bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Renewable Energy Deployment in Ghana: The Hype, Hope and Reality
Authors: Kuamoah Catherine
Published: January 2020

Over recent years, few areas of international development research have seen as much transformation as those relating to energy access and low carbon transitions. Ghana, amongst other African economies, has seen an increase in energy demand surpassing the supply of energy in the last decade. The incorporation of the incorporation of renewable energy into the mix is, therefore, seen as a significant role in addressing the energy needs by replacing conventional fuels with clean and reliable domestic electricity with the advantage of local economic opportunities. The country has adopted the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG); SDG goal 7 targets ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services. This target presents a formidable challenge to Ghana because the country still relies mainly on non-renewable energy sources. The country has a huge potential for renewable energy that remains underexploited. This study, therefore, seeks to assess the current renewable energy resource situation, examine the trend in Ghana’s energy consumption and undertake a comprehensive review and critical evaluation of Ghana’s renewable energy drive and policies.
On the Cutting Edge or the Chopping Block? Fostering a Digital Mindset and Tech Literacy in Business Management Education
Authors: Allen Scott J.
Published: January 2020

We are on the precipice of significant change in industry. Some have called it industry 4.0, and without significant attention, business management educators will be unfamiliar and underprepared—and as a result, they will not adequately equip their students for change. This essay explores the need for a digital mindset and tech literacy in business management education. The essay begins by examining why the need exists and continues by discussing some of the critical concepts that must be integrated into a business management program to better prepare students for the future of work. The essay concludes by sharing several pedagogical applications that can be incorporated into the material in the undergraduate or graduate classroom.
Cultural Variation and Similarities in Cognitive Thinking Styles Versus Judgment Biases: A Review of Environmental Factors and Evolutionary Forces
Authors: Ma-Kellams Christine
Published: January 2020

Cultural psychological research has compellingly demonstrated that reliable East-West differences exist in basic cognitive styles: in contrast to the analytic, focal, linear thinking prevalent in the West, East Asians prefer to engage in more holistic, contextual, and intuitive thinking. However, despite the consensus on these cultural differences in thinking style, the literature on cross-cultural variation in actual cognitive biases is far more equivocal. The Fundamental Attribution Error (and by extension the Ultimate Attribution Error) has received the most attention among cognitive biases in the cultural arena; multiple studies have shown both evidence for cultural differences and evidence for universality. Similarly equivocal findings have emerged for other cognitive biases like the hindsight bias, positive illusions, and social exchange. Error Management Theory offers to reconcile this paradox of why consistent variation in thinking style do not necessarily lead to similarly consistent differences in cognitive biases; different mechanisms drive preferences (i.e., for how to think) versus actual behaviors (i.e., involving judgments/decisions). While different features of the physical environment likely gave rise to differences in preferences, pressures from the social environment likely pushed cognitive processing in common judgment tasks (like inferring another person’s mind or one’s own) in similar directions.
Short-term hotel room price effects of sporting events
Authors: Falk Martin Thomas , Vieru Markku
Published: January 2020

A difference-in-differences analysis is used to investigate the short-term price effects of eight sporting events in Finnish Lapland. Data consist of 220,000 room bookings from the reservation system of a nine-hotels chain. Treated hotels are those located within an area where sporting events are regularly held. The control group consists of hotels further away that are not affected by the event. Robust regressions show that hotel room prices rise by 14% on average during the event, when booking and guest specific factors are held constant. For the pre-event period, no significant positive price effect can be detected, and for the post-event period, there is even a significant negative effect of 6%, on average. In addition, there is a large variation in the price effects across the different sporting events, with the highest for the Levi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup competition (60%) and no effect for some small-scale events. Quantile regressions show that price effects are slightly higher for high-priced than for low-priced rooms.
Knowledge of peripheral artery disease: What do the public, healthcare practitioners, and trainees know?
Authors: Bridgwood Bernadeta M , Nickinson Andrew TO , Houghton John SM , Pepper Coral J , Sayers Rob D
Published: January 2020

This systematic review evaluated the knowledge and awareness of peripheral artery disease (PAD) within the general public (including patients with peripheral vascular disease), nonspecialist healthcare professionals (nsHCP), and trainees (medical students and trainee doctors). Relevant articles were identified from electronic databases using key search terms: ‘peripheral artery disease’; ‘limb ischaemia’; ‘intermittent claudication’; ‘knowledge’; ‘understanding’; ‘public’; ‘medical professional’. The heterogeneous results were described narratively. A lack of knowledge and understanding of PAD (disease awareness) were identified in all groups. Among nsHCPs, factors which affect knowledge include the level of training, early clinical exposure and the presence of family members with cardiovascular/vascular disease. Within the general public, knowledge and awareness was improved if a family member/friend had a diagnosis, or following a patient-centred consultation with any HCP. Public campaigns are proven effective in improving disease knowledge/awareness in conditions such as stroke alongside sustained patient education. These may provide future avenues to improve PAD knowledge and awareness, in order to effectively manage risk factors and minimise delayed or missed diagnosis of PAD. (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018117304)
Interoceptive reliance as a major determinant of emotional eating in adult obesity
Authors: Willem Clémence , Nandrino Jean-Louis , Doba Karyn , Roussel Méline , Triquet Claire , Verkindt Hélène , Pattou François , Gandolphe Marie-Charlotte
Published: January 2020

This study examined the association between emotional eating, emotion dysregulations, and interoceptive sensibility in 116 patients with obesity by distinguishing an “awareness” and a “reliance” component of interoceptive sensibility. Deficits in interoceptive awareness were only associated with more emotional eating in obesity through less interoceptive reliance and more emotion dysregulations. The results suggest that good interoceptive awareness can increase the risk of emotional eating if not supported by good interoceptive reliance. Interoceptive reliance, like the ability to trust, positively consider, and positively use inner sensations, should be a privileged target of psychotherapeutic interventions in obesity.
Parties matter but institutions live on: Labour’s legacy on Conservative immigration policy and the neoliberal consensus
Authors: Consterdine Erica
Published: January 2020

The drivers of immigration policy have long been contested. While partisan theory contends that policy is a product of parties’ interests, historical institutionalism places explanatory value on the norms of policymaking and path dependency. Examining Conservative-led immigration policy, I argue that while parties matter for defining policy objectives, institutions explain policy outputs. Despite a shift from Labour’s expansive managed migration regime to the Coalition’s restrictive policy, there was remarkable confluence in policy and policymaking. Challenging the parties matter school of thought, I argue that institutional legacies inherited from New Labour explain policy stability and that these are reflective of an emerging political consensus on neoliberal migration management, including outsourcing and commodifying migration controls, maintaining an indirect corporatist agreement with employers, underpinned by a policy paradigm predicated on economic worthiness. This article demonstrates how inherited institutions persist and how ideational legacies evolved to a political consensus of neoliberal migration management.
Facial cleansing wipes: A predictive model between consumer perception and in vitro lab measurements for rapid prototype screening
Authors: Xing Huajing , Macfie Hal , Vaught Claudette , Luo Rui , Chambers Edgar
Published: January 2020

Product development teams frequently develop many prototypes for screening before launching into the marketplace. Gaining customer feedback on each prototype is impossible because of constraints, such as tight timelines, budget, etc. For innovation in facial cleansing/makeup remover wipes, a design of experiments study was conducted to help the team optimize the product based on consumer feedback of prototypes. A predictive model based on consumer results and in vitro lab measurements for the makeup remover wipes was developed that could aid in future reformulation efforts of the textile base as well as the “juice” or lotion add-on. A consumer design of experiments study was conducted on 18 prototypes to help optimize the variables. Makeup remover wipe users and wipe considerers ( n = 963) from the United States and the United Kingdom participated in the study. In vitro lab measurements were also conducted on the same 18 prototypes covering relevant attributes. Partial least square regression was applied with a cross-validation procedure to build a predictive model between the in vitro and consumer research results. Scatter plots between consumer and in vitro lab results showed good directional trends between consumer perception and lab method on cleansing properties, softness, and gentleness. Model equations were developed for those measures. Future validation is needed prior to implementation. The validated model will enable use of in vitro results to predict consumer ratings for prototype screening. The predictive model can provide a quick and efficient way for facial cleansing/makeup remover wipe prototype screening, which will conserve resources and improve efficiency for the business.
A Narrative Review of the Use of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation in Individuals With Diabetic Foot Ulceration
Authors: Goodall Richard James , Langridge Benjamin , Lane Tristan , Davies Alun Huw , Shalhoub Joseph
Published: January 2020

This review aims to summarize the evidence reported on the use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) in individuals with diabetic foot ulceration (DFU). A systematic search of EMBASE and MEDLINE databases was performed in February 2019, using search terms relating to the domains DFU and NMES. All primary evidence assessing outcomes of NMES in DFU were included. Of 344 references obtained from database searching, 7 met the inclusion criteria and included a total of 140 participants, 77 of whom had DFU. All included studies used prospective designs. Two studies demonstrated improvements in chronic ulcer healing with NMES use; however, in each study, only 3 of the included participants had DFU and subgroup analyses based on ulcer etiology was omitted. The remaining 5 studies were produced by the same research group and positive effects of NMES (in combination with heat therapy) on DFU healing were consistently demonstrated. They reported significantly better healing rates with NMES in DFU than in nondiabetic wounds of a similar grade (healing rate: 70.0 ± 32.3% in DFU vs 38.4 ± 22.3% in nondiabetic ulcers [ P < .01]). These studies did not provide data assessing the isolated effects of NMES without concomitant heat exposure. Data on device tolerability and compliance were lacking. The existing data support a potential role for NMES in individuals with DFU; however, the identified studies inadequately controlled for confounding and were underpowered. Given the significant morbidity and mortality associated with DFU, higher quality evidence is needed to assess the adjunctive role for NMES in this group.
Fatigue damage and reliability assessment of subway train bogie frames under operating conditions
Authors: Wang Binjie , Sun Shouguang , Ma Shuang , Wang Xi
Published: January 2020

