A model-based multithreshold method for subgroup identification

Thresholding variable plays a crucial role in subgroup identification for personalizedmedicine. Most existing partitioning methods split the sample basedon one predictor variable. In this paper, we consider setting the splitting rulefrom a combination of multivariate predictors, such as the latent factors, principlecomponents, and weighted sum of predictors. Such a subgrouping methodmay lead to more meaningful partitioning of the population than using a singlevariable. In addition, our method is based on a change point regression modeland thus yields straight forward model-based prediction results. After choosinga particular thresholding variable form, we apply a two-stage multiple changepoint detection method to determine the subgroups and estimate the regressionparameters. We show that our approach can produce two or more subgroupsfrom the multiple change points and identify the true grouping with high probability.In addition, our estimation results enjoy oracle properties. We design asimulation study to compare performances of our proposed and existing methodsand apply them to analyze data sets from a Scleroderma trial and a breastcancer study

Effects of essential amino acids on food and water intake of rats

This study examined the effects of selected groups of essential amino acids (EAAs), given by gavage, on short-term food and water intake. Amino acid groups were selected on the basis of their common physiologic functions in relation to current hypotheses on the role of amino acids in food intake control, and the quantities given were based on the proportions in 1.5 g of the EAA content of albumin. The complete EAA mixture (1.5 g) suppressed food intake by an average of 60 and 37% during the 1st and 2nd h of feeding, respectively, but had no influence on feeding in the subsequent 12 h. Total daily (14 h) intake was decreased by 9%. With the exception of the aromatic amino acid (Phe + Tyr + Trp, 0.34 g) group, all groups significantly decreased food intake by a comparable magnitude (32%) during the 1st h. In this time period, rats given the EAAs, Arg + Met + Val (0.38 g), and Arg + His + Lys (0.44 g) mixtures increased their water intake, whereas intake by rats given the Phe + Tyr + Trp + Thr (0.46 g) and Ile + Leu + Val (0.45 g) mixtures was unchanged. Thus, the food intake suppression caused by EAAs was not accounted for by an equal effect of its component amino acid groups. As well, food intake suppression by amino acid groups was not explained by increased water consumption, nor was it simply related to the quantity of nitrogen provided by the treatment.published_or_final_versio

Evolution of fragmented states

We consider the problem of evolution of the many-body state of a weakly interacting system of bosons in an initially fragmented (Fock) state. We show that the state at any time can be expressed as a continuous superposition of an infinite number of Gross-Pitaevskii states.Comment: 4 page

Hypertension Programmed in Adult Hens by Isolated Effects of Developmental Hypoxia In Ovo.

In mammals, pregnancy complicated by chronic hypoxia can program hypertension in the adult offspring. However, mechanisms remain uncertain because the partial contributions of the challenge on the placenta, mother, and fetus are difficult to disentangle. Here, we used chronic hypoxia in the chicken embryo-an established model system that permits isolation of the direct effects of developmental hypoxia on the cardiovascular system of the offspring, independent of additional effects on the mother or the placenta. Fertilized chicken eggs were exposed to normoxia (N; 21% O2) or hypoxia (H; 13.5%-14% O2) from the start of incubation (day 0) until day 19 (hatching, ≈day 21). Following hatching, all birds were maintained under normoxic conditions until ≈6 months of adulthood. Hypoxic incubation increased hematocrit (+27%) in the chicken embryo and induced asymmetrical growth restriction (body weight, -8.6%; biparietal diameter/body weight ratio, +7.5%) in the hatchlings (all P<0.05). At adulthood (181±4 days), chickens from hypoxic incubations remained smaller (body weight, -7.5%) and showed reduced basal and stimulated in vivo NO bioavailability (pressor response to NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, -43%; phenylephrine pressor response during NO blockade, -61%) with significant hypertension (mean arterial blood pressure, +18%), increased cardiac work (ejection fraction, +12%; fractional shortening, +25%; enhanced baroreflex gain, +456%), and left ventricular wall thickening (left ventricular wall volume, +36%; all P<0.05). Therefore, we show that chronic hypoxia can act directly on a developing embryo to program hypertension, cardiovascular dysfunction, and cardiac wall remodeling in adulthood in the absence of any maternal or placental effects.The British Heart Foundation The Wellcome Trus

Reduced density matrix sampling: Self-consistent embedding and multiscale electronic structure on current generation quantum computers

We investigate fully self-consistent multiscale quantum-classical algorithms on current generation superconducting quantum computers, in a unified approach to tackle the correlated electronic structure of large systems in both quantum chemistry and condensed matter physics. In both of these contexts, a strongly correlated quantum region of the extended system is isolated and self-consistently coupled to its environment via the sampling of reduced density matrices. We analyze the viability of current generation quantum devices to provide the required fidelity of these objects for a robust and efficient optimization of this subspace. We show that with a simple error mitigation strategy these self-consistent algorithms are indeed highly robust, even in the presence of significant noises on quantum hardware. Furthermore, we demonstrate the use of these density matrices for the sampling of nonenergetic properties, including dipole moments and Fermi liquid parameters in condensed phase systems, achieving a reliable accuracy with sparse sampling. It appears that uncertainties derived from the iterative optimization of these subspaces is smaller than variances in the energy for a single subspace optimization with current quantum hardware. This boosts the prospect for routine self-consistency to improve the choice of correlated subspaces in hybrid quantum-classical approaches to electronic structure for large systems in this multiscale fashion

Persistent currents in a circular array of Bose-Einstein condensates

A ring-shaped array of Bose-Einstein condensed atomic gases can display circular currents if the relative phase of neighboring condensates becomes locked to certain values. It is shown that, irrespective of the mechanism responsible for generating these states, only a restricted set of currents are stable, depending on the number of condensates, on the interaction and tunneling energies, and on the total number of particles. Different instabilities due to quasiparticle excitations are characterized and possible experimental setups for testing the stability prediction are also discussed.Comment: 7 pages, REVTex

To what extent do site-based training, mentoring, and operational research improve district health system management and leadership in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review protocol

District health managers play a key role in the effectiveness of decentralized health systems in low- and middle-income countries. Inadequate management and leadership skills often hamper their ability to improve quality of care and effectiveness of health service delivery. Nevertheless, significant investments have been made in capacity-building programmes based on site-based training, mentoring, and operational research. This systematic review aims to review the effectiveness of site-based training, mentoring, and operational research (or action research) on the improvement of district health system management and leadership. Our secondary objectives are to assess whether variations in composition or intensity of the intervention influence its effectiveness and to identify enabling and constraining contexts and underlying mechanisms

Localization of the relative phase via measurements

When two independently-prepared Bose-Einstein condensates are released from their corresponding traps, the absorbtion image of the overlapping clouds presents an interference pattern. Here we analyze a model introduced by Javanainen and Yoo (J. Javanainen and S. M. Yoo, Phys. Rev. Lett. 76, 161 (1996)), who considered two atomic condensates described by plane waves propagating in opposite directions. We present an analytical argument for the measurement-induced breaking of the relative phase symmetry in this system, demonstrating how the phase gets localized after a large enough number of detection events.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figur