cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Flow Properties of Spray‐Dried Encapsulated Butteroil

The interdependence of physical properties of spray-dried butteroil encapsulated in sucrose, lactose or all-purpose flour were evaluated and compared to those of common powders such as spray-dried nonfat dry milk, whole milk powder, and sodium chloride. Powders were evaluated in terms of flow (mass flow rate and angle of repose), bulk (density) and mechanical properties (compressibility and stress relaxation). The powders were classified into three groups by mechanical sieving based on size as: “small particles” (>210 μm), “particles” (+210–420 μm) and “encapsulated particles” (+210–500 μm). The flow and mechanical behavior of encapsulated powders were different (P < 0.05) from the other powders. Encapsulated powders were less flowable (P < 0.05) but the addition of 2% anti-caking/flow agent enhanced flow characteristics.
Interfacial oxide, grain size, and hydrogen passivation effects on polysilicon emitter transistors

The influence of several process variables on the characteristics of polysilicon emitter transistors is studied. The diffusion length of the polysilicon layer was increased using hydrogen passivation, resulting in an increase in the transistor current gain. The increase observed was less than that predicted by the T.H. Ning and R.D. Isaac (1980) transport model, especially at high emitter doping levels. Similarly, the polysilicon grain size had a smaller effect on the current gain than predicted by this model. On the other hand, an increase in the interfacial layer thickness caused a large increase in the emitter efficiency and also resulted in retarded arsenic diffusion and increased emitter resistance and base current ideality factor. The results suggest that reflection of minority carriers at the interface plays a dominant role in determining the emitter Gummel number in devices with heavily doped emitters. >
The Andean Hybrid Baroque: Convergent Cultures in the Churches of Colonial Peru

"The Andean Hybrid Baroque" is the first comprehensive study of the architecture and architectural sculpture of Southern Peru in the late colonial period (1660s-1820s), an enduring and polemical subject in Latin American art history. In the southern Andes during the last century and a half of colonial rule, when the Spanish crown was losing its grip on the Americas and Amerindian groups began organizing into activist and increasingly violent political movements, a style of architectural sculpture emerged that remains one of the most vigorous and creative outcomes of the meeting of two cultures. The Andean Hybrid Baroque (also known as "Mestizo Style"), was a flourishing school of carving distinguished by its virtuoso combination of European late Renaissance and Baroque forms with Andean sacred and profane symbolism, some of it originating in the pre-Hispanic era. The Andean Hybrid Baroque found its genesis and most comprehensive iconographical expression in the architecture of Catholic churches, chapels, cloisters, and conventual buildings.Drawing on hundreds of primary documents and on ethno-historical and anthropological literature that has rarely been applied to an art-historical subject, Gauvin Alexander Bailey provides the most substantial study of colonial Peruvian architecture in decades. The product of five years of photographic surveys in Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina, as well as research in governmental and ecclesiastical archives in Latin America and Europe, Bailey's richly illustrated study examines the construction history and decoration of forty-four churches. It offers a fundamentally new understanding of the chronology, regional variations, and diffusion of the Andean Hybrid Baroque style, as well as a fresh interpretation of its relationship to indigenous Andean culture."Gauvin Alexander Bailey's "The Andean Hybrid Baroque"is a magnificent and ambitious study that not only covers an important geographic area of the southern Andes but also encompasses, in an informative and ordered style, a complex and dense constellation of pre-Hispanic and European cultural references in constant change." --Ramon Mujica Pinilla, Universidad de San Marcos, Lima, Peru"Gauvin Alexander Bailey's new book will surely become a textbook and standard resource for Andean art and architecture. With exciting insights into the colonial period in the southern Andes for the avid reader, and with original archival research for the inquisitive scholar, "The Andean Hybrid Baroque"challenges many of the facile suppositions about the indigenous and European cultural encounter and religious worldview. The author examines church facades in Peru and Bolivia, dating and scrutinizing the detailed carving work of native artists and combining that visual information with the testimony of colonial historians, inquisition records, and the images on textiles and "queros" (drinking cups). The result is an original and nuanced contribution to Andean scholarship." --Jaime Lara, University of Notre Dame"
Injection Pultrusion Simulation for Polyester/Glass Mat/Rovings/Mat Composites:

Producing quality pultruded parts requires that complete wet out of the reinforcement fibers is achieved in the injection chamber. The magnitude of the injection pressure is extremely important for achieving good wet out of the fibers. This work focused on the impact of pull speed, resin viscosity, and product thickness on resin fiber wet out in the injection chamber for a polyester resin (mat/roving/mat) composite. Recommended injection pressures for complete wet out are predicted for given sets of processing parameters for polyester/glass fiber (mat/rovings/mat) composites. Flow through porous media (Darcy’s law) is employed to model the fiber/resin system of injection pultrusion. The governing equations are solved, by using the finite volume method, to predict the resin pressure, resin velocity field, and resin moving flow front location. The Gutowski (Gutowski, T.G., Morigaki, T. and Cai, Z. (1987). The Consolidation of Laminate Composites, Journal of Composite Materials. 21(7): 172-187) permeability ...
Influence of thermal dispersion on forced convection in a composite parallel-plate channel

