cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Conversation Between Hedvig Hricak and Johannes Czernin.

1038 Introduction: Gold nanostar (AuNS) displays a high photothermal conversion efficiency and has been applied for in vitro and in vivo photothermal therapy (PTT) of various tumors. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) provide a powerful tool for in vivo tracking of nanoparticles. In this study, we synthesized PEGylated AuNS (pAuNS) and its radioactive surrogate to evaluate its biological characteristics. The results of biodistribution and SPECT images may be adopted in designing the procedure of cancer treatment. The potential of pAuNS-mediated PTT was evaluated in a SKOV-3 human ovarian tumor-bearing mouse model. Methods: AuNS with a maximal plasma absorption peak at ~790 nm and an average size of 46.8±3.6 nm was synthesized by HEPES-reduction method, and then PEGylated to obtain pAuNS. The temperature rise of pAuNS in different buffers after 793 nm near infrared (NIR) laser irradiation was recorded with a thermal camera. DTPA-conjugated pAuNS was labeled with indium-111 to obtain 111In-DTPA-pAuNS with high radiolabeling efficiency (94.8±1.4%) and good in vitro stability (>95% after 72 h of incubation in serum). The biological characterizations of 111In-DTPA-pAuNS were conducted in mice bearing SKOV-3 human ovarian xenografts. The tumor gold concentration was estimated based on the results of biodistribution and validated by the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The anti-tumor effect of pAuNS-mediated PTT was also evaluated in the same animal tumor model. Results: The heat generation after NIR irradiation (1.0 and 1.5 W/cm2) of pAuNS-containing normal saline and fetal bovine serum increased in a dose-dependent manner. MicroSPECT/CT images revealed that most of 111In-DTPA-pAuNS after intravenous injection retained in liver and spleen in the tumor-bearing mice. The gold content in tumor determined by 111In-radioactivity and ICP-MS was considerably correlated (R2 >0.7), indicated that 111In-DTPA-pAuNS is a suitable radioactive surrogate of pAuNS. At 24 h post-injection of 111In-DTPA-pAuNS, the tumor-to-muscle ratio reached plateau and was selected as the time point for pAuNS-mediated PTT. Comparing to NIR irradiation only, the tumor temperature rise was more remarkable, accompanied with a significantly inhibited tumor growth, in pAuNS-mediated PTT treatment group. No pathological changes or injuries were detected in main organs following pAuNS administration. Conclusions: We demonstrated the anti-tumor effect of pAuNS-mediated PTT in treating ovarian cancer. 111In-labeled pAuNS (i.e. 111In-DTPA-pAuNS) was successfully synthesized and used for investigating the biological behaviors of pAuNS, which hence facilitated the selection of the appropriate time point for pAuNS-mediated PTT.
Normal range for MR elastography measured liver stiffness in children without liver disease

Author(s): Sawh, Mary Catherine; Newton, Kimberly P; Goyal, Nidhi P; Angeles, Jorge Eduardo; Harlow, Kathryn; Bross, Craig; Schlein, Alexandra N; Hooker, Jonathan C; Sy, Ethan Z; Glaser, Kevin J; Yin, Meng; Ehman, Richard L; Sirlin, Claude B; Schwimmer, Jeffrey B | Abstract: BackgroundMagnetic resonance elastography (MRE) can determine the presence and stage of liver fibrosis. Data on normative MRE values, while reported in adults, are limited in children.PurposeTo determine the distribution of MRE-measured liver stiffness in children without liver disease.Study typeProspective, observational.PopulationEighty-one healthy children (mean 12.6 ± 2.6 years, range 8-17 years).Field strength/sequence3.0T Signa HDxt, General Electric MR Scanner; 2D GRE MRE sequence.AssessmentHistory, examination, laboratory evaluation, and (MR) exams (proton density fat fraction, PDFF, and MRE) were performed. MR elastograms were analyzed manually at two reading centers and compared with each other for agreement and with published values in healthy adults and thresholds for fibrosis in adult and pediatric patients.Statistical testsDescriptive statistics, Bland-Altman analysis, t-test to compare hepatic stiffness values with reference standards.ResultsStiffness values obtained at both reading centers were similar, without significant bias (P = 0.362) and with excellent correlation (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] = 0.782). Mean hepatic stiffness value for the study population was 2.45 ± 0.35 kPa (95th percentile 3.19 kPa), which was significantly higher than reported values for healthy adult subjects (2.10 ± 0.23 kPa, P l 0.001). In all, 74-85% of subjects had stiffness measurements suggestive of no fibrosis.Data conclusionMean liver stiffness measured with MRE in this cohort was significantly higher than that reported in healthy adults. Despite rigorous screening, some healthy children had stiffness measurements suggestive of liver fibrosis using current published thresholds. Although MRE has the potential to provide noninvasive assessment in patients with suspected hepatic disease, further refinement of this technology will help advance its use as a diagnostic tool for evidence of fibrosis in pediatric populations.Level of evidence1 Technical Efficacy: 5 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2020;51:919-927.
Schneiderian Membrane Thickness Is Increased in Patients With Cleft Lip and Palate.

