cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 1296: Identification of human nuclear factor 1 (NF-1) as a potential transcription factor which regulates the gene expression of Sulfotransferase isoform 1A1 (SULT1A1) in human breast cancer

Proceedings: AACR 103rd Annual Meeting 2012‐‐ Mar 31‐Apr 4, 2012; Chicago, IL Sulfotransferase isoform 1A1 (SULT1A1) plays a central role in drug metabolism. SULT1A1 expression is tissue specific, with little to no expression in normal breast epithelia but plentiful protein expression in most breast tumors. Revelation of the regulators of SULT1A1 expression in breast tissues is important in predicting breast tissue response to therapeutic agents that are substrates of SULT1A1, particularly tamoxifen which can be used for both breast cancer treatment and chemoprevention. In order to identify the appropriate transcription factors that regulate the gene expression of SULT1A1, we performed transcription factor (TF) Activation Profiling Plate Array assay (Signosis, Sunnyvale, CA) in normal breast MCF10A cells and breast cancer ZR-75 cells. TF activation profile differences in MCF10A cells and ZR-75 cells were quantitatively analyzed and compared. Out of 48 TFs DNA-binding activities allowed per plate, 18 TFs’ activities were at least 1.5 fold higher in ZR75 cells compared to that of in MCF10A cells. Matching of the 18 TFs to the possible TF binding consensus sequences in SULT1A1, which were predicted by software Alibaba 2.0, was performed and we found that nuclear factor 1 (NF-1) and GATA transcription factor 1 (GATA-1) were putative transcription factors involved in the regulation of SULT1A1 expression. To further study the relationship between NF-1 and GATA-1 and SULT1A1, we measured mRNA levels of NF-1, GATA-1, and SULT1A1 using total RNA isolated from 97 human liver samples. The liver samples were obtained from 43 female and 54 male health subjects (age range 26-102 year, mean 59.0 years). The real-time RT-PCR results showed that only NF-1, not GATA-1, mRNA level showed significant correlation with SULT1A1 mRNA level (r=0.64, p<0.0001). Therefore, we have identified that NF-1 as a new strong candidate for SULT1A1 gene expression regulation. The finding has laid foundation for the study on the effect of NF-1 on SULT1A1 gene expression, which could provide a mechanistic explanation for the differential expression of SULT1A1 between normal breast tissue and breast tumors. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1296. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-1296
Calculation of Tripartite Entangled States Generated by Spontaneous Two-Photon Cascade Emission

Tripartite entangled states are generated from spontaneous two-photon cascade emission in three-level systems with spin-1/2 ground states. Prototypical W and GHZ states are produced for certain initial conditions and photon emission directions.
Di- and Tri-iodide Reactivity at Illuminated Titanium Dioxide Interfaces

A photoelectrochemical cell designed to characterize interfacial electron transfer at potentiostatically controlled mesoporous nanocrystalline (anatase) TiO2 thin film electrodes was employed to characterize the reactivity of TiO2 with di- and tri-iodide in acetonitrile solution. Tri- and di-iodide, I3− and I2•−, were generated by direct excitation of iodide (266 nm), band gap excitation of TiO2 (355 nm), or both. The first iodide oxidation product observed spectroscopically after pulsed laser excitation was di-iodide, I2•−. The yield of I2•− measured 0.1 μs after pulsed 355 nm laser excitation decreased with the application of a forward bias. Under all conditions studied, there was no direct evidence for a reaction between TiO2 and I2•−, even when the concentration of trapped electrons, TiO2(e−)s, was increased with a forward bias. Di-iodide was found instead to disproportionate to yield tri-iodide, I3−, and iodide with a disproportionation rate constant that was within experimental error the same as tha...
Color-Coded Three-Dimensional Micro Particle Tracking Velocimetry and Its Applications

A color-coded three-dimensional particle image velocimetry is successfully adapted into a microscopic setup using a 10X objective lens. A three-pinhole plate, color-coded by color filters of different wavelengths, is utilized to create a triangular triple exposure pattern on the image sensor plane for each tracer particle in the flow. The 3-D physical location of the particle can then be calculated from the size of the triangle pattern with micrometer accuracy. Light sources of different wavelengths are aligned with the corresponding pinholes, and a color separation algorithm based on principal component transformation (PCT) is developed to account for the signal crosstalk issues caused by the color filters. A particle identification method modified from cascade correlation method is used to resolve the peak locations of heavily overlapped particle images, and the triplet exposures are matched to reconstruct the 3D particle locations with a calibration-based epi-polar line search method. The velocity field is resolved by a vision-based particle tracking algorithm to track the individual particle movement between the reconstructed particle fields from each image pair. The experimental uncertainties of the system verified with experiments shows that the location uncertainties are less than 0.10µm and 0.08µm for the in-plane, and less than 0.82µm for the out-of-plane components, respectively. The displacement uncertainties are 0.62 µm and 0.63µm for the in-plane, and 0.77µm for the out-of-plane components, respectively. With the ability to tack particles in higher particle densities, the experimental setup is used to image a 600 µm × 600 µm × 600 µm volume of a backward-facing step micro-channel flow. Both results of steady flow and decelerating flow are presented, ranging from Reynolds number 0.825 to 0.033.
Outcomes of Perceived Discrimination Among Hispanic Employees: Is Diversity Management a Luxury or a Necessity?

