Abstract Osteoprotegerin (OPG) regulates bone metabolism by reducing the activation of osteoclasts, but may also be involved in blood vessel calcification and atherosclerosis. Within endothelial cells OPG is stored in Weibel–Palade bodies (WPBs). Blood kinetics of OPG are essentially unknown. We aimed to assess these using two distinct in vivo models; one after stimulation with desmopressin (DDAVP) and another after stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Both clinical trials were conducted at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. Participants received desmopressin (0.3 µg/kg), LPS (2 ng/kg), or placebo (sodium chloride 0.9%) with subsequent blood sampling at time points up to 24 hours after administration. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the plasma kinetics of OPG after stimulation with desmopressin and LPS. Secondary analyses included the release of other WPB contents including von Willebrand factor (vWF). This analysis included 31 healthy volunteers (n = 16 for desmopressin and placebo, n = 15 for LPS). Infusion of desmopressin did not increase OPG concentrations compared with placebo, while LPS infusion significantly increased OPG levels, both compared with desmopressin (p < 0.0001) and to placebo (p = 0.004), with a maximum of ∼twofold increase in OPG levels ∼6 hours after infusion. von Willebrand factor levels increased after both desmopressin and LPS infusion (p < 0.0001), with a maximum of ∼threefold increase 2 hours after desmopressin and a maximum of ∼twofold increase 6 hours after LPS administration. In conclusion, we report that, in contrast to vWF, OPG is not released upon stimulation with desmopressin, but increases significantly during experimental endotoxemia.

The purpose of this recommendation of the Oncology Task Force of the European Society of Paediatric Radiology (ESPR) is to indicate reasonable applications of whole-body MRI in children with cancer and to address useful protocols to optimize workflow and diagnostic performance. Whole-body MRI as a radiation-free modality has been increasingly performed over the last two decades, and newer applications, as in screening of children with germ-line mutation cancer-related gene defects, are now widely accepted. We aim to provide a comprehensive outline of the diagnostic value for use in daily practice. Based on the results of our task force session in 2018 and the revision in 2019 during the ESPR meeting, we summarized our group’s experiences in whole-body MRI. The lack of large evidence by clinical studies is challenging when focusing on a balanced view regarding the impact of whole-body MRI in pediatric oncology. Therefore, the final version of this recommendation was supported by the members of Oncology Task Force.

Abstract Xanthene derivatives have become a group of molecules of great importance in discovering of new anticancer drugs. Recent studies of our group performed on xanthen-3-one and xanthen-1,8-dione derivatives have shown their antiproliferative activity on HeLa cervical cell lines. Obtained IC50 values together with calculated molecular descriptors were subjected to Quantitative Structure–Activity Relationship (QSAR) study in order to identify the most relevant molecular features responsible for the observed antiproliferative activity of compounds. Partial least square statistical method and the same training and test set were used to obtain statistical parameters for internal and external validation in 2D- and 3D-QSAR study. The obtained QSAR models have shown next results: 2D-QSAR: R 2 = 0.741, Q 2 = 0.792, R 2 pred = 0.875 and 3D-QSAR: R 2 = 0.951, Q 2 = 0.830, R 2 pred = 0.769. Based on the performed QSAR analysis and calculated ADMET properties, novel xanthene derivatives with enhanced antiproliferative activity were designed. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma

Abstinence is a conscious and voluntary waiver of one original political right, the right to vote. Often, the very act of abstinence is understood as a kind of election, as an expression of disagreement with political alternatives, candidates and parties participating in the elections. Abstinence is close to the notion of apolitical, that is the disinterest and indifference of citizens, of individuals and groups to politics and participation in the political life of the community. The paper analyzes the difference between abstinence in elections and apoliticality and attempts to point to the problem of increasing abstinence from voting in general elections in post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This study strives to explore the nexus between entrepreneurial orientation (EO), total quality management (TQM), competitive intensity (CI) and firm performance in the context of an emerging laggard economy in the South-Eastern European region. Moreover, the present study aims to examine the effect of each dimension of EO (innovativeness, proactiveness, and risk-taking) on the TQM and firm performance. The proposed conceptual model and research hypotheses were tested through structural equation modelling (SEM). Our results show that TQM partially mediates the relationship between EO and firm performance and that as the intensity of competition increases, the direct effect of EO on firm performance becomes stronger. Thus, this study contributes to the EO and TQM literature by arguing that EO as a strategic orientation is positively related to firm performance outcomes through the mechanism of TQM practices. Moreover, this study adds to the current literature by revealing that the effectiveness of the synergetic effect of EO and TQM of firm performance outcomes is contingent on the market environment conditions (i.e. competitive intensity). Regarding the relative importance of EO dimensions, findings indicate that innovativeness and proactiveness are vital pillars of organisational processes aimed at developing TQM practices to enhance firm performance outcomes.

Conference Report: Izvještaj sa Međunarodne naučne konferencije „Migracije i njihov uticaj na društvena i privredna kretanja na širem području Brčkog od početka XVII do kraja XX stoljeća, Brčko, 13. i 14. septembar 2019.

In this paper, the author emphasizes the specific case of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian intraparty dispute in the context of the reconstruction of the republican leaderships in Yugoslavia, the change of “Croatian Spring participants” and “liberals” as well as the so-called “senior cadres” at the beginning of 1970s. Pasaga Mandzic's years-long dispute with the current political leadership in Tuzla and also in the Republic will touch upon various issues, from plans and results of economic and urban development, integration of enterprises, organization and activities of political and party leadership to establishing the "historical truth" about the events throughout the war years 1941 and 1942. Considering the current socio-political discourse, Mandzic will come out very boldly, demanding that it is finally time to "speak openly" about the actual war events, the consequences of Partisan-Chetnik cooperation at the end of 1941, the dominance of the Serb element in the communist leadership and its attitude towards the Bosniaks during the war, but also in the post-war period. The insistence on establishing the "real truth" entailed a revision of the existing image of a "glorious war past", which also raised the question of consistent application of the principles of brotherhood and unity. Ultimately, years of clarification resulted in the political elimination and moral discredit of Pasaga Mandzic.