Objective:Patients with cleft lip and palate (CLP) are more likely to have sinusitis. The purpose of this study is to determine whether patients with CLP have thickening of the Schneiderian membran...
Interleukin-22 Ameliorates Neutrophil-Driven Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Through Multiple Targets.

Background and aims Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of diseases ranging from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and liver cancer. At present, how simple steatosis progresses to NASH remains obscure and effective pharmacological therapies are lacking. Hepatic expression of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 1 (CXCL1), a key chemokine for neutrophil infiltration (a hallmark of NASH), is highly elevated in NASH patients but not in fatty livers in obese individuals or in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. The aim of this study was to test whether overexpression of CXCL1 itself in the liver can induce NASH in HFD-fed mice and to test the therapeutic potential of IL-22 in this new NASH model. Approach and results Overexpression of Cxcl1 in the liver alone promotes steatosis-to-NASH progression in HFD-fed mice by inducing neutrophil infiltration, oxidative stress, and stress kinase (such as apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase) activation. Myeloid cell-specific deletion of the neutrophil cytosolic factor 1 (Ncf1)/p47phox gene, which encodes a component of the NADPH oxidase 2 complex that mediates neutrophil oxidative burst, markedly reduced CXCL1-induced NASH and stress kinase activation in HFD-fed mice. Treatment with interleukin (IL)-22, a cytokine with multiple targets, ameliorated CXCL1/HFD-induced NASH or methionine-choline deficient diet-induced NASH in mice. Mechanistically, IL-22 blocked hepatic oxidative stress and its associated stress kinases via the induction of metallothionein, one of the most potent antioxidant proteins. Moreover, although it does not target immune cells, IL-22 treatment attenuated the inflammatory functions of hepatocyte-derived, mitochondrial DNA-enriched extracellular vesicles, thereby suppressing liver inflammation in NASH. Conclusions Hepatic overexpression of CXCL1 is sufficient to drive steatosis-to-NASH progression in HFD-fed mice through neutrophil-derived reactive oxygen species and activation of stress kinases, which can be reversed by IL-22 treatment via the induction of metallothionein.
Timing of Low Pressure Irrigation Affects Plant Growth and Water Utilization Efficiency

Abstract Pine bark based substrates, commonly used in the southeastern United States for container nursery crop protection, have low moisture retention properties; therefore, daily irrigation durin...
The Effect of Priming and Customer Reviews on Sustainable Travel Behaviors

This research investigates how priming environmental attitudes influences purchase decisions and donations in response to environmental cues in online traveler reviews. An experiment evaluated the ...
Thermosensitive Biodegradable Copper Sulfide Nanoparticles for in vivo Multispectral Optoacoustic Tomography

192 Objectives: Copper sulfide nanoparticles (CuS NPs) have emerged as one of the most promising theranostic nanoplatforms for treating cancer, due to their relatively small size, facile chemistry and excellent photothermal properties. Herein, we have designed a thermosenstive biodegradable CuS NP, which can be more clinical relevant with lower side effects. Our goal was to investigate its in vitro and in vivo biodegradation profile, and apply it to high-resolution multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT) in living animals in both static and dynamic manners. Methods: Polyethylene glycol (PEG)-coated CuS NPs were synthesized via a one-step reaction with CuCl2 and Na2S as the precursors and mPEG-SH as the surfactant reacted at 90 oC. As-prepared CuS-PEG was incubated in water/PBS in different temperatures to examine its in vitro biodegradation by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), optical absorbance based on UV-VIS-NIFR spectrometry and ion concentration based on inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). CuS-PEG was injected into healthy Balb/c mice, and livers of CuS-PEG NP-injected mice were investigated over time with ICP-OES for in vivo biodegradation. MSOT was performed in SKOV-3 tumor bearing nude mice to validate the imaging capacity of the biodegradable CuS NPs. Results: CuS-PEG NPs were successfully synthesized with superior solubility and size range 10~12 nm in diameter. After incubating with water/PBS for 7 days at 37 oC, significant degradation (73.2 ± 0.1 %) was observed; whereas minimal degradation (14.0 ± 0.3 %) was observed when incubating at 4 oC. Different conditions, such as air exposure and presence of residual precursors, were also investigated, suggesting that temperature is the major cause of biodegradation. Cu concentration in liver based on ICP-OES also demonstrated significant biodegradation (50.0 ± 0.4 μg NP per g tissue at 3 h p.i. v.s. 8.2 ± 0.4 μg NP per g tissue at 7 days p.i.) of CuS-PEG in vivo. Both static and dynamic MSOT showed manifestly enhanced signal in tumor after 2h p.i. which decreased with time, correlating with the in vitro findings. Of note, degraded Cu ions will not render MSOT signal, leading to more accurate imaging results in comparison to the imaging techniques that rely on radionuclides. Conclusions: In this study, we reported a novel biodegradable CuS NPs for MSOT in living animals, which are able to effectively enhance the tumor signal and promptly degrade in several days. The degradation is controllable and temperature-dependent, making it a clinically-translatable in vivo theranostic platform with lower long-term side effects. Our study provides a comprehensive and unique perspective to evaluate CuS NPs, and may inspire future explorations into the realm of more controllable, biodegradable, and clinical relevant nanotheranostics.
Application of a Digitized Fuel Load Surveying Methodology to Office Buildings

