cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Survival of patients with hormone refractory prostate cancer in the prostate specific antigen era.

ABSTRACTPurpose: The historically reported 12 to 18-month duration of survival of patients with hormone refractory prostate cancer is not consistent with current clinical experience. Furthermore, to our knowledge patient survival after serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) progressively increases from a nadir despite castrate testosterone has not been previously reported. For this reason we studied overall survival and the clinical variables that influence survival in patients with hormone refractory prostate cancer.Materials and Methods: The study focused on 254 patients with prostate cancer on androgen deprivation therapy. Hormone refractory prostate cancer was defined as the first in a series of PSA elevations despite castrate levels of testosterone. The duration of survival in the hormone refractory phase was calculated from the date of the first PSA elevation to the date of death.Results: Median survival after hormone refractory prostate cancer developed in patients initially staged with and without ...
The immune restorative effect of isoprinosine administration on the local graft-versus-host reaction of cancer patients

The immunorestorative effect of Isoprinosine (ISO) in vivo on T-cell-induced local graft-versus-host reaction (GVHR) was analyzed in 60 cancer patients randomized into three groups: 20 patients received 1 g/day ISO orally for 7 days, 20 patients received 4 g/day ISO for 7 days, and 20 patients received no treatment for 7 days. The local GVHR was assessed before and after the 7 days of treatment (or no treatment). A significant augmentation of the local GVHR was observed among the ISO-treated patients (44.1 +/- 19.1 vs 61 +/- 37.1 for 1 g ISO, P less than 0.05; 42.1 +/- 20.1 vs 58.9 +/- 23.8 for 4 g of ISO, P less than 0.01). This was not so for patients who received no treatment (38.5 +/- 20.4 vs 38.3 +/- 21.2; P greater than 0.1). Nine patients treated with 1 g of ISO and 5 treated with 4 g of ISO/day, who were initially characterized by a negative local GVHR (less than 50 mm3), converted to a positive reaction (greater than or equal to 50 mm3) compared to none of the patients who received no treatment. Two patients treated with 1 g of ISO and 2 patients treated with 4 g, who initially had a positive GVHR, demonstrated further augmentation (greater than or equal to 50% increase) in the GVHR after 7 days of treatment. In 2 patients (one in each treated group) the ISO induced a suppression of the GVHR from positive to negative. Incubation of the patients' lymphocytes in vitro with ISO (100 micrograms/ml X 1 hr) failed to induce augmentation of the GVHR and did not correlate with the in vivo effect in the same patients. These results demonstrate an immunomodulatory effect of ISO in cancer patients and lend further support to the use of this drug as an immunomodulating therapy among cancer patients.
Aortopulmonary window with aortic origin of the right pulmonary artery

Cross-sectional Doppler echocardiographic diagnosis of an aortopulmonary window with type B interrupted aortic arch, and anomalous origin of the right pulmonary artery from the ascending aorta was made in a 15-day-old neonate. This is the first known reported case of surgical repair for this rare association based on prospective echocardiographic diagnosis alone.
Energy flow and fluorescence near a small metal particle

We examine the classical energy-balance equation for a fluorescing system consisting of a molecule near a small, spherical metal particle capable of sustaining electromagnetic resonances and irradiated with laser light. From the energy-flow distribution in the entire system, we obtain the enhancement factor for the fluorescence emission of the adsorbed molecule. Numerical results demonstrate that the electromagnetic interactions of the molecule and the surface can be understood in terms of energy flow through the entire system and applied to investigate spectroscopic properties of adsorbates in similar systems. Absorption and emission rates of the adsorbed molecule are determined considering the energy-flow distribution and its dependence on the substrate as well as molecular parameters. Such understanding is useful in predicting spectroscopic responses of adsorbates.
A cluster analysis of symptom patterns and adjustment in Vietnam combat veterans with chronic posttraumatic stress disorder.

This study investigated whether a subgroup of veterans with malignant posttraumatic stress syndrome, as described by Rosenheck (1985) and Lambert et al. (1996), could be identified via cluster analysis within two samples of Vietnam veterans with combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In the initial subsample (n = 157), four clusters were identified, including a subgroup that scored consistently higher on measures of interpersonal violence and current physical problems. Similar results were found in the cross-validation subsample (n = 156). These results provide support for the theoretical concept of malignant PTSD and suggest that veterans with chronic PTSD are not homogenous. Whereas some manifest extreme levels of both functional impairment and PTSD symptomatology, others exhibit markedly less functional impairment despite manifesting clinically significant levels of PTSD. Clinicians can consider this heterogeneity in their treatment decisions.
Proteomic discovery of previously unannotated, rapidly evolving seminal fluid genes in Drosophila

