bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Interoception in Psychiatric Disorders: A Review of Randomized, Controlled Trials with Interoception-Based Interventions
Authors: Khoury Nayla M. , Lutz Jacqueline , Schuman-Olivier Zev
Published: September 2018

Interoception, or the process of sensing, interpreting, and integrating internal bodily signals, has increasingly been the subject of scientific research over the past decade but is still not well known in clinical practice. The aim of this article is to review clinical treatment interventions that use interoception, to synthesize the current research knowledge, and to identify the gaps where future research is needed. We conducted a comprehensive literature search on randomized, controlled trials that both include interoception in treatment interventions for individuals with psychiatric disorders and measure aspects of interoception using self-report measures. Out of 14 randomized, controlled trials identified, 7 found that interventions with interoception were effective in ameliorating symptoms. These studies included individuals with anxiety disorders, eating disorders, psychosomatic disorders, and addictive disorders. All of the intervention studies with positive clinical outcomes also demonstrated changes on interoceptive measures; however, these measures were often related to specific illness symptoms. Interoception may be a mechanism of action in improving clinical symptomatology, though studies incorporating general, symptom-independent interoceptive measures remain scarce. To further our understanding of the role interoception has in psychiatric disorders and their treatment, more studies integrating interoceptive measures are needed, along with a clearer definition of interoceptive terms used.
Intracranial hypertension: a current review
Authors: Jordan Catherine O. , Aylward Shawn C.
Published: September 2018

Purpose of review

To provide a current review of recent publications with regards to intracranial hypertension.

Recent findings

Attempts were made to provide pediatric data; however, the recent completion of the Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension Treatment Trial (IIHTT) has provided a wealth of data with regards to adult intracranial hypertension.

The pediatric incidence of intracranial hypertension ranges between 0.63 and 0.71 per 100 000 children. A majority of pediatric cases responded to acetazolamide, with resolution of headache averaging 3.8 weeks. Most patients require less than 1 year of treatment with male sex, older age at diagnosis, primary intracranial hypertension, and lack of headache being predictors of good response. Fluorescein angiography has the highest accuracy in distinguishing true papilledema from pseudopapilledema. The IIHTT found Frisen grade of papilledema was within 1 grade in 92.8% of patients. Monitoring of potassium levels is not required and aplastic anemia was not seen in patients taking acetazolamide.

Although the newer pediatric studies report incidence rates in pediatric intracranial hypertension are lower than seen in adults, intracranial hypertension is still a concern in pediatrics. There has been a wealth of information with regards to symptomatology, treatment, and outcomes from the IIHTT that will hopefully assist with management in the pediatric population.
Incidence of Viremia With DNA Viruses in Oncology Patients With Febrile Neutropenia
Authors: Teranishi Hideto , Ohzono Nanae , Miyata Ippei , Wakabayashi Shoko , Kono Mina , Ono Sahoko , Kato Atsushi , Saito Aki , Kondo Eisuke , Tanaka Yuuhei , Akaike Hiroto , Oishi Tomohiro , Ohno Naoki , Terada Kihei , Ouchi Kazunobu
Published: September 2018

Background:

Although febrile neutropenia (FN) is one of the most common adverse events produced by chemotherapy, its microbiological etiology is determined for only 15% to 30% of cases.

Objectives:

We investigated the rate of viremia with common DNA viruses in patients with FN.

Study Design:

From June 2012 to April 2014, 72 blood samples from 24 patients receiving chemotherapy, who experienced FN episodes, were examined for the presence of herpes viruses and other DNA viruses. We used real-time polymerase chain reaction assays to detect herpes simplex virus type 1 and 2, varicella zoster virus, Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, human herpes virus types 6 and 7, BK virus and human parvovirus B19 (B19).

Results:

Viruses were identified in 14 of 72 samples (19.4%). The detected etiological agents were BK virus (5 episodes), human herpes virus type 6 (4 episodes), B19 (4 episodes), Epstein-Barr virus (2 episodes), and cytomegalovirus (1 episode).

Conclusions:

Our results indicate that viral infections are common causes in patients with FN. Therefore, viruses may be responsible for FN in a large proportion of patients in whom a causative microorganism could not be identified, and this viral etiology may explain their poor response to antibiotic therapy.
Physical Activity Among Postoperative Esophageal Cancer Patients
Authors: Ichijo Yuka , Takeda Yuko , Oguma Yuko , Kitagawa Yuko , Takeuchi Hiroya , Doorenbos Ardith Z.
Published: September 2018

Background

Previous literature has reported that regular physical activity enhances health-related quality of life for cancer patients. However, there is a lack of studies that focus on physical activity among postoperative esophageal cancer patients.

