cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Development of an easy-to-use Spanish Health Literacy test.

Objective. The study was intended to develop and validate a health literacy test, termed theShortAssessmentofHealthLiteracyforSpanish-speakingAdults (SAHLSA), for the Spanish-speaking population. Study Design. The design of SAHLSA was based on the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine (REALM), known as the most easily administered tool for assessing health literacy in English. In addition to the word recognition test in REALM, SAHLSA incorporates a comprehension test using multiple-choice questions designed by an expert panel. Data Collection. Validation of SAHLSA involved testing and comparing the tool with other health literacy instruments in a sample of 201 Spanish-speaking and 202 English-speaking subjects recruited from the Ambulatory Care Center at UNC Health Care. Principal Findings. With only the word recognition test, REALM could not differentiate the level of health literacy in Spanish. The SAHLSA significantly improved the differentiation. Item response theory analysis was performed to calibrate the SAHLSA and reduce the instrument to 50 items. The resulting instrument, SAHLSA-50, was correlated with the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults, another health literacy instrument, at r 5 0.65. The SAHLSA-50 score was significantly and positively associated with the physical health status of Spanish-speaking subjects (po.05), holding constant age and years of education. The instrument displayed good internal reliability (Cronbach’s a 5 0.92) and test–retest reliability (Pearson’s r 5 0.86). Conclusions. The new instrument, SAHLSA-50, has good reliability and validity. It could be used in the clinical or community setting to screen for low health literacy among Spanish speakers.
Hyperfine structure of the Na2 13Δg state

Abstract The hyperfine structure in the Na2 13Δg state is partially resolved by perturbation facilitated optical-optical double resonance (PFOODR) spectroscopy via A1Σu+ ∼ b3Πu mixed intermediate levels. The hyperfine splitting and intensity patterns are shown to be consistent with the Hund's case bβS limit, which implies that J-destroying hyperfine matrix elements are large relative to all fine structure splittings. The fine and hyperfine splitting in the 13Δg state is dominated by the Fermi contact coupling constant associated with the σg3s valence orbital. The fitted coupling constant, b = 210 ± 8 MHz, agrees well with a simple prediction, 221 MHz, based on the atomic Na 32S Fermi contact constant. We suggest that all nlλ3Λ triplet Rydberg states of Na2 and Li2, built on the X2Σg+ ion-core ground state, will exhibit case bβS limiting behavior with fine and hyperfine structure dominated by an n,l,λ-independent Fermi contact coupling constant.
Doping effects on microstructure and scintillation properties of cadmium tungstate films

ABSTRACT This paper reports experimental study on the development of cadmium tungstate scintillator material in the form of nanocrystal films through controlled sol-gel processing and pre-designed doping. We chose cadmium tungstate as a base material for doping and nanostructure development due to its excellent inherent photoluminescence property. In addition, our studies revealed that doping with Li + , B 3+ and Bi 3+ resulted in appreciably reduced grain size and porosity, leading to enhanced optical transmittance. Further analyses indicated that photoluminescence output changed significantly with dopants. The relationships between doping, defects and luminescence were discussed. Key words : Cadmium tungstate; Scintillator; Sol-gel; Doping; Film 1. INTRODUCTION Scintillator is essentially a luminescent material that absorbs the energy of incident particles such as X-rays, -rays, and neutrons and then converts the energy to visible or near visible light. Its physical process, i.e., scintillation, is in princi ple the same as and comparable to that of phosphors
Reasons for missing interviews in the daily electronic assessment of pain, mood, and stress.

Abstract Electronic diary assessment methods offer the potential to accurately characterize pain and other daily experiences. However, the frequent assessment of experiences over time often results in missing data. It is important to identify systematic reasons for missing data because such a pattern may bias study results and interpretations. We examined the reasons for missing electronic interviews, comparing self-report and data derived from electronic diary responses. Sixty-two patients with temporomandibular disorders were asked to rate pain intensity, pain-related activity interference, jaw use limitations, mood, and perceived stress three times a day for 8 weeks on palmtop computers. Participants also were asked the number of and reason(s) for missing electronic interviews. The average electronic diary completion rate was 91%. The correspondence between self-report and electronic data was high for the overall number of missed electronic interviews (Spearman correlation=0.77, P
Images of self-confidence and the change-of-career prospective elementary science teacher

Research studies have reported an overall positive change of attitude toward teaching science after prospective elementary teachers complete a science methods course. The studies also reveal an absence of a description of the attitude change from the individual participant's point of view. It was the purpose of this three-year qualitative study to generate a framework of categories to describe perspective teachers' change of attitude toward teaching science over the term of a science methods course. Participants were graduate change-of-career prospective elementary science teachers. Sources of narrative data were participants' science journal entries and post-lesson plan comments.
Dam1 is the right one: phosphoregulation of kinetochore biorientation.