Perceived discrimination is hypothesized to influence employee outcomes above and beyond other work stressors. Data from 139 Hispanic employees of multiple organizations supported this prediction. ...
The Multimedia Courseware and Its Application in Class Teaching

As technology advances,the reform of education is going further.New educational concept and new technology is challenging the traditional methods of teaching and studying.At the same time,software and hardware also being updated,which make much wider space for Multimedia Computer Assisted Instruction.The teacher who uses multimedia courseware in his/her classes is on the rise.It becomes the inevitable trend to the reform of classroom teaching.
Partially observable stochastic game-based multi-agent prediction markets

We present a novel representation of the prediction market using a partially observable stochastic game with information (POSGI), that can be used by each trading agent to precisely calculate the state of the market. We then propose that a correlated equilibrium (CE) strategy can be used by the agents to dynamically calculate the prices at which they should trade securities in the prediction market. Simulation results comparing the CE strategy within our POSGI model with five other strategies commonly used in similar markets show that the CE strategy results in improved price predictions and higher utilities to the agents as compared to other strategies.
Labour Pains: The Birth of Assisted Reproductive Technology Policy in India

As the industry of international fertility tourism has continued to grow around the world India has become a hotbed of controversy around the practice of commercial surrogacy. Some estimates claim that over 5,000 babies are born every year in India via surrogacy. With transnational surrogacy becoming a more widely known reproductive alternative, there are ongoing debates both in academia and the media regarding the extent to which women are empowered while also protected in the current structure of surrogacy. The resulting arrangement between intended parents, healthcare providers, surrogates and other agencies has become incredibly complex and wrought with challenges. As Shome & Hegde (2002a) have pointed out, the current state of globalization creates processes by which economic and cultural power lines shift rapidly. In light of the industry growth, the government and the Indian Council of Medical Research proposed guidelines and legislation aimed to regulate the Assisted Reproductive Technology indust...
Sex-specific differences in neonatal hyperoxic lung injury.

Male sex is considered an independent predictor for the development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) after adjusting for other confounders. BPD is characterized by an arrest in lung development ...
Teaching Research Communities

We have spoken of the traditional view of mathematics in the classroom in which the teacher is the authoritarian voice and students – passive recipients of his/her knowledge, and the alternate or reform view exposed by constructivists, as well as Koestler and most prominent mathematical educational institutions in which the focus is on the role of students as active participants in the construction of knowledge.
Passive acoustic localization and density estimation of fin whales using a single hydrophone

This paper presents an approach for carrying out passive underwater acoustic localization of a vocalizing marine mammal with data from a single receiver, and aims to build upon earlier work on localization based on the time of arrival of acoustic energy traveling either directly from source to receiver, or bouncing one or more times off the ocean surface and/or bottom. This localization approach will be applied to a multi-year data set consisting of thousands of fin whale vocalizations, necessitating an approach with a high degree of automation. This approach uses a comparison between the recorded fin whale vocalizations and model-predicted acoustic waveguide impulse responses at a set of candidate ranges and depths relative to the receiver. The location whose estimated impulse response best matches the recorded fin whale call is deemed to be the estimated source position. A small number of calls distributed throughout the data record were localized individually using a linearized Bayesian localization approach with a quantitative uncertainty analysis incorporating both data and environmental uncertainties. The data for this study were recorded by the single hydrophone in the ALOHA cabled observatory, located 100 km N of Oahu in 4728 m of water. Repeated hydrographic, chemical, and biological sampling has been done at this site since 1988, facilitating acoustic propagation modeling in the vicinity of the ALOHA site. The primary motivation for this work is to estimate the local population density of fin whales observed near the ALOHA cabled observatory.
NIBRS and SHR: A Comparison of Two National Homicide Databases With Respect to Parricide

ABSTRACTEmpirical studies on children killing parents in the United States have used the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) arrest database and have focused on single victim-single offender incidents. The authors used a second national database, National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), to compare the correlates of single victim-single offender parricide incidents in the United States from 1991 to 2010 across the two databases. NIBRS, unlike the SHR database, which includes homicide arrests across the United States, currently encompasses 30% of the U.S. population and 28% of the crime statistics collected by the FBI. Statistical tests to compare findings from the two data sets are conducted to determine to what extent NIBRS data yield similar profiles to SHR data. Results indicated that the offender, victim, and weapons data for parents and stepfathers were generally very consistent across the two databases. Very few statistically significant differences betw...
Topological subsystem codes from graphs and hypergraphs

Topological subsystem codes were proposed by Bombin based on 3-face-colorable cubic graphs. Suchara, Bravyi, and Terhal generalized this construction and proposed a method to construct topological subsystem codes using 3-valent hypergraphs that satisfy certain constraints. Finding such hypergraphs and computing their parameters, however, is a nontrivial task. We propose families of topological subsystem codes that were previously not known. In particular, our constructions give codes which cannot be derived from Bombin's construction. We also study the error recovery schemes for the proposed subsystem codes and give detailed schedules for the syndrome measurement that take advantage of the 2-locality of the gauge group. The study also leads to a new and general construction for color codes.
Expansion and Purification Are Critical for the Therapeutic Application of Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Myogenic Progenitors.

