cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Planning the Mobilization of Resources via Sustainable Tourism

Questions around the viability of protected areas and conservation landscapes evolve around their financial sustainability. Hence, the chapter addresses this question for the Lake Tumba Landscape via conducting a thorough assessment of its ecotourism potential, which was identified as the most possible and viable independent source of financial revenue. The study identified several natural assets to support the ecotourism (viewing wild bonobos, birds, landscape sceneries, bush trekking) and cultural assets (traditional dancing fair and net hunting). Additionally, the study identified navigating Kasai-Congo River and kayaking along the rapids found in the landscape around Malebo as additional assets. The chapter discusses the necessary investments in infrastructure, logistics, and human resources and proposes the joint-venture (DRC Government, conservation, private sector, and communities) as the route to ensure successful ecotourism in the Lake Tumba Landscape.
Longitudinal Assessment of Hemodynamic and Autonomic Responses to Mechanical Circulatory Support Among Advanced Heart Failure Patients

Purpose Determine the hemodynamic and autonomic response to implantation of durable continuous-flow (CF) left ventricular assist device (LVAD) among individuals with advanced heart failure (AHF). Background HF leads to neurohormonal activation with exaggerated increases in sympathetic tone. This hyperadrenergic environment is positively correlated with HF severity and mortality. Previous investigations have demonstrated that non-physiologic reductions in pulsatility associated with CF-LVADs, contributes to elevated levels of sympathetic nerve activity. Therefore, it is thought that CF-LVAD implantation leads to heightened sympathetic tone. However, there are no data examining longitudinal changes in hemodynamics and/or sympathetic tone prior to and following device implantation. Methods Nine individuals (59 ± 9 yrs, 8 males) scheduled for CF-LVAD implantation underwent hemodynamic assessment ∼two weeks prior to, and ∼three months following surgery. At those dates participants completed a graded head-up tilt (HUT) at supine, 30 and 60 degrees, with assessment of heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP) by arterial catheter, and plasma catecholamines at each position. Results Hemodynamic and catecholamine responses to HUT are displayed in Figure 1. HR and MAP were similar prior to and following CF-LVAD implantation (Supine MAP 78.9 ± 7.5 v. 87.8 ± 14 mmHg, for pre- and post-LVAD respectively, P=0.76). However, pulse pressure was significantly reduced following device implantation (47.3 ± 18, 23.7 ± 12 mmHg for supine pre- and post-LVAD, respectively, P=0.009). Despite the reduction in pulsatility, plasma norepinephrine levels were significantly reduced following device implantation (pre-LVAD 712 ± 374, post- LVAD 319 ± 156 pg/ml, both supine, P =0.016). Notably, pre-LVAD supine norepinephrine levels were significantly greater than post-LVAD levels at a 60-degree HUT (712 ± 374 v. 481 ± 234 pg/ml, P=0.25), indicating a marked reduction in autonomic tone following device implantation. Discussion Despite a reduction in physiologic pulsatility following CF-LVAD implantation, autonomic tone, as measured by plasma norepinephrine levels, significantly declines following device implantation. However, norepinephrine levels observed following device implantation are elevated compared to levels observed among healthy individuals. Together, this information suggests that CF-LVAD implantation improves, but does not reverse, the hyperadrenergic environment that is characteristic of AHF.
Revisiting the Neural Architecture of Decision-Making: Univariate and Multivariate Evidence for System-Based Models in Adolescence

Abstract System-based theories are a popular approach to explaining the psychology of human decision making. Such theories posit that decision-making is governed by interactions between different psychological processes that arbitrate amongst each other for control over behavior. To date, system-based theories have received inconsistent support at the neural level, leading some to question their veracity. Here we examine the possibility that prior attempts to evaluate system-based theories have been limited by their reliance on predicting brain activity from behavior, and seek to advance evaluations of system-based models through modeling approaches that predict behavior from brain activity. Using within-subject decision-level modeling of fMRI data from a risk-taking task in a sample of over 2000 decisions across 51 adolescents—a population in which decision-making processes are particularly dynamic and consequential—we find support for system-based theories of decision-making. In particular, neural activity in lateral prefrontal cortex and a multivariate pattern of cognitive control both predicted a reduced likelihood of making a risky decision, whereas increased activity in the ventral striatum—a region typically associated with valuation processes—predicted a greater likelihood of engaging in risk-taking. These results comprise the first formalized within-subjects neuroimaging test of system-based theories, garnering support for the notion that competing systems drive decision behaviors. Significance Statement Decision making is central to adaptive behavior. While dominant psychological theories of decision-making behavior have found empirical support, their neuroscientific implementations have received inconsistent support. This may in part be due to statistical approaches employed by prior neuroimaging studies of system-based theories. Here we use brain modeling—an approach that predicts behavior from brain activity—of univariate and multivariate neural activity metrics to better understand how neural components of psychological systems guide decision behavior. We found broad support for system-based theories such that that neural systems involved in cognitive control predicted a reduced likelihood to make risky decisions, whereas value-based systems predicted greater risk-taking propensity.
Efficient biosynthesis of lipids from concentrated biomass hydrolysates by an oleaginous yeast

