cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Seasonal pattern of early mortality and infectious complications in liver transplant recipients.

Seasonal variation has been documented in the frequency and attributable mortality of a number of medical illnesses and infections in the nontransplantation setting. Whether similar trends exist in transplant recipients is not known. Seasonal rates of overall and early mortality and contributory variables stratified by season were assessed in 190 consecutive liver transplant recipients who underwent transplantation over a 10-year period. The frequency of infectious complications and rejection was also assessed and stratified by season of transplantation. Early (deaths occurring in the first year posttransplantation), but not overall, mortality correlated significantly with seasonality. Of patients with early mortality, 43% (13 of 30 patients) died in winter; 23% (7 of 30 patients), in spring; 13% (4 of 30 patients), in summer; and 20% (6 of 30 patients), in fall. The frequency of deaths in winter was significantly greater than for all other seasons (P = .022). The high wintertime mortality could not be explained by previously recognized risk factors portending a poor outcome, e.g., United Network for Organ Sharing status, Child-Pugh score, surgical time, blood loss, pretransplantation and posttransplantation dialysis, infections, rejection, or increased immunosuppression. Strong trends toward a higher rate of cytomegalovirus disease in patients who underwent transplantation in fall (P = .09) and bacterial infections in those who underwent transplantation in winter were documented (P = .09). There was no correlation between seasonality and rejection. Early mortality in winter in liver transplant recipients was significantly greater than if the deaths were totally random. Whether the seasonal clustering of deaths and infections is triggered by respiratory viruses, yet unrecognized viruses, or unknown exogenous factors remains to be determined.
Antecedents of Improvisation in IT-Enabled Engineering Work

The success of engineering work depends on the ability of individuals to improvise in response to emerging challenges and opportunities Kappel & Rubenstein, 1999. Building on experiential learning theory Eisenhardt & Tabrizi 1995; Kolb, 1984 and improvisation theory Miner, Bassoff, & Moorman, 2001, this authors argue that information systems facilitate the generation of new product and process design ideas by providing richer feedback, creating shorter learning cycles, and enabling engineers to try a variety of new ideas more easily. An empirical research model of the antecedents of improvisation in IT-enabled engineering work is proposed. This model is examined using a sample of 208 individuals engaged in computer-intensive engineering design work. The multiple regression results suggest that software capability, autonomy, problem solving/decision support usage, system use for work planning, and length of use explain the extent of new product and process ideas that are generated. The practical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.
Spectral plots for optical glass selection

Plots of the index of refraction and of partial dispersion versus V-number have long been used as a standard tool in selecting glasses for chromatic correction. The change in the distribution of glasses on these plots for widely differing spectral regions has generally been ignored. Some sample plots demonstrate the adjustments in approach required for selecting glasses in alternative spectral regions.
Guidelines for the Documentation of Segments of the History of Computing

Requirement specifications for the guidance of researchers in collecting and recording the history of computing have been sought by many persons during our 12 year history as a journal. While there does not exist a definitive outline which covers all aspects of the field, the set of guidelines created for the first History of Programming Languages Conference in 1976 have been used by many researchers, authors, and editors. This set of questions, primarily targeted toward those who were involved in the very history which they are recording and reporting on, has been revised and expanded by the program committee of the proposed second History of Programming Languages Conference, scheduled for 1993.
Body form and paleoecology of the large Late Cretaceous bony fish, Pachyrhizodus caninus

Abstract Pachyrhizodus caninus Cope is an extinct bony fish found in various Upper Cretaceous marine deposits in North America, but very little has been known about its paleobiology. This paper describes a nearly complete skeleton of P. caninus from the Britton Formation (Cenomanian – lower Turonian) of the Eagle Ford Shale in Texas, USA. The fish specimen is large, measuring 233 cm in total length, and is significant not only because it suggests that P. caninus had a stout tuna-like body with a marlin-like dorsal fin but also because it preserves a partial skeleton of an ichthyodectiform fish representing putative stomach content. This study indicates that P. caninus was a large, active carnivore that swam in open-ocean pelagic environment, much like the comparable-sized, extant tunas and marlins.
Ultraviolet astronomical polarimetry: some results and prospects

