cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Linkage of Alzheimer's disease to chromosome 21 and chromosome 19 markers: effect of age of onset assumptions.

Age of onset heterogeneity in Alzheimer's disease families was modelled by allowing for different liability classes for affected individuals according to their age of onset when calculating lod scores to chromosome 21 and chromosome 19 markers. Linkage to chromosome 21 was supported in the Boston data set, and the method of age correction did not greatly change the lod scores when only affected individuals were analyzed. The location of a gene on chromosome 19 for late age of onset illness was affected by the assumptions about early onset individuals
Local cerebral glucose utilization after relapse in ethanol drinking in alcohol-preferring (P) rats.

Abstract The [ 14 C]-2-deoxyglucose ([ 14 C]-2-DG) quantitative autoradiographic technique was used to determine rates of local cerebral glucose utilization (LCGU) in discrete brain regions of adult, male alcohol-preferring (P) rats after 2 weeks of ethanol deprivation (E-D), 3 and 14 days of ethanol-relapse drinking (E-R3; E-R14), and in P rats, which were chronically drinking ethanol (E-C) for 8 weeks during daily 3-h scheduled-access sessions to 15% (vol./vol.) ethanol and water, or were ethanol-naive (E-N). The hypothesis to be tested was that ethanol-relapse drinking is initiated to restore changes in functional activity back to their chronic ethanol–exposed state. The LCGU rates were measured 1 h before the scheduled-access session. Mean ethanol intake did not differ among the groups. The LCGU rates were decreased in 41 of 57 regions or subregions examined in E-C rats compared with findings for E-N rats, including subregions of the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and structures in the mesocorticolimbic and nigrostriatal systems. After 2 weeks of deprivation, LCGU values tended to return toward control values (E-N) in most CNS regions and did not differ significantly from control values in 12 regions or subregions (e.g., parts of the limbic system, cerebral cortex). Compared with LCGU values that recovered toward control levels in the E-D group, ethanol-relapse drinking was associated with decreased LCGU values in (1) 4 of 10 limbic structures, (2) all 6 cerebral cortical regions, (3) 1 of 4 basal ganglia regions, (4) 2 of 7 hippocampus subregions, and (5) 1 of 6 thalamic nuclei. The present results indicate that ethanol-relapse drinking was associated with reduced LCGU rates in most CNS regions that recovered toward control values and suggested to us that ethanol-relapse drinking may be initiated to restore neuronal function to its prior chronic ethanol–exposure state.
Does the Continuum of Care Improve - the Timing of Follow-up Services?

Objective: To identify the impact of the continuum-of-care treatment philosophy on the timing of follow-up services received by individuals discharged from inpatient facilities. Method: Using data from the Fort Bragg Evaluation, the analyses involve hazard modeling of the timing of follow-up services. Results: The continuum-of-care treatment philosophy greatly accelerated the receipt of follow-up services and strengthened the link between the timing of follow-up services and individual and family characteristics. Conclusions: Expanding available services and coordinating service use increases the use of follow-up services. The findings also highlight the importance of family resources in shaping service use. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry, 1998, 37(8):805-814. Key Words: stepdown services, continuum of care, Fort Bragg Demonstration. Recent years have seen radical changes in the provision of mental health services to children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances. Driving these changes has been the continuum-of-care philosophy: the notion that children’s needs are best served when care is child-centered and family-sensitive and when services are coordinated across providers (Stroul and Friedman, 1986). A key premise of this philosophy is that children should be treated in the community whenever possible (Behar, 1995). Such care contrasts sharply with that received by many children and adolescents using mental health services. Care is often fragmented and disorganized, and inpatient care is overused (Behar, 1995; Knitzer, 1982, 1993). In contrast, under a continuum of care, a wide array of services is provided, ranging from outpatient services to “intermediate” residential (e.g., group homes) and nonresidential services (e.g., day treatment and partial hospitalization) to inpatient care in psychiatric hospi
Facilities relative allocation technique (FRAT)

SUMMARY This paper discusses the problem of assigning facilities to locations. Several optimal and Sub-optimal-yielding algorithms are discussed mentioning their desirable and undesirable features. A new heuristic algorithm is proposed. The proposed algorithm, combining features from other well known models, and programmed in Fortran IV is tested against existing methods. The results show that the algorithm is efficient, easy to run and is very competitive with other well-known methods.
Operational performance of the EVLA digital transmission system

The Expanded Very Large Array (ELVA) uses fiber optic technologies for the Digital Data Transmission, the Local Oscillator and Reference distribution, and all Monitor/Control functions. These signals are sent on separate fibers to each of the twenty-seven EVLA antennas. The Data Transmission System (DTS) is used to transmit the four digitized IF signals from the antennas to the Central Electronics Building. A sustained data rate of 10.24 Gbits/s per channel and 122.88 Gbits formatted per antenna is supported. Each IF signal uses a parallel interface of three synchronized single bit high-speed serial optical fiber transmission channels. Each set of three channels, twelve channels in total, is wavelength division multiplexed onto a single fiber. The formatted data are received and de-formatted before the data are sent to the correlator. The system configuration includes a CW laser, an Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier, passive optical multiplexers, up to 22 km of standard single mode fiber and an APD optical receiver. This paper presents a complete description of the EVLA fiber system including specific component specifications. The calculated performance of the IF system is compared to the actual performance and resulting "Lesson Learned" are presented.© (2002) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Post-ischemic brain tissue alkalosis suppressed by U74006F

