bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Analyzing the Constructs of Stakeholder Engagement towards Renewable Energy Projects Success in Malaysia: A PLS Approach
Authors: Waris Muhammad , Sufia Azlan Zarith , Fadzline Muhamad Tamyez Puteri , Ullah Mehfooz , Khan Asadullah
Published: August 2019

Stakeholder engagement is increasingly becoming a part of practice in delivering successful project outcomes. However, there is a limitation of studies on how the stakeholder engagement approaches are being implemented primarily towards mega-scale projects such as renewable energy projects. This paper intends to fill the gap by analyzing the relationship between ten identified constructs of stakeholder engagement and renewable energy project success. Data was collected through survey questionnaires applied to the Renewable Energy Power Providers (REPPs) in Malaysia, using stratified random sampling. SPSS ver.23 and SmartPLS 3.0 was applied to test measurement and structural models of this study. The findings revealed that effective communication, continuous consultation, understand intention and behavior, implement plans, build good relationships, analyze changes, risk mitigation, compromise conflicts, understand project success and good project governance were significant critical constructs of stakeholder engagement that were confirmed as drivers that influenced the renewable energy project successfully. It is apparent that this study allows the contribution to the body of knowledge of project management and offers some important insights into limited literature on stakeholder engagement. This study also shed light on the key stakeholders’ groups in developing successful renewable energy projects.
Manufacturing Outsourcing to Achieve Organizational Performance through Manufacturing Integrity Capabilities
Authors: Shanmugan Muralitharan , Shabir Shaharudin Muhammad , Ganesan Yuvaraj , Fernando Yudi
Published: August 2019

Manufacturing companies outsource their manufacturing process to achieve organizational performance. Companies can focus on improving their core business processes while leaving manufacturing process to companies that are more efficient and cost-effective. However, this leaves manufacturing companies with a dilemma as those outsourcing companies are also producing for competitors and companies’ brand is liable to the integrity of outsourcing companies. By having integrity capabilities, it is argued that companies can achieve organizational performance. This paper investigates the relationship between manufacturing outsourcing and organizational performance with the mediating effect of manufacturing integrity capabilities. This paper contributes to the body of literature by investigating the impact of manufacturing integrity capabilities with resource-based view and transaction cost economics theories. Furthermore, this paper also is practically useful for companies to understand integrity capabilities that are useful to increase organizational performance in the era of the dynamic business environment.
Multi-Approach Formulation in Dynamic Personality-Situation Interaction for Personnel Selection
Authors: Hanafiah Ahmad Mohd , Nawanir Gusman , Rashid Ab Hamid Mohd
Published: August 2019

The purpose of personnel selection is to measure knowledge, skills, and abilities that are necessary to perform a job effectively. The process involves various assessments, including personality assessment. This conceptual paper discussed the potential of using a learning factory to develop multiple simulations for assessment center activities in assessing personality in different situations. Although traditional personality assessment contributes to the effectiveness of selection decisions and prediction, it tended to ignore that trait-related behaviors may differ across situations. Study on dynamic personality is essential as empirical studies showed that within-person fluctuations in personality states relate to a variety of work outcomes, including job performance. To further understand this fundamental issue, this paper discussed further how personality–situation interplay influences performance by using a learning factory assessment center method. This study also discussed how the adaptation of exploratory mixed methods approach could be used. The mixed exploratory methods are suitable as this topic is related to fundamental research and empirical study, besides the investigation on this area is still limited. This paper could benefit other researchers, industry players, and policymakers in understanding better how dynamic personality may influence performance, especially in the activities related to Industry 4.0.
How Cultural Divergence Influences Expatriate’s Performance in Malaysia
Authors: Salma Sultana Umme , Warda Andalib Tarnima , Ridzuan Darun Mohd
Published: August 2019

Malaysia is one of the countries which welcome expatriates from all over the world to fill the need for skilled employees. This paper provides an overview of how cultural divergence influence expatriates performance in Malaysia. The main purpose of this study is to identify the important issues which directly or indirectly, positively or negatively influence expatriate’s performance in day to day work. This study reviewed 55 papers related to cultural divergence, employee performance, cultural intelligence, and human resource management practices in Malaysia. The finding highlights that expatriates experience cultural clashes between foreign and local values, which pose direct influences on expatriates’ performance. This study contributes to the body of knowledge in the cross-cultural management field as well as practical implications to expatriating firms. Finally, this research is beneficial and informative, especially for Malaysian researchers and managers in International Human Resource Management (IHRM) field.
The Effectiveness of the Environmental Management System (EMS) Implementation in Green Supply Chain: A Case Study
Authors: Daud Sarbani , Yusof Nurfaizah , Mokhtar Mazita
Published: August 2019

Environmental awareness rapidly increased worldwide these recent decades. Likewise, individuals but also business organizations have begun practicing ”Green” initiatives in their organization’s operations to reduce environmental impact. The implementation of the Environmental Management System (EMS) in the Green Supply Chain (GSC) is an approach to adopt the green initiatives in the business operations that beneficial to the organization, not just regarding the environmental benefits, but economic and social as well. In an example where EMS improves the environmental performance of the organization, previous research suggests that improvements not only occur within the limits of the organizational operation but also need to be extended throughout the supply chain. The effectiveness of EMS implementation in the green supply chain boosts the environmental performance of the organization. Ultimately, EMS and GSCM practices are complementary to each other. Organizations that implemented EMS have more signs of improving the environment not only at the boundaries of their organizations but also across their network of buyers and suppliers. This research explains the debate by empirically assessing the relationship between EMS and GSCM practices.
Does Commitment to Anti-Corruption Matter?
Authors: Devi Susela , Ko YoungKyung , Subramaniam Ravichandran
Published: August 2019