Abstract Chromosomes have to establish the proper attachment to the spindle before segregation—a process that requires Ipl1p Aurora kinase. Recent work has identified Dam1p, a member of the DASH complex, as the key Ipl1p substrate responsible for kinetochore/microtubule interaction.
Sublethal effects of phenanthrene, nicotine, and pinane on Daphnia pulex

Nearly 500 compounds were detected in the tissues of Great Lakes fish as compared to 8 in tissues of hatchery-reared fish. Lethal concentrations for many representative compounds were determined by testing their acute toxicity (48-hr EC50) to Daphnia pulex. However, the population growth and survival of aquatic organisms over longer time intervals are usually affected at concentrations much lower than the EC50 for a specific chemical. To develop a general relationship between acute and chronic concentrations for representative compounds detected in Great Lakes fish, the authors initiated full-life-cycle testing on D. pulex with phenanthrene, nicotine, and pinane. Growth and fecundity of daphnids was measured in 16-d tests in the laboratory. Phenanthrene and nicotine were highly toxic and pinane was moderately toxic to D. pulex in acute studies. For phenanthrene, a compound of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that has been associated with incomplete combustion of organic matter. For nicotine, a compound in the heterocyclic nitrogen class of chemicals that has been used as an insecticide, the EC50 was 0.24 mg/L. Cyclic alkanes, many of which are constituents of crude oil were represented by pinane for which the EC50 was 3.35 mg/L.
Casein kinase II stimulates rat liver mitochondrial glycerophosphate acyltransferase activity

Abstract Rat liver mitochondrial glycerophosphate acyltransferase (mtGAT) possesses 14 consensus sites for casein kinase II (CKII) phosphorylation. To study the functional relevance of phosphorylation to the activity of mtGAT, we treated isolated rat liver mitochondria with CKII and found that CKII stimulated mtGAT activity approximately 2-fold. Protein phosphatase-λ treatment reversed the stimulation of mtGAT by CKII. Labeling of both solubilized and non-solubilized mitochondria with CKII and [γ- 32 P]ATP resulted in a 32 P-labeled protein of 85 kDa, the molecular weight of mtGAT. Our findings suggest that CKII stimulates mtGAT activity by phosphorylation of the acyltransferase. The significance of this observation with respect to hormonal control of the enzyme is discussed.
Aminoglycoside antibiotics inhibit lysosomal phospholipase A and C from rat liver in vitro

Abstract Accumulation of aminoglycoside antibiotics and phospholipids in lysosomes is a prominent feature of aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity, suggesting the possibility that these agents may inhibit the activity of lysosomal phospholipases. We examined the effect of four aminoglycoside antibiotics, ainikacin, dibekacin, gentamicin and tobramycin, on the hydrolysis of [ 3 I]dioleoylphosphatidylcholine by a lysosomal protein fraction obtained from rat liver which contains phospholipase A and C . Phospholipase A was inhibited strongly by these agents. Phospholipase C was also inhibited, especially by amikacin and tobramycin. These results suggest that the accumulation of phospholipids in the kidney cortex in aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity may be due to inhibition of lysosomal phospholipase action.
Quantitative detection of free 24S-hydroxycholesterol, and 27-hydroxycholesterol from human serum

Background Cholesterol metabolism is important for the maintenance of myelin and neuronal membranes in the central nervous system. Blood concentrations of the brain specific cholesterol metabolite 24S-hydroxysterol to the peripheral metabolite 27-hydroxycholesterol may be useful surrogate markers for neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders, and Multiple Sclerosis. However, current methods to isolate hydroxycholesterols are labor intensive, prone to produce variable extraction efficiencies and do not discriminate between free and esterfied forms of hydroxycholesterols. Since free hydroxycholesterols are the biologically active form of these sterols, separating free from esterfied forms may provide a sensitive measure to identify disease-associated differences in brain sterol metabolism.
Estrogens and Estrogen-Like Non-Feminizing Compounds: Their Role in the Prevention and Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease

: The present position paper is intended to provide evidence that estrogen deprivation contributes to the occurrence and course of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and that currently available estrogen preparations may be useful in the prevention and treatment of AD in women. Additionally, there is now substantial preclinical evidence to support the development of novel non-feminizing estrogens for use in male and female subjects for the protection of neurons from damage and death that underlies the neuropathology of AD. Estrogens and non-feminizing estrogen-like compounds may exert their beneficial effects in AD through a variety of mechanisms, directly through their neuroprotective actions and indirectly through their neurotrophic effects. Inasmuch as estrogens are comparatively free of both acute and chronic toxicities, and non-feminizing estrogens are expected to be even safer, their use for years to decades for the prevention or treatment of AD is possible.
Performance of a Direct Injection Diesel Engine Fueled by a Heavy Oil With the Addition of Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) Polymer

