bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
USING METHODS OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE FOR RESEARCH IN THE EDUCATION SPHERE
Authors: POLIAKOVA Yuliia , NOVOSAD Zoriana , ANILOVSKA Hanna ,   Lviv University of Trade and Economics
Published: February 2023

The article is devoted to finding out the possibilities of using modern scientific methods of scientific knowledge, in particular the method of expert evaluations, when identifying trends in the development of the educational space in Ukraine and developing directions for its adaptation to internal conditions and global challenges. The characteristic features of the development of higher education in the conditions of globalization of the educational space are revealed. Emphasis is placed on actualizing the issues of using a complex of modern methods of scientific knowledge in the analysis of the processes taking place in the development of educational activity, for the adopting of well-founded decisions. The method of expert evaluations is recognized as one of these methods, the advantage of which is the possibility to make decisions when objective methods cannot give the desired result. The research was carried out on the example of the educational process of students of the first bachelor’s level in three educational and professional programs “Marketing”, “Advertising in Business” and “Law” of the Lviv University of Trade and Economics on the subject of determining the degree of conformity of forms, methods of learning and teaching to the principles of academic freedom and student-centered approach during training. A special questionnaire with a wide range of questions and proposed answers was used to implement the methodology, and a point scale was established for the possibility of processing the received data. To process the obtained assessment data, the widespread universal Microsoft Excel software package was used. As a result, it was established that the need to combine study and work, an excessive amount of study load and an inconvenient schedule are important for applicants. At the same time, the issues of insufficient provision of educational and methodical literature, lack of interest in education or employment prospects are of no importance. It is substantiated that the application of expert methods allows to carry out a quantitative assessment of the level of influence of factors on the education of students in educational and professional programs, and such an assessment can become the basis for further improvement of the educational process.
REDUCTION OF CORRUPTION RISKS AS A NECESSARY CONDITION FUNCTIONING OF ROAD INDUSTRY ENTERPRISES
Authors:   Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, KUPALOVA Halyna
Published: February 2023

The purpose of the article is to formulate the main measures to reduce corruption risks as a necessary condition for the effective functioning of road industry enterprises. Progressive changes in the road industry of Ukraine in recent years have been analyzed. An important step in reducing corruption risks was the reform of pricing, in particular in the issue of determining the cost of road works and services. Information about tender offers, procurement related to the repair and maintenance of highways has become open and available on the Prozorro platform and the Unified State Portal of Open Data. Despite the measures taken, corruption risks in the road industry remain high. The reasons for corruption in the Ukravtodor system, according to the interviewed employees, are the dishonesty of officials, the presence of private interest, the imperfection of legislation, the low level of salaries and the influence of third parties. The main factors and conditions for the reduction of corruption manifestations are the integrity of employees, the transparency of management decision-making and control over compliance with anti-corruption requirements. Activities to reduce corruption risks in the road construction system require the use of a systemic approach, which includes a set of management, social-psychological, legal and informational measures. Management measures include actions related to financial control, procurement monitoring. Social and psychological measures are aimed at forming a negative attitude towards corruption. Legal measures are based on the application of legal norms in the regulation of industrial and labor relations. Information measures include the transparency of public procurement, openness of databases on prices, tenders, procurement volumes, and anti-corruption information work.
RETROSPECTIVE AND PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF FOREIGN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY OF UKRAINE
Authors: KARVATSKA Natasha , TIURINA Nila , NAZARCHUK Tatiana ,   Khmelnytskyi National University
Published: February 2023

A retrospective analysis and assessment of the current state of Ukraine’s foreign economic activity during the years of independence was performed in the article. In particular, the volume of export-import and investment activities, indicators of economic openness, geographical and commodity structure of exports and imports were analyzed. According to the results of the analysis, it was determined that in the process of independence and development of the national economy of Ukraine there is a transformation into an open economic system that tries to take advantage of international economic cooperation, develop all forms of international economic relations. However, due to inefficient international specialization, slow restructuring of the national economy, inefficient foreign trade management, the level of competitiveness and investment attractiveness of Ukraine in the world market remains low. The export-oriented model of economic growth with the predominance of low-tech exports has led to the extensive nature of economic development, which remains energy-intensive, low-productive, poorly diversified, uncompetitive and dependent on external sources of raw materials, energy resources and world markets. It is positive that Ukraine has changed the vector of orientation in foreign economic activity and the European Union is gradually becoming the largest and main foreign trade partner. Such a trend, given the geopolitical, geo-economics and historical European position of Ukraine, should remain one of the priorities of Ukraine’s foreign economic policy. The article concludes that the system of foreign economic regulation of Ukraine needs radical changes, which should begin with a review of foreign economic policy of the state which should be aimed at increasing export potential, product diversification, introduction of innovative technologies to ensure a sufficient level of competitiveness of domestic goods in world markets.
Análisis de las consecuencias del tratado de libre comercio (TLC) entre Colombia y la Unión Europea (UE) en el subsector ganadero colombiano
Authors: Giraldo Buitrago María Camila , Henao Toro Geraldín
Published: February 2023

