cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Cardiovascular Disease

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common medical condition that occurs in approximately 5% to 15% of the population. The pathophysiology of OSA is characterized by repetitive occlusions of the posterior pharynx during sleep that obstruct the airway, followed by oxyhemoglobin desaturation, persistent inspiratory efforts against the occluded airway, and termination by arousal from sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea is associated with daytime sleepiness and fatigue, likely due to fragmented sleep from recurrent arousals. Substantial evidence shows that patients with OSA have an increased incidence of hypertension compared with individuals without OSA and that OSA is a risk factor for the development of hypertension. Recent studies show that OSA may be implicated in stroke and transient ischemic attacks. Obstructive sleep apnea appears to be associated with coronary heart disease, heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmias. Pulmonary hypertension may be associated with OSA, especially in patients with preexisting pulmonary disease. Although the exact cause that links OSA with cardiovascular disease is unknown, there is evidence that OSA is associated with a group of proinflammatory and prothrombotic factors that have been identified to be important in the development of atherosclerosis. Obstructive sleep apnea is associated with increased daytime and nocturnal sympathetic activity. Autonomic abnormalities seen in patients with OSA include increased resting heart rate, decreased R-R interval variability, and increased blood pressure variability. Both atherosclerosis and OSA are associated with endothelial dysfunction, increased C-reactive protein, interleukin 6, fibrinogen, and plasminogen activator inhibitor, and reduced fibrinolytic activity. Obstructive sleep apnea has been associated with enhanced platelet activity and aggregation. Leukocyte adhesion and accumulation on endothelial cells are common in both OSA and atherosclerosis. Clinicians should be aware that OSA may be a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease.
Observation of a large nighttime gravity wave at Arecibo

The observation of a large nighttime gravity wave at Arecibo is reported, and velocity and temperature perturbations to the neutral atmosphere are inferred. An increase in the velocity perturbation with height is observed. An anomalous temperature increase occurred when the gravity wave encountered the meridional wind reversal that normally occurs after midnight at low latitudes.
Low-frequency dynamics and Raman scattering of crystals, of B-, A-, and Z-DNA, and fibers of C-DNA.

Normal modes of vibration of DNA in the low-frequency region (10–300 cm−1 interval) have been identified from Raman spectra of crystals of B-DNA [d(CGCAAATTTGCG)], A-DNA [r(GCG)d(CGC) and d(CCCCGGGG)], and Z-DNA [d(CGCGCG) and d(CGCGTG)]. The lowest vibrational frequencies detected in the canonical DNA structures—at 18 ± 2 cm−1 in the B-DNA crystal, near 24 ± 2 cm−1 in A-DNA crystals, and near 30 ± 2 cm−1 in Z-DNA crystals—are shown to correlate well with the degree of DNA hydration in the crystals structures, as well as with the level of hydration in calf thymus DNA fibers. These findings support the assignment [H. Urabe et al. (1985) J. Chem. Phys.82, 531–535; C. Demarco et al. (1985) Biopolymers24, 2035–2040] of the lowest frequency Raman band of each DNA to a helix mode, which is dependent primarily upon the degree of helix hydration, rather than upon the intrahelical conformation. The present results show also that B-, A-, C-, and Z-DNA structures can be distinguished from one another on the basis of their characteristics Raman intensity profiles in the region of 40–140 cm−1, even through all structures display two rather similar and complex bands centered within the intervals of 66–72 and 90–120 cm−1. The similarity of Raman frequencies for B-, A-, C-, and Z-DNA suggests that these modes originate from concerted motions of the bases (librations), which are not strongly dependent upon helix backbone geometry or handedness. Correlation of the Raman frequencies and intensities with the DNA base compositions suggests that the complex band near 90–120 cm−1 in all double-helix structures is due to in-plane librational motions of the bases, which involve stretching of the purine-pyrimidine hydrogen bonds. This would explain the centering of the band at higher frequencies in structures containing G C pairs (> 100 cm−1) than in structures containing A T pairs (< 100 cm−1), consistent with the strengths of G C and A T hydrogen bonding.
Modification of low pressure membranes with carbon nanotube layers for fouling control.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with different physiochemical properties were layered onto low pressure membranes and tested for antifouling properties using a natural surface water with high fouling potential. Membranes modified with the largest diameter pristine multi-walled CNTs (MWCNTs) were most effective in controlling membrane fouling, tripling the time it took for the membrane to become noticeably fouled at a CNT loading of 22 g/m(2). The differences in the structure of CNT layers were an important contributing factor for antifouling properties; scanning electron microscopy imaging showed that large diameter MWCNTs formed homogeneous porous layers across the membrane surface, while less effective, small diameter MWCNTs formed heterogeneous layers. Water quality analysis showed that CNT-membranes constructed with larger diameter CNTs were more effective at removing larger organic macromolecules responsible for fouling from feedwater compared to membranes made with smaller diameter CNTs. This reduced the concentration of foulants reaching the PVDF membrane and thus helped reduce membrane fouling. Beneficial for application, increased loadings of CNTs onto the membrane surface increased resistance to fouling while only slightly reducing the clean water permeability of the modified membranes. Overall, CNT layered membranes were shown to highly resist membrane fouling with potential applications in sustainable water treatment.
Ecological Distribution of Fishes of Moapa (Muddy) River in Clark County, Nevada

