A Head-to-head Comparison of the EQ-5D-3L Index Scores Derived from the Two EQ-5D-3L Value Sets for China

Background: Two EQ-5D-3L (3L) value sets (developed in 2014 and 2018) co-exist in China. The study examined the level of agreement between index scores for all the 243 health states derived from them at both absolute and relative levels and compared the responsiveness of the two indices. Methods: Intraclass correlations coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman plot were adopted to assess the degree of agreement between the two indices at the absolute level. Health gains for 29,403 possible transitions between pairs of 3L health states were calculated to assess the agreement at the relative level. Their responsiveness for the transitions was assessed using Cohen effect size.Results：The mean (standard deviation, SD) value was 0.427 (0.206) and 0.649 (0.189) for the 3L2014 and 3L2018 index scores, respectively. Although the ICC value showed good agreement (i.e., 0.896), 88.9% (216/243) of the points were beyond the minimum important difference limit according to the Bland-Altman plot. The mean health gains for the 29,403 health transitions was 0.234 (3L2014 index score) and 0.216 (3L2018 index score). The two indices predicted consistent transitions in 23,720 (80.7%) of 29,403 pairs. For the consistent pairs, Cohen effective size value was 1.05 (3L2014 index score) or 1.06 (3L2018 index score); and the 3L2014 index score only yielded 0.007 more utility gains. However, the results based on the two measures varied substantially according to the direction and magnitude of health change. Conclusion：The 3L2014 and 3L2018 index scores are not interchangeable. The choice between them is likely to influence QALYs estimations.

The genomic structure of isolation across breed, country and strain for important South African and Australian sheep populations

Background South Africa and Australia shares multiple important sheep breeds. For some of these breeds, genomic breeding values are provided to breeders in Australia, but not yet in South Africa. Combining genomic resources could facilitate development for across country selection, but the influence of population structures could be important to the compatability of genomic data from varying origins. The genetic structure within and across breeds, countries and strains was evaluated in this study by population genomic parameters derived from SNP-marker data. Populations were first analysed by breed and country of origin and then by subpopulations of South African and Australian Merinos. Results Mean estimated relatedness according to the genomic relationship matrix varied by breed (-0.11 to 0.16) and bloodline (-0.08 to 0.06) groups and depended on co-ancestry as well as recent genetic links. Measures of divergence across bloodlines (FST: 0.04–0.12) were sometimes more distant than across some breeds (FST: 0.05–0.24), but the divergence of common breeds from their across-country equivalents was weak (FST: 0.01–0.04). According to mean relatedness, FST, PCA and Admixture, the Australian Ultrafine line was better connected to the SA Cradock Fine Wool flock than with other AUS bloodlines. Levels of linkage disequilibrium (LD) between adjacent markers was generally low, but also varied across breeds (r2: 0.14–0.22) as well as bloodlines (r2: 0.15–0.19). Patterns of LD decay was also unique to breeds, but bloodlines differed only at the absolute level. Estimates of effective population size (Ne) showed genetic diversity to be high for the majority of breeds (Ne: 128–418) but also for bloodlines (Ne: 137–369). Conclusions This study reinforced the genetic complexity and diversity of important sheep breeds, especially the Merino breed. The results also showed that implications of isolation can be highly variable and extended beyond breed structures. However, knowledge of useful links across these population substructures allows for a fine-tuned approach in the combination of genomic resources. Isolation across country rarely proved restricting compared to other structures considered. Consequently, research into the accuracy of across-country genomic prediction is recommended.

The Psychology behind Luxury Consumption

This paper will talk about the psychology of consumption of luxury products and experiences and how individuals get emotionally connected to them. This paper discussed new drivers, forms, and consequences of luxury spending. Also, the belief that the psychology of luxury consumption is driven by a series of conflicts between what luxury is to oneself and the external factors that drive luxury consumption. These tensions influence consumer behavior and the post-purchase feelings of consumption of luxurious products or experiences. Since some individuals regard non-luxury items as inferior merely because they are non-luxury, they also conclude that more expensive goods are of more outstanding quality, without any evidence about their absolute level of quality or longevity. Another angle that we discuss in detail is how self-esteem plays a role in impacting a person's choice of purchases and instilling a sense of belonging. This paper is going to be based on an amalgamation of primary and secondary research and will contribute to self-awareness of people who do and do not indulge in luxury buying and what goes behind the mindset of both categories. This will also help brands decide on their unique selling propositions to appeal to their respective target groups.

