Die soziale Verantwortung der Unternehmen

Einführung in das Schwerpunktthem

Ovulation inhibition with four variations of a four-phasic estradiol valerate/dienogest combined oral contraceptive : results of two prospective, randomized, open-label studies

Background: Attempts to improve the tolerability of combined oral contraceptives (COCs) have included the substitution of ethinylestradiol (EE) with 17beta-estradiol (E2). However, this has proved unsatisfactory, specifically in terms of cycle control. To improve upon the poor cycle control seen previously, E2 (in the form of estradiol valerate [E2V], 1 mg E2V contains 0.76 mg E2) was combined with dienogest (DNG) in a novel four-phasic regimen. In the current studies the ovulation inhibition potency of four variations of this regimen was assessed. Study design: Two randomized, open-label, phase II studies were performed. The first study compared two regimens (1A, 2A) with similar dosages of DNG but different lengths of application. Having established in Study 1 that the length of application of regimen 2A was most suitable but that the dosages of DNG were too low for effective ovulation inhibition, a second study was undertaken, which compared two regimens (2B, 2C) with similar lengths of application but increased dosages of DNG. The primary efficacy variable in both studies was the proportion of women with a Hoogland score of 5/6 during Cycle 2. Results: The full analysis set comprised 192 and 203 women in Study 1 and 2, respectively. In Study 1, 10 women (10.9%) in regimen 1A and 6 women (6.4%) in regimen 2A had a Hoogland score of 5/6. In Study 2, 3 women (3.1 %) in regimen 2B and 1 woman (1.0%) in regimen 2C had a Hoogland score of 5/6. There were no safety concerns with any of the regimens

Ökonomische und ökologische Bewertung der Auswirkungen des demografischen Wandels auf die Siedlungsentwässerung: Ökonomische und ökologische Bewertung der Auswirkungen des demografischen Wandels auf die Siedlungsentwässerung: Teil 1: Entwicklung von Szenariobausteinen für die Siedlungswasserwirtschaft im Jahr 2050 – Eine Studie auf Basis von Expertenbefragungen

In recent publications it is questioned whether the existing wastewater management system is suitable for future requirements. The today’s wastewater infrastructure is a complex socio-technical system characterized by centralization, very long life-spans and sunk costs. Thus, it appears questionable whether this system is suitable against the background of a context of dynamic conditions as demographic change, climate change and the emerging requirements in terms of sustainability. This paper adds a contribution to the growing body of literature on prospective waste water management systems. Focusing on long term developments this paper aims to build up scenario-modules towards the year 2050. Our approach combines three methodologies which appear to be suitable with each other, namely the method of explorative scenario development, a modified Delphi method and content analysis. As the waste water sector is a very complex system with various impact factors which are characterized by high dynamics and strong uncertainty the scenario technique appears as an appropriate method. Within the scenario building process a modified Delphi method had been applied to generate the input for the scenario-modules. Key drivers and uncertainties in the field of waste water management were identified by interviewing 16 experts who are scientists or practitioners in the waste water sector. The interviews had been transliterated and then evaluated by using the content analysis approach. Afterwards scenario-modules were derived which provide a basis for further procedure towards complete scenarios for future wastewater infrastructure

Arenen, Akteure und Prozesse

Transnationale Unternehmen haben eine besondere Verpflichtung sich für soziale Nachhaltigkeit einzusetzen. Gleichzeitig werden verschiedene Akteursgruppen in Entscheidungsprozesse von Unternehmen eingebunden. Doch wie sieht es bei der Entwicklung von CSR-Aktivitäten mit der Zusammenarbeit mit Stakeholdern aus

Ovulation inhibition with four variations of a four-phasic estradiol valerate/dienogest combined oral contraceptive : results of two prospective, randomized, open-label studies

Background: Attempts to improve the tolerability of combined oral contraceptives (COCs) have included the substitution of ethinylestradiol (EE) with 17beta-estradiol (E2). However, this has proved unsatisfactory, specifically in terms of cycle control. To improve upon the poor cycle control seen previously, E2 (in the form of estradiol valerate [E2V], 1 mg E2V contains 0.76 mg E2) was combined with dienogest (DNG) in a novel four-phasic regimen. In the current studies the ovulation inhibition potency of four variations of this regimen was assessed. Study design: Two randomized, open-label, phase II studies were performed. The first study compared two regimens (1A, 2A) with similar dosages of DNG but different lengths of application. Having established in Study 1 that the length of application of regimen 2A was most suitable but that the dosages of DNG were too low for effective ovulation inhibition, a second study was undertaken, which compared two regimens (2B, 2C) with similar lengths of application but increased dosages of DNG. The primary efficacy variable in both studies was the proportion of women with a Hoogland score of 5/6 during Cycle 2. Results: The full analysis set comprised 192 and 203 women in Study 1 and 2, respectively. In Study 1, 10 women (10.9%) in regimen 1A and 6 women (6.4%) in regimen 2A had a Hoogland score of 5/6. In Study 2, 3 women (3.1 %) in regimen 2B and 1 woman (1.0%) in regimen 2C had a Hoogland score of 5/6. There were no safety concerns with any of the regimens

