bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of population health short courses: implications for developing and evaluating population health professional development initiatives
Authors: Naccarella Lucio , Greenstock Louise , Butterworth Iain
Published: July 2015

Population health as an approach to planning is key to improving the health and well-being of whole populations and to reduce inequities within and between population groups. The Victorian Department of Health North and West Metropolitan Region, in collaboration with The University of Melbourne (School of Population Health), have delivered four annual population health short courses. The short courses were designed to equip participants with knowledge and skills to implement population health approaches upon their return to their workplaces. For three consecutive years, online surveys (n=41) and semi-structured interviews (n=35), underpinned by participatory and realist evaluation approaches, were conducted to obtain the perceptions and experiences of the population health short course participants. Evaluation findings indicate that participants’ understanding of population health concepts increased; however, there were mixed outcomes in assisting participants’ implementation of population health approaches upon their return to their workplaces. A core list of perceived requirements, enablers and barriers emerged at an individual, organisational and system level as influencing the capability of participants to implement population health approaches. Evaluation recommendations and actions taken to revise short course iterations are presented, providing evidence that the evaluation approaches were appropriate and increased the use of evaluation learnings. Implications of evaluation findings for professional development practice (i.e. shift from a ‘Course’ as a one-off event to a Population Health ‘Program’ of inter-dependent components) and evaluation (i.e. participatory realist evaluation approaches) are presented.
Experimental deformation of deuterated ice in 3D and 2D: identification of grain-scale processes
Authors: Wilson Christopher J.L. , Luzin Vladimir , Piazolo Sandra , Peternell Mark , Hammes Daniel
Published: July 2015

Major polar ice sheets and ice caps experience cycles of variable flow during different glacial periods and as a response to past warming. The rate and localisation of deformation inside an ice body controls the evolution of ice microstructure and crystallographic fabric. This is critical for interpreting proxy signals for climate change, with deformation overprinting and disrupting stratigraphy deep under ice caps due to the nature of the flow. The final crystallographic fabric in polar ice sheets provides a record of deformation history, which in turn controls the flow properties of ice during further deformation and affects geophysical sensing of ice sheets. For example, identification of layering in ice sheets, using seismic or ice radar techniques, is attributed to grain size changes and fabric variations. Such information has been used to provide information on climate state and its changes over time, and as the Fourth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report (Solomon et al. 2007) points out there is currently still a lack of understanding of internal ice-sheet dynamics. To answer this we have recently conducted experiments at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) to collect fully quantitative microstructural data from polycrystalline heavy water (D2O) ice deformed in a dynamic regime. The ice and temperature (–7°C) chosen for this study is used as a direct analogue for deforming natural-water ice as it offers a unique opportunity to link grain size and texture evolution in natural ice at –10°C. Results show a dynamic system where steady-state rheology is not necessarily coupled to microstructural and crystallographic fabric stability. This link needs to be taken into account to improve ice-mass-deformation modelling critical for climate change predictions.
Formation of surface nanodroplets under controlled flow conditions
Authors: Zhang Xuehua , Lu Ziyang , Tan Huanshu , Bao Lei , He Yinghe , Sun Chao , Lohse Detlef
Published: July 2015

Significance

Solvent exchange is a generally used approach for producing many nanoscale droplets on an immersed substrate. In this process, a good solvent is displaced by a poor solvent of oil, leading to oil nanodroplet nucleation and subsequent growth on the substrate. This work is, to our knowledge, the first attempt to quantitatively understand the relationship between the droplet size and the flow conditions during the solvent exchange, and to pave the way for the droplet size control. The experimental results show that the droplet volume increases with increasing Peclet number of the flow as

∝
P

e

3
/
4

, in good agreement with our theoretical analysis. We also reveal that the buoyancy effects contribute to the formation of bigger and less homogeneously distributed droplets in less-narrow channels.
Metaphorical conceptualization of emotion in Spanish
Authors: Reali Florencia , Arciniegas Catalina
Published: July 2015

Over the last two decades, accumulating work in cognitive science and cognitive linguistics has provided evidence that language shapes thought. Conceptual metaphor theory proposes that the conceptual structure of emotions emerges through metaphorization from concrete concepts such as spatial orientation and physical containment. Primary metaphors for emotions have been described in a wide range of languages. Here we show, in Study 1, the results of a corpus analysis revealing that certain metaphors such as EMOTIONS ARE FLUIDS and EMOTIONS ARE BOUNDED SPACEs are quite natural in Spanish. Moreover, the corpus data reveal that the bounded space source domain is more frequently mapped onto negative emotions. In Study 2, we consider the question of whether the instantiation of metaphorical framing influences the way we think about emotions. A questionnaire experiment was conducted to explore this question, focusing on the Spanish case of locura (‘madness’). Our results show that when madness was framed as a fluid filling a container (the body), people tended to rate symptoms as less enduring and as more likely to be caused by social and environmental factors, compared with when it was framed as a place in space. Results are discussed in the light of conceptual metaphor theory.
Descent for algebraic cobordism
Authors: González José , Karu Kalle
Published: July 2015

We prove the exactness of a descent sequence relating the algebraic cobordism groups of a scheme and its envelopes. Analogous sequences for Chow groups and K-theory were previously proved by Gillet. As an application, we prove that the

K
K

-group of a scheme can be obtained from its cobordism group by extension of scalars.
Identification of a Novel Agonist-Like Autoantibody in Preeclamptic
Patients
Authors: Velloso Elizabeth Portugal , Pimentel Renata Lúcia , Braga Janaína F. , Cabral Antônio Carlos Vieira , Reis Zilma Silveira N. , Bader Michael , Santos Robson Augusto S. , Wallukat Gerd
Published: July 2015

BACKGROUND

Recent studies have shown that preeclampsia (PE) is associated with the presence of autoantibodies (AABs) that activate the angiotensin II AT 1 receptor, which could contribute to many of the symptoms of PE.

METHODS

To investigate the frequency and the targets of AABs in preeclamptic women (31 cases) and healthy pregnant normotensive women (29 cases) in Brazil, antibodies from serum samples were detected by a bioassay using spontaneously beating neonatal rat cardiomyocytes in culture. In the cardiomyocytes, the agonistic AABs induce a positive or negative chronotropic response, mimicking the corresponding receptor agonists. The specificity of the AAB response was identified by specific receptor antagonists.

RESULTS

Thirty preeclamptic patients (97%) presented AABs against the angiotensin II AT 1 receptor. The agonistic effect of the AAB was blocked by irbesartan and neutralized by a peptide corresponding to the second extracellular loop of this receptor. Strikingly, we discovered that all sera from the severe preeclamptic patients (16 cases) contained a novel agonist-like AAB directed against the endothelin-1 ETA receptor in addition to the AABs against the angiotensin II AT 1 receptor. This AAB was selectively blocked by the antagonist BQ-123, antagonized by the protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor Calphostin C and neutralized by peptides corresponding to the second extracellular loop of the endothelin-1 ETA receptor subtype.

CONCLUSIONS

We described, for the first time, the presence of endothelin-1 ETA receptor AABs in PE. Our results suggest that the presence of both agonistic AABs may be involved in the pathogenesis of severe PE.
Guiding Hypertension Management Using Central Blood Pressure: Effect
of Medication Withdrawal on Left Ventricular Function
Authors: Kosmala Wojciech , Marwick Thomas H. , Stanton Tony , Abhayaratna Walter P. , Stowasser Michael , Sharman James E.
Published: July 2015

BACKGROUND

Central blood pressure (BP) is an acknowledged contributor to end-organ damage and independent determinant of prognosis. Primary analysis from the BPGUIDE study demonstrated no detriment on left ventricular (LV) structure from central BP-guided hypertension management, despite significant medication withdrawal. However, the effect of this on LV function has not been investigated. In this study, we sought to investigate the impact of central BP-guided hypertension management on LV systolic and diastolic performance.

METHODS

A total of 286 enrollees with uncomplicated hypertension were randomized to therapeutic decisions guided by best-practice usual care (UC) or, in addition, by central BP intervention (CBP) for 12 months. Each participant underwent baseline and follow-up 2-dimensional echocardiography, with assessment undertaken by an expert blinded to participant allocation.

RESULTS

Antihypertensive medication quantity remained unchanged for UC but significantly decreased with intervention. However, no significant between-group differences were noted for changes during follow-up in both brachial and central BP, as well as other central hemodynamic parameters: augmentation index and augmented pressure. Similarly, there were no differences between groups in parameters of LV diastolic function: tissue e ′ velocity (∆UC vs. ∆CBP; P = 0.27) and E / e ′ ratio (∆UC vs. ∆CBP; P = 0.60), and systolic parameters: LV longitudinal strain (∆UC vs. ∆CBP; P = 0.55), circumferential strain (∆UC vs. ∆CBP; P = 0.79), and ejection fraction (∆UC vs. ∆CBP; P = 0.15).

CONCLUSIONS

Hypertension management guided by central BP, resulting in significant withdrawal of medication to maintain appropriate BP control, had no adverse effect on LV systolic or diastolic function.

clinical trials registration

Australia New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry Number ACTRN12608 000041358
Overcoming barriers to implementing patient-reported outcomes in an electronic health record: a case report
Authors: Harle Christopher A , Listhaus Alyson , Covarrubias Constanza M , Schmidt Siegfried OF , Mackey Sean , Carek Peter J , Fillingim Roger B , Hurley Robert W
Published: July 2015

