cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Probes of the mitochondrial cAMP-dependent protein kinase
Creators: name: Shell, Jennifer R.
name: Lawrence, David S.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2013

description: The development of a fluorescent assay to detect activity of the mitochondrial cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) is described. A peptide-based sensor was utilized to quantify the relative amount of PKA activity present in each compartment of the mitochondria (the outer membrane, the intermembrane space, and the matrix). In the process of validating this assay, we discovered that PKA activity is regulated by the protease calpain. Upon exposure of bovine heart mitochondria to digitonin, Ca2+, and a variety of electron transport chain inhibitors, the regulatory subunits of the PKA holoenzyme (R2C2) are digested, releasing active catalytic subunits. This proteolysis is attenuated by calpain inhibitor I (ALLN).
Accuracy of the ActivPAL and Fitbit Charge 2 in measuring step count in Cystic Fibrosis
Creators: name: Curran, Maire
name: Tierney, Audrey
name: Collins, Louise
name: Kennedy, Lauren
name: McDonnell, Ciara
name: Sheikhi, Ali
name: Walsh, Cathal
name: Casserly, Brian
name: Cahalan, Róisín
Publisher: name: University of Limerick
Year: 2024
Subjects: classificationCode: 42
subject: Health sciences
subject: FOS: Health sciences

description: Background: Physical activity (PA) is important in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) management. Fitness wear?ables are becoming increasingly popular as measurement tools of PA; however, the accuracy of these devices should first be evaluated.Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of the ActivPAL and Fitbit Charge 2 as a measure of step count in Cystic Fibrosis.Methods: Twenty-one participants were recruited from an adult CF Center in Ireland for a single session of testing. Participants walked for 5 min at five pre-determined speeds in a controlled testing environment (2, 2.5, 3, 3.5 and 4 miles per hour on a treadmill) and at three self-selected speeds in a corridor (slow, medium, and fast). They concurrently wore an accelerometer (ActivPAL) and fitness wearable (Fitbit Charge 2), and both were compared to visual observations. Step count is the outcome being assessed.Results: The ActivPAL under-estimated step count by 0.63% across treadmill speeds and 1.1% across self-selected walking speeds. The Fitbit Charge 2 underestimated the step count by 2.97% across treadmill speeds and by 6.3% across self-selected walking speeds. Very strong correlations were found between the ActivPAL and visual observations (r: 0.93 to 0.99), while the Fitbit Charge 2 ranged from weak to very strong correlations when compared to visual observations (r: 0.34 to 0.84).Conclusion: The ActivPAL and Fitbit Charge 2 demonstrated acceptable validity for step count measurement in CF. These devices can be used for tracking PA during interventions in people with CF.
Simple Sequence Repeats in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health: An Ethnically Diverse Resource for Genetic Analysis of Health and Behavior
Creators: name: Hewitt, John K.
name: Haberstick, Brett C.
name: Halpern, Carolyn T.
name: Lessem, Jeffrey M.
name: Hewitt, Christina
name: Pardo, Alicia
name: Roy, Forest
name: Rick Casey, H.
name: Harris, Kathleen Mullan
name: Ryals, Lauren A.
name: Stetler, Gary L.
name: Killeya-Jones, Ley A.
name: Roy, Taylor
name: Whitsel, Eric A.
name: Smolen, Andrew
name: Tabor, Joyce W.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2014

description: Simple sequence repeats (SSRs) are one of the earliest available forms of genetic variation available for analysis and have been utilized in studies of neurological, behavioral, and health phenotypes. Although findings from these studies have been suggestive, their interpretation has been complicated by a variety of factors including, among others, limited power due to small sample sizes. The current report details the availability, diversity, and allele and genotype frequencies of six commonly examined SSRs in the ethnically diverse, population-based National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). A total of 106,743 genotypes were generated across 15,140 participants that included four microsatellites and two di-nucleotide repeats in three dopamine genes (DAT1, DRD4, DRD5), the serotonin transporter (5HTT), and monoamine oxidase A (MAOA). Allele and genotype frequencies showed a complex pattern and differed significantly between populations. For both di-nucleotide repeats we observed a greater allelic diversity than previously reported. The availability of these six SSRs in a large, ethnically diverse sample with extensive environmental measures assessed longitudinally offers a unique resource for researchers interested in health and behavior.
Reading ability and print exposure: item response theory analysis of the author recognition test
Creators: name: Gordon, Peter C.
name: Moore, Mariah
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2015

