cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Platelet tagging with tritium labeled diisopropylfluorophosphate.

A method is described for tagging platelets either in vitro or in vivo with tritium labeled diisopropylfluorophosphate, burning the tagged platelets by a modification of the Schoniger combustion technic and counting the resultant tritiated water by liquid scintillation counting. The curve of in vitro uptake of DFP-H3 by the platelet suggests that more than one protein in or on the platelet takes up the DFP. However, a saturation point is reached, as indicated by a plateau in the uptake curve. The survival curve of in vivo tagged platelets in five normal dogs is exponential with a half-life of 2.4 days. This can be explained by random destruction of platelets or by elution of the tag. The DFP-H3 tag has several advantages over the DFP32 tag. Either smaller doses of DFP or higher levels of radioactivity or both may be achieved with this technic.
Lusophone-African SME internationalization: A case for born global and international joint ventures

AbstractThis study investigates the internationalization strategies of Lusophone Africa multinational enterprises (MNEs) from Angola and Mozambique, more specifically their entry mode. Information ...
Does glucagon-like peptide-1 induce diuresis and natriuresis by modulating afferent renal nerve activity?

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), an incretin hormone, has diuretic and natriuretic effects. The present study was designed to explore the possible underlying mechanisms for the diuretic and natriur...
Sea Level Rise and Coastal Communities

Globally, sea level is rising and it represents a serious concern. The trends are indisputable, and the predictions indicate that sea level will continue to rise for the coming centuries. Sea level rise is a consequence of human-induced climate change and has significant implications for low-lying coastal communities around the world. The impacts are felt with increased coastal flooding during storms and higher frequency of tidal flooding. In many countries, local drainage infrastructures were not designed to consider the mean of sea level rise observed in the past couple of years. Consequently, outlet pipes are often inundated and covered at high tide, reducing the efficiency of drainage in the event of heavy rain. With continued population growth and many people living in high-risk, coastal locations, the potential exists for significant physical, health, social, economic, and environmental consequences on both individuals and communities especially in developing countries.
Running the Gauntlet: Assessing the Threats to Vertical Migrators

Diel vertical migrations by zooplankton and nekton are driven by the selective advantage of avoiding visually cued predators near the surface during the hours of daylight. And just as there is a second set of predators that occupy the migrators’ dark daytime depths, there is also a diverse suite of predators that comprise a gauntlet of threats during the migrations. Here we examine these migrations from the perspective of the migrators, to enumerate the kinds of predatory threats they face and to assess the threat potential of various predator types. The study is based on thousands of hours of in situ observations and measurements of the mesopelagic community in Monterey Bay, California, conducted chiefly by remotely operated vehicles. We provide accounts of some predator/prey interactions, and we introduce a means to calculate the threat potential of specific predators, based on MBARI’s long-term time-series of quantitative video surveys.
Gallium Oxide Materials and Devices

Gallium oxide has recently been found to be of high interest as the widest bandgap semiconductor for which single crystals bulk substrates are available and whose electronic conductivity can be controlled by n-type doping. Because wide-bandgap semiconductors lead to high breakdown voltages in small length scales, and the resistive losses over small length scales are low, the material has several attractive attributes for high-voltage electronic diodes and switches. In this chapter, I give a personal account of the materials science and physics of this exciting new semiconductor material and its initial use in device demonstrations. The intention of the personal account is to share the twisted and connected paths that lead one to a specific research direction—this is certainly true for how I ended up being interested in gallium oxide as an interesting semiconductor material.
Guinea pig cytomegalovirus trimer complex gH/gL/gO uses PDGFRA as universal receptor for cell fusion and entry

Species-specific guinea pig cytomegalovirus (GPCMV) causes congenital CMV and the virus encodes homolog glycoprotein complexes to human CMV, including gH-based trimer (gH/gL/gO) and pentamer-complex (PC). Platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (gpPDGFRA), only present on fibroblast cells, was identified via CRISPR as the putative receptor for PC-independent GPCMV infection. Immunoprecipitation assays demonstrated direct interaction of gH/gL/gO with gpPDGFRA but not in absence of gO. Expression of viral gB also resulted in precipitation of gB/gH/gL/gO/gpPDGFRA complex. Cell-cell fusion assays determined that expression of gpPDGFRA and gH/gL/gO in adjacent cells enabled cell fusion, which was not enhanced by gB. N-linked gpPDGFRA glycosylation inhibition had limited effect and blocking tyrosine kinase (TK) transduction had no impact on infection. Ectopically expressed gpPDGFRA or TK-domain mutant in trophoblast or epithelial cells previously non-susceptible to GPCMV(PC-) enabled viral infection. In contrast, transient human PDGFRA expression did not complement GPCMV(PC-) infection, a potential basis for viral species specificity.
Targeting heparan sulfate proteoglycan-assisted endocytosis as a COVID-19 therapeutic option