Considering the escalating cost of fossil fuels in correlation with the growing influence of sustainability, the need to seek new alternative fuels is increasing rapidly. This movement has lead researchers to look beyond the usual alternative fuels and focus on plastics as an energy resource in the form of a low density polyethylene (LDPE) used throughout the global community. The authors investigated the injection and combustion of a new class of polymer fuel containing 5% LDPE by weight in a heavy fuel oil (AHFO) in a direct injection diesel engine, in order to evaluate its effectiveness for application as a new alternative fuel. The analysis occurred at 1200 rpm, under loads that ranged from BMEP 1.4-6.04 bar. In order to maintain the fuel’s viscosity around 20 cSt the fuel was heated at 130-150 °C. The smoke (bosch) and emission analysis were also performed and provided promising results in terms of engine performance. This suggests that the feedstock of LDPE may be a viable substitute for AHFO for application in a diesel engine with the addressing of the technical challenges associated with the injection system operation.
Quantitation of NAD+ biosynthesis from the salvage pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD{sup +}) is synthesized via two major pathways in prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems: the de novo biosynthesis pathway from tryptophan precursors, or by the salvage biosynthesis pathway from either extracellular nicotinic acid or various intracellular NAD{sup +} decomposition products. NAD{sup +} biosynthesis via the salvage pathway has been linked to an increase in yeast replicative lifespan under calorie restriction (CR). However, the relative contribution of each pathway to NAD{sup +} biosynthesis under both normal and CR conditions is not known. Here, we have performed lifespan, NAD{sup +} and NADH (the reduced form of NAD{sup +}) analyses on BY4742 wild type, NAD+ salvage pathway knockout (npt1{Delta}), and NAD+ de novo pathway knockout (qpt1{Delta}) yeast strains cultured in media containing either 2% glucose (normal growth) or 0.5% glucose (CR). We have utilized {sup 14}C labeled nicotinic acid in the culture media combined with HPLC speciation and both UV and {sup 14}C detection to quantitate the total amounts of NAD{sup +} and NADH and the amounts derived from the salvage pathway. We observe that wild type and qpt1{Delta} yeast exclusively utilize extracellular nicotinic acid for NAD{sup +} and NADH biosynthesis under both the 2% and 0.5% glucose growth conditions suggestingmore » that the de novo pathway plays little role if a functional salvage pathway is present. We also observe that NAD{sup +} concentrations decrease in all three strains under CR. However, unlike the wild type strain, NADH concentrations do not decrease and NAD{sup +}:NADH ratios do not increase under CR for either knockout strain. Lifespan analyses reveal that CR results in a lifespan increase of approximately 25% for the wild type and qpt1{Delta} strains, while no increase in lifespan is observed for the npt1{Delta} strain. In combination these data suggest that having a functional salvage pathway is more important than the absolute levels of NAD{sup +} or NADH for lifespan extension under CR.« less
On the possibility of using acoustic reverberation for remote sensing of ocean dynamics

The two-point correlation function of diffuse noise fields produced by distributed random sound sources carries useful information on the medium of sound propagation. Such information can be used for performing passive acoustic tomography of the ocean. In a number of cases that are important for practice, the noise field in the ocean is predominated by contributions of individual point sources. Here, a theoretical study is presented on the possibility of determining the sound speed and current velocity in the water column by the correlation processing of reverberation signals measured by two vertical receiving arrays. In other words, we study the possibility of replacing the diffuse noise produced by a great number of delta-correlated sources by waves generated by a localized source and scattered at the rough surface and bottom of the ocean for sensing the medium. The correlation function of scattered waves is calculated by using the method of small perturbations. It is shown that the correlation processing of the scattered waves offers an opportunity of measuring the acoustic nonreciprocity and reconstructing the field of sound speed in the fluid, without using any acoustiLc transceivers.
High-efficiency temporally decorrelated multifocal arrays for multiphoton microscopy and micromachining

Temporally decorrelated multifocal arrays eliminate the spatial interference of adjacent foci that occurs in multifocal arrays and allow multifocal imaging with the diffraction-limited resolution of a single focus even with closely spaced foci. To date, we have produced 1-D temporally decorrelated multifocal arrays using low throughput etalons, which limited the efficiency of the arrays. In this work, we demonstrate a 2-D high-efficiency cascaded-beamsplitter array for producing the beamlets. Using the cascaded beamsplitters, we split the 800-nm light from an ultrashort-pulsed Ti:Al 2 O 3 laser into a 2-D array of beamlets in which the pulses arrive at a plane perpendicular to the propagation direction at different times. We then overlap the collimated beams with slightly different angles at the entrance aperture to a 1.25 NA oil-immersion objective and produce 2-dimensional array of foci that are temporally decorrelated. This allows multiphoton imaging with diffraction-limited focusing, even for pulses as short as 20-fs. This new method of imaging will make it possible to completely overlap the foci and eliminate the need for scanning. This makes highly efficient use of the power available from typical ultrafast lasers, increasing the frame rate in multiphoton microscopy and the throughput in micromachining applications.
Engineering Diplomacy: The Evolving Role of the International Boundary and Water Commission in U.S.-Mexico Water Management

