Social Accounting for Nonprofit Organizations: Visualizing the Invisible Value of Social Impacts

欧州を中心に議論されている社会的企業の判定基準を手掛かりに、NPOが生み出す社会価値を貨幣的に測定し、社会価値を評価する指標を試算することに取り組んだ。Traditionally, financial accounting records revenue and expensebased on present or future income and expenditure. Nonprofit organizations have not been able to accurately inform stakeholdersof their social activities because of the limited nature of financial reporting. To address this issue we focus on social accounting methods to calculate invisible social costs and benefits using the‘social value’ concept. In our case study, experimental analysis of a social value statement found total inputs, including volunteer activities and out-of-pocket expenses, were five times higher thanactual expenditure. Furthermore, findings indicate the social value statement expands social accounting methods and verifies invisible community contributions by nonprofit organizations

Effective cardiac resynchronization therapy for an adolescent patient with dilated cardiomyopathy seven years after mitral valve replacement and septal anterior ventricular exclusion

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is a new treatment for refractory heart failure. However, most heart failure patients treated with CRT are middle-aged or old patients with idiopathic or ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy. We treated a 17 year 11 month old girl with dilated cardiomyopathy after mitral valve replacement (MVR) and septal anterior ventricular exclusion (SAVE). Seven years after the SAVE procedure, she presented complaining of palpitations and general fatigue with normal activity. Her echocardiogram showed reduced left ventricular function. Despite of optimal medical therapy, her left ventricular function continued to decline and she experienced regular arrhythmias such as premature ventricular contractions. We thus elected to perform cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillator (CRT-D). After CRT-D, her clinical symptoms improved dramatically and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) improved from 31.2% to 51.3% as assessed by echocardiogram. Serum BNP levels decreased from 448.2 to 213.6 pg/ml. On ECG, arrhythmias were remarkably reduced and QRS duration was shortened from 174 to 152 msec. In conclusion, CRT-D is an effective therapeutic option for adolescent patients with refractory heart failure after left ventricular volume reduction surgery

Transition from real to virtual polarized photon structures

We investigate the transition of the polarized photon structure function $g_1^\gamma(x,Q^2,P^2)$ when the target photon shifts from on-shell ($P^2=0$) to far off-shell ($P^2\gg \Lambda^2$) region. The analysis is performed to the next-to-leading order in QCD. The first moment of $g_1^\gamma$ which vanishes for the real photon, turns to be a negative value when target photon becomes off-shell. The explicit $P^2$-dependence of the first moment sum rule as well as of the structure function $g_1^\gamma(x,Q^2,P^2)$ as a function of $x$ is studied in the framework of the vector meson dominance model.Comment: 16 pages, 4 eps figure

社会的企業のソーシャル・アカウンティング : 地域福祉事業の事例から

社会的企業に対する国際的な関心と期待が高まるなか、これらの組織が生み出す社会価値の測定や評価の方法が課題となっている。本稿では、社会的企業の評価ツールとして欧米で検討されているSocial Return on Investmentアプローチなども踏まえながら、日本の社会的企業の実状に合わせたソーシャル・アカウンティングの手法を検討する。その１つの試みとして、地域福祉事業を実施する２つのNPO法人と１つの有限会社の財務諸表を活用して社会価値計算書を作成し、地域社会貢献度・制度資金依存度・有償性・ボランティア貢献度・効率性を測定する社会価値指標の試算を行った。その結果、一定の限界はあるものの、これらの社会的企業が生み出した見えない社会価値を金額的に示すことができ、組織形態や収入規模の違いを超えて社会性を比較することが可能となった。ただし、これらの指標の望ましい水準はいまだ明らかになっておらず、今後ケース・スタディを積み上げて、信頼性のある社会的企業の評価手法を探りたい

Isolated gestational proteinuria preceding the diagnosis of preeclampsia : an observational study

