cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Outcomes following 50 consecutive endoscopic gastrojejunal revisions for weight gain following Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: a comparison of endoscopic suturing techniques for stoma reduction

Approximately 20–30 % of morbidly obese patients undergoing Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) will experience significant weight regain in the years following surgery. Endoscopic gastrojejunal revision (EGJR) has been shown to be a safe, effective and less invasive alternative to revisional surgery, with promising weight loss outcomes. However, minimal data exist regarding how to perform the procedure most effectively and what factors may predict good outcomes. We compared weight loss outcomes between patients undergoing endoscopic stoma revision by one of two full-thickness suturing techniques. A retrospective review of patients undergoing EGJR between 06/2012 and 09/2015 was performed. Included patients were adults 18–74 years of age who had experienced weight regain ≥2 years after initial RYGB with stoma dilation ≥15 mm in diameter. Revision was done with either an interrupted (IRT) or purse-string (PST) suture technique. A linear mixed effects model was constructed to predict postoperative weight loss. Fifty revisions (IRT = 36, PST = 14) were performed in 47 patients (92 % female, mean age of 50.9 ± 10.9 years and body mass index of 41.4 ± 7.1 kg/m2). Technical success (stoma diameter ≤10 mm) was achieved in all cases. Final diameter was significantly smaller in the PST group, 6.6 ± 2.2 mm versus 4.8 ± 1.8 mm (p < 0.01), resulting in a significantly greater % stoma reduction (76.8 ± 8.5 % vs. 84.2 ± 5.1 %, p < 0.01) versus the IRT group. PST resulted in greater % excess weight loss over time compared to IRT. Sixteen comorbid conditions resolved among 12 patients. No major complications occurred. Endoscopic revision of the gastric outlet results in meaningful weight loss and comorbidity resolution in select patients experiencing weight regain following RYGB. A PST revision likely results in higher and more sustainable weight loss when compared to IRT.
Data exploration, quality control and statistical analysis of ChIP-exo/nexus experiments

ChIP-exo/nexus experiments rely on innovative modifications of the commonly used ChIP-seq protocol for high resolution mapping of transcription factor binding sites. Although many aspects of the ChIP-exo data analysis are similar to those of ChIP-seq, these high throughput experiments pose a number of unique quality control and analysis challenges. We develop a novel statistical quality control pipeline and accompanying R/Bioconductor package, ChIPexoQual, to enable exploration and analysis of ChIP-exo and related experiments. ChIPexoQual evaluates a number of key issues including strand imbalance, library complexity, and signal enrichment of data. Assessment of these features are facilitated through diagnostic plots and summary statistics computed over regions of the genome with varying levels of coverage. We evaluated our QC pipeline with both large collections of public ChIP-exo/nexus data and multiple, new ChIP-exo datasets from Escherichia coli. ChIPexoQual analysis of these datasets resulted in guidelines for using these QC metrics across a wide range of sequencing depths and provided further insights for modelling ChIP-exo data.
Modern Radiotherapy of Prostatic Cancer

Summary The advent of modern megavoltage radiotherapy devices such as 60CO units, linear accelerators, and betatrons has stimulated radiotherapists to explore their potential usefulness in the treatment of certain neoplasms not usually considered radiocurable. One of these is carcinoma of the prostate which because it remains reasonably localized for long periods of time within a relatively small volume of tissue represents an ideal situation for radiation therapy. During the past 13 years 308 patients with localized carcinoma of the prostate have been irradiated by means of the Stanford Medical Linear Accelerator. A tumor dose of approximately 7,500 rads homogeneously distributed within a cylindrical volume of tissue 6 cm in diameter and 6 cm in height fractionated over a period of seven weeks has been used in most cases. Survival rates of 58 % at five years and 40 % at ten years have been observed. While this technique may not replace radical prostatectomy in the patient with a well circumscribed small nodule as the treatment of choice, it does offer an alternate method of definitive treatment for patients with neoplasm too extensive for radical resection but still localized to the region of the prostate, periprostatic tissue, and seminal vesicles.
Spontaneous rupture of uterine smooth muscle tumour presenting acute abdominal pain and haemoperitoneum

Uterine smooth muscle tumours are histologically categorised into benign leiomyoma, malignant leiomyosarcoma or smooth muscle tumours of uncertain malignant potentials (STUMPs).1 Common symptoms of uterine tumours are hypermenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, lumbago or irregular genital bleeding. We experienced a case of uterine tumour with atypical clinical behaviour. A 40-year-old woman who had been diagnosed with leiomyoma presented with severe abdominal pain and intraperitoneal haemorrhage. By emergent surgery, we found that the uterine tumour had ruptured spontaneously. The pathological diagnosis was STUMPs. 14 months later, she underwent a second surgery for a tumour recurrence. Pathological diagnosis was leiomyosarcoma. 20 months later, she underwent a third surgery for a re-recurrent tumour. After the third surgery, massive fluid containing haemorrhage accumulated inside the tumour. Percutaneous drainage of intratumour fluid was successfully performed. Chemotherapy was also taken, but it ended without significant efficacy. 3 years after the first surgery, she died because of intestinal perforation and peritonitis.
The diagnostic approach to the hypotonic and weak infant

