cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of Spermine on Microtubule Structures

Spermine is a tetravalent polyamine present at millimolar concentration in all eukaryotic cells. The adsorption of cationic spermine on anionic microtubules (MTs) surface may have a potential regulatory role on the complex dynamics of MTs. Experiments have shown that polyamines such as spermine can facilitate the polymerization of tubulin at physiological concentration, including the formation of nuclei or growth of MTs. The underlying molecular mechanism is thought to be based on the bridging interaction of spermine with the highly negative C-terminal tail on the tubulin surface that helps bind tubulin together. Recent experiments also show that bundles of taxol-stabilized MTs undergo a shape transformation to bundles of inverted tubulin tubules (ITTs) at high concentrations of spermine, where the outside surface of an ITT corresponds to the inner surface of a regular MT. Furthermore, the longitudinal (lateral) bonds in a regular MT along its axis (circumference) are transformed into lateral (longitudinal) bonds in an ITT along its circumference (axis). However, the molecular mechanism responsible for the shape transformation is unclear. We performed all atom molecular dynamics simulation on taxol-stabilized MT sheets containing two protofilaments with and without spermine in an explicit water solvent. Our simulations have identified important regions on the MT surface where spermine binds and the influence of spermine binding on the structure of tubulin proteins and tubulin-tubulin contacts in MTs. In contrast to Taxol, spermine-binding seems to decrease the flexibility of tubulin proteins, resulting in weaker tubulin-tubulin contacts. Our results point to a possible molecular mechanism of how spermine disrupts the contact between protofilaments and facilitates the bending of protofilaments into inverted rings and eventually inverted tubules.
The Unchanging Core of Brazilian State Capitalism, 1985-2015

Amidst the current economic crisis in Brazil, it is often forgotten that the structure of the Brazilian economy, and especially the strong role of the state as an economic actor, predates the Workers’ Party administrations (2003-present) and has been a fixture of the democratic regime. This paper describes the basic mechanics of state capitalism under democracy in Brazil, and the powerful tools that it offers to policymakers, as well as the equally important constraints that inhibit change. The paper advances two central arguments. The first is that state capitalism in Brazil is much broader than the state’s role in business alone. State capitalism is not merely, or even centrally, about the degree to which the state owns firms. Indeed, it is the very breadth of the state’s role across multiple dimensions of the economy that has helped to sustain state capitalism against challengers. The second argument is that the interlocking aspects of these dimensions help to explain their continuity overall, even under democracy: linkages and mutually supporting ties between macro level policies, between fiscally oblique instruments in micro policies, and between taxation, labor, pension and social policies.
MIMO interference channel with confidential messages: Game theoretic beamforming designs

We study the achievable rate regions of the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) interference channel with confidential messages sent to two receivers. Under this model, each receiver is an eavesdropper for the other link and tries to decode both its own message and the message intended for the other receiver. We describe several transmission schemes for Gaussian interference channels and derive their achievable secrecy rate regions under the assumption that the transmitters use low complexity beamforming algorithms. We also consider the trade-offs associated with their need for channel state information at the transmitter (CSIT).We approach the above topics from a game-theoretic perspective.
Inhibition of Clostridium botulinum Types A and B by Phenolic Antioxidants

Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) was inhibitory to growth of three proteolytic strains of Clostridium botulinum in prereduced thiotone yeast-extract glucose medium (TYG) (pH 7.0) at 37 C. There was outgrowth and toxin production by strain 10755A spores when 25 ppm of BHA was present in the medium, whereas growth was inhibited by 50 ppm of BHA. Strains 62A and 213B were inhibited by 25 ppm of BHA throughout an incubation period of 7 days. Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and propyl gallate (PG) were less effective in inhibiting outgrowth of C. botulinum spores than was BHA. Spore outgrowth and toxin production were inhibited in the presence of 200 ppm of BHT in the TYG. PG exhibited the least inhibitory activity of the antioxidants tested. None of the levels (25 to 200 ppm) of PG tested delayed outgrowth or toxin formation for more than 24 h.
Transport of ELM energy and particles into the SOL and divertor of DIII–D

Abstract We report on DIII–D data that reveal the underlying processes responsible for transport of energy and particles from the edge pedestal to the divertor target during Type I edge-localized modes (ELMs). The separate convective and conductive transport of energy due to an ELM is determined by Thomson scattering measurements of electron density and temperature in the pedestal. Conductive transport is measured as a drop in pedestal temperature and decreases with increasing density. The convective transport of energy, measured as a loss of density from the pedestal, however, remains constant as a function of density. From the SOL, ELM energy is quickly carried to the divertor target. An expected sheath limit to the ELM heat flux set by the slower arrival of pedestal ions is overcome by additional ionization of neutrals generated from the divertor target as evidenced by a fast, ∼100 μs, rise in divertor density. A large in/out asymmetry of the divertor ELM heat flux is observed at high density, but becomes nearly symmetric at low density.
Comment: Frameworks for Theory and Research on Positive Emotions:

Contributions to this special section on positive emotions are summarized and integrated within a framework for organizing theory and research on particular emotions. Emotions are conceptualized as...
Chronic postoperative pain: recent findings in understanding and management.