This paper concentrates on the analytical study of the effect of thermal dispersion on fully developed forced convection in a parallel-plate channel partly filled with a fluid saturated porous medium. The walls of the channel are subject to a constant heat flux. The central part of the channel is occupied by a homogeneous fluid, while peripheral parts of the channel are occupied by a fluid saturated porous medium of uniform porosity. It is assumed that the momentum flow in the porous region is described by the Brinkman-Forchheimer-extended Darcy equation. Since thermal dispersion becomes appreciable in high speed flows, that is, for the same situation when accounting for the Forchheimer term in the momentum equation is essential, the effect of thermal dispersion should be taken into account simultaneously with accounting for the Forchheimer term in the momentum equation. The objective of the present research is to determine in which situations accounting for thermal dispersion can significantly influence the solution.
Endogenous nitric oxide synthesis determines sensitivity to the pressor effect of salt

Endogenous nitric oxide synthesis determines sensitivity to the pressor effect of salt. Endogenous nitric oxide plays an important role in modulation of renal hemodynamics and sodium handling, with increased nitric oxide production inducing renal vasodilation and natri-uresis. In the normal rat, nitric oxide activity increases as an adaptive response to increased dietary salt intake, perhaps facilitating natriuresis and thus blood pressure homeostasis. We hypothesized that impaired nitric oxide synthetic ability would result in sensitivity to the pressor effects of high dietary salt intake. Four groups of normal Sprague-Dawley rats were observed for eight weeks: Control, 0.4% NaCl chow and tap water; Salt, 4% NaCl chow and tap water; NAME, 0.4% NaCl chow and water containing the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, L-nitro-arginine-methylester; Salt4-NAME, 4% NaCl chow and water containing L-nitro-arginine-methylester. Compared to Controls, Salt rats demonstrated a significant increase in urinary excretion rate of the stable nitric oxide metabolites, NO 2 and NO 3 , and had no increase in blood pressure. Furthermore, Salt rats had no functional or structural evidence of renal injury. In contrast, Salt+NAME rats demonstrated a significantly higher blood pressure than NAME rats, and urinary NO 2 and NO 3 excretion rate did not increase despite high salt intake. After eight weeks, Salt+NAME rats had significantly impaired renal function and proteinuria. We conclude that adaptive changes in endogenous NO production play a critical role in sodium and blood pressure homeostasis. Furthermore, impaired nitric oxide synthase activity may be a pathogenetic factor in the development of salt-sensitive hypertension.
PROMIS Pediatric Anger Scale: an item response theory analysis

The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) aims to develop patient-reported outcome (PROs) instruments for use in clinical research. The PROMIS pediatrics (ages 8–17) project focuses on the development of PROs across several health domains (physical function, pain, fatigue, emotional distress, social role relationships, and asthma symptoms). The objective of the present study was to report on the psychometric properties of the PROMIS Pediatric Anger Scale. Participants (n = 759) were recruited from public school settings, hospital-based outpatient, and subspecialty pediatrics clinics. The anger items (k = 10) were administered on one test form. A hierarchical confirmatory factor analytic model (CFA) was conducted to evaluate scale dimensionality and local dependence. Item response theory (IRT) analyses were then used to finalize the item scale and short form. CFA confirmed that the anger items are representative of a unidimensional scale, and items with local dependence were removed, resulting in a six-item short form. The IRT-scaled scores from summed scores and each score’s conditional standard error were calculated for the new six-item PROMIS Pediatric Anger Scale. This study provides initial calibrations of the anger items and creates the PROMIS Pediatric Anger Scale, version 1.0
HIV-infected women: Barriers to AZT use

AZT has become a mainstay drug in efforts to slow disease progression in HIV-infected individuals. Further, recent evidence indicates that AZT use by pregnant infected women and their neonates may reduce the risk of vertical transmission. In a study of HIV-infected women's treatment-related behavior, attitudes toward the use of this drug were examined. Data were gathered through unstructured interviewing techniques. The data from the first 71 women accrued revealed that negative attitudes towards its use were widely prevalent. Women viewed the drug as highly toxic, prescribed indiscriminately, inadequately tested in women and minorities, promoted for the wrong reasons and inappropriate while they were feeling well. The findings suggest that removing attitudinal barriers to the use of AZT will be important to both primary and secondary prevention efforts.
Axospinous synaptic subtype-specific differences in structure, size, ionotropic receptor expression, and connectivity in apical dendritic regions of rat hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons.

