cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
mHealth SMS text messaging interventions and to promote medication adherence: an integrative review.

Aims and objectives This article is an integrative review of the evidence for mobile health Short Message Service text messages as an innovative and emerging intervention to promote medication adherence. Authors completed this review to draw conclusions and implications towards establishing a scientific foundation for use of text messages to promote medication adherence, thus informing clinical practice. Background The World Health Organization has identified medication adherence as a priority global problem. Text messages are emerging as an effective means of improving health behaviours and in some diseases to promote medication adherence. However, a gap in the literature indicates lack of evidence in guiding theories and content of text messages, which should be synthesised prior to use in clinical practice. Design Integrative review. Methods Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Excerpta Medica dataBASE, Scopus, the Cochrane Library and PubMed were searched for relevant studies between 2004–2014. Inclusion criteria were (1) implementation of a text-message intervention and (2) medication adherence to a prescribed oral medication as a primary outcome. Articles were assessed for quality of methodology and measures of adherence. An integrative review process was used to perform analysis. Results Thirteen articles meeting the inclusion criteria are included in this review. Nine of 13 studies found adherence rates improved between 15·3—17·8% when using text messages to promote medication adherence. Text messages that were standardised, tailored, one- or two-way and timed either daily to medication regimen, weekly or monthly showed improvement in medication adherence. Conclusions This review established a scientific basis for text messages as an intervention to improve medication adherence across multiple diseases. Future large rigorous randomised trials are needed to further test text messaging interventions. Relevance to clinical practice This review provides clinicians with the state of the science with regard to text messaging interventions that promote medication adherence. A description of intervention components are provided to aid nurses in development of text messages and in translating evidence into practice.
Eating Right Here: Moving from Consumer to Food Citizen

The term food citizenship is defined as the practice of engaging in food-related behaviors that support, rather than threaten, the development of a democratic, socially and economically just, and environmentally sustainable food system. Ways to practice food citizenship are described and a role for universities in fostering food citizenship is suggested. Finally, four barriers to food citizenship are identified and described: the current food system, federal food and agriculture policy, local and institutional policies, and the culture of professional nutrition organizations.
Patients' willingness to accept risks of medical intervention: intubation and ventilatory support for short periods of time.

STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess patients' willingness to accept the risks of intubation and ventilatory support (IVS) for short periods of time. DESIGN Cross-sectional structured interviews of patients. SETTING The Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Portland, Oregon, USA, a university-based Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. PARTICIPANTS 97 consecutive patients (mean age =67.4 years, s.d. =9.16, range =39-84) seen for continuity clinic appointments in a general medicine clinic. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS In a hypothetical situation of an acute exacerbation of a medical condition requiring IVS, patients were asked whether they would accept IVS if their physician thought that their acute exacerbation was reversible (defined as being able to leave the hospital with their mental capacity minimally affected and being able to care for themselves in most activities of daily living in a nursing home environment). Patients were also asked to define what they meant by a "short period of time of IVS," and at what chance of reversal of their acute exacerbation they would allow their physicians to act with IVS (measured by means of a lottery methodology). Ninety-seven percent (94/97) of patients reported a willingness to undergo IVS for a short period of time. Eighteen percent reported that they would allow IVS for 1-2 days; 38% reported 3-14 days; 14% reported 15-30 days; and 30% reported >30 days. One third of the patients were willing to accept IVS if the probability of reversal were ≤40%. Patients with advance directives preferred to be supported for fewer days on IVS than patients without an advance directive (P=0.014). CONCLUSIONS We conclude that most patients are willing to allow IVS for the reversal of an acute condition as defined above. There are wide variations in the length of time patients would allow IVS and in the probability of reversal they would require before their physician intervened with IVS on their behalf. These results suggest that discussions about advance directives with patients should include assessment of patient preferences about duration of intervention and probability of successful outcome.
Forage Production of Sainfoin across an Irrigation Gradient

Limited water and curtailed use of public lands for grazing has increased interest in intensively managed pastures in the western USA. Our objective was to evaluate forage production of sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia Scop.), a nonbloating legume, compared with alfalfa (Medicago saliva L.). Thirteen sainfoin cultivars and 'Deseret' alfalfa were evaluated at four water levels (WLs) and four harvests in 1998 and 1999 under a line-source irrigation system. Water levels (WL1, WL2, WL3, and WL4) received an average of 78.3, 65.8, 34.9, and 8.3 cm of water, respectively. Significant effects were found for cultivar, cultivar × WL, harvest date, and cultivar × harvest date. Annual production of sainfoin at WL1, WL2, WL3, and WL4 was 11.6, 11.4, 9.6, and 8.9 Mg ha -1 , respectively, whereas annual production of Deseret was 20.7, 18.5, 18.0, and 16.3 Mg ha -1 , respectively. Overall yield trends across WLs were linear for sainfoin and Deseret and were parallel (P = 0.55) with slopes of b = 0.042 and b = 0.054, respectively. Yield of sainfoin at Harvest 1 through 4 was 5.5, 2.1, 1.5, and 1.3 Mg ha -1 , respectively. Yield of Deseret from Harvest 1 through 4 was 5.9, 5.3, 4.7, and 2.4 Mg ha -1 , respectively. Yields of the two species at Harvest 1 did not differ. The flat linear trend across WLs verifies that both crops are tolerant to dry conditions. With its highest production potential during early growth, sainfoin is best suited for situations where early growth of a nonbloating legume is desired, but will not compete with alfalfa in total seasonal production.
Effect of Oligosaccharide Modified Material X on Viability of Human Cancer Cell Lines

