cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantification and Confirmation of Zearalenone Using a LC-MS/MS QTRAP System in Multiple Reaction Monitoring and Enhanced Product Ion Scan Modes

A simple, rapid, and efficient liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method, operated in electrospray ionization (ESI) and quadrupole linear ion trap modes, has been developed for the identification and structural characterization of zearalenone (ZEN) in corn oil. Samples (5 g) were extracted with acetonitrile/water (80:20, v/v). After centrifugation and dilution, the extracts were separated on a C18 analytical column by gradient elution (acetonitrile/water) and analyzed by UPLC–MS/MS. The developed multiple reaction monitoring–information-dependent acquisition–enhanced product ion method enabled quantification and confirmation of the analyte in a single run. Enhanced product ion mode was used for qualitative analysis, while multiple reaction monitoring mode was used for quantitative analysis. An in-house library was constructed for identification. Calibration curve showed good linearity with correlation coefficients (r) higher than 0.995. Limit of detection was determined to be below 0.20 μg kg−1 for ZEN. The recovery for ZEN was in the acceptable range of 86.6 to 97.2%. 82.4 % of the samples were found to contain ZEN among the 51 samples.
Patient-specific iPSCs carrying an SFTPC mutation reveal the intrinsic alveolar epithelial dysfunction at the inception of interstitial lung disease.

Alveolar epithelial type 2 cell (AEC2) dysfunction is implicated in the pathogenesis of adult and pediatric interstitial lung disease (ILD), including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF); however, identification of disease-initiating mechanisms has been impeded by inability to access primary AEC2s early on. Here, we present a human in vitro model permitting investigation of epithelial-intrinsic events culminating in AEC2 dysfunction, using patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) carrying an AEC2-exclusive disease-associated variant (SFTPCI73T). Comparing syngeneic mutant versus gene-corrected iPSCs after differentiation into AEC2s (iAEC2s), we find that mutant iAEC2s accumulate large amounts of misprocessed and mistrafficked pro-SFTPC protein, similar to in vivo changes, resulting in diminished AEC2 progenitor capacity, perturbed proteostasis, altered bioenergetic programs, time-dependent metabolic reprogramming, and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) pathway activation. Treatment of SFTPCI73T-expressing iAEC2s with hydroxychloroquine, a medication used in pediatric ILD, aggravates the observed perturbations. Thus, iAEC2s provide a patient-specific preclinical platform for modeling the epithelial-intrinsic dysfunction at ILD inception.
Destruction and reconstruction of UO22+ using gas-phase reactions.

While the strong axial UO bonds confer high stability and inertness to UO22+, it has been shown that the axial oxo ligands can be eliminated or replaced in the gas-phase using collision-induced dissociation (CID) reactions. We report here tandem mass spectrometry experiments initiated with a gas-phase complex that includes UO22+ coordinated by a 2,6-difluorobenzoate ligand. After decarboxylation to form a difluorophenide coordinated uranyl ion, [UO2(C6F2H3)]+, CID causes elimination of CO, and then CO and C2H2 in sequential dissociation steps, to leave a reactive uranium fluoride ion, [UF2(C2H)]+. Reaction of [UF2(C2H)]+ with CH3OH creates [UF2(OCH3)]+, [UF(OCH3)2]+ and [UF(OCH3)2(CH3OH)]+. Cleavage of C–O bonds within these species results in the elimination of methyl cation (CH3+). Subsequent CID steps convert [UF(OCH3)2]+ to [UO2(F)]+ and similarly, [U(OCH3)3]+ to [UO2(OCH3)]+. Our experiments show removal of both uranyl oxo ligands in “top-down” CID reactions and replacement in “bottom-up” ion–molecule and dissociation steps.
Price Effects of Stock Market Liberalization in Taiwan

In January 1991, the Taiwan stock Market was partially opened to direct investment by foreign investors. This paper examines the stock price effects of this market liberalization. We use the GARCH methodology to investigate the impact of stock-market liberalization on the distribution of stock returns yielded by the Taiwan Weighted Index over the period 1988-1994. The results show that Taiwan's stock market liberalization has induced some changes in the returns distribution. More importantly, the volatility of stock returns is lower post-liberalization.
Cocaine shifts dopamine D2 receptor sensitivity to gate conditioned behaviors

Summary Cocaine addiction is a chronic, relapsing disorder characterized by maladaptation in the brain mesolimbic and nigrostriatal dopamine system. Although changes in the properties of D2-receptor-expressing medium spiny neurons (D2-MSNs) and connected striatal circuits following cocaine treatment are known, the contributions of altered D2-receptor (D2R) function in mediating the rewarding properties of cocaine remain unclear. Here, we describe how a 7-day exposure to cocaine alters dopamine signaling by selectively reducing the sensitivity, but not the expression, of nucleus accumbens D2-MSN D2Rs via an alteration in the relative expression and coupling of G protein subunits. This cocaine-induced reduction of D2R sensitivity facilitated the development of the rewarding effects of cocaine as blocking the reduction in G protein expression was sufficient to prevent cocaine-induced behavioral adaptations. These findings identify an initial maladaptive change in sensitivity by which mesolimbic dopamine signals are encoded by D2Rs following cocaine exposure.
Paths to market for stationary solid oxide fuel cells: Expert elicitation and a cost of electricity model

