cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Lidar based edge-detection for bridge defect identification

Previous visual damage detection on bridge structure based on eye-ball method is arbitrary and time-consuming for bridge management due to its heuristic nature. Commercial remote sensing (CRS), which has remarkable applications for geometric quantification, is suggested to supplement visual bridge inspection. Ground-based LIDAR is one of the remote sensing tools that have been successfully used in bridge evaluation. Most of the early measurement algorithms are developed based on the spatial information contained from the LIDAR data; this paper explores the potential of applying another important feature of the scan data: the reflectivity, to enhance the defect detection program. The addition of reflectivity in damage diagnostics is particularly useful for defect detection of curved surfaces. A damaged joint area and concrete beam were selected to verify the method. The study shows that the reflectivity of the LIDAR could be used to support the automatic defect detection in bridges by combining it with the current position-based only image processing algorithms.
The effect of divided attention on gait stability following concussion.

Abstract Background . The need to identify functional impairment following a brain injury is critical to prevent re-injury during the period of recovery. While many neuropsychological tests have been developed to assess cognitive performance, relatively little information on gait and dynamic stability is available on motor task performance for young adults following concussion. This study was performed to investigate the effect of divided attention following concussion on various gait variables. It was hypothesized that, when compared to uninjured controls, concussed subjects would demonstrate deficits in maintenance of dynamic stability. Methods . Ten subjects with Grade 2 concussion completed testing within 48 h of injury as well as 10 age-, height-, weight-, and activity-matched controls. The gait protocol consisted of level walking under two conditions: (1) undivided attention (single-task) and (2) while simultaneously completing simple mental tasks (dual-task). Whole-body motion data were collected using a six-camera motion analysis system. A 13-segment biomechanical model was used to compute whole body center of mass motion and velocity. Findings . Walking with a concurrent cognitive task resulted in significant changes in gait and center of mass measurements for both groups. Concussed subjects were found to be able to conservatively adjust their whole body center of mass motion to maintain dynamic stability while walking without divided attention. However, while walking with divided attention, subjects with concussion demonstrated a significantly greater medio-lateral center of mass sway. Interpretation . These data suggest that the ability to control and maintain stability in the frontal plane during walking is diminished under divided attention in individuals following a concussion.
Making the Grade in a Portfolio-Based System: Student Performance and the Student Perspective

Assessment is such an integral part of the educational system that we rarely reflect on its value and impact. Portfolios have gained in popularity, but much attention has emphasized the end-user and portfolio assessment. Here we focus on the portfolio creator (the student) and examine whether their educational needs are met with such an assessment method. This study aims to investigate how assessment practices influence classroom performance and the learning experience of the student in a graduate education setting. Studied were 33 medical students at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, a program utilizing a portfolio-based system. The students may elect to simultaneously enroll in a Masters program; however, these programs employ traditional letter grades. Thus creating a unique opportunity to assess 25 portfolio only (P) students and 8 portfolio and grade (PG) students concurrently taking a course that counts for both programs. Classroom performance was measured via a comprehensive evaluation where the PG students scored modestly better (median total scores, 72% P vs. 76% PG). Additionally, a survey was conducted to gain insight into student’s perspective on how assessment method impacts the learning experience. The students in the PG group (those receiving a grade) reported increased stress but greater affirmation and self-assurance regarding their knowledge and skill mastery. Incorporation of such affirmation remains a challenge for portfolio-based systems and an area for investigation and improvement.
Exploring decision-making approaches and responsibility for developing marketing communications strategy

Abstract The results of a national survey ( n = 101) of marketing communication practitioners are used to: (1) examine whether companies assign the responsibility for developing communication strategies to an individual or if there is a consensus among the heads of various communication functions, and (2) look for evidence of trends in the assignment of planning responsibilities. Although a minority of the firms responding to the survey currently use the consensus decision-making approach, its use is increasing. Arguments are presented regarding the importance of the consensus approach in the development of integrated marketing communications.
Different Phenotypes in Human Prostate Cancer: α6 or α3 Integrin in Cell-extracellular Adhesion Sites

The distribution of α6/α3 integrin in adhesion complexes at the basal membrane in human normal and cancer prostate glands was analyzed in 135 biopsies from 61 patients. The levels of the polarized α6/α3 integrin expression at the basal membrane of prostate tumor glands were determined by quantitative immunohistochemistry. The α6/α3 integrin expression was compared with Gleason sum score, pathological stage, and preoperative serum prostate -specific antigen (PSA). The associations were assessed by statistical methods. Eighty percent of the tumors expressed the α6 or α3 integrin and 20% was integrin-negative. Gleason sum score, but not serum PSA, was associated with the integrin expression. Low Gleason sum score correlated with increased integrin expression, high Gleason sum score with low and negative integrin expression. Three prostate tumor phenotypes were distinguished based on differential integrin expression. Type I coexpressed both α6 and α3 subunits, type II exclusively expressed α6 integrin, and type III expressed α3 integrin only. Fifteen cases were further examined for the codistribution of vinculin, paxillin, and CD 151 on frozen serial sections using confocal laser scanning microscopy. The α6/α3 integrins, CD151, paxillin, and vinculin were present within normal glands. In prostate carcinoma, α6 integrin was colocalized with CD 151, but not with vinculin or paxillin. In tumor phenotype I, the α6 subunit did not colocalize with the α3 subunit indicating the existence of two different adhesion complexes. Human prostate tumors display on their cell surface the α6β1 and/or α3β1 integrins. Three tumor phenotypes associated with two different adhesion complexes were identified, suggesting a reorganization of cell adhesion structures in prostate cancer.
Numerical Evaluation of Paris-Regime Crack Growth Rate Based on Plastically Dissipated Energy

