cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Injection of guanosine and adenosine nucleotides into Limulus ventral photoreceptor cells

1. Several nucleotide and nucleotide analogues had striking effects when pressure-injected into Limulus ventral photoreceptor cells. The poorly hydrolysable GTP analogues guanosine 5′-0-(3-thiotriphosphate) (GTPγS), guanylyl imidodiphosphate (Gpp[NH]p) and guanylyl (β, γ methylene) diphosphonate (Gpp[CH2]p) produced large increases in the frequency of ‘discrete events’ that were recorded from photoreceptors in darkness. This effect was only observed after the injected cell was exposed to light. Injection of the ATP analogue ATPγS had effects similar to those of the GTP analogues. 2. We conclude that GTPγS, Gpp[NH]p, Gpp[CH2]p and ATPγS act at a common site to cause a light-dependent, long-term activation of the excitation mechanism of the photoreceptor. 3. Injection of GTP or GDP at pH 4.8 was followed by a smooth, transient depolarization that was observed neither when GTP at pH 7.5 was injected nor when ATP, 5′GMP or 2-[N-morpholino] ethane sulphonic acid (MES) were injected at pH 4.8. The reversal potential of the current induced by GTP injection was significantly more positive than the reversal potential of the light-induced current. 4. We conclude that GTP injection induces changes of membrane conductance either in addition to, or different from, the light-induced change of membrane conductance. 5. Injection of the ATP analogue adenylyl imidodiphosphate (App[NH]p), and the pyrophosphate analogue imidodiphosphate (p[NH]p) produced a drastic decrease in the sensitivity of photoreceptors to light. This decrease in sensitivity was partially reversed when the concentration of calcium ions in the bathing medium was reduced. 6. We suggest that App[NH]p and p[NH]p injections act by increasing the cytoplasmic concentration of calcium ions.
Missions of the Japanese National University Corporations in the 21st Century: Content Analysis of Mission Statements

In 2004, Japanese national universities became national university corporations (NUCs). Many scholars have discussed the NUCs as Japan’s alignment with neo-liberalism in higher education. Under the new system, these NUCs have stronger autonomy in governing their institutions, while they remain under pressure to serve the country’s goals as government agencies. The present study examined the mission statements of 86 NUCs to explore their visions and roles. The findings based on content analysis revealed the NUCs’ strong commitment to improving education and research. A few select NUCs place stronger emphasis on research while others focus on education. These NUCs express a commitment to society and their regional communities—some more strongly than others. These NUCs recognize the importance of general and advanced specialized education. The paper discusses these findings in reference to the discourse of neo-liberalism in higher education and the unique Japanese contexts shaping these NUCs’ missions. DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2013.v2n3p197
The NOνA Module Factory Quality Assurance System

Abstract The NOνA experiment will measure neutrino oscillations using a long-baseline beam, a ∼220-ton near detector and a ∼14-kiloton far detector. Production of ∼12500 modules to build these detectors is an industrial scale operation requiring careful quality assurance to meet the stringent technical specifications. Unlike a typical industrial operation, this project will use primarily a part time labor force of ∼200 University of Minnesota undergraduate students managed by a small team of full time employees. The quality assurance system is involved in nearly every aspect of the production: assembly, scheduling, training, payroll, materials, machine maintenance, test data, and safety compliance. The quality assurance data collected during the assembly process allows us to quickly identify and correct any problems that arise.
Receptors for concanavalin A cluster at the front of polarized neutrophils

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) can recognize, engulf and kill microorganisms and are thus an important host defence against infection. The initial encounter between a microbe and the neutrophil takes place at the neutrophil surface. Receptors, including those for the Fc end of the immunoglobulin G (ref. 1), the C3b component of complement2, formyl peptides3 and plant lectins4 have been identified on the surface of neutrophils. We have now examined the surface pattern and arrangement of receptors for the plant lectin concanavalin A (Con A) to determine if the surface receptor array varied with the functional state of the neutrophil. We found that receptors for Con A clustered at the front of polarized neutrophils.
Relationships between protein structure and dynamics from a database of NMR-derived backbone order parameters.

Abstract The amplitude of protein backbone NH group motions on a time-scale faster than molecular tumbling may be determined by analysis of 15N NMR relaxation data according to the Lipari-Szabo model free formalism. An internet-accessible database has been compiled containing 1855 order parameters from 20 independent NMR relaxation studies on proteins whose three-dimensional structures are known. A series of statistical analyses has been performed to identify relationships between the structural features and backbone dynamics of these proteins. Comparison of average order parameters for different amino acid types indicates that amino acids with small side-chains tend to have greater backbone flexibility than those with large side-chains. In addition, the motions of a given NH group are also related to the sizes of the neighboring amino acids in the primary sequence. The secondary structural environment appears to influence backbone dynamics relatively weakly, with only subtle differences between the order parameter distributions of loop structures and regular hydrogen bonded secondary structure elements. However, NH groups near helix termini are more mobile on average than those in the central regions of helices. Tertiary structure influences are also relatively weak but in the expected direction, with more exposed residues being more flexible on average than residues that are relatively inaccessible to solvent.
A Calculus for Design of Two-Stage Adaptive Procedures

