cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The B protein of Escherichia coli tryptophan synthetase. I. Effects of sulfhydryl modification on enzymatic activities and subunit interaction.

Abstract Sulfhydryl modification of the B protein of Escherichia coli tryptophan synthetase has been carried out to investigate the role of sulfhydryl residues in the active center of this protein and in its interaction with the A protein. Both N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) and 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) react with two sulfhydryls per monomer of apo-B protein and one sulfhydryl per monomer of the holo-B protein, which contains 1 mole of pyridoxal phosphate per monomer. The serine deaminase activity and the tryptophan synthetase activity are both largely lost after the reaction of one sulfhydryl in the holo-B protein with DTNB. Similar results are obtained after the reaction of one sulfhydryl in the apo-B protein with NEM. In contrast, after the reaction of one sulfhydryl in the holo-B protein with NEM, the serine deaminase activity is somewhat enhanced, whereas, the tryptophan synthetase activity is largely lost. Kinetic comparisons of the NEM-modified holo-B protein with the untreated holo-B protein show that the Km for l-serine is largely unchanged, but that both the Km for indole and the Vmax in the tryptophan synthetase reaction are changed by modification. Since one sulfhydryl in the B protein is fully protected from NEM modification by pyridoxal phosphate and a second sulfhydryl is partially protected from modification in the holo-B protein by the substrate l-serine, both of these sulfhydryl residues may be located in the active center of the protein. The reactive sulfhydryl residue in the holo-B protein is also protected by interaction with the A protein. However, this sulfhydryl is not necessary for the interaction of the A and B proteins since the holo-B protein modified with 1 mole of NEM still associates normally with the A protein and facilitates its hydrolysis of indole-3-glycerol phosphate.
Perfect secrecy in wireless networks

In a classic paper, among a multitude of other security issues, Claude E. Shannon defined perfect secrecy for a pair of secure computers communicating over an insecure link. The present paper extends Shannon's notion of perfect secrecy to ad hoc wireless networks of computers. All of the wireless transmissions are insecure. This paper assumes a secure base-station communicating wirelessly using symmetric encryption with physically insecure autonomous computers. These wireless communications use a common symmetric encryption algorithm. Each of the computers has a unique fixed key. The base station has a copy of each key. This scenario gives way to a generalization of Shannon's perfect secrecy. This generalizes to t-perfect secrecy which is directly based on t-wise independence. This gives another natural application of t-wise independence to cryptography. Finally, transmission noise, message collisions, and other issues are briefly discussed with respect to this generalization of Shannon's perfect secrecy.
Some remarks on the whitehead asphericity conjecture

The Whitehead asphericity conjecture claims that if $\langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{R}\rangle$ is an aspherical group presentation, then for every $\mathcal{S} \subset \mathcal{R}$ the subpresentation $\langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{S}\rangle$ is also aspherical. It is proven that if the Whitehead conjecture is false then there is an aspherical presentation $E = \langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{R} \cup \{z\}\rangle$ of the trivial group $E$, where the alphabet $\mathcal{A}$ is finite or countably infinite and $z \in \mathcal{A}$, such that its subpresentation $\langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{R}\rangle$ is not aspherical. It is also proven that if the Whitehead conjecture fails for finite presentations (i.e., with finite $\mathcal{A}$ and $\mathcal{R}$) then there is a finite aspherical presentation $\langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{R}\rangle$, $\mathcal{R} = \{R_{1},R_{2},\ldots,R_{n}}$, such that for every $\mathcal{S} \subseteq \mathcal{R}$ the subpresentation $\langle\mathcal{A}||\mathcal{S}\rangle$ is aspherical and the subpresentation $\langle\mathcal{A}||R_{1}R_{2},R_{3},\ldots,R_{n}$ of aspherical $\langle\mathcal{A}||R_{1}R_{2},R_{3},\ldots,R_{n}$ is not aspherical.
Geometric Searching over the Rationals

We revisit classical geometric search problems under the assumption of rational coordinates. Our main result is a tight bound for point separation, ie, to determine whether n given points lie on one side of a query line. We show that with polynomial storage the query time is ?(log b/ log log b), where b is the bit length of the rationals used in specifying the line and the points. The lower bound holds in Yao's cell probe model with storage in nO(1) and word size in bO(1). By duality, this provides a tight lower bound on the complexity on the polygon point enclosure problem: given a polygon in the plane, is a query point in it?
Commentary on Baum and Titone