The Malaysian capital market regulators take great efforts to continuously enhance corporate governance codes and practices to improve transparent reporting and enhance board responsibility and investors’ protection. In 2017, the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance published a report assessing the transparency of reporting by top 100 listed companies in respect of anti-corruption, organizational disclosure, and sustainability. This study uses this unique set of data on scores on anti-corruption commitment, organizational transparency, and sustainability to investigate the association between corporate transparency and firm value, and whether political connections moderate this relationship. Not surprisingly, findings show that listed government-linked companies (GLCs) have higher scores than non-GLCs, such as family and foreign firms. Firms with enhanced anti-corruption commitment are more likely to have higher firm value, and this relationship is stronger for politically connected firms. The implications for investors and regulators are discussed in this paper.
Sustainability Ethics of Safety in the Building Maintenance Industry: Technical Manager’s Perspectives
Authors: Kamarudin Diyana , Affendy Omardin Mohammad
Published: August 2019

Building maintenance (BM) projects usually involve various technical individuals such as building managers, architects, and building contractors. These individuals are usually concerned with certain issues pertaining to their views and experiences on a range of ethical topics surrounding BM industry activities. The issue of professional ethics plays an important role in quality-related problems in a BM project. Ethics is a vital component in producing a profitable long-term profit in the BM industry. This paper highlights the process practice of professional ethics and sustainability in the BM industry and how ethics influences the activities of BM projects. This qualitative case study recruited four (4) technical managers within the BM organisations. Data for this research were collected through semi-structured interviews with technical managers of the BM organisations. Results indicated that different types of unethical conducts impact BM tasks significantly. This study found that it is important to include professional ethics as a pre-requisite to attaining sustained and acceptable quality in BM. The study also suggests several approaches and methods enhance professionalism among BM professionals, which could help improve the quality in BM projects. The findings provide safety sustainability ethics process to BM organisation on how to address the ethical root issues when confronting the Malaysian BM industry.
Big Data and Predictive Analytics Capabilities: A Review of Literature on Its Impact on Firm’s Financial Performance
Authors: Khai Loon Lee , Cean Peing Lim
Published: August 2019

In the era of the fourth industrial revolution, big data and predictive analytics (BDPA) capabilities considered as one of the significant resources that enable a firm to gain competitiveness. Nowadays, the advancement of technology information increases the difficulty of the firm to manage vast amounts of structured and unstructured data. The excessive growth between data captured and the firm’s capabilities to manage, process, analyze, and transfer the big data to actionable knowledge and value still challenges many firms in the competitive market. Besides, the lack of tangible resources, technical skills, management skills, organizational learning, and data-driven culture are some of the challenges for firms to apply analytics approach to support the data processing process. These situations led to poor decision making by the firm and result in high operation cost and lower profitability. However, the situation will be different if the firm able to manage BDPA capabilities in the right way. Based on the identified problems, this study aims to review the impact of BDPA capabilities on a firm’s financial performance. This study is expected to enhance the body of knowledge on BDPA capabilities and the firm’s financial performance. This study also provides information regarding the importance of BDPA capabilities on the firm’s financial performance to industrial practitioners. An empirical study on this subject matter is suggested for future researchers, especially in Malaysia manufacturing industry.
Contractor’s Technology Acceptance for Firm Sustainability Performance
Authors: Bamgbade J.A. , Gbadebo Salimon Maruf , Adeleke A.Q. , Nasidi Y.
Published: August 2019

The construction industry’s contributions to Greenhouse gas emissions have generated several discussions among the construction stakeholders in recent times. Granted that the construction industry has been contributing significantly to the economy as well as employment in most countries for decades, the industry’s resource consumption is, at the same time, damaging to a sustained human environment. This paper empirically explored the organizational technology orientation and perceived organizational usefulness that could improve construction Malaysian construction firm’s sustainability performance. Close-ended structured copies of questionnaire survey were employed to collect data from large Malaysian construction firms, and Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling technique was used to analyze the 172 responses. The results indicated that both technology orientation and perceived organizational usefulness are capable of influencing the construction firms’ sustainability performance. The implication is that this study’s model can predict the sustainability performance of the sampled construction firms. Some implications for research and practice, as well as future recommendations, were highlighted.
RGEC, Sustainability Reporting, and Financial Performance: A Study in Listed Banks in IDX 2013-2017
Authors: Gunarsih Tri , . Setiyono , Sayekti Fran , Novak Tamas
Published: August 2019

This study aims to analyze Risk Profile, Good Corporate Governance, Earning, and Capital (RGEC), Sustainability Reporting (SR) and financial performance (ROE and TQ) of the listed banks in the IDX. This research implements correlation and regression analysis. Base on data samples of 12 banks in 2013-2017, the results of this study show that GCG and RGEC positively correlated to performance (ROE and TQ), but there is no correlation between SR and performance. The regression analysis shows that risk profile (LDR), GCG, and Earning / rentability (ROA) are statistically significant influence ROE but only NPL and GCG that influence TQ while SR is not significant, both to ROE and TQ. These findings support the arguments that the better the RGEC, the higher the financial performance. Subject to data limitation of SR, this study could not give empirical evidence that the better the SR, the higher the firm performance.
Ethical Practice Disclosure of Malaysian Public Listed Companies
Authors: Firdhauz Zainul Abidin Ahmad , Aishah Hashim Hafiza , Salleh Zalailah , Devi Susela
Published: August 2019