Recent reports have documented the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells toward the skeletal myogenic lineage using transgene- and cell purification-free approaches. Although these protocols generate myocytes, they have not demonstrated scalability, safety, and in vivo engraftment, which are key aspects for their future clinical application. Here we recapitulate one prominent protocol, and show that it gives rise to a heterogeneous cell population containing myocytes and other cell types. Upon transplantation, the majority of human donor cells could not contribute to myofiber formation. As a proof-of-principle, we incorporated the inducible PAX7 lentiviral system into this protocol, which then enabled scalable expansion of a homogeneous population of skeletal myogenic progenitors capable of forming myofibers in vivo. Our findings demonstrate the methods for scalable expansion of PAX7+ myogenic progenitors and their purification are critical for practical application to cell replacement treatment of muscle degenerative diseases.
A Discontinuous Galerkin Method for an Incompatibility-Based Strain Gradient Plasticity Theory

We consider a recent strain gradient plasticity theory based on incompatibility of plastic strain due to the nature of lattice distortion around a dislocation (J. Mech. Phys. Solids, 52, 2545–2568, 2004). The key features of this theory are an explicit treatment of the Burgers vector, a microforce balance that leads to a classical yield condition, and the inclusion of dissipation from plastic spin. The flow rule involves gradients of the plastic strain, and is therefore a partial differential equation. We apply recently-developed ideas on discontinuous Galerkin finite element methods to treat this higher-order nature of the yield condition, while retaining considerable flexibility in the mathematical space from which the plastic strain is drawn. In particular, despite the higher-order continuity apparent in the yield condition, it is possible to use plastic strain interpolations that are discontinuous across element edges. Two distinct approaches are outlined: the Interior Penalty Method and the Lifting Operator Method. The numerical implementation of the Interior Penalty Method is discussed, and a numerical example is presented.
The role of English in Pennsylvania German development: best supporting actress?

L'A. analyse les facteurs internes et externes du changement linguistique dans un espace bilingue, en l'occurrence la Pennsylvanie germanique. Il examine la variation des formes du participe passe et les restrictions sur les prefixes verbaux separables
Compensation Appraisals and Labor Union Membership.

Given the beneficial effects of labor unions on “bread and butter issues,” union members should appraise their economic circumstances more favorably than nonunion members do. Yet, research on the a...
Who feels the calorie crunch and when? The impact of school meals on cyclical food insecurity

Abstract Monthly welfare programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) produce consistent cycles of expenditure and consumption among recipients. Food insecurity, health status, crime, poor behavior and test scores track these cycles. This paper leverages new data from the USDA—the FoodAPS survey—to better understand these cycles in three ways. First, I find that expenditure and consumption cycles are correlated within households–a fact not previously established. Second, I study diet quality over the benefit month, and find that it worsens, potentially compounding the harmful consequences of cyclical food insecurity. Third, I find that kids bear less of the burden of the consumption cycle than adults, and that much of this difference may be driven by school-meal programs. This finding suggests large potential gains in child welfare from expanding summer meal programs.
Birthday celebrations as a family homelessness intervention: a mixed-methods analysis

Families report that the experience of homelessness presents a significant barrier to family functioning and interrupts regular family routines. This study uses data from 22 homeless shelters in Ma...
The relationship between health-related variables and increases in smoking among recently diagnosed HIV+ people who inject drugs in Vietnam

Abstract Background In Vietnam tobacco smoking is prevalent among people living with HIV (PLHIV) and causes excess mortality in this population. Injection drug use is a driver of HIV infections in Vietnam. Changes in HIV disease state may correlate to changes in smoking among PLHIV. This study investigates the relationship between increases in smoking and health-related variables among recently diagnosed HIV+ people who inject drugs (PWID) in Vietnam. Methods We analyzed longitudinal data from 323 recently diagnosed HIV+ PWID in a randomized controlled trial from 2009 to 2013 in Thai Nguyen province, Vietnam. The outcome was an increase of >one cigarette/day from baseline visit cigarette smoking. A generalized estimating equation for repeated measures was used to estimate bivariable and multivariable associations between participant characteristics and smoking increases. We collected qualitative data to enhance our understanding of quantitative results, from 16 HIV+ PWID who smoke. Results Ninety three point 5% of participants reported some smoking at baseline. Smoking fewer cigarettes, higher health related quality of life (QOL), and higher CD4 counts were predictive of increases in smoking at future visits in a multivariable model. Qualitative data showed smoking increases were tied to improved perceived health, and counseling during respiratory illnesses may increase intention to quit. Conclusion HIV+ PWID in Vietnam smoke at a very high rate. Increases in their smoking are correlated to increases in heath-related QOL, and increases in perceptions of health. Any tobacco-use intervention should account for internal tobacco use triggers faced by HIV+ PWID.
An unfolding role for ankyrin-G at the axon initial segment.