Abstract Fish collections were made at nine stations along the Moapa River of southern Nevada. Four native species are ecologically separated into headwater and middle-stream types. The headwater fishes are ecologically segregated into one pond species (Crenichthys baileyi) and one stream species (Moapa coriacea). The apparent temperature preference for both species is near 29.5 C. Temperature range for Crenichthys is 27–32 C and for Moapa 19.5–32 C. Both Gila robusta and Rhinichthys osculus are most abundant in the turbid middle portion of the stream in undisturbed, deep riffle habitats. A fifth native species, Plagopterus argentissimus, is extremely rare or of accidental occurrence. The unsaturated Moapa River environment has been easily colonized by exotic or non-native species, most recently and most successfully by Poecilia mexicana. An additional species, Gambusia affinis, is widespread and abundant throughout much of the stream. Cyprinus carpio, Notropis lutrensis, Pimephales promelas, Ictalurus me...
Origin and degradation of the RNA primers at the 5′ termini of nascent DNA chains in Bacillus subtilis

We had earlier characterized the nascent DNA synthesized in permeable cells of Bacillus subtilis in the presence of 5-mercurideoxycytidine triphosphate and 2',3'-dideoxyATP as being substituted at its 5' end with a ribonucleotide moiety of the sequence pApG(pC)1-2 DNA. In this paper, we examine the origin and turnover of the DNA-linked ribonucleotide and its relationship to DNA replication. At least 50% of the RNA-linked nascent DNA chains served as guanylate acceptors when incubated with GTP and the eukaryotic capping enzyme, indicating the presence of 5'-terminal di- or triphosphate groups and suggesting that the RNA moiety is synthesized de novo and is not a degradation product. In nascent DNA produced without limitation of chain growth by dideoxyATP, the degree of terminal ribonucleotide substitution was reduced by 50%, consistent with a linkage between RNA primer removal and DNA chain growth. Such a relationship was demonstrated directly by examining the RNA primer content of nascent DNA synthesized in the absence of dideoxyATP as a function of DNA chain length. As the DNA size increased from 40 to 200 nucleotide residues, the extent of RNA substitution declined from 80% to nearly 0%. Endgroup analysis showed that the loss of RNA was accompanied by a gradual shift from predominantly adenylate residues to 5'-terminal guanylate, consistent with a stepwise removal of ribonucleotides from the 5' end. Evidence that the nascent mercurated DNA synthesized under our experimental conditions was indeed a replicative intermediate came from the study of the time course of DNA chain growth and pulse-chase experiments. In the presence of the DNA ligase inhibitor NMN, mercurated DNA accumulated in two size classes with average length of approximately 750 and 8000 nucleotide residues, presumably representing the mature size of intermediates in discontinuous DNA synthesis. Comparison with the DNA size range at which the loss of the 5'-terminal RNA moiety occurred (40 to 200 residues) indicated that the processing of RNA primers occurred at an early stage during DNA chain elongation, and that moderate size intermediates in discontinuous DNA replication (greater than 200 nucleotides) have already lost their RNA primers.
Direct Measurement of Thermoelastic Properties of Glassy and Rubbery Polymer Brush Nanolayers Grown by “Grafting-from” Approach

We report the results of atomic force microscopy (AFM) based nanoscale probing of thermal and nanomechanical properties of relatively thick (50−90 nm) polymer brush layers from poly(styrene-co-2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorostyrene) (PSF) and polymethylacrylate (PMA). These layers, with a high density of grafting, are synthesized according to a “grafting-from” approach on a silicon surface modified with a reactive self-assembled monolayer. In the dry state, glassy and rubbery brush layers are found to be homogeneous matters with no signs of lateral chain segregation, which is observed for polymer layers with low to moderate grafting densities. We observed that thermal, mechanical, and thermoelastic properties of these polymer brush layers are virtually identical to that for unconfined polymers obtained concurrently via bulk polymerization. Direct measurement of heat dissipation and the thermoelastic response within the PSF brush layer confirms that the glass−rubber transition occurs between 100 and 110 °C as expect...
The effect of myoglobin on the oxygen concentration in skeletal muscle subjected to ischemia

A mathematical model of oxygen transport in skeletal muscle is utilized to investigate myoglobin's effect on the space-time distribution of oxygen in skeletal muscle subjected to ischemia.
Neural systems for cognitive reappraisal in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

