cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cerro Tilcajete: un centro secundario del Estado zapoteco temprano (100 ac-200dc)

Investigaciones arqueologicas en el valle de Oaxaca han demostrado la existencia de una organizacion politica estatal en la fase Monte Alban II (100 a.C.-200 d.C.). Los datos regionales indican un patron de asentamiento jerarquico de cuatro niveles, donde Monte Alban fue la capital del estado y Cerro Tilcajete, Dainzu y San Jose Mogote funcionaron como centros secundarios. En este articulo se describen los resultados de excavaciones recientes en el Cerro Tilcajete y un analisis de las excavaciones en los demas sitios, para evaluar la relacion entre cada sitio secundario y la capital. Para Monte Alban se senala la presencia de una arquitectura estatal estandarizada, como el templo de dos cuartos, el palacio y el juego de pelota. Los sitios secundarios muestran algunas diferencias en los planos de los edificios, asi como en sus tipos y numero. Sin embargo, los artefactos recuperados en los sitios secundarios demuestran la existencia de una elite de cultura comun. Los datos nos permiten sugerir que 1) la administracion estatal del valle no fue homogenea durante la fase Monte Alban II y 2) es probable que el sistema administrativo creciera con base en las relaciones de cooperacion y de conflicto que existian entre las elites durante la epoca de formacion del Estado
Epiphytic Plants as NTFPs from the Forest Canopies: Priorities for Management and Conservation

A wide range of canopy plants are harvested for their economic and cultural value, yet little is known about their the impacts of harvest on populations of vascular and non-vascular epiphytic plants, the canopy species that depend on them, and their ecosystems. In addition, understanding epiphyte harvest and its effects necessitates the study of cultural and socioeconomic patterns of use and trade, in addition to biological data, yet very few studies address that. Existing research on the epiphyte market indicate that a high diversity and volume of species are traded. This is specifically important because it can strengthen conservation efforts since most of these species are listed under CITES including the Orchidaceae. We review what we know to date about the harvest and trade in the forest canopy, focusing on four categories of epiphytic plants: orchids, bromeliads, ferns, and nonvascular plants. We conclude by identifying research priorities that address the key knowledge gaps identified in the review.
Regulation of the Heat-Shock Response in Escherichia coli

Cells respond to a sudden increase in temperature by increasing their rate of synthesis of a small number of proteins (reviewed in Neidhardt et al., 1984; Schlesinger et al., 1982). This response is called the heat-shock response, and the proteins synthesized in response to heat stress are called the heat-shock proteins (HSPs). Both prokaryotes and eukaryotes have been shown to have a heat-shock response (Schlesinger et al., 1982). At least two of the HSPs are strongly conserved between prokaryotes and eukaryotes (Bardwell and Craig, 1984), suggesting that the response serves a similar function in all organisms.
Watson, James Dewey

James D. Watson (1928–) is an American-born scientist. While at the University of Chicago, he became fascinated with genetics, in particular the problem of the structure of the gene. In 1953, while on a postdoctoral fellowship at Cambridge University, he and Francis HC Crick deduced the double-helix structure of DNA. Watson spent the rest of his career advancing DNA as the fundamental molecule of living systems, through research and teaching, pedagogical and popular writing, and administration. In 1968, he became director of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a weathered, storied, seaside biology lab on New York’s Long Island where he had spent summers as a student. Watson rejuvenated the lab, making it into a center for cancer research, then general molecular biology. From 1988 to 1992, he directed the National Center for Human Genome Research, now the National Human Genome Research Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. In 2007, he resigned from Cold Spring Harbor over controversy surrounding remarks about race, intelligence, and heredity.
Vaccination and Associated Adverse Events in Dogs Previously Treated for Primary Immune-Mediated Hemolytic Anemia

This study described the rate of vaccine reactions in a population of dogs receiving vaccines after diagnosis of primary immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA). A secondary objective was to describe the time elapsed between vaccination and initial diagnosis of IMHA. A medical record search identified cases meeting criteria for primary IMHA. Owners and referring veterinarians were surveyed regarding vaccination of the dog following diagnosis. Referring veterinarians were surveyed regarding vaccination prior to diagnosis of IMHA. A completed survey was returned in 44 cases. Twenty-two dogs received vaccinations after diagnosis, and 22 dogs did not. The median time elapsed between vaccination and initial diagnosis was 280 days. No dog was vaccinated within 30 days of diagnosis. Two of the following possible reactions were noted out of 22 dogs vaccinated: vomiting and urticarial eruption in a dog administered a rabies and canine distemper vaccine, and recurrent anemia in a dog administered a rabies vaccine. The rate of vaccine reactions was higher than previously reported, although the time period evaluated was longer than in previous studies. The relationship between initial vaccination and development of IMHA, and between vaccination and vaccine reaction, in this population is uncertain and may reflect coincidence or differences in susceptibility.
Identification of breast cancer targeting ligands using OBOC combinatorial library method

3171 Breast cancer is the most common malignant tumor among women. The search for effective and safe diagnostic and therapeutic agents for breast cancer is a relevant and timely pursuit.Synthesis and screening of “one-bead one-compound” (OBOC) combinatorial peptide libraries, a method originally developed in our lab, 1 have become a widely used method to identify novel ligands against various interesting receptors.Here, one OBOC combinatorial libraries have been designed and synthesized, and screened for binding against MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Through sequencing the positive beads, we obtained maximal structure-activity-relationship (SAR) information of potential targeting ligands for MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Two cyclic peptides (LXY1 and LXY2) containing D-amino acids were selected for characterization as a result of the screenings. Anti-α3 antibody was found to block the binding of these two peptides against MDA-MB-231 cells, indicating that these two peptides are highly specific to α3 integrin. In addition, the molecular interaction between α3 integrin and LXY1 or LXY2 was characterized by using K562 cells transfected with α3 integrin site-directed mutants. Mutation at T162A, G163A, M164A and T162F resulted in the loss of cell binding to the LXY1 and LXY2 beads, further confirming that the target receptor is α3 integrin, and that the interaction site is in close proximity to those mutated residues indicated above.2 GD-6 (KQNCLSSRASFRGCVRNLRLSR residues numbered 3011-3032), representing the amino acid sequence within the carboxy-terminal region of laminin A, was demonstrated as a native ligand binding to α3β1 integrin.3 Flow cytometry was used to determine the binding affinity of the peptide ligands to MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. The binding affinity of LXY1 was approximately 0.170 µM (Kd) to α3 integrin on MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells, which is about 26-fold improvement compared to GD-6 (4.5µM). Based on the established SAR study, four highly focused cyclic peptide libraries were further designed, synthesized, and screened against MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells under stringent conditions. LXY3, a cyclic peptide with higher binding affinity (Kd=0.103µM, Bmax=677), was identified.Furthermore, we used in vivo near infra-red fluorescence optical imaging and bioluminescence imaging to investigate the targeting efficiency of LXY3. LXY3 was demonstrated to specifically target MDA-MB-231-luciferase (+) breast cancer orthotopic xenografts in nude mice in vivo. In conclusion, LXY3 is an excellent candidate for the development of radio-targeting or chemo-targeting agents for breast cancer.
Molds and Tenuazonic Acid in Fresh Tomatoes Used for Catsup Production.

The mold flora was determined for 146 samples of fresh but visibly moldy tomatoes collected from sorting belts in tomato catsup processing plants in California and in Midwestern and Eastern United States. Mold found in 141 of the samples included at least 22 genera, principally Alternaria , Aspergillus , Cladosporium , Fusarium and Penicillium , and 51 species. The California tomatoes were dominated by Geotrichum candidum and species of Aspergillus and Penicillium ; Midwest and East tomatoes were dominated by Alternaria . This suggested that the predominant molds in tomatoes may differ, depending on geographical source. Tenuazonic acid (TA), a toxic metabolite of Alternaria spp., was found in 73 of the samples at a range of 0.4 to 69.7 (average 4.94) μg/g of moldy tissue; however, Alternaria spp. were not found in 35 of the 73 TA-positive samples. It is possible that other molds may produce TA or that the toxin-producing Alternaria died off before our sampling.
Divergent Temporal Trends in Morbidity and Mortality Related to Heart Failure and Atrial Fibrillation: Age, Sex, Race, and Geographic Differences in the United States, 1991-2015.

Background Heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are rising in prevalence and pose a substantial public health burden. Methods and Results We evaluated temporal trends specific to age, se...
Estimating NonResponse Bias in Mail Surveys: A Replication Study

A major problem faced in mail survey research is whether nonresponse bias exists. If the responses of persons who answer the questionnaire differ substantially from those who do not, the results cannot be generalized to the overall sample, much less the overall population. A previous article attempted to solve this problem by projecting nonresponse bias in mail questionnaires through various extrapolation methods. This article reports research that was conducted to replicate the previous study with a different sample. However, contradictory results were obtained between the original and the replication study. A comparison of the two studies, conclusions, and directions for future research to resolve this contradiction are discussed.
Using intercultural rhetoric to examine translingual practices of postgraduate L2 writers of English

Abstract This pilot study applies the three tenets of intercultural rhetoric (i.e., texts must be studied in context; culture is complex and dynamic; written discourse encounters necessitate negotiation and accommodation) to an investigation of the translingual practices of four post-graduate-level second language (L2) writers of English. By using stimulated recall to probe the participants’ awareness and use of L1 and L2 academic conventions in the writing process, we were able to identify the negotiation strategies they employed and to understand the linguistic or cultural factors that influenced those choices. Our findings revealed that participants’ translingual negotiations varied, depending on their level of proficiency in English, field of study, and experience writing academically in both their L1 and L2. Participants also tended to frame discussions of their academic writing in terms of both large, national cultures and small, disciplinary or classroom-based ones. Finally, this study illustrates how inquiries that highlight the social contexts and complexities of cross-cultural comparisons can be useful in operationalizing translingual concepts and developing evidence-based pedagogy for L2 writing.
Wasserstein GAN With Quadratic Transport Cost