Baum and Titone address several issues related to bilingual advantages in executive control that are often overlooked in this literature but warrant further consideration and empirical investigation. We limit our comments to two issues: the problem of establishing the directional relationship between bilingualism and executive control and the problem of decomposing executive control.
Pity and Judgment in Greek Drama: A Response to Professor Alford

the thin, "interested" self that has been advocated by liberal theory and constituted by liberal practice. He frames his thoughtful analysis with a summary of A. O. Hirschman's account of the process whereby early modem authors, first, lost faith in the capacity of reason to control the passions, and, second, set about to transform these dangerous passions into orderly and predictable "interests." Professor Alford suggests that a more promising approach can be found in Greek drama, which, he argues, pits the "civilizing passions," and especially pity, against the violent and retributive passions that had defined the heroic ethic of the archaic world. By suppressing the passions and seeking to ground civilization on impersonal interests and contracts, early modem authors only set the stage for these passions to erupt in an angry pursuit of power and domination; by recognizing the legitimacy of the passions and seeking to educate them in a "cultivation of pity," the dramatists propose a more inclusive, and hence less pathological, ground for civilization. While there is much in this paper with which I agree, I shall focus in this response on one disagreement: I shall argue that in associating the dramas with the case for the passions (or emotions), Professor Alford accepts a dichotomy between reason and the passions that fails to capture their subtle interpenetration in the dramas. The danger here is not just the possibility of misunderstanding classical drama; it is the possibility of misunderstanding what contemporary liberal democrats might learn from the dramatists. The poets build the healthy democratic polis on a foundation of "friendship" (philia) and "sympathetic understanding and judgment" (suggnome). Precisely because it defies the reason/passion dichotomy, this foundation avoids the risks, so terrifying to Hobbes and many other seventeenthand eighteenthcentury writers, of building our shared lives on the untempered passions. Many, if not all, of the extant tragedies examine the painful transition from the tribal world of Homer to the polis, and the importance of resisting
An imageable highly metastatic orthotopic red fluorescent protein model of pancreatic cancer

In order to investigate the antitumor and antimetastatic efficacy of new chemotherapeutic agents, a novel, red-fluorescent, orthotopic model of pancreatic cancer was constructed in nude mice. MIA-PaCa-2 human pancreatic cancer cells were transduced with red fluorescent protein (RFP) and initially grown subcutaneously. Fluorescent tumor fragments were then transplanted onto the pancreas by surgical orthotopic implantation (SOI), facilitating high-resolution, real-time visualization of tumor and metastatic growth and dissemination in vivo. Tumor growth at the primary site was visible within the first postoperative week, while distant metastasis and the development of ascites became visible over the following week. This MIA-PaCa-2-RFP model produced extensive local disease and metastases to the retroperitoneum (100%), spleen (100%), intestinal and periportal lymph nodes (100%), liver (40%) and diaphragm (80%), and gave rise to malignant ascites and peritoneal carcinomatosis in 80% of cases. Growth and metastasis of tumor was more rapid and frequent than in previously described orthotopic pancreatic cancer models, leading to a median survival of only 21 days after tumor implantation. This unique, red fluorescent model rapidly and reliably simulates the highly aggressive course of human pancreatic cancer and can be easily non-invasively visualized in the live animal. The model can therefore be used for the discovery and evaluation of novel therapeutics for the treatment of this devastating disease.
Alteration of human lymphocyte triosephosphate isomerase isozymes during blastogenesis

Summary Human lymphocytes contain a single isozyme of triosephosphate isomerase (pI=5.6). However, when induced to undergo blastogenesis by culturing in the presense of mitogens, a more acidic isozyme (pI=5.2) is also produced concomitant with DNA replication. Culturing of lymphocytes in the absence of mitogens or incubation of homogenates from lymphoblasts with fresh lymphocyte extracts does not generate the new isozyme. This system provides, for the first time, an in vivo method for studying the molecular basis and factors regulating the expression of the different isozymes of human triosephosphate isomerase.
Distribution of Phoma sclerotioides and incidence of brown root rot of alfalfa in Wyoming, U.S.A.

Brown root rot of alfalfa, caused by Phoma sclerotioides, has been reported from Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, and was the cause of widespread “winterkill” of alfalfa in southwestern Wyoming, U.S.A., in 1996. Affected plants exhibit characteristic dark, sunken, necrotic lesions on upper tap and lateral roots. Surveys of irrigated fields were conducted in nine counties to determine distribution of the pathogen within Wyoming. Symptomatic as well as asymptomatic root-tissue isolations demonstrated that P. sclerotioides was present in most counties surveyed, indicating its distribution may be statewide. Disease incidence was assessed in two fields where P. sclerotioides occurred. Results indicate that the pathogen is uniformly distributed within infested fields.
Evidence for macroscopic quantum tunneling in one-dimensional superconductors

Measurements of the superconducting-to-normal transition in very-small-diameter In wires are presented. The results are discussed in terms of the currently accepted theory, in which dissipation below ${T}_{c}$ is attributed to thermally activated motion of the Ginzburg-Landau order parameter over the free-energy barriers which separate metastable states. This theory is consistent with our results for temperatures within about 0.2 K of ${T}_{c}$, but at lower temperatures it fails qualitatively. We suggest that the low-temperature behavior is dominated by quantum-mechanical tunneling through the free-energy barrier, and show that our results are consistent with this picture.
Further studies of the electrical characteristics of oxide films on aluminium