However one chooses to consider the work of the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico (IBWC)--whether from a cultural, geographic or political standpoint--one is drawn to the conclusion it is as remarkable a regional water management agency as can be found anywhere. Supervising the boundary and water of the entire 1967 mile border, the Commission oversees two major river basins, numerous lesser ones, and over 700 miles of land boundary between El Paso, Texas and Tijuana, Baja California Norte. The Commissions' jurisdiction, originating prior to the turn of the century, has grown to embrace a wide range of functions and an extraordinarily diverse geographic and human landscape in the 1980s. In the process it has acquired a reputation as a singularly effective diplomatic and administrative agency and made this delicate sphere of U.S.-Mexican relations the hallmark of binational cooperation. It is at present the only officially designated international organization and permanently institutionalized commission in any sphere of U.S.-Mexico relations (Federal Register, 1984:292). As such, it has become a model for emulation by other countries. From its modest beginnings as a binational agency charged with mapping and maintaining the international boundary, the IBWC's jurisdiction and functions have grown to encompass an array of water management responsibilities and projects, ranging from water apportionment, storage, and flood control, to include border sanitation, water quality, and emergency water supply. Most important, the Commission has evolved as both a diplomatic and technical agency, with primary responsibilities for enforcing and interpreting the provisions of the international treaties with which it is entrusted, and anticipating and designing solutions to new problems within its jurisdiction. The Commission's work is, therefore, dynamic and changing. In the 1970s and 1980s it has faced a number of new issues and challenges that have significantly broadened its actual functions and portend further changes in the Commission's agenda. This paper is addressed to an understanding of these issues, how they have affected the work of the Commission and its capacity to respond to the new items on its agenda. The principal thesis developed in the following pages is that the IBWC functions subject to institutional and political limitations that 1) enable it to be dynamic and effective in certain areas and 2) circumscribe its functional development in others. This dual relationship has rather significant implications for the evolution of the Commission's work in the 1980s and the way in which it will respond to the several challenges it currently faces. In subsequent pages the paper sets out the functional character and scope of the Commission's work, its institutional and political limitations, current problems on the agenda of the Commission, and an analysis of its capacity to deal with these issues in the 1980s.
Some Reflections on Disability and Bioethics

(2001). Some Reflections on Disability and Bioethics. The American Journal of Bioethics: Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 51-52.
Landmine detection using forward-looking GPR with object tracking

There has been significant amount of study on the use of Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) for forward-looking landmine detection. This paper presents our analysis of GPR data collected at a U.S. Army site using the radar system developed by Planning Systems Inc. (PSI). One property of forward-looking systems is that a target appears in multiple radar images at different distances. To exploit this property, we divide the distance range in the radar images into a number of distance bands. Identification of potential targets is first performed in each distance band independently. Our algorithm then tracks these potential targets through multiple distance bands and computes weighted averages of their geometrical features. The persistence property of the targets is used to further reduce false alarm rates by removing potential targets that only appear spuriously. Results of landmine detection, including performance on blind test lanes, are presented.
The Incidence of Diastolic Right Atrial Collapse in Patients With Pleural Effusion in the Absence of Pericardial Effusion

The aim of this study was to describe the incidence of cardiac chamber collapse assessed by echocardiography and explore possible mechanisms in a clinical population of 116 patients with pleural effusion in the absence of pericardial effusion. We found that the frequency of chamber collapse was 18% in patients with pleural effusion in the absence of pericardial effusion, thus cardiac chamber collapse occurs in patients with pleural effusion. (ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Volume 20, April 2003)
Use of Hydrogen Peroxide to Improve Golden Shiner Egg Hatchability

Abstract The efficacy of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in controlling fungal infections (saprolegniasis) in the eggs of golden shiner Notemigonus crysoleucas was assessed in two experiments. Golden shiner eggs were exposed in a 15-min static bath (21°C) to 0, 50, 100, or 200 mg H2O2/L in the first experiment and to 0, 200, 400, and or 800 mg/L in the second experiment. All treatments were based on the amount of active ingredient (30% active ingredient concentration of H2O2) in a single treatment. Three replicates of each concentration were used in each experiment. The objective was to determine the H2O2 concentration that would result in optimum hatching success. The hatching rate significantly increased in each treatment level until 800 mg/L. The mean ± SE percent egg hatchability was 72.3 ± 8.55% and 68.2 ± 5.03% at 400 and 800 mg/L, respectively. Regression analysis revealed the peak treatment level to be between 400 and 800 mg/L.
Understanding Latino children and adolescents in the mainstream: placing culture at the center of developmental models.

Demographic shifts in the U.S. population require developmental researchers to increase their attention to cultural diversity. Conceptual models that incorporate culturally relevant variables and focus on normative and positive development are needed to produce a more balanced understanding of Latino youth development.
Acute stress induces cardiac mast cell activation and histamine release, effects that are increased in Apolipoprotein E knockout mice.

