cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Set-Defined Irregular Colorings

Chapter 2 dealt with vertex-distinguishing unrestricted edge colorings c of a graph G using the colors 1, 2, …, k for some positive integer k that induce vertex colorings c ′ where c ′ (v) is defined as the sum of the colors of the edges incident with v. Chapter 3 also explored vertex-distinguishing unrestricted edge colorings, where in that chapter the colors were members of some set \(\mathbb{Z}_{k}\) of integers modulo k and the induced color of a vertex was once again the sum (computed in \(\mathbb{Z}_{k}\)) of the colors of edges incident with the vertex.
Preparation of metal supported montmorillonite catalyst: A new approach

A new approach for the preparation of metal supported montmorillonite catalyst is reported here for the first time. The polyol process in which ethylene glycol is used as reducing agent was employed for the preparation of uniformly distributed copper metal particles on and within the montmorillonite matrix. A hydroxy copper acetate intercalated form of montmorillonite was refluxed at 195 °C with liquid ethylene glycol for 6 h. The reduction of copper acetate to copper metal was apparent from the red color of the reduced product. An X-ray powder diffraction pattern showed the deposition of copper metal on the external surface of montmorillonite and scanning electron micrographs exhibited uniformly distributed spherical copper metal particles of about 0.5 μm size. This process may also be extended for the preparation of other fine metal particles supported on montmorillonite catalysts.
Neptune predictions wanted

Earth and planetary scientists will have the opportunity to speculate in print about Neptune, before the Voyager 2 spacecraft's flyby of the planet in August 1989. The AGU journal Geophysical Research Letters (GRL) will be publishing scientific predictions about the most distant of the four giant gaseous planets in the Solar System. A statement published in GRL in September 1987 by editor Alex Dessler calls for the hypotheses because “the classic test of a theory is its ability to predict.” Although much has been learned from Voyager's visits to Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus, “the Neptune encounter challenges our present understanding,” Dessler said.
Purification of antibodies against biotin on lipoic acid-sepharose

Abstract The use of a “hapten-analog” affinity column, lipoyl-Sepharose, is described for the purification of antibodies directed against biotin. The antibodies bind to biotin very tightly ( K d ⋍ 10 −8 m ) ( M. Berger, 1975 , Biochemistry 14, 2338–2342), and elution of antibody from biotin-Sepharose requires harsh conditions (1–1.5 m acetic acid) and results in a poor yield of antibody, which, upon storage, loses much of its capacity to inhibit the biotin-containing enzyme, transcarboxylase. With lipoyl-Sepharose, the antibody can be eluted in good yield and with high efficacy using 0.1 m acetic acid. In addition, antibody-biotin complexes or complexes of the antibody with biotin enzyme can be eluted directly from antibody-bound lipoyl-Sepharose using solutions of biotin or of biotin-containing enzyme.
Effect of Business and Dairy Herd Management Practices on the Variable Cost of Producing Milk

Abstract A Cobb-Douglas-type function was used to study the effect of several business and dairy herd factors on the variable cost of production per 45.4kg milk in 410 New York State dairy herds. The model used was a recursive system of equations with milk sold per cow per year and total variable cost associated with milk production as endogenous variables. Solutions were obtained using the two-stage least squares procedure. Relationships were essentially linear between variable production cost per 45.4kg of milk and average age of the herd, percent days in milk, average age at first calving, average body weight, average days dry, fat test, and kilograms of concentrates fed. For average days open, herd size, number of cows per worker, tillable acres per cow, percent cows leaving the herd, and capital investment per cow, relationships were curvilinear. A lower variable production cost was associated with those herds having fewer days open, younger age at first calving, higher percent days in milk, lower percent cows leaving the herd, and heavier cows. Average body weight of all cows, average days dry, cows per worker, and tillable acres per cow had very little relationship with the variable production cost.
Statistical mechanical evaluation of surface area from physical adsorption of gases

Abstract Gas adsorption methods provide detail relating to the morphology that is not obtainable by any other means. An equation is derived from statistical mechanical considerations to describe the physical adsorption process on solid surfaces. This derivation is predicated on the following assumptions: (1) The surface may be described as a large potential box either with or without localized areas of high bonding energy. (2) The molecules adsorbed on the surface are completely mobile and may either skate around, over, or under each other. (3) The bonding energy between a molecule in a high energy localized site and a molecule in the next layer is equal to the energy of liquefaction. (4) The bonding energy of the molecules whenever they are in the first layer is greater than the energy of liquefaction. (5) All other bond energies between adsorbed molecules is equivalent to the energy of liquefaction (including lateral bonding), and (6) the adsorbed molecules are indistinguishable from each other. This mathematical relationship is extremely useful in that it allows the direct calculation of surface area without any arbitrary proportionality constant. The functionality of the treatment gives rise to the autoshielding potential relationship θ = ln{−ln[ P (θ=0)/ P 0 ]} − ln[−ln( P / P 0 )], where θ is the monolayer equivalent of adsorbate, P is the equilibrium pressure of adsorbate over solid adsorbent, and P 0 is the liquid vapor pressure of adsorbate at the isotherm temperature. Additional considerations account for first layer adsorption on specific sites, i.e. chemisorption, microporosity, defects, etc.
Voluntary movement dysfunction in Huntington's disease and tardive dyskinesia

