bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The social role of supply chain firms during the pandemic period
Authors: Najaf Khakan , Dhiaf Mohamed Mahjoub M. , Marashdeh Hazem , Atayah Osama F.
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Social risk management is vital for growth and business continuity. This study investigates the social risk shift in supply chain management during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were retrieved from Bloomberg between 2010 and 2021 regarding all supply chain enterprises from nine countries. The authors undertake a confirmatory examination of formulated hypotheses. Social supply chain risk (SSCR) refers to “firms that took the necessary steps to decrease social risks in their supply chain. Social risks involve the child or forced labor, poor working conditions, lack of a living and fair or minimum wage”. The authors complement the analysis and address the endogeneity issue using the dynamic generalized moments method (GMM).

Findings

A significant positive relationship between COVID-19 and SSCR was discovered in this study. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain firms faced supply chain social risk. Notably, SSCR policies differ from one country to another during this period.

Research limitations/implications

The research has some limitations. The sample data are limited to 9 countries. Furthermore, it was somewhat difficult to determine the country-wise difference using COVID-19 as a dummy variable. Future research may adopt qualitative approaches, such as structural or semi-structural interviews.

Practical implications

The results have important implications for supply chain practitioners to consider the critical role of social risk in their operations. COVID-19 has exposed the new political economy and re-centered governments as the key actors in tackling grand challenges to safeguard workers, produce socially useful products and protect their stakeholders. Also, the study highlights the importance of governments and policymakers having a well-structured regulatory framework and environment for firms to comply with the social norms in their supply chain management. Finally, the study's findings should encourage supply chain managers to adopt a proactive mechanism that reduces the social risk impacts of pandemics.

Originality/value

Considering the historical backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study is unique in measuring the SSCR of enterprises from a worldwide viewpoint.
The impact of spirituality on religious competition in the USA marketplace of religion
Authors: von der Ruhr Marc
Published: March 2023

Purpose

The USA has long been known to provide a competitive environment in which religions compete for believers. The data clearly show winners and losers in this marketplace. Major Christian denominations are generally experiencing a decline in membership while religious “nones” are growing in number. Of note, the recent Pew studies of the US Religious Landscape (2008 and 2015a) indicate that measures of spirituality are rising in this environment. This paper empirically investigates how the demand for spirituality in religion may better understand these trends.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper applies ordinary least squares to survey data from the 2015 Pew study to empirically investigate how belonging to a major Christian faith and attending religious services impacts feeling of spirituality, while conditioning on a host of other demographic variables, in order to better understand these trends.

Findings

The author finds that being a member of a Christian denomination generally reduces the measure of spirituality relative to religious “nones.” However, this effect is almost always offset by a measure of attendance at religious services suggesting spirituality is positively associated with social interaction.

Originality/value

The results have implications for religious leaders concerned about maintaining and growing the church's membership. The results suggest that Church leaders may benefit from de-emphasizing hierarchical top-down rules and emphasizing community.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-05-2022-0342
Does online–offline channel integration matter for supply chain resilience? The moderating role of environmental uncertainty
Authors: Wu Xia , Li Yang , Zhu Zujun
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Drawing on dynamic capability theory, this study investigates how online–offline channel integration (OOCI) affects a firm's supply chain resilience and how such an effect is moderated by market turbulence and regulatory uncertainty.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 273 Chinese firms that conduct online and offline business and hierarchical regression analysis were used to examine the research model.

Findings

The results suggest that the effect of OOCI on supply chain resilience differs in terms of its dimensions (i.e. information integration, transaction integration and service integration). While information integration and service integration were positively associated with supply chain resilience, transaction integration had a non-significant relationship with supply chain resilience. Moreover, market turbulence negatively moderated the effect of transaction integration and positively moderated the effect of service integration. Regulatory uncertainty positively moderated the effect of transaction integration and negatively moderated the effect of service integration. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Originality/value

This study examines the effect of OOCI on supply chain resilience. It further explores the influence of market turbulence and regulatory uncertainty on the relationship between OOCI and supply chain resilience.
Modelling the barriers of rice supply chain in India using the fuzzy logic approach
Authors: Sreejith J. , Saleeshya P.G.
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Rice is an important grain in Indian scenarios, and the purpose of the research work is to identify the attributes which can be the possible barriers in the traditional rice supply chain network.

