cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vagus nerve stimulation for partial seizures

Background This is an updated version of the original Cochrane review published in Issue 1, 2002. Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) has been introduced as an adjunct for treating people with seizures. The aim of this systematic review was to overview the current evidence for the effects of vagus nerve stimulation when used as an adjunctive treatment for people with drug-resistant partial epilepsy. Objectives To determine the effects of VNS high-level stimulation compared to low-level (presumed subtherapeutic dose) stimulation. Search methods We searched the Cochrane Epilepsy Group's Specialized Register (January 2010), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library Issue 1, 2010), and MEDLINE (1950 to January 2010). No language restrictions were imposed. Selection criteria Randomized, double-blind controlled trials of VNS comparing high and low stimulation paradigms. Studies in adults or children with drug-resistant partial seizures. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently selected trials for inclusion and extracted data. The following outcomes were assessed: (a) 50% or greater reduction in total seizure frequency; (b) treatment withdrawal (any reason); (c) adverse effects. Primary analyses were intention-to-treat. Sensitivity best and worst case analyses were also undertaken. Summary odds ratios (ORs) were estimated for each outcome. Main results Results of the overall efficacy analysis show that VNS stimulation using the high stimulation paradigm was significantly better than low stimulation. The overall OR (95% confidence interval (CI)) for 50% responders across all studies is 1.93 (95% CI 1.1 to 3.4). This effect did not vary substantially and remained statistically significant for both the best and worst case scenarios. Results for the outcome "withdrawal of allocated treatment" suggest that VNS is well tolerated as no significant difference was found between the high and low stimulation groups, and withdrawals were rare. Statistically significant adverse effects associated with implantation (low versus baseline) were hoarseness, cough, pain, and paresthesia. Statistically significant adverse effects associated with stimulation (high versus low) were hoarseness and dyspnea, suggesting the implantation is associated with hoarseness, but the stimulation produces additional hoarseness. Authors' conclusions VNS for partial seizures appears to be an effective and well tolerated treatment. Adverse effects of hoarseness, cough, pain, paresthesias, and dyspnea are associated with the treatment but appear to be reasonably well tolerated as dropouts were rare. Typical central nervous system adverse effects of antiepileptic drugs such as ataxia, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, and somnolence were not statistically significantly associated with VNS treatment.
Effect of Thymine-5-Bromouracil Substitution on F Pili

The effect of thymine-5-bromouracil substitution on the regeneration and length of F pili produced by an F(+)Lac(+)/Lac(-)Thy(-) strain of Escherichia coli was studied by electron microscopy. When 5-bromouracil (5BU) incorporation into deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was maximal, the modal length of the pilus doubled and the number of pili per cell was approximately 50% that of thymine-grown cells. The ability of 5BU-grown cells to form mating pairs and to be infected by ribonucleic acid (R17) and DNA (M13) male-specific phages was also reduced by approximately 50%. Loss of function was not due to loss of sex factor as 5BU cells retained a sex factor that was susceptible to curing by acridine orange. Elongation of pili on 5BU-grown cells was more sensitive to irradiation at 253.7 nm than on thymine-grown cells, suggesting that DNA is the sensitive target.
Money Laundering Detection Framework to Link the Disparate and Evolving Schemes

Money launderers hide traces of their transactions with the involvement of entities that participate in sophisticated schemes. Money laundering detection requires unraveling concealed connections among multiple but seemingly unrelated human money laundering networks, ties among actors of those schemes, and amounts of funds transferred among those entities. The link among small networks, either financial or social, is the primary factor that facilitates money laundering. Hence, the analysis of relations among money laundering networks is required to present the full structure of complex schemes. We propose a framework that uses sequence matching, case-based analysis, social network analysis, and complex event processing to detect money laundering. Our framework captures an ongoing single scheme as an event, and associations among such ongoing sequence of events to capture complex relationships among evolving money laundering schemes. The framework can detect associated multiple money laundering networks even in the absence of some evidence. We validated the accuracy of detecting evolving money laundering schemes using a multi-phases test methodology. Our test used data generated from real-life cases, and extrapolated to generate more data from real-life schemes generator that we implemented.
Is Sodium Supplementation Necessary to Avoid Dehydration During Prolonged Exercise in the Heat

