Waterlogging strongly affects agronomic performance of maize （Zea mays L.）. In order to investigate the suitable selection criteria of waterflooding tolerant genotypes, and identify the most susceptible stage and th...Waterlogging strongly affects agronomic performance of maize （Zea mays L.）. In order to investigate the suitable selection criteria of waterflooding tolerant genotypes, and identify the most susceptible stage and the best continuous treatment time to waterlogging, 20 common maize inbred lines were subjected to successive artificial waterflooding at seedling stage, and waterlogging tolerance coefficient （WTC） was used to screen waterflooding tolerant genotypes. In addition, peroxidase （POD） activities and malondialdehyde （MDA） contents were measured for 6 of 20 lines. The results showed that the second leaf stage （V2） was the most susceptible stage, and 6 d after waterflooding was the best continuous treatment time. Dry weight （DW） of both shoots and roots of all lines were significantly reduced at 6 d time-point of waterlogging, compared to control. POD activities and MDA contents were negatively and significantly correlated, and the correlation coefficient was -0.9686 （P 〈 0.0001）. According to the results, WTC of shoot DW can be used for practical screening as a suitable index, which is significantly different from control and waterlogged plants happened 6 d earlier. Furthermore, leaf chlorosis, MDA content and POD activities could also be used as reference index for material screening. The implications of the results for waterlogging-tolerant material screening and waterlogging-tolerant breeding have been discussed in maize.展开更多
Liver transplantation(LT) is the only potentially curative treatment for selected patients with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) who are not candidates for resection. When the Milan criteria are strictly ap...Liver transplantation(LT) is the only potentially curative treatment for selected patients with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) who are not candidates for resection. When the Milan criteria are strictly applied, 75% to85%of 3-to 4-year actuarial survival rates are achieved, but up to 20% of the patients experience HCC recurrence after transplantation. The Milan criteria are based on the preoperative tumor macromorphology, tumor size and number on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging that neither correlate well with posttransplant histological study of the liver explant nor accurately predict HCC recurrence after LT, since they do not include objective measures of tumor biology. Preoperative biological markers, including alpha-fetoprotein, desgamma-carboxiprothrombin or neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-tolymphocyte ratio, can predict the risk for HCC recurrence after transplantation.These biomarkers have been proposed as surrogate markers of tumor differentiation and vascular invasion, with varied risk magnitudes depending on the defined cutoffs. Different studies have shown that the combination of one or several biomarkers integrated into prognostic models predict the risk of HCC recurrence after LT more accurately than Milan criteria alone. In this review, we focus on the potential utility of these serum biological markers to improve the performance of Milan criteria to identify patients at high risk of tumoral Published online: January 27, 2019 recurrence after LT.Liver transplantation(LT) is the only potentially curative treatment for selected patients with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) who are not candidates for resection. When the Milan criteria are strictly applied, 75% to85%of 3-to 4-year actuarial survival rates are achieved, but up to 20% of the patients experience HCC recurrence after transplantation. The Milan criteria are based on the preoperative tumor macromorphology, tumor size and number on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging that nei展开更多
Alcohol consumption accounts for 3.8% of annual global mortality worldwide, and the majority of these deaths are due to alcoholic liver disease(ALD), mainly alcoholic cirrhosis. ALD is one of the most common indicatio...Alcohol consumption accounts for 3.8% of annual global mortality worldwide, and the majority of these deaths are due to alcoholic liver disease(ALD), mainly alcoholic cirrhosis. ALD is one of the most common indications for liver transplantation(LT). However, it remains a complicated topic on both medical and ethical grounds, as it is seen by many as a "self-inflicted disease". One of the strongest ethical arguments against LT for ALD is the probability of relapse. However, ALD remains a common indication for LT worldwide. For a patient to be placed on an LT waiting list, 6 mo of abstinence must have been achieved for most LT centers. However, this "6-mo rule" is an arbitrary threshold and has never been shown to affect survival, sobriety, or other outcomes. Recent studies have shown similar survival rates among individuals who undergo LT for ALD and those who undergo LT for other chronic causes of end-stage liver disease. There are specific