The ERP and CRM business value

Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Information Management, specialization in Knowledge Management and Business IntelligenceThe value of Information Technology (IT) adoption has been and still is a crucial question for the decision on IT adoption. In this paper we suggest and test a research model that aims at defining the integrative value of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. ERP and CRM systems is analysed based on the Resource Based View (RBV) of the firm and will be measured by its impact on business value, having in consideration the moderation of system and process integration. The research model was tested and analysed with data, collected with the assistance of Microsoft, from firms that have adopted both ERP and CRM systems in their organization. Our aim with this research is that it will provide new knowledge on how ERP and CRM systems may positively influence value from IT investments, and how systems integration as well as process integration provides business value

Whole-genome analysis of DNA methylation across cancer types reveals specific patterns in early stages

Dynamic variations in DNA methylation are known to play an important role in cancer development through modulation of gene expression. Here, were developed a mathematical structured model to identify patterns of differentially methylated genes (cDMGs), across different cancers types that can act as epigenetic diagnostic biomarkers. A Working Pipeline (WP), designed in R language, was applied to 8 cancer cohorts from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) aiming to analyze DNA methylation and gene expression alterations occurring during normal to stage I carcinogenic transition. WP has a principal component which was divided in four steps: 0. Clinical characterization of patients; 1. Identification of cDMGs; 2. Identification of genetic/epigenetic patterns across different cancer type; and 3. Identification of diagnostic predictors. Additionally, the WP had a second component containing two more complementary steps: 4. Identification of CpG probes that better predict gene expression and 5. HJ-Biplot approach to visualize genes or CpG probes and its association with sample distribution. Appling the principal component of the WP to TCGA cohorts, we identified 117 cDMGs in breast cancer, 307 in colorectal cancer, 99 in head and neck cancer, 156 in kidney clear cell cancer, 106 in kidney papillary cancer, 349 in liver cancer, 180 in lung cancer and 25 in thyroid cancer. Analysis of patterns across these cancers revealed that the majority of cDMGs are cancer-specific. Moreover, we found cDMGs to be good predictors of diagnosis. When considering specific biomarkers for each cancer, only 19, 153, 27, 93, 53, 72, 38 and 14 genes were found to be good diagnostic biomarkers in breast, colorectal, head and neck, kidneyR, kidneyP, liver, lung and thyroid cancers, respectively. Therefore, we developed a novel working pipeline that allowed data sets analyses available worldwide. Validation of this mathematical model evidences that normal-tumor transition is not a conserved process event across different cancers type, but specific to the cell of origin.O cancro é descrito como um grupo de doenças altamente complexas caracterizadas pelo crescimento anormal e descontrolado de células com a capacidade de invadir outros tecidos. A vasta maioria das células presentes no organismo adulto apresentam o genoma completo, altamente regulado, de forma, a manter os padrões de atividade específica para cada tecido. Assim, os mecanismos que regulam esta atividade são importantes objetos de estudo no desenvolvimento de cancro, nomeadamente, a metilação do DNA. A metilação do DNA é um dos mecanismos epigenéticos mais estudados que ocorre pela adição de um grupo metil à sequência de DNA, modificando a função dos genes e influenciando a expressão genética. O cancro é maior causa de morbilidade e mortalidade no mundo, contando com 18.1 milhões de novos casos e 9.6 milhões de mortes. Salienta-se, que os cancros do pulmão, mama e colorretal apresentam a maior taxa de incidência. A presente dissertação teve como principais objetivos 1) criar um procedimento de trabalho, 2) identificar genes diferencialmente metilados associados a cancro (cDMGs), 3) identificar padrões de expressão/metilação entre diferentes tipos cancros e 4) identificar preditores de diagnóstico. Metodologicamente, foi criado um procedimento de trabalho que teve aplicação na análise do genoma completo das coortes do The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). A análise enunciada utilizou dados de expressão genética (Illumina Hiseq) e metilação de DNA (Illumina HumanMethylation 450K array) para 8 coortes dos seguintes tipos de cancro: cancro da mama, cancro colorretal, cancro da cabeça e pescoço, cancro das células renais (cancro do rimR), cancro papilar do rim (cancro do rimP), cancro do fígado, cancro do pulmão e cancro da tiroide. Neste projeto, foram comparados dois grupos, tecido sólido adjacente e tumor primário em estadio I com 84 e 126 em cancro da mama, 21 e 54 em cancro colorretal, 20 e 27 em cancro da cabeça e pescoço, 24 e 155 em cancro do rimR, 23 e 167 em cancro do rimP, 41 e 171 em cancro do fígado, 21 e 245 em cancro do pulmão e 50 e 284 em cancro da tiroide, respetivamente. Os dados mencionados foram analisados através de linguagem de programação em