As genomic sequences become easier to acquire, shotgun proteomics will play an increasingly important role in genome annotation. With proteomics, researchers can confirm and revise existing genome annotations and discover completely new genes. Proteomic-based de novo gene discovery should be especially useful for sets of genes with characteristics that make them difficult to predict with gene-finding algorithms. Here, we report the proteomic discovery of 19 previously unannotated genes encoding seminal fluid proteins (Sfps) that are transferred from males to females during mating in Drosophila. Using bioinformatics, we detected putative orthologs of these genes, as well as 19 others detected by the same method in a previous study, across several related species. Gene expression analysis revealed that nearly all predicted orthologs are transcribed and that most are expressed in a male-specific or male-biased manner. We suggest several reasons why these genes escaped computational prediction. Like annotated Sfps, many of these new proteins show a pattern of adaptive evolution, consistent with their potential role in influencing male sperm competitive ability. However, in contrast to annotated Sfps, these new genes are shorter, have a higher rate of nonsynonymous substitution, and have a markedly lower GC content in coding regions. Our data demonstrate the utility of applying proteomic gene discovery methods to a specific biological process and provide a more complete picture of the molecules that are critical to reproductive success in Drosophila.
Effects of induced hypothermia on amino acids and glycogen in rat brain.

— The concentrations of free amino acids and glycogen in the cerebral cortex of normal and deeply hypothermic (body temperature 18–20°C) rats were measured. The significant changes which accompanied the induction of hypothermia were a large reduction in glutamic acid concentration and moderate increases in the concentrations of glutamine and aspartic acid. The concentrations of γ-aminobutyric acid, N-acetylaspartic acid and glycogen did not change significantly.
Behavioral characteristics predicting self and peer perceptions if open communication

Past research has found little correspondence among self, peer, and observer assessments of self‐disclosure, seriously hampering researchers’ abilities to isolate, predict, and explain self‐disclosure and its relational consequences. This study suggests that the conceptualization and operationalization of self‐disclosure may account for this problem. This research investigates the performance of weighted prediction equations incorporating multiple, observed, openness characteristics in predicting sender and peer‐receiver perceptions of communicated personal information. The derived equations perform very well in discriminating between high and low rated open communicators in a group communication situation. The results suggest that senders and receivers attend to a cluster of content and, particularly, style characteristics in judging openness.
A probabilistic approach to determining biological structure: integrating uncertain data sources

Modeling the structure of biological molecules is critical for understanding how these structures perform their function, and for designing compounds to modify or enhance this function (for medicinal or industrial purposes). The determination of molecular structure involves defining three-dimensional positions for each of the constituent atoms using a variety of experimental, theoretical and empirical data sources. Unfortunately, each of these data sources can be noisy or not available in sufficient abundance to determine the precise position of each atom. Instead, some atomic positions are precisely defined by the data, and others are poorly defined. An understanding of structural uncertainty is critical for properly interpreting structural models. We have developed a Bayesian approach for determining the coordinates of atoms in a three-dimensional space. Our algorithm takes as input a set of probabilistic constraints on the coordinates of the atoms, and an a priori distribution for each atom location. The output is a maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimate of the location of each atom. We introduce constraints as updates to the prior distributions. In this paper, we describe the algorithm and show its performance on three data sets. The first data set is synthetic and illustrates the convergence properties of the method. The other data sets comprise real biological data for a protein (the trp repressor molecule) and a nucleic acid (the transfer RNA fold). Finally, we describe how we have begun to extend the algorithm to make it suitable for non-Gaussian constraints.
Minimum Comparison Merging of Sets Of Approximately Equal Size

The problem of merging ordered sets in the least number of binary comparisons has been solved completely only for a few special cases. When the sets to be merged are of size m and n (m ⩽ n ⩽ m + 4) the tape merge algorithm has been shown to be optimum in the worst case. This paper significantly extends these results by showing that the tape merge algorithm is optimum in the worst case whenever one set is no larger than 1.5 times the size of the other. This result is obtained by defining an interesting and amusing two-player game isomorphic to the problem of merging ordered sets and analyzing the optimum strategies for each player. The form of this result should be applicable to the solution of similar sorting and selection problems.
Structural studies on LixTiS2

Abstract Precise studies of the lattice parameters as a function of composition in LixTiS2 TiS2 provide conclusive evidence that a single-phase product exists for all x values. The data indicate that the TiS2 lattice expands on intercalation with Li because of charge transfer from the Li+ to TiS2- and not because of a propping of the layer by the Li+. Trends in the lattice parameters and the thermoelectric power suggests that there is a change in the composition-dependent electron transfer near x= 1 3 . For x 1 3 a rigid band model describes the electron donation. These results are consistent with recent band structure calculations.
Fast-Scan Mass Spectrometry with Capillary Gas-Liquid Chromatography in Investigation of Fruit Volatiles

Fast-Scan Mass Spectrometry with Capillary Gas-Liquid Chromatography in Investigation of Fruit Volatiles
The multigrid method for accelerated solution of the discretized Schrödinger equation

Abstract The use of the new multigrid method for the numerical solution of the discretized Schrodinger equation is discussed. A simple approach is chosen to circumvent the difficulties associated with the fact that the Schrodinger differential operator is not positive definite. The scheme is applied to a two-dimensional model problem which includes the essential features present in actual scattering problems. The results show that significant savings can be achieved both in computational work and core memory requirements. The multigrid method should greatly increase the utility of meshing procedures for solving the partial differential equations of quantum mechanics.
Bisdeoxycoelenterazine derivatives for improvement of bioluminescence resonance energy transfer assays.

