cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Battlefield Pain Control: Forging Ahead by Building on the Past

Regardless of how we opine on the current state of health care reform, most would agree that pain management is a right, not a privilege. Both the civilian patients we care for every day and the wounded warriors in our military deserve our very best efforts when it comes to controlling their pain and relieving their suffering. Solving the problem of excessive pain may prove more challenging in military populations than in civilian populations. Both physical and emotional suffering are problematic in survivors of combat-related injuries caused by explosions. Patients who experience combat-related blasts have more extensive physical injuries and greater pain severity than soldiers and civilians without blast injuries. Fig. 1 is an exemplar of the extent of injuries commonly seen in blast patients. Additionally, those with combat-related burn injuries require larger opioid doses for pain than soldiers and civilians with nonblast injuries. Although the severity of injuries requires the implementation of sophisticated and intensive pain management strategies that are often cited as major health care expenditures, pain management is about much more than just dollars and cents. Reduction of unnecessary pain and suffering is a cornerstone of medicine. Inadequate pain management is something we must act upon. The burden of pain is enough to encumber or overwhelm an individual when not treated well. Along with the coincident and inherent mental anguish of being in pain at any given moment, there are long-term sequelae as well. These may include posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, nonrestorative sleep patterns, and of course, chronic pain syndromes. Even the ability to perform activities of daily living can be compromised when pain cannot be managed appropriately. Pain management can be a potential problem for thousands of new patients each year.
Preschoolers' Imitation of Intonation Contours.

This study evaluated normally developing preschoolers’ imitation of intonation contours modeled in a sentence elicitation task. Three intonation contours (declarative, interrogative, and monotone) ...
Hybrid generation of smooth functions by spline interpolation

The use of sparse data in hybrid computer simula tion has been provided with a formal procedure for generating smooth approximation functions with excellent reproduction quality. The method is use ful with data records over the independent variable or where a variable diode function generator might be used. The method depends on the theory of spline functions, which provides the specified quality of "smoothness" of the reconstructed function. An analog polynomial circuit receives parameters sequentially from the digital to generate the function. Besides illustrating an efficient method for hybrid function generation, the subject of spline approximation has been introduced to simulators in a simple language.
Androgenic induction of alpha-2-u-globulin in the rat: requirement of an intact pituitary.

A SEX dependent urinary protein in the rat has been described by Roy and Neuhaus1–4. This protein is an α2-globulin (α2U) of hepatic origin and has a molecular weight of 26,400 (refs. 2 and 3). It is rapidly excreted in the urine3. The level of α2U in blood is therefore very low (< 3 mg per 100 ml. blood)3. This protein is absent in females and immature male rats. The synthesis of α2U is very sensitive to hormonal manipulations4. Treatment with testosterone of the spayed females induces its synthesis whereas treatment of adult male rats with oestradiol brings about a complete repression4. A quantitative immunological method for the assay of α2U has been described3. All of these above mentioned properties make α2U a very convenient system for studying the possible hormonal control of gene action in the mammalian system. In this communication we report our studies on the requirement of the pituitary gland for the androgenic induction of α2U in spayed rats.
Dynamic Interactions of the UL16 Tegument Protein with the Capsid of Herpes Simplex Virus

The UL16 tegument protein of herpes simplex virus is conserved throughout the herpesvirus family. It has been reported to be capsid associated and may be involved in budding by providing an interaction with the membrane-bound UL11 protein. UL16 has been shown to be present in all the major locations that capsids are found (i.e., the nucleus, cytoplasm, and virions), but whether it is actually capsid associated in each of these has not been reported. Therefore, capsids were purified from each compartment, and it was found that UL16 was present on cytoplasmic but not nuclear capsids. In extracellular virions, the majority of UL16 (87%) was once again not capsid associated, which suggests that the interaction is transient during egress. Because herpes simplex virus (HSV) buds into the acidic compartment of the trans-Golgi network (TGN), the effect of pH on the interaction was examined. The amount of capsid-associated UL16 dramatically increased when extracellular virions were exposed to mildly acidic medium (pH 5.0 to 5.5), and this association was fully reversible. After budding into the TGN, capsid and tegument proteins also encounter an oxidizing environment, which is conducive to disulfide bond formation. UL16 contains 20 cysteines, including five that are conserved within a putative zinc finger. Any free cysteines that are involved in the capsid interaction or release mechanism of UL16 would be expected to be modified by N-ethylmaleimide, and, consistent with this, the amount of capsid-associated UL16 dramatically increased when virions were incubated with this compound. Taken together, these data suggest a transient interaction between UL16 and capsids, possibly modified in the acidic compartment of secretory vesicles and requiring a release mechanism that involves cysteines.
Rp: a Computer Program for Calculating rP, Cattell's Profile Similarity Coefficient

A computer program entitled RP for calculating profile similarity coefficients is described. The SAS program is flexibly structured to accept data input in several different configurations. It provides outputs in the form of a matrix of person-by-person rp coefficients. RP is fully documented both internally and externally.
Multiscale Modeling of Calcium Signaling in the Cardiac Dyad

