cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Recruitment of Tube and Pelle to signaling sites at the surface of the Drosophila embryo

A signaling pathway initiated by activation of the transmembrane receptor Toll defines dorsoventral polarity in the Drosophila embryo. Toll, which is present over the entire surface of the embryo, is activated ventrally by interaction with a spatially restricted, extracellular ligand. Tube and Pelle then transduce the signal from activated Toll to a complex of Dorsal and Cactus. Here we demonstrate by an mRNA microinjection assay that targeting of either Tube or Pelle to the plasma membrane by myristylation is sufficient to activate the signal transduction pathway that leads to Dorsal nuclear translocation. Using confocal immunofluorescence microscopy we also show that activated Toll induces a localized recruitment of Tube and Pelle to the plasma membrane. Together, these results strongly support the hypothesis that intracellular signaling requires the Toll-mediated formation of a membrane-associated complex containing both Tube and Pelle.
Side effects of medical therapy for chronic hepatitis C

The treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) has improved greatly over the past decade. Over half of all patients treated with the combination of peginterferon and ribavirin have the opportunity to achieve sustained virologic response. The major factors which interfere with this goal are the side effects of therapy which require that the doses of peginterferon or ribavirin be reduced or that these medications be discontinued. While some of these side effects can be overcome and treatment continued, some side effects are severe and potentially life threatening. Appropriate recognition and management of these side effects will both improve response to therapy and avoid unnecessary morbidity and mortality.
The Last Conflict Resolution: A Parallel Analysis of Ancient Rome and the Ninety-Nine Percent Sure Path to Monarchy

Prelude: "Inclusivity" is perhaps the single most important human need to facilitate and demonstrate fairness for all members in an open and free society. When this principle need is compromised by appearances of unscrupulous self-interested privileged elites to perpetuate a systemic widening disparity between social-economic classes favoring exclusivity, it is imminently imperative to galvanize public opposition to mitigate this threat. A society that is governed by its collective citizenry should never be marginalized by its institutions or the people that run them. No institution should be more esteemed than its human beings. Rt. (reckless thinker) Thesis: The use of sociology to inform and provide a comparative analysis of human behavior spanning across several millennia is quite an effective and useful tool for predicting the tendentious course of historic parallels. Past events are shaped by social, economic and political conditions and informed by geography, religion, art, technology and the inherited traditions and values that distinguish one culture from another. The aggregate of these elements form civilizations, whereupon close study reveals the unique characteristic customs that make them different in appearance. In spite of these differences, social behavior within these systemic structures remains reliably consistent. In other words, under similar conditions human beings respond and react similarly. This study seeks to expand the range of historic inquiry beyond the parallels that connect the present to the past by using conditional evidence to forecast events in the future. The object here is to paint in broad strokes the social, political and economic phenomenon that intermittently jarred the Roman Republic through three tumultuous episodic periods of their history. The journey will draw comparisons with Rome that precisely parallel America from 1963 to 2011, beginning with the assassination of Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus and the subsequent trucidation of his brother Gaius Gracchus, to the end of the Republic and establishment of the Roman Empire under Augustus Caesar. Ultimately, this study will support an argument which suggests that Roman Civilization was not only indistinguishably paralleled to the culture of the USA, but also, that its history foreshadowed the Kennedy assassinations, 9/11 with its subconsequent loss of social freedoms, the Occupy Wall Street protests, and the inevitable plutocracy presently emerging on the world stage to usher in a global Monocratic Empire.
Reconstruction of the lower extremity. Microsurgical composite tissue transplantation.

Reconstructive surgery of the lower extremity has been revolutionized in the last decade with the introduction of new donor tissue made possible by microsurgery. In these procedures, a large segment of muscle or cutaneous tissue on a muscle, island vascular pedicle, or neurovascular pedicle is transferred. In the hands of experienced surgeons, the length of the operation has not been excessive.
Using the Entrustable Professional Activity Framework to Guide Medical School Training Enhancement

Many undergraduate medical education (UME) programs are interested in implementing Core Entrustable Professional Activities for Entering Residency (Core EPAs). The Core EPAs have been adopted by one northwest medical school for health professional training enhancement, setting expectations for undergraduate medical education environments. The Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensure Examination-USA (COMLEX-USA) is a summative assessment sequence of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners. COMLEX-USA Level 2PE is a nationally-normed clinical performance evaluation. Results from sub-scores on this assessment can be matched to several entrustable activities, providing a context for discussion on documentation of student achievement within the Core EPA framework.
Planned Pregnancy for a Patient with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia

Management of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) during pregnancy can be difficult for patients, their families and care providers. Treatment of CML and pregnancy remains a clinical challenge. Current recommendations, for women of childbearing potential, are to use adequate contraception and avoid pregnancy while taking kinase inhibitors. Consequences of exposure to kinase inhibitors to a fetus during pregnancy are unknown. Treatment may result in an increased risk of serious fetal abnormalities or spontaneous abortion. Lack of treatment for CML, during a pregnancy, may result in disease progression. In the absence of detailed information, difficulty arises to guide this patient through a decision making process. Patients who wish to interrupt therapy and become pregnant should receive intense counseling for both parents, using the most recent data available. Decisions concerning patients with CML and pregnancies must be based on individual cases. This report describes a 25 year old woman with newly diagnosed CML who purposefully arranged harvesting and storage of her unfertilized ova, prior to commencing bosutinib chemotherapy for CML
The Means of Production

Technical leadership remains one of the great problems of software production. The Web extra at https://youtu.be/GXlVabNP4nI is an audio recording of author David Alan Grier expanding on his Errant Hashtag column.
Joint Decoding for Speech Recognition and Semantic Tagging.

