cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Non‐replicating oral whole cell vaccine protective against enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) diarrhea: Stimulation of anti‐CFA (CFA/I) and anti‐enterotoxin (anti‐LT) intestinal IgA and protection against challenge with ETEC belonging to heterologous serotypes

An oral killed (non-replicating) whole-cell anti-ETEC vaccine was prepared by treating enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli strain H-10407 (ST + LT +; 078: H11: CFA/I) with a 100%-lethal amount of colicin E2. Colicin E2 is a potent DNA endonuclease which enters the target bacterial cells without disrupting cellular integrity. Thus the vaccine consists of intact cells lacking chromosomal and plasmid DNA but possessing a normal complement of antigens, including CFA/I and enterotoxin(s), unaltered by chemical- or heat-treatment. Young healthy volunteers were administered two oral doses, one month apart, of approximately 3×1010 vaccine cells. Of 22 vaccinees, 17 (77.3%) showed an intestinal anti-CFA/I IgA response and 19 (86.4%) showed an increase in intestinal anti-LT IgA. Twenty of 22 (90.9%) vaccinees had antibody responses to either CFA/I, LT, or both antigens, demonstrating that colicin E2-treated CFA-positive E. coli cells are an efficient vehicle in terms of delivery of antigens to the gut immune system. We previously demonstrated protection of vaccinees against challenge with the living homologous ETEC (strain H-10407). In this study, two groups of 8 vaccinees were challenged with a diarrheagenic dose of virulent ST+LT+ETEC of heterologous serotype; one group was challenged with a CFA/I-positive 063 : H- strain and the other group was challenged with a CFA/II-positive 06 : H16 strain. Approximately 75% efficacy was achieved in both challenge groups. None of the 16 vaccinees who had responded to both CFA/I and LT became ill upon challenge while both of the vaccinees who had not responded to either antigen did. That protection against challenge with heterologous ETEC was due to non-specific immunostimulation proved to be unlikely since only 1 of the remaining 6 vaccinees showed mild symptoms when challenged with strain H-10407 6 months after vaccination. These results indicate that ETEC heterologous with respect to O, H, and CFA may share other antigens which contribute to a protective intestinal immune response.
Functional link between the mammalian exosome and mRNA decapping.

Abstract Mechanistic understanding of mammalian mRNA turnover remains incomplete. We demonstrate that the 3′ to 5′ exoribonuclease decay pathway is a major contributor to mRNA decay both in cells and in cell extract. An exoribonuclease-dependent scavenger decapping activity was identified that follows decay of the mRNA and hydrolyzes the residual cap. The decapping activity is associated with a subset of the exosome proteins in vivo, implying a higher-order degradation complex consisting of exoribonucleases and a decapping activity, which together coordinate the decay of an mRNA. These findings indicate that following deadenylation of mammal mRNA, degradation proceeds by a coupled 3′ to 5′ exoribonucleolytic activity and subsequent hydrolysis of the cap structure by a scavenger decapping activity.
Intraoperative ultrasound during renal parenchymal sparing surgery for hereditary renal cancers: a 10-year experience.

Purpose: We review our 10-year experience with intraoperative ultrasound during renal parenchymal sparing surgery in patients with hereditary renal cancers.Materials and Methods: Between 1991 and 2000, 68 nephron sparing procedures were performed on 26 women and 27 men, all but 1 of whom had a hereditary predisposition to renal cancer, for example von Hippel-Lindau, hereditary papillary renal cancer. Intraoperative ultrasound was performed after the surgeon removed all visible or palpable lesions. High frequency transducers (7 MHz.) and color Doppler were used in all cases. Lesions were characterized as simple cysts, complex cysts or solid masses, and were recorded on a map.Results: A total of 935 lesions (mean 12.8 lesions per kidney) were removed in 68 nephron sparing operations performed on 53 patients. Of these lesions 870 were removed without while 65 required intraoperative ultrasound. In 17 of 68 (25%) procedures intraoperative ultrasound identified renal cancers that were not detectable by the sur...
Directed evolution of ribosomal protein S1 for enhanced translational efficiency of high GC Rhodopseudomonas palustris DNA in Escherichia coli

The expression of foreign DNA in Escherichia coli is important in biotechnological applications. However, the translation of genes from GC-rich organisms is inefficient in E. coli. To overcome this problem, we applied directed evolution to E. coli ribosomal protein S1. Two selected mutants enabled 12- and 8-fold higher expression levels from GC-rich DNA targets. General improvements in translation efficiency over a range of genes from Rhodopseudomonas palustris and E. coli was achieved using an S1 mutant selected against multiple genes from R. palustris. This method opens new opportunities for the expression of GC-rich genes in E. coli.
Assessing Differences in Sperm Competitive Ability in Drosophila

Competition among conspecific males for fertilizing the ova is one of the mechanisms of sexual selection, i.e. selection that operates on maximizing the number of successful mating events rather than on maximizing survival and viability 1. Sperm competition represents the competition between males after copulating with the same female 2, in which their sperm are coincidental in time and space. This phenomenon has been reported in multiple species of plants and animals 3. For example, wild-caught D. melanogaster females usually contain sperm from 2-3 males 4. The sperm are stored in specialized organs with limited storage capacity, which might lead to the direct competition of the sperm from different males 2,5. Comparing sperm competitive ability of different males of interest (experimental male types) has been performed through controlled double-mating experiments in the laboratory 6,7. Briefly, a single female is exposed to two different males consecutively, one experimental male and one cross-mating reference male. The same mating scheme is then followed using other experimental male types thus facilitating the indirect comparison of the competitive ability of their sperm through a common reference. The fraction of individuals fathered by the experimental and reference males is identified using markers, which allows one to estimate sperm competitive ability using simple mathematical expressions 7,8. In addition, sperm competitive ability can be estimated in two different scenarios depending on whether the experimental male is second or first to mate (offense and defense assay, respectively) 9, which is assumed to be reflective of different competence attributes. Here, we describe an approach that helps to interrogate the role of different genetic factors that putatively underlie the phenomenon of sperm competitive ability in D. melanogaster.
Generating multiple wavelengths, simultaneously, in a Ti:sapphire ring laser with a ramp-hold-fire seeding technique

The ability to simultaneously produce pulsed laser output over multiple discrete wavelengths can mitigate many of the timing and jitter issues associated with the use of multiple laser systems. In addition, Fourier-transform limited laser output on every pulse is required for many applications such as with pump-probe detection, non-linear frequency mixing, differential absorption lidar (DIAL), and resonance ionization. As a matter of practice, such lasers need to be capable of operating within uncontrolled or noisy environments. We report on a novel Ti:sapphire ring laser that has been developed to produce Fourier-transform limited 20-ns laser pulses at multiple discrete wavelengths, simultaneously, utilizing a Ramp-Hold-Fire (RHF) seeding technique. Resonance of the seed light is achieved by using a KD*P crystal to modify the phase of the light circulating within the slave oscillator cavity where the fast response of the crystal results in a seeding technique that is immune to noise throughout the acoustic regime.
Poliomyelitis and skeletal asymmetry in Gombe chimpanzees

Skeletons of free-ranging chimpanzees from Gombe National Park, Tanzania allow assessment of the effects of long-term, unilateral upper limb paralysis due to the infectious viral disease, poliomyelitis. Comparison of left and right upper limb bone weights, lengths, joint areas, and diaphysial diameters between two adult females with long-term, partial paralysis and a group of unaffected adult Gombe chimpanzees show that the disease caused considerable asymmetries in the skeleton. Detailed analyses of mineral content and diaphysial cross-sectional geometry of the humerus in the affected females show individual differences. The analysis extends to consideration of bone-muscle relationships and peripheral and central nervous system involvement. For each individual, sex, estimated age at death, and behavioral information during life are known from field studies. The impact of the disease on survival and reproductive outcome of the affected individuals is discussed.
Punching Shear Failure in Double-Layer Pultruded FRP Grid Reinforced Concrete Bridge Decks

The use of pultruded fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) grids is being investigated as tensile reinforcement in concrete bridge decks. Three full scale simply supported concrete slabs reinforced with double layer pultruded FRP girds representing long span bridge decks were tested. Punching shear was the critical failure mode. The punching shear capacity was compared to the University of Wisconsin punching shear equation, developed for the grid system on shorter spans by Jacobson (2004), and the punching shear capacity as given by ACI 440 (2006). The Jacobson equation conservatively predicted the capacity for slabs with edge restraint and accurately predicted the punching shear capacity for slabs without edge restraint. The ACI 440 (2006) punching shear equation underestimated the punching shear capacity of the slabs.
Porcine Muscle Properties. B. Relation to Naturally Occurring and Artificially Induced Variation in Heart and Respiration Rates

SUMMARY Studies were conducted to: 1) investigate the association between the physiological parameters heart and respiration rates, and the postmortem properties of muscle; and 2) determine the physiological response of the pig to experimentally-imposed, abrupt changes in environmental temperature immediately prior to slaughter. In the first phase of these studies, observations were made on 55 untreated pigs representing 4 breeds. Heart and respiration rates were determined on restrained animals in standing position, just before slaughter. Abnormally high heart and respiration rates were observed under these conditions in comparison with resting rates. Nevertheless, very high heart and respiration rates, immediately prior to slaughter, were associated with rapid rates of post-mortem muscle pH decline, low post-mortem pH values and pale, soft, exudative musculature. In the second phase of these studies, a group of 42 Poland China pigs were subjected to 7 ante-mortem temperature treatments. Warm treatment resulted in marked increases in respiration rates and wide variations in heart rates. Cold treatments generally decreased both respiration and heart rates. In the combination treatments, a change from warm to cold environment tended to restore respiration rate to pretreatment levels. Both respiration and heart rate tended to increase as muscle temperature increased. Drastic increases in heart rates due to warm treatment were associated with the development of extremely pale, soft, exudative musculature.
Intraindustry Specialization and the Proposed Korea-United States Free Trade Agreement