Farmers’ Satisfaction with Land Expropriation System Reform: A Case Study in China

Farmers’ satisfaction with reform of the land expropriation system has not been fully examined, so it is difficult to comprehensively and successfully judge the effectiveness of the reforms. Traditional statistical methods cannot accurately explain the relationship between the variables. In order to fully understand the implementation, progress, and applicability of land expropriation system reform, this paper analyzes the factors influencing farmers’ satisfaction, presents the shortcomings of land expropriation system reform, and puts forward improvement suggestions. Taking the land expropriation system reform pilot in Dingzhou city as an example, this paper investigates the satisfaction of the farmers who have had their land expropriated by establishing a structural equation model (SEM) to obtain feedback on the implementation effect of the pilot work. The results show that the factors affecting farmers’ satisfaction with the reform of land expropriation systems can be summarized into four variables: land expropriation compensation standard, land income distribution, land expropriation security mode, and land expropriation procedure. The parameter estimation between these four potential variables and their corresponding observation variables shows that, in the process of land expropriation, the comparison of land expropriation compensation standards and observation variables with market entry projects is an important factor affecting the satisfaction of farmers with regard to land expropriation. The income of municipal and county governments and village collective incomes have a great impact on farmers, indicating that the satisfaction of farmers is not only related to the absolute level of compensation and income, but is also affected by the relative level. In addition, providing farmers with a variety of reasonable security methods is an important element to enable the smooth progress of land expropriation. Furthermore, attention should also be paid to the formulation of land expropriation schemes and emergency plans to solve land expropriation conflicts.

Excess mortality by individual and spousal education for recent and long-term widowed

Objectives The loss of a spouse is followed by a dramatic but short-lived increase in the mortality risk of the survivor. Contrary to expectations, several studies have found this increase to be larger among those with high education. Having a spouse with high education is associated with lower mortality which suggests that losing a spouse with high education means the loss of a stronger protective factor than losing a spouse with low education. This may disproportionately affect the high educated because of educational homogamy. Methods We use Swedish total population registers to construct an open cohort of 1,842,487 married individuals aged 60 to 89 during 2007—2016, observing 239,276 transitions into widowhood and 277,946 deaths. We use Poisson regression to estimate relative and absolute mortality risks by own and spousal education among the married, recent, and long-term widows. Results We find an absolute increase in mortality risk, concentrated to the first six months of widowhood across all educational strata. The relative increase in mortality risk is larger in higher educational strata. Losing a spouse with high education is associated with higher excess mortality, which attenuates this difference. Discussion When considering the timing and the absolute level of excess mortality we find that the overall patterns of excess mortality are similar across educational strata. We argue that widowhood has a dramatic impact on health, regardless of education.

The evolution of Risk from Landslides: Concepts and Applications for Communities in New Zealand

<p>The aim of this research is to identify temporal changes of risk from landsliding for several locations in New Zealand (the Western Hutt Hills, close to Wellington; Te Arai, close to Gisborne; Mt.Cook/Aoraki Village, South Island). While risk analysis usually targets a particular point in time, this research includes several five-year intervals (based on census years) starting in 1981 until 2006. The scale of this analysis is the community level. Risk is not expressed as an absolute level of loss, for example a dollar value or the number of fatalities. Risk is rather considered as the probability and extent of adverse effects on a community inferred from landsliding. As such, risk is relative: the aim is to quantify risk for a community relative to another point in time, and relative to other communities. In addition, the degree to which risk levels vary between communities is quantified. The objectives of the risk analysis are to: 1. establish landslide hazard, i.e. the frequency and magnitude of landsliding for each location, 2. develop an index of social vulnerability per census year and community, 3. develop an index of social resilience per census year and community, 4. combine 1.-3. and, together with exposure ('elements at risk'), determine risk from landsliding for each community through time.</p>

The evolution of Risk from Landslides: Concepts and Applications for Communities in New Zealand

<p>The aim of this research is to identify temporal changes of risk from landsliding for several locations in New Zealand (the Western Hutt Hills, close to Wellington; Te Arai, close to Gisborne; Mt.Cook/Aoraki Village, South Island). While risk analysis usually targets a particular point in time, this research includes several five-year intervals (based on census years) starting in 1981 until 2006. The scale of this analysis is the community level. Risk is not expressed as an absolute level of loss, for example a dollar value or the number of fatalities. Risk is rather considered as the probability and extent of adverse effects on a community inferred from landsliding. As such, risk is relative: the aim is to quantify risk for a community relative to another point in time, and relative to other communities. In addition, the degree to which risk levels vary between communities is quantified. The objectives of the risk analysis are to: 1. establish landslide hazard, i.e. the frequency and magnitude of landsliding for each location, 2. develop an index of social vulnerability per census year and community, 3. develop an index of social resilience per census year and community, 4. combine 1.-3. and, together with exposure ('elements at risk'), determine risk from landsliding for each community through time.</p>

Stuttering: A Disorder of Energy Supply to Neurons?

