cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diffusion abnormalities in patients with Wernicke encephalopathy

Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) can help to diagnose acute ischemic stroke. Other nonischemic disorders may show abnormal signals with DWI. The authors report two cases of Wernicke encephalopathy with DWI signal changes in characteristic midline locations, one with reduction in apparent diffusion constant and one without. DWI abnormalities may suggest early thiamine deficiency and are useful in diagnosing Wernicke encephalopathy.
Students Like Peer Evaluation during Home Visit Simulation Experiences

Abstract Background Peer evaluation is an effective technique for successful simulation in nursing because it enhances active student engagement in the learning process. The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine students' perceptions of learning effectiveness, fidelity, and satisfaction with peer evaluation during a home visit simulation with a standardized patient. Method Study participants included 50 undergraduate nursing students at a Southeastern university who were enrolled in a community health nursing course. After the completion of the home visit simulation and peer evaluation, students were asked to complete an online survey. Results Students reported peer evaluation to be highly effective and satisfactory for their learning needs. On a 5-point Likert-type scale (from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree), students generally perceived that their peer evaluation experience helped them to improve in the areas of (a) assessment (M = 4.52, SD = 0.76), (b) communication (M = 4.46, SD = 0.76), (c) critical thinking (M = 4.53, SD = 0.68), (d) technical skills (M = 4.46, SD = 0.73), and (e) overall performance (M = 4.49, SD = 0.73). Conclusion Students perceived that the home visit simulation provided them with a good learning opportunity, that they learned vicariously by watching peers, and that they used peers' critiques to strengthen their own simulation experience. Findings of the current study also suggest that the use of a standardized patient and integration of the peer evaluation were perceived by students as an innovative and effective teaching method.
Evidence of spillover of illness among household members: EQ-5D scores from a US sample.

Background/Objectives: The effects of illness extend beyond the individual to caregivers and family members. This study identified evidence of spillover of illness onto household members’ health-re...
Development of posttraumatic hyperthermia after traumatic brain injury in rats is associated with increased periventricular inflammation

Posttraumatic hyperthermia (PTH) is a noninfectious elevation in body temperature that negatively influences outcome after traumatic brain injury (TBI). We sought to (1) characterize a clinically relevant model and (2) investigate potential cellular mechanisms of PTH. In study I, body temperature patterns were analyzed for 1 week in male rats after severe lateral fluid percussion (FP) brain injury (n=75) or sham injury (n=17). After injury, 27% of surviving animals experienced PTH, while 69% experienced acute hypothermia with a slow return to baseline. A profound blunting or loss of circadian rhythmicity (CR) that persisted up to 5 days after injury was experienced by 75% of brain-injured animals. At 2 and 7 days after injury, patterns of cell loss and inflammation were assessed in selected brain thermoregulatory and circadian centers. Significant cell loss was not observed, but PTH was associated with inflammatory changes in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) by one week after injury. In brain-injured animals with altered CR, reactive astrocytes were bilaterally localized in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and the PVN. Occasional IL-1beta+/ED-1+ macrophages/microglia were observed in the PVN and SCN exclusively in brain-injured animals developing PTH. In animals with PTH there was a significant positive correlation (r=0.788, P<0.01) between the degree of postinjury hyperthermia and the total number of cells positive for inflammatory markers within selected thermoregulatory and circadian nuclei. In study II, a separate group of animals underwent the same injury and temperature monitoring paradigm as in study I, but had additional physiologic data obtained, including vital signs, arterial blood gases, white blood cell counts, and C-reactive protein levels. All parameters remained within normal ranges after injury. These data suggest that PTH and the alteration in CR of temperature may be due, in part, to acute reactive astrocytosis and inflammation in hypothalamic centers responsible for both thermoregulation and CR.
Can slope be negative in 3-space? Studying concept image of slope through collective definition construction

Developing deep conceptual understanding of what Ma (1999) calls fundamental mathematics is a well-accepted goal of teacher education. This paper presents a microanalysis of an intriguing episode within a course designed to encourage such understanding. An adaptation of Krummheuer’s (1995) elaboration of Toulmin’s (1958/2003) diagrams is used to examine video recordings and transcripts of a group of graduate students in secondary mathematics education grappling with the idea of a three-dimensional line having negative slope. The graduate students’ understandings of slope are examined using an expansion of Stump’s (1999, 2001b) categories of conceptions of slope. The episode ends in an interesting impasse, in which the graduate students agree to pursue the idea no further, purposely ignoring the question of negative slope, despite the clear intention of the task. The analysis explores the argumentation, factors of the learning environment, and conceptions of slope that may have contributed to this impasse.
Cap-and-Trade: Five Implications for Transportation Planners

This paper identifies for transportation planners five key implications of extending cap-and-trade for greenhouse gas emissions to the transportation sector, as envisaged in legislative and regulatory proposals in the U.S. Congress and in the western states and Canadian provinces. First, cap-and-trade would increase gasoline prices as refiners and fuel importers pass on the cost of carbon allowances; a $30 per metric ton price of carbon allowances equates to 27 cents per gallon of gasoline. Second, transit, smart growth, and other emission reduction projects might be eligible for billions of dollars in revenue from carbon allowance auctions. Third, as emissions would be constrained at the level of the cap, transportation projects would be unlikely to have any impact on aggregate emissions. Any environmental benefit of a project (reduced emissions) would be converted into an economic benefit (reduced carbon allowance prices and thus reduced compliance costs in other sectors). Fourth, the converse of this argument suggests a weakening of the potential to use the environmental review process to mitigate emissions from development projects. There may be an economic impact (higher carbon allowance prices), but not an environmental impact (emissions would be constrained at the level of the cap). Finally, extending cap-and-trade to the transportation sector would eliminate the potential for revenue from the sale of offsets, as this would double count emission reductions.
Crystal structures of KDOP synthase in its binary complexes with the substrate phosphoenolpyruvate and with a mechanism-based inhibitor.

The crystal structures of 3-deoxy- D-manno-2-octulosonate-8-phosphate synthase (KDOPS) from Escherichia coli complexed with the substrate phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) and with a mechanism-based inhibitor (Kd ) 0.4 IM) were determined by molecular replacement using X-ray diffraction data to 2.8 and 2.3 A resolution, respectively. Both the KDOPS ‚PEP and KDOPS‚inhibitor complexes crystallize in the cubic space group I23 with cell constants a ) b ) c ) 117.9 and 117.6 A, respectively, and one subunit per asymmetric unit. The two structures are nearly identical, and superposition of their C R atoms indicates an rms difference of 0.41 A. The PEP in the KDOPS ‚PEP complex is anchored to the enzyme in a conformation that blocks its si face and leaves its re face largely devoid of contacts. This results from KDOPS's selective choice of a PEP conformer in which the phosphate group of PEP is extended toward the si face. Furthermore, the structure reveals that the bridging (P -O-C) oxygen atom and the carboxylate group of PEP are not strongly hydrogen-bonded to the enzyme. The resulting high degree of negative charge on the carboxylate group of PEP would then suggest that the condensation step between PEP and D-arabinose-5-phosphate (A5P) should proceed in a stepwise fashion through the intermediacy of a transient oxocarbenium ion at C2 of PEP. The molecular structural results are discussed in light of the chemically similar but mechanistically distinct reaction that is catalyzed by the enzyme 3-deoxy- D- arabino-2-heptulosonate-7-phosphate synthase and in light of the preferred enzyme-bound states of the substrate A5P.
University and College Life and the People at its Core

The articles in this issue of the journal reminded me of the complexity of university and college life and of the way our perceptions of reality are mediated through our own lens of the world and how it works. I recalled how our predispositions and prior knowledge shape our interpretations of current events, people, and processes. When we engage in the fundamental purposes of higher education—to teach, to inquire, to serve—we are dealing with people. Yes, we may be conducting scientific research in the laboratory, but people—in our departments, in our disciplines, in our universities and colleges, those “above, below, and beyond” influence our research questions, our access to resources, and the perception and conduct of all aspects of our work. These people are called students, and faculty, and administrators, and colleagues, and support staff; and the labels go on and on. Our labels tell where we are in the pecking order or in the bee hive. Labels to a certain degree signify the roles we are playing. What we do not know from the labels, however, as the articles in this issue so clearly suggest, is who these people really are, how they think and feel and react and learn and teach. The article by Smith and Shoho investigated “trust” by faculty members toward administrators, colleagues, and students. Interestingly, trust seemed to erode as people moved through the ranks, with professors showing less trust toward administrators and colleagues than assistant professors. Somewhat reassuring was the finding that majority and minority participants did not differ on trust levels. Is it that the roles corrupt our impressions of others and lower our trust or that after many battles we are no longer naive and trusting? It is a disturbing finding, and suggests that along the way people lose confidence in their fellow workers and the hierarchy of administration. Bruch, Higbee, and Siaka examined multiculturalism in the General College at the University of Minnesota. They provide a well-balanced look at the problems and promise of multicultural emphases in one large university. Summarized are the multiple meanings of multiculturalism including “critical perspectives”, canons of knowledge, assimilation perspectives and practices, and the “reduction” of standards. The authors review student reflections on affirmative action, reverse discrimination, and pluralism. In their review Innov High Educ (2007) 32:123–124 DOI 10.1007/s10755-007-9051-y
Technology Integration in a Science Classroom: Preservice Teachers' Perceptions.

