The Effects of Vitamin E, Silymarin and Carnitine on the Metabolic Abnormalities Associated with Nonalcoholic Liver Disease.

The obesity epidemic has resulted in an increase in the incidence of metabolic syndrome, and liver disease. Studies indicate that antioxidant supplementation may improve abnormal liver chemistries, glucose control, and hyperlipidemia, in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The primary objective of the study was to determine the normalization of abnormalities in hepatic function testing in patients with NAFLD when treated with vitamin E 200 IU, Silymarin 750 mg, and l-carnitine 1 gram (VSC) for 18 weeks in comparison to a placebo-controlled group.

Logistic regression trees for initial selection of interesting loci in case-control studies.

Modern genetic epidemiology faces the challenge of dealing with hundreds of thousands of genetic markers. The selection of a small initial subset of interesting markers for further investigation can greatly facilitate genetic studies. In this contribution we suggest the use of a logistic regression tree algorithm known as logistic tree with unbiased selection.

Multistage designs in the genomic era: providing balance in complex disease studies.

In this summary paper, we describe the contributions included in the Multistage Design group (Group 14) at the Genetic Analysis Workshop 15, which was held during November 12-14, 2006. Our group contrasted and compared different approaches to reducing complexity in a genetic study through implementation of staged designs. Most groups used the simulated dataset (problem 3), which provided ample opportunities for evaluating various staged designs.