Wasserstein GANs are increasingly used in Computer Vision applications as they are easier to train. Previous WGAN variants mainly use the $l_1$ transport cost to compute the Wasserstein distance between the real and synthetic data distributions. The $l_1$ transport cost restricts the discriminator to be 1-Lipschitz. However, WGANs with $l_1$ transport cost were recently shown to not always converge. In this paper, we propose WGAN-QC, a WGAN with quadratic transport cost. Based on the quadratic transport cost, we propose an Optimal Transport Regularizer (OTR) to stabilize the training process of WGAN-QC. We prove that the objective of the discriminator during each generator update computes the exact quadratic Wasserstein distance between real and synthetic data distributions. We also prove that WGAN-QC converges to a local equilibrium point with finite discriminator updates per generator update. We show experimentally on a Dirac distribution that WGAN-QC converges, when many of the $l_1$ cost WGANs fail to [22]. Qualitative and quantitative results on the CelebA, CelebA-HQ, LSUN and the ImageNet dog datasets show that WGAN-QC is better than state-of-art GAN methods. WGAN-QC has much faster runtime than other WGAN variants.
An Investigation of the LGBTQ+ Youth Suicide Disparity Using National Violent Death Reporting System Narrative Data

Abstract Purpose This study explored law enforcement and medical examiner reports about adolescent and young adult deaths by suicide for novel and understudied risk factors and described variability by sexual orientation and gender identity in those risk factors' prevalence. It also sought to explain why the suicide disparity between lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, and other sexual/gender minority (LGBTQ+) youth and non-LGBTQ+ youth is wider in adolescence than in young adulthood. Methods This study involved coding of law enforcement and medical examiner reports from the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) for all 394 LGBTQ+ youth who died by suicide in NVDRS participating states between 2013 (the year that NVDRS began coding for sexual orientation and transgender status) and 2016 (the latest year of NVDRS available), along with 394 non-LGBTQ+ cases matched with them on dimensions of sex, urbanicity, race, and military service. Results Fifty-nine percent of 12- to 17-year-old LGBTQ+'s cases mentioned an LGBTQ+-specific contributing circumstance, whereas only 30% of 18- to 29-year-old LGBTQ+'s cases mentioned an LGBTQ+-specific contributing circumstance. However, there were 3.6 times as many cases of LGBTQ+ 18- to 29-year-olds as there were of LGBTQ+ 12- to 17-year-olds. Cases of gay males, bisexual males, and bisexual females were particularly likely to include family/peer rejection and bullying as contributing circumstances, while lesbians' cases more often mentioned romantic breakups. Conclusions The LGBTQ+/non-LGBTQ+ suicide disparity may be greater for adolescents because LGBTQ+-specific contributing circumstances are more prevalent among adolescents. Prevention efforts should be tailored to clients' age and specific LGBTQ+ subgroup.
Numerical model for predictive high yield assembly of Cobalt nanowires using floating electrode dielectrophoresis

The isolation and manipulation of individual nanomaterials from macroscopic agglomerates and their integration into functional systems offer a pathway to realize devices in application areas spanning spintronics, nanoelectronics, energy storage, and sensing. Recently, field-directed techniques involving bottom-up assembly of nanowire/nanoparticles have been developed that utilize external stimuli such as electric [1] , magnetic [2] , optical [3] and acoustic [4] forces. Dielectrophoresis is one of the most commonly used nano-assembly techniques involving electric stimuli to accomplish device integration at single NW or nanotube level [5] . In this paper, we present the floating electrode dielectrophoresis (FE-DEP) technique for assembly of Cobalt nanowires. In FE-DEP [6] , [7] , only one set of electrodes is connected to an assembly bias (V AC ), while the opposing set of electrodes are held at floating potential with respect to underlying substrate, which is electrically grounded, as shown in Figure 1 (a) . A Cobalt NW deposited on a silicon chip using FE-DEP over an on-chip system is shown in Figure 1(b) . To investigate the deposition of this NW, a 3D nanoelectrokinetic model is built for prediction of the nano-assembly process, considering the process parameters such as nanowire properties, dimensions, location, electrode design, applied potential and suspension properties. This model is thereafter leveraged to design/fabricate systems that advance the yield capability for single NW isolation over FE-DEP on-chip devices.
Preschool Environmental Influences on Physical Activity in Children with Disabilities.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to describe associations between physical and social environmental features of preschools and physical activity behaviors of young children with developmental disabilities. Methods A sample of 34 preschool-age children (mean age, 4.28 ± 1.07; male, 64.7%) with developmental disabilities participated in this study. Physical activity and preschool environmental factors were measured through direct observation using the Observational System for Recording Physical Activity in Children-Developmental Disabilities version. Children were observed approximately eight times over the course of a week, yielding a total of 11, 310 observation intervals. The number of intervals and percentage of time spent in physical activity across environmental contexts were calculated. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine associations between time spent in physical activity and features of the physical and social environment. Results Children with disabilities were sedentary for most of the observed intervals (81.5%). Children were 4.8 times (confidence interval (CI), 4.25-5.50) more likely to be physically active while outdoors compared with indoors. Physical activity was more likely to occur in open spaces (odds ratio [OR], 3.3; CI, 2.59-4.19) and when using portable play equipment (OR, 2.7; CI, 1.31-5.64) compared with fixed playground equipment. While indoors, children in this study were 5.6 times (CI, 3.78-8.03) more likely to be active when in therapy compared with group time activities. Physical activity was more likely to occur when in solitary (OR, 3.4; CI, 2.87-4.10) or one-on-one group contexts (OR, 1.7-2.9) compared with in groups with an adult present. Conclusions Certain features of the preschool setting, such as location and social group composition, were more conducive to physical activity than others. Children with disabilities would benefit from more time outdoors and in smaller group settings during preschool.
Increasing Health Care Workers' Proficiency With Using Professional Medical Interpretation: A Workshop.