Changes in intraindustry specialization indicators over the 2000–2007 period are used to assess factor adjustment pressures that may arise in Korea from the proposed Korea–United States Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA). There is considerable scope for intraindustry specialization between Korea and the United States. Results show few industries in Korea are candidates for adjustment problems. The 14 industries that may face adjustment pressures account for 13% of all Korean imports from the United States. Long tariff phase-out periods, tariff-rate quotas and import safeguards will be used to ease factor adjustment pressures in import-sensitive industries.
Toward Holistic Modeling, Margining and Tolerance of IC Variability

The 2013 edition of the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors [10] highlights a slowdown of traditional pitch and density scaling in leading-edge patterning technologies. Through the foundry N5/N7 nodes, the roadmap also projects unfavorable scaling of device and interconnect electrical performance (drive vs. leakage, resistivity, capacitive coupling, etc.). IC product value is also challenged by increasingly dominant variability mechanisms ranging from lithography and planarization in manufacturing, to dynamic voltage droop and aging in the field. Design teams compensate variability with margin (guardbanding), but this substantially reduces the value of designs at the next technology node. In this context, it is increasingly critical to deliver design-based equivalent scaling through novel design technologies. This paper reviews recent research directions that seek to improve modeling, margining and tolerance of IC variability. Collectively, these design methods offer new means by which product companies can extract greater value from available technologies, even as traditional scaling slows for patterning, devices and interconnects.
Expression of high-affinity glucose transport protein Hxt2p of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is both repressed and induced by glucose and appears to be regulated posttranslationally.

Expression of putative high-affinity glucose transport protein Hxt2p of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was repressed 15- to 20-fold in high concentrations of glucose or fructose. S. cerevisiae with either the ssn6-delta 9 or the hxk2-delta 1::URA3 mutation, each of which relieves glucose repression, exhibited high Hxt2p expression in both 2.0% glucose (normally repressing) and 0.05% glucose (normally derepressing) while S. cerevisiae with the snf1-delta 10 mutation, which causes constitutive repression, did not detectably express Hxt2p in either glucose concentration. In addition to repressing at high concentrations, glucose or fructose is required for induction of Hxt2p expression. Hxt2p was not expressed by wild-type S. cerevisiae in media containing only ethanol or galactose as carbon and energy source but was expressed if glucose was added. An hxk2-delta 1::URA3 mutant did not detectably express Hxt2p in ethanol or galactose, but an ssn6-delta9 mutant did highly express Hxt2p in both carbon sources. Thus, simple relief of glucose repression as occurs with hxk2 null mutants is insufficient for high-level Hxt2p expression. Mutation of ssn6, a general transcriptional repressor, does lead to Hxt2p expression in the absence of glucose induction, suggesting relief of an additional negative regulatory system. High expression of Hxt2p does not always result in HXT2-dependent high-affinity transport, implying that Hxt2p activity is regulated posttranslationally. In the high glucose condition for the ssn6 mutant, high-affinity glucose transport is derepressed. Deletion of the HXT2 locus does not diminish this level of transport. However, high-affinity glucose transport is diminished in the ssn6-delta9 hxt2 delta1 double mutant compared with ssn6-delta9 alone in low glucose. Thus, while constitutively expressed in ssn6 mutants, Hxt2p only appears to be active as a transporter under low-glucose conditions. Similarly, Hxt2p was found to be expressed under low-glucose conditions in an snf3 mutant which does not display high-affinity uptake. This finding suggests that SNF3 may be involved in the posttranslational regulation of Hxt2p. Images
Brain cell membrane modification following hypercapnia and recovery in newborn piglets.

The effect of hypercapnia on brain cell membrane structure and function was studied in anesthetized newborn piglets. Lipid peroxidation products (conjugated dienes and fluorescent compounds), Na+,K+-ATPase activity and enzyme affinity to ATP (substrate), K+ and Na+ ions (activators), and strophanthidin (inhibitor) were measured in three groups of animals: controls, those exposed to 90 minutes of Paco2 > 80 mmHg (hypercapnia) and those exposed the same way, following restoration of normal Paco2, (recovery). Enzyme activity was unchanged by hypercapnia, but enzyme affinity was altered as indicated by an increase in ATP affinity. Affinities to Na+, K+, and strophanthidin were unchanged. Restoration of normal Paco2 resulted in an increase in conjugated dienes. The data demonstrate that hypercapnia followed by restoration of normal Paco2 in healthy term newborn piglets is associated with mild modification of brain cell membrane Na+, K+-ATPase, possibly due to lipid peroxidation.Pediatr Pulmonal. 1994;18:81–88. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Tissue characterization by the method of the envelope correlation spectrum

