cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Safety of bariatric surgery in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The efficacy of bariatric surgery in achieving weight loss and preventing long-term comorbidities such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus and osteoarthritis is well established. Data regarding safety of bariatric surgery in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is scarce. We attempted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the complications following bariatric surgery in patients with IBD. The primary outcomes evaluated were wound infection, Clavien-Dindo grade > II complications and IBD exacerbation (within 1 year). Secondary outcomes evaluated included overall mortality, stricture, small bowel obstruction, acute kidney injury (AKI) and thromboembolism. Pooled outcomes (event rate) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using random effects model. A total of 14 studies (all observational) with 2608 patients were included. The rates of primary outcomes were: wound infection (4.1%, 95% CI: 0.9-7.2), Clavien-Dindo grade > II complications (2.0%, 95%: CI 0.6-3.5) and IBD exacerbation (4.3%, 95% CI: 0.7-7.9). The pooled rate for other outcomes was: mortality 0.1%, stricture 6.5%, small bowel obstruction 6.7%, AKI 2.2% and thromboembolism 0.1%. Bariatric surgery is relatively safe in patients with IBD and should be pursued to reduce comorbidities associated with obesity. Future comparative studies are needed to further assess the safety of bariatric surgery in population with and without IBD.
Fibula Free Flap Salvage From 10-hour Prolonged Arterial Insufficiency and Venous Thrombosis.

ABSTRACT Fibula free flaps are standard in facial reconstructions after head and neck cancer resection and typically have short flap ischemia times, often under 2 hours. Methods for short-term flap ischemia are characterized, but methods for extremely prolonged flap ischemia have not been well-described. We describe a 72-year-old patient who underwent composite floor of mouth and mandible resection with fibula free flap reconstruction. Patient intraoperative instability forced flap ischemia of over 10 hours with arterial insufficiency and venous thrombosis. Despite complicated and extremely prolonged ischemia, aggressive local and systemic anticoagulants with intraoperative leach therapy were still effective in flap salvage. The flap ultimately survived without necrosis. This case describes a method to guide surgeons faced with situations of forced, prolonged flap ischemia. Traditionally indicated in short-term ischemia, anticoagulation and leach methods can be effective for intraoperative treatment of extremely prolonged flap ischemia, arterial insufficiency, and venous thrombosis.
Predictions of glass transition onset temperature of chalcogenide glass GexSe1−x

Abstract The chalcogenide glass, GexSe1−x, has been widely used in advanced electronics and photonics. The onset temperature of glass transition, Tg, plays an important role in manufacturing processes and practical applications. To investigate the Tg, experimental methods to observe the glass transition step are commonly used, but the correlation between influencing factors and the Tg remains vague. In this study, we develop the multivariate linear regression (MLR) model to present the relationship between physical attributes and GexSe1−x Tg. This simple model is highly accurate and contributes to rapid calculations of Tg. Compared with previous models that are more complicated in model construction and applications, the MLR model shows better performance and the direct statistical correlation between descriptors and the target variable.
Direct selling party plans: communal sharing in the Systems of Provision

Wine producers have built their businesses on the concept of sharing, typically explored in the context of the communal consumption of wine among consumers. In this paper, we offer an often-overloo...
Human immunodeficiency virus-associated lung cancer in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy.

BACKGROUND: Lung cancer is the leading cause of death among non-acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-defining malignancies. Because highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has improved the survival of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the authors evaluated lung cancer outcomes in the HAART era. METHODS: HIV-positive patients who were diagnosed with lung cancer at the authors' institution during the HAART era (1995-2008) were analyzed. Patient charts were reviewed for clinical and laboratory data. The CD4 count at diagnosis was treated as a continuous variable and subcategorized into distinct variables with 3 cutoff points (50 cells/mL, 200 cells/mL, and 500 cells/mL). Pearson correlation coefficients were estimated for each covariate studied. Survival was determined by using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: Of 80 patients, 73 had nonsmall cell lung cancer. Baseline characteristics were as follows: median patient age, 52 years; male, 80%; African Americans, 84%; injection drug users, 25%; smokers, 100%; and previous exposure to antiretroviral agents, 55%. At the time of cancer diagnosis, the mean CD4 count was 304 cells/mL, and the mean viral load was 82,420 copies/mL. The latency between HIV diagnosis and lung cancer diagnosis was significantly shorter among women (4.1 years vs 7.7 years; P = .02), and 71% of patients received anticancer therapy. The 1-year and 3-year survival rates for stage IIIB/IV were 25% and 0%, respectively. Grade 3/4 toxicities occurred in 60% of patients who received chemoradiation versus 36% of patients who received chemotherapy. Cancer-related survival was better for patients with CD4 counts >200 cells/mL (P = .0298) and >500 cells/mL (P = .0076). CONCLUSIONS: The latency from diagnosis of HIV to lung cancer was significantly shorter for women. Although outcomes for patients with lung cancer who have HIV remain poor, a high CD4 count was associated with improved lung cancer-related survival. Cancer 2012;. © 2011 American Cancer Society.
Circaseptan (about-7-day) bioperiodicity--spontaneous and reactive--and the search for pacemakers

A built-in (genetically determined) about-7-day (circaseptan) period comes to the fore as a desynchronized feature of human time structure in the urinary excretion of 17-ketosteroids by a clinically healthy man: during several years following an endocrine intervention (the self-administration of testosterone suppositories), a circaseptan rhythm (which during the preceding decade had revealed a period of precisely 7 days) deviated slightly, yet with statistical significance, from the environmental week. A second line of evidence for an intrinsic circaseptan component stems from the demonstration of statistically significant differences in timing of a circaseptan rhythm in springtail oviposition. A third line of evidence documents prominent circaseptan rhythmicity after the application of a single stimulus (devoid in itself of any circaseptan information). Such single stimulus induction, amplification and/or synchronization also documents the clinical and biologic importance of built-in circaseptan rhythms that were previously often misinterpreted as being purely reactive: a circaseptan spectral component is remarkably prominent in mammalian organ transplant rejection, both in the clinic and in the laboratory. In the latter case, in the absence of any weekly cycles in hospital routine, including treatment schedules, circaseptan components characterize the rejection of the rat kidney, pancreas and heart. Much additional information here reviewed reveals the occurrence of periods of about 7 days. Their implications for transplant and other chronoimmunology as well as biology in general, and their clinical applications in drug treatment, include the need to weld circaseptan timing to circadian timing and dosing. A dramatic documentation of this need stems from the circumstance that pretreatment for one week with the same total dose of the same substance (a polysaccharide — Lentinan) accelerates or retards cancerous growth (hence shortens or lengthens survival) as a function of interactive circaseptan and circadian rhythms.
Gravure Multi‐Copy Printing

Gravure, also known as rotogravure, is an intaglio (from the Italian word “intagliare” meaning to engrave) printing process. The intaglio printing processes are characterized by printing plates (image carriers) images with have been etched or engraved into a hard surface. To print from an intaglio image carrier, the recessed images must be flooded, or filled with ink and the surface of the image carrier must be cleared of ink, usually by a metal wiping blade known as a “doctor blade.” The paper or other substrate is pressed against the intaglio image carrier, and the resulting contact between substrate and ink-filled image areas causes the ink to transfer from the image carrier to the substrate. Gravure printing has evolved from early intaglio printing processes, and has been adapted to a rotary printing process capable of higher resolution, higher speeds, and greater production capacity than the traditional intaglio processes. The primary differences between gravure and printing from a conventional intaglio plate involve the type of ink used for each process and the variation of the image carrier. The gravure printing process utilize much more fluid, low viscosity ink. This ink has been adapted to dry quickly on a variety of substrates. The gravure printing process is currently the third most common process used in the United States and the second most commonly used process in Europe and Asia. Three distinctly different market segments use the gravure process: publication, packaging, and specialty. Gravure printed publication products include magazines, Sunday newspaper supplements, catalogs and newspaper advertising inserts. Gravure packaging presses are designed to handle the specific substrates used in the packaging industry. Gravure-printed packaging products include folding cartons, usually printed on paperboard, flexible packaging, usually printed on polyethylene or polypropylene, and labels and wrappers. The most interesting and diverse segment of gravure printing is known as the product or specialty segment e.g., wallcoverings, gift wrap, vinyl flooring, etc. The strength of gravure derives from the simplicity of operation—fewer moving parts. This allows for a more stable and consistent production process. Keywords: gravure; rotogravure; history; etching; gravure cylinders; ink; doctor blade; impression rolls; dryers; web handling; offset
Chapter 2 Large-Scale Ocean Circulation

Publisher Summary Satellite altimetry has provided the first direct measurement of the global ocean topography. This chapter discusses the utility of such measurement for the determination of the oceanic general circulation. Because of the lack of detailed knowledge of the geoid, satellite-altimeter data have primarily been used to study the temporal variability of the ocean. The differences in sea-surface height measured along precisely repeating ground tracks or at ground-track crossovers reflect primarily the temporal change plus measurement errors, while the time-invariant geoid is canceled in the sea-surface height differences. The large variability of the ocean in space and time makes direct measurement of the oceanic general circulation, the long-term average of the flow field of the world's oceans, extremely difficult. The basic principle allowing the determination of the circulation from the ocean's density field is based on the fact that, in the open ocean at latitudes more than a few degrees from the equator, the large-scale oceanic flows are nearly in geostrophic and hydrostatic balance.
Parallel Flow-Direction and Contributing Area Calculation for Hydrology Analysis in Digital Elevation Models