factors that should be addressed when evaluating LT patients with ALD because these patients commonly have a high prevalence of multisystem alcohol-related changes. Risk factors for relapse include the presence of anxiety or depressive disorders, short pre-LT duration of sobriety, and lack of social support. Identification of risk factors and strengthening of the social support system may decrease relapse among these patients. Family counseling for LT candidates is highly encouraged to prevent alcohol consumption relapse. Relapse has been associated with unique histopathological changes, graft damage, graft loss, and even decreased survival in some studies. Research has demonstrated the importance of a multidisciplinary evaluation of LT candidates. Complete abstinence should be attempted to overcome addiction issues and to allow spontaneous liver recovery. Abstinence is the cornerstone of ALD therapy. Psychotherapies, including 12-step facilitation therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and motivational enhancement therapy, help support abstinence. Nutritional therapy helps t展开更多
Storage of CO2 in saline aquifers is a viable option for reducing the amount of CO2 released to the atmosphere. This paper provides an overall review of CO2 sequestration in saline aquifers. First, the principles of C...Storage of CO2 in saline aquifers is a viable option for reducing the amount of CO2 released to the atmosphere. This paper provides an overall review of CO2 sequestration in saline aquifers. First, the principles of CO2 sequestration are presented, including CO2 phase behavior, CO2-water-rock interaction, and CO2 trapping mechanisms. Then storage capacity and CO2 injectivity are discussed as the main determinants of the storage potential of saline aquifers. Next, a site section process is addressed considering basin characteristics, reservoir characteristics, and economic and social concerns. Three main procedures are then presented to investigate the suitability of a site for CO2 sequestration, including site screening, detailed site characterization, and pilot field-scale test. The methods for these procedures are also presented, such as traditional site characterization methods, laboratory experiments, and numerical simulation. Finally, some operational aspects of sequestration are discussed, including well type, injection rate, CO2 purity, and injection strategy.展开更多
AIM: To expand the living donor liver transplantation(LT) pool of eligible patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) using new morphological and biological criteria.METHODS: Patients with HCC who underwent living do...AIM: To expand the living donor liver transplantation(LT) pool of eligible patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) using new morphological and biological criteria.METHODS: Patients with HCC who underwent living donor LT(LDLT) from March 2005 to May 2013 at the National Cancer Center Korea(NCCK) were enrolled. We performed the 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography(PET/CT)before LDLT. Overall and disease-free survival analysis was done in patients to evaluate the usefulness of new NCCK criteria using PET/CT and total tumor size(10 cm).RESULTS: We enrolled a total of 280 patients who pathologically confirmed to have HCC and performed the PET/CT before transplantation. Among them, 164(58.6%) patients fulfilled the NCCK criteria and 132 patients(47.1%) met the Milan criteria. Five-year overall and disease-free survival rates for patients who fulfilled the NCCK criteria showed 85.2% and 84.0%, respectively, and were significantly higher than those beyond the NCCK criteria(60.2% and 44.4%, respectively; P < 0.001). The correlation analysis between preoperative imaging tests and pathologic reports using Cohen's Kappa demonstrated the better results in the NCCK criteria than those in the Milan criteria(0.850 vs 0.583). The comparison of diseasefree analysis among the NCCK, Milan, and University of California, San Francisco(UCSF) criteria using the receiver operating characteristics curves revealed the similar area under the curve value criteria(NCCK vs Milan, P = 0.484; NCCK vs UCSF, P = 0.189 at 5-years).CONCLUSION: The NCCK criteria using hybrid concept of both morphological and biological parameters showed an excellent agreement between preoperative imaging and pathological results, and favorable survival outcomes. These new criteria might select the optimal patients with HCC waiting LDLT and expand the selection pool.展开更多
