bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Minimal Clinically Important Differences and Substantial Clinical Benefit in Patient-Reported Outcome Measures after Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation
Authors: Ogura Takahiro , Ackermann Jakob , Barbieri Mestriner Alexandre , Merkely Gergo , Gomoll Andreas H.
Published: September 2018

Objective

We sought to determine the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) and substantial clinical benefit (SCB) associated with the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) Subjective Knee Evaluation Form, Lysholm, and Short Form–12 (SF-12) after autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI).

Design

Ninety-two patients with satisfaction surveys at a minimum of 2 years postoperatively and at least 1 repeated patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) were analysed. The MCID was determined using 4 anchor-based methods: average change, mean change, minimally detectable change, and the optimal cutoff point for receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. If an anchor-based method was not applicable, standard deviation–based and effect size–based estimates were used. SCB was determined using ROC curve analysis.

Results

The 4 anchor-based methods provided a range of MCID values for each PROM (11-18.8 for the KOOS pain, 9.2-17.3 for the KOOS activities of daily living, 12.5-18.6 for the KOOS sport/recreation, 12.8-19.6 for the KOOS quality of life, 10.8-16.4 for the IKDC, and 6.2-8.2 for the SF-12 physical component summary). Using the 2 distribution-based methods, the following MCID value ranges were obtained: KOOS symptom, 3.6 to 8.4; the Lysholm, 4.2 to 10.5; and the SF-12 mental component summary, 1.9 to 4.6. SCB was 30 for the KOOS sport/recreation and 34.4 for the IKDC, which most accurately predict substantial improvement. No significant association was noted between SCB achievement and the baseline PROMs.

Conclusion

The MCID and SCB determined in our study will allow interpretation of the effects of treatment in clinical practice and trials. Given the varied MCID values in this study, standardisation of the most appropriate calculation methods is warranted.
Same‐day colon capsule endoscopy is a viable means to assess unexplored colonic segments after incomplete colonoscopy in selected patients
Authors: Hussey Mary , Holleran Grainne , Stack Roisin , Moran Neil , Tersaruolo Claudio , McNamara Deirdre
Published: September 2018

Background

Same‐day colon capsule endoscopy (CCE) immediately following incomplete optical colonoscopy (OC) would have a number of advantages for patients, while also presenting unique procedural challenges including the effect of sedation on capsule propulsion and patient tolerance of protracted preparation and fasting.

Aim

The aim of this article is to prospectively assess the efficacy of same‐day CCE after incomplete OC in an unselected patient cohort.

Methods

This was an observational, prospective, single‐centre study of CCE post‐incomplete colonoscopies. Patients with an incomplete OC for any reason other than obstruction or inadequate bowel preparation were recruited. CCE was performed after a minimum of a one‐hour fast. Once the patient was fully alert, intravenous metoclopramide was administered after capsule ingestion when possible, and a standard CCE booster protocol was then followed. Relevant clinical information was recorded. CCE completion rates, findings and their impact, and adverse events were noted.

Results

Fifty patients were recruited, mean age = 57 years and 66% (n = 32) were female. Seventy‐six per cent (n = 38) of CCEs were complete; however, full colonic views were obtained in 84% (n = 42) of cases. Patients > 50 years of age were five times more likely to have an incomplete CCE and there was also a trend towards known comorbidities associated with hypomobility having reduced excretion rates. Overall diagnostic yield for CCE in the unexplored segments was 74% (n = 37), with 26% (n = 13) of patients requiring significant changes in management based on CCE findings. The overall incremental yield was 38%. CCE findings were normal 26% (n = 13), polyps 38% (n = 19), inflammation 22% (n = 11), diverticular disease 25 (n = 12), angiodysplasia 3% (n = 1) and cancer 3% (n = 1). Significant small bowel findings were found in three (6%) cases, including Crohn's disease and a neuroendocrine tumour. A major adverse event occurred in one patient (2%), related to capsule retention.

Conclusion

Same‐day CCE is a viable alternative means to assess unexplored segments of the colon after incomplete OC in selected patients.
Screening for Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in Type 2 Diabetes Using Patient-Reported Outcome Measures: Comparative Performance of the EQ-5D-5L and SF-12v2
Authors: Al Sayah Fatima , Ohinmaa Arto , Johnson Jeffrey A.
Published: September 2018

Objective. To evaluate the performance of EQ-5D-5L (EuroQol Five-Dimension, Five-Level Questionnaire) and SF-12-v2 (12-item Medical Outcomes Health Survey–Short Form, Version 2) in screening for anxiety and depressive symptoms in adults with type 2 diabetes. Methods. Cross-sectional data from a population-based study of type 2 diabetes in Alberta, Canada, were used. Anxiety symptoms (using the 2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder questionnaire) were categorized into absent (<3) versus present (≥3). Depressive symptoms (using the 8-item Patient Health Questionnaire) were categorized according to two severity cut-points: absent (<10) versus mild (≥10), and absent (<15) versus moderate-severe (≥15). The performance of the measures in screening for anxiety and depressive symptoms was evaluated using receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis. Results. Average age of participants ( N = 1,391) was 66.8 years (SD 10.2), and 47% were female. Seventeen percent of participants screened positive for mild and 5.9% for moderate-severe depressive symptoms, and 11.3% for anxiety symptoms. For comorbid symptoms, 8.6% screened positive for anxiety and any depressive symptoms, and 4.6% for anxiety and moderate-severe depressive symptoms. The EQ-5D-5L anxiety/depression dimension and the SF-12 mental composite summary score had the best performance in screening for anxiety (area under ROC: 0.89, 0.89, respectively), depressive symptoms (any: 0.88, 0.92; moderate-severe: 0.90, 0.90), and comorbid anxiety and depressive symptoms (any: 0.92, 0.91; moderate-severe: 0.92, 0.90). These were followed by SF-12 feeling downhearted/depressed item (range = 0.83–0.85), while the lowest performance was for the EQ-5D-5L index score (0.80–0.84) and the SF-12 mental health domain (0.81–0.82). Conclusion. The EQ-5D-5L and the SF-12 are suitable tools for screening for anxiety and depressive symptoms in adults with type 2 diabetes. These tools present a unique opportunity for a standardized approach for routine mental health screening within the context of routine outcome measurement initiatives, where screening is recommended.
Inter-sectoral and multilevel coordination alone do not reduce deforestation and advance environmental justice: Why bold contestation works when collaboration fails
Authors: Ravikumar Ashwin , Larson Anne M , Myers Rodd , Trench Tim
Published: September 2018

Policy makers, academics, and conservationists often posit that poor coordination between different land use sectors, and between levels of governance, as an underlying challenge for reducing deforestation and forest degradation. This paper analyzes this argument using data from interviews with over 500 respondents from government, nongovernmental organizations, private companies, local and indigenous communities, activists, and individuals involved in 35 diverse land use initiatives in three countries: Peru, Indonesia, and Mexico. We find that while there is strong evidence of widespread coordination failures between sectors and levels, more fundamental political issues preclude effective coordination. We argue that political coalitions act to oppose environmental objectives and to impede their opponents from participating in land use governance. Moreover, we find that where coordination between actors does occur, it does not necessarily produce environmentally sustainable and socially just land use outcomes. Where we do find successful initiatives to reduce deforestation and benefit local people, effective coordination between well-informed actors is often present, but it does not occur spontaneously, and is instead driven by political organizing over time by activists, local people, nongovernmental organizations, and international donors. We suggest that the global environmental community must recognize explicitly these political dimensions of land use governance in order to successfully collaborate with local people to reduce deforestation.
Mobilizing smart grid experiments: Policy mobilities and urban energy governance
Authors: Levenda Anthony M
Published: September 2018

Cities across the US have been looking to urban experiments as a way to demonstrate potential pathways for carbon control, economic development, and resilience. On their own, these experiments are often small in scale and highly localized, embodying a piecemeal approach to urban development and climate governance. In this paper, I examine the relationship between urban experimentation and policy mobilities to understand how these projects have broader significance for climate governance and urban development. Drawing together empirical data from a multisited case study of smart grid experiments in Austin, Texas; Boulder, Colorado; and Chicago, Illinois, I show how governmental rationalities are mobilized, mutated, and transmitted in the processes of urban learning, extrospection, and consultation. While the imperative of cities to respond to climate change is ever more central to urban politics and governance, I find that the logics of experimentation are tied to specific governmental rationalities and norms of conduct that embed limited notions of citizen involvement and engagement in policy. The paper outlines how three elements of an Austin smart grid model—users as test-bed, test-bed as platform, and test-bed as epistemology—reinforce these logics and rationalities. The implications for urban climate and energy governance are outlined stressing three synergies between urban experiments and policy mobilities approaches.
Live imaging of developing mouse retinal slices
Authors: Barrasso Anthony P. , Wang Shang , Tong Xuefei , Christiansen Audrey E. , Larina Irina V. , Poché Ross A.
Published: September 2018

Background

Ex vivo, whole-mount explant culture of the rodent retina has proved to be a valuable approach for studying retinal development. In a limited number of recent studies, this method has been coupled to live fluorescent microscopy with the goal of directly observing dynamic cellular events. However, retinal tissue thickness imposes significant technical limitations. To obtain 3-dimensional images with high quality axial resolution, investigators are restricted to specific areas of the retina and require microscopes, such as 2-photon, with a higher level of depth penetrance. Here, we report a retinal live imaging method that is more amenable to a wider array of imaging systems and does not compromise resolution of retinal cross-sectional area.

Results

Mouse retinal slice cultures were prepared and standard, inverted confocal microscopy was used to generate movies with high quality resolution of retinal cross-sections. To illustrate the ability of this method to capture discrete, physiologically relevant events during retinal development, we imaged the dynamics of the Fucci cell cycle reporter in both wild type and Cyclin D1 mutant retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) undergoing interkinetic nuclear migration (INM). Like previously reported for the zebrafish, mouse RPCs in G1 phase migrated stochastically and exhibited overall basal drift during development. In contrast, mouse RPCs in G2 phase displayed directed, apical migration toward the ventricular zone prior to mitosis. We also determined that Cyclin D1 knockout RPCs in G2 exhibited a slower apical velocity as compared to wild type. These data are consistent with previous IdU/BrdU window labeling experiments on Cyclin D1 knockout RPCs indicating an elongated cell cycle. Finally, to illustrate the ability to monitor retinal neuron differentiation, we imaged early postnatal horizontal cells (HCs). Time lapse movies uncovered specific HC neurite dynamics consistent with previously published data showing an instructive role for transient vertical neurites in HC mosaic formation.

