cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Permutations of combined free flaps using the subscapular system.

Over five dozen permutations of free-flap combinations based on the subscapular system are possible. Although this has been the most common single flap donor site in the author's overall experience (38.5 percent), the use of a combined flap has been required in only seven cases, representing only 10 percent of all free flaps selected from this region, indeed implying that their indications are limited When muscle flaps per se were specifically desired, the latissimus dorsi and serratus anterior muscles could be simultaneously transferred, while requiring only a single microanastomosis to their common subscapular pedicle. Additional advantages of using this most common form, or with other combined flaps, are not only augmentation of available surface area for wound coverage, but also disparate sites can be closed individually; microanastomoses are easily protected by the second flap; circumferential gliding surfaces are provided to minimize tendon adhesions; and dynamic restoration of multiple paralyzed muscles is achieved, while violating but a single donor site.
BENEFITS OF PROVIDING COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE STRATEGIES TO NOVICE PERFORMERS LEARNING A COMPLEX MOTOR SKILL

Verbal reports were collected from experienced performers during acquisition trials of a novel throwing task and summarized as cognitive performance strategies. These strategies were incorporated in the practice regimen of 8 novices with no sport experience who learned the same task. A control group of 8 novices practiced the task without the experts' cognitive performance strategies. The performance of the novices who used the strategies was similar to that of the experts and significantly better than the performance of the control novices.
Lactate and glucose metabolism in the resting and diving harbor seal (Phoca vitulina)

The rates of lactate and glucose production, removal, and oxidation were measured in harbor seals before and after 10 min restrained dives using radioisotope tracer techniques. The results show: 1. Net turnover rates were 24 μmol·min−1·kg−1 for lactate and 12 μmol·min−1·kg−1 for glucose at rest (Table 2). 2. Only 21% of lactate turnover and 3% of glucose turnover were oxidized. Their combined oxidation contributed less than 9% to resting energy production. 3. During 10 min dives, there was 9 fold increase in lactate production. 4. Less than 27% of the lactate produced during diving was oxidized during recovery. 5. The blood glucose concentration decreased 1 mM during diving, but increased and remained elevated for 2 h after the dive (Fig. 5 and 6). The postdive hyperglycemia resulted from a high glucose entry rate which lasted 10–15 min after the dive. A peak entry rate of 168 μmol·min−1·kg−1 was measured 30 sec after a dive. 6. In spite of the postdive hyperglycemia, glucose oxidation was only 11% higher than predive levels. 7. The predive concentration of plasma free fatty acids (FFA) was similar to other arctic carnivores (Fig. 9).
The Application of Mindfulness for Interpersonal Dependency: Effects of a Brief Intervention

This study examined the efficacy of a brief mindfulness intervention for alleviating the affective consequences of interpersonal dependency. Seventy undergraduate students with high trait dependency underwent a mood induction to exacerbate the core cognitive and affective features of interpersonal dependency. Participants were then randomly assigned to listen and participate in a 20-min recording of either a mindfulness treatment or a distraction (control) treatment. Relative to those in the distraction group, mindfulness group participants reported greater increases in state mindfulness and greater reductions in state anxiety and state negative affect. Mediation analyses supported the notion that the decentering facet of state mindfulness fully mediated the improvements in both state anxiety and state negative affect. The findings of this study evince that mindfulness training may be a beneficial adjunct for treating interpersonal dependency and possibly dependent personality disorder.
Games with multiple payoffs

The traditional theories of decision making and games are based on an assumption that prevents their broader practical utilization:a single dimensional payoff. In reality, any alternative is likely to imply more than one payoff, e.g. not only costs but also time, price, quality, safety, maintainability, productivity, etc. Similarly, the Theory of Games faces difficulties as we attempt to apply it to the conflict situations of the social and business environment. The assumption that a single dimensional payoff, like money, points or chips, is a realistic consequence of individual moves or strategies, is difficult to sustain. In this short paper, concepts of nondominated solutions and a decomposition of parametric spaces are used to formulate and resolvedecision problems with vector payoffs. Both Games against Nature and Two-Person, Zero-Sum frameworks are considered. A concept of compromise solutions is introduced to help the decision maker with further reduction of the nondominated set. Some numerical examples are given.
A developmental study of the pragmatic communication rule for prenominal adjective ordering

First-, fourth-, and eighth-grade children and college undergraduates indicated preference for either normal or inverted orders of prenominal adjectives (for example,the large red car or the red large car, respectively) to describe a pictorial referent. Preference for the normal order of adjectives first appeared with the fourth graders. When communication context was vaxied by presenting a nonreferent that required a color adjective for discrimination from the referent, college students increased their preference for the inverted order. This separation of the acquisition of a linguistic rule from its utilization in communication was discussed.
Masking effects of speech and music: Does the masker's hierarchical structure matter?

