cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Morphometric and histologic changes in the pulmonary system of broilers raised at simulated high altitude

Broilers were reared in conditions of hypobaric hypoxia (3500 m altitude) to investigate the development of pulmonary nodules in birds reared in hypobaric hypoxia and judged by clinical observation to be developing broiler pulmonary hypertension syndrome (BPHS); in unaffected birds reared in hypobaric hypoxia; and in birds reared at ambient atmospheric pressure. Gross pulmonary morphometric measurements, packed cell volume, electrocardiogram QRS amplitude and body weight also were compared among the three experimental groups. Results indicate that hypobaric hypoxia alone exercised little influence on the development of pulmonary nodules. Nodule numbers per section and nodule area per section were numerically greater in birds reared in hypobaric hypoxia, but there were no consistent significant differences in nodule numbers in birds which developed BPHS. As expected, absolute lung length, inter-rib distance and lung volume increased significantly with increasing age and size; but when these parameters were expressed as a function of body weight, they decreased with increasing age. Again, intergroup differences were inconsistent. Packed cell volume and electrocardiogram QRS amplitude were significantly increased in birds reared in hypobaric hypoxia.
A constrained heart: a case of sudden onset unrelenting chest pain.

Information about a real patient is presented in stages (boldface type) to expert clinicians (Dr Kronzon, Dr Machnicki, and Dr Ruiz), who respond to the information, sharing their reasoning with the reader (regular type). A discussion by the authors follows. A 43-year-old athletic black male was awoken from sleep with severe left-sided, nonradiating chest pain. He has no past medical history and denied any recent injury, infection, or drug use. He described the chest pain as nonreproducible on palpation but sharp that increased in severity when laying on his left side. Because of his symptoms the patient went to the local emergency department. On arrival, his temperature was 98.3°F, pulse 79 bpm, blood pressure 170/100 mm Hg, and respiratory rate of 24 breaths per minute with oxygen saturation of 98% on room air. Physical examination revealed a jugular venous pressure of 8 cm H 2 O, clear lungs on auscultation, regular rate with normal S1 and S2 sounds without murmurs, rubs, or gallops. There was no lateral displacement of the point of maximum impulse. The abdomen was nondistended with normal bowel sounds and was free of bruits. The extremities were warm, with 2+ palpable pulses with no arterial pulse delay. Cardiac enzymes were drawn and an initial ECG ( Figure 1) showed normal sinus rhythm with >5-mm ST-segment elevations in the lateral and inferior lead segments. Figure 1. Resting 12-lead ECG on presentation demonstrating marked ST elevations in leads I, II, aVL, aVF, and V4–V6 with down slopping ST depressions in aVR and V1–V3. There are no pathological q waves. Dr Ruiz: When a patient presents with chest pain, the 12-lead ECG is 1 of the principal tools used in diagnosis. This test can be performed quickly and helps narrow the differential, especially when the application of timely treatment aimed at coronary …
Association between prior peripherally inserted central catheters and lack of functioning arteriovenous fistulas: a case-control study in hemodialysis patients.

Background Although an arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is the hemodialysis access of choice, its prevalence continues to be lower than recommended in the United States. We assessed the association between past peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) and lack of functioning AVFs. Study Design Case-control study. Participants & Setting Prevalent hemodialysis population in 7 Mayo Clinic outpatient hemodialysis units. Cases were without functioning AVFs and controls were with functioning AVFs on January 31, 2011. Predictors History of PICCs. Outcomes Lack of functioning AVFs. Results On January 31, 2011, a total of 425 patients were receiving maintenance hemodialysis, of whom 282 were included in this study. Of these, 120 (42.5%; cases) were dialyzing through a tunneled dialysis catheter or synthetic arteriovenous graft and 162 (57.5%; controls) had a functioning AVF. PICC use was evaluated in both groups and identified in 30% of hemodialysis patients, with 54% of these placed after dialysis therapy initiation. Cases were more likely to be women (52.5% vs 33.3% in the control group; P = 0.001), with smaller mean vein (4.9 vs 5.8 mm; P P = 0.01) than controls. A PICC was identified in 53 (44.2%) cases, but only 32 (19.7%) controls ( P P P = 0.002). Limitations Retrospective study, participants mostly white. Conclusion PICCs are commonly placed in patients with end-stage renal disease and are a strong independent risk factor for lack of functioning AVFs.
Some Ideas on Interrupting the Right: On Doing Critical Educational Work in Conservative Times.

In a considerable number of nations, `conservative modernization' has gained increasing influence. Neo-liberals, neo-conservatives, and new middle-class mangerialists have defined the terrain of ed...
Community services for abused women: A review of perceived usefulness and efficacy

This review of 12 studies examines both the types of community and professional services that abused women most frequently contact, and how useful and effective the women perceive those services to be. These studies show that police, social service agencies, clergy, crisis lines, physicians, psychotherapists, women's groups, and lawyers are the sources of assistance abused women most frequently contact. However, the studies reveal that some of these services are not necessarily perceived as very useful or effective. Women tend to contact different services depending on the type of abuse suffered. Abused women report that crisis lines, women's groups, social workers, psychotherapists, and physicians are helpful most of the time for all types of abuse, and that police officers, lawyers, and clergy are not helpful in most types of abuse. Results of this review suggest the need for education of professionals and community service providers in understanding needs of abused women.
A three-parameter logistic model to characterize ovarian tissue using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

