cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hydroxychloroquine and lichen planopilaris: Efficacy and introduction of Lichen Planopilaris Activity Index scoring system

Background Lichen planopilaris (LPP) and its variant frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) are primary lymphocytic cicatricial alopecias for which there is no evidence-based therapy. Objective We assessed the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine in active LPP and FFA using the LPP Activity Index (LPPAI), a numeric score that allows quantification of the symptoms and signs of the condition for statistical comparison. In addition, we determined with the LPPAI if any improvement (reduction) in the numeric score pretreatment and posttreatment reached statistical significance. Methods This was a retrospective, single-center chart review of 40 adult patients with LPP, FFA, or both who were treated with hydroxychloroquine for up to 12 months from 2004 to 2007 at the University of California, San Francisco Hair Center. Symptoms, signs, activity, and spreading were scored at each visit in the standardized cicatricial alopecia flow chart. A numeric score was assigned to these markers of disease activity and a numeric score was calculated at each visit. Results There was significant reduction (P Limitations Retrospective analysis and uncontrolled study are limitations. Conclusions Hydroxychloroquine is effective in decreasing symptoms and signs in LPP and FFA as shown by significant reduction in the LPPAI in 69% and 83% of patients after 6 and 12 months of treatment, respectively.
Impact of repeat testing of living kidney donors within 14 days of the transplant procedure: a multicenter retrospective survey

I.A. Echenique, D. Cohen, D.L. Rudow, M.G. Ison. Impact of repeattesting of living kidney donors within 14 days of the transplantprocedure: a multicenter retrospective survey.Transpl Infect Dis 2014. All rights reservedAbstract: Background. Atransmissionofhumanimmunodeﬁciencyvirus (HIV) from a live kidney donor prompted recommendations bythe New York State Department of Health and the US Centers forDiseaseControlandPreventionthatalllivedonorsundergoadditionalscreening for HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus(HCV) within 7–14 days of the donation procedure. There areconcerns that re-screening will result in delays and cancelledtransplants.Methods. We surveyed live-donor transplant centers in New YorkState to assess their screening protocols and outcomes. Nine live-donor programs (kidney and liver centers) responded.Results. All but 1 program has a formal repeat screening policy.Overall, no cancellations occurred, but 2 centers experiencedtransplantation delays, generally as the result of technician andlaboratory procedural mistakes necessitating repeat phlebotomy.Testing is typically coordinated with pre-surgical visits, additionallaboratory tests, and physical examinations. In the initial evaluation,serology was most frequently used (all 9 centers), with few centersutilizing nucleic acid testing (NAT) (HIV NAT, 1; HBV NAT, 2; HCVNAT, 2). Repeat testing modalities varied: HIV antibody (5, 55%),HIV NAT (8, 88%), hepatitis B surface antigen (5, 55%), hepatitis Bsurface antibody (2, 22%), hepatitis B core antibody (3, 33%), HBVNAT (3, 33%), HCV antibody (3, 33%), and HCV NAT (5, 55%).Conclusion. Most respondents have policies to re-test living donorswithin 14 days of the transplant procedures. Rarely, centersencountered repeat testing-associated delays, but no cancellationsoccurred.I.A. Echenique
Chopping parameters for separation of sweet sorghum pith and rind-leaf.

Abstract Whole sweet sorghum stalks were chopped immediately after harvest and after 30 days storage using knife velocities of 6, 12 and 18 m s −1 and chop intervals of 0·5, 1·0 and 1·5 cm. The resulting mixture of short pith particles and longer rind-leaf fibers was separated using a manually vibrated 1·25-cm mesh screen. Both the pith and rind-leaf fractions were sampled for moisture content and nonstructural carbohydrate (NC) analysis. For freshly harvested stalks, the pith fraction ranged from 48 to 76% of fresh weight and contained 42–75% of whole-plant NC. After 30 days storage, the chopping treatments yielded a pith fraction ranging from 35 to 65% of whole-plant mass and containing less of the whole-plant NC. The pith did not clean from the rind as easily when the stored stalks were processed. An ANOVA showed that knife velocity and chop interval were both significant, and there was a significant interaction between them at 0 days, but not at 30 days. The 6 m s −1 knife velocity produced pith with the smallest number of rind-leaf fragments, and the 18 m s −1 velocity produced material similar in appearance to that produced by a forage chopper. At 18 m s −1 the rind-leaf appeared to be fractured into smaller pieces, consequently more rind-leaf material was included with the pith. In general, there was a significant drop in whole-plant mass and NC captured in the pith fraction when chop interval was increased above 1 cm. If the design objective is to prepare stalks for juice expression with resultant fermentation to ethanol, the best operating condition is 18 m s −1 and a chop interval of 1 cm or less. The purest (cleanest) pith is needed for juice expression to produce edible syrup, consequently a designer might choose the 6 m s −1 knife velocity and 0·5 cm chop interval. Machine capacity is maximized with the highest knife velocity and largest chop interval.
Full low-frequency asymptotic expansion for second-order elliptic equations in two dimensions

