cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Microglia and the control of autoreactive T cell responses

Microglial activation is one of the earliest and most prominent features of nearly all CNS neuropathologies often occurring prior to other indicators of overt neuropathology. Whether microglial activation in seemingly healthy CNS tissue during the early stages of several is a response to early stages of neuronal or glial distress or an early sign of microglial dysfunction causing subsequent neurodegeneration is unknown. Here we characterize and discuss how changes in the CNS microenvironment (neuronal activity/viability, glial activation) lead to specific forms of microglial activation. Specifically, we examine the potential role that TREM-2 expressing microglia may play in regulating the effector function of autoreactive T cell responses. Thus, we suggest that ubiquitous suppression of microglial activation during CNS inflammatory disorders rather than targeted manipulation of microglial activation, may in the end be maladaptive leading to incomplete remission of symptoms.
Simultaneous influx of ammonium and potassium into maize roots: kinetics and interactions.

The interaction between ammonium and potassium during influx was examined in roots of dark-grown decapitated corn seedlings (Zea mays L., cv. Pioneer 3369A). Influx was measured during a 10-min exposure to either (15NH4)2SO4 ranging from 10 to 200 μM NH 4 + with and without 200 μM K(86Rb)Cl or to K(86Rb)Cl ranging from 10 to 200 μM K+ with and without 200 μM NH 4 + as (15NH4)2SO4. The simple Michaelis-Menten model described the data well only for potassium influx in the presence of ambient ammonium. For the other three instances, the data were improved by assuming that a second influx mechanism became operative as the low-concentration phase approached saturation. Two distinct mechanisms are thus indicated for both ammonium and potassium influx within the range of 10 to 200 μM. The influx mechanism operating at low concentrations showed greater affinity for potassium than for ammonium, even though the capacity for ammonium transport was twice as large as that for potassium. It is suggested that this phase involved a common transport system for the two ions and that localized low acidity next to the internal surface, following H+ extrusion, favored ammonium deprotonation and dissociation from the transport system-ammonium complex. Parallel decreases in V max and increases in Km of the low-concentration saturable phase occurred for ammonium influx when ambient potassium was present and for potassium influx when ambient ammonium was present. The data support a mixed-type inhibition in each case. Simultaneous measurement of potassium and ammonium influx showed that they were highly negatively correlated at the lower concentrations, indicating that the extent to which influx of the inhibited ion was restricted was associated with influx of the inhibitor ion. Presence of ambient ammonium eliminated the second phase of potassium influx. In contrast, the presence of ambient potassium decreased the concentration at which the second phase of ammonium influx was initiated but did not restrict the rate.
Plasticity at the mature neuromuscular junction

The physiological properties of the neuromuscular junction vary with its function in the animal. Synapses associated with fast- and slow-twitch muscles differ in transmitter output and fatiguability. These properties are modified after chronic periods of altered activity. Post-synaptic receptors may also be affected by usage. As Norman Robbins describes here, the neuromuscular junction is a useful model for examining the mechanisms underlying plasticity in the nervous system.
Swimming behaviour, patch exploitation and dispersal capacity of a marine benthic ciliate in flume flow

Abstract The ability of a marine benthic ciliate Euplotes sp., (Ciliophora: Hypotrichida), to find patches of food, exploit them and disperse to new patches, was studied in both still water and flume flow. The ciliates efficiently accumulated in patches of food independent of flow. In the lower region of the boundary layer Euplotes sp. was unimpeded by the flow, and ciliates seemed to actively settle on and leave the sediment. Euplotes sp. was further observed to slowly drift immediately above the sediment surface, occasionally making contact with the sediment to resume walking. Average walking speed, motility, and the fractal dimension of walking paths did not differ between food patches and controls without food. Instead, the ability of Euplotes sp. to accumulate in food patches is explained by an active reversal response to the sharp food gradient at patch boundaries which increases patch residence time. When Euplotes sp. was subjected to food depletion the proportion of swimmers increased. It is suggested that this response explains the observed long-range dispersal in horizontal flow. The analysis of the swimming pattern and the observations of Euplotes sp. in flowing water, indicate that this ciliate can use flow to find patchily distributed resources.
Performance differences between IPOs in new industries and IPOs in established industries

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a unique approach to examining issues related to initial public offerings (IPOs).Design/methodology/approach – The price behavior of IPOs in new industries is analyzed relative to IPOs in established industries.Findings – The results show that there are fundamental differences between IPOs of companies in new industries and those in established industries in that there is greater uncertainty regarding future earnings, less competition and fewer barriers to entry. The results indicate that IPOs in new industries outperform IPOs in established industries during holding periods of one to ten years. Furthermore, IPOs in new industries tend to merge less often, declare bankruptcy less often and are delisted less often than firms conducting an IPO in established industries.Originality/value – A longitudinal approach allows analysis of IPOs of firms relative to other IPOs within the same industry that occurred before or after. By performing such a longitudinal st...
On curve matching

