cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Laser and Thermal Vapor Deposition of Metal Sulfide (NiS, PdS) Films and in Situ Gas-Phase Luminescence of Photofragments from M(S2COCHMe2)2

NiS and PdS thin films are prepared at 10-2 Torr from the single-source precursors M(S2COCHMe2)2, M = Ni and Pd. Two different vapor deposition processes, photochemical and thermal, are employed. Gas-phase emission spectroscopy is used during the photochemical deposition to identify the two elemental components of the final materials, the metal atom and sulfur, in the gas phase. NiS and PdS thin films are grown by the thermal process at 300 and 350 °C, respectively, on Si and quartz substrates. The NiS films are highly oriented rhombohedral (γ) phase, and the PdS films are tetragonal-phase polycrystalline. The metal sulfide films are grown photolytically by 308 nm laser irradiation of the gas-phase precursors at lower temperatures (near the sublimation temperature). The NiS films show no X-ray diffraction patterns, but the PdS films are polycrystalline tetragonal phase. The films are analyzed by various surface analytical tools including scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron, and Rutherford ba...
Partial regularity of the dynamic system modeling the flow of liquid crystals

Here we established the partial regularity of suitable weak solutions to the dynamical systems modelling the flow of liquid crystals. It is a natural generalization of an earlier work of Caffarelli-Kohn-Nirenberg on the Navier-Stokes system with some simplifications due to better estimates on the pressure term.
Electric Fatigue in Lead Zirconate Titanate Ceramics

Electric fatigue is a major obstacle for some potential applications of ferroelectric materials based on reversals of spontaneous polarization, such as memory devices and high strain actuators. The authors` studies of fine-grained hot-pressed lead zirconate titanate with lanthanum dopant (PLZT 7/68/32) show that fast fatigue is actually caused by contaminated surfaces instead of intrinsic structure deterioration or the change of domain states. All of the specimens with conventionally cleaned surfaces showed significant fatigue after 10{sup 5} switching cycles, but specimens cleaned with a few cleaning procedure did not fatigue even after more than 10{sub 8} switching cycles. This type of fatigue is found to be due to generated microcracking at the ceramic-electrode interface.
Linear integral equations and renormalization group

A formulation of the position-space renormalization-group (RG) technique is used to analyze the singular behavior of solutions to a number of integral equations used in the theory of the liquid state. In particular, we examine the truncated Kirkwood-Salsburg equation, the Ornstein-Zernike equation, and a simple nonlinear equation used in the mean-field theory of liquids. We discuss the differences in applying the position-space RG to lattice systems and to fluids, and the need for an explicit free-energy rescaling assumption in our formulation of the RG for integral equations. Our analysis provides one natural way to define a "fractal" dimension at a phase transition.
Heat Pulses in Molecular Solids: Phonon-induced delocalization of trapped excited triplet states

Abstract Thermal modulation spectroscopy is used to analyze the dynamics of energy redistribution between trap states and band states in the one-dimensional exciton system 1,2,4,5-tetrachloro-benzene. The time-resolved decrease in the phosphorescence intensity emitted from localized or “trapped” excited states in 1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene (TCB), which occurs during the propagation time of a 1.0 msec heat pulse, is analyzed in terms of the direct absorption of phonons resonant with the trap depth. For each of the three traps studied, the heat pulse power dependence of the phosphorescence change can be related to the power dependence of the resonant phonon flux radiated by the heater. The data demonstrates that (i) single phonon events are probably responsible for the promotion of the trap state to the band state (ii) the redistribution of the excitation energy into the bands exhibits an explicit dependence of the density of states function and (iii) the extent of the trap state depletion is shown to be se...
What makes consumers think dietary supplements are safe and effective? The role of disclaimers and FDA approval.

Objective The present study was designed to examine the effect of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) regulatory framework on beliefs about the safety and effectiveness of a dietary supplement. Design An experimental study was conducted with a sample of college students (N = 262). Participants read a description of a dietary supplement, and the experimental manipulations were embedded in the product description. Main outcome measures Primary measures of interest included overall knowledge of the FDA's role in regulating dietary supplements and safety and effectiveness ratings of the dietary supplement. Results Results demonstrated that individuals were not very knowledgeable about the FDA's role in regulating dietary supplements. Making participants explicitly aware that the FDA did not approve a dietary supplement lowered safety ratings of the supplement but had no influence on effectiveness ratings. The opposite results were obtained for a structure-function disclaimer in which the presence of the disclaimer lowered effectiveness ratings of the supplement but did not affect safety ratings. Conclusion Results highlight the importance of educating individuals about the FDA's role in regulating dietary supplements.
Multicenter distribution of molecular integrals and energy components

A central problem in both semiempirical and ab initio molecular electronic structure theory is treatment of the three- and four-center interactions. A systematic evaluation of multicenter contributions and a search for invariants has been carried out by computing frequency distribution functions for one-, two- versus three-, four-center two-electron integrals and by separating one-, two-center from three-, four-center terms in the one-electron energies of molecular-orbital theory. Data have been obtained for a considerable number of polyatomic molecules and representative results are presented for NH−2, NH3, CH4, H3O+, C2N2, C3H+3, N4, and C6H6.
Morality and capitalism – friends or foes?

