cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Proteins made in the mammalian cell cycle.

DNA-binding proteins made by Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells at specific times in their cell cycle were chromatographed on DNA-cellulose and analyzed with sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide electrophoresis. Some small proteins (less than 25,000 mol wt) were made in S (the period of DNA synthesis), but not during G1 (the period following mitosis and preceding DNA synthesis). These were relatively low in tryptophan and could in part be histones. Larger DNA-binding proteins were made equally in early and late interphase. Proteins from cells labeled in the absence of calf serum during the S period had a different electrophoresis gel pattern compared to cells labeled in the presence of calf serum. Proteins from G1 cells labeled with or without serum had similar patterns. These results suggest that effects of serum are localized temporally in the cell cycle. Comparing our results with those of Salas and Green (Nature (New Biol.), 229, 165 (1971)), we suggest that the G0 state of nongrowing cells is distinct from the normal G1 phase of proliferating cells.
O impacto fiscal do envelhecimento populacional no Brasil: 2005-2050

In this paper, we estimate the fiscal impact on population aging in Brazil from 2005 through 2050. We focus on three key areas of public spending: education, pensions, and health care. Our projections are based on a simple model in which aggregate public expenditures are driven by changes in the age structure of the population as well as by changes in the average public benefits received per age. We assess the likely increases in public spending over the coming decades, contrasting the divergent trends in public spending on education, pensions, and health care. We also assess the magnitude of these changes in terms of growth in spending relative to GDP annually through 2050 and estimate the present value of the increase in spending. We find that changing population age structure will lead to increasing cost pressures in health care and especially in pensions. Our projections show that beginning around 2015, public spending will begin a sustained and rapid increase lasting several decades rising from 18% of GDP to reach 27% of GDP by 2050. The needs for increased investment in students will compete against those for sustaining pension benefits and facing increasing demands for health care. In particular, our projections show that an ambitious educational reform aimed at reaching the OECD level of investment per youth within a decade would amount to only about one fourth of the projected cost increases in public health and pension programs.
HPSG Analysis of English

In this chapter we summarize the results of the HPSG English grammar project for analysis and generation in Verbmobil, housed at CSLI, Stanford University. After providing a description of the design and implementation of the grammar, we give an overview of the linguistic phenomena encountered in the Verbmobil domains, show the results of an evaluation of the grammar measured against transcribed spoken language data, and then point to next steps in the development of the grammar.
A reappraisal of "tight control " in diabetic pregnancies

Abstract The records of 130 diabetic patients, classified by the White system (76 Class A; 54 insulin dependent), were analyzed to see whether control of diabetes, reflected as mean glucose concentration or HbA 1c , is predictive of fetal weight. Fetal overgrowth was found to be common despite adequate (good or fair) control of diabetes by conventional criteria. Neither class of diabetes nor adequacy of control was correlated with fetal overgrowth, and HbA 1c data followed the same trend. The failure to find an association between birth weight and HbA 1c could stem from the control not being tight enough or the birth weight being more appreciably affected by other factors overshadowing the effect of control. HbA 1c reflects long-term control and may serve as a useful summarizing statement.
A system for simulating shared memory in heterogeneous distributed-memory networks with specializations for robotics applications

Hetero Helix is a programming environment which simulates shared memory on a heterogeneous network of distributed-memory computers. The machines in the network may vary with respect to their native operating systems and internal representation of numbers. Hetero Helix presents a simple shared memory programming model to developers, and considers the needs of designers, system integrators and maintainers. The key software technology in Hetero Helix is a compiler which automatically generates code for translating data representations from the format native to each machine into a common format and vice versa. The design of Hetero Helix was motivated by the requirements of robotics applications. >
Exploring the ‘Socio’ or Socio-Legal Studies. By Dermot Feenan. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 307pp. $105 Cloth.