Introduction Families with limited English proficiency are at risk for poor outcomes and medical errors due to barriers in communication. The use of professional medical interpretation has been lin...
Specificity protein (Sp) transcription factors and metformin regulate expression of the long non-coding RNA HULC

Specificity protein 1 (Sp1) transcription factor (TF) regulates expression of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. RNA interference (RNAi) studies showed that among several lncRNAs expressed in HepG2, SNU-449 and SK-Hep-1 cells, highly upregulated in liver cancer (HULC) was regulated not only by Sp1 but also Sp3 and Sp4 in the three cell lines. Knockdown of Sp transcription factors and HULC by RNAi showed that they play important roles in HCC cell proliferation, survival and migration. The relative contribution of Sp1, Sp3, Sp4 and HULC on these responses in HepG2, SNU-449 and SK-Hep-1 cells were cell context- and response-dependent. In the poorly differentiated SK-Hep-1 cells, knockdown of Sp1 or HULC resulted in genomic and morphological changes, indicating that Sp1 and Sp1-regulated HULC are important for maintaining the mesenchymal phenotype in this cell line. Genomic analysis showed an inverse correlation between expression of genes after knockdown of HULC and expression of those genes in liver tumors from patients. The antidiabetic drug metformin down-regulates Sp proteins in pancreatic cancer, and similar results including decreased HULC expression were observed in HepG2, SNU-449 and SK-Hep-1 cells treated with metformin, indicating that metformin and other antineoplastic agents that target Sp proteins may have clinical applications for HCC chemotherapy.
A Frameshift Mutation in a Patient with Tay-Sachs Disease Causes Premature Termination and Defective Intracellular Transport of the α-Subunit of β-Hexosaminidase *

Mutations of the gene encoding the α-subunit of the lysosomal enzyme, β-hexosaminidase, are the cause of Tay-Sachs disease. We previously showed that fibroblasts from one patient (WG1051) synthesized an unstable α-subunit that was smaller than normal and appeared to be trapped in an early biosynthetic compartment (Zokaeem, G., Bayleran, J., Kaplan, P., Hechtman, P., and Neufeld, E. F. (1987) Am. J. Hum. Genet. 40, 537–547). We now have identified the mutation as a deletion of cytosine at position 1510 of the coding sequence. We first determined that the structural abnormality was at the carboxyl terminus of the protein and then sequenced the corresponding regions of the cDNA and genomic DNA after amplification by the polymerase chain reaction. The frameshift mutation, which is present on both alleles, causes premature termination four codons downstream, and the loss of a very hydrophilic stretch of 22 amino acids. Expression of α-subunit cDNA with the cytosine deletion in Cos-1 cells reproduced the WG1051 phenotype, i.e. a truncated α-subunit that was retained and degraded in an early compartment, presumably the endoplasmic reticulum. Loss of the cysteine residue at position 522 was not the sole cause of instability and defective transport.
Toward a global ethic

The results to date of the contemporary organizational ethics movement are not encouraging; credible, empirical evidence of more ethical individuals and institutions remains to be discovered. This is not surprising, given the daunting nature of organizational change, multiple perspectives toward ethics programs, and the need for transformational, as opposed to transactional, leadership. As currently conceived and executed, ethics training tends to be rule‐oriented, legalistic and superficial, and thus produces cynicism, boredom and passivity. Therefore, proposes an ethics training initiative consisting of a philosophical and an institutional framework, as well as a two‐stage program based on clarification of universal values and justification of organizational policies and practices in light of those values. The philosophical framework is grounded in the unified ethic, which combines deontology, teleology, and virtue, while the institutional framework is grounded in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights and the work of the Caux Roundtable. The ultimate aim of this ethics training program is to advance global democratic deliberation and decision making in both private and public organizations.
Implications of The Spiritual Revolution for Those in Health Care Chaplaincy