Abstract Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) can efficiently generate continuous electricity for buildings but face technical and economic challenges to achieving mass market acceptance. We conducted a workshop comprising 23 experts to assess near-term markets, system cost and production scale, and system and stack degradation rates. Experts identified commercial- and residential-scale systems as the most favorable entry-level markets in the U.S. and world, respectively. The 2020, 2035, and 2050 median 250 kW electric-only system costs assessed by experts were $2,400/kW, $1,909/kW, and $841/kW (2018 USD) at production volumes of 210, 4000, and 10,000 systems per year, respectively. For small-scale combined heat and power applications, median 1 kW system cost assessments were $11,000/kW, $7,750/kW, and $5,750/kW at 50,000, 80,000 and 175,000 systems per year, respectively. Experts suggested voltage degradation could achieve 0.2%/1000 hrs in 2035–2050 and identified chromium poisoning, microstructural cathode degradation, and Ni agglomeration and coarsening as the most substantial barriers to mitigating degradation. To assess lifecycle performance, we incorporated experts' assessments into a cost of electricity (COE) model. The 250 kW system COE competed with anticipated internal combustion engine, microturbine, and U.S. grid COEs in 2035–2050. The 1 kW system COEs were three times anticipated grid prices in 2035–2050; however, 1 kW systems may be better suited to countries with higher spark spreads. Our results could inform business decisions, funding prioritizations, and technology roadmap development.
A New Piazorhinus Schoenherr, 1836 from Arizona and New Mexico (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Curculioninae)

Specimens of Piazorhinus from Arizona and New Mexico, previously considered Piazorhinus scutellaris (Say, 1826), are here described as Piazorhinus caeloinsularis Hespenheide, new species. The new species is distinguished from P. scutellaris, and genitalia of both species are illustrated. New distribution records of P. scutellaris are given. Similar Central American species are also briefly discussed and distinguished.
Regulation of nodulation by Rhizobium meliloti 102F15 on its mutant which forms an unusually high number of nodules on alfalfa

Abstract A mutant (WL3A150) of Rhizobium meliloti 102F51 that elicits an unusually high number of nodules on its host, alfalfa (Medicago sativa), supports the idea that the host may rely on early bacteroid development in the nodule or on metabolites produced in the infection thread as one of the signals to control further nodulation. This mutant was initially isolated because of its Fix− phenotype. It consistently formed many more nodules than all the other Fix− mutants isolated from strain 102F51 (a total of 11 mutants). Nodules formed by this mutant were small and white and were indistinguishable in appearance from nodules formed by the other Fix− mutants. An ultrastructural study of the nodules, however, showed that this mutant, although forming numerous infection threads, failed to develop into bacteroids. The ability of the mutant to form an unusually high number of nodules coulde be suppressed in a time-dependent manner by the presence of the wild type.
On the Interpretation of Shadow-Moire Fringes,

Shadow moire is presented as one of the methods used to determine loci of constant height in curved surfaces (isotathmics). A general expression to interpret the fringes is derived taking into consideration possible rotations and translation of the grating. A discussion of the influence of such rotations and translation on the sensitivity of the response is also presented. Furthermore, simplified equations are obtained for particular cases of practical interest. An example of application to the case of an inverted perforated tube is shown.
Role of basal extracellular Ca2+ entry during 5-HT-induced vasoconstriction of canine pulmonary arteries

1 Measurements of artery contraction, cytosolic [Ca2+], and Ca2+ permeability were made to examine contractile and cytosolic [Ca2+] responses of canine pulmonary arteries and isolated cells to 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), and to determine the roles of intracellular Ca2+ release and extracellular Ca2+ entry in 5-HT responses. 2 The EC50 for 5-HT-mediated contractions and cytosolic [Ca2+] increases was ∼10−7 M and responses were inhibited by ketanserin, a 5-HT2A-receptor antagonist. 3 5-HT induced cytosolic [Ca2+] increases were blocked by 20 μM Xestospongin-C and by 2-APB (IC50=32 μM), inhibitors of InsP3 receptor activation. 4 5-HT-mediated contractions were reliant on release of InsP3 but not ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ stores. 5 5-HT-mediated contractions and cytosolic [Ca2+] increases were partially inhibited by 10 μM nisoldipine, a voltage-dependent Ca2+ channel blocker. 6 Extracellular Ca2+ removal reduced 5-HT-mediated contractions further than nisoldipine and ablated cytosolic [Ca2+] increases and [Ca2+] oscillations. Similar to Ca2+ removal, Ni2+ reduced cytosolic [Ca2+] and [Ca2+] oscillations. 7 Mn2+ quench of fura-2 and voltage-clamp experiments showed that 5-HT failed to activate any significant voltage-independent Ca2+ entry pathways, including store-operated and receptor-activated nonselective cation channels. Ni2+ but not nisoldipine or Gd3+ blocked basal Mn2+ entry. 8 Voltage-clamp experiments showed that simultaneous depletion of both InsP3 and ryanodine-sensitive intracellular Ca2+ stores activates a current with linear voltage dependence and a reversal potential consistent with it being a nonselective cation channel. 5-HT did not activate this current. 9 Basal Ca2+ entry, rather than CCE, is important to maintain 5-HT-induced cytosolic [Ca2+] responses and contraction in canine pulmonary artery. British Journal of Pharmacology (2005) 144, 252–264. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0706077
Loitering Detection Using Bayesian Appearance Tracker and List of Visitors

