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PubMed1994

Parallel and serial processes in the human oculomotor system: bimodal integration and express saccades.

Saccadic reaction times (SRTs) were analyzed in the context of stochastic models of information processing (e.g., Townsend and Ashby 1983) to reveal the processing architecture(s) underlying integrative interactions between visual and auditory inputs and the mechanisms of express saccades. The results support the following conclusions. Bimodal (visual+auditory) targets are processed in parallel, and facilitate SRT to an extent that exceeds levels attainable by probability summation. This strongly implies neural summation between elements responding to spatially aligned visual and auditory inputs in the human oculomotor system. Second, express saccades are produced within a separable processing stage that is organized in series with that responsible for intersensory integration. A model is developed that implements this combination of parallel and serial processing. The activity in parallel input channels is summed within a sensory stage which is organized in series with a pre-motor and motor stage. The time course of each subprocess is considered a random variable, and different experimental manipulations can selectively influence different stages. Parallels between the model and physiological data are explored.

Cybernetics↗
PubMed2002

Successful program maintenance when federal demonstration dollars stop: the ACCESS program for homeless mentally ill persons.

A major issue that has long dogged federal human services demonstration programs is the perception that when federal dollars end, the programs end-regardless of any proven successes. Access to Community Care and Effective Services and Supports (ACCESS) was a 5-year federal demonstration project to foster partnerships between service providers for homeless people with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance abuse disorders; and to identify effective, replicable systems integration strategies. After federal funding ended, research teams visited the ACCESS sites to determine which project elements remained and which strategies were used by the sites to continue ACCESS. This article describes ACCESS services and systems integration activities retained by the sites, new funding streams, and strategies used to obtain continued funding.

Community Mental Health Services↗
PubMed2004

Stain reduction of an integrated oral hygiene system.

This article discusses research to determine the efficacy of a prototype integrated power toothbrush and toothpaste dispensing system, the IntelliClean System from Sonicare and Crest, in the removal of extrinsic stain. The prototype integrated system and a positive control, the Sonicare Elite with conventional toothpaste, were evaluated in 2 randomized, single-blinded, parallel 4-week controlled clinical trials. There was a low dropout rate, with 28 subjects of the 31 randomized in study 1 completing the study (10% loss to follow-up) and 26 subjects of the 28 randomized in study 2 completing the study (7% loss to follow-up). Lobene stain scores were used to assess the extent and intensity of stain for all teeth meeting the criteria for inclusion in the studies. Lobene stain scores were assessed at baseline and after 4 weeks in both studies. A survey also was conducted at the conclusion of each study to determine user attitude toward the integrated system. The prototype integrated system was found to significantly reduce overall extrinsic stain over time, performing not significantly differently from the positive control. Overall, the prototype integrated system reduced the composite measure of stain that encompasses both the extent and intensity of stain by 60%. This research demonstrates that the IntelliClean System from Sonicare and Crest is highly effective in reducing extrinsic stain.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Orthographic codes are used in integrating information from the parafovea by the saccadic computation system.

Two experiments that examined the characteristics of information extracted from a parafoveal letter string by the saccadic system are reported. In Experiment 1, we observed the effect of the orthographic legality of the initial letter sequence on landing positions. The deviation of landing positions towards an orthographically illegal letter sequence was shown to occur in saccades when subjects were instructed to read a nonsense letter string. Moreover, it was shown that the initial placement of the eyes is influenced by the frequency of occurrence of the letter sequence and not by the frequency of the letters that formed this sequence. Experiment 2 followed up on the implication that readers use orthographic information only from the initial letters of the parafoveal string. We concluded that the saccadic computation system integrates orthographic information from the two initial letters.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2005

Improving the in vitro prediction of in vivo central nervous system penetration: integrating permeability, P-glycoprotein efflux, and free fractions in blood and brain.

This work examines the inter-relationship between the unbound drug fractions in blood and brain homogenate, passive membrane permeability, P-glycoprotein (Pgp) efflux ratio, and log octanol/water partition coefficients (cLogP) in determining the extent of central nervous system (CNS) penetration observed in vivo. The present results demonstrate that compounds often considered to be Pgp substrates in rodents (efflux ratio greater than 5 in multidrug resistant Madin-Darby canine kidney cells) with poor passive permeability may still exhibit reasonable CNS penetration in vivo; i.e., where the unbound fractions and nonspecific tissue binding act as a compensating force. In these instances, the efflux ratio and in vitro blood-brain partition ratio may be used to predict the in vivo blood-brain ratio. This relationship may be extended to account for the differences in CNS penetration observed in vivo between mdr1a/b wild type and knockout mice. In some instances, cross-species differences that might initially seem to be related to differing transporter expression can be rationalized from knowledge of unbound fractions alone. The results presented in this article suggest that the information exists to provide a coherent picture of the nature of CNS penetration in the drug discovery setting, allowing the focus to be shifted away from understanding CNS penetration toward the more important aspect of understanding CNS efficacy.

ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Mem↗
PubMed2002

A microchip electrophoresis system with integrated in-plane electrodes for contactless conductivity detection.

We present a new approach for contactless conductivity detection for microchip-based capillary electrophoresis (CE). The detector integrates easily with well-known microfabrication techniques for glass-based microfluidic devices. Platinum electrodes are structured in recesses in-plane with the microchannel network after glass etching, which allows precise positioning and batch fabrication of the electrodes. A thin glass wall of 10-15 microm separates the electrodes and the buffer electrolyte in the separation channel to achieve the electrical insulation necessary for contactless operation. The effective separation length is 34 mm, with a channel width of 50 microm and depth of 12 microm. Microchip CE devices with conductivity detection were characterized in terms of sensitivity and linearity of response, and were tested using samples containing up to three small cations. The limit of detection for K+ (18 microM) is good, though an order of magnitude higher than for comparable capillary-based systems and one recently reported example of contactless conductivity on chip. However, an integrated field-amplified stacking step could be employed prior to CE to preconcentrate the sample ions by a factor of four.

Cations↗
PubMed1996

Formularies in integrated health systems: Sharp HealthCare.

Formulary management implications are described for a California health system comprising 7 hospitals, 4 skilled-nursing centers, 22 medical clinics, 8 urgent care facilities, and a health maintenance organization. Sharp HealthCare serves nearly one million people in the San Diego area. A single institutional care division (ICD) pharmacy service has been created under the guidance of a steering committee comprising a pharmacy operations coordinator and a staff pharmacist from each site, the system pharmacy director, the system senior pharmacy information systems specialist, and the system senior clinical pharmacy specialist. Operations at each site are overseen by an operations coordinator instead of a pharmacy director. Functional teams reporting to the steering committee are standardized pharmacy processes, including formulary management; this is particularly important because the ICD has pharmacists and nurse per diem pools. Until 1995, formularies were independently managed at each site. Now, one system formulary is being developed. Standard policies and procedures, a nonformulary drug request form, and a monograph format have been completed. The hospitals' autonomous medical staffs have thus far elected to retain individual pharmacy and therapeutics (P&T) committees but approved a revamped formulary review process and system-wide P&T subcommittees. The computer system is being enhanced so that pharmacists will have access to applicable P&T committee-approved guidelines for drug use. Since vendors were advised that the system is establishing one formulary, Sharp has been able in some cases to achieve better pricing than it previously could through its purchasing group.

California↗
PubMed1999

Sequencing of gel-isolated proteins using microblotter capillary liquid chromatography-electrospray mass spectrometry.

Enzymatic digests of proteins isolated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) were separated by capillary high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The column eluate was split to an electrospray mass spectrometer on one side and to both a UV detector and a microblotter on the other side. Using the microblotter, the peptides eluted from the column were collected directly onto a polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) membrane for Edman sequencing. Thus, a peptide mass map from the mass spectrometric analysis and a prepared PVDF membrane for subsequent Edman sequencing were generated in a single experiment. The addition of molecular mass information to the blotted LC eluate is useful for determining the most important peaks to undergo Edman sequencing. Coupling the capillary HPLC with a microblotter to electrospray mass spectrometry provides an integrated system for separation, collection, and structural analysis of protein digests. It provides high levels of sensitivity, recovery, and convenience for protein characterization. Proteins loaded onto SDS-PAGE at low picomole levels can be analyzed by the new integrated system.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2002

Escaping gravity. Movie magic and dreams of flying.

When movie-goers are thrilled by cinematic imagery portraying transcendent motor action, they are drawn into a world of imagination more often inhabited only in dreams of flying or of perfectly executed motion. The drive toward free and expansive movement which such dreams portray doesn't require explanation in terms of symbolic links to other aims, as has been common in the literature. The aim to achieve mastery in the locomotor sphere of action is a basic aim, in itself, integral to ego development. The developing child could not begin to organize perception, intention, and a coherent sense of self without this drive to move. This proposition is supported by emerging views of the ways the developing nervous system integrates systems mediating perception, action, and affect, which complement observations of the bodycentered development of mutual recognition in infants and their caregivers.

Dreams↗
PubMedDate not supplied

HIS/RIS/PACS integration: getting to the gold standard.

