cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the roles of reactive species, heat, and UV radiation in the inactivation of bacterial cells by air plasmas at atmospheric pressure

Abstract Recently, non-equilibrium, atmospheric pressure air plasmas have been shown to possess excellent germicidal properties. A number of studies have shown that air plasmas are capable of inactivating a wide range of microorganisms in the matter of few seconds to few minutes. However, until now little information regarding quantitative measurements of the various plasma agents that can potentially participate in the inactivation process has been published. In this paper, emission spectroscopy and gas detection are used to evaluate important plasma inactivation factors such as UV radiation and reactive species. Our measurements show that for non-equilibrium, atmospheric pressure air plasmas, it is the oxygen-based and nitrogen-based reactive species that play the most important role in the inactivation process.
Ratings of Journals for the Dissemination of Pharmacy-Related Social and Administrative Science

Abstract Background It has been over a decade since a journal quality rating study has been conducted in the social and administrative sciences (SAdS). This study sought to reevaluate perceptions of journal quality. Objectives To develop a list of journals that are suitable publication venues for SAdS scholars and compare the quality of these journals as rated by school of pharmacy deans, SAdS department/division chairs, and SAdS faculty. Methods A list of journals was assembled and presented to a Delphi panel of 15 SAdS scholars. Using a modified Delphi technique, the panel refined the list by judging the suitability of each journal as a publication venue for scholars. This list was used in a survey administered via the Internet. Journal quality was rated on a 7-point Likert-type scale with the option of indicating unfamiliarity with each journal. Differences in quality ratings between faculty, chairs, and deans were explored. Adjusted rating scores were calculated based on familiarity with journals. Ratings from the current study were compared to previous studies. Results One hundred and twelve journals emerged from the modified Delphi technique. Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance found no significant difference in perceived journal quality across all journals evaluated by the 3 groups (KW=3.91). Groups did differ in their familiarity (KW=11.71, P Conclusions Results of this study have implications for scholars choosing publication venues and those who make decisions contingent on scholars' publication records. These differences may represent a positive or negative bias that affects hiring as well as tenure and promotion decisions. This study provides guidance for decisions reliant on publication records, but should not be used exclusively as such an indicator.
Detection of focal hypoxic-ischemic injury and neuronal stress in a rodent model of unilateral MCA occlusion/reperfusion using radiolabeled annexin V.

In this study we wished to determine whether technetium-99m annexin V, an in vivo marker of cellular injury and death, could be used to noninvasively monitor neuronal injury following focal middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion/reperfusion injury. Sixteen adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (along with four controls) underwent left (unilateral) MCA intraluminal beaded thread occlusion for 2 h followed by reperfusion. One hour following tail vein injection of 5–10 mCi of 99mTc-annexin V, animals underwent either single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) or autoradiography followed by immunohistochemical analyses. There was abnormal, bilateral, multifocal uptake of 99mTc-annexin V in each cerebral hemisphere as seen by both SPECT and autoradiography at 4 h and 1, 3, and 7 days after initiation of occlusion. The average maximal annexin V uptake at 4 h was 310%±85% and 365%±151% above control values (P<0.006) within the right and left hemispheres, respectively, peaking on day 3 with values of 925%±734% and 1,194%±643% (P<0.03) that decreased by day 7 to 489%±233% and 785%±225% (P<0.01). Total lesional volume of the left hemisphere was 226%, 261%, and 451% (P<0.03) larger than the right at 4, 24, and 72 h after injury, respectively. Annexin V localized to the cytoplasm of injured neurons ipsilateral to the site of injury as well as to otherwise normal-appearing neurons of the contralateral hemisphere as confirmed by dual fluorescent microscopy. It is concluded that there is abnormal bilateral, multifocal annexin V uptake, greater on the left than on the right side, within 4 h of unilateral left MCA ischemic injury and that the uptake peaks at 3 days and decreases by 7 days after injury. This pattern suggests that neuronal stress may play a role in the response of the brain to focal injury and be responsible for annexin V uptake outside the region of ischemic insult.
The plasma bradykinin-forming pathways and its interrelationships with complement