Objective

The aims of this study were to (1) describe the prevalence of physical activity among postoperative esophageal cancer patients, (2) explore variables related to physical activity (demographics, nutrition, dysphagia, and health-related qualify of life), and (3) examine potential reasons for inactivity among participants who scored low using case studies.

Methods

In this cross-sectional design, physical activity was evaluated by the Japanese version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Variables were analyzed using Spearman rank correlation coefficients, Mann-Whitney U tests, or Fisher exact tests.

Results

Fifty-eight patients participated in this study; 79% met the recommended physical activity guidelines. Present occupational status and past leisure-time physical activity behavior before the cancer diagnosis were related to current leisure-time physical activity and meeting the guidelines postoperatively. Participants who scored 0 (little or no activity) in the questionnaire also scored low in health-related quality of life.

Conclusions

Participants performed especially well in physical activity related to leisure time and transportation. Positive reinforcement is needed for patients who perform adequate levels of physical activity, and reviewing the benefits of regular physical activity is encouraged for all.

Implications for Practice

Occupational status and past leisure-time physical activity before diagnosis can be indicators for promoting physical activity among postoperative esophageal cancer patients. Inactive participants should be supported to promote both physical activity and health-related qualify of life.
Impact of Vascular Disease, Amputation Level, and the Mismatch Between Balance Ability and Balance Confidence in a Cross-Sectional Study of the Likelihood of Falls Among People With Limb Loss
Authors: Wong Christopher Kevin , Chihuri Stanford T.
Published: September 2018

Objective

The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of balance ability, activities-specific balance confidence, and other self-reported and clinical factors on incidence of falls among people with lower limb loss.

Design

This is a cross-sectional study (N = 305) with multivariable logistic regression analysis.

Results

Participants included 68.3% men with an age of 55.5 ± 14.9, with 50% dysvascular and 56.8% transtibial amputations. The mean ± SD activities-specific balance confidence is 2.1/4 ± 1.1, balance ability is 2.9/4 ± 1.3, and walking speed is 0.766 ± 0.387 m/sec. The final model showed fall risk was heightened for people with vascular comorbidities (odds ratio = 3.46, 95% confidence interval = 1.40–8.54) and better balance (odds ratio = 23.29, confidence interval = 3.19–170.23), but attenuated for people with transfemoral (odds ratio = 0.08, confidence interval = 0.01–0.82) and vascular amputations (odds ratio = 0.38, confidence interval = 0.15–0.95). Significant interactions existed between age and amputation level (odds ratio = 1.06, confidence interval = 1.02–1.11) and between balance confidence and balance ability (odds ratio = 0.27, confidence interval = 0.13–0.57).

Conclusions

Although people with vascular amputations were less likely to fall than those with nonvascular amputations, people with concurrent vascular comorbidities were more likely to fall than those without. People with transfemoral amputations were less likely to fall; however, fall risk increased with each year of age compared with people with transtibial amputations. People with balance ability of 3.5 or greater fell more often than those with lower ability, but people with lower balance ability and mismatched confidence in their balance ability had 3.7 times greater fall risk.
Neural Perforasomes of the Upper Extremity
Authors: Koehler Steven M. , Matson Andrew P. , Ruch David S. , Mithani Suhail K.
Published: September 2018

Background:

In the setting of the rapid advancement of integumentary vascular knowledge, the authors hypothesized that the extrinsic blood supply to the major peripheral nerves of the upper extremity could be categorized into discrete neural “perforasomes.”

Methods:

Total limb perfusion of the arterial system was performed with gelatin–red lead oxide in cadaveric upper limbs. The perforating vessels to the radial, median, and ulnar nerves were identified, confirmed with fluoroscopy, and dissected. Distances to major anatomical landmarks of the upper extremity were measured. Additional cadaveric limbs’ nerves were dissected and source arteries were selectively cannulated and injected to assess specific contribution to extrinsic nerve perfusion. The perfusion of each nerve was then calculated among all specimens.

Results:

The radial, median, and ulnar nerve perforators were mapped. The corresponding neural perforasomes were mapped. The distal portions of the superficial radial nerve and the posterior interosseous nerve demonstrated a lack of staining. Similarly, at the carpal tunnel and at the proximal 25 percent of the median nerve (corresponding to the pronator teres), the nerve lacked vascular staining. At the Guyon canal and the flexor carpi ulnaris, the ulnar nerve demonstrated a lack of vascular staining.

