cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract B34: Pregnancy-associated breast cancer and differentially expressed microRNAs.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short-stranded, non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression. The expression of miRNAs is often deregulated in breast cancer. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, have been shown to regulate miRNA gene expression in breast cancer. In our study, we set out to analyze the role that differentially expressed miRNAs play in pregnancy associated breast cancer (PABC) amongst a Hispanic population within the Ella Binational Breast Cancer study. PABC is defined as cancer that arises within a time-frame of 10 years after pregnancy. Previous studies have shown that women diagnosed with PABC do far worse than women diagnosed with non-PABC. Our hypothesis is that the epigenetic regulation of miRNA genes contributes to poor survival in PABC. We are testing our hypothesis using a cohort of post-partum formalin fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) breast cancer tissues from a Hispanic population. Using Exiqon miRCURY LNA™ Universal RT microRNA PCR panels we were able to test for the expression of 360 human miRNAs, which our laboratory previously identified as miRNAs that are specific for human mammary cells. Preliminary data from a small subset of samples showed six miRNAs that were differentially expressed (having > 4-fold expression and a p-value ≤ 0.05) between PABC and non-PABC (hsa-miR-876-5p; hsa-miR-299-3p; hsa-miR-137; hsa-miR-187; hsa-miR-873; hsa-miR-190b ). Several of these miRNAs have been implicated in carcinogenesis. Our goals are to identify differentially expressed miRNAs and to determine the extent of the epigenetic regulation of those miRNAs. These miRNAs will be evaluated for their potential utility as targets of epigenetic regulation and targets for therapeutic interventions. In addition, our studies will be the first to look at epigenetic mechanisms related to PABC in Hispanics. Hispanics have one of the highest fertility rates and an early breast cancer diagnosis. Therefore, our results will elucidate factors associated with this PABC disparity. Citation Format: Jose Luis Munoz-Rodriguez, Lukas Vrba, Patricia A. Thompson-Carino, Maria Elena Martinez, Bernard W. Futscher. Pregnancy-associated breast cancer and differentially expressed microRNAs. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fifth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2012 Oct 27-30; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012;21(10 Suppl):Abstract nr B34.
Predicting biological system objectives de novo from internal state measurements

Optimization theory has been applied to complex biological systems to interrogate network properties and develop and refine metabolic engineering strategies. For example, methods are emerging to engineer cells to optimally produce byproducts of commercial value, such as bioethanol, as well as molecular compounds for disease therapy. Flux balance analysis (FBA) is an optimization framework that aids in this interrogation by generating predictions of optimal flux distributions in cellular networks. Critical features of FBA are the definition of a biologically relevant objective function (e.g., maximizing the rate of synthesis of biomass, a unit of measurement of cellular growth) and the subsequent application of linear programming (LP) to identify fluxes through a reaction network. Despite the success of FBA, a central remaining challenge is the definition of a network objective with biological meaning. We present a novel method called Biological Objective Solution Search (BOSS) for the inference of an objective function of a biological system from its underlying network stoichiometry as well as experimentally-measured state variables. Specifically, BOSS identifies a system objective by defining a putative stoichiometric "objective reaction," adding this reaction to the existing set of stoichiometric constraints arising from known interactions within a network, and maximizing the putative objective reaction via LP, all the while minimizing the difference between the resultant in silico flux distribution and available experimental (e.g., isotopomer) flux data. This new approach allows for discovery of objectives with previously unknown stoichiometry, thus extending the biological relevance from earlier methods. We verify our approach on the well-characterized central metabolic network of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We illustrate how BOSS offers insight into the functional organization of biochemical networks, facilitating the interrogation of cellular design principles and development of cellular engineering applications. Furthermore, we describe how growth is the best-fit objective function for the yeast metabolic network given experimentally-measured fluxes.
VARIATION OF MUTAGENIC ACTION ON NONSENSE MUTANTS AT DIFFERENT SITES IN THE ISO-1-CYTOCHROME c GENE OF YEAST

Three ochre and two amber mutants in yeast have been definitively identified by the amino acid replacements in iso-1-cytochromes c from intragenic revertants. Except for rare and sometimes unusual changes, all of the replacements were single amino acids whose codons differed from UAA or UAG by one base. These assignments, which were based on the absence of tryptophan replacements in ochre revertants, could be corroborated from the studies of two groups of suppressors that were shown to act on either the ochre or amber mutants. All five nonsense mutants are located at different sites in the cyc1 gene and all are at sites that can be occupied by amino acids having a wide range of structures. The relative frequencies of the amino acid replacements indicate that identical codons located at different sites may respond differently to a mutagenic agent. Notably glutamine replacements occurred almost exclusively in UV-induced revertants of only one ochre mutant cyc1–9, but not at all or at reduced proportions in the others. Similarly, lysine replacements occurred almost exclusively in the NA-induced revertants of only the ochre mutant cyc1–72, but not at all in the others. These and other results reveal that mutation of A·T base pairs by UV and nitrous acid are dependent upon the location of the codon within the gene as well as the location of the base pair within the codon. From these findings, it appears as if the type of base-pair changes induced by UV and nitrous acid are strongly influenced by adjacent nucleotide sequences.
A High-Performance Hybrid Computing Approach to Massive Contingency Analysis in the Power Grid