El objetivo de este artículo fue establecer la autenticidad de la integración económica que se gestionara a largo plazo. El Tratado de Libre Comercio entre Colombia y la Unión Europea una vez logre entrar en vigencia, dará a Colombia una integración con uno de los bloques más importantes en la economía global, otorgándole a los productores nacionales la posibilidad de fortalecer los diferentes sectores productivos, y la posibilidad de ganar participación en los mercados internacionales, debido al aumento de la demanda de los productos colombianos. Sin embargo una integración económica siempre evidencio y manifestó perjuicios y anomalías para algún sector en particular, por ende se deben de analizar los efectos de tal apertura económica, caso explicito que se desarrolla en el presente texto en particular para el subsector ganadero colombiano.
La Tectónica
Authors: Marin Galeano Andrés
Published: February 2023

La tectónica es una manera de hablar de los edificios que utilizan la estructura y la experiencia, están explícitamente relacionados con la materialización y la realización de la construcción. La tectónica deriva de la palabra griega tecton, que significa carpintero o generalmente fabricante. De esta forma, podemos entender que el arquitecto es el carpintero o fabricante del edificio, y por esta razón, vale destacar algunas afirmaciones que Louis kahn solía hacer: "El diseño es hacer forma en el orden"' "La forma sigue al deseo, como la realización de una necesidad o una creencia"' En estas afirmaciones se fundamenta el pensamiento filosófico de Kahn respecto a la tectónica de las formas. Si la tectónica es la deformación o reformación de la corteza terrestre donde actúan fuerzas naturales, podemos decir que en la construcción de un edificio
Una mirada a la informalidad en el espacio público de Pereira
Authors: Bolívar Galvis Ana María
Published: February 2023

El espacio público entendido como el escenario donde el habitante se relaciona, y se fomenta lo colectivo, sin embargo en la actualidad se ha transformado en el dominio de lo privado. Y es precisamente el comercio informal el que ha desdibujado el dominio de lo colectivo en la sociedad actual.
Transformación del territorio en la creación de espacios amables y nuevas centralidades
Authors: Osorio Torres Diego Alexander
Published: February 2023

A lo largo de la historia de las ciudades y en su desarrollo, es común encontrar sectores que están ubicados en lugares estratégicos,pero que distintas razones especialmente de orden público, los convierten el lugares impenetrables y fuente de delincuencia, es en esos momentos que las personas que se encargan de la administración de la ciudad se proponen reformar estos sectores con el fin de convertirlos en lugares amables para las personas y centros económicas y sociales, mediante la implementación de edificios con jerarquías especiales, un buen tratamiento del espacio público que le muestre a las personas, y además que los haga tener sentido de pertenencia de estos lugares y se identifiquen con ellos, es decir, que noten y valoren las transformaciones que realizan las ciudades.
Aportes de diseño a los artesanos de la guadua de los municipios de Pereira, Quimbaya y Armenia
Authors: Cardona Ramírez Carolina , Sepúlveda Catalina , Cruz Montoya Catalina
Published: February 2023

La preocupación por mejorar la calidad de los productos artesanales y por contribuir a la mejor integración de los artesanos de la región cafetera a la cadena productiva de la guadua, en términos de una mejor presentación y llegada de sus productos al mercado, como una demanda directa del contexto ha sido motivo de reflexión en el Grupo de Investigación Medio Ambiente y Diseño GMAD y de su Semillero. Es así que se llevó a cabo la experiencia del reconocimiento de necesidades de los artesanos en materia de diseño y de aporte a su solución a través de la interacción conjunta con los estudiantes de diseño. Durante varias semanas se avanzó en el trabajo que culminó con la presentación de dichas propuestas al grupo beneficiario.
Detergentes LTDA: funciones de almacenaje y distribución física
Authors: Ramírez Ramírez Jessica
Published: February 2023

Actualmente en el mundo se está presentando una crisis donde las empresas que no estén dispuestas a adaptarse a los cambios desafortunadamente no podrán salir de ésta. Colombia al ser un país subdesarrollado, debe encontrar y aplicar modelos de estrategias de otros paises o de otras empresas, casos exitosos que permiten a nuestras empresas contrarrestar los efectos de dicha crisis. Es el objetivo de este trabajo estudiar una de las estrategías escenciales como lo es la logística. Para el caso sólo se tomarán los eslabones de almacenamiento y distribución física a partir de un caso preciso como lo es la Empresa Detergentes Ltda. Y describir cómo a partir de la buena administración de estos eslabones se puede llegar a tener una estructura logística adecuada que permita a la empresa no sólo ser competitiva sino también estar conforme a los estándares que el inundo y los mercados exigen.
Industria, región y competitividad
Authors: Cabrera Castaño Maryury Jacklim
Published: February 2023