Calcium (Ca 2+ )-induced Ca 2+ -release (CICR) takes place in spatially restricted microdomains known as dyads. The length scale over which CICR occurs is on the order of nanometers and relevant time scales range from micro- to milliseconds. Quantitative understanding of CICR therefore requires development of models that are applicable over a range of spatio-temporal scales. We will present several new approaches for multiscale modeling of CICR. First, we present a model of dyad Ca 2+ dynamics in which the Fokker-Planck equation (FPE) is solved for the probability P(x, t) that a Ca 2+ ion is located at dyad position x at time t. Using this model, we demonstrate that (a) Ca 2+ signaling in the dyad is mediated by approximately tens of Ca 2+ ions; (b) these signaling events are noisy due to the small number of ions involved; and (c) the geometry of the RyR (ryanodine receptors) protein may function to restrict the diffusion of and to "funnel" Ca 2+ ions to activation-binding sites on the RyR, thus increasing RyR open probability and excitation-contraction (EC) coupling gain. Simplification of this model to one in which the dyadic space is represented using a single compartment yields the stochastic local-control model of CICR developed previously. We have shown that this model captures fundamental properties of CICR, such as graded release and voltage-dependent gain, may be integrated within a model of the myocyte and may be simulated in reasonable times using a combination of efficient numerical methods and parallel computing, but remains too complex for general use in cell simulations. To address this problem, we show how separation of time scales may be used to formulate a model in which nearby L-type Ca 2+ channels (LCCs) and RyRs gate as a coupled system that may be described using low-dimensional systems of ordinary differential equations, thus reducing computational complexity while capturing fundamentally important properties of CICR. The simplified model may be solved many orders of magnitude faster than can either of the more detailed models, thus enabling incorporation into tissue-level simulations.
The political significance of corporate social reporting in the United States of America

Abstract Recognizing that corporate social reporting may soon assume a new significance in the U.S.A., this article reviews the reasons for this and discusses the responses to date. In looking at the current state of practice in the area, particular consideration is given to disclosure experiments initiated by a number of major U.S. business enterprises.
Phylogenetic relationships of hoplocercid lizards: Coding and combining meristic, morphometric, and polymorphic data using step matrices

Hoplocercidae is a small (10 species, 3 genera), poorly known but pivotal family of Central and South American iguanian lizards that has never been the subject of a focused phylogenetic study or systematic revision. We undertake the first rigorous phylogenetic analysis of hoplocercid lizards. We also use our analysis to demonstrate how meristic, morphometric, and polymorphic morphological characters can be coded and combined for phylogenetic analyses using step matrices, which allow continuous variation to be treated as continuous. Parsimony analysis of 46 informative external and skeletal characters (17 qualitative and fixed, 19 qualitative and polymorphic, 8 meristic, and 2 morphometric) yields very different topologies, depending on how the meristic characters are scaled (weighted). Use of between-state scaling yields a phylogeny in which Hoplocercus is at the base of the hoplocercid tree, and Morunasaurus is paraphyletic with respect to a monophyletic Enyalioides. Scaling between characters produces a...
Signal processing and neural network toolbox and its application to failure diagnosis and prognosis

Many systems are comprised of components equipped with self-testing capability; however, if the system is complex involving feedback and the self-testing itself may occasionally be faulty, tracing faults to a single or multiple causes is difficult. Moreover, many sensors are incapable of reliable decision-making on their own. In such cases, a signal processing front-end that can match inference needs will be very helpful. The work is concerned with providing an object-oriented simulation environment for signal processing and neural network-based fault diagnosis and prognosis. In the toolbox, we implemented a wide range of spectral and statistical manipulation methods such as filters, harmonic analyzers, transient detectors, and multi-resolution decomposition to extract features for failure events from data collected by data sensors. Then we evaluated multiple learning paradigms for general classification, diagnosis and prognosis. The network models evaluated include Restricted Coulomb Energy (RCE) Neural Network, Learning Vector Quantization (LVQ), Decision Trees (C4.5), Fuzzy Adaptive Resonance Theory (FuzzyArtmap), Linear Discriminant Rule (LDR), Quadratic Discriminant Rule (QDR), Radial Basis Functions (RBF), Multiple Layer Perceptrons (MLP) and Single Layer Perceptrons (SLP). Validation techniques, such as N-fold cross-validation and bootstrap techniques, are employed for evaluating the robustness of network models. The trained networks are evaluated for their performance using test data on the basis of percent error rates obtained via cross-validation, time efficiency, generalization ability to unseen faults. Finally, the usage of neural networks for the prediction of residual life of turbine blades with thermal barrier coatings is described and the results are shown. The neural network toolbox has also been applied to fault diagnosis in mixed-signal circuits.
Nerve lesions and the generation of pain.