Psychiatric patients with tardive dyskinesia (TD) may be difficult to distinguish from those with Huntington's Disease (HD), who frequently have psychiatric symptoms. This study compared 14 patients with HD with 21 patients (15 schizophrenics and 6 with affective disorder), matched for involuntary movements, using a quantitated neurological examination and other objective and semi-objective tests. The HD group was significantly more impaired on measures of voluntary movement and saccadic eye movements. When the psychiatric group was subdivided, voluntary motor impairment was most marked in schizophrenics with both TD and parkinsonism. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Does Past Treatment for Depression Influence the Current Functioning of Individuals With a History of Depression? A National Study

This study examines whether a history of treatment differentiates levels of general mental and physical functioning among individuals with lifetime depressive disorder, with and without a history of suicide attempt. We also examine whether functioning varies treatment type (outpatient psychotherapy, pharmacologic, pharmacologic and outpatient psychotherapy, or inpatient treatment). Using the 2001–2002 National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC), individuals meeting criteria for depression, with and without a history of suicide attempt, who received past treatment were included. No type of treatment was associated with better mental or physical functioning among attempters. Only outpatient psychotherapy was associated with higher physical and mental functioning among non-attempters. Given the poor rates of treatment adherence among depressed suicide attempters, long-term improvement in physical and mental health functioning is difficult to achieve. Treatment engagement should b...
Stability results for multi-layer radial Hele-Shaw and porous media flows

Motivated by stability problems arising in the context of chemical enhanced oil recovery, we perform linear stability analysis of Hele-Shaw and porous media flows in radial geometry involving an arbitrary number of immiscible fluids. Key stability results obtained and their relevance to the stabilization of fingering instability are discussed. Some of the key results, among many others, are (i) absolute upper bounds on the growth rate in terms of the problem data; (ii) validation of these upper bound results against exact computation for the case of three-layer flows; (iii) stability enhancing injection policies; (iv) asymptotic limits that reduce these radial flow results to similar results for rectilinear flows; and (v) the stabilizing effect of curvature of the interfaces. Multi-layer radial flows have been found to have the following additional distinguishing features in comparison to rectilinear flows: (i) very long waves, some of which can be physically meaningful, are stable; and (ii) eigenvalues can be complex for some waves depending on the problem data, implying that the dispersion curves for one or more waves can contact each other. Similar to the rectilinear case, these results can be useful in providing insight into the interfacial instability transfer mechanism as the problem data are varied. Moreover, these can be useful in devising smart injection policies as well as controlling the complexity of the long-term dynamics when drops of various immiscible fluids intersperse among each other. As an application of the upper bound results, we provide stabilization criteria and design an almost stable multi-layer system by adding many layers of fluid with small positive jumps in viscosity in the direction of the basic flow.
Recent Advances In Optical Microscopy Applied To The Biomedical Sciences

A review of the advances in optical microscopy and the recent applications in biomedical research are discussed.
Bone marrow transplantation for myelodysplasia.

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) is the only treatment modality that has consistently been demonstrated to cure patients with the myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Since the early 1980s, numerous publications have reported the results with BMT for over 700 patients with MDS and the lead patients are now disease-free for more than 16 years. Overall, these studies show that approximately 40% of patients are likely to be cured with allogeneic BMT. The best results have been reported for patients with refractory anemia who receive marrow from fully matched related donors, with 75% long-term disease-free survival rates. Factors that are associated with an increased risk of relapse and, thereby, shorter disease-free survival, include increased blast percentage and poor risk karyotype. Factors that are associated with an increased risk of non-relapse mortality and, in some studies, shorter disease-free survival, include longer disease duration, advanced patient age, therapy-related MDS, male patients, and use of mismatched or unrelated donors. However, favorable results have been seen in small studies of patients 55-66 years of age and in patients with refractory anemia undergoing matched unrelated donor BMT. Allogeneic BMT is appropriate therapy for patients with high or intermediate risk disease (risk category based on the International Prognostic Scoring System). The use of allogeneic BMT for patients with low risk disease is not well defined, but may be appropriate for particularly young individuals or those with a life-threatening single cytopenia.
Epistemology's search for significance

Epistemology is supposed to guide our reason. This means that epistemology is practically important because our beliefs so often play a decisive role in how we decide to act. We argue that in order to be effectively action-guiding, traditional epistemological theories must be supplemented with an account of significance—of what makes one reasoning problem significant and another reasoning problem insignificant. We sketch the beginning of an account of significance that employs Signal Detection Theory. We then argue that any internalist theory of justification is not going to fit smoothly with a plausible account of significance. This calls into question the power of internalist theories of justification to effectively guide reason and action.
Products and Kinetics of Cloransulam-methyl Aerobic Soil Metabolism

