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Abstract:  Current evidence on diet-cancer interaction remains incomplete, particularly in oral carcinoma (OC). This study aimed to evaluate the relationship among daily saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (FAs) intake and eating patterns in people with / without OC, during a minimum period of five years, and its possible relationship with SNP TP53-R72P.  A retrospective case-control study (n = 79), matched by sex and age (21-85 years old), was carried out. Dietary information was collected using a quantitative food frequency survey validated for Cordoba population. TP53-R72P alleles were determined using conventional PCR. The Mann–Whitney U test and logistic regression were applied to assess the association between case/control status and FAs intake adjusted by alcohol/tobacco, respectively. Dietary patterns were identified by principal component factor analysis. The intake of saturated FAs such as myristic (p = 0.037), palmitic (p = 0.004), stearic (p = 0.009), arachidic (p = 0.012), monounsaturated such as palmitoleic (p = 0.013), oleic (p = 0.002) and polyunsaturated as linoleic (p = 0.0006) and alpha-linoleic (p = 0.003) was higher in cases. Omega6/omega3 ratio was significantly higher in cases (p = 0.003). The mutated C allele was more frequent in cases (p = 0.0061) than controls. All surveyed patients with OC were heterozygous for TP53-R72. In addition, they presented a high consumption of total fats in relation to controls. The studied population presented a dietary pattern described as “Western diet”;  related with a high daily intake of meat, eggs and alcohol; it was remarkable an association between red meat consumption and the presence of OC (p = 0.015). This diet has a high amount of omega-6 FAs, which leads to an increase in arachidonic acid and its derivatives, than have been related to the risk of OC. The presence of mutated TP53-R72P allele in OC patients is related to the loss of ability to induce apoptosis. The presence of both risk factors, diet and presence of a mutated polymorphic variant, could linked to an increaserisk of developing OC.Resumen:  La evidencia actual sobre la interacción dieta-cáncer sigue siendo incompleta, particularmente en el carcinoma oral (CO). El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar la relación entre la ingesta dietaria de ácidos grasos (AGs) saturados, monoinsaturados y poliinsaturados y patrones de alimentación en personas con/sin CO, durante un período mínimo previo de cinco años al momento de la encuesta; y su posible relación con la presencia del polimorfismo TP53-R72P. Se realizó un estudio retrospectivo de casos/controles (n=79), apareados por sexo y edad (21-85 años). Se recolectaron datos de un cuestionario cuantitativo de frecuencia alimentaria validado para la población cordobesa. TP53-R72P se genotipificó por PCR alelo específica. Se aplicaron la prueba Mann-Whitney y regresión logística para evaluar la asociación entre casos/controles y la ingesta de AGs ajustada por alcohol/tabaco, respectivamente. Los patrones alimentarios se identificaron por análisis factorial de componentes principales. La ingesta de AGs saturados como mirístico (p=0.037), palmítico (p=0.004), esteárico (p=0.009), araquídico (p=0.012), monoinsaturados como palmitoleico (p=0.013), oleico (p=0.002) y poliinsaturados como linoleico (p=0.0006) y alfa-linoleico (p=0.003) fue mayor en los casos. La relación omega-6/omega-3 fue significativamente mayor en los casos (p=0.003).  De los sujetos genotipificados, el alelo mutado C fue más frecuente en los casos (p=0.0061) que en los controles. De los sujetos encuestados y con genotipificación TP53-R72P se observó que todos los pacientes con CO eran heterocigotos y, además, presentaron un alto consumo de grasas en relación a los controles. La población total presentó un patrón alimentario reconocido como dieta occidental asociada a una ingesta diaria elevada en carnes, huevos y alcohol de la población estudiada; siendo notorio una asociación entre el consumo de carnes rojas y la presencia de CO (p=0.015). Esta dieta presenta una alta cantidad de AGs omega-6, lo que conduce a un aumento del ácido araquidónico y sus derivados, los cuales se han relacionado con el riesgo de CO. La presencia del alelo mutado TP53-R72P en pacientes con CO está relacionado con la pérdida de capacidad de conducir a la célula a apoptosis. La presencia de ambos factores de riesgo, dieta y presencia de variante polimórfica mutada, podría incrementar el riesgo de desarrollar CO.

