cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Complement 3 signaling is necessary for the developmental refinement of olfactory bulb circuitry

Abstract The olfactory system depends upon organizational maps that are developmentally refined and maintained, however the cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie these processes are unknown. Studies have shown that microglia and complement molecules are important for the developmental refinement of circuitry within the visual system, thus we asked whether they played a similar role in the olfactory system through the formation of the olfactory bulb (OB) maps, the glomerular and intrabulbar maps. Our findings revealed that microglia in mature animals engulf olfactory sensory neuron (OSN) axons and the synaptic terminals of tufted cells in the glomerular and intrabulbar maps respectively, suggesting microglia could anatomically shape the mature OB circuitry. To determine the mechanisms underlying this axonal pruning activity we used complement 3 (C3) and complement receptor 3 (CR3) knockout mice to investigate if C3 signaling was necessary for precise OB map development. Our results demonstrate that glomerular and intrabulbar map disorganization as typically present in early postnatal mice persists into adulthood when C3 signaling is disrupted. These data clearly establish the C3/CR3 pathway as necessary for the proper developmental refinement of both olfactory maps. We further present the olfactory system as a unique platform to study the role of glia in the development and adult refinement of regenerating circuits.
Building shared power: the Trans-Arabian Pipeline and the technopolitics of anti-sectarian labor mobilization in Lebanon, 1950–1964

ABSTRACTThis article examines anti-sectarianism and the technopolitics of labor mobilization at the facilities of the Trans-Arabian Pipeline (Tapline) company in Lebanon between 1950 and 1964. It argues that although Tapline helped sustain a Lebanese elite strategy of cross-sectarian power-sharing, it also unintentionally fostered specifically anti-sectarian labor mobilization. Pursuing a line of inquiry into the technopolitics of worker mobilization around oil infrastructure opened by Timothy Mitchell’s Carbon Democracy, this article specifically examines how Lebanese Tapline workers construed their actions, and did so in anti-sectarian terms. It also proposes that similar studies of labor and the technopolitics of infrastructure could offer productive avenues for inquiry into the origins of anti-sectarian politics in Lebanon.
Lazy Controller Synthesis using Three-valued Abstractions for Safety and Reachability Specifications

The synthesis of correct-by-design control software is a promising direction to address the well known difficulties in formally verifying complex cyber-physical systems. Despite the promise of this approach, it is currently limited to small systems since it typically requires the computation of a finite-state abstraction whose size grows exponentially with the number of continuous states. In this paper we present a new way to tackle the lack of scalability of control software synthesis by adopting a lazy controller synthesis approach. Instead of synthesizing a controller using a precomputed abstraction of the full system, the abstraction is computed lazily as needed for safety and reachability specifications. We illustrate, through different examples, how this lazy approach significantly reduces the total time required for the synthesis of correct-by-design controllers.
Skin dendritic cells induce follicular helper T cells and protective humoral immune responses

Background The contribution of individual subsets of dendritic cells (DCs) to generation of adaptive immunity is central to understanding immune homeostasis and protective immune responses. Objective We sought to define functions for steady-state skin DCs. Methods We present an approach in which we restrict antigen presentation to individual DC subsets in the skin and monitor the effects on endogenous antigen-specific CD4 + T- and B-cell responses. Results Presentation of foreign antigen by Langerhans cells (LC) in the absence of exogenous adjuvant led to a large expansion of T follicular helper (T FH ) cells. This was accompanied by B-cell activation, germinal center formation, and protective antibody responses against influenza. The expansion of T FH cells and antibody responses could be elicited by both systemic and topical skin immunization. T FH cell induction was not restricted to LCs and occurred in response to antigen presentation by CD103 + dermal DCs. CD103 + DCs, despite inducing similar T FH responses as LCs, were less efficient in induction of germinal center B cells and humoral immune responses. We also found that skin DCs are sufficient to expand CXCR5 + T FH cells through an IL-6– and IFN-α/β receptor–independent mechanism, but B cells were required for sustained Bcl-6 + expression. Conclusions These data demonstrate that a major unappreciated function of skin DCs is their promotion of T FH cells and humoral immune responses that potentially represent an efficient approach for vaccination.
The 4,6-O-[alpha-(2-(2- iodophenyl)ethylthiocarbonyl)benzylidene] protecting group: stereoselective glycosylation, reductive radical fragmentation, and synthesis of beta-D-rhamnopyranosides and other deoxy sugars.