The morphology of axospinous synapses and their parent spines varies widely. Additionally, many of these synapses are contacted by multiple synapse boutons (MSBs) and show substantial variability in receptor expression. The two major axospinous synaptic subtypes are perforated and nonperforated, but there are several subcategories within these two classes. The present study used serial section electron microscopy to determine whether perforated and nonperforated synaptic subtypes differed with regard to their distribution, size, receptor expression, and connectivity to MSBs in three apical dendritic regions of rat hippocampal area CA1: the proximal and distal thirds of stratum radiatum, and stratum lacunosum-moleculare. All synaptic subtypes were present throughout the apical dendritic regions, but there were several subclass-specific differences. First, segmented, completely partitioned synapses changed in number, proportion, and AMPA receptor expression with distance from the soma beyond that found within other perforated synaptic subtypes. Second, atypically large nonperforated synapses showed NMDA receptor immunoreactivity identical to perforated synapses, levels of AMPA receptor expression intermediate to nonperforated and perforated synapses, and perforated synapse-like changes in structure with distance from the soma. Finally, MSB connectivity was highest in proximal stratum radiatum, but only for those MSBs comprised of nonperforated synapses. The immunogold data suggest that most MSBs would not generate simultaneous depolarizations in multiple neurons or spines, however, because the vast majority of MSBs are comprised of two synapses with abnormally low levels of receptor expression, or involve one synapse with a high level of receptor expression and another with only a low level.
Taking the heart failure battle inside the cell: Small molecule targeting of Gβγ subunits

Heart failure (HF) is devastating disease with poor prognosis. Elevated sympathetic nervous system activity and outflow, leading to pathologic attenuation and desensitization of β-adrenergic receptors (β-ARs) signaling and responsiveness, are salient characteristic of HF progression. These pathologic effects on β-AR signaling and HF progression occur in part due to Gβγ-mediated signaling, including recruitment of receptor desensitizing kinases such as G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) kinase 2 (GRK2) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), which subsequently phosphorylate agonist occupied GPCRs. Additionally, chronic GPCR signaling signals chronically dissociated Gβγ subunits to interact with multiple effector molecules that activate various signaling cascades involved in HF pathophysiology. Importantly, targeting Gβγ signaling with large peptide inhibitors has proven a promising therapeutic paradigm in the treatment of HF. We recently described an approach to identify small molecule Gβγ inhibitors that selectively block particular Gβγ functions by specifically targeting a Gβγ protein-protein interaction "hot spot." Here we describe their effects on Gβγ downstream signaling pathways, including their role in HF pathophysiology. We suggest a promising therapeutic role for small molecule inhibition of pathologic Gβγ signaling in the treatment of HF. This article is part of a special issue entitled "Key Signaling Molecules in Hypertrophy and Heart Failure."
Determinants of Lipid Mixing Membrane Fusion by HIV gp41

A critical step in HIV infection involves membrane fusion between the enveloped virion and the target cell plasma membrane, catalyzed by the viral membrane protein gp41 at or near physiologic pH. Specific global gp41 conformations (i.e. six-helix-bundle and coiled-coil) and specific regions (i.e. fusion peptide) are implicated in steps of fusion catalysis. Our goal is to elucidate the molecular mechanism of gp41 catalyzed membrane fusion. One challenge to biophysical analysis of structure and function in hydrophobic gp41 is solubility. Low pH (∼3.0) is utilized to enhance protein solubility by significantly increasing overall positive charge. Interestingly, the cationic six-helix-bundle region enhances/inhibits lipid mixing of anionic vesicles at low/neutral pH, which correlates with close association (∼5A) between membrane headgroup phosphates and a large/small proportion or population of helical bundles based on solid-state NMR analysis. The apolar trimeric fusion-peptide region contributes to lipid mixing and is predominantly β-sheet (∼75%) with a large fraction of β-strands located close to (∼5-7A)/far from (>∼10A) membrane headgroup phosphates at residues Ala-1 and Ala-14/Leu-7 and Met-19 at low pH. Swapping to neutral pH does not affect fusion-peptide conformation, but does lower the fraction of β-strands close to the membrane surface. Partial shedding of fusion-peptides from membranes, poor protein solubility, and protein lipid mixing inactivity at neutral pH are reversed upon pH swap back to low, indicating irreversible aggregation is not occurring at neutral pH. Our solid-state NMR findings indicate that abrogation of lipid-mixing fusion function by gp41 in six-helix-bundle conformation at the physiologic pH of viral fusion is determined primarily by stearic and electrostatic barriers to close membrane apposition imposed by the six-helix-bundle region, and minimally by membrane location or conformation of the fusion-peptide region.
Antiretinal Antibodies in Serum of Patients with Age-related Macular Degeneration

Abstract Antibodies, immunoreactive with normal human retinal proteins, were detected by Western immunoblot analysis in the sera of 30 patients with agerelated macular degeneration (AMD). Sera from 14 of these patients demonstrated positive binding predominantly to a doublet protein of molecular weight between 58 and 62 kD. The sera from the remaining 16 patients and from 12 control subjects reacted either weakly or not at all with the doublet protein. No correlation was found with any specific type of AMD. The serum antibodies also immunocrossreacted with the same proteins from isolated photoreceptor outer segments; this was confirmed by indirect immunofluorescence on intact retinas. The crossreactivity of the serum antibodies with a protein of M r 58 to 62 kD, the lower band present in the bovine purified neurofilament-68 kD preparation, suggests strongly that this protein may be a component of the neuronal cytoskeleton. However, it is not clear whether these autoantibodies play a direct role in the etiology of AMD or represent a nonspecific response to retinal damage.
Transport of bovine milk xanthine oxidase into mammary glands of the rat.

Abstract This research investigated transport of bovine milk xanthine oxidase into mammary glands of the lactating rat. Transport capability suggested an exogenous, nonmammary, source for the enzyme. Five lactating rats were injected intracardially with 100 μ g of purified iodine-125 labeled xanthine oxidase and five were injected with 100 μ g of the enzyme unpurified. Four hours later the rodents were hand-milked, and radiation was confirmed in all samples by liquid scintillation counting. Counts were recorded per volume of milk and the percentage radiation was computed. Autoradiographs of the rats indicated radiation almost exclusively associated with the mammary glands. Greatest concentration of radioactivity was in the micellar casein fraction of milk, and a compound of high molecular weight, presumably [iodine-125] xanthine oxidase, was confirmed by gel filtration of the casein. Results suggest that the compound was transported into the mammary glands. The degree of transport was dependent upon the stage of lactation.
Carboxylic acid containing polyimides for pervaporation separations of toluene/iso-octane mixtures

Abstract Pervaporation (PV) separation of toluene/ iso -octane mixtures via copolyimide membranes containing 3,5-diaminobenzoic (DABA) was investigated. Incorporation of the DABA units promotes segmental packing, reduces membrane swelling, and improves membrane selectivity and durability. The material containing 60% DABA-based repeat units provides a normalized flux of 1 kg μm/m 2 h and a selectivity of 90 for the toluene/ iso -octane (50/50 wt.%) system at 100 °C. The improvement in pervaporation selectivity, relative to the polymer without DABA, is mainly due to the increase in diffusivity selectivity; however, favorable toluene/ iso -octane solubility selectivity also contributes significantly as well. A correlation of the pervaporation performance with the intrinsic fractional free volume (FFV) of the glassy polymer is observed and explained in terms of the downstream conditions present in pervaporation. The pervaporation performance of the current polyimides is compared with other materials reported in the literature. Relationships between polymer structure and transport are established.
Rethinking Guidelines for VTE Risk Among Nursing Home Residents: A Population-Based Study Merging Medical Record Detail With Standardized Nursing Home Assessments

BACKGROUND Nursing home (NH) residents are at increased risk for both VTE and bleeding from pharmacologic prophylaxis. Construction of prophylaxis guidelines is hampered by NH-specific limitations with VTE case identification and characterization of risk. We addressed these limitations by merging detailed provider-linked Rochester Epidemiology Project (REP) medical records with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Minimum Data Set (MDS) NH assessments. METHODS This population-based nested case-control study identified all Olmsted County, Minnesota, residents with first-lifetime VTE October 1, 1998, through December 31, 2005, while a resident of an NH (N = 91) and one to two age-, sex-, and calendar year-matched NH non-VTE control subjects. For each NH case without hospitalization 3 months before VTE (n = 23), we additionally identified three to four nonhospitalized NH control subjects. REP and MDS records were reviewed before index date (VTE date for cases; respective REP encounter date for control subjects) for numerous characteristics previously associated with VTE in non-NH populations. Data were modeled using conditional logistic regression. RESULTS The multivariate model consisting of all cases and control subjects identified only three characteristics independently associated with VTE: respiratory infection vs no infection (OR, 5.9; 95% CI, 2.6-13.1), extensive or total assistance with walking in room (5.6, 2.5-12.6), and general surgery (3.3, 1.0-10.8). In analyses limited to nonhospitalized cases and control subjects, only nonrespiratory infection vs no infection was independently associated with VTE (8.8, 2.7-29.2). CONCLUSIONS Contrary to previous assumptions, most VTE risk factors identified in non-NH populations do not apply to the NH population. NH residents with infection, substantial mobility limitations, or recent general surgery should be considered potential candidates for VTE prophylaxis.
Herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP4 deletion mutant virus d120 infection failed to induce apoptosis in nerve growth factor–differentiated PC12 cells