description: In the Author Recognition Test (ART) participants are presented with a series of names and foils and are asked to indicate which ones they recognize as authors. The test is a strong predictor of reading skill, with this predictive ability generally explained as occurring because author knowledge is likely acquired through reading or other forms of print exposure. This large-scale study (1012 college student participants) used Item Response Theory (IRT) to analyze item (author) characteristics to facilitate identification of the determinants of item difficulty, provide a basis for further test development, and to optimize scoring of the ART. Factor analysis suggests a potential two factor structure of the ART differentiating between literary vs. popular authors. Effective and ineffective author names were identified so as to facilitate future revisions of the ART. Analyses showed that the ART is a highly significant predictor of time spent encoding words as measured using eye-tracking during reading. The relationship between the ART and time spent reading provided a basis for implementing a higher penalty for selecting foils, rather than the standard method of ART scoring (names selected minus foils selected). The findings provide novel support for the view that the ART is a valid indicator of reading volume. Further, they show that frequency data can be used to select items of appropriate difficulty and that frequency data from corpora based on particular time periods and types of text may allow test adaptation for different populations.
Attributions for Relatives' Behavior and Perceived Criticism: Studies With Community Participants and Patients With Anxiety Disorders
Creators: name: Simmons, Rachel A.
name: Chambless, Dianne L.
name: Blake, Kimberly D.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2010

description: The relationship between perceived criticism from one’s relative and attributions about that relative’s behavior was examined in two studies. In Study 1, 50 community couples volunteered to participate in a study of marital interaction. Participants rated their interaction-specific perceived criticism after a 10-min problem-solving interaction and their attributions for their spouses’ behavior during a review of the videotaped interaction. In Study 2, 70 outpatients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (n = 41) or panic disorder with agoraphobia (n = 29) completed a measure of global perceived criticism in their relationship with their spouse or other family member and on another occasion participated in a 10-min problem-solving interaction with that relative. Using interaction transcripts, coders extracted and coded attributions from patients’ speech and, using the videotapes themselves, rated relatives’ observable criticism. In both studies higher scores on negative attributions were related to higher perceived criticism ratings. In Study 2, negative attributions contributed to the prediction of perceived criticism above and beyond the contribution of observed criticism. These findings suggest that targeting attributions about perceived criticism may be fruitful in reducing the negative impact of perceived criticism on treatment outcome for a variety of psychiatric disorders.
Merger seismology: Asteroseismic properties of massive merger products
Creators: name: Henneco, Jan
name: Schneider, Fabian R. N.
name: Hekker, Saskia
name: Aerts, Conny
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024

description: Products of stellar mergers are likely common in stellar populations and can potentially explain stars with peculiar properties. Massive post-main-sequence (post-MS) stellar merger products may remain on the blue side of the Hertzsprung gap (HG) for millions of years and, hence, provide a natural explanation for the overabundance of observed B-type stars. Distinguishing merger products from genuine single stars (GSSs) based on surface diagnostics alone is not straightforward. We make model-by-model asteroseismic comparisons between massive post-MS merger products and GSSs to identify which asteroseismic diagnostics can be used to distinguish them. Merger products on the blue side of the HG have convective helium-burning cores, while GSSs (M < 11.4 M⊙) with similar surface diagnostics are fully radiative. As a result, merger products have significantly lower asymptotic period spacing values. The presence of a convective hydrogen-burning shell in merger products causes the appearance of deep dips in their period spacing patterns (PSPs). GSSs of more than 11.4 M⊙ have a short-lived intermediate convective zone, which causes similar deep dips in their PSPs. We perform these comparisons with and without the effects of slow rotation included in the pulsation equations and conclude that the two types of stars are seismically distinguishable in both cases. The observability of the distinguishing asteroseismic features of merger products can now be further assessed and exploited in practice.
Prenatal phthalate exposures and child temperament at 12 and 24 months
Creators: name: Calafat, A.M.
name: Engel, S.M.
name: Silva, M.J.
name: Wolff, M.S.
name: Singer, A.B.
Publisher: name: Elsevier B.V.
Year: 2017

description: Introduction Gestational phthalate exposures have been adversely associated with attention, externalizing, and internalizing behaviors in childhood. Early childhood temperament may be a marker of later behavioral patterns. We therefore sought to determine whether gestational phthalate exposures were associated with infant and toddler temperament. Methods The Mount Sinai Children's Environmental Health Study is a prospective cohort study of children born between May 1998 and July 2001 in New York City (N = 404). Phthalate metabolites were measured in spot urine samples collected from pregnant women in their third trimester. Child temperament was assessed by parental report at 12-months using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ) (N = 204) and at 24-months using the Toddler Behavior Assessment Questionnaire (TBAQ) (N = 279). We used multiple linear regression to evaluate associations between urinary phthalate metabolites and eleven temperament domains. Results Phthalate biomarker concentrations were weakly associated with lower gross motor activity levels as well as higher duration of orienting at the 12-month assessment. Mono(3-carboxypropyl) phthalate (MCPP), monobenzyl phthalate (MBzP) and the sum of metabolites of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (∑DEHP) were associated with lower levels of smiling and laughing at 12 months. At 24-months, social fear and lower pleasure was linked to higher concentrations of MCPP and MBzP, and higher ∑DEHP was weakly associated with increased anger levels at 24-months. Conclusions Though we observed some weak associations between biomarkers of prenatal exposure to phthalates and temperament at 12- and 24-months, overall phthalates biomarkers were not strongly associated with alterations in temperament.
A Clinical Trial of In-Home CBT for Depressed Mothers in Home Visitation
Creators: name: Stevens, Jack
name: Teeters, Angelique R.
name: Van Ginkel, Judith B.
name: Ammerman, Robert T.
name: Putnam, Frank W.
name: Altaye, Mekibib
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2013