This response to Linda Woodhead’s paper is in broad agreement with the findings of the study and the conclusions reached, and gives consideration to how the ‘subjective turn’ is played out in the sphere of healthcare in Scotland. It outlines the shape of spirituality in the NHS and considers implications for chaplaincy work. New guidelines on ‘spiritual care’ have necessitated a rethinking of the role of chaplains, but this has proved contentious: those who practice and bear witness to a clear set of beliefs do not fit easily within subjective structures.
Some Remarks on Input Choices for Biochemical Systems

This is a short note with some (very elementary) remarks concerning realization theory and the choice of inputs for identifying systems. Its goal is to bring some of these facts to the attention of the systems biology community.
Improved recognition of contact names in voice commands

The recognition of contact names in mobile-device voice commands is a challenging problem. Some of the difficulties include potentially infinite vocabularies, low probability of contact tokens in the language model (LM), increased false triggering of contact voice commands when none are spoken, and very large and noisy contact name lists. In this paper we suggest solutions for each of these difficulties.
Effective Learning Resources for a Neuroscience and Behavior Course for First Year Medical Students - Get Neurology out of the Textboxes. (P4.197)

Objective: A survey was carried out for textbooks suitable for an integrated neuroscience and behavior course for first year medical students. Background: The curriculum at the new Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine (FAU) has a sequence of integrated basic science courses in the first semester, followed by organ based courses in the second semester of year 1, starting with the “Neuroscience and Behavior course”. An important task of the course director is to choose effective learning resources, including textbooks. A unique challenge is to select teaching materials for clinical neurology suitable for first year medical students. Methods: Textbooks in neuroscience, neuroanatomy and neurology were surveyed over a five-year period using library resources, publishers’ on-line information, desk examination copies, and inspection at conference exhibitions. Textbooks were screened for coverage of common neurological disorders (Hirtz et al., Neurology 68: 326-337, 2007). Results: Most neuroscience texts are either extensive volumes aimed at graduate neuroscience courses or not sufficiently rigorous. A survey showed that neurological diseases are often used as an illustration for the importance of basic neuroscience. Specific information for diseases is often isolated in small “textboxes”. Traditionally, rare neurological disorders with a specific anatomical pattern are disproportionally emphasized, and no systematic account of common neurological disorders can be found. One notable exception is a neuroanatomy text centered on clinical cases (Blumenfeld, Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases, 2010). We decided to combine this text with problem-based learning (PBL) cases covering common neurological disorders. Three cycles of formal student and facilitator feedback were used to refine PBL cases. Conclusions: For our first year course, a neuroanatomy text with reference to clinical cases and PBL cases were combined to cover common neurological disorders. There is need for a neurology text suitable for first year medical students. Disclosure: Dr. Schmidt-Kastner has received personal compensation in an editorial capacity for Neuroscience.
Silver nanorod arrays as highly sensitive SERS substrates for viral detection

The aligned silver nanorod array substrates prepared by the oblique angle deposition method are capable of providing extremely high enhancement factors (~108) at near-infrared wavelengths (785 nm) for a standard reporter molecule 1,2 trans-(bis)pyridyl-ethene (BPE). The enhancement factor depends strongly on the length of the Ag nanorods, the substrate coating, the polarization of the excitation light, as well as the incident angle. With the current optimum structure, we demonstrate that the detection limit for BPE can be lower than 0.1 fM. The applicability of this substrate to the detection of bioagents has been investigated by looking several viruses at low quantities (~0.5uL). Different viruses have different fingerprint Raman spectrum.
Making a Liveable ‘Place’: Content Design in Virtual Environments

This paper argues that designers of virtual environments must not only design the context of their worlds (as architects do) but also assume at least partial responsibility for designing the content (as filmmakers do). The design of a virtual environment is, therefore, a unique task that combines the traits of both architects and filmmakers, a fact that has often been overlooked by designers of virtual environments. Only by taking responsibility for both context and content, and being cognisant of the affordances and limitations of the medium used, can virtual environment designers create a sense of place, which will be comparable, if different, to the sense of place engendered by physical environments.
Variation of the Pinus ponderosa needle oil with season and needle age

Abstract Influence of season and needle age on the yield and composition of the Pinus ponderosa needle oil was investigated. Oil yields throughout the year averaged 0·13% on the basis of tissue green weight. The average composition was 11·9% α-pinene, 70·2% β-pinene, 8·0% 3-carene, 5·0% myrcene, 1·8% limonene, 2·2% β-phellandrene and 6·4% methyl chavicol (total monoterpenes = 100%). The amount of methyl chavicol and total monoterpenoids was highest in summer, lower in juvenile than in mature firstyear needles, and decreasing thereafter with needle age. A significant increase in 3-carene and decrease in β-pinene was apparent in juvenile needles. The most important step towards decreasing the seasonal and age variability of needle samples in ecological or chemotaxonomic studies was found to involve exclusion of sample collections during a period between the initial appearance of young needles and the time that they reach maximum length.
EFFECT OF STORAGE ON THE CONCENTRATION OF PROLINE AND OTHER FREE AMINO ACIDS IN PORK BELLIES