Abstract The crack growth rate during cyclic loading is investigated via numerical simulations. The crack advancement is governed by a propagation criterion that relates the increment in plastically dissipated energy ahead of the crack tip to a critical value. Once this critical value is satisfied, crack propagation is modeled via a node release scheme. Thus, the crack growth rate is an output from the numerical simulation. The crack growth rate predicted by the proposed scheme is compared with published experimental crack growth data in the Paris-regime for selected metals. A good match is found between the experimentally observed crack growth rates and the numerically obtained results. The Paris coefficients are subsequently evaluated from the numerically obtained crack growth rates.
A study of the relationship of the dental midline to the facial median line

This report presents the results of an original investigation designed to determine (1) the prevalence in the natural dentition of a maxillary midline located in the exact middle of the mouth using the philtrum as the most reliable guide and (2) the percentage of people in whom the maxillary and mandibular midlines precisely coincide with each other. Results indicate that the midline is situated in the exact middle of the mouth in approximately 70% of people and that the maxillary and mandibular midlines fail to coincide in almost three fourths of the population.
Alternative econometric approaches for studying the link between economic systems and economic outcomes

Abstract Econometric studies on the link between economic systems and economic outcomes have relied on two approaches. In the forecasting approach an estimated relationship for Western countries is used to generate hypothetical outcomes for Eastern countries, which are then compared to actual outcomes. In the dummy-variable approach a single relationship is estimated for Eastern and Western countries, using dummy variables to test for differences in Eastern and Western performance. The forecasting approach is shown as flawed; a more complete version of the dummy-variable approach is shown as far superior. A study of energy consumption in some Eastern and Western countries illustrates these approaches.
Thinking Differently About Genetic Counseling Service Delivery

With the increasing integration of genomic testing into medical care, there is a need to evaluate how genetic counseling services are provided, identify barriers to obtaining services, and establish ways to improve service delivery to ensure adequate patient access to high quality services. This article reviews the current status of genetic counseling service delivery including recent innovations. We describe some key factors that affect access and delivery including the time-intensiveness of genetic counseling sessions, the labor intensiveness of case preparation and follow-up services, and geographic barriers. Current remedies for improving access to genetic counseling services and their effectiveness are reviewed. Factors that potentially pose barriers for increasing access, such as reimbursement for services, are discussed. Finally, we propose ways for genetic and non-genetic professionals to work together to develop targeted strategies for enhancing access to genetic counseling services in their own practice areas.
Variability of Intraseasonal Kelvin Waves in the Equatorial Pacific Ocean

Abstract Previous observational work has demonstrated that the phase speed of oceanic equatorial Kelvin waves forced by the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) appears to vary substantially. Processes that are responsible for systematic changes in the phase speed of these waves are examined using an ocean general circulation model. The model was integrated for 26 yr with daily wind stress derived from the NCEP–NCAR reanalysis. The model is able to reproduce observed systematic changes of Kelvin wave phase speed reasonably well, providing a tool for the analysis of their dynamics. The relative importance of the upper ocean background state and atmospheric forcing for phase speed changes is determined based on a series of model experiments with various surface forcings. Systematic changes in phase speed are evident in all model experiments that have different slowly varying basic states, showing that variations of the upper ocean background state are not the primary cause of the changes. The model experiments t...
Short-term androgen-deprivation therapy improves prostate cancer-specific mortality in intermediate-risk prostate cancer patients undergoing dose-escalated external beam radiation therapy.

