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This study proposes an improved group decision making (GDM) framework that combines the VIKOR method with data fuzzification to quantify the spatial flood vulnerability including multiple criteria. In general, GDM method is an effective tool for formulating a compromise solution that involves various decision makers since various stakeholders may have different perspectives on their flood risk/vulnerability management responses. The GDM approach is designed to achieve consensus building that reflects the viewpoints of each participant. The fuzzy VIKOR method was developed to solve multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problems with conflicting and noncommensurable criteria. This comprising method can be used to obtain a nearly ideal solution according to all established criteria. This approach effectively can propose some compromising decisions by combining the GDM method and fuzzy VIKOR method. The spatial flood vulnerability of the southern Han River using the GDM approach combined with the fuzzy VIKOR method was compared with the spatial flood vulnerability using general MCDM methods, such as the fuzzy TOP-SIS and classical GDM methods (i.e., Borda, Condorcet, and Copeland). As a result, the proposed fuzzy GDM approach can reduce the uncertainty in the data confidence and weight derivation techniques. Thus, the combination of the GDM approach with the fuzzy VIKOR method can provide robust prioritization because it actively reflects the opinions of various groups and considers uncertainty in the input data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study developed a streamflow drought severity--duration--frequency (SDF) curve that is analogous to the well-known depth--duration--frequency (DDF) curve used for rainfall. Severity was defined as the total water deficit volume to target threshold for a given drought duration. Furthermore, this study compared the SDF curves of four threshold level methods: fixed, monthly, daily, and desired yield for water use. The fixed threshold level in this study is the 70th percentile value (Q70) of the flow duration curve (FDC), which is compiled using all available daily streamflows. The monthly threshold level is the monthly varying Q70 values of the monthly FDC. The daily variable threshold is Q70 of the FDC that was obtained from the antecedent 365 daily streamflows. The desired-yield threshold that was determined by the central government consists of domestic, industrial, and agricultural water uses and environmental in-stream flow. As a result, the durations and severities from the desired-yield threshold level were completely different from those for the fixed, monthly and daily levels. In other words, the desired-yield threshold can identify stream- flow droughts using the total water deficit to the hydrological and socioeconomic targets, whereas the fixed, monthly, and daily streamflow thresholds derive the deficiencies or anomalies from the average of the historical streamflow. Based on individual frequency analyses, the SDF curves for four thresholds were developed to quantify the relation among the severities, durations, and frequencies. The SDF curves from the fixed, daily, and monthly thresholds have comparatively short durations because the annual maximum durations vary from 30 to 96 days, whereas those from the desired-yield threshold have much longer durations of up to 270 days. For the additional analysis, the return-period--duration curve was also derived to quantify the extent of the drought duration. These curves can be an effective tool to identify streamflow droughts using severities, durations, and frequencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper quantifies the transformed effectiveness of alternatives for watershed management caused by climate change and urbanization and prioritizes five options using multi-criteria decision making techniques. The climate change scenarios (A1B and A2) were obtained by using a statistical downscaling model (SDSM), and the urbanization scenario by surveying the existing urban planning. The flow and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) concentration duration curves were derived, and the numbers of days required to satisfy the environmental flow requirement and the target BOD concentration were counted using the Hydrological Simulation Program-Fortran (HSPF) model. In addition, five feasible alternatives were prioritized by using multi-criteria decision making techniques, based on the driving force-pressure-state-impact-response (DPSIR) framework and cost component. Finally, a sensitivity analysis approach for MCDM methods was conducted to reduce the uncertainty of weights. The result indicates that the most sensitive decision criterion is cost, followed by criteria response, driving force, impact, state and pressure in that order. As it is certain that the importance of cost component is over 0.127, construction of a small wastewater treatment plant will be the most preferred alternative in this application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper quantifies the transformed effectiveness of alternatives for watershed management caused by climate change and urbanization and prioritizes five options using multi-criteria decision making techniques. The climate change scenarios (A1B and A2) were obtained by using a statistical downscaling model (SDSM), and the urbanization scenario by surveying the existing urban planning. The flow and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) concentration duration curves were derived, and the numbers of days required to satisfy the environmental flow requirement and the target BOD concentration were counted using the Hydrological Simulation Program-Fortran (HSPF) model. In addition, five feasible alternatives were prioritized by using multi-criteria decision making techniques, based on the driving force-pressure-state-impact-response (DPSIR) framework and cost component. Finally, a sensitivity analysis approach for MCDM methods was conducted to reduce the uncertainty of weights. The result indicates that the most sensitive decision criterion is cost, followed by criteria response, driving force, impact, state and pressure in that order. Since it is certain that the importance of cost component is over 0.127, use of the groundwater collected by subway stations will be the most preferred alternative in this application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study develops a social-economic-engineering combined framework for decision making in water resources planning. This framework consists of four parts which are to spatially identify the grades on hydrological vulnerability (potential streamflow depletion and potential water quality deterioration), to evaluate the monetary values of improvements on hydrological vulnerability grades using the choice experiment method, to derive an alternative evaluation index (AEI) to quantify the effectiveness of all alternatives, and to combine the derived willingness-topays (WTPs) with the AEI and do the cost-benefit analysis of feasible alternatives. This framework includes the stakeholder participation in order to quantify the preferences with regard to management objectives (water quantity and quality) and WTPs of alternatives. Finally, the economic values of each alternative can be estimated by this study which combines the WTPs for improvements on hydrologic vulnerability grades with the AEI. The proposed procedure is applied in the Anyangcheon watershed which has been highly urbanized for past thirty years. As a result, WTPs are $0.24~$10.08/month-household for water quantity and $0.80~$8.60/month-household for water quality and residents of the five regions among six have higher WTPs for water quality improvement. Finally, since three of ten alternatives have BC>0, they can be proposed to the decision makers. This systematic screening procedure will provide decision makers with the flexibility to obtain stakeholders' consensus for water resources planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purposes: We recently proposed the existence of neurotoxic interactions between the cannabinoid type 1 (CB(1)) receptor and transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) channels in rat mesencephalic cultures. This study seeks evidence for the mediator(s) and mechanisms underlying the neurotoxic interactions between CB(1) receptors and TRPV1 in vitro and in vivo.Experimental Approach: The mediator(s) and mechanism(s) for the interactions between CB(1) receptors and TRPV1 were evaluated by cell viability assays, immunocytochemistry, Fura-2 calcium imaging, mitochondrial morphology assay, ELISA and Western blot assay in vitro in neuron-enriched mesencephalic cultures. Injections into the substantia nigra and subsequent cell counts were also used to confirm these interactions in vivo.Key Results: The neurotoxic interactions were mediated by 12(S)-hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12(S)-HPETE), an endogenous TRPV1 agonist. CB(1) receptor agonists (HU210 and WIN55,212-2) increased the level of 12(S)-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12(S)-HETE), a downstream metabolite of 12(S)-HPETE, which stimulates TRPV1-mediated death of mesencephalic neurons, both in vitro and in vivo. The neurotoxicity was mediated by increased intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) through TRPV1, consequently leading to mitochondrial damage and was attenuated by baicalein, a 12-lipoxygenase inhibitor.Conclusion and Implications: Activation of CB(1) receptors in rat mesencephalic neurons was associated with biosynthesis of 12(S)-HPETE, which in turn stimulated TRPV1 activity, leading to increased [Ca(2+)](i), mitochondrial damage and neuronal death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a new methodology not only to evaluate willingness to pays (WTPs) for the improvement of hydrological vulnerability using a choice experiment (CE) method but also to do a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of some feasible alternatives combing the derived WTPs with an alternative evaluation index (AEI). The hydrological vulnerability consists of potential streamflow depletion (PSD), and potential water quality deterioration (PWQD) and can be quantified using a multi-criteria decision making technique and pressure-state-response (PSR) framework. PSD and PWQD not only provide survey respondents with sufficient site-specific information to avoid scope sensitivity in a choice experiment but also support the standard of dividing the study watershed into six sub-regions for site-fitted management. Therefore CE was applied to six regions one after the other, in order to determine WTPs for improvements on hydrological vulnerability considering the characteristics which are vulnerability, location, and preferences with regard to management objectives. The AEI was developed to prioritize the feasible alternatives using a continuous water quantity/quality simulation model as well as multi-criteria decision making techniques. All criteria for alternative performance were selected based on a driver-pressures-state-impact-response (DPSIR) framework, and their weights were estimated using an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). In addition, the AEI that reflects on residents' preference with regard to management objectives was proposed in order to incite the stakeholder to participate in the decision making process. Finally, the economic values of each alternative are estimated by a newly developed method which combines the WTPs for improvements on hydrologic vulnerability with the AEI. This social-economic-engineering combined framework can provide the decision makers with more specific information as well as decrease the uncertainty of the CBA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diurnal variations of upper tropospheric humidity (UTH) as well as middle tropospheric humidity (MTH) were examined in conjunction with the diurnal cycle of convection over tropical Africa and the adjacent tropical Atlantic Ocean using Meteosat-8 measurements. Cloud and humidity features were also tracked to document the diurnal variations of humidity and clouds in the Lagrangian framework. A distinct diurnal variation of UTH (and MTH) is noted over regions where tropical deep convective cloud systems are commonly observed. The amplitude of the UTH diurnal variation is larger over land, while its variations over convectively inactive subtropical regions are much smaller. The diurnal variation of UTH tends to reach a maximum during nighttime over land, lagging deep convection and high cloud whose maxima occurred in the late afternoon and evening, respectively. It was revealed that these diurnal variations over the African continent are likely associated with continental-scale daytime solar heating and topography, in which topographically-induced signals develop earlier around the mid-afternoon and merge into stronger and broader continental-scale convection clusters later, forming a precipitation maximum in the late afternoon. It was also revealed that advection effect on the diurnal variation appears to be insignificant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diurnal variations of upper tropospheric humidity (UTH) as well as middle tropospheric humidity (MTH) were examined in conjunction with the diurnal cycle of convection over tropical Africa and the adjacent tropical Atlantic Ocean using Meteosat-8 measurements. Cloud and humidity features were also tracked to document the diurnal variations of humidity and clouds in the Lagrangian framework. A distinct diurnal variation of UTH (and MTH) is noted over regions where tropical deep convective cloud systems are commonly observed. The amplitude of the UTH diurnal variation is larger over land, while its variations over convectively inactive subtropical regions are much smaller. The diurnal variation of UTH tends to peak during nighttime over land, lagging deep convection and high cloud whose maxima occurred in the late afternoon and the evening, respectively. The time lag between the maximum UTH and deep convection/high cloud maxima over the ocean appears to be longer in comparison to that found over land. It was also indicated that both the UTH (and MTH) and the cirrus anvil cloud show a variation which is in phase, implying that moistening of the upper troposphere is closely linked to process of development and dissipation of deep convective clouds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of malignant melanoma has been rising steadily for the last 30 years. Through physician and patient education, surveillance of high-risk individuals, and biopsy of any suspicious lesions, more lesions are being diagnosed earlier, where there is a high cure rate. Unfortunately many patients will still present with thicker lesions or nodal involvement, which carries a significantly worse prognosis. Over the past decade, there have been several changes in the management of primary cutaneous melanoma. These have stemmed from novel surgical approaches, a new understanding of melanoma biology, and randomized clinical trials designed to improve outcome and decrease the morbidity of therapy. This article will review the clinical evidence behind the current treatment recommendations for primary cutaneous melanoma as well as some of the emerging data on innovative immunologic-approaches to melanoma treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peutz-Jeghers syndrome is an autosomal dominant inherited disorder characterized by hamartomatous polyps in the small bowel and mucocutaneous pigmentation. Patients with Peutz-Jeghers syndrome often present as surgical emergencies with complications of the polyps, such as intussusception, bowel obstruction, and bleeding. Recently an increased risk of malignancies has also been reported. This study was initiated to determine the clinical features of Peutz-Jeghers syndrome in Korean patients, with special attention to the development of malignancies. Thirty patients with Peutz-Jeghers syndrome were investigated; their median age was 23.5 years, and symptoms appeared at a median age of 12.5 years. Family history was positive in one-half of cases, and mucocutaneous pigmentation was observed in almost all patients (93%). The jejunoileum was the most frequent site of the polyps, and there were generally 10–100 polyps. Multiple laparotomies were performed in a substantial portion of the patients, due mainly to polyp-induced bowel obstruction, and the surgical interventions were begun at a relatively young age (average 21.4 years). Four cases of small-bowel cancer and one case of breast cancer were detected in probands, at a relatively young age (mean 36 years). Cancers of the small bowel, stomach, colon, breast and cervix were diagnosed in the first relatives of the probands. Close follow-up from an early age should thus be performed in patients with Peutz-Jeghers syndrome as they are at high risk of surgical emergency and development of malignancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on global scale monitoring of upper tropospheric relative humidity (UTH) in 2015. It mentions measurement of tropical and dry anomalies which resulted from strong El Niño and the prominent global products of precipitation such as the Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) dataset and the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP).

Introduction Current guidelines recommend cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) in patients with severe symptomatic heart failure, depressed left ventricular (LV) systolic function and a wide QRS complex (≥120 ms). However, patients with heart failure having a narrow QRS complex might also benefit from CRT. Design setting patients interventions During the Predictors of Response to Cardiac Resynchronisation Therapy (PROSPECT) trial, 41 patients were enrolled in a 'narrow') QRS sub-study. These patients had a QRS complex <130 s, but documented evidence of mechanical dyssynchrony by any of seven pre-defined echocardiographic measures. Results After 6 onths of CRT, 26 (63.4%) patients showed improvement according to the Clinical Composite Score, 4 (9.8%) remained unchanged and 11 (26.8%) worsened. In patients with paired data, the 6-min walking distance increased from 334±118 to 382±128 , (p=0.003) and quality-of-life score improved from 44.2±19.7 to 26.8±20.2 (p<0.0001). Furthermore, there was a significant decrease in LV end-systolic diameter (from 59±9 to 55±12 m, p=0.002) and in LV end-diastolic diameter (from 67±9 to 63±11 m, p=0.007). Conclusion The results suggest that CRT may have a beneficial effect in heart failure patients with a narrow QRS complex and mechanical dyssynchrony as assessed by echocardiography. The majority of patients improved on clinical symptoms, and there was an evident reduction in LV diameters. Larger studies are needed to clearly define selection criteria for CRT in patients with a narrow QRS complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]