Abstract The change of defect structure, crystal structure and thickness of γ-Al2O3 films during immersion in aqueous solutions of sodium chromate, chloride and fluoride were studied by a.c. capacitance and dissipation factor determinations at variable frequency, by electron microscopy and diffraction, by the elliptically polarized light method and by cathodic polarization determinations. Immersion of 260 A thick γ-Al2O3 films on aluminum for eight hours in molar sodium chromate and sodium chloride solutions at pH 6 results in no detectable change of film thickness or crystal structure. However, immersion in sodium chloride results in a substantial decrease in specific resistance of the film with time at frequencies below 100,000 c/s, whereas immersion in sodium chromate maintains the resistivity at higher values which are constant with time. The lowered specific resistance in chloride solutions is considered to be due to the introduction of n type current carriers by exchange of chloride ions from solution with oxide ions. This lowers the ionic rather than the electronic resistance of the film. Similar results were obtained during immersion in sodium fluoride solution at pH 6 except that the oxide films became contaminated with a crystalline second phase which complicates interpretation of the results. It appears that a greater number of n type current carriers are created in fluoride than in chloride solutions. This results in a larger reduction of the ionic resistance of the film than is occasioned by immersion in sodium chloride solution. There is some evidence that the degree of exchange in fluoride solution is sufficient to increase the average dielectric constant of the film.
Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy plus dystonia is caused by a mitochondrial DNA point mutation

A novel point mutation in the ND6 subunit of complex I at position 14,459 of the mitochondrial DNA (MTND6*LDY T14459A) was identified as a candidate mutation for the highly tissue-specific disease. Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy plus dystonia. Since the MTND6*LDYT14459A mutation was identified in a single family, other pedigrees with the mutation are needed to confirm its association with the disease. Clinical, biochemical, and genetic characterization is reported in two additional pedigrees. Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy developed in two family members in one pedigree. The daughter had clinically silent basal ganglia lesions. In a second pedigree, a single individual presented with childhood-onset generalized dystonia and bilateral basal ganglia lesions. Patient groups that included individuals with Leigh's disease, dystonia plus complex neurodegeneration, and Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy did not harbor the MTND6*LDYT14459A mutation, suggesting that this mutation displays a high degree of tissue specificity, thus producing a narrow phenotypic range. These results confirm the association of the MTND6*LDYT14459A mutation with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy and/or dystonia. As the first genetic abnormality that has been identified to cause generalized dystonia, this mutation suggests that nuclear DNA or mitochondrial DNA mutations in oxidative phosphorylation genes are important considerations in the pathogenesis of dystonia.
Congress and national security policy: Changing and varied roles for a shared responsibility

Abstract The Constitution issues an “invitation to struggle” to Congress and the President in making national security policy, because of each branch's competing formal powers and rival political power. The result is a system of checks and balances for a shared responsibility. Under it, Congress has adopted a variety of roles: a ratifier of executive‐led policies, a modifier of them, an ad hoc overseer, and an initiator and leader in its own right. This article explores these roles, mapping out some of the reasons for their adoption along with the different paths that Congress can take to direct or guide the national security establishment, presidential power in this field, and ultimately public policy. An earlier version of this paper was prepared for delivery at the National Defense University Symposium on “The National Security Process: The Making of National Strategy for the 1990s and Beyond,” Washington, DC, December 1–2, 1988. The views expressed herein are those of the author and are attributable t...
Parameterizing the deformation of LN 2 -cooled silicon monochromator crystals with modified linear power density funtion

The very low emittance and low energy spread source of a future Cornell energy recovery linac (ERL) will be equipped with long undulators of large numbers of short period magnets. The power density in the undulator radiation central cone will be much higher than that from normal undulators at current 3 rd generation sources. The deformation of liquid nitrogen (LN 2 ) cooled silicon crystal monochromators for ERL beamlines is evaluated by parameterizing the thermal problem with a modified linear power density function based on a simplified analytical model. This provides a clear and “universal” description of thermal deformation under different thermal footprints, variable loads and is independent of specific facility. The characteristics of thermal deformation of LN 2 -cooled Si crystals for Cornell ERL undulators is also given using finite element analysis (FEA).
The Bias of Physicians Entering the Service

The identification of attitudes held by physicians entering the military service and changes that resulted from a brief training program are once again assessed in a two-year follow-up. The subject of investigation is wide-ranging, from personal to professional concern. When the nature of biases and the situation are taken into account, the continuation of attitudes, gained in both pre-service experience and from training and service experience, shows considerable variation. Generally, attitudes toward military medicine and the military role were maintained, but personal involvement and professional criteria showed the greatest change. Variables in assignment showed no marked influence generally.
Non-Intrusive Heat Transfer Coefficient Determination in a Packed Bed of Spheres