The Malaysian corporate environment has been shocked by corporate scandals and poor performance among government-related companies, such as 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), Lembaga Tabung Haji (LTH), Felda Global Ventures (FGV) and Khazanah Nasional Berhad (KHAZANAH). Despite having strong corporate governance and being strengthened through Malaysia Code of Corporate Governance (MCCG), unethical practices and a lack of transparency remain a problem among Malaysian companies. The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of disclosure of ethical practices among Malaysian public listed companies. Ethical practice disclosure is measured using the modified Ethical Commitment Index (ECI) with six themes derived from the literature; notably, corporate ethical values, action to promote ethics, whistle-blowing policy, code of ethics, sustainability practices, and ethics committee. Through content analysis of the annual reports of 1,115 companies and five years’ observation (2012-2016), this study found there is a need to improve several aspects of ethical practice disclosure. The findings implied that companies supported the MCCG, with most of the companies complying with the recommendations of MCCG 2012 to uphold a high standard of ethical practice. However, supplementary practices, such as disciplinary action, programmes to support a code of ethics, whistle-blowers’ protection, and establishing an ethics committee, are still weak. The findings indicate that the level of ethical practice disclosure among Malaysian public listed companies remains low and raises concern that requires action by regulators. This paper contributes by providing insights into the disclosure of ethical practice among Malaysian public companies.
A Survey on Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) Challenges in the Malaysian Construction Industry
Authors: Syamimi Zulkefli Nur , Mahmud Fatimah , Mohd Zainudin Nurhaizan
Published: August 2019

In recent years, mounting environmental and sustainability concerns are driving the construction industry players to adopt green supply chain management (GSCM) in their organizations. GSCM is a converging sustainability approach that integrates environmental thinking and initiatives into the traditional supply chain management (SCM) practices. However, despite having various benefits, this approach has not been widely implemented. Therefore, this paper aims to reveal the challenges faced by Malaysian construction companies in implementing GSCM. A total of 160 questionnaires were distributed among contractors and consultants in Malaysian Construction Companies. Only 50 questionnaires completed by the respondents resulting in a response rate of 32%. The research found that leadership and commitment from top management as the main challenges among construction players in implementing GSCM, in addition to changing mindset and culture and government support and regulation. This finding will allow practitioners to acknowledge and prioritize the challenges embedded with GSCM implementation, thus come out with strategies to overcome the challenges. This research can be further enriched by including an in-depth study on the GSCM challenges through qualitative research.
Re-engineered and Integrated Industrial Relations Model for Governance Integrity: Multiple Case Studies in Bangladesh
Authors: Warda Andalib Tarnima , Ridzuan Darun Mohd
Published: August 2019

This paper re-engineers the ‘industrial relationships between the leaders and the employees (RLE)’ model in the Bangladeshi manufacturing companies, where labour management, supply, and demand of workflow and workers, employee’s conditions and rights are significant factors. Researchers have pondered the ‘industrial relationships between leaders and employees’ component as part of ‘human resource management’ and have adept the integration by using soft systems technology, where this component’s codes are associated with employees’ rights protocols of ‘Universal declaration of human rights (UDHR), ‘International labour organisations (ILO) and ‘Bangladesh labour act 2006’ (BDL). Here, qualitative method’s multiple case studies are applied with purposeful sampling to choose twelve cases (12) and eighty-seven (87) participants’ for in-depth interviews, which are transcribed and coded methodically in NVIVO. Here, re-engineered ‘industrial relationships between leaders and employees model’ is the outcome. The concept of integration is novel, which is an addition to the knowledge of literature and the advancement of ‘industrial relationships between leaders and employees’ model.
Sudy of theeffects of orchidectomy and testosterone and estradiol administration on lipids profile in male rats
Authors: Yari Maryam , Najd Hassan Bonab Leila , Ahmadi Rahim
Published: August 2019

Introduction: Sex steroids have multiple roles in regulating of body lipid metabolism. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of orchidectomy and administration of testosterone and estradiol on lipid profile in male rats.
Methods: In this experimental study, 40 male rats were divided into groups of 5 animals in each: control, orchidectomized, testosterone or estradiol receiving, orchidectomized testosterone receiving, estradiol receiving, orchidectomized estradiol receiving, sham and olive oil receiving rats. Testosterone enanthate (10µg/kg/day) and estradiol valerate (2µg/kg/day) were injected intraperitoneally. After 7 weeks, blood samples were obtained and serum levels of lipid profile were measured using spectrophotometry method. Data were analyzed using SPSS19 software and ANOVA.
Results: Serum level of triglyceride and VLDL significantly decreased in orchidectomized group compared to the control group (P<0.01). Serum LDL and HDL levels were not significantly changed in all groups compared with the control group. Compared to the control group, there was a significant decrease in serum cholesterol levels in orchiectomized (P<0.01), testosterone receiving (P<0.001), estradiol receiving orchiectomized (P<0.01), testosterone receiving orchidectomized (P <0.01) groups.
Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that orchidectomy and decreased testosterone results in rapid decrease in cholesterol levels; however, testosterone or estradiol administration did not revert the cholesterol levels to its normal levels. Administration of testosterone causes decreased TG and VLDL levels, but did not significantly change lipid profile.
The Effect of Quadriceps Kinesio Taping on the Anaerobic Muscle Power and Anaerobic Threshold of Active Male Students
Authors: Behboodi Zohreh , Siahkohian Marefat , Barghamadi Mohsen
Published: August 2019

