cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chronic moderate alcohol drinking alters insulin release without affecting cognitive and emotion-like behaviors in rats.

Abstract Because the consumption of alcoholic beverages prevails in society, its effects on diabetes risk is a subject of interest. Extant literature on this issue often disagrees. Here, we probed the effects of chronic moderate ethanol consumption on glucose metabolism in rats. The effect of chronic moderate alcohol drinking on depression- and anxiety-like behaviors and memory was also explored. Adolescent male and female Long-Evans rats consumed saccharin-sweetened 5% (1 week) and 10% ethanol (7 weeks) under a 7.5-h/day (Monday–Friday) access schedule. This exposure was followed by sucrose preference and elevated plus maze (EPM) tests during an intervening week, before a 6-week intermittent-access (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) to 20% unsweetened ethanol in a 2-bottle choice drinking paradigm was implemented (EtOH). A free-feeding control group received water (Water). Our prior work revealed that voluntary ethanol consumption decreases food intake in rats. Hence, a second control group that received water was mildly food-restricted (FR), and their average body weight was matched to that of the EtOH group. During the week following week 6 of intermittent-access to 20% ethanol, rats were submitted to sucrose preference, EPM, and novel object recognition (NOR) tests. Insulin response to a glucose load was subsequently assessed via an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Rats attained and maintained blood ethanol concentrations of ∼55 mg/dL that correlated with the dose of sweetened 10% ethanol ingested. Relative to intake by Water controls, EtOH rats consumed less chow. There was no body weight difference between both groups. Neither sex of EtOH rats showed increased depression- and anxiety-like behaviors, as respectively measured by sucrose preference and EPM, nor did they show deficit in object recognition memory during abstinence. Male EtOH rats, however, showed signs of reduced general activity on the EPM. During OGTT, male EtOH rats showed a time-dependent potentiation of insulin release for proper glucose clearance. Such an effect was not observed in females. This landmark study shows that chronic moderate alcohol consumption can have negative metabolic consequences in the absence of overt behavioral deficits, especially in males.
The Toxic Effect of Lanthanum on Planaria Is Mediated by a Variety of Ion Channels

The effect of toxic concentrations of La3+ on the Ca, K, Na, Mg, and Cl channels of planaria was investigated through the use of various agonists and antagonists to those channels. It was demonstrated that La exerts its toxic effects through L-type, but not T-type, Ca channels. La also demonstrated activity at Na, K, Mg, and Cl channels, but, these effects were most likely mediated by other effects of La on Ca activity. However, these interactions appear to be very complex and confounded by oxidative stresses. The study also introduces a planaria stress scale which allows the effects of toxic substances to be examined on a continuum.
Effect of Aging on Transport of Amino Acids by Bovine Lens

The effects of aging of the bovine lens have been evaluated on transport in vitro of five neutral amino acids and the dibasic amino acid, arginine. Data were obtained for five systems of transport. A significant decrease in the uptake of all the amino acids was observed with increasing age. Transport was studied at both the anterior and posterior faces of the lens in order to determine the effects of aging on physiological function of both the anterior epithelium and the posterior fiber cells which are formed on differentiation from the epithelium. Transport activity was always greater in the epithelium, but approximately proportionate decreases with age were observed at both surfaces. The A-component of sarcosine appeared to be exceptional in that it was not detected at the posterior surface of the bovine lens. The Non-saturable component of uptake was found to increase at both faces of the lens with age.
Vascular occlusion and thrombosis in zebrafish

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the vascular occlusion and thrombosis in zebrafish. The laser-induced vascular injury method is a very reproducible assay to measure thrombus formation using zebrafish larvae because of the advantage that a well-defined target location on the vessel could be easily selected. This is unlike the difficulties in reproducing uniform wounding from one vessel to another in mice that requires the analysis of large numbers of vessels to obtain reliable information. With the vascular occlusion method developed, it is possible to conduct larval screens for endothelium and blood components, such as thrombocytes and other cells, as well as plasma procoagulant, anticoagulant, and fibrinolytic factors along with the factors affecting flow dynamics. The larval vascular occlusion assay presents a powerful tool to discover regulatory elements of blood flow and endothelial cells affecting hemostasis. In addition to the larval screens for thrombus formation, the ability to directly visualize lysis of the thrombus allows the design of the assays for mutations affecting fibrinolysis and wound healing.
Saturation spectroscopy of NV− centers in diamond

We report saturation of NV− centers resulting in ~40% inversion level under 632nm pumping. Δk/ko kinetics revealed long recovery time of NV− centers after photoionization under 532nm pump, which involved different relaxation channels depending on the probe beam wavelengths.
Influence of high pressure hydrogen on cyclic load crack growth in metals

The effect of high pressure hydrogen on the crack growth rate of various nickel-base alloys was studied at ambient temperature. Considerable enhancement of the cyclic flaw growth rate was observed for Inconel 718, wrought and cast, and Waspaloy, a nickel-base alloy similar to Inconel 718. Only slight enhancement of the flaw growth rate for Alloy 903 was observed.
Multidisciplinary Impact on Heart Failure Readmissions

Introduction HF related hospitalizations contribute significantly to health care costs. Consequently, the Hospitals Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP) was created to “support the national goal of improving health care for Americans by linking payment to quality of hospital care” including 30 day readmissions for HF hospitalizations. Many methods have been employed including patient centered (e.g. enhanced post-discharge monitoring) and non-patient centered (e.g. upcoding of disease severity) to reduce HF readmissions. Drivers of HF hospitalization vary and affect readmissions regardless of what patient centered or non-patient centered approaches are used. In this study, we used an inpatient multidisciplinary approach to find these drivers in patients at high risk for HF readmission and targeted these drivers in a specialized HF clinic. Hypothesis Use of a multidisciplinary assessment of patients admitted with HF will reduce readmissions. Methods Beginning Nov 2018, 6 patients (pts) were selected weekly using a health informatics database that identified pts admitted with HF. These pts were stratified by risk of readmission. They were included with the following criteria: presence of HF during hospitalization and mod-high risk of readmission. They were excluded for the following: ESRD requiring dialysis, severe COPD, advanced HF, location at ancillary site. These 6 pts were seen by the following entities: Supportive Palliative Care (SPC), Behavioral Health (BH), Physical Therapy and Cardiac Rehab, Pharmacy, a HF representative, and Case Management. A multidisciplinary meeting was held each Wednesday, and a focused discussion was held on the drivers of admission for HF. Issues pertinent to each pt were identified. Pts were discharged to a “bridge clinic” in which these issues were addressed with a) volume optimization using ReDS technology and an IV diuretic clinic, b) embedded BH/SPC, home PT as needed and a visiting nurse. Pts were seen weekly for 4 weeks and then followed with their Primary Physician or Cardiologist with continued management of issues identified in the multidisciplinary meeting. Readmission rate was followed subsequently. Results 101 pts were selected between Nov 5th 2018 and Feb 25th 2019. These pts accounted for 183 HF related admissions in the 6 months prior to initiation of this program. Of these 101 pts, 17 were readmitted within 30 days of which 9 were HF related. This accounted for a readmission rate of 16.8% of our selected pts. The overall readmission rate for index HF hospitalizations during this time was 16.6%. Conclusions Use of health informatics and a multidisciplinary team was associated with reduction in HF readmissions. Ongoing utilization of this program will be needed to assess whether this effect is persistent.
Influenza virus NS1 protein upregulates epithelial sodium channel expression and function by inhibiting ubiquitin ligase Nedd4‐2

Influenza is a contagious respiratory virus that infects epithelial cells throughout the respiratory tract. The viral infection is facilitated by the attachment of the viral hemagglutinin to the si...
Msasarememt of iatraocnlar slroctnrs by optical coherence domain reflectometry

The ability of excimer lasers to remove corneal tissue in submicron increments has led to interest in the use of these lasers for keratorefractive surgery, in particular, linear incision keratotomy and large area ablation. To exploit the potential for micron resolution ablation control, a precise method for monitoring the incision depth is needed. Linear incision keratotomy produces narrow high aspect ratio cuts that are difficult to range with ultrasonic pachymetry and most optical pachymetry methods due to the requirements for high transverse resolution and nocontact measurement. Time domain reflectometry (OTDR) using femtosecond pulses1 satisfies these requirements. However, femtosecond time domain reflectometry requires complicated laser systems which are bulky and costly. We report here the measurement of corneal thickness and incision depth by optical coherence domain reflectometry (OCDR) using a compact diode laser source. The OCDR system has comparable spatial resolutions and better sensitivity than previously demonstrated with femtosecond OTDR ranging of corneal incisions.1 The experimental setup (Fig. 1) is similar to those used in OCDR2 and OTDR3 systems developed for measurement and localization of reflections in integrated optical devices.
A true “migrant trap”: Boerhavia (Nyctaginaceae) entanglement as a recurring cause of avian entrapment and mortality

Bird entanglement in plants is a relatively uncommonly documented occurrence, with only a handful of plant species known to recurrently trap birds and cause mortality. Here I describe a large number of bird entanglement events, including 3 confirmed bird deaths, involving Boerhavia torreyana (Torrey's spiderling) in an arid canyon in northern Arizona. Like many species of Boerhavia, B. torreyana possesses sticky rings on its stems that are hypothesized to enhance herbivory defense. I document that these sticky rings also frequently capture birds, and identify 39 separate bird entanglement events involving at least 9 different bird species in a small area where B. torreyana is common. Because B. torreyana is an annual plant that germinates with the arrival of the Southwestern monsoon in mid-summer, it matures and presents an entanglement risk at a time that coincides with the fall bird migration. Small ground-dwelling passerines and insectivores appear to be particularly at risk of being trapped. There are very few known examples of plant species that regularly causes bird entanglement and associated mortality, and the observations presented here document a new case of this phenomenon.
Overcoming Stereotypes to “Master Our Dreams”: The Salience of Ethnic Climate and Racial Diversity Among Students of Color in Middle School:

Ethnic-racial climate is a salient dimension of school context, especially amid the current sociopolitical climate. This study examined perceptions of school ethnic-racial climate among adolescent ...
Identifying Disparities in Care in Treating Glioblastoma: A Retrospective Cohort Study of Patients Treated at a Safety-net Versus Private Hospital Setting.