Design/methodology/approach

A multilevel conceptual model is developed based on the literature review, and a field study is conducted by administering a questionnaire from the experts. Fuzzy logic methodology and a ranking score method is applied to identify the rice supply chain performance and the barriers of the traditional rice supply chain network.

Findings

The rice supply chain performance index for the traditional rice supply chain network is obtained, and the performance of the existing rice supply chain is found to be “fair”. The “information flow” is the attribute that can be a critical weak attribute in the traditional rice supply chain network. A proposed model of the blockchain technology-enabled rice supply chain network is developed as a solution for the “information flow” barrier.

Research limitations/implications

The present research work is focussed on the generalized rice supply chain model of the Indian scenario, and more detailed studies can be carried out based on the regional issues.

Originality/value

The rice supply chain plays an important role in Indian economic development, and hence the current research paper focusses on identifying the barriers and the performance of the existing rice supply chain network.
A retrospective overview of the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management using bibliometric analysis
Authors: Güngör Göksu Gonca
Published: March 2023

Purpose

The study aims to explore a retrospective overview of the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management, a prestigious international journal in the discipline. It also analyses the bibliometric information of its publications between 2011 and 2021 in terms of authors, countries, documents, themes, topics and sources.

Design/methodology/approach

The performance analysis and science mapping were conducted using the data from Scopus between 2011 and 2021. The bibliometric information of 301 publications was visualised through the analysis types, such as co-authorship, co-citation and bibliographic coupling, through the VOSviewer software programme.

Findings

The main finding is that the journal has recently improved in several areas (e.g. its productivity and visibility, citations, index scores and international collaborations). Although financial aspects such as accounting and accountability, financial management and public budgeting maintained their importance during the analysing period, some other features were revealed as new research themes. However, there are some research gaps regarding sustainable development goals, climate change and other matters, and the solutions for them through public fiscal policies.

Research limitations/implications

The analyses are primarily backwards oriented by their very nature. Although they were excellent at portraying the past, the findings provided limited information about subjects that would be hot topics in future. The study has some limitations. The information on publications was collected from the Scopus database. However, bibliometric analyses were conducted from 2011 to 2021 as its data on Scopus did not cover before 2011. Second, the data are dynamic over time and may contain various changes in the future. Therefore, the bibliometric analysis may be repeated by including new studies of JPBAFM in the following years.

Social implications

A performance analysing that the editorial team could benefit from in order to monitor the productivity of JPBAFM, one of the popular and favoured journals in the discipline, was conducted in this paper. The editorial team may also find ideas for the intellectual development of the journal as a result of mapping the performance of the publications.

Originality/value

The bibliographic analysis of the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management has yet to be conducted. The study presents comprehensive findings on the performance and bibliometric analysis of the journal to guide authors and readers.
Modelling of consumer challenges and marketing strategies during crisis
Authors: Ishrat Irna , Hasan Mohammad , Farooq Ayesha , Khan Fateh Mohd
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Marketing is all about understanding your consumers and giving them what they want. However, this process becomes more complicated in times of economic crisis and national slowdown. Consumers can become scattered and unpredictable in their behaviour, making it hard to understand what they want or need. At times like these, it is more important than ever to rely on qualitative market research to understand the views of consumers and managers. Thus, this study aims to look at the significant consumer challenges that arise during times of crisis and the marketing strategies that managers prefer to counter the crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

The data collected for this study involves an extensive literature review followed by personal interviews with industry experts. This study presents two separate models, indicating hierarchical relationships among consumer challenges during crisis and marketing strategies using the total interpretive structural modelling approach. Further MICMAC analysis (popularly known as cross-impact matrix multiplication) was also performed to assess each variable's driving and dependence power.

Findings

“Price sensitiveness” and “adaptive buying” result as driving factors with the highest driving and lowest dependence power, which further gives rise to other consumer behaviour challenges. Likewise, the most critical strategies are “information systems” and the formation of “crisis management teams” during a crisis. At the same time, other strategies have resulted as linkage and dependent factors and none as the autonomous factor.