Abstract Microbial lipids are valuable renewable precursors for fuels, chemicals, and nutraceuticals. However, a major limitation to lipid production from cellulosic biomass is low lipid titers, largely stemming from difficulty in preparing highly concentrated biomass hydrolysates and further converting such hydrolysates by microbes. In this study a new process was proposed for high-titer lipid production. In Particular, a concentrated biomass hydrolysate with 121.7 g/L monomeric sugars (113.5 g/L glucose and 8.2 g/L xylose) and 88% glucose yield was prepared from switchgrass pretreated by an acidic aqueous choline chloride: ethylene glycol (ChCl:EG) deep eutectic solvent (DES) within only 24 h of enzymatic hydrolysis. The oleaginous yeast Lipomyces tetrasporus (NRRL Y-11562) was able to consume both glucose and xylose in the biomass hydrolysate and produce 17.6 g/L lipid in batch fermentation. This study demonstrated a new process enabled by DES pretreatment for the production of microbial lipids at high titer from lignocellulosic biomass.
Correlation of Different Visual Scores and the Presence or Absence of Painful Foot Lesions

Most lame cows in dairy farms are detected by visual locomotion scoring (VLS) by farmers and farm personnel. However, it is unknown how accurately foot lesions can be detected by VLS. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the level of agreement between visual locomotion scores and presence or absence of painful foot lesions and to determine the frequency distribution of the encountered diseases related to lameness.
Intergenerational Educational Attainment and Cardiometabolic Health in Latino Individuals Living in the United States

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to estimate the association between cycles of poverty, measured by intergenerational educational attainment (IEA), and the burden of obesity and metabolic dysfunction among Hispanic/Latino individuals in the United States. METHODS This is a cross-sectional study utilizing data from 392 adults linked to 286 biologic parents from the Ninos Lifestyle and Diabetes Study and the Sacramento Area Latino Study on Aging. The educational attainment of parents and offspring was dichotomized in order to categorize IEA. Outcomes included obesity and metabolic syndrome (MetS). Model-based standardization with population weights was used to compare obesity and MetS across generations, and Poisson regression was used to estimate prevalence ratios by IEA. RESULTS A higher prevalence of obesity and MetS was observed in offspring (54% and 69%, respectively) compared with their parents (48% and 42%, respectively). Compared with stable-low IEA, any category with high offspring education was associated with lower obesity and MetS prevalence. The upwardly mobile group saw the greatest benefit; they were 38% (95% CI: 10%-57%) and 46% (95% CI: 21%-63%) less likely to have obesity or MetS. CONCLUSIONS IEA strongly patterns cardiometabolic health among Hispanic/Latino individuals living in the United States, suggesting that promotion of higher education is associated with reductions in obesity and MetS, potentially benefitting future generations of this population.
Functional Coefficient Models for Economic and Financial Data

This paper gives a selective overview on the functional coefficient models with their particular applications in economics and finance. Functional coefficient models are very useful analytic tools to explore complex dynamic structures and evolutions for functional data in various areas, particularly in economics and finance. They are natural generalizations of classical parametric models with good interpretability by allowing coefficients to be governed by some variables or to change over time, and also they have abilities to capture nonlinearity and heteroscedasticity. Furthermore, they can be regarded as one of dimensionality reduction methods for functional data exploration and have nice interpretability. Due to their great properties, functional coefficient models have had many methodological and theoretical developments and they have become very popular in various applications.
Recent Experiences and Advances in Contrast-Enhanced Subharmonic Ultrasound

Nonlinear contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging schemes strive to suppress tissue signals in order to better visualize nonlinear signals from blood-pooling ultrasound contrast agents. Because tissue does not generate a subharmonic response (i.e., signal at half the transmit frequency), subharmonic imaging has been proposed as a method for isolating ultrasound microbubble signals while suppressing surrounding tissue signals. In this paper, we summarize recent advances in the use of subharmonic imaging in vivo. These advances include the implementation of subharmonic imaging on linear and curvilinear arrays, intravascular probes, and three-dimensional probes for breast, renal, liver, plaque, and tumor imaging.
Surgical management of urethrovaginal and vesicovaginal fistulas

Abstract This report reviews a 50 year period during which 157 vesico- and 24 urethrovaginal fistulas were managed. Although the etiologic factors have changed, there has not been a dramatic decrease in the incidence of this complication. In the last 17 years we have noted an increased number of both types of fistula, primarily related to the increased frequency of gynecologic operative procedures. Only 11 (6 per cent) of the fistulas reported in this series resulted from surgical procedures performed in our department. In this series 96 per cent were repaired vaginally but the abdominal approach was used for certain complicated fistulas. Our initial cure rate was 89 per cent and the final success rate in 157 vesicovaginal fistulas was 94.3 per cent. The urethrovaginal fistulas represent a special problem because of the location, scarring, and lack of sufficient fascia for a second-layer closure. In such instances we have successfully used the bulbocavernous fat pad. The success rate for 24 patients with this type of fistula was 87.5 per cent.
Securing embedded user interfaces: Android and beyond

