Understanding churn and its reasons: The GuestU case

In the age of computerisation, entrepreneurs around the world aim to revolutionise their field with ground-breaking ICTs. GuestU is one of those offering mobile application development to small and medium-sized tourism enterprises. To assure the young start-ups steady growth this paper aims to identify reasons for the high customer churn risk. Primary data is used to analyse end-user behaviour and particularly the success of acquisition and activation. Results show troubling download quantities as well as retention rates leading to the recommendations for GuestU to incentivise and guide their customers in increasing promotion for the applications.

Under Armour

Equity research report

Quantitative Centromere Epigenetics

A PhD is like a box of chocolates, …… and in this thesis I will present what I got. My work has been focused on a cellular structure that is essential for accurate genome inheritance: the centromere. Centromeres are chromosomal domains that do not rely on the presence of any specific DNA sequence. Rather, they are determined by the presence of a histone variant called CENP-A. Stable transmission of CENP-A containing chromatin is accomplished through 1) an unusually high level of protein stability, 2) selfdirected recruitment of nascent CENP-A near existing molecules, and 3) strict cell cycle regulation of assembly. Together, these features lead to a self-sustaining loop that allows for epigenetic maintenance of centromeres.(...)

Para uma semiótica da luz. Da visão mítica aos regimes escópicos da contemporaneidade

Tese de Doutoramento em Ciências da Comunicação

OpenAIRE guidelines: supporting interoperability for Data Archives

OpenAIRE supports the European Commission Open Access policy by providing an infrastructure for researchers to comply with the European Union Open Access mandate. The current OpenAIRE infrastructure and services, resulting from OpenAIRE and OpenAIREplus FP7 projects, builds on Open Access research results from a wide range of repositories and other data sources: institutional or thematic publication repositories, Open Access journals, data repositories, Current Research Information Systems and aggregators. (...)

Critical analyses of the introduction of liquid-based cytology in a public health service of the state of São Paulo, Brazil

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare the performance of the current conventional Pap smear with liquid-based cytology (LBC) preparations. STUDY DESIGN Women routinely undergoing their cytopathological and histopathological examinations at Fundação Oncocentro de São Paulo (FOSP) were recruited for LBC. Conventional smears were analyzed from women from other areas of the State of São Paulo with similar sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS A total of 218,594 cases were analyzed, consisting of 206,999 conventional smears and 11,595 LBC. Among the conventional smears, 3.0% were of unsatisfactory preparation; conversely, unsatisfactory LBC preparations accounted for 0.3%. The ASC-H (atypical squamous cells - cannot exclude high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion) frequency did not demonstrate any differences between the two methods. In contrast, the incidence of ASC-US (atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance) was almost twice as frequent between LBC and conventional smears, at 2.9 versus 1.6%, respectively. An equal percentage of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions were observed for the two methods, but not for low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, which were more significantly observed in LBC preparations than in conventional smears (2.2 vs. 0.7%). The index of positivity was importantly enhanced from 3.0% (conventional smears) to 5.7% (LBC). CONCLUSIONS LBC performed better than conventional smears, and we are truly confident that LBC can improve public health strategies aimed at reducing cervical lesions through prevention programs.

High-level of viral genomic diversity in cervical cancers: a Brazilian study on human papillomavirus type 16

Invasive cervical cancer (ICC) is the third most frequent cancer among women worldwide and is associated with persistent infection by carcinogenic human papillomaviruses (HPVs). The combination of large populations of viral progeny and decades of sustained infection may allow for the generation of intra-patient diversity, in spite of the assumedly low mutation rates of PVs. While the natural history of chronic HPVs infections has been comprehensively described, within-host viral diversity remains largely unexplored. In this study we have applied next generation sequencing to the analysis of intra-host genetic diversity in ten ICC and one condyloma cases associated to single HPV16 infection. We retrieved from all cases near full-length genomic sequences. All samples analyzed contained polymorphic sites, ranging from 3 to 125 polymorphic positions per genome, and the median probability of a viral genome picked at random to be identical to the consensus sequence in the lesion was only 40%. We have also identified two independent putative duplication events in two samples, spanning the L2 and the L1 gene, respectively. Finally, we have identified with good support a chimera of human and viral DNA. We propose that viral diversity generated during HPVs chronic infection may be fueled by innate and adaptive immune pressures. Further research will be needed to understand the dynamics of viral DNA variability, differentially in benign and malignant lesions, as well as in tissues with differential intensity of immune surveillance. Finally, the impact of intralesion viral diversity on the long-term oncogenic potential may deserve closer attention.

Prevalência de dislipidemias em adultos da demanda laboratorial de Salvador, Brasil

OBJETIVO: Determinar a prevalência das dislipidemias em adultos da demanda laboratorial não-hospitalar da cidade de Salvador (BA). MÉTODOS: Casuística procedente de amostra probabilística de 25% dos laboratórios não-hospitalares da cidade que usavam o método enzimático para dosagem dos lípides séricos e controle de qualidade da Sociedade Brasileira de Patologia Clínica (93% do total); LDL estimado pela fórmula de Friedewald. Sorteados os meses ímpares de 1995 para o estudo. Critérios para dislipidemias, em mg/dl: colesterol ³240; LDL ³160; HDL <35 e triglicérides ³200. Análise: prevalências, seus intervalos de confiança (IC) a 95% e qui-quadrado (chi²). RESULTADOS: Excluídos uma recusa e um laboratório que arquivava laudos só por 3 meses, foram analisados dados de 24 dos 26 laboratórios amostrados. Dos 7392 adultos, 65,5% eram mulheres. Prevalências estimadas e valores dos IC a 95% para homens, foram: hipercolesterolemia =24,0% (20,5; 27,5); LDL elevado =26,1 (22,4; 29,3); HDL baixo =15,9 (14,2; 17,8) e hipertrigliceridemia =27,6 (25,7; 29,5). Para mulheres: hipercolesterolemia =30,0 (27,8; 32,2), LDL elevado =33,1 (30,8; 35,4); HDL baixo =8,0 (7,1; 8,9) e hipertrigliceridemia =30,4 (29,0; 31,4). Todas as prevalências diferiram significantemente inter-gênero (p, 0,05 a p<0,001). Também foram mais freqüentes nas mulheres os níveis indesejáveis do colesterol e LDL. CONCLUSÃO: As dislipidemias são importante fator de risco para aterosclerose na demanda laboratorial de Salvador em ambos os gêneros. Os resultados subsidiam os médicos para incentivar mudanças no estilo de vida que conduzam seus pacientes a níveis lipídicos desejáveis.