Despite substantial clinical and anecdotal evidence for emotion dysregulation in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), little is known about the neural substrates underlying this phenomenon. We sought to explore neural mechanisms for cognitive reappraisal in children and adolescents with ASD using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We studied 16 youth with ASD and 15 age- and IQ-matched typically developing (TD) comparison youth. Participants were instructed in the use of cognitive reappraisal strategies to increase and decrease their emotional responses to disgusting images. Participants in both groups displayed distinct patterns of brain activity for increasing versus decreasing their emotions. TD participants showed downregulation of bilateral insula and left amygdala on decrease trials, whereas ASD participants showed no modulation of insula and upregulation of left amygdala. Furthermore, TD youth exhibited increased functional connectivity between amygdala and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex compared to ASD participants when downregulating disgust, as well as decreased functional connectivity between amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex. These findings have important implications for our understanding of emotion dysregulation and its treatment in ASD. In particular, the relative lack of prefrontal-amygdala connectivity provides a potential target for treatment-related outcome measurements.
Magnetic properties and large coercivity of MnxGa nanostructures

Abstract To investigate structure–property correlations, high-coercivity Mn x Ga nanoparticles were synthesized by the method of sequential deposition of Ga and Mn fluxes using molecular beam epitaxy. Spontaneous nanostructuring was assisted by the use of an Au precursor and thermal annealing, and the growth properties, structure and magnetic properties were characterized. Atomic force microscopy revealed average particle dimensions of 100 nm and X-ray diffraction revealed a dominant tetragonal D0 22 crystal structure. Magnetic characterization at room temperature identified the presence of two magnetic phases, dominated by a high-coercivity (2.3 T) component in addition to a low-coercivity component.
Calcium and the muscarinic synaptosomal phospholipid labeling effect.

: The role of calcium in the muscarinic phospholipid labeling effect in synaptosomes has been investigated. In the absence of added calcium, acetylcholine doubled phosphatidate labeling and increased phosphatidy linositol labeling 40% in synaptosomes when incubated in a medium that contained [32P]orthophosphate. Inclusion of calcium or the omission of magnesium resulted in a marked elevation of acetylcholine-stimulated phosphatidylinositol labeling (70–80%) while phosphatidate stimulation was unaltered. Calciumchelating agents, EGTA and EDTA, reduced the stimulated labeling of both phosphatidate and phosphatidylinositol, but this inhibition could be reversed by calcium addition. The calcium ionophore A23187, which promotes entry of calcium into cells, selectively increased labeling of both phosphatidate and phosphatidyl-inositol. This effect, unlike acetylcholine-stimulated labeling, was not blocked by the addition of atropine. The calcium dependency of the acetylcholine stimulation, on the one hand, and the insensitivity of the ionophore to a muscarinic antagonist, on the other, argue strongly that the acetylcholine-receptor interaction regulates calcium mobilization and that the latter is linked to the stimulated labeling of phosphatidate and phosphatidylinositol.
Social support and homicide: a cross-national test of an emerging criminological theory

The social support (also known as social altruism) perspective in criminological theory has emerged as a potentially important explanation of aggregate levels of crime. Recent studies have tested the theory's ability to predict levels of violent and property crimes at the city and state levels in the United States, yet a formal test of the theory using data from outside of the U.S. has yet to be conducted. Accordingly, this article draws on insights from social support theory in a cross-national context. Consistent with the core proposition of the theory, the analyses show that, net of statistical controls, the indicator of social support is inversely and significantly related to rates of violent crime (measured by homicides). The implications of these results for criminological theory development and for the construction of effective crime control policies are discussed.
Radial Nerve Injuries

Radial nerve injuries continue to challenge hand surgeons. The course of the nerve and its intimate relationship to the humerus place it at high risk for injury with humerus fractures. We present a review of radial nerve injuries with emphasis on their etiology, workup, diagnosis, management, and outcomes.
Preoperative assessment: safety considerations for patients taking herbal products.

The increased use of herbal therapy and other dietary supplements in the past decade has increased the risk of complications for patients undergoing surgery. The use of herbal products is projected to rise in the United States. Therefore, it is important for the perianesthesia nurse to be aware of the herbal products that patients are taking and the possible anesthesia and/or surgical complications related to herbal products. Current resources are reviewed in this article to increase awareness for the perianesthesia nurse. Recommendations for establishing local protocols are given, and patient education on the use of herbal products is also considered.
An Economic Perspective of Disk vs. Flash Media in Archival Storage