Two algorithms to find the longest common subcurve of two 2D curves are presented. These algorithms are based on conversion of the curves into shape signature strings and application of string matching techniques to find long matching substrings, followed by direct curve matching of the corresponding candidate subcurves to find the longest matching subcurve. The first algorithm is of complexity O(n), where n is the number of sample points on the curves. The second one, while being theoretically somewhat less efficient, proved to be robust and efficient in practical applications. Both algorithms solve the problem of general curves without being dependent on some set of special points on the curves. The algorithms have industrial applications to problems of object assembly and object recognition. Experimental results are included. The algorithms can be easily extended to the 3D case. >
Microwave-Assisted Parallel Synthesis of a 14-Helical β-Peptide Library

To facilitate the preparation of β-peptide libraries in parallel, we have adapted reaction conditions for the solid-phase synthesis of 14-helical β-peptides for use in a multimode microwave reactor. The low temperature/pressure requirements of microwave-assisted β-peptide synthesis were found to be compatible with multiwell filter plates composed of polypropylene. Microwave heating of the 96-well plate was sufficiently homogeneous to allow the rapid preparation of a β-peptide library in acceptable purity.
PPPS-2013: Analysis of secondary electron emission of dielectric materials using a direct kinetic simulation

Secondary electron emission (SEE) plays an important role in the interaction of a plasma and dielectric materials which are used in electric propulsion devices. It has been proposed by Hobbs and Wesson that the near-wall sheath becomes space charge limited for an SEE coefficient larger than a critical value1. In their analysis, the SEE coefficient is assumed to be the ratio of currents of cold secondary and warm primary electrons, and the material dependence of the SEE coefficient is not taken into account. The purpose of this investigation is to understand the SEE effects on the collisionless sheath structure near a dielectric material. A direct kinetic simulation2, in which the Vlasov equation is solved to directly obtain the velocity distributions of the plasma components, is used to model the collisionless sheath in the presence of SEE. The numerical results which assume cold secondary electrons are in good agreement with Hobbs and Wesson's exact and approximate solutions. We also investigate the sheath structure accounting for a velocity distribution of electrons that are reflected and emitted from the dielectric material. The SEE effects on the near-wall sheath of dielectric materials are discussed.
Study of incompressible flow separation using primitive variables

Abstract The flow in a channel with an asymmetric constriction has been analyzed, using the primitive variables. The objective of this study is to develop a reduced form of the Navier-Stokes equations that is regular at the separation point. The resulting formulation is a semi-elliptic model comprised of the parabolized momentum equations together with an elliptic equation for the pressure distribution. Analytic coordinate transformations are used to provide surface-oriented coordinates with proper resolution for the viscous regions near the channel walls, as well as for the separated-flow regions. Results are obtained for several flow configurations using a semi-implicit numerical method of solution. These are presented in terms of streamling contours and shear-stress and pressure distributions at the channel walls. Comparison with the corresponding Navier-Stokes results shows that the semi-elliptic model performs very well as regards the separation singularity. Some of the qualitative flow features predicted by the available asymptotic analysis for constricted-channel flows are also well reproduced in some of the present results obtained for Re=1000 .
Separated-local-field measurements using low-power multipulse decoupling

The separated-local-field experiment in the NMR of solids is used to measure the strength of the static dipolar interaction between isolated heteronuclear spin pairs (Z3). In the case of static solids, the strength of the dipolar interaction can be used to calculate the heteronuclear interatomic distance (4). Alternatively, in the presence of some molecular motion and a known interatomic distance, the reduction of the strength of the heteronuclear dipolar interaction due to that motion can be used to obtain information about the amplitudes of those molecular motions (3). Techniques to obtain this local-field information are two-dimensional experiments which contain the usual preparation, evolution, and detection periods. During the Preparation period, the spin system comes to equilibrium; then observe spin magnetization is generated (usually by means of Hartmann-Hahn cross polarization). In the second period, the magnetization is allowed to evolve for a time t, while the coupled heteronuclei are subjected to a homonuclear decoupling, allowing heteronuclear interactions to survive. In the final period, t2, the observe nuclei are detected under full heteronuclear decoupling. For this two-dimensional experiment, the t, increment is a cycle of some appropriate homonuclear decoupling scheme, usually WAHUHA (5) or MREV-8 (68). These “windowed” sequences, however, require very high power levels in order to obtain reasonable results. Typically, RF fields greater than 2 mT, cortespomimg to a 90” pulse length of less than three microseconds, are required to homodecouple protons. This demanding requirement is generally not available to the routine or casual solids NMR spectroscopist. This report describes a version of the separated-locall the usual WAHUHA homondear decoupling pulse train has been replaced by the more efficient windowless BLEW12 (9) sequence. Also, the time interval between cross polarization and the refocusing pulse was not constrained to be an integer number of multipulse cycles. For this work, a half-cycle of BLEW-12 is used as the tl increment time. The half-cycle represents the minimum pulse sequence necessary to cause zero-order dipolar interactions to vanish (9).
Dietary Carbohydrate Modifies the Inverse Association Between Saturated Fat Intake and Cholesterol on Very Low-Density Lipoproteins