description: Despite negative outcomes for depressed mothers and their children, no treatment specifically designed to address maternal depression in the context of home visitation has emerged. In-Home Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (IH-CBT) is an adapted treatment that is delivered in the home, focuses on the needs of new mothers, and leverages ongoing home visiting to optimize engagement and outcomes. This study examined the efficacy of IH-CBT using a randomized clinical trial. Subjects were 93 new mothers in a home visiting program. Mothers with major depressive disorder identified at 3 months postpartum were randomized into IH-CBT and ongoing home visitation (n=47) or standard home visitation (SHV; n=46) in which they received home visitation alone and could obtain treatment in the community. Depression was measured at pre- and posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up using interviews, clinician ratings, and self-report. Mothers receiving IH-CBT showed improvements in all indicators of depression relative to the SHV condition and these gains were maintained at follow-up. For example, 70.7% of mothers receiving IH-CBT were no longer depressed at posttreatment in terms of meeting criteria for major depressive disorder compared to 30.2% in the SHV group. These findings suggest that IH-CBT is an efficacious treatment for depressed mothers in home visitation programs.
Cosmological perturbation theory in 1+1 dimensions
Creators: name: McQuinn, Matthew
name: White, Martin
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Many recent studies have highlighted certain failures of the standard Eulerian-space cosmological perturbation theory (SPT). Its problems include (1) not capturing large-scale bulk flows [leading to an O(1) error in the 1-loop SPT prediction for the baryon acoustic peak in the correlation function], (2) assuming that the Universe behaves as a pressureless, inviscid fluid, and (3) treating fluctuations on scales that are non-perturbative as if they were. Recent studies have highlighted the successes of perturbation theory in Lagrangian space or theories that solve equations for the effective dynamics of smoothed fields. Both approaches mitigate some or all of the aforementioned issues with SPT. We discuss these physical developments by specializing to the simplified 1D case of gravitationally interacting sheets, which allows us to substantially reduces the analytic overhead and still (as we show) maintain many of the same behaviors as in 3D. In 1D, linear-order Lagrangian perturbation theory ("the Zeldovich approximation") is exact up to shell crossing, and we prove that n^{th}-order Eulerian perturbation theory converges to the Zeldovich approximation as n goes to infinity. In no 1D cosmology that we consider (including a CDM-like case and power-law models) do these theories describe accurately the matter power spectrum on any mildly nonlinear scale. We find that theories based on effective equations are much more successful at describing the dynamics. Finally, we discuss many topics that have recently appeared in the perturbation theory literature such as beat coupling, the shift and smearing of the baryon acoustic oscillation feature, and the advantages of Fourier versus configuration space. Our simplified 1D case serves as an intuitive review of these perturbation theory results.
description: 28 pages + appendices; 10 figures; matches version accepted to JCAP
A Proof for Poisson Bracket in Non-commutative Algebra of Quantum Mechanics
Creators: name: Khorasani, Sina
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The widely accepted approach to the foundation of quantum mechanics is that the Poisson bracket, governing the non-commutative algebra of operators, is taken as a postulate with no underlying physics. In this manuscript, it is shown that this postulation is in fact unnecessary and may be replaced by a few deeper concepts, which ultimately lead to the derivation of Poisson bracket. One would only need to use Fourier transform pairs and Kramers-Kronig identities in the complex domain. We present a definition of Hermitian time-operator and discuss some of its basic properties.
Prenatal exposure to pyrethroid pesticides and childhood behavior and executive functioning
Creators: name: Barr, D.B.
name: Furlong, M.A.
name: Wolff, M.S.
name: Engel, S.M.
Publisher: name: Elsevier B.V.
Year: 2017

