Human myocardial protein pattern reveals cardiac diseases

Proteomic profiles of myocardial tissue in two different etiologies of heart failure were investigated using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)/Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS). Right atrial appendages from 10 patients with hemodynamically significant isolated aortic valve disease and from 10 patients with isolated symptomatic coronary heart disease were collected during elective cardiac surgery. As presented in an earlier study by our group (Baykut et al., 2006), both disease forms showed clearly different pattern distribution characteristics. Interesting enough, the classification patterns could be used for correctly sorting unknown test samples in their correct categories. However, in order to fully exploit and also validate these findings there is a definite need for unambiguous identification of the differences between different etiologies at molecular level. In this study, samples representative for the aortic valve disease and coronary heart disease were prepared, tryptically digested, and analyzed using an FT-ICR MS that allowed collision-induced dissociation (CID) of selected classifier masses. By using the fragment spectra, proteins were identified by database searches. For comparison and further validation, classifier masses were also fragmented and analyzed using HPLC-/Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight/time-of-flight (TOF/TOF) mass spectrometry. Desmin and lumican precursor were examples of proteins found in aortic samples at higher abundances than in coronary samples. Similarly, adenylate kinase isoenzyme was found in coronary samples at a higher abundance. The described methodology could also be feasible in search for specific biomarkers in plasma or serum for diagnostic purposes

Evaluation of Lean Systems in Rail Maintenance Operations

The recognized strength of lean systems is its broad applicability to every process industry even though they include some complicated and time-intensive processes. However, this conception is based on the tools and philosophy of Lean systems and the nature of the industry. The required craftsmanship and repetitive processes in rail maintenance define the uniqueness of this research The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for lean systems in rail maintenance. During the research a unique system, consisting of Lean systems and systems engineering tools, is realized and tried to integrate instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the potential implementation of Lean systems in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s rail maintenance facility, and presents the results of the potential transformatio

Evaluation of Lean Systems in Rail Maintenance Operations

The recognized strength of lean systems is its broad applicability to every process industry even though they include some complicated and time-intensive processes. However, this conception is based on the tools and philosophy of Lean systems and the nature of the industry. The required craftsmanship and repetitive processes in rail maintenance define the uniqueness of this research The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for lean systems in rail maintenance. During the research a unique system, consisting of Lean systems and systems engineering tools, is realized and tried to integrate instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the potential implementation of Lean systems in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s rail maintenance facility, and presents the results of the potential transformatio

Opportunities for Lean Enterprise in Public Regional Transportation

This thesis demonstrates the application of Lean Enterprise principles in a unionized/government-subsidized environment. This study states that Lean cannot be fully implemented in such an environment. The work environment and organization\u27s culture required a hybrid system to maximize the process efficiency. Lean production is a manufacturing philosophy that focuses on adding value for the customer. It is commonly accepted that Lean is applicable to almost any repetitive process in any kind of organization, including government agencies and unionized work environments. The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for Lean Enterprise in public transportation. During the implementation a hybrid production system, consisting of Lean and systems engineering tools, is realized and integrated instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the implementation of Lean in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s bus maintenance facility, and presents the results of the transformation. The possible future state is proposed by the aid of Arena simulation software and statistical analysi

Opportunities for Lean Enterprise in Public Regional Transportation

This thesis demonstrates the application of Lean Enterprise principles in a unionized/government-subsidized environment. This study states that Lean cannot be fully implemented in such an environment. The work environment and organization\u27s culture required a hybrid system to maximize the process efficiency. Lean production is a manufacturing philosophy that focuses on adding value for the customer. It is commonly accepted that Lean is applicable to almost any repetitive process in any kind of organization, including government agencies and unionized work environments. The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for Lean Enterprise in public transportation. During the implementation a hybrid production system, consisting of Lean and systems engineering tools, is realized and integrated instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the implementation of Lean in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s bus maintenance facility, and presents the results of the transformation. The possible future state is proposed by the aid of Arena simulation software and statistical analysi

