cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Safety of long-distance transfers of patients on acute mechanical circulatory support

Abstract Background Acute mechanical circulatory support (aMCS) can be a lifesaving therapy for patients with refractory cardiogenic shock. As device safety and technology improve, so will the ability to extend aMCS to patients at remote hospitals. The Intermountain West is unique because of the large geographical area, making transport of critically ill patients a logistical challenge. Methods We reviewed our experience of transporting patients in cardiogenic shock over long distances who had already been placed on aMCS: Impella and extracorporeal membrane oxygenator devices. Survival data was compared to international benchmark data published by the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization. Results A total of 11 patients (91% male; mean age 56 ± 5.4 y) were transported via fixed-wing aircraft to our center. The etiology of cardiogenic shock was ST-elevation myocardial infarction ( n = 4), acutely decompensated chronic systolic heart failure ( n = 4), postcardiotomy shock ( n = 2), and acute myocarditis ( n = 1). Average transport distance was 364 ± 139 miles (585 ± 264 km) and flight time was 170 ± 29 min. All patients were safely transported with no in-transit adverse events. The average duration of aMCS was 6.4 ± 3.3 d. Six patients (54.5%) survived to device explantation and 3 (27.2%) survived to hospital discharge. For comparison, Extracorporeal Life Support Organization benchmark data for adult cardiogenic shock patients report 56% survival to device explantation and 41% to hospital discharge. Conclusions Patient transport with aMCS over long distances can be done safely without serious adverse events using good protocols and well-trained personnel. Although survival data are slightly below benchmark data, they appear reasonable, given the severity of illness and challenges of transferring critically ill patients to an expert center.
Decoding Dysfunction in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Cardiomyopathy.

See Article by Yamamoto et al Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked disorder diagnosed in childhood that is characterized by rapidly progressive and life-limiting loss of muscle function. The DMD gene is the largest known gene in humans, comprising 79 exons. Exonic out-of-frame mutations produce truncated or absent dystrophin protein. As a result, cardiac and skeletal myocytes lose their plasma membrane integrity and contractile ability, leading to muscle weakness. DMD affects ≈1 in every 5000 live male births, and these individuals usually die before reaching the third decade of life.1 With advances in pulmonary and neuromuscular care over the past few decades, DMD cardiomyopathy has emerged as a principal cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with this disease.2 DMD cardiomyopathy is characterized by left ventricular (LV) dysfunction, atrial and ventricular arrhythmias, and a higher mortality than other pediatric dilated cardiomyopathies. Early detection and management are associated with delayed progression of LV dysfunction and with lower mortality. However, overall, DMD cardiomyopathy remains under-recognized and undertreated.3–5 Genotype–phenotype correlations relating the genetic location of the dystrophin mutation to age of onset of dilated cardiomyopathy have been reported in other dystrophinopathies; however, the associations are less clear in DMD.6 In this issue of Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine , Yamamoto et al7 aim to elucidate relationships between deficiencies in 4 dystrophin tissue-specific isoforms and cardiac dysfunction based on 2-dimensional echocardiographic parameters. The 4 isoforms examined were Dp260, which is expressed in the retina; Dp140, which is expressed in …
The West Point Knot: A Sliding-Locking Arthroscopic Knot

Abstract Despite the advent of sutureless technology, knot tying remains an important skill for any arthroscopist. When one is choosing which knot to tie, there are a variety of options, with each possessing its own inherent strengths and weaknesses. The West Point knot is a sliding-locking arthroscopic knot that is relatively easy to learn and has excellent knot security. This article details the appropriate manner in which to tie this knot.
Mineral contents of selected pre-prepared food sampled in a hospital food service line.

Twenty-four pre-prepared (convenience) foods were sampled as served at a VA hospital. They were analyzed for sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, manganese, and phosphorus contents.
Depression in the Medically Ill: Critical Issues in Diagnostic Assessment

Diagnosing depression in the medically ill is a difficult diagnostic task that will not be clarified appreciably by DSM-IV. The author reviews diagnostic validity as it relates to depressive disorders in the medically ill. Suggested guidelines for using the DSM-IV to diagnose depressive disorders in the medically ill also are reviewed.
Parenteral Opioid Shortage — Treating Pain during the Opioid-Overdose Epidemic

Parenteral Opioid Shortage Various measures have resulted in a reduction in the quantity of opioids prescribed in the United States, but there have been unintended consequences — including severe shortages of the three most commonly used parenteral opioids: morphine, hydromorphone, and fentanyl.
NMR Studies of Cytochromes

Haem proteins cover a wide range of function in the biological systems. These functions include the transfer of oxygen, haemoglobins and myoglobins, the transfer of electrons, cytochromes, and the catalysis of oxidation-reduction reactions of bound substrates. From these proteins, cytochromes constitute the group which is most thoroughly characterized both from the point of view of their structure and of their physico-chemical properties (1–6). These studies have used practically all the spectroscopic techniques available to the biophysicist. The nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies of cytochromes goes back to beginnings of the application of this technique to the characterization of biological systems.
Clinical variables that increase the probability of pulmonary embolism diagnosis in symptomatic children.