In this case report, the authors describe the implementation of a system for collecting patient-reported outcomes and integrating results in an electronic health record. The objective was to identify lessons learned in overcoming barriers to collecting and integrating patient-reported outcomes in an electronic health record. The authors analyzed qualitative data in 42 documents collected from system development meetings, written feedback from users, and clinical observations with practice staff, providers, and patients. Guided by the Unified Theory on the Adoption and Use of Information Technology, 5 emergent themes were identified. Two barriers emerged: (i) uncertain clinical benefit and (ii) time, work flow, and effort constraints. Three facilitators emerged: (iii) process automation, (iv) usable system interfaces, and (v) collecting patient-reported outcomes for the right patient at the right time. For electronic health record-integrated patient-reported outcomes to succeed as useful clinical tools, system designers must ensure the clinical relevance of the information being collected while minimizing provider, staff, and patient burden.
Estimating Dynamic Ideal Points for State Supreme Courts
Authors: Windett Jason H. , Harden Jeffrey J. , Hall Matthew E. K.
Published: July 2015

Courts of last resort in the American states offer researchers considerable leverage to develop and test theories about how institutions influence judicial behavior. One measure critical to this research agenda is the individual judges' preferences, or ideal points, in policy space. Two main strategies for recovering this measure exist in the literature: Brace, Langer, and Hall's (2000, Measuring preferences of state supreme court judges,Journal of Politics62(2):387–413) Party-Adjusted Judge Ideology and Bonica and Woodruff's (2014, A common-space measure of state supreme court ideology,Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, doi: 10.1093/jleo/ewu016) judicial CFscores. Here, we introduce a third measurement strategy that combines CFscores with item response (IRT) estimates of judicial voting behavior in all fifty-two state courts of last resort from 1995 to 2010. We show that leveraging two distinct sources of information (votes and CFscores) yields a superior estimation strategy. Specifically, we highlight several key advantages of the combined measure: (1) it is estimated dynamically, allowing for the possibility that judges' ideological leanings change over time and (2) it maps judges into a common space. In a comparison against existing measurement strategies, we find that our measure offers superior performance in predicting judges' votes. We conclude that it is a valuable tool for advancing the study of judicial politics.
Infants Fed a Lower Calorie Formula With 2′FL Show Growth and 2′FL Uptake Like Breast‐Fed Infants
Authors: Marriage Barbara J. , Buck Rachael H. , Goehring Karen C. , Oliver Jeffery S. , Williams Jennifer A.
Published: July 2015

Objectives:

The aim of the present study was to examine the growth and tolerance of infants fed infant formulas with a caloric density closer to human milk (HM) supplemented with human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) and to study uptake of the HMOs.

Methods:

A prospective, randomized, controlled, growth and tolerance study was conducted in healthy, singleton infants (birth weight ≥2490 g), who were enrolled by day of life (DOL) 5. Formula‐fed infants were randomized to 1 of 3 formulas with a caloric density of 64.3 kcal/dL. Each formula contained galactooligosaccharides, and the 2 experimental formulas contained varying levels (0.2 and 1.0 g/L) of the HMO 2′‐fucosyllactose (2′FL). The 3 formula groups were compared with an HM‐fed reference group. Infants were exclusively fed either formula (n = 189) or HM (n = 65) from enrollment to 119 DOL. 2′FL was measured in the blood and urine collected from a subset of infants at DOL 42 and 119, and in HM collected from breast‐feeding mothers at DOL 42.

Results:

There were no significant differences among any groups for weight, length, or head circumference growth during the 4‐month study period. All of the formulas were well tolerated and comparable for average stool consistency, number of stools per day, and percent of feedings associated with spitting up or vomit. 2′FL was present in the plasma and urine of infants fed 2′FL, and there were no significant differences in 2′FL uptake relative to the concentration fed.

Conclusions:

This is the first report of infants fed 2′FL‐fortified formulas with a caloric density similar to HM. Growth and 2′FL uptake were similar to those of HM‐fed infants.
Leopard Skin–Like Colonic Mucosa
Authors: Obayashi Naho , Arai Katsuhiro , Nakano Natsuko , Mizukami Tomoyuki , Kawai Toshinao , Yamamoto Shojiro , Shimizu Hirotaka , Nunoi Hiroyuki , Shimizu Toshiaki , Tang Julian , Onodera Masafumi
Published: July 2015

Background:

Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a rare inherited disorder in which phagocytes are unable to eradicate pathogens because of a deficit of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase. Among CGD patients, ∼30% to 50% develop severe gastrointestinal tract symptoms. Although characteristic histologic findings of CGD‐associated colitis have been reported, information on endoscopic features remained vague.

Methods:

A total of 8 male patients with CGD (ages 2–23 years) from 2 Japanese institutions underwent colonoscopy for the evaluation of their fever, diarrhea, bloody stool, and abdominal pain. The endoscopic and histologic findings were retrospectively reviewed.

Results:

The endoscopic findings of CGD‐associated colitis appeared varied. Notably, brownish dots over a yellowish edematous mucosa were observed in 3 of the 8 patients. Prominent pigment‐laden macrophages were noted histologically on the mucosa.

