cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Implementing Cancer Prevention into Clinical Practice

Cancer prevention has been associated with decreased rates of cancer incidence and increased survival. Cancer prevention, however, can have a greater impact if barriers to implementing cancer prevention into practice are removed and opportunities are both fostered and seized. The purpose of this article is to identify barriers and opportunities to cancer prevention in clinical practice and provide recommendations for the future. A multidisciplinary team participated in "The Future Directions Cancer Prevention and Control: Workforce Implications for Training, Practice and Policy" workshop on October 17-18, 2009 at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX. During the meeting, the team discussed barriers and opportunities for the implementation of cancer prevention into clinical practice. Further data were collected from peer-reviewed journals and published government and cancer agencies reports. Several issues were identified: (1) The funding allocated to basic cancer prevention research and application is not optimal and less than that for cancer treatment; (2) participation in cancer prevention behaviors and screening practices are lower than desired, especially among the uninsured; (3) a shortage in healthcare professionals is a major challenge in meeting the future needs of cancer prevention; (4) demands on medical schools to balance increased enrollment, incorporate cancer prevention in an already crowded curriculum, and develop faculty are daunting; and (5) healthcare reforms in 2010 provide both opportunities and additional challenges for cancer prevention. Based on the current state of cancer prevention, we formed six recommendations: (1) additional funding for cancer prevention research with a focus on implementation into practice, (2) improved tracking of cancer prevention research funding and the outcomes associated with it, (3) continued monitoring of cancer prevention services participation with emphasis on closing the gap in health disparities, (4) financial and technical assistance to healthcare professional schools for incorporating cancer prevention into curricula, (5) assessment of the current state of technology in cancer prevention care, and (6) the use of effective multidisciplinary teams in cancer prevention care. Improved delivery of cancer prevention services can have a tremendous impact on cancer incidence and survival rates.
Heparan sulfate/heparin N-deacetylase/N-sulfotransferase. The N-sulfotransferase activity domain is at the carboxyl half of the holoenzyme.

GlycosaminoglycanN-acetylglucosaminylN-deacetylases/N-sulfotransferases are structurally related enzymes that play an important role in the biosynthesis of heparan sulfate and heparin. They are dual catalytic, single membrane-spanning polypeptides of approximately 850–880 amino acids that catalyze the N-deacetylation of N-acetylglucosamine of glycosaminoglycans followed byN-sulfation of the same sugar. On the basis of homologies of these proteins with other N-acetylglucosaminylN-deacetylases involved in the biosynthesis of chitin and putative deacetylases from bacteria, we have constructed two soluble chimeras between protein A and the amino- and carboxyl-terminal halves of the above mastocytoma holoenzyme. The carboxyl-terminal chimera half (amino acids 479–880) was able to catalyze the N-sulfation of glucosamine of heparan sulfate with a similar affinity for its two substrates, adenosine 3′-phosphate 5′-phosphosulfate and heparan sulfate, as the holoenzyme. However, the reaction only occurred at 30 °C and not at 37 °C, both temperatures at which the holoenzyme was active. The V max of the chimera was 10–20-fold slower than that of the holoenzyme. Soluble chimeras between protein A and amino acids 43–521 and 43–680 of the holoenzyme were unable to catalyze the N-deacetylation of the bacterial N-acetylglucosaminyl-glucuronic acid polymer K5 under conditions where the holoenzyme was active. The recent appearance in genome data banks of homologs to the N-sulfotransferase domain and now the direct demonstration that this domain catalyzes this reaction raises the possibility that both N-deacetylation and N-sulfation activities of the holoenzyme might have emerged as gene fusions during evolution.
Effect of the Linear Electromagnetic Stirring on Microstructure and Properties of Cu-10%Nb Alloys

Cu-10%Nb alloys were solidified with or without electromagnetic stirring. The effect of electromagnetic stirring (EMS) on the distribution of Nb particles in solidified Cu-10%Nb ingots and the performance of its deformed wires were studied. The 300A/16Hz EMS has refined the microstructure of Cu-10%Nb alloy, with smaller phase size and larger amount, and is benefit to the homogenous distribution of Nb-rich phases. The fitted lognormal distribution of Nb phase size in case without or with EMS is compared, and the EMS case has the higher frequency percentage in the range of smaller size for both the solidified ingot and the deformed wire. Cu-10%Nb wires in EMS case have a less value of electrical conductivity and a considerably higher ultimate tensile strength compared with that without EMS.
Absence of gender differences in pediatric bipolar disorder: findings from a large sample of referred youth.