Proline is a potential precursor in the formation of N-nitrosopyrrolidine, a carcinogen that has been detected in fried bacon. The concentration of free proline and 11 additional amino acids were measured on the first and eighth day after slaughter and storage at 2°C. The free amino acids (proline, alanine, glycine, isoleucine, leucine, methionine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, valine, glutamic acid, cystine, aspartic acid) were determined on separated lean tissue, on the adipose tissue, and on samples of intact green pork bellies. The concentration of most of the amino acids increased with storage. Proline in the intact pork bellies increased approximately 52% after 1 wk of storage. Over the same period, free proline in the lean and in the adipose tissues increased 50 and 90% respectively. Effects of extended storage (28 days) on the concentration of free proline in lean tissue was also determined.
Characterization of a cryptic extrachromosomal element isolated from the mollicute Spiroplasma taiwanense.

Abstract Characterization of an extrachromosomal element from an organism in the genus Spiroplasma is likely to be an essential step in the development of cloning vectors which replicate in these organisms. A restriction map for an II-kb element, designated pCT-I, isolated from Spiroplasma taiwanense train CT-I (ATCC 43302) has been constructed using the restriction enzymes Bg /II, EcoRI, HincII, HindIII, HpaI, Pst I, and XhaI. This element is distinct from any previously characterized spiroplasma virus or plasmid. pCT-1 has been cloned into the Escherichia coli vector pBR322 as a step in the development of a biphasic shuttle vector system.
Modification of zymosan-induced release of lysosomal enzymes from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes by cytochalasin B

During the process of phagocytosis, polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) release lysosomal enzymes into the extracellular medium. When the antibiotic cytochalasin B (CB) is present in the incubation medium along with phagocytable particles, enhanced recovery of enzyme activities from the incubation medium has been observed. These findings have led to the interpretation that CB enhances lysosomal enzyme release. Our results contradict this interpretation. The lysosomal enzymes acid phosphatase and beta-galactosidase are unstable after they are released from cells. During the first 5-15 min of phagocytosis, significant amounts of both acid phosphatase and beta-galactosidase can be recovered from the extracellular medium. After this, the recovery of enzyme from the medium declines, presumably because the rate of loss of lysosomal enzyme activity exceeds the rate of release at later time periods. In the presence of CB, the appearance of lysosomal enzymes in the extracellular medium of cells exposed to zymosan is retarded for 5-10 min, after which it begins and then continues for approximately 20 min. At the end of a 30-min incubation period, therefore, in the absence of CB, extracellular levels of lysosomal enzymes (especially those which are unstable) are declining toward low levels while, in the presence of CB, extracellular enzyme levels are continuing to rise. We also measured the lysosomal enzyme remaining within cells after exposure to zymosan. CB retarded the disappearance of enzyme from cells and resulted in significantly less total cell enzyme loss. Thus, in the presence of CB, a greater proportion of the lysosomal enzyme lost from cells is recovered in the extracellular medium. In contrast to the previous conclusions that CB enhances lysosomal enzyme release, our results indicate that CB delays and decreases the zymosan-stimulated release of lysosomal enzymes from PMN. Since CB inhibits phagocytosis by PMN, our results indicate that the antibiotic modifies the mechanism of release of lysosomal enzymes, resulting in zymosan stimulation of their release independently of phagocytosis.
Rabbit behavioral model of marijuana psychoactivity in humans

In a genetically unique colony of tetrahydrocannabinol-seizure susceptible (THC-SS) rabbits, nonfatal convulsions are elicited by Δ9THC, the major psychoactive ingredient of marijuana. The major characteristics of cannabinoid-produced psychoactivity (the “high”) in humans, e.g., dose-effect relationships, specificity of response to only psychoactive cannabinoids, tolerance development, EEG correlates, and Δ9THC-cannabidiol interactive effects, are also characteristics of cannabinoid-induced behavioral convulsions in the rabbits. Because of these and other theoretical and practical considerations, it is hypothesized that the THC-SS rabbit represents a novel laboratory animal model of marijuana-induced psychoactivity in humans.
Mineral nutrition of Pinus caribaea and Eucalyptus camaldulensis seedlings inoculated with Pisolithus tinctorius and Thelephora terrestris