Conclusions:

Although nonspecific endoscopic findings of CGD‐associated colitis have been reported before, our observation of brownish dots spread across a yellowish edematous mucosa, termed “leopard sign,” could be a unique feature of this condition.
Fundamental solutions and dual boundary element methods for fracture in plane Cosserat elasticity
Authors: Atroshchenko Elena , Bordas Stéphane P. A.
Published: July 2015

In this paper, both singular and hypersingular fundamental solutions of plane Cosserat elasticity are derived and given in a ready-to-use form. The hypersingular fundamental solutions allow to formulate the analogue of Somigliana stress identity, which can be used to obtain the stress and couple-stress fields inside the domain from the boundary values of the displacements, microrotation and stress and couple-stress tractions. Using these newly derived fundamental solutions, the boundary integral equations of both types are formulated and solved by the boundary element method. Simultaneous use of both types of equations (approach known as the dual boundary element method (BEM)) allows problems where parts of the boundary are overlapping, such as crack problems, to be treated and to do this for general geometry and loading conditions. The high accuracy of the boundary element method for both types of equations is demonstrated for a number of benchmark problems, including a Griffith crack problem and a plate with an edge crack. The detailed comparison of the BEM results and the analytical solution for a Griffith crack and an edge crack is given, particularly in terms of stress and couple-stress intensity factors, as well as the crack opening displacements and microrotations on the crack faces and the angular distributions of stresses and couple-stresses around the crack tip.
Probable case of Cephalotheca foveolata bloodstream infection
Authors: Lu Lenette L. , Weil Ana A. , Wiederhold Nathan , Sutton Deanna A. , Chesnut Lauren , Lindner Jonathan , Fan Hongxin , Tingpej Bhatraphol , El-Khoury Joseph , Kwon Douglas S.
Published: July 2015

Introduction:

Cephalotheca foveolata is a saprobic fungus recently described among clinical isolates.

Case presentation:

A 59-year-old man presented with fevers, upper back pain and shortness of breath after gastric tube removal following an oesophagectomy, oesophagojejunostomy and gastrostomy for management of oesophogeal adenocarcinoma. He had a suspected oesophageal leak and polymicrobial empyema. Blood cultures grew only C. foveolata. He improved clinically on empiric antifungal and broad-spectrum antibacterial therapy.

Conclusion:

We report a probable case of C. foveolata bloodstream infection. This is a newly recognized pathogen requiring molecular diagnostic methods to make an accurate diagnosis.
Endocarditis and myocardial abscess caused by group B Streptococcus
Authors: Bettenhausen Aaron , Sander Jared , Carson Paul , Koponen Mark , Dyke Cornelius
Published: July 2015

Introduction:

Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a rare infectious endocarditis. Patients with GBS infective endocarditis have a high rate of local and systemic complications.

Case presentation:

A 30-year-old male presented to the Emergency Department with fever, chills, fatigue and a recent onset of symptoms suggestive of stroke following a bout of pyelonephritis. Echocardiography confirmed a diagnosis of endocarditis and blood cultures grew GBS. Antibiotic therapy was initiated with penicillin G and gentamicin. Urological evaluation revealed a urethral stricture. He was taken to the operating room on hospital day 10 for the debridement of his aortic annulus, reconstruction of his aortic root and replacement of his aortic valve. On post-operative day 7, he died of sudden cardiac arrest. A large myocardial abscess located within the interventricular septum was identified post-mortem.

Conclusion:

Recurrent or complicated urinary tract infections are rare among the young male population. Without evaluation and treatment for the underlying pathology, patients are at risk of developing antimicrobial-resistant infections, which may disseminate rapidly. Although a common pathogen of the urinary tract, GBS is a rare infectious agent for endocarditis. We propose urethral stricture as a risk factor for developing GBS endocarditis. Operative timing for these infections can be challenging; however, urgent and radical surgical debridement appears to yield favourable results.
Native valve endocarditis caused by Streptococcus oligofermentans: a case report
Authors: Menon Thangam , Gopalakrishnan Sathyanarayanan , Ravi Marimuthu Shanmugam
Published: July 2015

Introduction:

Viridans group streptococci (VGS), which are commensal flora in the oral cavity, can act as opportunistic pathogens causing serious infections such as infective endocarditis (IE). Species identification of these organisms is difficult because of variability in phenotypic traits among strains of the same species.

Case presentation:

We report a case of endocarditis in a 64-year-old male patient caused by Streptococcus oligofermentans, which was identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. S. oligofermentans is a commensal of the oral cavity and rarely causes disease. This is the second report of IE caused by S. oligofermentans.

Conclusion:

Molecular methods are necessary to ascertain the identity of VGS strains, particularly those that rarely cause human disease.
Streptococcus pneumoniae infection of the lumbar epidural spine: a rare condition with distinctive signs requiring specialized intervention
Authors: Carson Henry J. , Boyd Jonnine , Witt Frederick L.
Published: July 2015

Introduction:

Bacterial infection of the vertebral column is uncommon, but when it occurs, the meninges are at high risk.

Case presentation:

A patient presented with acute-onset back pain and signs of inflammation, excluding an elevated white count and bacteraemia. Laminectomy specimens showed infection with Streptococcus pneumoniae. No previous source of possible seeding of the bacteria was identified.

