cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Molecular Identification of Transmitted/Founder Hepatitis C Viruses and Their Progeny by Single Genome Sequencing

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection exists as a complex mixture of genetically distinct viruses, commonly referred to as a "quasispecies." Quasispecies complexity can vary substantially during the course of natural infection as a consequence of viral population "bottlenecking." This occurs at the time of transmission from one individual to the next and during the course of chronic infection of an individual when adaptive immune responses eliminate certain viruses but allow others to escape and expand. Antiviral treatment with drugs that fail to eradicate virus can also lead to virus population bottlenecks and emergence of drug-resistant variants. Single genome sequencing (SGS) combined with mathematical modeling and phylogenetic inference is a recently described approach for characterizing the HCV quasispecies in unprecedented detail, allowing for the first time the retention of genetic linkage across genes and near full-length genomes and precise identification of transmitted/founder (T/F) genomes. Here, we describe the methodological approach to SGS and show how this strategy allows for the precise and unambiguous molecular identification of transmitted viruses as well as those that repopulate the body after drug or immune-mediated selective sweeps. This is an enabling experimental strategy that allows for a precise genetic, biologic, and antigenic characterization of HCV viruses that are responsible for transmission and persistence. Such an approach can be particularly valuable to future HCV vaccine design efforts, as it has been for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1).
OSHA Liability on the Multiemployer Worksite

The Occupational Safety and Health Act does not expressly prescribe a rule for liability where, on a multiemployer worksite, one employer creates a hazard, but another employer's employees are exposed to it. The author discusses the initial position of the Occupa tional Safety and Health Review Commission that employers should be liable for hazards to which their employees are exposed, whether or not such employers created or controlled the hazards. He then analy zes the judicial responses to the Review Commission's position and subsequent modifications by the Commission. He concludes that im posing liability on both "controlling" employers and "exposing" employers would least complicate enforcement as well as best serve the purposes of the Act.
Atomic vapor laser isotope separation

Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope Separation (AVLIS) is a general and powerful technique applicable to many elements. A major present application to the enrichement of uranium for lightwater power reactor fuel has been under development at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory since 1973. In June 1985, the Department of Energy announced the selection of AVLIS as the technology to meet future U.S. needs for the internationally competitive production of uranium separative work. Major features of the AVLIS process will be discussed with consideration of the process figures of merit.
The logic of bio-meritocracy in the promotion of higher education equity

AbstractThis article argues that there is incomplete acknowledgment of the historically racist and ableist meaning of merit in the promotion of higher education equity. Consequently, a masquerade o...
Designing Value-Centric AmI: Building a Vision for a Caring AI Using Ambient Intelligent Systems

The proliferation of Artificially Intelligent agents and embedded, publicly-available sensing systems has placed great importance on the field of study known as Ambient Intelligence (AmI). AmI systems point to a future where urban areas are at least partially aware of (and responsive to) their inhabitants.
Quantum dots in single molecule spectroscopy

Abstract Quantum dots (QDs) are luminescent nanoparticles that are bright, photostable, color tunable by size and have long fluorescence lifetimes. These properties allow them to be observed at the single particle level for long periods of time, both when observed alone or when conjugated to biomolecules to be used for in vitro and in vivo bioimaging. As with all single molecule/particle species, heterogeneity in their behavior is immediately apparent that can provide information both on the structure-property relationships of single QDs, as well as the biomolecules that they are conjugated to. This book chapter will start by briefly reviewing the synthetic methods used to control the structure-property relationships of QDs and the surface functionalization/bioconjugation approaches used to study biological processes of interest. Then, the electronic structure of QDs will be described and how the electronic structure affects single QD photophysics. Several initially unexpected observations, such as blinking, dark fraction formation and spectral diffusion will be described, together with the significant efforts to study and control the mechanisms underlying them. Then, a range of applications will be described where QDs (and, to a lesser extent quantum dots, QRs) have been used as biological fluorescent labels. Examples of such applications include 3D and 4D single particle tracking (SPT), fluorescence/image correlation spectroscopy (FCS, ICS), single molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (SMFRET), super-resolution microscopy, fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM), time gated imaging (TGI) and as probes for local environmental and chemical changes. The chapter will conclude with a brief discussion on the potential for using single QDs as single photon sources and to create quantum-entangled photons deterministically for potential applications in quantum computing, cryptography and communications.
Treatment Fidelity Procedures for an Aphasia Intervention Within a Randomized Controlled Trial: Design, Feasibility, and Results

Purpose This study reports on the treatment fidelity procedures implemented during a 5-year randomized controlled trial comparing intensive and distributed comprehensive aphasia therapy. Specifical...
Comparison of short-term seismic precursors and explosion parameters during the 2016–2017 Bogoslof eruption