We propose calculus for designing two-stage adaptive procedures. We describe the design components that specify a two-stage adaptive design, define their interrelationships, and demonstrate how changes in one design component effect changes in the other components. Our technique allows us to control many aspects of a two-stage adaptive clinical trial, including the type I and type II error rates and the maximum total sample size. We also conduct an ANOVA-type study to understand the effects of different components of the design specification on the performance characteristics of the design. Stage I components—namely sample size, type I error rate, and type II error rate—are found to be the most influential.
Effect of hybrid poplar trees on microbial populations important to hazardous waste bioremediation

Microbial concentrations of denitrifiers, pseudomonads, and monoaromatic petroleum hydrocarbon (BTX) degraders were significantly higher (p < 0.1) in soil samples from the rhizosphere of poplar trees than in adjacent agricultural soils, and atrazine degraders were found only in one rhizosphere sample. The relative abundance of these phenotypes (as a fraction of total heterotrophs) was not significantly different between rhizosphere and surrounding soils. Therefore, the poplar rhizosphere enhanced the growth of microbial populations that participate in natural bioremediation without exerting selective pressure for them.
Stability over time of variables measuring heart rate variability in normal subjects

Abstract Both time and frequency domain measures of heart rate (HR) variability have been used to assess autonomic tone in a variety of clinical conditions. Few studies in normal subjects have been performed to determine the stability of HR variability over time, or the correlation between and within time and frequency domain measures of HR variability. Fourteen normal subjects aged 20 to 55 years were studied with baseline and placebo 24-hour ambulatory electrocardiograms performed 3 to 65 days apart to assess the reproducibility of the following time domain measures of cycle length variability: the standard deviation of all normal cycle intervals; mean normal cycle interval; mean day normal cycle interval; night/day difference in mean normal cycle interval; root-mean-square successive cycle interval difference; percentage of differences between adjacent normal cycle length intervals that are >50 ms computed over the entire 24-hour electrocardiographic recording (proportion of adjacent intervals >50 ms); and the frequency domain measures of high (0.15 to 40 Hz), low (0.003 to 0.15) and total (0.003 to 0.40) power. The mean and standard deviations of these measures were virtually identical between placebo and baseline measurements and within the studied time range. Variables strongly dependent on vagal tone (high-frequency, low-frequency and total power, root-mean-square successive difference, and percentage of differences between adjacent normal cycle intervals >50 ms computed over the entire 24-hour electrocardiographic recording) were highly correlated (r > 0.8). It is concluded that measures of HR variability are stable over short periods of time. Certain time and frequency domain variables are highly correlated and may serve as surrogates for each other, and no placebo effect on these variables is evident.
Effect of skin and fat layers on the spatial sensitivity profile of continuous wave diffuse reflectance near-infrared spectra

In order to measure muscle physiological parameters such as pH and oxygen partial pressure (PO2) by continuous wave (CW) diffuse reflectance near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), light must penetrate through skin and subcutaneous fat layers overlying muscle. In this study, the effect of skin and subcutaneous fat layer and on the spatial sensitivity profile of CW diffuse reflectance near-infrared spectra is investigated through Monte Carlo simulations. The simulation model uses a semi-infinite medium consisting of skin, fat and muscle. The optical properties of each layer are taken from the reported optical data at 750 nm. The skin color is either Caucasian or Negroid and the fat thickness is varied from 0 ~ 20 mm. The spatial sensitivity profile, penetration depth, and sensitivity ratio as functions of optical fiber source-detector separation (SD, 2.5 mm, 5.0 mm, 10.0 mm, 20.0 mm, 30.0 mm and 40.0 mm), skin color and fat thicknesses are predicted by the simulations. It is shown that skin color only slightly influenced the spatial sensitivity profile, while the presence of the fat layer greatly decreased the detector sensitivity. It is also shown that probes with longer SD separations can detect light from deeper inside the medium. The simulation results are used to design a fiber optic probe which ensures that enough light is propagated inside the muscle in NIRS measurement on a leg with a fat layer of normal thickness.
VII. Neuroanatomical localization of structures responsible for seizures in the GEPR: Lesion studies

Identification of the neural substrates subserving audiogenic convulsions in the GEPR is an important task and while it is not yet complete, many laboratories employing various techniques have contributed importantly to our current understanding. The present review focuses on the use of lesions to identify the neural substrates of audiogenic convulsions. Lesions in brain stem nuclei appear to have a much greater ability to attenuate audiogenic convulsions than do forebrain lesions. In fact, some forebrain lesions (dorsal hippocampus, caudate, intralaminar thalamic nuclei) appear to enhance the severity of audiogenic seizures. On the other hand, bilateral lesions in the inferior colliculus (IC) have been shown to completely abolish audiogenic convulsions, while lesions in the pontine reticular formation (PRF nucleus) abolish all aspects except the running episode suggesting that these two brain stem structures are important neural substrates involved in the expression of audiogenic convulsions. Large bilateral lesions of the substantia nigra also appear to attenuate audiogenic convulsions. The effect of lesions on audiogenic convulsions is basically similar to their effect on other generalized seizure models and the data appear to support the hypothesis that there are two anatomical systems involved in the expression of all generalized convulsions: a forebrain system responsible for the expression of face and forelimb clonus; and a brain stem system responsible in the expression of running-bouncing clonus and tonus.
Dysarthria in Wilson’s Disease

