cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Adding Genes to the RNA Genome of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus: Positional Effects on Stability of Expression

Gene expression of the nonsegmented negative strand (NNS) RNA viruses is controlled primarily at the level of transcription by the position of the genes relative to the single transcriptional promoter. We tested this principle by generating engineered variants of vesicular stomatitis virus in which an additional, identical, transcriptional unit was added to the genome at each of the viral gene junctions. Analysis of transcripts confirmed that the level of transcription was determined by the position of the gene relative to the promoter. However, the position at which a gene was inserted affected the replication potential of the viruses. Adding a gene between the first two genes, N and P, reduced replication by over an order of magnitude, whereas addition of a gene at the other gene junctions had no effect on replication levels. All genes downstream of the inserted gene had decreased levels of expression, since transcription of the extra gene introduced an additional transcriptional attenuation event. The added gene was stably maintained in the genome upon repeated passage in all cases. However, expression of the added gene was stable at only three of the four positions. In the case of insertion between the N and P genes, a virus population arose within two passages that had restored replication to wild-type levels. In this population, expression of the additional gene as a monocistronic mRNA was suppressed by mutations at the end of the upstream (N) gene that abolished transcriptional termination. Because transcription is obligatorily sequential, this prevented transcription of the inserted downstream gene as a monocistronic mRNA and resulted instead in polymerase reading through the gene junction to produce a bicistronic mRNA. This eliminated the additional attenuation step and restored expression of all downstream genes and viral replication to wild-type levels. These data show that transcriptional termination is a key element in control of gene expression of the negative strand RNA viruses and a means by which expression of individual genes may be regulated within the framework of a single transcriptional promoter. Further, these results are directly relevant to the use of NNS viruses as vectors and vaccine delivery agents, as they show that the level of expression of an added gene can be controlled by its insertion position but that not all positions of insertion yield stable expression of the added gene.
ENDURANCE AND TEMPORARY INTRINSICS

of temporary intrinsics rules out the possibility that objects endure through change.' Lewis maintains that to account for temporary intrinsics we should say that objects do not endure through change, but rather perdure.2 I disagree; Lewis's arguments do not demonstrate that an endurance theory cannot accommodate temporary intrinsics. The problem of temporary intrinsics is this: ordinary objects persist through changes in their intrinsic properties, i.e. those properties which an object has in virtue of the way it is, independently of anything else. To use Lewis's example, 'when I sit I'm bent, when I stand, I'm straight'. But an object cannot have incompatible properties. So how is intrinsic change possible? Lewis initially outlines three solutions to this problem, of which he favours the third. The first is the view that properties are really relations to times; the second is the view that only the present exists; the third is the doctrine of temporal parts. It is important to note that Lewis's solution, like the others he mentions, requires a trade off in our intuitions about intrinsic change. Although on his view it is true that there are persisting objects (the perdurers), and it is also true that properties such as shape are genuinely intrinsic (to the stages), there is nothing such that it persists through a change in its intrinsic properties. The intrinsic properties of the stages are not properties of the perdurer. The perdurer itself is not simply bent and then straight; if it were we'd be left with the
Quality of Life in Patients Using Self-Administered Intracavernous Injections of Prostaglandin E1 for Erectile Dysfunction

AbstractPurpose: We assessed changes in quality of life after 6 months of self-injections of prostaglandin E1 for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.Materials and Methods: A prospective study was done at a university affiliated Veterans Affairs medical center of patients using prostaglandin E1 at home. Quality of life was assessed with the Case Western Reserve University sexual functioning questionnaire and the Duke health profile. These questionnaires were administered before initiation and after 6 months of prostaglandin E1 therapy.Results: Of 16 subjects injecting prostaglandin E1 at home 15 completed 6 months of therapy, and 13 of them completed both questionnaires. While using prostaglandin E1 we found an increase in the frequency of sexual activity from 2.9 to 5.5 times during the prior month (p = 0.01), rigidity of erection scores from 3.8 to 7.6 (p = 0.002, score 0--no erection to 8--full erection) and sexual satisfaction scores from 2.5 to 4.1 (p = 0.03, score 0--extremely unsatisfied to 5--ex...
Effects of Auxin, Auxin-Transport Inhibitors and Mineral Nutrients on Apical Dominance in Pharbitis nil

Summary An analysis and comparison was carried out in Pharbitis nil on the effects of treatments with nutrients (N, P and K), auxin and the auxin transport inhibitors, triiodobenzioc acid (TIBA) and 2-(1-pyrenol) benzoic acid (PBA), on lateral bud outgrowth in decapitated/intact upright plants and/or in plants with inverted shoots. Although it could not be unequivocally determined whether or not the initiation of bud outgrowth was dependent on a nutrient signal, it was clearly demonstrated that the continued outgrowth of the lateral bud was dependent upon an continuous supply of nitrogen and phosphorous via the root system. There was also evidence, though not conclusive, for a significant role of auxin in the control of apical dominance. IAA treatment of decapitated shoots delayed but outgrowth. Stem treatment with the auxin transport inhibitors TIBA and PBA promoted lateral bud outgrowth. The shoot-inversion approach as employed here allowed for the analysis of interaction between the shoot apex and lateral bud both before and after the release of apical dominance.
Nozzle boundary-layer displacement thickness at Mach numbers 30 to 70

Nozzle boundary layer displacement thickness at Mach 30-70 in helium using Langley hotshot tunnel tests
Behavior of damage spreading in the two-dimensional Blume-Capel model.