A signal processing algorithm based on the frequency analysis of ultrasonic echoes is tested on a variety of computer generated objects. These objects represent a range of structures ranging from regular arrays of scatterers to more complex distributions. It is apparent from simulations that this proposed algorithm converges rapidly is independent of processing parameters, and can quantize the scatterer distribution. The method is named the envelope correlation spectrum of ECS. >
THE INFLUENCE OF A COMPETITOR ON THE GEOGRAPHIC MOSAIC OF COEVOLUTION BETWEEN CROSSBILLS AND LODGEPOLE PINE

Abstract The geographic mosaic theory of coevolution posits that the form of selection between interacting species varies across a landscape with coevolution important and active in some locations (i.e., coevolutionary hotspots) but not in others (i.e., coevolutionary coldspots). We tested the hypothesis that the presence of red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) affects the occurrence of coevolution between red crossbills (Loxia curvirostra complex) and Rocky Mountain lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta ssp. latifolia) and thereby provides a mechanism giving rise to a geographic mosaic of selection. Red squirrels are the predominant predispersal seed predator and selective agent on lodgepole pine cones. However, in four isolated mountain ranges east and west of the Rocky Mountains, red squirrels are absent and red crossbills are the main predispersal seed predator. These isolated populations of pine have apparently evolved without Tamiasciurus for about 10,000 to 12,000 years. Based on published morphologica...
System of Systems - the meaning of of

We present distinguishing characteristics (i.e. autonomy, belonging, connectivity, diversity, and emergence), that can help us to recognize or to realize a System of Systems (SoS). The principle differentiation that we make between a thing being either a 'system' or a SoS focuses on the nature of a system's composition. We will distinctly define this set of distinguishing characteristics which will include a set of cross references from our literature research where we believe others are articulating our chosen differentiating characteristics. We conclude by summarizing the difference in these terms in a fundamental sense, one that impacts their structure, behavior and realization, and the distinction comes from the manner in which parts and relationships are gathered together and therefore in the nature of the emergent whole.
Cytochrome-C oxidase inhibition in 26 aluminum phosphide poisoned patients.

To the Editor:We read with interest the recent article on cytochrome-c oxidase inhibition in aluminum phosphide poisoned patients in India (1). Since this is a rare poisoning in the United States (...
Interdependence of N-acetyl aspartate and high-energy phosphates in healthy human brain

Because cellular and extract data have suggested that N-acetylaspartate (NAA) reflects neuronal mitochondrial function, we evaluated the quantitative relationship between NAA, high-energy phosphates, and ADP levels in the hippocampus and occipital lobe of 15 healthy volunteers. The ADP levels are calculated using the creatine kinase equilibrium and quantified (31)P and total creatine measurements. Using high-field quantitative MR spectroscopic imaging, we find that NAA and ADP concentrations in the hippocampal body are 9.7 +/- 1.5mM and 35 +/- 8microM, respectively. In the occipital lobe, NAA and ADP are 11.9 +/- 1.9mM and 32 +/- 12microM, respectively. There is a statistically significant positive correlation between NAA and ADP, with R = +0.80, p < 2 x 10(-7)in the hippocampal body. In an adjacent hippocampal NAA voxel, the correlation between NAA and ADP had a R = +0.62, p < 3 x 10(-4), whereas, in the occipital lobe, R = +0.67, p < 5 x 10(-5). There was no significant relationship NAA and either ATP or phosphocreatine. This positive relationship of NAA with ADP suggests a directional process wherein energetics may modulate mitochondrial function.
A Question of Relationship: Internationalism and Assimilation in Recent American Indian Studies

In the preface to his first book on American Indian literature, The Invention of Native American Literature, Robert Dale Parker declares provocatively, "Native American literature has arrived-or has it?" (vii). The recent publication of the five books discussed here might answer Parker's question regarding the field of Native literary studies. All argue, to some extent, that Indian literature bears on the formation of US culture, and for this reason must not be ignored in mainstream scholarship. I would like to accept Parker's word of caution-not about whether the body of work by and about Indians is growing, for it resoundingly is-but that most scholars, despite an admirable, expanding interest in studying American Indian literature and culture, still approach Native literary texts primarily as a project to form an interpretive relationship to the literature of an extremely different culture. Whether one views this concern with relationship as a necessary scholarly pursuit or as a distraction from more pressing issues facing Indian people and their literature likely frames the answer to the above question. In the first chapter of Red Matters: Native American Studies, Arnold Krupat organizes the divergent models of this relationship for scholars in the field. Throughout Red Matters, Krupat further develops his crosscultural approach to minority cultures and literatures, which he has called Ethnocriticism (1992) in an earlier book, but which in this study he names "cosmopolitan comparativism." The change in terms matters, for here Krupat expands his discussion of the US relationship to American Indian literature from an engagement between cultures to include an interaction between nations. While in former writing Krupat has been critical of Indian claims to nationhood-and, by extension, national literatures, intellectual independence, and intellectual property-in Red Matters, he concedes the
Using prototypical objects to implement shared behavior in object-oriented systems