Cloransulam-methyl aerobic soil metabolism was investigated to ascertain rates and products of environmental dissipation. Cecil loamy sand and Hanford loam fortified with 66 ng of [14C]cloransulam-methyl g-1 of soil were incubated in the dark at 25 °C and 100 kPa of moisture potential under positive O2 pressure for up to 357 days. Cloransulam-methyl exhibited a biphasic pattern of degradation. Aerobic soil half-lives were 9 and 13 days, respectively, on Cecil and Hanford soils for data fit to a two-compartment model and 16 and 21 days, respectively, for data fit to a first-order initial rate model. Degradation rates decreased ≈10-fold when soils were incubated at 5 °C or when sterilized by γ-irradiation. Evolved 14CO2 accounted for up to 10% of applied 14C. Metabolites (cloransulam, 5-hydroxycloransulam-methyl, and 5-hydroxycloransulam) occurred in acetone/acetic acid extracts at maximum concentrations of 25, 9, and 8 ng g-1, respectively, and were significantly less phytotoxic than the parent molecule. B...
An evaluation of three potential methods for preventing the spread of larval Lepeophtheirus salmonis (Krøyer, 1837)

Within the State of Maine, only a portion of the farm sites experience sea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) infections on an annual basis. There has been concern about the further spread of lice by farming activities to unaffected areas despite routine disinfection of equipment with sodium hypochlorite or iodophors. We examined the effects of Povidone-iodine, sodium hypochlorite and desiccation on egg strings of L. salmonis and the potential of these methods for preventing hatching of nauplii or development to the copepodid stage. L. salmonis egg strings were exposed to one of eight treatments: 200 ppm of sodium hypochlorite or Povidone-iodine solutions for 1 min, 500 ppm of either disinfectant for one minute or 10 min, or desiccation for either 4 or 24 h. The egg strings were then incubated and the hatched copepods were kept for 6 days in filtered natural seawater at 32 ppt salinity at 12°C. Desiccation for 4 or 24 h were the only methods that prevented L. salmonis nauplii from hatching or developing to the infective copepodid stage. Common disinfection procedures against pathogenic bacteria and virus were not found to be effective against L. salmonis eggs.
Flowers and Women in Hawthorne's THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES

The act of the passing generation is the germ which may and must produce good or evil fruit. (Hawthorne 6)Critics of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The House of the Seven Gables often focus on how his use o...
The MHC class II molecule H2-M is targeted to an endosomal compartment by a tyrosine-based targeting motif.

Abstract The nonpolymorphic human class II molecule HLA-DM (DM) has been found to play a key role in antigen presentation by MHC class II molecules. HLA-DM and its murine equivalent H2-M are located intracellularly and are absent from the cell surface. In transfected HeLa cells, H2-M was transported to an endosomal compartment in the absence of invariant chain. A tyrosine-based targeting motif in the cytoplasmic tail of H2-Mβ was responsible for the endosomal location and, if this tyrosine was mutated, H2-M accumulated at the cell surface. In the presence of invariant chain the mutated H2-M was redistributed to endosomes. The targeting motif of H2-M appeared not to be crucial for efficient peptide loading of class 11, but if the invariant chain targeting motif also was removed, peptide loading decreased drastically. Thus, the targeting motif of H2-M appears to be supplementary, rather than essential for class II-peptide association.
Effect of age on the function of mitochondria isolated from brain and heart tissue

Abstract The ADP: O ratios and rates of State 3 and State 4 respiration were measured for mitochondria isolated from heart and brain tissue of 3–32-month-old Fischer F344 rats using the following substrates: succinate, β-hydroxybutyrate, palmitylcarnitine, glutamate, glutamate plus malate, and pyruvate plus malate. No significant age-related change in either the ADP: O ratio or State 4 respiration by isolated heart and brain mitochondria was observed with any of the substrates tested. The rate of State 3 respiration did not change with increasing age using succinate as substrates. However, the rate of State 3 respiration did change significantly as a function of age with isolated heart mitochondria using β-hydroxybutyrate, palmitylcarnitine, glutamate, glutamate plus malate, and pyruvate plus malate and with isolated brain mitochondria using glutamate, glutamate plus malate, and pyruvate plus malate. Between 12 and 32 months of age, the rate of State 3 respiration by isolated heart mitochondria decreased 27–74%.
Implementing computer technology: a multiorganizational test of Klein and Sorra’s model

Abstract In an empirical test and extension of Klein and Sorra’s [Acad. Manag. Rev. 21 (1996) 1055] model, the organization’s receptivity toward change, climate for implementation, and innovation-values fit are tested as determinants of implementation effectiveness. The model suggests that collective human perceptions have an impact on successful implementation of technology. The research examines the implementation of computer technology in science education in a sample of 69 schools. The results provide strong support for the hypothesized relationships between receptivity toward change, climate for implementation, and implementation effectiveness.
Evaluation of iron deficiency as a nutritional adaptation to infectious disease: An evolutionary medicine perspective