Three judges rated a number of speech characteristics of 20 patients with Wilson’s disease, an inherited metabolic disease. The perceptual data suggest the presence of a mixed dysarthria with prominent ataxic, spastic, and hypokinetic features which were predictable from neurologic data on the patients. Perceptual data on 10 patients, recorded at two specific points in a treatment program, indicate that speech can be used as an effective monitor of progress in the treatment of this disease.
Generalized Hessenberg transformations for reduced-order modelling of large-scale systems†

The problem of constructing a reduced-order model induced by the information structure is considered. A new system representation, denoted as the Generalized Hessenberg Representation (GHR), is introduced and chained aggregation which transforms the system representation into the GHR is described. A ninth-order model of a two-thermal plant power system used in load-frequency studies is presented to demonstrate the potential of the GHR in model reduction. The role of GHR in identifying model structure and suggesting appropriate subsets of adjustable parameters is established.
Su1705 Secretin Endoscopic Pancreas Function Test Correlates With Pancreatic Endocrine Function Post Autologous Islet Transplantation for Refractory Chronic Pancreatitis

Figure 2. Scatter plot of islet yield by ePFT result. Solid bar shows median and interquartile range.
Protein kinase C is involved in 2B4 (CD244)‐mediated cytotoxicity and AP‐1 activation in natural killer cells

Summary 2B4 (CD244) is a member of the CD2 subset of the immunoglobulin superfamily and functions as a triggering molecule on natural killer (NK) cells. Previously, we have found that 2B4-mediated activation of NK cells involves complex interactions involving LAT, Ras, Raf, ERK and p38 and that cytolytic function and cytokine production may be regulated by distinct pathways. Here we assessed the role of protein kinase C (PKC) in 2B4-mediated cytotoxicity of YT cells, a human NK cell line. Our data indicate that PKC-δ is activated upon stimulation with monoclonal antibody against 2B4. Treatment with the PKC inhibitor, bisindolylmaleimide I (Go6850), of YT cells or YT cells depleted of Ca2+-dependent isoforms of PKC prior to 2B4 stimulation, resulted in inhibition of natural cytotoxicity and redirected antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. However, inhibition of PKC failed to block 2B4 stimulation of interferon-γ secretion as opposed to pretreatment with LY294002, a phosphoinositide 3-kinase inhibitor. We also examined the effect of phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) induction on 2B4 gene transcription. PMA induction resulted in a more than two-fold increase of 2B4 transcription. However, when we introduced a three-base substitution mutation to disrupt the activator protein-1 binding site at (−106 to −100) in the 2B4 promoter, we found complete loss of transcriptional activity, including the two-fold increase due to PMA induction of PKC. The present study indicated that PKC may play an important role in 2B4 signalling and activator protein-1 activation.
Behavioral Assessment of Aquatic Pollutants

Animal behavior is the link between organisms and their environment and is critical for biological adaptation. Despite many studies demonstrating the sensitivity and utility of behavioral endpoints in bioassays assessing potential pollutant effects in aquatic ecosystems, behavioral toxicity testing has not, historically, been included routinely in assessments of aquatic toxicity and subsequent environmental policy formulation. The results of behavioral risk assessments may allow behavioral toxicologists to demonstrate that a chemical is not merely a potential hazard, but that it elicits a functional change in an animal. In this regard, the behavioral toxicologist is on stronger ground than toxicologists recommending action based on isolated, non-functional changes such as acute or chronic mortality. Such sublethal pollutant effects should be of major interest and concern to individuals formulating environmental policies and water quality criteria because many more aquatic organisms encounter sublethal rat...
Endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair with general versus local anesthesia: a comparison of cardiopulmonary morbidity and mortality rates.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the cardiopulmonary morbidity and mortality rates after endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm (EAAA) repair with local anesthesia (LA) with intravenous sedation versus general anesthesia (GA). Methods: Data from patients who underwent elective infrarenal EAAA repair between June 1996 and October 2000 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with two or more Eagle clinical cardiac risk factors were considered to be at increased risk for a major postoperative cardiac event. Univariate and multivariate analyses for major cardiac and pulmonary morbidity and mortality rates were analyzed with respect to anesthetic type (GA versus LA), age, size of aneurysm, mean number of Eagle risk factors, and presence of two or more cardiac risk factors. Results: Two hundred twenty-nine patients underwent EAAA repair. The GA (158 patients) and LA (71 patients) groups were significantly different with respect to mean age (73 versus 76 years; P = .01) and mean number of cardiac risk factors per patient (1.2 versus 1.6; P = .002). No difference was seen in the overall cardiopulmonary complication rate (13% for GA and 19% for LA; P = .3), pulmonary complication rate (3.8% for GA and 7% for LA; P = .3), or cardiopulmonary mortality rate (3.2% for GA and 2.8% for LA; P = .9). The major cardiac event rate was higher in patients with two or more Eagle risk factors (22%) versus those patients with one or less Eagle risk factors (3.4%; P < .001), irrespective of anesthetic type. In analysis of patients with one or less Eagle risk factors, no difference was seen in the major cardiac event rate by anesthetic type (3% for GA and 5% for LA; P = .6). Also, no difference was seen in major cardiac events in patients with two or more Eagle risk factors by anesthetic type (24% for GA and 22% for LA). On multivariate analysis, the mean number of Eagle risk factors per patient (P < .0001) and the presence of two or more Eagle risk factors were associated with major cardiac and cardiopulmonary complications, whereas age, size of AAA, and anesthetic type were not. Conclusion: No difference exists in overall cardiac and pulmonary morbidity and mortality rates after EAAA repair in comparison of GA and LA. The presence of two or more preoperative cardiac risk factors significantly increases the risk of a major postoperative cardiac event. (J Vasc Surg 2002;36:988-91.)
A wavelet time-shift-detail decomposition

