A hybrid human and machine resource curation pipeline for the Neuroscience Information Framework.

The breadth of information resources available to researchers on the Internet continues to expand, particularly in light of recently implemented data-sharing policies required by funding agencies. However, the nature of dense, multifaceted neuroscience data and the design of contemporary search engine systems makes efficient, reliable and relevant discovery of such information a significant challenge. This challenge is specifically pertinent for online databases, whose dynamic content is 'hidden' from search engines. The Neuroscience Information Framework (NIF; http://www.neuinfo.org) was funded by the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research to address the problem of finding and utilizing neuroscience-relevant resources such as software tools, data sets, experimental animals and antibodies across the Internet. From the outset, NIF sought to provide an accounting of available resources, whereas developing technical solutions to finding, accessing and utilizing them. The curators therefore, are tasked with identifying and registering resources, examining data, writing configuration files to index and display data and keeping the contents current. In the initial phases of the project, all aspects of the registration and curation processes were manual. However, as the number of resources grew, manual curation became impractical. This report describes our experiences and successes with developing automated resource discovery and semiautomated type characterization with text-mining scripts that facilitate curation team efforts to discover, integrate and display new content. We also describe the DISCO framework, a suite of automated web services that significantly reduce manual curation efforts to periodically check for resource updates. Lastly, we discuss DOMEO, a semi-automated annotation tool that improves the discovery and curation of resources that are not necessarily website-based (i.e. reagents, software tools). Although the ultimate goal of automation was to reduce the workload of the curators, it has resulted in valuable analytic by-products that address accessibility, use and citation of resources that can now be shared with resource owners and the larger scientific community. DATABASE URL: http://neuinfo.org.

Prototype of Kepler Processing Workflows For Microscopy And Neuroinformatics.

We report on progress of employing the Kepler workflow engine to prototype "end-to-end" application integration workflows that concern data coming from microscopes deployed at the National Center for Microscopy Imaging Research (NCMIR). This system is built upon the mature code base of the Cell Centered Database (CCDB) and integrated rule-oriented data system (IRODS) for distributed storage. It provides integration with external projects such as the Whole Brain Catalog (WBC) and Neuroscience Information Framework (NIF), which benefit from NCMIR data. We also report on specific workflows which spawn from main workflows and perform data fusion and orchestration of Web services specific for the NIF project. This "Brain data flow" presents a user with categorized information about sources that have information on various brain regions.

Peculiarities of the transitions to synchronization in coupled systems with amplitude death.

The paper presents the results of the study of the sequences of bifurcation leading to the synchronization and amplitude death in a system of two dissipatively coupled self-sustained oscillators with inertial nonlinearity. Two types of synchronizations tongues have been identified. In one of them phase locking regions exist where the synchronization is achieved by the saddle-node bifurcation and regions where the transition to synchronization leads through Neimark-Sacker bifurcation. In the second type of the tongues there are only phase locking regions. It has been shown that for a weak non-identity of the system parameters, the first type tongues merge together. The transition between the synchronization tongues can occur without bifurcations, i.e., transition between the synchronized regimes with different periods of oscillations can occur gradually.

