cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Yankee merchants and the making of the urban West: Savagedom, destiny, and the isothermal zodiac

For western cities, growth began in the East. Migrants and capital from the eastern states generated urban development in the antebellum West and transformed frontier towns into major commercial centers. The great urban rivalries of the nineteenth century, therefore, were often decided hundreds of miles from the cities that were involved. Moreover, frontier boosters recognized this fact and waged their literary wars in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and other large population centers. Victory did not depend on the quantity of the promotional literature that energetic editors manufactured. Instead, eastern perceptions of western cities – and the responses that those perceptions triggered – determined the winner. St. Louis crushed Quincy, for example, because easterners knew more about St. Louis and because they responded favorably to what they had read and heard about St. Louis. The city that attracted migrants and investors denied such resources to its rivals. As a result, St. Louis triumphed. But because victory began in the East rather than in the West, success reflected what easterners read – not what westerners wrote. Thus, the body of information available to easterners shaped the course of urban development. Potential settlers and investors, however, knew far more about western cities than what local boosters manufactured.
Accelerated Carbonation of Ca- and Mg-Bearing Minerals and Industrial Wastes Using CO2

Abstract This chapter introduces the concept of carbon mineralization that involves the conversion of CO 2 into solid inorganic carbonates. It starts by presenting an overall scheme of CO 2 reactions with alkaline-rich materials such as minerals and industrial wastes containing calcium and magnesium. The engineered weathering of silicate minerals including olivine ((Mg,Fe) 2 SiO 4 ), serpentine ((Mg,Fe) 3 (OH) 4 (Si 3 O 5 )) and wollastonite (CaSiO 3 ) are discussed as one of the most safe and permanent carbon storage solutions. The method of using CO 2 to treat industrial wastes such as fly ash, cement kiln dust, stainless steel slag and red mud is also presented in detail. The carbonated materials can be readily landfilled without the concern of contaminant leaching, or utilized in various applications such as in construction. Environmental implications and potential benefits of CO 2 utilization via various carbon mineralization schemes are summarized.
P-017 Delayed Cerebral Ischemia Secondary to Arteriovenous Malformation Rupture

Objective Vasospasm and resultant clinical deterioration caused by delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) are well known sources of morbidity after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) rupture is a relatively common cause of spontaneous parenchymal hemorrhage, as well as subarachnoid and intraventricular hemorrhage. However, ensuing vasospasm associated with AVM rupture is rare, with only 20 cases documented in the literature. We report a series of patients with ruptured AVMs in order to evaluate the prevalence of vasospasm and resultant DCI. Methods We retrospectively reviewed our own series of 854 patients presenting to our institution with an ICD-9 code for intracranial hemorrhage between September 2005 and May 2014. Thirty-six of these patients were found to have acute intracranial hemorrhage secondary to a ruptured cerebral AVM. Diagnostic cerebral angiograms were reviewed by two blinded neurointerventionalists. Electronic medical records, laboratory data, all related noninvasive imaging and angiographic data of the patients were reviewed. Results The mean age of the patients was 43 years; there was a 1.25:1 male to female predominance. Twenty-six patients had an intraparenchymal hemorrhagic component (72%), while 10 patients (28%) had pure extra-axial hemorrhage. Fifteen patients had subarachnoid component (42%) and 24 patients had intraventricular component (67%). Three patients (8.3%) had pure intraventricular hemorrhage. All patients had AVMs diagnosed on CT angiography or digital subtraction angiography as part of their workup for the intracranial hemorrhage. All patients had digital subtraction angiography within 7 days of hemorrhage. Twenty-seven patients had supratentorial AVM nidus. Five patients demonstrated angiographic vasospasm (13.9%), 4 of whom went on to develop DCI (11.1%). The mean time from ictus to demonstration of vasospasm was 6.6 days. All of the 5 patients who developed vasospasm had intraventricular hemorrhage. Of the 3 patients with pure intraventricular hemorrhage, all developed DCI. Conclusions Although typically associated with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, angiographic vasospasm after AVM rupture is possible. AVM rupture classically produces parenchymal hemorrhage, but may also present with subarachnoid and/or intraventricular hemorrhage, both of which are associated with vasospasm and DCI. In cases with AVM rupture causing extra-axial hemorrhage, arterial vasospasm may be a rare, however under-reported, consequence. Specifically, in cases with pure intraventricular hemorrhage, arterial vasospasm does remain a possibility and may be a factor in patients who develop DCI. Disclosures K. Amuluru: None. F. Al-Mufti: None. C. Prestigiacomo: None. C. Gandhi: None.
Segmentation of highly unstructured handwritten documents using a neural network technique