Abstract The plasma bradykinin-forming cascade and the complement pathways share many elements, including cross-activation, common control mechanisms, and shared binding proteins. The C1 inhibitor (C1 INH) is not only the inhibitor of activated C1r and C1s, but it is the key control protein of the plasma bradykinin-forming cascade. It inhibits the autoactivation of Factor XII, the ability of Factor XIIa to activate prekallikrein and Factor XI, the activation of high molecular weight kininogen (HK) by kallikrein, and the feedback activation of Factor XII by kallikrein. Thus in the absence of C1 INH (hereditary angioedema or acquired C1 INH deficiency) there is unimpeded formation of bradykinin leading to angioedema. Activated Factor XII (Factor XIIa, 80,000 kDa) is further cleaved by kallikrein or plasmin to yield Factor XII fragment (Factor XIIf, 30,000 kDa) and Factor XIIf can activate the C1r subcomponent of C1, particularly when C1 INH (which inhibits Factor XIIf) is absent. Once bradykinin is formed, it causes vasodilatation and increased vascular permeability by interaction with constitutively expressed B-2 receptors. However degradation of bradykinin by carboxypeptidase N (in plasma) or carboxypeptidase M (on endothelial cells) yields des-arg-9 ( Kerbiriou and Griffin, 1979 ) bradykinin which interacts with B-1 receptors. B-1 receptors are induced in inflammatory states by cytokines such as Interleukin 1 and its interaction with bradykinin may prolong or perpetuate the vascular response until bradykinin is completely inactivated by angiotensin converting enzyme or aminopeptidase P, or neutral endopeptidase. The entire bradykinin-forming cascade is assembled and can be activated along the surface of endothelial cells in zinc dependent reactions involving gC1qR, cytokeratin 1, and the urokinase plasminogen activated receptor (u-PAR). Although Factors XII and HK can be shown to bind to each one of these proteins, they exist in endothelial cells as two bimolecular complexes; gC1qR-cytokeratin 1, which preferentially binds HK, and cytokeratin 1–u-PAR which preferentially binds Factor XII. The gC1qR, which binds the globular heads of C1q is present in excess and can bind either Factor XII or HK however the binding sites for HK and C1q have been shown to reside at opposite ends of gC1qR. Activation of the bradykinin-forming pathway can be initiated at the cell surface by gC1qR-induced autoactivation of Factor XII or direct activation of the prekallikrein–HK complex by endothelial cell-derived heat-shock protein 90 (HSP 90) or prolylcarboxypeptidase with recruitment or Factor XII by the kallikrein produced.
Calcium action on fatty acid and phospholipid monolayers and its relation to the cell membrane

Abstract Calcium ions interact with stearic and palmitic acid monolayers producing a solid-condensed film which is rigid, has no measurable surface viscosity, and has a high solid-to-liquid transition temperature measured by the talc test. This effect can be explained by charge destruction, formation of di-soap molecules, or formation of a copolymeric soap lattice. Surface viscosity experiments indicate that charge destruction has a measurable but minor effect on film properties. Di-soap analogs have increased surface viscosities. However, these analogs form plastic films with moderate transition temperatures. The data suggest that the unusual properties of calcium stearate and palmitate films are most readily explained by a copolymeric lattice structure. Calcium has no effect on the surface viscosity of cis -and trans -monoethenoic acid and phospholipid monolayers. Saturated fatty acid soaps thus have unique surface properties which depend on their packing mode and crosssectional area and limit their value as model systems for calcium interactions with the cell membrane.
Brief report: Construct validity of two identity status measures: the EIPQ and the EOM-EIS-II

The present study was designed to examine construct validity of two identity status measures, the Ego Identity Process Questionnaire (EIPQ; J. Adolescence 18 (1995) 179) and the Extended Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status II (EOM-EIS-II; J. Adolescent Res. 1 (1986) 183). Construct validity was operationalized in terms of how identity status classifications generated by the EIPQ and EOM-EIS related to a measure of psychological agency, the Multi-Measure Agentic Personality Scale (MAPS; J. Adolescence 20 (1997) 421). Results indicated that, for the most part, the agentic personality scales differentiated the EIPQ diffused and moratorium statuses from the foreclosed and achieved statuses, whereas the agentic personality scales differentiated the EOM-EIS-II achieved status from the other three statuses. The EIPQ is recommended as the preferred instrument for making contrasts between or among identity statuses, whereas the EOM-EIS-II is recommended when the objective is to consider continuous measures of the identity statuses.
Gastrointestinal manifestations in pediatric AIDS.

The pathologic changes in the gastrointestinal tract of children with AIDS are variable, clinically significant, and reflect multisystemic disease processes. Inflammation, changes in the lymphoid tissue, miscellaneous lesions, and tumors are documented in 58 patients in addition to cases reported in the literature. Cytomegalovirus infection of the gastrointestinal tract, associated with ulcerations, hemorrhage, perforation, and intestinal obstruction, carries a high morbidity and mortality, whereas the remaining infections are not life threatening. Special stains and electron micrographic examination are important to identify correctly certain microorganisms such as mycobacterium avium intracellulare, cryptosporidia, and microsporidia. Lymphoproliferative changes of the gastrointestinal tract, a component of the generalized lymphoproliferative process, need to be characterized by tumor markers and cytogenetic studies. Within the miscellaneous lesions, AIDS associated arteriopathy can be complicated by int...
A model for diffusion along a moving grain boundary

Abstract A model of grain boundary (GB) diffusion along an isolated moving GB is proposed based on the Fisher model. The GB is assumed to move with a constant velocity v . Analytical solutions of the model are obtained, and methods of GB diffusion parameters determination in different experimental conditions are discussed. Application of conventional methods, like the 6 5 - method , to moving GBs results in essentially (by a factor of about 1 2 vt( Dt ) − 1 2 underestimated values of the product D ′ δ . For more correct estimation of D ′ δ , the proposed exponential solution should be used in such cases. A detailed classification of kinetic regimes in a bicrystal, containing stationary and moving GBs, is introduced. A kinetic diagram, useful in designing GB diffusion experiments, is proposed.
Diabetic CKD/ESRD 2010: A Progress Report?

Both in the United States and many regions of the world, chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in patients with diabetes mellitus have reached epidemic proportions in recent years. The large prevalent diabetic ESRD population in the US involves remarkable risk in African Americans and an increasing population of elderly diabetic patients, including many octogenarians. In the US and globally, over 90% of diabetic ESRD patients have type 2 diabetes. The multinational epidemic of diabetic ESRD has been linked to increases in the prevalence of diabetes in many populations, related to obesity, ageing, and physical inactivity. It is anticipated that the worldwide prevalence of diabetes over the next 20 years will reach a level twice that of the year 2000. The excessive morbidity and mortality of the diabetic ESRD population are well documented. However, the growth in incidence and prevalence rates for diabetic ESRD has remained somewhat stable in the US in recent years, and new data suggest that the incidence of ESRD expressed per diabetic population may finally be declining, suggesting that proven therapies are making "progress on progression."
A Multi-port Low-Fluence Alpha-Particle Irradiator: Fabrication, Testing and Benchmark Radiobiological Studies

Abstract Neti, P. V. S. V., de Toledo, S. M., Perumal, V., Azzam, E. I. and Howell, R. W. A Multi-port Low-Fluence Alpha-Particle Irradiator: Fabrication, Testing and Benchmark Radiobiological Studies. Radiat. Res. 161, 732–738 (2004). A new multi-port irradiator, designed to facilitate the study of the effects of low fluences of α particles on monolayer cultures, has been developed. The irradiator consists of four individual planar 241Am α-particle sources that are housed inside a helium-filled Lucite chamber. Three of the radioactive sources consist of 20 MBq of 241Am dioxide foil. The fourth source, used to produce higher dose rates, has an activity of 500 MBq. The four sources are mounted on rotating turntables parallel to their respective 1.5-μm-thick Mylar exit windows. A stainless steel honeycomb collimator is placed between the four sources and their exit windows by a cantilever attachment to the platform of an orbital shaker that moves its table in an orbit of 2 cm. Each exit window is equipped w...
Impaired expression of hematopoietic growth factors: A candidate mechanism for the hematopoietic defect of aging

Abstract Aged humans and aged experimental animals exhibit a diminished ability to upregulate hematopoiesis, but the mechanism responsible for this is unknown. The purpose of the studies was to test the hypothesis that this disregulation might be attributable to altered expression of hematopoietic growth factors. We studied the in vitro ability of cells from aged humans or mice to release bioactive colony stimulating activity (CSA) and to accumulate mRNA for defined growth factors. Human light density leukocytes from the aged released less CSA than cells from the young. GM-CSF accounted for 72–100% of the CSA released by young humans, as judged by antibody inhibition studies. In contrast, GM-CSF accounted for 0–42% of CSA from aged humans. The observation of diminished expression of GM-CSF by cells from aged humans was further accompanied by a reduced accumulation of mRNA for GM-CSF. In other in vitro studies, splenic cells from aged mice released less CSA than cells from young mice, and in vivo experiments showed that splenic cells from mice challenged with E. coli accumulated less mRNA for M-CSF than young mice. These data demonstrate a similar defect in the expression of hematopoietic growth factors in aged man and mice. We propose that this diminished production of bioactive and identifiable hematopoietic growth factors may be mechanistically important in explaining the disordered hematopoiesis of aging.
A deterministic inventory replenishment model with a linear trend in demand

We propose a simple and computationally efficient optimal method in recursive fashion to solve the problem of determining the number and timing of replenishment points, and the amount to be ordered at each replenishment in order to minimize the total ordering, inventory, and shortage costs in the case of a deterministic demand pattern having a linear trend.
The conceptual representation of number

The experiments reported here investigated the format of plural conceptual representations using a picture-matching paradigm. In Experiment 1, participants read sentences that ended with a singular noun phrase (NP), a two-quantified plural NP, or a plural definite description [The parents handed the child the (two) crayon/s] and then saw a picture of one or multiple referents for the NP. Judgement times to confirm that there was overlap between the pictured object(s) and a noun in the sentence showed an interaction between the NP's number and NP–picture match. For singular NPs and two-quantified NPs, participants were reliably faster to respond “yes” to a picture that had the exact number of objects specified by the NP, but for plural definite descriptions, the effect of the number of pictured items was not reliable. Experiment 2 extended this finding to conceptual plurals. Participants read sentences biased toward either a collective (Together the men carried a box—box is interpreted as singular) or dist...
Sulfasalazine inhibits the binding of TNFα to its receptor