Introduction. Some pregnant women develop significant proteinuria in the absence of hypertension. However, clinical significance of isolated gestational proteinuria (IGP) is not well understood. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of IGP in singleton pregnancies and the proportion of women with IGP who subsequently developed preeclampsia (IGP-PE) among all PE cases. Material and methods. This was an observational study of 6819 women with singleton pregnancies at 12 centers, including 938 women with at least once determination of protein-to-creatinine ratio (P/Cr). Significant proteinuria in pregnancy (SPIP) was defined as P/Cr (mg/mg) level >0.27. IGP was defined as SPIP in the absence of hypertension. Gestational hypertension (GH) preceding preeclampsia (GH-PE) was defined as preeclampsia (PE) in which GH preceded SPIP. Simultaneous PE (S-PE) was defined as PE in which both SPIP and hypertension occurred simultaneously. Results. IGP and PE were diagnosed in 130 (1.9%) and 158 (2.3%) of 6819 women, respectively. Of 130 women with IGP, 32 (25%) progressed to PE and accounted for 20% of all women with PE. Hence, women with IGP had a relative risk of 13.1 (95% CI; 9.2-18.5) for developing PE compared with those without IGP [25% (32/130) vs. 1.9% (126/6689)]. At diagnosis of SPIP, P/Cr levels already exceeded 1.0 more often in women with S-PE than in those with IGP-PE [67% (33/49) vs. 44% (14/32), respectively, p = 0.031]. Conclusions. IGP is a risk factor for PE, and IGP-PE accounts for a considerable proportion (20%) of all PE

Cardiosphere-derived exosomal microRNAs for myocardial repair in pediatric dilated cardiomyopathy

Although cardiosphere-derived cells (CDCs) improve cardiac function and outcomes in patients with single ventricle physiology, little is known about their safety and therapeutic benefit in children with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). We aimed to determine the safety and efficacy of CDCs in a porcine model of DCM and translate the preclinical results into this patient population. A swine model of DCM using intracoronary injection of microspheres created cardiac dysfunction. Forty pigs were randomized as preclinical validation of the delivery method and CDC doses, and CDC-secreted exosome (CDCex)–mediated cardiac repair was analyzed. A phase 1 safety cohort enrolled five pediatric patients with DCM and reduced ejection fraction to receive CDC infusion. The primary endpoint was to assess safety, and the secondary outcome measure was change in cardiac function. Improved cardiac function and reduced myocardial fibrosis were noted in animals treated with CDCs compared with placebo. These functional benefits were mediated via CDCex that were highly enriched with proangiogenic and cardioprotective microRNAs (miRNAs), whereas isolated CDCex did not recapitulate these reparative effects. One-year follow-up of safety lead-in stage was completed with favorable profile and preliminary efficacy outcomes. Increased CDCex-derived miR-146a-5p expression was associated with the reduction in myocardial fibrosis via suppression of proinflammatory cytokines and transcripts. Collectively, intracoronary CDC administration is safe and improves cardiac function through CDCex in a porcine model of DCM. The safety lead-in results in patients provide a translational framework for further studies of randomized trials and CDCex-derived miRNAs as potential paracrine mediators underlying this therapeutic strategy

Cell jamming, stratification and p63 expression in cultivated human corneal epithelial cell sheets

Corneal limbal epithelial stem cell transplantation using cultivated human corneal epithelial cell sheets has been used successfully to treat limbal stem cell deficiencies. Here we report an investigation into the quality of cultivated human corneal epithelial cell sheets using time-lapse imaging of the cell culture process every 20 minutes over 14 days to ascertain the level of cell jamming, a phenomenon in which cells become smaller, more rounded and less actively expansive. In parallel, we also assessed the expression of p63, an important corneal epithelial stem cell marker. The occurrence of cell jamming was variable and transient, but was invariably associated with a thickening and stratification of the cell sheet. p63 was present in all expanding cell sheets in the first 9 days of culture, but it’s presence did not always correlate with stratification of the cell sheet. Nor did p63 expression necessarily persist in stratified cell sheets. An assessment of cell jamming, therefore, can shed significant light on the quality and regenerative potential of cultivated human corneal epithelial cell sheets