The primary purpose of this work was to gain further insight into the need for sodium supplementation for maintenance of appropriate hydration during prolonged exercise under hot conditions. Participants of a 161-km ultramarathon (ambient temperature reaching 39° C) underwent body weight measurements immediately before, during, and after the race, and completed a postrace questionnaire about supplemental sodium intake and drinking strategies during 4 race segments. The postrace questionnaire was completed by 233 (78.7%) race finishers. Significant direct relationships were found for percentage weight change during the race with intake rate (r = 0.18, p = 0.0058) and total amount (r = 0.24, p = 0.0002) of sodium in supplements. Comparing those using no sodium supplements throughout the race (n = 15) with those using sodium supplements each race segment (n = 138), body weight change across the course showed significant group (p = 0.022), course location (p < 0.0001), and interaction (p = 0.0098) effects. Posttests revealed greater weight loss at 90 km (p = 0.016, -3.2 ± 1.6% vs. -2.2 ± 1.5%, mean ± SD) and the finish (p = 0.014, -3.2 ± 1.5% vs. -1.9 ± 1.9%) for those using no sodium supplements compared with those using sodium supplements each segment. Six runners who used no sodium supplements, drank to thirst, and only drank water or a mixture of mostly water with some electrolyte-containing drink finished with mean weight change of -3.4%. Although the use of supplemental sodium enhanced body weight maintenance, those not using sodium supplements maintained a more appropriate weight than those consistently using sodium supplements. Therefore, we conclude that the supplemental sodium is unnecessary to maintain appropriate hydration during prolonged exercise in the heat.
Enhancing value via cooperation: Firms' process benefits from participation in a standard consortium

Firms benefit from participating in a consortium in two ways: from final products and from the cooperation process. Process benefits, including interorganizational learning and social capital benefits, are critical to motivate firms to participate in a consortium. However, there is limited understanding of what factors enable firms to obtain process benefits via consortium activities. Based on 232 member surveys collected from seven e-business standard consortia, we find that firms anticipate more process benefits if they are more technically capable, value the forthcoming standards higher, and participate in a better-managed consortium. Surprisingly, although relational risks exist due to potential competition among consortium members, their impacts on process benefits are insignificant in e-business standard consortia. Furthermore, our empirical analysis suggests that more technically capable firms handle relational risk less effectively when learning within the consortium. Copyright 2012 The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Associazione ICC. All rights reserved., Oxford University Press.
Water-rock interaction and life

Water-rock interactions play a critical role in the origin, existence, and prospects of life. Minerals are sources of energy and nutrients. Life uses aqueous chemical gradients to access and use minerals. Chemical disequilibrium, therefore, represents one type of biotic signature. Life also controls other types of disequilibrium, including isotopic disequilibrium and morphology. Water is a fundamental contributor to all of these biosignatures, acting as a medium for mass transfer and a reservoir for components. Distinguishing biosignatures from abiotic signatures challenges instrumental capabilities. Finally, the ubiquity and heterogenous distribution of life on Earth challenges the ability to interpret different types of disequilibria as evidence for life, or absence thereof.
Source code curation on StackOverflow: the vesperin system

The past few years have witnessed the rise of software question and answer sites like StackOverflow, where developers can pose detailed coding questions and receive quality answers. Developers using these sites engage in a complex code foraging process of understanding and adapting the code snippets they encounter. We introduce the notion of source code curation to cover the act of discovering some source code of interest, cleaning and transforming (refining) it, and then presenting it in a meaningful and organized way. In this paper, we present Vesperin, a source code curation system geared towards curating Java code examples on StackOverflow.
The multiperson use of non-syringe injection equipment and risk of hepatitis c infection in a cohort of young adult injection drug users, chicago 1997-1999.

Abstract PURPOSE: The possibility that hepatitis C virus (HCV) is transmitted via the multiperson use of injection paraphernalia other than syringes has been suggested, but epidemiologic studies to examine the association are difficult to design due to saturation levels of infection in most samples of injection drug users (IDUs). This study (1) assembled a sample of young adult IDUs, among whom hepatitis C infection prevalence was still moderate, (2) measured incident HCV infection, and (3) determined the risk for seroconversion associated with specific forms of sharing injection paraphernalia. METHODS: Between 1997 and 1999, 702 IDUs, 18–30 years old, were interviewed and screened for antibodies to HCV at baseline and at 6 and 12 months post-baseline. Participants were recruited through street outreach, advertising and chain-referral from ethnically diverse neighborhoods in metropolitan Chicago. Data were analyzed using standard survival statistical methods. RESULTS: HCV prevalence was 27% at enrollment. During 296.5 person-years of observation, we observed 37 HCV seroconversions (incidence: 12.5/100 person-years). The adjusted relative hazard (RH) of seroconversion, after controlling for demographic and drug use covariates, was highest for sharing cookers (RH, 3.58; 95% CI 1.47–8.70), followed by sharing rinse water (RH, 2.16; 95% CI 1.03–4.52), and cottons (RH, 1.84; 95% CI 0.95–3.56). Risk associated with syringe sharing was marginally significant, and backloading was unassociated with hepatitis C seroconversion. Adjusting for syringe sharing, the independent effects of sharing cookers and cottons remained significant, and a final model that included each sharing practice demonstrated that sharing cookers had at the strongest association with seroconversion (RH, 3.03; 95% CI 1.05–8.72). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that sharing non-syringe paraphernalia may be an important cause of hepatitis C virus transmission between IDUs.
Kaolinite exchange between a stream and streambed: Laboratory experiments and validation of a colloid transport model

