cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evidence for a role of osteopontin in macrophage infiltration in response to pathological stimuli in vivo

Previous studies have suggested that osteopontin, an arginine-glycine-aspartate-containing secreted protein, might be important in macrophage accumulation during interstitial nephritis and wound healing. The current study investigated the role of osteopontin in intradermal macrophage infiltration using immunohistochemistry and neutralizing antibodies. Purified osteopontin induced macrophage accumulation after injection in rat dermis and facilitated adhesion and migration of cultured macrophage-like cells in vitro. Intradermal injection of N-formyl-met-leu-phe (FMLP), a potent macrophage chemotactic peptide, induced a macrophage-rich infiltrate at the site of injection. Most of these macrophages expressed high levels of osteopontin as shown by immunochemical analysis. To determine whether osteopontin expressed by macrophages was required for their infiltration, we treated rats with either anti-osteopontin neutralizing antibody (OP199) or nonimmune antibody. We found that FMLP-induced macrophage accumulation was largely inhibited (>60%) by anti-osteopontin antibody treatment compared with rats receiving nonimmune antibody. These data support the hypothesis that osteopontin may be a critical mediator of inflammation in specific disease and injury states, potentially by promoting macrophage adhesion and migration.
New Options in Constipation Management

Constipation is common in the general population and for those on opioids and/or who are suffering from advanced cancer. Self-management consists of dietary changes, exercise, and laxatives. However, responses to self-management efforts are often inadequate to relieve the subjective and objective experience of constipation. Multiple new anti-constipating medications have recently been tested in randomized trials and the following are available commercially: probiotics, prucalopride, lubiprostone, linaclotide, elobixibat, antidepressants, methylnaltrexone, alvimopan, and naloxegol. This review will discuss the evidence-based benefits of these medications and outline an approach to managing constipation.
Enteroviral disease in early infancy.

To discover the nature of enteroviral infections in early infancy (infants less than two months of age) in the United States, data were examined of 338 such infants with nonpolio enterovirus isolates reported to the Center for Disease Control in 1972–1975. Interpretation of such data is limited by reporting bias and difficulty in documenting disease causality. Enteroviral disease was severe in 74% of the infants. The most common clinical manifestations were meningitis, severe systemic disease, nonspecific febrile illness, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Fifty-one percent of all enteroviral disease was associated with echoviruses; 45% with Coxsackie B viruses; and only 4% with Coxsackie A viruses. Disease was more prevalent in the summer months, was recognized throughout the country, and occurred more frequently in males.
Vasa Vasorum in Normal and Diseased Arteries

The vasa vasorum are a specialized microvasculature that play a major role in normal vessel wall biology and pathology. Under physiological conditions, the adventitial vasa vasorum take up molecules that are transmitted from the blood to the adventitia by mass transport through the arterial wall. The adventitia is the primary early site for vessel wall response to arterial injury that occurs on the luminal side. The vasa vasorum expand in response to the injury, which alters vessel homeostasis. This review focuses on the impact the vasa vasorum expansion has on development of vascular pathology, particularly neointima development and growth of atherosclerotic plaque. The adventitia, the outermost layer of the vessel wall, has received considerable attention in recent years. It contains a heterogeneous population of cells, including macrophages,1,2 T cells,3 B cells,1,2 dendritic cells,1,2 progenitor cells,4,5 and fibroblasts that can differentiate into myofibroblasts.6 It also contains an adrenergic nervous system,7 a lymphatic network,8 and vasa vasorum, a specialized microvasculature that plays a major role in normal vessel wall biology and pathology that is the subject of the present review. Under physiological conditions, the adventitial vasa vasorum and lymphatic vessels take up molecules that are transmitted from the blood to the adventitia by mass transport through the arterial wall.9–11 Vascular injury at the luminal side of the vessel wall significantly impacts the adventitia by convection of soluble factors, microparticles and macroparticles, mediators such as products of oxidation, tissue cytolysis, and proteolysis from the intima to the adventitia by hydraulic conductance.12 As a result, the adventitia becomes the primary early site for the vessel wall response to arterial injury, which includes myofibroblast migration into the vessel wall,13,14 inflammatory cell accumulation, …
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: recent advances and current understanding of the clinical and genetic heterogeneity.

The Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) is a heterogeneous group of generalized connective tissue disorders, the major manifestations of which are skin fragility, skin hyperextensibility, and joint hypermobility. The clinical and molecular definition of more than ten types of EDS has, more than ever, emphasized the importance of correct diagnosis because the natural history and mode of inheritance differ among the types. Unfortunately, much of the older literature does not differentiate among the types clearly, and in some instances the life-threatening complications of EDS type FV may be cited as characteristic of the syndrome as a whole. Heterogeneity in EDS began to be appreciated about 30 years ago when the core of the modern classification was developed by Barabas. Since then it was extended by Beighton et al, and then amplified with the insights provided by biochemical and molecular genetic studies. Clinical studies were sufficient initially to distinguish five types of EDS; biochemical studies identified four additional types, EDS type VI, EDS type VII, EDS type IX, and EDS type X, whereas clinical criteria distinguished EDS type VIII. In the following sections, the clinical manifestations of the different forms of EDS are summarized and the known biochemical and molecular genetic features are emphasized. J Invest Dermatol 103:47S–52S, 1994
A Lymphoblastoma Occurring in Young Chicks Reared on a Diet Treated with Ferric Chloride to Destroy Vitamin E

During the course of feeding experiments with newly hatched chicks the writer has observed a condition arising with great regularity and in a large proportion of the chicks which is strikingly similar to so-called leukemia in the fowl. Because of this similarity to a disease which is so closely related to neoplasms in general, a thorough study of the experimental condition has been undertaken in the hope of learning more regarding its cause and possible methods of prevention or cure. The histological study here presented is only a part of the investigation carried out in collaboration with Dr. H. J. Sloan and Dr. L. E. Card of the Poultry Division of the University of Illinois. Their cooperation and assistance have been most generous, and the writer wishes to acknowledge his indebtedness to them, as well as to Dr. E. H. Barger of the Animal Pathology Laboratory of the University. Methods and Materials The purpose of the original experiments was to investigate the results of prolonged vitamin E deficiency in relation to excessive tissue growths as suggested by conditions encountered in earlier work with chick embryos (Adam-stone, 1931, 1934). The procedure followed was to set out a group of newly hatched chicks in a wire-floored pen and begin feeding immediately with a normal ration 1 treated with ferric chloride. The food was soaked in a 1 per cent solution of ferric chloride in ether for about twelve hours, after which the ether was removed by evaporation. This method destroys or inactivates the vitamin E in the food but is supposed to leave the vitamin A unaffected (Waddell and Steenbock, 1928, 1931). As a precaution, however, in view of the susceptibility of vitamin A to oxidation in the presence of ferrous salts (Mattill, 1927), 2 per cent of cod-liver oil or sardilene oil was added to the food after treatment. Since completion of the first work, the experiment has been repeated with the same general results on five separate occasions.
Adding a Statistical Wrench to the “Toolbox”

This paper demonstrates a formal statistical test that can be used to help researchers make decisions about alternative statistical model specifications. This test is commonly used by researchers who would like to test whether adding new variables to a model improves the model fit. However, we demonstrate that this formal test can also be employed when alternative representations of variables or constructs are considered for inclusion in a regression. An empirical example is provided using information from a widely cited US Department of Education report. Substantively, we find evidence that an alternative representation of an important policy variable would have been a better fit to the data than the index that was used in the analysis conducted in the report.
Ice-water slurry flow in a circular pipe

Abstract Pressure-drop measurements were made in an ice-water slurry flowing in a 102.3 mm diameter horizontal pipe. The ice fraction range of the experiments was 0 to 15%. The slurry was found to be drag reducing in all cases, and a correlating parameter is presented for application in the plug flow regime which was reached at ice fractions above 8 to 10%.
Risk profiles of women with cervical neoplasia.

Risk-factor profiles were compared in M.D. Anderson Cancer Center patients with various uterine cervix histologic diagnoses. Intraepithelial neoplasia (n = 171) and condyloma (n = 82) were associated with significantly lower patient age (mean 23.6 and 25.8 years, respectively). In addition, these two groups were lowest in annual income, age at beginning intercourse and at first pregnancy, and highest in percentages of black and Hispanic patients, number of sexual partners, and history of gonorrhea. Women with squamous carcinoma in situ (n = 47), who were about a decade older, exhibited a similar socioeconomic distribution and sexual history. All three groups also reported high prevalences of current smokers, were most likely to use oral contraceptives, and were least likely to use diaphragms or condoms. Patients with invasive squamous cell carcinoma (n = 77) had a mean age of 46.3 years, a large lowest-income constituency, and the highest mean number of pregnancies; they were least likely to have used oral contraceptives. Adenocarcinoma (n = 21) was epidemiologically distinct: a predominance of white woman characterized by high socioeconomic status, elevated body mass index, and non of the liberal sexual practices of the other groups. Primary and secondary prevention strategies must be tailored to the unique needs and socioeconomic status of the young at-risk populations.
A Fraction from Normal Chick Embryo Similar to the Tumor Producing Fraction of Chicken Tumor I

SummaryBy means of a method of differential centrifugation at high speed, a fraction can be separated from normal chick embryo tissue, which, in its main characteristics, resembles the active fraction isolated from chicken tumor extracts by the same method.The implications of these observations are discussed.
The shift in aerial/subterranean fruit ratio in Amphicarpum purshii: causes and significance.

