Experimental evaluation of small-scale erectable truss hardware

To aid in the prediction of the dynamic behavior of the space station, a one-tenth scale dynamic test model is to be constructed of commercially available, small scale truss hardware. Tests have been performed to determine the axial stiffness characteristics and failure loads of the truss joint. A parametric study has shown that the stiffness of the joint increases as the attachment bolt torque value is increased. Furthermore, at torque values equal to or higher than 250 in-lbs, hysteresis in the load-deflection curve is essentially eliminated. Also, the joint stiffness remained relatively constant between specimens. The effective stiffness of a joint subassembly tested is 76 percent that of the strut. Tensile and compressive failure occurred in the region of the bonded plug, with lower failure loads corresponding to compressive loadings

Fraud in Realty Transactions

In real estate transactions, the law will protect the innocent, unwary, and sometimes stupid, buyer from fraud, misrepresentation and deceit. This article presents a summary of that law, categorized according to the specific matter misrepresented (i.e., misrepresentations of value, income, size or quantity, and condition or quality)

Traumatic Neurosis as a Distinct Cause of Action

The purpose of this article is: (1) To define traumatic neurosis on a medico-legal basis. (2) To determine when damages may be recovered for traumatic neurosis through a review of recent cases

Book Review

Reviewing Encyclopedia of Negligence, Central Book Company, 196

Book Review

Reviewing Encyclopedia of Negligence, Central Book Company, 196

Quantitative nucleotide level analysis of regulation of translation in response to depolarization of cultured neural cells

Studies on regulation of gene expression have contributed substantially to understanding mechanisms for the long-term activity-dependent alterations in neural connectivity that are thought to mediate learning and memory. Most of these studies, however, have focused on the regulation of mRNA transcription. Here, we utilized high-throughput sequencing coupled with ribosome footprinting to globally characterize the regulation of translation in primary mixed neuronal-glial cultures in response to sustained depolarization. We identified substantial and complex regulation of translation, with many transcripts demonstrating changes in ribosomal occupancy independent of transcriptional changes. We also examined sequence-based mechanisms that might regulate changes in translation in response to depolarization. We found that these are partially mediated by features in the mRNA sequence—notably upstream open reading frames and secondary structure in the 5′ untranslated region—both of which predict downregulation in response to depolarization. Translationally regulated transcripts are also more likely to be targets of FMRP and include genes implicated in autism in humans. Our findings support the idea that control of mRNA translation plays an important role in response to neural activity across the genome

Multi-omics of the gut microbial ecosystem in inflammatory bowel diseases.

Inflammatory bowel diseases, which include Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, affect several million individuals worldwide. Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are complex diseases that are heterogeneous at the clinical, immunological, molecular, genetic, and microbial levels. Individual contributing factors have been the focus of extensive research. As part of the Integrative Human Microbiome Project (HMP2 or iHMP), we followed 132 subjects for one year each to generate integrated longitudinal molecular profiles of host and microbial activity during disease (up to 24 time points each; in total 2,965 stool, biopsy, and blood specimens). Here we present the results, which provide a comprehensive view of functional dysbiosis in the gut microbiome during inflammatory bowel disease activity. We demonstrate a characteristic increase in facultative anaerobes at the expense of obligate anaerobes, as well as molecular disruptions in microbial transcription (for example, among clostridia), metabolite pools (acylcarnitines, bile acids, and short-chain fatty acids), and levels of antibodies in host serum. Periods of disease activity were also marked by increases in temporal variability, with characteristic taxonomic, functional, and biochemical shifts. Finally, integrative analysis identified microbial, biochemical, and host factors central to this dysregulation. The study's infrastructure resources, results, and data, which are available through the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Multi'omics Database ( http://ibdmdb.org ), provide the most comprehensive description to date of host and microbial activities in inflammatory bowel diseases

Attitudes of healthcare workers in U.S. hospitals regarding smallpox vaccination

BACKGROUND: The United States is implementing plans to immunize 500,000 hospital-based healthcare workers against smallpox. Vaccination is voluntary, and it is unknown what factors drive vaccine acceptance. This study's aims were to estimate the proportion of workers willing to accept vaccination and to identify factors likely to influence their decisions. METHODS: The survey was conducted among physicians, nurses, and others working primarily in emergency departments or intensive care units at 21 acute-care hospitals in 10 states during the two weeks before the U.S. national immunization program for healthcare workers was announced in December 2002. Of the questionnaires distributed, 1,165 were returned, for a response rate of 81%. The data were analyzed by logistic regression and were adjusted for clustering within hospital and for different number of responses per hospital, using generalized linear mixed models and SAS's NLMIXED procedure. RESULTS: Sixty-one percent of respondents said they would definitely or probably be vaccinated, while 39% were undecided or inclined against it. Fifty-three percent rated the risk of a bioterrorist attack using smallpox in the United States in the next two years as either intermediate or high. Forty-seven percent did not feel well-informed about the risks and benefits of vaccination. Principal concerns were adverse reactions and the risk of transmitting vaccinia. In multivariate analysis, four variables were associated with willingness to be vaccinated: perceived risk of an attack, self-assessed knowledge about smallpox vaccination, self-assessed previous smallpox vaccination status, and gender. CONCLUSIONS: The success of smallpox vaccination efforts will ultimately depend on the relative weight in people's minds of the risk of vaccine adverse events compared with the risk of being exposed to the disease. Although more than half of the respondents thought the likelihood of a bioterrorist smallpox attack was intermediate or high, less than 10% of the group slated for vaccination has actually accepted it at this time. Unless new information about the threat of a smallpox attack becomes available, healthcare workers' perceptions of the vaccine's risks will likely continue to drive their ongoing decisions about smallpox vaccination

Regional fat deposition and cardiovascular risk in HIV infection: the FRAM study

HIV-infected individuals are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and lipodystrophy, but the relationship between regional adipose tissue (AT) depots and CVD risk is not well-described. We determined regional AT volumes and CVD risk in an analysis of 586 HIV-infected and 280 control FRAM study subjects using whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the Framingham Risk Score (FRS). Median FRS and FRS >10% were higher in HIV than control men (4.7% vs. 3.7%, p=0.0002; 16% vs. 4%, p<0.0001). HIV and control women had similarly-low FRS (1.1% vs. 1.2%, p=0.91). In controls, total AT and all regional AT depots showed strong positive correlations with FRS (p<0.001) in men, and weaker positive correlations in women. Greater visceral AT (VAT) and lower leg subcutaneous AT (SAT) volumes were associated with elevated FRS in HIV subjects, with a trend for upper trunk SAT. Controls in the lowest quartile of leg SAT had the lowest FRS (1.5%), whereas HIV with similarly-low leg SAT had the highest FRS (4.0%, p<0.001 vs. controls). Increased VAT is associated with CVD risk, but the risk is higher in HIV-infected individuals relative to controls at every level of VAT. Peripheral lipoatrophy (as measured by leg SAT) is associated with striking increased CVD risk in HIV-infected patients, even after controlling for VAT, whereas low leg SAT is associated with low CVD risk in controls