In recent years there has been a growing interest in digitizing the extensive amounts of books and documents that existed preceding the widespread adoption of digital technologies. Many of these digitizing initiatives deal with huge collections of handwritten documents, for which document image analysis techniques (page segmentation, keyword-spotting, optical character recognition (OCR), etc) are not yet as mature as for printed text. Thus, there is an imminent need to develop techniques to understand, archive, index and search the manuscripts. The antiquated approach of manually transcribing handwritten collections and then using standard text retrieval techniques can be very expensive for large collections. But many of the manuscripts in these collections, unlike machine-printed texts, contain unstructured information, cluttered group of texts and graphics that do not necessarily follow a pre-specified format, thus making it quite challenging to automatically process. Thus, in this paper we present a convolutional neural network (CNN) based implementation that is used to segment pages of handwritten documents into their constituent sections. We showcase a multiscale sliding window based network that is trained to predict the sections of the pages in handwritten manuscripts. The results of the network are post-processed with a novel region growing technique to further improve the segmentation results. The implementation is applied on the Marianne Moore archival collection, a body of handwritten notes and memos by the renowned author Marianne Moore (1887–1972), one of the foremost modernist poets of the early twentieth-century. We present our segmentation results both quantitatively and qualitatively.
P2.43 Gender differences in risk factors and clinical outcomes of patients receiving antiretroviral therapy at an hiv clinic in guatemala city over a 9-year period

Introduction There is no consensus on gender differences in clinical outcomes of HIV-infected patients. Immunologic, virologic, and survival data for patients receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) show an inconsistent presence and direction of a gender gap. Gender and sexual behavior-based outcomes analysis is lacking in Guatemala, which has largely sexual transmission of HIV. We examine outcomes of HIV-positive Guatemalans receiving ART over a 9 year period. Methods Retrospective cohort analysis was conducted using a database of treatment-naive patients offered free ART at the Clinica Familiar Luis Angel Garcia in Guatemala City from 2004 to 2014. Multivariate Cox regression was used to study gender differences in all-cause mortality, immunologic failure (CD4 Results 4248 patients were included: 2605 men, 1617 women, and 26 transgender patients (analysed separately). Compared to men, women had higher median CD4 counts (198 vs. 126 cells/µL, p 4 copies/mL vs. 11.27 × 10 4 copies/mL, p Conclusion Women receiving ART have lower mortality than men when adjusted for sociodemographic factors and sexual behaviours. Sexual risk factors affect genders differently and can predict treatment outcomes in previously infected patients.
Alcohol operant self-administration: Investigating how alcohol-seeking behaviors predict drinking in mice using two operant approaches

Alcohol operant self-administration paradigms are critical tools for studying the neural circuits implicated in both alcohol-seeking and consummatory behaviors and for understanding the neural basis underlying alcohol-use disorders. In this study, we investigate the predictive value of two operant models of oral alcohol self-administration in mice, one in which alcohol is delivered into a cup following nose-poke responses with no accurate measurement of consumed alcohol solution, and another paradigm that provides access to alcohol via a sipper tube following lever presses and where lick rate and consumed alcohol volume can be measured. The goal was to identify a paradigm where operant behaviors such as lever presses and nose pokes, as well as other tracked behavior such as licks and head entries, can be used to reliably predict blood alcohol concentration (BAC). All mice were first exposed to alcohol in the home cage using the "drinking in the dark" (DID) procedure for 3 weeks and then were trained in alcohol self-administration using either of the operant paradigms for several weeks. Even without sucrose fading or food pre-training, mice acquired alcohol self-administration with both paradigms. However, neither lever press nor nose-poke rates were good predictors of alcohol intake or BAC. Only the lick rate and consumed alcohol were consistently and significantly correlated with BAC. Using this paradigm that accurately measures alcohol intake, unsupervised cluster analysis revealed three groups of mice: high-drinking (43%), low-drinking (37%), and non-drinking mice (20%). High-drinking mice showed faster acquisition of operant responding and achieved higher BACs than low-drinking mice. Lick rate and volume consumed varied with the alcohol concentration made available only for high- and low-drinking mice, but not for non-drinking mice. In addition, high- and low-drinking mice showed similar patterns during extinction and significant cue-induced reinstatement of seeking. Only high-drinking mice showed insensitivity to quinine adulteration, indicating a willingness to drink alcohol despite pairing with aversive stimuli. Thus, this study shows that relying on active presses is not an accurate determination of drinking behavior in mice. Only paradigms that allow for accurate measurements of consumed alcohol and/or lick rate are valid models of operant alcohol self-administration, where compulsive-like drinking could be accurately determined based on changes in alcohol intake when paired with bitter-tasting stimuli.
Simple Rules Govern the Patterns of Arctic Sea Ice Melt Ponds

Climate change, amplified in the far north, has led to rapid sea ice decline in recent years. In the summer, melt ponds form on the surface of Arctic sea ice, significantly lowering the ice reflectivity (albedo) and thereby accelerating ice melt. Pond geometry controls the details of this crucial feedback; however, a reliable model of pond geometry does not currently exist. Here we show that a simple model of voids surrounding randomly sized and placed overlapping circles reproduces the essential features of pond patterns. The only two model parameters, characteristic circle radius and coverage fraction, are chosen by comparing, between the model and the aerial photographs of the ponds, two correlation functions which determine the typical pond size and their connectedness. Using these parameters, the void model robustly reproduces the ponds' area-perimeter and area-abundance relationships over more than 6 orders of magnitude. By analyzing the correlation functions of ponds on several dates, we also find that the pond scale and the connectedness are surprisingly constant across different years and ice types. Moreover, we find that ponds resemble percolation clusters near the percolation threshold. These results demonstrate that the geometry and abundance of Arctic melt ponds can be simply described, which can be exploited in future models of Arctic melt ponds that would improve predictions of the response of sea ice to Arctic warming.
The International Regulatory Framework