AIM: To evaluated patterns and outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).METHODS: From 2001 to 2014, 293 patients underwent LDLT for HCC at our transplant ce...AIM: To evaluated patterns and outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).METHODS: From 2001 to 2014, 293 patients underwent LDLT for HCC at our transplant center. We retrospectively reviewed 54 (18.4%) patients with HCC recurrence after LDLT. We evaluated patterns and outcomes of HCC recurrence after LDLT, with particular attention to the Milan criteria at transplantation, treatments for HCC-recurrent patients, and factors related to survival after HCC recurrence. Furthermore, we evaluated the efficacy of combination treatment of sorafenib and an mTOR inhibitor.RESULTS: The 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival rates after HCC recurrence were 41.1%, 20.5%, and 15.4%, respectively. The median time interval between LDLT and HCC recurrence was 6.5 mo. Although recurrence rates according to the Milan criteria at LDLT were significantly different, HCC recurrence patterns and survival rates after HCC recurrence were not significantly different between the two groups. Time to recurrence < 12 mo (P = 0.048), multiple recurrences at HCC recurrence (P = 0.038), and palliative treatment for recurrent tumors (P = 0.003) were significant independent prognostic factors for poor survival after HCC recurrence in a multivariate analysis. The combination treatment of sorafenib and sirolimus showed survival benefits in the palliative treatment group (P = 0.005).CONCLUSION: Curative treatment for recurrent HCC after LDLT is the most important factor in survival rates after HCC recurrence and combination treatments of sorafenib and an mTOR inhibitor could have survival benefits in patients with HCC recurrence after LT in the palliative treatment group.展开更多
Agricultural investment project selection is a complex multi-criteria decision-making problem,as agricultural projects are easily influenced by various risk factors,and the evaluation information provided by decisionm...Agricultural investment project selection is a complex multi-criteria decision-making problem,as agricultural projects are easily influenced by various risk factors,and the evaluation information provided by decisionmakers usually involves uncertainty and inconsistency.Existing literature primarily employed direct preference elicitation methods to address such issues,necessitating a great cognitive effort on the part of decision-makers during evaluation,specifically,determining the weights of criteria.In this study,we propose an indirect preference elicitation method,known as a preference disaggregation method,to learn decision-maker preference models fromdecision examples.To enhance evaluation ease,decision-makers merely need to compare pairs of alternatives with which they are familiar,also known as reference alternatives.Probabilistic linguistic preference relations are employed to account for the presence of incomplete and uncertain information in such pairwise comparisons.To address the inconsistency among a group of decision-makers,we develop a pair of 0-1mixed integer programming models that consider both the semantics of linguistic terms and the belief degrees of decision-makers.Finally,we conduct a case study and comparative analysis.Results reveal the effectiveness of the proposed model in solving agricultural investment project selection problems with uncertain and inconsistent decision information.展开更多
Fuzzy entropy measures are valuable tools in decision-making when dealing with uncertain or imprecise information.There exist many entropy measures for Pythagorean Fuzzy Sets(PFS)in the literature that fail to deal wi...Fuzzy entropy measures are valuable tools in decision-making when dealing with uncertain or imprecise information.There exist many entropy measures for Pythagorean Fuzzy Sets(PFS)in the literature that fail to deal with the problem of providing reasonable or consistent results to the decision-makers.To deal with the shortcomings of the existing measures,this paper proposes a robust fuzzy entropy measure for PFS to facilitate decision-making under uncertainty.The usefulness of the measure is illustrated through an illustration of decision-making in a supplier selection problem and compared with existing fuzzy entropy measures.The Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to Ideal Solution(TOPSIS)approach is also explored to solve the decision-making problem.The results demonstrate that the proposed measure can effectively capture the degree of uncertainty in the decision-making process,leading to more accurate decision outcomes by providing a reliable and robust ranking of alternatives.展开更多
Purpose–The fuzziness and complexity of evaluation information are common phenomenon in practical decision-making problem,interval neutrosophic sets(INSs)is a power tool to deal with ambiguous information.Similarity ...Purpose–The fuzziness and complexity of evaluation information are common phenomenon in practical decision-making problem,interval neutrosophic sets(INSs)is a power tool to deal with ambiguous information.Similarity measure plays an important role in judging the degree between ideal and each alternative in decision-making process,the purpose of this paper is to establish a multi-criteria decision-making method based on similarity measure under INSs.Design/methodology/approach–Based on an extension of existing cosine similarity,this paper first introduces an improved cosine similarity measure between interval neutosophic numbers,which considers the degrees of the truth membership,the indeterminacy membership and the falsity membership of the evaluation values.And then a multi-criteria decision-making