bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What influences village-level access to a bank branch? Evidence from India
Authors: Garg Sandhya , Gupta Samarth
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Financial access is key to achieving several economic goals in developing countries. This paper aims to construct a longitudinal village-level measure of financial access in India and understand the role of RBI's policies and village characteristics in influencing the access.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors adopt a spatial approach in developing a metric of financial access. In particular, they measure the distance of each unbanked village in India to the nearest banked-centre from 1951 to 2019. The authors use this measure to conduct two exercises. First, a descriptive study is undertaken to assess how RBI's policies on bank branch expansion from 1951 to 2019 influenced the proximity to bank branches. Second, the authors conduct regression analyses to investigate how socio-economic and demographic characteristics of villages influence their proximity to bank branches.

Findings

The average distance of an unbanked village to the nearest banked-centre has declined from 43.5 km in 1951 to 4.2 km in 2019. The gain in bank access has varied geographically and over time. In 2001, bank branches were relatively distant from villages with under-privileged caste groups and proximate to areas with better infrastructure. This relationship worsened after 2005 when RBI introduced liberalized branch expansion policies. By 2019, proximity responds much more adversely to the presence of underprivileged groups. At the same time, banks have moved closer to economically better-off villages and villages with workforce in non-farm enterprises rather than agriculture.

Originality/value

First, studies in the Indian context focus on state-level determinants of bank branching, this is the first study to develop a longitudinal measure of financial access at the village level. This helps to understand spatial heterogeneity in bank branch access within states, which other studies are unable to do. Second, the paper analyses the role of village-level socio-economic and demographic characteristics in proximity to bank branches. This analysis helps in discovering micro-foundations of growth of bank branch network. The granularity of the approach adopted here overcomes the confoundedness problems that the studies at a more aggregate level face.
Linking relation-specific investments and sustainability performance: the mediating role of supply chain learning
Authors: Yang Yang , Jiang Yan , Chen Haojia , Xu Zhiduan
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Despite the growing interest in the role of relation-specific investments (RSIs) in superior firm performance, their impact on sustainability performance remains unexplored, as do the underlying mechanisms of such effects. Drawing on the relational view and resource orchestration theory (ROT), the authors propose that supply chain learning (SCL) mediates the link between RSIs and sustainability performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A multi-method approach was adopted, combining a case study and survey. An exploratory case study of four Chinese manufacturing firms was first conducted to develop research hypotheses. A quantitative survey of data collected from 269 firms was then undertaken to test hypotheses.

Findings

Property-based, knowledge-based and personal-based RSIs positively impact firm sustainability performance and SCL. SCL fully mediates the relationship between knowledge-as well as personal-based RSIs and sustainability performance, and partially mediates the relationship between property-based RSIs and sustainability performance.

Practical implications

The study unveils important practical insights and approaches for firms endeavouring to achieve sustainability performance through RSIs and SCL.

Originality/value

The study extends the RSIs literature by linking RSIs and sustainability performance and differentiating the effects of different types of RSIs on sustainability performance. The theorized underlying mechanism advances the understanding of SCL in the link between RSIs and sustainability performance.
Technological innovation system in agribusiness: motors and evolution
Authors: Garcez Telmo Lena , Dias Marcelo Fernandes Pacheco
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to analyze the evolution and interaction over time of the functions of a technological innovation system (TIS) based on the concept of an innovation motor.

Design/methodology/approach

It is a case study of the innovation system associated with the technology for producing cage-free pullets for laying eggs in Pelotas/Rio Grande do Sul (RS).

Findings

The motors proposed by the TIS approach evolve sequentially and are associated with cumulative causality mechanisms. The study's results identified two functionalities: analysis of the chain as a whole and coordination of the actors involved in the system. The study's results also identified the presence of inflection points at the beginning of each of the motors.

Research limitations/implications

The absence of a more accurate detailing of the market motor in discussions of the evolution of the motors and functions of TIS cage free Pelotas.

Practical implications

Innovation Motors as a new guiding approach for participatory innovation initiatives in rural areas.

Originality/value

Application of the TIS approach in agribusiness and proposition of two new functions for motor analysis, in addition to including inflection points as activation triggers in the evolution between motors.
Partnership and capacity building in the date sector in Tunisia: the contribution of support organizations
Authors: Rouached Lamia , Loukil Faten , Boughzala Yasmine
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to understand how support organizations promote the structuring of the agricultural value chain through partnerships and capacity building of the various links in the chain.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is exploratory and qualitative, based on ten semi-structured interviews with the main public support organizations related to the date sector in Tunisia.

Findings

The results showed that the support organizations of the Tunisian date sector do not share the same vision of the priorities to be strengthened to promote the export of dates in Tunisia.