This paper presents a framework of detecting loitering pedestrians in a video surveillance system. When a pedestrian appears in the field of view of the monitoring camera, he/she is tracked by a Bayesian appearance tracker (BAT). The tracker takes the advantage of Bayesian decision to associate the detected pedestrians according to their color appearances among consecutive frames. The pedestrian's appearance is modeled as a multivariate normal distribution and recorded in a table called list of visitors (LV). LV also records time stamps when the pedestrian appears as an appearing history. Therefore, even though the pedestrian leaves and returns to the scene, he/she can still be recognized and re-identified as a locally or globally loitering suspect by using different rules. A 10-minute video about three loitering pedestrians is used to test the proposed system. They are successfully detected and recognized from other passing-by pedestrians.
Absorption and Fluorescence of Alexandrite and of Titanium in Sapphire and Glass

An assessment of ions and hosts as candidates for new laser materials can be made from absorption and fluorescence measurements. Predictions of important laser parameters such as gain, absorption, and emission cross-sections can be readily made from this data. Titanium in crystalline sapphire exhibits a broad fluorescence spectrum with a peak near 750nm. A search for new laser host materials for Ti(III) has shown that Ti:YA103 also exhibits a broad fluorescence spectra with the peak blue shifted by about 150nm (ref. 1). We undertook a study of Ti(III) in glass hosts which should exhibit an extreme low field case for the ion (ref. 2). We present here the results of fluorescence and absorption experiments made, to date, on titanium in crystalline sapphire, at two dopant levels, and titanium doped into three glass structures and compare these results with those of alexandrite.
Transport of Cryptosporidium parvum in porous media: Long‐term elution experiments and continuous time random walk filtration modeling

[1] Complex transport behavior other than advection-dispersion, simple retardation, and first-order removal has been observed in many biocolloid transport experiments in porous media. Such nonideal transport behavior is particularly evident in the late time elution of biocolloids at low concentrations. Here we present a series of saturated column experiments that were designed to measure the breakthrough and long-term elution of Cryptosporidium parvum in medium sand for a few thousand pore volumes after the initial source of oocysts was removed. For a wide range of ionic strengths, I, we consistently observe slower-than-Fickian, power law tailing. The slope of the tail is flatter for higher I. At very high ionic strength the slope decays to a rate slower than t−1. To explain this behavior, we propose a new filtration model based on the continuous time random walk (CTRW) theory. Our theory upscales heterogeneities at both the pore-scale geometry of the flow field and the grain surface physicochemical properties that affect biocolloid attachment and detachment. Pore-scale heterogeneities in fluid flow are shown to control the breakthrough of a conservative tracer but are shown to have negligible effect on oocyst transport. In our experiments, C. parvum transport is dominated by the effects of physicochemical heterogeneities. The CTRW model provides a parsimonious theory of nonreactive and reactive transport. The CTRW filtration process is controlled by three parameters, Λ, β, and c, which are related to the overall breakthrough retardation (R = 1 + Λ), the slope of the power law tail (β), and the transition to a slower than t−1 decay (c).
Endogenous activation of apoptosis in bursal lymphocytes: inhibition by phorbol esters and protein synthesis inhibitors.

The bursa of Fabricius represents the primary immune organ where immature B cells undergo maturational changes in avian species. Isolation of bursal lymphocytes for analysis in cell culture results in the rapid endogenous activation of apoptosis. After 2 h of incubation, over 45% of the lymphocytes were shown to be undergoing apoptosis and by 6 h 80% were un-dergoing apoptosis as demonstrated by a terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP-fluores-cein isothiocynate nick end-labeling flow-cytometric analysis. These results were corroborated by a propidium iodide-staining flow-cytometric assay and by an agarose gel electrophoresis DNA fragmentation assay that demonstrated internucleosomal DNA cleavage of genomic DNA in apoptotic bursal lymphocytes. Endogenous activation of apoptosis in bursal lymphocytes could be inhibited in a dose-dependent fashion with the phorbol ester, phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, but not the phorbol ester antagonist 4α-phorbol 12,13-didecanoate. In addition, apoptosis could be inhibited in a dose-dependent fashion with inhibitors of protein translation, cycloheximide, and puromycin, as well as the transcriptional inhibitor actinomycin D. These results suggest that endogenous activation of bursal lymphocyte apoptosis may be mediated by the protein kinase C signal transduction pathway and activation of this process appears to be dependent uponde novoprotein biosynthesis.
Lifetime Trauma, Prayer, and Psychological Distress in Late Life

The purpose of this study is to see whether prayer helps older people cope more effectively with the adverse effects of lifetime trauma. Data from a nationwide survey of older adults reveal that the size of the relationship between traumatic events and depressive symptoms is reduced for older people who believe that only God knows when it is best to answer a prayer and when they believe that only God knows the best way to answer it. The findings further reveal that these beliefs about prayer outcomes are especially likely to offset the effects of traumatic events that arose during childhood.
Attracting retinal cells to electrodes for high-resolution stimulation