Sulfasalazine was found to exhibit a dose-dependent inhibition of human mucosal and peripheral blood cytotoxic T-cell function. The drug also inhibited the cytotoxic activity of supernatants from anti-CD3-triggered T-cells against murine L929 fibroblasts. TNF alpha has previously been shown to be primarily responsible for the lytic activity of such supernatants and this was confirmed. Sulfasalazine also inhibited the lytic activity of recombinant TNF alpha. When tested under conditions where TNF alpha was allowed to bind to but not lyse the target cells, the results suggested that the drug inhibits the action of this cytokine by inhibiting its binding to the cell membrane receptor. Additional evidence for an inhibitory effect of sulfasalazine on the membrane binding of TNF alpha was obtained by demonstrating a dose-dependent displacement of 125I-TNF alpha from HL60 cells. Although sulfasalazine is often considered to be a pro-drug for site-specific delivery of its component fragments 5-ASA and sulfapyridine, the results demonstrate an immunopharmacological property of the parent compound that is not shared with its component molecules.
W-Algebra W(2, 2) and the Vertex Operator Algebra {L(\frac{1}{2},\,0)\,\otimes\, L(\frac{1}{2},\,0)}

In this paper the W-algebra W(2, 2) and its representation theory are studied. It is proved that a simple vertex operator algebra generated by two weight 2 vectors is either a vertex operator algebra associated to an irreducible highest weight W(2, 2)- module or a tensor product of two simple Virasoro vertex operator algebras. Furthermore, we show that any rational, C 2-cofinite and simple vertex operator algebra whose weight 1 subspace is zero, weight 2 subspace is 2-dimensional and with central charge c = 1 is isomorphic to $${L(\frac{1}{2},0)\otimes L(\frac{1}{2},0)}$$ .
Hanle effect measurement of the lifetime of the A 1II state of PN

Author Institution: Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania; Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University
The NPEY Sequence Is Not Necessary for Endocytosis and Processing of Insulin-Receptor Complexes

The tetrameric amino acid sequence AsnProXTyr (NPXY), where X represents any amino acid, is conserved in the intracytoplasmic domains of several membrane proteins and has been postulated to play a role in receptor-mediated endocytosis. The human insulin receptor (hIR) contains a single copy of the sequence AsnProGluTyr (NPEY) in its intracytoplasmic domain. To determine if this putative consensus sequence is necessary for endocytic functions of hIR, we constructed a mutant receptor, hIR delta NPEY, that lacks NPEY sequence, stably expressed this mutant receptor in Chinese hamster ovary cells, and then studied its endocytic functions. When compared to wild type hIR similarly expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells, the hIR delta NPEY mutant exhibited: 1) normal subunit organization and insulin binding affinity; 2) essentially normal internalization of covalent photoaffinity labeled insulin-receptor complexes; and 3) normal internalization of receptor-bound [125I]insulin as well as normal degradation and release of the internalized insulin. Therefore, we conclude that the NPEY sequence in the juxtamembrane domain of hIR is not necessary for its endocytic function.
Membrane and synaptic properties of developing lateral geniculate nucleus neurons during retinogeniculate axon segregation.

Abstract During the first postnatal month in the ferret (Mustela putorius furo), the projections from the retina to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) become segregated into eye-specific layers and ON and OFF sublayers, a process that is thought to depend in part on neuronal activity. Remarkably, virtually nothing is known about the physiological features of LGN neurons during this period. We have recorded intracellularly from 46 A-layer neurons in slices of the ferret LGN between the ages of postnatal days 7 and 33. The passive membrane properties and current-voltage relationships of the developing neurons were similar in many, though not all, respects to those of adult LGN neurons. Action potentials in younger animals were smaller in amplitude and longer in duration than in older animals, but cells at all ages were capable of producing spike trains whose latency and spike number varied with stimulus intensity. In addition, cells at all ages responded with low-threshold potentials upon release from hyperpolarization. Slightly more than half of the LGN neurons responded to optic tract stimulation with excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs), inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs), or EPSP-IPSP pairs, beginning with the youngest ages. Thus, as early as the second postnatal week, and much before the onset of pattern vision, LGN neurons have many of the membrane and synaptic properties of adult thalamic neurons. These data are consistent with LGN cells playing a significant role in activity-dependent reshaping of the retinogeniculate pathway.
Design and model for a computer supported cooperative environment for CASE and CAD applications

For the past decade, numerous commercial and experimental systems have been designed for collaborative writing applications. From our experience working in the area of CSCW research and development, we have come to realize the possibility and the potential significance of CSCW systems in the engineering design process. The objective of the research is to introduce and develop a CSCW environment to support engineering design, specifically, in a distributed environment that combines computer aided design (CAD) and computer aided software engineering (CASE). In an effort to combine them into a seamless engineering package, we first target supporting engineering design (using CAD) with computer simulation (using CASE). This paper addresses issues involved in the design and development of the environment, including the graphical user interface, text and graphics editors, video and audio communication, multimedia database, document integration, and software simulation.
Including Past and Present Impacts in Cumulative Impact Assessments