The ability of neurons to integrate convergent inputs and generate action potentials, the physiological currency of activity, relies on the axon initial segment (AIS). This specialized segment of the proximal axon is the site of electrogenesis in neurons (1), reflecting its striking enrichment in voltage-gated sodium channels (NaV). The AIS has additional, critical roles in the organization and function of neurons. It is a locus of homeostatic plasticity, i.e., activity-dependent remodeling that serves to dampen swings in activity (2). It provides a barrier to the ingress of somatodendritic components into the axonal compartment, thereby helping to establish neuronal polarity (3, 4). Finally, the AIS receives inhibitory (axo-axonic) synaptic input from Chandelier cells. These GABAergic interneurons can thereby each coordinately regulate the activity of hundreds of pyramidal neurons (5). Given these varied, critical functions, it is not surprising that the AIS is increasingly appreciated as the site of pathology in a number of neurological and psychiatric disorders (6). In PNAS, Yang et al. (7) describe several human mutations in ankyrin-G (AnkG)—the master scaffold of the AIS—that result in neurodevelopmental disorders. Analysis of these mutants indicates they impair a key conformational change in AnkG that is crucial for the assembly/maturation of the AIS, providing important insights into this essential neuronal domain. The AIS is composed of a macromolecular complex that forms autonomously in the proximal axon. This complex includes the NaV and KCNQ ion channels and members of the L1 family cell adhesion molecules, i.e., neurofascin 186 (NF186), NrCAM, and L1CAM (Fig. 1 A ). All of these proteins bind to AnkG, which itself binds to the C terminus of βIV spectrin to form a submembranous scaffold characteristic of the AIS (8). AnkG is critical for AIS assembly (9). It is also required for proper innervation of the AIS by Chandelier cells by … [↵][1]1Email: James.Salzer{at}nyulangone.org. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
The Bone Marrow Stromal Niche: A New Master Regulator of Hematological Myeloid Malignancies

Abstract Several factors converge to induce evolution of malignant cells in hematological myeloid malignancies. Such factors accumulate with aging, can be intrinsic or extrinsic to mutation-carrying hematopoietic stem cell clones and in the latter case can be exerted by their microenvironment. The bone marrow microenvironment has emerged as a critical regulator of the development of hematological myeloid malignancies acting as a permissive niche required for the emergence of tumor cells or influencing their progression or resistance to treatment. Identifying mechanisms that mediate functions of the stromal niche on disease development or progression may provide novel targets of therapeutic potential.
Gendered motivations and aspirations of university physics students in Finland

Finland is known worldwide for their strong K-12 education system and robust gender equality across their nation, yet Finnish female university students still face challenges that male students do not.
Infected Hemodialysis Arteriovenous Fistula with Distant Explosive Pleuritis: A Rare Phenomenon

BACKGROUND The management of patients with end-stage kidney disease can be accomplished with hemodialysis via a surgically created arteriovenous fistula. An arteriovenous fistula has an advantage because of the ability to serve as permanent access for hemodialysis over several months to years; however, it has a disadvantage because of its associated vascular and infectious complications. An infectious complication such as explosive pleuritis, which is usually due to respiratory infections, in the setting of an infected arteriovenous fistula site infection, is extremely rare. CASE REPORT A 36-year-old man with a past medical history of IgA nephropathy on hemodialysis with a left forearm arteriovenous fistula presented to the Emergency Department because of left flank pain. Despite no recent history or evidence of a respiratory tract infection, he developed explosive pleuritis within 48 h. The presence of Group A Streptococcus at the arteriovenous fistula site coincided with Streptococcus pyogenes infection. The pleural effusion was drained and he was treated with antibiotics. He recovered and was eventually discharged home. CONCLUSIONS Explosive pleuritis, although less frequent, is almost always secondary to respiratory tract infections. An arteriovenous fistula site infection may be the source of infection of an internal organ if no apparent source is identified.
Remote Organic Chemistry Laboratories at University of Michigan-Dearborn

University of Michigan—Dearborn offers a one semester, two credit, stand-alone Organic Chemistry Laboratory course aimed at students with an interest in health-related careers. The COVID-19 pandemi...
Zymogen and activated protein C have similar structural architecture.