La industria textil ha sido históricamente uno de los sectores económicos más protegidos por su alto impacto en la generación de empleos, por consiguiente la investigación pretende el conocimiento cifrado en el sector industrial textil, a través de los muchos años de su ejercicio, como es el caso de la empresa textil OMNES localizada en el municipio de Dosquebradas, observando así tendencias importantes en cuanto a su producción y comercialización a nivel mundial. Esta investigación proporciona herramientas conceptuales y metodológicas al estudiante en su formación como administrador de empresas. Es pertinente en la medida en que brinda nuevas formas de entendimiento de aquellos hechos sociales que desde la observación, la descrip
The use of mean circulatory filling pressure analogue for monitoring hemodynamic coherence: A post-hoc analysis of the SPARSE data and proof-of-concept study
Authors: Laou Eleni , Papagiannakis Nikolaos , Sarchosi Smaragdi , Kleisiaris Konstantinos , Apostolopoulou Aggeliki , Syngelou Vasiliki , Kakagianni Maria , Christopoulos Agamemnon , Ntalarizou Nicoleta , Chalkias Athanasios
Published: February 2023

BACKGROUND: Dissociation between macrocirculation and microcirculation is often observed in surgical patients. OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that the analogue of mean circulatory filling pressure (Pmca) can monitor hemodynamic coherence during major non-cardiac surgery. METHODS: In this post-hoc analysis and proof-of-concept study, we used the central venous pressure (CVP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and cardiac output (CO) to calculate Pmca. Efficiency of the heart (Eh), arterial resistance (Rart), effective arterial elastance (Ea), venous compartment resistance (Rven), oxygen delivery (DO2), and oxygen extraction ratio (O2ER) were also calculated. Sublingual microcirculation was assessed using SDF + imaging, and the De Backer score, Consensus Proportion of Perfused Vessels (Consensus PPV), and Consensus PPV (small) were determined. RESULTS: Thirteen patients were included, with a median age of 66 years. Median Pmca was 16 (14.9–18) mmHg and was positively associated with CO [p < 0.001; a 1 mmHg increase in Pmca increases CO by 0.73 L  min-1 (p < 0.001)], Eh (p < 0.001), Rart (p = 0.01), Ea (p = 0.03), Rven (p = 0.005), DO2 (p = 0.03), and O2ER (p = 0.02). A significant correlation was observed between Pmca and Consensus PPV (p = 0.02), but not with De Backer Score (p = 0.34) or Consensus PPV (small) (p = 0.1). CONCLUSION: Significant associations exist between Pmca and several hemodynamic and metabolic variables including Consensus PPV. Adequately powered studies should determine whether Pmca can provide real-time information on hemodynamic coherence.
Intrahepatic splenosis: Contrast enhanced ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging findings
Authors: Chen Kailing , Fan Peili , Luo Rongkui , Han Hong , Mao Feng , Wang Kun , Dong Yi , Wang Wen-Ping
Published: February 2023

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (CEMRI) features of intrahepatic splenosis (IHS). METHODS & MATERIALS: Five patients (three males and two females, median age, 44 years; range,32–73 years) with seven IHSs were retrieved from the database of our hospital from March 2012 to October 2021. All IHSs were confirmed histologically by surgery. The CEUS and CEMRI characteristics of individual lesion were fully analyzed. RESULTS: All IHS patients were asymptomatic and four out of five patients had history of splenectomy. On CEUS, all IHSs were hyperenhancement in arterial phase. 71.4% (5/7) of IHSs manifested overall filling within few seconds, the other two lesions showed centripetal filling. Subcapsular vascular hyperenhancement and feeding artery was seen in 28.6% (2/7) and 42.9% (3/7) of IHSs, respectively. During portal venous phase, IHSs presented hyperenhancement (2/7) or isoenhancement (5/7). Moreover, rim-like hypoenhanced area was uniquely observed surrounding 85.7% (6/7) of IHSs. In late phase, seven IHSs remained continuous hyper- or isoenhancement. On CEMRI, five IHSs showed mosaic hyperintense in early arterial phase, the other two lesions showed homogeneous hyperintense. In portal venous phase, all IHSs revealed continuous hyper- (71.4%, 5/7) or iso-intense (28.6%, 2/7). During late phase, one IHS (14.3%, 1/7) became hypointense, the other lesions remained hyper- or isointense. CONCLUSION: Diagnosis of IHS can be based on typical CEUS and CEMRI features in patients with history of splenectomy.
Individualized treatment of congenital vascular malformations of the tongue
Authors: Guntau Moritz , Cucuruz Beatrix , Brill Richard , Bidakov Oleksandr , Von der Heydt Susanne , Deistung Andreas , Wohlgemuth Walter A.
Published: February 2023

