University of Houston

About: University of Houston is a education organization based out in Houston, Texas, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 23074 authors who have published 53903 publications receiving 1641968 citations.

Prevention of secondary ischemic insults after severe head injury.

Abstract: Objective:The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of two acute-care management strategies on the frequency of jugular venous desaturation and refractory intracranial hypertension and on long-term neurologic outcome in patients with severe head injury.Design:Randomized clinical trial.Set

The current state of scenario development: an overview of techniques

Abstract: Purpose – The paper aims to review all the techniques for developing scenarios that have appeared in the literature, along with comments on their utility, strengths and weaknesses. Design/methodology/approach – The study was carried out through an electronic search using internet search engines and online databases and indexes. Findings – The paper finds eight categories of techniques that include a total of 23 variations used to develop scenarios. There are descriptions and evaluations for each. Practical implications – Futurists can use this list to broaden their repertoire of scenario techniques. Originality/value – Scenario development is the stock-in-trade of futures studies, but no catalog of the techniques used has yet been published. This list is the start at developing a consensus list of techniques that can be refined as the field matures.

A Review of Antimicrobial Peptides and Their Therapeutic Potential as Anti-Infective Drugs

Abstract: Purpose: Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are an essential part of innate immunity that evolved in most living organisms over 2.6 billion years to combat microbial challenge. These small cationic peptides are multifunctional as effectors of innate immunity on skin and mucosal surfaces and have demonstrated direct antimicrobial activity against various bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. This review summarizes their progress to date as commercial antimicrobial drugs for topical and systemic indications. Methods: Literature review. Results: Despite numerous clinical trials, no modified AMP has obtained Food & Drug Administration approval yet for any topical or systemic medical indications. Conclusions: While AMPs are recognized as essential components of natural host innate immunity against microbial challenge, their usefulness as a new class of antimicrobial drugs still remains to be proven.

The Community Land Model version 5 : description of new features, benchmarking, and impact of forcing uncertainty

Abstract: The Community Land Model (CLM) is the land component of the Community Earth System Model (CESM) and is used in several global and regional modeling systems. In this paper, we introduce model developments included in CLM version 5 (CLM5), which is the default land component for CESM2. We assess an ensemble of simulations, including prescribed and prognostic vegetation state, multiple forcing data sets, and CLM4, CLM4.5, and CLM5, against a range of metrics including from the International Land Model Benchmarking (ILAMBv2) package. CLM5 includes new and updated processes and parameterizations: (1) dynamic land units, (2) updated parameterizations and structure for hydrology and snow (spatially explicit soil depth, dry surface layer, revised groundwater scheme, revised canopy interception and canopy snow processes, updated fresh snow density, simple firn model, and Model for Scale Adaptive River Transport), (3) plant hydraulics and hydraulic redistribution, (4) revised nitrogen cycling (flexible leaf stoichiometry, leaf N optimization for photosynthesis, and carbon costs for plant nitrogen uptake), (5) global crop model with six crop types and time‐evolving irrigated areas and fertilization rates, (6) updated urban building energy, (7) carbon isotopes, and (8) updated stomatal physiology. New optional features include demographically structured dynamic vegetation model (Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator), ozone damage to plants, and fire trace gas emissions coupling to the atmosphere. Conclusive establishment of improvement or degradation of individual variables or metrics is challenged by forcing uncertainty, parametric uncertainty, and model structural complexity, but the multivariate metrics presented here suggest a general broad improvement from CLM4 to CLM5.