Conclusions:

Peripheral nerves can be divided into neural perforasomes with limited overlap. The extrinsic perfusion of peripheral nerves is highly segmental. Absent stains within the nerves correspond to common sites of compression: carpal tunnel and pronator teres for the median nerve, supinator for the posterior interosseous nerve, and the Guyon canal and the flexor carpi ulnaris for the ulnar nerve.
Anatomical Nasal Lining Flaps for Closure of the Nasal Floor in Unilateral and Bilateral Cleft Lip Repairs Reduce Fistulas at the Alveolus
Authors: Mittermiller Paul A. , Sethi Harleen , Morbia Roshan P. , Johns Dana , Baylan Joseph , Lorenz H. Peter , Khosla Rohit K.
Published: September 2018

Background:

Techniques vary for addressing the nasal floor during cleft lip repair in patients with a cleft lip and palate. Sometimes, no closure is performed, leaving a symptomatic alveolar fistula until the time of alveolar bone grafting. Often, medial and lateral skin flaps are used, but these are often thin and unreliable. Anatomical nasal lining flaps are used to improve closure with robust, well-vascularized flaps that anatomically close the nasal floor.

Methods:

A retrospective chart review was performed to identify patients with a unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and palate who underwent primary cleft lip repair with nasal lining flaps or with medial and lateral flaps. The primary outcome was presence of a symptomatic and/or visible oronasal fistula.

Results:

Sixty-four patients were included. Thirty-seven underwent closure with nasal lining flaps, whereas 27 underwent closure using Millard medial and lateral flaps. The rate of symptomatic/visible fistulas after cleft palate repair was 19 percent (seven of 37) for patients with nasal lining flaps and 44 percent (12 of 27) for patients with medial and lateral flaps (p = 0.0509, Fisher’s exact test). The alveolar fistula rate was 3 percent (one of 37) for patients with nasal lining flaps and 30 percent (eight of 27) for patients with medial and lateral flaps (p = 0.0032, Fisher’s exact test).

Conclusions:

Nasal lining flaps at the time of cleft lip repair effectively close the anterior nasal floor in patients with a unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and palate. Decreasing the presence of alveolar fistulas after cleft palate repair improves the quality of life for patients with cleft deformities.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, III.
Distraction Osteogenesis for Unicoronal Craniosynostosis: Rotational Flap Technique and Case Series
Authors: Brandel Michael G. , Dalle Ore Cecilia L. , Reid Chris M. , Zhu William , Lance Samuel , Meltzer Hal , Gosman Amanda A.
Published: September 2018

Background:

The limitations of the soft-tissue envelope, devascularized bone grafts, and relapse of the deformity are important considerations in the surgical treatment of unicoronal craniosynostosis. The authors report their technique evolution of distraction osteogenesis for treatment of patients with unicoronal craniosynostosis.

Methods:

Open anterior cranial vault reconstruction combined with internal distraction was used, with the aid of virtual surgical planning. Technique evolution included maximizing bone flap perfusion by means of limited rotational flap osteotomies, and preservation of dural attachments. Clinical and procedural characteristics including distraction protocol, intracranial volume change, efficiency of distraction, transfusion, operative time, length of hospitalization, complications, and postoperative outcomes were analyzed.

Results:

Sixteen patients with nonsyndromic unicoronal craniosynostosis underwent repair between August of 2013 and December of 2016. Mean age was 9.0 months. Distractors were advanced a mean of 27.1 mm and achieved a cranial volume change of 29.5 percent, with a mean efficiency of 1.3 percent increase per millimeter of distraction. Mean operating time was 169.3 minutes. Complications were predominately related to infections at the distractor site. At most recent follow-up, all patients had a Whitaker grade I result.

Conclusions:

Distraction osteogenesis can be a safe and effective method of achieving satisfactory aesthetic outcomes and volume expansion for patients with unicoronal craniosynostosis. The technique presented is proposed to maximize bone flap viability and limit relapse of deformity. Further long-term follow-up is needed for definitive comparison with traditional anterior cranial vault reconstruction.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, IV.
Human Herpesvirus Alpha Subfamily (Herpes Simplex and Varicella Zoster) Viral Pneumonias
Authors: Hammer Mark M. , Gosangi Babina , Hatabu Hiroto
Published: September 2018

Purpose:

The aim of this study was to evaluate CT features of pneumonias caused by the alpha Herpesviruses, herpes simplex virus (HSV), and varicella-zoster virus (VZV).

Materials and Methods:

By searching the electronic medical record from 2005 to 2017, we identified 12 patients with HSV and 15 with VZV pneumonia. Four patients with coinfection were excluded from imaging analysis. Two radiologists reviewed computed tomography scans (CTs) for findings including ground glass and nodules. CTs were assigned to a predominant pattern of crazy paving, nodular, or other.

Results:

The most common risk factor was hematologic malignancy, present in 58% of HSV and 47% of VZV patients. Crazy paving was seen in 50% of HSV and 31% of VZV cases; a nodular pattern was present in 20% of HSV and 69% of VZV patients (P=0.03).