Research limitations/implications

Reviewing the coordination mechanisms between the support organizations is important in order to improve the governance of the value chain and to reinforce the capacity of the operators in the date value chain.

Originality/value

Public support organizations are important actors in agricultural value chains as these organizations implement agricultural policies. Assessing these organizations' contribution to capacity building of chain links is an innovative approach to detecting organizational dysfunction in agricultural value chains in developing countries.
Older women and domestic abuse: through a glass darkly
Authors: Milne Alisoun
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to offer a profile of domestic abuse of older women and its impact on their health and well-being; explore some of the conceptual tensions that exist in this field; and discuss current policy and practice responses to this group of victim-survivors.

Design/methodology/approach

It is a review paper drawing on material from a range of sources; it has policy, practice and research implications.

Findings

Although there is growing recognition that older women are victims of domestic abuse, it tends to be regarded as a “younger women’s issue” and to be subsumed under the umbrella of elder abuse. This not only removes the gendered element, but it also uncouples it from the lifecourse where, for many, its roots lie. It also tends to foreground “old age” as the primary dimension of risk. There is a tension between the justice-oriented approach of the domestic abuse system and the welfarist approach that imbues the safeguarding system. There is a need for integration between the two systems. Also, for the health and care system to be more alert to the needs of older women at risk, we need to achieve a more effective balance between protection and justice, accord a greater level of agency to older victim-survivors and ensure they have access to domestic abuse law, policy and appropriate support services.

Research limitations/implications

More research is needed with older victim-survivors: listening to their lived experiences, coping strategies and pathways out of abuse. The issue also needs to be more visible.

Practical implications

Developing appropriate domestic abuse services for older women is critical. Practice lessons can be learnt too: especially greater integration of the safeguarding system with the domestic abuse system. Training is needed too for frontline health and social care staff about the distinctive nature of domestic abuse of older women.

Social implications

Domestic abuse of older women needs to be spoken about and made more visible in society and inside services, including older people’s third sector services.

Originality/value

This paper adopts a critical lens and makes a number of new arguments.
Gender gap in the perceived mastery of reasoning-for-complexity competency: an approach in Latin America
Authors: Vázquez-Parra José Carlos , Castillo-Martínez Isolda Margarita , Ramírez-Montoya María Soledad , Amézquita-Zamora Juan Alberto , Cruz-Sandoval Marco
Published: March 2023

Purpose

The study aims to assess students' perceived mastery of reasoning-for-complexity competency and its sub-competencies in a sample of students in a Latin American university. The intention was to identify statistically significant differences between a population of men and women with similar sociocultural characteristics, assessing whether gender could be a factor for educational institutions to consider when implementing strategies to develop this competency.

Design/methodology/approach

The eComplexity instrument was applied to 370 undergraduate students in their first to ninth semesters in a private university in Western Mexico. Descriptive statistics were analyzed to determine the mean and standard deviation indicators and were tested for statistical significance. The convenience sampling methodology ensured that there were students from all semesters and a diversity of majors. The sampling aimed for a balance of men and women, resulting in 189 women and 181 men.

Findings

The results confirmed no statistically significant evidence to indicate differences between men and women in their perceived mastery of the reasoning-for-complexity competency in general. However, statistically significant differences were found in the perceived achievements of the sub-competencies of systems, critical and scientific thinking, which comprise the overall competency. Women presented a higher average perception of systemic and critical thinking achievement, and men had a higher perception of scientific thinking. The authors concluded that social and cultural elements influence the perception of achievement that men and women develop in thinking and solving problems.

Practical implications

Governments and educational institutions must establish training programs that do not follow gender stereotypes and promote reasoning-for-complexity skills equitably in men and women. It is necessary to create more scientific and academic spaces and projects involving women in the sciences; countries must emphasize this to improve their scientific competency. Only in this way will it be possible to reverse the perception that men and women have of their problem-solving skills and abilities, which, as this study shows, are more a matter of culture than capabilities.

Originality/value

Unlike previous studies, which analyze the competency of complex thinking in a particular way among its sub-competencies, this research sought comprehensive measurement. Furthermore, beyond measuring competency development, this study aimed to measure the perception of achievement. The authors believe this is the first step towards identifying elements of the social imagination that limit the formation of scientific thinking among women in Latin America.
Immigrant Indians’ identity in second-generation Asian American context: interpretation of ethnicity, gender and religion
Authors: Shafi Saheeh
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to interpret the multidimensional Asian American identity of immigrant Indians in terms of pan-ethnicity, gender and religion.

