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This article proposes a methodology to resolve the advertising method selection problem (AdSP). The use of different advertising methods for the same product can generate different responses in terms of the product’s sales volume. Companies selling products have limited resources for advertising, with challenges such as budget and time constraints. It is necessary that the correct advertising method is selected in order to increase the maximum profit, given these limited resources. In the present study, a mathematical model was developed to represent the AdSP, and optimization software (OS) was utilized to optimally resolve it. However, a larger problem can prevent OS from optimally resolving the problem within a reasonable timeframe. To overcome this challenge, the authors developed a metaheuristic called the improved differential evolution algorithm (IDE), which combines three metaheuristics: (1) The differential evolution algorithm (DE); (2) the iterated local search (ILS); and (3) the adaptive large neighborhood search (ALNS). The performance of IDE reflects the best elements of these three methods. The computational results show that IDE can generate solutions that are similar to the optimal solutions obtained by OS while using 69.25% less computational time than OS. IDE improved the efficiency compared with the three original component methods. Moreover, IDE also found better solutions than those found by the original DE, ILS, and ALNS.

We proposed and created a methodology to solve a real-world problem, which is a special case of the generalized assignment problem. The problem consists of assigning drivers to harvesters, which will then be assigned to harvest sugarcane in order to maximize daily profit. A set of drivers have various levels of experience. Therefore, a different capability to harvest sugarcane leads to a range of daily wages. Each harvester has different operating years and engine size, which affects its fuel consumption rate and capacity to harvest sugarcane, respectively. Assigning a worker to a harvester can improve the fuel consumption and efficiency of the harvester. We developed a mathematical model to reflect this problem and to solve it to find the maximum outcome using Lingo v.11 commercial optimization software. Since Lingo v.11 is limited to solving only small-size test instances, for medium to large test instances, four modified differential evolution (MDE) algorithms were used to solve the problem: MDE-1, MDE-2, MDE-3, and MDE-4. MDE-2 was found to be the best proposed heuristics because it has intensification and diversification ability. MDE has been tested with the case study. We tried to increase the daily profit by implementing three strategies: (1) change all harvesters that are more than five years old, (2) train drivers to reach maximum capacity, and (3) a combination of 1 and 2. Each strategy has a different investment. The breakeven point (number of days) to return the investment was calculated from the increase of daily profit. The computational results show that strategy 2 is the best because it has the quickest rate of investment return rate. However, this strategy has a disadvantage, since it is possible that drivers may leave the company if they have been highly trained. Moreover, strategy 1 has an acceptable break-even point at 392 days.

This study aims to solve the real-world multistage assignment problem. The proposed problem is composed of two stages of assignment: (1) different types of trucks are assigned to chicken farms to transport young chickens to egg farms, and (2) chicken farms are assigned to egg farms. Assigning different trucks to the egg farms and different egg farms to the chicken farms generates different costs and consumes different resources. The distance and the idle space in the truck have to be minimized, while constraints such as the minimum number of chickens needed for all egg farms and the longest time that chickens can be in the truck remain. This makes the problem a special case of the multistage assignment (S-MSA) problem. A mathematical model representing the problem was developed and solved to optimality using Lingo v.11 optimization software. Lingo v.11 can solve to optimality only small- and medium-sized test instances. To solve large-sized test instances, the differential evolution (DE) algorithm was designed. An excellent decoding method was developed to increase the search performance of DE. The proposed algorithm was tested with three randomly generated datasets (small, medium, and large test instances) and one real case study. Each dataset is composed of 12 problems, therefore we tested with 37 instances, including the case study. The results show that for small- and medium-sized test instances, DE has 0.03% and 0.05% higher cost than Lingo v.11. For large test instances, DE has 3.52% lower cost than Lingo v.11. Lingo v.11 uses an average computation time of 5.8, 103, and 4320 s for small, medium and large test instances, while DE uses 0.86, 1.68, and 8.79 s, which is, at most, 491 times less than Lingo v.11. Therefore, the proposed heuristics are an effective algorithm that can find a good solution while using less computation time.

This research aimed to solve the economic crop planning problem, considering transportation logistics to maximize the profit from cultivated activities. Income is derived from the selling price and production rate of the plants; costs are due to operating and transportation expenses. Two solving methods are presented: (1) developing a mathematical model and solving it using Lingo v.11, and (2) using three improved Differential Evolution (DE) Algorithms—I-DE-SW, I-DE-CY, and I-DE-KV—which are DE with swap, cyclic moves (CY), and K-variables moves (KV) respectively. The algorithms were tested by 16 test instances, including this case study. The computational results showed that Lingo v.11 and all DE algorithms can find the optimal solution eight out of 16 times. Regarding the remaining test instances, Lingo v.11 was unable to find the optimal solution within 400 h. The results for the DE algorithms were compared with the best solution generated within that time. The DE solutions were 1.196–1.488% better than the best solution generated by Lingo v.11 and used 200 times less computational time. Comparing the three DE algorithms, MDE-KV was the DE that was the most flexible, with the biggest neighborhood structure, and outperformed the other DE algorithms.