description: Several previous studies of pyrethroid biomarkers and behavior have reported associations between concurrent pyrethroid levels and adverse behavioral problems in children. One geospatial study reported associations between prenatal exposure to pyrethroids and autism. However, the association between prenatal pyrethroid biomarkers and childhood behavior is unknown. The Mount Sinai Children's Environmental Health Center is a prospective birth cohort with urinary pyrethroid biomarkers during pregnancy and behavioral measurements at 4, 6, and 7–9 years of age. Primiparous women were enrolled between 1998 and 2002. 162 mother/child pairs with complete exposure and behavioral outcomes data were used to investigate associations between detectable levels of prenatal pyrethroid metabolites and scores on the Behavioral Assessment System for Children and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function. Overall, detection frequencies of pyrethroid metabolites were low (<30%). In longitudinal mixed models, detectable levels of 3-PBA during pregnancy were associated with worse Internalizing (β −4.50, 95% CI −8.05, −0.95), Depression (β −3.21, 95% CI −6.38, −0.05), Somatization (β −3.22, 95% CI −6.38, −0.06), Behavioral Regulation (β −3.59, 95% CI −6.97, −0.21), Emotional Control (β −3.35, 95% CI −6.58, −0.12), Shifting (β −3.42, 95% CI −6.73, −0.11), and Monitoring (β −4.08, 95% CI −7.07, −1.08) scales. Detectable levels of cis-DCCA were associated with worse Externalizing (β −4.74, 95% CI −9.37, −0.10), Conduct Problems (β −5.35, 95% CI −9.90, −0.81), Behavioral Regulation (β −6.42, 95% CI −11.39, −1.45), and Inhibitory Control (β −7.20, 95% CI −12.00, −2.39). Although detection frequencies of pyrethroid metabolites were low, we found suggestive evidence that prenatal exposure to 3-PBA and cis-DCCA may be associated with a variety of behavioral and executive functioning deficits.
Behavior Therapy and Callous-Unemotional Traits: Effects of a Pilot Study Examining Modified Behavioral Contingencies on Child Behavior
Creators: name: Crum, Kathleen I.
name: Helseth, Sarah A.
name: Coles, Erika K.
name: Pelham,, William E.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2014

description: The conduct problems of children with callous-unemotional traits (i.e., lack of empathy, guilt/lack of caring behaviors) (CU) are particularly resistant to current behavioral interventions, and it is possible that differential sensitivities to punishment and reward may underlie this resistance. Children with conduct problems and CU (CPCU) are less responsive to behavioral punishment techniques (e.g., time-out), however reward techniques (e.g., earning points for prizes or activities) are effective for reducing conduct problems. This study examined the efficacy of modified behavioral interventions, which de-emphasized punishment (condition B) and emphasized reward techniques (condition C), compared to a standard behavioral intervention (condition A). Interventions were delivered through a Summer Treatment Program over seven weeks with an A-B-A-C-A-BC-A design to a group of eleven children (7–11 years; 91% male). All children were diagnosed with either oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder, in addition to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Results revealed the best treatment response occurred during the low punishment condition, with rates of negative behavior (e.g., aggression, teasing, stealing) increasing over the seven weeks. However, there was substantial individual variability in treatment response, and several children demonstrated improvement during the modified intervention conditions. Future research is necessary to disentangle treatment effects from order effects, and implications of group treatment of CPCU children (i.e., deviancy training) are discussed.
IPBES invasive alien species assessment, data management report for Chapter 3. Section 3.3.4.1: Temperature change
Creators: name: Pergl, Jan
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Data management report

description: Section 3.3.4.1 assesses the role of temperature and its change as a driver of biological invasions. The experts conducted a systematic review to report on the existing knowledge on this driver. This systematic review consists in the main source of evidence for the section.
On Conditional Prediction Errors in Mixed Models with Application to Small Area Estimation
Creators: name: Sugasawa, Shonosuke
name: Kubokawa, Tatsuya
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Methodology (stat.ME)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: The empirical Bayes estimators in mixed models are useful for small area estimation in the sense of increasing precision of prediction for small area means, and one wants to know the prediction errors of the empirical Bayes estimators based on the data. This paper is concerned with conditional prediction errors in the mixed models instead of conventional unconditional prediction errors. In the mixed models based on natural exponential families with quadratic variance functions, it is shown that the difference between the conditional and unconditional prediction errors is significant under distributions far from normality. Especially for the binomial-beta mixed and the Poisson-gamma mixed models, the leading terms in the conditional prediction errors are, respectively, a quadratic concave function and an increasing function of the direct estimate in the small area, while the corresponding leading terms in the unconditional prediction errors are constants. Second-order unbiased estimators of the conditional prediction errors are also derived and their performances are examined through simulation and empirical studies.
Birth outcomes among adolescent and young adult cancer survivors
Creators: name: Nichols, H.B.
name: Black, K.Z.
name: Wood, W.A.
name: Anderson, C.
name: Anders, C.K.
name: Engel, S.M.
name: Mersereau, J.E.
Publisher: name: American Medical Association
Year: 2017

