cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Classifications in Brief: Fernandez Classification of Distal Radius Fractures

AIM: Assess the scientific value and validity of the Fernandez classification to treat and study distal radius fractures. METHODS: A review article evaluated current and past literature to determine the interobserver reliability of the Fernandez classification and its application in distal radius fractures. A literature review was performed using search engines including Pubmed. RESULTS: The literature demonstrated kappa scores of initial distal radius fracture evaluation 0.39 and for a second look 3 months later to be 0.15. Intra-class correlations were 0.4 and 0.12 respectively demonstrating poor intra and interobserver reliability. Additionally, CT scans utilized after initial assessment via radiographs did not improve identification. CONCLUSION: This classification has only moderate reliability that was not improved by the addition of CT scans. When this classification was specifically tested in the clinical setting, it showed no reliability when predicting associated soft tissue or structure injury. The Fernandez classification system intention was to provide a treatment algorithm, it does not serve much use outside of its historical context in the understanding of distal radius fractures.
‘I Have Flyophobia’: Jane Rice’s ‘The Idol of the Flies’ and Evil as Unwanted Houseguest

Kevin Knott applies Gina Wisker’s analysis of the Domestic Gothic in a close reading of pulp author Jane Rice’s 1942 story, ‘Idol of the Flies’. The chapter argues that Rice’s story typifies the turn to the Domestic Gothic in twentieth-century US Gothic fiction, and the story satirises some of these emerging conventions. Reading the fly as psychological and spiritual nuisance, Knott finds the fly enables a discussion of the ecological balance of the home upset by the intrusive and violent presence of Pruitt, a young emerging psychopath who uses flies to terrorise the women in the home.
Ethical issues related to the undergraduate-graduate-faculty mentoring triad in psychology

A triad approach to mentoring, involving an undergraduate student a graduate student and a faculty member, offers unique benefits to all involved. However, complexities and tensions within the tria...
An Evaluation of Fascial Closure Techniques in Open Ventral Hernia Repair: Practice Patterns and Short-Term Outcomes:

The best method for fascial closure during hernia repair remains unknown. This study evaluates the impact of fascial closure techniques on short-term outcomes. All patients undergoing open ventral hernia repair were queried using the Americas Hernia Society Quality Collaborative database. Analysis was stratified by suture type (absorbable and permanent) and technique (figure-of-eight, running, and interrupted). Outcome measures included SSI, surgical site occurrence (SSO), SSO requiring intervention, recurrence rate, and quality of life. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used. The study included 6544 patients. Two-thirds of surgeons closed fascia during ventral hernia repair with absorbable suture and one-third with permanent suture. In the absorbable group, 17 per cent used figure-of-eight, 46 per cent running, and 4 per cent interrupted suture. In the permanent group, 13 per cent used figure-of-eight, 8 per cent running, and 11 per cent interrupted suture. There was no significant association between SSO and closure technique (P = 0.2). However, SSO and suture type were significant (P 0.5) with SSI, SSO requiring intervention, hernia recurrence rate, or HerQLes or NIH PROMIS 3a scores at 30 days or 6 months. Fascial closure technique and suture material do not have a major impact on outcomes in ventral hernia repair. Despite a significantly higher rate of SSO for absorbable sutures than permanent, this did not increase the rate of interventions.
Policy Responses to Modern Economic Crises

In March 2020, Jay Powell, Federal Reserve (Fed) chairperson, faced a daunting prospect that only a few months prior seemed like a remote possibility: massive expansion of the Fed's balance sheet. Over the past five years, the economy had experienced steady economic growth, permitting the Fed to reduce its balance sheet. The Fed's economists expected the trend to continue. But the rapidly spreading global coronavirus pandemic (known as COVID-19) had rendered moot all prior forecasts. In addition to the health crisis, the United States—and the world—faced the prospect of another economic crisis—just over 10 years after emerging from the largest recession since the Great Depression. How should Powell and his counterparts who ran fiscal policy respond to the crisis? And to what extent could the policy experiments implemented in response to the Great Recession of 2008 guide the monetary and fiscal policy interventions in response to the pandemic crisis? Excerpt UVA-GEM-0182 Rev. Oct. 28, 2020 Policy Responses to Modern Economic Crises In March 2020, Jay Powell, Federal Reserve (Fed) chairperson, faced a daunting prospect that only a few months prior seemed like a remote possibility: massive expansion of the Fed's balance sheet. Over the past five years, the economy had experienced steady economic growth, permitting the Fed to reduce its balance sheet (see Exhibit1 for the monetary base). The Fed's economists expected the trend to continue. But the rapidly spreading global coronavirus pandemic (known as COVID-19) had rendered moot all prior forecasts. In addition to the health crisis, the United States—and the world—faced the prospect of another economic crisis—just over 10 years after emerging from the largest recession since the Great Depression. How should Powell and his counterparts who ran fiscal policy respond to the crisis? And to what extent could the policy experiments implemented in response to the Great Recession of 2008 guide the monetary and fiscal policy interventions in response to the pandemic crisis? Global Financial Crisis As is characteristic of economic crises, the global financial crisis of 2008 came as a surprise that forced policymakers to adapt to evolving events. Mortgage delinquencies accelerated, and indices of national home prices started to decline in early 2007 (Exhibit 2). Lenders such as HSBC experienced large losses, and some filed for bankruptcy. Despite the issues in the housing market, policymakers at first maintained an optimistic outlook. On March 17, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke stated: “We believe the effect of the troubles in the subprime sector on the broader housing market will likely be limited, and we do not expect significant spillovers from the subprime market to the rest of the economy or to the financial system.” . . .
The War on Terror: Secular or Sacred?