Experiments were conducted in a recirculating flume to elucidate the fundamental physical and chemical processes which control the stream-subsurface exchange of colloids. Results are presented on the rate of exchange of colloids (kaolinite clay) and a conservative solute (lithium) from a stream to a sand streambed covered by stationary bed forms (dunes, ripples). Kaolinite and lithium were added to the recirculating stream, and their exchange with the bed was observed over time. Kaolinite was observed to be much more extensively trapped in the streambed than lithium owing to nonconservative processes. By the end of most experiments, essentially all added kaolinite was taken up by the streambed. The observed exchange rates can be explained by analyzing the solute and particle fluxes through the stream-subsurface interface and the physicochemical interactions between transported kaolinite and the bed sediment. The colloid pumping model predicts particle exchange based on pumping hydraulics, particle settling in the bed, and filtration by the bed sediments. Observed colloid and solute exchanges were successfully predicted by the process-based models without the use of fitting coefficients. Hydraulic parameters measured in the flume and particle parameters measured in separate experiments were used as model inputs. The successful prediction of experimental results validates the modeling approach of combining a fundamental hydraulic exchange model with a physicochemical model for colloid transport and filtration in the streambed. Further, because colloid transport behavior was interpreted in terms of basic exchange and trapping processes, the results of this study are expected to be directly applicable to the analysis of fine sediment dynamics in natural streams.
Sublethal effects of oiled sediment on the sand worm, Nereis (neanthes) virens: Induced changes in burrowing and emergence

Abstract The burrowing and emergence behavior of sand worms, Nereis (Neanthes) virens Sars , in sediment contaminated with sublethal concentrations of Prudhoe Bay crude oil ranging from 74 to 5222 ppm, was studied in the laboratory. Initial burrowing in oiled sediment did not differ from that observed in unoiled sediment. Emergence of exposed worms was related to the oil concentration and the extent of weathering of oiled sediment. Sand worms buried in unoiled sediment did not emerge. Worms dug from oiled sediment after 12 hours' exposure and placed on unoiled sediment were impaired, resulting in a significant increase in time to burrow. However, after 12h, they recovered and burrowed at normal rates. Worms held in oiled sediment for 96 h also recovered. Possible causes for recovery are discussed. Results suggest that oil-induced aberrations may increase vulnerability to predation.
The foundation of kinship: households.

Men’s hunting has dominated the discourse on energy capture and flow in the past decade or so. We turn to women’s roles as critical to household formation, pair-bonding, and intergenerational bonds. Their pivotal contributions in food processing and distribution likely promoted kinship, both genetic and affinal, and appear to be the foundation from which households evolved. With conscious recognition of household social units, variable cultural constructions of human kinship systems that were sensitive to environmental and technological conditions could emerge. Kinship dramatically altered the organization of resource access for our species, creating what we term “kinship ecologies.” We present simple mathematical models to show how hunting leads to dependence on women’s contributions, bonds men to women, and bonds generations together. Kinship, as it organized transfers of food and labor energy centered on women, also became integrated with the biological evolution of human reproduction and life history.
Effect of methylprednisolone on experimental noncardiogenic pulmonary edema.

Methylprednisolone, 30 mg/kg body weight, was given to dogs 30 min and 4 h after injection of monocrotaline to produce noncardiogenic pulmonary edema. Control animals received monocrotaline but not corticosteroids. After 6 h the steroid-treated animals demonstrated significantly better gas exchange and significantly less pulmonary edema. A possible mechanism of this beneficial effect of steroids is inhibition of complement-leukocyte interactions which may mediate pulmonary microvascular injury. The results lend some support to the clinical practice of short-term pharmacologic doses of steroids in noncardiogenic pulmonary edema.
Introducing δ88/86Sr analysis in archaeology: a demonstration of the utility of strontium isotope fractionation in paleodietary studies

Abstract Isotopic methods are widely used in archaeology to investigate paleodiet. Here, we present a new method to identify trophic level in archaeological human populations and to investigate paleodiet. We demonstrate that strontium isotope compositions (reported as δ88/86Sr) vary in a mass-dependent manner with increasing trophic level and can elucidate paleodiet in archaeological human populations. We present new mass-dependent strontium isotope data from tooth enamel and bone from individuals buried during the Late Intermediate Period (c. AD 1000–1300) in the large cemeteries of Chiribaya Alta, Chiribaya Baja, San Geronimo, and El Yaral in the Ilo and Moquegua Valleys of southern Peru. We compare these data to radiogenic strontium isotope data (87Sr/86Sr) and light stable isotope data (δ15Ncol and δ13Ccol) from the same individuals to investigate geologic variability in strontium sources as well as marine food consumption among the Chiribaya. Our results demonstrate the utility of measurements of strontium isotope fractionation as a new tool for archaeological investigation of paleodiet. Importantly, this new technique can be used to generate paleodietary (δ88/86Sr) and paleomobility (87Sr/86Sr) data from the same specimen, minimizing destructive analyses of invaluable archaeological material, and provides a new way to examine paleodiet through hydroxyapatite, which is particularly important when collagen is poorly preserved.
Isolation of mitotic chromosomes from partially synchronized carrot (D. carota) cell suspension cultures