Operating the electrical power grid to prevent power black-outs is a complex task. An important aspect of this is contingency analysis, which involves understanding and mitigating potential failures in power grid elements such as transmission lines. When taking into account the potential for multiple simultaneous failures (known as the N-x contingency problem), contingency analysis becomes a massively computational task. In this paper we describe a novel hybrid computational approach to contingency analysis. This approach exploits the unique graph processing performance of the Cray XMT in conjunction with a conventional massively parallel compute cluster to identify likely simultaneous failures that could cause widespread cascading power failures that have massive economic and social impact on society. The approach has the potential to provide the first practical and scalable solution to the N-x contingency problem. When deployed in power grid operations, it will increase the grid operator’s ability to deal effectively with outages and failures with power grid components while preserving stable and safe operation of the grid. The paper describes the architecture of our solution and presents preliminary performance results that validate the efficacy of our approach.
Transition metal AB3 intermetallics: Structure maps based on quantum mechanical stability

Abstract We study a two-dimensional structure map for AB 3 binary transition metal compounds with variables appropriate for direct quantum-mechanical energy calculations. The variables are the electron count and Δ H ii , the difference in d -orbital Coulombic integrals. The experimental structure map differentiates between the six known AB 3 transition metal structure types: Cr 3 Si , AuCu 3 , SnNi 3 , TiAl 3 , TiCu 3 and TiNi 3 . The theoretical quantum mechanical map (based on μ 2 -Huckel calculations) gives good agreement with the experimental map. The numerical accuracy of the μ 2 -Huckel energies is assessed by direct comparison to LDA-DFT calculations carried out on TaIr 3 . For this system, both the μ 2 -Huckel and LDA-DFT calculations place the six structure types in the same energetic order. The μ 2 -Huckel theory, in addition, allows further analysis on the structural origins of these differences in energy. The chief structural features responsible for differences in energy prove to be the varying number of three- and four-member rings of bonded atoms. These results help delineate the principal factors responsible for transition metal icosahedral, Frank–Kasper vs. closest-packed structures.
Decentralized Implementation of Centralized Controllers for Interconnected Systems

Given a centralized controller associated with a linear time-invariant (LTI) interconnected system, this paper is concerned with designing a parameterized decentralized controller in such a way that the state and input of the system under the obtained decentralized controller can become arbitrarily close to those of the system under the given centralized controller, by tuning the controller's parameters. To this end, a two-level decentralized controller is designed, where the upper level captures the dynamics of the centralized closed-loop system, and the lower level is an observed-based subcontroller designed based on the new notion of structural initial value observability. The proposed method can decentralize every generic centralized controller, provided the interconnected system satisfies very mild conditions.
Numerical simulation of convective diffusion in blood flowing in a channel with a steady, three‐dimensional velocity field

A numerical study was performed to investigate improvement in mass transfer rates obtainable by introduction of secondary convection into a proposed membrane blood oxygenator. The three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations were solved numerically for the velocity field in channel and the results used in the numerical solution for the local Po2 in the oxygenator. The convective diffusion equation solved is nonlinear, in addition to being three-dimensional, because of the presence of red cell oxygen sinks. The convection introduced was generated by moving one wall of the blood flow channel laterally to the main flow. Decreases in blood side film resistance up to 5 × 104 were predicted. In the presence of moderate to strong convection, the limiting factor on oxygenation rate is imposed by the membrane situated between blood and gas phases. It appears that a considerable decrease in required blood priming volume would be possible if the method discussed here were implemented.
BayeShield: conversational anti-phishing user interface

Phishing is an attack in which users are fooled into entering personal information into a “spoof” website instead of the intended legitimate website. Traditional anti-phishing tools, such as the default tools in Internet Explorer 6+ and Mozilla Firefox 2.0/3.0, rely primarily on blacklists, lists of URLs that have been observed hosting phishing attacks. Blacklists provide no protection from attacks that are not already flagged as phishing. The number of such missed attacks is considerable [5]. Researchers have proposed supplementing blacklists with Information Retrieval (IR)-based tools [10]. However, an IR-based approach may generate false positives; legitimate websites incorrectly flagged as phishing. False positives may undermine user trust in a tool and pose questions of legal liability. We are investigating whether or not a conversational user interface (UI) can help users determine if a website is phishing or legitimate. Our anti-phishing UI, BayeShield, can serve as the front-end to an IR-based tool that identifies phishing attacks with high probability but may produce a small number of false positives. First, we discuss related work and follow this with our system design. We then conclude by detailing the highlights of a formative user study we have conducted and outline future work.
Adherence Index Based on the AHA 2006 Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations Is Associated with Select Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Older Puerto Ricans