Vaginal progesterone reduces the rate of preterm birth in women with a sonographic short cervix: a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: Women with a sonographic short cervix in the mid-trimester are at increased risk for preterm delivery. This study was undertaken to determine the efficacy and safety of using micronized vaginal progesterone gel to reduce the risk of preterm birth and associated neonatal complications in women with a sonographic short cervix. METHODS: This was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that enrolled asymptomatic women with a singleton pregnancy and a sonographic short cervix (10-20 mm) at 19 + 0 to 23 + 6 weeks of gestation. Women were allocated randomly to receive vaginal progesterone gel or placebo daily starting from 20 to 23 + 6 weeks until 36 + 6 weeks, rupture of membranes or delivery, whichever occurred first. Randomization sequence was stratified by center and history of a previous preterm birth. The primary endpoint was preterm birth before 33 weeks of gestation. Analysis was by intention to treat. RESULTS: Of 465 women randomized, seven were lost to follow-up and 458 (vaginal progesterone gel, n=235; placebo, n=223) were included in the analysis. Women allocated to receive vaginal progesterone had a lower rate of preterm birth before 33 weeks than did those allocated to placebo (8.9% (n=21) vs 16.1% (n=36); relative risk (RR), 0.55; 95% CI, 0.33-0.92; P=0.02). The effect remained significant after adjustment for covariables (adjusted RR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.31-0.91; P=0.02). Vaginal progesterone was also associated with a significant reduction in the rate of preterm birth before 28 weeks (5.1% vs 10.3%; RR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.25-0.97; P=0.04) and 35 weeks (14.5% vs 23.3%; RR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.42-0.92; P=0.02), respiratory distress syndrome (3.0% vs 7.6%; RR, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.17-0.92; P=0.03), any neonatal morbidity or mortality event (7.7% vs 13.5%; RR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.33-0.99; P=0.04) and birth weight < 1500 g (6.4% (15/234) vs 13.6% (30/220); RR, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.26-0.85; P=0.01). There were no differences in the incidence of treatment-related adverse events between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The administration of vaginal progesterone gel to women with a sonographic short cervix in the mid-trimester is associated with a 45% reduction in the rate of preterm birth before 33 weeks of gestation and with improved neonatal outcome.

Phase multistability and phase synchronization in an array of locally coupled period-doubling oscillators.

We consider phase multistability and phase synchronization phenomena in a chain of period-doubling oscillators. The synchronization in arrays of diffusively coupled self-sustained oscillators manifests itself as rotating wave regimes, which are characterized by equal amplitudes and phases in every site which are shifted by a constant value. The value of the phase shift is preserved while the shape of motion becomes more complex through a period-doubling cascade. The number of coexisting attractors increases drastically after the transition from period-one to period-two oscillations and then after every following period-doubling bifurcation. In the chaotic region, we observe a number of phase-synchronized modes with instantaneous phases locked in different values. The loss of phase synchronization with decreasing coupling is accompanied by intermittency between several synchronous regimes.

Suppression of high-p{T} neutral pion production in central Pb+Pb collisions at sqrt[S{NN}]=17.3 GeV relative to p+C and p+Pb collisions.

Neutral pion transverse momentum spectra were measured in p+C and p+Pb collisions at sqrt[S{NN}]=17.4 GeV at midrapidity (2.3 less than or approximately equal eta{lab} less than or approximately equal 3.0) over the range 0.7 less than or approximately equal p{T} less than or approximately equal 3.5 GeV/c. The spectra are compared to pi{0} spectra measured in Pb+Pb collisions at sqrt[S{NN}]=17.3 GeV in the same experiment. For a wide range of Pb+Pb centralities (N{part} less than or approximately equal 300), the yield of pi{0}'s with p{T} greater than or approximately equal 2 GeV/c is larger than or consistent with the p+C or p+Pb yields scaled with the number of nucleon-nucleon collisions (N{coll}), while for central Pb+Pb collisions with N{part}greater than or approximately equal 350, the pi{0} yield is suppressed.

Role of saddle tori in the mutual synchronization of periodic oscillations.

We show that in the mutual synchronization of periodic oscillators, besides an attracting torus, there is also a saddle torus that plays an equally important role. We demonstrate that the saddle and stable tori form an elegant structure, allowing for a variety of phenomena, both known and new, related to the origin and evolution of coexisting synchronous regimes (phase multistability).

Quantitative analysis of chaotic synchronization by means of coherence.

We use an index of chaotic synchronization based on the averaged coherence function for the quantitative analysis of the process of the complete synchronization loss in unidirectionally coupled oscillators and maps. We demonstrate that this value manifests different stages of the synchronization breaking. It is invariant to time delay and insensitive to small noise and distortions, which can influence the accessible signals at measurements. Peculiarities of the synchronization destruction in maps and oscillators are investigated.

Interferometry of direct photons in central 208Pb + 208Pb collisions at 158A GeV.

Two-particle correlations of direct photons were measured in central 208Pb+208Pb collisions at 158A GeV. The invariant interferometric radii were extracted for 100

Information theoretic approach to quantify complete and phase synchronization of chaos.