We report here syntheses of bisdeoxycoelenterazine derivatives that show significantly improved kinetics of the bioluminescent reaction. All derivatives contain a protecting group at the carbonyl group of the imidazopyrazinone moiety that ensures slower light signal decay. The longer lasting light signal offers the possibility of real-time imaging of protein−protein interactions.
Secretion of vasointestinal peptide by a primary liver tumor with rhabdoid features.

A 5-year-old child presented with an unresectable liver neoplasm, the histology of which resembled a malignant rhabdoid tumor. Clinical course was unrelenting despite therapy, and the child died four months later. During the course of her illness, she developed watery diarrhea and was found to have a high serum level of vasointestinal peptide (VIP). This is the first report of a childhood tumor with rhabdoid features to secrete VIP. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Epigenetic analysis of kinetochore assembly on variant human centromeres.

Abstract Human centromere formation involves the assembly of the mitotic kinetochore onto chromosomal locations that contain the interphase prekinetochore. Immunofluorescent analysis of two functionally converse human centromere variants, neocentromeres and inactive centromeres, has been used to evaluate the functional significance of over 24 centromere proteins, providing important insight into the epigenetics of centromere formation and kinetochore assembly.
Ethical Expertise and Personal Character

We celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of The Hastings Center and realize how quickly a new academic and intellectual species can evolve. Today, Homo ethicus is well established in a newly recognized territory, that is, people pursue Ph.D. degrees in bioethics and actually get jobs. While bioethics is now more or less centered in philosophical ethics, it remains true to its interdisciplinary origins--it collaborates with theology, literature, and psychology, as well as with law, medicine, and policy studies. As a psychologist and longtime participant observer of the bioethical enterprise, I contend that psychological factors have always played a major role in bioethics. After all, human beings are the "self-interpreting animals," to use Charles Taylor's pungent phrase, ergo ethical questions involve subjective psychological processing within conscious selves. What, for instance, constitutes an 'informed consent,' or a 'substituted judgment'? When we deal with an actual person's 'pain,' 'risk taking,' 'suffering,' 'needs,' 'desires,' 'interest,' 'competence,' or 'quality of life,' what is going to count as an adequate description? Even the first ethical commandment, to "do no harm," has to confront the psychological reality that human beings can be harmed without suffering a scratch. To my mind the subjective and interpersonal dimensions of bioethics have too often been obscured, subsumed into objective, abstract formulations that more easily pass muster with physicians, lawyers, and philosophers of a certain cast of mind (gender irrelevant). Yet one psychological set of subjective concerns remains visible: how do you engender highly ethical decisionmakers? How does a person's character and personality affect ethical action? Must you be morally wise and good to do bioethics well? Debates over ethical competence and ethical expertise arise when you attempt to educate or induct newcomers into bioethics, or try to persuade the morally tone-deaf in some institution or profession. Despite these problems, I'm afraid most ethicists would still maintain that the personality and morality of the individual ethicist has little to do with the quality of his or her ethical analyses or judgments. As long as ethicists don't take bribes, abuse drugs, or suffer from medically diagnosed Alzheimer disease, their personal qualities can be ignored. Perhaps these hyperrationalists could be induced to accept an "impaired ethicist act"--but only after the profession's "credentialling problems" have been properly ironed out. Those claiming that ethical expertise has little to do with personal character tend to offer odd analogies to prove their point. At one college where I was holding forth on the importance of emotions in ethical decisionmaking, I was asked, "My dear Mrs. Callahan, do you really think it makes any difference if your surgeon reads novels?" My questioner, for his part (gender not irrelevant?), was a mathematician advocating a computer approach to bioethics (quantify the variables, enter the information, run the program, and read out the solution). …
Counter deadtime: A question of poor textbook advice

Abstract Numerous deadtime equations proposed over the years have needlessly confused the paired source technique and its practice. The ambiguities disappear if the apparently esoteric exact equation is used instead of approximations.
Are atoms intrinsic to molecular electronic wavefunctions? I. The FORS model

Abstract The model of the full optimized reaction space describes the electronic structure of a molecule in terms of the best wave-function that can be obtained as a superposition of all those configurations which are generate possible occupancies and couplings from a “formal minimal basis” of valence, orbitals on the constituent atoms. These configurations span a “full reaction space”, and MC SCF optimization of the orbitals in terms of an extended set of quantitative basis orbitals determines the full optimized reaction space (FORS). Basic justifications, methodological specifics and sample applications are discussed.
Genetic barcoding with fluorescent proteins for multiplexed applications.

