cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
355 DETERMINANTS OF ORDERING SERUM PROLACTIN AND ITS UTILITY IN PATIENTS WITH SEIZURES AND PSEUDOSEIZURES.

Background Prolactin, a neurohormone, is released at the onset of seizures, peaking within 15 to 20 minutes, and declines to baseline levels within an hour. Prolactin usually fails to rise significantly following pseudoseizures and therefore can be used to differentiate between seizures and pseudoseizures. In an emergency room study the sensitivity of prolactin in diagnosing seizures was 42% and specificity was 82%. Purpose and Hypothesis To study the prevalence and patient and physician factors associated with the ordering of serum prolactin. These determinants influencing the ordering of prolactin in seizure/pseudoseizure patients have not been studied. We hypothesized that serum prolactin will be ordered more frequently on resident patients compared to other physicians. Patients with a past history of seizures and substance abuse will be less likely to have serum prolactin ordered. Methods Retrospective chart review of patients 18 years and older presenting with admitting diagnosis of seizures/pseudoseizures for a period of 6 months. Statistical analyses were done to determine the prevalence and timing of ordering prolactin, sensitivity and specificity of prolactin, physician and patient characteristics in ordering prolactin. Prolactin > 20 ng/mL at 90 minutes postictally was considered positive. Results Of the 395 patients admitted with diagnosis of seizures/pseudoseizures, 38 had serum prolactins ordered. The prevalence of ordering prolactin was 96.20 cases/1,000. Among these, 47% had prolactin drawn within 90 minutes. Emergency physicians ordered most prolactin levels, 68.42%. Sixty percent of patients had a past history of seizure, 58% a history of substance abuse, 53% had a history of psychiatric disorder, and 21% were on antipsychotic medications. The sensitivity and specificity of elevated prolactin obtained within 90 minutes for seizures were 38.46% and 80%, respectively. The sensitivity of normal prolactin in diagnosing pseudoseizures was 80%. Conclusion In our study emergency room physicians ordered most prolactins. The high sensitivity of normal prolactin in patients with pseudoseizures emphasizes its utility in diagnosing patients presenting with possible diagnosis of pseudoseizures. We propose that serum prolactin levels should be a part of basic seizure investigation protocol. Obtaining serum prolactin levels is easy, affordable, and available widely and is useful as a diagnostic tool when obtained within a short time following seizure.
The Other Side of Inequality: Using Standpoint Theories to Examine the Privilege of the Evaluation Profession and Individual Evaluators:

Social justice evaluation approaches advance antioppressive and culturally responsive methods to mitigate societal inequalities. However, social justice efforts will fall short if they focus solely...
Area-selective atomic layer deposition of dielectric-on-dielectric for Cu/low-k dielectric patterns

Area-selective atomic layer deposition (AS-ALD) has received a great deal of attention in recent years because of its potential to provide a more robust and controllable fabrication process for next generation electronic devices. In this paper, we study selective deposition of metal oxides on Cu/low-k dielectric patterns. We demonstrate that the inherent growth rate of ALD films is higher on Cu than on low-k surfaces, which indicates the importance of using organic molecules as an inhibitor to prevent ALD growth on Cu surfaces if the goal is to achieve area-selective deposition of materials on lowk surfaces. We show that vapor-phase dodecanethiol (DDT) can be used as an inhibitor. DDT is selectively deposited on Cu surfaces and is effective at ZnO ALD blocking with selectivity greater than 90% after 100 ALD cycles (~17 nm). With the optimization of DDT deposition temperature and Al2O3 deposition conditions, the blocking ability of DDT against a more aggressive precursor is further improved and shows selectivity above 90% after 1.5 nm Al2O3 deposition.
Environmental Gradients and Overlapping Ranges of Dominant Coastal Wetland Plants in Weeks Bay, AL

Predicted changes in sea level and other environmental conditions may threaten the marginal occupancy of coastal wetlands. In a field survey conducted in Weeks Bay, AL, we investigated intertidal wetland plant zonation along environmental gradients. The results of this survey may have implications for coastal wetland resilience both locally and across the Northern Gulf of Mexico as changing environmental conditions exceed plant community tolerances, resulting in “coastal squeeze” phenomena. Within the coastal marsh transition of Weeks Bay, there was heterogeneous micro-topography with a large overlap of plant distributions along the elevation gradient (-0.474–0.661m NAVD 88). In addition to elevation, salinity was a primary indicator of plant zonation for the dominant species in the area: Spartina cynosuroides (Big Cordgrass), Juncus roemerianus (Black Needlerush), and Cladium mariscus ssp. jamaicense (Swamp Sawgrass). Based on our findings, the persistence of these plants in the intertidal zone of Weeks Bay may be especially susceptible to changes in flooding and salinity associated with sea-level rise and the presence of barriers to upslope migration.
Coupled chemical-isotope assessment of potential metal releases to the water column from river sediments impacted by coal ash spill

