685 research outputs found
How to juggle priorities? An interactive tool to provide quantitative support for strategic patient-mix decisions: an ophthalmology case
An interactive tool was developed for the ophthalmology department of the Academic Medical Center to quantitatively support management with strategic patient-mix decisions. The tool enables management to alter the number of patients in various patient groups and to see the consequences in terms of key performance indicators. In our case study, we focused on the bottleneck: the operating room. First, we performed a literature review to identify all factors that influence an operating room's utilization rate. Next, we decided which factors were relevant to our study. For these relevant factors, two quantitative methods were applied to quantify the impact of an individual factor: regression analysis and computer simulation. Finally, the average duration of an operation, the number of cancellations due to overrun of previous surgeries, and the waiting time target for elective patients all turned out to have significant impact. Accordingly, for the case study, the interactive tool was shown to offer management quantitative decision support to act proactively to expected alterations in patient-mix. Hence, management can anticipate the future situation, and either alter the expected patient-mix or expand capacity to ensure that the key performance indicators will be met in the future
Hydrophilic antioxidant compounds in orange juice from different fruit cultivars: Composition and antioxidant activity evaluated by chemical and cellular based (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) assays
Antioxidant capacity was evaluated by a cellular model (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and chemical
methods (FRAP, TEAC and total phenols by Folin-Ciocalteu assay) in the hydrophilic fraction (phenolic
compounds and ascorbic acid) of orange juices (OJs) from six varieties (Midknight, Delta Seedless, Rohde
Red, Seedless, Early and clone Sambiasi), harvested in two seasons. The contents of phenolic compounds
and ascorbic acid analyzed, respectively, by UPLC and HPLC were 370.04 76.97 mg/L and
52.05 6.69 mg/100 mL. Variety and season significantly influenced (p < 0.05) composition and antioxidant
capacity. TEAC and FRAP values correlated well with individual hydrophilic compounds (R2 > 0.991) but no
correlation with cellular assay was observed. An increase in survival rates between 23% and 38% was
obtained, excepting for two varieties that showed no activity (Rohde Red and Seedless). Narirutin, naringin-d,
ferulic acid-d2, didymin, neoeriocitrin and sinapic acid hexose and caffeic acid-d1 were the phenolic
compounds which contributed to survival rates (R2 = 0.979, p < 0.01
International entrepreneurship in SMEs: a study of influencing factors in the textile industry
The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11365-012-0242-3International entrepreneurship is an incipient research area with a rapidly increasing body of knowledge and contributions. An important part of this literature has focused on the analysis of the contributing factors to IE development. From these studies, this work attempts to analyse and validate through an integrative model the effect on this construct in SME of some of the main factors proposed by the literature such as Skills and Competences, Attitude and Proactiveness, Creativity and Innovation, Networking, Employees and Activity. To proceed with this aim, we conducted an empirical research focused on 174 textile SME in Spain. The results obtained confirm a positive relationship between the studied factors and the IE development. 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Effects of salinity and drought on growth, ionic relations, compatible solutes and activation of antioxidant systems in oleander (Nerium oleander L.)
[EN] Nerium
oleander
is an
ornamental
species
of high
aesthetic
value,
grown
in arid
and
semi-
arid
regions
because
of its
drought
tolerance,
which
is also
considered
as
relatively
resistant
to salt;
yet
the
biochemical
and
molecular
mechanisms
underlying
oleander¿s
stress
toler-
ance
remain
largely
unknown.
To
investigate
these
mechanisms,
one-year-old
oleander
seedlings
were
exposed
to 15
and
30
days
of treatment
with
increasing
salt
concentratio
ns,
up
to 800
mM
NaCl,
and
to complete
withholding
of irrigation;
growth
parameters
and
bio-
chemical
markers
characteristic
of conserved
stress-response
pathways
were
then
deter-
mined
in stressed
and
control
plants.
Strong
water
deficit
and
salt
stress
both
caused
inhibition
of growth,
degradation
of photosynthetic
pigments,
a slight
(but
statistically
signifi-
cant)
increase
in the
leaf
levels
of specific
osmolytes,
and
induction
of oxidative
stress¿as
indicated
by
the
accumulation
of malondialdehyde
(MDA),
a reliable
oxidative
stress
marker
¿accompanied
by
increases
in the
levels
of total
phenolic
compounds
and
antioxidant
fla-
vonoids
and
in the
specific
activities
of ascorbate
peroxidase
(APX)
and
glutathione
reduc-
tase
(GR).
High
salinity,
in addition,
induced
accumulation
of Na
+
and
Cl
-
in roots
and
leaves
and
the
activation
of superoxide
dismutase
(SOD)
and
catalase
(CAT)
activities.