Chronic postoperative pain is a poorly recognized potential outcome from surgery. It affects millions of patients every year, with pain lasting for months to years, resulting in patient suffering and ensuing economic consequences. The operations with the highest incidence of chronic postoperative pain are amputations, thoracotomies, cardiac surgery, and breast surgery. Other risk factors include preoperative pain, psychological factors, demographics, and the intensity of acute postoperative pain. Attempts to prevent chronic postoperative pain have often led to debatable results. This article presents data from recently published studies examining the incidence, risk factors, mechanisms, treatment options, and preventive strategies for chronic postoperative pain in adults. In summary, many of the previously identified risk factors for chronic postoperative pain have been confirmed and some novel ones discovered, such as the importance of the trajectory of acute pain and the fact that catastrophizing may not always be predictive. The incidence of chronic postoperative pain hasn’t changed over time, and there is limited new information regarding an effective preventive therapy. For example, pregabalin may actually cause more harm in certain surgeries. Further research is needed to demonstrate whether multimodal analgesic techniques have the best chance of significantly reducing the incidence of chronic postoperative pain and to determine which combination of agents is best for given surgical types and different patient populations.
A Six-Coordinate Peroxynitrite Low-Spin Iron(III) Porphyrinate Complex—The Product of the Reaction of Nitrogen Monoxide (·NO(g)) with a Ferric-Superoxide Species

Peroxynitrite (−OON═O, PN) is a reactive nitrogen species (RNS) which can effect deleterious nitrative or oxidative (bio)chemistry. It may derive from reaction of superoxide anion (O2•–) with nitric oxide (·NO) and has been suggested to form an as-yet unobserved bound heme-iron-PN intermediate in the catalytic cycle of nitric oxide dioxygenase (NOD) enzymes, which facilitate a ·NO homeostatic process, i.e., its oxidation to the nitrate anion. Here, a discrete six-coordinate low-spin porphyrinate-FeIII complex [(PIm)FeIII(−OON═O)] (3) (PIm; a porphyrin moiety with a covalently tethered imidazole axial “base” donor ligand) has been identified and characterized by various spectroscopies (UV–vis, NMR, EPR, XAS, resonance Raman) and DFT calculations, following its formation at −80 °C by addition of ·NO(g) to the heme-superoxo species, [(PIm)FeIII(O2•–)] (2). DFT calculations confirm that 3 is a six-coordinate low-spin species with the PN ligand coordinated to iron via its terminal peroxidic anionic O atom with...
A new Black Girls’ Club: Mentoring Doctoral and ABD Candidates in Academia

Dr Patricia Morris Carey, speaking at the Association of Black Women in Higher Education Annual Fall Conference in October 2012 held at New York University reminded her audience that parents have served as their mentors.
Becoming NULL: Queer relations in the excluded middle

This article investigates how computational media have come to shape the form and function of identity in contemporary society, suggesting that these technologies have conscripted users into system...
Topology of P-glycoproteins.

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the techniques, which have generated new insights and questions regarding P-glycoprotein (Pgp) folding, topology, and general mechanisms of polytopic protein biogenesis. For most eukaryotic polytopic proteins, transmembrane topology is established in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane through a series of programmed folding events. These events are directed through interactions between specific sequence determinants encoded in the nascent chain and their cognate cytosolic and membrane-bound receptors. Several complementary techniques are used to study Pgp biogenesis and topology in the ER membrane. These techniques exploit the physical integrity and/or asymmetric enzymatic activities of the ER membrane, which include protease protection of translocated peptide domains, cleavage of the chain by signal peptidase complex, and covalent addition of N-linked high mannose oligosaccharides.
Electron microscopy of ryanodine receptors.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the contributions of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and single-particle three-dimensional reconstruction (3D cryo-EM) to understanding the structural architecture of ryanodine receptors (RyRs). 3D reconstructions at about 1-nm resolution are determined for RyRs in putatively open and closed states, and reveal the mechanism of calcium release channel gating and of allosteric communication over distance greater than 10 nm between the cytoplasmic and transmembrane (TM) regions of the receptor. The information content of 3D cryo-EM is greatly increased when combined with biochemical and molecular biological labeling and strategies for docking atomic structures of subcomponents into cryo-EM density maps or RyRs. All three of the mammalian isoforms—RyR1, RyR2, RyR3—have been characterized by cryo-EM and 3D reconstruction and based on their high-sequence similarity, shown to have nearly identical 3D structures. Once initial 3D reconstructions of RyRs became available, it was quite easy to determine additional reconstructions at moderate resolutions of RyRs that have been chemically modiﬁed by various ligands, mainly for the purpose of determining the locations of the ligands.
Genomic DNA: New Approaches to Evolutionary Problems

The genome of a haploid cell from most eukaryotes contains over three billion base pairs of DNA. The organization of this DNA is complex. Much of it consists of various families of repeated sequences, some of which have changed rapidly in time, while others have been conserved evolutionarily. A relatively small portion of the genome contains the few thousand expressed genes that code for proteins. Regulatory sequences, important in differentiation and adaptation, are also present. Further, there may be sequences that migrate within and between chromosomes, perhaps altering the phenotype, and sequences that might direct the rearrangement of chromosomes, which also could profoundly affect the development of organisms and their morphology. In short, all of the information that constitutes an individual as a member of a species, genus, or higher taxonomic group is encoded in the genome, and it is here that evolutionary change is recorded. In the past, in order to investigate the interrelatedness of species and the genetic processes by which they evolve, systematists and evolutionary biologists have, by necessity, been forced to study the consequences of gene expression. But the revolution in DNA techniques that has emerged from molecular biology now makes it possible to study and compare gene structure and organization directly. The insights that are emerging from these new approaches for studying the genome have already drastically altered our concept of the gene. In the future they may also alter our view of evolution. In this chapter we hope to survey some of the principal methods that are being used in evolutionary studies of genomic DNA, to describe a few results of their application, and to discuss their prospects for the future. Much of what we present will be speculative or preliminary, but it may indicate some of the directions of evolutionary biology in the years ahead.
Symptom Burden Associated With Late Lower Cranial Neuropathy in Long-term Oropharyngeal Cancer Survivors.

Importance Lower cranial neuropathy (LCNP) is a rare but potentially disabling result of radiotherapy and other head and neck cancer therapies. Survivors who develop late LCNP may experience profound functional impairment, with deficits in swallowing, speech, and voice. Objective To investigate the association of late LCNP with severity of cancer treatment–related symptoms and subsequent general functional impairment among oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) survivors. Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional survey study analyzed 889 OPC survivors nested within a retrospective cohort of OPC survivors treated at MD Anderson Cancer Center from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2013. Eligible survey participants were disease free and completed OPC treatment 1 year or more before the survey. Data analysis was performed from October 10, 2017, to March 15, 2018. Exposures Late LCNP defined by onset 3 months or more after cancer therapy. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome variable was the mean of the top 5 most severely scored symptoms of all 22 core and head and neck cancer–specific symptoms from the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory Head and Neck Cancer Module (MDASI-HN). Secondary outcomes included mean MDASI-HN interference scores and single-item scores of the most severe symptoms. Multivariate models regressed MDASI-HN scores on late LCNP status, adjusting for clinical covariates. Results Overall, 36 of 889 OPC survivors (4.0%) (753 [84.7%] male; 821 [92.4%] white; median [range] age, 56 [32-84] years; median [range] survival time, 7 [1-16] years) developed late LCNP. Late LCNP was significantly associated with worse mean top 5 MDASI-HN symptom scores (coefficient, 1.54; 95% CI, 0.82-2.26), adjusting for age, survival time, sex, therapeutic modality, T stage, subsite, type of radiotherapy, smoking, and normal diet before treatment. Late LCNP was also significantly associated with single-item scores for difficulty swallowing or chewing (coefficient, 2.25; 95% CI, 1.33-3.18), mucus (coefficient, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.03-2.91), fatigue (coefficient, 1.35; 95% CI, 0.40-2.21), choking (coefficient, 1.53; 95% CI, 0.65-2.41), and voice or speech symptoms (coefficient, 2.30; 95% CI, 1.60-3.03) in multivariable models. Late LCNP was not significantly associated with mean interference scores after correction for multiple comparisons (mean interference coefficient, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.09-1.35). Conclusions and Relevance In this large survey study, OPC survivors with late LCNP reported worse cancer treatment–related symptoms, a finding suggesting an association between late LCNP and symptom burden. This research may inform the development and implementation of strategies for LCNP surveillance and management.
Comparing the prevalence of non-AIDS defining cancers by HIV status in the Ohio Medicaid population.

1567Background: Persons living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLWHV) are over-represented in low income and minority populations. This makes Medicaid data particularly relevant for evaluating c...
Application of deoxygenation-aeration cycling to control the predatory bacterium Vampirovibrio chlorellavorus in Chlorella sorokiniana cultures

Abstract A previously untested approach was evaluated to enable management of the predatory bacterium, Vampirovibrio chlorellavorus, a pathogen of Chlorella sorokiniana, in suspension cultures grown in a laboratory test reactor. Because V. chlorellavorus is an obligate aerobic bacterium, whereas C. sorokiniana grows under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, deoxygenation of the culture was expected to be detrimental to the pathogen, but not to the algal host. The effect of deoxygenation on the uninfected (healthy) C. sorokiniana suspension cells, compared to the C. sorokiniana-V. chlorellavorus co-culture, was studied in relation to biomass, dissolved oxygen, ratio of C. sorokiniana to V. chlorellavorus DNA, and visual and light microscopic observations. Preliminary experiments were conducted to test the effects of different deoxygenation-aeration cycling regimes on performance of V. chlorellavorus-free C. sorokiniana cultures. To an aerobic culture, pure nitrogen gas was introduced to create anoxic conditions, followed by the injection of ambient air to re-establish an aerobic environment. Under this repeated cycling regime, C. sorokiniana was shown to tolerate the anoxic conditions for extended timespans that ranged from 2 to 8 h over a 5-day test period. The analogous aerobic-anoxic cycling with the C. sorokiniana-V. chlorellavorus co-cultures resulted in ‘near-normal’ growth cycle and harvestable biomass, whereas the continuously-aerated (aerobic) co-cultures that were grown without the deoxygenation step in the cycle collapsed in 3 days. Visual and light microscopic observations revealed intact C. sorokiniana cells were present in the deoxygenated cultures, compared to the aerobically-grown, brown-colored algal cultures consisting of collapsed cells. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis showed continuous increases in the ratio of V. chlorellavorus (16S rDNA) to C. sorokiniana (18S rDNA) DNA in the aerated co-cultures, with greater increases during dark periods, while the pathogen-to-host DNA ratio in the deoxygenated co-cultures was relatively low and algal cells did not collapse, as would be expected following pathogen attack.
Zinc Deficiency Stimulates NADPH Oxidase-2 Upregulation in Mouse Kidneys

BackgroundZn2+ deficiency (ZnD) is common in chronic kidney disease, including diabetic nephropathy. Experimental studies show that ZnD worsens diabetic kidney complications. Oxidative stress cause...
Nobel Lecture: Asymptotic freedom: From paradox to paradigm

Asymptotic freedom was developed as a response to two paradoxes: the weirdness of quarks, and in particular their failure to radiate copiously when struck; and the coexistence of special relativity and quantum theory, despite the apparent singularity of quantum field theory. It resolved these paradoxes, and catalyzed the development of several modern paradigms: the hard reality of quarks and gluons, the origin of mass from energy, the simplicity of the early universe, and the power of symmetry as a guide to physical law.
Diagnosis and management of a case of retroperitoneal eosinophilic sclerosing fibroplasia in a cat

Case summaryA 4-year-old neutered male cat was presented with a 2-month history of intermittent constipation that progressed to obstipation. Primary clinical findings included a large, multi lobula...
Place attachment, climate friendly behavior, and support for climate friendly management action among state park visitors.

This study examined the role of place attachment in determining visitors’ willingness to engage in climate friendly behavior in parks and support for management actions to minimize climate-change impacts. The sample consisted of visitors to Missouri State Parks (n = 1775). Place attachment was measured using 12 items of place identity, place dependence, and social bonding. Exploratory factor analysis of climate friendly behavior items revealed two dimensions: Visit based (i.e., short-term, immediate actions individuals could take during their visit) and Big Picture (i.e., advocacy actions that suggest a long-term engagement with parks). A path analysis demonstrated that the dimensions of place attachment predict climate friendly behavior and support for climate friendly management action in different ways. Specifically, place identity increased climate friendly behavior (big picture) and place dependence increased both climate friendly behavior (visit based) and support for climate friendly management action. Findings from this study provided evidence for the importance of place attachment as a means for engaging visitors in climate-related actions both in and beyond the park setting.
On the ontology of life and mind: a proposed paradigm shift

The hard problems of distilling life out of lifeless matter and extracting non-physical mind out of physical brain are often dubbed as the impossible problems in biology and neuroscience. The reasons for this pessimism are ideological perspectives that limit existence to the physical realm, and view subjective existence as an illusion. There is a need for a paradigm shift to broaden existence that includes both physical and non-physical subjective realms. We need to be open to radically different ideas about life and mind if we are to have any chance of unveiling their secrets and developing a true understanding of them. Once life and mind are correctly characterised as non-physical entities, then we can concentrate on how material and immaterial things interact and how the process can be manipulated. This may lead to the development of tools to explore the mysterious nature of both life and mind. The paper focuses on inferences made by inductive reasoning, and falls into the category of the philosophy of science.
A Macrolevel Study of Police Killings at the Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Gender:

We investigate macrolevel sources of police use of fatal force at the intersection of race, ethnicity, and gender. Focusing on 580 U.S. counties from 2013 to 2018, we build a unique dataset and ana...
Characterization of the microbiome and immune response in corals with chronic Montipora white syndrome.