Fatigue cracks developed on subway train bogie frames before reaching the designed lifetime, which poses great challenges to operational safety. This article presents a structural fatigue reliability assessment method combining both the in-service measurement of dynamic stress and probabilistic approach for lifetime prediction. It was found that curved interval with rail corrugation can induce the elastic vibration and the modal stress on the frame, which caused the accelerated accumulation of the fatigue damage. The predicted failure mileage for the welding joint with 99% reliability was only 340,000 km, which agreed well with the real operation situation.
The Morality of War: A Review and Research Agenda
Authors: Watkins Hanne M.
Published: January 2020

What is judged as morally right and wrong in war? I argue that despite many decades of research on moral psychology and the psychology of intergroup conflict, social psychology does not yet have a good answer to this question. However, it is a question of great importance because its answer has implications for decision-making in war, public policy, and international law. I therefore suggest a new way for psychology researchers to study the morality of war that combines the strengths of philosophical just-war theory with experimental techniques and theories developed for the psychological study of morality more generally. This novel approach has already begun to elucidate the moral judgments third-party observers make in war, and I demonstrate that these early findings have important implications for moral psychology, just-war theory, and the understanding of the morality of war.
A primary care update to circumcision
Authors: Osinibi Elizabeth , Smith Thomas , Henderson Alastair
Published: January 2020

Male circumcision is the oldest and most commonly performed surgical procedure, worldwide. Historically, it has largely been performed for ritual and religious indications. However, in the last few decades, its practice, which was once taken up for non-medically proposed health benefits, has now become increasingly controversial in Europe. This article aims to highlight the clinically acceptable indications for circumcision in the UK. It discusses the assessment of a patient with phimosis, and alternatives that may be attempted in primary care before referral to a surgeon. It also aims to summarise the controversy and potential complications of circumcision, which patients may wish to consider prior to referral.
What balance between Eurojust and Europol from a parliamentary angle?
Authors: Schinina Maria
Published: January 2020

The article addresses the debated issue of the democratic accountability of Europol and Eurojust. After a short introduction on the discussion in the pre-Lisbon phase, it focuses on the current legislative framework. Through a comparative analysis of the relevant provisions of reg (EU) 2016/794 (concerning Europol) and reg (EU) 2018/1727 (on Eurojust), the article highlights an asymmetry in the intensity of the parliamentary oversight on the two Agencies and a much strong interest of Parliaments in the control on Europol. The reasons of this misalignment are identified in the different nature of the two bodies (police vs. judicial) and the reinforced operational dimension of Europol’s activity, which can have a stronger impact on fundamental rights. The second part of the contribution analyses the experience of the recently established Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group (JPSG) on Europol, identifying some limits to the parliamentary control mechanism, linked, on the one hand, to the legislative framework and, on the other hand, to the rules governing the structure and functioning of the JPSG. Finally, the article notes that relaunching the process of revision of the JPSG’s Rule of procedure is needed to improve the effectiveness of the parliamentary oversight on Europol. Moreover, a more functional framework for the interparliamentary control on Europol could provide substantial and procedural inputs to the implementation of the extremely meagre provisions related to Eurojust’s democratic accountability. Ultimately, it could represent a general model in the discussion about the democratic accountability of the proliferating Justice and Home Affairs agencies.
Transition from selexipag to oral treprostinil in a patient with pulmonary arterial hypertension
Authors: Oriaku Ifeoma , Patel Amol , Safdar Zeenat
Published: January 2020

Prostacyclins are the mainstay treatment for patients with severe pulmonary arterial hypertension. This case highlights the transition from selexipag to oral treprostinil. Our patient improved both subjectively and objectively. Cardiac output and index, as measured by the echocardiogram, improved 12% and 7.7%, respectively. Invasive hemodynamic data revealed greater improvements: cardiac output improved by 25% and cardiac index by 28%. Mixed venous oxygen saturation improved from 65% to 71%. A possible explanation is that selexipag has a maximal dose, whereas there is no recommended maximum dose of oral treprostinil. Another theory is oral treprostinil has higher affinity to the IP receptor, though selexipag has a higher specificity. However, there are no bio‐equivalency data, and data comparing pharmacodynamics of both drugs are lacking. Furthermore, no head‐to‐head trials comparing these agents exist.
Sphingosine‐1‐phosphate receptor‐independent lung endothelial cell barrier disruption induced by FTY720 regioisomers
Authors: Camp Sara M. , Marciniak Alexander , Chiang Eddie T. , Garcia Alexander N. , Bittman Robert , Polt Robin , Perez Ruth G. , Dudek Steven M. , Garcia Joe G. N.
Published: January 2020

Rationale

Vascular permeability is a hallmark of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and ventilator‐induced lung injury pathobiology; however, the mechanisms underlying this vascular dysregulation remain unclear, thereby impairing the development of desperately needed effective therapeutics. We have shown that sphingosine‐1‐phosphate (S1P) and 2‐amino‐2‐(2‐[4‐octylphenyl]ethyl)‐1,3‐propanediol (FTY720) analogues are useful tools for exploring vascular barrier regulation mechanisms.

