cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Glutamate-induced Calcium Transients in Rat Neurons of the Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus

The dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMNV) integrates peripheral and central signals and sends efferent output to the gastrointestinal system. Glutamate, the major excitatory neurotransmitter of the central nervous system, causes increases in intracellular calcium in DMNV neurons. The mechanisms by which glutamate activates calcium signaling in the DMNV were examined. DMNV neurons were isolated from neonatal rat brainstem using microdissection and enzymatic digestion. Exposure to glutamate caused intracellular Ca2+ increments in greater than 80% of cells. Removal of extracellular Ca2+ abolished intracellular Ca2+ transients. Kynurenic acid, a nonspecific glutamate receptor antagonist, abolished intracellular Ca2+ transients. Exposure to glutamate while blocking AMPA receptors with GYKI 52466 abolished the Ca2+ response. Exposure to (S)AMPA, an AMPA receptor agonist, caused intracellular Ca2+ increments in 97% of cells. Activation and antagonism of NMDA and kainate receptors produced no changes compared to control experiments. NiCl, a nonspecific Ca2+ channel blocker, abolished intracellular Ca2+ transients. Blocking T-type Ca2+ channels with mibefradil abolished the Ca2+ response in 76% of cells. Blockade of L-type and N-type Ca2+ channels did not affect the Ca2+ response. Glutamate mediates intracellular Ca2+ currents in DMNV neurons via the AMPA receptor and T-type Ca2+ channels, allowing influx of extracellular Ca2+.
Air Pockets Trapped During Routine Coupling in Dry Head Lithotripsy Can Significantly Decrease the Delivery of Shock Wave Energy

Purpose: Current lithotriptors use a dry treatment head that must be coupled to the patient with gel or oil. We determined how the quality of coupling affects stone breakage under conditions that simulated patient treatment.Materials and Methods: Experiments were performed with a Dornier® DoLi-50 electromagnetic lithotriptor. The test tank had a clear Mylar® membrane for coupling with the treatment head water cushion. Thus, air pockets trapped at the coupling interface could be photographed for quantitation. Coupling efficiency was assessed using a fiberoptic hydrophone and different coupling regimes were tested for the effect on gypsum stone breakage.Results: The quality of coupling was variable with air pockets covering 1.5% to 19% of the coupling area, resulting in a mean decrease in shock wave amplitude of approximately 20%. Breaking and reestablishing contact, as when a patient is repositioned during treatment, decreased acoustic pressure almost 32%, representing a 57% decrease in acoustic energy tra...
Progressive systemic sclerosis: Mode of presentation, rapidly progressive disease course, and mortality based on an analysis of 91 patients

Abstract The overwhelming majority of patients with PSS present with combinations of Raynaud's phenomenon, sclerodactyly, polyarthralgias, or swelling of an extremity. However, the clinical presentation of PSS may be atypical; 14% of patients in the present series initially sought medical attention for symptoms other than Raynaud's phenomenon, tight skin, or joint pain. In the present series, only 31% of patients fulfilled the ARA criteria for PSS at the time of initial medical evaluation. Most patients manifested advanced disease by the time the criteria were fulfilled. The ARA criteria for the classification of PSS appear to have limited value with regard to making the diagnosis in an individual patient. Rapidly progressive PSS occurred in 17.6% of patients in this series and represents a particularly fulminant form of the disease whose course may not be predictable on clinical grounds at the time of initial medical evaluation or diagnosis. Patients destined to develop renal or cardiorespiratory failure usually do so in the first 3 years of disease. Close observation of PSS patients during the first 12 to 18 months may serve to identify those individuals who will undergo an accelerated disease course. Prognosis for patients with rapidly progressive PSS is poor and is associated with significantly higher mortality compared with patients with a more protracted disease course. Future therapeutic trials in PSS should be designed with the recognition that a subgroup of patients with this disorder will have a rapidly progressive disease course.
Core-valence and core-core correlation effects on hyperfine-structure parameters and oscillator strengths in Tl II and Tl III

We report on large-scale ab initio multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock calculations of hyperfine-structure parameters and oscillator strengths for the lowest few levels in Tl II and Tl III. The effect of both core-valence and core-core correlation on these properties is investigated, probing effects of all core subshells. The agreement with most experiments is excellent. These data are of vital interest for the interpretation of recent spectra of the chemically peculiar star chi Lupi.
A note on the law of contradiction and human freedom

L'article traite de la contradiction entre la souverainete de Dieu qui determine toutes choses et la liberte humaine. L'A. etudie la loi de contradiction en philosophie pour chercher un modele approprie a la conceptualisation de la nature humaine et de la liberte dans l'Ecriture, modele ou la contradiction disparait
The emergency department as a potential site for smoking cessation intervention: a randomized, controlled trial.

