Lack of effects of isoflavones on the lipid profile of Brazilian postmenopausal women

Objective: To evaluate the effects of soy isoflavone supplementation on profile lipid and endogenous hormone levels. Methods: In this double-blind, placebo-controlled Study, 47 post menopausal women 47-66 v of age received 40 mg of isoflavone (n = 25) or 40 mg of casein placebo (11 = 22). Cardiovascular risk factors were assessed by evaluating lipid profile at baseline and after 6 mo of treatment. To examine the effects of this regime on endogenous hormone levels, follicle-stimulating hormone and beta-estradiol were measured. Urinary isoflavone concentrations (genistein and daidzein) were measured as markers of both compliance and absorption using high performance liquid chromatography. Baseline characteristics were compared by the unpaired Student`s t-test. Within-group changes were determined by paired Student`s t-test and comparison between the isoflavone and casein placebo groups were determined by analysis of variance. Results: Lipid levels (low-density lipoprotein and total cholesterol) similarly decreased in both,groups. High-density lipoprotein increased significantly in both groups and cannot thus be attributable to treatment: the reason for Such variation is unknown and can be attributed to chance or to bias (even that of a real placebo effect in both groups or perhaps in spontaneous changes in exercise and dietary habits of patients after their inclusion). Furthermore, in both groups very low-density lipoprotein and triacylglycerol levels increased in a non-significant manner. Conclusion: The results of the present Study do not support any biologically significant estrogenic effects of isoflavone on the parameters assessed. Further research will he necessary to definitively assess the safety and efficacy of isoflavone. (C) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Photoproduction of J/psi and of high mass e(+)e(-) in ultra-peripheral Au plus Au collisions at root s(NN)=200 GeV

We present the first measurement of photoproduction of J/psi and of two-photon production of high-mass e(+)e(-) pairs in electromagnetic (or ultra-peripheral) nucleus-nucleus interactions, using Au + Au data at root s(NN) = 200 GeV. The events are tagged with forward neutrons emitted following Coulomb excitation of one or both Au* nuclei. The event sample consists of 28 events with m(e+e-) > 2 GeV/c(2) with zero like-sign background. The measured cross sections at midrapidity of d sigma/dy (J/psi + Xn, y = 0) = 76 +/- 33 (stat) +/- 11 (syst) pb and d(2)sigma /dm dy (e(+) e(-) + Xn, y = 0) = 86 +/- 23(stat) +/- 16(syst) mu b/ (GeV/c(2)) for m(e+e-) epsilon vertical bar 2.0, 2.8 vertical bar GeV/c(2) have been compared and found to be consistent with models for photoproduction of J/psi and QED based calculations of two-photon production of e(+)e(-) pairs. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dilepton mass spectra in p plus p collisions at root s=200 GeV

PHENIX has measured the electron-positron pair mass spectrum from 0 to 8 GeV/c(2) in p + p collisions at root s = 200 GeV. The contributions from light meson decays to e(+)e(-) pairs have been determined based on measurements of hadron production cross sections by PHENIX. Within the systematic uncertainty of similar to 20% they account for all e(+)e(-) pairs in the mass region below similar to 1 GeV/c(2). The e(+)e(-) pair yield remaining after subtracting these contributions is dominated by semileptonic decays of charmed hadrons correlated through flavor conservation. Using the spectral shape predicted by PYTHIA, we estimate the charm production cross section to be 544 +/- 39(stat) +/- 142(syst) +/- 200(model) pb. which is consistent with QCD calculations and measurements of single leptons by PHENIX. (C) 2008 Elsevier BV. All rights reserved.

Does the motivation to help differ between generation X and Y?

This exploratory study examines the motivation for helping from the perspective of Generation X and Y. A study of 422 respondents was conducted to investigate their perception of helping based on intrinsic (social or community need) and extrinsic motivation (personal need). The findings suggested significant group differences. Although there was no significant main effect for motivation to help as a personal need (extrinsic motivation) across the generations, an examination of the social and community need (intrinsic motivation) indicated that generation X considered social and community need more important than Generation Y.