We show that, with respect to an orthonormal wavelet ψ(ċ) ∈ L 2 (R) any f (ċ) ∈ L 2 (R) is, on the one hand, the sum of its "layers of details" over all time-shifts, and on the other hand, the sum of its layers of details over all scales. The latter is well known and is a consequence of a wandering subspace decomposition of L 2 (R) which, in turn, resulted from a wavelet multiresolution analysis (MRA). The former has not been discussed before. We show that it is a consequence of a decomposition of L 2 (R) in terms of reducing subspaces of the dilation-by-2 shift operator.
The influence of porosity on short fatigue crack growth at large strain amplitudes

Abstract The influence of pore microstructure (0% to 6% rounded porosity, isolated vs. interconnected) on short crack growth during low cycle fatigue has been evaluated using powder-processed titanium as a model. The presence of porosity enhances short crack propagation adjacent to the pores as a result of localized, pore-induced plasticity. Observations of short cracks using surface replicas indicate that once a crack extends beyond a plastic zone of an isolated pore it decelerates to propagation rates similar to those observed for fully dense materials of similar grain sizes. For low levels of porosity in which the pores are isolated, the vast majority of short crack growth occurs outside the pore-induced plastic zones, and thus the overall short crack growth rates are not significantly affected. However, when the pores are interconnected, short cracks propagate at higher rates of growth than cracks of comparable size in the dully dense material. The enhanced growth rates appear to be a result of the continuous nature of the plastic zones which provide a high strain amplitude propagation path.
Zeeman Effect in the Hyperfine Structure of Iodine. II

Observations of the Zeeman effect in the hyperfine structure of iodine II lines at fields of 4000 to 16,000 gauss provide an independent confirmation of the value 2\textonehalf{} units as the spin of the iodine nucleus. The patterns observed in intermediate fields have been interpreted with the help of the theory of Goudsmit and Bacher. Evidence of a nuclear quadrupole interaction is detected in some Zeeman patterns.
The tourist moment.

Abstract Recognizing the gap between experience and the representation of it, this essay explores the interpellation of the tourist-as-subject in a serendipitous moment—the tourist moment—as represented in narrative. Because it conditions a spontaneous instance of self-discovery and belonging, the moment simultaneously produces and erases the tourist-as-subject, for at the very instant of awareness and self-representation as “tourist,” one goes beyond “being a tourist.” This double movement of constitution and dissolution represents a temporary end to the search for authenticity, for the “tourist” perceives himself to have gotten beyond both touristic representation and subjectivity.
Modeling Stiffness Reduction of Graphite/Epoxy Composite Laminates:

An investigation has been conducted into the effects of fatigue loading on the stiffness and strength degradation of composite laminates. An experimental test program using graphite/epoxy [±35]2s laminates has been conducted to generate meaningful data for this evaluation. Based on this investigation, a model is proposed to relate the stiffness degrada tion to the fractional life expended at a given stress level and also to the residual strength degradation. These models are restricted to specimens subjected to constant amplitude fatigue loadings.
Research Spotlight: First images of Earth's plasma sheet

[1] New images from the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) mission capture for the first time part of Earth's magnetosphere. The new observations, described byMcComas et al., provide the first images of the extended terrestrial plasma sheet, the sheet separating the north and south lobes of the magnetosphere. The plasma sheet cannot be seen in images in visible light; the IBEX images were created using detections of energetic neutral atoms. One of the images captured what appears to be a magnetic disconnection event, in which magnetic field lines tear and part of the plasma sheet pinches off from the rest. These types of disconnections release energy and can cause charged particles to be accelerated toward Earth, potentially disrupting satellites. This is the first time that a plasma sheet disconnection event may have been directly seen. (Journal of Geophysical Research-Space Physics, doi:10.1029/2010JA016138, 2011)
Future directions in cancer rehabilitation.