The new territory of ultraviolet imaging polarimetry is being explored at the University of Wisconsin Space Astronomy Lab by a sounding rocket payload, the Wide-Field Imaging Survey Polarimeter ('WISP'). WISP uses an 8-inch F/1.9 all-reflective Schmidt telescope, a large rotatable stressed CaF2 waveplate, and a fixed polarizing mirror coated with an opaque monolayer of ZrO2, illuminated at the Brewster angle. The payload has flown successfully four times, targeting the Pleiades Reflection Nebula, the Large Magellanic Cloud, comet Hale-Bopp, and the diffuse light of our Galaxy. An improved payload in the concept stage is Cosmic Ultraviolet Polarimetric Imaging Device ('CUPID'), which would use a 20- inch Gregorian Paul-Baker telescope, WISP-style polarimetric optics, and multilayer reflective coatings to achieve wide- field imaging polarimetry with more than 15 times the sensitivity of WISP. It is to be used to separate the Galactic and Cosmological components of the ultraviolet diffuse background using their polarimetric properties. High resolution stellar spectropolarimetry in the far ultraviolet is to be pioneered by a sounding rocket payload in the design stage, the Far-Ultraviolet Spectropolarimeter ('FUSP'). This instrument is to have a spectral resolution of 0.07 nm and a spectral coverage from 105 to 145 nm. It uses a 20-inch telescope with polarimetric optics at the prime focus, and a far ultraviolet spectrometer using an aberration-corrected holographic grating. The polarimetric analyzer will be a thin LiF stressed waveplate, followed by a Brewster-angle polarizer of natural diamond. Scientific goals include diagnosis of the geometry and magnetic fields in stellar envelopes via resonance scattering and the Hanle Effect.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Is the left hemisphere specialized for language at birth

Abstract The recognition of the lateralization of language to the left hemisphere in most adults was one of the great triumphs of nineteenth-century neurology, but because the clinical finding of frequent crossed aphasia in children suggested that language functions were bilateral during childhood, the notion arose that lateralization was a developmental process that occurred over the first decade of life. Recent neuroanatomical, electroencephalographic and neuropsychological investigations have tended to support the contrary view that language is primarily lateralized to the left hemisphere from the first months of post-uterine life. Now the collection of more clinical data on acquired childhood aphasia, and the reanalysis of earlier clinical studies, indicate that the modern incidence of crossed aphasia in children is too low to support the hypothesis of a gradual lateralization of language over time, and is more consistent with a theory of developmental invariance of language lateralization.
Substitution of hazardous offshore chemicals in UK waters: an evaluation of their use and discharge from 2000 to 2012

The offshore oil and gas industry will use and discharge large quantities of chemicals into the marine environment during operational activities, with some of those chemicals considered hazardous. Chemical substitution, as part of the environmental regulatory regime, has been advocated as a simple and effective tool to reduce inputs of hazardous substances to the environment. In 2007 the UK National Plan was introduced, to prioritise into four groups and subsequently phase out in stages the most hazardous substances used and discharged during offshore oil and gas operations. Level 1 substances categorised for phase out in 2010 were virtually eliminated from discharge between 2006 and 2012 and there was a significant decline in discharge of substances at Level 2 to 4 over the same period. The discharge of substitutable substances had been reduced to less than 5 tonnes at most production installations by 2012. More than 91% of this discharge is contributed by corrosion inhibitor, scale inhibitor, demulsifier and water clarifier formulations. The discharge of corrosion inhibitors accounted for the largest contribution to UK National Plan Level 2 substitutable substance discharges, and they appear to be the type of product with the fewest options found for substitution. This implies that a finite discharge of substances from these groups will continue to require formal justification beyond the target date, as occurred for Level 1 substances after the 2010 target date. The overall figures for substitutable substance discharges from 2006 to 2012 suggest that the introduction of the UK National plan with prioritisation of substances for substitution and ongoing encouragement of operators and, indirectly, suppliers to work towards reduction goals for substitutable substances is resulting in a reduction in discharges and contributing to their ultimate phase out. The next few years will be particularly challenging as the deadline for the phase-out of discharges of substitutable substances included in OSPAR Recommendation, 2006/3 is 1 January 2017 and, in addition, by 2018 all chemical substances used offshore will need to have been registered under the EC REACH Regulation. The approach described in this paper illustrates the benefits of a prioritised strategy for chemical substitution and an ongoing dialogue between the industry and regulator. A continuing case by case dialogue with offshore operators and suppliers will be essential to ensure that alternative technical solutions are trialled and options for substitution are investigated at the earliest stage.
Small signal moduation of dual oxide cavity composite resonator vertical cavity lasers

We report small signal modulation greater than 10 GHz for the first time from composite-resonator vertical-cavity laser (CRVCL) devices with reduced capacitance using metal contacts on polymer layers, which has been successfully employed in conventional VCSELs. We find that the dynamics of the laser are determined by the total photon density rather than the individual values of current. These modulation results, combined with high slope efficiency, may enable new VCSEL-based optical link applications for the CRVCL
Primary Care Validation of a Single-Question Alcohol Screening Test

BACKGROUND Unhealthy alcohol use is prevalent but under-diagnosed in primary care settings.
Including tourists in crime rate calculations for new casino jurisdictions: What difference does it make?

One way to analyze the effect of tourism on crime is to include the average number of visitors in the denominator used to calculate community crime rates. Modified crime rates were computed for 7 new casino jurisdictions and compared with traditional crime rates based on the resident population. A preand postcasino comparison indicates a minority of Part I crimes increased significantly regardless of which crime rate was used. While a majority of Part II crimes rose significantly when using the traditional crime rate, fewer than half the modified crime rates displayed any gains. It appears that a large concentration of casinos with a concomitant increase in tourism leads to an increase in Part II crimes.
Evidence, discourse and values in obesity-oriented policy: menu labeling as a conversation starter.

