We consider the observations in this exploratory hypothesis-generating study interesting enough to merit validation in a larger hypothesis driven study, testing the correlation between GR binding capacity and outcome.
If the estimate for the primary outcome is favourable for the treatment/intervention group then this would support a decision to continue with a larger hypothesis testing study (Piantadosi, 2005).
From this, we speculate that a larger aetiopathogenetic hypothesis could be formulated for sCJD at least (and probably for PD also), named " triple match," including the toxic environmental exposure, the host genotype, and the direct contact with "hot" anatomical regions (i.e., olfactory fibers, vagal fibers, and hypoglossal fibers).
Critics have a problem with the larger hypothesis at hand: that evolution left its mark on psychology.
Interpreting a large number of hypothesis tests when the magnitude of the expected changes is small is difficult due to an unavoidable large proportion of false positives.
8 However, comparing each of the ILAR subtypes separately against controls would result in a large number of hypothesis tests.
In conclusion, the present study confirms in a large dataset the hypothesis of an inverse association between coffee drinking and liver cancer.
BH's error control requires a large number of hypothesis tests, a reasonable assumption for differential gene expression analysis, though not the case with pathway-based analysis.
A pilot study is not a hypothesis-testing study, but a necessary initial step in exploring a novel intervention to inform its feasibility and identify modifications needed in the design of a larger ensuing hypothesis-testing study.
This approach is able to simultaneously analyse a broad range of polar and nonpolar metabolites, which is ideal for a large-scale hypothesis-generating study with twofold faster data acquisition and analysis time when compared to the conventional methods.