In this paper, a logistic prediction model is introduced to characterize the ovarian tissue. A new parameter, the phase retardation rate, was extracted from phase images of polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT). Statistical significance of this parameter between normal and malignant ovarian tissues was demonstrated (p<0.0001). Linear regression analysis showed that this parameter was positively correlated (R = 0.74) with collagen content, which was associated with the development of ovarian tissue malignancy. When this parameter and the optical scattering coefficient and the phase retardation estimated from the 33 ovaries were used as input predictors to the logistic model, 100% sensitivity and specificity in classifying malignant and normal ovaries were achieved. Ten additional ovaries were imaged and used to validate the prediction model and 100% sensitivity and 83.3% specificity were achieved. These results showed that the three-parameter prediction model based on quantitative parameters estimated from PS-OCT images could be a powerful tool to detect and diagnose ovarian cancer.
Boiling heat transfer in a hydrofoil-based micro pin fin heat sink

Abstract Flow boiling of R-123 in a hydrofoil-based micro pin fin heat sink was investigated. Average two-phase heat transfer coefficients were obtained over effective heat fluxes ranging from 19 to 312 W/cm2 and mass fluxes from 976 to 2349 kg/m2 s. The paper presents a flow map, which divides the data into three flow pattern regions: bubbly, wavy intermittent and spray-annular flows. Heat transfer coefficient trends and flow morphologies were used to infer boiling heat transfer mechanisms. Existing conventional scale correlations for circular tubes resulted in large scatter and were not able to predict the heat transfer coefficients accurately.
‘Leaky’ Ryanodine Receptors and Sudden Cardiac Death

Sudden cardiac death is a significant cause of mortality in the industrialized world, accounting for as much as 30% of deaths in high-risk populations.1 Despite the high incidence, the cellular mechanisms leading to fatal ventricular arrhythmias are not fully understood, thereby hindering the development of novel therapeutic strategies to mitigate this adverse outcome of myocardial infarction. Repolarization heterogeneities have been implicated as substrates for re-entrant arrhythmia, ultimately leading to ventricular fibrillation (VF).2 At the myocyte level, lability in action potential duration and beat-to-beat fluctuations in calcium (Ca2+) transients (Ca2+ alternans) have been observed in several different models as contributing factors to altered repolarization.3,4 Although the importance of intracellular Ca2+ alternans in the aetiology of ventricular arrhythmia is clear, little is known about which pathways in the cellular Ca2+ cycle are altered in VF-prone hearts. Belevych et al. 5 provide … *Corresponding author. Tel: +1 252 744 0083, fax: +1 252 744 5884. E-mail address : casciow{at}ecu.edu
A constitutive equation for non-linear electro-active solids

Electro-active solids are solids that are either infused with electrorheological fluids or embedded with electrically conducting particles, the body as a whole however conducting negligible current. In this paper, we provide a mathematical framework, within the context of continuum mechanics, for the study of electro-active solids. The theory assumes that the body can be considered as a continuum, in the sense of homogenization, which is isotropic, incompressible, elastic and is capable of responding to an electric field. Appealing to standard techniques in continuum mechanics, we obtain a constitutive relation for the stresses in terms of the deformation and electric field. This is used in a study of triaxial extension, simple shear and anisotropy induced by the electric field.
HiMAP: a portable super modular multilevel parallel multidisciplinary process for large scale analysis

Abstract An efficient super modular process to simulate aeroelasticity of aerospace vehicles using high fidelity flow equations such as the Euler/Navier–Stokes equations is presented. The process is suitable for both tightly coupled and uncoupled analysis. The process is designed to execute on massively parallel processors (MPP) and work-station clusters based on a multiple-instruction, multiple-data (MIMD) architecture. The fluids discipline is parallelized using a zonal approach whereas the structures discipline is parallelized using the substructures concept. Provision is also made to include controls domain. Computations of each discipline are spread across processors using IEEE standard message passing interface (MPI) for inter processor communications. Disciplines can run in parallel using a macro utility MPIRUN developed based on MPI. In addition to discipline parallelization and coarse-grain parallelization of the disciplines, embarrassingly parallel capability to run multiple parameter cases is implemented using a script system. The combined effect of three levels of parallelization is an almost linear scalability for multiple concurrent analyses that perform efficiently on MPP.
Calculation of Muon Depth Distributions in Thin Film Single Crystals

Abstract To investigate the effects of sample crystallinity and the consequent channeling on the stopping distribution of low energy muons, we compare the results of the well-known binary-collision-approximation code(BCA): TRIM to results from MARLOWE from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and those of a code which we have written and given the acronym MUSCLE. TRIM assumes an amorphous stopping medium. MARLOWE is also a BCA code, but treats the stopping medium as crystalline. MUSCLE uses a molecular dynamics approach and should be even more accurate. For the results shown here we use bcc Fe. TRIM, MARLOWE, and MUSCLE are Monte-Carlo codes. We find that the average penetration depths are similar, but that the detailed shapes of the penetration distributions are quite different. When the dependence of the interpretation of experiments depends on the relative probabilities of penetration depth, a use of code which includes the effects of crystallinity is recommended.
Regulating the conducting states of a mammalian serotonin transporter.