Abstract Background Because little is known about gender differences in pediatric bipolar disorder, we evaluated whether gender moderates the expression of pediatric bipolar disorder in a large clinical sample. Methods Subjects were consecutively referred youth aged 18 years or less who met full criteria for DSM-III-R bipolar disorder (BPD) (females, n=74; BD males, n=224). All subjects were assessed with a structured diagnostic interview and measures of psychosocial and family functioning. Results Most of the bipolar subjects (91% of males, 70% of females) also had ADHD. Bipolar disorder was equally prevalent in both genders. Among females and males, severe irritability (83% and 80%, respectively), mixed presentation (87% and 84%, respectively), chronic course (84% and 77%, respectively) and prepubertal onset (78% and 93%, respectively) predominated the clinical picture. We found no meaningful differences between genders in the number of BPD symptoms, type of treatment for BPD (counseling, medication, hospitalization), severity of educational deficits, severity of family and interpersonal functioning or patterns of psychiatric comorbidity. Conclusions Because gender does not moderate the clinical expression of pediatric bipolar disorder, our data does not suggest that gender specific criteria for the disorder are warranted.
The effect of salinity on binding of Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn to dissolved organic matter

Salinity can affect binding of metals to humic acid and thus affect bioavailability, however, the effects are poorly understood. The fraction of Cu, Zn, Cd and Cr (at 100 μg/L) complexed with Suwannee River Humic Acid (SRHA) was measured at salinities of 0, 1, 3, 10, and 15 psu using 1000 Dalton ultrafiltration membranes. In distilled water, 10 mg SRHA/L bound at least 40% of each metal. Except for Cu, metal binding decreased to less than 20% at salinities between 1 and 15 psu. Copper binding decreased to 27% at 3 psu, but increased to approximately 60% bound at 15 psu. Copper complexation with natural dissolved organics from a local estuary was also measured and ranged from 25 to 100%.
Effects of hydralazines on canine muscarinic ganglion transmission.

Abstract The effects of hydralazine, dihydralazine and 4-propyl-1-hydrazinophthalazine (4-propyhydralazine) were investigated on reflex pressor responses to increased intracranial fluid pressure (IIP) during occlusion of the abdominal two independent vascular zones in the animal (Steinberg and Hilton, 1966a). Increasing intracranial fluid pressure during MVO elicits a reflex pressor response which consists of two components. One component is blocked by the nicotonic ganglionic blocking agent, chlorisondamine, and the other component is blocked by small doses of atropine. It was found that hydralazine and dihydralazine were effective in blocking residual pressor responses following partial blockade of reflex pressor responses to IIP with chlorisondamine. 4-Propylhydralazine, which is chemically similar to hydralazine and dihydralazine, was less active in inhibiting the residual pressor responses. It is suggested that hydralazine may act in part by interfering with muscarinic ganglionic transmission.
Geometry of binocular imaging III : Wide-Angle and Fish-Eye Lenses

We address the issue of creating stereo imagery on a screen that, when viewed by naked human eyes, will be indistinguishable from the original scene as viewed through a visual accessory. In doing so we investigate effects that appear because real optical systems are not ideal. Namely, we consider optical systems that are not free from geometric aberrations. We present an analysis and confirming computational experiments of the simulations of stereoscopic optical accessories in the presence of aberrations. We describe an accessory in the framework of the Seidel-Schwarzschild theory. That means that we represent its deviation from an ideal (Gaussian) device by means of five constants. Correspondingly, we are able to simulate five fundamental types of monochromatic geometric aberrations: spherical aberration, coma, astigmatism, curvature-of-field, and distortion (barrel and pincushion). We derive and illustrate how these aberrations in stereoscopic optical systems, can lead to anomalous perception of depth, e.g., the misperception of planar surfaces as curved, or even twisted as well as to circumstances under which stereoscopic perception is destroyed. The analysis and numerical simulations also allow us to simulate the related but not identical effects that occur when lenses with aberrations are used in stereoscopic cameras.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Hydrogen peroxide-scavenging enzymes and antioxidants in Echinochloa frumentacea as affected by triazole growth regulators.

Paclobutrazol (PBZ)- and uniconazole (UCZ)-treated plants of Echinochloa frumentacea were shorter but had much wider leaves than untreated controls 10 days after treatment. Leaves of treated plants had a slightly higher concentration of soluble protein than the controls and exhibited enhanced activities of ascorbate peroxidase, monodehydroascorbate (MDHA) reductase, and glutathione (GSH) reductase. The triazoles did not influence the activity of dehydroascorbate (DHA) reductase. The leaves of treated plants had increased concentrations of water-soluble sulfhydryls and ascorbic acid. In contrast, the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA), a by-product of lipid peroxidation, was lower in the leaves of treated plants than in controls. These results suggest that triazole growth regulators increased the activity of the endogenous H2O2-scavenging system in E. frumentacea.
Solution medium effects on the photochemical degradation of pyrene in water

Abstract Poly-aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), carcinogenic compounds ubiquitous in the environment, are readily degraded photochemically. Understanding the kinetics and mechanisms of their photochemical degradation is important in assessing their overall toxicity. Here we have measured the photo-oxidation rate of pyrene in aqueous solution as a function of environmentally relevant solution media. The degradation rate of pyrene is 0.268 min −1 in air-equilibrated water at pH 8. Degradation appears to require water and is dependant on oxygen concentrations, ionic strength and the concentration of humic acid in solution. Rates decrease as oxygen concentrations decrease, reaching a rate of 0.0424 min −1 in argon-purged solutions. Degradation increases as ionic strength increases and decreases as humic acid concentration increases. Rates will vary by as much as an order of magnitude over the range of environmental ionic strengths and humic acid concentrations. Mechanistic studies showed the formation of the 1-hydroxypyrene intermediate, consistent with a previously proposed mechanism in the literature that proceeds via electron transfer from excited singlet state pyrene to oxygen.
The distribution of glutamate decarboxylase in rat tissues; isotopic vs fluorimetric assays.