Development of the electronic retinal prosthesis for restoration of sight in patients suffering from the degenerative retinal diseases faces many technological challenges. To achieve significant improvement in the low vision patients the visual acuity of 20/80 would be desirable, which corresponds to the pixel size of 20μm in the retinal implant. Stimulating current strongly (quadratically) depends on distance between electrode and cell. To achieve uniformity in stimulation thresholds, to avoid erosion of the electrodes and overheating of tissue, and to reduce the cross-talk between the neighboring pixels the neural cells should not be separated from electrodes by more than a few micrometers. Achieving such a close proximity along the whole surface of an implant is one of the major obstacles for the high resolution retinal implant. To ensure proximity of cells and electrodes we have developed a technique that prompts migration of retinal cells towards stimulating sites. The device consists of a multilayered membrane with an array of perforations of several (5-15) micrometers in diameter in which addressable electrodes can be embedded. In experiments in-vitro using explants of the whole retina of P7 rats, and in-vivo using adult rabbits and RCS rats the retinal tissue grew into the pores when membranes were positioned on the sub-retinal side. Histology has demonstrated that migrating cells preserve synaptic connections with cells outside the pores, thus allowing for signal transduction into the retina above the implant. Intimate proximity of cells to electrodes achieved with this technique allows for reduction of the stimulation current to 2μA at the 10μm electrode. A 3mm disk array with 18,000 pixels can stimulate cells with 0.5 ms pulses at 50Hz while maintaining temperature rise at the implant surface below 0.3°C. Such an implant can, in principle, provide spatial resolution geometrically corresponding to the visual acuity of 20/80 in a visual field of 10°.
A Mixture Group Bifactor Model for Binary Responses

The presence of nuisance dimensionality is a potential threat to the accuracy of results for tests calibrated using a measurement model such as a factor analytic model or an item response theory model. This article describes a mixture group bifactor model to account for the nuisance dimensionality due to a testlet structure as well as the dimensionality due to differences in patterns of responses. The model can be used for testing whether or not an item functions differently across latent groups in addition to investigating the differential effect of local dependency among items within a testlet. An example is presented comparing test speededness results from a conventional factor mixture model, which ignores the testlet structure, with results from the mixture group bifactor model. Results suggested the 2 models treated the data somewhat differently. Analysis of the item response patterns indicated that the 2-class mixture bifactor model tended to categorize omissions as indicating speededness. With the ...
Right Ventricular Involvement in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

The aim of this study was to assess, using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR), whether morphologic right ventricular (RV) abnormalities are present in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HC). Left ventricular hypertrophy has been considered the predominant phenotypic expression of HC. Whether structural abnormalities of the right ventricle are also present in HC is unknown. CMR provides complete coverage of both ventricles with high spatial resolution. CMR was applied to study RV morphology in HC. CMR was performed on 46 subjects with HC (mean age 39 ± 16 years; 70% men) free of pulmonary hypertension and 22 healthy subjects (mean age 44 ± 16 years; 50% men). Mass, wall thickness, chamber volume, the ejection fraction, and fibrosis were assessed for both ventricles. Maximum RV wall thickness was increased in patients with HC compared with referent controls (7 ± 2 vs 5 ± 1 mm, p 2 = 0.4, p 2 = 0.4, p
Britain, the European Community, and the developing Commonwealth: dependence, interdependence, and the political economy of sugar

During the last decade dependency theory has emerged as an important, if highly controversial, perspective on contemporary North-South relations. This paper assesses the utility of dependency approaches by examining one concrete North-South relationship over an extended period, that between Commonwealth cane sugar producers and Great Britain. After detailing the origins of the colonial sugar trade and the later impact of British free trade policies, the article follows the evolution of British-Commonwealth sugar relations from the enactment of the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement in 1951 to the signing in 1975 of the Lome Convention's Sugar Protocol governing sugar imports into the enlarged Community. Two conclusions are drawn from this historical case study regarding the usefulness of dependency theory. First, dependency theorists exaggerate the cohesiveness of the posture of developed market economy countries toward the Third World. Second, dependency theory has too often neglected the need to explore realistic alternatives to dependency available to underdeveloped countries.
Toward a Microscopic Basis for the de Gennes Narrowing

It is pointed out that recent work on the high-frequency behavior of the neutron scattering function S(k, ω) in liquids indicates that at fixedgw there is a dip at a value of k very close to the maximum of S(k) (first diffraction peak). This dip is due to the configurational average over pairs of particles and scales as the inverse particle radius.
Tests of Higher Symmetries

Model-independent cross-section relations predicted by unbroken SU(3) symmetry, and some predicted by $\mathrm{SU}{(6)}_{W,\mathrm{strong}}$, are compared with experiment. The relations are found to be satisfied, apart from deviations which follow, in every case, the pattern and rough size of symmetry breaking expected from Regge-pole exchange. Interestingly, this Regge symmetry breaking diverges with increasing energy. It is argued that this behavior, though contrary to intuition, is reasonable.
Spectra of Se XVI to Se XXIV observed in a tokamak plasma