In 2006, the AHA released diet and lifestyle recommendations (AHA-DLR) for cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk reduction. The effect of adherence to these recommendations on CVD risk is unknown. Our objective was to develop a unique diet and lifestyle score based on the AHA-DLR and to evaluate this score in relation to available CVD risk factors. In a cross-sectional study of Puerto Rican adults aged 45-75 y living in the greater Boston area, information was available for the following variables: diet (semiquantitative FFQ), blood pressure, waist circumference (WC), 10-y risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) (Framingham risk score), and fasting plasma lipids, serum glucose, insulin, and C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations. We developed a diet and lifestyle score (AHA-DLS) based on the AHA-DLR. The AHA-DLS had both internal consistency and content validity. It was associated with plasma HDL cholesterol (P = 0.001), serum insulin (P = 0.0003), and CRP concentrations (P = 0.02), WC (P < 0.0001), and 10-y risk of CHD score (P = 0.01 in women). The AHA-DLS was inversely associated with serum glucose among those with a BMI < 25 (P = 0.01). Women and men in the highest quartile of the AHA-DLS had lower serum insulin (P-trend = 0.0003) and CRP concentrations (P-trend = 0.002), WC (P-trend = 0.0003), and higher HDL cholesterol (P-trend = 0.008). The AHA-DLS is a useful tool to measure adherence to the AHA-DLR and may be used to examine associations between diet and lifestyle behaviors and CVD risk.
Stretching and conformal bonding of organic solar cells to hemispherical surfaces

This paper describes the stretching and conformal bonding (i.e., decal-transfer printing) of organic solar cells in both the “conventional” and “inverted” configurations to hemispherical glass surfaces with radii of 8 mm. This action produces equivalent biaxial tensile strains of 24%, which many materials used in organic electronic devices cannot accommodate without fracture. Consideration of the mechanical properties of conjugated polymers reveals a surprising effect of a single structural parameter—the length of the alkyl side chain—on the elasticity and ductility of regioregular polythiophene. This analysis enables selection of materials that can accommodate sufficient tensile strain for non-planar applications. For polymer–fullerene solar cells, devices based on the elastic and ductile poly(3-octylthiophene) (P3OT) exhibit typical photovoltaic properties when bonded to hemispherical glass substrates, while those based on the relatively brittle poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) exhibit extensive cracking, which degrades the photovoltaic effect significantly. The results suggest that mechanical properties should be taken into account when designing and selecting organic semiconductors for applications that demand significant deformation.
The design and analysis of longitudinal studies of development and psychopathology in context: Statistical models and methodological recommendations

The utility and flexibility of recent advances in statistical methods for the quantitative analysis of developmental data--in particular, the methods of individual growth modeling and survival analysis--are unquestioned by methodologists, but have yet to have a major impact on empirical research within the field of developmental psychopathology and elsewhere. In this paper, we show how these new methods provide developmental psychopathologists with powerful ways of answering their research questions about systematic changes over time in individual behavior and about the occurrence and timing of life events. In the first section, we present a descriptive overview of each method by illustrating the types of research questions that each method can address, introducing the statistical models, and commenting on methods of model fitting, estimation, and interpretation. In the following three sections, we offer six concrete recommendations for developmental psychopathologists hoping to use these methods. First, we recommend that when designing studies, investigators should increase the number of waves of data they collect and consider the use of accelerated longitudinal designs. Second, we recommend that when selecting measurement strategies, investigators should strive to collect equatable data prospectively on all time-varying measures and should never standardize their measures before analysis. Third, we recommend that when specifying statistical models, researchers should consider a variety of alternative specifications for the time predictor and should test for interactions among predictors, particularly interactions between substantive predictors and time. Our goal throughout is to show that these methods are essential tools for answering questions about life-span developmental processes in both normal and atypical populations and that their proper use will help developmental psychopathologists and others illuminate how important contextual variables contribute to various pathways of development.
Changing the environment of schizophrenia at the community level

Objectives: One may categorise environmental factors as operating at the individual, domestic or community level. This paper reviews important factors influencing schizophrenia at the community level: the availability of work, economic disincentives to work and stigma and discrimination.Conclusions: Work helps decrease the alienation of people with schizophrenia and aids recovery. In much of the developed world, however, few people with serious mental illness are employed. To improve the employment of people with schizophrenia, we could (a) create small enterprises to provide opportunities for people with schizophrenia to work in a mixed workforce; and (b) look within the mental health service budget for possible contracts for consumer-employing business.People with schizophrenia are subject to prejudice, discrimination and stigma. Modern communication technology, however, can be harnessed to fight stigma and prejudice. At the local level, we can lobby the entertainment and news media and develop targeted...
Rapid fabrication of thick spray-layer-by-layer carbon nanotube electrodes for high power and energy devices