—The activity of glutamate decarboxylase (GAD, EC 4.1.1.15) in normal and neoplastic rat tissues was determined by two assay methods, one based on the production of 14CO2 from [14C]glutamic acid and the other on the fluorimetric measurement of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) formation. Activities obtained with the isotopic assay were high in every tissue (ranging from over 800 in liver and brain to 107nmol CO2/min/g in lung). They were drastically diminished by Triton X-100, by an oxygen-free atmosphere or by the mitochondrial electron transport inhibitors, rotenone and antimycin A. Activities measured fluorimetrically were significant in only a few tissues and were stimulated by Triton (e.g. from 299 to 569 nmol GABA/min/g brain) but were unaffected by rotenone. For several tissues after Triton treatment the fluorimetric and isotopic assays (in air) gave the same results (i.e. the two end products, CO2 and GABA were in stoichiometric agreement); however, the fluorimetric assay remains the more reliable measure of GAD activity since Triton may not inhibit completely the non-GAD dependent decarboxylation of glutamate in all types of tissue preparations. The hepatic, renal and mammary tumours tested were devoid of GAD; among non-neural normal tissues, kidney, liver and, possibly, adrenal gland contained significant GAD activity. In kidney and liver the activity was 15 and 10 per cent of that in brain.
Creation of in-plane anisotropic strain in GaAs/AlXGa1-XAs multiple quantum well structures

Thin film of GaAs/AlGaAs multiple quantum well (MQW) structure have been bonded to the lithium tantalate (LiTaO3) or calcium carbonate (CaCO3) substrates cut such that one of the linear thermal expansion coefficients almost matches that of the MQW while its orthogonal counterpart does not. By choosing the proper bonding and operating temperatures, in-plane anisotropic strain up to 0.3% has been achieved. The transmission spectrum shows an anisotropy in excitonic absorption which results in a polarization rotation of a light beam at normal incidence to the structure. The theoretical calculation is in agreement with the experimental results. Using the polarization rotation, we have demonstrated a novel MQW light modulator with an exceedingly high contrast ratio of 330:1.
The cortical projections of the inferior pulvinar and adjacent lateral pulvinar in the rhesus monkey (macaca mulatta): An autoradiographic study

Abstract An autoradiographic technique was used to determine superior colliculus (SC) and pulvinar projections in the rhesus monkey. SC projects bilaterally to the inferior pulvinar (PI) while occipital cortex projects to PI and the lateral pulvinar (PL). PI has sustaining, topographical projections to layers IV, III and I of areas 18 and 19 (and VI and I of 17) which agrees with the central representation of the visual hemifield and suggests that there is more than one hemifield representation in prestriate cortex. PL adjacent to PI also projects to the same cortical areas and layers, while the portion of PL extending into the caudal pole of the pulvinar projects to layers IV, III and I of areas 20 and 21. Thus, occipital cortices are associated by cortico-thalamocortical connections and also receive direct leminiscal input via SC-PI and the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (DLG), while inferotemporal areas 20 and 21 receive only cortico-thalamocortical connections. It is concluded that Stoffels' principle of lamellation holds and, that one pulvinar subdivision projects to several cortical areas, that adjacent pulvinar subdivisions have overlapping projections to these cortical areas and their layers and that the pulvinar also projects to the same cortical area as DLG but to different layers. These connections are similar to those in lower mammals but not to those in the squirrel monkey and bushbaby.
Lateral growth patterns in the Cladoniaceae

Lateral growth from the apex of vertical structures is widespread in cladoniiform lichens. In the family Cladoniaceae, it is accomplished through a developmental shift in the meristem, in which growth orientation changes from isotropous to anisotropous. In anisotropous development, the more or less constant relationship among the axial, radial, and circumferential planes of growth is altered during ontogeny. The result is pronounced lateral elongation of the apical meristem, a departure from the isotropous body plan of early ontogeny. Development that favors radial and circumferential growth over axial growth is an innovation that provides ontogenetic flexibility but which also entails the loss of control from a single centralized meristem to one or more meristems. A shift from the constraints of symmetry to the risks and potential of asymmetry and a subsequent diversity of heritable thallus forms reflect evolutionary processes in the Cladoniaceae. Similar morphogenetic activities, which are apparently highly conserved, are shared by species that are presumably only distantly related.
Toxicity Caused by Hydroxycinnamoyl-Coenzyme A Thioester Accumulation in Mutants of Acinetobacter sp. Strain ADP1

