cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of pH changes and ionization on the action of epinephrine upon the isolated rabbit ileum

Abstract This study demonstrates that the activity of epinephrine on the isolated rabbit ileum is related to the quantity of epinephrine present as the cation in the tissue bath at a given pH. Isolated segments of rabbit ileum were exposed to doses of epinephrine in Tyrode solution which varied in pH from 6.4 to 8.8. The change of pH did not significantly alter the spontaneous contractile activity of an intestinal segment; however, epinephrine-induced inhibition of intestinal activity varied with changes of pH. At oH 6.4–7.8 the catecholamines exist predominantly as cations. The relative amount of the cationic form of these compounds does not appreciably change unless the pH of a solution of catecholamine is raised above 7.8. The alteration of pH from 7.8 to 8.8 was great enough to vary the fraction of epinephrine present as a cation from 90 to 52% of a given total dose of drug. As the pH was raised above 7.8, epinephrine activity decreased in proportion to the decreased concentration of epinephrine cation.
Spatial attention in V4: a biophysical model

It has been shown that directing attention towards a location inside the receptive field of a V4 neuron induces an increase in the stimulus response of the neuron, in the local field potential power within the gamma frequency range and also an increase of phase-locking. When two stimuli are presented in the receptive field of the same neuron, the two compete and the neuron's response is in between the responses to each stimulus presented alone. Attention to the location of one of the stimuli is found to bias this competition, favouring this stimulus. The top down attentional signal presumably comes from prefrontal areas. In one of these areas, the frontal eye field, the neural activity has been shown to be linked with the activity in V4 and to be able to induce the attentional effects seen in V4. Despite these experimental results, the basic mechanisms underlying competition and attention are still not well understood. We introduce a biophysical model of V4 to study this problem. The model consists on a network of pyramidal neurons and interneurons, connected via realistic synapses and receiving stimulus inputs from area V2 and feedback attentional inputs. We study parameters roles (like the synaptic conductances) on the network dynamics and find values for which the in vivo type of dynamics is reproduced. In presence of two stimuli, the model results show that they compete. Applying an attentional signal towards one stimulus is found to induce the observed attentional effects. Interneurons are found to play an important role in both phenomena. These network results extend our previous conclusions regarding competition and attention but which were at the neuronal level.
Visible and Near-Infrared Spectral Observations of 4179 Toutatis

Asteroid 4179 Toutatis had a particularly favorable opposition in the winter of 1992/1993, offering a rare opportunity to study a near-Earth asteroid in detail. On January 4, 1993, we measured the 0.5- to 3.5-μm spectrum of near-Earth asteroid 4179 Toutatis almost simultaneously from three separate telescopes to investigate its surface composition. We combined nearly simultaneous visible photometry, CCD spectra from 0.5 to 0.97 μm, CVF photometry from 1.3 to 2.4 μm, J, H, and K photometry, and photometry of the 3-μm region into a composite visible and near-infrared reflectance spectrum of 4179 Toutatis, in an effort to constrain its surface mineralogy and compositional type. A pyroxene absorption band is seen centered at 1.966 ± 0.012 μm, which implies an average pyroxene composition of Wo5-10En50-35Fs45-55. The absorption band near 1 μm is centered at a wavelength longer than 0.96 μm, which implies some olivine must also be present. At a heliocentric distance of 1.158 AU, the thermal flux component of 4179 Toutatis at wavelengths longer than 3 μm is significant. Modeling the thermal contribution to the photometry in the 3- to 3.5-μm region indicates that the surface of 4179 Toutatis has a high thermal inertia compared to the moon. Although the uncertainties in removing the thermal flux are large, no evidence for surface hydration is seen.
In Vitro Imaging of Angiogenesis Using Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Cells

Angiogenesis is an important event during developmental processes, and it plays a key role in neovascularization. The development of an in vitro model that can be used for live imaging of vessel growth will facilitate the study of molecular and cellular mechanisms for the growth of blood vessels. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are considered to be a novel renewable source for the derivation of genetically manipulable endothelial cells (ECs). To derive green fluorescence protein (GFP)-expressing ECs, we used a transgenic ESC line in which a GFP reporter was driven by the endothelial-specific promoter fetal liver kinase 1. ESC-ECs were isolated from 11-day embryoid bodies by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Embedding the aggregated ESC-ECs in a 3-dimensional collagen gel matrix resulted in ESC-EC migration out of the aggregates and coalescence into a capillary network. Time-lapse microscopy revealed EC migration, proliferation, lumen formation, and anastomosis to other capillary vessels during this process...
Analytical investigations of the process planning problem