Evidence, discourse and values in obesity-oriented policy: menu labeling as a conversation starter
Testing for a Structural Break at Unknown Date with Long‐memory Disturbances

We derive the null limiting distributions of the usual sup-Wald and CUSUM tests for structural stability with an unknown potential break date in a polynomial regressi on model where the errors are I(d), −0.5 0, both tests diverge under the null so that the asymptotic size of either test is unity. For d< 0, both tests converge to zero under the null so that the asymptotic size of either test is zero
Ion transport and metabolic effects of amiloride in canine tracheal mucosa.

We studied the interaction between Cl transport and the Na entry step at the luminal side of the canine tracheal epithelium by testing the effects of amiloride, an inhibitor of apical membrane Na conductance. The tracheal mucosa was mounted as a flat sheet in Ussing chamber and bathed with Krebs-Henseleit solution. In six experiments22Na and36Cl transepithelial fluxes were determined. Under basal conditions net Na absorption was 0.45±0.10 µEq/cm2·h (\(\bar X\)±SE) and declined to 0.07±0.08 after 0.1 mM amiloride was added to the mucosal bath. No changes were found in Cl fluxes. Addition of amiloride (0.1 mM) to the luminal bath usually caused a 10–20% decline in short circuit current (SCC). However, these alterations in SCC were often transient when the bathing media contained Cl. In contrast, in the absence of Cl the inhibition of SCC by 0.01 mM mucosal amiloride was predictable, large, and stable (ΔSCC=−21±6 µA/cm2,N=5). Addition of higher concentration of amiloride (2–4 mM) to the submucosal side (N=6) caused significant decline in net Cl secretion from 1.67±0.37 to 0.06±0.25 µEq/cm2 · h (P<0.02). These changes were probably caused by inhibition of tissue metabolism since 2 mM amiloride caused a 73% fall in tissue oxygen consumption. Ouabain (0.1 mM), which inhibits Na-K-ATPase and therefore both Na and Cl transport, reduced tissue O2 consumption by 34%. The Na entry step at the luminal membrane is amiloride sensitive, but does not appear to be crucial for the maintenance of the Cl secretory process. Luminal membrane conductance appears to be primarily a Cl-conductance. About one third of tissue O2 demands are utilized for transport of Na and Cl.
GaN/InGaN avalanche phototransistors

We report on III–nitride (III–N) avalanche phototransistor (APT) action by illuminating ultraviolet (UV) photons onto a GaN/InGaN npn heterojunction bipolar transistor in an open-base configuration. A high responsivity of >1 A/W was measured for the device operating at a collector-to-emitter voltage (VCE) of 68 A/W at VCE = 95 V. The InGaN APT demonstrates the feasibility of using III–N bipolar transistor structures for high-sensitivity UV photodetection applications.
A practical method for analysis of river waves and for kinematic wave routing in natural channel networks

The behaviour of river waves is described using a simplified dimensionless form of the momentum equation in conjunction with the continuity equation. Three dimensionless parameters were derived based on a quantitative linear analysis. These parameters, which depend on the Froude number of the steady uniform flow and the geometric characteristics of the river, permit quantification of the influence of inertia and pressure in the momentum equation. It was found that dynamic and diffusion waves occur mainly on gentle channel slopes and the transition between them is characterized by the Froude number. On the other hand, the kinematic wave has a wide range of applications. If the channel slope is greater than 1%, the kinematic wave is particularly suitable for describing the hydraulics of flow. Since slopes in natural channel networks are often greater than 1%, an analytical solution of the linearized kinematic wave equation with lateral inflow uniformly distributed along the channel is desirable and was therefore derived. The analytical solution was then implemented in a channel routing module of an existing simple rainfall–runoff model. The results obtained using the analytical solution compared well with those obtained from a non-linear kinematic wave model. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Transient shear waves in a wedge subjected to rapid tearing

Abstract The surface of an elastic wedge is subjected to sudden antiplane surface tractions and displacements sufficient to cause tearing. The subsequent crack instability is investigated. The wedge faces subtend an angle κπ with the line of antisymmetry, along which the crack propagates with a constant velocity v. For the externally applied disturbances that are considered here, and for constant crack tip velocities, the particle velocity and ⋗t θz are functions of r t and θ only, which allows Chaplygin's transformation and conformai mapping to be used. The theory of analytic functions is then used. For various values of the crack propagation velocity, the dependence of the elastodynamic stress intensity factor, and energy flux into the crack tip, on the wedge angle 2 κπ is investigated.
Retrospective Review of Serum Creatinine and Creatinine-Based Measures of Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate in an Amputee Population