It has been suggested that terminally differentiated neuronal cells and mitotic cells respond differently in many aspects to herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection. The ICP4-deleted, Us3-defective, HSV-1 mutant strain d120 induces classical apoptosis in a variety of mitotic cell lines. Its behavior in postmitotic cells is not known. Here the authors report that mutant d120 virus failed to induce apoptosis in neuronal-like, nerve growth factor (NGF)-differentiated PC12 cells. More strikingly, rather than inducing apoptosis, d120 infection prolonged the life of nondividing NGF-differentiated PC12 cells in the culture flask. The virus genome had a half-life of 30 days. Unlike in other cells, such as Vero, neither wild-type nor d120 infection of NGF-differentiated PC12 cells induced the nuclear factor (NF)-κB p65 pathway, which has been associated with virus-induced apoptosis. Thus, the authors demonstrate, for the first time, that a potent apoptosis inducer mutant d120 failed to induce apoptosis in neuronal-like NGF-differentiated PC12 cells, unlike a number of other cell lines studied. The possible mechanisms involved in the failure of d120 to induce apoptosis in neuronal-like NGF-differentiated PC12 cells are discussed.
Exploring Oral Literacy in Communication with Hospice Caregivers

Abstract Context Low oral literacy has been identified as a barrier to pain management for informal caregivers who receive verbal instructions on pain medication and pain protocols. Objectives To examine recorded communication between hospice staff and informal caregivers and explore caregiver experiences. Methods Using transcripts of interactions ( n = 47), oral literacy features were analyzed by examining the generalized language complexity using the Flesch-Kincaid grading scale and the dialogue interactivity defined by talking turns and interaction time. Means for longitudinal follow-up measures on caregiver anxiety, quality of life, perception of pain management, knowledge and comfort providing pain medication, and satisfaction were examined to explore their relationship to oral literacy. Results Communication between team members and caregivers averaged a fourth-grade level on the Flesch-Kincaid scale, indicating that communication was easy to understand. Reading ease was associated ( r = 0.67, P r = 0.61, P r = −0.82, P r = −0.49, P Conclusion As the grade level of talk with caregivers and hospice teams increased, associated caregiver anxiety increased. Caregivers with higher anxiety also experienced greater difficulty in understanding pain medication and its management. Specific adjustments that hospice teams can make to improve caregiver experiences are identified.
Fast analog architecture for high-order curve recognition

An original method of higher order curve detection using the straight-line Hough transform (HT) is presented. This scheme is possible because curves in an image can be approximated by small straight-line segments. By combining the straight-line HT mapping scheme with an associative memory (AM), the method can discrimmate and identify between different curvies. Curves such as circles, ellipses, and parabolas have been studied. This method is computationally very efficient and may yield to hardware implementation, thus making it possible to use the HT in fast real-time applications. The system consists of a parallel analog mapping from image plane to parameter plane and an AM pattern classifier.
Morphological distinctions between Phytophthora capsici and P. tropicalis sp. nov.

Phytophthora isolates with deciduous long- pedicellate sporangia can be separated into two groups by isozyme analyses, but an apparent overlap in morphological characteristics was previously deemed as sufficient justification for inclusion of both groups in P. capsici with an expanded descrip- tion of the species. However, the occurrence of two morphologic groups in a species is unsettling, prompting a reexamination of the taxon. Compara- tive morphological and cultural studies of 100 Phy- tophthora isolates with deciduous, long-pedicellate sporangia which have been referred to P capsici, re- vealed that they were separable into two taxa: Phyto- phthora capsici with broad sporangia, sporangial length to diameter ratio less than 1.8, predominately round sporangial bases, absence of chlamydospores, good growth at 35 C, and pathogenicity to Capsicum; and Phytophthora tropicalis sp. nov., distinguished from P capsici by narrow sporangia less than 26 ptm in diameter, sporangial length to diameter ratio of more than 1.8, predominately tapered sporangial ba- ses, production of chlamydospores by most isolates, poor or no growth at 35 C, and weak or no virulence to Capsicum.
Sir Watkin Williams Wynn and the Rutgers Handel Collection

A chance visit in January, 1991, to the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff drew my attention to a portrait in their collection of the young Sir Watkin Williams Wynn( 1749-89) painted on a visit he made to Italy in 1768. (Pl. 1) I had previously encountered his name as that of an enthusiast and collector of art and music, particularly music by Handel, some of which had found its way into Special Collections and Archives of the Rutgers University Libraries in New Brunswick, New Jersey. That visit has led me to the present attempt to explore Sir Watkins relationship to art and music, and especially to Handel and the Handel collection at Rutgers. In the December 1965 issue of this Journal I described a collection of prints and manuscripts of music by George Frideric Handel housed in Special Collections and Archives of the Alexander Library of Rutgers in New Brunswick. It was explained there that part of the collection was acquired by Rutgers around 1950 as a result of a purchase by the Dana Library of Rutgers in Newark that had been recommended by Professor Alfred Mann, a distinguished Handel scholar, now emeritus. Some time after this purchase, which included eleven manuscript volumes described in my article cited above, the materials were transferred to Special Collections in New Brunswick. At that time the provenance of the Handel manuscripts was largely a mystery, although it is clear that they were once part of a single collection, being uniformly bound in leather and numbered consecutively from I to IX, lacking vol. IV but including an "Appendix Vol. I" and two unnumbered volumes. All the numbered volumes are devoted to Anthems, while the unnumbered ones contain An Ode for Queen Anne's Birthday and Italian Duettos and Trios? Since the publication of my article, the collection, and particularly the manuscripts, have been cited in the relevant literature, including studies by Larsen, Dean, and Beeks, the Handel thematic catalogue by Baselt, and the edition of Anthems in the Hallische HandelAusgabe.
15 The Effects of Hyperglycemia on Newborn Endothelial Progenitor Cells.