The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) is an international treaty that came into existence during 1952, superseding all previous international plant protection agreements. The IPPC is intended to secure common and effective action to prevent the introduction and spread of pests and diseases of plants and plant products and to promote measures for their control. In 2013, there were 179 contracting parties to the Convention. A Secretariat for the IPPC and a Committee of Experts on Phytosanitary Measures (CEPM) were established in 1993 to address the task of developing International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs). ISPMs provide a useful framework for National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs), particularly when pest management systems and regulatory decision-making have an important role in international trade. ISPMs in themselves are not regulatory instruments but come into force after countries establish phytosanitary measures within their national legislation. Countries may establish phytosanitary measures that provide a higher level of protection than ISPMs, as long as these national measures are science based and technically justified. Subject Matter Experts from member countries draft ISPMs, which have many levels of review and revision before their adoption. Thirty-six (36) International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures relating to all aspects of plant health have been adopted between 1995, when standard setting began, until 2013. Many more are in various stages of development.
Addition of ethylamines to the phenols of bithionol and synthetic retinoids does not elicit activity in gram-negative bacteria

Our labs have demonstrated the activity of bithionol and synthetic retinoids against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), as well as their membrane-acting mechanism of action. However, the compounds lack activity in gram-negative species. Herein, we apply a known strategy for converting gram-positive agents into broad-spectrum therapies: addition of an alkylamine. By appending an alkylamine to the phenols of these known membrane disruptors, we test whether this approach is applicable to our compounds. Ultimately, biological testing in four MRSA strains and three gram-negative species showed abolished or diminished activity in all our analogs compared to their parent compounds and no gram-negative activity. Thus, we find that alkylamines would not elicit broad-spectrum activity from bithionol or CD437 derivatives.
Response of Piles in Multilayers of Soil under Uplift Forces

Abstract A new methodology is introduced to determine the mobilized pile response under axial tension forces in a soil profile with multilayers of sand and/or clay. The proposed model allows the as...
Ion Exchange Gels Allow Organic Electrochemical Transistor Operation with Hydrophobic Polymers in Aqueous Solution

Conjugated-polymer-based organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) are being studied for applications ranging from biochemical sensing to neural interfaces. While new polymers that interface digital electronics with the aqueous chemistry of life are being developed, the majority of high-performance organic transistor materials are poor at transporting biologically relevant ions. Here, the operating mode of an organic transistor is changed from that of an electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistor (EGOFET) to that of an OECT by incorporating an ion exchange gel between the active layer and the aqueous electrolyte. This device works by taking up biologically relevant ions from solution and injecting more hydrophobic ions into the active layer. Using poly[2,5-bis(3-tetradecylthiophen-2-yl) thieno[3,2-b]thiophene] as the active layer and a blend of an ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, and poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) as the ion exchange gel, four orders of magnitude improvement in device transconductance and a 100-fold increase in kinetics are demonstrated. The ability of the ion-exchange-gel OECT to record biological signals by measuring the action potentials of a Venus flytrap is demonstrated. These results show the possibility of using interface engineering to open up a wider palette of organic semiconductors as OECTs that can be gated by aqueous solutions.
Online implementation of portions of “the cognitive challenges of effective teaching”

Chew and Cerbin (2021) offer a fruitful way of thinking deeply about teaching economics. In this article, the author offers several ideas on how to offload parts of three of the cognitive challenge...
A data-driven predictome for cognitive, psychiatric, medical, and lifestyle factors on the brain

Most neuroimaging studies individually provide evidence on a narrow aspect of the human brain function, on distinct data sets that often suffer from small sample sizes. More generally, the high technical and cost demands of neuroimaging studies (combined with the statistical unreliability of neuroimaging pilot studies) may lead to observational bias, discouraging discovery of less obvious associations that nonetheless have important neurological implications. To address these problems, we built a machine-learning based classification framework, NeuroPredictome, optimized for the reliability and robustness of its associations. NeuroPredictome is grounded in a large-scale dataset, UK-Biobank (N=19,831), which includes resting and task functional MRI as well as structural T1-weighted and diffusion tensor imaging. Participants were assessed with respect to a comprehensive set of 5,034 phenotypes, including the physical and lifestyle factors most relevant to general medicine. Results generated by data-driven classifiers were then cross-validated, using deep-learning textual analyses, against 14,371 peer-reviewed research articles, providing an unbiased hypothesis-generator of linkages between diverse phenotypes and the brain. Our results show that neuroimaging reveals as many neurological links to physical and lifestyle factors as to cognitive factors, supporting a more integrative approach to medicine that considers disease interactions between multiple organs and systems.
Identifying Execution Anomalies for Data Intensive Workflows Using Lightweight ML Techniques

