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Background: The subject of the paper is lighting, which represents one of the instruments of shopper marketing. Review of the relevant literature suggests that lighting can have a significant impact on the appearance of the observed product. Purpose: The aim of this paper is to evaluate whether lighting in a retail facility affects the behaviour of shoppers on the Serbian market. Study design/methodology/approach: Data for testing hypotheses were collected from the sample on the market of Serbia. In order to collect data, an online experiment was conducted. Data were processed using repeated measures one-factor analysis of variance. Findings/conclusions: Based on the research results the conclusion is that different treatments of lighting colour and temperature affect the shoppers' perception of the quality of the observed product, but do not affect shoppers' price perception of the observed product on the Serbian market. Limitations/future research: Limitations of this research are: research on the basis of one characteristics of lighting, online research, one subject of observation, number of treatments, light source and influence of the device screen characteristics. Future research should include: research in more realistic conditions, usage of various stimulus and sources of artificial lighting and identification of the device by which the respondent accessed the questionnaire with the aim of comparison of the obtained results.

The main idea in this paper was to investigate how agriculture and processing sectors are connected through commercial activity, and how they influence municipal economic development in Serbia. This was examined through the influence of relevant non-price structural factors related to agricultural and processing sector on the ratio between agricultural product procurement and overall agricultural production. The focus was placed on agricultural investments and subsidies. A multi regression model was developed based on hard data provided by SORS and SBRE on a municipal level in Serbia. The analysis confirmed the relation between agricultural commercial activity and municipal level of economic development. In addition, important findings concerning municipal investment and agricultural subsidies allocation have been provided as well.

Although the use of various forms of marketing channels is increasing within agricultural marketing, there have been only a limited number of research efforts exploring the influencing factors on the structure of agricultural marketing channels and the decisions to select individual intermediaries. Due to the specific nature of agricultural production and its products, complex transportation and storage problems require a greater number of intermediaries in their movement from producers to consumers. Management of sales channels is an important factor for the success of farmers, so it is necessary to evaluate the impact of changes in the environment on them. In order to adapt sales to the demands of the contemporary market, cheese producers are faced with the dilemma of expanding existing sales channels, adding modern channels to existing traditional channels, or making more radical changes to the market access. This paper defines the distribution methods and key players in cheese delivery that should point to strengthening the competitiveness of producers in the global market.

Contemporary cooperative movement must rest on the original cooperative principles that were confirmed and modernized by the Congress of International Co-Operative Alliance held in Manchester in 1995. Development of coops legislative framework in Serbia has a long history and presently the matter of cooperatives is governed by the federal Law on Cooperatives adopted in 1996. The text analyzes the extent to which a legislative framework can be an incentive for and/or impediment to cooperatives' operation in Serbia, and what sort of results can be expected from a modernized and improved legal framework. Interview of key players in the coop sector was one of the research methods. Other methods include historical, comparative analysis and case study. The paper includes four parts: a) historical and legal background of development of coops in Serbia; b) legislative framework; c) successful case study and d) framework for further development. The paper also analyses cooperatives within the environment of social enterprises and evaluates their role in the social inclusion process.

The subject of the research in this paper is the emergence of big data phenomenon and application of big data technologies for business' needs with the specific emphasis on marketing and trade. The purpose of the research is to make a comprehensive overview of different discussions about the characteristics, application possibilities, achievements, constraints and the future of big data development. Based on the relevant literature, the concept of big data is presented and the potential of large impact of big data on business activities is discussed. One of the key findings indicates that the most prominent change that big data brings to the business arena is the appearance of new business models, as well as revisions of the existing ones. Substantial part of the paper is devoted to the marketing and marketing research which are under the strong impact of big data. The most exciting outcomes of the research in this domain concerns the new abilities in profiling the customers. In addition to the vast amount of structured data which are used in marketing for a long period, big data initiatives suggest the inclusion of semi-structured and unstructured data, opening up the room for substantial improvements in customer profile analysis. Considering the usage of information communication technologies (ICT) as a prerequisite for big data project success, the concept of Networked Readiness Index (NRI) is presented and the position of Serbia and regional countries in NRI framework is analyzed. The main outcome of the analysis points out that Serbia, with its NRI score took the lowest position in the region, excluding Albania. Also, Serbia is lagging behind the appropriate EU mean values regarding all observed composite indicators - pillars. Further on, this analysis reveals the domains of ICT usage in Serbia, which could be focused for an improvement and where incentives can be made. These domains are: political and regulatory environment, business and innovation environment, business usage, government usage and social impacts of ICT.