Background Pulmonary embolism (PE) in children carries a significant morbidity and mortality. We examined previously described factors in 2 cohorts of children tested for PE and identified novel factors. Methods We combined data from 2 retrospective cohorts. Patients up to age 21 years were included who underwent imaging or D-dimer testing for PE, with positive radiologic testing being the gold standard. Combined predictor variables were examined by univariate analysis and then forward stepwise multivariable logistic regression. Results The combined data set yielded 1103 patients with 42 unique predictor variables, and 93 PE-positive patients (8.4%), with a median age of 16 years. Univariate analysis retained 17 variables, and multivariable logistic regression found 9 significant variables with increased probability of PE diagnosis: age-adjusted tachycardia, tachypnea, hypoxia, unilateral limb swelling, trauma/surgery requiring hospitalization in previous 4 weeks, prior thromboembolism, cancer, anemia, and leukocytosis. Conclusion This combined data set of children with suspected PE discovered factors that may contribute to a diagnosis of PE: hypoxia, unilateral limb swelling, trauma/surgery requiring hospitalization in previous 4 weeks, prior thromboembolism, and cancer, age-adjusted tachycardia, tachypnea, anemia, and leukocytosis. Prospective testing is needed to determine which criteria should be used to initiate diagnostic testing for PE in children.
Haplotype Networking of GWAS Hits for Citrulline Variation Associated with the Domestication of Watermelon.

Watermelon is a good source of citrulline, a non-protein amino acid. Citrulline has several therapeutic and clinical implications as it produces nitric oxide via arginine. In plants, citrulline plays a pivotal role in nitrogen transport and osmoprotection. The purpose of this study was to identify single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers associated with citrulline metabolism using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and understand the role of citrulline in watermelon domestication. A watermelon collection consisting of 187 wild, landraces, and cultivated accessions was used to estimate citrulline content. An association analysis involved a total of 12,125 SNPs with a minor allele frequency (MAF)>0.05 in understanding the population structure and phylogeny in light of citrulline accumulation. Wild egusi types and landraces contained low to medium citrulline content, whereas cultivars had higher content, which suggests that obtaining higher content of citrulline is a domesticated trait. GWAS analysis identified candidate genes (ferrochelatase and acetolactate synthase) showing a significant association of SNPs with citrulline content. Haplotype networking indicated positive selection from wild to domesticated watermelon. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing genetic regulation of citrulline variation in plants by using a GWAS strategy. These results provide new insights into the citrulline metabolism in plants and the possibility of incorporating high citrulline as a trait in watermelon breeding programs.
Filling the Organ Donor Pool by Giving Priority.

CONTEXT Many of the alternatives for procuring donor organs are considered either ineffective, unethical, or illegal. One possibility that may not face such challenges is a priority system whereby individuals who register as an organ donor are given priority to receive an organ over those who have not registered. However, providing extrinsic rewards can sometimes paradoxically reduce the target behavior, especially for those who are more altruistically motivated. METHODS Two behavioral experiments were employed and data were analyzed using regressions as well as examining open-ended responses. FINDINGS The results suggest that giving priority to receive an organ to those who register to donate postmortem could increase overall registration rates. Further, the effect of providing priority appears to work by inducing anticipated regret, which can be used to overcome common obstacles to registration. Finally, it was found that a priority system is most effective in increasing donor rates for those individuals who are less altruistically motivated and does not reduce registration rates for those who are more altruistically motivated. CONCLUSIONS Given the unabated shortage of transplant organs, the finding that a priority system could increase the willingness to register as a donor without crowding out altruistically motivated individuals is highly encouraging.
Contact Zone Earth: Power and Consent in Steven Universe and Octavia Butler’s Lilith’s Brood

Donaldson examines how issues of power and consent thread through the relationships between humans and aliens in Steven Universe and in Lilith’s Brood, by Octavia Butler. Both texts center the stories of alien–human hybrid children who become emblematic of reproductive futurity. Donaldson uses Jakob von Uexkull’s theory of the umwelt and Donna Haraway’s theory of companion species to examine inter-species empathy and the experience of consciousness. The chapter argues that communication norms enable consensual symbiosis between humans and aliens. Despite the aliens in both cases conceptualizing themselves as more capable and complex, these norms lead to mutual respect and the sharing of power in Steven Universe in contrast to the eating of humans and exploitation of reproductive labor in Lilith’s Brood.
Major Features of the Gene