Today's computational science applications are increasingly dependent on many complex, data-intensive operations on distributed datasets that originate from a variety of scientific instruments and repositories. To manage this complexity, science workflows are created to automate the execution of these computational and data transfer tasks, which significantly improves scientific productivity. As the scale of workflows rapidly increases, detecting anomalous behaviors in workflow executions has become critical to ensure timely and accurate science products. In this paper, we present a set of lightweight machine learning-based techniques, including both supervised and unsupervised algorithms, to identify anomalous workflow behaviors. We perform anomaly analysis on both workflow-level and task-level datasets collected from real workflow executions on a distributed cloud testbed. Results show that the workflow-level analysis employing k-means clustering can accurately cluster anomalous, i.e. failure-prone and poorly performing workflows into statistically similar classes with a reasonable quality of clustering, achieving over 0.7 for Normalized Mutual Information and Completeness scores. These results affirm the selection of the workflow-level features for workflow anomaly analysis. For task-level analysis, the Decision Tree classifier achieves >80% accuracy, while other tested classifiers can achieve >50% accuracy in most cases. We believe that these promising results can be a foundation for future research on anomaly detection and failure prediction for scientific workflows running in production environments.
Management of Adolescents With OUD: A Simulation Case for Subspecialty Trainees in Addiction Medicine and Addiction Psychiatry

Introduction The opioid epidemic impacts all ages, yet few published medical education curricula exist to train physicians on how to care for opioid use disorder (OUD) in adolescents, a development...
Vibration Immune, Long-Term Stable and Low Noise Synchronized Mass MEMS Gyroscope

The paper describes a small size (2.25 mm2active sensor area) yaw rate sensor component for ADIS1654x series Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) with notable performance parameters such as in-run bias instability of 0.55 °/hr stable over 3 months on Allan Deviation, g-sensitivity of 0.8 (°/hr)/g, bias repeatability of 50 °/hr in 10 years, and no observable startup drift from a cold-start. The current generation IMU offers improvement of bias improvement by 4x, g-sensitivity by 30x, and repeatability by 10x over previous generation ADI's IMU.
Acceleration of starvation- and glycerol-induced myxospore formation by prior heat shock in Myxococcus xanthus.

The effect of heat shock on Myxococcus xanthus was investigated during both glycerol- and starvation-induced development. Cells heat shocked at 40 degrees C for 1 h prior to a development-inducing signal displayed an accelerated rate of myxospore formation at 30 degrees C. Additionally, M. xanthus cells heat shocked prior to glycerol induction formed a greater total number of myxospores when sporulation was complete than did control cells maintained at 30 degrees C. However, in starvation-induced fruiting cells the total number of myxospores in control and heat-shocked populations was about equal when fruiting body and myxospore formation was complete. When extended heat shock (3 h) was applied to cells prior to development, no acceleration of myxospore formation was observed. Heat shock elicited the premature expression of many developmentally regulated proteins. Cell fractionation and analysis by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and fluorography revealed the subcellular location and molecular weights of the 18 glycerol-induced and 9 starvation-induced developmental proteins. Comparison with previously identified M. xanthus heat shock proteins showed that nine of the developmental proteins found in glycerol-induced cells and three of the developmental proteins found in starvation-induced cells were heat shock proteins. Furthermore, heat shock increased the activity of alkaline phosphatase, a developmentally regulated enzyme, in vegetative cells, glycerol-induced cells, and starvation-induced cells. Images
Application of plasma estriol estimations in the management of high-risk pregnancies

Abstract Serial plasma estriol levels were determined in 51 uncomplicated and 58 complicated pregnancies. Additionally, in 13 uncomplicated, 16 toxemic, and 4 diabetic pregnancies, urinary estriol levels were also collated with plasma estriol values. Highly significant correlation was observed between plasma and urinary estriol levels in both uncomplicated and complicated pregnancies. In 5 of 37 toxemic patients, unusually high plasma estriol levels were found, though no definite correlation could be established between estriol levels and the severity of toxemia. From the thirty-fourth week of gestation, plasma estriol levels in diabetic and pre-eclamptic patients were essentially the same as those found in uncomplicated pregnancies; however, the levels in hypertensive pregnant patients were significantly lower. Broad guidelines have been postulated to correlate plasma estriol levels with fetal status from the thirty-sixth week of gestation to term. Levels of less than 5 μg per 100 ml. of plasma in this period are not compatible with a living fetus; values of less than 10 μg per 100 ml. with a dropping estriol pattern are indicative of fetal distress.
Electronic measurement of fluid level using acoustic sensors

Many fluid tanks are, in effect, a sealed box which, if forced by an acoustic source will resonate at a fundamental frequency dependent upon the volume of the box as well as its shape and the thickness and stiffness of its walls. The introduction of fluid to the bottom of the tank will change the effective volume of the tank as seen by the acoustic source. This will change the acoustic properties of the tank by an amount which corresponds to the amount of fluid in the tank. Three methods of fluid volume measurement based on this principle are presented. Results of these three methods are compared. The advantages of these methods and applications are discussed. >
Extracellular Adenosine Generation in the Regulation of Pro-Inflammatory Responses and Pathogen Colonization