Condensed mitotic chromosomes were isolated from cell suspension cultures of carrot, Daucus carota var. Danvers. Mitotic cells were obtained from partially synchronized cell cultures by adding colchicine 15 h after inoculation of 4-day-old cultures into fresh medium. From 12% to 18% of the cells were in mitosis 6 h after colchicine addition. Other methods of inducing synchrony and collecting mitotic cells, including using 5-fluorodeoxyuridine (Fudr) or hydroxyurea (HU), were less effective. Chromosomes were isolated by incubating the cells in cell wall degrading enzymes for 1 h, rupturing the cells and subjecting the extract to differential centrifugation to partially remove nuclei and cell debris. Paired mitotic chromosomes were identified in these extracts using phase contrast and fluorescence microscopy.
Two-dimensional imaging through diffusing media using 150-fs gated electronic holography techniques

We combine 150-fs holographic gating with specifically adapted electronic holography techniques to produce transmission images of objects embedded in diffusing material. The technique captures, without the use of scanning procedures, complete two-dimensional images with 150-fs temporal resolution, thereby yielding submillimeter spatial resolution through diffusing objects several centimeters thick.
Capacity Release by Shunt Capacitor Placement on Distribution Feeders: A New Voltage-Dependent Model

A new voltage-dependent methodology for shunt-capacitor compensation of primary distribution feeders is presented. A generalized computer- based procedure is described for optimally sizing and placing any specified number of fixed shunt capacitors while accounting for voltage variation along the feeder. The procedure is applied to a physically-existing feeder with known P, Q loads to yield results for capacity release exactly comparable to those from an optimal power flow. The superiority of the new methodology over existing methods is demonstrated.
Corrugated (multiple) ringed esophagus, GERD versus allergy?

TO THE EDITOR: Having observed 12 patients (1, 2), some for a dozen years, with multiple rings (corrugated ringed esophagus [CRE] seems nicely descriptive!), I question Morrow et al.'s (3) gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) primacy postulate. Their pathologist, as many formerly did, equates esophageal eosinophilia to GERD! That ignores CRE's many similarities to adolescent idiopathic eosinophilic "allergic" esophagitis (IEE)—both manifesting major maleness, allergic histories, and intramucosal eosinophilia. Originally IEE was also attributed to GERD. But normal ambulatory pH studies and total failure to respond to intensive acid suppression (even fundoplications), accompanied by striking full-length eosinophilia on biopsy (4, 5, 6), led to its recognition. IEEs are dramatically normalized symptomwise by attacking allergic causes—oral prednisone (5, 6), topical corticosteroids (7), or elimination diets (6, 8). Esophageal eosinophilia has been carefully studied in both IEE and GERD (5, 6, 9). In IEE the criteria are greater than 20/high powered field (hpf). In GERD the counts are both lower, and in contrast to IEE and CRE, the upper two thirds of the esophagus is nearly devoid of eosinophils. Walsh's group (9) found a mean of five/hpf distally, none over 11, and only one/hpf proximally! Moreover, Ahmed et al. (10) found no eosinophilia in 52% of documented pH monitor-positive GERDs.
High-order discretization schemes for biochemical applications of boundary element solvation and variational electrostatic projection methods.

A series of high-order surface element discretization schemes for variational boundary element methods are introduced. The surface elements are chosen in accord with angular quadrature rules for integration of spherical harmonics. Surface element interactions are modeled by Coulomb integrals between spherical Gaussian functions with exponents chosen to reproduce the exact variational energy and Gauss’s law for a point charge in a spherical cavity. The present work allows high-order surface element expansions to be made for variational methods such as the conductorlike screening model for solvation and the variational electrostatic projection method for generalized solvent boundary potentials in molecular simulations.
Improved efficiency in Monte Carlo simulation of ion implanted impurity profiles in single-crystal materials

Abstract In this paper is reported a new approach with greatly improved efficiency for the Monte Carlo simulation of implanted profiles in single-crystal materials. This approach has been successfully implemented in the UT Monte Carlo code (UT-MARLOWE). A time savings of over 200 × has been observed with a 4-stage simulation yielding a statistically significant distribution over a dynamic range of three orders of magnitude. A simulation of arsenic implants with 15 keV implant energy typically takes approximately 12 minutes on a workstation.
Effects of fish meal- and fish oil-free diets on growth responses and fatty acid composition of juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch)