The damage spreading technique has been used to study the general integer and half-integer spin-S Blume-Capel model on the square lattice within a Metropolis-type dynamics. For S= 1 and 2 integer spins, our results suggest that there exists one multicritical point along the order-disorder transition line; for S=3/2 and 5/2 half-integer spins, our results show that this multicritical behavior does not exist for this model.
Necessity and Opportunity Entrepreneurs through the Business Cycle

We construct a simple model of occupational choice among agents with differing abilities. The fraction of agents creating new businesses who are low ability rises during recessions. Thus, cohorts born during recessions are on average lower quality: their businesses yield lower initial earnings, grow more slowly, and are more likely to fail. We show that, because of their effects on the ability distribution of business founders, short-lived recessions can have long-term consequences for the quality of a cohort of firms.
Parental Absence, Academic Competence, and Expectations in Latino Immigrant Youth

Academic outcomes as a function of parental absence were examined among 268 newly immigrant Latino youth from Argentina, Colombia, and Cuba. Participants experienced parental absence as a result of divorce, parental death, and serial migration. Students who experienced parental absence reported lower achievement expectations. Parental death, prolonged parental absence, and serial migration negatively affected the academic competence and expectations of students. The extent to which parental absence related to competence and expectations through potential mediating factors was assessed with structural equation modeling. Overall, the model was able to explain some of the relationship between parental absence and the academic competence and expectations of these Latino immigrant students.
A Study of Interior Egg Quality in Twenty Midwestern Flocks

Abstract During the course of studies on the occurrence of blood spots in eggs from commercial flocks we had an opportunity to record interior egg quality on a total of 7,200 eggs consisting of 360-egg samples from each of twenty flocks. There were 10 flocks of Leghorns, 4 from Illinois, 2 each from Indiana and Michigan, and one each from Missouri and Ohio. The remaining 10 flocks were heavy breeds, 3 White Plymouth Rocks, 1 Barred Plymouth Rock, 2 New Hampshires, and 4 Rhode Island Reds, and they were located in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Missouri. It was requested that the sample from each flock represent a single day’s collection from pullets hatched in 1943, and be gathered on or about May 15, 1944. Eggs were shipped by express to Urbana, Illinois, and were examined within twenty-four hours after arrival. All eggs were broken individually on a glass plate . . .
Sensor Selection and Power Allocation for Distributed Estimation in Sensor Networks: Beyond the Star Topology

Optimal power allocation for distributed parameter estimation in a wireless sensor network with a fusion center under a total network power constraint is considered. For the simple star topology, an analysis of the effect of the measurement noise variance on the optimal power allocation policy is presented. The optimal solution evolves from sensor selection, to water- filling, to channel inversion as the measurement noise variance increases; in the last solution, the sensor with the weakest channel signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is allocated the largest fraction of the total power. Relaying nodes are then introduced to form the more complex branch, tree, and linear topologies. The optimal power allocation strategies for these complex topologies are then considered for both amplify-and-forward and estimate-and-forward transmission protocols. Analytical solutions for these cases appear to be intractable, and thus asymptotically optimal (for increasing measurement noise variance) solutions are derived. The solutions to this asymptotic problem offer near-optimal performance even for modest measurement noise. The optimal limiting power policy for the leaf nodes in branch and tree topologies is channel inversion, whereas in linear networks, the optimal solution is a form of weighted channel inversion. The results are extended to a multipath channel model and to the estimation of a vector of random parameters.
Stream merging for live continuous broadcast with time-shifting

We consider live continuous broadcast (such as radio or TV) to which users can join with time-shifting. They can join the broadcast at time t and receive the broadcast of time t - w for some offset parameter w ges 0. The simplest implementation that supports such a feature allocates a dedicated channel for each arrival time t and offset value w. Using such a technique, the server bandwidth quickly becomes a bottleneck. We adapt the stream merging technique to the time-shifting model, which allows us to greatly reduce the required server bandwidth. In addition to the application of distributing popular media, there are many other applications such as distance learning and large Internet events that could benefit from the use of time-shifting
Flipping the Switch on Clathrin-Mediated Endocytosis using Thermally Responsive Protein Microdomains