Introdution: The Purpose of this study examined the effect of Kinesio taping the quadriceps femurs muscle of active students on anaerobic muscle power (AMP) and the anaerobic threshold (AT) to analyze the functional value of taping on athletic performance capacity.
Methods: Twenty eight male healthy students with a mean age of 22.02±2.2 years were enrolled in this study voluntarily and randomly divided into two groups of taping (n=13) and control (n=15) groups. The anaerobic muscle power (AMP) was measured by the Wingate test, and the anaerobic threshold of participants was measured by a dependent maximal treadmill protocol (Conconi Test) with a week gap. Kinesio tapes, 5 cm in width, were applied to quadriceps femurs muscles of participants. The anaerobic threshold was evaluated after 7 days taping, then after 7 days, the anaerobic muscle power was re-evaluated. Normality of data and homogeneity were tested by Shapiro–Wilk test. Paired sample t-test for within groups and independent t-test for between groups comparison were used to analyses the hypotheses (P≤0.05).
Results: The results showed that there were significant differences between pre and posttest of total time, total distance, maximum velocity, LTP1, anaerobic capacity, maximum power and anaerobic capacity ratio after taping. There were no significant differences between pre and posttest in the control group.
Conclusion: Taping of the quadriceps femurs muscle of active students was effective on the anaerobic muscle power and the anaerobic threshold, indicating its beneficial effects for athletic performance
The role of local production systems in the establishment of sustainable consumer attitude
Authors: Horváth Bálint
Published: August 2019

The present study elaborates on the importance of material flows in the context of local and global production systems. The theoretical part describes how population growth induced the need for global production and how it contributed to further welfare disparities. The research focuses on the socio-economic processes of globalization with a special consideration on resources. It states that business processes have grown over the importance of territorial affairs in the past 100-150 years. Movements requiring war conflicts in previous times are currently conducted through international trade relations. The spread of empires has been replaced by global corporate expansion. The paper reviews essential literature concerning this hypothesisand argues for the transparency of resource utilization throughout the phenomenon. The results stand for the introduction of border adjustment taxes based on accurate resource valuation. The preference of local markets does not only strengthen local economies but comes significant regarding sustainable resource management
Applied food safety requirements in the case of organic farmers’ food processing activity and their effects on the production
Authors: Nagyné Pércsi Kinga
Published: August 2019

The improvement of the organic farming is a basic aim of the national agricultural policy for years. The new CAP 2014-2020 also strengthen the central role of organic agriculture in the fight against climate change, the protection of the environment and the preservation of biodiversity. The organic farms are usually small scale enterprises so their development also relating to the improvement of the Short Food Supply Chains which is supported in the frame of the Rural Development Programme. The health related characteristics of the food product gained on importance in the past decade among the European consumers. The organics has more favourable characteristics from this aspect as compared to the conventional food, which is due to the organic producing principles. However the food safety, hygienic characteristic of the food stemming from local small scale farmers are similar to the organics. The aim of the article is to reveal the judgement of the applied rules by the organic and small scale farmers and to find the main differences in food safety level in the two product categories in this field.
Nagy mennyiségű szakirodalom feldolgozásának támogatása egy tudományos folyóirat cikkeinek tartalom szerinti kategorizálásával szöveg-sűrűségi mutatók alapján a Simulation & Gaming tudományos folyóirat példáján
Authors: Boda Márton Attila
Published: August 2019

A tanulmány egy folyóirat példáján mutatja be, hogy számítógéppel támogatott módszerrel hogyan lehet tartalom szerinti elemzéssel csökkenteni az irodalom feldolgozása során szelektálásra fordítandó időt. A kutatás 899 dokumentum, ebből 561 darab kutatási cikk esetében végez szógyakorisága alapján témába történő rendezést, melyet faktor- és klaszteranalízis segít.
Az éghajlatváltozás kihívásai a GDP alapú gazdasági teljesítmény-értékelés számára Magyarország példáján bemutatva
Authors: Bognár Róbert , Erdélyi Dániel
Published: August 2019

Ma Magyarországon az első számú nemzetgazdasági mutató a GDP, melynek esetében a fejlettség, jólét mérésekor komoly hiányosságit tapasztalhatjuk. Az alternatív közgazdaságtan által megalkotott valódi fejlődés mutatója (GPI) szélesíti a figyelembe vett tényezők számát, társadalmi és környezeti szempontokat is vizsgál. Jelen cikk a NATéR kartogramjait elemzi, rávilágítva Magyarország környezeti állapotának változására, annak társadalmi és gazdasági következményeire.
Reprezentatív felmérés a Gyöngyösi járásban található önkormányzatok megújuló energia pályázatainak vonatkozásában
Authors: Szeberényi András
Published: August 2019