Abstract In December 2008, the Kingston coal ash spill led to contamination of the Emory, Clinch, and Tennessee rivers with toxic metals and metalloids (e.g., arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury, vanadium). At present, it is unclear whether the surface waters are impacted by releases from the coal ash residing in the bottom river sediments. Therefore, in April 2016 we collected new samples from several depths of the water column (0, 4, 6, 10 m) from seven impacted and three non-impacted sites along these river systems. The sampled water was analyzed for trace metal and metalloid concentrations and carbon-sulfur-hydrogen-oxygen (C-S-H-O) isotope compositions. The obtained results show that most trace metals and metalloids were below detection limit in the water column (
Water Quality for Decentralized Use of Non-potable Water Sources

Pressures on water resources continue to rise with increasing population and diminishing local freshwater supplies. Use of locally available water sources can increase reliability and resilience of water supplies, particularly in areas prone to drought. Examples of local water supplies include roof runoff, stormwater, graywater, and treated wastewater. Conventionally, municipalities withdraw water from freshwater sources, treat that water to potable quality to meet urban water demand, and then treat and discharge wastewater. This approach results in substantial use of energy and consumables. Water is essentially imported and exported from local areas. An alternative is to use locally available water sources. This practice is gaining interest as an approach to minimize the import and export of water ensure reliable water sources, increase water supply resiliency, and promote energy efficiency. Local water sources are often supplied via decentralized water systems.
Enhancing Plasticity in Central Networks Improves Motor and Sensory Recovery after Nerve Damage

Nerve damage can cause chronic, debilitating problems including loss of motor control and paresthesia, and generates maladaptive neuroplasticity as central networks attempt to compensate for the loss of peripheral connectivity. However, it remains unclear if this is a critical feature responsible for the expression of symptoms. Here, we use brief bursts of closed-loop vagus nerve stimulation (CL-VNS) delivered during rehabilitation to reverse the aberrant central plasticity resulting from forelimb nerve transection. CL-VNS therapy drives extensive synaptic reorganization in central networks paralleled by improved sensorimotor recovery without any observable changes in the nerve or muscle. Depleting cortical acetylcholine blocks the plasticity-enhancing effects of CL-VNS and consequently eliminates recovery, indicating a critical role for brain circuits in recovery. These findings demonstrate that manipulations to enhance central plasticity can improve sensorimotor recovery and define CL-VNS as a readily translatable therapy to restore function after nerve damage.
ONYCHOMYCOSIS: A Review of New and Emerging Topical and Device-based Treatments

Onychomycosis is a challenging nail condition to treat. The gold standard treatment relies on long-term systemic therapy, which carries risks of potential side effects and drug interactions. Topical alternatives exist; however, treatment outcomes remain disappointing. In this article, we review newer topical formulations that are approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, as well as other topical drugs that are still undergoing clinical trials. Lasers and energy-based devices have also been used for the treatment of onychomycosis; however, standardized parameters and clear treatment endpoints have yet to be specified. Currently, device-based therapies are considered as options for improving the cosmetic appearance of nails. The use of lasers to improve the penetration of topical antifungal treatments as possible combination treatments is also reviewed.
Introduction to this special issue: Modeling and understanding the spread of COVID-19: (part I)

The spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected all of us. Across the globe researchers investigate how to model and understand the spread of COVID-19, to inform and educate about the science of virus transmission and prevention, and to encourage the development of processes and actions to address this global challenge. For this purpose, the SIGSPATIAL community is in a unique position, given our experience in managing, modeling, querying, and mining spatial and spatio-temporal data for nearly three decades. Many new research projects related to COVID-19 have been started in the last months, supported, for example, by NSF, NSERC Canada, and the German DFG, and new COVID-19 funding opportunities are emerging almost daily.
(p)ppGpp and c-di-AMP Homeostasis Is Controlled by CbpB in Listeria monocytogenes.

The facultative intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes, like many related Firmicutes, uses the nucleotide second messenger cyclic di-AMP (c-di-AMP) to adapt to changes in nutrient availability, osmotic stress, and the presence of cell wall-acting antibiotics. In rich medium, c-di-AMP is essential; however, mutations in cbpB, the gene encoding c-di-AMP binding protein B, suppress essentiality. In this study, we identified that the reason for cbpB-dependent essentiality is through induction of the stringent response by RelA. RelA is a bifunctional RelA/SpoT homolog (RSH) that modulates levels of (p)ppGpp, a secondary messenger that orchestrates the stringent response through multiple allosteric interactions. We performed a forward genetic suppressor screen on bacteria lacking c-di-AMP to identify genomic mutations that rescued growth while cbpB was constitutively expressed and identified mutations in the synthetase domain of RelA. The synthetase domain of RelA was also identified as an interacting partner of CbpB in a yeast-2-hybrid screen. Biochemical analyses confirmed that free CbpB activates RelA while c-di-AMP inhibits its activation. We solved the crystal structure of CbpB bound and unbound to c-di-AMP and provide insight into the region important for c-di-AMP binding and RelA activation. The results of this study show that CbpB completes a homeostatic regulatory circuit between c-di-AMP and (p)ppGpp in Listeria monocytogenes IMPORTANCE Bacteria must efficiently maintain homeostasis of essential molecules to survive in the environment. We found that the levels of c-di-AMP and (p)ppGpp, two nucleotide second messengers that are highly conserved throughout the microbial world, coexist in a homeostatic loop in the facultative intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes Here, we found that cyclic di-AMP binding protein B (CbpB) acts as a c-di-AMP sensor that promotes the synthesis of (p)ppGpp by binding to RelA when c-di-AMP levels are low. Addition of c-di-AMP prevented RelA activation by binding and sequestering CbpB. Previous studies showed that (p)ppGpp binds and inhibits c-di-AMP phosphodiesterases, resulting in an increase in c-di-AMP. This pathway is controlled via direct enzymatic regulation and indicates an additional mechanism of ribosome-independent stringent activation.
First year status and performance of the POLARBEAR-2a cosmic microwave background instrument