This paper introduces a set of parallel algorithms to determine the hydrological flow direction and contributing area of each cell in a digital elevation model (DEM) using cluster computers in an MPI programming model. DEMs are partitioned across processes relevant to the physical layout of the terrain such that processes with adjacent ranks calculate flow direction and contributing areas for physically adjacent partitions of the DEM. The contributing area algorithm makes use of a queue to order the consideration of cells such that each cell is visited only once for calculation and cross-partition calculations are handled in an efficient and order-independent manner. This algorithm replaces a serial recursive algorithm included as part of the TauDEM hydrology analysis package.
Which clinical/pathologic factors matter in the era of chemoradiation as treatment for locally advanced cervical carcinoma? Analysis of two Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) trials.

Abstract Purpose. To explore clinical/pathologic factors associated with prognosis of patients with locally advanced cervical carcinoma treated with weekly cisplatin and pelvic radiation. Methods. We retrospectively reviewed data from 335 women who received weekly cisplatin and radiation while participating in similar arms of two GOG studies (protocols 120 and 165). Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated for associations between clinical/pathologic factors and prognosis. Prognosis and selected toxicities were also compared between studies. Results. Four-year PFS and OS for stage II patients were 64.2% and 68.1%, respectively for those treated on GOG 120 and 65.8% and 73.9% for those treated on GOG 165, compared to 51.4% and 55.4% for stage III/IV patients respectively treated on GOG 120 and 37.7% and 42.7% respectively for those treated on GOG 165. In multivariate analysis, stage, tumor grade, race and age were independently predictive of PFS and OS (for all, p p =0.012) and OS (HR, 1.88; 95% CI, 1.08–3.26; p =0.024) in GOG 165 but not GOG 120. Conclusions. FIGO stage, tumor grade, race and age are prognostic in patients with locally advanced cervical carcinoma treated with concurrent cisplatin and radiation. This exploratory analysis has generated a hypothesis that clinical staging (as per GOG 165) is less sensitive in detecting aortic nodal metastases compared to surgical staging (as per GOG 120) and may be associated with poorer prognosis particularly when radiation is prolonged. Prospective clinical studies are needed to test this hypothesis.
Inhibition of host cell RNA polymerase III-mediated transcription by poliovirus: inactivation of specific transcription factors.

Abstract The inhibition of transcription by RNA polymerase III in poliovirus-infected cells was studied. Experiments utilizing two different cell lines showed that the initiation step of transcription by RNA polymerase III was impaired by infection of these cells with the virus. The observed inhibition of transcription was not due to shut-off of host cell protein synthesis by poliovirus. Among four distinct components required for accurate transcription in vitro from cloned DNA templates, activities of RNA polymerase III and transcription factor TFIIIA were not significantly affected by virus infection. The activity of transcription factor TFIIIC, the limiting component required for transcription of RNA polymerase III genes, was severely inhibited in infected cells, whereas that of transcription factor TFIIIB was inhibited to a lesser extent. The sequence-specific DNA-binding of TFIIIC to the adenovirus VA1 gene internal promoter, however, was not altered by infection of cells with the virus. We conclude that (i) at least two transcription factors, TFIIIB and TFIIIC, are inhibited by infection of cells with poliovirus, (ii) inactivation of TFIIIC does not involve destruction of its DNA-binding domain, and (iii) sequence-specific DNA binding by TFIIIC may be necessary but is not sufficient for the formation of productive transcription complexes.
Learning Sentiment Lexicons in Spanish

In this paper we present a framework to derive sentiment lexicons in a target language by using manually or automatically annotated data available in an electronic resource rich language, such as English. We show that bridging the language gap using the multilingual sense-level aligned WordNet structure allows us to generate a high accuracy (90%) polarity lexicon comprising 1,347 entries, and a disjoint lower accuracy (74%) one encompassing 2,496 words. By using an LSA-based vectorial expansion for the generated lexicons, we are able to obtain an average F-measure of 66% in the target language. This implies that the lexicons could be used to bootstrap higher-coverage lexicons using in-language resources.
Abnormal Resting-State Functional Connectivity in Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Results of Seed and Data-Driven Analyses