Objective

To experimentally define the effects of FTY720 regioisomers on lung endothelial cell barrier regulation.

Methods

Specific barrier‐regulatory receptor and kinase inhibitors were utilized to probe signaling mechanisms involved in FTY720 regioisomer‐mediated human lung endothelial cell barrier responses (trans‐endothelial electrical resistance, TER). Docking simulations with the S1P1 receptor were performed to further evaluate FTY720 regioisomer signaling.

Results

FTY720 regioisomers produced potent endothelial cell barrier disruption reflected by declines in TER alterations. Pharmacologic inhibition of Gi‐coupled S1P receptors (S1P1, S1P2, S1P3) failed to alter FTY720 regioisomer‐mediated barrier disruption; findings that were corroborated by docking simulations demonstrating FTY720 regiosomers were repelled from S1P1 docking, in contrast to strong S1P1 binding elicited by S1P. Inhibition of either the barrier‐disrupting PAR‐1 receptor, the VEGF receptor, Rho‐kinase, MAPK, NFkB, or PI3K failed to alter FTY720 regioisomer‐induced endothelial cell barrier disruption. While FTY720 regioisomers significantly increased protein phosphatase 2 (PP2A) activity, PP2A inhibitors failed to alter FTY720 regioisomer‐induced endothelial cell barrier disruption.

Conclusions

Together, these results imply a vexing model of pulmonary vascular barrier dysregulation in response to FTY720‐related compounds and highlight the need for further insights into mechanisms of vascular integrity required to promote the development of novel therapeutic tools to prevent or reverse the pulmonary vascular leak central to ARDS outcomes.
How Informal Sector Affects the Formal Economy in Pakistan? A Lesson for Developing Countries
Authors: Mughal Khurrum S. , Schneider Friedrich G.
Published: January 2020

We explore the interaction of the informal sector with the formal economy for a developing economy, that is, Pakistan. Estimation results are obtained via autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach, which show a significantly positive effect of the informal sector in the long run whereas a negative impact of informal sector is found in the short run. We also present dynamic simulations to show the effect/contribution in terms of revised GDP per capita if the informal sector is accounted for in official statistics. The novelty of results is the varying effects of the informal sector across two time horizons that can have serious policy implications for developing and transition economies with large informal sectors. Although, the findings of this article enrich our understanding on the behaviour of the informal sector, they further fuel the debate associated with eradication of the informal sector. Efforts to curb informal activities may burden the low-skilled workforce in this sector and increase corruption opportunities in bureaucracy in the absence of institutional reforms. On the contrary, it makes the formal sector policy design and implementation a challenging task.

JEL Classification: E26, H26, K42, O17
Frequency Following Response and Speech Recognition Benefit for Combining a Cochlear Implant and Contralateral Hearing Aid
Authors: Kessler David M. , Ananthakrishnan Saradha , Smith Spencer B. , D’Onofrio Kristen , Gifford René H.
Published: January 2020

Multiple studies have shown significant speech recognition benefit when acoustic hearing is combined with a cochlear implant (CI) for a bimodal hearing configuration. However, this benefit varies greatly between individuals. There are few clinical measures correlated with bimodal benefit and those correlations are driven by extreme values prohibiting data-driven, clinical counseling. This study evaluated the relationship between neural representation of fundamental frequency (F0) and temporal fine structure via the frequency following response (FFR) in the nonimplanted ear as well as spectral and temporal resolution of the nonimplanted ear and bimodal benefit for speech recognition in quiet and noise. Participants included 14 unilateral CI users who wore a hearing aid (HA) in the nonimplanted ear. Testing included speech recognition in quiet and in noise with the HA-alone, CI-alone, and in the bimodal condition (i.e., CI + HA), measures of spectral and temporal resolution in the nonimplanted ear, and FFR recording for a 170-ms/da/stimulus in the nonimplanted ear. Even after controlling for four-frequency pure-tone average, there was a significant correlation ( r = .83) between FFR F0 amplitude in the nonimplanted ear and bimodal benefit. Other measures of auditory function of the nonimplanted ear were not significantly correlated with bimodal benefit. The FFR holds potential as an objective tool that may allow data-driven counseling regarding expected benefit from the nonimplanted ear. It is possible that this information may eventually be used for clinical decision-making, particularly in difficult-to-test populations such as young children, regarding effectiveness of bimodal hearing versus bilateral CI candidacy.
Geoscience Curriculum: Approach Through Learning Taxonomy and Outcome Based Education
Authors: Ram Manulal P. , Ajay K. K. , A. Gopinathan Nair
Published: January 2020

