cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An analysis of Chinese Super League partial results

Some of the history of soccer/world football in China is presented. Then consideration turns to the 2008 Chinese Super League. It has 16 teams. The results from the first half of the season, i.e. 15 rounds, are studied. The response of interest for a specific game is whether the home team won, tied or lost, who the home team was, and who the opponent was. The response is ordinal-valued. A generalized linear model is fit and then, given the remaining fixtures, used to predict the final standings of the season. Other explanatories, such as round number, are considered for inclusion in the model. Simulation is employed to estimate probabilities of interest.
Legislating on occupational safety and health: a comparison of the British and American experience

. In the early 1970s both the United Kingdom and the United States legislated new occupational safety regulations. Enforcement strategies varied considerably: the British chose a persuasive, the Americans a coercive approach. The legislative process was characterized by consensus in the first case, by conflict in the second. Consequentially the UK regulation appears to have been quite effective, while the US one led only to negligible results. This difference can be mainly explained by the different strength of the interest groups involved in the regulation's implementation.
Genetic Heterogeneity in a Cyclical Forest Pest, the Southern Pine Beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis, is Differentiated Into East and West Groups in the Southeastern United States

The southern pine beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmerman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is an economically important pest species throughout the southeastern United States, Arizona, Mexico, and Central America. Previous research identified population structure among widely distant locations, yet failed to detect population structure among national forests in the state of Mississippi. This study uses microsatellite variation throughout the southeastern United States to compare the southern pine beetle's pattern of population structure to phylogeographic patterns in the region, and to provide information about dispersal. Bayesian clustering identified east and west genetic groups spanning multiple states. The east group had lower heterozygosity, possibly indicating greater habitat fragmentation or a more recent colonization. Significant genetic differentiation (θST = 0.01, p < 0.0001) followed an isolation-by-distance pattern (r = 0.39, p < 0.001) among samples, and a hierarchical AMOVA indicated slightly more differentiation occurred between multi-state groups. The observed population structure matches a previously identified phylogeographic pattern, division of groups along the Appalachian Mountain/Apalachicola River axis. Our results indicate that the species likely occurs as a large, stable metapopulation with considerable gene flow among subpopulations. Also, the relatively low magnitude of genetic differentiation among samples suggests that southern pine beetles may respond similarly to management across their range.
Impact of spatial neglect on stroke rehabilitation: evidence from the setting of an inpatient rehabilitation facility.

Abstract Objective To examine the impact of spatial neglect on rehabilitation outcome, risk of falls, and discharge disposition in stroke survivors. Design Inception cohort. Setting Inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF). Participants Individuals with unilateral brain damage after their first stroke (N=108) were assessed at IRF admission and discharge. At admission, 74 of them (68.5%) demonstrated symptoms of spatial neglect as measured using the Kessler Foundation Neglect Assessment Process (KF-NAP). Interventions Usual and standard IRF care. Main Outcome Measures The FIM, Conley Scale, number of falls, length of stay (LOS), and discharge disposition. Results The greater the severity of spatial neglect (higher KF-NAP scores) at IRF admission and the lower the FIM scores at admission as well as at discharge. Higher KF-NAP scores also correlated with greater LOS and lower FIM improvement rate. The presence of spatial neglect (KF-NAP score>0), but not Conley Scale scores, predicted falls such that participants with spatial neglect fell 6.5 times more often than those without symptoms. More severe neglect, indicated by KF-NAP scores at IRF admission, reduced the likelihood of returning home at discharge. A model that took spatial neglect and other demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical factors into account predicted home discharge. Rapid FIM improvement during IRF stay and lower annual income level were significant predictors of home discharge. Conclusions Spatial neglect after a stroke is a prevalent problem and may negatively affect rehabilitation outcome, risk of falls, and LOS.
Biological aerosol trigger

In recent history, manmade and natural events have shown us the every-present need for systems to monitor the troposphere for contaminates. These contaminants may take either a chemical or biological form, which determines the methods we use to monitor them. Monitoring the troposphere for biological contaminants is of particular interest to my organization. Whether manmade or natural, contaminants of a biological origin share similar constituents; typically the aromatic amino acids tryptophan, phenylalanine, and tyrosine. All of these proteinaceous compounds autofluorescence when exposed to UV radiation and this established the basis of the laser-induced fluorescence technique we use to detect biological contaminants. This technique can be employed in either point or remote detection schemes and is a valuable tool for discriminating proteinaceous form non-proteinaceous aerosols. For this particular presentation I am going to describe a breadboard point sensor we designed and fabricated to detect proteinaceous aerosols. Previous point sensor designs relied on convoluted flow paths to concentrate the aerosols into a solution. Other systems required precise beam alignment to evenly distribute the energy irradiating the detector elements. Our objective was to build a simple system where beam alignment is not critical, and the flow is straight and laminar. The breadboard system was developed over a nine- month period and its performance assessed at a recent test at Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah. In addition, we have performed chamber experiments in an attempt to establish a baseline for the systems. The results of these efforts are presented here.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Exposure to 4-aminopyridine prevents depressant effects of opiates on sensory-evoked dorsal-horn network responses in spinal cord cultures.