Most conversational understanding (CU) systems today employ a cascade approach, where the best hypothesis from automatic speech recognizer (ASR) is fed into spoken language understanding (SLU) module, whose best hypothesis is then fed into other systems such as interpreter or dialog manager. In such approaches, errors from one statistical module irreversibly propagates into another module causing a serious degradation in the overall performance of the conversational understanding system. Thus it is desirable to jointly optimize all the statistical modules together. As a first step towards this, in this paper, we propose a joint decoding framework in which we predict the optimal word as well as slot (semantic tag) sequence jointly given the input acoustic stream. On Microsoft’s CU system, we show 1.3% absolute reduction in word error rate (WER) and 1.2% absolute improvement in F measure for slot prediction when compared to a very strong cascade baseline comprising of the state-of-the-art recognizer followed by a slot sequence tagger.
Effectiveness of the WHO SCC on improving adherence to essential practices during childbirth, in resource constrained settings

India accounts for 27 % of world’s neonatal deaths. Although more Indian women deliver in facilities currently than a decade ago, early neonatal mortality has not declined, likely because of insufficient quality of care. The WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist (SCC) was developed to support health workers to perform essential practices known to reduce preventable maternal and new-born deaths around the time of childbirth. Despite promising early research many outstanding questions remain about effectiveness of the SCC in low-resource settings. In collaboration with the Ministry of Health SCC was modified for Indian context and introduced in 101 intervention facilities in Rajasthan, India and 99 facilities served as comparison to study if it reduces mortality. This Quasi experimental Observational intervention-comparison was embedded in this larger program to test whether a program for introduction of SCC with simple implementation package was associated with increased adherence to 28 evidence-based practices. This study was conducted in 8 intervention and 8 comparison sites. Program interventions to promote appropriate use of the SCC included orienting providers to the checklist, modest modifications of the SCC to promote provider uptake and accountability, ensuring availability of essential supplies, and providing supportive supervision for helping providers in using the SCC. The SCC was used by providers in 86 % of 240 deliveries observed in the eight intervention facilities. Providers in the intervention group significantly adhered to practices included in the SCC than providers in the comparison group controlling for baseline scores and confounders. Women delivering in the intervention facilities received on an average 11.5 more of the 28 practices included compared with women in the comparison facilities. For selected practices provider performance in the intervention group increased as much as 93 % than comparison sites. Use of the SCC and provider performance of best practices increased in intervention facilities reflecting improvement in quality of facility childbirth care for women and new-born in low resource settings.
Assessment of treatment response in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis using advanced magnetic resonance imaging

SummaryBackground Magnetic resonance imaging-derived measures of liver fat and volume are emerging as accurate, non-invasive imaging biomarkers in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Little is known about these measures in relation to histology longitudinally. Aim To examine any relationship between MRI-derived proton-density fat-fraction (PDFF), total liver volume (TLV), total liver fat index (TLFI), vs. histology in a NASH trial. Methods This is a secondary analysis of a 24-week randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 50 patients with biopsy-proven NASH randomised to oral ezetimibe 10 mg daily (n = 25) vs. placebo (n = 25). Baseline and post-treatment anthropometrics, biochemical profiling, MRI and biopsies were obtained. Results Baseline mean PDFF correlated strongly with TLFI (Spearman's ρ = 0.94, n = 45, P < 0.0001) and had good correlation with TLV (ρ = 0.57, n = 45, P < 0.0001). Mean TLV correlated strongly with TLFI (ρ = 0.78, n = 45, P < 0.0001). After 24 weeks, PDFF remained strongly correlated with TLFI (ρ = 0.94, n = 45, P < 0.0001), maintaining good correlation with TLV (ρ = 0.51, n = 45, P = 0.0004). TLV remained strongly correlated with TLFI (ρ = 0.74, n = 45, P < 0.0001). Patients with Grade 1 vs. 3 steatosis had lower PDFF, TLV, and TLFI (P < 0.0001, P = 0.0003, P < 0.0001 respectively). Regression analysis of changes in MRI-PDFF vs. TLV indicates that 10% reduction in MRI-PDFF predicts 257 mL reduction in TLV. Conclusions The MRI-PDFF and TLV strongly correlated with TLFI. Decreases in steatosis were associated with an improvement in hepatomegaly. Lower values of these measures reflect lower histologic steatosis grades. MRI-derived measures of liver fat and volume may be used as dynamic and more responsive imaging biomarkers in a NASH trial, than histology.
"A Mind Plague on Both Your Houses": Imagining the Impact of the Neuro-Turn on the Neurosciences