R. Considerando os objetivos propostos, verificou-se que o primeiro objetivo é a chave para os restantes. O procedimento de trabalho foi estruturado com base em duas componentes distintas. A componente principal apresentou 4 fases: Fase 0 – Caracterização dos cohorts; Fase 1 – Identificar genes diferencialmente metilados associados a cancro; Fase 2 – Identificar padrões genéticos/epigenéticos entre diferentes tipos de cancro e Fase 3 – Identificar preditores de diagnóstico. Entretanto, a componente complementar apresentou 2 fases: Fase 4 – Identificar sítios de metilação com maior impacto na expressão e Fase 5 – Representação multivariada utilizando HJ-Biplot para visualizar genes ou sítios de metilação e a sua associação com a distribuição das amostras. Dentro da componente principal, a Fase 0 foi considerada opcional e teve como intuito caracterizar os pacientes da coorte utilizando as variáveis clínicas disponíveis para tal. As fases seguintes estiveram dependentes da existência de dados de expressão genética (Illumina HiSeq) e metilação de DNA (Illumina HumanMethylation 450K array), assim como, pacientes que apresentem ambas as amostras. Deste modo, ambas as bases de dados foram importadas no início da Fase 1, os genes e sítios de metilação foram sujeitos a um pré-processamento, seguido de um processo de testes inferenciais distribuídos por níveis. Após seleção de genes com diferenças significativas de expressão e sítios de metilação com diferenças significativas de metilação estabeleceu-se os pontos de corte (valor absoluto log2(Foldchange)>1.5 e valor absoluto Δβ>0.2). Assim, foram selecionados apenas genes e CpG com diferenças muito significativas com interesse de estudo. Posteriormente, o teste de correlação de Pearson avaliou a relação entre ambos e identificou os genes diferencialmente metilados associados a cancro. A Fase 2 procurou identificar padrões através da interseção das várias coortes. Por fim, a Fase 3 identificou os bons preditores de diagnóstico. De forma a complementar a análise, a Fase 4 utilizou os modelos lineares de regressão múltipla para identificar a metilação de sítios de metilação com maior impacto na expressão de gene. Entretanto, a Fase 5 procurou de forma multivariada identificar comportamentos de gene ou sítios de metilação com maior influência na distinção entre grupos e na distribuição das amostras. Através do procedimento de trabalho estabelecido, foram identificados nas coortes mama, colorretal, cabeça e pescoço, rimR, rimP, fígado, pulmão e tiroide, diferenças na expressão de 117, 307, 99, 156, 106, 349, 180 e 25 genes (valor absoluto de log2(Foldchange) > 1,5 e p-value ajustado (FDR)0,2 e p-value ajustado (FDR)<0.05), respetivamente, designados de cDMGs. Seguidamente, foi realizada uma análise de processo biológico que revelou a existência de enriquecimento de funções ligadas ao desenvolvimento e sistema nervoso. Entretanto, foi realizada uma análise anotação com objetivo de verificar quais dos cDMGs nunca foram reportados em cancro. Esta análise sugere que nas coortes acima mencionadas 18, 36, 13, 18, 15, 48, 20 e 3 genes, respetivamente, nunca foram mencionados com cancro. Por outro lado, 62, 150, 28, 27, 20, 94, 100 e 6 genes, respetivamente, já foram mencionados no cancro específico. Entretanto, os restantes já foram mencionados em cancro, mas não no cancro específico. De seguida, a intersecção dos genes ou sítios de metilação entre coortes mostrou que a maioria eram específicos para o tipo tumoral e apenas uma pequena quantidade deles tinham presença em mais de uma coorte. Assim, para as coortes da mama, colorretal, cabeça e pescoço, rimR, rimP, fígado, pulmão e tiroide, são específicos para a coorte 55, 202, 49, 100, 70, 240, 97 e 18 genes, respetivamente, e 261, 782, 223, 244, 189, 1339, 449 e 35 sítios de metilação, respetivamente. Seguidamente, foi realizada uma análise de vias de sinalização utilizando a base de dados Reactome que mostrou a cascata RAF/MAP quinase (p-value=8.01e-05) está muito presente em cancro colorretal, assim como, as interações L1CAM (p-value=0.004208). Adicionalmente, a ativação do recetor GABA A (p-value=0.026896) está enriquecido em cancro da cabeça e pescoço, os recetores péptido-ligando (p-value=0.006942) e a metilação de DNA (p-value=0.024459) em cancro do pulmão. Finalmente, os nossos resultados sugerem que o desenvolvimento de cancro em estadios precoces apresenta características intrínsecas ao tecido de origem. Por último, a análise de bons preditores de diagnóstico teve como objetivo identificar biomarcadores com capacidade de discriminar tecido normal e tumoral em estadios precoces. Os nossos resultados mostraram que nas coortes previamente mencionados existiram 45, 238, 57, 142, 88, 126, 88 e 18 genes, respetivamente, juntamente com 340, 835, 286, 299, 200, 1129, 595 e 38 sítios de metilação, respetivamente. Destes, 44, 153, 68, 173, 111, 261, 128 e 24, respetivamente pertenceram aos padrões específicos encontrados. Concluindo, nós criamos um procedimento de trabalho capaz de analisar bases de dados de todo o mundo. Como vimos, este estudo mostrou que o procedimento permitiu identificar diferenças de metilação significativas em estadios precoces. Estas alterações na sua grande maioria são específicas da transição normal-tumoral evidenciando que este evento não é conservado entre tipos de cancro, sugerindo que cada tecido apresenta características únicas do tipo de célula de origem

