119 research outputs found
One-sided versus two-sided stochastic descriptions
It is well-known that discrete-time finite-state Markov Chains, which are
described by one-sided conditional probabilities which describe a dependence on
the past as only dependent on the present, can also be described as
one-dimensional Markov Fields, that is, nearest-neighbour Gibbs measures for
finite-spin models, which are described by two-sided conditional probabilities.
In such Markov Fields the time interpretation of past and future is being
replaced by the space interpretation of an interior volume, surrounded by an
exterior to the left and to the right.
If we relax the Markov requirement to weak dependence, that is, continuous
dependence, either on the past (generalising the Markov-Chain description) or
on the external configuration (generalising the Markov-Field description), it
turns out this equivalence breaks down, and neither class contains the other.
In one direction this result has been known for a few years, in the opposite
direction a counterexample was found recently. Our counterexample is based on
the phenomenon of entropic repulsion in long-range Ising (or "Dyson") models.Comment: 13 pages, Contribution for "Statistical Mechanics of Classical and
Disordered Systems
Identification of claudin-4 as a marker highly overexpressed in both primary and metastatic prostate cancer
In the quest for markers of expression and progression for prostate cancer (PCa), the majority of studies have focussed on molecular data exclusively from primary tumours. Although expression in metastases is inferred, a lack of correlation with secondary tumours potentially limits their applicability diagnostically and therapeutically. Molecular targets were identified by examining expression profiles of prostate cell lines using cDNA microarrays. Those genes identified were verified on PCa cell lines and tumour samples from both primary and secondary tumours using real-time RT–PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry. Claudin-4, coding for an integral membrane cell-junction protein, was the most significantly (P<0.00001) upregulated marker in both primary and metastatic tumour specimens compared with benign prostatic hyperplasia at both RNA and protein levels. In primary tumours, claudin-4 was more highly expressed in lower grade (Gleason 6) lesions than in higher grade (Gleason ⩾7) cancers. Expression was prominent throughout metastases from a variety of secondary sites in fresh-frozen and formalin-fixed specimens from both androgen-intact and androgen-suppressed patients. As a result of its prominent expression in both primary and secondary PCas, together with its established role as a receptor for Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin, claudin-4 may be useful as a potential marker and therapeutic target for PCa metastases
Care coordination gaps due to lack of interoperability in the United States: a qualitative study and literature review
Managed care and outpatient substance abuse treatment intensity
This study examines the extent to which managed care behavioral controls are associated with treatment intensity in outpatient substance abuse treatment facilities. Data are from the 1995 National Drug Abuse Treatment System Survey, a nationally representative survey that includes over 600 provider organizations with a response rate of 86%. Treatment intensity is measured in three ways: (1) the number of months clients spend in outpatient drug treatment, (2) the number of individual treatment sessions clients receive over the course of treatment, and (3) the number of group treatment sessions clients receive over the course of treatment. After accounting for selection bias and controlling for market, organization, and client characteristics, there is no significant relationship between the scope of managed care oversight and treatment intensity. However, the stringency of managed care oversight activities is negatively associated with the number of individual and group treatment sessions received over the course of treatment.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45772/1/11414_2005_Article_BF02287231.pd
Managed care and access to substance abuse treatment services
Using nationally representative data from 1995 and 2000, this study examined how managed care penetration and other organizational characteristics were related to accessibility to outpatient substance abuse treatment. At an organizational level, access was measured as the percentage of clients unable to pay for services; the percentage of clients receiving a reduced fee; and the percentage of clients with shortened treatment because of their inability to pay. Treatment units with both relatively low and relatively high managed care penetration were more likely to support access to care; these units provided care to higher percentages of clients unable to pay and were less likely to shorten treatment because of client inability to pay. Treatment units with midrange managed care penetration were least likely to support access to care. The complexity of managing in an environment of conflicting incentives may reduce the organization's ability to serve those with limited financial means.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45776/1/11414_2005_Article_BF02289805.pd
ADVANCE integrated group intervention to address both substance use and intimate partner abuse perpetration by men in substance use treatment: a feasibility randomised controlled trial
Background: Substance use is a risk factor for intimate partner abuse (IPA) perpetration. Delivering perpetrator
interventions concurrently with substance use treatment shows promise.
Methods: The feasibility of conducting an efficacy and cost-effectiveness trial of the ADVANCE 16-week
intervention to reduce IPA by men in substance use treatment was explored. A multicentre, parallel group
individually randomised controlled feasibility trial and formative evaluation was conducted. Over three temporal
cycles, 104 men who had perpetrated IPA towards a female (ex) partner in the past year were randomly allocated
to receive the ADVANCE intervention + substance use treatment as usual (TAU) (n = 54) or TAU only (n = 50) and
assessed 16-weeks post-randomisation. Participants’ (ex) partners were offered support and 27 provided outcome
data. Thirty-one staff and 12 men who attended the intervention participated in focus groups or interviews that
were analysed using the framework approach. Pre-specified criteria assessed the feasibility of progression to a
definitive trial: 1) ≥ 60% of eligible male participants recruited; 2) intervention acceptable to staff and male
participants; 3) ≥ 70% of participants followed-up and 4) levels of substance use and 5) IPA perpetrated by men in
the intervention arm did not increase from average baseline level at 16-weeks post-randomisation.
Results: 70.7% (104/147) of eligible men were recruited. The formative evaluation confirmed the intervention’s
acceptability. Therapeutic alliance and session satisfaction were rated highly. The overall median rate of intervention
session attendance (of 14 compulsory sessions) was 28.6% (range 14.3–64.3% by the third cycle). 49.0% (51/104) of
men and 63.0% (17/27) of their (ex) partners were followed-up 16-weeks post-randomisation. This increased to
100% of men and women by cycle three. At follow-up, neither substance use nor IPA perpetration had worsened
for men in the intervention arm.
Conclusions: It was feasible to deliver the ADVANCE intervention in substance use treatment services, although it
proved difficult to collect data from female (ex)partners. While some progression criteria were met, others were not,
although improvements were demonstrated by the third cycle. Lessons learned will be implemented into the study
design for a definitive trial of the ADVANCE intervention
Forebrain-selective AMPA-receptor antagonism guided by TARPλ 3-8 as an antiepileptic mechanism
A computational pipeline for identifying kinetic motifs to aid in the design and improvement of synthetic gene circuits
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