Abstract Serotonin transporters (SERTs), sites of psychostimulant action, display multiple conducting states in expression systems. These include a substrate-independent transient conductance, two separate substrate-independent leak conductances associated with Na + and H + , and a substrate-dependent conductance of variable stoichiometry, which exceeds that predicted from electroneutral substrate transport. The present data show that the SNARE protein syntaxin 1A binds the N-terminal tail of SERT, and this interaction regulates two SERT-conducting states. First, substrate-induced currents are absent because Na + flux becomes strictly coupled to 5HT transport. Second, Na + -mediated leak currents are eliminated. These two SERT-conducting states are present endogenously in thalamocortical neurons, act to depolarize the membrane potential, and are modulated by molecules that disrupt SERT and syntaxin 1A interactions. These data show that protein interactions govern SERT activity and suggest that both cell excitability and psychostimulant-mediated effects will be dependent upon the state of association among SERT and its interacting partners.
Flow cytometric analysis of RNA content in different cell populations using pyronin Y and methyl green.

Pyronin Y (PY) was used, in flow cytometric (FCM) systems, to estimate the RNA content per cell in formalin fixed EL4 leukosis tumor cells, enzyme dispersed R3327-G rat prostatic adenocarcinoma cells, mouse spleen cells stimulated with concanavalin A, and human peripheral blood lymphocytes stimulated with phytohemagglutinin. Preincubation of the cells with methyl green (MG) blocked PY binding to DNA such that the intracellular fluorescence from MG-PY was due primarily to its binding to RNA. Treatment of the cells with ribonuclease resulted in a 3- to 5-fold reduction in the fluorescence intensity of intracellular MG-PY. Mitogen stimulation of either mouse or human lymphocytes resulted in an increase in DNA (propidium iodide fluorescence) and RNA (MG-PY fluorescence) content per cell over resting levels. Further, the changes in stimulated human lymphocyte DNA and RNA contents following 24, 48, and 72 hr of cell culture were monitored. The results showed that RNA levels were significantly increased prior to that of DNA. Also, the effects of different cell cycle phase specific blocking agents on lymphocyte cell cycle traverse were investigated. We found that: (a) actinomycin D inhibited the increases in cellular RNA and DNA; (b) hydroxyurea inhibited the increases in cellular DNA whereas increases in cellular RNA were only slightly reduced; (c) tritiated thymidine caused an accumulation of cells having high DNA and RNA contents; and (d) Colcemid promoted an accumulation of cells having high DNA contents while causing a reduction of cells having high RNA contents. These results were nearly identical to reports by other investigators using the metachromatic dye acridine orange to quantitate RNA per cell. Thus, the MG-PY technique described is indicated to provide a stable and accurate measure of RNA content per cell.
The importance of cluster fragmentation in the catalytic hydrogenation of phenylacetylene by PtRu5 carbonyl cluster complexes

Abstract PtRu 5 ( CO ) 13 ( PBu 3 t ) ( μ 3 - PhC 2 H ) ( μ 5 - C ) ( 2 ) has been shown to be a catalyst precursor for the hydrogenation of PhC 2 H to styrene and ethylbenzene. Three new organometallic products have been found in the catalyst solutions. These are Ru 5 ( CO ) 12 ( μ 5 - C ) [ PtPBu 3 t ] ( μ 3 - PhC 2 H ) ( μ - H ) 2 ( 4 ) , Pt ( PBu 3 t ) ( PhC 2 H ) ( CO ) ( 5 ) , and Ru 5 (CO) 11 (μ 4 -CCHCPh)(μ 4 -HC 2 Ph)(μ 3 -HC 2 Ph) ( 6 ). Compounds 4 – 6 have been synthesized independently and structurally characterized and each one has been tested independently for its ability to produce hydrogenation of PhC 2 H catalytically. Compound 4 contains an open square-pyramidal cluster of five ruthenium atoms with one platinum atom bridging an edge of the cluster. It is structurally related to 2 but contains one less CO ligand and two hydrido ligands formed by the addition of one equivalent of hydrogen to the metal cluster. It can be obtained directly from 2 by reaction with hydrogen in the presence of trimethylamine oxide. Compound 5 is a tricoordinated mononuclear platinum complex containing one PBu 3 t ligand, one CO ligand and one μ 2 -PhC 2 H ligand. Compound 5 can be obtained directly from Pt ( PBu 3 t ) 2 by reaction with PhC 2 H under an atmosphere of CO. Compound 6 was obtained from the reaction of Ru 5 (CO) 15 (μ 5 -C) with PhC 2 H in the presence of UV–Vis irradiation. Compound 6 contains three equivalents of PhC 2 H; one is present as triply bridging PhC 2 H ligand; one is a quadruply bridging ligand; the third one has formed a bond to the carbido ligand in the center of the metal cluster to form a novel tetra-metallated allyl ligand. Compound 5 has the highest catalytic activity of all three compounds and is believed to be responsible for the vast majority of the catalytic hydrogenation produced from the solutions of 2 . Compound 4 is transformed into 5 under the conditions of catalysis.
The fungal etiology of gout and hyperuricemia: the antifungal mode of action of colchicine