In the thioglycoside/BSP/Tf2O glycosylation method, the 4,6-O-[α-(2-(2-iodophenyl)ethylthiocarbonyl)benzylidene] group enforces β-selectivity in mannopyranosylations. Following glycosylation, treatment with Bu3SnH in toluene at reflux affords regioselective, reductive fragmentation to the 6-deoxy-β-mannosides (β-rhamnosides). Applied to glucosides, the radical fragmentation provides 6-deoxyglucosides, whereas 4-deoxygalactosides are the preferred products in the galactose series. The radical fragmentation is fully compatible with the presence of benzyl and p-methoxybenzyl ethers and with acetate esters
A precarious future for distinctive peripheral populations of meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

Conservation efforts rely on robust taxonomic assessments that should be based on critical assessment of interspecific boundaries, infraspecific variation, and potentially distinctive peripheral populations. The meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) is widely distributed across North America, including 28 morphologically defined subspecies and numerous isolated populations. Because some subspecies are of high conservation concern, we examined geographic variation across the range of the species to test existing infraspecific taxonomy in terms of local and regional diversification. We sequenced mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from 20 subspecies of M. pennsylvanicus and contextualized infraspecific variation through comparison of pairwise genetic distances derived from an extended data set of 63 species of Microtus. We found strong support for at least three divergent clades within M. pennsylvanicus, with observed intraspecific clade divergence exceeding that between several pairwise comparisons of sister species within Microtus. Six nuclear genes were then sequenced to test the validity of mtDNA structure and to further evaluate the possibility of cryptic, species-level diversity using Bayes factor species delimitation (BFD) analyses. BFD consistently and decisively supported multiple species based on the multilocus approach. We propose that taxonomic revision of the meadow vole is required, with the eastern clade now identified as M. pennsylvanicus (Ord 1815), the western clade as M. drummondii (Audubon and Bachman 1853), and the coastal Florida clade as M. dukecampbelli (Woods, Post, and Kilpatrick 1982). We suggest that such an arrangement would more closely reflect evolutionary history and provide critical context for further examination of distinctive southern peripheral populations that harbor novel evolutionary legacies and adaptive potential.
Linear Classifiers in Product Space Forms.

Embedding methods for product spaces are powerful techniques for low-distortion and low-dimensional representation of complex data structures. Nevertheless, little is known regarding downstream learning and optimization problems in such spaces. Here, we address the problem of linear classification in a product space form -- a mix of Euclidean, spherical, and hyperbolic spaces. First, we describe new formulations for linear classifiers on a Riemannian manifold using geodesics and Riemannian metrics which generalize straight lines and inner products in vector spaces, respectively. Second, we prove that linear classifiers in $d$-dimensional space forms of any curvature have the same expressive power, i.e., they can shatter exactly $d+1$ points. Third, we formalize linear classifiers in product space forms, describe the first corresponding perceptron and SVM classification algorithms, and establish rigorous convergence results for the former. We support our theoretical findings with simulation results on several datasets, including synthetic data, CIFAR-100, MNIST, Omniglot, and single-cell RNA sequencing data. The results show that learning methods applied to small-dimensional embeddings in product space forms outperform their algorithmic counterparts in each space form.
Wind Farm Electrical Asset Components: Insulation Diagnostics through Partial Discharge Measurements

The reliability of asset components of wind and photovoltaic plants has been an issue, especially regarding premature failures of electrical insulation systems. Extensive testing of cables is often carried out, generally off-line, to assess partial discharge activity and level of dissipation factor, and this occurs, to lower extent, also other components, as generators and transformers. However, they may be not effective in predicting health conditions, which are related to the dynamic of operation, the real electrothermal stresses acting with load variations and abnormal electrical stresses associated to the often non-sinusoidal power supply. Another issue about diagnostic measurements is that they require often data processing and interpretation made by experts, which does not favor, for a matter of cost and timing, the diffusion of on-line monitoring systems. This paper presents an approach to partial discharge monitoring addressed towards an automated and unsupervised technology, able to provide traffic light alerts to maintenance manager upon reaching critical conditions for wind-farm asset components. Examples of applications to rotating machines controlled by power electronics, transformers, switchgears and cables are presented, illustrating how the new automatic approach works for noise and partial discharge recognition, noise rejection, partial discharge harmfulness identification and dynamic health index build up.
Efficient k-NN Search on Streaming Data Series

Data streams are common in many recent applications, e.g. stock quotes, e-commerce data, system logs, network traffic management, etc. Compared with traditional databases, streaming databases pose new challenges for query processing due to the streaming nature of data which constantly changes over time. Index structures have been effectively employed in traditional databases to improve the query performance. Index building time is not of particular interest in static databases because it can easily be amortized with the performance gains in the query time. However, because of the dynamic nature, index building time in streaming databases should be negligibly small in order to be successfully used in continuous query processing. In this paper, we propose efficient index structures and algorithms for various models of k nearest neighbor (k-NN) queries on multiple data streams. We find scalar quantization as a natural choice for data streams and propose index structures, called VA-Stream and VA + -Stream, which are built by dynamically quantizing the incoming dimensions. VA + -Stream (and VA-Stream) can be used both as a dynamic summary of the database and as an index structure to facilitate efficient similarity query processing. The proposed techniques are update-efficient and dynamic adaptations of VA-file and VA + -file, and are shown to achieve the same structures as their static versions. They can be generalized to handle aged queries, which are often used in trend-related analysis. A performance evaluation on VA-Stream and VA + -Stream shows that the index building time is negligibly small while query time is significantly improved.
Effects of a Synthetic Antimicrobial Agent on the Rates of Synthesis and Degradation of Liver and Skeletal Muscle Proteins in Growing Rats