Although altered resting-state functional connectivity (FC) is a characteristic of many chronic pain conditions, it has not yet been evaluated in patients with chronic fatigue. Our objective was to investigate the association between fatigue and altered resting-state FC in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Thirty-six female subjects, 19 ME/CFS and 17 healthy controls, completed a fatigue inventory before undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. Two methods, (1) data driven and (2) model based, were used to estimate and compare the intraregional FC between both groups during the resting state (RS). The first approach using independent component analysis was applied to investigate five RS networks: the default mode network, salience network (SN), left frontoparietal networks (LFPN) and right frontoparietal networks, and the sensory motor network (SMN). The second approach used a priori selected seed regions demonstrating abnormal regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in ME/CFS patients at rest. In ME/CFS patients, Method-1 identified decreased intrinsic connectivity among regions within the LFPN. Furthermore, the FC of the left anterior midcingulate with the SMN and the connectivity of the left posterior cingulate cortex with the SN were significantly decreased. For Method-2, five distinct clusters within the right parahippocampus and occipital lobes, demonstrating significant rCBF reductions in ME/CFS patients, were used as seeds. The parahippocampal seed and three occipital lobe seeds showed altered FC with other brain regions. The degree of abnormal connectivity correlated with the level of self-reported fatigue. Our results confirm altered RS FC in patients with ME/CFS, which was significantly correlated with the severity of their chronic fatigue.
Intercultural Communication and Transnational Protests Circling the Modern Olympic Games: A Cross-Sectional Study between the Cold War and the Post-Cold War Era

Although the Olympic Games are an under-explored phenomenon in the study of International Relations, they represent one of the longest standing forums for global interactions that have evolved with the international political environment. Since the Games are a worldwide event which occurs every two years, has athletes competing while representatives watching, and are full of symbolism, many actors — from states to non-state — seek to take advantage of the unique political opportunity provided by the Olympics. In this essay, I examine the relationship between intercultural communication, the modern Olympic Games, and transnational protests from an IR perspective. Why did the modern Olympic Games increasingly emerge as a political arena for transnational activist movements at the end of the Cold War rather than during the Cold War? What issues did the activists protest? And what does the rising role of non-state actors in IR tell us? I hypothesize that intercultural communication has significantly increased both the number and the political issues of transnational protests surrounding the Olympic Games in the Post-Cold War than during the Cold War.
Experimental determination of the pressure dependence of the barrier height of metal/[n-type GaAs] Schottky contacts: A critical test of Schottky-barrier models

The experimentally measured pressure dependence of the Au/[n-type GaAs] barrier height, 9.5 meV/kbar, is consistent with the theoretically calculated value for an interface with a high concentration of As antisite defects while it is inconsistent with the calculated value for an ideal interface. This is conclusive evidence that Fermi-level pinning is dominated by defects at a metal/semiconductor interface, whereas the pressure dependence of the Al/[n-type GaAs] barrier height, 10.5 meV/kbar, is consistent with the prediction of an ideal interface.
Topological conjugacy to given constant length substitution minimal systems

Abstract We find necessary and sufficient conditions for a symbolic dynamical system to be topologically conjugate to any given constant length substitution minimal system, thus extending the results in Coven et al. (2008) for the Morse and Toeplitz substitutions.
Selective formation of monodisperse CdSe nanoparticles on functionalized self-assembled monolayers using chemical bath deposition

Abstract Using CdSe chemical bath deposition (CBD) we demonstrate the selective growth and deposition of monodisperse nanoparticles on functionalized self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry and scanning electron microscopy. We show that the deposition mechanism involves both ion-by-ion growth and cluster-by-cluster deposition. On –COOH terminated SAMs strongly adherent CdSe nanoparticles form via a mixed ion-by-ion and cluster-by-cluster mechanism. Initially, Cd 2+ ions form complexes with the terminal carboxylate groups. The Cd 2+ -carboxylate complexes then act as the nucleation sites for the ion-by-ion growth of CdSe. After a sufficient concentration of Se 2− has formed in solution via the hydrolysis of selenosulfate ions, the deposition mechanism switches to cluster-by-cluster deposition. On –OH and –CH 3 terminated SAMs monodisperse CdSe nanoparticles are deposited via cluster-by-cluster deposition and they do not bind strongly to the surface. Finally, under the appropriate experimental conditions we demonstrate the selective deposition of CdSe nanoparticles on patterned –CH 3 /–COOH SAMs.
Nonlinear interface: three-dimensional versus saturated model predictions in light of new experimental findings

We compare two- and three-dimensional standard model predictions of nonlinear interface behavior to recent observations of deep single-step switching. The three-dimensional model shows even greater discrepancy between observed and predicted behavior. Only the saturated-nonlinearity model provides qualitative agreement.
Wage and Hour Law in California

Federal and state wage and hour laws are complex and violations can be costly. California law shares some similarities with federal law but also contains some important difference. Generally, California has a highly developed body of wage and hour law that usually exceeds federal requirements. If an employer is in compliance with California law, the federal requirements are also met, with occasional exceptions. Employee exemptions and child labor restrictions are especially hazardous areas. Employers must be vigilant about their compliance practices and maintain training programs for key personnel, including frontline supervisors.
A major histocompatibility complex class II restriction for BioBreeding/Worcester diabetes-inducing T cells.