Adenosine, an immunomodulatory biomolecule, is produced by the ecto-enzymes CD39 (nucleoside triphosphate dephosphorylase) and CD73 (ecto-5'-nucleotidase) by dephosphorylation of extracellular ATP. CD73 is expressed by many cell types during injury, infection and during steady-state conditions. Besides host cells, many bacteria also have CD39-CD73-like machinery, which helps the pathogen subvert the host inflammatory response. The major function for adenosine is anti-inflammatory, and most recent research has focused on adenosine’s control of inflammatory mechanisms underlying various autoimmune diseases (e.g., colitis, arthritis). Although adenosine generated through CD73 provides a feedback to control tissue damage mediated by a host immune response, it can also contribute to immunosuppression. Thus, inflammation can be a double-edged sword: it may harm the host but eventually helps by killing the invading pathogen. The role of adenosine in dampening inflammation has been an area of active research, but the relevance of the CD39/CD73-axis and adenosine receptor signaling in host defense against infection has received less attention. Here, we review our recent knowledge regarding CD73 expression during murine Salmonellosis and Helicobacter-induced gastric infection and its role in disease pathogenesis and bacterial persistence. We also explored a possible role for the CD73/adenosine pathway in regulating innate host defense function during infection.
Influence of Cardiovascular Medication on Nutritional Status

Review effects of food on absorption of cardiovascular medications. Describe interactions of cardiovascular medication with nutrients. Describe cardiovascular medications' effects on nutritional status or specific nutrients.
Derivation of infinite-component wave equations from field theory

Infinite-component wave equations describe composite particles relativistically and nonperturbatively. They have been used in the past phenomenologically to describe mass spectra, magnetic moments, form factors, etc. of atoms, nuclei and hadrons. They are now derived from field theory, hence related to the properties of basic fields. Their solutions therefore provide nonperturbative solutions to the underlying field theory.
Driving performance and automobile accidents in patients with sleep apnea.

Patients with untreated obstructive sleep apnea have poorer driving performance than patients without sleep apnea. This poor driving has been demonstrated by studies on a wide variety of driving simulators. Patients with sleep apnea show a significant improvement in driving performance after successful treatment of their apnea with nasal CPAP. After treatment with CPAP, their driving performance is similar to control subjects. Several studies show that patients with untreated sleep apnea are poor drivers and have two to three times more auto accidents than other drivers. These studies reveal that almost one quarter of these patients report frequently falling asleep while driving. Patients with severe sleep apnea or those who perform poorly on driving simulators may be at highest risk of auto accidents. Automobile accidents involving patients with sleep apnea may lead to severe injury or death. Patients, individual physicians, and the medical profession have responsibilities to help prevent these accidents. Finally, more study is needed to improve patient care, protect drivers, and formulate a fair and rational policy concerning drivers with sleep apnea. Language: en
Chemotherapeutic Sensitivity of Normal and Leukemic Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells to N-[4-(9-Acrldinylamlno)-3-methoxyphenyl]-methanesulfonamlde, a New Anticancer Agent

The sensitivities of hematopoietic colony-forming cells (CFC) to N-[4-(9-acridinylamino)-3-methoxyphenyl]-methanesulfonamide (NSC-249992) (m-AMSA) were measured with an in vitro clonogenic assay, a modification of the Robinson and Pike human marrow culture system. CFC derived from bone marrow and peripheral blood of normal subjects and patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) were studied. Sensitivities to m-AMSA did not differ significantly between normal marrow and blood CFC, between normal and CML CFC, or between CML CFC obtained from patients with leukemias in chronic phase and blast transformation. Drug doses and exposure times producing in vitro hematopoietic inhibition were comparable to clinically employed drug dosages and schedules associated with hematopoietic toxicity.
Arteriolar tortuosity of the white matter in aging and hypertension. A microradiographic study.

Previous studies have shown tortuous arteries and arterioles in the brains of older people, but the effects of age and other factors have not been studied. To examine the effects of hypertension, age, race and sex on white matter (WM) arteriolar tortuosity (AT), we performed high-resolution microradiography and morphometry of human brains taken at autopsy from 44 subjects of various ages (range 30-96 years; 31 hypertensives/13 normotensives). About 70% of tortuosities in the WM were found at the gray-white interfaces of the insular region and adjacent subcortical-WM of the inferior frontal and superior temporal gyri. Six morphologic types of tortuous profiles were identified. The number of tortuous profiles increased with age, but not significantly. Hypertension, sex and race had no effect on tortuosity. Our findings also suggest that 1) WM AT is found mostly at the interfaces between gray matter and WM and, therefore, 2) the physical properties of the WM somehow predispose to the development of AT; 3) AT is not associated with tortuosity in the veins; and 4) the location of complex arteriolar coils supports a recent claim that they can be mistaken for the Charcot-Bouchard microaneurysms if injection of contrast media and low-magnification radiography of the brain slices are employed for that purpose.
Electrophysiologic properties of procainamide in man.

