A MODEL WITH STORAGE LIMITATION AND SIMULATED DEMAND AS FRESH MEAT INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SUPPORT

An important aspect of retail outlets which offer different kinds of fresh meat is the careful planning of inventory. In this context, inventory management includes ensuring the required quantity of meat, storing it in an adequate way, and also minimizing the setup cost, holding cost, shortage cost and possible losses that might occur if the goods remain unsold. By devising and applying appropriate models companies can significantly improve their decision making connected to harmonizing the demand and different inventory costs. This paper presents an inventory model with limited storage space, characterized by the estimate of meat demand based on simulated values generated by computer from beta distribution. If the determined quantities exceed the available storage space, the Lagrange multiplier which allows for simultaneous decrease of the originally established values, could be used in the model. This eventually results in the optimum order quantity of different meat products, as well as the associated total storage costs

Factors Predisposing to Early Childhood Caries (ECC) in Children of Pre-School Age in the City of Zagreb, Croatia

The aim of this study was to investigate factors predisposing to early childhood caries (ECC) in pre-school children in the city of Zagreb, Croatia. The investigation was carried out on the sample of 145 children (77 boys and 68 girls) aged between 2 and 5 years, including clinical examination of dental status and survey on the habits among the parents. The overall prevalence of ECC was 30%: in girls it was 25%, and in boys 48%. The study on the risk factors was designed as a classic case-control study. The mean value of dmfs index among the cases amounted to 8.6, in comparison to 5.2 in the control group (p<0.05). Bottle-feeding did not represent a significant risk, but night consumption of sweet beverages after first 24 months and the lack of introduction of teeth-brushing habit after first 24 months did (p<0.001 for both predictors). The study revealed the importance of early introduction of teeth-brushing and giving up the nightly consumption of sweet beverages in prevention of ECC

Antioxidant and cytotoxic potential of selected plant species of the boraginaceae family

Antioxidant activity is one of the most important properties of plant extracts. Antioxidants from natural sources have been intensively studied in the last few decades. The antioxidant contents of medicinal plants may contribute to the protection of diseases. Bioactive components of plants have a potential role in chemoprevention and inhibition of different phases of the malignant transformation process. Therefore, plant extracts and essential oils are in the focus of research, and in recent decades have been tested on a large number of malignant cell lines. The aim of this study was to examine antioxidant and cytotoxic potential of selected plant species from the Boraginaceae family. Determination of antioxidant activity was performed by ammonium-thiocyanate method. Testing citotoxic activity was performed by MTT test on cancer cell lines: HEP 2c (human larynx carcinoma), RD (human cell line-rhabdomyosarcoma) and L2OB (mouse tumor fibroblast line). The best antioxidant activity showed ethanol, acetone and chloroform extracts of Anchusa officinalis, Echium vulgare and Echium italicum. The tested extracts showed an inhibitory effect on cancer cells, but chloroform and acetone extracts of all three plant had the most effective effect on L2OB cells. Isolation of individual active components from this plants and their testing for cancer cells would be of great importance for this field of research

Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia: Dental Features and Carriers Detection

Ectodermal dysplasia is a heterogeneous condition characterized by affected ectodermal structures, among which the teeth and skin with its derivatives (hair, sweat glands) are the most frequent. The aim of this work is to present the analysis of dental traits in five families (affected boys and their mothers) with hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (HED), and to evaluate the importance of orofacial and dental findings in the determination of female HED gene carriers. Hypodontia (oligodontia) was found in all the patients. The mothers, gene carriers, had either hypodontia or a reduced size of teeth with a particular morphological, peg shape. In patients with hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia the deciduous second molar teeth were mostly affected by taurodontism. The characteristic dental finding in heterozygous females of the mandibular peg shaped incisors and canines, as well as of hypodontia or peg shaped upper lateral incisors can be used as a reliable criterion for the detection of HED gene carriers

Structural Investigations of Polyvinyliden Fluoride Thin and Thick Films

Polyvinyliden fluoride (PVDF) is a low-density fluoropolymer that exhibits piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties. It can be used in the chemical, semiconductor, medical and defense industries, as well as in aviation and aerospace applications. Crucial factors that lead to the PVDF ferroelectric properties and determine its piezoelectric, mechanical, optical, electrical and thermal properties are its polar conformations, crystal structure, and crystallinity. These characteristics of the material significantly depend on the conditions used in the processing of polymer films. Therefore, we investigated structure and morphology of thin and thick PVDF films obtained by spin coating and solution casting methods, respectively. Structural investigations of PVDF thin and thick films were performed by the X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) methods, while microstructure morphology has been analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Present results will enable optimization of PVDF processing techniques for the production of pressure and IR sensors

Antioxidant activity relationship of phenolic compounds in Hypericum perforatum L.

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The St John's Wort (<it>Hypericum perforatum</it>; Clusiaceae) has been used in traditional and modern medicine for a long time due to its high content of biologically active phenolics. The purpose of this work was to develop a method for their fractionation and identification, and to determine the most active antioxidant compounds in plant extract.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An LC-MS method which enables fast qualitative and semiquantitative analysis was developed. The composition determined is in agreement with the previous results, where 6 flavonoids, 4 naphthodianthrones and 4 phloroglucinols have been identified. Significant antioxidant activity was determined for most of the fractions by DPPH assay (the lowest IC₅₀of 0.52 μg/ml), NO scavenging (6.11 μg/ml), superoxide scavenging (1.86 μg/ml), lipid peroxidation (0.0079 μg/ml) and FRAP (the highest reduction capacity of 104 mg Fe equivalents/g) assays.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>LC-MS technique has been successfully applied for a quick separation and identification of the major components of <it>H. perforatum </it>fractions. Majority of the fractions analyzed have expressed a very high antioxidative activity when compared to synthetic antioxidants. The antioxidant activity could be attributed to flavonoids and phenolic acids, while phloroglucinols and naphthodianthrones showed no significant activity. It is demonstrated that it is possible to obtain, by fractionation, <it>H. perforatum </it>preparations with significantly increased phloroglucinols-to-naphthodianthrones ratio (up to 95:5).</p

Development of fluorinated indanone-based derivatives for the imaging of monoamine oxidase B via positron emission tomography

Ziel/Aim The monoamine oxidase B (MAO B) isoenzyme is known to be involved in the oxidative deamination of biogenic amines. While the use of MAO B inhibitors is already well-established for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, recent reports suggest its involvement in certain types of brain tumors.1 We herein aim at the synthesis and preclinical evaluation of fluorinated indanone-based derivatives targeting MAO B in the brain via positron emission tomography (PET). Methodik/Methods A small series of fluorinated indanone derivatives was obtained via the O-alkylation or esterification starting with the commercially available 6-hydroxy-2,3-dihydro-1H-inden-1-one in one or two steps. Binding affinities towards the human MAO isoenzymes were estimated in vitro by radioligand displacement. HL126 was selected for radiofluorination via its corresponding boronic acid pinacol ester. In vitro autoradiography of [18F]HL126 was performed in mice brain slices. In vivo evaluation of [18F]HL126 in CD-1 mice was carried out and metabolism studies were performed in plasma and brain samples via radio-HPLC. Ergebnisse/Results The fluorinated indanone derivatives were synthesized in yields ranging from 65-89 %. The fluorophenyl ether derivative, HL126, was further selected for radiofluorination based on its high binding affinity towards MAO B (Ki = 6.9 ± 5.3 nM). [18F]HL126 was obtained by an alcohol-enhanced copper-mediated approach via the corresponding boronic acid pinacol ester precursor with radiochemical yields of about 11 ± 3 %, high radiochemical purities (≥99 %) and molar activities in the range of 20 GBq/mmol. In vitro autoradiography showed a specific blockade with selective MAO-A/B inhibitors. PET/MRI analyses revealed that [18F]HL126 readily enters the brain. Some radiometabolites do cross the blood-brain barrier. Schlussfolgerungen/Conclusions Although metabolism studies with [18F] HL126 revealed the presence of radiometabolites in the brain, the high binding affinity towards MAO B and the pronounced selectivity in in vitro autoradiography studies encourage further derivatization of indanone-based scaffolds for targeting MAO B

The analysis of using information and communication technologies among the population of elementary students

U ovom su radu prezentirani rezultati istraživanja čiji je osnovni cilj bio ispitati korištenje informacijskih i komunikacijskih tehnologija u osnovnoškolskoj populaciji Republike Hrvatske, s posebnim osvrtom na situaciju u Vukovarsko-srijemskoj županiji. S tom je intencijom u uvodnom dijelu rada prvo teoretski sagledana tematika upotrebe informacijskih i komunikacijskih tehnologija u osnovnoškolskom obrazovnom sustavu Republike Hrvatske. Empirijski dio rada sadrži rezultate istraživanja koje je provedeno na uzorku od 262 učenika tri osnovne škole s područja navedene županije.This paper presents the results of a research whose primary objective was to examine the use of information and communication technologies among elementary school population in the Republic of Croatia, with special reference to the situation in the County of Vukovar-Srijem. With that intention, in the introductory part, the usage of information and communication technologies in Croatian elementary school system is theoretically analyzed. The empirical part of this paper contains the results of the research based on a sample of 262 pupils in three elementary schools from the mentioned county