This article argues that the war on terror is not fought between secularism and religion, but between two skewed visions of social order that are both, in different ways, sacred. The United States represents a type of expansionist civil religion that is not simply religiously neutral.
Friendship in Aristotle and Buddhism: Confluences and Divergences

This paper aims at a cross-cultural comparison between friendship in Aristotle and friendship in Buddhist traditions. Aristotle’s thorough analysis of friendship results in Buddhist concepts of friendship necessarily a sub-category as Aristotle deems friendship within religious communities to be a niche category of friendship. Although Buddhist notions of love and compassion are universally prescribed, monastic friendship is necessarily highly selective to be between like-minded individuals within a Buddhist community pursuing the shared end of enlightenment. Buddhism however offers three categories of friendship: lay community friendship, monastic friendship and spiritual friendship. Buddhism, therefore, while unavoidably a sub-category of Aristotelian concepts of friendship, reveal nuanced approaches to friendship depending on an individual’s place in the Buddhist tradition.
Deep learning connects DNA traces to transcription to reveal predictive features beyond enhancer-promoter contact

Chromatin architecture plays an important role in gene regulation. Recent advances in super-resolution microscopy have made it possible to measure chromatin 3D structure and transcription in thousands of single cells. However, leveraging these complex data sets with a computationally unbiased method has been challenging. Here, we present a deep learning-based approach to better understand to what degree chromatin structure relates to transcriptional state of individual cells. Furthermore, we explore methods to "unpack the black box" to determine in an unbiased manner which structural features of chromatin regulation are most important for gene expression state. We apply this approach to an Optical Reconstruction of Chromatin Architecture dataset of the Bithorax gene cluster in Drosophila and show it outperforms previous contact-focused methods in predicting expression state from 3D structure. We find the structural information is distributed across the domain, overlapping and extending beyond domains identified by prior genetic analyses. Individual enhancer-promoter interactions are a minor contributor to predictions of activity.
Preparing women experiencing symptoms of menopause for shared decision making about treatment.

OBJECTIVE To develop a decision support intervention that can be used with women experiencing menopausal symptoms to facilitate treatment shared decision making. METHODS Our research team contacted patients with reported menopausal symptoms by telephone to obtain consent and administer a baseline survey. Subsequently, we sent participants a booklet on the treatment of menopausal symptoms. A nurse educator then contacted participants by telephone to review the booklet and guide them through a structured decision counseling exercise designed to help clarify treatment preference. A 60-day endpoint telephone survey was completed. RESULTS Forty-eight consenting participants completed the baseline survey and 37 (77%) also completed a decision counseling session. At baseline, 19 of the women who had decision counseling were not being treated for menopausal symptoms and 18 were being treated. After decision counseling, 13 (68%) participants who were not being treated and 14 (78%) who were being treated identified a preferred treatment. Comparison of baseline and endpoint survey data showed that participant treatment knowledge increased (P = 0.007) and treatment decisional conflict decreased (P < 0.001). Furthermore, 71% of participants reported that they had received new information about treatment and 94% said they believed better prepared to discuss treatment with their healthcare provider. CONCLUSIONS Nurse-led decision counseling increased participant treatment knowledge, reduced treatment decisional conflict, and helped to clarify treatment preference. Implementation of this strategy could help to facilitate provider-patient shared decision making about the treatment of menopausal symptoms.
AGENCY AND PRACTICAL IDENTITY: A HEGELIAN RESPONSE TO KORSGAARD

: This article argues that Christine Korsgaard's stimulating claim that practical identity is at the foundation of agency is weakened by her reliance on a Kantian conception of freedom. The commitments that make up our practical identity are, the article suggests, better described through a system like Hegel's that attends to the nature of and connection among different kinds of commitments. Beginning with such an analysis allows us better to describe human agency; it also enables us to reflect the place commitments have in our lives more accurately. Hegel offers a description of ethical life in which commitments are central but still subject to norms that themselves better allow humans to achieve concrete freedom.
The Principal and the Media Program

Idon't want my daughter reading this book!" was the excited comment of a parent to Mr. Thomas, principal of Maplehurst Middle School. The conversation was about Deenie, by Judy Blume, a book that Marjorie Williams, a sixth grader, had taken home to read. In another school, the principal was speaking on the phone to Mr. Richards, whose son had been talking about the film on AIDS that was shown in health class. Mr. Richards was upset by his son's report. Such situations focus the attention of administrators on the media centers in their schools. But although controversies direct attention to media centers, they fail to suggest the total impact of an effective media program. The media center is often described as the "heart of the school" and "the hub of the instruction program." Teachers and students use the services and resources of
Acoustic wave propagation in an axisymmetric swirling jet.