Hydroxycinnamates, aromatic compounds that play diverse roles in plants, are dissimilated by enzymes encoded by the hca genes in the nutritionally versatile, naturally transformable bacterium Acinetobacter sp. strain ADP1. A key step in the hca-encoded pathway is activation of the natural substrates caffeate, p-coumarate, and ferulate by an acyl:coenzyme A (acyl:CoA) ligase encoded by hcaC. As described in this paper, Acinetobacter cells with a knockout of the next enzyme in the pathway, hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA hydratase/lyase (HcaA), are extremely sensitive to the presence of the three natural hydroxycinnamate substrates; Escherichia coli cells carrying a subclone with the hcaC gene are hydroxycinnamate sensitive as well. When the hcaA mutation was combined with a mutation in the repressor HcaR, exposure of the doubly mutated Acinetobacter cells to caffeate, p-coumarate, or ferulate at 10−6 M totally inhibited the growth of cells. The toxicity of p-coumarate and ferulate to a ΔhcaA strain was found to be a bacteriostatic effect. Although not toxic to wild-type cells initially, the diphenolic caffeate was itself converted to a toxin over time in the absence of cells; the converted toxin was bactericidal. In an Acinetobacter strain blocked in hcaA, a secondary mutation in the ligase (HcaC) suppresses the toxic effect. Analysis of suppression due to the mutation of hcaC led to the development of a positive-selection strategy that targets mutations blocking HcaC. An hcaC mutation from one isolate was characterized and was found to result in the substitution of an amino acid that is conserved in a functionally characterized homolog of HcaC.
Numerical solution of Volterra integro‐differential equations modelling thalamo‐cortical systems

Our study concerns thalamo-cortical systems which are modelled by nonlinear systems of Volterra integro-differential equations of convolution type. The thalamo-cortical systems describe a new architecture for a neurocomputer. Such a computer employs principles of human brain. It consists of oscillators which have different frequencies and are weakly connected via a common medium forced by an external input. Since a neurocomputer consists of many interconnected oscillators (referred also as neurons), the thalamo-cortical systems include large numbers of Volterra integro-differential equations. Solving such systems numerically is expensive not only because of their large dimensions but also because of many kernel evaluations which are needed over the whole interval from the initial point, where the initial condition is imposed, up to the present point, where the computations are currently executed. Moreover, the whole computed history of the solution has to be stored in the memory of the computing machine. Therefore, robust and efficient numerical algorithms are needed for computer simulations for the solutions to the thalamocortical systems. In this paper, we illustrate an iteration technique to solve the thalamo-cortical systems. The proposed successive iterates are vector functions of time, which change the original problems into systems of easier and separated equations. Such separated equations can then be solved in parallel computing environments. Results of numerical experiments are presented for large numbers of oscillators. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Elasticity of Short DNA Molecules: Theory and Experiment for Contour Lengths of 0.6–7μm

The wormlike chain (WLC) model currently provides the best description of double-stranded DNA elasticity for micron-sized molecules. This theory requires two intrinsic material parameters—the contour length L and the persistence length p. We measured and then analyzed the elasticity of double-stranded DNA as a function of L (632 nm–7.03 μm) using the classic solution to the WLC model. When the elasticity data were analyzed using this solution, the resulting fitted value for the persistence length pwlc depended on L; even for moderately long DNA molecules (L = 1300 nm), this apparent persistence length was 10% smaller than its limiting value for long DNA. Because p is a material parameter, and cannot depend on length, we sought a new solution to the WLC model, which we call the “finite wormlike chain (FWLC),” to account for effects not considered in the classic solution. Specifically we accounted for the finite chain length, the chain-end boundary conditions, and the bead rotational fluctuations inherent in optical trapping assays where beads are used to apply the force. After incorporating these corrections, we used our FWLC solution to generate force-extension curves, and then fit those curves with the classic WLC solution, as done in the standard experimental analysis. These results qualitatively reproduced the apparent dependence of pwlc on L seen in experimental data when analyzed with the classic WLC solution. Directly fitting experimental data to the FWLC solution reduces the apparent dependence of pfwlc on L by a factor of 3. Thus, the FWLC solution provides a significantly improved theoretical framework in which to analyze single-molecule experiments over a broad range of experimentally accessible DNA lengths, including both short (a few hundred nanometers in contour length) and very long (microns in contour length) molecules.
Structural Basis of the Tight Binding of Pyridoxal 5'-Phosphate to a Low Molecular Weight Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase †

Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) binds tightly to bovine low Mr protein tyrosine phosphatase (BPTP), but it is a very poor substrate for the enzyme. The structural basis of this tight binding of PLP is examined here by a variety of methods. Binding constants of a number of PLP analogues were measured with wild-type BPTP, and PLP binding constants of some site-specific mutants of BPTP were determined at pH 5.0 through the use of several independent methods. The tight binding of PLP (Ki = 7.6 microM) causes a downfield shift of the His-72 Cepsilon1H resonance in the 1H NMR spectrum of the protein, consistent with a structural alteration in the phosphate binding loop transmitted through a complex hydrogen bond network that exists between His-72 and Asn-15, which is a residue in the phosphate binding loop. 1H NMR spectroscopy with an MLEV-17 spectral editing scheme was used to monitor the aldehyde resonance of PLP during titration of a catalytically inactive C12A mutant of BPTP. The aldehydic proton resonance of PLP shifted from 10.43 to 10.26 ppm upon complex formation with the C12A mutant. This resonance occurs far from the region where a hemithioacetal hydrogen would be expected to appear, consistent with the conclusion that the Cys-17 side chain of BPTP does not add to the aldehyde group of PLP. UV-visible spectrophotometric titration also supported this conclusion. The binding constant of PLP to a C17A mutant was similar to that exhibited with wild-type protein. These results show that Cys-17 makes virtually no contribution to the tight binding of PLP by BPTP, in contrast to a published report that it is "essential" for binding PLP. On the other hand, Asp-129 of BPTP was found to be very important for binding PLP. It is concluded that Asp-129 binds to the pyridinium nitrogen of PLP and that this renders Asp-129 effectively unavailable to serve its essential catalytic role as a general acid. The interactions described here should be useful in the design of specific inhibitors of this and related phosphotyrosyl protein phosphatases.
Effect of the Conceptus on Uterine Natural Killer Cell Numbers and Function in the Mouse Uterus During Decidualization