Theorems on existence and global dynamics for the Einstein equations

This article is a guide to theorems on existence and global dynamics of solutions of the Einstein equations. It draws attention to open questions in the field. The local-in-time Cauchy problem, which is relatively well understood, is surveyed. Global results for solutions with various types of symmetry are discussed. A selection of results from Newtonian theory and special relativity that offer useful comparisons is presented. Treatments of global results in the case of small data and results on constructing spacetimes with prescribed singularity structure or late-time asymptotics are given. A conjectural picture of the asymptotic behaviour of general cosmological solutions of the Einstein equations is built up. Some miscellaneous topics connected with the main theme are collected in a separate section.Comment: Submitted to Living Reviews in Relativity, major update of Living Rev. Rel. 5 (2002)

Synthesising Corporate Responsibility on Organisational and Societal Levels of Analysis: An Integrative Perspective

This article develops an integrative perspective on corporate responsibility by synthesising competing perspectives on the responsibility of the corporation at the organisational and societal levels of analysis. We review three major corporate responsibility perspectives, which we refer to as economic, critical, and politico-ethical. We analyse the major potential uses and pitfalls of the perspectives, and integrate the debate on these two levels. Our synthesis concludes that when a society has a robust division of moral labour in place, the responsibility of a corporation may be economic (as suggested under the economic perspective) without jeopardising democracy and sustainability (as reported under the critical perspective). Moreover, the economic role of corporations neither signifies the absence of deliberative democratic mechanisms nor business practices extending beyond compliance (as called for under the politico-ethical perspective). The study underscores the value of integrating different perspectives and multiple levels of analysis to present comprehensive descriptions and prescriptions of the responsibility phenomenon

The role of rock joint frictional strength in the containment of fracture propagation

The fracturing phenomenon within the reservoir environment is a complex process that is controlled by several factors and may occur either naturally or by artificial drivers. Even when deliberately induced, the fracturing behaviour is greatly influenced by the subsurface architecture and existing features. The presence of discontinuities such as joints, artificial and naturally occurring faults and interfaces between rock layers and microfractures plays an important role in the fracturing process and has been known to significantly alter the course of fracture growth. In this paper, an important property (joint friction) that governs the shear behaviour of discontinuities is considered. The applied numerical procedure entails the implementation of the discrete element method to enable a more dynamic monitoring of the fracturing process, where the joint frictional property is considered in isolation. Whereas fracture propagation is constrained by joints of low frictional resistance, in non-frictional joints, the unrestricted sliding of the joint plane increases the tendency for reinitiation and proliferation of fractures at other locations. The ability of a frictional joint to suppress fracture growth decreases as the frictional resistance increases; however, this phenomenon exacerbates the influence of other factors including in situ stresses and overburden conditions. The effect of the joint frictional property is not limited to the strength of rock formations; it also impacts on fracturing processes, which could be particularly evident in jointed rock masses or formations with prominent faults and/or discontinuities

CSR and related terms in SME owner-managers' mental models in six European countries: national context matters

As a contribution to the emerging field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) cognition, this article reports on the findings of an exploratory study that compares SME owner–managers’ mental models with regard to CSR and related concepts across six European countries (Belgium, Italy, Norway, France, UK, Spain). Utilising Repertory Grid Technique, we found that the SME owner–managers’ mental models show a few commonalities as well as a number of differences across the different country samples. We interpret those differences by linking individual cognition to macro-environmental variables, such as language, national traditions and dissemination mechanisms. The results of our exploratory study show that nationality matters but that classifications of countries as found in the comparative capitalism literature do not exactly mirror national differences in CSR cognition and that these classifications need further differentiation. The findings from our study raise questions on the universality of cognition of academic management concepts and warn that promotion of responsible business practice should not rely on the use of unmediated US American management terminology

Newtonian flow inside carbon nanotube with permeable boundary taking into account van der Waals forces

