Commercial reality demands long and lasting relationships that are beneficial to both advertising agencies and their clients. This article presents a conceptual model to illustrate the salient choice ...criteria employed by advertisers when renewing advertising agency contracts. The model was empirically tested, and data obtained from 116 respondents were subjected to factor and correlation analysis to explore the dimensionality of the retention construct. Research results support that retention is multidimensional and highlights the limitations of research that measure single factors related to retention. The model postulates that retention is the result of a good working relationship, service satisfaction, respect and support, clear terms of engagement; and affective conflict resolution. Insight into the nuances of each of these antecedents is also offered. In management practice, this model will provide valuable insight to agencies with regard to client retention management. Findings of this study may also be extended to other high-value professional service industries.
It has been shown in a previous study that brown coal-derived potassium humate is safe and effective in suppressing contact hypersensitivity in rats. In this study the efficacy of potassium humate on ...other types of inflammation was determined. Preparative TLC followed by mass spectroscopy was used in an attempt to fingerprint the product. The effects of potassium humate, at an oral dose of 60 mg/kg bodyweight, on a delayed type hypersensitivity reaction, a carrageenan-induced inflammation model and an allogeneic graft-versus-host reaction (GVHR) in rats were investigated. Paw oedema was used as a measure of inflammation. It was found that potassium humate had no effect on the delayed type hypersensitivity reaction but significantly inhibited the increase in paw volume of the carrageenan-induced oedema in rats which compared favourably with indomethacin treatment. Furthermore, potassium humate inhibited the GVHR induced in normal and cyclophosphamide-treated immune-incompetent rats. The identification of a naturally occurring compound that is safe and effective in reducing different types of inflammation merits further evaluation in clinical trials.
Open science and collaboration are necessary to facilitate the advancement of Parkinson's disease (PD) research. Hackathons are collaborative events that bring together people with different skill ...sets and backgrounds to generate resources and creative solutions to problems. These events can be used as training and networking opportunities, thus we coordinated a virtual 3-day hackathon event, during which 49 early-career scientists from 12 countries built tools and pipelines with a focus on PD. Resources were created with the goal of helping scientists accelerate their own research by having access to the necessary code and tools. Each team was allocated one of nine different projects, each with a different goal. These included developing post-genome-wide association studies (GWAS) analysis pipelines, downstream analysis of genetic variation pipelines, and various visualization tools. Hackathons are a valuable approach to inspire creative thinking, supplement training in data science, and foster collaborative scientific relationships, which are foundational practices for early-career researchers. The resources generated can be used to accelerate research on the genetics of PD.
Background: Semuloparin is a novel ultra‐low‐molecular‐weight heparin under development for venous thromboembolism (VTE) prevention in patients at increased risk, such as surgical and cancer ...patients.
Objectives: Three Phase III studies compared semuloparin and enoxaparin after major orthopedic surgery: elective knee replacement (SAVE‐KNEE), elective hip replacement (SAVE‐HIP1) and hip fracture surgery (SAVE‐HIP2).
Patients/Methods: All studies were multinational, randomized and double‐blind. Semuloparin and enoxaparin were administered for 7–10 days after surgery. Mandatory bilateral venography was to be performed between days 7 and 11. The primary efficacy endpoint was a composite of any deep vein thrombosis, non‐fatal pulmonary embolism or all‐cause death. Safety outcomes included major bleeding, clinically relevant non‐major (CRNM) bleeding, and any clinically relevant bleeding (major bleeding plus CRNM).
Results: In total, 1150, 2326 and 1003 patients were randomized in SAVE‐KNEE, SAVE‐HIP1 and SAVE‐HIP2, respectively. In all studies, the incidences of the primary efficacy endpoint were numerically lower in the semuloparin group vs. the enoxaparin group, but the difference was statistically significant only in SAVE‐HIP1. In SAVE‐HIP1, clinically relevant bleeding and major bleeding were significantly lower in the semuloparin vs. the enoxaparin group. In SAVE‐KNEE and SAVE‐HIP2, clinically relevant bleeding tended to be higher in the semuloparin group, but rates of major bleeding were similar in the two groups. Other safety parameters were generally similar between treatment groups.
Conclusions: Semuloparin was superior to enoxaparin for VTE prevention after hip replacement surgery, but failed to demonstrate superiority after knee replacement surgery and hip fracture surgery. Semuloparin and enoxaparin exhibited generally similar safety profiles.
The purpose of this research was to determine the acute and subacute safety and proof-of-concept efficacy of carbohydrate-derived fulvic acid (CHD-FA).
In this double-blind study, 30 male volunteers ...with predetermined atopy were randomly assigned to either Group A or Group B, each consisting of 15 participants. In part 1 of the study, the groups were administered increasing amounts of CHD-FA, ranging from 5 mL to 40 mL, provided that no adverse events had occurred at the previous dosage. In part 2, Group A participants received 20 mL of 3.8% CHD-FA twice daily for 3 days and were monitored for a week. Because no adverse events occurred, Group B received 40 mL of 3.8% CHD-FA twice daily for a period of 3 days. In part 3, both groups received either 40 mL of 3.8% CHD-FA or placebo twice daily for a period of one week, followed by a one-week washout period before crossover to the alternative treatment schedule. Parameters used to establish safety were electrocardiography, a physical examination, a health questionnaire, and hematology and biochemistry, determined at baseline, during regular calculated intervals, and at the end of each part of the study. A skin prick test was done as part of the screening process and, from the result, the allergen the participant was most allergic to was then selected, along with the positive histamine and negative control to be repeated at the start and end of each respective stage.