Rapid fabrication of layer-by-layer (LbL) electrodes is essential to expand their utility in energy storage applications. Herein, we address challenges in developing thick LbL electrodes of multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) using conventional dip- and spray-LbL processes, and present a solution to overcome these challenges. The vacuum-assisted spray-LbL process using porous carbon substrates enabled a linear growth of LbL-MWNT electrodes with a 600 time decrease in their fabrication time. This result was attributed to the enhanced surface interactions between MWNTs and substrate via increased surface areas, enhanced capillary forces, physical entrapment in pores, and changes in hydrodynamic drag forces. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed high surface area carbon nanotube networks comprised of individual MWNT's. The spray MWNT electrodes delivered a high gravimetric energy of 100 W h kg−1 at high gravimetric power of 50 kW kg−1, which is higher than those of most carbon nanotube electrodes reported. Moreover, the spray MWNT electrodes delivered the highest energy capacity per unit area (up to 300 μW h cm−2 at 0.4 mW cm−2 among the LbL electrodes reported, and showed excellent retention of energy capacity up to 100 μW h cm−2 at high power capacity of 200 mW cm−2. These performance values are higher or comparable to the most advanced battery electrodes for high energy capacity per unit area.
Thermal radio radiation from the moon and planets

Thermal radio radiation has been observed from the moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The most important result of the observations is the discovery that the temperature at the surface of Venus, beneath the clouds, is greater than 600\deg K. The thermal radio radiation from the moon comes from beneath the surface and gives information about the temperature distribution and variation which can be interpreted in terms of the physical characteristics of the subsurface material. This also should apply to the planets with thin atmospheres. The thermal radio radiation from Jupiter should give information about the temperature distribution in the extensive absorbing atmosphere, but the intensity of the thermal radiation is confused by the nonthermal radiation of the radiation belts and cannot be accurately specified until more observational data are available.
Pope Pius XII, Apostle of World Peace*

TRUTH, JUSTICE AND POLAND are the major victims of our second World War. To appease our ally, Russia, we sacrificed Truth, Justice and Poland. We went to war to liberate Poland from tyrannical aggression, to defend the fundamental European liberties and to preserve Christian civilizations. An "tunconditional surrender" victory saved none of these. Even before victory we renounced most of these original objectives. Our unconditional surrender of Poland to Soviet aggression, massacres, and total enslavement represented but one stage of a progressive national, moral deterioration, which culminated in repudiation of our original moral objectives and their replacement largely by those against which we originally revolted. And so, today, justice and truth, like the millions of homeless, naked, starving, disposessed peoples, seek-amidst rubble that recalls the glorious, priceless Christian heritage of centuries past-a place on which to rest. Exulting in pride of victory, and blinded by imperialistic greeds and hatreds, leaders of major world powers shortsightedly seek, in materialistic ideals and principles, foundations upon which to establish the peace, order and well-being for which millions sacrificed their lives and for which mankind ardently craves. Peace or another world war awaits our decision as to the fate of Truth, Justice and Poland. The fate of Europe, our fate, and the fate of humanity hang in the balance. Shall we revive our original objectives, shall Christian truth and justice be given a fair chance to demonstrate their regenerating power, shall the glorious, vitalizing spirit of Christ, the Prince of Peace, be allowed to revitalize an almost extinct civiliza-
Sumulation of porous low-k dielectric sealing by combined He and NH 3 plasma treatment

Summary form only given. In order to reduce the RC time delay in integrated circuits, porous dielectric materials are used to lower the capacitance. Typical pore sizes are many nm with porosity of up to 50%. The porous low-k materials are typically SiOCH - silicon dioxide with carbon groups, principally CH3, lining the pores. These materials have pores open to the surface which are internally connected and so can offer pathways for reactive species to enter into the porous network. Reaction with the CHX groups can increase the k value of the material. To maintain the low k value of the porous dielectric, sealing of the surface pores is essential. Treatment of the porous material with successive He and NH3 plasmas has been successful in sealing the pores. Ultimately, this sealing process is a tradeoff between densification of the porous material and removing CHX groups, increasing the k-value and sealing the pores. A reaction mechanism has been developed for the sealing of a porous carbon doped silica films (SiOCH) in sequentially applied He and NH3/Ar plasmas. The HPEM (Hybrid Plasma Equipment Module) was employed to obtain the ion energy and angle distributions of reactive fluxes from inductively coupled plasmas. These are used as input to the MCFPM (Monte Carlo Feature Profile Module) with which profiles of the low-k materials after the plasma exposures are predicted. Results will be discussed, including validation with data from the literature, for the densification and sealing of pores as a function of bias voltage and plasma power.
NaCl-Induced Renal Vasoconstriction in Salt-Sensitive African Americans: Antipressor and Hemodynamic Effects of Potassium Bicarbonate