Design/methodology/approach

The social construction and experience of race in the US and the intersection of multiethnic Asian American identity with race, gender and religion will be used in critically commenting on the interview of primary ethnic identity of Indian Americans including the pan-ethnic identity of Indians in the US as Asian Americans, the Mar Thoma Church community, the second-generation Patel family's union formation in terms of gender identity.

Findings

The future directives include Asian American Movement (AAM) which is trying to incorporate Indians as pan-ethnic identity assimilation and the process of holding American identity as primary identification of Indians.

Practical implications

Policy recommendations are that the US Census Bureau should include Indian Americans as separate ethnic identity for Indian immigrants like the Chinese Americans. USCIS (US Citizenship and Immigration Services) should reform policies to include the wives of H-4 visa holders. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) should provide secure living environment for Indian immigrants. The US Department of Labor should provide equal opportunities for women in their immigration policies.

Originality/value

This paper will critically analyze the interview results of primary ethnic identity and justify the hypotheses of Asian American identity of Indians, whether (1) they merge with the American identity as part of cultural assimilation or (2) retain their Asian identity beyond Americanized identity or (3) go beyond both American and Asian identity to restate their Indian ethnicity.
Sudan's brain gain: what motivates the intention of skilled Sudanese in Japan to return and contribute to their home country
Authors: Kurokawa Chiemi
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper examines the drivers of brain gain by investigating the motivations of migrants who plan to return and contribute to their home country. It focuses on highly skilled Sudanese migrants in Japan, including a group of “plan-to-return” migrants (P-group), who intend to gain knowledge abroad that they will use to contribute to their homeland upon their return.

Design/methodology/approach

The participants are 24 highly skilled Sudanese migrants in Japan, 10 of whom are part of the P-group. To understand their motivation to contribute to their home country, the study applies the qualitative life course approach, using Elder's four life course themes: lives in time and space, the timing of lives, linked lives and human agency.

Findings

The P-group is characterised by a high level of motivation for self-development, which motivates them to study abroad. The analysis finds that the P-group's drive to contribute had been nurtured by a spirit of mutual aid in Sudanese society, which emphasises Islamic values and social ties. Religious norms, personal interactions and emotional ties to Sudan are especially influential on the P-group's motivation to contribute to their home society.

Originality/value

This study identifies drivers that lead to brain gain. Whereas previous studies have noted the relationship between return intentions and willingness to contribute to the home countries; they have not investigated influences on motivations to contribute. The results suggest that Sudan might already possess a system for local human resource development to encourage brain gain.
Linking environmentally-specific empowering leadership to hotel employees' green creativity: understanding mechanisms and boundary conditions
Authors: Badar Kamal , Kundi Yasir Mansoor , Siddiquei Ahmad Nabeel , Abualigah Ahmad
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Drawing on conservation of resources and social exchange theories, the authors build and test a theoretical model examining the association of environmentally-specific empowering leadership (ESEL) with green creativity as well as the mediating and moderating roles of green knowledge sharing behavior and green psychological climate, respectively, in this association.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected in three different waves from 265 employees working in three-, four- and five-star hotels located in major cities in Pakistan. EFA, CFA and PROCESS macro were utilized to validate the study's research model and to examine the hypotheses.

Findings

The results indicated that ESEL is positively associated with green creativity, and green knowledge sharing behavior is an effective underlying mechanism between the ESEL–green creativity association. Furthermore, this study’s findings suggested that green psychological climate moderates the direct and indirect associations such that the associations were stronger when green psychological climate was more positive rather than less positive.

Practical implications

The study provides important lessons to managers and policymakers about the benefits of ESEL to achieving green employee creativity within the hospitality sector and helps to contextualize the importance and relevance of addressing global challenges in light of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Originality/value

The study is the first to explore the green adaptation of empowering leadership, its effects, mechanisms and boundary conditions.
Servicescape design: balancing physical and psychological safety
Authors: S Kumar Deepak , Nair K. Unnikrishnan , Purani Keyoor
Published: March 2023

Purpose

As physical evidence, servicescapes play a crucial role in tangibilizing service value. Since value creation and consumption are inseparable in many services, servicescapes also contribute significantly to consumer experiences. By reviewing the role of design factors on the physical and psychological safety of customers, particularly in different service contexts based on social factors, this paper aims to provide insights into how servicescape frameworks may be re-examined from a safety perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a critical review of studies in multidisciplinary domains, including environmental psychology, community medicine, architecture and engineering, this paper proposes a conceptual model anchored in stimulus–organization–response (S-O-R) theory and presents related propositions for safer servicescape designs.

Findings

The study reveals the need for re-evaluating current servicescape design frameworks by incorporating the concept of servicescape safety, discusses the significance of various interior factors and presents the moderating effects of social factors and service types on perceived safety.