Selenium was injected into the plasma of the Texas Experimental Tokamak by laser ablation. Spectra of Se ions stripped to the n = 3 shell were observed photographically with a 2.2-m vacuum spectrograph. Classifications of 60 lines arising from K-like to Na-like ions were determined. A wavelength accuracy of ±0.010 A was obtained by calibration with internally generated Fe spectra.
The kirkwood-salsburg equations for random continuum percolation

We develop two different hierarchies of Kirkwood-Salsburg equations for the connectedness functions of random continuum percolation. These equations are derived by writing the Kirkwood-Salsburg equations for the distribution functions of thes-state continuum Potts model (CPM), taking thes→1 limit, and forming appropriate linear combinations. The first hierarchy is satisfied by a subset of the connectedness functions used in previous studies. It gives rigorous, low-order bounds for the mean number of clusters 〈n c 〉 and the two-point connectedness function. The second hierarchy is a closed set of equations satisfied by the generalized blocking functions, each of which is defined by the probability that a given set of connections between particles is absent. These auxiliary functions are shown to be a natural basis for calculating the properties of continuum percolation models. They are the objects naturally occurring in integral equations for percolation theory. Also, the standard connectedness functions can be written as linear combinations of them. Using our second Kirkwood-Salsburg hierarchy, we show the existence of an infinite sequence of rigorous, upper and lower bounds for all the quantities describing random percolation, including the mean cluster size and mean number of clusters. These equations also provide a rigorous lower bound for the radius of convergence of the virial series for the mean number of clusters. Most of the results obtained here can be readily extended to percolation models on lattices, and to models with positive (repulsive) pair potentials.
Two hundred and two consecutive operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism: Has medical management changed the profiles of patients requiring parathyroidectomy?

Background Because of improvements in the medical management of end-stage renal disease, some surgeons perceive that they now perform fewer operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism, and that current patients have more advanced disease. Methods One hundred and seventy-two patients undergoing 202 operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism between 1988 and 2007 were reviewed. Patients operated on in the past decade (1998–2007) were compared with those from the previous decade (1988–1997). The main outcome measures were pre- and post-operative biochemical and symptom profiles, operation performed, and recurrence. Results One hundred and thirty first-time operations and 72 reoperations were performed. From 1988 to 1997, 106 operations were performed, compared with 96 from 1998 to 2007. There were no demographic differences between decades. There were no differences in preoperative serum calcium (10.0 mg/dL vs 10.2 mg/dL), PTH (1622 ng/L vs 1424 ng/L), phosphate (6.9 mg/dL vs 7.0 dL), and alkaline phosphatase (339 U/L vs 347 U/L). Symptom profiles were similar. Patients in the past decade were less likely to require reoperation (6% vs 22%) ( P Conclusion Despite improvements in medical management, the population of patients requiring parathyroidectomy for secondary hyperparathyroidism has remained constant in number and preoperative biochemical and symptom profiles over the past 2 decades. However, fewer patients have required reoperation in the past decade.
Carbon films from carbon suboxide decomposition. Inhibition by carbon monoxide and the heat of formation of C2O

A theoretical analysis of carbon-deposition kinetics has been developed to take into account a back-reaction in a simple kinetic case and has been applied to experimental data for deposition from C3O2 in the presence of CO. The analysis may serve as a prototype for the treatment of more complex systems. In the case of C3O2, experimental data on CO-inhibited deposition provide an approximate figure for the rate constant of the reaction, C2O+CO→C3O2, and this in turn has permitted the equilibrium constant at 1060°K to be determined for the reaction, C3O2(g)C2O+CO. An estimate of ΔS° for the reaction permits calculation of its ΔH° (+55 kcal) and the ΔH°f of C2O (+58 kcal), with uncertainties of 2 or 3 kcal. The most interesting result of the work is its strong support for a 3∑ state as the ground state of C2O together with the conclusion that the thermal decomposition of C3O2 provides a further example to add to the short list of elementary reactions known to involve a change of spin. The transmission coefficient is found to be approximately 10−4.
Design Of A Four-Channel Simultaneous Visual Infrared Photometer

A four channel photometer is in the final stages of construction at Steward Observatory. The instrument will obtain redshift estimates for distant (z,l) elliptical galaxies to at least 10% accuracy in short (15-20 minutes) integrations on the Multiple Mirror Telescope (MMT). Redshifts will be determined from comparison of visual and near infrared colors with those expected from a redshifted standard elliptical galaxy spectrum. The four channels are 0.4-0.7 microns (VB), 0.7-0.95 microns (RB), 1.4-1.8 microns (H), and 1.9-2.5 microns (K). Three dichroic filters allow these to be measured simultaneously. A silicon photodiode is used for RB,indium antimonide diodes for H and K, and a photomultiplier for VB. The diodes are all operated at liquid helium temperature to reduce thermal background and preamp noise, while the photomultiplier operates at room temperature using magnetic defocusing. Under these conditions the photometer will have sky background limited performance on the MMT, even in dark time, in all four detectors. Details of the instrument design are presented.© (1982) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Effect of Gibberellin A3 on the Endoplasmic Reticulum and on the Formation of Glyoxysomes in the Endosperm of Germinating Castor Bean