A bona fide morality favours a consistent free market capitalist system of law. If there are dangers and temptations arising from such a society, let the various institutions that can develop among free people respond to them. Individuals and their various voluntary organisations – not governments that have the unique responsibility to use force judiciously – ought to take care of our souls, our medical needs, our preservation of monuments, historical buildings, wild parks and the rest. Let those things be taken care by people in their voluntary interaction, not by some elite that thinks itself to be above the rest of us – even if they do it democratically.
Microwave assisted vacuum drying and end point determination using mass spectrometry, Part I

On-line mass spectrometry (MS) was investigated as a tool to monitor microwave vacuum drying operations on laboratory scale. Using several different solvents and calcium carbonate solids, MS was used to monitor the drying end point of single and multiple solvent wet cakes. The microwave drying rates for polar solvents were shown to have a linear correlation with solvent heat of vaporization. Mass spectrometry profiles were also shown to correlate with other drying end point parameters, including rate of recovered solvent, product temperature, and microwave reflected power.
Functional reorganization of neural networks during repeated exposure to the traumatic memory in posttraumatic stress disorder: an exploratory fMRI study.

Abstract Background Repeated exposure to the traumatic memory (RETM) is a common component of treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This treatment is based on a fear extinction model; however, the degree to which this treatment actually engages and modifies neural networks mediating fear extinction is unknown. Therefore, the purpose of the current exploratory study was to define the dynamic changes in neural processing networks while participants completed a novel adaptation of RETM. Method Participants were adult women (N = 16) with PTSD related to physical or sexual assault. Prior to scanning, participants provided written narratives of a traumatic event related to their PTSD as well as a neutral control event. RETM during fMRI consisted of 5 sequential presentations of the blocked narrative types, lasting three minutes each. Self-reported anxiety was assessed after each presentation. Results Relative to changes in functional connectivity during the neutral control script, RETM was associated with strengthened functional connectivity of the right amygdala with the right hippocampus and right anterior insular cortex, left amygdala with the right insular cortex, medial PFC with right anterior insula, left hippocampus with striatum and dorsal cingulate cortex, and right hippocampus with striatum and orbitofrontal cortex. Greater PTSD severity generally led to less changes in functional connectivity with the right insular cortex. Conclusions These results provide evidence that RETM engages and modifies functional connectivity pathways with neural regions implicated in fear extinction. The results also implicate the engagement of the right insular cortex and striatum during RETM and suggest their importance in human fear extinction to trauma memories. However, comorbidity in the sample and the lack of a control group limit inferences regarding RETM with PTSD populations specifically.
Extraction of Conventional Two-State Melting Temperature from DNA Oligomers with Significant Premelting Behavior

The determination of some thermodynamic quantities of DNA, including melting temperature, may be confounded by premelt behavior. This is a significant problem for fluorescent observation of DNA melting and can be further exacerbated by the use of common dyes, which may actually increase deviation from the simple two-state melt model1. Using contact-quenched fluorescently labeled DNA oligomers2, we have developed a fitting function for fluorescent melting curves that may be used to extract the conventional 'two-state' melting temperature, even in the presence of significant premelt behavior of oligomers that melt at high temperatures (greater than 80 oC). This function is developed using a three-state model that approximates the ensemble of partially fluorescent premelted states as single state. The utility of this model is demonstrated by the extraction of melting temperatures from a set of synthesized DNA oligomers in both macro- and microscale environments to calibrate laser-heating for microdroplet PCR.This research was supported by funds from the DOD Breast Cancer Research Program (grant number W81XWH-12-1-0076; the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, 820 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick MD 21702-5014 is the awarding and administering acquisition office) and internal research and development funds from SRI International. The content of this paper does not necessarily reflect the position or the policy of the government, and no official endorsement should be inferred.
Heat inactivation of leaf phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase: Protection by aspartate and malate in C4 plants.

The activity of phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) carboxylase EC 4.1.1.31 in leaf extracts of Eleusine indica L. Gaertn., a C4 plant, exhibited a temperature optimum of 35–37° C with a complete loss of activity at 50° C. However, the enzyme was protected effectively from heat inactivation up to 55° C by L-aspartate. Activation energies (Ea) for the enzyme in the presence of aspartate were 2.5 times lower than that of the control enzyme. Arrhenius plots of PEP carboxylase activity (±aspartate) showed a break in the slope around 17–20° C with a 3-fold increase in the Ea below the break. The discontinuity in the slopes was abolished by treating the enzyme extracts with Triton X-100, suggesting that PEP carboxylase in C4 plants is associated with lipid and may be a membrane bound enzyme. Depending upon the species, the major C4 acid formed during photosynthesis (malate or aspartate) was found to be more protective than the minor C4 acid against the heat inactivation of their PEP carboxylase. Oxaloacetate, the reaction product, was less effective compared to malate or aspartate. Several allosteric inhibitors of PEP carboxylase were found to be moderately to highly effective in protecting the C4 enzyme while its activators showed no significant effect. PEP carboxylase from C3 species was not protected from thermal inactivation by the C4 acids. The physiological significance of these results is discussed in relation to the high temperature tolerance of C4 plants.
The effect of biochemical inhibitors upon the killer-sensitive system in Paramecium aurelia☆

Abstract Homogenates of killer cells and intact sensitive cells were exposed to various biochemical inhibitors. In the homogenates the failure to find an effect of chloramphenicol indicates that the development of lethal particles is not dependent upon normal protein synthesis. Lower activity of the homogenates found in the presence of DNP and NaN3 suggests that development of the lethal particles is dependent upon energy formed during terminal electron transport. Marked increases in lethal activity of the homogenates in the presence of malonate or fluoride suggest that the development of the particles cannot be dependent upon the glycolytic or Krebs tricarboxylic acid cycles, and that normal cellular metabolism may be competitive with development of lethality. Increased activity in the presence of xanthine suggests the possibility of the presence of xanthine oxidase as one alternative pathway for development of lethal particles. Sensitive cells are protected by chloramphenicol, DNP, and azide after acquisition of the lethal particles. Normal protein synthesis and a functional, terminal, electron-transport system therefore appear to be essential for the manifestation of the killing effect of the particles.
Ingestion of toxic substances by children.

Ingestion of a harmful substance is among the most common causes of injury to children less than six years of age. Fortunately, in most cases, the ingested agent has minimal or no clinically important toxic effect. Occasionally, however, such ingestion can be life-threatening or can even result in death. Although preventive measures have been remarkably successful in reducing the frequency and severity of poisoning in children, poisoning continues to occur and requires strategies for treatment and prevention that are safe and effective. In this review, I discuss the management of poisoning in children, with an emphasis on current guidelines for . . .
Aging-related reduced release of LH-releasing hormone from hypothalamic granules.

The effects of aging on the secretory function of hypothalamic granules containing luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) were examined, using chelated copper as a test substance. Granules prepared from old and young female rats were each incubated with various concentrations of CuATP and the kinetic constants of LHRH release estimated. The LHRH content of the hypothalamus of old female rats (3.4± 0.1 ng; mean±S.E.; n=3 determinations) was lower than that of young female rats (4.7±0.1 ng;n=3). CuATP-stimulated LHRH release (pg/hypothalamus) from granules isolated from old animals was significantly (p<0.001) lower than that from granules isolated from young animals; Vmax being 58.5±1.6 pg (n=36) and 76.7±2.7 pg (n=34) of LHRH released/min, respectively. In contrast, the fractional amount of CuATP-stimulated of LHRH from granules isolated from old and young rats was similar; Vmax being 60±0.5% and 62±1% of granule LHRH released respectively. In addition, the apparent Km for CuATP-stimulated release of LHRH from granules of old and youn rats was also similar, 5.1 and 5.5. μM copper, respectively. These results are suggestive that aging does not alter the responsiveness of LHRH-containing granules to a secretion-stimulus such as copper but it does alter the capacity (amount) of peptide released.
The Surgical Treatment of Type II Diabetes Mellitus: Changes in HOMA Insulin Resistance in the First Year Following Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (LRYGB) and Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding (LAGB)

Background Bariatric operations significantly improve glucose metabolism, decrease insulin resistance, and lead to clinical resolution of type II diabetes mellitus in many patients. The mechanisms that achieve these clinical outcomes, however, remain ill defined. Moreover, the relative impact of various operations on insulin resistance remains vigorously contested. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to compare directly the impact of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) on hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels and insulin resistance in comparable groups of morbidly obese patients.
Chimeric HIV-1 virus-like particles containing gp120 epitopes as a result of a ribosomal frameshift elicit Gag- and SU-specific murine cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activities.

Abstract Insect cell expression of the HIV-1 Gag precursor protein by recombinant baculoviruses results in the assembly and budding of noninfectious virus-like particles (VLPs). The VLPs resemble immature virus in ultrastructural morphology and can be purified by conventional retroviral techniques. The virus-like appearance of the particles suggested that they could be used to package additional peptides. The retroviral frameshift mechanism was used to translate the pol gene products by expressing additional genetic information as chimeric Gag–Pol fusion proteins. Sequences encoding the carboxyl 65% of the HIV-1 surface glycoprotein (gp120, SU) were inserted into the Gag–Pol reading frame immediately downstream of the Gag stop codon. The assembly and budding of large quantities of Gag and chimeric Gag–SU VLPs were observed by standard transmission electron microscopy. The presence of gp120 epitopes in the Gag–SU VLPs was confirmed by immunoelectron microscopy and Western blot analysis using monoclonal anti-gp120 antibodies. Mice inoculated with the Gag–SU pseudovirions developed cytotoxic lymphocyte responses to both HIV-1 Gag and Env epitopes yet humoral immune responses only to Gag epitopes. The chimeric Gag–SU particles may have applications as vaccines or immunotherapeutic treatments for HIV-1 infection. In addition, the frameshift mechanism can be applied to the packaging of other viral or cellular proteins.
Geophysical and geochemical consequences of nuclear explosions