Drugs capable of blocking the infectious cycle of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 are urgently needed to tackle the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, the cell entry of SARS-CoV-2, initiated by the binding of the viral Spike (S) protein to human ACE2, has emerged as an attractive drug repurposing target. Here we use murine leukemia viruses pseudotyped with Spike from SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-2 to demonstrate that ACE2-mediated coronavirus entry can be mitigated by heparin, a heparan sulfate-related glycan, or by genetic ablation of biosynthetic enzymes for the cell surface heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs). A drug repurposing screen targeting HSPG-dependent endocytosis identifies pharmacologically active endocytosis inhibitors that also abrogate coronavirus cell entry. Among them, Mitoxantrone (EC50=~10 nM) targets HSPGs directly, whereas Sunitinib and BNTX disrupt the actin network to impair HSPG-assisted viral entry. Gene expression profiling suggests potential combination regimens that optimally target HSPG-dependent viral entry. Altogether, our study establishes HSPGs as an assisting factor for ACE2 in endocytosis-mediated coronavirus entry and identifies drugs that can be repurposed to target this important stage in the viral life cycle.
Prodromal Markers of Upper Limb Deficits in FMR1 Premutation Carriers and Quantitative Outcome Measures for Future Clinical Trials in Fragile X-associated Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome.

Background Fragile X-associated Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome (FXTAS) is a rare, late-onset neurodegenerative disorder characterized by tremor and cerebellar gait ataxia, affecting premutation carriers (PMC) of CGG expansions (range, 55-200) in the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) gene. Discovery of early predictors for FXTAS and quantitative characterization of motor deficits are critical for identifying disease onset, monitoring disease progression, and determining efficacy of interventions. Methods A total of 39 PMC with FXTAS, 20 PMC without FXTAS, and 27 healthy controls performed a series of upper extremity (UE) motor tasks assessing tremor, bradykinesia, and rapid alternating movements that were quantified using an inertial-based sensor system (Kinesia One; Great Lakes NeuroTechnologies, Cleveland, OH, USA). Sub-scores from the clinician-rated FXTAS Rating Scale were correlated with the severity scores generated by the sensor system to determine its validity in FXTAS. Results PMC with FXTAS had significantly worse postural and kinetic tremor compared with PMC without FXTAS (P = 0.02, 0.03) and controls (P = 0.001, 0.0001), respectively, and slower finger tap (P = 0.001), hand movement (P = 0.0001), and rapid alternating movement speed (P = 0.003) and amplitude (P = 0.04) than controls. PMC without FXTAS had significantly worse right finger tap (P = 0.004), hand movement (P = 0.01), and rapid alternating movement speed (P = 0.003) and amplitude (P = 0.02) than controls. FXTAS Rating Scale subscores significantly correlated with all tremorography scores except for finger taps and left rapid alternating movement. Conclusions These findings support the use of inertial sensor quantification systems as promising measures for preclinical FXTAS symptom detection in PMC, characterization of the natural history of FXTAS, assessment of medication responses, and outcome assessment in clinical trials.
OP0142 Family pain history predicts child health status in children with chronic rheumatic disease

Objectives To examine the relationships between parental and family pain history and the pain report and physician-rated health status of children with chronic rheumatic disease, and to determine whether child coping strategy mediates the relationship between family pain history and the child’s pain and physician-rated health status. Method Parents of 100 children were recruited from a paediatric rheumatology clinic during routine visits. Parents completed questionnaires assessing parental pain history and family characteristics. Children in the study completed a series of questionnaires to assess pain and pain coping strategies. A paediatric rheumatologist provided a global assessment of disease severity as an index of child health status. Results A high number of parents of children seen in a paediatric rheumatology clinic described a personal pain history. Over 90% of parents reported having at least one chronic pain condition, with an equal proportion reporting an episode of pain in the past month. Correlational analyses indicated that parents reporting higher levels of current pain and higher mean levels of pain during the past month were more likely to have children reporting higher levels of current pain. In addition, parents who sought more treatment for their own pain and reported higher levels of pain-related interference with activity were more likely to have children reporting higher levels of pain and presenting with poorer health status. Finally, a series of mediational statistical models confirmed that child use of the pain coping strategy, catastrophizing, mediated the relationship between several parent and family pain history variables and the child’s own current pain ratings and physician global assessment. Conclusions The results from the present study highlight potentially important relationships between parent and child pain experiences and suggest that parents should participate in interventions aimed at improving children’s abilities to cope with pain.
Negative Pressure Wound Therapy With Instillation and Dwell Time Used to Treat Pyoderma Gangrenosum: A Case Report.

Introduction Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is a rare, ulcerative dermatosis that is part of a systemic auto-inflammatory process. The overall incidence of PG is 5.8 per 100 000 individuals and it is associated with an increased mortality rate compared with the general population. Due to the pathergy phenomenon-present in 20% to 30% of cases-traumatic events, such as debridement or surgery, are often avoided in these patients. This report is on the use of negative pressure wound therapy with instillation and dwell time (NPWTi-d) combined with a reticulated open cell foam dressing with through holes (ROCF-CC) to achieve debridement and granulation in a lower extremity PG wound. Case report A known patient with history of neuropathic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and cryoglobulinemic vasculitis presented with worsening of his lower extremity wound including new onset pain, odor, and purulent discharge. Negative pressure wound therapy with instillation and dwell time using a hypochlorous acid solution and a ROCF-CC was initiated. Significant decrease in necrotic tissue was noted by day 4, with improved granulation tissue growth by day 25. No pathergy occurred in this case. Conclusions The use of NPWTi-d with ROCF-CC demonstrated positive debridement effects on this PG wound.
Reconstruction of muscle development as a sequence of macromolecular synthesis.