Environmental concerns such as loss of biological diversity and stratospheric ozone depletion have heightened awareness of the need to assess cumulative impacts in environmental documents. More than 20 years of experience with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) have provided analysts in the United States with opportunities for developing successful techniques to assess site-specific impacts of proposed actions. Methods for analyzing a proposed action's incremental contribution to cumulative impacts are generally less advanced than those for project-specific impacts. The President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) defines cumulative impact to include the impacts of “past, present and reasonably foreseeable future actions” regardless of who undertakes the action. Court decisions have helped clarify the distinction between reasonably foreseeable future actions and other possible future actions. This paper seeks to clarify how past and present impacts should be included in cumulative impact analyses. The definition of cumulative impacts implies that cumulative impact analyses should include the effects of all past and present actions on a particular resource. Including past and present impacts in cumulative impact assessments increases the likelihood of identifying significant impacts. NEPA requires agencies to give more consideration to alternatives and mitigation and to provide more opportunities for public involvement for actions that would have significant impacts than for actions that would not cause or contribute to significant impacts. For an action that would contribute to significant cumulative impacts, the additional cost and effort involved in increased consideration of alternatives and mitigation and in additional public involvement may be avoided if the action can be modified so that its contributions to significant cumulative impacts are eliminated.
A gaussian space of test functions

Elsewhere we develop an aspect of analysis on the simplest space of type G/K when G = SL2(C) and K is the unitary subgroup, having to do with the analogue of Poisson's inversion formula and resulting additive zeta functions obtained by applying the Gauss transform. The present paper carries out systematically a number of foundational properties of gaussians on that space, which serve as test functions, give rise to explicit formulas, and lead immediately into the heat kernel, which is a gaussian. We prove approximation properties and the fact that the space of gaussians is dense in essentially anything space one wants. (© 2005 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
An OL ( n 3 ) primal interior point algorithm for convex quadratic programming

We present a primal interior point method for convex quadratic programming which is based upon a logarithmic barrier function approach. This approach generates a sequence of problems, each of which is approximately solved by taking a single Newton step. It is shown that the method requires $$O(\sqrt n L)$$ iterations and O(n3.5L) arithmetic operations. By using modified Newton steps the number of arithmetic operations required by the algorithm can be reduced to O(n3L).
Mathematical models for continuous culture growth dynamics of mixed populations subsisting on a heterogeneous resource Base: I. Simple competition

Abstract The classical Monod model for bacterial growth in a chemostat, based on a Michaelis-Menten kinetic analog, is restated in terms of an approximate Lotka-Volterra formulation. The parameters of these two formulations are explicitly related; the new model is easier to work with, but yields the same results as the original. The model is then extended to the case where multiple alternate substrates may be growth limiting, using the corresponding kinetic analogs for multiple-substrate enzymes. Again, one is led to a Lotka-Volterra analog. In the multiple-substrate model, however, coexistence of multiple genotypes is possible, in contrast to the single-substrate model. The usual Lotka-Volterra conditions for existence and stability of pure or mixed equilibria may all be translated into corresponding statements about the parameters of the chemostat system. Possible extensions to deal with metabolic inhibition, cross-feeding, and predation are indicated.
Memory system performance of UNIX on CC-NUMA multiprocessors

This study characterizes the performance of a variant of UNIX SVR4 on a large shared-memory multiprocessor and analyzes the effects of possible OS and architectural changes. We use a nonintrusive cache miss monitor to trace the execution of an OS-intensive multiprogrammed workload on the Stanford DASH, a 32-CPU CC-NUMA multiprocessor (CC-NUMA multiprocessors have cache-coherent shared memory that is physically distributed across the machine). We find that our version of UNIX accounts for 24% of the workload's total execution time. A surprisingly large fraction of OS time (79%) is spent on memory system stalls, divided equally between instruction and data cache miss time. In analyzing techniques to reduce instruction cache miss stall time, we find that replication of only 7% of the OS code would allow 80% of instruction cache misses to be serviced locally on a CC-NUMA machine. For data cache misses, we find that a small number of routines account for 96% of OS data cache stall time. We find that most of these misses are coherence (communication) misses, and larger caches will not necessarily help. After presenting detailed performance data, we analyze the benefits of several OS changes and predict the effects of altering the cache configuration, degree of clustering, and cache coherence mechanism of the machine. (This paper is available via http://wwwflash.stanford.edu.)
Cutaneous metabolism of benzo[a]pyrene: comparative studies in C57BL/6N and DBA/2N mice and neonatal Sprague--Dawley rats.