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Oral malformations of the tongue are exceedingly rare. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of individualized treatment for patients with vascular malformations of the tongue. METHODS: This retrospective study is based on a consecutive local registry at a tertiary care Interdisciplinary Center for Vascular Anomalies. Patients with vascular malformations of the tongue were included. Indications for therapy of the vascular malformation were macroglossia with the impossibility to close the mouth, bleeding, recurrent infection and dysphagia. Size regression of the malformation (volume measurement) and symptom improvement were investigated. RESULTS: Out of 971 consecutive patients with vascular malformations, 16 patients suffered from a vascular malformation of the tongue. Twelve patients had slow-flow malformations and 4 fast-flow malformations. Indications for interventions were bleeding (4/16, 25%), macroglossia (6/16, 37.5%), and recurrent infections (4/16, 25%). For two patients (2/16, 12.5%), there was no indication for intervention due to absence of symptoms. Four patients received sclerotherapy, 7 patients Bleomycin-electrosclerotherapy (BEST) and 3 patients embolization. Median follow-up was 16 months (IQR 7–35.5). In all patients, symptoms had decreased after two interventions at a median (IQR 1–3.75). Volume reduction of the malformation of the tongue was 13.3% (from median 27.9 cm3 to median 24.2 cm3, p = 0.0039), and even more pronounced when considering only patients with BEST (from 86 cm3 to 59.1 cm3, p = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Symptoms of vascular malformations of the tongue are improved after a median of two interventions with significantly increased volume reduction after Bleomycin-electrosclerotherapy.
Recent strategies to achieve high production yield of recombinant protein: A review
Authors: Tepap Cromwel Zemnou , Anissi Jaouad , Bounou Salim
Published: February 2023

Recombinant proteins have long been used in the pharmaceutical, chemical, and agricultural industries. These proteins can be produced in hosts such as mammalian cells, bacteria, insect cells, yeast, and plants. However, the demand for recombinant proteins, especially for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases, is increasing. Meeting this growing demand on a large scale remains a challenge for many industries. Developing new tools to increase the yield and quality of these proteins is therefore a necessity. Many strategies to optimize protein production in various expression systems have emerged in recent years. This review summarizes the different characteristics of expression systems, as well as the current strategies used to improve the yield of recombinant proteins.
Oral manifestations of COVID-19: A review
Authors: Anarthe Raju , Mani Amit , Saklecha Sejal
Published: February 2023

An important indicator of general health, well-being, and quality of life is oral health. The SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has been discovered to have a number of adverse effects. One of the earliest tissue areas to become infected by the virus and undergo alterations is the oral cavity. Oral manifestations included ulcer, erosion, bulla, vesicle, pustule, fissured or depapillated tongue, macule, papule, plaque, pigmentation, halitosis, white patches, haemorrhagic crust, necrosis, petechiae, swelling, erythema, and spontaneous bleeding. The tongue (38%), labial mucosa (26%), and palate (22%) were the three most typical sites of involvement. Aphthous stomatitis, herpetiform lesions, candidiasis, vasculitis, mucositis, drug eruption, necrotizing periodontal disease, angina bullosa-like, angular cheilitis, atypical sweet syndrome, and Melkerson-Rosenthal syndrome were suggested diagnoses for the lesions. In 68% of instances, oral lesions were symptomatic. There were almost equally as many oral lesions in both sexes (49% female and 51% male). More extensive and severe oral lesions were present in patients who were older and who had COVID-19 diseases that were more severe. The most significant risk factors for the development of oral lesions in COVID-19 patients include poor oral hygiene, opportunistic infections, stress, immunosuppression, vasculitis, and hyper-inflammatory response. It is crucial to identify any changes in the mucosa in COVID-19 patients and administer assertive treatment to prevent complications. Patients should also try to maintain adequate oral hygiene throughout the course of the illness to prevent the colonisation of opportunistic microorganisms and to prevent complications both orally and systemically.
Intelligent decision methodology for business English teaching quality evaluation based on GHM and PG operators with 2-tuple linguistic neutrosophic numbers
Authors: Wang Wenpu , Lin Wei , Gao Fengxiang , Chang Shuli
Published: February 2023