Activated protein C is a trypsin-like protease with anticoagulant and cytoprotective properties that is generated by thrombin from the zymogen precursor protein C in a reaction greatly accelerated by the cofactor thrombomodulin. The molecular details of this activation remain elusive due to the lack of structural information. We now fill this gap by providing information on the overall structural organization of these proteins using single molecule FRET and small angle X-ray scattering. Under physiological conditions, both zymogen and protease adopt a conformation with all domains vertically aligned along an axis 76 A long and maximal particle size of 120 A. This conformation is stabilized by binding of Ca2+ to the Gla domain and is affected minimally by interaction with thrombin. Hence, the zymogen protein C likely interacts with the thrombin-thrombomodulin complex through a rigid body association that produces a protease with essentially the same structural architecture. This scenario stands in contrast to an analogous reaction in the coagulation cascade where conversion of the zymogen prothrombin to the protease meizothrombin by the prothrombinase complex is linked to a large conformational transition of the entire protein. The presence of rigid epidermal growth factor domains in protein C as opposed to kringles in prothrombin likely accounts for the different conformational plasticity of the two zymogens. The new structural features reported here for protein C have general relevance to vitamin K-dependent clotting factors containing epidermal growth factor domains, such as factors VII, IX, and X.
Spatial Tailoring of a Metal-Ceramic Composite Panel Subjected to High-Speed Flow

AbstractIn this paper, an optimization-based computational framework for the spatial tailoring of a metal-ceramic composite panel subjected to high-speed flow is discussed. The framework includes t...
GDF8 Contributes to the Adverse Effects of Liver Injury on Skeletal Muscle Homeostasis and Regeneration

ABSTRACT Background An emerging clinical phenomenon in patients with end stage liver disease is progressive skeletal muscle atrophy. This loss in lean mass predicts poor survival outcomes for liver disease patients and highlights an underappreciated crosstalk between injured liver and muscle that lacks defined mediators. The purpose of our study was to identify potential liver-muscle mediator(s) in pre-clinical in vivo models of liver injury which may contribute to the muscle loss observed in liver disease. Methods Utilizing a mouse model of carbon tetrachloride CCl4-induced liver injury in the presence or absence of cardiotoxin-induced muscle injury, we evaluated whether neutralizing Activin type IIB receptor (ActRIIB) ligands, or specifically growth differentiation factor 8 (Gdf8), could preserve or reverse muscle atrophy associated with liver disease. Results We found that hepatic injury via CCl4 or bile duct ligation (BDL) similarly caused significant muscle atrophy along with decreased gene expression in key myogenesis markers. This adverse effect of injured liver on muscle were completely prevented and reversed by the intervention of Activin type IIB receptor (ActRIIB)-Fc fusion protein, which neutralizes the ActRIIB ligands, including Activins and growth differentiation factor 8 (Gdf8 or myostatin). The results indicate that ActRIIB ligands promoted muscle atrophy which was manifested in response to hepatic injury/disease and conferred the negative communication of injured liver with muscle. Indeed, direct injection of exogenous Gdf8 protein into muscle along with acute focal muscle injury recapitulated similar dysregulated muscle regeneration as observed with liver injury. Furthermore, we found that hepatocytes produced Gdf8 in response to liver injury in rodents and in patients with end stage liver disease. A neutralizing antibody to Gdf8 attenuated muscle atrophy and unexpectedly ameliorated liver fibrosis in both CCl4 and BDL models. Following this observation, we demonstrated Gdf8’s ability to induce fibrogenesis in stellate cells, potentially identifying a novel hepatic role for this protein. Moreover, hepatic Gdf8 promoted muscle wasting in response to liver damage and hindered skeletal muscle regeneration. Conclusion Our findings identified Gdf8 as a novel hepatomyokine contributing to injured liver-muscle negative crosstalk and liver injury progression. Moreover, we demonstrated a promising therapeutic strategy for muscle atrophy accompanying liver diseases.
The NLRB Through the Looking Glass: Employer Power Trumps Employee Voice

This paper examines the reversal of precedent in four areas of employee protections under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act by the Trump administration’s National Labor Relations Board. This paper’s analysis reveals that in all four areas, the Trump administration’s National Labor Relations Board reversed established precedent to bolster management’s power over employees’ workplace rights.
Understanding teacher affect, knowledge, and instruction over time: an agenda for research on productive disposition for teaching mathematics

Teacher affect heavily influences instruction and learning (Cross 2009; Pajares 1992; Philipp 2007; Robertson-Kraft and Duckworth 2014). Teacher affect, which includes partially cognitive traits such as attitudes and beliefs as well as noncognitive traits such as emotion, motivation, and grit, is often defined in opposition to purely cognitive traits such as IQ or mathematical knowledge. As a consequence, teacher affect has often been studied in isolation from teacher cognition (Philipp 2007; Thompson 1992).By contrast, some researchers collapse cognitive and partially cognitive categories, grouping mathematics teacher knowledge and beliefs together as beliefs (e.g., Leatham 2006) or as knowledge (e.g., Beswick et al. 2012). Mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT), one of the most widely used frameworks for teacher knowledge, is defined to comprise ‘‘skills, habits, sensibilities as well as knowledge’’ (Ball et al. 2008; p. 403). Although this definition of MKT seems to include components of teacher affect, measures of MKT do not include affect-specific items (e.g., Hill et al. 2004). As these examples suggest, teacher affect is recognized as a critical area for research, but researchers have wrestled with how to conceptualize and measure constructs that are sensitive to the content and context of instruction (e.g., Herbel-Eisenmann et al. 2006; Newton 2009) and that can even seem inconsistent with teachers’ own instructional practice (cf., Francis 2015). Moreover, researchers have struggled to clarify how teacher affect changes during teacher education or in the context of established instructional practice (Philipp 2007). Managing these complex interactions has led to definitions of teacher affect constructs that are distant from teaching itself.
Applications of Stress Response Studies: Biofuel Production