Exploring the 'Socio' or Socio-Legal Studies. By Dermot Feenan. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 307pp. $105 Cloth.In this book, legal scholar and research fellow in law, Dermot Feenan, corrals some of the leading scholars in the field of law and society, legalstudies,aswellasthefocusof the book, sociolegal studies. In writing this review, I found myself initially wanting to simply write that sociolegal studies is a method scholars use to simplify their explanation of what they research. However, each scholar, beginning with Feenan, clearly introduces and explains that the "socio" plays a definitive role in sociolegal studies. The distinction, one in which the scholars in the book explore, examines the aspects of the social and society in the legal. That is, there is a two-way road regarding how law effects society and how society effects law.As a legal scholar working in the social sciences, humanities, and the field of law, Feenan is the optimal editor to efficiently gather some of the field's leading scholars on sociolegal studies. Feenan helps explain precisely how and why the study of the socio is important. His claim is that the socio in sociolegal studies involves a "doubling of the social, both the subject and method of inquiry" (p. 33). Essentially, this means that the problems set by the theoretical frames are sufficiently addressed with this approach. Susan Silbey, a contributor to the book and professor of sociology and anthropology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, aptly asks, what do we do with this insight? I suggest that Feenan's array of scholars sufficiently answer that question.The book is broken up into 13 chapters, each providing contextual inquiries into the socio of sociolegal studies. The first several parts, which include six chapters, provide introductions regarding how the notion of socio has been contested and the historical and theoretical inquiries associated with that/those questions. Legal scholars, including, Julia Shaw whose work on law, legal theory, and legal semiotics, posit that "language has an ordering function and the unique ability to categorize social subjects and, significantly, it is able to construct the individual by reference to a dominant ideology..." (p. 111). This leads one to see that law can form various truths that may help provide legitimacy to the power hierarchies in place. Of course, this also means that those legal hierarchies are able to maintain their structures of power for additional periods of time, even during times of social upheaval. Ultimately, this means that the notion of sociolegal studies needs to widen its audience, particularly by addressing the group of disenfranchised and downtrodden who need the benefits of the law. …
Do seasonal temperatures, species traits and nearby timber harvest predict variation in moth species richness and abundance in unlogged deciduous forests?

The present study aimed to determine whether the activity of lepidopteran communities in stands adjacent to timber harvest was more variable than that for communities in unlogged landscapes. Moths were sampled using light traps in 11 unlogged forest stands in Morgan-Monroe State Forest (Indiana, U.S.A.) in 2007 (before harvest) and then again from 2009 to 2012 (post-harvest within nearby stands). Mean winter low temperatures were correlated with higher levels of variation in species richness across all forest stands. Greater variation in species richness was also correlated with the occurrence of nearby harvests. Colder winters depressed species richness of forest moths across all forest stands. Unlogged stands within 100 m of patch cuts or shelterwood cuts gained and lost species at a greater rate than stands adjacent to unlogged forest. Species specialized to a single host were subject to the most significant variability and many specialists experienced ±50% change in abundance over 5 years. Timber harvest created a disturbance footprint that extended beyond the managed forest concession. Moth species with a specialized larval diet appeared to be most vulnerable to the indirect effects of timber harvest. Small logging concessions may change diversity at larger scales than presumed.
A Case Study Perspective on Working with ProUCL and a State Environmental Agency in Determining Background Threshold Values

ProUCL is a software package made available by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide environmental scientists with better tools with which to conduct statistical analyses. ProUCL has been in production for over ten years and is in its fifth major version. In time, it has included more sophisticated and appropriate analysis tools. However, there is still substantial criticism of it among statisticians for its various omissions and even its philosophical approach. Due to limited resources, some state agencies have set ProUCL as a standard by which all state-mandated environmental analyses are compared, despite the EPA’s more open acceptance of other software products and methodologies. As such, it can be difficult for state-supervised sites to convince the state to allow the use of more appropriate methodologies or different software. In the current case study, several such instances arose and substantial resources were invested to demonstrate the appropriateness of alternative methodologies, sometimes without acquiring acceptance by the state despite sound statistical demonstration. In particular, efforts were made to address: inappropriate outlier detection, upper tolerance limit (UTL) calculations based on gamma distributions when non-detects were present, and inappropriate use of nonparametric UTL formulas.
Multiple comparison procedures for detecting differences in simply ordered means

Abstract In the one-way analysis of variance, we study multiple-comparison procedures that detect differences in the treatment means when they are known to be simply ordered (i.e., μ1⩽μ2⩽⋯⩽μk). Several existing procedures as well as four procedures proposed here are compared by Monte-Carlo techniques. In 1990, Hayter developed a one-sided Studentized range procedure (H), and the max–min technique exploited in 2002 by Liu, Lee, and Peng provides an improved Hayter procedure (M). In her 2001 doctoral dissertation, Liu developed a procedure (L) that is based on the differences in the averages of two blocks of means. A procedure (R), which utilizes the restricted maximum-likelihood estimates of the means corrected for their biases and standard deviations, and an analogue to Fisher's LSD (T) are proposed. For T, the usual F test is replaced by an order-restricted test and one-sided t-tests are used. Declaring μi
The interrelation and distinction between flood-tidal delta and washover deposits in a transgressive barrier island

Abstract The distinction and interrelation between flood-tidal delta and washover deposits is described by comparing back-barrier sands associated with an active and a relict tidal inlet system on the south shore of Long Island. Guidelines for comparison include three-dimensional morphology, sedimentary structures, sediment texture, and facies sequences. The active, modern flood-tidal delta is covered by reversing small-scale ripples represented by bidirectional small-scale cross-bedding in the subsurface. Large-scale flood-oriented cross-beds are associated with non-reversing sand waves on the flood ramp. The relict flood-tidal delta is represented by medium- to fine-grained sands characterized by small-scale cross-bedding or massive bedding. Relict flood-tidal delta deposits are overlain by distinct washover deposits separated by thin units of salt-marsh peat. Dominant washover structures are parallel laminations. Well-preserved roots are commonly found in washover sands, but are largely absent in flood-tidal delta sands. Facies sequences of the relict inlet system indicate that flood-tidal delta deposits extend the width of the barrier island. Overwashing serves to infill abandoned channels of the delta and contributes to vertical buildup.
Optimal maintenance-repair policies for the machine repair problem