Amphicarpum purshii Kunth, an annual grass, produces both small aerial and larger subterranean seeds, and previous research has indicated that the ratio of the number of viable aerial seeds to the number of viable subterranean seeds decreases with secondary succession and/or the lack of frequent disturbance. The objective of this research was to determine if increasing density and/or greater seed depth could produce this shift in reproductive allocation. Plants arising from aerial and subterranean seeds were grown in pure and mixed cultures at varying densities in a greenhouse to note the effects of intraspecific competition on biomass allocation. In addition, subterranean seeds were sown at varying depths to note the effects of seed depth. Results showed that the growth of plants from aerial seeds was severely depressed in mixtures of plants from the two types of seeds. Increasing density in both pure and mixed cultures led to drastic decreases in allocation to aerial seeds, but the percentage allocation to subterranean seeds was not significantly reduced. Greater seed depth led to decreased emergence rates and increased percentage allocation to subterrancean seeds. It is suggested that as secondary succession progresses, A. purshii and other plants increase in abundance, and the increasing density and the deeper burial of subterrranean seeds result in plants producing mostly subterranean seeds which accumulate in the soil seed bank. These strongly indurate propagules remain viable following the disappearance of Amphicarpum plants in secondary succession and can give rise to “instant populations” upon subsequent vegetation removal and/or soil disturbance.
American Indians in Court: The Burger and Rehnquist Years

Abstract The Supreme Court and individual justices’ treatment of American Indian interests has generated relatively little scholarly attention. To fill this void in the extant literature, this study seeks to examine how American Indian interests fared before the Supreme Court of the United States during the Burger and Rehnquist Courts (1969–1992 October terms) and attempts to discern the factors influencing their treatment. The findings indicate that while American Indian interests won 48% of their cases, the Burger Court was much more sympathetic than the Rehnquist Court to the plight of this politically disadvantaged group. The error correcting strategy, the ideological proclivities of the justices, and the issue area being litigated were all influential explanatory variables. Interestingly, the Solicitor General’s Office had an adverse influence when it opposed American Indian interests as a direct or third party, but had little impact when supporting their interests.
Some fundamental experiments on high temperature creep

At high temperatures, the creep strain, ϵ, appears to be a function of a temperature (T), compensated time (t), namely te−ΔHRT, and the stress. X-ray analyses and plastic properties reveal that the same structures are developed at the same values of te−ΔHRT following creep at the same stress. Thus ϵ = ƒ(te−ΔHRT), for the same stress. When the creep rate, ϵ, is evaluated as a function of stress, σ, for the same structure ϵ = Se−ΔHRT φ(σ) where S depends on the structure and Although B and n appear to be insensitive to structural changes attending creep of annealed alloys, they decrease with increasing solute additions and cold working. Transients attending loading and unloading and the coincidence of the activation energy for creep, ΔH, with that for self-diffusion suggest that high temperature creep might be ascribed to a dislocation climb process.
A System-level Network-on-Chip Simulation Framework with Analytical Interconnecting Wire Models

This paper presents a system-level Network-on-Chip simulation framework employing transaction-level communication fabric models, such as routers and links, to achieve high simulation speed and provide NoC's latency and throughput information. This framework integrates an analytical interconnecting wire model to estimate the wire delay and its overall influence to the system performance and power properties in early design stages. SystemC provides the infrastructure to integrate transaction-level NoC model and analytical wire model seamlessly, making it easy to refine. 6 deep-submicron CMOS processes from 180nm to 45nm are used to evaluate the performance/power of NoC considering the interconnecting wire models, and wire's latency is estimated to be ~5X more than the router's in sub-100nm processes, and it brings 33.1% in average bandwidth degradation. Temporal and spatial NoC power analysis with wire models under different traffics provides more power implications for designers in early design stages.
Vascular access outcomes using the transposed basilic vein arteriovenous fistula

Abstract Background: Although the transposed basilic vein arteriovenous fistula (TBAVF) is increasingly performed for hemodialysis vascular access in patients lacking adequate superficial veins, little is known about the long-term patency or risk factors for failure. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted for 99 patients who had a TBAVF created between April 1997 and October 2001. Primary outcomes were unassisted and assisted patency rates and primary failure rates. Results: This was the first access procedure in 46% of patients, mean age was 55 years, and 46% were men. Unassisted and assisted patency rates were 47% and 64% at 1 year and 41% and 58% at 2 years, respectively. Primary access failure occurred in 23% of cases. Unassisted access patency was significantly worse in patients with a previous access (relative risk [RR], 2.04; confidence interval [CI], 1.09 to 3.85; P = 0.03) or an ipsilateral central venous catheter (RR, 2.92; CI, 1.34 to 6.38; P P P P = 0.01). Steal syndrome requiring intervention occurred in 5% of cases. Conclusion: In summary, the TBAVF provides a viable option for vascular access; however, certain patient characteristics seem to affect long-term patency and should be considered when exploring access options.
Fault tolerant digital systems