A traditional philosophical controversy between representing general concepts as abstract sets or classes and representing concepts as concrete prototypes is reflected in a controversy between two mechanisms for sharing behavior between objects in object oriented programming languages. Inheritance splits the object world into classes, which encode behavior shared among a group of instances, which represent individual members of these sets. The class/instance distinction is not needed if the alternative of using prototypes is adopted. A prototype represents the default behavior for a concept, and new objects can re-use part of the knowledge stored in the prototype by saying how the new object differs from the prototype. The prototype approach seems to hold some advantages for representing default knowledge, and incrementally and dynamically modifying concepts. Delegation is the mechanism for implementing this in object oriented languages. After checking its idiosyncratic behavior, an object can forward a message to prototypes to invoke more general knowledge. Because class objects must be created before their instances can be used, and behavior can only be associated with classes, inheritance fixes the communication patterns between objects at instance creation time. Because any object can be used as a prototype, and any messages can be forwarded at any time, delegation is the more flexible and general of the two techniques.
Improved quantitative Apt test for detecting fetal hemoglobin in bloody stools of newborns

We devised an improved spectrophotometric method, based on the differential susceptibility of various hemoglobins to alkaline denaturation, to measure the percentage of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) in bloody meconium so as to determine the source of the blood. The oxyhemoglobin of a sample was spectrophotometrically scanned from 450 to 650 nm before and after the addition of sodium hydroxide. With Allen baseline correction, the ratio of absorbance at 576 nm was linearly proportional to the percentage of HbF in the specimen as described by the equation: ratio = 0.01 (%HbF) + 0.0045 (r = 0.9971, Sy/x = 0.047). Preliminary studies on samples containing 10% or 80% HbF revealed that the method was fairly precise. The accuracy of this test was verified by comparing the results (y) with those obtained by radial immunodiffusion (x): y = 0.997x + 2.93 (r = 0.91). This preliminary study demonstrates that the modified test is simple, fast, and free from bilirubin interference. It should be useful for the diagnosis of gastrointestinal bleeding of the newborn on a stat basis.
Salisbury and the Lords, 1868–1895

During the period from the Reform Act of 1832 to the early 1880s, when a change set in, the house of lords was perceptibly weaker than the house of commons. The prevailing view of its position, accepted for the most part even by the peers themselves, was expressed in Walter Bagehot's highly influential English constitution (1867, rev. 1872), where the house of lords is described as safe from rough destruction but not from inner decay, the danger coming not so much from assassination as atrophy, not from abolition but decline. This description drew on Bagehot's distinction between the dignified and efficient parts of the constitution. The house of lords belonged to the first category: that house in its dignified capacity inspired a reverence in the people that attached them to the government. Yet, paradoxically, in view of the great respect for the aristocracy, the house of lords had been subordinate as a legislative chamber to the house of commons even before the Reform Act of 1832; and since then this subordination had grown ever more pronounced.
Private School Enrollment and Public School Performance

Advocates of education privatization often take two general approaches to denigrating commonplace public school monopoly service provision assignments. One general argument is that public school administrators are self-interested rent-seekers, which is evidenced by the ever-enlarging bureaucracies they operate. This argument has been roundly criticized by Kevin Smith and Kenneth Meier (1994, 1995) in two methodologically rigorous analyses. The second general argument is grounded in the assumption that public school student performance will improve if public schools are forced to compete for enrollment with private school alternatives. The evidence regarding this claim of privatization advocates has been contested in a systematic study of North Carolina school districts, but requires further analysis to determine if these findings can be generalized to school districts writ large. Such a replication study is presented here, with findings reported that are in agreement with those of Newmark (1995).
Opportunistic resource exchange in inter-vehicle ad-hoc networks

In this paper we examine resource discovery in inter-vehicle ad-hoc networks in an urban area, where moving vehicles communicate with each other via short-range wireless transmission. Our focus is on real-time location-specific information. We explore an opportunistic approach to resource recovery, in which a vehicle obtains information about resources from encountered vehicles. The vehicle uses a spatio-temporal relevance function to sort the resources, and save only the most relevant ones. Our theoretical and experimental analysis indicates that the opportunistic exchange algorithm automatically limits the distribution of a resource to a bounded spatial area and to the duration for which the resource is of interest.
Elastic-Plastic Flow in Three Space Dimensions