Learning outcomes are inevitably to be declared by any university and educational institution at every level of their programmes. It should have a general scheme for all programmes regardless of the discipline specificities, individual courses or even independent instructional units. Such outcomes are stated at different levels based on the taxonomy of learning adopted in each scheme. People follow different learning taxonomies for stating course contents, designing the assessment items and measuring the attainment. In this work, revised Bloom’s taxonomy (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001) has been adopted as a classic model to express different cognitive levels in outcome statements and assessment items. This has been demonstrated here based on an 80 credit postgraduate programme in geology offered by state universities and autonomous institutions. This article presents outcome statements and assessment items for three courses of the programme, namely (a) Biostratigraphy and Palaeontology, (b) Metamorphic Petrology and (c) Structural Geology, which can be ideal specimen for adopting the learning taxonomy and outcome-based education in any similar disciplines of educational programmes.
Vitality, Self-healing and Ecology: The Flow of Naturopathic Thought Across the United States and India
Authors: Sheldon Victoria
Published: January 2020

For over 5,000 years, the region now known as India has held a rich reservoir of medical systems, each providing distinct orientations towards illness experience, aetiology, cure and prevention. Since the turn of the twentieth century, there has been a considerable rise in the cultural recontextualisation of European and North American medical traditions in South Asia. With a focus on the guiding concepts of vitality, self-healing and ecology, this article maps the transnational trajectories of naturopathy across three sites: its instantiation into the United States’ early 1900s cultural climate of health epidemics and industrialisation; its rearticulation into the context of Gandhian anti-colonial movements in India; and its transformation into a mode of asserting public health and environmental advocacy in contemporary India. After tracing the trajectory of naturopathic thought, this article will provide a practitioner profile of naturopathy Dr Jacob Vadakkanchery as well as a framing of his politicised response to the 2018 floods in Kerala, south India. This particular examination serves as a microcosm of a larger trend: contemporary practitioners in India overtly re-frame naturopathic concepts in relation to immanent environmental and public health concerns.
A Comparative Study on SECA Compliance Options for Maritime Fuel Producers
Authors: Olaniyi Eunice Omolola , Prause Gunnar
Published: January 2020

In January 2015, the Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECA) regulations changed so that ships that ply the Baltic Sea and the North Sea can no longer use bunker fuel that exceeds 0.1 per cent v/v of sulphur. Many changes have been seen in the maritime sector, especially in the Baltic Sea region (BSR). From studies, the impact is still somewhat negative for some maritime stakeholders, such as small-scale fuel producing companies who must produce fuel that complies with the SECA requirements. The impact analysis of their compliance options shows that hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) option is the most viable option with a commensurable investment return rate, but it is highly risky and expensive considering the incessant plummeting of fuel price and the financial status of such companies.

However, even though the situation looks bleak for the small-scale maritime fuel producers, a deeper probe revealed a chance for exceptional opportunities for growth and profit through a change of business model to the maritime energy-contracting model (MEC). The study zooms in on a case study of a fuel producing company and empirically compares the operating costs of the MEC model (as a decentralised option) and the HDS process (as a centralised option) to determine which option will be most economically worthwhile if adopted as a SECA compliance strategy to ensure a rounded and robust choice-making process for maritime stakeholders in such situations.
How Does the Man-Know-Man Network Culture Influence Transnational Entrepreneurship?
Authors: Njoku Kingsley C. , Cooney Thomas M.
Published: January 2020

Scholars broadly agree that ethnic network and culture facilitates opportunity formation amongst transnational entrepreneurs (TEs). This article explores shared practices such as cultural values and traditional beliefs in entrepreneurial behaviour to expound how it influences decision-making process amongst TEs. The man-know-man guiding framework is introduced, and scenarios are presented that will allow in-depth understanding regarding how TEs engage in such practices. The article contributes to existing knowledge through the exposition of the new framework for analysing man-know-man network practices and how they influence transnational entrepreneurship. It also presents a novel strategy for building business relationship on quid pro quo conditions.
An Empirical Study of Net Job Creation, Firm Size and Firm Age in China
Authors: You Boyang , Fan Conglai
Published: January 2020

Based on the data set from Chinese Industrial Enterprises Database (2003–2008), this article first quantifies the net job creation of industrial enterprises in China by three methods: the base-year method ( Birch, 1979 ), the average-year method ( Davis, Haltiwanger, & Schuh, 1996 ) and the dynamic method (Davidsson, 1998). After evaluating from the results, it is concluded that the dynamic method is more precise than others. By adapting the dynamic method to the database, this article reaffirms that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in China are the dominated power in terms of job creation. Furthermore, relationships between net job creation and several enterprise characteristics, including enterprise size, age, average salary and asset are investigated with the data calculated by the dynamic method. Instead of conventional linear regressions, a lognormal simulation is found to be more suitable to describe those relationships. Finally, the conclusion in this article indicates that not only the SMEs but also young enterprises (under the age of 5) are the major force in creating jobs in China.
Social Business Model and its Efficacy: A Case Study on Agroforestry in the Indian Context
Authors: Kumar Neelesh
Published: January 2020

This article aims to discuss how social impact and social value creation (SVC) happen in a social enterprise. It attempts to understand the efficacy of social innovation through the lens of different stakeholders within a social enterprise with special reference to the beneficiary and the social entrepreneur.