Seedlings of castor bean (Ricinus communis cv. Hale) were exposed to a range of concentrations of gibberellin A3 (GA3). Treatments for 20 hours with GA3 concentrations of 0.5 μM or higher resulted in increased levels of NADH-cytochrome c reductase, phosphorylcholine glyceride transferase, and malate synthase in endoplasmic reticulum (ER) isolated from endosperm on linear sucrose gradients. GA3 treatment also resulted in increased RNA associated with ER. Malate synthase and catalase in crude homogenates were enhanced by 1 to 100 μM GA3 concentrations. Isocitrate lyase, citrate synthase, malate synthase, catalase, and glycolate oxidase in isolated glyoxysomes were enhanced by 60, 20, 18, 40, and 28%, respectively, over controls. Treatment with abscisic acid led to decreased levels of glyoxysomal enzymes and reduced glyoxysomal protein. The effect of GA3 and abscisic acid on the specific activities of glyoxysomes of different densities suggests that GA3 influences enzyme levels and glyoxysome assembly.
Differential regulation of epidermal growth factor and transforming growth factor-alpha messenger ribonucleic acid in the rat anterior pituitary and hypothalamus induced by stresses.

Evidence has shown that epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF alpha) are present in the anterior pituitary as well as the hypothalamus, and that EGF can influence the function of pituitary cells, particularly corticotropes in vivo and in vitro. However, little is known about their exact functional roles and how they are regulated in these two areas. The present study was designed to determine if EGF and TGF alpha messenger RNA (mRNA) are expressed in the rat anterior pituitary and hypothalamus and how stress conditions such as cold, ether, or restraint affect their local expression. A sensitive mRNA detection method, the ribonuclease protection assay, detected both EGF and TGF alpha mRNA in the rat anterior pituitary and hypothalamus. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) further showed the presence of EGF and TGF alpha mRNA in these two areas and several other rat tissues (submandibular gland, liver, kidney, lung cerebral cortex, and testis). No TGF al...
Hemoglobin Differences by Race in Children With CKD

Background There are known racial disparities in the prevalence of anemia in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD), but these differences have not been well described in children. Study Design Cohort study, cross-sectional analysis. Setting & Participants The Chronic Kidney Disease in Children (CKiD) Study is a multicenter prospective cohort study of children with mild to moderate CKD. This analysis included 429 children of African American or white race. Predictor Race. Outcomes & Measurements This study examined the association of race with hemoglobin level. Both multiple linear regression and generalized gamma modeling techniques were used to characterize the association between race and hemoglobin level. Results 79% of the cohort was white, 21% was African American. Neither median hemoglobin level nor frequency of erythropoiesis-stimulating agent use differed by race. In multivariate analysis, lower levels of iohexol-measured glomerular filtration rate, African American race, and glomerular disease (vs nonglomerular disease) as the underlying cause of CKD were independently associated with decreased hemoglobin levels; independent of glomerular filtration rate and CKD diagnosis, African American children had average hemoglobin levels that were 0.6 g/dL (95% CI, −0.9 to −0.2 g/dL) lower than those of white children. Generalized gamma modeling showed that differences in hemoglobin levels observed by race become more pronounced when moving from high to low in the overall hemoglobin level distribution. Limitations Cross-sectional analysis cannot establish causality, and data for iron stores were not available for all patients. Conclusions African American compared with white children have lower hemoglobin values in CKD independent of the underlying cause of CKD. These racial differences in hemoglobin levels appear to increase at the lower end of the hemoglobin level distribution in this population.
Zur technischen Keten-Chemie†

Trotz ihrer schwierigen Erzeugung und Handhabung werden Ketene, die schon spontan ohne Einwirkung von Katalysatoren polymerisieren oder wegen ihrer Labilitat leicht Folgereaktionen eingehen, in den letzten Jahren in zunehmendem Mase fur grostechnische Synthesen verwendet. Auser durch Acetylierungsreaktionen, die besonders zur Herstellung von Acetanhydrid benutzt werden, konnen hauptsachlich durch Anlagerungsreaktionen die vielfaltigsten Produkte erhalten werden. Nach eine allgemeinen Ubersicht uber Keten-Reaktionen werden in dieser Arbeit vor allem die Anlagerung von Acetalen an Ketene, die zu Acrylsaureestern fuhrt, sowie die Herstellung von Isopropenylacetat durch Anlagerung von Aceton an Keten mit Difluorphosphorsaure als Katalysator behandelt.
An Inorganic Chick Growth Response

Abstract SEVERAL sources of unidentified growth factor activity for the chick have been reported—dried whey by Menge et al. (1949) and Reed et al. (1951); fish meal and dried brewers yeast by Carlson et al. (1949); liver by Savage et al. (1950), Sunde et al. (1950), and Combs et al. (1954); fish solubles by Fuller et al. (1952), Heuser and Norris (1951); and distillers dried solubles by Couch et al. (1951, 1952, 1954), Norris (1954) and Rasmussen et al. (1954). The variation in responses obtained with the various sources of the unidentified factors has been explained on the basis of carry over from the maternal diet as well as the variability which occurs in the sample. The use of hens depleted in the various unidentified factors as a source of the chicks for unidentified factor studies was reported by Welch (1954). It was also found that extraction of the isolated …
Electron-electron scattering and mobilities in semiconductors and quantum wells