We consider a model with M + N identical machines. As many as N of these can be working at any given time and the others act as standby spares. Working machines fail at exponential rate λ, spares fail at exponential rale γ, and failed machines are repaired at exponential rate μ. The control variables are λ. μ, and the number of removable repairman, S, to be operated at any given time. Using the criterion of total expected discounted cost, we show that λ, S, and μ are monotonic functions of the number of failed machines M, N, the discount factor, and for the finite time horizon model, the amount of time remaining.
Tumor diagnosis using the backpropagation neural network method

For characterization of skin cancer, an artificial neural network method has been developed to diagnose normal tissue, benign tumor and melanoma. The pattern recognition is based on a three-layer neural network fuzzy learning system. In this study, the input neuron data set is the Fourier transform IR spectrum obtained by a new fiberoptic evanescent wave Fourier transform IR spectroscopy method in the range of 1480 to 1850 cm-1. Ten input features are extracted from the absorbency values in this region. A single hidden layer of neural nodes with sigmoids activation functions clusters the feature space into small subclasses and the output nodes are separated in different nonconvex classes to permit nonlinear discrimination of disease states. The output is classified as three classes: normal tissue, benign tumor and melanoma. The results obtained from the neural network pattern recognition are shown to be consistent with traditional medical diagnosis. Input features have also been extracted from the absorbency spectra using chemical factor analysis. These abstract features or factors are also used in the classification.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Comment on “Observational and Model Evidence for Positive Low-Level Cloud Feedback”

Clement et al. (Reports, 24 July 2009, p. 460) provided observational evidence for systematic relationships between variations in marine low cloudiness and other climatic variables and found that most current-generation climate models were deficient in reproducing such relationships. Our analysis of one of these models (GFDL CM2.1), using more complete model output, indicates better agreement with observations, suggesting that more detailed analysis of climate model simulations is necessary.
Ethanol-induced delta-opioid receptor modulation of glutamate synaptic transmission and conditioned place preference in central amygdala

Alcoholism involves compulsive behaviors of alcohol drinking, which is thought to be related at least initially to the rewarding effect of alcohol. It has been shown that mu-opioid receptors play an essential role in drug reward and dependence for many drugs of abuse including alcohol, but the function of delta-opioid receptors (DOR) in drug reward remains largely unknown at present. Previous animal studies using systemic approaches with DOR antagonists or DOR knockout animals have yielded inconsistent results, showing a decrease, an increase or no change in alcohol consumption and behaviors of alcohol reward after DOR inhibition or deletion. In the present study, we used ethanol-conditioned rats to investigate adaptive DOR function in neurons of the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA), a key brain site for alcohol reward and addiction. We found that functional DOR was absent in glutamate synapses of CeA neurons from control rats, but it emerged and inhibited glutamate synaptic currents in CeA neurons from rats displaying ethanol-induced behavior of conditioned place preference (CPP). Analysis of paired-pulse ratios and miniature glutamate synaptic currents revealed that the recruited DOR was present on glutamatergic presynaptic terminals. Similar induction of functional DOR was also found on GABA synapses. Furthermore, microinjection of a DOR antagonist into the CeA reversed ethanol-induced CPP behavior in rats in vivo. These results suggest that repeated alcohol exposure recruits new functional DOR on CeA glutamate and GABA synapses, which may be involved in the expression or maintenance of ethanol-induced CPP behavior.
Drain-site metastasis after radical hysterectomy for squamous cervical cancer.

Abstract Drain-site metastasis occurred after radical hysterectomy for squamous cervical cancer.
Exploiting data compression methods for network-level management of multi-sensor systems

Data compression ideas can be extended to assess the data quality across multiple sensors to manage the network of sensors to optimize the location accuracy subject to communication constraints. From an unconstrained-resources viewpoint it is desirable to use the complete set of deployed sensors; however, that generally results in an excessive data volume. Selecting a subset of sensors to participate in a sensing task is crucial to satisfying trade-offs between accuracy and time-line requirements. For emitter location it is well-known that the geometry between sensors and the target plays a key role in determining the location accuracy. Furthermore, the deployed sensors have different data quality. Given these two factors, it is no trivial matter to select the optimal subset of sensors. We attack this problem through use of a data quality measure based on Fisher Information for set of sensors and optimize it via sensor selection and data compression.
Changes in Health Behaviors of Older Adults: The San Diego Medicare Preventive Health Project