For the past decade, humanists and social scientists have responded to what some have experienced as an encroaching neuro-presence: the proliferation of neuro-disciplines, the adoption of brain-centrism that has accompanied an explanatory shift from gene to neuron, and the media machine dedicated to all things “neuro-.” At the same time, neuroscientists have been reacting to hyperbolic media representations and potentially dubious scientific studies (often grouped under a rubric of pop neuroscience). In this chapter, I explore how the effects of the “neuro-” (and even the “neuro-turn”) have been imagined for the neurosciences, and I analyze why the neurosciences are discursively—if not realistically—endangered by the “neuro-.” I focus on two examples: the 2012–13 backlash against pop neuroscience, and the EU’s Human Brain Project. In closing, I theorize some of the stakes for both the neurosciences and the neuro-turn: these include problems of translation, reputation, and marketability.
Increased urinary angiotensin converting enzyme 2 and neprilysin in patients with type 2 diabetes

Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and neprilysin (NEP) are metalloproteases that are highly expressed in the renal proximal tubules. ACE2 and NEP generate renoprotective angiotensin (1–7) from...
A new statistical model for analyzing rating scale data pertaining to word meaning

The concrete-abstract categorization scheme has guided several research programs. A popular way to classify words into one of these categories is to calculate a word's mean value in a Concreteness or Imageability rating scale. However, this procedure has several limitations. For instance, results can be highly distorted by outliers, ascribe differences among words when none may exist, and neglect rating trends in participants. We suggest using an alternative procedure to analyze rating scale data called median polish analysis (MPA). MPA is tolerant to outliers and accounts for information in multiple dimensions, including trends among participants. MPA performance can be readily evaluated using an effect size measure called analog R 2 and be integrated with bootstrap 95% confidence intervals, which can prevent assigning inexistent differences among words. To compare these analysis procedures, we asked 80 participants to rate a set of nouns and verbs using four different rating scales: Action, Concreteness, Imageability, and Multisensory. We analyzed the data using both two-way and three-way MPA models. We also calculated 95% CIs for the two-way models. Categorizing words with the Action scale revealed a continuum of word meaning for both nouns and verbs. The remaining scales produced dichotomous or stratified results for nouns, and continuous results for verbs. While the sample mean analysis generated continua irrespective of the rating scale, MPA differentiated among dichotomies and continua. We conclude that MPA allowed us to better classify words by discarding outliers, focusing on main trends, and considering the differences in rating criteria among participants.
An Investigation into the Properties and Microstructure of Cement Mixtures Modified with Cellulose Nanocrystal

This paper aims to examine the effect of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) on the hydration, transport behavior, and microstructure of cement mixtures. The addition of CNC delayed hydration at an early age but improved hydration at later ages. A small increase in the electrical resistivity of the cement mixtures with CNC was observed. Statistical nanoindentation showed a small tendency to a larger volume fraction of high density calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) and a smaller volume fraction of low-density C-S-H in the mixture with CNC.
Mueller-Lyer decrement as a function of number of adjustment trials and configurations of the illusion figure

Five groups of 36 Ss were exposed to different configurations of the Muller-Lyer figure and given varying numbers of adjustment trials. The results were compared to predictions based upon five theoretical positions. Day’s veridical interpretation was concluded to most accurately describe the data. It was suggested the decrement to illusion figures is not an example of figurai aftereffects, but a separate class of phenomena.
Proteomic patterns of chemosensitivity in NSCLC cell lines

4536 Current clinical and histopathological evaluation of non-small cell lung cancer provides little information useful in predicting response to chemotherapy. Proteomic analysis of NSCLC may provide molecular patterns indicative of a tumorâ€™s sensitivity to different chemotherapeutic regimens at the time of initial biopsy or resection. We present class prediction models based on the proteomic analysis of 50 NSCLC cell lines capable of differentiating resistant from sensitive cell lines for cisplatin, paclitaxel, gemcitabine, and vinorelbine. Chemosensitivities were determined for these chemotherapeutics for each cell line with an in vitro MTT assay of the IC50; based on these IC50 values the cell lines were divided into sensitive, resistant, and intermediate groups for each drug. Mass spectra were obtained for each cell line using MALDI-TOF-MS; these spectra were then processed using in-house developed peak-selection and alignment software. Ion signals with statistically significant expression differences between the different chemosensitivy groups were identified using the Kruskal-Wallis test, Fisherâ€™s exact test, the t test, significance analysis of microarrays, and weighted gene analysis. Cutoffs for comparison of sensitive versus non-sensitive and resistant versus non-resistant for all drugs were p
Clinical Relevance of Gene Expression in Cerebral Ischemia