Purpose We investigated the benefit of short-term androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) in patients with intermediate-risk prostate cancer (PC) receiving dose-escalated external beam radiation therapy. Methods and Materials The present retrospective study comprised 710 intermediate-risk PC patients receiving external beam radiation therapy with doses of ≥81 Gy at a single institution from 1992 to 2005, including 357 patients receiving neoadjuvant and concurrent ADT. Prostate-specific antigen recurrence-free survival (PSA-RFS) and distant metastasis (DM) were compared using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards models. PC-specific mortality (PCSM) was assessed using competing-risks analysis. Results The median follow-up was 7.9 years. Despite being more likely to have higher PSA levels, Gleason score 4 + 3=7, multiple National Comprehensive Cancer Network intermediate-risk factors, and older age ( P ≤.001 for all comparisons), patients receiving ADT had improved PSA-RFS (hazard ratio [HR], 0.598; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.435-0.841; P =.003), DM (HR, 0.424; 95% CI, 0.219-0.819; P =.011), and PCSM (HR, 0.380; 95% CI, 0.157-0.921; P =.032) on univariate analysis. Using multivariate analysis, ADT was an even stronger predictor of improved PSA-RFS (adjusted HR [AHR], 0.516; 95% CI, 0.360-0.739; P P =.002), and PCSM (AHR, 0.297; 95% CI, 0.128-0.685; P =.004). Gleason score 4 + 3=7 and ≥50% positive biopsy cores were other independent predictors of PCSM. Conclusions Short-term ADT improves PSA-RFS, DM, and PCSM in patients with intermediate-risk PC undergoing dose-escalated external beam radiation therapy.
Attenuation of Neointima Formation Following Arterial Injury in PAI-1 Deficient Mice

: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease in which the fibrinolytic system has been implicated as playing a major role. In order to directly assess the physiological impact an imbalanced fibrinolytic system has on both early and late stages of this disease, mice deficient for PAI-1 (PAI-1−/−) were used in a model of vascular injury/repair and compared to wildtype mice (WT). Copper-containing cuffs were placed around the carotid arteries of these mice and the injured arteries were removed at either 7 or 21 days for histological analyses. At both times after injury, fibrin was prevalent in WT arteries, whereas only diffuse in PAI-1−/− arteries. At 21 days after injury, a prominent, multilayered neointima was evident in WT arteries, with no evidence of a neointima in PAI-1−/− arteries. Results from this study directly confirm the involvement of the fibrinolytic system in vascular repair processes following injury and indicate that fibrin could potentially play a role in lesion formation by stimulating smooth muscle cell proliferation, collagen synthesis, and intracellular cholesterol accumulation.
Contributions of the C-terminal domain to gating properties of inward rectifier potassium channels

Two inward rectifier potassium channels, the G protein-dependent GIRK1 and the G protein-independent BIR10, display large differences in rectification and macroscopic kinetics. A chimeric channel was constructed in which the putative intracellular carboxy-terminal domain of the G protein-dependent channel replaced the corresponding domain of the G protein-independent channel. The chimeric channel conducted potassium ions without the requirement of activated G proteins, yet displayed activation and deactivation kinetics and rectification properties similar to those of the G protein-dependent channel. The results demonstrate that structural elements in the C-terminus can independently control gating but not G protein signal transduction. The voltage dependence, time course, and kinetics of gating suggest a mechanism in which the pore may be occluded by reversible interactions with charged residues in the C-terminus.
Fossil Energy Use in Conventional and Low-External-Input Cropping Systems

Picture 1. Aerial picture of the crop rotation experiment, Boone, IA. Experiment Research was conducted at Iowa State University's Marsden Farm, Boone, IA, to determine fossil energy use in three cropping systems: • 2-year rotation: Corn and soybean • 3-year rotation: Corn, soybean, and small grains (triticale or oat) + red clover • 4-year rotation: Corn, soybean, small grains, and alfalfa hay The 2-year rotation was managed conventionally, whereas the 3-year and 4-year systems received reduced rates of synthetic N fertilizer and herbicides. Field work began in 2002. Plot size was 60’ x 275’.
Assessment of strain and strain rate by two-dimensional speckle tracking in mice: comparison with tissue Doppler echocardiography and conductance catheter measurements.

Aims This study was designed in order to compare the strain and strain rate deformation parameters assessed by speckle tracking imaging (STI) with those of tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) and conductance catheter measurements in chronic murine models of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. Methods and results Twenty-four male C57BL/6J mice were assigned to wild-type ( n = 8), myocardial infarction ( n = 8) and transaortic constriction ( n = 8) groups. Echocardiographic and conductance measurements were simultaneously performed at rest and during dobutamine infusion (5 µg/kg/min) in all animals 10 weeks post-surgery. The LV circumferential strain (Scirc) and the strain rate (SRcirc) were derived from grey scale and tissue Doppler data at frame rates of 224 and 375 Hz, respectively. Scirc and SRcirc by TDI/STI correlated well with the preload recruitable stroke work (PRSW) ( r = −0.64 and −0.71 for TDI; r = −0.46 and −0.50 for STI, P < 0.05). Both modalities showed a good agreement with respect to Scirc and SRcirc ( r = 0.60 and r = 0.63, P < 0.05). During stress, however, TDI-estimated Scirc and SRcirc values were predominantly higher than those measured by STI ( P < 0.05). The similarity of Scirc and SRcirc measurements with respect to the STI/TDI data was examined by the Bland–Altman analysis. Conclusion In mice, the STI- and TDI-derived strain and strain rate deformation parameters relate closely to intrinsic myocardial function. At low heart rate-to-frame rate ratios (HR/FR), both STI and TDI are equally acceptable for assessing the LV function non-invasively in these animals. At HR/FR (e.g. dobutamine challenge), however, these methods cannot be used interchangeably as STI underestimates S and SR at high values.
U.S. preparedness for severe storms questioned