Objectives: Cardiac mast cells have recently been found to be activated in atherosclerotic coronary arteries, but no mediator has so far been documented to be released from them, nor have they been investigated in Apolipoprotein (Apo) E knockout (k/o) mice that develop atherosclerosis. Psychological stress triggers acute coronary syndrome, while acute restraint stress stimulates rat cardiac mast cells, the main mediator of which histamine is a coronary constrictor. Here, we investigated the effect of acute stress on the activation of cardiac mast cells morphologically, as well as the levels of cardiac and serum histamine in normal and genetically deficient mice. Methods: Male, 8–14 week-old ApoE k/o mice and their corresponding control C57BL/6J mice were used. Significant reduction of cardiac histamine from 396.7±45.6 to 214.6±41.5 ng/g was observed over 120 min restraint stress with a corresponding increase in serum histamine from 126.9±4.0 to 188.4±17.3 ng/ml in C57BL mice. Cardiac mast cell activation was observed by light and electron microscopy. Both basal cardiac and serum histamine in ApoE k/o mice was significantly higher than that in C57BL mice. Although the extent of mast cell activation in ApoE k/o mice was similar to that of C57BL mice, the number of cardiac mast cells in ApoE k/o mice was 37% higher. Histamine levels were hardly detectable with or without stress in W/Wv mast cell deficient mice. Conclusions: Acute restraint stress triggered cardiac histamine release in mice that was clearly derived from mast cells, as it was absent in W/Wv mice. The high basal cardiac and serum histamine in ApoE k/o mice, along with the high number of cardiac mast cells, suggest possible ongoing cardiac mast cell activation that may participate in atherosclerosis. These results may possibly help better understand stress-related cardiovascular pathology.
Direct correction of non-space-clamped currents via Cole's theorem

The currents measured during voltage clamp of a non-isopotential neuron reflect axial as well as membrane conductances. One wishes to remove the former in the hope that the latter will reveal quantitative information on the nature of the voltage gated channels at the clamp site. We here show that Cole's theorem can be used to directly remove the axial component from simulated voltage clamp recordings. It is direct in the sense that it requires neither simulation nor fitting. As it comes down to squaring the clamp current and then differentiating with respect to clamp voltage it may indeed be implemented in real time. When applied to synthetic potassium currents in straight fibers we find that our method accurately and robustly recovers both non-uniform conductances and non-uniform channel kinetics. We indicate the degree to which such accuracy is diminished for cells that taper and/or branch.
Response to Dr Krous and Dr Byard's comment regarding EHD paper

Response to Dr Krous and Dr. Byard: We appreciate your interest in the study conducted in Rhode Island to examine the relationship between newborn TEOAE screen findings and SIDS and agree with the cautionary statements made by Dr. Krous and Byard. The study cohort of SIDS infants is indeed small and the study was retrospective and exploratory. The findings are preliminary and we agree that a larger study of SIDS hearing would be invaluable; consequently a large scale multi-center study is being planned. Only a cochlear finding is claimed in the preliminary paper. A brief mention was made of the potential involvement of vestibular function in SIDS to paint a more complete picture of the hypothesis in the discussion. An animal study is
Simultaneous coronary artery bypass grafting and abdominal aneurysm repair decreases stay and costs

Abstract Background . Patients with large (≥5.0 cm) abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) frequently have marked associated coronary artery disease. We hypothesized that a single operation for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)/AAA would provide equivalent, if not improved, patient care while decreasing postoperative length of stay and hospital costs compared with staged procedures. Methods . Eleven patients to date have undergone a combined procedure at our institution. Ten underwent CABG followed by AAA repair, whereas one patient received an aortic valve replacement before aneurysm repair. We performed a retrospective analysis comparing the postoperative length of stay and hospital costs for this single procedure to a combined cohort of 20 randomly selected patients who either received AAA repair (n = 10) or standard CABG (n = 10) during the same time period. Results . No operative mortality has been reported. There were no episodes of neurologic deficit or cardiac complication after these procedures. The postoperative length of stay was significantly decreased for the CABG/AAA group compared with the combined postoperative length of stay for the AAA plus CABG group (7.44 ± 0.88 days versus 14.10 ± 2.00; p = 0.012). Total hospital costs were also significantly decreased for the CABG/AAA group compared with total hospital costs for the AAA plus CABG group ($22,941 ± $1,933 versus $34,076 ± $2,534; p = 0.003). Conclusions . A single operation for coronary revascularization and AAA repair is safe and effective. Simultaneous CABG and AAA repair substantially decreases postoperative length of stay and hospital costs while avoiding possible interim aneurysm rupture and repeat anesthesia.
Unraveling the Specificity of Heparanase Utilizing Synthetic Substrates