This paper discusses application of a new methodology that facilitates fuel load surveys in buildings. The methodology consists of four steps comprising digital inventory, data organization, item matching through computer vision, and fuel load estimation, and is programmed into a digitized surveying application. The present paper applies the methodology to three office buildings and provides the results of surveyed fuel load density. A total office area of 1720 m2 was surveyed consisting of 34 closed offices and 161 cubicles within 12 large open plan office spaces. Compartment areas range from 8 m2 to 87 m2 for closed offices and 24 m2 to 345 m2 for open plan offices. The measured fuel load density for movable content had a mean of 1115 MJ/m2 with a standard deviation of 614 MJ/m2. When including the fixed content, the measured total fuel load density had a mean of 1486 MJ/m2 with a standard deviation of 726 MJ/m2. These values are considerably larger than values found in older surveys and most code provisions. The surveyed rooms had large quantities of paper, which amounted to 54% of the movable fuel load on average. Based on these results, and findings from other recent surveys, it is recommended to collect additional data. The work has established the foundation toward a fully automatized method, relying on an electronic form and a structured database of recorded information. A wide adoption of this method could populate an extensive fuel load database which can then be used to provide design guidelines for fuel load density in codes and standards, for application in performance-based design.
Application of anchored instruction in teaching for standard training nurses of emergency department in women's and children's hospital

Objective To explore the effects of anchored instruction in teaching for standard training nurses of emergency department in women's and children's hospital. Methods We randomly selected 40 nurses in West China Second University Hospital as observation group from July 2014 to June 2015 in Grade One and 38 nurses as control group form January 2013 to December 2014 in Grade One, and all objects received nurse standard training respectively. The students in the control group received traditional teaching methods, while the students in the observation group received anchored instruction. After the course, a satisfaction survey for teaching results, theory and skill assessment had been evaluated and compared between two groups. Results The degree of satisfaction to improve learning initiative, manipulative skill, language ability, ability of problem analyzing and solving, team-work spirit, understanding and application of theoretical knowledge, ability of using nonverbal communication and opportunities to self-presentation in the observation group were all significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). The examination performance of theory and skill assessment in the observation group[(81.40±4.23), (96.21±2.10)] were higher than that of the control group[(75.43±5.78), (93.36±2.60)] (P<0.01) . Conclusions Anchored instruction is an effective method in teaching for standard training nurses of emergency department in women's and children's hospital and worth to be popularized and applied. Key words: Inservice training; Emergency service, hospital; Anchored instruction
Genome-wide transcriptome architecture in a mouse model of Gulf War Illness

Abstract Gulf War Illness (GWI) is thought to be a chronic neuroimmune disorder caused by in-theater exposure during the 1990–1991 Gulf War. There is a consensus that the illness is caused by exposure to insecticides and nerve agent toxicants. However, the heterogeneity in both development of disease and clinical outcomes strongly suggests a genetic contribution. Here, we modeled GWI in 30 BXD recombinant inbred mouse strains with a combined treatment of corticosterone (CORT) and diisopropyl fluorophosphate (DFP). We quantified transcriptomes from 409 prefrontal cortex samples. Compared to the untreated and DFP treated controls, the combined treatment significantly activated pathways such as cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction and TNF signaling pathway. Protein-protein interaction analysis defined 6 subnetworks for CORT + DFP, with the key regulators being Cxcl1, Il6, Ccnb1, Tnf, Agt, and Itgam. We also identified 21 differentially expressed genes having significant QTLs related to CORT + DFP, but without evidence for untreated and DFP treated controls, suggesting regions of the genome specifically involved in the response to CORT + DFP. We identified Adamts9 as a potential contributor to response to CORT + DFP and found links to symptoms of GWI. Furthermore, we observed a significant effect of CORT + DFP treatment on the relative proportion of myelinating oligodendrocytes, with a QTL on Chromosome 5. We highlight three candidates, Magi2, Sema3c, and Gnai1, based on their high expression in the brain and oligodendrocyte. In summary, our results show significant genetic effects of the CORT + DFP treatment, which mirrors gene and protein expression changes seen in GWI sufferers, providing insight into the disease and a testbed for future interventions.
Two new miniature silverside fishes of the genus Membras Bonaparte (Atheriniformes, Atherinopsidae) from the Tropical North Atlantic Ocean

Two new species of miniature silverside fishes are described from coastal habitats in the tropical Atlantic: Membras pygmaea sp. nov., from Brus Lagoon, Honduras, and M. procera sp. nov., from the Gulf of Uraba, Colombia. These new species belong to the martinica species-group within the genus Membras Bonaparte. The monophyletic martinica species-group (see below) contains four additional species, all coastal, marine that extend from the east coast of North America to Sao Paolo State, Brazil. Within the martinica species-group, all but M. martinica are miniature species, ranging from 41–60 mm SL. The smallest species, M. pygmaea sp. nov., is mature at 24 mm SL. A geometric morphometric analysis shows: (i) each species of the martinica species-group occupies its own portion of shape space; and (ii) none of the miniature species possess the shapes of small immature M. martinica. While some of the literature suggests that miniaturization may involve paedomorphosis, our results show that the miniatures accelerate to adult body forms.
Exploring the Christian Teachings on Immigration in the Social Studies Classroom.