The concept of a fungal/mycotoxin etiology of gout/hyperuricemia in humans was first reported by Costantini in 1989. Gout and/or hyperuricemia have been induced in animals by the fungal species Ustilago maydis, Chaetomium trilaterale, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and by the mycotoxins, aflatoxin, ochratoxin, oosporein, oxalic acid. Gout and/or hyperuricemia have been induced in humans by the yeast Candida utilis and by the fungal metabolites cyclosporin, ergotamine and penicillin. Gout is documented to be etiologically linked to beer, a Saccharomyces fermented beverage. Beers contain significant amounts of ochratoxin and large amounts (7 to 9 mg/dl of uric acid, a metabolite produced by the brewer's yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Consistent with the fungal etiology of gout and hyperuricemia, the mode of action of colchicine in the treatment of gout is antifungal. Colchicine shares antitubulin activity with griseofulvin, a potent antifungal antibiotic. Griseofulvin is as equally effective in the treatment of gout as colchicine. Similarly, another antitubulin drug, vinblastine is also antifungal and effective in the treatment of gout. All of the other drugs used to treat gout and/or hyperuricemia possess antifungal activity. Biomedical Reviews 1992; 1: 47-52.
Molecular Dynamic Simulation of Cascade Overlap and Amorphization in 3C-SiC

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been employed to study cascade overlap and defect accumulation processes during amorphization in 3C-SiC. A large number of 10 keV displacement cascades were randomly generated in a model crystal to achieve the amorphous state, and the corresponding dose is consistent with experimental observations. The results show that most defects are single interstitials and mono-vacancies at low dose, whereas the amorphous or disordered clusters, which consist of interstitials and antisite defects, appear at intermediate dose levels. These local disordered regions play an important role in the amorphization of SiC. At higher doses, a significant proportion of antisite defects is created during continued cascade overlap. The increase in interstitials and antisite defects with increasing dose suggests that the primary driving force for the crystalline-to-amorphous transition under these ion irradiation conditions in SiC is due to the accumulation of both Frenkel pairs and antisite defects.
Mechanical fatigue of silica glass

It was shown that the thermally or chemically treated SiO 2 glass can have cracks with blunt tips. The mechanical fatigue behavior of the specimens with blunt cracks was different from that of the freshly abraded specimens. This difference can best be explained by postulating that the fatigue of the specimens with blunt cracks involves crack initiation, in addition to crack growth while that of the specimens with sharp cracks involves only the crack growth. It was also shown that crack initiation under sub-critical stress requires the presence of a special medium such as water which can enter the glass under stress.
Tumour biomarkers & mutations in patients with squamous cell type non-small cell lung cancer

The widespread use of pre-hospital needle decompression, in the absence of rigid criteria, extensive training, and effective equipment, runs the risk of potentially devastating complications. A trauma patient suspected of tension pneumothorax underwent bilateral needle decompression, in the field, that resulted in penetrating cardiac injury requiring immediate repair. We review current literature regarding the utility of needle decompression as an adjuvant in the field and caution its use. Introduction: Tension pneumothorax is a life-threatening injury and unless rapidly decompressed, can lead to death. Definitive decompression involves placing a tube thoracostomy, but a tension pneumothorax can be temporised by decompression using a needle. A standard 14 gauge angiocath, approximately 4.5 cm is perhaps the most commonly used implement [1,2,10,11]. It is generally placed in the second intercostal space in the midclavicular line, or in the fifth intercostal space in the mid-axillary line [12]. Needle Abstracts e69
Hybrid simulation strategy for multiple planar collisions with changing topologies and local deformation

Abstract The development of a hybrid strategy for the simulation of multiple plastic-elastic collisions is presented. The strategy attempts to bridge the gap between finite element methods (FEM), which typically require excessively long computation times for multiple impact simulations, and lumped parameter approaches that cannot provide accurate local deformation information. The proposed strategy employs a finite element routine solely to simulate the impact phase, thereby obtaining detailed local deformation information. The simulation of the flight phase between impacts, however, proceeds under rigid body dynamics, resulting in significant reduction in computation time. The transfer of control between FEM and rigid body dynamics is automatic and the points of contact need not be known a priori. The progressive object internal plastic strain, determined from FEM, is retained from one impact to the next, thereby ensuring a certain degree of continuity of the physical properties of the body. An example is presented to demonstrate the efficacy of this approach.
Mineral control of organic carbon mineralization in a range of temperate conifer forest soils