The depressant effects of morphine (0.1–1 μM) on sensory-evoked dorsal-horn network responses in explants of mouse spinal cord with attached dorsal root ganglia (DRGs) were rapidly restored after addition of 4-aminopyrdine (4-AP; 0.1 mM) and major components of these cord responses were stably maintained in the presence of the opiate. Moreover, prior exposure of cord-DRG explants to 0.1 mM 4-AP prevented the depressant effects of 0.1 μM morphine on DRG-evoked dorsal-horn responses, and the effects of 1–10 μM morphine were at least partly antagonized. Increased Ca++ levels (5 μM) attenuated the depression of dorsal horn responses by 1–10 μM morphine and these effects of Ca++ were greatly enhanced in the presence of 4-AP -- in some cultures, concentrations of morphine as high as 100 μM were strongly antagonized during test periods up to 2 hours. Receptor assays showed that 0.1 mM 4-AP ± 5 mM Ca++ had no effect on stereospecific opiate binding, indicating that the antagonist actions of these agents in our cultures do not occur at the level of the opiate receptor. The relevance of our invitro studies of 4-AP antagonism of opiate-depressant effects on sensory-evoked dorsal-horn network responses for analyses of problems in opiate analgesia has been strengthened by a recent report demonstrating that 4-AP does, in fact, reverse morphine analgesia in rats, as determined by tail flick tests.
Closed-Form Expressions for Minimizing Total Harmonic Distortion in Three-Phase Multilevel Converters

The total harmonic distortion (THD) of a waveform is a standard way to quantify its deviation from a sinusoid. In three-phase systems, we are interested in minimizing 3THD: the component of THD produced by odd nontriplen harmonics. However, its definition involves an infinite sum, making it difficult to evaluate and analyze. This paper solves the problem of finding equivalent closed-form expressions for the 3THD of a staircase waveform. In particular, two expressions are rigorously derived, which reveal 3THD to be a piecewise differentiable function. One expression is shorter but describes the pieces implicitly. The other is longer but describes the pieces explicitly. We minimize 3THD using the closed-form expression and provide a comparison with previous techniques. Finally, we provide experimental results that show close agreement with the theoretical results.
The Amino-terminal Charge and Core Region Hydrophobicity Interdependently Contribute to the Function of Signal Sequences

We have constructed a series of signal sequence mutants that contain negatively charged amino termini and simplified core regions of varying hydrophobicity levels. This series provides a means of exploring the relative roles of the amino terminus and the hydrophobic core region during transport. The signal peptides with highly hydrophobic core regions support a rapid rate of transport in the presence of a negatively charged amino terminus. We have found that these negatively charged mutants are secreted in a manner similar to the wild-type signal sequence; sodium azide and carbonyl cyanide 3-chlorophenylhydrazone treatments indicate that the negatively charged mutants depend on SecA and the protonmotive force, respectively. These same mutants also demonstrate reduced competition with coexpressed β-lactamase, reflecting the lower overall affinity for the transport pathway due to the net negative charge at the amino terminus. In addition, the pronounced effects of introducing three negative charges support the conclusion that the two regions function in a concerted manner.
The Role of Surface Deconstruction in the Autocatalytic Decomposition of Formate and Acetate on Ni(110)

The adsorption of formate and acetate on the Ni(110) surface has been investigated with STM, LEED, TPRS, and XPS. At saturation coverage formate and acetate form a c(2 × 2) structure amid a pitted surface, which is suggestive of the incorporation of “added” Ni atoms into the c(2 × 2) structure. Heating the surface to 350 K to decompose the formate produces islands of step height, indicative of the release of Ni from the c(2 × 2) structure during HCOO decomposition. Upon further heating to 370 K the islands dissipate and p(4 × 1)-CO domains appear. Heating the acetate-covered surface affects a restructuring of the c(2 × 2) to scattered domains of a p(8 × 1) structure, which is attributed to acetate. Concomitant with this restructuring is the release of Ni to form islands of step height. Upon further heating the acetate decomposes to yield a p(4 × 5)-C covered surface. The present investigation adds further insight into the phenomena underlying the autocatalytic decomposition of formate and acetate. It is s...
Interactions of 31 MeV protons with He4

Abstract Angular distributions for the He4(p, p)He4 and the He4(p, d)He3 reactions were determined for a proton energy of 31.0 MeV at centre-of-mass angles ranging from ∽ 6° to ∽ 160° for elastic proton scattering and from ∽ 15° to ∽ 100° for the deuteron pickup reaction. The differential elastic scattering cross section was fitted by an optical model analysis which included both surface and volume absorption. The deuteron angular distributions were fitted by calculations based on the direct interaction theory of Butler and the distorted wave Born approximation with diffuse-well optical potentials as proposed by Smith and Ivash.
Formin' actin filament bundles.