Abstract —In 16 African Americans (blacks, 14 men, 2 women) with average admission mean arterial pressure (MAP, mm Hg) 99.9±3.5 (mean±SEM), we investigated whether NaCl-induced renal vasoconstriction attends salt sensitivity and, if so, whether supplemental KHCO3 ameliorates both conditions. Throughout a 3-week period under controlled metabolic conditions, all subjects ate diets containing 15 mmol NaCl and 30 mmol potassium (K+) (per 70 kg body wt [BW] per day). Throughout weeks 2 and 3, NaCl was loaded to 250 mmol/d; throughout week 3, dietary K+ was supplemented to 170 mmol/d (KHCO3). On the last day of each study week, we measured renal blood flow (RBF) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) using renal clearances of PAH and inulin. Ten subjects were salt sensitive (SS) (ΔMAP >+5%) and 6 salt resistant (SR). In NaCl-loaded SS but not SR subjects, RBF (mL/min/1.73 m2) decreased from 920±75 to 828±46 ( P <0.05); filtration fraction (FF, %) increased from 19.4± to 21.4 ( P <0.001); and renal vascular resistance (RVR) (103×mm Hg/[mL/min]) increased from 101±8 to 131±10 ( P <0.001). In all subjects combined, ΔMAP varied inversely with ΔRBF ( r =−0.57, P =0.02) and directly with ΔRVR ( r = 0.65, P =0.006) and ΔFF ( r = 0.59, P =0.03), but not with MAP before NaCl loading. When supplemental KHCO3 abolished the pressor effect of NaCl in SS subjects, RBF was unaffected but GFR and FF decreased. The results show that in marginally K+-deficient blacks (1) NaCl-induced renal vasoconstrictive dysfunction attends salt sensitivity; (2) the dysfunction varies in extent directly with the NaCl-induced increase in blood pressure (BP); and (3) is complexly affected by supplemented KHCO3, GFR and FF decreasing but RBF not changing. In blacks, NaCl-induced renal vasoconstriction may be a pathogenetic event in salt sensitivity.
Statistical characteristics of irreversible predictability time in regional ocean models

Probabilistic aspects of regional ocean model pre- dictability is analyzed using the probability density function (PDF) of the irreversible predictability time (IPT) (called - PDF) computed from an unconstrained ensemble of stochas- tic perturbations in initial conditions, winds, and open boundary conditions. Two-attractors (a chaotic attractor and a small-amplitude stable limit cycle) are found in the wind- driven circulation. Relationship between attractor's resi- dence time and IPT determines the -PDF for the short (up to several weeks) and intermediate (up to two months) pre- dictions. The -PDF is usually non-Gaussian but not multi- modal for red-noise perturbations in initial conditions and perturbations in the wind and open boundary conditions. Bi- furcation of -PDF occurs as the tolerance level varies. Gen- erally, extremely successful predictions (corresponding to the -PDF's tail toward large IPT domain) are not outliers and share the same statistics as a whole ensemble of predic- tions.
The Effects of Physical Attractiveness, Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Gender of Defendants and Victims on Judgments of Mock Jurors: A Meta‐Analysis1

A meta-analysis of experimental research on mock juror judgments was conducted to assess the effects of physical attractiveness, race, socioeconomic status (SES), and gender of both defendants and victims to test the theory that jurors use characteristics that are correlated with criminal behavior as cues to infer guilt and to recommend punishment. In general, it was advantageous for defendants to be physically attractive, female, and of high SES, although these advantages were nil for some crimes. There were no overall effects of race on mock jurors' judgments, but the effect of defendant race on punishment was strongly moderated by type of crime. Effects of victim characteristics on jurors' judgments were generally inconsequential, although defendants were at a disadvantage when the victim was female.
Short-Fiber—Rubber Composites: The Properties of Oriented Cellulose-Fiber—Elastomer Composites

Abstract Unregenerated-cellulose-fiber-elastomer composites with widely varying properties can be obtained. The properties depend on the type of elastomer used as the matrix, the fiber concentration, fiber aspect ratio, and fiber orientation. The fibers must be bonded to the matrix elastomer to obtain good strength. Composites of good strength can be prepared from a wide variety of elastomers. Composites with Young's modulus from 20000 to over 100000 psi and strengths up to 6000 psi can be obtained by varying the amounts or lengths of fibers. In addition, these compositions offer a high degree of dimensional stability; they resist creep deformation and solvent swelling. Further, compositions of good fatigue life under high stress conditions can be obtained. It is expected that the new composite compositions will find uses where good long-term load-bearing characteristics and dimensional stability are required. Uses in a number of environments are indicated since a wide variety of elastomers can be used as...
Improving the efficiency and effectiveness of clinical research regulatory review processes: Lessons from the Six Sigma Body of Knowledge

e17554 Background: The duration and complexity of regulatory review processes are increasingly associated with the slow pace and high cost of clinical trials. To evaluate and minimize the impact of...
Virulence inCeratocystis ulmi