Conclusions

We have detailed a straightforward method to image mouse retinal slice culture preparations that, due to its relative ease, extends live retinal imaging capabilities to a more diverse group of scientists. We have also shown that, by using a slice technique, we can achieve excellent lateral resolution, which is advantageous for capturing intracellular dynamics and overall cell movements during retinal development and differentiation.
Cone beam computed tomography in endodontics: the missing link?
Authors: Rosen Eyal , Tsesis Igor
Published: September 2018

Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) has become a popular diagnostic method in endodontics. However, recently published data provides a glance into possible missing links regarding the efficacy of CBCT and its use to support the endodontic clinical decision-making process.
Intravaginal Testosterone Improves Sexual Satisfaction and Vaginal Symptoms Associated With Aromatase Inhibitors
Authors: Davis Susan R , Robinson Penelope J , Jane Fiona , White Shane , White Michelle , Bell Robin J
Published: September 2018

Context

Intravaginal testosterone (IVT) is a potential treatment of vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA) associated with aromatase inhibitor (AI) use.

Objective

To investigate the effects of IVT on sexual satisfaction, vaginal symptoms, and urinary incontinence (UI) associated with AI use.

Design

Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

Setting

Academic clinical research center.

Participants

Postmenopausal women taking an AI with VVA symptoms.

Intervention

IVT cream (300 μg per dose) or identical placebo, self-administered daily for 2 weeks and then thrice weekly for 24 weeks.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The primary outcome was the change in the sexual satisfaction score on the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Secondary outcomes included vaginal symptoms and responses to the Profile of Female Sexual Function, the Female Sexual Distress Scale–Revised (FSDS-R), and the Questionnaire for UI Diagnosis. Serum sex steroids were measured.

Results

A total of 44 women were randomly assigned and 37 provided evaluable data, (mean age 56.4 years, SD 8.8 years). At 26 weeks, the mean between-group difference in the baseline-adjusted change in FSFI satisfaction scores was significantly greater for the IVT group than the placebo group (mean difference 0.73 units; 95% CI, 0.02 to 1.43; P = 0.043). IVT cream resulted in significant improvements, compared with placebo, in FSDS-R scores (P = 0.02), sexual concerns (P < 0.001), sexual responsiveness (P < 0.001), vaginal dryness (P = 0.009), and dyspareunia (P = 0.014). Serum sex steroid levels did not change. Few women had UI symptoms, with no treatment effect.

Conclusion

IVT significantly improved sexual satisfaction and reduced dyspareunia in postmenopausal women on AI therapy. The low reporting of UI among women on AI therapy merits further investigation.
Vanity's Residue
Authors: McCarthy Tom
Published: September 2018

This article was originally delivered as the keynote address at the fourth biennial conference of the Society for Novel Studies, University of Pittsburgh, May 13, 2016.
A Tale of Two Marats: On the Abhorrence of Verticality, from Laissez-Faire to Neoliberalism
Authors: Reber Dierdra
Published: September 2018

This essay traces a conceptual through-line from the twenty-first century crisis of democratic institutionality, explained as an effect of contemporary neoliberalism, back to the eighteenth-century discursive origins of free-market capitalism. On both ends of this temporal bridge, we find an emphasis on the radical horizontalization of political subjectivity and power against perceived hierarchies of institutional control. The discourse of laissez-faire—and sometime democratic—horizontalization turns on affect as an organizing principle (i.e., morality, sentiment, emotion) and locates control within the self as one entity among equals; verticality, in contrast, is linked to rationality and locates control in an asymmetrical relationship of superiority and inferiority that is decried as tyranny. I offer a comparatist interpretation of these concepts in aesthetic play in Jacques-Louis David's The Death of Marat (1793) alongside Vik Muniz's Marat/Tião as depicted in the documentary film Waste Land (2010) as evidence of the epistemological continuity between the laissez-faire and neoliberal political landscapes of the eighteenth and twenty-first centuries, respectively. The takeaways from this temporal through-line are the possibility that the twenty-first-century symptoms of institutional crisis are the ultimate epistemological expression of affectively inflected horizontal laissez-faire culture and that the reach of this epistemological paradigm extends far beyond political structure and into the deepest cultural imaginings of self and world.
The Abstract, the Concrete, and the Labor of the Novel
Authors: Sauri Emilio
Published: September 2018

What might it mean to conceive of a work of art not simply as a mirror held up to society but as a means to visualize the abstract functions that make society look the way it does? And what can this tell us about the novel's social, political, and artistic potential today? To raise these questions, of course, is to presume that society exists and that works of art are still possible in a situation in which neither of these claims is self-evident, as suggested by recent tendencies within literary studies associated with “postcritique.” Nevertheless, it is this situation that the novelist Yuri Herrera and the photographer Alejandro Cartagena both aim to address within the context of Mexico, where neoliberalism's virtually seamless identification of development with the free market has precipitated the sense of a present from which the future has all but vanished. Rather than merely reflect this state of affairs, Herrera offers a sense of how the contemporary novel departs from this perspective, by taking up a version of the problem that Cartagena's photography similarly attempts to resolve—namely, how to make visible the abstract in the concrete.
Something Extraordinary Keeps Happening: J. G. Ballard's Enclave World
Authors: Hart Matthew
Published: September 2018

This essay considers a late novel sequence by the British speculative fiction writer J. G. Ballard (1930–2009). Although Ballard is often celebrated as a great iconoclast, there is arguably no postwar novelist with a more recognizable style. The essay analyzes Cocaine Nights (1996), Super-Cannes (2000), Millennium People (2003), and Kingdom Come (2006) as a programmatic fictional project. It identifies five key formal and thematic elements of the late sequence, paying particular attention to the question of setting. In Ballard's late fictions, the gated enclave figures as a privileged spatial agent within the diegesis; the central quality of these enclaves is that they are at once ordinary and extraordinary—set off from any shared social fabric and representative of general psychic and material qualities. Methodologically, the essay begins with critical description, following the grain of Ballard's late novels to show how their plots, themes, and characters relate to their settings. The essay then explores Ballard's autocritical explanation of his mature fiction as a belated response to his childhood in the extraterritorial International Settlement of Shanghai, drawing on his autobiographies as well as new research in his personal manuscripts, now collected at the British Library. Any full exploration of the late novels' autocritical energies must go beyond the project of critical description, which by itself produces a historically flat and argumentatively recursive account of Ballard's extraordinary literary accomplishment.
From a Distance: Teju Cole, World Literature, and the Limits of Connection
Authors: Saint Lily
Published: September 2018

This essay challenges recent theories of world literature that argue that the global anglophone novel, in particular, instantiates empathic, ethical connection across and beyond nation-states. Taking cues from Teju Cole's Open City, it understands the urge to connect as a psychological logic of compensation that operates in cosmopolitan readers to keep less pleasant feelings such as guilt, depression, futility, or isolation at bay. Cole's work interrogates the imperative to always connect, intimating all the while certain possibilities for distance as a mode of relationality. The role Cole accords storytelling lies less in its power to forge international contact zones or imagined communities than in its caution against a facile instrumentalism equating knowing with social transformation. Instead, Open City juxtaposes the urge for harmonious cross-cultural connection with a conscious critique of that very desire.
Plurality in Question: Zimbabwe and the Agonistic African Novel
Authors: Jackson Jeanne-Marie
Published: September 2018

This essay argues for a structuralist approach to reading the recurrence of formal, geographic, and epistemological schisms in the Zimbabwean novel from the 1970s through today. The essay makes this claim within a wider context of plurality's fetishization in African literary studies and postcolonial theory. Whereas the postcolonial-cum-global field tends to prioritize categorical expansiveness and dissolution in African writing, equating structural and conceptual more-than-oneness with pluralism of a clearly political expression, “Plurality in Question” suggests that a robust pluralist practice in fact demands categorical delineation and opposition. In this way, Zimbabwean writers' frequent reliance on binary oppositions becomes the starting point for theorizing an argumentative novel form, which responds to but may not directly reflect the antipluralist commitments of lived imperial and/or nationalist politics. In the context of African literature specifically, the essay also offers a new through-line connecting key liberation-era fiction (e.g., Charles Mungoshi, Dambudzo Marechera) with some of its current transnational successor texts (e.g., NoViolet Bulawayo, Christopher Mlalazi).
Short-term effects of heavy metal and temperature stresses on the photophysiology of Symbiodinium isolated from the coral Fungia repanda
Authors: GHOORA MANJULA D. , PILLY SIVAJYODEE S. , CHUMUN PRAMOD KUMAR , JAWAHEER SHOBHA , BHAGOOLI RANJEET
Published: September 2018

Abstract. Ghoora MD, Pilly SS, Chumun PK, Jawaheer S, Bhagooli R. 2018. Short-term effects of heavy metal and temperature stresses on the photo-physiology of Symbiodinium isolated from the coral Fungia repanda. Ocean Life 2: 11-20. This study aimed to investigate the effects of the heavy metals, copper, zinc and lead, on the photo-physiology of the symbiotic dinoflagellate Symbiodinium isolated from the coral Fungia repanda. Freshly isolated Symbiodinium found to belong to clade C were exposed to different concentrations of the three heavy metals for 3-hour and 18-hour treatments at 28°C and 32°C. The Pulse Amplitude Modulated (PAM) fluorometry technique was used to determine the maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm), relative maximum electron transport rate (rETRmax) and maximum non-photochemical quenching (NPQmax) of the photosystem II (PSII). An increase in non-photochemical quenching accompanied by a decrease in photosynthetic capacity was noted for copper at a concentration of 50 µg/L for both temperatures. The Fv/Fm was not significantly affected by the Zn treatments. However, at 28 °C, isolates treated with 100 µg/L Zn for 18 hours showed an increase in non-photochemical quenching accompanied by a decrease in photosynthetic capacity. Pb had the most profound effect on all of the isolates. The Fv/Fm significantly decreased and an increase in NPQmax was noted. The decrease of rETRmax and increase in NPQmax for the heavy metal bioassays under 32 °C were more significant than at 28 °C. This study suggests that Cu (?50 µg/L), Zn (? 100 µg/L) and Pb decrease the photosynthetic capacity of the Symbiodinium isolates from F. repanda especially more so with increasing temperatures.
Come Yew In!
Authors: Floyd Simon
Published: September 2018