method is established based on the improved cosine similarity measure,in which the ordered weighted averaging(OWA)is adopted to aggregate the neutrosophic information related to each alternative.Finally,an example on supplier selection is given to illustrate the feasibility and practicality of the presented decision-making method.Findings–In the whole process of research and practice,it was realized that the application field of the proposed similarity measure theory still should be expanded,and the development of interval number theory is one of further research direction.Originality/value–The main contributions of this paper are as follows:this study presents an improved cosine similarity measure under INSs,in which the weights of the three independent components of an interval number are taken into account;OWA are adopted to aggregate the neutrosophic information related to each alternative;and a multi-criteria decision-making method using the proposed similarity is developed under INSs.展开更多
Alpha-fetoprotein(AFP) is the main tumor biomarker available for the management of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Although it is neither a good screening test nor an accurate diagnostic tool for HCC, it seems to be a ...Alpha-fetoprotein(AFP) is the main tumor biomarker available for the management of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Although it is neither a good screening test nor an accurate diagnostic tool for HCC, it seems to be a possible prognostic marker. However, its contribution in liver transplantation for HCC has not been fully determined, although its use to predict recurrence after liver transplantation has been underlined by international societies. In an era of organ shortages, it could also have a key role in the selection of patients eligible for liver transplantation. Yet unanswered questions remain. First, the cut-off value of serum AFP above which liver transplantation should not be performed is still a subject of debate. We show that a concentration of 1000 ng/m L could be an exclusion criterion, whereas values of < 15 ng/m L indicate patients with an excellent prognosis whatever the size and number of tumors. Monitoring the dynamics of AFP could also prove useful. However, evidence is lacking regarding the values that should be used. Today, the real input of AFP seems to be its integration into new criteria to select patients eligible for a liver transplantation. These recent tools have associated AFP values with morphological criteria, thus refining pre-existing criteria, such as Milan, University of California, San Francisco, or "up-to-seven". We provide a review of the different criteria submitted within the past years. Finally, AFP can be used to monitor recurrence after transplantation, although there is little evidence to support this claim. Future challenges will be to draft new international guidelines to implement the use of AFP as a selection tool, and to determine a clear cut-off value above which liver transplantation should not be performed.展开更多
Collaboration with universities as ＇knowledge factories＇ is increasingly perceived to be an effective and viable solution for firms to gain competitive advantage. One of the main challenges firms face in this area i...Collaboration with universities as ＇knowledge factories＇ is increasingly perceived to be an effective and viable solution for firms to gain competitive advantage. One of the main challenges firms face in this area is how to select the best university for collaboration. This selection undoubtedly affects some other strategic activities of firms, such as managing and governing the relationship with the selected university and, most importantly, firm performance. As such, the selection becomes an important strategic decision that deserves a great deal of attention. Thus far, no systematic attempt has been made to investigate this significant area of research. The main purpose of this study is to formulate a decision-making model for university selection. Reviewing existing literature of university-industry relationship yields a list of relevant criteria for this problem. The problem is then formulated as a multi-criteria decision-making （MCDM） model, and a fuzzy AHP is used to provide the solution. To illustrate the model, three Dutch universities are ranked based on the importance of the selected criteria.展开更多