Heparanase is a promising anticancer target because of its involvement in cancer invasion and metastasis. Heparanase cleaves heparan sulfate (HS), a sulfated polysaccharide, and activates a series of HS-mediated cell proliferation and angiogenesis processes. Understanding the substrate specificity of heparanase will aid the discovery of heparanase inhibitors. Here, we sought to determine the specificity of heparanase using synthetic polysaccharide substrates. The substrates were prepared using purified HS biosynthetic enzymes. Using these substrates, we were able to dissect the structural moieties required for heparanase. Our data suggest that heparanase cleaves the linkage between a GlcA unit and an N-sulfo glucosamine unit carrying either a 3-O-sulfo or a 6-O-sulfo group. In addition, heparanase cleaves the linkage of a GlcA unit and N-sulfo glucosamine unit with a 2-O-sulfated GlcA residue, not a 2-O-sulfated IdoA residue, in proximity. We also discovered that the polysaccharide with repeating disaccharide units of IdoA2S-GlcNS inhibits the activity of heparanase. Our findings advance the understanding of the substrate specificity of heparanase and identify a lead compound for developing polysaccharide-based heparanase inhibitors.
Inference based on regression estimator in double sampling

SUMMARY The problem of hypothesis testing using the regression estimator in double sampling is considered. Test procedures are provided when the covariance matrix between the primary and the auxiliary variables is either partially known or completely unknown. For the latter case a new 'studentized' version of the regression estimator is proposed as a test statistic. The exact null distribution of this statistic is derived in a special case. An approximation to the null distribution is derived in the general case and studied by means of the Monte Carlo method. The problem of choosing between the double sample regression estimator and the single sample mean estimator is also discussed.
Effectiveness Versus Efficacy: The Limited Value in Clinical Practice of High Dose Dexamethasone Suppression Testing in the Differential Diagnosis of Adrenocorticotropin-Dependent Cushing’s Syndrome

High dose dexamethasone suppression testing has been widely employed in the differentiation between pituitary ACTH-dependent hypercortisolism[ Cushing’s disease (CD)] and the ectopic ACTH syndrome. We hypothesized that the high dose dexamethasone suppression test as it is performed in practice does not improve the ability to differentiate between these two types of ACTH-dependent Cushing’s syndrome. Cases were drawn from 112 consecutive patients with ACTH-dependent Cushing’s syndrome, who were then classified based upon results of inferior petrosal sinus sampling for ACTH levels. Analysis of test characteristics of high dose dexamethasone suppression testing was performed in the 73 patients for whom results are available. Statistical modeling was performed using the 68 cases with complete data on all assessed variables. Logistic regression models were used to predict the probability of pituitary-dependent Cushing’s syndrome (CD) given the results of high dose dexamethasone suppression testing before and a...
Progression of prehypertension to hypertension in adolescents.

In the 2004 report from the National High Blood Pressure (BP) Education Program Working Group on BP in Children and Adolescents, the term “high normal BP” was replaced with the designation “prehypertension”. It was proposed that BP levels that were higher than normal but did not reach the level of hypertension posed an increased risk for progression to hypertension. The overall intent of this description was to help identify children who were at the greatest risk for the development of hypertension. These are children and adolescents for whom targeted prevention programs are expected to be most beneficial. Following the 2004 report, the prehypertension condition has been examined and described in adolescents as well as adults. This review summarizes the knowledge that has been gained on prehypertension including clinical characteristics, rates of progression to hypertension, and evidence of cardiovascular pathology.
A note on correlation clusters and cluster search methods

Four methods of determining the clusters in a correlation matrix are described and compared. The choice of method has to be made according to the size of the matrix and the type of cluster sought. The relativity of clusters is emphasized and a distinction is drawn between phenomenal clusters and nuclear clusters. The relative utility of clusters and factors is briefly commented upon.
An empirical investigation of audit qualification decisions in the presence of going concern uncertainties

. This study presents a logistic regression model which is used to identify U.S. companies that are likely to have their financial statements qualified for going concern reasons. The model is developed using financial statement data for a sample of failing companies. Validation tests performed on independent samples of bankrupt and nonbankrupt companies indicate that the model has reasonable explanatory power. The findings from this study indicate that the auditor's qualification for companies in financial distress is correlated with variables derived from financial statement data. The variables that are consistently identified as being closely associated with the auditor's decision whether to qualify his opinion are recurring operating losses and change in a company's liquidity position. Resume. Cette etude presente un modele de regression logistique utilise afin d'identifier les societes americaines dont les etats financiers sont susceptibles d'etre accompagnes d'une opinion avec restriction quant a la permanence de l'entreprise. Le modele est construit a l'aide de donnees tirees d'etats financiers provenant d'un echantillon d'entreprises en difficultes. Des tests de validation effectues sur des echantillons independants de societe faillies et non-faillies, indiquent que le modele demontre une capacite explicative acceptable. Les resultats de cette etude montrent une correlation entre, d'une part, l'opinion avec restriction dans le cas de societes en difficultes financieres et entre, d'autre part, des variables tirees des donnees d'etats financiers. Les variables qui sont regulierement identifiees comme etant reliees de pres a la decision du verificateur d'emettre un rapport avec restriction, sont les pertes d'exploitation repetitives et la variation dans la position de tresorerie d'une societe.
Association of first-trimester low PAPP-A levels with preterm birth.