An all-Union session on the geophysical and geochemical consequences of nuclear explosions was commissioned by the AGU Public Affairs Committee and will be given at San Francisco Wednesday morning, December 7, 1983. The session is deliberately restricted to aspects within the domain of the American Geophysical Union, and the social, political, and ethical issues will not be treated explicitly. It is inevitable that such issues will be present in the minds of the speakers and audience, but they cannot be evaluated by rigorous scientific methods. The aim of the session is to examine the possible range of geophysical and geochemical consequences of various scenarios involving nuclear explosions. Such scenarios extend from a single nuclear explosion to a major nuclear exchange involving thousands of weapons. A Wednesday afternoon session at the Fall Meeting will examine atmospheric consequences.
ICCAD-2015 CAD Contest in Large-scale Equivalence Checking and Function Correction and Benchmark Suite

Equivalence checking (EC) and functional Engineering Change Order (ECO) on large-scale designs becomes a crucial industrial topic as the design scale expands. In this topic, we are especially interested in how to partition the large-scale problems into smaller EC and ECO problem with lower complexity. In this contest, we ask the participants to design the algorithm to insert the corresponding cuts as the partitioned points on given two designs as simplifying the EC and ECO problems. The team correctly simplifying the problem most wins the contest. The benchmark suites are extracted from the real designs in our interesting applications. We look forward to triggering the academic area to investigate on this problem.
The human plasma fibrinolytic system: regulation and control.

The factors involved in the regulation and control of the human plasma fibrinolytic system at the cellular level are unknown at this time. The physiological regulation of plasmin formation in plasma depends primarily on the nature of the circulating zymogen, plasminogen, the physiological activators formed both in the blood and in the vascular endothelium, and the specific plasmin inhibitors found both in plasma and in certain of the cellular elements of the blood. The biosynthesis of the zymogen must be under genetic control, and the activators are probably released, after thrombus and clot formation, from components involved in the surface-mediated initiation of the coagulation system, and from the vascular endothelium. Activation of plasminogen can occur both in the fluid phase surrounding the thrombus and probably at thrombus surfaces, involving both the fibrin clot and the platelet membrane. The plasmin inhibitors act to control the system in order to prevent proteolytic degradation of important physiological trace proteins of the coagulation, complement and kallikrein-kinin systems by the enzyme.
Torque and temperature dependence of the hysteretic voltage-induced torsional strain in tantalum trisulfide

We have measured the dependence of the hysteretic voltage-induced torsional strain (VITS) in crystals of orthorhombic tantalum trisulfide on temperature and applied torque. In particular, applying square-wave voltages above the charge density wave (CDW) threshold, so as to abruptly switch the strain across its hysteresis loop, we have found that the time constant for the VITS to switch (at different temperatures and voltages) varied as the CDW current. Application of torque to the crystal could also change the VITS time constant, magnitude, and sign, suggesting that, at least in part, the VITS is a consequence of residual torsional strain in the sample which twists the CDW. Application of voltage changes the pitch of these CDW twists, which then act back on the lattice. However, it remains difficult to understand the sluggishness of the response.
Comparison of Spurway and saturated media extracts of soilless media

Abstract Seedlings of Catharanthus roseus ’Grape Cooler’ transplanted into 120‐cm3 cell packs of three commercial potting media were fertilized at each irrigation in flood and drain trays with commercial 20N‐4.4P‐17K fertilizer at concentrations of 50, 150, or 250 ppm nitrogen (N). Media samples were obtained 2, 3, 4 and 5 weeks post transplant. The contents of four cells from each of two replications were airdried, mixed, and sifted to pass a 2 mm sieve. Concentrations of calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), potassium (K), phosphorus (P), ammonium (NH4 +), and nitrate (NO3 ‐) were measured in Spurway (SPUR) and Saturated Media (SME) extracts. Electrical conductivity (EC) was measured in SME extracts. Leaf samples obtained four weeks post transplant were analyzed for all essential elements. Highly significant correlations were obtained for nutrient concentrations in SME and SPUR, but the coefficient of determination (r2) for linear regressions ranged from 0.34 for Ca to 0.77 for NH4 +. Trends over time for incre...
Use of an Aqueous Micellar Medium to Improve the Spectrophotometry Determination of Cyanide Ion with 5,5′-Dithiobis(2-Nitrobenzoic Acid)