Coral diseases have increased in frequency and intensity around the tropics worldwide. However, in many cases, little is known about their etiology. Montipora white syndrome (MWS) is a common disease affecting the coral Montipora capitata, a major reef builder in Hawai'i. Chronic Montipora white syndrome (cMWS) is a slow-moving form of the disease that affects M. capitata throughout the year. The effects of this chronic disease on coral immunology and microbiology are currently unknown. In this study, we use prophenoloxidase immune assays and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to characterize the microbiome and immunological response associated with cMWS. Our results show that immunological and microbiological responses are highly localized. Relative to diseased samples, apparently healthy portions of cMWS corals differed in immune activity and in the relative abundance of microbial taxa. Coral tissues with cMWS showed decreased tyrosinase-type catecholase and tyrosinase-type cresolase activity and increased laccase-type activity. Catecholase and cresolase activity were negatively correlated across all tissue types with microbiome richness. The localized effect of cMWS on coral microbiology and immunology is probably an important reason for the slow progression of the disease. This local confinement may facilitate interventions that focus on localized treatments on tissue types. This study provides an important baseline to understand the interplay between the microbiome and immune system and the mechanisms used by corals to manage chronic microbial perturbations associated with white syndrome.
Improving guidance for the correctability of congenital cardiovascular shunts with increased pulmonary vascular resistance

Abstract Background Based upon expert opinion, guidelines have been proposed for the correctability of congenital cardiovascular shunts with increased pulmonary vascular resistance. This study reports the accuracy of published guidelines using a dataset from the Inhaled Nitric Oxide as a Preoperative Test study. Methods The hemodynamic measurements and outcome of 52 patients with relatively high pulmonary vascular resistance who underwent corrective surgery of congenital shunts were used to determine how well recent guidelines would accurately identify correctable and uncorrectable patients. Results The accuracy of preoperative testing was 19%, 29% and 17% using a baseline indexed pulmonary vascular resistance less than 4 WU-m2, indexed pulmonary vascular resistance less than 6 WU-m2 and ratio of pulmonary to systemic vascular indices less than 0.30 as criteria for correctable shunts, respectively. Accuracy improved to 71%, 87% and 88% by using the results of acute vasodilator testing with oxygen and nitric oxide instead of baseline measurements. The accuracy of preoperative testing was 46% and 48% using a baseline indexed pulmonary vascular resistance greater than 8 WU-m2 and a ratio of pulmonary to systemic vascular indices greater than 0.50 as criteria for uncorrectable shunts, respectively. Accuracy improved to 88% and 88% by using the results of acute vasodilator testing with oxygen and nitric oxide instead of baseline measurements. Conclusions Guidelines using baseline hemodynamic measurements do not provide accurate guidance for identifying patients with correctable or uncorrectable congenital cardiovascular shunts and increased pulmonary vascular resistance. The accuracy of a preoperative evaluation can be increased with acute vasodilator testing.
An Inexpensive 3D-Printable Do-It-Yourself Visible Spectrophotometer for Online, Hybrid, and Classroom-Based Learning

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic compelled the field of education to swiftly redesign courses for hybrid and online teaching environments. The lack of in-person learning prompted professionals to rapidly incorporate unique and previously never-seen teaching practices in numerous different fields. One of the biggest challenges that educators have been facing during these difficult times is the lack of hands-on technology-based teaching activites under hybrid and online environments. To mitigate this issue, a small, affordable, and 3D-printed visible spectrophotometer (SpectroBox) was developed to allow instructors to rapidly create a portable instrument and provide a hands-on learning experience for students. SpectroBox is mainly a do-it-yourself at-home platform specifically designed for rapid implementation; thus, instructors can deploy SpectroBox under various learning environments, such as remote and hybrid practices. Included parts are in a small package and are transportable via standard parcel delivery; consequently, students can get access to these spectrometric units rapidly and easily. In this work, detailed design, schematics, and step-by-step instructions are presented for instructors to easily incorporate this system. The SpectroBox project was implemented and tested during the Fall 2020 semester, and student assessment data indicated that the theoretical and practical aspects of visible spectroscopy were better understood by 67% of students with this hands-on learning exercise. The final learning outcome of this project was a broad skillset possessed by students, including 3D printable object design, spectrometer assembly, principles of optical spectroscopy, exploration of design components, basic electronics, data acquisition and processing. SpectroBox helped students to fully understand the fundamentals of visible spectroscopy and ultimately improved their expertise in the field of spectroscopy.
Postpartum psychosis: a diagnosis for the DSMV.

Postpartum psychosis (PPP) is a serious disorder that is associated with maternal and infant morbidity and mortality, yet it is denied a diagnostic classification in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). PPP was included in the DSMI (1952) and the DSMII (1968). It was removed from DSMIII (1980). The purpose of this article is to review the history of postpartum psychosis in the DSM and provide the mechanism and research that argues for the inclusion of postpartum psychosis as a separate diagnostic entity in the DSM. This work describes a proposal to the DSMV committee in 2020 for inclusion of PPP as a unique diagnosis based on the cognitive disorganization that accompanies psychotic symptoms. The proposal for inclusion provides the required criteria such as a rationale for the proposed change and evidence that PPP is distinct from other disorders. Validators are described. Reliability studies and benefits of inclusion are provided. We were unable to gain consensus on the presence of cognitive impairment for all postpartum psychotic episodes. The committee opined that we did not demonstrate proof that PPP is a distinct diagnosis. However, the committee acknowledged that the current "specifier" may be insufficient, and thus the option favored by the committee is that it could be added to Sect. 3 of the DSM, "Conditions for Further Study." In the next proposal, we suggest that the unique temporal relationship of symptom onset to childbirth deserves consideration as unique criteria for diagnostic distinction of PPP.
Management's Assessment of Internal Controls, External Consultants, and Audit Efficiency: Evidence of New Factors in Client-Auditor Interactions

