bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Helicobacter pylori Infection: Sequential Therapy Followed by Levofloxacin‐Containing Triple Therapy provides a Good Cumulative Eradication Rate
Authors: Manfredi Marco , Bizzarri Barbara , de’Angelis Gian Luigi 
Published: March 2012

AbstractBackground:  In the eradication of H. pylori infection, even today, the main international guidelines recommend the triple therapy as first‐line regimen, although its effectiveness is clearly decreasing. As second‐line treatment, the bismuth‐containing quadruple therapy is the most used regimen, although several other therapies are studied. The Italian guidelines recommend, alternatively, sequential therapy or triple therapy as first‐line treatment and levofloxacin‐containing triple therapy as second‐line regimen. We wanted to assess the overall eradication rate of Helicobacter pylori infection in two therapeutic rounds following the Italian guidelines in clinical practice.Materials and Methods:  We treated 231 consecutive Helicobacter pylori‐positive patients by sequential therapy and we verified the eradication 8–10 weeks after treatment by stool antigen test. Patients positive for stool antigen test received levofloxacin‐containing triple therapy, as second‐line therapy, according to Italian Guidelines and they were again submitted to the fecal test 8–10 weeks after the end of treatment.Results:  In the first‐line regimen, we obtained an eradication rate of 92.6%, in the second‐line of 75.0% and as cumulative result we achieved a 97.8% of eradication, in per‐protocol analysis.Conclusions:  Sequential therapy as first‐line and levofloxacin‐containing triple therapy as second‐line represent a good combination to eradicate Helicobacter pylori infection in only two rounds.
Evaluation of the Anti‐Adhesive Effect of Milk Fat Globule Membrane Glycoproteins on Helicobacter pylori in the Human NCI‐N87 Cell Line and C57BL/6 Mouse Model
Authors: Horemans Tessa , Kerstens Monique , Clais Sofie , Struijs Karin , van den Abbeele Pieter , Van Assche Tim , Maes Louis , Cos Paul 
Published: March 2012

AbstractBackground:  The interest in non‐antibiotic therapies for Helicobacter pylori infections in man has considerably grown because increasing numbers of antibiotic‐resistant strains are being reported. Intervention at the stage of bacterial attachment to the gastric mucosa could be an approach to improve the control/eradication rate of this infection.Materials and Methods:  Fractions of purified milk fat globule membrane glycoproteins were tested in vitro for their cytotoxic and direct antibacterial effect. The anti‐adhesive effect on H. pylori was determined first in a cell model using the mucus‐producing gastric epithelial cell line NCI‐N87 and next in the C57BL/6 mouse model after dosing at 400 mg/kg protein once or twice daily from day −2 to day 4 post‐infection. Bacterial loads were determined by using quantitative real‐time PCR and the standard plate count method.Results:  The milk fat globule membrane fractions did not show in vitro cytotoxicity, and a marginal antibacterial effect was demonstrated for defatted milk fat globule membrane at 256 μg/mL. In the anti‐adhesion assay, the results varied from 56.0 ± 5.3% inhibition for 0.3% crude milk fat globule membrane to 79.3 ± 3.5% for defatted milk fat globule membrane. Quite surprisingly, in vivo administration of the same milk fat globule membrane fractions did not confirm the anti‐adhesive effects and even caused an increase in bacterial load in the stomach.Conclusions:  The promising anti‐adhesion in vitro results could not be confirmed in the mouse model, even after the highest attainable exposure. It is concluded that raw or defatted milk fat globule membrane fractions do not have any prophylactic or therapeutic potential against Helicobacter infection.
Convulsive seizure detection using a wrist‐worn electrodermal activity and accelerometry biosensor
Authors: Poh Ming‐Zher , Loddenkemper Tobias , Reinsberger Claus , Swenson Nicholas C. , Goyal Shubhi , Sabtala Mangwe C. , Madsen Joseph R. , Picard Rosalind W. 
Published: March 2012

SummaryThe special requirements for a seizure detector suitable for everyday use in terms of cost, comfort, and social acceptance call for alternatives to electroencephalography (EEG)–based methods. Therefore, we developed an algorithm for automatic detection of generalized tonic–clonic (GTC) seizures based on sympathetically mediated electrodermal activity (EDA) and accelerometry measured using a novel wrist‐worn biosensor. The problem of GTC seizure detection was posed as a supervised learning task in which the goal was to classify 10‐s epochs as a seizure or nonseizure event based on 19 extracted features from EDA and accelerometry recordings using a Support Vector Machine. Performance was evaluated using a double cross‐validation method. The new seizure detection algorithm was tested on >4,213 h of recordings from 80 patients and detected 15 (94%) of 16 of the GTC seizures from seven patients with 130 false alarms (0.74 per 24 h). This algorithm can potentially provide a convulsive seizure alarm system for caregivers and objective quantification of seizure frequency.
Organizing Interindustry Architectural Innovations: Evidence from Mobile Communication Applications
Authors: Jaspers Ferdinand , Prencipe Andrea , van den Ende Jan 
Published: March 2012