Opportunities for Lean Enterprise in Public Regional Transportation

This thesis demonstrates the application of Lean Enterprise principles in a unionized/government-subsidized environment. This study states that Lean cannot be fully implemented in such an environment. The work environment and organization\u27s culture required a hybrid system to maximize the process efficiency. Lean production is a manufacturing philosophy that focuses on adding value for the customer. It is commonly accepted that Lean is applicable to almost any repetitive process in any kind of organization, including government agencies and unionized work environments. The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for Lean Enterprise in public transportation. During the implementation a hybrid production system, consisting of Lean and systems engineering tools, is realized and integrated instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the implementation of Lean in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s bus maintenance facility, and presents the results of the transformation. The possible future state is proposed by the aid of Arena simulation software and statistical analysi

Evaluation of Lean Systems in Rail Maintenance Operations

The recognized strength of lean systems is its broad applicability to every process industry even though they include some complicated and time-intensive processes. However, this conception is based on the tools and philosophy of Lean systems and the nature of the industry. The required craftsmanship and repetitive processes in rail maintenance define the uniqueness of this research The objective of this thesis was to research the opportunities and applicability for lean systems in rail maintenance. During the research a unique system, consisting of Lean systems and systems engineering tools, is realized and tried to integrate instead of a pure Lean system. This thesis details the potential implementation of Lean systems in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority\u27s rail maintenance facility, and presents the results of the potential transformatio

Do the Depository Banks in Borsa Istanbul Corporate Governance Index Have Better Market Performance Following Their Entry to the Index?

The aim of the paper is to examine whether market performances of the depository banks in Borsa Istanbul Corporate Governance Index (BIST XKURY) have changed following their entry to the Index.  Mann Whitney U tests on quarterly data, from the third quarter of 2007 to the third quarter of 2013, of five incumbent banks in the Index reveal that with the exception of two largest banks, market values of the banks and overall sample have not changed in the indexed period.  With the exception of one bank, however, market to book values of all banks and overall sample have declined in the period. There is no change in the price to earnings ratio for overall sample. The findings indicate that owners’ equity values of the banks have improved, however, those improvements have not fully been reflected as due increase on the market prices.  The widespread observation of banking panics around the globe that intensified around 2010s might be a reason leading investors to display cautious attitude in pricing betterments on balance sheets. Keywords: Borsa Istanbul, Corporate Governance Index, Banking Sector, Market Based Ratios, Mann Whitney U Test

A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE RATINGS WITH MULTIPLE-CRITERIA DECISION ANALYSIS: A CASE OF BIST XKURY

This paper aims at providing the comparative analysis of corporate governance rankings, generated by major multiple-criteria decision making tools, of fifty-six firms listed as of 2014 in Borsa Istanbul Corporate Governance Index (BIST XKURY). Normally, Capital Market Board requires each BIST XKURY company to have an annual corporate governance rating provided by a licensed rating company. The rating is essentially the weighted average of four components of “shareholder relations” (%25), “transparency and disclosure” (%25), “board of directors” (%35), and “stakeholder relations” (%15). What these ratings lack is the comparative positioning of each company based on their relative distance to the best and worst performing companies. For the purpose of comparatively assessing alternative corporate governance rankings, this study makes use of four major multiple-criteria decision tools, namely; Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Vise Kriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR), and Grey Relational Analysis (GRA). The study initially produced an overall average of annual corporate governance rating for each company over their lives in the index from the inception of the index in 2007 to 2014. The lists created by the selected methods exhibit conflicting rankings. The rankings produced by TOPSIS and AHP methods are rather similar to the ranking based on the raw, unprocessed ratings. The inconsistent rankings draw attention to the exercise of caution in generalizing the findings of any method, as other methods have the potential to generate contradicting lists

A Research on Deferred Taxes: A Case Study of BIST Listed Banks in Turkey

This study attempts to investigate the general profile and drivers of the deferred tax assets and liabilities of sixteen banks listed in Borsa Istanbul (BIST). The issue of deferred taxes is regulated by Turkish Accounting Standard No-12 (TAS-12), which is a verbatim Turkish translation of the International Accounting Standard (IAS) of the same number. The article discusses deferred taxes by establishing a link between them and temporary differences. Based on the examination of the annual financial statements of sixteen BIST-listed banks for the period of 2005-2013, it is found that the banks have generally reported deferred tax assets. The analysis of the financial statements of 2013 revealed that “severance payment rights” is the leading cause for deferred tax assets whereas the primary factor for deferred tax liabilities is the “valuation of financial assets”. Keywords: IAS-12, TAS-12, Banks, BIST, Temporary Differences, Deferred Tax Assets, Deferred Tax Liabilities