We aimed to investigate the relationship between dietary saturated fat on fasting triglyceride (TG) and cholesterol levels, and any mediation of this relationship by dietary carbohydrate intake. Men and women in the NHLBI Genetics of Lipid-Lowering Drugs and Diet Network (GOLDN) study (n = 1036, mean age ± SD = 49 ± 16 y) were included. Mixed linear models were run with saturated fat as a predictor variable and fasting TG, very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C), low density cholesterol (LDL-C) and high density cholesterol (HDL-C) as separate outcome variables. Subsequent models were run which included dietary carbohydrate as a predictor variable, and an interaction term between saturated fat and carbohydrate. All models controlled for age, sex, BMI, blood pressure and dietary covariates. In models that included only saturated fat as a predictor, saturated fat did not show significant associations with fasting lipids. When carbohydrate intake and an interaction term between carbohydrates and saturated fat intake was included, carbohydrate intake did not associate with lipids, but there was an inverse relationship between saturated fat intake and VLDL-C (P = 0.01) with a significant interaction (P = 0.01) between saturated fat and carbohydrate with regard to fasting VLDL-C concentrations. Similar results were observed for fasting TG levels. We conclude that, when controlling for carbohydrate intake, higher saturated fat was associated with lower VLDL-C and TGs. This was not the case at higher intakes of carbohydrate. This has important implications for dietary advice aimed at reducing TG and VLDL-C levels.
Is Adjustment with Equitable Economic Growth Possible? Evidence from a Developing Country

ABSTRACT This article analyzes the effects of structural adjustment policies in the 1980s on growth and income distribution in the Sudan within a Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) framework. These policies were unbalanced between the productive sectors of the economy and biased toward modem irrigated agriculture, large capital-intensive and highly import-dependent industries. The SAM multiplier analysis indicates that these sectors have the weakest growth linkages in the economy and the smallest impact on household income. In contrast, traditional agriculture (including livestock and forestry) provide the strongest linkages and have the largest impact on every household income group. These results must be heavily qualified when taking into account the limitations of both the data base and the SAM multiplier model.
Rhetologia or Aretalogia

Tatian, adv. Graecos 40 (p. 41, 1-10 Schwartz): The argument of this passage follows a line familiar to readers of the apologists: the Hebrew Lawgiver and the prophets belonged to an earlier age than the wise men of Greece, who borrowed Hebrew wisdom and perverted it in one way or another. Leaving one word purposely untranslated, we may render the last sentence, “For their sophists, tampering freely with what they had learned from Moses and those who shared his philosophy, tried to give it a false stamp, first, in order that they might be credited with saying something of their own, and secondly, that they might cloak what they did not understand with some fictitious ῥητολογία and unfairly represent the truth as a fable.”
Pentosan polysulfate: a novel therapy for the mucopolysaccharidoses.

Background Pentosan polysulfate (PPS) is an FDA-approved, oral medication with anti-inflammatory and pro-chondrogenic properties. We have previously shown that animal models of the mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) exhibit significant inflammatory disease, contributing to cartilage degeneration. Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) only partly reduced inflammation, and anti-TNF-alpha antibody therapy significantly enhanced clinical and pathological outcomes. Here we describe the use of PPS for the treatment of MPS type VI rats. Methodology/Principal Findings Treatment began during prenatal development and at 1 and 6 months of age. All animals were treated until they were 9 months old. Significant reductions in the serum and tissue levels of several inflammatory markers (e.g., TNF-alpha, MIP-1alpha and RANTES/CCL5) were observed, as was reduced expression of inflammatory markers in cultured articular chondrocytes. ADAMTS-5/aggrecanase-2 levels also were reduced in chondrocytes, consistent with an elevation of serum tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1. Marked improvements in motility and grooming behavior occurred, along with a reduction in eye and nasal secretions and a lessening of the tracheal deformities. MicroCT and radiographic analyses further revealed that the treated MPS skulls were longer and thinner, and that the teeth malocclusions, misalignments and mineral densities were improved. MicroCT analysis of the femurs and vertebrae revealed improvements in trabecular bone mineral densities, number and spacing in a subset of treated MPS animals. Biomechanical assessments of PPS-treated spines showed partially restored torsional behaviors, suggesting increased spinal stability. No improvements were observed in cortical bone or femur length. The positive changes in the PPS-treated MPS VI rats occurred despite glycosaminoglycan accumulation in their tissues. Conclusions Based on these findings we conclude that PPS could be a simple and effective therapy for MPS that might provide significant clinical benefits alone and in combination with other therapies.
Mineralogical heterogeneities in the Earth's mantle: Constraints from Mn, Co, Ni and Zn partitioning during partial melting