This chapter gives examples of unintentional or unwanted chemical and physical stresses and nutrient or physical stresses, and describes general strategies that are used to manage or to sidestep them. This is followed by a discussion of metabolic imbalances as a universal stress associated with microbial biofuel production. Although, currently, the amount of H2 produced by these systems is relatively small and insufficient to consider scaling up, it is a starting point that can likely be improved on. Strategies that have targeted photosystem II activity have yielded mutants that produce H2 in the presence of sulfur and have favorable H2 production rates compared to the parent strain. This illustrates that it is possible to capitalize on detailed knowledge of a stress response to design strategies for enhanced biofuel production. Most fermentative microbes, particularly those that produce longer chain length alcohols such as butanol, produce a mixture of reduced and more oxidized organic fermentation products as a strategy to capture additional ATP by substrate level phosphorylation. Diversion or enhancement of one particular set of reactions toward excreting an energy rich, highly reduced compound can lead to either an excess or insufficiency of key intermediary metabolites. Such metabolic imbalances are another form of cellular stress that can compromise growth.
Synthetic T and B Cell Recognition Sites: Implications for Vaccine Development

Publisher Summary The advantages and disadvantages surrounding the development of synthetic peptide vaccines have been discussed in this chapter. There are obvious practical advantages to synthetic vaccines as compared to the conventional killed, attenuated, or other subunit vaccines. Conventional antiviral vaccines require large cultures to provide sufficient protein for mass immunization and not all viruses can even be propagated in culture. Whole virus vaccines must be properly inactivated or contain only attenuated virus. Many virus preparations are unstable and require special handling that may prevent their worldwide distribution in underdeveloped areas. There are also a number of more subtle immunological benefits to the use of synthetic vaccines. Certain characteristics have been demonstrated in a number of synthetic antigen systems. The synthetic immunogen elicited high-titered antibodies to each of the three antigens. Although pathogen-related T cell recognition sites were not included in this experiment, inclusion of such T cell sites would be expected to prime Th cell memory responses to each pathogen as well as antibody production. Nucleoprotein-specific Th cells were shown to elicit antienvelope antibody production as well as antinucleoprotein antibody. This finding and the proposed importance of nucleoprotein-specific T cell responses in HBV infection prompted researchers to construct a synthetic immunogen composed of nucleoprotein T cell sites and an envelope B cell epitope.
Understanding tourism: a critical introduction, by Kevin Hannam and Dan Knox

While there have been a number of studies that aim to enhance our understanding of tourism, there are remarkably few social studies that draw attention to pluralist notions of tourism from a critic...
Isolation, sequencing, and disruption of the CKA1 gene encoding the alpha subunit of yeast casein kinase II.

Abstract Casein kinase II of Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains two distinct catalytic subunits, alpha and alpha', which must be encoded by separate genes (R. Padmanabha and C. V. C. Glover, J. Biol. Chem. 262:1829-1835, 1987). The gene encoding the 42-kilodalton alpha subunit has been isolated by screening a yeast genomic library with oligonucleotide probes synthesized on the basis of the N-terminal amino acid sequence of the polypeptide. This gene (designated CKA1) contains an intron-free open reading frame of 372 amino acid residues. The deduced amino acid sequence is 67% identical to the alpha subunit of Drosophila melanogaster casein kinase II. The CKA1 gene product appears to be distantly related to other known protein kinases but exhibits highest similarity to the CDC28 gene product and its homolog in other species. Gene replacement techniques have been used to generate a null cka1 mutant allele. Haploid and diploid strains lacking a functional CKA1 gene appear to be phenotypically wild type, presumably because of the presence of the alpha' gene. Interestingly, the CKA1 gene appears to be single copy in the yeast genome; i.e., the alpha' gene, whose existence is known from biochemical studies and protein sequencing, cannot be detected by low-stringency hybridization.
The false allure of equity indexed annuities

The purpose of this column is to explain the undesirable features of annuities in general and of equity indexed annuities in particular. The types of annuities, a contract between a purchaser and an insurance company, are discussed.
The Electroencephalogram in Pediatric Practice: Its Use and Abuse