Coupled climate–ecosystem models predict significant alteration of temperate forest biome distribution in response to climate warming. Temperate forest biomes contain approximately 10% of global soil carbon (C) stocks and therefore any change in their distribution may have significant impacts on terrestrial C budgets. Using the Sierra Nevada as a model system for temperate forest soils, we examined the effects of temperature and soil mineralogy on soil C mineralization. We incubated soils from three conifer biomes dominated by ponderosa pine (PP), white fir (WF), and red fir (RF) tree species, on granite (GR), basalt (BS), and andesite (AN) parent materials, at three temperatures (12.51C, 7.51C, 5.01C). AN soils were dominated by noncrystalline materials (allophane, Al-humus complexes), GR soils by crystalline minerals (kaolinite, vermiculite), and BS soils by a mix of crystalline and noncrystalline materials. Soil C mineralization (ranging from 1.9 to 34.6 [mg C (g soil C) � 1 ] or 0.1 to 2.3 [mg C (g soil) � 1 ]) differed significantly between parent materials in all biomes with a general pattern of ANoBSoGR. We found significant negative relationships between Fe-oxyhydroxides, Al-oxyhydroxides, and Al-humus complex content and soil C mineralization, suggesting mineral control of C mineralization. Modeled decomposition rates and mineralizable pool size increased with increasing temperature for all parent materials and biomes. Further, d 13 C values of respired CO2 suggest greater decomposition of recalcitrant soil C compounds with increasing temperature, indicating a shift in primary C source utilization with temperature. Our results demonstrate that soil mineralogy moderates soil C mineralization and that soil C response to temperature includes shifts in decomposition rates, mineralizable pool size, and primary C source utilization.
Risk of Napping: Excessive Daytime Sleepiness and Mortality in an Older Community Population

OBJECTIVE: To describe the demographic and health-related factors related to excessive daytime sleepiness. To estimate the risk of mortality associated with excessive daytime sleepiness independent of nighttime sleep problems and other factors that limit survival. DESIGN: Four-year prospective cohort study with annual interviews. SETTING: One urban and four rural counties in north-central North Carolina. PARTICIPANTS: Adults 65 years and older (n = 3962) living in the community. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Excessive daytime sleepiness was measured as, “How often do you get so sleepy during the day or evening that you have to take a nap?” Mortality was based on continuous surveillance of the population by field investigators and abstraction of death certificates. RESULTS: Point prevalence of excessive daytime sleepiness in this population was 25.2%. Frequent daytime nappers were more likely than infrequent nappers to report nighttime sleep complaints and were more likely to be male and urban-dwellers, to report more depressive symptoms, more limited physical activity, and more functional impairment, and were more likely to be overweight. Of the frequent nappers, 23.9% died, compared with 15.4% of infrequent nappers. In an adjusted Cox proportional hazard model, the 4-year mortality rate was accelerated 1.73 times among older people who nap most of the time and make two or more errors on a cognitive status examination. CONCLUSION: Excessive napping is associated with impaired sleep hygiene as well as with a broad range of activity-related health deficits among community-dwelling older adults. Frequent napping was associated with impaired sleep hygiene, male gender, urban-dwelling, depressive symptoms, physical activity deficits, functional impairment, and excess weight. Mortality risk was elevated selectively among the most cognitively impaired subjects.
Radiation following chemotherapy for mediastinal Hodgkin's disease: the outcome of various doses for bulky tumors

Abstract Twenty-one patients with bulky mediastinal disease responding to chemotherapy received consolidation with low-dose mediastinal radiation (19.8–25.2 Gy). Their 5-year mediastinal failure rate (10%) was equivalent to that of 10 similar patients who received higher doses of 30–44 Gy (20%). Low-dose radiation may be appropriate for these patients. Prospective studies are required to verify these findings.
Infrared Spectroscopic Study of Liquid Crystalline N-[4-(4-n-alkoxybenzoyloxy)-2-hydroxybenzylidene]-3-cyanoanilines

Abstract A homologous series of N-[4-(4-n-alkoxybenzoyloxy)-2-hydroxybenzylidene]-3-cyanoanilines [AHC(n; n = 1–8, 10, 12)] was synthesized. AHC(4–8, 10) exhibit a monotropic nematic phase. The temperature dependence of infrared (IR) spectra of AHC(4–8) has been observed in the spectral range of 2300–600cm−1. On cooling, the intensity of the IR band at 2230cm−1 remained unchanged through the phase-transition of isotropic-nematic and increased gradually toward room temperature (solid phase). This band can be assigned to the C ≡ N stretching vibrational mode. The wavenumber of the band increased slightly (about 1 cm−1) during the temperature from isotropic to solid. In mela-CN substituted AHC, it is suggested that the CN group may not play a dominant role in the intermolecular interaction.
The measurement of self-focusing parameters using intrinsic optical damage

A new method for measuring the self-focusing parameters of transparent materials is reported. The technique consists of using lenses with different focal lengths to induce intrinsic bulk damage at low powers where catastrophic self-focusing is absent and then comparing the results to analytical calculations. Using this technique, the self-focusing parameters for sapphire are determined.
Consequences of hyperphosphatemia in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD)

Consequences of hyperphosphatemia in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Hyperphosphatemia is invariably present among patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and is becoming an increasingly important clinical entity. Despite concerted efforts by patients, dietitians, and nephrologists to control serum phosphorus, a recent study by Block et al found that more than 60% of patients on hemodialysis in the United States have serum phosphorus levels above the recommended goal of 5.5 mg/dL. Historically, nephrologists have been concerned about the central role of elevated serum phosphorus in the pathogenesis of secondary hyperparathyroidism and extraosseous calcification. However, the consequences of untreated hyperphosphatemia have assumed more importance in the last few years, largely due to recent clinical studies that revealed a more sinister role of elevated serum phosphorus in increasing the mortality risk among patients with ESRD. Hemodialysis patients with serum phosphorus greater than 6.5 mg/dL were reported to have a 27% higher mortality risk than patients with serum phosphorus between 2.4 and 6.5 mg/dL. The pathophysiologic mechanisms by which persistent hyperphosphatemia enhances the mortality risk in dialysis patients are not yet completely understood. However, given that inadequate control of serum phosphorus contributes to elevated calcium-phosphorus product (Ca × P), untreated hyperphosphatemia may play a key role in cardiovascular calcification. In response to these findings, the National Kidney Foundation Kidney Disease Outcome Quality Initiative (K/DOQI) Clinical Practice Guidelines for Bone Metabolism and Disease in Chronic Kidney Disease have recently recommended more stringent levels for controlling serum phosphorus and Ca × P product in order to improve patients' quality of life and longevity.
The use of Y2O3 coatings in preventing solid-state Si-base ceramic/metal reaction

