There seems to be no limit to the complexity of computations that genetic linkage analysts want to do. Two primary factors that increase the length of computations are pedigree loops and unknown genotypes. I describe the implementation in FASTLINK of some algorithmic improvements to partly address the problems of pedigree loops and unknown genotypes. LINKAGE is by far the most popular software ...

While it is well accepted that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable disorder, not all of the risk is genetic. It is estimated that between 10 and 40% of the variance associated with ADHD is likely to be accounted for by environmental factors. There is considerable interest in the role that the prenatal environment might play in the development of ADHD with previ...

background: familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (hcm) is caused by mutations in genes encoding cardiac sarcomere proteins. nowadays genetic testing of hcm plays an important role in clinical practice by contributing to the diagnosis, prognosis, and screening of high-risk individuals. the aim of this study was developing a reliable testing strategy for hcm based on linkage analysis and appropri...

Background Modern approaches to identifying new genes associated with disease allow very fine analysis of associaton and can be performed in population based case-control studies. However, the sibpair design is still valuable because it requires few assumptions other than acceptably high penetrance to identify genetic loci. Methods We conducted simulation studies to assess the impact of design ...

IMPORTANCE In the past decade, significant progress in genomic medicine and technologic developments has revolutionized our approach to common complex disorders in many areas of medicine, including ophthalmology. A disorder that still needs major genetic progress is diabetic retinopathy (DR), one of the leading causes of blindness in adults. OBJECTIVE To perform a literature review, present t...

Purpose – The main objective of this paper is to critically appraise various service quality models and identify issues for future research based on the critical analysis of literature. Design/methodology/approach – The paper critically examines 19 different service quality models reported in the literature. The critical review of the different service quality models is intended to derive linka...

Research on the genetic epidemiology of schizophrenia is briefly and selectively reviewed. The following three salient features of schizophrenia that represent challenges to the design of linkage studies are identified: (1) The analysis of twin and family data has consistently failed to identify a single major gene effect upon schizophrenia risk; (2) the ascertainment of multiplex families does...

There is emerging evidence which indicates the essential role of genetic factors in the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR). In this regard it should be highlighted that genetic factors account for 25-50% of the risk of developing DR. Therefore, the use of genetic analysis to identify those diabetic patients most prone to developing DR might be useful in designing a more individualized tre...

The dynamic behaviour of a four-bar linkage driven by a velocity controlled DC motor is discussed in the paper. In particular the author presents the results obtained by means of a specifically developed software, which implements the mathematical models of all components of the system (linkage, transmission, electric motor, control devices). The use of this software enables a more efficient de...