Abstract Commercial diets fed to coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) contain high levels of fish meal and fish oil. Given concerns about future supplies and prices of these commodities, more nutritional research aimed at identifying alternative dietary ingredients for Pacific salmon is needed. Thus, utilizing a factorial design, terrestrial proteins and lipids were evaluated in practical diets fed to coho salmon. The two basal diets, containing mostly marine proteins or containing only terrestrial proteins, were extruded and top-coated with either marine fish oil or a 63:37 mixture of canola and flaxseed oils. Each of the four dietary treatments was fed to quadruplicate groups of juvenile coho salmon initially weighing 7.5 g/fish. At the end of the 15-wk feeding trial, weight gain (WG), feed efficiency (FE) and survival were significantly higher in fish fed diets containing marine protein compared with fish fed diets containing terrestrial proteins. Similarly, WG and FE were significantly higher in fish fed diets containing fish oil compared with fish fed diets containing plant oils. Survival was not significantly affected by dietary lipid source. Hemoglobin, hematocrit and total protein concentrations in whole blood were significantly higher in fish fed the marine protein diets compared with fish fed the terrestrial protein diets. Hematological responses were not significantly affected by dietary lipid source. Tissue (liver, muscle and carcass) lipids in fish fed the diets with added fish oil contained significantly higher proportions of 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 and significantly lower 18:1n-9, 18:2n-6 and 18:3n-3 percentages compared with fish fed the diets with added plant oils. Tissue fatty acid profiles also were significantly affected by dietary protein source, as liver, muscle and whole body lipids of fish fed the terrestrial protein diets contained significantly higher percentages of 18:2n-6 and total n-6 PUFA and a significantly lower total n-3:n-6 fatty acid ratio compared with fish fed the marine protein diets. Results of this study indicate complete replacement of dietary fish meal or fish oil individually have similar inhibitory growth effects in coho salmon, but have different effects on survival, hematological responses and tissue fatty acid percentages in this species.
An optical prism based on resonance ultra-dispersive media

We have theoretically predicted and experimentally demonstrated an ultra-dispersive atomic prism made of coherently driven Rb atomic vapor. The prism posses spectral angular dispersion that six orders of magnetude higher than the prism made from optical glass; it is the highest spectral angular dispersion that has been ever shown (such angular dispersion allows one to resolve spatially light separated by a few kHz). The prism is working near the resonant frequency of atomic vapor, and its dispersion is optically controlled by coherent driving field.
Looking beyond resources: Exploring the importance of entrepreneurship to firm-level competitive advantage in technologically intensive industries

Abstract The resource-based view of the firm (RBV) suggests that in order to attain and sustain a competitive advantage firms must possess and exploit valuable, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable resources. Despite the focus on exploitation, empirical work in this area has focused primarily on resource possession. By infusing this traditional view of the RBV with ideas from the dynamic capabilities approach and the entrepreneurship literature, this paper presents conceptual arguments about the exploitation of resources through the development of specific capabilities. The empirical results suggest that entrepreneurial capacity and entrepreneurial management are important capabilities that help in building competitive advantage for firms in technologically intensive industries.
Cytometric determination of novel organotellurium compound toxicity in a promyelocytic (HL-60) cell line.

The increasing use of tellurium compounds in organic synthesis, industrial applications, and as a possible component in pesticides means that its introduction into the environment will increase in the future. Therefore, knowledge of the relative toxicity and mode of toxic action of tellurium-containing compounds is important. The studies detailed here used three model compounds: diphenyl ditelluride, 3,3′-diaminodiphenyl ditelluride, and 4,4′-diisopropyldiphenyl ditelluride. Experiments with human promyelocytic (line HL-60) cells indicate that all of the organotellurium compounds induce an apoptotic form of cell death. The induction of apoptosis occurs in a time- and dose-dependent manner as assayed by three different analytical methods: fluorescence microscopy, gel electrophoresis, and flow cytometry. Apoptotic cells were evident as early as 2 h following treatment with 1×10–6 M concentrations of the compounds. Based on these results, future care should be afforded these compounds in laboratory as well as industrial settings.
Glycogen metabolism: metabolic coupling between astrocytes and neurons.

ATP= : adenosine triphosphate; cAMP= : cyclic adenosine monophosphate; GBE= : glycogen branching enzyme; GSK= : glycogen synthase kinase; PTG= : protein targeting to glycogen. Brain glycogen metabolism provides a typical example of metabolic coupling between neurons and astrocytes. Glycogen is almost exclusively localized in astrocytes and serves as an endogenous source of energy for these cells and for neurons. Neural activity leads to release of glutamate and other neurotransmitters that trigger mobilization of energy from glycogen in astrocytes. Glycogenolysis in astrocytes leads to the production of lactate, which serves as an energy substrate for the active neurons. Although the functional role of glycogen in the brain is incompletely understood, there is experimental evidence that glycogen is able to sustain neuronal activity during energy deprivation or in the setting of hypoxia, ischemia, hypoglycemia, or seizures. Whereas neurons also have the enzymatic machinery to synthesize glycogen, in normal conditions this process is actively inhibited, and this prevents glycogen- triggered damage of these cells. Abnormal glycogen metabolism has been typically associated with muscle disorders, but may also underlie some disorders affecting the CNS. Inability to inhibit glycogen synthesis in neurons is the basis for Lafora disease and impaired activity of glycogen branching enzyme occurs in adult polyglucosan body disease. The focus of this short review is on some physiologic aspects of brain glycogen metabolism and their clinical correlations. These topics have been comprehensively reviewed elsewhere.1–7 ### Glycogen metabolism in astrocytes. In adult brain, glycogen is predominantly present in astrocytes. Glycogen is a spherical and highly branched polymer comprising up to approximately 53,000 glycosyl units. It is synthesized from a core consisting of a peptide called glycogenin and proglycogen, which serves as a stable intermediate that is converted into macroglycogen, the storage form of glycogen.8,9 Glycogen synthesis from glucose depends on the activity of glycogen synthase, which catalyzes formation of α-1,4-glycosidic linkage of the polymer, and glycogen branching enzyme, which introduces the α-1,6-glycosidic branch points. Degradation occurs in the cytosol through …
Lithium insertion into Fe2(MO4)3 frameworks: Comparison of M = W with M = Mo

