Joint modelling of multiple network wiews

Latent space models (LSM) for network data were introduced by Hoff et al. (2002) under the basic assumption that each node of the network has an unknown position in a D-dimensional Euclidean latent space: generally the smaller the distance between two nodes in the latent space, the greater their probability of being connected. In this paper we propose a variational inference approach to estimate the intractable posterior of the LSM. In many cases, different network views on the same set of nodes are available. It can therefore be useful to build a model able to jointly summarise the information given by all the network views. For this purpose, we introduce the latent space joint model (LSJM) that merges the information given by multiple network views assuming that the probability of a node being connected with other nodes in each network view is explained by a unique latent variable. This model is demonstrated on the analysis of two datasets: an excerpt of 50 girls from 'Teenage Friends and Lifestyle Study' data at three time points and the Saccharomyces cerevisiae genetic and physical protein-protein interactions

Factors Associated with Revision Surgery after Internal Fixation of Hip Fractures

Background: Femoral neck fractures are associated with high rates of revision surgery after management with internal fixation. Using data from the Fixation using Alternative Implants for the Treatment of Hip fractures (FAITH) trial evaluating methods of internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures, we investigated associations between baseline and surgical factors and the need for revision surgery to promote healing, relieve pain, treat infection or improve function over 24 months postsurgery. Additionally, we investigated factors associated with (1) hardware removal and (2) implant exchange from cancellous screws (CS) or sliding hip screw (SHS) to total hip arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, or another internal fixation device. Methods: We identified 15 potential factors a priori that may be associated with revision surgery, 7 with hardware removal, and 14 with implant exchange. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses in our investigation. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of revision surgery included: female sex, [hazard ratio (HR) 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.25-2.50; P = 0.001], higher body mass index (fo

Release from soil pathogens plays an important role in the success of invasive Carpobrotus in the Mediterranean

Introduced plant species can become locally dominant and threaten native flora and fauna. This dominance is often thought to be a result of release from specialist enemies in the invaded range, or the evolution of increased competitive ability. Soil borne microorganisms have often been overlooked as enemies in this context, but a less deleterious plant soil interaction in the invaded range could explain local dominance. Two plant species, Carpobrotus edulis and the hybrid Carpobrotus X cf. acinaciformis, are considered major pests in the Mediterranean basin. We tested if release from soil-borne enemies and/or evolution of increased competitive ability could explain this dominance. Comparing biomass production in non-sterile soil with that in sterilized soil, we found that inoculation with rhizosphere soil from the native range reduced biomass production by 32% while inoculation with rhizosphere soil from the invaded range did not have a significant effect on plant biomass. Genotypes from the invaded range, including a hybrid, did not perform better than plants from the native range in sterile soil. Hence evolution of increased competitive ability and hybridization do not seem to play a major role. We conclude that the reduced negative net impact of the soil community in the invaded range may contribute to the success of Carpobrotus species in the Mediterranean basin