This review addresses the issue of how axotomy of peripheral nerve fibers leads to pain and hyperalgesia. The point of axotomy (the nerve injury site), the dorsal root ganglia, and the dorsal horn of the spinal cord are candidate sites for generation of the pain signal that is likely to be critical for maintaining the neuropathic pain state. This review considers neuropathic pain from a "systems" perspective, tracing concepts of neuropathic pain from the work of Henry Head to the present. Surprisingly, the nerve injury site and the dorsal root ganglion belonging to a transected spinal nerve do not give rise to spontaneous activity in putative C-fiber nociceptors. The intact nociceptor belonging to adjacent uninjured spinal nerves, however, does acquire abnormal spontaneous activity and a chemical sensitivity to catechols. It is suggested that partially denervated tissues in the nerve, skin, and other locations may release substances that, in turn, sensitize the intact nociceptors. These abnormalities in the intact nociceptor, which arise in the context of Wallerian degeneration, probably play a role in creating or maintaining the abnormal pain state. These considerations probably also apply to the understanding of pain arising in other neuropathies. The findings relative to the "intact" nociceptor provide a rationale by which to understand how therapies distal to the nerve injury site may diminish pain.
Accuracy of biopsy sampling for subtyping basal cell carcinoma

Background Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is a common skin cancer for which the treatment and recurrence risk correlate with the histologic subtype. Limited information is available regarding the accuracy of biopsy in diagnosing BCC subtypes. Objective We sought to determine the correlation between BCC subtypes present in a biopsy specimen and the actual subtypes present in a tumor. Methods In this retrospective study, skin biopsy specimens and corresponding excisions were reviewed. All histologic subtypes present in the biopsy specimen were reported and compared with the composite BCC subtype present in the biopsy specimen and excision. Results A total of 232 biopsy specimens and corresponding wide excisions were examined. The biopsy specimen accuracy rate was 82% for punch and shave biopsy specimens. Mixed histologic subtypes were seen in 54% of the cases, half of which contained an aggressive subtype (infiltrative, morpheaform, or micronodular). There was an 18% discordance rate between the biopsy specimen subtype and the composite subtype. Importantly, 40% of these discordant cases (7% of all cases examined) had an aggressive subtype that was not sampled in the initial biopsy specimen. Furthermore, some cases were misidentified as infiltrative subtype in the biopsy specimen as a result of misinterpretation of surface ulceration and reactive stromal changes. Limitations The limited number of punch biopsy specimens and the fact that Mohs excisions were not included are limitations. Conclusions Punch and shave biopsy specimens provided adequate sampling for correct BCC subtyping in 82% of the cases examined. However, 18% of the biopsy specimens were misidentified, some of which missed an aggressive component. Thus, there are potential pitfalls in the identification of BCC subtypes in biopsy specimens, which may have important implications in treatment outcome.
Measurements of gaseous HONO, HNO3, SO2, HCl, NH3, particulate sulfate and PM2.5 in New York, NY

Simultaneous measurements of gaseous HONO, HNO3, HCl, SO2, and NH3 for a period of 1 year from July 1999 to June 2000 and fine-fraction particulate (<2.5 μm) sulfate (SO42−) from January 1999 to November 2000 were made at Bronx and Manhattan in New York City with an annular denuder system followed by ion chromatography. The hourly PM2.5 mass was measured with a Rupprecht and Patashnick TEOM Series 1400a real-time monitor for approximately 2 years (January 1999–November 2000) at the same sites. Concentrations at the two sites were highly correlated, with Manhattan being slightly higher than at the Bronx. The concentrations of HNO3, HCl, NH3 and SO42− were higher during summer than winter, the summer/winter ratios at Manhattan being 3.9, 3.1, 1.5, and 1.9, respectively. The concentrations of HONO and SO2 were lower during summer than winter, the summer/winter ratios at Manhattan being 0.48 and 0.44, respectively. Gaseous HONO concentrations were higher than that of HNO3 except in summer, when the HNO3 was higher. The annual mean concentration of PM2.5 was 15.2 μg/m3 at the Bronx, and 15.5 μg/m3 at Manhattan (based only on days when data were available from both sites). The monthly mean concentrations at Manhattan ranged from 13.2 to 21.7 μg/m3 and were highest in June and July 1999, and lowest in March and April. The monthly mean fraction of PM2.5 as SO42− ranged from 0.17 to 0.31, with the highest values observed during June–September. The hourly mean concentrations of PM2.5 showed a bimodal pattern, with peaks at around 7–8 AM and 8–9 PM. In general, the second maximum is lower than the morning one, but during summer this is reversed. The contributions from regional and local emissions and the influence of atmospheric transport and chemical reactions on the observed concentrations are discussed in a compendium paper.
Eotaxin/CCL11 Is a Negative Regulator of Neutrophil Recruitment in a Murine Model of Endotoxemia