The hypotonic infant is a common clinical scenario that is encountered by a pediatric neurologist. Such presentation can be nonspecific, making the diagnosis challenging. A systematic diagnostic approach is important to localization, beginning with distinguishing between central and peripheral causes of hypotonia. This chapter describes how to apply the clinical evaluation and ancillary testing including electrodiagnostic, biochemical, and genetic testing, imaging, and histopathological analysis to differentiate between neuropathic and myopathic disorders and then arrive to an etiology. This chapter describes the most common disorders including spinal muscular atrophies (SMA), neuropathies, and various forms of myopathic disorders such as congenital muscular dystrophies (CMDs) and congenital myopathies. In addition, we describe the management and treatment approach for infants with neuropathic and myopathic disorders. Availability of treatment for SMA with nusinersen is described, making an early diagnosis a high priority.
Evidence-Based Dentistry: Two Decades and Beyond

Abstract Background In 1999, the American Dental Association proffered a definition of the term evidence-based dentistry, which is still very much used to this day. It stated that “… evidence-based dentistry is an approach to oral health care that requires the judicious integration of systematic assessments of clinically relevant scientific evidence, relating to the patient's oral and medical condition and history, with the dentist's clinical expertise and the patient's treatment needs and preferences.” Concerted research during the past 2 decades have defined and characterized the protocols that obtain the qualitative and quantitative consensus of the best evidence base. This component of evidence-based dentistry, which is referred to as evidence-based dental research, is brought about as comparative effectiveness research with the research synthesis design. The best evidence base is judiciously used to generate evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, which in turn inform evidence-based dental practice. Discussion At this juncture, the complexity of the construct of evidence-based dentistry dictates several avenues of current and future inquiry and development. The most urgent and important of these is undoubtedly to craft and validate novel didactic and practical methodologies to teach evidence-based dentistry—both research and practice—to the next generation of dental researchers and clinical dentists and to optimize the integration of evidence-based dentistry in the dental curriculum. Secondarily, but certainly not of lesser importance, is the need to open and expand new research opportunities in subdomains critical to successful evidence-based dental practice, such as stakeholder engagement, teledentistry, patient-centered care, individual patient data analysis, and health literacy of the patients and caregivers. Conclusions The course that has led evidence-based dentistry from its infancy in 1999 to a state of relative recognition, if not acceptance across academic and private clinical dentistry in the United States and abroad that the field enjoys today, has been arduous. The concerted efforts by researchers and clinicians were aided considerably by the political environment, which, during the years, proffered funding to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Patient-Centered Outcome Research Institute. These have been significant catalysts of the field of comparative effectiveness research and evidence-based research in medicine and dentistry and have fostered and defended the pursuit of evidence-based endeavors in translational health care. The road ahead does not promise to be easier in next 2 decades. In fact, it has become all the murkier and more complicated now as phrases such as science based and evidence based have presently been banned and declared politically incorrect.
Oxygenated lipid signaling in tumor-associated macrophages—focus on colon cancer

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are enzymatically converted to a variety of bioactive products through insertion of molecular oxygen. PUFA-derived mediators can have either inflammatory or anti-inflammatory/pro-resolving properties, depending upon their specific structures. The relative harm or benefit of these mediators can also be tissue and context dependent. These mediators play important roles in maintaining homeostasis and their dysregulation is involved in pathogenesis of cancers, especially those associated with chronic inflammation. There is a well-established link between colorectal cancer (CRC) and chronic inflammation. The colon harbors a large population of immune cells, which must be tightly regulated in order to maintain the balance between pathogenic and commensal microbes in the gut. Macrophages are key to the process of distinguishing between potentially harmful antigens/microbes and benign or beneficial signals. Macrophages are often associated with tumors (tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), including CRC. There is some debate as to the prognostic significance of these TAMs in CRC, with some work suggesting a beneficial impact. The purpose of this review is to give an overview of what is currently known regarding PUFA-derived mediator signaling in tumor-associated macrophages in CRC.
Brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs) and intraoperative BAEP monitoring

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses that the evoked potentials are the electrical signals produced by the nervous system in response to a sensory input. A transient acoustic stimulus, such as a click or tone pip, a complex series of auditory evoked potentials (AEPs), with latencies ranging from several milliseconds to several hundred milliseconds are recorded from the surface of the head. These signals can be used to assess the function of the auditory system and also for intraoperative monitoring (IOM) of the ear, the eighth cranial nerve, and the brainstem auditory pathways. The chapter reviews that loud acoustic stimuli can also elicit neck muscle contractions that are thought to be mediated by the saccule and vestibular nerve. The electromyographic signals produced by these muscle contractions, called vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials, are also discussed in this chapter. The chapter also discusses the brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPS) recording techniques that include: acoustic stimulation; recording electrode positions; and amplification, filtering, and signal averaging.
Temporal shifts in intraspecific and interspecific diet variation: effects of predator body size and identity across seasons in a stream community