Abstract The first-row transition elements (FRTEs) are compatible to moderately incompatible during melting in mafic and ultramafic systems. Unlike highly incompatible elements, FRTEs are sensitive to changes in mineralogy or major element composition, and thus, are promising to trace lithological heterogeneities in the mantle source regions of basaltic magmas. However, experimental constraints on the partitioning behaviors of several FRTEs at mantle conditions, such as Zn, are still lacking despite growing interest in the application of these tracers to magmatic systems. Here we present mineral-melt partitioning experiments at 1.5–2.0 GPa and 1300–1500 °C for divalent FRTEs—Zn, Fe, Mn, Co, and Ni. Our study provides for the first time Zn and Zn/Fe fractionation data between peridotitic olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and basaltic melt. Using our new partition coefficients and combining multiple ratios (Zn/Fe, Ni/Co, Mn/Fe, and Mn/Zn) we assess the role of FRTEs as tracers of mineralogical composition in the mantle source regions of basalts. We show that, during melting, olivine and orthopyroxene do not significantly fractionate Mn, Fe, and Zn from each other, and because olivine and orthopyroxene dominate the budget of these elements in ultramafic systems, melts from peridotite would be expected to have similar Mn/Fe and Zn/Fe as the source. In contrast, our results for clinopyroxene and published results for garnet show strong fractionations, such that melts of pyroxenites or eclogites would be expected to have low Mn/Fe, Co/Fe, Ni/Co, Mn/Zn and high Zn/Fe compared to peridotite partial melts. We compare Zn, Fe, Co, Mn and Ni contents of natural oceanic basalts to modeled compositions of peridotitic and pyroxenitic partial melts. Most mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) and near-ridge ocean island basalts (OIB, e.g., Iceland and Galapagos) can be explained by shallow melting of peridotite, but most ocean island basalts away from ridges deviate from predicted peridotite melt compositions. We use melting and mixing models of FRTEs ratios in peridotite and in MORB-like eclogite to illustrate the potential contribution of eclogite- and peridotite derived melts in individual MORB and OIB lavas. We also present a simple melt–melt mixing model that estimates the amount of eclogite in the source of mantle end-members HIMU, EM1, and EM2 and individual OIB.
Particulate matter composition and emission rates from the disk incorporation of class B biosolids into soil

Abstract Biosolids contain metal, synthetic organic compound, endotoxin, and pathogen concentrations that are greater than concentrations in the agricultural soils to which they are applied. Once applied, biosolids are incorporated into soils by disking and the aerosols produced during this process may pose an airborne toxicological and infectious health hazard to biosolids workers and nearby residents. Field studies at a Central Arizona biosolids land application site were conducted to characterize the physical, chemical, and biological content of the aerosols produced during biosolids disking and the content of bulk biosolids and soils from which the aerosols emanate. Arrayed samplers were used to estimate the vertical source aerosol concentration profile to enable plume height and associated source emission rate calculations. Source aerosol concentrations and calculated emission rates reveal that disking is a substantial source of biosolids-derived aerosols. The biosolids emission rate during disking ranged from 9.91 to 27.25 mg s−1 and was greater than previously measured emission rates produced during the spreading of dewatered biosolids or the spraying of liquid biosolids. Adding biosolids to dry soils increased the moisture content and reduced the total PM10 emissions produced during disking by at least three times. The combination of bulk biosolids and aerosol measurements along with PM10 concentrations provides a framework for estimating aerosol concentrations and emission rates by reconstruction. This framework serves to eliminate the difficulty and inherent limitations associated with monitoring low aerosol concentrations of toxic compounds and pathogens, and can promote an increased understanding of the associated biosolids aerosol health risks to workers and nearby residents.
Functional detection of chemopreventive glucosinolates in Arabidopsis thaliana

Natural isothiocyanates, derived from glucosinolates by myrosinase-catalyzed hydrolysis, are potent chemopreventive agents that favorably modify carcinogen metabolism in mammals by inhibiting metabolic activation of carcinogens and/or by inducing carcinogen-detoxifying enzymes. Methylsulfinylalkyl isothiocyanates are potent selective inducers of mammalian Phase 2 detoxification enzymes such as quinone reductase [NADP(H):quinone-acceptor oxidoreductase, EC 1.6.99.2]. Members of the Cruciferae family, including the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heyhn, synthesize methylsulfinylalkyl glucosinolates. We have adapted a colorimetric bioassay for quinone reductase activity in Hepa 1c1c7 murine hepatoma cells as a versatile tool to rapidly monitor methylsulfinylalkyl glucosinolate content in A. thaliana leaf extracts. Using wild type plants and mutant plants defective in the synthesis of 4-methylsulfinylbutyl glucosinolate (glucoraphanin), we have demonstrated that A. thaliana (ecotype Columbia) is a rich source of Phase 2 enzyme inducers and that methylsulfinylalkyl glucosinolates, predominantly glucoraphanin, account for about 80% of the quinone reductase inducer potency of Columbia leaf extracts. We have optimized leaf extraction conditions and the quinone reductase bioassay to allow for screening of large numbers of plant extracts in a molecular genetic approach to dissecting glucosinolate biosynthesis in A. thaliana.
Acrylamide and molecular oxygen fluorescence quenching as a probe of solvent-accessibility of aromatic fluorophores complexed with DNA in relation to their conformations: coronene-DNA and other complexes.

