Showing papers by "Ford Motor Company published in 2017"

Health Effects of Overweight and Obesity in 195 Countries over 25 Years.

Abstract: BACKGROUND Although the rising pandemic of obesity has received major attention in many countries, the effects of this attention on trends and the disease burden of obesity remain uncertain. METHOD ...

Imaging biomarker roadmap for cancer studies.

Abstract: Imaging biomarkers (IBs) are integral to the routine management of patients with cancer. IBs used daily in oncology include clinical TNM stage, objective response and left ventricular ejection fraction. Other CT, MRI, PET and ultrasonography biomarkers are used extensively in cancer research and drug development. New IBs need to be established either as useful tools for testing research hypotheses in clinical trials and research studies, or as clinical decision-making tools for use in healthcare, by crossing 'translational gaps' through validation and qualification. Important differences exist between IBs and biospecimen-derived biomarkers and, therefore, the development of IBs requires a tailored 'roadmap'. Recognizing this need, Cancer Research UK (CRUK) and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) assembled experts to review, debate and summarize the challenges of IB validation and qualification. This consensus group has produced 14 key recommendations for accelerating the clinical translation of IBs, which highlight the role of parallel (rather than sequential) tracks of technical (assay) validation, biological/clinical validation and assessment of cost-effectiveness; the need for IB standardization and accreditation systems; the need to continually revisit IB precision; an alternative framework for biological/clinical validation of IBs; and the essential requirements for multicentre studies to qualify IBs for clinical use.

Effect of Continuous Glucose Monitoring on Glycemic Control in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes Using Insulin Injections: The DIAMOND Randomized Clinical Trial.

Abstract: Importance Previous clinical trials showing the benefit of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in the management of type 1 diabetes predominantly have included adults using insulin pumps, even though the majority of adults with type 1 diabetes administer insulin by injection. Objective To determine the effectiveness of CGM in adults with type 1 diabetes treated with insulin injections. Design, Setting, and Participants Randomized clinical trial conducted between October 2014 and May 2016 at 24 endocrinology practices in the United States that included 158 adults with type 1 diabetes who were using multiple daily insulin injections and had hemoglobin A 1c (HbA 1c ) levels of 7.5% to 9.9%. Interventions Random assignment 2:1 to CGM (n = 105) or usual care (control group; n = 53). Main Outcomes and Measures Primary outcome measure was the difference in change in central-laboratory–measured HbA 1c level from baseline to 24 weeks. There were 18 secondary or exploratory end points, of which 15 are reported in this article, including duration of hypoglycemia at less than 70 mg/dL, measured with CGM for 7 days at 12 and 24 weeks. Results Among the 158 randomized participants (mean age, 48 years [SD, 13]; 44% women; mean baseline HbA 1c level, 8.6% [SD, 0.6%]; and median diabetes duration, 19 years [interquartile range, 10-31 years]), 155 (98%) completed the study. In the CGM group, 93% used CGM 6 d/wk or more in month 6. Mean HbA 1c reduction from baseline was 1.1% at 12 weeks and 1.0% at 24 weeks in the CGM group and 0.5% and 0.4%, respectively, in the control group (repeated-measures model P 1c level from baseline was –0.6% (95% CI, –0.8% to –0.3%; P P = .002). Severe hypoglycemia events occurred in 2 participants in each group. Conclusions and Relevance Among adults with type 1 diabetes who used multiple daily insulin injections, the use of CGM compared with usual care resulted in a greater decrease in HbA 1c level during 24 weeks. Further research is needed to assess longer-term effectiveness, as well as clinical outcomes and adverse effects. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier:NCT02282397

Continuous Glucose Monitoring Versus Usual Care in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Receiving Multiple Daily Insulin Injections: A Randomized Trial