Background. This study presents behavioral outcomes at 1-year follow-up from a preventive services intervention trial with Medicare beneficiaries. Methods. The health promotion package consisted of goal setting and counseling based on a health risk appraisal and a series of eight educational sessions. All subjects completed a health risk appraisal questionnaire immediately prior to the intervention and 1 year later; this served as the dependent measure. Results. Results indicated that there were significant, positive changes in intervention subjects in activity level and selected nutrition behaviors relative to control subjects. The strengths and weaknesses of a broad-based approach to intervention are discussed.
Creative gadget design in fictions: generalized planning in analogical spaces

Science-fiction and fantasy stories often contain objects never envisioned previously. Inventing gadgets like lightsabers or mythical creatures like griffins is a creative task. Traditional computational storytelling systems are limited in their expressivity because they cannot create new types of objects or gadgets. The Japanese manga series Doraemon exemplifies the role of new and creative gadgets in creating fun and successful stories. We surveyed five volumes of Doraemon and identified 9 cognitive strategies of gadget creation, unified in a 5-step process. We present an algorithm to create new types of gadgets in the context of story generation. The algorithm is a combination of partial-order planning and analogical reasoning. Although Doraemon is our motivating example, we can also generate gadgets commonly seen in other science fictions and fairy tales.
Dog Bites of the Scalp, Face, and Neck in Children

OBJECTIVE: To update the surgical management of injuries from dog bites of the scalp, face, and neck in children. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case review. METHODS: A retrospective review of 44 children with dog bites of the scalp, face, and neck was carried out at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center (Albuquerque, NM) between January 1, 1995, and December 31, 2000. Data on demographics, hospitalization, surgery, and outcome were collected and entered into an Access 2000 database. RESULTS: The children ranged in age from 1.0 to 12.1 years. The mean age of the study population was 5.2 years (+/-2.9 y standard deviation). Sixteen severely injured children (36%) were hospitalized to repair damage to the airway and blood vessels of the neck or to treat hemodynamic compromise. The length of stay in hospital ranged from 1 to 16 days. The most common injury in these children was a scalp laceration (57%). Twenty-six less severely injured children (64%) were not hospitalized. The most common surgery in these children (88%) was repair of multiple facial lacerations. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder was noted in the medical records of 12 children (29%). Complications occurred in five children (31%) who were hospitalized and nine children (35%) who were not hospitalized. CONCLUSIONS: The injured child is typically a 5-year-old boy attacked by a familiar dog at home or in the local neighborhood. Children with the diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder appear to be at a higher risk of dog bite injuries and should be monitored during interactions with dogs. The goal of surgical management for severely injured children is to avoid immediate mortality and to establish a schedule of multiple-staged procedures for revision surgeries. An optimal cosmetic result is the principal goal for less severely injured children. Language: en
Avoiding Twisted Pixels: Ethical Guidelines for the Appropriate Use and Manipulation of Scientific Digital Images

Digital imaging has provided scientists with new opportunities to acquire and manipulate data using techniques that were difficult or impossible to employ in the past. Because digital images are easier to manipulate than film images, new problems have emerged. One growing concern in the scientific community is that digital images are not being handled with sufficient care. The problem is twofold: (1) the very small, yet troubling, number of intentional falsifications that have been identified, and (2) the more common unintentional, inappropriate manipulation of images for publication. Journals and professional societies have begun to address the issue with specific digital imaging guidelines. Unfortunately, the guidelines provided often do not come with instructions to explain their importance. Thus they deal with what should or should not be done, but not the associated ‘why’ that is required for understanding the rules. This article proposes 12 guidelines for scientific digital image manipulation and discusses the technical reasons behind these guidelines. These guidelines can be incorporated into lab meetings and graduate student training in order to provoke discussion and begin to bring an end to the culture of “data beautification”.
NEUTRALIZING ANTIBODIES TO STREPTOCOCCAL DIPHOSPHOPYRIDINE NUCLEOTIDASE IN THE SERUM OF EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS AND HUMAN BEINGS

Specific neutralizing antibodies directed against streptococcal DPNase were induced experimentally in rabbits and guinea pigs by the injection of partially purified preparations of the enzyme. Similar antibodies capable of inhibiting the biological activity of the enzyme were found to occur naturally in the serum of a very high percentage of human beings, and the titer of these antibodies often rose sharply following streptococcal infections. The antibody response to streptococcal DPNase in general paralleled that to streptolysin O, though in some instances antibodies to one increased when those to the other did not.
Mammalian Brain-specific L-Proline Transporter. NEURONAL LOCALIZATION OF mRNA AND ENRICHMENT OF TRANSPORTER PROTEIN IN SYNAPTIC PLASMA MEMBRANES