Anticarcinoma agents take part in the selective destruction of cancer cell lines, or inhibit the growth and proliferation of cancer cells. Finding anticarcinoma agents that have do not have noteworthy negative side effects is important matter for application in various flelds. Most of polysaccharides were used as medical product or an additive to health functional food. For example chitin and chitosan are known to exhibit antitumor, antibacterial, and antihypertensive activity. In this study, we incubated two kinds of cancer cells (Hep3B, A549) and 293T HEK cell treated with material X in concentration of 0.5%, 1% and 2% respectively for 24h. Then we measured viability of the cells by MTT assay. Our data suggest viability of 293T decreases gradually as concentration of X increases. Survival rates of 293T with X in concentration of 0.5%, 1% and 2% are 73.3%, 53.2% and 31.3% respectively. The cancer cell lines had more tolerance for 0.5% X and 1% X. However the cancer cells exhibited a rapid decline of viability when treated with 2% X. Survival rate of Hep3B with 2% X is 8.7% and that of A549 is 8.4%. With 2% X, cancer cell lines are about 4 times cytotoxic effects of the normal cell line. These results indicate that material X of specific concentration or higher depletes cancer cell lines while showing gradual effect on normal cell lines. To our knowledge, material X could be a promising antitumor application.
The effect of saccade metrics on the corollary discharge contribution to perceived eye location.

Corollary discharge (CD) is hypothesized to provide the movement information (direction and amplitude) required to compensate for the saccade-induced disruptions to visual input. Here, we investiga...
Realpolitik in the American University: Charles A. Beard and the Problem of Academic Repression

Charles A. Beard resigned from Columbia University on October 8, 1917 at a time when modern universities were emerging as significant institutions in the economic and political development of the United States. Thus, Beard's highly publicized resignation came at a time when universities were under exceptional scrutiny by economic and political elites, who increasingly viewed higher education institutions as either private corporations which they owned or as extensions of the modern state apparatus. Moreover, Beard's resignation came after a long string of dismissals, resignations, and censures at American universities that progressive historians have ironically chronicled as a history of the development of academic freedom in the United States. In fact, the early “academic freedom” cases were successful acts of academic repression and, in this context, Charles A. Beard's resignation opened a window onto the realpolitik of American universities, which have never been ivory towers, but have always been fund...
Martian megaflood‐triggered chaos formation, revealing groundwater depth, cryosphere thickness, and crustal heat flux

[1] Ravi Vallis is an outflow channel complex that emerged from Aromatum Chaos, a region of collapsed ground in Xanthe Terra, Mars. I propose that the megaflood that carved Ravi Vallis incised the crust more than 700 m, penetrated the cryosphere, and triggered the release of groundwater and genesis of secondary chaos zones in the deepest parts of the channel system. Discharge rates of 4 × 106 to 5 × 107 m3 s−1 are estimated for early overland flooding. Assuming bank-full flow would yield unrealistic discharge rates of >3 × 108 m3 s−1. Waning stage flooding in an inner channel had a discharge rate on the order of ≲1 × 106 m3 s−1. The cryosphere thickness and groundwater depth are estimated as the sum of the channel incision depth and the thickness of residual cryosphere beneath the channel floor that could be disrupted by high artesian pressure. The surface elevation (−1231 m) of a transient water body in Aromatum Chaos would have controlled the maximum potentiometric heads in confined aquifers to the east. Where Iamuna Chaos was spawned, the floor of Ravi Vallis would have experienced upward hydraulic pressures of ≤2.4 MPa, enough to rupture a basaltic rock layer ≤255 m thick. At the time of the flood the cryosphere thickness and groundwater depth would have been 700 to 1000 m at this location on the equator, indicating a relatively cold, long-term climate trend similar to that of present-day Mars. The crustal heat flux likely exceeded 50 mW m−2 at Iamuna Chaos. If deep lakes existed at that time in the ancestral Valles Marineris, their ice covers are estimated to have been less than 3 km thick. The fluvial incision and groundwater breakout model described here can fully account for the inception of Iamuna Chaos, Oxia Chaos, and a smaller unnamed chaos. Therefore a locally enhanced crustal heat flux was not required to initiate the formation of these chaotes.
Chloroplast gene arrangement variation within a closely related group of green algae (Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta)