Abstract The electrophysiologic properties of procainamide were studied in 16 patients and correlated with plasma levels. Procainamide caused a minimal prolongation of atrioventricular (A-V) nodal conduction in 11 of 16 patients during sinus rhythm, but His-Purkinje conduction time was significantly prolonged in 15 of 16 patients. The effective refractory period of the atrium was prolonged by procainamide in 14 of 16 patients. The effective refractory period of the A-V node decreased in 8 of 9 patients. This may have been due to (1) anticholinergic properties of procainamide, (2) production of an A-V nodal “gap” by procainamide, or (3) an apparent A-V nodal block that actually represented decremental conduction in the His bundle; procainamide then caused delay in the A-V node allowing improved intra-His conduction and ventricular depolarization. The relative refractory period of the His-Purkinje system was prolonged in 10 of 11 patients. The effective refractory period was prolonged in one patient, unchanged in a second and apparently shortened in a third. In this third patient, procainamide produced a marked delay in proximal His-Purkinje conduction allowing a distal area of refractoriness to recover, thus causing apparent shortening of the effective refractory period. Plasma levels averaged 7.1 mg/ liter at the end of the study; no toxicity was noted.
Is the FXR the fix for cholesterol gallstone disease

Cholesterol gallstone disease is characterized by several events, including cholesterol precipitation in bile, increased bile salt hydrophobicity and gallbladder inflammation. Here, we describe the same phenotype in mice lacking the bile acid receptor, FXR. Furthermore, in susceptible wild-type mice that recapitulate human cholesterol gallstone disease, treatment with a synthetic FXR agonist prevented sequelae of the disease. These effects were mediated by FXR-dependent increases in biliary bile salt and phospholipid concentrations, which restored cholesterol solubility and thereby prevented gallstone formation. Taken together, these results indicate that FXR is a promising therapeutic target for treating or preventing cholesterol gallstone disease.
Synthesis of β,β-difluoroacrylates

Abstract Diethyl malonates substituted in the α-position by an alkyl group may be bromo- difluoromethylated to give derivatives suitable for conversion to β,β-difluoro-α-alkylacrylates. The final step involves dealkoxycarbonylation-elimination promoted by potassium bromide in dimethyl sulfoxide.
Reactions of fac-[Re(CO)3(H2O)3]+ with nucleoside diphosphates and thiamine diphosphate in aqueous solution investigated by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy.

Products formed between monoester diphosphates (MDPs) and fac-[Re(CO)3(H2O)3]OTf at pH 3.6 were examined. Such adducts of the fac-[Re(CO)3]+ moiety have an uncommon combination of properties for an “inert” metal center in that sharp NMR signals can be observed, yet the products are equilibrating at rates allowing NMR EXSY cross-peaks to be observed. Thiamine diphosphate (TDP) and uridine 5‘-diphosphate (5‘-UDP) form 1:1 bidentate {Pα,Pβ} chelates, in which the MDP binds Re(I) via Pα and Pβ phosphate groups. Asymmetric centers are created at Re(I) (RRe/SRe) and Pα (Δ/Λ), leading to four diastereomers. The two mirror pairs of diastereomers (RReΔ/SReΛ) and (RReΛ/SReΔ) for TDP (no ribose) and for all four diastereomers (RReΔ, RReΛ, SReΔ, SReΛ) for 5‘-UDP (asymmetric ribose) gave two and four sets of NMR signals for the bound MDP, respectively. 31Pα−31Pα EXSY cross-peaks indicate that the fac-[Re(CO)3(H2O)({Pα,Pβ}MDP)]- isomers interchange slowly on the NMR time scale, with an average k ≈ 0.8 s-1 at 32 °C; the...
INTERACTIONS OF 1‐METHYLADENINE AND THE SURFACE OF STARFISH OOCYTE

Three metabolic inhibitors, mycostatin, concanavalin A (Con A) and cytochalasin B (CB) were used to study the interactions between l-methyladenine (1-MA) and the starfish oocyte surface leading to germinal vesicle breakdown (GVB). Mycostatin and Con A had no obvious effects on GVB. CB did not inhibit, but did delay GVB. This delaying effect was interpreted as having multiple 1-MA reactive “sites” on the surface. The results also suggested that not all of them were needed to react with 1-MA to bring about GVB.
Biology of intracranial aneurysms: role of inflammation

Intracranial aneurysms (IAs) linger as a potentially devastating clinical problem. Despite intense investigation, our understanding of the mechanisms leading to aneurysm development, progression and rupture remain incompletely defined. An accumulating body of evidence implicates inflammation as a critical contributor to aneurysm pathogenesis. Intracranial aneurysm formation and progression appear to result from endothelial dysfunction, a mounting inflammatory response, and vascular smooth muscle cell phenotypic modulation producing a pro-inflammatory phenotype. A later final common pathway appears to involve apoptosis of cellular constituents of the vessel wall. These changes result in degradation of the integrity of the vascular wall leading to aneurysmal dilation, progression and eventual rupture in certain aneurysms. Various aspects of the inflammatory response have been investigated as contributors to IA pathogenesis including leukocytes, complement, immunoglobulins, cytokines, and other humoral mediators. Furthermore, gene expression profiling of IA compared with control arteries has prominently featured differential expression of genes involved with immune response/inflammation. Preliminary data suggest that therapies targeting the inflammatory response may have efficacy in the future treatment of IA. Further investigation, however, is necessary to elucidate the precise role of inflammation in IA pathogenesis, which can be exploited to improve the prognosis of patients harboring IA.
Novel human-derived extracellular matrix induces in vitro and in vivo vascularization and inhibits fibrosis

