cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Kv1.1/1.2 channels are downstream effectors of nitric oxide on synaptic GABA release to preautonomic neurons in the paraventricular nucleus.

Abstract The paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus is important for the neural regulation of cardiovascular function. Nitric oxide (NO) increases synaptic GABA release to presympathetic PVN neurons through the cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP)/protein kinase G signaling pathway. However, the downstream signaling mechanisms underlying the effect of NO on synaptic GABA release remain unclear. In this study, whole-cell voltage-clamp recordings were performed on retrograde-labeled spinally projecting PVN neurons in rat brain slices. Bath application of the NO precursor l -arginine or the NO donor S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP) significantly increased the frequency of GABAergic miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs) in labeled PVN neurons. A specific antagonist of cyclic ADP ribose, 8-bromo-cyclic ADP ribose (8-Br-cADPR), had no significant effect on l -arginine-induced potentiation of mIPSCs. Surprisingly, blocking of voltage-gated potassium channels (Kv) with 4-aminopyridine or α-dendrotoxin eliminated the effect of l -arginine on mIPSCs in all labeled PVN neurons tested. The membrane permeable cGMP analog mimicked the effect of l -arginine on mIPSCs, and this effect was blocked by α-dendrotoxin. Furthermore, the specific Kv channel blocker for Kv1.1 (dendrotoxin-K) or Kv1.2 (tityustoxin-Kα) abolished the effect of l -arginine on mIPSCs in all neurons tested. SNAP failed to inhibit the firing activity of labeled PVN neurons in the presence of dendrotoxin-K, Kα. Additionally, the immunoreactivity of Kv1.1 and Kv1.2 subunits was colocalized extensively with synaptophysin in the PVN. These findings suggest that NO increases GABAergic input to PVN presympathetic neurons through a downstream mechanism involving the Kv1.1 and Kv1.2 channels at the nerve terminals.
Digital wavelet‐encoded MRI: A new wavelet‐encoding methodology

A new digital wavelet-encoding method for MRI is described. The method differs from previously described wavelet-encoding approaches, because the point-spread function is made independent of the wavelet basis used. This has a significant practical advantage, because wavelet bases can now be considered that would otherwise be excluded due to the difficulty of precisely exciting wavelet-shaped RF profiles. The method has been implemented on a clinical MRI system, and human images are presented.
The mitochondrial contribution to stem cell biology

The distribution and functions of mitochondria in stem cells have not been examined, yet the contributions of these organelles to stem cell viability and differentiation must be vitally important in view of their critical roles in all other cell types. A key role for mitochondria in stem cells is indicated by reports that they translocate in the oocyte during fertilisation to cluster around the pronuclei and can remain in a perinuclear pattern during embryo development. This clustering appears to be essential for normal embryonic development. Because embryonic stem cells are derived from fertilised oocytes, and eventually can differentiate into 'adult' stem cells, it was hypothesised that mitochondrial perinuclear clustering persists through preimplantation embryo development into the stem cells, and that this localisation is indicative of stem cell pluripotency. Further, it was predicted that mitochondrial activity, as measured by respiration and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) content, would correlate with the degree of perinuclear clustering. It was also predicted that these morphological and metabolic measurements could serve as indicators of 'stemness.' This article reviews the distribution and metabolism of mitochondria in a model stem cell line and how this information is related to passage number, differentiation and/or senescence. In addition, it describes mitochondrial DNA deletions in oocytes and embryos that could adversely affect stem cell performance.
Efflorescence of ammonium sulfate and coated ammonium sulfate particles: evidence for surface nucleation.

Using optical microscopy, we investigated the efflorescence of ammonium sulfate (AS) in aqueous AS and in aqueous 1:1 and 8:1 (by dry weight) poly(ethylene glycol)-400 (PEG-400)/AS particles deposited on a hydrophobically coated slide. Aqueous PEG-400/AS particles exposed to decreasing relative humidity (RH) exhibit a liquid−liquid phase separation below 90% RH with the PEG-400-rich phase surrounding the aqueous AS inner phase. Pure aqueous AS particles effloresced in the RH range from 36.3% to 43.7%, in agreement with literature data (31−48% RH). In contrast, aqueous 1:1 (by dry weight) PEG-400/AS particles with diameters of the AS phase from 7.2 to 19.2 μm effloresced between 26.8% and 33.9% RH and aqueous 8:1 (by dry weight) PEG-400/AS particles with diameters of the AS phase from 1.8 to 7.3 μm between 24.3% and 29.3% RH. Such low efflorescence relative humidity (ERH) values have never been reached before for AS particles of this size range. We show that these unprecedented low ERHs of AS in PEG-400/AS particles could not possibly be explained by the presence of low amounts of PEG-400 in the aqueous AS phase, by a potential inhibition of water evaporation via anomalously slow diffusion through the PEG coating, or by different time scales between various experimental techniques. High-speed photography of the efflorescence process allowed the development of the AS crystallization fronts within the particles to be monitored with millisecond time resolution. The nucleation sites were inferred from the initial crystal growth sites. Analysis of the probability distribution of initial sites of 31 and 19 efflorescence events for pure AS and 1:1 (by dry weight) PEG-400/AS particles, respectively, showed that the particle volume can be excluded as the preferred nucleation site in the case of pure AS particles. For aqueous 1:1 (by dry weight) PEG-400/AS particles preferential AS nucleation in the PEG phase and at the PEG/AS/substrate contact line can be excluded. On the basis of this probability analysis of efflorescence events together with the AS ERH values of pure aqueous AS and aqueous PEG-400/AS particles aforementioned, we suggest that in pure aqueous AS particles nucleation starts at the surface of the particles and attribute the lower ERH values observed for aqueous PEG-400/AS particles to the suppression of the surface-induced nucleation process. Our results suggest that surface-induced nucleation is likely to also occur during the efflorescence of atmospheric AS aerosol particles, possibly constituting the dominating nucleation pathway.
Assay of ornithine aminotransferase by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Abstract Ornithine aminotransferase has been measured previously with a spectrophotometric assay and with a radioactive assay. We report here an isocratic reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography assay which measures Δ1-pyrroline-5-car☐ylic acid, the reaction product. This assay offers the advantages of sensitivity and convenience.
Interdependent microcosms for the assessment of pollutants in the marine environment

Laboratory microcosms are described for assessing the fate and effects of pollutants in marine and estuarine environments. These systems focus on specific ecosystem processes and interactions and are interdependant in that the results of all are necessary for a complete description of a pollutant's environmental impact. The following individual systems are described using methyl parathion as the pollutant: Environmental Fate Screening System; Eco‐Core System; Continuous Flow Systems; Aquatic Gradient Avoidance Response System; Benthic Bioassay System.
Relationship between Patient Symptoms and Endosonographic Findings in Chronic Pancreatitis

Background/Aims: The endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis (CP) relies on the presence of up to nine distinct pancreatic parenchymal and ductal abnormalities
Disease resistance conferred by the expression of a gene encoding a synthetic peptide in transgenic cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) plants

Fertile, transgenic cotton plants expressing the synthetic antimicrobial peptide, D4E1, were produced through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. PCR products and Southern blots confirmed integration of the D4E1 gene, while RT-PCR of cotton RNA confirmed the presence of D4E1 transcripts. In vitro assays with crude leaf protein extracts from T0 and T1 plants confirmed that D4E1 was expressed at sufficient levels to inhibit the growth of Fusarium verticillioides and Verticillium dahliae compared to extracts from negative control plants transformed with pBI-d35S(Omega)-uidA-nos (CGUS). Although in vitro assays did not show control of pre-germinated spores of Aspergillus flavus, bioassays with cotton seeds in situ or in planta, inoculated with a GFP-expressing A. flavus, indicated that the transgenic cotton seeds inhibited extensive colonization and spread by the fungus in cotyledons and seed coats. In planta assays with the fungal pathogen, Thielaviopsis basicola, which causes black root rot in cotton, showed typical symptoms such as black discoloration and constriction on hypocotyls, reduced branching of roots in CGUS negative control T1 seedlings, while transgenic T1 seedlings showed a significant reduction in disease symptoms and increased seedling fresh weight, demonstrating tolerance to the fungal pathogen. Significant advantages of synthetic peptides in developing transgenic crop plants that are resistant to diseases and mycotoxin-causing fungal pathogens are highlighted in this report.
Inaccuracy of Stated Versus Measured Parental Heights

Routine measurement of children's height is essential in monitoring for deviations in normal growth velocity. Target adult height of children is estimated by determining an adjusted midparental height. Such determinations are dependent on the accurate acquisition of parental height. Incorrect assessment of parental height will result in inaccurate expectations for the child's height. To observe the difference between stated and measured parental heights within a United States subspecialty setting, prospective acquisition of parental stated and measured heights during the summer months of 2000 and 2001 was examined. Two hundred and thirty-eight parents, 185 mothers and 53 fathers, were measured. The mean values of the stated heights for mothers and fathers were 163.7 cm +/- 6.3 cm and 177.1 cm +/- 8.6 cm, respectively. The corresponding measured heights were 163.0 cm +/- 5.9 cm and 175.2 cm +/- 6.6 cm, respectively. The mean height difference for mothers was 0.69 cm (p<0.001) while the mean height difference for fathers was 1.90 cm (p<0.001). Parents significantly overestimate their height in a clinical setting. Fathers overestimate to a greater degree than mothers. These findings emphasize the need to obtain height measurement of parents along with that of their children in assessing for linear growth delay.
Major Pulmonary Embolism