Discussions on immigration in the social studies classroom have often focused on the political ideologies that frame the debate. Often, the religious and ethical frameworks surrounding immigration ...
Probing Clustering Dynamics between Silicon and PAA or LiPAA Slurries under Processing Conditions

This work explores the complex interplay between slurry aggregation, agglomeration, and conformation (i.e., shape) of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA)- and lithiated PAA-based silicon slurries as a functio...
Use of tofacitinib in the context of COVID-19 vaccination: comment on the American College of Rheumatology clinical guidance for COVID-19 vaccination in patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases.

We read with great interest the ACR’s COVID‐19 Vaccine Clinical Guidance Summary for Patients with Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases (1). We commend the Task Force’s emphasis on the importance of immunization in this population and for providing guidance to the rheumatology community. Regarding their recommendation to hold Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors for 1 week after each COVID‐19 vaccine dose (1), we propose the following available tofacitinib data for consideration in this context.
Miniature Kolsky bar Methods

Abstract Split Hopkinson pressure bars, or Kolsky bars, can be miniaturized to achieve very high strain-rates, and rates in excess of 1,000,000/s have been achieved with bar diameters 300 micrometers and smaller. Reducing bar diameter improves the temporal resolution of the measurements made by the bars, and guidelines for quantifying this are reviewed. For bar diameters less than 3 mm, optical instrumentation is preferred, and several different interferometric methods are discussed. Specimen equilibrium and inertia are legitimate concerns at very high rates of deformation, and the methods used to confirm valid test conditions are also reviewed. Finally, data for a number of materials at rates in the range of 100,000/s to 1,000,000/s are presented.
Examining Racial/Ethnic Disparities in the Association between Adolescent Sleep and Alcohol or Marijuana Use

Objectives The current study examines the association between self-reported measures of trouble sleeping, total sleep time (TST), and bedtimes and odds of past month alcohol and marijuana (AM) use in a racially/ethnically diverse sample of adolescents.
Caring more and knowing more reduces age-related differences in emotion perception.

Accurate emotion perception is important for social adjustment and maintaining relationships (Carton, Kessler, & Pape, 1999; Engelberg & Sjoberg, 2004). Yet, older adults are less accurate than young adults at recognizing facial expressions of emotion (Ruffman, Henry, Livingstone, & Phillips, 2008) in traditional lab tasks. This finding is somewhat surprising given older adults’ greater life experience and research that suggests age-related maintenance or gains in the emotional domain (Gross et al., 1997; Kunzmann, Little, & Smith, 2000; Orgeta, 2009). What factors might be responsible for age-related differences in emotion perception in the traditional emotion perception tasks and do these same differences remain when the emotion perception task is more similar to emotion perception in daily life (i.e., when older adults care more and know more)? A number of studies have failed to account for age-related differences with tests of perceptual abilities, fluid intelligence, working memory, inhibition, education, or even gaze patterns (Keightley, Winocur, Burianova, Hongwanishkul, & Grady, 2006; Murphy & Isaacowitz, 2010; Phillips, MacLean, & Allen, 2002; Sullivan & Ruffman, 2004), suggesting that age differences in emotion perception abilities remain even when controlling for the “usual suspects” of mediators in aging research (i.e., age-related cognitive and perceptual decline) as well as attentional strategy differences. In the present research, we took a different approach: rather than investigating correlates of age and emotion perception accuracy, we manipulated the emotion perception task to test the boundary conditions of age effects. In one task, we manipulated the motivation of participants with accountability instructions (the “caring more” manipulation). In a second task we adapted a paradigm from the empathic accuracy literature to examine the influence of familiarity on age differences in emotion perception accuracy (the “knowing more” manipulation). We used a modified standard interview paradigm with a yoked-subject design in which pairs of perceivers viewed videos of emotional expressions of either their romantic partner or a same-age stranger (Ickes & Hodges, 2013). If older adults’ accuracy on the emotion perception task varied with these manipulations, it would suggest that age differences in emotion perception may be more tied to mutable socioemotional factors than permanent differences in ability. Next, we describe age differences in traditional emotion perception tasks and the ways in which traditional emotion perception tasks fail to include the rich context of emotion perception in everyday life. Then, against this backdrop, we present evidence that manipulations to increase the ecological validity in other social judgment tasks, namely, by increasing motivation (caring more) and knowledge (knowing more), may improve accuracy and attenuate age differences.
The Effects of Exercise Modality on State Body Image