Technologies from different industries are increasingly being combined to create new products and services. A fundamental challenge for the successful development of these interindustry innovations is to combine the previously unconnected technologies in an entirely new product architecture. The development of the required architectural knowledge is especially challenging in an interindustry setting. For instance, specialists from the different industries are likely to have different routines and no prior ties. Given these considerations, this paper explores the conditions for the successful organization of the development process of interindustry architectural innovations.This study adopts a multiple case study design. Based on document analysis and semistructured interviews, three development projects were studied and compared. These projects involved the development of mobile communication applications for services that were already being provided by traditional means in other industry, that is, television, banking, and payment. To increase the likelihood of finding relevant theoretical insights, the three projects were selected based on their different organizational setups, that is, a contractual alliance of two large firms, an informal alliance of two large firms and one small firm, and an independent start‐up together with its suppliers.The results show that development projects for interindustry architectural innovations are likely to benefit from an organizational form (1) that includes specialists from the relevant industries; (2) that facilitates intense coordination integration between these specialists; and (3) that facilitates timely decision making and conflict resolution. Interestingly, these organizational dimensions influence project performance jointly rather than individually. Hence, these results lay the ground for the development of a configurational theory. This is a clear contribution to the new product development literature because configurational theories in this field of research are underdeveloped.Configurational theories offer valuable insights for managers who have to make multiple decisions simultaneously rather than in isolation. In particular, this study shows how multiple organizational dimensions can be aligned to produce a synergistic effect, while taking into account the specific characteristics and challenges of interindustry architectural innovations. In particular, this study proposes intense collaborations between specialists from the different industries in which one of these specialists takes the lead. Of course, specialists should be responsible for their areas of expertise, but architectural decisions should be made by consensus and—whenever needed to speed up the process—by fiat. At the same time, the findings suggest that going it alone by start‐ups as well as fifty–fifty collaborations between incumbents do not work well for this type of innovation.
Integrating the Content and Process of Strategic MIS Planning with Competitive Strategy*
Authors: Das Sidhartha R. , Zahra Shaker A. , Warkentin Merrill E. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTThis paper presents a framework that links strategic MIS planning and business strategy and relates it to competitive advantage and company performance. To achieve this objective, the paper first delineates the dimensions of strategic MIS planning, focusing on both content and process issues. The notion of fit within dimensions, between sets of dimensions (process and content), and between MIS planning and competitive strategy is also introduced. Next, employing the Miles‐Snow typology of business strategy, the paper posits normative differences in the dimensions of strategic MIS planning along different business (or competitive) strategies. The implications of our study for both decision makers and scholars are discussed. Propositions that tie competitive strategy, strategic MIS planning, and company financial performance are then presented. The paper concludes by providing direction for future research.
Equivalent Alternate Solutions for the Tour Scheduling Problem*
Authors: Easton Fred F. , Rossin Donald F. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTAchieving minimum staffing costs, maximum employee satisfaction with their assigned schedules, and acceptable levels of service are important but potentially conflicting objectives when scheduling service employees. Existing employee scheduling models, such as tour scheduling or general employee scheduling, address at most two of these criteria.This paper describes a heuristic to improve tour scheduling solutions provided by other procedures, and generate a set of equivalent cost feasible alternatives. These alternatives allow managers to identify solutions with attractive secondary characteristics, such as overall employee satisfaction with their assigned tours or consistent employee workloads and customer response times.Tests with both full‐time and mixed work force problems reveal the method improves most nonoptimal initial heuristic solutions. Many of the alternatives generated had more even distributions of surplus staff than the initial solutions, yielding more consistent customer response times and employee workloads. The likelihood of satisfying employee scheduling preferences may also be increased since each alternative provides a different deployment of employees among the available schedules.
