Ross School

To assess the 1-year natural history of liver imaging reporting and data system (LI-RADS) 3 observations on contrast-enhanced MRI in cirrhotic patients across multiple international centers, and to identify clinical and imaging predictors of progression using multivariable and machine learning models. This retrospective study included 347 cirrhotic patients with 540 LI-RADS 3 observations from six centers across three countries, each with 12 (±3) months of follow-up MRI. Observations were reassessed using LI-RADS v2018 criteria. Generalized linear mixed-effects models and machine learning (LASSO, random forest) evaluated predictors of progression. Area under the curve (AUC) analysis assessed the predictive performance of clinical and imaging variables. Within one year, 28% of LI-RADS 3 observations progressed: 14% to LI-RADS 4 and 14% to LI-RADS 5. Independent predictors of progression included lesion size, with an odds ratio (OR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.01-1.24), Child-Pugh Class C (OR: 8.36, 95% CI: 1.01-69.27), and alcohol-related liver disease (OR: 0.24, 95% CI: 0.06-0.94). Enhancing capsule and untreated hepatitis C virus were significant in univariable analysis. Imaging features improved predictive accuracy, increasing AUC from 0.65 to 0.72 (p = 0.01). A lesion size cut-off of 9.5 mm was associated with increased progression risk. One in four LI-RADS 3 observations progress within one year. Lesion size, liver function, and etiology are key predictors. Integration of imaging features enhances risk stratification and supports more personalized follow-up strategies for indeterminate liver lesions. Question Identifying which LI-RADS 3 liver observations progress to malignancy remains challenging; evidence from large, standardized, multicenter MRI cohorts is lacking. Findings In this large multinational study, 28% of LI-RADS 3 observations progressed within one year; lesion size, liver dysfunction, and disease etiology were key independent predictors. Clinical relevance LI-RADS 3 observations show significant progression risk, with imaging features improving prediction models and guiding surveillance strategies for early HCC detection.

This study investigated how emotional events-specifically experiences of sadness (vs. happiness)-influence individuals' mental visualization processes, with a focus on how they alter perceived color chroma in visual imagery. Drawing on emotion regulation theory, we propose that people are more motivated to forget sad experiences than happy ones, and this tendency influences how such events are mentally visualized. Specifically, individuals tend to mentally represent sad events with lower color chroma (i.e., reduced vividness, intensity, or saturation) compared to happy events. Results from three experiments involving 939 participants support our theorization (data collected in 2018-2023). Experiment 1 extends prior research by showing that participants mentally represent sad experiences in lower color chroma than happy experiences. This suggests that the color-emotion association exists not only in stimuli-based processing but also in mental visualization. Experiment 2 identifies the mediating role of the motivation to forget the emotional experience in the causal relationship between emotions and color chroma representation. Experiment 3 further indicates that the effect of emotions on color chroma is mitigated when individuals are explicitly prompted to forget emotional experiences. This research demonstrates the role of motivational processes in shaping mental visualization and provides a novel and verifiable explanation for the association between color chroma and emotions documented in the emotion literature (Pazda et al., 2024). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Purpose This study is threefold. The authors define and provide a typology for generative AI-enhanced stimuli (GES); map how GES have been used in organizational behavior (OB) experiments; and outline a research and practice agenda for integrating GES into OB designs. Design/methodology/approach The authors used the scoping review methodology and followed conventional best practices for reporting, via Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). The authors searched peer-reviewed articles published between 2014 and 2024 through Scopus, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Business Source Complete and Google Scholar. Findings This study identifies critical trends to assist scholars in using GES as part of their experimental research designs. This then provides an overview of the different theoretical, practical and methodological considerations linked to using GES. In addition, it identifies key outcomes affected by GES use and provide key avenues for future research, including theoretical, practical and methodological considerations. Originality/value This study provides new and timely insights regarding GES in OB research. This scoping review guides scholarship by considering theoretical, methodological and ethical factors.