An analysis has been developed to study the acoustic wave propagation in an axisymmetric swirling subsonic jet flow. The governing convected wave equation derived in the spherical coordinates includes mean shears, shear gradients and pressure gradients. The directivity patterns for various spinning and non-spinning modes due to the influence of the mean jet swirl were obtained by numerically integrating the governing wave equation. The mean flow field used in the computation was that obtained semiempirically for subsonic swirling turbulent jet and is completely specified once the degree of swirl is known. The dependence of sound directivity on jet Mach number, swirl ratio and frequency are discussed.
Calcium channel antagonists augment hydroxyurea- and ru486-induced inhibition of meningioma growth in vivo and in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: Although the chemotherapy drug hydroxyurea (HU) and the antiprogesterone mifepristone (RU486) have been used to treat meningiomas for which surgical and radiation therapies have failed, results have been disappointing. The addition of calcium channel antagonists (CCAs) to chemotherapeutic drugs enhances tumor growth inhibition in other tumor types, and the authors demonstrated that CCAs can block meningioma growth in vitro and in vivo. The purpose of this study was to test the effects of the addition of a CCA to HU or RU486 on meningioma growth. METHODS: Primary and malignant (IOMM-Lee) meningioma cell lines were treated with HU, RU486, or either of these plus diltiazem or verapamil. Assays for cell growth, apoptosis, and fluorescent-activated cell sorting were performed on in vitro cultures. Similar cell lines were implanted into nude mice and were treated with HU or RU486, in combination with a CCA. Tumors were analyzed by light microscopy, MIB-1, and factor VIII immunohistochemical staining studies. RESULTS: The addition of diltiazem or verapamil to HU or RU486 augmented meningioma growth inhibition by 20 to 60% in vitro. In vivo, tumors treated with combination drugs were smaller; and immunohistochemical analysis of the IOMM-Lee tumors showed a 10% decrease in the MIB-1 ratio (from 0.41 to 0.30) and an approximate 75% decrease in microvascular density. CONCLUSION: The addition of diltiazem or verapamil to HU or RU486 augments meningioma growth inhibition in vitro by inducing apoptosis and G1 cell-cycle arrest. The combination of HU and diltiazem inhibited the growth of meningiomas in vivo by decreasing proliferation and microvascular density. These results suggest a possible role for these drugs as an additional adjuvant therapy for recurrent or unresectable meningiomas.
Dead or alive: The problem of in vitro tissue mechanics

Extensive studies have been made of the biomechanical properties of tissues in vitro. The majority of experiments demonstrate a "preconditioning" effect. This effect is associated with the differences between in vivo and in vitro conditions. Failure to utilize initial or isochronal data may lead to erroneous conclusions. Objective criteria would permit comparison between experiments.
An Examination of the Effects of Information Consistency and Distinctiveness in a Reference-Price Advertisement Context

Drawing from theories of social cognition and perception, the effects of information consistency and distinctiveness implied by semantic cues in reference price ads are examined in a 2 (Levels of Distinctiveness) × 2 (Levels of Consistency) × 3 (Levels of Reference Price) between-subjects experimental design. Both the reference-price level and the perceived distinctiveness of information implied by the semantic cue had significant effects on internal price standard and attitudinal and perceptual dependent variables. Consistency information had no effect. Competing rationales drawn from assimilation-contrast theory and anchoring and adjustment effects on judgment are offered as bases for reference-price predictions. Results reveal that reference-price level had a monotonic effect on most dependent variables, and thus are more consistent with effects predicted by anchoring and adjustment rationales.
Behavioral contrast in rats with an operant licking response

Access to a sucrose tube was made contingent upon licks on an empty glass tube. After training on a mult VI 45/VI 45 schedule, separate groups of rats were shifted to either a mult VI 45/ext or a mixed VI 45/ext schedule. Illumination or nonillumination of the operant tube was used as the discriminative stimulus for the multiple group. Substantial stimulus control and behavioral contrast was demonstrated in the multiple-schedule group, but an equivalent increase in response rate was shown in the mixed group. Behavioral contrast was attributed to decrease in reinforcement density subsequent to the shift rather than to behaviors elicited by the predictive value of S+.
Crustal analysis of Venus from Magellan satellite observations at Atalanta Planitia, Beta Regio, and Thetis Regio