Napjainkban egyre többeket foglalkoztat az egyre korlátozottabb mennyiségben rendelkezésre álló fosszilis energiák felhasználása. Régóta kutatják, hogy milyen alternatív energiákkal tudnák helyettesíteni azokat, és egyre nyilvánvalóbbá válik, hogy egyedül a megújuló energiák képesek kiváltani ezeket a leghatékonyabban. Jelenlegi helyzetet tekintve a fosszilis energiák használata, valamint az ezzel párhuzamosan és exponenciálisan növekvő megoldatlan problémák - például a kitermelt olaj csökkenő mennyisége, az autók számának évről évre történő növekedése, az erősödő környezetterhelés, az üvegházhatás, a globális felmelegedés - már világméretű problémának tekinthető. Ezek egyik hatékony megoldása lehet, ha a fiatalabb generációknak minél korábban megtanítják a környezettudatos életmód fontosságát. A fiatalok mellett a másik döntő szerep az önkormányzatoké, melyek meghatározói lehetnek a lakosság környezettudatosságra való nevelésének, hisz saját példájukkal irányvonalat mutatnak: hogyan lehet többet tenni a környezetünk védelméért. Az itt bemutatott kutatás legfőbb célja az volt, hogy a Gyöngyösi járás önkormányzatainak segítségével egy olyan reprezentatív kutatás készüljön, amely átfogó képet ad az önkormányzatok megújuló energia felhasználási szintjéről, a környezettudatos hozzáállásukról és arról, hogy a közeljövőben hogyan szeretnének még többet tenni annak érdekében, hogy ezt a szemléletmódot erősítsék projektek, pályázatok, a közösségi média vagy más lehetőségek által.
Retrospective analysis of patiens with brain death
Authors: EMİNOĞLU Şermin , ÖZGÜNAY Şeyda Efsun
Published: August 2019

Objectives:
We
aimed to retrospectively analyze brain death cases in the our intensive care
units. Methods: We examined archive records of brain
death cases diagnosed between January 01, 2014 and October 01, 2018. We
recorded patients’ demographics (age, gender, place of birth, blood type and
diagnosis on admission), time to the preparation of the report, additional
tests performed, rate of organ donation, donor rate, and number of organs
removed. Results: A total of 151 brain death cases were
detected. Of these, 69 were female. The average age was 53.96 ± 19.52years. A
Rh + was the most common type (39.7%) in blood type analysis. Intracranial
hemorrhage was the primary reason (54.3%) for admission. Apnea test was
performed for 88 patients. Radiological imaging was used in 129 (85.4%) cases;
computed tomography angiography being the most commonly performed method with
79 (52.3%) cases. Forty four patients’ families consented to organ donation.
Considering the place of birth for donors, Marmara Region was the leader with
18 (40.9%) donors. Of the 82 brain death cases diagnosed with intracranial
hemorrhage, 35 (42.68%) donated organs and this rate was significantly high (p = 0.002). The mean follow-up period
for brain death was 1.49 days.

Conclusions: Health team is responsible for
identifying brain death and shoud be conscious about it, attempting to increase
organ donation. They should act rapidly and avoid wasting time after the
diagnosis. Family interviews to be conducted by an experienced and trained
organ donation coordinator may increase donations by emphasizing the importance
of organ donations. Giving wide media coverage to organ donation may increase
awareness of the community of organ donation.﻿
The evaluation of the relationship between fetuin-A and traditional and non-traditional cardiovascular risk factors in kidney transplantation recipients
Authors: KOCA Nizameddin , ERSOY Alparslan , ŞENSOY Barış , KIRHAN Emine , GÜLLÜLÜ Sümeyye , DİRİCAN Melahat , SARANDÖL Emre
Published: August 2019

Objectives:
Kidney transplantation recipients (KTRs) have higher cardiovascular
complications risk compared to the general population. Cardiovascular risk
factors (CVRF, Traditional and non-traditional) are widely studied to
understand the causes of increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in KTRs.
Fetuin-A prevents from vascular calcification (VC) by inhibiting production and
collapsing of apatite crystals to the vascular wall. The relationship between fetuin-A
levels and CVRF in KTRs was investigated in this study. Methods: Sixty-two KTRs with no prior
CVD history participated. Anthropometrical, laboratory (fetuin-A, inflammation
markers, antioxidants, lipid peroxidation products) and cardiological
(echocardiographic, pulse wave velocity) measurements were performed.
Participants were divided into two groups according to normal (≥ 0.5 g/L, n = 32,
NFA) and low (< 0.5 g/L, n = 30, LFA) fetuin-A levels according to manufacturer’s
reference range, and the results were compared. Results: No significant difference was observed in demographic features, body mass index, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, left ventricle mass index, waist and hip circumferences, left ventricle hypertrophy and waist-hip ratios between the two groups (p > 0.05). The ratios of drug usage such as immunosuppressives, anti-hypertensives and statin were comparable between two groups. Parathormone levels were significantly higher in the NFA group (p = 0.015) and glomerular filtration
rate was calculated significantly higher in LFA group (p = 007). The comparison of other CVRF reveals no significant
difference (p > 0.05).