The technology for acquiring, storing, retrieving, displaying, and distributing images has advanced dramatically in recent years. The push is toward enterprise-wide image management solutions, where digital images from radiology, cardiology, and other "ologies" are seamlessly linked with information from clinical information systems and other databases, and they are accessed seamlessly from a single point of end-user interaction. The "gold standard" of system integration would provide the platform for improved workflow, patient throughput and patient safety, as well as decreased cost. Unfortunately, the gold standard remains elusive in most healthcare environments, even those with new systems. One of the earliest issues that plagued the progress of hospital information system/radiology information systems/picture archiving and communication systems (HIS/RIS/PACS) integration was a matter of language between Health Level-7 (HL7) and DICOM. This barrier was solved by the broker--a software and hardware device that accepts HL7 messages from the RIS then translates, or maps, the data to produce DICOM messages for transmission to the PACS. Technologist workflow requires patient and exam information from the RIS to flow to the modality. The broker provides support for this by taking advantage of the DICOM Modality Worklist (DMWL). Two primary problems are inherent in most brokered configurations. Workflow is driven by paper, and RIS information flows in 1 direction only, which leads to duplicative databases. Overcoming the limitations of HIS/RIS/PACS connectivity requires industry accepted communication protocols/rules. To facilitate this, the Integrating the Health Care Enterprise (IHE) initiative was developed. The goal of IHE is to provide end-users improved access to critical patient and clinical information across all systems within the healthcare delivery network. While the IHE initiative began to facilitate more efficient, predictable, and functional integration between disparate systems, vendors still had technology hurdles to overcome. System integration continues to be significantly hampered, not by technology limitations, but instead by business and political issues. In response to these challenges, several vendors have begun to offer consolidated RIS/PACS solutions and/or HIS/RIS/PACS solutions. Consequently, the prospect of the gold standard appears to be on the horizon. Single vendor consolidated systems are not, however, feasible for deployment in many healthcare organizations, and they are not necessarily the panacea.

Database Management Systems↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A users group approach to quality improvement across an integrated healthcare delivery system.

Aurora Healthcare, an integrated healthcare delivery system, wanted to use interhospital collaboration to improve quality. An opportunity for improvement at five Aurora hospitals was identified: Only 71% of patients received timely preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis. A Users Group approach was proposed to foster collaboration among the hospitals in a quality improvement (QI) effort. Although these hospitals differed in size, volume of cases, medical staffs, and antibiotic-delivery processes, they had common objectives and, many times, common barriers to the timely delivery of antibiotics. A Users Group approach to this QI initiative resulted in an 18% improvement in the number of patients who received timely administration of preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis (p < 0.001). This article describes the Users Group approach to QI at Aurora Healthcare in southeastern Wisconsin.

Antibiotic Prophylaxis↗
PubMed2004

Cold-storage affects antioxidant properties of apples in Caco-2 cells.

Data on the composition of phenolic antioxidant compounds present in food plants and assessment of their activity are essential for epidemiological explanation of the health benefits of fruit and vegetables. Various factors such as cultivation methods, industrial processing, and storage may affect the final concentrations of phytochemicals in food plants and their eventual bioactivity. This study investigated the influence of commercial cold-storage periods on the antioxidant properties of apples grown either by organic or integrated systems. In both cases, total phenolics and total antioxidant activity decreased only in the first 3 mo and only in apples with skin (P < 0.05), suggesting that cold storage rapidly impoverishes these properties in skin but not in pulp. Assessment of antioxidant bioactivity in vitro, measured in terms of intracellular antioxidant, cytoprotective, and antiproliferative activity in human colon carcinoma (Caco-2) cells (differentiated to normal intestinal epithelia for intracellular antioxidant and cytoprotective effects), showed strong, time-related decreases over 6 mo of cold storage for all 3 parameters (P < 0.01), irrespective of the cultivation system. These findings with integrated and organic apples further support the concept that organic systems of cultivation do not generally provide real health benefits. Moreover, the data from the present study clearly show that factors such as cold storage may affect the antioxidant properties of apples. Epidemiological studies on the cancer-preventive benefits of fruits and vegetables should take into account the cold-storage bias for apples, and possibly for other products.

Antioxidants↗
PubMed2000

Commercial systems for fluconazole susceptibility testing of yeasts: comparison with the broth microdilution method.