Abstract The combinatorial nature of problems in process systems engineering has led to the establishment of mixed-integer optimization techniques as a major paradigm in this area. Despite the success of these methods in tackling practical sized problems, the issue of exponential increase of the computational effort with the problem size has been of great concern. A major open question has been whether there is any hope of ever designing ‘efficient’ exact algorithms for this class of problems. Further, if such algorithms are not possible, one would like to know whether provably good approximation schemes can be devised. In this paper, we pursue analytical investigations to provide answers to these two questions in the context of the process planning problem. By means of a computational complexity analysis, we first prove that the general process planning problem is N P -hard, and thus efficient exact algorithms for this class of problems are unlikely to exist. Subsequently, we develop an approximation scheme for this problem and prove, via probabilistic analysis, that the error of the heuristic vanishes asymptotically with probability one as the problem size increases. Finally, we present computational results to substantiate the theoretical findings.
Semiquantitative visual approach to scoring lung cancer treatment response using computed tomography: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to compare a newly developed semiquantitative visual scoring (SVS) method with the current standard, the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) method, in the categorization of treatment response and reader agreement for patients with metastatic lung cancer followed by computed tomography. MATERIALS AND METHODS The 18 subjects (5 women and 13 men; mean age, 62.8 years) were from an institutional review board-approved phase 2 study that evaluated a second-line chemotherapy regimen for metastatic (stages III and IV) non-small cell lung cancer. Four radiologists, blinded to the patient outcome and each other's reads, evaluated the change in the patients' tumor burden from the baseline to the first restaging computed tomographic scan using either the RECIST or the SVS method. We compared the numbers of patients placed into the partial response, the stable disease (SD), and the progressive disease (PD) categories (Fisher exact test) and observer agreement (kappa statistic). RESULTS Requiring the concordance of 3 of the 4 readers resulted in the RECIST placing 17 (100%) of 17 patients in the SD category compared with the SVS placing 9 (60%) of 15 patients in the partial response, 5 (33%) of the 15 patients in the SD, and 1 (6.7%) of the 15 patients in the PD categories (P < 0.0001). Interobserver agreement was higher among the readers using the SVS method (kappa, 0.54; P < 0.0001) compared with that of the readers using the RECIST method (kappa, -0.01; P = 0.5378). CONCLUSIONS Using the SVS method, the readers more finely discriminated between the patient response categories with superior agreement compared with the RECIST method, which could potentially result in large differences in early treatment decisions for advanced lung cancer.
Nicotine Enhances but Does Not Normalize Visual Sustained Attention and the Associated Brain Network in Schizophrenia

Sustainedattentionabnormalityinschizophreniaisusuallyrefractory to available treatment. Nicotine can transientlyimprove sustained attention in schizophrenia patients, al-thoughitsneuralmechanismsareunknown.Understandingthe neural basis of this effect may lead to new treatmentstrategies for this cognitive deﬁcit. Twenty schizophreniapatients and 24 healthy comparison smokers participatedin a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover, random-ized functional magnetic resonance imaging study compar-ing nicotine vs placebo patch on sustained attention, usingthe rapid visual information–processing task. Schizo-phrenia patients had impaired visual sustained attentionaccuracy and processing speed (all P’s <.001) and showedsignificantly reduced activation in the frontal-parietal-cingulate-thalamicattentionnetworkcomparedwithhealthycomparison subjects. Nicotine administration enhanced ac-curacy and processing speed compared with placebo (all P’s£.006), with no drug 3 diagnosis interactions. However,schizophreniapatients’taskperformanceremainedimpairedduring the nicotine condition, even when compared withhealthy comparison subjects in the placebo condition (allP’s £.01). Nicotine exerted no significant reversal of theimpaired attention network associated with schizophrenia.Activations in brain regions associated with nicotine-in-duced behavioral improvement were not significantly dif-ferent between patients and comparison subjects. Thus,nicotine transiently enhanced sustained attention similarlyin schizophrenia patients and in healthy comparison smok-ers. The neural mechanisms for this nicotinic effect inschizophrenia appear similar to those for healthy compar-ison subjects. However, nicotine, at least in a single sus-tained dose, does not normalize impaired sustainedattentionanditsassociatedbrainnetworkinschizophrenia.These findings provide guidance for developing newtreatment strategies for the sustained attention deficit inschizophrenia.Key words: cognition/smoking/cigarette/fMRI/self-medication/RVIPIntroductionOne of the most replicated neurocognitive deficits inpatients with schizophrenia is their poor sustained atten-tion. This trait-like deficit is present across early andchronic states of the disease in medicated and never med-icated patients and in high-risk individuals.
Utility of PCR for DNA analysis from dried blood spots on filter paper blotters.