The challenge of preparing students for the information age has prompted administrators to increase technology in the public schools. Yet despite the increased availability of technology in schools, few teachers are integrating technology for instructional purposes. Preservice teachers must be equipped with adequate content knowledge of technology to create an advantageous learning experience in science classrooms. To understand preservice teachers’ conceptions of technology integration, this research study explored 15 elementary science methods students’ definitions of technology and their attitudes toward incorporating technology into their teaching. The phenomenological study took place in a science methods course that was based on a constructivist approach to teaching and learning science through science activities and class discussions, with an emphasis on a teacher beliefs framework. Data were collected throughout the semester, including an open-ended pre/post-technology integration survey, lesson plans, and reflections on activities conducted throughout the course. Through a qualitative analysis, we identified improvements in students’ technology definitions, increased technology incorporation into science lesson plans, and favorable attitudes toward technology integration in science teaching after instruction. This research project demonstrates that positive changes in beliefs and behaviors relating to technology integration in science instruction among preservice teachers are possible through explicit instruction.
Temperature and hydrophobic alcohol-induced structural changes of Pluronics micelles

Abstract SANS investigations were carried out on the structural changes of micelles of triblock copolymers (Pluronic P84 and P105) in aqueous solutions as functions of temperature and added 1-phenylethanol concentration. Modeling of the SANS data reveals that morphological changes from spherical to cylindrical and then to lamellar micelles occur with either increasing temperature or concentration of added dl -1-phenylethanol. The mechanism of these structural changes has been presented.
Trade dress: The increasing importance of an ancient yet new form of intellectual property protection

Abstract Trade dress is a means of identifying and differentiating the product of a vendor by visual (and very occasionally auditory) cues of a form other than written language. The use of trade dress certainly goes back into pre-Roman times, and was very likely used well before then. Trade dress remains important in societies both highly literate and substantially illiterate, and in some respects has increased in importance in both.
How frequently do the results from completed US clinical trials enter the public domain?--A statistical analysis of the ClinicalTrials.gov database.

Background Achieving transparency in clinical trials, through either publishing results in a journal or posting results to the ClinicalTrials.gov (CTG) web site, is an essential public health good. However, it remains unknown what proportion of completed studies achieve public disclosure of results (PDOR), or what factors explain these differences. Methods We analyzed data from 400 randomly selected studies within the CTG database that had been listed as ‘completed’ and had at least four years in which to disclose results. Using Kaplan-Meier curves, we calculated times from completion to PDOR (defined as publishing the primary outcomes in a journal and/or posting results to CTG), and identified explanatory variables predicting these outcomes using Cox proportional hazards models. Findings Among the 400 clinical trials, 118 (29.5%) failed to achieve PDOR within four years of completion. The median day from study completion to PDOR among 282 studies (70.5%) that achieved PDOR was 602 days (mean 647 days, SD 454 days). Studies were less likely to achieve PDOR if at earlier stages (phase 2 vs. phase 3/4, adjusted HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.47–0.78), if they only included adult subjects (adjusted HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.45–0.83), involved randomization (adjusted HR 0.62, 95% CI 0.46–0.83), or had smaller sample sizes (≤50 subjects vs. >50, adjusted HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.44–0.83). Industry-funded studies were significantly less likely to be published than non-industry or blended studies (adjusted HR 0.49, 95% CI 0.36–0.66). Conclusions A significant proportion of completed studies did not achieve PDOR within the four years of follow-up, particularly smaller studies at earlier stages of development with industry funding. This constitutes reporting bias and threatens the validity of the clinical research literature in the US.
Critical phenomena at phase transitions in fluids and model ferromagnets

Abstract Various concepts used in discussing critical phenomena in fluids and ferromagnets are reviewed: order parameter, correlation length, critical exponents, scaling, universality, crossover effects, tricritical points, and the effects of long-range forces.
Modification of the behavioral effects of morphine in rats by serotonin (5-HT)1A and 5-HT2A receptor agonists: antinociception, drug discrimination, and locomotor activity

Rationale Indirect-acting serotonin (5-HT) receptor agonists can enhance the antinociceptive effects of morphine; however, the specific 5-HT receptor subtype(s) mediating this enhancement is not established.
Insurance Status and the Severity of Breast Cancer at the Time of Diagnosis

Rationale and Objectives To evaluate how the insurance status of women diagnosed with breast cancer correlates with size and stage at the time of diagnosis. Methods and Materials The age-adjusted incidence of early- and late-stage breast cancer as determined by the tumor node metastasis classification system of stages in situ, local, regional, or distant was calculated for insured and uninsured women from our institution's database between 2002 and 2004. Late-stage breast cancer was defined as present when patients had either regional or distant disease. Statistical analysis was conducted using generalized linear models and χ 2 tests. Results There were a total of 617 patients in our retrospective study. Of these, 564 (91.4%) had insurance and 53 (8.6%) were uninsured. Four hundred forty-seven (72.4%) patients were Caucasian and 170 (27.6%) patients were non-Caucasian. Of the 463 patients with early-stage breast cancer (0, I, or II), 433 (93.5%) had insurance and 30 (6.5%) were uninsured. Of the 154 patients with late-stage breast cancer (III or IV), 131 (85.1%) had insurance and 23 (14.9%) patients were uninsured. Analysis demonstrated that there was a significant effect in the insurance status on cancer stage ( P = .006) and tumor size ( P = .010). Compared to insured patients, uninsured patients had a 66% higher likelihood of presenting with a late-stage cancer and larger tumor. The analysis from the χ 2 test also supports the above with a significant association between patients' cancer stage and insurance status ( P = .001) and also between tumor size and insurance status ( P = .001). Patients' ages and geographic locations were not significant correlated with size and stage, but non-Caucasians had a significantly higher risk of larger tumors and more advanced stage than Caucasians ( P Conclusions Uninsured, non-Caucasian patients have a higher probability of presenting with a more advanced stage of breast cancer and larger tumor size than patients with insurance in a large university multidisciplinary breast cancer population.
Evoked potential measures of interhemispheric transfer time in reading disabled and normal boys