POLARBEAR-2a (PB-2a) is the first of three telescopes comprising the Simons Array, a cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization observatory sensitive over a wide range of wavelengths and angular scales. The Simons Array will have a broad science reach, including primordial gravitational wave background searches and neutrino physics constraints. PB-2a, which began observing from northern Chile in 2018, has enabled many of the technologies necessary for the full operation of the Simons Array. Here, we describe the first year on-sky characterization and operation of PB-2a along with recent upgrades which improve upon the sensitivity, stability, and operability of the detector array.
On Adversarial Robustness of 3D Point Cloud Classification under Adaptive Attacks

3D point clouds play pivotal roles in various safety-critical applications, such as autonomous driving, which desires the underlying deep neural networks to be robust to adversarial perturbations. Though a few defenses against adversarial point cloud classification have been proposed, it remains unknown whether they are truly robust to adaptive attacks. To this end, we perform the first security analysis of state-of-the-art defenses and design adaptive evaluations on them. Our 100% adaptive attack success rates show that current countermeasures are still vulnerable. Since adversarial training (AT) is believed as the most robust defense, we present the first in-depth study showing how AT behaves in point cloud classification and identify that the required symmetric function (pooling operation) is paramount to the 3D model's robustness under AT. Through our systematic analysis, we find that the default-used fixed pooling (e.g., MAX pooling) generally weakens AT's effectiveness in point cloud classification. Interestingly, we further discover that sorting-based parametric pooling can significantly improve the models' robustness. Based on above insights, we propose DeepSym, a deep symmetric pooling operation, to architecturally advance the robustness to 47.0% under AT without sacrificing nominal accuracy, outperforming the original design and a strong baseline by 28.5% ($\sim 2.6 \times$) and 6.5%, respectively, in PointNet.
Examination of the global regulon of CsrA in Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri using quantitative proteomics and other approaches

The RNA-binding protein CsrA is a global posttranscriptional regulator and controls many physiological processes and virulence traits. Deletion of csrA caused loss of virulence, reduced motility an...
Prophecy, Polemics, and Spiritual Exegesis: Interpretive Warrants for Ruptures in American Anglicanism

Spiritual exegesis of Hebrew Bible texts fuels the divide between two ecclesial instantiations of Anglicanism in the United States. This exegesis, engaged in strikingly similar manners by both orga...
Ads Keyword Rewriting Using Search Engine Results

Paid Search (PS) ads are one of the main revenue sources of online advertising companies where the goal is returning a set of relevant ads for a searched query in search engine websites such as Bing. Typical PS algorithms, return the ads which their Bided Keywords (BKs) are a subset of searched queries or relevant to them. However, there is a huge gap between BKs and searched queries as a considerable amount of BKs are rarely searched by the users. This is mostly due to the rare BKs provided by advertisers. In this paper, we propose an approach to rewrite the rare BKs to more commonly searched keywords, without compromising the original BKs intent, which increases the coverage and depth of PS ads and thus it delivers higher monetization power. In general, we first find the relevant web documents pertaining to the BKs and then extract common keywords using the web doc title and its summary snippets. Experimental results show the effectiveness of proposed algorithm in rewriting rare BKs and consequently providing us with a significant improvement in recall and thereby revenue.
The Aggressive Phenotype Revisited: Utilization of Higher‐Risk Liver Allografts

Organ shortage has led to increased utilization of higher risk liver allografts. In kidneys, aggressive center-level use of one type of higher risk graft clustered with aggressive use of other types. In this study, we explored center-level behavior in liver utilization. We aggregated national liver transplant recipient data between 2005 and 2009 to the center-level, assigning each center an aggressiveness score based on relative utilization of higher risk livers. Aggressive centers had significantly more patients reaching high MELDs (RR 2.19, 2.33 and 2.28 for number of patients reaching MELD>20, MELD>25 and MELD>30, p 20, MELD>25 and MELD>30 divided by number of organs recovered at the OPO, p<0.04), and were clustered within various geographic regions, particularly regions 2, 3 and 9. Median MELD at transplant was similar between aggressive and nonaggressive centers, but average annual transplant volume was significantly higher at aggressive centers (RR 2.27, 95% CI 1.47-3.51, p<0.001). In cluster analysis, there were no obvious phenotypic patterns among centers with intermediate levels of aggressiveness. In conclusion, highwaitlist disease severity, geographic differences in organ availability, and transplant volume are the main factors associated with the aggressive utilization of higher risk livers.
Alkaloid studies—XX : Isolation and structure of two new cactus alkaloids piloceredine and lophocerine