Come Yew In! was a collaboration between Norfolk writers, artists and amateur researchers, actors and crew who helped create a free, inclusive outdoor variety show that was staged in a number of open spaces Norwich in the Summer of 2017. Its main aim was to help the people of Norwich to appreciate and celebrate the long history of the contribution that incomers have made to our city. Drawing inspiration from an extensive programme of research conducted by a team of volunteers working with Anglia Ruskin University, Come Yew In! proved to be a high-paced historical and contemporary pastiche combining original dance, song, comedy, audience participation and personal testimony. Participants came from a local theatre company the Common Lot and ta Norwich-based charity New Routes, who support the integration of modern-day migrants to the city. The project was fully funded and supported by contributions from the Norwich Freemen’s Charity, Norwich City Council, Norwich Arts Centre, The Common Lot and Anglia Ruskin University.
Análise da eficiência produtiva na indústria automotiva: integrando teoria das restrições e o índice de rendimento operacional globaL (IROG)
Authors: De Souza Mariane Cásseres , Bauer Jéssica Mariella , Gauze Junior João William
Published: September 2018

O objetivo do presente trabalho é analisar a eficiência global de uma célula de manufatura de uma indústria automotiva brasileira. Os objetivos específicos são: (i) analisar o tempo de ciclo por operação em cada produto, (ii) analisar as operações da célula versus demanda. Para tanto se utilizou o modelo de gerenciamento da capacidade proposto por Pacheco et al. (2012), o qual integra os conceitos da Teoria das Restrições e da Total Productive Maintenance (TPM). A aplicação prática do modelo é relevante na medida em que a definição da capacidade produtiva de sistemas possibilita o melhor gerenciamento dos recursos e de suas capacidades, melhora a programação da produção no chão de fábrica e o atendimento às demandas impostas pelo mercado. Os resultados obtidos permitiram comprovar a eficácia do modelo. Foi possível determinar a capacidade do sistema produtivo e o impacto sobre a capacidade produtiva de todo o sistema, ao se considerar as não conformidades de qualidade que ocorrem após o recurso gargalo do fluxo produtivo. O IROG como ferramenta possibilita a tomada de ações mais assertivas na solução de problemas, otimização no uso dos recursos industriais e uma maior integração entre as diversas áreas que englobam a manufatura.
Análise do fluxo de valor sob uma perspectiva estocástica
Authors: De Souza Leonardo Bittencourt , Tortorella Guilherme , Nascimento Daniel
Published: September 2018

A aplicação da produção enxuta (PE) surge como uma resposta à busca por aumento da competitividade em um mercado globalizado. Dentre as práticas utilizadas na aplicação da PE, o mapeamento do fluxo de valor (MFV) serve como meio para identificar desperdícios e direcionar a aplicação das demais práticas, sendo, consequentemente, uma das mais adotadas. O MFV permite mapear fluxos de materiais e informações de controle da produção. No entanto, o MFV possui uma abordagem determinística, o que limita o poder de modelagem e dificulta o mapeamento de modelos dinâmicos. Nesse sentido, este trabalho objetiva a proposição de um método de identificação de oportunidades de melhorias que combine o mapeamento de fluxo de valor e simulação de Monte Carlo, de modo a levar em consideração as incertezas do fluxo de valor na sua análise de lead time. Os resultados obtidos mostram que essa nova abordagem permite identificar oportunidades de melhoria que não seriam contempladas em uma aplicação tradicional do MFV, possibilitando atuar não somente em valores nominais dos processos, mas também em sua variação.
Gestão de riscos em cadeia de suprimentos: aplicação em uma distribuidora de gás canalizado
Authors: De Oliveira Ana Camila Rodrigues , E Silva Liane Márcia Freitas , Leite Maria Silene Alexandre
Published: September 2018

O objetivo deste artigo é identificar, avaliar e priorizar os riscos existentes em uma empresa pertencente a uma cadeia de suprimentos de gás natural canalizado no Estado da Paraíba.  A relevância deste trabalho relaciona-se ao fato de que as interrupções em cadeias de suprimentos podem gerar perdas financeiras, elevação dos custos, redução da qualidade do produto e/ou serviço oferecido e perda de reputação. Para alcançar o objetivo proposto, utilizou-se um instrumento de pesquisa construído a partir de uma ampla revisão da literatura. Como resultado, observou-se que o risco de preço é prioritário, uma vez que possui alta probabilidade de ocorrência e pode impactar de forma severa na organização. Tal risco ocorre devido às variações no preço das matérias-primas e às variações no preço do produto final ao cliente. Por fim, a pesquisa sugere estratégias de mitigação para os riscos críticos com a finalidade de assegurar a continuidade dos negócios. No entanto, os riscos que não foram considerados como prioritários não devem ser ignorados, uma vez que novos riscos surgem ao longo do tempo e os riscos existentes podem evoluir.
Plano financeiro de uma microcervejaria artesanal, Maranhão
Authors: Da Silva Ruan Ferreira Carmo , Pinheiro Eduardo Mendonça
Published: September 2018