Abstract The spectrophotometric method for the determination of cyanide, which is based on the reaction of cyanide ion with 5,5′-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) to displace the corresponding absorbing thiol anion, has been reinvestigated using an aqueous cetyltrimethylammonium bromide micellar reaction medium. The rate of the analytical reaction is increased considerably in the presence of the cationic surfactant. Thus, the time required for the spectrophotometric determination of cyanide ion in the 0.18 – 2.80 μg/ml range using this procedure is decreased from 25 minutes to 1 – 3 minutes.
Two-stage decomposition of SNORT rules towards efficient hardware implementation

The performance gap between the execution speed of security software and the amount of data to be processed is ever widening. A common solution is to close the performance gap through hardware implementation of security functions. However, continuously expanding signature databases have become a major impediment to achieving scalable hardware based pattern matching. Additionally, evolutionary rule databases have necessitated real time online updating for reconfigurable hardware implementations. Based on the observation that signature patterns are constructed from combinations of a limited number of primary patterns, we propose to decompose the Snort signature patterns. These smaller primary pattern sets can be stored along with their associations to allow dynamic signature pattern reconstruction. Not only does the matching operation potentially become more scalable, but the real time online updating task is simplified. The approach is verified with patterns from the latest version of the Snort rule database. The experimental results show that after decomposition, a reduction in size of over 77% can be achieved on Snort signature patterns.
SNITCH: AUGMENTING HYPERTEXT DOCUMENTS WITH A SEMANTIC NET

A new model of hypertext, in which text is augmented with a fine-grained semantic net representation of the text, solves several problems found in traditional hypertext models. In the new model, hypertext links are paths that originate in the text, move across to the semantic net, traverse a sub-path through the semantic net, then return to a different point in the text. Benefits of the model include a strong semantics for links, dynamic discovery of links, link reusability, and automatic creation of links. The SNITCH hypertext system, which is based on this model, allows a user to access data in ways never foreseen by the hypertext author.
Quality assurance and quality control data validation procedures used for the Love Canal and Dallas lead soil monitoring programs.

Public awareness of soils contamination has increased in recent years due in part to the notoriety associated with the indiscriminate release, packaging, transporting and disposal of hazardous materials. In 1980, and again in 1982, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was responsible for designing, implementing and conducting environmental monitoring programs at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, New York, and in Dallas, Texas, that dealt with suspected contaminated soils. Both of these monitoring programs were conducted over a relatively short time with the collection and analysis of over 4000 soil samples. The methods employed by the Environmental Protection Agency for providing soil data that was scientifically valid and of defensible quality for each of these monitoring programs are presented. Also, methods for identifying data bias, its precision and its uncertainty are identified.
When my country is at war: Issue importance and interpersonal influence lead Iraq War attitudes to cluster within social networks

Two studies investigated how issue importance and interpersonal influence contribute to the development of shared attitudes among social network members (i.e., attitude clustering). Study 1 used the start of the 2003 Iraq War as a natural experiment on the role of issue importance in attitude clustering within residential conversation networks. Attitudes toward the U.S. involvement in Iraq grew more clustered after—but not before—the start of the Iraq War, and this post-war growth in attitude clustering was greater for this issue relative to other political issues. Study 2, using structural equation modeling (SEM), found support for a sequential mediation model whereby personal importance of the Iraq War increases war-relevant information seeking, which increases discussion of the issue, which in turn increases attitude clustering within egoistic social networks. Overall, these results illustrate how intrapersonal attitude processes can catalyze interpersonal influence processes.
Population kinetic study on the origin of guinea pig monocyte heterogeneity.

Abstract Population kinetic studies were performed on guinea pig peripheral blood monocyte fractions isolated by counter-flow centrifugation elutriation following a single in vivo pulse of tritiated thymidine. Labeled large monocytes (volume 317 μm 3 ; relative distribution 49%; circulating half-life 5.7 hr; and production rate 17,000 cells/ml blood/hr) accumulated in the circulation more rapidly, had a faster turnover time, and were produced in greater numbers than small monocytes (volume 283 μm 3 ; relative distribution 34%; circulating half-life 10.8 hr; and production rate of 6100 cells/ml blood/hr). The kinetic data do not support a maturational sequence of small into large monocytes. Intermediate monocytes (volume 300 μm 3 ; relative distribution 11%; circulating half-life 18.2 hr) and very large monocytes (volume 354 μm 3 ; relative distribution 6%; circulating half-life 36.5 hr) had production rates, respectively, of only 1200 and 320 cells/ml blood/hr. Maxima in the labeling index curve for small and large monocytes suggested a generation time of 24 hr while grain count analysis revealed that these two cell fractions were derived from a precursor population with similar numbers of reductive divisions. Grain count analysis of intermediate and very large monocytes revealed that these cells differed from both small and large monocytes. Our data support the concept that monocyte subsets exist in guinea pig peripheral blood with different kinetics of production and survival.
Intravitreal poly(l-lactide) microparticles sustain retinal and choroidal delivery of TG-0054, a hydrophilic drug intended for neovascular diseases