Intraspecific variation is increasingly recognized as an important factor in ecological interactions, sometimes exceeding the role of interspecific variation. Few studies, however, have examined how intra- versus interspecific variation affect trophic interactions over time within a seasonally dynamic food web. We collected stomach contents from 2,028 reticulate sculpin (Cottus perplexus), 479 cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii clarkii), and 107 Pacific giant salamanders (Dicamptodon tenebrosus) in western Oregon streams and compared diets among predator species and size classes over three seasons. Predator body size and species identity both showed strong effects on dietary niche breadth, proportional prey composition, and prey size, with seasonal variation in the relative magnitudes of intraspecific and interspecific diet variation. Size-associated diet variation was high in summer and fall but was heavily outweighed by species-associated diet variation in spring. This pattern was driven primarily by a 50-fold increase in the consumption of terrestrial thrips (Order: Thysanoptera) by cutthroat trout in spring compared to summer and fall. Mean dietary niche breadth generally increased with body size and was roughly half as wide in sculpin as in trout and was intermediate in salamanders. Predator-specific responses to the seasonality of terrestrial prey availability were associated with interspecific differences in foraging mode (e.g., benthic vs drift-feeding) and contributed to temporal variation in the roles of predator size and identity in trophic niche differentiation. Our results thereby demonstrate that intraspecific and interspecific diet variation can exhibit strong seasonality in stream predators, emphasizing the dynamic nature of food webs and the need to incorporate sampling over relevant temporal scales in efforts to understand species interactions.
How to develop an empirically based psychological test

Abstract This presents a general model of test development that can be applied to most types of tests, emphasizing the development of a strategic plan for test development rather than a step-by-step description of implementing the plan. We have found that plan implementation varies greatly depending on the setting, the type of test being developed, and the level of support available. However, our experience is that a detailed, comprehensive plan is necessary for—and typically results in—successful implementation. The validity of test score interpretations is the most important consideration in test development and so ensuring the validity of those interpretations must begin when you initiate the process of test development. Although we focus on how commercial tests are designed and implemented, since they are the most common tests encountered beyond teacher-made classroom tests, this model may be implemented on a smaller scale for those developing a test for smaller research projects. We describe four broad stages or phases for developing tests. These stages are Test Conceptualization, Specification of Format and Structure, Specification of Standardization, Scaling, Psychometric Studies, and Plan Implementation.
An Investigation of Teacher Evaluation Practice in Indiana: PL 90 Implementation and Issues for Administrators.

This study investigated teacher evaluation practices used in Indiana as the state was implementing a mandated teacher evaluation system (Public Law 90) and early reporting of subsequent teacher eff...
Unhappy Performatives of Statehood: Staging Incompatible Narratives of Eritrea through Academic Conferences

Two conferences held on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Eritrean independence operate as Austinian “unhappy performatives.” Using a performance studies lens offers new ways of understanding...
Of Therapy, Toxicity and Tungstates: The Anti-Retroviral Pharmacology of Polyoxometalates

Based upon activity in a number of in vitro assays of anti-retroviral activity, E3925 (alpha-vandoundecatungstoboric acid, hexa-potassium salt (K6[BVW11O40]·xH2O)) was elected for further evaluation as a potential condidate for clinical treatment of HIV/AIDS. When tested in mice against Friend leukemia virus (FLV), which was used as a surrogate model of retrovirus-induced immunodeficiency disease, E3925 was as efficacious as AZT and superior to HPA-23. Treatment of FLV-infected mice could be delayed up to 48 hours post-infection with no significant loss of antiviral activity. Careful manipulation of loading dose, maintenance dose and administration interval demonstrated that anti-retroviral efficacy could be maintained by administering E3925 as infrequently as every two weeks. In combination therapy experiments, E3925 was both compatible and additive with AZT in reducing the severity of FLV-induced disease in mice. Further clinical development of this compound was prevented by treatment-related coagulopathy.
Statistical Approach for Assessing the Stockholm Convention's Effectiveness: Great Lakes Atmospheric Data

The implementation of the Stockholm Convention (SC) in 2004 should become evident in decreases in environmental concentrations of various pollutants even in countries that not have ratified the SC....
Smad7 Controls Immunoregulatory PDL2/1-PD1 Signaling in Intestinal Inflammation and Autoimmunity.