. Objective: To assess the effect of physician counseling and referral on smoking cessation rates and attendance at a smoking cessation program. Methods: This was a prospective, randomized clinical trial set in a suburban, community teaching hospital emergency department (ED). During study hours, dedicated research associates enrolled consecutive, stable, oriented patients who were smokers. Eligible, consenting patients were randomized to one of two intervention groups. The control group received a two-page “Stop Smoking” pamphlet from the American Heart Association (AHA). Patients in the intervention group were given the AHA pamphlet along with pharmacologic information and standardized counseling by the attending emergency physician, including written and oral referral to a smoking cessation program. The primary outcome measures were telephone contact/attendance at the smoking cessation program by the intervention group and the rate of smoking cessation in both study groups at three months post-ED visit. Categorical data were analyzed by chi-square and Fisher's exact tests. Rank data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney tests and continuous data by t-tests. All tests were two-tailed with alpha set at 0.05. Results: One hundred fifty-two patients were enrolled; 78 were randomized to the intervention group. Nearly 70% of patients (103) were available for telephone follow-up. The study groups were statistically similar with regard to baseline demographic characteristics and the prevalence of moderate or severe nicotine addiction. None of the patients (0%) in the intervention group contacted or attended the smoking cessation program during the study period (95% CI = 0-4%). The percentages of patients who stopped smoking after three months were similar in the two groups [10.4% (5/48) control vs 10.9% (6/55) intervention; p = 1]. Conclusion: The authors found no difference in the smoking cessation rates between ED patients who received written material and those who were counseled by emergency physicians. Referral of patients who smoked to a cessation program was unsuccessful.
Built space and the interactional framing of experience during a murder interrogation

Human interaction and communication involve space in multiple ways. This paper examines the spatial and interactional order of a covertly video-taped police interrogation. When the participants enter the interrogation room and become engaged in the interrogation process, the room itself is a constraint and a resource for interaction. While interacting within a built environment, the participants appropriate their material surroundings in ways that constitute a spatial order and make possible certain arguments. This paper examines how the physical structure of the interrogation room is differentially appropriated, used, and filled in by the participants'; territorial and postural manoeuvers over the course of their interaction; and how the spatial structures thus created by the bodily appropriation of the physical locale are subsequently formulated by talk and thereby used as a metaphorical resource to frame the participants' situated experience. Through this embedded process, the interrogators move the suspect toward confession.
The application of thin cemented carbide hardfacings to elements of card machines — a case history

Abstract The formation and behaviour of cemented carbide hardfacings a few micrometres thick deposited by the metallic surface fusion (MSF) process on parts of card machines are described. Rolls treated by the MSF process moving the processed cards are smoothed during service to produce flat featureless surfaces. In another application the overlay protects a steel spring from damage arising from fretting and sliding against a cemented carbide piercing punch. The deposit is worn out in a similar way, whilst the punches are slightly marred by “attrition wear”. In each application elements treated by the MSF process perform satisfactorily with a reduced failure rate.
Parthenocarpy: Natural and artificial

That some plants produce fruits without seeds is a fact observed and recorded by the ancients, according to Sturtevant in 1890. These observers had their pet theories on how to produce seedless fruits, such as "fruits of all kinds may be grown without seeds by reversing the cion-rooting the top end of the cions", or by removing the pith from grapevines. While there were many others, we owe especially much of the early careful observations and scientific attempts to produce seedless fruits to Gartner (44), Munson (103, 104), Miiller-Thurgau (101, 102), Waite (154, 155), Noll (110), Ewert (31, 32, 33, 34), Winkler (159, 160) and Fitting (35, 36, 37). These men thought it possible to obtain varieties of apples, pears, cherries, plums, peaches, grapes and other fruits without seeds. They were interested in this matter for many reasons but mainly because seedless fruits were thouglht to be better and also because many varieties are self sterile, necessitating the planting of more than one variety in an orchard to insure a profitable crop. In 1902 Noll (110), recognizing the similarity between seedlessness in fruits and parthenogenesis, introduced the term "Parthenokarpie" to denote the seedless condition, and this term is now in general use, though sometimes the Germans use "Jungfernfruchtbildung" or "Jungfernfruchtigkeit". Although Noll considered that perhaps all seedless fruits should be included under this term, whatever the cause of seedlessness, he restricted it to denote fruits produced without pollination or other stimulation. Winkler (159) in 1908 defined parthenocarpy "as the production of fruits without or with empty seeds", and he differentiated between stimulative parthenocarpy in which a fruit is produced only after pollination or other stimulation, and vegetative parthenocarpy in which no pollination or other stimulation is necessary. Fitting used the term "autonomous" for vegetative and "aitionomous" for stimulative parthenocarpy. At present parthenocarpy seems to be used to denote production of fruits without fertilization; and to denote seedless fruits produced as a result of fertilization but with early
From ‘Miracle’ to ‘Cronyism’: Explaining the Great Asian Slump