While poorly soluble drugs such as corticosteroids sustain drug delivery in the vitreous humor by virtue of slow dissolution, macromolecules such as antibodies and their fragments sustain their levels due to their slow clearance. However, currently there are no approaches to sustain the delivery of well water-soluble small molecule drugs in the vitreous. In this study, we optimized a poly(l-lactide) (PLA) microparticle formulation for sustained intravitreal delivery of TG-0054, a well water-soluble anti-angiogenic drug that is of potential value in treating choroid neovascularization. After determining the influence of process parameters on particle size and drug loading, spherical microparticles syringeable through a 27-G needle, with a mean diameter of 7.6 μm, 10% (w/w) TG-0054 loading, sustained in vitro drug release for at least 6 months, and low residual organic solvent content (~ 1 ppb/mg) were prepared. Microparticles as well as drug solution were assessed for their in vivo drug delivery over 3 months following intravitreal injection in New Zealand white rabbits. Drug levels in the microparticle dosed eyes at 3 months were 43.7 ± 16.2, 243 ± 42.6, and 62.8 ± 22.6 μg/g vitreous, retina, and choroid–retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), respectively, and similar to levels at 1 month. Intravitreal injection of plain drug solution resulted in significantly lower amounts of drug in the dosed eye, with the levels being 0.8 ± 0.5, 2.7 ± 2.8, and 4.9 ± 4.2 μg/g in vitreous, retina, and choroid–RPE, respectively, at 1 month, with no detectable drug at 3 months. Although surface degradation was evident, microparticles maintained their spherical structure during the 6-month in vitro study and the 3-month in vivo study, with the vitreal particle retention at 1 and 3 months being 60% and 27%, respectively. Thus, PLA microparticles capable of sustaining retinal and choroidal delivery of TG-0054 for 3 to 6 months were developed.
Effect of substance P on opossum duodenal smooth muscle

Opossum duodenum was cut into strips measuring 2.0×15.0 mm. Strips cut along the oral-caudal axis were called longitudinal strips, while those cut 90° to that axis were called circular strips. Each strip was placed in a heated, oxygenated organ bath and attached to a force-displacement transducer. Substance P produced tonic contraction in longitudinal strips and tonic and phasic contraction in circular strips. The ED50 for longitudinal and circular muscle was 1.9×10−7 M and 2.8×10−7 M, respectively. Longitudinal muscle was 1.3 times more sensitive to substance P than circular muscle. Phenoxybenzamine, atropine, curare, propanolol, haloperidol, and tetrodotoxin had no effect on the substance P-produced contractions in circular and longitudinal muscle. Trifluoperazine (10−5 and 10−4 M), D600 (10−7 M), and nifedipine (10−8 and 10−7) inhibited both tonic and phasic contraction in circular and longitudinal strips. These studies suggest that substance P acts on both muscle layers at a site located at the muscle cell and that it produces tonic and phasic contraction through similar calcium-activating pathways.
Outcome of treatment of pedal ganglia

Abstract Between 1st March 1995 and 31st December 2002 we treated 70 patients for pedal ganglia. Review was in research clinic or by postal questionnaire by an independent reviewer. One patient had died of unrelated causes and one was housebound and frail. Twenty-one were lost to follow-up. Seventeen patients had no intervention. Only one subsequently underwent surgical removal of the ganglion. Nine patients had a ganglion at review (including the patient operated on). However, only four had symptoms, all minor, and none wished further intervention. Eight of the 16 untreated ganglia had resolved (50%). Thirteen patients had simple aspiration, mainly of small ganglia. Six repeat aspirations and three surgical excisions were carried out for symptomatic recurrence. At review, nine had ganglia. Five had minor symptoms but none wished further treatment. Fourteen patients had aspiration and steroid injection, mainly of larger ganglia. Five repeat aspirations and six surgical excisions were carried out for recurrence. Six patients had ganglia present at review. Six patients in the group had minor residual symptoms but none wished further intervention. In all, 13 patients underwent excision of ganglia. Eight recurred and three patients underwent repeat excisions. Ganglia were present in five patients at review. None of the patients wished further intervention. There were five minor wound problems but no infections or major nerve injuries. Only 23% of our patients required surgery. Although many had residual or recurrent ganglia at follow-up, most had few or no symptoms. Observation or aspiration, with or without steroid injection, is satisfactory for most patients with pedal ganglia.
Relation of Age to Immune Response of Mice to Formolized Equine Encephalomyelitic Virus

SummaryThe ability of mice to be immunized by means of formolized virus of Eastern equine encephalomyelitis increases with age, as shown by the strikingly higher resistance of older immunized mice to the intracerebral injection of active virus, as well as by the amount of neutralizing antibodies developed.
Microvesicular caspase-1 mediates lymphocyte apoptosis in sepsis.