We tested the hypothesis that causality analysis, applied to the spontaneous beat-to-beat variability of heart period (HP) and systolic arterial pressure (SAP), can identify the improvement of autonomic control linked to plantar mechanical stimulation in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). A causality index, measuring the strength of the association from SAP to HP variability, and derived according to the Granger paradigm (i.e. SAP causes HP if the inclusion of SAP into the set of signals utilized to describe cardiovascular interactions improves the prediction of HP series), was calculated using both linear model-based (MB) and nonlinear model-free (MF) approaches. Univariate HP and SAP variability indices in time and frequency domains, and bivariate descriptors of the HP-SAP variability interactions were computed as well. We studied ten PD patients (age range: 57-78 years; Hoehn-Yahr scale: 2-3; six males, four females) without orthostatic hypotension or symptoms of orthostatic intolerance and 'on-time' according to their habitual pharmacological treatment. PD patients underwent recordings at rest in a supine position and during a head-up tilt before, and 24 h after, mechanical stimulation was applied to the plantar surface of both feet. The MF causality analysis indicated a greater involvement of baroreflex in regulating HP-SAP variability interactions after mechanical stimulation. Remarkably, MB causality and more traditional univariate or bivariate techniques could not detect changes in cardiovascular regulation after mechanical stimulation, thus stressing the importance of accounting for nonlinear dynamics in PD patients. Due to the higher statistical power of MF causality we suggest its exploitation to monitor the baroreflex control improvement in PD patients, and we encourage the clinical application of the Granger causality approach to evaluate the modification of the autonomic control in relation to the application of a pharmacological treatment, a rehabilitation procedure or external intervention.

Entropy-based approaches are frequently used to quantify complexity of short-term cardiovascular control from spontaneous beat-to-beat variability of heart period (HP) and systolic arterial pressure (SAP). Among these tools the ones optimizing a critical parameter such as the pattern length are receiving more and more attention. This study compares two entropy-based techniques for the quantification of complexity making use of completely different strategies to optimize the pattern length. Comparison was carried out over HP and SAP variability series recorded from 12 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients without orthostatic hypotension or symptoms of orthostatic intolerance and 12 age-matched healthy control (HC) subjects. Regardless of the method, complexity of cardiovascular control increased in PD group, thus suggesting the early impairment of cardiovascular function.

In occidental countries, breast cancer is the most frequent cancer in women. In the last 30 years, the therapeutical progresses have improved the prognosis and the survival rate. However, despite this hope of recovering, women continue to face the fear of death and vulnerability. Moreover, treatments can induce cognitive, emotional and behavioral reactions in patients but also in their relatives. Therefore, the treatments are associated with physical and psychosocial dysfunctioning influencing quality of life.

One hundred and seven clinical isolates of Streptococcus pyogenes, 80 susceptible to macrolides and 27 resistant to erythromycin A (MIC >0.5 microgram/ml), were examined. The erythromycin A-lincomycin double-disk test assigned 7 resistant strains to the M-phenotype, 8 to the inducible macrolide, lincosamide, and streptogramin B resistance (iMLS(B)) phenotype, and 12 to the constitutive MLS(B) resistance (cMLS(B)) phenotype. MICs of erythromycin A, clarithromycin, azithromycin, roxithromycin, and clindamycin were determined by a broth microdilution method. MICs of telithromycin were determined by three different methods (broth microdilution, agar dilution, and E-test methods) in an ambient air atmosphere and in a 5 to 6% CO(2) atmosphere. Erythromycin A resistance genes were investigated by PCR in the 27 erythromycin A-resistant isolates. MICs of erythromycin A and clindamycin showed six groups of resistant strains, groups A to F. iMLS(B) strains (A, B, and D groups) are characterized by two distinct patterns of resistance correlated with genotypic results. A- and B-group strains were moderately resistant to 14- and 15-membered ring macrolides and highly susceptible to telithromycin. All A- and B-group isolates harbored erm TR gene, D-group strains, highly resistant to macrolides and intermediately resistant to telithromycin (MICs, 1 to 16 microgram/ml), were all characterized by having the ermB gene. All M-phenotype isolates (C group), resistant to 14- and 15-membered ring macrolides and susceptible to clindamycin and telithromycin, harbored the mefA gene. All cMLS(B) strains (E and F groups) with high level of resistance to macrolides, lincosamide, and telithromycin had the ermB gene. The effect of 5 to 6% CO(2) was remarkable on resistant strains, by increasing MICs of telithromycin from 1 to 6 twofold dilutions against D-E- and F-group isolates.