Conclusion:

The infection responded to intravenous ceftriaxone. This case informs us to be aware of infection in a case of back pain even without a prior source of infection.
Staphylocccus intermedius group infections in humans: report of four cases and a literature review
Authors: Frank Maria G. , Keniston Angela , Madinger Nancy , Price Connie , Bessesen Mary T.
Published: July 2015

Introduction:

Staphylococcus intermedius group (SIG) comprises coagulase-positive staphylococci isolated from veterinary wounds, with anecdotal association of this pathogen and disease in humans. To date, 28 human cases have been described in the literature. Here, we described four cases of human infection caused by SIG members and, through a literature review, identified potential common characteristics and risk factors for this infection.

Case presentations:

Cases were obtained via electronic query of existing microbiology records for S. intermedius isolates at three teaching hospitals in Denver, CO, USA, between 2003 and 2008. Four cases were identified. Three cases were soft tissue and/or bone infection and one case was a urinary tract infection.

Conclusion:

Staphylococcus intermedius infections in humans are rarely identified. Dog ownership as well as diabetes or other causes of immunosuppression may place patients at higher risk. Misidentifying SIG infections could lead to delays in treatment as well as undertreatment of this zoonosis.
TreeQTL: hierarchical error control for eQTL findings
Authors: Peterson Christine , Bogomolov Marina , Benjamini Yoav , Sabatti Chiara
Published: July 2015

Commonly used multiplicity adjustments fail to control the error rate for reported findings in many expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies. TreeQTL implements a stage-wise multiple testing procedure which allows control of appropriate error rates defined relative to a hierarchical grouping of the eQTL hypotheses.

Availability and Implementation

The R package TreeQTL is available for download athttp://bioinformatics.org/treeqtl.

Contact

sabatti@stanford.edu
Structure and evolutionary history of a large family of NLR proteins in the zebrafish
Authors: Howe Kerstin , Schiffer Philipp H , Zielinski Julia , Wiehe Thomas , Laird Gavin K , Marioni John , Soylemez Onuralp , Kondrashov Fyodor , Leptin Maria
Published: July 2015

NACHT- and Leucine-Rich-Repeat-containing domain (NLR) proteins act as cytoplasmic sensors for pathogen- and danger-associated molecular patterns and are found throughout the plant and animal kingdoms. In addition to having a small set of conserved NLRs, the genomes in some animal lineages contain massive expansions of this gene family. One of these arose in fishes, after the creation of a gene fusion that combined the core NLR domains with another domain used for immune recognition, the PRY/SPRY or B30.2 domain. We have analysed the expanded NLR gene family in zebrafish, which contains 368 genes, and studied its evolutionary history. The encoded proteins share a defining overall structure, but individual domains show different evolutionary trajectories. Our results suggest gene conversion homogenizes NACHT and B30.2 domain sequences among different gene subfamilies, however, the functional implications of its action remains unclear. The majority of the genes are located on the long arm of chromosome 4, interspersed with several other large multi-gene families, including a new family encoding proteins with multiple tandem arrays of Zinc fingers. This suggests that chromosome 4 may be a hotspot for rapid evolutionary change in zebrafish.
Learning from heterogeneous data sources: an application in spatial proteomics
Authors: Breckels Lisa M. , Holden Sean , Wojnar David , Mulvey Claire M. , Christoforou Andy , Groen Arnoud , Trotter Matthew W.B. , Kohlbacher Oliver , Lilley Kathryn S. , Gatto Laurent
Published: July 2015

Sub-cellular localisation of proteins is an essential post-translational regulatory mechanism that can be assayed using high-throughput mass spectrometry (MS). These MS-based spatial proteomics experiments enable us to pinpoint the sub-cellular distribution of thousands of proteins in a specific system under controlled conditions. Recent advances in high-throughput MS methods have yielded a plethora of experimental spatial proteomics data for the cell biology community. Yet, there are many third-party data sources, such as immunofluorescence microscopy or protein annotations and sequences, which represent a rich and vast source of complementary information. We present a unique transfer learning classification framework that utilises a nearest-neighbour or support vector machine system, to integrate heterogeneous data sources to considerably improve on the quantity and quality of sub-cellular protein assignment. We demonstrate the utility of our algorithms through evaluation of five experimental datasets, from four different species in conjunction with four different auxiliary data sources to classify proteins to tens of sub-cellular compartments with high generalisation accuracy. We further apply the method to an experiment on pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cells to classify a set of previously unknown proteins, and validate our findings against a recent high resolution map of the mouse stem cell proteome. The methodology is distributed as part of the open-source BioconductorpRolocsuite for spatial proteomics data analysis.