T h e collection of dried blood spots on filter paper blotters is a major innovation and has facilitated the development and dissemination of newborn screening programs principally because of the ease of sample collection, handling, and shipment to centrally located laboratories and the stability of the analytes in these specimens. (1,2) These samples, which are also known as "Guthrie spots," after their originator Dr. Robert Guthrie, have been used for a considerable number and a broad variety of screening tests. Examples of these tests are shown in Table 1, organized according to newborn screening detection categories. The traditional analyte categories that have been targeted by newborn screening programs have been metabolites, hormones, and proteins (Table 1). (2,3) This report will show that DNA represents a new analyte category for direct mutation detection from these Guthrie spots. In addition to describing how analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified DNA is beginning to interface with neonatal screening programs, we will discuss the use of dried blood specimens for determination of mutant allele frequencies in various populations, as well as for forensic identification and databases, infectious disease diagnosis, and large animal agriculture. The ability of this PCR-based molecular genetic technology to provide large-scale screening and diagnosis will require the development of automation to reduce the number of personnel needed, and we also will consider current and future developments in this area. In 1987 it was reported that DNA could be obtained from the dried blood specimens on filter paper blotters. (,4) The initial efforts resulted in microextraction of approximately 500 ng of DNA from a single 1/2-in-diameter specimen circle representing the dried equivalent of approximately 50 ~1 of whole blood. This amount of DNA was sufficient for a single Southern blot analysis, but DNA in these amounts was approaching the limits of the existing technology. Fortunately, as these original investigations were being completed, the technique of PCR amplification was reported/s) and it was shown that the DNA obtained from the dried blood spots could be amplified by PCR. (6) Improvements in the microextraction technique permitted isolation of DNA from as little as a 1/8-indiameter punched disc, representing the dried equivalent of approximately 3 lal of whole blood. (6) The development of the heat-stable polymerase from Thermus aquaticus (7) and a programmable heating block (8) permitted automated temperature cycling to replace the previously tedious manual PCR procedures.
Multiple-spacecraft reconfigurations through collision avoidance, bouncing, and stalemates

We consider constrained multiple-spacecraft reconfigurations outside a gravity well in deep space. As opposed to the single-spacecraft scenario, such reconfigurations involve collision avoidance constraints that can be embedded in a nonconvex, state-constrained optimal control problem. Due to the difficulties in solving this general class of optimal control problems, we adopt a heuristically motivated approach to multiple-spacecraft reconfigurations. Then, we proceed to prove the convergence properties of the proposed approach for reconfigurations involving an arbitrary number of spacecraft.
Stand-alone front-end system for high- frequency, high-frame-rate coded excitation ultrasonic imaging

A stand-alone front-end system for high-frequency coded excitation imaging was implemented to achieve a wider dynamic range. The system included an arbitrary waveform amplifier, an arbitrary waveform generator, an analog receiver, a motor position interpreter, a motor controller and power supplies. The digitized arbitrary waveforms at a sampling rate of 150 MHz could be programmed and converted to an analog signal. The pulse was subsequently amplified to excite an ultrasound transducer, and the maximum output voltage level achieved was 120 Vpp. The bandwidth of the arbitrary waveform amplifier was from 1 to 70 MHz. The noise figure of the preamplifier was less than 7.7 dB and the bandwidth was 95 MHz. Phantoms and biological tissues were imaged at a frame rate as high as 68 frames per second (fps) to evaluate the performance of the system. During the measurement, 40-MHz lithium niobate (LiNbO3) single-element lightweight (<;0.28 g) transducers were utilized. The wire target measure- ment showed that the -6-dB axial resolution of a chirp-coded excitation was 50 μm and lateral resolution was 120 μm. The echo signal-to-noise ratios were found to be 54 and 65 dB for the short burst and coded excitation, respectively. The contrast resolution in a sphere phantom study was estimated to be 24 dB for the chirp-coded excitation and 15 dB for the short burst modes. In an in vivo study, zebrafish and mouse hearts were imaged. Boundaries of the zebrafish heart in the image could be differentiated because of the low-noise operation of the implemented system. In mouse heart images, valves and chambers could be readily visualized with the coded excitation.
Density functional theory study of dipicolinic acid isomers and crystalline polytypes

Six isomers of dipicolinic acid (DPA) in the gas phase are predicted based on a detailed density functional theory study. Energetics include the binding energy, ionization potential, and electron affinity. Dipole moments, rotational constants, atomic charges, and Fukui functions are also calculated. Several isomerization reactions are shown as possible, with calculated reaction path and transition barriers in the range 6–14 kcal/mol. Prediction of five DPA dimers and three crystalline DPA polytypes are also reported. Vibrational analysis for monomers and dimers is calculated and compared to existing experimental results. The electronic band structure of three crystalline polytypes shows that DPA crystals are insulators. The three stable polytypes display distinct hydrogen-bonding formations that originate sheets of DPA molecules that are further stacked to form layered crystals that are energetically nearly degenerate.
Analysis of Paramecium tetraurelia A-51 surface antigen gene mutants reveals positive-feedback mechanisms for maintenance of expression and temperature-induced activation.