Abstract We monitored chronically (for 1 week) the effect of the 21-aminosteroid U74006F, a potent lipid peroxidation inhibitor, on the pH profile of the rat brain following transient forebrain ischemia. Eight rats were treated initially with 3 mg/kg i.v. of U74006F 1 min after reperfusion. A second dose of 1.5 mg/kg i.v. was given 60 min after reperfusion. A vehicle group ( n = 9) was treated in the same manner, using the same volume of the vehicle solution, 20 mM citric acid, 3 mM sodium citrate, and 8 mM NaCl. Statistically significant interaction between group and time ( P = 0.003) was detected for pH. Brain pH of the vehicle treated animals were significantly higher than the U74006F treated group at 24 h ( P = 0.009) and 48 h ( P = 0.009) of reperfusion. Chronic post-ischemic brain tissue alkalosis at 24 h (pH 7.22 ± 0.12) and 48 h (pH 7.25 ± 0.11) post-ischemia, observed among the vehicle treated animals (and untreated animals), was suppressed by treatment with U74006F. These results suggest a coupling between post-ischemic brain tissue alkalosis and free radical induced lipid peroxidation.
On optimal link creation for facilitation of consensus in social networks

We consider the problem of reaching consensus in a social network of agents described by the DeGroot model. We develop a measure for the efficiency with which consensus is reached, where the measure quantifies the transient behavior of public opinion around the consensus value. We then propose an optimization problem that maximizes consensusreaching efficiency via the creation of new social links, subject to a total link-creation budget. We employ the alternating direction method of multipliers, an algorithm well-suited to large optimization problems, to find the optimal location and weights of the new links. We demonstrate the utility of our results through an example, where we observe that for a social network described by a regular graph the addition of new links leads to an augmented graph that resembles a small-world network characterized by sparse long-range links.
Primary intestinal lymphoma with paraproteinemia.

Five cases of primary intestinal lymphoma are described. The main clinical features included abodminal pain, diarrhea, and marked weight loss, together with radiologic and some laboratory findings suggestive of malabsorption. Laparatomy performed in four cases revealed dilatation of the small intestine, with mesenteric node enlargement. In these four instances there was a definite histologic evidence of malignant lymphoma, either initially or later in the course of the disease. A characteristic feature here was the diffuse infiltration of the intestinal mucosa with plasma cells, which in the deeper layers became progressively atypical and were mixed with histiocytes and giant cells. A similar infiltrate was seen in the mesenteric nodes. Immunoelectrophoresis showed the pattern of IgA heavy chain disease. It is suggested that the latter is a variant of primary intestinal lymphoma and not a separate disease entity.
The show must go on : problems of tagging performance texts

A dramatic work may be seen either as an event or as a text; the TEI guidelines make it possible to encode a dramatic work in either way, but do not attempt to solve the difficult problem of doing both at once. The basic element of a dramatic work, when seen as a text, is the speech; the guidelines also provide elements for encoding other familiar parts of dramatic texts (such as stage directions and cast lists), as well as for encoding analytic information on various aspects of texts and performances that is not normally included in printed dramatic texts. There are often other formal structures in dramatic works that intersect with the structure of speeches — metrical structures, for example; we discuss approaches for encoding these structures.
Large-scale auroral motions and polar magnetic disturbances—I A polar disturbance at about 1100 hours on 23 september 1957

Abstract The nature of polar magnetic disturbances associated with large-scale auroral motions is studied, with particular reference to one of the remarkable magnetic and auroral events of 23 September 1957. It is concluded that both the westward auroral electro jet and the eastward auroral motion are produced simultaneously by a southward electric field of order 2 × 10 4 e.m.u. (= 20 V/km), for a moderate magnetic variation of order 550 γ. It is shown that the electrojet, with duration of order 1 hr, moves rapidly northward or southward. This would imply that the intensity of the electric field varies rapidly in time and place. It is inferred that the precipitation zone of high-energy electron beam varies in the same way. From these points of view, the dynamo theory is criticized and the origin of the electric field is discussed.
Comparison of NIOSH Method 7400 A and B Counting Rules for Assessing Synthetic Vitreous Fiber Exposures