Macrodiversity system with macrodiversity selection combining (SC) receiver and three microdiversity SC receivers operating over Gamma shadowed Nakagami-m multipath fading environment is considered in this work. Level crossing arte of signals at outputs microdiversity SC receivers are calculated and by using these formulas, closed form expression for average level crossing rate of macrodiversity SC receiver output signal is evaluated. Average fade duration of proposed macrodiversity system can be calculated as ratio of outage probability and level crossing rate. By using obtained results the influence of Nakagami-m multipath fading severity parameter, Gamma shadowing severity parameter and shadowing correlation parameter on average level crossing rate is analyzed and discussed.

Cooperatives in Serbia have long history, evolving from big traditional families to the contemporary social networked organizations and even private companies acting like coops. Current legal framework, on one side, enables many possibilities, but on the other side prevents further development of cooperatives. An interview of key players in the coop sector was one of the research methods. Other methods include historical method, comparative analysis method and case study method. In conclusion, the major obstacle for the further coops development in Serbia is legal status of ownership. Other obstacles are: the level of state interference, the loyalty of primary producers and participants, the average land size per households, etc. The paper includes three parts: historical evolution, successful case study and framework for future development.

Context: Congenital Hyperinsulinism (CHI) is associated with inappropriately high levels of C-peptide in the context of hypoglycemia., Objective: We aimed to better clarify a diagnostic threshold value of C-peptide for children presenting with CHI., Design: This was a retrospective case-control analysis, examining all hypoglycemia screens, undertaken between 2009 and 2019 at a quaternary paediatrics unit. Plasma C-peptide, insulin, free fatty acid (FFA) and B-hydroxybutyrate (BHOB) concentrations in children diagnosed with CHI were compared with concentrations in children diagnosed with other conditions., Patients: All patients requiring hypoglycaemic screens at the quaternary children's hospital were analysed., Results: Median [C-peptide] were statistically significantly different between CHI (147) and non-CHI (72) patients, p < 0.05. The Youden Index indicated that a [C-peptide] value of 291.5 pmol/L would give the greatest optimization of sensitivity (82%) and specificity (99%) for detecting CHI. Median [insulin] differed significantly between the cohorts with a level of 64 pmol/L for CHI patients compared with 0 pmol/L with non-CHI patients (p < 0.01). Median [BOHB] was 0 μmol/L in CHI patients as compared with 2378 μmol/L for non-CHI patients (p < 0.01). Median [FFA] levels were 1910 μmol/L in the non-CHI cohort, compared with 0 in the CHI cohort (p < 0.01)., Conclusions: This study suggests that a C-peptide concentration greater than 291.5 pmol/L is diagnostic of CHI in children. C-peptide appears to offer the greatest utility as a biochemical diagnostic test for CHI and could be prioritised for laboratory analysis., (© 2024 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Obesity in women of reproductive age has a number of adverse metabolic effects, including Type II Diabetes (T2D), dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular disease. It is associated with increased menstrual irregularity, ovulatory dysfunction, development of insulin resistance and infertility. In women, estradiol is not only critical for reproductive function, but they also control food intake and energy expenditure. Food intake is known to change during the menstrual cycle in humans. This change in food intake is largely mediated by estradiol, which acts directly upon anorexigenic and orexigenic neurons, largely in the hypothalamus. Estradiol also acts indirectly with peripheral mediators such as glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Like estradiol, GLP-1 acts on receptors at the hypothalamus. This review describes the physiological and pathophysiological mechanisms governing the actions of estradiol during the menstrual cycle on food intake and energy expenditure and how estradiol acts with other weight-controlling molecules such as GLP-1. GLP-1 analogs have proven to be effective both to manage obesity and T2D in women. This review also highlights the relationship between steroid hormones and women's mental health. It explains how a decline or imbalance in estradiol levels affects insulin sensitivity in the brain. This can cause cerebral insulin resistance, which contributes to the development of conditions such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease. The proper use of both estradiol and GLP-1 analogs can help to manage obesity and preserve an optimal mental health in women by reducing the mechanisms that trigger neurodegenerative disorders., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Vigil, Meléndez, Petkovic and Del Río.)