Apart
from
anatomical
adaptations
that
protect
oleander
from
leaf
dehydration
at moderate
levels
of
stress,
our
results
indicate
that
tolerance
of this
species
to salinity
and
water
deficit
is based
on
the
constitutive
accumulation
in leaves
of high
concentratio
ns
of soluble
carbohydrates
and,
to a lesser
extent,
of glycine
betaine,
and
in the
activation
of the
aforementioned
antiox-
idant
systems.
Moreover,
regarding
specifically
salt
stress,
mechanisms
efficiently
blocking
transport
of toxic
ions
from
the
roots
to the
aerial
parts
of the
plant
appear
to contribute
to a
large
extent
to tolerance
in
Nerium
oleanderThis work was financed by internal funds of the Polytechnic University of Valencia to Monica Boscaiu and Oscar Vicente. Dinesh Kumar’s stay in Valencia was financed by a NAMASTE fellowship from the European Union, and Mohamad Al Hassan was a recipient of an Erasmus Mundus pre-doctoral scholarship financed by the European Commission (Welcome Consortium).Kumar, D.; Al Hassan, M.; Naranjo Olivero, MA.; Agrawal, V.; Boscaiu, M.; Vicente, O. (2017). Effects of salinity and drought on growth, ionic relations, compatible solutes and activation of antioxidant systems in oleander (Nerium oleander L.). PLoS ONE. 12(9). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0185017Se018501712
A comprehensive overview of radioguided surgery using gamma detection probe technology
The concept of radioguided surgery, which was first developed some 60 years ago, involves the use of a radiation detection probe system for the intraoperative detection of radionuclides. The use of gamma detection probe technology in radioguided surgery has tremendously expanded and has evolved into what is now considered an established discipline within the practice of surgery, revolutionizing the surgical management of many malignancies, including breast cancer, melanoma, and colorectal cancer, as well as the surgical management of parathyroid disease. The impact of radioguided surgery on the surgical management of cancer patients includes providing vital and real-time information to the surgeon regarding the location and extent of disease, as well as regarding the assessment of surgical resection margins. Additionally, it has allowed the surgeon to minimize the surgical invasiveness of many diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, while still maintaining maximum benefit to the cancer patient. In the current review, we have attempted to comprehensively evaluate the history, technical aspects, and clinical applications of radioguided surgery using gamma detection probe technology
Measurement of hadronic event shapes in high-p T multijet final states at √s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector
A measurement of event-shape variables in proton-proton collisions at large momentum transfer is presented using data collected at s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Six event-shape variables calculated using hadronic jets are studied in inclusive multijet events using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb−1. Measurements are performed in bins of jet multiplicity and in different ranges of the scalar sum of the transverse momenta of the two leading jets, reaching scales beyond 2 TeV. These measurements are compared with predictions from Monte Carlo event generators containing leading-order or next-to-leading order matrix elements matched to parton showers simulated to leading-logarithm accuracy. At low jet multiplicities, shape discrepancies between the measurements and the Monte Carlo predictions are observed. At high jet multiplicities, the shapes are better described but discrepancies in the normalisation are observed. [Figure not available: see fulltext.
A search for the dimuon decay of the Standard Model Higgs boson with the ATLAS detector
A search for the dimuon decay of the Standard Model (SM) Higgs boson is performed using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1) collected with the ATLAS detector in Run 2 pp collisions at root s = 13 TeV at the Large Hadron Collider. The observed (expected) significance over the background-only hypothesis for a Higgs boson with a mass of 125.09 GeV is 2.0 sigma (1.7 sigma). The observed upper limit on the cross section times branching ratio for pp -> H -> mu mu is 2.2 times the SM prediction at 95% confidence level, while the expected limit on a H -> mu mu signal assuming the absence (presence) of a SM signal is 1.1(2.0). The best-fit value of the signal strength parameter, defined as the ratio of the observed signal yield to the one expected in the SM, is mu = 1.2 +/- 0.6. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V
Alignment of the ATLAS Inner Detector in Run 2
The performance of the ATLAS Inner Detector alignment has been studied using pp collision data at v s = 13 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment during Run 2 (2015-2018) of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The goal of the detector alignment is to determine the detector geometry as accurately as possible and correct for time-dependent movements. The Inner Detector alignment is based on the minimization of track-hit residuals in a sequence of hierarchical levels, from global mechanical assembly structures to local sensors. Subsequent levels have increasing numbers of degrees of freedom; in total there are almost 750,000. The alignment determines detector geometry on both short and long timescales, where short timescales describe movementswithin anLHCfill. The performance and possible track parameter biases originating from systematic detector deformations are evaluated. Momentum biases are studied using resonances decaying to muons or to electrons. The residual sagitta bias and momentum scale bias after alignment are reduced to less than similar to 0.1 TeV-1 and 0.9 x 10(-3), respectively. Impact parameter biases are also evaluated using tracks within jets
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