Business English teaching quality evaluation Business English is a new type of composite specialty, which is a discipline innovation made by China’s higher education to adapt to the new market demand and international standards since the reform and opening up. Over the past 20 years, it has cultivated a number of compound talents for the cause of China’s reform and opening up. However, the backwardness of business English theoretical research has greatly restricted the development of business English. At present, Business English has been officially approved as a new major for undergraduate enrollment by the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. Its subject nature, specialty structure, training objectives, and specialty compound characteristics need to be qualitatively studied theoretically. The business English teaching quality evaluation is viewed as the multiple attribute decision making (MADM) issue. In this paper, we connect the geometric Heronian mean (GHM) operator and power geometric (PG) with 2-tuple linguistic neutrosophic numbers (2TLNNs) to propose the generalized 2-tuple linguistic neutrosophic power geometric HM (G2TLNPGHM) operator. Then, the G2TLNGHM operator is applied to deal with the MADM problems under 2TLNNs. Finally, an example for business English teaching quality evaluation is used to show the proposed methods. Some comparative analysis and parameter influence analysis are fully given. The results show that the built algorithms method is useful for business English teaching quality evaluation.
Collaborative possibilistic fuzzy clustering based on information bottleneck
Authors: Duan Chen , Liu Yongli
Published: February 2023

In fuzzy clustering algorithms, the possibilistic fuzzy clustering algorithm has been widely used in many fields. However, the traditional Euclidean distance cannot measure the similarity between samples well in high-dimensional data. Moreover, if there is an overlap between clusters or a strong correlation between features, clustering accuracy will be easily affected. To overcome the above problems, a collaborative possibilistic fuzzy clustering algorithm based on information bottleneck is proposed in this paper. This algorithm retains the advantages of the original algorithm, on the one hand, using mutual information loss as the similarity measure instead of Euclidean distance, which is conducive to reducing subjective errors caused by arbitrary choices of similarity measures and improving the clustering accuracy; on the other hand, the collaborative idea is introduced into the possibilistic fuzzy clustering based on information bottleneck, which can form an accurate and complete representation of the data organization structure based on make full use of the correlation between different feature subsets for collaborative clustering. To examine the clustering performance of this algorithm, five algorithms were selected for comparison experiments on several datasets. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the comparison algorithms in terms of clustering accuracy and collaborative validity.
Neuro-Cardio-Autonomic Modulations in Children with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
Authors: Inbaraj Ganagarajan , Arjun Krishnamurthy , Meghana Adoor , Preethish-Kumar Veeramani , John Anu P , Polavarapu Kiran , Nashi Saraswati , Sekar Deepha , Udupa Kaviraja , Prathuysha Parthipulli V. , Prasad Krishna , Bardhan Mainak , Raju Trichur R. , Kramer Boris W. , Nalini Atchayaram , Sathyaprabha Talakad N.
Published: February 2023

Background and Objective: Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a degenerative X-linked muscle disease. Death frequently results from complications in cardiopulmonary systems. Preclinical/early diagnosis of cardiac autonomic abnormalities may aid initiate cardioprotective therapy and enhance prognosis. Methods: A cross sectional, prospective study of 38 DMD boys compared with 37 age-matched healthy controls was conducted. Lead II electrocardiography and beat-to-beat blood pressure were recorded to assess heart rate variability (HRV), blood pressure variability (BPV), and baroreceptor sensitivity (BRS) in a standardized environment. Data were analysed and correlated with disease severity and genotype. Results: In the DMD group, the median age at assessment was 8 years [IQR 7–9 years], the median age at disease onset was 3 years [IQR, 2–6 years], and the mean duration of illness was 4 years [IQR, 2.5–5]. DNA sequencing showed deletions in 34/38 (89.5 %) and duplications in 4/38 (10.5%) patients. The median heart rate in DMD children was significantly higher [101.19 (Range, 94.71–108.49)] /min compared to controls [81 (Range, 76.2–92.76)] /min (p < 0.05). All the assessed HRV and BPV parameters were significantly impaired in DMD cases except for the coefficient of variance of systolic blood pressure. Further, BRS parameters were also significantly reduced in DMD, excluding alpha-LF. A positive correlation was found between alpha HF with age at onset and duration of illness. Conclusion: This study demonstrates a distinct early impairment of neuro-cardio-autonomic regulation in DMD. Simple yet effective non-invasive techniques such as HRV, BPV, and BRS may help identify cardiac dysfunction in a pre-clinical state, paving the way for early cardio-protective therapies and limiting disease progression in DMD patients.
A Case of Oculopharyngeal Muscular Dystrophy Caused by a Novel PABPN1 c.34G > T (p.Gly12Trp) Point Mutation without Polyalanine Expansion
Authors: Takahashi Yoshiaki , Morimoto Nobutoshi , Nada Tomoaki , Morimoto Mizuki , Eura Nobuyuki , Minami Narihiro , Nishino Ichizo
Published: February 2023