Purpose of Study: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is the most prevalent risk factor for acquiring vascular disease. Since optimal glycemic control delays onset and progression of vascular morbidities, hyperglycemia is hypothesized to be a key pathogenic factor for vasculopathies. Vascular integrity requires endothelial repair and angiogenesis. Recently, circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) were shown to have a critical role in promoting endothelial repair and angiogenesis. Given that infants exposed to a diabetic intrauterine environment have an increased risk of DM and vascular disease, we hypothesize that hyperglycemia alters neonatal EPC function. Thus, our aims were to examine the effect of hyperglycemia on newborn EPC clonogenic capacity, proliferative potential, apoptosis, senescence, and capillary tube formation.
Design and test of a PC-based portable three-dimensional ultrasound software system Ultra3D

Currently, portable ultrasound units lack three-dimensional (3D) image display, limiting their potential usefulness especially under remote and hostile operating environments where information must be intuitive and objective. A freehand 3D image processing and visualization software package, Ultra3D, has been developed and tested, especially to work with a miniaturized linear-array transducer probe that is connected to a laptop PC. This paper presents the software design and method to integrate Ultra3D into Terason's miniaturized SmartProbe(TM) for freehand 3D ultrasound imaging. Since images generated by Ultra3D are in a digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) format, data sharing with others is easy.
Neural networks in scene analysis

In this paper we discuss the advantages of two specific neural net models for the purposes of scene analysis. Two applications of those models are also presented. One concerns the prediction of sea water depth on the basis of the intensity of reflected light. The second one concerns the characterization of biological cells from slide images. The fractal dimension is found to be a very good parameter for the latter case. 1.© (1990) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Are the Distribution of Einstein Crossing Times of Galactic Microlensing Events Bimodal

The observed distribution of a blending-corrected sample of Einstein ring crossing times, , for microlensing events toward the galactic bulge/bar are analyzed. An inspection of the distribution of crossing times suggests that it may be bimodal, indicating that two populations of lenses could be responsible for observed microlensing events. Given the possibility that microlensing in this direction can be due to the two most common classes of stars, main-sequence and white dwarf, we analyze and show via Monte Carlo simulations that the observed bimodality of can be derived from their accepted mass functions, and the density distributions of both stellar populations in the galactic disk and bulge/bar, with a transverse velocity distribution that is consistent with the density distribution. Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) one sample tests shows that a white dwarf population of about 25% of all stars in the galaxy agrees well with the observed bimodality with a KS significance level greater than 97%. This is an expanded and updated version of a previous investigation (Wickramasinghe, Neusima, & Struble, in Mao 2008). A power-point version of the talk, with introductory figures, is found at: https://sites.google.com/site/rhkochconference/agenda-1/program.
Sunspot equilibria and incomplete financial markets

Abstract This paper analyzes the equilibrium allocations of a two-period, pure exchange competitive economy with incomplete financial markets, nominal assets and ‘extrinsic’ uncertainty in the second period. Under standard assumptions, the equilibrium allocation set contains a one-parameter family of distinct allocations. Moreover, all but a finite (and odd) number of them are inefficient, sunspot allocations.
Evidence for pathogenic involvementof eosinophils and neutrophilsin Churg-Strauss syndrome

Abstract Background: Churg-Strauss syndrome (CSS) is a multi-organ disease with tissue and blood eosinophilia. Objective: Our aim was to study eosinophil and neutrophil involvement in CSS. Methods: Eight lesional skin biopsy specimens from 6 patients with CSS and serum and blister fluid from one patient were tested for eosinophil and neutrophil activity. Indirect immunofluorescence on skin specimens used antibodies to eosinophil granule major basic protein (MBP), eosinophil-derived neurotoxin (EDN), and neutrophil elastase (NE). Serum and blister fluid specimens were analyzed for granule protein levels and for eosinophil-activating cytokines. Results: Indirect immunofluorescence showed prominent cellular and extracellular staining for EDN in skin biopsy specimens; MBP staining was less extensive. Five biopsy specimens showed marked cellular NE staining; 4 showed prominent extracellular NE. Serum and blister fluid specimens contained elevated MBP, EDN, and interleukin 5 levels and enhanced eosinophil survival in culture. Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor and interleukin 5 were detected in blister fluid. Blister fluid contained more NE than normal serum. Conclusions: Both eosinophils and neutrophils likely participate in skin lesion development in CSS. (J Am Acad Dermatol 2002;47:209-16.)
Beyond Financial Reporting An Integrated Approach to Disclosure

