Improving indigenous Vietnamese Black Rabbit frozen sperm quality: the role of glycine and sperm selection methods

[EN] Rabbit sperm are known to undergo damage during both cryopreservation and thawing, leading to decreased viability, motility and membrane integrity. Glycine can protect sperm and reduce damage during freezing. Swim-up is a simple semen processing method for selecting good motile sperm. The study evaluated the effect of the swim-up method and glycine with different concentrations supplemented to the frozen medium. Three indigenous black rabbits were selected for semen collection by artificial vagina. Next, semen was selected by swim-up method and diluted with glycine-added frozen medium. The samples were then transferred to 0.5 mL straws, cooled to 15°C and 5°C, placed in liquid nitrogen vapour, and finally placed directly into liquid nitrogen (-196°C). The samples were thawed and evaluated for sperm quality. The results showed that the medium supplemented with 10mM glycine in combination with swim-up method for 30 min gave the best results and was significantly different from the remaining concentrations (P<0.01), with viability rate, overall mobility and membrane integrity of 68.0%, 58.7% and 49.7%, respectively. In conclusion, 10 mM glycine concentration combined with swim-up for 30 min is the optimal choice for freezing local black rabbit semen. The study highlights the importance of optimising freezing protocols to improve the quality of frozen rabbit sperm, which can have important implications for animal breeding and conservation efforts.This study is funded in part by the Can Tho University, Code: T2022-133Tran, TTT.; Duy, NLK.; Hang, NT.; Ngoc, PK.; Tuyen, DND. (2023). Improving indigenous Vietnamese Black Rabbit frozen sperm quality: the role of glycine and sperm selection methods. World Rabbit Science. 31(4):229-236. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2023.1969022923631

Determinants of antibiotic prescribing in primary care in Vietnam: a qualitative study using the Theoretical Domains Framework

Background: To formulate effective strategies for antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) in primary care, it is crucial to gain a thorough understanding of factors influencing prescribers' behavior within the context. This qualitative study utilizes the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) to uncover these influential factors. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with primary care workers in two provinces in rural Vietnam. Data analysis employed a combined inductive and deductive approach, with the deductive aspect grounded in the TDF. Results: Thirty-eight doctors, doctor associates, and pharmacists participated in twenty-two interviews and two focus group discussions. We identified sixteen themes, directly mapping onto seven TDF domains: knowledge, skills, behavioral regulation, environmental context and resources, social influences, social/professional role and identity, and optimism. Factors driving unnecessary prescription of antibiotics include low awareness of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), diagnostic uncertainty, prescription-based reimbursement policy, inadequate medication supplies, insufficient financing, patients’ perception of health insurance medication as an entitlement, and maintaining doctor-patient relationships. Potential factors facilitating AMS activities include time availability for in-person patient consultation, experience in health communication, and willingness to take action against AMR. Conclusion: Utilizing the TDF to systematically analyze and present behavioral determinants offers a structured foundation for designing impactful AMS interventions in primary care. The findings underscore the importance of not only enhancing knowledge and skills but also implementing environmental restructuring, regulation, and enablement measures to effectively tackle unnecessary antibiotic prescribing in this context

Factors affecting employee performance through a mediation of job satisfaction. An empirical study of hospitality industry in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The research was conducted to explore the relationships between the factors of career development, team spirit, relationship at work, compensation and benefit, working environment, job stress and the factor of employee performance through a mediation of job satisfaction in Hospitality Industry in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Based on previous theoretical and empirical studies, the research conceptual framework and hypotheses were constructed. The primary data was collected from a questionnaire survey with 711 respondents. Multiple regression and Path analyses were conducted to test the research hypotheses, the results showed that career development, team spirit, relationship at work, compensation and benefit, working environment, and employee job satisfaction positively and directly impacted on employee performance. In addition, all factors indirectly influenced employee performance through job satisfaction. Hence, organizations operating in hospitality industry in Ho Chi Minh City should understand better employee expectations to efficiently and effectively improve and manage their human resources

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

Stakeholders and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme as key sustainable development strategies to promote corporate reputation: Evidence from Vietnam

The aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between stakeholder influence, CSR types and corporate reputation. CSR types in this research are economic, legal, ethical, environmental and philanthropic responsibility. Data were collected from surveys of 869 leaders and managers in the public, private and foreign direct investment (FDI) sectors. The research data were analysed using a partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) model incorporating measurement-model results (verifying internal consistency, reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity) and structural model results (identifying the causal relationship among variables and confirming the research hypotheses). The results revealed that the stakeholder influence does not only significantly affect the CSR types but also positively affects corporate reputation. Further, CSR performance in legal, ethical, environmental, philanthropic responsibility except economic responsibility have a significant influence on corporate reputation. Based on the findings, the study considers CSR performance a valuable management tool for enhancing corporate reputation. It has implications for the improvement of CSR management and sustainable development

Factors Affecting the Intention to Use Financial Technology among Vietnamese Youth: Research in the Time of COVID-19 and Beyond

This study focuses on understanding the factors that affect the intention of using financial technology among young Vietnamese in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fintech studies are abundant in developed countries and mainly focus on consumers’ conditions, awareness, habits, and capital. These are expected to differ significantly from the situation in developing countries. We have reviewed factors that can affect the user’s intention, including the Perceived Benefit (PB), Perceived Risk (PR), Belief (B), and Social Influence (SI), and rely on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) model in this research. The survey sample comprises 161 Z-generation consumers with strong flexibility and knowledge about the use of Fintech. We use the PLS-SEM (partial least squares structural equation modeling) analysis method with the SmartPLS software (SmartPLS GmbH, Oststeinbek, Germany) to evaluate the research model. We find that the Perceived Benefit (PB) has the most significant impact on the intention to use Fintech, followed by Belief (B). However, in general, the factors are not significant, perhaps due to many reasons that are intrinsic in Vietnam. Based on this result, service providers, policymakers, and researchers can calibrate the development and research for the following stages. We offer findings different from the previous research, thus especially extending the literature on young people

Performance Evaluation of Best Path Selection Protocol in Multi-hop Relaying Networks under Joint Impact of Co-channel Interference and Hardware Impairments

This paper evaluates outage probability (OP) of a path-selection protocol in multi-path multi-hop decode-and-forward (DF) relaying networks. In the considered protocol, relying on the end-to-end signal to interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), the best path between the source and the destination is selected to enhance the outage performance under joint impact of co-channel interference and hardware imperfection. We derive exact and asymptotic closed-form expressions of the end-to-end OP for the considered protocol over Rayleigh fading channels. The simulation results are then presented to validate the theoretical results