Described here is the HEMP 3D computer simulation program for solving problems in solid mechanics and gas dynamics in three dimensions.
A 62-Year-Old Woman with a 6-Month History of Jaundice

A 62-year-old African American woman on dialysis with a medical history notable for end-stage renal disease, congestive heart failure, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and possible sarcoidosis presented to the hospital with an altered mental status after experiencing a fall that broke her wrist. She had a 6-month history of jaundice, pruritus, and …
Proinflammatory Cytokines Found in Amniotic Fluid Induce Collagen Remodeling, Apoptosis, and Biophysical Weakening of Cultured Human Fetal Membranes

The mechanisms by which fetal membranes (FM) rupture during the birth process are unknown. We have recently reported that FM weaken, at least in part, because of a developmental process of extracellular matrix remodeling and apoptosis. We now hypothesize that cytokines that normally increase in amniotic fluid at term induce FM collagen remodeling and apoptosis with concomitant weakening. Full-thickness FM fragments were cultured with (0-100 ng/ml) or without tumor necrosis factor (TNF) or interleukin 1, beta (IL1B). Physical properties were then examined with specially adapted industrial rupture strength testing equipment. Cultured FM were also evaluated for evidence of collagen remodeling and apoptosis. Cytokine-treated FM exhibited a dose-dependent decrease in strength and work to rupture. Compared with controls, the highest TNF dose caused maximal decrease in FM rupture strength (13.2 +/- 1.2 N versus 3.8 +/- 1.5 N; P = 0.0003) and work to rupture (0.035 +/- 0.005 J versus 0.005 +/- 0.002 J; P < 0.0001). The highest IL1B dose also decreased rupture strength (12.9 +/- 3.2 versus 4.6 +/- 1.1 N; P = 0.0027) and work to rupture (0.018 +/- 0.005 J versus 0.005 +/- 0.002 J; P < 0.01). Matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) protein increased, tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase 3 (TIMP3) protein decreased, and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP1) cleavage increased with increasing TNF or IL1B doses (all P < 0.05), suggesting collagen remodeling and apoptosis. TNF and IL1B cause significant weakening of cultured FM. Both cytokines induce biochemical markers in the FM in a manner characteristic of the weak zone of FM overlying the cervix. TNF and or IL1B may be involved in the development of the weak zone of the FM.
Inside the Museum: Curating between hope and despair: POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews

The reception of the core exception of POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, which opened in Warsaw on 28 October 2014, is the focus of this essay. While eschewing a master narrative, the exhibition is guided by metahistorical principles and a distinctive approach to mode of narration. Both have proven controversial as evidenced by answers to the following questions. What is the difference between a history of Polish Jews and a history of Polish Jewish relations? What is the most important period in the history of Polish Jews? Can visitors be trusted to draw the proper conclusions from a multi-voiced narrative based largely on quotations from primary sources, supported with scholarly commentary? Is a museum whose core exhibition features relatively few original objects a museum? What is the role of intangible heritage in such a museum?
Re-visioning Design Education: A Third Culture Epistemology

Traditionally, education has been theorized as existing within a binary system—education inthe sciences and education in the humanities. If education in design can be viewed as a third culture within this realm then it will have teachers that teach design, students that learn design, and mechanisms in place to insure that the teaching and learning of design occur. Resultantly, one must ask: What does it mean to know as a designer? This question is one of epistemic significance, and, as such, begins to create the basisof a framework for design knowledge and design education. What, in a newly categorized third culture, can establish such an epistemic foundation; are the epistemic models available in the sciences and humanities appropriate for design education? How can education in design both situate itself in relation to the sciences and the humanities while providing for an epistemic foundation that allows for design knowing, design teaching, and design learning? It is the intention of this paper to explore a qualitative and philosophical inquiry that positions design education; a position that interrogates a two-culture epistemology of education and begins to allow for a third culture whose knowledge is founded upon its own epistemic authority. This positionality will be addressed by exploring design education in relation to traditional education, outlining and engaging the problematic assumptions of the historical emergence of design education, and then proposing a return to the virtues of durability, utility, and beauty as proposed by Vitruvius in his foundational text De Architectura (1st CenturyBC). This return to Vitruvian virtue re-theorizes a design epistemology—and; therefore, a design education—that is once again grounded in the material, the contextual, and the experiential. By way of this Vitruvian re-visioning—a re-visioning that positions design education firmly within a pragmatic and material world—the content of that education is expunged from the store of tradition and made available to all learners through the uniqueness and complexity of individually lived experience.
The Impact of Trade and Foreign Direct Investment Liberalization in the Dominican Republic