A company's market value is a key determinant of its future success, affecting its ability to raise capital, recruit and retain key employees, and make strategic acquisitions. Confident, well-informed investors are necessary for achieving and maintaining accurate valuation of a company's stock. But standard disclosure practice has left many companies releasing a great deal of data while conveying only limited understanding to outsiders. This article presents the outline of an integrated approach to corporate disclosure in which each of the three major elements–required financial reports, supplemental disclosure, and interactions with investors and intermediaries–are consistent and mutually reinforcing. Such an approach begins with required reports that refiect as closely as possible the economic reality of a company's business. But if GAAP income statements and balance sheets are often useful for communicating current and past performance, they are not designed to convey management's strategic vision and the company's prospects for creating value. To achieve and maintain accurate valuation, management must supplement mandated financial reporting with voluntary communication that highlights value drivers and helps investors understand both the company's strategic goals and management's progress in meeting those goals. Finally, management must interact with investors and capital market intermediaries in ways that provide them with a clear and compelling picture of the company's prospects, which should help both analysts and institutional investors become more effective monitors of the firm's performance. Through consistent communication that goes well beyond the sell side's focus on quarterly earnings per share, management will discover that it has the power to set the agenda for how the company's performance is evaluated by the market. In the process, companies are also likely to find that their investors (and analysts) are more patient than they thought, while their operating managers feel less pressure to take shortsighted steps to boost EPS. Both of these expected benefits of an integrated disclosure policy should end up increasing a company's value.
Differences in the avian communities of natural and created Spartina alterniflora salt marshes

Birds were surveyed by censusing strip transets, monthly from October 1990 through September 1991 in seven created and seven natural salt marshes located in lower Galveston Bay. All birds observed using the transect, the airspace above the transect, and 5m of bay bottom adjacent to the transect were recorded. Species richness and species diversity were calculated for each salt marsh and compared between natural and created sites. Species richness and diversity were greater in natural salt marshes due to the occurrence of migratory waterfowl, wintering shorebirds, and typical marsh species such as rails and marsh sparrows. Birds using created salt marshes consisted primarily of gulls and terns, especially during the nesting season. Bird density was greater in natural marshes during fall and winter months, while created marshes had higher bird density from March through July. Created salt marshes provided bird habitat, however not necessarily for the same species assemblage as natural salt marshes.
Attitudes toward wolves in the United States and Canada: A content analysis of the print news media, 1999-2008

Several trends indicate public attitudes toward wolves and other charismatic wildlife changed during the 20th century. However, empirical studies indicate relative stability in attitudes toward wolves—at least in recent decades. We analyzed ∼30,000 evaluative expressions about wolves in U.S. and Canadian print news media over a 10-year time period (1999 to 2008), and classified each expression by type and valence (i.e., positive, negative). Results show an increase in the percentage of discourse about wolves that is negative. Additionally, discourse varied by exposure to wolves: states with new wolf populations had significantly more negative expressions per article than states and provinces with permanent wolf populations, and states in federal recovery zones that lacked wolves had more negative expressions than states outside of recovery zones. Results suggest that even the anticipated presence of wolf populations alters social discourse about the predator, which could impact attitudes toward wolves ove...
Confluent and reticulate papillomatosis: successful treatment with minocycline

Confluent and reticulate papillomatosis (CRP) is a dermatosis of unknown origin usually affecting teenagers and young adults. Although CRP is often refractory to treatment, success has been reported with tetracycline antibiotics. 1 Report of Cases. We retrospectively reviewed 8 cases of CRP treated with minocycline from the medical records at the University of California, San Francisco, Department of Dermatology. The clinical result following minocycline therapy was recorded from the physician's chart note. Follow-up was obtained in 5 of 8 patients and ranged from6 to 19 months following initial treatment with minocycline. Skin biopsy samples were obtained from cutaneous lesions in 6 of 8 patients. Tissue sections cut from formalin-fixed specimens were stained with hematoxylin-eosin. Giemsa, Fite, Gomori methenamine silver, and Steiner stains were obtained on 2 tissue blocks (patients 6 and 7). There were 7 female patients and 1 male patient whose ages ranged from 8 to 27 years at
Student Norms of Classroom Decorum.

Student perceptions of what constitutes appropriate and inappropriate classroom behavior are affected by who is being asked.
Cost-effectiveness analysis with risk aversion.

SUMMARY This paper discusses why, in a medical context, the standard assumption of a risk-neutral social planner is inappropriate and develops a framework for conducting cost-effectiveness (CE) analysis when social planners are risk-averse. This framework demonstrates that if new medical interventions are variance increasing (decreasing), the risk-neutral approach will approve (reject) projects that should be rejected (accepted). This methodology is applied to two medical interventions that have been previously evaluated and considered cost-effective in the published literature. Since both conclusions assumed risk neutrality we determine the level of societal risk-aversion that would be necessary to reject these new interventions and compare these levels to previous estimates of risk-aversion in the economics literature. We find that for reasonable values of the risk-aversion parameter, only one of the two interventions should be approved. It is our recommendation that the cut-off risk aversion parameter (the level of risk-aversion above which a project would be rejected) should become a standard reported figure in future CE studies. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
In vitro fertilization after in vivo treatment of rats with three reproductive toxicants.