Background Patients of lower socioeconomic status (SES) may experience barriers to their oncologic care, but current data conflict over whether SES affects the prognosis of patients with glioblastoma (GB). Objective We sought to determine whether SES disparities impaired delivery of neuro-oncologic care and affected the prognosis of GB patients. Methods The records of GB patients treated from 2010 to 2014 at a safety-net hospital (SNH) or private hospital (PH), both served by 1 academic medical institution, were retrospectively reviewed and compared. Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results A total of 55 SNH and 39 PH GB patients were analyzed with median 11-month follow-up. SNH patients were predominantly Hispanic, low income, enrolled in Medicaid, were less likely to receive radiation (89% vs. 100%), took longer to start radiation (41 vs. 29 days), and were less likely to complete radiation treatment (80% vs. 95%). Concurrent and adjuvant temozolomide use were also lower (85% vs. 94% and 60% vs. 71%, respectively). OS and PFS were not significantly different (15 vs. 16 months and 8 vs. 11 months, respectively). On multivariate analysis, adjuvant chemotherapy and RT completion predicted for better OS, whereas hospital type, income, and insurance did not. Conclusion Although GB patients at our SNH received less adjuvant treatment compared with PH, outcomes were similar. Access to multidisciplinary care staffed by academic physicians may play an important role in overcoming socioeconomic barriers to treatment availability and quality at SNHs.
Influence of annealing on the creep behavior of GlidCop Al-15

Abstract The steady-state creep behavior of annealed GlidCop Al-15 (100 h, 1273 K) was studied at 973 K and compared to the extruded version. The Rosler-Arzt model applies well to both extruded and annealed alloys, suggesting the major deformation mechanism to be dislocation detachment from particles. However, threshold behavior was also observed at low stresses for both material conditions, which can be phenomenologically described by the threshold stress model. The annealed GlidCop samples exhibited better creep resistance than their extruded counterparts, the reason behind which was carefully examined in terms of the annealing effects on grain size, texture, dislocation density, and particle size and distribution. This investigation reveals that none of the above are the primary factors affecting the difference in the creep behavior of the two forms of GlidCop. Instead, the transformation of Al2O3 particles to 9Al2O3–B2O3 after long-term annealing is considered to be the major cause of the difference in steady-state creep rates, as the resulting less-coherent particle/matrix interface increases the energy required for the dislocation detachment process.
Increased Morbidity and Mortality of Patients with Non-cirrhotic Portal Vein Thrombosis After Abdominal and Pelvic Surgeries: a Study of the National Inpatient Sample 2002 to 2015

A higher rate of postoperative morbidity and mortality in patients with portal hypertension from cirrhosis is well recognized; however, the rate of postoperative morbidity and mortality among patients with portal hypertension from non-cirrhotic portal vein thrombosis (NCPVT) is largely unknown. All adults undergoing abdominal and pelvic surgery were identified from the National Inpatient Sample database from 2002 to 2015. Patients were then categorized into three groups: non-cirrhotic non-portal vein thrombosis (NCNPVT), NCPVT, and cirrhotic portal vein thrombosis (CPVT). Inpatient mortality, type of disposition, transfusions, length of stay, postoperative complications, and total charges were compared. Logistic regression and ordinary least squares regression analyses were performed for factors associated with inpatient mortality, transfusions, surgery-related complications, and log length of stay. Patients with NCPVT had significantly higher inpatient mortality rates, surgery-related complications, and longer length of stays compared with patients with NCNPVT (2.64% vs. 0.34%, 10.26% vs. 3.26%, 8 vs. 2 days) but less than patients with CPVT (2.64% vs. 6.31%, 10.26% vs. 17.48%, 8 vs. 11 days). In multiple logistic regression analyses, NCPVT groups remained associated with increased inpatient mortality rate, transfusions, and postoperative complications with odds ratios of 3.71 (1.88, 7.32), 3.43 (2.54, 4.62), and 3.08 (2.16, 4.39), respectively. NCPVT was also associated with 2.4 times increased length of stay. Patients with NCPVT had significantly higher risks of postoperative morbidity and mortality than patients with NCNPVT but less than patients with CPVT. Future studies with detail regarding the characteristics of PVTs are needed to confirm the findings in this study.
Unconventional Blinking Characteristics of Single Quantum Dots Revealed by Timing Analyses

Discontinuous emission, or “blinking”, from colloidal quantum dots (QDs) hampers the practical applications of QDs in numerous areas. The blinking of individual QDs does not have characteristic tim...
Few-Shot Learning to Classify Android Malwares