Objective To determine the association of, and predictive ability of, pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A), free β-human chorionic gonadotrophin (β-hCG), and nuchal translucency (NT) with preterm birth (PTB). Methods A 5-year retrospective cohort study of women who underwent first-trimester combined screening was performed. Maternal medical, antepartum, and pregnancy outcome data were obtained. PAPP-A and β-hCG were converted to multiples of the median (MoM), and primary exposure was defined as ≤10th percentile MoM for PAPP-A. Secondary exposures were defined as ≥ 90th percentile MoM for β-hCG and NT values of ≥ 20 and 25 mm. The primary outcome was PTB before 35 weeks and the secondary outcome was PTB before 32 weeks. Univariate, bivariate, multivariate, and receiver–operator analyses were used. Results Of the 2231 patients meeting inclusion criteria with complete outcome data available, 222 had a PAPP-A level ≤10th percentile MoM. Abnormally low PAPP-A was associated with an increased risk for PTB < 35 weeks [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.0, 1.0–3.8] and < 32 weeks (aOR 2.7, 1.1–6.4), even after adjusting for prior PTB, tobacco exposure, chronic hypertension, and body mass index. PAPP-A ≤10th percentile was not sufficiently predictive of PTB < 35 weeks (area under curve = 0.63, 95% CI 0.53–0.72). Neither abnormally high β-hCG nor increased NT was associated with an increased risk for PTB. Conclusions PAPP-A ≤10th percentile is associated with an increased risk for PTB, but is not sufficiently predictive to be used clinically. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Radical Embodied Cognitive Science

While philosophers of mind have been arguing over the status of mental representations in cognitive science, cognitive scientists have been quietly engaged in studying perception, action, and cognition without explaining them in terms of mental representation. In this book, Anthony Chemero describes this nonrepresentational approach (which he terms radical embodied cognitive science), puts it in historical and conceptual context, and applies it to traditional problems in the philosophy of mind. Radical embodied cognitive science is a direct descendant of the American naturalist psychology of William James and John Dewey, and follows them in viewing perception and cognition to be understandable only in terms of action in the environment. Chemero argues that cognition should be described in terms of agent-environment dynamics rather than in terms of computation and representation. After outlining this orientation to cognition, Chemero proposes a methodology: dynamical systems theory, which would explain things dynamically and without reference to representation. He also advances a background theory: Gibsonian ecological psychology, "shored up" and clarified. Chemero then looks at some traditional philosophical problems (reductionism, epistemological skepticism, metaphysical realism, consciousness) through the lens of radical embodied cognitive science and concludes that the comparative ease with which it resolves these problems, combined with its empirical promise, makes this approach to cognitive science a rewarding one. "Jerry Fodor is my favorite philosopher," Chemero writes in his preface, adding, "I think that Jerry Fodor is wrong about nearly everything." With this book, Chemero explains nonrepresentational, dynamical, ecological cognitive science as clearly and as rigorously as Jerry Fodor explained computational cognitive science in his classic work The Language of Thought.
Behavioral Activation of a Breast Cancer Patient With Coexistent Major Depression and Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Recently developed behavioral activation interventions have shown promise in effectively treating depression through increasing value-based activity levels that elicit response-contingent reinforcement. This case study highlights the implementation of behavioral activation to a breast cancer patient with major depression and generalized anxiety disorder, applied within the context of a medical center oncology clinic. Following an eight-session behavioral activation protocol, the patient demonstrated notable decreases in self-reported depressive and anxious symptoms and an overall increase in quality of life and medical functioning. These treatment gains were maintained through 6-month follow-up. Consistent with an accumulating literature, these data support behavioral activation as an effective and parsimonious intervention for individuals with depression and concurrent medical problems such as breast cancer.
Topical povidone-iodine reduces mortality from bacterial peritonitis☆

The efficacy of topical 10 and 1.5% povidone-iodine was assessed in a rat fecal peritonitis model. Both solutions were bactericidal in vitro. An LD90 preparation of fecal peritonitis in the rat was then assessed and rats were assigned to control or four treatment groups consisting of lavage with saline, 10% povidone-iodine (2.5 ml/kg), povidone-iodine plus saline (600 ml/kg), or 1% cephalothin (600 ml/kg). Twenty-four-hour mortality rates were recorded. Quantitative peritoneal cultures were obtained before and 3 and 6 hr after lavage. Lavage was effective only with 1.5% povidone-iodine or when cephalothin was added. Each of these lavage solutions significantly reduced mortality (P < 0.05). Delayed intravenous cephalothin (200 mg/kg) reduced mortality significantly following 10 or 1.5% povidone-iodine. Failure of povidone irrigation is due to uncontrolled infection rather than to drug toxicity.
Mediator and SAGA Have Distinct Roles in Pol II Preinitiation Complex Assembly and Function