The scope and spectrum of pulmonary embolism (PE) that are likely to challenge the intensivist are dominantly confined to 2 scenarios; first, a patient presenting with undifferentiated shock or respiratory failure and, second, an established intensive care unit (ICU) or hospital patient who develops hemodynamically unstable PE after admission. In either scenario, the diagnostic approach and therapeutic options are challenging. Differentiating PE from other life-threatening cardiopulmonary disorders can be exceedingly difficult. This article will review a structured pathophysiologic approach to the diagnostic, resuscitative and management strategies related to PE in the ICU.
World Health Organization Program for the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines

The WHO program on essential medicines advises governments about how to determine which medicines are needed to meet the health care needs of the majority of the population and how to make them available to everyone. A Model List of these medicines proposed in 1977 included 186 drugs; the current list exceeds 300. The principle of making essential medicines available to everyone is accepted by 156 countries. Implementation is variable. Problems currently being considered for solution include whether drugs effective for rare diseases are ever essential and getting pediatric dosage forms of essential drugs manufactured and registered for sale. With all societies dealing with the rising cost of medical care and having to make choices, the concept of essential medicines is a relevant to all now as it was to countries with limited resources when the WHO program started in 1975.
Conference Keynotes: Asking music students to reflect on their creative work: encouraging the revision process

(2003). Conference Keynotes: Asking music students to reflect on their creative work: encouraging the revision process. Music Education Research: Vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 243-249.
A redundant variable scaling CORDIC rotation engine implementation

The CMOS implementation of a high-performance rotation processor using redundant CORDIC is described in detail. This design replaces carry-propagate addition with carry-save addition, which is a fast form of parallel addition. Characteristics of 1.2- mu m CMOS implementations are given. >
A Review of “Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management”: 2nd ed. Peggy Johnson. Chicago: American Library Association, 2009, xiii, 407 pp.; ill.; 23 cm. ISBN13: 978-0-8389-0972-0 (alk. paper), ISBN: 0838909728 (alk. paper)

The 2nd edition of Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management was written for students and experienced librarians. The author, Peggy Johnson, is the editor of two journals pertaining to ...
Improved Liquid Water Equivalent Nowcasting Using the Weather Support to Deicing Decision Making System

AbstractShort-term automated forecasts (nowcasts) of liquid water equivalent (LWE) values can be used to assist aviation deicing decision-making activities. Such decisions can mitigate hazards that cause losses of life and property and increase costs because of travel delays. The Weather Support to Deicing Decision Making (WSDDM) system provides LWE nowcasts and is currently deployed at several major airports in the United States. WSDDM produces these nowcasts in two steps. First, an equation relating radar reflectivity to LWE rate is calibrated by correlating radar and surface observations. Then, nowcasts of reflectivity are converted to nowcasts of LWE using this calibrated equation. This paper shows that the incorporation of the Dynamic and Adaptive Radar Tracking of Storms (DARTS) radar–based nowcasting method into WSDDM can provide more accurate and efficient nowcasts of LWE relative to the correlation-based nowcasting method currently used. Results of an evaluation considering approximately 92 h of ...
The New Digital Dating Behavior - Sexting: Teens’ Explicit Love Letters: Criminal Justice or Civil Liability

Twenty-first century technology has transformed human relationships. By virtue of e-mail, text, twitter, Skype, IM or any other form of electronic communication, people meet and socially interact in cyberspace. In this fast-paced, technologically-driven era, most relationships, whether business or personal, depend upon some form of electronic or virtual interaction. As technology advances expanding the ways people communicate, even language must keep apace, resulting in the development of new words. Forms of communication turn into verbs, requiring those less technologically savvy to learn a new vocabulary and a new way of speaking. “Sexting” is one of those new, hybrid words, combining the mode of technology with the subject matter communicated to create a verb. It is only within the past few years that sexting has become a recognizable word to anyone beyond teenage years. Specifically, sexting is “the practice of sending or posting sexually suggestive text messages and images, including nude or semi-nude photographs via cellular telephones or over the Internet.”The legal response to sexting and its negative consequences have been problematic. Sexting is hard to put into a legally defined category. From explicit love letters to child pornography and everywhere in between, where sexting falls on the continuum of First Amendment protections is difficult to determine, but necessary to form an appropriate legal response. Thus far, the criminal justice system has responded to the problems of sexting with very mixed results. Child pornography laws are ill-suited to deal with the harms caused by most teen sexting, but dealing with the morality of such activity is not the role of government.This paper proposes a statutory civil cause of action holding parents vicariously liable for harms caused by their minors’ sexting when done with actual malice. This solution strikes a balance between permitting kids to be kids and placing responsibility on parents to compensate for the harms caused by their children’s digital abuse activity. Civil remedies are often the best form of deterrence; and the actual malice standard will avoid the feared “floodgate” problems of tort liability.
Proline-Dependent Regulation of Clostridium difficile Stickland Metabolism