Abstract— The relationships between the accessibilities to fluorescence quenchers (O2 and acrylamide) of three different aromatic molecules and their modes of binding to double-stranded DNA were investigated. Proflavin was selected for this study because it is a known intercalator, while Hoechst 33258 is known to bind externally in the minor groove of DNA; it is shown here that the relatively bulky polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon coronene forms partial intercalation complexes, and thus represents a third class of fluorophore-DNA binding. Fluorescence quenching results suggest that Hoechst 33258 bound to DNA is fully accessible to 02, that the accessibility of partially intercalated coronene is reduced to 20% of the free-solution value, while the accessibility of intercalated proflavin to molecular oxygen is at least ten times smaller than for free polycyclic aromatic molecules in fluid solutions. In contrast, the fluorescence of all these three fluorophores bound to DNA is insensitive to acrylamide (the effective accessibilities appear to be reduced by factors greater than 50 upon binding to DNA). It is concluded that O, is useful as a qualitative probe of the type of binding and solvent exposure of fluorophore-DNA complexes, while acrylamide appears to be of limited utility. However, acrylamide fluorescence quenching may be useful for studies of other types of fluorophore-DNA complexes since the fluorescence of the pyrene residues in covalent adducts derived from the binding of benzo(a)pyrene diol expoxide to DNA was found to be at least partially sensitive to acrylamide.
Severe food allergies by skin contact

Background Ingestion is the principal route for food allergens, yet some highly sensitive patients may develop severe symptoms upon skin contact. Case Report We describe five cases of severe food allergic reactions through skin contact, including inhalation in one. Methods The cases were referred to a university allergy clinic, and evaluation comprised detailed medical history, physical examination, skin testing, serum total and specific IgE, and selected challenges. Results These cases were found to have a strong family history of allergy, early age of onset, very high total serum IgE level, and strong reactivity to foods by skin prick testing or RAST. Interestingly, reactions occurred while all five children were being breast-fed (exclusively in four and mixed in one). Conclusions Severe food allergic reactions can occur from exposure to minute quantities of allergen by skin contact or inhalation. Food allergy by a noningestant route should be considered in patients with the above characteristics.
Consultant as Container Assisting Organizational Rebirth in Mandela's South Africa

This case study recounts an intervention into the senior leadership group of a state-owned organization in South Africa. What started as an executive education program was transformed into a consulting project, a journey of discovery for both the leadership of this organization and the consultants. The turbulent and oftentimes inverted experiences of the work with this senior leadership team are examined via five anomalous events that form the basis for theorizing about how consultants can function as containers for the emotions of the client system. In this project, the consultants' willingness to absorb and work with the leadership's anxiety, hopelessness, and projections enabled the participants to address the many troubling emotions blocking their growth. This article documents the processes and the theory that led this executive group to an independent and mature way of functioning.
Purpura haemorrhagica in 53 horses

The medical records of 53 horses with purpura haemorrhagica were reviewed. Seventeen of them had been exposed to or infected with Streptococcus equi, nine had been infected with Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, five had been vaccinated with S equi M protein, five had had a respiratory infection of unknown aetiology, and two had open wounds; the other 15 cases had no history of recent viral or bacterial infection. The horses were between six months and 19 years of age (mean 8-4 years). The predominant clinical signs were well demarcated subcutaneous oedema of all four limbs and haemorrhages on the visible mucous membranes; other signs included depression, anorexia, fever, tachycardia, tachypnoea, reluctance to move, drainage from lymph nodes, exudation of serum from the skin, colic, epistaxis and weight loss. Haematological and biochemical abnormalities commonly detected were anaemia, neutrophilia, hyperproteinaemia, hyperfibrinogenaemia, hyperglobulinaemia and high activities of muscle enzymes. All of the horses were treated with corticosteroids; 42 also received non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and 26 received antimicrobial drugs. Selected cases received special nursing care, including hydrotherapy and bandaging of the limbs. Most of the horses were treated for more than seven days and none of them relapsed. Forty-nine of the horses survived, one died and three were euthanased, either because their severe clinical disease failed to respond to treatment or because they developed secondary complications. Two of the four non-survivors had been vaccinated against S equi with a product containing the M protein, one had a S equi infection and the other had a respiratory infection of undetermined aetiology.
Eviscerated Yield, Component Parts, and Meat, Skin and Bone Ratios in the Chicken Broiler