Based on an information theory approach we suggest a quantitative characteristic for evaluating the degree of chaotic synchronization. The proposed characteristic is tested for the cases of complete and phase synchronization of chaos. It is shown that this characteristic is stable with respect to the influence of small noise and nonlinear signal distortion.

[Anesthesia in the early postoperative period in patients who had undergone extensive surgical interventions on the colon with plastic repair]. / Anesteziia v rannem posleoperatsionnom periode u bol'nykh, perenesshikh obshirnye khirurgicheskie vmeshatel'stva na tolstoi kishke s élementami plastiki.

Reconstructive plastic (n = 24) and repair operations (n = 23) on the colon were performed in 47 patients at Coloproctology Research Center (Moscow). The patients were divided into 2 groups administered different anesthesias and postoperative analgesias: total intravenous anesthesia (TIA) and combined epidural anesthesia (CEA). Adequate analgesia by CEA and early activation of patients after the operation promoted earlier (by 2 days) recovery of the motor function of the intestine than after TIA and traditional intramuscular analgesia with a narcotic analgetic. CEA ensured complete blocking of nociceptive pulsation and neurovegetative protection a with lower doses of narcotics during the postoperative period and can be used in this type of operations and postoperative management. CEA prevented gastrointestinal pareses, improved microcirculation and metabolic processes at the zone of intervention, and decreased the incidence of postoperative complications.

Multistability formation and synchronization loss in coupled Hénon maps: two sides of the single bifurcational mechanism.

We investigate phenomena of multistability and complete chaos synchronization in coupled Hénon maps, which is an invertible system. Multiparametric analysis of a selected family of periodic orbits for coupled Henon maps shows that a single bifurcational mechanism describes both a loss of chaos synchronization and multistability formation. The process of bubbling transition and riddle basins, and the multistability formation in invertible systems are described in detail.

Three-pion interferometry results from central Pb+Pb collisions at 158A GeV/c.

Three-particle correlations have been measured for identified pi(-) from central 158A GeV Pb+Pb collisions by the WA98 experiment at CERN. A substantial contribution of the genuine three-body correlation has been found as expected for a mainly chaotic and symmetric source.

Loss of lag synchronization in coupled chaotic systems.

Lag synchronization denotes a particular form of synchronization in which the amplitudes of two interacting, nonidentical chaotic oscillators are correlated but there is a characteristic time delay between them. We study transitions to and between different forms of synchronization for the attractors defined as "in-phase" and "out-of-phase" and investigate the processes by which lag synchronization is lost in two coupled Rössler systems. With a small frequency mismatch between the two systems, these processes are related to the occurrence of a peculiar form of basin structure as more and more periodic orbits embedded into the synchronized chaotic state become unstable in a transverse direction.

[Comparative epidemiology of arterial hypertension in the native and migrant male population of Chukotka and Novosibirsk]. / Sravnitel'naia kharakteristika epidemiologii arterial'noi gipertenzii u korennogo i prishlogo muzhskogo naseleniia Chukotki i Novosibirska.

The paper provides the results of a prospective epidemiological study of the prevalence of arterial hypertension in three populations: Chukotka's aborigines and migrants and a Novosibirsk's population. The most unfavourable epidemiological situation for arterial hypertension was found to be in migrant males aged 30-59 years. A medical examination is proposed among young migrants in the first years of adaptation in the North.

[Knowledge of health problems among male non-autochthonous population of Chukotka]. / Informirovannost' o problemakh zdorov'ia muzhskogo nekorennogo naseleniia Chukotki.

In the random sample of 762 males aged 30-59 years who had moved to Chukotka, the attitude towards their health, a physician, bad habits, and prevention of diseases was examined within the Programme on Epidemiology of Major Non-Communicable Diseases and Their Risk Factors among the residents of the Chukotsky Autonomous District. The non-aboriginal Chukotka's population having higher risk factors showed decreased self-appraisal of their health, inadequate awareness of their health and risk factors for diseases. However, the majority of the male population consider it useful to be surveyed, which should be borne in mind in implementing educational measures among these population groups.