Mobile phones have become a target for cybercrime where malicious apps are developed to acquire sensitive information or corrupt data. To mitigate this issue and to improve the security in mobile devices, many machine learning methods have been developed to detect and classify Android malware. One problem with the existing methods is that they all assume a large dataset is available to train the learning models. In this paper, a model named few-shot malware classification (FSMC) is proposed to classify Android apps by using only a few training cases for each class. For three small datasets, the experimental results demonstrate that the FSMC model is able to achieve significantly higher accuracy compared to the existing 2-way 1-shot and 2-way 3-shot malware classification methods.
Hydrodynamics of aquatic swimming: inspiration for flow control

Aquatic swimming has fascinated researchers for more than a century. In this keynote talk, different types of swimming, their mechanisms of propulsion, and major findings from simulations are reviewed. The body undulations of the fish, which can be approximated well by a backward traveling wave, tend to keep the flow attached on the body of the swimmer. These observations have inspired us to use low-amplitude, backward traveling waves (which can be generated through piezoelectric actuators) for flow control. Our results indicate that backward traveling waves perform better than other types of surface morphing, e.g., standing waves, to control the flow separation over an airfoil.
The Politics of a Memory Wound: Norwegian Exceptionalism and the Trauma of July 22, 2011:

Following the July 22, 2011, Oslo bombing and shootings at the Utoya youth camp Norway became embroiled in a conflict over commemorative ethics. The memorial initially selected in an international ...
Stakeholders' recommendations for revising Good Clinical Practice.

Abstract The International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) is revising ICH E6 Good Clinical Practice (GCP). The Clinical Trials Transformation Initiative (CTTI) initiated a project to identify and provide ICH with stakeholders’ priority areas and suggestions for revising ICH E6 GCP. We conducted a global online survey to identify areas of ICH E6 GCP that are and are not in need of revision. A total of 327 stakeholders completed the survey. Stakeholders represent many research roles and types of organizations, are employed in 39 countries, and conduct research in 153 countries. The ICH E6 GCP principles mentioned most often (range, 25%–29%) in need of revision were implementing systems that assure quality, providing medical care by qualified physicians/dentists, protecting confidentiality and privacy, obtaining informed consent, and documenting and storing information. The Investigator section (n = 244, 75%) and Sponsor section (n = 242, 74%) of ICH E6 GCP were identified as needing the most revision and the Investigator Brochure section (n = 166, 51%) as needing the least revision. The topic most frequently mentioned as needing revision is Monitoring (n = 146; 45%) in the Sponsor section. Although none of the principles or topics in ICH E6 GCP were identified as needing revision by the majority of stakeholders, a meaningful percentage of stakeholders identified areas that they believe need revision. These findings, which represent the views of a wide variety of stakeholders, may be useful to ICH for identifying where specifically to focus their revision efforts. CTTI provided the final report to ICH with the project findings for their consideration.
Itraconazole Improves Vulvodynia in Fungus Culture-Negative Patients Post Fluconazole Failure.

INTRODUCTION Vulvodynia is a difficult condition to treat due to both the uncertain etiology of the disorder and poorly available therapies. This difficulty leads to a disproportionately high prevalence and cost of treatment for this condition. Candida vulvovaginitis is a frequent co-present diagnosis in vulvodynia patients. Whether through treatment of co-present, candida vulvovaginitis or by systemic interaction, itraconazole has been proposed as a treatment for vulvodynia. AIM To describe objective change in vulvodynia pain in a cohort of patients treated with itraconazole. METHODS This study was a retrospective cohort study comprised of women diagnosed with vulvodynia who were treated with itraconazole between January 1, 2011 and October 17, 2017. Patients had failed fluconazole treatment and had negative fungus cultures for >2 months before itraconazole treatment. All other vulvovaginal disorders were excluded. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE The main outcome measure was the change in pain before and after treatment as measured by cotton swab testing. RESULTS 106 patients met inclusion criteria. Average pain reduction for the entire cohort was 60.7%. Patients who continued itraconazole for 5 to 8 weeks demonstrated a 69.6% reduction in cotton swab test pain. Pain reduction as a percentage of total patients showed complete resolution of pain in 37.7% of patients and >50% reduction in 66.0% of patients. Two-sample paired T-tests for means analysis of pain scores disproved the null hypothesis (P < .01, α = 0.01) and showed a 50% reduction in pain to be significant (P = 0.043, α = 0.05). Two-tailed Wilcoxon signed rank test also demonstrated rejection of the null hypothesis (α = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Itraconazole therapy is associated with a significant reduction in vulvovaginal pain in patients with negative fungus cultures and no other identifiable disease in this pilot study. A randomized placebo-controlled trial is warranted. Rothenberger R, Jones W, MacNeill C. Itraconazole Improves Vulvodynia in Fungus Culture-Negative Patients Post Fluconazole Failure. J Sex Med 2021;9:100383.
Improving diversity in medical research.

