Specific Modeling Research Articles

Towards establishing the national referential on exposure factors in France

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Availability of up-to-date methods, models, and exposure data is critical to realistically estimate human exposure to environmental contaminants. Exposure factors (EF) are human characteristics and behaviors that are needed for reliable exposure and, thus, risk assessments (RA). These factors determine exposure time, frequency, and intensity. They are usually considered as effect modifiers in epidemiological studies. While the US-EPA Exposure Factors Handbook is under updating, there is no European equivalent that meets RA needs. Therefore, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) launched a working group to define the reference values of specific EFs for the French population. METHODS: We defined priority EFs based on an inventory of needs identified by ANSES. For each EF, we defined the method, including a systematic review, quality assessment of studies, individual data retrieval, and specific modeling approaches, including descriptive statistics and generalized additive models for location, scale and shape, to derive population distributions for reference values by sex, age, and region. We also conducted uncertainty analyses. RESULTS:We prioritized three EFs: body mass, time-activity-location patterns, and inhalation rate (IR). For body mass, we pooled individual data from nine large studies to yield age-related distribution per sex, region, and socio-professional categories. For time-activity-location patterns, we estimated the practising individuals fraction and duration of all activities/locations, and frequency of some, as reported in the French Time Use Survey (2009-2010) (FTUS), per age-group (from 11 years), sex and region. For IR, we applied an energy-based approach. We determined energy expenditure per activity (professional and personal) from the FTUS using metabolic equivalent tasks and derived 24-hour IR and per physical activity level (sedentary, light, moderate, vigorous) by age-group, sex, and BMI. CONCLUSIONS:The output will allow more precise RA, facilitate the implementation of probabilistic RA approaches and improve comparability of RA results at the international level. KEYWORDS: body mass, time-activity-location patterns, inhalation rate, energy expenditure, (pooled) analysis of individual data, reference percentiles

MODELING AND SIMULATION IN CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURES PROTECTION

Abstract: Critical infrastructure protection is a complex field that involves using specific research methods, capturing the dynamic and complex reality in which infrastructure systems evolve. Modeling and simulation provides particular tools and approaches adapted to the field of critical infrastructure protection. A good knowledge of the methodology and using the appropriate tools can lead to improvements in the security of critical infrastructures. Creating models for infrastructures or systems facilitates research, followed by the simulation of potential events with a negative impact. The studies carried out at the intersection of the two fields open new research opportunities to improve the modeling and simulation tools and increase the resilience of critical infrastructures. The specific modeling and simulation methods find their applicability at the operator's or owners' activity for the elaboration of the security plans and their validation.

OPTIMIZING DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND IN PERSPECTIVE OF RETURN ON EDUCATION IN EAST JAVA: TO SCHOOL, TO WORK, OR TO ENTREPRENEUR?

Human capital highly affects economics productivity. Thus, education plays an important factor in every demographic dividend. This study will estimate the return on education to paid-employment and self-employment in East Java using SAKERNAS 2012. Using Mincerian specification and Sohn model, this study analyzed the baseline model and to analyse further in self-employment. This study will also compare result in East Java with National and other Java province. Results from estimation found that return on education in East Java is generally higher than national, but lower than West Java. As for self-employment, return on education in East Java is lower than paid-employment, but in the lowest magnitude if compared with National and other Java region. Labor market flexibility that analyzed in this study also shows that East Java relatively more flexible. As a matter of opportunity cost, the low return rate of education in East Java demand some adjustment in education and labor market policy to optimize the economic outcome.