The expression of a high affinity Na⁺- (and Cl⁻) dependent L-proline transporter (PROT) in subpopulations of putative glutamatergic pathways in rat brain raises the possibility of a specific physiological role(s) for this carrier in excitatory neurotransmission (Fremeau, R. T., Jr., Caron, M. G., and Blakely, R. D.(1992) Neuron 8, 915-926). However, the biochemical properties and regional, cellular, and subcellular distribution of the PROT protein have yet to be elucidated. Here, we document the brain-specific expression and neuronal localization of rat PROT mRNA. We also report the first identification and partial biochemical characterization of the mammalian brain PROT protein. An affinity-purified antipeptide antibody was produced that specifically recognized a single 68-kDa PROT protein on immunoblots of rat and human brain tissues. Deglycosylation of rat hippocampal membranes with peptide-N-glycosidase F reduced the apparent molecular mass of the native PROT protein from 68 to 53 kDa, the size of the primary PROT translation product determined by in vitro translation of the rat PROT cDNA in the absence of microsomes. Subcellular fractionation studies demonstrated that the PROT protein was enriched in synaptic plasma membranes but absent from postsynaptic densities. A differential distribution of PROT mRNA and protein was observed in rat striatum, suggesting that the transporter protein is synthesized in neuronal cell bodies in the cortex and exported to axon terminals in the caudate putamen. These findings warrant the consideration of a novel presynaptic regulatory role for this transporter in excitatory synaptic transmission.
Morphological control and plasmonic tuning of nanoporous gold disks by surface modifications

We report a surface modification protocol to control nanoporous gold (NPG) disk morphology and tune its plasmonic resonance. Enlarged pore size up to ∼20 nm within 60 s dealloying time has been achieved by adsorbing halides onto alloy surfaces in-between two dealloying steps. In addition, plasmonic resonance has been significantly red-shifted by up to ∼258 nm by the surface modification. Furthermore, with the enlarged pore size, small gold nanoparticles have been effectively loaded into the pores to enhance the performance of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) due to hot spot formation between the original nanoporous network and loaded nanoparticles.
Approximating Joint Probability Distributions Given Partial Information

In this paper, we propose new methods to approximate probability distributions that are incompletely specified. We compare these methods to the use of maximum entropy and quantify the accuracy of all methods within the context of an illustrative example. We show that within the context of our example, the methods we propose are more accurate than existing methods.
Transthoracic impedance does not decrease with rapidly repeated countershocks in a swine cardiac arrest model.

Abstract Study purpose: Successful defibrillation is dependent upon the delivery of adequate electrical current to the myocardium. One of the major determinant of current flow is transthoracic impedance. Prior work has suggested that impedance falls with repeated shocks during sinus rhythm. The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in transthoracic impedance with repeated defibrillation shocks in an animal model of cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation (VF). Methods: VF was electrically induced in anesthetized swine. After 5 min of untreated VF, monophasic or biphasic waveform defibrillation was attempted using a standard sequence of ‘stacked shocks’ (200, 300, then 360 J, if necessary) administered via adhesive electrodes. If one of the first three shocks failed to convert VF, conventional CPR was initiated and defibrillation (360 J) attempted 1 min later. Strength–duration curves for delivered voltage and current were measured during each shock and transthoracic impedance calculated. Animals requiring a minimum of four shocks were selected for study inclusion. Impedance data from sequential shocks were analyzed using mixed linear models to account for the repeated-measures design and the variability of the initial impedance of individual animals. Results: Thirteen animals (monophasic waveform, n =7, biphasic waveform, n =6) required at least four shocks to terminate VF (range 4–6). Transthoracic impedance did not change from the first shock in the 13 animals (46±8 Ω) to the fourth shock (46±9 Ω). In animals receiving more than four shocks, transthoracic impedance likewise did not change significantly from the first to the last shock, which terminated VF. The lack of a significant change in impedance was also observed when animals were analyzed according to defibrillation waveform. Conclusion: Transthoracic impedance does not change significantly with repeated shocks in a VF cardiac arrest model. This is likely due to the lack of reactive skin and soft tissue hyperemia and edema observed in non-arrest models.
Ultraviolet reflectance patterns of male guppies enhance their attractiveness to females

Abstract In many groups of fish male colour patterns reflect in the ultraviolet, but little is known about female preferences for these components of male ornaments. We studied UV-reflective colour patterns in male guppies, Poecilia reticulata , and their importance in female choice. Using photographs taken with a filter transmitting only short wavelengths, we found that 4–24% of the area of a male's colour pattern reflects in the UV. We measured female visual responses to paired males placed, alternately, behind UV-blocking and UV-transmitting Plexiglas partitions. When pairs were matched for carotenoid (red), structural (white) and UV-reflective colour patterns, females spent significantly greater amounts of time inspecting a male when he was behind the UV-transmitting partition. These results show that UV-reflective components of male colour patterns enhance their attractiveness to females. To determine whether level of predation affects female response to UV-reflective colour patterns, we tested females from two populations differing in predation pressure. Females from both populations preferred males viewed through the UV-transmitting partition. When females were presented with male pairs that differed in the area of UV reflectance but were matched for carotenoids and structural pigments, difference in the time spent with the males was positively correlated with difference in the area of UV reflectance. Our results indicate that UV-reflective colour patterns enhance male attractiveness to females and thus may be elaborated through sexual selection.
718 SPLIT PRODUCTS OF C3 IN RHEUMATIC DISEASES OF CHILDREN

