Term Paper on E-Business Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

On E-Business - Term Paper Example As far as the marketers are concerned online marketing has increased the reach, reduced planning time, lowered the costs and with the use of technology they are able to reduce the sales points and offer a number of payment options to the customers. The prevalence of the Internet provides efficiency and convenience but as technology has developed, risks and uncertainties too have developed which directly impact online shopping behavior and customer satisfaction. In the case of internet banking, the perceived security risks are high as a third party can easily intercept the system (Mann and Sahni 2011). On the supply side too, the sellers are subject to security and fraud risks. E-business and online purchase subjects the customer to unique risks such as credit card fraud, non-delivery of goods after purchase, private information being shared with other portals, and lack of guarantee of the good and services purchased (Koyuncu and Bhattacharya 2004). Such risks prevent the customers fr om buying high-priced items online or items that would require visual inspection. Customers also fear delays in delivery or goods damaged in delivery, which poses a challenge for the sellers (Sharma 2011). Lack of face-to-face interactions emphasizes the role of trust in online payments (Ranaweera, McDougall and Bansal 2005). Trust in an online environment takes time to develop and is based on past experience and recommendations by the third party (Mann and Sahni 2011). Fraud and security risks faced by the sellers have limited the growth of e-business. However, as technology has developed secure transactions and encryption have developed too, offering guarantees and security to buyers and sellers. E-business has more risks than retail shopping but in spite of the risks internet business has grown because of the numerous advantages it offers. These advantages include lower transaction cost, lower search cost both in terms of time and money; wider range to select the products from, l ower prices and savings on time as shopping is much faster (Koyuncu and Bhattacharya 2011). However, if the delivery time increases, or the risks of payments increases, the customers are likely to engage less in e-business. The theory of reasoned action (TRA) explains that human behavior is based on the beliefs and intentions. Bonera (2011) finds that online purchase intention could be influenced by the construct of playfulness but then perceived security and usefulness influence the purchase intention. Thus, if the perceived security level is low, online purchase is likely to be adversely impacted. Apart from the security concerns, ease of use and website quality can influence consumers’ online purchase behavior. A satisfied customer would have the intention to return to the website and also be willing to recommend the website to friends (Ranaweera, McDougall and Bansal 2005). While the first transaction may stem from curiosity or playfulness, subsequent transactions would d epend upon the actual delivery and consumption relating to the first transaction. Acquisition costs are higher than retention costs and hence it is a challenge for the marketers to convert the first-time visitors to actual buyers. There exists a definite relationship between website quality and website satisfaction. At the same time consumer

LPS Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

LPS - Literature review Example The LPS of this group of bacteria can be divided into 3 components, 1) lipid A, 2) a core oligosaccharide, which can be further subdivided into an inner and outer core structure, and a glycosyl polymer of repeating units, called O-polysaccharide. The hydrophobic lipid A domain of the molecule contributes to the structural stability of LPS. The core oligosaccharide, on the other hand, maintain the semi-permeable barrier of the bacterial cell‘s membrane by cross-linking with divalent cations or polyamines (Frirdich and Whitfield, 2005). Because of its biological effects, it has been used in experimental research as a prototype endotoxin as well as an adjuvant. Through the elucidation that LPS’ lipid A component is a nontoxic immunostimulatory molecule, it was established that the lipid A domain modulates LPS’ biological activity (Harsoliya et al., 2011). According to Frirdich and Whitfield (2005), this domain of LPS is the most conserved, followed by the inner core oligosaccharide moiety attached to lipid A. 2. Modifications Just like other membrane proteins, LPS undergo structural changes to accommodate environmental changes such as availability of nutrients and balance of ions. In particular, lipid A modifications were found to enable the bacteria to adapt to an environment with low divalent cations, abundant cationic peptides and low temperature (Frirdich and Whitfield, 2005). The TLR4 pathway TLR4 is a membrane protein expressed by hematopoietic-derived, immune cells such as macrophages, neutrophils, lymphocytes and dendritic cells. It is the link of LPS to the innate immune pathway, which allows a faster recruitment of immune cells to the site of infection. It is able to do so by stimulating the transfer of nuclear factor- (NF-) to the nucleus, thus initiating the expression of the genes coding for IL-6, IL-1 and TNF-? (Creely, 2007), whose importance will be discussed in detail later. Because many body surfaces and mucosa are susceptible to bacterial infection, many body parts may be exposed to LPS as well. As such, they are also expressed by non-hematopoietic cells such as epithelia and endothelia. In the respiratory tract, many studies have already recognized the role of TLR4 in inducing defensive mechanisms against pulmonary infection. Since the non-hematopoietic cells do not have immune functions, they release signals that allow the recruitment neutrophils to the site of infection. If uncontrolled, however, this response may lead to a decrease in lung function due to inflammation of the lungs, as well as exacerbation of allergic asthma. (Hollingsworth et al., 2005). However, it was determine by Hollingsworth et al. (2005) that, at least in the respiratory tract, immune response is different in magnitude when LPS is detected by hematopoietic cells than if it is by epithelial and endothelial cells of the airway. In their experiment, they used chimeric mice to limit expression of TLR4 in 1) hematopoietic cells onl y, or in 2) structural cells only. Number of neutrophils present, cytokine/chemokine production, and airway inflammation, through assessment of tracheal pressure. It was observed that even if the epithelia and endothelia of the respiratory tract do not express TLR4, neutrophil recruitment was still made possible because hematopoietic cell