The effect of supply chain agility on firm performance during COVID-19 pandemic: the mediating and moderating role of demand stability

The aim of this paper is to analyse the effects of supply chain agility on firm performance and the role of demand stability in this relationship. Within the scope of the research, by establishing a SEM (structural equation modelling), effects of supply chain agility and demand stability on firm performance were investigated. In addition, the effect of supply chain agility on demand stability is also observed. Analyzes have shown that during COVID-19 pandemic period, supply chain agility positively affects demand stability and firm performance. In addition, demand stability has positively affected firm performances. The mediating role of demand stability was analysed with the Process Macro method and its moderating effect was analysed with multiple regression. Analysis results showed that demand stability has a mediating role in the effect of supply chain agility on firm performance, but it doesn't have a moderating role

Longitudinal Assessment of Alterations in Peripheral Inflammatory Markers Over a Hospitalization Period in Patients with Schizophrenia

Objective: To assess the effects of regular medication administration, diet, sleep, and physical activity provided by hospital care on inflammatory markers in schizophrenia patients. The primary hypothesis of our study is that the assembly of various factors, will reduce low-grade inflammation in a short period. Materials and Methods: This retrospective longitudinal study involved 106 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia who met the exclusion and inclusion criteria. Inflammatory markers such as neutrophil-to-lymphocyte Ratios (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratios (MLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios (PLR), C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratios (CAR), and systemic immune inflammation indices (SII) were calculated at the time of hospital admission and after three weeks. Results: The mean age of the participants was 39.0±13.1 years and the majority were male (n: 75). Reductions were observed in all inflammatory markers after three weeks. The CRP decreased from a median value of 2.6 (interquartile range (IQR): 1.1-5.3) to 1.90 (IQR: 0.85-3.30) (p=0.001, effect size=0.375). The CAR changed from 0.064 (IQR: 0.026-0.115) to 0.043 (IQR: 0.017-0.077) (p=0.005, effect size=0.371). The NLR demonstrated a significant reduction from 2.31 (IQR: 1.73-3.24) to 1.73 (IQR: 1.28-2.27) (p<0.001, effect size=0.647). The SII decreased from 634 (IQR: 425-870) to 470 (IQR: 321-645) (p<0.001, effect size=0.577). The PLR went down from 9.85 (IQR: 7.4-12.7) to 8.21 (IQR: 6.22-10.3) (p<0.001, effect size=0.547). Lastly, the MLR reduced from 0.297 (IQR: 0.221-0.378) to 0.258 (IQR: 0.195-0.319) (p<0.001, effect size=0.522). Conclusion: This study underscores the influence of regular antipsychotic treatment and hospital care in reducing inflammation markers like NLR, MLR, PLR, SII, and CAR in schizophrenia patients. Future studies should explore the potential of markers like CAR and SII in detecting low-grade inflammation, and further probe into the role of sleep, nutrition, and physical activity, emphasising the paramount role of comprehensive hospital care

Application of a validated LC-MS/MS method for JWH-073 and its metabolites in blood and urine in real forensic cases

Synthetic cannabinoids, which were synthesized to improve the therapeutic effects of cannabis, have become a major issue when they are abused. They have different chemical structures from tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) but similar effects on endocannabinoid receptors. "Spice'' named products have more serious side effects than cannabis and can even cause death. These mixtures are prepared by spraying chemicals onto small pieces of herbs and are being dishonestly sold as "natural'' and "legal'' products over the internet. Their popularity is continuously increasing. Studies on detecting synthetic cannabinoids in biological samples as well as pharmacology and toxicology studies of these chemicals are very limited

Deficient median nerve prepulse inhibition of the blink reflex in cervical dystonia

Objective: We analyzed prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the blink reflex (BR) in patients with cervical dystonia (CD) to examine the sensory modulation of the motor system

Differential modulation of prepulse inhibition of the blink reflex in peripersonal versus extrapersonal space

Objective. - Threatening stimuli encountered in peripersonal space (PPS) are processed differently from those encountered in extrapersonal space (EPS). This phenomenon is attributed to tonic top-down modulation. We hypothesized that prepulse inhibition (PPI) of a reflex, which has a protective function, may change according to whether the conditioning stimulus appears in PPS or EPS. We aimed to compare the strength of the PPI according to whether stimulation was delivered in PPS or EPS

Validation of JWH-018 and its metabolites in blood and urine by UPLC-MS/MS: Monitoring in forensic cases

The herbal products referred to as 'Spice' have been used as 'legal alternatives' to cannabis worldwide since 2004. The first synthetic cannabinoid JWH-018 was detected in 'Spice' products in 2008, and has been banned by many legal authorities since the beginning of 2009. In order to prove use of JWH cannabinoids (JWHs), specific and robust methods were needed. We have developed a specific and reliable method for the detection and quantification of JWH-018, JWH-018 N-pentanoic acid, and JWH-018 N-(5-hydroxypentyl) in blood and urine using solid-phase extraction followed by UPLC-MS/MS analysis. The method has been validated in terms of linearity (0.1-50 ng/mL), selectivity, intra-assay and inter-assay accuracy and precision (CV < 15%), recovery (85-98%), limits of detection (LOD) (0.08-0.14 ng/mL), and quantification (LOQ) (0.10-0.21 ng/mL). Matrix effects, stability, and process efficiency were also assessed. The method has been applied to 868 authentic samples received by the Department of Chemistry (Istanbul) in the Council of Forensic Medicine of the Ministry of Justice. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved