On the asymptotic efficiency of the multisample location-scale rank tests and their adjustment for ties

summary:Explicit formulas for the non-centrality parameters of the limiting chi-square distribution of proposed multisample rank based test statistics, aimed at testing the hypothesis of the simultaneous equality of location and scale parameters of underlying populations, are obtained by means of a general assertion concerning the location-scale test statistics. The finite sample behaviour of the proposed tests is discussed and illustrated by simulation estimates of the rejection probabilities. A modification for ties of a class of multisample location and scale test statistics, based on ranks and including the proposed test statistics, is presented. It is shown that under the validity of the null hypothesis these modified test statistics are asymptotically chi-square distributed provided that the score generating functions fulfill the imposed regularity conditions. An essential assumption is that the matrix, appearing in these conditions, is regular. Conditions sufficient for the validity of this assumption are also included

Comparison of change-points in multivariate statistical process control using the performance of Lapage-type (nonparametric)

The inability of the Shewhart‟s, the EWMA, and the CUSUM, Hotelling‟s T2 and many other control charts to indicate the time of shift poses great problems in production, Medicine, etc. To overcome the problems the need to identify the period of change (shift) in the process becomes inevitable. The study used Lapage-type Change-point (LCP) to detect the simultaneous shift in both mean and variance. In the study we compare the performance of generalized likelihood ratio change-point (GLRCP) a parametric-base with our proposed method (LCP) at different varying start-ups using real life data. We run the data on Normal, Laplace and Lognormal distributions and also Average Run Length (ARL0) to assess the performance of the methods. Evaluating in-control ARLs (IC-ARLs) for each of the methods at change-point 250 and ARL0 500 indicates the same performance irrespective of the start-up value; LCP and GLR methods have rather a similar performance IC-ARLs at change-point 50 and change-point 100 under the normality assumptions, but under non-normal distributions, LCP has substantially higher IC-ARLs compared to GLRCP at 20. The LCP outperformed the GLRCP when applied to children bronchial pneumonia status. We therefore recommend that new method be used in short-run situations and also when underlying distributions are usually unknown

Exploration of gray matter correlates of cognitive training benefit in adolescents with chronic traumatic brain injury

Sustaining a traumatic brain injury (FBI) during adolescence has a profound effect on brain development and can result in persistent executive functioning deficits in daily life. Cognitive recovery from pediatric-TBI relies on the potential of neuroplasticity, which can be fostered by restorative training-programs. However the structural mechanisms underlying cognitive recovery in the immature brain are poorly understood. This study investigated gray matter plasticity following 2 months of cognitive training in young patients with TBI. Sixteen adolescents in the chronic stage of moderate-severe-TBI (9 male, mean age = 15y8m +/- 1y7m) were enrolled in a cognitive computerized training program for 8 weeks (5 times/week, 40 min/session). Pre-and post-intervention, and 6 months after completion of the training, participants underwent a comprehensive neurocognitive test-battery and anatomical Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans. We selected 9 cortical-subcortical Regions-Of-Interest associated with Executive Functioning (EF-ROIs) and 3 control regions from the Desikan-Killiany atlas. Baseline analyses showed significant decreased gray matter density in the superior frontal gyri p = 0.033, superior parietal gyri p = 0.015 and thalamus p = 0.006 in adolescents with TBI compared to age and gender matched controls. Linear mixed model analyses of longitudinal volumetric data of the EF-ROI revealed no strong evidence of training-related changes in the group with TBI. However, compared to the change over time in the control regions between post-intervention and 6 months follow-up, the change in the EF-ROIs showed a significant difference. Exploratory analyses revealed a negative correlation between the change on the Digit Symbol Substitution test and the change in volume of the putamen (r = - 0.596, p = 0.015). This preliminary study contributes to the insights of training-related plasticity mechanisms after pediatric-TBI

Cortical thickness of the insula and prefrontal cortex relates to externalizing behavior: Cross-sectional and prospective findings

Externalizing behaviors (EBs) pertain to a diverse set of aggressive, antisocial, and potentially destructive behaviors directed toward the external environment. They range from nonclinical to clinical in severity, associated with opposition, aggression, hyperactivity, or impulsivity, and are considered a risk factor for the emergence of psychopathology later in adulthood. Focusing on community adolescents (N = 102; 49 female and 53 male adolescents; age range 12-19 years), this study aimed to explore the relations between EBs and the cortical thickness of regions of interest as well as to identify possible risk markers that could improve understanding of the EB construct. Using a mixed cross-sectional and prospective design (1-year follow-up), we report specific associations with cortical thickness of the left insular, right orbitofrontal, and left anterior cingulate cortex. Specifically, thinner left insular and right orbitofrontal cortex was associated with higher EBs, and thinner left anterior cingulate cortex predicted less reduction in EBs 1 year later. In addition, further examination of the aggression and rule-breaking subscales of the Youth/Adult Self-Report, used to assess EBs, revealed specific associations with insular subregions. Findings suggest that cortical structure morphology may significantly relate to the expression and maintenance of EBs within the general population of adolescents

Deviations from normative brain white and gray matter structure are associated with psychopathology in youth

Contains fulltext : 285929.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access

Analysis of the P. lividus sea urchin genome highlights contrasting trends of genomic and regulatory evolution in deuterostomes

Sea urchins are emblematic models in developmental biology and display several characteristics that set them apart from other deuterostomes. To uncover the genomic cues that may underlie these specificities, we generated a chromosome-scale genome assembly for the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus and an extensive gene expression and epigenetic profiles of its embryonic development. We found that, unlike vertebrates, sea urchins retained ancestral chromosomal linkages but underwent very fast intrachromosomal gene order mixing. We identified a burst of gene duplication in the echinoid lineage and showed that some of these expanded genes have been recruited in novel structures (water vascular system, Aristotle's lantern, and skeletogenic micromere lineage). Finally, we identified gene-regulatory modules conserved between sea urchins and chordates. Our results suggest that gene-regulatory networks controlling development can be conserved despite extensive gene order rearrangement

Analysis of the P. lividus sea urchin genome highlights contrasting trends of genomic and regulatory evolution in deuterostomes

Sea urchins are emblematic models in developmental biology and display several characteristics that set them apart from other deuterostomes. To uncover the genomic cues that may underlie these specificities, we generated a chromosome-scale genome assembly for the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus and an extensive gene expression and epigenetic profiles of its embryonic development. We found that, unlike vertebrates, sea urchins retained ancestral chromosomal linkages but underwent very fast intrachromosomal gene order mixing. We identified a burst of gene duplication in the echinoid lineage and showed that some of these expanded genes have been recruited in novel structures (water vascular system, Aristotle's lantern, and skeletogenic micromere lineage). Finally, we identified gene-regulatory modules conserved between sea urchins and chordates. Our results suggest that gene-regulatory networks controlling development can be conserved despite extensive gene order rearrangement

Littlewood–Paley characterization of discrete Morrey spaces and its application to the discrete martingale transform

The goal of this paper is to develop the Littlewood–Paley theoryof discrete Morrey spaces. As an application, we establish the boundedness ofmartingale transforms. We carefully justify the definition of martingale transforms, since discrete Morrey spaces do not contain discrete Lebesgue spaces asdense subspaces. We also obtain the boundedness of Riesz potentials

Fano 4-folds with nef tangent bundle in positive characteristic

In characteristic 0, the Campana-Peternell conjecture claims thatthe only smooth Fano variety with nef tangent bundle should be homogeneous.In this paper, we study the positive characteristic version of the CampanaPeternell conjecture. In particular, we give an affirmative answer for Fano4-folds with nef tangent bundle and Picard number greater than one