The effect of electron-electron scattering on the mobility in semiconductors and semiconductor quantum wells is examined. A general exact formula is derived for the mobility, when the electron-electron collision rate is much faster than other scattering rates such as those by ionized impurities and phonons. In this limit, the transport relaxation rate is independent of the carrier's energy and contributions to the inverse mobility from individual scattering mechanism add up. The mobility becomes significantly reduced from its value in the absence of electron-electron scattering. When the collision rates are not necessarily dominated by electron-electron scattering, the mobility is calculated by the Kohler-Sondheimer variational method in the presence of ionized-impurity scattering and acoustic-phonon scattering in a nondegenerate two-dimensional quantum well.
A Lack of Significant Lipid Interactions in the Open State of MSCS Implies a Jack-In-The-Box Type Channel Gating Mechanism

Bacterial mechanosensitive channels are important for cell survival in changing osmotic environments. For the mechanosensitive channel of small conductance from Escherichia coli (Ec-MscS), seven residues have previously been shown to form important lipid contacts in the closed state of the channel. Based on open state crystal structures and closed state models, these residues interact with lipids in the closed state of the channel. Decreasing the hydrophobicity of these residues reduces bacterial survival upon osmotic downshock. Since the closed state appears to be stabilized by lipid interactions, we hypothesized that similar stabilizing lipid interactions could be identified in the open state. Using a computational model of open state Ec-MscS embedded in a lipid bilayer, eleven residues were determined to be lipid exposed with ten of these residues being unique to the open state of the channel. To identify the role of lipid interactions these residues were mutated to alanine and leucine to alter their interaction with the hydrophobic lipids. The effects of these mutations on channel function were assayed using osmotic downshock lysis assays, growth assays, and patch clamp electrophysiology. Mutations of the ten residues that are exposed to the lipid bilayer only in the open state of the channel effected a wildtype phenotype in all of these assays. The lack of phenotypic changes, for residues that interact with the lipid bilayer solely in the open state, suggests that these interactions are not critical for channel gating. This has led us to propose a "Jack-In-The-Box" model of gating for MscS, in which intrinsic lipid bilayer pressure holds the channel in the closed state. Upon relief of the intrinsic bilayer pressure by application of opposing extrinsic tension, MscS springs into the open state.
Prediction of Fat and Fat Free Live Weight in Broiler Chickens Using Backskin Fat, Abdominal Fat, and Live Body Weight

Abstract Data from 100 male and 100 female broiler chickens that were raised on the floor under two lighting regimes (12 and 24 hr light) were combined. Birds were weighed when 58 days old (male data presented first) (2372 g, 1913 g) and then slaughtered at 59 days. Abdominal fat was weighed (2.18%, 2.82%) and fat extracted from ground carcass (12.0%, 13.7% wet basis), intestines (47.6%, 56.2% dry basis), and from a triangular section of backskin (86.1%, 88.0% dry basis). Percent total fat was 10.4 and 12.2 (wet basis). Abdominal fat regressed on live body weight produced negative intercepts, indicating that regressed rather than percent values should be used. Fat from the four locations mentioned above had correlation coefficients of +.45 to +.76 for males and +.47 to +.74 for females. Percent abdominal fat had low nonsignificant correlations with fat free live body weight (r = +.23 male, −.07 female). Abdominal fat weight was a better (higher r2) predictor of total fat, total fat minus abdominal fat, percent carcass fat, and percent intestinal fat, than percent backskin fat. Thirty-three percent (male) and 22% (female) of the variation of percent abdominal fat was accounted for by percent backskin fat. Abdominal fat should be obtained directly and used for predicting fat in the bird rather than backskin fat. Abdominal fat was +20.7% (male) and +22.8% (female) of total fat. Prediction equations for estimating total fat and fat free live weight, given abdominal fat, and live body weight were developed. Selection against percent abdominal fat would probably result in a reduction of fat in other locations and little change in fat free live weight.
Procedure Writing and Corporate Management: Thinking, Writing, and Speaking for Internal Coordination

Presentation des objectifs, du format, des caracteristiques et du contenu des manuels destines a la mise en œuvre de la politique d'une entreprise industrielle ou gouvernementale, et a la coordination entre ses divers departements
BIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL ACTIONS OF METHOTREXATE IN PSORIASIS

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the biological effects of methotrexate (MTX) in psoriasis occur by direct drug action on the psoriatic plaque or are mediated by systemic action at a site distant from skin. Injection of intralesional MTX into plaques showed a dose-related decrease in mitotic activity accompanied by a production of MTX "damaged cells" beginning 2hr after injection. These effects were similar to those found in psoriatic epidermis with systemically administered MTX. The data suggest that MTX acts directly on the psoriatic plaque rather than systemically at a distant site. In the EFA rat with a hyperproliferative epidermis intradermal MTX decreased epidermal mitoses and thymidine reversed this effect. Additionally, psoriatic patients were injected intralesionally with MTX simultaneously with either leucovorin, thymidine, uridine, or saline. Thymidine protected against the biologic effects of MTX described above in all patients. Leucovorin with MTX provided only partial protection while uridine and saline had no influence on the MTX effects. These data suggest that the biologic effects of MTX in psoriasis are mediated by the local depletion of the thymidine pool rather than by other biochemical actions. Continued efforts in the investigation of topical MTX analogs seems warranted for the treatment of psoriasis.
"Gravid with the ancient future": Cloud Atlas and the Politics of Big History