The article uses a case study research method within qualitative research with the emphasis on intrinsic and instrumental case research. An inductive, interpretivist approach has been used for drawing propositions.

Through six propositions, the article understands the phenomenon of social innovation, the barriers and bottlenecks in the same which ultimately has to lead to higher levels of social impact and SVC resulting in a win-win-win situation for all the stakeholders.

The biggest limitation is that it is difficult to generalise the phenomenon occurring in case of this case research, which may be exactly replicated in other organisational settings/situations/circumstances.

The case study has been developed after having taken permission directly from the founder and co-founders of the enterprise. Due permission had been sought from the social entrepreneur(s) before going ahead with the writing and construction of this research article.
Outcomes of Cartilage‐Sparing Wide Local Excision for Primary Melanoma of the External Ear
Authors: Yamasaki Alisa , Wu Michael P. , Emerick Kevin S.
Published: January 2020

Objective

To describe outcomes after cartilage‐sparing wide local excision for primary melanoma of the external ear.

Study Design

Retrospective analysis of patients undergoing external ear melanoma excision using a cartilage‐sparing approach at a university‐based tertiary care center between 2010 and 2018.

Setting

University‐based tertiary care center.

Subject and Methods

Chart review was performed for all patients over age 18 who were treated for melanoma of the external ear at Massachusetts Eye and Ear between 2010 and 2018. Patients with melanoma in situ or with melanomas in noncartilaginous areas of the ear (eg, lobule) were excluded.

Results

A total of 8 patients underwent cartilage‐sparing excision. Sentinel lymph node biopsy was performed in 7 patients, with positive lymph nodes in 1 of 7 cases. Positive margins and local recurrence occurred in 1 of 8 (12.5%) patients during a mean (SD) follow‐up time of 22.5 (15.1) months (SE, 5.3 months). No distant metastasis or death was observed.

Conclusion

Cartilage‐sparing wide local excision for melanoma of the external ear is a surgical approach that enables surgeons to follow guideline‐recommended oncologic excision margins but has the added benefit of improved postoperative aesthetic outcomes as well as reconstructive options through preservation of the auricular cartilage framework.
The economic value of R0 for selective breeding against microparasitic diseases
Authors: Janssen Kasper , Bijma Piter
Published: January 2020

Background

Microparasitic diseases are caused by bacteria and viruses. Genetic improvement of resistance to microparasitic diseases in breeding programs is desirable and should aim at reducing the basic reproduction ratio $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0. Recently, we developed a method to derive the economic value of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 for macroparasitic diseases. In epidemiological models for microparasitic diseases, an animal’s disease status is treated as infected or not infected, resulting in a definition of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 that differs from that for macroparasitic diseases. Here, we extend the method for the derivation of the economic value of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 to microparasitic diseases.

Methods

When $${\text{R}}_{0} \le 1$$R0≤1, the economic value of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 is zero because the disease is very rare. When $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0. is higher than 1, genetic improvement of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 can reduce expenditures on vaccination if vaccination induces herd immunity, or it can reduce production losses due to disease. When vaccination is used to achieve herd immunity, expenditures are proportional to the critical vaccination coverage, which decreases with $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0. The effect of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 on losses is considered separately for epidemic and endemic disease. Losses for epidemic diseases are proportional to the probability and size of major epidemics. Losses for endemic diseases are proportional to the infected fraction of the population at the endemic equilibrium.

Results

When genetic improvement reduces expenditures on vaccination, expenditures decrease with $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 at an increasing rate. When genetic improvement reduces losses in epidemic or endemic diseases, losses decrease with $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 at an increasing rate. Hence, in all cases, the economic value of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 increases as $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 decreases towards 1.

Discussion

$${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 and its economic value are more informative for potential benefits of genetic improvement than heritability estimates for survival after a disease challenge. In livestock, the potential for genetic improvement is small for epidemic microparasitic diseases, where disease control measures limit possibilities for phenotyping. This is not an issue in aquaculture, where controlled challenge tests are performed in dedicated facilities. If genetic evaluations include infectivity, genetic gain in $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 can be accelerated but this would require different testing designs.

