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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
21

Queueing Variables and Leave-Without-Treatment Rates in the Emergency Room

Gibbs, Joy Jaylene 01 January 2018 (has links)
Hospitals stand to lose millions of dollars in revenue due to patients who leave without treatment (LWT). Grounded in queueing theory, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between daily arrivals, daily staffing, triage time, emergency severity index (ESI), rooming time, door-to-provider time (DTPT), and LWT rates. The target population comprised patients who visited a Connecticut emergency room between October 1, 2017, and May 31, 2018. Archival records (N = 154) were analyzed using multiple linear regression analysis. The results of the multiple linear regression were statistically significant, with F(9,144) = 2902.49, p < .001, and R2 = 0.99, indicating 99% of the variation in LWT was accounted for by the predictor variables. ESI levels were the only variables making a significant contribution to the regression model. The implications for positive social change include the potential for patients to experience increased satisfaction due to the high quality of care and overall improvement in public health outcomes. Hospital leaders might use the information from this study to mitigate LWT rates and modify or manage staffing levels, time that patients must wait for triage, room placement, and DTPT to decrease the rate of LWT in the emergency room.
22

Selecting the Best Linear Model From a Subset of All Possible Models for a Given Set of Predictors in a Multiple Linear Regression Analysis

Jensen, David L. 01 May 1972 (has links)
Sixteen "model building" and "model selection" procedures commonly encountered in industry, all of which were initially alleged to be capable of identifying the best model from the collection of 2k possible linear models corresponding to a given set of k predictors in a multiple linear regression analysis, were individually summarized and subsequently evaluated by considering their comparative advantages and limitations from both a theoretical and a practical standpoint. It was found that none of the proposed procedures were absolutely infallible and that several were actually unsuitable. However, it was also found that most of these techniques could still be profitably employed by the analyst, and specific directional guidelines were recommended for their implementation in a proper analysis. Furthermore, the specific role of the analyst in a multiple linear regression application was clearly defined in a practical sense.
23

Enhancement of Pavement Maintenance Decision Making by Evaluating the Effectiveness of Pavement Maintenance Treatments

Dong, Qiao 01 May 2011 (has links)
The performance of different pavement maintenance treatments were evaluated by investigating practical projects collected from Tennessee Pavement Management System (PMS) and Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) database. The influence of factors on the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and cracking initiation of different treatment were evaluated by “Optime”, multiple linear regression and parametric survival analysis. Pavement roughness, pavement serviceability index (PSI) and the initiation time of cracking were used as pavement performance indicators. Investigation on the pavement maintenance projects in Tennessee by Optime and multiple linear regression analysis indicated that HMA overlay had the highest effectiveness, followed by mill & fill and micro surfacing. Due to the relatively low cost, micro surfacing was the most cost-effective treatment, followed by HMA overlay and mill & fill. The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness decreased with the increase of traffic level and pre-treatment pavement condition. Investigation on the LTPP resurfacing treatments indicated that thick overlay and milling reduced the roughness after rehabilitation. Thin overlay, high traffic level and poor pre-rehabilitation pavement condition increased the deterioration rate of new overlay. Using reclaimed asphalt material did not influence the treatment performance but was cost-effective in reducing the roughness of new overlay. For a certain deterioration rate, there was an optimized pre-rehabilitation roughness value or time for applying maintenance treatment. Survival analysis on the crack initiation of asphalt overlay indicated that high traffic level accelerated the initiation of cracking. Thick overlay delayed the initiation of cracking except for the non-wheel path longitudinal crack. Mill retarded the occurrence of the non-fatigue cracks, whereas severe freeze thaw condition accelerated the occurrence of the two types of cracking. Using 30% RAP accelerated the initiation of longitudinal fatigue crack on wheel path but did not cause serious fatigue problem. The performance curves of HMA resurfacing treatments used in Tennessee were calibrated by investigating the influence of different factors on the slopes and intercepts of post-treatment performance curves. The analysis indicated that pavement with high pre-treatment PSI, thick overlay and deep milling had low deterioration rate, whereas pavement with higher traffic level deteriorated faster.
24