Stress is known to be associated with adverse health outcomes. The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns are examples of chronic stressors. Lockdown measures inadvertently caused significant psychological distress and became a powerful source of anxiety/stress, sleep disturbances, nutritional changes and weight gain. Stress is known to impact women's health specifically, through hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis dysfunction and resultant ovulatory dysfunction. Such dysfunction may manifest in menstrual irregularities and/or infertility due to hypothalamic hypogonadism. Here, we review the key physiological mediators of stress and associated ovulatory dysfunction. The kisspeptinergic system is comprised of sets of neurons located in the hypothalamus, the rostral periventricular region of the third ventricle (RP3V) and the arcuate nucleus (ARC). This system links nutrition, reproductive signals and stress. It plays a key role in the function of the HPG axis. During chronic stress, the kisspeptinergic system affects the HPG axis, GnRH pulsatility, and, therefore, ovulation. Leptin, insulin and corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) are thought to be additional key modulators in the behavioral responses to chronic stress and may contribute to stress-related ovulatory dysfunction. This mini-review also summarizes and appraises the available evidence on the negative impact of chronic stress as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. It proposes physiological mechanisms to explain the observed effects on women's reproductive health and well-being. The review suggests areas for future research., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Vigil, Meléndez, Soto, Petkovic, Bernal and Molina.)

In the present study, the metal leaching from recycled concrete aggregates (RCA) used in road sub-base is presented after >10years of exposure. The released levels of inorganic constituents, the effect of small variation of pH and the use of de-icing salt during winter season were studied. In addition, speciation modelling for the major elements has been provided. The pH varied from 7.5 to 8.5 for the sub-base constructed with RCA whereas the pH of around 8 was obtained for the test section not affected by the traffic and de-icing salts. Despite a small variation in pH, the leachability of Al, Ca and Mg was found to be strongly dependent on pH and fair agreement between the measured and predicted concentrations was obtained. The speciation modelling indicated that gibbsite, calcite and magnesite controlled the solubility of Al, Ca and Mg, respectively, which was in agreement with the expected carbonation products. Due to the larger pH fluctuations in the test sections exposed to the road traffic, increased concentrations were observed for the oxyanions. The same effect was not seen for the trace metal cations Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn. The distinct pH dependent leaching profile (solubility maximum in the mildly basic pH region) for vanadium could be seen after 10years of exposure. The simplified risk assessment showed that the released quantities did not exceed the chosen acceptance criteria for groundwater and fresh water. The results obtained for the test section not influenced by road dust and de-icing salts, complied with these criteria even without considering any dilution effects caused by the mixing of pore water with groundwater., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy of open-label placebos compared with no treatment in a systematic review and meta-analysis., Methods: We searched the Cochrane Injuries Group's Specialised Register, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Ovid MEDLINE(R) In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations (OvidSP), EMBASE (OvidSP), and clinical trials registers and screened reference lists. The search was run on 27 th April 2015. We included all randomized controlled trials of any medical condition with open-label placebo and no-treatment groups. Authors independently assessed records and extracted data. We excluded nonrandomized trials and nonclinical studies. Risk of bias was assessed using Cochrane criteria. We used random-effects model for meta-analysis., Results: We screened 348 publications, assessed 24 articles for eligibility and identified five trials (260 participants) that met inclusion criteria. The clinical conditions were: irritable bowel syndrome, depression, allergic rhinitis, back pain, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The risk of bias was moderate. We found a positive effect for nondeceptive placebos (standardized mean difference 0.88, 95% CI 0.62 to 1.14, P < 0.00001, I 2 = 1%)., Conclusions: Open-label placebos appear to have positive clinical effects compared to no treatment. Caution is warranted when interpreting these results due to the limited number of trials identified, lack of blinding, and the fact that positive messages were included alongside open-label placebos. Larger definitive trials are now warranted to explore the potential patient benefit of open-label placebos, to investigate the relative contributions of positive suggestions, and ethical implications., (© 2017 Chinese Cochrane Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