Publisher Summary This chapter hopes to promote progress toward an understanding of muscle development by attempting to integrate the results of the different lines of research. An approximate schedule of the successive steps in the determination of mesodermal tissue that leads to the development of presumptive muscle cells in the limb buds of the chick is elaborated. The chapter outlines the characteristics of this crucial transition period in developing muscle tissue. It begins with the frustrating problem of the first appearance of cell-specific proteins. Two general difficulties in the analysis of developmental processes are encountered. The first of these pertains to the definition of what is meant by specific cell proteins. Perhaps more critical is the second difficulty—defining what is meant by “the first appearance” of a cell-specific protein. The appearance and increase in myosin in skeletal muscle is used as the standard indicator. The overall activity of the transcriptional and translational system is measured as incorporation of amino acids into proteins. The chapter inquires the relationship of protein accumulation to protein synthesis expressed as amino acid incorporation.
Brain cell swelling during hypocapnia increases with hyperglycemia or ketosis.

Background Severe hypocapnia reduces cerebral blood flow (CBF) and is known to be a risk factor for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)-related cerebral edema and cerebral injury in children. Reductions in CBF resulting from hypocapnia alone, however, would not be expected to cause substantial cerebral injury. We hypothesized that either hyperglycemia or ketosis might alter the effects of hypocapnia on CBF and/or cerebral edema associated with CBF reduction. Methods We induced hypocapnia (pCO2 20 ± 3 mmHg) via mechanical ventilation in three groups of juvenile rats: 25 controls, 22 hyperglycemic rats (serum glucose 451 ± 78 mg/dL), and 15 ketotic rats (β-hydroxy butyrate 3.0 ± 1.0 mmol/L). We used magnetic resonance imaging to measure CBF and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in these groups and in 17 ventilated rats with normal pCO2 (40 ± 3 mmHg). In a subset (n = 35), after 2 h of hypocapnia, pCO2 levels were normalized (40 ± 3 mmHg) and ADC and CBF measurements were repeated. Results Declines in CBF with hypocapnia occurred in all groups. Normalization of pCO2 after hypocapnia resulted in hyperemia in the striatum. These effects were not substantially altered by hyperglycemia or ketosis. Declines in ADC (suggesting brain cell swelling) during hypocapnia, however, were greater during both hyperglycemia and ketosis. Conclusions We conclude that brain cell swelling associated with hypocapnia is increased by both hyperglycemia and ketosis, suggesting that these metabolic conditions may make the brain more vulnerable to injury during hypocapnia.
Accurate Optical Flow Sensor for Obstacle Avoidance

In this paper, an accurate optical flow sensor based on our previous design is proposed. Improvements are made to make the optical flow sensor more suitable for obstacle avoidance tasks on a standalone FPGA platform. Firstly, because optical flow algorithms are sensitive to the noise, more smoothing units are added into the hardware pipeline to suppress the noise in real video source. These units are hardware efficient to accommodate limited hardware resources. Secondly, a cost function is used to evaluate the estimated motion vector at each pixel for higher level analysis. Experiment results show that the proposed design can substantially improve the optical flow sensor performance for obstacle avoidance applications.
'A MATTER OF TRUST' : EFFECTS OF COMMUNICATION ON THE EFFICIENCY AND DISTRIBUTION OF OUTCOMES

Abstract In two studies of bilateral bargaining with asymmetric information, we show that the communication medium in which the bargaining takes place, affects the efficiency and distribution of outcomes. The results reflect different degrees of truth-telling and trust across the media. We present a conceptualization of how the effects of communication media can be incorporated into behavioral decision research and game theoretic models of bargaining.
Assembly of vesicular stomatitis virus: Distribution of the glycoprotein on the surface of infected cells

This study demonstrates that the glycoprotein of vesicular stomatitis virus clusters in the plasma membrane of infected Chinese hamster lung cells during morphogenesis and suggests that viral nucleocapsids are required for this clustering. A mutant virus (ts E-1) which is temperature sensitive for the synthesis of viral nucleocapsids but not viral membrane proteins was used. The surface distribution of the viral glycoprotein in cells infected by this virus was determined by a specific indirect immunoferritin stain. Early in infection at permissive temperatures, the glycoprotein was randomly distributed on membrane ghosts. Later, clusters of ferritin the size and shape of virus particles were seen. In contrast, ghosts prepared from virus-infected cells maintained at a restrictive temperature always had a random distribution of viral glycoprotein.
Inversion of a refraction wavefield by imaging in the p-x and v-z planes