Abbreviations

LOPIT

Localisation of Organelle Proteins by Isotope Tagging

PCP

Protein Correlation Profiling

ML

Machine learning

TL

Transfer learning

SVM

Support vector machine

PCA

Principal component analysis

GO

Gene Ontology

CC

Cellular compartment

iTRAQ

Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation

TMT

Tandem mass tags

MS

Mass spectrometry
Low but significant genetic differentiation underlies biologically meaningful phenotypic divergence in a large Atlantic salmon population
Authors: Aykanat Tutku , Johnston Susan E. , Orell Panu , Niemelä Eero , Erkinaro Jaakko , Primmer Craig R.
Published: July 2015

Despite decades of research assessing the genetic structure of natural populations, the biological meaning of low yet significant genetic divergence often remains unclear due to a lack of associated phenotypic and ecological information. At the same time, structured populations with low genetic divergence and overlapping boundaries can potentially provide excellent models to study adaptation and reproductive isolation in cases where high resolution genetic markers and relevant phenotypic and life history information are available. Here, we combined SNP-based population inference with extensive phenotypic and life history data to identify potential biological mechanisms driving fine scale sub-population differentiation in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) from the Teno River, a major salmon river in Europe. Two sympatrically occurring sub-populations had low but significant genetic differentiation (FST= 0.018) and displayed marked differences in the distribution of life history strategies, including variation in juvenile growth rate, age at maturity and size within age classes. Large, late-maturing individuals were virtually absent from one of the two sub-populations and there were significant differences in juvenile growth rates and size-at-age after oceanic migration between individuals in the respective sub-populations. Our findings suggest that different evolutionary processes affect each sub-population and that hybridization and subsequent selection may maintain low genetic differentiation without hindering adaptive divergence.
Does competency matter? Competency as a factor in workplace bullying
Authors: McDaniel Karen Rogers , Ngala Florence , Leonard Karen Moustafa
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the intersection of competency and bullying behaviors, not yet reported in the literature.

Design/methodology/approach

– The approach is an examination of the literature available on both topics, and development of a framework related to both.

Findings

– The theory is that there is a strong mediating relationship between the victim’s self-perception of competency and outcomes (the victim’s reactions) to bullying behaviors. There are multiple impacts of bullying behaviors, but the authors believe this mediation action of competency might be crucial. There is little research on competency or expertise in terms of behaviors resulting from these self-assessments. Future research should seek to examine the link empirically, and there are implications about the competency levels of bullies themselves that might arise.

Research limitations/implications

– As this is a newly developed research stream, the authors plan to continue with work on the topic.

Practical implications

– By developing competency, individuals may develop some protection or coping mechanisms when confronted by bullying behaviors. Managers need to be aware of the need to allow employee development to reduce the incidence of such behaviors.

Social implications

– Bullying behaviors have become rampant in society. In trying to determine where the problem might be best addressed, the authors feel that they have made a significant impact to allow managers to address competency among those victimized by these behaviors. This should have a flow-on effect for organizational and societal culture.

Originality/value

– This is an intersection that has not been explored but holds significant explanatory power in the area. These bullying behaviors are on the rise; therefore, it is an exceptional opportunity to present new ideas in a forum that is well read by both academics and practitioners.
Employee benefits and high-tech fatherhood
Authors: Blumen Orna
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– This study, inspired by the theory of the separate spheres, considers the social circumstances of employee benefits, examining the needs of fathers in dual-earner families to cope with work and family responsibilities. The purpose of this paper is to explore how high-tech managers view the work-family interface of R & D engineers and analyzes the typical package of discretionary, non-financial, work-family employee benefits.

Design/methodology/approach

– Relying on the phenomenological approach, in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 22 private-sector managers disclosed their shared perception and experience, revealing the informal level at which underlying social principles becomes business strategy, often intuitively.

Findings

– Values of gender are assimilated into the informal environment and reflected in the selection of benefits which have been effective in attracting labor in demand. Recently these values have been challenged by new ideas of more involved fatherhood, and these are inadequately addressed by the package of benefits.

Research limitations/implications

– Larger samples from various socio-cultural settings are needed.

Practical implications

– Managers are advised not to be blinded by the financial worth of discretionary employee benefits and consider how these meet the actual, as opposed to stereotypical, needs of employees and their family members. Observing social dynamics and considering non-financial consequences of employee benefits are essential for business-society continuity. Also, organizations of relatively low-social diversity should not alienate themselves from their multicultural environment.

Social implications

– The study unveils the reciprocity between organizations and people. Traditional fatherhood is being contested and negotiated at the work-family interface, as embedded to ongoing changes in the social meaning of gender. That employee benefits help to maintain the masculinity of high-tech, reflects also on gender segregation in the workplace.

Originality/value

– The study illustrates how businesses apply social values and describes how such values are processed and reinstated in society as employee benefits.
Online networking and employee engagement: what current leaders do?
Authors: Korzynski Pawel
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is twofold: to examine the role of online networks in employee engagement and to analyze the factors influencing leaders’ involvement in online social networking.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study’s participants included team leaders, managers and directors working in Fortune 500 companies in the USA. Data were collected through structured surveys delivered through LinkedIn, professional online networking platform to randomly selected users with leadership roles. Totally, 194 matched questionnaires were returned.