Originality/value

With no robust models currently available to evaluate the impact of servicescape designs on users' physical and psychological safety, this paper provides guidelines based on a multidisciplinary review of studies. A healthy and safe servicescape requires interdisciplinary investigations, the results of which will reshape future design approaches.
CEO social network, capital structure complexity and firm performance
Authors: Mundi Hardeep Singh
Published: March 2023

Purpose

The paper aims to examine the effect of CEOs' social networks on capital structure complexity (CSC) and firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Ordinary Least Squares regression (OLS) and Generalized method of moments (GMM) regression results estimate the effect of CEOs' (Chief executive officer) social networks on capital structure complexity and firm performance. The number of sources of capital (NSC) and concentration ratio estimate the capital structure complexity for the sample firms.

Findings

The results show that CEOs' social networks significantly influence CSC. We suggest that the CEOs' social networks encourage them to make more complex capital structure decisions. This behavior deteriorates firm performance.

Research limitations/implications

There is a lack of systematic conceptual reason for measuring CEO social network. Future research should use other measures of the social network to estimate the relation of the CEO's social network with CSC and firm performance.

Practical implications

The findings support the managerial power approach and social network theory that the observable characteristics of CEOs influence CSC. The results are robust for an alternative explanation.

Originality/value

By investigating the impact of the influence of CEOs' social networks on CSC and performance, the authors extend research on strategic leadership and capital structure and firm performance.
Transformational leadership and career success: a moderated mediation model of proactive career behavior and role ambiguity
Authors: Agrawal Swati , Pradhan Sajeet
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This study examines the mediating and moderating role of proactive career behavior (PCB) and role ambiguity (RA) in the relationship between transformational leadership and subjective career success (SCS).

Design/methodology/approach

This study is a moderated mediation model with a sample size of 408 employees as respondents working in seven different organizations in the hospitality industry in the northern region of India. For the analysis of data, SmartPLS is used, and moderated mediation is done by Hayes Process Macro.

Findings

The results report that PCB mediates the relationship between transformational leadership and SCS. Also, it has been found that RA will moderate this relationship.

Practical implications

The result of the study on SCS will be beneficial for organizations facing high attrition. Also, the paper brings forth the importance of transformational leadership and the impact of RA on employees' career success. Leaders and seniors in an organization need to focus on reducing RA.

Originality/value

This study is unique since the relationship between transformational leadership and SCS has been examined in the hospitality industry. In addition, perhaps RA as a moderator influencing PCB and career success has been studied for the first time.
The dark side of digital finance: evidence from environmental information disclosure of Chinese listed companies
Authors: Guo Chong , Jiang Yalin , Wu Yingyu
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This study aims to explore the relationship between corporate environmental information disclosure and digital finance.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors used Chinese listed enterprises as the sample. Data on digital finance are from the China Digital Inclusive Finance Index published by the Institute of Digital Finance of Peking University, and corporate environmental information disclosure is collected from the China Securities Market and Accounting Research database. Multivariate regression and Stata software were used for data analysis.

Findings

The findings suggest that digital finance significantly inhibits firms’ environmental information disclosure. Digital finance increases firms’ motivation to meet low-income customers’ demands, which is achieved at the expense of environmental performance, leading to deteriorated environmental information disclosure. Furthermore, this inhibitory effect is exacerbated by managerial power but mitigated by institutional shareholdings and political connections.

Practical implications

The findings have important implications for policymakers and managers when formulating relevant policies regarding the co-development of digital finance and corporate environmental information disclosure.

Social implications

Environmental information disclosure is a crucial element in CSR disclosure quality.

Originality/value

This study enriches the literature on the environmental influences of digital finance by examining the relationship between digital finance and corporate environmental information disclosure, a crucial way through which external stakeholders obtain information about corporate environmental behaviours.
Long‐range alteration of the physical environment mediates cooperation between Pseudomonas aeruginosa swarming colonies
Authors: Deforet Maxime
Published: March 2023

Pseudomonas aeruginosa makes and secretes massive amounts of rhamnolipid surfactants that enable swarming motility over biogel surfaces. But how these rhamnolipids interact with biogels to assist swarming remains unclear. Here, I use a combination of optical techniques across scales and genetically engineered strains to demonstrate that rhamnolipids can induce agar gel swelling over distances >10,000× the body size of an individual cell. The swelling front is on the micrometric scale and is easily visible using shadowgraphy. Rhamnolipid transport is not restricted to the surface of the gel but occurs through the whole thickness of the plate and, consequently, the spreading dynamics depend on the local thickness. Surprisingly, rhamnolipids can cross the whole gel and induce swelling on the opposite side of a two‐face Petri dish. The swelling front delimits an area where the mechanical properties of the surface properties are modified: water wets the surface more easily, which increases the motility of individual bacteria and enables collective motility. A genetically engineered mutant unable to secrete rhamnolipids (ΔrhlA), and therefore unable to swarm, is rescued from afar with rhamnolipids produced by a remote colony. These results exemplify the remarkable capacity of bacteria to change the physical environment around them and its ecological consequences.
How Voicer Humility Influences Managerial Voice Endorsement: An Expectancy Violation Perspective
Authors: Duan Jinyun , Wang Xiaotian , Lin Xiaoshuang , Guo Zhaojun
Published: March 2023