Abstract The metabolism of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) carcinogen benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) was studied using microsomes prepared from the skin of the mouse and rat. Topical application of the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1254 or the PAH 3-methylcholanthrene (3-MC) to the skin of the C57BL/6N and DBA/2N mouse and the Sprague-Dawley rat caused statistically significant enhancement of cutaneous microsomal aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH) activity in each animal. PCB was a more potent inducer of the enzyme than was 3-MC. BaP metabolism by skin microsomes from the same animals was assessed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The skin of untreated animals metabolized BaP into 9,10-, 7,8- and 4,5-dihydrodiols, phenols and quinones. Skin application of PCB caused greater than 16–18-fold enhancement of BaP metabolism in the C57BL/6N mouse and the rat and 2–5-fold enhancement in the DBA/2N mouse. Skin application of 3-MC enhanced BaP metabolism 2–8-fold in the C57BL/6N mouse and 5–10-fold in the rat and had no effect in the DBA/2N mouse. The formation of procarcinogenic metabolite BaP-7, 8-diol was greatly enhanced (4–12-fold) by treatment with the PCB and 3-MC in the tumor susceptible C57BL/6N mouse and in the tumor-resistant neonatal Sprague-Dawley rat. In contrast, the formation of BaP-7,8-diol was either slightly enhanced (2-fold) or unaffected by treatment with the PCB or 3-MC in the tumor-resistant DBA/2N mouse. Our data indicate that neither the patterns of metabolism nor the amount of BaP-7,8-diol formation in the skin are reliable predictors of tumor susceptibility to the PAH in rodent skin.
Neurotransmission by Neurons That Use Serotonin, Noradrenaline, Glutamate, Glycine, and γ-Aminobutyric Acid in the Normal and Injured Spinal Cord

OBJECTIVE:The science of neurotransmission in the normal and injured spinal cord has grown. This is a review of neurotransmission using serotonin, noradrenaline, glutamate, glycine, and γ-aminobutyric acid.METHODS:The literature on spinal cord neurotransmission and changes that occur with trauma are
USDA Funding for Fisheries Research

Abstract Four hundred seventy-six fisheries projects contained in the Current Research Information System for the 5-year period 1979–84 were analyzed by USDA geographic region, habitat or culture system, type of study and biological group. Federal funds supported 68% of projects in the southern region whereas state funds supported approximately 50% of projects in other regions. Federal support of aquaculture and the large number of aquaculture projects in southern states accounts for much of this difference. State-funded projects were more evenly distributed across habitat types and were more ecological in orientation. Federally supported projects were more biologically and economically oriented. Seventy-five percent of all projects addressed finfish. There is an obvious though not absolute distinction between state and federally funded projects.
A critical comparison of methods for measuring fish respiratory movements

Abstract Six different methods for detecting and measuring fish respiratory movements are reviewed and compared. Several yield only breathing frequency which may not reflect alterations in the ambient water. The matter of disturbance to the fish by certain methods is discussed. The method giving the most information appears to be the measurement of buccal and opercular pressures with indwelling catheters and sensitive pressure transducers. Where simplicity is important, breathing frequency may be obtained from the recording of the changing potentials between two external electrodes not actually attached to the fish.
Maneuvering in juvenile carcharhinid and sphyrnid sharks: the role of the hammerhead shark cephalofoil.

Summary The peculiar head morphology of hammerhead sharks has spawned a variety of untested functional hypotheses. One of the most intu itively appealing ideas is that the anterior foil acts, as in canard-winged aircraft, to increase maneuverability. We tested this hypothesis by determining whether juveniles of two hammerhead species (Sphyrna tiburo and S. lewini) turn more sharply, more often, and with greater velocity than a juvenile carcharhinid shark ( Carcharhinus plumbeus). Although the hammerheads were more maneuverable, further investigation revealed that they do not roll their body during turns, suggesting that the cephalofoil does not act as a steering wing. We also show that hammerhead sharks demonstrate greater lateral flexure in a turn than carcharhinids, and that this flexibility may be due to cross sectional shape rather than number of vertebrae.
Molecular Markers in Blood as Surrogate Prognostic Indicators of Melanoma Recurrence

Improvement is needed in the ability to evaluate the prognosis of melanoma patients who are clinically disease-free but likely to develop recurrent metastatic disease. The detection of circulating melanoma cells in blood is a potential surrogate marker of subclinical residual disease. We assessed the prognostic clinical utility of a multimarker melanoma reverse transcriptase-PCR (RT-PCR) assay using blood of 46 patients who were clinically disease-free. All patients were followed up for more than 4 years for disease recurrence. There was a significant correlation between number of RT-PCR markers present in blood and American Joint Committee on Cancer stage (P = 0.009). The number of RT-PCR markers detected in blood was an independent prediction factor of disease recurrence in a Cox proportional hazard model (P = 0.02). A risk factor model using American Joint Committee on Cancer stage and number of positive RT-PCR markers significantly predicted disease recurrence in 2, 3, and 4 years of follow-up. These studies demonstrate that molecular detection of circulating melanoma cells may be of significant prognostic value in determining early disease recurrence and may be useful for stratifying patients for adjuvant therapy.
Magnetic resonance imaging of neuroblastoma using current techniques