Previous research has implicated dysfunctions in interhemispheric interaction in the etiology of dyslexia. The present study was designed to examine whether dyslexics differ from matched controls on visual evoked potential measures of interhemispheric transfer time (IHTT). Checkerboard flashes were presented hemiretinally while evoked responses were recorded from right and left side occipital scalp locations. IHTT was computed separately in response to right and left visual field presentations. Dyslexics were found to have faster IHTT from right‐to‐left hemisphere and slower IHTT from left‐to‐right hemisphere compared with controls. Evoked potential measures of IHTT accounted for significant variance in measures of reading and related cognitive skills. The implications of these data for understanding the underlying neural substrates of dyslexia are discussed.
Alternative Predictions for Optimal Dispersal in Response to Local Catastrophic Mortality

Abstract What dispersal strategy should be employed by an organism in response to local catastrophic mortality? Here we contrast predictions from an analytical solution derived from an ESS model which optimizes competitive ability (Comins et al ., 1980) with those from a stochastic, branching process model (Karlson and Taylor, 1992) which maximizes survivorship of a clonal lineage. The optimal dispersal fraction varies directly with the probability of local extinction in the ESS model, yet varies inversely with this probability over much of the parameter space in the latter model. In order to conform more closely with the assumptions of the ESS model, we have modified the branching process model to have a random, Poisson-distributed number of offspring and compared the predictions of these models. Both models invoke dispersal as an escape from local extinction and predict mixed dispersal strategies over a wide range of conditions. However, increasing local catastrophic mortality favors more dispersal in the ESS model, but it can be so severe in the branching process model that no dispersal strategy is adaptive. In this model, the predicted optimal proportion of dispersed offspring is highest at low to intermediate levels of catastrophic mortality depending on the total number of offspring produced. We suggest that this observed discrepancy is sufficiently large to warrant empirical tests of these qualitatively different predictions.
Comparison of neural networks and regression-based methods for temperature retrievals

Two methods for performing clear-air temperature retrievals from simulated radiances for the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder are investigated. Neural networks are compared with a well-known linear method in which regression is performed after a change of bases. With large channel sets, both methods can rapidly perform clear-air retrievals over a variety of climactic conditions with an overall RMS error of less than 1 K. The Jacobian of the neural network is compared with the Jacobian (the regression coefficients) of the linear method, revealing a more fine-scale variation than expected from the underlying physics, particularly for the neural net. Some pragmatic information concerning the application ofneural nets to retrieval problems is also included.
In vivo antifungal efficacy of salivary histidine-rich polypeptides: Preliminary findings in a denture stomatitis model system

Six denture stomatitis patients, all found to have Candida albicans on their maxillary denture and palatal tissue surfaces, volunteered in this preliminary study to test the in vivo efficacy of human salivary antifungal histidine-rich polypeptides (HRPs) in treating their oral disease. The patients were equally divided among the Newton types classification and, as expected, the severity of the inflammation was greatest in the Newton type III patients and least in the Newton type I patients. Patients received sterile solutions of either HRP-3 or HRP-4, which they used both as a mouthrinse and as a denture soak for a period of 1 week. Agar replicas of the tissue-fitting surface of the maxillary dentures revealed HRP reduction and/or elimination of C. albicans from the denture; in one Newton type II individual, this finding directly correlated with a site-specific reduction in palatal inflammation. In the Newton type II and type III individuals alike, there was a significant generalized decrease in inflammation suggesting the therapeutic efficacy of the HRPs. Killing of this yeast species by the HRPs, as determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), was probably responsible for the observed clinical benefits noted in this investigation. In the SEM, HRP-treated blastospores appeared severely deflated, as if they had been emptied of significant quantities of intracellular material.
An array-based Chip Lifetime Predictor macro for gate dielectric failures in core and IO FETs

A comprehensive Chip LIfetime Predictor (CLIP) macro for automatically characterizing gate dielectric failure reduces the stress time and silicon area by a factor proportional to the number of FETs to be tested. A flexible DUT cell that can be stressed in isolation without thicker t ox FETs to 4 times supply voltage, enables accurate lifetime prediction under different ON and OFF state dielectric breakdown modes for both low voltage core and high voltage IO devices.
Children's language: Developing narrative and discourse competence (Vol. 10). Keith E. Nelson, Ayhan Aksu-Koc, and Carolyn E. Johnson. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2001. Pp. 163.