Explanations are about the only thing not in short supply in the Asian crisis. For all their diversity they can be collapsed into two ‘meta’ interpretations reflecting deeper differences in beliefs about rationality and markets. Those whose world view emphasizes rationality, self-adjusting markets, and market failure as exceptional except when governments introduce distortions, tend to see the crisis as the result of rational calculations in a situation of market-distorting government interventions and institutional weaknesses in Asian economies. Those whose world view stresses non-rationality (or a different kind of rationality than that assumed by neoclassical theory), routine failure of well-working markets, and the need for government interventions to modify market outcomes, tend to see it as the result of non-rational calculations in under-regulated financial markets, both national and international.
Hematoporphyrin-mediated photodynamic therapy for treatment of head and neck cancer: clinical update 1996

From 1983 to 1996 Phase II and III clinical studies at Henry Ford Hospital demonstrated complete or partial responses in 55 of 56 patients treated with hematoporphyrin-derivative or PHOTOFRIN-mediated photodynamic therapy (HPD-PDT) for a variety of benign and malignant upper aerodigestive tract disease: (1) superficial 'condemned mucosa' or 'field cancerization' of the oral cavity and larynx (7 cases); (2) Stage III/IV head and neck cancer (25 cases); (3) mucocutaneous AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma of the upper aerodigestive tract and non AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma of the lower extremity (15 cases); (4) recurrent laryngotracheal papillomatosis (3 cases); (5) severe dysplasia/adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma in situ in Barrett's esophagus (4 cases); (6) partial or completely obstructing terminal esophageal cancer (9 cases). At the time of this report, HPD-PDT produced complete responses in 24 patients (follow up 6 months to 9 years) with 'field cancerization' (CIS, T1N0M0) of the oral cavity and larynx (6 cases), adenocarcinoma in situ in Barrett's esophagus (3 cases), mucocutaneous Kaposi's sarcoma (12 cases), obstructing esophageal carcinoma (1 case), and stage IV squamous cell carcinoma of the nasopharynx (1 case), and radiation therapy or solar-induced basal cell/squamous cell carcinomas (2 cases). PDT treatment protocols, results, complications, and application as adjunct or primary oncologic therapy for head and neck cancer are reviewed in this article.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Lipoprotein Lipase (LPL) is Associated with Neurite Pathology and Its Levels Are Markedly Reduced in the Dentate Gyrus of Alzheimer’s Disease Brains

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) is involved in regulation of fatty acid metabolism, and facilitates cellular uptake of lipoproteins, lipids and lipid-soluble vitamins. We evaluated LPL distribution in healthy and Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain tissue and its relative levels in cerebrospinal fluid. LPL immunostaining is widely present in different neuronal subgroups, microglia, astrocytes and oligodendroglia throughout cerebrum, cerebellum and spinal cord. LPL immunoreactivity is also present in leptomeninges, small blood vessels, choroid plexus and ependymal cells, Schwann cells associated with cranial nerves, and in anterior and posterior pituitary. In vitro studies have shown presence of secreted LPL in conditioned media of human cortical neuronal cell line (HCN2) and neuroblastoma cells (SK-N-SH), but not in media of cultured primary human astrocytes. LPL was present in cytoplasmic and nuclear fractions of neuronal cells and astrocytes in vitro. LPL immunoreactivity strongly associates with AD-related pathology, staining diffuse plaques, dystrophic and swollen neurites, possible Hirano bodies and activated glial cells. We observed no staining associated with neurofibrillary tangles or granulovacuolar degeneration. Granule cells of the dentate gyrus and the associated synaptic network showed significantly reduced staining in AD compared to control tissue. LPL was also reduced in AD CSF samples relative to those in controls.
Some interpretations of surface vibrational spectroscopy pertinent to fuel-cell electrocatalysis

Abstract Some applications of vibrational spectroscopy for characterizing chemisorbates of relevance to fuel-cell technology are examined, with particular reference to the fundamental interpretation in terms of interfacial structure and bonding. The central role of the surface potential in controlling vibrational properties is illustrated by examining chemisorbed CO in corresponding electrochemical and ultrahigh vacuum-based interfaces. Some new-found opportunities for the quantum-chemical understanding of potential-dependent chemisorbate bonding by using density functional theory (DFT) are briefly discussed, specifically the connections between vibrational frequencies, binding energetics, and surface charge polarization, and the insight into specific orbital and other interactions that can be furnished by finite-cluster calculations. Related adsorptive and electrocatalytic properties of carbon-supported Pt nanoparticle films are described, prompted by the applicability of such materials in fuel cells. The infrared characterization of size-dependent nanoparticles by using chemisorbed CO as a structural probe indicates a sharply increasing proportion of edge versus terrace Pt sites for particle diameters below 4 nm, in accordance with simple atom-packing considerations. The qualitatively different dependence of the electrocatalytic properties of such films on the nanoparticle diameter for methanol and formic acid oxidation is interpreted in terms of an ‘ensemble effect’, whereas the availability of contiguous terrace sites (apparently required for the former but not the latter process) is curtailed for small particle diameters. Finally, the value of DFT as a means of predicting infrared absorbances and Raman scattering intensities by evaluating the dynamic dipole moment and its field dependence (i.e. the dynamic polarizability), respectively, is illustrated for adsorbates of interest in fuel-cell electrocatalysis, and compared with experimental data.
A Cocaine Context Renews Drug Seeking Preferentially in a Subset of Individuals

