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1 – 4 of 4Pedram Pam, Maryam Behrooz, Mehrdad Jamali, Hosna Ghorbani, Amirataollah Hiradfar, Azim Rezamand and Zohreh Ghoreishi
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between dietary total antioxidant capacity (DTAC) and the dietary inflammatory index (DII) with inflammatory status in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between dietary total antioxidant capacity (DTAC) and the dietary inflammatory index (DII) with inflammatory status in children recently diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). As the relationship between diet quality scores and inflammation remains uncertain in this population, the authors carried out a hospital-based cross-sectional study.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a cross-sectional design involving 54 children recently diagnosed with ALL. Dietary data was collected using a 147-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire developed for the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study. Inflammatory status was evaluated using various indicators like C-reactive protein (CRP), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), Glasgow prognostic score (GPS) and Complete blood count-based inflammatory score.
Findings
The authors found no significant relationship between DII with inflammatory indices and length of hospitalization in patients. However, a significant inverse relationship was observed between the antioxidant indices ferric-reducing ability of plasma, total reactive antioxidant potential and Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity with the inflammatory index MLR, respectively (ß: −0.19, p = 0.001), (ß: −0.42, p = 0.02), (ß: −0.53, p = 0.005). Also, a significant inverse relationship between FRAP and CRP was observed in the crude model (ß: −0.13, p = 0.05). FRAP was also inversely correlated with GPS and PLR, respectively (ß: −0.08, p = 0.02), (ß: −0.26, p = 0.03). No additional significant links were discovered between food scores and the outcomes studied.
Originality/value
This study found no link between DII with inflammatory markers or hospitalization duration in children with ALL. However, the authors did observe a noteworthy inverse relationship between DTAC and certain inflammatory markers like MLR. To achieve more dependable findings, further research in this area is necessary.
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Seyed Mohammad Hadi Baghdadi, Ehsan Dehghani, Mohammad Hossein Dehghani Sadrabadi, Mahdi Heydari and Maryam Nili
Spurred by the high turnover in the pharmaceutical industry, locating pharmacies inside urban areas along with the high product perishability in this industry, the pharmaceutical…
Abstract
Purpose
Spurred by the high turnover in the pharmaceutical industry, locating pharmacies inside urban areas along with the high product perishability in this industry, the pharmaceutical supply chain management has recently gained increasing attention. Accordingly, this paper unveils an inventory-routing problem for designing a pharmaceutical supply chain with perishable products and time-dependent travel time in an uncertain environment.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, mathematical programming is employed to formulate a multi-graph network affected by the traffic volume in order to adapt to real-world situations. Likewise, by transforming the travel speed function to the travel time function using a step-by-step algorithm, the first-in-first-out property is warranted. Moreover, the Box–Jenkins forecasting method is employed to diminish the demand uncertainty.
Findings
An appealing result is that the delivery horizon constraint in the under-study multi-graph network may eventuate in selecting a longer path. Our analysis also indicates that the customers located in the busy places in the city are not predominantly visited in the initial and last delivery horizon, which are the rush times. Moreover, it is concluded that integrating disruption management, routing planning and inventory management in the studied network leads to a reduction of costs in the long term.
Originality/value
Applying the time-dependent travel time with a heterogeneous fleet of vehicles on the multi-graph network, considering perishability in the products for reducing inventory costs, considering multiple trips of transfer fleet, considering disruption impacts on supply chain components and utilizing the Box–Jenkins method to reduce uncertainty are the contributions of the present study.
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Maryam AlQasmi and Kamla Ali Al-Busaidi
This study aims to investigate the most effective enablers and tools for inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition in public policymaking organizations.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the most effective enablers and tools for inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition in public policymaking organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a literature review, the study summarized 51 individual, organizational, technological and inhabitant-related enablers of inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition, as well as 36 technological and social tools. The study assessed the effectiveness of these enablers and tools based on two rounds of a Delphi study targeting 31 policymakers in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Kendall’s coefficient of concordance was assessed to determine consensus among participating policymakers.
Findings
The findings indicate that the most effective enablers were inhabitants’ willingness to get involved, information technology (IT) infrastructure, IT staff support and inhabitants’ trust in policymakers. Additionally, the study found that the most effective tools for inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition included meetings, interviews, social media and field visits.
Originality/value
Inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition is an important social and economic force that will drive change in any society by enabling the implementation of innovative ideas and practices. A review of the relevant research shows that despite the usability of inhabitants’ knowledge, the degree to which inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition is integrated into the public policymaking system remains unclear. This study of inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition from the policymaker perspective provides a better understanding of the inhabitants’ knowledge acquisition process in policymaking organizations.
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Milad Bakhshi, Kambiz Heidarzadeh Hanzaee and Mirahmad Amirshahi
Shopping motivations are considered the primary stimuli for shoppers in the prepurchase stage of the customer journey. This study contributes to the understanding of how cultural…
Abstract
Purpose
Shopping motivations are considered the primary stimuli for shoppers in the prepurchase stage of the customer journey. This study contributes to the understanding of how cultural factors affect shopping motivation. This study aims to understand the effect of cultural factors on shopping motivations in Eastern culture with Islam religion.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is based on the approach of phenomenology, and multiple methods were performed to interpret the phenomenon of shopping motivations. To this aim, 16 observations and 18 in-depth interviews were performed for data collection, and after that, data interpretation was done.
Findings
In this study, the motivations fall into product-related and hedonic motivations which are related to shopper psychology, while environmental motivations are culturally dependent. The influence of cultural factors on the individual concept of shopping motivations was identified in this study. Nine subthemes including product selection, product quality, functional, in-store service, convenience, store environment, value shopping, self-gratifications and role-playing were identified in the categories of product-related, environmental and hedonic motivations.
Practical implications
In non-Western countries, the store environment profoundly influences shoppers’ experience. This study clearly illustrates relationships between theory and practice in grocery shopping motivations in a non-Western context. Retailers who are active in eastern Islamic countries should pay attention to the fact that cultural and contextual factors play a significant impact on the shopping motivation and behavior of these shoppers.
Originality/value
In this study, shopping motivations are not fixed in different societies, and cultural and contextual factors play a significant impact in this regard. In other words, shopping motivations are fluid, and cultural factors play a significant role in their formation. This study makes two important contributions: First, cultural motivations are prominent among Muslim shoppers. Among these motivations, shopping environment motivations, including relationships with others and cleanliness, and staff behavior are very significant. These motivations are highly influenced by the culture of the context and we discover which motivations are not related to psychology alone and that the context has a significant influence on their formation. Second, hedonic motivations are also highlighted in the purchase of utilitarian products. In addition to direct effects, such as Islamic regulations on halal foods, Muslims’ religious tenets also have significant indirect effects on their behaviors and motivations.
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