Conclusions:

Most patients with alpha Herpesvirus pneumonias demonstrated either a crazy paving or nodular pattern on CT. The nodular pattern was significantly more common in VZV than in HSV. Radiologists should consider these rare infections when evaluating immunocompromised patients with these imaging patterns.
Evaluation of Validity and Reliability of a Revised Incontinence-Associated Skin Damage Severity Instrument (IASD.D.2) by 3 Groups of Nursing Staff
Authors: Bliss Donna Z. , Gurvich Olga V. , Hurlow Jennifer , Cefalu Jean E. , Gannon Alexandra , Wilhems Anna , Wiltzen Kjerstie R. , Gannon Elise , Lee Haeyeon , Borchert Kathleen , Trammel Sheila Howes
Published: September 2018

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a revised version of the Incontinence-Associated Skin Damage Severity instrument (IASD.D.2) using 3 different groups of nursing staff. Revisions to the instrument included renumbering 1 body area where incontinence-associated dermatitis (IAD) occurs into 2 areas (right and left), which raised the total possible score from 52 to 56, and defining the borders of the body areas.

DESIGN:

Observational, evaluative design.

SAMPLE AND SETTING:

Five clinical experts certified in wound, ostomy, and/or continence (WOC) nursing evaluated content validity. Evaluators were attendees at the WOC Nurses (WOCN) Society 2014 conference, hospital nurses, and nursing staff at a nursing home. Evaluators were attendees at the WOCN Society's 2014 National Conference, hospital nurses at a community hospital with Magnet designation, and nursing staff at a skilled nursing home in the Midwestern United States. The evaluator group comprised 198 conference attendees (all nurses; age 53 ± 8.2 years, mean ± SD), 67 hospital nurses (age 37 ± 11 years), and 34 nursing home nursing staff (age 45 ±13.8 years). The majority of evaluators (>75%) in each of the groups were female.

METHODS:

Clinical experts evaluated the content validity of the revised instrument. Evaluators scored 5 to 9 photographic cases using the revised instrument. Four of the cases were scored by all evaluators. The agreement of case scores among all evaluators was analyzed to assess interrater reliability. The scores of evaluators grouped by evaluators' self-identified skin color or nursing experience (<10 years vs ≥10 years) were also tested for differences. To provide evidence for criterion validity, the agreement of evaluators' scores with experts' scores (considered a “gold standard” in this study) was analyzed.

RESULTS:

The agreement of the IASD.D.2 scores among all evaluators within each group ranged from 0.74 to 0.79, suggesting good interrater reliability. The agreement of each group of evaluators with the experts for all case scores ranged from 0.82 to 0.85, suggesting good criterion validity. There was no significant difference in scores by evaluators' skin color or nursing experience.

CONCLUSION:

The revised IASD.D.2 has good content and criterion validity and interrater reliability. The instrument has potential to standardize reporting of IAD severity in research and clinical practice and assist communication about IAD among nursing staff.
Tasting the unexpected: disconfirmation of expectations leads to lower perceived food value in an invertebrate
Authors: Oberhauser F. B. , Czaczkes T. J.
Published: September 2018

To make sensible decisions, both humans and other animals must compare the available options against a reference point—either other options or previous experience. Options of higher quality than the reference are considered good value. However, many perceptible attributes of options are value-neutral, such as flower scent. Nonetheless, such value-neutral differences may be part of an expectation. Can a mismatch between the expectation and experience of value-neutral attributes affect perceived value? Consumer psychology theory and results suggest it can. To test this in a non-human animal, we manipulated a value-neutral aspect of a food source—its taste—while keeping its absolute value—its sweetness—the same. Individual ants (
Lasius niger
) were allowed to drink either lemon- or rosemary-flavoured 1 M sucrose. After three successive visits to the food, we switched the taste in the last, fourth, visit to induce a disconfirmation of expectations. In control trials, ants received the same taste on all four visits. Disconfirmed ants showed lower food acceptance and laid less pheromone on the way back to the nest, even though the molarity of the food was unchanged. As ants recruit nest-mates via pheromone depositions, fewer depositions indicate that the ants valued the food less. Thus, an expectation of value-neutral attributes can influence the perceived value of a resource. Such influences of value-neutral variables on value perception may affect how animals interact with and exploit their environment, and may contribute to phenomena such as flower constancy.
Regional climate and local-scale biotic acceptance explain native–exotic richness relationships in Australian annual plant communities
Authors: Towers Isaac. R. , Dwyer John. M.
Published: September 2018