Summary. The slowness-distance (p, x) plane is an alternative to the slowness-time intercept (p, T) plane as the intermediate image space in inversion of seismic refraction data. The production of a (p, x) image from travel time-distance (T, x) data has been presented elsewhere so emphasis here is on (p, x) to velocity-depth (u. z) transformation. Iterative downward continuation of a (p. x) image converges to the correct (u, z) image in a manner similar to that in the widely used (p, T) to (u, z) process. Application to a real refraction data set from the Imperial Valley of southern California gives a similar (u, z) solution via both (p, x) and (p, T) images.
Congress Must Act to Guard Our Most Important Right

The recent Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v.Holder, invalidating the “pre-clearance” formula of the Voting Rights Act — which required states with a history of race discrimination in voting to secure federal approval prior to changing election practices — provides an opportunity for Congress to strengthen protection of minority voting rights. While discriminatory methods today are far from the lynch mobs and grandfather clauses that stopped blacks from voting during Jim Crow, the end result of voter suppression and dilution remains largely the same. Congress should act quickly and decisively on this core American principle in order to ensure minority participation in the democratic process.
Fontes orais e histórias comunitárias: controle político ou construção de cidadania?

Existe um tipo de trabalho, relacionado com a memoria de bairros, que utiliza fontes orais objetivando “resgatar” uma historia subterrânea, pouco pesquisada, escondida do conjunto da populacao, inclusive da propria comunidade, que, sem passado reconhecido, teria problemas em se auto-identificar e, por conseguinte, encontrado dificuldades para apontar problemas, caminhos e solucoes. Nesse caso, os autores optam por privilegiar os depoimentos dos moradores da comunidade pesquisada a respeito de diversas questoes relativas aos dilemas do crescimento local, com enfase nas questoes infra-estruturais e na luta para resolve-las. Mas, as entrevistas, na realidade, apenas ilustram um esquema de trabalho previamente montado, de exaltacao a determinada proposta partidaria explicita nas paginas iniciais. Ao abordar um aspecto especifico, dificilmente um discurso questiona outro, direcionando o raciocinio do leitor ao encontro do coro unissono formado para reconstruir a historia do bairro, tratando-se de uma estrategia utilizada, conscientemente ou nao, nas disputas pela memoria. Palavras-chave: Fontes orais, memoria, poder politico, representacoes, historia local Abstract: Summary: A type of work, related with the memory of quarters exists, that uses oral sources objectifying to rescue an underground history, little searched, hidden of the set of the population, also of the proper community, that, without recognized past, would have problems in if autoidentifying e, therefore, joined difficulties to point problems, ways and solutions. In this in case that, the authors opt to privileging the depositions of the inhabitants of the community searched regarding diverse relative questions to the quandaries of the local growth, with emphasis in the questions infrastructures and the fight to decide them. But, the interviews, in the reality, only illustrate a project of work previously mounted, of dither determined the proposal partisan explicit in the initial pages. When approaching a specific aspect, hardly a speech questions another one, directing the reasoning of the reader to the meeting of the unisonous choir formed to reconstruct the history of the quarter, being about na used strategy, conscientiously or not, in the disputes for the memory, Word-key: Oral sources, memory, power politician, representations, local history
The role of external radiotherapy in patients treated with permanent prostate brachytherapy.

To examine the difference in Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA)-Relapse Free Survival (RFS) in patients (pts) with prostate cancer treated with permanent prostate brachytherapy (PPB) alone (monotherapy) or combined modality PPB and external radiotherapy (CMT) by a matched pair analysis. There were 1476 pts who were treated loosely based on the American Brachytherapy Society criteria for monotherapy or CMT. PSA-RFS was based upon the Kattan modification of the ASTRO consensus panel definition. A computer generated matching process was undertaken to produce two equally weighted pairs of patients divided by treatment methodology and Kaplan-Meier PSA-RFS curves were generated and compared by chi(2) testing. All pts were treated between 1992 and 2000 with a 6-y PSA-RFS of 81.9%. The median follow-up was 34.7 months. Patients treated with CMT presented with higher pre-treatment PSA values, Gleason sum score, clinical stage, risk classification, and were more likely to be treated with neoadjuvant hormones. A matched-pair analysis with 314 pts in each group was created stratified by the addition of neoadjuvant hormones, Gleason score sum and the pretreatment PSA value. Actuarial 5-y PSA-RFS was 77.0% for the monotherapy group and 81.1% for the combined therapy group (P=0.54).chi(2) testing by pretreatment PSA value, Gleason score sum, risk stratification, isotope and the addition of neoadjuvant hormones failed to identify any group with a significant difference in 5-y PSA-RFS. In conclusion, this retrospective study presents a large cohort of patients treated with PPB that failed to identify a significant advantage for the addition of combined therapy. A matched pair analysis performed also failed to identify any significant difference based on treatment modality.
Spin-lattice relaxation time measurements using hybrid CSI ― phantom study

The spin-lattice relaxation time T1 of multicomponent tissues is often determined by fitting relaxation data to monoexponential functions. This process can lead to large errors in the relaxation time. We describe a procedure using chemical-shift imaging (CSI) which separates the NMR signal into water and lipid components thus allowing the two signals to be individually analyzed for relaxation times. This procedure yields more representative relaxation times than those obtained by both monoexponential and biexponential fitting schemes.
Obesity in Chinese children.