A double isotope technique was used to evaluate the effects of a synthetic antimicrobial compound (carbadox) upon the synthesis and degradation of rat liver and muscle proteins. Trials 1 and 2 used, respectively, 20 and 12 male Sprague-Dawley rats with average initial weights of 75 and 81 g. A 16% crude protein corn-soybean diet without or with carbadox (55 ppm) was fed. Rats were randomly assigned to diets which were fed 10 days prior to the initial isotope (14C-lysine) injection. The second isotope injection (3H-lysine) was made 3 days after the 14C-lysine injection in trial 1, 6 days in trial 2. Four hours after the second injection, the rats were killed and the right and left quadriceps and a sample of liver were removed. Total protein from the right quadriceps was prepared via a boiling trichloroacetic acid (TCA) extraction procedure. The left quadriceps was separated into myofibrillar and sarcoplasmic protein fractions via a KCl salt gradient. In both trials, gains were similar across treatments, but markedly reduced during the injection periods. Gain/feed prior to injection was greater (P less than 0.05) for carbadox-fed rats. In both trials right quadriceps 3H-incorporation (expressed as 3H cpm/mg protein) and relative degradation (3H cpm/14C cpm) were not affected by dietary carbadox. The sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar protein fractions were also not significantly affected. However, in both trials liver protein 3H-incorporation was enhanced (P less than 0.025) by carbadox, while liver protein degradation was affected (P less than 0.001) only in trial 2.
Medication Adherence among the Elderly and Technology Aids: Results from an Online Survey Study

Appropriate use of medications can improve the health of seniors and other patients, but inappropriate use or misuse can lead to adverse side effects, deterioration, and other conditions that may result in either more medical visits, hospitalizations or even death. This study aimed at exploring how senior people manage their daily medication and the acceptance towards the medication management technology and the service in assisted living facilities. Results of an online questionnaire survey with senior participants suggested that the online senior communities manage their medication in three ways: managed based on memory or routines, assisted by medication management tools, or helped by other members in the family. Although medication management technology is in low usage rate, participants showed positive attitude towards medication management service and accepting technology as a method to improve medication adherence, with the concerning issues on user acceptance, usability, and user preference.
Genetic and Cellular Vaccines

First page of article Keywords: antigen-presenting cells (APCs); antitumour immunity; cellular vaccine; costimulatory molecules; cytotoxic T cell (CTL); dendritic cell (DC); genetic vaccine or DNA immunization; helper T cell; immune response; immunosuppression; tumour antigen; tumour clinic trial; tumour immunotherapy
Size reduction of permanent magnet generators for wind turbines using halbach cylinders

The U.S. is currently dependent on fossil fuels for electricity generation, resulting in negative consequences such as carbon emissions. To reduce this dependence the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has proposed 20% electricity generation from wind by 2030 as wind energy presents a viable and renewable alternative to fossil fuels. The DOE has targeted larger and offshore wind turbines to achieve this goal [1].
Mechanism of action of peptide YY to inhibit gastric motility

Abstract The pathway by which peptide YY inhibits upper gastrointestinal motility is largely unknown and prompted this investigation. Muscle tension and [ 3 H]acetylcholine release studies were performed on isolated muscle strips and slices obtained from the guinea pig stomach. Peptide YY [0.1–1000 nmol/L; concentration of half-maximal effect (EC 50 ), 6 nmol/L] caused concentration-dependent relaxation of longitudinally oriented muscle strips that was unaffected by hexamethonium but was blocked by atropine and tetrodotoxin, suggesting that the peptide inhibited postganglionic cholinergic neurotransmission. In addition, peptide YY (1 μmol/L) reduced by 42% ± 6% electrically stimulated muscle contractions that were blocked by atropine and tetrodotoxin, providing additional evidence that the peptide inhibits release of acetylcholine. Next, the effect of peptide YY on potassium-evoked release of [ 3 H]acetylcholine and whether the peptide inhibits cyclic adenosine monophosphate-dependent release of acetylcholine were examined. Peptide YY (1 μmol/L) inhibited KCl (35 mmol/L)-evoked release of [ 3 H]acetylcholine by 58% ± 6%. The inhibitory action of peptide YY was unaffected by antagonists for dopamine-2, α-2, and opiate receptors that are known to mediate presynaptic inhibition. In addition, peptide YY reduced halfmaximal forskolin and cholera toxin-evoked release of acetylcholine by 45% ± 6% and 42% ± 8%, respectively, suggesting that the peptide can inhibit cyclic adenosine monophosphate-dependent release of acetylcholine. This effect of peptide YY was reversed by pertussis toxin which prevents activation of the inhibitory guanine nucleotide binding protein coupled to adenylate cyclase. In summary, peptide YY inhibited basal and stimulated cholinergic neurotransmission in the guinea pig stomach. In addition, peptide YY antagonized cyclic adenosine monophosphate-mediated release of acetylcholine through a pertussis toxin-sensitive mechanism.
Translational Control of Cell Proliferation and Viability in Normal and Neoplastic Cells