Enterprise resource planning and customer relationship management value

Ruivo, P., Oliveira, T., & Mestre, A. (2017). Enterprise resource planning and customer relationship management value. Industrial Management and Data Systems, 117(8), 1612-1631. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-08-2016-0340Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a theoretical model to measure the impact of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management (CRM) systems and moderating relationships of system and process integration on business value. Design/methodology/approach - ERP and CRM systems are analysed with the resource-based view theory and measured by their impact on business value, having in consideration the moderation of system and process integration. The model was tested and analysed with data collected by Microsoft, from firms that have adopted both ERP and CRM systems in their organisation. Findings - ERP system is found to be an important asset to business value, but CRM systems' impact on business value is found to be not significant. System integration as moderator of ERP or CRM system is found to be not significant but has a positive and significant impact on business value. For process integration, the study finds that it is significant only when moderating the CRM system variable. Research limitations/implications - The model shows that the moderating effects of system and process integration are important variables for understanding the joint business value of ERP and CRM. Practical implications - Adopting an ERP system and ensuring system integration provides a direct impact on business value. In order for a CRM system to have a positive impact on business value, process integration with ERP system must be ensured. Originality/value - This study provides new knowledge on how ERP and CRM systems used together may positively influence value from IT investments, and how systems integration and process integration provide business value.authorsversionpublishe

Dimensionamento de supermercados e reorganização de layouts, processos e fluxos numa secção de corte e costura

