Sensitive detection methods are key to identify secondary EGFR c.2369C>T p.(Thr790Met) in non-small cell lung cancer tissue samples

Background: Correct identification of the EGFR c.2369C>T p.(Thr790Met) variant is key to decide on a targeted therapeutic strategy for patients with acquired EGFR TKI resistance in non-small cell lung cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correct detection of this variant in 12 tumor tissue specimens tested by 324 laboratories participating in External Quality Assessment (EQA) schemes. Methods: Data from EQA schemes were evaluated between 2013 and 2018 from cell lines (6) and resections (6) containing the EGFR c.2369C>T p.(Thr790Met) mutation. Adequate performance was defined as the percentage of tests for w

Social and environmental sustainability model on consumers’ altruism, green purchase intention, green brand loyalty, and evangelism

Across the globe, the awareness for environmental degradation and its harmful effects is rapidly growing. The whole world has come together to work in the direction to protect the environment. Consumers are increasingly becoming cautious towards the impact of their consumption pattern on environment and organisations can attain a competitive edge by leveraging this cautiousness by offering them green products/brands. However, it is importance for the marketers to understand that how increasing levels of sustainability awareness impacts other factors which explain pro-environmental behaviour of customers. To fill the existing gap in the current literature in this regard, the current study aims to build a structural model which includes social and environmental sustainability awareness in measuring customer altruism, buying intention, loyalty and customer evangelism. The theoretical model extends the existing framework of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and explores the decision-making framework regarding ethical behaviour. Through existing literature review and expert input, the indicators (variables) for each construct were recognised. After that, data was collected from 331 respondents through a structurally designed questionnaire; the hypothetical model was test using the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique. The findings of the study indicate that sustainability awareness positively influence the consumer altruism which in turn enhances the consumer purchase intention, green brand loyalty and green brand evangelism and altruism can and can bridge value-action gap for green brands. Current analysis supports the view that there are significant positive associations among the identified constructs.N/

A cross-category investigation into the effects of nine-ending pricing on brand choice

International audienceRetailers largely adopt nine-ending prices and these prices have attracted greater attention from researchers in marketing. Despite this increased interest, very few empirical studies have tried to quantify the effects of nine-ending prices on consumer actual behaviors. Those who have studied the behavioral effects of nine-ending prices have produced mixed findings. In this article, we investigated the cross-category effects of nine-ending pricing on consumer brand choice at the SKU level. We distinguished between different types of nine-ending while controlling for the rounded prices and other marketing-mix variables. We conducted our analysis on over 11,000 SKUs in 102 product categories of two (2) grocery retailers. We find that the effects of 99 ending prices on the SKU's category choice are larger in concentrated and promotional categories but smaller in expensive categories. However, their influence on purchase quantity is larger in expensive categories but smaller in concentrated categories.</p

Effets des prix à terminaison 9 sur le choix des consommateurs

International audienceLes professionnels de la distribution et de la communication adoptent couramment les prix à terminaison 9, considérés comme étant attractifs en toutes circonstances. La recherche en marketing a approfondi les connaissances concernant les effets des prix à terminaison 9. L’article propose une synthèse des principales connaissances issues des pratiques managériales et de la recherche académique. Il met en relief les effets les plus significatifs, mais souligne également certaines limites, en vue d’une meilleure efficacité globale de l’exploitation commerciale des terminaisons tarifaires 9. Mot-clés : prix, terminaison tarifaires, prix à terminaison 9, prix rond.</p

Nine-ending prices and consumer's behavior: A field study in a restaurant

International audienceThe effect of nine-ending prices on customer's behavior was tested in a little restaurant (pizzeria-grill) where 1271 customers who ordered a pizza were observed. A list of nine main dishes was proposed in this restaurant and included five different pizzas. The effect of the price-ending of one pizza was tested. During 2 weeks, all the pizzas were proposed with a round 00-ending price (i.e. 8.00 €) whereas for the other 2 weeks a target-pizza was proposed with a nine-ending price (i.e. 7.99 €) whereas the four other were proposed with a round 00-ending price. A last, a third 2 weeks period was tested where all the pizzas were proposed with a nine-ending price. Results showed that an increase in the choice of the target-pizza by the customers was observed when the price of this item was a nine-ending price and the prices of the other items ended with zero. No difference in the choice of the target-pizza was observed when all the items were presented with the same type of ending (9 or 0)

