cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Large-scale production of embryonic red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells.

Objective To develop a method to produce in culture large number of erythroid cells from human embryonic stem cells. Materials and Methods Human H1 embryonic stem cells were differentiated into hematopoietic cells by coculture with a human fetal liver cell line, and the resulting CD34-positive cells were expanded in vitro in liquid culture using a three-step method. The erythroid cells produced were then analyzed by light microscopy and flow cytometry. Globin expression was characterized by quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and by high-performance liquid chromatography. Results CD34-positive cells produced from human embryonic stem cells could be efficiently differentiated into erythroid cells in liquid culture leading to a more than 5000-fold increase in cell number. The erythroid cells produced are similar to primitive erythroid cells present in the yolk sac of early human embryos and did not enucleate. They are fully hemoglobinized and express a mixture of embryonic and fetal globins but no β-globin. Conclusions We have developed an experimental protocol to produce large numbers of primitive erythroid cells starting from undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells. As the earliest human erythroid cells, the nucleated primitive erythroblasts, are not very well characterized because experimental material at this stage of development is very difficult to obtain, this system should prove useful to answer a number of experimental questions regarding the biology of these cells. In addition, production of mature red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells is of great potential practical importance because it could eventually become an alternate source of cell for transfusion.
Do current animal models of intracerebral hemorrhage mirror the human pathology

Although intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has no proven treatment, well-designed studies using animal models of ICH may lead to the development of novel therapies. We briefly review current animal models of ICH. Furthermore, we discuss how these models may be utilized and targeted to facilitate translation of preclinical findings to the clinical arena.
Cow Milk Proteins: Twenty-Five Years of Progress ~

Before assessing the progress in our understanding of the milk protein system of cow's milk since 1955, it seems appropriate to recall the level of knowledge at that time. As early as 1925 Linderstrem-Lang questioned the homogeneity of casein, which was in opposition to Hammersten's contention that it was a homogeneous compound. In 1939, Mellander, utilizing the newly introduced Tiselius movingboundary electrophoretic technique, reported that casein showed three boundaries, which he designed a-, /3-, and ")'-casein in order of decreasing mobility. This event marked the genesis of a nomenclature system for caseins based upon electrophoretic resolution. By 1952, three discrete components, corresponding to the three electrophoretic boundaries, had been separated from isoelectric casein by utilizing their unique solubility characteristics at specific pH and temperature in dissociating solvents, viz., urea and alcohol. Detailed electrophoretic studies of the principal component, a-casein, under various experimental conditions revealed that this seemingly homogeneous fraction consisted of more than one component. Also, it was recognized that rennin acted preferentially on the a-component in its primary reaction. Electron photomicrographs of skim milk specimens revealed that colloidal casein existed in nearly spherical micelles, ranging in size from 30 to 280 nm. The principle protein of whey (milk serum) was recognized as 3-1actoglobulin that had been crystallized from the albumin (lactalbumin) fraction by A. H. Palmer in 1934. Because it was relatively simple to prepare and presumed to be homogeneous, /3-1actoglobulin served as
Change in Energy Density of the Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) during its Parasitic Phase: Implications for Modeling Food Consumption and Growth

Previous energetics-based models of feeding and growth by sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) have included the assumption that the wet energy density of sea lamprey tissue is constant. It was hypothesized that a seasonal or body-size related increase in wet energy density of sea lamprey tissue contributed to a tendency for model predictions to overestimate growth in wet mass by large sea lampreys late in the year. Bomb calorimetry of parasitic-phase sea lampreys collected in northern Lake Huron during 1996 and 1997 revealed that wet energy density increased with wet body mass. Seasonal effects were not significant once the effects of body mass were taken into account. Increased wet energy density resulted both from a decrease in percentage water content and an increase in energy density of dry tissue with increased body mass. Statistical comparisons failed to reveal significant differences between sexes or years. Although the overall mean wet energy density for sea lampreys sampled in the present study was similar to the empirically-derived constant value used in previous models, incorporating a relationship between wet energy density and wet body mass into our sea lamprey feeding model improved its ability to predict instantaneous growth.
Enzymatic synthesis and hydrolysis of [32P]phosphatidylinositol phosphate.