Stuttering is a disorder characterized by intermittent loss of volitional control of speech movements. This hypothesis and theory article focuses on the proposal that stuttering may be related to an impairment of the energy supply to neurons. Findings from electroencephalography (EEG), brain imaging, genetics, and biochemistry are reviewed: (1) Analyses of the EEG spectra at rest have repeatedly reported reduced power in the beta band, which is compatible with indications of reduced metabolism. (2) Studies of the absolute level of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) show conflicting findings, with two studies reporting reduced rCBF in the frontal lobe, and two studies, based on a different method, reporting no group differences. This contradiction has not yet been resolved. (3) The pattern of reduction in the studies reporting reduced rCBF corresponds to the regional pattern of the glycolytic index (GI; Vaishnavi et al., 2010). High regional GI indicates high reliance on non-oxidative metabolism, i.e., glycolysis. (4) Variants of the gene ARNT2 have been associated with stuttering. This gene is primarily expressed in the brain, with a pattern roughly corresponding to the pattern of regional GI. A central function of the ARNT2 protein is to act as one part of a sensor system indicating low levels of oxygen in brain tissue and to activate appropriate responses, including activation of glycolysis. (5) It has been established that genes related to the functions of the lysosomes are implicated in some cases of stuttering. It is possible that these gene variants result in a reduced peak rate of energy supply to neurons. (6) Lastly, there are indications of interactions between the metabolic system and the dopamine system: for example, it is known that acute hypoxia results in an elevated tonic level of dopamine in the synapses. Will mild chronic limitations of energy supply also result in elevated levels of dopamine? The indications of such interaction effects suggest that the metabolic theory of stuttering should be explored in parallel with the exploration of the dopaminergic theory.

SPECIFIC FEATURES OF THE DYNAMICS OF CD4+CD25+ SUBPOPULATIONS OF T-LYMPHOCYTES IN PATIENTS WITH SATISFACTORY EARLY RENAL ALLOGRAFT FUNCTION

Background. Experimental models indicate a certain role of T-regulatory lymphocytes in the induction of immunological tolerance. However, it is necessary to study their function and phenotype in more detail for the purposes of applying the mechanisms of tolerance induction. Objective. To assess the dynamics of CD3+CD4+CD25+ and CD3+CD4+CD25+highCD127+low indicators in renal transplant recipients with satisfactory early allograft function. Material and Methods. Kidney transplantation was performed in 197 recipients. We assessed CD3+CD4+CD25+ and CD3+CD4+CD25+highCD127+low level before the transplantation and on the 1st, 3rd, 7th, 30th and 90th days after the transplantation. The following groups of recipients were identified: PGF – those with satisfactory primary graft function, PGD – those with primary graft dysfunction, TR – those with transplant rejection in the early postoperative period. The comparison group (CG) consisted of healthy volunteers. Results. A significant increase in the relative and absolute level of CD3+CD4+CD25+highCD127+low from day 30 to 90 after surgery was revealed in recipients with a primary functioning graft. At the same time, CD3+CD4+CD25+ indicators in the recipients of the studied groups did not have significant differences throughout the study. Conclusions. CD3+CD4+CD25+highCD127+low monitoring can be used to identify patients with high tolerogenic potential.

Metacognition and self-concept: Elaborating on a construct relation in first-grade children

Self-evaluations play an important role in various fields of study, specifically in research on metacognition and self-concept. Although the assumption that self-evaluations as known from metacognitive monitoring and academic self-concept are related has received wide agreement, the nature of such a relationship has only rarely been investigated. In the current study, the individual-differences approach that has occasionally addressed this association is discussed and extended twofold. For one, a novel way to compare metacognition and self-concept is presented by computing a self-concept bias—analogous to metacognition research. For another, the study targeted a younger population, namely first-grade children. In line with previous studies, the results confirmed a weak relation between metacognitive monitoring and academic self-concept when relating the two constructs at the absolute level of confidence. However, relating the constructs by means of the respective biases revealed a more substantial association. Thus, while previous studies have assumed the common thread between metacognition and self-concept to be best explained by a general confidence trait, the present study suggests the accuracy of self-evaluations to be at stake instead. Hence, by introducing a method to quantify a bias in self-concept, the current study proposes a new and promising way to compare and relate the constructs of metacognition and self-concept.