Addiction is characterized by a high propensity for relapse, in part because cues associated with drugs can acquire Pavlovian incentive motivational properties, and acting as incentive stimuli, such cues can instigate and invigorate drug-seeking behavior. There is, however, considerable individual variation in the propensity to attribute incentive salience to reward cues. Discrete and localizable reward cues act as much more effective incentive stimuli in some rats (‘sign-trackers', STs), than others (‘goal-trackers', GTs). We asked whether similar individual variation exists for contextual cues associated with cocaine. Cocaine context conditioned motivation was quantified in two ways: (1) the ability of a cocaine context to evoke conditioned hyperactivity and (2) the ability of a context in which cocaine was previously self-administered to renew cocaine-seeking behavior. Finally, we assessed the effects of intra-accumbens core flupenthixol, a nonselective dopamine receptor antagonist, on context renewal. In contrast to studies using discrete cues, a cocaine context spurred greater conditioned hyperactivity, and more robustly renewed extinguished cocaine seeking in GTs than STs. In addition, cocaine context renewal was blocked by antagonism of dopamine receptors in the accumbens core. Thus, contextual cues associated with cocaine preferentially acquire motivational control over behavior in different individuals than do discrete cues, and in these individuals the ability of a cocaine context to create conditioned motivation for cocaine requires dopamine in the core of the nucleus accumbens. We speculate that different individuals may be preferentially sensitive to different ‘triggers' of relapse.
Drug treatment of phobias. Efficacy and optimum use

In the last decade anxiety disorders have been the focus of intensive research in the psychiatric community, resulting in a rapid growth in our understanding of these illnesses. Diagnostic, biological, and psychopharmacological investigations have revealed important distinctions among these disorders which enable the clinician to make well-informed therapeutic choices and frequently ameliorate or even eliminate anxiety symptoms and related phobic behaviour. The principles of treatment can be simply stated: 1. Careful diagnostic evaluation through history and exclusion of medical and psychiatric conditions which mimic anxiety disorders. 2. Treatment selection based on diagnosis and formulation with the patient of the goals and expected outcome of pharmacotherapy. 3. Systematic application of each drug treatment in sufficient dosage and for an adequate duration permitting progression to the next agent when results are not optimal. 4. Addition of non-pharmacological interventions, usually behavioural therapy, to decrease phobic behaviour. 5. Development of a maintenance or discontinuation strategy tailored to the needs of the patient.
Cell‐surface characteristics of hairy cell leukemia in seven patients

Surface marker studies were performed on "hairy cells" from 7 patients with hairy cell leukemia (HCL). Using sensitive analytic techniques including specific antisera and Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorter (FACS-1), further definition of the abnormal cell was achieved. Four different antisera were used in infestigating the cell surface characteristics of these patients: anti-p23,30, an antiserum reactive with B cells and a subset of monocytes, anti-311, which reacts only with T cells, pepsin digested anti-F(ab')2 which reacts with B cells only and pepsin digested anti-lysozyme reactive with monocytes and myeloid cells, but not with B or T cells. In all cases strong reactivity was observed with anti-p23,30 and anti-F(ab')2, but no reactivity with anti-311. Five out of the seven cases were reactive with anti-lysozyme in a pattern similar to normal monocytes. Furthermore, when cells were separated according to binding to anti-p23,30, anti-F(ab')2 and anti-lysozyme and in two cases, according to cell size, the majority of reactivity and large cells were "hairy" when examined under microscopy. In contrast, the small and nonreactive (dull cells) appeared as normal mature lymphocytes. Thus, our data supports the view that HCL cells bear in most cases B cell and monocytic membrane markers.
The vibrational spectra of the intermediate compounds in the system Y2O3P2O5 and Gd2O3P2O5

The Infrared- and Raman-spectra of the intermediate compounds were studied for clues to their structural behavior as related to luminescence response. It was found that the degree of polymerization of PO/sub 4/ polyhedra increases in the phosphate-rich region and perhaps in the RE-oxide-rich region as well which was evident from the shift of stretching bands towards the higher energy side. Except in orthophosphates, the PO/sub 4/ polyhedra occupy more than one non-equivalent lattice site in all the phosphates.
Anti-cytokine therapies for psoriasis

Current approaches for the treatment of psoriasis with anti-cytokine therapies involve the blockade of TNF-α, or the p40 sub-unit of IL-12 and IL-23. However, the field is currently evolving to test more selective antagonists, such as anti-IL-23p19, IL-17 and other inflammatory cytokines. Here we discuss our current understanding of dendritic cell and T cell subsets that are relevant in psoriasis, and the pharmacologic strategies that temper their activity in this disease.
Restoring dressing independence in persons with Alzheimer's disease: A pilot study