Findings

– The results indicate that employee engagement is positively associated with the time leaders spend on internal online networking platforms, the code of online networking conduct, and the presence of an open-organizational culture. Furthermore, the study shows that organizations can influence leaders’ use of online social networking platforms through an open culture and training. Finally, the findings also indicate that leaders, who communicate with a higher percentages of employees through internal and external platforms, also spend more time on online social networking platforms than those who do not. Surprisingly, a hierarchical structure and the code of conduct are not an indicator of the number of hours that leaders spend on online networking platforms.

Research limitations/implications

– The study has three main limitations. First, it was conducted among leaders working in companies from the Fortune 500 list, because the majority of these companies have already implemented internal networking platforms, which are not yet popular in small and medium enterprises (SME). In the future, companies from the SME sector are also worth studying. Second, the study was undertaken among leaders from the USA, because most of the online networking platforms were developed there and then adopted in other countries. Online networking trends in other countries are also very interesting topics for study in future research projects. Third, the quality of the time leaders spend on online platforms should also be examined in future studies.

Practical implications

– The next generation of leaders should pay increasing attention to online social networking platforms so as to be more effective in fostering employees’ social and emotional well-being. Organizations that seek ways to facilitate involvement among their leaders in internal online networking, need to organize training and support leaders and employees in the use of online networking platforms.

Social implications

– The use of online social networking platforms change the way people communicate with others and how companies can use online social networking for the social well-being of their employees.

Originality/value

– This research provides a new look at employee engagement in the current working environment as well as organizational features fostering leaders’ involvement in online networking.
Technology and application of the LTCC-based microfluidic module for urea determination
Authors: Malecha Karol , Remiszewska Elżbieta , Pijanowska Dorota G
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to focus on the technology and performance of the miniature microfluidic module for urea determination. The presented module was made using low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC). It shows the possibility for the integration of the bioreceptor layers with structures that have been fabricated using modern microelectronic technology.

Design/methodology/approach

– The presented microfluidic module was fabricated using LTCC technology. The possibility for the fabrication of an enzymatic microreactor in a multilayer ceramic substrate, made of CeramTec glass ceramic (GC) material systems with an integrated thick-film heater, is studied. Different configurations of the LTCC/heater materials (gold, silvers and palladium-silver) are taken into account. The performance of the LTCC-based microfluidic module with the integrated heater and immobilized enzyme was examined experimentally.

Findings

– A compatible material for the heater embedded in the CeramTec GC-based structures was found. The preliminary measurements made for the test solution containing various concentrations of urea have shown stability (for seven days of operation) and a relatively high signal-to-noise ratio (above 3 pH units) for the microreactor’s output signal.

Research limitations/implications

– The presented research is a preliminary work which is focused on the fabrication of the LTCC-based microfluidic module, with an integrated heater and immobilized enzyme for urea determination. The device was positively tested using a model reaction of the hydrolysis of urea. However, urea concentration in real (biological) fluid should also be measured.

Practical implications

– The development of the LTCC-based microfluidic module for urea determination provides opportunity for the construction of a lab-on-chip, or μTAS-type system, for fast medical diagnoses and the continuous monitoring of various biochemical parameters, e.g. for estimating the effectiveness of hemodialysis.

Originality/value

– This paper shows the design, fabrication and performance of the novel microfluidic module for urea determination, made with LTCC technology.
Magnetoelectric properties in bulk and layered composites
Authors: Guzdek Piotr , Wzorek Marek
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of the paper was to present a comparative study on the microstructure and magnetoelectric effect of new magnetoelectric composites based on TbFe2 compound and Ni0.3Zn0.62Cu0.08Fe2O4, CoFe2O4 ferrites as a magnetostrictive phase, Pb(Fe1/2Ta1/2)O3 (PFT), Pb(Fe1/2Nb1/2)O3 relaxors as a ferroelectric phase and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) as piezoelectric phase.

Design/methodology/approach

– The ceramic components of composites were prepared by the standard solid-state reaction method. The intermetallic compound TbFe2 was prepared with an arc melting system with a contact-less ignition in a high purity argon atmosphere. The metal – ceramic – polymer composites were prepared in a container in which powder of PVDF were dissolved in N,N-dimethylformamide with continuous mixing and at the controlled temperature. Ceramic composites were prepared as bulk samples and multilayer tape cast and co-sintered laminates. The microstructure of the composites was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The magnetoelectric effect of the composites was evaluated at room temperature by means of the dynamic lock-in method.

Findings

– SEM analysis revealed a dense, fine-grained microstructure and uniform distribution of the metallic, ferrite and relaxor grains in the bulk composites. The SEM image for multilayer composite illustrates the lack of cracks or delaminations at the phase boundaries between the well-sintered ferrite and relaxor layers. For all studied composites, the magnetoelectric coefficients at a lower magnetic field increase, reaches a maximum and then decreases.