In Paramecium tetraurelia, variable surface antigen loci show mutually exclusive expression which is controlled primarily at the transcriptional level. Clonally stable expression of a single antigen has attracted models involving self-regulation by their gene products. However, direct demonstration of self-feedback at the molecular level has been complicated due to the inability to separate the functional gene from its product as well as copy number effects associated with injected extrachromosomal DNA in the polygenomic somatic nucleus. In this study, we exploited several germ line termination and frameshift mutations in the A-51 surface antigen gene to analyze variable surface antigen expression. These mutant alleles have the same copy number as the wild-type allele and therefore eliminate possible copy number effects. The mutant alleles were not transcribed at 27°C, consistent with positive-feedback models for gene expression. However, further analysis showed that high temperatures (34°C) induced transcription of the mutant A genes even in the presence of a different antigen on the cell surface. Thus, transcription was temperature dependent. Unlike wild-type cells, transcription of the mutant A genes at high temperatures was not maintained after temperature shift back to 27°C in homozygous mutant cells. Importantly, transcription of the mutant allele was maintained at 27°C in heterozygous cells with one copy of the wild-type allele. These results indicate that expression of the wild-type gene is required to stabilize its own transcriptional state at 27°C.
Modulation of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation through Substrate-dependent Changes in Fibronectin Conformation

Integrin-mediated cell adhesion to extracellular matrices provides signals essential for cell cycle progression and differentiation. We demonstrate that substrate-dependent changes in the conformation of adsorbed fibronectin (Fn) modulated integrin binding and controlled switching between proliferation and differentiation. Adsorption of Fn onto bacterial polystyrene (B), tissue culture polystyrene (T), and collagen (C) resulted in differences in Fn conformation as indicated by antibody binding. Using a biochemical method to quantify bound integrins in cultured cells, we found that differences in Fn conformation altered the quantity of bound alpha5 and beta1 integrin subunits but not alphav or beta3. C2C12 myoblasts grown on these Fn-coated substrates proliferated to different levels (B > T > C). Immunostaining for muscle-specific myosin revealed minimal differentiation on B, significant levels on T, and extensive differentiation on C. Differentiation required binding to the RGD cell binding site in Fn and was blocked by antibodies specific for this site. Switching between proliferation and differentiation was controlled by the levels of alpha5beta1 integrin bound to Fn, and differentiation was inhibited by anti-alpha5, but not anti-alphav, antibodies, suggesting distinct integrin-mediated signaling pathways. Control of cell proliferation and differentiation through conformational changes in extracellular matrix proteins represents a versatile mechanism to elicit specific cellular responses for biological and biotechnological applications.
Power-law exponents and hidden bulk relation in the impedance spectroscopy of solids

Several aspects of the bulk response of disordered solids are investigated. The question is explored of how constant loss at the dielectric level, equivalent to the real part of the admittance being proportional to frequency, can occur. Such response is found to be possible for dielectric system response but is not likely for conducting system response. This kind of dielectric system behavior, which arises from the presence of a flat-top box probability distribution of activation energies, is further used to investigate and illustrate a promising alternative to Kronig-Kramers transformation of small-signal ac response data. For conducting system relaxation, the response of a possibly quite general dispersion equation, the Bryksin-Dyre-Macdonald (BDM) equation, an effective-medium approximation, is explored and used to illustrate how the underlying bulk dispersion of a material is obscured or hidden within the usual high frequency bulk semicircle present in impedance-level complex plane plots.
Practical Evaluation of Continuous Particle Electrophoretic Separation of Bacterial Species

Abstract Experiments were conducted in which the continuous particle electro-phoresis apparatus was utilized for the separation of five bacterial species and an ascosporogenous yeast. The separated bands observed when bacteria or bacteria-yeast binary mixtures were electrophoresed were not composed of pure cultures. This was confirmed by classical cultural techniques. The reasons for the poor resolution of microorganisms into pure cultures using this instrument are discussed.
Effect of deformation-induced suction in the behavior of unsaturated fine-grained soils using simplified finite-element model

AbstractMatric suction is one of the important variables used to characterize the deformation behavior of unsaturated soil. The stress-strain relationship and the governing differential equations are the two elements in which suction is incorporated in the development of mathematical models for the dynamics of unsaturated soils. In this paper, a simplified finite-element model was used to understand the effect of initial suction and deformation-induced suction variation in the static and dynamic behavior of silty and clayey soils. The simplified finite-element model was developed by neglecting the relative acceleration and velocity terms associated with water and air phases in the fully coupled governing differential equations. The stress-strain behavior of the solid skeleton was represented by linear elastic model, a simple model to explain the computed responses using basic theory. The suction-degree of saturation relationship was modeled by the Brooks and Corey model. Simulation results showed that the...
Workstation capacity tuning using reinforcement learning

Computer grids are complex, heterogeneous, and dynamic systems, whose behavior is governed by hundreds of manually-tuned parameters. As the complexity of these systems grows, automating the procedure of parameter tuning becomes indispensable. In this paper, we consider the problem of auto-tuning server capacity, i.e. the number of jobs a server runs in parallel. We present three different reinforcement learning algorithms, which generate a dynamic policy by changing the number of concurrent running jobs according to the job types and machine state. The algorithms outperform manually-tuned policies for the entire range of checked workloads, with average throughput improvement greater than 20%. On multi-core servers, the average throughput improvement is approximately 40%, which hints at the enormous improvement potential of such a tuning mechanism with the gradual transition to multi-core machines.
Decentralized PI observer-based control of nonlinear interconnected systems with disturbance attenuation