Purpose: Well meaning nursing facility staff may compromise the independence of older adults with dementia by performing activities of daily living for residents. We assessed the impact of teaching certified nursing assistants (CNAs) to use a graduated prompting procedure to increase dressing independence of persons with dementia.Design and methods: This study was conducted in a seven-bed dementia care unit. Three residents and two CNAs participated in the study. We used a repeatedmeasures experimental design to evaluate the effect of a training workshop for CNAs on a strategy for increasing resident engagement in self-care activities.Results: During a series of baseline observations, we found that CNAs typically dressed residents with minimal resident involvement. Results showed that, following the training workshop for CNAs, resident independence in dressing increased and range of motion improved.Implications: CNAs can provide restorative care that increases dressing independence and range of motion of ...
Regularization of the Burnett equations for rapid granular flows via relaxation

Abstract In [J. Fluid Mech. 361 (1998) 41] Sela and Goldhirsch have used the Chapman–Enskog expansion to derive constitutive relations for the pressure deviator P , heat flux q , and rate of energy loss Γ for rapid flows of smooth inelastic spheres. Unfortunately as in the classical Chapman–Enskog expansion for elastic spheres any truncation of the expansion beyond Navier–Stokes order ( n =1) will possess unphysical instabilities. In this paper we propose a visco-elastic relaxation approximation that eliminates the instability paradox for all wave numbers, and provide a system of local equations allowing robust numerical approximations of gas dynamics valid to the Burnett order. This system is weakly parabolic, has a linearly hyperbolic convection part, and is endowed with a generalized entropy inequality in the case of purely elastic collisions, thus it is linearly stable for all wave numbers. It agrees with the solution of the Boltzmann equation up to the Burnett order via the Chapman–Enskog expansion.
Lymphoproliferative disease and autoimmunity in mice with increased miR-17-92 expression in lymphocytes

The genomic region encoding the miR-17-92 microRNA (miRNA) cluster is often amplified in lymphoma and other cancers, and cancer cells carrying this amplification have higher expression of miRNA in this cluster. Retroviral expression of miR-17-92 accelerates c-Myc-induced lymphoma development, but precisely how higher expression of miR-17-92 promotes lymphomagenesis remains unclear. Here we generated mice with higher expression of miR-17-92 in lymphocytes. These mice developed lymphoproliferative disease and autoimmunity and died prematurely. Lymphocytes from these mice showed more proliferation and less activation-induced cell death. The miR-17-92 miRNA suppressed expression of the tumor suppressor PTEN and the proapoptotic protein Bim. This mechanism probably contributed to the lymphoproliferative disease and autoimmunity of miR-17-92-transgenic mice and contributes to lymphoma development in patients with amplifications of the miR-17-92 coding region.
Variability in Retention of Marine Phytoplankton by Membrane Filters

DURING a series of experiments designed to determine the relative sizes of tropical pelagic phytoplankton labelled with carbon-14, it was noted that the retentive capacity of ‘AA Millipore’ membrane filters varied considerably in three experiments as shown by retention of passed material on a fine filter (Table 1). It seemed surprising that a membrane filter with a pore size of 0.8µ would pass significant amounts of carbon-14 activity, bound in phytoplankton.
Real life clinic visits do not match the ideals of shared decision making

Objective To use observation to understand how decisions about higher-risk treatments, such as biologics, are made in pediatric chronic conditions. Methods Gastroenterology and rheumatology providers who prescribe biologics were recruited. Families were recruited when they had an outpatient appointment in which treatment with biologics was likely to be discussed. Consent/assent was obtained to video the visit. Audio of the visits in which a discussion of biologics took place were transcribed and analyzed. Our coding structure was based on prior research, shared decision making (SDM) concepts, and the initial recorded visits. Coded data were analyzed using content analysis and comparison with an existing model of SDM. Results We recorded 21 visits that included discussions of biologics. In most visits, providers initiated the decision-making discussion. Detailed information was typically given about the provider's preferred option with less information about other options. There was minimal elicitation of preferences, treatment goals, or prior knowledge. Few parents or patients spontaneously stated their preferences or concerns. An implicit or explicit treatment recommendation was given in nearly all visits, although rarely requested. In approximately one-third of the visits, the treatment decision was never made explicit, yet steps were taken to implement the provider's preferred treatment. Conclusions We observed limited use of SDM, despite previous research indicating that parents wish to collaborate in decision making. To better achieve SDM in chronic conditions, providers and families need to strive for bidirectional sharing of information and an explicit family role in decision making.
Revealing climate change opinions through investment behavior: Evidence from Fukushima

Abstract In this study we present a novel research approach to obtaining behavior-based evidence of regional climate change attitudes, using the 2011 Fukushima nuclear plant incident as a natural experiment. Our approach allows us to produce the first non-survey-based empirical evidence of a trans-Atlantic divide in public opinion on the environment and climate change that investors assign to fossil-based and renewable energy. This value is based on the perceived potential of these fuel types to substitute for nuclear generation in the aftermath of the Fukushima crisis. We carry out an event study to examine differences in abnormal returns of global coal and renewable energy companies on European and American stock exchanges. We find that investors trading on U.S. markets exhibit a significantly more favorable perception of coal stock profitability, while investors trading on European exchanges display a more favorable perception about profitability of renewable energy stocks.
Free Radical Formation from Secondary Amines in the Maillard Reaction