The highly regarded Children's Language series continues in 2001 with two new volumes, 10 and 11 (Nelson, Aksu-Koc, & Johnson, 2001, Vol. 11). Under the able leadership of Keith Nelson (who has edited all but two volumes), each volume since 1978 has represented current topics in research on child language; and the series provides a comprehensive overview of the history and progression of the study of language development over the past two and a half decades. Since Volume 7, the papers included in the series were chosen from the range of presentations at the meetings of the International Association of the Study of Child Language, which bring together researchers from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, North and South America, and Africa. Prior to Volume 7, articles in each volume also represented an international scope.
Differential susceptibility of pumpkins to bacterial wilt related to plant growth stage and cultivar

Abstract Fifteen jack-o'-lantern and three processing-pie pumpkin ( Cucurbita pepo L.) cultivars were tested in the greenhouse and field for their susceptibility at different growth stages to Erwinia tracheiphila , the causal agent of bacterial wilt. The bacterium is vectored by cucumber beetles ( Acalymma vittatum (F) and Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi Barber). Each variety was artificially inoculated with E. tracheiphila in the greenhouse at cotyledon, first, second, third, fourth and fifth true leaf, first flower and first female flower growth stages to discern if maturity confers tolerance to the disease. Field experiments compared the sublethal effects of E. tracheiphila inoculated plants with water-inoculated plants on pumpkin fruit yield and quality. The cotyledon stage was most susceptible to infection (22% of plants killed). At the 3–4 leaf stage, no plants died owing to bacterial wilt. Howden, Baby Boo, and Happy Jack inoculated at the cotyledon stage were the most susceptible jack-o'-lantern cultivars, with 18%, 15% and 13%, respectively, of the inoculated plants dying. Only 5% of all the processing pumpkins inoculated at any stage died from bacterial wilt. Eighteen percent, 90% and 100% of infected plants that started to wilt 2 weeks after inoculation at the cotyledon, first true leaf and second true leaf stages, respectively, recovered and continued to grow. None of the most susceptible cultivars recovered from initial wilting. Infected plants that survived did not have significantly different yields or quality of pumpkin fruit compared with plants inoculated with water.
Occurrence of Spontaneous Sparks in Ventricular Myocytes From Junctional and Non-junctional Ryr Clusters

In isolated rabbit ventricular myocytes, we found a significant number of ryanodine receptor (RyR) clusters that are not associated with the sarcolemma (non-junctional RyRs). The contribution of non-junctional RyR clusters to calcium transients is unclear. Here, we investigated if these non-junctional RyRs are able to produce spontaneous local calcium release events (sparks), and compared the probability of non-junctional versus junctional sparks. We imaged spontaneous sparks in cells loaded with fluo-4 and bathed in Tyrode solution with dextran (Molecular Weight: 10 kDa) linked to Texas Red dye. We evoked spontaneous sparks using field stimulation in the presence of 1 μM isoproterenol and 4 mM calcium. After 5 stimuli applied with a frequency of 0.5 Hz, we simultaneously imaged the sarcolemma and spontaneous sparks using a line scan confocal microscope (Biorad MRC-1024). Furthermore, a 3D image stack of the Texas Red associated signal was acquired to identify the sarcolemma including the transverse tubular system. We classified sparks as non-junctional if their distance to the sarcolemma is larger than 1 μm. All other sparks were assumed to be junctional. In measurements on 12 isolated cells, 38 sparks (51%) were identified as non-junctional, 36 (49%) as junctional. Our measurements clearly demonstrate that non-junctional RyR clusters are able to release calcium and produce spontaneous sparks. We expect that our approach for distinguishing between non-junctional and junctional sparks underestimates the number of non-junctional sparks. If this is true, the probabilities of the types of sparks are similar to probabilities of the two types of RyR clusters identified in related immunolabeling and microscopic studies. This would suggests that spark generation probability of RyR clusters does not depend on their type.
Bombesin-induced poikilothermy in rats

Abstract The effect of ambient temperature (TA) on the rectal temperature (TRE) response to intraventricular injection of bombesin has been evaluated in conscious adult male rats. AtTA= 4 °C, bombesin (50 ng-1 μg) caused a marked hypothermia which was dose-dependent both in terms of the magnitude and of the duration of the response. The bombesin-induced hypothermia was reduced atTA= 24 °C, whereas atTA= 31 or 33 °C, the peptide (1 μg) failed to affect TRE. AtTA= 36 °C, bombesin 1–10 μg induced anelevation in TRE. The hyperthermia observed at high TA could be reversed to hypothermia by transferring rats to cold. The analogs [ D -Trp8]bombesin or [ D -Leu13]-bombesin, tested under the same conditions, failed to produce significant changes in TRE. These findings demonstrate that bombesin appears to act in the brain as a poikilothermic agent by disrupting thermoregulation at temperatures below or above thermoneutrality.
Insights into Okazaki Fragment Synthesis by the T4 Replisome: THE FATE OF LAGGING-STRAND HOLOENZYME COMPONENTS AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON OKAZAKI FRAGMENT SIZE