Single-ascospore cultures ofCeratocystis ulmi from the progeny of a cross between a culture of compatibility type A from Belford, Massachusetts, U.S.A., and one of type B from Rotterdam, Netherlands, were morphologically heterogeneous and varied widely in virulence towards young elms inoculated in the greenhouse. Some cultures regularly caused typical wilt in callus cuttings ofUlmus hollandica ‘Belgica’ (susceptible) but none in those ofU. carpinifolia ‘Christine Buisman’ (resistant). Some cultures cuased wilt in trees of both clones; others in neither. All isolates produced abundant yeast-like cells in liquid culture. All isolated induced typical vascular discoloration except in the terminal inch of twigs. Similar progeny from a cross between cultures of types A and B, both from Naarden, Netherlands, however, were morphologically homogeneous and caused a fairly uniform level of symptoms in young trees ofU. hollandica ‘Belgica’ (susceptible) and ‘Commelin’ (moderately resistant), and in seedlings ofU. americana after inoculation in the nursery.
Sampling for Plant-parasitic Nematodes in Corn Strip Trials Comparing Nematode Management Products

Protectant seed treatments are a new management option for plant-parasitic nematodes that feed on corn. Many growers and agribusiness personnel are conducting strip-trial comparisons of nematode se...
Comparative utilization of carotene administered orally and parenterally.

SummaryCarotene solubilized in water by the use of Tween 40 will support growth in vit. A-deficient rats when as little as 1.6 γ is injected intramuscularly daily. For maximum growth, approximately 4 to 6 times as much carotene is required parenterally as orally. Aqueous carotene is also well utilized when given subcutaneously. Carotene dissolved in cottonseed oil and administered parenterally is essentially not utilizable.
The Cell as the First Niche Construction

Niche construction nominally describes how organisms can form their own environments, increasing their capacity to adapt to their surroundings. It is hypothesized that the formation of the first cell as ‘internal’ Niche Construction was the foundation for life, and that subsequent niche constructions were iterative exaptations of that event. The first instantation of niche construction has been faithfully adhered to by returning to the unicellular state, suggesting that the life cycle is zygote to zygote, not adult to adult as is commonly held. The consequent interactions between niche construction and epigenetic inheritance provide a highly robust, interactive, mechanistic way of thinking about evolution being determined by initial conditions rather than merely by chance mutation and selection. This novel perspective offers an opportunity to reappraise the processes involved in evolution mechanistically, allowing for scientifically testable hypotheses rather than relying on metaphors, dogma, teleology and tautology.
Carrier Self-trapping and Luminescence in Intrinsically Activated Scintillator: Cesium Hafnium Chloride (Cs2HfCl6)

There has been renewed interest in the scintillation properties of Cs2HfCl6 (CHC) primarily due to its favorable characteristics such as nonhygroscopicity, cubic structure, and fairly high light yield without any intentional doping. In this work, we report on its electronic and optical properties using first-principles calculations. As a large gap insulator (band gap ∼ 6 eV), CHC favors the formation of localized charge carriers, viz., Vk centers and electron polarons. The [HfCl6]-octahedra play a central role in trapping both types of localized carriers that leads to several low energy excitonic structures or self-trapped excitons (STEs). The observed emission spectrum of CHC is compared with our modeled STE structures and their emission energies. We find that Zr present as an unintentional impurity has high solubility in CHC and may be responsible for a secondary emission peak observed around 480 nm. Finally, we mention the electronic structure of the bromide and iodide analogues of CHC as well as the m...
[Molecular typing of 12 Brucella strains isolated in Guizhou province in 2010-2013].

Objective To identify and characterize the Brucella strains from Guizhou province in 2010-2013. Methods A total of 12 strains of Brucella suspicious bacteria were isolated in Guizhou province from 2010 to 2013. Four strains (GZLL3, GZLL4, GZLL11 and SH2) were isolated from goat blood samples and eight strains (SH4, GZZY, GZSQ, GZZA, BR13001, BR13004, BR13005 and BR13006) were isolated from blood samples of patient 12 Brucella suspicious strains were identified and characterized using conventional methods. Brucella genus specific gene BCSP31-based PCR (BCSP31-PCR) was used to identify the genus of Brucella and IS711 insert sequence-based PCR (AMOS-PCR) was applied to identify the species of Brucella strains. Goats and patients originated Brucella strains were comparatively analysed using Pulse-field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE). Results Both of conventional methods and PCR identified the 12 Brucella suspicious strains as B. melitensis biotype 3. BCSP31-PCR identification results showed that a specific DNA bands (223 bp) were detected in all the 12 strains and positive control samples with no DNA band in negative samples. AMOS-PCR amplified a 731 bp-DNA bands in all the 12 strains, with 731 bp, 498 bp and 275 bp in M5, S2 and A19 strains, respectively, and no DNA band was detected in the negative control samples. PFGE analysis showed that 12 Brucella isolates from patients and goats showed consistent PFGE patterns with the digestion of restriction enzyme Xba I. Conclusion The epidemic species/type of Brucella in both human and animal in Guizhou province was B. melitensis biotype 3 and goat was the main animal source of infection of brucellosis in Guizhou province. Key words: Brucella; Polymerase chain reaction; Electrophoresis,gel,pulsed-field; Guizhou
tDCS over the prefrontal cortex alters objective but not subjective encoding