Native and exotic species richness is expected to be negatively related at small spatial scales where individuals interact, and positive at larger spatial scales as a greater variety of habitats are sampled. However, a range of native–exotic richness relationships (NERRs) have been reported, including positive at small scales and negative at larger scales. We present a hierarchical metacommunity framework to explain how contrasting NERRs may emerge across scales and study systems, and then apply this framework to NERRs in an invaded winter annual plant system in southwest Western Australia. We analysed NERRs at increasing spatial scales from neighbourhoods (0.09 m2) to communities (225 m2) to metacommunities (greater than 10 ha) within a multilevel structural equation model. In contrast to many previous studies, native and exotic richness were positively related at the neighbourhood scale and were not significantly associated at larger scales. Heterogeneity in soil surface properties was weakly, but positively, associated with native and exotic richness at the community scale. Metacommunity exotic richness increased strongly with regional temperature and moisture availability, but relationships for native richness were negative and much weaker. Thus, we show that neutral NERRs can emerge at larger scales owing to differential climatic filtering of native and exotic species pools.
Jealous females? Female competition and reproductive suppression in a wild promiscuous primate
Authors: Baniel Alice , Cowlishaw Guy , Huchard Elise
Published: September 2018

Female–female competition over paternal care has rarely been investigated in promiscuous mammals, where discreet forms of male care have recently been reported despite low paternity certainty. We investigated female competition over paternal care in a wild promiscuous primate, the chacma baboon (
Papio ursinus
), where pregnant and lactating females establish strong social bonds (friendships) with males that provide care to their offspring. We tested whether pregnant and lactating females interfere with the sexual activity of their male friend to prevent new conceptions that might lead to the subsequent dilution of his paternal care. We found that pregnant and lactating females were more aggressive towards oestrous females when they had recently conceived themselves, and when the oestrous female was mate-guarded by, and showed greater sexual activity with, their male friend. This aggression also reduced the likelihood of conception of the targeted female. These findings indicate that females can aggressively prevent further conceptions with their offspring's carer through reproductive suppression. Competition over access to paternal care may play an important and underestimated role in shaping female social relationships and reproductive strategies in promiscuous mammalian societies.
Temperature drives diversification in a model adaptive radiation
Authors: Zhang Quan-Guo , Lu Han-Shu , Buckling Angus
Published: September 2018

The warmer regions harbour more species, attributable to accelerated speciation and increased ecological opportunities for coexistence. While correlations between temperature and energy availability and habitat area have been suggested as major drivers of these biodiversity patterns, temperature can theoretically also have direct effects on the evolution of diversity. Here, we experimentally studied the evolution of diversity in a model adaptive radiation of the bacteriumPseudomonas fluorescensacross a temperature gradient. Diversification increased at higher temperatures, driven by both faster generation of genetic variation and stronger diversifying selection. Specifically, low temperatures could limit the generation of diversity, suggested by the observation that supply of genetic variation through immigration increased diversity at low, but not high temperatures. The two major determinants of mutation supply, population size and mutation rate, both showed a positive temperature dependence. Stronger diversifying selection in warmer environments was suggested by promoted coexistence, and further explicitly inferred by the ability of evolved phenotypes to invade the ancestral type from rare. We discuss possible physiological and environmental mechanisms underlying the findings, most of which are likely to be general.
Seagrass digestion by a notorious ‘carnivore’
Authors: Leigh Samantha C. , Papastamatiou Yannis P. , German Donovan P.
Published: September 2018

What an animal consumes and what an animal digests and assimilates for energetic demands are not always synonymous. Sharks, uniformly accepted as carnivores, have guts that are presumed to be well suited for a high-protein diet. However, the bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo), which is abundant in critical seagrass habitats, has been previously shown to consume copious amounts of seagrass (up to 62.1% of gut content mass), although it is unknown if they can digest and assimilate seagrass nutrients. To determine if bonnetheads digest seagrass nutrients, captive sharks were fed a13C-labelled seagrass diet. Digestibility analyses, digestive enzyme assays and stable isotope analyses were used to determine the bonnethead shark's capacity for digesting and assimilating seagrass material. Compound-specific stable isotope analysis showed that sharks assimilated seagrass carbon (13.6 ± 6.77‰δ13C mean ± s.d. for all sharks and all amino acid types analysed) with 50 ± 2% digestibility of seagrass organic matter. Additionally, cellulose-component-degrading enzyme activities were detected in shark hindguts. We show that a coastal shark is digesting seagrass with at least moderate efficiency, which has ecological implications due to the stabilizing role of omnivory and nutrient transport within fragile seagrass ecosystems.
Wear, tear and systematic repair: testing models of growth dynamics in conodonts with high-resolution imaging
Authors: Shirley Bryan , Grohganz Madleen , Bestmann Michel , Jarochowska Emilia
Published: September 2018