Abstract The 22 published chloroplast genomes of green algae, representing sparse taxonomic sampling of diverse lineages that span over one billion years of evolution, each possess a unique gene arrangement. In contrast, many of the >190 published embryophyte (land plant) chloroplast genomes have relatively conserved architectures. To determine the phylogenetic depth at which chloroplast gene rearrangements occur in green algae, a 1.5–4 kb segment of the chloroplast genome was compared across nine species in three closely related genera of Trebouxiophyceae (Chlorophyta). In total, four distinct gene arrangements were obtained for the three genera Elliptochloris, Hemichloris, and Coccomyxa. In Elliptochloris, three distinct chloroplast gene arrangements were detected, one of which is shared with members of its sister genus Hemichloris. Both species of Coccomyxa examined share the fourth arrangement of this genome region, one characterized by very long spacers. Next, the order of genes found in this segment of the chloroplast genome was compared across green algae and land plants. As taxonomic ranks are not equivalent among different groups of organisms, the maximum molecular divergence among taxa sharing a common gene arrangement in this genome segment was compared. Well-supported clades possessing a single gene order had similar phylogenetic depth in green algae and embryophytes. When the dominant gene order of this chloroplast segment in embryophytes was assumed to be ancestral for land plants, the maximum molecular divergence was found to be over two times greater in embryophytes than in trebouxiophyte green algae. This study greatly expands information about chloroplast genome variation in green algae, is the first to demonstrate such variation among congeneric green algae, and further illustrates the fluidity of green algal chloroplast genome architecture in comparison to that of many embryophytes.
Effects of exogenous hormones on spermatogenesis in the male prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)

Background Male prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) breed anually and have complete testicular regression. Changes in the seminiferous tubules during the annual cycle have been described recently (Foreman, 1997). This is the first description of spermatogenesis in such a species. The definition of tubular stages during the cycle allows for evaluation of the effects of exogenous hormones, hemicastration, and hemicryptorchidism on spermatogenesis during the annual cycle. Methods Hemicastration was performed during stages of the annual cycle to determine effects of exogenous hormones on remaining testes. Hemicryptorchidism was also done during stages of the annual cycle. FSH, LH, and testosterone were given in high and low doses for short- or long-term treatment periods during stages of the annual cycle. Testicular weights and counts of cell types in tubules of control and treated testes were made on testis tissues. Results Hemicastration during the out-of-season period does not cause compensatory hypertrophy of the remaining testis, but during recrudescence, hypertrophy of the remaining testis occurs. Hemicastration does not prevent loss of weight by the remaining testis during regression. The seminiferous epithelium of hemicryptorchid prairie dog testes shows damage during spermatogenic activity but not during testicular inactivity. Similarly, hemicryptorchid 15-day-old rat testes do not show damage from hemicryptorchidism. Long-term treatment with FSH preparations during testicular inactivity increased testis weights, spermatogonial proliferation, and spermatocyte differentiation in conjunction with Sertoli cell differentiation. Short-term treatments with low doses increased spermatogonial proliferation and abnormal meiotic activity. Both long- and short-term treatments with LH caused increased sloughing of germ cells and stimulated Leydig and Sertoli cells. Testosterone propionate injections stimulated Sertoli secretions but not Leydig cell activity. Conclusions Hemicastration during inactivity does not stimulate gonadotropin secretion. Hemicryptorchidism does not affect tubular morphology during inactivity in either rats or prairie dogs. Prompt responses to FSH depend on scrotal location of the testis. FSH has its major effects on germ cell proliferation and differentiation, both directly and through activation of Sertoli cells, whereas LH affects Sertoli and Leydig cell activation but has no effect on germ cell activity. Testosterone activates Sertoli cells. Anat. Rec. 250:45–61, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Human Brain Rhythms: I. Recording Techniques and Preliminary Results

(1936). Human Brain Rhythms: I. Recording Techniques and Preliminary Results. The Journal of General Psychology: Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 98-126.
Research: Performance and bandwidth balancing of the register insertion bus (RIB) fiber optic network

Register insertion bus (RIB) is a high-speed network that uses a folded-bus topology and a medium access interface similar to that used in the register insertion ring. A detailed analysis of the packet delay for the RIB network is presented. The analysis results are demonstrated and shown to accurately match RIB simulation results. Performance analysis demonstrates that fair network access is achieved at normal loads, but upstream stations are favored for high loads. Thus, extensions to the RIB access scheme to provide a fair distributed access scheme is presented. Results presented show this bandwidth balancing technique to provide a fair access to the network for all loads.
Soft breaking of supersymmetry

Using superfield methods we discuss systematically explicit soft breaking of global supersymmetry. We find that, in a component field language, dimension-two operators are soft while, in general, dimension-three operators are not and introduce quadratic divergences not present in the unbroken theory. At the one-loop level we give a parallel discussion based on the effective potential.
Effects of Thermal History and Jet Fuel Absorption on the Properties of APC-2:

The response of APC-2 (AS4/PEEK) processed with different thermal histories simulating different fabrication techniques was investigated. Three thermal histories were evaluated: (1) slow cooled (SC...
Drug Treatment for Women: Traditional Models and New Directions