This research examines the effects of international trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) liberalization policies on the economy of the Dominican Republic during 1990s using a production function methodology. The regression results indicate evidence of unbalanced growth characterized by regional and technological dualism: (a) an efficient free trade zone (FTZ), highly dependent on FDI, and operating under increasing returns to scale, and (b) a relatively inefficient primary/secondary sector operating under decreasing returns to scale. Trade and FDI liberalization policies to promote sustained growth and development are not adequate because: (a) the implemented policies failed to establish economic linkages between different economic sectors, and (b) the FTZ’s contribution to GDP averages only about 3%.
Congenital Heart Defects

Congenital heart defects have always had special place among birth defects for clinical geneticists. They are both common and serious with an estimated prevalence of approximately 8 in 1000 births and are the most common cause of birth defect-related death (Hoffman and Kaplan, 2002). They are often the first anomaly to present in a child and, as many are life threatening, they also typically command the greatest attention. For these reasons, they are the defining birth defect for many genetic syndromes. For example, supravalvular aortic stenosis is linked with Williams syndrome, pulmonary stenosis with Noonan syndrome, and coarctation of the aorta with Turner syndrome. However, only one-third of heart defects present as one component of a genetic syndrome, with the remainder occurring as an isolated finding (Ferencz et al., 1989).
Prescription Drug Promotion from 2001-2014: Data from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The volume of prescription drug promotion over time is often measured by assessing changes in ad spending. However, this method obscures the fact that some types of advertising are more expensive than others. Another way to measure the changes in prescription drug promotion over time is to assess the number of promotional pieces submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Form FDA 2253 collects information such as the date submitted and the type of material submitted. We analyzed data from Forms FDA 2253 received from 2001–2014. We examined the frequency of submissions by audience (consumer and healthcare professional) and type of promotional material. There was a noted increase in prescription drug promotion submissions across all media in the early 2000s. Although non-Internet promotion submissions have since plateaued, Internet promotion continued to increase. These results can help public health advocates and regulators focus attention and resources.
Can being ageist harm your older adult patients

MR. C, 81, was admitted to an acute care facility for a scheduled total hip arthroplasty. Before the surgery, Mr. C worked part-time in the accounting office he'd started over 45 years ago, now managed by his son. He was completely independent in his activities of daily living. He lived with his wife of 57 years in a one-story single-family home.
In vitro and in vivo characterization of disulfide bond use in myocilin complex formation.

Purpose Myocilin forms large complexes in aqueous humor. Part of this complex formation is due to myocilin-myocilin protein non-covalent interactions within the leucine zipper. However, additional covalent interactions also exist. We investigated the role of these covalent interactions in disulfide bond formation within myocilin. Methods Human aqueous humor was separated by denatured/non-reduced SDS-PAGE followed by Western blot analysis with myocilin specific antibodies. In part two of the study, site-directed mutagenesis was used to selectively mutate one, two, three, four, and all five cysteine residues in the mature myocilin protein expressed in an in vitro system. Products were immunoprecipitated with a hemagglutinin polyclonal antibody following in vitro transcription/translation and analyzed by SDS-PAGE. In part three of the study, glaucoma associated myocilin mutations Arg82Cys and Cys433Arg were created and complex formation analyzed in trabecular meshwork cells. Results Human aqueous humor showed myocilin in several distinct large complexes in non-reduced SDS-PAGE gels, indicating disulfide bonds occur. Similarly, in vitro expressed myocilin also produced large complexes. Mutation of all five cysteines (within the mature myocilin protein) eliminated this large complex formation. A combination of cysteine to alanine substitutions at amino acids 185, 245, and 433 had the most influence on myocilin complex formation under non-reducing conditions, however individual substitutions at each of the five cysteine amino acids had little influence on myocilin complexes. In trabecular meshwork cells, Arg82Cys was secreted but formed different sized complexes than wild type myocilin. Cys433Arg was not secreted and remained intracellular in a pattern that differed from wild type myocilin and Arg82Cys. Conclusions Myocilin complexes present in human aqueous humor are in part due to disulfide bond formation between cysteine amino acids. Glaucoma associated mutations that affect the number of cysteine residues may alter covalent interactions.
Political Parties, Growth and Equality: Supply-Side Economic Strategies from a Comparative Perspective (II): The Public Business Sector and Tax Strategies