Doug Hill, chief meteorologist for WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C., recalled the broadcast news coverage of two supercell thunderstorms that swept through the region on September 24, producing three tornadoes and causing two fatalities. Hill said that only one local radio station which airs his forecasts activated the federal emergency alert system to immediately notify the public about the tornadoes, and added that there should be some changes in requirements. “Somehow, broadcast stations have to get the idea that these warnings and requests to activate [the alerts] are not done [just] for fun,” he said. Hill was among several experts appearing at an October 11 congressional hearing, “Weatherproofing the U.S.: Are We Prepared for Severe Storms?” The hearing, which was held by the U.S. House of Representatives' Science Committee, included testimony about the nation's emergency preparedness in dealing with several types of severe weather: tornadoes, hurricanes, and wind storms.
Targeting a Pneumocystis carinii group I intron with methylphosphonate oligonucleotides: backbone charge is not required for binding or reactivity.

Pneumocystis carinii is a mammalian pathogen that contains a self-splicing group I intron in its large subunit rRNA precursor. We report the binding of methylphosphonate/DNA chimeras and neutral methylphosphonate oligonucleotides to a ribozyme that is a truncated form of the intron. At 15 mM Mg2+, the nuclease-resistant all-methylphosphonate hexamer, d(AmTmGmAmCm)rU, with a sequence that mimics the 3‘ end of the precursor's 5‘ exon, binds with a dissociation constant of 272 nM. The hexamer's dissociation constant for binding by base-pairing alone to the ribozyme's binding site sequence is 8.3 mM. Thus there is a 30 000-fold binding enhancement by tertiary interactions (BETI), which is close to the 60 000-fold enhancement previously observed with the all-ribo hexamer, r(AUGACU). Evidently, backbone charge and 2‘ hydroxyl groups are not required for BETI. At 3−15 mM Mg2+, the all-methylphosphonate and DNA oligonucleotides trans-splice to a truncated form of the rRNA precursor, but do not compete with cis-sp...
Feature-based classification of optical water types in the Northwest Atlantic based on satellite ocean color data

[1] We have developed an optical water type classification approach based on remotely sensed water leaving radiance, for application to the study of spatial and temporal dynamics of ecologically and biogeochemically important properties of the upper ocean. For CZCS and SeaWiFS imagery of the Northwest Atlantic region, pixels from several different locations projected into distinct clusters in water-leaving radiance feature space, suggesting that these waters can be distinguished using a few spectral bands of ocean color data. Based on these clusters, we constructed a Northwest Atlantic Training Set and developed two different classification techniques. The Euclidean Distance Classifier minimizes the raw distance between each pixel and the centroid of the class to which it is assigned, whereas the Eigenvector Classifier is based on scaling the raw distances by the variance of each class, thereby accounting for the shape of each class in feature space. We conducted an initial evaluation of these two classification techniques by constructing water type classes based on only half of the pixels of each water type (randomly selected) in the Northwest Atlantic Training Set; classification was then carried out on the remaining half of the training set data. Applying the Euclidean Distance Classifier resulted in an average of 97.4% correctly classified pixels over 20 trials; even higher success rates were achieved with the Eigenvector Classifier, which gave an average of 99.1% correctly classified pixels. The Euclidean Distance Classifier performed well with spherical classes, but with more ellipsoidal classes, classification success improved considerably using the Eigenvector Classifier. We then applied these classifiers to ocean color images of the Northwest Atlantic to elucidate the geographical location and extent of each water type. We interpreted classifier results based on our Classification Goodness of Fit measure, which indicates how closely a given pixel is associated with its assigned class. This revealed that sharp boundaries exist between water masses of different optical types, with pixels on either side of the boundaries being strongly associated with their water type class. We anticipate that our classification techniques will facilitate long-term time series studies by tracking optical water types through seasonal and interannual changes.
Effect of signal-to-clutter ratio on template-based ATR

In this work, we evaluate the robustness of template matching schemes for automatic target recognition (ATR) against the effects of clutter layover. The results of our experiments indicate the performance of template matching ATR in various image transform domains against the signal to clutter ratio (SCR). The purpose of these transforms is to enhance the target features in a chip while suppressing features representative of background clutter or simple noise. The ATR experiments were performed for synthetic aperture radar imagery using target chips in the public domain MSTAR database. The transforms include pointwise nonlinearities such as the logarithm and power operations. The templates are generated using the training portion of the MSTAR database at the nominal SCR. Many different ATR parameterizations are considered for each transform domain where templates are built to represent different ranges of aspect angles in uniform angular bins of 5, 10, 15, 30, and 45 degree increments. The different ATRs were evaluated using the testing portion of the database where synthetic clutter was added to lower the SCR.
Synthetic Biology and Metabolic Engineering