Drug treatment is a diverse field in which a variety of treatment frameworks and formats exist, few of which have been tailored to women's circumstances and needs. Most drug treatment is based on insight-oriented and behavioral approaches, often accompanied by pharmacologic treatments. Complementary approaches such as acupuncture and biofeedback also are available. Feminist criticisms of traditional therapy have prompted development of woman-centered treatment, which provides a safe environment for empowerment and building relationship skills. Nurses can provide supportive interventions using mutuality and avoiding confrontation, and can advocate for access to woman-centered drug treatment and harm reduction measures to minimize the damage caused by alcohol and drugs.
Sandstone Compositions Related to Plate Tectonic Settings: ABSTRACT

Sandstone compositions are a function of provenance and depositional basin and both of these are determined by plate tectonics. Modal analyses of major framework grain types--quartz, polycrystalline quartz, potassium feldspar, plagioclase, volcanic lithic grains, and sedimentary lithic grains--plotted on a series of four triangular diagrams can be used to distinguish between the main provenance types. Quartz-rich sands come from cratonal sources and are deposited in basins on the craton and at quiet continental margins (miogeoclines and opening ocean basins). Arkosic sands are shed from uplifted blocks on continental basement into rift troughs and wrench basins associated with transform faults. Volcanic lithic sands have volcanic arc provenances and are deposited in trenches, forearc basins, and marginal seas. Undissected arcs produce very lithic-rich sand; more mature and eroded arcs produce a mixture of volcanic lithic and plutonic (mainly quartz and feldspar) detritus. Sands rich in quartz or chert plus sedimentary lithic grains come from subduction complexes, collision orogenic belts, and foreland uplifts and are deposited in closing ocean basins, successor basins, and foreland basins. Data from both modern sands and ancient sandstones of known tectonic settings fit the above picture; influence of climate and diagenesis on sand composition must be less important than that of tectonic setting. Hence knowing the detrital modes of sandstones provides a way of determining the original tectonic setting of the rocks, and framework grain composition of sands can be predicted from their tectonic setting. End_of_Article - Last_Page 449------------
David and Goliath: Diaspora organizations as partners in the development industry

SUMMARY Diasporas are a potential resource for development and are receiving more attention from governments, international donors, and other development actors. Increasing rapprochement among these actors for the purpose of development may yield a mix of costs and benefits, depending on how it evolves. This article draws lessons from NGOs’ experience; identifies diasporas’ potential comparative advantages for development; illuminates limitations to their instrumentalization by these actors; and provides assessment tools and frameworks for informing strategic partnerships that can sustain diasporas’ organization identity over time. Attention to diasporas as potential development actors rarely moves beyond remittances, though diasporas may embody a range of significant comparative advantages. For example, diasporans may come from the poorest, most marginalized places in their country of origin (COO), and may be the only actors with sustained reach and interest into these locations and populations. The analysis focuses on informing DOs’ decision-making with respect to strategically partnering with governments and donors to advance shared development aims. On their part, if donors and governments seek to maximize diaspora development contributions rather than rushing to instrumentalize diasporas, they would do well simply to embrace diasporans as independent partners, not extensions of their own agendas. Copyright # 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Regional specificity in estradiol effects on [3H]uridine incorporation in rat brain

In this study, the effects of 15 days of estradiol (E2) on tritiated-uridine incorporation were autoradiographically examined, on a cell-by-cell basis, in 4 E2-concentrating regions of the female rat brain. These areas included the ventromedial hypothalamus and medial amygdala nucleus, 2 regions involved in the behavioral components of reproduction, and the medial preoptic area and arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, 2 regions involved in the endocrine components of reproduction. Chronic E2 caused a 50% and 52% increase in tritiated-uridine incorporation in the arcuate nucleus and medial preoptic area, but was without effect in the ventromedial hypothalamus and medial amygdala nucleus. Somal area was also increased with E2 in the arcuate nucleus and medial preoptic area (16% and 43%, respectively) but not in the ventromedial hypothalamus and medial amygdala nucleus. The results indicate that the effects of estradiol on levels of newly synthesized RNA vary in a functionally and regionally specific manner within the brain.
Cytokine induced modulation of MHC class I and class II molecules on human cervical epithelial cells

Our purpose was to determine the expression of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and class II gene products as well as the costimulatory molecules B7-1 and B7-2 on cervical epithelial cells, and to determine to what extent inflammatory cytokines regulate their expression. Immunohistology and flow cytometry techniques were used to identify and quantify MHC class I and class II molecules, and the costimulatory molecules B7.1 and B7.2, on sections and primary epithelial cell cultures of human endo- and ectocervix. MHC class I but not class II molecules were constitutively expressed on tissue sections and primary epithelial cell cultures derived from endo- and ectocervix. Expression of MHC class I and class II was upregulated in vitro by IFN-γ in a time and dose dependent fashion. The induction of class II expression was more pronounced on ectocervical cells than on endocervical cells. MHC class I but not class II expression was also enhanced by IFN-α as well as TNF-α. TNF-α and TGF-β1 inhibited the IFN-γ induced MHC class II expression. Expression of the costimulatory molecules B7-1 and B7-2 were not detected in tissue sections or on resting or cytokine-treated cervical epithelial cells in vitro. The present results support the concept that endo- and ectocervical epithelial cells, like their counterparts at other mucosal sites, constitutively express MHC class I molecules and can express MHC class II upon cytokine stimulation, indicating that they are capable of presenting antigens to T-cells.
Lysine-insensitive aspartate kinase in two threonine-overproducing mutants of maize.

Aspartate kinase (AK; EC 2.7.2.A) catalyzes the first reaction in the biosynthesis pathway for aspartate-derived amino acids in plants. Aspartate kinase was purified from wildtype and two maize (Zea mays L.) genotypes carrying unlinked dominant mutations,Ask LT19 andAsk2 -LT20, that conferred overproduction of threonine, lysine, methionine and isoleucine. The objective of this investigation was to characterize the AKs from mutant and wildtype plants to determine their role in regulating the synthesis of aspartate-derived amino acids in maize. Kernels of the homozygousAsk2 mutant exhibited 174-, 10-, 13- and 2-fold increases in, in this sequence, free threonine, lysine, methionine and isoleucine, compared to wildtype. In wildtype maize, AK was allosterically feedback-inhibited by lysine with 10 μMl-lysine required for 50% inhibition. In contrast, AK purified from the isogenic heterozygousAsk and homozygousAsk2 mutants required 25 and 760 μM lysine for 50% inhibition, respectively, indicating thatAsk andAsk2 were separate structural loci for lysine-regulated AK subunits in maize. Further characterization of purified AK from the homozygous mutantAsk2 line indicated altered substrate and lysine inhibition kinetics. The apparent Hill coefficient was 0.7 for the mutantAsk2 AK compared with 1.6 for the wildtype enzyme, indicating that the mutant allele conferred the loss of a lysinebinding site to the mutant AK. Lysine appeared to be a linear noncompetitive inhibitor ofAsk2 AK with respect to MgATP and an uncompetitive inhibitor with respect to aspartate compared to S-parabolic, I parabolic noncompetitive inhibition of wildtype AK. Reduced lysine sensitivity of theAsk2 gene product appeared to reduce the lysine inhibition of all of the AK activity detected in homozygousAsk2 plants, indicating that maize AK is a heteromeric enzyme consisting of the two lysine-sensitive polypeptides derived from theAsk andAsk2 structural genes.
Allergy to phenyl salicylate

Six cases of contact dermatitis from a lip salve are described. Five were allergic to phenyl salicylate and one to geraniol in the fragrance. The dermatitis spread in a ring around the mouth. Phenyl salicylate has been removed from the formulation.
Topoisomerase I Associates Specifically with Simian Virus 40 Large-T-Antigen Double Hexamer–Origin Complexes

Topoisomerase I (topo I) is required for releasing torsional stress during simian virus 40 (SV40) DNA replication. Recently, it has been demonstrated that topo I participates in initiation of replication as well as in elongation. Although T antigen and topo I can bind to one another in vitro, there is no direct evidence that topo I is a component of the replication initiation complex. We demonstrate in this report that topo I associates with T-antigen double hexamers bound to SV40 origin DNA (TDH) but not to single hexamers. This association has the same nucleotide and DNA requirements as those for the formation of double hexamers on DNA. Interestingly, topo I prefers to bind to fully formed TDH complexes over other oligomerized forms of T antigen associated with the origin. High ratios of topo I to origin DNA destabilize TDH. The partial unwinding of a small-circular-DNA substrate is dependent on the presence of both T antigen and topo I but is inhibited at high topo I concentrations. Competition experiments with a topo I-binding fragment of T antigen indicate that an interaction between T antigen and topo I occurs during the unwinding reaction. We propose that topo I is recruited to the initiation complex after the assembly of TDH and before unwinding to facilitate DNA replication.
NO-donating aspirin inhibits the growth of leukemic Jurkat cells and modulates β-catenin expression

Abstract β-Catenin has been implicated in leukemic cell proliferation. We compared the effects of aspirin (ASA) and the ortho , meta , and para positional isomers of NO-donating aspirin (NO-ASA) on cell growth and β-catenin expression in human Jurkat T leukemic cells. Cell growth inhibition was strong: IC 50 for p -, o -, and m - were 20 ± 1.6 (mean ± SEM), 15 ± 1.5, and 200 ± 12 μM, respectively, in contrast to that of ASA (3200 ± 375 μM). The para isomer of NO-ASA degraded β-catenin in a dose- and time-dependent manner coinciding with increasing expression of activated caspase-3. The caspase inhibitor ZVAD blocked β-catenin cleavage by p -NO-ASA and partially reversed cell growth inhibition by p -NO-ASA but not that by ASA. A denitrated analog of p -NO-ASA did not degrade β-catenin indicating the importance of the NO-donating moiety. Our findings suggest that NO-ASA merits further study as an agent against leukemia.
Energy future from the United States perspective

Abstract Affordable and abundant supplies of energy are essential to economic, environmental and national security. Clearly energy matters because: energy is a key economic driver; energy offers real market opportunities for business; energy impacts the environment; and energy is an important global commodity of strategic importance.
An automated phenotype-driven approach (GeneForce) for refining metabolic and regulatory models.