Arroyave's method for the detection of C3c and C3d by counterimmunoelectrophoresis (J. Immunol. Methods, 13:101, 1976) has been used to study plasma from children with various rheumatic diseases over a period of 18 mos. Eleven of 11 children with active SLE had (+) tests. Plasma from 2 of 5 children with clinically inactive SLE were (+). Variations with time confirmed Arroyave's finding that (+) tests are sensitive indicators of disease activity in SLE. Plasma from 1 child with MCTD was transiently (+). Consistently (−) tests were found in 7 children with dermatomyositis and 2 with scleroderma. On 1 occasion, 1 of 5 children with ankylosing spondylitis had a (+) test. Thirty of 74 children with JRA were (+) on one or more occasions. By mode of onset these were: 6 of 14 systemic, 13 of 27 poly-articular and 11 of 33 pauciarticular. Six of 8 latex fixation (+) patients had (+) tests for C3c and C3d, but only 9 of 24 ANA (+) patients had (+) tests. Correlations with sedimentation rates or other measures of disease activity were not clear. One traumatic knee effusion and synovial fluid from 2 children with pauciarticular,plasma (−) JRA had (−) tests for C3c and C3d. Synovial fluid and plasma from 1 child with Jacob's “Streaking Leukocyte Syndrome” were (+). This data is consistent with other work indicating that some, but not all, children with JRA have antigen-antibody complexes in blood or elsewhere which are capable of activating complement.
Genomic Copy Number Variants: Evidence for Association with Antibody Response to Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed

Background Anthrax and its etiologic agent remain a biological threat. Anthrax vaccine is highly effective, but vaccine-induced IgG antibody responses vary widely following required doses of vaccinations. Such variation can be related to genetic factors, especially genomic copy number variants (CNVs) that are known to be enriched among genes with immunologic function. We have tested this hypothesis in two study populations from a clinical trial of anthrax vaccination.
Compact broadband vibrational sum-frequency generation spectrometer with nonresonant suppression

A compact broadband vibrational sum-frequency spectroscopy (SFG) apparatus is described to study molecules at surfaces and interfaces. Using an etalon as the frequency narrowing device, the visible pulse has a time-asymmetric profile that allows the user to deeply suppress nonresonant background signals that hinder detection of molecular vibrational resonances. Several features of the spectrometer that, in aggregate, improve signal-to-noise ratios by a large factor are described. The spectrometer features a series of interchangeable prealigned sample holders for different applications. Examples of applications are presented where nonresonant suppression greatly improves the ability to study adsorbates on single-crystal surfaces as a function of rotation about the azimuth, and where the rapid data acquisition abilities of the spectrometer are used to study electrochemical transformations on single-crystal electrodes.
Tailoring treatment to minority patients

Abstract The treatment of high blood pressure in black people is often complicated by a variety of factors. These include the tendency of black hypertensive patients to have three to five times the cardiovascular mortality of white hypertensive patients, black hypertensives' more frequent progression to end-organ damage and stroke, and socioeconomic conditions that impede access to proper health care. In addition, blacks have a unique hemodynamic profile, one that alters the efficacy of many antihypertensive drugs. In black hypertensives, for example, diuretics are more effective than they are in whites, whereas beta-blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors are less effective. Although it is true that blacks are disproportionately represented in the hypertensive population—having up to seven times the prevalence of severe hypertension seen in whites—it is not true that they are relatively unresponsive to drug therapy. A number of long-term clinical trials have established that black hypertensives respond well to treatment. Specifically, blacks in stepped-care therapy achieve goal blood pressure at the same rate as their white counterparts, although the increased barriers to blood pressure control in blacks require practitioners to put increased effort into this therapy. Possibly because black hypertensives tend to have low plasma renin levels, beta-blockers and ACE inhibitors are not nearly as effective as diuretics when used as monotherapy. Diuretics, on the other hand, have established efficacy in blacks, and their selection for initial monotherapy is favored for two additional reasons. First, they present a better profile in terms of overall cost and compliance, thanks to their lower relative cost and once-a-day dosing. Second, when diuretics are combined with another antihypertensive therapy, such as an ACE inhibitor or a calcium-entry blocker, responsiveness may be further improved. This combination therapy may be especially important in black hypertensives, who exhibit a higher incidence of concurrent diseases such as left ventricular hypertrophy and congestive heart failure.
Pattern visual evoked potentials recorded from human occipital cortex with chronic subdural electrodes