Web and smartphone applications commonly embed third-party user interfaces like advertisements and social media widgets. However, this capability comes with security implications, both for the embedded interfaces and the host page or application. While browsers have evolved over time to address many of these issues, mobile systems like Android--which do not yet support true cross-application interface embedding--present an opportunity to redesign support for secure embedded user interfaces from scratch. In this paper, we explore the requirements for a system to support secure embedded user interfaces by systematically analyzing existing systems like browsers, smartphones, and research systems. We describe our experience modifying Android to support secure interface embedding and evaluate our implementation using case studies that rely on embedded interfaces, such as advertisement libraries, Facebook social plugins (e.g., the "Like" button), and access control gadgets. We provide concrete techniques and reflect on lessons learned for secure embedded user interfaces.
Using a Seed-Network to Query Multiple Large-Scale Gene Expression Datasets from the Developing Retina in Order to Identify and Prioritize Experimental Targets

Understanding the gene networks that orchestrate the differentiation of retinal progenitors into photoreceptors in the developing retina is important not only due to its therapeutic applications in treating retinal degeneration but also because the developing retina provides an excellent model for studying CNS development. Although several studies have profiled changes in gene expression during normal retinal development, these studies offer at best only a starting point for functional studies focused on a smaller subset of genes. The large number of genes profiled at comparatively few time points makes it extremely difficult to reliably infer gene networks from a gene expression dataset. We describe a novel approach to identify and prioritize from multiple gene expression datasets, a small subset of the genes that are likely to be good candidates for further experimental investigation. We report progress on addressing this problem using a novel approach to querying multiple large-scale expression datasets using a ‘seed network’ consisting of a small set of genes that are implicated by published studies in rod photoreceptor differentiation. We use the seed network to identify and sort a list of genes whose expression levels are highly correlated with those of multiple seed network genes in at least two of the five gene expression datasets. The fact that several of the genes in this list have been demonstrated, through experimental studies reported in the literature, to be important in rod photoreceptor function provides support for the utility of this approach in prioritizing experimental targets for further experimental investigation. Based on Gene Ontology and KEGG pathway annotations for the list of genes obtained in the context of other information available in the literature, we identified seven genes or groups of genes for possible inclusion in the gene network involved in differentiation of retinal progenitor cells into rod photoreceptors. Our approach to querying multiple gene expression datasets using a seed network constructed from known interactions between specific genes of interest provides a promising strategy for focusing hypothesis-driven experiments using large-scale ‘omics’ data.
Fundamentals of Practical Controller Design for LTI Plants with Distributed Parameters: Part 1, Modelling and Well-Posedness

This paper addresses some fundamental concerns pertaining to the subject of practical controller design for LTI plants with possibly distributed parameters. The well-posedness of a general LTI model is introduced in terms of the existence of bandlimited stabilizing compensation for the given model. The well posedness of a model is critical from an implementation standpoint for the application of any model-based controller design methodology. The problem addressed in this paper is to characterize LTI distributed parameter models that are well posed with respect to bandlimited stabilising control. The problem is posed on a framework consisting of a novel class of convolution kernels and a completely general control system configuration. These two aspects of the problem formulation place no a priori restriction on the class of LTI distributed paramater systems under consideration or the control design methodology used. Indeed, this framework allows the modelling of LTI distributed parameter systems including point sensing, boundary actuation and effects of initial conditions. Within this framework the result obtained are algebraic in nature. A characterization of well-posed models is given in the form of necessary conditions for the existence of a bandlimited stabilizing controller. Also a restriction of the class of all linear distributed parameter systems under consideration is derived which exhibits this condition.
Histamine synthesis by intact mast cells from canine fundic mucosa and liver

Abstract The synthesis and degradation of histamine by dog fundic mucosa was studied by using cells dispersed by enzymatic digestion and separated sequentially by velocity sedimentation in an elutriator rotor, and by density gradient. Histidine decarboxylase activity was found in appreciable amounts in fractions highly enriched in mast cells when these cells were studied intact, whereas only trace activity was detected in homogenates of these mucosal mast cells or of whole mucosa. Unlike the rat gastric mucosal histamine cell, dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase activity was not present in the canine fundic mast cell. Serotonin, which is found in the rat peritoneal mast cell, was not detectable in the canine mast cell. The histamine-degrading enzyme, histamine methyltransferase, was also present in gastric mucosal cells, but not diamine oxidase. This methyltransferase activity was primarily associated with parietal cells and was not found in the mast cell-enriched fractions. For comparison, fractions containing 60%–80% mast cells were enriched by elutriation from enzyme-dispersed cells of canine liver. As with the gastric mast cells, histidine decarboxylase activity was found in intact cell, but it was lost upon cell disruption.
The handling of the proposal to conserve the name Acacia at the 17th International Botanical Congress—an attempt at minority rule

