94 research outputs found
Pharmacogenomic strategy for individualizing antidepressant therapy
Despite remarkable progress, pharmacotherapy in general, including that for the treatment of depressive conditions, has often ignored the magnitude and clinical significance of the huge interindividual variations in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, resulting in poor compliance, suboptimal therapeutic effects, and treatment resistance. Advances in pharmacogenomics and computer modeling technologies hold promise for achieving the goals of āindividualizedā (āpersonalizedā) medicine. However, the challenges for realizing such goals remain substantial. These include the packaging and interpretation of genotyping results, changes in medical practice (innovation diffusion), and infrasiructural, financing, ethical, and organizational issues related to the use of new information
Solar Heating in Taiwan
AbstractSolar water heaters (SWHs) can provide hot water at temperatures ranging from 40 to 80oC for domestic or industrial use. With the subsidy programs (1986-1991 and 2000-present) offered by the Bureau of Energy, Ministry of Economic Affairs and some municipal governments, the accumulated area of solar collectors installed at the end of 2012 reached 2.25 million square meters. The well-orchestrated and concerted efforts put forward by the government of Taiwan, particularly with the Renewable Energy Development Bill promulgated in 2010, have played a significant role in the increased dissemination of SWHs. Further, the long-duration national subsidy programs might constitute one of the main driving forces for local market expansion. The mass media should be more aggressively utilized to enhance public awareness and promote utilization of SWHs. Organizations also need to consider the interests of society by being accountable for their businesses practices and by being responsible for the impact of their activities on the environment. This paper reports the current status and perspectives of SWHs in Taiwan, according to the desk and field surveys
Nonperturbatively-renormalized glue momentum fraction at physical pion mass from Lattice QCD
We present the first nonperturbatively-renormalized determination of the glue
momentum fraction in the nucleon, based on lattice-QCD
simulations at physical pion mass using the cluster-decomposition error
reduction (CDER) technique. We provide the first practical strategy to
renormalize the glue energy-momentum tensor (EMT) nonperturbatively in the
RI/MOM scheme, and convert the results to the scheme
with 1-loop matching. The simulation results show that the CDER technique can
reduce the statistical uncertainty of its renormalization constant by a factor
of (300) in calculations using typical state-of-the-art lattice
volume, and the nonperturbatively-renormalized is shown
to be independent of the lattice definitions of the glue EMT up to
discretization errors. We determine the renormalized to be 0.47(4)(11) at
physical pion mass, which is consistent with the experimentally-determined
value.Comment: 9 pages, 11 figures, the version accepted by PR
Nonperturbatively Renormalized Glue Momentum Fraction at the Physical Pion Mass from Lattice QCD
We present the first nonperturbatively renormalized determination of the glue momentum fraction āØxā©g in the nucleon, based on lattice-QCD simulations at the physical pion mass using the cluster-decomposition error reduction technique. We provide the first practical strategy to renormalize the gauge energy-momentum tensor nonperturbatively in the regularization-independent momentum-subtraction (RI/MOM) scheme and convert the results to the MSĀÆ scheme with one-loop matching. The simulation results show that the cluster-decomposition error reduction technique can reduce the statistical uncertainty of its renormalization constant by a factor of O(300) in calculations using a typical state-of-the-art lattice volume, and the nonperturbatively renormalized āØxā©g is shown to be independent of the lattice definitions of the gauge energy-momentum tensor up to discretization errors. We determine the renormalized āØxā©MSĀÆg(2āāGeV) to be 0.47(4)(11) at the physical pion mass, which is consistent with the experimentally determined value
Dissemination of solar water heaters in South Africa