Eotaxin/CCL11 is a chemokine that has been primarily characterized with respect to its eosinophil chemoattractant activity. However, the broad tissue expression of eotaxin/CCL11 suggests that it may have other unknown activities. We have used a murine model of endotoxemia to study the role of eotaxin/CCL11 in neutrophil recruitment. We demonstrate that eotaxin/CCL11 is acutely upregulated in the serum, peritoneal wash, and lungs of mice given an intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge. Furthermore, immunoneutralization of eotaxin/CCL11 in this model results in a significant increase in the number of neutrophils within the lung after LPS challenge. When eotaxin/CCL11 knockout mice were challenged with LPS, these mice had increased peritoneal neutrophils, but not lung neutrophils, compared to the wild-type controls. Administration of eotaxin/CCL11 to eotaxin(-/-) mice suppressed endotoxemia-associated peritoneal neutrophils. The presence or absence of eotaxin/CCL11 did not affect the number of peritoneal macrophages in these mice. These data indicate that eotaxin/CCL11 plays a novel regulatory role during the acute inflammatory response and suggest that constitutive expression of this chemokine within tissues such as the gut, lung, heart, and placenta might be important in downregulating acute inflammatory processes within these tissues.
The adsorption geometry and energetics of formaldehyde physisorbed on Ag(111): An EELS and TPD study

Formaldehyde (H2CO and D2CO) adsorbed on Ag(111) has been studied in ultrahigh vacuum at submonolayer to multilayer coverages using electron energy loss spectroscopy (in both vibrational and electronic loss regimes) and temperature programmed desorption. It is shown that H2CO is weakly adsorbed on Ag(111) at T < 106 K with little perturbation of its vibrational or electronic properties as compared to the gas-phase molecule. The coverage (c)-dependent desorption activation energy for the monolayer is estimated to be 6.2 + 0.5c kcalmol. It is demonstrated that the adsorption geometry on the surface can be determined from the relative intensities of the vibrational loss peaks of H2CO and D2CO. The CO axis of formaldehyde is found to be tilted away from the surface normal by 57° ± 6°. The angle between the molecular plane and the tilt-plane is less well determined, but most likely lies between 0° and 36°.
Minor element geochemistry of Lake Michigan ferromanganese nodules

Abstract Samples of ferromanganese nodules from several localities in Lake Michigan have been analyzed for their minor element content utilizing neutron activation techniques. The thorium and uranium levels in Lake Michigan nodules exhibit marked dissimilarities with marine nodules. The radium content of these freshwater nodules is substantially higher than the reported marine values. The concentrations of barium in the Lake Michigan nodules appear to be abnormally high. Although barium could be present as minute segregations of the mineral barite, patterns obtained using the electron microprobe suggest it is evently dispersed throughout the nodules. The average arsenic content of these freshwater nodules is at least twice as great as that reported for highly oxidized marine sediments. If all this arsenic is dissolved and released into Green Bay as a result of changing environmental conditions (eutrophication), the concentration in the water of Green Bay would be several times the maximum permissible level for drinking water.
New Precision Measurements of the Decay Rates of Singlet and Triplet Positronium

Both the singlet and triplet decay rates (${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{S}, {\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{T}$) of positronium have been measured in a new direct timing experiment based on singlet-triplet state mixing for positronium formed in isobutane gas in a magnetic field. ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{S}=7.994\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.011$ ${\mathrm{nsec}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ was found, a factor of 10 improvement in accuracy and the first measurement sensitive enough to test the radiative corrections to ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{S}$. ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{T}=7.051\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.005$ \ensuremath{\mu}${\mathrm{sec}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ was found, in agreement with previous measurements. The combined ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{T}$ data are not in satisfactory agreement with theory.
The Signal Peptide of the IgE Receptor α-Chain Prevents Surface Expression of an Immunoreceptor Tyrosine-based Activation Motif-free Receptor Pool

The high affinity receptor for IgE, Fc epsilon receptor I (FcϵRI), is an activating immune receptor and key regulator of allergy. Antigen-mediated cross-linking of IgE-loaded FcϵRI α-chains induces cell activation via immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motifs in associated signaling subunits, such as FcϵRI γ-chains. Here we show that the human FcϵRI α-chain can efficiently reach the cell surface by itself as an IgE-binding receptor in the absence of associated signaling subunits when the endogenous signal peptide is swapped for that of murine major histocompatibility complex class-I H2-Kb. This single-chain isoform of FcϵRI exited the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), trafficked to the Golgi and, subsequently, trafficked to the cell surface. Mutational analysis showed that the signal peptide regulates surface expression in concert with other described ER retention signals of FcϵRI-α. Once the FcϵRI α-chain reached the cell surface by itself, it formed a ligand-binding receptor that stabilized upon IgE contact. Independently of the FcϵRI γ-chain, this single-chain FcϵRI was internalized after receptor cross-linking and trafficked into a LAMP-1-positive lysosomal compartment like multimeric FcϵRI. These data suggest that the single-chain isoform is capable of shuttling IgE-antigen complexes into antigen loading compartments, which plays an important physiologic role in the initiation of immune responses toward allergens. We propose that, in addition to cytosolic and transmembrane ER retention signals, the FcϵRI α-chain signal peptide contains a negative regulatory signal that prevents expression of an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif-free IgE receptor pool, which would fail to induce cell activation.
Optimization of mixing time in a ladle with dual plugs