Abstract Seedlings of Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. and Pinus caribaea Morelet var. hondurensis Loock. were inoculated witH mycelium of Pisolithus tinctorius (Pers.) Coker & Couch and Thelephora terrestris Ehrl. per Fr. After four months in glasshouse culture, the roots of Pisolithus inoculated seedlings had significantly more ectomycorrhizae than Thelephora inoculated seedlings. The Pisolithus inoculated Eucalyptus seedlings were significantly larger in size than plants colonized with T. terrestris. Shoot dry weight and needle surface area of P. caribaea seedlings were significantly increased by Pisolithus inoculation. Inoculation with Pisolithus significantly increased N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, and B content in E. camaldulensis seedlings compared to Thelephora inoculated plants. In contrast, only N, Mg, Cu, Fe, Zn, and B content was significantly increased by Pisolithus colonization of P. caribaea, compared to Thelephora inoculated seedlings. These data suggest ectomycorrhizal fungi differs in ...
2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfamoyl-benzo(F)-quinoxaline (NBQX) increases fibroblast growth factor mRNA levels after contusive spinal cord injury

We have previously demonstrated that the glutamatergic receptor (AMPA) antagonist 2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfamoyl-benzo(F)-quinoxaline (NBQX) reduces functional deficits in a standardized rat model of contusive spinal cord injury (SCI). NBQX not only acted to protect neurons from excitotoxicity but also, unexpectedly, enhanced sparing of white matter including axons of descending pathways. We have therefore investigated mechanisms through which NBQX could produce beneficial effects for white matter. We report here that NBQX elicits a rapid and selective induction of FGF2 mRNA levels in injured spinal cord. This novel effect could contribute to the therapeutic properties of NBQX in the treatment of SCI.
Hearing Losses After Apical Lesions in the Cochlea

(1952). Hearing Losses After Apical Lesions in the Cochlea. Acta Oto-Laryngologica: Vol. 42, No. 3, pp. 263-274.
Ion beams, thermal processes and lithographic challenges

Among the challenges with which lithographers are currently grappling, the issues of line-edge roughness (LER) and non-linear overlay errors intersect the concerns of ion implantation and thermal process engineers. LER, and the associated metric for contact holes, local critical dimension uniformity (LCDU), must be small to meet the requirements of advanced nodes. Photon shot-noise-induced LER and LCDU diminution, which can benefit from high resist exposure doses, must be balanced with exposure tool throughput requirements for meeting cost targets for Moore's Law. Because very small improvements in LER and LCDU can require substantial increases in resist exposure doses, post-lithographic techniques for reducing LER and LCDU can have sizable salutary impact on overall wafer costs. The impact of LER on circuit performance depends on the spatial frequencies comprising the LER, and the criticality of particular ranges of spatial frequencies may shift as a consequence of transitions to new types of devices. LER can be reduced post-lithographically by using charged particle beams. Non-linear wafer distortions, which can result from thermal processes and the etching of high-stress films, are problematic for overlay control. Correction of non-linear overlay errors requires the use of a large number of alignment sites and overlay measurements, again resulting in a trade-off between process control and wafer cost. The impact of these distortions on overlay can be predicted quantitatively by measurements of out-of-plane wafer warp. Such measurements can be used to develop processes with intrinsically low distortion and for maintaining process control in manufacturing.
Best Practices in Due Professional Care: An it Audit Perspective

Abstract Due professional are can be defin ned in n several ways. Some will tell you thhat it is the respect you show your auditee and the way in which you conduct yourself during an audit. Others might say it is the Professional image expecteed of an auditor toward the auditee. Still others believe that due professional care denotes the expectancy of adding value to the client by providing solutions instead of problem.
16-Hydroxycarnosic acid, a diterpene from Salvia apiana.

Abstract A dichloromethane extract of the leaves of Salvia apiana gave a new abietane, 16-hydroxycarnosic acid, and the known diterpene carsonic acid or salvin.
The Prevalence of Hypertension in the United States Today

The simplest response to the question, what is the prevalence of hypertension in the United States today?, is given by a currently popular slogan: ‘23,000,000 Americans have hypertension’. It is clear that the problem is large in scale, but this figure alone is an insufficient guide to many practical issues. The prevalence ratio underlying this estimate is about 15% for adults 18 to 79 years of age. Actual prevalence ratios may vary widely in specific subgroups of the population and in accordance with differing methods and criteria of ascertainment. For example, the actual numbers of hypertensives in the general population of the US, detectable by twostage screening, may be closer to 8 or 9 million. On the other hand, the current failure generally of detection of hypertension would suggest that the entire adult population must be screened periodically–and this number is greater than 126 million. The implications of these considerations for undertaking screening and management programmes are discussed briefly.
Genomic 5-methylcytosine determination by 32P-postlabeling analysis.