Abstract Based on a study of several parameters of yield in the 8-week-old broiler chicken, eviscerated yield for birds packed in watertight bags in ice for 24 hours were 72.04% for the males and 70.08% for the females. The mean edible yield was 73.48% for males and 75.23% for females. Meat-to-bone ratios for the whole carcass were 2.43 for the males and 2.71 for the females. The meat plus skin-to-bone ratios for the whole carcass were 3.04 for the males and 3.32 for the females. From the data presented here, it seems that breast yield values are slightly higher than the values reported in the 1950’s. Our data also suggest that the combined yield of giblets, including the neck, has decrezsed slightly, but that the relative yield ann percentage of the various parts have not changed appreciably during the last 20 years.
An efficient two-stage approach for image-based FSI analysis of atherosclerotic arteries

Patient-specific biomechanical modeling of atherosclerotic arteries has the potential to aid clinicians in characterizing lesions and determining optimal treatment plans. To attain high levels of accuracy, recent models use medical imaging data to determine plaque component boundaries in three dimensions, and fluid–structure interaction is used to capture mechanical loading of the diseased vessel. As the plaque components and vessel wall are often highly complex in shape, constructing a suitable structured computational mesh is very challenging and can require a great deal of time. Models based on unstructured computational meshes require relatively less time to construct and are capable of accurately representing plaque components in three dimensions. These models unfortunately require additional computational resources and computing time for accurate and meaningful results. A two-stage modeling strategy based on unstructured computational meshes is proposed to achieve a reasonable balance between meshing difficulty and computational resource and time demand. In this method, a coarsegrained simulation of the full arterial domain is used to guide and constrain a fine-scale simulation of a smaller region of interest within the full domain. Results for a patient-specific carotid bifurcation model demonstrate that the two-stage approach can afford a large savings in both time for mesh generation and time and resources needed for computation. The effects of solid and fluid domain truncation were explored, and were shown to minimally affect accuracy of the stress fields predicted with the two-stage approach.
Synthesis of N‐[11C]‐methyl‐L‐DOPA

The radiochemical synthesis of N-[11C-methyl]-L-DOPA was accomplished by N-methylation of the methyl and ethyl esters of L-N-tert-butyl-oxycarbonyl-[β-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)] alaninate with [11C]iodomethane using sodium hydride in tetrahydrofuran and deprotection of the N-methyl intermediate with hydriodic acid. A catalytic influence of Kryptofix on the methylation reaction was observed. Using the ethyl ester precursor, the average specific activity at the end-of-synthesis was 972 mCi/μmole. The synthesis was completed in an average of 45 minutes following the end-of-bombardment.
The effect of median filtering on edge location estimation

Abstract We study the effect of noise reduction preprocessing, specifically median filtering and averaging, on the accuracy of edge location estimation using least squares. The original edge is either a step or a linear ramp, corrupted by white Gaussian noise or binary symmetrical channel noise. The surprising conclusion is that in the case of white Gaussian noise, neither median filtering nor averaging improves the estimation accuracy. In the case of binary symmetrical channel noise, median filtering does improve the estimation accuracy for ramp edges, which are reasonable models for real-life edges.
Acidic precipitation: considerations for an air-quality standard

Acidic precipitation, wet or frozen precipitation with a H+ concentration greater than 2.5 μeq l−1, is a significant air pollution problem in the United States. The chief anions accounting for the H+ in rainfall are nitrate and sulfate. Agricultural systems may derive greater net nutritional benefits from increasing inputs of acidic rain than do forest systems when soils alone are considered. Agricultural soils may benefit because of the high N and S requirements of agricultural plants. Detrimental effects to forest soils may result if atmospheric H+ inputs significantly add to or exceed H+ production by soils. Acidification of fresh waters of southern Scandinavia, southwestern Scotland, southeastern Canada, and northeastern United States is caused by acid deposition. Areas of these regions in which this acidification occurs have in common, highly acidic precipitation with volume weighted mean annual H+ concentrations of 25 μeq l−1 or higher and slow weathering of granitic or precambrian bedrock with thin soils deficient in minerals which would provide buffer capacity. Biological effects of acidification of fresh waters are detectable below pH 6.0. As lake and stream pH levels decrease below pH 6.0, many species of plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates are progressively eliminated. Generally, fisheries are severely impacted below pH 5.0 and are completely destroyed below pH 4.8. At the present time studies documenting effects of acidic precipitation on terrestrial vegetation are insufficient to establish an air quality standard. It must be demonstrated that current levels of precipitation acidity alone significantly injure terrestrial vegetation. For aquatic ecosystems, current research indicates that establishing a maximum permissible value for the volume weighted annual H+ concentration of precipitation at 25 μeq l−1 may protect the most sensitive areas from permanent lake acidification. Such a standard would probably protect other systems as well.
The technical efficiency of vacuum-pan sugar industry of India: An application of a stochastic frontier production function using panel data

Abstract A stochastic production frontier method is used to examine technical efficiency among Indian vacuum-pan sugar factories over a five-year period. Most factories are close to Indian best practice in terms of technical efficiency. Smaller firms and firms with access to sweeter cane are likely to be more efficient than other firms, while publicly owned firms are less efficient. There are transitory positive effects of a long crushing season on technical efficiency.
Complete elastic characterization of viscoelastic materials by dynamic measurements of the complex bulk and Young's moduli as a function of temperature and hydrostatic pressure