In December 2016, the unmonitored Bogoslof volcano unexpectedly began erupting, producing at least 70 explosions over the next 8.5 months. Roughly half of the explosions were preceded by observable short-term precursory activity, defined here as seismic activity ending within 30 min of the explosion onset or an earthquake swarm ending within a few hours before the explosion onset. Five different types of precursors were noted during the Bogoslof eruption: non-swarm earthquakes, earthquake swarms, rapid rate events, tremor, and chromatic tremor. Most of the precursors that were detectable by the nearby seismic networks (> 45 km away) occurred during the first 3 months of the eruption, with nearly all precursory earthquake swarms occurring during this period. A hydrophone deployed ~ 7 km northeast of the summit for the last 3 months of the eruption detected weaker activity that was not recorded by the more distant seismic networks. We describe the observed precursors and discuss their inter-relations. Overall, the precursors seem indicative of processes occurring throughout the volcanic system and suggest possible changes in the system during the eruption. We then compare the short-term precursors with explosion parameters, such as plume height, duration, and occurrence of lightning, to look for relations that may provide more insight into the eruption dynamics and subsurface processes and help to further improve forecasting. We find no obvious relations between any of the precursor or explosion parameters, suggesting that their use in forecasting eruption characteristics at Bogoslof is limited.
Impacts of broadband and selected infrared wavelength treatments on inactivation of microbes on rough rice

This study investigated the effects of broadband and selected infrared (IR) wavelength treatments of rough rice on microbial inactivation. Rough rice was treated at different IR wavelengths and product‐to‐emitter distances (110, 275, and 440 mm) followed by tempering at 60°C for 4 hr. The total mold and aerobic plate counts (APC) on non‐treated and treated samples were determined. Significant total mold reductions of 1.14 and 3.11 log CFU/g were obtained after IR heating using broadband and selected wavelengths, respectively (p < .05). The most significant reduction of APC using selected IR wavelength was 1.09 log CFU/g; the broadband IR wavelength had no effect on the mean APC. The IR treatments followed by tempering step resulted in greater reductions of total mold counts and APC (4.03 and 3.50 log CFU/g) in comparison to IR treatments without tempering (3.11 and 1.09 log CFU/g). Overall, bacteria showed more resistance to IR treatments than molds.
Cofilin‐1–induced actin reorganization in stored platelets

Background During platelet storage, there are extensive changes in cytoskeleton and phosphatidylserine exposure. The intrinsic mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis, activated in stored platelets, is a major mediator these changes. Cofilin-1 is an effector of actin reorganization. We examined the effect of cofilin-1 deficiency on cytoskeleton and phosphatidylserine exposure during storage and following activation of apoptosis. Methods and results We assessed actin filaments by Alexa-647-phalloidin and phosphatidylserine exposure by fluorescein isothiocyanate-lactadherin by fluorescence microscopy. In fresh platelets, actin filaments are distributed in the subcortical region, and they do not express phosphatidylserine in the outer surface. In stored platelets, there is retraction of actin filaments from the subcortical region with increased phosphatidylserine expression. These changes are seen in 20% of platelets of 6 days old and increases further with storage. Treatment with ABT-737, which activates the mitochondrial apoptosis, induces similar cytoskeletal changes in actin filaments with increased phosphatidylserine. Cofilin-1 is activated in stored platelets as well as in ABT-737 treated platelets by dephosphorylation. In cofilin-1 deficient murine platelets actin filaments are abnormal and ABT-737 induces less phosphatidylserine. Despite these changes in vitro, platelet survival of cofilin-1 deficient platelets in mice was not significantly different from their wild-type controls. Conclusion These results show that cofilin-1 plays a role in apoptosis-induced actin rearrangement and phosphatidylserine exposure during storage. Despite the defects in platelet cytoskeleton and phosphatidylserine exposure in cofilin-1-deficient platelets, the in vivo life span of platelets is similar to littermate controls, indicating multiple redundant pathways for the clearance of platelets in vivo.
Market interactions, trust and reciprocity

Trust is a key ingredient of almost all market interactions. Much of the literature on the relationship between trust and market activity, however, has focused on how trust facilitates market activity rather than on how market activity affects trust. In this study, however, we investigate whether market interactions can affect the subsequent trusting and reciprocating behavior of former trading partners. Additionally, we explore the effect of personal and impersonal exchange on the trusting and reciprocating behavior of former trading partners. We find experimental evidence that suggests that positive and negative market interactions can affect such behavior. Further, we find that past market dealings only affect the trusting and reciprocating behavior of subjects who participated in an experimental market where exchanges were more personal, but did not affect trust and reciprocity between trading partners who participated in an experimental market where exchanges were more impersonal. In the market where exchanges are more personal, people exhibit higher levels of trust and reciprocity to trading partners with whom they have mostly positive market interactions than with whom they have mostly negative market interactions. However, in the market where exchanges are more impersonal, people exhibit the same levels of trust and reciprocity to trading partners regardless of the nature of their previous market interactions.
ColumnBurst: a near-storage accelerator for memory-efficient database join queries