Fluorescent proteins, fluorescent dyes and fluorophores in general have revolutionized the field of molecular cell biology. In particular, the discovery of fluorescent proteins and their genes have enabled the engineering of protein fusions for localization, the analysis of transcriptional activation and translation of proteins of interest, or the general tracking of individual cells and cell populations. The use of fluorescent protein genes in combination with retroviral technology has further allowed the expression of these proteins in mammalian cells in a stable and reliable manner. Shown here is how one can utilize these genes to give cells within a population of cells their own biosignature. As the biosignature is achieved with retroviral technology, cells are barcoded ´indefinitely´. As such, they can be individually tracked within a mixture of barcoded cells and utilized in more complex biological applications. The tracking of distinct populations in a mixture of cells is ideal for multiplexed applications such as discovery of drugs against a multitude of targets or the activation profile of different promoters. The protocol describes how to elegantly develop and amplify barcoded mammalian cells with distinct genetic fluorescent markers, and how to use several markers at once or one marker at different intensities. Finally, the protocol describes how the cells can be further utilized in combination with cell-based assays to increase the power of analysis through multiplexing.
Trehalose and glucose levels in the hemolymph of Heliothis virescens parasitized by Microplitis croceipes or Cardiochiles nigriceps.

Abstract 1. 1. Heliothis virescens larvae were parasitized by either Microplitis croceipes or Cardiochiles nigriceps. 2. 2. Hemolymph trehalose levels from host larvae parasitized by M. croceipes nearly tripled within 1 day following parasitization and remained elevated during parasitoid development. 3. 3. C. nigriceps did not affect trehalose levels. 4. 4. Neither parasitoid affected the level of glucose in the hemolymph of its host. 5. 5. M. crociepes prevented any significant increase in host hemolymph dry weight beyond day 0 values; whereas, C. nigriceps elevated the dry weight during the latter part of its development.
Cytotoxic Necrotizing Factor 1 Contributes to Escherichia coli Meningitis

E. coli is the most common Gram-negative bacteria causing neonatal meningitis, and E. coli meningitis continues to be an important cause of mortality and morbidity throughout the world. Recent reports of E. coli meningitis caused by antimicrobial resistant strains are a particular concern. These findings indicate that a novel strategy is needed to identify new targets for prevention and therapy of E. coli meningitis. Cytotoxic necrotizing factor 1 (CNF1) is a bacterial virulence factor associated principally with E. coli strains causing urinary tract infection and meningitis. We have shown that CNF1 contributes to E. coli invasion of the blood-brain barrier and penetration into the brain, the essential step in the development of E. coli meningitis, and identified the host receptor for CNF1, 37-kDa laminin receptor precursor (37LRP). CNF1, however, is a cytoplasmic protein and its contribution to E. coli invasion of the blood-brain barrier requires its secretion from the bacterial cytoplasm. No signal peptide is found in the CNF1 sequence. CNF1 secretion is, therefore, a strategy utilized by meningitis-causing E. coli to invade the blood-brain barrier. Elucidation of the mechanisms involved in CNF1 secretion, as shown in this report with the involvement of Fdx and YgfZ provides the novel information on potential targets for prevention and therapy of E. coli meningitis by virtue of targeting the secretion of CNF1.
So, how do I teach them? Understanding multicultural education and culturally relevant pedagogy

In this paper, the author summarizes her understanding of multicultural education and culturally relevant pedagogy; she also presents her concerns and questions about ambiguities emerging from her literature review. She hopes to extend the conversation about what scholars mean when they use the terms ‘multicultural’, ‘multiethnic’ and ‘culturally relevant’. Specifically, she is concerned about a mismatch between the definitions, purposes of multicultural education, culturally relevant pedagogy and the research reported in the literature. There seems to be a disconnection between the theory and perspectives reported in the literature and the complexity of everyday practice in the classrooms.
Influence of serial practice on Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue scores: the learning effect

Clinical application of the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test may be compromised by uncontrolled sources of psychophysical fluctuation such as a serial practice effect. Although the literature does not report a substantial practice effect for the 100-hue test, we have measured significant improvement in performance extending over at least four test repetitions for a group of twenty-six normal naive subjects. Analysis of test taking strategy identified the most likely source of improvement as cognitive in nature and not related to the availability of the peripheral color signal. An extended training procedure was devised to minimize the serial practice effect which included intensive instruction with illustrations of correct and incorrect cap sequences and practice with verbal feedback on performance using a subset of ten 100-hue caps. Administration of the pretest training was found to minimize the practice effect in an additional group of thirty initially naive subjects. Using pretest training, we were also able to record consistent 100-hue intensity-response functions over five illumination levels.
Interactions between polycationic and polyanionic layers: Changes in rigidity, charge and adsorption kinetics