Available evidence indicates that the initiation step in translation of mRNA into protein—a step mediated by the translational complex eIF4F—is an obligatory regulatory hub in the circuitry of the normal cell physiology and cancer. Control of cell cycle progression, apoptosis, premature cell senescence and authophagy by eIF4F is required in the developmental and physiological setting for maintenance of cell homeostasis, whereas usurping eIF4F-mediated translational control is oncogenic. The members of eIF4F are ubiquitously dysregulated or overexpressed in human malignancies. When hyperactivated by upstream oncogenic signaling, eIF4F selectively stimulates translation of a group of mRNAs required for the acquisition and maintenance of the basic capabilities of cancer, including cell autonomy for growth signals, tissue invasion and evasion of cancer defense systems, such as apoptosis and premature senescence. These findings place aberrant eIF4F in a list of primary candidates for targeting by cancer therapy.
A novel human macrophage-derived intestinal mucin secretagogue: Implications for the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract Background: A novel 68-kilodalton macrophage-derived protein (MMS-68) stimulating mucin release from respiratory epithelial cells has previously been described. In this study, the effect of MMS-68 on mucin release from intestinal epithelial cells was determined. Methods: Colonic epithelial cells isolated from normal colon, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's colitis, and cells from three colon cancer cell lines were labeled with [3H]-glucosamine and stimulated with MMS-68. High molecular weight glycoproteins were precipitated and counted. Results: In all of the cells tested, MMS-68 enhanced mucin secretion by 1.46–2.0-fold above control values, comparable to the level achieved with carbachol (10−5 mol/L). Coincubation with anti-MMS-68 monoclonal antibody 1D-10 blocked this bioactivity. Freshly isolated intestinal macrophages reacted with monoclonal antibody 1D-10. Immunofluorescent staining of frozen sections revealed the presence of MMS-68-producing cells (macrophages) in the lamina propria of normal colon and Crohn's colitis, with weaker expression in ulcerative colitis mucosa. Conclusions: Intestinal macrophages produce a novel mucin secretagogue, which is as potent as carbachol for stimulating mucin secretion from colonic epithelial cells. This factor may explain, in part, the alterations in mucin secretion often seen in inflammatory bowel disease.
Financial Openness and the Dutch Disease

This paper studies the relationship between the degree of financial openness and Dutch disease effects of capital inflows in developing countries.The results reveal that an increase in financial openness leads to an appreciation of the real exchange rate. In particular, the study shows that an increase in inflow of foreign direct investments (FDI) results in an appreciation of the real exchange rate in more financially open countries only. The results also suggest that there is a trade-off between the resource movement effect and the spending effect in more financially open economies following an increase in FDI inflows, such that the more the tradable sector expands relative to the nontradable sector, the greater is the real exchange rate appreciation.
Multiple-Locus Heterozygosity and the Physiological Energetics of Growth in the Coot Clam Mulinia-Lateralis From a Natural Population

The relationship between individual energy budgets and multiple-locus heterozygosity at six polymorphic enzyme loci was examined in Mulinia lateralis. Energy budgets were determined by measuring growth rates, rates of oxygen consumption, ammonia excretion and clearance rates. Enzyme genotypes were determined using starch gel electrophoresis. Growth rate and net growth efficiency (the ratio of energy available for growth to total energy absorbed) increased with individual heterozygosity. The positive relationship between observed growth and multiple-locus heterozygosity was associated with a negative relationship between routine metabolic costs and increasing heterozygosity. Reduction in routine metabolic costs explained 60% of the observed increased growth of more heterozygous individuals. When routine metabolic costs were standardized for differences in feeding rates, these standard metabolic costs explained 97% of the differences in growth rate. Lower standard metabolic costs, associated with increasing heterozygosity, have been proposed as a physiological mechanism for the relationship between multiple-locus heterozygosity and growth rate that has been reported for a variety of organisms, ranging in diversity from aspens to humans. This study demonstrates that reduction of standard metabolic costs, at least in clams, accounts for virtually all of the differences in growth rate among individuals of differing heterozygosity.
The erythrocyte anion transport protein is cotranslationally inserted into microsomes

The biosynthesis of the erythrocyte anion transport protein, Band III (molecular weight 100,000), is of interest, as its NH2-terminal half is hydrophilic and faces the cytoplasmic surface, and its COOH-terminal half spans the phospholipid bilayer several times. To investigate the problem of insertion of Band III into membranes, we used erythroid precursor cells from the spleens of anemic mice as a source of messenger RNA for in vitro studies in the wheat germ and reticulocyte lysate cell-free system containing dog pancreatic microsomes. Immediately after synthesis, Band III was found to be inserted into intracellular membranes in its mature configuration, with the NH2-terminal portion exposed to the cytoplasm and its hydrophobic COOH-terminal portion spanning the lipid bilayer. The newly synthesized Band III was provided with a high mannose asparagine-linked oligosaccharide, which was sensitive to cleavage by endoglycosidase H; this is presumably the precursor of the very large and complex oligosaccharide found on the finished molecule. Band III was found to insert into dog pancreatic microsomes in a cotranslational manner; in synchronized translation studies microsomes could be added as late as the time when the hydrophilic NH2-terminal half of the protein had been synthesized and still allow normal transmembrane insertion and glycosylation. There is no cleavage of any NH2-terminal peptide during membrane insertion. The results suggest that Band III contains a sequence near the middle of the protein that directs its insertions into endoplasmic reticulum membranes.
WE-G-211-06: Multiplexed Radio Luminescence Imaging for Radiation Therapy