Inbred diabetes-prone (DP) BioBreeding/Worcester (BB/Wor) (RT1u) rats develop spontaneous autoimmune diabetes, which, like human insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, is mediated by autoreactive T lymphocytes. Breeding studies have shown an absolute requirement for at least one copy of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) RT1u haplotype for spontaneous diabetes expression. Concanavalin A-activated spleen cells from acutely diabetic DP rats adoptively transfer diabetes only to recipients that express at least one RT1u haplotype. To investigate the basis for the MHC requirement in BB/Wor autoimmunity, diabetes-inducing T cell lines were derived from the spleens of acutely diabetic DP rats. Upon activation in vitro with islet cells, the T cell lines adoptively transfer insulitis and diabetes into young DP recipients and non-diabetes-prone RT1 congenic rat strains that are class IIu. Recipients that are RT1u at only the class I A or C locus, but not at the class II B/D loci, do not develop diabetes after T cell transfer. The adoptive transfer of diabetes by Concanavalin A-activated diabetic DP spleen cells also requires that donor and recipient share class II B/Du gene products. Furthermore, the adoptive transfer of diabetes into MHC class IIu congenic rats is independent of the class I haplotype; i.e., it occurs in the presence of class I Aa Cu or Au Ca gene products. BB/Wor T cells can be activated in vitro for the transfer of diabetes with islet cell antigens and class II-positive but not class IIu-negative antigen-presenting cells. The inductive phase of BB diabetes is therefore MHC class II restricted, and this appears to operate at the level of interaction between inducing T cells and class IIu antigen-presenting cells. These results may explain the well-documented, but not yet understood, MHC class II genetic contribution to insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus pathogenesis, and they may facilitate the development of protocols designed to prevent diabetes onset in susceptible individuals.
Gell-Mann-Okubo mass formula forSU (4) meson hexadecuplet

Using the linear mass spectrum of anSU (4) meson hexadecuplet, we derive the Gell-Mann-Okubo mass formula for the charmed mesons, in good agreement with experiment. The possible generalization of this method to a higher symmetry group is briefly discussed.
Maximal Scheduling in Wireless Ad Hoc Networks With Hypergraph Interference Models

This paper proposes a hypergraph interference model for the scheduling problem in wireless ad hoc networks. The proposed hypergraph model can take the sum interference into account and, therefore, is more accurate as compared with the traditional binary graph model. Further, different from the global signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) model, the hypergraph model preserves a localized graph-theoretic structure and, therefore, allows the existing graph-based efficient scheduling algorithms to be extended to the cumulative interference case. Finally, by adjusting certain parameters, the hypergraph can achieve a systematic tradeoff between the interference approximation accuracy and the user node coordination complexity during scheduling. As an application of the hypergraph model, we consider the performance of a simple distributed scheduling algorithm, i.e., maximal scheduling, in wireless networks. We propose a lower bound stability region for any maximal scheduler and show that it achieves a fixed fraction of the optimal stability region, which depends on the interference degree of the underlying hypergraph. We also demonstrate the interference approximation accuracy of hypergraphs in random networks and show that hypergraphs with small hyperedge sizes can model the interference quite accurately. Finally, the analytical performance is verified by simulation results.
ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF THE BRITISH PURCHASE TAX

THE ECONOMIC ASPECTS of the British Purchase Tax have varied considerably during the thirteen years since it was first introduced in wartime Great Britain. Not only have changing economic circumstances altered its operational significance, but its design also has been changed repeatedly to better fit it for the various functional roles it has been given in Britain's over-all economic policy. Thus, aside from the currently revived interest in all forms of sales taxation, the flexible way in which the Purchase Tax has been used in a succession of critical economic problems adds considerable interest to it as a tool of economic control.
Metacognitive Strategy Training for ESL Reading

Recent research in second language reading has focused on metacognition, literally, cognition of cognition. These studies investigate metacognitive awareness of reading strategies and the relationships among perception of strategies, strategy use, and reading comprehension. Strategy research suggests that less competent learners may improve their skills through training in strategies evidenced by more successful learners. Relatively little research on metacognitive strategy training has been done in a second language context or, more specifically, in second language reading. This article reports a study of metacognitive strategy training for reading in ESL. Strategy training was provided to experimental groups. Control groups received no strategy training, but participated in pre-and posttesting. Several research questions are addressed: “Does metacognitive strategy training enhance L2 reading?” If so, “Does one type of strategy training facilitate L2 reading better than another?” “How is the effectiveness of metacognitive strategy training related to the learning styles of the students?” Results show that metacognitive strategy training is effective in enhancing second language reading, and that the effectiveness of one type of training versus another may depend upon the way reading is measured. Further, our results show that the effectiveness of the training is related to differences in the learning styles of the students.
Indomethacin and methacholine tolerance in normal subjects. Role of prostaglandin synthesis in the attenuation of methacholine's effect during repeated inhalation challenges