We present ColumnBurst, a memory-efficient, near-storage hardware accelerator for database join queries. While the paradigm of near-storage computation has demonstrated performance and efficiency benefits on many workloads by reducing data movement overhead, memory-bound operations such as relational joins on unsorted data have been relatively inefficient with fast modern storage devices, due to the limited capacity and performance of memory available on the near-storage processing engine. ColumnBurst delivers very high performance even on such complex queries, while staying within the memory performance and capacity budget of what is typically already available on off-the-shelf storage devices. ColumnBurst achieves this via a compact, hardware implementation of sorting-based group-by aggregation and join algorithms, instead of the conventional hash-based algorithms. We evaluate ColumnBurst using an FPGA-based prototype with 1 GB of slow on-device DDR3 DRAM, and show that on benchmarks including TPC-H queries with join queries on unsorted columns, it outperforms MonetDB on a 6-core i7 with 32 GB of DRAM by over 7x, and ColumnBurst using a near-storage hash join algorithm by 2x.
Decline in circulating viral and human tumor markers after resection of head and neck carcinoma.

Background DNA sequencing panels can simultaneously quantify human and viral tumor markers in blood. We explored changes in levels of plasma tumor markers following surgical resection of head and neck carcinoma. Methods In preresection and postresection plasmas, targeted DNA sequencing quantified variants in 28 human cancer genes and levels of oncogenic pathogens (human papillomavirus [HPV], Epstein-Barr virus [EBV], Helicobacter pylori) from 21 patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Results Preresection, 11 of 21 patients (52%) had detectable tumor markers in plasma, most commonly TP53 mutation or HPV genome. Several days postresection, levels fell to undetectable in 8 of 10 evaluable patients, while two high-stage patients retained circulating tumor markers. Conclusions Modern sequencing technology can simultaneously quantify human gene variants and oncogenic viral genomes in plasma. Falling levels of cancer-specific markers upon resection can help identify viral and human markers to track at subsequent timepoints as a means to evaluate efficacy of interventions.
Retrospective Analyses Associate Hemostasis Activation Biomarkers With Poor Outcomes in Patients With COVID-19.

Objectives Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have thromboembolic complications. Assessment of coagulation and other markers could be useful to understand their coagulopathy. Methods We performed a retrospective study of inflammatory and coagulation parameters, including prothrombin fragment 1.2 (PF1.2), thrombin-antithrombin complexes (TATs), fibrin monomers, and D-dimer, in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. We compared the markers in patients with thrombosis, admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), and poor outcome. Results Of the 81 patients, 9 (11%) experienced an acute thrombotic event (4 with pulmonary embolism, 3 with venous thrombosis, and 2 with stroke). PF1.2 was elevated in 32 (39%) patients, TATs in 54 (67%), fibrin monomers in 49 (60%), and D-dimer in 76 (94%). Statistically significant elevation in PF1.2 and TATs was seen in patients admitted to the ICU, while D-dimer and fibrin monomers were significantly elevated in patients with poor outcomes. The presence of multiple abnormal coagulation parameters was associated with ICU admission. Other parameters with statistically significant results included abnormal WBC counts and elevated C-reactive protein, which were associated with ICU admission and poor outcomes. Conclusions Our data demonstrate that abnormalities of biomarkers of hemostasis activation and inflammatory markers are associated with poor outcomes in patients with COVID-19.
EUS and secretin endoscopic pancreatic function test predict evolution to overt structural changes of chronic pancreatitis in patients with nondiagnostic baseline imaging.

Background and Objectives: The accuracy of EUS and endoscopic pancreatic function test (ePFT) for diagnosis of early or minimal-change chronic pancreatitis (MCCP) is poorly understood. We hypothesized that the natural history of the disease may be used as a “gold standard” to assess the ability of EUS and ePFT to predict the eventual development of overt chronic pancreatitis (CP) changes on computed tomography/magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (CT/MRCP). The aim of the study was to determine the ability of EUS and ePFT to predict disease progression in patients with suspected MCCP who had nondiagnostic baseline imaging. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. Patients who underwent EUS and ePFT for suspected CP and who had nondiagnostic CT or MRCP were included. Patients without repeat imaging performed more than 1 year after their initial EUS/ePFT were excluded. Imaging was considered diagnostic if calcifications, main duct dilation (Cambridge Class III/IV), or severe atrophy were identified. Patients lost to follow-up were contacted to complete a survey documenting current symptoms and whether patients progressed to CP based on imaging. Univariable and multivariable analyses were performed using Cox regression. Results: Two hundred and thirty patients who underwent EUS/ePFT for suspected MCCP were identified between 2006 and 2012. Of these, 90 had a non-diagnostic baseline imaging test and subsequently a follow-up imaging test greater than 1 year later. These 90 patients constituted our study population. During a mean follow-up of 7 years, 19 (21%) patients developed CP by histology and imaging. Abnormal ePFT (peak bicarbonate
Gender Roles: A Handbook of Tests and Measures

