Family and Store Choice - A Conceptual Framework

Retail Store choice has traditionally been studied from the perspective of an individual. The retail offering is however consumed more by the family than by an individual. This study questions the study of store choice by an individual and argues that the family is the relevant unit of analysis. The study draws on the extensive literature available on store choice and also on the family decision making for products and services. It identifies the key factors from the literature, which might be affecting the store choice of a family. On the basis of these factors, it proposes a conceptual framework for studying the retail store choice as a family decision.

Cost of Conservation of Agrobiodiversity

The cost of conservation of germplasm stored in gene banks i.e., ex-situ collections has been studied in other parts of the world to estimate direct and indirect contributions by various actors involved in conservation. This is the first study of its kind in India done in collaboration with National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi. This was part of a sponsored research by Centre for Development Research, Germany. The limitations of this study are also listed so that future research in this regard can be pursued better. One of the costs not included is the cost of sharing data with local communities for enabling them to access germplasm in times of need. This is an important component of conservation and would require translation of gene bank and associated database in local language, making them available through public kiosks. This cost has not been included in any study on the subject so far. Separately, studies are underway to look at the conservation of germplasm under in-situ conditions.

Assessment of changes in brain metabolites in Indian patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy

BACKGROUND: The brain is a target for diabetic end-organ damage, though the pathophysiology of diabetic encephalopathy is still not well understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of diabetes on the metabolic profile of brain of patients having diabetes in comparison to healthy controls, using in-vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy to get an insight into the pathophysiology of cerebral damages caused due to diabetes. METHODS: Single voxel proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)H-MRS) was performed at 1.5 T on right frontal, right parieto-temporal and right parieto-occipital white matter regions of the brain of 10 patients having type-2 diabetes along with 7 healthy controls. Absolute concentration of N-acetylaspartate (NAA), choline (cho), myo-inositol (mI), glutamate (Glu) and glutamine (Gln), creatine (Cr) and glucose were determined using the LC-Model and compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The concentration of N-acetylaspartate was significantly lower in the right frontal [4.35 ±0.69 vs. 5.23 ±0.74; p = 0.03] and right parieto-occipital region [5.44 ±0.52 vs.6.08 ±0.25; p = 0.02] of the brain of diabetics as compared to the control group. The concentrations of glutamate and glutamine were found to be significantly higher in the right frontal region of the brain [7.98 ±2.57 vs. 5.32 ±1.43; P = 0.01] in diabetics. Glucose levels were found significantly elevated in all the three regions of the brain in diabetics as compared to the control group. However, no significant changes in levels of choline, myo-inositol and creatine were observed in the three regions of the brain examined among the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: (1)H-MRS analysis indicates that type-2 diabetes mellitus may cause subtle changes in the metabolic profile of the brain. Decreased concentrations of NAA might be indicative of decreased neuronal viability in diabetics while elevated concentrations of Gln and Glu might be related to the fluid imbalance resulting from disruption of glucose homeostasis

Heterogeneity based Mode Choice Behaviour for Introduction of Sustainable Intermediate Public Transport (IPT) Modes

Intermediate public transport (IPT) supplements the public transport system by providing first and last-mile connectivity to commuters. A feeder service based on sustainable intermediate public transportation can be made attractive by improving its mobility, accessibility, convenience, and comfort for its users. Sustainable IPT modes have a lower impact on the environment and can cater to the current and future needs of transportation. In this study, commuters' choice responses were collected using a stated preference survey instrument, and the database was analyzed using a Random Parameter Logit (RPL) model. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with respondents who were approached at random. A different combination of values from the levels of attributes was used to create choice scenarios for each IPT mode. Different types of IPT modes were identified in the study act as feeder services, which was used to find their utility functions using a random parameter logit model. The random parameter logit model with heterogeneity was used to evaluate the impacts of different socioeconomic and trip features on mean estimations. The utility function was used to find willingness to pay (WTP) for different attributes of an IPT mode to assess the relative value of these attributes. It was observed that WTP values also varied between different levels, which were based on their "monthly income level", "trip purpose", and "fare". "High income level" commuters have a higher WTP for travel time, frequency, and comfort improvements. On the other hand, the "work trip" and "high travel fare" levels of commuters have higher WTP for travel time, frequency, and safety improvements. According to the findings of the study, sustainable IPT modes with high quality of service are recommended because of commuters' willingness to pay for improved safety and comfort. The results so obtained can also be used for a better understanding of the travel behaviour analysis of various IPT modes. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-03-09 Full Text: PD

Willingness to Pay for Improvement in Service Quality of Intermediate Public Transport (IPT) Modes

The Rapid increase in urban population has put extraordinary pressure on transport infrastructure. Public transport frameworks in small and medium-sized cities in developing countries include of IPT modes. However, these midsized cities in developing countries face congestion problems and have severe environmental pollution. The paper focuses on the assessment of willingness to pay for improvement in service quality of IPT mode of transportation in urban India. A Stated Choice (SC) survey instrument was designed and data was collected from IPT users to collect respondent’s socio-economic characteristics and their attributes for the stated hypothetical scenarios. Respondents were approached randomly and face-to-face interviews were carried out. The present study aimed at finding the willingness to pay for different attributes of an IPT mode to assess the relative importance of these attributes. The multinomial logit model was developed using the econometric software NLOGIT 4.0. The results obtained from the analysis suggest that the commuters in the city perceive safety as the most important attribute of an IPT mode followed by comfort and waiting time. The findings of the study shall be useful for policy makers and operators in urban planning and improvement of the transportation systems of mid-sized cities of developing countries and any new mode incorporating high comfort and safety shall be preferred. Doi: 10.28991/cej-2021-03091696 Full Text: PD