Abstract Phosphatidylinositol kinase activity in plasma membrane preparations of mouse liver was found to be comparable to that in A431 cells and higher than that in three human tumor xenografts. This activity was exploited in preparing 32P-labeled phosphatidylinositol phosphate of high specific radioactivity in which approximately 4% of the radioactivity of the substrate, [γ-32P]ATP, was incorporated into the lipid. The subcellular distribution of phosphatidylinositol phosphate phosphatase in a human astrocytoma xenograft was determined using [32P]phosphatidylinositol phosphate as a substrate. The highest phosphatase activity was found in the plasma membranes.
Women in popular music: A quantitative analysis of feminine images over time

Popular song lyrics from the years 1946, 1956, 1966, and 1976, were content analyzed for feminine images. Eleven stereotyped female images were examined: woman as evil; emphasis on physical characteristics; woman's need for man; woman as a possession of man; woman as mother; woman as sex object; woman as delicate; woman as child; woman on a pedestal; woman as physically attractive; and woman as supernatural. Significant changes over time were found for 8 of the 11 images. Of the songs sampled from 1946–1976, 96% contained at least one of the female stereotypes examined in this investigation.
Physical Layer Impact in Wireless Ad Hoc Network Routing

In this paper, we present the set of factors in the physical layer that are relevant to the performance evaluation of the routing protocols. Such factors consist of signal reception, path loss, fading and interference considerations. Therefore it would be desirable for routing algorithms in wireless ad hoc networks, to be able to select paths that are more likely to be stable. With this in mind we adopt a numerical approach based on Finite State Markov Chain channel model to study the performance of an ad hoc routing protocol under various radio propagation models. Further this paper presents a new cross-layer algorithm for joint physical and routing layers in wireless ad hoc networks, applying this to the Optimized Link State Routing (OLSR), protocol. We address the problem of link and route stability, focusing particularly on multipoint relay (MPR) selection method, to find the most optimal routes between any pair of nodes. Our simulation results indicate that the network throughput is greatly improved and the delay is significantly decreased using this cross-layer mechanism, compared to the original OLSR.
An evaluation of freeway lane control signing using computer simulation

Lane control has been proposed as a traffic congestion alleviation method. For this method to work, a certain minimum percentage of the drivers must comply with the lane signing. The research described here has been performed to analyze the percentage of drivers that must comply with lane control. A simulation model was developed and tested. The simulation results for heavy traffic flow (1550 vehicles per hour per lane-vphpl), medium traffic flow (900 vphpl), and light traffic flow (300 vphpl) conditions indicate that lane control has little influence on congestion, regardless of the percentage of drivers that comply with the lane control signing. For heavy flow, the congestion level remains high even when all drivers comply. For medium and light flow, the congestion level remains low even when no drivers comply. The region between heavy and medium traffic flow is, however, sensitive to lane control. Four flow rates between medium and heavy flow were tested. The impact of lane control under these conditions is described.
Human leukocyte antigen–associated sequence polymorphisms in hepatitis C virus reveal reproducible immune responses and constraints on viral evolution

CD8+ T cell responses play a key role in governing the outcome of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, and viral evolution enabling escape from these responses may contribute to the inability to resolve infection. To more comprehensively examine the extent of CD8 escape and adaptation of HCV to human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I restricted immune pressures on a population level, we sequenced all non-structural proteins in a cohort of 70 chronic HCV genotype 1a-infected subjects (28 subjects with HCV monoinfection and 42 with HCV/human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] coinfection). Linking of sequence polymorphisms with HLA allele expression revealed numerous HLA-associated polymorphisms across the HCV proteome. Multiple associations resided within relatively conserved regions, highlighting attractive targets for vaccination. Additional mutations provided evidence of HLA-driven fixation of sequence polymorphisms, suggesting potential loss of some CD8 targets from the population. In a subgroup analysis of mono- and co-infected subjects some associations lost significance partly due to reduced power of the utilized statistics. A phylogenetic analysis of the data revealed the substantial influence of founder effects upon viral evolution and HLA associations, cautioning against simple statistical approaches to examine the influence of host genetics upon sequence evolution of highly variable pathogens. Conclusion: These data provide insight into the frequency and reproducibility of viral escape from CD8+ T cell responses in human HCV infection, and clarify the combined influence of multiple forces shaping the sequence diversity of HCV and other highly variable pathogens. (HEPATOLOGY 2007.)
Groundwater residues of atrazine and alachlor under water-table management practices

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of various water-table management (WTM) practices on the concentrations of two surface-applied herbicides, atrazine and alachlor, in a shallow groundwater system. Groundwater samples were collected by installing piezometers and suction tubes at Iowa State University’s research centers near Ames and Ankeny during three corn-growing seasons, 1989-1991. At the Ames site, experiments were conducted by maintaining constant water-table depths (WTD) of 0.3, 0.6, and 0.9 m in nine field-type lysimeters, and groundwater samples were collected from various depths during the corn-growing seasons. At the Ankeny site, a dualpipe subirrigation system was installed on a 0.85 ha field, and variable water-table depths were maintained. Analysis of water samples collected in 1989, 1990, and 1991 clearly indicates that atrazine and alachlor concentrations in groundwater could be substantially reduced by maintaining shallow WTD during the growing season. It was also observed that atrazine concentrations were higher than those of alachlor. Alachlor was not detected in many samples; however, atrazine was detected in all samples, with high concentrations at the Ames site at the 0.9 m WTD, and at the Ankeny site at deeper WTD. Pesticide concentrations in groundwater decreased with soil depth and time. Results of this study suggest a positive influence of WTM practices in reducing pesticide concentrations in groundwater.
Adoptive immunochemotherapy of a transplantable akr leukemia (k36).

