cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dendrimers Effects on the Immune System: Insights into Toxicity and Therapeutic Utility.

Background Dendrimers are hyperbranched polymeric nanomaterials increasingly used in research, industrial and biomedical applications. Establishing safety profile of these particles includes an understanding of their interactions with blood components and the immune system. Method Herein I review the literature demonstrating how tuning dendrimer physicochemical properties influences their interaction with erythrocytes, platelets, plasma proteins, complement and coagulation systems. Dendrimer immunogenicity, adjuvanticity, allergenicity, anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive and antibacterial properties are also discussed. Conclusion Dendrimers hemato- and immune- compatibility are determined by particle size, architecture, type and density of surface functional groups. Case studies from the literature are discussed to support this conclusion. The review also highlights questions which require more thorough investigation to fill the gaps in our understanding of immunological properties of dendrimers.
Method and structure to reduce leakage for ESD device: ET/ID: Enabling technologies and innovative devices

To fully enable and leverage the power of advanced processors, products must have abundant cache memory with much shorter access paths without increasing chip power for nonfunctional cells such as such as electrostatic discharge (ESD) circuits. It is very critical to have ESD circuits to protect the chip and module but also important to ensure that ESD circuits don't add significant power to the chip. A novel solution to meet higher ESD requirements during chip manufacturing, packaging, and test that can be “turned off” in system operation to reduce power is described.
Investigation of the Role of a Supplementation with Taurine on the Effects of Hypoglycemic-Hypotensive Therapy Against Diabetes-Induced Nephrotoxicity in Rats.

This study has examined the role of supplementing a treatment of diabetic rats with captopril (CAP), metformin (MET) or CAP-MET with the antioxidant amino acid taurine (TAU) on biochemical indices of diabetes-induced metabolic changes, oxidative stress and nephropathy. To this end, groups of 6 male Sprague-Dawley rats (250–375 g) were made diabetic with a single, 60 mg/kg, intraperitoneal dose of streptozotocin (STZ) in 10 mM citrate buffer pH 4.5 and, after 14 days, treated daily for up to 42 days with either a single oral dose of CAP (0.15 mM/kg), MET (2.4 mM/kg) or TAU (2.4 mM/kg), or with a binary or tertiary combination of these agents. Rats receiving only 10 mM citrate buffer pH 4.5 or only STZ served as negative and positive controls, respectively. All rats were sacrificed by decapitation on day 57 and their blood and kidneys collected. In addition, a 24 h urine sample was collected starting on day 56. Compared to normal rats, untreated diabetic ones exhibited frank hyperglycemia (+313%), hypoinsulinemia (−76%) and elevation of the glycated hemoglobin value (HbA1c, +207%). Also they showed increased plasma levels of Na+ (+35%), K+ (+56%), creatinine (+232%), urea nitrogen (+158%), total protein (−53%) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1, 12.4-fold) values. These changes were accompanied by increases in the renal levels of malondialdehyde (MDA, +42%), by decreases in the renal glutathione redox state (−71%), and activities of catalase (−70%), glutathione peroxidase (−71%) and superoxide dismutase (−85%), and by moderate decreases of the urine Na+ (−33%) and K+ (−39%) values. Following monotherapy, MET generally showed a greater attenuating effect than CAP or TAU on the changes in circulating glucose, insulin and HbA1c levels, urine total protein, and renal SOD activity; and CAP appeared more potent than TAU and MET, in that order, in antagonizing the changes in plasma creatinine and urea nitrogen levels. On the other hand, TAU generally provided a greater protection against changes in glutathione redox state and in CAT and GPx activities, with other actions falling in potency between those of CAP and MET. Adding TAU to a treatment with CAP, but not to one with MET, led to an increase in protective action relative to a treatment with drug alone. On the other hand, the actions of CAP-MET, which were about equipotent with those of MET, became enhanced in the presence of TAU, particularly against the changes of the glutathione redox state and activities of antioxidant enzymes. In short, the present results suggest that the addition of TAU to a treatment of diabetes with CAP or CAP-MET, and sometimes to one with MET, will lead to a gain in protective potency against changes in indices of glucose metabolism and of renal functional impairment and oxidative stress.
Using Explainability for Constrained Matrix Factorization

Accurate model-based Collaborative Filtering (CF) approaches, such as Matrix Factorization (MF), tend to be black-box machine learning models that lack interpretability and do not provide a straightforward explanation for their outputs. Yet explanations have been shown to improve the transparency of a recommender system by justifying recommendations, and this in turn can enhance the user's trust in the recommendations. Hence, one main challenge in designing a recommender system is mitigating the trade-off between an explainable technique with moderate prediction accuracy and a more accurate technique with no explainable recommendations. In this paper, we focus on factorization models and further assume the absence of any additional data source, such as item content or user attributes. We propose an explainability constrained MF technique that computes the top-n recommendation list from items that are explainable. Experimental results show that our method is effective in generating accurate and explainable recommendations.
Cellular Membrane Alterations in Neoplasia: A Review and a Unifying Hypothesis