An Empirical Comparison of Direct Questioning, Scenario, and Randomized Response Methods for Obtaining Sensitive Business Information*
Authors: Armacost Robert L. , Hosseini Jamshid C. , Morris Sara A. , Rehbein Kathleen A. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTCertain business practices include legal but ethically questionable activities. Surveys intended to determine the nature and extent of such activities must employ questioning methods which mitigate the inherent threat of sensitive questions and account for social desirability effects. This study uses a national mail survey of chief executive officers (CEOs) of manufacturing firms to compare the performance of direct questioning, scenario, and randomized response methods for estimating the prevalence of several sensitive business practices. The direct questioning and scenario versions used self‐reporting (individual‐based) questions, as well as the CEO's perceptions of the extent to which others engage in questionable activities (other‐based). In general, the estimates of the prevalence of selected questionable activities were lowest when the individual‐based direct questioning was used and highest when other‐based (either direct questioning or scenario) methods were used. The individual‐ based scenario and randomized response estimates represented intermediate estimates. Suggested guidelines for using the three methods for eliciting sensitive information are discussed.
The Selection of Computer‐Aided Software Engineering Tools: A Multi‐Criteria Decision Making Approach
Authors: Subramanian Girish H. , Gershon Mark 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTThe selection of the appropriate computer‐aided software engineering (CASE) tools to suit the needs of an organization requires the systematic application of the multi‐criteria decision methodology (MCDM). In order to make a case for the use of MCDM, the application of the ELECTRE I method to the selection of CASE tools from a possible set of six alternatives is demonstrated. The demonstration helps in gaining a grasp of the MCDM approach and the ELECTRE I method. There is potential for the application of the MCDM approach in other software engineering decisions, especially in the feasibility analysis of the systems life cycle.
A Computational Study of Replicated Clustering with an Application to Market Segmentation*
Authors: Helsen Kristiaan , Green Paul E. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTIn most commercial applications of k‐means clustering, researchers choose one set of kseed points to start the partitioning process; often, the initial set of seeds is chosen randomly. Using Monte Carlo simulation, we show that significant benefits are associated with replicated starting configurations that incorporate seed selection procedures based on a hierarchical clustering of sample points drawn from the original data matrix. A real‐world application of the approach is then presented.
Economic Inventory/Transport Lot, Sizing with Quantity and Freight Rate Discounts
Authors: Tersine Richard J. , Barman Samir 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTDiscounts are a primary marketing mechanism for inducing customers to increase the size of their purchases. Quantity discounts from suppliers and freight discounts from shippers are commonly encountered by organizations. This paper structures quantity and freight discounts into the order size decision in a deterministic economic order quantity system. Optimum lot‐sizing algorithms are derived for the dual discount situations of all‐units or incremental quantity discounts and all‐weight or incremental freight discounts.
A Note on the Effect of Sudden Obsolescence on the Optimal Lot Size
Authors: Masters James M. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTIn most management situations, the decision to hold inventory involves some element of obsolescence risk The traditional approach to this problem, in both theory and practice, is to incorporate obsolescence costs in the inventory holding cost. This note explores this issue and demonstrates that the traditional approach is appropriate for items subject to sudden obsolescence; that is, for items with demand lifetimes that are exponentially distributed.
An Inventory Model with Planned Shortages and Price Dependent Demand
Authors: Burwell Timothy H. , Dave Dinesh S. , Fitzpatrick Kathy E. , Roy Melvin R. 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTPrevious research has yielded a procedure for a retailer to determine the optimal lot size and selling price when a supplier offers all‐unit quantity discounts and demand is a decreasing function of price. In this paper, we extend that research by allowing for shortages. An algorithm is presented that determines the optimal lot size, order level, and selling price for a class of demand functions, including the constant price‐elasticity and linear demand functions.
Novel Synthesis and Characterization of High Quality Silicon Carbide Coatings on Carbon Fibers
Authors: Xie Wei , Mirza Zakaria , Möbus Guenter , Zhang Shaowei 
Published: March 2012