The use of Y2O3 sputtered coatings on the order of 0.1 μm thick have been found to greatly reduce the degree of reaction between metals and Si-base ceramics. Even though the Y2O3 coating tends to become detached from the sputtered ceramic after one heating cycle, modifications in the surface chemistry of the ceramic continues to provide protection from further attack.
Synthesis and Thermoelectric Properties of “Nano-Engineered” CoSb3 Skutterudite Materials

Because of their good electrical transport properties, skutterudites have been widely studied as potential next-generation thermoelectric (TE) materials. One of the main obstacles to further improving their thermoelectric performance has been reducing their relatively high thermal conductivity. To some extent, this hindrance has been partially resolved by filling the voids found in the skutterudite structure with so-called “rattling” atoms. It has been predicted that reducing the dimensionality in a TE material would have a positive effect in enhancing its thermoelectric properties, for example increasing the thermopower and reducing the thermal conductivity. Introducing nanoparticles into the skutterudite materials could therefore have favorable effects on their electrical properties and should also reduce lattice thermal conductivity by introducing extra scattering centers throughout the sample. Nanoparticles may also be used in conjunction with void filling for further reduction of the thermal conductivity of skutterudites. Cobalt triantimonide (CoSb3) samples with different amounts of embedded nanoparticles have been grown, and the electrical and thermal transport properties for these composites have been measured from 10 K to 650 K. The synthetic techniques and electrical and thermal transport data are discussed in this paper.
Associative symmetry: VI. The effect of varying the interstimulus interval upon backward learning during classical conditioning

A subthreshold tone was paired with a light that followed. The interval between the offset of the tone and the onset of the light was varied over groups. There was no interstimulus interval for Group 1, a,5-sec interval for Group 2, and a 1.0-sec interval for Group 3. It was found that the subsequent presentation of the light alone elicited the experience of a very low tone in the first two groups, but not in the third. It was concluded that the hallucinatory tone resulted from a backward connection formed during training. In addition, the strength of backward learning varied as a function of the interstimulus interval, just as in forward conditioning.
Metabolism of [14C]photoisodrin in mice and houseflies

Abstract 1. 1. The metabolism of [14C]photoisodrin, a photoconversion product of the cyclodiene insecticide, isodrin, was studied in vivo and in vitro in male mice and houseflies. In male mice, about 10 and 80% of orally administered dose of photoisodrin was eliminated, respectively, in the urine and feces, in 4 days following the treatment. About 4% and 74% of the administered radioactivity, respectively, in urine and feces was extractable with organic solvents. The organic extracts contained, in addition to photoisodrin, 5 metabolites in the case of feces and only one in the case of urine. The organic extracts of the aqueous phase after acid hydrolysis showed 4 metabolites in feces and 3 in urine. 2. 2. All eleven tissues' samples obtained at autopsy, 4 days after treatment, showed a minimum of 0.02% of the administered dose. Higher concentrations of 14C-residues (0.67% of the administered dose) were found in fat followed by liver and then by other tissues. 3. 3. About 57% of the topically applied dose of [14C]photoisodrin could be recovered from flies and the container after 24 hr. The extracts of flies and their excreta showed the presence of three metabolites along with photoisodrin. 4. 4. The in vitro metabolism of [14C]photoisodrin by the microsomal mixed-function oxidase produced 5 and 1 organosoluble metabolites in the case of, respectively, mouse liver and housefly abdomens.
Effect of Body Temperature on Salicylate-lnduced Hyperventilation:

AbstractHyperventilation and hyperpyrexia occur simultaneously during acute salicylate intoxication. The present experiments were designed to investigate the stimulatory effect of increased body temperature on respiration in this pathological state. Acute salicylate intoxication was produced in mongrel dogs by intravenous infusion of 200 mg sodium salicylate/kg body weight, and the effect of body temperature on salicylate-induced hyperventilation was studied by comparing the respiration of hyperthermic animals with the respiration of animals maintained normothermic during acute salicylate intoxication by bathing them in cold water. The minute volume of ventilation increased greatly over control levels in both normothermic and hyperthermic animals, but this increment was much larger in hyperthermic animals. The increase in ventilation of normothermic animals can be explained as a rise in alveolar ventilation which results in hypocapnia despite large increases in carbon dioxide production and oxygen consump...
Symmetry breaking and generational mixing in top-color-assisted technicolor

Top-color-assisted technicolor provides a dynanamical explanation for electroweak and flavor symmetry breaking and for the large mass of the top quark without unnatural fine-tuning. A major challenge is to generate the observed mixing between heavy and light generations while breaking the strong top-color interactions near 1 TeV. I argue that these phenomena, as well as electroweak symmetry breaking, are intimately connected and I present a scenario for them based on nontrivial patterns of technifermion condensation. I also exhibit a class of models realizing this scenario. This picture leads to a rich phenomenology, especially in hadron and lepton collider experiments in the few hundred GeV to few TeV region and in precision electroweak tests at the ${Z}^{0}$, atomic parity violation, and polarized M\o{}ller scattering.
Transport of auxin (indoleacetic acid) through lipid bilayer membranes.