Two common dependability measures of fault-tolerant systems, availability and reliability, are defined, and the design of a reliable system is described. The first step is the incoming inspection of components to remove weak or defective components prior to assembly into subsystems. The next step is to use fault-avoidance techniques. Examples are careful signal routing, shielding, cabinet grounding, and inline static filters to increase the signal-to-noise ratio, limiting the fanout of gates to a small number to reduce the dissipation of power, and minimization of human errors through such measures as labeling and documentation. Another technique for increasing reliability is the use of a fault-tolerant design. Three approaches are examined: (1) fault-detection techniques (duplication, coding techniques, the check sum method, watchdog timers and timeouts, and consistency and capability checking); (2) fault-masking techniques (triple modular redundancy and error-correcting codes); (3) dynamic redundancy techniques. System diagnosis and the application of fault-tolerant systems are also discussed. >
Persistence of Candida Despite Seemingly Adequate Systemic and Intraperitoneal Amphotericin B Treatment in a Patient on CAPD

A case of Candida peritonitis in a patient on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is presented. Despite 2 weeks of intravenous and 4 weeks of intraperitoneal amphotericin B, good clinical response, and repeatedly negative fungal cultures from the peritoneal dialysate, her Tenckhoff catheter upon removal grew the same Candida species. This case emphasizes the point that Candida may persist on the catheter despite seemingly adequate antifungal treatment and good clinical and microbiologic response.
Communicated Knowledge: A Learning Foundation

Organizational learning capabilities are embedded in organizational communication systems and processes related to knowledge creation and articulation. The emergence of new organizational forms (such as horizontal organizations) in rapidly-changing environments and hyper-competitive markets underscores the need to better understand these foundational sources of learning. In fact the reason horizontal organizations may find success is that their structure is intended to promote communications systems and processes which enhance a knowledge response sequence similar to a stimulus-response sequence associated with learning. These systems permit managers to quickly gather information, respond with agility in making decisions, and continue to make ongoing adjustments. Firms which understand the need to build their communications capabilities may be characterized as meta-learning organizations. Resource-based theory suggests that communications systems and processes are thus sources of competitive advantage. Future empirical research on organizational learning may progress by evaluating specific measures of communication process as proxies for learning processes.
Automated T2 quantitation in neuropsychiatric lupus erythematosus: a marker of active disease.

Active neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE) is characterized by brain edema as measured by manual quantitative magnetic resonance (MR) relaxometry. An automated image processing method was developed to segment gray matter (GM), while minimizing the effects of confounding factors, specifically cerebral atrophy and volume averaging artifacts. Twenty patients with SLE (10 major, 10 minor), matched for atrophy, were studied. We compared T2 calculated for GM segmented by manual and automated methods. Both methods demonstrated a marked increase in GM T2 in patients with major NPSLE (P < 0.001), confirming the presence of cerebral edema. The results from each method were highly correlated, (r = 0.64, P = 0.002). The automated method effectively identifies GM, minimizes volume averaging artifacts, and produces results similar to the manual method. This method markedly decreases analysis time and will make quantitative relaxometry a valuable contribution to the clinical management of NPSLE. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 1999;9:39–43 © 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
The effect of colonies of aligned grains on critical current in high-temperature superconductors

Abstract X-ray microdiffraction has been used to map the orientational distribution of grains in a 4 × 5mm 2 polycrystalline film of Tl 1− y Ba 2 Cu 2 Cu 3 O x (Tl-1223) grown on yttira-stabilized zirconia (YSZ). The film consists of “colonies”, each containing ∼ 10 4 grains with their a -axes aligned; the c -axes of all grains are aligned normal to the film, but there is no overall a -axis alignment. While the grain boundaries within a colony are small angle, colonies are separated by large-angle tilt boundaries. The typical colony size is 0.4 mm. Measured critical currents are compared with simulations based on observed distributions of grain alignment; we find that variations in grain alignment account for the observed variations in the critical current density. Simulations over longer distances indicate that a colony structure can substantially increase the critical current, especially in magnetic fields.
Systemic and coronary hemodynamic effects of bepridil in patients with depressed left ventricular function

Abstract To assess the effects of oral bepridil therapy (10–14 days) on cardiac performance and myocardial energetics in the presence of depressed left ventricular function, systemic and coronary hemodynamic effects and neurohumoral effects were evaluated in 7 patients with coronary artery disease and reduced ejection fraction at control, submaximal, and maximal pacing rates during atrial pacing stress. After bepridil therapy, arterial, right atrial, and left ventricular filling pressures as well as systemic vascular resistance and left ventricular stroke work index did not change, suggesting no deleterious effects of bepridil on cardiac performance in patients with reduced ejection fraction. Rate-pressure product, myocardial oxygen consumption, coronary sinus blood flow, myocardial lactate extraction, and catecholamine balance remained unchanged. Development of angina during pacing showed a variable response to bepridil. We conclude that despite its potential negative inotropic effect, bepridil does not exert deleterious effects on hemodynamics or left ventricular performance. The mechanism for its beneficial antianginal effect may be due to favorable redistribution of myocardial blood flow to ischemic zones; no clear effect on anginal threshold or sympathetic tone could be demonstrated in these patients.
Plasticity of spinal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors following spinal nerve ligation.