Clinical research is essential for the advancement of medicine; however, trials often enrol homogeneous populations that do not accurately represent the patient populations served. Representative and diverse research participation is necessary to establish fair standards of care, minimize outcome disparities between populations, and achieve and uphold social equity. Clinical trials often enrol homogeneous populations that do not accurately represent the patient populations served. However, diverse research participation is necessary to establish fair standards of care, minimize outcome disparities and achieve social equity. Here, the authors discuss reasons for reduced trial participation and provide a framework for increasing diversity in clinical trials.
Comparison of Whole Genome Sequencing and Repetitive Element PCR for Multidrug- Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa Strain Typing

Hospital-acquired infections pose significant costly global challenges to patient care. Rapid and sensitive methods to identify potential outbreaks are integral to infection control measures. Whole genome sequencing (WGS)-based bacterial strain typing provides higher discriminatory power over standard nucleotide banding pattern-based methods like repetitive sequence-based PCR (rep-PCR). However, integration of WGS into clinical epidemiology is limited by the lack of consensus in methodology and data analysis/interpretation. In this study, WGS was performed on 22 multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDR-PA) genomic DNA using the Illumina MiSeq platform. Resulting high quality reads were analyzed for phylogenetic relatedness using whole genome multi-locus sequence typing (wgMLST)-based BIOMERIEUX EPISEQ CS (EpiSeq; Durham, NC) and Single Nucleotide Variant PHYLogenomics (SNVPhyl). WGS-based results were compared to conventional MLST and archived rep-PCR results. Rep-PCR identified three independent clonal clusters of MDR-PA. Only one clonal cluster identified by rep-PCR, an endemic strain within the pediatric cystic fibrosis population at Texas Children's Hospital, was concordantly identified using wgMLST (EpiSeq) and SNVPhyl. Results were highly consistent between the three sequence-based analyses (conventional MLST, wgMLST, and SNVPhyl), and these results remained consistent with the addition of 74 MDR-PA genomes. These WGS-based methods provided greater resolution for strain discrimination than rep-PCR or standard MLST classification, and the ease of use of EpiSeq renders it clinically viable for analysis, interpretation, and reporting of WGS-based strain typing.
Threats to Identity

In the physical sciences, stress is a relative concept that reflects the pressure or force on a body to deform its shape versus the strength or resistance of the body to hold its shape. When external force exceeds internal resistance, the body bends and ultimately breaks, losing its integrity. If internal resistance is greater than external force, the integrity of the entity survives.
Financing State and Local Services in a Cyclical Economy

During the past six years, state-local government finance ranged from a situation of fiscal crisis in 1970, to a boom in 1972-73, and back to a crisis in 1974-75. This was far worse than any since the Great Depression. During the recession of 1970-71, rising state and local tax revenues and federal grants did not keep pace with increases in expenditures resulting primarily from inflation [21, p. 500]. More favorable conditions in 1972-73, though, saw researchers projecting large future surpluses for the remainder of the decade and calling for reductions in tax rates and increases in expenditures [11, pp. 364-366].
Private Information Storage with Logarithmic-Space Secure Hardware

In Private Information Retrieval (PIR), a user obtains one of N records from a server, without the server learning what record was requested.
Rectal administration of evipal soluble in obstetrics

Abstract 1. 1. Evipal soluble was administered rectally to 75 women in labor and the results were tabulated. The dosage corresponds to that of previous investigators. 2. 2. The analgesia and amnesia secured were extremely variable. The duration of analgesia was generally short, ranging from fifteen minutes to six hours, averaging about two and one-half hours. In some cases amnesia was complete and in others totally absent. Despite the fact that about 35 per cent of the patients received supplementary drugs, the total number of good results was low (46.6 per cent). 3. 3. Two grave maternal reactions were observed. Although both patients recovered, the reactions were very alarming. These two cases are described in detail. 4. 4. Three babies were moderately asphyxiated at birth when evipal was the only analgesic drug used during labor. Two babies in cases in which evipal alone was used during labor exhibited severe asphyxia. All the babies in this series were drowsy for about twenty-four hours following delivery.
Multiresponse quality design and possibilistic regression

Multiresponse quality design techniques are used to identify settings of process parameters that make the product's performance close to target values in the presence of multiple quality characteristics. In many situations, these quality characteristics and thus their functional relations are imprecise to some degree due to nonspecificity, measuring errors, incomplete knowledge, vagueness of definitions and so on. Here, possibility distributions and possibilistic regression models are used to model these imprecise natures and induced imprecise functional relationships. We first integrate and extend existing possibilistic regression methods to obtain unified measures of predictive quality characteristics or responses. We then propose a multiple objective programming model to obtain an appropriate combination of process parameter settings based on the obtained possibility distributions of imprecise predictive responses. We not only optimize the most possible responses values, but also minimize the imprecision or deviations from the most possible values.
Cortical granules of mammalian eggs.