Within hours, tolerance occurs to repeated methacholine challenge in normal subjects, and this study examines whether prostaglandin synthesis produces this phenomenon. On two separate study days, ten nonasthmatic nonsmoking subjects with measurable baseline responsiveness to methacholine performed five sequential methacholine challenge tests over 6 h. Pretreatment before each day consisted of either placebo tablets or 50-mg tablets of indomethacin given three times daily for 48 h prior to testing. Medications were administered in a single-blind crossover fashion, with study days assigned in random order and separated by at least 1 wk. Methacholine challenge tests were summarized by the PD 20 FEV 1 (the provocative dose in cumulative breath units [cbu] required to produce a 20 percent fall in FEV 1 ). Indomethacin pretreatment had no effect on baseline spirometry between the two study days; however, the baseline geometric mean PD 20 FEV 1 fell from 145 ± 2 cbu (± percent SD) after placebo pretreatment to 65 ± 1 cbu (± percent SD) on the indomethacin day (p = 0.046). This effect of indomethacin on baseline airway responsiveness persisted when an additional ten subjects were studied to further investigate this finding. Significant tolerance to repeated methacholine challenges occurred on both study days, with geometric mean PD 20 FEV 1 rising approximately 16-fold (p
Neurosyphilis masquerading as herpes encephalitis

Classic presentations of neurosyphilis, such as tabes dorsalis and general paresis, are rare today. Instead, neurosyphilis can present with a spectrum of diverse clinical manifestations. Therefore, neurosyphilis should beconsidered in the differential diagnosis of all patients with unexplained neurologic deficit or encephalitis. We report a patient who had a nonbloody spinal fluid venereal disease research laboratory titer of 1:32, but presented with a clinical syndrome, MRI findings, and an electroencephalogram (EEG) pattern consistent with herpes simplex encephalitis. Admission spinal fluid PCR for herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2 was negative in 2 reference laboratories.
A case study in digital government: developing and applying UrbanSim, a system for simulating urban land use, transportation, and environmental impacts

The UrbanSim project provides a case study in Digital Government, and this article examines progress to date in developing and applying the system in a range of metropolitan areas. Digital Government is meant here in the context of an innovative, cross-cutting initiative of the National Science Foundation. The project integrates academic research on urban simulation modeling and policy evaluation with research on human-computer interaction and software engineering, and uses a value-sensitive design to ensure that the system addresses the needs of governments and citizens. This article addresses the importance of the problem domain and the project objectives, presents a range of challenges, and outlines the design and application of UrbanSim in response to these. It discusses issues arising in the application of the model in the Salt Lake City metropolitan region, where a lawsuit over a highway project has precipitated use of UrbanSim to assess the interactions of transportation, land use, and environmental outcomes, and concludes with an assessment and directions for future research.
Epithelial Cells Augment Barrier Function via Activation of the Toll-Like Receptor 2/Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase Pathway upon Recognition of Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium Curli Fibrils in the Gut

Curli fibrils, the best-characterized functional bacterial amyloids, are an important component of enterobacterial biofilms. We have previously shown that curli fibrils are recognized by the Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2)/TLR1 heterodimer complex. Utilizing polarized T-84 cells, an intestinal epithelial cell line derived from colon carcinoma grown on semipermeable tissue culture inserts, we determined that infection with a Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium csgBA mutant, which does not express curli, resulted in an increase in intestinal barrier permeability and an increase in bacterial translocation compared to infection with curliated wild-type S. Typhimurium. When the TLR2 downstream signaling molecule phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) was blocked using wortmannin or LY294002, the difference in disruption of the intestinal epithelium and bacterial translocation was no longer observed. Additionally, disruption of polarized T-84 cells treated basolaterally with the TLR5 ligand flagellin was prevented when the polarized cells were simultaneously treated with the synthetic TLR2/TLR1 ligand Pam(3)CSK(4) or with purified curli fibrils in the apical compartment. Similar to in vitro observations, C57BL/6 mice infected with the csgBA mutant suffered increased disruption of the intestinal epithelium and therefore greater dissemination of the bacteria to the mesenteric lymph nodes than mice infected with wild-type S. Typhimurium. The differences in disruption of the intestinal epithelium and bacterial dissemination in the mice infected with csgBA mutant or wild-type S. Typhimurium were not apparent in TLR2-deficient mice. Overall, these studies report for the first time that activation of the TLR2/PI3K pathway by microbial amyloids plays a critical role in regulating the intestinal epithelial barrier as well as monitoring bacterial translocation during infection.
Luteinizing hormone receptors and testosterone production in whole testes and purified Leydig cells from the mouse: differences among inbred strains.