The present paper contains the low-frequency expansions of solutions of a large class of exterior boundary value problems involving second-order elliptic equations in two dimensions. The differential equations must coincide with the Helmholtz equation in a neighbourhood of infinity, however, they may depart radically from the Helmholtz equation in any bounded region provided they retain ellipticity. In some cases the asymptotic expansion has the form of a power series with respect to k2 and k2 (ln k + a)−1, where k is the wave number and a is a constant. In other cases it has the form of a power series with respect to k2, coefficients of which depend polynomially on In k. The procedure for determining the full low-frequency expansion of solutions of the exterior Dirichlet and Neumann problems for the Helmholtz equation is included as a special case of the results presented here.
Demand-assigned multiple-access systems using collision-type request channels: stability and delay considerations

Stability and delay characteristics are developed for a demand-assigned multiple-access (DAMA) scheme which employs multiple message channels and multiple collision-type request channels, and which is capable of high traffic capacity. Trade-offs among delay, stability, and bandwidth utilisation, are investigated using an approximate analysis based on expected value-performance measurements. It is shown that by operating only a few per cent below capacity a dramatic decrease in average delay is attainable while maintaining absolute stability. The scheme is particularly appropriate for single-channel-per-carrier applications with many low-duty-cycle users.
Endocrine and immunologic studies in breast cancer

Summary Estrogen binding tests would appear to be easily reproducible laboratory procedures which can delineate those pateints who will not respond to endocrine ablation. Of those patients with estrogen-sensitive tumors, a competent immunologic status seems to correlate with response to therapy. A favorable response to endocrine therapy was associated with good immunologic capability and failure to respond was associated with immunologic deficiency. The presence of extensive disease, very aggressive tumors, or immune deficiency may warrant the use of chemotherapy preceding or concomitant with endocrine manipulation.
Salmonella survival differences in heated skimmilk and in spray drying of evaporated milk.

Abstract The destruction of Salmonella typhimurium, S. thompson, S. tennessee, and S. kentucky in heated liquid skimmilk was compared with their resistance to milk spray drying at different temperatures. All four strains exhibited relatively similar heat sensitivities in liquid milk, with D values at 60C of from 21.3 to 34.5sec. This was not true for inactivation during spray drying. At each temperature S. tennessee was much more resistant to spray drying, amounting to population decreases of 2 to 3 log cycles less, and calculated D values approximately 2 to 5 times greater, than for the other strains. The exceptional resistance of S. tennessee to spray drying would not have been predicted from D values in heated liquid milk.
Fascicular conduction disturbances after coronary artery bypass surgery: a review with a meta-analysis of their long-term significance

Fascicular conduction abnormalities are frequently reported following adult cardiac surgery, but their pathogenesis and long-term outcomes remain unclear. In this article, we review the epidemiological features, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management, and the short-term and long-term significance of fascicular conduction abnormalities following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, based on data from 30 studies. Conduction disturbances have an incidence of 3.4% to 55.8% after CABG surgery, the most common being right bundle branch block (RBBB). RBBB is usually transient and benign. Although a slew of factors have been implicated in the pathogenesis of fascicular conduction disturbances, the two most important factors are myocardial ischemia and type of cardioplegia. While a 12-lead electrocardiogram is the gold standard for diagnosis, additional tests such as myocardial enzymes or echocardiography may have additional diagnostic and prognostic value. Short-term prognosis after RBBB is good, but its impact on long-term survival is unclear. We conducted a meta-analysis, the first of its kind in this area, using long-term survival data from five studies. There was no difference in long-term survival between patients who developed conduction disturbances after CABG surgery, and those who did not, indicating a benign influence of conduction disturbances on long-term survival, and the lack of the necessity for monitoring or pacing. While the older literature reported an adverse impact of fascicular conduction disturbances on long-term survival, the more recent studies report a substantially reduced mortality after CABG surgery, despite a higher incidence of conduction disturbances, pointing to the effect of improved surgical techniques.
Finding Atomicity-Violation Bugs through Unserializable Interleaving Testing

Multicore hardware is making concurrent programs pervasive. Unfortunately, concurrent programs are prone to bugs. Among different types of concurrency bugs, atomicity violations are common and important. How to test the interleaving space and expose atomicity-violation bugs is an open problem. This paper makes three contributions. First, it designs and evaluates a hierarchy of four interleaving coverage criteria using 105 real-world concurrency bugs. This study finds a coverage criterion (Unserializable Interleaving Coverage) that balances the complexity and the capability of exposing atomicity-violation bugs well. Second, it studies stress testing to understand why this common practice cannot effectively expose atomicity-violation bugs from the perspective of unserializable interleaving coverage. Third, it designs CTrigger following the unserializable interleaving coverage criterion. CTrigger uses trace analysis to identify feasible unserializable interleavings, and then exercises low-probability interleavings to expose atomicity-violation bugs. We evaluate CTrigger with real-world atomicity-violation bugs from seven applications. CTrigger efficiently exposes these bugs within 1-235 seconds, two to four orders of magnitude faster than stress testing. Without CTrigger, some of these bugs do not manifest even after seven days of stress testing. Furthermore, once a bug is exposed, CTrigger can reliably reproduce it, usually within 5 seconds, for diagnosis.
The Mature Athlete Aging Tendon and Ligament

