Customer attractiveness, supplier satisfaction and preferred customer status: a review and a cycle model

In this paper, we introduce the concept of preferred customer status, i.e. a buyer is awarded preferential treatment of its important suppliers compared to their other customers. As there is a lack of knowledge of what motivates suppliers to serve selected buyers better than others, our research focuses on the suppliers’ evaluation of customers and how it can be influenced by buyers. Based on social exchange theory, we provide a conceptual model which proposes customer attractiveness, supplier satisfaction and knowledge of alternative customers as factors influencing suppliers to award preferred customer status. Subsequently, a literature review is provided to give an overview of the drivers of customer attractiveness, supplier satisfaction and preferred customer status already analysed in current literature. We conclude by providing a preliminary conceptual framework and suggesting future research directions in this field. This article proposes new insights into supplier relationship management and offers a state-of-the-art analysis as well as a theoretical base to this new research field

On circuits and pancyclic line graphs

Clark proved that L(G) is hamiltonian if G is a connected graph of order n ≥ 6 such that deg u + deg v ≥ n - 1 - p(n) for every edge uv of G, where p(n) = 0 if n is even and p(n) = 1 if n is odd. Here it is shown that the bound n - 1 - p(n) can be decreased to (2n + 1)/3 if every bridge of G is incident with a vertex of degree 1, which is a necessary condition for hamiltonicity of L(G). Moreover, the conclusion that L(G) is hamiltonian can be strengthened to the conclusion that L(G) is pancyclic. Lesniak-Foster and Williamson proved that G contains a spanning closed trail if |V(G)| = n ≥ 6, δ(G) 2 and deg u + deg v ≥ n - 1 for every pair of nonadjacent vertices u and v. The bound n - 1 can be decreased to (2n + 3)/3 if G is connected and bridgeless, which is necessary for G to have a spanning closed trail

GreenSeace

Imagine you are relaxing on the beautiful shores of Fiji. You are currently soaking up the sun with a pina colada in your hand. You feel your skin burning so you decide to cool off in the ocean. As you dive under you get wrapped in a sea of rubbish, everything from plastic bottles, bags and pharmaceutical packaging. You feel claustrophobic and wonder how the marine life survive in such poor conditions. We’ve come up with an idea that will aid in the reduction of water pollution. Clean water is essential for not only human kind, but for the thousands of species that live in the ocean. Many regulations and systems have been enforced to minimise pollution around the world, all working towards the same goal of making the planet cleaner and greener. Our idea is to create biodegradable pharmaceutical packaging by utilising ‘green plastic’. Green plastic is created by combining plant starch and soy protein, as an alternative to petroleum-based products. We plan to use sugarcane crops from the two-main islands in Fiji (Viti Levu and Vanualevu) to produce this environmentally sustainable product. The manufacture and disposal of green plastic involves environment-friendly processes. Environmental sustainability is crucial in rescuing the world and reducing the risk of climate change. This highlights the importance of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of ‘Climate Action’. If we can arrest and decrease the pollution and waste currently going into our waterways, we can play an effective part in limiting the detrimental damage caused to the planet

Nutritional, immune, micronutrient and health status of HIV-infected children in care centres in Mangaung

Aim: To assess the nutritional, immune, micronutrient and health status of antiretroviral-naïve HIV-infected children.Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study was undertaken between September 2004 and March 2006 amongst HIV-infected children of which none received antiretroviral therapy, in care centres in Mangaung, Free State.Results: The study included 37 clinically stable and food-secure HIV-infected children. Their median age was 5.4 years (range 1.2–10.2 years). Fifteen children (41%) were underweight, 30 (81%) were stunted and one (3%) was wasted. The most commonly observed clinical features were lymphadenopathy (84%), skin rashes (51%), hepatomegaly (32%) and pallor (41%). Eight per cent of children had features of TB, while 19% had a lower respiratory tract infection. The median viral load of the group (n = 35) was 117 000 copies/ml, the median CD4+ cell count was 477 cells/mm3 and the median CD4 percentage was 22.5%. A significant negative correlation could be demonstrated between viral load and nutritional indicators. Children had deficient serum levels relative to normal reference values for glutathione (91% of children), albumin (78%), vitamin A (63%), vitamin D (44%), zinc (38%) and vitamin E (13%). Sixty per cent of the children were anaemic and 30% were iron deficient.Conclusion: A high prevalence of acute and chronic malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies occurred among HIV-infected children residing in care centres. The study highlights the need to investigate early initiation of antiretroviral therapy and nutrition interventions, including aggressive supplementation, in order to improve the prognosis of these children

Emerging Synergisms Between Drugs and Physiologically-Patterned Weak Magnetic Fields: Implications for Neuropharmacology and the Human Population in the Twenty-First Century

Synergisms between pharmacological agents and endogenous neurotransmitters are familiar and frequent. The present review describes the experimental evidence for interactions between neuropharmacological compounds and the classes of weak magnetic fields that might be encountered in our daily environments. Whereas drugs mediate their effects through specific spatial (molecular) structures, magnetic fields mediate their effects through specific temporal patterns. Very weak (microT range) physiologically-patterned magnetic fields synergistically interact with drugs to strongly potentiate effects that have classically involved opiate, cholinergic, dopaminergic, serotonergic, and nitric oxide pathways. The combinations of the appropriately patterned magnetic fields and specific drugs can evoke changes that are several times larger than those evoked by the drugs alone. These novel synergisms provide a challenge for a future within an electromagnetic, technological world. They may also reveal fundamental, common physical mechanisms by which magnetic fields and chemical reactions affect the organism from the level of fundamental particles to the entire living system

Release of Major Peanut Allergens from Their Matrix under Various pH and Simulated Saliva Conditions—Ara h2 and Ara h6 Are Readily Bio-Accessible

The oral mucosa is the first immune tissue that encounters allergens upon ingestion of food. We hypothesized that the bio-accessibility of allergens at this stage may be a key determinant for sensitization. Light roasted peanut flour was suspended at various pH in buffers mimicking saliva. Protein concentrations and allergens profiles were determined in the supernatants. Peanut protein solubility was poor in the pH range between 3 and 6, while at a low pH (1.5) and at moderately high pHs (\u3e8), it increased. In the pH range of saliva, between 6.5 and 8.5, the allergens Ara h2 and Ara h6 were readily released, whereas Ara h1 and Ara h3 were poorly released. Increasing the pH from 6.5 to 8.5 slightly increased the release of Ara h1 and Ara h3, but the recovery remained low (approximately 20%) compared to that of Ara h2 and Ara h6 (approximately 100% and 65%, respectively). This remarkable difference in the extraction kinetics suggests that Ara h2 and Ara h6 are the first allergens an individual is exposed to upon ingestion of peanut-containing food. We conclude that the peanut allergens Ara h2 and Ara h6 are quickly bio-accessible in the mouth, potentially explaining their extraordinary allergenicity