The monumental and Herculean task of averting irreversible ischemic brain damage with neuroprotective agents to preserve the complex brain/mind relationship, the highest expression of evolutionary development, was substantially advanced by the discovery that excitatory amino acid neurotransmitters aggravated ischemic injury while their blockade was protective. Galvanized by this discovery, a broad assault has taken place on identifying metabolic and cellular factors accounting for ischemic vulnerability and developing derivative interventional strategies. This volume is testimony to the exciting search for vulnerable molecular factors conveying ischemic vulnerability, but, likely, successful intervention for neuroprotection will require multiple therapies to defend against the fast–moving cascade of disintegrating cellular and molecular events. The role of gene expression in cerebral ischemia has caught the imagination of investigators because of the powerful role genes play in ultimately regulating cellular physiology and function, and the awesome domination genes have in being the final authority for cellular and species functioning.
SIU–ICUD consultation on bladder cancer: basic science

To provide a condensed summary of the Basic Science chapter that was included in the Third International Consultation on Bladder Cancer. World bladder cancer basic science experts used the published literature to create summaries of recent progress in their areas of expertise. The completion of several large-scale genomics projects coupled with a strong collaborative culture within the research community and the exciting clinical activity of immune checkpoint blockade have combined to transform the bladder cancer research landscape. Bladder cancer molecular subtypes and the presence of specific DNA alterations provide important information about disease heterogeneity that has direct implications for clinical management, and some can be targeted by compounds that are already clinically available. Tests are being developed that can measure many of these alterations non-invasively in peripheral blood or urine, raising confidence that they could be used as biomarkers for surveillance and monitoring the effects of local and systemic therapies. Although the bulk of the mechanistic work lies ahead, the genomics results have created a hypothesis-generating description of bladder cancer heterogeneity that has set the stage for deeper mechanistic studies, and they have already provided us with extremely attractive candidate biomarkers to guide clinical practice. Here, we will summarize the recent progress in basic bladder cancer research and highlight near-term opportunities for the future.
Undead food-webs: Integrating microbes into the food-chain

Abstract Detritivory represents the dominant trophic mode on Earth, and within this vast consumer group, microbes tend to predominate. Virtually all detritus is replete with microbes, many of which consume the detrital substrate, rendering it a complex of living and non-living components. A detrital mass, therefore, can be considered an ‘undead’ food-web in which the resident microbes busily displace non-living biomass with their own, while carnivorous microbes prey upon other organisms. In this food-chain, bacteria and fungi have been shown to register just as animals do, demonstrating that microbes are analogous to animals within trophic hierarchies. Given that microbial consumers are often suffused throughout detrital substrates, the detritus becomes a complex of multiple trophic groups. It has long been suggested that microbial consumers within soil systems represent distinct trophic groups, and in recent studies, these hypotheses have been tested empirically. The detrital complex, then, can be considered a dynamic microcosm of the broader food-web, and the trophic identities within the complex (as well as the metazoans that consume the complex), can be measured and interpreted. This multi-trophic aspect of ‘undead’ detritus tends to elevate the trophic positions of animals (i.e., trophic inflation), which derives from the assimilation of heterotrophic (microbial) and autotrophic proteins. Importantly, inclusion of microbes in trophic hierarchies provides a more comprehensive framework within which to interpret organismal-, population-, and community-scale trophic identities. However, in recalibrating our trophic ‘lens’ to include microbial consumers, there remain some long-standing concepts, questions, and definitions that will need to be revisited.
Perceived Barriers to Meditation Among College Students: The Role of Personality Traits

Background: Meditation is likely to be a useful intervention for anxiety and depression, and is increasingly common as a clinical intervention and informal practice among university students. However, meditation dropout rates are high, and it is likely that perceived barriers to meditation play a role. While neuroticism is known to predict dropout, there has been no study relating personality traits to these barriers. Aim: To better understand the barriers to meditation practice that university students experience. Methods: We used online survey data to analyze the relationship between personality traits, whether students practice meditation, time spent on academic and other work, and university students’ perception of barriers to meditation. Results: We found a nonlinear relationship between neuroticism and perceived barriers; the number of perceived barriers increased with increased neuroticism but eventually flattened out. Participants who meditate perceive more barriers than those who do not. We found no relationship between time spent in other activities and perception of barriers. Conclusions: Those students who would benefit most from meditation may have the most trouble continuing. Clinicians applying meditation as an intervention in a university setting should be ready to work with students on barriers to practice.
Identification of a 50,000 Mr protein from rabbit brush border membranes that binds Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin

A protein that binds Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin was extracted with NP-40 from rabbit intestinal brush border membranes. This protein was partially purified by affinity chromatography on enterotoxin-coupled CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B. The molecular weight of this protein was approximately 50,000 as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Affinity-purified samples containing this protein specifically inhibited biological activity of the enterotoxin on Vero (African green monkey kidney) cells. These studies suggest that this protein may be involved in the binding of the enterotoxin to rabbit intestinal epithelial cells.
The Effect of Presidential Election Outcomes on Alcohol Drinking