Metabolic engineering emerged 20 years ago as the discipline occupied with the directed modification of metabolic pathways for the microbial synthesis of various products. As such, it deals with the engineering (design, construction, and optimization) of native as well as non-natural routes of product synthesis, aided in this task by the availability of synthetic DNA, the core enabling technology of synthetic biology. The two fields, however, only partially overlap in their interest in pathway engineering. While fabrication of biobricks, synthetic cells, genetic circuits, and nonlinear cell dynamics, along with pathway engineering, have occupied researchers in the field of synthetic biology, the sum total of these areas does not constitute a coherent definition of synthetic biology with a distinct intellectual foundation and well-defined areas of application. This paper reviews the origins of the two fields and advances two distinct paradigms for each of them: that of unit operations for metabolic enginee...
Structural features of the subducting slab beneath the Kii Peninsula, central Japan: Seismic evidence of slab segmentation, dehydration, and anisotropy

[1] Seismic evidence of lithospheric slab segmentation, dehydration, and anisotropic rocks beneath the Kii Peninsula, central Japan, is detected with receiver function (RF) analyses. By stacking radial and transverse RFs with moveout perturbations, we estimate the downdip azimuth, dip angle, and depth of the slab Moho beneath each seismic station. Comparing the downdip azimuth to the slab convergence azimuth, we can classify the slab into three segments. The segments correspond to both the fault zones of past megathrust earthquakes and to the spatial distribution of intraslab seismicity. The slab Moho lies just above the intraslab seismicity in the southwestern Kii Peninsula. Slab Moho lies deeper at the eastern part of the peninsula, at the bottom of seismicity. This suggests that earthquakes occur only within the slab mantle under the southern Kii Peninsula. The dip angle of slab Moho becomes steeper at 40- to 50-km depth, perhaps caused by dehydration transformation of basalt to eclogite. At some stations located in the western part of the Kii Peninsula, RF-estimated dip angle of the interface is much steeper than that estimated by spatial trends in seismicity. Since the local seismicity distribution reflects well the larger-scale geometry of the slab, the RF-estimated dip angle may imply anisotropic wave speeds within strongly sheared and/or hydrated media around the slab Moho. These detailed features of the slab may be one key in distinguishing the source regions of megathrust earthquakes in the Nankai region.
Characterization of Arterial Wave Reflection in Healthy Bonnet Macaques: Feasibility of Applanation Tonometry

Nonhuman primates are commonly used in cardiovascular research. Increased arterial stiffness is a marker of subclinical atherosclerosis and higher CV risk. We determined the augmentation index (AI) using applanation tonometry in 61 healthy monkeys (59% female, age 1–25 years). Technically adequate studies were obtained in all subjects and required 1.5 ± 1.3 minutes. The brachial artery provided the highest yield (95%). AI was correlated with heart rate (HR) (r = −0.65, P < .001), crown rump length (CRL) (r = 0.42, P = .001), and left ventricular (LV) mass determined using echocardiography (r = 0.52, P < .001). On multivariate analysis, HR (P < .001) and CRL (P = .005) were independent predictors of AI (R2 = 0.46, P < .001). Body Mass Index (BMI) and AI were independent predictors of higher LV mass on multivariate analysis (P < .001 and P = .03). In conclusion, applanation tonometry is feasible for determining AI. Reference values are provided for AI in bonnet macaques, in whom higher AI is related to HR and CRL, and in turn contributes to higher LV mass.
U.S. Geological Survey Carbon Sequestration – Geologic Research and Assessments

Abstract In 2007, the U.S. Energy Independence and Security Act authorized the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to conduct a national assessment of geologic storage resources for anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) and to evaluate the national technically recoverable hydrocarbon resources resulting from CO2 injection and storage through CO2-enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR). In addition, the USGS is addressing several other areas of carbon sequestration research that include study of natural CO2 and helium reservoirs as analogues for anthropogenic CO2 storage, the economics of CO2 storage and CO2-enhanced oil recovery, and induced seismicity associated with CO2 geologic storage.
Molybdopterin biosynthesis: trapping of intermediates for the MoaA-catalyzed reaction using 2'-deoxyGTP and 2'-chloroGTP as substrate analogues.

MoaA is a radical S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet) enzyme that catalyzes a complex rearrangement of guanosine-5'-triphosphate (GTP) in the first step of molybdopterin biosynthesis. In this paper, we provide additional characterization of the MoaA reaction product, describe the use of 2′-chloroGTP to trap the GTP C3′ radical, generated by hydrogen atom transfer to the 5′-deoxyadenosyl radical, and the use of 2′-deoxyGTP to block a late step in the reaction sequence. These probes, coupled with the previously reported trapping of an intermediate in which C3′ of the ribose is linked to C8 of the purine, allow us to propose a plausible mechanism for the MoaA-catalyzed reaction.
Clonal expansion of ovarian germline stem cells during niche formation in Drosophila.