Immediately after the initial methionine codon, the PABPN1 gene encodes a stretch of 10 alanines, 1 glycine, and 2 alanines. Oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy (OPMD) is caused by the expansion of the first 10 alanine stretches. The only exception is the missense mutation of glycine at the 12th residue into alanine, which elongates the stretch to 13 alanines by connecting the first and second stretch with the addition of one alanine in between, indicating that the expansion or elongation of the alanine stretch results in OPMD. We report a 77-year-old man with the novel missense mutation c.34G > T (p.Gly12Trp) in PABPN1 gene whose clinicopathological findings were compatible with OPMD. He presented with slowly progressive bilateral ptosis, dysphagia, and symmetrical proximal dominant muscle weakness. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed selective fat replacement of the tongue, bilateral adductor magnus, and soleus muscles. Immunohistochemistry studies of the muscle biopsy sample revealed PABPN1-posibive aggregates in the myonuclei which have been reported to be specific to OPMD. This is the first OPMD case caused by neither the expansion nor the elongation of alanine stretch. The present case suggests that OPMD may be caused not only by triplet repeats but also by point mutations.
Worker empowerment in Bangladesh: The European initiative for the garment industry
Authors: Alamgir Hasnat , Sayeed Sabrina
Published: February 2023

BACKGROUND: Empowering workers through operational safety committees and having an effective safety reporting mechanism improves occupational health and safety. The Western large retailers mostly from Europe formed the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh (Accord) in 2013 to advance occupational health and safety in the Bangladesh garment industry and one of its missions was to empower the workers. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of Accord’s programs on improving safety and quality of the working environment in the garment sector. METHOD: All reports of Accord published and made available for the public were accessed and analyzed. Data were gathered and presented on 1) number of Safety Committees formed 2) Safety Training Programs conducted and 3) Safety and Health Complaints received. RESULTS: By 2021, a total of 1581 factories and 1.8 million workers were covered by Accord. By May, 2021, Accord formed Safety Committees and completed training sessions on these in 1022 factories (65% of the target). By 2020, the average number of total complaints received per factory was around two and the number of occupational health and safety (OSH) complaints -which was deemed to be dealt directly by Accord- was less than one per factory. The numbers of OSH complaints were less than two per 1000 workers and non-OSH complaints made up almost one third (25-35%) of all complaints during 2016 to 2019; however, in 2020 and 2021, non-OSH complaints constituted half (50%) of all complaints. CONCLUSION: Accord’s worker empowerment mission could not form Safety Committees or deliver training sessions in all its factories and the number and relevance of complaints received appeared to be low given the number of factories and workers it covered.
Evaluating the biomechanics of an in-between posture to create a multi-posture office environment
Authors: Lamsal Archana , Weidig Garrett , Bellingar Teresa , Bush Tamara Reid
Published: February 2023

BACKGROUND: Prolonged sitting during work is common and has been shown to cause health issues. However, changing working postures has been reported to reduce musculoskeletal issues and impact other health issues; thus, there is a need for an office environment with multiple choices of working postures. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in body position, body loading, and blood perfusion while in a seated, standing, and new office seating position, termed the in-between position. METHODS: Ground reaction forces, joint angles, pelvic tilt, openness angle (angle between the pelvis plane and thorax), and blood perfusion were evaluated for three positions. A motion capture system with markers was used to capture the position of anatomical landmarks. A six-axis force plate was used to collect the ground reaction forces, and a laser doppler perfusion monitor was used to obtain the blood perfusion. RESULTS: Data showed that the in-between position articulated the hips, which provided a hip and lumbar position closer to a standing posture than a seated posture. The average vertical ground reaction force in the in-between position was larger than the seated position but significantly smaller than during standing (p < 0.0001). There were no significant differences in anterior/posterior ground reaction forces between the seated and the in-between positions (p = 0.4934). Lastly, blood perfusion increased during the dynamic transitions between positions indicating changes in blood flow. CONCLUSION: The in-between position provides benefits of both standing (larger pelvic tilt and increased lumbar lordosis) and sitting (reduction in ground reaction forces).
PD-1 AND TIM-3 BLOCKING CANNOT ENHANCE APOPTOSIS OF CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKEMIA CELLS INDUCED BY PERIPHERAL BLOOD CD8+ T CELLS
Authors: Jafarkhani S. , Hossein-Nataj H. , Eslami-Jouybari M. , Ghoreishi M. , Asgarian-Omran H.
Published: February 2023