Timely loss recognition in Brazilian firms under corruption investigation

ABSTRACT This article evaluates the impact of the disclosure of the participation of Brazilian firms listed on the Bolsa Brasil Balcão (B3) in corruption scandals through media scrutiny and by disclosure of independent auditors on the quality of accounting information, measured from the perspective of accounting conservatism. We examine the possible theoretical link between the disclosure of corruption scandals and the quality of accounting information in the Brazilian context. Brazil has gone through successive corruption scandals involving firms and government entities in different levels. Accounting can be an important tool to mitigate said risks based on the artifacts it has to inform key stakeholders. However, it is necessary to identify the extent to which these artifacts can be influenced by the actors involved in these scandals. The research places accounting as an instrument subject to pressures from different interests and that may be shaped to them. Although accounting is an instrument that must aim to reduce information asymmetry, preventing the harmful effects of corruption, in specific contexts, it can be used in the opposite direction, such as in cases of corruption and economic crises. We used the model based on Ball and Shivakumar (2005) with specific modeling characteristics for corruption and crisis. The models were estimated using the Stata 13 software using the pooled approach using the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) estimation method, clustered by year and economic sector, and the Generalized Least Squares (GSL) estimator. The results point to the presence of conservatism when disclosing involvement in investigations of corruption crimes in Brazil. This behavior was less intense in firms effectively mentioned in these events. These results highlight the relevance of studies aimed at clarifying the connections between corruption and accounting reports, enabling the development of measures to curb corruption in the business environment.

Wrinkles of Change: CEO Succession and the Reproduction of Age Profiles in the Executive Suite

We examine the reproduction of age profiles in the executive suite across CEO succession events. Counter to the trend of the general workforce becoming more age diverse, age profiles in the executive suite seem to become more homogenous and CEOs appear to be increasingly older at appointment. This is despite increasing frequency of CEO succession events, which represent opportunities for demographic change of top management to align with changing environments. Drawing on insights from homosocial reproduction theory, upper echelons theory, and executive succession research, we argue that the age profile of executives may be actually reproduced to reduce social uncertainty around CEO succession events, and that over time, age homophily is particularly reinforced under new outsider CEOs. Exploiting CEO turnover as an empirical identification strategy, we construct a unique sample of 391 successions in 297 S&P500 companies between 2000 and 2020 and apply a hierarchical linear modelling specification to test hypotheses. We find support for the overall notion that some age profiles are reproduced across CEO succession events. Notably, the overall age profile shifts upwards as CEOs are increasingly older at appointment, a tendency that is reinforced by outsider CEO successors. We discuss implications for age homophily in executive ranks, how outsider CEOs reinforce demographic similarity, and age-identity of corporate leadership roles.

Generation of an HBIM Library regarding a Palace of the 19th Century in Lisbon

The growing interest within the construction industry in the preservation, rehabilitation, and conversion of heritage-value buildings has led to the implementation of Historic Building Information Modelling (HBIM) across all sectors. The rigorously accurate representation of old construction solutions for roofs, floors, and walls, and of the decorative details and finishes, commonly used in historic buildings of patrimonial value, requires specific geometric modelling processes in order to generate relevant libraries of parametric objects. This study addresses the generation of parametric families of representative architectural geometry in the context of the conversion of a building of patrimonial value. A collection of historical information and a detailed inspection in situ, recorded by means of digital images and sketches with annotative dimensions of the architectural forms, were first carried out to support the accurate representation of the building. Several families of objects were generated, namely, guillotine windows, glazed doors, ornamental stonework, staircases, and handrails, thus creating a reference library for use in further similar building projects. The study improves the potential of the BIM process for its application to buildings with distinctive architecture in the context of the preservation or conversion of heritage buildings.

Sociodemographic characteristics of missing data in digital phenotyping

The ubiquity of smartphones, with their increasingly sophisticated array of sensors, presents an unprecedented opportunity for researchers to collect longitudinal, diverse, temporally-dense data about human behavior while minimizing participant burden. Researchers increasingly make use of smartphones for “digital phenotyping,” the collection and analysis of raw phone sensor and log data to study the lived experiences of subjects in their natural environments using their own devices. While digital phenotyping has shown promise in fields such as psychiatry and neuroscience, there are fundamental gaps in our knowledge about data collection and non-collection (i.e., missing data) in smartphone-based digital phenotyping. In this meta-study using individual-level data from six different studies, we examined accelerometer and GPS sensor data of 211 participants, amounting to 29,500 person-days of observation, using Bayesian hierarchical negative binomial regression with study- and user-level random intercepts. Sensitivity analyses including alternative model specification and stratified models were conducted. We found that iOS users had lower GPS non-collection than Android users. For GPS data, rates of non-collection did not differ by race/ethnicity, education, age, or gender. For accelerometer data, Black participants had higher rates of non-collection, but rates did not differ by sex, education, or age. For both sensors, non-collection increased by 0.5% to 0.9% per week. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using smartphone-based digital phenotyping across diverse populations, for extended periods of time, and within diverse cohorts. As smartphones become increasingly embedded in everyday life, the insights of this study will help guide the design, planning, and analysis of digital phenotyping studies.