Utilized appropriately, the EEG is a helpful diagnostic tool; however, it is currently much abused and much overutilized. Understanding its limitations and its usefulness may lead to less frequent but more appropriate requests for EEGs. Realization that the EEG alone neither diagnoses nor rules out epilepsy and that it is not crucial in the diagnosis or management of "minimal brain damage" should decrease the utilization and abuse of the procedure.
Recognition and management of nonpenetrating cardiac trauma in children

Abstract OBJECTIVE. To characterize the evaluation and clinical course of children with nonpenetrating injury to the heart. METHODS. We reviewed the medical records for children admitted to St. Louis Children's Hospital between the years 1987 to 1992 with traumatic cardiac injury. Patients with penetrating trauma were excluded; eight children, ages 4 to 13 years, were the study subjects. Chest x-ray studies, electrocardiograms, and serum creatine kinase values were obtained on admission. Two-dimensional echocardiography was performed when indicated by unexplained hemodynamic instability or abnormal radiographic findings. RESULTS. All children with nonpenetrating cardiac trauma were involved in a motor vehicle accident. The principal cardiac diagnoses were ventricular septal defect (1), mitral regurgitation (1), pericardial effusion (2), contusion (3), and arrhythmia (1). Multisystem injury was present in each case, but cardiac injury was not suspected at the time of admission in seven of the eight patients. The hemodynamic status of four children was compromised 12 to 48 hours after admission; echocardiography was diagnostic in each instance, but the electrocardiogram and creatine kinase values were nonspecific. Two patients eventually required cardiac surgery. CONCLUSIONS. Recognition of blunt cardiac trauma in children may be confounded by associated multisystem injury and the delayed onset of clinical manifestations. Echocardiography is a sensitive diagnostic tool for hemodynamically significant disease, and should be performed promptly when patients have unexplained hypotension or diminished peripheral perfusion. (J P EDIATR 1996;128:536-41)
Persistent cobalamin deficiency causing failure to thrive in a juvenile beagle

A six-month-old beagle was presented with a three-month history of failure to gain weight, lethargy, intermittent vomiting and seizures. Hypoglycaemia, portosystemic shunt, lead intoxication, gastrointestinal diseases and hereditary metabolic disorders were considered. Laboratory test results of low serum cobalamin (Cbl) concentrations, anaemia, leucopenia and methylmalonic aciduria while the dog was receiving a balanced commercial canine diet were suggestive of a congenital selective Cbl malabsorption. Treatment with repeated injections of parenteral cyanocobalamin (CN-Cbl) at 50 microg/kg every two weeks corrected the Cbl-deficient state and reversed all the clinical abnormalities. Selective Cbl malabsorption has previously been described in giant schnauzers and border collies and represents a unique readily treatable hereditary metabolic disorder.
Visualization and three-dimensional image processing of positron emission tomography (PET) brain images

The author applied image processing and volume rendering algorithms together with considerations on the physiology of the human visual system to improve the quality of perception of the information contained in positron emission tomography (PET) brain images, and to highlight the existing anatomical information. The psychophysical considerations for selecting color and brightness level are used to visualize functional and anatomical structures in three dimensions. One is able to perceive in the images the levels of rates of glucose metabolism of regions in the brain and their relative locations. In addition, some of the anatomic structures, such as the interhemispheric fissure, the caudate nucleus, and the thalamus, are apparent. >
Radiation protectors: the unexpected benefits

(1989). Radiation Protectors: the Unexpected Benefits. Drug Metabolism Reviews: Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 13-42.
Chronicle of a debt foretold Mexico’s FOBAPROA debacle and lessons for the US financial crisis

In recent months, policymakers and the mainstream media have rediscovered Mexico’s tequila crisis (1994–95) and heralded purported similarities with the ongoing financial debacle in the United States. In principle, the rediscovery of the tequila crisis provides an opportunity to critically assess the causes, consequences and potential responses to the current predicament. In practice, however, vested political and economic interests have availed themselves of the tequila crisis to redefine its causes, elide responsibility for the collapse of the country’s financial system and portray Mexico’s FOBAPROA (Fondo Bancario de Proteccion al Ahorro – Banking Fund to protect Savings) bailout as a model for the present circumstances. Mexico’s tequila crisis does, indeed, have much to teach us about the US financial crisis. However, the most valuable lessons are not found in revisionist histories. Rather, popular response in Mexico reveals the possibility of organising collectively to contest the government bailout ...
Photolysis of alkyl N-alkylbenzohydroxamates

Abstract The photochemistry of alkyl N -alkylbenzohydroxamates)PhCONR 1 OR 2 ) was studied. These compounds give both type I (benzaldehyde) and type II ( N -alkylbenzamides) products. Although alkyl benzohydroxamates (PhCONHOR) undergo the type II process exclusively through the triplet state, the alkyl N -alkylbenzohydroxamates have both singlet and triplet contribution to the type II process. The type I process for the alkyl N -alkylbenzohydroxamates occurs via the singlet state and has not been observed previously in benzohydroxamate photochemistry. When changing from a more polar to a less polar solvent, the quantum yields of the type II product increase. This differs from the type II process of alkylbenzohydroxamates which shows no solvent effect and that of aryl alkanones which shows the opposite effect. The solvent effect observed here is attributed to intramolecular hydrogen bonding in the hydroxy 1,4-diradical.
Involvement of sulfhydryl groups in the action of insulin and radiation on thymocyte Na+-dependent amino acid transport