Previous research has implicated the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in successful associative encoding and subjective awareness of one's memory performance. We tested the causal role of the PFC in these processes by applying transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) during a verbal associative encoding and judgment-of-learning (JOL) task. tDCS over the PFC impaired associative encoding compared to sham and parietal tDCS, as shown by fewer hits on a subsequent associative recognition test. There were no effects of tDCS on the magnitude or accuracy of JOLs. These results suggest the PFC plays a causal role in objective measures of encoding, and that objective and subjective aspects of associative encoding are separable.
Basement Membranes and Autoimmune Diseases

Basement membrane components are targets of autoimmune attack in diverse diseases that destroy kidneys, lungs, skin, mucous membranes, joints, and other organs in man. Epitopes on collagen and laminin, in particular, are targeted by autoantibodies and T cells in anti-glomerular basement membrane glomerulonephritis, Goodpasture's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, post-lung transplant bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome, and multiple autoimmune dermatoses. This review examines major diseases linked to basement membrane autoreactivity, with a focus on investigations in patients and animal models that advance our understanding of disease pathogenesis. Autoimmunity to glomerular basement membrane type IV is discussed in depth as a prototypic organ-specific autoimmune disease yielding novel insights into the complexity of anti-basement membrane immunity and the roles of genetic and environmental susceptibility.
Moment-to-Moment Tracking of Participant Responses to Race-Based Campaign Messages

Studies of media effects are often limited by an inability to clearly identify particular elements within a stimulus that are related to subsequent attitudes. Experimental design allows for isolating elements to infer causality, and emerging technologies have advanced the precision of identifying moments that relate to posttest responses. In this study, we use moment-to-moment technology that affords participants the opportunity to indicate their feelings about a stimulus fluidly and in real time. We employ a 2 (race of participant) x 3 (message) design (N = 240) to explore the ways White and Black participants respond to ingroup and outgroup messages in a fictitious campaign advertisement for a Black candidate. Discussion centers on the relationship between treatment conditions and evaluations of the candidate, as well as correlations between perceptional analyzer ratings and key demographic and attitudinal variables.
Inconsistencies in the Electronic Properties of Phosphorene Nanotubes: New Insights from Large-Scale DFT Calculations

Contrary to recent reports, we show that the electronic properties of phosphorene nanotubes are surprisingly rich and much more complex than previously assumed. We find that all phosphorene nanotubes exhibit an intricate direct-to-indirect band gap transition as the nanotube diameter decreases, a unique property not identified in any prior studies (which claimed either direct or indirect band gaps only) that we uncover with large-scale DFT calculations. We address these previous inconsistencies by detailed analyses of orbital interactions, which reveal that the strain associated with decreasing the nanotube diameter causes a transition from a direct to an indirect band gap for all of the phosphorene nanotubes. We show that our findings are completely general, and extensive calculations across several exchange–correlation functionals verify our conclusions. Most importantly, our results and analyses resolve a long-standing question on the electronic properties of phosphorus nanotubes and bring closure to p...
Effects of Classroom-based Team Experiences on Undergraduate Student Leadership Development: When Practice Does Not Make Perfect

Engineering students (N = 285) enrolled in either a first-year or senior-year design course that consisted entirely of team-based collaborative learning projects reported few gains in their overall leadership development. First-year students made moderate gains in transformational leadership skills and social-normative motivation to lead. Peer evaluations of skill were lower than were self-reported scores, and, for first-year students, self-reported scores and peer scores were not correlated. A high degree of co-curricular involvement in student organizations, as compared to little or no involvement, was associated with student gains in seniors. These results indicate the relatively small degree of leadership learning that takes place in classroom-based team experiences when those experiences are not paired with opportunities for deliberate practice or reflection in the development of leadership capacity.
Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches to the Modification of Aggressive Behavior in Children

Contingency management programs for modifying aggression in children are powerful methods of short-term behavior change in the treatment setting but have not consistently led to maintenance of beha...
Provisioning Behavior of Male and Female Eastern Screech-Owls During the Post-Brooding Period

Abstract Although most owls exhibit biparental care, the relative contributions of males and females during critical life cycle stages are poorly understood. Further information could improve our understanding of the feeding ecology of owls and of mechanisms that govern natural and sexual selection, particularly as they relate to the evolution of reversed sexual dimorphism. The objective of our study was to assess possible intersexual differences in provisioning behavior (visit rate and prey size and type) of slightly dimorphic Eastern Screech-Owls (Megascops asio; females 17% greater mass than males) during the post-brooding period when both adults provision nestlings. Pairs of Eastern Screech-Owls provisioned young with 16 different types of prey in our study with insects and crayfish (Family Astacidae) being the most common. We found no differences between females and males in provisioning rate or in mean size of prey delivered. Our findings suggest Screech-Owls are opportunistic feeders in the post-br...
Comparison of Different Invasive Hemodynamic Measurements as a Prediction Tool for Mortality after Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement in Men: A Retrospective Observational Study