Abstract Interactions between poly-electrolytes on solid substrates and the subsequent formation of films with desirable characteristics is a relatively new technology that strongly depends on the mechanical and chemical properties of the new “two-dimensional” material. We show that binding between positively-charged poly( l -lysine) (PLL) and negatively charged poly(styrene sulfonate) (PSS) result in a significantly more rigid aggregate film than that for non-neutralized layers (∼4 times more rigid). Thus, providing the basis for mechanically stabilized 2D films. The value for the adsorption rate constant, ka, estimated from the random sequential adsorption (RSA) model for the first PLL layer (adsorption onto gold) was ∼0.020 cm/min where as that for the second layer (adsorption on preformed PLL–PSS layer) was ∼0.016 cm/min. The ka, value for the first PSS layer was ∼0.018 cm/min and increased to ∼0.021 cm/min for the second adsorption layer. Using a negatively charged tethered probe with exposed carboxylic acid groups (–COO− at pH 7.4), we could easily follow the charge neutralization process of the adsorbed layers with chemical force microscopy. Sequential layer-by-layer assembly exhibits similar changes in rigidity and adhesion force for the two bi-layers suggesting good reproducibility in physico-chemical properties of the multilayer.
Erythromycin as a potential precipitating agent in the onset of Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy.

Abstract A 23-years-old male entered a safety clinical trial for cetirizine (a selective histamine H 1 -receptor antagonist) in combination with the antibiotic erythromycin. Within a few weeks of finishing the trial, the patient reported bilateral vision loss with optic nerve atrophy. Genetic studies showed that he had a mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation at position 11778 (within the gene for subunit 4 of NADH-coenzyme Q oxidoreductase), commonly associated with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy. To test if erythromycin could worsen the mitochondrial respiratory chain defect associated with the 11778 mtDNA mutation, we transferred the patient's mtDNA to cultured mtDNA-less osteosarcoma cells. Erythromycin inhibited proliferation of the patient's transmitochondrial cybrids in conditions that required mitochondrial respiration for growth. We confirmed that erythromycin is a potent inhibitor of mitochondrial translation in these cells. Taken together, these results suggest that erythromycin may have hastened a bioenergetics crisis in the optic nerve of this patient. This association underscores the importance of being cautious with the use of drugs that interfere with cellular respiration in individuals with an underlying mitochondrial dysfunction.
IN VITRO EFFICACY OF A NOVEL CHEMORADIOPOTENTIATOR— TAXOLTERE METRO

Abstract Purpose: To evaluate the in vitro cytotoxic and radiopotentiating effects of a novel paclitaxel analog (taxoltere metro) on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and human colon cancer cells. Methods and Materials: Three cell lines (CHO cells, HCT116 human colon carcinoma cells [paclitaxel-sensitive], and VM46 cells [paclitaxel-resistant subline of HCT116]) were employed in this study. Cell survival was determined using the standard colony-forming assay. The ID 50 value (drug concentrations required to reduce colony formation to 50% of the control value) was determined as a cytotoxic index from each cell survival curve. The sensitizer enhancement ratio (SER) as a radiopotentiating endpoint was determined as the ratio of the D 0 values (with or without drugs) under hypoxic or air conditions. Results: Taxoltere metro was 5–15 times more effective in killing CHO cells than paclitaxel under both hypoxic and euoxic treatment conditions. Cytocidal effects of taxoltere metro on HCT116 cells and VM46 cells were 28 and 70 times higher than those of paclitaxel ( p Conclusion: The results demonstrate that taxoltere metro is significantly more potent than paclitaxel in chemoradiopotentiating CHO cells and HCT116 human colon carcinoma cells. The data strongly suggest that taxoltere metro could be a promising chemoradiopotentiating agent for treatment of cancer.
Energy-efficient information routing in sensor networks for robotic target tracking

Target tracking problems have been studied for both robots and sensor networks. However, existing robotic target tracking algorithms require the tracker to have access to information-rich sensors, and may have difficulty recovering when the target is out of the tracker's sensing range. In this paper, we present a target tracking algorithm that combines an extremely simple mobile robot with a networked collection of wireless sensor nodes, each of which is equipped with an unreliable, limited-range, boolean sensor for detecting the target. The tracker maintains close proximity to the target using only information sensed by the network, and can effectively recover from temporarily losing track of the target. We present two algorithms that manage message delivery on this network. The first, which is appropriate for memoryless sensor nodes, is based on dynamic adjustments to the time-to-live (TTL) of transmitted messages. The second, for more capable sensor nodes, makes message delivery decisions on-the-fly based on geometric considerations driven by the messages' content. We present an implementation along with simulation results. The results show that our system achieves both good tracking precision and low energy consumption.
Crystal and Molecular Structure and Properties of Picolyltricyanoquinodimethan, the Zwitterionic Donor-Pi- Acceptor Adduct Beiween Li+Tcnq− and 1,2-Dimethyl-Pyridinium Iodide

