STRONG REPRESENTATION OF THE QUANTILE FUNCTION FOR LEFT TRUNCATED AND DEPENDENT DATA

International audienceLet (X i) i≥1 be a sequence of strong-mixing random variables with common unknown absolutely continuous distribution function F subject to random left truncation. Let F −1 (p) denote the pth (p ∈]0, 1[) quantile function of the marginal distribution function of the X i 's which is estimated by the sample quantile F −1 n (p). In this paper, we derive the strong consistency and a strong representation for F −1 n (p), the quantile function of the Lynden-Bell estimator of F for strong-mixing processes

Promoter–enhancer looping at the PPARγ2 locus during adipogenic differentiation requires the Prmt5 methyltransferase

PPARγ2 is a critical lineage-determining transcription factor that is essential for adipogenic differentiation. Here we report characterization of the three-dimensional structure of the PPARγ2 locus after the onset of adipogenic differentiation and the mechanisms by which it forms. We identified a differentiation-dependent loop between the PPARγ2 promoter and an enhancer sequence 10 kb upstream that forms at the onset of PPARγ2 expression. The arginine methyltransferase Prmt5 was required for loop formation, and overexpression of Prmt5 resulted in premature loop formation and earlier onset of PPARγ2 expression. Kinetic studies of regulatory factor interactions at the PPARγ2 promoter and enhancer revealed enhanced interaction of Prmt5 with the promoter that preceded stable association of Prmt5 with enhancer sequences. Prmt5 knockdown prevented binding of both MED1, a subunit of Mediator complex that facilitates enhancer–promoter interactions, and Brg1, the ATPase of the mammalian SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling enzyme required for PPARγ2 activation and adipogenic differentiation. The data indicate a dynamic association of Prmt5 with the regulatory sequences of the PPARγ2 gene that facilitates differentiation-dependent, three-dimensional organization of the locus. In addition, other differentiation-specific, long-range chromatin interactions showed Prmt5-dependence, indicating a more general role for Prmt5 in mediating higher-order chromatin connections in differentiating adipocytes.National Institutes of Health (NIH) [DK084278 to S.S., A.N.I., GM56244 to A.N.I., F32DK082263 to S.E.L., DK32520 to UMass Medical School Diabetes and Endocrine Research Center]. Funding for open access charge: Institutional funds

2-Methyl-3-(n-octylsulfan­yl)quinoxaline

All the non-H atoms of the title compound, C17H24N2S, lie almost in a common plane (r.m.s. deviation = 0.049 Å). The octyl chain adopts an all-trans conformation

News discourses on distant suffering: A critical discourse analysis of the 2003 SARS outbreak

News carries a unique signifying power, a power to represent events in particular ways (Fairclough, 1995). Applying Critical Discourse Analysis and Chouliaraki's theory on the mediation of suffering (2006), this article explores the news representation of the 2003 global SARS outbreak. Following a case-based methodology, we investigate how two Belgian television stations have covered the international outbreak of SARS. By looking into the mediation of four selected discursive moments, underlying discourses of power, hierarchy and compassion were unraveled. The analysis further identified the key role of proximity in international news reporting and supports the claim that Western news media mainly reproduce a Euro-American centered world order. This article argues that news coverage of international crises such as SARS constructs and maintains the socio-cultural difference between 'us' and 'them' as well as articulating global power hierarchies and a division of the world in zones of poverty and prosperity, danger and safety

1-Benzyl-3-methyl­quinoxalin-2(1H)-one

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C16H14N2O, contains three independent mol­ecules. The dihedral angles between the quinoxaline and phenyl planes in the three mol­ecules are 82.58 (8), 85.66 (9) and 85.36 (9)°. The crystal packing is stabilized by C—H⋯O and C—H⋯N hydrogen bonds

Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) factors associated with growth between birth and 1 year of age in children in Soweto, South Africa: Results from the Soweto Baby WASH study

Interventions to reduce undernutrition and improve child growth have incorporated improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) as part of disease transmission prevention strategies. Knowledge gaps still exist, namely, when and which WASH factors are determinants for growth faltering, and when WASH interventions are most effective at improving growth. This study drew cross-sectional data from a longitudinal cohort study and used hierarchical regression analyses to assess associations between WASH factors: water index, sanitation, hygiene index, and growth: height-forage (HAZ), weight-for-age (WAZ), weight-for-height (WHZ) at 1, 6, and 12 months postpartum among infants a priori born healthy in Soweto, Johannesburg. Household access to sanitation facilities that were not safely managed was associated with a decrease in HAZ scores at 1 month (/? = -2.24) and 6 months (/?=-0.96); a decrease in WAZ at 1 month (8=-1.21), 6 months (/?= -1.57), and 12 months (/3= -1.92); and finally, with WHZ scores at 12 months (/?= -1.94). Counterintuitively, poorer scores on the hygiene index were associated with an increase at 1 month for both HAZ (/? = 0.53) and WAZ (0 = 0.44). Provision of safely managed sanitation at household and community levels may be required before improvements in growth-related outcomes are obtained