Cryotolerance of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus CFL1 is modified by acquisition of antibiotic resistance

International audienceThis study aimed to relate the acquisition of different antibiotic resistances and the corresponding physiological responses to cold stress of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus strain CFL1. Six resistant mutants were spontaneously obtained and studied depending on the target of the antibiotic: (i) bacitracin and vancomycin (Bac R , Van R , wall synthesis), (ii) novobiocin (Nov R , DNA replication), and (iii) kanamycin, spiramycin, streptomycin (Kan R , Spi R , Str R , RNA translation). The mutations modified the growth and the cold stress response at three different physiological levels: (i) Van R and Spi R mutants showed significant lower growth rates compared to the wild type strain. (ii) Van R and Bac R mutants displayed a slightly higher resistance to a freezing-thawing challenge whereas Str R and Spi R mutants were more sensitive compared to the wild type. (iii) The recovery of acidification activity after freezing and during frozen storage was improved by considering the Nov R strain, but not with the Van R and Spi R mutants. Thus, acquisition of some antibiotic resistance by spontaneous mutation led to modification of the cold stress response. The hypothesis of a unique cellular thermostat is discussed regarding the diversity of the tested antibiotics

Recovery of the resonance frequency of buildings following strong seismic deformation as a proxy for structural health

Elastic properties of civil engineering structures change when subjected to a dynamic excitation. The modal frequencies show a rapid decrease followed by a relaxation, or slow recovery, that is dependent on the level of damage. In this article, we analyze the slow recovery process applying three relaxation models to fit real earthquake data recorded in a Japanese building that shows variant structural state over 20 years. Despite the differences in conditions, the different scales and the complexity of a real-scale problem, the models originally developed for laboratory experiments are well adapted to real building data. The relaxation parameters (i.e. frequency variation, recovery slope, characteristic times and their amplitudes, and range of relaxation times) are able to characterize the structural state, given their clear connection to the degree of fracturing and mechanical damage to the building. The recovery process following strong seismic deformation, could, therefore, be a suitable proxy to monitor structural health

Weaned piglets display low gastrointestinal digestion of pea (Pisum sativum L.) lectin and pea albumin 2

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Assessing the reliability of local earthquake tomography for crustal imaging: 30 years of records in the Western Alps as a case study

International audienceLocal earthquake tomography (LET) is a popular method for inverting arrival time picks of local-regional earthquakes for P- and S-wave velocity and hypocenter parameters in seismically active regions. This popularity is due to some robust and well-documented open-source codes that are sometimes used as black boxes. The availability of a very complete time-pick database on the Western Alps gives us a chance to thoroughly investigate the influence of the numerous processes and parameters involved when applying LET to the Western Alps or similar targets. From a subset of high-quality manual picks (1989-2014), we compute preliminary P and S velocity models that are used to predict arrival times for later events and allow the selected fusion of picks downloaded from different seismological agencies for a consistent 33-year database (1989-2021). Different model reconstructions are proposed by selecting different subsets of the arrival time dataset. Aside data input into the LET, influence of initial stratified or three-dimensional velocity models and related initial earthquake locations is investigated together with grid discretization, Laplacian smoothing and damping parameters in the standard penalty approach commonly used by LET codes. These numerical parameters account for the expected limited resolution of seismic waves due to their finite-frequency content. Parameter selection is handled by the user, whereas frequency impact is only implicit in the onset picks. The earthquake distribution allows a reconstruction down to 40-km depth over an area of ~500x500 km2. Robust features such as the high-velocity Ivrea body anomaly, and a deep low-velocity anomaly associated with crustal thickening underneath the mountain belt survive whatever the tomography strategy and parameters. Finally, a comparison with previous LET reconstructions suggests that finite-frequency content be explicitly incorporated through wave equation tomography to improve spatial resolution. This would fully exploit observables collected from seismograms, albeit with a significant increase in computer costs