The study was conducted in the Awbarre district of the Fafen zone of the Somali regional state of Ethiopia. The objective of the study was to assess the breeding practices and reproductive performance of Black-head So...The study was conducted in the Awbarre district of the Fafen zone of the Somali regional state of Ethiopia. The objective of the study was to assess the breeding practices and reproductive performance of Black-head Somali sheep under a traditional management system. Purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used to select targeted kebeles and households, respectively. A total of 120 households were selected from four kebeles, each of 30 households, based on the production system and sheep population. Semi-structured questionnaires, group discussions, key informants interviews and field observations were used to generate the required data. The primary purpose of keeping sheep was for income generation, followed by saving as a future asset. The majority (89.2%) of the respondents separated male and female animals during herding. The selection criteria for breeding rams were appearance, growth, pedigree, and color while for breeding ewes were appearance, adaptability, pedigree, color, and lamb growth. The overall weaning age of Black-head Somali sheep in the study area was 3.7 months for both males & females. The castration of male sheep was common for the purpose of fattening, fattening with breeding control and breeding control as well. The castration is mainly performed during the summer and autumn and the methods of castration were both traditional and modern methods, the traditional castration method being the most important one in pastoral areas. The age of sexual maturity was 7.64 months for rams and 8.97 months for ewe’s male and female lambs in the pastoral area and 8.42 & 8.38 for rams & ewes in agro-pastoral and overall lambing interval was 11 months. On average, the ewe of Black-head Somali sheep in pastoral & agro-pastoral could produce 9.49 & 9.57 lambs, respectively in their lifetime. As the pastoralists and agro-pastoralists indicated the source of the breeding ram was their own, so the exchange of breeding ram is recommended to minimize the risk of inbreeding and further studies of on-f展开更多
基金supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province, China (2008CDB079)the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program,2006AA100103)
文摘Waterlogging strongly affects agronomic performance of maize （Zea mays L.）. In order to investigate the suitable selection criteria of waterflooding tolerant genotypes, and identify the most susceptible stage and the best continuous treatment time to waterlogging, 20 common maize inbred lines were subjected to successive artificial waterflooding at seedling stage, and waterlogging tolerance coefficient （WTC） was used to screen waterflooding tolerant genotypes. In addition, peroxidase （POD） activities and malondialdehyde （MDA） contents were measured for 6 of 20 lines. The results showed that the second leaf stage （V2） was the most susceptible stage, and 6 d after waterflooding was the best continuous treatment time. Dry weight （DW） of both shoots and roots of all lines were significantly reduced at 6 d time-point of waterlogging, compared to control. POD activities and MDA contents were negatively and significantly correlated, and the correlation coefficient was -0.9686 （P 〈 0.0001）. According to the results, WTC of shoot DW can be used for practical screening as a suitable index, which is significantly different from control and waterlogged plants happened 6 d earlier. Furthermore, leaf chlorosis, MDA content and POD activities could also be used as reference index for material screening. The implications of the results for waterlogging-tolerant material screening and waterlogging-tolerant breeding have been discussed in maize.
文摘Liver transplantation(LT) is the only potentially curative treatment for selected patients with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) who are not candidates for resection. When the Milan criteria are strictly applied, 75% to85%of 3-to 4-year actuarial survival rates are achieved, but up to 20% of the patients experience HCC recurrence after transplantation. The Milan criteria are based on the preoperative tumor macromorphology, tumor size and number on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging that neither correlate well with posttransplant histological study of the liver explant nor accurately predict HCC recurrence after LT, since they do not include objective measures of tumor biology. Preoperative biological markers, including alpha-fetoprotein, desgamma-carboxiprothrombin or neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-tolymphocyte ratio, can predict the risk for HCC recurrence after transplantation.These biomarkers have been proposed as surrogate markers of tumor differentiation and vascular invasion, with varied risk magnitudes depending on the defined cutoffs. Different studies have shown that the combination of one or several biomarkers integrated into prognostic models predict the risk of HCC recurrence after LT more accurately than Milan criteria alone. In this review, we focus on the potential utility of these serum biological markers to improve the performance of Milan criteria to identify patients at high risk of tumoral Published online: January 27, 2019 recurrence after LT.Liver transplantation(LT) is the only potentially curative treatment for selected patients with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) who are not candidates for resection. When the Milan criteria are strictly applied, 75% to85%of 3-to 4-year actuarial survival rates are achieved, but up to 20% of the patients experience HCC recurrence after transplantation. The Milan criteria are based on the preoperative tumor macromorphology, tumor size and number on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging that nei