Abstract: Background Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), which studies have shown is beneficial for adults with type 1 diabetes, has not been well-evaluated in those with type 2 diabetes receiving insulin. Objective To determine the effectiveness of CGM in adults with type 2 diabetes receiving multiple daily injections of insulin. Design Randomized clinical trial. (The protocol also included a type 1 diabetes cohort in a parallel trial and subsequent second trial.) (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02282397). Setting 25 endocrinology practices in North America. Patients 158 adults who had had type 2 diabetes for a median of 17 years (interquartile range, 11 to 23 years). Participants were aged 35 to 79 years (mean, 60 years [SD, 10]), were receiving multiple daily injections of insulin, and had hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels of 7.5% to 9.9% (mean, 8.5%). Intervention Random assignment to CGM (n = 79) or usual care (control group, n = 79). Measurements The primary outcome was HbA1c reduction at 24 weeks. Results Mean HbA1c levels decreased to 7.7% in the CGM group and 8.0% in the control group at 24 weeks (adjusted difference in mean change, -0.3% [95% CI, -0.5% to 0.0%]; P = 0.022). The groups did not differ meaningfully in CGM-measured hypoglycemia or quality-of-life outcomes. The CGM group averaged 6.7 days (SD, 0.9) of CGM use per week. Limitation 6-month follow-up. Conclusion A high percentage of adults who received multiple daily insulin injections for type 2 diabetes used CGM on a daily or near-daily basis for 24 weeks and had improved glycemic control. Because few insulin-treated patients with type 2 diabetes currently use CGM, these results support an additional management method that may benefit these patients. Primary funding source Dexcom.

Using Ranking-CNN for Age Estimation

Abstract: Human age is considered an important biometric trait for human identification or search. Recent research shows that the aging features deeply learned from large-scale data lead to significant performance improvement on facial image-based age estimation. However, age-related ordinal information is totally ignored in these approaches. In this paper, we propose a novel Convolutional Neural Network (CNN)-based framework, ranking-CNN, for age estimation. Ranking-CNN contains a series of basic CNNs, each of which is trained with ordinal age labels. Then, their binary outputs are aggregated for the final age prediction. We theoretically obtain a much tighter error bound for ranking-based age estimation. Moreover, we rigorously prove that ranking-CNN is more likely to get smaller estimation errors when compared with multi-class classification approaches. Through extensive experiments, we show that statistically, ranking-CNN significantly outperforms other state-of-the-art age estimation models on benchmark datasets.

Techno-economic Analysis of Metal–Organic Frameworks for Hydrogen and Natural Gas Storage

Abstract: A techno-economic analysis was conducted for metal–organic framework (MOF) adsorbents, which are promising candidates for light-duty vehicle on-board natural gas and hydrogen storage. The goal of this analysis was to understand cost drivers for large-scale (2.5 Mkg/year) MOF synthesis and to identify potential pathways to achieving a production cost of less than $10/(kg of MOF). Four MOFs were analyzed with four different metal centers and three different linkers: Ni2(dobdc) (dobdc4– = 2,5-dioxido-1,4-benzenedicarboxylate; Ni-MOF-74), Mg2(dobdc) (dobdc4– = 2,5-dioxido-1,4-benzenedicarboxylate; Mg-MOF-74), Zn4O(bdc)3 (bdc2– = 1,4-benzenedicarboxylate; MOF-5), and Cu3(btc)2 (btc3– = 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate; HKUST-1). Baseline costs are projected to range from $35/kg to $71/kg predicated on organic solvent (solvothermal) syntheses using an engineering scale-up of laboratory-demonstrated synthesis procedures and conditions. Two alternative processes were analyzed to evaluate the cost impact of reducing so...

Concise review : Developing best-practice models for the therapeutic use of extracellular vesicles

Abstract: Growing interest in extracellular vesicles (EVs, including exosomes and microvesicles) as therapeutic entities, particularly in stem cell-related approaches, has underlined the need for standardization and coordination of development efforts. Members of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and the Society for Clinical Research and Translation of Extracellular Vesicles Singapore convened a Workshop on this topic to discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with development of EV-based therapeutics at the preclinical and clinical levels. This review outlines topic-specific action items that, if addressed, will enhance the development of best-practice models for EV therapies. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2017;6:1730-1739.