ABSTRACTA variety of equations are used to estimate glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). These formulas have never been validated in the setting of traumatic amputation. In this retrospective study involving 255 military personnel with traumatic amputations at a single outpatient center, muscle mass lost was estimated using percentage of estimated body weight lost (% EBWL). Serum creatinine (Scr) and eGFR by the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equations were compared to % EBWL for each patient. The average Scr for the group studied was also compared with a cohort matched for age, sex, and race from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). Percentage EBWL correlated significantly with Scr (R2 = 0.095, p < 0.0001), eGFR by MDRD (R2 = 0.077, p < 0.0001), and eGFR by CKD-EPI (R2 = 0.074, p < 0.0001). The average Scr was significantly lower than a similar population from NHANES III (0.83 ± 0.137 mg/dL vs....
Anther culture and Hordeum bulbosum-derived barley doubled haploids mutations and methylation

Anther culture and Hordeum bulbosum-derived doubled haploid (DH) lines of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) were analyzed for RFLP and RAPD polymorphisms. Polymorphisms were not detected in the anther culture-or H. bulbosum-derived DH lines among 273 RFLP and 89 polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified DNA fragments assayed. It was calculated that base substitution or small deletion/insertion mutations had not been induced among 401 640 by screened. Large deletion/insertion mutations were not observed among 33 Mb screened. Polymorphisms were observed when DNA was digested with the methylation-sensitive restriction enzymes HpaII and MspI: these RFLPs originated primarily from the anther culture-derived doubled haploids. The data indicate that heritable DNA methylation changes had occurred during DH production, particularly with the anther culture method.
ESR studies of the kinetics of intramolecular collisions between the two ends of hydrocarbon chains having the structure (α-naphthyl−)-(CH2) i-(α-naphthyl)

Abstract The ESR spectra of radical-anions α-naphthalenide − -(CH 2 ) j -α naphthyl in HMPA, investigated over a range of temperatures, allowed us to study the rate of intramolecular collisions and compare them with the rate of intermolecular collisions, n butyl-α-naphthalenide − + n -butyl-α-naphthyl→ exchange. For j =12 and low temperatures the ESR spectra are identical to those obtained in slow intermolecular exchange. For j =3 or for j =4 at higher temperatures the ESR spectra are those of the hypothetic dimer (CH 2 .C CH2-α-naphthyl) − . The intermediate spectra are seen when j =5 or 6.
The Application of Constraint Semantics to the Language of Subjective Uncertainty

This paper develops a compositional, type-driven constraint semantic theory for a fragment of the language of subjective uncertainty. In the particular application explored here, the interpretation function of constraint semantics yields not propositions but constraints on credal states as the semantic values of declarative sentences. Constraints are richer than propositions in that constraints can straightforwardly represent assessments of the probability that the world is one way rather than another. The richness of constraints helps us model communicative acts in essentially the same way that we model agents’ credences. Moreover, supplementing familiar truth-conditional theories of epistemic modals with constraint semantics helps capture contrasts between strong necessity and possibility modals, on the one hand, and weak necessity modals, on the other.
Electron-screening correction for the proton-proton reaction

We test the Salpeter formalism for the electron screening of the solar proton-proton fusion reaction by solving numerically the relevant Schrodinger equation. We evaluate exactly the square of the overlap integral of the two-proton wave function and the deuteron wave function and compare with the usual analytic approximation. The usual WKB solution agrees with the numerical result to O(10^-4). The WKB approximation should be even more precise for the other nuclear fusion reactions in the pp chain and CNO cycles.
The new International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics surgical staging and survival rates in early endometrial carcinoma.

The medical records of patients with clinical Stage I endometrial adenocarcinoma who were treated at the Maimonides Medical Center between October 1979 and October 1987 were reviewed. There was sufficient surgical-pathologic information to allow a reclassification based on the new International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) surgical staging in 93 patients. These are the subjects of analysis. Twenty-one patients (23%) were found surgically to have more than Stage I disease. The 5-year survival rate for the whole group (N = 93) was 90%. However, it was significantly better for patients with surgical Stage I disease (98%) than for patients with surgical Stage III disease (60%) (P less than 0.001). There was no significant statistical difference in survival among patients with different substages within surgical Stage I (i.e., IA, 100%; IB, 100%; and IC, 88%), whereas the distribution of adjuvant therapy among these substages was not statistically different (P = 0.17). Thus, survival was not significantly affected by depth of myometrial invasion in patients who had negative peritoneal washing and no involvement of lymph nodes or the peritoneal cavity.
Impaired phorbol ester-induced hepatocyte proliferation in cirrhosis.