Introduction: Placebos have long provided a robust control for evaluating active pharmacological preparations, but frequently demonstrate a variable therapeutic effect when delivered in double-blinded placebo-controlled trials. Delivery of placebos as treatment alone has been considered unethical, as it has been thought that deception is essential for their effect. However, recent evidence suggests that clinical benefit can be derived from placebos delivered without deception (unblinded/open-label) manner. Here, we present a protocol for the first systematic review and meta-analysis of studies of the effects of non-deceptive placebos compared with no treatment., Methods and Analysis: This protocol will compare the effect of placebos delivered non-deceptively to no treatment. It will also assess the methods of delivery used for non-deceptive placebos. Studies will be sought through relevant database searches and will include those within disease settings and those among healthy controls. To be included, trials must include both non-deceptive (open-label) placebo and no treatment groups. All data extraction and analysis will be conducted by two independent reviewers. The analysis will evaluate any differences in outcome measures between the non-deceptive placebo and no treatment groups. Outcome measures will be the clinically-relevant outcomes detailed in the primary papers. The delivery methods, such as verbal instructions, which may provide positive expectations and outcomes, of non-deceptive placebos will also be assessed. Each study will be comprehensively assessed for bias. Subgroup analyses will identify any discrepancies among heterogeneous data., Ethics and Dissemination: This review does not require ethical approval. The completed review will be widely disseminated by publication and social media where appropriate. This protocol has been registered on PROSPERO (2015:CRD42015023347)., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/)

Introduction: Some specific pregnancy disorders are known to be associated with increased incidence of long-term maternal ill health (eg, gestational diabetes with late onset type 2 diabetes; pre-eclampsia with arterial disease). To what degree these later health conditions are a consequence of the woman's constitution prior to pregnancy rather than pregnancy itself triggering changes in a woman's health is unknown. Additionally, there is little prospective evidence for the impact of pre-pregnancy risk factors on the outcome of pregnancy. To understand the importance of pre-pregnancy health requires the recruitment of women into a long-term cohort study before their first successful pregnancy. The aim of this feasibility study is to test recruitment procedures and acceptability of participation to inform the planning of a future large-scale cohort study., Methods: The prospective cohort feasibility study will recruit nulliparous women aged 18-40 years. Women will be asked to complete a questionnaire to assess the acceptability of our recruitment and data collection procedures. Baseline biophysical, genetic, socioeconomic, behavioural and psychological assessments will be conducted and samples of blood, urine, saliva and DNA will be collected. Recruitment feasibility and retention rates will be assessed. Women who become pregnant will be recalled for pregnancy and postpregnancy assessments., Ethics and Dissemination: The study protocol was approved by South Central Portsmouth REC (Ref: 12/SC/0492). The findings from the study will be disseminated through peer reviewed journals, national and international conference presentations and public events., Trial Registration Number: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov; NCT02419898., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/)

The release of major and trace elements from recycled concrete aggregates used in an asphalt covered road sub-base has been monitored for more than 4 years. A similar test field without an asphalt cover, directly exposed to air and rain, and an asphalt covered reference field with natural aggregates in the sub-base were also included in the study. It was found that the pH of the infiltration water from the road sub-base with asphalt covered concrete aggregates decreased from 12.6 to below pH 10 after 2.5 years of exposure, whereas this pH was reached within only one year for the uncovered field. Vertical temperature profiles established for the sub-base, could explain the measured infiltration during parts of the winter season. When the release of major and trace elements as function of field pH was compared with pH dependent release data measured in the laboratory, some similar pH trends were found. The field concentrations of Cd, Ni, Pb and Zn were found to be low throughout the monitoring period. During two of the winter seasons, a concentration increase of Cr and Mo was observed, possibly due to the use of de-icing salt. The concentrations of the trace constituents did not exceed Norwegian acceptance criteria for ground water and surface water Class II., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Unlabelled: Although offered, two of our Hurler patients (OMIM 607014) had not undergone bone marrow transplantation at an early stage of their disease. Rapid disease progression had resulted in a range of signs and symptoms representative of advanced neurodegeneration and debilitating somatic Hurler disease. As general palliative care had only little impact on the burden of disease, laronidase (Aldurazyme) treatment was introduced in an attempt to alleviate somatic symptoms and to improve the quality of their lives. Therapeutic benefits from enzyme replacement therapy included improvements in general physical condition and mood, as well as normalisation of the sleep patterns, disappearance of sleep apnoea syndrome and reduction of hepatosplenomegaly. Improvements in the joint mobility were mainly limited to the wrists and hips. In addition, improvements in cardiac function, stool habits, visual acuity, corneal clouding and hearing were observed in one or both patients. Irreversible skeletal changes did not deteriorate. The neurological outcome of these patients is likely not influenced as laronidase is believed not to pass the blood-brain barrier. Therefore, the decision to initiate this therapy in transplant-naïve Hurler patients with an advanced stage of the disease should be taken after careful consideration., Conclusion: We are of the opinion that the option of enzyme therapy should not be excluded in severely affected Hurler patients who cannot undergo bone marrow transplantation. Stabilization or amelioration of somatic disease and improvement of the quality of their lives should be embraced as therapeutic goals.