Adoptive immunotherapy of a transplantable AKR leukemia (K36) was carried out as an adjunct to cytoxan chemotherapy using normal allogeneic H-2-incompatible spleen cells as well as sensitized H-2-matched allogeneic spleen cells. A significant therapeutic effect was obtained with cytoxan and allogeneic C57BL/6 splenocytes, demonstrating the potential use of the graft-versus-host reaction. Utilizing specific adoptive immunochemotherapy, a maximum effect was found with splenocytes from allogeneic but H-2-compatible CBA/J mice immunized against an allogeneic Gross-virus-induced lymphoma (E female G2). This therapeutic effect was most likely the result of prior sensitization of donor lymphocytes to common virus-associated tumor antigens.
Detoxification of gold nanorods by treatment with polystyrenesulfonate.

We address an outstanding issue associated with the biocompatibility of gold nanorods (GNRs), a promising agent for biomedical imaging and theragnostics. GNRs are typically prepared in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), a cationic surfactant whose rigorous removal is necessary due to its cytotoxicity and membrane-compromising properties. CTAB-stabilized GNRs can be partially purified by treatment with polystyrenesulfonate (PSS), an anionic polyelectrolyte often used as a surrogate peptizing agent, followed by chloroform extraction and ultrafiltration with minimal loss of dispersion stability. However, in vitro cytotoxicity assays of PSS-coated GNRs revealed IC50 values in the low to submicromolar range, with subsequent studies indicating the source of toxicity to be associated with a persistent PSS−CTAB complex. Further exchange of CTAB-laden PSS with fresh polyelectrolyte greatly improves biocompatibility, to the extent that 85 μg/mL of “CTAB-free” GNRs (the highest level evaluated) h...
Contextual and individual-level predictors of abused children's reentry into out-of-home care: A multilevel mixture survival analysis

Abstract Objectives This study examined the effects of individual and contextual factors on reentry into out-of-home care among children who were discharged from child protective services in fiscal year 2004–2005. The objectives were to: (1) examine individual and contextual factors associated with reentry, (2) explore whether there are meaningful groups of youth who differ in terms of risk for reentry, and (3) determine whether relatively homogeneous clusters of child welfare agencies, based on contextual characteristics, differ significantly in terms of the reentry rates of the children whom they serve. Method The study design involved a multilevel longitudinal analysis of administrative data based on an exit cohort. Two Cox proportional hazards multilevel mixture models were tested. The first model included multiple individual level predictors and no agency level predictors. The second model included both levels of predictors. Results The results of multilevel Cox regression mixture modeling indicated that at the individual level, younger age, being placed in out-of-home care because of neglect and having physical, health problems corresponded to a decreased likelihood for reentry. At the agency level, lower average expenditures per child and contracting out case management services were associated with faster reentry into out-of-home care. Conclusions This study demonstrates that children who reenter out-of-home care appear to be a homogeneous population and that reentry is associated with both contextual factors and individual characteristics. Practice implications The most important implication that can be drawn from the study findings is that reentry may be most effectively prevented by focusing on such factors at the organizational level as contracting out case management services and funding allocation. Child welfare agencies that are responsible for an array of services and decide to contract out case management should consider the use of performance-based contracts and emphasize and strengthen quality assurance approaches for contracted services. In addition, to compensate for lower funding allocated for children served in out-of-home care, child welfare workers should become more familiar with community resources and help connect families to these supports.
Validation of Solids Suspension Viscosity Measurements Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

Accurately measuring the viscosity of a solids suspension requires uniform suspension of the solids in the viscometer cup. In a cup-and-impeller viscometer system, solids may settle when the impeller speed is too low, causing viscosity measurements to appear lower than that of a well-suspended slurry. Pre-mixing of a solids suspension is typically performed to achieve steady state prior to measurements. Data here shows that the measured viscosity values differ depending on the pre-mixing speed, indicating that the solids are not properly suspended at all speeds. A commonly used cup-and-vane impeller system can be thought of as a mixing tank that should operate above the uniform-suspension speed (USS), although determining the USS experimentally is rather subjective. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is employed here to determine the USS of a pretreated corn stover (PCS) solids suspension and to confirm the experimentally measured USS.
Consumer Preferences for Detailed versus Summary Formats of Nutrition Information on Grocery Store Shelf Labels