Based on the two-phase fluid (Eulerian-Eulerian) model, a mathematical model about the gas-liquid flow and mixing behavior was developed to investigate the effect of the offset of dual plugs, the included angle of dual plugs with a center point, and gas flow rate on the mixing time in a ladle with dual plugs. Numerical results indicate that two types of recirculation zones exist in the ladle. One is the middle recirculation between gas and liquid plumes, and the other is the sidewall recirculation between plumes and the ladle sidewall. The correction shows that the mixing time is in proportion to −0.2676 power of gas flow rate. There is a unique optimum offset of dual plugs with a particular included angle, in turn, a unique optimum included angle of dual plugs exits with a particular offset.
KNO scaling as a phase transition of a Feynman-Wilson “gas”

Abstract We consider a one-dimensional Feynman-Wilson “gas” as a statistical model for the multiparticle production in hadron-hadron collision. The Ginzburg-Landau probability functional introduced by Scalapino and Sugar not only gives a simple model of rapidity correlations but permits one to study the effect of phase transitions in the system. We show that in the constant field approximation, there is KNO scaling at very large energies. We also investigate the fluctuations around the mean field for T T c and T > T c . When T ≅ T c , there is a first-order phase transition and the probability distribution has KNO scaling. We argue that the onset of KNO scaling is an indication of a transition of a hadronic matter to a quark-gluon plasma. Finally we give predictions for the observable quantities such as multiplicities, moments and two-particle correlations.
Regiospecific oxidation of substituted 1-benzyl-3,4-dihydro-isoquinolines using singlet oxygen

Abstract Singlet oxygen regiospecifically oxidizes 1-benzyl-3,4-dihydroisoquinoline. Mechanistic studies do not distinguish between a dioxetane or the alternative zwitterionic peroxide intermediate.
Voltage dependent anion channel-1 (VDAC-1) as an anti-cancer target.

Commentary to:Down-regulation of voltage-dependent anion channel-1 expression by RNA interference prevents cancer cell growth in vivoInbar Koren, Ziv Raviv and Varda Shoshan-Barmatz
Cost and speed of locomotion for rotifers

The hypothesis that the ciliary locomotion of rotifers is size limited and that it accounts of a significant portion of the energy budget was investigated using the genera Brachionus and Asplanchna. Speed of movement was measured among clones of different size in Brachionus, which shows little size variation through development. The same tests were done among individuals of different size within a clone of Asplanchna, which shows significant postembryonic size increase. In both cases, relative speed (body lengths per second) decreased significantly as body size increased. On this basis, and ecologically limiting size for ciliary locomotion is proposed. The actual cost of locomotion was measured for Brachionus; it is 62% of total metabolism, even though the theoretical (calculated) power requirements are well below 1% of total metabolism. Ciliary locomotion in the Rotifera thus appears to be extremely inefficient (low ratio of theoretical to actual power requirements). This hypothesis is supported indirectly by the sensitivity of speed to total metabolic rate in Brachionus: both plateau over the temperature range 20-32°C and decline in parallel outside this range. Unexpectedly high actual cost of locomotion is proposed as an important disadvantage of the Rotifera, partly offsetting the advantages accruing to them from small body size.
On subject expression in russian infinitive clauses of comparison

Certain embedded clauses in Russian, particularly those introduced by ctoby, esli, cem, etc., can be both finite and infinitival. Russian infinitival embedded clauses have been studied less intensively by far than their finite counterparts. Many problems of their structure and usage have not been described in detail, such as, for example, the problem of their subject expression. When a clause is infinitival, its subject is not, as a rule, overtly expressed, as in (1):
Some perspectives on monoamine-opioid peptide interaction in rat central nervous system

Abstract Light microscopic immunocytochemistry was employed to investigate possible sites of interaction between the endogenous opioid peptides and monoamines in the rat central nervous system. The opioid and related peptides examined included beta-endorphin (β-END), alpha-MSH (α-MSH) and leucine-enkephalin (Leu-ENK). The monoamines were examined using antisera generated against tyrosine hydroxylase, dopamine-β-hydroxylase as well as serotonin. Due to the long-tract nature of the central monoamine projections as well as β-END/α-MSH fiber systems, serial section analyses were performed utilizing parasagittal brain sections. Many areas rich in both the monoamines as well as opioid peptides were investigated. These included several thalamic and hypothalamic nuclei, several limbic structures, mesencephalic periaqueductal gray, brain stem noradrenergic cell groups and their rostral projections, the dopaminergic nigrostriatal system, and the serotonergic raphe nuclei and their projections. The results suggest a more intimate linkage between the monoamines and the opioid peptides than previously realized. Some of the intricacies of monoamine-opioid peptide interaction, in particular those pertaining to their possible role in pain and analgesia, catalepsy, and neuroendocrine effects are also discussed.
The Affinity of Protein C for the Thrombin·Thrombomodulin Complex Is Determined in a Primary Way by Active Site-dependent Interactions