文摘Alcohol consumption accounts for 3.8% of annual global mortality worldwide, and the majority of these deaths are due to alcoholic liver disease(ALD), mainly alcoholic cirrhosis. ALD is one of the most common indications for liver transplantation(LT). However, it remains a complicated topic on both medical and ethical grounds, as it is seen by many as a "self-inflicted disease". One of the strongest ethical arguments against LT for ALD is the probability of relapse. However, ALD remains a common indication for LT worldwide. For a patient to be placed on an LT waiting list, 6 mo of abstinence must have been achieved for most LT centers. However, this "6-mo rule" is an arbitrary threshold and has never been shown to affect survival, sobriety, or other outcomes. Recent studies have shown similar survival rates among individuals who undergo LT for ALD and those who undergo LT for other chronic causes of end-stage liver disease. There are specific factors that should be addressed when evaluating LT patients with ALD because these patients commonly have a high prevalence of multisystem alcohol-related changes. Risk factors for relapse include the presence of anxiety or depressive disorders, short pre-LT duration of sobriety, and lack of social support. Identification of risk factors and strengthening of the social support system may decrease relapse among these patients. Family counseling for LT candidates is highly encouraged to prevent alcohol consumption relapse. Relapse has been associated with unique histopathological changes, graft damage, graft loss, and even decreased survival in some studies. Research has demonstrated the importance of a multidisciplinary evaluation of LT candidates. Complete abstinence should be attempted to overcome addiction issues and to allow spontaneous liver recovery. Abstinence is the cornerstone of ALD therapy. Psychotherapies, including 12-step facilitation therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and motivational enhancement therapy, help support abstinence. Nutritional therapy helps t
基金support from the China Scholarship Council ([2007]3020) is gratefully acknowledged
文摘Storage of CO2 in saline aquifers is a viable option for reducing the amount of CO2 released to the atmosphere. This paper provides an overall review of CO2 sequestration in saline aquifers. First, the principles of CO2 sequestration are presented, including CO2 phase behavior, CO2-water-rock interaction, and CO2 trapping mechanisms. Then storage capacity and CO2 injectivity are discussed as the main determinants of the storage potential of saline aquifers. Next, a site section process is addressed considering basin characteristics, reservoir characteristics, and economic and social concerns. Three main procedures are then presented to investigate the suitability of a site for CO2 sequestration, including site screening, detailed site characterization, and pilot field-scale test. The methods for these procedures are also presented, such as traditional site characterization methods, laboratory experiments, and numerical simulation. Finally, some operational aspects of sequestration are discussed, including well type, injection rate, CO2 purity, and injection strategy.
文摘AIM: To expand the living donor liver transplantation(LT) pool of eligible patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) using new morphological and biological criteria.METHODS: Patients with HCC who underwent living donor LT(LDLT) from March 2005 to May 2013 at the National Cancer Center Korea(NCCK) were enrolled. We performed the 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography(PET/CT)before LDLT. Overall and disease-free survival analysis was done in patients to evaluate the usefulness of new NCCK criteria using PET/CT and total tumor size(10 cm).RESULTS: We enrolled a total of 280 patients who pathologically confirmed to have HCC and performed the PET/CT before transplantation. Among them, 164(58.6%) patients fulfilled the NCCK criteria and 132 patients(47.1%) met the Milan criteria. Five-year overall and disease-free survival rates for patients who fulfilled the NCCK criteria showed 85.2% and 84.0%, respectively, and were significantly higher than those beyond the NCCK criteria(60.2% and 44.4%, respectively; P < 0.001). The correlation analysis between preoperative imaging tests and pathologic reports using Cohen's Kappa demonstrated the better results in the NCCK criteria than those in the Milan criteria(0.850 vs 0.583). The comparison of diseasefree analysis among the NCCK, Milan, and University of California, San Francisco(UCSF) criteria using the receiver operating characteristics curves revealed the similar area under the curve value criteria(NCCK vs Milan, P = 0.484; NCCK vs UCSF, P = 0.189 at 5-years).CONCLUSION: The NCCK criteria using hybrid concept of both morphological and biological parameters showed an excellent agreement between preoperative imaging and pathological results, and favorable survival outcomes. These new criteria might select the optimal patients with HCC waiting LDLT and expand the selection pool.