Pattern evoked potentials to full- and partial-field stimulation were recorded simultaneously from scalp electrodes and from subdural electrodes located over the temporal and occipital cortex, including electrodes placed over or close to the lower lip of the calcarine fissure. High-amplitude pattern evoked potentials were recorded exclusively from electrodes localized in the vicinity of the calcarine fissure and showed a positive-negative deflection in phase with surface recordings, followed by a second negative peak phase reversed with respect to the major surface positive peak ("P100"). The findings suggest that the initial component is an expression of the afferent volley and that the second component (equivalent of the surface "P100") is most probably generated as a dipole strictly localized to the visual cortex in close proximity of the calcarine fissure (area 17 and/or area 18).
The application of cloud computing to scientific workflows: a study of cost and performance

The current model of transferring data from data centres to desktops for analysis will soon be rendered impractical by the accelerating growth in the volume of science datasets. Processing will instead often take place on high-performance servers co-located with data. Evaluations of how new technologies such as cloud computing would support such a new distributed computing model are urgently needed. Cloud computing is a new way of purchasing computing and storage resources on demand through virtualization technologies. We report here the results of investigations of the applicability of commercial cloud computing to scientific computing, with an emphasis on astronomy, including investigations of what types of applications can be run cheaply and efficiently on the cloud, and an example of an application well suited to the cloud: processing a large dataset to create a new science product.
Medical management of Barrett's esophagus

Barrett’s esophagus or Barrett’s metaplasia is regarded as a severe consequence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Barrett’s metaplasia is an acquired condition in which the normal stratified squamous epithelium of the esophagus is replaced by an intestinal-type, columnar epithelium. Longstanding reflux of acid into the esophagus predisposes patients to the development of Barrett’s metaplasia, which is associated with an increased incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma. The potential for development of adenocarcinoma with Barrett’s metaplasia is uniquely attributable to the presence of specialized intestinal metaplasia (SIM) [1,2]. Endoscopically, Barrett’s metaplasia appears as salmon-colored mucosa contrasting the normal pale, pink mucosa of the stratified squamous epithelium. The metaplastic area can be circumferential or appear as tongues emanating from the esophagogastric junction. Histopathologically, SIM exhibits a villous architecture containing goblet cells (Fig. 1A). Intestinal metaplasia is divided into four subtypes, three of which are relevant to Barrett’s esophagus. In type 1, or complete intestinal metaplasia, there is a complete brush border with mature goblet cells, and Paneth’s cells usually are seen in the crypt bases. Types 2 and 3 are defined as incomplete intestinal metaplasia, because the columnar cells lack the intestinal absorptive ability or ultrastructural characteristics of true intestinal cells [3]. Each of these types of metaplastic epithelium potentially can become dysplastic and malignant. Dysplastic alterations in Barrett’s metaplasia have been classified as low- or high-grade (LGD or HGD) (Figs. 1B,C), depending upon the degree of nuclear pleomorphism, hyperchromatism, and altered nuclear polarity. HGD is an ominous finding that often is associated with coexistent carcinoma (Fig. 1D). Barrett’s esophagus was originally described in 1950 by Sir Norman Barrett as columnar-lined esophagus [4,5]. The definition is important, because the over
Phosphate Monoester Hydrolysis in Cyclohexane

The hydrolysis of simple phosphate monoesters is among the most difficult reactions that are subject to catalysis by enzymes, and it has been suggested that extraction of the substrates from solvent water may contribute to the catalytic effects of phosphohydrolases. Here, we show that the tetrabutylammonium salt of neopentyl phosphate enters wet cyclohexane at concentrations sufficient to allow determination of its rate of hydrolysis. The second-order rate constant for hydrolysis of the phosphomonoester dianion is enhanced ∼2 × 1012-fold by transfer from water to cyclohexane. That rate enhancement arises from an increase in the entropy of activation.
Chronic Cough and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: New Twists to the Riddle

In this issue of Gastroenterology, Smith et al1 report on a meticulous analysis of the relationship between chronic cough and reflux in a carefully characterized series of patients studied with ambulatory reflux monitoring. This is not a new topic, but it is one that sorely needed fresh data and to those who have followed this saga through the years, this paper will not disappoint. Chronic cough, defined as that which persists for >8 weeks, is an extremely common problem faced in primary care as well as in several subspecialties: pulmonary medicine, otolaryngology, allergy, and gastroenterology to name the dominant ones.2,3 Implicit in this heterogeneity is that chronic cough has a diverse set of potential causes that are often elusive. Compounding the difficulty is that cough is often an atypical presentation of a common disease. Thus, for example, a patient with cough variant asthma may not exhibit typical wheezing and a patient with reflux-associated cough may not report heartburn. Thus, not only is the etiology of chronic cough difficult to establish, but it is often unclear in which direction to turn for help.
The electrical properties of bistable niobium pentoxide films

