Animation with programs of recreational activities in tourism

Pregnantna misao Nikolaja K. Mihajlovskog da „život postavlja ciljeve nauci, a nauka osvetljava put života” bila je ideja vodilja ove disertacije. U digitalnoj eri, u vremenu globalizacije, prvog kiborga i bioničkog čoveka, u vremenu konjunkture industrije zabave, javila se i potreba za redefinisanjem uloge turističke usluge zbog radikalne promene načina i stila života savremenog čoveka. Istraživanje je rađeno na uzorku od 736 ispitanika oba pola. Ispitanici su osobe koje su boravile u gradu Kasiopi na ostrvu Krfu u okviru aranžmana dve turističke agencije iz Srbije u periodu od maja do oktobra. Gostima su ponuđeni besplatni programi rekreativnih aktivnosti u sklopu njihovog aranžmana. Animatori koji se nalaze na destinaciji rade „soft“ animaciju rekreativnim programima. U prepodnevim časovima su realizovali: jutarnje vežbanje, pilates, školu plivanja i jogu. U popodnevnim časovima su bile ponuđene aktivnosti poput akvabika, odbojke, frizbija na plaži, škole plesa, fudbala i košarke. U večernjim terminima su bili ponuđeni tipski kontakt večernji programi: „Karaoke“, „Rat polova“, „Veče plesa“, „Kladim se“ i drugi. U istraživanju, kao osnovna metoda, koristila se empirijsko-neeksperimentalna metoda ili tzv. servey metoda. Ispitivanje je vršeno transverzalno i longitudinalno, odnosno ispitivana je populacija turista od 2007. do 2012. godine u turističkoj sezoni. Kao dopuna uz osnovnu analizu korišćena je metoda teorijske analize. Uz pomoć metode komparacije ustanovljeno je ono što je zajedničko i ono što je različito u tim istraživanjima i na osnovu toga, uz pomoć korišćenja logičkih procesa apstrakcije i generalizacije, urađen je okvirni teorijski pristup našem empirijskom proučavanju. Istovremeno, takav teorijski okvir poslužio je za odgovarajuću klasifikaciju i tumačenje dobijenih rezultata. Kada pogledamo rezultate istraživanja koja su rađena na ovom uzorku, vidimo da je procenat bavljenja rekreativnim aktivnostima kod kuće (pešačenje, sa 62,5 odsto onih koji nekoliko puta u toku nedelje upražnjavaju ovu aktivnost kod kuće, biciklizam sa 16,9 odsto, plivanje sa 21,60 odsto, lagano trčanje koje 11,5 odsto ispitanika našeg istraživanja upražnjava nekoliko puta nedeljno), za goste iz naše zemlje koji su boravili na odmoru u Kasiopiju, u nekim segmentima sličan sa istraživanjima koja su rađena na nivou građana Srbije...The guiding principle of this dissertation was a pregnant thought by Nikolaj K. Mihajlovski that "Life sets goals to science, while science lights the path of life." A need to redefine the role of tourist service arose in the digital era, the time of globalization, the first cyborg and bionic man, the time of conjuncture in the entertainment industry, mostly due to a radical change of the modern man's lifestyle. The research was conducted on a sample of 763 male and female respondents. The respondents were staying in the town of Kassiopi, Corfu, within a travel package organized by two Serbian tourist agencies between May and October. The guests were offered free programs of recreational activities within their travel package. The animators engaged in this destination conduct "soft" animation recreational programs. In the mornings they organized morning exercise, pilates, swimming lessons and yoga. In the afternoons, activities such as aquabics, volleyball, beach frisbee, dancing lessons, football and basketball were on offer. In the evenings, guests had typical contact evening programs at their disposal: Karaoke, Battle of the Sexes, Dance Night, I Bet!, etc. The fundamental method of the research in this dissertation was empirical/nonexperimental method, also known as "survey" method. The research was conducted transversally and longitudinally, i.e. it covered tourist population in the tourist seasons from 2007 to 2012. In addition to the basic analysis, the method of theoretical analysis was also used in this dissertation. Comparative method made it possible to establish the common grounds and differences in the research, which with the help of logical processes of abstraction and generalization served as the basis for the framework of theoretical approach to our empirical study. At the same time, such theoretical framework served to make adequate classification and interpretation of the obtained results..