I do not wish to add fuel to the fire by entering into a discussion on food advertising versus physical inactivity as the culprit for childhood obesity that was prompted by Dr Ashton's editorial (February 2004 JRSM1). I always tell my overweight or obese patients that body fat does not grow on the tree; it has to come from an external source, either overeating or underexertion. The best example comes from China. China used to be known for her slender people; I never saw a fat person in China until very recently.2 Now China is fighting obesity, especially childhood obesity, just like the rest of the world. According to the latest statistics from China, the proportion of obesity among children under the age of 15 increased from 15% in 1982 to 27% today.3 Among the predisposing factors for increasing prevalence of childhood obesity in China, fast food and physical inactivity are the two most important. Because of the efficient advertisements of such fast food giants in the United States as McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken, Chinese children are devouring the American fast food faster than ever.2,4 All of the children in China recognize the image of Ronald McDonald, even though they might not be able to read English.4 That physical inactivity is the other important risk factor for obesity in Chinese children is illustrated by three observations. First, the effect of television on childhood obesity in China has been documented: each hourly increment of television viewing is associated with a 1-2% increase in the prevalence of obesity in urban China.5 Second, childhood obesity is more prevalent in urban areas than in rural areas, not only because children in rural China are physically more active6 but also because urban boys consume more fat than rural boys—23-30% versus 16-20%.7 Third, urban children in China are engaged in more homework because they are under pressure to achieve scholastically, whereas rural Chinese children are engaged more in field work because of economic necessity.8
Tabu Search Based Distributed Risk Management for Virtual Enterprise

For the desired profit and anticipated goal, the virtual enterprises (VEs) must avoid the risks successfully. In view of its characteristics of composition and operation, distributed decision making is used to the deal with the risk of the VE in this paper. A distributed decision making risk management model is established, Tabu search algorithm is designed to solve the model. The computation results of simulative examples show the effectiveness and feasibility of the model and algorithm.
Method for Overcoming the Antiethylene Effects of Ag

A technique is described for eliminating the antiethylene effects of the Ag+ ion in the intact pea plant (Pisum sativum). The technique is based on the ability of the ethylene mimic, acetylene, to negate the antiethylene effect of Ag+, presumably through salt formation, and subsequently to induce the ethylene response.
Forces involved in retention and movement of non-metabolic strontium inPhaseolus vulgaris

Deposition of non-metabolic strontium was studied in tops of bean plants using Sr-89 as a tracer. Test solutions contained 2, 4 dinitrophenol as a metabolic inhibitor. Roots were severed from the plants to allow direct access of solutions into the plant top.
Dynamic modeling and simulation of simple membrane permeators

Dynamic models of membrane permeators for gas separation have been developed. The models, consisting of a system of stiff nonlinear partial differential equations, were generalized into dimensionless forms, simplified by using the Quasi-Steady-State Assumption (QSSA), and solved by the orthogonal collocation method. Dynamic responses of the simple permeators to various disturbances in operating conditions are presented. The simulation results provide insight into the permeator dynamic behavior which is very useful for permeator control and design. The computer program used here is capable of simulating membrane separators of more complex configurations with slight modifications
ZnO cone-shaped blue light emitting diodes

We report on ZnO wafer bonded III-nitride light emitting diodes (LEDs). ZnO wafer was selectively etched to form a hexagonal pyramid shape. For enhancing light extraction and heat conductivity, two types of LED structures were demonstrated: one is having patterned GaN at the wafer bonded interface between GaN and ZnO, the other is the LED having no sapphire. The experimental results of electrical and optical characteristics indicate the high potential of these types of LEDs for solid state lighting sources.
Associations between breast density and a panel of single nucleotide polymorphisms linked to breast cancer risk: a cohort study with digital mammography

Breast density and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have both been associated with breast cancer risk. To determine the extent to which these two breast cancer risk factors are associated, we investigate the association between a panel of validated SNPs related to breast cancer and quantitative measures of mammographic density in a cohort of Caucasian and African-American women. In this IRB-approved, HIPAA-compliant study, we analyzed a screening population of 639 women (250 African American and 389 Caucasian) who were tested with a validated panel assay of 12 SNPs previously associated to breast cancer risk. Each woman underwent digital mammography as part of routine screening and all were interpreted as negative. Both absolute and percent estimates of area and volumetric density were quantified on a per-woman basis using validated software. Associations between the number of risk alleles in each SNP and the density measures were assessed through a race-stratified linear regression analysis, adjusted for age, BMI, and Gail lifetime risk. The majority of SNPs were not found to be associated with any measure of breast density. SNP rs3817198 (in LSP1) was significantly associated with both absolute area (p = 0.004) and volumetric (p = 0.019) breast density in Caucasian women. In African-American women, SNPs rs3803662 (in TNRC9/TOX3) and rs4973768 (in NEK10) were significantly associated with absolute (p = 0.042) and percent (p = 0.028) volume density respectively. The majority of SNPs investigated in our study were not found to be significantly associated with breast density, even when accounting for age, BMI, and Gail risk, suggesting that these two different risk factors contain potentially independent information regarding a woman’s risk to develop breast cancer. Additionally, the few statistically significant associations between breast density and SNPs were different for Caucasian versus African American women. Larger prospective studies are warranted to validate our findings and determine potential implications for breast cancer risk assessment.
Specific heat anomalies in metal hydrides