Abstract The reaction of the lithium salt of 7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethan (TCNQ) with 1.2-dimethylpyridinium iodide in ethanol leads to a conventional charge-transfer salt. However, the same reagents dissolved in acetonitrile yield crystals which belong to space group P21/c, with unit cell constants a = 1493.5(2), b = 720.9(2) (stack axis), C = 1380.2(3) pm, β = 107.06(2)°. Z = 4 for Cl8H13N4. 1746 unique CAD-4F diffractometer Mo Ka data refined to R = 5.1 per cent, to yield the structure of the zwitterionic donor-pi-acceptor adduct Z-β-(N-methyl-2-pyridyl)-α-cyano-4-styryl dicyanomethids (trivial name: picolyl-tricyanoquinodimethan, P3CNQ). The pyridinium ring is inclined 30.13° from the quinodimethan 6-membered ring. The salt is diamagnetic, and the pyridinium N atom stacks above the dicyanomethide portion of the next molecule along the b axis.
Use of the fiberoptic choledochoscope in common bile duct and intrahepatic duct exploration

This report summarizes our experience with 339 consecutive flexible fiberoptic choledochoscopic examinations performed in the course of 598 common bile duct explorations for biliary tract stones. Routine choledochoscopy added 5 to 10 minutes to the operation and caused no complications. In 81 of the patients, additional stones were discovered with choledochofiberscopy after completion of routine bile duct exploration. Postoperative cholangiography demonstrated a retained stone in 57 patients (two in the common bile duct and 55 in the intrahepatic ducts). Forty-two patients with stones retained in the intrahepatic ducts were diagnosed during operation with the fiberoptic choledochoscope, but those stones were very difficult for us to remove. The accuracy of postexploratory choledochoscopy in diagnosis of stones in the common bile duct and intrahepatic ducts was 99.0% and 90.5%, respectively. Choledochofiberscopy is useful in exploration of the common bile duct and a safe procedure in the diagnosis of biliary tract stones during operation.
Localization of the actin-binding protein fesselin in chicken smooth muscle

This report compares cellular localization of fesselin in chicken smooth, skeletal and cardiac muscle tissues using affinity purified polyclonal fesselin antibodies. Western blot analyses revealed large amounts of fesselin in gizzard smooth muscle with lower amounts in skeletal and cardiac muscle. In gizzard, fesselin was detected by immunofluorescence as discrete cytoplasmic structures. Fesselin did not co-localize with talin, vinculin or caveolin indicating that fesselin is not associated with dense plaques or caveolar regions of the cell membrane. Immunoelectron microscopy established localization of fesselin within dense bodies. Since dense bodies function as anchorage points for actin and desmin in smooth muscle cells, fesselin may be involved in establishing cytoskeletal structure in this tissue. In skeletal muscle, fesselin was associated with desmin in regularly spaced bands distributed along the length of muscle fibers suggesting localization to the Z-line. Infrequently, this banding pattern was observed in heart tissue as well. Localization at the Z-line of skeletal and cardiac muscle suggests a role in contraction of these tissues.
Cognitive Impairment in the Non-elderly: Validation of a New Tool to Assess Intellectual Disability in Community and Clinical Populations

In the absence of dementia or delirium, cognitive impairment in non-elderly adults is most often associated with intellectual or developmental disability. There is limited information about the prevalence of intellectual disability or its impact on mental disorders and health services use derived from epidemiological studies. Existing assessment measures of intelligence are not easily administered in large, population samples. This study investigates cognitive impairment in the non-elderly utilizing data from the NIMH Epidemiologic Catchment Area Program (ECA). The study also examines the validity and psychometric properties of a newly-developed, brief, and easily administered instrument to assess cognitive impairment in non-elderly adults in community and clinical populations. Utilizing items of the ECA Standardized Psychiatric Examination encompassing three domains—proverb interpretation, fund of knowledge, and interpretation of similarities and differences—a scale (PROFOKS) was developed and validated against various measures and indicators of cognitive impairment in both the community and clinical samples.
Droplet breakup in a model of the Hele-Shaw cell.

The Hele-Shaw cell involves two immiscible fluids separated by an interface. Possible topology changes in the interface are investigated. In particular, we ask whether a thin neck between two masses of the fluid can develop, get thinner, and finally break. To study this, we employ the lubrication approximation, which implies for a symmetrical neck that the neck thickness h obeys ${\mathit{h}}_{\mathit{t}}$+(${\mathit{hh}}_{\mathit{x}\mathit{x}\mathit{x}}$${)}_{\mathit{x}}$=0. The question is whether, starting with smooth positive initial data for h, one can achieve h=0, and hence a possible broken neck within a finite time. One possibility is that, instead of breaking, the neck gets continually thinner and finally goes to zero thickness only at infinite time. Here, we investigate one set of initial data and argue that in this case the system does indeed realize this infinite-time breakage scenario.
Exact distribution of Wilks' lVccriterion and its percentage points in the complex case

The exact null distribution of Wilks' L VC_ criterion for testing the hypothesis , α and ρ unknown,against the alternative A ≠ H where , in a p-variate complex normal population , has been derived in a gamma series form and in an alternate series form using contour integration. Percentage points for p =2 (1) 8 for various levels of significance and various degrees of freedom have been computed but in this paper we present selected tables only.
Warty dyskeratoma of oral mucosa