We investigate how the involvement of an external consultant in management's assessment of internal control affects external auditors' planning decisions. We find that when management integrity is low, such involvement results in auditors recommending a higher reliance on internal controls and lower budgeted hours than in the absence of such involvement. Surprisingly, when management integrity is high, the involvement of external consultants results in higher budgeted hours. Based on our results, we conclude that external auditors perceive the involvement of external consultants as a legitimate managerial intent to accurately assess the state of internal control rather than hide its deficiencies. However, in case of high integrity management the involvement of external consultants might be seen by auditors as inconsistent with prior evidence on the quality of internal control and thus might signal the existence of the additional risk factors of material weaknesses.
Acute stroke in a metropolitan area 1970 and 1980: The Minnesota heart survey

Mortality rates for stroke, and hospitalization and case fatality rates for acute stroke in 1970 and 1980 were obtained for residents aged 30–74 of the Twin Cities (Minneapolis—St Paul) metropolitan area to determine whether improved hospital care contributed to the decline in stroke mortality. Age-adjusted mortality rates per 100,000 declined significantly in that decade for men (1970, 89.4; 1980, 47.5; p < 0.01) and women (1970, 72.6; 1980, 40.9; p < 0.01). Age-adjusted hospitalization rates per 100,000 population also declined significantly for men (1970, 438; 1980, 323; p < 0.01) and women (1970, 331; 1980, 203; p < 0.01). Age-adjusted mean length of hospital stay did not change significantly. Hospital case fatality declined for men aged 30–64 years (1970, 22.5%; 1980, 15.1%; p < 0.01) but did not change significantly for 65 to 74 year-old men (1970, 16.5%; 1980, 20.0%; p = 0.09) or for all women (age-adjusted rates: 1970, 13.6%; 1980, 16.0%; p = 0.17). There was no change in the distribution of severity of hospitalized cases between years. Therefore, the decline in stroke mortality is consistent with a decreased incidence of stroke resulting from improved hypertension control. Improvements in hospital medical care appear not to have contributed substantially to the decline in stroke mortality.
IκB Kinase Complex Is an Intracellular Target for Endotoxic Lipopolysaccharide in Human Monocytic Cells

Endotoxic lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a proinflammatory agonist produced by gram-negative bacteria and a contributor to the majority of the 400,000 septic shock cases recorded annually in US hospitals. The primary target cells for LPS are monocytes and macrophages. Their response consists of massive production of proinflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen- and nitrogen-intermediates, procoagulants, and cell adhesion molecules. In turn, expression of these LPS-responsive factors contributes to collapse of the circulatory system, to disseminated intravascular coagulation, and to a 30% mortality rate. A common intracellular mechanism responsible for the expression of septic shock genes in monocytes and macrophages involves the activation of NF-kappaB. This transcription factor is regulated by a family of structurally related inhibitors including IkappaBalpha, IkappaBbeta, and IkappaBepsilon, which trap NF-kappaB in the cytoplasm. In this report, the investigators show that LPS derived from different gram-negative bacteria activates cytokine-responsive IkappaB kinases containing catalytic subunits termed IKKalpha (IKK1) and IKKbeta (IKK2). The kinetics of IKKalpha and IKKbeta activation in LPS-stimulated human monocytic cells differ from that recorded on their stimulation with tumor necrosis factor-alpha, thereby implying a distinct activation mechanism. LPS-activated IKK complexes phosphorylate all 3 inhibitors of NF-kappaB: IkappaBalpha, IkappaBbeta, and IkappaBepsilon. Moreover, LPS activates IKKbeta preferentially, relative to IKKalpha. Thus, IKK complex constitutes the main intracellular target for LPS-induced NF-kappaB signaling to the nucleus in human monocytic cells to activate genes responsible for septic shock.
Monetary Actions and Sub-macroeconomic Impacts: A Multi-period Assessment

This study investigates monetary impacts within the regional economies ofthe United States. It provides updated evidence on regional impacts and examines howimpacts have changed over time. Using vector autoregression (VAR) methods, impactsare investigated for the overall period (1959-2003), and two sub-periods, 1959-1979 and1980-2003. The study finds that regional economies do respond differently to monetaryshocks. Evidence also indicates that these effects have changed over time; pre-1980patterns no longer apply in many key regions. Notable in the results are the muchmoderated period two impacts and shifting across region's ranking as "stronger/weakerthan average" impacts. (JEL E0, E5, R11)
Lysophospholipid receptor nomenclature review: IUPHAR Review 8