Integrated constraint-based metabolic and regulatory models can accurately predict cellular growth phenotypes arising from genetic and environmental perturbations. Challenges in constructing such models involve the limited availability of information about transcription factor—gene target interactions and computational methods to quickly refine models based on additional datasets. In this study, we developed an algorithm, GeneForce, to identify incorrect regulatory rules and gene-protein-reaction associations in integrated metabolic and regulatory models. We applied the algorithm to refine integrated models of Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium, and experimentally validated some of the algorithm's suggested refinements. The adjusted E. coli model showed improved accuracy (∼80.0%) for predicting growth phenotypes for 50,557 cases (knockout mutants tested for growth in different environmental conditions). In addition to identifying needed model corrections, the algorithm was used to identify native E. coli genes that, if over-expressed, would allow E. coli to grow in new environments. We envision that this approach will enable the rapid development and assessment of genome-scale metabolic and regulatory network models for less characterized organisms, as such models can be constructed from genome annotations and cis-regulatory network predictions.
Congestive heart failure and respiratory arrest secondary to methyldopa-induced hemolytic anemia

We report a case of methyldopa-induced hemolytic anemia in a 64-year-old woman who presented to the emergency department in congestive heart and respiratory failure. She subsequently suffered a respiratory arrest and required endotracheal intubation and brief CPR. After the initial evaluation revealed anemia and a 3+ positive Coombs' test, a diagnosis of methyldopa-induced hemolytic anemia was entertained. Withdrawal of the drug and supportive therapy resulted in the complete recovery of the patient. Emergency physicians should be aware of this syndrome and be able to diagnose it early in its course, avoiding potential morbidity and mortality. A discussion of the pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of the syndrome is given.
Generalizing Quantile Regression for Counting Processes With Applications to Recurrent Events

In survival analysis, quantile regression has become a useful approach to account for covariate effects on the distribution of an event time of interest. In this article, we discuss how quantile regression can be extended to model counting processes and thus lead to a broader regression framework for survival data. We specifically investigate the proposed modeling of counting processes for recurrent events data. We show that the new recurrent events model retains the desirable features of quantile regression such as easy interpretation and good model flexibility, while accommodating various observation schemes encountered in observational studies. We develop a general theoretical and inferential framework for the new counting process model, which unifies with an existing method for censored quantile regression. As another useful contribution of this work, we propose a sample-based covariance estimation procedure, which provides a useful complement to the prevailing bootstrapping approach. We demonstrate t...
High affinity GnRH binding to testicular membrane homogenates

Abstract The binding of GnRH to membrane homogenates from collagenase-dissociated normal rat interstitial cells is shown to be of high affinity and specific. The dissociation constant for the radioligand used, [125I-Tyr5, D-Ala6, NαMeLeu7, Pro9-NEt]-GnRH is 0.26 ± 0.02 nM and the number of binding sites is 17 fmoles/mg membrane homogenate. There is one GnRH antagonist whose affinity is greater for the pituitary than for the testis. This antagonist has the same affinity for testis homogenates as for ovarian homogenates.
Kisspeptin Regulates Gonadotropin Genes via Immediate Early Gene Induction in Pituitary Gonadotropes

Kisspeptin signaling through its receptor, Kiss1R, is crucial for many reproductive functions including puberty, sex steroid feedback, and overall fertility. Although the importance of Kiss1R in the brain is firmly established, its role in regulating reproduction at the level of the pituitary is not well understood. This study presents molecular analysis of the role of kisspeptin and Kiss1R signaling in the transcriptional regulation of the gonadotropin gene β-subunits, LHβ and FSHβ, using LβT2 gonadotrope cells and murine primary pituitary cells. We show that kisspeptin induces LHβ and FSHβ gene expression, and this induction is protein kinase C dependent and mediated by the immediate early genes, early growth response factor 1 and cFos, respectively. Additionally, kisspeptin induces transcription of the early growth response factor 1 and cFos promoters in LβT2 cells. Kisspeptin also increases gonadotropin gene expression in mouse primary pituitary cells in culture. Furthermore, we find that Kiss1r expression is enhanced in the pituitary of female mice during the estradiol-induced LH surge, a critical component of the reproductive cycle. Overall, our findings indicate that kisspeptin regulates gonadotropin gene expression through the activation of Kiss1R signaling through protein kinase C, inducing immediate early genes in vitro, and responds to physiologically relevant cues in vivo, suggesting that kisspeptin affects pituitary gene expression to regulate reproductive function.
Carbon isotope fractionation between graphite, diamond and carbon dioxide