A key feature of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) preinitiation complexes (PICs) is their ability to coordinate transcription initiation with chromatin modification and remodeling. To understand how this coordination is achieved, we employed extensive proteomic and mechanistic analyses to study the composition and assembly of PICs in HeLa cell and mouse embryonic stem cell (ESC) nuclear extracts. Strikingly, most of the machinery that is necessary for transcription initiation on chromatin is part of the PIC. The PIC is nearly identical between ESCs and HeLa cells and contains two major coactivator complexes: Mediator and SAGA. Genome-wide analysis of Mediator reveals that it has a close correlation with Pol II, TATA-binding protein, and messenger RNA levels and thus may play a major role in PIC assembly. Moreover, Mediator coordinates assembly of the Pol II initiation factors and chromatin machinery into a PIC in vitro, whereas SAGA acts after PIC assembly to allow transcription on chromatin.
Adjustment of cerebrospinal fluid protein for red blood cells in neonates and young infants

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationship between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) red blood cell (RBC) count and CSF protein in neonates and young infants undergoing lumbar puncture. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Urban tertiary care children's hospital. PATIENTS: Infants 56 days of age and younger who had a lumbar puncture in the emergency department between January 1, 2005 and July 31, 2009 were eligible for inclusion. Infants with missing laboratory data, exceedingly high CSF red blood cell counts, or conditions known to elevate CSF protein were excluded. MEASUREMENTS: Linear regression was used to determine the association between CSF RBC and CSF protein. RESULTS: Of 1986 infants, 56 days of age or younger, who underwent lumbar puncture in the emergency department during the study period, 1241 (62.5%) met inclusion criteria. The median age was 34 days (interquartile range: 19-46 days); 45% of patients were male. The median CSF RBC count was 40 cells/mm3 (interquartile range: 2-1080 cells/mm3); 11.8% of patients had a CSF RBC >10,000 cells/mm3. CSF protein increased by 1.9 mg/dL (95% confidence interval: 1.7-2.1 mg/dL) per 1000 CSF RBCs for all included patients. Restricting analysis to patients without pleocytosis yielded comparable results, as did subanalyses by age and delivery type. CONCLUSIONS: We found that CSF protein concentrations increased by approximately 2 mg/dL for every 1000 CSF RBCs. These data may assist clinicians in interpreting CSF protein concentrations in infants 56 days of age and younger in the context of traumatic lumbar punctures. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2012; © 2012 Society of Hospital Medicine
Design and evaluation of a multimedia computing architecture based on a 3D graphics pipeline

With the innovation and integration of media objects in multimedia applications, the importance of architectural support for different types of media objects, e.g., image, video and graphics, in one platform has significantly increased. While several approaches based on vector or VLIW (very long instruction word) architectures, e.g., Vector-IRAM and Imagine, have been pursued, they are not as effective as dedicated graphics pipelines for high-performance 3D graphics. We have explored a new programmable computing architecture based on a 3D graphics pipeline, which utilizes dedicated hardware resources in the 3D graphics pipeline for other types of multimedia computing. Adding programmable flexibility to a graphics pipeline for texture mapping has proven to be effective, e.g., pixel shader. However, due to the diversity of imaging and video processing applications, there are several challenges associated with converting a fixed graphics pipeline to a flexible multimedia computing engine. In this paper, we identify the additional architectural requirements, introduce the proposed architecture with extension details, and present the results of the performance evaluation. With cycle-accurate simulation of several benchmark functions, we have verified that the proposed architecture outperforms a modem powerful media processor in imaging and video processing by a factor of 1.3 to 7.5. The 3D graphics performance would not change much because the additional pipeline stages for the extension result in longer pipeline latency but similar throughout.
Friend spleen focus-forming virus induces factor independence in an erythropoietin-dependent erythroleukemia cell line.

Abstract Erythroid cells from mice infected with the polycythemia-inducing strain of Friend spleen focus-forming virus (SFFVP), unlike normal erythroid cells, can proliferate and differentiate in apparent absence of the erythroid hormone erythropoietin (Epo). The unique envelope glycoprotein encoded by SFFV has been shown to be responsible for this biological effect. The recent isolation of an Epo-dependent erythroleukemia cell line, HCD-57, derived from a mouse infected at birth with Friend murine leukemia virus, afforded us the opportunity to study the direct effect of SFFVP on a homogeneous population of factor-dependent cells. The introduction of SFFVP in complex with various helper viruses into these Epo-dependent cells efficiently and reproducibly gave rise to lines which expressed high levels of SFFV and were factor independent. SFFV appears to be unique in its ability to abrogate the factor dependence of Epo-dependent HCD-57 cells, since infection of these cells with retroviruses carrying a variety of different oncogenes had no effect. The induction of Epo independence by SFFV does not appear to involve a classical autocrine mechanism, since there is no evidence that the factor-independent cells synthesize or secrete Epo or depend on it for their growth. However, the SFFV-infected, factor-independent cells had significantly fewer receptors available for binding Epo than their factor-dependent counterparts had, raising the possibility that the induction of factor independence by the virus may be due to the interaction of an SFFV-encoded protein with the Epo receptor.