The interaction of thrombin (IIa) with thrombomodulin (TM) is essential for the efficient activation of protein C (PC). Interactions between PC and extended surfaces, likely contributed by TM within the IIa.TM complex, have been proposed to play a key role in PC activation. Initial velocities of PC activation at different concentrations of PC and TM could be accounted for by a model that did not require consideration of direct binding interactions between PC and TM. Reversible inhibitors directed toward the active site of IIa within the IIa.TM complex behaved as classic competitive inhibitors of both peptidyl substrate cleavage as well as PC activation. The ability of these small molecule inhibitors to block PC binding to the enzyme points to a principal role for active site-dependent substrate recognition in determining the affinity of IIa.TM for its protein substrate. Selective abrogation of active site docking by mutation of the P1 Arg in PC to Gln yielded an uncleavable derivative (PC(R15Q)). PC(R15Q) was a poor inhibitor (K(i) >or= 30 microm) of PC activation as well as peptidyl substrate cleavage by IIa.TM. Thus, inhibition by PC(R15Q) most likely results from its ability to weakly interfere with active site function rather than by blocking extended interactions with the enzyme complex. The data suggest a primary role for active site-dependent substrate recognition in driving the affinity of the IIa.TM complex for its protein substrate. Interactions between PC and extended surfaces contributed by IIa and/or TM within the IIa.TM complex likely contribute in a secondary or minor way to protein substrate affinity.
Involvement of cyclins and cdc2 serine/threonine protein kinase in human sperm cell function.

The presence and roles of mitotic cyclins (cyclin A and cyclin B), and cdc2 and related (having an N-terminal PSTAIRE conserved sequence) serine/threonine protein kinases were investigated by use of specific antibodies. The cyclin A and cyclin B, antibodies reacted specifically with the acrosomal regions of human sperm cells in the indirect immunofluorescence technique (IFT) and recognized the specific band of p60 (cyclin A) and p62 (cyclin B,) on the Western blot of sodium deoxycholate (DOC)-solubilized noncapacitated human sperm preparation. Both antibodies reacted more strongly with the specific cell region/ band of capacitated sperm than with that of noncapacitated sperm. The cdc2 and PSTAIRE antibodies also reacted predominantly with the acrosomal regions of human sperm cells in IFT and recognized the specific band of 34 kDa corresponding to p34 cdc2 protein on the Western blot of DOC-solubilized noncapacitated human sperm preparation. Again, both antibodies reacted more strongly with the specific cell region/band of capacitated sperm than with that of noncapacitated sperm. The cyclin A antibodies (but not the cyclin B, antibodies) and cdc2 antibodies as well as the PSTAIRE antibodies significantly (p = 0.02 top < 0.001) increased (rather than decreased) the human sperm penetration rates of zona-free hamster ova; the cyclin A and cdc2 antibodies showed the strongest enhancing effects. These three antibodies significantly increased the acrosome reaction and release of acrosin activity from the sperm cells. There was no significant effect of these antibodies on percentage of motility, though they significantly affected various sperm motility characteristics, especially the velocity, amplitude of lateral head displacement, and beat cross frequency-the motility parameters involved in hyperactivation phenomenon of sperm cells. These results suggest the presence and possible involvement of mitotic cyclins (especially cyclin A) and of cdc2 and related serine/threonine protein kinases in the human sperm cell capacitation and/or acrosome reaction.
PRODUCTION OF ESTROGENIC HORMONE BY A TRANSPLANTABLE OVARIAN CARCINOMA

Physiological activity of glandular neoplasias has been frequently described. Tumors involving the endocrine glands are of particular interest for profound changes may be brought about in the individual by the hormones secreted by such neoplasms. That these tumors secrete hormones is shown by alleviation of the aggravated conditions after surgical removal of the tumors. Among the tumors of the endocrine glands that are of interest are those involving the ovary. Impetus toward the study of the problem of ovarian tumors secreting hormones has been accelerated by the series of papers by Meyer (1–5) since 1930. At the present time in mankind, according to Meigs (6) 6 ovarian tumors which may secrete hormones have been identified: 1) ovariotestes; 2) testicular tubular adenoma of Pick; 3) arrhenoblastoma; 4) hypernephroma of adrenal origin; 5) disgerminoma or seminoma; and 6) granulosa cell tumor. Of these 6 types only the granulosa cell tumor is known to secrete estrogenic hormone.
Thermal profiling of photonic integrated circuits by thermoreflectance microscopy

We demonstrate the use of thermoreflectance imaging for wafer-scale testing of photonic integrated circuits. The technique is used to identify damaged devices in a dysfunctional photonic circuit comprised of cascaded semiconductor optical amplifiers.
Adaptive eigen-projection beamforming algorithms for 1D and 2D antenna arrays

We develop one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) adaptive algorithms that use gradient projections in selected subspaces for use in antenna beamforming. The 1D algorithm is essentially a significantly enhanced version of an eigenspace projection algorithm (EPA) that was previously developed for controls. The 2D algorithm is new and is based on a stacked configuration of the enhanced 1D algorithm. Both algorithms are applied to antenna beamforming in uniform linear and planar arrays. Simulation results show faster convergence as well as improved beam properties. In addition, results for a more realistic scenario, with a BPSK signal and antenna coupling effects, are also quite promising.
Androgen receptor identification in the diagnosis of eyelid sebaceous carcinomas.