文摘AIM: To evaluated patterns and outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).METHODS: From 2001 to 2014, 293 patients underwent LDLT for HCC at our transplant center. We retrospectively reviewed 54 (18.4%) patients with HCC recurrence after LDLT. We evaluated patterns and outcomes of HCC recurrence after LDLT, with particular attention to the Milan criteria at transplantation, treatments for HCC-recurrent patients, and factors related to survival after HCC recurrence. Furthermore, we evaluated the efficacy of combination treatment of sorafenib and an mTOR inhibitor.RESULTS: The 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival rates after HCC recurrence were 41.1%, 20.5%, and 15.4%, respectively. The median time interval between LDLT and HCC recurrence was 6.5 mo. Although recurrence rates according to the Milan criteria at LDLT were significantly different, HCC recurrence patterns and survival rates after HCC recurrence were not significantly different between the two groups. Time to recurrence < 12 mo (P = 0.048), multiple recurrences at HCC recurrence (P = 0.038), and palliative treatment for recurrent tumors (P = 0.003) were significant independent prognostic factors for poor survival after HCC recurrence in a multivariate analysis. The combination treatment of sorafenib and sirolimus showed survival benefits in the palliative treatment group (P = 0.005).CONCLUSION: Curative treatment for recurrent HCC after LDLT is the most important factor in survival rates after HCC recurrence and combination treatments of sorafenib and an mTOR inhibitor could have survival benefits in patients with HCC recurrence after LT in the palliative treatment group.
文摘Agricultural investment project selection is a complex multi-criteria decision-making problem,as agricultural projects are easily influenced by various risk factors,and the evaluation information provided by decisionmakers usually involves uncertainty and inconsistency.Existing literature primarily employed direct preference elicitation methods to address such issues,necessitating a great cognitive effort on the part of decision-makers during evaluation,specifically,determining the weights of criteria.In this study,we propose an indirect preference elicitation method,known as a preference disaggregation method,to learn decision-maker preference models fromdecision examples.To enhance evaluation ease,decision-makers merely need to compare pairs of alternatives with which they are familiar,also known as reference alternatives.Probabilistic linguistic preference relations are employed to account for the presence of incomplete and uncertain information in such pairwise comparisons.To address the inconsistency among a group of decision-makers,we develop a pair of 0-1mixed integer programming models that consider both the semantics of linguistic terms and the belief degrees of decision-makers.Finally,we conduct a case study and comparative analysis.Results reveal the effectiveness of the proposed model in solving agricultural investment project selection problems with uncertain and inconsistent decision information.
文摘Fuzzy entropy measures are valuable tools in decision-making when dealing with uncertain or imprecise information.There exist many entropy measures for Pythagorean Fuzzy Sets(PFS)in the literature that fail to deal with the problem of providing reasonable or consistent results to the decision-makers.To deal with the shortcomings of the existing measures,this paper proposes a robust fuzzy entropy measure for PFS to facilitate decision-making under uncertainty.The usefulness of the measure is illustrated through an illustration of decision-making in a supplier selection problem and compared with existing fuzzy entropy measures.The Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to Ideal Solution(TOPSIS)approach is also explored to solve the decision-making problem.The results demonstrate that the proposed measure can effectively capture the degree of uncertainty in the decision-making process,leading to more accurate decision outcomes by providing a reliable and robust ranking of alternatives.
文摘Purpose–The fuzziness and complexity of evaluation information are common phenomenon in practical decision-making problem,interval neutrosophic sets(INSs)is a power tool to deal with ambiguous information.Similarity measure plays an important role in judging the degree between ideal and each alternative in decision-making process,the purpose of this paper is to establish a multi-criteria decision-making method based on similarity measure under INSs.Design/methodology/approach–Based on an extension of existing cosine similarity,this paper first introduces an improved cosine similarity measure between interval neutosophic numbers,which considers the degrees of the truth membership,the indeterminacy membership and the falsity membership of the evaluation values.And then a multi-criteria decision-making method is established based on the improved cosine similarity measure,in which the ordered weighted averaging(OWA)is adopted to aggregate the neutrosophic information related to each alternative.Finally,an example on supplier selection is given to illustrate the feasibility and practicality of the presented decision-making method.Findings–In the whole process of research and practice,it was realized that the application field of the proposed similarity measure theory still should be expanded,and the development of interval number theory is one of further research direction.Originality/value–The main contributions of this paper are as follows:this study presents an improved cosine similarity measure under INSs,in which the weights of the three independent components of an interval number are taken into account;OWA are adopted to aggregate the neutrosophic information related to each alternative;and a multi-criteria decision-making method using the proposed similarity is developed under INSs.