Abstract Uterine natural killer (uNK) cells are the most abundant lymphocytes in the uterus during early pregnancy and play a role in spiral arteriole modifications. In the present study, we investigated whether uNK cell populations differed between mouse decidua and deciduoma. Histochemical staining using the Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA) lectin was used to identify uNK cells and classify their stages of maturation. We found differences in the pattern of localization and density of uNK cells between the decidua and deciduoma at Days 2–4 after the onset of decidualization. The cells were more distributed and the densities were significantly greater in the mesometrial region of the decidua than in the deciduoma. Using double-labeling for DBA lectin binding and bromodeoxyuridine incorporation, we found that the higher number of uNK cells in the decidua was not due to an increase in uNK cell proliferation. Western blot analyses revealed that the increase in uNK cell number was accompanied by significant...
PASSIVE IMMUNONEUTRALISATION OF HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS IN PATIENTS WITH ADVANCED AIDS

Infusions of 55-500 ml plasma from one of two donors selected for high anti-p24 antibody titre and neutralising capacity were given to six patients with advanced AIDS. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antigenaemia cleared immediately and the recipients' serum acquired the HIV antibody profile of the donor together with HIV neutralising activity. The passive antibody effects persisted for up to eleven weeks depending upon the volume of plasma given, which had a half-life of about 12 days. The infusions were followed by fewer symptoms, a transient increase in T lymphocytes, a reduction in the frequency of opportunistic infections, and a decline in the rate at which HIV could be cultured from plasma or lymphocytes.
A Simple Method for Estimating Age-Specific Rates from Sequential Cross Sections

I develop and demonstrate a simple formula for estimating age-specific event rates for a period from “before” and “after” cross sections. The general approach applies to a wide range of estimation problems in demography, the social sciences, and epidemiology. The method arises from the formal mathematics of unstable populations and is similar in spirit to “variable-r” methods. Unlike those methods, however, the new technique does not require specialized computer programming or iterative calculations, and event rates can be calculated directly from cross-sectional data in simple spreadsheets. The article includes a formal mathematical exposition of the method, simulation tests, and several examples.
Paternalism, Productivism, Collaborationism: Employers and Society in Interwar and Vichy France

Long before Michel Foucault compared the factory to a prison, employer paternalism had acquired a pejorative sense for many observers. Those who favored the idea in France preferred the term “patronage,” following the usage of engineer and social philosopher Frederic Le Play. The Centre des Jeunes Patrons (CJP), a progressive employers' group founded in 1938 in the wake of the Popular Front social crisis, vowed to “rehabilitate the patronal function.” Corporatist theorists imagined new forms of “association” or “community” in the workplace, a conscious break with paternalist habits of rule by “divine right.”
A bacterial type III secretion system inhibits actin polymerization to prevent pore formation in host cell membranes.

The bacterial pathogen Yersinia pseudotuberculosis uses type III secretion machinery to translocate Yop effector proteins through host cell plasma membranes. A current model suggests that a type III translocation channel is inserted into the plasma membrane, and if Yops are not present to fill the channel, the channel will form a pore. We examined the possibility that Yops act within the host cell to prevent pore formation. Yop– mutants of Y.pseudotuberculosis were assayed for pore-forming activity in HeLa cells. A YopE– mutant exhibited high levels of pore-forming activity. The GTPase-downregulating function of YopE was required to prevent pore formation. YopE+ bacteria had increased pore-forming activity when HeLa cells expressed activated Rho GTPases. Pore formation by YopE– bacteria required actin polymerization. F-actin was concentrated at sites of contact between HeLa cells and YopE– bacteria. The data suggest that localized actin polymerization, triggered by the type III machinery, results in pore formation in cells infected with YopE– bacteria. Thus, translocated YopE inhibits actin polymerization to prevent membane damage to cells infected with wild-type bacteria.
Dynamic anycasting over wavelength routed networks with lightpath switching

In this paper we investigate the problem of provisioning dynamic anycast holding-time-aware (HTA) lightpaths in all-optical wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) networks. We employ a technique called lightpath switching (LPS) wherein the data transmission may begin on one lightpath and switch to a different lightpath at a later time. We propose two heuristics to solve the anycast routing and wavelength assignment (RWA) problem: anycast with continuous segment (ACS) and anycast with lightpath switching (ALPS). We first compare the performance of ACS to ALPS and observe that ALPS achieves better blocking than ACS. Furthermore, we also compare the performance of these two anycast RWA algorithms to the traditional unicast RWA algorithm. We show that the anycast RWA algorithms presented here significantly out-perform the traditional unicast RWA algorithms.
Low level anti-Hu reactivity: A risk marker for small cell lung cancer?

