A SNAPSHOT VIEW OF HRM IN TURKEY: EVIDENCES FROM COMPANIES LOCATED IN MARMARA REGION

HRM discipline, occurring in 1920’s in the USA, has been predominant in the USA and the European countries and there has been evolving phases throughout the 20th century (Storey, 1989). Personnel management began to gain a more managerial role in the 1960s. As a result of this process, there has been a shift from activities such as arrangement of data storage and personnel files to the administration of employee procedures (Fombrun et al., 1984). However, in practice the replacement of HRM for personnel management has only meant the change of department names and titles for some companies and “there has been no considerable change in terms of the function’s quality and activities (Armstrong, 2000). Research shows that the number of department names and titles containing the term “human resources” appears to be significantly higher than the ones containing the term “personnel” (Caldwell, 2002, Bayraktaroglu, 2006). Turkey is not an exception to this trend and contributed greatly by changing the department names overnight in most companies. Examining the current issues that have recently taken place in the HRM field, it would be suitable to point out that the strategic nature and role of the HR function have been emphasized since the 1980s (Bayraktaroglu, 2002). The HR function’s gaining of a strategic role is said to show the increase of its importance (Bowen et al., 2002). This paper critically explores the current status of HRM in large Turkish and will be based on questionnaires conducted within large companies who have HR departments in Marmara Region of Turkey

Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention for Acute Myocardial Infarction in a Young Female with Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura: A Case Report and Review

A 23-year-old female with the diagnosis of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) was admitted to our hospital with severe chest pain. The electrocardiogram (ECG) revealed acute anterior myocardial infarction. She underwent an immediate cardiac catheterization. An occluded left anterior descending (LAD) was detected by coronary angiography. Reperfusion was performed successfully by angioplasty and stenting with optimal distal flow without any complications. In this report we discussed the management strategies of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in a patient with ITP

Surface characteristics of wood treated with new generation preservatives after artificial weathering,”Wood

ABSTRACT Wood samples treated with new generation preservatives (ammoniacal copper quat (Celcure AC 500), micronized copper quat (MCQ )) and traditional preservatives (didecyldimethylammonium chloride (DDAC), and copper (II) sulfate pentahyrate (Cu(II)SO 4 .5H 2 O)) have been studied in accelerated weathering experiments. Changes to the surface of the all weathered samples were characterized by colour change and surface roughness measurements. The results show that the treatment with new generation preservatives (Celcure AC 500 and MCQ ) provided less colour change than that of traditional preservatives (DDAC and Cu(II)SO 4 .5H 2 O) after an artificial weathering test. The least amount of colour change was found on the surface of Celcure AC 500 treated wood samples after 672 hour exposure time. The wood samples treated with copper-containing new generation preservatives were cured to surface roughness in accelerated weathering experiments. The surface values of pine and spruce wood samples treated with DDAC increased more than that of untreated samples after the accelerated weathering test

Effect of reactive oxygen species in cisplatin-induced apoptotic response of hct 116 colon carcinoma cells