A number of counting rules are available to quantify airborne concentrations of synthetic vitreous fibers (SVFs), including the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Method 7400 A and B rules and the World Health Organization European Reference Method for Man-Made Mineral Fibers. Differences in counting rules have led to a lack of comparability of sampling results across studies. The purpose of this article is to compare NIOSH Method 7400 A and B fiber counts using samples collected as a part of a large assessment of end-user exposures to SVFs. This comparison provides a link between previous investigations that utilized A rules and more recent investigations that used B rules. A total of 792 airborne fiber samples were collected according to NIOSH Method 7400 and separately evaluated using both NIOSH A and B counting rules. The results of this investigation indicate that A-rule fiber counts give statistically higher fiber density estimates than corresponding B-rule fiber counts, w...
Persons in situations: distinguishing new wine from old wine in new bottles

An ambitious scientist dreams of overturning conventional wisdom and establishing a new paradigm that will provide a grand theoretical synthesis of the field. This commentary examines the articles ...
Nutrient Stratification in Uncultivated and Sugarcane-Cultivated Peatlands

Long-term sugarcane cultivation may alter nutrient distribution in the soil profile and contribute to deficiencies. The objective of this study was to determine how sugarcane cultivation altered nutrient stratification in peatlands. Soil pH decreased with depth for uncultivated soils but remained constant at 6.9 for sugarcane soils. Long-term fertilization did not result in accumulation of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). Sugarcane soils had 74, 72, and 94% more zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), and copper (Cu) than uncultivated soils 0–30 cm deep, indicating micronutrient fertilization rates were greater than their removal in harvested biomass. Total iron (Fe) concentrations were lower in sugarcane than uncultivated soils, indicating Fe removal in biomass exceeded fertilization rates. Macronutrient fertilization rates for sugarcane did not result in accumulation in soil, indicating close agreement with crop needs, while overapplication of most micronutrients, except Fe, occurred. Because of minimal environmenta...
Preclinical evaluation of UC781 microbicide vaginal drug delivery

UC781 is a potent nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor being investigated as a potential microbicide to prevent transmission of HIV-1 both vaginally and rectally. This study was designed to investigate the in vitro drug release, in vitro permeability/safety, and in vivo pharmacokinetics in rabbits of a vaginal gel prepared with micronized or nonmicronized UC781 (UC781m and UC781nm, respectively). Gels prepared with UC781m had greater in vitro release rates (Franz cells) and permeability/tissue-associated UC781 concentrations than gels prepared with UC781nm (EpiVaginal tissues). Both gels were well tolerated under in vitro conditions compared with controls using EpiVaginal tissues. Following intravaginal administration of both gels to rabbits, tissue concentrations typically ranged from 1,000 to over 10,000 ng/g regardless of dosing regimen (single dose or 7 days once daily dosing) and sampling times (2 and 24 h post-dose). Tissue-associated concentrations were highly variable, and no statistically significant differences were found between test conditions. Plasma levels were generally low after vaginal administration: following a single dose, the concentrations were between 0.5 and 1.0 ng/mL. After 7 days repeated once daily dosing, UC781 concentrations were slightly higher ranging from below 1.0 to about 2 ng/mL, although none of the differences were statistically significant. Based on these results, gels prepared with either form of UC781 led to tissue concentrations well in excess of UC781’s EC50 under in vitro conditions (~3 ng/mL).
Effects of repeated "benign" noise exposures in young CBA mice: shedding light on age-related hearing loss.

Temporary hearing threshold shift (TTS) resulting from a “benign” noise exposure can cause irreversible auditory nerve afferent terminal damage and retraction. While hearing thresholds and acute tissue injury recover within 1–2 weeks after a noise overexposure, it is not clear if multiple TTS noise exposures would result in cumulative damage even though sufficient TTS recovery time is provided. Here, we tested whether repeated TTS noise exposures affected permanent hearing thresholds and examined how that related to inner ear histopathology. Despite a peak 35–40 dB TTS 24 hours after each noise exposure, a double dose (2 weeks apart) of 100 dB noise (8–16 kHz) exposures to young (4-week-old) CBA mice resulted in no permanent threshold shifts (PTS) and abnormal distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE). However, although auditory brainstem response (ABR) thresholds recovered fully in once- and twice-exposed animals, the growth function of ABR wave 1 p-p amplitude (synchronized spiral ganglion cell activity) was significantly reduced to a similar extent, suggesting that damage resulting from a second dose of the exposure was not proportional to that observed after the initial exposure. Estimate of surviving inner hair cell afferent terminals using immunostaining of presynaptic ribbons revealed ribbon loss of ∼40 % at the ∼23 kHz region after the first round of noise exposure, but no additional loss of ribbons after the second exposure. In contrast, a third dose of the same noise exposure resulted in not only TTS, but also PTS even in regions where DPOAEs were not affected. The pattern of PTS seen was not entirely tonotopically related to the noise band used. Instead, it resembled more to that of age-related hearing loss, i.e., high frequency hearing impairment towards the base of the cochlea. Interestingly, after a 3rd dose of the noise exposure, additional loss of ribbons (another ∼25 %) was observed, suggesting a cumulative detrimental effect from individual “benign” noise exposures, which should result in a significant deficit in central temporal processing.
Ultrasensitive optofluidic-nanoplasmonic BioNEMS for life sciences and point-of-care diagnostics

Recent progress on the development of optofluidic-nanoplasmonic BioNEMS is reviewed in this proceeding. Following a brief summary of the fundamental limitations in current lab-on-chip platforms, optofluidic-nanoplasmonic BioNEMS are discussed in detail and means to overcome mass transport limitations are shown. Finally, nanofluidic approach is extended to a cross fluidic scheme for efficiently isolation of rare circulating tumor cells.
A new mutation in GFAP widens the spectrum of Alexander disease.