Purpose To assess the role of androgen receptor detection in diagnosing eyelid sebaceous carcinomas and to compare it with that of adipophilin. Design Retrospective, clinicopathologic study. Methods Ten sebaceous carcinomas (8 invasive, 2 intraepithelial only) were stained immunohistochemically for androgen receptors and were compared with adipophilin staining. Receptor staining also was performed on benign sebaceous tumors (a sebaceoma and an adenoma) and as controls on eyelid basal cell carcinomas, eyelid squamous cell carcinomas, conjunctival squamous dysplasias, and conjunctival melanomas. Results All 8 patients with an invasive component of sebaceous carcinoma underwent a biopsy in which the tumor cells showed diffusely positive results for androgen receptors (>20% of cells and usually >40%) and positive results for adipophilin. Eight cases displaying an intraepithelial (or pagetoid) component of spread also showed diffusely positive results for androgen receptors and adipophilin in at least 1 of multiple biopsy samples from each patient. However, in 8 of 21 separate conjunctival biopsy specimens with intraepithelial cytologic atypia, adipophilin results were negative. A sebaceoma and a sebaceous adenoma also showed positive results for both of these biomarkers. Among the controls, squamous carcinomas and melanomas showed negative results for androgen receptors and adipophilin. Basal cell carcinomas displayed focal receptor positivity in fewer than 5% of cells and showed negative results for adipophilin. Conclusions Androgen receptors and adipophilin can separate sebaceous tumors immunohistochemically from squamous carcinomas and melanomas, which showed negative results for both, and from basal cell carcinomas, which showed positive receptor results in a distant minority of cells. Regarding intraepithelial (or pagetoid) spread, androgen receptor detection was more sensitive and reliable than adipophilin in highlighting this component of the disease.
Using measured material parameters in solving forced motion problems in viscoelasticity

Abstract A method is given for handling forced motion problems in viscoelasticity when experimental data is used to represent the material data instead of a model. A cubic spline series is used to interpolate between data points and thus to represent the data in a logical fashion that can be handled analytically. The solution to the time part of the problem is found in terms of the Laplace transform which is inverted numerically. The problem of the forced motion of a circular Mindlin plate is considered and the results compared to previously obtained results where a three element, or standard linear solid, representation was used to model the material's behavior in shear.
Ovulation in Drosophila is controlled by secretory cells of the female reproductive tract

How oocytes are transferred into an oviduct with a receptive environment remains poorly known. We found that glands of the Drosophila female reproductive tract, spermathecae and/or parovaria, are required for ovulation and to promote sperm storage. Reducing total secretory cell number by interferring with Notch signaling during development blocked ovulation. Knocking down expression after adult eclosion of the nuclear hormone receptor Hr39, a master regulator of gland development, slowed ovulation and blocked sperm storage. However, ovulation (but not sperm storage) continued when only canonical protein secretion was compromised in adult glands. Our results imply that proteins secreted during adulthood by the canonical secretory pathway from female reproductive glands are needed to store sperm, while a non-canonical glandular secretion stimulates ovulation. Our results suggest that the reproductive tract signals to the ovary using glandular secretions, and that this pathway has been conserved during evolution. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.00415.001
Response to auditory stimuli in 6- and 9-week-old human infants.

Response to 5-sec, 75-dB complex sounds was studied in groups of 24 infants each at 6 and 9 weeks of age. Under conditions appropriate for eliciting orienting, no significant cardiac response appeared at 6 weeks, but a significantly decelerative response did appear at 9 weeks. Measurement of noncardiac responses suggested that sucking suppression is also a component of orienting to sound, that the status of eye-opening is equivocal, and that previously reported eye-movement responses are probably a component of startle. We concluded that age changes in orienting may occur in young infants, even when state is controlled, and that the probability of orienting varies with the kind of stimuli employed.
Methods for inferring regional surface‐mass anomalies from Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) measurements of time‐variable gravity

[1] The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, GRACE, will deliver monthly averages of the spherical harmonic coefficients describing the Earth's gravity field, from which we expect to infer time-variable changes in mass, averaged over arbitrary regions having length scales of a few hundred kilometers and larger, to accuracies of better than 1 cm of equivalent water thickness. These data will be useful for examining changes in the distribution of water in the ocean, in snow and ice on polar ice sheets, and in continental water and snow storage. We describe methods of extracting regional mass anomalies from GRACE gravity coefficients. Spatial averaging kernels were created to isolate the gravity signal of individual regions while simultaneously minimizing the effects of GRACE observational errors and contamination from surrounding glacial, hydrological, and oceanic gravity signals. We then estimated the probable accuracy of averaging kernels for regions of arbitrary shape and size.
From Bloch functions to quantum wells.