Together with its abnormal growth, the neoplastic state is characterized by numerous and variable cellular derangements, but none of the many biochemical, immunological, biological and morphological defects hitherto described is common to all tumors. Moreover, even tumors induced by a single agent in a single cell type can have a multiplicity of phenotypes, which tend to modulate in time. Pleiomorphism thus constitutes a dominant aspect of neoplasia.
The Architectural Object as a Sociospatial System

Concerns with the social inadequacy of architecture and the movement towards user-centred design call for new perspectives and architectural visions that can help alleviate usability problems and make buildings more user-friendly and accommodating in supporting user operations. Accordingly, this study proposes the concept of the sociospatial system. This conceptualization is based on premises of the systems approach and a social science interpretation of the problem. We provide a foundation for relating spatial-material objects and sociocultural phenomena, for homogenizing different discipline perspectives, and for developing relational descriptions of the systems components. This allows the built environment to be represented in terms of the sociocultural organism that it accommodates. The elastic concept of the sociospatial system described herein can be used as a holistic framework for the study of sociospatial interactions; including facilities programming and design, where this way of thinking can facilitate a holistic interpretation of a wide array of considerations.
Pleomorphic Lobular Carcinoma In Situ: Imaging Features, Upgrade Rate, and Clinical Outcomes

OBJECTIVE. Pleomorphic lobular carcinoma in situ (PLCIS) is an aggressive subtype of lobular carcinoma in situ treated similarly to ductal carcinoma in situ. The purpose of this study was to determ...
Airborne Two-Micron Double-Pulse IPDA Lidar Validation for Carbon Dioxide Measurements Over Land

An airborne double-pulse 2-μm Integrated Path Differential Absorption (IPDA) lidar has been developed at NASA LaRC for measuring atmospheric CO2 . IPDA was validated using NASA B-200 aircraft over land and ocean under different conditions. IPDA evaluation for land vegetation returns, during full day background conditions, are presented. IPDA CO2 measurements compare well with model results driven from on-board insitu sensor data. These results also indicate that CO2 measurement bias is consistent with that from ocean surface returns.
Теоретические вопросы применения нетарифных мер регулирования во внешней торговле (Application of Non-Tariff Barriers)

Russian Abstract: В работе исследуется чувствительность физического объема импорта иностранных товаров к нетарифным мерам регулирования внешней торговли для России и некоторых других стран постсоветского пространства. Даны оценки адвалорного эквивалента каждой рассматриваемой нетарифной меры для различных товарных групп. Полученные автором результаты могут быть использованы для оценки мер таможенно-тарифной политики правительства. English Abstract: In this paper the author investigates the sensitivity of the physical volume of imports of foreign goods to non-tariff measures in regulation of foreign trade in Russia and other former Soviet republics. The author gives estimates of the ad valorem equivalent of each non-tariff measure for various commodity groups. Research ﬁndings can be used for the assessment of customs and tariff policy of the government.
Abstract TP411: Biomarker Profiling of Neurovascular Diseases in Patients With Stage 5 Chronic Kidney Disease

Introduction: Patients with stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD5D) have a higher risk for developing neurocognitive deficits. Stroke, cervical carotid artery disease (CCAD), and intracranial athero...
VIPER: variability-preserving imputation for accurate gene expression recovery in single-cell RNA sequencing studies

We develop a method, VIPER, to impute the zero values in single-cell RNA sequencing studies to facilitate accurate transcriptome quantification at the single-cell level. VIPER is based on nonnegative sparse regression models and is capable of progressively inferring a sparse set of local neighborhood cells that are most predictive of the expression levels of the cell of interest for imputation. A key feature of our method is its ability to preserve gene expression variability across cells after imputation. We illustrate the advantages of our method through several well-designed real data-based analytical experiments.
Two new approaches to compressed sensing exhibiting both robust sparse recovery and the grouping effect

In this paper we introduce a new optimization formulation for sparse regression and compressed sensing, called CLOT (Combined L-One and Two), wherein the regularizer is a convex combination of the l 1 - and l 2 -norms. This formulation differs from the Elastic Net (EN) formulation, in which the regularizer is a convex combination of the l 1 - and l 2 -norm squared. This seemingly simple modification has fairly significant consequences. In particular, it is shown in this paper that the EN formulation does not achieve robust recovery of sparse vectors in the context of compressed sensing, whereas the new CLOT formulation does so. Also, like EN but unlike LASSO, the CLOT formulation achieves the grouping effect, wherein coefficients of highly correlated columns of the measurement (or design) matrix are assigned roughly comparable values. It is noteworthy that LASSO does not have the grouping effect and EN (as shown here) does not achieve robust sparse recovery. Therefore the CLOT formulation combines the best features of both LASSO (robust sparse recovery) and EN (grouping effect). The CLOT formulation is a special case of another one called SGL (Sparse Group LASSO) which was introduced into the literature previously, but without any analysis of either the grouping effect or robust sparse recovery. It is shown here that SGL achieves robust sparse recovery, and also achieves a version of the grouping effect in that coefficients of highly correlated columns of the measurement (or design) matrix are assigned roughly comparable values, if the columns belong to the same group.
Chronic Silicosis with Progressive Massive Fibrosis

Chronic Silicosis with Progressive Massive Fibrosis A 76-year-old man who had previously worked as a sandblaster presented with progressively worsening dyspnea. Findings on chest imaging were consi...
“It’s All About the Brick”: Mobilizing Adult Fans of LEGO

In this chapter, author Nancy Jennings examines how The LEGO Group has organized their most valuable consumers, Adult Fans of LEGO (AFOLs), to create a legion of brand ambassadors and co-creators. Jennings focuses on the intersection of fan studies, public relations and labor management as AFOLs navigate their fan identity. While the LEGO Group’s success can be measured in product sales and corporate growth, these metrics fail to capture the special and deeply personal ways in which consumers connect with LEGO. Moreover, this chapter explores how The LEGO Group adroitly mobilizes its adult fans in a variety of ways: as brand ambassadors to promote LEGO through community building; as consumers to make more and bigger purchases; and as co-creators in the development of new products.
Genetic compensation of γ CaMKII, an evolutionarily conserved gene

CaMKII is a Ca2+/CaM-dependent protein kinase encoded by a family of conserved genes found throughout all metazoan species and expressed from fertilization into adulthood. One of these genes, camk2g1, is particularly important during early development as determined by pharmacologic, dominant negative and antisense morpholino approaches in zebrafish. Four other teleost fish species (cavefish, medaka, stickleback, and tilapia), exhibit sequence conservation of camk2g1 and duplication of the same CaMKII genes. A homozygous mutant of camk2g1 was generated in zebrafish using TALEN technology but yielded none of the phenotypic alterations seen using all other approaches and was reproductively viable. However, these camk2g1 mutant embryos showed a 4-fold over-expression of its paralog camk2g2. None of the other camk2 genes showed such transcriptional elevation, in fact, some of these genes were suppressed to 10% of wild type levels. In contrast, G0 camk2g1 CRISPR/Cas9 embryos recapitulated nearly all of the altered phenotypes observed in camk2g1 morphants, including renal, aural and ciliary defects. These findings validate the importance of this gene family during early zebrafish development and provide evidence for gene-specific transcriptional cross-talk consistent with genetic compensation.
CHAPTER 3 – Simplex Spaces

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses properties of simplex spaces. The facial topology for K and the center for A(K) is described. It is shown that the facially closed sets form the closed sets for the facial topology of K. If {Eα} is a family of facially closed sets satisfying the finite intersection property, and with Eα = δFα for some closed split faces Fα, then {Fα} has the finite intersection property. It is found that if K is a Bauer simplex, then δK is compact in the relative topology and every closed subset of δK is facially closed. The relative and facial topologies of δK coincide. It is important to determine the nature of the real-valued functions on δK that are facially continuous. The center of A(K) is always a sublattice containing the constants. It is found that for simplexes the center has a purely lattice-theoretic characterization.
Dynamic and conformational switching in proteins

Using bioinformatic methods for treating protein dynamics, developed in earlier work, we study the relationship between sequence mobility and dynamics in proteins. It is shown that sequence mobility drives a transition between two dynamic regimes in proteins, and that the specific details of this transition differ qualitatively between α-helical proteins and those in other structural classes. We examine the possibility that conformational switching is related to dynamic switching, by considering a specific system of sequences which exhibit the switching phenomenon. It is shown that a relationship between dynamic and conformational switching is entirely plausible.
Advancing research in digital and social media marketing

This article takes a quasi-historical perspective on digital and social media marketing. It traces digital marketing from its roots in direct and interactive marketing to the present day. The artic...
External Communities as Initiators of Organizational Change

Organizational change literature has long described the ways change efforts are designed and executed, with particular attention to where the change effort initiated: whether from the top down or t...
A Walsh-Fourier Approach to the Analysis of Binary Time Series

A nonparametric approach to analyzing a stationary binary time series X(n), n = 0, ±1, ±2, … taking values in 0, 1 is discussed. The analysis is accomplished in the spectral domain using the Walsh-Fourier transform which is based on Walsh functions. This seems to be a natural alternative to the trigonometric functions used in the usual spectral analysis since the Walsh functions take on only two values, +1 or − 1, (or “on” and “off”, as does the series X(n) itself). This approach enables the investigator to analyze a binary series in terms of square-waves and sequency (switches or changes per unit time) rather than sine-waves and frequency (cycles per unit time). We discuss (1) the basic theory of Walsh-Fourier analysis, (2) the computational aspects involved in calculating the discrete Walsh-Fourier transform, and (3) the analysis of simulated and real binary data in the sequency domain. We suggest that these methods would enhance the analysis of time series which take values in a discrete finite set.
The Proposed Illinois Civil Practice Act

s and Briefs); § x22 (Rule 17, Ill. Sup. Ct.-Time of Filing and Service of Briefs and Abstracts); § 123 (Rules Io-18-2o-22, and 28 of Ill. Sup. Ct.-Appeal Dockets); § 125 (Rule 23, Ill. Sup. Ct.-Oral Argument). 92 § 116 (Rule 20). 93 § 84; § 1'7 (Rule 21). The perfection of an appeal now depends upon two jurisdictional factors-having both bond and record filed and approved in apt time.
Investigation of inductors for digital Si-CMOS technologies