The health-related problems caused by poor diet choices has elevated the policy importance of how to communicate nutrition information more effectively to consumers at the point of purchase. At the same time, food retailers want to provide their customers with nutrition information in the format their shoppers prefer. The shopping environment, which includes the provision of nutrition information, is a way that food retailers can differentiate themselves from the competition. In this article, we present a simple model of the demand for nutrition information and empirically evaluate consumer preferences for two different formats. We compare nutrition information on grocery store shelf labels in the Greater San Francisco Area presented in detailed and summary formats. The detailed nutrition information provides an explicit description of specific nutrients but may be more costly to process and difficult to understand. Summary nutrition information reduces processing effort but provides a condensed description of nutritional content. The results indicate that there are higher mean preferences for detailed nutrition labels but also a greater dispersion of preferences. Nutrition-conscious consumers are more likely to prefer detailed information. The summary format may benefit shoppers who are less likely to use other forms of information.
Effects of polarization-mode dispersion in dual-pump fiber-optic parametric amplifiers

Effects of polarization-mode dispersion (PMD) on dual-pump parametric amplifiers are investigated numerically using a set of four vector equations. It is found that PMD induces large fluctuations in the signal power that can affect the system performance by enhancing the outage probability. The average gain itself is reduced by more than 10 dB even for a relatively small value of 0.05 ps//spl radic/km for the PMD parameter. For larger values of the PMD parameter, the gain spectrum begins to distort and loses its flatness. We also show that the polarization dependence of gain cannot be eliminated by using orthogonally polarized pumps.
Intravenous Administration of the Glycoprotein IIb-IIIa Receptor Antagonist 7E3 Induces Reperfusion of an Acute Thrombotic Occlusion of the Canine Coronary Artery

The ability of the F(ab')2 fragment of the murine monoclonal antibody 7E3 directed against the platelet glycoprotein IIb-IIIa receptor complex, to cause reperfusion of a totally occluding coronary artery thrombus was examined alone and in combination with aspirin and heparin in a canine model of coronary artery thrombosis. A localized thrombus was produced in the left circumflex coronary artery in open-chest dogs by electrolytic injury of the endothelium. Intravenous administration of a single injection of 5.0 mg/kg aspirin and heparin (80 U/kg bolus plus 30 U/kg/hr x 2 hr) maintained vessel patency for approximately 101 +/- 15 minutes. After vessels had been completely occluded for 5 minutes (in the presence of aspirin + heparin), a single intravenous injection of saline (10 ml) or 0.8 mg/kg 7E3 was administered. Reperfusion was observed in all dogs (6 of 6) receiving 7E3; 4 of 6 dogs maintained vessel patency throughout the course of the 2 hour observation period. Activated partial thromboplastin and thrombin times were elevated 1.4 and 9 fold, respectively, in groups that received heparin. Template bleeding times were significantly elevated in the groups receiving 7E3. In the control group, 2 of 5 dogs reperfused briefly, however neither were patent at the end of the observation period. A third group of 4 dogs which did not receive the aspirin + heparin regimen was allowed to occlude and 5 minutes later received a single intravenous injection of 0.8 mg/kg 7E3. None of the 4 dogs in this group reperfused at any time during the study. There were no significant differences between groups in regards to hematological or hemodynamic measurements during the experiment. We concluded from these findings that the monoclonal antibody, 7E3 can promote the dissolution of friable coronary artery thrombi that evolve during standard anticoagulant and antiplatelet therapy.
Turbulent diffusion in the core of a pipe with uniform transverse flow at the walls

An analysis of point source turbulent diffusion of a gaseous tracer in the core of a circular straight porous pipe with uniform transverse flow at the walls is presented. Time averaged concentration distributions were measured at four distances downstream from a point source located at the axis of a fully developed turbulent flow of air in a 6-in. pipe. Experiments were run at average velocities between 4.36 and 23.0 ft./sec. (corresponding to Reynolds numbers 12,000 to 66,000) with injection velocities ranging from 0 to 0.170 ft./sec. and suction velocities from 0 to 0.048 ft./sec. The highest injection rate corresponded to 58% by volume of the main stream. Good agreement is obtained between the expeimental and the calculated concentration profiles. The present study shows that the plume width of the disperising tracer is considerably affected by the transverse flow. It also shows that the eddy diffusivity in the pipe core and the radial mass flux increase with fluid injection and decrease with suction through the pipe walls. Also, for increasing values of aspect ratio, they increase in the case of injection and decrease in the case of fluid suction.
Scaling of terahertz radiation from large-aperture biased photoconductors

We present a theoretical and experimental investigation into the generation of subpicosecond pulses of terahertz radiation from large-aperture biased photoconductors with 1.5-eV photon excitation. A model that describes the far-field radiation from the optically excited, biased photoconductor is developed. The peak of the radiated electric field as well as waveforms are presented as a function of optical excitation fluence and pulse width. The dependence of the terahertz radiation from biased InP and GaAs emitters on the applied bias field and on incident optical fluence for bias fields as high as 12 kV/cm and for optical fluences of 0.01–1.0 mJ/cm2 is presented. For a given level of optical excitation the radiated electric field is predicted by theory to scale linearly with the applied bias field. This prediction is verified experimentally, with radiated-field strengths as high as 1.23 ± 0.13 kV/cm being demonstrated. The radiated electric field also exhibits the monotonic saturation behavior predicted by theory, and saturation fluences of 0.058 ± 0.015 and 0.018 ± 0.008 mJ/cm2 are obtained for InP and GaAs emitters, respectively.
Application of an efficient hybrid scheme for aeroelastic analysis of advanced propellers