Conodont elements are the earliest mineralized vertebrate dental tools and the only ones capable of extensive repair. Two models of conodont growth, as well as the presence of a larval stage, have been hypothesized. We analysed normally and pathologically developed elements to test these hypotheses and identified three ontogenetic stages characterized by different anisometric growth and morphology. The distinction of these stages is independently corroborated by differences in tissue strontium (Sr) content. The onset of the last stage is marked by the appearance of wear resulting from mechanical food digestion. At least five episodes of damage and repair could be identified in the normally developed specimen. In the pathological element, function was compromised by the development of abnormal denticles. This development can be reconstructed as addition of new growth centres out of the main growth axis during an episode of renewed growth. Our findings support the model of periodic retraction of elements and addition of new growth centres. Changes in Sr content coincident with distinct morphology and lack of wear in the early life stage indicate that conodonts might have assumed their mature feeding habit of predators or scavengers after an initial larval stage characterized by a different feeding mode.
Ancestral Reconstruction of Protein Interaction Networks
Authors: Liebeskind Benjamin J. , Aldrich Richard W. , Marcotte Edward M.
Published: September 2018

The molecular and cellular basis of novelty is a major open question in evolutionary biology. Until very recently, the vast majority of cellular phenomena were so difficult to sample that cross-species studies of biochemistry were rare and comparative analysis at the level of biochemical systems was almost impossible. Recent advances in systems biology are changing what is possible, however, and comparative phylogenetic methods that can handle this new data are wanted. Here, we introduce the term “phylogenetic latent variable models” (PLVMs, pronounced “plums”) for a class of models that has recently been used to infer the evolution of cellular states from systems-level molecular data, and develop a new parameterization and fitting strategy that is useful for comparative inference of biochemical networks. We deploy this new framework to infer the ancestral states and evolutionary dynamics of protein-interaction networks by analyzing >16,000 predominantly metazoan co-fractionation and affinity-purification mass spectrometry experiments. Based on these data, we estimate ancestral interactions across unikonts, broadly recovering protein complexes involved in translation, transcription, proteostasis, transport, and membrane trafficking. Using these results, we predict an ancient core of the Commander complex made up of CCDC22, CCDC93, C16orf62, and DSCR3, with more recent additions of COMMD-containing proteins in tetrapods. We also use simulations to develop model fitting strategies and discuss future model developments.
Effect of cooling rate after heat treatment on pitting corrosion of super duplex stainless steel UNS S 32750
Authors: Shin Byung-Hyun , Park Junghyun , Jeon Jongbae , Heo Sung-bo , Chung Wonsub
Published: September 2018

Purpose

In this study, super duplex stainless steel (SDSS) was heat-treated. The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of the cooling rate after heat treatment on the pitting corrosion of SDSS.

Design/methodology/approach

The heat treatment from 1,000°C to 1,300°C was applied to SDSS to check the effect of the cooling rate.

Findings

The heat treatment temperature produced a different SDSS microstructure, and the cooling rate led to the growth of austenite. The casted SDSS indicated the presence of heterogeneous austenite, and the precipitation secondary phase under 1.6 per cent precipitated to bare metal. By applying heat treatment and cooling SDSS, its corrosion resistance changes because of the change in the chemical composition. The cooling rate at 5,600 J/s has the highest critical pitting temperature (CPT) at 1,100°C, and the cooling rate at 1.6 J/s has the highest CPT at 1,200°C. Low cooling rate (0.4 J/s) made the secondary phase at all temperature range.

Research limitations/implications

The effect of secondary phase not consider because that is well known to decreasing corrosion resistance.

Practical implications

Solution annealing is taken into account to optimize the corrosion resistance. But that is not consider the cooling rate at each temperature. This study assessed the effect of the cooling rate at each temperature point.

Social implications

Manufacturers need to know the effect of the cooling rate to optimize the corrosion resistance, and this study can be applied in the industrial scene.

Originality/value

SDSS is hard the optimization because SDSS is a dual-phase stainless steel. Corrosion resistance can be optimized by controlling heat treatment temperature and the cooling rate. Anyone not studied the effect of the cooling rate at each temperature. The effect of the cooling rate should be considered to optimize the corrosion resistance.
Use of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system and gene expression programming methods for estimation of the bearing capacity of rock foundations
Authors: Sadrossadat Ehsan , Ghorbani Behnam , Oskooei Rahimzadeh , Kaboutari Mahdi
Published: September 2018

Purpose

This study aims to examine the potential of two artificial intelligence (AI)-based algorithms, namely, adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and gene expression programming (GEP), for indirect estimation of the ultimate bearing capacity (qult) of rock foundations, which is a considerable civil and geotechnical engineering problem.

Design/methodology/approach

The input-processing-output procedures taking place in ANFIS and GEP are represented for developing predictive models. The great importance of simultaneously considering both qualitative and quantitative parameters for indirect estimation of qult is taken into account and explained. This issue can be considered as a remarkable merit of using AI-based approaches. Furthermore, the evaluation procedure of various models from both engineering and accuracy viewpoints is also demonstrated in this study.