The early foundations for the electronics revolution were set in Professor Felix Bloch’s Ph. D. dissertation. The fundamental insights of this work are reviewed in light of both their impact on modern electronics, and particularly, their relevance for today’s quantum well engineered devices, and their potential to be tomorrow’s electronics foundation.
Quantifying the Use of Structure in Cognitive Tasks

Modern algorithms that process images to be viewed by humans analyze the images strictly as signals, where processing is typically limited to the pixel and frequency domains. The continuum of visual processing by the human visual system (HVS) from signal analysis to cognition indicates that the signal-processing based model of the HVS could be extended to include some higher-level, structural processing. An experiment was conducted to study the relative importance of higher-level, structural representations and lower-level, signal-based representations of natural images in a cognitive task. Structural representations preserve the overall image organization necessary to recognize the image content and discard the finer details of objects such at textures. Signal-based representations (i.e. digital photographs) decompose an image in terms of its frequency, orientation, and contrast. Participants viewed sequences of images from either structural or signal-based representations, where subsequent images in the sequence reveal additional detail or visual information from the source image. When the content was recognizable, participants were instructed to provide a description of that image in the sequence. The descriptions were subjectively evaluated to identify a participant's recognition threshold for a particular image representation. The results from this experiment suggest that signal-based representations possess meaning to human observers when the proportion of high frequency content, which conveys shape information, exceeds a seemingly fixed proportion. Additional comparisons among the representations chosen for this experiment provide insight toward quantifying their significance in cognition and developing a rudimentary measure of visual entropy.
Robustness in the Strategy of Scientific Model Building.

Publisher Summary Robustness may be defined as the property of a procedure which renders the answers it gives insensitive to departures, of a kind which occur in practice, from ideal assumptions. Since assumptions imply some kind of scientific model, I believe that it is necessary to look at the process of scientific modelling itself to understand the nature of and the need for robust procedures. Against such a view it might be urged that some useful robust procedures have been derived empirically without an explicitly stated model. However, an empirical procedure implies some unstated model and there is often great virtue in bringing into the open the kind of assumptions that lead to useful methods. The need for robust methods seems to be intimately mixed up with the need for simple models. This we now discuss.
The Common Ground of Wesley and Edwards

Although evangelicalism is “spiritual” and empiricism is “natural,” the great principle of empiricism, that one must see for oneself and be in the presence of the thing one knows, applies as well to evangelical faith. Each of these two methodologies operates along a continuum that joins emotion to intellect; each joins externality to words through “ideas/ideals of sensation,” that is, through either perception or grace-in-perception or both. While empiricism refers to immediate contact with and direct impact from objects and subjects in time and place, evangelicalism entertains the notions that religious truth is concerned with experiential presuppositions and that experience need not be nonreligious. On the basis of the experiential common denominator between empiricism and evangelicalism, through the “both/and” logic of philosophical theology, I argue that John Wesley (1703–91), founder of British Methodism, and Jonathan Edwards (1703–58), leader of the American Great Awakening, theologize empiricism. They ground transcendentalism in the world, balance religious myths and religious morality with scientific reverence for fact and detail, and ally empirical assumptions with “disciplined” spirit. Above all, they share the simultaneously rational and sensationalist reliance on experience as the avenue to both natural and spiritual knowledge.
Nonconventional Clinical Trial Designs Approaches to Provide More Precise Estimates of Treatment Effects With a Smaller Sample Size, but at a Cost

Statistical sciences have recently made advancements that allow improved precision or reduced sample size in clinical research studies. Herein, we review 4 of the more promising: (1) improvements in approaches for dose selection trials, (2) approaches for sample size adjustment, (3) selection of study end point and associated statistical methods, and (4) frequentist versus Bayesian statistical methods. Whereas each of these holds the opportunity for more efficient trials, each are associated with the need for more stringent assumptions or increased complexity in the interpretation of results. The opportunities for these promising approaches, and their associated "costs," are reviewed.
Development of the Triangular Model for Pavement Evaluation Using the Rolling Wheel Deflectometer

Using the rolling wheel deflectometer (RWD), which measures pavement deflections at traffic speeds, offers the potential to characterize the structural capacity of the road network without major delays and to do so in a cost-effective way. To optimize using the RWD at the network level, an assessment tool is needed to incorporate RWD data into a current pavement management system (PMS) and to identify pavements in need of maintenance or rehabilitation. The objective of this study is to present the development of a screening tool, referred to as the pavement-assessment triangular model, to predict overall pavement conditions on the basis of RWD deflection, roughness measurements, and surface conditions as described by a pavement condition index (PCI). Formulation of the proposed tool and its application were based on data collected during evaluation and testing of RWDs in Louisiana. This screening tool may be used at the network level to identify sites in poor condition and to conduct additional testing using the falling weight deflectometer (FWD) on the identified sites or to select a rehabilitation treatment option based on RWD measurements and PMS data.
The synaptojanin-like protein Inp53/Sjl3 functions with clathrin in a yeast TGN-to-endosome pathway distinct from the GGA protein- dependent pathway

Yeast TGN resident proteins that frequently cycle between the TGN and endosomes are much more slowly transported to the prevacuolar/late endosomal compartment (PVC) than other proteins. However, TG...