The inability to vascularize engineered organs and revascularize areas of infarction has been a major roadblock to delivering successful regenerative medicine therapies to the clinic. These investigations detail an isolated human extracellular matrix derived from the placenta (hPM) that induces vasculogenesis in vitro and angiogenesis in vivo within bioengineered tissues, with significant immune reductive properties. Compositional analysis showed ECM components (fibrinogen, laminin), angiogenic cytokines (angiogenin, FGF), and immune-related cytokines (annexins, DEFA1) in near physiological ratios. Gene expression profiles of endothelial cells seeded onto the matrix displayed upregulation of angiogenic genes (TGFB1, VEGFA), remodeling genes (MMP9, LAMA5) and vascular development genes (HAND2, LECT1). Angiogenic networks displayed a time dependent stability in comparison to current in vitro approaches that degrade rapidly. In vivo, matrix-dosed bioscaffolds showed enhanced angiogenesis and significantly reduced fibrosis in comparison to current angiogenic biomaterials. Implementation of this human placenta derived extracellular matrix provides an alternative to Matrigel and, due to its human derivation, its development may have significant clinical applications leading to advances in therapeutic angiogenesis techniques and tissue engineering.
Insulin resistance and hippocampal volume in women at risk for Alzheimer's disease.

Insulin resistance (IR) is the main pathological condition underlying vascular disorders, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which are well established risk factors for cognitive decline and Alzheimer disease (AD). Hippocampal atrophy has been associated with cognitive decline, but little is known about the influence of IR on hippocampus integrity in non-diabetic, cognitively intact individuals. Herein, 50 women ages 50-65, current users of hormone therapy, underwent magnetic resonance imaging, cognitive testing, and homeostatic assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), as part of a longitudinal study examining brain structure and function in postmenopausal women at risk for AD. Results demonstrated a significant negative relationship between HOMA-IR and right and total hippocampal volume, overall cognitive performance, and selective tests of verbal and non-verbal memory. The main effect of HOMA-IR on brain structure and cognition was not altered by the presence of APOE-e4 allele or by reproductive history, such as duration of endogenous and exogenous estrogen exposure. These results suggest that IR in middle-aged individuals at risk for AD may be biomarker for dementia risk.
The RNA binding protein, HuR, posttranscriptionally regulates the expression of chemokines and cytokines☆

Abstract Rationale Many processes require upregulation of chemokines/cytokines. Chemokines and cytokines are frequently posttranscriptionally modulated at the level of mRNA stability or translation. Their mRNAs are tightly regulated and possess AUUUA rich elements (AREs) in their 3' UTRs. The ubiquitously expressed RNA binding protein, HuR, binds to these mRNAs, transports them out of the nucleus and either stabilizes them or enhances their translation in the cytoplasm. Methods In order to identify putative in vivo HuR targets, we immunoprecipitated RNPs (ribonuclear particles) from cells using anti-HuR antibodies, recovered the mRNA and probed microarrays with it. To corroborate these results, we used siRNA technology to knock down HuR expression in order to confirm the biological relevance of in vivo HuR mRNA targets identified from the microarray data. Results HuR targets included not only eotaxin and multiple cytokines such as IL3, IL2, IL8, TNF and GM-CSF, but also the arthritis suppressors, TTP and BRF-1. Both TTP and BRF-1 are themselves RNA binding proteins. Conclusions Through its interactions with the ARE cis-elements in its mRNA targets, HuR is directly involved in posttranscriptionally regulating many critical genes involved in a variety of allergic and inflammatory responses, including TTP and BRF-1. TTP and BRF-1 both have multiple downstream targets. Hence, we conclude that HuR may play a pivotal role in regulating many genes involved in allergic inflammation.
Heuristic stochastic model of mirrorless optical bistability

Most interest in optical bistability, (OB) has centered on devices in optical cavities [1]. However, recent experimental [2] and theoretical [3,4] interest has involved devices in which there are no specific mirrors or surfaces in the system to provide the feedback, i.e., mirrorless optical bistability (MOB). For simplicity, we discuss exclusively models in which the medium consists of stationary, homogeneously broadened two-level atoms. All discussion of mechanisms in this paper refers to those pertinant to this particular model. No experiment has as yet seen MOB under circumstances in which such a model is appropriate, and various theoretical treatments have been inconsistant on the issue of the existance of MOB in this model.
Parenting in Gay and Lesbian Families

The purpose of the present study was to gather descriptive data on gay and lesbian parents and to examine differences between lesbian mothers and gay fathers. The study consisted of structured interviews with 10 gay fathers and 11 lesbian mothers with custody of or regular contact with their children. The parents has a total of 37 children, ranging in age from 4 to 22 years. Lesbian mother had significantly lower incomes than gay fathers, had more multiple marriages, were less likely to live with a lover, were more liklely to tell their children themselves of their homosexuality, and were more likely to have difficulty reconiling their gay and parenting roles. Gay fathers reported better relationships with ex-spouses than lesbian mothers. Both sets of parents reported few lingering problems with their children as a result of their homosexuality.
Superordinate shape classification using natural shape statistics.

