Attentional frames, frame curves and figural boundaries: the inside/outside dilemma.

Attended and unattended regions of the image array are viewed often as binary complements to one another, with a well-defined boundary between them. A simple experiment shows otherwise: if the contour of a simple convex shape is perturbed to create a distinctive texture, it is typically the outside of the contour that provides the basis for similarity judgement, not the inside. The introduction of the appropriate task, however, can make the inside part of the contour become more salient.

Angiogenesis and molecular biologic substaging in patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer.

Background: Although complete surgical resection remains the primary treatment for localized stage I non-small cell lung cancer, the cancer recurrence rate is 25% to 40%. If one could identify, a subset of patients using molecular factors that contribute to tumour aggressiveness, one might improve prognosis in this group with additional treatment. High expression of angiogenesis factor viii has been associated with the presence of nodal metastases in breast cancer; here we examined its relation to survival with non-small lung cancer.

Oral ill-health in a general dental practice in south Wales.

Purpose Of Study: To establish and report oral health status data by measuring social impact in conjunction with clinical impact. Oral health status encompassed functional, experiential and psychosocial impact measures in addition to clinical measures.

Population Studied: Registered dental patients over 18 years of age attending for routine care at a general dental practice.

A partial model of the erythropoietin receptor complex.

A model of the structure of erythropoietin (Epo) is presented based on structural homology to other hemopoietic cytokines. A model of the erythropoietin receptor complex was made based on evidence that this includes a homodimer of the receptor chain with known sequence. Key interactions are noted which explain data from mutation experiments, although at not all residues believed to be important to binding of Epo are at the interface.

The role of elective operation in the treatment of portal hypertension.

Variceal bleeding is associated with a high rate of rebleeding and death if left untreated. Operative therapy is an important modality for managing portal hypertension in patients unsuitable for, or who fail, sclerotherapy. Review of 41 patients undergoing 42 surgical procedures for portal hypertension since 1988 revealed 22 elective procedures with a 4.

A novel representation of protein structure.

Using a nonlinear mapping technique, we demonstrate that proteins folded in two dimensions display the same overall structural features as their three-dimensional counterparts. The two-dimensional representation of protein structure provides a novel way to visualize structural as well as distance information. It may also provide a link for deriving three-dimensional structure from amino acid sequence.

Models of ion pores in N-type voltage-gated calcium channels.

Two computer models of the outer vestibule of the pore of the N-type voltage-gated Ca2+ channel are predicted. The models are constructed from beta-hairpin peptide segments in the S5-S6 loops of each of the four domains that produce the channel. These hairpins together are modeled to form a short eight-stranded beta barrel.

Insertional mutagenesis and molecular analysis of a new gene associated with polycystic kidney disease.

We have identified a new insertional mutation in the mouse (TgN737Rpw) that causes a phenotype that closely resembles human autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease. The renal pathology in these mutants first presents itself as a dilation of the proximal tubules, which is quickly followed by the development of cystic lesions in the collecting ducts. The livers in the mutant animals develop a variable lesion depending upon the genetic background.

Molecular modeling of the GM-CSF and IL-3 receptor complexes.

A model for the structure of the cytokine interleukin-3 (IL-3) is presented based on the structural homology of the hematopoietic cytokines and utilizing the crystal structures of interleukin-5 and granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF). In addition, models of the receptor complexes of GM-CSF and IL-3 are presented based on the structural homology of the hematopoietic receptors to growth hormone. Several key interactions between the ligands and their receptors are discovered, some in agreement with previous mutagenesis studies and others that have not yet been the subject of mutagenesis studies.

Effect of the PufQ protein on early steps in the pathway of bacteriochlorophyll biosynthesis in Rhodobacter capsulatus.

The addition in trans of the pufQ gene to a strain of Rhodobacter capsulatus from which the entire puf operon had been deleted, increased its ability to synthesize coproporphyrinogen from both delta-aminolevulinic acid and porphobilinogen. Studies at the enzyme level indicated that the conversion of porphobilinogen to uroporphyrinogen III had about a 2-fold higher level of activity in the anaerobically-grown pufQ-containing strain. This increase in activity over the puf-deletion strain appeared to occur during transitions from aerobic to semiaerobic growth conditions.

Stromelysin-3 is overexpressed by stromal elements in primary non-small cell lung cancers and regulated by retinoic acid in pulmonary fibroblasts.

Stromelysin-3 (STR-3) is a recently characterized matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) that was cloned on the basis of differential expression in benign and malignant breast tumors. This MMP has a unique processing mechanism and substrate specificity. Unlike previously characterized MMPs that are secreted as inactive zymogens, STR-3 is processed within the constitutive secretory pathway and secreted as an active enzyme.

Role of nitric oxide in human esophageal circular smooth muscle in vitro.

The role of nitric oxide in human esophageal smooth muscle was examined. Immunostaining for constitutive nitric oxide synthase labeled nerve fibers and bundles within longitudinal and circular smooth muscle layers of resected tissue samples. Strips of circular muscle mounted in organ baths exhibited spontaneous contractions and active tone.

Localized adenocarcinoma of the lung: oncogene expression of erbB-2 and p53 in 150 patients.

Historical information and pathological material from 150 consecutive patients with localized adenocarcinoma of the lung was collected to evaluate oncogene expression of erbB-2 and p53, and erbB-2 gene amplification. Pathological material after resection was reviewed to verify histological staging, and patient follow-up was complete in all cases for at least 68 months. Immunohistochemistry of erbB-2 (HER-2/neu) and p53 oncogene expression was performed on two separate paraffin tumor blocks for each patient with normal lung as control.