We consider the problem of designing decentralized PI observer-based controller for nonlinear interconnected systems using linear matrix inequalities (LMIs). The overall system is composed of linear subsystems and nonlinear time-varying interconnections depending on both time and state. We take advantage of additional degrees of freedom in PI observer to maximize the bound on nonlinear interconnection terms. Also we extend the original problem of robust stabilization by including a disturbance term and provide a sufficient condition for connective stability with disturbance attenuation in the L 2 gain sense. An example is included to validate the theoretical results.
Effects of Multiple Occupancy and Interparticle Interactions on Selective Transport through Narrow Channels: Theory versus Experiment

Many biological and artificial transport channels function without direct input of metabolic energy during a transport event and without structural rearrangements involving transitions from a closed to an open state. Nevertheless, such channels are able to maintain efficient and selective transport. It has been proposed that attractive interactions between the transported molecules and the channel can increase the transport efficiency and that the selectivity of such channels can be based on the strength of the interaction of the specifically transported molecules with the channel. Herein, we study the transport through narrow channels in a framework of a general kinetic theory, which naturally incorporates multiparticle occupancy of the channel and non-single-file transport. We study how the transport efficiency and the probability of translocation through the channel are affected by interparticle interactions in the confined space inside the channel, and establish conditions for selective transport. We compare the predictions of the model with the available experimental data and find good semiquantitative agreement. Finally, we discuss applications of the theory to the design of artificial nanomolecular sieves.
Negotiating ritual duty in degenerate times: The goddess Mathamma and the legal secular in rural South India

In India, religious practices deemed incompatible with liberal governance are often legally curtailed in the name of “morality,” “health,” or “public order.” These “secular” laws are historically backed by significant efforts to reform “former” practitioners in a manner compatible with legitimate religious practice and belief. Among practitioners of the legally prohibited Devadasi custom in South India, these reform programs consist of legal education and empowerment programs that seek to inculcate a “respectable femininity” in female ritual specialists that the state regards as “ritual prostitutes.” I track the manner in which these projects of “surveillance” and “normalization” are received in Devadasi communities beyond a presumption of marginalization and constraint. I argue that the legal prohibition of the Devadasi custom constitutes the starting point for a form of legal procedure that ensures the preservation of the custom, even as it draws on the idioms of secular state law.
Introduction: Interviews vs. ‘natural’ contexts: A false dilemma

The popularity of interviewing as a method of data collection in the social sciences is a recognized fact. In their survey of qualitative research paradigms and methods, Denzin and Lincoln (2004:353) declare that “the interview is the favorite methodological tool of the qualitative researcher.” And, describing data-collection techniques in sociolinguistics and dialectology, Fuller (2000:388) argues that “much of the data in the field comes from interviews.” These assertions are hardly surprising given the central role that interviews have assumed as an essential part of the toolkit of the qualitative researcher since the early decades of the twentieth century (Fontana & Frei 2004). Interviews are the most common cross-disciplinary research instruments since they are widely used by investigators in fields as diverse as education, anthropology, sociology, social psychology, and social history, where they serve as vital research methods alone or in combination with other techniques such as participant observation. Given the centrality of interpretive and qualitative research paradigms in sociolinguistics, ethnography, linguistic anthropology, and narrative studies, the interview has acquired an even more prominent place for investigation in these disciplines. However, this research method and tool for collecting data has been the object of extremes of confidence and criticism. On one side there are those who try to erase the interactional context of the interview, believing that it is both possible and desirable to make participants forget about the event so that interviewers can access their “natural” behavior. On the opposite side there are those who argue that interviews are “inauthentic” and “artificial” contexts for data collection and therefore it is best to avoid them completely. In both extremes, the interview ends up being a problem to overcome. One unfortunate result of these attitudes has been that the interview as a real communicative event has been understudied. Our objective with this special issue is to contribute to redressing this tendency by drawing attention to the need for, and advantages of, the research interview as a legitimate interactional encounter, and taking narrative as our focus. In doing this we build on a small but significant cross-disciplinary body of mostly recent scholarship that has analyzed a variety of issues related to the use of semi-structured and open-ended interviews in qualitative research, and that has recognized the crucial importance of placing interview data in context.
Learning to Appropriate a Project Social Network System Technology

Construction project participants constitute a complex social human network composed of a heterogeneous and fragmented set of stakeholders. The disjoint group of actors that team to work on a project constitutes collective entities, social networks at different scales in time and space. There is a need to incorporate new social network systems that respond to the demand for the interfacing of actors’ communication in the construction project practices. For this purpose, it is critical to understand how social actors interact with these new technologies. This research proposes a framework to understand the actors’ learning process of a social networking system technology, in particular an in-house developed social-network- system for construction projects. The challenge is to understand the interplay of social network system and social actors, as it involves the interaction of multiple actors. It is expected that learning and understanding the components of this technology will lead learners to effectively use the its resources and enable them to effectively appropriate its associated processes for its use, including communication and coordination with the construction work force, and creation, contribution, and distribution of information content.
Phytochemical based strategies for nematode control.