A systematic review of exercise testing in patients with intermittent claudication: A focus on test standardisation and reporting quality in randomised controlled trials of exercise interventions

A systematic review was conducted to identify the range of terminology used in studies to describe maximum walking distance and the exercise testing protocols, and testing modalities used to measure it in patients with intermittent claudication. A secondary aim was to assess the implementation and reporting of the exercise testing protocols. CINAHL, Medline, EMBASE and Cochrane CENTRAL databases were searched. Randomised controlled trials whereby patients with intermittent claudication were randomised to an exercise intervention were included. The terminology used to describe maximal walking distance was recorded, as was the modality and protocol used to measure it. The implementation and reporting quality was also assessed using pre-specified criteria. Sixty-four trials were included in this review. Maximal walking distance was reported using fourteen different terminologies. Twenty-two different treadmill protocols and three different corridor tests were employed to assess maximal walking distance. No single trial satisfied all the implementation and reporting criteria for an exercise testing protocol. Evidence shows that between-study interpretation is difficult given the heterogenous nature of the exercise testing protocols, test endpoints and terminology used to describe maximal walking distance. This is further compounded by poor test reporting and implementation across studies. Comprehensive guidelines need to be provided to enable a standardised approach to exercise testing in patients with intermittent claudication

Toward an Identification of Resources Influencing Habitat Use in a Multi-Specific Context

Interactions between animal behaviour and the environment are both shaping observed habitat use. Despite the importance of inter-specific interactions on the habitat use performed by individuals, most previous analyses have focused on case studies of single species. By focusing on two sympatric populations of large herbivores with contrasting body size, we went one step beyond by studying variation in home range size and identifying the factors involved in such variation, to define how habitat features such as resource heterogeneity, resource quality, and openness created by hurricane or forest managers, and constraints may influence habitat use at the individual level. We found a large variability among individual's home range size in both species, particularly in summer. Season appeared as the most important factor accounting for observed variation in home range size. Regarding habitat features, we found that (i) the proportion of area damaged by the hurricane was the only habitat component that inversely influenced roe deer home range size, (ii) this habitat type also influenced both diurnal and nocturnal red deer home range sizes, (iii) home range size of red deer during the day was inversely influenced by the biomass of their preferred plants, as were both diurnal and nocturnal core areas of the red deer home range, and (iv) we do not find any effect of resource heterogeneity on home range size in any case. Our results suggest that a particular habitat type (i.e. areas damaged by hurricane) can be used by individuals of sympatric species because it brings both protected and dietary resources. Thus, it is necessary to maintain the openness of these areas and to keep animal density quite low as observed in these hunted populations to limit competition between these sympatric populations of herbivores

The Edinburgh claudication questionnaire has poor diagnostic accuracy in people with intermittent claudication

Background The screening and diagnosis of intermittent claudication is a challenging process and often relies on the expertise of specialist vascular clinicians. We sought to investigate the diagnostic performance of the Edinburgh Claudication Questionnaire (ECQ) as a screening tool for referrals of suspected intermittent claudication from primary to secondary care. Method Prospectively, 100 referrals from primary care with a stated diagnosis or query regarding intermittent claudication were recruited. All participants who completed the ECQ, underwent an anklebrachial pressure index (ABPI) assessment and treadmill exercise testing. Outcomes of the ECQ were compared to clinical diagnoses of intermittent claudication. Results The ECQ had a sensitivity of 46.8% (95% CI: 27–65%), specificity of 63.2% (95% CI: 43–82%) and accuracy of 53.0% (95% CI: 43–63%). The diagnostic performance was not changed by combining the ECQ with a positive ABPI or post-exercise ABPI outcome for PAD. Conclusion The ECQ had a poor diagnostic performance in this cohort. Considering the results found here and in other recent studies, the utility of the ECQ as a screening tool and epidemiological survey tool must be questioned. Novel, low-resource diagnostic tools are needed in this population