Immunohistochemical assessment of PD-L1 expression using three different monoclonal antibodies in triple negative breast cancer patients

Background PD-L1 receptor expression in breast cancer tissue can be assessed with different anti-human PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies. The performance of three specific monoclonal antibodies in a head-to-head comparison is unknown. In addition, a potential correlation of PD-L1 expression and clinico-pathological parameters has not been investigated. Methods This was a retrospective study on tissue samples of patients with histologically confirmed triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). PD-L1 receptors were immune histochemically stained with three anti-human PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies: 22C3 and 28-8 for staining of tumor cell membranes (TC) and cytoplasm (Cyt), SP142 for immune cell staining (IC). Three different tissue samples of each patient were evaluated separately by two observers in a blinded fashion. The percentage of PD-L1 positive tumor cells in relation to the total number of tumor cells was determined. For antibodies 22C3 and 28-8 PD-L1 staining of 0 to  50% was rated "strong positive". Cyt staining was defined as “negative” when no signal was observed and as “positive”, when any positive signal was observed. For IC staining with SP142 all samples with PD-L1 expression ≥ 1% were rated as “positive”. Finally, the relationship between PD-L1 expression and clinico-pathological parameters was analyzed. Results Tissue samples from 59 of 60 enrolled patients could be analyzed. Mean age was 55 years. Both the monoclonal antibodies 22C3 and 28-8 had similar properties, and were positive for both TC in 13 patients (22%) and for Cyt staining in 24 patients (40.7%). IC staining with antibody SP142 was positive in 24 patients (40.7%), who were also positive for Cyt staining. The differences between TC and Cyt staining and TC and IC staining were significant (p = 0.001). Cases with positive TC staining showed higher Ki67 expression compared to those with negative staining, 40 vs 30%, respectively (p = 0.05). None of the other clinico-pathological parameters showed any correlation with PDL1 expression. Conclusions Antibodies 22C3 and 28-8 can be used interchangeably for PD-L1 determination in tumor cells of TNBC patients. Results for Cyt staining with 22C3 or 28-8 and IC staining with SP142 were identical. In our study PD-L1 expression correlates with Ki67 expression but not with OS or DFS

Internationale Studie zur Unternehmenssteuerung und zum Umweltmanagement: Eine Auswertung erster Ergebnisse