In this issue Nam et al1 describe a novel case of Alexander disease that markedly expands the candidate patient population for this often fatal neurodegenerative disorder of astrocyte dysfunction. Astrocytes are a predominate cell type in the central nervous system; yet, despite their multiple critical activities, Alexander disease is the only genetic disorder presently known attributable to a primary defect in these cells (reviewed in Brenner et al2). The disease, defined by the abundant presence in astrocytes of protein aggregates termed Rosenthal fibers, was first described as a childhood leukodystrophy featuring the striking clinical signs of megalencephaly, seizures and psychomotor delay accompanied by massive white matter deficits in the frontal lobes. Subsequently, a later-onset form was added based on sharing the abundance of Rosenthal fibers, but with clinical signs that could be quite different, such as difficulty swallowing and speaking, autonomic dysfunction and ataxia. In addition, the radiologic abnormalities of the later-onset cases involve more caudal central nervous system regions, such as the cerebellum, brainstem and cervical spinal cord (see Prust et al3 for a description of the two forms). A common etiology for the two forms was established by finding that about 95% of both are caused by mutations in the gene encoding glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), an intermediate filament protein expressed strongly and predominantly in astrocytes.4, 5 All initial mutations discovered were heterozygous missense changes predicting production of both full-length mutant and wild-type proteins. This, together with the finding that GFAP null mice do not display signs of Alexander disease, led to the conclusion that the mutations cause disease by a dominant gain of toxic function.
L∞ Variational Problems and Aronsson Equations

In this paper, we prove that viscosity solutions of Aronsson equations are absolute minimizers in certain L∞ variational problems.
A test of bone mobilization relative to reproductive demand: skeletal quality is improved in cannibalistic females with large litters.

AbstractIn species with repeated bouts of reproduction, a female’s ability to retain sufficient tissue for self-maintenance is essential to her survival and capacity for future reproduction. Loss of bone mineral content results in bone fragility and the possibility of reduced survival, so females should guard against the overuse of their bone mineral during reproduction. Given these constraints, I predicted that bone mobilization would increase with litter size in mice but plateau before maximum litter size was reached. To test this idea, I manipulated the litter sizes of house mice on the day of parturition to 3, 8, 13, and 18 offspring. At weaning, I euthanized the females and calculated whole-body and bone mineral composition. The total mineral content of females’ femurs dropped as litter size increased to the average litter size for this strain of mouse (13) but surprisingly, femoral mineral content was higher for females assigned the largest litter sizes (18). Seven of the nine females assigned 18 yo...
Synthesis and photovoltaic properties of a furan-diketopyrrolopyrrole-fluorene terpolymer

Abstract We report the synthesis of two solution-processable reduced band gap donor–acceptor conjugated polymers p(C8-DPP-F) and p(C12-DPP-F), composed from 9,9-dioctylfluorene as the donor moiety, diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) moiety as the acceptor moiety and furan bridges. Two different alkyl chains, n -dodecyl and n -octyl were used on the DPP moiety and the impact of this structural modification evaluated in detail. Both polymers exhibited similar optical and electrochemical properties with optical band gap of around 1.75 eV as result of LUMO levels near −3.4 eV and high-lying HOMO levels of ∼5.2 eV. Bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices using these polymers electron donors along with PC 70 BM as the electron acceptor, gave power conversion efficiency of 1.60% and 0.75% for p(C12-DPP-F) and p(C8-DPP-F) respectively.
Common Pitfalls in Giving Medical-Legal Advice to Trainees and Supervisees

Co-editors: Ronald Schouten, MD, JD, and Rebecca W. Brendel, MD, JDRebecca W. Brendel, MD, JDThe nineteenth-century American satirist Charles Farrar Browne, writing under the name Artemus Ward, was...
Metabolite profiling of 5′-AMP induced hypometabolism