Publisher Summary Cortical granules are small, spherical, membrane-limited organelles found mostly beneath the oolemma of the unfertilized ovum. During folliculogenesis, the onset of cortical granule formation parallels the hypertrophy and hyperplasia of the Golgi complexes. As transformation of Golgi complexes occurs, they migrate centrifugally into the subcortical region of the oocyte. The Golgi complexes, in concert with the granular endoplasmic reticulum, are implicated in cortical granule formation. In this process, the contents of the cortical granules are packaged into membrane-limited granules. In most species, the formation of cortical granules ceases at ovulation, however, continued accumulation of cortical granules occurs in oocytes of a few species. The size of the cortical granules and the density of their matrix show considerable species variation. In the unpenetrated tubal eggs, cortical granules form an irregularly spaced monolayer beneath the plasma membrane. A polarity in the distribution of cortical granules is well exhibited in oocytes of some mammals; cortical granules are absent in much of the egg hemisphere homolateral to the meiotic spindle. Cortical granule exudate contains a trypsin-like protease; histochemical observations show both protein and polysaccharide components in cortical granules. At fertilization, the spermatozoon induces the cortical reaction.
Mathematical determination of external defibrillators needed at mass gatherings.

Objective. To develop a mathematical formula that assists in determining the number of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) needed at sites of mass gatherings. Methods. Twenty (10 male, 10 female) healthy volunteers (equally divided between age groups 21–30 and 31–40 years) responded to mock cardiac arrests in a sports stadium. Seven different first-responder scenarios were simulated (ascending and descending three separate stairway slopes (22°, 39°, and 69°), as well as a response across a horizontal (0°) surface. To assess the impact of spectator congestion, the same volunteers conducted each scenario in an empty and full stadium. The quantitative relationship between time and distance was then plotted for each situation. Using the quantitative relationship, the area a first responder can cover in a specified time was calculated. Results. The formula for the total number of AEDs needed in a stadium (or other mass gathering site) can be expressed as follows: Total AEDs = [A1/(Ds1 × Dh1)] + [A2/(Ds2 ×...
The Titanium Oxide Bands

THE fine structure analysis of the blue-green titanium bands, started nearly two years ago (see Phys. Rev., 29, 212; 1927, abstract 26), has now reached the point where it is possible to draw certain definite conclusions regarding the molecule responsible for the radiation of these bands. These conclusions are based on a complete verification of the combination principle, using some 1500 lines measured in the three bands 0-0, 1-0, and 0-1 (μ 5167, 4955, and 5448).
Repeated helical epitopes of defined amino acid sequence in human type III collagen identified by monoclonal antibodies.

Abstract Two monoclonal antibodies, designated 1F8 (IgG1) and 5B10 (IgG1), have been produced in mice against native human type III collagen. These antibodies were highly type and species specific, recognizing the triple helical domain of type III as tested by ELISA. Immunofluorescence studies using each of these antibodies resulted in a fibrous staining pattern in human skin dermis. Immunogold electron microscopy resulted in a periodic distribution of gold particulates along banded collagen fibrils. Assuming that the total contour length of pepsin digested type III collagen is 300 nm, measurements of antibody-antigen complexes visualized by rotary shadowing revealed that each antibody bound at the same two sites: one approximately at the middle of the helix (153 nm from the tN -terminus), the other at a site one-quarter the triple helical length from the N -terminus (75 nm). That the one-quarter binding site was closest to the N -terminus was determined by antibody incubation following tadpole collagenase treatment, which results in a larger, N -terminus containing fragment (binding antibody) and a smaller tC -terminus containing fragment (not binding antibody). Located at each antibody binding epitope is a sequence of 10 amino acids: Gly-Ala-Hyp-Gly-Leu-Arg-Gly-Gly-Ala-Gly. Renatured cyanogen bromide-cleaved(CB)-peptides, CB4 and CB8, containing these repeated sequences reacted with each antibody, whereas other renatured type III CB-peptides were unreactive as determined by Western blotting analysis and ELISA. This was further confirmed by inhibition tests using a 10 residue synthetic peptide of identical sequence, which yielded 20–30% inhibition of antibody binding to native type III collagen at 4°C. However, no inhibition was noted at higher temperature. These results indicate that both monoclonal antibodies recognize a specific helical conformation of 10 or slightly fewer residues in the three identical polypeptide chains comprising type III collagen.
Mapping Mechanical Properties of the Extra Cellular Matrix Surrounding Cells Cultured in 3D

There is a preponderance of evidence for roles of bulk stromal stiffness in cell regulation, but little is about the mechanical microenvironment. To investigate these roles we culture cells within 3D extracellular matrix (ECM) hydrogels. We implement automated optical tweezers active microrheology (aAMR) to probe extracellular stiffness and map it in the volume surrounding cells. Our aAMR uses optical forces acting on microbeads to measure the complex response function of the ECM surrounding each bead. Hundreds of beads are probed in one hour to map the mechanical landscape and to seek correlations between local stiffness and cell properties such as contractility, signaling and differentiation. For example, we will present our study of primary human aortic smooth muscle cells (AoSMCs) cultured within a collagen hydrogel. We observed a range of stiffness from over 200 Pa to less than 20 Pa, with the stiffer regions near the leading edge of the cell. Such stiffening is consistent with the non-linear stress-strain relationship of natural tissue in which stiffness increases with stretch. After treatment with inhibitors of contractility such as blebbistatin or the ROCK Inhibitor Y-27632, we observed cell relaxation coincident with a distribution of softer values ranging from 100 to ∼10 Pa. Such leading edge contractile force-dependent stiffness is consistent with our earlier findings for primary mesenchymal stem cells and an invasive capillary morphogenesis model, in which only several beads could be measured in one hour due to the notable complexity of performing AMR. In contrast, our aAMR densely measures ECM stiffness, chronically, and is a new research tool for studying the interplay between viscoelastic properties, forces and signaling at the ECM-cell interface.
Laparoscopic total abdominal colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis for familial adenomatous polyposis.