Lysophospholipids encompass a diverse range of small, membrane-derived phospholipids that act as extracellular signals. The signalling properties are mediated by 7-transmembrane GPCRs, constituent members of which have continued to be identified after their initial discovery in the mid-1990s. Here we briefly review this class of receptors, with a particular emphasis on their protein and gene nomenclatures that reflect their cognate ligands. There are six lysophospholipid receptors that interact with lysophosphatidic acid (LPA): protein names LPA1 – LPA6 and italicized gene names LPAR1-LPAR6 (human) and Lpar1-Lpar6 (non-human). There are five sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) receptors: protein names S1P1-S1P5 and italicized gene names S1PR1-S1PR5 (human) and S1pr1-S1pr5 (non-human). Recent additions to the lysophospholipid receptor family have resulted in the proposed names for a lysophosphatidyl inositol (LPI) receptor – protein name LPI1 and gene name LPIR1 (human) and Lpir1 (non-human) – and three lysophosphatidyl serine receptors – protein names LyPS1, LyPS2, LyPS3 and gene names LYPSR1-LYPSR3 (human) and Lypsr1-Lypsr3 (non-human) along with a variant form that does not appear to exist in humans that is provisionally named LyPS2L. This nomenclature incorporates previous recommendations from the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology, the Human Genome Organization, the Gene Nomenclature Committee, and the Mouse Genome Informatix.
NASA Advanced Life Support Technology Testing and Development

Prior to 2010, NASA's advanced life support research and development was carried out primarily under the Exploration Life Support Project of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. In 2011, the Exploration Life Support Project was merged with other projects covering Fire Prevention/Suppression, Radiation Protection, Advanced Environmental Monitoring and Control, and Thermal Control Systems. This consolidated project was called Life Support and Habitation Systems, which was managed under the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. In 2012, NASA re-organized major directorates within the agency, which eliminated the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate and created the Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT). Life support research and development is currently conducted within the Office of the Chief Technologist, under the Next Generation Life Support Project, and within the Human Exploration Operation Missions Directorate under several Advanced Exploration System projects. These Advanced Exploration Systems projects include various themes of life support technology testing, including atmospheric management, water management, logistics and waste management, and habitation systems. Food crop testing is currently conducted as part of the Deep Space Habitation (DSH) project within the Advanced Exploration Systems Program. This testing is focused on growing salad crops that could supplement the crew's diet during near term missions.
Microtopography Influences Early Successional Plant Communities on Experimental Coal Surface Mine Land Reclamation

Surface mining for coal represents one of the dominant forms of anthropogenic disturbance to forests of the eastern United States. Reclamation methods adopted under federal law in the 1970s have led to a state of arrested succession, failing to achieve pre-disturbance conditions. New methods of reclamation have been proposed with the goal of returning mined land to its former forested state through the use of compaction reducing techniques that significantly increase fine-scale heterogeneity. The Forestry Reclamation Approach creates topographic heterogeneity by loosely dumping overburden material into large piles to serve as a tree-planting medium. We examined the effect of fine-scale topographic relief, soil physical properties, and reclamation method on early plant community development on a mine site in eastern Ohio. We sampled plots at four microtopographic positions and three distances from the remaining forest edge in both experimentally and traditionally reclaimed areas of a surface mine. Multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) on distance matrices indicated significant differences in plant community composition among microtopographic positions and reclamation methods. Microtopographic positions also exhibited significant differences in measured soil properties significantly affecting plant community composition. Plots in the traditionally reclaimed areas had no woody plant colonization, indicating arrested succession common to sites reclaimed using traditional methods. Our results suggest that the creation of topographic heterogeneity at the time of reclamation markedly accelerates ecological succession and promotes enhanced plant community diversity. Expanded application of the methods used here could allow for a faster return to the former forested state of mined lands than traditional reclamation methods.
Supporting Young Children’s Vocabulary Growth: The Challenges, the Benefits, and Evidence-Based Strategies

The complexity of words makes vocabulary development a multi-faceted process that presents challenges to early childhood educators, offers benefits to young learners, and must be supported through evidence-based strategies. All students, regardless of socio-economic status or background, need to make significant gains in receptive and expressive vocabulary at home and at school each year in order to support their growth in literacy. Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds and those students who speak English as a second language are particularly at risk of failing to make proficient vocabulary gains. The most effective way for early childhood educators to enhance the vocabulary development of all students is to implement evidence-based strategies for teaching vocabulary. A key finding in the research is that young children need to be actively engaged in vocabulary development if they are to remember new words and begin to grasp the multiple, nuanced meanings of words. Other effective vocabulary instruction practices include meaningful repetition; combining the enactive, iconic, and symbolic modes; and reading aloud in a dialogic style. In light of the trend in the research data that links the child’s vocabulary level to gains in reading comprehension, early childhood educators have a special obligation to teach vocabulary more effectively.
Brain and cerebrospinal fluid lactate concentration in respiratory acidosis and alkalosis

