Build Innovation through Organizational Learning Capability

This research paper aims to explain the relationship between Organizational Learning (OL), and Organization Innovation (OI). The Author has used analysis of the related literatures to have deep understanding of the subject. This research offers personal mastery, systems thinking and team learning as organizational Learning Capability that will help the entity to have an innovation

Factors Affecting Readiness for Business Process Reengineering-Developing and Proposing a Conceptual Model

In this paper researcher made an effort to suggest an approach to minimize risk of implementing Business Process Reengineering (BPR) initiatives by identifying certain factors crucial towards creating readiness for BPR. Lack of readiness is main factor behind high rate of BPR failures. Extensive literature review and interviews from the panel of experts provided sufficient background information. Leadership style, Information technology (IT), Top management commitment and collaborative working figured out as critical factors towards creating readiness. Regular leadership actions consistent with organizational environment, collaborative working, Information Technology and Top management commitment could promote coherence in organizational members' readiness perceptions. Assessing BPR readiness can address strong points, weak points and risks, and hence the ranking/level of readiness in the organization. Keywords: Business process reengineering, Business process readiness, Critical success factors, Organizational change

Quinidine-Induced Immune Thrombocytopenia

We have identified six cases of quinidine-induced immune thrombocytopenia based on clinical evidence and in association with elevated amounts of platelet surface IgG. The degree of thrombocytopenia did not correlate with severity of clinical symptoms, nor did it predict the amount of IgG on the platelet surface. Three of the patients recovered promptly after drug discontinuation alone whereas the other patients received additional corticosteroid therapy. The clinical presentation, mode of diagnosis, and therapeutic considerations in the treatment of drug-induced thrombocytopenia are discussed

Comparison of Erythropoietin alone with Erythropoietin plus oral Ascorbic Acid in the Treatment of Anemia in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

Objective Of the Study:   To compare efficacy of “Oral ascorbic acid in combination with Erythropoietin”  with “standard dose of erythropoietin alone” in renal anemia in terms of mean hemoglobin rise. Introduction: Recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) has a vital role in management of anemia in CKD (chronic kidney disease) patients. In the last decade, Ascorbic acid (AA) has emerged as a potential therapy to improve anemia probably by enhancing iron mobilization. We have conducted this study to compare the mean hemoglobin rise after treatment with standard dose erythropoietin alone with standard dose erythropoietin plus Oral ascorbic acid in CKD patients who were suffering from anemia. Materials & Methods: A total of 70 patients of CKD with anemia, 18 to 70 years of age of both genders were included. Patients with laboratory proven iron deficiency anemia, obvious blood loss, pernicious anemia, hyperparathyroidism and contraindications for erythropoietin or ascorbic acid treatment were excluded. The patients which were selected randomly placed in two groups. Group A (erythropoietin alone) & Group B (erythropoietin plus oral ascorbic acid), by using lottery method. Outcome variable like hemoglobin was measured at 2, 4 and 6 months. Results: Mean age was 48.90 ± 13.53 years. Male to female ratio was 1.6:1 with 43 (61.43%) males and 27 (38.57%) females. Mean pre-therapy hemoglobin  was 9.40 ± 1.03 g/dl in the Group A while it was 9.42 ± 0.98 g/dl (p-value = 0.901) in Group B and  mean post-therapy hemoglobin in the Group A was 9.34 ± 1.06 g/dl while in the Group B was 10.37 ± 1.16 g/dl with p value of 0.0002 which is statistically significant. Conclusion: The study concluded that standard dose erythropoietin plus Oral ascorbic acid in CKD anemia is more effective  as compared to erythropoietin alone. Keywords: Chronic kidney disease, Erythropoietin, Ascorbic acid, Anemia

A phase Ib/II study of galunisertib in combination with nivolumab in solid tumors and non-small cell lung cancer

Galunisertib; Immune checkpoint inhibitor; NivolumabGalunisertib; Inhibidor del punt de control immunitari; NivolumabGalunisertib; Inhibidor del punto de control inmunitario; nivolumabBackground In this phase Ib/II open-label study, tumor immune suppression was targeted in patients with advanced refractory solid tumors and patients with recurrent/refractory non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using galunisertib with nivolumab. Methods Eligible patients were ≥ 18 years old, had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status ≤ 1, and were treatment-naive for anti-programmed cell death-1, its ligand, or transforming growth factor β receptor 1 kinase inhibitors. Phase Ib was an open-label, dose-escalation assessment of the safety and tolerability of galunisertib with nivolumab in patients with advanced refractory solid tumors. Phase II evaluated the safety of galunisertib with nivolumab in NSCLC patients who had received prior platinum-based treatment but were immuno-oncology agent-naive. Results This trial was conducted between October 2015 and August 2020. No dose-limiting toxicities were observed in phase I. In the phase II NSCLC cohort (n = 25), patients received 150 mg twice daily galunisertib (14 days on/14 days off dosing schedule for all phases) plus nivolumab at 3 mg/kg (intravenously every 2 weeks). In this phase, the most frequent treatment-related adverse events (AEs) were pruritus (n = 9, 36%), fatigue (n = 8, 32%), and decreased appetite (n = 7, 28%). No grade 4 or 5 treatment-related AEs were observed. Six (24%) patients had confirmed partial response (PR) and 4 (16%) had stable disease; 1 additional patient had confirmed PR after initial pseudo-progression. The median duration of response was 7.43 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.75, NR). Among the 7 responders, including the delayed responder, 1 had high PD-L1 expression (≥ 50%). The median progression-free survival was 5.26 months (95% CI: 1.77, 9.20) and the median overall survival was 11.99 months (95% CI: 8.15, NR). Interferon gamma response genes were induced post-treatment and cell adhesion genes were repressed, although the association of these observations with tumor response and clinical outcomes was not statistically powered due to limited samples available. Conclusions The study met its primary endpoint as galunisertib combined with nivolumab was well tolerated. Preliminary efficacy was observed in a subset of patients in the Phase 2 NSCLC cohort.Funded by Eli Lilly and Company in collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb

Local Immunomodulation Using an Adhesive Hydrogel Loaded with miRNA-Laden Nanoparticles Promotes Wound Healing.

Chronic wounds are characterized by impaired healing and uncontrolled inflammation, which compromise the protective role of the immune system and may lead to bacterial infection. Upregulation of miR-223 microRNAs (miRNAs) shows driving of the polarization of macrophages toward the anti-inflammatory (M2) phenotype, which could aid in the acceleration of wound healing. However, local-targeted delivery of microRNAs is still challenging, due to their low stability. Here, adhesive hydrogels containing miR-223 5p mimic (miR-223*) loaded hyaluronic acid nanoparticles are developed to control tissue macrophages polarization during wound healing processes. In vitro upregulation of miR-223* in J774A.1 macrophages demonstrates increased expression of the anti-inflammatory gene Arg-1 and a decrease in proinflammatory markers, including TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6. The therapeutic potential of miR-223* loaded adhesive hydrogels is also evaluated in vivo. The adhesive hydrogels could adhere to and cover the wounds during the healing process in an acute excisional wound model. Histological evaluation and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis show that local delivery of miR-223* efficiently promotes the formation of uniform vascularized skin at the wound site, which is mainly due to the polarization of macrophages to the M2 phenotype. Overall, this study demonstrates the potential of nanoparticle-laden hydrogels conveying miRNA-223* to accelerate wound healing

Laser Therapy for Peyronie’s Disease: A Randomized Control Double-Blind Pilot Study

Introduction: The management of Peyronie’s disease (PD) has remained a therapeutic dilemma for physicians and there is no gold standard treatment. In this paper, we decided to investigate the beneficial effect of the intralesional administration of verapamil compared with the intralesional administration of verapamil plus a low-intensity laser (LIL).Methods: Research was activated from May 2016 to May 2018 and a total of 38 men aged 18 years and older completed the investigation. The subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups. Group 1 was composed of 22 patients that were treated only by verapamil (5 mg) plus a sham laser weekly for 6 weeks, and group 2 consisted of 22 patients that received a laser, using the BTL – 6000 HIGH-INTENSITY LASER 12 W machine and the same protocol of intralesional verapamil injection. The visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to evaluate pain during an erection, penile ultrasonography was used to measure plaque size, the penile curvature angle degree was measured using the photographs taken during an erection, and the International Index of Erectile Function questionnaire was used to assess erectile function. The follow-up treatment lasted for nine months, with visits performed in the 3rd and 9th months.Results: All study parameters decreased significantly after treatment in both arms, but the reduction in pain and penile curvature improvements in combination therapy revealed more significant changes in 3 months (p = .035, p=.032). Nevertheless, these improvements were not seen in the follow-up session after 9 months.Conclusion: A laser appears to be safe treatment modality in carefully-selected patients with PD. It has moderate efficacy in the short term

Synthesis and Evaluation of Tripodal Peptide Analogues for Cellular Delivery of Phosphopeptides

Tripodal peptide analogues were designed on the basis of the phosphotyrosine binding pocket of the Src SH2 domain and assayed for their ability to bind to fluorescein-labeled phosphopeptides. Fluorescence polarization assays showed that a number of amphipathic linear peptide analogues (LPAs), such as LPA4, bind to fluorescein-labeled GpYEEI (F-GpYEEI). LPA4 was evaluated for potential application in cellular delivery of phosphopeptides. Fluorescence microimaging cellular uptake studies with fluorescein-attached LPA4 (F-LPA4) alone or with the mixture of LPA4 and F-GpYEEI in BT-20 cells showed dramatic increase of the fluorescence intensity in cytosol of cells, indicating that LPA4 can function as a delivery tool of F-GpYEEI across the cell membrane. Fluorescent flow cytometry studies showed the cellular uptake of F-LPA4 in an energy-independent pathway and confirmed the cellular uptake of F-GpYEEI in the presence of LPA4. These studies suggest that amphipathic tripodal peptide analogues, such as LPA4, can be used for cellular delivery of phosphopeptides