Summary Smad7, a negative regulator of TGF-β signaling, has been implicated in the pathogenesis and treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), including Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Here, we found that Smad7 mediates intestinal inflammation by limiting the PDL2/1-PD1 axis in dendritic cells (DCs) and CD4+T cells. Smad7 deficiency in DCs promotes TGF-β responsiveness and the co-inhibitory molecules PDL2/1 on DCs, and it further imprints T cell-PD1 signaling to promote Treg differentiation. DC-specific Smad7 deletion mitigates DSS-induced colitis by inducing CD103+PDL2/1+DCs and Tregs. In addition, Smad7 deficiency in CD4+T cells promotes PD1 and PD1-induced Tregs in vitro. The transfer of Smad7-deficient CD4+T cells enhances Tregs in vivo and protects against T cell-mediated colitis. Furthermore, Smad7 antisense ameliorates DSS-induced UC, increasing TGF-β and PDL2/1-PD1 signaling. Enhancing PD1 signaling directly via Fc-fused PDL2/1 is also beneficial. Our results identify how Smad7 mediates intestinal inflammation and leverages these pathways therapeutically, providing additional strategies for IBD intervention.
The Effect of Potential Entrants on Audit Market Competition

Concerns regarding a lack of competition in the market for public-company audits focus on Big Four audit firms. Little concern has been raised regarding Non-Big Four firms, yet we know little about competition and barriers to entry in this market. Prior studies only consider competition from audit firms that already have public-company clients. I examine the role of potential entrants – PCAOB registered audit firms with no public clients – as an additional source of competition that can affect the quality and pricing of small firms in the public-company audit market. I find that audit quality increases and audit fees decrease for clients of Non-Big Four auditors when competition from potential entrants increases. Collectively, the results inform regulators and academics of the role potential entrants play in improving the financial reporting environment.
The Mouse Claustrum Is Required for Optimal Behavioral Performance Under High Cognitive Demand.

Abstract Background To achieve goals, organisms are often faced with complex tasks that require enhanced control of cognitive faculties for optimal performance. However, the neural circuit mechanisms underlying this ability are unclear. The claustrum is proposed to mediate a variety of functions ranging from sensory binding to cognitive control of action, but direct functional assessments of this telencephalic nucleus are lacking. Methods Here, we employed the Gnb4 (guanine nucleotide-binding subunit beta-4) cre driver line in mice to selectively monitor and manipulate claustrum projection neurons during 1-choice versus 5-choice serial reaction time task performance. Results Using fiber photometry, we found elevated claustrum activity prior to an expected cue during correct performance on the cognitively demanding 5-choice response assay relative to the less demanding 1-choice version of the task. Claustrum activity during reward acquisition was also enhanced when task demand was higher. Furthermore, optogenetically inhibiting the claustrum prior to the onset of the cue reduced choice accuracy on the 5-choice task but not on the 1-choice task. Conclusions These results suggest that the claustrum supports a cognitive control function necessary for optimal behavioral performance under cognitively demanding conditions.
Cardiac sequelae of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): a clinical case series

Background COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 most commonly manifests with fever and respiratory illness. The cardiovascular manifestations have become more prevalent but can potentially go unrecognized. We look to describe cardiac manifestations in three patients with COVID-19 using cardiac enzymes, electrocardiograms, and echocardiography. Case summaries The first patient, a 67-year-old Caucasian female with non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy, presented with dyspnoea on exertion and orthopnoea 1 week after testing positive for COVID-19. Echocardiogram revealed large pericardial effusion with findings consistent with tamponade. A pericardial drain was placed, and fluid studies were consistent with viral pericarditis, treated with colchicine, hydroxychloroquine, and methylprednisolone. Follow-up echocardiograms showed apical hypokinesis, that later resolved, consistent with Takotsubo syndrome. The second patient, a 46-year-old African American male with obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus presented with fevers, cough, and dyspnoea due to COVID-19. Clinical course was complicated with pulseless electrical activity arrest; he was found to have D-dimer and troponin elevation, and inferior wall ST elevation on ECG concerning for STEMI due to microemboli. The patient succumbed to the illness. The third patient, a 76-year-old African American female with hypertension, presented with diarrhoea, fever, and myalgia, and was found to be COVID-19 positive. Clinical course was complicated, with acute troponin elevation, decreased cardiac index, and severe hypokinesis of the basilar wall suggestive of reverse Takotsubo syndrome. The cardiac index improved after pronation and non-STEMI therapy; however, the patient expired due to worsening respiratory status. Discussion These case reports demonstrate cardiovascular manifestations of COVID-19 that required monitoring and urgent intervention.
A New Look at Cohort Trend and Underlying Mechanisms in Cognitive Functioning.