I One of the striking generic features of the emerging field of Big History is a closing glance toward the future. Summed up by the title of Fred Speir’s Big History and the Future of Humanity (2010), this generic gesture shows up in the “Big History Project,” a free online course for secondary schools, whose final unit is entitled “The Future” and features Henry Louis Gates and Bill Gates offering their prognostications on the future of the earth over the next 50 years (Big).1 The concluding chapter of Daniel Lord Smail’s Deep History and the Brain, entitled “Looking Ahead,” offers this final admonition: “The deep past is also our present and our future” (202).2 The convention of turning back to the future can be explained, in part, by the environmentalist origins of the field. Big History grows out of the green politics of US sixties counter-culture, which first finds its expression in projects like the Whole Earth Catolog and Earth Day. The scale of Big History promises to bring into stark relief the environmental impact of our species on the planet. In a cautionary note echoed by many contributors to the discourse, Cynthia Stokes Brown opens Big History: From the Big Bang to the Present (2012) by sounding on the negative ecological consequences of human activity: “the actions people have taken to keep their offspring increasing have put the planetary environment and its life-forms in grave jeopardy” (xii). As its title “What Now? What Next?” implies, the conclusion of Brown’s study pushes the book’s historical narrative beyond the title’s nominal temporal limits (from the big bang to the present) out into the future. Offering the computer modeling of Meadows, Randers, and Meadows’ The Limits to Growth (1972) as an appropriate scientific resource for playing out possible “short-term scenarios” for humanity’s future, Brown maintains that the best place to explore our “middle-range future” is in works of science fiction like George Stuart’s The Earth Abides (1949), Walter
Photosensitized Singlet Oxygen Production upon Two-Photon Excitation of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Their Functionalized Analogues

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) functionalized with −COOH (along with some sulfonation and nitration) and/or modified with chitosan were prepared and tested for their singlet oxygen (1O2) pr...
In Vitro Activity of Gentamicin, Amikacin, and Netilmicin Alone and in Combination with Carbenicillin Against Serratia marcescens

The inhibitory and bactericidal effects of gentamicin, amikacin, netilmicin (Sch 20569), and carbenicillin were tested against 55 clinical isolates of Serratia marcescens that had been subtyped into 26 strains by biotyping and serotyping. Three major patterns of resistance to gentamicin, netilmicin, and carbenicillin were recognized among these isolates. (i) Most of the 27 isolates that were susceptible to gentamicin (minimal bactericidal concentration [MBC] ≤6.25 μg/ml) were susceptible to carbenicillin (MBC ≤125 μg/ml) and resistant to netilmicin (MBC ≥12.5 μg/ml). (ii) Most of the 11 isolates with moderate resistance to gentamicin (MBC of 12.5 to 25 μg/ml) were also susceptible to carbenicillin and resistant to netilmicin. (iii) The 17 isolates with high-level resistance to gentamicin (MBC ≥ 50 μg/ml) were all highly resistant to carbenicillin (MBC ≥8,000 μg/ml) but susceptible to netilmicin (MBC ≤6.25 μg/ml). The susceptibility to amikacin was unpredictable among these groups of isolates but, overall, 80% of the isolates were killed by 25 μg of amikacin/ml, which is within the range of peak serum concentrations used therapeutically. Clinically attainable subinhibitory concentrations of carbenicillin enhanced the activity of the three aminoglycosides against all isolates with MBCs of carbenicillin ≤2,000 μg/ml. The 17 isolates with high-level resistance to carbenicillin and gentamicin, as well as the four isolates with high-level resistance to carbenicillin but not to gentamicin, were not susceptible to such enhancement of aminoglycoside activity by carbenicillin.
At-risk children in Christian families concerning alcohol use.

Health educators proposing alcohol prevention programs for a church setting face a variety of problems. “Information only” preventive types of alcohol programs are being increasingly criticized. The purpose of this study was to identify variables that best predict use of alcohol for children in fundamentalist Protestant Christian families. Three hundred and two students currently enrolled in a mandatory health course at a fundamentalist Protestant Christian university responded to a questionnaire designed to identify contextual or environmental risk factors for alcohol use. A significant difference was found in five of 15 established environmental factors. This paper suggests that an alcohol education program that focused on these differences would be advantageous for the health educator to carry out in the church setting.
Comment on "Tumor response to radiotherapy regulated by endothelial cell apoptosis" (I).

Garcia-Barros et al . ([ 1 ][1]) reported innovative experiments demonstrating that for two murine tumors, the growth rate, endothelial cell apoptosis, and radiation response, at dosages of 10 to 15 grays (Gy), were affected by acid sphingomyelinase levels in the endothelial cells of acid
Metamorphism of the Mullerneset Formation, St. Jonsfjorden, Svalbard

The metamorphism of upper greenschist facies metasediments exposed in the extreme southwestern portion of St. Jonsjorden, Svalbard, is described. The rocks form part of the Miillerneset Formation o...