We have previously demonstrated that 5′-adenosine monophosphate (5′-AMP) can be used to induce deep hypometabolism in mice and other non-hibernating mammals. This reversible 5′-AMP induced hypometabolism (AIHM) allows mice to maintain a body temperature about 1 °C above the ambient temperature for several hours before spontaneous reversal to euthermia. Our biochemical and gene expression studies suggested that the molecular processes involved in AIHM behavior most likely occur at the metabolic interconversion level, rather than the gene or protein expression level. To understand the metabolic processes involved in AIHM behavior, we conducted a non-targeted comparative metabolomics investigation at multiple stages of AIHM in the plasma, liver and brain of animals that underwent AIHM. Dozens of metabolites representing many important metabolic pathways were detected and measured using a metabolite profiling platform combining both liquid-chromatography–mass spectrometry and gas-chromatography–mass spectrometry. Our findings indicate that there is a widespread suppression of energy generating metabolic pathways but lipid metabolism appears to be minimally altered. Regulation of carbohydrate metabolites appears to be the major way the animal utilizes energy in AIHM and during the following recovery process. The 5′-AMP administered has largely been catabolized by the time the animals have entered AIHM. During AIHM, the urea cycle appears to be functional, helping to avoid ammonia toxicity. Of all tissues studied, brain’s metabolite flux is the least affected by AIHM.
STOCHASTIC MODELLING OF CONSUMER'S DIMINISHING RETURN

An intriguing economic phenomenon in consumption studies is the law of diminishing return. In spite of its economic importance, this phenomenon has not received attention by stochastic modelers. In this article, an attempt is made to explain this phenomenon via a new probability model. Both the estimation and hypothesis testing procedures for the model parameters are derived, and illustrated using data on the number of viewers of a weekly television show in Denver, USA.
Classifying compact convex sets with frames

Abstract Classification is a fundamental image processing task. Recent empirical evidence suggests that classification algorithms which make use of redundant linear transforms will regularly outperform their nonredundant counterparts. We provide a rigorous explanation of this phenomenon in the single-class case. We begin by developing a measure-theoretic analysis of the set of points at which a given decision rule will have an intolerable chance of making a classification error. We then apply this general theory to the special case where the class is compact and convex, showing that such a class may be arbitrarily well approximated by frame sets, namely, preimages of hyperrectangles under frame analysis operators. This leads to a frame-based classification scheme in which frame coefficients are regarded as features. We show that, indeed, the accuracy of such a classification scheme approaches perfect accuracy as the redundancy of the frame grows large.
Risk based Fatigue Inspection Planning – State of the Art

The present paper presents the methodology and the practical calculations for risk based inspection planning of fatigue cracks in welded offshore steel structures. Due to the uncertainty in the variables involved in the problem the planning has to be carried out by stochastic modeling and risk based assessments. Scatter in potential crack growth has to be analyzed by applied probabilistic facture mechanics and the uncertainty in the performance of the actual inspection technique has to be determined. With given risk acceptance criteria the practical outcome of the analyses is recommended inspection techniques and associated planned inspection time intervals. The classical theory is briefly outlined and the latest recommendations from a Joint Industry Project recently completed in Norway are included. A practical case study for life extension of an oil loading system in the North Sea is presented.
Fat suppression with spectrally selective inversion vs. high spectral and spatial resolution MRI of breast lesions: qualitative and quantitative comparisons.

Purpose To compare conventional fat-suppressed MR images of the breast to images derived from high spectral and spatial resolution MR data. Image quality and the level of fat suppression are compared qualitatively and quantitatively. Materials and Methods Women with suspicious breast lesions found on X-ray mammography were imaged on 1.5 Tesla GE SIGNA scanners. High spectral and spatial resolution (HiSS) data were acquired using echo-planar spectroscopic imaging. Images with intensity proportional to the water signal peak height in each voxel were synthesized. Conventional fat-suppressed images were acquired using a frequency selective inversion method. The experimental (HiSS) and conventional images were compared by experienced radiologists to evaluate the quality of fat suppression. In addition, fat suppression and image quality were evaluated quantitatively. Results Fat suppression, tumor edge delineation, lesion conspicuity, and image texture were improved in the peak height images derived from HiSS data. Conclusion The results demonstrate that the water peak height images obtained from HiSS data potentially could improve the quality of fat suppression, detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. HiSS allowed detection of lesions and evaluation of lesion morphology prior to contrast media injection. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Parents' Experience of Feeling Socially Supported as Adolescents Come Out as Lesbian and Gay: A Phenomenological Study

Discovering that an adolescent is lesbian or gay is often experienced as a family crisis. Feeling bereft of social support during times of such emotional upheaval and transition may precipitate states of despondency for parents, placing both children and parents at risk. While social support has been discussed as a key mediating agent for psychosocial stress in many areas of parenting, there has been minimal focus on parents of lesbian and gay youth. This phenomenological study explores eight parents' experience of feeling socially supported as they approach living with their adolescents' coming-out. The emergent, thematic structures comprised two dimensions of experience: those prompting social isolation and those creating social reconnection. Translating this knowledge into practice innovations offers ideas for relevant and responsive outreach.
Elemental composition of common ragweed and Pennsylvania smartweed spray-irrigated with municipal sanitary landfill leachate