description: IMPORTANCE: Cancer diagnosis and treatment may adversely affect reproductive outcomes among female cancer survivors. OBJECTIVE: To compare the birth outcomes of adolescent and young adult cancer survivors (AYA [diagnosed at ages 15-39 years]) with those of women without a cancer diagnosis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The North Carolina Central Cancer Registry (CCR) was used to identify female AYA cancer survivors diagnosed from January 2000 to December 2013; CCR records were linked to statewide birth certificate files from January 2000 to December 2014 to identify postdiagnosis live births to AYA survivors (n = 2598). A comparison cohort of births to women without a recorded cancer diagnosis was randomly selected from birth certificate files (n = 12 990) with frequency matching on maternal age and year of delivery. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Prevalence of preterm birth, low birth weight, small-for-gestational-age births, cesarean delivery, and low Apgar score. RESULTS: Overall, 2598 births to AYA cancer survivors (mean [SD] maternal age, 31 [5] years) were included. Births to AYA cancer survivors had a significantly increased prevalence of preterm birth (prevalence ratio [PR], 1.52; 95% CI, 1.34-1.71), low birth weight (PR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.38-1.83), and cesarean delivery (PR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.01-1.14) relative to the comparison cohort of 1299. The higher prevalence of these outcomes was most concentrated among births to women diagnosed during pregnancy. Other factors associated with preterm birth and low birth weight included treatment with chemotherapy and a diagnosis of breast cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, or gynecologic cancers. The prevalence of small-for-gestational-age births and low Apgar score (<7) did not differ significantly between groups. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Live births to AYA cancer survivors may have an increased risk of preterm birth and low birth weight, suggesting that additional surveillance of pregnancies in this population is warranted. Our findings may inform the reproductive counseling of female AYA cancer survivors.
Equilibrium phase diagram of a randomly pinned glass-former
Creators: name: Ozawa, Misaki
name: Kob, Walter
name: Ikeda, Atsushi
name: Miyazaki, Kunimasa
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We use computer simulations to study the thermodynamic properties of a glass former in which a fraction $c$ of the particles has been permanently frozen. By thermodynamic integration, we determine the Kauzmann, or ideal glass transition, temperature $T_K(c)$ at which the configurational entropy vanishes. This is done without resorting to any kind of extrapolation, {\it i.e.}, $T_K(c)$ is indeed an equilibrium property of the system. We also measure the distribution function of the overlap, {\it i.e.}, the order parameter that signals the glass state. We find that the transition line obtained from the overlap coincides with that obtained from the thermodynamic integration, thus showing that the two approaches give the same transition line. Finally we determine the geometrical properties of the potential energy landscape, notably the $T-$and $c-$dependence of the saddle index and use these properties to obtain the dynamic transition temperature $T_d(c)$. The two temperatures $T_K(c)$ and $T_d(c)$ cross at a finite value of $c$ and indicate the point at which the glass transition line ends. These findings are qualitatively consistent with the scenario proposed by the random first order transition theory.
description: 14 pages, 11 figures, published version
Left truncation bias to explain the protective effect of smoking on preeclampsia potential, but how plausible?
Creators: name: Keil, A.P.
name: Brookhart, M.A.
name: Poole, C.
name: Engel, S.M.
name: Buckley, J.P.
name: Kinlaw, A.C.
Publisher: name: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
Year: 2017

description: Background: An inverse association between maternal smoking and preeclampsia has been frequently observed in epidemiologic studies for several decades. In the May 2015 issue of this journal, Lisonkova and Joseph described a simulation study suggesting that bias from left truncation might explain the inverse association. The simulations were based on strong assumptions regarding the underlying mechanisms through which bias might occur. Methods: To examine the sensitivity of the previous authors' conclusions to these assumptions, we constructed a new Monte Carlo simulation using published estimates to frame our data-generating parameters. We estimated the association between smoking and preeclampsia across a range of scenarios that incorporated abnormal placentation and early pregnancy loss. Results: Our results confirmed that the previous authors' findings are highly dependent on assumptions regarding the strength of association between abnormal placentation and preeclampsia. Thus, the bias they described may be less pronounced than was suggested. Conclusions: Under empirically derived constraints of these critical assumptions, left truncation does not appear to fully explain the inverse association between smoking and preeclampsia. Furthermore, when considering processes in which left truncation may result from the exposure, it is important to precisely describe the target population and parameter of interest before assessing potential bias. We comment on the specification of a meaningful target population when assessing maternal smoking and preeclampsia as a public health issue. We describe considerations for defining a target population in studies of perinatal exposures when those exposures cause competing events (e.g., early pregnancy loss) for primary outcomes of interest.
Fast quasi-centroid molecular dynamics for water and ice
Creators: name: Lawrence, Joseph E.
name: Lieberherr, Annina Z.
name: Fletcher, Theo
name: Manolopoulos, David E.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Chemical Physics (physics.chem-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We describe how the fast quasi-centroid molecular dynamics (f-QCMD) method can be applied to condensed phase systems by approximating the quasi-centroid potential of mean force as a sum of inter- and intra-molecular corrections to the classical interaction potential. The corrections are found by using a regularised iterative Boltzmann inversion procedure to recover the inter- and intra-molecular quasi-centroid distribution functions obtained from a path integral molecular dynamics simulation. The resulting methodology is found to give good agreement with a previously published QCMD dipole absorption spectrum for liquid water, and satisfactory agreement for ice. It also gives good agreement with spectra from a recent implementation of CMD that uses a pre-computed elevated temperature potential of mean force. Modern centroid molecular dynamics methods therefore appear to be reaching a consensus regarding the impact of nuclear quantum effects on the vibrational spectra of water and ice.
description: 10 pages, 4 figures, plus supplementary information and toc figure
Effects of sample handling and analytical procedures on thyroid hormone concentrations in pregnant women's plasma
Creators: name: Knudsen, G.P.
name: Zoeller, R.T.
name: Aase, H.
name: Ask, H.
name: Longnecker, M.P.
name: Zeiner, P.
name: Engel, S.M.
name: Learner, E.
name: Reichborn-Kjennerud, T.
name: Villanger, G.D.
Publisher: name: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
Year: 2017