HE KEYSTONE for the future of cancer rehabilitation is widespread recognition of the importance of providing creative and wellresearched rehabilitation measures in addition to specific antitumor treatment for persons with cancer. The patient deserves the opportunity for functioning at an optimal level within the limits imposed by the cancer or its treatment. The recognition of the need for rehabilitation as well as specific treatment can lead to better rehabilitation techniques and procedures. The nursing profession has often led the way in emphasizing quality of life issues and can be expected to continue to do so in fostering appropriate physical, psychosocial, and vocational rehabilitation for all cancer patients. These concerns are addressed in a position statement of the Oncology Nursing Society. ’ The recent increased interest in medical rehabilitation is encouraging. In June 1990, the National Institutes of Health convened a Task Force on Medical Rehabilitation Research. Four panels focused on major areas of scientific concentration. These were neurophysiological dysfunction, musculoskeletal disorders, cancer rehabilitation, and geriatric rehabilitation. The Cancer Rehabilitation Panel consisted of 12 members. Those serving on this panel represented various areas ranging from specific expertise in particular cancer sites to community oncology, nursing, physiatry , and pediatric oncology. Many of the recommendations of the Panel will be incorporated into this article. The full report has been published.2 Progress in Cancer Rehabilitation requires appropriate and continuing assessment of the patient’s rehabilitation needs. The development of a good database is essential. Assessment tools must have the capacity for quantitating improvement in specific functional parameters. The mechanisms for optimal service delivery need to be better defined. The development of multidisciplinary Cancer Rehabilitation Programs should be fostered; but the efficacy of such programs requires documentation in the literature.
Worlds apart or a part of the world? Public relations issues and challenges in India

This study examines modern public relations in India investigating current issues, trends and leadership in communication management. Using a survey of Indian practitioners, it compares public relations in India with global trends. Findings suggest that practice in India is interdependent and changing dynamically with global influences, though a global�local dialectic is clearly present. Country-level differences are evident with development of human capital seen as the top issue in the region. At the same time, similar to other countries, the industry in India is also dealing with issues of digitization and information flow, struggling with measurement concerns, and trying to stay on top of crisis management preparedness.
Distributed Policy Processing in Active-service Based Infrastructures

More and more applications in the Internet are requiring an intelligent service infrastructure to provide customized services. In this paper, we present an infrastructure, which can transparently and effectively provide customized active-services to end users and dynamically adapt to changing customized policies in large distributed heterogeneous environments. The infrastructure consists of two components: the policy agent and middleware box. Particularly, our technologies include: (1) Generic active-service based infrastructure, where the policy agent can integrate policies requested by applications, and middleware boxes can transparently execute services and (2) Distributed policy processing in the middleware box. We study two policy partitioning schemes to achieve conflict-free policies for distributed policy processing and guarantee the correctness of the policy execution. We conduct extensive performance evaluations on different schemes proposed. Our experimental results demonstrate that our policy partitioning schemes can effectively generate partition-capable and conflict-free policy sets. The evaluation results also show that distributed policy processing can achieve over 70% increase in performance/price ratio with proper assignment of the policy distribution degree compared to a purely centralized approach. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Group Summary: Simulation I

In the two years following the first Workshop, we have experienced a significant surge in the capability of numerical simulation of transition phenomena. High-order compact differencing and spectral multi-domain discretization methods have reached a level of maturity as to allow accurate and efficient direct numerical simulations (DNS) for a wide range of incompressible and compressible flows. Additionally, the fundamental concepts leading to reliable non-reflecting outflow boundary conditions are becoming clear, allowing spatial simulations to become viable tools in the investigation of transition physics.
No effect of menstrual cycle phase on glucose and glucoregulatory endocrine responses to prolonged exercise.