Abstract A detailed examination of the alkaloids of the cactus Lophocereus Schottii has resulted in the isolation of two new alkaloids, piloceredine and lophocerine in addition to the previously described pilocereine; quaternary alkaoloids were not encountered. Piloceredine (C30H44N2O4) was shown to be diastereoisomeric with pilocereine and potassium-liquid ammonia cleavage of its methyl and ethers yielded the same cleavage products as the corresponding derivatives of pilocereine. Lophocerine was obtained in impure form from the phenolic alkaloid fraction and is assigned the structure 1-isobutyl-2-methyl-6-methoxy-7-hydroxy-1,2,3,4,-tetrahydroisoquinoline since upon methylation it afforded the known 1-isobutyl-2-methyl-6,7-dimethoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline. Lophocerine appears to be the biogenetic precursor of pilocereine and piloceredine.
Effect of repeated reproductive cycles on pregnancy outcome in ad libitum-fed and chronically food-restricted rats.

To evaluate the combined effects of re peated, closely spaced reproductive cycles and dietary in take on maternal nutritional status and pregnancy out come, rats were fed ad libitum or 75 or 60% of ad libitum intake. Dietary treatment began 28 d before breeding and continued through two reproductive cycles. Underfed rats gained less weight during pregnancy and had fewer and lighter pups at parturition. During the third week of the first lactation and between weaning and the second conception, underfed rats gainedweight, whereasthe controls lost weight. Underfed dams gained more weight in the second preg nancy and retained more weight than in the first pregnancy. Dams and pups in all groups were larger at the second parturition. The results indicate that net weight gain both during pregnancy and between reproductive cycles con tributed to the ability of underfed dams to produce larger young at the second birth. J. Nutr. 117: 1959-1966, 1987.
The Long-Run Weight of Communism or the Weight of Long-Run History?

If one were to have made predictions in 1912 about the outlook for Russia, Central Europe and China in 2012, what plausible scenarios could one imagine? Surprisingly, one can well imagine scenarios that are very close to what we are observing today. Prediction is often nothing less than an extrapolation from the past. Russia was modernizing economically but was remaining politically very autocratic. Central Europe was economically very prosperous and well integrated into Western Europe but was experiencing nationalistic tensions. China was waking up from its torpor and opening up to the out-side world, searching for modern institutions capable of unifying it, in all likelihood via a unified military command. A hundred years later, some of the trends one could observe in the early twentieth century can still be observed today. The remarkable thing is that during this century, these different regions of the world have all undergone several decades of living under a communist regime, which had mostly not been predicted in 1912. Seen in the very long term, it would seem, however, that these decades of communism have not left a great influence on the long-run trends one observes in these regions of the world. Was the communist experience, in the very long term, nothing more than a minor historical blip in the long-run evolution of these countries?1
Microelements preparations obtained during processing of natural flint affect the physiology and biochemistry of bifidobacteria

Microelement preparations obtained in the course of processing flint powder stimulate the biological activity of Bifidobacterium adolescentis94-BIM grown on complex and synthetic nutritive media. The composition of the microelement preparations differed in the content of cations and anions. Introduction of the preparations into cultures of physiologically active or anabiotic forms of bifidobacteria changed the parameters of exponential growth: compared to the controls, the cultures were characterized by an increased specific growth rate and a decreased generation time. In the presence of microelements, the development of populations of bifidobacteria was associated with a more pronounced accumulation of metabolic products (acetate, lactate, and ethanol). Introduction of microelement preparations increased the rate of synthesis of the extracellular proteinase (the maximum content of the enzyme was observed after 3 h, whereas control cultures attained this level only after 6 h).
A numerical study of the effects of realistic GPR antennas on the scattering characteristics from unexploded ordnances

The detection and classification of unexploded ordnances (UXOs) is a difficult task, and it is even further complicated by the fact that the ground penetrating radar (GPR) antenna can significantly distort the scattering signal from the UXO. We consider the model of the real antenna which will be used in the numerical study of scattering from UXOs. We consider a rigorous finite difference time domain (FDTD) model of a fully polarimetric horn-fed bowtie (HFB) antenna and study how various modifications of the parameters of the antenna can affect it performance.
Using Modechart modules for testing formal specifications

Automated model-checking of formal specifications for real-time systems has remained an elusive goal due to the state-space explosion problem. This paper describes an approach to testing formal specifications using automatically generated testing modules. This technique preserves many of the advantages of using formal specifications while mitigating the state-space explosion problem by focusing state-space exploration to a subset determined by the test. Because the testing modules are defined in the same formalism as the specification, the semantics of the test are precisely defined. Moreover, existing model-checking tools can be leveraged to perform the testing. Finally, this approach reduces evaluation of a potential complex assertion to a simple reachability condition in the tested specification's state space.
Docosahexaenoic Acid Inhibits Adipocyte Differentiation and Induces Apoptosis in 3T3-L1 Preadipocytes