In this study primarily response to CDDP administration in terms of cell viability was examined. For demonstration of cell viability in response to CDDP treatment, MTT Assay was used in the absence or presence of the antioxidant, N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine (NAC) pretreatment. It showed around 19% decrease in cell viability for wt and 21% for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 24h and 30μM CDDP. It also revealed around 72% decrease for wt and 31% decrease for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 48h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the cell viability was found to be favoured by almost 20% for wt. To assess the extend of apoptotic response in the absence or presence of NAC pre-treatment Flow Cytometric Analyses by Annexin-V Labelling was applied. It revealed around 1.6 fold increase for wt and 2.4 fold increase for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 24h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the apoptotic response was found to be repressed by almost 20% for wt and 40% for p53-/- It also showed around 4.7 fold increase for wt and 2.6 fold increase for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 48h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the apoptotic response was found to be repressed by almost 57% for wt. The data showed that wt and p53-/- cells differed in cell viability depending on the dose of CDDP and antioxidant pre-treatment, indicating that some fraction of the apoptotic response was due to increased ROS levels. In addition, DCFH-DA was exploited as the label for ROS in Flow Cytometric Analyses. Flow Cytometry showed around 4 fold increase for wt and 3.2 fold increase for p53-/- at 24h and 30μM CDDP yet in the presence of NAC the increase of ROS was found to be repressed by almost 50% for wt. It also revealed around 5.2 fold increase for wt and 5 fold increase for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 48h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the increase of ROS was found to be repressed by almost 66% for p53-/-. A second method, Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) Assay was used to gain more insight, this time in terms of lipid peroxidation. TBARS Assay revealed 8.4 fold increase for wt and 5.9 fold increase for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 24h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the increase was found to be repressed by almost 75% for wt. It also showed around 1.5 fold increase for wt and 1.8 fold increase for p53-/- in the absence of NAC at 48h and 30μM CDDP, yet in the presence of NAC the increase was found to be repressed by around 13% for wt and 39% for p53-/-. Data acquired in this section indicated increased ROS and lipid peroxidation levels with CDDP treatment which could be overcome by NAC pre-treatment. In further experiments, OxyBlot™ procedure was applied to total protein isolates and also to the pro-survival proteins of the Bcl-2 family proteins, Bcl-2, Mcl-1 and Bcl-xL, fished out of the total protein suspensions via immunoprecipitation. The technique gave the picture of an increased protein carbonylation with increasing doses of CDDP (0, 30 and 60μM CDDP) and also exhibited that all three pro-survival proteins gave detectable carbonylation signal in the absence of the antioxidant and TP53 gene at 30μM CDDP, supporting the initial hypothesis of this work that loss of function of pro-survival proteins due to protein modifications contributes to apoptotic response in this experimental setup. These results were discussed in the light of intracellular signalling cascades, especially those related to apoptosis and intracellular oxidative stress. As CDDP was found to be inducing apoptosis via affecting the overall redox status of the cell and the concept of sensitization to CDDP treatment could be an interesting approach for possible future applications of this work

Relationship between MPV and paraoxonase-1 activity, brachial artery diameter and IMT in patients with diabetes mellitus

Aims: Higher mean platelet volume (MPV) in diabetic patients has been considered as an emerging risk factor for diabetes related micro- and macrovascular complications. Human paraoxonase 1/arylesterase (PON1), which has antioxidant and antiatherogenic properties, is documented in high oxidative stress conditions like uncontrolled diabetes. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between mean platelet volume (MPV) and paraoxonase-1 (PON-1) activity, brachial artery diameter (BAd) and intima media thickness (BA-IMT), in diabetic patients with regard to obesity and diabetic complications.Methods: Two-hundred and one diabetic patients (mean age: 52.4 ± 13.4 years, 73.6% females) were grouped according to obesity and diabetic complications (microvascular and macrovascular). Data on demographics, anthropometrics, diabetic complications, MPV levels, BAd and BA-IMT, and serum paraoxonase and arylesterase activities were recorded. The correlation of MPV values to paraoxonase and arylesterase activities, BAd and BA-IMT was evaluated.Results: Paraoxonase and arylesterase values were 119.8 ± 37.5 U/L and 149.0 ± 39.9 U/L, respectively, with no significant difference in respect of obesity and macrovascular complications. Significantly lower values for paraoxonase (107.5 ± 30.7 vs. 123.9 ± 38.8 U/L, p = 0.007) and arylesterase (132.1 ± 30.2 vs. 154.7 ± 41.2, U/L, p = 0.001) were noted in patients with microvascular complications. MPV values were 9.10 ± 0.87 fL, with no significant difference across the groups and no significant correlation with other parameters.Conclusion: In conclusion, PON-1 activity is more significantly decreased in diabetic patients with microvascular than macrovascular complications with no effects on MPV values. On the other hand, no relationship was found between thrombogenic activity and PON-1 activity, BAd and BA-IMT regardless of obesity and diabetic complications.Keywords: cardiovascular, diabetes, insulin resistance, obesity, vasculatur

Monocyte/high-density lipoprotein ratio predicts the mortality in ischemic stroke patients

Objective The inflammatory process is a very important stage in the development and prognosis of acute ischemic stroke (AIS). The monocyte to high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratio (MHR) is accepted as a novel marker for demonstrating inflammation. However, the role of MHR as a predictor of mortality in patients with AIS remains unclear. Methods We retrospectively enrolled 466 patients who were referred to our clinic within the first 24hours of symptom presentation and who were diagnosed with AIS between January 2008 and June 2016. Four hundred and eight controls of similar age and gender were also included. The patient group was classified into two groups according to 30-day mortality. The groups were compared in terms of monocyte counts, HDL, and MHR values. Results The patient group had significantly higher monocyte counts and lower HDL levels; therefore, this group had higher values of MHR compared to controls. Additionally, the monocyte count and MHR value were higher, and the HDL level was lower in non-surviving patients (p<0.001). The MHR value was also observed as a significant independent variable of 30-day mortality in patients with AIS (p<0.001). The optimum cut-off value of MHR in predicting the 30-day mortality for patients with AIS was 17.52 (95% CI 0.95–0.98). Conclusion Our study demonstrated that a high MHR value is an independent predictor of 30-day mortality in patients with AIS