Coastline Simulation Using Fractal

chuag, Yu-hua 08 July 2009 (has links)
Fractal was first used in measuring the length of the coastline, with the fractal research and development, not only to break the traditional Archimedean geometry, but also to explain many scientific to ignore the complexity and nature of nonlinear phenomena structure .Fractal has been widely applied to such as physics, astronomy, geography and sociology and other fields, as a wave of interdisciplinary research in recent years. Coastal areas has always been cultural, economic and activities areas since ancient times. Coastal zone was land and sea for the interaction region by a variety of factors (ex: waves, tides, currents and wind, etc.) continue to function, derived from different coastal terrain. Therefore changes in the coast of the deep impact of humanity. Under the principle of the conservation and development, Coastal areas should be use of modern technology to prediction, analysis, assessment, planning, and management, so that a sustainable preservation of coastal resources. In this study, static and dynamic predict and simulation the coast shape base on fractal. The static part is observation of 29 beaches in South China coast. And collect and calculate the parameters and fractal dimensions of the coast. Through the shape of image processing and analysis of information, to find two generators of the coast. Through the data mining technology to identify the criteria for classification, and to simulation the coastline by generate iterations method. The dynamic part is based on hydraulic model¡¦s results, the use of traditional multiple linear regression and neural network to compare the dynamic prediction of the coastline. The results show that the use of neural networks to predict than the use of multiple linear regression, and effect of use difference angle (£c) to predict sub-coastlines than the effect of not use difference angle (£c) to predict, and add fractal dimension can effectively reduce the predict error and increase the degree of interpretation.
25

Hepatic Gene Expression Profiling to Predict Future Lactation Performance in Dairy Cattle

Doelman, John 07 October 2011 (has links)
An experiment was conducted to obtain a hepatic gene expression dataset from postpubertal dairy heifers that could be fit to a computational model capable of predicting future lactation performance values. The initial animal experiment was conducted to characterize the hepatic transcriptional response to 24-hour total feed withdrawal in one-hundred and two postpubertal Holstein dairy heifers using an 8329-gene oligonucleotide microarray in a randomized block design. Plasma concentration of non-esterified fatty acids was significantly higher, while levels of beta-hydroxybutyrate, triacylglycerol, and glucose were significantly lower with the 24-hour total feed withdrawal. In total, 505 differentially expressed genes were identified and microarray results were confirmed by real-time PCR. Upregulation of key gluconeogenic genes occurred despite diminished dietary substrate and lower hepatic glucose synthesis. Downregulation of ketogenic genes was contrary to the non-ruminant response to feed withdrawal, but was consistent with a lower ruminal supply of short-chain fatty acids as precursors. Following the microarray experiment, the first series of regression analyses was employed to identify relationships between gene expression signal and lactation performance measurements taken over the first lactation of 81 of the subjects from the original study. Regression models were evaluated using mean square prediction error (MSPE) and concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) analysis. The strongest validated stepwise regression models were constructed for milk protein percentage (r = 0.04) and lactation persistency (r = 0.09). To determine if another type of regression analysis would better predict lactation performance, partial least squares (PLS) regression analysis was then applied. Selection of gene expression data was based on an assessment of the linear dependence of all genes in normalized datasets for 81 subjects against 18 dairy herd index (DHI) variables using Pearson correlation analysis. Results were distributed into two lists based on correlation coefficient. Each gene expression dataset was used to construct PLS models for the purpose of predicting lactation performance. The strongest predictive models were generated for protein percentage (r = 0.46), 305-d milk yield (r = 0.44), and 305-d protein yield (r = 0.47). These results demonstrate the suitability of using hepatic gene expression in young animals to quantitatively predict future lactation performance. / Ontario Centre for Agricultural Genomics, NSERC Canada, and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA)
26

Studies on bikeability in a metropolitan area using the active commuting route environment scale (ACRES)

Wahlgren, Lina January 2011 (has links)
Background: The Active Commuting Route Environment Scale (ACRES) was developed to study active commuters’ perceptions of their route environments. The overall aims were to assess the measuring properties of the ACRES and study active bicycle commuters’ perceptions of their commuting route environments. Methods: Advertisement- and street-recruited bicycle commuters from Greater Stockholm, Sweden, responded to the ACRES. Expected differences between inner urban and suburban route environments were used to assess criterion-related validity, together with ratings from an assembled expert panel as well as existing objective measures. Reliability was assessed as test-retest reproducibility. Comparisons of ratings between advertisement- and street-recruited participants were used for assessments of representativity. Ratings of inner urban and suburban route environments were used to evaluate commuting route environment profiles. Simultaneous multiple linear regression analyses were used to assess the relation between the outcome variable: whether the route environment hinders or stimulates bicycle-commuting and environmental predictors, such as levels of exhaust fumes, speeds of traffic and greenery, in inner urban areas. Results: The ACRES was characterized by considerable criterion-related validity and reasonable test-retest reproducibility. There was a good correspondence between the advertisement- and street-recruited participants’ ratings. Distinct differences in commuting route environment profiles between the inner urban and suburban areas were noted. Suburban route environments were rated as safer and more stimulating for bicycle-commuting. Beautiful, green and safe route environments seem to be, independently of each other, stimulating factors for bicycle-commuting in inner urban areas. On the other hand, high levels of exhaust fumes and traffic congestion, as well as low ‘directness’ of the route, seem to be hindering factors. Conclusions: The ACRES is useful for assessing bicyclists’ perceptions of their route environments. A number of environmental factors related to the route appear to be stimulating or hindering for bicycle commuting. The overall results demonstrate a complex research area at the beginning of exploration. / BAKGRUND: Färdvägsmiljöer kan tänkas påverka människors fysiskt aktiva arbetspendling och därmed bidra till bättre folkhälsa. Studier av färdvägsmiljöer är därför önskvärda för att öka förståelsen kring möjliga samband mellan fysiskt aktiv arbetspendling och färdvägsmiljöer. En enkät, ”The Active Commuting Route Environment Scale” (ACRES), har därför skapats i syfte att studera fysiskt aktiva arbetspendlares upplevelser av sina färdvägsmiljöer. Huvudsyftet med denna avhandling var dels att studera enkätens psykometriska egenskaper i form av validitet och reliabilitet, dels att studera arbetspendlande cyklisters upplevelser av sina färdvägsmiljöer. METODER: Arbetspendlande cyklister från Stor-Stockholm rekryterades via tidningsannonsering och via direkt kontakt i anslutning till färdvägen. Deltagarna besvarade enkäten ACRES. Tillsammans med skattningar från en grupp av experter och redan existerande objektiva mått användes förväntade skillnader mellan färdvägsmiljöer i inner- och ytterstaden för att studera kriterierelaterad validitet. Reliabiliteten studerades som reproducerbarhet via upprepade mätningar (test-retest). Jämförelser mellan skattningar av deltagare rekryterade via annonsering och via direkt kontakt i färdvägsmiljöer användes för att studera representativitet. Skattningar av färdvägsmiljöer i inner- och ytterstaden användes vidare för att studera färdvägsmiljöprofiler. Multipel linjär regressionsanalys användes även för att studera sambandet mellan utfallsvariabeln huruvida färdvägsmiljön motverkar eller stimulerar arbetspendling med cykel och miljöprediktorer, såsom avgasnivåer, trafikens hastighet och grönska, i innerstadsmiljöer. RESULTAT: Enkäten ACRES visade god kriterierelaterad validitet och rimlig reproducerbarhet. Det var en god överrensstämmelse mellan skattningar av deltagare rekryterade via annonsering och via direkt kontakt. Färdvägsmiljöprofilerna visade tydliga skillnader mellan inner- och ytterstadsmiljöer. Ytterstadens färdvägsmiljöer skattades som tryggare och mer stimulerande för arbetspendling med cykel än innerstadens färdvägsmiljöer. Vidare verkar vackra, gröna och trygga färdvägsmiljöer, oberoende av varandra, vara stimulerade faktorer för arbetspendling med cykel i innerstadsmiljöer. Däremot verkar höga avgasnivåer, höga trängselnivåer och färdvägar som kräver många riktningsändringar vara motverkande faktorer. SLUTSATSER: Enkäten ACRES är ett användbart instrument vid mätningar av cyklisters upplevelser av sina färdvägsmiljöer. Ett antal faktorer relaterade till färdvägsmiljön verkar vara stimulerande respektive motverkande för arbetspendling med cykel. Generellt sett på visar resultaten ett relativt outforskat och komplext forskningsområde. / Faap-projektet "Fysiskt aktiv arbetspendling i Stor-Stockholm"
27

Modelagem da produtividade de cana-de-açúcar utilizando índices de vegetação / Sugarcane productivity modeling using vegetation index