An efficient 3-D hybrid scheme is applied for solving Euler equations to analyze advanced propellers. The scheme treats the spanwise direction semi-explicitly and the other two directions implicitly, without affecting the accuracy, as compared to a fully implicit scheme. This leads to a reduction in computer time and memory requirement. The calculated power coefficients for two advanced propellers, SR3 and SR7L, and various advanced ratios showed good correlation with experiment. Spanwise distribution of elemental power coefficient and steady pressure coefficient differences also showed good agreement with experiment. A study of the effect of structural flexibility on the performance of the advanced propellers showed that structural deformation due to centrifugal and aero loading should be included for better correlation.
Perioperative statin therapy reduces mortality in normolipidemic patients undergoing cardiac surgery

Objective Statins might have pleiotropic effects, independent of their ability to reduce lipid levels. Recent data have suggested that statins improve early survival and cardiovascular outcomes after coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The effectiveness of statin therapy in normolipidemic cardiac surgery patients is as yet unclear. Methods We evaluated 3056 consecutive patients who had undergone cardiac surgery between April 2004 and April 2009. Perioperative statin therapy was defined as continued treatment both before (≥ 6 months) and after the index surgery (included as a discharge medication). Hyperlipidemia (HL) was defined as a total cholesterol level greater than 200 mg/dL within 6 months before surgery. Four groups were analyzed: (1) statin-untreated normolipidemic (NL−, n = 1052); (2) statin-treated normolipidemic (NL+, n = 206); (3) statin-untreated hyperlipidemic (HL−, n = 638); and (4) statin-treated hyperlipidemic (HL+, n = 1160) patients. Adjusted hazard ratios accounted for the known preoperative cardiac risk factors. Mortality was ascertained by retrospective database review and the Social Security Death Index. Results The mean follow-up was 2.2 years. The crude rate of 30-day mortality was 3.0% (32/1052), 0% (0/206), 8.0% (51/638), and 0.7% (8/1160) for the NL−, NL+, HL−, and HL+ groups, respectively. The overall all-cause crude mortality rate was 9.6% (101/1052), 3.9% (8/206), 17.2% (110/638), and 6.5% (75/1160) for the NL−, NL+, HL−, and HL+ groups, respectively. Statin therapy for NL patients undergoing cardiac surgery independently reduced the overall all-cause mortality (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.34; 95% confidence interval, 0.16–0.71; P = .004). Conclusions Perioperative statin therapy was associated with reduced mid-term mortality for patients undergoing cardiac surgery, irrespective of their baseline lipid status. This clinical evidence suggests that the beneficial effects of statins might extend beyond their lipid-lowering ability.
Gene Banks Pay Big Dividends to Agriculture, the Environment, and Human Welfare

Plants are the foundation of human life. The Western Regional Plant Introduction Station is a vital link in a greater US and international system of gene banks providing plant genetic resources to improve agriculture and the environment.
PARTITION NOISE IN ELECTRON TRANSPORT

A comparison is made between a partitioned photon and electron system with respect to the nonequilibrium noise induced by a beam splitter. In the elastic scattering regime, photons and electrons behave similarly, contrary to the commonly held belief that the Pauli exclusion principle is necessary to observe a noise power reduction with increasing transmission. In the inelastic scattering regime, the Pauli exclusion principle is essential for the natural noise suppression predicted in mesoscopic electron devices. At finite temperature and frequency, this noise suppression eventually leads to the recovery of Nyquist noise in the heavily dissipative limit.
Voronoi random fields: extracting the topological structure of indoor environments via place labeling

The ability to build maps of indoor environments is extremely important for autonomous mobile robots. In this paper we introduce Voronoi random fields (VRFs), a novel technique for mapping the topological structure of indoor environments. Our maps describe environments in terms of their spatial layout along with information about the different places and their connectivity. To build these maps, we extract a Voronoi graph from an occupancy grid map generated with a laser range-finder, and then represent each point on the Voronoi graph as a node of a conditional random field, which is a discriminatively trained graphical model. The resulting VRF estimates the label of each node, integrating features from both the map and the Voronoi topology. The labels provide a segmentation of an environment, with the different segments corresponding to rooms, hallways, or doorways. Experiments using different maps show that our technique is able to label unknown environments based on parameters learned from other environments.
Knowledge and opinions about organ donation and transplantation among Vietnamese Americans in Seattle, Washington: a pilot study.