Abstract Two independent systems to measure the dynamic complex Young's and bulk moduli of viscoelastic materials as a function of temperature and hydrostatic pressure are described. In the Young's modulus system, a bar-shaped sample is adhered to a piezoelectric shaker and mounted vertically inside an air-filled pressure vessel. Data are obtained using both the traditional resonant approach and a wave-speed technique. In the bulk modulus system, the compressibility of a sample of arbitrary shape immersed in Castor oil and placed inside a pressure chamber is measured. Data can be obtained at frequencies typically ranging from 50 Hz to 5 kHz, at temperatures comprised between −2 and 50 °C and under hydrostatic pressures ranging from 0 to 2 MPa (Young's), or 6.5 MPa (bulk). Typical data obtained with both systems are presented, and it is shown how these data can be combined to completely characterize the elasticity of the material under investigation. In particular, they can be used to obtain experimental values of the complex Poisson's ratio, whose accurate measurement is otherwise quite challenging to perform directly. As an example, the magnitude and loss tangent of Poisson's ratio are presented for a nearly incompressible rubber.
Recent developments in conservation genetics

Abstract Because of the new molecular genetics information from various genome projects, new applications and insights for genetics studies in endangered species are forthcoming. Neutral variants are generally used for conservation applications and estimating evolutionary parameters, and with highly variable loci, many more markers, or extensive sequence data, these approaches should become much more informative. Detrimental and adaptive variation is of importance in conservation genetics but identification and characterization of such variation is more difficult. Neutral variants might be used to identify adaptive variants but the overlay of different mutational processes and selective regimes suggests that great caution should be used in making such predictions. Examples in endangered species discussed below are (1) estimation of long-term effective population size using neutral markers in three fishes of the lower Colorado River; (2) genetic restoration of the Florida panther by the introduction of Texas cougars; (3) impact of pathogens and adaptive variation on the winter-run chinook salmon; (4) examination of the adaptive variation for a major histocompatibility complex (MHC) gene in red wolves. Although these examples are all from animals, the techniques and approaches used should prove equally useful in endangered plant species.
EXPLAINING HUSBANDS' PARTICIPATION IN DOMESTIC LABOR

Three hypotheses of husbands' participation in domestic labor (i.e., housework and child care) are examined: (1) the relative resources hypothesis states that the more resources (e.g., socioeconomi...
Textural characteristics of lowfat, fullfat and smoked cheeses: sensory and instrumental approaches☆

Abstract Research on the comparison of textural properties of lowfat, fullfat and smoked cheeses is yet to be reported. The objective of this study was to find textural differences in these cheeses by sensory and instrumental methods and to try to correlate the sensory and the instrumental data. Nine commercial cheeses were evaluated for aroma, flavor, and texture by descriptive analysis and were also subjected to instrumental texture profile analysis. The sensory evaluation by a panel of nine judges separated the cheeses into ‘smoked’ and ‘non-smoked’ based on aroma and flavor. On the basis of texture the judges categorized the cheeses into either ‘dry and crumbly’ or ‘sticky and creamy’. The texture profile analysis segregated the cheeses into ‘smoked’ and ‘non-smoked’. ‘Hardness’ (instrumental) was positively correlated to sensory texture attributes such as ‘dry’, ‘hardness’ and ‘crumbly’, which might indicate hardness of cheeses during mastication. The judges that participated in the panel were found to be very consistent as a group in their evaluation.
Feature extraction technique based on Hopfield neural network and joint transform correlation

In this paper, a new Hopfield neural network based supervised filtering technique is proposed. The learnable filtering architecture has been developed by modifying the Hopfield network structure using 2D convolution instead of weight-matrix multiplications. This feature offers high speed learning and testing possibility for image feature extraction process. The learning property of the filtering technique is provided by using a recurrent learning algorithm. The proposed technique has been implemented using joint transform correlator. The requirement of non-negative data for optoelectronic implementation is provided by incorporating bias technique to convert the negative data to non-negative data. Simulation results for the proposed technique are reported for feature extraction problems such as edge detection, and vertical line extraction.
The vacancy in cubic tetrahedrally coordinated materials

Abstract Bonding of the four dangling bonds surrounding a vacancy in cubic tetrahedrally coordinated semiconductors has long been recognized to yield states with a 1 and t 2 symmetry. It is shown that the introduction of the spin-orbit interaction causes the a 1 state to become a Φ 6 state and the three-fold degenerate (six-fold with spin) t 2 state to split into Φ (two-fold) and Φ 8 (four-fold) states. A calculation is carried out for the vacancy in silicon which yields a Φ 8 -Φ 7 splitting of approximately 0.05 eV. Estimates of the splitting are given for the vacancy in other materials.
Pelvic exenterative therapy for cynecologic malignancy. An analysis of 70 cases