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22:6), a (n-3) fatty acid in fish oil, has been shown to decrease body fat and fat accumulation in rodents. We investigated the direct effect of DHA on cell growth, differentiation, apoptosis, and lipolysis using 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Cells were treated with 25-200 mumol/L DHA containing 0.2 mmol/L alpha-tocopherol or bovine serum albumin vehicle as a control. Proliferation of preconfluent preadipocytes was not affected by the DHA treatment. When added to postconfluent preadipocytes, all concentrations of DHA inhibited differentiation-associated mitotic clonal expansion (P < 0.01). Postconfluent preadipocytes demonstrated apoptosis after 48 h with 100 mumol/L DHA and after 24 and 48 h with 200 mumol/L DHA (P < 0.01). Differentiation was examined by Oil Red O staining and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) activity after DHA treatment for 6 d. DHA decreased mean droplet size and percent lipid area in a dose-dependent manner (P < 0.01). GPDH activity was also decreased by DHA treatment (P < 0.01). In fully differentiated adipocytes, DHA increased basal lipolysis compared with the control (P < 0.01). These results demonstrate that DHA may exert its antiobesity effect by inhibiting differentiation to adipocytes, inducing apoptosis in postconfluent preadipocytes and promoting lipolysis.
Interim acrylic resin duplicate removable partial dentures

Certain dental procedures require patients to be without their removable partial dentures. This can be a great inconvenience and psychologically difficult for some patients. This procedure permits duplicating existing removable partial dentures so that patients will not have to be without prostheses.
High School Athletes and Marijuana Use

Identifying groups of young people that might be especially susceptible to marijuana use would aid in the design and implementation of drug policy programs. This article examines whether those who participated in high school athletics have a different pattern of marijuana use than comparable non-athletes. The results indicate that male athletes have a higher incidence of marijuana use than non-athletes. The same is not true for female athletes, who actually engage in less marijuana use than their non-athlete counterparts. However, female athletes are more likely than non-athletes to wait until their post-high school years to try the drug for the first time.
Interface wavelength between supersonic jets and subsonic flowfields

A linearized, potential flow solution for freejet, axisymmetric, and two-dimensional flows has been developed based upon a strained coordinate extension to Pack's slipline perturbation solution
ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID ANTIBODIES AS A CAUSE OF RENAL ALLOGRAFT LOSS. • 2174

Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome is a thrombophilic disorder in which both venous and/or arterial thromboses may occur in the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). Renal allograft thrombosis remains a leading cause of allograft loss in the pediatric transplant population. We assessed the prevalence of aPL in pediatric patients with a history of thrombotic events including allograft loss due to thrombosis.
Two-year toxicity and carcinogenicity study of methyleugenol in F344/N rats and B6C3F1 mice.

Methyleugenol (MEG) was tested for toxicity/carcinogenicity in a 2-yr carcinogenesis bioassay because of its widespread use in a variety of foods, beverages, and cosmetics as well as its structural resemblance to the known carcinogen safrole. F344/N rats and B6C3F(1) mice (50 animals/sex/dose group) were given MEG suspended in 0.5% methylcellulose by gavage at doses of 37, 75, or 150 mg/kg/day for 2 yr. Control groups (60 rats/sex and 50 mice/sex) received only the vehicle. A stop-exposure group of 60 rats/sex received 300 mg/kg/day by gavage for 53 weeks followed by the vehicle only for the remaining 52 weeks of the study. A special study group (10 animals/sex/species/dose group) were used for toxicokinetic studies. All male rats given 150 and 300 mg/kg/day died before the end of the study; survival of female rats given 150 mg/kg/day and all treated female mice was decreased. Mean body weights of treated male and female rats and mice were decreased when compared to control. Area under the curve results indicated that greater than dose proportional increases in plasma MEG occurred for male 150 and 300 mg/kg/day group rats (6 and 12 month) and male 150 mg/kg/day mice (12 month). Target organs included the liver, glandular stomach, forestomach (female rats) and kidney, mammary gland, and subcutaneous tissue (male rats). Liver neoplasms occurred in all dose groups of rats and mice and included hepatoadenoma, hepatocarcinoma, hepatocholangioma (rats only), hepatocholangiocarcinoma, and hepatoblastoma (mice only). Nonneoplastic liver lesions included eosinophilic and mixed cell foci (rats only), hypertrophy, oval cell hyperplasia, cystic degeneration (rats only), and bile duct hyperplasia. Mice also exhibited necrosis, hematopoietic cell proliferation, and hemosiderin pigmentation. Glandular stomach lesions in rats and mice included benign and malignant neuroendocrine tumors, neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia, and atrophy and in mice included glandular ectasia/chronic active inflammation. In female rats, the forestomach showed a positive trend in the incidences of squamous cell papilloma or carcinoma (combined). Male rats also exhibited kidney (renal tubule hyperplasia, nephropathy, and adenomacarcinoma), mammary gland (fibroadenoma), and subcutaneous tissue (fibroma, fibrosarcoma) lesions. Male rats also exhibited malignant mesotheliomas and splenic fibrosis. These data demonstrate that MEG is a multisite, multispecies carcinogen.
Differential testicular responses to short daylength in deer mice are reflected by regional and morphological differences in the GnRH neuronal system.