Originality/value

– The progress in electronic technology is directly linked to advances made in materials science. Exploring and characterizing new materials with interesting magnetoelectric properties, in the rapidly growing field of functional materials, is an important task. The paper reports on processing, microstructure and magnetoelectric properties of novel magnetoelectric composites.
Thermoelectric properties of thin-film germanium-based layers
Authors: Markowski Piotr , Prociów Eugeniusz , Urbaniak Łukasz
Published: July 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to determine the thermoelectric properties of the germanium-based thin films and selecting the most suitable ones for fabrication of micrognerators.

Design/methodology/approach

– The germanium layers were deposited by low pressure magnetron sputtering method, in the pressure of 10−3/104 mbar range. The amount of dopants (germanium or vanadium) was changed in a limited extent. The influence of such changes on the layers output properties was studied. Post-processing heat treatment at temperature below 823 K was applied to activate the layers. It leads to improve the electrical and thermoelectrical performance.

Findings

– The special attention was paid to the power factor (PF = S2/ρ) of the layers. To estimate power factor (PF) electrical resistivity (ρ) and Seebeck coefficient (S) were determined. The achieved Seebeck coefficient value was 185 Volt/Kelvin (μV/K) for germanium doped with vanadium (Ge:V1.15) and 225 μV/K for germanium doped with gold(Ge:Au3.13) layers at room temperature. After activation process, the PF reached a value of 2.5 × 10−4 W/m · K2 for the Ge:Au3.13 and 1.1 × 10−4 W/m · K2 for the Ge:V1.15 layers.

Originality/value

– The fabricated thermoelectric layers can be thermally annealed in temperature up to 823 K in the air and in 1,023 K under a nitrogen atmosphere. This enables integration of thin layers with thick-film technology. Corning glass or low temperature cofired ceramic was used as a substrate.
Banks’ Risk Endogenous to Strategic Management Choices
Authors: Delis Manthos D. , Hasan Iftekhar , Tsionas Efthymios G.
Published: July 2015

Use of variability of profits and other accounting‐based ratios in order to estimate a firm's risk of insolvency is a well‐established concept in management and economics. We argue that these measures fail to approximate the true level of risk accurately because managers consider other strategic choices and goals when making risky decisions. Instead, we propose an econometric model that incorporates current and past strategic choices to estimate risk from the profit function. Specifically, we extend the well‐established multiplicative error model to allow for the endogeneity of the uncertainty component. We demonstrate the power of the model using a large sample of US banks and show that our estimates predict the accelerated bank risk that led to the subprime crisis in 2007. Our measure of risk also predicts the probability of bank default both in the period of the default but also well in advance of this default and before conventional measures of bank risk.
Babi–Baha'i Expansion and “Geo‐Cultural Breakthroughs”
Authors: Smith Peter
Published: July 2015

Utilising the concept of “geo‐cultural breakthroughs,” the article briefly describes the process of Babi‐Baha'i expansion, tracing the way in which the early Babi movement was later transformed into the Baha'i Faith, and the Baha'i movement itself underwent a succession of massive transformations in the range and diversity of its following. Three main stages and three “worlds” of expansion are identified: (i) an initial “Islamic” stage (1844–c. 1892), in which Babism and the early Baha'i movement were largely confined to the environing culture and society of the Islamic Middle East and its cultural extensions; (ii) an “international” stage (c. 1892–c. 1953), during which Baha'i missionary expansion succeeded in transcending the religion's Islamic roots, in particular by gaining a small but intensely active Western following; and (iii) the present “global” stage from about 1953 onwards, in which the Baha'i Faith has begun to assume the characteristics of a small‐scale world religion, with larger numbers of adherents having been gained, particularly in some parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, regions outside of both the religion's original Islamic heartland and the West.
Maternal physical morbidity associated with denial of pregnancy
Authors: Schultz Meleesa J. , Bushati Tony
Published: July 2015

Background

Denial of pregnancy, an inappropriate reaction where the woman does not consciously recognise her pregnancy, has been widely associated with poor outcomes for the woman's mental health, the events of labour and the newborn's health. However, reports of maternal physical complications are rare.

Aims

To evaluate the physical morbidity associated with denial of pregnancy.

Materials and Methods

Birth records from 2007 to 2013 were searched for women who did not receive any antenatal care. The medical records of women with denial of pregnancy were then examined in detail. The primary outcome measure was physical morbidity in women with denial of pregnancy until labour, using the hospital's general obstetric population as a comparator.

Results

Six cases of denial of pregnancy (involving five women) were identified, a rate of 1:1420 births. All characteristics and complications were in keeping with previous studies, except regarding maternal physical morbidity. Three of the five women experienced physical complications, namely pre‐eclampsia and its sequelae. Concerningly, two of these women required admission to the intensive care unit, one after an eclamptic seizure. These complications were significantly higher than in the hospital's wider obstetric population (all P < 0.05).

Conclusions

Previous reports of low maternal physical morbidity associated with denial of pregnancy are likely a reflection of low rates of diagnosis and underreporting. Given this study's increased rate of maternal physical morbidity and the implications this has for the women's future pregnancies, this underlines the importance of actively considering physical complications in women presenting with denial of pregnancy.