Objective Immune dysregulation during sepsis is poorly understood, however, lymphocyte apoptosis has been shown to correlate with poor outcomes in septic patients. The inflammasome, a molecular complex which includes caspase-1, is essential to the innate immune response to infection and also important in sepsis induced apoptosis. Our group has recently demonstrated that endotoxin-stimulated monocytes release microvesicles (MVs) containing caspase-1 that are capable of inducing apoptosis. We sought to determine if MVs containing caspase-1 are being released into the blood during human sepsis and induce apoptosis.. Design Single-center cohort study Measurements 50 critically ill patients were screened within 24 hours of admission to the intensive care unit and classified as either a septic or a critically ill control. Circulatory MVs were isolated and analyzed for the presence of caspase-1 and the ability to induce lymphocyte apoptosis. Patients remaining in the ICU for 48 hours had repeated measurement of caspase-1 activity on ICU day 3. Main Results Septic patients had higher microvesicular caspase-1 activity 0.05 (0.04, 0.07) AFU versus 0.0 AFU (0, 0.02) (p<0.001) on day 1 and this persisted on day 3, 0.12 (0.1, 0.2) versus 0.02 (0, 0.1) (p<0.001). MVs isolated from septic patients on day 1 were able to induce apoptosis in healthy donor lymphocytes compared with critically ill control patients (17.8±9.2% versus 4.3±2.6% apoptotic cells, p<0.001) and depletion of MVs greatly diminished this apoptotic signal. Inhibition of caspase-1 or the disruption of MV integrity abolished the ability to induce apoptosis. Conclusion These findings suggest that microvesicular caspase-1 is important in the host response to sepsis, at least in part, via its ability to induce lymphocyte apoptosis. The ability of microvesicles to induce apoptosis requires active caspase-1 and intact microvesicles.
Approximate Queueing Formulae Based on Consideration of the Busy Period

An approximation formula to one in M/M/1 queueing theory for hours in a queue is examined. Then it is extended to models M/D/1 and M/Ek/1 whereby wasted time or queue length is found to lie between two extremes. An empirical approximation to traffic intensity called utilization rate is used.
Das anomale Verhalten der magnetischen Permeabilität des Eisens in hochfrequenten Feldern

Die Herren Malov und Arkadiew haben kurzlich die Ansicht vertreten, das die Resultate, die ich im Jahre 1927 nach der heterodynen Schwebungsmethode erhalten habe, eine systematische Abnahme der Permeabilitat mit abnehmender Frequenz zeigten. Das ist angesichts meines experimentellen Materials nicht gerechtfertigt. Die Hauptfolgerung meiner damaligen Arbeit, das sich keine Anomalie im Verhalten der Permeabilitat des Eisens zwischen 3,500 und 2,50 · 106 Hertz findet, wird durch die Diskussion von Malov und Arkadiew nicht beruhrt. Neues Material, das mit der Resonanzmethode erhalten wurde, wird hier zum erstenmal veroffentlicht. Es betrifft die Veranderung der Permeabilitat mit der Frequenz und den Einflus von Wirbelstromen. Wirbelstromeffekte konnen bei dieser Methode grose scheinbare Anderungen der Permeabilitat mit der Frequenz vortauschen.
Deep-water renewal in Lake Issyk-Kul

[1] The deep-water renewal rates of Lake Issyk-Kul are studied using the time-dependent anthropogenically produced tracers sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6 ), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and tritium-helium-3. SF 6 and the CFCs are used to calibrate a mixing model from which the vertical age distribution is calculated and found to be comparable to the SF 6 apparent ages. Based on this model, the mean age of the water below 100 m depth is 6.1 yrs. The mean oxygen consumption rate for the same depth range is 6.4 μmol kg -1 yr -1 and the mean remineralization rates for nitrate, phosphate and silicate are 0.53, 0.003 and 0.67 μmol kg -1 yr -1 , respectively.
Chlordiazepoxide inhibition of reflex vagal bradycardia in the cat

Abstract The effect of chlordiazepoxide (CDZ) on phenylephrine-induced reflex vagal bradycardia was studied in cats anesthetized with chloralose. The sympathetic component of the reflex was eliminated by either pretreating the animals with propranolol (1 mg/kg, i.v.) or sectioning the spinal cord. In animals pretreated with propranolol, CDZ (3, 10 and 20 mg/kg, i.v.) produced a dose-related inhibition of phenylephrine-induced bradycardia. These doses of CDZ had no significant effect on phenylephrine-induced pressor responses. Similar results were obtained with CDZ in animals with spinal cords transected. Chlordiazepoxide did not prevent bradycardia evoked by electrical stimulation of the peripheral cut-end of the right vagus nerve. These results indicate that CDZ can inhibit reflex vagal bradycardia and that the inhibition involves a central action of the drug.
Glucose attenuation of atropine-induced deficits in paradoxical sleep and memory