Prevalência de dislipidemias na demanda laboratorial de três diferentes prestadores de assistência

OBJETIVO: Detectar diferenças nas prevalências das dislipidemias em adultos da demanda laboratorial de três diferentes prestadores de assistência médica, em Salvador, 1995. MÉTODOS: Estudo seccional, clínico epidemiológico, baseado em resultados das dosagens de lípides séricos de uma amostra probabilística de 25% dos 104 laboratórios que usavam o mesmo método de dosagem e o mesmo padrão para controle de qualidade. O critério de dislipidemia foi o do II Consenso Brasileiro de Dislipidemias para adultos. Os resultados foram agrupados conforme procedência: Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), convênios (C) e seguros privados + particulares (SP). Análise: prevalência com intervalos de confiança (IC) a 95%, e teste do chi². RESULTADOS: Dos 5.464 adultos com menção da procedência, 14,8% foram do SUS, 31,6% dos C e 53,6% dos S+P. As mais elevadas prevalências de hipercolesterolemia - 28,0% (IC 24,0; 32,0) e de LDL-c elevado - 30,4% (IC 27,6; 33,2) foram detectadas no grupo C. No grupo S+P concentraram-se as maiores prevalências de HDL-c anormal - 12,3% (IC 10,0; 13,8) e hipertrigliceridemia - 17,8% (IC 16,3; 19,3). Quase todas as diferenças entre as prevalências foram estatisticamente significantes, favoráveis às taxas mais baixas do SUS. CONCLUSÃO: O melhor perfil lipídico do grupo SUS sugere diferenças sociais nas prevalências das dislipidemias. Para os três prestadores de assistência, a prevalência do HDL-c <35mg/dL foi baixa quando comparada às das demais dislipidemias. Os resultados podem ser inferidos para a prática médica dos respectivos prestadores de assistência e indicam a necessidade de informação e de orientação dos usuários para redução das dislipidemias e melhoria do estilo de vida.

Contributo para a compreensão das causas de exclusão de ilicitude e da culpa no crime de acesso ilegítimo

Dissertação de mestrado em Direito e Informática

Tapping the wealth of microbial data in high-throughput metabolic model reconstruction

Genome-scale metabolic models are valuable tools in the metabolic engineering process, based on the ability of these models to integrate diverse sources of data to produce global predictions of organism behavior. At the most basic level, these models require only a genome sequence to construct, and once built, they may be used to predict essential genes, culture conditions, pathway utilization, and the modifications required to enhance a desired organism behavior. In this chapter, we address two key challenges associated with the reconstruction of metabolic models: (a) leveraging existing knowledge of microbiology, biochemistry, and available omics data to produce the best possible model; and (b) applying available tools and data to automate the reconstruction process. We consider these challenges as we progress through the model reconstruction process, beginning with genome assembly, and culminating in the integration of constraints to capture the impact of transcriptional regulation. We divide the reconstruction process into ten distinct steps: (1) genome assembly from sequenced reads; (2) automated structural and functional annotation; (3) phylogenetic tree-based curation of genome annotations; (4) assembly and standardization of biochemistry database; (5) genome-scale metabolic reconstruction; (6) generation of core metabolic model; (7) generation of biomass composition reaction; (8) completion of draft metabolic model; (9) curation of metabolic model; and (10) integration of regulatory constraints. Each of these ten steps is documented in detail.

Mechanical versus biological aortic valve implants in the elderly. A comparison of early and mid-term results

OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to compare, in a non randomized study, the surgical outcome in elderly patients with mechanical (Group 1; n=83) and bioprosthetic valve implants (Group 2; n=136). METHODS: During a three year period, 219 patients >75 years underwent Aortic Valve Replacement. The groups matched according to age, sex, comorbidity, valve pathology and concomitant Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery. Follow-up was a total of 469 patient-years (mean follow-up 2.1 years, maximum 4,4 years). RESULTS: Operative mortality was zero and the overall early mortality was 2.3 % (within 30 days). Actuarial survival was 87.5 ± 4.0% and 66.1 ± 7.7% (NS) at 4 years in Group 1 and Group 2, respectively. Freedom from valve-related death was 88.9 ± 3.8% in Group 1 and 69.9±7.9% (NS) in Group 2 at 4 years. CONCLUSION: Aortic Valve Replacement in the elderly (>75 years) is a safe procedure even in cases where concomitant coronary artery revascularization is performed. Only a few anticoagulant-related complications were reported and this may indicate that selected groups of elderly patients with significant life expectancy may benefit from mechanical implants .

Caroli Linnaei...Systema naturae per regna tria naturae :secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis.

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Caroli Linnaei...Systema naturae per regna tria naturae :secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis.

v.2

Caroli Linnaei ... Species plantarum :exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas...

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