Abstract A case of intraoral warty dyskeratoma in a 53-year-old man is presented and the literature is reviewed briefly. Warty dyskeratoma of the oral mucosa shares many of the clinical and histologic features of its cutaneous counterpart but may have a different origin and a more variable clinical appearance.
To Give Is to Get The Promotional Role of Investment Bankers in Local Bond Elections

Public managers and elected officials are generally restricted from supporting election campaigns with public resources. In the case of legislative referenda, the public stakeholders responsible for putting a policy question on the ballot must play a neutral role when acting in their official capacity. A system where private money supports public goals has emerged as regulatory provisions simultaneously restrict direct private giving to elected officials and public support for election campaigns. Using campaign finance disclosures, election results, and municipal bond issuance data, we find that post-election fees paid to firms making political contributions are significantly higher than for non-contributors. The finding improves the understanding of how private dollars support public policy outcomes, raises questions about the circumvention of laws restricting the use of public resources in election campaigns, and informs ongoing consideration of the need for additional regulatory action and disclosure requirements to address issue committee campaign contributions.
Analysis of some abstract measures of protection in computer systems

Under the premise that there is a tradeoff between the amount of protection within a computer system and the system cost, this paper investigates some theoretical measures of protection within systems. A system simply consists of any number of active elements, called subjects, that make use of passive elements, called objects. The investigation is restricted to an analysis and comparison of access mechanisms defined by a family of boolean functions. Some definitions are stated, and some theorems are proved that are valid for all mechanisms within the family considered. Algorithms are presented for the optimal assignment of access codes to subjects are objects for unstructured systems and for several types of structured systems. It is proven that for a very general class of systems, the optimal assignment will still allow at least (n/2)(γ- 1) unauthorized accesses to objects, wheren is the number of subjects, and γ is the largest integer not greater than the quantityn divided by the number of access classes.
Oceanic plate motions driven by lithospheric thickening and subducted slabs

The thickening of the cooling oceanic lithosphere results in a significant driving force that is distributed over the area of the plates. Simple flow models show that this force may be more important in driving oceanic plates than that force from sinking lithospheric slabs at subduction zones.
Synthesis of helminthogermacrene and β-elemene

Abstract Helminthogermacrene (1) and β-elemene (3) have been synthesized by a short route starting from geranylacetone. Titanium-induced cyclization of 3-isopropenyl-6-methyl-10-oxo-6 E -undecenal (7) was used as the key step.
Reactivity of the triple ion and separated ion pair of tris(trimethylsilyl)methyllithium with aldehydes: a RINMR study.

Low-temperature rapid-injection NMR (RINMR) experiments were performed on tris(trimethylsilyl)methyllithium. In THF/Me2O solutions, the separated ion (1S) reacted faster than can be measured at −130 °C with MeI and substituted benzaldehydes (k ≥ 2 s−1), whereas the contact ion (1C) dissociated to 1S before reacting. Unexpectedly, the triple ion reacted faster with electron-rich benzaldehydes relative to electron-deficient ones. The addition of HMPA had no effect on the rate of reaction of the triple ion with p-diethylaminobenzaldehyde, and the immediate product of the reaction was the HMPA-solvated separated ion 1S, with the Peterson product forming only slowly. Thus, the aldehyde is catalyzing the dissociation of the triple ion. HMPA greatly decelerated the reaction of 1S (<10−10), providing an estimate of the Lewis acid activating effect of a THF-solvated lithium cation in an organolithium addition to an aldehyde.
GENDER DIFFERENCES IN ENTREPRENEURIAL RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN THE FRANCHISE CONTEXT

This study examines how entrepreneurial relationship variables such as trust, conflict, interpersonal justice (IJ) and satisfaction differ among a group of male and female franchisees. Results suggest differences exist between these two groups in relation to conflict, IJ and trust with their franchisor. These results are consistent with research on feminine gender roles and research that suggests female entrepreneurs are more relationship oriented throughout the entrepreneurial process. The results further make a case for the importance of empirically examining different entrepreneurial relationship variables in future research on gender and entrepreneurship, and illustrate the power of the franchising business model in breaking down potential barriers of gender discrimination for female entrepreneurs.
Opioid physical dependence development: effects of single versus repeated morphine pretreatments and of subjects' opioid exposure history.

In acute dependence, signs and symptoms of opioid withdrawal are precipitated when an opioid antagonist (naloxone) is administered following acute (e.g. single dose) pretreatment with amu agonist. This study examined the influence of amount of previous opioid exposure, both immediate and remote, on intensity of precipitated withdrawal effects in an acute dependence model. Two groups of subjects, opioid abusers (n=20) and nonabusers (n=20), received either one 15 mg/70 kg IM morphine pretreatment or two such pretreatments spaced 24 h apart. Naloxone challenge (30 mg/70 kg) followed 4.33 h after the second pretreatment. There were clear effects of morphine pretreatment condition (single versus repeated 15 mg) on the intensity of precipitated withdrawal responses elicited by naloxone. More intense effects were seen after the repeated pretreatment, suggesting that physical dependence escalates with repeated opioid exposures spaced at appropriate intervals. Subjects with an opioid abuse history reported greater liking of agonist drug effects than did nonabusers, whereas nonabusers reported more sedating effects. However, an opioid abuse history did not influence the intensity of precipitated withdrawal symptoms and signs. The latter finding suggests that a previous opioid exposure history does not dramatically modulate initial stages of physical dependence development during subsequent opioid exposure episodes.
English adjective comparison and analogy