Objectives The prevalence of dementia in the United States seems to have declined over the last few decades. We investigate trends and their underlying mechanisms in cognitive functioning (CF) across seven decades of birth cohorts from the Greatest Generation to Baby Boomers. Method Data come from 30,191 participants of the 1996-2014 Health and Retirement Study. CF is measured as a summary score on a 35-point cognitive battery of items. We use generalized linear models to examine the trends in CF and explanatory variables across birth cohorts. Then Karlson-Holm-Breen decomposition method is used to evaluate the contribution of each explanatory variable to the trend of CF. Results CF has been improving from the Greatest Generation to Late Children of Depression and War Babies, but then significantly declines since the Early-Baby Boomers and continues into Mid-Baby Boomers. This pattern is observed universally across genders, race/ethnicities, education groups, occupations, income and wealth quartiles. The worsening CF among Baby Boomers does not originate from childhood conditions, adult education, or occupation. It can be attributed to lower household wealth, lower likelihood of marriage, higher levels of loneliness, depression and psychiatric problems, and more cardiovascular risk factors (e.g., obesity, physical inactivity, hypertension, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease). Discussion The worsening CF among Baby Boomers may potentially reverse past favorable trends in dementia as they reach older ages and cognitive impairment becomes more common if no effective interventions and policy responses are in place.
Care Delivery and Treatment Decision Making: Bioethical and Nursing Considerations During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The disruption in the supply chain of resources and interruptions in cancer treatments caused by the pandemic presented tremendous challenges to the healthcare system. OBJECTIVES: This article describes the National Academy of Medicine-defined states of medical and nursing care delivery for which local plans should be drawn and the shifting and evolving systems framework that can guide decisions to optimize the crisis standards of care. METHODS: A case study is presented to describe the process of shifting the state of medical and nursing care delivery and bioethical nursing considerations during the pandemic and beyond. FINDINGS: An evolving and shifting systems framework for crises rooted in deontology, principlism, and the ethics of care model provide meaningful guidance for establishing priorities for patient care.
Pulmonary lymphangiomyomatosis

Pulmonary lymphangiomyomatosis is a disease of young females, who typically present with progressive dyspnea, hemoptysis, cough, repeated spontaneous pneumothoraces, and chylous effusions. The disease should be suspected when these findings are associated with an obstructive ventilatory impairment and disproportionately abnormal gas exchange. Symptoms may occur in the presence of radiographically normal-appearing pulmonary parenchyma. As the disease progresses, diffuse, prominent interstitial markings, suggestive of pulmonary fibrosis, are seen radiographically. The diagnosis is made by open lung biopsy.
Relationship between beef cow fertility and maternal immunity

ABSTRACT Objective There is evidence that maternal immunity changes from type 1 (cell-mediated response) to predominantly type 2 (antibody-mediated immune response) during pregnancy. Lack of this shift in maternal immune response may contribute to unsuccessful pregnancy in animals. Changes in estradiol and progesterone during the estrous cycle affect immune function and potentially change the type 1–type 2 balance. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between relative balance of type 1 and type 2 immunity at the time of insemination and fertility in beef cows, using a nanoparticle probe-enabled blood test. Materials and Methods Angus-Hereford cows (n = 394) were synchronized with a 5-d CO-Synch controlled internal drug release (CIDR) fixed-time AI protocol. Estrus behavior was monitored using estrus detection aids and visual observation from CIDR removal until the day of AI. At the time of AI, a blood sample was collected from all animals to determine relative ratio between type 1 and type 2 and serum progesterone concentrations. A rapid blood test (D2Dx; Tsai et al., 2021 ) was used to assess the type 1–type 2 immunity balance. Pregnancy was determined by ultrasound 48 to 63 d after AI. Results and Discussion Overall pregnancy per AI (P/AI) was 51%. Mean relative type 1–type 2 immunity balance as determined by the D2Dx immunity test was different (P Implications and Applications The results indicate that the measurement of the relative type 1–type 2 immunity balance at the time of AI may be used as a potential marker for pregnancy prediction in beef cows.
Managing Cyber Attacks in International Law, Business, and Relations: In Search of Cyber Peace

This book presents a framework to reconceptualize internet governance and better manage cyber attacks. It examines the potential of polycentric regulation to increase accountability through bottom-up action. It also provides a synthesis of the current state of cybersecurity research, bringing features of cyber attacks to light and comparing and contrasting the threat to all relevant stakeholders. Throughout the book, cybersecurity is treated holistically, covering issues in law, science, economics and politics. This interdisciplinary approach is an exemplar of how strategies from different disciplines as well as the private and public sectors may cross-pollinate to enhance cybersecurity. Case studies and examples illustrate what is at stake and identify best practices. The book discusses technical issues of Internet governance and cybersecurity while presenting the material in an informal, straightforward manner. The book is designed to inform readers about the interplay of Internet governance and cybersecurity and the potential of polycentric regulation to help foster cyber peace.
Numerical computation of electrohydrodynamic motions of liquids subjected to unipolar injection

The application of a step voltage on a dielectric liquid confined between two plane parallel electrodes and subjected to an unipolar injection can give rise to an electrohydrodynamic (EHD) instability. The evolution of liquid motion and electrical charge distribution is obtained by numerically solving the governing equations. The equations are expressed in a 2-D vorticity-stream formulation and discretized with a group finite element scheme. Evolution from an initial perturbation shows that two different mechanisms of instability are involved in the transition from the liquid at rest to stable convective cells.
An Hypothesis for a Novel Learning Mechanism in the Cerebellar Cortex

The cerebellar cortical circuitry may support a distinct second form of associative learning, complementary to the well-known synaptic plasticity (long term depression, LTD) that has been previously shown. As the granule cell axons ascend to the molecular layer, they make multiple synapses on the overlying Purkinje cells (PC). This ascending branch (AB) input, which has been ignored in models of cerebellar learning, is likely to be functionally distinct from the parallel fiber (PF) synaptic input. We predict that AB-PF correlations lead to Hebbian-type learning at the PF-PC synapse, including long term potentiation (LTP), and allowing the cortical circuit to combine AB-PF LTP for feedforward state prediction with climbing fiber LTD for feedback error correction. The new learning mechanism could therefore add computational capacity to cerebellar models and may explain more of the experimental data.
Prenatal diagnosis of classic hemophilia (hemophilia A) by immunoradiometric assays.