Aim: Given the invaluable success of immune checkpoint inhibitors for tumor immunotherapy, in this study, the effect of programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and T cell immunoglobulin-3 (TIM-3) blocking was investigated to induce apoptosis of leukemic cells by exhausted CD8+ T cells in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Materials and Methods: Peripheral blood CD8+ T cells were positively isolated from 16 CLL patients using magnetic beads separation method. Isolated CD8+ T cells were treated with either blocking anti-PD-1, anti-TIM-3 and isotype-matched control antibodies and then co-cultured with CLL leukemic cells as target. The percentage of apoptotic leukemic cells and the expression of apoptosis-related genes were evaluated by flow cytometry and real-time polymerase chain reaction methods, respectively. Interferon gamma and tumor necrosis factor alpha concentration was also measured by ELISA. Results: Flow cytometric analysis of apoptotic leukemic cells indicated that the blockade of PD-1 and TIM-3 did not significantly enhance the apoptosis of CLL cells by CD8+T cells, which then were confirmed by analysis of BAX, BCL2 and CASP3 gene expression, which was similar in blocked and control groups. No significant difference was found between blocked and control groups in terms of interferon gamma and tumor necrosis factor alpha production by CD8+ T cells. Conclusion: We concluded that the blockade of PD-1 and TIM-3 is not an effective strategy to restore the function of CD8+ T cells in CLL patients at the early clinical stages of the disease. Further in vitro and in vivo studies are needed to more address the application of immune checkpoint blockade in CLL patients.
Development and Deployment of Web Application Using Machine Learning for Predicting Intraoperative Transfusions in Neurosurgical Operations
Authors:   Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, Tunthanathip Thara , Sae-heng Sakchai ,   Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, Oearsakul Thakul ,   Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, Kaewborisutsakul Anukoon ,   Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, Taweesomboonyat Chin ,   Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand
Published: February 2023

Background and Aim: Preoperative blood product preparation is a common practice in neurosurgical patients. However, over-requesting of blood is common and leads to the wastage of blood bank resources. Machine learning (ML) is currently one of the novel computational data analysis methods for assisting neurosurgeons in their decision-making process. The objective of the present study was to use machine learning to predict intraoperative packed red cell transfusion. Additionally, a secondary objective focused on estimating the effectiveness of blood utilization in neurosurgical operations. Methods and Materials/Patients: This was a retrospective cohort study of 3,021 patients who had previously undergone neurosurgical operations. Data from the total cohort were randomly divided into a training dataset (N=2115) and a testing dataset (N=906). The supervised ML models of various algorithms were trained and tested with test data using both classification and regression algorithms. Results: Almost all neurosurgical conditions had a cross-match to transfusion ratio of more than 2.5. Support vector machine (SVM) with linear kernel, SVM radial kernel, and random forest (RF) classification had a performance with good AUC of 0.83,0.82, and 0.82, respectively, while RF regression had the lowest root mean squared error and mean absolute error. Conclusion: In almost all neurosurgical surgeries, preoperative overpreparation of blood products was detected. The ML algorithm was proposed as a high-performance method for optimizing blood preparation and intraoperative consumption. Furthermore, ML has the potential to be incorporated into clinical practice as a calculator for the optimal cross-match to transfusion ratio.
Developing a model of experiencing spousal violence in women based on personality traits with a mediating role of psychological distress
Authors:   PhD Student, Department of Counseling, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran., Fatehi Shaho , Moradi Omid ,   Associate Professor, Department of Family Counseling, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran, Yousefi Fayegh ,   Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.
Published: February 2023

Introduction: One of the manifestations of violence against women is spousal abuse. Due to patriarchy in Iranian societies, spousal abuse is mainly applied by men and against women in various forms. Aim: The present study aimed to develop a model of experiencing spousal violence in women based on personality traits with a mediating role of psychological distress. Method: The present study is an applied-fundamental research in terms of aim and a descriptive, structural equations type research in terms of implementation. The study population consisted of all women referring to divorce counseling, welfare, social emergency and counseling centers in Sanandaj in 2021. Among them, 400 were selected using a convenience sampling method. The research instruments included the Spousal Abuse, Dark Personality Traits, Alexithymia and Psychological Distress questionnaires. SPSS-25 and SmartPLS-3.2.8 software was used to analyze the data. Results: The results showed that dark personality traits (β=0.351), alexithymia (β=0.168) and psychological distress (β=0.470) have direct and positive (p<0.001) impact on spousal abuse, and dark personality traits (β=0.198) and alexithymia (β=0.207) indirectly and through psychological distress (p<0.001) had a positive and significant effect on spousal abuse. The standardized root mean squared residual was 0.067, indicating a good fit of the model. Conclusion: Women with high scores of alexithymia, dark personality traits and psychological distress are more likely to be abused by their husbands. By controlling these characteristics, it is possible to change the behavior of spouses towards women, and finally, it is possible to prevent spousal abuse and further harms.
Relationship between personality traits and psychological characteristic of achievement motivation in girl’s students
Authors:   PhD Student, Department of Motor Behavior, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran, Musavi Kobra , Vaez Mousavi Mohammad ,   Professor, Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Imam Hossein University, Tehran, Iran, Nasiri Esmaeel ,   Assistant Professor, Department of Motor Behavior, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran, Bagherli Zhaleh ,   Assistant Professor, Department of Motor Behavior, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Published: February 2023