description: Background: Maternal thyroid function is a critical mediator of fetal brain development. Pregnancy-related physiologic changes and handling conditions of blood samples may influence thyroid hormone biomarkers. We investigated the reliability of thyroid hormone biomarkers in plasma of pregnant women under various handling conditions. Methods: We enrolled 17 pregnant women; collected serum and plasma were immediately frozen. Additional plasma aliquots were subjected to different handling conditions before the analysis of thyroid biomarkers: storage at room temperature for 24 or 48 hours before freezing and an extra freeze-Thaw cycle. We estimated free thyroid hormone indices in plasma based on T3 uptake. Results: High correlations between plasma and serum (>0.94) and intraclass correlation coefficients for plasma handling conditions (0.96 to 1.00) indicated excellent reliability for all thyroid hormone biomarkers. Conclusion: Delayed freezing and freeze-Thaw cycles did not affect reliability of biomarkers of thyroid function in plasma during pregnancy. See video abstract at, http://links.lww.com/EDE/B180.
The Sense of Incompleteness as a Motivator of Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms: An Empirical Analysis of Concepts and Correlates
Creators: name: Sica, Claudio
name: McKay, Dean
name: Crowe, Katherine B.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2014

description: Contemporary models of obsessive-compulsive disorder emphasize the importance of harm avoidance (HA) and related dysfunctional beliefs as motivators of obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms. Recently, there has been a resurgence of interest in Janet’s (1908) concept of incompleteness (INC) as another potentially important motivator. Contemporary investigators define INC as the sense that one’s actions, intentions, or experiences have not been properly achieved. Janet defined INC more broadly to include alexithymia, depersonalization, derealization, and impaired psychological mindedness. We conducted two studies to address four issues: (a) the clinical correlates of INC; (b) whether INC and HA are distinguishable constructs; (c) whether INC predicts OC symptoms after controlling for HA; and (d) the relative merits of broad versus narrow conceptualizations of INC. Study 1 was a meta-analysis of the clinical correlates of narrowly defined INC (16 studies, N=5,940). INC was correlated with all types of OC symptoms, and was more strongly correlated with OC symptoms than with general distress. Study 2 (N=534 nonclinical participants) showed that: (a) INC and HA were strongly correlated but factor analytically distinguishable; (b) INC statistically predicted all types of OC symptoms even after controlling for HA; and (c) narrow INC was most strongly correlated with OC symptoms whereas broad INC was most strongly correlated with general distress. Although the findings are limited by being correlational in nature, they support the hypothesis that INC, especially in its narrow form, is a motivator of OC symptoms.
Fundamental Groups of Character Varieties: Surfaces and Tori
Creators: name: Biswas, Indranil
name: Lawton, Sean
name: Ramras, Daniel
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Algebraic Topology (math.AT)
subject: Algebraic Geometry (math.AG)
subject: Representation Theory (math.RT)
subject: FOS: Mathematics
subject: 14D20, 14L30, 14F35

description: We compute the fundamental group of moduli spaces of Lie group valued representations of surface and torus groups.
description: v2: 12 pages, minor edits, accepted for publication at Mathematische Zeitschrift
Gestational weight gain in women with systemic lupus erythematosus
Creators: name: Petri, M.
name: Eudy, A.M.
name: Clowse, M.E.B.
name: Howard, A.G.
name: Engel, S.M.
name: Franceschini, N.
name: Siega-Riz, A.M.
Publisher: name: SAGE Publications Ltd
Year: 2017

description: Objective The objective of this study was to estimate the proportion of pregnant women with systemic lupus erythematosus meeting Institute of Medicine guidelines for gestational weight gain and determine correlates of adherence to guidelines. Methods Singleton, live births in the Hopkins Lupus Pregnancy Cohort 1987-2015 were included. Pre-pregnancy weight was the weight recorded 12 months prior to pregnancy/first trimester. Final weight was the last weight recorded in the third trimester. Adherence to Institute of Medicine guidelines (inadequate, adequate, or excessive) was based on pre-pregnancy body mass index. Fisher's exact test and analysis of variance determined factors associated with not meeting guidelines. Stepwise selection estimated predictors of gestational weight gain. Results Of the 211 pregnancies, 34%, 24% and 42% had inadequate, adequate and excessive gestational weight gain, respectively. In exploratory analyses, differences in Institute of Medicine adherence were observed by pre-pregnancy body mass index, race, elevated creatinine during pregnancy and pre-pregnancy blood pressure. Odds of inadequate and excessive gestational weight gain increased 12% with each 1 kg/m2 increase in pre-pregnancy body mass index. Lower maternal education was associated with increased odds of inadequate and excessive gestational weight gain. Conclusions As in the general population, most women with systemic lupus erythematosus did not meet Institute of Medicine guidelines. Our results identified predictors of gestational weight gain to aid in targeted interventions to improve guideline adherence in this population.
Birth rates after radioactive iodine treatment for differentiated thyroid cancer
Creators: name: Engel, S.M.
name: Nichols, H.B.
name: Anderson, C.
name: Zevallos, J.P.
name: Weaver, M.A.
Publisher: name: Wiley-Liss Inc.
Year: 2017