AbstractSpeech and music are time-varying signals organized by parallel hierarchical rules. Through a series of four experiments, this study compared the masking effects of single-talker speech and instrumental music on speech perception while manipulating the complexity of hierarchical and temporal structures of the maskers. Listeners’ word recognition was found to be similar between hierarchically intact and disrupted speech or classical music maskers (Experiment 1). When sentences served as the signal, significantly greater masking effects were observed with disrupted than intact speech or classical music maskers (Experiment 2), although not with jazz or serial music maskers, which differed from the classical music masker in their hierarchical structures (Experiment 3). Removing the classical music masker's temporal dynamics or partially restoring it affected listeners’ sentence recognition; yet, differences in performance between intact and disrupted maskers remained robust (Experiment 4). Hence, the ...
The effect of variation in sentence length on young children's attention and comprehension:

The effect of sentence length on children's attention and com prehension was studied. Twenty-five two- to five-year-olds were placed into three groups, High, Middle, and Low, based on their mean le...
Dynamic partial order reduction for relaxed memory models

Under a relaxed memory model such as TSO or PSO, a concurrent program running on a shared-memory multiprocessor may observe two types of nondeterminism: the nondeterminism in thread scheduling and the nondeterminism in store buffering. Although there is a large body of work on mitigating the scheduling nondeterminism during runtime verification, methods for soundly mitigating the store buffering nondeterminism are lacking. We propose a new dynamic partial order reduction (POR) algorithm for verifying concurrent programs under TSO and PSO. Our method relies on modeling both types of nondeterminism in a unified framework, which allows us to extend existing POR techniques to TSO and PSO without overhauling the verification algorithm. In addition to sound POR, we also propose a buffer-bounding method for more aggressively reducing the state space. We have implemented our new methods in a stateless model checking tool and demonstrated their effectiveness on a set of multithreaded C benchmarks.
Diagonal convexity conditions for problems in convex analysis and quasi-variational inequalities

Abstract Many theorems in convex analysis and quasi-variational inequalities can be derived by using a class of weaker convexity (concavity) conditions which require a functional φ ( x , y ) to be quasi-convex or convex for diagonal entries of certain type. In this paper, we discuss such conditions and use them to generalize several important theorems such as Ky Fan's inequality and saddle point theorem and some recent results in quasi-variational inequalities.
A NEW PHOTOSENSITIVE PIGMENT OF THE EURYHALINE TELEOST, GILLICHTHYS MIRABILIS

Retinal extracts have been prepared from dark-adapted mudsuckers by treatment of retinal tissue or of isolated outer segments of the visual cells with digitonin solution. The extracts were examined spectrophotometrically and found to absorb light maximally between the wave lengths of 488 and 510 mµ, depending on the proportion of yellow impurities and light-sensitive pigment present. This photosensitive pigment was shown to be homogeneous by partial bleaching of the extracts with monochromatic light of various wave lengths from 390 to 660 mµ. The mudsucker pigment was specifically demonstrated not to be a mixture of rhodopsin and porphyropsin; the adequacy of the method used to analyze such mixtures was shown by performing a control experiment with an artificial mixture of bullfrog rhodopsin and carp porphyropsin. Comparison of the hydroxylamine difference spectrum and of the absorption maximum of the purest retinal extract located the mudsucker photosensitive pigment maximum at 512 ± 1 mµ. Extraction of retinal tissue with a fat solvent after exposure to white light gave a preparation which after the addition of antimony chloride reagent developed the absorption band maximal near 664 mµ, which is characteristic of retinene1. If an hour intervened between exposure of the retinal tissue to light and extraction of the carotenoid, the antimony trichloride test gave a color band maximal at 620 mµ, characteristic of vitamin A1. No evidence of retinene2 or vitamin A2 was obtained. The euryhaline mudsucker has, therefore, a photosensitive retinal pigment with an absorption maximum halfway between the peaks of rhodopsins and of porphyropsins and belonging to the retinene1 system characteristic of rhodopsins. The pigment is therefore named a retinene1 pigment 512 of the mudsucker, Gillichthys mirabilis. It is uncertain whether this type of photosensitive pigment will be found in other euryhaline fishes.
Photorefractive liquid crystals doped with electron donor and acceptor molecules

We report recent improvements in the photorefractive performance of liquid crystalline thin film composites containing electron donor and acceptor molecules. The improvements primarily result from optimization of the exothermicity of the intermolecular charge transfer reaction and improvement of the diffusion characteristics of the photogenerated ions. Photorefractivity resulting from intramolecular charge transfer dopants is also discussed.
T cell subset-specific susceptibility to aging.