We evaluated the ability of current magnetic resonance (MR) scanning techniques to detect and stage neuroblastoma in children, using surgical and histopathologic correlation. We prospectively and retrospectively reviewed 16 MR examinations from 14 patients with neuroblastoma (13 patients) or ganglioneuroblastoma (1 patient) and compared these to computed tomography (CT) (5 patients) and pathology (all patients). Sequences included: precontrast T1-weighted and T2-weighted images, and gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted images. The study time for each MR exam was also calculated. Five primary tumors were intrathoracic paraspinous masses, eight were adrenal, and 1 was presacral. Neural foraminal invasion was demonstrated on MR in four of 14 patients. Three of the four patients had undergone CT and neural foraminal invasion was shown in one. Vascular encasement was demonstrated in five of 14 patients on MR images. Three of the five patients had undergone CT and vascular involvement was shown in two. All cases of neural foramina invasion and vascular encasement were proven at surgery. There were no false positive or false negative MR studies of neural foraminal invasion or vascular encasement. Bone marrow invasion was shown in two of 14 patients on MR images which were confirmed by bone marrow aspirate. No false negative cases of bone marrow invasion was shown. In one patient, CT considered one neuroblastoma to be adrenal in location which was correctly shown to be intrathoracic on MR. The mean study time for MR imaging was 49 min. Current MR techniques are accurate at detecting and staging neuroblastoma, and coverage of chest, abdomen, and pelvis can be performed in less than one hour.
The Thermal Conductivity of Several Fluoride Glasses

For all amorphous materials, irrespective of composition, the thermal conductivity, K, is nearly the same function of temperature. This fact is believed to be a consequence of the existence of a more or less universal, frequency-dependent phonon mean free path, leading to a conductivity which first increases as T2, flattens out into a temperature-independent plateau region, and finally again increases slowly with temperature up to just below the glass transition temperature, Tg [1]. In this paper we present thermal conductivity results for a family of fluoride glass specimens, which we have measured in the 1.6 to \( 1\not{0}\not{0} \) K temperature range: the materials include pure beryllium fluoride glass, a fluoroberyllate glass, three fluorozirconate glasses, and a fluoride glass with equal majority components of ZnF2, YbF3, and ThF4 [2]. Some of these results have been reported previously [3]. We find that, below the plateau region, the thermal conductivities can be well correlated with specimen composition.
Calcium Uptake by Potato Tuber Mitochondria

An attempt was made to isolate from potato tuber mitochondria the reported calcium-45 complex. Mitochondria fractionation results showed that the lipids were not involved in the calcium-45 complex formation. Using hot water as an extracting solvent it was found that two calcium-45 complexes occurred in the mitochondria fraction. One of the complexes was readily removable while the other complex was much less readily extractable with hot water. The readily removable calcinm-45 complex was identified as calcium phosphate and the less readily extractable complex seemed to be directly related to mitochondrial RNA liberation, however, it was impossible to isolate a calcium-45 ribonucleic acid complex. The extraction of the slowly removable calcium-45 complex was not a simple liberation of the complex but rather a breakdown which was irreversible and could be inhibited partially by sodium arsenate. A possible explanation of these data is that the TCA soluble fraction represents the total calcium45 uptake by the mitochondria, that is, the calcium-45 that has been accumulated plus that which is in the “calcium-carrier complex”. It is suggested that the easily extractable hot water fraction is the accumulated calicum-45 while the less readily extractable fraction is the “calcium-carrier complex”.
Inside the Mucosal Immune System

An intricate network of innate and immune cells and their derived mediators function in unison to protect us from toxic elements and infectious microbial diseases that are encountered in our environment. This vast network operates efficiently by use of a single cell epithelium in, for example, the gastrointestinal (GI) and upper respiratory (UR) tracts, fortified by adjoining cells and lymphoid tissues that protect its integrity. Perturbations certainly occur, sometimes resulting in inflammatory diseases or infections that can be debilitating and life threatening. For example, allergies in the eyes, skin, nose, and the UR or digestive tracts are common. Likewise, genetic background and environmental microbial encounters can lead to inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). This mucosal immune system (MIS) in both health and disease is currently under intense investigation worldwide by scientists with diverse expertise and interests. Despite this activity, there are numerous questions remaining that will require detailed answers in order to use the MIS to our advantage. In this issue of PLOS Biology, a research article describes a multi-scale in vivo systems approach to determine precisely how the gut epithelium responds to an inflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), given by the intravenous route. This article reveals a previously unknown pathway in which several cell types and their secreted mediators work in unison to prevent epithelial cell death in the mouse small intestine. The results of this interesting study illustrate how in vivo systems biology approaches can be used to unravel the complex mechanisms used to protect the host from its environment.
Transaction Evaluations and Relationship Intentions

Marketers'understanding of customers'postpurchase decision process is questioned in an effort to propose a conceptual model that can strengthen the current measurement practice of customers'transaction-specific product-service evaluations. The proposed model incorporates such transaction-oriented variables as customer satisfaction and customer value into a trust-based relationship framework. Empirical data support the validity of the proposed model in general, indicating that understanding customers'product-service evaluations in a relationship framework would be a potentially fruitful direction to pursue. Data are analyzed following a systematic approach to mediation analysis in the context of structural equation modeling. The article also provides suggested avenues for future research in this and related directions.
Judicial Retirement Strategies: The Judge's Role in Influencing Party Control of the Appellate Courts

If judges are politically strategic, they may try to retire at times that maximize the chances that an ideologically compatible successor will be appointed. Using biographical data on all appellate...
Robust Speaker Recognition with Cross-Channel Data: MIT-LL Results on the 2006 NIST SRE Auxiliary Microphone Task