An evolutionary perspective suggests that iron deficiency may have opposing effects on infectious disease risk, decreasing susceptibility by restricting iron availability to pathogens, and increasing susceptibility by compromising cellular immunocompetence. In some environments, the trade-off between these effects may result in optimal iron intake that is inadequate to fully meet body iron needs. Thus, it has been suggested that moderate iron deficiency may protect against acute infection, and may represent a nutritional adaptation to endemic infectious disease stress. To test this assertion, we examined the association between infection, reflected by C-reactive protein, a biomarker of inflammation, and iron status, reflected by transferrin receptor (TfR) and zinc protoporphyrin to heme ratio (ZPP:H), among school-age Kenyan children, and evaluated the hypothesis that moderate iron deficiency is associated with lower odds of infectious disease. TfR > 5.0 mg/l, with sensitivity and specificity for iron deficiency (ZPP:H > 80 micromol/mol) of 0.807 and 0.815, was selected as the TfR definition of iron deficiency. Controlling for age and triceps skinfold thickness (TSF), the odds ratio (OR) for acute viral or bacterial infection associated with iron deficiency (compared to normal/replete) was 0.50 (P = 0.11). Controlling for age and TSF, the OR for infection associated with an unequivocally iron replete state (compared to all others) was 2.9 (P = 0.01). We conclude that iron deficiency may protect against acute infection in children.
Comparison of prostate-specific antigen recurrence-free survival in a contemporary cohort of patients undergoing either radical retropubic or robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy.

OBJECTIVES To compare the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) recurrence (PSAR) rates in patients undergoing robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP) or radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP). PATIENTS AND METHODS Data from 797 consecutive patients who had RALP or RRP between August 2003 and January 2007 were retrieved from our database. Age, race, body mass index, PSA level, estimated blood loss (EBL), clinical and pathological stage, biopsy and pathological Gleason score, lymph node involvement, positive surgical margin (PSM) status, and prostate weight were compared between the groups. Multivariate analysis (logistic and Cox regression) was used to adjust for differences in clinical and pathological features when comparing the risk for PSM and PSAR. RESULTS In all, 362 men had RALP and 435 had RRP; the mean follow-up was 1.09 and 1.37 years, respectively. RALP patients had a significantly lower clinical stage, Gleason score and EBL (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in PSM between RALP and RRP in univariate (P = 0.701) and multivariate analyses (P = 0.095). The risk of PSAR for patients undergoing RALP or RRP was not significantly different after adjusting for clinical (hazard ratio 0.82, 95% confidence interval 0.48–1.38; P = 0.448) and pathological differences (0.94, 0.55–1.61; P = 0.824). CONCLUSIONS Patients undergoing RALP had a lower EBL and lower-risk disease. After adjusting for differences in clinical and pathological features, there was no significant difference in early PSAR between patients undergoing RALP or RRP.
Interspecific differences among swallowtail larvae (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) in susceptibility to aristolochic acids and berberine

. 1. The larvae of four swallowtail butterfly species, Papilio polyxenes Fabr. in the Papilionini, Parides bunichus (Hubner) and Battus polydamas (L.) in the Troidini, and Eurytides marcellus (Cramer) in the Graphiini, were grown on host leaves to which test compounds had been added. 2. The test chemicals are biosynthetically related. Berberine, a 1-benzyl-tetrahydroisoquinoline-related (1-BTIQ) alkaloid, is found in many rutaceous hosts of the Papilionini; laudanosine, a simpler 1-BTIQ alkaloid, is found in the Papaveraceae, plants on which no papilionids feed; aristolochic acids are found only in the Aristolochiaceae, hosts of the Troidini. 3. Swallowtail larvae can tolerate the compounds characteristic of their host plants, but not chemicals found in the hosts of other papilionid groups. Diets with laudanosine did not affect the test species. 4. Our results support the contention that plant secondary chemicals, such as berberine and aristolochic acids, are important feeding barriers, and are partially responsible for host specificity in swallowtails.
Adaptation of divers to size distortion under water.

A diver's face-mask produces an optical distortion of the relationship between size and distance under water, with the result that objects normally appear further than the optical distance and enlarged. Adaptation to size enlargement was examined by obtaining size estimates in air and water, before and after a period of 20–40 min. underwater activity in which objects of known size were handled. Size estimates were obtained by adjusting a line to an estimated length of 12 in. Initial estimates in water indicated that novices experienced more size enlargement than experienced divers. Both groups of divers showed significant aftereffects in air, indicating that some size adaptation had occurred. The aftereffect declined rapidly, and was significant for only the first two trials. A second experiment showed that the greater accuracy of experienced divers also occurred when looking into water through a porthole: it was not, therefore, ‘situation-contingent’ in the sense that it depended upon wearing a face-mask in water.
Transport properties of periodic metamaterials