The handling of controversial Proposal 1584 to conserve the name Acacia with a conserved type for the Australian acacias during the Nomenclature Section meeting at the 17th International Botanical Congress (Vienna) in 2005 is reviewed. Through a simple majority vote, this Section adopted rules requiring a 60% majority of votes to approve any proposal to modify the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and a simple majority to approve all other motions; motions not receiving the required majority were to be rejected. However, for the motion addressing Proposal 1584, 45.1% voted to conserve the type of the name Acacia for Australian acacias, and 54.9% voted to retain the current African type for the name Acacia . Even though this motion failed to get a 60% majority either way as required by the Section’s own rules, Section officials have concluded that the name Acacia is to be conserved for Australian acacias. Treating a motion as approved, even though it received only minority support, also violates the fundamental principle of standard parliamentary procedure—the right of the majority to approve proposals. For Acacia to be formally conserved, the Nomenclature Section needed to approve a motion addressing Proposal 1584 with a majority vote, and this never happened in Vienna. Recommendations are made on how this process might be improved.
Gas-Chromatographic Determination of Ethylene Glycol in Serum

We have developed a method for detection and quantitation of ethylene glycol in serum, based on the gas chromatography of its dibenzoate ester. No special reagents or equipment are required. The method is virtually free of interference and sensitive to less than 0.02 mg of ethylene glycol per milliliter. The total analysis time is about 90 min.
Performance on the Motor Scale of The McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities as Related to Home Environment and Neonatal Reflexes.

Total motor and cognitive-motor performance at age 4 was related to home environment but not to neonatal reflexes. Large muscle skill was unrelated to environment but did relate to neonatal reflexe...
Convergent synthesis of 3-arm star polymers from RAFT-prepared poly(N,N-diethylacrylamide) via a thiol–ene click reaction

A novel convergent route to 3-arm star polymers is described that takes advantage of RAFT-synthesized homopolymers serving as masked macromolecular terminal thiol-containing materials capable of undergoing thiol-ene click reactions.
A comprehensive clustering algorithm for strategic analysis of supply chain networks

Inventory management in supply chain networks involves keeping track of hundreds of items spread across multiple locations with complex interrelationships between them. However, it is not computationally feasible to consider each item individually during the decision making process. The use of clusters of items is preferred for the evaluation of these decisions. In addition, the use of groups of items provides management with more effective methods for characterizing and controlling system performance and results in cost savings such as group discounts. In this research, we introduce a comprehensive clustering methodology for supporting inventory management in supply chain networks. All product characteristics which have a significant impact on the performance of the supply chain are taken into account. The nodes in the network are split into subnodes prior to clustering to reduce the complexity. The average linkage clustering algorithm and the Calinski and Harabasz index are used to identify clusters of similar items. In addition, a set of heuristics is used to capture the relationships between items as specified in the bill of materials for the products. Examples are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the clustering methodology as well as the performance of the heuristics, by comparing the results obtained with the optimal solution.
Three Type I X-Ray Bursts from Cygnus X-2: Application of Analytical Models for Neutron Star Mass and Radius Determination

We study the spectral and temporal properties of three type I X-ray bursts observed from Cygnus X-2 with the Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer. Despite the short time durations (~5 s), these bursts show a radial expansion on the order of several neutron star (NS) radii. We apply the analytical models of spectral formation during the expansion and contraction stages to derive physical conditions for the matter in the burning zone close to the surface of the NS as well as to derive the NS's mass-radius relation. Our results, combined with statistical errors, show that the central object is a compact star with a mass of ~1.4 M☉ and a radius of ~9 km. Our results favor the softer equation of state for NS matter.
Synthesis and in vivo evaluation of (S)-6-(4-fluorophenoxy)-3-((1-[11C]methylpiperidin-3-yl)methyl)-2-o-tolylquinazolin-4(3H)-one, a potential PET tracer for growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR).

Abstract The peptide hormone ghrelin mediates through action on its receptor, the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR), and is known to play an important role in a variety of metabolic functions including appetite stimulation, weight gain, and suppression of insulin secretion. In light of the fact that obesity is one of the major health problems plaguing the modern society, the ghrelin signaling system continues to remain an important and attractive pharmacological target for the treatment of obesity. In vivo imaging of the GHSR could shed light on the mechanism by which ghrelin affects feeding behavior and thus offers a new therapeutic perspective for the development of effective treatments. Recently, a series of piperidine-substituted quinazolinone derivatives was reported to be selective and potent GHSR antagonists with high binding affinities. Described herein is the synthesis, in vitro, and in vivo evaluation of ( S )-6-(4-fluorophenoxy)-3-((1-[ 11 C]methylpiperidin-3-yl)methyl)-2- o -tolylquinazolin-4(3 H )-one ([ 11 C] 1 ), a potential PET radioligand for imaging GHSR.
Formation and Evaporation of Nonsingular Black Holes