A ubiquitous approach to study protein function is to knock down activity (gene deletions, siRNA, small molecule inhibitors, etc) and study the cellular effects. Using a new methodology, this manuscript describes how to rapidly and specifically switch off cellular pathways using thermally responsive protein polymers. A small increase in temperature stimulates cytosolic elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) to assemble microdomains. We hypothesize that ELPs fused to a key effector in a target macromolecular complex will sequester the complex within these microdomains, which will bring the pathway to a halt. To test this hypothesis, we fused ELPs to clathrin-light chain (CLC), a protein associated with clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Prior to thermal stimulation, the ELP fusion is soluble and clathrin-mediated endocytosis remains 'on.' Increasing the temperature induces the assembly of ELP fusion proteins into organelle-sized microdomains that switches clathrin-mediated endocytosis 'off.' These microdomains can be thermally activated and inactivated within minutes, are reversible, do not require exogenous chemical stimulation, and are specific for components trafficked within the clathrin-mediated endocytosis pathway. This temperature-triggered cell switch system represents a new platform for the temporal manipulation of trafficking mechanisms in normal and disease cell models and has applications for manipulating other intracellular pathways.
Using genomewide mutagenesis screens to identify the genes required for neural tube closure in the mouse

BACKGROUND Neural tube closure is a critical embryological process that requires the coordination of many molecular and cellular events. Only recently has the molecular basis of the cell movements that drive neural tube closure begun to be elucidated. This has been accomplished in part due to the analysis of a growing number of genetically targeted and naturally occurring mouse mutant strains that have neural tube defects (NTDs). Currently there are more than 100 genes that when mutated result in NTDs in the mouse. Yet only approximately 10% of genes in the mouse genome have been mutated and their gross phenotype analyzed, suggesting that only a small percentage of the genes that can cause NTDs have been identified. METHODS In order to more systematically and fully understand the genetic basis of neural tube closure and to begin to define the molecular pathways that direct this key embryonic event, our laboratories have undertaken a forward genetic screen in mice. From this we hope to gain a better understanding of the regulation of this complex morphogenic processes. CONCLUSIONS The mouse provides a good model for human neural tube closure, and therefore the information gained from generating novel mouse models of NTDs will help to predict the genes responsible for human NTDs and provide experimental evidence for how they function. Birth Defects Research (Part A), 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Nearshore Water Quality Estimation Using Atmospherically Corrected AVIRIS Data

The objective of the research is to characterize the surface spectral reflectance of the nearshore waters using atmospheric correction code—Tafkaa for retrieval of the marine water constituent concentrations from hyperspectral data. The study area is the nearshore waters of New York/New Jersey considered as a valued ecological, economic and recreational resource within the New York metropolitan area. Comparison of the Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) measured radiance and in situ reflectance measurement shows the effect of the solar source and atmosphere in the total upwelling spectral radiance measured by AVIRIS. Radiative transfer code, Tafkaa was applied to remove the effects of the atmosphere and to generate accurate reflectance (R(0)) from the AVIRIS radiance for retrieving water quality parameters (i.e., total chlorophyll). Chlorophyll estimation as index of phytoplankton abundance was optimized using AVIRIS band ratio at 675 nm and 702 nm resulting in a coefficient of determination of R 2 = 0.98. Use of the radiative transfer code in conjunction with bio optical model is the main tool for using ocean color remote sensing as an operational tool for monitoring of the key nearshore ecological communities of phytoplankton important in global change studies.
Detection of Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein in Dogs With Naturally Occurring Malignant Neoplasia

Serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) concentrations were determined, by use of an automated microparticle enzyme-linked immunoassay (MEIA), in 16 control dogs and 48 dogs with previously untreated, histologically confirmed, naturally occurring neoplasia (17 dogs with lymphoma and 31 dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies, 13 dogs with carcinomas, 18 dogs with sarcomas). Mean serum AFP concentrations for untreated dogs with lymphoma, for dogs with sarcomas, and for dogs with carcinomas were not significantly different from the mean serum AFP concentration for the 16 untreated control dogs. Mean serum AFP concentration for dogs with transitional cell carcinoma (n=7) was not significantly different from the mean serum AFP concentration for the control dogs. It has been shown previously by others that a mean serum AFP concentration > 225 ng/mL is suggestive of a hepatic malignancy (e.g., hepatocellular carcinoma, lymphoma). In our study, all 48 dogs had a normal complete blood count, serum biochemical analysis, and urinalysis. Only one of the 48 dogs was found to have a serum AFP concentration > 225 ng/mL. Later evaluation of this dog confirmed hepatic involvement with lymphoma. AFP can be detected in the serum of dogs with naturally occurring tumors using the MEIA technique. A serum AFP concentration above that observed in normal dogs is not a common finding in dogs with naturally occurring neoplasia; however, we confirmed that a serum AFP concentration > 225 ng/mL, with or without evidence of a serum biochemical abnormality, may suggest primary and/or secondary hepatic involvement with a neoplastic disease and may warrant an adjustment in clinical stage and prognosis. A prospective diagnostic and therapeutic evaluation of dogs, with naturally occurring tumors having an elevated serum AFP concentration would determine the validity of this conclusion.
Distributed, scalable routing based on vectors of link states

We have present a new method for distributed routing in computer networks and internets using link-state information. Link vector algorithms (LVA) are introduced for the distributed maintenance of routing information in large networks and internets.
Phenotypic and Genetic Variance of House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) Early in Development

ABSTRACT. Phenotypic diversity is essential to the evolutionary process. We used a partial cross-foster design to investigate sources of variation in a component of immunity and three morphological traits in nestling House Sparrows (Passer domesticus). We found substantial differences in the causes of variation across traits. Most traits were influenced by date in the season; nestlings hatching later in the year were less developed, were smaller, and exhibited a lower immune response at age 10 days than nestlings hatched early in the season. Variation in rearing environment had significant effects on condition, growth, and immune response, but this could not be attributed to variation in provisioning rate. The number of offspring reared together had a negative effect on condition, but no effect on immune response. Only immune response showed significant origin-related variation. Interestingly, offspring sex had several complex effects. Males showed greater origin-related and less rearing-related variance ...
A study of the effectiveness of telepsychiatry-based culturally sensitive collaborative treatment of depressed Chinese Americans

Chinese American patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) tend to underutilize mental health services and are more likely to seek help in primary care settings than from mental health specialists. Our team has reported that Culturally Sensitive Collaborative Treatment (CSCT) is effective in improving recognition and treatment engagement of depressed Chinese Americans in primary care. The current study builds on this prior research by incorporating telemedicine technology into the CSCT model. We propose a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the acceptability and effectiveness of a telepsychiatry-based culturally sensitive collaborative treatment (T-CSCT) intervention targeted toward Chinese Americans. Patients meeting the study's eligibility criteria will receive either treatment as usual or the intervention under investigation. The six-month intervention involves: 1) an initial psychiatric interview using a culturally sensitive protocol via videoconference; 2) eight scheduled phone visits with a care manager assigned to the patient, who will monitor the patient's progress, as well as medication side effects and dosage if applicable; and 3) collaboration between the patient's PCP, psychiatrist, and care manager. Outcome measures include depressive symptom severity as well as patient and PCP satisfaction with the telepsychiatry-based care management service. The study investigates the T-CSCT model, which we believe will increase the feasibility and practicality of the CSCT model by adopting telemedicine technology. We anticipate that this model will expand access to culturally competent psychiatrists fluent in patients' native languages to improve treatment of depressed minority patients in primary care settings. NCT00854542
The Evolving Landscape of HER2 Targeting in Breast Cancer

The development of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-targeting agents for the treatment of HER2-amplified breast cancer has dramatically improved outcomes for patients with this disease. The value of HER2 as a therapeutic target encompasses 2 entirely different mechanistic dimensions. The first approach exploits the fact that HER2 is clearly a disease-driving oncogene to deliver HER2 kinase inhibitors, apparently a highly rational approach to the treatment of HER2-amplified cancers. However, the functionally relevant HER2-HER3 complex has proven much more difficult to inhibit than had been anticipated, and because of its modest efficacy, the HER2 inhibitor lapatinib is currently used predominantly in combinations and in very advanced stages of disease. The second approach exploits the massive cell surface expression of HER2 and delivers of a variety of cytotoxic or immunologic effectors with great selectivity to these cancer cells. This approach has proven transformative, with 3 such drugs introduced into practice to date. The HER2-specific antibody trastuzumab, in combination with chemotherapy, has shown substantial effect in the management of HER2-amplifed breast cancer at all stages of disease and lines of therapy—and the addition of the second HER2 antibody pertuzumab substantially increases the magnitude of this effect in all of the contexts tested thus far. While the immunologic effectors stimulated by these naked HER2 antibodies provide only modest activity as monotherapy, the toxin-carrying antibody trastuzumab-emtansine provides substantial single-agent activity and is being developed for both early- and late-stage disease. The diverse mechanistic landscape afforded by the target HER2 has proven to be fertile ground for drug development, but it has also created complexity and misconception in understanding these agents’ modes of action, undermining the development of clinically useful predictive biomarkers. This accounts for the failure of signaling-based biomarkers to predict clinical trastuzumab resistance and shifted the focus to markers of immunologic activity with greater success. The evolving world of HER2 targeting is reviewed herein.
Pool boiling performance comparison of smooth and sintered copper surfaces with and without carbon nanotubes

Pool boiling heat transfer is measured with two individual working fluids on copper surfaces enhanced with sintered copper powder and carbon nanotubes. The working fluids are a segregated hydrofluoroether, HFE-7300 (3M Electronic Markets Materials Division, St. Paul, MN), and deionized water. The surfaces considered in the experiments include smooth copper, copper with sintered copper particles, smooth copper with copper-coated carbon nanotubes (CNT), and copper with sintered copper particles and copper-coated carbon nanotubes. Characteristics of the resulting boiling curves are discussed and analyzed. Lower wall superheats resulted from both the sintered particles and the CNT array for both working fluids. For water, there was no additional benefit from the addition of CNTs on the sintered particle substrate. For HFE-7300, however, the hybrid (sintered with CNTs) surface achieved the lowest wall superheat at high heat fluxes. Critical heat flux for HFE-7300 increased by more than 45% for the hybrid surfa...
Epidemiology of Pyrazinamide-Resistant Tuberculosis in the United States, 1999–2009

Background. Pyrazinamide (PZA) is essential in tuberculosis treatment. We describe the prevalence, trends, and predictors of PZA resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in the United States. Methods. We analyzed culture-positive MTBC cases with reported drug susceptibility tests for PZA in 38 jurisdictions routinely testing for PZA susceptibility from 1999 to 2009. National Tuberculosis Genotyping Service data for 2004–2009 were used to distinguish M. tuberculosis from Mycobacterium bovis and determine phylogenetic lineage. Results. Overall 2.7% (2167/79 321) of MTBC cases had PZA resistance, increasing annually from 2.0% to 3.3% during 1999–2009 (P< .001), largely because of an increase in PZA monoresistance. PZA-monoresistant MTBC (vs drug-susceptible) was associated with an age of 0–24 years (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR],1.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.31–1.71), Hispanic ethnicity (aPR, 3.52; 95% CI, 2.96–4.18), human immunodeficiency virus infection (aPR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.15–1.77), extrapulmonary disease (aPR, 3.02; 95% CI, 2.60–3.52), and normal chest radiograph (aPR, 1.88; 95% CI, 1.63–2.16) and was inversely associated with Asian (aPR, 0.59; 95% CI, .47–.73) and black (aPR, 0.37; 95% CI, .29–.49) race. Among multidrug-resistant (MDR) cases, 38.0% were PZA-resistant; PZA resistance in MDR MTBC was associated with female sex (aPR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.08–1.46) and previous tuberculosis diagnosis (aPR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.16–1.62). Of 28 080 cases with genotyping data, 925 (3.3%) had PZA resistance; 465 of 925 (50.3%) were M. bovis. In non-MDR M. tuberculosis cases, PZA resistance was higher in the Indo-Oceanic than the East Asian lineage (2.2% vs 0.9%, respectively; aPR, 2.26; 95% CI, 1.53–3.36), but in MDR cases it was lower in the Indo-Oceanic lineage (22.0% vs 43.4%, respectively; aPR, 0.54; 95% CI, .32–.90). Conclusions. Specific human and mycobacterial characteristics were associated with PZA-resistant MTBC, reflecting both specific subgroups of the population and phylogenetic lineages of the mycobacteria.
Effects of High Air and Soil Temperature Stress on Growth and Tuberization in Solanum tuberosum

Des pommes de terre sont cultivees a des temperatures aeriennes et du sol differentes pour determiner l'effet de ce facteur sur les racines, tubercules et sur la croissance des tiges
MRL-Filters and Their Adaptive Optimal Design for Image Processing

In this paper a general class of nonlinear systems, named MRL-filters, is formulated. They consist of a convex combination between a morphological/rank filter and a linear filter. A steepest descent method is then proposed to optimally design these filters, using the averaged LMS algorithm. The filter design is viewed as a learning process, and convergence issues are investigated. To overcome the problem of non-differentiability of the nonlinear filter component, and to improve the numerical robustness of the training algorithm, an alternative approach is also proposed, resulting in very simple training equations. Image processing applications in system identification and noise cancellation are finally presented. The results not only support the proposed algorithm, but also illustrate the potential of MRL-filters and their training algorithm as important tools for nonlinear signal and image processing.
X-Ray Characterization of the Crystallization Process of High-TC Superconducting Oxides in the Sr-Bi-Pb-Ca-Cu-O System

Phase assemblages in two Sr-Bi-Pb-Ca-Cu-O glasses and their crystallization into glass-ceramics through a sequence of heat treatments are described. Samples were heat treated at various temperatures based on differential thermal analysis (DTA) analysis of the as-quenched glasses. X-ray powder diffraction was used to identify the compounds in each sample; and the different phases formed in these two samples were compared. Results of microstructural characterization of selected samples using scanning electron microscopy are discussed.
Value of sequential-time simulations in distribution planning

Distribution planning has generally been focused on providing sufficient base power delivery capacity to supply the peak load demand. Renewable generation and various Smart Grid technologies add the requirement that the time-varying characteristic of controls and loads be included in the planning problem. A sequential-time power flow solution capability is needed to properly account for the time-dependent impact of these technologies and any other technology that results in significant changes to the daily loadshape. Having the capability to perform chronological simulations allows the distribution planner to properly account for the effects of such things as shunt capacitor switching controls, modifying voltage regulation schemes to provide headroom for DG and to optimize voltage profiles, and modeling advanced inverter controls. This paper will discuss some recent EPRI research in this area. Examples will demonstrate the value of sequential-time simulations.
A new Lulworthia (Ascomycotina) from corals