During the 10-year period from June 1, 1965 to June 1, 1975 70 patients with gynecologic malignancy were treated with some type of pelvic exenteration at the University of Michigan Medical Center. Total pelvic exenteration was performed in over 75% of the cases. The most recent figures suggest a 3-year and 5-year survival rate of over 60%. The surgical mortality is 1.4%: the hospital mortality is 1.4%. Those patients with squamous cell disease, such as recurrent carcinoma of the cervix, vagina or vulva, have a better prognosis than do those patients with gland cell disease. Regional lymph node involvement gives a bad prognosis. Advances in therapeutic techniques during this 10-year period, including: 1) use of prophylactic antibiotics: 2) transverse abdominal incision; 3) so-called "ski-position" on the operating table; 4) prophylactic compartmentalization of the inferior vena cava; 5) uretero-sigmoid conduit for urinary diversion; 6) peritoneal graft as a "lid" over the pelvic vault' and 7) split-thickness skin graft vaginoplasty as part of the rehabilitation program, are discussed.
Crystal structure of the transcriptional regulator AcrR from Escherichia coli.

The AcrAB multidrug efflux pump, which belongs to the resistance-nodulation-division (RND) family, recognizes and extrudes a wide range of antibiotics and chemotherapeutic agents, and causes the intrinsic antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli. The expression of AcrAB is controlled by the transcriptional regulator AcrR, whose open reading frame is located 141-base-pair upstream of the acrAB operon. To understand the structural basis of AcrR regulation, we have determined the crystal structure of AcrR, to 2.55 A resolution, revealing a dimeric two-domain molecule with an entirely helical architecture similar to members of the TetR family of transcriptional regulators. Each monomer of AcrR forms a multi-entrance pocket of 350 cubic angstroms in the ligand-binding domain. The ligand-binding pocket is surrounded with mostly hydrophobic residues. In addition, a completely buried negatively charged glutamate, expected to be critical for drug binding, is located at the center of the binding pocket. The crystal structure provides novel insight into the mechanisms of ligand binding and AcrR regulation.
Preparation of isotopic ruthenium targets using an ion beam sputtering source

The preparation of ruthenium targets to be used in heavy-ion experiments has always presented challenges due to the physical properties of ruthenium and the cost of the separated isotopes. The straightforward approach of ion beam sputtering provides an efficient deposition technique, which allows for conservation of the isotopic starting material. A description of the target preparation will be presented along with results for several ruthenium isotopes.
The Interstate Commerce Commission and the Railroad Terminal Problem

I. Introduction, 462. — Failure of railroad regulation to accomplish the larger and ultimate object of regulation, 463. — The present problems of terminal regulation, 464. — The six categories of regulation, 465. —II. Analysis of Interstate Commerce Commission's Policy, 465.—The obligations of a rail carrier to perform switching services, 466. — The obligations of a carrier to build switch connections and to charge demurrage established, 471. — The obligations of a carrier to absorb terminal charges in certain traffic not effectively controlled in the absence of separation of terminal and Une haul charges, 474. — The obligations of a carrier to permit joint use of its terminal facilities not successfully established, 480. — The legality of terminal associations established, 483. — III. Conclusion: The Strength of the Interstate Commerce Commission's Policy, 484. — The conservative interpretation of the provisions for joint use of facilities, 486. — Unsatisfactory control of terminal charges, 486. — Need of a practical policy which conforms to recent conceptions of public interest, 490
Structure of the hydrogen stabilized MgO(1 1 1)-(1 × 1) surface from low energy electron diffraction (LEED)

A structural study has been performed on the MgO(1 1 1)-(1 × 1) surface by low energy electron diffraction (LEED) using experimental data obtained with a delay-line-detector LEED (DLD-LEED) system to minimize electron damage. It was found that the surface is terminated by a hydroxide layer with the top O–Mg interlayer spacing equal to 1.02 A, which is close to the spacings between Mg and O planes in bulk brucite crystals (Mg(OH)2). This is in good agreement with a recent study using photoelectron diffraction (PhD) spectroscopy and density functional theory calculation (DFT) [V.K. Lazarov, R. Plass, H.-C. Poon, D.K. Saldin, M. Weinert, S.A. Chambers, M. Gajdardziska-Josifovska, Phys. Rev. B 71 (2005) 115434]. The second interlayer spacing shows a small expansion of 3% and the third is bulk-like, while the DFT calculation predicted that the spacings below the top one are all bulk-like. This result clearly favors hydroxylation [K. Refson, R.A. Wogelius, D.G. Fraser, M.C. Payne, M.H. Lee, V. Milman, Phys. Rev. B 52 (1995) 10823] as a way of stabilizing the MgO(1 1 1) surface at low temperature over metallization, which has a top layer spacing of 0.86 A for O termination and 1.25 A for Mg termination [Lazarov et al. 2005; T. Tsukada, T. Hoshino, Phys. Soc. Jpn. 51 (1982) 2562, J. Goniakowski, C. Noguera, Phys. Rev. B 60 (1999) 16120].