Marketing Stadiums as Event Venues: Modified Balanced Scorecard (mBSC) Evaluation of Minor League Baseball Websites as an eMarketing Tool

Maximizing and gaining access to stadium related revenue streams, including non-game day social and corporate event rentals, is a critical factor for the financial viability of professional sports teams. Minor League Baseball (MiLB) teams and Independent baseball league (Indy) teams are no exception and franchise owners strive to maximize ancillary business opportunities, including stadium usage year-round. Currently, teams are marketing their venues through various mediums, including their websites. Considering the implications of eMarketing on MiLB and Indy teams’ ability to target and solicit social and corporate event customers it is critical to evaluate current eMarketing efforts. This study employs the Modified Balanced Scorecard (mBSC) approach to website evaluation and aims to a) evaluate the contents and design of minor league (MiLB and Indy) baseball teams’ websites as a marketing tool for their stadiums and b) to identify trends of minor league baseball stadium use as social and corporate event venues. Research findings provide researchers and industry professionals with empirical evidence of the current positioning of minor league baseball stadiums as social and corporate event venues. The authors also discuss how teams can improve their eMarketing strategy to better engage social and corporate event clients

Reduction of circulating innate lymphoid cell progenitors results in impaired cytokine production by innate lymphoid cells in patients with lupus nephritis

Abstract Background Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) play an essential role in maintaining homeostasis; however, they can also cause chronic inflammation and autoimmune disease. This study aimed to identify the role of ILCs in the pathogenesis of lupus nephritis (LN). Methods The percentage of ILCs within the peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) population and urine of patients with LN (n = 16), healthy controls (HC; n = 8), and disease controls (ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV; n = 6), IgA nephropathy (IgAN; n = 9), and other glomerular diseases (n = 5)) was determined by flow cytometry analysis. In addition, ILCs were sorted and cultured with plasma from LN patients or HC to elucidate whether the reduced population of CD117+ ILCs observed in LN was due to changes in the ILC progenitor population. Results The percentage of total ILCs and CD117+ ILCs in LN was significantly lower than that in HC. The percentage of cytokine-secreting ILCs was also lower in LN; however, when the disease stabilized, cytokine production was restored to levels similar to those in HC. The increase in the number of exhausted ILCs (cells unable to secrete cytokines) correlated positively with disease activity. When CD117+ ILCs were cultured with LN plasma, the number of CD117+ ILCs fell, but that of other ILC subsets increased. Conclusions The percentage of CD117+ ILCs and the capacity of ILCs to secrete cytokines fell as LN severity increased, suggesting that an inflammatory environment of LN induces persistent differentiation and exhaustion of ILCs

Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Idiopathic Parkinson’s Disease: An Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline

Patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (IPD) require long-term care and are reported to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) interventions frequently. This CAM-specific clinical practice guideline (CPG) makes recommendations for the use of CAM, including herbal medicines, acupuncture, moxibustion, pharmaco-acupuncture, and qigong (with Tai chi) in patients with IPD. This guideline was developed using an evidence-based approach with randomized controlled trials currently available. Even though this CPG had some limitations, mainly originating from the bias inherent in the research on which it is based, it would be helpful when assessing the value of the CAM interventions frequently used in patients with IPD

The Forty-Sixth Euro Congress on Drug Synthesis and Analysis: Snapshot

The 46th EuroCongress on Drug Synthesis and Analysis (ECDSA-2017) was arranged within the celebration of the 65th Anniversary of the Faculty of Pharmacy at Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia from 5-8 September 2017 to get together specialists in medicinal chemistry, organic synthesis, pharmaceutical analysis, screening of bioactive compounds, pharmacology and drug formulations; promote the exchange of scientific results, methods and ideas; and encourage cooperation between researchers from all over the world. The topic of the conference, Drug Synthesis and Analysis, meant that the symposium welcomed all pharmacists and/or researchers (chemists, analysts, biologists) and students interested in scientific work dealing with investigations of biologically active compounds as potential drugs. The authors of this manuscript were plenary speakers and other participants of the symposium and members of their research teams. The following summary highlights the major points/topics of the meeting

Lipid-Reactive T Cells in Immunological Disorders of the Lung

Regulation of T cell-mediated immunity in the lungs is critical for prevention of immune-related lung disorders and for host protection from pathogens. While the prevalent view of pulmonary T cell responses is based on peptide recognition by antigen receptors, called T cell receptors (TCR), on the T cell surface in the context of classical major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules, novel pathways involving the presentation of lipid antigens by cluster of differentiation 1 (CD1) molecules to lipid-reactive T cells are emerging as key players in pulmonary immune system. Whereas, genetic conservation of group II CD1 (CD1d) in mouse and human genomes facilitated numerous in vivo studies of CD1d-restricted invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells in lung diseases, the recent development of human CD1-transgenic mice has made it possible to examine the physiological roles of group I CD1 (CD1a-c) molecules in lung immunity. Here, we discuss current understanding of the biology of CD1-reactive T cells with a specific focus on their roles in several pulmonary disorders

Fixed Points and Random Stability of a Generalized Apollonius Type Quadratic Functional Equation

<p/> <p>Using the fixed-point method, we prove the generalized Hyers-Ulam stability of a generalized Apollonius type quadratic functional equation in random Banach spaces.</p

Altered Gut Microbiota Composition in Rag1-deficient Mice Contributes to Modulating Homeostasis of Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells

Hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) can produce all kind of blood lineage cells, and gut microbiota that consists of various species of microbe affects development and maturation of the host immune system including gut lymphoid cells and tissues. However, the effect of altered gut microbiota composition on homeostasis of HSPCs remains unclear. Here we show that compositional change of gut microbiota affects homeostasis of HSPCs using Rag1(-/-) mice which represent lymphopenic condition. The number and proportions of HSPCs in Rag1(-/-) mice are lower compared to those of wild types. However, the number and proportions of HSPCs in Rag1(-/-) mice are restored as the level of wild types through alteration of gut microbiota diversity via transferring feces from wild types. Gut microbiota composition of Rag1(-/-) mice treated with feces from wild types shows larger proportions of family Prevotellaceae and Helicobacterceae whereas lower proportions of family Lachnospiraceae compared to unmanipulated Rag1(-/-) mice. In conclusion, gut microbiota composition of lymphopenic Rag1(-/-) mice is different to that of wild type, which may lead to altered homeostasis of HSPCs.113Nsciekc

Epipolythiodiketopiperazines from the Marine Derived Fungus Dichotomomyces cejpii with NF-κB Inhibitory Potential

The Ascomycota Dichotomomyces cejpii was isolated from the marine sponge Callyspongia cf. C. flammea. A new gliotoxin derivative, 6-acetylmonodethiogliotoxin (1) was obtained from fungal extracts. Compounds 2 and 3, methylthio-gliotoxin derivatives were formerly only known as semi-synthetic compounds and are here described as natural products. Additionally the polyketide heveadride (4) was isolated. Compounds 1, 2 and 4 dose-dependently down-regulated TNFα-induced NF-κB activity in human chronic myeloid leukemia cells with IC50s of 38.5 ± 1.2 µM, 65.7 ± 2.0 µM and 82.7 ± 11.3 µM, respectively. The molecular mechanism was studied with the most potent compound 1 and results indicate downstream inhibitory effects targeting binding of NF-κB to DNA. Compound 1 thus demonstrates potential of epimonothiodiketopiperazine-derived compounds for the development of NF-κB inhibitors