Abstract Background : Previous experimental and laboratory studies have implicated antibodies against Hu proteins (anti-Hu) as a potential marker for small cell lung cancer (SCLC); there are no estimates of the association between anti-Hu and SCLC using a population-based design. Methods : We used stored plasma specimens to evaluate anti-Hu reactivity in relationship to small cell lung cancer in a population-based case–control study. Using Western Blot analysis, we measured anti-Hu reactivity against recombinant Hu family member, HuD, in plasma samples from 41 SCLC cases and 79 controls individually matched for age, race, sex, and smoking status (never, past, current). We analyzed the association between anti-Hu reactivity and SCLC using conditional logistic regression. Results : Anti-Hu reactivity was associated with SCLC, both before and after adjustment for amount of smoking. We observed a smoking-adjusted odds ratio of 3.2 (95% confidence interval from 0.98 to 13.4) comparing subjects above 1800 units (the lower limit of the second tertile of the distribution among antibody positive controls) to subjects with lower reactivity. We also found suggestive evidence in follow-up of our cases that anti-Hu above 1800 units was related to longer-term survival from SCLC. The present research is the first report of anti-Hu reactivity and SCLC in a population-based study. Conclusions : Given the suggestive evidence in this study, prospective analyses to examine whether anti-Hu reactivity might predict risk of developing SCLC, or whether anti-Hu reactivity could serve as an early marker for SCLC, may be warranted.
The intersensory origins of word‐comprehension: an ecological–dynamic systems view

How do infants begin to understand spoken words? Recent research suggests that word comprehension develops from the early detection of intersensory relations between conventionally paired auditory speech patterns (words) and visible objects or actions. More importantly, in keeping with dynamic systems principles, the findings suggest that word comprehension develops from a dynamic and complementary relationship between the organism (the infant) and the environment (language addressed to the infant). In addition, parallel findings from speech and non-speech studies of intersensory perception provide evidence for domain general processes in the development of word comprehension. These research findings contrast with the view that a lexical acquisition device with specific lexical principles and innate constraints is required for early word comprehension. Furthermore, they suggest that learning of word–object relations is not merely an associative process. The data support an alternative view of the developmental process that emphasizes the dynamic and reciprocal interactions between general intersensory perception, selective attention and learning in infants, and the specific characteristics of maternal communication.
The novel mouse Polo-like kinase 5 responds to DNA damage and localizes in the nucleolus

Polo-like kinases (Plk1-4) are emerging as an important class of proteins involved in many aspects of cell cycle regulation and response to DNA damage. Here, we report the cloning of a fifth member of the polo-like kinase family named Plk5. DNA and protein sequence analyses show that Plk5 shares more similarities with Plk2 and Plk3 than with Plk1 and Plk4. Consistent with this observation, we show that mouse Plk5 is a DNA damage inducible gene. Mouse Plk5 protein localizes predominantly to the nucleolus, and deletion of a putative nucleolus localization signal (NoLS) within its N-terminal moiety disrupts its nucleolar localization. Ectopic expression of Plk5 leads to cell cycle arrest in G1, decreased DNA synthesis, and to apoptosis, a characteristic it shares with Plk3. Interestingly, in contrast to mouse Plk5 gene, the sequence of human Plk5 contains a stop codon that produces a truncated protein lacking part of the kinase domain.
Prior and Posterior Probabilities and Semantic Information

According to logicians, high ‘semantic information’ must be desired by a scientist. It is associated with ‘surprise’. Indeed, if scientist is defined as one for whom all errors are equally undesirable and all correct statements are equally desirable, then it does follow that in the case of mutually exclusive propositions: (A) the scientist (though not a decision-maker in general) receiving perfect evidence gains least when it is a priori most probable (and thus ‘least surprising’): and (B) he gains on the average most from that imperfect evidence which assigns to some proposition a higher probability a posteriori than that assigned to any proposition by any other such evidence.
Hemicastration causes and testosterone prevents enhanced uptake of [3H] thymidine by Sertoli cells in testes of immature rats.

Rat pups were hemicastrated and uptake of [3 H] thymidmne by Sertoli cells in the remaining testis was compared to that in testes of sham-operated pups at intervals of from 8 h to 21 days after surgery. Labeled thymidine was administered subcutaneously 2 h before sacrifice. Testes were processed for light microscope autoradiography and the percent of Sertoli cell nuclei that had incorporated [3 H] thymidmne was determined by scoring nuclei in tissue sections as labeled or unlabeled. The percentage of cells labeled was increased in hemicastrates over intact controls by 8 h after surgery and testicular hypertrophy became apparent in hemicastrates by the following day. Labeling of Sertoli cells in hemicastrates remained elevated for 4 days and then returned to normal. When plasma levels of gonadotropmns were measured in both groups 4 days after surgery, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) was found to be more than twice normal in hemicastrates while luteinizing hormone (LH) was unchanged. The effect of testosterone on the response of Sertoli cells to hemicastration was also examined. In hemicastrates, 2 days of androgen therapy depressed, and an additional 2 days abolished, the proliferative response of the Sertoli cells. Our findings suggest that increased proliferation of Sertoli cells within the remaining testis is involved in the enlargement of the testis that follows hemicastration. They also imply that prevention of compensatory hypertrophy by testosterone involves interference with this response of Sertoli cells in some way. Finally, our data implicate FSH in control of Sertoli cell proliferation in vivo in immature rats.
Supplemental progesterone and timing of resynchronization on pregnancy outcomes in lactating dairy cows