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to describe our results in a series of patients undergoing total abdominal colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis (TAC/IRA) using laparoscopic techniques in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and rectal-sparing. Young patients with FAP requiring TAC/IRA may be ideal candidates for minimally invasive surgery, because they are generally thin and have benign disease. They might benefit maximally from the theoretic advantages of these techniques. METHODS: We have performed laparoscopic TAC/IRA in 16 FAP patients (10 females; mean age, 18 years). Procedures were entirely intracorporeal, with a 3-cm to 6-cm specimen extraction incision. RESULTS: Median operative time was 232 (range, 156–285) minutes, and blood loss 175 (range, 50–675) ml. The only intraoperative complication, a twisted ileorectal anastomosis, was noted intraoperatively and revised. There were no conversions to conventional laparotomy. Median postoperative interval to passage of flatus was three days,1–4 and for bowel movements it was three days.1–4 Median hospital stay was five days.3–11 One case of early postoperative small-bowel obstruction was treated nonoperatively, and one case of brachial plexus neuropraxia resolved spontaneously. CONCLUSIONS: Based on this preliminary experience, we believe laparoscopic TAC/ IRA can be a safe and effective treatment for selected patients with FAP. As techniques and instrumentation for laparoscopic colon surgery are perfected, this procedure will likely become an appealing option in the management of patients with FAP.
Prominent Perikaryal Expression of α- and β-Synuclein in Neurons of Dorsal Root Ganglion and in Medullary Neurons

Synucleins (syns) are a family of small, highly conserved proteins expressed predominantly in neurons. Although the normal function of syns is unknown, α-syn plays a pivotal role in several neurodegenerative diseases. The expression patterns of syns have been described in several studies, but much of this information was obtained before the cloning of all four members of this family of proteins and previous studies were limited to the analysis of single species. Here, we used antibodies specific for α-, β-, and γ-syn to study the patterns of expression in human, mouse, and rat nervous systems. Significant species-specific differences were detected in the expression of all three syns throughout the neuraxis. For example, γ-syn is highly expressed in human cortex, while it is present only at low levels in mouse and rat cortex. Moreover, in contrast to previous reports that α- and β-syns are normally localized predominantly at presynaptic terminals, we demonstrate that these proteins also are abundant in the perikarya of some neurons, such as in dorsal root ganglion. Intense α-syn immunoreactivity also was detected in the perikarya of human neurons in raphe, hypoglossal, and arcuate nuclei. These data underscore the need for additional studies to better understand the fundamental biological mechanism(s) targeting specific proteins to axonal terminals, as disruption of this process may be involved in the formation of pathological lesions.
Matching Pursuit and Source Deflation for Sparse EEG/MEG Dipole Moment Estimation

In this paper, we propose novel matching pursuit (MP)-based algorithms for EEG/MEG dipole source localization and parameter estimation for multiple measurement vectors with constant sparsity. The algorithms combine the ideas of MP for sparse signal recovery and source deflation, as employed in estimation via alternating projections. The source-deflated matching pursuit (SDMP) approach mitigates the problem of residual interference inherent in sequential MP-based methods or recursively applied (RAP)-MUSIC. Furthermore, unlike prior methods based on alternating projection, SDMP allows one to efficiently estimate the dipole orientation in addition to its location. Simulations show that the proposed algorithms outperform existing techniques under various conditions, including those with highly correlated sources. Results using real EEG data from auditory experiments are also presented to illustrate the performance of these algorithms.
Strong law of large numbers for U-statistics of varying order

Abstract Let Unm be a U-statistic of order m based on n i.i.d. real random variables. Suppose that m=m(n) changes with n as n → ∞. In this work we are concerned with establishing the strong consistency properties for Unm under linear norming. The results are obtained by generalizing the SLLN for arrays of rowwise independent random variables (Hu et al., 1989) to the case of rowwise martingale differences and applying standard martingale decompositions of Unm.
Health Literacy and Child Health Promotion: Implications for Research, Clinical Care, and Public Policy