Conclusions: Although many CVRF improved in
KTRs, subclinical inflammation markers were still higher than the healthy
population. Identification and early recognition of CVRF in high-risk
individuals may contribute to the reduction of cardiovascular mortality. In our
study, we observed no significant relationship between fetuin-A levels and
CVRFs. We evaluated the
relationship between serum fetuin-A levels on cardiovascular risk factors by
its role in pathophysiology.
Bee venom: A medical perspective
Authors: SİG Ali Korhan , GÜNEY Mustafa , ÖZ SİG Özlem , ŞAN Hüseyin
Published: August 2019

Apitherapy
is a complementary medical technique that has an old history and is applied in
various diseases worldwide. Apitherapeutical applications are not treatment
methods by themself, but theycan be substantial parts of multidisciplinary
approaches. One of them, bee venom therapy, is a currently-applied method
worldwide. Bee venom (BV) includes several substances such as peptides, phospholipids,
bioactive amines, amino acids, sugars, pheromones, enzymes and minerals.Studies
on whole BV and its singular components indicated that they have a huge
potential in anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritis, anti-nociceptive,
neuroprotective, anti-tumoral, anti-microbial, anti-diabetic and anti-rheumatic
activities.Results of in vivo studies
against arthritis, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease andcancer are very
promising, and also in vitro results
indicating other activities such as antimicrobial effect are observed. Although
mechanisms of action and many bioactive substances still remains unclear,
beneficial effects and potential utilities in certain medical conditions are
obvious. It seems bioactive components of BV may open new doors in treatment of
various diseases.
Medication adherence after myocardial infarction: A single center retrospective cohort study
Authors: BAYRAM Ufuk Tan , AKBUĞA Kürşat , KARANFİL Mustafa , DÜZENLİ Mehmet Akif
Published: August 2019

Aim: The study is designed to compare the discharge prescriptions
of ST-elevated (STEMI) and non ST-elevated (NSTEMI) myocardial infarction
patients and the medications used end of first year and also to investigate the
relationship between MI type, gender, age groups and drug adherence.Material and Methods: In retrospect, data from 413 patients were collected
via epicrisis and phone visits. Discharge and the outpatient medications end of
one year were compared.Results: Of the 413 patients included in the study, 312 (%75)
were male. MI type distribution was NSTEMI with a ratio of 38.5% (n = 159) and
STEMI with a ratio of 61.5% (n = 254). Only 2 (0.5%) patients did not receive
acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) at discharge. The rate of beta-blocker, statin,
clopidogrel users were %94.4, %97.1 and %97.8, respectively. The rate of
patients who used five drugs (ASA, beta blocker, ACEI/ARB, statin, clopidogrel)
at discharge was 78.7% (n = 325). At the end of first year, the rate of ASA,
statin, beta blocker, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors/aldosterone
receptor blocker(ACEI/ARB) and clopidogrel users dropped down to 88.1% (n =
364), 66% (n = 273), 80.9% (n = 334), 69.7% (n = 288) and 81.3% (n = 336),
respectively(p<0.05 for all parameters). After one year, the number of
patients using five drugs dropped to %45(p<0.05). Beta-blocker target dose
was achieved in 68(16.5%) patients and ACEI / ARB target dose was achieved in
74(17.9%) patients. Patients with renal failure were not able to reach the
target doses of ACEI/ARB at the end of first year (p: 0,033). And also renal
failure is considered as an impediment to proper drug use at discharge and end
of the first year (p <0.01 and p<0.01 respectively).Conclusion: It was determined that treatment compliance was
impaired at the end of one year in a significant proportion of patients with
acute coronary syndrome. One year later, compliance with treatment was higher
in females than in males and was inversely related to age and renal failure. It
is observed that follow-up training programs are needed to succeed in drug
adherence.
The relationship between leukocyte activation and apoptosis in venous insufficiency etiopathogenesis
Authors: TÜMER Naim Boran , İRİZ Erkan , GÜLBAHAR Özlem , ERER Dilek , SONCUL Halim , Coşkun Elif
Published: August 2019

Aim: Varicose veins are the most common disorders of the lower extremities. The
purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of leukocyte activation in
the vein wall and apoptosis in the etiopathogenesis of varicose veins.Material and Methods:Forty-six patients with varicose veins were included in the study. High
ligation with stripping with or without additional individual ligation and
excision was performed for symptoms, complications or cosmetic needs. ELISA was
used to measure the serum concentration of caspase-8 and caspase-9.Results: There was a statistically significant difference between the cephalic vein
and saphenous vein groups (p=0.04 and p<0.0001 respectively).

Conclusion: As a conclusion, the complex
pathophysiology underlying varicose veins has yet to be fully defined. It is
suggested that both leukocyte activation and dysregulation of apoptosis are
associated with susceptibility for varicose vein formation however this
argument needs further research.
Efecto de formulaciones de ácido oleico y quitosano sobre el desarrollo in vitro de Clavibacter michiganensis
Authors: Castañón-Viveros Susana Alexa , Salas-Marcial Cindy , Ramos-García Margarita De Lorena , Hernández-Romano Jesús , Guillén-Sánchez Dagoberto
Published: August 2019

Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis, causa pérdidas económicas significativas en el cultivo de Solanáceas, debido a que al infectarse, el cultivo debe ser desechado. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar formulaciones de ácido oleico y quitosano sobre el desarrollo in vitro de C. michiganensis subsp. michiganensis. La bacteria se aisló en medio NBY. Se elaboraron formulaciones  acuosas de ácido oleico (1, 2 y 3%)  y quitosano al 1%.  Las técnicas utilizadas para evaluar el efecto bactericida de las formulaciones, fueron de pozos, antibiograma disco-placa y envenenamiento del medio, en este último caso, previo y posterior a la incubación de la bacteria.  Se evaluó el crecimiento (cm) y peso (g). La temperatura de incubación fue de 28 °C durante 8 días. Los resultados mostraron que en la técnica de envenenamiento del medio, previo a la siembra del microorganismo, la solución de ácido oleico al 3% y quitosano 1%, controló el crecimiento de C. michiganensis (0.02g) al compararlo con el control (0.35 g). El ácido oleico y  quitosano al aplicarlo de manera preventiva, disminuyeron el crecimiento de C. michiganensis subsp. michiganensis in vitro.
Streptomyces como biocontroladores in vitro de Exserohilum rostratum y productores de sustancias promotoras del crecimiento vegetal
Authors: García-Rojas Darío Enrique , Vázquez-Vázquez Pedro , Pérez-Corral Daniel Alonso , Ruiz-Cisneros María Fernanda , Berlanga-Reyes David Ignacio , Ornelas-Paz José De Jesús , Acosta-Muñiz Carlos Horacio , Rios-Velasco Claudio , Salas-Marina Miguel Ángel , Osorio-Hernández Eduardo
Published: August 2019

El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar la actividad antifúngica de Streptomyces spp. contra Exserohilum rostratum cepa CIAD_CP01 (Sinónimo de Setosphaeria rostrata), así como su capacidad para producir sustancias promotoras del crecimiento vegetal. La actividad antagónica in vitro de seis cepas de Streptomyces se evaluó por confrontación directa y a través de volátiles contra E. rostratum aislado de follaje de maíz en el estado de Chihuahua, (siendo éste, el primer reporte de ocurrencia en dicho estado), y se estimó mediante el porcentaje de inhibición del crecimiento radial (PICR). Así mismo, se determinó la capacidad de Streptomyces spp., para producir ácido indol acético (AIA) y sideróforos, además de su potencial para fijar nitrógeno atmosférico y solubilizar fosfatos. Los valores de PICR obtenidos fluctuaron de 34.9 a 95.7% en confrontación directa y de 0.6 a 2.2% mediante volátiles. Streptomyces cangkringensis cepa CIAD-CA07 (A7) y Streptomyces misionensis cepa CIAD-CA27 (A27) produjeron 3 y 29 µg mL-1 de AIA, respectivamente. Todas las cepas fueron capaces de producir el sideróforo trihidroxamato (ferrioxamina) de 7.8 a 39.3% de unidades de sideróforos y de fijar nitrógeno atmosférico. Con base en los resultados, las cepas de Streptomyces podrían ser utilizadas como agentes de control biológico de E. rostratum y como biofertilizantes en cultivos hortofrutícolas.
Actividad antifúngica in vitro de microorganismos antagonistas contra Fusarium oxysporum de rizosfera de árboles de aguacate en Xalisco, Nayarit, México
Authors: Vega-Torres María Guadalupe , Ruiz-Cisneros María Fernanda , Pérez-Corral Daniel Alonso , Berlanga-Reyes David Ignacio , Ornelas-Paz José De Jesús , Rios-Velasco Claudio , Cambero-Campos Octavio Jhonathan , Estrada-Virgen Mario Orlando , Luna-Esquivel Gregorio , Denise-Revérchon Frédérique Lucciene
Published: August 2019

El objetivo del estudio fue aislar y caracterizar hongos y bacterias antagonistas de la rizosfera de huertos de aguacate de Xalisco, Nayarit, México, capaces de inhibir el crecimiento in vitro de aislados de Fusarium oxysporum. En 2018, se recolectaron muestras de suelo asociado a la rizosfera de árboles sanos de 10 huertos de aguacate cv. Hass en el municipio de Xalisco, Nayarit, México para el aislamiento de posibles antagonistas de F. oxysporum. Se aislaron e identificaron morfológicamente 117 actinomicetos (Streptomyces spp.), 83 bacterias (Bacillus spp.) y 43 hongos (Trichoderma spp.). De cada grupo de microorganismos se evaluaron 10 aislados (al azar) contra tres aislados de F. oxysporum, y se caracterizaron molecularmente 10 de estos aislados que mostraron la mayor inhibición. De los antagonistas evaluados in vitro, destacó el aislado A75 (Streptomyces sp.), con PICR que fluctuaron de 26.82 a 67.52%; los aislados B65 y B78 (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens y B. velezensis, respectivamente) con inhibiciones >50% y los 10 aislados de Trichoderma, que inhibieron el crecimiento radial (PICR) de F. oxysporum entre 35 a 75%. En huertos de aguacate de Xalisco, Nayarit, existen microorganismos antagonistas, especialmente cepas de los géneros Streptomyces spp., Bacillus spp. y Trichoderma spp., con posible potencial para ser usados en el manejo de Fusarium spp.
Efecto de extracto etanólico de residuos de higo (Ficus carica) sobre el crecimiento de hongos postcosecha
Authors: Istúriz-Zapata María Alejandra , Pérez-García Mariana , Contreras-Saavedra Sergio , Barrera-Necha Laura Leticia
Published: August 2019