Abstract Equations have been derived for the variation of the specific heat with temperature for non-stoicho-metric metal hydrides using both attractive and repulsive hydrogen atom mutual interactions. The calculated specific heat anomalies resulting from solute atom rearrangement within the solvent lattice have been compared with measured specific heat curves for palladium and Group V metal hydrides.
The low-temperature catalytic oxidation of CO with N2O by molybdenum oxide supported on silica gel

Abstract On the surface of partially reduced molybdenum oxide supported on silica gel the O− ion was formed from adsorbed N2O and reacted with CO to give the CO2− ion. The latter ion was thermally stable to temperatures in excess of 100 °C. Preadsorption of CO inhibited the formation of the O− and CO2− ions, but the preadsorption of CO2 had no effect on the formation of the two species. The supported molybdenum oxide was active for the oxidation of CO to CO2 at temperatures as low as 0 °C. At all pressures and temperatures studied, the reaction rate was zero order in the partial pressure of CO and CO2; whereas, the rate was zero or first order with respect to the N2O partial pressure, depending upon the pressure and temperature. Apparent activation energies of 14.9 and 10.8 kcal/mole were determined for the zero and first order reactions, respectively. In view of the thermal stability of CO2− and the inhibiting effect of CO, it is concluded that the O− ion is not an intermediate in the low-temperature reaction. Rather, the reaction appears to involve molecular complexes of N2O and CO on clusters of metal ions.
Gradient Elution Moving Boundary Electrophoresis with Channel Current Detection

Gradient elution moving boundary electrophoresis (GEMBE) is a recently described technique for electrophoretic separations in short (1−3 cm) capillaries or microchannels. With GEMBE, the electrophoretic migration of analytes is opposed by a bulk counterflow of separation buffer through the separation channel. The counterflow velocity is varied over the course of a separation so that analytes with different electrophoretic mobilities enter the separation channel at different times and are detected as moving boundary, stepwise increases in the detector response. The resolution of a GEMBE separation is thus dependent on the rate at which the counterflow velocity is varied (rather than the length of the separation channel), and relatively high resolution separations can be performed with short microfluidic channels or capillaries. In this paper we describe an implementation of the GEMBE technique in which a very short (2.5−3.5 mm) capillary or microchannel is used as both the separation channel and a conducti...
Comment on “three-dimensional analysis of laser induced plasmas in single and double pulse configuration”

Abstract Laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an effective technique for real-time chemical analysis of samples in the laboratory and in the field. The performance of LIBS can be significantly improved by replacing the conventional LIBS configuration from single pulse laser to double pulse laser ablation. Corsi et al. showed that by firing two lasers with microsecond order delay can increase LIBS sensitivity [M. Corsi, G. Cristoforetti, M. Giuffrida, M. Hidalgo, S. Legnaioli, V. Palleschi, A. Salvetti, E. Tognoni, C. Vallebona, Three-dimensional analysis of laser induced plasmas in single and double pulse configuration, Spectrochimica Acta, Part B 59 (2004) 723–735] [1] . By studying plume evolution, they attribute this enhancement to the faster plume expansion in double pulse laser ablation. Blast wave theory was used in Corsi's paper to explain the higher expansion speed observed in double pulse laser ablation. However, it is questionable whether the blast wave theorem applies in laser ablation where the shockwave is driven by a vapor plume of mass. We introduce an alternative way to explain the faster plume expansion during double pulse laser through a more general thermodynamic relation.
Pulmonary reactivity to vanadium pentoxide following subchronic inhalation exposure in a non-human primate animal model.

An experimental study was conducted to evaluate changes in pulmonary reactivity resulting from repeated vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) dust inhalation. The study assessed pulmonary reactivity to V2O5 through the use of provocation challenges, and compared V2O5 reactivity before and after subchronic V2O5 exposure. A total of 24 adult, male cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) were exposed by inhalation for 6 h per day, 5 days per week, for 26 weeks. Two V2O5-exposed groups (n=8 each) received equal weekly V2O5 exposures (concentration x time) with different exposure profiles. One V2O5-exposed group received 0.1 mg V2O5 m−3 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, with a twice-weekly peak exposure of 1.1 mg V2O5 m−3 on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and was included to investigate the influence of an exposure regimen with peaks on the development of pulmonary hyper-reactivity. The other V2O5-exposed group received a constant daily concentration of 0.5 mg V2O5 m−3. A control group (n-8) received filtered, conditioned air. Pre-exposure challenges with V2O5 produced a concentration-dependent impairment in pulmonary function, characterized by airway obstructive changes (increased resistance and decreased flow). Analysis of respiratory cells recovered from the lung by bronchoalveolar lavage demonstrated that airway obstruction was accompanied by a significant influx of inflammatory cells into the lung. Subchronic V2O5 inhalation did not produce an increase in V2O5 reactivity in comparison to the control group, and cytological, immunological and skin test results indicate the absence of allergic sensitization. Instead, a trend toward decreased pulmonary reactivity was found following subchronic V2O5 inhalation. Pulmonary reactivity to V2O5 (both functional and cellular responses) was affected, as well as non-specific reactivity to methacholine. This finding suggests that the absence of increased pulmonary reactivity to V2O5 following subchronic inhalation may be related to the induction of tolerance under the exposure conditions used in the study.
SU-E-T-347: Evaluation of DQA Results Using a Super-Sampling Dose Calculation in Helical Tomotherapy