Originality/value

This paper provides a systematic understanding of how a manager can understand the challenges consumers face during a crisis and suggests a powerful summary of strategies companies can implement to sail through a crisis.
Efficient experience replay architecture for offline reinforcement learning
Authors: Zhang Longfei , Feng Yanghe , Wang Rongxiao , Xu Yue , Xu Naifu , Liu Zeyi , Du Hang
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Offline reinforcement learning (RL) acquires effective policies by using prior collected large-scale data, while, in some scenarios, collecting data may be hard because it is time-consuming, expensive and dangerous, i.e. health care, autonomous driving, seeking a more efficient offline RL method. The purpose of the study is to introduce an algorithm, which attempts to sample the high-value transitions in the prioritized buffer, and uniformly sample from the normal experience buffer, improving sample efficiency of offline reinforcement learning, as well as alleviating the “extrapolation error” commonly arising in offline RL.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors propose a new structure of experience replay architecture, which consists of double experience replies, a prioritized experience replay and a normal experience replay, supplying samples for policy updates in different training phases. At the first training stage, the authors sample from prioritized experience replay according to the calculated priority of each transitions. At the second training stage, the authors sample from the normal experience replay uniformly. The combination of the two experience replies is initialized by the same offline data set.

Findings

The proposed method eliminates out-of-distribution problem in an offline RL regime, and promotes training by leveraging a new efficient experience replay. The authors evaluate their method on D4RL benchmark, and the results reveal that the algorithm can achieve superior performance over the state-of-the-art offline RL algorithm. The ablation study proves that the authors’ experience replay architecture plays an important role in terms of improving final performance, data-efficiency and training stability.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the extra addition of prioritized experience replay, the proposed method increases the computational burden and has the risk of changing data distribution due to the combined sample strategy. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to use the experience replay block effectively and efficiently further.

Practical implications

Offline RL is susceptible to the quality and coverage of pre-collected data, which may be not easy to be collected from specific environment, demanding practitioners to handcraft behavior policy to interact with environment for gathering data.

Originality/value

The proposed approach focuses on the experience replay architecture for offline RL, and empirically demonstrates the superiority of the algorithm on data efficiency and final performance over conservative Q-learning across diverse D4RL tasks. In particular, the authors compare different variants of their experience replay block, and the experiments show that the stages, when to sample from the priority buffer, play an important role in the algorithm. The algorithm is easy to implement and can be combined with any Q-value approximation-based offline RL methods by minor adjustment.
Pandemic recordkeeping – the New Zealand experience
Authors: Wendelken Seren
Published: March 2023

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review the recordkeeping response to the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand. It identifies how archival authorities supported potential changes in recordkeeping practice as a result of constraints brought about by the pandemic, in particular the shift to work-from-home as the dominant paradigm.

Design/methodology/approach

Analysis of guidance, standards and initiatives published online by New Zealand archival authorities in the early stages of the pandemic was undertaken and contextualised with international counterparts.

Findings

Findings indicate that guidance provided to support changes in recordkeeping practice brought about by the pandemic was high-level, outlining potential considerations and possible pitfalls but did not provide applied advice on how to approach the shift to a work-from-home reality.

Originality/value

Research into the effects of the pandemic on recordkeeping practice and output is in its infancy; this paper contributes a brief insight into the New Zealand experience.
A review: material characterization with metamaterial based sensors
Authors: Singh Kunal Kumar , Kumar Mahto Santosh , Sinha Rashmi
Published: March 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to concentrate on research that has been conducted in the previous decade on metamaterial (MTM)-based sensors for material characterization, which includes solid dielectrics, micro fluids and biomolecules.

Design/methodology/approach

There has been a vast advancement in sensors based on MTM since the past few decades. MTM elements provide a sensitive response to materials while having a tiny footprint, making them an appealing alternative for realizing diverse sensing devices.

Findings

Related research papers on MTM sensors published in reputable journals were reviewed in this report, with a specific emphasis on the structure, size and nature of the materials characterized. Because electromagnetic wave interaction excites MTM structures, sensing applications around the electromagnetic spectrum are possible.