Non-intrusive measurements of the internal average heat transfer coefficient [1] in a randomly packed bed of spherical particles are made. It is desired to establish accurate results for this simple geometry so that the method used can then be extended to determine the heat transfer characteristics in any porous medium, such as a compact heat exchanger. Under steady, one-dimensional flow the spherical particles are subjected to a step change in volumetric heat generation rate via induction heating. The fluid temperature response is measured. The average heat transfer coefficient is determined by comparing the results of a numerical simulation based on volume averaging theory with the experimental results. More specifically, the average heat transfer coefficient is adjusted within the computational procedure until the predicted values of the fluid outlet temperature match the experimental values. The only information needed is the basic material properties, the flow rate, and the experimental data. The computational procedure alleviates the need for solid and fluid phase temperature measurements, which are difficult to make and can disturb the solid-fluid interaction. Moreover, a simple analysis allows us to proceed without knowledge of the heat generation rate, which is difficult to determine due to challenges associated with calibrating an inductively-coupled, sample specific, heat generation system. The average heat transfer coefficient was determined, and expressed in terms of the Nusselt number, over a Reynolds number range of 20–600. The results compared favorably to the work of Whitaker [2] and Kays and London [3]. The success of this method, in determining the average heat transfer coefficient in a randomly packed bed of spheres, suggests that it can be used to determine the average heat transfer coefficient in other porous media.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Multimodal Magnetic-Resonance/Optical-Imaging Contrast Agent Sensitive to NADH

Disruption of redox homoeostasis may lead to oxidative stress, that is, production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and can induce many pathological conditions, including atherosclerosis, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and cancer.[1] Non-invasive observation of intracellular redox activities and their relationship to physiological function is a challenge for molecular imaging.[2] Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has recently emerged as a most promising tool for molecular imaging.[3] Typically MRI is not capable of sensing biochemical activity, but current advances in activatable contrast agents, which generate a signal in response to some variable in their immediate environment, hold the promise that MR contrast agents can be designed to be reporters of biological processes (i.e. pH, temperature, oxygen pressure, redox, enzyme, and metal-ion concentration).[3,4] To date nitroxides are the most commonly used redox-sensitive paramagnetic contrast agents for MRI. However, the combination of relatively low relaxivity and short life spans limit the extensive use of MRI in observation of redox activities in living systems.[4c,5]
The literature of environmental communication

This paper examines the growth and development of the literature of “environmental communication” research. The paper collects citations of all papers matching specified keywords covering environmental communication topics in the social science journal literature from relevant indices. The indices used were: the Institute for Scientific Information's (ISI) Social Sciences Citation Index (Web of Science), the ISI Arts and Humanities Citation Index (Web of Science), Communication Abstracts, PsycINFO, Anthropological Literature, Sociology Abstracts and Periodical Abstracts (Pro-Quest Direct). The paper analyzes the collected citations for journal of publication, date, and frequency of publication by year, author, and keywords and topics. The paper shows what topics of attention, what fields, and what journals have been interested in publishing environmental communication research, and some of the authors leading the way. In addition, basic topics of interest for environmental communication research are disce...
Effects of 250 mg% ethanol on monoamine and amino acid release from rat striatal slices

A single IP injection of 2.5 g ethanol/kg body weight into the rat increased the striatal levels of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) one hour later to 133 and 141% of control values, respectively. Blood alcohol concentrations at this time were approximately 250 mg%. The increased striatal tissue levels of DOPAC and HVA found after IP administration did not appear to be due to a direct effect of ethanol on the efflux of these two metabolites or on the release of dopamine (DA) since in vitro studies with striatal slices demonstrated that 250 mg% ethanol had no effect on the endogenous release of DOPAC, HVA, or DA. However, ethanol did enhance the K+-stimulated, Ca2+-dependent release of glutamate and aspartate from striatal slices to 168 and 214% of control values, respectively. The release of glutamate and aspartate from slices of midbrain (minus colliculi) was also increased by 250 mg% ethanol. On the other hand, the release of GABA, NE and 5-HT did not appear to be significantly altered by 250 mg% ethanol. The in vitro findings have led to the hypothesis that the elevated DOPAC and HVA levels observed in the striatum following an acute IP injection of 2.5 g/kg of ethanol are due to increased release of DA produced by the excitatory actions of glutamate (and/or aspartate) on dopaminergic neurons.
Video Killed The Data Store: Extending the n-Dimensional Display Interface for Full Screen Video

Prior research introduced the n-Dimensional Display Interface (NDDI) as a new "narrow waist" for the display pipeline. In this paper, we extend the NDDI architecture to provide a blending feature. We then utilize that new feature for full screen video playback, leveraging application-level framing to realize a significant data transmission reduction. We then explore new NDDI configurations for effective rate control under highly constrained transmission budgets.
Absorption and scattering of agglomerated soot particulate

Abstract This work examines the scattering and absorption characteristics of agglomerated soot particles. It treats the agglomerate as a collection of spherical sub-units or primary particles and assumes that they are Rayleigh scatterers. The model accounts for all electromagnetic (EM) interactions between the primary particles via an existing analytical solution. Clusters and chains of as many as 136 primary particles are investigated. The analytical results indicate that a cluster of spheres has EM cross-sections which are similar to those of an equivalent sphere of equal solid volume. These effective-diameter results are compared to existing laser diagnostic data of soot in flames. The results are in good agreement, yielding a more detailed interpretation of laser diagnostic measurements in clustered media. An alternative equivalent sphere uses a sphere of the same outer dimension as the cluster with the refractive index varied in order to match the EM cross-sections. The results of this approach are in excellent agreement with the Maxwell Garnett theory.
The Neurocomputational mind meets normative epistemology 1