Abstract Sprinkler irrigation was tested as a method for the land disposal of leachate wastewater from a municipal sanitary landfill. As part of our objective of determining the efficiency of soils and vegetation as a total system for leachate decontamination, we analysed the concentrations of 18 elements in weeds that volunteered profusely in forage grass plots spray-irrigated for 8 months with 155 cm of leachate. Common ragweed ( Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) and Pennsylvania smartweed ( Polygonum pennsylvanicum L.) digests analysed by atomic absorption, colorimetry, pyrolysis and auto-titration differed significantly in their accumulation of macro- and micro-nutrients. Smartweed accumulated 0·75% Mn without evidence of phytotoxicity. Calcium content was 1·1% in smartweed and 1·5% in ragweed. Both weed species had higher average micro-nutrient levels than those usually found in forages. Averages for heavy metals were 0·3 ppm Cd, 1·0 ppm Co and Cr; 1·92 ppm Ni, 3·68 ppm Pb and 12·8 ppm Cu. Lime and rock phosphate applied at 11·2 metric tons/ha and superphosphate applied at 0·67 metric tons/ha generally did not affect elemental concentrations of weeds. However, P levels in both species were higher for phosphate treatments and Mn was significantly lower in smartweed from lime and rock phosphate treatments than in unfertilised or superphosphate-treated soils. Results suggested that weeds grown from soils treated with leachate contain Ca, Mg, and Zn in amounts that may be suitable for grazing animals. However, smartweed may have toxic amounts of Mn.
Interactions between Speech and Finger Movements

Under the dynamic pattern perspective for motor control, movement is viewed as an "emergent" property, arising from cooperative relationships among limit-cycle oscillators. This is in contrast to m...
Incorporating Gene Annotations as Node Metadata to Improve Network Centrality Measures for Better Node Ranking

Network centrality measures allow ranking of nodes and edges based on their importance to the network topology. Closeness centrality [1] and shortest path betweenness centrality [2] are two of the most popular and well-utilized centrality measures that have provided good results [3,4,5,6]. Both of these centralities rely exclusively on topological features of the network [7] to calculate node importance. We propose an improvement to these path length based centrality measures that incorporate node-specific metadata to provide biologically relevant node ranking. We choose gene annotations and gene ontology (GO) evidences as our metadata to highlight the new approach. Application of the newly proposed centrality measures to synthetic networks, and pathogen infected barley's gene co-expression networks resulted in a significantly better prioritization of the nodes. We compared our results against unmodified centrality measures applied to the same networks. Our proposed improvements provide a new avenue for tailoring centrality measures for biological networks, and hold great potential for further improvement of random walk based [8] and motif-based centrality [9] measures.
On the linear instability of the rayleigh spheroidization process

The problem of diffusional stability of infinitely long cylinders with respect to spheroidization has been analyzed. It is well known that long solid cylinders will break down into individual particles of spherical geometry under the action of an appropriate shape perturbation. The driving force for this process is considered to be the chemical potential gradients associated with variations in curvature which develop on the surface, or interface, in response to the perturbation. The resulting diffusional flow of material can lead to a breakdown of the rod morphology. From a practical point of view, the cylindrical geometry is one which occurs in fiber reinforced composites and rod shaped precipitates in eutectic/eutectoid structures. The shape stability of such rods is an important aspect of high temperature mechanical behavior. The general method of study for this problem involves analyzing the time dependent behavior of a perturbation; which is an imposed, mass conserving and periodic surface wave of small amplitude. These surface undulations will be referred to here as Rayleigh surface waves. In most cases, attention is focused on the surface wavelength which gives the maximum growth rate of the perturbation. This choice has not been justified by experimental results on rod eutectics whichmore » show significant scatter in the instability wavelength, and little or no physical basis, such as a stability argument, has been presented for the operation of the maximum growth rate hypothesis in the growth of periodic Rayleigh surface waves. Despite the many detailed studies on the behavior of Rayleigh surface waves, the possibility that the surface waves themselves might actually be unstable has not been considered in the literature.« less
Maximum Torque for Small Knobs Operated with and without Gloves

An experiment was conducted to determine the maximum torque that men in the standing position can apply to diamond-knurled knobs ⅜, ½ and J in. in diameter if the men brace themselves with their free hand. A total of 120 subjects operated these knobs with and without gloves and with the knobs on both a front panel and a panel facing to the right. Although the results were significantly influenced by many variables and interactions, only differences in knob size had a marked effect on the 5th percentile values normally used as design maxima. It was concluded that the standard maximum torque limits should be 44 in, oz for ⅜ in., 56 in.-oz for ½ in. and 90 in.-oz for ¾ in. diamond-knurled knobs.
Augmented humoral immune function in metallothionein-null mice.