The objective was to determine the effect of exogenous progesterone (P4) in a timed artificial insemination (TAI) protocol initiated at 2 different times post-AI on pregnancies per AI (P/AI) in lactating dairy cows. Cows (n=1,982) in 5 dairy herds were assigned randomly at a nonpregnancy diagnosis 32 ± 3 d post-AI to 1 of 4 resynchronization (RES) treatments arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial design using the Ovsynch-56 (GnRH, 7d later PGF2α, 56 h later GnRH, 16 h later TAI) protocol. Treatments were as follows: cows initiating RES 32 ± 3 d after AI with no supplemental P4 (d 32 RES-CON; n=516); same as d 32 RES-CON plus a controlled internal drug release (CIDR) insert containing P4 at the onset of Ovsynch-56 (d 32 RES-CIDR; n=503); cows initiating RES 39 ± 3 d after AI (d 39 RES-CON; n=494); and same as d 39 RES-CON plus a CIDR (d 39 RES-CIDR; n=491). Cows were inseminated if observed in estrus before TAI. The P/AI was determined 32 and 60 d after TAI. In a subgroup of cows (n=1,152), blood samples were collected and ovarian structures examined by ultrasonography on the days of the first GnRH (G1) and PGF2α of Ovsynch-56. Percentage of cows with a corpus luteum (CL) at G1 was unaffected by timing of treatments, but percentage of cows with a CL at PGF2α was greater for d 32 than for d 39 cows (87.9 vs. 79.4%). In addition, percentage of cows with P4 ≥ 1 ng/mL at G1 was unaffected by timing of treatments, but was increased for d 32 compared with d 39 RES cows on the day of the PGF2α of the RES protocols (86.5 vs. 74.3%). Treatment did not affect ovulation to G1 or P/AI 32 d after RES TAI (d 32 RES-CON=30.1%, d 32 RES-CIDR=28.8%, d 39 RES-CON=27.5%, d 39 RES-CIDR=30.5%). A greater percentage of d 39 RES cows underwent premature luteolysis during the RES protocol compared with d 32 RES cows. An interaction was detected between day of RES initiation and CIDR treatment, in which the CIDR increased P/AI 60 d after TAI for d 39 (CON=23.7% vs. CIDR=28.0%), but not for d 32 (CON=26.9% and CIDR=24.2%) cows. Pregnancy loss was unaffected by treatment. In addition, cows had improved P/AI 60 d after TAI when they received a CIDR and did not have a CL (CON-CL=28.2%, CON-No CL=19.2%, CIDR-CL=27.0%, and CIDR-No CL=26.5%) or had P4 <1 ng/mL (CON-High P4=27.8%, CON-Low P4=15.0%, CIDR-High P4=25.0%, and CIDR-Low P4=29.4%) at G1, but not if a CL was present or P4 was ≥ 1 ng/mL at G1. In conclusion, addition of a CIDR insert to supplement P4 during the RES protocol increased P/AI for cows initiating RES 39 ± 3 d after AI but not 32 ± 3 d after AI.
Effect of nodulation, nitrogen fixation and CO2 enrichment on the physiology, growth and dry mass allocation of seedlings of Alnus rubra bong

SUMMARY Inoculated and uninoculated Alnus rubra Bong, seedlings were grown for 47 days in atmospheres containing ambient (350 μ1 CO2 1−1) and elevated (650 μl CO2 1−1) levels of CO2, with and without combined nitrogen (20 mg 1−1) supplied as ammonium nitrate. Five plants from each treatment were harvested 15, 30, and 47 days after exposure to CO2 treatments began. Evidence for the presence of a positive feedback loop between nitrogen fixation and photosynthesis was observed in nodulated plants growing at elevated CO2. These plants had greater whole-plant photosynthesis and nitrogenase activity, leaf area and nitrogen content, as well as nodule and plant dry mass, relative to nodulated plants grown at ambient CO2 and non-nodulated plants grown at both CO2 levels. This feedback may be an important way in which the potential carbon drain of nitrogen fixation on the host plant could be compensated; increased nitrogen availability resulting in stimulated leaf area growth and whole-plant photosynthesis. The relative amount of dry mass allocated below ground decreased for all seedlings over time, and the amount allocated above ground increased. This shift in allocation occurred slowly and at a constant rate in non-nodulated plants and more rapidly and abruptly when plants were nodulated. The proportion of dry mass allocated below ground was consistently greater in non-nodulated plants. Dry mass allocation to the stem was increased when combined nitrogen was applied and was greatest in nodulated plants grown at high CO2. Dry mass partitioning among other organs was not directly affected by nodulation, CO2 enrichment, or other treatment interactions.
Consumer's Surplus as an Exact Approximation When Prices Are Appropriately Deflated

A canonical price-normalized form is proposed as a generalization of the ordinary consumer's surplus expression commonly used to evaluate changes in economic welfare. This familiar-looking formula, it is proved, can be rigorously interpreted as representing the first- and second-order terms of a Taylor-series expansion for the equivalent-variation or willingness-to-pay function of a single consumer. In principle, the lowly consumer's surplus triangle-and-rectangle methodology can be rigorously defended as an exact approximation to a theoretically meaningful measure as long as prices are appropriately deflated. The appropriate price deflator is derived, and some implications are discussed.
Heuristics with Constant Error Guarantees for the Design of Tree Networks