Abstract Cirrhotic livers are considered to regenerate less actively than normal livers after hepatic resection. Little is known about the mechanisms responsible for impaired capacity of regeneration in cirrhotic liver. In the present study, we investigated the effect of phorbol ester on hepatocyte proliferation in healthy and cirrhotic hepatocytes, using one of the phorbol esters, 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), which has a direct effect on activation of protein kinase C (PKC). Cirrhosis was established by the administration of carbon tetrachloride and phenobarbital to rats. Healthy and cirrhotic hepatocytes were isolated from Wistar male rats by a two-step collagenase perfusion technique. DNA synthesis was estimated by [3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA and by autoradiographic nuclear labeling index. [3H]Thymidine incorporation was measured 24 hr after hepatocytes were stimulated by appropriate reagents. TPA (50 nM) stimulated [3H]thymidine incorporation in healthy hepatocytes (control vs TPA, 991 ± 247 vs 2569 ± 766 mean ± SEM cpm/μg DNA; P
Blunt trauma leading to delayed extrusion of sacral nerve implant

Sacral neuromodulation is an effective treatment for refractory urge urinary incontinence, frequency, and urgency. Post pulse generator (IPG) adverse events requiring revision or explantation are typically pain, loss of response, and infection. We report a case of trauma-induced soft tissue injury and delayed extrusion of the IPG through the subcutaneous fat and skin. The device was explanted.
Experience and the Hit Rate for Entrepreneurial Initiatives

The hit-rate perspective on innovation contends that firms cannot improve their success rates and, so, can increase their number of successes only by making more attempts. On the other hand, an organizational learning perspective suggests that firms can increase proficiency with processes they perform repeatedly. Basing hypotheses on these two perspectives, this study considers how a firm’s percentage of launches, or hits, from its new product development (NPD) portfolio is related to characteristics of its on-going NPD activity. The setting is drug development in the pharmaceutical industry, and the analysis uses panel data for 77 firms over the years 1997 – 2006. The launch rate measure considers that drugs either are launched or are dropped from the portfolio when development is discontinued. Results reveal a negative relationship between the number of projects in the portfolio and the launch rate. There is an inverted-U curvilinear relationship between the percentage of projects that are newly initiated and the launch rate. The test of an interaction indicates that launch rate decreases with increases in the percent of new projects in knowledge categories that are new to the firm. These results imply that project portfolios characterized by activity that is a stretch from the base of experience tend to exhibit lower launch rates. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE AR-SA
Molecular systematics of the Coronophorales and new species of Bertia , Lasiobertia and Nitschkia

The Nitschkiaceae has been placed in the Coronophorales or the Sordariales in recent years. Most recently it was accepted in the Coronophorales and placed in the Hypocreomycetidae based on sequence data from large subunit nrDNA. To confirm and corroborate the taxonomic placement and monophyly of the Coronophorales, additional taxa representing the diversity of the group were targeted for phylogenetic analysis using partial sequences of the large subunit nrDNA (LSU). Based on molecular data, the Coronophorales is found to be monophyletic and its placement in the Hypocreomycetidae is maintained. The order is a coherent group with morphologies that include superficial, often turbinate, often collabent ascomata that may or may not contain a quellkorper and asci that are often stipitate and at times polysporous. Three species with accepted Nitschkia names, together with Fracchiaea broomeiana and Acanthonitschkea argentinensis, comprise the paraphyletic nitschkiaceous complex. Two new families, Chaetosphaerellaceae and Scortechiniaceae fams nov., are described for the clades containing Chaetosphaerella and Crassochaeta and the taxa having a quellkorper (Euacanthe, Neofracchiaea and Scortechinia) respectively. The Bertiaceae is accepted for the clade containing Bertia species. Three new species are described: Bertia tropicalis, Lasiobertia portoricensis, and Nitschkia meniscoidea spp. nov.
On the role of veterans in the development of neurology in the United States: A personal reflection

"Don't go into neurology. You'll never make a living unless you do psychiatry." This was the almost universal comment of fellow students and faculty at Cornell University Medical College in New York, which I attended from 1948 to 1952. And yet Cornell then had more neurology than most schools have today. The basic sciences were strongly oriented in this direction; the dean was a neuroanatomist. Even more intense was the clinical exposure under Harold G. Wolff, Professor of Medicine (Neurology). In the second year there was an obligatory course in neurologic diagnosis under his direction, distinct from physical diagnosis. A 54-page typed neurologic examination had to be carried out, resulting in a 20-page handwritten report that included all negatives tested. For example, corrected and uncorrected visual acuity, color vision, and mapped-out visual fields had to be performed to assess that area. The examination was organized by body parts-the "end organs," and brainstem functions of midbrain and anterior, middle, and posterior hind brain (not "cranial nerves") were part of the head functions. Throughout my career I have regularly provided this examination to students, residents, and staff, not with a requirement for its use (this approach never caught on outside the Cornell axis), but rather as an example of what should be tested and why. In the third year there was an obligatory clerkship in neurology, which I took at the Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital in the Bronx, where Wolff was Director of Training. Most of my spare time in that whole year, though, was spent in an intensive elective in functional neuroanatomy under Louis Hausman.1,2 This included building his 4:1 scale model of the brain, which I still have intact in my office. Structures were color coded according to function and phylogeny and provided a three-dimensional view of the CNS …
Economic Deprivation and Environmental Inequality in Postindustrial Detroit A Comparison of Landfill and Superfund Site Locations