Leda, Victor Costa [UNESP] 28 July 2016 (has links)
Submitted by VICTOR COSTA LEDA null (victorleda@gmail.com) on 2016-09-20T13:48:09Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Victor Costa Leda Final.pdf: 3518003 bytes, checksum: 6c1cfb1843e622175cfceb9c905d91f0 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ana Paula Grisoto (grisotoana@reitoria.unesp.br) on 2016-09-22T19:30:58Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 leda_vc_me_bot.pdf: 3518003 bytes, checksum: 6c1cfb1843e622175cfceb9c905d91f0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-09-22T19:30:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 leda_vc_me_bot.pdf: 3518003 bytes, checksum: 6c1cfb1843e622175cfceb9c905d91f0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-07-28 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / A produção da cana-de-açúcar é destaque no cenário econômico do estado São Paulo, dessa forma confirma-se a necessidade do monitoramento dessa cultura, de maneira a contribuir com melhorias em decisões e planejamentos operacionais. A produção total e a produtividade da cana-de-açúcar são fatores de grande interesse para os agricultores, pois é a partir dessa informação que a programação das operações são realizadas, porém, essas estimativas não possuem métodos de alta precisão e confiança em amostragens não destrutivas. O homem possui excelente capacidade de analisar e interpretar resultados, mas também está sujeito a subjetividades em suas avaliações. A análise empreendida no trabalho teve como objetivo a elaboração de modelos matemáticos que expliquem a produtividade da cana-de-açúcar por meio das técnicas de geoprocessamento e sensoriamento remoto. O experimento foi realizado na área de produção comercial da Agrícola Rio Claro, parceira do grupo Zilor, que está localizada nos municípios de Lençóis Paulista e Pratânia, possui aproximadamente 6000 hectares, com altimetrias variando entre 600 e 700 metros. Para a coleta das informações espectrais, utilizou-se as imagens do satélite Landsat 8, com órbita/ponto em 221/076. Nos resultados do trabalho realizado, constatou-se que as modelagens foram satisfatórias, variando o coeficiente de determinação entre 0,15 a 0,97. Sendo que em períodos com elevados coeficientes de determinação, podem geralmente ser encontradas áreas de forma aglomerada, o que sugere uma menor incidência de variáveis. Enquanto que em períodos com coeficientes de determinação baixos, muito provavelmente foram obtidos devido a outros fatores listados terem ocorrido como dispersão dos talhões na área, classes de solo, precipitação e variedades da cultura, provavelmente distintos. / The production of sugarcane is a highlight in the economic scenario in the state of São Paulo, thus it confirms the need of monitoring this culture, in order to contribute to improvements in making decisions and operational planning.The production and productivity of sugarcane are factors of great interest to farmers, because, from this information the planning of operations is performed out, however, these estimates do not have high precision and reliable methods for non-destructive sampling.The human has an excellent ability to analyze and interpret results, but may also be affected by the subjectivity of their evaluations.The analysis undertaken in this work aimed at the development of mathematical models to explain the productivity of sugarcane through geoprocessing and remote sensing.The experiment was conducted in commercial area of Agrícola Rio Claro, partner of Zilor group, which is located in Lençóis Paulista and Pratânia, of approximately 6000 hectares, with altimetry ranging between 600 and 700 meters. For the collection of the spectral information, it was used the images of the satellite Landsat 8, with orbit/point 221/076. The results of the work, it was found that all the modeling were satisfactory, varying the coefficient of determination between 0.15 to 0.97. Given that, in periods with high coefficients of determination areas may be generally found in clusters, suggesting a lower incidence of variables. While in periods of low coefficient of determination, it was most likely obtained due to other factors listed of having occurred such as a dispersion of the plots in the area, soil types, rainfall and varieties, probably distinctly.
28