Influence of Aggregates on Stripping Behavior of Bituminous Mixes

Moisture damage leads to premature failure of flexible pavements. The removal of bituminous coating from aggregates lead to the disintegration of bituminous mixes and is known as stripping. Various mechanisms and factors have been identified to play a role in the process, properties of aggregates being one of the major factors. This study is an attempt to analyze the influence of chemical, mineralogical and physical properties of aggregates on the stripping propensity of the loose mix. For this purpose, aggregates are chosen from six different quarry sites with diverse chemical compositions used for construction and maintenance of a large network of roads. Stripping tests are thereafter conducted on the aggregates using different percentage of hydrated lime. The amount of hydrated lime required for the prevention of stripping for concerned aggregate sources is determined. The research leads to the findings that the presence of elements such as silicon and potassium leads to a decrease in bond strength whereas the presence of calcium, sodium, iron, magnesium and aluminium enhanced the bond strength. Statistical tools and techniques are used to verify the results. Comparatively softer aggregates showed lesser resistance to stripping which could be inferred from aggregate impact and Los Angeles abrasion tests. The findings of the study can be helpful in the selection of aggregates with different chemical content for bituminous road construction depending upon the sensitivity to stripping. Doi: 10.28991/cej-2021-03091671 Full Text: PD

Study of Effect of Nano-Silica on Strength and Durability Characteristics of High Volume Fly Ash Concrete for Pavement Construction

Increasing demands of cement concrete for construction of rigid pavements motivates for the utilization of other sustainable waste cementitious materials. High volume fly-ash concrete (HVFAC) which is composed of more than 50% fly-ash fulfils the aspiration of large volume of fly-ash which are produced world over. The disadvantage which the HVFAC has is its delayed gain of strength. Contemporary literature identifies nano-silica as the material which when added in small percentages in HVFAC has the potential to improve its strength and durability characteristics at an early age. The objective of the study is to investigate the strength and durability characteristics of HVFAC modified with addition of different percentages of nano-silica so that it can be used for construction of rigid pavements. The methodology of the study involves mix proportioning of HVFAC and introducing nano-silica powder in aqueous medium after mixing it thoroughly at 2500 rpm. Various tests related to strength and durability was carried out after 28, 56 and 90 days age of concrete. The tests related to strength namely flexural strength, compressive strength and split tensile strength tests were carried out. Durability characteristics were evaluated by permeability, sorptivity and rapid chloride penetration tests and were confirmed by density and ultrasonic pulse velocity test.  The test results show that the utilization of 2% nano-silica in HVFAC enhances the strength and durability characteristics to a level that are comparable to that of normal concrete after 28 days and thus, can be sustainably utilized for rigid pavement construction

Cytokine Gene Polymorphism and Sepsis

Trauma is a significant problem across the globe with mortality more than 50%. Despite the advancement of pre-hospital care to trauma patients, early resuscitation in the emergency department, surgical interventions and intensive care monitoring mortality rate has not improved yet. The higher rate of mortality in trauma patients is usually associated with development of complications such as sepsis, septic shock, and MOF which may occur due to hysterical immune inflammatory responses. Trauma patients who developed these complications in the ICU have comparatively higher chances of mortality. Cytokines are very important for host immune response against infections and play vital roles in the regulation of innate and adaptive immunity. The slanted expression of cytokines due to trauma may be involved in development of sepsis and related complications. The recently published work from various studies suggested that slanted expression of cytokines correlates with the variations in the promoter and structural regions of cytokine genes, which may be responsible for inter-individual differences in susceptibility to sepsis. Therefore, understanding the variations in cytokine genes and associated outcomes due to trauma would possibly contribute to the event of latest genetically changed diagnostic and therapeutic interventions that will improve the outcome in post-traumatic sepsis patients

Plasmodium knowlesi Genome Sequences from Clinical Isolates Reveal Extensive Genomic Dimorphism.

Plasmodium knowlesi is a newly described zoonosis that causes malaria in the human population that can be severe and fatal. The study of P. knowlesi parasites from human clinical isolates is relatively new and, in order to obtain maximum information from patient sample collections, we explored the possibility of generating P. knowlesi genome sequences from archived clinical isolates. Our patient sample collection consisted of frozen whole blood samples that contained excessive human DNA contamination and, in that form, were not suitable for parasite genome sequencing. We developed a method to reduce the amount of human DNA in the thawed blood samples in preparation for high throughput parasite genome sequencing using Illumina HiSeq and MiSeq sequencing platforms. Seven of fifteen samples processed had sufficiently pure P. knowlesi DNA for whole genome sequencing. The reads were mapped to the P. knowlesi H strain reference genome and an average mapping of 90% was obtained. Genes with low coverage were removed leaving 4623 genes for subsequent analyses. Previously we identified a DNA sequence dimorphism on a small fragment of the P. knowlesi normocyte binding protein xa gene on chromosome 14. We used the genome data to assemble full-length Pknbpxa sequences and discovered that the dimorphism extended along the gene. An in-house algorithm was developed to detect SNP sites co-associating with the dimorphism. More than half of the P. knowlesi genome was dimorphic, involving genes on all chromosomes and suggesting that two distinct types of P. knowlesi infect the human population in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. We use P. knowlesi clinical samples to demonstrate that Plasmodium DNA from archived patient samples can produce high quality genome data. We show that analyses, of even small numbers of difficult clinical malaria isolates, can generate comprehensive genomic information that will improve our understanding of malaria parasite diversity and pathobiology