Abstract One objective of these experiments was to establish a sensitive assay to evaluate fertilizing potential of rat gametes in vitro. A second objective was to evaluate this in vitro fertilization (IVF) assay as a method to detect in vivo effects of reproductive toxicants on male and female gametes using three known reproductive toxicants as model systems. The IVF assay with zona-free oocytes was more precise than the assay with cumulus-intact oocytes in these studies (coefficients of variation of 8.7 and 14.4%, respectively). Sperm fertilizing potential for zona-free oocytes was reduced by treatment of rats with m-dinitrobenzene (10–10 000 μg/kg) and ethylene glycol monomethyl ether (50–100 mg/kg) that had no effect on sperm motility. Molinate (60 mg/kg for 5 days) reduced sperm fertilizing potential concurrently with reductions in sperm motility. Neither molinate (60 mg/kg for 5 days) nor dinitrobenzene (0.002% in the drinking water for 14 days) administered to females seemed to affect the fertilizability of their oocytes. Ethylene glycol monomethyl ether treatment (0.15–0.25% in the drinking water for 14 days) reduced the number of ovulated oocytes. IVF is a means to evaluate toxicant effects on female gametes and demonstrates sperm’s ability to interact with the oocyte plasma membrane.
The political economy of regional integration in Latin America

Of the four major integration schemes with some degree of official status, two have been in actual operation for some years: the Central American Common Market (CACM) since 1960, and the Latin American Free Trade Association (LAFTA) since 1961. Costa Rica, E1 Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua make up the CACM, while LAFTA now encompasses eleven countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay being the charter members and Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia and Venezuela later adherents. The other two comprehensive schemes, one for a common market of Andean countries and the other for a common market embracing all Latin America (Cuba presumably excluded) are at this writing (October, 1968) still only in the planning and discussion phase.
An Overview of Research in the Fields of Laser Surface Modification and Laser Machining at the Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Institute, NRC

At the Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Institute (IMTI), National Research Council Canada, research in laser material processing has been underway for more than a decade. Topics being investigated include the development of laser welding, cutting, and drilling applications, surface modification techniques, laser depth controlled machining, stereolithography (SLA), and selective laser sintering (SLS). This paper reviews the activities in laser surface modification and laser depth controlled machining of ceramics.
Autoimmunity: The Fas track

Abstract The discovery of mutations in the gene encoding Fas in patients with an autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome, and studies of Fas-deficient mice provide the first molecular view of the pathogenesis of autoimmunity.
Jails as Public Health Partners: Incarceration and Disparities among Medically Underserved Men

There were nearly 12 million admissions to U.S. jails in 2011, the majority of them Black or Hispanic. We analyzed data on men’s health screenings from the last Bureau of Justice Statistics Survey of Inmates in Local Jails. Black and Hispanic men had the same or higher odds of reporting nearly all types of screenings compared to White male inmates. Because many prisoners are medically underserved, jails can be crucial public health partners in reducing disparities by identifying men in need of health care. The anticipated expansion of Medicaid eligibility in 2014 constitutes an important opportunity for correctional and public health authorities to work together to ensure linkage to care following release from incarceration.
Analysis of the workforce and workplace for rheumatology and the research activities of rheumatologists early in their careers.

Objective To assess the workforce and workplace in rheumatology, and the research work of early-career rheumatologists. Methods Early-career rheumatologists were defined as practicing physicians who joined the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) in 1991–2005, were 49 years of age or younger when they joined, and reside in North America. This cohort participated in a Web-based survey distributed by the ACR. A total of 247 surveys (21.2% response) were used for this analysis. Survey questions were designed to obtain core insights about the workforce, workplace, research activities, funding, and the demographic profile of respondents. Results Respondents from all workplaces—clinical, academic, federal, and industry—engaged in clinical care, teaching, administration, and research. The time devoted to these tasks was employer dependent, and workplaces shaped the scale and scope of research. Patient-oriented research was predominant across all workplaces. Disease, population, and translational research were intermediate, and few respondents pursued basic or prevention-oriented research in any type of workplace. Rheumatologists obtained extramural funds (21.3%) and intramural funds (78.7%) to pay portions of their salaries for time spent on research. Receiving a National Institutes of Health K08/K23 award was associated with receipt of a federal research project grant (P < 0.001). Respondents associated investigative work with reduced earnings, a perception validated by an estimated drop in pre-tax annual earnings of 2.3% for each half-day/week dedicated to research (P < 0.01). Conclusion The results of this study justify interventions for closing gaps embedded in investigational rheumatology. These include improved funding for clinical research, increasing the number of K08/K23 awards, and recruiting rheumatologists from underrepresented demographic groups.