Lulworthia calcicola Kohlm. & Volkm.-Kohlm., sp. nov., is described from coral rock on the back reef of three islands off the coast of Belize (Central America). Ascomata are attached with subicula to the lower side of coral slabs. A key leads to 10 recognized members of Lulworthia.
Open Nomenclature in the biodiversity era

Summary The uncertainty or the provisional status of a taxonomic identification can be expressed by a set of terms and abbreviations known as Open Nomenclature (ON) qualifiers. This approach is widely applied across biological disciplines, and a high amount of biodiversity data left in ON can be found in literature and data bases. However, there is no consensus about ON qualifiers and their meaning. The use of ON qualifiers has been reviewed in order to provide a summary and guide to current practice in zoology. Some recommendation is given to avoid inconsistencies or vagueness. A flow chart is proposed to clarify the sources of uncertainties during identification and to facilitate the application of ON qualifiers. This review provides a guide for taxonomists and ecologists currently involved in biomonitoring and biodiversity programmes, as well as for researchers dealing with biodiversity data infrastructures and tools, offering a starting point for a methodological harmonization.
Interaction of diazosulfanilic acid and the opiate receptor: inhibition of specific binding to synaptic membranes and labeling of a membrane lipid stereospecifically protected by opioids.

3,5-Diiodo-4-diazosulfanilic acid (DIDSA) inhibited the opiate specific binding to the rat brain synaptic membrane. DIDSA inhibited [3H]dihydromorphine binding more rapidly and to a greater extent than [3H]naloxone binding. That the inhibition of the opiate binding resulted from the derivatization of the opiate receptor sites by DIDSA was demonstrated by Scatchard analysis of the binding data and by the ability of 0.1 µM concentrations of various opiate ligands and not 0.1 µM dextrorphan to attenuate the DIDSA inhibition. DIDSA was probably reacting with a population of sites distinct from those which reacted with N-ethylmaleimide (NEM). This was demonstrated by the ability of 100 mM Na+ to decrease NEM inhibition of [3H]naloxone binding and not that of DIDSA inhibition. The difference in NEM and DIDSA reactive sites was further demonstrated by the ability of hypoosmotic lysis of synaptosomes to enhance DIDSA but not NEM inhibition of naloxone binding. When synaptic membranes were derivatized with a combination of 0.4 mM, DIDSA and 0.1 mM NEM in the presence of levorphanol and subsequently labeled with [125I]diazosulfanilic acid (DISA), there was a levorphanol concentration-dependent increase in radioactivity incorporated into the chloroform:methanol (2:1) extractable membrane lipids previously protected from the reagents with levorphanol but not those lipids protected with dextrorphan. There was a parallel increase in the amount of opiate receptor binding activity protected by the levorphanol. Moreover, the 2-fold increase in the radiolabeling of the protected membrane polar lipids could be eliminated by the addition of 0.1 µM levorphanol but not by the addition of dextrorphan in the reaction mixtures containing [125I]DISA. The identity of the polar lipid selectively protected by levorphanol was determined by thin-layer chromatography in silica gel G plates in three different solvent mixtures. The chromatographic patterns of the membrane polar lipids extract in these solvent mixtures compared favorably with those of the standard phosphatidylethanolamine. Separation of membranous protein with Sephadex column chromatography and polyacrylamide gel isoelectric focusing did not resolve any proteins which were significantly protected by levorphanol.
Intermediary Institutions and the Sharing Economy

In Regulating Sharing: The Sharing Economy as an Alternative Capitalist System, Professor Rashmi Dyal-Chand challenges the assumption – implicit in the fast-growing legal literature on the “sharing economy” – that companies in this sector operate in the manner of traditional firms. Framing the sharing economy as a “nascent form of a coordinated market economy”, Dyal-Chand calls for regulation rooted in a deeper understanding of the institutions – both the technological platforms most commonly associated with the sharing economy (Uber, Airbnb, TaskRabbit, and their ilk) and a burgeoning collection of more organic and democratic organizations — that shape this economy.This short invited Response focuses on the potential of this second category of institutions to achieve a more equitable distribution of the economic benefits of the sharing economy. While I agree that much can be gained from a more critical reflection on the nature of the institutions that shape the sharing economy, I harbor skepticism regarding the current vitality and future potential of these alternative institutions. I first explore how intermediary institutions might strengthen the position of workers in the sharing economy. I then express a few hesitations regarding the prospects of intermediary institutions to adequately counterbalance the technological platforms that dominate the sharing economy. Finally, I offer suggestions for how, by drawing on discussions of the role of institutions in other areas of legal doctrine; an “institutional turn” in thinking about the sharing economy might inform both legal scholarship and regulation.
Semiclassical Multi-Mode Floquet Theory and Non-Adiabatic Approximation Quasi-Energy Method for Intense Field Multiphoton Processes