O presente trabalho descreve a implementação de ações de melhoria na Secção de Corte e Costura da Nexxpro, tendo como base a filosofia Lean Thinking e a aplicação de ferramentas de identificação e eliminação de desperdício. O principal objetivo era reduzir o número elevado de ruturas de stock, tempos de espera e movimentação de pessoas e materiais. Durante o processo de resolução do problema, foram identificadas várias causas-raiz que resultaram na implementação de projetos de melhoria ao nível do dimensionamento de supermercados, reorganização de layouts, processos e fluxos. Apesar de os projetos de melhoria não terem sido aplicados na sua totalidade e ainda ser necessário um maior distanciamento temporal, é inegável o contributo deste trabalho para a organização, tendo aumentado a capacidade de resposta da secção, melhorado os seus processos e diminuído as ruturas de stock e o desperdício em todas as suas formas.The present work describes the implementation of improvement action plans in a Sewing and Cutting section, based on the Lean Thinking philosophy and through the application of waste identification and elimination tools. The main goal was to decrease the high number of stock ruptures, waiting times and movement of people and materials. During the problem resolution process, there were identified various root causes that led to the execution of supermarket sizing and reorganization of layouts, processes and flows enhancement projects. Even though the depicted work didn’t reach a terminal phase, its undeniable the amount of benefits that it brought to the organization, increasing the section’s capacity, improving its processes and reducing stock ruptures and waste in all of its forms.Mestrado em Engenharia e Gestão Industria

Contribuição para o estudo de propagação e produção de plantas aquáticas

Mestrado em Arquitectura Paisagista - Instituto Superior de AgronomiaThis work discusses a theoretical and practical study on the production and propagation of aquatic plants. The importance of this subject is based on the functions performed by aquatic plants on the environmental and economic level and considering that these can be inserted under a multifunctional criterion in Landscape Architecture use. This study aims to expose the importance of the aquatic plants, its properties and functions in the ecosystem and landscape and the best methods of propagation and production. The research focused on the study of macrophytes (hydrophytes and helophytes) of freshwater ecosystems. Nevertheless it’s significant to highlight that there are species for its great ecological plasticity or lack of data can be classified in relation to their water requirements as hygrophytes or sub-hygrophytes. This study is divided into two parts, the first is intended to provide a theoretical base which also served as the principle for the development of the practical component, allowing a greater accuracy and resource optimization. Initially it’s given a set of definitions and concepts that are considered essential for a clear understanding of this study, describing then the most important characteristics of the aquatic plants at the environmental and economic level, followed by various topics related to the production and propagation. The second part of the study consists of a practical exercise where was simulated a micro-production using a hydroponic floating system in a closed circuit with a great approach on the energy and environmental sustainability. It was also prepared an economic analysis in which was investigating the feasibility of production and marketing of aquatic plants in Portugal. This research and subsequent analysis and discussion of results from experiments carried out during two months, resulted in a set of technical solutions that allowed enhancing the production of aquatic plants through hydroponics and controlled environment, taking into account a potentially increasing marke

Implantologia em pacientes oncológicos Revisão Sistemática Integrativa

Anualmente, mais de 650.000 pessoas em todo o mundo são afetadas pelo cancro de cabeça e pescoço, refletindo-se entre 2 e 4% de todos os cancros do mundo. Os tratamentos para esta doença incluem uma combinação de cirurgia e radioterapia, com base no grau de gravidade da doença. Pacientes submetidos ao tratamento de radioterapia são suscetíveis a uma deterioração significativa na saúde oral. Em muitos casos, os implantes podem ser a única possibilidade de uma restauração protética, visando a reabilitação funcional do paciente, reintegração social e bem-estar psicológico. O objetivo foi realizar uma revisão sistemática integrativa sobre a implantologia em pacientes oncológicos. Realizou-se uma pesquisa bibliográfica na PubMed com as seguintes palavras-chave: dental implant, cancer, survival, radiotherapy, head and neck neoplasms. Critérios de inclusão e exclusão foram definidos. Na reabilitação oral com implantes em pacientes submetidos a tratamento oncológico, foram estudadas as seguintes técnicas: implantes em retalhos livres, implantes imediatos, prótese colocada sobre implantes e implantes zigomáticos. Dentro destas técnicas a taxa de sucesso foi, na sua grande maioria, acima de 85%. As causas das falhas dos implantes mais recorrentes foram a reabsorção óssea marginal, a peri-implantite e a osteonecrose. As taxas de sucesso são semelhantes entre as diversas técnicas relatadas anteriormente, no entanto, diversos fatores afetam em geral para todos os casos. Isto porque, não são relatados na maioria, a quantidade de radiação aplicada, o local do tumor, o estágio do tumor, o tipo de implante e o intervalo de tempo que o implante foi colocado após o tratamento.Annually, more than 650,000 people worldwide are affected by head and neck cancer, representing between 2 and 4% of all cancers worldwide. Treatments for this disease include a combination of surgery and radiotherapy, based on the severity of the condition. Patients undergoing radiotherapy treatment are susceptible to significant deterioration in oral health. In many cases, implants can be the only possibility for prosthetic restoration, aiming at the patient's functional rehabilitation, social reintegration, and psychological well-being. The objective was to conduct a systematic integrative review on implantology in oncology patients. A bibliographic search was conducted on PubMed using the following keywords: dental implant, cancer, survival, radiotherapy, head and neck neoplasms. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined. In oral rehabilitation with implants in patients undergoing oncological treatment, the following techniques were studied: implants in free flaps, immediate implants, prostheses placed on implants, and zygomatic implants. Within these techniques, the success rate was, for the most part, above 85%. The most recurrent causes of implant failures were marginal bone resorption, peri-implantitis, and osteonecrosis. The success rates are similar among the various techniques previously reported; however, several factors generally affect all cases. This is because the quantity of radiation applied, the tumor's location, stage of the tumor, type of implant used, and the time interval between implant placement and treatment are not commonly reported in most studies. These factors can significantly influence the outcome of oral rehabilitation with implants in patients undergoing oncological treatment

Passing Through a Hole: Delayed Diaphragmatic Hernia After Cytoreductive Surgery

A diaphragmatic hernia is a protrusion of abdominal contents into the thoracic cavity. Although it is commonly congenital, diaphragmatic hernias can also be acquired. Blunt or penetrating trauma are among the most frequent causes, although spontaneous or iatrogenic cases have been reported. Recently, some case reports related to diaphragmatic hernia after debulking surgery for advanced ovarian cancer have been described. This is an exceedingly rare but life-threatening complication, being prompt recognition and surgical correction critical. We report a case of a delayed diaphragmatic hernia in a 19-year-old female resulting from cytoreductive surgery for advanced ovarian cancer. Rapid evolution from gastrointestinal symptoms to hypovolemic shock occurred, and intensive care admission was required. Immediate surgery was critical to improving the patient outcome. This case highlights this uncommon but life-threatening complication, the challenges of diagnosing and managing those patients, and the need for early recognition, support, and surgical correction.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Integrated Omics analysis of pig muscle metabolism under the effects of dietary Chlorella vulgaris and exogenous enzymes

Monogastric feeding is dependent on costly conventional feedstuffs. Microalgae such as Chlorella vulgaris are a sustainable alternative; however, its recalcitrant cell wall hinders monogastric digestion. Carbohydrate Active Enzyme (CAZyme) supplementation is a possible solution. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of 5% dietary C. vulgaris (CV) and enzymatic supplementation (CV + R— Rovabio® Excel AP; CV + M—four CAZyme mix) on muscle transcriptome and proteome of finishing pigs, in an integrated approach. Control pigs increased the abundance of contractile apparatus (MYH1, MYH2, MYH4) and energy metabolism (CKMT1, NDUFS3) proteins, demonstrating increased nutrient availability. They had increased expression of SCD, characteristic of increased glucose availability, via the activation of SREBP-1c and ChREBP. CV and CV + R pigs upregulated proteolytic and apoptotic genes (BAX, DDA1), whilst increasing the abundance of glucose (UQCRFS1) and fatty acid catabolism (ACADS) proteins. CV + R pigs upregulated ACOT8 and SIRT3 genes as a response to reduced nutrient availability, maintaining energy homeostasis. The cell wall specific CAZyme mix, CV + M, was able to comparatively reduce Omics alterations in the muscle, thereby reducing endogenous nutrient catabolism compared to the CV + R and CVinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Quality Traits and Nutritional Value of Pork and Poultry Meat from Animals Fed with Seaweeds