In this study, we employed a circular replication substrate with a low priming site frequency (1 site/1.1 kb) to quantitatively examine the size distribution and formation pattern of Okazaki fragments. Replication reactions by the T4 replisome on this substrate yielded a patterned series of Okazaki fragments whose size distribution shifted through collision and signaling mechanisms as the gp44/62 clamp loader levels changed but was insensitive to changes in the gp43 polymerase concentration, as expected for a processive, recycled lagging-strand polymerase. In addition, we showed that only one gp45 clamp is continuously associated with the replisome and that no additional clamps accumulate on the DNA, providing further evidence that the clamp departs, whereas the polymerase is recycled upon completion of an Okazaki fragment synthesis cycle. We found no support for the participation of a third polymerase in Okazaki fragment synthesis.
Cloning and expression of the cDNA for a Drosophila insulin-degrading enzyme.

We have previously identified and characterized a metalloproteinase from Drosophila that cleaves insulin and transforming growth factor-α, but not epidermal growth factor, at physiological concentrations. On the basis of enzymatic properties and substrate specificity, this enzyme was identified as the Drosophila homolog of the mammalian insulindegrading enzyme (IDE). We now report the cloning and sequencing of the cDNA coding for the Drosophila IDE (dIDE). Northern blot analysis indicates that the dIDE is translated from a 3.6-kilobase transcript similar in size to one of the two human IDE transcripts. The gene for the dIDE has been mapped to chromosome 3L (77B). The sequence of the dIDE is very similar to that of the human IDE, and both enzymes share limited but significant identity with the bacterial metalloproteinase protease III. Indirect studies based upon inhibitors, degradation products, and microinjected antibodies have suggested that the IDE can initiate cellular insulin degradation in mammalian ...
A New LDMOS Transistor Macro-Modeling for Accurately Predicting Bias Dependence of Gate-Overlap Capacitance

We have developed a macro model, which allows us to describe precise LDMOS DC/AC characteristics. Characterization of anomalous gate input capacitance is the key issue in the LDMOS model development. We have newly employed a T-type distributed RC scheme for gate overlapped LDMOS drift region. The bias dependent resistance and capacitance are modeled independently in Verilog-A as R-model and PMOS-capacitance. The dividing factor of the distributed R is introduced to reflect the shield effect of the gate overlap capacitance. Comparison between the new model and measurement results has proven that the developed macro model reproduces accurately not only the gate input capacitance, but also DC characteristics.
ACTIVE IMMUNIZATION OF GUINEA PIGS WITH THE VIRUS OF EQUINE ENCEPHALOMYELITIS : III. QUANTITATIVE STUDIES OF SERUM ANTIVIRAL BODIES IN ANIMALS IMMUNIZED WITH ACTIVE AND INACTIVE VIRUS.

An analysis of the preceding experiments discloses that antiviral bodies are demonstrable not at all or in small amounts in the sera of guinea pigs injected with a quantity of active virus not sufficient to induce immunity against the described intracerebral test for induced resistance. However, neutralizing bodies are found in immune animals, although in low concentration, and are regularly manifested when serum is added to low multiples of infective doses of virus under optimal conditions of time and temperature. Hyperimmune serum, on the other hand, reveals a distinct increase in the amount of antiviral bodies present. Irrespective of the mode of procedure for revealing neutralizing bodies, there does not appear to be any notable difference in the content of such bodies in the serum of animals immunized with active virus or with formolized vaccine in which active virus could not be demonstrated. In other words, the antigenic complexes in active as well as in inactive virus produce similar degrees of antibody reaction. The formolization of virus tissue suspensions, therefore, can be considered as a process whereby the virus is inactivated but the antigenicity of the suspensions is preserved, as is also shown in the preceding paper of this series in tests on tissue immunity. In that article is described the remarkably high degree of tissue immunity which results from injections of inactive virus; now we demonstrate that this resistance is associated with a minimal degree of serum antibody. Finally, the question may well be asked, if practically no antiviral bodies are demonstrable immediately or soon after mixing immune serum and virus, and are recognizable in a tenfold increase when functions of time and temperature are brought into play, whether the bodies are "neutralizing" or the phenomenon is due merely to aggregation of virus particles by the serum. From the recent work on the same virus and immune serum (9) by Merrill, there appears to be warrant for the belief in aggregation of virus particles which in turn diminishes the virus activity to the indicated degree.
Temporal pattern of motor activity of chicks during the early posthatching period

The motor activity of domestic chicks was continuously recorded in running-wheels to ascertain whether it exhibits predictable temporal variations during the first 3-4 days after hatching. As recorded in constant light and several different temperatures, this activity was characterized by a general increment after the first day, by irregular fluctuations over intervals of a few hours, and by regular, near 24-h cycles commencing after an initial period of variable activity. The phase pattern of the cycles of normally hatching chicks correlated consistently with posthatching age. Artificially advancing and delaying emergence from the shell shifted the phases accordingly, thus indicating that the phase pattern, rather than being developmentally scheduled, was determined by initial light exposure and, perhaps, slight temperature change at the time of shell emergence. The cycles, indicative of a circadian rhythm, provide a prospective basis for predicting variations in other aspects of behaviour.
Anionic amino acid transporter expression in late gestation rodent yolk sac.