Context:Aging changes the biology, healing capacity, and biomechanical function of tendons and ligaments and results in common clinical pathologies that present to orthopedic surgeons, primary care physicians, physical therapists, and athletic trainers. A better understanding of the age-related changes in these connective tissues will allow better patient care.Evidence Acquisition:The PubMed database was searched in December 2012 for English-language articles pertaining to age-related changes in tendons and ligaments.Level of Evidence:Level 5.Results:The mature athlete faces challenges associated with age-dependent changes in the rotator cuff, Achilles tendon, lateral humeral epicondylar tendons, quadriceps tendon, and patellar tendon. The anterior cruciate ligament and the medial collateral ligament are the most studied intra-articular and extra-articular ligaments, and both are associated with age-dependent changes.Conclusion:Tendons and ligaments are highly arranged connective tissue structures that ma...
Locus of control and weight loss in joiners and non-joiners of weight reduction organizations.

Szimmary.-70 female subjects who had attempted to lose weight responded to Rotter's I-E Scale and to a linear scale indicating their success in weight reduction. They also indicated whether they had ever joined an organized weightreduction program and, if so, whether they had completed it. On the basis of their responses they were classified as Externals or Internals and as Joiners or Non-joiners producing four groups in a 2 x 2 factorial design. The groups were External Joiners, External Non-joiners, Internal Joiners and Internal Nonjoiners. The perceived locus of control did not affect self-rating scores of weight reduction. Nor did membership status affect ratings of success. An interaction between perceived locus of control and membership status was found. Internal Joiners reported greater success in weight loss than Internal Non-joiners. External subjects, however, reported greater success in weight reduction when they did not join a weight-reduction program. The least successful group in weight loss was composed of Joiners who dropped out of a program before its com
Peripheral blood progenitor cell mobilization with intermediate-dose cyclophosphamide, sequential granulocyte-macrophage-colony-stimulating factor and granulocyte-colony-stimulating factor, and scheduled commencement of leukapheresis in 225 patients undergoing autologous transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Interpatient variability in the kinetics of peripheral blood progenitor cell (PBPC) mobilization is commonly seen with conventional chemotherapy-based mobilization regimens. This necessitates the availability of leukapheresis (LP) facilities 7 days a week. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The efficacy of an approach where LP was invariably commenced on Day 11 after intermediate-dose cyclophosphamide followed by sequential administration of granulocyte-macrophage–colony-stimulating factor (CSF) and granulocyte–CSF (Cy/GM/G) was retrospectively analyzed in 225 consecutive, unselected patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for all diagnoses other than acute leukemia at our center. Cy/GM/G was scheduled to avoid weekend LP. RESULTS: After Cy/GM/G, a CD34+ cell yield of at least 2.0 × 106 per kg was achieved in 90.7 percent of patients. Optimal yield (OY; ≥5 × 106 or 10 × 106 CD34+ cells/kg depending on diagnosis) was achieved in 67.6 percent of patients. Only three patients (1.3%) required LP on Saturday or Sunday. Febrile neutropenia (FN) was encountered in 5.3 percent. PBPC yield was highest on Day 1 of LP (p < 0.001). In multivariate analyses, platelet (PLT) count on Day 1 of LP (PLT-D1LP) was positively associated with achievement of OY (p < 0.001). PLT-D1LP and diagnosis of myeloma were associated with a shorter time to achieve a CD34+ cell yield of at least 5 × 106 per kg (p < 0.001 and p = 0.002, respectively). CONCLUSION: Cy/GM/G with scheduled LP commencement on Day 11 enables optimal CD34+ cell yields in most patients undergoing autologous transplantation, despite a low risk of FN and avoidance of weekend LP.
Discussion of: “Investor protection under unregulated financial reporting” (by Jan Barton and Gregory Waymire)

Abstract Barton and Waymire (J. Account. Econ. (this issue)) investigate voluntary accounting disclosure practices in the 1920s. They conclude that managers’ incentives explain, in part, cross-sectional reporting differences. Moreover, the authors conclude that firms with higher “quality” financial reporting experienced substantially lower price declines when stock prices dropped so dramatically in October 1929. Their first finding seems incontrovertible, albeit less surprising. Their second finding is more ambitious, but is questionable, given the limitations of the theory and the empirical tests they employ.
Combined Hydrogen, Heat and Power (CHHP) pilot plant design