Abstract The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) has made it possible to study cancer-related mutations, including missense mutations. We used the PolyPhen scoring system to determine the functional impact of missense mutations. Mutation data of genes from 12 selective cancers (Head & Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Kidney Chromophobe, Liver Heptocellular Carcinoma, Kidney Renal Clear Cell Carcinoma, Kidney Renal Papillary Cell Carcinoma, Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Prostate Adenocarcinoma, Thyroid Carcinoma, Bladder Urothelial Carcinoma, Lung Adenocarcinoma, Breast Invasive Carcinoma, Stomach Adenocarcinoma) were downloaded from the cBioPortal; subsequently, the missense mutations that met these two criteria: 1. number of mutations in the sample must be greater than or equal to 5; 2. functional impact must be possibly or probably damaging based upon PolyPhen score, were identified. We found that Papillary Renal Cell Carcinoma had the highest average PolyPhen score of 0.932 while Prostate Adenocarcinoma had the lowest average PolyPhen score of 0.896; showing that the missense mutations in Papillary Renal Cell Carcinoma had more detrimental missense mutations. Further analysis showed that amino acid Arginine (R) was the most commonly substituted amino acid among the 12 cancers we studied. The 5 relatively high substituted amino acids were R (15.8%), E (9.33%), D (9.0%), G (8.94%), S (8.48%). In addition, we also studied the disparities of most commonly substituted amino acids in White, Black, and Asian. We found that in the Black race, the most common substitution percentages were amino acids R (20.73%), G (18.52%), E (16.05%), D (12.11%), S (11.75%). In the White race, the most common substitution percentages were amino acids R (16.36%), G (9.03%), D (9.01%), E (8.81%), S (8.56%). In the Asian race, the most common substitution percentages were amino acids I (34.91%), E (24.32%), R (18.46%), T (16.45%), P (15.27%). This interesting finding demonstrated that the White and the Black races shared more similarity of the mutation pattern in the most frequently substituted amino acids. In contrast, the Asian race had a distinct amino acid substitution pattern of missense mutations. By examining the mutation pattern, we hope to identify key genes as biomarkers so that the somatic mutation landscape of different races can be described. Citation Format: Lucas C. Wang, Kai He, Allen Bai. Computational analysis of missense mutations & amino acid substitution pattern of 12 selective cancers’ candidate genes using TCGA datasets [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 18th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities; 2025 Sep 18-21; Baltimore, MD. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2025;34(9 Suppl):Abstract nr C016.

Despite the great potential benefits of battery energy storage systems (BESSs) to electrical grids, most standalone uses of BESS are not economical due to batteries’ high upfront costs and limited lifespans. Energy stacking, a strategy of providing two or more services with a single BESS, has been of great interest to improve profitability. However, some key questions, for example, the underlying mechanism by which stacking works or why and how much it may improve profitability, remain unanswered in the literature. Using two popular battery services, we analytically show that there often exists cost-saving synergy—the cost of performing both services at the same time (simultaneous stacking) is smaller than the sum of individual costs if we had performed each service alone—which allows for bigger profits. Furthermore, we perform comparative statics on the optimal mix of the services to systemically characterize grid/market conditions that maximize/minimize this synergy. We also derive a theoretical upper bound on simultaneous stacking’s benefits, showing that it can approximately double the profit of the best standalone service. Several generalizations of the base model not only show that the main lessons continue to hold but also that stacking’s benefits may become even stronger. This paper was accepted by Jayashankar Swaminathan, operations management. Supplemental Material: The online appendices and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.03477 .

The Supplemental Security Income program uses a birth weight cutoff at 1,200 grams to determine eligibility. Using birth certificates linked to administrative records, we find low-income families of infants born just below the cutoff receive higher monthly cash benefits (equal to 27 percent of family income) at ages 0–2 with smaller benefits continuing through age 10. Yet we detect no improvements in health care use and mortality in infancy, nor in health and human capital outcomes as observed through young adulthood for these infants. We also find no improvements for their older siblings. (JEL I12, I13, I18, I38, J13, J14, J31)