From Lustre to Simulink

Model-based design is now unavoidable when building embedded systems and, more specifically, controllers. Among the available model languages, the synchronous dataflow paradigm, as implemented in languages such as MATLAB Simulink or ANSYS SCADE, has become predominant in critical embedded system industries. Both of these frameworks are used to design the controller itself but also provide code generation means, enabling faster deployment to target and easier V&V activities performed earlier in the design process, at the model level. Synchronous models also ease the definition of formal specification through the use of synchronous observers, attaching requirements to the model in the very same language, mastered by engineers and tooled with simulation means or code generation. However, few works address the automatic synthesis of MATLAB Simulink annotations from lower-level models or code. This article presents a compilation process from Lustre models to genuine MATLAB Simulink, without the need to rely on external C functions or MATLAB functions. This translation is based on the modular compilation of Lustre to imperative code and preserves the hierarchy of the input Lustre model within the generated Simulink one. We implemented the approach and used it to validate a compilation toolchain, mapping Simulink to Lustre and then C, thanks to equivalence testing and checking. This backward compilation from Lustre to Simulink also provides the ability to produce automatically Simulink components modeling specification, proof arguments, or test cases coverage criteria.

PRODUCT REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATION PROCESS IN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

AbstractRequirements engineering and requirements management are essential sub-processes of product development and are an integrated part of virtually all product development models and industrial process descriptions. Proprietary and context specific processes for working with requirements are used in industrial design practice. However, these are not appropriately reflected in existing process models for product development. Existing standards describe the content and generation of requirements documents but not their integration in the product development process.The study is based on a retrospective analysis of a set of representative real-world product development projects from automotive industry and rail industry. Comparing the processes downstream the milestone “release of PRD”, it was found that subsequent processes to manage requirements and specifications do not differ much with regard to industrial context. Based on this, a model for the product requirements specification (PRS) process is proposed which addresses the gap.

Matrix and agent-based modeling of threats to a diamond-backed terrapin population

Population models are important tools for evaluating human impacts and potential management approaches on declining species. However, often studies are limited by constraints of the specific modeling approach. In this study we considered the persistence of a diamond-backed terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) population using two distinct modeling approaches. Two of the models were deterministic matrix models. Analysis of the discrete non-spatial models showed that female adult survival rate had the largest positive impact on population growth while delaying sexual maturity decreased population growth. The matrix models also demonstrated that an increase in crab traps skewed the sex ratio of the population in favor of females. The third model was a stochastic agent-based formulation that evaluated how increases in the number of crab traps and frequency of nest disturbances affected the long-term viability of diamond-backed terrapins. The spatial agent-based model revealed how terrapin mortality was highly sensitive to the proximity of traps to the primary terrapin habitat. Results from this project improve our understanding of threats to diamond-backed terrapins and can be used to guide conservation efforts.

The effect of income inequality on human capital inequality: Evidence from China

This paper studies the effect of income inequality on human capital inequality empirically across 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions of China during 1996-2018. Using a series of econometric approaches, including the two-way fixed-effect IV panel regression, we find that: (i) growing income inequality is associated with an expansion in human capital inequality, given all other things being equal, and (ii) increasing the growth rate of initial income, as an essential family resource to finance access to schooling, tends to weaken the positive effect of income inequality on human capital inequality. Our results are consistent with the existing theory, showing that impoverished households who have less family resources are more likely to be restrained from accessing better education opportunities under credit market imperfections. Moreover, our results are robust to alternative modeling specifications and estimation methods, including instrumental variables that address the problem of reverse causality arising from human capital inequality.

Finite element model for static characteristic analysis of rolling linear guide

From the designer’s point of view, the static precise finite element model of the single ball-raceway, the overall and the unit slice of the rolling linear guide (RLG) are established based on the limited data obtained. According to the contact characteristics of a single ball-raceway, Hertz theory and finite element method (FEM) are used to determine the maximum contact stress and deformation of RLG under a specific preload value. The specific modeling process of the overall and unit slice finite element model of the RLG is described in detail as well. The comparative analysis results indicate that the unit slice finite element model can take place of the overall finite element model at the static level. On the basis of previous research, the mapping laws between external load, preload value, curvature ratio, the carriage’s wall thickness, the guide’s width, and static mechanical properties of RLG are studied. The combined application of these precise finite element models can solve the problems of large calculation and low efficiency in statics of RLG. Meanwhile, it also provides a new way to achieve high-efficiency and high-rigidity design of RLG from the source.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance for Cardiac Transplant Rejection: A Meta-Analysis

ObjectivesThe aim of this meta-analysis was to assess the diagnostic performance of various CMR imaging parameters for evaluating acute cardiac transplant rejection. BackgroundEndomyocardial biopsy is the current gold standard for detection of acute cardiac transplant rejection. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is uniquely capable of myocardial tissue characterization and may be useful as a noninvasive alternative for the diagnosis of graft rejection. MethodsPubMed and Web of Science were searched for relevant publications reporting on the use of CMR myocardial tissue characterization for detection of acute cardiac transplant rejection with endomyocardial biopsy as the reference standard. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, and hierarchical modeling–based summary receiver-operating characteristic curves were calculated. ResultsOf 478 papers, 10 studies comprising 564 patients were included. The sensitivity and specificity for the detection of acute cardiac transplant rejection were 84.6 (95% CI: 65.6-94.0) and 70.1 (95% CI: 54.2-82.2) for T1, 86.5 (95% CI: 72.1-94.1) and 85.9 (95% CI: 65.2-94.6) for T2, 91.3 (95% CI: 63.9-98.4) and 67.6 (95% CI: 56.1-77.4) for extracellular volume fraction (ECV), and 50.1 (95% CI: 31.2-68.9) and 60.2 (95% CI: 36.7-79.7) for late gadolinium enhancement (LGE). The areas under the hierarchical modeling–based summary receiver-operating characteristic curve were 0.84 (95% CI: 0.81-0.87) for T1, 0.92 (95% CI: 0.89-94) for T2, 0.78 (95% CI: 0.74-0.81) for ECV, and 0.56 (95% CI: 0.51-0.60) for LGE. T2 values demonstrated the highest diagnostic accuracy, followed by native T1, ECV, and LGE (all P values <0.001 for T1, ECV, and LGE vs T2). ConclusionsT2 mapping demonstrated higher diagnostic accuracy than other CMR techniques. Native T1 and ECV provide high diagnostic use but lower diagnostic accuracy compared with T2, which was related primarily to lower specificity. LGE showed poor diagnostic performance for detection of rejection.

On the construction of trend resistant PBIB designs

In agricultural, animal, fisheries and industrial experimentation under block design setup, systematic trend may affect the response under consideration. Although remote, these effects may still have high influence on response and hence should be incorporated in the model for proper model specification. Completely trend resistant block designs, also known as trend free block designs, are an important class of designs where the analysis can be done in usual manner as in case of normal block designs since trend effects and treatment effects are orthogonal. Literature is available on different aspects of trend resistant incomplete block designs mainly focusing on balanced incomplete block designs. This article deals with the construction of completely trend resistant Partially Balanced Incomplete Block (TR-PBIB) designs. Two methods of constructing such designs have been discussed. The information matrices for the class of designs developed have been derived and SAS code for the generation of the developed designs has also been provided.

Computational challenges to test and revitalize Claude Lévi-Strauss transformational methodology

The ambition and proposal for data modeling of myths presented in this paper is to link contemporary technical affordances to some canonical projects developed in structural anthropology. To articulate the theoretical promise and innovation of this proposal, we present a discrete-event system specification modeling and simulation approach in order to perform a generative analysis and a dynamic visualization of selected narratives, aimed at validating and revitalizing the transformational and morphodynamic theory and methodology proposed by Claude Lévi-Strauss in his structural analysis of myth. After an analysis of Lévi-Strauss’s transformational methodology, we describe in detail how discrete-event system specification models are implemented and developed in the framework of a DEVSimPy software environment. The validation of the method involves a discrete-event system specification simulation based on the extension of discrete-event system specification models dedicated to provide a dynamic Google Earth visualization of the selected myth. Future work around the discrete-event system specification formalism in anthropology is described as well as future applications regarding the impact of computational models (discrete-event system specification formalism, Bayesian inferences, and object-oriented features) to new contemporary anthropological domains.