This paper investigates the classification of shapes into broad natural categories such as animal or leaf. We asked whether such coarse classifications can be achieved by a simple statistical classification of the shape skeleton. We surveyed databases of natural shapes, extracting shape skeletons and tabulating their parameters within each class, seeking shape statistics that effectively discriminated the classes. We conducted two experiments in which human subjects were asked to classify novel shapes into the same natural classes. We compared subjects’ classifications to those of a naive Bayesian classifier based on the natural shape statistics, and found good agreement. We conclude that human superordinate shape classifications can be well understood as involving a simple statistical classification of the shape skeleton that has been “tuned” to the natural statistics of shape.
Ophthalmologic Procedures in the Emergency Department— Part II: Routine Evaluation Procedures

The emergency physician (EP) must be familiar with performance of ophthalmologic procedures for evaluation and treatment of a multitude of eye complaints. This article is the second of three articles addressing ophthalmologic procedures potentially of use by the EP. This article reviews the indications and the techniques for the following routine procedures: visual acuity testing, pupil dilatation, topical anesthesia use, and tonometry. Criteria for consultation also are addressed.
Fundamental Concepts of NMR in Paramagnetic Systems. Part II: Relaxation Effects

Paramagnetic effects on nuclear relaxation processes are described in the framework of the Solomon-Bloembergen concepts. The factors contributing to nuclear relaxation, including the instantaneous electron-nuclear dipolar and contact couplings and the Curie spin effect, are described using simplified cases. Spectral effects are illustrated, and the factors that allow various metal ions to function as either shift or relaxation agents are qualitatively described.
Semiconductor logic technology in IBM

In the last twenty-five years the performance of integrated circuits has improved by more than three orders of magnitude and the unit cost has been reduced by approximately the same factor. This paper describes the evolution of semiconductor logic technology in IBM from its early replacement of vacuum tubes in the mid-1950s to the beginnings of VLSI. It highlights the major challenges and accomplishments in the development of bipolar and field-effect transistor technologies and their embodiment in components for a wide spectrum of IBM products.
Causes of calcium accumulation in rat cortical brain slices during hypoxia and ischemia: role of ion channels and membrane damage

To better understand why neurons accumulate calcium during cerebral ischemia, the influence of specific ion channel inhibitors on the rise in cytosolic free calcium ([Ca2+]c) during hypoxia or ischemia was evaluated in rat cerebrocortical brain slices. [Ca2+]c was measured fluorometrically with the dye fura-2 during hypoxia (95% N2/5% CO2 or 100 microM NaCN), simulated ischemia (100 microM NaCN plus 3.5 mM iodoacetate), or 0.5-1.0 mM glutamate. Hypoxia or ischemia increased [Ca+2]c from 100-250 nM to 1,000-2,500 nM within 3-5 min. Greater than 85% of the calcium accumulation was influx from the extracellular medium. The non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) inhibitor MK-801 reduced [Ca2+]c accumulation during hypoxia, but antagonism of alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole (AMPA) receptors or voltage-gated sodium or calcium channels or Na+/Ca2+ exchangers had no effect. During ischemia, combined antagonism of NMDA, AMPA and voltage-gated sodium channels slowed the rate of calcium accumulation, but not concentration at 5 min. Membrane damage, as indicated by leakage of lactate dehydrogenase into superfusate, occurred coincidentally with calcium influx and ATP loss during both hypoxia and ischemia. We conclude that cytosolic calcium changes during hypoxia or ischemia in cortical brain slices are due to multiple mechanisms, are incompletely inhibited by combined ion channel blockade, and are associated with disruption of cell membrane integrity.
Pair-distribution function of a non-polar molecular fluid based on the site-site interaction model

Abstract The purpose of this paper is the study of the complete (i.e. orientation dependent) pair-distribution function of a diatomic molecular fluid. Using the site-site interaction model for the pair potential between molecules and the diagrammatic expansion theory, the molecular pair-distribution function (PDF) is expanded in terms of the correlation functions of a simple fluid that we refer to as reference system. Both the molecular fluid and the reference system have the same density. As a consequence the calculations will depend on the packing fraction, η, having small values, which makes the PDF converge faster. The use of a simple fluid as a reference system has an other advantage, that is the correlation functions of the simple fluid are well known.
Synthesis, structure and stability of novel dimeric peptide-disulfides

Oxidation of nonapeptide dithiol (2) with K3Fe(CN)6 leads to either monomeric disulfide (4) or antiparallel and parallel dimeric disulfides (3a and 3b) depending upon reaction conditions. When exposed to small amounts of thiols or cyanide in aqueous solution, these three species interconvert to an equilibrium mixture of 2:1:8 (3a: 3b: 4). © Munksgaard 1996. © Munksgaard 1996.