O Brasil é o terceiro maior produtor de cerveja do mundo, ultrapassando um bilhão de cervejas/ano, levando o brasileiro a consumir diferentes rótulos e criar o hábito de produzir sua própria cerveja inovando nos sabores e apresentação da bebida. Portanto, o empreendedor desse ramo deve antever as dificuldades do mercado e alterar seus movimentos estratégicos para sobreviver e ter bons retornos sobre o capital investido. Este trabalho consistiu em uma abordagem do plano financeiro para avaliar a viabilidade econômico-financeira de uma microcervejaria artesanal na cidade de São Luís do Maranhão. Foi efetuada pesquisa bibliográfica descritiva e estudo de caso de uma implantação de uma microcervejaria artesanal com abordagem qualitativa. Foram utilizadas ferramentas como cálculo do ponto de equilíbrio, demonstração resultado de exercício, payback, taxa interna de retorno e criação de cenários alternativos demonstrando a viabilidade de uma microcervejaria artesanal com conceito de BrewPub e permitindo que o empreendedor possa visualizar de qual forma sua empresa poderá funcionar e os recursos necessários no momento oportuno.
Tecnologias educacionais como ferramentas: Considerações críticas acerca de uma metáfora fundamental
Authors: Ferreira Giselle Martins dos Santos , Lemgruber Márcio Silveira
Published: September 2018

No Plano Nacional de Educação vigente (2014-2024), a palavra tecnologia aparece repetidamente na descrição de estratégias propostas para apoiar as metas definidas no documento. Ainda que o termo ferramenta não figure explicitamente no texto, sugere-se a ideia da tecnologia como ferramenta que é amplamente disseminada nos discursos acadêmicos e de marketing da tecnologia educacional. Trata-se de uma metáfora fundamental (Perelman & Tyteca-Olbrecht) ou conceptual (Lakoff & Johnson), ou seja, uma metáfora que encapsula determinadas formas de perceber, pensar e relacionar-se com o mundo, e, assim, estrutura o pensamento e a ação. Este artigo discute a metáfora da tecnologia como ferramenta como uma concepção insidiosa e duplamente perigosa, pois, ao oferecer suporte à visão da tecnologia como neutra, expressa na perspectiva de que os impactos de determinados artefatos são função apenas de seus usos, reflete uma perspectiva reducionista da relação entre o humano e o técnico. O texto discute o modo como essa metáfora apoia formas de conceber a tecnologia que precisam ser examinadas, pois a visão simplista e acrítica que promove tende a obscurecer questões fundamentais relativas à multiplicidade de contextos de produção e consumo de artefatos criados por uma indústria com pautas e interesses primordialmente comerciais.
Preanalytical stability of [-2]proPSA in whole blood stored at room temperature before separation of serum and plasma: implications to Phi determination
Authors: Dittadi Ruggero , Fabricio Aline S.C. , Rainato Giulia , Peroni Edoardo , Di Tonno Fulvio , Vezzù Beatrice , Mazzariol Chiara , Squarcina Elisa , Tammone Laura , Gion Massimo
Published: September 2018

Background

[-2]proPSA seems to outperform free/total prostate-specific antigen (PSA) ratio in prostate cancer diagnosis. However, [-2]proPSA stability remains an underestimated issue. We examined [-2]proPSA stability over time in whole blood before separation of serum and plasma and its implications for prostate health index (Phi) determination. Total PSA (tPSA) and free PSA (fPSA) stabilities were also assessed.

Methods

Blood was drawn from 26 patients and separated in two tubes for plasma (K2EDTA and K2EDTA plus protease inhibitors – P100) and one for serum (clot activator plus gel separator). Tubes were stored at room temperature before centrifugation 1, 3 and 5 h for serum and EDTA plasma or 1 and 5 h for P100 plasma. To investigate the influence of gel separator on markers’ stability, blood was collected from 10 patients in three types of tubes to obtain serum: tubes with clot activator plus gel separator, with silica particles or glass tubes. Biomarkers were assayed with chemiluminescent immunoassays.

Results

[-2]proPSA and Phi levels significantly and progressively increased over time in serum (+4.81% and +8.2% at 3 h; +12.03% and +14.91% at 5 h, respectively, vs. 1 h; p<0.001). Conversely, [-2]proPSA levels did not change in plasma (EDTA or P100). tPSA levels did not change over time in serum or plasma, whereas fPSA decreased in serum. All markers were higher in plasma than in serum at any time point. This difference did not seem to be attributable to the use of gel for serum preparation.

Conclusions

EDTA prevented spurious in vitro modifications in PSA-related isoforms, confirming that a stabilized blood sample is a prerequisite for [-2]proPSA measurement and Phi determination.
Synthesis of fluorine-containing phthalocyanines and investigation of the photophysical and photochemical properties of the metal-free and zinc phthalocyanines
Authors: Çelenk Kaya Elif , Ersoy Sibel , Durmuş Mahmut , Kantekin Halit
Published: September 2018

4-(3-(Trifluoromethyl)benzylthio)phthalonitrile (1) was synthesized. Metal-free phthalocyanine 2, zinc(II) phthalocyanine 3 and cobalt(II) phthalocyanine 4 were synthesized starting with dinitrile compound 1. Photodynamic therapy properties of 2 and 3 were studied.
Dehydroepiandrosterone and/or its metabolites: possible androgen receptor antagonistic effects on digitized mammographic breast density in normal breast tissue of postmenopausal women
Authors: Lundström Eva , Carlström Kjell , Naessen Sabine , Söderqvist Gunnar
Published: September 2018

Background

Androgens, notably testosterone inhibit breast cell proliferation and negative correlations between free testosterone (fT) and breast cell proliferation as well as mammographic density have been described. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is reported to be a partial androgen antagonist in breast tumor cells in vitro. Our aim was to investigate if circulating DHEA had any effects on the association between circulating fT and mammographic density in vivo in the normal postmenopausal breast.

Methods

We measured visual and digitized mammographic density and serum DHEA, testosterone, sex-hormone-binding globulin and calculated fT in 84 healthy untreated postmenopausal women.

Results

Significant negative correlations between fT and both visual and digitized mammographic density were strengthened when the median DHEA level decreased from 10.2 to 8.6 nmol/L. Thereafter, correlations became weaker again probably due to decreasing fT levels and/or sample size. There were no correlations between mammographic density and DHEA, at any of the DHEA concentration ranges studied. Serum levels of fT and DHEA were positively correlated.

Conclusion

Our findings demonstrate that circulating DHEA and/or its metabolites counteract the inhibitory action of fT on mammographic breast density.
Endometrial injury for patients with endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome undergoing medically assisted reproduction: current data and a protocol
Authors: Siristatidis Charalampos , Rigos Ioannis , Pergialiotis Vasilios , Karageorgiou Vasilios , Christoforidis Nikolaos , Daskalakis George , Bettocchi Stefano , Makrigiannakis Antonis
Published: September 2018

We propose a study protocol capable of improving clinical outcomes following medically assisted reproduction (MAR) in infertile women with endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The proposed research derives from the published evidence on the positive impact from endometrial injury (EI) and the beneficial nature of the intervention towards improved implantation rates. We primarily refer to the cluster of events and hypotheses, such as the mechanical cascade, the inflammatory response per se, the events accompanying wound healing, the immune cell recruitment and protein involvement, alterations in gene expression and the neo-angiogenesis theories, which have been previously investigated for this purpose. We are also exploring the possible problems in MAR cycles with negative outcomes in PCOS and endometriosis patients and we are proposing potential mechanisms on how this intervention might work. Our hypothesis states that the EI before the initiation of the MAR cycle can affect clinical pregnancy rates in patients with the aforementioned pathologies.
Interplay between reversible phosphorylation and irreversible ADP-ribosylation of eukaryotic translation elongation factor 2
Authors: Mateus-Seidl Rita , Stahl Sebastian , Dengl Stefan , Birzele Fabian , Herrmuth Hedda , Mayer Klaus , Niederfellner Gerhard , Liu Xiu-Fen , Pastan Ira , Brinkmann Ulrich
Published: September 2018

The functionality of eukaryotic translation elongation factor 2 (eEF2) is modulated by phosphorylation, eEF2 is simultaneously the molecular target of ADP-ribosylating toxins. We analyzed the interplay between phosphorylation and diphthamide-dependent ADP-ribosylation. Phosphorylation does not require diphthamide, eEF2 without it still becomes phosphorylated. ADP-ribosylation not only modifies the H715 diphthamide but also inhibits phosphorylation of S595 located in proximity to H715, and stimulates phosphorylation of T56. S595 can be phosphorylated by CDK2 and CDK1 which affects EEF2K-mediated T56-phosphorylation. Thus, ADP-ribosylation and S595-phosphorylation by kinases occur within the same vicinity and both trigger T56-phosphorylation. Diphthamide is surface-accessible permitting access to ADP-ribosylating enzymes, the adjacent S595 side chain extends into the interior. This orientation is incompatible with phosphorylation, neither allowing kinase access nor phosphate attachment. S595 phosphorylation must therefore be accompanied by structural alterations affecting the interface to ADP-ribosylating toxins. In agreement with that, replacement of S595 with Ala, Glu or Asp prevents ADP-ribosylation. Phosphorylation (starvation) as well as ADP-ribosylation (toxins) inhibit protein synthesis, both affect the S595/H715 region of eEF2, both trigger T57-phosphorylation eliciting similar transcriptional responses. Phosphorylation is short lived while ADP-ribosylation is stable. Thus, phosphorylation of the S595/H715 ‘modifier region’ triggers transient interruption of translation while ADP-ribosylation arrests irreversibly.
Synthetic Control Method: Inference, Sensitivity Analysis and Confidence Sets
Authors: Firpo Sergio , Possebom Vitor
Published: September 2018

We extend the inference procedure for the synthetic control method in two ways. First, we propose parametric weights for the p-value that includes the equal weights benchmark of Abadie et al. [1]. By changing the value of this parameter, we can analyze the sensitivity of the test’s result to deviations from the equal weights benchmark. Second, we modify the RMSPE statistic to test any sharp null hypothesis, including, as a specific case, the null hypothesis of no effect whatsoever analyzed by Abadie et al. [1]. Based on this last extension, we invert the test statistic to estimate confidence sets that quickly show the point-estimates’ precision, and the test’s significance and robustness. We also extend these two tools to other test statistics and to problems with multiple outcome variables or multiple treated units. Furthermore, in a Monte Carlo experiment, we find that the RMSPE statistic has good properties with respect to size, power and robustness. Finally, we illustrate the usefulness of our proposed tools by reanalyzing the economic impact of ETA’s terrorism in the Basque Country, studied first by Abadie and Gardeazabal [2] and Abadie et al. [3].
Modeling and Simulating the Aerobic Carbon Metabolism of a Green Microalga Using Petri Nets and New Concepts of VANESA
Authors: Brinkrolf Christoph , Henke Nadja A. , Ochel Lennart , Pucker Boas , Kruse Olaf , Lutter Petra
Published: September 2018