ABSTRACT Clostridium difficile, a proteolytic Gram-positive anaerobe, has emerged as a significant nosocomial pathogen. Stickland fermentation reactions are thought to be important for growth of C. difficile and appear to influence toxin production. In Stickland reactions, pairs of amino acids donate and accept electrons, generating ATP and reducing power in the process. Reduction of the electron acceptors proline and glycine requires the d-proline reductase (PR) and the glycine reductase (GR) enzyme complexes, respectively. Addition of proline in the medium increases the level of PR protein but decreases the level of GR. We report the identification of PrdR, a protein that activates transcription of the PR-encoding genes in the presence of proline and negatively regulates the GR-encoding genes. The results suggest that PrdR is a central metabolism regulator that controls preferential utilization of proline and glycine to produce energy via the Stickland reactions.
Rapid transcriptome characterization and parsing of sequences in a non-model host-pathogen interaction; pea-Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

White mold, caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is one of the most important diseases of pea (Pisum sativum L.), however, little is known about the genetics and biochemistry of this interaction. Identification of genes underlying resistance in the host or pathogenicity and virulence factors in the pathogen will increase our knowledge of the pea-S. sclerotiorum interaction and facilitate the introgression of new resistance genes into commercial pea varieties. Although the S. sclerotiorum genome sequence is available, no pea genome is available, due in part to its large genome size (~3500 Mb) and extensive repeated motifs. Here we present an EST data set specific to the interaction between S. sclerotiorum and pea, and a method to distinguish pathogen and host sequences without a species-specific reference genome. 10,158 contigs were obtained by de novo assembly of 128,720 high-quality reads generated by 454 pyrosequencing of the pea-S. sclerotiorum interactome. A method based on the tBLASTx program was modified to distinguish pea and S. sclerotiorum ESTs. To test this strategy, a mixture of known ESTs (18,490 pea and 17,198 S. sclerotiorum ESTs) from public databases were pooled and parsed; the tBLASTx method successfully separated 90.1% of the artificial EST mix with 99.9% accuracy. The tBLASTx method successfully parsed 89.4% of the 454-derived EST contigs, as validated by PCR, into pea (6,299 contigs) and S. sclerotiorum (2,780 contigs) categories. Two thousand eight hundred and forty pea ESTs and 996 S. sclerotiorum ESTs were predicted to be expressed specifically during the pea-S. sclerotiorum interaction as determined by homology search against 81,449 pea ESTs (from flowers, leaves, cotyledons, epi- and hypocotyl, and etiolated and light treated etiolated seedlings) and 57,751 S. sclerotiorum ESTs (from mycelia at neutral pH, developing apothecia and developing sclerotia). Among those ESTs specifically expressed, 277 (9.8%) pea ESTs were predicted to be involved in plant defense and response to biotic or abiotic stress, and 93 (9.3%) S. sclerotiorum ESTs were predicted to be involved in pathogenicity/virulence. Additionally, 142 S. sclerotiorum ESTs were identified as secretory/signal peptides of which only 21 were previously reported. We present and characterize an EST resource specific to the pea-S. sclerotiorum interaction. Additionally, the tBLASTx method used to parse S. sclerotiorum and pea ESTs was demonstrated to be a reliable and accurate method to distinguish ESTs without a reference genome.
BLT1-mediated T cell trafficking is critical for rejection and obliterative bronchiolitis after lung transplantation

Leukotriene B4 is a lipid mediator that recently has been shown to have potent chemotactic activity for effector T lymphocytes mediated through its receptor, BLT1. Here, we developed a novel murine model of acute lung rejection to demonstrate that BLT1 controls effector CD8+ T cell trafficking into the lung and that disruption of BLT1 signaling in CD8+ T cells reduces lung inflammation and mortality in the model. In addition, we used BLT1-deficient mice and a BLT1 antagonist in two tracheal transplant models of lung transplantation to demonstrate the importance of BLT1 for the recruitment of T cells into tracheal allografts. We also show that BLT1-mediated CD8+ T cell recruitment plays an important role in the development of airway fibroproliferation and obliteration. Finally, in human studies of lung transplant recipients, we found that BLT1 is up-regulated on T lymphocytes isolated from the airways of patients with obliterative bronchiolitis. These data demonstrate that BLT1 contributes to the development of lung rejection and obliterative bronchiolitis by mediating effector T lymphocyte trafficking into the lung. This is the first report that describes a pathologic role for BLT1-mediated T lymphocyte recruitment in disease and identifies BLT1 as a potential therapeutic target after lung transplantation.
A class of embedded discontinuous Galerkin methods for computational fluid dynamics