Over the years, the gene has received numerous definitions, many of which became widely accepted. It has long been known as the unit of inheritance, or the factor that results in a given hereditary trait, definitions that continue in use today; it was also considered a point, or locus, on a chromosome that serves in the foregoing capacity. Later, as the molecular aspects of cell function began to unfold, a better understanding of the nature of the gene was gained, and the concept of “one gene, one protein” came into existence. Then, when proteins were perceived as being constructed of several subunits, each the product of a separate locus, that view became modified to “one gene, one polypeptide.” All these ideas are both sound and unsound; even the most recent, which defines a gene as a sequence in the nucleic acid of the genome, contains an element of weakness, which will become apparent as the discussion of gene structure proceeds immediately below.
A 0.05pJ/Pixel 70fps FHD 1Meps Event-Driven Visual Data Processing Unit

An Event-driven visual data Processing Unit (EPU) exploits temporal redundancy in stationary camera video streams to localize motion-based Regions-of-Interest (RoI), saving compute FLOPs and memory bandwidth (BW) for Deep Learning (DL) based object detection. The proposed EPU supports FHD frames at 70fps and can be time-multiplexed across multiple video streams. The EPU pipeline consists of event detection, event clustering, event cluster dilation and RoI extraction and occupies 0.34mm2 in 10nm CMOS. Frame-based, inter- and intra-frame event-driven power management schemes minimize normalized energy/pixel to 0.05pJ at 0.65V. RoI filtering with an EPU frontend improves the end-to-end (E2E) energy-efficiency of a deep-learning (DL) based vision pipeline by 5X, while improving its throughput by 4.3X.
Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage

Pulmonary renal syndromes are uncommon but serious conditions that may lead to serious complications such as end-stage renal disease and pulmonary compromise. Serologic testing for these syndromes assists with diagnosis although tissue biopsy is preferable. The following case illustrates a patient who was dependent on dialysis, then presented with hemoptysis. Bronchoscopy demonstrated progressively bloody bronchoalveolar lavage samples consistent with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage. Serologic testing was consistent with microscopic polyangiitis. The patient experienced a clinical remission with cyclophosphamide and corticosteroids.
Energy expenditure does not explain step length-width choices during walking

Healthy young adults have a most preferred walking speed, step length, and step width that are close to energetically optimal. However, people can choose to walk with a multitude of different step lengths and widths, which can vary in both energy expenditure and preference. Here we further investigate step length-width preferences and their relationship to energy expenditure. In line with a growing body of research, we hypothesized that peoples preferred stepping patterns would not be fully explained by metabolic energy expenditure. To test this hypothesis we used a two-alternative forced-choice paradigm. Fifteen participants walked on an oversized treadmill. Each trial participants experienced two stepping patterns and then chose the pattern they preferred. Over time, we adapted the choices such that there was 50% chance of choosing one pattern over another (equally preferred). If peoples preferences are based solely on metabolic energy expenditure, then these equally preferred stepping patterns should have equal energy expenditure. We found that energy expenditure differed across equally preferred step length-width patterns (p < 0.001). On average, longer steps with higher energy expenditures were preferred over shorter and wider steps with lower energy expenditures (p < 0.001). We also asked participants to rank a set of shorter, wider, and longer steps from most preferred to least preferred, and from most energy expended to least energy expended. Only 7/15 participants had the same rankings for their preferences and perceived energy expenditure. Our results suggest that energy expenditure is not the only factor influencing a persons conscious gait choices.
Associations between private well water and community water supply arsenic concentrations in the conterminous United States.

Abstract Geogenic arsenic contamination typically occurs in groundwater as opposed to surface water supplies. Groundwater is a major source for many community water systems (CWSs) in the United States (US). Although the US Environmental Protection Agency sets the maximum contaminant level (MCL enforceable since 2006: 10 μg/L) for arsenic in CWSs, private wells are not federally regulated. We evaluated county-level associations between modeled values of the probability of private well arsenic exceeding 10 μg/L and CWS arsenic concentrations for 2231 counties in the conterminous US, using time invariant private well arsenic estimates and CWS arsenic estimates for two time periods. Nationwide, county-level CWS arsenic concentrations increased by 8.4 μg/L per 100% increase in the probability of private well arsenic exceeding 10 μg/L for 2006–2008 (the initial compliance monitoring period after MCL implementation), and by 7.3 μg/L for 2009–2011 (the second monitoring period following MCL implementation) (1.1 μg/L mean decline over time). Regional differences in this temporal decline suggest that interventions to implement the MCL were more pronounced in regions served primarily by groundwater. The strong association between private well and CWS arsenic in Rural, American Indian, and Semi Urban, Hispanic counties suggests that future research and regulatory support are needed to reduce water arsenic exposures in these vulnerable subpopulations. This comparison of arsenic exposure values from major private and public drinking water sources nationwide is critical to future assessments of drinking water arsenic exposure and health outcomes.
Unassisted refolding of urea unfolded rhodanese.