The growing political polarization and the increasing use of social media have been linked to straining social ties worldwide. The 2016 presidential elections in the United States reflected this trend with reports of fear and anxiety among voters. We examine how election results can be linked to episodes of anxiety through the use of alcohol as self-medication. We analyze a daily dataset of household purchases of alcohol in the weeks following presidential elections. We find that, within 30 days from Election Day, a 10 percentage point increase in support for the losing candidate increases alcohol expenditure by 1.1%. The effect is driven by counties with a higher share of supporters of the losing candidate and is robust to controlling more flexibly for omitted variables related to alcohol consumption. The increase in alcohol consumption is present in the 2016 elections and absent in the previous three presidential elections.
Little Arabia: A California Ethnoanchor:

Tucked into strip malls along Brookhurst Street are the scattered agglomeration of restaurants, markets, bakeries, butcher shops, hookah lounges, educational centers, hair salons, and clothing stor...
Bioactive Siloxane-Containing Shape-Memory Polymer (SMP) Scaffolds with Tunable Degradation Rates.

A material-guided, regenerative approach to heal cranial defects requires a scaffold that cannot only achieve conformal fit into irregular geometries but also has bioactivity and suitable resorption rates. We have previously reported "self-fitting" shape-memory polymer (SMP) scaffolds based on poly(e-caprolactone) diacrylate (PCL-DA) that shape recover to fill irregular defect geometries. However, PCL-DA scaffolds lack innate bioactivity and degrade very slowly. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) has been shown to impart innate bioactivity and modify degradation rates when combined with organic cross-linked networks. Thus, this work reports the introduction of PDMS segments to form PCL/PDMS SMP scaffolds. These were prepared as co-matrices with three types of macromers to systematically alter PDMS content and cross-link density. Specifically, PCL90-DA was combined with linear-PDMS66-dimethacrylate (DMA) or 4-armed star-PDMS66-tetramethacrylate (TMA) macromers at 90:10, 75:25, and 60:40 wt % ratios. Additionally, a triblock macromer (AcO-PCL45-b-PDMS66-b-PCL45-OAc), having a 65:35 wt % ratio PCL/PDMS, was used. Scaffolds exhibited pore interconnectivity and uniform pore sizes and further maintained excellent shape-memory behavior. Degradation rates increased with PDMS content and reduced cross-link density, with phase separation contributing to this effect. Irrespective of PDMS content, all PCL/PDMS scaffolds exhibited the formation of carbonated hydroxyapatite (HAp) following exposure to simulated body fluid (SBF). While inclusion of PDMS expectedly reduced scaffold modulus and strength, mineralization increased these properties and, in some cases, to values exceeding or similar to the PCL-DA, which did not mineralize.
The Impact of Incorporating Evidence-Based Guidelines for Lumbar Fusion Surgery in Neurosurgical Resident Education.

Background Instrumented fusion procedures are essential in the treatment of degenerative lumbar spine disease to alleviate pain and improve neurological function, but they are being performed with increasing incidence and variability. We implemented a training module for neurosurgery residents that is based on evidence-based criteria for lumbar fusion surgery and measured its effectiveness in residents' decision making regarding whether patients should or should not undergo instrumented fusion. Methods The study design was a pretest versus posttest experiment conducted from September 2019 until July 2020 to measure improvement after formalized instruction on evidence-based guidelines. Neurosurgery residents of all training levels at our institution participated. A test was administered at the beginning of each academic year. The highest possible score was 18 points in each pretest and posttest. Results There was a general trend of test score improvement across all levels of training with a greater degree of change for participants with lower compared with higher pretest scores, indicating a possible ceiling effect. Paired t test demonstrated an overall mean score increase of 2 points (P Conclusions Incorporating a targeted evidence-based learning module for lumbar spine fusion surgery can improve neurosurgery residents' clinical decision making toward a more uniform practice supported by published data.
Zahnärztliche Gebote und Verbote

Die Infektionen der Zahne und ihrer Umgebung haben fur den Arzt nur dann Interesse, wenn sie im Beginn von konstitutionellen Symptomen auftreten. Wir haben die histologischen Folgen von Infektionen beschrieben, die in Form von Degenerationen oder Entzundungen im Zahn auftreten und ihn ganz oder teilweise zerstoren. Danach ist wichtig zu wissen, was der Zahnchirurg zu der schlieslichen Nekrose beitragt. Bohrungen unter dem Zahn vermehren nur das, was schon tot ist, ebenso naturlich alle Operationen der Pulpa, gleichgultig, ob man den Wurzelkanal fullt oder nicht. Der Chirurg kann den Wunsch gehabt haben, den infektiosen Prozes zum Stehen zu bringen. Aber wie oft hat er Erfolg? Die Antwort ist: nie! Aber das glaubt der Zahnarzt nicht; denn er glaubt, das auch einfach gefullte oder pulpalose, abgetotete, desinfizierte und danach gefullte Zahne etwas hygienisch Ertragliches sind. Wie verbreitet ist die Ansicht, das solche Gebilde „ohne Anzeichen eines Wurzelabszesses“nicht infiziert sein konnen! Wie es in Wirklichkeit aussieht, wollen wir jetzt besprechen. Dann folgen einige Ausfuhrungen daruber, was man zur Wiederherstellung schlechter Zahne tun kann. Schlieslich folgt eine Ubersicht uber das, was man bei Infektion und ihren pathologischen Folgen „prophylaktisch“gegen „Pyorrhoe“tut.
Use of erythromycin in pertussis outbreaks.