Testicular and Leydig cell function were studied in four inbred strains of mice. Significant strain-related differences were found in the number of LH receptors and in the production of testosterone in vitro in response to increasing concentrations of human CG (hCG) by both decapsulated testes and isolated Leydig cells. Maximal testicular testosterone production was similar in the C57BL/10J and C57BL/6J strains and considerably less in the DBA/2J (DBA) and C3H/HeJ strains, which were similar. However, the number of testicular LH receptors was less in C57BL/6J mice than in all three other strains. The pattern of maximal testosterone production by isolated Leydig cells among the four strains was similar to that observed for whole testes, whereas the number of LH receptors per 106 Leydig cells was least for Leydig cells from the DBA strain. When the number of Leydig cells per testis was estimated by dividing the number of testicular LH receptors by the number of LH receptors in 106 Leydig cells, it was appar...
Logic with a relative truth predicate and “that”-terms

In this paper we shall discuss and characterize an interpreted axiomatic system which can express the notion "relative to so-and-so, such-and such is true". The system features one non-extensional context, the name-former "that", which can enter into extensional contexts, such as "jc is necessary", "x believes y", and "x tries to bring about y" so as to form non-extensional compounds, such as "that such-and-such is the case is necessary", "jc believes that such-and-such is the case", and "jc tries to bring about that such-and-such is the case". Principles of interchange will be allowed to depend on content, rather than on uniform conditions of provability or necessity. While the system should provide for "intensional" phrases of English, no semantic use will be made of entities which are thought of as possible objects, possible worlds, or propositions. In particular, truth will be relativized to entities which are both formally and intuitively linguistic in nature. The paper begins with a presystematic statement of problems and desiderata, continues with an informal discussion of formal devices to be sub sequently employed, presents the semantics and axiomatics with brief informal sidelights, and ends with a completeness proof.
Unit commitment with voltage constraints

This paper proposes an efficient algorithm for considering reactive power and voltage constraints in unit commitment. Because the problem is formulated as a large mixed-integer programming and has a two-level hierarchical structure, the Benders decomposition method is used. Using decomposition, the master problem solves unit commitment, and the subproblem examines reactive power and voltage constraints in each hour to test the feasibility of the unit commitment solution. In the case of infeasibility, a proper constraint (Benders cut) is introduced and placed in the master problem for unit commitment rescheduling. The iterative process between the master and subproblems provides a minimum cost solution for generation scheduling while satisfying reactive power and voltage constraints. The constrained economic dispatch is used in our unit commitment. The constraints in the subproblem are formulated as linear programming with a block-angular structure. So, the Dantzig–Wolfe decomposition is applied in the subproblem to solve large-scale power system problems. A modified IEEE-30 bus system is presented to demonstrate the efficiency of the method. © 1997 by John Wiley and sons, Ltd.
Use of Fourier Transforms in Transient Analysis of Asymmetric Sideband Systems

A method for the deterniination of the transient response of asymmetric sideband systems utilizing fast Fourier transforms on a digital computer is developed. The method employs a single simplified compact representation of the equivalent low-pass analog of the system transfer function from which both the in-phase and quadrature components of the transient response may simultaneously be determined.
On the approximation of some nonlinear equations

We approximate the solutions of a polynomial equation in a Banach space using the solutions of finite rank polynomial equations.
Lateral and distortional buckling of pultruded I-beams

Abstract The elastic buckling modes of pultruded I-beams subjected to various loading conditions are studied. The coupling of lateral and distortional buckling, very likely to appear in thin-walled cross-sections, is investigated. Plate theory is used to allow for distortion of the cross-section. Shear effects and bending-twisting coupling are accounted for in the analysis, because of their significant role. The effect of fiber orientation in the matrix and volume fraction is investigated by a parametric study. Pultruded cross-sections are always thin-walled due to constraints in the manufacturing process. Hence, the buckling strength determines the overall strength of the member. The results presented correspond to actual pultruded cross-sections being used in civil engineering types of structure.
Application of technology to push epidemiology forward.

The main strategy employed in the science of epidemiology is to evaluate associations (i.e., who, what, where, and when) with disease occurrence in an attempt to identify links with potentially preventable causes. When such associations are identified, they are pursued at increasingly finer levels of resolution in order to get at the underlying mechanisms that may be responsible. The improved resolution that is needed is frequently obtained by applying novel methodologies to the problem. This effort is often hindered, however, by the fact that epidemiologists are almost always trained as generalists. They thereby command a systematic approach to public health problems but rarely are they knowledgeable about the new technologies emerging in more specialized
Increase in production of matrix metalloproteinase 13 by human articular chondrocytes due to stimulation with S100A4: Role of the receptor for advanced glycation end products.

