An appropriate use of iMap produces correct statistical results: a reply to McManus (2013) "iMAP and iMAP2 produce erroneous statistical maps of eye-movement differences".

McManus (2013, Perception, 42, 1075-1084) contends the validity of the statistical approach adopted in previous versions of iMap (namely, iMap and iMap2; Caldara & Miellet, 2011, Behavior Research Methods, 43, 864-878), casts doubts on earlier results obtained with the toolbox, and offers an altered version of the code. Here we dispute these claims and argue that while some of the arguments put forward are valid, McManus's conclusions are misleading, since they are based on a partial use of the toolbox. Moreover, we compared iMap with the alternative code offered by McManus and objectively demonstrate that McManus's approach is underpowered and flawed. iMap offers an appropriate and effective alternative to the commonly used regions of interest approach for statistical analyses of eye-movement data

Structural Properties of an S-system Model of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Gene Regulation

Magombedze and Mulder in 2013 studied the gene regulatory system of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (Mtb) by partitioning this into three subsystems based on putative gene function and role in dormancy/latency development. Each subsystem, in the form of S-system, is represented by an embedded chemical reaction network (CRN), defined by a species subset and a reaction subset induced by the set of digraph vertices of the subsystem. For the embedded networks of S-system, we showed interesting structural properties and proved that all S-system CRNs (with at least two species) are discordant. Analyzing the subsystems as subnetworks, where arcs between vertices belonging to different subsystems are retained, we formed a digraph homomorphism from the corresponding subnetworks to the embedded networks. Lastly, we explored the modularity concept of CRN in the context of digraph.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1909.0294

A New Partnership: The Society for Acupuncture Research and the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine

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Linear conjugacy of chemical kinetic systems

Two networks are said to be linearly conjugate if the solution of their dynamic equations can be transformed into each other by a positive linear transformation. The study on dynamical equivalence in chemical kinetic systems was initiated by Craciun and Pantea in 2008 and eventually led to the Johnston-Siegel Criterion for linear conjugacy (JSC). Several studies have applied Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) approach to generate linear conjugates of MAK (mass action kinetic) systems, Bio-CRNs (which is a subset of Hill-type kinetic systems when the network is restricted to digraphs), and PL-RDK (complex factorizable power law kinetic) systems. In this study, we present a general computational solution to construct linear conjugates of any "rate constant-interaction function decomposable" (RID) chemical kinetic systems, wherein each of its rate function is the product of a rate constant and an interaction function. We generate an extension of the JSC to the complex factorizable (CE) subset of RID kinetic systems and show that any non-complex factorizable (NE) RID kinetic system can be dynamically equivalent to a CF system via transformation. We show that linear conjugacy can be generated for any RID kinetic systems by applying the JSC to any NE kinetic system that are transformed to CF kinetic system

A Multivariate Surface-Based Analysis of the Putamen in Premature Newborns: Regional Differences within the Ventral Striatum

Many children born preterm exhibit frontal executive dysfunction, behavioral problems including attentional deficit/hyperactivity disorder and attention related learning disabilities. Anomalies in regional specificity of cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuits may underlie deficits in these disorders. Nonspecific volumetric deficits of striatal structures have been documented in these subjects, but little is known about surface deformation in these structures. For the first time, here we found regional surface morphological differences in the preterm neonatal ventral striatum. We performed regional group comparisons of the surface anatomy of the striatum (putamen and globus pallidus) between 17 preterm and 19 term-born neonates at term-equivalent age. We reconstructed striatal surfaces from manually segmented brain magnetic resonance images and analyzed them using our in-house conformal mapping program. All surfaces were registered to a template with a new surface fluid registration method. Vertex-based statistical comparisons between the two groups were performed via four methods: univariate and multivariate tensor-based morphometry, the commonly used medial axis distance, and a combination of the last two statistics. We found statistically significant differences in regional morphology between the two groups that are consistent across statistics, but more extensive for multivariate measures. Differences were localized to the ventral aspect of the striatum. In particular, we found abnormalities in the preterm anterior/inferior putamen, which is interconnected with the medial orbital/prefrontal cortex and the midline thalamic nuclei including the medial dorsal nucleus and pulvinar. These findings support the hypothesis that the ventral striatum is vulnerable, within the cortico-stiato-thalamo-cortical neural circuitry, which may underlie the risk for long-term development of frontal executive dysfunction, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and attention-related learning disabilities in preterm neonates. © 2013 Shi et al

