Does weight-based pricing for municipal waste collection contribute to waste reduction? A dynamic panel analysis in Flanders.

This paper analyzes the effects of weight-based pricing on municipal waste generation in Flanders (Belgium) by applying the bias-corrected least squares dummy variables estimation model to account for the dynamic relationship. The study also considers yearly weight-based pricing dummy variables to clarify the annual effects after its introducing and price elasticities of weight-based pricing systems from the both viewpoints of short and long terms. The results by the dynamic panel estimations showed that the continuous participation of weight-based pricing decreases the amount of residual waste significantly by approximately 10.

Clinicopathological Analysis of 320 Cases of Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma Using the Hans Classifier.

The estimation of clinical prognosis for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) with a quick, cost-efficient method is necessary because of the clinical heterogeneity of this disease, which leads to death, relapsed or refractory disease in approximately 40% of patients. We analyzed 320 cases diagnosed from 2007 to 2013 treated with R-CHOP therapy at Tokai University Hospital and associated institutions. DLBCL was classified according to the cell-of-origin using the Hans algorithm [germinal center B-cell-like (GCB) vs non-GCB subtypes], and into 6 subgroups derived from combinations of CD10, BCL6 and MUM1 markers.

A novel 111-nucleotide duplication in the G gene of human metapneumovirus.

In 2017, novel human metapneumovirus (HMPV) A2b subgroup strains with a 111-nucleotide duplication in the G gene was detected by the present team. These strains were related to previously identified HMPV A2b strains with a 180-nucleotide duplication; however, they appeared to be different strains, produced by an independent duplication event. The recent evolution of HMPV suggests that careful monitoring of this virus is required.

180-Nucleotide Duplication in the G Gene of A2b Subgroup Strains Circulating in Yokohama City, Japan, since 2014.

(HMPV), a member of the family , was first isolated in 2001. Seroepidemiological studies have shown that HMPV has been a major etiological agent of acute respiratory infections in humans for more than 50 years. Molecular epidemiological, genetic, and antigenetic evolutionary studies of HMPV will strengthen our understanding of the epidemic behavior of the virus and provide valuable insight for the control of HMPV and the development of vaccines and antiviral drugs against HMPV infection.

Cost and efficiency of disaster waste disposal: A case study of the Great East Japan Earthquake.

This paper analyzes the cost and efficiency of waste disposal associated with the Great East Japan Earthquake. The following two analyses were performed: (1) a popular parametric approach, which is an ordinary least squares (OLS) method to estimate the factors that affect the disposal costs; (2) a non-parametric approach, which is a two-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) to analyze the efficiency of each municipality and clarify the best performance of the disaster waste management. Our results indicate that a higher recycling rate of disaster waste and a larger amount of tsunami sediments decrease the average disposal costs.