Das Controlling übernimmt in Unternehmen die Aufgabe, die langfristige Existenz des Unternehmens zu sichern und kurzfristig die Ziele der Gewinnerzielung und der Liquiditätssicherung zu erreichen. In Zeiten der zunehmenden Bedeutung von Nachhaltigkeit tritt neben die ökonomische die ökologische und soziale Nachhaltigkeit im Sinne der sogenannten Triple Bottom Line. Daher widmet sich unsere internationale Studie explizit der Beziehung von Unternehmenssteuerung und Umweltmanagement in Bezug auf Nachhaltigkeit. Der vorliegende Auswertungsbericht fasst erste deskriptive Ergebnisse dieser Studie, bei der die 2.500 größten Unternehmen in Deutschland im Jahr 2015 befragt wurden, zusammen.:Abbildungsverzeichnis Tabellenverzeichnis Abkürzungsverzeichnis 1 Einleitung 1.1 Zielsetzung 1.2 Aufbau und Auswertungsmethodik 2 Grundkonzepte des Controllings und des Umweltmanagements 2.1 Konzeption des Controllings 2.1.1 Levers of Control von Simons (1995) 2.1.2 Objects of Control von Merchant und Van der Stede (2012) 2.2 Konzeption des Umweltmanagements 2.2.1 Ökologieorientiertes Controlling 2.2.2 Instrumente des ökologieorientierten Rechnungswesens 2.3 Zielgrößen der Unternehmenssteuerung und des Umweltmanagements 2.3.1 Unternehmenserfolg 2.3.2 Innovationsleistung 2.4 Einflussfaktoren der Unternehmenssteuerung und des Umweltmanagements 2.4.1 Strategietypen 2.4.2 Umfeldunsicherheiten 2.4.3 Länderkultur 2.4.4 Unternehmenskultur 2.4.5 Stakeholder 3 Datenerhebung 3.1 Charakterisierung der Grundgesamtheit 3.2 Ablauf der Datenerhebung 3.3 Zusammenfassung des Fragebogenrücklaufs 4 Empirische Ergebnisse zur Unternehmenssteuerung 4.1 Wettbewerbsstrategie 4.2 Integration von Unternehmenssteuerung und Umweltmanagement 4.3 Trends im Controlling und im Umweltmanagement 4.4 Leistungsmessung und Kontrolle 4.5 Steuerung von Maßnahmen und Aktivitäten 4.6 Mitarbeiterführung 4.7 Werte und Normen 4.8 Administrative Innovationen 4.9 Organisationale Innovationen in Arbeits- und Ablaufprozessen 4.10 Produkt- und Prozessinnovationen 4.11 Veränderungen im Unternehmensumfeld 4.12 Unternehmenskultur 4.13 Unternehmenserfolg 4.14 Effektivität der strategischen Planung 5 Empirische Ergebnisse zum Umweltmanagement 5.1 Umweltmanagementsystem und Berichterstattung 5.2 Bedeutung von Stakeholdern 5.3 Umweltmanagement 5.4 Werte und Normen 5.5 Umweltinformationssystem 5.6 Umweltbezogene Entscheidungsfindungsprozesse 5.7 Öko-Controlling 5.8 Analyse von Materialflüssen 5.9 Umweltleistung 5.10 Nutzung von Umweltkennzahlen 5.11 Mitarbeiterführung 5.12 Steuerung von umweltbezogenen Leistungszielen 5.13 Leistungsmessung und Kontrolle 5.14 Bedeutung von Umweltaspekten für Lieferanten 5.15 Lieferantenbeziehungen 5.16 Hemmnisse für eine ökologieorientierte Wertschöpfungskette 6 Management Summary Literaturverzeichni

Gadobutrol in Renally Impaired Patients: Results of the GRIP Study.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the potential risk of gadobutrol-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with moderate to severe renal impairment for the development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a prospective, international, multicenter, open-label study in 55 centers. Patients with moderate to severe renal impairment scheduled for any gadobutrol-enhanced MRI were included. All patients received a single intravenous bolus injection of gadobutrol at a dose of 0.1 mmol/kg body weight. The primary target variable was the number of patients who develop NSF within a 2-year follow-up period. RESULTS: A total of 908 patients were enrolled, including 586 with moderate and 284 with severe renal impairment who are at highest risk for developing NSF. The mean time since renal disease diagnosis was 1.83 and 5.49 years in the moderate and severe renal impairment cohort, respectively. Overall, 184 patients (20.3%) underwent further contrast-enhanced MRI with other gadolinium-based contrast agents within the 2-year follow-up. No patient developed symptoms conclusive of NSF. CONCLUSIONS: No safety concerns with gadobutrol in patients with moderate to severe renal impairment were identified. There were no NSF cases

Risk governance in organizations

Dieses Buch dokumentiert 10 Jahre Risk-Governance-Forschung an der Universität Siegen. In 50 Beiträgen reflektieren Forscher und Praktiker Risk Governance vor dem Hintergrund ihrer eigenen Forschungen und/oder Erfahrungen und geben jeweils einen Entwicklungsimpuls für die Zukunft der Risk Governance. Das Buch zeigt die große Bandbreite und Tiefe des Forschungsgebietes auf und diskutiert Grundannahmen, Implementierungsfragen, die Rolle der Risk Governance als Transformationsmotor, ihre Wirkung in den verschiedenen betrieblichen Funktionen, Entwicklungsperspektiven und den Beitrag der Risk Governance zu einer nachhaltigen Ausrichtung von Unternehmen.This book documents 10 years of risk governance research at the University of Siegen. In 50 contributions, researchers and practitioners reflect on risk governance against the background of their own research and/or experience and provide a development impetus for the future of risk governance. The book shows the wide range and depth of the research field and discusses basic assumptions, implementation issues, the role of risk governance as transformation engine, its impact in the various operational functions, development perspectives, and the contribution of risk governance to a sustainable orientation of companies