Purpose: Radio LuminescenceImaging is being investigated for its potential to provide biological feedback during radiation treatment. We are investigating the use of biologically‐targeted phosphornanoparticles to enable high‐resolution molecular imaging with standard therapeutic systems. This work demonstrates the ability of this technique to image multiple molecular markers in a small‐animal model. We investigate their potential in resolving markers pertinent to treatment monitoring. Method and Materials: Images were acquired with a custom‐built imaging system incorporating a Princeton Instruments Pro‐EM camera CCD with 512×512 pixels) and a 50mm lens. Tb‐ and Eu‐doped BaYF4 nanoparticles of linearly varying amounts (0mg/ml:10mg/ml; 2.5mg/ml:7.5 mg/ml; 7.5mg/ml:2.5mg/ml; and 10mg/ml:0mg/ml) were mixed into cuvettes and imaged under irradiation with an 80keV X‐ray source (Pantak Therapax). BaYF4 nanoparticles were also placed in the right foreleg and right and left flanks of a nude mouse. In another experiment, phosphornanoparticles were placed in a cylindrical plug‐shaped phantom and irradiated with a 9MeV electron beam produced by a Varian Trilogy linear accelerator. All images were processed with custom spectral unmixing software, which enabled the visualization of each phosphor. Results: Concentrations less than 0.1 mg/ml were resolved. Spectral unmixing showed excellent separation of the phosphornanoparticles (r = −0.98), demonstrating the multiplexing ability of the technique. In addition, phosphor concentrations showed excellent linearity (R>0.99), with excellent separation of the phosphornanoparticles.Images of the phosphornanoparticles implanted in the fore and hindquarters demonstrated the ability to spectrally separate in small‐animal model. Conclusion: The ability of radio luminescent imaging was demonstrated in phantom and small‐animal models, for both X‐rays and electron beams. Enabling simultaneous imaging of multiple molecular imaging markers is possible in Radiation Therapy applications. This technique has potential for introducing the monitoring of biological markers during treatment. The Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program, the National Institutes of Health ICMIC P50CA114747, the Center for Biomedical Imaging at Stanford, and the Friends for Early Breast Cancer Detection.
Microarray-based mutation detection in the dystrophin gene

Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies (DMD and BMD) are X-linked recessive neuromuscular disorders caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene affecting approximately 1 in 3,500 males. The human dystrophin gene spans>2,200 kb, or roughly 0.1% of the genome, and is composed of 79 exons. The mutational spectrum of disease-causing alleles, including exonic copy number variations (CNVs), is complex. Deletions account for approximately 65% of DMD mutations and 85% of BMD mutations. Duplications occur in approximately 6 to 10% of males with either DMD or BMD. The remaining 30 to 35% of mutations consist of small deletions, insertions, point mutations, or splicing mutations, most of which introduce a premature stop codon. Laboratory analysis of dystrophin can be used to confirm a clinical diagnosis of DMD, characterize the type of dystrophin mutation, and perform prenatal testing and carrier testing for females. Current dystrophin diagnostic assays involve a variety of methodologies, including multiplex PCR, Southern blot analysis, multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA), detection of virtually all mutations-SSCP (DOVAM-S), and single condition amplification/internal primer sequencing (SCAIP); however, these methods are time-consuming, laborious, and do not accurately detect duplication mutations in the dystrophin gene. Furthermore, carrier testing in females is often difficult when a related affected male is unavailable. Here we describe the development, design, validation, and implementation of a high-resolution comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) microarray-based approach capable of accurately detecting both deletions and duplications in the dystrophin gene. This assay can be readily adopted by clinical molecular testing laboratories and represents a rapid, cost-effective approach for screening a large gene, such as dystrophin.
Effective Segmentation of University Alumni: Mining Contribution Data with Finite-Mixture Models

Having an effective segmentation strategy is key to the viability of any organization. This is particularly true for colleges, universities, and other nonprofit organizations—who have seen sharp declines in private contributions, endowment income, and government grants in the past few years, and face fierce competition for donor dollars (Wall Str J p. R1, 2011). In this paper, we present a finite-mixture model framework to segment the alumni population of a university in the Midwestern United States based on the monetary value of annual contributions. A salient feature of the model is that it exploits longitudinal data, i.e., contribution sequences. Another important feature of the model is that it supports the identification of unobserved heterogeneities in the population’s giving behavior. Our empirical study presents substantive insights gained through the processing of the full contribution sequences, and establishes the presence of seven distinct segments of alumni in the population. Results provide a basis to support the design of segment-tailored solicitations, and guide the allocation of resources (e.g., telemarketing dollars) to fundraising activities.
Estrogen Enhancement of Ca-, Mg-, and Ca-Mg-Stimulated Adenosine Triphosphatase Activity in the Chick Shell Gland