Key-Value Retrieval Networks for Task-Oriented Dialogue

Abstract: Neural task-oriented dialogue systems often struggle to smoothly interface with a knowledge base. In this work, we seek to address this problem by proposing a new neural dialogue agent that is able to effectively sustain grounded, multi-domain discourse through a novel key-value retrieval mechanism. The model is end-to-end differentiable and does not need to explicitly model dialogue state or belief trackers. We also release a new dataset of 3,031 dialogues that are grounded through underlying knowledge bases and span three distinct tasks in the in-car personal assistant space: calendar scheduling, weather information retrieval, and point-of-interest navigation. Our architecture is simultaneously trained on data from all domains and significantly outperforms a competitive rule-based system and other existing neural dialogue architectures on the provided domains according to both automatic and human evaluation metrics.

A Bayesian framework for learning rule sets for interpretable classification

Abstract: We present a machine learning algorithm for building classifiers that are comprised of a small number of short rules. These are restricted disjunctive normal form models. An example of a classifier of this form is as follows: If X satisfies (condition A AND condition B) OR (condition C) OR ..., then Y = 1. Models of this form have the advantage of being interpretable to human experts since they produce a set of rules that concisely describe a specific class. We present two probabilistic models with prior parameters that the user can set to encourage the model to have a desired size and shape, to conform with a domain-specific definition of interpretability. We provide a scalable MAP inference approach and develop theoretical bounds to reduce computation by iteratively pruning the search space. We apply our method (Bayesian Rule Sets - BRS) to characterize and predict user behavior with respect to in-vehicle context-aware personalized recommender systems. Our method has a major advantage over classical associative classification methods and decision trees in that it does not greedily grow the model.

Wintertime aerosol chemistry and haze evolution in an extremely polluted city of the North China Plain: significant contribution from coal and biomass combustion

Abstract: . The North China Plain (NCP) frequently experiences heavy haze pollution, particularly during wintertime. In winter 2015–2016, the NCP region suffered several extremely severe haze episodes with air pollution red alerts issued in many cities. We have investigated the sources and aerosol evolution processes of the severe pollution episodes in Handan, a typical industrialized city in the NCP region, using real-time measurements from an intensive field campaign during the winter of 2015–2016. The average (±1σ) concentration of submicron aerosol (PM1) during 3 December 2015–5 February 2016 was 187.6 (±137.5) µg m−3, with the hourly maximum reaching 700.8 µg m−3. Organic was the most abundant component, on average accounting for 45 % of total PM1 mass, followed by sulfate (15 %), nitrate (14 %), ammonium (12 %), chloride (9 %) and black carbon (BC, 5 %). Positive matrix factorization (PMF) with the multilinear engine (ME-2) algorithm identified four major organic aerosol (OA) sources, including traffic emissions represented by a hydrocarbon-like OA (HOA, 7 % of total OA), industrial and residential burning of coal represented by a coal combustion OA (CCOA, 29 % of total OA), open and domestic combustion of wood and crop residuals represented by a biomass burning OA (BBOA, 25 % of total OA), and formation of secondary OA (SOA) in the atmosphere represented by an oxygenated OA (OOA, 39 % of total OA). Emissions of primary OA (POA), which together accounted for 61 % of total OA and 27 % of PM1, are a major cause of air pollution during the winter. Our analysis further uncovered that primary emissions from coal combustion and biomass burning together with secondary formation of sulfate (mainly from SO2 emitted by coal combustion) are important driving factors for haze evolution. However, the bulk composition of PM1 showed comparatively small variations between less polluted periods (daily PM2. 5 ≤ 75 µg m−3) and severely polluted periods (daily PM2. 5 > 75 µg m−3), indicating relatively synchronous increases of all aerosol species during haze formation. The case study of a severe haze episode, which lasted 8 days starting with a steady buildup of aerosol pollution followed by a persistently high level of PM1 (326.7–700.8 µg m−3), revealed the significant influence of stagnant meteorological conditions which acerbate air pollution in the Handan region. The haze episode ended with a shift of wind which brought in cleaner air masses from the northwest of Handan and gradually reduced PM1 concentration to