We determine the effective complex permittivity of a two-dimensional composite, consisting of an arbitrary doubly periodic array of identical circular cylinders in a homogeneous matrix, whose dielectric properties are complex-valued. Efficient formulas are provided to determine the effective complex permittivity tensor which are in excellent agreement with numerical calculations. We also show that the real and imaginary parts of the effective complex-valued tensor can exhibit non-monotonic behavior as functions of volume fraction of cylinders.
Cosorption of organic contaminants from water by hexadecyltrimethylammonium-exchanged clays

The characteristics of organoclays as sorbents for neutral organic contaminants (NOCs) in aqueous systems containing multiple solutes were evaluated by measuring the sorption of trichloroethylene on hexadecyltrimethylammonium (HDTMA) exchanged illite and smectite in the absence and presence of carbon tetrachloride, nitrobenzene and ethyl ether. Trichloroethylene partitioned into HDTMA-derived phases present on the external surfaces of the clay particles manifesting type III isotherms. Carbon tetrachloride functioned to increase the solvency of the external HDTMA phase, and hence enhanced sorption of trichloroethylene. Nitrobenzene solvated HDTMA resulting in a more vertical orientation of the C-16 alkyl chains and interlayer expansion. This rendered the interlamellar region of HDTMA-smectite accessible for trichloroethylene sorption, and nitrobenzene sorption simultaneously increased the solvency of HDTMA phase for trichloroethylene. Ethyl ether sorption suppressed the uptake of trichloroethylene by decreasing the solvency of HDTMA phase for trichloroethylene. Sorption of trichloroethylene also facilitated sorption of carbon tetrachloride and nitrobenzene. The results suggest that multiple organic compounds generally produce a synergistic effect on the uptake of NOCs from water by HDTMA-clays, and support multiple mechanisms controlling the sorption process.
The effects of family planning effort and development on fertility: an intervening variables framework.

PIP: To pinpoint the intervening variable that transmit the impacts of development and family planning effort on fertility, a modified proximate determinants model was applied to data from 59 developing countries. The intermediate variable included level of exposure to sexual intercourse (the percentage of women 20-24 years old in a union), deliberate marital fertility control (the percentage of married women of reproductive age who were using contraception), and natural marital fertility (operationalized as average per capita calorie consumption). The regression equations indicated that both social development and family planning effort can influence fertility levels substantially through their association with higher levels of contraceptive use. Interestingly, the direct effects of family planning and social development on the crude birth rate became insignificant when the intermediate variables were included in the same equation. Path analysis revealed that social development has an indirect effect of -0.083 via its influence on marriage patterns and of -0.316 due to its effect on contraceptive usage. Family planning has a lesser indirect impact on fertility (-0.487), and -0.111 of this effect reflects program effort's dependence on the level of social development. Economic development is positively linked to fertility, and future research should assess whether this factor is partially counterbalancing the fertility-reducing impact of social development and family planning programs. Although this analysis confirms that delayed marriage and widespread adoption of contraception are key intervening variables, they cannot influence fertility in societies where there are social or cultural impediments to such changes.
Compensation of spatial and temporal dispersion for acousto-optic multiphoton laser-scanning microscopy

We describe novel approaches for compensating dispersion effects that arise when acousto-optic (AO) beam deflection of ultrafast laser pluses is used for multiphoton laser-scanning microscopy (MPLSM). AO deflection supports quick positioning of a laser beam to random locations, allowing high frame-rate imaging of user-selected sites of interest, in addition to conventional raster scanning. Compared to standard line-scan approaches, this results in improved signal strength (and thus increased signal-to-noise) as well as reduced photobleaching and photodamage. However, 2-D AO scanning has not yet been applied for multiphoton microscopy, largely because ultrafast laser pulses experience significant spatial and temporal dispersion while propagating through AO materials. We describe and quantify spatial dispersion, demonstrating it to be a significant barrier to achieving maximal spatial resolution. We also address temporal dispersion, which is a well-documented effect that limits multiphoton excitation efficacy, and is particularly severe for AO devices. To address both problems, we have developed a single diffraction grating scheme that reduces spatial dispersion more than three-fold throughout the field of view, and a novel four-pass stacked-prism prechirper that fully compensates for temporal dispersion while reducing by two-fold the required physical length relative to commonly employed designs. These developments enable the construction of a 2-D acousto-optic multiphoton laser-scanning microscope system.
The Alternate Conception and John R. Commons

This paper places Commons and his friend, Edward Alsworth Ross, in the context of the attack by Richard T. Ely and Lester Frank Ward on a conception of history that attributed all progress in human welfare to natural processes — Darwinian natural selection and market mechanisms. According to this conception, interference with these natural processes would be counterproductive. Ward, a confirmed Darwinian, coined the term "artificial selection" when he proposed an alternate conception that attributed most progress to the disciplined application of human intelligence. Ross adapted Ward's artificial-natural distinction to the problem of social order, arguing that random variation and survival of the fittest can generate social controls that preserve order in small communities, but that only artificial social controls can keep order in complex societies. Ross's distinction made its way into the Legal Foundations of Capitalism and Institutional Economics where Commons focused on the evolution of what Ross labe...
Specific Ablation of Stat3β Distorts the Pattern of Stat3-Responsive Gene Expression and Impairs Recovery from Endotoxic Shock