For three decades, Kryder's law correctly predicted an exponential increase in bit density on disk platters, leading to an exponential drop in cost per gigabyte, and thus to an entrenched expectation that if data could be stored for a few years the incremental cost of storing it forever would be minimal. However, disk now is over 7 times as expensive as Kryder's law would have predicted, and industry projections suggest that in 2020 the gap will reach 200 times, disrupting this expectation. Our model shows that archives based upon alternative media are surprisingly cost competitive with archives based upon traditional disk media over the long-term. We propose using Archival Flash for long-term data preservation, with the trade off between longer data retention period and lower write cycles.
Optimum space‐time transmission for a high K factor wireless channel with partial channel knowledge

We study the optimum transmission scheme that maximizes ergodic capacity of a 2×1 multiple-input single-output (MISO) system, when the channel knowledge at the transmitter is characterized by a known gain ratio and a known probability density function of the phase shift between antennas. Such a channel scenario can arise in a forward link at the base station when there is a single direct path propagation. We show that the optimum transmit solution is beamforming on the mean value of the phase shift with unequal power input to the antennas. When the phase is completely unknown, the solution reduces to a single antenna transmission. I. I NTRODUCTION Recent works in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) wireless channel capacity and coding have shown that channel knowledge at the transmitter, in either full or partial form s, can increase the channel capacity and performance considerably (6)-(12). While zero-mean channels have been largely the focus of the existing work, it is also often found in practice that the wireless channel has a non-zero mean(2), (3). In other words, a finite K factor, which is the ratio of the power in the fixed component to that of the variable component in the channel, exists. This motivates the study of transmit schemes for K-factor channels. In this paper, we study a limiting case when the K factor is infinity, which corresponds to a direct dominant path prop - agation. The results however could be applicable to channels with high K factors, say 20dB, which occur in practice (3). The receiver is assumed to know the channel perfectly. The transmit channel knowledge model assumes a perfectly known antenna gain ratio, including equal-gain, and a random phase shift with a known probability density function (PDF). This scenario is typical in the forward link at a base station with direct path propagation and large spacing ( » 10 carrier wavelengths) between the two transmit antennas. This model of channel knowledge differs from models considered in the aforementioned work, where long-term first and second order statistic information of the channel are usually assumed, t o- gether with complex Gaussian distributed channel coefficie nts. The channel coefficients in this model represent a non-fadin g wireless link which has a phase shift uncertainty.
Improvisational theater for computing scientists

Computing disciplines integrate computing and another discipline. In the field of computational biology this often includes mathematics, physics, biology and computing. To better understand the qualitative character of learning, collaboration and creativity in computational biology, a pilot study was initiated to determine if training in improvisational theater affects computing scientists' ability to be creative in their research. In this work we provide introductory improvisational theater training to students and researchers along the computational biology continuum. We are developing a better understanding of the creative character of computational biology education and research. Our evaluation suggests participants recognize that interpersonal relationships affect learning and creativity; and reexamine their notions of learning and creativity.
C. I. Lewis and the Paradox of the Esthetic

C. I. Lewis has not written extensively in the area of esthetics,1 but what he has had to say has been frequently attacked by his critics. And, any attack on Lewis’ esthetics involves one, ultimately, in Lewis’ general epistemology, for as Stolnitz has aptly noted, the machinery of esthetics is “taken over bodily by Lewis from his analysis of non-evaluative knowledge.”2 The latest attack on Lewis’ esthetics reaches the most devastating conclusion thus far presented, asserting that he holds a paradoxical theory which places works of art and esthetic values beyond the range of esthetic experience.3 Furthermore, the critic holds that such a paradoxial position in esthetics is intimately linked with one of Lewis’ most fundamental epistemological doctrines — the doctrine of “the given.”
Experiments with Freedom: Milieus of the Human

Over 150 years ago, Karl Marx proclaimed that capitalism had opened up fractures and fissures in the solid crust of European society. "Beneath the apparently solid surface, they betray oceans of liquid matter, only needing expansion to rend into fragments continents of hard rock" (577). Marx and Friedrich Engels's famous phrase, "all that is solid melts into air" (Berman 5), captures the constant political and cultural upheavals that characterize global modernity. Today, the ruptures and revolutions are associated with contradictory globalizing phenomena. The interplay between a capricious world and experiments with freedoms threatens to render modem norms of citizenship and human rights "antiquated before they can ossify" (Marx and Engels 70). The explosive growth and destruction of global markets is associated with various kinds of freedoms: freedom from old traditions, old obligations, spatial confinements, and political arrangements. Experimentations with freedoms-at the political, social, and individual levels-have historically accompanied capitalist expansion. The rise of nation-states in a global order has paralleled the growth of a world economy. These parallel developments have greatly complicated the meaning of freedom and obscured our understanding of the various forms it can take. What is citizenship if not the institutionalization of human rights as political membership in a nation-state? What are human rights if not the freedom from basic human want promised by a global community? Indeed, citizenship concepts that appear to us as enduring global norms of human existence are in constant flux, mirroring the constant upheavals of society and the eternal restlessness of capitalism. Contemporary globalization once again opens up questions about the nature of human freedom and claims in environments of uncertainties and risks. Insecurities linked to mass displacements, economic downturns, and market exclusions highlight the protective
Origin of arches in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico basin