With increasing age, the competence of the immune system to fight infections and tumors declines. Age-dependent changes have been mostly described for human CD8 T cells, raising the question of whether the response patterns for CD4 T cells are different. Gene expression arrays of memory CD4 T cells yielded a similar age-induced fingerprint as has been described for CD8 T cells. In cross-sectional studies, the phenotypic changes were not qualitatively different for CD4 and CD8 T cells, but occurred much more frequently in CD8 T cells. Homeostatic stability partially explained this lesser age sensitivity of CD4 T cells. With aging, naive and central memory CD8 T cells were lost at the expense of phenotypically distinct CD8 effector T cells, while effector CD4 T cells did not accumulate. However, phenotypic shifts on central memory T cells were also more pronounced in CD8 T cells. This distinct stability in cell surface marker expression can be reproduced in vitro. The data show that CD8 T cells are age sensitive by at least two partially independent mechanisms: fragile homeostatic control and gene expression instability in a large set of regulatory cell surface molecules.
The effect of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol on cytoplasmic DNA metabolism

Abstract Tetrahydrocannabinol has been shown to interfere with DNA synthesis in a variety of organisms and cell systems. Results presented in this paper show that in Volvox species, strain HK-10, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol acts specifically on cytoplasmic DNA, by preventing its synthesis and mediating in its degradation. CaCl density gradient centrifugation profiles of DNA from Volvox , labeled with [3H]-adenine in either the presence or absence of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol are presented. This data demonstrates that while nuclear DNA continues to be synthesized in the presence of the drug, the incorporation of label into the cytoplasmic DNA species is halted. In addition, Volvox DNA prelabeled with [3H]-adenine, and later exposed to Δ 9 - tetrahydrocannabinol in vivo , shows that the drug also mediates in the degradation of pre-existing cytoplasmic DNA.
On convergence of a discrete aggregate model in polycrystalline plasticity

Abstract A discrete aggregate model, recently proposed by the author [1] as a basis for quantitative studies in polycrystalline plasticity, is extended and further analyzed herein. The discretized internal stress and strain increment fields, uniquely determined from the solution of a constrained quadratic programming problem, are proved to be strictly convergent to the solution of the corresponding continuum boundary value problem. Thus, the model is rigorously confirmed as a rational approximation well-suited for computational investigations of aggregate behavior.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PYROPHOSPHATE CONTENT AND OXYTETRACYCLINE LABELLING OF BONE SALT.

HEATING of bone to 325° C has been shown to induce the formation of pyrophosphate1–3. The quantity of pyrophosphate so formed is greater in the epiphysis than in the diaphysis and greater in the younger than in the older animal, and is therefore presumably greater in newly laid down than in older bone salt1. The question to be investigated is whether pyrophosphate-yielding mineral of new bone has specific chemical characteristics. There is much evidence which suggests that the tetracyclines are deposited in high concentrations in newly formed bone salt4. This communication demonstrates that the tetracycline labels the form of the bone salt that yields pyrophosphate in large amounts after heating.
Three-dimensional flow diagnostics by holographic diffraction image velocimetry

Despite the rapid proliferation and increased capabilities of computational fluid diagnostic algorithms, there still exists a need for experimental techniques which can provide global information in an accurate and expeditious manner for augmentation and/or verification of numerical methods. While many optical, non-intrusive techniques such as particle imaging velocimetry have been developed and refined in recent years, systems which can simultaneously extract all three-velocity components are few. We present a technique which utilizes a dual-reference-beam holographic recording and reconstruction system along with a two-step data acquisition and processing method for the determination of in- and out-of-plane velocity components form a single viewing direction. Although still under development, the method, termed holographic diffraction image velocimetry, shows promise to become a useful tool for accurate gross-field diagnostics of complex flows.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Robin functions and distortion of capacity under conformal mapping

Under normalized conformal mappings of a multiply connected domain ω it is found that the sharp lower bound for the capacity of the image of a given set is the Robin capacity of A with respect to ω. The result is generalized to a sharp inequality for quadratic forms involving Green's function and the Robin function associated with A and ω. AMS No. 30C85, 30C35, 30C70, 31A15
Plasma platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase activity in human immunodeficiency virus infection and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Platelet-activating factor (PAF) acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH) catalyzes the hydrolysis of PAF, a mediator of inflammation, as well as other biologically active oxidized phospholipids. In humans, plasma PAF-AH activity is bound to low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Higher levels of plasma PAF-AH activity have been found in a variety of diseases, and are thought to be a defense mechanism against the toxic effects of PAF and oxidized phospholipids. We studied plasma PAF-AH activity in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a disease characterized by chronic HIV infection and a systemic host response. Plasma PAF-AH activity was significantly greater in AIDS patients compared with control subjects (25.2 +/- 2.0 v 17.0 +/- 0.8 nmol/min/mL, P < .001). The higher levels of plasma PAF-AH activity were found in LDL (28.2 +/- 2.2 v 18.3 +/- 1.0 nmol/min/mL for AIDS v controls, respectively, P = .0005), but not in HDL. Plasma PAF-AH activity in AIDS correlated with circulating interferon alfa (r = .575, P = .005) and plasma triglycerides (r = .556, P < .0025). The presence of secondary infection in AIDS did not significantly change plasma PAF-AH activity. The initiation of a new antiretroviral regimen with either a protease inhibitor or the nucleoside analog lamivudine did not significantly decrease plasma PAF-AH activity, despite successful suppression of HIV RNA levels. Plasma PAF-AH activity may be a sensitive marker of the host response to infection, and the higher levels of plasma and LDL-associated PAF-AH activity in patients with HIV infection and AIDS may be a physiological response to protect the host against oxidative injury from PAF and oxidized phospholipids.
The EU Committee of AmCham: The powerful voice of American firms in Brussels