Abstract The rapid development of connectionist models in computer science and of powerful computational tools in neuroscience has encouraged eliminativist materialist philosophers to propose specific alternatives to traditional mentalistic theories of mind. One of the problems associated with such a move is that elimination of the mental would seem to remove access to ideas like truth as the foundations of normative epistemology. Thus, a successful elimination of propositional or sentential theories of mind must not only replace them for purposes of our psychology, it must also replace them for purposes of the evaluation of our theories and explanations, psychological and otherwise. This paper briefly reviews eliminativist arguments for doubting the correctness of sentential accounts of explanation, understanding, and normative evaluation. It then considers Paul Churchland's (1989) proposed alternative norms, which are framed neurocomputationally. The alternative is found wanting in several specific ways...
Volatilization, transport, and sublimation of metallic and non-metallic elements in high temperature gases at Merapi Volcano, Indonesia

Abstract Condensates, silica tube sublimates and incrustations were sampled from 500–800°C fumaroles and lava samples were collected at Merapi Volcano, Indonesia in Jan.–Feb., 1984. With respect to the magma, Merapi gases are enriched by factors greater than 105 in Se, Re, Bi and Cd; 104–105 in Au, Br, In, Pb and W; 103–104 in Mo, Cl, Cs, S, Sn and Ag; 102–103 in As, Zn, F and Rb; and 1–102 in Cu, K, Na, Sb, Ni, Ga, V, Fe, Mn and Li. The fumaroles are transporting more than 106 grams/day ( g d ) of S, Cl and F; 104–106 g/d of Al, Br, Zn, Fe, K and Mg; 103–104 g d of Pb, As, Mo, Mn, V, W and Sr; and less than 103 g d of Ni, Cu, Cr, Ga, Sb, Bi, Cd, Li, Co and U. With decreasing temperature (800-500°C) there were five sublimate zones found in silica tubes: 1) cristobalite and magnetite (first deposition of Si, Fe and Al); 2) K-Ca sulfate, acmite, halite, sylvite and pyrite (maximum deposition of Cl, Na, K, Si, S, Fe, Mo, Br, Al, Rb, Cs, Mn, W, P, Ca, Re, Ag, Au and Co); 3) aphthitalite (K-Na sulfate), sphalerite, galena and Cs-K. sulfate (maximum deposition of Zn, Bi, Cd, Se and In; higher deposition of Pb and Sn); 4) Pb-K chloride and Na-K-Fe sulfate (maximum deposition of Pb, Sn and Cu); and 5) Zn, Cu and K-Pb sulfates (maximum deposition of Pb, Sn, Ti, As and Sb). The incrustations surrounding the fumaroles are also chemically zoned. Bi, Cd, Pb, W, Mo, Zn, Cu, K, Na, V, Fe and Mn are concentrated most in or very close to the vent as expected with cooling, atmospheric contamination and dispersion. The highly volatile elements Br, Cl, As and Sb are transported primarily away from high temperature vents. Ba, Si, P, Al, Ca and Cr are derived from wall rock reactions. Incomplete degassing of shallow magma at 915°C is the origin of most of the elements in the Merapi volcanic gas, although it is partly contaminated by particles or wall rock reactions. The metals are transported predominantly as chloride species. As the gas cools in the fumarolic environment, it becomes saturated with sublimate phases that fractionate from the gas in the order of their equilibrium saturation temperatures. Devolatilization of a cooling batholith could transport enough acids and metals to a hydrothermal system to play a significant role in forming an ore deposit. However, sublimation from a high temperature, high velocity carrier gas is not efficient enough to form a large ore deposit. Re, Se, Cd and Bi could be used as supporting evidence for magmatic fluid transport in an ore deposit.
Characterization of a growth factor that binds exclusively to the erbB-2 receptor and induces cellular responses

The erbB-2 oncogene encodes a 185-kDa transmembrane protein that has been suggested to be a growth factor receptor. We have previously identified and purified a 30-kDa growth factor (gp30) that is a ligand for the p185erbB-2 protein that at high concentrations induces growth inhibition of cells with erbB-2 amplification. We now report the purification and characterization of a protein from SKBr-3 human breast cancer cells with a molecular mass of 75 kDa (p75) that is a p185erbB-2 ligand. An affinity column coupled to the extracellular domain of p185erbB-2 was used for the purification. We found that p75 induced tyrosine phosphorylation of the erbB-2 oncoprotein, as determined by in vivo and in vitro phosphorylation and phosphoamino acid analysis. p75, as well as gp30, stimulated cell proliferation and colony formation of cells overexpressing erbB-2. The specificity of this effect was confirmed by showing that the antiproliferative effects of soluble erbB-2 extracellular domain were reversed by either p75 or gp30. p75 did not show binding to the epidermal growth factor receptor and had no growth effects on cells overexpressing epidermal growth factor receptor. These data show that SKBR-3 cells, which exhibit erbB-2 amplification and overexpression, secrete a growth factor that binds and activates p185erbB-2 specifically.
Using financial ratios to predict insolvency

Abstract The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of using financial ratios as an analytical technique to predict financial insolvency. Using discriminant analysis, a credit-risk score was calculated to determine if a lender should accept or reject a prospective borrower. This study reveals that 80% of the cases were correctly predicted by this model.
Possible regulation of phospholipase C activity in human platelets by phosphatidylinositol 4′,5′-bisphosphate

Abstract Phospholipase C from human platelets was found to catalyze the Ca2+-dependent degradation of phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylinositol 4′-phosphate (DPI), and phosphatidylinositol 4′,5′-bisphosphate (TPI) at Ca2+ concentrations from 150 μ m to 5 m m . Both DPI and TPI inhibited the hydrolysis of [2-3H]inositol-labeled PI (250 μ m ) in a concentration-dependent manner. The use of DPI and TPI from beef brain, both of which have fatty acid compositions different from that of soybean PI, permitted an assessment of the inhibitory effect of polyphosphoinositides on the hydrolysis of PI by phospholipase C. Fatty acid analysis of the diacylglycerols formed demonstrated that DPI and TPI, when incubated in mixture with PI, were competitive substrates for PI hydrolysis. Increasing the DPI PI ratio from 0 to 0.3 caused a shift in the degradation of PI to DPI without greatly affecting the formation of 1,2-diacylglycerol. TPI alone, or in mixture with PI, was a poor substrate for phospholipase C. Increasing the TPI PI ratio from 0 to 0.21, on the other hand, inhibited both PI degradation (⩾95%) and overall formation of 1,2-diacylglycerol (⩾82%). Kinetic analysis revealed that TPI acts as a mixed-type inhibitor with a Ki of about 10 μ m . The Ka for Ca2+ in PI hydrolysis was profoundly increased from 5 to 180 μ m when TPI (36 μ m ) was included with PI (250 μ m ). Optimum PI degradation under these conditions was only attained when the calcium concentration approached 4 m m . Analysis of phospholipids from unstimulated human platelets from five different donors revealed DPI PI and TPI PI ratios of 0.42 and 0.16, respectively. These findings, combined with the observed inhibition of PI hydrolysis by TPI at a TPI PI ratio of 0.16, would suggest that in unstimulated platelets phospholipase C activity may be inhibited by ⩾75%. Changes in 33P-prelabeled phospholipids of intact platelets upon stimulation with thrombin indicated a transient decline in 33P label of both TPI and DPI (15 s) followed by an increase in [33P]phosphatidic acid but no change in [33P]PI. The finding that DPI is selectively degraded by phospholipase C in mixture with PI at DPI PI ratios determined to be present in unstimulated platelets indicates that DPI may be more important than PI in the formation of 1,2-diacylglycerol which is believed to serve as precursor of arachidonic acid for thromboxane biosynthesis. Furthermore, the results suggest that in human platelets TPI may serve as modulator for the formation of 1,2-diacylglycerol from inositol phospholipids.
Regional hyperthermia in the treatment of clinically advanced, deep seated malignancy: results of a pilot study employing an annular array applicator

From October 1980 through December 1982, 46 patients were entered into a pilot study at the University of Utah Medical Center to assess the feasibility and safety of heating deep-seated, advanced, pelvic and abdominal malignancies with an annular array of electromagnetic wave (EMW) applicators. The patients, most of whom were heavily pretreated, were treated on a protocol in which most of the patients received combined hyperthermia and low dose X ray therapy. Discomforting local symptoms were the predominant treatment related acute side effects in 28 patients with pelvic disease, while systemic hyperthermia and associated symptoms were the predominant side effects in 18 patients with abdominal disease. Minor subacute toxicity was minimal and no serious treatment related, chronic toxicity was observed. The treatments of 22 patients with sufficiently detailed thermometry were analyzed at arbitrary index temperatures of 41 degrees C and 43 degrees C. Objective response rates in 22 evaluable patients were 67% and 9% for pelvic and abdominal sites respectively.
Due Care, Not Prohibition of Expert Opinions

The scientific foundation for clinicians' opinions in child custody cases is weak, but it is both unnecessary and undesirable to exclude mental health professionals from the legal process. Avoidance of ultimate-issue opinions obviates the problems involved in expert testimony in the context of a limited research base and an ambiguous and value-laden legal standard. Psychologists may be able to contribute to legal policy-making about child custody standards, but the proper forum for doing so is probably the legislature. Even in that context, it is not clear that mental health professionals should have special standing in the public debate.
Prognostic factors for recurrence and survival in human breast cancer

Since only about half of primary breast cancer patients are cured by local treatment, factors which can predict which patients are likely to recur and should thus receive preventive treatmrnt are needed. Here, work on such prognostic factors which has been going on in San Antonio for many years will be reviewed. The significance of the number of involved axillary nodes and of steroid receptors is already well known, while the value of tumor proliferative rate and ploidy has been appreciated more recently, and the significance of amplification of the oncogene HER-2/neu is just now emerging.
Volunteering is Associated with Delayed Mortality in Older People: Analysis of the Longitudinal Study of Aging:

The Longitudinal Study of Aging (LSOA) assessed the health and social functioning of a representative sample of 7527 American community-dwelling older people (> 70 years). We tested the hypothesis ...
A simplified sequence for observing deoxymyoglobin signals in vivo: Myoglobin excitation with dynamic unexcitation and saturation of water and fat (MEDUSA)

This paper describes a new, simplified pulse sequence for observing NMR signals from deoxymyoglobin in vivo. Paramagnetically shifted resonances from deoxymyoglobin can be exploited to noninvasively calculate intracellular oxygen tension in striated muscle. However, special sequences are required to observe these weak signals against the larger water and fat signals encountered in vivo. The pulse sequence described here, which is based on inversion recovery sequences, efficiently suppresses both water and fat resonances and can be implemented with short repetition rates. Moreover, it is perfectly suited for studies with surface coils, where RF inhomogeneities render other popular suppression sequences ineffective.
Extending Part Lactation Milk Records by Regression Ignoring Herd Effects

Summary Regression coefficients for predicting 10-mo. milk yield from single test-day records, from cumulative test-day records of less than 10 mo. duration, from bimonthly and trimonthly test-day records, and from other combinations of test-day records are estimated ignoring herd effects. The records, adjusted for age at calving and season of calving, used for estimating these coefficients were from 9,036 Holstein cows in five New York counties. These regression coefficients are compared with intraherd coefficients reported earlier which were estimated from the same data. The relative efficiencies of the two procedures are compared to determine which procedure is more practical. For most combinations of records regression ignoring herd effects is less than 20% less efficient and in many cases less than 10% less efficient than regression considering herd effects. It is concluded that prediction of 10-mo. milk yield by regression ignoring herd effects is more practical for most situations, because of computational advantages although the accuracy of prediction is slightly less in all situations than for intra-herd prediction.
Surface assisted laser desorption–ionization mass spectrometry on patterned nanoporous silica thin films

Abstract We describe the preparation and use of patterned nanocomposite silica thin films deposited on silicon for laser desorption-ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) without the use of conventional matrices. Ordered nanocomposite silica thin films deposited on silicon substrates were prepared by evaporation induced self-assembly using Brij56 as the surfactant template. The films were then exposed to masked deep-UV light to selectively remove the template to yield isolated regions of ordered nanoporous silica in a field of nanostructured silica. The nanoporous regions act as isolated “wells” that allow for the mass spectral characterization of analytes by laser induced desorption–ionization MS using a commercial MALDI-TOF instrument. We demonstrate the utility of these patterned films for the mass spectral analysis of small organic molecules, such as amino acids, peptides and siderophores. No consistent background signal from the films was observed at laser intensities typically used to desorb/ionize analytes. We also show that the films remain active for over a year when stored at ambient laboratory conditions. Because these patterned nanocomposite films are straightforward to produce, readily modifiable and stable at ambient laboratory conditions, they provide a potentially useful alternative to currently available films and substrates for matrix-free LDI-MS analysis of small molecules.
Patient consent for release of sensitive information from their medical records: an exploratory study.

The disclosure of sensitive information concerning mental health, drug and alcohol use, and communicable diseases requires express patient consent under federal and state laws. This paper presents the results of a retrospective medical record abstraction of hospital consent-to-treatment and release-of-information forms, examining whether the forms are present in the records, and, if so, whether they are signed by patients. The results suggest that patients who have sensitive information in their medical records or pay out of pocket for their care are less likely to consent to disclosure of their records. We discuss the implications of these results and recommend further research to understand patients' perceptions of medical confidentiality and the processes used for securing consent to hospital treatment.
Innovative practices session 11C: Resilience

Software Hardware co-design is a key mechanism to realizing reliability at platform level. While error avoidance is the ideal, it is not always practical in an economic sense. Often used technique is to detect errors in hardware and implement the recovery in coordination with software. This talk will discuss some examples of such coordination on Intel Xeon (e.g., DIMM Sparing, MCA recovery) and the implications of this type of solution such as platform validation, interface standardization, software enablement, etc.
Minimum transmission power configuration in real-time sensor networks with overlapping channels

Multi-channel communications can effectively reduce channel competition and interference in a wireless sensor network and thus achieve increased throughput and improved end-to-end delay guarantees with reduced power consumption. However, existing work relies only on a small number of orthogonal channels, resulting in degraded performance when a large number of data flows need to be transmitted on different channels. In this article, we conduct empirical studies to investigate interferences among overlapping channels. Our results show that overlapping channels can also be utilized for improved real-time performance if the node transmission power is carefully configured. In order to minimize the overall transmission power consumption of a network with multiple data flows under end-to-end delay constraints, we formulate a constrained optimization problem to configure the transmission power level of every node and assign overlapping channels to different data flows. Since the optimization problem has an exponential computational complexity, we then present a heuristic algorithm designed based on simulated annealing to find a suboptimal solution. Our extensive empirical results on a 33-mote testbed demonstrate that our algorithm achieves better real-time performance and less power consumption than two baselines, including a scheme using only orthogonal channels.
Editor's Introduction to PCSP - From Single Case to Database: A New Method for Enhancing Psychotherapy Practice

This article sets forth a new model for knowledge generation in applied and professional psychology -- the pragmatic case study (PCS) method. Drawing from both psychology's traditional/quantitative and alternative/qualitative approaches, the PCS method involves the creation of systematic, peer-reviewed case studies in psychotherapy (and in all other areas of applied psychology) that follow D. Peterson's "disciplined inquiry" epistemological model. The studies are designed to be organized into "journal-databases," like Pragmatic Case Studies in Psychotherapy (PCSP), which combine (a) individual studies; (b) articles that address epistemological, theoretical, methodological, logistical, economic, political and ethical issues in the PCS method; and (c) substantive cross-case analyses of groups of individual cases already published in the database. To lay out the model's arguments, the article is divided into four major sections that consider, respectively: (1) a discussion of the relevant historical and philosophical context from which the PCS model emerges; (2) a proposal for an initial set of methodological guidelines for ensuring rigorous quality in each case study; (3) an illustrative application of the model to cognitive-behavioral efficacy research; and (4) an exploration of the implications of the model. Throughout, the emphasis is upon creating an integrative, pragmatic alternative for gaining new useful knowledge in our discipline.
Reliability and validity of a brief measure of sensation seeking

Abstract We developed a self-report measure of sensation seeking, a dispositional risk factor for various problem behaviors. In two studies, we administered the Brief Sensation Seeking Scale (BSSS) to more than 7000 adolescents. Study 1 participants completed a paper-and-pencil form of the BSSS in mass-testing sessions. Psychometric analyses of the resultant data revealed suitable item characteristics and internal consistency of responses to the items across age (13–17 years), sex, and ethnic categories. Study 2 participants, who completed the BSSS individually in an interview format, also provided data on their perceptions of and experiences with licit and illicit drugs as well as a series of additional risk and protective factors. Scores on the full BSSS correlated inversely with negative attitudes toward drug use and positively with drug use; sensation seeking as measured by the BSSS was a particularly strong predictor of the intention to try marijuana in the future. BSSS scores were reliably and predictably associated with other risk and protective factors.
Stimulation of sodium transport across the teleost urinary bladder by urotensin II

Abstract Active transport of sodium (measured as short-circuit current) from the lumen to the serosal side of the seawater-acclimated Gillichthys mirabilis urinary bladder (columnar cell region) is stimulated in vitro by urotensin II. The response is dose related over a calculated physiologically meaningful range of concentrations. There is a concomitant reduction in transepithelial resistance. Arginine vasotocin, another urophysial peptide, is without effect on short-circuit current and does not reduce resistance. India ink injection via the caudal vein demonstrates a direct vascular path from the urophysis to the urinary bladder, supporting the notion of the urinary bladder as a target for urotensin II. The effect of urotensin II on ion transport across the teleost urinary bladder is consistent with a possible role in seawater osmoregulation.
Contemporary Cardiovascular Device Clinical Trials (Trends and Patterns 2001 to 2012)

Device uptake and development have progressed over the last decade, but few quantitative data exist examining the overall operating characteristics and temporal trends of these clinical trials. We performed a systematic analysis of all cardiovascular device clinical trials from 2001 to 2012 published in medical and cardiovascular journals with the 8 highest impact factors. Of the 1,224 identified cardiovascular clinical trials, 299 (24.4%) focused specifically on devices. Each trial included a median of 335 patients (162 to 745) recruited from a median of 14 sites (3 to 38) over a median enrollment duration of 1.9 years (1.2 to 3.3). Median enrollment rate was 1.1 patients/site/month (0.5 to 4.2). Most device trials targeted coronary artery disease (55.2%), followed by arrhythmias (17.4%). Most were industry sponsored (53.6%) and included mortality as a primary end point (69.6%). The median number of patients (225 to 499, p
An ongoing randomized clinical trial in dysphagia

Abstract Most of us who have clinical practices firmly contend that the treatments we provide cause beneficial changes in the lives of our patients. Indeed, our clinical experience engenders strong convictions to the point of believing that withholding treatment creates ethical violations. Intellectually, however, we must recognize that the value of treatment needs to be validated through scientific evidence. This paper examines the use of randomized clinical trials as a means of obtaining the type of evidence relevant for work in health care settings. Learning outcomes (1) Readers will be able to explain why randomized clinical trials are conducted. (2) Readers will be able to describe the challenges faced when conducting randomized clinical trials. (3) Readers will be able to explain the ethical considerations involved in study design. (4) Readers will be able to describe the implementation and procedures used in Protocol 201. (5) Readers will be able to describe the two dysphagia interventions and the expected short and long-term effects of these interventions.