The San Marcos and Sabine arches are prominent north-to northwest-trending basement uplifts in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico basin that may be late Mesozoic to Cenozoic foreland or intraplate folds rather than domes over plutons or buoyant basement blocks. These arches are subparallel to and contemporaneous with orogenic episodes in the northwest-trending fold-thrust belt of Mexico. Arch movement was also contemporaneous with rapid convergence between the North American and Pacific plates. Arch development in the gulf as a result of tectonic compression is plausible in view of increasing recognition of wide zones of foreland and intraplate deformation in continents. Current tectonic models of the development of the gulf inaccurately predict gradual, decelerating subsidence when these arches were most active.
Remarks on parameter identification. II convergence of the algorithm

On demontre un theoreme de convergence pour l'algorithme d'identification du coefficient a(x) de l'equation parabolique U t =(a(x)u x ) x +F(x, t) et on donne des resultats de stabilite
Early vision and focal attention

At the thirty-year anniversary of the introduction of the technique of computer-generated random-dot stereograms and random-dot cinematograms into psychology, the impact of the technique on brain research and on the study of artificial intelligence is reviewed. The main finding---that stereoscopic depth perception (stereopsis), motion perception, and preattentive texture discrimination are basically bottom-up processes, which occur without the help of the top-down processes of cognition and semantic memory---greatly simplifies the study of these processes of early vision and permits the linking of human perception with monkey neurophysiology. Particularly interesting are the unexpected findings that stereopsis (assumed to be local) is a global process, while texture discrimination (assumed to be a global process, governed by statistics) is local, based on some conspicuous local features (textons). It is shown that the top-down process of "shape (depth) from shading" does not affect stereopsis, and some of the models of machine vision are evaluated. The asymmetry effect of human texture discrimination is discussed, together with recent nonlinear spatial filter models and a novel extension of the texton theory that can cope with the asymmetry problem. This didactic review attempts to introduce the physicist to the field of psychobiology and its problems---including metascientific problems of brain research, problems of scientific creativity, the state of artificial intelligence research (including connectionist neural networks) aimed at modeling brain activity, and the fundamental role of focal attention in mental events.
Water-soluble vitamin therapy in the delay of fatigue from physical activity in hot climatic conditions

18 high school age males were matched to form two groups. Three test sessions were scheduled to investigate the effect of vitamin supplementation on the delay of the onset of fatigue. Each test session consisted of ten 50-yard dashes. The vitamin supplement consisted of 100 mg of thiamine, 8 mg of riboflavin, 5 mg of pyridoxine, 25 mg of cobalamin, 100 mg of niacinamide, and 30 mg of pantothenic acid. It was concluded that the drug supplementation reduced the fatigue incurred during a test session. The drug components of thiamine and pantothenic acid, the amounts of which different from previous studies, are discussed in respect to their role in the TCA cycle.
Alteration of lymphocyte function by quinones through a sulfhydryl-dependent disruption of microtubule assembly

Abstract The cytoskeleton plays a pivotal role in lectin-induced lymphocyte blastogenesis. Microtubule disrupting agents, many of which are sulfhydryl (SH) reagents, interfere with cytoskeletal-dependent cell functions including lymphocyte blastogenesis and agglutination. For example, hydroquinone (HQ) and N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) inhibit lectin-stimulated lymphocyte blastogenesis and agglutination at concentrations (10 −5 M) that do not reduce cell viability or ATP production. Indicative of the SH-specificity of these effects, only L-cysteine protects against HQ or NEM inhibition of blastogenesis and agglutination. Other compounds, including L-serine, DL-lysine and imidazole, have no protective effect. These and other findings previously reported suggest a selective interaction of HQ, or its oxidation product, p-benzoquinone (p-BQ) with SH groups critical to early G1 events associated with lymphocyte activation. These compounds show similar SH specificity in inhibiting microtubule assembly in vitro . The subcellular target specificity (cytoskeleton) exhibited by these compounds was compared to that of Adriamycin (ADR), a complex polycyclic quinone with known immunotoxic activity. ADR inhibited microtubule assembly in vitro and inhibited lymphocyte blastogenesis, however, these effects were not correlated with a loss of agglutination nor was toxicity protected against by the addition of SH compounds. The combination of cell culture methods together with application of techniques to measure microtubule assembly in vitro provides an effective means to discriminate between agents that selectively interfere with cytoskeletal-dependent function and those producing non-specific effects associated with cell death, such as decreased energy production or increased membrane permeability.
Nanoscale forces of interaction between glass in aqueous and non-aqueous media : A theoretical and empirical study