Abstract Comprised of large American companies, the EU Committee of AmCham is recognized as one of the most powerful lobbying organizations in Brussels today. Until recently, however, the role of large American firms and the EU Committee have gone largely unnoticed by academics. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the collective action of American companies and the resulting political influence of the EU Committee in Brussels policy‐making. The EU Committee's collective action is novel owing not only to its form (direct firm membership), but also to the collective political incentives underlying the group's membership. The establishment of the EU Committee introduced an American‐style of lobbying along with a complex intelligence network previously unknown in Brussels. Through the EU Committee's ‘power of information’ and extensive institutional ties, the organization of ‘American firms of European parentage’ has become a model for other industry groups.
Porcine gastric mucin binds to recombinant norovirus particles and competitively inhibits their binding to histo-blood group antigens and Caco-2 cells.

Aims: To determine if human noroviruses (NV) bind to histo-blood group antigens (HBGA) from pig gastric mucosa. Methods and Results: An assay was developed to measure the inhibition of binding of recombinant norovirus-like particles (rNVLP) to HBGA in human saliva by porcine gastric mucin (PGM). The binding of rNVLP to HBGA could be inhibited by PGM in a dose-dependent pattern. Also, rNVLP could be captured effectively by PGM coated directly on plates and was detected by binding of polyclonal antibodies against rNVLP. Similarly, the binding of rNVLP to PGM could be inhibited effectively by HBGA in human saliva, and by Lewis b and Lewis d synthetic oligosaccharides (OS), but not inhibited effectively by an H3 OS or by purified bovine submaxillary gland mucin. Preincubation of rNVLPs with PGM completely inhibited their binding to human Caco-2 cells. Conclusions: PGM binds effectively to rNVLPs and competitively inhibits rNVLPs binding to human HBGA and Caco-2 cells. Significance and Impact of the Study: This is the first report of the binding of glycoproteins from animal gastric mucosa to human NVs. This study highlights the importance of further characterizing the NV incidence and infections in nonhuman animal hosts and the possibility that NV is a zoonotic disease.
Survival, growth, and accumulation of ingested lead in nestling American Kestrels ( Falco sparverius )

One-day old American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) nestlings were dosed orally daily with 5 μl/g of corn oil (controls), 25 mg/kg, 125 mg/kg, or 625 mg/kg of metallic lead in corn oil through day 10. Forty percent of the nestlings given 625 mg/kg died after six days. Growth rates became significantly different from controls in the 625 mg/kg group by day 3 and in the 125 mg/kg group by day 4. Crown-rump lengths and brain weights were significantly lower in both treatment groups. Liver and kidney weights were lower in the 625 mg/kg groups. Skeletal examination and measurement of alizarin red-S stained nestlings revealed reduced growth for the humerus, radius-ulna, femur, and tibiotarsus in the 125 mg/kg and 625 mg/kg groups. Skeletons were otherwise normal in appearance. Greater than 2 ppm (wet weight) lead in the liver or 6 ppm in the kidney was associated with suppressed growth, while more than 5 ppm in the liver and 15 ppm in the kidney occurred in survivors in the 625 mg/kg group. The order of accumulation of lead in tissues at the end of 10 days was kidney > liver > brain. These findings suggest that altricial nestlings may be considerably more sensitive to lead exposure than adults and also more sensitive than hatchlings of many precocial species.
Synthesis and stability of 3‐nitro‐2‐pyridinesulfenyl chloride (NpysCl)

3-Nitro-2-pyridinesulfenyl chloride (NpysCl) is the starting material for the synthesis of N-, O- and S-Npys-protected amino acids. Two efficient, novel synthetic routes to NpysCl are described. The stability of NpysCl was determined in a variety of solvents, with and without base, to determine the most suitable solvent and base for the synthesis of N-Npys amino acids. The syntheses of Npys-Ala and Boc-Lys(Npys) tert-butylammonium salt are also described.
Evidence from circular dichroism for the binding of hydrogen ions and calcium ions by poly (L-proline).