Abstract The Combined Hydrogen, Heat and Power (CHHP) system consists of a molten carbonate fuel cell, DFC300. DFC300 consumes biogas, and produces electricity and hydrogen. The high temperature flue gas can be recovered for useful purposes. During the hydrogen recovery process, the anode exhaust gas (37.1% H2O, 45.9% CO2, 5.7% CO, and 11.2% H2) is sent through a water gas shift (WGS) reactor to increase the hydrogen and carbon dioxide composition, and then water is removed in a vapor–liquid separator. The remaining hydrogen and carbon dioxide mixture gas is separated using a 2-adsorber pressure swing adsorption unit under 1379 kPa. Resulting hydrogen can achieve 99.99% purity, and it can be stored in composite hydrogen storage tanks pressurized at 34,474 kPa. Hydrogen is produced at a rate of 2.58 kg/h. The produced hydrogen is filled into transportable hydrogen cylinders and trucked to a residential community 7.5 km away from the CHHP site. The community is powered by fuel cells to supply electricity to approximately 51 apartments. A heat recovery unit to produce steam and hot water recovers hot air exhaust from the DFC300, having a total heating value of 405 MJ/h. The greenhouse employs a two-phase steam heating system. Hot water supply is mainly needed for the CHHP education center. DFC300 produces electricity at a maximum capacity of 280 kW. A substation is built to set up the interconnections. Power poles and power lines are built to distribute electricity to the CHHP system, the education center, and the greenhouse. The overall electricity consumption of the CHHP system is 86 kW, and the greenhouse consumes 40 kW. Therefore, an aggregate of 154 kW of power can be used to provide power to the UC Davis campus.
Dose Calculations for Si-SiO2Si Layered Structures Irradiated by X Rays and 60Co Gamma Rays

A Monte Carlo calculation of dose deposition in a layered Si-SiO2-Si structure is described. Results are given for dose distributions for 250-, 500-, and 5000-A SiO2 thicknesses and for irradiation by 8-keV x rays and 60Co gamma rays. Spatial distributions of holes in the 500-A SiO2 layer are presented.
Physiological identification of static beta axons in primate muscle.

Skeletofusimotor (β) axons exerting a static action on spindle primary endings were identified in the peroneus brevis and tertius muscles of the cynomolgus monkey.
Being female and athletic: A cause for conflict?

This study examined the interrelationships among role conflict, gender role orientation, and female sport participation. One hundred six female high school athletes and nonathletes were administered the Personal Attributes Questionnaire and a role conflict inventory. Multivariate analyses revealed that athletes experienced significantly higher levels of role conflict than nonathletes, but a nonsignificant relationship was found between role conflict and gender role orientation. Role conflict was also unrelated to type of sport, although team athletes high in feminine orientation perceived higher role conflict than low feminine oriented athletes. Overall, levels of perceived and experienced role conflict were low. In sum, role conflict does not appear a major concern for adolescent female athletes nor was gender role orientation a factor related to conflict between the roles of female and athlete.
Construct Validity and Reliability of Hartman's Color Code Personality Profile1

The three reliability and two construct validity studies presented here represent the first psychometric research on the commercially successful and popular Hartman Color Code Personality Profile. The reliability studies found high reliability after 3 and 6 weeks. The construct validity studies substantiated that the Color Code assesses some personality traits. The magnitude of the error variance suggests caution, however, in using the Color Code classifications at the individual level.
Change in direction of flagellar rotation is the basis of the chemotactic response in Escherichia coli

BERG and Anderson1 recently argued from existing evidence that bacteria swim by rotation of their helical flagella. Silver-man and Simon2 have now provided a clear demonstration of this. By means of antibodies specific for flagellar components, they tethered cells to microscope slides or to each other and observed rotation of the cell bodies. The cells were able to stop and to rotate in either direction. It seemed possible, as they proposed2, that cessation, or reversal of flagellar rotation might be involved in bacterial chemotaxis. Accordingly, we used wild-type and chemotaxis-defective mutant cells of Escherichia coli tethered to microscope slides in a manner similar to that of Silverman and Simon2, and stimulated them by sudden increases of chemotactic agents. We found that changes in the direction of flagellar rotation indeed constitute the basis of chemotaxis: addition of attractants causes counter clockwise (CCW) rotation, whereas repellents cause clockwise (CW) rotation.
Expression of 72 kDa and 92 kDa type IV collagenases from human giant-cell tumor of bone

Basement membrane forms widespread barriers to tumor invasion. It has been shown that tumor-secreted, basement membrane-degrading enzymes, namely metalloproteinases (MMPs) play an important role in tumor invasion and metastasis. In this study, we determined the enzymatic activity, content, and mRNA of both the 72 kDa (MMP-2) and 92 kDa (MMP-9) MMPs in primary cultures of human giant-cell tumor of bone (GCT)in vitro and in tissue extracts (in vivo). Gelatin zymography showed the presence of lytic bands at Mr 121000, 92000, and 72000, and these enzymatic activities were inhibited by EDTA, an inhibitor of MMPs. Western blots with antibodies specific for MMP-2 and MMP-9 confirmed the presence of MMP-2 and MMP-9 bothin vitro andin vivo, but GCT cells at late passage showed only MMP-2. Northern blots using labeled cDNA probes specific for these molecules revealed the presence of 3.1 kb transcript for MMP-2 and a 2.9 kb transcript for MMP-9. Using specific antibodies to 72 kDa and 92 kDa type IV collagenases, we studied their cellular distribution by immunohistochemical means. Stronger immunoreactivity was found for 92 kDa type IV collagenase than 72 kDa type IV collagenase in the giant cells. It appears, therefore, that MMP-9 may play an important role in the malignant behavior of GCTs and suggests a potential therapeutic role for protease inhibitors in attempting to minimize the invasive behavior of GCTs.
The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and seasonal flooding – Bangladesh