Purpose: The aim of this work is to evaluate the impact of a new supersampling dose calculation method on delivery quality assurance (DQA) results for helical tomotherapy patient plans. Methods: Accuray's Tomotherapy treatment planning system performs its dose calculation by approximating the continuous beam of a full gantry rotation into 51 discrete beam projections, with one dose calculation per projection (TomoHD version 1.0). In a recent software release, TomoHD version 1.1, Accuray enhanced this technique by employing three dose calculation samples per projection. This ‘super‐sampling’ methodology is meant to improve agreement between measured and calculated dose. For this study, we compare the results of the 24 patient DQA plans calculated in our clinic with the newer version of dose calculation with the previous 24 patient plans which were calculated with the older method. The plans were delivered to a SunNuclear ArcCHECK cylindrical detector array, and data were compared using a γ evaluation, with criteria of 3%/3mm. To quantify the results, the percentage of points with γ 95%. Results: 21 of 24 DQA plans (87%) calculated with the older TomoHD 1.0 algorithm passed our (Pγ 95% criteria, while all 24 DQA Plans (100%) generated with the TomoHD 1.1 super‐sampling dose calculation passed. The average values for (Pγ<l) was 97.9% and 98.9% for the original and super‐sampling calculation, respectively. The standard deviation for the older software was 2.1, versus 1.5 for the newer super‐sampling method. Conclusions: The increased number of samples per projection angle employed in the new TomoHD Version 1.1 software leads to a reduction in the dose discrepancies seen in patient DQA plan results. This can improve the agreement between the calculated dose and delivered dose to patients.
Ionizing radiation enhances the therapeutic potential of TRAIL in prostate cancer in vitro and in vivo: Intracellular mechanisms.

Background We assessed the influence of sequential treatment of ionizing radiation followed by tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) on intracellular mechanisms of apoptosis of prostate tumor cells in vitro and in vivo. Methods Prostate normal and cancer cells were exposed to irradiation and TRAIL. Four- to 6-week-old athymic nude mice were injected s.c. with PC-3 tumor cells. Tumor bearing mice were exposed to irradiation and TRAIL, either alone or in combination (TRAIL after 24 hr of irradiation), and tumor growth, apoptosis, and survival of mice were examined. Expressions of death receptors, Bcl-2 family members, and caspase were measured by Western blotting, ELISA, and ribonuclease protection assay; tumor cellularity was assessed by HE inhibition of p53 was performed by RNA interference (RNAi) technology, and apoptosis was measured by annexin V/propidium iodide staining, and terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated nick end labeling assay. Results Irradiation significantly augmented TRAIL-induced apoptosis in prostate cancer cells through upregulation of DR5, Bax, and Bak, and induction of caspase activation. Dominant negative FADD and p53 siRNA inhibited the synergistic interaction between irradiation and TRAIL. The pretreatment of cells with irradiation followed by TRAIL significantly enhanced more apoptosis than single agent alone or concurrent treatment. Furthermore, irradiation sensitized TRAIL-resistant LNCaP cells to undergo apoptosis. The sequential treatment of xenografted mice with irradiation followed by TRAIL-induced apoptosis through activation of caspase-3, induction of Bax and Bak, and inhibition of Bcl-2, and completely eradicated the established tumors with enhanced survival of nude mice. Conclusion The sequential treatment with irradiation followed by TRAIL can be used as a viable option to enhance the therapeutic potential of TRAIL in prostate cancer. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Structural and morphological study of pulsed laser deposited calcium phosphate bioceramic coatings: influence of deposition conditions, laser parameters, and target properties.