During the period from 1978 to 1983, 92 pregnancies have been evaluated by fetoscopy for the prenatal diagnosis of hemophilia A. Satisfactory fetal plasma samples were obtained in 80 instances and the diagnosis-- or exclusion--of hemophilia was made by immunoradiometric assay of the factor VIII coagulant protein (VIII:CAg). The accuracy of the diagnosis established by fetoscopy has been verified after delivery or termination, and there have been no misdiagnoses resulting from laboratory error. Additional evidence for the accuracy of the analysis was the observation that the frequency of hemophilia in pregnancies of obligate carriers of the hemophilia gene, and of women whose plasma assays were indicative of the carrier state, was 29 of 59 fetuses at risk. In one case of cross-reacting material-positive hemophilia, samples obtained at fetoscopy and from the newborn infant had normal VIII:CAg levels but the infant had decreased factor VIII procoagulant activity. There were five fetal deaths resulting from fetoscopy in 55 pregnancies not intentionally terminated. Although only a small percentage of pregnant hemophilia carriers in the United States have elected to undergo fetoscopy for prenatal diagnosis, this procedure has allowed a number of pregnancies to go to term with delivery of normal males in families that were not willing to accept the risk of a hemophilic child. In eight instances, fetoscopic evaluation was sought for two successive pregnancies.
Willing Suspects and Docile Defendants: The Contradictory Role of Consent in Criminal Procedure

“Consent” is ubiquitous in our criminal justice system. Its centrality highlights the ironic disjuncture between constitutional principle and the day-to-day practice of criminal justice. The Constitution imposes strict restrictions on the State’s ability to investigate and prosecute crimes – the warrant requirement and right to jury trial are examples. But, our criminal justice system depends on individuals “consensually” relinquishing those very protections every day. The Supreme Court has encouraged this dependence by deeming an individual’s consent valid even when the State pressures her to give it. The police regularly rely on individuals consenting to searches when there is no probable cause. Suspects routinely confess to crimes when it is not in their interests to do so. And defendants routinely plead to charges that would not yield conviction following trial. This article uses political theory to account for consent’s centrality in our criminal justice system and to challenge the Court’s broad interpretation of the concept in the search, confession, and plea contexts. The Court has inappropriately relied on a kind of “fictional consent” in criminal procedure. This not only produces unfair results in individual cases, it threatens the democratic legitimacy of our criminal justice system. Bringing constitutional principle and criminal justice practice into greater harmony will require more stringent rules of consent than we currently have. The article advances a framework for reform.
School-Smart and Mother-Wise: Working-Class Women's Identity and Schooling

School-Smart and Mother-Wise: Working-Class Women's Identity and Schooling. Wendy Luttrell. New York and London: Routledge, 1997. 164 pp.
Prolonged exercise in pregnancy: Glucose homeostasis, ventilatory and cardiovascular responses

This study was designed to assess glucose homeostasis in pregnant women in their third trimester of gestation in response to exercise. Specifically, this study was designed to (1) compare the extend and rate at which blood glucose levels decrease in pregnant (22 to 33 weeks of gestation) versus that which occurs in nonpregnant women; and (2) determine the pattern of changes of the substrates (glucose, lactate, beta-hydroxybutyrate, and free fatty acids, and hormones (insulin), that contribute to the glucose homeostasis of pregnant (N = 10), and nonpregnant (N = 10) women in response to 1-hour prolonged moderate intensity exercise (at 55% of their VO2max). Each subject was tested for the determination of their maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) and, based on their VO2max, they performed 60 minutes of prolonged moderate intensity exercise. Blood was collected before, during, and after the exercise bout. The results indicated that blood glucose levels of pregnant women decrease at a faster rate and to a significantly lower level post exercise (P < .05). Insulin levels of pregnant women also decreased to a significantly lower level post exercise, and lactate levels were maintained at a lower level 15 minutes after exercise. beta-hydroxybutyrate level was not different between the two groups, but demonstrated a different pattern of changes during exercise (P < .05). Furthermore, the results suggest that blood glucose levels of the late pregnant women decrease lower than those of nonpregnant women; also, there are differences in the rate and kinetics of blood glucose between pregnant and nonpregnant women. The results also indicate significant differences in the level of circulating substrates and hormones between pregnant and nonpregnant women in response to exercise.
Distinct and Overlapping Roles of Nipah Virus P Gene Products in Modulating the Human Endothelial Cell Antiviral Response