Inflammatory Biomarkers Interleukin‐6 and C‐Reactive Protein and Outcomes in Stable Coronary Heart Disease: Experiences From the STABILITY (Stabilization of Atherosclerotic Plaque by Initiation of Darapladib Therapy) Trial

Abstract: BackgroundEvaluation of cardiovascular prognosis in patients with stable coronary heart disease is based on clinical characteristics and biomarkers indicating dysglycemia, dyslipidemia, renal dysfu...

Path planning for autonomous vehicles using model predictive control

Abstract: Path planning for autonomous vehicles in dynamic environments is an important but challenging problem, due to the constraints of vehicle dynamics and existence of surrounding vehicles. Typical trajectories of vehicles involve different modes of maneuvers, including lane keeping, lane change, ramp merging, and intersection crossing. There exist prior arts using the rule-based high-level decision making approaches to decide the mode switching. Instead of using explicit rules, we propose a unified path planning approach using Model Predictive Control (MPC), which automatically decides the mode of maneuvers. To ensure safety, we model surrounding vehicles as polygons and develop a type of constraints in MPC to enforce the collision avoidance between the ego vehicle and surrounding vehicles. To achieve comfortable and natural maneuvers, we include a lane-associated potential field in the objective function of the MPC. We have simulated the proposed method in different test scenarios and the results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in automatically generating reasonable maneuvers while guaranteeing the safety of the autonomous vehicle.

Early-life home environment and risk of asthma among inner-city children.

Abstract: Background Environmental exposures in early life appear to play an important role in the pathogenesis of childhood asthma, but the potentially modifiable exposures that lead to asthma remain uncertain. Objective We sought to identify early-life environmental risk factors for childhood asthma in a birth cohort of high-risk inner-city children. Methods We examined the relationship of prenatal and early-life environmental factors to the occurrence of asthma at 7 years of age among 442 children. Results Higher house dust concentrations of cockroach, mouse, and cat allergens in the first 3 years of life were associated with lower risk of asthma (for cockroach allergen: odds ratio per interquartile range increase in concentration, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.36-0.86; P P = .048) and maternal stress and depression scores. Conclusion Among high-risk inner-city children, higher indoor levels of pet or pest allergens in infancy were associated with lower risk of asthma. The abundance of a number of bacterial taxa in house dust was associated with increased or decreased asthma risk. Prenatal tobacco smoke exposure and higher maternal stress and depression scores in early life were associated with increased asthma risk.

An ISHLT consensus document for prevention and management strategies for mechanical circulatory support infection.

Abstract: 1053-2498/$ see fron rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.10 Authors’ Disclosure The authors have m Heart and Lung Transp S.A., P.G., M.H., S.M Pediatric Thoracic T Schubert) Nursing, Health Sci Heart Failure and T F.G., A.L., S.P., S.Sch Pharmacy and Phar Mechanical Circulat F.G., A.L., S.P., S.S., The following auth Circulatory Assist Clin Reprint requests: S Arizona, 5777 East M +480 342 0115. Fax: E-mail address: ku CONSENSUS STATEMENT

Young People’s Use of E-Cigarettes across the United Kingdom: Findings from Five Surveys 2015-2017