The research presented here directly engages the issues of environmental inequality by testing the empirical merits of two sociological explanations of urban inequality by comparing landfill and Superfund locations in postindustrial (1970 to 1990) Detroit, Michigan. The results indicate that economic deprivation supercedes race in predicting the location of both landfill and Superfund sites; furthermore, both landfill and Superfund sites tend to be located in census tracts located near to industrial districts contiguous to navigable waterways in Detroit. Using Geographic Information Systems and logistic regression, the results indicate that the probability of living near a landfill is highest among the economically deprived and those least able to “escape” the urban center of Detroit. Substantively, the findings suggest that the process of deindustrialization is decisive in understanding environmental inequality, whereas methodologically, the results underscore the subtle nuances posed by different types ...
An analysis of nucleotides and catecholamines in bovine medullary granules by anion exchange high pressure liquid chromatography and fluorescence. Evidence that most of the catecholamines in chromaffin granules are stored without associated ATP.

The catecholamine and nucleotide content of chromaffin granules from bovine adrenal medulla was analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Nucleotides were examined by separation on anion exchange high pressure liquid chromatography and ultraviolet absorption, as well as by anion exchange thin-layer chromatography and luciferin-luciferase light emission analysis. Catecholamines were quantified via automated continuous-flow analysis using fluorescence. We found the average catecholamine/ATP ratio to be 8.2:1 with an SD of 1.98 and an SE of 0.50 for 16 separate glands. Relative percentages of epinephrine and norepinephrine were found to be 79.8 and 20.2, respectively. The granules contained 80.9% ATP, 12.3% GTP, and 6.8% UTP, as well as detectable amounts of ADP, AMP, GDP, and UDP. If we accept the catecholamine/ATP ratio of 4:1 proposed by Hillarp earlier, then those catecholamines constituting the remainder of our ratio of 8.2:1 should represent a nucleotide-unassociated pool. In view of recent evidence of a direct agonistic function of nucleotides, we propose that the granule-associated nucleotides may act locally as coagonists with certain biogenic amines, and may additionally provide a circulating pool of purines and pyrimidines for use by the heart and lungs.
Laser debonding of ceramic orthodontic brackets: a theoretical approach

Ceramic brackets are an esthetic substitute for conventional stainless steel brackets in orthodontic patients. However, ceramic brackets are more brittle and have higher bond strengths which can lead to bracket breakage and enamel damage during debonding. It has been demonstrated that various lasers can facilitate ceramic bracket removal. One mechanism with the laser is through the softening of the bracket adhesive. The high energy density from the laser on the bracket and adhesive can have a resultant deleterious thermal effect on the pulp of the tooth which may lead to pulpal death. A theoretical computer model of bracket, adhesive, enamel and dentin has been generated for predicting heat flow through this system. Heat fluxes at varying intensities and modes have been input into the program and the resultant temperatures at various points or nodes were determined. Further pursuit should lead to optimum parameters for laser debonding which would have minimal effects on the pulp.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Photoconductivity of the Sulfide, Selenide, and Telluride of Zinc or Cadmium

The highlights of recent photoconductivity research on evaporated, powder, and sintered layers, and on single crystals of photoconductors in the group ZnS, CdS, ZnSe, CdSe, ZnTe, and CdTe are reviewed. The following aspects of photoconductivity are discussed: spectral response, impurity sensitization, electrode contact problems, conductivity, mobility, speed of response, photocurrent vs light intensity, photocurrent vs temperature, infrared quenching, thermally stimulated current and trapping, space-charge limited current, photoconductivity and luminescence, photovoltaic effect, photoemissive effect, and surface photoconductivity. The utility of the concepts of the Fermi-level and demarcationlevel in the description of many photoconductivity phenomena is briefly discussed.
Scyphomedusae and their polyps are the same immunologically: implications for systematics.

Abstract 1. 1. Polyp and medusa of the scyphozoans Aurelia aurita and Pelagia colorata (phylum Cnidaria) are indistinguishable by radioimmunoassay of whole animals, yet differ from other enidarians against which they were tested. 2. 2. We infer that proteins distinguishing species swamp those that differentiate the two (very distinct) life history phases. 3. 3. Thus, at least for some taxa and some systematic techniques analyzing proteins, using organisms at the same developmental phase may be unnecessary, contrary to conventional wisdom.
HIDDEN MARKOV MODELS IN COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY: APPLICATIONS TO PROTEIN MODELING

Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) are applied to the problems of statistical modeling, database searching and multiple sequence alignment of protein families and protein domains. These methods are demonstrated on the globin family, the protein kinase catalytic domain, and the EF-hand calcium binding motif. In each case the parameters of an HMM are estimated from a training set of unaligned sequences. After the HMM is built, it is used to search the SWISS-PROT 22 database for other sequences that are members of the given protein family, or contain the given domain. The HMM produces multiple alignments of good quality that agree closely with the alignments produced by programs that incorporate three-dimensional structural information. When employed in discrimination tests (by examining how closely the sequences in a database fit the globin, kinase and EF-hand HMMs), the HMM is able to distinguish members of these families from non-members with a high degree of accuracy. Both the HMM and PROFILESEARCH (a technique used to search for relationships between a protein sequence and multiply aligned sequences) perform better in these tests than PROSITE (a dictionary of sites and patterns in proteins). The HMM appears to have a slight advantage over PROFILESEARCH in terms of lower rates of false negatives and false positives, even though the HMM is trained using only unaligned sequences, whereas PROFILESEARCH requires aligned training sequences. Our results suggest the presence of an EF-hand calcium binding motif in a highly conserved and evolutionarily preserved putative intracellular region of 155 residues in the alpha-1 subunit of L-type calcium channels which play an important role in excitation-contraction coupling. This region has been suggested to contain the functional domains that are typical or essential for all L-type calcium channels regardless of whether they couple to ryanodine receptors, conduct ions or both.
Neurobiology of Periventricular Leukomalacia in the Premature Infant

Brain injury in the premature infant is a problem of enormous importance. Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) is the major neuropathologic form of this brain injury and underlies most of the neurologic morbidity encountered in survivors of premature birth. Prevention of PVL now seems ultimately achievable because of recent neurobiologic insights into pathogenesis. The pathogenesis of this lesion relates to three major interacting factors. The first two of these, an incomplete state of development of the vascular supply to the cerebral white matter, and a maturation-dependent impairment in regulation of cerebral blood flow underlie a propensity for ischemic injury to cerebral white matter. The third major pathogenetic factor is the maturation-dependent vulnerability of the oligodendroglial (OL) precursor cell that represents the major cellular target in PVL. Recent neurobiologic studies show that these cells are exquisitely vulnerable to attack by free radicals, known to be generated in abundance with ischemia-reperfusion. This vulnerability of OLs is maturation-dependent, with the OL precursor cell highly vulnerable and the mature OL resistant, and appears to relate to a developmental window characterized by a combination of deficient antioxidant defenses and active acquisition of iron during OL differentiation. The result is generation of deadly reactive oxygen species and apoptotic OL death. Important contributory factors in pathogenesis interact with this central theme of vulnerability to free radical attack. Thus, the increased likelihood of PVL in the presence of intraventricular hemorrhage could relate to increases in local iron concentrations derived from the hemorrhage. The important contributory role of maternal/fetal infection or inflammation and cytokines in the pathogenesis of PVL could be related to effects on the cerebral vasculature and cerebral hemodynamics, to generation of reactive oxygen species, or to direct toxic effects on vulnerable OL precursors. A key role for elevations in extracellular glutamate, caused by ischemia-reperfusion, is suggested by demonstrations that glutamate causes toxicity to OL precursors by both nonreceptor- and receptor-mediated mechanisms. The former involves an exacerbation of the impairment in antioxidant defenses, and the latter, an alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid/kainate receptor-mediated cell death. Most importantly, these new insights into the pathogenesis of PVL suggest potential preventive interventions. These include avoidance of cerebral ischemia by detection of infants with impaired cerebrovascular autoregulation, e.g. through the use of in vivo near-infrared spectroscopy, the use of free radical scavengers to prevent toxicity by reactive oxygen species, the administration of alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid/kainate receptor antagonists to prevent glutamate-mediated injury, or the use of maternal antibiotics or anticytokine agents to prevent toxicity from maternal/fetal infection or inflammation and cytokines.
Early events in the life cycle of JC virus as potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy.

The human polyomavirus, JC virus (JCV), is the etiological agent of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). PML occurs almost exclusively in the setting of severe and prolonged immunosuppression and it remains an important and life-threatening complication in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) population. Several drugs that target DNA replication have shown efficacy at inhibiting JCV replication in vitro but none to date have shown in vivo efficacy. The authors’ laboratory has been studying early events that contribute to infection of susceptible cells by JCV. They previously demonstrated that infection of glial cells by JCV requires clathrin-dependent endocytosis and that this early step in the viral life cycle can be blocked by the antipsychotic drug, chlorpromazine. As chlorpromazine is associated with the development of extrapyramidal symptoms that may be heightened in AIDS patients, the authors sought to test the atypical antipsychotic, clozapine, for antiviral activity against JCV. In this report, the authors show that clozapine is as effective as chlorpromazine at inhibiting infection. They further demonstrate that low-dose combinations of both drugs synergistically inhibit infection.
T-cell metabolism in autoimmune disease