Abstract Brain CO2 buffering capacity and Csf bicarbonate concentration increase in respiratory acidosis and decrease in respiratory alkalosis. To study the mechanism responsible for these adjustments, lactate and pyruvate concentrations were measured at intervals in brain, cisternal Csf and arterial blood of dogs during 6 hr of hyper- and hypocapnia. PCO2, pH, bicarbonate concentration and PO2 were also measured in all Csf and arterial blood samples. During respiratory acidosis lactate concentration in brain and Csf fell at 30 min, returning to normal values by 6 hr. During respiratory alkalosis brain lactate rose significantly in the first 30 min, fell slightly by 2 hr, but rose to its highest value by 6 hr. Cisternal Csf lactate rose continuously. The mild and transient fall in brain and Csf lactate during respiratory acidosis does not account for the upward shift in brain CO2 buffering capacity and simultaneous increase in Csf bicarbonate content. During respiratory alkalosis, the rise in lactate explains partially the downward shift in brain buffering capacity and may account for one-third of the bicarbonate fall in the Csf.
Traffic-aware dynamic firewall policy management: techniques and applications

Firewalls are important network security devices that protect networks by blocking unwanted traffic based on filtering policies. However, the structure of firewall policies has a major impact on firewall security and performance. In this article, we classify, describe, and compare traffic-aware firewall policy management techniques based on their objectives, schemes, complexity, applicability, and limitations. We classify traffic-aware firewall policy techniques into two categories based on their goals: matching optimization and early rejection optimization schemes. Matching optimization techniques try to minimize the matching time of normal network traffic. Early rejection techniques create a minimum set of policy preamble rules (constraints) that can potentially filter out the maximum amount of denied traffic. Both categories are self-adaptive to ensure that the performance gain will always supersede the dynamic management maintenance overhead. We believe that our work provides important insights on the operation and use of trafficaware filtering.
Electric and Magnetic Dipole Radiation in a Random Medium

ABSTRACT Electric and magnetic dipole radiation are studied for a medium where random, small-scale inhomogeneities are confined to a spherical shell region. Numerical results are presented for both the far-field pattern and the total radiated power. When the random inhomogeneities are located in the near field of the source, an electric dipole radiates a larger incoherent field than a magnetic dipole because of the electric dipole's larger reactive electric field.
Dynamic rupture experiments elucidate tensile crack development during propagating earthquake ruptures

We used optical experiments and high-speed photography to interpret the origins of tensile fractures that form during dynamic shear rupture in laboratory experiments. Sub-Rayleigh (slower than the Rayleigh wave speed, c_R) shear ruptures in Homalite-100 produce damage zones consisting of an array of tensile cracks. These cracks nucleate and grow within cohesive zones behind the tips of shear ruptures that propagate dynamically along interfaces with frictional and cohesive strength, simulating a “strong” fault. The tensile cracks are produced only along one side of the interface where transient, fault-parallel, tensile stress perturbations are associated with the growing shear rupture tip. Results of this study represent an important potential bridge between geological observations of structures preserved along exhumed faults and theoretical models of earthquake propagation, potentially leading to diagnostic criteria for interpreting velocity, directivity, and static prestress states associated with past earthquakes on exhumed faults.
EFFECT OF RECOIL ON THE ELASTIC SCATTERING OF HIGH-ENERGY ELECTRONS BY ZERO- SPIN NUCLEI

The effect of nuclear recoil on the elastic scattering of high-energy electrons or muons by zero-spin nuclei is studied by adapting the Breit two-particle Hamiltonian to the case that one of the two particles is of finite size, is spinless, and is nonrelativistic, the other being a normal point Dirac particle. A radial and angular separation of the Dirac equation is still possible. To leading order in the parameter (electron energy)/ (nuclear mass), the effect of the dynamic recoil terms is to rotate the scattering amplitude vectors in the complex plane without changing their magnitudes, a result which is independent of the shape and size of the nuclear charge distribution. To this order, the cross section is affected only by the kinematic recoil corrections. The dynamic recoil terms also influence the scattering amplitudes through terms of order (electron mass)/(nuclear mass). These corrections, owing to large amplification factors in going from phase shifts to cross section, may be of some significance in muon scattering, but are probably of no importance in the analysis of high-energy electron scattering. The dynamic effect is proportional to nuclear charge and therefore nearly as great for heavy as for light nuclei.
Evidence for a single electron transfer mechanism in 1he reduction of aromatic nitrogen heterocycles with main group metal hydrides and dihydropyridyl metal complexes.

Abstract Direct spectroscopic (EPR) evidence is presented to support a single electron transfer mechanism to describe the reactions of various simple and complex hydrides of the main group elements and dihydropyridyl metal complexes with aromatic nitrogen heterocyclic compounds.