: Background: Racial/ethnic minorities comprise almost 50% of registrants on national waiting lists for organ transplantation in the USA. As the list continues to expand, organ shortage becomes a bigger problem. Increasing donation rates especially among racial minority groups would lower the waiting times for these groups. Purpose: Asian Americans are among the fastest growing and most diverse ethnic group in the USA, but research on their knowledge or opinions about organ donation is rare. Population: A non-random sample of 350 Vietnamese American church attendees and students attending a major university in Seattle (Washington), was drawn. Methods: A self-administered 39-item knowledge/opinion-based survey was conducted during June to August 2003. Results: Of 278 respondents (a 79.7% response rate), 69.1% knew blood-type made a difference in donation (p = 0.000), 61.6% knew transplant survival rates were high (p = 0.000), and 75.9% knew transplants could come from living donors (p = 0.000). But 53.4% also thought organs could be sold for money in the USA (p = 0.000), and 49.8% thought more people died of auto accidents and gunshot wounds than from heart disease (p = 0.000). Those who answered correctly to more than 50% of the knowledge questions were also more likely to favor donation (p = 0.007). Conclusion: We found among this study population that having correct knowledge about organ donation related to a willingness to donate.
Phenomenology and severity of major depression and comorbid lifetime anxiety disorders in primary medical care practice

The psychiatric history and presenting clinical characteristics of 276 depressed primary care patients with and without a lifetime comorbid anxiety disorder were studied in a randomized control trial of treatments for major depression. Our findings indicate that distinctive patterns of depressive symptoms and severity, functional impairment, comorbidity of other DSM-III-R Axis I and Axis II disorders, and treatment participation are associated with lifetime histories of panic and generalized anxiety disorder. The most consistent differences are evident between patients with major depression alone and those with major depression and a lifetime panic disorder. The latter presented with greater depressive severity, greater impairment in physical and psychosocial functioning, and were more likely to have a history of alcohol dependence, somatization disorder, and avoidant personality disorder. Discriminant function analysis indicated that 66% of depressed patients with lifetime panic disorder could be correctly distinguished from those without such comorbidity on the basis of the severity of somatic and affective symptoms but not cognitive symptoms of depression. Further, depressed patients with lifetime panic disorder were more likely to prematurely terminate both pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy during each treatment's acute phase. Implications for the diagnosis and treatment of major depression with comorbid anxiety disorder in primary care patients are discussed. Anxiety 2:210–218 (1996). © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Of Geese and Golden Eggs

Mr. President, members of the Board, fellows and guests of the Academy, and, most importantly, members of the Class of 1999: It is a rare privilege and a great honor to have been asked to address you on this important occasion. It is common at times like this to remind you that you represent the future of medicine and of our specialty, and indeed you do. But it is just as true that your own future will be determined by the future of medicine and that of orthopaedics. Today, as you become a member of one of the largest and most respected medical organizations, you assume increasing responsibilities for the stewardship of your profession and, thus, of your own professional careers. You have inherited a troubled profession and a specialty confronted with problems that are not of your making. Medicine has not been immune to the materialism and greed that have increasingly characterized society for the last thirty years or more. Some of our own, before your time, weakened medicine by wanting too much, and now the greed of others preys upon our profession and threatens its future. When I was a child, I learned Aesop's fable about the goose with the golden eggs3. Many of you may recall it as well. It goes like this: One day a countryman going to the nest of his goose found there an egg all yellow and glittering. When he took it up, it was heavy as lead and he was going to throw it away, because he thought a trick had been played upon him. But he took it home on second thoughts and soon found to his delight that it was an egg of pure gold. Every morning, the same thing occurred and he soon became rich by selling …
Are we recording postoperative complications correctly? Comparison of NHS Hospital Episode Statistics with the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program

Background Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data are used to measure surgical outcomes, but its quality has been considered inferior to that of clinical databases. We compare the recording accuracy of HES, an administrative database used in the National Health Service (NHS), with that of ACS NSQIP (American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program), a well-established clinical database. Methods 1323 patient records from our hospital, common to both databases were compared for ten surgical procedures (amputation, appendicectomy, cholecystectomy, femoral hernia repair, Hartmann's procedure, incisional hernia repair, inguinal hernia repair, long saphenous vein surgery, parathyroidectomy and umbilical hernia repair) and nine postoperative complications (acute renal failure, myocardial infarction, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, urinary tract infection, blood transfusion, septic shock, surgical site infection and wound disruption) using text strings or ICD-10 (International Classification of Diseases) codes. κ coefficient was calculated as a measure of concordance between HES and ACS NSQIP databases. Results The databases showed perfect or very good agreement in recording a majority of surgical procedures (κ coefficient range 0.82–1.0), but there was discordance in recording postoperative complications. When HES was investigated using text string or ICD-10 code, the κ coefficient range for nine postoperative complications was 0.00–0.56, indicating poor to moderate inter-rater agreement. Concordance was even less when searched by HES coder's recommended way to record postoperative complications. Conclusions HES poorly registers postoperative complications. Suggested improvements include addition of dates when a condition is diagnosed, agreed criteria to identify postoperative complications, specifically trained coding staff for surgery and consistent use of the coding guidance.
Tissue ablation through water with erbium: YAG lasers