Regular (nonsingular) space-times are given that describe the formation of a (locally defined) black hole from an initial vacuum region, its quiescence as a static region, and its subsequent evaporation to a vacuum region. The static region is Bardeen-like, supported by finite density and pressures, vanishing rapidly at large radius and behaving as a cosmological constant at small radius. The dynamic regions are Vaidya-like, with ingoing radiation of positive-energy flux during collapse and negative-energy flux during evaporation, the latter balanced by outgoing radiation of positive-energy flux and a surface pressure at a pair creation surface. The black hole consists of a compact space-time region of trapped surfaces, with inner and outer boundaries that join circularly as a single smooth trapping horizon.
Metabolic Mysteries of the Inflammatory Response: T Cell Polarization and Plasticity

While simultaneously maintaining homeostasis and reducing further harm to the host, the immune system is equipped to eliminate both tumors and pathogenic microorganisms. Bifurcated into cell-mediated and humoral immunity, the adaptive immune system requires a series of complex and coordinated signals to drive the proliferation and differentiation of appropriate subsets. These include signals that modulate cellular metabolism. When first published in the 1920s, "the Warburg effect" was used to describe a phenomenon in which most cancer cells relied on aerobic glycolysis to meet their biosynthetic demands. Despite the early observations of Warburg and his colleagues, targeting cancer cell metabolism for therapeutic purposes still remains theoretical. Notably, many T cells exhibit the same Warburg metabolism as cancer cells and the therapeutic benefit of targeting their metabolic pathways has since been reexamined. Emerging evidence suggests that specific metabolic alterations associated with T cells may be ancillary to their subset differentiation and influential in their inflammatory response. Thus, T cell lymphocyte activation leads to skewing in metabolic plasticity, and issue that will be the subject of this review.
Measurement of the lifetimes of the lowest P 1 3 state of neutral Ba and Ra

The lifetimes of the lowest $^{3}P_{1}$ states of Ba and Ra were determined to be $1345\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}14\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{ns}$ and $422\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}20\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{ns}$, respectively, by measuring the exponential decay of fluorescence after illuminating a thermal atomic beam with pulses of laser light. In addition, the $^{1}S_{0}(F=1∕2)\text{\ensuremath{-}}^{3}P_{1}(F=3∕2)$ transition frequency in $^{225}\mathrm{Ra}$ was measured to be $13\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}999.269\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.001\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ by referencing a nearby ${\mathrm{I}}_{2}$ transition.
Physicians’ obligations to patients infected with Ebola: echoes of acquired immune deficiency syndrome

Physicians across the United States are engaged in training in the identification, isolation, and initial care of patients with Ebola. Some will be asked to do more. The issue this viewpoint will address is the moral obligation of physicians to participate in these activities. In order to do so the implicit contract between society and its physicians will be considered, as will many of the arguments that are redolent of those that were litigated 30 years ago when acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) was raising public fears to similar levels, and some physicians were publically proclaiming their unwillingness to render care to those individuals. We will build the case that if steps are taken to reduce risks-optimal personal protective equipment and training-to what is essentially the lowest possible level then rendering care should be seen as obligatory. If not, as in the AIDS era there will be an unfair distribution of risk, with those who take their obligations seriously having to go beyond their fair measure of exposure. It would also potentially undermine patients' faith in the altruism of physicians and thereby degrade the esteem in which our profession is held and the trust that underpins the therapeutic relationship. Finally there is an implicit contract with society. Society gives tremendously to us; we encumber a debt from all society does and offers, a debt for which recompense is rarely sought. The mosaic of moral, historical, and professional imperatives to render care to the infected all echoes the words of medicine's moral leaders in the AIDS epidemic. Arnold Relman perhaps put it most succinctly, "the risk of contracting the patient's disease is one of the risks that is inherent in the profession of medicine. Physicians who are not willing to accept that risk…ought not be in the practice of medicine."
Assessment of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-uptake during the development of left ventricular hypertrophy.

Abstract Cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) sequesters Ca2+ and plays a crucial role in the regulation of intracellular Ca2+. Its functional properties are central to the excitation–contraction cycle of cardiac muscle. In this study, we hypothesized that alterations in SR function occur during the development of left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy. LV hypertrophy was produced in Lewis rats by the one-kidney, one-clip (1K1C) procedure. LV tissues were obtained from 1K1C rats 1 week (mild, N=7), 4 weeks (moderate, N=7), and 8 weeks (severe, N=7) post-surgery and from the corresponding age-matched, sham-operated controls (N=7 at each stage). In all of these rats, the ratio of LV weight (g) to body weight (kg) was determined and considered as an index for LV hypertrophy. In addition, the ratio of lung weight (g) to body weight (kg) was determined and considered as an index for pulmonary congestion and heart failure. In each LV specimen, SR Ca2+-uptake and tissue Ca2+-ATPase (CAA) level were determined. In 1K1C rats, LV hypertrophy increased by 21, 40, and 90% at 1, 4, and 8 weeks post-surgery, respectively, compared to the age-matched, sham-operated rats, whereas pulmonary congestion did not occur at 1 and 4 weeks but increased significantly by about 21% at 8 weeks. Further, both SR Ca2+-uptake and immunodetectable CAA level did not change at 1 week, increased (54%) to the same extent at 4 weeks, and decreased (42%) by approximately the same extent at 8 weeks in 1K1C rats compared to the age-matched, sham-operated rats. In summary, as LV hypertrophy evolved, Ca2+-uptake and CAA expression did not change in the early, increased in the moderate, and then declined in the later stages of hypertrophy development. The increase in Ca2+-uptake and CAA expression suggests, at the cellular level, a compensatory response to LV hypertrophy, while the decline at later stages indicates the transition to heart failure.
Novel approach for reducing the probability of error in the presence of intersymbol interference and Gaussian noise