Although the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) affects one-quarter of the globe to a significant extent, scientific research in Bangladesh relating to ENSO is just beginning. The prime objective of this paper is to provide an improved description of the ENSO-related flooding variability in Bangladesh. Information analyzed for this study includes: i) locally available Bangladesh rainfall and flood-affected area data, and ii) globally available precipitation, sea surface temperature (SST), and atmospheric circulation data.
Translationally Optimal Codons Associate with Structurally Sensitive Sites in Proteins

The mistranslation-induced protein misfolding hypothesis predicts that selection should prefer high-fidelity codons at sites at which translation errors are structurally disruptive and lead to protein misfolding and aggregation. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed the relationship between codon usage bias and protein structure in the genomes of four model organisms, Escherichia coli, yeast, fly, and mouse. Using both the Mantel–Haenszel procedure, which applies to categorical data, and a newly developed association test for continuous variables, we find that translationally optimal codons associate with buried residues and also with residues at sites where mutations lead to large changes in free energy (ΔΔG). In each species, only a subset of all amino acids show this signal, but most amino acids show the signal in at least one species. By repeating the analysis on a reduced data set that excludes interdomain linkers, we show that our results are not caused by an association of rare codons with solvent-accessible linker regions. Finally, we find that our results depend weakly on expression level; the association between optimal codons and buried sites exists at all expression levels, but increases in strength as expression level increases.
Activation of ExoU Phospholipase Activity Requires Specific C-Terminal Regions

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a Gram-negative opportunistic pathogen that utilizes a type III secretion system to subvert host innate immunity. Of the 4 known effector proteins injected into eukaryotic cells, ExoS and ExoU are cytotoxic. The cytotoxic phenotype of ExoU depends on the enzymatic activity of the patatin-like phospholipase A(2) domain localized to the N-terminal half of the protein. Amino acid residues located within the C-terminal region of ExoU are postulated to be required for trafficking or localization to the plasma membrane of eukaryotic cells. This report describes the characterization of a transposon-based linker insertion library in ExoU. Utilizing an unbiased screening approach and sensitive methods for measuring enzymatic activity, we identified regions of ExoU that are critical for activation of the phospholipase activity by the only known cofactor, SOD1. Insertions at D572 and L618 reduced the rate of substrate cleavage. Enzymatic activity could be restored to almost parental levels when SOD1 concentrations were increased, suggesting that the linker insertion disrupted the interaction between ExoU and SOD1. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)-based binding test was developed to measure ExoU-SOD1 binding. These experiments suggest that ExoU activation by SOD1 is hampered by linker insertion. ExoU derivatives harboring minimal phospholipase activity retained biological activity in tissue culture assays. These proteins affected primarily cellular architecture in a manner similar to that of ExoT. Our studies suggest that conformational changes in ExoU are facilitated by SOD1. Importantly, the level of phospholipase activity influences the biological outcome of ExoU intoxication.
Direct and Indirect Measures of Intentional Forgetting in Children and Adults: Evidence for Retrieval Inhibition and Reinstatement☆

In two experiments children in grades 3 and 4 and college students were given an item-by-item cued intentional forgetting task (i.e., instructions were to remember some words and to forget others), either a direct (cued recall word-stem completion) or an indirect (repetition priming word-stem completion) test of memory for the words, and a final free recall test for both remember- and forget-cued words. In both age groups, direct and indirect assessments produced better memory for remember- than for forget-cued words, even in Experiment 2 where the opportunity to selectively rehearse had been reduced by having subjects count aloud with each cue. These results suggest that retrieval inhibition plays a role in item-cued intentional forgetting, albeit one that is similar across ages. Furthermore, again in both age groups, performance on the word-stem completion tasks was enhanced in comparison with an immediate free-recall group, but only for material thought to be irrelevant (the forget-cued words). The facilitation on the priming tasks, however, did not carry over to a final free-recall task. These results on the effects of an intervening experience are discussed in terms of their implications for children's eyewitness testimony.
PULSE FORMATION IN LASERS.

Abstract An exact solution of the nonlinear laser equations in the transient and steady state region shows that a pulse formation takes place in a ring laser for sufficiently high pumping and properly chosen cavity length.
Automatic Segmentation of the Left Ventricle in Cardiac MR and CT Images

This paper describes a segmentation technique to automatically extract the myocardium in 4D cardiac MR and CT datasets. The segmentation algorithm is a two step process. The global localization step roughly localizes the left ventricle using techniques such as maximum discrimination, thresholding and connected component analysis. The local deformations step combines EM-based region segmentation and Dijkstra active contours using graph cuts, spline fitting, or point pattern matching. The technique has been tested on a large number of patients and both quantitative and qualitative results are presented.
Selective induction of apoptosis in mature T lymphocytes by variant T cell receptor ligands.