Humble employees are less inclined to speak up in a challenging and dominant manner. Drawing from the expectancy‐violation theory, we argue that challenging voice expressed by humble employees can be viewed as unexpected and receives high recognition. Specifically, we examine the effects of voicer humility on violation‐expectedness and violation‐valence, and, subsequently, on managerial voice endorsement. Moreover, we hypothesize that manager–subordinate familiarity moderates these relationships. Results from an event‐based recall study with 188 manager–subordinate dyads (Study 1) and a vignette‐based experiment with 434 managers (Study 2) revealed that voicer humility was positively related to managerial voice endorsement via violation‐expectedness and violation‐valence. Furthermore, we found that the positive relationship between voicer humility and violation‐expectedness, as well as the positive relationship between voicer humility and violation‐valence, were stronger when manager–subordinate familiarity was higher. We also discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings and directions for future research.
Unsettling the treatment imperative? Chemotherapy decision‐making in the wake of genomic techniques
Authors: Ross Emily , Kerr Anne , Swallow Julia , Chekar Choon Key , Cunningham‐Burley Sarah
Published: March 2023

Social scientists have argued that a treatment imperative shapes experiences of biomedicine. This is evident within oncology, where discourses of hope are tempered by persistent fears surrounding cancer. It is within this context that genomic decision‐making tools are entering routine care. These may indicate that a treatment is not appropriate for a particular disease profile. We draw on qualitative interviews and observations centred on gene expression profiling to consider the implications of this technique for the treatment imperative in early breast cancer. Influenced by sociological perspectives on medical technologies, we discuss how fallibilities of established tools have forged a space for the introduction of genomic testing into chemotherapy decision‐making. We demonstrate how high expectations shaped patients’ interpretations of this tool as facilitating the ‘right’ treatment choice. We then unpick these accounts, highlighting the complex relationship between gene expression profiling and treatment decision‐making. We argue that anticipations for genomic testing to provide certainty in treatment choice must account for the sociocultural and organisational contexts in which it is used, including the powerful entwinement of chemotherapy and cancer. Our research has implications for sociological perspectives on treatment decision‐making and clinical expectations for genomic medicine to resolve the ‘problem’ of overtreatment.
Organizational unlearning: A risky food safety strategy?
Authors: Manning Louise , Morris Wyn , Birchmore Ian
Published: March 2023

Strategically unlearning specific knowledge, behaviors, and practices facilitates product and process innovation, business model evolution, and new market opportunities and is essential to meet emergent supply chain and customer requirements. Indeed, addressing societal concerns such as climate change and net zero means elements of contemporary practice in food supply chains need to be unlearned to ensure new practices are adopted. However, unlearning is a risky process if crucial knowledge is lost, for example, if knowledge is situated in the supply base not the organization itself, or there is insufficient organizational food safety knowledge generation, curation, and management when new practices/processes are designed and implemented. An exploratory, critical review of management and food safety academic and gray literature is undertaken that aims to consider the cycle of unlearning, learning, and relearning in food organizations and supply chains with particular emphasis on organizational innovation, inertia, and the impact on food safety management systems and food safety performance. Findings demonstrate it is critical with food safety practices, such as duration date coding or refrigeration practices, that organizations “unlearn” in a way that does not increase organizational, food safety, or public health risk. This paper contributes to extant literature by highlighting the organizational vulnerabilities that can arise when strategically unlearning to promote sustainability in a food supply context. Mitigating such organizational, food safety, and public health risk means organizations must simultaneously drive unlearning, learning, and relearning as a dynamic integrated knowledge acquisition and management approach. The research implications are of value to academics, business managers, and wider industry.
Effect of sanxan gel on the quality of salt‐free noodles during cooking
Authors: Liang Ying , Liu Hao , Li Kaifang , Liu Mei , Zhang Xia , Wu Xingquan , Chen Shihua , He Baoshan , Wang Jinshui
Published: March 2023