Diffusion of auxin (indole-3-acetic acid) through planar lipid bilayer membranes was studied as a function of pH and auxin concentration. Membranes were made of egg or soybean lecithin or phosphatidyl serine inn-decane (25–35 mg/ml). Tracer and electrical techniques were used to estimate the permeabilities to nonionized (HA) and ionized (A−) auxin. The auxin tracer flux is unstirred layer limited at low pH and membrane limited at high pH, i.e., when [A−]≫[HA]. The tracer flux is not affected by the transmembrane voltage and is much higher than the flux predicted from the membrane conductance. Thus, only nonionized auxin crosses the membrane at a significant rate. Auxin transport shows saturation kinetics, but this is due entirely to unstirred layer effects rather than to the existence of an auxin “carrier” in the membrane. A rapid interconversion of A− and HA at the membrane surface allows A− to “facilitate” the auxin flux through the unstirred layer. Thus, the total flux is higher than that expected for the simple diffusion of HA alone. The relation between flux (J A), concentrations and permeabilities is: 1/J A=1/P UL([A−]+[HA])+1/P HA M [HA]. By fitting this equation to our data we find thatP UL=6.9×10−4 cm/sec andP HA M =3.3×10−3 cm/sec for egg lecithin-decane bilayers. Similar membrane permeabilities were observed with phosphatidyl serine or soybean lipids. Thus, auxin permeability is not affected by a net surface charge on the membrane. Our model describing diffusion and reaction in the unstirred layers can explain the “anomolous” relationship between pH and weak acid (or weak base) uptake observed in many plant cells.
Dynamic analysis of torsional resonance mode of atomic force microscopy and its application to in-plane surface property extraction

In the torsional resonance (TR) mode of atomic force microscopy (AFM), the changes in the torsion-related dynamic characteristics of a tip–cantilever system due to in-plane (lateral) tip–sample interaction are used for surface property imaging. This paper investigates the fundamental dynamics of a tip–cantilever system when it is operated in TR mode, with or without tip–sample interaction. With the actual location of the tip on the cantilever taken into consideration, modal analysis is carried out to obtain the cantilever TR frequencies/mode shapes under linear elastic tip–sample interaction. The relations of lateral contact stiffness and viscosity to torsional amplitude/phase shift are established. A comprehensive understanding on the effects of lateral contact stiffness and viscosity, driving frequency, and tip location on the cantilever torsional amplitude/phase shift is achieved by parametric analysis. The basic methodology to extract in-plane surface properties in TR mode is described. This work will help in advancing the development and applications of the techniques and instruments using TR mode of AFM.
In situ optimization of the electrode geometry of the quadrupole ion trap

Abstract The performance of the quadrupole ion trap is affected by imperfections in the quadrupolar electric fields used to trap the ions. These effects can be compensated for by stretching the trap along its axis. A systematic investigation of the effects of stretching and compressing the z 0 dimension of the ion trap under operating conditions shows improvement in resolution and signal intensity if the z 0 dimension if the quadrupole ion trap is stretched by 9%, with respect to the value for the nominally pure quadrupolar trap. A plot of the relationship between the mass shift for the nitrobenzene molecular ion and z 0 is also presented. It shows that the shift drops to zero at the geometry at which the performance is optimized.
MRI of laser-induced interstitial thermal injury in an in vivo animal liver model with histologic correlation.

Laser-induced interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) is a preferred method of minimally invasive therapy. MRI is a noninvasive method by which to monitor the thermal effects of LITT. To properly control such effects, changes in MRI parameters during and after LITT should be correlated with changes in the tissue. T1-weighted fast spin echo (FSE) MRI (1 image/10 seconds) at 1.5 T monitored LITT in vivo in rabbit liver (n = 6) using an interstitial bare delivery fiber (600-microm diameter; 3.0 W; 1,064 nm; 150 seconds). During laser irradiation, MRI signal intensity decreased around the fiber tip; after irradiation, this hypointensity proved reversible and permanent lesions were evident. The lesions had hyperintense margins that were brighter than surrounding normal tissue (P < .001); the tissue in these bright regions was mapped to tissue necrosis characterized by the presence of thermally damaged ghost red blood cells amid generally normal hepatocytes. T1-FSE identified the spatial extent of the LITT lesions.
Generalized Lotka-Volterra equations and the mechanism of technological substitution

Abstract This paper demonstrates that if technological substitution is viewed as the result of competition between old and new technology in which new technology wins, and if generalized Lotka-Volterra equations are taken to describe this competition, then various models of technological substitution can be obtained as very special cases. It is argued that this could lead to a better understanding of the substitution process itself.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING IN INDIA: ISSUES AND INNOVATIONS. R. K. Agnihotri and A. L. Khanna (Eds.). New Delhi, India: Sage, 1995. Pp. 338. $42.00 cloth.