Carbon fibers were coated with silicon carbide (SiC) by partially reacting with silicon (Si) powders in a NaCl‐based salt for 4 h at 1200°C–1250°C in Ar, and characterized by using X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and energy dispersive X‐ray (EDX) analysis. At 1200°C, almost no SiC was formed, whereas at 1250°C Si completely reacted to form SiC coatings on carbon fibers. The molten salt medium is believed to facilitate the dissolution and diffusion of Si and thus the SiC coating formation. The SiC coating thickness could be readily tailored by simply adjusting the Si/C ratio. To illustrate this, two different Si/C weight ratios (1/10 and 1/5) were used, respectively, to prepare a “thick” (300–350 nm) coating and a “thin” (~130 nm) coating. Both coatings were found to be continuous, homogeneous, and crack free.
Influence of Ammonia on Properties of Nanocrystalline Barium Titanate Particles Prepared by a Hydrothermal Method
Authors: Moon San , Lee Hyun‐Wook , Choi Chang‐Hak , Kim Do Kyung 
Published: March 2012

The influence of ammonia on BaTiO3 particles prepared via hydrothermal synthesis is discussed. Two kinds of Ti‐precursors, amorphous (with ammonia) and anatase (without ammonia), are synthesized by a hydrolysis reaction using Ti‐butoxide as the starting material. Amorphous Ti‐precursors are found to be excellent for this purpose and offer several advantages over anatase. Superior tetragonal properties of BaTiO3 powders with more uniform particle sizes can be achieved at 200°C after 24 h using amorphous Ti‐precursors. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy was carried out on both types of Ti‐precursor, and a decrease in H2O adsorption on the amorphous Ti‐precursors is confirmed. It is considered that the reduction in H2O adsorption on the Ti‐precursors results from the shielding effects of ammonia and is attributed to a decreased formation of intragranular pores in the BaTiO3 particles. These suggested mechanisms are clarified by the results of in situ transmission electron microscopy observations and density measurements of the hydrothermally synthesized BaTiO3.
Protein Analysis Meets Visual Word Recognition: A Case for String Kernels in the Brain
Authors: Hannagan Thomas , Grainger Jonathan 
Published: March 2012

AbstractIt has been recently argued that some machine learning techniques known as Kernel methods could be relevant for capturing cognitive and neural mechanisms (Jäkel, Schölkopf, & Wichmann, 2009). We point out that ‘‘String kernels,’’ initially designed for protein function prediction and spam detection, are virtually identical to one contending proposal for how the brain encodes orthographic information during reading. We suggest some reasons for this connection and we derive new ideas for visual word recognition that are successfully put to the test. We argue that the versatility and performance of String kernels makes a compelling case for their implementation in the brain.
Genetic variation in field and laboratory populations of the spined soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris
Authors: Kneeland Kathleen , Coudron Thomas A. , Lindroth Erica , Stanley David , Foster John E. 
Published: March 2012

AbstractThe predatory spined soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae), is an economically important and highly valued biological control agent. There is substantial information on the biology, ecology, behavior, and rearing of this stink bug. However, virtually nothing is known of its genetic variation, in natural or domesticated populations. To address this lacuna, we used amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) to assess the genetic variability of field and laboratory populations. Four AFLP universal primer combinations yielded a total of 209 usable loci. The AFLP results showed greater genetic variability between populations from Missouri and Mississippi (both USA), and relatively low variability within Missouri populations. We infer little genetic isolation among Missouri field populations and within laboratory populations, but a significant genetic isolation between Missouri and Mississippi populations.
Two enzymes responsible for the formation of herbivore‐induced volatiles of maize, the methyltransferase AAMT1 and the terpene synthase TPS23, are regulated by a similar signal transduction pathway
Authors: Lenk Claudia , Köllner Tobias G. , Erb Matthias , Degenhardt Jörg 
Published: March 2012

AbstractHerbivore‐induced volatiles play an important role in the indirect defense of plants. After herbivore damage, volatiles are released from the plant and can attract herbivore enemies that protect the plant from additional damage. The herbivore‐induced volatile blend is complex and usually consists of mono‐ and sesquiterpenes, aromatic compounds, and indole. Although these classes of compounds are generally produced at different times after herbivore damage, the release of the terpene (E)‐β‐caryophyllene and the aromatic ester methyl anthranilate appear to be tightly coordinated. We have studied the herbivore induction patterns of two terpene synthases from Zea mays L. (Poaceae), TPS23 and TPS10, as well as S‐adenosyl‐L‐methionine:anthranilic acid carboxyl methyltransferases (AAMT1), which are critical for the production of terpenes and anthranilate compounds, respectively. The transcript levels of tps23 and aamt1 displayed the same kinetics after damage by the larvae of Spodoptera littoralis (Boisduval) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), and showed the same organ‐specific and haplotype‐specific expression patterns. Despite its close functional relation to TPS23, the terpene synthase TPS10 is not expressed in roots and does not display the haplotype‐specific expression pattern. The results indicate that the same JA‐mediated signaling cascade maycontrol the production of both the terpene (E)‐β‐caryophyllene and aromatic ester methyl anthranilate.
State‐of‐the‐art of visualization in post‐mortem imaging
Authors: LUNDSTRÖM CLAES , PERSSON ANDERS , ROSS STEFFEN , LJUNG PATRIC , LINDHOLM STEFAN , GYLLENSVÄRD FRIDA , YNNERMAN ANDERS 
Published: March 2012

Lundström C, Persson A, Ross S, Ljung P, Lindholm S, Gyllensvärd F, Ynnerman A. State‐of‐the‐art of visualization in post‐mortem imaging. APMIS 2012; 120: 316–26.Autopsies constitute a valuable feedback to the healthcare chain to achieve improvements in quality of care and cost effectiveness. This review describes post‐mortem imaging, which has emerged as an important part of the pathology toolbox. A broad range of visualization aspects within post‐mortem imaging are covered. General state‐of‐the‐art overviews of the components in the visualization pipeline are complemented by in‐depth descriptions of methods developed by the authors and our collaborators. The forensic field is represented and related to, as it is spearheading much development in post‐mortem imaging. Other topics are workflow, imaging data acquisition, and visualization rendering technology. All in all, this review shows the mature state of visual analysis for a non‐ or minimal‐invasive investigation of the deceased patient.