Alternative splicing of the gene for Stat3, a transcription factor activated by the IL-6 family of cytokines, produces two isoforms: Stat3alpha and a dominant-negative variant, Stat3beta. Stat3beta-deficient mice were generated by gene targeting. Despite intact expression and phosphorylation of Stat3alpha, overall Stat3 activity was impaired in Stat3beta(-/-) cells. Global comparison of transcription in Stat3beta(+/+) and Stat3beta(-/-) cells revealed stable differences. Stat3beta-deficient mice exhibit diminished recovery from endotoxic shock and hyperresponsiveness of a subset of endotoxin-inducible genes in liver. The hepatic response to endotoxin in wild-type mice is accompanied by a transient increase in the ratio of Stat3beta to Stat3alpha. These findings indicate a critical role for Stat3beta in the control of systemic inflammation.
The ultrastructure of the non-localized kinetochores of Luzula and Cyperus.

Profiles of kinetochores of Luzula appear fibrillar, less electron-dense than the rest of the chromatin, and are located in recesses on the poleward surfaces of the chromosomes. Cyperus kinetochores also appear less electron-dense than the majority of the chromatin; but Cyperus kinetochores are not as distinct as those of Luzula and are not located in recesses. Serial sections reveal that the non-localized kinetochores of both Luzula and Cyperus consist of several packages of kinetochore material along the poleward surfaces of the chromosomes instead of being truly diffuse as suggested by earlier light microscopists. Interchromosomal connections are observed, but no structural relationships to the non-localized kinetochore condition are evident.
Ki67 staining pattern as a diagnostic tool in the evaluation of lymphoproliferative disorders.

Aims : To evaluate a group of lymphoid proliferations using only Ki67-stained slides to determine the value of the pattern of proliferating cells in diagnosis. Ki67 immunohistochemistry allows evaluation of the distribution of proliferating cells in addition to simply determining the proliferation rate of cells. Methods and results : Three observers, using a Ki67-stained slide only, studied 149 cases from five diagnostic groupings: follicular hyperplasia, mixed pattern hyperplasia, localized Castleman's disease, follicular lymphoma and marginal zone lymphoma. The sensitivity for benign lesions varied from 94% to 97% among the three observers. Follicular lymphomas were recognized as neoplastic with a sensitivity of 96% and 100% by two of the observers. Marginal zone lymphoma was recognized as neoplastic in 67–73% of cases. Conclusions : The Ki67 stain alone is a powerful tool for distinguishing benign from malignant proliferations within the selected groups. Nuances and pitfalls in the interpretation of Ki67 staining pattern are discussed.
Marijuana and Immunity

Despite the fairly large literature that developed during the past 15 years or so, the effect of cannabinoids on the immune system is still unsettled. The evidence has been contradictory and is more supportive of some degree of immunosuppression only when one considers in vitro studies. These have been seriously flawed by the very high concentrations of drug used to produce immunosuppression and by the lack of comparisons with other membrane-active drugs. The closer that experimental studies have been to actual clinical situations, the less compelling has been the evidence. Although the topic was of great interest during the 1970's, as indicated by the preponderance of the references from that period, interest has waned during the present decade. This waning of interest suggests that perhaps most investigators feel that this line of inquiry will not be rewarding. The AIDS epidemic has also diverted the attention of immunologists to the far more serious problem of the truly devastating effects a retrovirus can have on a portion of the immune system. The relationship between the use of social drugs and the development of clinical manifestations of AIDS has been of some interest, however. Persons infected with the virus but not diagnosed as AIDS have been told to avoid the use of marijuana and/or alcohol. This advice may be reasonable as a general health measure, but direct evidence that heeding this warning will prevent the ultimate damage to the immune system is totally lacking.
Disruption of the C5a receptor gene increases resistance to acute Gram-negative bacteremia and endotoxic shock: opposing roles of C3a and C5a.

The host response to intravascular, Gram-negative bacteria includes profound immunologic, hematologic and physiologic changes. Numerous host defense mechanisms are activated by Gram-negative bacteria, including the complement system. Activation of the complement system leads to cleavage of C5 with subsequent generation of the C5a anaphylatoxin peptide. C5a mediates potent, proinflammatory activities by binding to the C5a receptor (C5aR, CD88). In this study, we report the targeted disruption of the murine C5aR gene (C5aR-/- mice) and define the role of the C5aR in a model of Gram-negative bacteremia. Following an intravenous infusion of heat-killed Escherichia coli, the C5aR-/- mice were completely protected from the mortality suffered by their wild-type littermates (P < 0.001). The C5aR-/- mice were also significantly (P = 0.008) more resistant to mortality following an intravenous infusion of purified E. coli endotoxin compared to the wild-type littermates. In addition, the C5aR-/- mice were resistant to the thrombocytopenia and hemoconcentration observed in wild-type animals. Lethality in the wild-type mice was reversed by pre-treatment with either the histamine antagonist diphenhydramine or triprolidine. The wild-type littermates were also rescued following pre-treatment with the basophil and mast cell-stabilizing agent - cromolyn sodium. Collectively, these data demonstrate that not only is the absence of the C5aR protective in E. coli bacteremia, but that C5aR-dependent histamine release plays a major role in shock induced by Gram-negative septicemia. Moreover, they provide additional in vivo evidence that C3a and C5a have divergent biological functions in Gram-negative bacteremia and shock.
The effect of osmotic hysteresis on volume regulation in Mytilus edulis