文摘Alpha-fetoprotein(AFP) is the main tumor biomarker available for the management of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Although it is neither a good screening test nor an accurate diagnostic tool for HCC, it seems to be a possible prognostic marker. However, its contribution in liver transplantation for HCC has not been fully determined, although its use to predict recurrence after liver transplantation has been underlined by international societies. In an era of organ shortages, it could also have a key role in the selection of patients eligible for liver transplantation. Yet unanswered questions remain. First, the cut-off value of serum AFP above which liver transplantation should not be performed is still a subject of debate. We show that a concentration of 1000 ng/m L could be an exclusion criterion, whereas values of < 15 ng/m L indicate patients with an excellent prognosis whatever the size and number of tumors. Monitoring the dynamics of AFP could also prove useful. However, evidence is lacking regarding the values that should be used. Today, the real input of AFP seems to be its integration into new criteria to select patients eligible for a liver transplantation. These recent tools have associated AFP values with morphological criteria, thus refining pre-existing criteria, such as Milan, University of California, San Francisco, or "up-to-seven". We provide a review of the different criteria submitted within the past years. Finally, AFP can be used to monitor recurrence after transplantation, although there is little evidence to support this claim. Future challenges will be to draft new international guidelines to implement the use of AFP as a selection tool, and to determine a clear cut-off value above which liver transplantation should not be performed.
文摘Collaboration with universities as ＇knowledge factories＇ is increasingly perceived to be an effective and viable solution for firms to gain competitive advantage. One of the main challenges firms face in this area is how to select the best university for collaboration. This selection undoubtedly affects some other strategic activities of firms, such as managing and governing the relationship with the selected university and, most importantly, firm performance. As such, the selection becomes an important strategic decision that deserves a great deal of attention. Thus far, no systematic attempt has been made to investigate this significant area of research. The main purpose of this study is to formulate a decision-making model for university selection. Reviewing existing literature of university-industry relationship yields a list of relevant criteria for this problem. The problem is then formulated as a multi-criteria decision-making （MCDM） model, and a fuzzy AHP is used to provide the solution. To illustrate the model, three Dutch universities are ranked based on the importance of the selected criteria.
文摘The study was conducted in the Awbarre district of the Fafen zone of the Somali regional state of Ethiopia. The objective of the study was to assess the breeding practices and reproductive performance of Black-head Somali sheep under a traditional management system. Purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used to select targeted kebeles and households, respectively. A total of 120 households were selected from four kebeles, each of 30 households, based on the production system and sheep population. Semi-structured questionnaires, group discussions, key informants interviews and field observations were used to generate the required data. The primary purpose of keeping sheep was for income generation, followed by saving as a future asset. The majority (89.2%) of the respondents separated male and female animals during herding. The selection criteria for breeding rams were appearance, growth, pedigree, and color while for breeding ewes were appearance, adaptability, pedigree, color, and lamb growth. The overall weaning age of Black-head Somali sheep in the study area was 3.7 months for both males & females. The castration of male sheep was common for the purpose of fattening, fattening with breeding control and breeding control as well. The castration is mainly performed during the summer and autumn and the methods of castration were both traditional and modern methods, the traditional castration method being the most important one in pastoral areas. The age of sexual maturity was 7.64 months for rams and 8.97 months for ewe’s male and female lambs in the pastoral area and 8.42 & 8.38 for rams & ewes in agro-pastoral and overall lambing interval was 11 months. On average, the ewe of Black-head Somali sheep in pastoral & agro-pastoral could produce 9.49 & 9.57 lambs, respectively in their lifetime. As the pastoralists and agro-pastoralists indicated the source of the breeding ram was their own, so the exchange of breeding ram is recommended to minimize the risk of inbreeding and further studies of on-f