Previous research has shown that chronic exercise positively impacts body image in women. Research defining the modality that yields the best results following an acute session of exercise has yet to be determined. This research attempted to show the psychological benefits that exercise could have on female body image after only one bout of exercise. PURPOSE: The purpose of the current study was to examine the effects of three different modalities of acute exercise on state body image in women. This study aimed to determine which modality, if any, is more effective in increasing state body image. METHODS: Twenty-five female participants (20.2 ± 2.2 years; 23.6 ± 4.0 BMI, 25.5 ± 6.0 body fat percent) attended laboratory sessions on six different occasions; the initial informed consent, risk stratification, and descriptive data session, the familiarization session, the three exercise sessions, and the control session. During the familiarization session, each participant was acquainted with each exercise modality. The aerobic (AE) session consisted of a five-minute warm-up, 30 minutes of treadmill exercise, and a five-minute cool-down. The interval circuit (IC) session involved a fiveminute warm-up, two circuits containing five bodyweight exercises each, and five minutes of cool-down stretching. The resistance (RE) session included a five-minute warm-up, three sets of eight repetitions of the bench press, bent-over row, overhead press, squat, deadlift, and lunge exercises, and five-minutes of cool-down stretching. The control session included 40 minutes of quiet reading. Ratings of perceived exertion and
Who uses tips as a reward for service and when? An examination of potential moderators of the service–tipping relationship

Abstract Consumers in many countries often give voluntary payments of money (tips) to the workers who have served them. These tips are supposed to be a reward for service and research indicates that they do increase with customers’ perceptions of service quality. This paper contributes to the service–tipping literature by examining numerous potential moderators of this relationship in two studies. Results indicate that the service–tipping relationship is robust across meal type, day of week, sex and race of server as well as customers’ alcohol consumption, education, income, race, worship frequency, and hospitality work experience, but that it is stronger for older consumers than for younger ones and for parties with large bills than for parties with smaller bills. The practical and theoretical implications of these and other findings are discussed.
Synthesis and microstructure of Bi1.8Pb0.4Sr2Ca2.2Cu3Ox obtained from freeze-dried precursors

Abstract Amorphous precursor powders for Bi 1.8 Pb 0.4 Sr 2 Ca 2.2 Cu 3 O x (2223) were prepared by a freeze-drying process incorporating a splat-freezing step. The critical parameters affecting the drying process are discussed. The freeze-dried powders have high reactivity and led to essentially phase pure 2223 phase formation in 12 h. The microstructure of the 2223 shows fine particles of 2201 in the matrix. The grain boundaries of the 2223 grains appear to be clean, leading to good intergrain contact between 2223 grains.
INFRASTRUCTURE SUPPORT FOR MULTIMEDIA COMMUNICATION: A SURVEY

This survey provides a brief review of the existing and future infrastructure support needed to facilitate multimedia communication utilizing graphics, audio and video data. It touches upon properties of multimedia, switching and compression standards, network support and operating systems support.
NH3 adsorption and dissociation on a stepped Fe(s)(100) surface

The interaction of NH3 with a stepped Fe(100) surface has been studied using electron stimulated desorption ion angular distributions (ESDIAD), thermal desorption spectroscopy (TDS), and low energy electron diffraction (LEED). The goal has been to provide insights into the molecular structure of adsorbed NH3 and the influence of steps on NH3 orientation and dissociation. For low NH3 coverages, θ(NH3)≈0.02, both molecular and dissociative adsorption occurs at step sites. The adsorbed species are believed to include oriented NHx fragments as well as NH3 species which are inclined due to interaction between the NH3 dipole and the dipolar charge distribution at the steps. For higher coverages, up to saturation of the first monolayer (θ(NH3)≈0.34), ESDIAD is dominated by a “halo” H+ pattern indicating the NH3 is bonded via the N atom and the H atoms (with random azimuthal orientation) are pointed away from the surface. The ESDIAD data correlate well with TDS data, where different binding states due to fractional monolayer, second layer and multilayer adsorption are observed. Using Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), it is found that only a small amount of residual nitrogen, θ(N)
Divergence as a measure of visual recognition: bias and errors caused by small samples

Total divergence has been shown to be a useful measure of performance of visual recognition processes. Measurement and comparison of divergences using samples require statistical processing and sample size becomes an important factor in practical applications when sample sizes are small. We recently completed a numerical study on the applicability of total divergence to a medical Pap test process in small samples. This study suggested that in order to keep measurement biases within +/- 0.5 decits, 100 - 200 samples of cytology- histology pairs were required in the best classifications of 3, 4, and 5 category-states. At these sample sizes, measurement errors (standard errors) were also contained within +/- 0.5 decits. This study also confirmed that previously reported, over-estimated propagated errors in small samples were in fact over-estimation, and that their use for testing a null hypothesis was valid. The number of samples with indefinable statistics due to a zero denominator can be as high as 30% when the sample sizes were 500 for 3, 4, and 5 category-state classifications. Biases due to small samples were positive for most category-states except for the optimum 3 category-states, in which bias changed to negative (bias inversion), and observed errors of total divergence paradoxically decreased as N decreased (error-sample paradox) for a small sample size (N < 700).
Arterial thrombosis in a gynecologic oncology patient: evaluation and management.