Fluconazole susceptibility was tested in 100 clinical yeast isolates (65 Candida albicans, 13 C. glabrata, 8 C. tropicalis, 7 C. parapsilosis, 3 Saccharomyces cerevisiae, 1 each of C. krusei, C. lusitaniae, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula glutinis) and two control strains (Candida krusei ATCC 6258, C. parapsilosis ATCC 22019) using broth microdilution (reference method), disk diffusion, Etest strips, Sensititre YeastOne, Candifast, Integral System Yeasts. Using M27-A breakpoints, isolates were classified as susceptible (81%), susceptible-dose dependent or Resistant with broth dilution. Rates of concordance with the reference method were good for Sensititre YeastOne, Etest and disc-diffusion (81.2%-94.7%) but very low for the Candifast (3.1%) and Integral System (16.6%), which classified most susceptible isolates as resistant. Lack of standardisation (inoculum, medium composition) and non-objective interpretation schemes may be the cause of their poor performance. Sensititre YeastOne, Etest and disc-diffusion are potentially useful for fluconazole antifungal susceptibility testing of yeasts in clinical laboratories.

Antifungal Agents↗
PubMed2007

A trap-and-release integrated microfluidic system for dynamic microarray applications.

Dynamic microarrays hold great promise for advancing research in proteomics, diagnostics and drug discovery. However, this potential has yet to be fully realized due to the lack of reliable multifunctional platforms to transport and immobilize particles, infuse reagents, observe the reaction, and retrieve selected particles. We achieved all these functions in a single integrated device through the combination of hydrodynamic and optical approaches. Hydrodynamic forces allow simultaneous transportation and immobilization of large number of particles, whereas optical-based microbubble technique for bead retrieval gives dexterity in handling individual particles without complicated circuitry. Based on the criterion derived in this paper, the device was designed, and fabricated using standard photolithography and soft lithography methods. We examined the dynamics of bubble formation and dissipation in the device, and parametric studies revealed that higher power settings at short intervals were more efficient than low power settings at longer intervals for bead retrieval. We also demonstrated the capabilities of our device and its potential as a tool for screening methods such as the "one-bead-one-compound" (OBOC) combinatorial library method. Although both approaches, hydrodynamic confinement and optical-based microbubbles, are presented in one device, they can also be separately used for other applications in microchip devices.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2006

Cardiac endocrine function is an essential component of the homeostatic regulation network: physiological and clinical implications.

The discovery of cardiac natriuretic hormones required a profound revision of the concept of heart function. The heart should no longer be considered only as a pump but rather as a multifunctional and interactive organ that is part of a complex network and active component of the integrated systems of the body. In this review, we first consider the cross-talk between endocrine and contractile function of the heart. Then, based on the existing literature, we propose the hypothesis that cardiac endocrine function is an essential component of the integrated systems of the body and thus plays a pivotal role in fluid, electrolyte, and hemodynamic homeostasis. We highlight those studies indicating how alterations in cardiac endocrine function can better explain the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases and, in particular of heart failure, in which several target organs develop a resistance to the biological action of cardiac natriuretic peptides. Finally, we emphasize the concept that a complete knowledge of the cardiac endocrine function and of its relation with other neurohormonal regulatory systems of the body is crucial to correctly interpret changes in circulating natriuretic hormones, especially the brain natriuretic peptide.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[A system of mechanical integration of tissue as the basic regulation system at the tissue level of organization].

A new concept for tissue--level regulation system is proposed. This concept is based on three groups of facts: 1) possibility of regulation of tissue behavior by fields of mechanical tension; 2) correlation between changes in mechanical properties of the tissue and its biological behavior at different stages of blastomogenesis; 3) regulative role of tissue--specific (endo- and exo)-genic factors which influence directly the mechanical properties of the tissue. This system is called the system of the mechanical integration of the tissue. Some problems concerning the action mechanism of this system are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

A subterranean mammal uses the magnetic compass for path integration.

Path integration allows animals to navigate without landmarks by continuously processing signals generated through locomotion. Insects such as bees and ants have evolved an accurate path integration system, assessing and coding rotations with the help of a general directional reference, the sun azimuth. In mammals, by contrast, this process can take place through purely idiothetic (mainly proprioceptive and vestibular) signals. However, without any stable external reference for measuring direction, path integration is highly affected by cumulative errors and thus has been considered so far as valid only for short-distance navigation. Here we show through two path integration experiments (homing and shortcut finding) that the blind mole rat assesses direction both through internal signals and by estimating its heading in relation to the earth's magnetic field. Further, it is shown that the greater the circumvolution and length of the traveled path, the more the animal relies on the geomagnetic field. This path integration system strongly reduces the accumulation of errors due to inaccuracies in the estimation of rotations and thus allows the mole rat to navigate efficiently in darkness, without the help of any landmark, over both short and long distances.

Animals↗