We investigated an improved quantitative method for interpreting attributes of the Venusian crust from Magellan spacecraft imagery and spherical harmonic topographic and gravity models. We used spectral correlation theory to compare gravity effects of topography against free-air gravity anomalies for three tectonically disparate crustal regions. Adjusting terrain gravity effects for correlated free-air anomalies yields compensated effects that we used to estimate the Moho and crustal thickness variations. For Atalanta Planitia, the crust may be less than 10 km thick, but thickened peripherally at concentric ridge belts and tessera terrain. Crustal thickness may increase rapidly between the interior of this lowland plain and the peripheral ridge belts. For Beta Regio, the crustal thickness may exceed 40 km. Of the three regions considered, the crust of Beta Regio may be the most poorly compensated because its free-air anomalies are largest relative to corresponding terrain gravity effects. For Thetis Regio, crustal thicknesses may exceed 50 km. The thickened crust of Thetis Regio may also have been rifted and embayed by plains forming lavas. The lavas appear to embay and cover complexly ridged areas except where these units remained above the reach of the plains forming lavas. Crosscutting relationships, which are evident from Magellan imagery, together with our crustal thickness estimates, suggest that the complexly ridged terrain (or tesserae) may be the oldest crustal units within the three study regions. Hence these units may represent relict surfaces that predate emplacement of the plains.
The hazards of writing or disclosing information in psychiatry

The health care professional must be aware of the potential hazards in writing or disclosing information about a patient or a non-patient. Two important interests are pitted against each other: dissemination of scientific information versus confidentiality. Presented is a discussion of the legal and ethical issues involved in (1) writing an article or book about a patient, (2) writing about a research subject, (3) writing about a subject of a forensic examination on behalf of the court or attorney, and (4) writing in a medical record.
Effects of dopaminergic drugs on delayed reward as a measure of impulsive behavior in rats.

Rationale: Impulsive individuals exhibit an exaggerated preference for immediate rewards over delayed but larger rewards, perhaps because they value the delayed rewards less. Dopamine (DA) has been postulated to mediate the incentive value of rewards, thus it may also mediate the exaggerated preference for immediate rewards in impulsive individuals. In this paper, we investigate the effects of DA agonists and antagonists on the value of delayed versus immediate rewards. Objectives: The study had three main objectives: (1) to determine the effects of D1 and D2 type DA antagonists on the value of delayed rewards, (2) to determine the effect of the indirect DA agonist d-amphetamine on the value of delayed rewards, (3) to determine the sensitivity of the adjusting amount (AdjAmt) procedure to acute one-day changes in delay to reward, amount of reward, deprivation level and starting amount. Methods: In the AdjAmt procedure, rats choose between an adjusting amount of water given immediately (adjusting alternative) and a constant 150 µl water delayed by 4 s (standard alternative). The immediate amount of water is adjusted across trials until the rat chooses both alternatives with equal frequency (indifference point). The final adjusted amount is an indicator of the subjective value of the standard alternative. Results: The D1/D2 antagonist flupenthixol (25, 50, and 100 μg/kg) and the D2 antagonist raclopride (40, 80, and 120 μg/kg), decreased the indifference points, whereas the D1 antagonist SCH 23390 (5, 10, and 20 μg/kg) did not affect the indifference point. All three DA antagonists slowed responding. The indirect DA agonist amphetamine (0.5, and 1.0 mg/kg) had effects opposite to those of the DA antagonists, it decreased choice latency, increased the number of trials completed and increased the indifference point. Decreasing the water deprivation level (6, 24, and 48 h) had no effect on the indifference points but slowed responding. Increasing the delay to reward (2, 4, and 8 s) and decreasing the amount of water available for choosing the standard alternative (300, 150, 75 µl) decreased the indifference point. Conclusions: The results indicate that amphetamine increased the value of delayed rewards (decreased impulsivity) and that D2 but not D1 receptor antagonists decreased the value of delayed rewards (increased impulsivity). The procedure was sensitive to acute 1-day changes in delay and magnitude of reward.
Inferior collicular CS intensity effect on rabbit nictitating membrane conditioning.

Abstract Intracranial stimulation (ICS) of the inferior colliculus was utilized as a CS (ICCS) in classically conditioning the rabbit nictitating membrane response. The results indicated that a 0.300 mA ICS could serve as a CS but elicited more non-associative responding than an externally presented CS. Intensities of the ICCS as low as 0.170 mA were found to be functionally little different from the 0.300 mA ICCS while a 0.037 mA CS produced significant levels of conditioned responding with few non-associative responses. A 0.005 mA CS appeared to be at or slightly below behavioral threshold. The Grice-Hunter adaptation level theory of CS intensity effects was partially supported by comparisons of the within- and between-animal portions of the study.
Psychological Distance in Raymond Carver's CATHEDRAL

In the first paragraph of his short story “Cathedral,” Raymond Carver's use of demonstratives and possessives, central determiners, draws readers close to the story's narrator while simultaneously ...
The general anesthesia induced by various drugs differentially affects analgesia and its variability.