A tree network is a collection of trees rooted at a common central node. Several types of network design problems can be viewed as requiring the formation of a spanning tree network of minimum length, subject to a bound on the sum of "weights" on the nodes of any component tree. Such problems are NP-complete, and experience has shown that only small examples can be solved to optimality. This paper describes an efficient heuristic algorithm based on partitioning of a traveling salesman tour. When all the nodes have a unit weight and the bound is K, the heuristic finds a solution whose cost is at most 3-2/K times the minimum; in the general case the error bound is 4.
Poverty and macroeconomic performance across space, race, and family structure.

We examined the effects of macroeconomic performance and social policy on the extent and depth of poverty in America using state-level panel data from the 1981–2000 waves of the Current Population Survey. We found that a strong macroeconomy at both the state and national levels reduced both the number of families who were living in poverty and the severity of poverty. The magnitude and source of these antipoverty effects, however, were not uniform across family structures and racial groups or necessarily over time. While gains in the eradication of poverty, in general, were tempered by rising wage inequality, simulations indicated that female-headed families and families that were headed by black persons experienced substantial reductions in poverty in the 1990s largely because of the growth in median wages. An auxiliary time-series analysis suggests that the expansions in the federal Earned Income Tax Credit of the 1990s accounted for upward of 50% of the reduction in after-tax income deprivation.
D.C. v. Heller and the Death of Consistent Constitutional Jurisprudence

When ruling on the day's most politicized legal issues, the Supreme Court has abandoned consistent interpretive theory. This paper will examine the Roberts Court's tendency to resolve divisive issues on a policy, rather than legal, basis, and will show that this trend is exemplified by the Court’s landmark Heller opinions. Part I of this paper will discuss the traditional importance of theories of Constitutional interpretation. Part II will examine the Constitutional theory subscribed to and consistently applied by Justice Scalia, perhaps the Court's most outspoken proponent of a consistent and defined interpretive style. Part III of this paper will delve into Justice Scalia's Heller opinion and show that the interpretive model used by the Court is simply an inconsistent gloss used to obscure a political ruling. This paper will conclude by showing that the interpretive inconsistency that marks the Heller opinion is not isolated to the Heller case but rather has become the rule for this Court.
The science of CPAP

Excellent reviews have been written recently on both efficacy and equipment options of various types of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) systems (J Thorac Dis 7:1323-42, 2015), as well as technical descriptions of how different makes and models of PAP systems operate (Med Devices 8:425-37, 2015). However, there is little in the literature discussing fundamental aspects of CPAP such as alternative options for pressure selection, as well as how mask interface can impact successful patient treatment. Therefore, in this paper, although many of the commonly discussed aspects of CPAP will be addressed briefly, such as compliance issues, humidification, and pressure relief options, more effort is spent discussing little known (or discussed) topics such as predictive formulas for CPAP setting and how mask interface can effect treatment efficacy.
Transmission of dengue fever by mosquitoes.

This summarizes the results obtained in an extensive series of experiments relating to the transmission of dengue fever by mosquitoes. The investigations have been pursued by the U. S. Army Medical Department Research Board at the Bureau of Science and at the Sternberg General Hospital in Manila, P. I.Part I of the report considers the plans and arrangements made and the preliminary work done in preparation for the actual experimental work. Part II concerns itself with the various sets of experiments made, the results obtained and the conclusions drawn therefrom.
A Survey of Segregation at Interphase Boundaries in Ternary Ni-Ag-X Alloys

This paper presents an alternative derivation of a discrete lattice regular solution model for computing the composition profile across an interphase boundary in a three component system. The model is applied to the calculation of the composition profiles across interfaces separating Ni-rich and Ag-rich phases in several Ni-Ag-X ternary systems (where X stands for Cu, Pd or Au). The results show that segregation to a (001) Ni-Ag interface is expected to be strong in the case of Cu, moderate in the case of Pd, and weak in the case of Au. It is also found that the Gibbsian interfacial excess of these segregants decreases with increasing temperature.
Colloidal Supported Metal Nanoparticles (CSMNs) as Effective Nanocatalysts for Liquid-Phase Suzuki Cross-Coupling Reactions

We investigate the catalytic activity obtained for three types of nanocatalysts: colloidal supported metal nanoparticles (CSMNs) prepared with silica colloids in solution that are air-dried, CSMNs prepared with dry silica colloids resuspended in doubly deionized water that are air-dried, and palladium nanoparticles loaded onto bulk silica dispersed in doubly deionized water that are air-dried. The three types of catalysts are prepared with and without the aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) linker for a total of six different catalysts that are tested for the liquid-phase cross-coupling reaction between phenylboronic acid and iodobenzene to form biphenyl. TEM images and EDS spectra were obtained for the six different catalysts to see if the palladium nanoparticles are covalently attached to the functionalized silica colloids and functionalized bulk silica supports and to see if the palladium nanoparticles are adsorbed onto the unfunctionalized silica colloids and unfunctionalized bulk silica supports. The ...