Nipah virus (NiV) is a highly pathogenic zoonotic paramyxovirus that causes fatal encephalitis in up to 75% of infected humans. Like other paramyxoviruses, NiV employs co-transcriptional mRNA editing during transcription of the phosphoprotein (P) gene to generate additional mRNAs encoding the V and W proteins. The C protein is translated from the P mRNA, but in an alternative reading frame. There is evidence from both in vitro and in vivo studies to show that the P gene products play a role in NiV pathogenesis. We have developed a reverse genetic system to dissect the individual roles of the NiV P gene products in limiting the antiviral response in primary human microvascular lung endothelial cells, which represent important targets in human NiV infection. By characterizing growth curves and early antiviral responses against a number of recombinant NiVs with genetic modifications altering expression of the proteins encoded by the P gene, we observed that multiple elements encoded by the P gene have both distinct and overlapping roles in modulating virus replication as well as in limiting expression of antiviral mediators such as IFN-β, CXCL10, and CCL5. Our findings corroborate observations from in vivo hamster infection studies, and provide molecular insights into the attenuation and the histopathology observed in hamsters infected with C, V, and W-deficient NiVs. The results of this study also provide an opportunity to verify the results of earlier artificial plasmid expression studies in the context of authentic viral infection.
Parenteral essential amino acids in acute renal failure.

Abstract Parenteral 1.75 per cent L-essential amino acids in 47 per cent dextrose (Group I, 11 patients) or 47 per cent dextrose (Group II, 9 patients) were administered to patients with severe acute renal failure in a single blind-controlled study. Survival rates (55 per cent in Group I and 56 per cent in Group II) and duration of renal failure were similar in the two groups. Rate of daily rise in blood urea nitrogen was significantly reduced during intravenous nutrition in Group I but not in Group II. Serious complications of intravenous nutrition did not occur. Since improved nitrogen metabolism is demonstrated, further trials of essential amino acid therapy in acute renal failure are indicated.
Motion of Mn ++ -Cation Vacancy Pairs in NaCl: Study by Electron Spin Resonance and Dielectric Loss

Thermal motion of the bound positive ion vacancy around a ${\mathrm{Mn}}^{++}$ ion in NaCl has been detected as a broadening of some of the multiplets in the ${\mathrm{Mn}}^{++}$ spin resonance spectrum. In addition, dielectric loss measurements at radio frequencies reveal a Debye loss peak which can be directly correlated with this motion. Analysis of these experiments gives the lifetime of the vacancy in the cation site nearest the ${\mathrm{Mn}}^{++}$ to be $\frac{1}{\ensuremath{\tau}}=1.2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{14}\mathrm{exp}(\ensuremath{-}\frac{E}{\mathrm{kT}})$, with $E=0.63\ensuremath{\mp}0.05$ ev. Near 300\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C, the lifetime of the vacancy in the next nearest site is approximately one-third less. The ${\mathrm{Mn}}^{++}$-vacancy interchange is not detected in the resonance and therefore does not set in first. The magnitude and form of the loss peak is in good agreement with the recent theory of Lidiard if the effect of both nearest and next nearest pairs is considered.
Formal Analysis Provides Parameters for Guiding Hyperoxidation in Bacteria using Phototoxic Proteins

In this work, we developed a methodology to analyze a bacteria model that mimics the stages through which bacteria change when phage therapy is applied. Due to the widespread misuse and overuse of antibiotics, drug resistant bacteria now pose significant risks to health, agriculture and the environment. Therefore, we were interested in an alternative to conventional antibiotics, a phage therapy. Our model was designed according to an experimental procedure to engineer a temperate phage, Lambda (λ), and then kill bacteria via light-activated production of superoxide. We applied formal analysis to our model and the results show that such an approach can speed up evaluation of the system, which would be impractical or possibly not even feasible to study in a wet lab.
Separation and determination of radiostrontium in calcium carbonate matrices of biological origin

Radiostrontium is concentrated in the shells of mollusks and other animals due to the isomorphic substitution of strontium for calcium in the calcium carbonate shell matrix. Radiochemical separation of strontium from such matrices is difficult because of the chemical similarity between strontium and calcium. This paper describes a technique using a commerically-available, solid-phase extractant to separate Sr-89 and Sr-90 from high concentrations of Ca2+. The extractant removes Sr(NO3)2 from acidic nitrate media, and strontium activities are determined via conventional β-counting techniques. This method has been used to process mollusk shells collected from contaminated reactor cooling ponds at the Savannah River Site and Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
Immunoassay of antigens and haptens by inhibition of passive immune hemolysis.