Abstract The yolk sac plays an important role in fetal nutrition. Transport of amino acids by the rodent visceral yolk sac has been shown previously. We have demonstrated the presence of several amino acid transport proteins capable of the Na + -dependent transport of anionic amino acids within late gestation mouse visceral yolk sac and uterine epithelium. We speculate that these proteins may be involved in the efflux of glutamate from the fetal to the maternal circulations.
Mammalian stratum corneum contains physiologic lipid thermal transitions.

Using a new high-sensitivity differential scanning calorimeter, capable of very slow scanning rates and large sample volumes, we examined the thermal transitions in neonatal mouse stratum corneum. Both physiological and supraphysiological transitions were found in intact tissue that were displaced on cooling and obliterated by solvent treatment establishing them as lipids. Physiologic peaks were encountered in lipid extracts from the same tissues. With heating and cooling recycling we found a novel effect of thermal "fractionation" of the peaks into discrete subfractions that appeared to correspond roughly the number of bands found on thin-layer chromatography of the lipid extracts.
Targeting the brain

Abstract Gene Therapy for Neurological Disorders and Brain Tumors edited by E.A. Chiocca and X.O. Breakefield, Humana Press, 1998. US $135.00 (xi+458 pages) ISBN 0 896 03507 7
Reactor Scale Model of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Growth in a Tube Flow Chemical Vapor Deposition Reactor

Even though a large number of applications for multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been proposed, there is relatively limited knowledge about the optimal conditions in which to create multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs). Computational models have been shown to be a promising tool to determine the best carbon nanotube growth conditions. In this paper the growth of MWNTs in a tube flow CVD reactor was studied through the use of the commercial software package COMSOL, where details steps have been described to reformulate an existing single walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) growth model to accommodate MWNTs followed by validation and growth rate prediction. Higher growth rates were predicted for MWNTs than SWNTs which is a result of the increase in pathways for carbon to form carbon nanotubes based on the additional walls. Results indicate that selecting the correct number of walls can be important to the results of the model.© 2009 ASME
Effects of the specular Orbiter forward radiators on a typical Spacelab payload thermal environment

Orbiter radiators, having a specular reflection, must be considered when determining the design environment for payloads which can view the forward deployed radiators. Unlike most surfaces on the Orbiter, which reflect energy diffusely, the radiators are covered with a highly specular silverized Teflon material, with high emissivity, and have a concave contour, producing a local concentration of reflected energy towards the region of angle incidence. The combined effects of radiator specularity and geometry were analyzed using the Thermal Radiation Analysis System (TRASYS II), a specialized ray trace program, and a generalized Monte-Carlo-based thermal radiation program. Data given for a 0 deg payload inclination angle at orbital noon at 3.454 m indicate that the maximum total flux and average flux can increase 173% and 63%, respectively, when compared to diffuse radiators.
The therapeutic value of maintenance tocolysis: an overview of the evidence

The results obtained from current systematic overview do not support the routine administration of maintenance tocolytic treatment after parenteral tocolytic therapy has halted acute preterm labor. Eliminating or reducing such routine maintenance therapy, therefore, could substantially decrease costs and side effects associated with managing preterm labor without compromising perinatal outcomes. It remains to be elucidated whether it will become possible to accurately identify some groups of pregnancies for which maintenance tocolysis would be beneficial.
Technical note: Skin thickness measurements using high-resolution flat-panel cone-beam dedicated breast CT.

Purpose: To determine the mean and range of location-averaged breast skin thickness using high-resolution dedicated breast CT for use in Monte Carlo-based estimation of normalized glandular dose coefficients. Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed image data from a clinical study investigating dedicated breast CT. An algorithm similar to that described by Huang [“The effect of skin thickness determined using breast CT on mammographic dosimetry,” Med. Phys. 35(4), 1199–1206 (2008) doi: 10.1118/1.2841938.] was used to determine the skin thickness in 137 dedicated breast CT volumes from 136 women. The location-averaged mean breast skin thickness for each breast was estimated and the study population mean and range were determined. Pathology results were available for 132 women, and were used to investigate if the distribution of location-averaged mean breast skin thickness varied with pathology. The effect of surface fitting to account for breast curvature was also studied. Results: The study mean (± interbreast SD) for breast skin thickness was 1.44 ± 0.25 mm (range: 0.87–2.34 mm), which was in excellent agreement with Huang et al. Based on pathology, pair-wise statistical analysis (Mann-Whitney test) indicated that at the 0.05 significance level, there were no significant difference in the location-averaged mean breast skin thickness distributions between the groups: benign vs malignant (p = 0.223), benign vs hyperplasia (p = 0.651), hyperplasia vs malignant (p = 0.229), and malignant vs nonmalignant (p = 0.172). Conclusions: Considering this study used a different clinical prototype system, and the study participants were from a different geographical location, the observed agreement between the two studies suggests that the choice of 1.45 mm thick skin layer comprising the epidermis and the dermis for breast dosimetry is appropriate. While some benign and malignant conditions could cause skin thickening, in this study cohort the location-averaged mean breast skin thickness distributions did not differ significantly with pathology. The study also underscored the importance of considering breast curvature in estimating breast skin thickness.
Knowledge management: Integrating social networking technologies and a generative learning environment