Abstract 1. 1. When Mytilus edulis was transferred from 600 to 300 mOsm, the hemolymph osmotic pressure decreased with a rate constant of 0.077 ± 0.0097. Irrigation of the mantle cavity increased the rate constant to 0.50 ± 0.05. 2. 2. When mussels were transferred from 300 to 600 mOsm, the hemolymph osmotic pressure increased with a rate constant of 0.721 ± 0.095. Inhibition of lateral cilia with dopamine decreased the rate constant to 0.615 ± 0.0509. 3. 3. During hypoosmotic stress, irrigation of the mantle cavity increased the magnitude of water gain, sped recovery in whole animals but slowed recovery in isolated tissue. 4. 4. During hyperosmotic stress, addition of dopamine decreased the magnitude of water loss and sped recovery in whole animals, and isolated tissue.
Lineage specification of ovarian theca cells requires multicellular interactions via oocyte and granulosa cells

Organogenesis of the ovary is a highly orchestrated process involving multiple lineage determination of ovarian surface epithelium, granulosa cells and theca cells. Although the sources of ovarian surface epithelium and granulosa cells are known, the origin(s) of theca progenitor cells have not been definitively identified. Here we show that theca cells derive from two sources: Wt1(+) cells indigenous to the ovary and Gli1(+) mesenchymal cells that migrate from the mesonephros. These progenitors acquire theca lineage marker Gli1 in response to paracrine signals Desert hedgehog (Dhh) and Indian hedgehog (Ihh) from granulosa cells. Ovaries lacking Dhh/Ihh exhibit theca layer loss, blunted steroid production, arrested folliculogenesis and failure to form corpora lutea. Production of Dhh/Ihh in granulosa cells requires growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9) from the oocyte. Our studies provide the first genetic evidence for the origins of theca cells and reveal a multicellular interaction critical for the formation of a functional theca.
CORRELATION BETWEEN LIGAND COORDINATION NUMBER AND THE SHIFT OF THE 7F0-5D0 TRANSITION FREQUENCY IN EUROPIUM(III) COMPLEXES

The relative shift of the Eu(III) 7F0−5D0 transition toward lower energies due to the formation of inner-sphere Eu(III) complexes is shown to be linearly proportional to the total ligand donor number of the ligand bound to Eu(III) for 40 organic ligand complexed species in both water and DMSO solvents. Such a correlation allows estimation of the donor number, CNL, of organic ligands coordinated to Eu(III) from the relative frequency, Δν, of the Eu(III) 7F0−5D0 transition by the equation of CNL = 0.237Δν + 0.628. The validity of the method has been confirmed by using shift data of other Eu(III) complex systems from the literature. The nature of the shift of 7F0−5D0 band upon complexation is discussed as possibly due to a small degree of covalency in the Eu−L bond of the complexes with organic ligands.
Benzimidazole Derivatives Bearing Substituted Biphenyls as Hepatitis C Virus NS5B RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase Inhibitors: Structure−Activity Relationship Studies and Identification of a Potent and Highly Selective Inhibitor JTK-109

Following the discovery of a new series of benzimidazole derivatives bearing a diarylmethyl group as inhibitors of hepatitis C virus NS5B RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (HCV NS5B RdRp),1,2 we extended the structure-activity relationship (SAR) study to analogues bearing a substituted biphenyl group and succeeded in a significant advancement of activity. Starting from compound 1, optimization of the A, B, and C rings afforded potent inhibitors with low nanomolar potency against genotype 1b NS5B. The compounds, which have a substituent with a carbonyl function at the 4-position of the B-ring, efficiently blocked subgenomic viral RNA replication in the replicon cell assay at low submicromolar concentrations. Among the new compounds, compound 10n (JTK-109) exhibited favorable pharmacokinetic profiles, high selectivity for NS5B, and good safety profiles, suggesting the potential for a clinical candidate in the treatment of hepatitis C.
Unlikely alliances: encounters between state science, nature spirits, and indigenous industrial forestry in Mexico, 1926-2008.