Stem cell niches are specific regulatory microenvironments formed by neighboring stromal cells. Owing to difficulties in identifying stem cells and their niches in many systems, mechanisms that control niche formation and stem cell recruitment remain elusive. In the Drosophila ovary, two or three germline stem cells (GSCs) have recently been shown to reside in a niche, in which terminal filaments (TFs) and cap cells are two major components. We report that signals from newly formed niches promote clonal expansion of GSCs during niche formation in the Drosophila ovary. After the formation of TFs and cap cells, anterior primordial germ cells (PGCs) adjacent to TFs/cap cells can develop into GSCs at the early pupal stage while the rest directly differentiate. The anterior PGCs are very mitotically active and exhibit two division patterns with respect to cap cells. One of these patterns generates two daughters that both contact cap cells and potentially become GSCs. Our lineage tracing study confirms that one PGC can generate two or three GSCs to occupy a whole niche (`clonal expansion9). decapentaplegic ( dpp ), the Drosophila homolog of human bone morphogenetic protein 2/4, is expressed in anterior somatic cells of the gonad, including TFs/cap cells. dpp overexpression promotes PGC proliferation and causes the accumulation of more PGCs in the gonad. A single PGC mutant for thick veins , encoding an essential dpp receptor, loses the ability to clonally populate a niche. Therefore, dpp is probably one of the mitotic signals that promote the clonal expansion of GSCs in a niche. This study also suggests that signals from newly formed niche cells are important for expanding stem cells and populating niches.
Citrinin Toxicity in Young Chicks

Two experiments were conducted to demonstrate the capacity of citrinin to cause dose-related increases in water consumption and urine excretion. In Experiment 1, chicks 24 days old were fed mixtures of untreated and inoculated corn containing citrinin to provide 0, 50, 100, 150, 200, and 250 micrograms of the toxin per gram of blended corn. The corn was fed for 4 hr, and water intake and urine excretion were measured. Chicks consumed 0, 1.23, 2.37, 3.68, 4.26 and 5.44 mg citrinin from the respective treatments. Compared with chicks consuming no citrinin, water intake and urine excretion of treated chicks increased (P less than .05) when chicks consumed 3.68 mg or more citrinin. Measures of the difference between water intake and urine excretion were similar for all treatments except for chicks consuming 3.68 mg citrinin; for those chicks the difference was significantly greater (P less than .05) than for chicks consuming 1.23 mg citrinin. In Experiment 2, inoculated corn was heated in a microwave oven for 1, 2, 8, and 16 min. Temperatures of the heated corn samples, when removed from the oven, were 76 C, 100 C and 105 C, respectively. Chicks that were 28 days old were fed these various samples of corn for 4 hr. Heating corn for 2 min to a temperature of 76 C caused no apparent loss of citrinin activity based on water intake and urine excretion measures. Heating the corn for 8 min to a temperature of 100 C destroyed some of the citrinin activity. Heating citrinin-contaminated corn to 105 C for 16 min destroyed the diuretic effect of the mycotoxin.
Thalamic paraventricular nucleus neurons collateralize to innervate the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens

The prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens are primary recipients of medial thalamic inputs, prominently including projections from the thalamic paraventricular nucleus. It is not known if paraventricular neurons collateralize to innervate both the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. We used dual retrograde tract tracing methods to examine this question. A small population of paraventricular neurons was found to innervate the prefrontal cortex and medial nucleus accumbens. These data suggest that the thalamic paraventricular nucleus may coordinately influence activity in the prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum.
ACES corner: ACES 2014 student paper competition

The 30th International Review of Progress in Applied Computational Electromagnetics Conference (ACES) was held on March 23?27, 2014, in Jacksonville, Florida. The ACES conference once again provided an opportunity for students to present their research in computational electromagnetics in a special student paper competition session, and to compete for cash prizes. ACES requires participants to be the only student authors of the submitted papers.
Transferability and Level of Heterozygosity of Microsatellite Markers in Citrus Species

Microsatellite markers are a powerful tool for genetic studies, including germplasm conservation, cultivar identification, and integration of linkage maps. Several works have shown that primer pairs designed for one species can be used in related species to facilitate wider application because it reduces the costs for primer development. The objective of this study was to evaluate the transferability of microsatellite primers which was previously developed from the genomic library of Pera sweet orange (Citrus sinensis L. Osbeck) and to determine the level of heterozygosity between citrus accessions and related genera. Twenty-four microsatellite loci were evaluated on 12 genotypes of Citrus, Poncirus, and an intergeneric hybrid. All analyzed markers were transferable across all genotypes. Seventeen loci were polymorphic, and the number of alleles per loci ranged from one to six. The lowest level of heterozygosity was observed for Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf. cultivars while the highest level was for Swingle citrumelo. In general, microsatellite markers showed wide genetic variation and demonstrated that they can be useful in citrus breeding programs.
Intracortical circuits of pyramidal neurons reflect their long-range axonal targets

