Review Manipulation: Literature Review, and Future Research Agenda

Background: The phenomenon of review manipulation and fake reviews has gained Information Systems (IS) scholars’ attention during recent years. Scholarly research in this domain has delved into the causes and consequences of review manipulation. However, we find that the findings are diverse, and the studies do not portray a systematic approach. This study synthesizes the findings from a multidisciplinary perspective and presents an integrated framework to understand the mechanism of review manipulation. Method: The study reviews 88 relevant articles on review manipulation spanning a decade and a half. We adopted an iterative coding approach to synthesizing the literature on concepts and categorized them independently into potential themes. Results: We present an integrated framework that shows the linkages between the different themes, namely, the prevalence of manipulation, impact of manipulation, conditions and choice for manipulation decision, characteristics of fake reviews, models for detecting spam reviews, and strategies to deal with manipulation. We also present the characteristics of review manipulation and cover both operational and conceptual issues associated with the research on this topic. Conclusions: Insights from the study will guide future research on review manipulation and fake reviews. The study presents a holistic view of the phenomenon of review manipulation. It informs various online platforms to address fake reviews towards building a healthy and sustainable environment

FAKE REVIEWS AND MANIPULATION: DO CUSTOMER REVIEWS MATTER?

With the prevalence of fake reviews across web and e-commerce platforms it has become difficult for the customers to make an informed purchase decision. Considering this we examine the influence of review manipulation on customer’s purchase decision. A qualitative approach employing interviews with frequent online shoppers was employed to explore the phenomenon. The results of the study suggest that customers accord recommendations from their social network more weightage than the reviews available on an e-commerce platform. Further, we found that customers apply either or both interactive and extractive strategies to deal with review manipulation. Keywords: information processing, review manipulation, fake reviews, grounded theory

Do Customers Perceive Reviews as Manipulated? A Warranting Theory Perspective

Online customer reviews proved to have an influence on customer’s purchase. However, most online reviews don’t always prove effective in guiding the purchase process, because of fake reviews. While e-commerce platforms do tend to incorporate ways to counter review manipulation, customer perception on review quality is more important. In this study we aim to understand the impression mechanism of online reviews. Using warranting theory, as theoretical lens we found that textual and review characteristics play a crucial role in forming an impression amongst the customers. Further, research suggest that higher contamination of reviews influence customers to perceive reviews less authentic

Development of serum substitute medium for bone tissue engineering

In tissue engineering, cells are grown often on scaffolds and subjected to chemical/mechanical stimuli. Most such cultures still use fetal bovine serum (FBS) despite its known disadvantages including ethical concerns, safety issues, and variability in composition, which greatly influences the experimental outcomes. To overcome the disadvantages of using FBS, chemically defined serum substitute medium needs to be developed. Development of such medium depends on cell type and application—which makes it impossible to define one universal serum substitute medium for all cells in any application. Here, we developed a serum substitute medium for bone tissue engineering (BTE) in a step-by-step process. Essential components were added to the medium while human bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (hBMSCs, osteoblast progenitor cells) were cultured in two-dimensional and three-dimensional substrates. In a 3-week culture, the developed serum substitute medium worked equally well as FBS containing medium in term of cell attachment to the substrate, cell survival, osteoblast differentiation, and deposition of extracellular matrix. In the next step, the use of serum substitute medium was evaluated when culturing cells under mechanical loading in the form of shear stress. The outcomes showed that the application of shear stress is essential to improve extracellular matrix formation while using serum substitute medium. The developed serum substitute medium could pave the way in replacing FBS for BTE studies eliminating the use of controversial FBS and providing a better-defined chemical environment for BTE studies.</p

Alkaline Phosphatase Activity of Serum Affects Osteogenic Differentiation Cultures

Fetal bovine serum (FBS) is a widely used supplement in cell culture medium, despite its known variability in composition, which greatly affects cellular function and consequently the outcome of studies. In bone tissue engineering, the deposited mineralized matrix is one of the main outcome parameters, but using different brands of FBS can result in large variations. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is present in FBS. Not only is ALP used to judge the osteogenic differentiation of bone cells, it may affect deposition of mineralized matrix. The present study focused on the enzymatic activity of ALP in FBS of different suppliers and its contribution to mineralization in osteogenic differentiation cultures. It was hypothesized that culturing cells in a medium with high intrinsic ALP activity of FBS will lead to higher mineral deposition compared to media with lower ALP activity. The used FBS types were shown to have significant differences in enzymatic ALP activity. Our results indicate that the ALP activity of the medium not only affected the deposited mineralized matrix but also the osteogenic differentiation of cells as measured by a changed cellular ALP activity of human-bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (hBMSCs). In media with low inherent ALP activity, the cellular ALP activity was increased and played the major role in the mineralization process, while in media with high intrinsic ALP activity contribution from the serum, less cellular ALP activity was measured, and the ALP activity of the medium also contributed to mineral formation substantially. Our results highlight the diverse effects of ALP activity intrinsic to FBS on osteogenic differentiation and matrix mineralization and how FBS can determine the experimental outcomes, in particular for studies investigating matrix mineralization. Once again, the need to replace FBS with more controlled and known additives is highlighted.</p

Outcome of different modes of non-invasive ventilation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients with type II respiratory failure

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive inflammatory airway disorder often leading to type II respiratory failure (RF). Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) is crucial in COPD management. This study compares T (Timed), ST (Spontaneous-Timed), and iVAPS (Intelligent volume assured pressure support) modes. Method: A prospective, experimental, comparative study spanned two years. One hundred COPD patients with Type 2 RF were randomized into three groups: T mode (n=33), ST mode (n=33), and iVAPS mode (n=34). Outcome assessment included clinical, hematological parameters, and intubation rate. Result: The study revealed varying degrees of success among the three modes of NIV. iVAPS mode demonstrated the highest success rate, with 79.4% of cases achieving positive outcomes. Noteworthy improvements were observed in respiratory rate (RR) and oxygen saturation (SpO2) in the iVAPS group after 12 hours of NIV. Both the ST mode and iVAPS mode showed significant increases in pH levels, with a more pronounced improvement seen in the iVAPS group. Additionally, a substantial reduction in pCO2 levels after BiPAP was noted in the iVAPS group. The intubation rate was lowest in the iVAPS group, though the difference did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions: iVAPS mode demonstrated superior outcomes, including significant improvements in RR, SpO2, pH, and pCO2. While the intubation rate was lowest in the iVAPS group, statistical significance was not achieved. iVAPS emerges as a promising alternative, potentially averting the need for invasive ventilation. Larger, diverse studies are needed to validate these findings

Hearing Loss in Chronic Otitis Media Mucosal Type, Does This Have a Relation with Patient Demographic Profile, a Study in the Third World Country

The study was conducted to establish a relationship between hearing loss withthe demographic profile in patients with chronic otitis media inactive mucosal disease. Patients with chronic otitis media (COM) inactive mucosal disease, of both sexes and different age groups were assessed and grouped based on unilateral or bilateral ear involvement; rural and urban, and based on the duration of discharge. Hearing loss (HL) was measured by calculating the air-bone gap via pure-tone audiometry. The study included 210 ears, a total of 161 patients. The age group of patients ranged from 15 to 55 years. Maximum proportion (53 %) in younger age groups (15-25 years) but no relation with HL was seen. Incidence was higher in females, with significantly greater HL. Greater HL in bilateral involvement. 51% right ear and 49% left ear involvement; 59 % from the rural area, 41 % from urban areas; no significant difference in HL. Duration of ear discharge varied from2 months to several years; maximum proportion (41%) for more than 10 years, with maximum HL (27.18 dB). Hence, it was concluded that high incidence of COM was in patients in the younger age range, in females, in rural areas, and in unilateral ear involvement. HL was significantly higher with bilateral involvement and in the female population. Greater HL was associated with longer discharging ears.Lattice Science Publication (LSP) © Copyright: All rights reserved

Ectopic parathyroid adenoma: A case report

The parathyroid adenoma can be located in an "ectopic" situation in 10% of cases, secondary to "embryonic migration" anomalies. Retroclavicular location of an ectopic parathyroid adenoma is exceptional. Therefore, its diagnosis can be particularly difficult. We report the case of a 51-year-old female patient with no previous history who consulted for asymptomatic hypercalcemia and whose investigations, in particular Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi scintigraphy, revealed a right retroclavicular parathyroid adenoma measuring 2.7x3.2 cm in an ectopic situation, confirmed on histological examination after surgery