Prolonged exercise requires increased utilization of blood glucose and adjustment of glucoregulatory hormones. Estrogen can reduce hepatic gluconeogenesis which could affect insulin concentrations. Amylin is co-secreted with insulin and controls influx of glucose into the blood. To determine the effect of menstrual cycle stage on glucose, leptin, and pancreatic hormone responses to prolonged (90 min) exercise. Five healthy, eumenorrheic women (24.6 ± 5.1 years; 67.4 ± 1 kg) were monitored for 3 months to determine menstrual cycle length. Subjects completed a preliminary session to determine exercise workloads and, in a fasted condition, completed two randomized 90-min treadmill exercise trials at 60 % VO2max during the early follicular (EFX) and mid-luteal phase (MLX) of their menstrual cycle. Blood samples were analyzed for glucose, insulin, C-peptide, amylin, glucagon, leptin, and cortisol concentrations at rest (−30 and 0 min), during exercise (18, 36, 54, 72, and 90 min) and after 20 min of recovery. No changes in amylin, leptin, or cortisol occurred for EFX and MLX trials. A significant (p < 0.05) time effect occurred for glucose, insulin, and glucagon with reduced insulin across the exercise trial and increases in glucose and glucagon later in the trial, but there were no differences between the EFX and MLX trials. Menstrual cycle stage does not affect glucose, insulin, C-peptide, amylin, glucagon, cortisol, and leptin responses to prolonged exercise; however, the exercise reduces insulin and increases glucose and glucagon concentrations. This is the first study to determine acute effects of exercise on amylin and other glucoregulatory hormone responses in women.
Association of cardiac events with coronary artery disease detected by 64-slice or greater coronary CT angiography: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract Background The value of ≥64-slice coronary CT angiography (CCTA) to determine odds of cardiac death or non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI) needs further clarification. Methods We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis using publications reporting events/severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients with suspected CAD undergoing CCTA. Patients were divided into: no CAD, non-obstructive CAD (maximal stenosis I 2 index. Results We included thirty-two studies comprising 41,960 patients with 363 all-cause deaths (15.0%), 114 cardiac deaths (4.7%), 342 MI (14.2%), 69 unstable angina (2.8%), and 1527 late revascularizations (63.2%) over 1.96 (SD 0.77) years of follow-up. Cardiac death or MI occurred in 0.04% without, 1.29% with non-obstructive, and 6.53% with obstructive CAD. OR for cardiac death or MI was: 14.92 (95% CI, 6.78 to 32.85) for obstructive CAD, 6.41 (95% CI, 2.44 to 16.84) for non-obstructive CAD versus no CAD, and 3.19 (95% CI, 2.29 to 4.45) for non-obstructive versus obstructive CAD and 6.56 (95% CI, 3.07 to 14.02) for no versus any CAD. Similar trends were noted for all-cause mortality and composite major adverse cardiovascular events. Conclusions Increasing CAD severity detected by CCTA is associated with cardiac death or MI, all-cause mortality, and composite major adverse cardiovascular events. Absence of CAD is associated with very low odds of major adverse events, but non-obstructive disease significantly increases odds of cardiac adverse events in this follow-up period.
Of spherical cows, cloudy crystal balls, and proteins

Although proteins perform a vast multitude of tasks in living organisms, perhaps the most fascinating and least well understood is the nanoengine aspect of protein action, where chemical energy is turned into mechanical motion. In order for this to happen a protein must change chemical bond energy into physical displacement via some sort of a conformational change of the protein. The critical first step of this process must be the transient storage (self-trapping) of chemical energy into some metastable strained conformation of the protein. We discuss how the early work of Irwin C. "Gunny" Gunsalus with Hans Frauenfelder and Peter Debrunner led to insights into the picosecond dynamics of proteins, the initial functionally important motions.
An optimal sdp algorithm for max-cut, and equally optimal long code tests

Let G be an undirected graph for which the standard Max-Cut SDP relaxation achieves at least a c fraction of the total edge weight, 1/2 ≤ c ≤ 1. If the actual optimal cut for G is at most an s fraction of the total edge weight, we say that (c, s) is an SDP gap. We define the SDP gap curve GapSDP : [1/2,1] -> [1/2,1] by GapSDP(c) = inf{s : (c, s) is an SDP gap}. In this paper we complete a long line of work [15, 14, 20, 36, 19, 17, 13, 28] by determining the entire SDP gap curve; we show GapSDP(c) = S(c) for a certain explicit (but complicated to state) function S. In particular, our lower bound GapSDP(c) - S(c) is proved via a polynomial-time - RPR2' algorithm. Thus we have given an efficient, optimal SDP-rounding algorithm for Max-Cut. The fact that it is RPR2 confirms a conjecture of Feige and Langberg [17]. We also describe and analyze the tight connection between SDP gaps and Long Code tests (and the constructions of [25, 3, 4]). Using this connection, we give optimal Long Code tests for Max-Cut. Combining these with results implicit in [27, 29] and ideas from [19], we derive the following conclusions: - The Max-Cut SDP gap curve subject to triangle inequalities is also given by S(c). - No RPR2 algorithm can be guaranteed to find cuts of value larger than S(c) in graphs where the optimal cut is c. (Contrast this with the fact that in the graphs exhibiting the c vs. S(c) SDP gap, our RPR2 algorithm actually finds the optimal cut.) - Further, no polynomial-time algorithm of any kind can have such a guarantee, assuming P ≠ NP and the Unique Games Conjecture.
Correlating tropospheric column ozone with tropopause folds: the Aura-OMI satellite data

Abstract. The geographic and temporal variations in tropospheric and stratospheric ozone columns from individual swath measurements of the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), on the NASA Aura spacecraft, are reasonably well simulated by the University of California, Irvine (UCI) chemistry transport model (CTM) using 1°×1°×40-layer meteorological fields for the year 2005. From the CTM we find that high-frequency spatial variations in tropospheric column ozone (TCO), including around the jet streams, are not generally correlated with variations in stratospheric ozone column, but instead are collocated with folding events involving stratospheric-origin, high-ozone layers below the tropopause. The CTM fold events are verified in many cases with available ozone sondes. Using the OMI Level 2 profiles, and defining tropopause height from our CTM using the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) fields, we find that most of the variations in TCO near CTM folding events are also not correlated with those in stratospheric ozone column. A large fraction of the OMI TCO variance is accurately simulated by the CTM where the variance is significant, especially along the subtropical jets. The absolute tropospheric columns from OMI and CTM agree swath-by-swath, pixel-by-pixel within ±5 Dobson Units (DU) for most cases. Notable exceptions are in the tropics where neither the high ozone from biomass burning nor the low ozone in the convergence zones over the Pacific is found in the OMI observations, because of OMI's insensitivity to the lower troposphere. Another difference is identified with the OMI profiles near the southern subtropical jet. The CTM has a high bias in stratospheric column outside the tropics, due to problems previously identified with the stratospheric circulation in the 40-layer meteorological fields. Overall, we identify ozone folds with short-lived features in TCO that have scales of a few hundred kilometres as observed by OMI.
Hemodynamic effects of hydralazine in infants with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure

We evaluated the acute hemodynamic responses to hydralazine during cardiac catheterization in 13 infants with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. Ages ranged from 2 to 13 months (6.7 +/- 4.0 months, mean +/- SD). Each infant had congestive heart failure and angiographic evidence of markedly depressed left ventricular ejection fraction (0.24 +/- 0.11; normal = 0.58-0.78) with left ventricular dilation (left ventricular end-diastolic volume = 349 +/- 125% of normal). Hydralazine (0.5 to 1.0 mg/kg administered intravenously) acutely decreased systemic arteriolar resistance from 21.1 +/- 3.3 to 12.0 +/- 2.7 U/m2 (p less than 0.001). This 41 +/- 14% decrease in systemic resistance was accompanied by a 45 +/- 16% increase in cardiac index (3.24 +/- 0.53 to 4.71 +/- 0.99 L/min/m2; p less than 0.001). Mean arterial blood pressure declined from 70 +/- 8 to 60 +/- 11 mm Hg (p less than 0.001). Hydralazine also increased heart rate (122 +/- 19 to 138 +/- 18 bpm; p less than 0.001), but this increase did not account entirely for the change in cardiac index as evidenced by a rise in stroke volume index (26.9 +/- 4.9 to 34.5 +/- 7.5 ml/beat/m2; p less than 0.001). Pulmonary arteriolar resistance and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure fell slightly in response to hydralazine. Subsequently, oral hydralazine was included in the treatment regimen of 10 infants followed for 3 to 38 months (mean = 15 months). Of these, eight demonstrated sustained clinical improvement. We conclude that hydralazine may be a beneficial adjunct to the management of congestive heart failure in young infants with a dilated cardiomyopathy.
Abnormalities of surfactant in children with recurrent cyanotic episodes

The mechanism of recurrent cyanotic episodes in infants and children is not known, but a deficiency of surfactant is a possible cause. We have measured the amount of surfactant collected by bronchoalveolar lavage from two children with recurrent cyanotic episodes and from two controls with anatomical airway obstructions. We also assessed the physical properties of the surfactant by changing the surface area (A) of a monolayer and measuring its surface tension (gamma). The cases had lower amounts of surfactant extracted, which could explain some of the abnormalities of the gamma/A loops. However, the finding that the cases had reversed loops (ie, the surface tension is higher during monolayer compression than during expansion) shows that there is also a qualitative abnormality. These features suggest a possible diagnostic test if not a mechanism for this disorder.
Statistical phase shifting step estimation based on continuous wavelet transform for high resolution interferometry metrology

A statistical phase shifting estimation for temporal phase shifting interferometry (PSI) based on continuous wavelet transform is proposed in this paper. The tests on numerical simulation and Moire interferometry are performed for the validation. In the temporal PSI, the interferograms are reconstructed upon the assumptions of the accurate estimation of the shifted phase steps. The estimations are usually based on the experimental configuration of the phase shifting mechanism. Due to the calibration error and environmental errors, the phase steps are not constants and vary with time and introduce error in the phase reconstruction. To solve this problem, the researchers proposed different phase step estimation algorithms which explore both temporal (inter-frame) and spatial redundancies (intra-frame) in the data to estimate the shifted phase. Each algorithm imposes different constraints on the structure of the shifted phases. The accuracy of the estimated phase steps varies under different condition and also changes among different interferometers. The proposed methods can serve as a benchmark method for comparing the accuracy of the different phase steps estimation methods statistically.
Like climbing Jacob’s ladder: An art-based exploration of the comprehensive exam process

The comprehensive exam process is a rite of passage in the scholarly world, and as such the movements of this process often feel like a guarded secret to graduate students. As a PhD candidate, I le...
Hepatic transmethylation reactions in micropigs with alcoholic liver disease

Alcoholic liver disease is associated with abnormal hepatic methionine metabolism, including increased levels of homocysteine and S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) and reduced levels of S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and glutathione (GSH). The concept that abnormal methionine metabolism is involved in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease was strengthened by our previous findings in a micropig model where combining dietary folate deficiency with chronic ethanol feeding produced maximal changes in these metabolites together with early onset of microscopic steatohepatitis and an eightfold increase in plasma aspartate aminotransferase. The goal of the present study was to determine potential mechanisms for abnormal levels of these methionine metabolites by analyzing the transcripts and activities of transmethylation enzymes in the livers of the same micropigs. Ethanol feeding or folate deficiency, separately or in combination, decreased transcript levels of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR), methionine adenosyltransferase (MAT1A), glycine-N-methyltransferase (GNMT) and S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase (SAHH). Ethanol feeding alone reduced the activities of methionine synthase (MS) and MATIII and increased the activity of GNMT. Each diet, separately or in combination, decreased the activities of MTHFR and SAHH. In conclusion, the observed abnormal levels of methionine metabolites in this animal model of accelerated alcoholic liver injury can be ascribed to specific effects of ethanol with or without folate deficiency on the expressions and activities of hepatic enzymes that regulate transmethylation reactions. These novel effects on transmethylation reactions may be implicated in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease.
A psychodynamic approach to the study and treatment of child-abusing parents