description: Treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI) for differentiated thyroid cancer has been associated with alterations in gonadal function in women, including changes in menstrual function and an earlier age at menopause. Our objective was to evaluate associations between RAI and postdiagnosis live birth rates among thyroid cancer survivors diagnosed at ages 15–39 years. We identified women diagnosed with differentiated thyroid cancer between January 2000 and December 2013 in the North Carolina Central Cancer Registry (CCR). CCR records were linked to state birth certificate files to identify livebirths to thyroid cancer survivors through December 2014. Person-years of follow-up were accrued from 6 months after diagnosis to first birth, 46th birthday, death, or December 31, 2014, whichever came first. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazards ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for first livebirth. Among 2,360 women with a differentiated thyroid cancer diagnosis, 53% received RAI. The cumulative incidence of birth at the end of follow-up (maximum 14.5 years) was 30.0 and 29.3% among those who were and were not treated with RAI, respectively. Overall, first birth rates did not significantly differ between groups (HR = 1.00; 95% CI: 0.82, 1.23). In our observational cohort, treatment with RAI was not associated with a reduced birth rate. Our findings add to the evidence available for counseling thyroid cancer patients with concerns about future fertility.
Subcortical lesions impact confrontation naming in bilinguals with later age of acquisition: An exploratory study
Creators: name: González, David Andrés
name: Soble, Jason R.
name: Bailey, K. Chase
name: Bain, Kathleen M.
name: Marceaux, Janice C.
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Space Science
subject: Medicine
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy
subject: 111714 Mental Health
subject: FOS: Health sciences

description: The bilingual experience is believed to impact brain development and, possibly, cognitive performance. Subcortical structures, including the striatum and white matter, are believed related to confrontation naming performance among bilingual individuals with later age of acquisition (AoA) and lower proficiency of a second language (L2). However, these findings are primarily derived from healthy adult samples, although there is clinical significance for the interpretation of naming performance. The present study examined whether striatal and white matter lesions were associated with naming tasks in clinic-referred bilingual veterans (n = 29) and whether L2 AoA moderated this relationship. Clinically rated lesions, without regard for AoA, were not consistently correlated with naming performance. Moderation models (lesion × AoA) were significant across naming tasks (i.e., naming scores were negatively correlated with striatal lesions with increasing AoA). Effect sizes were higher among striatal models as compared to white matter models. Results extend prior neuroimaging findings with healthy bilinguals that AoA moderates the relationship between subcortical lesions and naming performance in bilingual patients, and suggests that clinicians should consider specifics of bilingual experience when interpreting test scores.
Extreme Cognitions in Bipolar Spectrum Disorders: Associations With Personality Disorder Characteristics and Risk for Episode Recurrence
Creators: name: Weiss, Rachel B.
name: Ong, Mian-Li
name: Stange, Jonathan P.
name: O’Garro-Moore, Jared K.
name: Walshaw, Patricia D.
name: Adams, Ashleigh Molz
name: Alloy, Lauren B.
name: Abramson, Lyn Y.
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2015