The effect of 17β-estradiol (E2) on Ca-, Mg-, and Ca-Mg-ATPase activity was investigated in the shell gland of 6-week-old chicks. In the first study, each of 42 birds was implanted with three E2 (Compudose-200) pellets. An additional 6 sham-implanted birds served as controls for measurements of body weight and concentrations of E2 and Ca in plasma. The activities of Mg-, Ca-, and Ca-Mg-ATPase peaked coincident with maximum plasma E2 concentrations 8 days after implantation and then progressively declined in concert with the decline in plasma E2. By 29 days after implantation, the ATPase activities were similar to those measured in birds whose E2 pellets had been removed for 11 days. Concentrations of plasma E2 dropped from peak values of 1676 ± 317 at Day 8 to 611 ± 180 pg/ml at Day 29. When birds whose E2 pellets had been removed were reimplanted with three pellets per bird, plasma E2 again increased to 1637 ± 227 pg/ml. ATPase activity in these reimplanted birds also was greater (P < 0.05) than activities measured in E2-removed or E2-maintained birds. In a second study the Ca-ATPase Km and Vmax were determined in E2-implanted chicks (three pellets per bird) and compared to E2-withdrawn chicks. Five days after reimplantation of chicks with E2, there was a significant increase in both Vmax (3.38 ± 0.21 vs 2.37 ± 0.28 μg Pi/mg protein/min; P < 0.05) and Km (0.31 ± 0.02 vs 0.25 ± 0.01 mM Ca; P < .01). These data demonstrate that the Ca-, Mg-, and Ca-Mg-ATPase activities in the shell gland are sensitive to changes in plasma E2 concentrations.
Brain and plasma levels of cocaine and benzoylecgonine in lead-exposed and cadmium-exposed rats following acute or chronic intraperitoneal administration of cocaine

Previous investigations of metal/cocaine interactions have shown that chronic oral exposure to inorganic lead or cadmium attenuates the psychoactive effects of acute or repeated administration of cocaine. The purpose of this investigation was to assess the possibility that such interactive effects may derive from metal-induced disturbances in cocaine pharmacokinetics, i.e., delivery of cocaine to critical biologic sites may be disrupted by metal contamination. In this study, adult male rats were exposed to purified diets containing 250 ppm lead acetate (Group Lead), 100 ppm cadmium chloride (Group Cadmium), or unadulterated laboratory chow (Group Control); n = 48/exposure condition. Following ad libitum access to their respective diets in the home cage for 45 days, half the animals from each exposure regimen received single daily IP injections of 5, 10, or 20 mg/kg cocaine HCl for a period of 7 days (n = 8/group). The remaining half the animals received repeated daily injections of saline during this pretreatment phase. On the day following pretreatment, animals previously receiving cocaine injections were administered a single cocaine test challenge at a dose equal to that received in pretreatment. Similarly, saline pretreatment animals received either 5, 10, or 20 mg/kg cocaine. The results of this investigation did not reveal reliable evidence of metal-related differences in brain levels of cocaine. Plasma cocaine and benzoylecgonine (BE) levels also were essentially the same for control and metal-exposed animals. The failure to show that lead or cadmium alters the disposition of cocaine in brain or plasma underscores the need to pursue alternative accounts of metal/cocaine interactions.
Characterization of Polynomials Using Divided Differences

One of the authors, Brian Dietel, is an undergraduate student at Whitman College, and the work presented here is the result of a grant provided by the Perry Summer Research Scholarship Program. We first started working on this material after reading the paper by Stenlund [6]. Our results offer another proof of the main result in that paper. After obtaining the results presented here, we discovered the article by Horwitz [3], in which he considers the point of intersection of Taylor polynomials of odd degree and proves a number of interesting results about the corresponding means. Of course, tangent lines are the special case in which the degree of the Taylor polynomial is one. Horwitz's results offer generalizations of some of the results discussed in this paper as well as different (but more advanced) proofs. We highly recommend this paper to those who have a good background in analysis. For other ways to use a function to define a mean, see the paper by Mays [5] and the references found there. The classic work by Hardy, Littlewood, and Polya [2] is also a good source of information about means.
REACTION OF CO2 WITH MgO(100) SURFACES