Conclusions

When $${\text{R}}_{0} \le 1$$R0≤1, its economic value is zero. The economic value of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 is highest at low values of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0 and approaches zero at high values of $${\text{R}}_{0}$$R0.
BCREval: a computational method to estimate the bisulfite conversion ratio in WGBS
Authors: Zhou Junhua , Zhao Minqiong , Sun Zefang , Wu Feilong , Liu Yucong , Liu Xianghua , He Zuping , He Quanze , He Quanyuan
Published: January 2020

Background

Whole genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) also known as BS-seq has been widely used to measure the methylation of whole genome at single-base resolution. One of the key steps in the assay is converting unmethylated cytosines into thymines (BS conversion). Incomplete conversion of unmethylated cytosines can introduce false positive methylation call. Developing a quick method to evaluate bisulfite conversion ratio (BCR) is benefit for both quality control and data analysis of WGBS.

Results

Here we provide a computational method named “BCREval” to estimate the unconverted rate (UCR) by using telomeric repetitive DNA as native spike-in control. We tested the method by using public WGBS data and found that it is very stable and most of BS conversion assays can achieve> 99.5% efficiency. The non-CpG DNA methylation at telomere fits a binomial model and may result from a random process with very low possibility (the ratio < 0.4%). And the comparison between BCREval and Bismark (Krueger and Andrews, Bioinformatics 27:1571–1572, 2011), a widely used BCR evaluator, suggests that our algorithm is much faster and more efficient than the latter.

Conclusion

Our method is a simple but robust method to QC and speculates BCR for WGBS experiments to make sure it achieves acceptable level. It is faster and more efficient than current tools and can be easily integrated into presented WGBS pipelines.
ElTetrado: a tool for identification and classification of tetrads and quadruplexes
Authors: Zok Tomasz , Popenda Mariusz , Szachniuk Marta
Published: January 2020

Background

Quadruplexes are specific structure motifs occurring, e.g., in telomeres and transcriptional regulatory regions. Recent discoveries confirmed their importance in biomedicine and led to an intensified examination of their properties. So far, the study of these motifs has focused mainly on the sequence and the tertiary structure, and concerned canonical structures only. Whereas, more and more non-canonical quadruplex motifs are being discovered.

Results

Here, we present ElTetrado, a software that identifies quadruplexes (composed of guanine- and other nucleobase-containing tetrads) in nucleic acid structures and classifies them according to the recently introduced ONZ taxonomy. The categorization is based on the secondary structure topology of quadruplexes and their component tetrads. It supports the analysis of canonical and non-canonical motifs. Besides the class recognition, ElTetrado prepares a dot-bracket and graphical representations of the secondary structure, which reflect the specificity of the quadruplex’s structure topology. It is implemented as a freely available, standalone application, available at https://github.com/tzok/eltetrado.

Conclusions

The proposed software tool allows to identify and classify tetrads and quadruplexes based on the topology of their secondary structures. It complements existing approaches focusing on the sequence and 3D structure.
Basal hsp70 expression levels do not explain adaptive variation of the warm- and cold-climate O3 + 4 + 7 and OST gene arrangements of Drosophila subobscura
Authors: Puig Giribets Marta , Santos Mauro , García Guerreiro María Pilar
Published: January 2020

Background

Drosophila subobscuraexhibits a rich inversion polymorphism, with some adaptive inversions showing repeatable spatiotemporal patterns in frequencies related to temperature. Previous studies reported increased basal HSP70 protein levels in homokaryotypic strains for a warm-climate arrangement compared to a cold-climate one. These findings do not match the similarhsp70genomic organization between arrangements, where gene expression levels are expected to be similar. In order to test this hypothesis and understand the molecular basis forhsp70expression, we compared basalhsp70mRNA levels in males and females, and analysed the 5′ and 3′ regulatory regions ofhsp70genes in warm- and cold-climate isochromosomal O3 + 4 + 7and OSTlines ofD. subobscura.

Results

We observed comparable mRNA levels between the two arrangements and a sex-biasedhsp70gene expression. The number of heat-shock elements (HSEs) and GAGA sites on the promoters were identical amongst the OSTand O3 + 4 + 7lines analysed. This is also true for 3′ AU-rich elements where most A and B copies ofhsp70have, respectively, two and one element in both arrangements. Beyond the regulatory elements, the only notable difference between both arrangements is the presence in 3′ UTR of a 14 bp additional fragment after the stop codon in thehsp70A copy in five O3 + 4 + 7lines, which was not found in any of the six OSTlines.

Conclusions

The equivalenthsp70mRNA amounts in OSTand O3 + 4 + 7arrangements provide the first evidence of a parallelism between gene expression and genetic organization inD. subobscuralines having these arrangements. This is reinforced by the lack of important differential features in the number and structure of regulatory elements between both arrangements, despite the genetic differentiation observed when the complete 5′ and 3′ regulatory regions were considered. Therefore, the basal levels ofhsp70mRNA cannot account, in principle, for the adaptive variation of the two arrangements studied. Consequently, further studies are necessary to understand the intricate molecular mechanisms ofhsp70gene regulation inD. subobscura.
Identification of functional regulatory elements in the human genome using pooled CRISPR screens
Authors: Borys Samantha M. , Younger Scott T.
Published: January 2020

Background

Genome-scale pooled CRISPR screens are powerful tools for identifying genetic dependencies across varied cellular processes. The vast majority of CRISPR screens reported to date have focused exclusively on the perturbation of protein-coding gene function. However, protein-coding genes comprise < 2% of the sequence space in the human genome leaving a substantial portion of the genome uninterrogated. Noncoding regions of the genome harbor important regulatory elements (e.g. promoters, enhancers, silencers) that influence cellular processes but high-throughput methods for evaluating their essentiality have yet to be established.