Here, water flow inside large radii semi-infinite carbon nanotubes is investigated. Permeable wall taking into account the molecular interactions between water and a nanotube, and the slip boundary condition will be considered. Furthermore, interactions among molecules are approximated by the continuum approximation. Incompressible and Newtonian fluid is assumed, and the Navier-Stokes equations, after certain assumptions, transformations and derivations, can be reduced into two first integral equations. In conjunction with the asymptotic expansion technique, we are able to derive the radial and axial velocities analytically, capturing the effect of the water leakage, where both mild and exceptionally large leakages will be considered. The radial velocity obeys the prescribed boundary condition at the (im)permeable wall. Through the mean of the radial forces, the sufficiently large leakages will enhance the radial velocity at the center of the tube. On the other hand, unlike the classical laminar flow, the axial velocity attains its maximum at the wall due to the coupling effect with the radial forces as water is being pushed into the proximity of the inner wall. In addition, the axial velocity and the flux with the consideration of the suck-in forces, induced by the tubes’ entry turn out to be one order higher than that without the suck-in forces. All the aforementioned considerations might partially resolve the mysteriously high water penetration through nanotubes. Axial velocity also drops with the tube’s length when the water leakage is permitted and the suck-in forces will ease the decline rate of the axial velocity. The present mathematical framework can be directly employed into the water flow inside other porous nano-materials, where large water leakage is permitted and therefore are of huge practical impact on ultra-filtration and environmental protection

Mapping the Relationship Among Political Ideology, CSR Mindset, and CSR Strategy: A Contingency Perspective Applied to Chinese Managers

The literature on antecedents of corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies of firms has been predominately content driven. Informed by the managerial sense-making process perspective, we develop a contingency theoretical framework explaining how political ideology of managers affects the choice of CSR strategy for their firms through their CSR mindset. We also explain to what extent the outcome of this process is shaped by the firm’s internal institutional arrangements and external factors impacting on the firm. We develop and test several hypotheses using data collected from 129 Chinese managers. The results show that managers with a stronger socialist ideology are likely to develop a mindset favouring CSR, which induces the adoption of a proactive CSR strategy. The CSR mindset mediates the link between socialist ideology and CSR strategy. The strength of the relationship between the CSR mindset and the choice of CSR strategy is moderated by customer response to CSR, industry competition, the role of government, and CSR-related managerial incentives

Theorems on existence and global dynamics for the Einstein equations

This article is a guide to theorems on existence and global dynamics of solutions of the Einstein equations. It draws attention to open questions in the field. The local in time Cauchy problem, which is relatively well understood, is surveyed. Global results for solutions with various types of symmetry are discussed. A selection of results from Newtonian theory and special relativity which offer useful comparisons is presented. Treatments of global results in the case of small data and results on constructing spacetimes with prescribed singularity structure are given. A conjectural picture of the asymptotic behaviour of general cosmological solutions of the Einstein equations is built up. Some miscellaneous topics connected with the main theme are collected in a separate section.Comment: 54 pages, submitted to Living Reviews in Relativit

Sex-Differences in the Pattern of Comorbidities, Functional Independence, and Mortality in Elderly Inpatients: Evidence from the RePoSI Register

Background: The RePoSi study has provided data on comorbidities, polypharmacy, and sex dimorphism in hospitalised elderly patients. Methods: We retrospectively analysed data collected from the 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016 data sets of the RePoSi register. The aim of this study was to explore the sex-differences and to validate the multivariate model in the entire dataset with an expanded follow-up at 1 year. Results: Among 4714 patients, 51% were women and 49% were men. The disease distribution showed that diabetes, coronary artery disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic kidney disease, and malignancy were more frequent in men but that hypertension, anaemia, osteoarthritis, depression, and diverticulitis disease were more common in women. Severity and comorbidity indexes according to the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS-s and CIRS-c) were higher in men, while cognitive impairment, mood disorders, and disability in daily life measured by the Barthel Index (BI) were worse in women. In the multivariate analysis, BI, CIRS, and malignancy significantly increased the risk of death in men at the 1-year follow-up, while age was independently associated with mortality in women. Conclusions: Our study highlighted the relevance and the validity of our previous predictive model in the identification of sex dimorphism in hospitalised elderly patients underscoring the need of sex-personalised health-care