This collected volume on English language teaching (ELT) in India contains 22 articles written by Indian teachers and researchers. The book has been divided into six sections. The first section—“Problematizing ELT in India”—offers a critical, historical perspective along with innovative ideas for making English language learning and teaching meaningful and purposive in modern India. The second section—“Nature of ELT Materials”—demonstrates how the ELT materials used in Indian classrooms are not embedded in local needs and indigenous contexts. The section emphasizes the importance of developing instructional materials that not only make use of the rich linguistic and cultural resources available in India but also promote effective communication skills among the learners. The third section—“Learner Profiles”—provides interesting insights into the needs, wants, and lacks of Indian learners of English. This section shows how the instruments of needs analysis developed in monocultural and monolingual settings are inadequate for assessing the needs and wants of learners in multilingual and multicultural India. The fourth section—“Classroom Issues”—focuses on certain central issues affecting teaching and learning in the classroom context, particularly the role of native language knowledge and skills that Indian learners bring with them. The fifth section—“Course Evaluation and Teacher Development”—suggests ideas for making teacher education responsive to the changing roles and responsibilities of language teachers. The sixth and final section—“Curriculum Change”—deals with the principles and procedures for curricular changes that are in tune with the evolving knowledge about learning and teaching and the increasing desire for learner control of the process of materials development and evaluation.
Hormone receptor status of a contralateral breast cancer is independent of the receptor status of the first primary in patients not receiving adjuvant tamoxifen.

Purpose To determine whether the hormone receptor status of the primary breast cancer (PBC) is predictive of the hormone receptor status of the subsequent contralateral breast cancer (CBC). Patients and Methods We identified patients in our database with known estrogen receptor (ER; n = 193) and/or progesterone receptor (PgR; n = 178) status in their PBC and in their subsequent CBC. One hundred twenty-six of these patients had received no adjuvant therapy, 34 had received adjuvant tamoxifen, and 33 had received adjuvant chemotherapy alone. The median interval between the first diagnosis of PBC and the development of the subsequent CBC was 3 years. ER and PgR assays were assessed biochemically in two central reference laboratories using identical quality-controlled ligand-binding methods. Results Among systemically untreated patients (n = 126), 88% of patients with ER-positive PBC and 75% of patients with ER-negative PBC developed an ER-positive CBC (P = .11). Among the tamoxifen-treated patients, those wi...
Calcium-Permeable AMPA Receptor Plasticity Is Mediated by Subunit-Specific Interactions with PICK1 and NSF

A recently described form of synaptic plasticity results in dynamic changes in the calcium permeability of synaptic AMPA receptors. Since the AMPA receptor GluR2 subunit confers calcium permeability, this plasticity is thought to occur through the dynamic exchange of synaptic GluR2-lacking and GluR2-containing receptors. To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying this calcium-permeable AMPA receptor plasticity (CARP), we examined whether AMPA receptor exchange was mediated by subunit-specific protein-protein interactions. We found that two GluR2-interacting proteins, the PDZ domain-containing Protein interacting with C kinase (PICK1) and N-ethylmaleimide sensitive fusion protein (NSF), are specifically required for CARP. Furthermore, PICK1, but not NSF, regulates the formation of extrasynaptic plasma membrane pools of GluR2-containing receptors that may be laterally mobilized into synapses during CARP. These results demonstrate that PICK1 and NSF dynamically regulate the synaptic delivery of GluR2-containing receptors during CARP and thus regulate the calcium permeability of AMPA receptors at excitatory synapses.
ENTRE ESTADO Y SOCIEDAD CIVIL: HISTORIA Y MILITANCIA EN LA CRÓNICA Y EL POLICIAL MEXICANOS, 1968-1988

--Copyright Information: All rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. Contact the author or original publisher for any necessary permissions. eScholarship is not the copyright owner for deposited works. Learn more at http://www.escholarship.org/help_copyright.html#reuse TEXTOS HIBRIDOS Vol. 2, No. 2 (diciembre 2012) 31 ENTRE ESTADO Y SOCIEDAD CIVIL: HISTORIA Y MILITANCIA EN LA CRONICA Y EL POLICIAL MEXICANOS, 1968-1988
Dissipative Selection of Low-Frequency Modes in a Reduced-Gravity Basin

The spectrum of linear free modes of a reduced-gravity ocean in a closed basin with weak dissipation is examined. The constraint of total mass conservation, which in the quasigeostrophic formulation determines the pressure on the boundary as a function of time, allows the existence of selected large-scale, low-frequency basin modes that are very weakly damped in the presence of dissipation. These weakly damped modes can be quasi-resonantly excited by time-dependent forcing near the eigenperiods, or during the process of adjustment to Sverdrup balance with a steady wind from arbitrary initial conditions. In both cases the frequency of the oscillations is a multiple of 2 p /t 0, where t 0 is the long Rossby wave transit time, which is of the order of decades for midlatitude, large-scale basins. These oscillatory modes are missed when the global mass conservation constraint is overlooked.