Abstract The interfacial forces that control colloid stability in aqueous and non-aqueous systems are functions of the polar and apolar properties of the medium. This study presents a complete empirical and theoretical description of the forces and energies between a glass microsphere and a glass surface in aqueous and non-aqueous n-decane solutions that were amended systematically to enhance various colloidal interactions. Force data were measured using colloid probe atomic force microscopy (AFM) and both classical DLVO and extended-DLVO (XDLVO) theories were used to calculate the free energy of each system. The successes and failures of each theory in predicting force data were evaluated and the results indicate the importance of minor amounts of impurities, especially in the non-aqueous solutions, which impart measurable electrostatic charges on the colloidal particles. Data were also collected in a complex non-aqueous solution (commercial motor oil) and the recorded forces were significantly different compared to data collected in n-decane; long-range repulsive forces were measured by AFM. These results document the significance of aqueous impurities in non-aqueous systems which will likely dominate interactions between colloids in natural systems. Our results also indicate that DLVO and XDLVO theory predict colloidal interactions in aqueous systems. However these theories are unable to predict colloid stability in natural and chemically complex non-aqueous media.
Reaction of thianthrene cation radical with alcohols: Isolation and chemistry of 5-cyclohexyloxythianthreniumyl perchlorate

Abstract 5-Cyclohexyloxythianthreniumyl perchlorate ( 1 ) was prepared by reaction of thianthrene cation radical perchlorate (Th •+ ClO 4 − ) with cyclohexanol in CH 2 Cl 2 . Cyclohexene and thianthrene 5-oxide (ThO) are formed when 1 is heated in solution. Reaction of 1 with H 2 O OH − occurs at the 5-position and gives cyclohexanol and ThO. The chemistry of isolated 1 clarifies earlier work on the reaction of Th •+ ClO 4 − with cyclohexanol.
Bad Pixel Mapping

Bad pixels are generally treated as a loss of useable area and then excluded from averaged performance metrics. The definition and detection of “bad pixels” or “cosmetic defects” are seldom discussed, perhaps because they are considered self-evident or of minor consequence for any scientific grade detector, however the ramifications can be more serious than generally appreciated. While the definition of pixel performance is generally understood, the classification of pixels as useable is highly application-specific, as are the consequences of ignoring or interpolating over such pixels. CMOS sensors (including NIR detectors) exhibit less compact distributions of pixel properties than CCDs. The extended tails in these distributions result in a steeper increase in bad pixel counts as performance thresholds are tightened which comes as a surprise to many users. To illustrate how some applications are much more sensitive to bad pixels than others, we present a bad pixel mapping exercise for the Teledyne H2RG used as the NIR tip-tilt sensor in the Keck-1 Adaptive Optics system. We use this example to illustrate the wide range of metrics by which a pixel might be judged inadequate. These include pixel bump bond connectivity, vignetting, addressing faults in the mux, severe sensitivity deficiency of some pixels, non linearity, poor signal linearity, low full well, poor mean-variance linearity, excessive noise and high dark current. Some pixels appear bad by multiple metrics. We also discuss the importance of distinguishing true performance outliers from measurement errors. We note how the complexity of these issues has ramifications for sensor procurement and acceptance testing strategies.
Cancellations in atomic dipole transition moments in the Cu isoelectronic sequence

A number of cancellation anomalies in lifetimes and emitted intensities in the Cu isoelectronic sequence are predicted, and their use as an experimental probe of small perturbations is discussed.
The effect of ovariectomy, estradiol and progesterone on opioid modulation of feeding

Abstract A number of lines of evidence have suggested that alterations in gonadal steroids may modulate opioid function. We report here the effects of manipulation of female gonadal steroids on the opioid feeding system. Naloxone produced a depression of feeding in all groups. Although the group × dosage interaction was not significant, an internally consistent tendency effect of naloxone among the different treatment groups was observed. Estradiol treated rats were 20 times less sensitive to naloxone's suppressive effects of feeding than ovariectomized animals. Sham operated controls and animals treated with estradiol and progesterone had sensitivities to naloxone which were intermediate to those seen in estradiol treated and ovariectomized animals. A significant drug × dosage interaction was present for the ketocyclazocine effects at 4 hours. Overall, ovariectomized animals were resistant to feeding induced by ketocyclazocine compared to the other groups. Ovariectomy significantly decreased ir-dynorphin levels in the cortex and these values were restored towards normal by a combination of estrogen and progesterone treatment. These studies add to the growing literature suggesting a role for the peripheral endocrine system in the modulation of opioid feeding system.
Shifts in microbial community structure along an ecological gradient of hypersaline soils and sediments