Findings

A new and explicit formula generated by GEP is proposed for the estimation of the qult of rock foundations, which can be used for further engineering aims. It is also presented that although the ANFIS approach can predict the output with a high degree of accuracy, the obtained model might be a black-box. The results of model performance analyses confirm that ANFIS and GEP can be used as alternative and useful approaches over previous methods for modeling and prediction problems.

Originality/value

The superiorities and weaknesses of GEP and ANFIS techniques for the numerical analysis of engineering problems are expressed and the performance of their obtained models is compared to those provided by other approaches in the literature. The findings of this research provide the researchers with a better insight to using AI techniques for resolving complicated problems.
Induction of junior faculty members of higher education institutions in Eritrea
Authors: Zemichael Zecarias
Published: September 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how the graduate assistants (GAs) are inducted into the system and ethos of the institutions of higher education (IHE) in Eritrea. The paper serves in the purpose of creating more conducive and supportive work environment in IHE facilitating the socialization of junior faculty members to the culture, standards and system of the institutions.

Design/methodology/approach

The research adhered a combined approach of quantitative and qualitative research methods. Data were gathered through a Likert scale questionnaire and in-depth interviews. The study was conducted in seven IHE involving 165 participants.

Findings

The GAs’ knowledge of job description, access to institutional information, sharing of resources, the quality of guidance and support provided, supervised teaching and feedback are discussed in detail. Results revealed that the GAs shoulder vital responsibilities but they receive poor induction at individual and institutional levels. GAs complain for lack of job description clarity and lack of transparent institutional communication at work. Holding first degree, GAs teach senior courses without any prior induction, pedagogic trainings and unsupervised. The GAs are recruited on the basis of the colleges’ long-term staff development plan, but little is done.

Practical implications

Despite their academic rank, the GAs represent 64 percent of the national academic staff (ADF, 2010). Creating conducive work atmosphere for the junior faculty members in the institutions is a long-term investment on institutional capacity building and quality assurance of the institutions’ performance.

Social implications

Induction of the newly recruited junior faculty members to the social, professional and the institutional ethos is a socialization process that would minimize the professional isolation and inefficiency of new recruits.
Future scenarios of the collaborative economy
Authors: Fehrer Julia A. , Benoit Sabine , Aksoy Lerzan , Baker Thomas L. , Bell Simon J. , Brodie Roderick J. , Marimuthu Malliga
Published: September 2018

Purpose

The collaborative economy (CE), and within it, collaborative consumption (CC) has become a central element of the global economy and has substantially disrupted service markets (e.g. accommodation and individual transportation). The purpose of this paper is to explore the trends and develop future scenarios for market structures in the CE. This allows service providers and public policy makers to better prepare for potential future disruption.

Design/methodology/approach

Thought experiments – theoretically grounded in population ecology (PE) – are used to extrapolate future scenarios beyond the boundaries of existing observations.

Findings

The patterns suggested by PE forecast developmental trajectories of CE leading to one of the following three future scenarios of market structures: the centrally orchestrated CE, the social bubbles CE, and the decentralized autonomous CE.

Research limitations/implications

The purpose of this research was to create CE future scenarios in 2050 to stretch one’s consideration of possible futures. What unfolds in the next decade and beyond could be similar, a variation of or entirely different than those described.

Social implications

Public policy makers need to consider how regulations – often designed for a time when existing technologies were inconceivable – can remain relevant for the developing CE. This research reveals challenges including distribution of power, insularity, and social compensation mechanisms that need consideration across states and national borders.

Originality/value

This research tests the robustness of assumptions used today for significant, plausible market changes in the future. It provides considerable value in exploring challenges for public policy given the broad societal, economic, and political implications of the present market predictions.
Enhancing the customer relationship management in public libraries
Authors: Stokić Aleksandar , Stojanović Danijela , Bogdanović Zorica , Despotović-Zrakić Marijana , Radenković Božidar
Published: September 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the possibilities of implementing the customer relationship management (CRM) concept and smart technologies in public libraries in developing countries. The goal was to explore the level of librarians’ awareness about CRM concept and their willingness to accept the CRM concept in libraries. Also, patrons’ satisfaction with the quality of services and relationships in public libraries is explored.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors obtained data for this research through two online surveys. The first survey measures librarians’ level of awareness about CRM concept and their perception about CRM and smart technologies concept in public libraries in three developing countries: Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The second survey measures patrons’ satisfaction with services and relationship in public libraries in these three countries.

Findings

The research results revealed that most surveyed librarians are familiar with the CRM concept. However, libraries in these three developing countries barely use CRM or smart technologies to improve the relationship with stakeholders. Also, most patrons are satisfied with relationships and services. The analysis of data indicates no significant difference in the satisfaction level among patrons between these three developing countries.

Research limitations/implications

Not all libraries participated in this research. Therefore, the sample is not distributed evenly across different types of libraries or user groups. Future research should include different types of libraries.