Abstract Male deer mice ( Peromyscus maniculatus ) respond to short photoperiod with a range of spermatogenic responses. About one-third of all short day exposed mice exhibit a complete cessation of spermatogenesis (reproductive responsive), while about an equal number remain reproductively competent (reproductive nonresponsive). These differential spermatogenic responses are mirrored by endocrine measures; reproductive responsive males exhibit reduced circulating levels of testosterone and luteinizing hormone, while reproductive nonresponsive males exhibit long day levels of both hormones. A variety of evidence indicates that despite individual differences in reproductive responses, all short day exposed mice detect and respond to the change in photoperiod at the level of the hypothalamus, irrespective of gonadal response. We investigated whether deer mice exhibiting disparate gonadal responses to short days differed in aspects of the GnRH neuronal system, as revealed by immunocytochemistry. Reproductively mature males were maintained on either long (16L:8D) or short (8L:16D) photoperiod for 8 weeks. Thereafter, regional and morphological differences in GnRH-containing neurons were compared among long day ( n = 8) and short day reproductive responsive ( n = 8) and nonresponsive ( n = 8) deer mice. Results demonstrate both an effect of photoperiod and reproductive state on the number, location and morphology of immunoreactive-GnRH neurons. Short days caused immunoreactive GnRH cell number to increase in both short day phenotypes relative to long day mice. Significant differences among treatment groups in the numbers of cells per region were confined to the lateral hypothalamus and lateral preoptic area. Both short day phenotypes exhibited an increase in cell number in the lateral preoptic area, compared to long day mice. However, only reproductive responsive mice exhibited an increase in cell number in the lateral hypothalamus. We also noted a strong correlation between the numbers of unipolar and bipolar neurons and reproductive response to short days. Both phenotypes exhibited a nearly identical increase in total numbers of immunoreactive unipolar neurons, compared to long day mice. Reproductive responsive males exhibited an additional increase in numbers of bipolar neurons, compared to the other treatment groups. Neuron morphology was also affected by short daylength: (1) mean soma area was larger among responsive mice than that of nonresponsive or long day housed males and (2) neurons of both short day phenotypes were less densely stained. These findings show both an affect of short day exposure and of gonadal state on the number, location and morphology of immunoreactive-GnRH neurons. Furthermore, results indicate that all short day housee deer mice exhibit adjustments in the GnRH neuronal system despite individual differences in gonadal response.
The Effects of Spousal Health on the Decision to Smoke: Evidence on Consumption Externalities, Altruism and Learning Within the Household

Married individuals are healthier than single individuals though the reasons are not well understood. Individuals with spouses/or partners are less likely to smoke. We explore the relationship between health and marital status by analyzing three potential channels through which marriage affects smoking, i.e., consumption externalities (one spouse's smoking affects the other spouse's welfare), altruism (one spouse reduces smoking in response to the other spouse's bad health), and learning about risks of smoking from the health experience of one's spouse. We find spousal health does not affect smoking due to altruism or learning within the household but do find evidence for consumption externalities.
A nucleotide change in the anticodon of an Escherichia coli serine transfer RNA results In supD– amber suppression

The tRNAs specified by the wild type and amber suppressor alleles of the Escherichia coli supD gene have been identified, and their primary structures determined. The sequences differ by a single nucleotide in the middle of the anticodon. A CUA anticodon allows the suppressor tRNA to read the UAG stop codon; the CGA anticodon in the minor serine tRNA species from which the suppressor is derived is specific for the serine codon UCG.
On approximations for two classes of Poisson mixtures

We investigate two related classes of Poisson mixtures which comprise exponential dispersion models. The first one is constructed starting from a law related to Bachelier's work. Certain members of this model emerge in the gambler's ruin problem. The other model is comprised of the distributions employed by Sichel and others for fitting diverse count data. We identify the unit variance function for the former model. The second-order local approximations for both the models, which involve inverse Gaussian laws, are constructed. Our techniques include Poisson mixtures, Laplace's method, and the Esscher transforms.
13C CHEMICAL SHIFT TENSOR OF THE ISOPROPYL CATION

A characteristic common to all carbenium shift calculations reported thus far is that they have discussed only the isotropic chemical shift which is observable in solution. We have recently reported measurements of the principal components. {delta}{sub 11}, {delta}{sub 22}, and {delta}{sub 33}, of the {sup 13}C shift tensors for various carbenium ions synthesized on solid acids including zeolites and metal halide powders. As demonstrated by the work of Facelli and Grant, agreement between calculated and experimental values of all three principal components is a more stringent test of methodology than agreement of the averages. We investigated the sensitivity of the shift calculations to reasonable variations in bond distances and angles and found no remarkable sensitivity. At the suggestion of a referee, we also considered pyramidalization of the cation. We optimized the structure of its water adduct (i.e., protonated 2-propanol) at Mp2/6-311+G{sup **}, froze the geometry, and removed H{sub 2}O. The isotropic {sup 13}C shift of the pyramidally distorted center so generated was 431 ppm. We therefore investigated possibilities other than relaxation of the geometry. The principal components of a heteroatom-substituted secondary cation were recently reported. In this communication we have reported the first such measurement for a nonsubstituted secondary carbeniummore » ion. 24 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.« less
Molecular addition compounds. 16. New, highly reactive borane adducts with N,N-dialkyl-tert-alkylamines for hydroboration