Stress response proteins can play integral roles as modulators of cellular function and can be involved in mechanisms that are important to immune function. Metallothionein (MT), a cysteine-rich stress response protein, has been shown to play numerous roles in the cell: it serves as a reservoir of essential heavy metals, it scavenges free radicals, and it can sequester heavy metals. These various functions suggest that MT may also participate in modulating immune responses. In previous work, we have shown that exogenous metallothionein can suppress the developing humoral immune response when coinjected with antigen. The present study was designed to evaluate the effects of endogenous MT on the development of humoral immunity. We compared the humoral immune function of animals with a targeted disruption of Mt-1 and -2 genes (MTKO) and their wild-type counterparts. MTKO mice displayed a significantly higher humoral response to challenge with ovalbumin (OVA) compared to wild-type controls. The secondary anti-OVA response in MTKO mice is as much as 58% higher than the response in control mice injected at the same time. Overall circulatory immunoglobulin levels are also substantially higher in MTKO mice (0.039 mg/ml IgM and 0.42 mg/ml IgG) than wild-type controls. MTKO mice displayed increased B cell differentiation following OVA challenge and an enhanced lymphoproliferative response to mitogenic stimulation. These changes in immune functional capacity occur in the context of changes in the makeup of the lymphoid compartments of the blood and spleen. There are substantially fewer T and B cells in the circulation of MTKO mice, but more T cells in the spleen of these mice than in control animals. Finally, we have found that splenocytes from MTKO animals displayed significantly elevated levels of NF-κB activity compared to wild-type controls. In conclusion, we have provided evidence that endogenous metallothionein can modulate the immune response in vivo and that intracellular MT may modulate immune function by regulation of transcription factor activity.
Improved Methods for Side Chain and Loop Predictions via the Protein Local Optimization Program: Variable Dielectric Model for Implicitly Improving the Treatment of Polarization Effects.

This paper presents significant improvements in both accuracy and computational efficiency of protein side chain and loop predictions using the Protein Local Optimization Program (PLOP). We introduce a novel energy model in which the internal dielectric constant of the protein is allowed to vary as a function of the interacting residues and present a physical rationale for this model. Using this model, we achieve qualitative improvements in the accuracy of side chain predictions with respect to experimental crystal structure and substantially reduce the RMSDs for loop predictions, particularly those predictions involving charged side chains. For the single side chain prediction of lysine, 40% of the errors are eliminated, and the accuracy increases from 62.6% to 76.8%. The errors in glutamate and aspartate predictions are reduced by 19% and 24%, respectively. When applied to a set of 240 loop predictions with 6, 8, 10, and 13 residue of loop length, this new model yields unprecedented accuracies with average backbone root-mean-square deviations of 0.39 A, 0.68 A, 0.80 A, and 1.00 A for 6, 8, 10, and 13 residue loops, respectively. We also describe a series of technical improvements in the PLOP simulation algorithms, which lead to a speedup of a factor of 2-4 in loop predictions.
Low level in vivo gene transfer into the arterial wall through a perforated balloon catheter.

BACKGROUND Gene transfer into the arterial wall may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of coronary artery restenosis. Previously described methods for gene transfer into the arterial wall require total vessel occlusion for 30 minutes. We sought to develop a protocol for gene transfer within a more clinically relevant time frame. METHODS AND RESULTS We used a perforated balloon (Wolinsky) catheter to inject retroviral vector-containing virions into rabbit aortas in vivo. The virions were injected within 1 minute. Aortas were removed 5-14 days after injection and analyzed for evidence of gene transfer. In initial studies, nine rabbits were injected with a vector expressing the beta-galactosidase gene, and nine rabbits were injected with either non-beta-galactosidase-containing vectors or with a vehicle control. Histochemical staining of aortic tissues revealed blue (positive) cells in eight of nine experimental rabbits and six of nine controls. Because of the lack of specificity of the beta-galactosidase detection system, we adopted a polymerase chain reaction-based protocol in which oligonucleotide primers were used to amplify specific vector-related sequences from aortic tissue extracts. The polymerase chain reaction protocol, calibrated with standards containing known numbers of transduced cells, revealed low amounts of vector-related sequences in six of 12 vector-injected rabbits and in one of 13 controls (p less than 0.03). Comparison with standards indicated that fewer than 100 transduced cells were present in a 2-cm length of the injected aortic tissue. CONCLUSIONS Although in vivo gene transfer through an infusion balloon catheter can be accomplished within 1 minute, the therapeutic use of this protocol is limited by the small number of cells that are transduced.
Optimal bang-bang controls arising in a Sobolev impulse control problem

Abstract In this note the switches of optimal bang-bang controls associated with Sobolev impulse control problems are studied. The determination of the number of switches in such controls is discussed and examples are considered. Also, sequences of approximating controls arising from the variational optimality conditions are shown to converge almost everywhere to the optimal control.
Testing soil water retention estimation with the MUUF pedotransfer model using data from the southern United States