The nation's leading sources of morbidity and health disparities (eg, preterm birth, obesity, chronic lung disease, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, mental health disorders, and cancer) require an evidence-based approach to the delivery of effective preventive care across the life course (eg, prenatal care, primary preventive care, immunizations, physical activity, nutrition, smoking cessation, and early diagnostic screening). Health literacy may be a critical and modifiable factor for improving preventive care and reducing health disparities. Recent studies among adults have established an independent association between lower health literacy and poorer understanding of preventive care information and poor access to preventive care services. Children of parents with higher literacy skills are more likely to have better outcomes in child health promotion and disease prevention. Adult studies in disease prevention have suggested that addressing health literacy would be an efficacious strategy for reducing health disparities. Future initiatives to reduce child health inequities should include health-promotion strategies that meet the health literacy needs of children, adolescents, and their caregivers.
GN and C Design Overview and Flight Test Results from NASA's Max Launch Abort System (MLAS)

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) designed, developed and flew the alternative Max Launch Abort System (MLAS) as risk mitigation for the baseline Orion spacecraft launch abort system (LAS) already in development. The NESC was tasked with both formulating a conceptual objective system (OS) design of this alternative MLAS as well as demonstrating this concept with a simulated pad abort flight test. The goal was to obtain sufficient flight test data to assess performance, validate models/tools, and to reduce the design and development risks for a MLAS OS. Less than 2 years after Project start the MLAS simulated pad abort flight test was successfully conducted from Wallops Island on July 8, 2009. The entire flight test duration was 88 seconds during which time multiple staging events were performed and nine separate critically timed parachute deployments occurred as scheduled. Overall, the as-flown flight performance was as predicted prior to launch. This paper provides an overview of the guidance navigation and control (GN&C) technical approaches employed on this rapid prototyping activity. This paper describes the methodology used to design the MLAS flight test vehicle (FTV). Lessons that were learned during this rapid prototyping project are also summarized.
Influence of Dietary Sodium Intake on Renal Medullary Nitric Oxide Synthase

Abstract We previously reported that chronic systemic treatment of rats with a nitric oxide synthase inhibitor leads to a selective decrease in renal medullary blood flow, retention of sodium, and ...
The burden of osteoporosis in California, 1998.

This study estimates the cost of osteoporosis in California, including health care services and the value of lives lost prematurely to the disease. Costs are estimated for diagnoses of “osteoporosis” and for the proportion of spine, forearm, hip and other fractures that are caused by the disease. The additional costs resulting from a secondary diagnosis of osteoporosis are also included. Osteoporosis accounted for over $2.4 billion in direct health care costs in 1998, and over $4 million in lost productivity resulting from premature death. Most of the cost results from hip fractures and other fractures. In fact, only 15% of costs are for people with a diagnosis of “osteoporosis” per se, and, of this group, most of the costs are associated with a secondary, not a primary diagnosis. The disease is largely a diagnosis of older white women: three-quarters of the hospitalization costs are incurred by women, 80% of those hospitalized are white, and three-quarters are over age 65 years. As would be expected, Medicare pays for most of the hospital care – almost three-fourths of the total. Nursing home care represents the largest cost for people with osteoporosis, accounting for 59% of the money spent treating the disease.
Inductive learning for risk classification

The authors discuss the application of inductive learning to credit risk analysis. Three risk classification problems are addressed: business loan evaluation, bond rating, and bankruptcy prediction. The use of a system called Marble, a knowledge-based decision-support system that uses approximately 80 decision rules to evaluate commercial loans, is discussed. In particular, an aspect of Marble that uses inductive learning to classify financial risks is described, and the effectiveness of the technique is discussed. >
Bio-orthogonal phosphatidylserine conjugates for delivery and imaging applications.

The syntheses of phosphatidylserine (PS) conjugates are described, including fluorescent derivatives for potential cellular delivery and bioimaging applications. Installation of terminal functional groups (amine, thiol, or alkyne) onto the sn-2 chain provides reactive sites for bio-orthogonal conjugation of cargo with suitably protected PS derivatives. An amine-containing PS forms amide bonds with peptidic cargo, a thiol derivative is designed for conjugation to cargo that contain α-halo carbonyls or Michael acceptors, and the terminal alkyne PS analogue permits “click” conjugation with any azide-tagged molecule. This latter conjugation method is quite versatile as it can be performed without PS headgroup protection, in aqueous media, and with acid-labile cargo.
Rigorous derivation of reaction-diffusion equations with fluctuations.

We study interacting particle (spin) systems on a lattice under the combined influence of Glauber (spin flip) and simple exchange (Kawasaki) dynamics. We prove that when the conserving exchanges occur on a microscopically fast scale the macroscopic density (magnetization) evolves according to an autonomous nonlinear diffusion-reaction equation. Microscopic fluctuations about the deterministic macroscopic evolution are found explicitly. They grow, with time, to become infinite, when the deterministic solution is unstable.
Creating Stakeholders for Transportation Research Some Factors Affecting Internal Customer Use of Transportation Research Bureau Projects

This paper examines factors that relate to how internal customers use the work completed for them by state department of transportation research bureaus. The focus is on strategies and techniques for enhancing use. The influence of researcher-customer relations, top management values, actions of the federal government and industry, and credibility and time dimensions of the research process itself are examined.