Linkage analysis of longitudinal data

BACKGROUND: We propose a statistical model for linkage analysis of the longitudinal data. The proposed model is a mixed model based on the new Haseman and Elston model and allows several random effects. Specifically, the proposed model includes a random effect for correlation among sib pairs having one sibling in common, and one for the correlation among siblings from the same parents. RESULTS: The proposed model was applied to the analysis of the Genetic Analysis Workshop 13 simulated data set for a quantitative trait of the systolic blood pressure. A simple independence model and two kinds of random effects models yielded good power for detecting linkage for these data sets, while the random effects models performed slightly better than the independence model. Both random effects models showed similar performance. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed models seem not only quite useful in detecting linkage with the longitudinal data for the trait but also quite flexible. They can handle a wide class of correlation structures. Models with a more general class of covariance structure are desirable

Paratracheal Air Cysts: Sonographic Findings in Two Cases

We report two cases of paratracheal air cyst discovered incidentally at neck ultrasonography and confirmed at CT. The cysts were located at the inferoposterior aspect of the right lobe of the thyroid. Ultrasonography revealed an ill-defined hypoechoic mass containing hyperechoic foci which mimicked calcifications. Neck CT confirmed the presence of an ill-defined air pocket which communicated with the trachea through a slit

Suppression of magnetic ordering in XXZ-type antiferromagnetic monolayer NiPS3

How a certain ground state of complex physical systems emerges, especially in two-dimensional materials, is a fundamental question in condensed-matter physics. A particularly interesting case is systems belonging to the class of XY Hamiltonian where the magnetic order parameter of conventional nature is unstable in two-dimensional materials leading to a Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition. Here, we report how the XXZ-type antiferromagnetic order of a magnetic van der Waals material, NiPS3, behaves upon reducing the thickness and ultimately becomes unstable in the monolayer limit. Our experimental data are consistent with the findings based on renormalization group theory that at low temperatures a two-dimensional XXZ system behaves like a two-dimensional XY one, which cannot have a long-range order at finite temperatures. This work provides experimental examination of the XY magnetism in the atomically thin limit and opens new opportunities of exploiting these fundamental theorems of magnetism using magnetic van der Waals materials.Comment: 57 pages, 24 figures (including Supplementary Information

Blood culture contamination in hospitalized pediatric patients: a single institution experience

PurposeBlood culture is the most important tool for detecting bacteremia in children with fever. However, blood culture contamination rates range from 0.6% to 6.0% in adults; rates for young children have been considered higher than these, although data are limited, especially in Korea. This study determined the contamination rate and risk factors in pediatric patients visiting the emergency room (ER) or being admitted to the ward.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective chart review of blood cultures obtained from children who visited Yonsei Severance Hospital, Korea between 2006 and 2010. Positive blood cultures were labeled as true bacteremia or contamination according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Healthcare Safety Network definitions for laboratory-confirmed bloodstream infection, after exclusion of cultures drawn from preexisting central lines only.ResultsAmong 40,542 blood cultures, 610 were positive, of which 479 were contaminations and 131 were true bacteremia (overall contamination rate, 1.18%). The contamination rate in the ER was significantly higher than in the ward (1.32% vs. 0.66%, P6 years, respectively).ConclusionOverall, contamination rates were higher in younger children than in older children, given the difficulty of performing blood sampling in younger children. The contamination rates from the ER were higher than those from the ward, not accounted for only by overcrowding and lack of experience among personnel collecting samples. Further study to investigate other factors affecting contamination should be required

A single nucleotide polymorphism in CAPN1 associated with marbling score in Korean cattle

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Marbling score (MS) is the major quantitative trait that affects carcass quality in beef cattle. In this study, we examined the association between genetic polymorphisms of the micromolar calcium-activated neutral protease gene (micro-calpain, <it>CAPN1</it>) and carcass traits in Korean cattle (also known as Hanwoo).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>By direct DNA sequencing in 24 unrelated Korean cattle, we identified 39 sequence variants within exons and their flanking regions in <it>CAPN1</it>. Among them, 12 common polymorphic sites were selected for genotyping in the beef cattle (<it>n </it>= 421). Statistical analysis revealed that a polymorphism in the 3'UTR (<it>c.2151*479C>T</it>) showed significant association with MS (<it>P</it>^{<it>cor</it>.}= 0.02).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings suggest that polymorphisms in <it>CAPN1 </it>might be one of the important genetic factors involved in carcass quality in beef cattle, although it could be false positive association.</p

Immunogenicity and Safety of Trivalent Inactivated Influenza Vaccine: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Multi-Center, Phase 3 Clinical Trial in a Vaccine-Limited Country

Influenza vaccines are the primary method for controlling influenza and its complications. This study was conducted as a phase 3, randomized, double-blind, controlled, multi-center trial at seven university hospitals to evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of an inactivated, split, trivalent influenza vaccine (GC501, Green Cross Corporation, Yongin, Korea), which was newly manufactured in Korea in 2008. Between September 21 and 26, a total of 329 healthy subjects were recruited for the immunogenicity analysis, while 976 subjects were enrolled for the safety analysis. The GC501 vaccine met both FDA and EMEA criteria with ≥ 80% of subjects achieving post-vaccination titers ≥ 40 for all three subtypes, even in the elderly. The vaccine was well tolerated with only mild systemic and local adverse events. In summary, GC501 showed excellent immunogenicity and a good safety profile in both young adults and the elderly. The licensure of GC501 might be an important basis in preparation for the future influenza pandemic

Electroreflectance Study of Zn0.8Mg0.2O/ZnO Nanorod Heterostructures

ZnO, due to its large exciton binding energy which enables excitonic recombination at room temperature, is attracting much attention as a material for room-temperature UV devices. In particular, ZnO nanorod has attracted a great deal of attention because of the commercial interest in short-wavelength semiconductor laser diodes and nanometer-scale electronic devices. Zn0.8Mg0.2O/ZnO nanorod heterostructures were grown by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy on catalyst-free ZnO nanorods. Electro reflectance measurements were carried out at temperatures between 90 K and 295 K and compared with photoluminescence data. Quantum confinement effects in Zn0.8Mg0.2O/ZnO nanorod heterostructures were observed.This work was supported by KOSEF through the Quantum Photonic Science Research Center at Hanyang University and by MOST through the National R&D Project for Nano Science

Severe Paradoxical Reaction Requiring Tracheostomy in a Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-negative Patient with Cervical Lymph Node Tuberculosis

During drug treatment of tuberculous lymphadenitis, paradoxical response (PR) may occasionally occur. Continued treatment or lymph node aspiration improves PR without severe sequelae. However, we report a case of severe PR in a patient with cervical lymph node tuberculosis causing airway obstruction due to retropharyngeal lymph node swelling during antituberculous treatment. Tracheostomy and drainage of the node were performed to secure the airway. Possible airway obstruction due to PR must be suspected when cervical lymph node tuberculosis involves the retropharyngeal lymph node