Indian Institutes of Management

About: Indian Institutes of Management is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & The Internet. The organization has 10 authors who have published 9 publications receiving 29 citations.

The disorders of the calcium release unit of skeletal muscles: what have we learned from mouse models?

Abstract: Calcium storage, release, and reuptake are essential for normal physiological function of muscle. Several human skeletal muscle disorders can arise from dysfunction in the control and coordination of these three critical processes. The release from the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum stores (SR) is handled by a multiprotein complex called Calcium Release Unit and composed of DiHydroPyridine Receptor or DHPR, Ryanodine Receptor or RYR, Calsequestrin or CASQ, junctin, Triadin, Junctophilin and Mitsugumin 29. Malignant hyperthermia (MH), Central Core Disease (CCD), Exertional/environmental Heat Stroke (EHS) and Multiminicore disease (MmD) are inherited disorders of calcium homeostasis in skeletal muscles directly related to mutations of genes coding for proteins of the CRU, primarily ryanodine receptor (RYR1). To understand the pathophysiology of MH and CCD, four murine lines carrying point mutations of human RYR1 have been developed: Y524S, R163C, I4898T and T4826I. Mice carrying those mutations show a phenotype with the traits of MH and/or CCD. Interestingly, also ablation of skeletal muscle calsequestrin (CASQ1) leads to a phenotype with MH-like lethal episodes in response to halothane and heat stress and development of central cores. In this review, we aim to describe the murine lines with RYR mutations or CASQ ablation, which show a phenotype similar to human MH or CCD, to underline their specific phenotypes and their differences and to discuss their contribution to the understanding of the pathophysiology of the disorders and the development of therapeutic strategies.

Deteriorating inventory model with finite production rate and two-level of credit financing for stochastic demand

Abstract: An inventory model for deteriorating items with finite production rate and stochastic demand rate is developed when the supplier offers delay period to the retailer for due payment against purchases and the retailer in turn extends the trade credit offer to its customers. This policy of passing on of the credit period is well known as two-level of credit financing. Items in the system follow stochastic demand behavior that are produced with finite production rate and subjected to constant rate of deterioration. The model is developed with an objective to minimize total expected cost of retailer as it is assumed to be a dominant player in the supply chain. Necessary and sufficient conditions for existence and uniqueness of the optimal solution are obtained and established to minimize the retailer’s total expected cost. Results obtained are validated with the help of numerical examples. Sensitivity analysis of various parameters is carried out to gain meaningful managerial insights.

Construction of Mixed Covering Arrays for Pair-wise Testing Using Probabilistic Approach in Genetic Algorithm

Abstract: In a system with large number of input parameters, it is necessary to check for errors that can occur as a result of interactions between various input parameters. However, checking of all possible combinations of input parameters is often restricted due to time and budget constraints. In order to overcome the constraints of exhaustive testing, combinatorial testing has been employed to generate optimal and efficient test set that covers all t-way combinations of input parameters. Pair-wise testing, a combinatorial testing technique, tests all possible combinations of each pair of input parameter values. In this paper, we present an efficient algorithm pair-wise test set generator using genetic algorithm (PTSG-GA) for generating test set for pair-wise testing. PTSG-GA is an extension of our previous work that applies genetic algorithm (GA) to generate optimal test set for pair-wise testing. In this paper, combinatorial objects, namely covering array (CA) and mixed covering arrays (MCA), are used to represent test set. The major contribution of algorithm PTSG-GA is that it uses a probabilistic approach to generate initial population of CAs/MCAs to improve the performance of GA. The algorithm PTSG-GA is implemented using an open-source tool PWiseGen. We have reported experimental results that illustrate the effectiveness of PTSG-GA as compared to existing state-of-the-art algorithms.

Concentrated Promotional Efforts and Product Diffusion: A Normative Analysis

Abstract: This paper attempts to derive optimal normative promotion policy for new product diffusion in which the marketer has the option of engaging in a geographically concentrated product promotion policy. Such kind of promotion takes place in rural marketing situations in India, in which a group of consumers is assembled at one place, and “concentrated” promotion is provided to this group at a specific point in time. The model developed is an extension of the traditional product diffusion model (Bass 1969) and takes into account the impact of this marketing action in a finite horizon context. The paper simulates scenarios that vary in terms of the product type, cost of promotion and per-period marketing costs. The numerical analysis reveals that low promotion costs results in larger promotions. In addition, slow moving products require greater amount of promotion than fast moving products. Further, lower per-period costs are associated with longer optimal product diffusion cycles.

Primitive Accumulation and Surplus Population: A Critique of Capitalocentrism in Marxian Theory

Abstract: Marx’s concept of primitive accumulation has traditionally been understood as pre-history to the emergence and eventual universalization of capital in the social formation. I argue, to the contrary, that “primitive accumulation” can be a theoretical category only in the presence of a theorized notion of an “outside” to capital. This “outside” of capital in a social formation is populated by a “surpluspopulation”—another concept that needs to be delinked from the capitalocentric notion of “reserve army of labour”. Once we recognize an ever-present non-capitalist “outside” in a social formation, primitive accumulation becomes central to dominance of capital over a social formation.