Activation, anergy, and apoptosis are all possible outcomes of T cell receptor (TCR) engagement. The first leads to proliferation and effector function, whereas the others can lead to partial or complete immunological tolerance. Structural variants of immunizing peptide–major histocompatibility complex molecule ligands that induce selective lymphokine secretion or anergy in mature T cells in association with altered intracellular signaling events have been described. Here we describe altered ligands for mature mouse CD4+ T helper 1 cells that lead to T cell apoptosis by the selective expression of Fas ligand (FasL) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) without concomitant IL-2, IL-3, or interferon γ production. All ligands that stimulated cell death were found to induce FasL and TNF mRNA expression and TCR aggregation (“capping”) at the cell surface, but did not elicit a common pattern of tyrosine phosphorylation of the TCR-associated signal transduction chains. Thus, TCR ligands that uniquely trigger T cell apoptosis without inducing cytokines that are normally associated with activation can be identified.
Knowing Me, Knowing You: Gender Differences in Students’ File Trading

In studying the behavior of students who trade digital files, such as MP3s, over the internet, we have identified a number of gender differences. These differences are interesting because they reflect broader issues such as differences in technology use, cooperative behavior, and risk aversion. MP3s are highly-compressed, high-quality digital audio files that are easily reproduced, and are traded over the internet using special peer-to-peer (P2P) software. Such file trading is frequently at odds with copyright law. We surveyed nearly 1,300 economics principles students at three universities: Colorado State University, Southwest Missouri State University, and the University of Missouri-Rolla. Such students represent a key segment of the file-sharing population. We examined gender differences relating to the uploading and downloading of MP3s from non-commercial sources. Of the 1,239 students who indicated their gender, 501 are female. Certainly, men and women in the sample are similar with regard to several relevant characteristics. For example, no statistical differences between their ages, computer ownership, or reported level of total monthly expenditures exist. However, there were differences in listening habits and computer use. Women in our sample listen to 3.7 hours of music a day, while the men spend only 3.4 hours, a difference significant at the 5 percent level. Women do spend significantly less time on the computer each day. Despite their greater listening habits, fewer women own MP3s. While 84 percent of the men own MP3s, only 68 percent of the women do. A t-test suggests the difference is significant at the 1 percent level. Furthermore, even among those who already own MP3s, men indicate that they expected to obtain significantly more MP3s in the future than the women. When asked how many songs in MP3 format they are expected to acquire in the next 12 months, women are over-represented in the categories of none and 1Y100, while men are over-represented in the categories of 300 or more. File trading requires a certain level of cooperative behavior. To have a robust supply of files for downloading, somebody must be willing to upload. When asked whether they made their digital song files available to others, of those who answered the question, 65 percent of the men but only 51 percent of the women indicated they did. A Pearson Chisquared test rejects the hypothesis that making MP3s available is independent of gender at the 1 percent level. Other research used a logit model to show that female students were only 65 percent as likely as their male counterparts to make MP3s available to other users, even after controlling for such things as time spent listening to music, time spent on computers, and the desire to download more MP3s. [Gallaway et al., Journal of Economics, 2006]. However, male and female students are remarkably similar in their understanding of the free rider problem. Roughly 71 percent of both women and men Atlantic Economic Journal (2006)34:509Y510 * IAES 2006 DOI: 10.1007/s11293-006-9034-x
Shear stress is normalized in glomerular capillaries following ⅚ nephrectomy

Loss of significant functional renal mass results in compensatory structural and hemodynamic adaptations in the nephron. While these changes have been characterized in several injury models, how they affect hemodynamic forces at the glomerular capillary wall has not been adequately characterized, despite their potential physiological significance. Therefore, we used intravital multiphoton microscopy to measure the velocity of red blood cells in individual glomerular capillaries of normal rats and rats subjected to ⅚ nephrectomy. Glomerular capillary blood flow rate and wall shear stress were then estimated using previously established experimental and mathematical models to account for changes in hematocrit and blood rheology in small vessels. We found little change in the hemodynamic parameters in glomerular capillaries immediately following injury. At 2 wk postnephrectomy, significant changes in individual capillary blood flow velocity and volume flow rate were present. Despite these changes, estimated capillary wall shear stress was unchanged. This was a result of an increase in capillary diameter and changes in capillary blood rheology in nephrectomized rats.
Priestly and Prophetic Influences on Black Church Social Services

This study examines the relationship between priestly and prophetic functions and social services sponsored by the Black Church. Faith Factor 2000 Project data for seven African American denominations are used to study the role of the contemporary Black Church in addressing economic and social problems that affect the African American community. Results from bivariate and negative binomial analyses show varied denominational support of social services. The majority of sponsored programs are economic in nature or youth-oriented, rather than political or civic. Furthermore, financially stable churches with better educated, paid clergy positively influence social service sponsorship. And while variables associated with a prophetic function have a greater influence on social services, variables that reflect a more priestly function, specifically whether churches sponsor religious programs, are also important in motivating churches to provide such services. These findings add to the literature on the nuanced nature of the dialectical model used to describe the Black Church.
Crustal Thickness on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge: Bull's-Eye Gravity Anomalies and Focused Accretion.

Spreading segments of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge show negative bull9s-eye anomalies in the mantle Bouguer gravity field. Seismic refraction results from 33°S indicate that these anomalies can be accounted for by variations in crustal thickness along a segment. The crust is thicker in the center and thinner at the end of the spreading segment, and these changes are attributable to variations in the thickness of layer 3. The results show that accretion is focused at a slow-spreading ridge, that axial valley depth reflects the thickness of the underlying crust, and that along-axis density variations should be considered in the interpretation of gravity data.
Experimental aerodynamcis of a rotor entry vehicle.

An unpowered rotor entry vehicle model has been tested at Mach numbers 0.10 to 3.54 at angles of attack from 15° to 90°. The tests included variations of blade collective and cyclic pitch angles. A summary of the autorotative equilibrium rotor speed, forces, and moments is presented. The results indicate that adding the rotor to the capsule improved vehicle performance throughout most of the Mach number range. Maximum lift drag ratio was substantially improved at low Mach numbers. Large pitching moments were produced by the rotor, requiring the use of flaps for longitudinal trim. Control phasing was unusual compared to the predicted response of an "ideal rotor" but did not change grossly with forward flight speed.
Plasma BDNF Is Associated with Age-Related White Matter Atrophy but Not with Cognitive Function in Older, Non-Demented Adults

Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) seems to be involved in regulation of synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis. BDNF plasma and serum levels have been associated with depression, Alzheimer's disease, and other psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. In a community sample, drawn from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA), we examined whether BDNF plasma concentration was associated with rates of age-related change in cognitive performance (n = 429) and regional brain volume (n = 59). Plasma BDNF levels, which were significantly higher in females (p 0.05). Sex differences in the relationship between BDNF and the trajectories of regional brain volume changes were observed for the whole brain and frontal white matter volumes (p<0.05), whereby lower plasma BDNF was associated with steeper volume decline in females but not males. Together, our findings contribute to furthering the understanding of the relationships between plasma BDNF, structural brain integrity and cognition. Potential mechanisms mediating these relationships merit further investigation.
Apologies and Medical Error

One way in which physicians can respond to a medical error is to apologize. Apologies—statements that acknowledge an error and its consequences, take responsibility, and communicate regret for having caused harm—can decrease blame, decrease anger, increase trust, and improve relationships. Importantly, apologies also have the potential to decrease the risk of a medical malpractice lawsuit and can help settle claims by patients. Patients indicate they want and expect explanations and apologies after medical errors and physicians indicate they want to apologize. However, in practice, physicians tend to provide minimal information to patients after medical errors and infrequently offer complete apologies. Although fears about potential litigation are the most commonly cited barrier to apologizing after medical error, the link between litigation risk and the practice of disclosure and apology is tenuous. Other barriers might include the culture of medicine and the inherent psychological difficulties in facing one’s mistakes and apologizing for them. Despite these barriers, incorporating apology into conversations between physicians and patients can address the needs of both parties and can play a role in the effective resolution of disputes related to medical error.
Orientation dependence of the critical magnetic field for multiferroic BiFeO 3

Multiferroic BiFeO${}_{3}$ undergoes a transition from a distorted spiral phase to a G-type antiferromagnet above a critical field ${H}_{c}$ that depends on the field orientation $\mathbf{m}$. We show that ${H}_{c}(\mathbf{m})$ has a maximum when oriented along a cubic diagonal parallel to the electric polarization $\mathbf{P}$ and a minimum in the equatorial plane normal to $\mathbf{P}$ when two magnetic domains with the highest critical fields are degenerate. The orientational dependence of ${H}_{c}(\mathbf{m})$ is more complex than indicated by earlier work, which did not consider the competition between magnetic domains. Some recent measurements might be explained by a mixture of magnetic domains.
Chemical reaction strengthening of Al/TiC metal matrix composites by isothermal heat treatment at 913 K

The effect of solid state heat treatment at 913 K on extruded XD Al/TiC metal matrix composite with 0.7 and 4.0 /nm particle sizes has been investigated. The interfaces between Al and TiC after extrusion were atomically abrupt, as observed by HRTEM. On holding at 913 K, the composite with submicron particle size showed substantial changes in the phases present due to reaction between Al and TiC at 913 K. The stable reaction products are Al3Ti and A14C3. A substantial increase in Young's modulus occurs. The room and elevated temperature strength and hardness of the composite with submicron particles also increase significantly with time of heat treatment, but at the expense of ductility. The effect of heat treatment over the time range investigated is limited to the interfaces for the 4.0 /xm TiC particle size composite due to longer diffusion paths.
Cholecystokinin elicits Satiety in Rats with Open Gastric Fistulas