Intermolecular nuclear Overhauser effects (NOEs) were measured between the protons of various small solvent or gas molecules and the non-specific lipid transfer protein (ns-LTP) from wheat. Intermolecular NOEs were observed with the hydrophobic pocket in the interior of wheat ns-LTP, which grew in intensity in the order cyclopropane (saturated solution) < methane (140 bar) < ethane (40 bar) < acetonitrile (5% in water) < cyclohexane (saturated solution) < benzene (saturated solution). No intermolecular, NOEs were observed with dioxane (5% in water). The intermolecular NOEs were negative for all of the organic molecules tested. Intermolecular NOEs between wheat ns-LTP and water were weak or could not be distinguished from exchange-relayed NOEs. As illustrated by the NOEs with cyclohexane versus dioxane, the hydrophobic pocket in wheat ns-LTP preferably binds non-polar molecules. Yet, polar molecules like acetonitrile can also be accommodated. The pressure dependence of the NOEs between methane and wheat ns-LTP indicated incomplete occupancy, even at 190 bar methane pressure. In general, NOE intensities increased with the size of the ligand molecule and its vapor pressure. NMR of the vapor phase showed excellent resolution between the signals from the gas phase and those from the liquid phase. The vapor concentration of cyclohexane was fivefold higher than that of the dioxane solution, supporting the binding of cyclohexane versus uptake of dioxane.

The three-dimensional solution structure of Ace-AMP1, an antifungal protein extracted from onion seeds, was determined using 1H NMR spectroscopy and molecular modeling. This cationic protein contains 93 amino acid residues and four disulfide bridges. Its structure was determined from 1260 NOE-derived distance restraints and 173 dihedral restraints derived from NOEs and 3JCaHNH coupling constants. The global fold involves four helical segments connected by three loops and a C-terminal tail without regular secondary structures, except for a 3(10)-helix turn and a beta-turn. The most striking feature is the absence of any continuous cavity running through the whole molecule as found in recently determined structures of nonspecific transfer proteins extracted from wheat and maize seeds, although their global folds are very similar. Consistent with the absence of a cavity in the core of Ace-AMP1, it was found that this protein, in contrast to ns-LTPs, does not bind fluorescently labeled phospholipids in solution. On the other hand, Ace-AMP1 is able to interact with phospholipid membranes as shown by the release of carboxyfluorescein from the lumen of artificial liposomes and by the induction of alterations in fluorescence polarization of fluorescently labeled phospholipids embedded in artificial liposomes.

The authors present and illustrate most of the ultrastructural abnormalities encountered in skeletal muscle in cases of neuromuscular disease. The diagnostic significance of the changes are discussed but emphasis is laid on the nonspecific character of most of them. For diagnostic purposes, examination by light microscopy remains the preferred approach, but electron microscopy enables the nature and origins of the lesions to be better defined and is a very valuable technique in exploring the pathogenesis of muscular diseases.

We studied ten cases of disseminated sensory neuropathy. Both sexes were similarly involved. Except in one case, the first symptoms appeared between ages 20 and 50. The clinical disorders, their evolution and similar cases previously reported suggest and autonomous benign disease. The deficits resulted from a selective involvement of superficial cutaneous nervous fibers and appeared in different cutaneous areas. Some territories were more frequently affected (nervus peroneus, sural, radialis, cutaneous femoralis lateralis). Tinel's sign was often present. Patients sometimes described a sensation of electric discharge when elongating nerve trunks. In half of the cases the attacks of dysesthesia or of sensory loss followed one another within less than one year. The deficits were fully reversible in a third of the cases after a mean total evolution of 4 to 8 years. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid were always normal. Electromyography and motor conduction velocities were normal. Sensory conduction velocities were uncommonly decreased. On the other hand, the aspect of somesthetic potentials which were evoked from cutaneous areas involved by the disease were modified in most cases. Pathological examination of nerve biopsies which were performed in 5 cases showed non specific axo-myelinic degeneration in 3 cases and a severe sclerosis of the perineurium in one case. The etiopathogenesis of the disease is discussed.

A case of Waldenström's disease with peripheral nerve involvement resembling mononeuritis multiplex is described. The various etiopathogenic mechanisms generally cited in connection with peripheral neuropathies observed in cases of macroglobulinemia, most often of the polyneuritic type, are discussed in turn : nerve infiltration by lymphocytes, intervention of an immunologic mechanism through the agency of paraprotein links with amyloidosis. However, the reported case differs from habitual cases on account of the asymmetry of the nerve involvement and the discovery of vasculitic lesions on muscle biopsy. The hypothesis of ischemic neuropathy associated with serum hyperviscosity is proposed and confirmed by the clinical improvement and reduction of macroglobulin obtained by repeated plasma exchanges and administration of Chlorambucil.