Blueprinting perspective to managing giving

This paper examines the potential of using service blueprinting to assist non-profit organizations in better managing their donation efficiency by identifying the complexities of the donation process from a customer perspective, which in turn should allow them to better meet the needs of those they seek to assist. A disregard of donors’ expectations in relation to the overall experience could potentially result in “dissatisfaction” and thus reductions in future donations to a given organization.

Australian environmental alliances from an environmental NGOs perspective

Businesses have used alliances to share knowledge and resources amongst themselves to achieve corporate goals, yet little is written in the literature on how non-profit organizations manage alliances and what makes these alliances effective. This paper examines how Australian environmental non-governmental agencies (NGOs) perceive their alliances with other NGOs, profit-based organizations and governmental partners. To a large extent this paper replicates the work of Milne, Iyer and Gooding-Williams (1996) and includes measures of alliance effectiveness developed by Bucklin and Sengupta (1993). The findings suggest that Australian environmental NGOs use varying mechanisms to manage these alliance relationships, which is generally supported in the existing literature.

Publishing in 20 leading marketing journals – an examination of global performance

Purpose of this paper was to examine the global contribution of academics to marketing literature between 1999 and 2003. This was done based on an examination of the location of academics institution of employment, as reported in published works within the targeted journals. This was then used to examine the globally dispersion of publishing by institutions.

Design/approach. The paper used a content analysis. The authorship of all articles in 20 leading journals was examined between 1999 and 2003. Empirical examination of institutions performance was undertaken across geographic regions. There was also an examination of whether the type of journal impacted on regional performance, using Polonsky and Whitelaw’s (2006) A, B and C journal groupings.

Findings. The research found that there is a significant “bias” of authorship within the 20 journals examined, with the majority of works published by academics at institutions in North America. There is some variation in regional performance based on the type of journal examined. However, when one considers the number of universities within each country/region, it is identified that the proportion of institutions within a country/region publishing within the targeted journals is in fact hight outside North America.

Limitations. There was no attempt to examine why any differences exist. The study also only focused on a sample of 20 English language journals over 5 years, although these journals have been ‘defined’ as a leading marketing journal for European marketing academics.

Practical Implications. The research suggests that there may in fact be a range of differences in publishing behaviour. It is unclear if these differences relate to variations in the “objectives” of institutions within each country or other factors. The research posits that a marketing knowledge may be unnecessarily restricted, if there is a bias against non-north American perspectives.

Originality. While there have been other works examining research performance of institutions, there have not been any marketing-related works that focused on the nation in which authors work. This work therefore takes a global “snapshot” of national research performance within marketing.

Managing strategic versus tactical green collaborations : a nonprofit perspective

This exploratory study examines how non-profit organisations view collaborations with other organisations, based on the objective of the collaboration. This perspective has not been previously considered within the literature. Our findings suggest that non-profits believe there are differences in the management of collaborations depending on whether they are designed
to achieve strategic or tactical goals. The variables of power and managerial imbalance were found to impact on the perceived effectiveness of strategic collaborations while organisational compatibility was found to impact on the perceived effectiveness of tactical collaborations.

Chinese consumers' perceptions of country design, assembly and parts capabilities : does country considered or consumer acculturation matter?

Chinese consumers are facing a diverse range of choices in regards to products produced wholly or in part overseas or by overseas corporations based in China. This study examines how consumers from China, both residing at home and abroad, perceived capability of Germany, Japan, US and China in regard to three dimensions of country capabilities- design, assembly and parts/components. The findings show that consumers have different perceptions concerning country capabilities and that Chinese consumers residing overseas appear to have more positive perceptions of foreign countries’ capabilities.