Abstract In vitro refolding after urea unfolding of the enzyme rhodanese (thiosulfate:cyanide sulfurtransferase, EC 2.8.1.1) normally requires the assistance of detergents or chaperonin proteins. No efficient, unassisted, reversible unfolding/folding transition has been demonstrated to date. The detergents or the chaperonin proteins have been proposed to stabilize folding intermediates that kinetically limit folding by aggregating. Based on this hypothesis, we have investigated a number of experimental conditions and have developed a protocol for refolding, without assistants, that gives evidence of a reversible unfolding transition and leads to greater than 80% recovery of native enzyme. In addition to low protein concentration (10 micrograms/ml), low temperatures are required to maximize refolding. Otherwise optimal conditions give less than 10% refolding at 37 degrees C, whereas at 10 degrees C the recovery approaches 80%. The unfolding/refolding phases of the transition curves are most similar in the region of the transition, and refolding yields are significantly reduced when unfolded rhodanese is diluted to low urea concentrations, rather than to concentrations near the transition region. This is consistent with the formation of "sticky" intermediates that can remain soluble close to the transition region. Apparently, nonnative structures, e.g. aggregates, can form rapidly at low denaturant concentrations, and their subsequent conversion to the native structure is slow.
Who’s most at risk for school removal and later juvenile delinquency?: Effects of early risk factors, Gender, School/Community poverty, and their impact on more distal outcomes

Abstract Research on school removal, either through suspension or expulsion, typically focuses on boys who have higher rates of removal than do girls. The present study compares girls to boys on proximal and distal characteristics and outcomes related to this event. Results supported known individual risk factors for school removal such as gender, race, SES, repeating a grade, and early aggressive behaviors which varied across gender by a contextual variable, that of school/community poverty. Regarding more distal risks, school removal differentially impacted later juvenile delinquency as well as early pregnancy and parenting depending on gender and the contextual factor of school/community poverty.
Where to from Here

While our editors were too polite to call it that, I was assigned to write the Old Professor’s chapter. It’s up to me to wrap up this volume by taking stock and looking into the future. Actually, being 30 years past the Ph.D., I rather like this role. Taking the long view suits me fine.
Modeling Wind Instrument Sound Radiation Using Digital Waveguides

This paper develops the theory and digital waveguide implementation for modeling threedimensional (3D) sound emission from wind instrument air columns. It is shown that the current acoustic theory regarding sound radiation from ducts and holes can be implemented in the digital waveguide context using properly designed digital filters. Each radiating sound source or hole requires a firstor second-order digital filter to account for angularand frequency-dependent pressure distribution characteristics. Sound propagation delay from the source to the pickup is modeled with a delay line and possibly a fractional-delay interpolation filter. An additional digital filter to model attenuation in free space can also be used. The results of this model compare well with frequency-domain polar radiation calculations. A simplified system appropriate for real-time synthesis is developed that allows continuous pickup movement within an anechoic 3D space.
Fermi LAT observations of the Crab Nebula during the exceptional April 2011 outburst

The Crab Nebula, formerly thought to be steady in gamma rays, shows unexpected and occasionally dramatic variability in high-energy gamma rays. The Large Area Telescope (LAT) on Fermi recorded several strong outbursts, including dedicated pointed observations of the brightest yet seen, a spectacular flare in April 2011. These observations provide a particularly detailed look at the temporal and spectral characteristics of the nebula during the flare. The LAT data show an additional component in the spectral energy distribution that peaks at a maximum of $375\pm26~\mathrm{MeV}$. In the probable scenario that this component is synchrotron emission, the electrons are accelerated to extreme energies that are difficult to reconcile with the very rapid change in flux and the expectation for acceleration processes and conditions occurring within the pulsar wind nebula. The physical location and mechanism driving the flares remains undetermined despite observations across the spectrum made by a variety of instruments including the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Very Large Array. I will present timing and spectral studies of the high-energy gamma-ray data, discuss implications for the origin of the flares, and highlight preparations for the next major flare.
Response of Bighead Carp and Silver Carp to Repeated Water Gun Operation in an Enclosed Shallow Pond

AbstractThe Bighead Carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis and Silver Carp H. molitrix are nonnative species that pose a threat to Great Lakes ecosystems should they advance into those areas. Thus, technologies to impede Asian carp movement into the Great Lakes are needed; one potential technology is the seismic water gun. We evaluated the efficacy of a water gun array as a behavioral deterrent to the movement of acoustic-tagged Bighead Carp and Silver Carp in an experimental pond. Behavioral responses were evaluated by using four metrics: (1) fish distance from the water guns (D); (2) spatial area of the fish's utilization distribution (UD); (3) persistence velocity (Vp); and (4) number of times a fish transited the water gun array. For both species, average D increased by 10 m during the firing period relative to the pre-firing period. During the firing period, the spatial area of use within the pond decreased. Carp were located throughout the pond during the pre-firing period but were concentrated in the nort...
Sex differences in binge eating patterns in male and female adult rats