Abstract Responses to noxious stimuli in awake animals are not totally consensual but are influenced by environmental factors. We considered the possibility that the influence of the environment could be reduced by induction of general anesthesia. We, therefore, compared responses to nociceptive thermal stimuli by measuring tail flick latency, a spinal reflex, in anesthetized and awake mice. All anesthetics tested decreased the intraindividual variability in the measurement of response, suggesting that environmental factors may account for much of this variability in the awake mouse. Mice treated with pentobarbital showed a graded response to increasing levels of heat but were unresponsive to either morphine or naloxone. In mice anesthetized with pentobarbital, increases in latencies occured only at very deep levels of anesthesia, while urethane increased and ketamine decreased latencies. The antinociceptive effect of urethane was unaffected by naloxone, but the nociceptive effect of ketamine was reversed by morphine. Thus, the various anesthetics could show differential effects towards opiate action. The decrease in statistical variability, the differential effects of general anesthetics on tail flick latency, and the distinctive effects of the different anesthetics on opiate action suggest that the anesthetized animal may be a useful tool in the study of nociception.
Public Policy and Public Schools A Training Program.for Parents

Effective parental participation in policymaking depends on parents' knowledge and skill, which this program fosters.
Finessing the fuel: Revisiting the challenge of radioactive waste disposal

Abstract It is pointed out that the apparent decision of the United States to end development of the Yucca Flat, Nevada repository for permanent disposal of radioactive waste may inadvertently place it at variance with the disposal principles of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which caution nuclear nations that “ The burden on future generations shall be minimized by safely disposing of high level radioactive wastes at an appropriate time, technical, social and economic factors being taken into account. ” It is then shown that the IAEA's ten technical criteria for underground disposal can seemingly be met by storing vitrified waste a kilometer underground in the crystalline basement rock of a mid-continent shield, where: (a) it should be invulnerable to redistribution by incompetence, natural disaster, or terrorism and (b) there is no obvious pathway for leakage into the biosphere. Finally, a method is proposed by which the storage impasse may be broken.
Cobalt-substituted zinc finger 3 of transcription factor IIIA: Interactions with cognate DNA detected by 31P ENDOR spectroscopy

We show the first ENDOR study of the coordination environment of high-spin Co(II) in a biological system with a study of DNA binding to the Co-substituted Cys2/His2 single Zn-finger domain, Finger 3 (F3), from the prototypical zinc finger protein, transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA) from Xenopus laevis. High covalency to cysteine and histidine is implied by ENDOR-derived 1H couplings to protons of cysteinyl ligands and 14N couplings to histidyl nitrogens, results which support the expectation that Zn(II) and Co(II) bind to F3 in a very similar manner. No changes in either 1H or 14N ENDOR were detected upon binding Co(II)-F3 to C-block DNA. Of particular importance to the use of Co(II) substitution for Zn(II), the ENDOR method shows that Co(II)-F3 undergoes sequence-specific binding to the cognate DNA for Zn(II)-F3, the internal control region (ICR) of the 5S rRNA (C-block). 31P ENDOR measurements yield a Co−31P distance of rCo-P = 8.1(3) A to the nearest backbone phosphodiester of the C-block. Interestingl...
Derivatization of progesterone to a neurally active steroid by pituitary neurointermediate lobe.

Abstract The melanotrophs of the neurointermediate lobe and peptidergic terminals of the neural lobe are regulated by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) via GABA-A receptors and therefore, may be important sites for the modulatory actions of neurally active steroids. These steroid compounds might be produced peripherally, synthesized de novo in the pituitary, or derivatized from circulating steroids, each pathway having different physiological implications. In the present study, we show that neurointermediate lobe tissue can derivatize progesterone to the neurally active steroid 3α-hydroxy-5α-pregnan-20-one. The neurointermediate lobe was found to be four times as active as anterior pituitary and mediobasal hypothalamus in conversion of progesterone to 3α-hydroxy-5α-pregnan-20-one; mediobasal hypothalamus was relatively more active in the production of the intermediate 5α-pregnan-3,20-dione. The identity of the compounds was confirmed by the method of serial isotopic dilution. We observed rates of synthesis in the neurointermediate lobe consistent with the production of physiologically relevant quantities of 3α-hydroxy-5α-pregnan-20-one from concentrations of progesterone which can occur naturally. In support of these findings, we demonstrate the presence of 3α-hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase in neurointermediate lobe by immunocytochemistry.
The influence of auxin and ethylene on chromatin-directed ribonucleic acid synthesis in soybean hypocotyl.

Soybean seedlings treated with ethylene exhibited small increases in ribonucleic acid content in the elongating section of the hypocotyl. Chromatin isolated from the elongating section of ethylene-treated seedlings showed a 35 to 60% increase in the capacity for RNA synthesis. The ethylene-induced response was saturated at 1 microliter/liter of ethylene and was fully expressed after 3 hours. Auxin caused marked accumulation of RNA and DNA in the elongating and basal tissue of the hypocotyl. Chromatin isolated from these auxin-treated tissues showed an 8- to 10- fold increase in RNA synthetic capacity as measured in vitro. Ethylene added with auxin reduced the auxin enhancement of nucleic acid synthesis in the elongating and basal tissues. Both ethylene and auxin treatment of the seedlings inhibited nucleic acid accumulation and chromatin activity in the apical tissue. Ethylene did not appear to mediate the auxin effects on nucleic acid synthesis in soybean hypocotyl with the possible exception of inhibition in the apical tissue.The RNA which was synthesized by chromatin isolated from control and auxin- and ethylene-treated tissues was characterized by nearest neighbor analyses. The nearest neighbor frequencies of the RNA products synthesized by chromatin isolated from auxin- and ethylene-treated hypocotyl tissue were different from each other and different from the control RNA product.Seedlings treated in sealed containers exhibited growth, RNA, and DNA responses, especially to ethylene, different from those of seedlings treated in continuous flow containers.
Satisfiability Testing of Boolean Combinations of Pseudo-Boolean Constraints using Local-search Techniques