Studies of hypersaline ecosystems often yield novel organisms and contribute to our understanding of extreme environments. Soils and sediments from La Sal del Rey, a previously uncharacterized, hypersaline lake located in southern Texas, USA, were surveyed to characterize the structure and diversity of their microbial communities. Samples were collected along a transect that spanned vegetated uplands, exposed lakebed sediments, and water-logged locations, capturing a wide range of environments and physical and chemical gradients. Community quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used in combination with tag-encoded pyrosequencing, 16S rRNA gene cloning, and Sanger sequencing to characterize the lake's soil and sediment microbial communities. Further, we used multivariate statistics to identify the relationships shared between sequence diversity and heterogeneity in the soil environment. The overall microbial communities were surprisingly diverse, harboring a wide variety of taxa, and sharing significant correlations with site water content, phosphorus and total organic carbon concentrations, and pH. Some individual populations, especially of Archaea, also correlated with sodium concentration and electrical conductivity salinity. Across the transect, Bacteria were numerically dominant relative to Archaea, and among them, three phyla--the Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes--accounted for the majority of taxa detected. Although these taxa were detected with similar abundances to those described in other hypersaline ecosystems, the greater depth of sequencing achieved here resulted in the detection of taxa not described previously in hypersaline sediments. The results of this study provide new information regarding a previously uncharacterized ecosystem and show the value of high-throughput sequencing in the study of complex ecosystems.
Vasomotor effect of intravitreal juxta-arteriolar injection of L-lactate on the retinal arterioles following acute branch retinal vein occlusion in minipigs

Purpose After branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO), the retinal territory affected by the occlusion becomes hypoxic and the arterioles crossing this territory are often constricted. The purpose of the current experimental animal study is to investigate the effect of intravitreal juxta-arteriolar microinjection of L-lactate on the retinal arteriolar diameter following acute BRVO in minipigs. Methods Under general anesthesia, 9 eyes of 9 minipigs were evaluated. Argon laser endo-photocoagulation was used to create BRVO. Two hours after BRVO, an intravitreal juxta-arteriolar microinjection of 50 µl L-lacate 1 mM (pH=7.4) was performed. The procedure was recorded in real time and retinal arteriolar diameter changes were measured in vivo using a Retinal Vessel Analyzer. Results Two hours after BRVO, the retinal arteriolar diameter decreased from 210 ± 16 AU to 183 ± 14 AU in the affected territories (p=0.04). Five minutes following L-lactate juxta-arteriolar microinjection, the retinal arteriolar diameter increased to 241 ± 16 AU (p< 0.01). The vasodilatory effect of L-lactate persisted and remained significant till the end of the study period (243 ± 15 AU at 30 min, p<0.01). Conclusion We measured a significant vasodilation after intravitreal juxta-arteriolar L-lactate microinjection in eyes with experimental BRVO. L-lactate microinjection can be of potential interest in acute BRVO, reversing the arteriolar vasoconstriction, thus leading to increase of the retinal arteriolar blood flow and possibly to improvement of the retinal cellular function in the occluded territory.
Intranasal administration of IGF-1 attenuates hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats

To determine whether intranasal administration (iN) of recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-1 (rhIGF-1) provides neuroprotection to the neonatal rat brain following cerebral hypoxia-ischemia (HI), two doses of rhIGF-1 (50 microg at a 1 h interval) were infused into the right naris of postnatal day 7 (P7) rat pups with or without a prior HI insult (right common carotid artery ligation, followed by an exposure to 8% oxygen for 2 h). Our result showed that rhIGF-1 administered via iN was successfully delivered into the brain 30 min after the second dose. In the following studies rhIGF-1 was administered to P7 rat pups at 0, 1 or 2 h after HI at the dose described above. Pups in the control group received cerebral HI and vehicle treatment. Pups that underwent sham operation and vehicle treatment served as the sham group. Brain pathological changes were evaluated 2 and 15 days after HI. Our results showed that rhIGF-1 treatment up to 1 h after cerebral HI effectively reduced brain injury as compared to that in the vehicle-treated rats. Moreover, rhIGF-1 treatment improved neurobehavioral performance (tested on P5-P21) in juvenile rats subjected to HI. Our results further showed that rhIGF-1 inhibited apoptotic cell death, possibly through activating the Akt signal transduction pathway. rhIGF-1 enhanced proliferation of neuronal and oligodendroglial progenitors after cerebral HI as well. These data suggest that iN administration of IGF-1 has the potential to be used for clinical treatment.
Roughness Spectra and Acoustic Response from a Diver-Manipulated Sea Floor

A digital stereo photogrammetric system was designed and implemented to measure seafloor roughness in coastal sands. High-resolution images that achieve more than four pixels/mm in either the horizontal or vertical dimension are created by two cameras sealed in watertight housings and actuated simultaneously by a scuba diver. A Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the photographed sea floor is created from digital autocorrelation of left and right paired images. The DEM is used to estimate a 2D roughness power spectrum, from which are derived parameters of the spectral exponent and spectral strength that are used as inputs in high-frequency acoustic scattering models.
Mass transport analysis of a passive vapor-feed direct methanol fuel cell