Abstract: Concern has been expressed about the use of e-cigarettes among young people. Our study reported e-cigarette and tobacco cigarette ever and regular use among 11–16 year olds across the UK. Data came from five large scale surveys with different designs and sampling strategies conducted between 2015 and 2017: The Youth Tobacco Policy Survey; the Schools Health Research Network Wales survey; two Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Smokefree Great Britain-Youth Surveys; and the Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey. Cumulatively these surveys collected data from over 60,000 young people. For 2015/16 data for 11–16 year olds: ever smoking ranged from 11% to 20%; regular (at least weekly) smoking between 1% and 4%; ever use of e-cigarettes 7% to 18%; regular (at least weekly) use 1% to 3%; among never smokers, ever e-cigarette use ranged from 4% to 10% with regular use between 0.1% and 0.5%; among regular smokers, ever e-cigarette use ranged from 67% to 92% and regular use 7% to 38%. ASH surveys showed a rise in the prevalence of ever use of e-cigarettes from 7% (2016) to 11% (2017) but prevalence of regular use did not change remaining at 1%. In summary, surveys across the UK show a consistent pattern: most e-cigarette experimentation does not turn into regular use, and levels of regular use in young people who have never smoked remain very low.

Balancing gravimetric and volumetric hydrogen density in MOFs

Abstract: Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are promising materials for the storage of hydrogen fuel due to their high surface areas, tunable properties, and reversible gas adsorption. Although several MOFs are known to exhibit high hydrogen densities on a gravimetric basis, realizing high volumetric capacities – a critical attribute for maximizing the driving range of fuel cell vehicles – remains a challenge. Here, MOFs that achieve high gravimetric and volumetric H2 densities simultaneously are identified computationally, and demonstrated experimentally. The hydrogen capacities of 5309 MOFs drawn from databases of known compounds were predicted using empirical (Chahine rule) correlations and direct atomistic simulations. A critical assessment of correlations between these methods, and with experimental data, identified pseudo-Feynman–Hibbs-based grand canonical Monte Carlo calculations as the most accurate predictive method. Based on these predictions, promising MOF candidates were synthesized and evaluated with respect to their usable H2 capacities. Several MOFs predicted to exhibit high capacities displayed low surface areas upon activation, highlighting the need to understand the factors that control stability. Consistent with the computational predictions, IRMOF-20 was experimentally demonstrated to exhibit an uncommon combination of high usable volumetric and gravimetric capacities. Importantly, the measured capacities exceed those of the benchmark compound MOF-5, the record-holder for combined volumetric/gravimetric performance. Our study illustrates the value of computational screening in pinpointing materials that optimize overall storage performance.

Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System and Legacy Patient-Reported Outcome Measures in the Field of Orthopaedics: A Systematic Review.

Abstract: Purpose To compare Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) physical function (PF) with legacy patient-reported outcome measures with regard to correlations, ease of use, and quality criteria for orthopaedic conditions. Methods A systematic search of the PubMed/MEDLINE database was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines to identify published articles that referenced the various PROMIS PF measures. Three authors independently reviewed selected studies. The search returned 130 studies, 44 of which underwent review. Of these, 18 were selected for inclusion. A general linear model and paired t -tests were used to assess for differences between legacy patient-reported outcome measures and PROMIS. Results The combined sample size of all articles yielded 3,047 total patients. Overall, PROMIS PF measures and legacy scores showed strong correlations (range: 0.59-0.83) when evaluating upper extremity, lower extremity, and spine patients. PROMIS questionnaires (6.04, standard error [SE] = 0.7) have significantly fewer questions than legacy forms (24.27, SE = 4.36). In lower extremity studies, the PROMIS PF (100.14 seconds, SE = 28.41) forms were completed in significantly less time ( P = .03) than legacy forms (243.70 seconds, SE = 45.8). No significant difference was found between the reliabilities of the 2 types of measures. Conclusions PROMIS PF scores correlate strongly, particularly in lower extremity patients, with some of the most commonly used legacy measures in orthopaedics. PROMIS can be administered quicker and applied to a broader patient population while remaining highly reliable. Level of Evidence Level IV, systematic review of Level I-IV evidence.

Sunscreens: An Update

Abstract: Sunscreens have been widely used by the general public for their photoprotective properties, including prevention of photocarcinogenesis and photoaging and management of photodermatoses. It is important to emphasize to consumers the necessity of broad-spectrum protection, with coverage of both ultraviolet A (320-400 nm) and ultraviolet B (290-320 nm) radiation. This review discusses the benefits of sunscreen, different ultraviolet filters, sunscreen regulations and controversies, the importance of broad-spectrum protection, issues of photostability and formulation, and patient education and compliance.

Modeling Solid-Electrolyte Interphase (SEI) Fracture: Coupled Mechanical/Chemical Degradation of the Lithium Ion Battery

Abstract: In lithium ion batteries, intercalation and deintercalation of lithium may result in volume changes that induce stresses in the lithium-host electrode-material particles. At relatively high rates of charging or discharging, the host electrode particles may see large lithium concentration gradients which may result in fracture and pulverization due to large diffusion-induced stresses. Conversely, during low-rate charge/discharge operations, the lithium concentration gradients in the particle are minimal; in turn, the internal stresses to which the electrode particles are subjected are low. The electrode particle-cracking models fail to explain why cells exhibit higher coulombic capacity loss during low-rate cycling than during storage. The primary reason being that most of these models focus on understanding the host particle pulverization but fall short of recognizing the importance of possible mechanical degradation of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer. In this article, we develop a mathematical model to study stresses experienced by the SEI and demonstrate that stresses of large magnitude are exerted on the SEI layer during the expansion/contraction of an electrode particle which may fracture the SEI layer. With these stress calculations we also show that the larger the state-of-lithiation (SOL) change (or 'swing') during a lithiation event, the larger the possibility of SEI fracture. We propose that at lower discharge/charge rates of battery operation the SEI cracking and reforming, rather than the host particle fatigue, is a dominant mechanism of cell capacity loss. The capacity loss due to SEI cracking is shown to be proportional to the square of the SOL swing of the electrode particle during lithiation. An equation is derived to estimate battery capacity fade with SEI fracture and reformation as the main capacity-loss mechanism. The equation is used to estimate capacity fade during actual cell cycling experiments with satisfactory agreement between estimated and observed capacity fade with only one adjustable parameter.

Co-oxidation of CO and propylene on Pd/CeO2-ZrO2 and Pd/Al2O3 monolith catalysts: A light-off, kinetics, and mechanistic study

Abstract: The light-off (ignition) and steady-state behavior for individual oxidation and co-oxidation of CO and propylene under near-stoichiometric conditions was studied using Pd/Al 2 O 3 and Pd/CeO 2 -ZrO 2 monolith catalysts. CO and propylene are shown to be self- and mutually-inhibiting, with inhibition mitigated by the promotional effect of CeO 2 -ZrO 2 . Oxidation is enhanced at low temperatures for CO, and at intermediate and high temperatures for propylene. Light-off behavior during CO and propylene co-oxidation is similarly improved at low and high temperatures. Steady-state differential kinetics measurements using Pd/Al 2 O 3 show reaction orders of ∼−1 with respect to CO and propylene. Using Pd/CeO 2 -ZrO 2 , the reaction order with respect to CO shifts towards zero and the activation energy decreases, suggesting an alternate reaction mechanism for CO oxidation when enough ceria is present. Mechanisms for CO and propylene oxidation that are consistent with the kinetics and inhibition trends are presented.

Abnormal Driving Detection Based on Normalized Driving Behavior

Abstract: Abnormal driving behavior may cause serious danger to both the driver and the public. In this study, we propose to detect abnormal driving by analyzing normalized driving behavior. Serving as the virtual driver, a personalized driver model is established for speed control purposes by using the locally designed neural network and the real-world vehicle test data. The driving behavior is normalized by employing the virtual driver to conduct the speed following task as defined by the standard driving cycle test, e.g., the FTP-72. Three typical abnormal driving behaviors are characterized and simulated, namely, the fatigue/drunk, the reckless, and the phone use while driving. An abnormality index is proposed based on the analysis of normalized driving behaviors and is applied to quantitatively evaluate the abnormity. Numerical experiments are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.