Hemodynamic measurements can assess for paravalvular aortic regurgitation after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). This study compared the utility of different invasive hemodynamic measures in providing prognostic information. This retrospective observational study of TAVR patients at a Veterans Hospital assessed aortic regurgitation index, diastolic delta, pulse pressure, and heart rate adjusted diastolic delta obtained at valve implantation. The primary outcome was total mortality. Overall, 151 patients underwent TAVR. Immediately after implantation, mean aortic regurgitation index was 31 ± 8.6, mean diastolic delta was 38 ± 9.8 mmHg, mean pulse pressure was 67 ± 18 mmHg, and mean heart rate adjusted diastolic delta was 47 ± 14.3 mmHg/beats per minute. Two percent of patients had ≥ moderate paravalvular aortic regurgitation by postoperative transthoracic echocardiography. Total mortality was 15.2% at a mean follow-up of 12.7 ± 9.2 months. Aortic regurgitation index 60 vs. ≤60 mmHg were not associated with total mortality. However, total mortality was 50% for heart rate adjusted diastolic delta <25 mmHg/beats per minute vs. 12.6% for heart rate adjusted diastolic delta ≥25 mmHg/beats per minute (p = 0.017). In a multivariate Cox regression analysis, heart rate adjusted diastolic delta <25 mmHg/beats per minute vs. heart rate adjusted diastolic delta ≥25 mmHg/beats per minute was associated with total mortality (hazard ratio 9.4, 95% confidence interval 2.0–44, p = 0.004). Among a cohort of TAVR patients, the only invasive hemodynamic test independently associated with total mortality was heart rate adjusted diastolic delta.
Chronic exposure to insufficient sleep alters processes of pain habituation and sensitization

Chronic pain conditions are highly comorbid with insufficient sleep. While the mechanistic relationships between the 2 are not understood, chronic insufficient sleep may be 1 pathway through which central pain-modulatory circuits deteriorate, thereby contributing to chronic pain vulnerability over time. To test this hypothesis, an in-laboratory model of 3 weeks of restricted sleep with limited recovery (5 nights of 4-hour sleep per night followed by 2 nights of 8-hour sleep per night) was compared with 3 weeks of 8-hour sleep per night (control protocol). Seventeen healthy adults participated, with 14 completing both 3-week protocols. Measures of spontaneous pain, heat-pain thresholds, cold-pain tolerance (measuring habituation to cold over several weeks), and temporal summation of pain (examining the slope of pain ratings during cold water immersion) were assessed at multiple points during each protocol. Compared with the control protocol, participants in the sleep-restriction protocol experienced mild increases in spontaneous pain (P < 0.05). Heat-pain thresholds decreased after the first week of sleep restriction (P < 0.05) but normalized with longer exposure to sleep restriction. By contrast, chronic exposure to restricted sleep was associated with decreased habituation to, and increased temporal summation in response to cold pain (both P < 0.05), although only in the past 2 weeks of the sleep-restriction protocol. These changes may reflect abnormalities in central pain-modulatory processes. Limited recovery sleep did not completely resolve these alterations in pain-modulatory processes, indicating that more extensive recovery sleep is required. Results suggest that exposure to chronic insufficient sleep may increase vulnerability to chronic pain by altering processes of pain habituation and sensitization.
Locating transit hubs in a multi-modal transportation network: A cluster-based optimization approach

Abstract This paper develops a mathematical model with equilibrium constraints for integrated design of transit hub locations and link establishments in a multimodal network, grounded on the cluster-based framework to capture real-world geographical and administrative features as well as to improve the overall transit-oriented system performance. By explicitly capturing multimodal transfer activities and cost implications with virtual transfer nodes and arcs, this study models transit hub as a realistic transportation infrastructure rather than a single node in the network. A genetic-algorithm-based heuristic embedded with the Augmented Lagrangian Dual algorithm is developed to solve the problem to meta-optimality.
Calorimetry of Drawn and Rolled Linear Polyethylene of High and Low Crystallinity

The thermal investigation of polymer samples gives very nearly the same information about crystallinity α as the measurement of density. On the basis of a two-component model one has $$1/\rho = \alpha /{\rho _c} + \left( {1 - \alpha } \right)/{\rho _a}$$ (1) $$c = \alpha {c_c} + \left( {1 - \alpha } \right){c_a}$$ $$\Delta {h_f} = \alpha \Delta {h_{fc}} - 2\sigma /L$$ where ρ is density, c is specific heat, ∆hf is heat of fusion, σ is surface energy of the folds containing surfaces, L is the thickness of crystal lamellae, and the indices c and a relate to the crystalline and amorphous (supercooled melt) phase, respectively. The expression for the heat of fusion is derived under the assumption that all the polymer is included in crystals and every crystal has on the average the same crystalline (α) and amorphous (1 — α) component as the whole sample.
Structural and functional characterization of IGF-I RNA 3' variants.

In rat and other mammalian species a single insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) gene gives rise to a heterogeneous and complex family of IGF-I mRNAs (1,2).