description: Bipolar spectrum disorders (BSDs) are often characterized by cognitive inflexibility and affective extremities, including “extreme” or polarized thoughts and beliefs, which have been shown to predict a more severe course of illness. However, little research has evaluated factors that may be associated with extreme cognitions, such as personality disorders, which are often characterized by extreme, inflexible beliefs and also are associated with poor illness course in BSDs. The present study evaluated associations between BSDs, personality disorder characteristics, and extreme cognitions (polarized responses made on measures of attributional style and dysfunctional attitudes), as well as links between extreme cognitions and the occurrence of mood episodes, among euthymic young adults with BSDs (n = 83) and demographically-matched healthy controls (n = 89) followed prospectively for three years. The relationship between personality disorder characteristics and negative and positive extreme cognitions was stronger among BSD participants than among healthy controls, even after statistically accounting for general cognitive styles. Furthermore, extreme negative cognitions predicted the prospective onset of major depressive and hypomanic episodes. These results suggest that extreme cognitive styles are most common in individuals with BSDs and personality disorder characteristics, and they provide further evidence that extreme negative cognitions may confer risk for mood dysregulation.
Bayesian Evidence and Model Selection
Creators: name: Knuth, Kevin H.
name: Habeck, Michael
name: Malakar, Nabin K.
name: Mubeen, Asim M.
name: Placek, Ben
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Methodology (stat.ME)
subject: Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics (astro-ph.IM)
subject: Applications (stat.AP)
subject: Computation (stat.CO)
subject: Machine Learning (stat.ML)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this paper we review the concepts of Bayesian evidence and Bayes factors, also known as log odds ratios, and their application to model selection. The theory is presented along with a discussion of analytic, approximate and numerical techniques. Specific attention is paid to the Laplace approximation, variational Bayes, importance sampling, thermodynamic integration, and nested sampling and its recent variants. Analogies to statistical physics, from which many of these techniques originate, are discussed in order to provide readers with deeper insights that may lead to new techniques. The utility of Bayesian model testing in the domain sciences is demonstrated by presenting four specific practical examples considered within the context of signal processing in the areas of signal detection, sensor characterization, scientific model selection and molecular force characterization.
description: Arxiv version consists of 58 pages and 9 figures. Features theory, numerical methods and four applications
Effect of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate on sleep in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Creators: name: Roth, Thomas
name: Hamdani, Mohamed
name: Adler, Lenard A
name: Weisler, Richard
name: Goodman, David
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2009

description: BackgroundSleep problems are common in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This analysis aimed to evaluate the impact of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (LDX) on sleep quality in adults with ADHD.MethodsThis 4-week, phase 3, double-blind, forced-dose escalation study of adults aged 18 to 55 years with ADHD randomized participants to receive placebo (n = 62), or 30 (n = 119), 50 (n = 117), or 70 (n = 122) mg/d LDX, taken once a day in the morning. The self-rated Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was administered at baseline and at week 4 to assess sleep quality. The PSQI global score assesses 7 sleep components (subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleeping medications, and daytime dysfunction) each scored from 0 (no difficulty) to 3 (severe difficulty).ResultsThe mean baseline PSQI global score was 5.8 for LDX and 6.3 for placebo (P = .19) indicating poor overall sleep quality. At endpoint, least squares (LS) mean change from baseline was -0.8 for LDX vs -0.5 for placebo (P = .33). The daytime functioning component showed significant improvement in LS mean change at endpoint for LDX compared with placebo (LDX -0.4 vs placebo 0.0, P = .0001). LS mean changes for the other 6 PSQI components did not significantly differ from placebo. Sleep-related treatment-emergent adverse events with an incidence ≥2% in the active treatment and placebo groups, respectively, were insomnia (19.3% and 4.8%), initial insomnia (5.0% and 3.2%), middle insomnia (3.6% and 0%), sleep disorder (0.6% and 3.2%), somnolence (0.3% and 3.2%), and fatigue (4.7% and 4.8%), and were generally mild or moderate in severity.ConclusionFor most subjects, LDX was not associated with an overall worsening of sleep quality and significantly improved daytime functioning in adults with ADHD.Trial Registrationclinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00334880
The population of Comet candidates among quasi-Hilda objects revisited and updated
Creators: name: Correa-Otto, J.
name: Garcia-Migani, E.
name: Gil-Hutton, R.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this paper, we perform a dynamical study of the population of objects in the unstable quasi-Hilda region. The aim of this work is to make an update of the population of quasi-Hilda comets (QHCs) that have recently arrived from the Centaurs region. To achieve our goal, we have applied a dynamical criteria to constrain the unstable quasi-Hilda region that allowed us to select 828 potential candidates. The orbital data of the potential candidates was take from the ASTORB database and we apply backward integration to search by those that have recently arrived from the outer regions of the Solar System. Then we studied the dynamical evolution of the candidates from a statistical point of view by calculating the time-averaged distribution of a number of clones of each candidate as a function of aphelion and perihelion distances. We found that 47 objects could have been recently injected into the inner Solar System from the Centaur or transneptunian regions. These objects may have preserved volatile material and are candidates to exhibit cometary activity.
description: 7 pages 3 figures
Thick brane in $f(R)$ gravity with Palatini dynamics
Creators: name: Bazeia, D.
name: Losano, L.
name: Menezes, R.
name: Olmo, Gonzalo J.
name: Rubiera-Garcia, D.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: This work deals with modified gravity in five dimensional spacetime. We study a thick Palatini $f(R)$ brane, that is, a braneworld scenario described by an anti-de Sitter warped geometry with a single extra dimension of infinite extent, sourced by real scalar field under the Palatini approach, where the metric and the connection are regarded as independent degrees of freedom. We consider a first-order framework which we use to provide exact solutions for the scalar field and warp factor. We also investigate a perturbative scenario such that the Palatini approach is implemented through a Lagrangian $f(R)=R+εR^n$, where the small parameter $ε$ controls the deviation from the standard thick brane case.
description: 8 double-column pages, 10 figures, revtex4-1 style. Several modificacions added in Sections I, II, III and IV. To appear in Eur. Phys. J. C