Indigenous community leaders and conservationists in Oaxaca, Mexico, believe that deforestation causes streams to dry up and threatens rainfall, authorizing popular mobilizations against industrial logging. This belief was produced by a combination of indigenous beliefs in nature spirits and earlytwentieth-century state-sponsored desiccation theory, which was brought to the Valley of Mexico in the 1920s. Desiccation theory acquires political significance because it allows rural people to build political and epistemic alliances that bypass industrial forestry institutions and find sympathetic urban audiences and environmentalist allies, undermining state claims to reason and scientific authority. These alliances require the skillful translation and mistranslation of local environmental concerns by activists and conservationists, who link the concerns of urban audiences with those of rural people. Popular beliefs about climate and forests in Mexico structure the authority and credibility of the state and will powerfully affect efforts to protect forests to mitigate climate change.
Copolymerization of N,N-Dimethylacrylamide with n-Butyl Acrylate via Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization

The (co)polymerization of N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMAA) was performed by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). Using methyl 2-chloropropionate/CuCl/Me6TREN as the initiating/catalyst system in toluene solution, at room temperature, high molecular weight homopolymers (Mn up to 50 000) with narrow molecular weight distribution (Mw/Mn = 1.05−1.13) were prepared. The controlled polymerization of DMAA has been extended to simultaneous copolymerization with n-butyl acrylate (nBA), which resulted in a comparable rate of conversion for each monomer, indicating formation of a nearly random copolymer. The reactivity ratios of DMAA and nBA in ATRP are similar: rDMAA = 1.16 and rnBA = 1.01. Block copolymers of nBA and DMAA, with two different polymerization degrees of the second block (DPDMAA = 65 and 100), were synthesized using a well-defined PnBA-Br (DPnBA = 140) macroinitiator. The other approach to block copolymer formation using extension of PDMAA-Cl (DPDMAA = 160) with nBA was used, and block copolymer...
Randomization-Based Inference within Principal Strata.

In randomized studies, treatment comparisons conditional on intermediate postrandomization outcomes using standard analytic methods do not have a causal interpretation. An alternative approach entails treatment comparisons within principal strata defined by the potential outcomes for the intermediate outcome that would be observed under each treatment assignment. In this article we develop methods for randomization-based inference within principal strata. We compare our proposed methods with existing large-sample methods as well as traditional intent-to-treat approaches. This research is motivated by HIV prevention studies, where few infections are expected and inference is desired within the always-infected principal stratum, that is, all individuals who would become infected regardless of randomization assignment.
Emergency physician attitudes toward thrombolytic therapy in acute stroke.

Background: Intravenous use of tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) is the only currently approved treatment for acute ischemic stroke. Methods: To determine emergency physician attitudes and practices with regard to thrombolysis for ischemic stroke, a questionnaire was sent to program directors of accredited emergency medicine residencies in the United States. Results: There were 73 program directors who responded to the survey; 71% of medical centers have used TPA for treatment of stroke. The reported major complication rate for cerebral hemorrhage and death averaged 7%. For nontreating centers, two major factors cited were lack of appropriate patients and concerns regarding the safety of TPA; 48% of the facilities do not have an acute stroke team. Delayed patient arrival and the perceived narrow risk/benefit ratio of TPA were identified as the two greatest obstacles to more widespread use of TPA. Conclusion: Although the majority of medical centers that responded in this study have some experience with thrombolytic therapy for acute ischemic stroke, almost one half do not have an acute stroke team and considerable uncertainty exists regarding the safety of intravenous TPA. More uniform national treatment of acute stroke will require greater consensus among emergency physicians and further analysis of the risk/benefit ratio of thrombolytic treatment.
Guided tissue regeneration in the treatment of furcation defects in man

The regenerative potential of the periodontal tissues in degree II and III furcation defects at mandibular molars was assessed in a clinical trial using a surgical treatment technique based on the principles of guided tissue regeneration. The patient sample included 37 subjects who had periodontal lesions in the right and left mandibular molar regions, including advanced periodontal destruction within the radicular area. Following a baseline examination, the furcation-involved molars were randomly assigned in each patient to either a test or a control treatment procedure. The test procedure included the elevation of mucoperiosteal flaps and the placement of a teflon membrane to cover the entrance of the furcation area and the adjacent root surfaces as well as a portion of the alveolar bone apical to the crest. The flaps were repositioned and secured with interdental sutures. A procedure identical to the one used at the test teeth was performed at the control tooth regions with the exception of the placement of the teflon membrane. Following surgery, all patients were placed on a plaque control regimen which involved daily rinsing with chlorexidine gluconate and, in addition, professional tooth cleaning once every 2 weeks for 6 months. After 6 months of healing, the test and control sites were re-examined. The findings demonstrated that the treatment of degree II furcation defects at mandibular molars using the principles of guided tissue regeneration in 19 sites out of 21 resulted in the resolution of the furcation defect. Conventional therapy reached the same goal in less than 20% of the cases treated.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Comparison of once and twice daily radiotherapy for limited stage small-cell lung cancer.

Purpose This study was designed to review outcomes of once- (QD) versus twice-daily (BID) radiotherapy (RT) for limited stage small-cell lung cancer (L-SCLC) treated at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Brigham and Women’s Hospital.