The formin family of proteins have been implicated in regulation of cell polarity and cytoskeletal function in fungal and animal cells, but the manner in which they affect these processes has been mysterious. Two new studies report that formins in budding yeast are specifically required for the assembly of bundles of parallel actin filaments known as cables.
The effect of oxidant stress on diamide-treated human granulocytes

Abstract The role of sulfhydryls in the protection of human polymorphonuclear neutrophils against extracellular oxidant attack was investigated by simultaneously exposing polymorphonuclear neutrophils to the thiol-oxidizing agent diamide and the oxidant-generating system xanthine-xanthine oxidase. Neither diamide nor the oxidants generated by the xanthine-xanthine oxidase system alone impaired the burst in chemiluminescence, hexose monophosphate shunt activity or formate oxidation normally seen during polymorphonuclear neutrophil phagocytosis. Incubation of the polymorphonuclear neutrophils simultaneously with diamide and xanthine-xanthine oxidase markedly impaired polymorphonuclear neutrophil phagocytosis, hexose monophosphate shunt activity, chemiluminescence and formate oxidation. Although the polymorphonuclear neutrophils exposed to diamide and xanthine-xanthine oxidase did not respond to a variety of phagocytizable stimuli, trypan blue exclusion was normal and hexose monophosphate shunt activity could be stimulated by diamide. The damaging effect of the diamide xanthine-xanthine oxidase system could be blocked by the addition of superoxide dismutase or catalase, but not by hydroxyl radical or singlet oxygen scavengers. We hypothesize that an unidentified population of thiols may play a role in protecting the polymorphonuclear neutrophil from endogenously derived oxidants.
The origins of the neutral theory of molecular evolution

Molecular biology has had a profound impact on the nature of the biological sciences in the twentieth century. Molecular techniques are found now in virtually every area of biology. To reduce the impact of molecular biology to the dissemination of its technologies, however, is to sell it short: it has also dramatically altered researchers' attitudes toward the question which problems or problem areas are of fundamental importance. This shift in attitude is nowhere more evident than in hybrid fields such as molecular evolution. When the first major conferences on molecular evolution were held in 1964,1 the vast majority of evolutionary biologists saw the world through the lens of panselectionism natural selection was accepted as the dominant and most important mechanism of biological evolution.2 This panselectionism was a product of the evolutionary synthesis in the 1930s and 1940s and the related effort to demonstrate the central role of evolution within the biological sciences. Architects of the evolutionary synthesis, such as George G. Simpson and Ernst Mayr, attended these early conferences on molecular evolution and actively promoted the power of natural selection.3 For Mayr and Simpson, molecular biology was threat-
A Smooth-Turn Mobility Model for Airborne Networks

The design of effective routing protocols in airborne networks (ANs) relies on suitable mobility models that capture the movement patterns of airborne vehicles. As airborne vehicles cannot make sharp turns as easily as ground vehicles do, the widely used ground-based mobile ad hoc network (MANET) mobility models are not appropriate to use as the analytical frameworks for airborne networking. In this paper, we introduce a novel mobility model, which is called the smooth-turn (ST) mobility model, that captures the correlation of acceleration of airborne vehicles across temporal and spatial coordinates. The proposed model is realistic in capturing the tendency of airborne vehicles toward making straight trajectories and STs with large radii, yet is tractable enough for analysis and design. We first describe the mathematics of this model and then prove that the stationary node distribution is uniform. Furthermore, we introduce a metric to quantify the degree of model randomness, and using this, we compare and classify several mobility models in the literature. We conclude this paper with several possible variations to the basic ST mobility model.
Single-ion conductors for lithium batteries via silica surface modification

Single-ion conductors (SICs) have been prepared by free-radical polymerization of sulfonic acid-containing monomer on high-purity silica surface that was first tailored with unsaturated functionality using a silanation reaction. It was found that steric effects limited polyelectrolyte surface loading even when large amount of silane molecules were grafted by forming a cross-linked structure. The results indicate that large surface area is an important factor to achieve high-surface loading of ionic moieties. Composite electrolytes were prepared by dispersing these SICs in aprotic solvents. The effects of filler content and solvent on ionic conductivity were investigated.
Kinetic Studies on the Thermal Decomposition of trans-2,3-Dimethyl-1-tri-tert-butylsilyl-1-triisopropylsilylsilirane and the Mechanism of Silylene Generation

trans-2,3-Dimethyl-1-tri-tert-butylsilyl-1-triisopropylsilylsilirane (1) has been prepared in 98% yield by the treatment of (tBu3Si)(iPr3Si)SiBr2 with activated magnesium in the presence of trans-2...
Fault location by radon and mercury detection at an active volcano in Nicaragua

The Masaya Caldera Complex, Nicaragua, with the active crater, Santiago (Fig. 1), is the site of present-day basaltic volcanism1,2. Some of the faults that bound the caldera and lie within it can be located geologically; others are postulated. A possible older caldera rim lies to the south of the present margin. To investigate whether one can identify faults in this environment of active volcanism, concentrations of radon and mercury in the regolith were determined at 232 selected points in and adjacent to the caldera. Higher concentrations of Hg0 or Rn or both occurred over 75% of the known structures studied. Some hitherto suspected structures were confirmed while others were not. Lack of a chemical signature may be ascribed to the absence of a structure, inappropriate sampling sites, post-fault lava cover or other sealing of the structure. We show here how the use of Rn and Hg0 determinations has helped in structural analysis at this active volcano.
Photon as a Composite Particle in Quantum Electrodynamics

It has been claimed that quantum electrodynamics can be written in a form in which the photon appears as a bound state (of the electron and positron). We examine this notion in the light of recent attempts to describe bound states in field theory by the vanishing of wave-function renormalization constants. Our conclusion is that even if the renormalization constant ${Z}_{3}=0$ to all orders of perturbation theory, the photon cannot be described as a bound state, because other necessary conditions are not satisfied. The argument is given (implicitly) in terms of Green's functions rather than fields.
Interactions of ADP-stimulated human platelets with PEGylated polystyrene substrates prepared by surface amidation.

Abstract A study primarily focused on the interactions between ADP-stimulated human platelets and PEGylated polystyrene substrates is described in this paper. The platelet–surface interactions were investigated using colorimetric acid phosphatase assay. Two types of amine-containing polymeric hydrogel materials based on poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), H 2 N–PEG–OCH 3 and H 2 N–PEG–NH 2 , were used to PEGylate polystyrene surfaces derivatized with maleic anhydride by amidation at alkaline pH. In addition, comparative studies using surfaces non-covalently adsorbed by bovine serum albumin (BSA) or fibrinogen (Fg) were also conducted. The assay results showed that no significant platelet adhesion was observed when PEGylated surfaces or BSA-coated surfaces were exposed to unstimulated gel-filtered platelets (GFP). However, upon ADP-stimulation, platelet adhesion to the surfaces under investigation in this study all increased to varying degrees. Most importantly, the results showed that polystyrene surfaces PEGylated using H 2 N–PEG–NH 2 were most effective in resisting platelet adhesion when assays were performed using ADP-stimulated GFP. By PEGylating the surfaces of polystyrene microtiter wells via the amidation reaction described in this paper, it is demonstrated that (i) higher degree of surface PEGylation is favored at more alkaline pH and (ii) polystyrene substrates capable of more effectively resisting the adhesion of ADP-stimulated GFP can be obtained by the PEGylation reaction carried out at pH 9.1 using H 2 N–PEG–NH 2 .
Assessing biological and chemical signatures related to nutrient removal by floating islands in stormwater mesocosms.

Abstract Aquatic floating plants on BioHaven mats were tested for their potential use as a Best Management Practice to be incorporated within existing stormwater detention ponds. Plants were analyzed for their capability to remove nutrient-pollution in parallel with the study of ecological dynamics. Experiments were carried out in cylindrical mesocosms of 5 m diameter and 1.2 m height, above-ground pools with a water volume of 14 m 3 . The design parameters tested were for 5% and 10% vegetated floating island coverage of the mesocosm, both with and without shoreline plants called littoral zone. This littoral shelf was 0.5 m thick, graded at a downward slope of 1:5 toward the center using loamy soil with low organic matter content, excavated from below turf grass. Endemic plant species were chosen for the experimental location in central Florida based on a wetland identification manual by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to ensure the study was not compromised by unique climate requirements of the plants. Nutrient and aquatic chemical conditions such as pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity, and chlorophyll a were monitored to understand their relationships to the general wetland ecosystem. Real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis identified the microbial activity near the rhizospheric zone. Logistical placement considerations were made using spatial sampling across the horizontal plane of the mesocosms, beneath and around the root zone, to determine if nutrients tend to aggregate around the floating island. This study concluded that the application of floating islands as a stormwater technology can remove nutrients through plant uptake and biological activity. The most cost-effective size in the outdoor mesocosms was 5% surface area coverage of the mat.
Plasma transport in the Io torus: The importance of microscopic diffusion

This paper considers the question of whether the distribution of mass in the Io plasma torus is consistent with the concept of interchange eddy transport. Specifically, the flux tube content exhibits a gradual decrease with increasing radial distance from the source near Io without any evidence for substantial density irregularity associated with the plasma source or loss. Using a simple one-dimensional numerical model to simulate macroscopic interchange eddy transport, it is demonstrated that this smooth equilibrium distribution of mass can occur but only with the inclusion of a minimal level of small scale microscopic mixing at a rate approaching Bohm diffusion. Otherwise, the system exhibits a chaotic appearance which never approaches an equilibrium distribution. Various physical mechanisms for the microscopic diffusion process which is required to provide a sufficiently rapid mixing of material between the macroscopic eddies are discussed.
Multi-level Hashing for Peer-to-Peer System in Wireless Ad Hoc Environment

Peer-to-peer is a popular distributed system. With the advancement in mobile technologies, mobile P2P has revealed its attraction. But, the resource constraints such as bandwidth, computing power, energy, etc. and node's mobility give hard challenges to the researchers. Smart content distribution and efficient content discovery are the heart of P2P protocols. Routing is associated with every task but it is expensive in ad hoc environment. In this paper, we address these issues and present a peer-to-peer system for wireless ad-hoc networks using multi-level hashing to reduce routing overhead. The necessity of multilevel hashing is justified through extensive simulation
Multiyear Subinertial and Seasonal Eulerian Current Observations near the Florida Big Bend Coast