Synchrotron-based photoemission spectroscopy (C 1s and O 1s regions) as well as C K-edge NEXAFS spectroscopy have been used to investigate the formation of carbonate species on the surface of MgO(100) after exposure to CO2 at pressures ranging from 0.8 to 260 Torr. These results are tentatively compared with a two-stage model for the reaction of H2O on MgO(100) [Liu et al., Surf. Sci.412/413, 287 (1998)]. At p(CO2) values below a threshold pressure (predicted to be in the range of 10-9–10-6 Torr), the reaction of CO2 with MgO(100) is fairly limited and CO2 is assumed to react with defect sites only. At pressures ≥ 0.8 Torr, CO2 reacts with terrace sites, resulting in extensive formation of ${\rm CO}_3^{2-}$ groups on the MgO(100) surface. However, carbonate formed at "high" pressures (PCO2 ≥ 0.8 Torr) begins to desorb at the low pressure of the analysis chamber (10-11 Torr), which is consistent with equilibrium thermodynamic predictions of the "threshold" pressure for the reaction MgO+CO2=MgCO3. Results f...
Work, marital status, and heart disease

Longitudinal data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Survey and its follow‐up were used to analyze the effects of marriage and work roles and changes in these roles on the incidence of coronary heart conditions in a sample of 3,097 middle‐aged women. Education, age, family income, race, and number of children were included as covariates. The data indicated that women who became unmarried, younger women, and better educated women were at relatively low risk, whereas women who left the labor force and women who were homemakers were at relatively high risk for the conditions. Additional analyses were done on employed women. These findings support the “well‐worker effect”; but cast doubt on the belief that marriage is always beneficial to health.
Lynx® midurethral sling system: a 1-year prospective study on efficacy and safety

The objective of this study is to determine the outcomes for the Lynx® midurethral sling system in the treatment of urodynamic stress incontinence (USI). Prospective study of 118 subjects who underwent a Lynx® midurethral sling procedure for USI. Subjects were considered cured if they were subjectively dry by history and objectively dry by standing stress test. Intraoperative and postoperative complications were documented. Complete information was available on 102 (86%) subjects at 1 year. Ninety-two patients were considered cured, and ten were failures. There were four intraoperative bladder perforations and five (4.2%) erosions. Two patients developed urinary retention with one resolving at 31 days and the other undergoing subsequent takedown at 6 months. Both remain dry at 12 months. The Lynx® midurethral sling system shows high subjective and objective success rates for the treatment of USI at 1 year with low rates of intraoperative and postoperative complications.
Proviruses of avian sarcoma virus are terminally redundant, co-extensive with unintegrated linear DNA and integrated at many sites.

Abstract We have analyzed the DNA from 15 clones of avian sarcoma virus (ASV)-transformed rat cells with restriction endonucleases and molecular hybridization techniques to determine the location and structure of proviral DNA. All twenty units of proviral DNA identified in these 15 clones appear to be inserted at different sites in host DNA. In each of the ten cases that could be sufficiently well mapped, entirely different regions of cellular DNA were involved. Thus ASV DNA can be accommodated at many positions in cellular DNA, but the existence of preferred sites has not been excluded. Six of the 15 clones carry only one normal provirus, two contain two normal proviruses, and seven harbor either one or two proviruses that appear anomalous in physical mapping tests. Both ends of at least 18 proviruses, however, were found to contain sequences specific to both the 3′ and 5′ termini of viral RNA. The organization of these terminally redundant sequences appeared identical to that of the 300 base pair (bp) repeats found at the ends of unintegrated linear DNA (Shank et al., 1978). Proviral DNA is therefore co-extensive, or nearly co-extensive, with unintegrated linear DNA and has a structure we denote as CELL DNA-3′5′—3′5′-CELL DNA. Three of the four anomalous proviruses which were fully analyzed were deletion mutants lacking 25–65% of the genetic content of ASV; the fourth provirus had a novel site for cleavage by Eco RI but was otherwise normal. Tests for the biological competence of proviral DNA, based upon rescue of transforming virus after fusion with chicken cells, were generally consistent with the physical mapping studies.
Practice-centered e-science: a practice turn perspective on cyberinfrastructure design

Cyberinfrastructure is a rapidly growing area of global research and funding with a history of emphasizing the role technology will play in changing scientific work practices. This paper proposes a practice-theoretic perspective that is informative to cyberinfrastructure research and design. To illustrate the relevancy of a practice-theoretic perspective to cyberinfrastructure, this paper presents a critical review of 160 cyberinfrastructure research papers and reports published in the last decade through a perspective of embodied practice. After relating common cyberinfrastructure research themes through a focus on embodied practice, we propose a series of early implications for design aimed at incorporating the lessons of embodied practice into the design and development of future cyberinfrastructure applications.
Inactivation and reactivation of sex-linked steroid sulfatase gene in murine cell culture.