ReviewSeaweeds have caught the attention of the scientific community in recent years. Their production can mitigate the negative impact of anthropogenic activity and their use in animal nutrition reduces the dependency on conventional crops such as maize and soybean meal. In the context of monogastric animals, novel approaches have made it possible to optimise their use in feed, namely polysaccharide extraction, biomass fermentation, enzymatic processing, and feed supplementation with carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes). Their bioactive properties make them putative candidates as feed ingredients that enhance meat quality traits, such as lipid oxidation, shelf-life, and meat colour. Indeed, they are excellent sources of essential amino acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, minerals, and pigments that can be transferred to the meat of monogastric animals. However, their nutritional composition is highly variable, depending on species, harvesting region, local pollution, and harvesting season, among other factors. In this review, we assess the current use and challenges of using seaweeds in pig and poultry diets, envisaging to improve meat quality and its nutritional valueinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Screening for colorectal cancer leading into a new decade: the “Roaring ‘20s” for epigenetic biomarkers?

Colorectal cancer (CRC) has an important bearing (top five) on cancer incidence and mortality in the world. The etiology of sporadic CRC is related to the accumulation of genetic and epigenetic alterations that result in the appearance of cancer hallmarks such as abnormal proliferation, evasion of immune destruction, resistance to apoptosis, replicative immortality, and others, contributing to cancer promotion, invasion, and metastasis. It is estimated that, each year, at least four million people are diagnosed with CRC in the world. Depending on CRC staging at diagnosis, many of these patients die, as CRC is in the top four causes of cancer death in the world. New and improved screening tests for CRC are needed to detect the disease at an early stage and adopt patient management strategies to decrease the death toll. The three pillars of CRC screening are endoscopy, radiological imaging, and molecular assays. Endoscopic procedures comprise traditional colonoscopy, and more recently, capsule-based endoscopy. The main imaging modality remains Computed Tomography (CT) of the colon. Molecular approaches continue to grow in the diversity of biomarkers and the sophistication of the technologies deployed to detect them. What started with simple fecal occult blood tests has expanded to an armamentarium, including mutation detection and identification of aberrant epigenetic signatures known to be oncogenic. Biomarker-based screening methods have critical advantages and are likely to eclipse the classical modalities of imaging and endoscopy in the future. For example, imaging methods are costly and require highly specialized medical personnel. In the case of endoscopy, their invasiveness limits compliance from large swaths of the population, especially those with average CRC risk. Beyond mere discomfort and fear, there are legitimate iatrogenic concerns associated with endoscopy. The risks of perforation and infection make endoscopy best suited for a confirmatory role in cases where there are positive results from other diagnostic tests. Biomarker-based screening methods are largely non-invasive and are growing in scope. Epigenetic biomarkers, in particular, can be detected in feces and blood, are less invasive to the average-risk patient, detect early-stage CRC, and have a demonstrably superior patient follow-up. Given the heterogeneity of CRC as it evolves, optimal screening may require a battery of blood and stool tests, where each can leverage different pathways perturbed during carcinogenesis. What follows is a comprehensive, systematic review of the literature pertaining to the screening and diagnostic protocols used in CRC. Relevant articles were retrieved from the PubMed database using keywords including: “Screening”, “Diagnosis”, and “Biomarkers for CRC”. American and European clinical trials in progress were included as well.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio