cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Discovery of putative oocyte quality markers by comparative ExacTag proteomics

Purpose: Identification of the biomarkers of oocyte quality, and developmental and reprogramming potential is of importance to assisted reproductive technology in humans and animals. Experimental design: PerkinElmer ExacTag™ Kit was used to label differentially proteins in pig oocyte extracts (oocyte proteome) and pig oocyte-conditioned in vitro maturation media (oocyte secretome) obtained with high- and low-quality oocytes. Results: We identified 16 major proteins in the oocyte proteome that were expressed differentially in high- versus low-quality oocytes. More abundant proteins in the high-quality oocyte proteome included kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (an adaptor for ubiquitin-ligase CUL3), nuclear export factor CRM1 and ataxia-telangiectasia mutated protein kinase. Dystrophin (DMD) was more abundant in low-quality oocytes. In the secretome, we identified 110 proteins, including DMD and cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, two proteins implicated in muscular dystrophy and cystic fibrosis, respectively. Monoubiquitin was identified in the low-quality-oocyte secretome. Conclusions and clinical implications: A direct, quantitative proteomic analysis of small oocyte protein samples can identify potential markers of oocyte quality without the need for a large amount of total protein. This approach will be applied to discovery of non-invasive biomarkers of oocyte quality in assisted human reproduction and in large animal embryo transfer programs.
Impacts of a Habitat-Forming Exotic Species on Estuarine Structure and Function: An Experimental Assessment of Eurasian Milfoil

It is widely believed that successful colonization of ecosystems by non-native species will have catastrophic consequences for the recipient system. Within the Mobile–Tensaw Delta, AL, exotic Eurasian milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) has been reported to trigger degradation of ecosystem structure and function. We evaluated the impacts of structurally complex milfoil on food web structure and predator-prey interactions via comparisons with two native grasses, structurally simple wild celery (Vallisneria americana) and the more complex water stargrass (Heteranthera dubia). While significant differences were not detected in the faunal compositions of milfoil and stargrass habitats, significant differences between milfoil and wild celery were found. Laboratory experiments showed that rainwater killifish, a key contributor to these differences, preferred milfoil over wild celery, but did not occupy milfoil more than stargrass. Subsequent experiments indicated that survivorship was drastically lower in wild celery. Though many of the documented impacts of Eurasian milfoil have been cast as detrimental, shelter-seeking organisms may perceive milfoil in the same way as other complex native species.
Community characteristics, individual and household attributes, and child survival in brazil

This paper presents an analysis of the relationship between community characteristics, household attributes, and child survival in Brazil. The principal objectives are to investigate how the social and environmental context in which a child is raised affects his or her survival chances, and to analyze how household variables modify the effects of community characteristics. The interaction effects we examine help to explain the effects of community characteristics on child survival chances by illuminating the most likely pathways through which these covariates operate. This information is also useful for predicting who is most likely to benefit from public policies to improve community infrastructure. education, and health care.
Vitamin and mineral content of value cuts from beef steers fed distiller's grains

Abstract Selected vitamin (vitamin E, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12) and mineral (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, sulfur, iron, copper, zinc, manganese, and sodium) concentrations were determined for the value cuts—flat iron steaks (musculus infraspinatus) and petite tenders (musculus teres major) from cross-bred steers fed finishing rations containing 0% or 40% DM wet distiller's grains plus solubles (WDGS) with and without added daily supplemental vitamin E. The feeding treatment groups were: 0% WDGS with basal vitamin E (n = 6), 0% WDGS with supplemental vitamin E (500 IU/steer top-dressed daily) (n = 7), 40% WDGS with basal vitamin E (n = 8), and 40% WDGS with supplemental vitamin E (n = 8). Few differences in micronutrient concentrations were observed in either cut by treatment groups. Feeding steers diets containing 40% WDGS decreased vitamin B12 and increased sodium concentrations in flat iron steaks and increased thiamin and decreased manganese concentrations in petite tenders. Significant differences in α-tocopherol concentrations in both cuts were observed by vitamin E grouping. Several significant differences were observed by cut. Uncooked flat iron steaks and petite tenders from these steers are rich sources of vitamin B12, zinc, and sometimes phosphorus, good sources of riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, and iron, and low in sodium.
Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Structural Damage Detection Using Changes in Natural Frequencies

A robust iterative algorithm is used to identify the locations and extent of damage in beams using only the changes in their first several natural frequencies. The algorithm, which combines a first-order, multiple-parameter perturbation method and the generalized inverse method, is tested extensively through experimental and numerical means on cantilever beams with different damage scenarios. If the damage is located at a position within 0-35% or 50-95% of the length of the beam from the cantilevered end, while the resulting system equations are severely underdetermined, the minimum norm solution from the generalized inverse method can lead to absolution that closely represents the desired solution at the end of iterations when the stiffness parameters of the undamaged structure are used as the initial stiffness parameters. If the damage is located at a position within 35-50% of the length of the beam from the cantilevered end, the resulting solution by using the stiffness parameters of the undamaged structure as the initial stiffness parameters deviates significantly from the desired solution. In this case, a new method is developed to enrich the measurement information by modifying the structure in a controlled manner and using the first several measured natural frequencies of the modified structure. A new method using singular value decomposition is also developed to handle the ill-conditioned system equations that occur in the experimental investigation by using the measured natural frequencies of the modified structure.
Comprehensive analytical figures of merit for fluorimetry of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons

Abstract The analytical figures of merit for fluorescence of sixty polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons are presented. The limits of detection for most of the compounds are below 50 ng ml-1 and the average relative standard deviation at 1 μg ml-1 for each compound is 1.4%. The fluorescence excitation and emission peak wavelengths are listed. These results confirm the excellent detection limits and precision offered by this technique for quantification of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons.
Parental care in burying beetles: the organization of male and female brood-care behavior.

Parental care in the burying beetle Nicrophorus orbicollis was studied by comparing the composition of male and female repertories and time budgets and by analyzing the pairwise transition frequencies of brood-care acts performed by each sex. Males and females performed the same brood-care acts, but the frequency and duration of several acts differed significantly between the sexes. Males spent more time guarding the brood chamber than did females and females regurgitated to larvae more frequently than did males. Transition frequencies between behavior acts were used to attempt to define roles to examine the organization of behavior. There were no important significant associations between acts suggesting that behavior is not organized into roles but remains flexible. The data support the hypothesis that brood provisioning and brood guarding both were important in the evolution of paternal care in this species.
The Hermeneutics of Hannity: Format Innovation in the Space of Opinion after September 11

This article explores changes in media and political culture in the US since 11 September 2001. Our specific focus is opinion media on cable television, in particular Fox News Channel’s Hannity & Colmes program. We argue that the events of September 11 provided an opportunity for conservative pundits to respond to some of the cultural limitations that had been associated with the cable talk format, creating a new cultural environment for mediated political debate in the US. These changes have pushed the cable talk shows even further away from the dominant practices of the journalistic field, turning them into clearly-delineated partisan interpretive communities, in which the crafting of political narratives is moving beyond the control of political party leaders.
Rule-Following, Rule-Governance and Rule-Accord: Reflections on Rules after Rawls

In this discussion, I describe my introduction to Rawls' famous paper on rules and situate this in a broader intellectual context. I then attempt to locate its significance within developments in linguistics (especially in speech-act analysis) and also in ethnomethodology. My main idea is that Rawls' concept of a 'constitutive rule' is in deep harmony with many of Wittgenstein's insights into the same thematic.
Facts, procedures, and visual models in Novices’ learning of coding skills

A Study with students enrolled at an urban technical college compared learning of HTML coding across three Web-based program versions. One group received examples providing factual information about the source code (Facts group). A second group was presented with a step-by-step description of the source code (Procedures group). The third group was shown a visual model, including a diagram and arrows denoting the source code and the associated outcome (Visual Model group). A comparison of coding activity revealed that the Visual Model group constructed more correct code, with fewer trials, in the same amount of time. The Visual Model group also more accurately debugged flawed code. The Procedures group coded more correctly than the Facts group but differences decreased as problem complexity increased.
A novel mechanism of filaggrin induction and sunburn prevention by β-damascenone in Skh-1 mice.

Understanding how oral administration of aroma terpenes can prevent sunburn or skin cancer in mice could lead to more effective and safer ways of blocking sun damage to human skin. To establish sunburn preventive activity, female Skh-1 mice were given oral β-damascenone followed by irradiation with UVR from fluorescent ‘sunlamps’. The following endpoints were evaluated versus controls at various times between 1 and 12 days after the terpene: whole genome gene expression and in situ immunohistochemistry of PCNA, keratin10, filaggrin and caspase 14, and sunburn was evaluated at 5 days. UVR-induced sunburn was prevented by a single oral β-damascenone dose as low as 20 μL (0.95 mg/g body weight). Microarray analysis showed sunburn prevention doses of β-damascenone up-regulated several types of cornification genes, including keratins 1 and 10, filaggrin, caspase 14, loricrin, hornerin and 6 late cornified envelope genes. Immunohistochemical studies of PCNA labeling showed that β-damascenone increased the proliferation rates of the following cell types: epidermal basal cells, follicular outer root sheath cells and sebaceous gland cells. Keratin 10 was not affected by β-damascenone in epidermis, and filaggrin and caspase 14 were increased in enlarged sebaceous glands. The thickness of the cornified envelope plus sebum layer nearly doubled withinmore » 1 day after administration of the β-damascenone and remained at or above double thickness for at least 12 days. β-Damascenone protected against sunburn by activating a sebaceous gland-based pathway that fortified and thickened the cornified envelope plus sebum layer in a way that previously has been observed to occur only in keratinocytes. -- Highlights: ► Orally administered β-damascenone prevented UVB-induced sunburn in Skh-1 mice. ► Filaggrin and caspase 14 genes were induced in sebaceous gland cells. ► Numerous cornification genes were up-regulated by β-damascenone. ► β-Damascenone stimulated cell division in epidermal and follicular keratinocytes. ► Results explained by induction of a novel sebaceous gland system of UVR protection.« less
Distributed synchronization and medium access in wireless mesh networks

Implicit local coordination of nodes in a wireless network using mechanisms such as Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) is conceptually attractive and relatively easy to implement, but often leads to performance that is far inferior to what is possible using explicit global coordination strategies such as Time Division Multiplexing (TDM). In this paper, we give two examples showing that appropriately designed implicit coordination strategies that employ learning and memory can provide performance competitive with that obtained using explicit strategies, while requiring minimal overhead. The first example is an algorithm for distributed timing synchronization maintenance using the timing information already present in ongoing communication in the network. The second example is a distributed medium access control protocol that achieves performance close to time division multiplexing (TDM) without requiring explicit resource allocation: nodes lock into communication patterns that have been found to work, with enough randomization to prevent locking into poor schedules. While the general philosophy of exploiting learning and memory in the design of network protocols is of broad applicability, our numerical results emphasize 60 GHz networks with highly directional links: effective coordination is particularly important for such networks, in view of the “deafness” caused by directionality.
Enhancing the detection of hidden occlusal caries lesions with OCT using high index liquids

In a previous study, we investigated the influence of several high refractive index fluids on the performance of polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT). That study showed that these liquids can increase the effective imaging depth and lesion contrast. Other in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that OCT can be used to show whether occlusal lesions have penetrated to the dentinal-enamel junction (DEJ) and spread laterally under the enamel. The purpose of this study was to determine if high index fluids can enhance the ability of OCT to detect hidden occlusal lesions and show if these lesions have penetrated through the enamel into the underlying dentin. Ten extracted teeth with occlusal lesions were imaged using OCT after the application of water, glycerol, BABB (33% Benzyl Alcohol + 67% Benzyl Benzoate) and a Cargille Liquid (Cedar Grove, NJ) (hydrogenated terphenyl 1- bromo-naphthalene) with a refractive index of 1.61. The intensity of the reflectance from the underlying lesion area for each sample was compared with the reflectance of the sound tooth surface for each fluid. The use of high index fluids significantly (P< 0.0001) increased the reflectivity of subsurface occlusal lesions under the surrounding sound enamel.
APPN connection networks

In this fourth article on managing APPN networks the concepts of Connection Networks are discussed. Connection Networks are not a new type of network with new networking protocols. Existing network types with the capabilities of any-to-any addressing are categorized as Connection Networks. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Computers and the Language Laboratory: Learning from History.

In the 1950s and 1960s, educators and researchers were extremely enthusiastic about the advent of the language learning laboratory. Many felt at the outset that students would finally, through the use of high-tech equipment, reach higher levels of proficiency in the foreign or second language in a shorter amount of time than students who did not use the available technology. This is not what researchers found. In retrospect, the problems with the research as well as with the existing software at the time are obvious. Materials were developed, published, and distributed without research into how best to use the technology. The result was a loss of credibility for foreign language education and for the use of technology in language learning in general. In Smith's studies on the Pennsylvania project in the 1960s, he concluded that the use of a language laboratory had no discernible effect on student achievement. In fact, on a variety of tests, students who did not use the laboratory performed better than students who did use it. We know that assessment of student performance in this study was based on the grammar-translation method. Since the students who used the lab were taught language via the audio-lingual method rather than the grammar-translation method, it is not surprising that they did not do well on the exams. This parallels, to a large extent, what is happening today in the area of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL). First, many studies focus on what students can do with the computer rather than what students actually do. Researchers such as Garrett (1991) have pointed out that the existence of state-of-the-art functionality that may allow students to search for lexical, cultural, or structural items does not necessarily lead to actual use of these features. Second, as with the early language laboratories, materials are again being developed without research into their pedagogical efficacy, and results are often disappointing. As a result, many educators do not see the value of using computers in teaching foreign languages. This paper will describe a variety of possible uses of computers going beyond traditional drill-and-practice programs.
Central Nervous System Involvement in Childhood Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