Los residuos generados durante la producción del higo constituyen una alternativa novedosa para elaborar biofungicidas. Los polifenoles están presentes en la piel de los frutos de higo y poseen actividad antioxidante y antimicrobiana, por lo que este desecho fue utilizado para cuantificar fenoles, antocianinas y actividad antioxidante, además para determinar su efecto sobre la Tasa de Crecimiento (TC), la Inhibición del Crecimiento Micelial (ICM), la esporulación y la germinación de las esporas de los hongos fitopatógenos Colletotrichum acutatum, Fusarium solani, Penicillium oxallicum y Rhizopus stolonifer, a concentraciones de 2.5 a 50 mg mL-1. Los resultados fueron analizados por ANOVA y prueba de Tukey. La concentración de los polifenoles totales y antocianinas fueron mayores en la piel del higo, comparadas con las del extracto etanólico. En contraste la capacidad antioxidante del extracto fue mayor 32.9 µmol g-1 comparada con la piel de higo 21.7 µmol g-1. En general los hongos presentaron TC similares al control y baja ICM de 23 a 30%. No se observó esporulación en F. solani a concentraciones de 7.5 a 25 mg mL-1. El porcentaje de germinación de esporas en R. stolonifer fue de 0 % a 50 mg mL-1.
Efecto de inhibidores en el control del Papaya ringspot virus y productividad en papaya (Carica papaya)
Authors: Magaña-López Isaac , Guillén-Sánchez Dagoberto , Alia-Tejacal Irán , López-Martínez Víctor , Juárez-López Porfirio , Andrade-Rodríguez María , Hernández-Pérez Ricardo
Published: August 2019

La papaya (Carica papaya) es un frutal muy aceptado en el mercado de exportación por generar alta rentabilidad, en México se cultiva en zonas tropicales y subtropicales. El Papaya ring spot virus (PRSV) ocasiona la enfermedad más restrictiva de la producción de este cultivo en México y el mundo, por lo cual se evaluó la eficacia de Inhibitovir® y Virus Stop® en campo a 3 mL L-1 y 6 mL L-1 sobre incidencia, intensidad y control de la virosis, altura de planta, diámetro de tallo, número de flores y frutos, peso del fruto y rendimiento. El PRSV se detectó hasta el quinto mes después del trasplante, tiempo para que la plantación lograra un buen amarre de frutos, sin embargo, la eficacia de los inhibidores virales no tuvo diferencias significativas sobre plantas testigo infectadas con el PRSV, así como en altura de planta, diámetro de tallo, número de flores y frutos, peso del fruto y rendimiento.
Effect of urea, bio-fertilizers and their interaction on the growth, yield and yield attributes of Cyamopsis Tetragonoloba
Authors: Gul Asma , Salam Abdul , Afridi Muhammad Siddique , Bangash Naila Khan , Ali Fawad , Ali Muhammad Yuosaf , Khan Shumaila , Mubeeen Ramsha
Published: August 2019

A field experiment was conducted at Agriculture Research Station Bahawalpur (Pakistan) during Kharif, 2016 to evaluate the response of cluster bean against bio and chemical fertilizers. The treatments consisted of three levels of nitrogen (urea 75g, 85g and 95g/40g seeds) with three level of Rhizobium (1.5g, 2.0g and 2.5g/40g of seeds). The experiment arranged in a randomized complete block design with 16 treatments and three replications. Combine treatment of urea and Rhizobium resulted in maximum plant height, number of pods/plants, number of seeds/pod, 1000 seeds weight, yield/plant, and chlorophyll content. Similarly, application of 2.5g rhizobium and 85g of urea separately resulted in highest number of leaves. Our results concluded that the use of urea and rhizobium in consortium could be a potential agronomic practice for the production of high grain yield in cluster bean.
Impact of saline water irrigation plus potassium sulphate application on growth and yield potential of pepper plants
Authors: Rahil Mahmoud H. , Mousa Sami A. , Abu Safieh Daoud I.
Published: August 2019

The aim of this research was to investigate the impact of different saline water irrigation levels plus potassium sulphate (K2SO4) application on growth and yield potential of pepper plants. The treatments consisted of three saline water irrigation levels (2.5, 4 and 6 dS m-1) and tab water as control. Each treatment was supplemented with different levels of K2SO4 at (zero, 2 and 4 gm K2SO4 per plant), except for the control. Plant observations were collected to evaluate plant length, fruit number per plant, fruit yield per plant, stem water potential, plant transpiration, photosynthetic rate and dry matter of shoots and roots. Results of this study indicated that K2SO4 application played a positive impact on alleviating salinity stress and improving plant growth parameters mainly under saline water irrigation levels of 2.5 and 4 dS m-1 plus 2 gm K2SO4 compared to saline water irrigation treatments which were not supplemented with K2SO4.
Economic production of maize under chemical and granular organic fertilizer with hormone mixed formula, NPK and organic fertilizer
Authors: Keteku A. K. , Intanon P. , Terapongtanakorn S. , Intanon R.
Published: August 2019

A new hybrid of maize (Pacific 999 Super) was investigated under six treatments; organic fertilizer (OF), chemical and granular organic fertilizer with hormone mixed formula A (HO-A), formula B (HO-B), formula C (HO-C), NPK-15-15-15 and control in 2017 and 2018 seasons at Phitsanulok, Thailand. The treatments were arranged in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with 3 replications. Fertilizer application rate was 300 kg/ha. Initial soil analysis had shown lower rates of NPK (0.394%, 0.013% and 0.191%). The vegetative growth data showed that, mean plant height, leaf area, leaf chlorophyll and total dry matter/plant were highest in HO-C (255.49 cm, 158.37 dm2, 61.10 and 299.62g, respectively). A maximum grain weight (9,289.67 kg/ha), crude protein (8.99%) and profit (889.6 $/ha) were again recorded in HO-C. The results have demonstrated that the HO-C produced the greatest yield, income and is recommend for maize production.