Pyam: Analysis and visualisation of integrated assessment and macro-energy scenarios

The open-source Python package pyam provides a suite of features and methods for the analysis, validation and visualization of reference data and scenario results generated by integrated assessment models, macro-energy tools and other frameworks in the domain of energy transition, climate change mitigation and sustainable development. It bridges the gap between scenario processing and visualisation solutions that are "hard-wired" to specific modelling frameworks and generic data analysis or plotting packages. The package aims to facilitate reproducibility and reliability of scenario processing, validation and analysis by providing well-tested and documented methods for timeseries aggregation, downscaling and unit conversion. It supports various data formats, including sub-annual resolution using continuous time representation and "representative timeslices". The code base is implemented following best practices of collaborative scientific-software development. This manuscript describes the design principles of the package and the types of data which can be handled. The usefulness of pyam is illustrated by highlighting several recent applications.

A Novel Model of Human Hemopoiesis Based on Single Cell Functional and Transcriptional Analysis of Lympho-Myeloid Progenitors

Introduction: Human hemopoiesis produces 10 billion new, terminally mature blood cells daily; a production that is also rapidly responsive to external stimuli. Dysregulation of this complex process can lead to hemopoietic and immune deficiencies and blood cancers. In humans, the hemopoietic progenitor hierarchy producing lymphoid and myeloid lineages is unclear. Multiple progenitor populations give rise to lymphoid and myeloid cells but they remain incompletely characterized at the immunophenotypic, transcriptional and functional level. Here, we aim to understand the clonal functional output and transcriptional programs of primary human lympho-myeloid progenitor populations - the lymphoid-primed multipotent progenitor (LMPP) (Goardon et al., Cancer Cell, 2011), the multi-lymphoid progenitor (MLP) (Doulatov et al., Nature Immunology, 2010) and the granulocyte-macrophage progenitor (GMP).Methods: We devised a FACS strategy to prospectively purify eight human hemopoietic stem and progenitor cell populations. We functionally compared the LMPP, MLP and GMP in vitro by quantitative CFU assays, three different single cell liquid cultures or limit dilution analysis and in vivo by transplantation into a humanized ossicle mouse model (Reinisch et al., Nature Medicine, 2016). We performed population and single cell RNA sequencing and Fluidigm qRT-PCR to understand the relationship between the functional and transcriptional heterogeneity within human lympho-myeloid progenitor populations.Results: Our study comprehensively characterized the LMPP, MLP and GMP lympho-myeloid progenitor populations. Both LMPP and MLP are very rare within the mononuclear fraction (1 in 104 and 1 in 105 cells in CB and BM, respectively). We cultured 4357 single LMPP, GMP and MLP cells (isolated from 25 cord blood units and equivalent to ~1010 mononuclear cells) under three different culture conditions, one of which is described for the first time. We observed marked functional heterogeneity in the three lympho-myeloid progenitor populations. Focusing on the wells that gave single cell-initiated cultures, the majority of cells from LMPP, MLP and GMP gave uni-lineage output (60-90%). Bi-lineage output was less common (up to 35%), while multi-lineage output was the least frequent and only observed from LMPP and GMP cells (up to 15%). In vivo transplantation using the humanized ossicle mouse model increased the engraftment of lympho-myeloid progenitors 10-fold compared to previous reports. In vivo, the LMPP and GMP gave robust engraftment but the MLP substantially less engraftment. The LMPP gave rise to both myeloid and B cell engraftment, the GMP to myeloid engraftment and the MLP mainly to B cell output. Population RNA sequencing revealed distinct transcriptional signatures of these populations: MLP signature was enriched for lymphoid-affiliated genes, GMP for myeloid-affiliated genes and LMPP had a hybrid lympho-myeloid signature. Single cell RNA sequencing of 320 LMPP, MLP and GMP cells showed that the 3 progenitor populations form a transcriptional continuum. Linking the single cell gene expression to FACS indexing allowed exclusive purification of lymphoid- and myeloid-only progenitors from the current LMPP and GMP populations.Conclusions: These data change our understanding of human hematopoiesis and offer a radically new model of human lympho-myeloid progenitor specification. This model may have important implications for human immune deficiencies and hemopoietic malignancies.BS and DK contributed equally to this work. FH and AR contributed equally to this work. DisclosuresQuek:Celgene Corporation: Research Funding. Vyas:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Speakers Bureau; Celgene Corporation: Speakers Bureau.