Apart from providing physical and human capital directly through the public budget, whose political determinants have been explored in Chapter 3, the government may equally choose to shape the supply conditions of the economy by “indirect” means. The state may affect the provision of supply factors through the creation of a public business sector. Also, it may affect the levels of both domestic savings and private investment through tax and regulatory measures. This chapter starts by examining the political factors that motivated the distinct strategies that OECD nations have been pursuing toward the public business sector since the late 1980s. Besides confirming again the key role partisan forces have played, this first section highlights how increasingly strained economic conditions (since the mid-1970s) broke down an already tepid consensus around postwar industrial policies and generated substantially divergent policy responses across the political space. The second section then explores the evolution of tax policies. In light of the empirical results obtained in both this chapter and Chapter 3, the third section offers a first appraisal of the political dimensions of economic policymaking in advanced nations. STRATEGIES TOWARD THE PUBLIC BUSINESS SECTOR Although in the 1960s public firms played, on average, a sizable role in the OECD, the size of the public business sector differed sharply across nations. As a result of the emergence since the late 1970s of an extensive political debate about the role of state-owned firms and their potential privatization, these differences only increased in the following twenty years.
Sport Personology: A Paradigmatic and Methodological Analysis

In a previous review of the literature between 1950 and 1973, sport personology—the study of personality theory and research in sport—was examined with regard to paradigmatic and methodological issues (Martens, 1975). This study follows up and extends that article by examining trends and issues that have developed in sport personology since that time. A content analysis of the sport personality research published in selected journals and proceedings between 1974 and 1987 was made with regard to paradigm, methodological considerations, and objectives. The results indicated that sport personology has shifted paradigmatically from the trait paradigm to interactionism, but the cognitive interactional approach has overshadowed the trait-state interactional approach. Methodological trends included an emphasis on correlational methods and field research. With regard to research objectives, most studies focused on description and prediction with only a few studies focused on intervention.
Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Mortality in an Elderly Population in Northern Manhattan: A Prospective Cohort Study

Previous studies of exercise have focused on measuring physical activity in totality using summary statistics such as metabolic equivalent score for total intensity or total energy count. We aimed to examine the multidimensionality of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and to identify the specific LTPA components that were associated with cardiovascular mortality in the elderly. The Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS) is a multiethnic prospective cohort of elderly stroke-free individuals consisting of a total of 3298 participants recruited between 1993 and 2001, with a median follow-up of 17 years. Physical activity questionnaire data were available in 3293 NOMAS participants, who were categorized into subgroups with similar exercise patterns by model-based cluster analysis. Three subgroup-defining LTPA features were identified and were considered as primary exposures in Cox proportional hazard models: frequency of activity, number of activity types (variety), and energy-to-duration ratio (EDR). We considered cardiovascular mortality and non-cardiovascular mortality as outcomes in Cox cause-specific proportional hazard models, and all-cause mortality as outcome in Cox models. A high activity frequency was associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality (hazard ratio, HR = 0.93, P = 0.03), but demonstrated no effect on non-cardiovascular death. A high EDR was associated with increased risk of cardiovascular death (HR = 1.30, P = 0.01). A high number of activity types was beneficial in reducing all-cause mortality (HR = 0.87, P = 0.01). Exercise frequency was protective against cardiovascular mortality, and a high variety of activity was protective against all-cause mortality. The performance of frequent and varied non-intense exercise in an elderly population such as ours is achievable and can reduce the risk of death.
Colonizing Black Female Bodies Within Patriarchal Capitalism: Feminist and Human Rights Perspectives

This article argues that the dynamics underlying the fundamental gendered/raced/sexual relationships that were created under colonialism exist in the same form in global patriarchal capitalism and pop culture, including mainstream music and pornography. It also explores contemporary Black feminist literature that critiques foundational Black feminist thought which views individual examples of “empowered” (wealthy, marketed/marketable) women of color as evidence of Black female liberation. Finally, in an effort to bridge foundational Black feminist thought with contemporary critiques, I discuss media representations of the Black female body in the context of human rights and sexual rights, as this offers global and historical perspective without minimizing the agency of those whose bodies have historically been exploited for profit. Public Health Statement: This study argues that hypersexualized and degrading images of women of color in media contradict the World Health Organization’s current definition of...
Reply: A dynamic approach for outpatient scheduling.

Reply to: Lim C, Chodhari, R. Missed appointments — could evening clinics be a solution? https://doi.org/10.1080/13696998.2017.1360311Original Article: Creps J, Lotfi V. A dynamic approach for outp...
Identifying potential predictive indicators of massive transfusion in pediatric trauma

ObjectivePredictive scores were developed in adults to identify patients at risk for traumatic hemorrhage but have not been studied in children. Our objective was to identify clinical predictors of massive transfusion (≥40 ml/kg red blood cells or ≥80 ml/kg total blood product at 24 h) in injured children.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective case–control study of children <18 years old who presented from 2005 to 2014 for trauma care. Cases were children who received massive transfusion. Two control groups were identified: (1) ‘random’ and (2) matched for age and injury severity score (matched). Variables included vital signs, injury mechanism, active bleeding, and laboratory values. Multivariate logistic regression models to predict massive transfusion were developed using only clinical findings (‘pre-arrival’ model) and then also including laboratory values (emergency department model).ResultsOf 11,995 injured children, 44 received massive transfusion. We selected 132 random and 127 matched controls. Usin...