Objective Several efforts are underway to model binge eating in animals in order to advance neurobiological models of risk. However, knowledge of sex differences in these models is currently lacking. The goal of the present study was to examine sex differences in binge eating phenotypes using a well-established rodent model (i.e., the binge eating resistant/binge eating prone model). Method Thirty male and 30 female adult Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to feeding tests consisting of intermittent access to palatable food (PF). Rats were then categorized as binge eating prone (BEP) based on the amount and consistency of PF consumption across tests. Results Across multiple methods for BEP classification, rates of BEP phenotypes were two to six times higher in female than male rats. Discussion Findings provide support for sex differences in rodent models of binge eating and highlight the promise of the BER/BEP model for understanding neurobiological mechanisms underlying sex differences in risk. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2013; 46:729–736)
Age-specific locomotor response to nicotine in yellow and mottled yellow Avy/a mice

Most Agouti viable yellow (A vy ) mice display constitutive expression of agouti protein, which acts as an inverse agonist at the melanocortin receptor 4 (Mc4r), resulting in adult-onset obesity as well as an altered sensitivity to some drugs of abuse. We investigated the influence of excessive agouti expression on open-field locomotor response to daily 0.5 mg/kg (-)-freebase nicotine injections in 27 early adolescent and 27 young adult male A vy /a and a/a mice, and assessed the effects of nicotine administration (0.5 mg/kg) followed by open-field testing on serum corticosterone levels in a separate group of 25 young adult male A vy /a and a/a mice. Young adult A vy /a mice displayed pronounced nicotine-induced hypolocomotion (a 24% reduction in distance traveled) compared to their a/a littermates. Early adolescent A vy /a mice did not differ from their a/a littermates or saline-matched controls in locomotion following nicotine administration. Young adult A vy /a mice also displayed increased thigmotaxis (a 5% increase in time spent outside the center of the apparatus) on the first day of nicotine administration as compared to saline-matched controls, while a/a mice did not. An increase in serum corticosterone levels 20 minutes after nicotine injection in a separate group of young adult male mice (n = 25) was proportionally similar between A vy /a and a/a mice. Overall, the results suggest an age- and epigenotype- or genotype-specific response to nicotine administration in young adult male A vy /a mice. It appears the A vy /a locomotor and thigmotaxic responses to acute nicotine administration are not mediated solely by hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis stimulation.
A study of the disproportionation of mercury(I) induced by gas sparging in acidic aqueous solutions for cold-vapor atomic absorption spectrometry

Abstract Instrumentation and procedures for the cold-vapor atomic absorption determination of mercury have been modified. Samples are analyzed by syringe injection under reducing and non-reducing conditions so as to allow mercury valence state differentiation. It is shown that chloride ion is effective in preventing mercury(I) disproportionation; in the absence of a strong mercury(II) complexing ligand, mercury(I) readily disproportionates when solutions are sparged with nitrogen. The data are consistent with the formation at the 10–500 ppb level of a Hg2Cl2 precipitate with a lower solubility product than the literature values.
Long-term biological data sets: Their role in research, monitoring, and management of estuarine and coastal marine systems

Long-term records of biological data are extremely valuable for documenting ecosystem changes, for differentiating natural changes from those caused by humans, and for generating and analyzing testable hypotheses. Long-term sampling, however, is generally discouraged by a variety of institutional disincentives, so that today such records are uncommon. We discuss approaches for overcoming these disincentives through improved research planning and design, including clearera priori definition of management and regulatory actions and information needs, more rigorous adherence to hypothesis formulation and testing, and proper spatial and temporal scaling in sampling. We distinguish between prospective study design, in which the foregoing elements are essential for coast-effectiveness, and retrospective analysis, which relies on reconstruction of long-term records from existing data sets. We demonstrate the great value of retrospective analysis of encountered data, and argue for renewed attention to archival of data sets with documented data quality, interacalibration and documentation of methodologies, and long-term storage of samples for future analysis. Such practices are essential to ensure the quality of long-term records that are reconstructed for retrospective examination of new hypotheses in the future.
River flow forecasting using wavelet and cross‐wavelet transform models

In this study, short-term river flood forecasting models based on wavelet and cross-wavelet constituent components were developed and evaluated for forecasting daily stream flows with lead times equal to 1, 3, and 7 days. These wavelet and cross-wavelet models were compared with artificial neural network models and simple perseverance models. This was done using data from the Skrwa Prawa River watershed in Poland. Numerical analysis was performed on daily maximum stream flow data from the Parzen station and on meteorological data from the Plock weather station in Poland. Data from 1951 to 1979 was used to train the models while data from 1980 to 1983 was used to test the models. The study showed that forecasting models based on wavelet and cross-wavelet constituent components can be used with great accuracy as a stand-alone forecasting method for 1 and 3 days lead time river flood forecasting, assuming that there are no significant trends in the amplitude for the same Julian day year-to-year, and that there is a relatively stable phase shift between the flow and meteorological time series. It was also shown that forecasting models based on wavelet and cross-wavelet constituent components for forecasting river floods are not accurate for longer lead time forecasting such as 7 days, with the artificial neural network models providing more accurate results. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Different views of a data base: coexistence between network model and relational model