Carbon isotope fractionation factors for 13C exchange between graphite, diamond and carbon dioxide are calculated and tabulated for various temperatures between 0° and 1000°C. Lattice dynamics and the root sampling method were used to calculate the needed reduced partition function ratios for graphite and diamond. Approximate ways for doing the calculation and the geochemical interest of the results are discussed.
Symmetric information implicit contracts when both the labor pool and capital stock are endogenous

Abstract This paper introduces two novelties into the standard symmetric information implicit contract model of the labor market. First, capital is added to the model. Second, the number of contracts offered by firms to workers is made endogenous. We show that with these innovations optimal contracts involve levels of employment that are, in all states of nature, below those found in the standard model of the literature. However, they lead to higher levels of employment than those that would arise if labor trades on appropriately defined spot markets.
Bayesian Inference for the Demand of Engineering Products

Within the context of a profit making firm, the job of a design engineer is to choose design parameters and product attributes that maximize the expected utility of profit. To do this effectively, the engineer needs to have an estimate of the demand for the product as a function of its price and its attributes. The firm may conduct a survey to elicit consumer preferences for the product at a given price and would like to update their belief about demand given the survey data. The purpose of this paper is to present a Bayesian methodology for demand estimation that meets this need. The estimation process begins with a prior probability distribution of demand at a given price. Using Bayesian analysis, we show how to update demand for the product given various pieces of information such as market analysis, polls and a variety of other methods. We also discuss situations where consumers can demand multiple units of the product at the given price.© 2012 ASME
Drug Insight: VEGF as a therapeutic target for breast cancer

Schneider and Sledge discuss the mechanisms of resistance associated with anti-angiogenic agents and the problems associated with defining which groups of patients might benefit from this class of therapy. This review highlights the rationale for targeting VEGF and how the combination of anti-angiogenic drugs with other biologic agents is also being explored in clinical trials, in an attempt to improve efficacy and to overcome resistance seen with the initially studied anti-angiogenic drugs. Angiogenesis is implicated in the pathogenesis of malignancy and metastasis. Inhibition of angiogenesis has demonstrated clinically significant improvements in outcomes in a variety of malignancies, including breast cancer. The humanized monoclonal antibody against VEGF, bevacizumab, is the clinically most mature of the antiangiogenic agents and has recently been shown to improve outcome when combined with chemotherapy in the first-line metastatic setting of breast cancer. A variety of other antiangiogenic agents are currently under investigation, including drugs that inhibit the VEGF receptor 2, the cognate receptor for VEGF found on endothelial cells. The combination of antiangiogenic drugs with one another and with other biologic agents is also being explored in an attempt to improve efficacy and to overcome the drug resistance seen with the initial studies of antiangiogenic agents. This Review will focus on the current state of therapeutics designed to inhibit this angiogenic process in breast cancer.
ALUMINUM SULFATE TREATMENT OF A EUTROPHIC RESERVOIR: RATIONALE, APPLICATION METHODS, AND PRELIMINARY RESULTS

ABSTRACT Aluminum sulfate was applied to eutrophic Eau Galle Lake to control internal phosphorus recycling from anoxic sediments for a period of five years, and to provide increased user benefits at a reasonable cost. Treatment dose (11.3 g Al/m2) was based on mass balance estimates of summer Internal phosphorus loading rates; no attempt was made to curtail external loading rates. Phosphorus concentrations in bottom waters, internal phosphorus loading rate, and the abundance of blue-green algae were reduced relative to previous years; however, algal biomass remained relatively high. The proliferation of the dinoflagellate Ceratium hirundinella, a vertical migrator, suggested that these algae may have obtained phosphorus from interflowing river waters having a high nutrient content.
Delay limited packet switched data vortex network

In deflection based Data Vortex switching fabric networks, packets may experience additional delays that are dependent on the network operation conditions such as resource redundancy conditions, traffic loads and network sizes. Even though physical latency might still be acceptable, packets in the tail of the delay distribution may have suffered from excessive noise accumulation due to excessive number of hops and the corresponding optical signals may have too much degradation in its S/N ratio. Therefore, it is beneficial to discard these packets if possible within the network. In this study, the delay or the number of node hops is limited within the network simply by dropping the packets once their delay exceeds a preset threshold level. A centralized control signal can be used for the purpose in addition to a distributed traffic control signal that maintains the single packet routing within the nodes. Packet dropping rate in different operation conditions are studied and system implementation of the delay limited network is presented. The proposed scheme is slightly more costly with additional latency monitoring, but it is beneficial for the network manager to control the latency tail within such networks with an acceptable packet dropping rate.
Carbon and hydride migrations of cyclobutylhalocarbenes

The photolysis of cyclobutylchlorodiazirine affords chlorocyclopentene and chloromethylenecyclobutane by direct rearrangements from the diazirine's excited state (65%) and by competitive formation and subsequent rearrangement of cyclobutylchlorocarbene. The involvement of excited diazirine in the analogous cyclobutylfluorodiazirine photolysis is much reduced (12%).
The Potential for Improved Boundary Layer Cloud Optical Depth Retrievals from the Multiple Directions of MISR