ESR spectroscopy has been used to study the formation of free radicals in the Maillard browning reaction, from the reaction between glycolaldehyde or glyceraldehyde and N,N‘-dialkylethylenediamines (alkyl = methyl, ethyl, iso-propyl, tert-butyl) in either aqueous buffer or in methanol. Two series of cyclic cation radicals are formed. The first is a 1:1 sugar:amine product in which the nitrogen atoms in 1 ethylenediamine molecule are bridged by a sugar molecule. The second, and more stable, is a 2:2 product in which a substituted dihydropyrazine cation radical is formed by the bridging of two amines with two sugars. In addition, nitroxide radicals are also observed when methanol is used as the solvent. A mechanism for the formation of these radicals in the early stages of the Maillard reaction is proposed. Keywords: Maillard reaction; cation radicals; ESR; dihydropyrazines
A web-accessible complete transcriptome of normal human and DMD muscle.

We present an assessment of the complete transcriptome of human skeletal muscle in Duchenne muscular dystrophy patient muscle and non-dystrophic controls (36 RNAs analyzed from ten Duchenne dystrophy and eight controls; ∼65,000 gene/expressed sequence tag/probe sets queried on U95 five-GeneChip series and MuscleChip). The use of the multiple chip types allowed us to compare results from different probe sets for the same gene: we found excellent concordance between different probe sets on different microarrays. We found 30% of human genes expressed in muscle at detectable levels. Three percent of these showed differential regulation in dystrophin deficiency. Among 1882 dysregulated probe sets, 1324 corresponded to characterized genes/proteins (891 non-redundant transcript units), and 588 to expressed sequence tags or predicted genes. Data interpretation was limited to the insulin-like growth factor pathway members, an investigation of possible de-regulation towards a cardiac lineage, and identification of male- and female-specific transcripts. We found transcriptional upregulation of both IGF-I and IGF-II in dystrophic muscle, however the possible beneficial effects of the growth factors appear offset by transcriptional upregulation of inhibitory IGF-binding proteins and regulators (IGFBP-2, -4, -6 and -7; and PRSS11 [IGFBP-5 protease]). We hypothesize that the beneficial effects of IGF-I or IGF-II supplementation in dystrophic muscle may be the result of dose-dependent sequestration of inhibitory IGF-binding proteins. We also focused on six ‘cardiac’ genes expressed in muscle (α-cardiac actin, CARP, CASQ2, troponin T2 cardiac [TNNT2], CUGBP2, and connexin 43). Comparison to a 27 time point murine muscle regeneration series and mdx muscle profiles showed that CARP and Cx43 were macrophage-associated, and TNNT2 activated-myoblast-associated. Upregulation of cardiac actin and CUGBP2 was not associated with muscle regeneration profiles, suggesting a more specific dysregulation induced by dystrophin deficiency. We found two Y-linked genes expressed solely in male muscle (RPS4Y, DDX3Y), and two autosomal genes expressed much more highly in female muscle (GRO2, ZNF91) (all comparisons P<0.01). Finally, we present the first web-accessible expression profiling database for all data, including image files (.dat), processed image files (.cel), and complete comparison files which are publicly available through a novel queriable web site, that permits query-by-gene across all profiles (http://microarray.cnmcresearch.org/pga). These data enumerate the full range of molecular changes associated downstream of dystrophin deficiency, and provide a web-accessible platform to study the specificity of transcriptional pathway alterations in muscle disease.
Kinetic-Dependent Crystal Growth of Size-Tunable CdS Nanoparticles

The general study of crystal growth of spherical-like nanoparticles involves monitoring the kinetics during the progress of the reaction. In the case of cadmium sulfide (CdS), cadmium acetate and sodium sulfide are employed as starting reagents that are dissolved in different solvents (ethylene glycol, glyme, diglyme, and trioctylphosphine) to study the solvent effect on monomers, nucleation rates, and the quality of the seeds. Trialkylphosphine oxide (alkyl = ethyl or octyl) is chosen as a surfactant to passivate the surface of CdS nanoparticles. We propose a kinetic approach model to illustrate the unreported time-evolved crystal growth mechanism observed in this case. An experimental value for the diameter of critical volume (Vc), a nanosized volume with a relative minimum surface-volume tension and considered a temporal stable stage (r = 5.7 nm in this case), is derived from transmission electron microscopy images. The size of the nanoparticles made by this synthesis route is tunable by variation of t...
Predicting the duration of mechanical ventilation. The importance of disease and patient characteristics.