A semi-classical over-barrier model for charge exchange between highly charged ions and one-optical electron atoms

Absolute total cross sections for electron capture between slow, highly charged ions and alkali targets have been recently measured. It is found that these cross sections follow a scaling law with the projectile charge which is different from the one previously proposed basing on a classical over-barrier model (OBM) and verified using rare gases and molecules as targets. In this paper we develop a "semi-classical" (i.e. including some quantal features) OBM attempting to recover experimental results. The method is then applied to ion-hydrogen collisions and compared with the result of a sophisticated quantum-mechanical calculation. In the former case the accordance is very good, while in the latter one no so satisfactory results are found. A qualitative explanation for the discrepancies is attempted.Comment: RevTeX, uses epsf; 6 pages text + 3 EPS figures Journal of Physics B (scehduled March 2000). This revision corrects fig.

In vitro pre-vascularisation of tissue-engineered constructs A co-culture perspective

In vitro pre-vascularization is one of the main vascularization strategies in the tissue engineering field. Culturing cells within a tissue-engineered construct (TEC) prior to implantation provides researchers with a greater degree of control over the fate of the cells. However, balancing the diverse range of different cell culture parameters in vitro is seldom easy and in most cases, especially in highly vascularized tissues, more than one cell type will reside within the cell culture system. Culturing multiple cell types in the same construct presents its own unique challenges and pitfalls. The following review examines endothelial-driven vascularization and evaluates the direct and indirect role other cell types have in vessel and capillary formation. The article then analyses the different parameters researchers can modulate in a co-culture system in order to design optimal tissue-engineered constructs to match desired clinical applications

Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ): an anti-angiogenic side-effect?

Bisphosphonates are recommended in the treatment of osteoporosis and some cancers, in which case they prevent the appearance of bone metastasis. The patients taking bisphosphonates are at increased risk of developing bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ) which is characterised by the presence of an un-healing wound after dental surgery. BRONJ might represent an anti-angiogenic side effect. However, the real number of patients with BRONJ might be higher than currently recorded. Considering the differential diagnosis which includes various primary and secondary cancers, a correct histopathological diagnosis is very important. The morphological criteria for diagnosis of BRONJ are highlighted in this material.Virtual Slides: The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1813972972323288. © 2012 Petcu et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Periodontal and dental pulp cell-derived small extracellular vesicles: a review of the current status

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-bound lipid particles that are secreted by all cell types and function as cell-to-cell communicators through their cargos of protein, nucleic acid, lipids, and metabolites, which are derived from their parent cells. There is limited information on the isolation and the emerging therapeutic role of periodontal and dental pulp cell-derived small EVs (sEVs, <200 nm, or exosome). In this review, we discuss the biogenesis of three EV subtypes (sEVs, microvesicles and apoptotic bodies) and the emerging role of sEVs from periodontal ligament (stem) cells, gingival fibroblasts (or gingival mesenchymal stem cells) and dental pulp cells, and their therapeutic potential in vitro and in vivo. A review of the relevant methodology found that precipitation-based kits and ultracentrifugation are the two most common methods to isolate periodontal (dental pulp) cell sEVs. Periodontal (and pulp) cell sEVs range in size, from 40 nm to 2 μm, due to a lack of standardized isolation protocols. Nevertheless, our review found that these EVs possess anti-inflammatory, osteo/odontogenic, angiogenic and immunomodulatory functions in vitro and in vivo, via reported EV cargos of EV–miRNAs, EV–circRNAs, EV–mRNAs and EV–lncRNAs. This review highlights the considerable therapeutic potential of periodontal and dental pulp cell-derived sEVs in various regenerative applications. View Full-TextShu Hua, Peter Mark Bartold, Karan Gulati, Corey Stephen Moran, Sašo Ivanovski and Pingping Ha

Classical approach in quantum physics

The application of a classical approach to various quantum problems - the secular perturbation approach to quantization of a hydrogen atom in external fields and a helium atom, the adiabatic switching method for calculation of a semiclassical spectrum of hydrogen atom in crossed electric and magnetic fields, a spontaneous decay of excited states of a hydrogen atom, Gutzwiller's approach to Stark problem, long-lived excited states of a helium atom recently discovered with the help of Poincar$\acute{\mathrm{e}}$ section, inelastic transitions in slow and fast electron-atom and ion-atom collisions - is reviewed. Further, a classical representation in quantum theory is discussed. In this representation the quantum states are treating as an ensemble of classical states. This approach opens the way to an accurate description of the initial and final states in classical trajectory Monte Carlo (CTMC) method and a purely classical explanation of tunneling phenomenon. The general aspects of the structure of the semiclassical series such as renormgroup symmetry, criterion of accuracy and so on are reviewed as well. In conclusion, the relation between quantum theory, classical physics and measurement is discussed.Comment: This review paper was rejected from J.Phys.A with referee's comment "The author has made many worthwhile contributions to semiclassical physics, but this article does not meet the standard for a topical review"

Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ): diagnostic criteria and possible pathogenic mechanisms of an unexpected anti-angiogenic side effect.