The records of 37 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) followed at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia between 1968 and 1978 were reviewed for evidence of central nervous system (CNS) involvement. Criteria for CNS involvement included evidence of organic brain syndrome, electroencephalographic abnormalities with symptoms referable to CNS, or objective neurologic signs. Sixteen of 37 children had CNS involvement (43%). Thirteen patients had CNS involvement at the onset of SLE. Three patients had late onset CNS manifestations 1 to 2 years after the diagnosis of SLE. The most frequently observed symptoms were headache, behavior disorder, lethargy, diplopia, blurred vision, memory alteration, dizziness, and alteration of consciousness. The most frequently observed neurologic signs were seizures, cranial nerve palsy, ataxia, papilledema, nystagmus, meningitis, tremor, rigidity, cortical blindness, and coma. Neuropsychiatric manifestations included organic brain syndrome, functional psychosis, and personality disorder. Laboratory tests showed elevated cerebrospinal fluid opening pressure and protein, negative cultures, and abnormal electroencephalograms and computerized axial tomography scans. Fourteen of 16 children with CNS manifestations are alive. Thirteen had a mean IQ of 89 by the Wechsler Intelligence Tests. Twelve are in educational programs. One required long-term psychiatric care. A residual neurologic abnormality, a seizure disorder, was present in 3. CNS involvement with SLE in children carries a favorable prognosis.
Biological cell detachment from poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) and its applications

Over the past two decades, poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) (pNIPAM) has become widely used for bioengineering applications. In particular, pNIPAM substrates have been used for the nondestructive release of biological cells and proteins. In this feature article, we review the applications for which pNIPAM substrates have been used to release biological cells, including for the study of the extracellular matrix (ECM), for cell sheet engineering and tissue transplantation, the formation of tumorlike spheroids, the study of bioadhesion and bioadsorption, and the manipulation or deformation of individual cells. The articles reviewed include submissions from our own group as well as from those performing research in the field worldwide.
Use of experimental materials to assess toxicological tests for rating polymeric materials under thermal stress

In order to evaluate the performance of the indices of toxicity which have been developed, thermal decomposition products of three polymers, polyvinylchloride, polychloroprene, and polycarbonate were tested for sensory irritation, physiological stress induction, and acute lethality. Each polymer has been contrasted with the same polymer containing 5% zinc ferrocyanide. The most irritating and the most stressful pyrolysis products were those from polyvinylchloride. The least irritation and stress were associated with polycarbonate decomposition products. The acute lethality for polychloroprene was higher than that of the other two polymers by a factor of 4. The addition of zinc ferrocyanide had a variable effect, depending on the polymer and the index of toxicity being evaluated. Sensory irritation was lessened by the presence of zinc ferrocyanide in polycarbonate. The sample weight required to cause death of 50% of the animals was reduced for the two hydrogen chloride-generating polymers, polyvinylchloride and polychloroprene. However, the acute lethality of polycarbonate did not change with addition of zinc ferrocyanide. By itself, zinc ferrocyanide decomposed very slowly during heating, caused almost no irritation or stress, and no deaths.
Separation and quantitation of the amino acid neurotransmitters in rat brain by capillary electrophoresis

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) has been used to separate the CBI derivatives of the neurotransmitters gamma-aminobutyric acid, glycine, glutamate, aspartate, norepinephrine and dopamine from 18 other amino acids present in the rat brain. The procedure, which requires an injection volume of < 10 nl, gave detection limits of 24-40 fmol using UV detection at 420 nm. Efficiencies for the derivatized amino acids varied from 344,000 to 444,000 theoretical plates. The method was applied successfully to the quantitation of the amino acid neurotransmitters and several other amino acids in a rat brain homogenate.
Inhibiting the TE 1 -mode diffraction losses in parallel-plate waveguides via slightly concave plates

We investigate how to inhibit the diffraction losses inherent to the TE 1 mode of the parallel-plate waveguides via slightly concave plates. This would lead to the realization of an ultra-low-loss THz waveguide as predicted previously.
Improving search efficiency using possible subgoals

A primary function of most advanced traveler information systems involves the ability to plan optimal routes. Although the route planning ability of ATI systems can be facilitated using centralized computing resources, most ATI systems currently under development use in-vehicle computational resources. The primary advantage of this type of approach is fault tolerance; vehicles can continue to plan routes even in the absence of a centralized computing center. However, there are significant challenges associated with planning routes using in-vehicle electronics. These challenges result from trying to keep the cost of the in-vehicle electronics to a reasonable level. Thus, the route planning algorithm must be both space and time efficient to compensate for the limited amount of memory and computational resources available. This paper describes a new heuristic search algorithm that can be used for in-vehicle route planning. Certain types of heuristic search problems may contain an identifiable subgoal. This subgoal can be used to break a search into two parts, thus reducing search complexity. However, it is often the case that instead of one subgoal, there will be many possible subgoals, not all of which lie on an optimal path to the eventual goal. For this case, the search cannot be simply broken into two parts. However, the possibility of reducing the search complexity still exists. Previously, Chakrabarti et al. [1] developed a search algorithm called Algorithm I which exploits islands to improve search efficiency. An island, as defined by Chakrabarti et al. [1], is a possible subgoal. Previously, this algorithm had only been analyzed theoretically. In this paper, some experimental results comparing Algorithm I to A^* are presented. Algorithm I has also been generalized to cases where more than one possible subgoal can appear on an optimal path. Two new heuristic island search algorithms have been created from this generalization and are shown to provide even further improvement over Algorithms I and A ^*. The use of possible subgoals can make any type of search more efficient, not just A ^*. Modifications are discussed which describe how to incorporate possible subgoal knowledge into IDA ^* search.
Witness and Unity in 21st-Century World Christianity

Christianity has recently undergone historic demographic and cultural shifts: it has expanded significantly in the global south while declining in the west. In an age of World Christianity, these c...
Instructional strategies that leverage mobile, handheld computers

Mobile, handheld computing provides teachers and students with unprecedented, new opportunities for teaching and learning. To use these devices effectively, however, teachers need to employ instructional strategies that leverage the affordances of the devices. In turn, these affordances make it easy to employ pedagogically valuable instructional strategies. In this article, we describe seven instructional strategies that meet the desired criteria. We describe their theoretical rationales as well as provide concrete examples of their use in real classrooms.
Disambiguating the “guilty look”: Salient prompts to a familiar dog behaviour

Anthropomorphisms are regularly used by owners in describing their dogs. Of interest is whether attributions of understanding and emotions to dogs are sound, or are unwarranted applications of human psychological terms to non-humans. One attribution commonly made to dogs is that the "guilty look" shows that dogs feel guilt at doing a disallowed action. In the current study, this anthropomorphism is empirically tested. The behaviours of 14 domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) were videotaped over a series of trials and analyzed for elements that correspond to an owner-identified "guilty look." Trials varied the opportunity for dogs to disobey an owner's command not to eat a desirable treat while the owner was out of the room, and varied the owners' knowledge of what their dogs did in their absence. The results revealed no difference in behaviours associated with the guilty look. By contrast, more such behaviours were seen in trials when owners scolded their dogs. The effect of scolding was more pronounced when the dogs were obedient, not disobedient. These results indicate that a better description of the so-called guilty look is that it is a response to owner cues, rather than that it shows an appreciation of a misdeed.
Phthalate ester-induced gubernacular lesions are associated with reduced insl3 gene expression in the fetal rat testis

Targeted inactivation of the insulin-like hormone 3 (insl3) gene in male mice results in altered gubernacular development, disrupted testis decent, and cryptorchidism. Cryptorchidism is a fairly common human malformation, being displayed in about three males per 100 at birth, but only a small percentage can be linked directly to genetic defects. The phthalate esters (PEs) are high production volume, ubiquitous environmental chemicals, some of which when administered during sexual differentiation, induce male rat reproductive tract malformations including gubernacular agenesis. We hypothesized that phthalate-induced gubernacular lesions likely result from an inhibition of insl3 gene expression. Three phthalates, di-n-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) were administered orally to the dam on gestation day 14 through 18 (GD14-18) and the fetal testes examined on GD18 for effects on steroid hormone production and insl3 gene expression. Compared to chemicals like vinclozolin, linuron, and prochloraz that act as AR antagonists and/or inhibit fetal Leydig cell testosterone production, only the three phthalates significantly reduced both ex vivo testosterone production and insl3 gene expression when quantified by real-time rtPCR. These results provide the first demonstration of PE-induced alteration of insl3 mRNA in the fetal male rat testis.
On the instability of geostrophic vortices

The instabilities of barotropic and baroclinic, quasi-geostrophic, f-plane, circular vortices are found using a linearized contour dynamics model. We model the vortex using a circular region of horizontally uniform potential vorticity surrounded by an annulus of uniform, but different, potential vorticity. We concentrate mostly upon isolated vortices with no circulation in the basic state outside the outer radius b. In addition to linear analyses, we also consider weakly nonlinear waves. The amplitude equation has a cubic nonlinearity and, depending upon the sign of the coefficient of the cubic term, may give nonlinear stabilization or nonlinear enhancement of the growth. Barotropic isolated eddies are unstable when the outer annulus is narrow enough; on the other hand, if the scale of the whole vortex is sufficiently small compared to the radius of deformation of a baroclinic mode, the break up may be preferentially to a depth-varying disturbance corresponding to a twisting and tilting of the vortex. As the vortex becomes more baroclinic, we find that large-scale vortices show an elliptical mode baroclinic instability as well which is relatively insensitive to the scale of the outer annulus. When the baroclinic currents in the basic state dominate, the twisting mode disappears, and we see only the instabilities associated with either strong enough shear in the annular region or sufficiently large vortices compared with the deformation radius. The finite amplitude results show that the baroclinic instability mode for large enough vortices is nonlinearly stabilized while in most cases, the other two kinds of instability are nonlinearly destabilized.
Managing brand equity: a look at the impact of attributes