The murine X-linked steroid sulfatase gene (Sts) normally escapes X inactivation. However, we have observed that most long-term murine cell cultures are deficient in STS activity even though only the L cells are known to be derived from an STS− mouse strain. To investigate this phenomenon, we developed a selective system whereby STS+ cells could be selected from STS− populations. The system is based on making cells dependent on cholesterol-sulfate as the sole source of cholesterol, allowing only STS+ cells to grow. Two STS− cell lines, after treatment with either 5-azacytidine (5AC) or ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS), yielded STS+ revertants, suggesting that their STS− phenotype was due to hyper-methylation. To study the evolution of STS− cell lines, we established XO and XX primary lines from STS+ strains; the XX cell line remained STS+ after more than 200 cell doublings whereas the XO became STS− after about 100 doublings. Treatment of this STS−XO cell line with 5AC produced clones with restored STS activity. All the revertants showed a growth disadvantage compared to their STS− counterparts. It would appear that aberrant methylation is the basis for much of the STS deficiency observed in established murine lines and that its propagation is due to the growth advantage of STS− over STS+ cells.
The relation between behavioral intentions and beliefs: A probabilistic model

Based on mathematical probability theory, a model of the relationship between beliefs and behavioral intention was proposed and tested. In Experiment 1, subjects indicated their beliefs about the consequences of smoking cigarettes as well as their intention to smoke cigarettes. When combined according to the proposed model the average correlation between predicted and obtained behavioral intention was .78 (p<.01). In Experiment 2, implications of the model for changing behavioral intentions were examined. Subjects were presented a hypothetical election campaign between two candidates. Intentions to vote for a given candidate were measured prior to and after presentation of information about some of the candidates' political views. Using the proposed model of intention, the predicted and observed changes in voting intentions were correlated .72 (p<.01). Implications of the model for theories of social behavior and persuasion were discussed.
Nanophotonics at Sandia National Laboratories

Sandia National Laboratories is leveraging the extensive CMOS, MEMS, compound semiconductor, and nanotechnology fabrication and test resources at Sandia National Laboratories to explore new science and technology in photonic crystals, plasmonics, metamaterials, and silicon photonics.
Interaction of polyamic acids and polyamic esters with copper and substituted polysilsesquioxane copolymers

The interactions of biphenyldianhydride–p-phenylenediamine (BPDA–PDA) polyamic acid and ester polymers with copper and copper-treated surfaces containing polysilsesquioxanes formed from 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APS) (or copolymers of APS and phenyltriethoxysilane) were compared by grazing-incidence infrared spectroscopy. This investigation of a flexible dianhydride–stiff diamine copolymer compliments earlier work using the stiff dianhydride–flexible diamine polyamic acid and ester of pyromellitic dianhydride–oxydianiline (PMDA–ODA). Results support earlier findings that amic acids form thermally labile salts on copper but esters do not. Further, while APS forms a copper-interactive film that insulates amic acid/metal interaction, APS–phenylsilsesquioxane copolymers create an interfacial region interactive with both copper and overlying polyamic acid.
A dialogue on the meaning and use of analogy in ethnoarchaeological reasoning

Dialogue sur la notion d'ethnoarcheologie et sur son utilisation. Ces deux chercheurs sont d'accord pour penser que cette discipline doit suivre des regles scientifiques, comme l'ouverture vers le public, la mesure et la quantification, les types d'hypotheses de travail, le developpement et l'application de certaines lois. Mais desaccord sur la notion d'argument par analogie.
1H- and 19F-NMR approaches to the study of the structure of proteins larger than 25 kDa

The three-dimensional solution structures of proteins larger than about 25 kDa cannot at present be detemined by multi-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods. However, for proteins that are larger than 25 kDa, for which X-ray structural information is not available, there are a variety of mostly one-dimensional NMR methods that still represent some of the most informative approaches to obtaining structural answers to questions of biochemical interest. This paper provides recent illustrative examples of 1H- and 19F-NMR experiments that describe ways to focus on proteins by region, by amino acid type, or by individual amino acid. Methods to focus on a particular region of a protein include exploiting domain mobility, using transferred nuclear Overhauser enhancements, the use of difference spectroscopy, the use of paramagnetic species, and domain fragmentation. Particular types of amino acid can be identified using selective deuteration, by incorporation of fluorinated amino acid analogues, by using photochemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization, and from the pH dependence of histidine residues. Individual amino acids can be identified by mutagenesis and, in special circumstances, by chemical shift. Many of the examples given are of plasma proteinases and their protein inhibitors, but other classes of protein are also discussed, including antibodies and DNA-binding proteins.
Factor analysis in left ventricular first-pass radionuclide angiography: value of the ventricular factor to measure ejection fraction.

Factor analysis theoretically generates the time-activity curves of the various physiological compartments, or factors, which are superimposed in a dynamic series of scintigraphic frames. An image of the spatial distribution of each of these factors is also displayed. We tested the ability of one of these, the ventricular factor, to measure the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in first-pass radionuclide angiography (FPRA). Forty-nine patients divided into three groups were studied. In a group of 32 patients, factor analysis was compared to a conventional scintigraphic method and to contrast angiography. The coefficient of correlation was similar for both techniques (r = 0.83). To test reproducibility, another group of 10 patients received two successive injections of Au-195m, three minutes apart. The reproducibility of LVEF was r = 0.78 with factor analysis and r = 0.81 with the conventional method. In a third group of seven patients, three successive injections of Au-195m were performed in the right and in the left anterior oblique projections. The reproducibility of LVEF was r = 071 with factor analysis. However LVEF was significantly lower in LAO than in RAO, 50 ± 11% vs 58 ± 17% respectively. It is concluded that factor analysis does not offer a more reliable means of calculating LVEF than a conventional method.