■ Abstract This review examines the discovery of naturally occurring phytochemicals antagonistic toward plant-parasitic and other nematodes. Higher plants have yielded a broad spectrum of active compounds, including polythienyls, isothiocyanates, glucosinolates, cyanogenic glycosides, polyacetylenes, alkaloids, lipids, terpenoids, sesquiterpenoids, diterpenoids, quassinoids, steroids, triterpenoids, simple and complex phenolics, and several other classes. Many other antinematodal compounds have been isolated from biocontrol and other fungi. Natural products active against mammalian parasites can serve as useful sources of compounds for examination of activity against plant parasites. The agricultural utilization of phytochemicals, although currently uneconomic in many situations, offers tremendous potential.
Lipoprotein effects of combined ezetimibe and colesevelam hydrochloride versus ezetimibe alone in hypercholesterolemic subjects: a pilot study

Two drug classes act in the intestine to lower cholesterol. Ezetimibe inhibits cholesterol absorption, whereas bile acid-binding resins enhance cholesterol excretion via enhanced conversion to bile acids. Combining these 2 classes may be beneficial, but cholestyramine binds ezetimibe, and the combined effect of colesevelam hydrochloride and ezetimibe was little studied. The aim of the study was to determine if adding colesevelam HCl to ezetimibe provides additional lowering of low-density lipoprotein- and apolipoprotein B-containing lipoproteins or alters ezetimibe levels. Twenty subjects with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels of 130 mg/dL or higher were enrolled and taught a National Cholesterol Education Program Step I diet. At a second baseline visit, lipoproteins were measured and subjects were randomly allocated to (1) ezetimibe 10 mg daily with placebo colesevelam HCl twice daily (E) or (2) ezetimibe 10 mg daily with 1.875 g colesevelam HCl twice daily (E + C). Lipoproteins were measured 6 and 12 weeks after initiating treatment. Baseline characteristics (mean +/- SD) were statistically indistinguishable in E vs E + C: LDL-C (mg/dL), 167 +/- 26 and 158 +/- 27; triglyceride, 134 +/- 75 and 140 +/- 67; and BMI, 29.4 +/- 4.9 and 27.8 +/- 6.6 kg/m(2), respectively. Percent changes after 12 weeks in E vs E + C were as follows: LDL-C, -24 +/- 12 vs -30 +/- 11 (P = .102); triglyceride, -19 +/- 34 vs 36 +/- 85 (P = .054; at 6 weeks, P = .009); total cholesterol, -19 +/- 9 vs -15 +/- 8 (P = .50); non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, -25 +/- 10 vs -21 +/- 11 (P = .70); apolipoprotein B, -31 +/- 14 vs -22 +/- 14 (P = .41). Plasma ezetimibe levels at 12 weeks were 21% lower in E + C vs E, a nonsignificant difference (P = .54). In conclusion, in the short term, colesevelam HCl may not consistently add cholesterol-lowering benefit to ezetimibe. This observation requires confirmation.
A phase II trial evaluating weekly docetaxel and capecitabine in patients with metastatic or advanced, locally recurrent head and neck cancers

We conducted a phase II study to determine the response rate and toxicity of weekly docetaxel and a flat dose capecitabine (days 5–18 of the 28-day cycle) in patients with incurable locally recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancers. The responses at 4 months were analyzed among 36 patients. Although the response rate was modest (11%), the 6.5 months estimated median survival was comparable to the standard platinum and 5-FU combination regimens. Major grade 3 and 4 toxicities included lymphopenia, infection, and fatigue. In view of low efficacy, this particular regimen does not appear to warrant further study.
Readiness to change and clinical success in a diabetes educational program.

BACKGROUND We wanted to determine whether a simple tool characterizing readiness to change among patients before participating in a diabetes educational intervention successfully screens for patients who will achieve satisfactory clinical improvement. METHODS Fifty patients referred to a diabetes educational center with hemoglobin A1c levels of more than 9.0% were asked four questions before participation in a diabetes educational program. Patients were categorized into precontemplation-contemplation, preparation, and action stages of readiness to change. Intensive diabetes education was offered to all participants. Hemoglobin A1c levels were measured for 24 months after the educational program. RESULTS Patients in preparation and actions stages achieved a significantly larger reduction in hemoglobin A1c levels in a shorter time than patients in the combined precontemplation-contemplation stage. Average change in hemoglobin A1c levels at 12 months was -1.06 +/- 1.80 (P = .17) for the precontemplation-contemplation stage, -1.82 +/- 1.84 (P = .006) for the preparation stage, and -2.56 +/- 2.12 (P = .0006) for the action stage. Patients had significantly more hemoglobin A1c measurements in the preparation stage (4.63 +/- 2.42, P = .036) and the action stage (4.94 +/- 2.38, P = .013) than patients in the precontemplation-contemplation stage (3.00 +/- 1.22) during the 24-month study. CONCLUSIONS In this small population, stage of change as determined by a simple clinical tool was significantly associated with clinical improvement in hemoglobin A1c levels at 3 months after an educational intervention. Significant differences in clinical improvement between groups persisted for at least 12 months. This tool could be used to tailor the most effective clinical diabetes interventions for patients and to address the needs of patients in a more targeted manner.
Risk of Hemorrhagic Stroke With Aspirin Use An Update

Background— Low-dose aspirin is an important therapeutic option in the secondary prevention of myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke, especially in light of its unique cost-effectiveness and widespread availability. In addition, based on the results of a number of large studies, aspirin is also widely used in the primary prevention of MI. This review provides an update of the available data to offer greater clarity regarding the risks of aspirin with respect to hemorrhagic stroke, as well as insights regarding patient selection to minimize the risk of this complication. Summary of Review— In the secondary prevention of cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and ischemic events, the evidence supports that the benefits of aspirin treatment significantly outweigh the risk of a major hemorrhage. The evidence from primary prevention of MI studies, including that from the recent Women’s Health Study evaluation of aspirin use in healthy women, demonstrate that the increased risk for hemorrhagic stroke is smal...
Bayesian Estimation of Optical Properties of Nearshore Estuarine Waters: A Gibbs Sampling Approach

A novel approach is developed for the retrieval of inherent optical properties of coastal water, from which water-quality constituent concentrations can be obtained. The technique combines an analytical bio-optical model with statistical modeling for the formulation of posterior probability distributions of phytoplankton absorption, backscattering, and colored dissolved organic matter absorption; a Gibbs Sampler is employed for optimization. In contrast to other methods that typically provide point estimates of the unknown parameters, the proposed method estimates posterior distributions of the parameters, quantifying the uncertainty present in the problem and revealing correlation patterns. The method is tested successfully on synthetic reflectance data and real data measured in situ in the Hudson/Raritan Estuary of New York-New Jersey.
O que faz um homem? Relendo Naven e The Gender of the Gift

Proponho neste ensaio que o conceito de masculinidade pioneiramente desenvolvido em Naven, de Gregory Bateson, sua monografia de 1936 a respeito do ritual e da sociedade entre os Iatmul, povo da Nova Guine, foi o momento original da posicao construtivista que se tornou predominante, nao apenas nos estudos sobre masculinidade na Melanesia em particular, mas tambem nos estudos sobre masculinidade em geral. Minha proposta, no entanto, faz ainda uma outra afirmacao definitiva: a visao antecipada de genero de Bateson nao atingiu a maturidade teorica nos estudos sobre a masculinidade, seja nos estudos da area, seja definidos de maneira mais ampla, ate 50 anos depois, quando recebeu um novo tratamento por Marilyn Strathern em The Gender of the Gift (1988).
Priming status‐legitimizing beliefs: Examining the impact on perceived anti‐White bias, zero‐sum beliefs, and support for Affirmative Action among White people

The current research examines how status-legitimizing beliefs (SLBs) influence White people's perceptions of anti-White bias, endorsement of zero-sum beliefs, and support for Affirmative Action. We suggest that SLBs perpetuate inequality by increasing White people's perceptions of zero-sum beliefs and anti-White bias, which in turn lead to decreased support for Affirmative Action. White individuals primed with SLBs perceived greater anti-White bias, endorsed greater zero-sum beliefs, and indicated less support for Affirmative Action than individuals primed with neutral content. Mediation analysis revealed that the SLB prime decreased support for Affirmative Action by increasing perceptions of anti-White bias. This research offers experimental evidence that SLBs contribute to White people's perceptions of anti-White bias and to decreased support for Affirmative Action.
A Comment on Fine-Scale Heterogeneity in Crossover Rate in the garnet-scalloped Region of the Drosophila melanogaster X Chromosome.

A paper published in this Journal ([Singh et al. 2013][1]) estimated fine-scale recombination rates across the 2.1-Mb garnet-scalloped ( g-sd ) region of the Drosophila melanogaster X chromosome by pooling male progeny inheriting crossovers within the region in groups of 100 for DNA sequencing. In
Triage and Transport of Infants and Children with Cardiac Disease

Advances in cardiology, intensive care, and surgical techniques have led to the survival of children with previously lethal congenital cardiac defects [1–3]. A large number of these children present to local community hospitals, nurseries, and emergency for their initial stabilization before being transferred to regional tertiary care centers for more invasive diagnostic, surgical, and/or critical care intervention. Because of this, pediatric transport systems have become a significant component of the pediatric cardiac care continuum.
Host Defense Mechanisms

Very little is known about the mechanisms of host defense in intravascular infections. Considerable emphasis is put on the ineffectiveness of conventional mechanisms: the lack of a lytic effect of antibody and complement on the gram-positive cocci responsible for the vast majority of infections and the inability of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) to penetrate the fibrin barrier surrounding developing bacterial colonies. These two factors, in addition to the diminished metabolic activity of colonies located deep in the vegetations (with the consequence that they would be theoretically less susceptible to the action of antibiotics, such as penicillin), serve as the theoretical basis for the empirical clinical reality that it takes long-term treatment with bactericidal antibiotics to cure intravascular infections.
No evidence for vitamin K-dependent carboxylation of canine surfactant apoproteins, 28-36 kDa

Recent research has shown that rat surfactant apoproteins (26-38 kDa) are vitamin K-dependent [Rannels, Gallaher, Wallin & Rannels (1987) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 84, 5952-5956]. We have investigated the effect of the vitamin K antagonist warfarin on this family of apoproteins in surfactant from dog lung. Our data suggest that warfarin does not interfere with synthesis and secretion of these proteins into dog lung surfactant. Abnormal surfactant apoproteins, produced in response to warfarin treatment of the dog, were also not found in lung surfactant. 4-Carboxyglutamic acid analysis of purified dog apoproteins also failed to detect the vitamin K-modification. When vitamin K-dependent 14C labelling of precursors of vitamin K-dependent proteins was carried out, fluorography of these precursors, when electrophoresed into SDS/polyacrylamide gels, revealed 14C-labelled proteins of apparent molecular mass 74, 46, 42, 34, 31 and 23 kDa. Antibodies produced against purified dog surfactant apoproteins recognized precursors of the surfactant apoproteins in lung microsomes but did not recognize any 14C-labelled carboxylase substrates. These precursors appeared on immunoblots with apparent molecular mass 29, 32, 33 and 50 kDa. Our data suggest that there are significant differences between this class of surfactant apoproteins in the rat and the dog.
Forestry best management practices for timber harvesting and site preparation in the eastern United States: An overview of water quality and productivity research during the past 20 years (1982–2002)

Forestry Best Management Practices (BMPs) were developed to protect water quality. In the eastern US, those BMPs were often expanded to include maintenance of site productivity. Generally, BMPs recommend the use of pre-harvest planning and careful design for construction of roads and other activities that expose bare soil, minimizing trafficking and areas of bare soil, maintaining streamside management zones, ensuring rapid revegetation following harvesting, minimizing soil disturbance, and ameliorating severe trafficking with site preparation. This review of peer-reviewed research from the past 20 years examined the effects of forest harvesting and site preparation on water quality and site productivity in the eastern US. The review was subdivided into areas having relatively similar physiography and land management (New England, Lake States, Appalachian Plateau, Ridge and Valley, Blue Ridge, Piedmont, Atlantic Coastal Plain, Gulf Coastal Plain, and Ouachitas-Ozarks). In general, data from steeper physiographic regions indicated that forest harvesting and site preparation can increase erosion, sediment and nutrient losses to streams. However, the quantities introduced into streams tended to be relatively low, generally below the values that are considered acceptable for alternative land uses. Also most research indicated that water quality recovers within two to five years following forest operation disturbances, particularly if BMPs are employed. Research from the less mountainous and often more poorly drained Lake States and Coastal Plain regions indicated that soil compaction and rutting may or may not cause site productivity effects, depending on soil types, natural ameliorative properties and site preparation. Overall, the research supports the forestry BMPs recommended in the eastern states.
Functional fast neuronal signals in the visual and motor cortex detected by frequency-domain near-infrared spectroscopy

With a low-noise frequency-domain near-infrared-spectroscopy instrument and highly effective filtering and extraction algorithms we detected functional fast signals, which are related to brain activity in the visual and motor cortex.
Computational Study of Heat Transfer Distribution in a Square Channel with Rib Turbulators and Bleed Holes

The objective of this study is to clearly understand the flow and the heat transfer mechanisms in a gas turbine cooling system by performing a computational analysis of the turbulent heat transfer of an internal ribbed channel. To test the performance, a square duct with rectangular turbulence promoting ribs oriented at 60o inverted V ribs and placed at regular intervals on one of the walls with bleeding holes has been simulated. The normalized Nusselt number obtained from simulation are validated against experiments. The Reynolds number is set at 12,500 for both simulation and experiment. The three-dimensional turbulent flows and heat transfer are numerically studied by using a turbulence model, nonlinear low-Reynolds number k-ω model. In k-ω ω ω ω model the cubic terms are included to represent the effects of extra strain-rates such as streamline curvature and threedimensionality on turbulence normal and shear stresses. The finite volume difference method incorporated with the higher-order bounded interpolation scheme has been employed in the present study. The outcome of this study helps determine the best suitable turbulence model for future studies.
Selfdeflection of partially spatially coherent beams and solitons in photorefractive crystals

We investigate both analytically and numerically the self-bending behavior of partially coherent beams and solitons in biased and unbiased photorefractive crystals. We show that in the linear diffraction regime, the self-bending angle decreases with increasing the degree of incoherence. This is in contrast with the case of partially coherent soliton beams.