The problem of data base access via different data models has been investigated for the network model and the relational model. The network model is based on the Codasyl proposal (1), which has been modified in two major respects: only one member record type is allowed per set type, and one data item of each record type is assumed to serve as primary key. For a given network model of the data base a coexistent relational model is proposed. The proposal is based on an extension of the usual relational model (2) by an incorporation of appropriate network parameters.
Dual-band ultra-wide tuning range CMOS voltage-controlled oscillator

A dual-band wide-tuning range LC CMOS voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) topology is proposed. Dual-band operation is realised by employing a double-tuned double-driven transformer as a resonator. The proposed approach eliminates MOS switches, which are typically used in multi-standard oscillators, and thus improves phase noise and tuning range characteristics. The concept is demonstrated through the design of an LC VCO in a standard 0.18 µm CMOS process. Two frequency bands are realised (2.4 and 6 GHz) with 740 MHz tuning range in the first band and 1.56 GHz tuning range in the second band. Operating from a 1.8 V supply, the VCO has a simulated phase noise of −119 dBc/Hz in the 2.4 GHz band and −110 dBc/Hz in the 6 GHz band at 600 KHz offset from the carrier.
The involvement of opiate and monoaminergic neuronal systems in the analgesic effects of ketamine

Abstract The anesthetic agent, ketamine, has the potential to recruit spinopetal noradrenergic and serotonergic neuronal pathways for its antinociceptive effect. Neurochemically, ketamine has been shown to interact with opiate receptors and thus may increase neuronal activity in the spinopetal monoaminergic (norepinephrine and serotonin) systems in a manner similar to morphine. In addition, ketamine should facilitate the antinociceptive effect of the monoamines at the level of the spinal cord by an action of the drug to prevent the neuronal reuptake of the monoamines. In this study, the analgesic action of both ketamine and morphine, as measured by the tail-flick test in rats, was inhibited by norepinephrine, serotonin and opiate receptor antagonists. Monoaminergic receptor inhibitors were more potent as antagonists of ketamine's analgesia while the opiate receptor antagonist naloxone was more effective against morphine analgesia. The greater sensitivity of the antinociceptive effect of ketamine to monoaminergic antagonist may reflect the importance of the inhibition of norepinephrine and serotonin reuptake in the analgesic action of the drug. Transecting the spinal cord of rats at T4-6 revealed distinct differences between the analgesic mechanisms of ketamine and morphine. For example, the potency of ketamine was increased nearly 9-fold in spinal rats whereas morphine's potency was decreased. This observation suggests that ketamine may activate both analgesic and antanalgesic systems supraspinally, and that its antinociceptive effect in intact animals is a summation of these opposing actions. Partial evidence that supraspinal noradrenergic neurons might be involved in the antanalgesic component of ketamine's action was provided by experiments demonstrating enhanced analgesia in intact animals after depletion of norepinephrine with FLA-63. In spinal animals a significant difference was also observed in the neuronal processes mediating the residual analgesic effects of morphine and ketamine. The analgesic effect of morphine remained primarily sensitive to naloxone but seemed to use a local serotonergic process (sensitive to the serotonergic antagonist methysergide) at higher doses of the opiate. Ketamine's analgesia, on the other hand, was only inhibited by methysergide. In conclusion, although it appears that morphine and ketamine may both activate spinopetal monoaminergic processes through an opiate mechanism, the two drugs differ significantly with regard to some of the components of their antinociceptive actions. The differences may be related to ketamine's ability to alter the metabolism of monoaminergic neurotransmitters involved in pain processing.
Is it time for a change? The case for early application of unrelated allo-SCT for severe aplastic anemia

Severe aplastic anemia (SAA) is a BM failure syndrome in which allo-SCT remains a highly effective curative option. Its application remains limited by donor availability and by the potential for treatment-related morbidity and mortality. The improved outcomes with unrelated transplantation are a result of the advent of molecular donor-recipient matching, generation of effective novel conditioning regimens, improvement of supportive care and expansion of the donor registry. Decision making regarding the earlier use of unrelated transplant procedures is rapidly evolving. This paper reviews critical data relevant to these treatment options and recommends early consideration of related SCT for patients with SAA who show failure of immune suppressive therapy.
Three-dimensional description of symmetric objects from range images