Introduction Measurement Gender Roles Children and Gender Stereotypes Marital and Parental Roles Employee Roles Multiple Roles Attitudes Toward Gender Role Issues Indexes
Promoting Educational Resiliency in Youth with Incarcerated Parents: The Impact of Parental Incarceration, School Characteristics, and Connectedness on School Outcomes

The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, and as a result, one of the largest populations of incarcerated parents. Growing evidence suggests that the incarceration of a parent may be associated with a number of risk factors in adolescence, including school drop out. Taking a developmental ecological approach, this study used multilevel modeling to examine the association of parental incarceration on truancy, academic achievement, and lifetime educational attainment using the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health (48.3 % female; 46 % minority status). Individual characteristics, such as school and family connectedness, and school characteristics, such as school size and mental health services, were examined to determine whether they significantly reduced the risk associated with parental incarceration. Our results revealed small but significant risks associated with parental incarceration for all outcomes, above and beyond individual and school level characteristics. Family and school connectedness were identified as potential compensatory factors, regardless of parental incarceration history, for academic achievement and truancy. School connectedness did not reduce the risk associated with parental incarceration when examining highest level of education. This study describes the school related risks associated with parental incarceration, while revealing potential areas for school-based prevention and intervention for adolescents.
Integrating biology, design, and engineering for sustainable innovation

Bio-inspired design, Biomimicry or Biomimetics is a broad methodology that encourages learning from nature to generate innovative, impactful, and responsible solutions to humankind's problems. As an integrative approach it can be used to teach students across the STEaM disciplines problem solving, design, innovation, and sustainability concepts, as well as strengthen their ability to develop solutions to cross-disciplinary problems. In the Spring 2014 semester we co-taught a course entitled Integrating Biology and Design for Sustainable Innovation at Virginia Tech. The course promoted true interdisciplinary collaboration by integrating teams with backgrounds in life sciences, engineering and design to solve a challenge through a semester long design project. In this paper we discuss our experience teaching the interdisciplinary course, as well as the framework for the course and best practices such that others can implement a similar course at their University. Above all, courses like these are significant in that they take a step towards accelerating sustainable design innovation, an area that has received considerable focus and effort yet whose progress for tangible outcomes has been insufficient.
Reactions of 1-fluoro-2,4-dinitrobenzene: I. Kinetic determination of the pK values of amino acids and peptides

Abstract The pH-dependent second-order rate constants, kH, for the reactions of 1-fluoro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (FDNB) with ionizable groups of amino acids and peptides were determined at 25 °C and a series of pH values ranging from 7.42 to 9.30. From the plots of 1 K h vs hydrogen ion concentration, the apparent pK values of the groups and their corresponding pH-independent second-order rate constants were calculated. The reactivities of the α-amino groups studied were found to follow the expected linear relationship between log k0 and pH. However, the amides of glycine and valine exhibited high nucleophilicities. In contrast, phenolic hydroxyl, thiol, and imidazole functions were closely associated with the Bronsted plot of the α-amino groups.
Properties of Purified Methylmalonate Semialdehyde Dehydrogenase of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Abstract Methylmalonate semialdehyde dehydrogenase, an inducible enzyme from Pseudomonas aeruginosa which catalyzes the oxidation of methylmalonate semialdehyde to propionyl coenzyme A, was purified to the extent that a preparation was obtained which was homogenous by the criterion of disc gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the native enzyme was estimated to be 132,000 by gel filtration. Methylmalonate semialdehyde dehydrogenase dissociated into subunits in urea or sodium dodecyl sulfate solutions. The molecular weight of the subunit was estimated at between 58,000 and 69,000 by the techniques of gel electrophoresis and gel filtration in sodium dodecyl sulfate, respectively, which means that the native enzyme is composed of at least two subunits. The purified enzyme catalyzed the reduction of NAD with methylmalonate semialdehyde and propionaldehyde. In the presence of CoA, propionyl-CoA was a product of methylmalonate semialdehyde oxidation. The enzyme was active when mercaptoethanol replaced CoA and an active propionyl derivative was formed then as well. The stoichiometry between NADH and propionyl-CoA was 1:1. 3-Hydroxyisobutyrate dehydrogenase and 3-hydroxyisobutyrate-1-14C were used to generate methylmalonate semialdehyde-1-14C, and radioactive carbon dioxide was produced when methylmalonate semialdehyde dehydrogenase was present in the reaction mixture. The Michaelis constants for methylmalonate semialdehyde, NAD, CoA, mercaptoethanol, and propionaldehyde were determined. The proposal is made that the physiological role of methylmalonate semialdehyde dehydrogenase in cell metabolism is to catalyze the oxidation of methylmalonate semialdehyde to propionyl-CoA in the catabolism of valine.
Efficient Algorithms for Solving Systems of Linear Equations and Path Problems