AbstractMultiyear in situ Eulerian acoustic Doppler current profiler measurements were obtained at 5-, 10-, and 19-m depths off the Big Bend coast, and in 19 m off the Florida Peninsula to the south. Analysis on subinertial time scales, dominated by weatherband frequencies, led to the following conclusions. At the 19-m Big Bend site (K-Tower), consistent with coastally trapped wave (CTW) theory, the along-isobath flow is not proportional to the local along-isobath wind stress, but rather to the alongshore wind stress to the south along the west Florida shelf (WFS). At the southern 19-m site, consistent with previous work, the along-isobath flow is driven by , but is weakened by an alongshore pressure gradient brake. Via CTW dynamics this brake is due to the abrupt “end” of the WFS at the Florida Keys. By contrast, along-isobath flow at the shallow 5-m site is driven by the local wind in a constant stress turbulent frictional layer. Because of the freshwater flux near the coast, density usually increases s...
Mechanisms of liver adaptation to prolonged selective biliary obstruction (SBO) in the rat

To determine changes which occur in selective biliary obstruction (SBO), we studied male adult Fischer rats after one month of either SBO or selective biliary cannulation (SBC) of the median lobe duct (MLD). In rats with SBC the ML was obstructed with a sealed PE-10 catheter placed in the MLD. One month later at laparotomy the ML was either drained or not drained for 30 min before the injection of 200 microCi [99Tc]DIDA (2,6-diethylacetoanilido-imino-diacetic acid). Bile was collected and biopsies of the obstructed ML and non-obstructed right lobe (RL) were taken at 1, 3, 10 and 30 min. Serum bile acid concentrations were higher in SBC not drained rats than in control as were hepatic bile acid concentrations. The latter, however, did not achieve statistical significance. In SBC-drained rats biliary bile acid secretion from the obstructed lobe was lower than that from the non-obstructed lobe for 30 min after the release of obstruction but was thereafter the same. Hepatic DIDA levels in both the obstructed and non-obstructed portions of liver from SBO animals were higher than in liver from controls, despite normal DIDA biliary excretion. This is in part explained by increased cytosolic binding of DIDA. In rats with SBO the MLD was simply ligated and transected. After one month uptake kinetics of [14C]taurocholate in freshly isolated hepatocytes from obstructed and non-obstructed lobes were similar suggesting that no major impairment of BA uptake occurs. We conclude that cholestasis is still present after 30 days of SBO in spite of the presence of interlobular biliary connections. The observed increased hepatic storage capacity for DIDA is probably an adaptive mechanism in mild chronic cholestasis.
Subinhibitory Antibiotic Concentrations Mediate Nutrient Use and Competition among Soil Streptomyces

Though traditionally perceived as weapons, antibiotics are also hypothesized to act as microbial signals in natural habitats. However, while subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics (SICA) are known to shift bacterial gene expression, specific hypotheses as to how SICA influence the ecology of natural populations are scarce. We explored whether antibiotic ‘signals’, or SICA, have the potential to alter nutrient utilization, niche overlap, and competitive species interactions among Streptomyces populations in soil. For nine diverse Streptomyces isolates, we evaluated nutrient utilization patterns on 95 different nutrient sources in the presence and absence of subinhibitory concentrations of five antibiotics. There were significant changes in nutrient use among Streptomyces isolates, including both increases and decreases in the capacity to use individual nutrients in the presence vs. in the absence of SICA. Isolates varied in their responses to SICA and antibiotics varied in their effects on isolates. Furthermore, for some isolate-isolate-antibiotic combinations, competition-free growth (growth for an isolate on all nutrients that were not utilized by a competing isolate), was increased in the presence of SICA, reducing the potential fitness cost of nutrient competition among those competitors. This suggests that antibiotics may provide a mechanism for bacteria to actively minimize niche overlap among competitors in soil. Thus, in contrast to antagonistic coevolutionary dynamics, antibiotics as signals may mediate coevolutionary displacement among coexisting Streptomyces, thereby hindering the emergence of antibiotic resistant phenotypes. These results contribute to our broad understanding of the ecology and evolutionary biology of antibiotics and microbial signals in nature.
Antiangiogenic potential of camptothecin and topotecan.