This paper presents a new technique for the three-dimensional recognition of symmetric objects from range images. Beginning from the implicit representation of quadrics a set of ten coefficients is determined for symmetric objects like spheres cones cylinders ellipsoids and parallelepipeds. Instead of using these ten coefficients trying to fit them to smooth surfaces (patches) based on the traditional way of determining curvatures a new approach based on two-dimensional geometry is utilized. For each symmetric object a unique set of two-dimensional curves is obtained from the various angles at which the object is intersected with a plane. Utilizing the same ten coefficients obtained earher and based on the discriminant method each of these curves is classified as a parabola a circle an ellipse or a hyperbola. Each symmetric object is found to possess a unique set of these two-dimensional curves whereby it can be differentiated from the others. In other words it is shown that instead of using the three-dimensional discriminant which involves evaluation of the rank of its matrix it is sufficient to utilize the two-dimensional discriminant which only requires three arithmetic operations. This approach seems to be more accurate and computationally inexpensive compared to the traditional approaches. 1.
Detailed kinetics and regulation of mammalian NAD-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase

A mathematical model is presented to describe the catalytic mechanism of mammalian NAD-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase (NAD-IDH), a highly regulated enzyme in the tricarboxylic acid cycle, a crucial pathway in energy metabolism and biosynthesis. The mechanism accounts for allosteric regulation by magnesium-bound isocitrate and EGTA and calcium-bound ATP and ADP. The developed model is used to analyze kinetic data for the cardiac enzyme and to estimate kinetic parameter values. Since the kinetic mechanism is expressed in terms of chemical species (rather than biochemical reactants), the model explicitly accounts for the effects of biochemical state (ionic strength, pH, temperature, and metal cation concentration) on the kinetics. Because the substrate isocitrate competes with allosteric activators (ATP and ADP) and an inhibitor (EGTA) for metal ion cofactors (Ca2+ and Mg2+), the observed kinetic relationships between reactants, activator and inhibitor concentrations, and catalytic flux are complex. Our analysis reveals that under physiological conditions, the ADP/ATP ratio plays a more significant role than Ca2+ concentration in regulating the enzyme's activity. In addition, the enzyme is highly sensitive to Mg2+ concentration in the physiological range, pointing to a potential regulatory role of [Mg2+] in mitochondrial energy metabolism.
GABAergic inhibition shapes frequency tuning and modifies response properties in the auditory midbrain of the leopard frog

The functional role of GABAergic inhibition in shaping the frequency tuning of 96 neurons in the torus semicircularis of the leopard frog, Rana pipiens, was studied using microiontophoresis of the GABAA receptor antagonist, bicuculline methiodide. Bicuculline application abolished, or reduced in size, the inhibitory tuning curves of 72 neurons. In each case, there was a concommitant broadening of the excitatory tuning curve such that frequency-intensity combinations that were inhibitory under control conditions, became excitatory during disinhibition with bicuculline methiodide. These effects were observed irrespective of the excitatory tuning curve configuration prior to bicuculline methiodide application. Results indicate an important role for GABA-mediated inhibition in shaping the frequency selectivity of neurons in the torus semicircularis of the leopard frog. Bicuculline application also affected several other response properties of neurons in the leopard frog torus. Disinhibition with bicuculline methiodide increased both the spontaneous firing rate (18 cells) and stimulus-evoked discharge rate (81 cells) of torus neurons, decreased the minimum excitatory threshold for 18 cells, and altered the temporal discharge pattern of 47 neurons. Additional roles for GABAergic inhibition in monaural signal analysis are discussed.
Precision Neutron Interferometric Measurement of the Nd Coherent Neutron Scattering Length and Consequences for Models of Three-Nucleon Forces

We have performed the first high precision measurement of the coherent neutron scattering length of deuterium in a pure sample using neutron interferometry. We find b(nd)=(6.665+/-0.004) fm in agreement with the world average of previous measurements using different techniques, b(nd)=(6.6730+/-0.0045) fm. We compare the new world average for the nd coherent scattering length b(nd)=(6.669+/-0.003) fm to calculations of the doublet and quartet scattering lengths from several modern nucleon-nucleon potential models with three-nucleon force (3NF) additions and show that almost all theories are in serious disagreement with experiment. This comparison is a more stringent test of the models than past comparisons with the less precisely determined doublet scattering length of (2)a(nd)=(0.65+/-0.04) fm.
Advancement of 3D printed conformal FSS and active array

The size and shape requirements imposed on many electronics applications today require innovative fabrication methods to surpass the limits of conventional printed circuit board manufacturing techniques. Flexible electronics based on thin films such as polyimide or elastic substrates like PDMS have contributed to the emergence of non-planar substrates, as has the use of omnidirectional printing, which enables the direct writing of conductive traces using metal-based inks on surfaces of arbitrary shape. Not without as host of issues, these methods are vulnerable to stretches and cracks, and often feature lower conductivity than PCBs due to the difficulty of fully sintering ink particles on polymer substrates.
Relationships between crack opening displacement, alloy variables, and crack detection sensitivity