To the Editor.— With two outbreaks of pertussis recently observed and soon to be reported in Maryland (41 cases) and Hawaii (24 cases), it is appropriate that all means to curb spread of infection from individuals involved in these outbreaks be properly utilized. In this regard, I would like to take issue with a recommendation in the current Red Book.1 Certainly, erythromycin is presently the drug of choice for pertussis but the recommended duration of treatment of seven to ten days is inadequate.
An Outline of the Geology of Labrador

Labrador forms the eastern portion of the Precambrian Canadian Shield. It is divisible into four geologic provinces, each characterized by different orogenic history. Superior Province, in Western Labrador, and Nain Province, along the eastern and northern coast, represent parts of Archean orogenic belts. Both consist primarily of high grade metamorphic rocks, which in Nain Province are overlain locally by less deformed Proterozoic sedimentary and volcanic assemblages. Churchill Province trends northward across central Labrador, between the two older orogens. It is composed of a western belt of relatively little deformed sedimentary and volcanic rocks, and an eastern zone of high grade metamorphic rocks, both of which were last deformed in the Early Proterozoic Hudsonian orogeny. Grenville Province trends east-northeast across southern Labrador. It is composed largely of quartzo-feldspathic gneisses, last deformed in the Grenvillian orogeny of the Middle Proterozoic. The metamorphic rocks of Grenville, Nain and Churchill Provinces are intruded by large anorthosite-adamellite plutons, emplaced during the Middle Proterozoic. Exploration in Labrador has been concentrated in two areas: the Labrador Trough, in the western part of Churchill Province, and the "Central Mineral Belt" of Labrador, which extends eastward across the southern parts of Churchill and Nain Provinces. Mining in the Labrador portion of the Trough accounts for about half of Canada's iron ore production. Uranium, copper, beryllium and molybdenum occurrences are being investigated in the central mineral belt.
Network functional compression

In this thesis, we consider different aspects of the functional compression problem. In functional compression, the computation of a function (or, some functions) of sources is desired at the receiver(s). The rate region of this problem has been considered in the literature under certain restrictive assumptions. In Chapter 2 of this Thesis, we consider this problem for an arbitrary tree network and asymptotically lossless computations. In particular, for one-stage tree networks, we compute a rate-region and for an arbitrary tree network, we derive a rate lower bound based on the graph entropy. We introduce a new condition on colorings of source random variables' characteristic graphs called the coloring connectivity condition (C.C.C.). We show that unlike the condition mentioned in Doshi et al., this condition is necessary and sufficient for any achievable coding scheme based on colorings. We also show that, unlike entropy, graph entropy does not satisfy the chain rule. For one stage trees with correlated sources, and general trees with independent sources, we propose a modularized coding scheme based on graph colorings to perform arbitrarily closely to the derived rate lower bound. We show that in a general tree network case with independent sources, to achieve the rate lower bound, intermediate nodes should perform some computations. However, for a family of functions and random variables called chain rule proper sets, it is sufficient to have intermediate nodes act like relays to perform arbitrarily closely to the rate lower bound. In Chapter 3 of this Thesis, we consider a multi-functional version of this problem with side information, where the receiver wants to compute several functions with different side information random variables and zero distortion. Our results are applicable to the case with several receivers computing different desired functions. We define a new concept named multi-functional graph entropy which is an extension of graph entropy defined by K6rner. We show that the minimum achievable rate for this problem is equal to conditional multi-functional graph entropy of the source random variable given the side information. We also propose a coding scheme based on graph colorings to achieve this rate. In these proposed coding schemes, one needs to compute the minimum entropy coloring (a coloring random variable which minimizes the entropy) of a characteristic graph. In general, finding this coloring is an NP-hard problem. However, in Chapter 4, we show that depending on the characteristic graph's structure, there are some interesting cases where finding the minimum entropy coloring is not NP-hard, but tractable and practical. In one of these cases, we show that, by having a non-zero joint probability condition on random variables' distributions, for any desired function, finding the minimum entropy coloring can be solved in polynomial time. In another case, we show that if the desired function is a quantization function, this problem is also tractable. We also consider this problem in a general…
Composing mappings among data sources