The positive circular dichroism band observed near 228 nm with poly(L-proline) responds in a similar fashion to HCl and CaCl2. The spectra in the HCl solutions are compatible with a simple binding equation and a pK near −2 for the dissociation of a proton from a protonated peptide bond in poly(L-proline). The data obtained in CaCl2 is susceptible to the same analysis, suggesting a pK near −1.5 for the dissociation of a calcium ion from its complex with poly(L-proline).
Characterization of thin films by optical mixing spectroscopy

Abstract Adsorption of thin films of polymer or protein onto polystyrene spheres in aqueous solutions is studied by optical mixing spectroscopy. The film is characterized as to hydrodynamic thickness, optical thickness, and surface charge density. These quentities are used to infer some aspects of the film structure.
New Bounds on the Higgs Sector of Minimal SUSY

We examine the Higgs sector of the minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model. The requirement of perturbative unification combined with the recent LEP data on Higgs boson searches, excludes substantial regions of parameter space. We find that only 0.42 ≤ tan β≲0.76 and tan β≳1.30 are the allowed values for tan β=υ2/υ1. We also determine the absolute lower bound on the lightest Higgs mass to be ≈8 GeV. We conclude that improved lower bounds on the top quark mass and/or the standard model Higgs boson mass will impose yet more stringent constraints on the model. These results clearly favor tan β>1, in agreement with N=1 supergravity or superstring-inspired models.
Input matching and patch use by native and invasive minnows

When members of a population choose patches that maximise individual net energy gain without interference, they are input matching, a strategy derived from the ideal free distribution (IFD) that results in equal rewards across all patches. We investigated the input matching abilities of yellowfin shiner, a recent invader, and rosyside dace, a common native minnow, found in Coweeta Creek, North Carolina, USA. To test the species' relative input matching abilities, we varied food abundance within the range found in the natural habitat in a two- patch laboratory stream to document the distribution of foragers when food densities differed in the ratio of 2:1. We then applied simple IFD model predictions to determine whether the observed distribution of foragers was best described by (i) the IFD, (ii) differing competitive abilities or (iii) the ideal despotic distribution and/or other unequal competitor models, and to ascertain whether the invader demonstrated a superior ability to track resource distributions. Yellowfin shiner was more likely to move between patches, which resulted in increased ability to match the distribution of food when prey abundance increased. The distribution of rosyside dace between patches did not change in response to increased food abundance. Despite a considerable range of competitive abilities within intraspecific groups, the 'equal competitors' IFD was as good at predicting fish distributions as 'unequal competitor' models. The ability to track local resource availability in highly variable environments facilitates maximising energy intake and likely promoted the establishment of yellowfin shiner in a southern Appalachian stream.
A synthetic peptide corresponding to a region of the human pericentriolar material 1 (PCM‐1) protein binds β‐amyloid (Aβ1‐42) oligomers

We have recently reported that a ~19-kDa polypeptide, rPK-4, is a protein kinase Cs inhibitor that is 89% homologous to the 1171–1323 amino acid region of the 228-kDa human pericentriolar material-1 (PCM-1) protein (Chakravarthy et al. 2012). We have now discovered that rPK-4 binds oligomeric amyloid-β peptide (Aβ)1-42 with high affinity. Most importantly, a PCM-1-selective antibody co-precipitated Aβ and amyloid β precursor protein (AβPP) from cerebral cortices and hippocampi from AD (Alzheimer's disease) transgenic mice that produce human AβPP and Aβ1-42, suggesting that PCM-1 may interact with amyloid precursor protein/Aβ in vivo. We have identified rPK-4′s Aβ-binding domain using a set of overlapping synthetic peptides. We have found with ELISA, dot-blot, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis techniques that a ~ 5 kDa synthetic peptide, amyloid binding peptide (ABP)-p4-5 binds Aβ1-42 at nM levels. Most importantly, ABP-p4-5, like rPK-4, appears to preferentially bind Aβ1-42 oligomers, believed to be the toxic AD-drivers. As expected from these observations, ABP-p4-5 prevented Aβ1-42 from killing human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells via apoptosis. These findings indicate that ABP-p4-5 is a possible candidate therapeutic for AD.
Studies of the decline of uteroglobin synthesis and secretion in the rabbit uterus during the continued presence of circulating progesterone.

To understand the physiology of the decline of uterine luminal uteroglobin content under various hormonal conditions in rabbits, the in vivo incorporation of 3H-labeled amino acids into uteroglobin was studied in pregnant, pseudopregnant, and progesterone-treated ovariectomized rabbits. The incorporation of 3H-labeled amino acids into the uteroglobin of progesterone-treated animals increased to days 4 and 5 and returned to low values by day 10. The uteroglobin content (in milligrams) of the uterine lumen was greater on day 5 in ovariectomized progesterone-treated (mean ± SEM, 1.70 ± 0.20), pseudopregnant (3.0 ± 0.75), and pregnant (1.6 ± 0.40) rabbits than on day 10 (0.6 ± 0.10, 0.9 ± 0.30, and 0.2 ± 0.1, respectively), and on day 10, the uteroglobin content was higher in the progesterone-treated and pseudopregnant animals than in the day 10 pregnant animals. In all three groups, the 3H-labeled amino acid incorporation into uteroglobin was much greater on day 5 than on day 10. The specific activities of a...
Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchange regulates Ca(2+)-dependent duodenal mucosal ion transport and HCO(3)(-) secretion in mice.