The use of the (single-mode) semiclassical Floquet theory [1,2] for nonperturbative treatments of the multiphoton dynamics of finite-level systems, involving periodic time-dependent Hamiltonians, has attracted considerable attention in the last few years. A detailed review of the theoretical investigations for two-level systems has been given by Dion and Hirschfelder [2]. Recently the conventional (single-mode) finite-level Floquet theory [1,2] has been extended to infinite-level (to include both bound as well as continuum states) non-Hermitian Floquet or complex quasi-energy theories [3–6], employing the use of complex-coordinate transformation [7] and L2-continuum discretization. This yields practical techniques for the study of intense field multiphoton ionization (MPI) of atoms [3], Stark-Zeeman [4] and laser-Zeeman [5] effects as well as multiphoton dissociation (MPD) of small molecules [6], using entirely only bound-state technology. In this paper, two new developments in Floquet theory, namely, the generalized multi-mode Floquet theory as well as a non-adiabatic quasi-energy method will be briefly presented.
Spike-triggered averaging to assess rat auditory cortex time-frequency receptive fields

Receptive fields have been used as a tool to study the functional organization of the auditory system in several animals. In this study, they have been used to characterize the primary auditory cortex of rats, specifically to address the differences in auditory processing at different depths of the cortex. The depths chosen; 500, 800 and 1300 /spl mu/m correspond to layers IV, V and VI of the cortex. This study aims at quantifying the differences in the receptive field in terms of changes in latency, differences in tuning curves, spectral bandwidth and the complexity of the receptive fields. The following preliminary trends were observed: the mean peak latency changes from 10 /spl plusmn/ 4 ms at a depth of 500 /spl mu/m to 46 /spl plusmn/ 13.08 ms at a depth of 1300 /spl mu/m. Mean spectral bandwidth changes from 6.4 /spl plusmn/ 0.95 kHz at 500 /spl mu/m to 8.9 /spl plusmn/ 1.73 KHz at 800 /spl mu/m to 8 /spl plusmn/ 2.53 KHz at 1300 /spl mu/m. The mean temporal width changes with increasing depth from 13.6 /spl plusmn/ 1.15 ms at 500 /spl mu/m to 9.4 /spl plusmn/ 1.88 ms at 1300 /spl mu/m. Quantitative characterization of the receptive field can be used to generate mathematical models of the auditory neurons, which could aid the computation of stimulation levels for implantable cortical prosthetics. Preliminary data from our experiment on three animals has been presented here.
Effects of elemental ratios in CZTSe film on CZTSe/CdS band alignment and inhomogeneity in absorber thermal conductivity

CZTSe solar cells with different elemental ratios are compared for their photo-response with low and high illumination densities. Elemental ratios are found not only affecting the defect density, but also Mo/CZTSe/CdS band alignment. Higher Sn/Cu and lower Zn ratio was found more immune to EQE droop at high power illumination, although it yields lower EQEs at low power level. Furthermore, inhomogeneity in thermal conductivity was found within the film. The findings suggest the potential to modify Zn and Sn ratios adapting to different operation conditions and applications.
Turning It Up to 11: Modular Proteins Amplify RNA Sensors for Sophisticated Circuitry

Ligand-sensing RNA switches can be enhanced using protein-based amplifiers to deliver sophisticated signal-processing genetic circuitry.
BAFF-R Receptor Also Functions in the Nucleus of Normal and Neoplastic Human B Lymphocytes.

Abstract B-lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS) is a relatively newly described tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily cytokine involved in cell survival and proliferation in normal and neoplastic B cells, particularly in the aggressive B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL-B). BLyS binds to three receptors: BAFF-R (or BR3), BCMA and TACI. However, recent studies have shown that BLyS regulates B cell survival and proliferation predominately through BAFF-R. Mice with mutant BAFF-R show significant decrease in the peripheral blood B-lymphocyte compartment, similar to the phenotype of BLyS knockout mice. BLyS/BAFF-R signaling functions through activation of the critical transcription factor NF-kB pathways, especially the NF-kB2 pathway, which mainly involves the p52/ rel-B complex. Our previous studies have shown that BLyS is constitutively expressed in aggressive NHL-B cells leading to increased survival and proliferation of the malignant B cells. In this study, we found by western blotting and confocal microscopy that BAFF-R, the major B cell associated cell membrane receptor for BLyS, was also present in the B cell nucleus, in addition to its location in plasma membrane and cytoplasm in both normal peripheral blood B lymphocytes and NHL-B cells. Nuclear presence can be increased by anti-IgM and soluble CD154 treatment in normal peripheral blood B lymphocytes, and is constitutively expressed in aggressive NHL-B. Inhibition of BLyS expression by specific BLyS siRNA decreases nuclear BAFF-R level and survival in LBCL cells. Immunostaining experiments show that in the cytoplasm of normal and neoplastic B cells, BAFF-R interacts with the improtin a and b which are members of the classic karypherin pathway. A candidate nuclear localization sequence (NLS) was also identified in the BAFF-R protein sequence, and mutation of this putative NLS can block BAFF-R entering nucleus, which is consistent with our hypothesis that BAFF-R undergoes nuclear translocation. To further investigate the functional role of BAFF-R in nucleus, we performed confocal immunostaining analysis and co-immunoprecipitation, that shows that BAFF-R co-localizes with some NF-kB family members such as c-rel in the B cell nucleus. We also found that nuclear BAFF-R/c-rel complex can bind to the NF-kB binding site on the promoters of NF-kB target genes such as BLyS, CD154, Bcl-xL and Bfl-1 /A1 by chromatin immnoprecipitation (ChIP) assay. Luciferase reporter assays show that BAFF-R has transactivation activity on these NF-kB target genes. Furthermore, NLS mutant BAFF-R decreases NF-kB target gene promoter activity, compared to wild type BAFF-R, and NHL-B cell proliferation. These findings indicates that in addition to activating NF-kB pathways at the plasma membrane, BAFF-R may also promote survival and proliferation of both normal and NHL-B cell in the nucleus by directly regulating transcriptional activity of key NF-kB target genes and may functions as a transcriptional co- factor with NF-kB.
Privileging Consumptive Use: A Critique of Ideology, Power, and Discourse in the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation

The North American Model of Wildlife Conservation (NAMWC) defines the unique style of conservation in the North American continent which is comprised of equal and ethical public access to natural resources that are ostensibly held in trust for them by the state. Since the NAMWC was first articulated as a concept, many wildlife specialists and curriculum developers in North America have adopted the seven tenets of the model as a representation of conservation history and an important component of future management strategies. In an ideological critique of the model, we argue that its narrow stakeholder focus and ideological representation limits both a broader spectrum of citizen involvement in wildlife management decisions and the future applicability of the model due to changing values toward nature. We draw on discourse and hegemony theory to critique written descriptions of the tenets from Geist et al. (2001) and other academic and popular literature addressing the model. We found that the NAMWC focuses its rhetoric on hunters and wildlife management practitioners, but excludes or marginalises non-consumptive users, policy-makers and other conservation practitioners. We argue for a broadening of the philosophical model to accommodate a variety of ideologies and diffuse powerful interests that have built up around the model.
Dual activation of neuronal G protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) channels by cholesterol and alcohol.

Activation of G protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) channels leads to a hyperpolarization of the neuron’s membrane potential, providing an important component of inhibition in the brain. In addition to the canonical G protein-activation pathway, GIRK channels are activated by small molecules but less is known about the underlying gating mechanisms. One drawback to previous studies has been the inability to control intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Here we used a reconstitution strategy with highly purified mammalian GIRK2 channels incorporated into liposomes and demonstrate that cholesterol or intoxicating concentrations of ethanol, i.e., >20 mM, each activate GIRK2 channels directly, in the absence of G proteins. Notably, both activators require the membrane phospholipid PIP2 but appear to interact independently with different regions of the channel. Elucidating the mechanisms underlying G protein-independent pathways of activating GIRK channels provides a unique strategy for developing new types of neuronal excitability modulators.
Modeling the performance of TRISO-based fully ceramic matrix (FCM) fuel in an LWR environment using BISON

Abstract Fully ceramic microencapsulated (FCM) fuel is a proposed fuel type for improved accident performance in LWRs (Light Water Reactors) that involves TRISO (TRistructural-ISOtropic) particles embedded in a nano-powder sintered silicon carbide (SiC) matrix. The TRISO particles contain a spherical fuel kernel ranging from 500 to 800 µm in diameter. The kernel and buffer layer are then coated with three layers, each of which is 30–40 µm thick, composed of dense inner pyrolytic carbon (IPyC), chemically vapor deposited silicon carbide (SiC) layer, and an outer pyrolytic carbon (OPyC) layer. These TRISO particles are then embedded in a fully dense sintered SiC matrix with an expected particle packing fraction of about 35–40% by volume. As is the case for gas reactor applications, the release of radioactivity into the coolant is dependent on the integrity of the silicon carbide layer of the TRISO particles, in addition to the SiC matrix. In this work, we report on fuel performance modeling of TRISO-bearing FCM fuel using the BISON code to simulate the thermo-mechanical behavior of this fuel in a prototypic LWR environment. This paper considers the effects of embedding a TRISO particle in the SiC pellet matrix and includes a discussion of the irradiation-induced dimensional change in the pyrolytic carbon (PyC) layers of the TRISO particle. Additionally, methods were developed to simulate a FCM pellet containing a large number of discrete and independent particles. Future work will report on developing an interface debonding model, a fracture model, and a radionuclide transport model.
The UWNLP system at SemEval-2018 Task 7: Neural Relation Extraction Model with Selectively Incorporated Concept Embeddings

This paper describes our submission for SemEval 2018 Task 7 shared task on semantic relation extraction and classification in scientific papers. Our model is based on the end-to-end relation extraction model of (Miwa and Bansal, 2016) with several enhancements such as character-level encoding attention mechanism on selecting pretrained concept candidate embeddings. Our official submission ranked the second in relation classification task (Subtask 1.1 and Subtask 2 Senerio 2), and the first in the relation extraction task (Subtask 2 Scenario 1).