1,721,034 research outputs found
Drug-Induced Liver Injury : The Role of Drug Metabolism and Transport
No full textMany studies have pinpointed the significant contribution of liver-mediated drug metabolism and transport to the complexity of drug-induced liver injury (DILI). Phase I cytochrome P450 (CYP450) enzymes can lead to altered drug metabolism and formation of toxic metabolites, whilst Phase II enzymes are also associated with DILI. The emerging role of hepatic transporters in regulating the movement of endogenous and exogenous chemicals (e.g., bile acids and drugs) across cellular and tissue membranes is critical in determining the pathophysiology of liver disease as well as drug toxicity and efficacy. Genetic and environmental factors can have a significant impact on drug metabolism and transporter proteins, consequently increasing the risk of DILI in susceptible individuals. The assessment of these factors therefore represents an important approach for predicting and preventing DILI, by better understanding the pharmacological profile of a specific drug. This review focuses on the mechanisms of DILI associated with drug metabolism and hepatic transport, and how they can be influenced by underlying factors
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Macro and micro-logistic aspects in defining the parts-feeding policy in mixed-model assembly systems
No full textThe handling activities within mixed-model assembly systems deal with two different logistic levels of the production environment. The micro-logistic level includes movements of parts across each assembly station due to pick to assembly activities. The macro-logistic level includes movements of parts within the supermarket and to deliver the stock-keeping units to the assembly stations. The most frequently adopted part-feeding policies, i.e., kanban system and kitting system, strongly influences both logistic levels with opposite effects. The former continuously refills the assembly stations; the latter prepares and delivers kits of components for each product. Moving from kanban to kitting system the time spent at the macro-logistic level increases. On the contrary, the time spent in part handling at the micro-logistic level decreases when moving from kanban to kitting system. Effective trade-offs are encouraged. This paper analyses the two introduced part-feeding policies, including hybrid possibilities, through an operative total handling time comparison model. The findings from five industrial cases belonging to different sectors and a global simulation analysis are discussed. Conclusions about the impact of some of the most important logistic variables of the production system to the whole performances drive the industrial practitioners in the part-feeding policy selection
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
Greening the tobacco flue-curing process using biomass energy: a feasibility study for the flue-cured Virginia type in Italy
No full textTobacco is among the top sectors, worldwide, for revenues and aggregate turnover with a global market arena and a group of top players progressively driving the change toward high-quality standards and a strong customer and environmental care. Behind cigarettes, the tobacco supply chain includes agricultural and industrial phases, to grow and cure the tobacco leaves and to manufacture and deliver the final products. This study addresses the goal of greening the tobacco flue-curing process, aimed at drying the tobacco leaves and known as the most energy-intensive process, presenting a joint techno-economic and environmental feasibility study for Virginia tobacco type in Italy. Starting from a review of the process, the curing barn features and the required physical conditions to obtain top quality flue-cured tobacco, this study investigates the impact of using biomass instead of fossil fuels to feed the heat generators. The input data, to support the analysis, are from Italian producers selling tobacco to an international leading company that joined the present research. Results highlight that the switch to non-fossil fuels for tobacco curing leads to annual cost savings up to 13% and to global environmental savings, i.e. emitted equivalent carbon dioxide reduction, up to 95% without product quality decrease
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