Cortical columns generate separate streams of information that are distributed to numerous cortical and subcortical brain regions1. We asked whether local intracortical circuits reflect these different processing streams by testing if the intracortical connectivity among pyramids reflects their long-range axonal targets. We recorded simultaneously from up to four retrogradely labelled pyramids that projected to the superior colliculus, the contralateral striatum or the contralateral cortex to assess their synaptic connectivity. Here we show that the probability of synaptic connection depends on the functional identity of both the presynaptic and postsynaptic neurons. We first found that the frequency of monosynaptic connections among corticostriatal pyramids is significantly higher than among corticocortical or corticotectal pyramids. We then show that the probability of feedforward connections from corticocortical neurons to corticotectal pyramids is approximately three- to fourfold higher than the probability of monosynaptic connections among corticocortical or corticotectal cells. Moreover, we found that the average axodendritic overlap of the presynaptic and postsynaptic pyramids could not fully explain the differences in connection probability that we observed. The selective synaptic interactions we describe demonstrate that the organization of local networks of pyramidal cells reflects the long-range targets of both the presynaptic and postsynaptic neurons.
Mechanistic studies in the synthesis of a series of thieno-expanded xanthosine and guanosine nucleosides.

Abstract During the synthetic pursuit of guanosine (tri-G) and xanthosine (tri-X) tricyclic nucleosides analogues, an interesting side product was discovered. In an effort to uncover the mechanistic factors leading to this result, a series of reaction conditions were investigated. It was found that by varying the conditions, the appearance of the side product could be controlled. In addition, the yield of the desired products could be manipulated to afford either a 50:50 mix of both tri-G and tri-X, or a majority of one or the other. To demonstrate the broad utility of the method, it was also adapted to the synthesis of guanosine and xanthosine from 5-amino-1-β- d -ribofuranosyl-4-imidazolecarboxyamide (AICAR). The mechanistic details surrounding the synthetic efforts are reported herein.
Photochemically Modified α‐Crystallin: A Model System for Aging in the Primate Lens¶

The purpose of this study was to quantitatively study the changes that occur upon irradiation of 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-HK) in the presence of alpha-crystallin under conditions similar to those in the lens. The samples were prepared in 10 mM phosphate buffer at pH 7.4, bubbled with O2 or Ar and irradiated with 300-400 nm light. The amount of light absorbed by the samples (Iabs) was measured using azobenzene as an actinometer. Modifications to alpha-crystallin were monitored by ultraviolet-visible and fluorescence spectroscopy. Aerobic samples had increased absorption around 320 nm and above 400 nm while the 3-HK maximum at 368 nm decreased. The isolated modified protein showed that there was increased absorption throughout the spectrum. Changes in the anaerobic samples were similar to those of the aerobic but occurred more slowly. As irradiation time increased fluorescence emission of the isolated protein red shifted and quantum yields of fluorescence (phi f) were calculated at different irradiation time intervals by comparison to 3-HK. By comparing OD320/OD365 for the model system to values from primate lenses, Iabs can be correlated with age and transmission of the sample in the blue region of the spectrum and thus allows lenticular aging to be quantitated.
Evaluation of anisotropic filters for diffusion tensor imaging

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measures, such as fractional anisotropy (FA), and trace are very sensitive to noise contained in the acquired diffusion weighted images. Typical isotropic smoothing methods reduce the high spatial frequency image content and blur the image features. We hypothesized that the diffusion tensor would be an approximate anisotropic Gaussian filter function because the blur will tend to be oriented parallel to the white matter structures. Thus, we implemented and evaluated an anisotropic Gaussian kernel smoothing method based on the diffusion tensor for preserving diffusion tensor structural features while significantly reducing the noise. We compared the diffusion tensor anisotropic filtering with isotropic Gaussian filtering, and a Perona-Malik (PM) filtering algorithm, which was derived from the intensity gradients of diffusion weighted images. Human brain DTI data with high SNR was used as a gold standard for evaluation. Overall, the anisotropic filters performed similarly, with slightly better performance using the DT anisotropic filter across the whole brain.
Adaptive background mixture models for real-time tracking

A common method for real-time segmentation of moving regions in image sequences involves "background subtraction", or thresholding the error between an estimate of the image without moving objects and the current image. The numerous approaches to this problem differ in the type of background model used and the procedure used to update the model. This paper discusses modeling each pixel as a mixture of Gaussians and using an on-line approximation to update the model. The Gaussian, distributions of the adaptive mixture model are then evaluated to determine which are most likely to result from a background process. Each pixel is classified based on whether the Gaussian distribution which represents it most effectively is considered part of the background model. This results in a stable, real-time outdoor tracker which reliably deals with lighting changes, repetitive motions from clutter, and long-term scene changes. This system has been run almost continuously for 16 months, 24 hours a day, through rain and snow.
Effect of syllabus tone: students’ perceptions of instructor and course