Social networking technologies have commanded a lot of recent attention because they have changed the manner in which individuals have traditionally and historically accessed and shared knowledge. Although these technologies provide individuals with the opportunity to access and to utilize a plethora of knowledge created by others, the knowledge still needs to be organized, interpreted, and incorporated by the user in order for it to be useful. This research sought to better understand how social networking technologies can aid a firm's efforts to establish a knowledge management and a generative learning environment. The study closely followed one of the United States leading aerospace and defense firm's efforts to utilize new information and communication technologies to facilitate knowledge exchange and communications within the organization. This investigation provided a rich source of evidence for how social networking technologies can aid a firm's ability to encourage knowledge exchange, as well as networking and communication within the firm. We provide four key research-related findings and offer practitioners several key strategies, tactics, and pitfalls to avoid that they should consider when attempting to use SNT to aid in the establishment of a knowledge management and a generative learning environment.
Crossing the Rubicon

A viral vector injected intravenously in mice crosses the blood-brain barrier and transduces widespread regions of the brain and spinal cord.
Perturbations in the biomass, metabolic activity, and community structure of the estuarine detrital microbiota: Resource partitioning in amphipod grazing

Abstract With the development of quantitative methods for estimating the biomass, metabolic activity, nutritional status and community structure of the estuarine detrital microbiota, and the indication of marked effects on the microbiota by amphipod grazing, a detailed examination of the effects of grazing by two sympatric amphipods was conducted. The microbiota, which develop on Teflon squares after a 2-wk exposure in a North Florida estuary, showed, when grazed for 2 wk, significantly increased bacterial biomass (short-branched and cis -vaccenic fatty acids) and microeukaryotes (total polyenoic fatty acids). Grazing in the laboratory at field density further increased the bacterial biomass (muramic acid, wall glucosamine), as well as the total photosynthetic biomass (lipid galactose) if compared to the microbiota grazed in the field. Grazing in the laboratory also depressed the algae estimated as alpha linolenic acid but stimulated the fast growing diatoms (20 carbon polyenoic fatty acids of the alpha linolenic series). The field-grazed microbiota showed metabolic stress indicated by the higher adenosine to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) ratio. Two sympatric amphipods Gammarus mucronatus (Say) and Melita appendiculata (Say) having markedly different mouth parts were shown to partition the detrital microbiota. Melita feed on nonphotosynthetic microeukaryotes (lowered triglyceride glycerol) leaving a larger total biomass (extractable lipid phosphate), photosynthetic biomass (lipid galactose) with greater total metabolic activity estimated as the 4-h rate of phospholipid and sulfolipid synthesis. Bacterial biomass increased (muramic acid, short-branched and cis -vaccenic fatty acids) compared with the detritus grazed by Gammarus . Gammarus feeds less specifically on bacteria and photosynthetic microeukaryotes. Bacteria (muramic acid) and microeukaryotes (the ratio of lipid glycerol to lipid phosphate) were significantly decreased. This feeding provokes an intense metabolic activity from the lowered biomass that is reflected in the significantly higher total adenosine nucleotides, ATP, and adenylate energy charge. The amphipods from the field and laboratory microcosms showed similar adenylate energy charges and neutral lipid glycerol to phospholipid ratios, indicating their nutritional status was similar.
Congenital Pulmonary Artery Stenoses Masquerading as Chronic Thromboembolic Disease

Stenotic pulmonary vascular lesions, often amenable to balloon angioplasty, can erroneously appear to suggest chronic thromboembolic disease on ventilation/perfusion (V/Q) scan. We report a case of multiple peripheral pulmonary artery stenoses and describe radiologic findings and treatment options.
Air contamination in umbilical cord blood gas sampling.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to determine the effect of air contamination and the length of time before assay on umbilical cord blood gases at delivery. STUDY DESIGN: Umbilical venous cord blood gases (0.5 ml) were drawn from 21 patients at delivery in 1 and 3 ml heparinized syringes with varying amounts of air contamination (none, 0.5 ml air admitted and removed from the syringe, and 0.5 ml of air retained). In an additional 15 patients the 0.5 ml sample was contaminated with 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 ml of air. RESULTS: -Air contamination had no effect on pH, Pco 2 , or bicarbonate but did increase the Po 2 when the residual air was > 37.5% in a 3 ml syringe. No changes occurred in a 1 ml syringe. Time from drawing the blood to assay did not significantly alter the results. CONCLUSION: Umbilical cord blood gases are best drawn in 1 ml heparinized syringes. Only if the residual air contamination exceeds 37.5% will Po 2 increase. The level of air contamination will not alter the evaluation of fetal-neonatal acidosis.