Abstract 1. 1. p- Chloromercuribenzene sulfonate concentrations 10−5 M of this reagent, transport is impaired and cell viability is affected. In contrast, 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoate) between 10−4 and 10−6 M produces only stimulation of 2-aminoisobutyrate uptake after treating for 10 min. 2. 2. Treatment of thymocytes with 10−4 M 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoate) reveals at least three categories of reactive SH groups. Titration of the most rapidly reacting category, 4 · 10 7 −7 · 10 7 / cell , activates 2-aminoisobutyrate transport to the same extent as does p- chloromercuribenzene sulfonate. Cells treated with 10−6 M insulin showed a 30–50% reduction in the number of sulfhydryl groups that could be titrated with 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoate). In thymocytes treated with 10−6 M p- chloro [ 203 Hg] mercuribenzene sulfonate, addition of 10−6 or 10−9 M insulin before treatment with the sulfhydryl reagent again reduces the number of titrable SH groups by 20%. 3. 3. Insulin (10 −10 −10 −6 M ) also stimulates 2-aminoisobutyrate uptake, but the effects of insulin and SH blocker are not addictive. 4. 4. Insulin, but not p- chloromercuribenzene sulfonate, prevents the impairment of 2-aminoisobutyrate transport caused by γ-irradiation. Treatment of cells with p- choloromercuribenzene sulfonate prior to irradiation increases the radiation impairment of 2-aminoisobutyrate transport. 5. 5. γ-irradiation reduces the number of 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoate) reactive sulfhydryl residues by 37%. 6. 6. A model for the action of insulin and irradiation on 2-aminoisobutyrate transport is presented.
Retrograde amnesia: lack of attenuation with centrally administered adrenergic antagonists.

Abstract Previous results indicate that pretraining peripheral injections of any of several adrenergic receptor antagonists can attenuate retrograde amnesia. The present experiment was an attempt to determine whether the attenuation of amnesia was due to peripheral or central actions of the adrenergic antagonists. This experiment examined the effects of intracerebroventricular (ICV) injections of these antagonists on the amnesia produced by supraseizure electrical stimulation of frontal cortex. Thirty minutes prior to training, rats received an ICV injection of an α-adrenergic (phenoxybenzamine, phentolamine, or piperoxane) or a β-adrenergic antagonist (propranolol) through a cannula in the lateral ventricle. After one-trial inhibitory (passive) avoidance training, the animals received stimulation of frontal cortex at an intensity that produces brain seizures and amnesia. The antagonists did not, in general, attenuate the amnesia produced by frontal cortex stimulation. One drug, propranolol, did attenuate the amnesia but this agent also impaired the brain seizure itself. Thus, the results suggest that adrenergic antagonists act to block the production of retrograde amnesia by interfering with peripheral aminergic responses to memory-impairing treatments.
Kinetic and structural characterization of mutations of glycine 216 in alpha-lytic protease: a new target for engineering substrate specificity.

Abstract Gly216 in the active site of the broadly specific MA190 mutant of α-lytic protease has been found to be remarkably tolerant of amino acid substitutions. Side-chains as large as Trp can be accommodated within the substrate-binding pocket without abolishing catalysis, and have major effects upon the substrate specificty of the enzyme. Kinetic characterization of eleven enzymatically active mutants against a panel of eight substrates clearly revealed the functional consequences of the substitutions at position 216. To understand better the structural basis for their altered specificity, the GA216 + MA190 and GL216 + MA190 mutants have been crystallized both with and without a representative series of peptide boronic acid transition-state analog inhibitors. An empirical description and non-para metric statistical analysis of structural variation among these enzyme: inhibitor complexes is presented. The roles of active site plasticity and dynamics in α-lytic protease function and substrate preference are also addressed. The results strongly suggest that substrate specificity determination in α-lytic protease is a distributed property of the active site and substrate molecule.
When two worlds meet.

ABSTRACTThe author is one of four American premedical students traveled to India to spend a month with Pallium India (palliumindia.org) to learn about palliative care at Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences, in the south Indian state of Kerala. The program was arranged by Child Family Health International (cfhi.org). They attended classroom sessions and joined the palliative care team during home visits and hospital consultations. They learned not just what palliative care is, but also how to understand and adapt to another culture. It was shocking to learn that all health care expenses are often out-of-pocket for most of the developing world and to see the extent of the suffering involved in life-limiting diseases. The students saw how the medical professional could adopt a basic and simple approach to medicine, acting as a mix of scientist, humanist, and spiritualist. She concludes that we in the United States too seem to be learning the value of such an approach and to make better use of availab...