Abstract Biodiesel fuels are alternatives to petrodiesel, especially in the transport sector where they have lower carbon footprint. Notwithstanding the environmental benefit, biodiesel fuels may have other toxicological properties than petrodiesel. Particulate matter (PM) from petrodiesel causes cancer in the lung as a consequence of delivery of genotoxic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, oxidative stress and inflammation. We have reviewed articles from 2002 to 2019 (50% of the articles since 2015) that have described toxicological effects in terms of genotoxicity, oxidative stress and inflammation of biodiesel exhaust exposure in humans, animals and cell cultures. The studies have assessed first generation biodiesel from different feedstock (e.g. rapeseed and soy), certain second generation fuels (e.g. waste oil), and hydrogenated vegetable oil. It is not possible to rank the potency of toxicological effects of specific biodiesel fuels. However, exposure to biodiesel exhaust causes oxidative stress, inflammation and genotoxicity in cell cultures. Three studies in animals have not indicated genotoxicity in lung tissue. The database on oxidative stress and inflammation in animal studies is larger (13 studies); ten studies have reported increased levels of oxidative stress biomarkers or inflammation, although the effects have been modest in most studies. The cell culture and animal studies have not consistently shown a different potency in effect between biodiesel and petrodiesel exhausts. Both increased and decreased potency have been reported, which might be due to differences in feedstock or combustion conditions. In conclusion, combustion products from biodiesel and petrodiesel fuel may evoke similar toxicological effects on genotoxicity, oxidative stress and inflammation.

In this paper, we present a 5G trace dataset collected from a major Irish mobile operator. The dataset is generated from two mobility patterns (static and car), and across two application patterns (video streaming and file download). The dataset is composed of client-side cellular key performance indicators (KPIs) comprised of channel-related metrics, context-related metrics, cell-related metrics and throughput information. These metrics are generated from a well-known non-rooted Android network monitoring application, G-NetTrack Pro. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first publicly available dataset that contains throughput, channel and context information for 5G networks. To supplement our real-time 5G production network dataset, we also provide a 5G large scale multi-cell ns-3 simulation framework. The availability of the 5G/mmwave module for the ns-3 mmwave network simulator provides an opportunity to improve our understanding of the dynamic reasoning for adaptive clients in 5G multi-cell wireless scenarios. The purpose of our framework is to provide additional information (such as competing metrics for users connected to the same cell), thus providing otherwise unavailable information about the base station (eNodeB or eNB) environment and scheduling principle, to end user. Our framework permits other researchers to investigate this interaction through the generation of their own synthetic datasets.

E-cigarette smoking (ECS) is a new method of tobacco smoking that is gaining popularity as it is thought to be a “healthy method” of tobacco consumption. The adverse outcomes of ECS on the respiratory and cardiovascular systems in humans have been recently demonstrated. Nevertheless, the effect of e-cigarette liquid (ECL) on the early stage of embryogenesis and angiogenesis has not been explored yet. Chicken embryo at 3 days of incubation and its chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of 5 days were used to explore the outcome of ECL on the embryo. Real-time PCR was also employed to study the regulation of a set of key controller genes of embryogenesis as well as angiogenesis. Our study revealed that ECL exposure is associated with a high rate of mortality in embryos as around 70% of treated embryos, at 3 days of incubation, die after 5 days of exposure. Additionally, ECL inhibits angiogenesis of the CAM of 5 days of incubation by more than 30%. These effects could be explained by the upregulation of ATF-3, FOXA2, INHBA, MAPRE-2, and RIPK-1, as well as the downregulation of SERPINA-4 and VEGF-C genes, which are important key controller genes of embryogenesis as well as angiogenesis. Our data suggest clearly that ECS can have dramatic toxic outcomes on the early stage of embryogenesis as well as angiogenesis. Accordingly, we believe that further studies to assess the effects of ECS on human health are essential.

This paper presents principal influences of heat input and welding position on geometrical properties of fillet welds for conventional and pulsed GMAW of unalloyed steel. We took into consideration geometrical properties such as fillet weld size, penetration, dilution and reinforcement. All presented influences are represented by fitting curves, based on simple linear regression of experimental data provided by visual and macro-section examination.

High resolution cervical auscultation is a very promising noninvasive method for dysphagia screening and aspiration detection, as it does not involve the use of harmful ionizing radiation approaches. Automatic extraction of swallowing events in cervical auscultation is a key step for swallowing analysis to be clinically effective. Using time-varying spectral estimation of swallowing signals and deep feed forward neural networks, we propose an automatic segmentation algorithm for swallowing accelerometry and sounds that works directly on the raw swallowing signals in an online fashion. The algorithm was validated qualitatively and quantitatively using the swallowing data collected from 248 patients, yielding over 3000 swallows manually labeled by experienced speech language pathologists. With a detection accuracy that exceeded 95%, the algorithm has shown superior performance in comparison to the existing algorithms and demonstrated its generalizability when tested over 76 completely unseen swallows from a different population. The proposed method is not only of great importance to any subsequent swallowing signal analysis steps, but also provides an evidence that such signals can capture the physiological signature of the swallowing process.