Global concern over a looming energy crisis, water scarcity and man-made climate change are driving a huge demand for clean technologies, which focus on preserving the earthās resources. In South Africa, the economy is very energy-intensive with coal being the main national energy supply. In view of the growing depletion of fossil fuel, it is important for South Africa to adopt a more sustainable energy mix. This study examines the potential for widespread dissemination of solar water heaters (SWHs) in South Africa. Barriers and constraints to market expansion are analyzed to determine strategies for overcoming these barriers. It is found that payback period of a SWH is shorter than the life-span of the system itself, indicating that SWHs are economically viable even with low production cost of electricity and thus represent a profitable investment proposition for end users, manufacturers and distributors. However, the subsidy programs offered by the government of South Africa may not be sufficient to facilitate diffusion. This is attributed to the high initial capital cost of the system and low affordability of the majority of the South Africa population with low income. Alternative financing mechanisms are required
Assessment of hypermucoviscosity as a virulence factor for experimental Klebsiella pneumoniae infections: comparative virulence analysis with hypermucoviscosity-negative strain
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Klebsiella pneumoniae </it>displaying the hypermucoviscosity (HV) phenotype are considered more virulent than HV-negative strains. Nevertheless, the emergence of tissue-abscesses-associated HV-negative isolates motivated us to re-evaluate the role of HV-phenotype.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Instead of genetically manipulating the HV-phenotype of <it>K. pneumoniae</it>, we selected two clinically isolated K1 strains, 1112 (HV-positive) and 1084 (HV-negative), to avoid possible interference from defects in the capsule. These well-encapsulated strains with similar genetic backgrounds were used for comparative analysis of bacterial virulence in a pneumoniae or a liver abscess model generated in either naĆÆve or diabetic mice. In the pneumonia model, the HV-positive strain 1112 proliferated to higher loads in the lungs and blood of naĆÆve mice, but was less prone to disseminate into the blood of diabetic mice compared to the HV-negative strain 1084. In the liver abscess model, 1084 was as potent as 1112 in inducing liver abscesses in both the naĆÆve and diabetic mice. The 1084-infected diabetic mice were more inclined to develop bacteremia and had a higher mortality rate than those infected by 1112. A mini-Tn<it>5 </it>mutant of 1112, isolated due to its loss of HV-phenotype, was avirulent to mice.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results indicate that the HV-phenotype is required for the virulence of the clinically isolated HV-positive strain 1112. The superior ability of the HV-negative stain 1084 over 1112 to cause bacteremia in diabetic mice suggests that factors other than the HV phenotype were required for the systemic dissemination of <it>K. pneumoniae </it>in an immunocompromised setting.</p
Differential relationships of family drinking with alcohol expectancy among urban school children
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Positive alcohol outcome expectancy has consistently been linked with problematic drinking, but there is little population-based evidence on its role on early stages of drinking in childhood. The present study seeks to understand the extent to which drinking of family members is differentially associated with the endorsement of alcohol expectancy in late childhood.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A representative sample of 4th and 6th graders (N = 2455) drawn from 28 public schools in an urban region of Taiwan completed a self-administered paper-and-pencil questionnaire. Each student provided information on alcohol expectancy, drinking experiences, and individual and family attributes. Complex survey analyses were performed to evaluate the relationship, with stratification by children's alcohol drinking history.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An estimated 29% of the 4<sup>th </sup>graders and 43% of the 6<sup>th </sup>graders had initiated alcohol consumption (over 40% of them had drank on three or more occasions). Alcohol drinking-related differences appear in both the endorsement and the correlates of alcohol expectancy. Positive alcohol expectancy was strongly associated with family drinking, particularly the dimension of "enhanced social behaviors"; negative alcohol expectancy was inversely associated with drinking frequency. Among alcohol naĆÆve children, significant connections appear between paternal drinking and three dimensions of positive alcohol expectancy (i.e., enhanced social behaviors:Ī²<sub>wt </sub>= 0.15, promoting relaxation or tension reduction:Ī²<sub>wt </sub>= 0.18, and global positive transformation:Ī²<sub>wt </sub>= 0.22).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Individual tailored strategies that address family influences on alcohol expectancy may be needed in prevention programs targeting drinking behaviors in children.</p
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