One particularly difficult challenge for cross-channel speaker verification is the auxiliary microphone task introduced in the 2005 and 2006 NIST Speaker Recognition Evaluations, where training uses telephone speech and verification uses speech from multiple auxiliary microphones. This paper presents two approaches to compensate for the effects of auxiliary microphones on the speech signal. The first compensation method mitigates session effects through Latent Factor Analysis (LFA) and Nuisance Attribute Projection (NAP). The second approach operates directly on the recorded signal with noise reduction techniques. Results are presented that show a reduction in the performance gap between telephone and auxiliary microphone data.
Vibrational energies of H2+ using fully nonadiabatic wavefunctions

Using variational Monte Carlo methods, we examine a number of fully nonadiabatic trial wavefunctions to determine which features best describe the lowest several vibrational states of H2+. Our final energies are in excellent agreement with previous calculations. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Maturing of Renal Cancer Therapeutics

Until recently, options for treatment of metastatic renal cancer were limited. High-dose interleukin-2 leads to sustained nearcompleteresponsesinaminorityofpatients,butistootoxicformost. Interferon leads to occasional responses and was the historical treatment reference, 1 but the benefit is modest, and the quality of life impact significant. It is in this context that the current vascular endothelialgrowthfactor(VEGF)pathwayandmammaliantargetofrapamycin (mTOR) ‐directed agents were developed. The phase II studies of the VEGF pathway inhibitors bevacizumab, sorafenib, and sunitinib and the mTOR inhibitor temsirolimus for treatment of renal cancer were all conducted within the same time frame; however, their sponsors elected different pathways for regulatory approval. Temsirolimus was compared with interferon in the front-line setting, with inclusion of a third combination arm, and with a survival end point in patients with poor prognostic features. 2 By limiting the study to poor-risk patients, the sponsors had hoped that the end point would be reached more rapidly in the competitive marketplace of multiple agentsundergoingphaseIIIevaluation.Unfortunately,thisrestric
Confidence intervals for putative quantitative trait loci – development and applications of new linkage methods

A new method for constructing confidence intervals for the location of putative genes regulating expression levels (quantitative traits) is proposed. This method is suitable for the "intermediate" fine-mapping step usually performed between the initial whole-genome screening and the follow-up fine mapping step as a means of reducing the size of the region where the latter is performed. Assuming the existence of a single quantitative trait locus (QTL) in the region/chromosome identified by the genome scan, the method constructs a confidence region for its true position by testing each location in the chromosome to see if it can be the trait locus. We applied our method to the gene expression data from Problem 1 of Genetic Analysis Workshop 15 (GAW15) data, focusing on 25 genes that have previously been shown to share common regulating factor(s) on chromosome 14. Our results pointed to the same region on chromosome 14 for 13 of the gene expressions studied, not only partially reproducing the results of the previous analysis, but also yielding 95% confidence regions for the regulatory quantitative trait loci. Moreover, we identified three regions, one on each of the chromosomes 3, 9, and 13, which potentially harbor additional common QTLs for several of the original gene expressions.
Evidence of strong electron–phonon coupling in the high Tc copper oxide superconductors

The fundamental mechanism responsible for high temperature superconductivity in the copper oxides is still not known. In view of this, it is important to consider how best to account for the normal state properties of these materials in the hope of characterizing the excitations which are relevant to the superconducting instability. Results of local density functional approximation (LDA) calculations are presented of the electronic density response, which yields predictions of phonon frequencies and electron–phonon interaction strength as well as structural parameters and structural instabilities. Structural properties and phonon frequencies are in excellent agreement with experiment in both La2–xMxCuO4 and YBa2Cu3O7. Theoretical evidence is also presented for strong nonlocal contributions to the electron–phonon coupling in these materials.
Pathological considerations in replacement cardiac valves.

The long-term outcome following cardiac valve replacement is primarily determined by three factors: irreversible cardiac and pulmonary pathology secondary to the valvular disease (especially left ventricular myocardial hypertrophy and degeneration, and pulmonary vascular disease), pre-existing cardiac disease, including congenital lesions and coronary arterial atherosclerotic occlusions, and prosthesis-host interactions. For most of the approximately 40,000 patients who undergo valve replacement each year in the United States, prosthesis-associated pathology is a a major determinant of prognosis. In this article, the significance, morphology, and pathogenesis of the major complications and other alterations during function of mechanical, bioprosthetic, and allograft valves are reviewed. Other reviews of pathologic considerations in cardiac valve replacement are available (l-7).
On-line Failure Detection in Memory Order Buffers

Technology scaling leads to burn-in phase out and higher post-silicon test complexity, which increases in-the-field error rate due to both latent defects and actual errors respectively. As a consequence, current reliability qualification methods will likely be infeasible. Microarchitecture knowledge of application runtime behavior offers a possibility to have low-cost continuous online testing techniques to cope with hard errors in the field. Whereas data can be protected with redundancy (like parity or ECC), there is a lack of mechanisms for control logic. This paper proposes a microarchitectural approach for validating that the memory order buffer logic works correctly.