Some search problems are most directly specified by conjunctions of (sets of) disjunctions of pseudo-Boolean (PB) constraints. We study a logic PL PB whose formulas are of such form, and design local-search methods to compute models of PL PB theories. In our approach we view a PL PB theory T as a data structure, a concise representation of a certain propositional conjunctive normal form (CNF) theory cl(T) logically equivalent to T. The key idea is an observation that parameters needed by local-search algorithms for CNF theories, such as walksat, can be estimated on the basis of T without the need to compute cl(T) explicitly. We compare our methods to a local-search algorithm wsat(oip). The experiments demonstrate that our approach performs better. In order for wsat(oip) to handle arbitrary PL PB theories, it is necessary to represent disjunctions of PB constraints by sets of PB constraints, which often increases the size of the theory dramatically. A better performance of our method underscores the importance of developing solvers that work directly on PL PB theories.
Relative Efficacy and Potency of β-Adrenoceptor Agonists for Generating cAMP in Human Lymphocytes

Background Dopexamine and dobutamine are traditionally described as having primarily β 2 -adrenergic agonist properties; norepinephrine is generally classified as β 1 -selective; and epinephrine, isoproterenol, and dopamine are considered mixed β 1 - and β 2 receptor agonists. Much of this selectivity is designated from studies conducted with intact cardiovascular systems in which indirect actions (eg, norepinephrine release from presynaptic nerve terminals) are not separated from direct agonist-receptor interactions. Objective To assess the relative efficacy and potency of dopamine, dobutamine, dopexamine, epinephrine, isoproterenol, and norepinephrine for directly stimulating cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) production in human lymphocytes, a model of β 2 -adrenoceptor function. Design Open-label, prospective paired studies of lymphocytes from nine healthy human volunteers (seven men). Setting Experimental laboratory of a large, university-affiliated medical center. Interventions Concentration-response curves were generated for each adrenergic agonist; maximal cAMP production was used to compare efficacy. For the agonists that more than doubled basal cAMP concentrations, EC 50 calculations were used to compare potency. Measurements and main results Isoproterenol and epinephrine produced the greatest concentrations of cAMP of the agonists tested. cAMP production was increased by isoproterenol at concentrations 1/10 to 1/10,000 that of the other agonists. Norepinephrine stimulated cAMP production only one third as much as epinephrine and isoproterenol, but more than double the level of dopamine, dobutamine, and dopexamine. EC50 concentrations for norepinephrine were 10-fold higher than epinephrine and 50-fold higher than isoproterenol. Conclusions Epinephrine and isoproterenol are the most efficacious and potent direct-acting β 2 -adrenergic receptor agonists using this lymphocyte cAMP model. Norepinephrine exhibits significant effects on the β-receptors on lymphocytes, suggesting β 2 -adrenoceptor effects with high concentrations of this drug. The very low cAMP levels generated by dopamine, dobutamine, and dopexamine (even in high concentrations) support other evidence that these agents have little direct effect on the β 2 -adrenoceptor.
Effect of crystallization and anneal on thin films of vinylidene fluoride/trifluorethylene (VR2/F3E) copolymers

Abstract The effect of time and temperature on substrate grown thin films of 75/25 copolymer of vinylidene fluoride and trifluoroethylene is explored. The coupling coefficient and acoustic quality are measured and related to the ferroelectric to paraelectric transition. It is found that substrate growth profoundly affects the ferroelectric properties, when compared to bulk grown materials: and that film piezoelectric properties can be maximized through proper use of growth conditions.
Glucocorticoid‐induced autophagy in osteocytes

Glucocorticoid (GC) therapy is the most frequent cause of secondary osteoporosis. In this study we have demonstrated that GC treatment induced the development of autophagy, preserving osteocyte viability. GC treatment resulted in an increase in autophagy markers and the accumulation of autophagosome vacuoles in vitro and in vivo promoted the onset of the osteocyte autophagy, as determined by expression of autophagy markers in an animal model of GC-induced osteoporosis. An autophagy inhibitor reversed the protective effects of GCs. The effects of GCs on osteocytes were in contrast to tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), which induced apoptosis but not autophagy. Together this study reveals a novel mechanism for the effect of GC on osteocytes, shedding new insight into mechanisms responsible for bone loss in patients receiving GC therapy.
Hypophosphatasia: nonlethal disease despite skeletal presentation in utero (17 new cases and literature review).

Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is caused by deactivating mutation(s) within the gene that encodes the tissue-nonspecific isoenzyme of alkaline phosphatase (TNSALP). Patients manifest rickets or osteomalacia and dental disease ranging from absence of skeletal mineralization in utero to only loss of adult dentition. Until recently, HPP skeletal disease in utero was thought to always predict a lethal outcome. However, several reports beginning in 1999 emphasized a benign prenatal form of HPP (BP-HPP) where skeletal disease detected in utero had a mild postnatal course. Here we describe prenatal and postnatal findings of 17 additional BP-HPP patients among our 178 pediatric HPP patients. Their findings are compared with those of their siblings with HPP, carrier parents, and others with identical TNSALP mutations. New information concerning 7 previously published BP-HPP patients accompanies a review of the HPP literature. Among our 17 BP-HPP patients, prenatal ultrasound showed normal chest or abdominal circumferences where recorded. Sometimes, poor skeletal mineralization, fetal crowding, and third-trimester improvement were observed. Postnatally, extremity bowing further improved (13 patients). BP-HPP severity postnatally spanned the “infantile” to “odonto” HPP phenotypes, resembling our patients who harbored identical TNSALP mutation(s). Eight had autosomal dominant (AD) and 9 had autosomal recessive (AR) BP-HPP. Fourteen of our 15 mothers were HPP carriers or affected. Of the 41 cumulative BP-HPP patients (24 literature cases meriting a BP-HPP diagnosis since 1996 plus our 17 patients), 63% had AR BP-HPP. Maternally transmitted HPP involved 11 of the 13 total AD BP-HPP probands (p = 0.01), supporting a maternal in utero effect on the baby. Fetal crowding, normal fetal mineralization and chest size, and TNSALP heterozygosity seem to identify BP-HPP. However, bowed fetal long bones with AR HPP, specific TNSALP mutations, or poor skeletal mineralization before the third trimester do not reliably diagnose HPP lethality. © 2011 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Dendroecological Reconstruction of 1980s Mountain Pine Beetle Outbreak in Lodgepole Pine Forests in Northwestern Colorado

Abstract: The mountain pine beetle (MPB) infested 1.6 million ha of forest in Colorado and southern Wyoming from 1996 to 2010, causing extensive tree mortality, especially in lodgepole pine forests. Identifying the extent to which MPB outbreaks have occurred in the past will further our understanding of the current outbreak's causes and consequences. We explore the use of dendroecological methods to reconstruct a prior MPB outbreak event, which occurred in northwestern Colorado in the early 1980s. We used coarse-scale maps of MPB and GIS layers of suitable MPB habitat based on stand attributes to identify 15 stands of probable MPB activity in the 1980s. At 9 sites where field observations indicated probable past MPB activity, we collected tree cores from canopy host trees and subcanopy non-host (Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir) and host trees. The relatively synchronous dates of death of host trees determined by crossdating against live or recently killed trees (i.e., after 1996) confirmed that host tr...
Palliative care in cystic fibrosis.

Although advances in therapy for cystic fibrosis (CF) have dramatically increased the average life span of patients, the disease is still uniformly fatal. Little attention has been paid to methods of palliative care for patients with cystic fibrosis in the medical literature. The primary palliative care issue in end-stage CF is the management of dyspnea. An observational study done at Children's Hospital in Boston suggested that doses of morphine in the range of 5 mg per hour can control the end-stage dyspnea in CF of over 50% of patients; the rest required increasing doses with the highest dose required being 30 mg/hour. The use of mechanical ventilation at the end of life is increasing in CF, particularly for those patients awaiting lung transplantation, and it appears that the consensus against the use of aggressive care at the end of life in CF may be eroding. The use of various modes of assisted ventilation in end-stage CF will add new challenges to the compassionate provision of end-of-life care. In...
Biochemical studies of bacterial sporulation and germination. XX. Phosphate metabolism during germination.

Abstract During germination in simple or complex media, the 3-phosphoglyceric acid content of dormant spores was rapidly utilized, and inorganic phosphate was generated from endogenous sources. The uptake of Pi from the medium during the first 40 min of germination in a complex medium or in glucose was extensive as compared to germination initiated by l-alanine or KBr. In the complex medium Pi was incorporated into acid-insoluble material (RNA) within 5 to 10 min. The principal acid-soluble products were glucose-6-P, fructose diphosphate, ATP, and l-α-glycerophosphate. The hexose phosphates increased throughout the first 40 min of germination. The level of α-glycerophosphate passed through a maximum in a complex germination medium, but not in the other media. These results indicate that energy-yielding metabolism begins very early in germination. Endogenous reserves, such as phosphoglyceric acid, may represent the earliest energy source, and at least part of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway becomes functional within a few minutes after germination is initiated. These results do not necessarily imply the absence of a pathway of direct oxidation of hexose monophosphates, but intermediates specific to this pathway were not found.
Culture and systems of oppression in abused women's lives

Women's experiences of abuse are shaped by the social and cultural contexts in which they live. Recognition of the complex ways in which culture and systems of oppression interact, creating qualitatively different abuse experiences, is important nursing knowledge. Of particular concern are the ways in which women are constrained in their efforts to combat abuse as they experience the harsh and alienating effects of racism, sexism, classism, and other forms of social injustice. An understanding of the ways in which race and ethnicity, class, language and citizenship, religion, and culture intersect and shape women's experiences of abuse is critical to the provision of culturally competent nursing care. This understanding is the springboard from which more effective assessment and intervention strategies with vulnerable abused women of diverse backgrounds can emerge.
A comparison of Spanish versus English-speaking caregivers' perception of early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease

The pattern of initial symptoms reported by caregivers of Alzheimer's disease (AD) subjects were described and compared in 45 Spanish-speaking (SS) and 84 English-speaking (ES) caregivers. The majority (56 percent) of SS caregivers were monolingual. All caregivers were given a standard interview in their respective language which included information on the age at onset and initial symptoms observed in the AD subject. First symptoms reported most frequently by ES caregivers fell into the following categories: memory (27 percent), activities of daily living (ADLs, 21 percent), disorientation (13 percent), and personality changes (13 percent). In contrast, SS caregivers reported memory (47 percent), psychological problems (16 percent), and personality changes (11 percent) at the first sign of the disease process. After adjusting for duration of illness, significantly more SS than ES caregivers reported memory loss, and sign ficantly less SS than ES caregivers reported difficulty with ADLs as an initial symp...
PHOTOCHEMISTRY OF DNA CONTAINING IODINATED CYTOSINE

— –Irradiation at 313 nm of compounds containing iodinated cytosine moieties results in the photolysis of iodine. Photolysis occurs with a quantum yield of 0·0224·024 for 5-iododeoxycytidine and 5-iododeoxycytidine monophosphate, and 0·004–0·008 for iodinated DNA as well as for iodinated polycytidylate. Photodegradation of the cytosine moiety occurs when air is present during irradiation, presumably due to the reaction of oxygen with the cytosyl radical formed when iodine is lost. This oxygen promoted photodegradation destroys the cytosine chromophore and is complete in the monomers but occurs to only a limited extent in the polymers. In the absence of oxygen or in the presence of ethanol, photodegradation is prevented and the loss of iodine leads exclusively to the formation of the cytosine chromophore. In DNA, the loss of iodine is accompanied by the formation of sugar damage and/or chain breaks. As measured by sedimentation in alkaline sucrose gradients, approximately one break is made for every six iodinqs lost in denatured DNA. The frequency of chain breakage per iodine photolyzed is reduced 2-fold in renatured DNA. Analysis in neutral gradients suggests that half of the breaks observed in alkali are alkali-labile bonds. Both ethanol and cysteamine reduce the number of chain breaks observed in alkali by ˜ 3-fold.
Persistent anxiolytic affects after chronic administration of the CRF1 receptor antagonist R121919 in rats

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) functions as one of the major mediators of the mammalian stress response and appears to play a key role in the pathophysiology of mood and anxiety disorders. Small molecule CRF₁ receptor antagonists may represent a novel form of pharmacotherapy for these disorders. The therapeutic success of CRF₁ receptor antagonists will depend, in part, upon whether tolerance develops to the actions of these compounds and whether appropriate patterns of HPA axis function is maintained. This study evaluated the effects of long term (~4 week) treatment with the CRF₁ receptor antagonist R121919, on CRF receptor function, HPA axis activity, behavioral measures, adrenal gland size, and body weight gain. Animals treated with 20 mg/kg/day of R121919 spent significantly more time in the open field in a defensive withdrawal test (138±36s for R121919 vs 52±12s for vehicle, p=0.01). No significant effect of chronic CRF₁ receptor blockade on basal ACTH or corticosterone concentrations were detected, nor were significant changes detected in an elevated plus maze test. Both vehicle- and R121919- treated rats showed increases in AUC and peak ACTH and corticosterone concentrations following air puff startle stress, without any overall group differences, although a clear but non-significant attenuation in HPA axis response was observable in R121919 treated animals. Chronic CRF₁ receptor blockade increased CRF peptide mRNA expression in the PVN and decreased CRF peptide mRNA expression in the central nucleus of the amygdala. Overall our results suggest that anxiolytic effects of chronic CRF₁ receptor antagonism persist following chronic administration without significant attenuation of the HPA axis's ability to mount a stress response. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled 'Trends in neuropharmacology: in memory of Erminio Costa'.
Acyl‐CoA acyl‐sn glycerol‐3 phosphorylcholine acyl transferase of bovine mammary tissue

Microsomal material from lactating bovine mammary tissue possess very active acyl-CoA:1-acyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphorylcholine acyl transferase (EC2.3.1.-1). Oleyl-CoA was the preferred substrate and rates of 6.3, 6.4, 1.8, 21.0, and 0.1 nmoles acylated/min/mg were obtained for myristyl-, palmityl-, stearyl-, oleyl- and linoleyl-CoA, respectively, when 1-oleyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphorycholine was used compared to 5.2, 4.1, 1.0, 3.5, and 0.2 nmoles/min/mg with 1-palmityl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphorylcholine as acyl acceptor. Apparent Km values of 4.5 and 5.2 μM for oleyl-CoA and 6.5 and 4.6 μM for palmityl-CoA were obtained with 1-oleyl- and 1-palmityl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphorylcholine, respectively. The Km values of 1-oleyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphorylcholine were 20 and 50 μM using oleyl-CoA and palmityl-CoA as acyl donors. The possible involvement of this enzyme in membrane dynamics during lipid secretion is discussed.