The effect and mechanism of sanxan on the quality of salt‐free noodles (SFNs) were investigated from different cooking stages (initial stage, 1 min; optimum cooking time, OCT; overcooked time, OT). The results showed significant changes in the cooking process with the addition of 1.2% sanxan. The OCT for noodles with 1.2% sanxan (experimental group, EG) was extended from 5 to 7 min compared to the non‐added noodles (blank group, BG) and 1.5% salt‐containing noodles (control group, CG). The hardness and adhesiveness of BG, EG, and CG all decreased significantly during cooking. In contrast, the springiness, maximum tensile strength, and tensile fracture distance trended first to increase and then to decrease. At OCT, EG had the highest hardness (3971.69 ± 94.49 g), adhesiveness (372.26 ± 33.56 g s), and maximum tensile strength (41.51 ± 2.76 g), which remained large even after overcooking. However, those in BG and CG showed a significant reduction (p < 0.05). The proportion of free water increased progressively as cooking progressed, with CG showing the largest increase, from 82.29% to 91.19%, whereas EG showed the smallest increase, from 78.34% to 86.02%. During the cooking process, the addition of sanxan delayed the water migration, whereas salt promoted it. Sensory evaluation showed that EG was smoother in appearance than BG and tasted malty with a slight stickiness. Moreover, EG had the smallest k1 and C∞ values. Thus, sanxan is an effective additive to enhance the quality of SFNs and can replace the role of salt in noodles in some properties, which is beneficial for the development of SFNs.
Metabolic engineering of thermophilic Bacillus methanolicus for riboflavin overproduction from methanol
Authors: Klein Vivien Jessica , Brito Luciana Fernandes , Perez‐Garcia Fernando , Brautaset Trygve , Irla Marta
Published: March 2023

The growing need of next generation feedstocks for biotechnology spurs an intensification of research on the utilization of methanol as carbon and energy source for biotechnological processes. In this paper, we introduced the methanol‐based overproduction of riboflavin into metabolically engineered Bacillus methanolicus MGA3. First, we showed that B. methanolicus naturally produces small amounts of riboflavin. Then, we created B. methanolicus strains overexpressing either homologous or heterologous gene clusters encoding the riboflavin biosynthesis pathway, resulting in riboflavin overproduction. Our results revealed that the supplementation of growth media with sublethal levels of chloramphenicol contributes to a higher plasmid‐based riboflavin production titre, presumably due to an increase in plasmid copy number and thus biosynthetic gene dosage. Based on this, we proved that riboflavin production can be increased by exchanging a low copy number plasmid with a high copy number plasmid leading to a final riboflavin titre of about 523 mg L−1 in methanol fed‐batch fermentation. The findings of this study showcase the potential of B. methanolicus as a promising host for methanol‐based overproduction of extracellular riboflavin and serve as basis for metabolic engineering of next generations of riboflavin overproducing strains.
Revealing the role of the rhizosphere microbiota in reproductive growth for fruit productivity when inorganic fertilizer is partially replaced by organic fertilizer in pear orchard fields
Authors: Shi Chun‐Hui , Wang Xiao‐Qing , Jiang Shuang , Zhang Li‐Qing , Luo Jun
Published: March 2023

In order to address the global crisis in pear productivity, there has been increased attention given to advocating for the use of organic fertilizers. As part of this effort, researchers have been investigating the microbial properties of organic fertilizers to better understand their potential impact on fruit productivity. Our research focused specifically on the impact of four different ratios of sheep manure (SM) and chemical fertilizers (CF) on pear productivity. We found that replacing CF with SM resulted in a proliferation of gammaproteobacteria, Chlamydiae, Bastocatellia and Clostridia in the soil rhizosphere, which is the region around the roots of plants where most nutrient uptake occurs. Using redundancy analysis, we were able to determine that SM was particularly effective at promoting the growth of gammaproteobacteria and clostridia, which were associated with C:N ratios around 14:1 as well as the availability of K, Fe, Zn and Cu. This combination of factors was conducive to a transition from vegetative growth to reproductive growth, resulting in an increase in pear production from 43 to 56 tons per hectare. We also discovered that Blastociella acts as a buffering system in regulating soil acidity. Taken together, our findings indicate that a combination of SM and CF can improve the abundance of beneficial bacteria in the rhizosphere, leading to an increase in pear productivity.
Opportunities and obstacles in microbial synthesis of metal nanoparticles
Authors: Carmona Manuel , Poblete‐Castro Ignacio , Rai Mahendra , Turner Raymond J.
Published: March 2023