There are two strategies for forming the comparative degree of adjectives in English; a synthetic strategy which suffixes -er to the adjective stem, and an analytical strategy which uses more in composition with the adjective. Many analyses of the choice between analytical and synthetic comparison have been proposed, but all face difficulties. In this paper I show that analogy can not only account for the distribution of analytical and synthetic comparison as well as traditional rule-based approaches, but can also provide a psychologically plausible model for the choice which speakers make.
A Bayesian batch means methodology for analysis of simulation output

The purpose of this research is to investigate the use of Bayesian methodology in the analysis of simulation output. Specifically, the Bayesian methodology is introduced in the context of the batch means procedure for building a confidence interval for the output mean. We assume that the output process is at steady state or equivalently that the output process is second order stationary. We also assume that the length is fixed at say n. So the output process can be given by X1, X2, ..., Xn,a sequence of observations from a continuous state stationary stochastic process with mean M, variance O2x and autocorrelation function {Pi}∞I=lThis Bayesian batch means methodology has been thoroughly tested. The five measures of effectiveness suggested in Schriber and Andrews (1981) are reported for a variety of simulated theoretical output processes. In addition, each run is compared with various batch means procedures.
Adrenal crisis in the setting of high-dose ketoconazole therapy.

• We describe a patient with type I diabetes mellitus and hypothyroidism who developed frank adrenocortical insufficiency while receiving a high-dose ketoconazole therapy for keratitis caused by Acanthamoeba species. While impaired cortisol responses to corticotropin and mildly symptomatic hypoadrenalism have been described previously with ketoconazole therapy, to our knowledge, this case represents the first documented article of an actual adrenal crisis associated with this drug. Two reasons are postulated for the development of this complication in our patient: high-dose ketoconazole therapy given in divided doses during the day, and a possibly impaired central response to stress because of hypothyroidism. Our article points to the need to monitor patients treated with high-dose ketoconazole for adrenal insufficiency, particularly if associated illnesses are present that may impair an adequate stress response. ( Arch Intern Med. 1989;149:802-804)
Reconstruction of a Pleistocene paleocatena using micromorphology and geochemistry of lake margin paleo-Vertisols, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Abstract Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania contains a rich record of Pleistocene paleoclimate and paleoenvironment, as well as an abundance of paleontological and archaeological data. The 2.2 Ma of volcaniclastic infill can be divided into time-slices using dated tuffs. Sediments were deposited in a semi-arid, closed rift basin containing a shallow saline–alkaline lake until ∼1.75 Ma. Four trenches in uppermost Bed I sample a ∼20 ka time-slice between Ng'eju Tuff (base, 1.818 ± 0.006 Ma) and Tuff IF (top, 1.803 ± 0.002 Ma). They form a ∼1 km transect of the lake margin flat that contains both stacked and cumulative paleosols that are interpreted as a heterogeneous paleocatena. Closer to the lake, paleosols are thinner, vertically stacked, and separated by thin tuffs or tufa. Further from the lake margin, there is additional volcaniclastic input, and paleosols are thicker and cumulative. Macroscale and micromorphological features identify these clay-rich paleosols as paleo-Vertisols. Abundant pedogenic slickensides and a variety of ped shapes were observed in the field, as well as micro-ped structures and stress cutans in thin section. Although weakly developed, these paleo-Vertisols also have distinct horizons defined by soil color changes, differing ped shapes, and bulk geochemistry and are indicative of monsoonal precipitation seasonality. Paleosols and parent materials were analyzed for bulk geochemistry of major, rare, and trace elements. Geochemical proxies reveal changing hydrology not definitively identifiable in the field or micromorphology. Molecular weathering ratios show increased weathering, and mass-balance calculations indicate greater translocations (positive and negative) through time. Lower soil moisture due to a drier climate likely created better-drained conditions allowing for increased pedogenesis. The records of FeMn oxides and zeolites precipitated in rhizoliths are further evidence for changing redox conditions and water chemistry. Redox-sensitive elements such as Fe and Mn were mobilized during saturated soil conditions and precipitated during drier conditions. As the hydrology changed due to increased aridity, zeolites precipitated as rhizoliths due to capillary rise and evaporative pumping of saline–alkaline water. The fluctuating hydrology identified in the paleo-Vertisols deposited between 1.79 and 1.81 Ma is indicative of a precession cycle and consistent with records from Olduvai Gorge and throughout East Africa. This 20 ka time-slice of the 2 Ma drying trend identified in Africa coincides with the first hominin migrations out of Africa at ∼1.8 Ma and suggests that hominins were living in a water-stressed environment with annual precipitation seasonality and large variations in precipitation due to precession.