Abstract A simple and sensitive method for the quantitation of 5-methyldeoxycytidine in DNA has been developed by the adaptation of the Randerath 32 P-postlabeling technique. Nucleic acids were digested to 3′-monophosphate nucleotides, which were converted to 32 P-labeled 3′,5′-bisphosphate nucleotides, the 3′-phosphate was cleaved by the action of nuclease P 1 , and the resultant 5′-[ 32 P]-monophosphate nucleotides were separated by two-dimensional thin-layer chromatography. Less than 1 μg of DNA was required for the precise quantitation of 5-methyldeoxycytidine content to a detectable limit of 0.01% of the total cytidine residues methylated. The genomic 5-methyldeoxycytidine content may thus be quantitated in tissue samples, small or selective cell populations, senescing or terminally differentiating cells, or DNA from any source. We report here, for the first time, the genomic 5-methyldeoxycytidine content of normal human bronchial epithelial and normal human pulmonary mesothelial cells. The chromatographic separation of all of the normal and some of the rare monophosphate deoxyribonucleotides and ribonucleotides has been characterized. Thus, 5-bromodeoxyuridine and the RNA contamination of DNA or the DNA contamination of RNA can also be quantitated during the same analysis.
Against the local trap: scale and the study of environment and development:

This paper argues against what we call ‘the local trap’, in which development researchers and practitioners falsely assume that localized decision-making is inherently more socially just or ecologi...
Improving non-negative matrix factorizations through structured initialization

In this paper we explore a recent iterative compression technique called non-negative matrix factorization (NMF). Several special properties are obtained as a result of the constrained optimization problem of NMF. For facial images, the additive nature of NMF results in a basis of features, such as eyes, noses, and lips. We explore various methods for efficiently computing NMF, placing particular emphasis on the initialization of current algorithms. We propose using Spherical K-Means clustering to produce a structured initialization for NMF. We demonstrate some of the properties that result from this initialization and develop an efficient way of choosing the rank of the low-dimensional NMF representation.
Mass customization in an endogenous-timing game with vertical differentiation

Abstract We study mass customization in a duopoly game in which the firms' products have different qualities. Whether customization choices are made simultaneously or sequentially is endogenously determined. Specifically, the customization stage of the game involves two periods. Each firm either selects its product type in period 1 or postpones this decision to period 2. We show that customization by one or both firms occurs only if the quality difference is sufficiently large. Flexibility of timing in the customization stage sometimes enables the firms to achieve an outcome that is Pareto superior to that if they were constrained to simultaneous customization choices. Although the high quality firm is more likely to customize, in some circumstances the low quality firm can obtain an advantage by becoming the first and only firm to adopt customization.
β2 Integrin Mediates Entry of a Bacterial Toxin into T Lymphocytes

Helicobacter pylori secretes a pore-forming toxin, VacA, that can cause numerous alterations in gastric epithelial cells and T lymphocytes. In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Sewald and colleagues report that beta2 integrin (CD18) mediates entry of VacA into human T cells. Downregulation of T cell responses by VacA may allow H. pylori to evade the adaptive immune response and establish persistent infection.
Absence of colony stimulating factor-1 in osteopetrotic (csfmop/csfmop) mice disrupts estrous cycles and ovulation.

Colony stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) is a hematopoietic growth factor required for the recruitment, proliferation, and differentiation of mononuclear phagocytes. In addition, CSF-1 is expressed in the female reproductive tract coincident with CSF-1 receptor localization on preovulatory oocytes, ovarian and uterine macrophages, decidual cells, and trophoblast. A role for CSF-1 in female reproduction was confirmed by studies on CSF-1-deficient, osteopetrotic (csfmop/csfmop) mice, which suffer from low pregnancy rates and smaller litter sizes compared to wild-type mice. The present study was designed to determine the exact causes of the preimplantation fertility defects in these mutant mice. Female csfmop/csfmop mice have extended estrous cycles compared to wild-type females, and s.c. administration of CSF-1 from birth restores estrous cyclicity. These mice fail to display the characteristic proestrous surge in circulating estradiol-17beta. However, concentrations of this hormone are normal during the remainder of the cycle. Furthermore, csfmop/csfmop females have significantly lower ovulation rates than wild-type mice, but the implantation rates of fertilized oocytes are normal. Serum pregnancy concentrations of progesterone are also normal in csfmop/csfmop females, in line with the relatively normal progression of pregnancy in these mice. Thus, the major effect of CSF-1 on female reproductive function is on the frequency and rate of ovulation, indicating a major role for this growth factor in regulating follicular development and ovulation.
Dependence function for continuous bivariate densities

The notion of cross-product ratio for discrete two-way contingency table is extended to the case of continuous bivariate densities. This results in the “local dependence function” that measues the margin-free dependence between bivariate random variables. Properties and examples of the dependence function are discussed. The bivariate normal density plays a special role since it has constant dependence. Continuous bivariate densities can be constructed by specifying the dependence function along with two marginals in analogy to the construction of two-way contingency tables given marginals and patterns of interaction. The dependence function provides a partial ordering on bivariate dependence.
Waveform reconstruction from the average-value model of line-commutated converter-synchronous machine systems

Relationships are established which can be used to predict the instantaneous waveforms of a line-commutated converter/synchronous machine system using an average value model. The analytically predicted waveforms are shown to be a valid approximation of the waveforms predicted by detailed simulation during both steady-state and transient conditions, while requiring much less computation time. The method set forth substantially increases the capabilities of average value simulations. >