Study objective To analyze the determinants of an individual patient's duration of mechanical ventilation and assess interhospital variations for average durations of ventilation. Design Prospective, multicenter, inception, cohort study. Setting Forty-two ICUs at 40 US hospitals. Patients A total of 5,915 patients undergoing mechanical ventilation on ICU day 1 selected from the acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) III database of 17,440 admissions. Interventions None. Measurements and results Utilizing APACHE III data collected on the 5,915 patients, multivariate regression analysis was performed on selected patients and disease characteristics to determine which variables were significantly associated with the duration of mechanical ventilation. An equation predicting duration of ventilation was then developed using the significant predictor variables and its accuracy was evaluated. Variables significantly associated with duration of ventilation included primary reason for ICU admission, day 1 acute physiology score (APS) of APACHE III, age, prior patient location and hospital length of stay, activity limits due to respiratory disease, serum albumin, respiratory rate, and PaO2/FIo2 measurements. Using an equation derived from these variables, predicted durations of ventilation were then calculated and compared with actual observed durations for each of the 42 ICUs. Average duration of ventilation for the 42 ICUs ranged from 2.6 to 7.9 days, but 60% of this variation was accounted for by differences in patient characteristics. Conclusions For patients admitted to the ICU and ventilated on day 1, total duration of ventilation is primarily determined by admitting diagnosis and degree of physiologic derangement as measured by APS. An equation developed using multivariate regression techniques can accurately predict average duration of ventilation for groups of ICU patients, and we believe this equation will be useful for comparing ventilator practices between ICUs, controlling for patient differences in clinical trials of new therapies or weaning techniques, and as a quality improvement mechanism.
Ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis of vertebrate G1- and S-phase regulators.

Cell-cycle progression in all eukaryotes is driven by cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) and their cyclin partners. In vertebrates, the proper and timely duplication of the genome during S-phase relies on the coordinated activities of positive regulators such as CDK-cyclins and E2F, and negative regulators such as CDK inhibitors of the Cip/Kip and INK4 families. Recent and ongoing work indicates that many important regulators of G1- and S-phases are targeted for ubiquitination and subsequent degradation by the 26S proteasome. The proteolysis of key proteins during G1- and S-phases appears to be central for proper custodial regulation of DNA replication and the maintenance of cellular homeostasis in general. This review highlights the current literature regarding ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis of G1- and S-phase regulators and the control of events during the initiation and completion of DNA replication in vertebrates.
Incoherent Imaging of Thin Specimens Using Coherently Scattered Electrons

We consider the imaging of phase objects using a scanning transmission electron microscope equipped with a large inner-angle annular detector. We show, contrary to popular expectation, that incoherent imaging theory can be used to describe the imaging process in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis. Interference effects between atoms possessing the same projected coordinates must, however, be considered explicitly.
Are the results likely biased toward the null

To the editor: I read Field and colleagues' study (1) on the association of sports drinks and obesity risk among youth and young adults with great interest. Though there remains some uncertainty regarding the causative relationship between sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and obesity risk, “the absence of evidence is not [always] the evidence of absence” (2). Therefore, it is perhaps wise that Field and colleagues chose to examine this association with sports beverage consumption while the literature on SSBs and obesity risk continues to grow. Having stated this, the purpose of this letter is not to challenge the merit of the research questions being addressed in this study, but to bring attention to a comment regarding the study's use of a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) to measure beverage intake. The authors stated that due to the use of self-reported beverage intake in their study that “there may be some measurement error, which likely bias results towards the null” (1). I agree with the authors that using a FFQ to operationalize beverage intake is a limitation of this study, but I do not fully agree that the results are likely biased towards the null. I believe that in order for all reported results to be biased towards the null, there has to be motivation for a participant to underreport their intake of all beverages measured in this study. Since sports drinks are typically marketed as an ergogenic aid (3), and endorsed in ads by some of the world's best athletes, I am not so sure that all youth in this study perceive it to be socially desirable to self-report lower amounts of sports beverage intake. If it is plausible that social approval bias can result in the overreporting of healthful foods such as fruits and vegetables (4), the same might be said for sports drinks. In other words, it could be that among some participants in this study, there is motivation to overreport sports drink consumption because of the perception that sports beverages are “healthful.” So I perceive that the direction of bias with regards to self-reported sports beverage intake among youth and young adults as debatable. That said, though the authors of this study made an important contribution to the literature by examining the relationship of interest using a prospective study design, I believe that the evidence presented is far from conclusive. Hence, before suggesting any policies restricting the intake of any beverage or food that, by the way, might lead to unintentional consequences (5), I suggest that we at least do two things. First, continue to examine the relationship of SSBs (including sports drinks) and obesity risk using more objective measures of beverage intake and physical activity in randomized controlled prospective studies. Second, we should also seek to understand youth's perceptions about sports drinks.
Effect of escapable versus inescapable shock on avoidance behavior in the goldfish (Carassius auratus)

Following exposure to either escapable, inescapable, or no shock, goldfish were tested on an avoidance task. Differences in latency consistent with the hypothesis that helplessness is learned were present only on the first block of five trials. While reliable differences in the number of trials to the first avoidance response supported an interpretation as learned helplessness, differences in the total number of avoidance responses did not.
A Revision of the Genus Sciara of the Family Mycetophilidae (Diptera)