Objective S100 proteins have been implicated in various inflammatory conditions, including arthritis. The aims of this study were to determine whether chondrocytes produce S100A4 and whether S100A4 can stimulate the production of matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP-13) by articular chondrocytes via receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE)–mediated signaling. Methods The expression of chondrocyte S100A4 was analyzed by immunohistochemistry using normal and osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage and by immunoblotting of chondrocyte cell lysates. RAGE signaling was examined by stimulating chondrocytes with S100A4 and monitoring for the activation of MAP kinases and NF-κB. Production of MMP-13 was determined in the conditioned medium. A pulldown assay using biotin-labeled S100A4 was used to demonstrate binding to RAGE. Results S100A4 expression was detected in human articular chondrocytes by immunoblotting and appeared to increase in the cell lysates from OA tissue. Marked positive immunostaining for S100A4 was also noted in sections of human cartilage with changes due to OA. Stimulation of chondrocytes with S100A4 increased the phosphorylation of Pyk-2, MAP kinases, and activated NF-κB, followed by increased production of MMP-13 in the conditioned medium. This signaling was inhibited in cells pretreated with soluble RAGE, advanced glycation end product–bovine serum albumin, or the antioxidant Mn(III)tetrakis (4-benzoic acid) porphyrin, or by overexpression of a dominant-negative RAGE construct. A pulldown assay showed that S100A4 binds to RAGE in chondrocytes. Conclusion This is the first study to demonstrate that S100A4 binds to RAGE and stimulates a RAGE-mediated signaling cascade, leading to increased production of MMP-13. Since both S100A4 and RAGE are up-regulated in OA cartilage, this signaling pathway could contribute to cartilage degradation in OA.
Chemisorption on densely packed metal surfaces: Mo, W, Re, and Ir

Abstract Prompted by previous findings that the (110) plane of tungsten is unreactive in the dissociative chemisorption of hydrogen, a larger examination of chemisorption on densely packed crystal planes has been carried out, using field emission to follow the adsorption process. The behavior of W(110) toward nitrogen is found to be quite different from that toward hydrogen: even at low temperatures, T =150 K, there is no initial delay in filling W(110) with nitrogen. Chemisorption takes place slowly but steadily. Under these conditions surface transport of dissociated nitrogen from peripheral regions is completely negligible, and dissociative chemisorption occurs directly on W(110). In contrast, on molybdenum both nitrogen and hydrogen chemisorb on (110) at a rate comparable to that on the rough surfaces. Tests have also been made on a face-centered cubic metal-iridium. Hydrogen chemisorption on the close-packed (111) plane occurs without hesitation, much as found in earlier studies on Rh(111). Quite different behavior is observed with rhenium, an hexagonal close-packed metal. Chemisorption of hydrogen on the basal plane at T
Tadalafil: A Long-Acting Phosphodiesterase-5 Inhibitor for the Treatment of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Abstract Background Tadalafil is a phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE-5) inhibitor that was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2009 for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Objective The purpose of this review is to evaluate the pharmacology, pharmacokinetic properties, clinical efficacy, adverse effects, drug interactions, and dosage and administration of tadalafil in patients with PAH. Methods A literature search of MEDLINE and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (1960 through September 5, 2010) was conducted with the search terms tadalafil, pulmonary arterial hypertension , and phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor . Data found from orignial research and case series published in English were screened for relevancy to pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, clinical efficacy and safety, and tolerability. Relevant articles from the bibliographies of the identified published articles were also obtained. Unpublished data and posters were obtained from the manufacturer of tadalafil and the FDA Web site. Results By selectively inhibiting PDE-5, tadalafil causes nitric oxide–mediated vasodilation in the pulmonary vasculature. Tadalafil has a greater affinity (10,000-fold) for PDE-5 compared with the other PDE inhibitors and has a t ½ of 17.5 hours. In a controlled clinical study in patients with PAH, patients receiving tadalafil in a total daily dose of 40 mg had significant improvements in their 6-minute walk distance (33 m from baseline) and time to clinical worsening compared with those receiving placebo (both, P Conclusions In the small number of studies available, tadalafil was effective and well tolerated when used to treat patients with PAH. Compared with placebo, tadalafil was associated with significant improvements in exercise capacity and reduced time to clinical worsening (68% relative risk reduction; P = 0.038). There is limited evidence comparing tadalafil with sildenafil and vardenafil, and the studies are limited by short treatment durations.
Picosecond trapping of photocarriers in amorphous silicon

Trapping of photoexcited carriers in the picosecond and subnanosecond time domains was studied by measuring the decay of photoinduced absorption (PA) in a‐Si, a‐Si:F, a‐Si:H, and a‐Si:H:F. We found that when the midgap density of states decreases, both the trapping time and its temperature dependence increase. The observed PA decays are compared to the picosecond photoconductivity decays, and the differences in the response curves are explained. The possibility that geminate recombination might explain our results is ruled out.