Modelos probabilísticos aplicados à Biometria

CORDEIRO, Hérbetes de Hollanda 16 December 2005 (has links)
Submitted by (ana.araujo@ufrpe.br) on 2016-07-06T15:01:17Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Herbetes de Holanda Cordeiro.pdf: 1261935 bytes, checksum: da7eb431e201178bcb2d605739806e64 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-06T15:01:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Herbetes de Holanda Cordeiro.pdf: 1261935 bytes, checksum: da7eb431e201178bcb2d605739806e64 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-12-16 / The term "Biometria" means, literally, measured of the life. In the world of the security or crime, one on the basis of mentions the methods to it automatized for identification of people its physical characteristics or mannering aspects. In this work, an analysis was proceeded from the main Systems Biométricos de Identificação, in order to integrate them it the too much areas of abrangência of the Biometria, that include since the diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, studies on Botany, Zoology, Epidemiologia and Bioestatística, until the most excellent applications contemporaries, as "Cells Trunk" and "Genoma Project". In another source, it was become fullfilled basically description of some discrete and continuous-chosen Probabilist Models for being the most cited in Biométrica literature and after an exhausting survey of its respective applications. On the other hand, it is also figured as fulcrum of this dissertação, the "Study of the Malaria" and the delineation of the partner-economic models torepresent it in Brazil, where it continues answering for great number of deaths, mainly in the region North. To materialize this last objective, they had been collected in 2004 partner-economic data and of incidence of this illness in the country, in 90 Cities of the regions North, South and Southeast, data these estruturadores of the gotten models. To the end, an analysis of this infection in the cited polar regions of development is made, with presentation of results and suggestions for later works of modeling. / O termo “Biometria” significa, literalmente, medida da vida. No mundo da segurança ou criminalidade, refere-se aos métodos automatizados para identificação de pessoas com base em suas características físicas ou aspectos comportamentais. Neste trabalho, procedeu-se uma análise dos principais Sistemas Biométricos de Identificação, de modo a integrá-los às demais áreas de abrangência da Biometria, que incluem desde o diagnóstico e tratamento de doenças, estudos sobre Botânica, Zoologia, Epidemiologia e Bioestatística, até as mais relevantes aplicações contemporâneas, como “Células Tronco” e “Projeto Genoma”. Em outra vertente, realizou-se a descrição de alguns Modelos Probabilísticos e uma pesquisa de suas aplicações à Biometria. Por outro lado, afigura-se também como fulcro desta dissertação, o “Estudo da Malária” e o delineamento dos modelos sócio-econômicos para representá-la no Brasil, onde continua respondendo por grande número de óbitos, principalmente na região Norte. Para materializar este último objetivo, foram coletados em 2004 dados sócio-econômicos e de incidência desta doença no país, em 90 Municípios das regiões Norte, Sul e Sudeste, dadosesses estruturadores dos modelos obtidos. Ao final, é feita uma análise dessa infecção nos citados pólos de desenvolvimento, com apresentação de resultados e sugestões para ulteriores trabalhos de modelagem.
29

Modelos para estimativa do grau de saturação do concreto mediante variáveis ambientais que influenciam na sua variação / Models to estimate the saturation degree through environmental variables that affect its variation

Peraça, Maria da Graça Teixeira January 2009 (has links)
Dissertação(mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Oceânica, Escola de Engenharia, 2009. / Submitted by Lilian M. Silva (lilianmadeirasilva@hotmail.com) on 2013-04-22T19:51:54Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Modelos para estimativa do Grau de Saturação do concreto mediante Variáveis Ambientais que influenciam na sua variação.pdf: 2786682 bytes, checksum: df174dab02a19756db94fc47c6bb021d (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Bruna Vieira(bruninha_vieira@ibest.com.br) on 2013-06-03T19:20:55Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Modelos para estimativa do Grau de Saturação do concreto mediante Variáveis Ambientais que influenciam na sua variação.pdf: 2786682 bytes, checksum: df174dab02a19756db94fc47c6bb021d (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-06-03T19:20:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Modelos para estimativa do Grau de Saturação do concreto mediante Variáveis Ambientais que influenciam na sua variação.pdf: 2786682 bytes, checksum: df174dab02a19756db94fc47c6bb021d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Nas engenharias, é fundamental estimar o tempo de vida útil das estruturas construídas, o que neste trabalho significa o tempo que os íons cloretos levam para atingirem a armadura do concreto. Um dos coeficientes que influenciam na vida útil do concreto é o de difusão, sendo este diretamente influenciado pelo grau de saturação (GS) do concreto. Recentes estudos levaram ao desenvolvimento de um método de medição do GS. Embora esse método seja eficiente, ainda assim há um grande desperdício de tempo e dinheiro em utilizá-lo. O objetivo deste trabalho é reduzir estes custos calculando uma boa aproximação para o valor do GS com modelos matemáticos que estimem o seu valor através de variáveis ambientais que influenciam na sua variação. As variáveis analisadas nesta pesquisa, são: pressão atmosférica,temperatura do ar seco, temperatura máxima, temperatura mínima, taxa de evaporação interna (Pichê), taxa de precipitação, umidade relativa, insolação, visibilidade, nebulosidade e taxa de evaporação externa. Todas foram analisadas e comparadas estatisticamente com medidas do GS obtidas durante quatro anos de medições semanais, para diferentes famílias de concreto. Com essas análises, pode-se medir a relação entre estes dados verificando que os fatores mais influentes no GS são, temperatura máxima e umidade relativa. Após a verificação desse resultado, foram elaborados modelos estatísticos, para que, através dos dados ambientais, cedidos pelo banco de dados meteorológicos, se possam calcular, sem desperdício de tempo e dinheiro, as médias aproximadas do GS para cada estação sazonal da região sul do Brasil, garantindo assim uma melhor estimativa do tempo de vida útil em estruturas de concreto. / In engineering, it is fundamental to estimate the life-cycle of built structures, which in this study means the period of time required for chlorides to reach the concrete reinforcement. One of the coefficients that affect the life-cycle of concrete is the diffusion, which is directly influenced by the saturation degree (SD) of concrete. Recent studies have led to the development of a measurement method for the SD. Although this method is efficient, there is still waste of time and money when it is used. The objective of this study is to reduce costs by calculating a good approximation for the SD value with mathematical models that predict its value through environmental variables that affect its variation. The variables analysed in the study are: atmospheric pressure, temperature of the dry air, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, internal evaporation rate (Pichê), precipitation rate, relative humidity, insolation, visibility, cloudiness and external evaporation rate. All of them were statistically analysed and compared with measurements of SD obtained during four years of weekly assessments for different families of concrete. By considering these analyses, the relationship among these data can be measured and it can be verified that the most influent variables affecting the SD are the maximum temperature and the relative humidity. After verifying this result, statistical models were developed aiming to calculate, based on the environmental data provided by the meteorological database and without waste of time and money, the approximate averages of SD for each seasonal station of the south region of Brazil, thus providing a better estimative of life-cycle for concrete structures.
30

Investigating the Influence of NEDD4L in the Development of Salt Sensitive Hypertension with Age

Kutcher, Stephen Alexander January 2016 (has links)
Background: Hypertension, a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease, exhibited in 17.7% of the Canadian population, and attributed to 13% of world mortality, is influenced by both the environment and genetics. Salt sensitivity is described at higher rates in the hypertensive population. The NEDD4-like (NEDD4L) protein is important in sodium reabsorption and has been implicated in essential hypertension and salt sensitivity. Objectives: Two variations (rs4149601/rs2288774) found in NEDD4L have been associated with salt sensitivity and hypertension; a third (rs576416) is in linkage disequilibrium with rs4149601. The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between the NEDD4L rs4149601, rs2288774, and rs576416 single nucleotide polymorphisms with sodium and age on blood pressure (BP). Methods: Canadian hypertensive patients were recruited through the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, with genotyped data from Leuven, Belgium, and the DNA of subjects from Warsaw, Poland also included in the study. Eligible subjects were studied off anti-hypertensive medications. Daytime BP was measured using 24hr ambulatory BP monitoring in 662 Caucasian hypertensives (BP ≥130/85 mmHg). 24hr urine Na+ was collected. DNA from Canada and Poland was genotyped on the GeneTitan Affymetrix Axiom platform and through TaqMan MGB probe-based RT-PCR, while the Belgium samples were analyzed on Illumina 1M-duo arrays. Simple and multivariate linear regression modelling with SAS 9.4.0 was used for genotypic comparisons affecting BP, combined with age and corrected urine sodium. Results: The three hypertensive populations were significantly different (P<0.05) across all demographic and clinical measures, even when stratified by sex. The Polish and female hypertensives from Canada and Belgium were removed from the analysis for lacking the general populations’ trend of increasing BP with age. Multiple linear regressive modelling found a significant association (Pmodel=0.0034) of rs4149601 GA (P=0.0129) and GG (P=0.0082), with age and urine sodium, on SBP in the Belgium male hypertensives (n=273). No significant models analyzing the association of rs576416 and rs2288774 with BP in the Belgium population were found. In the Canadian hypertensive population (n=120) no association on the discrete analyses of the rs4149601, rs576416, and rs2288774 genotypes were found; however the combination of the GG rs4149601 and AA rs576416 (β=0.021, P=0.03) and the GG rs4149601 and CC rs2288774 (β=0.020, P=0.04) genotypes showed significant associations with BP in borderline significant models (P=0.055 and P=0.094 respectively), when analyzed with urine sodium levels and age. Conclusions: A significant influence of the rs4149601 G-allele, with urine sodium and age, was found to be associated with an increase in BP in the Belgium males. Multiple linear modelling describing borderline significant findings in the interaction of rs4149601 with rs576416, and rs4149601 with rs2288774 in Canadian male hypertensives suggests of the possible synergism between polymorphisms and development of salt sensitive hypertension. Future research could evaluate the role of NEDD4L on the sex differences in early-onset salt-sensitive hypertension.

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