Abstract Current, voltage, temperature ( I - V - T ) and conductance, voltage, temperature ( G - V - T ) as well as switching time measurements have been made on the switching states of bistable amorphous niobium pentoxide films. The measurements are indicative of a charge transfer mechanism occurring prior to switching. I - V - T and G - V - T measurements on the switching states for temperatures in the range 1.3 to 4.2°K as well as at 77°K are discussed.
Economic Effects of Making the 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts Permanent

All of the provisions of the landmark tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003 are scheduled to expire by the end of 2010. This paper analyzes the economic effects of making the tax cuts permanent. We describe the recent tax cuts and the proposals to make them permanent, and explore the consequences of making the tax cuts permanent with regard to the fiscal status of the government, the distribution of after-tax income, and prospects for long-term economic growth.
Diffusion of oxygen through blood flowing in a porous capillary tube

Abstract In this work, we have obtained the numerical solution of the oxygen diffusion equation for blood flowing through a straight permeable tube. We assumed a fully-developed Casson velocity profile and a uniform oxygen partial pressure at the inlet of the tube. The procedure used is an explicit step by step forward marching finite difference process. Results have been obtained for a wide range of yield numbers, inlet pressures, pH, membrane resistance, and hemoglobin concentrations.
French international booksellers, suppliers to libraries, à la fin du vingtième siècle

This article is a 1998 field report from Paris on the major French international booksellers who supply libraries throughout the world, in particular the firms of Aux Amateurs de Livres, Library Service Association, and Jean Touzot. Data were gathered by means of interviews, a questionnaire, and direct observation. The article describes the histories of the firms and their $10 million market, organization, services, operations, and outlook.
Abstract 5019: Irradiation and anti-B7-H1 provide synergistic treatment effects in murine cancer

Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA High dose ionizing irradiation (IR) results in direct tumor cell death and has been demonstrated to augment tumor-specific immunity that enhance tumor control both locally and distantly. However, local relapses often occur in patients and in established experimental tumors after treatment with IR suggesting that IR-induced immune responses are inadequate. Therapeutic blockade of the T cell negative regulator Programmed Death Ligand 1 (PD-L1, also named B7-H1) can enhance T cell effector function when PD-L1 is expressed in chronically inflamed tissues and tumors. Here, we demonstrate that PD-L1 is up-regulated in the tumor microenvironment after IR. Administration of anti-PD-L1 enhanced the efficacy of IR through a CD8+ T cell dependent mechanism. Concomitant with IR-mediated tumor regression, we observed that IR and anti-PD-L1 synergistically reduced the local accumulation of tumor-infiltrating Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs), thus altering the tumor immune microenvironment. We demonstrate that CD8+ T cells, activated by combination therapy, mediate the reduction of MDSCs in tumors through the cytotoxic actions of TNF. Our data provide evidence for a close interaction between IR, T cells, and the PD-1/PD-L1 axis and establish the basis for the rational design of combination therapy with immune modulators and radiotherapy in the clinical setting. Note: This abstract was not presented at the meeting. Citation Format: Liufu Deng, Hua Liang, Byron Burnette, Micheal Beckett, Thomas Darga, Ralph Weichselbaum, Yang-Xin Fu. Irradiation and anti-B7-H1 provide synergistic treatment effects in murine cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 5019. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-5019
Analysis of Coumarin 7-Hydroxylation Activity of Cytochrome P450 2A6 using Random Mutagenesis

Cytochrome P450 (P450) 2A6 is an important human enzyme involved in the metabolism of many xenobiotic chemicals including coumarin, indole, nicotine, and carcinogenic nitrosamines. A combination of random mutagenesis and high-throughput screening was used in the analysis of P450 2A6, utilizing a fluorescent coumarin 7-hydroxylation assay. The steady-state kinetic parameters (k(cat) and Km) for coumarin 7-hydroxylation by wild-type P450 2A6 and 35 selected mutants were measured and indicated that mutants throughout the coding region can have effects on activity. Five mutants showing decreased catalytic efficiency (k(cat)/Km) were further analyzed for substrate selectivity and binding affinities and showed reduced catalytic activities for 7-methoxycoumarin O-demethylation, tert-butyl methyl ether O-demethylation, and indole 3-hydroxylation. All mutants except one (K476E) showed decreased coumarin binding affinities (and also higher Km values), indicating that this is a major basis for the decreased enzymatic activities. A recent x-ray crystal structure of P450 2A6 bound to coumarin (Yano, J. K., Hsu, M. H., Griffin, K. J., Stout, C. D., and Johnson, E. F. (2005) Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 12, 822-823) indicates that the recovered A481T and N297S mutations appear to be close to coumarin, suggesting direct perturbation of substrate interaction. The decreased enzymatic activity of the K476E mutant was associated with decreases both in NADPH oxidation and the reduction rate of the ferric P450 2A6-coumarin complex. The attenuation is caused in part to lower binding affinity for NADPH-P450 reductase, but the K476E mutant did not achieve the wild-type coumarin 7-hydroxylation activity even at high reductase concentrations.