A novel method to reduce the probability of error in the presence of inter-symbol interference (ISI) and additive Gaussian noise is introduced. The proposed technique is based on modifying the characteristic function of the ISI variable used in the Beaulieu series method to evaluate the probability of error for binary symmetric channels, such that some pulses are omitted to reduce the effect of ISI. This is accomplished by mapping words of certain bit lengths to prescribed series of pulses where some of the pulses are omitted (zeros). The probability of error for the proposed method is evaluated for different word lengths using Gaussian pulses. Test results show that certain pulse series of lengths 12 or greater, with free distances of two or more and consisting of 30% zeros or more, would achieve lower probability of error in the presence of ISI and Gaussian noise.
The Long Road to Treatment Models of Screening and Admission Into Drug Courts

Drug courts are quite popular but admit relatively small percentages of eligible offenders. Some participants may also not be appropriate for available treatment, further affecting the validity of evaluation findings. The authors used qualitative data from six representative drug courts to examine screening and admission processes in detail. Two distinct screening models were identified: (a) the prosecutor as key initial gatekeeper in diversion drug courts and (b) drug court staff as gatekeeper in postplea courts. Each had three stages: initial eligibility screening using formal eligibility criteria, evidence-based eligibility assessment incorporating clinical assessments and other screening, and judicial and client approval. Drug court admission is complex, with many decision points, gatekeepers, formal and informal criteria, and opportunities for rejection or refusal. The findings help explain drug courts’ low population penetration and suggest the importance of documenting admission processes to identi...
Evidence of complete cellular repair of 1,N6-ethenoadenine, a mutagenic and potential damage for human cancer, revealed by a novel method.

1,N6-Ethenoadenine (eA) is generated endogenously by lipid peroxidation and exogenously by tumorigenic industrial agents, vinyl chloride, and vinyl carbamate. eA detected in human tissues causes mutation and is implicated in liver, colon and lung cancers. N-methyl purine DNA-glycosylase (MPG) is the only enzyme known so far to repair eA. However, the mechanism of in vivo repair of eA and the role of MPG remain enigmatic. Moreover, previous in vivo repair studies for DNA lesions, including eA, focused only on the step of the removal of the base lesion without further insight into the completion of the repair process. This may be in part due to the unavailability of an appropriate in vivo quantitative method to evaluate complete BER process at the basal level. Our newly developed in vivo method is highly sensitive and involves phagemid M13mp18, containing eA at a defined position. The complete repair events have been estimated by plaque assay in E. coli with the phagemids recovered from the human cells after cellular processing. We found that the detectable complete (removal and replacement of eA with adenine) repair was observed only 18% in 16 h, but with the repair nearing completion within 24 h in colon cancer, HCT-116, cells. Moreover, MPG is the predominant enzyme for the BER process to remove eA in mammalian cells. Although, the eA is fairly a bulky adduct compared to other small BER substrate lesions, NER pathway is not involved in repair of this adduct. Furthermore, the eA repair in vivo and in vitro is predominant in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle.
DNA damage and rpair with age in individual human lymphocytes

Abstract Previous biochemical studies on DNA repair competence and aging have been limited to techniques, such as alkaline elution or nucleoid sedimentation, involving mass cell populations. These techniques provide no information about the distribution of DNA damage and repair among individual cells and are unlikely to detect age-dependent changes affecting a minor fraction of the cell population. We have recently described a microgel electrophoretic assay (Singh et al., 1988) that measures, at the level of the individual cell, single-strand DNA breaks and alkali-sensitive sites. Here, we employ this method to analyze DNA damage and repair in lymphocytes isolated from the peripheral blood of 31 subjects (23 males and 8 females aged 25–91 years) and exposed in vitro to 200 rads of X-irradiation. While basal (pre-irradiation) levels of damage were independent of the age of the donor, an age-dependent increase in DNA damage was observed immediately following irradiation. For all subjects, the mean level of DNA damage was restored to pre-irradiation control levels within 2 h of incubation at 37°C. However, a distribution analysis of DNA damage among cells within each sample indicated the presence of a few highly damaged cells (4–16%) in the 2-h sample, the occurrence of which was significantly more common among aged individuals. These data indicate an age-related decline in DNA repair competence among a small subpopulation of lymphocytes.
Functionalization and further crosslinking of the nicalon polycarbosilane based on its metalation with the n-butyllithium—postassium t-butoxide reagent