Stimulation of muscarinic receptors in duodenal mucosa raises intracellular Ca2+, which regulates ion transport, including HCO3− secretion. However, the underlying Ca2+ handling mechanisms are poor...
Retinal TrkB receptors regulate neural development in the inner, but not outer, retina

BDNF signaling through its TrkB receptor plays a pivotal role in activity-dependent refinement of synaptic connectivity of retinal ganglion cells. Additionally, studies using TrkB knockout mice have suggested that BDNF/TrkB signaling is essential for the development of photoreceptors and for synaptic communication between photoreceptors and second order retinal neurons. Thus the action of BDNF on refinement of synaptic connectivity of retinal ganglion cells could be a direct effect in the inner retina, or it could be secondary to its proposed role in rod maturation and in the formation of rod to bipolar cell synaptic transmission. To address this matter we have conditionally eliminated TrkB within the retina. We find that rod function and synaptic transmission to bipolar cells is not compromised in these conditional knockout mice. Consistent with previous work, we find that inner retina neural development is regulated by retinal BDNF/TrkB signaling. Specifically we show here also that the complexity of neuronal processes of dopaminergic cells is reduced in conditional TrkB knockout mice. We conclude that retinal BDNF/TrkB signaling has its primary role in the development of inner retinal neuronal circuits, and that this action is not a secondary effect due to the loss of visual signaling in the outer retina.
A review of liver transplantation for the dentist and guidelines for dental management

The number of recipients of liver transplants has grown rapidly in the last few years and is likely to continue to do so in the future. The dentist should be prepared to see individuals who are contemplating or have had liver transplants. The major goal of dental intervention, before and after liver transplantation, is the prevention of bacteremia from an oral source that could lead to systemic infection. In addition, pre-transplant medical conditions of concern to the dentist include poor drug metabolism, bleeding disorders, poor wound healing, and an inability to metabolize swallowed blood. Post-transplant dental treatment must take into consideration immunosuppressive drugs and the potential for infections. Dental treatment should include a thorough dental examination, elimination of dental problems that could cause medical problems, and an intensive preventive dentistry program to minimize the occurrence of dental disease.
Physical Activity Levels in College Students With Chronic Ankle Instability.

Context: Ankle sprains are the most common orthopaedic pathologic condition, and more concerning is the high percentage of persons who develop chronic ankle instability (CAI). Researchers have repo...
Incivility as Bullying in Nursing Education

Incivility as bullying in the workplace remains an important issue in need of attention. Nursing teaching-learning environments are no different. Acts of bullying can be disruptive and harmful to individuals and institutions. The author in this column discusses the prevalence of incivility as bullying within nursing communities with a focus on those in education. The humanbecoming ethical tenets, shame and betrayal are discussed as they relate to bullying. Suggested means of putting an end to this incivility are presented with a call for all nursing faculty to honor living quality as humanbecoming professionals.
The Effects of a Service-Learning Program on the Development of Civic Attitudes and Behaviors Among Academically Talented Adolescents

this study examined the effects of a service-learning program on the development of civic attitudes and behaviors of 230 high school students who were identified as academically gifted and participated in either a service-learning program or an accelerated academic program during the summer. Students’ responses to 3 surveys measuring civic responsibility, civic behavior, and leadership skills showed that enhanced civic responsibility, particularly a greater awareness of civic issues and a stronger connection and commitment to the community, was found among the students who participated in the service-learning program. Significant differences were not found for civic behaviors and leadership skills as a result of participation in the service-learning program. longer term studies with students and examination of the type of service-learning activities students choose to get involved in are suggested to corroborate the positive outcomes of the service-learning program.
Proangiogenic Properties of Thrombospondin-4

Objective—Thrombospondin-4 (TSP-4) is 1 of the 5 members of the thrombospondin protein family. TSP-1 and TSP-2 are potent antiangiogenic proteins. However, angiogenic properties of the 3 other TSPs, which do not contain the domains associated with the antiangiogeneic activity of TSP-1 and TSP-2, have not been explored. In our previous studies, we found that TSP-4 is expressed in the vascular matrix of blood vessels of various sizes and is especially abundant in capillaries. We sought to identify the function of TSP-4 in the regulation of angiogenesis. Approach and Results—The effect of TSP-4 in in vivo angiogenesis models and its effect on angiogenesis-related properties in cultured cells were assessed using Thbs4−/− mice, endothelial cells (EC) derived from these mice, and recombinant TSP-4. Angiogenesis was decreased in Thbs4−/− mice compared with wild-type mice. TSP-4 was detected in the lumen of the growing blood vessels. Mice expressing the P387 TSP-4 variant, which was previously associated with cor...
Stopping the Cycle of Child Abuse and Neglect: A Call to Action to Focus on Pregnant and Parenting Youth in and Aging Out of the Foster Care System

Each year, a significant number of adolescents become pregnant in the United States, with more than half of these pregnancies resulting in live births. Adolescent parenting is associated with poor outcomes, including increased risk of child maltreatment. Youth “aging out” of the foster care system may be at greater risk of maltreating their children due to their experiences of child maltreatment, a lack of social support, and little preparation for parenthood. This article examines current programs and policies targeting pregnant and parenting youth aging out and presents a research agenda that focuses on pregnancy prevention and positive parenting.
Phenol–formaldehyde resin curing and bonding in steam‐injection pressing. I. Resin synthesis, characterization, and cure behavior