This paper investigates the performance of passive and active inductors for digital Si-CMOS technologies. The extreme low-resistivity of the Si-substrate and the absence of thick top metal layers in digital-CMOS processes prevent the implementation of high-Q passive inductors, and demand alternate solutions. A detailed comparison between the active and passive inductors based on several performance criteria such as Q-factor, area, tunability, noise, linearity, EMI, floor-planning etc reveals the tremendous potential of the high-Q tunable active inductors. An optimization guideline for the grounded-inductor topology has also been suggested. As a basis of comparison, oscillators have been implemented using both the inductors. The active inductor VCO achieves a much higher tuning range and occupies a much smaller die-area than the passive implementation at the cost of degraded phase-noise performance.
Design-to-Manufacturing Information Management for Electronics Assembly

This paper addresses design to manufacturing (DTM) for electronics assembly from several different perspectives. First, a working definition for DTM is proposed, and the distinction is made between DTM and the more commonly known design for manufacturability. Following an overview of surface mount technology assembly processes, DTM information management is introduced in terms of its data requirements and underlying decision and planning problems. Evaluation criteria are discussed, and specific requirements for a state-of-the-art DTM system are highlighted. The experiences of one Motorola factory are presented in a brief case study, which covers process mapping, system design and benchmarking, and installation and configuration activities. Benefits of an efficient DTM system are discussed in terms of the improvements in production time, engineering time, and product or process quality. Finally, a summary of future trends for DTM is given.
Immediate observability of discrete event systems with application to user-interface design

A human interacting with a hybrid system is often presented, through information displays, with a simplified representation of the underlying system. This interface should not overwhelm the human with unnecessary information, and thus usually contains only a subset of information about the true system model, yet, if properly designed, represents an abstraction of the true system which the human is able to use to safely interact with the system [M. Heymann and A. Degani, 2002]. For cases in which the human interacts with all or part of the system from a remote location, and communication has a high cost, the need for a simple abstraction, which reduces the amount of information that must be transmitted, is of the utmost importance. The user should be able to immediately determine the actual state of the system, based on the information displayed through the interface. In this paper, we derive conditions for immediate observability in which the current state of the system can be unambiguously reconstructed from the output associated with the current state and the last or next event. Then, we show how to construct a discrete event system output function, which makes a system immediately observable, and apply this to a reduced state machine, which represents an interface.
Enterprises as systems: Context, boundaries, and practical implications

The focus of this paper is to describe the domain of enterprise analysis. This is accomplished through an exploration of relevant definitions, a discussion on boundaries, and a summary of practical implications for researchers and practitioners. Specifically, we consider the perspectives of stakeholders involved in small- and large-scale enterprise transformation, be they executives in corner offices or line workers on the factory floor. Anecdotes derived from research experiences with enterprise transformation provide insight into current enterprise research opportunities. To illustrate the domain of enterprise analysis, we identify three critical enterprise attributes - structure, function and value delivery - and investigate how these attributes can be used to influence boundary analysis, a discussion which provides researchers and practitioners the ability to use enterprise thinking as an invaluable tool to transform enterprises.
Conditions for boards' governing corporations

should govern; boards are part of dominant or rival coalitions; directors' status is equal to or greater than the chief executive's; procedures require problems to flow to boards; the load of problems on boards' agendas is light; and boards have indepen­ dent sources of information. Boards' decisions are within the limits of rationality under five conditions: strategic issues are ambiguous; corporate ideology is one of directors' governance; causal relations exist between strategy and the corporate en­ vironment; directors are associated with dominant or rival coalitions; and directors' view of knowledge accepts contradic­ tions and ambiguity. Four approaches to decision making are associated with boards' governance. The use of analytical deci­ sion making is a condition inimical to boards's governing, but dialectical and bargaining processses are sufficient for their governance. The case of fortuitous decision making leaves boards' governance problematic. Chairmen of boards need to be sensitive to changing conditions and assert the board's leadership only when the conditions are appropriate.
Etoposide kinetics in patients with obstructive jaundice.

The kinetics and urinary excretion of etoposide and etoposide glucuronide were determined in 11 patients with obstructive jaundice (bilirubin greater than 2.0 mg/dL) and in 23 patients with normal renal and hepatic function. Mean (+/- SE) measurements of clearance (24.5 +/- 2.06 v 26.5 +/- 2.05 mL/min/m2), half-life (5.7 +/- 0.5 v 6.4 +/- 0.5 hours), and volume of distribution (12.4 +/- 1.1 v 13.7 +/- 1.6 L/m2) were not significantly different in patients with jaundice when compared with controls. Similarly, etoposide kinetics in three patients determined during a period of hyperbilirubinemia were not different from measurements made in the same patients following resolution of their obstructive jaundice. In patients with jaundice, 46% of an administered etoposide dose was excreted in the urine as etoposide compared with 35% in controls (P = .15). Urinary excretion of etoposide glucuronide accounted for 29% of an administered etoposide dose in control patients and 15% in those with hepatic obstruction (P = .03). Biliary etoposide excretion measured in four patients with T-tubes was insignificant (less than 2.0% of an administered dose). The calculated renal clearance of etoposide was 11.5 mL/min/m2 in patients with jaundice and 10.4 mL/min/m2 in controls (P = .53). Respective metabolic clearance was 4.9 and 6.9 mL/min/m2 in these two study groups (P = .13). Although hepatic metabolism of etoposide may be slightly decreased in patients with obstructive jaundice, a modest increase in renal etoposide excretion appears to compensate for this change, so that total clearance is similar in the patients with jaundice when compared with controls. No etoposide dose reductions appear to be needed in treating patients with obstructive jaundice who have normal renal function.
The Law and Economics Approach to Property

This short paper written for a symposium issue of the Property Law Review on "Research Methods in Property Law," provides a concise introduction to the ways in which property rights (and duties) structure economic relations and, in turn, are influenced by economic considerations. Among the topics covered are: (a) property as a functional "institution" that not only facilitates exchange but also supports resource conservation (via the right to exclude); (b) Coasian comparative institutional analysis as a research method based on transaction costs; (c) property conflicts as joint- or social-cost problems; (d) the law and economics of property remedies; and (e) the under-explored variety and complexity of property regimes. The paper concludes with the obvious point (but one often ignored by legal scholars) that a thorough understanding of property law (including public and common property, as well as private property) requires attention to the vital economic functions it serves in virtually all societies.
[NLE4, D-PHE7]-$aL-MSH: A Superpotent Melanotropin That “Irreversibly” Activates Melanoma Tyrosinase

The superpotent and ultraprolonged melanotropic properties of an α-melanotropin analog, [Nle4, D-Phe]-α-MSH, were investigated in a Cloudman S91 (CCL 53.1) melanoma cell line. [Nle4, D-Phe7]-α-MSH is 100-fold more effective than the native hormone, α-MSH), in stimulating hormone (α-MSH), in stimulating melanoma cell tyrosinase activity, as determined from their minimum effective doses (10−11M and 10−9M, respectively). [Nle4, D-Phe7]-α-MSH also exhibits a more sustained effect than α-MSH on tyrosinase after removal of the melanotropins from the incubation medium. When cells were exposed to α-MSH (10−7M) for 24 h, residual activity after removal of the hormone was minimally significant. In contrast, under the same experimental conditions [Nle4, D-Phe]-α-MSH treatment induced tyrosinase activity 2–3 fold above basal level, and maintained remarkable stimulatory effects up to 72 h following melanotropin removal. When the exposure time to melanotropins was reduced to 4 h, α-MSH failed to elicit significant tyro...
Producing Gorongosa: Space and the Environmental Politics of Degradation in Mozambique

This article examines the spatial production of the greater Gorongosa ecosystem, linking the production of space with scientific discourses on environmental degradation. Ecological research conducted in Gorongosa National Park (GNP) in the 1960s established the spatial contours and produced the greater Gorongosa ecosystem that is continually under threat from Mozambican cultivators. This discursive production and its material effects obscure a long history of human occupancy and transformation of the landscape that is now categorised as a national park. The use of aerial surveys and satellite imagery by conservationists to chart biophysical changes in the landscape is central to the spatial production of the greater Gorongosa ecosystem. The knowledge produced through these ways of seeing the landscape is used to justify various socio-technical and legal interventions to protect the environment. Through analysing the discourse on human-induced environmental degradation in GNP between 2005 and 2010, I suggest that when nature and space are taken as self evident by conservation practitioners, there is a danger of reproducing narratives of environmental degradation that simplify historically dynamic interactions between people, institutions, and their biophysical surroundings, and serve as further justification for intervening in the lives and livelihoods of adjacent residents.
Festival motivation and loyalty factors

Every year hundreds of festivals and host communities around the world face increased competition from both each other and from other entertainment options available to the consumer. It is imperative that festival organizers understand tourist motivations for attending festivals in order to conduct effective festival planning and achieve a more productive festival marketing position and marketing strategy. The purpose of this study is twofold: First, this study attempted to investigate whether festivalscape factors impact attendees’ motivation and loyalty behavior. Additionally, this study attempted to examine whether festivalscape factors are influenced by different types of attendees. Practical implications for festival organizers and marketers include the importance of the customization of operational and marketing strategies depending on their target market (local versus non-local). Academic contributions of this study pertain to the theoretical foundations by validating the impact of festivalscape factors in tourism marketing.
Use of Recombinant DNA to Improve Production of Cephalosporin C By Cephalosporium acremonium

A recombinant DNA-modified strain of the filamentous fungus Cephalosporium acremonium, strain LU4-79-6, produced more of the antibiotic cephalosporin C than a non-recombinant strain, strain 394-4, from which it was derived by transformation. Strain 394-4, derived from C. acremonium ATCC 11550 by multiple rounds of mutagenesis and screening for improved antibiotic biosynthesis, has been useful for producing cephalosporin C at industrial scale. Strain LU4-79-6 has one insert of pPS56 DNA in its high molecular weight DNA. Plasmid pPS56 includes a dominant hygromycin B resistance marker and a 7 kb BamH1 C. acremonium DNA fragment containing the cefEF gene. The cefEF gene codes for a bifunctional protein that exhibits two sequentially-acting cephalosporin biosynthetic enzyme activities: deacetoxycephalosporin C synthetase (DAOCS) and deacetylcephalosporin C synthetase (DACS). Extracts of strain LU4-79-6 contained ∼2-fold more DAOCS activity than corresponding extracts of its non-recombinant parent. Strain LU4-79-6 excretes less penicillin N, the substrate of DAOCS, than strain 394-4. Resistance to hygromycin B, presence of pPS56 DNA, elevated intracellular DAOCS, decreased penicillin N production, and increased cephalosporin C production are retained after growth in a medium free of hygromycin B. The superiority of the recombinant strain has been confirmed at pilot scale.
Use of Tilapia as Supplemental Forage for Channel Catfish Broodstock

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of supplemental feeding with forage fish on the spawning success and egg quality of channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus. Channel catfish broodstock were maintained for 2 years on a diet of either commercial catfish feed with 32% protein or commercial catfish feed and live blue tilapia. Fish fed forage fish had significantly larger eggs and a higher gonadosomatic index prior to the second spawning season. They also spawned larger eggs, had a higher hatch rate, and produced more and larger fry than fish fed only commercial feed. During the second year of the study, growth rates and food conversion ratios were better over the winter months for channel catfish fed supplemental forage but worse over the summer months compared with fish fed only commercial feed. Over the two spawning seasons, broodstock fed forage fish produced an average of 9,221 sac fry/kg of females stocked in the spawning ponds. The addition of 10–15 kg/ha of blue tilapia to ch...
Dichotomous effects of complete versus partial class II major histocompatibility complex deficiency on circulating autoantibody levels in autoimmune-prone mice.

Objective To assess the effects of altered class II major histocompatibility complex (MHCII) expression on circulating autoantibody levels in C57BL/6 (B6) mice congenic for the Sle1 (B6.Sle1 mice) or Nba2 (B6.Nba2 mice) regions. Methods H-2Ab+/+ (MHCII-intact), H-2Ab+/– (MHCII-intermediate), and H-2Ab–/– (MHCII-deficient) littermate B6.Sle1 and B6.Nba2 mice were evaluated for spleen cell phenotype, numbers of splenic Ig-secreting cells, and serum levels of total IgM, total IgG, IgG antichromatin, IgG antihistone, and IgG anti–double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA). Results Compared with their MHCII-intact littermates, MHCII-deficient B6.Sle1 and B6.Nba2 mice developed markedly decreased circulating levels of IgG autoantibodies, along with decreased circulating levels of total IgG. In sharp contrast, MHCII-intermediate mice developed increased circulating levels of IgG autoantibodies. This was associated with increased numbers of splenic Ig-secreting cells and serum levels of total IgG in B6.Sle1 mice, but it occurred without concomitant increases in the numbers of splenic Ig-secreting cells or serum total IgG levels in B6.Nba2 mice. Conclusion In 2 clinically healthy strains of mice with a genetic proclivity for developing autoantibodies, the effects of class II MHC expression on levels of circulating IgG autoantibodies were found to be complex. In the absence of MHCII expression, circulating IgG autoantibody levels were minimal. With full MHCII expression, circulating IgG autoantibody levels were considerable. With intermediate MHCII expression, circulating IgG autoantibody levels were even greater. These last findings may help explain why heterozygosity at the H-2 locus is associated with increased autoantibody titers and aggravated disease in certain lupus-prone mice.
New treatments for ER+ breast cancer

Introductory Sentence. We hypothesize that rapamycin, an inhibitor of the proliferation-controlling kinase mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR), will inhibit 17-beta estradiol (E2)-driven proliferation and signaling in ER+ breast cancer cells. Methods. The ER+ breast cancer cell line MCF-7 was used for proliferation assays in the presence of combinations of E2, 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-OHT), and rapamycin. Treatments were done in quadruplicate and data were analyzed using simple t-tests and one-way ANOVA. To determine the effects of mTOR inhibition on non-genomic E2-dependent signaling, MCF-7 cells were stimulated with E2 in the presence or absence of rapamycin. Cells were sampled at early time points (<60 min) and analyzed by Western blot for the phosphorylation of the mTOR substrate S6K1. Effects of RNA interference (RNAi) against mTOR on nongenomic E2-dependent signaling were also examined. To investigate the effects of mTOR inhibition on genomic E2-dependent signaling, MCF-7 cells were stimulated with E2 in the presence or absence of rapamycin and then sampled several hours after stimulation. Northern blot analysis for the expression of the E2-responsive gene pS2 was performed. Experiments were repeated a minimum of three times. Results. Rapamycin inhibited the E2-driven proliferation of MCF-7 cells in a concentration-dependent manner and had additive inhibitory effects when combined with 4-OHT. E2 stimulated the phosphorylation of mTOR substrate S6K1 within 15 min; this effect was inhibited by pretreatment with rapamycin, and also by RNAi against mTOR. Furthermore, rapamycin attenuated the induction of E2-responsive pS2 transcript after E2 stimulation. Conclusions. Rapamycin inhibits E2-driven proliferation of the ER+ breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and has additive effects with 4-OHT. Rapamycin affects both nongenomic and genomic E2-dependent signaling. These results suggest that rapamycin could be a valuable addition to the armamentarium against ER+ breast cancer.
Anti-depressant and anxiolytic like behaviors in PKCI/HINT1 knockout mice associated with elevated plasma corticosterone level.

Background Protein kinase C interacting protein (PKCI/HINT1) is a small protein belonging to the histidine triad (HIT) family proteins. Its brain immunoreactivity is located in neurons and neuronal processes. PKCI/HINT1 gene knockout (KO) mice display hyper-locomotion in response to D-amphetamine which is considered a positive symptom of schizophrenia in animal models. Postmortem studies identified PKCI/HINT1 as a candidate molecule for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. We investigated the hypothesis that the PKCI/HINT1 gene may play an important role in regulating mood function in the CNS. We submitted PKCI/HINT1 KO mice and their wild type (WT) littermates to behavioral tests used to study anti-depressant, anxiety like behaviors, and goal-oriented behavior. Additionally, as many mood disorders coincide with modifications of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function, we assessed the HPA activity through measurement of plasma corticosterone levels.
Low temperature growth of epitaxial and amorphous silicon in a hydrogen-diluted silane plasma

The growth, structure and hydrogen incorporation in plasma-deposited low temperature epitaxial and amorphous silicon have been studied. An optimal balance between deposition and ‘etching’ produces epitaxy on hydrogen-passivated silicon surfaces for T=150–350°C, with the lower T materials contains more defects in the form of clustered H platelets. Although grown at similar temperatures, the disordered network incorporates ∼30–100 times more hydrogen than the ordered one. The incorporated H is 17 times more likely to originate from SiH4-related species than from H2 for both phases. In the high dilution regime, many incorporated H originate from H2, consistent with the concept of ‘etching’.
Edge Effect Studies in Fiber-Reinforced Laminates.

Experimental and theoretical studies of edge effects in rectangular composite strips under tension are discussed. The objective of the study was to investigate the effect of various parameters, including reinforcement material, fiber orientation and the structure of the reinforcement, on the various quantities which are observed in the vicinity of free edges in multidirectionally reinforced laminates. Of particular interest was the confirmation of theoretical results related to differences in response of graphite- and boron-reinforced laminates. Experiments consisted of moire measurements of surface-displacement patterns which were compared with theoretical predictions, and examination of failure levels. The experiments were carried out on AVCO 5505 boron and Whitaker 5206 MODMOR II graphite-reinforced angle-ply laminates in which both stacking sequence and fiber orientation were varied parametrically. Moire techniques were developed which allowed observation of displacements on both the wide surface and along the narrow edge of 1 in.-wide × 16-ply-thick (.085 in.-.105 in.) laminates.
Detection of Putative Periodontal Pathogens in Subgingival Specimens by 16S Ribosomal DNA Amplification with the Polymerase Chain Reaction

The utility of the 16S ribosomal RNA-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detection of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, Bacteroides forsythus, Campylobacter rectus, Eikenella corrodens, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia, and Treponema denticola was examined and compared with that of anaerobic culture. Primer pairs consisting of 20-27 nucleotides amplified 404- to 688-bp regions of 16S ribosomal RNA genes of these organisms. This method had a lower detection limit of 50 target cells in a background of 10(7) cells. Its specificity for B. forsythus, P. gingivalis, and T. denticola seemed high. The primers for A. actinomycetemcomitans, C. rectus, and P. intermedia cross-reacted with some closely related species but did not reveal amplification products in tests with more distantly related organisms. The primers for E. corrodens did not seem to cross-react with oral organisms. This PCR technique was sensitive, reproducible, and easy to perform. PCR-based amplification may prove valuable for the detection of some periodontal pathogens in crude subgingival specimens.
Oxidized proteins in Alzheimer's plasma.

The levels of oxidatively modified proteins were examined in blood from Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, non-AD controls, and AD relatives. Oxidative modification was measured by reacting the protein carbonyls with 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine (DNPH). The total oxidized proteins were determined by HPLC, while specific protein oxidation was assessed from Western blots of electrophoretic gels using antibody to the DNPderivatives. Statistically significant elevations (P < 0.05) of total oxidized proteins were observed in both AD subjects and AD relatives when compared with non-AD controls. Moreover, a protein band (e.g., MW = 78-kDa) was uniquely oxidized in the plasma of AD subjects. Furthermore, this protein from AD subjects was more susceptible to in vitro oxidation. These data suggest that such oxidized proteins may be useful as biomarkers for the detection and evaluation of AD.
One-Click Mesh Generation: Going From Multi-Region 2D Images to Tetrahedral Mesh

‘1click’ toolbox for tetrahedral mesh generation is presented that uses stack of 2D images with multiple regions. GUI-based approach to quality inspection and optimization of mesh bridges the gap from volume imaging to mesh generation.
Antibody-mediated activation of sindbis virus☆

Abstract The biological activity of an anti-Sindbis monoclonal antibody (MCAB 49) has been explored. The antibody recognizes an epitope on the E2 glycoprotein of Sindbis virus and, in the presence of complement (C′), neutralizes virus infectivity. In the absence of C′, reaction of the antibody with our laboratory strain of Sindbis, SB, increased the number of plaque-forming units (PFU) detected on baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells rather than neutralizing virus infectivity. The elevated titers of SB approached, but never exceeded, the number of virions calculated from the particle:PFU ratio, indicating that the additional PFU might have resulted from activation of normally noninfectious particles. The apparent activation could not be attributed to disaggregation of SB by MCAB 49 as shown by ultraviolet inactivation experiments with antibody-treated and untreated virus preparations. Fc receptors did not appear to be involved in the antibody-mediated activation. Fab′ and F(ab′ 2 fragments of MCAB 49 also increased the number of observed PFU of SB. Control monoclonal antibodies of the same isotype, but specific for the tobacco etch virus capsid protein, were unable to compete for cellular binding sites with the SB/MCAB 49 complex. Rather, the SB/MCAB 49 complex appeared to utilize the same receptor(s) as SB in that SB and the SB/MCAB 49 complexes competed with each other for binding sites on BHK cells. Binding studies with 32 P-labeled SB showed that a higher proportion of MCAB 49 activated virions than untreated virions associated with BHK cells. Moreover, activated virions were much less susceptible to elution. These results suggest that reaction which MCAB 49 may facilitate successful attachment of SB to its receptor, or receptors, on BHK cells.
Multiplication in the Fission Fragment Pulse Height Response of Silicon Surface Barriers

A number of investigators have observed multiplication phenomenon in the response of silicon surface barriers to fission fragments. In many cases, this multiplication is anomalous in the sense that it occurs at electric field intensities well below that required for avalanche multiplication. One group has suggested that this phenomenon is related to a "threshold depth". 1 However, other results from investigations of the response of surface barriers to fission fragments2 and heavy ions3 for a wide range of silicon resistivities and bias voltages have exhibited no systematic evidence to support the concept of a "threshold depth". In the work reported here, we demonstrate that multiplications at anomalously low field strengths can be significantly reduced by surface treatment after fabrication and can be reduced or eliminated by the proper surface treatment and control of the thickness of the front electrode. A possible multiplication mechanism based on the concept of tunneling injection through the oxide layer, which was first suggested by Gibson and Miller4, is discussed in terms of these experimental results. Fabrication techniques which minimize the tendency to multiply, together with other detailed design criteria for optimizing the performance of fission fragment and heavy ion spectrometers, are also presented.
Science-Driven Mathematical Explanation

The vast majority of philosophical work on explanation has concerned itself with scientific explanation. Aside from the obvious importance of science, another factor sometimes cited in support of this partiality is that there is ‘a substantial continuity between the sorts of explanations found in science and at least some forms of explanation found in more ordinary non-scientific contexts’ (Woodward 2009, p. 2). The idea seems to be that, by focusing on explanation in science, philosophers will be able to isolate and analyze features of explanatory practice that hold more generally. A notable exception to the above claim of continuity is explanation in mathematics. This topic was entirely ignored in the ‘first wave’ of work by analytic philosophers on explanation in the 1950’s and 1960’s. The situation has changed considerably over the past couple of decades, and there is now a significant amount of philosophical attention being paid specifically to the issue of mathematical explanation. Moreover, even philosophers whose main focus is on scientific explanation often acknowledge the existence of explanations within pure mathematics. Nonetheless, the predominant view is that mathematical explanation is qualitatively different both from scientific explanation and from explanation in ‘ordinary non-scientific contexts’. Thus the editors of a recent volume on interdisciplinary approaches to explanation write that ‘your explanation of why you’ll be home late for dinner and a mathematician’s proof of a theorem share very little’ (Wilson & Keil 2000, p. 91). There are good reasons for analyzing mathematical explanation separately from scientific explanation. Adopting this approach acknowledges the clear intuitive differences between these two spheres of explanatory practice, while also allowing theorists in one sphere to proceed unencumbered by potential counterexamples from the other. However, there is a fairly obvious problem with this neat picture, and that is that the spheres of mathematical practice and scientific practice frequently overlap. It is all very well emphasizing the qualitative differences between scientific explanation and its mathematical counterpart, but what about scientific explanations that make use of mathematics? Following Paolo Mancosu, I shall define a mathematical explanation in science (MES) to be ‘an explanation in natural science carried out by essential appeal to mathematical facts’ (Mancosu 2008, p. 135). An example of an MES that has been discussed at some length in the literature concerns the life-cycle of the North American