Reaction of the Nicalon polycarbosilane with the n-BuLi/Me3COK reagent resulted in metalation of approximately one CH2 group in four. Reaction of the metalated polymer with Me2 (CH2 = CH)SiCl gave a Me2(CH2 = CH)Si-substitued Nicalon polycarbosilane. The polymer was heated with different amounts of the [(MeSiH)∼0.8(MeSi)∼0.2]n polysilane in the presence of azobisisobutyronitrile in refluxing benezene. Hydrosilylation by the SiH-containing polysilane of the CH2CH groups of the Me2(CH2CH) Si-substituted Nicalon polycarbosilane gave a new hybrid polymer (when appropriate quantities of reactant polymers were used) whose pyrolyis in a stream of argon to 1000°C left a ceramic residue in 77% yield whose elemental analysis indicated a nominal composition of 91% by weight SiC and 9% C.
Putting Artists on the Map: The Geography of Artists in Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Across the country, urban leaders are developing arts-focused urban policy, but much remains unknown about artists' geography—particularly in contracting, rustbelt cities. Using Cuyahoga County, Ohio, this article describes the geography of artists and explores methodologies for predicting artist-concentrated neighborhoods. The research questions if, and how, scholars can predict artist neighborhoods and design policies to support and nurture these locations. It maps and analyzes existing patterns using survey, property, and Census data, and predicts artist-friendly neighborhoods via a regression model. The analysis reveals neighborhoods' residual capacity for artists and directs initial policy recommendations for an artist-focused vacant land reutilization initiative. For scholars, the findings contribute to a rapidly growing body of literature about the relationship between artists, neighborhood revitalization, and urban policy. For practitioners, the research investigates one strategy for shaping land policy in the post-2008 housing market. Across the country, city leaders, urban planners, and others are developing urban policy targeting artists and the arts. In planning practice and scholarship, artists and their role in revitalizing cities is a "hot topic." At the same time, much is still unknown about artists as a unique population group (if they are even a unique group), their residential and workplace geography, their preferences for housing and work space, and the ability to design policies that reinforce and promote artist neighborhoods. Much of the existing literature on the subject emphasizes booming, large cities, while neglecting moderate-sized, contracting, rust belt locations. This is despite the fact that these cities are also energetically turning to the arts and artists as one avenue of hope after decades of disinvestment. This article explores and analyzes the geography of artists within Cuyahoga County, Ohio (Figures 1 and 2). The county is located in the northeast corner of the state and is dominated
Experimental Study on Frost Structure on Surfaces With Different Hydrophilicity: Density and Thermal Conductivity

An experimental study has been conducted to investigate the effects of surface energy on frost formation. Test samples with three different surfaces of which dynamic contact angles (DCA) were 23, 55, and 88 deg were installed in a wind tunnel and exposed to a humid airflow. The airflow Reynolds number, humidity, the air and the cold plate temperatures were maintained at 9000, 0.0042 kg/kg', +12 and -22°C, respectively. The thickness and the mass of frost layer were measured and used to calculate frost density while heat flux and temperature profile were measured to obtain thermal conductivity. Exact positions of thermocouple junctions were verified by means of visualization system in order to increase accuracy. Results showed that frost density and thermal conductivity increase with time. The surface with a lower DCA showed a higher frost density and thermal conductivity during a two-hour test, but minor differences have been found after two hours of frost generation. Empirical correlations for thickness, mass deposition, density and thermal conductivity were proposed as the functions of test time and surface energy.
Experience in the transfer of handpump technology to less developed countries

Many of the world's nations have neither adequate water supplies nor sufficient sanitation facilities. The United Nations, therefore, designated 1981–1990 as the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade with the explicit goal of providing the world's poor with access to adequate water supplies and proper sanitations. Over the past eight years, the International Division of the Engineering Experiment Station at Georgia Tech has been helping the world's poorer countries assess their need for handoperated water pumps, develop effective hand pump programs, and manufacture, install, maintain and monitor the pumps. The purpose of this paper is to provide a methodology for technology transfer that is applicable to hand pumps as well as to numerous other hardware items.
The structure and chemistry of sulfatides.

Recent advances in the chemistry of cerebroside sulfates which have led to a precise formulation of their structure and to a detailed knowledge of their composition are reviewed.
Low-temperature (<or=550 degrees C) fabrication of poly-Si thin-film transistors

High performance n- and p-channel thin-film transistors (TFTs) have been fabricated in polycrystalline silicon films using a self-aligned-gate process without exceeding 550 degrees C. This process features the use of polycrystalline Si/sub 0.5/Ge/sub 0.5/ for the gate material and high-dose H/sup +/ implantation for grain-boundary passivation so that shorter process times can be used. Low threshold voltages of 2.8 and -0.2 V, and high field-effect mobilities of 35 and 28 cm/sup 2//V-s, where achieved by the NMOS and PMOS devices, respectively. The performance of these devices is comparable to that of previously reported devices fabricated using process temperatures up to 600 degrees C, and is adequate for large-area-display peripheral driver circuits. The significant reduction in maximum process temperature makes this process advantageous for the fabrication of CMOS circuits on large-area glass substrates. >
Expanding the Indications for Elective Partial Nephrectomy: Is this Advisable?