Metallic nanoparticles (MeNPs) are widely used in many areas such as biomedicine, packaging, cosmetics, colourants, agriculture, antimicrobial agents, cleaning products, as components of electronic devices and nutritional supplements. In addition, some MeNPs exhibit quantum properties, making them suitable materials in the photonics, electronic and energy industries. Through the lens of technology, microbes can be considered nanofactories capable of producing enzymes, metabolites and capping materials involved in the synthesis, assembly and stabilization of MeNPs. This bioprocess is considered more ecofriendly and less energy intensive than the current chemical synthesis routes. However, microbial synthesis of MeNPs as an alternative method to the chemical synthesis of nanomaterials still faces some challenges that need to be solved. Some of these challenges are described in this Editorial.
Three unrelated chemoreceptors provide Pectobacterium atrosepticum with a broad‐spectrum amino acid sensing capability
Authors: Velando Félix , Matilla Miguel A. , Zhulin Igor B. , Krell Tino
Published: March 2023

Amino acids are important nutrients and also serve as signals for diverse signal transduction pathways. Bacteria use chemoreceptors to recognize amino acid attractants and to navigate their gradients. In Escherichia coli two likely paralogous chemoreceptors Tsr and Tar detect 9 amino acids, whereas in Pseudomonas aeruginosa the paralogous chemoreceptors PctA, PctB and PctC detect 18 amino acids. Here, we show that the phytobacterium Pectobacterium atrosepticum uses the three non‐homologous chemoreceptors PacA, PacB and PacC to detect 19 proteinogenic and several non‐proteinogenic amino acids. PacB recognizes 18 proteinogenic amino acids as well as 8 non‐proteinogenic amino acids. PacB has a ligand preference for the three branched chain amino acids L‐leucine, L‐valine and L‐isoleucine. PacA detects L‐proline next to several quaternary amines. The third chemoreceptor, PacC, is an ortholog of E. coli Tsr and the only one of the 36 P. atrosepticum chemoreceptors that is encoded in the cluster of chemosensory pathway genes. Surprisingly, in contrast to Tsr, which primarily senses serine, PacC recognizes aspartate as the major chemoeffector but not serine. Our results demonstrate that bacteria use various strategies to sense a wide range of amino acids and that it takes more than one chemoreceptor to achieve this goal.
A remote sensing tool for near real‐time monitoring of harmful algal blooms and turbidity in reservoirs
Authors: Pamula Abhiram S. P. , Gholizadeh Hamed , Krzmarzick Mark J. , Mausbach William E. , Lampert David J.
Published: March 2023

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) diminish the utility of reservoirs for drinking water supply, irrigation, recreation, and ecosystem service provision. HABs decrease water quality and are a significant health concern in surface water bodies. Near real‐time monitoring of HABs in reservoirs and small water bodies is essential to understand the dynamics of turbidity and HAB formation. This study uses satellite imagery to remotely sense chlorophyll‐a concentrations (chl‐a), phycocyanin concentrations, and turbidity in two reservoirs, the Grand Lake O′ the Cherokees and Hudson Reservoir, OK, USA, to develop a tool for near real‐time monitoring of HABs. Landsat‐8 and Sentinel‐2 imagery from 2013 to 2017 and from 2015 to 2020 were used to train and test three different models that include multiple regression, support vector regression (SVR), and random forest regression (RFR). Performance was assessed by comparing the three models to estimate chl‐a, phycocyanin, and turbidity. The results showed that RFR achieved the best performance, with R2 values of 0.75, 0.82, and 0.79 for chl‐a, turbidity, and phycocyanin, while multiple regression had R2 values of 0.29, 0.51, and 0.46 and SVR had R2 values of 0.58, 0.62, and 0.61 on the testing datasets, respectively. This paper examines the potential of the developed open‐source satellite remote sensing tool for monitoring reservoirs in Oklahoma to assess spatial and temporal variations in surface water quality.
Inflation and Spatial Spillovers in a Large Archipelago: Evidence from Indonesia*
Authors: Aginta Harry
Published: March 2023

This study examines inflation dynamics in Indonesia, a large archipelagic country, using the Phillips curve specification. Utilising province‐level data from 2015 to 2019, the analysis accounts for regional interaction across Indonesian provinces and estimates spatial spillovers. To address the challenges of applying spatial methods to the world's largest archipelagic nation, two new approaches for the spatial weight matrix criteria are introduced: contiguity‐based from artificial boundaries (Thiessen polygons) and trade‐based from the Interregional Input–Output Tables. Furthermore, exploiting a new dataset, the study contrasts alternative measurements of inflation and output gap. These distinctions yield new findings. The results indicate the presence of a conventional Phillips curve in Indonesia. Different measures of inflation and the output gap have distinct spatial spillover effects.
Targeting diacylglycerol kinase α impairs lung tumorigenesis by inhibiting cyclin D3
Authors: Zhou Dong , Liu Tao , Rao Xinrui , Jie Xiaohua , Chen Yunshang , Wu Zilong , Deng Huilin , Zhang Dan , Wang Jian , Wu Gang
Published: March 2023

Background

Diacylglycerol kinase α (DGKA) is the first member discovered from the diacylglycerol kinase family, and it has been linked to the progression of various types of tumors. However, it is unclear whether DGKA is linked to the development of lung cancer.