Results

Here, we describe a CRISPR-based screening approach that facilitates the functional profiling of thousands of noncoding regulatory elements in parallel. We selected the tumor suppressor p53 as a model system and designed a pooled CRISPR library targeting thousands of p53 binding sites throughout the genome. Following transduction into dCas9-KRAB-expressing cells we identified several regulatory elements that influence cell proliferation. Moreover, we uncovered multiple elements that are required for the p53-mediated DNA damage response. Surprisingly, many of these elements are located deep within intergenic regions of the genome that have no prior functional annotations.

Conclusions

This work diversifies the applications for pooled CRISPR screens and provides a framework for future functional studies focused on noncoding regulatory elements.
Comparative chloroplast genomics of the genus Taxodium
Authors: Duan Hao , Guo Jinbo , Xuan Lei , Wang Ziyang , Li Mingzhi , Yin Yunlong , Yang Ying
Published: January 2020

Background

Chloroplast (cp) genome information would facilitate the development and utilization of Taxodium resources. However, cp genome characteristics of Taxodium were poorly understood.

Results

We determined the complete cp genome sequences of T. distichum, T. mucronatum, and T. ascendens. The cp genomes are 131,947 bp to 132,613 bp in length, encode 120 genes with the same order, and lack typical inverted repeat (IR) regions. The longest small IR, a 282 bp trnQ-containing IR, were involved in the formation of isomers. Comparative analysis of the 3 cp genomes showed that 91.57% of the indels resulted in the periodic variation of tandem repeat (TR) motifs and 72.46% single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located closely to TRs, suggesting a relationship between TRs and mutational dynamics. Eleven hypervariable regions were identified as candidates for DNA barcode development. Hypothetical cp open reading frame 1(Ycf1) was the only one gene that has an indel in coding DNA sequence, and the indel is composed of a long TR. When extended to cupressophytes, ycf1 genes have undergone a universal insertion of TRs accompanied by extreme length expansion. Meanwhile, ycf1 also located in rearrangement endpoints of cupressophyte cp genomes. All these characteristics highlight the important role of repeats in the evolution of cp genomes.

Conclusions

This study added new evidence for the role of repeats in the dynamics mechanism of cp genome mutation and rearrangement. Moreover, the information of TRs and hypervariable regions would provide reliable molecular resources for future research focusing on the infrageneric taxa identification, phylogenetic resolution, population structure and biodiversity for the genus Taxodium and Cupressophytes.
Genome-wide association study reveals that different pathways contribute to grain quality variation in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor)
Authors: Kimani Wilson , Zhang Li-Min , Wu Xiao-Yuan , Hao Huai-Qing , Jing Hai-Chun
Published: January 2020

Background

In sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), one paramount breeding objective is to increase grain quality. The nutritional quality and end use value of sorghum grains are primarily influenced by the proportions of tannins, starch and proteins, but the genetic basis of these grain quality traits remains largely unknown. This study aimed to dissect the natural variation of sorghum grain quality traits and identify the underpinning genetic loci by genome-wide association study.

Results

Levels of starch, tannins and 17 amino acids were quantified in 196 diverse sorghum inbred lines, and 44 traits based on known metabolic pathways and biochemical interactions amongst the 17 amino acids calculated. A Genome-wide association study (GWAS) with 3,512,517 SNPs from re-sequencing data identified 14, 15 and 711 significant SNPs which represented 14, 14, 492 genetic loci associated with levels of tannins, starch and amino acids in sorghum grains, respectively. Amongst these significant SNPs, two SNPs were associated with tannin content on chromosome 4 and colocalized with three previously identified loci forTannin1, and orthologs ofZm1andTT16genes. One SNP associated with starch content colocalized with sucrose phosphate synthase gene. Furthermore, homologues ofopaque1andopaque2genes associated with amino acid content were identified. Using the KEGG pathway database, six and three candidate genes of tannins and starch were mapped into 12 and 3 metabolism pathways, respectively. Thirty-four candidate genes were mapped into 16 biosynthetic and catabolic pathways of amino acids. We finally reconstructed the biosynthetic pathways for aspartate and branched-chain amino acids based on 15 candidate genes identified in this study.

Conclusion

Promising candidate genes associated with grain quality traits have been identified in the present study. Some of them colocalized with previously identified genetic regions, but novel candidate genes involved in various metabolic pathways which influence grain quality traits have been dissected. Our study acts as an entry point for further validation studies to elucidate the complex mechanisms controlling grain quality traits such as tannins, starch and amino acids in sorghum.