Abstract The nicotinic cholinergic system is known to be important in the processing of nociceptive information. In the spinal cord, nicotinic receptors are expressed on primary afferent terminals, inhibitory interneurons and descending noradrenergic and serotoninergic fibers. Following peripheral nerve injury, the expression of numerous receptors involved in nociceptive processing is altered in the superficial dorsal horn of the spinal cord. However, the expression of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits in the lumbar spinal cord following peripheral nerve injury has not been investigated. We examined the expression of the α3, α4, α5, α7, β2, β3 and β4 nicotinic subunits in the spinal cord of normal and spinal nerve ligated rats using immunocytochemistry. Two nicotinic subunits were found to have an increased expression following spinal nerve ligation. The number of cells expressing the α3 subunit in the dorsal horn increased bilaterally following spinal nerve injury. Also, the number of α5 immunoreactive fibers increased significantly ipsilateral to ligation. The expression of the α4, α7, β2, β3 and β4 subunits was unchanged. We propose that the increased expression of the α3 and α5 nicotinic subunits may contribute to the mechanical hypersensitivity observed following spinal nerve ligation.
The effect of white and filtered noise on contrast detection thresholds

Models of the dipper effect seen in contrast discrimination experiments predict that small amounts of noise should facilitate detection of a subthreshold sinusoidal grating. Although facilitation of chromatic sine waves has been measured with chromatic or luminance noise, a facilitory effect of luminance sinusoidal gratings has not been measured, most likely because the stimulus characteristics were not tuned for revealing facilitation. The present study measures contrast detection thresholds (CDTs) of sinusoidal gratings in two-dimensional, static, band-limited white noise and low-pass and high-pass filtered noise using a two-interval forced-choice paradigm. The results show facilitation in near threshold white noise of middle frequency sinusoidal gratings, and facilitation in filtered noise of sinusoidal gratings whose frequency is far outside the pass band of the noise. Based on these results, a model of contrast detection thresholds is modified such that the facilitation is attributed to reduced observer uncertainty caused by small amounts of noise.
Outcome of sex reassignment surgery.

Three independent reviews of the world literature dealing with the outcome of sex reassignment surgery in transsexualism are presented. In 10-15% of the patients who undergo sex reassignment the results end up in a failure. There are as many failures in the female to male group as in the male to female group. Optimal results from the surgical procedures are important for a successful outcome. Relatively high age when first requesting sex reassignment may be regarded as a risk factor for poor outcome. Genuine transsexuals as a group seem to have a better prognosis for successful outcome of sex reassignment than a group of secondary transsexuals (i.e. transvestites and effeminate homosexuals). On the other hand, secondary transsexuals do better than genuine transsexuals when sex reassignment is refused. It is stressed that great importance should be given to the differential diagnosis when evaluating gender dysphoric patients for sex reassignment.
BACKGROUND CHARACTERIZATION WITH A SCANNED FOURIER TRANSFORM SPECTROMETER

Background scene characterization in the long wave infrared (LWIR) region of the electromagnetic spectrum is of particular interest for simulating the operational environment of passive standoff chemical detection systems. In conjunction with collections of local metrological data and temperature and water vapor profiles, spectrally resolved LWIR imagery, acquired using a scanned Fourier Transform Spectrometer, and boresighted visible imagery were collected during Fall 2005. Resulting spectra in the 700 – 1450 cm−1 frequency range were analyzed to provide estimates of the foreground/background temperature differential that can then be used as a metric to assess the information content in the resulting IR imagery. Measurements were performed at two geographical sites and over 100 GBs of raw data were accumulated. Through spatio-temporal analysis of the resulting temperature differential maps, we have derived strategies for optimizing scan patterns. These optimized strategies attempt to minimize the amount of redundant data thus providing shorter inter-sample times for temporally varying portions of the scene. Considerations include the first and second order spatial and temporal statistics as well as information content as quantified by average pixel entropy. This research was financed by the U.S. Army Joint Project Manager for Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Contamination Avoidance under contract number N00024-03-D-6606.
CARBONATE EQUILIBRIA: A GRAPHIC AND ALGEBRAIC APPROACH1

Graphic solutions for a wide variety of problems in carbonate equilibrium can be obtained if one uses the total carbonate carbon and alkalinity as abscissa and ordinate. At any point on such a diagram the carbonate system is completely defined and the pH, carbon dioxide pressure, bicarbonate concentration, and carbonate concentration can be presented as contours. The diagrams can be prepared for systems which contain other buffers in addition to carbonate. On such diagrams, the addition or removal of CO2, HCO3-, CO3=, acid, or base is a vector property. Diagrams have been prepared for systems that are buffered only by H+ and OH- ions and by the carbonate species at 25C and 1 atm pressure. For solutions in equilibrium with calcite, the magnitude of the alkalinity minus the calcium can also be contoured. An algebraic treatment that is equivalent to graphic solutions can be used either to obtain greater precision or to work with different equilibrium constants.
Sex differences in the influence of nicotine dose instructions on the reinforcing and self-reported rewarding effects of smoking