Abstract Room-temperature lithium insertion into the title framework structures can be represented as Fe 3+ 2 ( Mo 6+ O 4 ) 3 → 2n- BuLi Li 2 Fe 2+ 2 ( Mo 6+ O 4 ) 3 → 6n- BuLi [ Li + 8 Fe 2+ 2 ( Mo 4+ O 4 ) 3 ] Li + 2y Mo 4+ y Fe 2+ 2 O 2+3y + Li + 8-2y Mo 4+ 3−y O 10−3y with 0 Fe 3+ 2 ( W 6+ O 4 ) 3 → 2n- BuLi Li 2 Fe 2+ 2 ( W 6+ O 4 ) 3 → 10n- BuLi [ Li + 12 Fe 0 2 ( W 4+ O 4 ) 3 ]6 Li 2 O +2 Fe +3 WO 2 Electrochemical insertion/extraction is reversible for LixFe2(WO4)3, 0 ≤ x ≤ 2.0, as in the molybdate system, a two-phase region extending over the range 0
Inflation of a viscoelastic ellipsoidal neo-Hookean membrane

The inflation of an ellipsoidal viscoelastic nonlinear membrane is described. The creep and relaxation phenomena are obtained for constant inflating pressures and constant deformations. The governing equations are written in terms of three new variables and are reduced to three partial differential integral equations. These equations are further reduced to three first-order ordinary equations with explicit derivatives by employing the trapezoidal rule for integration. The constitutive equations developed by Pipkin and Rogers are used.
Placental changes in a first trimester missed abortion in maternal systemic lupus erythematosus with antiphospholipid syndrome: A case report and review of the literature

The placental lesions generally attributed to the effects of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on the decidual and placental villi include decidual vasculopathy, placental infarcts and possibly intrauterine growth retardation. The maternal decidual vessels in SLE show a lesion termed "acute atherosis" which is histologically similar to acute vascular rejection in a transplanted kidney. These changes can be so extensive as to result in complete vascular occlusion, decreased placental perfusion and resultant placental villous infarction. In currettings from products of conception in the first trimester, acute atherosis is a rare finding. We describe striking decidual vasculopathy and extensive villous infarction in a case of a first trimester missed abortion in a patient with SLE who had anticardiolipin antibodies (ACL), both immunoglobulin (IgG) and IgM, and lupus anticoagulant (LA) in her serum. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of acute atherosis and villous infarction in a first trimester placenta in association with SLE and/or ACL and LA. Pathologists should be aware of these changes and alert clinicians to the possibility of SLE or antiphospholipid and/or anticardiolipin antibodies.
SIMILARITIES IN THE LIGHT CHAINS OF ANTI-γ-GLOBULINS SHOWING CROSS-IDIOTYPIC SPECIFICITIES

A marked homogeneity of the light chains was observed in an analysis of 17 IgM proteins with anti-γ-globulin activity. The V region subgroups of the light chains were determined by both sequence and antigenic analysis. The latter procedure permitted large scale screening for comparisons with control proteins. The two methods showed general agreement in the determination of Kappa III proteins; all proteins positive by antigenic analysis were also positive by sequence but exceptions were noted in the opposite direction. The anti-γ-globulins showed by antigenic analysis a 92% incidence of VK III light chains as compared to an incidence of 27% among 81 control proteins without this activity. A similar selection was observed for an antigen (VK III b) which subdivided the kappa III proteins. The major Wa group of anti-γ-globulins which had been delineated previously on the basis of cross-idiotypic specificity was primarily responsible for the special light-chain selection. All the proteins of this group contain VK III light chains and all were of the VK III b type. Current evidence indicates that additional light-chain similarities were involved in the cross-idiotypic specificity of the Wa group. It thus appears that for the anti-γ-globulins various levels of selection of light chains are manifest ranging from a preponderance of kappa type, of kappa III subgroup, of kappa III b sub-subgroup and perhaps of still further subdivisions to account for the cross-idiotypic specificity.
Molecular scale electronics. Syntheses and Testing

The syntheses of conjugated molecules that are over 100 A long are presented. They are based on oligo(thiophene-ethynylene)s and oligo(phenylene-ethynylene)s. A method for attachment of molecular-sized alligator clips is presented. These serve as bonding locations to gold probes.
Cardiac MRI: Part 1, cardiovascular shunts