We present a class of embedded discontinuous Galerkin (EDG) methods for numerically solving the Euler equations and the Navier-Stokes equations. The essential ingredients are a local Galerkin projection of the underlying governing equations at the element level onto spaces of polynomials of degree k to parametrize the numerical solution in terms of the approximate trace, a judicious choice of the numerical flux to provide stability and consistency, and a global jump condition that weakly enforces the single-valuedness of the numerical flux to arrive at a global formulation in terms of the numerical trace. The EDG methods are thus obtained from the hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin (HDG) method by requiring the approximate trace to belong to smaller approximation spaces than the one in the HDG method. In the EDG methods, the numerical trace is taken to be continuous on a suitable collection of faces, thus resulting in an even smaller number of globally coupled degrees of freedom than in the HDG method. On the other hand, the EDG methods are no longer locally conservative. In the framework of convection-diffusion problems, this lack of local conservativity is reflected in the fact that the EDG methods do not provide the optimal convergence of the approximate gradient or the superconvergence for the scalar variable for diffusion-dominated problems as the HDG method does. However, since the HDG method does not display these properties in the convection-dominated regime, the EDG method becomes a reasonable alternative since it produces smaller algebraic systems than the HDG method. In fact, the resulting stiffness matrix has a similar sparsity pattern as that of the statically condensed continuous Galerkin (CG) method. The main advantage of the EDG methods is that they are generally more stable and robust than the CG method for solving convection-dominated problems. Numerical results are presented to illustrate the performance of the EDG methods. They confirm that, even though the EDG methods are not locally conservative, they are a viable alternative to the HDG method in the convection-dominated regime.
Uplink medium access control for WLANs with multi-beam access point

We consider the CSMA/CA based uplink medium access control (MAC) protocol design for a wireless local area network (WLAN) with the use of multi-beam directional antennas at the access point. Our MAC protocol intends to fully utilize the spatial reuse by allowing as many parallel uplink data transmissions as possible. Since all nodes including the access point run in the contention-based MAC protocol, it is not easy to realize multiple collision-free parallel data transmissions while preserving the ad hoc nature of CSMA/CA based MAC. In addition to improving channel efficiency, we also consider the backward compatibility in our design, whereby a 802.11 limited node can transparently access a multi-beam access point. Our simulation results show that our scheme can improve throughput significantly
Age- and diapause-related acid and alkaline phosphatase activities in the intestine and malpighian tubules of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say).

Specific activities for soluble (s) and membrane (m)-bound acid (ACP) and alkaline phosphatases (ALP) were determined in the midgut, hindgut, and Malpighian tubules for developing, prediapausing, and diapausing adult Colorado potato beetles, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say). High ACP activities were found in the hindgut and Malpighian tubules while high ALP activities were found in the Malpighian tubules. Variation in both ACP and ALP activities in each tissue reflects fluctuation in protein synthesis and secretion involved with digestion, excretion, and other unknown functions. Phosphatase activities in the tissues examined show the dynamic nature of diapause in this insect. Diapausing beetles showed increases in phosphatase activity after hormone treatments. JHA treatments increased s-ACP and m-ACP activities in all tissues but 20-HE did not increase activity in any tissue. Allatotropin tended to mimic the effects of JHA treatment. The s-ALP activity was also increased in all tissues whereas m-ALP was increased in the midgut and hindgut by JHA treatment. Malpighian tubule m-ALP activity was only increased by 20-HE treatments. Allatotropin was not as effective in increasing ALP activities as it was with ACP activities. Arch. Insect Biochem. Physiol. 46:152–163, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
A detailed simulation model of an infusion treatment center

Oncology clinics face several complexities in their processes. When patients arrive at the infusion chairs, nurses and pharmacy technicians must be available to get the patients ready for the infusion and mix their drug treatments. This requires having the right information at the right moment. This research develops a detailed discrete event simulation model which considers the interactions between resources, information, and patient flow. The model was used to evaluate different scheduling policies and determine which of them could be incorporated in the clinic with the objective of increasing daily throughput without affect-ing patient wait time or total time in the system.
Measuring Client Engagement From the Client’s Perspective in Nonvoluntary Child Protective Services:

Objective: This study reports on the development and test of a multidimensional measure of client engagement in child welfare services. Method: Five dimensions of engagement were identified and were based on a literature review and data from interviews with child welfare workers and clients. A pool of items generated to reflect these five dimensions was reviewed by a panel of researchers, scholars, and practitioners. Pilot data from the resulting measure were collected from 287 respondents. Participants were primary caregivers who had an open case with child protective services at the point of data collection. Results: Internal consistency reliability and construct validity were examined, and tests of the fit of the data to the hypothesized measurement model were conducted and reported. Results supported the presence of four underlying factors and a single latent variable. Conclusion: The instrument demonstrated good potential for measuring aspects of client engagement.
Multimedia Information Systems

The sections in this article are 1 Requirements of Multimedia Information Systems 2 Notion of Time for Multimedia Data 3 Content-Based Retrieval of Multimedia Data 4 Multimedia Document Modeling and Retrieval 5 Conclusion
The Early History of Ionospheric Investigations in the United States

The early history of ionospheric investigations in the United States, from the first suggestion of its existence by Kennelly to the initial data procured with rockets, is outlined. A tabulation of the earlier groups and organizations in this field is followed by brief historical outlines of the work in certain technological and scientific areas. The report is concluded with an enumeration of several of the ionospherically related U.S. activities following the early 1950s.
Regulation of Beclin 1 in autophagy

Class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3KC3) plays a pleiotropic role in autophagy and protein sorting pathways. The human core complex of PI3KC3 consists of three major components including PI3KC3/hVps34, p150 and Beclin 1. How the specificity of PI3KC3 complex is derived towards autophagy is not clear. Utilizing a sequential affinity purification coupled with mass spectrometry approach, we have successfully purified a human Beclin 1 complex and cloned a novel protein we called Barkor (Beclin 1-associated autophagy-related key regulator). The function of Barkor in autophagy has been manifested in several assays, including stress-induced LC3 lipidation, autophagosome formation and Salmonella typhimurium amplification. Mechanistically, Barkor competes with UV radiation resistance associated gene product (UVRAG) for interaction with Beclin 1, and orients Beclin 1 to autophagosomes. Barkor shares considerable sequence homology with Atg14 in yeast, representing an evolutionary conserved autophagy specific regulatory step in early autophagosome formation.
Public housing and the American dream: Residents’ views on buying into “the projects”

Abstract This article examines residents’ attitudes toward homeownership in five large inner‐city public housing projects composed of multifamily apartment buildings. Based on 267 interviews with public housing residents in Boston, it contrasts their broad support for homeownership as a concept with their wholly mixed reaction to the idea of owning a public housing apartment. Interest in homeownership in public housing is shown to be independent of residents’ current employment status and closely tied to residents’ social investment in specific housing developments and to their perceptions about the quality of that development's management, maintenance, and security. The findings cast renewed doubt on policies that would make public housing sales a centerpiece of national policy, but they provide qualified support for more modest efforts to increase homeownership in public housing developments and in low‐income neighborhoods around them.
CO Oxidation on Supported Nano-Au Catalysts Synthesized from a [Au6(PPh3)6](BF4)2 Complex

Abstract Highly active and stable nano-Au catalysts have been synthesized by the interaction of an Au cluster–phosphine complex with a TiO2 support. These catalysts have been characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and tested for CO oxidation. The pretreatment conditions had a profound influence on the CO oxidation activity of the Au/TiO2 catalysts. Under optimum pretreatment conditions these catalysts showed high catalytic activity. This is noteworthy, considering that previous studies (Y. Yuan, A. P. Kozlova, K. Akasura, H. Wan, K. Tsai, and Y. Iwasawa, J. Catal. (1997) 170, 191) on similar systems (different pretreatment) showed that CO oxidation activity was one order of magnitude lower for the Au/TiO2 catalysts. The catalyst deactivation was very slow, and studies showed that the catalyst could be successfully regenerated to regain initial activity. Diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopy studies of CO on these supported catalysts are in excellent agreement with the infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy data obtained on model Au catalysts in our laboratory. The Au/TiO2 catalyst prepared by a temperature-programmed reduction–oxidation treatment showed high CO2 yield for the CO oxidation reaction in the presence of excess hydrogen.
FlatCam: Replacing Lenses with Masks and Computation

We present a thin form-factor lensless camera, FlatCam, that consists of a coded mask placed on top of a bare, conventional sensor array. FlatCam is an instance of a coded aperture imaging system in which each pixel records a linear combination of light from multiple scene elements. A computational algorithm is then used to demultiplex the recorded measurements and reconstruct an image of the scene. In contrast with vast majority of coded aperture systems, we place the coded mask extremely close to the image sensor that can enable a thin system. We use a separable mask to ensure that both calibration and image reconstruction are scalable in terms of memory requirements and computational complexity. We demonstrate the potential of our design using a prototype camera built using commercially available sensor and mask.
THE HIGH MOUNTED BRAKE LAMP--THE 4% SOLUTION

This paper reviews some of the underpinnings of the research that was done that led to adoption of the high mounted brake lamp. The expected reduction in rearend collisions of 50%, attributable to the lamp, has not been realized. Most recently, a reduction of 4% was reported. This large difference between the predicted effectiveness of the safety device with its actual effect is disturbing. The paper attempts to show the reasons for the low effectiveness, which include a lack of evidence for the high-mounting location, overriding a Society of Automotive Engineers standard on the intensity of high-mounted rear signal lamps and no valid theory of driver performance.
Role of Economics in Planning Flood Plain Land Use

Economic factors can be employed to formulate a plan combining nonstructural with structural measures for flood control. Planning decisions on whether development should be permitted in a flood plain can be integrated with decisions on how to arrange, design, use, and maintain those developments that are permitted. In order to illustrate the computational approach for establishing planning guidelines, a hypothetical simplified situation is examined in a procedure described step by step in a numerical example. References are made to literature and computer programs for dealing with data gathering and analysis in more complex, real world situations.
Determination of nutritional and functional principles of the jujube pulp fruit, ecotype Zfisef from northeastern of Algeria

The aim of the present work was to valorize the exotic fruit of jujube, Zfisef ecotype, growing in the western region of Algeria and highly appreciated by the population. The various analyzes of primary metabolites showed an interesting nutritional profile. The fruit pulp of jujube had a dry matter content of 81±0.21%. The amount of ash (6.1±0.16%) was high and demonstrated a wealth of minerals. Total sugars represented more than 23.20±1.85% while proteins and lipids represented only 2.88±0.32 SAB equivalent and 0.28±0.03% respectively. Vitamin C from the pulp of the fruit of the jujube tree was 194±4.36 mg/100 g of substrate and appeared significant compared to other varieties of other biotope and to fruit ripening stages. The fruit pulp of jujube (50g) gave an ethanol extract of 3.78±0.31%. The latter allowed us to determine secondary metabolites, in this case the total polyphenols (7.80±0.40 mg EAG/g) flavonoids (25.58±1.96 mg EQ/g) gallic tannins (0.15±0.025 μg EAG/100g) catechin tannins (3.48±0.28 μg ECT/mg) total anthocyanins (4.81±0.44 mg ECy3g/100g) and total carotenoids (5.02±0.19 mg E b-carotene/100g). These biologically active molecules conferred to the product good DPPH antioxidant activity (56.60±3.99% with PFJ extract concentration of 0.25±0.062 mg/ml). Concentration of product required for 50% inhibition was 0.22mg/ml. Iron reduction power of our jujube fruit extract exhibited a good antioxidant activity compared to ascorbic acid. Also the presence of many phenolic compounds determined by LC-MS/MS with var-ied identities and antioxidant characters generate interest in making this product a functional food.
Urban Environmental Policy Analysis, by Heather E. Campbell and Elizabeth A. Corley

In the past several decades, household demand for environmental quality and, by extension, the policies that promote it, have become among the most powerful forces acting on the landscapes and poli...
Inclusion and the Epistemic Benefits of Deliberation

Contrary to the popular belief, I argue that a more inclusive polity does not necessarily conflict with the goal of improving the epistemic capacities of deliberation. My argument examines one property of democracy that is usually thought of in non-epistemic terms, inclusion. Inclusion is not only valuable for moral reasons, but it also has epistemic virtues. I consider two epistemic benefits of inclusive deliberation: (a) inclusive deliberation helps to create a more complete picture of the world that everyone dwells together; and (b) inclusive deliberation can be helpful in reducing biases and errors endemic to a society. Having advanced two epistemic arguments for inclusive deliberation, I argue that the Deweyan model best captures the knowledge-pooling function of deliberation.
THE GENETIC BASIS OF DIFFERENCES IN GROWTH AND BEHAVIOR OF SPECIALIST AND GENERALIST HERBIVORE SPECIES: SELECTION ON HYBRIDS OF HELIOTHIS VIRESCENS AND HELIOTHIS SUBFLEXA (LEPIDOPTERA).

Two species of moths and their hybrids were studied to determine the genetic basis of host range. One species, Heliothis virescens (HV), has a broad host range and is an agricultural pest on cotton (Malvaceae), soybean (Fabaceae), and tobacco (Solanaceae). The other species, Heliothis subflexa (HS), has a narrow host range, feeding on plants in the genus Physalis (Solanaceae). Experiments were done to determine whether the abilities to feed on cotton, soybean, and tobacco were each under separate genetic control in HV (genetically uncorrelated) or whether feeding on all three hosts was genetically correlated. By repeatedly backcrossing hybrids to HS while selecting for high larval survival and weight on soybean, loci conferring the ability to feed on soybean were moved from HV into the genetic background of the specialist, HS. After six generations of selection on soybean we tested the selected line on soybean, cotton, Physalis, and tobacco to determine if ability to feed on soybean was correlated with feeding ability on these other hosts. We found no evidence to support the hypothesis that feeding on all three hosts was correlated and controlled by a single locus. Compared to HS, the survival and weight of the selected line were significantly higher on soybean, similar on tobacco and Physalis, and slightly, but not significantly, higher on cotton. We also conducted a behavioral choice test to determine if larval preference for soybean was correlated with preference for other hosts. The selected line larvae had higher preference for soybean and cotton than HS. Preference for tobacco was equal in the selected line and in HS. These results support the trends seen in survival and growth tests where performances on soybean and cotton appeared partially correlated and performances on soybean and tobacco were uncorrelated. In conclusion, the generalist, HV, did not have a single set of loci that governed feeding on soybean, cotton and tobacco. It is likely that some of the loci governing performance and preference for soybean also contributed to performance and preference for cotton and that the soybean loci examined did not interact negatively to lower performance and preference for Physalis, the specialist's host. This approach can be applied more widely to address evolutionary questions about host range and other ecological traits.
Extended antibiotic resistance in carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae: A case series

Infections caused by carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae resistant to tigecycline, colistin, or aminoglycosides are a growing health concern. In our retrospective chart review, we noted increased resistance to colistin compared with tigecycline, despite limited prior use of colistin. This may affect the choice of presumptive antibiotics used in these hard to treat infections. Improved infection control and antimicrobial stewardship practices are essential to prevent the spread of these multidrug-resistant organisms.
Digital Broadcasting: an introduction to new media

In Digital Broadcasting, Jo Pierson and Joke Bauwens have established a middle ground for academics and practitioners to negotiate their perspectives of converging media, each with equal merit. Thi...
Positive Institutions: Organizations, Laws, and Policies

We analyze how positive institutions in the form of organizations, laws, and policies can help foster human flourishing and thriving. We provide five examples of positive institutions to illustrate the important role that institutions can play in facilitating positive psychological outcomes by positively changing individual preferences and values. First, we analyze how to apply positive psychology to redesign law firm cultures to enable law firms’ attorneys, clients, and communities to flourish and thrive. Second, we investigate how to apply positive psychology to redesign law schools to empower law students, law professors, and other law school constituencies to flourish and thrive. Third, we demonstrate how to apply positive psychology to foster innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship in individuals, organizations, and societies. Fourth, we identify some complexities, due to people’s cognitive and emotional tendencies, of utilizing subjective well-being measures in a wide range of domains to evaluate the impacts of laws and policies. Finally, we develop implications from positive psychology about how and what governments and others can do to support individuals, communities, and societies to flourish and thrive. Our overarching goal is to provoke thoughtful discussion about positive psychology’s role in developing institutions in the form of organizations, laws, and policies that help individuals, communities, and societies to flourish and thrive.
Demand Estimation with Constrained Zero-Inflated Generalized Additive Model: A Monte Carlo Simulation

A common problem encountered in demand estimation especially using microdata is the presence of high number of zeroes purchased - the problem of zero inflation. One possible solution is the constrained zero-inflated generalized additive model which is a two-component mixture model specifying the distribution of the dependent variable belong to a zero-inflated 1-parameter exponential family. It has an additional constraint that some covariates could proportionally affect both the probability of non-zero-inflation and the regular exponential family distributed mean. I test the hypothesis whether price could influence not only the level of consumption but also the probability of purchase or not purchase. The Monte Carlo simulation has various percentages of zero-inflation, different distributions for error terms, and covariates.
The legacy of large regime shifts in shallow lakes.

Ecological shifts in shallow lakes from clear-water macrophyte-dominated to turbid-water phytoplankton-dominated are generally thought of as rapid short-term transitions. Diatom remains in sediment records from shallow lakes in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America provide new evidence that the long-term ecological stability of these lakes is defined by the legacy of large regime shifts. We examine the modern and historical stability of 11 shallow lakes. Currently, four of the lakes are in a clear-water state, three are consistently turbid-water, and four have been observed to change state from year to year (transitional). Lake sediment records spanning the past 150-200 yr suggest that (1) the diatom assemblage is characteristic of either clear or turbid lakes, (2) prior to significant landscape alteration, all of the lakes existed in a regime of a stable clear-water state, (3) lakes that are currently classified as turbid or transitional have experienced one strong regime shift over the past 150-200 yr and have since remained in a regime where turbid-water predominates, and (4) top-down impacts to the lake food-web from fish introductions appear to be the dominant driver of strong regime shifts and not increased nutrient availability. Based on our findings we demonstrate a method that could be used by lake managers to identify lakes that have an ecological history close to the clear-turbid regime threshold; such lakes might more easily be returned to a clear-water state through biomanipulation. The unfortunate reality is that many of these lakes are now part of a managed landscape and will likely require continued intervention.
Ureteral Stone Management: Emerging Concepts

AbstractA total of 206 procedures was performed on 193 patients with ureteral calculi. The success rate was 62 per cent for stones proximal to the pelvic brim and 94 per cent for stones distal to the pelvic brim (87 per cent success over-all). Of the procedures 61 were done for fragments lodged in the ureter following extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. Ureteroscopy was done in 147 cases. Our current management concepts (including extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy) for proximal and distal ureteral calculi are presented
Unfamiliar Quotations In Brecht’s Plays

(1971). Unfamiliar Quotations In Brecht’s Plays. The Germanic Review: Literature, Culture, Theory: Vol. 46, No. 1, pp. 26-42.
Digital Engagement: Opportunities and Risks for Sponsors: Consumer-Viewpoint and Practical Considerations For Marketing via Mobile and Digital Platforms

At the beginning of 2016, there were 2.3 billion consumers with active social media accounts, and, on average, these consumers each had five social media accounts.[1][1] Such pervasiveness points to a need for marketers to focus on engaging consumers on social media and other digital environments.
Deleuze, Concept Formation, and the Habit of Shorthand Inquiry:

Informed by Deleuze and Guattari’s philosophical sense of the concept, this article challenges the tendency to desire for, rationalize, and use qualitative research methodology as a day-to-day conc...