Recently, bisphosphonates (BPs) have been widely used in medical practice as anti-resorptive agents owing to their anti-osteoclatic action. In addition, these compounds are also used for their analgesic action and their potential anti-tumour effect. Patients treated with BPs may subsequently develop osteonecrosis of the jaw or maxillary bone after minor local trauma including dental work, recently labelled as bisphosphonate osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ). However, the etiopathogenic mechanisms of this pathological condition are poorly understood. Although, several pathways have been proposed for BRONJ occurrence, no single model can explain all morphological changes observed at the macro- and microscopic level. Recent research suggests that BPs may promote an anti-angiogenic effect which contributes directly to the clinical features associated with BRONJ. Remarkably, the anti-angiogenic effect promoting BRONJ might be in keeping with the anti-neoplastic action of BPs. The current review, presents clinical diagnostic criteria. In addition, based on our own experience we describe the histopathological criteria for diagnosis of BRONJ and the possible pathways which may lead to this frustrating pathological condition

Utilisation of an operative difficulty grading scale for laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Background A reliable system for grading operative difficulty of laparoscopic cholecystectomy would standardise description of findings and reporting of outcomes. The aim of this study was to validate a difficulty grading system (Nassar scale), testing its applicability and consistency in two large prospective datasets. Methods Patient and disease-related variables and 30-day outcomes were identified in two prospective cholecystectomy databases: the multi-centre prospective cohort of 8820 patients from the recent CholeS Study and the single-surgeon series containing 4089 patients. Operative data and patient outcomes were correlated with Nassar operative difficultly scale, using Kendall’s tau for dichotomous variables, or Jonckheere–Terpstra tests for continuous variables. A ROC curve analysis was performed, to quantify the predictive accuracy of the scale for each outcome, with continuous outcomes dichotomised, prior to analysis. Results A higher operative difficulty grade was consistently associated with worse outcomes for the patients in both the reference and CholeS cohorts. The median length of stay increased from 0 to 4 days, and the 30-day complication rate from 7.6 to 24.4% as the difficulty grade increased from 1 to 4/5 (both p < 0.001). In the CholeS cohort, a higher difficulty grade was found to be most strongly associated with conversion to open and 30-day mortality (AUROC = 0.903, 0.822, respectively). On multivariable analysis, the Nassar operative difficultly scale was found to be a significant independent predictor of operative duration, conversion to open surgery, 30-day complications and 30-day reintervention (all p < 0.001). Conclusion We have shown that an operative difficulty scale can standardise the description of operative findings by multiple grades of surgeons to facilitate audit, training assessment and research. It provides a tool for reporting operative findings, disease severity and technical difficulty and can be utilised in future research to reliably compare outcomes according to case mix and intra-operative difficulty

Characterization of the Autocrine/Paracrine Function of Vitamin D in Human Gingival Fibroblasts and Periodontal Ligament Cells

Background: We previously demonstrated that 25-hydroxyvitamin D-3, the precursor of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3, is abundant around periodontal soft tissues. Here we investigate whether 25-hydroxyvitamin D-3 is converted to 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3 in periodontal soft tissue cells and explore the possibility of an autocrine/paracrine function of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3 in periodontal soft tissue cells. Methodology/Principal Findings: We established primary cultures of human gingival fibroblasts and human periodontal ligament cells from 5 individual donors. We demonstrated that 1 alpha-hydroxylase was expressed in human gingival fibroblasts and periodontal ligament cells, as was cubilin. After incubation with the 1 alpha-hydroxylase substrate 25-hydroxyvitamin D-3, human gingival fibroblasts and periodontal ligament cells generated detectable 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3 that resulted in an up-regulation of CYP24A1 and RANKL mRNA. A specific knockdown of 1 alpha-hydroxylase in human gingival fibroblasts and periodontal ligament cells using siRNA resulted in a significant reduction in both 1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3 production and mRNA expression of CYP24A1 and RANKL. The classical renal regulators of 1 alpha-hydroxylase (parathyroid hormone, calcium and 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3) and Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide did not influence 1 alpha-hydroxylase expression significantly, however, interleukin-1 beta and sodium butyrate strongly induced 1 alpha-hydroxylase expression in human gingival fibroblasts and periodontal ligament cells. Conclusions/Significance: In this study, the expression, activity and functionality of 1 alpha-hydroxylase were detected in human gingival fibroblasts and periodontal ligament cells, raising the possibility that vitamin D acts in an autocrine/paracrine manner in these cells.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000305781700070&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Multidisciplinary SciencesSCI(E)PubMed13ARTICLE6e39878