When administered systemically, glucose attenuates deficits in memory produced by several classes of drugs, including cholinergic antagonists and opiate agonists. Glucose also enhances memory in aged rats, mice, and humans. In addition, glucose ameliorates age-related reductions in paradoxical sleep. Because deficits in paradoxical sleep are most marked in those individual aged rats that also have deficits in memory, treatments which improve one of these functions may similarly improve the other. The present experiments show that glucose attenuates deficits in paradoxical sleep and memory after atropine administration, with similar dose-response curves for both actions. In the first experiment, rats received saline, atropine (1 mg/kg), glucose (100 mg/kg) or combinations of atropine + glucose (10, 100, 250, and 500 mg/kg) 30 min before assessment on a spontaneous alternation task. In the second experiment, 3-h EEGs were assessed for spontaneous daytime sleep in rats administered saline, atropine (1 mg/kg), glucose (100 mg/kg) or combinations of atropine + glucose (10, 100 and 250 mg/kg). In both experiments, glucose significantly attenuated deficits at an optimal dose of 100 mg/kg. A third experiment assessed blood glucose levels after injections of atropine + glucose (100 mg/kg) and determined that blood glucose levels were similar to those produced by other treatments which enhance memory. These results are consistent with the view that paradoxical sleep and at least one test of memory are similarly influenced by atropine and glucose.
Cystic fibrosis clinical score: A new scoring system to evaluate acute pulmonary exacerbation

Although pulmonary function tests are used to evaluate acute changes in obstructive airway disease in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF), these tests are relatively difficult to perform in young children or severely ill patients and may be costly. Other standard tests (eg, the Shwachman-Kulczycki and National Institutes of Health [NIH] scoring systems) evaluate disease severity and predict prognosis but do not measure day-to-day changes in clinical status. They thus provide little information for assessing the start of acute pulmonary exacerbation. Alternative scoring systems are needed to better identify the start of pulmonary exacerbation, to predict worsening or improvement of respiratory function after intervention, and to distinguish the scores from illness severity scores. This study was undertaken to compare a new 10-component, 50-point-maximum, acute clinical scoring system with forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) variables in children with CF who were experiencing an acute pulmonary exacerbation before antimicrobial therapy was initiated and until the end of therapy. One hundred thirty children aged 5 to 17 years (median age, 11 years) had a median NIH score of approximately 64 (range, 39 to 85) at admission. The cystic fibrosis clinical score (CFCS) at admission was found to correlate highly with the modified NIH score at study entry (r = -.68, P = 0.0001 ). The total CFCS at entry was correlated inversely with both FEV1 (r = -.57, P = 0.0001) and FVC (r = -.55, P = 0.0001) measurements; crackles, dyspnea, sputum production, and respiratory rate were the 4 components most highly associated with either pulmonary function variable. The change in total CFCS from start to end of antimicrobial therapy also correlated with changes in FEV1 (r = -.31, P = 0.0016) and change in FVC (r = -.47, P = 0.0001). Clinical improvement was observed in all patients at the end of therapy, and only 1 patient had an increase in total CFCS. Patients who experienced clinical relapse had a mean increase of 8.5 points in the CFCS from end of therapy to 2- to 4-week follow-up, indicating worsening signs and symptoms of acute exacerbation. These data suggest that the CFCS is a predictive and optional surrogate of pulmonary function in assessing the health of patients with CF. Following further validation, this scoring system could be used to evaluate health status in the outpatient setting, the need for hospitalization, and subsequent improvement during an acute pulmonary exacerbation, as well as to compare the efficacy of therapeutic regimens.
Quantum calculations for one-dimensional laser cooling: Temporal evolution.

Temporal integration of density-matrix equations with quantized translational motion gives alternative results for laser cooling of atoms. For polarization gradient cooling, the average kinetic energy in the cold-atom peak after 1000 radiative lifetimes decreases with increasing ${\mathit{F}}_{\mathit{g}}$, and is 1 recoil energy at low laser intensity. With magnetically induced laser cooling (MILC) and low optical pumping rates, atoms cool slowly within the potential wells, giving minima in the velocity distribution at \ensuremath{\nu}=0. MILC is seen as a cyclic process; optical pumping cools and B-field mixing slightly heats.
Partial shape matching for CBIR of spine x-ray images

Efficient content-based image retrieval (CBIR) of biomedical images is a challenging problem. Feature representation algorithms used in indexing medical images on the pathology of interest have to address conflicting goals of reducing feature dimensionality while retaining important and often subtle biomedical features. In case of the vertebra, its shape effectively describes various pathologies identified by medical experts as being consistently and reliably found in x-rays in the image collection. A suitable shape method must enable retrieval relevant to the pathology in question. An approach to enabling pathology based retrieval is to use partial shape matching techniques. This paper describes our research in the development of such methods and initial retrieval results and related issues. The research is a part of our ongoing effort in developing CBIR for digitized images of a collection of 17,000 cervical and lumbar spine x-rays taken as a part of the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II) at the Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications, an intramural R&D division of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.