Just when the issue of elective partial nephrectomy appeared to be settled, it is now controversial again, with some centres proposing an expansion of indications to include larger tumour size (4.0– 7.0 cm). Elective partial nephrectomy, that is, partial nephrectomy for renal tumour in the presence of a normal contralateral kidney, is now well accepted for tumour size 4.0 cm. A recent review of the published series in the literature included 909 patients managed in this manner, with only 19 cases of postoperative local tumour recurrence (2.1%) [1]. Extended cancer-specific survival in most of these series has ranged from 95% to 100% [1,2]. Significantly, mean tumour size in most of these reports was 2.0 mg/dl) 10 yr after surgery was twice as high after radical nephrectomy when compared to partial nephrectomy (22.4% vs. 11.6%) [3]. Other studies suggest a potential psychological advantage to preservation of renal parenchyma in this setting [5]. Cost
Structural Modifications to Convert Melittin from a Cytolytic Peptide to a Stable Cargo Linker

Melittin is a 26 amino acid peptide that comprises more than half of the dry weight of the venom of the honeybee Apis Mellifera. In previous studies, we demonstrated that melittin stably bound to the lipid membrane of perfluorocarbon (PFC) nanoparticles and served as an active anti-cancer therapeutic agent in vivo (Soman et al. J Clin Invest. 2009). Here, we report the structure modification that converts the mellittin to a cargo linker for post-formulation liposome customization. We introduced point mutations and truncations to define the lytic and membrane binding activities of melittin. For each of the mutations, lytic activity of the peptides was tested by the carboxyfluorescein fluorescence dequenching assay on carboxyfluorescein encapsulated liposomes. Among all six melittin mutations, the mutation, D1-7, with the first 7 amino acids removed (VLTTGLPALISWIKRKRQQ) dramatically reduces the melittin lytic activity. Using immobilized Giant Unilamellar Vesicles (GUV), we illustrated that at peptide:lipid ratio of 40:1, D1-7 bound to the GUV without pore forming, while at peptide:lipid ratio of 1:83, melittin already formed pores on the GUV membrane. These results suggest that D1-7 eliminates the lytic activity but retains the strong lipid membrane binding. For further confirmation, we measured liposome sizes and zeta potentials with and without D1-7 loading. Consistently, D1-7 did not affect the size of the liposome, but shifted the zeta potential (or surface charge) of the liposome towards the positive voltage range, because D1-7 is a positively charged peptide. Among numerous existing nanosystems for drug delivery, liposomes are approved by FDA for anti-cancer and gene therapy. Accordingly, this linker and/or its refinements could enhance the therapeutic potential of approved liposomal drugs by enabling flexible incorporation and cargo multiplexing through post-formulation surface editing.
Influence of C4B null genes on cytomegalovirus antibody titers in healthy blood donors.

C4B null genes (C4B*QO) have been found with increased frequency in persons with viral diseases, including hepatitis and human immunodeficiency virus infection. Whether a relationship might exist between the presence of C4B*QO and antibodies to cytomegalovirus (CMV) was investigated. Fifty blood donors who were seropositive for CMV antibodies and 101 healthy nondonors were C4-allotyped with electrophoresis immmunofixation. CMV-seropositive sera were titrated for CMV IgG-specific antibody by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and serum IgG levels were assayed by rate nephelometry. C4B*QO was higher in the CMV antibody-positive group than in nondonors (p = 0.05), but the increase was most significant (p = 0.028) in donors with the highest titers of CMV antibodies. There was poor correlation (r = 0.015) between CMV titers and plasma IgG levels. Serum C4B levels were lower in CMV antibody-positive donors with one C4B null gene than in matched nondonors or nondonors not having any null genes.
Aquaplanet Experiments Using CAM’s Variable-Resolution Dynamical Core

AbstractA variable-resolution option has been added within the spectral element (SE) dynamical core of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)–NCAR Community Atmosphere Model (CAM). CAM-SE allows for static refinement via conforming quadrilateral meshes on the cubed sphere. This paper investigates the effect of mesh refinement in a climate model by running variable-resolution (var-res) simulations on an aquaplanet. The variable-resolution grid is a 2° (~222 km) grid with a refined patch of 0.25° (~28 km) resolution centered at the equator. Climatology statistics from these simulations are compared to globally uniform runs of 2° and 0.25°.A significant resolution dependence exists when using the CAM version 4 (CAM4) subgrid physical parameterization package across scales. Global cloud fraction decreases and equatorial precipitation increases with finer horizontal resolution, resulting in drastically different climates between the uniform grid runs and a physics-induced grid imprinting in the var-res simulation...