It is not uncommon for students to complain that faculty are unapproachable, while faculty complain that students are not engaged. Such perceptions, especially when formed at the start of a semester, can impact what students learn and how instructors teach; therefore, it is critical that these perceptions are prevented if a course is to be successful. A good starting point is the syllabus, which not only informs students about a course and its requirements, but creates a first impression about the instructor and his or her attitudes toward teaching. We conducted an experiment in which the course syllabus was manipulated to reflect a friendly or an unfriendly tone so that we could explore the perceptions students formed of the instructor and class. Results supported the hypothesis that a syllabus written in a friendly, rather than unfriendly, tone evoked perceptions of the instructor being more warm, more approachable, and more motivated to teach the course.
Multiple Hormonal Mechanisms for the Control of Collagen Synthesis in an Osteoblast-Like Cell Line, MMB-1*

An isolated osteoblast-like cell line (MMB-1) was used to study the hormonal regulation of collagen synthesis in bone cells. Collagen synthesis was measured by incorporation of [3H]proline into collagenase-digestible and collagenase-nondigestible proteins after exposure of the cells in culture to varying concentrations of PTH, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25- (OH)2D3], osteoclast-activating factor, and insulin. Collagen synthesis was inhibited by 10-10 M 1,25-(OH)2D3< and 3 × 10-10 M PTH after 9–12 h of treatment. Osteoclast-activating factor at 10-10 M also inhibited collagen synthesis. Insulin at 10-8 M increased collagen synthesis without stimulating proline incorporationinto noncollagen proteins. No effect on collagen synthesis was observed with 24,25-(OH)2D3. Inhibition of collagensynthesis was also observed when cells were treated with either 3 × 10-5 M 8-bromo-cAMP or 3 × 10-5 M (Bu)2cAMP. For all agents tested, the onset of the effects was gradual, with differences from controls beginning at 4–8 h,...
Metamorphosis of tangential visual system neurons in Drosophila

To learn about construction of the adult nervous system, we studied the differentiation of imaginal neurons in the Drosophila visual system. OL2-A and OL3 are tangential neurons that display dFMRFa neuropeptide gene expression in adults but not in larvae. The two large OL2-A neurons are generated near the end of the embryonic period and already show morphological differentiation at the start of metamorphosis. The numerous small OL3 neurons are generated postembryonically and first detected later in metamorphosis. The onset of dFMRFa transcription coincides with that of neuropeptide accumulation in OL2-A neurons, but it precedes peptide accumulation in the OL3 neurons by days. Altering each of the five conserved sequences within the minimal 256-bp OL dFMRFa enhancer affected in vivo OL transcriptional activity in two cases: alteration of a TAAT element greatly diminished and alteration of a 9-bp tandem repeat completely abolished OL2-A/OL3 reporter activity. A 46-bp concatamer containing the TAAT element, tested separately, was not active in OL neurons. We propose a model of neuronal differentiation at metamorphosis that features developmental differences between classes of imaginal neurons.
Measuring replicative life span in the budding yeast.

Aging is a degenerative process characterized by a progressive deterioration of cellular components and organelles resulting in mortality. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been used extensively to study the biology of aging, and several determinants of yeast longevity have been shown to be conserved in multicellular eukaryotes, including worms, flies, and mice 1. Due to the lack of easily quantified age-associated phenotypes, aging in yeast has been assayed almost exclusively by measuring the life span of cells in different contexts, with two different life span paradigms in common usage 2. Chronological life span refers to the length of time that a mother cell can survive in a non-dividing, quiescence-like state, and is proposed to serve as a model for aging of post-mitotic cells in multicellular eukaryotes. Replicative life span, in contrast, refers the number of daughter cells produced by a mother cell prior to senescence, and is thought to provide a model of aging in mitotically active cells. Here we present a generalized protocol for measuring the replicative life span of budding yeast mother cells. The goal of the replicative life span assay is to determine how many times each mother cell buds. The mother and daughter cells can be easily differentiated by an experienced researcher using a standard light microscope (total magnification 160X), such as the Zeiss Axioscope 40 or another comparable model. Physical separation of daughter cells from mother cells is achieved using a manual micromanipulator equipped with a fiber-optic needle. Typical laboratory yeast strains produce 20-30 daughter cells per mother and one life span experiment requires 2-3 weeks.
Formulas for Salvation: A Comparison of Two Byzantine Monasteries and their Founders

In the Christian world during the late fourth through the sixth centuries various strains of monastic life developed, from extreme eremitic isolation to the communal discipline of the cenobia. These different types of monastic life continued to evolve through the Middle Ages. Though most specialists are aware of the multiplicity of patterns of monastic life which are found within both the Latin and the Byzantine spheres, they have been less concerned with what informs these traditional patterns.1This paper attempts to isolate some differences in modes of monastic life in the eastern empire during the Komnenian period and then to explain those differences in terms of the founders' distinct conceptions of salvation.2 The analysis compares two founders—John II Komnenos and Neophytos—and the monastic life led in their respective institutions—the Pantocrator monastery in Constantinople and the Enkleistra in the provincial milieu of Byzantine Cyprus. These two monasteries have been selected not only because they represent extreme examples of their types, but also because rich artistic and literary documentation survives from both.