Purpose: To determine the inhibitory nature of sublethal doses of camptothecin (CPT) and topotecan (TPT) treatments on normal human endothelial cells in vitro, as well as the in vivo antiangiogenic activity as compared to another antiangiogenic compound, TNP-470 and to a nonspecific cytotoxic agent, cisplatin. Methods: Growth inhibition was determined by the crystal violet assay to measure relative cell numbers. 3H-thymidine uptake was used to determine the inhibitory effect of CPT and TPT on DNA synthesis in vitro. Cell viability was determined using trypan blue exclusion assays. Cell cycle response to CPT was determined by flow cytometric analysis of propidium iodide-stained nuclei. In vivo inhibition of angiogenesis was determined by the disc angiogenesis system (DAS), where surgical sponge discs were placed subcutaneously in the rat dorsum and the ability of systemic treatment with liposomal CPT (LCPT), TPT, TNP-470 or cisplatin to inhibit vascular growth into the discs was evaluated. Quantitation of vascular growth was determined using toluidine blue staining of sectioned discs followed by digital image analysis. Results: Treatment with 50 nM CPT or TPT inhibited human umbilical venular endothelial cell (HUVEC) growth as shown by crystal violet staining, but was not cytotoxic to the cells. This was evidenced by the fact that cell numbers did not increase or decrease with treatment, but remained static while cells were viable for over 96 h posttreatment. 3H-thymidine uptake in HUVEC was inhibited as early as 5 min, reached a maximum inhibition at 24 h and lasted over 96 h posttreatment. Cell cycle analysis of CPT-treated HUVEC showed arrest in S-phase at 12 h with a concurrent decrease in population of cells in G1. Accumulation of cells at the G2/M-phase was discernible at 24 h along with the S-phase inhibition. Treatment of rats with 1 mg/kg LCPT or TPT every other day for 14 days resulted in approximately 30% inhibition of vascular growth into the discs. This inhibition was similar to the inhibition seen with TNP-470, an established and potent angiogenic inhibitor. In contrast, cisplatin was not as effective in inhibiting vascular growth into the discs. Conclusions: In this work we showed that CPT and TPT inhibit human endothelial cell growth in vitro in a non-cytotoxic manner and that this inhibition lasts more than 96 h after drug removal. We also showed that LCPT and TPT, unlike a nonspecific cytotoxic agent, cisplatin, are as effective as TNP-470 in inhibiting angiogenic growth in the in vivo disc angiogenesis model. From this observation we propose that in addition to their proven tumoricidal activities, camptothecins may have an indirect in vivo antitumor effect mediated through the inhibition of angiogenesis.
RESEARCH PRODUCTIVITY OF TENURED AND NONTENURED FACULTY IN U.S. UNIVERSITIES: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF FOUR FIELDS AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

This study examines differences between the tenured and nontenured faculty in research productivity. The major hypothesis tested is that, in a given unit of time, the tenured faculty demonstrates and publishes its research more than the nontenured faculty. The study does not unequivocally verify this hypothesis for published books and articles. Policy implications of these findings in the context of designing an optimal reward system are discussed and explicated.
Renovation of Technical Services: Physical and Philosophical Considerations

Abstract The Auraria Library administration determined that the facility needed to be rewired to accommodate emerging electronic technologies in order to take full advantage of the campus-wide, fiber-optic, network. In requesting a grant for this project, it became evident that the technical services area, in particular, needed to be renovated and reorganized in addition to being rewired. This article reports on the physical and philosophical factors that were considered to accomplish these goals. Future trends in technical services are discussed along with some general information on wiring technology and building design.
The structure of rhodopsin and the rod outer segment disk membrane

Abstract Rhodopsin is the photoreceptor protein of rod cells in the vertebrate retina. Physical studies of the photoreceptor membrane provide a low-resolution structure and show that rhodopsin has a large fraction of its mass embedded in the lipid bilayer. The complete amino acid sequence of bovine rhodopsin has recently been obtained and this, combined with other information, leads to testable predictions of the basic structural features of vertebrate rhodopsin.
A lossless circuit layout image compression algorithm for electron beam direct write lithography systems

The recent algorithm Corner is a transform-based technique to represent a circuit layout image for electron beam direct write lithography systems. We improve the lossless circuit layout compression algorithm Corner so that 1) it requires fewer symbols during the corner transform, 2) it has a simpler and faster decoding process, and 3) it requires a similar amount of memory for the decoding process.
The Prevalence of Nightmares and Their Independence From Anxiety

Although several studies have examined the prevalence of nightmares and their relationship to anxiety, this is the first to have used daily dream logs, rather than retrospective self-reports, to monitor nightmare frequency. 220 undergraduates were administered self-report measures of anxiety and for 2 weeks recorded the number of their nightmares in logs. 47% of Ss reported at least one nightmare during the study period. The dream logs yielded an estimated mean annual nightmare frequency of 23.6, which is 2.5 times as great as the estimate yielded by retrospective reports (p less than .01). Nightmare frequency and anxiety were uncorrelated. The findings indicate that nightmares are more prevalent than has been reported, and their frequency unrelated to self-reported anxiety.
KARDAR-PARISI-ZHANG MODEL AND ANOMALOUS ELASTICITY OF TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL SMECTIC- A LIQUID CRYSTALS

We reveal a deep theoretical relationship between equilibrium statistical physics of smectic-A liquid crystals and nonequilibrium statistical physics of the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang dynamical model [M. Kardar, G. Parisi, and Y.-C. Zhang, Phys. Rev. Lett. 56, 889 (1986)] for interfaces growing in the presence of a flux of incoming particles. This relationship provides an exact approach to study Landau-Peierls phenomena and anomalous elasticity of two-dimensional smectic-A liquid crystals. Also, it yields prediction of an unusual elastic critical point in three-dimensional smectic-A liquid crystals with broken inversion symmetry (head-to-tail packing of layers). We discuss the elasticity and fluctuations of these unusual smectic-A phases.
p300 provides a corepressor function by cooperating with YY1 and HDAC3 to repress c-Myc