Compared to men, the smoking behavior of women may be less responsive to nicotine and more responsive to nonpharmacological factors, perhaps including verbal information (e.g., dose instructions). This study compared the influence of the presence vs absence of dose instructions on the subjective and reinforcing effects of nicotine via cigarette smoking in men and women. Subjects (n=120) abstained overnight from smoking and were randomly assigned to one of four groups. Half of the subjects received nicotine cigarettes (Quest 1, yield of 0.6 mg), and the other half received denicotinized cigarettes (“denic”; Quest 3, yield of 0.05 mg). Furthermore, half of each subsample was accurately instructed they were receiving a “normal nicotine” or a “no nicotine” cigarette, while the other half received no instructions. Subjects completed baseline measures of craving and mood (positive and negative affect), took two puffs from the cigarette after receiving dose instructions or no instructions, and then rated the cigarette's “reward” value (liking, satisfying) and other characteristics. They also repeated the craving and mood measures. Subjects then smoked more of that same brand ad libitum over the next 30 min to measure reinforcement (puff number and latency to first puff). Overall, nicotine increased reward, other cigarette ratings, and positive affect, but did not affect craving or smoking behavior. However, results varied by sex. Dose instructions enhanced the effects of nicotine on smoking reward and reinforcement in women, while instructions tended to dampen or even reverse these effects of nicotine in men (i.e., interaction of sex×nicotine×instructions). In women but not in men, the influence of nicotine on smoking reward and reinforcement is enhanced by accurate verbal information about the cigarette's nicotine dose. These results are consistent with the notion that the smoking behavior of women, relative to men, may be more responsive to nonpharmacological factors.
Neuronal population of area 4 during the life span of the rhesus monkey.

Abstract One right or left area 4 of each of 19 rhesus monkeys, ranging in age from 1 day to 35 years, was processed (frozen sectioned at 30 or 40 μm) for light microscopic analysis to assess age-related changes in the neuronal population. All neurons were examined regardless of their size. In addition, Betz cells were analyzed separately; to be regarded as Betz cells, pyramidal somata had to display a minimum height of 38 μm. A significant loss of approximately one-third was observed in the total number of neurons in maturing monkeys (
Preconditioned Iterative 3-D Finite-Difference Depth Migration Or Modeling On the CRAY T3D Massively Parallel Processors

The formulations of the three-drmensional (3-D) one-pass 45o implicit finite-difference migration or modeling schemes lead to a super-large pentadiagonal complex linear system. In this paper, we present a parallel algorithm to solve the large sparse system iteratively, using the preconditioned conjugate gradient (PCG) method [Munksgaard, 1980}. The solution of a complex pentadiagonal system of the linear equations lies at the heart of the problem. Moreover, a new technique to convert the complex sparse matrix into real, symmetric and positive definite form and a hybrid method in solving the system are proposed. We will show that the two key characters, symmetry and positive definitive, of the PCG method are inherited within the modified system. This reformation significantly accelerates the convergence of the solutions. This algorithm accommodates the hardware architecture on the CRAY T3D MPP systems. In our model of computation, all processors have access to a logically shared memory. Simultaneous reading from the same location is allowed. The influences of some critical factors such as, grid dimension, temporal frequency range, processor synchronization, and preconditioning options on the speed of convergence and performance of the systems are analyzed. The memory requirements and the computational efficiency of the new scheme will be compared to those from the traditional x-y splitting approximation method.
Argatroban-coupled Affi-Gel matrix for the purification of thrombin from plasma.

Sometimes it is necessary to obtain thrombin from limited amounts of human plasma for laboratory assay. None of the available purification methods easily deals with this subject. The procedure described in the present paper uses a readily available pharmaceutical agent, argatroban, to construct an affinity matrix. Argatroban has a high affinity for thrombin and its thrombin binding is reversible. Prothrombin derived from a Ba 2+ precipitate of human plasma is used as the starting material. The crude prothrombin can be bulk activated to thrombin using taipan-snake (Oxyuranus scutellatus) venom and bound to the argatroban-coupled matrix without further processing steps. The thrombin product eluted from the argatroban matrix is very pure as judged by high specific activity and by electrophoresis. This purification scheme is rapid, yielding purified thrombin within 2 days.
The Russian constructivist flapper dress