OBJECTIVE. MRI plays an important role in the morphologic and functional evaluation of cardiovascular shunts. Good spatiotemporal resolution, inherent contrast resolution, wide FOV, and multiplanar imaging capabilities make MRI an ideal tool in the investigation of cardiovascular shunts. The velocity-encoded phase-contrast sequence is used in the quantification of a shunt and the steady-state free precession (SSFP) sequence is used in the assessment of the functional impact of a shunt. In this article, the role of MRI in the evaluation of cardiovascular shunts and their respective MRI appearances are described and illustrated. CONCLUSION. MRI can identify and characterize septal defects, quantify shunts and their impact on cardiac function, and help in the selection of appropriate candidates for percutaneous device placement.
Development of the Waukegan station of the public service company of Northern Illinois

REASONS for the choice of site, general plan, and development of the Waukegan station are outlined briefly in this paper, further details being given in a companion paper by E. C. Williams. This station, located approximately 40 miles north of Chicago and on the west shore of Lake Michigan, has an installed capacity of 290,000 kw. It performs the dual function of supplying energy to a metropolitan system and a surrounding transmission system.
What pain tells us about cancer

Cancer pain sends a message. It is frightening to the patient. It heralds progression or recurrence to the oncologist. It is a biological readout of the cancer-nerve interaction for the scientist. Nerves have been considered bystanders within the cancer microenvironment. However, emerging information suggests that nerves are recruited and participate in the carcinogenic process. These newly formed fibers respond to mediators secreted by constituents of the cancer microenvironment. In this manner, these nerves serve as bellwethers and sensors embedded within the cancer. When we rigorously assess patients' cancer pain, we gain insight into the action of cancer. An enhanced understanding of cancer pain offers biological questions that if answered might not only provide relief from cancer pain but might also improve survival.
Review article: Medical therapy for fistulizing Crohn's disease.

ummary Background Fistulae will develop in approximately one-third of patients with Crohn's disease. With an expected spontaneous healing rate of only 10%, fistulizing Crohn's disease requires a comprehensive strategy with a medical and possible surgical approach. Aim To summarize the current literature evaluating various medical options for treating patients with fistulizing Crohn's disease. Methods A literature review was conducted using PubMed (search terms: Crohn's disease and fistula) and manual search of references among the identified studies and relevant review papers to identify papers that present data on medical treatment of fistulizing Crohn's disease. Results The first line of medical therapy remains antibiotics (metronidazole and ciprofloxacin). Mercaptopurine and azathioprine are medications that are effective in treating fistulizing Crohn's disease. The current gold standard of medical treatment to induce and maintain remission for fistulizing Crohn's disease is infliximab. Used as induction therapy, infliximab produced a 62% clinical response, and a complete closure rate of 46%. A maintenance therapy trial demonstrated at 54 weeks, 46% of patients receiving infliximab continued to respond to treatment, compared with 23% in the placebo group (P = 0.001). Conclusion Further research to find new therapies and to improve our existing medical treatment of fistulizing Crohn's disease is required.
Language of topologically valid bounding manifolds

Abstract The kernel of a boundary-based modelling system, rooted in a formal graph language of topologically valid representations of rigid solids as connected 2-manifolds, is discussed. The representation grammar includes a syntax of face-based Euler operators and their embeddings in manifold models. Since inclusion of both elements provides necessary and sufficient conditions for solidity, topological validity of the representation scheme can be proven as follows. First the start graph is shown to be representative of a solid, then productions in the grammar are shown to be both complete and closed in the solids.
Arrested Protein Synthesis in Polysomes of Cultured Chick Embryo Cells

Cells deprived of serum synthesize proteins at a reduced rate; when serum is restored the rate returns to normal. The polysomes do not dissociate, but show reduced incorporation of amino acid in vitro, and are less responsive to polyuridylic acid than are those from normal cells.
Evaluation of Comparative Treatment Trials: Assessing Clinical Benefits and Risks for Patients, Rather Than Statistical Effects on Measures

HE EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS of treatments should not depend on the statistical effect of treatments on individual measures of outcome (benefits or harms), but rather on the clinical effects of treatments (both benefits and harms) on individual patients who experience both benefits and harms. Such evaluation requires both statistical assessment of the rates of cooccurrence of such benefits and harms and clinical assessment of their combined clinical effects on patients. Randomized clinical trials (RCTs), carried out appropriately, have the potential to move research rapidly toward personalized medicine. 1 However, to do this, RCT methodology must be updated. Several such updates already exist, some to promote optimal use of existing RCT methods (RCT registration, 2 CONSORT guidelines 3 ) and others to modify and extend their clinical significance (effect sizes) rather than statistical significance (P values) 4 or moderators of treatment choice. 5 However, all of these advances depend crucially on the quality of the RCT outcomes. RCTs should consider outcomes at the patient level, taking into account the simultaneous benefits and harms experienced by each patient, much as a physician does when deciding between 2 treatment options. Information on benefit alone is useful only if potential harms are of no clinical importance and vice versa. For instance, there is concern that use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressants in adolescents may increase the risk of suicidal ideation and suicidality. 6 If only benefits are considered, a small subgroup of young patients may be exposed to serious harm; however, if only harms are considered, other patients may be denied a potentially lifesaving treatment. Methods for assessing clinical effects of interventions on patients rather than on measures are already available, and better methods can be developed, but this type of information must be demanded of RCTs.
167 The Effects of Hydrogen Peroxide on Fetal Wound Repair