Comparative Analysis of Kinetic Realizations of Insulin Signaling

Several studies have developed dynamical models to understand the underlying mechanisms of insulin signaling, a signaling cascade that leads to the production of glucose - the human body's main source of energy. Reaction network analysis allows us to extract formal properties of dynamical systems without depending on their parameter values. This study focuses on the comparison of reaction network analysis of insulin signaling in healthy cell (INSMS or INSulin Metabolic Signaling) and in type 2 diabetes (INRES or INsulin RESistance). INSMS and INRES are similar with respect to some network, structo-kinetic, and kinetic properties. However, they differ in the following network properties: the networks have different species sets and functional modules, INRES is more complex than INSMS, and INRES loses the concordance of INSMS. Based on structo-kinetic properties, INSMS is injective while INRES is not. And one of the most significant differences between INSMS and INRES in terms of kinetic properties is the loss of ACR species in INRES (INSMS has 8 ACR species). These results show the insights we gain from analyzing kinetic realization, beyond what we already know from analyzing the dynamical systems of insulin signaling in healthy and insulin-resistant cells.Comment: 30 pages, 1 figur

A Quantitative Correlational Study on Diversity Management, Career Planning, and Career Advancement for Women

Gender disparity is a pervasive problem in the United States automotive industry particularly in critical decision-making positions where male employees dominate the field. Three significant issues were addressed in this study: Diversity management, career planning, and women’s career advancement. The quantitative correlational study investigated how diversity management and career planning are related to women’s advancement in the US automotive industry to improve the representation of women in management and senior-level positions. The gender gap in management was examined through the organizational justice theory and grounded by the glass ceiling metaphor. Ninety-two full-time employees from an automotive company in Atlanta participated through Survey Monkey. Perceived Facilitators to Career Advancement Scales, the Perceived Barriers to Career Advancement Scales, and the Job Descriptive Index Scales were analyzed using multiple regression. The research questions addressed the individual and combined relationship between diversity management and career planning to career advancement

The Network Structure of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Filipina Migrant Domestic Workers: Comorbidity With Depression

Background Labour migrants are exposed to potentially traumatic events throughout the migration cycle, making them susceptible to developing mental disorders. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often comorbid with depression. Comorbidity worsens the course of illness, prognosis, treatment response, and increases suicidal risk. Using network analysis, this study examined the structure of PTSD and depression in a sample of migrant domestic workers, an especially vulnerable community of labour migrants. This study sought to derive the central or most important symptoms, strongest edges or relationships among symptoms, and bridge symptoms between PTSD and depression. Methods Data were obtained from 1,375 Filipina domestic workers in Macao SAR, China. Data from a subsample of 1,258 trauma-exposed participants were analysed using R software. Results Most of the strongest edges were within the same disorder and, for PTSD, within the same symptom cluster. Highest node centrality were PCL-5’s ‘avoid thoughts’, ‘lose interest’, ‘negative emotions’, and ‘not concentrate’, and PHQ-9’s ‘sleep difficulties’. The bridge symptoms were PHQ-9’s ‘sleep difficulties,’ ‘psychomotor agitation/retardation,’ and ‘fatigue,’ PCL-5’s ‘not concentrate’, and PHQ-9’s ‘worthlessness’ and ‘anhedonia’. Limitations Results may not generalize to Filipino migrant workers in other occupations and to male migrant workers. Potentially relevant symptoms like somatic symptoms and fear of somatic and mental symptoms were not included. Conclusions Central and bridge symptoms are the most important nodes in the network. Developing interventions targeting these symptoms, particularly depression symptoms, is a promising alternative to PTSD treatment given substantial barriers to specialist care for this population