The authors report the dynamics of vapor cavities generated by 200 mu s long Er:YAG laser pulses under water and in gelatin. Acoustic transients were detected at the beginning of the laser pulse and when the cavity collapsed. Cavity expansion and collapse, and the associated acoustic transients are possible ablation mechanisms with the Er:YAG laser. Shortening of the pulse duration is suggested to minimize long range underwater tissue damages. >
Endocrine Therapy With or Without Inhibition of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor and Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase III Trial of Fulvestrant With or Without Lapatinib for Postmenopausal Women With Hormone Receptor–Positive Advanced Breast Cancer—CALGB 40302 (Alliance)

Purpose CALGB 40302 sought to determine whether lapatinib would improve progression-free survival (PFS) among women with hormone receptor‐positive metastatic breast cancer treated with fulvestrant.
The arabidopsis zinc finger-homeodomain genes encode proteins with unique biochemical properties that are coordinately expressed during floral development

Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) contains approximately 100 homeobox genes, many of which have been shown to play critical roles in various developmental processes. Here we characterize the zinc finger-homeodomain (ZF-HD) subfamily of homeobox genes, consisting of 14 members in Arabidopsis. We demonstrate that the HDs of the ZF-HD proteins share some similarities with other known HDs in Arabidopsis, but they contain distinct features that cluster them as a unique class of plant HD-containing proteins. We have carried out mutational analyses to show that the noncanonical residues present in the HDs of this family of proteins are important for function. Yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) two-hybrid matrix analyses of the ZF-HD proteins reveal that these proteins both homo- and heterodimerize, which may contribute to greater selectivity in DNA binding. These assays also show that most of these proteins do not contain an intrinsic activation domain, suggesting that interactions with other factors are required for transcriptional activation. We also show that the family members are all expressed predominantly or exclusively in floral tissue, indicating a likely regulatory role during floral development. Furthermore, we have identified loss-of-function mutations for six of these genes that individually show no obvious phenotype, supporting the idea that the encoded proteins have common roles in floral development. Based on these results, we propose the ZF-HD gene family encodes a group of transcriptional regulators with unique biochemical activities that play overlapping regulatory roles in Arabidopsis floral development.
Anti-inflammatory and profibrinolytic effect of insulin in acute ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction.

Background— The clinical benefits of insulin previously observed in acute ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) may be partially explained by an anti-inflammatory effect. We assessed this potential effect of insulin in STEMI patients treated with fibrinolytics. Methods and Results— Thirty-two patients receiving reteplase were randomly assigned infusions of either insulin at 2.5 U/h, dextrose, and potassium (GIK) or normal saline and potassium (C) for 48 hours. Plasma concentrations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP), serum amyloid A (SAA), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), creatine kinase (CK), and CK-MB were measured at baseline and sequentially for 48 hours. Total p47phox protein in mononuclear cells was measured in a subgroup of 13 subjects. Baseline CRP and SAA were significantly increased (2- to 4-fold) at 24 and 48 hours in each group (P<0.01). However, in the insulin group, there was a significant (P<0.05) attenuation of the absolute rise in concentration of CRP and ...
Monitoring of the Brain and Spinal Cord

IOM has become commonly used by many surgeons to enhance their intraoperative decision making and reduce the morbidity and mortality of selected procedures. The ability to perform these tests rests on the anesthesiologist's ability to provide the patient with an anesthetic plan that provides comfort and monitoring. When events occur, the anesthesiologist's knowledge and ability to manipulate the patient's physiologic condition become integral to the decision making. A good understanding of the neural anatomy, impact of physiology, and anesthetic medications can allow effective IOM and good team decision making when changes in IOM occur.
Beauveria bassiana: Endophytic colonization and plant disease control

Seed application of Beauveria bassiana 11-98 resulted in endophytic colonization of tomato and cotton seedlings and protection against plant pathogenic Rhizoctonia solani and Pythium myriotylum. Both pathogens cause damping off of seedlings and root rot of older plants. The degree of disease control achieved depended upon the population density of B. bassiana conidia on seed. Using standard plating techniques onto selective medium, endophytic 11-98 was recovered from surface-sterilized roots, stems, and leaves of tomato, cotton, and snap bean seedlings grown from seed treated with B. bassiana 11-98. As the rate of conidia applied to seed increased, the proportion of plant tissues from which B. bassiana 11-98 was recovered increased. For rapid detection of B. bassiana 11-98 in cotton tissues, we developed new ITS primers that produce a PCR product for B. bassiana 11-98, but not for cotton. In cotton samples containing DNA from B. bassiana11-98, the fungus was detected at DNA ratios of 1:1000; B. bassiana 11-98 was detected also in seedlings grown from seed treated with B. bassiana 11-98. Using SEM, hyphae of B. bassiana11-98 were observed penetrating epithelial cells of cotton and ramifying through palisade parenchyma and mesophyll leaf tissues. B. bassiana11-98 induced systemic resistance in cotton against Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. malvacearum (bacterial blight). In parasitism assays, hyphae of B. bassiana 11-98 were observed coiling around hyphae of Pythium myriotylum.
An Oil-soluble Neurohumour in the Catfish Ameiurus