Abstract Soil hydraulic properties have often been estimated rather than measured. Such estimates are made using pedotransfer functions (PTFs), i.e. regression equations relating soil hydraulic properties to soil basic properties. PTFs were developed from about 18,000 samples from the national soil characterization database that used the clay activity ratio along with texture to characterize the effect of soil minerals on soil hydraulic properties. With those PTFs, the Map Unit User File (MUUF) software was developed to use soil series name and textural class of the uppermost soil horizon to estimate soil water retention. Objectives of this study were: (a) to test the MUUF with a database from Southern Plains, and (b) to see whether the MUUF PTFs will be more accurate with actual soil texture data as compared with the soil texture data for the representative pedon of the soil series. The root-mean-square error (RMSE) of the MUUF estimates of water content at −33 kPa in the uppermost horizon was about 0.04 m 3 m −3 , when only textural class and soil names were used. The accuracy did not change when the actual soil texture was entered in PTFs. In deeper horizons, the RMSE was about 0.065 m 3 m −3 when only soil name and textural classes were used. The accuracy improved significantly as the actual texture was used instead of the texture derived from the representative pedon. Using actual texture halved the RMSE in estimates of water contents at −1500 kPa. The worst estimates were obtained for silt texture. As compared with PTFs found in literature, the MUUF algorithms provide an average or better accuracy of water retention estimates in the uppermost soil horizons from the soil series name and textural class. For deep soil horizons, the MUUF pedotransfer algorithms are capable of the same degree of accuracy provided the information on texture of the deeper soil horizons is available.
PROSTATE CANCER SCREENING AND MANAGEMENT

In the last 10 years, the topic of prostate cancer has been increasingly prominent in the medical literature and publicized in the lay press. This is mainly due to the huge public health and economic issues that are raised by this disease, which is now more readily detectable. Much debate has been generated, and there is little consensus on any one issue. It is now the most common cause of noncutaneous cancer in American men with an estimated 317,000 new cases diagnosed in 1996. 59 This has risen by approximately 25% per year since 1992. 59 Its annual death rate, exceeded only by that of lung cancer, is expected to total 41,400 in the United States in 1996. Clearly, it is a disease with which all medical practitioners should be familiar. This article reviews prostate cancer screening and provides an overview of the various treatment options available.
Identifying biologically relevant genes via multiple heterogeneous data sources

Selection of genes that are differentially expressed and critical to a particular biological process has been a major challenge in post-array analysis. Recent development in bioinformatics has made various data sources available such as mRNA and miRNA expression profiles, biological pathway and gene annotation, etc. Efficient and effective integration of multiple data sources helps enrich our knowledge about the involved samples and genes for selecting genes bearing significant biological relevance. In this work, we studied a novel problem of multi-source gene selection: given multiple heterogeneous data sources (or data sets), select genes from expression profiles by integrating information from various data sources. We investigated how to effectively employ information contained in multiple data sources to extract an intrinsic global geometric pattern and use it in covariance analysis for gene selection. We designed and conducted experiments to systematically compare the proposed approach with representative methods in terms of statistical and biological significance, and showed the efficacy and potential of the proposed approach with promising findings.
Combining multifrequency microwave and optical data for crop management

Abstract The potential for the combined use of microwave and optical data for crop management is explored with the use of images acquired in the visible, near-infrared, and thermal spectrum and the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) wavelengths in the Ku (14.85 GHz) and C (5.3 GHz) bands. The images were obtained during June 1994 and covered an agricultural site composed of large fields of partial-cover cotton, near-full-cover alfalfa, and bare soil fields of varying roughness. Results showed that the SAR Ku backscatter coefficient (Ku-band σ†) was sensitive to soil roughness and insensitive to soil moisture conditions when vegetation was present. When soil roughness conditions were relatively similar (e.g., for cotton fields of similar row direction and for all alfalfa fields), Ku-band σ† was sensitive to the fraction of the surface covered by vegetation. Under these conditions, the Ku-band σ° and the optical normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) were generally correlated. The SAR C backscatter coefficient (C-z.sbnd;band σ°) was found to be sensitive to soil moisture conditions for cotton fields with green leaf area index (GLAI) less than 1.0 and alfalfa fields with GLAI nearly 2.0. For both low-GLAI cotton and alfalfa, Cband σ° was correlated with measurements of surface temperature (T s ). A theoretical basis for the relations between Kuband σ° and NDVI and between C-band gs0 and T s was presented and supported with on-site measurements. On the basis of these findings, some combined optical and radar approaches are suggested for crop management applications
The Associahedron and Triangulations of the n-gon

Let Pn be a convex n-gon in the plane, n ⩾ 3. Consider Σn, the collection of all sets of mutually non-crossing diagonals of Pn. Then Σn is a simplicial complex of dimension n − 4. We prove that Σn is isomorphic to the boundary complex of some (n − 3)-dimensional simplicial convex polytope, and that this polytope can be geometrically realized to have the dihedral group Dn as its group of symmetries. Formulas for the f-vector and h-vector of this polytope and some implications for related combinatorial problems are discussed.
Median-based regression methods in wood science applications

Regression analyses using the traditional, mean-based, least squares (LS) and the median-based, least absolute deviations method (LAD) were performed on twenty-five sets of bending strength and stiffness data. Comparisons of regression models were made to determine the effect of mathematical technique. In all cases, model coefficients demonstrated some degree of sensitivity to regression method. In cases where the residual data appeared to approximate a normal distribution, the models produced fairly similar results. However, the LS technique was found to be highly influenced by even a single extreme residual value. LAD regression proved to be far more stable in the presence of extreme residual values due to its more rational distance function.