Abstract The Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) views the earth with nine cameras, ranging from a 70° zenith angle viewing forward through nadir to 70° viewing aft. MISR does not have an operational cloud optical depth retrieval algorithm, but previous research has hinted that solar reflection measured in multiple directions might improve cloud optical depth retrievals. This study explores the optical depth information content of MISR’s multiple angles using a retrieval simulation approach. Hundreds of realistic boundary-layer cloud fields are generated with large-eddy simulation (LES) models for stratocumulus, small trade cumulus, and land surface–forced fair-weather cumulus. Reflectances in MISR directions are computed with three-dimensional radiative transfer from the LES cloud fields over an ocean surface and averaged to MISR resolution and sampled at MISR 275-m pixel spacing. Neural networks are trained to retrieve the mean and standard deviation of optical depth over different size pixel pa...
Warfarin dosing by genotype did not improve time in therapeutic range

Source Citation Kimmel SE, French B, Kasner SE, et al; the COAG Investigators. A pharmacogenetic versus a clinical algorithm for warfarin dosing. N Engl J Med. 2013;369:2283-93. 24251361
The effect of efferentiectomy and orchidectomy on the metabolism of the epididymis of the mouse.

The purpose of the study is a comparison of respiratory metabolic rates and anaerobic glycolytic activity (lactate accumulation) in homogenates of epididymides from normal, orchidectomized and testosterone replaced-orchidectomized mice. Animals subjected to vasa efferentiectomy were used to furnish sperm free homogenates as controls for the homogenates from orchidectomized animals, and to furnish estimates of the contribution of the spermatozoa to these metabolic parameters in homogenates of normal epididymides. Efferentiectomized mice yield homogenates with a significantly lowered rate of respiratory activity (30%). Experiments with fractions of these homogenates showed this reduction in activity to be equivalent to the contribution of the spermatozoa in homogenates from normal mice. No significant difference in the rate of respiratory metabolism was observed among homogenates obtained from efferentiectomized, orchidectomized, testosterone replaced-orchidectomized, or testosterone injected-efferentiectomized mice. Efferentiectomy also resulted in a lowered rate of anaerobic glycolytic activity in vitro. No further reduction or elevation of this activity was observed in homogenates from orchidectomized or testosterone injected animals. Further study indicated this loss following efferentiectomy to be due to a reduced glycolytic activity in the epididymal epithelium rather than to the absence of spermatozoan contribution to the metabolism. The evidence presented supports the hypothesis that the presence of some component of the spermatozoa or the fluids in which they reside controls the activation or inhibition of a segment of the lactic dehydrogenase activity which is responsible for the secretion of lactic acid into the epididymal canal for spermatozoan utilization.
Well Integrity During Operating the First Offshore Gas Wells in Saudi Arabia; Experiences and Lessons Learned

Annulus pressure is an important key to maintaining Well Integrity. During the start-up of Saudi Arabia’s first offshore nonassociated gas field containing high pressure high rate sour gas wells, a continuous increase of some annuli pressures was experienced despite the fact that these annuli were cemented to surface. During any well production, the heat transfer from the produced fluid to the trapped annuli fluids causes annuli pressures to increase to levels that could exceed collapse and/or burst pressure limits of the casings. This is especially true during early startup of the well when all annuli fluids are cold (offshore wells) or at ambient temperature (Onshore wells). To ensure that the pressures does not exceed the maximum allowable limit of well tubular various calculations were performed, taking into account not only the tubular limitations but also the formation pressures these casings encountered, to set the maximum limit. Periodic bleeding of pressures and continuous monitoring was necessary to avoid reaching this maximum set limit for the first four months of production. In this paper performance of the different annuli is analyzed and discussed. Calculation methods are also discussed in details which were employed to determine the maximum allowable pressure limit for each annulus. Elimination of frequent bleeding of 1st casing-casing annulus in one of the wells by revisiting the maximum limit, taking into consideration the formation pressure the casing was set in are some of the lessons learned documented during this first offshore gas field startup and will be put forth in the paper.
Endovascular Treatment of a Bleeding Secondary Aorto-Enteric Fistula. A Case Report with 1-Year Follow-up

We report a patient with life-threatening gastrointestinal bleeding caused by a secondary aorto-enteric fistula. Because the patient had several comorbid conditions, we succesfully stopped the bleeding by endovascular placement of a bifurcated aortic stent-graft. The patient developed periaortic infection 4 months later, but he was managed with antibiotics. The patient is well 1 year after the procedure.
Inelastic Electron Tunneling Spectroscopy: A Review of an Emerging Analytical Technique:

The technique of inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy (IETS) is reviewed. The physical principles involved, the theoretical status, and the experimental techniques necessary to obtain tunneling spectra are presented. The details of sample preparation and the necessary measuring circuits are discussed thoroughly. The application of IETS to analytical chemistry and surface interactions is illustrated through a review of the spectra that have been obtained from 1966 to the present.