Improved methods are presented for the detection of antigens and haptens by the use of the passive hemolysis inhibition test. The test is capable of detecting nanogram quantities of proteins (e.g., ferritin, IgE) and haptens (e.g., folinic acid, methotrexate). The method is also useful for studying quantitative and qualitative aspects of antibody-antigen interaction.
SYSTEMATICS IN THE VIBRATIONAL SPECTRA OF URANYL COMPLEXES

Abstract The calculation of U-O bond force constants for uranyl complexes from their infra-red absorption spectra is discussed. The maximum error involved in treating the uranyl group as free UO2++ for calculation of the U-O force constant is estimated to be less than 3 per cent. Approximate anharmonicity constants for general use for the uranyl vibrations are given. The application of Badger's rule relating U-O force constant to U-O bond distance is discussed.
Wildlife attitudes of early adopters who own forestland

Abstract This paper reports the wildlife preferences, activities, and attitudes of 63 early adopters who own forestland in the Piedmont region of South Carolina. Seventy‐eight percent of the respondents or their family members hunted, and 84 percent or more participated in other wildlife activities. A positive relationship was found between the number of wildlife enhancement management practices used and the professed importance of hunting. Results suggest that wildlife enhances lifestyle by preserving a way of life and providing a better environment for future generations, a better quality of life, and opportunities for observation and appreciation of animals and plants.
Irreversible inhibition of human natural killer cell natural cytotoxicity by modification of the extracellular membrane by the adenine nucleotide analog 5′-p-(fluorosulfonyl)benzoyl adenosine

Abstract Extracellular adenine nucleotides are inhibitors of the human natural killer cell line NK3.3 natural cytotoxicity activity. Natural cytotoxicity was inhibited approximately 26% by 1 m M ATP and 21% by 1 m M ADP. 5′-Adenylyl imidodiphosphate, a nonhydrolyzable ATP analog, inhibited natural cytotoxicity by 41% at a concentration of 1 m M and > 97% at a concentration of 10 m M . In contrast, AMP was not inhibitory. Adenosine was a weak inhibitor of natural cytotoxicity and may represent an alternate regulatory pathway. Removal of the nucleotides resulted in the restoration of control levels of natural cytotoxicity activity. The affinity label 5′- p -(fluorosulfonyl)benzoyladenosine (5′-FSBA) is a synthetic analog of ATP or ADP containing an electrophilic fluorosulfonyl group capable of covalently modifying proteins at adenine di- and triphosphate nucleotide-binding sites. Natural cytotoxicity was irreversibly inhibited by modification of the extracellular membrane of NK3.3 cells by 5′-FSBA. This inhibition was concentration dependent with an I 50 ∼ 100 μ M and complete inhibition at 1 m M . Modification of NK3.3 by 5′-FSBA did not affect the formation of effector—target cell conjugates; however, granule release was inhibited. This targets the site of inhibition by 5′-FSBA modification to a pathway preceding granule release. Irreversible, covalent modification of surface adenine nucleotide-binding proteins by 5′-FSBA provides a probe to study the role of specific adenine nucleotide-binding proteins in the extracellular regulation of natural killer cytolytic activity by adenine nucleotides.
Functional Analysis of Recombinant Respiratory Syncytial Virus Deletion Mutants Lacking the Small Hydrophobic and/or Attachment Glycoprotein Gene

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) produces three envelope glycoproteins, the attachment glycoprotein (G), the fusion (F) protein, and the small hydrophobic (SH) protein. It had been assumed, by analogy with other paramyxoviruses, that the G and F proteins would be required for the first two steps of viral entry, attachment and fusion. However, following repeated passage in cell culture, a viable mutant RSV that lacked both the G and SH genes was isolated (R. A. Karron, D. A. Buonagurio, A. F. Georgiu, S. S. Whitehead, J. E. Adamus, M. L. Clements-Mann, D. O. Harris, V. B. Randolph, S. A. Udem, B. R. Murphy, and M. S. Sidhu, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94:13961–13966, 1997). To explore the roles of the G, F, and SH proteins in virion assembly, function, and cytopathology, we have modified the full-length RSV cDNA and used it to rescue infectious RSV lacking the G and/or SH genes. The three resulting viruses and the parental virus all contain the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene that serves to identify infected cells. We have used purified, radiolabeled virions to examine virus production and function, in conjunction with GFP to quantify infected cells. We found that the G protein enhances virion binding to target cells but plays no role in penetration after attachment. The G protein also enhances cell-to-cell fusion, presumably via cell-to-cell binding, and enhances virion assembly or release. The presence or absence of the G protein in virions has no obvious effect on the content of F protein or host cell proteins in the virion. In growth curve experiments, the viruses lacking the G protein produced viral titers that were at least 10-fold lower than titers of viruses containing the G protein. This reduction is due in large part to the less efficient release of virions and the lower infectivity of the released virions. In the absence of the G protein, virus expressing both the F and SH proteins displayed somewhat smaller plaques, lower fusion activity, and slower viral entry than the virus expressing the F protein alone, suggesting that the SH protein has a negative effect on virus fusion in cell culture.
Fuzzy vs. Minmax Weighted Multiobjective Linear Programming Illustrative Comparisons

This paper compares two approaches to the solution of weighted multiobjective linear programming problems: the fuzzy linear programming method and the minmax distance metric. The two models produce an identical solution for equally weighted objectives, but the solutions differ when the objectives are unequally weighted. This is due to the underlying meaning of the weights attached to each solution method. The paper illustrates the graphical meaning of the weights and the implications to the decision maker.