Abstract Background. Arterial thrombosis is an extremely rare complication in gynecologic oncology with only two cases previously reported in the literature. Presentation, evaluation, and treatment varied considerably in all previous reports of arterial thrombosis associated with any malignancy. Case. We report a case of discontinuous arterial thrombosis in the upper extremity of a patient with fallopian tube cancer. Her initial evaluation, done in the acute setting of the thrombosis, revealed multiple thrombophilia abnormalities, including an elevated Factor VIII, and a borderline positive lupus anticoagulant. Follow-up studies over 2 years showed resolution of all coagulation abnormalities, thus indicating no genetic propensity for thrombosis. Conclusion. This case highlights the need for appropriate timing of the initial laboratory studies and follow-up so that patients can be managed appropriately.
EUV mask inspection tool using high NA DUV inspection tool

A new inspection system with DUV laser beam and high NA optic for EUV mask has been developed to inspect defects on EUV blank mask and defects by process and handling. The development of new reflective image and optics has increased inspection speed on EUV mask before absorber etch and after absorber etch. Defect classification and operation has increased the productivity of inspection and particle control on EUV mask process. With this new inspection system, defects on blank mask, after resist develop and after etch processed mask were classified and evaluated to install EUV mask process. And defect sensitivities according to various pattern size and process steps were evaluated with required defect size of simulated printing effect on wafer. Designed defect pattern of 46nm node were prepared. Blank masks from Hoya were used. Patterns were exposed using 50KeV electron beam writer. After resist develop, patterns with program defect were inspected. After absorber etching, defects were inspected and evaluated. According to sub film, inspection condition was optimized. Using simulation tool, defects printability were simulated and compared with sensitivity of this inspection tool. Our results demonstrate that this inspection tool is very effective to detect and identify defects and their sources on EUV mask process. In this paper, mask inspection performance of high NA, DUV optic with short working distance was evaluated and described on programmed EUV mask.
Mutational analysis of the catalytic domain of O-linked N-acetylglucosaminyl transferase

O-Linked N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (OGT) catalyzes the transfer of O-linked GlcNAc to serine/threonine residues of a variety of target proteins, many of which have been implicated in such diseases as diabetes and neurodegeneration. The addition of O-GlcNAc to proteins occurs in response to fluctuations in cellular concentrations of UDP-GlcNAc, which result from nutrients entering the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in sugar nucleotide recognition and transfer to protein are poorly understood. We employed site-directed mutagenesis to target potentially important amino acid residues within the two conserved catalytic domains of OGT (CD I and CD II), followed by an in vitro glycosylation assay to evaluate N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase activity after bacterial expression. Although many of the amino acid substitutions caused inactivation of the enzyme, we identified three amino acid residues (two in CD I and one in CD II) that produced viable enzymes when mutated. Structure-based homology modeling revealed that these permissive mutants may be either in or near the sugar nucleotide-binding site. Our findings suggest a model in which the two conserved regions of the catalytic domain, CD I and CD II, contribute to the formation of a UDP-GlcNAc-binding pocket that catalyzes the transfer of O-GlcNAc to substrate proteins. Identification of viable OGT mutants may facilitate examination of its role in nutrient sensing and signal transduction cascades.
Plasma LH rises rapidly following mating in hypogonadal female mice with preoptic area (POA) brain grafts.

Abstract Hypogonadal female mice, genetically deficient in gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), respond to preoptic area (POA) grafts obtained from normal fetal or neonatal mice with increased gonadotropin levels, ovarian and uterine development and continual vaginal estrus rather than spontaneous ovulatory cyclicity. Previous studies showed that such mice became pregnant following one overnight pairing with a normal male, indicating reflex ovulation. The present study evaluated plasma LH concentrations in relation to mating. Plasma LH levels in the hpg females with POA grafts were significantly elevated 10 min following the male partner's ejaculation, but were no different than baseline at 30, 60 or 120 min following the male's ejaculation. The post-copulatory plasma LH levels of 3.0 ± 0.6 ng/ml (mean±S.E.M.) were considerably lower than proestrous LH surge seen in the normal females in the colony (16.8 ± 4.8 ng/ml), but in at least 4 of 10 hpg mice the levels were sufficient to induce ovulation as proved by pregnancy following this single mating. Grafts contained GnRH-reactive cells and fibers that projected to the median eminence of the host brains.
Saturation effects in the VLF-triggered emission process

[1] An in-depth study is performed of the saturation characteristics of the VLF-triggered emission process, a plasma instability associated with the amplification of whistler mode signals in the magnetosphere. A survey of data from the 1986 operating year of the Siple VLF wave injection experiment reveals that long-period oscillations (characterized by a pattern of growth to saturation then subsequent suppression of the wave), short-period oscillations (previously identified as sidebands), and generation of incoherent wave energy around the frequency of the triggering signal are all characteristics of the instability at saturation. A model is developed to study these phenomena. The model is in some respects similar to the Vlasov Hybrid Simulation but modified so that saturation is a natural consequence of the modeled growth process. Results from the model indicate that the growth and eventual saturation are caused by wave amplitude gradients, most notably gradients that indicate a transition from an amplitude where the wave cannot trap electrons in its potential in the presence of the inhomogeneous magnetospheric magnetic field to an amplitude where such trapping is possible. That is, resonant currents are enhanced in the region where the phase space electron hole created by the trapping condition is allowed to mix with the ambient energetic electrons. This growth process is found to naturally lead to saturation of the instability.
Force optimization of ionic polymeric platinum composite artificial muscles by means of an orthogonal array manufacturing method