Long-term follow-up of a randomized AAV2-GAD gene therapy trial for Parkinson’s disease

Abstract: BACKGROUND. We report the 12-month clinical and imaging data on the effects of bilateral delivery of the glutamic acid decarboxylase gene into the subthalamic nuclei (STN) of advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. METHODS. 45 PD patients were enrolled in a 6-month double-blind randomized trial of bilateral AAV2-GAD delivery into the STN compared with sham surgery and were followed for 12 months in open-label fashion. Subjects were assessed with clinical outcome measures and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET imaging. RESULTS. Improvements under the blind in Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor scores in the AAV2-GAD group compared with the sham group continued at 12 months [time effect: F(4,138) = 11.55, P < 0.001; group effect: F(1,35) = 5.45, P < 0.03; repeated-measures ANOVA (RMANOVA)]. Daily duration of levodopa-induced dyskinesias significantly declined at 12 months in the AAV2-GAD group (P = 0.03; post-hoc Bonferroni test), while the sham group was unchanged. Analysis of all FDG PET images over 12 months revealed significant metabolic declines (P < 0.001; statistical parametric mapping RMANOVA) in the thalamus, striatum, and prefrontal, anterior cingulate, and orbitofrontal cortices in the AAV2-GAD group compared with the sham group. Across all time points, changes in regional metabolism differed for the two groups in all areas, with significant declines only in the AAV2-GAD group (P < 0.005; post-hoc Bonferroni tests). Furthermore, baseline metabolism in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) correlated with changes in motor UPDRS scores; the higher the baseline PFC metabolism, the better the clinical outcome. CONCLUSION. These findings show that clinical benefits after gene therapy with STN AAV2-GAD in PD patients persist at 12 months. TRIAL REGISTRATION. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00643890. FUNDING. Neurologix Inc.

A Double-End Sourced Wire-Bonded Multichip SiC MOSFET Power Module With Improved Dynamic Current Sharing

Abstract: This paper proposes a double-end sourced layout for multichip SiC MOSFET power module adopting conventional wire-bonded packaging technology. The unique design provides each MOSFET with two parallel commutation loops by incorporating a symmetrical pair of dc-bus terminals into the power module. This new layout provides symmetrical equivalent power loops to each paralleled MOSFET and thus enables consistent switching performances and equal dynamic current sharing for the paralleled MOSFETs. Compared to the conventional design, the proposed design reduces the equivalent power-loop stray inductance by more than 50% and achieves improved dynamic current sharing among devices. By mitigating the imbalance of the switching current, the new module design demonstrated reduced temperature differences among devices and decreased near-field radiation noise level compared to the conventional layout. These features can further help to improve the power module density by shrinking the heat sink and integrating the gate driver board with the power modules. In this paper, an analytic model has been proposed for fast prediction of the near-field radiation from the power module. Detailed design procedures and experimental validations are also included in this paper.

Taking Fact-checks Literally But Not Seriously? The Effects of Journalistic Fact-checking on Factual Beliefs and Candidate Favorability

Abstract: Are citizens willing to accept journalistic fact-checks of misleading claims from candidates they support and to update their attitudes about those candidates? Previous studies have reached conflicting conclusions about the effects of exposure to counter-attitudinal information. As fact-checking has become more prominent, it is therefore worth examining how respondents respond to fact-checks of politicians --- a question with important implications for understanding the effects of this journalistic format on elections. We present results to two experiments conducted during the 2016 campaign that test the effects of exposure to realistic journalistic fact-checks of claims made by Donald Trump during his convention speech and a general election debate. These messages improved the accuracy of respondents' factual beliefs, even among his supporters, but had no measurable effect on attitudes toward Trump. These results suggest that journalistic fact-checks can reduce misperceptions but often have minimal effects on candidate evaluations or vote choice.