1. The skin and fins of Ameiurus , irrespective of their original state, take on the dark coloration (dispersion of melanophore pigment) whenever they are triturated. Hence oil extracts can be made from these parts only in the dark condition. 2. Olive oil extracts from the skin and fins of dark Ameiurus when injected under the skin of light-tinted individuals induce the formation of temporary dark splotches in an otherwise light skin. 3. These splotches result from the dispersion of pigment in the melanophores, both epidermal and dermal, in the region of the injection. 4. On the spontaneous disappearance of these splotches, which ordinarily occurs a few days after their formation, the melanophore pigment reassumes its concentrated state. 5. Newly formed dark splotches in Ameiurus may be obliterated by an injection of adrenalin and will return spontaneously after the adrenalin has disappeared. 6. From these several tests it is concluded that the nervous factor in the dispersion of the melanophore pigment of Ameiurus is an oil-soluble neurohumour of local activity. 7. Ether extractions, hot and cold, yielded residues that were only slightly active in darkening the skin of the catfish. 8. No effective oil extracts could be obtained from the dark skins and fins of Fundulus heteroclitus probably because of the inaccessibility of the tissues to the oil.
The college opiate user.

Interviews were conducted with 43 known opiate users who had attended college. An analysis of the information obtained suggested that these student users were more similar to their college peers than the street addict studied in hospitalized samples. They were multiple drug users who reported experimentation with many different types of drugs including a large number of hallucinogens. Most came from middle-class families with no apparent history of deviance. Unlike the street addict, these users did not have a delinquent history prior to their drug use. Nearly all of the subjects interviewed expressed plans of finishing college. One variable, the use of heroin, did appear to differentiate two groups of users. The heroin users tended to start their drug careers at an earlier age, they had used a wider assortment of different drugs, and they tended to come from slightly lower socioeconomic backgrounds than did the nonheroin users.
Decentralized adaptive control of systems with uncertain interconnections, plant-model mismatch and actuator failures

Decentralized adaptive control is considered for systems consisting of multiple interconnected subsystems. It is assumed that each subsystem's parameters are uncertain and the interconnection parameters are not known. In addition, mismatch can exist between each subsystem and its reference model. A strictly decentralized adaptive control scheme is developed, wherein each subsystem has access only to its own state but has the knowledge of all reference model states. The mismatch is estimated online for each subsystem and the mismatch estimates are used to adaptively modify the corresponding reference models. The adaptive control scheme is extended to the case with actuator failures in addition to mismatch.
Low cost multi-channel 16-bit transient digitizer system for the PBX-M machine

In a serial data-acquisition system, the throughput of the serial link is always a limiting factor to the real-time performance. Transient digitizers overcome this problem by using local memory to store digitized data in real time, with data retrieval/processing occurring after acquisition has been completed. A wide dynamic range with minimum crosstalk has been achieved in the present application by using an independent 16-b analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for each channel. The system has 16 K words of memory per channel with a minimum sampling rate of 50 kHz. The system clock can be programmed to provide three different rates for each data collection cycle, namely, pretrigger, posttrigger I, and posttrigger II. Costs are reduced by utilizing standard computer automated measurement and control (CAMAC) modules and the existing software for the Princeton Beta Experiment-Modified (PBX-M) machine. The system is described, and its accuracy and potential are discussed. >
Role of nitric oxide in the control of mitochondrial function.

Nitric oxide (NO) has been a focus of intense scientific investigation over the past years. A vast array of physiologic as well as pathophysiologic roles for NO have been described in pulmonary, immunologic, neuronal, gastrointestinal, and reproductive systems.21 Undoubtedly however, the preponderance of nitric oxide research has focused on the role of NO in the cardiovascular system, both in normal and pathophysiologic states. Nitric oxide is involved in the control of mean arterial blood pressure, vascular tone and regional blood flow in virtually all vascular beds.1,34 In addition, NO prevents platelet aggregation and is an inhibitor of vascular smooth muscle proliferation. Thus, NO is believed to contribute significantly to the maintenance of vascular homeostasis. Despite ample evidence in support of the action of NO on vascular smooth muscle and the local abluminal environment, the role of NO in the control of tissue oxygen consumption has received relatively little attention. Thus, this chapter will discuss the role of NO in the control of tissue respiration, as well as possible physiologic and pathophysiologic implications linking endogenous NO production and oxygen utilization in mammalian systems.