Effectiveness and safety of elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate single-tablet combination among HIV-infected patients in Turkey: results from a real world setting

Background: Efficacy of elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil (E/C/F/TDF) in treatment-naïve and experienced patients with HIV infection was demonstrated in phase 3 trials. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate effectiveness and safety of E/C/F/TDF in real world settings. Methods: Retrospective, observational data collected by the Turkish ACTHIV-IST study group between May 2015 and December 2016 were analysed. Results: A total of 387 patients were prescribed E/C/F/TDF; 210 patients with available data at 6th month were eligible; 91.5% were male, and mean age was 35.2 (SD: 10.8) years; 54.0% of males identified themselves as MSM. Sixty-three percent (133) of the study population were treatment-naïve patients, and 37% (77) were treatment experienced. HIV RNA level was below 100 copies/mL in 78.9% of treatment-naïve patients and 89.9% of treatment experienced patients at month 6. Median increase in CD4 T lymphocyte count was 218 copies/mL in treatment-naïve patients and remained stable or increased in treatment experienced patients. Adverse events were observed in 15% of the patients, and the regimen was discontinued in only six patients. Conclusion: Real world data on the effectiveness and safety of E/C/F/TDF is comparable with the phase 3 trial results Adverse events are uncommon and manageable. Keywords: Elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate; HIV; effectiveness; safety

Erratum: “Human lung-on-chips: Advanced systems for respiratory virus models and assessment of immune response” [Biomicrofluidics 15, 021501 (2021)]

It has been drawn to the authors’ attention that our original article1 did not appropriately attribute portions of a figure that we had reused from Ref. 2. The figure caption as it should have appeared follows. FIG. 2. (a) Schematic depicting human lung, (b) respiratory airways including the bronchioles and the alveolus, (c) gas exchange at the alveolar-capillary membrane of the alveolar sac, and (d) the distribution of the predominant cell types of the human lung. The images for (a) and (b) created by using the visuals in the SMART Servier Medical Art (https://smart.servier.com/) program licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Images for (c) and (d) are reprinted with permission from P. Bajaj et al., ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng. 2, 473 (2016). Copyright 2016 American Chemical Society

Human lung-on-chips: Advanced systems for respiratory virus models and assessment of immune response

Respiratory viral infections are leading causes of death worldwide. A number of human respiratory viruses circulate in all age groups and adapt to person-to-person transmission. It is vital to understand how these viruses infect the host and how the host responds to prevent infection and onset of disease. Although animal models have been widely used to study disease states, incisive arguments related to poor prediction of patient responses have led to the development of microfluidic organ-on-chip models, which aim to recapitulate organ-level physiology. Over the past decade, human lung chips have been shown to mimic many aspects of the lung function and its complex microenvironment. In this review, we address immunological responses to viral infections and elaborate on human lung airway and alveolus chips reported to model respiratory viral infections and therapeutic interventions. Advances in the field will expedite the development of therapeutics and vaccines for human welfare

Erratum: “Human lung-on-chips: Advanced systems for respiratory virus models and assessment of immune response” [Biomicrofluidics 15, 021501 (2021)]

It has been drawn to the authors’ attention that our original article1 did not appropriately attribute portions of a figure that we had reused from Ref. 2. The figure caption as it should have appeared follows. FIG. 2. (a) Schematic depicting human lung, (b) respiratory airways including the bronchioles and the alveolus, (c) gas exchange at the alveolar-capillary membrane of the alveolar sac, and (d) the distribution of the predominant cell types of the human lung. The images for (a) and (b) created by using the visuals in the SMART Servier Medical Art (https://smart.servier.com/) program licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Images for (c) and (d) are reprinted with permission from P. Bajaj et al., ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng. 2, 473 (2016). Copyright 2016 American Chemical Society