Semantic mappings between data sources play a key role in several data sharing architectures. Mappings provide the relationships between data stored in different sources, and therefore enable answering queries that require data from other nodes in a data sharing network. Composing mappings is one of the core problems that lies at the heart of several optimization methods in data sharing networks, such as caching frequently traversed paths and redundancy analysis. This paper investigates the theoretical underpinnings of mapping composition. We study the problem for a rich mapping language, GLAV, that combines the advantages of the known mapping formalisms globalas-view and local-as-view. We first show that even when composing two simple GLAV mappings, the full composition may be an infinite set of GLAV formulas. Second, we show that if we restrict the set of queries to be in CQk (a common restriction in practice), then we can always encode the infinite set of GLAV formulas using a finite representation. Furthermore, we describe an algorithm that given a query and a finite encoding of an infinite set of GLAV formulas, finds all the certain answers to the query. Consequently, we show that for a commonly occuring class of queries it is possible to pre-compose mappings, thereby potentially offering significant savings in query processing.
Computing congruence lattices of finite lattices

An inequality between the number of coverings in the ordered set J(Con L) of join irreducible congruences on a lattice L and the size of L is given. Using this inequality it is shown that this ordered set can be computed in time O(n2 log2 n), where n = ILl. This paper is motivated by the problem of efficiently calculating and representing the congruence lattice Con L of a finite lattice L. Of course Con L can be exponential in the size of L; for example, when L is a chain of length n, Con L has 2n elements. However, since Con L is a distributive lattice, it can be recovered easily from the ordered set of its join irreducible elements J(Con L). Indeed any finite distributive lattice D is isomorphic to the lattice of order ideals of J(D) and this lattice is in turn isomorphic to the lattice of all antichains of J(D), where the antichains are ordered by A ? B, i.e., for each a E A there is a b E B with a < b. If P is an ordered set of size n which has N order ideals, then there are straightforward algorithms to find the order ideals of P which run in time 0(nN); see, for example, [5]. In [10] Medina and Nourine give an algorithm which runs in time 0(dN), where d is the maximum number of covers of any element of P. Thus we will concentrate on the problem of efficiently finding J(Con L).
Optimal approximations of complete sets

Orponen, Russo, and Sch6ning [0RS85] investigated the notion of polynomially levelable sets and showed that many "natural" intractable sets are polynomially levelable. For example, they show that i f a set is not in P and is "paddable" or "self-reducible" then i t is also polynomially levelable. Their results are suff ic ient ly powerful to show that i f P ~: PSPACE then the "natural" <P-complete sets for PSPACE are P-levelable. tn this paper i t is shown that all <log-COmplete sets for PSPACE are polynomialty levelable, provided P ~: PSPACE. Uti l izing the classif ication result of Russo and Orponen [RO], we can exactly identify the P-subset structure of all <tog-COmplete sets for PSPACE. A set of strings A to be polynomially levelable, or P-levelable for short, if for any algorithm M o recognizing A and polynomial Po, there exists another algorithm M for A and polynomial p, such that M runs in time p(Ixl) on inf ini tely many strings x c A for which the running time of M o exceeds Po(lxl) (Use of the term levelable was suggested by Ko, who investigated a more general notion of levelabil i ty [Ko85]) P-levelabi~ity may be viewed of as weak polynomial speedup property, but i t is more naturally viewed in the context of approximations. Consider the following simple notion of approximation: a polynomial time approximation algorithm for a set A is a polynomial time algorithm M that for each input x, outputs either "1" (accept), "0" (reject) or "?" (don't know), so that M(x) = 1
Pharmacy-randomized intervention delivering HIV prevention services during the syringe sale to people who inject drugs in New York City.

Abstract Background Pharmacy syringe access may be an opportunity to provide HIV prevention resources to persons who inject drugs (PWID). We examined the impact of a pharmacy-randomized intervention to reduce injection risk among PWID in New York City. Methods Pharmacies ( n = 88) were randomized into intervention, primary control, and secondary control arms. Intervention pharmacies received in-depth harm reduction training, recruited syringe customers who inject drugs into the study, and provided additional services (i.e., HIV prevention/medical/social service referrals, syringe disposal containers, and harm reduction print materials). Primary control pharmacies recruited syringe customers who inject drugs and did not offer additional services, and secondary control pharmacies did not recruit syringe customers (and are not included in this analysis) but participated in a pharmacy staff survey to evaluate intervention impact on pharmacy staff. Recruited syringe customers underwent a baseline and 3-month follow-up ACASI. The intervention effect on injection risk/protective behavior of PWID was examined. Results A total of 482 PWID completed baseline and follow-up surveys. PWID were mostly Hispanic/Latino, male, and mean age of 43.6 years. After adjustment, PWID in the intervention arm were more likely to report always using a sterile syringe vs. not (PR = 1.24; 95% CI: 1.04–1.48) at 3-month follow-up. Conclusions These findings present evidence that expanded pharmacy services for PWID can encourage sterile syringe use which may decrease injection risk in high HIV burdened Black and Latino communities.
Mechanisms Regulating Adipocyte Lipolysis