In this work we present new concepts of VANESA, a tool for modeling and simulation in systems biology. We provide a convenient way to handle mathematical expressions and take physical units into account. Simulation and result management has been improved, and syntax and consistency checks, based on physical units, reduce modeling errors. As a proof of concept, essential components of the aerobic carbon metabolism of the green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii are modeled and simulated. The modeling process is based on xHPN Petri net formalism and simulation is performed with OpenModelica, a powerful environment and compiler for Modelica. VANESA, as well as OpenModelica, is open source, free-of-charge for non-commercial use, and is available at: http://agbi.techfak.uni-bielefeld.de/vanesa.
Optoelectronics with single layer group-VIB transition metal dichalcogenides
Authors: Khan M.A. , Leuenberger Michael N.
Published: September 2018

The discovery of two-dimensional (2D) materials has opened up new frontiers and challenges for exploring fundamental research. Recently, single-layer (SL) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have emerged as candidate materials for electronic and optoelectronic applications. In contrast to graphene, SL TMDCs have sizable band gaps that change from indirect to direct in SLs, which is useful in making thinner and more efficient electronic devices, such as transistors, photodetectors, and electroluminescent devices. In addition, SL TMDCs show strong spin-orbit coupling effects at the valence band edges, giving rise to the observation of valley-selective optical excitations. Here, we review the basic electronic and optical properties of pure and defected group-VIB SL TMDCs, with emphasis on the strong excitonic effects and their prospect for future optoelectronic devices.
Numerical Analysis of Peristaltic Transport of Casson Fluid for non-zero Reynolds Number in Presence of the Magnetic Field
Authors: Javed T. , Ahmed B. , Hamid A.H. , Sajid M.
Published: September 2018

In this study, the peristaltic flow of a Casson fluid in a channel is considered in the presence of an applied magnetic field. Flow is considered in the moving frame of reference with constant velocity along the wave. The developed mathematical model is presented by a set of partial differential equations. A numerical algorithm based on finite element method is implemented to evaluate the numerical solution of the governing partial differential equations in the stream-vorticity formulation. The obtained results are independent of low Reynolds number and long wavelength assumptions, so the effects of non-zero moderate Reynolds number are presented. The expression for the pressure is also calculated implicitly and discussed through graphs. Computed solutions are presented in the form of contours of streamlines and vorticity. Velocity profile and pressure distribution for variation of different involved parameters are also presented through graphs. The investigation shows that the strength of circulation for stream function increases by increasing the Reynolds and Hartmann numbers. Enhancement in longitudinal velocity is noted by increasing the Reynolds number and Casson parameter while increasing Hartmann number reduces the longitudinal velocity. Comparison of the present results with the available results in literature is also included and found in good agreement.
Phase I/II study of oxaliplatin dose escalation via a laparoscopic approach using pressurized aerosol intraperitoneal chemotherapy (PIPOX trial) for nonresectable peritoneal metastases of digestive cancers (stomach, small bowel and colorectal): Rationale and design
Authors: Dumont Frédéric , Senellart Hélène , Pein Francois , Campion Loic , Glehen Olivier , Goere Diane , Pocard Marc , Thibaudeau Emilie
Published: September 2018

Background

The annual incidence of gastrointestinal carcinomas (stomach, small bowel, colon and rectum) is increasing in Western countries, reaching 50,000 new cases each year in France. Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) is diagnosed in 15% of these patients. Complete cytoreductive surgery (CCS) plus Hyperthermic IntraPeritoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC) is the only therapy that can offer patients with PC a chance for long-term survival with a 5 year overall survival (OS) rate of 30–60% versus 0–5% with systemic chemotherapy alone. However, CCS plus HIPEC still presents serious limitations and very few patients (10%) are candidates for these radical treatments. PC remains a palliative setting for 90% of patients with a median survival ranging from 15 to 25 months. Innovative surgical therapies such as Pressurized IntraPeritoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy (PIPAC) therefore need to be developed to improve the prognosis. Potential benefits were obtained after intraperitoneal nebulization of oxaliplatin in patients with advanced PC from colorectal cancer. Innovative surgical therapies such as pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) have been proposed as palliative locoregional treatment with some promising results. The dose of oxaliplatin currently established by nebulization (PIPAC) is really low at 92 mg/m2. However, the peritoneum acts as a barrier limiting the systemic passage of intraperitoneal drug. Oxaliplatin used at higher doses during PIPAC procedures could be a safe option and allow better intratumoral penetration of chemotherapy.

Method and design

The proposed study is a multicenter phase I/II trial of oxaliplatin dose escalation during PIPAC. The aim is to determine the maximum tolerated dose of pressurized oxaliplatin administered by the intraperitoneal route (PIPAC) during two consecutive procedures at a 4–6 week interval for patients with extended peritoneal carcinomatosis from the gastrointestinal tract. Dose started at 90 mg/m2and escalation was in 50 mg/m2steps up to a maximum of 300 mg/m2.

Discussion

Oxaliplatin is an effective drug in gastrointestinal cancer and high doses given by the intraperitoneal route during HIPEC are well tolerated. In this phase I trial, we hypothesized that high-dose oxaliplatin during PIPAC is feasible and safe. The repeated local administration of high doses of oxaliplatin could improve tumor response and prognosis.

Trial registration

Prospective study. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03294252. EudraCT: 2016-003666-49