Ionic polymer platinum composite (IPPC) artificial muscles have been the subject of research activities at AMRI (Artificial Muscle Research Institute) and have been identified as smart intelligent material. The potential for such artificial muscles is so vast that muscles of different enhanced characteristics will be required in the future to accomplish different desired tasks. However the immediate challenges are to identify, control and enhance different desired characteristics of artificial muscles (IPPC). One important milestone that may be regarded, as the most critical one is to enhance force produced by these artificial muscles. Obviously force enhancement if successful may put these artificial muscles into one-to-one competition against the available line of traditional force actuators which fall in the same category. In order to experimentally approach the process of optimizing the force output of ionic polymeric platinum composite (IPPC) artificial muscles, an orthogonal array method was used to identify potential specific manufacturing procedures. These sets of procedures will eventually be helpful to identify the different desired characteristics of manufactured artificial muscles. One manufactured artificial muscles are tested for force outputs, the best ones would then be easily traced back to manufacturing procedure and will be further enhanced up to the desired levels by further refining the underlying manufacturing procedures. The measure chosen for optimization process was basically the force generated by a specific piece of muscle of specific geometry.
Regularized multichannel restoration of color images using cross-validation

Multichannel images are the multiple image planes (channels) obtained by imaging the same scene using multiple sensors. The validity of multichannel restoration where both the within and between channel relations are incorporated has already been established using both stochastic and deterministic restoration filters. However, it has been demonstrated that stochastic multichannel filters are extremely sensitive to the estimates of the between channel statistics. In this paper deterministic multichannel filters are proposed that do not utilize any prior knowledge about the multichannel image and the noise. Regularization based on the multichannel Cross-Validation function is used to obtain these filters. Their relation to stochastic multichannel restoration filters is examined and a technique to estimate the variance of the multichannel noise is proposed. Finally, experiments are shown where proposed filters and noise variance estimators are tested using color images.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Robust dynamic inversion control laws for aircraft control

Dynamic inversion is a technique for control law design in which feedback is used to simultaneously cancel system dynamics and achieve desired dynamic response characteristics. However, dynamic inversion control laws lack robustness to modeling errors if improperly designed. This paper examines a simple linear example, control of roll rate about the body axis of high performance aircraft, to illustrate some robustness problems which may occur with a simple dynamic inversion control law. The paper demonstrates how structured singular value synthesis techniques can be used to enhance the robustness properties of the dynamic inversion controller.
Localization of dense intracranial electrode arrays using magnetic resonance imaging

Intracranial electrode arrays are routinely used in the pre-surgical evaluation of patients with medically refractory epilepsy, and recordings from these electrodes have been increasingly employed in human cognitive neurophysiology due to their high spatial and temporal resolution. For both researchers and clinicians, it is critical to localize electrode positions relative to the subject-specific neuroanatomy. In many centers, a post-implantation MRI is utilized for electrode detection because of its higher sensitivity for surgical complications and the absence of radiation. However, magnetic susceptibility artifacts surrounding each electrode prohibit unambiguous detection of individual electrodes, especially those that are embedded within dense grid arrays. Here, we present an efficient method to accurately localize intracranial electrode arrays based on pre- and post-implantation MR images that incorporates array geometry and the individual's cortical surface. Electrodes are directly visualized relative to the underlying gyral anatomy of the reconstructed cortical surface of individual patients. Validation of this approach shows high spatial accuracy of the localized electrode positions (mean of 0.96 mm ± 0.81 mm for 271 electrodes across 8 patients). Minimal user input, short processing time, and utilization of radiation-free imaging are strong incentives to incorporate quantitatively accurate localization of intracranial electrode arrays with MRI for research and clinical purposes. Co-registration to a standard brain atlas further allows inter-subject comparisons and relation of intracranial EEG findings to the larger body of neuroimaging literature.
Effects of S+ and S- Separation on Gradient Shifts in Humans

Following single stimulus training, responding during a generalization test tends to be distributed around the positive stimulus (S+). However, if participants are trained instead to discriminate the S+ from a negative stimulus (S-), the response gradient often shifts away from the S- and toward the opposite end of the stimulus continuum. In this experiment, the author examined the basis of gradient shifts with 72 college undergraduates. The research especially examined how gradient shifts are affected by the physical similarity of the S+ and the S- and by the ease with which the two stimuli can be compared. For the former manipulation, the author randomly assigned participants to either a control condition in which only the S+ was shown or a discrimination condition in which the S-was either near to or far from the S+ on the continuum. For the latter manipulation, the author randomly assigned participants to a condition in which S+ and S- presentations were separated by intervals of 1, 15, or 30 s. The r...
Evaporation barriers for4He indicate very extended forms for many emitting nuclei