Dynamic landscape of protein occupancy across the Escherichia coli chromosome.

Free-living bacteria adapt to environmental change by reprogramming gene expression through precise interactions of hundreds of DNA-binding proteins. A predictive understanding of bacterial physiology requires us to globally monitor all such protein-DNA interactions across a range of environmental and genetic perturbations. Here, we show that such global observations are possible using an optimized version of in vivo protein occupancy display technology (in vivo protein occupancy display-high resolution, IPOD-HR) and present a pilot application to Escherichia coli. We observe that the E. coli protein-DNA interactome organizes into 2 distinct prototypic features: (1) highly dynamic condition-dependent transcription factor (TF) occupancy; and (2) robust kilobase scale occupancy by nucleoid factors, forming silencing domains analogous to eukaryotic heterochromatin. We show that occupancy dynamics across a range of conditions can rapidly reveal the global transcriptional regulatory organization of a bacterium. Beyond discovery of previously hidden regulatory logic, we show that these observations can be utilized to computationally determine sequence specificity models for the majority of active TFs. Our study demonstrates that global observations of protein occupancy combined with statistical inference can rapidly and systematically reveal the transcriptional regulatory and structural features of a bacterial genome. This capacity is particularly crucial for non-model bacteria that are not amenable to routine genetic manipulation.

Preliminary CSI specification localization methodology matrix in China

The Construction Specification Institute (CSI) specifications are widely used to define client quality standards and facilitate communications among design and construction professionals in North America. When a US company builds a facility in China, these specifications are applied and expected to be implemented by client to ensure the project quality. Owing to differences in design and construction practices, market availabilities of products, and quality acceptance regulatory requirements, the CSI Specifications for North America must be modified to fit Chinese local regulations, market availability, and construction technology while direct translating the specification into English does not work. A CSI specification model is built based on the structure and section contents followed by the inputs of issues, research questions and category of section are developed. And 5 step analysis is provided as the solutions of localized specifications suitable for Chinese market and construction execution. Furthermore, the model is validated at a real project, followed by a discussion of evaluation and limitations. Using the code system and section content of standard CSI specification, and considering equivalent Chinese code, local market availability and quality acceptance requirements are the primary methods to localize these specifications. This approach enables defining quality expectations representing corporate brand names in a language relevant to local market stakeholders.

Discrimination, High-Effort Coping, and Cardiovascular Risk Profiles in the Jackson Heart Study: a Latent Profile Analysis.

African Americans exhibit heightened risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) necessitating further examination of biological pathways contributing to CVD incidence. An integrated specificity model suggests discrimination elicits psychophysiological responses that contribute to allostatic load (AL) but may differ by level of perceived discrimination and coping style. Differing psychophysiological risk responses may contribute to varying CVD risk patterns overtime. This study sought to (1) determine CVD risk profiles using AL biomarkers and (2) determine the extent discrimination and high-effort coping (HEC) contribute to inclusion in these profiles. Using Jackson Heart Study data (N = 4476), a latent profile analysis (LPA) using AL indicators was conducted to identify CVD risk profiles. Multinomial logistic regression analysis estimated the odds of risk profile inclusion according to everyday discrimination, lifetime discrimination, discrimination burden, and high-effort coping, adjusting for sex, age, body mass index, and smoking status. LPA identified five profiles exhibiting inflammatory, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and low risk. Greater lifetime discrimination lowered odds of inclusion in the inflammatory risk profile relative to the low risk profile (OR = .82, 95% CI [.73-.93]). Greater HEC increased odds of inclusion in the hyperlipidemia (OR = 1.03, 95% CI [1.00-1.05]) and hypertension (OR = 1.02, 95% CI [1.00-1.04]) risk profiles. Greater discrimination burden with greater HEC increased the likelihood of inclusion in the inflammatory risk profile (OR = 1.07, 95% = [1.06-1.13]). The study supports the use of an integrated specificity model to examine perceived discrimination and underlying CVD risk profiles among African American populations.