the proposed schemes incorporate recovery tasks/jobs into the schedule as needed, while still using the remaining slack for energy savings. The proposed schemes are evaluated through extensive simulations. The results confirm that all the proposed schemes can preserve the system reliability, while the ordinary (but reliability-ignorant) energy management schemes result in drastically decreased system reliability. For the static heuristics, the energy savings are close to what can be achieved by an optimal solution by a margin of 5 percent. By effectively exploiting the runtime slack, the dynamic schemes can achieve additional energy savings while preserving system reliability.
Comparative kinematics of terrestrial prey capture in Salamanders and newts (Amphibia:Urodela:Salamandridae)

High-speed cinematography was used to compare the kinematics of terrestrial prey capture among postmetamorphic individuals of the family Salamandridae that have a) terrestrial (Salamandra, Salamandrina, and Tylototriton), b) amphibious (Pleurodeles, Cynops, and Paramesotriton), and c) aquatic (Pachytriton) lifestyles. Tongue projection was common during prey capture attempts in Salamandra, Salamandrina, and Tylototriton, occurred frequently in Cynops and Paramesotriton, but was absent during terrestrial feeding by Pachytriton. The gape cycle consisted of four distinct phases that were associated with discrete movements of the hyolingual apparatus. In all salamandrids that projected the tongue, the gape 1) increased rapidly while the tongue was elevated from the floor of the mouth in preparation for protraction, 2) was stabilized while the tongue was protracted, 3) increased to maximum during retraction and 4) decreased rapidly while the tongue transported the prey into the oral cavity. The absence of tongue projection during some (Cynops, Paramesotriton), or all prey capture attempts (Pachytriton) resulted in gape profiles distinctly different from those described above. Most notably, these profiles lacked the gape stabilization component characteristic of tongue projection. The maximum distance that the tongue was projected beyond the mandible approached 6% snout-vent length (SVL) in most salamandrids, but reached 20% SVL in Salamandrina. Several elements of the feeding system in Salamandrina are functionally related to the evolution of its specialized tongue projection apparatus. These include a gape cycle of relatively long duration (200 ms) and the absence of a head-body surge and of eye retraction during the strike.
Impact ionization in InAlAs/InGaAs HFET's

The presence of an energy barrier to the transfer of holes from the channel to the gate electrode of InAlAs/InGaAs HFET's prevents the gate current from being a reliable indicator of impact ionization. Consequently, we have used a specially designed sidegate structure to demonstrate that due to the narrow bandgap of InGaAs, impact ionization takes place in the channel of these devices under normal operating conditions. The ionization coefficient was found to follow a classic exponential dependence on the inverse electric field at the drain end of the gate, for over three orders of magnitude. >
Machine vision system for verification and identification of tire treads

A machine vision system was developed by BIRL to provide verification and identification of tire treads on the fabrication line. This paper discusses technical aspects of this successful application, from the original design to the final implementation. Specific emphases are given to the hardware and software implementation of the image acquisition and processing of the system. Aspects regarding the imaging of highly absorptive material (black rubber) and rapidly moving target are also discussed. Problems encountered during the development and integration of the system are described, and solutions are presented.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The Roots of Third Party Voting The 2000 Nader Campaign in Historical Perspective

By many accounts, Ralph Nader had a substantial effect on the dynamics of the 2000 presidential campaign. While Nader’s place in history is unique due to his impact on the election’s outcome, Nader’s campaign follows in a long tradition of significant third party candidacies in the twentieth century. We explore the 2000 Nader campaign with the goal of placing its appeals - as well as its effect on voters - within this broader context of recent third party candidacies for the presidency. Based on the nature of his issue appeals, we can characterize the Nader campaign as a blend of left-wing populism and anti-system sentiment. Noting the similarity of this appeal with those of other significant third party candidates (excepting Wallace in 1968), we go on to look at the electoral impact of Nader and these other candidates. Our analysis of state-wide voting patterns yields surprisingly large correlations between the Nader vote and votes for recent third party campaigns that were ideologically different from t...
Thermodynamic and structural changes in deformation twinning of alloys

Abstract Except for pure metals or random substitutional alloys, deformation “twinning” always causes a structural or symmetry change. The point group of the “twin” is a subgroup common to both the parent crystal and mmm. the twinning strain. True twinning by deformation is prevented by clustering, imperfect ordering and immobile interstitials. The enthalpy and free energy changes resulting from deformation “twinning” is large. In ordered alloys, it results in an additional component to the “twinning” stress of order 1 GPa and is available to reduce the stress of “untwinning”.
SOURCES OF THE QUARTZITE OF SOME ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SCULPTURES

This article reports the results of analysis of samples collected from some Egyptian quartzite artifacts. such as statuary, dating from the New Kingdom. Most of the artifacts are located in Upper Egypt, but the results of analysis suggest that, until the middle of the fourteenth century B.C., the quartzite came from a more distant quarry near Cairo rather than from the quartzite quarries located near Aswan in Upper Egypt.
Having a Fit: Impact of Number of Items and Distribution of Data on Traditional Criteria for Assessing IRT’s Unidimensionality Assumption

Confirmatory factor analysis fit criteria typically are used to evaluate the unidimensionality of item banks. This study explored the degree to which the values of these statistics are affected by two characteristics of item banks developed to measure health outcomes: large numbers of items and nonnormal data. Analyses were conducted on simulated and observed data. Observed data were responses to the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Pain Impact Item Bank. Simulated data fit the graded response model and conformed to a normal distribution or mirrored the distribution of the observed data. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA), parallel analysis, and bifactor analysis were conducted. CFA fit values were found to be sensitive to data distribution and number of items. In some instances impact of distribution and item number was quite large. We concluded that using traditional cutoffs and standards for CFA fit statistics is not recommended for establishing unidimensionality of item banks. An investigative approach is favored over reliance on published criteria. We found bifactor analysis to be appealing in this regard because it allows evaluation of the relative impact of secondary dimensions. In addition to these methodological conclusions, we judged the items of the PROMIS Pain Impact bank to be sufficiently unidimensional for item response theory (IRT) modeling.
Laser Cooling of a Solid by 16 K Starting from Room Temperature

An Yb{sup 3+}-doped optical fiber is laser cooled {ital in vacuo}from 298 to 282K. Cooling results from anti-Stokes fluorescence of the ytterbium ions after optical pumping at a wavelength of 1015nm. The sample temperature is deduced from the emission spectrum, which is sensitive to the populations in the excited-state multiplet of the ions. The temperature change is limited by the coupling between the fiber and ambient blackbody radiation, as confirmed when samples suddenly exposed to the pump laser are found to exponentially relax towards thermal steady state with the expected time constants. {copyright} {ital 1997} {ital The American Physical Society}
Anti-Ia inhibits the activity of B cells but not a T cell-derived helper mediator

The effects of addition of anti-Ia sera to cultures of B cells responding to a number of different stimuli were studied. Anti-Ia sera inhibited the responses of B cells to thymus-dependent and thymus-independent antigens. The effects of antisera directed at different subregions within theI region were examined, using the same anti-Ia serum and mouse strains congenic atI. There was some indication that antisera directed at theI-C region might be more efficient at inhibiting responses to a thymus-independent antigen than to a thymus-dependent antigen. An antiserum to another B-cell surface component controlled by theH-2 complex, the D glycoprotein, had no effect on the response of B cells to a thymus-dependent antigen. By contrast, anti-Ia serum added to cultures had no effect on the activity of a T cell-derived, nonspecific, B-cell helper mediator (NSM). We concluded that the binding of anti-Ia sera to B-cell surfaces inhibited B-cell responses to antigen, either by competing directly with the binding of signal molecules, or by delivering an inhibitory signal to the B cell, such that it was subsequently refractory to stimulatory signals.