Safety parameters remained constant throughout the trial. A significant decrease in skin prick test results was observed.
No severe adverse events occurred, establishing that CHD-FA to be safe at doses up to 40 mL twice daily for a week and that at this dosage CHD-FA acts as an anti-inflammatory agent. These findings confirm earlier animal data.
Antibiotic resistance profiles and the correlation of enteric bacterial pathogens from HIV positive indivi-duals with and without diarrhoea and their household drinking water were determined using ...the Kirby Bauer disk diffusion and polymerase chain reaction methods respectively. The sef gene of Salmonella enteritidis was amplified with the primer pair sefA-1 and sefA-2. The fliC gene of Salmonella typhimurium was amplified with the primer pair flicA-1 and flicA-2. Heat-labile toxin (LT) primers (Lta and LTb) were used to amplify Escherichia coli isolates and VirA1 and VirA2 for the Vir A gene of Shigella dysenteriae. Results of antibiotic resistance profiles of enteric bacterial pathogens isolated from stool samples of HIV positive and negative individuals with and without diarrhea and their household drinking water showed very similar drug resistance patterns. Over 90% of all the organisms isolated from the various study cohorts showed resistance to penicillin, cloxacillin and amoxicillin. Conversely, almost all the organisms were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, gentamycin, meropenem and imipenem. About 50% of E. coli isolated from the various study cohorts showed multiple antibiotic resistance to penicillin, amoxicillin, ampicillin, erythromycin, tetracycline, doxycycline and cotri-moxazole (P super(R), A super(R), AP super(R), E super(R), T super(R), DXT super(R), and TS super(R)) whereas less than 10% resistance was consistently reported for ofloxacin, gentamycin, meropenem cefotaxime, cefuroxime and imipenem (OFX super(S), GM super(S), MEM super(S), CTX super(S), CXM super(S) and IMI super(S)). The majority of Salmonella and Shigella isolates from all the groups were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, amikacin, meropenem, imipenem, nalidixic acid, kanamycin, piperacillin-tazo bactam, cefuroxime, doxycyclin, cefepime and ceftazidime (CIP super(S), GM super(S), AK super(S), MEM super(S), IMI super(S), NA super(S), KN super(S), DXT super(S), CXM super(S), CPM super(S), CAZ super(S) and PTZ super(S)). For Campylobacter, over 30% of the isolates were resistant to erythromycin, ampicillin, tetracycline, cotrimoxazole and ceftazidime (E super(R), AP super(R) TS super(R) and CAZ super(R)) whereas over 85% were susceptible to ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, gentamycin, amikacin, mero-penem, and nalidixic acid (CIP super(S), OFX super(S), GM super(S), AK super(S), MEM super(S) and NA super(S)). In addition to penicillin, amoxicillin, ampicillin and erythromycin, Aeromonas and Plesiomonas spp were more resistant to chloramphenicol, but were susceptible to ciprofloxacin, gentamycin, amikacin, meropenem, imipenem and nalidixic acid (CIP super(S), GM super(S), AK super(S), MEM super(S), IMI super(S) and NAS). Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) experiments using targeted species genes of S. enteritidis, S. typhimurium, E. coli, Sh. dysenteriae showed that isolates from stool samples of HIV positive and HIV negative individuals with and without diarrhoea were also present in the household drinking water of the same study cohorts, suggesting that drinking water may have been the sources of the organisms in stool sample. Furthermore, by showing that the primers were able to amplify the genes in both clinical and environmental isolates, the link between the virulence of the pathogens was established.
A gas chromatographic (GC) method with mass spectrometric (MS) detection is developed and validated for the accurate and precise determination of octadecenedioic acid (C18:1 DIOIC) in human skin ...samples and transdermal perfusates. C18:1 DIOIC is extracted using methanol. The saturated analogue 1,18-octadecanedioic acid (C18:0 DIOIC) is added as internal standard. Prior to analysis, both compounds are converted to their trimethylsilylated derivatives using N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide with 15% trimethylchlorosilane. Quantitation is performed in selected ion monitoring mode with a limit of quantitation of 250 ng/mL. Linearity with a correlation coefficient of 0.998 is obtained over a concentration range of 250-2000 ng/mL. Values for within-day accuracy range from 94.5% to 102.4%, and from 97.5% to 105.8% for between-day accuracy. Within- and between-day precision values are better than 5% and 7%, respectively. The recovery values from the various matrices vary from 92.6% to 104.0%. The GC-MS method is employed for the determination of C18:1 DIOIC after application of an emulsion containing the active ingredient onto human skin in vitro. The results demonstrate that the method is suitable for the determination of C18:1 DIOIC in human skin samples and transdermal perfusates.
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