Brand equity continues to be one of the critical areas for marketing management. This study explores some of the consequences attributes may have on brand equity such as the bias on consumer preference. For comparative purposes, a longitudinal study is conducted on the high involvement soft drink category using the top nine national soft drinks brands. In addition to brand equity and the top attributes being measured, overall preferences and the impact of other variables were included. Attributes are examined from a tangible and intangible perspective and both are found to be important contributors to brand equity and brand choice.
Treatment with the smallpox antiviral tecovirimat (ST-246) alone or in combination with ACAM2000 vaccination is effective as a postsymptomatic therapy for monkeypox virus infection.

ABSTRACT The therapeutic efficacies of smallpox vaccine ACAM2000 and antiviral tecovirimat given alone or in combination starting on day 3 postinfection were compared in a cynomolgus macaque model of lethal monkeypox virus infection. Postexposure administration of ACAM2000 alone did not provide any protection against severe monkeypox disease or mortality. In contrast, postexposure treatment with tecovirimat alone or in combination with ACAM2000 provided full protection. Additionally, tecovirimat treatment delayed until day 4, 5, or 6 postinfection was 83% (days 4 and 5) or 50% (day 6) effective.
Transport of narcotic analgesics by choroid plexus and kidney tissue in vitro.

Abstract Radioactive narcotic analgesics, including morphine, dihydromorphine, nalorphine, codeine, levorphan, dextrorphan, and l -methorphan were accumulated against an apparent concentration gradient in pieces of rabbit and dog choroid plexus and in slices of dog renal cortex by a metabolically dependent mechanism. The uptake of dihydromorphine by these tissues in vitro was a saturable process depressed by low temperatures, a nitrogen atmosphere, and certain metabolic inhibitors. It also was competitively inhibited by nalorphine and by any one of several organic bases which previously have been demonstrated to be actively transported by these tissues. Under certain conditions, stimulation of dihydromorphine uptake by choroid plexus was produced by organic bases. The transport in choroid plexus of one of these organic bases, hexamethonium, was competitively inhibited by dihydromorphine. Studies with levorphan and dextrophan indicated an element of stereospecificity in their accumulation by choroid plexus. Thus it is concluded that the narcotic analgesics share the same active transport mechanisms described for a variety of organic bases that are accumulated in choroid plexus and renal tissue in vitro . Suggestions are made relative to the significance of these observations for the intact animal.
The Planning Implications of Disparate Rural Population Growth Trends

Demographers documented a net in-migration trend in many rural areas across the country in the 1970s that seemed to present hope for a "rural renaissance." Since 1982, demographers have reported a nationwide end to the rural in-migration, but using only county and higher population groupings. Based on 1970-1980 data for Illinois, this hides the fact that a rural county may continue to include both growth and decline despite overall stagnation or even decline for the total county. Data presented for 1,199 non-SMSA townships in Illinois shows that significant population growth occurred in remote rural townships containing environmental amenities and access to major roads. This occurred even as other townships in the same counties showed no growth or even continued out-migration and suggests that quality of life factors in combination with access to good roads are very important in rural growth as opposed to traditional economic explanations. It also suggests complex planning problems for rural community dev...
Rather never than late: celibacy and age at marriage in English cohort fertility, 1541-1871.

Most explanations of fertility change in preindustrial England emphasize changes in age at marriage. This paper shows that even after correcting for possible exaggerations in estimated celibacy rates it was celibacy and not age at marriage that accounted for most of the fertility variations before 1750. New research and new models of marriage behavior are needed. It may be necessary to abandon homeostasis to arrive at an adequate explanation of English fertility history. (authors)
Neighborhood structure and foster care entry risk: The role of spatial scale in defining neighborhoods

Abstract The renewed popularity of neighborhood-based child welfare services has been built on studies showing that certain neighborhood demographic characteristics are linked to child maltreatment. In response to this data, public child welfare system reform efforts seek to target services to neighborhoods at high risk for child welfare involvement. This study examines whether or not those neighborhood attributes are related to the risk of entering foster care. These relationships are examined at three spatial scales to establish whether the associations change depending on neighborhood operationalization. Foster care entries between 2000 and 2003 ( n = 3311) from a largely urban California county are geocoded to each of the three scales ( N = 46 zip codes, 320 Census tracts and 983 Census block groups). Fourteen demographic Census indicators are reduced to four meaningful constructs. Residential instability , impoverishment and childcare burden are positively associated with high foster care entry rates no matter how neighborhoods are delineated.
Perceived barriers to mammography among underserved women in a Breast Health Center Outreach Program.

Abstract Background To investigate perceived barriers to mammography among underserved women, we asked participants in the Siteman Cancer Center Mammography Outreach Registry–developed in 2006 to evaluate mobile mammography's effectiveness among the underserved–why they believed women did not get mammograms. Methods The responses of approximately 9,000 registrants were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression. We report adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) significant at 2-tailed P values less than .05. Results Fears of cost (40%), mammogram-related pain (13%), and bad news (13%) were the most commonly reported barriers. Having insurance was associated with not perceiving cost as a barrier (OR .44, 95% CI .40 to .49), but with perceiving fear of both mammogram-related pain (OR 1.39, 95% CI 1.21 to 1.60) and receiving bad news (OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.60) as barriers. Conclusion Despite free services, underserved women continue to report experiential and psychological obstacles to mammography, suggesting the need for more targeted education and outreach in this population.
Angiodysplasia: new look at an old conundrum.

Angiodysplasia is a unifying concept and designation for all developmental vascular anomalies currently known in the medical literature as angiomatosis, arteriovenous malformation, congenital arteriovenous fistula, congenital hemangioma or lymphangiomatosis, telangiectasia, vascular hamartoma, and all those clinical disorders identified by eponyms, such as Klippel-Tranaunay syndrome and Rendu-Osler-Weber syndrome. A new classification is proposed to catalog the histomorphologic spectrum of angiodysplasia likely to be found in each individual case with the caveat that virtually all angiodysplastic lesions will have mixed histomorphology although one type may predominate. Examples of the most commonly encountered angiodysplastic lesions are described and illustrated in this review.
Low-cost nonplanar microstrip-line ferrite phase shifter utilizing circular polarization

Microwave ferrite phase shifters are primarily used in phased-array antenna systems to electronically steer the antenna beam. Lee and Strahan (1993) at Hughes Aircraft Company (now Raytheon) proposed a low-cost alternative solution to the current ferrite phase shifter designs, namely, a planar ferrite phase shifter based on printed-circuit technology that could theoretically produce circularly polarized waves in the ferrite region. The University of Hawaii (2003) modelled Raytheon's patented ferrite phase shifter using Ansoft's High Frequency Structure Simulator (HFSS) software, now capable of simulating the effect of an applied magnetic bias on a B-H nonlinear (ferrite) material. It was found that the horizontal electric-field component was much weaker than the vertical component, resulting in elliptical polarization rather than circular polarization. In an effort to transform the elliptically polarized wave into a circularly polarized wave, the geometry of the Raytheon phase shifter was modified to produce the nonplanar ferrite phase shifter proposed in this paper.
Case study: application of feature tracking to analysis of autoignition simulation data

The focus of this paper is to evaluate the usefulness of some basic feature tracking algorithms as analysis tools for combustion datasets by application to a dataset modeling autoignition. Features defined as areas of high intermediate concentrations were examined to explore the initial phases in the autoignition process.
Validity of Otoliths and Pectoral Spines for Estimating Ages of Channel Catfish

Abstract Basal recess and articulating process sections of pectoral spines are often used to estimate the age of channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus. However, identification of annuli in pectoral spine sections can be difficult. We developed and validated a method for estimating the age of channel catfish by using sagittal otoliths. We also validated a new method using pectoral spines in which a single cut is made through the dorsal and anterior processes (hereafter termed cut spines) and annuli are enhanced with side illumination. Age estimates from otoliths and cut spines were compared with age estimates from traditional articulating process sections of pectoral spines for channel catfish of known ages (1–4). Age estimates by the three methods were correct for more than 90% of fish after two experienced readers independently estimated ages and resolved disagreements by mutual examination. Otoliths were more accurate and less variable in estimating age. Otolith age estimates were always within 1 year and...
Communication Challenges in the Hospital Setting: A Comparative Case Study of Hospitalists’ and Patients’ Perceptions

Hospitals have encountered significant changes since implementing the hospitalist model. The changes have been most prevalent in the communication between patients, primary care physicians, special...
Fourth-Grade Teachers' Perceptions of Giftedness: Implications for Identifying and Serving Diverse Gifted Students.