Efficient algorithms are presented for solving systems of linear equations defined on and for solving path problems [11] for treewidth k graphs [20] and for α-near-planar graphs [22]. These algorithms include the following: 1. O(nk2) and O(n3/2) time algorithms for solving a system of linear equations and for solving the single source shortest path problem, 2. O(n2k) and O(n2log n) time algorithms for computing A−1 where A is an n×n matrix over a field or for computing A* where A is an n×n matrix over a closed semiring, and 3. O(n2k) and O(n2log n) time algorithms for the all pairs shortest path problems.
Cell-specific ablation in plants.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the cell-specific ablation in plants. The ablation of specific cell types provides a powerful analytical tool in eukaryotic developmental biology. This technique has been used in a variety of organisms to analyze the origin and fate of specific cell types, to study the interaction of and communication between different cell types, and to probe cellular function. Traditionally, ablation has been achieved physically using methods such as micro-dissection or laser ablation or genetically through the characterization of specific mutations that affect cell lineage. These approaches have been particularly successful in Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans but are difficult to apply to more complex organisms that are less amenable to physical and genetic manipulation. More recently, genetic ablation has been achieved by directing the expression of a toxic gene product from a tissue-specific promoter. By this method, any tissue can, in theory, be targeted for killing using a promoter specifically expressed in that tissue. This toxigenic approach has been used to ablate a diverse group of tissues in mammals.
Long-term effects on distribution of forest biomass following different harvesting levels in the northern Rocky Mountains

Abstract With increasing public demand for more intensive biomass utilization from forests, the concerns over adverse impacts on productivity by nutrient depletion are increasing. We remeasured the 1974 site of the Forest Residues Utilization Research and Development in northwestern Montana to investigate long-term impacts of intensive biomass utilization on aspects of site productivity. The historical experiment was implemented in a western larch ( Larix occidentalis Nutt.) forest at three biomass utilization levels (high, medium, and low) combined with prescribed post-harvest burning treatments (burned and unburned) under three regeneration cuttings (clearcut, group selection, and shelterwood). The experiment has two replicates and was designed as a split-plot design with an imbalanced manner. Regenerated tree height and diameter at breast height, shrub root collar diameter, and soil properties (C, N, and total organic matter) of the forest floor and mineral soil layers were measured. Regenerated tree, shrub, and total aboveground biomass and total C, N, and organic matter contents of the soil layers were calculated. Results indicated that total organic matter pools at the ecosystem level were similar across regeneration cutting treatments, and there were no differences among the utilization treatments for either aboveground biomass production or soil properties 38 years after harvest. Minor differences observed among treatments seemed to originate from differences in regeneration dynamics and responses to burning treatment. Our results indicate that site productivity in this forest type was unaffected by these biomass utilization levels.
AFM Studies of Copper Solid-Liquid Interfaces

It is extremely important to characterize bare copper surfaces in situ before any subsequent corrosion or deposition chemistry on these materials can be understood. In this paper, in situ Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was used to image the low-index faces of Cu single crystals in H2SO4 and HC1O4 acidic solutions. Oxide monolayers were observed on Cu(100) and Cu(110) crystals in the thermodynamically forbidden region of the pH-potential phase diagram, which indicates that stable oxide adlayers develop prior to bulk oxide formation. The AFM was also used to follow the electrodeposition of Cu. The AFM is shown to locally enhance the electrochemical deposition of Cu on single crystal Cu surfaces. The tip-sample interaction increases the growth rate of Cu resulting in the localized formation of nanometer-scale epitaxial deposits. The results are consistent with a heterogeneous nucleation and growth mechanism in which the tip-sample interaction creates surface defect sites active towards the electrochemical adsorption of Cu species. Precise control of feature sizes allows this technique to be used for fabrication and constructive modification of solid-liquid interfaces.
Integrated NHANES: Uses in National Policy

The National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Program (NNMRRP) arose from Congressional concern about lack of information regarding the occurrence in the American population of undernutrition and diet-related risk factors for chronic diseases. Congressional appropriations and executive branch decisions about budget priorities have been the major determinants of the scope and number of nutrition monitoring surveys and surveillance activities fielded and therefore the information available for policy and research uses. The nutrition data collected in the NNMRRP are used by federal agencies, the private sector and academia for a variety of purposes, including public policy (e.g., development and evaluation of monitoring and surveillance, regulatory and nutrition programs), normative standards (e.g., growth charts, reference data for hematological and biochemical indicators of nutritional status or Dietary Reference Intakes) and research (e.g., cross-sectional, longitudinal and time-trends studies of dietary and nutritional status, health status, disease morbidity and mortality). Although the importance of the NNMRRP to national policy is difficult to quantify, in a 5-y period 97 proposed and final regulations citing NNMRRP data were published in the Federal Register by federal agencies responsible for nutrition and food safety programs. The NNMRRP-derived dietary and nutritional status data are essential information for quantitative risk assessments increasingly relied on by regulatory agencies as the basis for programmatic decisions and regulations development. Users of NNMRRP data in government agencies, academic institutions and the private sector have come to recognize the value of data from the surveys and surveillance systems for a wide variety of programmatic and research purposes.
Bradykinin B2 receptor knockout mice are protected from thrombosis by increased nitric oxide and prostacyclin.

Bradykinin (BK) liberates nitric oxide, prostacyclin, and tissue plasminogen activator from endothelial cells. We hypothesized that BK B2 receptor knockout (KO) mice (BKB2R-/-) have increased thrombosis risk. Paradoxically, the BKB2R-/- mice have long bleeding times and delayed carotid artery thrombosis, 78 ± 6.7 minutes, versus 31 ± 2.7 minutes in controls. The mechanism(s) for thrombosis protection was sought. In BKB2R-/- plasma coagulation, fibrinolysis and anticoagulant proteins are normal except for an increased prekallikrein and decreased factor XI. BKB2R-/- mice have elevated BK 1-5 (160 ± 75 fmol/mL, vs 44 ± 29 fmol/mL in controls) and angiotensin II (182 ± 41 pg/mL, vs 49 ± 7 pg/mL in controls). Ramipril treatment shortens vessel occlusion time. BKB2R-/- mice have elevated plasma 6-keto-PGF1α (666 ± 232 ng/mL, vs 23 ± 5.3 ng/mL in controls) and serum nitrate (61 ± 5.3 μM, vs 24 ± 1.8 μMin controls). Treatment with L-NAME (NG-mono-methyl-l-arginine ester) or nimesulide shortens the thrombosis time. BKB2R-/- mice have increased angiotensin receptor 2 (AT2R) mRNA and protein expression. Treatment with an AT2R antagonist, PD123 319, normalizes the thrombosis time and nitrate and 6-keto-PGF1α. The long bleeding times in BKB2R-/- mice also correct with L-NAME and nimesulide therapy. In BKB2R-/- mice, angiotensin II binding to an overexpressed AT2R promotes thromboprotection by elevating nitric oxide and prostacyclin. These investigations indicate a pathway for thrombosis risk reduction via the plasma kallikrein/kinin and renin angiotensin systems. (Blood. 2006;108:192-199)
Practicing la réciprocité: Conflict, compromise and boundary formation on the French‐Belgian border, 1715–1787

This article examines issues of mobility, taxation and provincial administration with regard to two eighteenth‐century Franco‐Belgian borderland provinces. The Franco‐Belgian region is one of the most important crossroads in Europe, contested by every major power in Western Europe between the fourteenth and twentieth centuries; “Belgium” remains internally contested as a nation‐state in the present day. During the eighteenth century, provincial governments on both sides of the border developed and maintained reciprocal accords that sought to mitigate tensions related to taxation, customs, mobility and justice. The emphasis on reciprocity, combined with the high level of provincial autonomy, diminished the impetus for national identity development and cross‐border conflict in a manner consistent with previous frontier analyses. These agreements began to falter after the mid‐eighteenth century, as their survival depended on the borderless, jurisdictional character of the frontier. Boundary treaties signed b...
Political ecology III: Theorizing landscape

In this last of three reports exploring the incorporation of human geography theory within political ecology, I focus on landscape. I begin by surveying recent work on landscape in human geography, which has increasingly stressed non-representational approaches, and then explore how landscape has been treated in political ecology. I found that political ecology shares with human geography more generally many of the same critical responses to the representational landscape approaches of the 1980s' ‘new cultural geography’. Although shifts in approaches to landscape in political ecology and human geography more broadly have often paralleled one another, this has not been an outcome of sustained interaction between the fields. I refer to work in anthropology to illustrate the theoretical and empirical potentialities of a more direct and explicit conversation between political ecology and landscape studies in human geography.
Child malnutrition and climate in Sub-Saharan Africa: An analysis of recent trends in Kenya

Abstract In Kenya – where undernutrition rates are high and the population-environment balance is delicate – the risk of declining food availability has become increasingly concerning as indications of drying trends threaten current food systems. The purpose of this research is to determine if climate variables are related to rates of childhood stunting in Kenya. Specifically we use multi-level regression models at the cluster/household level to evaluate the correlation between surface temperatures, rainfall levels and stunting among children aged one to five. Our results suggest that as Kenya continues to experience warming and drying, malnutrition rates will increase. We propose that investments in infrastructure and expansion of education can mitigate the negative impacts of climate change.
Male-specific differences in proliferation, neurogenesis, and sensitivity to oxidative stress in neural progenitor cells derived from a rat model of ALS.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive motor dysfunction and the loss of large motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain stem. A clear genetic link to point mutations in the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene has been shown in a small group of familial ALS patients. The exact etiology of ALS is still uncertain, but males have consistently been shown to be at a higher risk for the disease than females. Here we present male-specific effects of the mutant SOD1 transgene on proliferation, neurogenesis, and sensitivity to oxidative stress in rat neural progenitor cells (rNPCs). E14 pups were bred using SOD1G93A transgenic male rats and wild-type female rats. The spinal cord and cortex tissues were collected, genotyped by PCR using primers for the SOD1G93A transgene or the male-specific Sry gene, and cultured as neurospheres. The number of dividing cells was higher in male rNPCs compared to female rNPCs. However, SOD1G93A over-expression significantly reduced cell proliferation in male cells but not female cells. Similarly, male rNPCs produced more neurons compared to female rNPCs, but SOD1G93A over-expression significantly reduced the number of neurons produced in male cells. Finally we asked whether sex and SOD1G93A transgenes affected sensitivity to oxidative stress. There was no sex-based difference in cell viability after treatment with hydrogen peroxide or 3-morpholinosydnonimine, a free radical-generating agent. However, increased cytotoxicity by SOD1G93A over-expression occurred, especially in male rNPCs. These results provide essential information on how the mutant SOD1 gene and sexual dimorphism are involved in ALS disease progression.
TAG: you're it!

With the explosion of various technologies throughout the university, Information Technology faces the challenge of providing a high level of customer service with the same number of support staff. To address this challenge, Millersville University developed a TAG (Technical Action Group) Team consisting of technical staff from all areas of Information Technology. The team's goal is to share information and address issues about technical projects. TAG Team meets once a month not only to discuss technical projects occurring throughout the campus but also technical projects occurring within Information Technology such as server and application upgrades, DHCP conversion, and domain structure changes. Many technical projects require assistance and support from more than one area of Information Technology. TAG Team meetings give individuals the opportunity to discuss how they can help each other; thus providing not only higher levels of customer service to the campus but also within Information Technology. In addition, the TAG team approach provides opportunities for individuals to learn and assist with aspects of other areas. The TAG Team approach ensures a more cohesive team within Information Technology. Some of our future ideas for TAG Team include inviting individuals from other departments and our student assistants. Also, TAG Team will start to investigate and evaluate new technologies and products and make recommendations to the management team. The TAG Team's overall goal is to remove silos and build bridges throughout the university.
CARCINOMA OF BLADDER METASTATIC TO BREAST

Abstract Reported herein is the first case, to our knowledge, of carcinoma of the bladder metastatic to the breast. A review of the English literature and about 300,000 surgical reports and 10,000 autopsy reports, including all patients with carcinoma of the bladder at the Medical University of South Carolina, failed to reveal any such cases.
Motion Control, Planning and Manipulation of Nanowires Under Electric-Fields in Fluid Suspension

Automated manipulation of nanowires and nanotubes would enable the scalable manufacturing of nanodevices for a variety of applications, including nanoelectronics and biological applications. In this paper, we present an electric-field-based method for motion control, planning, and manipulation of nanowires in liquid suspension with a simple, generic set of electrodes. We first present a dynamic model and a vision-based motion control of the nanowire motion in dilute suspension with a set of $N\times N$ controllable electrodes. Since the motion planning of a nanowire from one position to the target location is NP-hard, two heuristic algorithms are presented to generate near-optimal motion trajectories. We compare the heuristic motion planning algorithms with other existing algorithms such as the rapidly exploring random tree (RRT) and $A^{\ast}$ algorithms. The comparisons show that the proposed heuristic algorithms obtain near-optimal minimum time trajectories. Finally, we demonstrate a single, integrated process to position, orient, and deposit multiple nanowires onto the substrate. Extensive experimental and numerical results are presented to confirm the motion control and planning algorithms.
On a discriminating liquid-xenon detector for SUSY dark-matter observation

We briefly review the arguments for SUSY dark matter and the problems of detecting neutralinos; this may be the easiest way to detect supersymmetry. We then describe the studies of liquid xenon as a detection medium, including various discrimination techniques as part of the ICARUS project. Finally we describe the ZEPLIN project to carry out a definitive search for SUSY dark matter.
Intra-tubular amyloidosis.

CASE PRESENTATION A 52-year-old man with a past medical history of asthma, well-controlled diabetes and hypertension was referred to our hospital for acute renal failure. The patient reported a 2-month history of fatigue and arthralgia involving his shoulders, elbows, wrists, metacarpophalangeal joints as well as his knees and ankles. Six weeks before admission, he started naproxen 400 mg twice daily without improvement. Subsequently he was evaluated by a local rheumatologist who suspected rheumatoid arthritis and started him on prednisone 30 mg daily. A month later, his laboratories revealed an elevated serum creatinine (12.3mg/dl, 1087/μmol/l) and potassium (7.9 mEq/l). His serum creatinine was 1.8 mg/dl (159.1 /μmol/l) 6 weeks earlier and 1.3 mg/dl 7 years earlier (Figure 1). The hyperkalemia was treated with intravenous insulin and dextrose, and he was admitted to our hospital for further management. He denied fever, chills, weight loss, shortness of breath, lower extremity edema, and did not have any uremic symptoms (no nausea, vomiting, hiccups, or itching). He had normal urine output and no dysuria or hematuria. He had hypertension that was diagnosed 13 years earlier and based on records it was well controlled (<135/85) on enalapril 10 mg daily. His diabetes was diagnosed 4 months earlier and treated with rosiglitazone 4 mg once daily. He had not been evaluated for retinopathy. He had no prior urine analysis to assess the presence of albuminuria. His other medications included fluticasone aerosol, albuterol/ ipratropium puffs, acetaminophen two tablets at bedtime, and prednisone 30 mg daily. On physical exam his initial blood pressure was 162/70 with a heart rate of 102/min, regular. Orthostatic blood pressure was not checked. He was afebrile. His mucous membranes were moist. His cardiac exam was normal with no pericardial rub and jugular veins were flat. His lungs were clear and abdomen soft with no organomegaly. The skin was normal. His joint exam revealed synovitis in his elbows, wrists, metacarpophalangeal joints, knees, and ankles bilaterally. He had stiffness and decreased range of motion in his elbows, wrists, and ankles. His admission laboratories are shown in Table 1A and 1B.
Studies on the nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of olefinic protons of conjugated fatty acid methyl esters

The NMR spectra of olefinic protons in the four representative conjugated fatty acid methyl esters, methylcis-9,trans-11-octadecadienoate, methyltrans-9,trans-11-octadecadienoate, methyl α eleostearate, and methyl β eleostearate, were studied. The chemical shift of each olefinic proton in these compounds was determined by considering their intramolecular environment. Coupling constants were also obtained as the results of spectral analysis.
Histopathological and Immunohistochemical Analysis of Melt-Associated Retroprosthetic Membranes in the Boston Type 1 Keratoprosthesis

Importance Retroprosthetic membrane (RPM) formation is the most common complication associated with the Boston type 1 keratoprosthesis and has been associated with corneal melt. Objective To identify the histological and immunohistochemical characteristics of RPMs associated with corneal melt. Design, Setting, and Participants Observational histopathological case series at a tertiary eye care referral center among patients who underwent Boston type 1 keratoprosthesis explantation because of donor corneal melt at the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary between January 1, 2011, and January 1, 2012. Exposures Seven RPM specimens from 7 eyes were stained with hematoxylin-eosin, cytokeratin 7, cytokeratin AE1/3, smooth muscle actin, vimentin, and CD34. Light microscopy was used to evaluate specimens for inflammation and epithelial ingrowth. XY-karyotyping using fluorescence in situ hybridization was performed on 4 specimens with known donor-recipient sex mismatch. Main Outcomes and Measures Histological and immunohistochemical characteristics of RPMs. Results Inflammatory cells were present in 4 of 7 RPMs. In 3 of 4 sex-mismatched specimens, tissue XY-karyotyping of the RPM interphase cells was consistent with the host sex karyotype. The fourth specimen showed a mixture of recipient-type and donor-type cells. Conclusions and Relevance Melt-associated RPMs show variable degrees of inflammation. Most membranes seem to originate from a proliferation of host cells, but donor tissue may contribute in some cases.
Fecundity of the White Bass, Morone chrysops (Rafinesque), in Beaver Reservoir, Arkansas

Abstract The relationships between fish total length, weight, and age to fecundity were determined for 57 white bass females collected in 1967. These relationships were F = 7.51 L - 2040, F = 1.03W - 262, and F = 309.12A - 243.
Plutonium, 241Am and 137Cs ratios, inventories and vertical profiles in Washington and Oregon continental shelf sediments

Abstract Continental shelf sediments from nine locations off Washington and Oregon have 239,240 Pu inventories which average 8.0 ± 2.6 mCi/km 2 . The Columbia River and seawaters advecting over the shelf supply Pu which is removed to underlying sediments, principally through scavenging by inorganic paniculate matter. Mass balance calculations argue that less than 20 percent of the advected Pu need be scavenged from the water column to balance river input and total shelf sediment inventories. The percentage of the Pu removed through scavenging is consistent with observed participate concentrations in shelf waters and published sediment/water distribution coefficients. No marked separation of Pu from 137 Cs is observed with depth in Pacific shelf sediments as has been reported in Atlantic coastal sediments. This interocean distinctness can be explained by differences in particle mixing and downward diffusion of Cs in sediments of varying porosities. The transuranic inventories and Pu/Cs ratios in the Pacific sediments do not support the hypothesis of Livingston and Bowen that Pu is remobilized within the sediment column by ‘complexone’ formation with (principally) organic substances. Excess 210 Pb/ 239,240 Pu inventory ratios in eight representative cores from the Washington shelf average 100 ± 19, even though absolute values of both inventories vary by much larger factors. This reasonably constant ratio, for a given water depth, permits estimation of total Pu inventories and prediction of sites of unusual Pu accumulation from data on the more easily measured natural radionuclide.