Calcium phosphate (CaP) bioceramics, especially hydroxyapatite (HA), have been used as coatings on implants owing to their biocompatible properties. The commercial practice for applying HA coating, plasma spraying, has some disadvantages which limit the long-term stability of the implants. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is being investigated as an alternative technique. The purpose of this research was to systematically study the effect of various parameters of the PLD process on the properties of CaP coatings. In this study, three types of HA targets and two laser wavelengths were used to make six categories of coatings. Predominantly crystalline HA coatings were produced under all six categories at optimum conditions, although small amounts of minor phases sometimes were found. Sufficient coating/substrate bond strength was also obtained. A wide variety of coating morphologies was obtained, from rather dense and uniform to rough and porous. The important factors that affected the morphology included target properties, vacuum level, deposition temperature, and laser wavelength and energy density. PLD's ability to produce both amorphous and crystalline, and both smooth/dense and rough/porous coatings may be a unique advantage.
Mechanical behavior of pressurized in vitro prearteriolar vessels determined with a video system

The muscular resistance arteries of the mesentery and brain serve two different control functions in the cardiovascular system. The former are representative vessels of vascular beds that influence total peripheral resistance and blood pressure; the latter are a good model of vessels in beds that demonstrate blood flow autoregulation. Our purpose was to develop a versatile myographic system appropriate for the in vitro study of 75–250 μm diameter vessels and to explore different physiological properties of cerebral and mesenteric arteries. In this paper the system is described in detail, examples of its use in determining the dynamic responses of the vessels to electrical stimulation are provided, and certain measures indicative of the extent of myogenic behavior are characterized. Cylindrical artery segments about 3-mm long were dissected from Wistar-Kyoto rats and mounted in a chamber filled with physiological saline solution maintained at 37°C. The same solution was perfused via a syringe into one end of the vessel through a microcannula. The other end was then occluded so that experiments could be made over a wide range of transmural pressures without flow. The vessel was viewed through a microscope coupled with a TV camera, and the video output signal of a selected scan line was processed by an electronic dimension analyzing system. This permitted simultaneous digital presentation and analog voltage outputs of the vessel wall thicknesses and lumen diameter. We further incorporated servo control of the syringe using a motor drive. In this way, vessel tests could be carried out at constant pressure or constant diameter, and vessel responses could be obtained following either pressure or diameter command signals. Using the methods presented in this study, small vessels can be maintained under conditions that approximate their in vivo state more closely than other in vitro techniques using ring segments on wires. We also find that the opto-electronic instrumentation is ideally suited for studying the dynamic vessel properties that underlie the control of vascular smooth muscle.
User modeling: a notoriously black art

This paper is intended as guidance for those who are familiar with user modeling field but are less fluent in statistical methods. It addresses potential problems with user model selection and evaluation, that are often clear to expert modelers, but are not obvious for others. These problems are frequently a result of a falsely straightforward application of statistics to user modeling (e.g. over-reliance on model fit metrics). In such cases, absolute trust in arguably shallow model accuracy measures could lead to selecting models that are hard-to-interpret, less meaningful, over-fit, and less generalizable. We offer a list of questions to consider in order to avoid these modeling pitfalls. Each of the listed questions is backed by an illustrative example based on the user modeling approach called Performance Factors Analysis (PFA) [9].
Indirect Determination of Sulfate in Natural Waters by Ion-Selective Electrode

Abstract The indirect determination of sulfate in natural waters (seawater and simulated rainwater) was accomplished by titration with lead nitrate solution using the lead ion-selective electrode as the titration sensor. The indirect determination of sulfate is based on the formation of PbSO4 which is quantified by measurements with a lead electrode. The measurements were carried out in 80 percent isopropanol using a double-junction reference electrode. The data evaluation was performed by a Gran plot of the titration of sulfate samples with standard lead nitrate. Samples containing between 2 and 100 ppm sulfate concentration were analyzed directly, while samples of higher sulfate concentration were diluted prior to analysis. The sea-water samples were diluted 100-fold prior to analysis.
The Risks of Sumatriptan Administration in Patients with Unrecognized Subarachnoid Haemorrhage (SAH)

Administration of sumatriptan in subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) patients, misdiagnosed as migraine patients, may induce symptomatic cerebral vasospasm with potentially dangerous consequences. Over a 5-year period, we observed three patients with a 3-15-year history of migraine, who received sumatriptan for acute headache. Two patients received 6 mg sumatriptan subcutaneously on days 4 and 6, and one patient 3 x 100 mg sumatriptan orally on day 1 after an acute headache episode. In all three cases, an alleviation of headache intensity from severe to moderate was observed. When headache recurred and meningeal signs appeared, SAH was diagnosed by computed tomography in all three cases. No neurological deficits occurred during the further course of the disease. In both patients with a SAH caused by an aneurysm, transcranial Doppler sonography demonstrated vasospasm of the basal cerebral arteries. An antinociceptive effect of sumatriptan can be observed in SAH patients in good clinical condition, which suggests a specific craniovascular antinociceptive action. This may lead to misdiagnosis as migraine and delayed appropriate diagnosis and treatment.
Photothermal common-path interferometry (PCI): new developments

The PCI technique, a modification of photothermal spectroscopy, has become a powerful tool for testing various low absorptive optical materials and components. The current state of the technique and recent progress in extending its capabilities toward the mid-infrared region is presented. A 3.39 μm probe was used for testing and studying various semiconductor materials, such as p-doped GaAs, that can exhibit non-thermal response to the pump beam in addition to the thermal one. A simple theoretical model of the PCI method is shown to describe adequately the experimental data, making it possible to calibrate the setup without using a calibration standard.