Cutaneous wound healing is a complex process that ends with scar formation in adult skin. In contrast, fetal skin within the first and second trimesters of development heals without a scar. One of the most important aspects of scarless fetal wound repair appears to be the lack of inflammation in these wounds, suggesting that acute inflammation can promote scar formation in the skin. While it is well accepted that inflammation causes scar formation in the fetus, it is not known what specific factors produced during inflammation are responsible for these effects. The present experiments tested the possibility that oxidants released by activated inflammatory cells can contribute to scar tissue production by inducing inflammation in the fetus. Using a murine fetal wound repair model we demonstrate that hydrogen peroxide increased E15 (embryonic day 15) fibroblast proliferation and ultimately interfered with scarless healing in E15 skin, possibly through the induction of TGF-β1. Defining the factors produced during the inflammatory response that contribute to scar formation could be important for the development of new therapies designed to minimize adult scarring.
Genetic deletion of CB1 receptors improves non-associative learning

Habituation (a form of non-associative learning) was measured by assessing locomotion in novel activity monitors in CB1 receptor knockout mice and juxtaposed to habituation measured in muscarinic M2, M4, and double M2/M4 receptor knockout mice. M2 and M2/M4, but not M4, receptor knockout mice appeared to have an impaired ability to habituate, whereas CB1 receptor knockout mice showed enhanced habituation compared to wild-type animals. We conclude that CB1 receptor gene invalidation improves habituation tentatively through an increase in cholinergic neurotransmission.
Indirect effects and distributed control in ecosystems:: Distributed control in the environ networks of a seven-compartment model of nitrogen flow in the Neuse River Estuary, USA—Steady-state analysis

Comparative network environ analysis (NEA) is used to holistically explore controlling relationships in ecosystems. The term, distributed control, for the present series of papers, is adopted to describe a diffuse and decentralized concept of control residing in the complexity of organization. Starting with “open-loop” control theory parlance, three ecological control terms (control ratio, control difference, and system control) are derived in an environ framework by considering pair-wise and system-wide distributed control relationships. These control relationships are then explored using the seven compartment steady-state model of average nitrogen flow in the Neuse River Estuary, North Carolina, USA (Christian, R.R., Thomas, C.R., 2003. Network analysis of nitrogen inputs and cycling in the Neuse River Estuary, N.C., USA. Estuaries 26 (3), 815–828). Sediment and nitrates–nitrites (NOx) are shown to participate in opposing roles. If magnitude denotes dominance and therefore control, the control metrics reveal that sediment is overwhelmingly controlled by all components where NOx exhibits control over all components. However, if a limiting factor perspective is used (e.g., sediment sequestering N with a controlled release to NOx), the conclusions are opposite; sediment controls all other components and all other components control NOx. As such, the overall direction of the control relationship is the subject of further review. Thus far, the results are preliminary and this remains a throughflow based steady-state analysis with additional discrete time analyses planned.
Interactive churn metrics: socio-technical variants of code churn

A central part of software quality is finding bugs. One method of finding bugs is by measuring important aspects of the software product and the development process. In recent history, researchers have discovered evidence of a "code churn" effect whereby the degree to which a given source code file has changed over time is correlated with faults and vulnerabilities. Computing the code churn metric comes from counting source code differences in version control repositories. However, code churn does not take into account a critical factor of any software development team: the human factor, specifically who is making the changes. In this paper, we introduce a new class of human-centered metrics, "interactive churn metrics" as variants of code churn. Using the git blame tool, we identify the most recent developer who changed a given line of code in a file prior to a given revision. Then, for each line changed in a given revision, determined if the revision author was changing his or her own code ("self churn"), or the author was changing code last modified by somebody else ("interactive churn"). We derive and present several metrics from this concept. Finally, we conducted an empirical analysis of these metrics on the PHP programming language and its post-release vulnerabilities. We found that our interactive churn metrics are statistically correlated with post-release vulnerabilities and only weakly correlated with code churn metrics and source lines of code. The results indicate that interactive churn metrics are associated with software quality and are different from the code churn and source lines of code.
APPLICATION OF ACTIVATION ANALYSIS TO FORENSIC SCIENCE--II. DRUGS.

Abstract Neutron-activation analysis has been applied to the problem of comparison and identification of drugs. Phenobarbital and pethidine hydrochloride samples have been irradiated in the reactor and the resulting induced radionuclides identified by non-destructive γ-ray spectrometry. Results obtained indicate the method could be used in differentiating sources of drugs.