Methods

We investigated the levels of DGKA in the lung cancer tissues. Cell growth assay, colony formation assay and EdU assay were used to examine the effects of DGKA‐targeted siRNAs/shRNAs/drugs on the proliferation of lung cancer cells in vitro. Xenograft mouse model was used to investigate the role of DGKA inhibitor ritanserin on the proliferation of lung cancer cells in vivo. The downstream target of DGKA in lung tumorigenesis was identified by RNA sequencing.

Results

DGKA is upregulated in the lung cancer cells. Functional assays and xenograft mouse model indicated that the proliferation ability of lung cancer cells was impaired after inhibiting DGKA. And cyclin D3(CCND3) is the downstream target of DGKA promoting lung cancer.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrated that DGKA promotes lung tumorigenesis by regulating the CCND3 expression and hence it can be considered as a potential molecular biomarker to evaluate the prognosis of lung cancer patients. What's more, we also demonstrated the efficacy of ritanserin as a promising new medication for treating lung cancer.
The vanishing searches and audit fees: Evidence from Google's withdrawal from China
Authors: Zu Chunyu
Published: March 2023

I investigate the impact of the disruption of free information access via search engines on audit fees using a quasi‐natural experiment provided by Google's withdrawal from China. Employing a difference‐in‐differences design, I document an increase in audit fees for firms with overseas business relative to firms without overseas business after Google's withdrawal. The results are robust to matched samples, placebo tests, alternative specifications, excluding alternative explanations and different event windows. This trend in audit fees suggests that Google's withdrawal hampers firms' foreign information streams and increases audit risk and audit effort. Consistent with this argument, after Google's withdrawal, firms with overseas business conduct more earnings management, pay more abnormal audit fees and experience longer audit report lags. Furthermore, the increase in audit fees is greater for firms with poor information environments, more retail investors or non‐Big 4 auditors. My findings suggest a potential auditing cost of restricting the free flow of public foreign information about firms.
Testing the Benefits of Public Deliberation
Authors: Minozzi William , Kennedy Ryan , Esterling Kevin M. , Neblo Michael A. , Jewell Ryan
Published: March 2023

Public deliberation grows increasingly prevalent yet remains costly in terms of money and time. Accordingly, some suggest supplanting talk‐based practices with individual, “deliberation within.” Yet we have little evidence either way on the additional benefits of public deliberation over its individual variant. We evaluate the benefits of public deliberation with a field experiment. With the cooperation of two sitting US Senators, we recruited several hundred of their constituents to deliberate on immigration reform. Participants were randomly assigned to either deliberate publicly in an online discussion, to deliberate individually, or to an information‐only control. Across several measures, public deliberation yielded more benefits than individual deliberation. We find, moreover, little evidence to ground worries that differences in education, race, conflict avoidance, gender, or gender composition of deliberating groups will render public talk less valuable than individual deliberation.
Outpatient vs inpatient induction of labor with oral misoprostol: A retrospective study
Authors: Hallén Natalie , Amini Mahdi , Wide‐Swensson Dag , Herbst Andreas
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Induction of labor is one of the most common obstetrical procedures today, with a successively rising rate. With a limited number of hospital beds, the option of starting induction at home has gained increasing attention. The primary aim of this study was to compare the proportion of women achieving vaginal delivery and the duration of hospital stay before delivery in induction of labor with oral misoprostol starting at home and induction with oral misoprostol at the hospital, in a low‐risk population.

Material and methods

Women with home induction (n = 282) were individually matched to controls induced at the hospital during the same time period regarding parity, age, body mass index, labor unit and indication for induction.

Results

The rates of vaginal birth were similar in outpatients and inpatients (84.8% vs 86.2%; p = 0.5). Time from hospital admission to delivery in the outpatient group was significantly shorter than in the inpatient group (12.8 vs 20.6 h; p < 0.001), as was total hospital stay (2 vs 3 days; p < 0.001). There were no significant differences between the groups in neonatal or maternal outcomes. One patient undergoing outpatient induction had an unplanned home birth.

Conclusions

Starting induction at home reduced the time spent in hospital without affecting the vaginal delivery rate. Although underpowered to assess safety, this study did not show any differences in adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes between inpatients and outpatients. Further research is needed to evaluate the safety of outpatient induction of labor with misoprostol.