Service blueprinting : a potential tool for improving cause-donor exchanges

This paper examines the potential for using service blueprinting to assist non-profit organizations in better managing donor exchanges. In many cases organizations are unclear of donors' expectations in relation to the overall giving experience. Failure to deliver on expectations could potentially result in donor 'dissatisfaction', which in turn may result in reductions of future donations to these organizations. This article begins with a review of blueprinting and the benefits of using such as tool as to assist in understanding the donation exchange. Zeithaml and Bitner's (2000) steps in building a blueprint are explained in the context of non-profit-donor exchanges. An example of a hypothetical blueprint provided to highlight the complexity and divergence encountered in such exchanges and used to identify potential problems associated with the various aspects of the donation experience. Finally, implications for managing giving and suggestions for future research are offered.

The impact of consumer ethnocentrism and country of origin sub-components for high involvement products on young Chinese consumers' product assessments

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of country of origin (COO) sub-components (i.e. design, assembly and parts), as well as the extent to which consumer ethnocentrism tendencies interact with these COO sub-components for young Chinese consumers with regards to product quality assessments and purchase intentions.

Design/methodology/approach – A 2?×?2?×?2 factorial experimental design was used to examine the effects of the three sub-components of COO with two levels of sourcing location – Home (China) and Foreign (Germany), for two high involvement products (an automobile and a digital camera). Chinese students in China represented the sample of 272 respondents. MANOVA was used to examine the direct effects and interactions of the three COO components, as well as ethnocentrism, measured using the CETSCALE.

Findings – It was found that the three COO sub-components did not influence young Chinese consumers’ evaluation of product quality or purchase intentions. In addition, consumers’ level of ethnocentrism also did not have a direct effect on perceived product quality or purchase intentions. There was only one statistically significant interaction effect between ethnocentrism and country of parts for one of the two products. As such, COO dimensions and young Chinese consumers’ ethnocentrism appears to have limited influence on their assessments of product quality or purchase intentions. This may occur because young Chinese consumers perceive that hybrid products are the norm for high involvement products in China as these products are all these consumers have experienced.

Originality/value – The findings of this research dispute the commonly held belief and evidence that sub-components of COO have an impact on the perceptions of product quality and purchase intentions. Young Chinese consumers may be different to consumers from western countries because they have been extensively exposed to hybrid products. Given the size and growth potential of China, young Chinese are an important, under-researched segment within the Chinese market.

Product evaluation and purchase intention : impact of country-of-origin and experience in living in a foreign country

This article presents the results of an experiment that compares the perceptions of product quality and purchase intentions of foreign versus home products by Chinese consumers who have had experience living in a western society compared to those living in China. The results indicate experience does affect purchase likelihood for home versus foreign products. Chinese, generally, find country of parts as the best cue in evaluating product quality and purchase intentions.

An examination of the globalisation of authorship in publishing in 20 leading marketing journals

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the global contribution of academics to marketing literature between 1999 and 2003, based on an examination of the location of academics institution of employment, as reported in published works. The data is used to evaluate the global dispersion of publishing.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses the method of content analysis where the authorship of all articles in 20 leading marketing journals between 1999 and 2003 is examined. An empirical examination of performance was undertaken across geographic regions. There was also an examination of whether the quality of journal affected regional performance.

Findings – The research found that there is a significant “bias” of authorship within the 20 journals examined, with the majority of works published by academics at institutions in North America. There is some variation in regional performance based on the type of journal examined.

Research limitations/implications – There was no attempt to empirically examine why differences might exist. The study only focused on a sample of 20 English language journals over five years. These journals have been included in studies that list the leading marketing journal for US and European academics.

Practical implications – The research suggests that there may in fact be regional differences in publishing behaviour. It is unclear if these differences relate to variations in the “objectives” of institutions within each country or other factors, such as the North American publish-or-perish mentality. The research posits that a marketing knowledge may be unnecessarily restricted, if there is a bias against non-North American perspectives.

Originality/value – While there have been other works examining research performance of institutions, there has been limited examination in marketing on the nation in which authors work and none have used a broad cross-section of journals. This work takes a global “snapshot” of national research performance within marketing.