Minimum aberration designs for discrete choice experiments

A discrete choice experiment (DCE) is a survey method that givesinsight into individual preferences for particular attributes.Traditionally, methods for constructing DCEs focus on identifyingthe individual effect of each attribute (a main effect). However, aninteraction effect between two attributes (a two-factor interaction)better represents real-life trade-offs, and provides us a better understandingof subjects’ competing preferences. In practice it is oftenunknown which two-factor interactions are significant. To address theuncertainty, we propose the use of minimum aberration blockeddesigns to construct DCEs. Such designs maximize the number ofmodels with estimable two-factor interactions in a DCE with two-levelattributes. We further extend the minimum aberration criteria toDCEs with mixed-level attributes and develop some general theoreticalresults

Some results on 2n−m2^{n-m} designs of resolution IV with (weak) minimum aberration

It is known that all resolution IV regular $2^{n-m}$ designs of run size $N=2^{n-m}$ where $5N/16<n<N/2$ must be projections of the maximal even design with $N/2$ factors and, therefore, are even designs. This paper derives a general and explicit relationship between the wordlength pattern of any even $2^{n-m}$ design and that of its complement in the maximal even design. Using these identities, we identify some (weak) minimum aberration $2^{n-m}$ designs of resolution IV and the structures of their complementary designs. Based on these results, several families of minimum aberration $2^{n-m}$ designs of resolution IV are constructed.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/08-AOS670 the Annals of Statistics (http://www.imstat.org/aos/) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org

Recent Developments in Nonregular Fractional Factorial Designs

Nonregular fractional factorial designs such as Plackett-Burman designs and other orthogonal arrays are widely used in various screening experiments for their run size economy and flexibility. The traditional analysis focuses on main effects only. Hamada and Wu (1992) went beyond the traditional approach and proposed an analysis strategy to demonstrate that some interactions could be entertained and estimated beyond a few significant main effects. Their groundbreaking work stimulated much of the recent developments in design criterion creation, construction and analysis of nonregular designs. This paper reviews important developments in optimality criteria and comparison, including projection properties, generalized resolution, various generalized minimum aberration criteria, optimality results, construction methods and analysis strategies for nonregular designs.Comment: Submitted to the Statistics Surveys (http://www.i-journals.org/ss/) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org

Designing fractional factorial split-plot experiments with few whole-plot factors

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73673/1/j.1467-9876.2003.05029.x.pd

Split-plot designs: What, why, and how

The past decade has seen rapid advances in the development of new methods for the design and analysis of split-plot experiments. Unfortunately, the value of these designs for industrial experimentation has not been fully appreciated. In this paper, we review recent developments and provide guidelines for the use of split-plot designs in industrial applications

Developmental biology of wood formation

The wood-forming vascular cambium is responsible for the production of a large part of the biomass on this planet. Yet, there is only limited knowledge on how cell proliferation and differentiation in the cambial meristem are regulated. In this thesis the wood-forming tissues of aspen were used as a model system to identify and characterize molecular factors related to cambial meristem activity. An important regulator of cambial meristem activity is the plant hormone auxin. As polar transport is crucial for the delivery of auxin to the cambial zone, we identified homologues of known regulators of polar auxin transport and described their regulation by environmental and developmental factors. Translating changes in auxin concentration into changes in gene expression involves members of the Aux/IAA gene family. Aspen homologues of Aux/IAA genes were cloned and found to be expressed in a highly tissue-specific fashion, which is further influenced by developmental events and changes in the environment. A major response of trees to environmental changes is the suspension of meristematic growth during winter dormancy. A comparison of gene expression in active and dormant cambia revealed dramatic changes in the transcriptome including the expression of many cold and stress related genes during winter. During the process of wood formation, cells originating in the vascular cambium go through an elaborate process of cell division, cell expansion, secondary wall formation and programmed cell death. Large-scale analysis of gene expression was used to create transcriptional maps of the differentiation process. This extensive dataset allowed us to confirm the proposed functions of various genes involved in wood formation, assign other known genes to specific stages along the developmental gradient and identify a large number of novel potential regulators of wood formation. The data further suggest that the cambial meristem shares regulatory mechanisms with other meristems in addition to its own, specific factors

Design and analysis of a microplate assay in the presence of multiple restrictions on the randomization

Experiments using multi-step protocols often involve several restrictions on the randomization. For a specific application to in vitro testing on microplates, a design was required with both a split-plot and a strip-plot structure. On top of two-level treatment factors and the factors that define the randomization restrictions, a multi-level fixed blocking factor not involving further restrictions on the randomization had to be added. We develop a step-by-step approach to construct a design for the microplate experiment and analyze a response. To consolidate the approach, we study various alternative scenarios for the experiment.Comment: 31 pages, 13 tables, 4 figure

Structure-based inhibitors of amyloid beta core suggest a common interface with tau.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology is characterized by plaques of amyloid beta (Aβ) and neurofibrillary tangles of tau. Aβ aggregation is thought to occur at early stages of the disease, and ultimately gives way to the formation of tau tangles which track with cognitive decline in humans. Here, we report the crystal structure of an Aβ core segment determined by MicroED and in it, note characteristics of both fibrillar and oligomeric structure. Using this structure, we designed peptide-based inhibitors that reduce Aβ aggregation and toxicity of already-aggregated species. Unexpectedly, we also found that these inhibitors reduce the efficiency of Aβ-mediated tau aggregation, and moreover reduce aggregation and self-seeding of tau fibrils. The ability of these inhibitors to interfere with both Aβ and tau seeds suggests these fibrils share a common epitope, and supports the hypothesis that cross-seeding is one mechanism by which amyloid is linked to tau aggregation and could promote cognitive decline