Abstract The author presents the psychodynamics of the distorted patterns of family interaction encountered in a study of 60 cases of child abuse. Sixty nonabusing subjects served as controls. Child abuse is regarded as a dysfunction of parenting in which the parent misperceives the child due to his own frustrating childhood experiences. The beating represents the parent's attempt to master trauma passively experienced as a child. The child abuse syndrome is conceptualized as the product of three factors: the parent's abuse-prone personality, the child's abuse-provoking characteristics, and environmental stress. The techniques, aims, and pitfalls of psychotherapeutic intervention with abusing parents are described.
Aerodynamic Bicycle Helmet Design Using a Truncated Airfoil With Trailing Edge Modifications

Aerodynamic drag contributes the majority of the resistance experienced by a competitive cyclist. Low aerodynamic drag is a key quality of high performance equipment and many aerodynamic helmets have been developed. These helmets are designed with a teardrop shape that attempts to maintain attached air flow. This shape provides a drag reduction when the athlete has their head up and is looking forward but has adverse effects if the athlete rotates their head down. A helmet design that helps maintain attached airflow while presenting reduced frontal area when the athlete’s head is down could significantly improve performance. The aerodynamic improvements of applying a truncated airfoil shape with a trailing edge modification to a helmet design were investigated. SolidWorks Flow Simulation was used to evaluate the aerodynamic forces. A common production helmet design was progressively truncated to determine the optimal truncation length and the effects of multiple trailing edge modifications were tested. A specific truncation length with a trailing edge base cavity was found to provide similar head up performance but significantly better head down performance compared to the production design. Scale models of the final improved design and the production helmet were tested in the wind tunnel to verify the computational results.Copyright © 2011 by ASME
Low-Level Endotoxin Induces Potent Inflammatory Activation of Human Blood Vessels. Inhibition by Statins

Background— Low-level endotoxemia (ie, ≥50 pg/mL) in apparently healthy subjects was recently identified as a powerful, independent risk factor for atherosclerosis. Methods and Results— We treated human saphenous veins (HSVs) with low levels of endotoxin. Release of the proinflammatory chemokines interleukin-8 (IL-8) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) was measured by ELISA. Superoxide was determined by using the fluorescent probe dihydroethidium (HE), and monocyte binding was assessed with calcein-labeled U-937 cells. Three- to 4-fold increases in MCP-1 and IL-8 release were observed at endotoxin concentrations of 100 pg/mL; these increases were inhibited by the 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitor atorvastatin. Studies in cultured endothelial cells suggest that the mechanism is related to inhibition of isoprenylation (ie, geranylgeranylation) rather than cholesterol formation. Endotoxin produced dose-dependent increases in HE fluorescence that were inhibited by the superoxide dismutase mimics Tiron and MnTBAP. Endotoxin potently induced U-937 cell binding to HSV; binding was inhibited by both Tiron and atorvastatin. Toll-like receptor-4 expression was detected in cultured HSV endothelial and smooth muscle cells and in intact HSV. Conclusions— Clinically relevant levels of endotoxin, as reported in ambulatory populations, have profound inflammatory effects on intact HSV. Inhibition of endotoxin-induced vascular inflammation might contribute to the beneficial effects of statins in treating atherosclerosis.
THE FORTRAN DEDUCTIVE SYSTEM

Abstract : A Fortran Program to solve generalized algebra type problems has been developed. It is a heuristic program, designed to give rapid solutions for problems which it can solve. The program accepts as input a definition of an algebraic system, then solves problems in the system. The program's operation is described here in general terms and examples of its operation are given.
Influence of Equal-Channel Angular Pressing on the Superplastic Properties of Commercial Aluminum Alloys

Equal-channel angular (ECA) pressing was used to refine the microstructure in two commercial aluminum alloys, Al-2024 and the Supral-100 Al-2004 alloy. The ECA pressing was conducted at room temperature and at elevated temperatures for both alloys using several different processing routes. Tensile testing was carried out at elevated temperatures on both pressed and unpressed samples of each alloy in order to evaluate the effect of the pressing. This paper describes the influence of the ECA pressing on the subsequent mechanical properties of these two alloys. For both alloys, it is shown that the optimum superplastic conditions are influenced by the ECA pressing, and in practice there tends to be a decrease in the optimum temperature for superplasticity and a corresponding increase in the optimum strain rate. In addition, there was evidence for high strain rate superplasticity (HSR SP) in both alloys after the ECA pressing procedure.