This essay has benefitted from a long gestation, including the opportunity to present versions of it as public lectures. I would like to thank the organizers and audiences of the session on Fashion, Identity, and Cultural History chaired by Leila Kinney and Nancy Troy at the annual meeting of the College Art Association in Los Angeles in 1999; the In the House lecture series at the Institute for Research on Women and Gender, Columbia University (particularly Nadia Michoustina); the modernist colloquium in the department of art history, Yale University (especially Christopher Wood); and the symposium New Work on the Russian Avant-garde at the University of California, Berkeley. I would also like to thank the members of the graduate seminar on the Russian avant-garde that I taught in the department of the history of art at Berkeley in the spring of 2000 for their careful reading of this essay; in particular the comments of Anthony Grudin, Ara Merjian, Allison Schachter, and John Tain all bore fruit in the text. Robert Gamboa read this essay with typical engagement and generosity; I have come to rely on his exacting response to my work.
China's rise in Historical Perspective

Abstract China today is the product of thousands of years of expansion. Much like the Russian and American empires, the Chinese Empire resulted from the ruthless extension of power from a relatively small core over a vast territory. The original inhabitants of those lands were driven away, killed, or assimilated. For much of its history, China dominated East Asia and controlled its contacts with the rest of the world. In the nineteenth century, however, the rise of European power challenged China and, for a relatively brief period – perhaps 100 years – Europeans and subsequently Japanese were able to impose their will on the Chinese people. Beginning with the establishment of the People's Republic in 1949, China has reasserted itself as a force in world affairs. Its government united the people and gained control over most of the territory the Han and Qing empires had acquired. As China regains its great power status, it can be expected to behave as all great empires have throughout history, resume its pl...
Exactly k-to-1 maps and hereditarily indecomposable tree-like continua

In 1947, W.H. Gottschalk proved that no dendrite is the continuous, exactly k-to-1 image of any continuum if k ≥ 2. Since that time, no other class of continua has been shown to have this same property. It is shown that no hereditarily indecomposable tree-like continuum is the continuous, exactly k-to-1 image of any continuum if k > 2.
Electrocoagulation of hemorrhagic gastritis.

An attempt at electrocoagulation of hemorrhagic gastritis in a cirrhotic patient is reported. The problems of applying the technique are discussed and the literature briefly reviewed.
Professionalism, Responsiveness, and Representation: What do They Mean for City Managers?

The literature in public administration advances three important values for public administrators. In their roles as technical experts, public administrators are professionals whose decisions are guided by the norms and principles of the public administration profession. In their roles as appointed officials, public administrators are expected to be responsive to their elected superiors. As representatives of the community, they are expected to voice the concerns and demands of citizens. Professionalism, responsiveness, and representation all are considered fundamental values that must be reflected in administrative decisions and actions. Despite the importance of these three values for public administration, insufficient empirical research has been done to examine what these values mean for public administrators. That is, the critical question that remains unanswered is: “What activities of public administrators are associated with these three values?” Based on a nationwide survey of city managers, this ...
Geomorphology: Flood-built land

The southeastern US coastline is under threat as land subsides and sea level rises. Measurements of the 2011 Mississippi River flood suggest that the river carries enough sandy sediment to offset some of this coastal drowning.
Impact of perioperative RSV or influenza infection on length of stay and risk of unplanned ICU admission in children: a case-control study

Background Children with viral respiratory infections who undergo general anesthesia are at increased risk of respiratory complications. We investigated the impact of RSV and influenza infection on perioperative outcomes in children undergoing general anesthesia.
Basement membrane components enhance isolated enterocyte growth.

Abstract Isolated enterocyte transplantation may have a potential role in increasing intestinal surface area. However, enterocytes are notoriously difficult to grow. Basement membrane components (BMC) promote adherence, migration, and differentiation of enterocytes. Our aim was to determine if BMC enhance enterocyte growth. Twenty-nine rabbits had 5-cm ileal segments resected and serosal pouches (n =.22) created from the serosal surface of the colon. Harvesting of enterocytes by warm trypsinization resulted in 92 ± 6% cell viability and yielded 5.0 ± 2.4 106 enterocytes/cm intestine. Enterocytes (105) were cultured in vitro (n = 7) in 10 ml growth media in plain flasks and flasks coated with laminin alone or Matrigel (an extract of mouse basement membrane containing laminin plus Type IV collagen and heparan sulfate). The cells were subcultured at 2 weeks and examined after Geimsa staining at 4 weeks. Epithelial growth was confirmed by light microscopy and staining for cytokeratin and quantitated by image analysis (JAVA). Epithelial coverage of the flasks was greater with Matrigel (80 ± 15%) than laminin (66 ± 15%) which was greater than control (44 ± 20%) (P
General equivalence of linear scan and staircase voltammetry