Introduction: Motivation is essential in learning and progress. Every person's action has a source of reason whose purpose is to strengthen the person's desirable efforts and feelings. Aim: This study examines the relationship between personality traits and psychological characteristic of achievement motivation among girl’s students. Method: The method was descriptive- correlational. The population includes all students among ShareRay branch of Islamic Azad University, Sama and AmirKabir Universities in 2018-2019. 175 girls were selected by the available sampling method. Subjects completed the Neo Personality Traits (NEO-AC), and Gill Achievement Motivation Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the Pearson correlation coefficient test with using SPSS-20. Results: The results showed that there were significant inverse relationships between neuroticism personality trait with conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness (P<0.05), a direct and significant relationship between conscientiousness and agreeableness (P<0.05), and a direct relationship between extraversion with conscientiousness and agreeableness (P<0.05). Finally, none of the personality components had a significant relationship with achievement motivation (P>0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of the present research, the personality characteristics of female students can be mentioned as an important factor in improving their psychological components. Thus; based on the obtained results, it is suggested that in explaining the results related to the psychological characteristics of female students, their personality characteristics and achievement motivation should be considered.
Association of perceived stress, social support and self-esteem with disordered eating due to Alexithymia
Authors:   MSc, Department of Psychology, South Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran, Saharkhizan Dorri , Azadi Mehran ,   Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, South Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Published: February 2023

Introduction: Stress, negative emotional states, emotional disorders, low self-esteem, and feelings of loneliness and isolation are among contributing factors, which can trigger disordered eating behaviors. Aim: The present study aimed to investigate the association of perceived stress, social support, and self-esteem with disordered eating due to alexithymia. Method: In this correlational study with structural equation modeling, the statistical population consisted of individuals, who were referred to Baraka Obesity Treatment Clinic in Tehran, Iran, during 2021-2022. A total of 303 people with a body mass index above 30 kg/m2 were selected using the convenience sampling method. Data were collected using the Perceived Stress Questionnaire by Cohen et al. (1983), Perceived Social Support Scale by Zimmet et al. (1988), Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale (1965), Alexithymia Scale by Bagby et al. (1994), and Eating Behavior Questionnaire by Van Stein and colleagues (1986). The structural equation modeling method was used to analyze the data. Results: The results of the structural equation modeling indicated the significant direct effects of perceived stress (β=0.22, P<0.01), social support (β=-0.25, P<0.01), and self-esteem (β=-0.21, P<0.01) on disordered eating. Also, the indirect effects of perceived stress (Z=7.69, P<0.01), social support (Z=-6.13, P<0.01), and self-esteem (Z=-6.46, P<0.01) were significant on disordered eating through alexithymia. Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that factors, such as the level of stress, social support, self-esteem, and identifying and expressing one’s emotions, can affect disordered eating behaviors. Therefore, by reducing stress and alexithymia and improving social support and self-esteem, disordered eating behaviors are speculated to decrease in obese people.
THE ECONOMIC LEAP BY THE ASIAN GROWTH MODEL
Authors:   Odessa National Economic University, Vydobora Volodymyr
Published: February 2023

The article is devoted to the study of economic policy of ensuring economic momentum according to the Asian model of growth as a positive experience for its implementation in Ukraine. The need to highlight the features that characterize the model of economic growth in East Asia: Japan, China, Singapore, South Korea, taking into account their natural, geographical, socio-cultural, historical and resource characteristics are substantiated in the article. The peculiarities of the formation and development of the Japanese, Chinese and Asian models of economic growth policy are analyzed. The basics of industrial policy and the dynamics of changes in the main indicators of economic growth in Japan, China and the “Asian Tigers”, particularly Singapore and South Korea, are studied. Based on the analysis of the features of industrial policy to stimulate economic growth in the countries of the Asian region, the characteristic features of the Asian model of economic growth in the following directions: state support for industrial development; conglomerate as a driver of private sector development; bank lending; employment relations focused on social support and motivation; high-tech logical development, are formed. It was determined that the economic leap of Asian countries is a natural result of the interaction of key factors, such as: the functioning of their own multinational corporations; attractiveness for the placement of multinational companies due to cheap labor, the development of the insurance and banking sectors; application of high technologies in production; emphasis on training highly qualified personnel through a high level of educational standards; active regional integration and attracting foreign investment to modernize the economy (real sector); optimal integration of the market mechanism and state regulation of economic processes, are detected. Based on the experience of high economic growth of Asian countries, the main directions of industrial policy formation that need to be taken into account and implemented in developing countries, including Ukraine are subscribe