Several N,N-diethyl-tert-alkylamines, such as N,N-diethyl-2-methyl-2-butylamine (1, t-PentNEt2), N,N-diethyl-2,3-dimethyl-2-butylamine (2, t-HexNEt2), N,N-diethyl-2,3,3-trimethyl-2-butylamine (3, t-HeptNEt2), and N,N-diethyl-1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutylamine (4, t-OctNEt2) with varying steric bulk around nitrogen (by changing the tert-alkyl group) have been prepared and examined as borane carriers. The complexing ability of these N,N-diethyl-tert-alkylamines with borane decreases in the order: t-BuNEt2 > t-PentNEt2 > t-HeptNEt2 > t-HexNEt2 ≥ t-OctNEt2. From these preliminary studies, the more promising tert-octyldialkylamines were selected for detailed studies. The optimum steric bulk around the nitrogen atom was established by comparing various tert-octyldialkylamines containing variable steric requirements for both the alkyl groups. The complexing ability of these amines with borane decreases in the order shown: t-OctNMe2 (5) > t-OctNEtMe (6) > t-OctN(CH2CH2)2O (7) > t-OctNEt2 (4) > t-OctNBuiMe (8) > t-Oc...
Release of adenosine triphosphate from isolated adult heart cells in response to hypoxia.

1. Adult rat heart cells were isolated enzymically and ATP was identified in the cell suspension using the firefly luminescence technique. Adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP) was not detected from cell suspensions obtained from hearts which had been left asystolic for 10 min. 2. It was found that ATP 0·34 ± 0·22 μ M/mg protein was released by cells kept in an oxygenated condition, while ATP 1·28 ± 0·41 μ M/mg protein was initially released by cells made hypoxic. 3. Addition of Ca2+ in a concentration of 2 m M caused cells to initially extrude ATP 0·40 ± 0·14 μ M/mg protein. This was attributed to an inotropic effect. 4. Extracellular ATPase activity in the fluid suspension was partially characterized, giving a Km of 13 μ M and a V/2 of hydrolysed ATP 18·3 μ M/min at 37° C. Q10 was found to be 4 between 25 and 37° C. Enzyme activity remained unaffected by either hypoxic conditions or ouabain. 5. If these amounts of ATP are released from myocardial cells rendered hypoxic in vivo, then it must be concluded that ATP plays a principal role in the local control of myocardial blood flow. 6. It is proposed that release of ATP occurs through the sarcolemma from an intracellular pool, and that alteration of the configuration of structural membrane protein controls the amounts of ATP extruded.
Contribution of mouse egg zona pellucida glycoproteins to gamete recognition during fertilization.

For sperm to fertilize eggs, they must first bind to the thick zona pellucida (ZP) that surrounds the plasma membrane of all unfertilized mammalian eggs. An extensive literature suggests that mouse sperm recognize and bind to a specific ZP glycoprotein called mZP3. However, the role of individual ZP glycoproteins in binding of mouse sperm to eggs has been called into question by recent transgenic experiments with null mice. Results of such experiments have been interpreted to mean that binding of sperm depends on the supramolecular structure of the ZP, not on an individual ZP glycoprotein. Here, it is argued that results of these transgenic experiments actually are consistent with the prevailing view of gamete recognition that implicates a specific ZP glycoprotein in both binding of mouse sperm to eggs and induction of the acrosome reaction. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
The origins of phagocytosis and eukaryogenesis

Phagocytosis, that is, engulfment of large particles by eukaryotic cells, is found in diverse organisms and is often thought to be central to the very origin of the eukaryotic cell, in particular, for the acquisition of bacterial endosymbionts including the ancestor of the mitochondrion. Comparisons of the sets of proteins implicated in phagocytosis in different eukaryotes reveal extreme diversity, with very few highly conserved components that typically do not possess readily identifiable prokaryotic homologs. Nevertheless, phylogenetic analysis of those proteins for which such homologs do exist yields clues to the possible origin of phagocytosis. The central finding is that a subset of archaea encode actins that are not only monophyletic with eukaryotic actins but also share unique structural features with actin-related proteins (Arp) 2 and 3. All phagocytic processes are strictly dependent on remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton and the formation of branched filaments for which Arp2/3 are responsible. The presence of common structural features in Arp2/3 and the archaeal actins suggests that the common ancestors of the archaeal and eukaryotic actins were capable of forming branched filaments, like modern Arp2/3. The Rho family GTPases that are ubiquitous regulators of phagocytosis in eukaryotes appear to be of bacterial origin, so assuming that the host of the mitochondrial endosymbiont was an archaeon, the genes for these GTPases come via horizontal gene transfer from the endosymbiont or in an earlier event. The present findings suggest a hypothetical scenario of eukaryogenesis under which the archaeal ancestor of eukaryotes had no cell wall (like modern Thermoplasma) but had an actin-based cytoskeleton including branched actin filaments that allowed this organism to produce actin-supported membrane protrusions. These protrusions would facilitate accidental, occasional engulfment of bacteria, one of which eventually became the mitochondrion. The acquisition of the endosymbiont triggered eukaryogenesis, in particular, the emergence of the endomembrane system that eventually led to the evolution of modern-type phagocytosis, independently in several eukaryotic lineages. This article was reviewed by Simonetta Gribaldo, Gaspar Jekely, and Pierre Pontarotti. For the full reviews, please go to the Reviewers' Reports section.
Torsion and closed geodesics on complex hyperbolic manifolds

