In this thesis we study problems related to approximation of asymmetric TSP. First we give worst case examples for the famous algorithm due to Frieze, Gabiati and Maffioli for asymmetric TSP with triangle inequality. Some steps in the algorithm consist of arbitrary choices. To prove lower bounds, these choices need to be specified. We show a worst case performance with some deterministic assump...

Objective—Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR ) is highly expressed in macrophage-derived foam cells of atherosclerotic lesions, and its expression may have a dramatic impact on atherosclerosis. Methods and Results—To investigate the contribution of macrophage PPAR expression on atherogenesis in vivo, we generated macrophage-specific PPAR knockout (MacPPAR KO) mice. C57BL/6 a...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the incidence and etiology of healthcare-associated infections in immunosuppressed children. METHODS Data collected prospectively between 1983 and 2008 were used to analyze changes in the rate, types of infection, and infecting organisms over time in patients treated at a children's cancer hospital. Neutropenia was evaluated as a risk factor. RESULTS Over th...

The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System, to hold increases in national health expenditures to no more than long-term economic growth, recommends a set of synergistic provider payment reforms, consumer incentives, and systemwide reforms to confront costs while improving health system performance. This approach could slow spending by a cumulative $2 trillion by 2023—i...

BACKGROUND The blood urea nitrogen to creatinine ratio (BCR) has been used since the early 1940s to help clinicians differentiate between prerenal acute kidney injury (PR AKI) and intrinsic AKI (I AKI). This ratio is simple to use and often put forward as a reliable diagnostic tool even though little scientific evidence supports this. The aim of this study was to determine whether BCR is a reli...

Drop-shipping is an arrangement whereby an e-tailer, who does not hold inventories, processes orders and requests a manufacturer to ship products directly to the end customers. To explore the economic benefits of adopting drop-shipping distribution strategy in a competitive environment, we investigate the profitability and the efficiency of the drop-shipping channel as compared to the tradition...

THIS paper reviews the Discourse of the Heart by James de Back, which was included in the English language edition of The Anatomical Exercises of William Harvey of 1653. The edition used for this review is a 1673 reprint published at London. There are no illustrations. Its contents include the anatomical exercises concerning the motion of the heart and blood by Harvey (of 1628) with the preface...

In 1653, the English physician William Harvey published the first comprehensive study of blood vessels, De Motu Cordis.1 This classic treatise delineated the directions of blood flow, differences between veins and arteries, functions of venous ''valves,' and anatomy of the systemic and pulmonary circulations. By the 19th century, the major layers constituting blood vessels were identified and o...

Objective: Data on the relevance of monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 in the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are inconsistent. Since MCP-1 is produced by adipocytes and has been postulated to be involved in macrophage infiltration into adipose tissue, we wanted to test whether serum MCP-1 levels were correlated with T2D or obesity. Design and methods: Out of 1653 ind...

The anthropogenic movement of live fish has been identified as the most important route for the transmission of disease between river catchments. To assist in contingency planning for exotic salmonid disease outbreaks, a stochastic model was developed to assess the potential geographic distribution of an introduced pathogen with time to first detection. The Live Fish Movement Database (a resour...