The present study sought to examine the perceptions of giftedness and identification procedures held by experienced teachers of gifted minority students. Twenty-seven 4th-grade teachers of gifted students in an urban school system with a high representation of minority and economically disadvantaged students were surveyed. Results indicated that experienced teachers still held a narrow conception of giftedness and were not aware of how culture and environmental factors may influence the expression of giftedness in minority and economically disadvantaged students. Findings also indicated that these teachers expressed concerns for approximately one third of their students qualifying for the gifted program. These concerns were based primarily on students having a skill deficit in one area, poor work habits, or behavioral or family problems. Teachers were less likely to notice gifted characteristics in these students compared to other identified students, even though both groups were identified in the same wa...
Functional analysis of the PUT3 transcriptional activator of the proline utilization pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Proline can serve as a nitrogen source for the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae when preferred sources of nitrogen are absent from the growth medium. PUT3, the activator of the proline utilization pathway, is required for the transcription of the genes encoding the enzymes that convert proline to glutamate. PUT3 is a 979 amino acid protein that constitutively binds a short DNA sequence in the promoters of its target genes, but does not activate their expression in the absence of induction by proline and in the presence of preferred sources of nitrogen. To understand how PUT3 is converted from an inactive to an active state, a dissection of its functional domains has been undertaken. Biochemical and molecular tests, domain swapping experiments, and an analysis of activator-constitutive and activator-defective mutant proteins indicate that PUT3 is dimeric and activates transcription with its negatively charged carboxyterminus, which does not appear to contain a proline-responsive domain. A mutation in the conserved central domain found in many fungal activators interferes with activation without affecting DNA binding or protein stability. Intragenic suppressors of the central domain mutation have been isolated and analyzed.
Proteomic analysis of oxidatively modified proteins induced by the mitochondrial toxin 3-nitropropionic acid in human astrocytes expressing the HIV protein tat.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-Tat protein has been implicated in the neuropathogenesis of HIV infection. However, its role in modulating astroglial function is poorly understood. Astrocyte infection with HIV has been associated with rapid progression of dementia. Intracellularly expressed Tat is not toxic to astrocytes. In fact, intracellularly expressed Tat offers protection against oxidative stress-related toxins such as the mitochondrial toxin 3-nitroproprionic acid (3-NP). In the current study, human astrocytes expressing Tat (SVGA-Tat) and vector controls (SVGA-pcDNA) were each treated with the irreversible mitochondrial complex II inhibitor 3-NP. Proteomics analysis was utilized to identify changes in protein expression levels. By coupling 2D fingerprinting and identification of proteins by mass spectrometry, actin, heat shock protein 90, and mitochondrial single-stranded DNA binding protein were identified as proteins with increased expression, while lactate dehydrogenase had decreased protein expression levels in SVGA-Tat cells treated with 3-NP compared to SVGA-pcDNA cells treated with 3-NP. Oxidative damage can lead to several events including loss in specific protein function, abnormal protein clearance, depletion of the cellular redox-balance and interference with the cell cycle, ultimately leading to neuronal death. Identification of specific proteins protected from oxidation is a crucial step in understanding the interaction of Tat with astrocytes. In the current study, proteomics also was used to identify proteins that were specifically oxidized in SVGA-pcDNA cells treated with 3-NP compared to SVGA-Tat cells treated with 3-NP. We found β-actin, calreticulin precursor protein, and synovial sarcoma X breakpoint 5 isoform A to have increased oxidation in control SVGA-pcDNA cells treated with 3-NP compared to SVGA-Tat cells treated with 3-NP. These results are discussed with reference to potential involvement of these proteins in HIV dementia and protection of astrocytes against oxidative stress by the HIV virus, a prerequisite for survival of a viral host cell.
Illusory Correlation and Group Impression Formation in Young and Older Adults

This study investigated whether a greater illusory correlation bias is present in older adults' memory and evaluative judgment for majority and minority social groups and, if so, whether this bias might be due to an age-related decline in the ability to engage in on-line processing of group-trait information. Young and older adults read desirable and undesirable trait adjectives about the members of 2 groups under either no-distraction or distraction conditions. Group A had twice as many members as Group B and, for both groups, desirable traits occurred twice as often as undesirable traits. Afterwards, participants completed group-trait memory and evaluative judgment tasks. Greater illusory correlation in memory and evaluative judgment after distraction suggested that diverting resources to competing tasks produced deficits in both memory for specific group-trait information and on-line group impression formation. Older adults' memory for specific group-trait information was disrupted more by distraction than was young adults' memory. However, there were no age differences in evaluative judgment after either distraction condition, suggesting that on-line impression formation activities remain intact in old age. These findings are interpreted within the framework of fuzzy trace theory.