WITHIN 10 min of starting to eat, a rat stops eating1, grooms for a short period, then usually sleeps. We define this behavioural sequence as satiety: its physiological basis is unknown. Beaumont2 presented the first evidence that the presence of food in the gut is important in generating satiety signals. In 1949, Janowitz and Grossman3 confirmed Pavlov's observation4 that oesophagostomized dogs, in which no food reached the stomach or intestines, ate prolonged meals.
Conceptual realism versus Quine on classes and higher-order logic

The problematic features of Quine's ‘set’ theories NF and ML are a result of his replacing the higher-order predicate logic of type theory by a first-order logic of membership, and can be resolved by returning to a second-order logic of predication with nominalized predicates as abstract singular terms. We adopt a modified Fregean position called conceptual realism in which the concepts (unsaturated cognitive structures) that predicates stand for are distinguished from the extensions (or intensions) that their nominalizations denote as singular terms. We argue against Quine's view that predicate quantifiers can be given a referential interpretation only if the entities predicates stand for on such an interpretation are the same as the classes (assuming extensionality) that nominalized predicates denote as singular terms. Quine's alternative of giving predicate quantifiers only a substitutional interpretation is compared with a constructive version of conceptual realism, which with a logic of nominalized predicates is compared with Quine's description of conceptualism as a ramified theory of classes. We argue against Quine's implicit assumption that conceptualism cannot account for impredicative concept-formation and compare holistic conceptual realism with Quine's class Platonism.
Caenorhabditis elegans atx-2 Promotes Germline Proliferation and the Oocyte Fate

In the Caenorhabditis elegans germline, proliferation is induced by Notch-type signaling. Entry of germ cells into meiosis is triggered by activity of the GLD-1 and GLD-2 pathways, which function redundantly to promote meiosis and/or inhibit proliferation. Activation of the germline Notch-type receptor, GLP-1, ultimately inhibits the activities of the GLD-1 and GLD-2 pathways. We previously identified several ego (enhancer of glp-1) genes that promote germline proliferation and interact genetically with the GLP-1 signaling pathway. Here, we show that atx-2 is an ego gene. Our data suggest that ATX-2 is not a positive regulator of the GLP-1 signaling pathway and GLP-1 signaling is not the sole positive regulator of ATX-2 activity. Moreover, our data indicate that GLP-1 must have an additional function, which may be to repress activity of a third meiotic entry pathway that would work in parallel with the GLD-1 and GLD-2 pathways. In addition to its role in proliferation, ATX-2 acts downstream of FOG-2 to promote the female germline fate.
Two-Layered Liquid Half-Space (Pekeris Waveguide)

We consider an example of a waveguide propagation problem which is not only formally solvable but whose solution contains a rich vein of formal and approximate analysis interspersed with physical interpretations. It is truly a canonical problem.
The Impact of HIV-Associated Neuropsychological Impairment on Everyday Functioning

HIV-1 infection can be associated with neuropsychological (NP) deficits ranging from subtle to severe. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional, or “real-world” impact of HIV-associated NP impairment in a group of 267 HIV-infected participants. All participants received comprehensive NP, neuromedical, and standardized functional evaluations that included laboratory measures of shopping, cooking, financial management, medication management and vocational abilities. Compared to NP-normal participants, those with NP impairment performed significantly worse on all laboratory measures of everyday functioning. Multivariate analyses revealed that the NP ability domains of Abstraction/Executive Function, Learning, Attention/Working Memory and Verbal abilities most strongly and consistently predicted failures on the functional battery. Both NP impairment and impairment on the functional battery were significantly associated with subjective experiences of cognitive difficulties, as well as unemployment and increased dependence in activities of daily living; multivariate prediction models that also considered depressed mood and biological measures of disease progression revealed that impairment on the functional battery and depression were the only unique predictors of all three indicators of “real-world” functioning. The current results add to growing evidence concerning the clinical significance of HIV-associated NP impairment. Objective, laboratory based functional measures, such as those used here, may compliment NP testing in future studies directed at understanding the impact on life quality of central nervous system disorders and their treatments. Finally, there is a need for additional research investigating the apparently independent effect of depression on level of everyday functioning in HIV infected persons.NOTE: Dr. Erin D. Bigler served as action editor during the course of this review. (JINS, 2004, 10, 317–331.)
A Validated LC Method for the Determination of the Enantiomeric Purity of Aliskiren Hemifumarate in Bulk Drug Samples

High-performance liquid chromatography enantioseparation of aliskiren hemifumarate was accomplished on an immobilized-type Chiralpak IC chiral stationary phase under both polar organic and reversed-phase modes. A simple analytical method was developed and validated using a mixture of acetonitrile –n-butylamine 100:0.1 (v/v/) as a mobile phase with a flow rate maintained at 1.0 mL/ min. Ultraviolet detection was carried out at 228 nm. Resolution between the two enantiomers was greater than 3.0. This method was capable of detecting the R-isomer to a level of 0.2 mg/mL. The method was validated as per International Conference on Harmonization guidelines and found to be robust. The method is very useful for routine evaluation of the quality of aliskiren hemifumarate in bulk drug manufacturing units.