Mechanisms regulating adipocyte lipolysis are reviewed in three stages. The first stage examines plasma membrane hormone receptors and G-proteins. The primary regulators of adipose tissue lipolysis, the catecholamines, bind to the α2, β1, β2, and β3 adrenergic receptors. The α2 receptor couples with Gi-proteins to inhibit cyclic AMP formation and lipolysis, while the β receptors couple with Gs-proteins to stimulate cyclic AMP formation and lipolysis. The β1 receptor may mediate low level catecholamine stimulation, while the β3 receptor, which is activated by higher levels of catecholamines, may deliver a more sustained signal. The second stage examines the regulation of cyclic AMP, the intracellular messenger that activates protein kinase A. Adenylyl cyclase synthesizes cyclic AMP from ATP and is regulated by the G-proteins. Phosphodiesterase 3B hydrolyzes cyclic AMP to AMP and is activated and phosphorylated by both insulin and the catecholamines norepinephrine and epinephrine. The third stage focuses on the rate-limiting enzyme of lipolysis, hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL). This 82 to 88 kDa protein is regulated by reversible phosphorylation. Protein kinase A activates and phosphorylates the enzyme at 2 sites, and 3 phosphatases have been implicated in HSL dephosphorylation. The translocation of HSL from the cytosol to the lipid droplet in response to lipolytic stimulation may be facilitated by a family of lipid-associated droplets called perilipins that are heavily phosphorylated by protein kinase A and dephosphorylated by insulin. As the mechanisms regulating adipocyte lipolysis continue to be uncovered, we look forward to the challenges of integrating these findings with research at the in situ and in vivo levels.
Alias cancellation and distortion elimination in multi-dimensional QMF banks

A necessary and sufficient condition is derived for alias cancellation in two-dimensional (2-D) quadrature-mirror-filter (QMF) banks. It requires the product of the polyphase matrices associated with the analysis and synthesis banks to be 2-D pseudocirculant. The conditions for eliminating phase or magnitude distortion are derived. A method for obtaining perfect reconstruction is suggested. The pseudocirculant property also arises in 2-D block filtering. The results can be generalized to higher dimensions. >
Guinea Pig Herpes-Like Virus Infections II. Antibody Response and Virus Persistence in Mice and Rabbits

Mice inoculated with guinea pig herpes-like virus produced minimal, if any, antibody response, and no virus was isolated from the inoculated animals 64 days after administration. The antibody response in rabbits inoculated with the same virus was prompt and reached a high level within 14 to 29 days regardless of the site of inoculation. Long-term persistence of viremia was observed only in intravenously inoculated rabbits; a brief period of viremia was observed in intraperitoneally inoculated rabbits, but no viremia was obtained in rabbits inoculated by the subcutaneous route. Maternal antibody was transferred readily to offspring; however, transference of infectious virus from mother to offspring was demonstrable in only one of 75 fetuses tested.
Gynaecological cancer in pregnancy

Cancer in pregnancy, fortunately, is uncommon. This is even more so for gynaecological cancer. Fertility preservation in gynaecological cancer is already a difficult issue, as the common gynaecological cancers affect organs intimately associated with conception and delivery. The presence of a viable pregnancy with gynaecological cancer presents tremendous challenges to the clinician, especially if the woman wants to conserve both her pregnancy and fertility. In this chapter, we address issues involved in such circumstances and suggest management decisions.
Tables for Normal Tolerance Limits, Sampling Plans, and Screening

(1981). Tables for Normal Tolerance Limits, Sampling Plans and Screening. Technometrics: Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 114-115.
Instrumental analysis for mercury in thumbnails of human subjects

Abstract Mercury levels in thumbnails were determined by instrumental analysis using thermal neutron activation technique. Samples were obtained from 14 subjects employed in the hospital dental service (a), 19 in the clinical laboratories (b), and from 16 hospitalized patients who were not employed in laboratory occupations (c). The average mercury levels in ppm for the respective groups were: (a) dentists, 2.7; technicians, 3.9; assistants, 6.6; (b) male technicians, 0.4; female technicians, 1.9; (c) patients, 0.3.
Measurements of the secondary velocity vector in a 180-degree U-tube using a 2D LDA system with a refractive-index matching technique

An experimental study using Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) has been carried out to investigate the developing laminar flow inside a 180 degree(s) U-tube. A previous experimental loop was modified for the purpose of measuring both the axial and secondary velocities. The uncertainties of velocity, the Reynolds number, and the Dean number were found to be under 1.52%, 2.37% and 2.60%, respectively. .
A variational characterization of a hyperelastic rod with hard self-contact

Abstract We consider an elastic rod, modeled as a curve in space with an impenetrable surrounding tube of radius ρ , subject to a general class of boundary conditions. The impossibility of self-intersection is then imposed as a family of scalar constraints on the physical separation of nonlocal pairs of points on the rod. Thus, the usual variational formulation of energy minimization is considered in a context of nonconvex, nonsmooth optimization. We show the existence of minimizers within suitably defined homotopy classes associated with both the centerline and the frame along the rod. The principle results are then concerned with derivation of first-order necessary conditions for optimality and some consequences of these for the contact forces and for regularity.