Noninvasive diagnosis of mesenteric ischemia using a SQUID magnetometer.

Objective: The authors assessed the ability of a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) magnetometer to noninvasively detect mesenteric ischemia in a rabbit model.

Summary Background Data: Superconducting Quantum Interference Device magnetometers have been used to detect magnetic fields created by the basic electrical rhythm (BER) and to detect changes in BER of exteriorized bowel of anesthetized rabbits during mesenteric ischemia.

Methods: The BER of rabbit ileum was noninvasively measured transabdominally using a SQUID magnetometer and compared with the electrical activity recorded with surgically implanted serosal electrodes before, during, and after snare occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery.

Reciprocal Rb inactivation and p16INK4 expression in primary lung cancers and cell lines.

cdk4-mediated phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma susceptibility protein (Rb) is stimulated by cyclin D1, an oncogene, and inhibited by p16, a candidate tumor suppressor. We examined these proteins in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which is predominantly Rb positive, and small cell lung cancer (SCLC), which is Rb negative. Most NSCLC and SCLC resection specimens and cell lines overexpress cyclin D1 (indicating that cyclin D1 overexpression and Rb inactivation can coexist in SCLC).

Neuronal control of esophageal function.

Esophageal peristalsis and sphincter function are controlled by the autonomic nervous system, with contributions from parasympathetic, sympathetic, and enteric divisions. Proximal regions, including the upper esophageal sphincter, are composed of striated muscle and are under direct (cholinergic) control of vagal motoneurons located in the nucleus ambiguus. Sequential peristaltic contraction is coordinated by a brainstem pattern generator circuit involving the nucleus of the solitary tract and modulated by vagal afferents.

Erythema nodosum associated with streptococcal infection in pregnancy.

Background: Erythema nodosum (EN) is a condition characterized by the presence of painful erythematous nodules on the pretibial aspects of the lower extremities. EN is thought to be a local inflammatory, immune-mediated reaction to a number of systemic antigenic stimuli. This condition is noted most often in women between menarche and menopause and is associated with certain drugs, infections, and pregnancy.

Trajectory mapping: a new nonmetric scaling technique.

Trajectory mapping is a new scaling technique designed to recover the parameterizations, axes, and paths used to traverse a feature space. Unlike with multidimensional scaling, there is no assumption that the space is homogeneous or metric. Although some metric ordering information is obtained with trajectory mapping, the main output is the feature parameterizations that partition the given domain of object samples into different categories.

Behavior of cholesterol and its effect on head group and chain conformations in lipid bilayers: a molecular dynamics study.

Cholesterol molecules were put into a computer-modeled hydrated bilayer of dimyristoyl phosphatidyl choline molecules, and molecular dynamics simulations were run to characterize the effect of this important molecule on membrane structure and dynamics. The effect was judged by observing differences in order parameters, tilt angles, and the fraction of gauche bonds along the hydrocarbon chains between lipids adjacent to cholesterol molecules and comparing them with those further away. It was observed that cholesterol causes an increase in the fraction of trans dihedrals and motional ordering of chains close to the rigid steroid ring system with a decrease in the kink population.

Identification of the PufQ protein in membranes of Rhodobacter capsulatus.

The PufQ protein has been detected in vivo for the first time by Western blot (immunoblot) analyses of the chromatophore membranes of Rhodobacter capsulatus. The PufQ protein was not visible in Western blots of membranes of a mutant (delta RC6) lacking the puf operon but appeared in membranes of the same mutant to which the pufQ gene had been added in trans. It was also detected in elevated amounts in a mutant (CB1200) defective in two bch genes and unable, therefore, to make bacteriochlorophyll.

Sinusitis in status asthmaticus.

The relationship between sinusitis and status asthmaticus (SA) remains obscure. The purposes of this study were to determine the prevalence of abnormal sinus radiographs (SXRs) and investigate possible risk factors among unselected children admitted with SA. Eighty-eight patients over 2 years of age (range 2 to 16 years) consecutively admitted with SA were studied.

Head group and chain behavior in biological membranes: a molecular dynamics computer simulation.

A computer-modeled hydrated bilayer model of the lipid 2,3-dimyristoyl-D-glycero-1-phosphorylcholine in the L alpha phase was built. Particular care was taken in building the starting structure with the inclusion of structural detail reported in experiments on the L alpha phase. Molecular dynamics simulations using the molecular dynamics and energy refinement program AMBER 3.

Esophageal physiology.

Esophageal peristalsis and sphincter function involve coordinated neuromuscular processes the nature of which differs according to regional muscular anatomy and, to a degree, according to whether motility is initiated by swallowing or esophageal distension. The physical characteristics of the bolus and the conditions of testing may alter the speed and force of the propulsive contraction. Neural control of these processes and their modulation involves parasympathetic, sympathetic and enteric innervation of the organ.

The mouse tissue plasminogen activator gene 5' flanking region directs appropriate expression in development and a seizure-enhanced response in the CNS.

Tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) is a secreted serine protease implicated in multiple aspects of development. In the adult rat brain, transcription of t-PA is an immediate-early response in the hippocampus following treatments that induce neuronal plasticity. To study the sequence elements that govern transcription of this gene, in situ analysis was used to define t-PA's temporal and spatial expression pattern in midgestation embryos.