Two different phenol–formaldehyde (PF) resole resins are serving as models in a study aimed at establishing the effects of moisture, temperature, pressure, and time on resin cure and bonding during the pressing of wood flakeboard. This phase of the program had two goals: first, to characterize the two resins in terms of their structure and chemistry during synthesis, aging, and cure—using viscosity measurement, gel permeation chromatography (GPC), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA); second, to make a preliminary evaluation of the utility of DSC, FTIR, and DMA for measuring the degree of resin cure. The two resins differed significantly in relative amounts of hydroxymethyl groups and methylene linkages (NMR), in molecular weight and its distribution (GPC), and in reaction rate (as measured by viscosity, DSC, FTIR, or DMA). The degree of cure developed during constant heating rate DSC scans was calculated for a series of maximum DSC temperatures from both the loss in hydroxymethyl groups (FTIR) and the decrease in available exothermic heat (DSC). Agreement between the two methods was quite good, considering the inherent difficulties in quantifying infrared data. For comparison, the degree of cure developed during constant heating rate DMA scans was calculated for a series of maximum DMA temperatures from both the increase in storage modulus (DMA) and the decrease in exothermic heat (DSC after rewetting). Samples that apparently achieved complete cure in the DMA still exhibited significant residual cure potential in the DSC. We attribute the lower apparent cure in the DMA to loss of moisture from samples during the DMA scan, with consequent loss in plasticization and molecular mobility.
An Ultra-Low-Power Pulse Oximeter Implemented With an Energy-Efficient Transimpedance Amplifier

Pulse oximeters are ubiquitous in modern medicine to noninvasively measure the percentage of oxygenated hemoglobin in a patient's blood by comparing the transmission characteristics of red and infrared light-emitting diode light through the patient's finger with a photoreceptor. We present an analog single-chip pulse oximeter with 4.8-mW total power dissipation, which is an order of magnitude below our measurements on commercial implementations. The majority of this power reduction is due to the use of a novel logarithmic transimpedance amplifier with inherent contrast sensitivity, distributed amplification, unilateralization, and automatic loop gain control. The transimpedance amplifier, together with a photodiode current source, form a high-performance photoreceptor with characteristics similar to those found in nature, which allows LED power to be reduced. Therefore, our oximeter is well suited for portable medical applications, such as continuous home-care monitoring for elderly or chronic patients, emergency patient transport, remote soldier monitoring, and wireless medical sensing. Furthermore, our design obviates the need for an A-to-D and digital signal processor and leads to a small single-chip solution. We outline how extensions of our work could lead to submilliwatt oximeters.
The perception of word-initial consonant length: Pattani Malay*

In experimental phonetic research, we often come across cases of multiple perceptual cues to a phonemic distinction, even though this distinction may be seen traditionally as dependent on some single phonetic feature. The question arises as to the relative power of these cues. How equally do they share the burden of communicative relevance? For example, among the several cues that emanate from the timing of the valvular action of the larynx (Lisker and Abramson (1965); Abramson (1977)), fundamental-frequency perturbations (House and Fairbanks (1953)) have been shown by some studies, apparently starting with Haggard, Ambler and Callow (1970) and Fujimura (1971), to help in the perceptual differentiation of voiced and voiceless stop consonants; however, recent work (Abramson and Lisker (1985)) suggests that this cue has very limited efficacy compared with other acoustic consequences of voice timing.
A compact self-packaged patch antenna folded in rectangular waveguide shape

A self-packaged antenna obtained by folding a normal patch antenna into rectangular waveguide shape has been recently reported by the authors. In this work, by applying electric vias at the edge of the folded patch as well as inductive dents on the edge, the folded antenna dimension is greatly reduced. At the same radiation frequency of 2.4GHz, the vertical length of the newly proposed antenna is reduced from 40mm to 19mm which is 52.5% size reduction. The cross section area is 20mm × 20mm. Since this architecture allows PCB layout or other electronics inside the cavity of the folded antenna, it is considered a self-packaged structure. If designed carefully, this antenna may take zero footprint and offers electromagnetic interference shielding to the PCB enclosed in its cavity. Meanwhile, this antenna does not require additional impedance matching circuits, which makes it very useful for compact devices. A quasi-omni-directional radiation pattern is obtained. Theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, fabrication and measurement are performed. Good agreement is observed between simulation and measurement data.
Leptin Metabolically Licenses T Cells for Activation To Link Nutrition and Immunity