We have analyzed a large set of mean energies and angular anisotropies for evaporative4He emission to obtain barriers to evaporation,B. These exit channel barriers are often substantially smaller than the corresponding empirical s-wave fusion barriersE0. The differences (E0-B) are interpreted as indicators of the extent of distortion of the emitters. These distortions have in turn been characterized by the deformation parameter for a spheroid α20. ForZ=80 the dependence ofB or {α}20 on spin is somewhat suggestive of the superdeformed shapes predicted by the liquid drop model. ForZ>70 significant distortions are indicated for emitters of both large and small spin.
Visible absorption and luminescence spectra of N-methyldeuteroporphyrin complexes and the question of “sitting-atop” complexes

Abstract Visible spectra of manganese(II), cobalt(II), and zinc(II) complexes of N-methyldeuteroporphyrin IX dimethyl ester are similar to each other in both energies and intensities of absorption bands. These spectra are also quite similar to the spectrum of the monoprotonated ligand, as found earlier for complexes of N-methyltetraphenylporphyrin. Luminescence intensities of N-methyldeuteroporphyrin complexes, however, are dependent on identity of the metal ion and axial ligand, varying in the order: free ligand /gt Cl-Zn(II) complex /gt Br-Zn(II) complex ⪢ Mn(II) complex, Co(II) complex. Complexation of metal ions to N-methyltetraphenylporphyrin results in reduction in emission, with intensities of the complexes varying in the order: Zn(II) /gt Cd(II) ⪢ Fe(II), Mn(II), Co(II). Formation of ion pairs consisting of a porphyrin cation and a metal-containing anion results in a fluorescence spectrum similar to that of the porphyrin ion pair formed by addition of HCl, without substantial quenching. Luminescence spectra provide conclusive evidence for the formation of ion pairs rather than “sitting-atop” complexes under conditions where the nature of such species has been controversial.
PML Degradation: Multiple Ways to Eliminate PML

The promyelocytic leukemia gene (PML) critically regulates several cellular functions that oppose tumorigenesis such as oncogene-induced senescence, apoptosis, the response to DNA damage and to viral infections. PML deficiency occurs commonly in a broad spectrum of human cancers through mechanisms that involve its aberrant ubiquitination and degradation. Furthermore, several viruses encode viral proteins that promote viral replication through degradation of PML. These observations suggest that restoration of PML should lead to potent anti-tumor effects or antiviral responses. In this review we will summarize the mechanisms involved in PML degradation with the intent to highlight novel therapeutic strategies to trigger PML restoration.
Equilibrium constants and free energies in unfolding of proteins in urea solutions

Unfolding curve for HPr, bacterial histidine-containing protein, in aqueous urea solutions. Experimental data from ref. 6. The broken line through the points presents the curve calculated from Eq. 27. The “ideal” curve is that for a transformation in which successive steps of ligand binding are energetically intrinsically identical.
Extraction of cyanobacterial endotoxin

To simplify our efforts in acquiring toxicological information on endotoxins produced by cyanobacteria, a method development study was undertaken to identify relatively hazard-free and efficient procedures for their extraction. One article sourced and two novel methods were evaluated for their ability to extract lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) or endotoxins from cyanobacteria. The Limulus polyphemus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) assay was employed to compare the performance of a novel method utilizing a 1-butanol-water (HBW) solvent system to that of Westphal's (1965) phenol-water system (HPW) for the extraction of endotoxin from various cyanobacteria. The traditional HPW method extracted from 3- to 12-fold more endotoxin from six different cyanobacterial blooms and culture materials than did the novel HBW method. In direct contrast, the novel HBW method extracted ninefold more endotoxin from a non-microcystin producing Microcystis aeruginosa culture as compared to the HPW method. A solvent system utilizing N,N'-dimethylformamide-water (HDW) was compared to both the HPW and HBW methods for the extraction of endotoxin from natural samples of Anabaena circinalis, Microcystis flos-aquae, and a 1:1 mixture of Microcystis aeruginosa/Microcystisflos-aquae. The LAL activities of these extracts showed that the novel HDW method extracted two- and threefold more endotoxin from the Anabaena sample that did the HBW and HPW methods, respectively. The HDW method also extracted approximately 1.5-fold more endotoxin from the Microcystis flos-aquae sample as compared to both the HBW and HPW methods. On the other hand, the HBW method extracted 2- and 14-fold more endotoxin from the Microcystis flos-aquae/Microcystis aeruginosa mixture than did the HPW and HDW methods, respectively. Results of this study demonstrate that significant disparities exist between the physicochemical properties of the cell wall constituents not only of different cyanobacterial species but also of different strains of the same cyanobacterial species, as showing by the varying effectiveness of the solvent systems investigated. Therefore, a sole method cannot be regarded as universal and superior for the extraction of endotoxins from cyanobacteria. Nevertheless, the ability of the novel HBW and HDW methods to utilize easily handled organic solvents that are less hazardous than phenol render them attractive alternatives to the standard HPW method.