We showed earlier that p300/CBP plays an important role in G1 progression by negatively regulating c-Myc and thereby preventing premature G1 exit. Here, we have studied the mechanism by which p300 represses c-Myc and show that in quiescent cells p300 cooperates with histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) to repress transcription. p300 and HDAC3 are recruited to the upstream YY1-binding site of the c-Myc promoter resulting in chromatin deacetylation and repression of c-Myc transcription. Consistent with this, ablation of p300, YY1 or HDAC3 expression results in chromatin acetylation and induction of c-Myc. These three proteins exist as a complex in vivo and form a multiprotein complex with the YY1-binding site in vitro. The C-terminal region of p300 is both necessary and sufficient for the repression of c-Myc. These and other results suggest that in quiescent cells the C-terminal region of p300 provides corepressor function and facilitates the recruitment of p300 and HDAC3 to the YY1-binding site and represses the c-Myc promoter. This corepressor function of p300 prevents the inappropriate induction of c-Myc and S phase.
Extension of scaled particle theory to inhomogeneous hard particle fluids. II. Theory and simulation of fluid structure surrounding a cavity that intersects a hard wall.

Integral equations describing the structure of a hard sphere fluid surrounding a cavity that intersects a hard wall are derived from scaled particle theory (SPT). The new expressions are solved exactly for specific cavity radii and the predictions are compared to simulation-generated results, showing excellent agreement. Additional simulation studies are conducted for cavity radii that fall outside the range of exact solution. For all cavity sizes, an enhancement of the local density of hard spheres over that of the hard wall contact value is seen for positions near the point of intersection of the cavity and the hard wall. The local density in front of the cavity and away from the hard wall is depleted at small cavity sizes, but eventually approaches the density profile created by a cavity placed within a bulk hard sphere fluid at larger cavity radii. The exact solutions and simulation results are also used to understand why a minimum appears in the inhomogeneous SPT function $\overline{G}(\ensuremath{\lambda},h)$ [D. W. Siderius and D. S. Corti, preceding paper, Phys. Rev. E 71, 036141 (2005)].
Influence of the protein kinase C inhibitor 3-{1-[3-(amidinothio)propyl]-1H-indoyl-3-yl}-3-(1-methyl-1H-indoyl-3-yl)maleimide methane sulfonate (Ro-318220) on surfactant secretion intype ii pneumocytes

Abstract We have investigated the influence of 3-{1-[3-(amidinothio)propyl]-1 H -indoyl-3-yl}-3-(1-methyl-1 H -indoyl-3-yl)maleimide methane sulfonate (Ro-318220), a potent and selective inhibitor of protein kinase C, on phosphatidylcholine secretion in response to surfactant secretagogues in rat type II cells. Freshly isolated cells were cultured overnight with [ 3 H]choline to label the phosphatidylcholine pool and were preincubated for 30 min in fresh medium with or without Ro-318220. Secretagogues were then added, and the incubation was continued for 90 min after which [ 3 H]phosphatidylcholine secretion was measured. Ro-318220 (10 μM) almost completely abolished the stimulatory effects of 36 μM terbutaline, 10 μM ATP, and 1 μM 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and significantly antagonized the effects of 10 μM 5'-( N -ethylcarboxyamido)adenosine (NECA), 100 μM dioctanoylglycerol, and 0.05 μM ionomycin. The effect of Ro-318220 was dependent on concentration. The IC 50 values for Ro-318220 inhibition of the effects of terbutaline, NECA, TPA, and ionomycin were not significantly different. The IC 50 value for Ro-318220 inhibition of the effect of TPA in the type II cell (0.05 μM) was similar to that reported for inhibition of protein kinase C in vitro (0.08 μM). We conclude that Ro-318220 antagonizes the effects of the different surfactant secretagogues by antagonizing a step common to the different signaling pathways. It remains to be established if it is protein kinase C or another step that is inhibited.
Post-translational methylation of phycobilisomes and oxygen evolution efficiency in cyanobacteria

Abstract A post-translationally methylated asparagine residue, γ-N- methylasparagine (NMA), is found at the β-72 site in many phycobiliproteins. We have examined the effects of asparagine methylation on photosynthetic rates in the wild-type cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC 7942 ( β-72 = NMA ) and two Synechococcus PCC 7942 methylase mutants ( β-72 = Asn ) that exhibit no detectable methylase activity. Previous studies indicate that phycobilisomes isolated from non-methylated mutants exhibit a 14% decrease in fluorescence quantum yield (Swanson, R.V. and Glazer, A.N. (1990) J. Mol. Biol. 214, 787–796). Relative rates of Photosystem II electron transfer were measured for these strains by monitoring steady state rates of oxygen evolution in whole cells. The methylase-minus mutants demonstrated lower rates of electron transfer through Photosystem II under conditions in which the phycobilisome components were preferentially illuminated with orange light at low intensity. Oxygen evolution rates were indistinguishable for the wild-type and mutant strains upon selective illumination of the chlorophyll-containing light-harvesting antennae with blue light. The observed differences in photosynthetic rates are consonant with the levels of asparagine methylation in the phycobilisomes. These results support the hypothesis that asparagine methylation which is energetically costly yet evolutionarily conserved, is associated with increased energy transfer efficiency through Photosystem II.
Bioadhesives for intraocular use.

Background/Purpose:A safe, effective adhesive could be useful in the management of retinal holes or tears and selected complicated retinal detachments, as well as for attaching a small electronic device (retinal prosthesis) to the retina. In this study, we examined nine commercially available compou
Systematics and the future of biology

B iology is a science of three dimensions. The first is the study of each species across all levels of biological organization, molecule to cell to organism to population to ecosystem. The second dimension is the diversity of all species in the biosphere. The third dimension is the history of each species in turn, comprising both its genetic evolution and the environmental change that drove the evolution. Biology, by growing in all three dimensions, is progressing toward unification and will continue to do so. A large part of the future of biology depends on interdisciplinary studies that allow easy travel across the three dimensions. Molecular and cellular biology, the subdisciplines of maximum support and activity today, occupy the two lowest levels of biological organization. They are focused on the first dimension in a small set of model species, selected primarily for their ease of culturing and the special traits that make them amenable for different kinds of analysis. The triumph of molecular and cellular biology has been the documentation of one of the two overarching principles of biology: that all living phenomena are obedient to the laws of physics and chemistry. The other overarching principle of biology is that all living phenomena originated and evolved by natural selection. That, in turn, has been the triumph of organismic and evolutionary biology. Viewed in the framework of the history of biology, the subdisciplines of molecular and cellular biology are in the natural history period of their development. This perhaps surprising characterization can be clarified with the following metaphor. The cell is a system consisting of a very large number of interacting elements and processes. It can be compared to a conventional ecosystem, such as a lake or forest, in this sense: Researchers …
Determination of Arsenic and Selenium in Food using a Microwave Digestion–Dry Ash Preparation and Flow Injection Hydride Generation Atomic Absorption Spectrometry

Abstract A flow injection hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry method was developed for determination of total arsenic and selenium content in food. The availability of arsenic and selenium for hydride generation was ensured by using a combination microwave digestion–dry ash preparation that destroyed the organic matrix including refractory organometallic compounds present in some foods. Hydroxylamine was used to enhance arsenic sensitivity by approximately 15%. The ratio of peak area to peak height was used to identify irregular peak profiles and potential interference. Method validation was performed with 21 foods and nine reference materials. Arsenic fortification recovery ranged from 96 to 105% in foods. Selenium fortification recovery ranged from 88 to 107% in foods. Inorganic species were used for fortification. Nine food-related reference materials were analyzed with satisfactory results. Estimated quantitation limits for a 1 g test portion were 0.01 mg/kg for arsenic and 0.02 mg/kg for selenium. Extensive quality control (QC) measures were included to support method performance.
Structure-activity relationship of purine ribonucleosides for inhibition of hepatitis C virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase

As part of a continued effort to identify inhibitors of hepatitis C viral (HCV) replication, we report here the synthesis and evaluation of a series of nucleoside analogues and their corresponding triphosphates. Nucleosides were evaluated for their ability to inhibit HCV RNA replication in a cell-based, subgenomic replicon system, while nucleoside triphosphates were evaluated for their ability to inhibit in vitro RNA synthesis mediated by the HCV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, NS5B. 2'-C-Methyladenosine and 2'-C-methylguanosine were identified as potent inhibitors of HCV RNA replication, and the corresponding triphosphates were found to be potent inhibitors of HCV NS5B-mediated RNA synthesis. The data generated in the cell-based assay demonstrated a fairly stringent structure-activity relationship around the active nucleosides. Increase in steric bulk beyond methyl on C2, change in the stereo- or regiochemistry of the methyl substituent, or change of identity of the heterobase beyond that of the endogenous adenine or guanine was found to lead to loss of inhibitory activity. The results highlight the importance of the ribo configuration 2'- and 3'-hydroxy pharmacophores for inhibition of HCV RNA replication in the cell-based assay and demonstrate that inclusion of the 2'-C-methylribonucleoside pharmacophore leads to increased resistance to adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase mediated metabolism.
Progesterone enhances glucocorticoid dissociation from the AtT-20 cell glucocorticoid receptor.

The dissociation rates of triamcinolone acetonide (9α-fluoro-11β, 16α, 17,21-tetrahydroxypregna-1,4-diene-3,20-dione-16,17-acetal with acetone), dexamethasone, and corticosterone from the AtT-20 cytosol receptor were measured after the addition of a 1000-fold excess of unlabeled homologous glucocorticoid. The simultaneous addition of unlabeled progesterone increased the rate of dissociation in a dose-dependent manner. The effect of progesterone was reversible. 17β-Estradiol, aldosterone, or additional amounts of glucocorticoids did not increase the dissociation rate. Steroids which were found to increase the dissociation rate were: R-5020 (dimethyl-19-norpregna- 4,9-diene-3,20-dione,17α,21-[17α-methyl]) > progesterone > desoxycorticosterone > medroxyprogesterone (17α-hydroxy-6α-methyl-Δ4-pregnen-3,20-dione) > cortexolone > testosterone > methyltestosterone (4-androsten-17α-methyl-17β-01-3- trione). Experiments were also performed using intact AtT-20 cells. Cells which had been incubated to equilibrium wit...