Practical implications

The results can be used by public libraries in developing countries to improve the relationship with stakeholders harnessing CRM concept and smart technologies.

Social implications

The use of CRM in combination with the smart technologies can help leverage the quality of the relationship between public libraries and stakeholders which in turn would secure their support and loyalty in the future.

Originality/value

The integration of CRM concept as a component of library business automation process is an idea that has not been discussed widely in the library community and could initiate a positive trend in public libraries in developing countries.
The Finna service: meeting the new measurement challenges in libraries
Authors: Laine Timo , Laitinen Markku Antero
Published: September 2018

Purpose

In the transformed information environment, the impact and value of the services are not adequately shown using the traditional library metrics. It needs to be supplemented with user-centered ways of measurement. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is a case study of the new Finna service and the measurement challenges it presents.

Findings

The standards guiding the measurement and evaluation of libraries cannot offer a “cook-book” for the organizations to follow. The paper suggests that as a one possible response to this, the Net Promoter Score can be used as one indicator in measuring the impact of new services.

Research limitations/implications

The findings of the paper are preliminary, because so far there is not a wide experience of the use of NPS in libraries. This calls for further study. The results are encouraging, but more testing is needed with different services.

Originality/value

NPS has not been widely used in libraries before.
Dual isomorphic mechanisms and the role of a transnational agent
Authors: Ha Yoo Jung , Wei Yingqi
Published: September 2018

Purpose

Corporate environmental innovation (CEI) is a proactive type of response to increasing public scrutiny regarding firms’ environmental performance. While past studies have overwhelmingly focused on coercive mechanisms and assumed a closed national institutional field, less attention has been given to non-coercive and transnational inter-firm mimetic mechanisms. This paper aims to investigate the joint effect of coercive isomorphic mechanisms from domestic institutions and mimetic isomorphic mechanisms from foreign multinational enterprises (MNE) on CEI adoption in domestic firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The study’s empirical analysis is based on data from 1,967 firms from the 2010 Korean Innovation Survey, as well as other official statistics.

Findings

This study reports the following results: the direct effects of domestic institutions on CEI adoption in domestic firms vary according to institution type; foreign MNEs have a positive effect, whether using global or local CEI strategies; and the positive effect of foreign MNEs strengthens when the stringency of domestic environmental regulation increases.

Originality/value

This paper shows that CEI diffusion is driven by both coercive institutional pressures and inter-firm mimetic mechanisms, including their joint effects. Foreign MNEs act as boundary-spanners that activate a dual isomorphic mechanism, affecting social as well as economic development in host countries. Finally, evidence of interaction between domestic coercive and transnational mimetic mechanisms supports the authors’ contention that national institutional fields are increasingly interconnected.
Conceptual modelling of the flow of frail elderly through acute-care hospitals
Authors: Bruzzi Silvia , Landa Paolo , Tànfani Elena , Testi Angela
Published: September 2018

Purpose

The ageing of the world’s population is causing an increase in the number of frail patients admitted to hospitals. In the absence of appropriate management and organisation, these patients risk an excessive length of stay and poor outcomes. To deal with this problem, the purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual model to facilitate the pathway of frail elderly patients across acute care hospitals, focussed on avoiding improper wait times and treatment during the process.

Design/methodology/approach

The conceptual model is developed to enrich the standard flowchart of a clinical pathway in the hospital. The modified flowchart encompasses new organisational units and activities carried out by new dedicated professional roles. The proposed variant aims to provide a correct assessment of frailty at the entrance, a better management of the patient’s stay during different clinical stages and an early discharge, sending the patient home or to other facilities, avoiding a delayed discharge. The model is completed by a set of indicators aimed at measuring performance improvements and creating a strong database of evidence on the managing of frail elderly’s pathways, providing proper information that can validate the model when applied in current practice.

Findings

The paper proposes a design of the clinical path of frail patients in acute care hospitals, combining elements that, according to an evidence-based management approach, have proved to be effective in terms of outcomes, costs and organisational issues. The authors can, therefore, expect an improvement in the treatment of frail patients in hospital, avoiding their functional decline and worsening frailty conditions, as often happens in current practice following the standard path of other patients.

Research limitations/implications

The framework proposed is a conceptual model to manage frail elderly patients in acute care wards. The research approach lacks application to real data and proof of effectiveness. Further work will be devoted to implementing a simulation model for a specific case study and verifying the impact of the conceptual model in real care settings.

Practical implications

The paper includes suggestions for re-engineering the management of frail elderly patients in hospitals, when a reduction of lengths of stay and the improvement of clinical outcomes is required.

Originality/value

This paper fulfils an identified need to study and provide solutions for the management of frail elderly patients in acute care hospitals, and generally to produce value in a patient-centred model.