Abstract Linear scan voltammetry is specified by one parameter, the scan rate, ν, whereas staircase voltammetry requires three parameters, the step height, ΔE, step width, τ, and fraction of the step width at which current is sampled, α. Here it is shown that the response in linear scan is the same (within acceptable limits) as that for staircase, for ν = ΔE/τ, for a wide variety of mechanisms, when certain simple conditiosn obtain. For all mechanisms described by an Abel integral equation (e.g. reversible system with semi-infinite linear diffusion) this correspondence holds for α = 0.25. For systems described by non-Abellian equations (e.g., quasi-reversible processes), the correspondence obtains for α = 0.50. In general the quality of agreement deteriorates with increasing step height and is adequate for nΔE ≤ 8 mV.
Alzheimer's Aβ(1-40) Amyloid Fibrils Feature Size-Dependent Mechanical Properties

Amyloid fibrils are highly ordered protein aggregates that are associated with several pathological processes, including prion propagation and Alzheimer's disease. A key issue in amyloid science is the need to understand the mechanical properties of amyloid fibrils and fibers to quantify biomechanical interactions with surrounding tissues, and to identify mechanobiological mechanisms associated with changes of material properties as amyloid fibrils grow from nanoscale to microscale structures. Here we report a series of computational studies in which atomistic simulation, elastic network modeling, and finite element simulation are utilized to elucidate the mechanical properties of Alzheimer's Aβ(1-40) amyloid fibrils as a function of the length of the protein filament for both twofold and threefold symmetric amyloid fibrils. We calculate the elastic constants associated with torsional, bending, and tensile deformation as a function of the size of the amyloid fibril, covering fibril lengths ranging from nanometers to micrometers. The resulting Young's moduli are found to be consistent with available experimental measurements obtained from long amyloid fibrils, and predicted to be in the range of 20–31 GPa. Our results show that Aβ(1-40) amyloid fibrils feature a remarkable structural stability and mechanical rigidity for fibrils longer than ≈100 nm. However, local instabilities that emerge at the ends of short fibrils (on the order of tens of nanometers) reduce their stability and contribute to their disassociation under extreme mechanical or chemical conditions, suggesting that longer amyloid fibrils are more stable. Moreover, we find that amyloids with lengths shorter than the periodicity of their helical pitch, typically between 90 and 130 nm, feature significant size effects of their bending stiffness due the anisotropy in the fibril's cross section. At even smaller lengths (⪅50 nm), shear effects dominate lateral deformation of amyloid fibrils, suggesting that simple Euler-Bernoulli beam models fail to describe the mechanics of amyloid fibrils appropriately. Our studies reveal the importance of size effects in elucidating the mechanical properties of amyloid fibrils. This issue is of great importance for comparing experimental and simulation results, and gaining a general understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying the growth of ectopic amyloid materials.
Morphological characterization and meiotic competence of oocytes collected from filly ovaries.

The effect of filly age on morphology of the ovaries, collected oocytes and their capacity for in vitro maturation (IVM) was examined. The ovaries of slaughtered fillies were classified into three groups, according to filly age: (I) 0.05) to mare oocytes. Both filly and mare oocytes with expanded cumuli displayed the same capacity for IVM.
Natural Products: Repellency and Toxicity of Wild Tomato Leaf Extracts to the Two-Spotted Spider Mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch

The potential of using phytochemicals from leaves of wild tomato for controlling the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch, is explored in this study as a promising alternative to the use of synthetic pesticides. Wild tomato accessions of Lycopersicon hirsutum plants that are not consumed by humans were planted under greenhouse conditions for mass production of leaves. Crude extracts from leaves of three accessions of L. hirsutum, six accessions of L. hirsutum f. glabratum, and one accession each of L. pennellii and L. pimpinellifolium were prepared in chloroform, ethanol and hexane. Two spider mite bioassays, one a measure of antibiosis and the other a measure of repellency, were utilized to determine the acaricidal performance of the crude extracts. The bioassay for antibiosis was a 6-h no-choice test. The bioassay for repellency utilized a ring bioassay. Chloroform leaf extracts of L. hirsutum f. glabratum accessions (PI-251304, PI-134417, PI-134418, and PI-126449) exhibited greatest antibiotic activity on two-spotted spider mites; the hexane extracts exhibited greatest repellency. Extracts from PI-251304, PI-126449, PI-134417, and PI-134418 were especially lethal (chloroform) or repellent (hexane). We investigated differences in chemical composition of the crude leaf extracts that may explain the observed differences in mortality and repellency among the different accessions. Major chemical compounds (alpha -curcumene, alpha -zingiberene, trans-caryophyllene, 2-undecanone, and 2-tridecanone) known to have pesticidal efficacy were detected and quantified in the crude leaf extracts using a gas chromatograph (GC) equipped with a mass spectrometer (GC/MS). Lethality of extracts was mainly associated with the presence of high concentrations of 2-tridecanone; repellency of extracts was mainly associated with the presence of trans-caryophyllene. Leaf extracts of L. hirsutum f. glabratum accessions that contain significant quantities of 2-tridecanone and/or trans-caryophyllene could be useful for managing populations of spider mites, which could reduce reliance on synthetic pesticides.