Alloy grain size is known to influence both the propagation path and the closure stress of surface fatigue cracks in many alloys. The general trend is for the path to be more tortuous and the closure stress to be larger, the larger the grain size. By use of Ti Al-4V and Al 7075-T6, the effects of grain size on the nondestructive detection of surface cracks which might arise from closure stress and path irregularity variables were evaluated. Titanium specimens were inspected using an acoustic harmonic generation technique, and it was discovered that the major source of harmonic signals was grain sized crystallographic cracks. Harmonic signals were larger during fatigue in an 8-µm compared to a 4-µm grain sized alloy, as there were more grain sized cracks in the large grain material. Crack closure was found to be extremely important in determining the reflected acoustic amplitude obtained in inspecting small (100–1000 µm) cracks in Al 7075-T6 using a critical angle technique. Average received amplitudes were an order of magnitude smaller for cracks at zero load than for those opened by a tensile stress. The scatter in the reflected amplitude was also large, apparently as the result of variations in the degree of the closure from crack to crack. For the 7075 material, the important effect of larger grain size was to increase the irregularity of the crack path, making the small cracks more visible acoustically at azimuthal angles not normal to the crack plane.
The inferior olivary complex of guinea pig: Cytoarchitecture and cellular morphology☆

Abstract The inferior olivary complex (I.O.C.) of the guinea pig can be divided into three primary subdivisions: the principal olive (PO), the medial accessory olive (MAO), and the dorsal accessory olive (DAO). In Nissl-stained preparations, the PO possessed darker staining cells than did the MAO and DAO and was the most densely populated with cells. All neuronal somata in the I.O.C. were oblique-spheroid in profile (mean size: coronal = 18.3 μm, parasagittal = 15.8 μm). Based on Golgi impregnations, it was apparent that inferior olive cells were of two unique radiate-cell types (I and II). Type I neurons had relatively diffuse, sparsely branched dendritic arbors, whereas type II cells had dendrites which were highly branched and massed about the cell body, at times creating complex spirals. Type II cells were further categorized into types IIa and IIb based on geometric variations of the type II dendritic arbors. Indices of branching and tortuosity, together with estimates of dendritic arbor volume, were quite helpful in distinguishing cell types. The cell types were differentially distributed across the subdivisions with type I neurons being encountered in the MAO while type II cells were found in all three subdivisions. Within the neuropil of the I.O.C., three different afferent axonal arbors were identified, as was the presence of dendrites from surrounding reticular formation cells. Neuronal aggregates creating a possible electrical syncytium within the I.O.C. are consistent with the dendroarchitectonics of the cells.
Synergism between mellitin and phospholipase A2 from bee venom: apparent activation by intervesicle exchange of phospholipids

Mellitin, a cationic amphiphilic peptide, has an apparent activating effect on interfacial catalysis by phospholipase A2 (PLA2) of bee venom on zwitterionic vesicles of 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoylglycero-sn-3-phosphocholine (POPC) and on anionic vesicles of 1,2-dimyristoylglycero-sn-3-phosphomethanol (DMPM), as well as on covesicles of POPC/DMPM (3:7). On the other hand, mellitin-induced increase in the rate of pig pancreatic PLA2 is seen only on anionic vesicles. Interfacial kinetic protocols and spectroscopic methods show that the activation is due to enhanced substrate replenishment resulting from intervesicle exchange of zwitterionic or anionic phospholipids through vesicle-vesicle contacts established by mellitin. It is shown that as the hydrolysis on POPC vesicles progresses, due to a high propensity of bee PLA2 for binding to the product containing zwitterionic vesicles, most of the enzyme in the reaction mixture is trapped on few vesicles that are initially hydrolyzed, and thus reaction ceases. Under these conditions, mellitin promotes substrate replenishment by direct exchange of the products of hydrolysis from the enzyme-containing vesicles with the substrate present in excess vesicles which have not been hydrolyzed. Pig PLA2 has poor affinity for POPC vesicles, and the affinity is only modestly higher in the presence of low mole fractions of the products of hydrolysis; therefore, the enzyme is not trapped on those vesicles. Biophysical studies confirm that the phospholipid exchange occurs through stable intervesicle contacts formed by low mole fractions of mellitin, without transbilayer movement of phospholipids or fusion of vesicles. At high mole fraction (> 1.5%) mellitin induces leakage in POPC vesicles and does not form additional contacts. In POPC/DMPM vesicles, the contacts are formed even at high mole fractions of mellitin. Changes in intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence of mellitin indicate that bound mellitin exists in at least two different functional forms depending on the lipid composition and on the lipid:peptide ratio. A model is proposed to accommodate amphiphilic mellitin as a transmembrane channel or an intervesicle contact.
Staged repair using omentum for posttraumatic aortoesophageal fistula

Aortoesophageal fistulas from traumatic thoracic aortic pseudoaneurysms are almost uniformly fatal. We report a case of a young woman who nearly exsanguinated soon after diagnosis. Immediate operative intervention consisted of prosthetic graft replacement of the pseudoaneurysm and pleural patch coverage. Definitive treatment of the esophageal perforation was necessary later for mediastinal sepsis. Primary repair of the esophagus accompanied by mobilization of the omentum into the space between the esophageal closure and the prosthetic graft led to a successful outcome.