LetX be a compact complex manifold covered by complex hyperbolicn-space with the induced metric. Each stable horocycle has a cocomplex structure preserved by the geodesic flow. To a closed geodesic γ one can thus associate a piece of the Poincare map with a holomorphic fixed point. The resulting Atiyah-Bott fixed point indices, together with the length and multiplicity of γ as a periodic orbit, determine the contribution of γ to certain zeta functionsRp(z), 0≦p≦n. From the leading coefficient ofR p atZ=0 and the Hodge numbersh ij (X) we calculate the Ray-Singer\(\bar \partial \)-torsionT p (X). This indicates that the known connections between torsion and the dynamical features of closed orbits continue to hold in the holomorphic category.
When diet and exercise are not enough, think immunomodulation.

The incidences of obesity and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) are rapidly on the rise and now considered global health epidemics. Clinical data indicate a physiologically critical connection between the metabolic and immune systems, as obese individuals are uniquely susceptible to infectious and autoimmune diseases. We discuss the relevance of mouse models of obesity and the potential development of a ‘biomarker toolkit’ from human blood, along with the current knowledge regarding immune cell profiles in blood and adipose tissue of obese individuals with or without concomitant diseases such as T2D and Metabolic Syndrome. Understanding how the immune system initiates, perpetuates, and/or exacerbates obesity-associated diseases could lead to novel immune-based therapies for the abrogation of disease progression especially in pre-diabetic patients.
Reductive dissolution and reactive solute transport in a sewage-contaminated glacial outwash aquifer

Contamination of shallow ground water by sewage effluent typically contains reduced chemical species that consume dissolved oxygen, developing either a low oxygen geochemical environment or an anaerobic geochemical environment. Based on the load of reduced chemical species discharged to shallow ground water and the amounts of reactants in the aquifer matrix, it should be possible to determine chemical processes in the aquifer and compare observed results to predicted ones. At the Otis Air Base research site (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) where sewage effluent has infiltrated the shallow aquifer since 1936, bacterially mediated processes such as nitrification, denitritication, manganese reduction, and iron reduction have been observed in the contaminant plume. In specific areas of the plume, dissolved manganese and iron have increased significantly where local geochemical conditions are favorable for reduction and transport of these constituents from the aquifer matrix. Dissolved manganese and iron concentrations ranged from 0.02 to 7.3 mg/L, and 0.001 to 13.0 mg/L, respectively, for 21 samples collected from 1988 to 1989. Reduction of manganese and iron is linked to microbial oxidation of sewage carbon, producing bicarbonate and the dissolved metal ions as by-products. Calculated production and flux of CO2 through the unsaturated zone from manganese reduction in the aquifer was 0.035 g/m2/d (12% of measured CO2 flux during winter). Manganese is limited in the aquifer, however. A one-dimensional, reaction-coupled transport model developed for the mildly reducing conditions in the sewage plume nearest the source beds showed that reduction, transport, and removal of manganese from the aquifer sediments should result in iron reduction where manganese has been depleted.
Communication in a divided world

Livestock production accounts for a significant fraction of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Progress in mitigating the adverse environmental impacts of this industry can be improved by shifting research emphases and fostering communication between researchers and ranchers.
Dithiabenzisapphyrin: A Core-Modified Sapphyrin Bearing Exocyclic Double Bonds at the meso-Positions

A dithia analogue of meso-alkylidenyl sapphyrin, a class of compounds that was hitherto unknown, was prepared via the condensation of a 1,3-phenylenebispyrrole with a bithiophene diol. The resulting system was found to be stable and highly nonplanar. It was also characterized by a partially conjugated electronic structure. As such, this system helps to underscore the emerging impression that conjugation and aromaticity effects in expanded porphyrins may be more protean than previously appreciated. Specifically, this work serves to demonstrate that even nonplanar structures can show partial conjugation effects.
A postulate to aid in model building

Abstract One of the difficulties frequently encountered in proposing models for biological systems results from the inadequacy of available information to permit a full quantitative description of the model. Further experiments on the system to aid in the derivation of a unique model are often not feasible. If, however, it is possible to perturb the system so that its parameters may take on new values, and the experiments repeated on the perturbed system, further definition of a model may become possible under special assumptions. A postulate is advanced to this end. It is postulated that the perturbation of a system may be expressed in some minimal way. This is equivalent to the introduction of new constraints on the model, which serve to limit the choices possible. Some of the quantitative aspects necessary to lead to a unique model are discussed. A computational procedure that may be applied routinely is also described. An example is given to demonstrate the concepts involved.