Immune responses are highly energy-dependent processes. Activated T cells increase glucose uptake and aerobic glycolysis to survive and function. Malnutrition and starvation limit nutrients and are associated with immune deficiency and increased susceptibility to infection. Although it is clear that immunity is suppressed in times of nutrient stress, mechanisms that link systemic nutrition to T cell function are poorly understood. We show in this study that fasting leads to persistent defects in T cell activation and metabolism, as T cells from fasted animals had low glucose uptake and decreased ability to produce inflammatory cytokines, even when stimulated in nutrient-rich media. To explore the mechanism of this long-lasting T cell metabolic defect, we examined leptin, an adipokine reduced in fasting that regulates systemic metabolism and promotes effector T cell function. We show that leptin is essential for activated T cells to upregulate glucose uptake and metabolism. This effect was cell intrinsic and specific to activated effector T cells, as naive T cells and regulatory T cells did not require leptin for metabolic regulation. Importantly, either leptin addition to cultured T cells from fasted animals or leptin injections to fasting animals was sufficient to rescue both T cell metabolic and functional defects. Leptin-mediated metabolic regulation was critical, as transgenic expression of the glucose transporter Glut1 rescued cytokine production of T cells from fasted mice. Together, these data demonstrate that induction of T cell metabolism upon activation is dependent on systemic nutritional status, and leptin links adipocytes to metabolically license activated T cells in states of nutritional sufficiency.
An integrated approach to crop/livestock systems: Forage and grain production for swath grazing

Current agricultural systems are the result of decoupling crop/livestock enterprises for short-term economic gain at the expense of long-term sustainability. Objectives of our research were to determine the influences of winter grazing dry gestating beef cows on no-till forage and grain production, water-use efficiency, and protein and phosphorus (P) production for an oat/pea–triticale/sweet clover–corn 3-year cropping system. Oat/pea and triticale crops were harvested for grain, with the straw and chaff left in swaths after harvest for winter grazing. Drilled corn for forage was swathed in late September. Cropping system treatments were: (1) straw and corn chopped and left in place (IP); (2) straw and corn baled and removed without livestock (R); and (3) straw and corn swath grazed by livestock (L). The first winter for grazing dry, bred cows was in 1999–2000; therefore, no treatment differences occurred for the 1999 crop. In 2000, oat/pea and triticale grain and straw production for the IP treatment was about half of the production for the R treatment, because of low oat/pea and triticale plant stands on the IP treatment. Averaged over all years, corn was about 1.5 times more efficient in using water for dry matter production when compared to oat/pea or triticale. Generally, protein and P production, on a unit area basis, were highest for corn and lowest for triticale. Averaged over 4 years, about half of the nitrogen used for protein production was derived from sources other than applied commercial fertilizer. Data suggest that more than 4 years of research are needed to understand cropping system and animal interactions on forage and grain production in integrated crop/livestock systems, with trends in year four suggesting that livestock may enhance forage and grain production.
Topical hypothermia: ineffective and deleterious as adjunct to cardioplegia for myocardial protection.

Abstract Background . Topical hypothermia, an early method developed for myocardial protection by virtue of its reduction of cardiac metabolic rate, is not without sequelae such as phrenic nerve paralysis and pulmonary complications. Methods . The hospital records of 505 nonrandomized consecutive patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting between 1991 and 1995 at the University of South Alabama were reviewed to evaluate the effectiveness of topical hypothermia and its relationship to pulmonary complications. Group A included 191 patients between 1991 and 1992 who received systemic hypothermia and topical hypothermia with iced slush in addition to cold blood cardioplegia. Group B included 314 patients between 1993 and 1995 who received systemic hypothermia and intermittent cold blood cardioplegia without iced slush. Results . Myocardial temperature mapping did not reveal any difference between the two groups. Postoperative cardiac morbidity, manifested as intraaortic balloon use, low cardiac output, inotrope use, and perioperative myocardial infarction, was decreased in group B, but the difference failed to achieve statistical significance. Mortality (group A, 3.14%; group B, 3.82%) and rates of significant morbidity such as sternal infection, stroke, reoperation for bleeding, renal failure, and prolonged ventilation were comparable between the two groups. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the incidence of diaphragmatic paralysis between group A and group B. Group A had a 25% incidence of diaphragmatic paralysis on the first postoperative day, 18% on the 15th postoperative day, and 8% at 6 months, as opposed to group B, which had incidences of 2% on the first postoperative day, 1% on the 15th postoperative day, and 1% at 6 months ( p p Conclusions . We conclude that topical hypothermia did not offer any additional cardioprotective benefit above systemic hypothermia and cold blood cardioplegia alone in coronary bypass patients, but significantly increased the incidence of diaphragmatic paralysis and associated pulmonary complications.
Collisionless electrostatic single-probe and double-probe measurements

An algebraic fit is made to the results of a numerical analysis describing the collisionless current attracted to cylindrical Langmuir probes whose ratios of probe radius to Debye length are of moderate value. The probe currents indicated by these expressions are compared to some numerically computed values and to values obtained using an approximate analytical solution. This algebraic description of the single-probe response is then used to derive the double-probe characteristics in the region where the current attracted to the probe is potentialdependent. Equations are derived and methods are discussed for accurately determining both electron temperature and number density from these double-probe characteristics. The analogous results for double-probe operation in the region of orbital-motio n-limited current collection are also included.