Cancer cells have long been known to fuel their pathogenic growth habits by sustaining a high glycolytic flux, first described almost 90 years ago as the so-called Warburg effect. Immune cells utilize a similar strategy to generate the energy carriers and metabolic intermediates they need to produce biomass and inflammatory mediators. Resting lymphocytes generate energy through oxidative phosphorylation and breakdown of fatty acids, and upon activation rapidly switch to aerobic glycolysis and low tricarboxylic acid flux. T cells in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have a disease-specific metabolic signature that may explain, at least in part, why they are dysfunctional. RA T cells are characterized by low adenosine triphosphate and lactate levels and increased availability of the cellular reductant NADPH. This anti-Warburg effect results from insufficient activity of the glycolytic enzyme phosphofructokinase and differentiates the metabolic status in RA T cells from those in cancer cells. Excess production of reactive oxygen species and a defect in lipid metabolism characterizes metabolic conditions in SLE T cells. Owing to increased production of the glycosphingolipids lactosylceramide, globotriaosylceramide and monosialotetrahexosylganglioside, SLE T cells change membrane raft formation and fail to phosphorylate pERK, yet hyperproliferate. Borrowing from cancer metabolomics, the metabolic modifications occurring in autoimmune disease are probably heterogeneous and context dependent. Variations of glucose, amino acid and lipid metabolism in different disease states may provide opportunities to develop biomarkers and exploit metabolic pathways as therapeutic targets.
The contemporary management of splenic artery aneurysms

Objectives The management of patients with splenic artery aneurysms (SAAs) is variable since the natural history of these aneurysms is poorly delineated. The objective of this study was to review our experience with open repair, endovascular therapy, and observation of SAAs over a 14-year interval. Methods Between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 2009, 128 patients with SAAs were evaluated. Sixty-two patients underwent surgical repair (n = 13) or endovascular coil/glue ablation (n = 49), while 66 patients underwent serial observation. The original medical records and computed tomography (CT) imaging were reviewed. Statistical analyses were performed using χ 2 or Fisher's exact test for categorical patient characteristics and t -test for continuous variables. Kaplan-Meier estimates for survival were calculated. Mortality was verified via the Social Security Death Index. Results Patients (61 ± 11 years, 69% female) were investigated for abdominal symptoms (49%) or had the incidental finding of SAA (mean size, 2.4 ± 1.4 cm). Seven patients (5.5%) presented with rupture and were treated emergently with two perioperative mortalities (29%). Patients requiring surgical or endovascular treatment were more likely male (40% vs 21%, P = .031), younger (58 vs 64 years; P = .004), and current smokers (18% vs 5%; P = .035). Increased aneurysm calcification was associated with decreased SAA size ( P = .013). The mean aneurysm size at initial diagnosis was 1.67 cm for patients undergoing observation and 3.13 cm for the treated group ( P P = .18). No late aneurysm-related mortality was identified. Conclusions Ruptured SAAs are lethal. Large SAAs can undergo endovascular ablation safely with durable SAA regression. Smaller SAAs (
Low power network processor design using clock gating

Network processors (NPs) have emerged as successful platforms to providing both high performance and flexibility in building powerful routers. Typical NPs incorporate multiprocessing and multi-threading to achieve maximum parallel processing capabilities. We observed that under low incoming traffic rates, most processing elements (PEs) in NPs are nearly idle and yet still consume dynamic power. This paper develops a low power technique to reduce the activities of PEs according to the varying traffic volume. We propose to monitor the average number of idle threads in a time window, and gate off the clock network of unused PEs when a subset of PEs is enough to handle the network traffic. We show that our technique brings significant reduction in power consumption (up to 30%) of NPs with no packet loss and little impact to the overall throughput.
Synaptic and subcellular localization of A-kinase anchoring protein 150 in rat hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells: Co-localization with excitatory synaptic markers.

Excitatory and inhibitory ionotropic receptors are regulated by protein kinases and phosphatases, which are localized to specific subcellular locations by one of several anchoring proteins. One of these is the A-kinase anchoring protein (AKAP150), which confers spatial specificity to pro- tein kinase A and protein phosphatase 2B in the rat brain. The distribution of AKAP150 was examined at rat hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cell asymmetric and symmetric post-synaptic densities and with respect to the distribution of markers of excitatory (vesicular glutamate transporter 1, glutamate re- ceptor subunit 1) and inhibitory receptors (vesicular GABA transporter, GABA receptor type A 2/3 subunits, gephyrin) and the Golgi marker, trans-Golgi network glycoprotein 38. AKAP150 was close to asymmetric synapses, consistent with numerous molecular and biochemical studies suggesting its interaction with components of the excitatory postsynaptic density. In contrast, we did not find AKAP150-immunoreac- tivity associated with inhibitory synapses in rat CA1 neurons, despite reports demonstrating an in vitro interaction between AKAP150 and GABA receptor type A receptor subunits, and the reported co-localization of these proteins in rat hippocampal cultures. There was some overlap between AKAP150 and GABA receptor type A receptor 2/3-immuno- reactivity intracellularly in perinuclear clusters. These find- ings support previous work indicating the integration of ki- nase and phosphatase activity at excitatory synapses by AKAP150, but do not support a role for selective targeting of AKAP150 and its accompanying proteins to inhibitory synapses. © 2005 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of IBRO. A-kinase anchoring proteins (AKAPs) are a group of func- tionally related proteins that bind the regulatory subunits of protein kinase A (PKA), and target the holoenzyme to discrete subcellular locations (Colledge and Scott, 1999;