In working over the Cornell University collection of specimens of Sciara, family Mycetophilidae, thirty-one new species collected in the United States were discovered. Consequently it was thought advisable to revise Dr. Johannsen’s Sciara key, found in the Maine Agricultural Exp. Sta. Bull. No. 200, Part IV, pp. 117–123. The work was done under Dr. Johannsen’s direction.
Anesthesia Considerations for the Patient With Acute Ischemic Stroke

Stroke is the leading cause of long-term disability in the United States. Hence immediate diagnosis must be made by CT or MRI and therapy instituted rapidly. Anesthesiologists must be aware of the concept of "penumbra" and maintain collateral flow. Blood pressure management is crucial. American Stroke Council recommends blood pressure reduction if systolic >220 mm Hg and diastolic >120 mm Hg. However if thrombolytic therapy is being used, blood pressure must be reduced to systolic <180 mmHg and diastolic < 105 mm Hg. Cerebral autoregulation may be dysfunctional in ischemic brain. Anesthesia management requires control of the airway to prevent aspiration, maintain adequate oxygenation and ventilation, and management of raised intra cranial pressure. Complications of intra-arterial thrombolysis include intracerebral hemorrhage. Frequent neurological exams are warranted. Extensive cerebral swelling may require hemi craniectomy. "Time is Brain" hence urgent thrombolysis is the key to a good outcome.
Improved quality and cost-effectiveness of coronary artery bypass grafting in the United States from 1988 to 2005

Objective This study was undertaken to assess the impact of increasing patient complexity and health care cost on coronary artery bypass grafting quality and cost-effectiveness in the United States over an 18-year period. Methods A retrospective study was carried out utilizing the Nationwide Inpatient Sample to track the characteristics and outcomes of 5,549,700 patients having isolated coronary artery bypass grafting in the United States from 1988 to 2005. Expected mortality, risk-adjusted mortality, and hospital charges were tracked over this period. Results The prevalence of congestive heart failure, pulmonary disease, diabetes, and acute myocardial infarction increased significantly over the study period. Expected mortality increased from 2.57% to 3.66%, reflecting the increasing patient comorbidity burden (P Conclusions Coronary artery bypass grafting surgery is being performed on an increasingly complex, high-risk patient population in the United States. Despite this challenge, risk-adjusted operative mortality has progressively declined. Moreover, hospital charges for coronary artery bypass grafting in relation to other medical care services have been reduced. These findings reflect improved quality and cost-effectiveness of coronary artery bypass grafting in the United States. Ongoing efforts directed at quality improvement should address the risks associated with comorbidities that increasingly accompany the diagnosis of coronary artery disease in patients having coronary artery bypass grafting.
Three-dimensional optical tomography using APPRIZE

We present a tomography method for fluorescence and absorption biomedical optical imaging which minimizes the computational burden of three-dimensional image reconstruction and enables data conditioning on the basis of variable and possibly spatially-correlated measurement and system noise. Specifically, we present three-dimensional images reconstructed from synthetic frequency-domain measurements and a recursive, minimum variance, optimization algorithm employing a Bayesian approximate extended Kalman filter accounting for measurement and system noise with a unique, data-driven zonation scheme to dynamically determine parameterization and accelerate convergence. Reconstruction of absorption maps owing to spatial distribution of fluorophores that were discretized onto a 9x9x9 node grid required just over 4 minutes on a 350 MHz Pentium II computer.
Glass Transition Behavior of Clay Aerogel/Poly(vinyl alcohol) Composites

In polymer/clay nanocomposites, the size and morphology of the dispersed clay are crucial in determining the macroscopic composite properties. Clay can be converted into an aerogel structure through a freeze-drying process which results in a reduction of its density from 2.35 to 0.05 g/cm3. The morphology of these clay aerogels resembles a house of cards structure. Low weight fraction (0.5−4 wt %) composites of clay and clay aerogel with a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH) matrix polymer were prepared. Glass transition temperature (Tg) behaviors of clay/PVOH composites were investigated as a function of size, loading, and dispersion of clay and clay aerogel in the polymer matrix. The trends in Tg measured from both dynamic mechanical analysis and differential scanning calorimetry are similar, exhibiting a maximum value at 1 wt % loading for both clay and clay aerogel and then decreasing with additional filler content. Although the trends are similar, the drop in Tg at 4 wt % clay composite is considerably larger...
Bit matrix transpose with tensor product and perfect shuffling

Efficient implementation of bit-level matrix transpose operations using a new family of perfect shuffle instructions in a word-based micro-processor architecture is investigated. Using a tensor representation of the perfect shuffle index mapping, we show how bit matrix of arbitrary size may be transposed using a minimal sequence of shuffle and pack instructions, and prove the correctness of the code so generated. Specifically, a shuffle decomposition approach, and a block matrix transpose approach are proposed and the performance of these approaches are compared. Implemented with Texas Instruments C64X instruction set, significant performance enhancement is observed.