A two-dimensional, two-phase, non-isothermal model using the multi-fluid approach was developed for a passive vapor-feed direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC). The vapor generation through a membrane vaporizer and the vapor transport through a hydrophobic vapor transport layer were both considered in the model. The evaporation/condensation of methanol and water in the diffusion layers and catalyst layers was formulated considering non-equilibrium condition between phases. With this model, the mass transport in the passive vapor-feed DMFC, as well as the effects of various operating parameters and cell configurations on the mass transport and cell performance, were numerically investigated. The results showed that the passive vapor-feed DMFC supplied with concentrated methanol solutions or neat methanol can yield a similar performance with the liquid-feed DMFC fed with much diluted methanol solutions, while also showing a higher system energy density. It was also shown that the mass transport and cell performance of the passive vapor-feed DMFC depend highly on both the open area ratio of the vaporizer and the methanol concentration in the tank.
Monte Carlo simulation of the CuAg (001) semicoherent interphase boundary

Abstract The structure and composition of the CuAg (001) semicoherent interphase boundary in the temperature range 600–900 K is investigated with Monte Carlo simulation, using the embedded atom method to model the atomic interactions. Parts of the CuAg phase diagram are calculated and found to be reasonably good agreement with experimental data. The interface, which contains an excess of Ag, is found to broaden with increasing temperature. The distribution of Cu and Ag in the layers adjoining the interface is non-uniform, with the larger Ag atoms tending to cluster in regions of tension, while the smaller Cu atoms tend to cluster in regions of compression. These regions of compression and tension are associated with the positions of the interfacial misfit dislocations. At higher temperatures the misfit dislocations wander due to thermal disordering, and the at the highest temperature the identity of the dislocations is lost, possibly indicating the transition from a semicoherent to an incoherent interface.
Effects of hormone manipulations and exploration on sex differences in maze learning

The maze learning ability of male rats castrated at birth, males and females treated with cyproterone acetate or sesame oil, and females treated with testosterone within the first 10 days postpartum was compared to that of nonmanipulated males and females (Experiment 1). Neonatal castration and injections of cyproterone acetate and testosterone were found to significantly reverse normal sex differences in maze learning. In Experiment 2, differences in gonadal hormone secretions and activities during adulthood on maze learning ability were assessed. It was found that gonadectomy did not significantly influence the performance of males and females. In Experiment 3, females were found to exhibit a greater tendency to explore and make irrelevant section entries on a maze that was problem free. It is suggested that differences in maze learning are more greatly influenced by brain sex than by subsequent gonadal hormone secretions during adulthood and are also due to the tendency of females to make more exploration-linked errors.
The Structure of the β-Propeller Domain and C-terminal Region of the Integrin αM Subunit DEPENDENCE ON β SUBUNIT ASSOCIATION AND PREDICTION OF DOMAINS

The alphaM subunit of integrin Mac-1 contains several distinct regions in its extracellular segment. The N-terminal region has been predicted to fold into a beta-propeller domain composed of seven beta-sheets each about 60 amino acid residues long, with the I-domain inserted between beta-sheets 2 and 3. The structure of the C-terminal region is unknown. We have used monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) as probes to study the dependence of the structure of different regions of the alphaM subunit on association with the beta2 subunit in the alphaM/beta2 heterodimer. All of the mAbs to the I-domain immunoprecipitated the unassociated alphaM precursor and reacted with the alphaM subunit expressed alone on the surface of COS cells. By contrast, four mAbs to the beta-propeller domain did not react with the unassociated alphaM precursor nor with the uncomplexed alphaM subunit expressed on COS cell surface. The four mAbs were mapped to three subregions in three different beta-sheets, making it unlikely that each recognized an interface between the alpha and beta subunits. These results suggest that folding of different beta-propeller subregions is coordinate and is dependent on association with the beta2 subunit. The segment C-terminal to the beta-propeller domain, residues 599-1092, was studied with nine mAbs. A subset of four mAbs that reacted with the alphaM/beta2 complex but not with the unassociated alphaM subunit were mapped to one subregion, residues 718-759, and five other mAbs that recognized both the unassociated and the complexed alphaM subunit were localized to three other subregions, residues 599-679, 820-882, and 943-1047. This suggests that much of the region C-terminal to the beta-propeller domain folds independently of association with the beta2 subunit. Our data provide new insights into how different domains in the integrin alpha and beta subunits may interact.
Nonpenetrating traumatic ventricular septal defect: two-dimensional echocardiographic and angiographic findings.

Abstract This report presents a case of nonpenetrating chest trauma leading to isolated ventricular septal defect (VSD). Emphasis is placed on accurate sequential physical examination and laboratory confirmation by 2-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography and cardiac catheterization with left ventricular and coronary angiography.
Flexible graphite as a compliant thermoelectric material

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