Originality/value

The paper contains valuable information on MTM sensor technology for material characterization, and this study also highlights the challenges and approaches that will guide future development.
Effectiveness of anti‐interleukin‐23 therapy in psoriatic arthritis: A pilot prospective real‐world study
Authors: Ak Tumay , Temiz Sera Nur Yucesoy , Taner Meliksah , Ayla Ali Yagiz , Aygun Ahmet Atıl , Engin Burhan , Can Gunay , Ugurlu Serdal
Published: March 2023

Aim

This study aimed to show the effectiveness of interleukin (IL)‐23 inhibitors in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) at weeks 12 and 24 in a real‐world setting.

Materials and Methods

Forty‐three patients with active PsA were enrolled in this study. These patients were treated with either guselkumab (n = 20) or risankizumab (n = 23). Treatment responses at the 12th and 24th weeks were evaluated with the parameters of the number of joints with active arthritis, Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) response rate, Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) score, Disease Activity Index for Psoriatic Arthritis (DAPSA) score, and C‐reactive protein (CRP) value. The study's primary endpoint was BASDAI ≤ 4 and DAPSA ≤ 14 at week 24, and the secondary endpoint was the absence of joints with clinically active arthritis signs at week 24.

Results

IL‐23 inhibition significantly improved all treatment response parameters at the 12th and 24th weeks (P < 0.001). While 90% of patients reached the primary endpoint with anti‐IL23 therapy, 74% achieved the secondary endpoint. Both biologic‐naïve and biologic‐experienced patients responded significantly to anti‐IL‐23 therapy. Also, no adverse events related to anti‐IL‐23 agents were observed.

Conclusions

The response parameters indicating the severity of PsA (the number of joints with active arthritis, BASDAI score, DAPSA score, and CRP value) and a parameter indicating the severity of skin involvement, that is, PASI score, significantly improved with anti‐IL‐23 therapy at weeks 12 and 24. Moreover, significant improvement was achieved at week 24 compared to week 12 in all response parameters.
Does credit default swap trading improve managerial learning from outsiders?
Authors: Kim Jeong‐Bon , Wiedman Christine , Zhu Chunmei
Published: March 2023

We investigate whether credit default swap (CDS) trading results in managers learning new information through stock prices that is relevant to their investment and forecasting decisions. We argue that the CDS market structure, the sophistication of CDS market participants, and the cleanness of CDS spreads as a signal of default risk together produce and convey information that is new to managers of firms referenced in CDS contracts. We consider two measures for managerial learning: (1) the sensitivity of managerial investments to share prices and (2) the sensitivity of changes in management forecast accuracy to stock returns. We find that both sensitivity measures increase significantly when firms are referenced in any traded CDS contracts, indicating that CDS trading improves managerial learning. We also find that the improvement in managerial learning is more pronounced for firms that are subject to higher uncertainty in industry‐specific and economy‐wide prospects, consistent with the view that CDS market participants have informational advantages with respect to the industry‐level and macroeconomic environments. We further find that the improvement in managerial learning is more evident for firms with higher credit risk. Our findings provide large‐sample evidence on a positive consequence of CDS trading in the context of managers' ability to learn from outside investors.
Measuring biological age using a functionally interpretable multi‐tissue RNA clock
Authors: Jung Sascha , Arcos Hodar Javier , del Sol Antonio
Published: March 2023

The quantification of the biological age of cells yields great promises for accelerating the discovery of novel rejuvenation strategies. Here, we present MultiTIMER, the first multi‐tissue aging clock that measures the biological, rather than chronological, age of cells from their transcriptional profiles by evaluating key cellular processes. We applied MultiTIMER to more than 70,000 transcriptional profiles and demonstrate that it accurately responds to cellular stressors and known interventions while informing about dysregulated cellular functions.
The gender citation gap: Why and how it matters
Authors: Wu Cary
Published: March 2023

The weight of evidence suggests that articles written by men and women receive citations at comparable rates. This suggests that research quality or gender‐based bias in research evaluation and citing behaviors may not be the reason why academic women accumulate fewer citations than men at the career level. In this article, I outline a career perspective that highlights women's disadvantages in career progression as the root causes for the gender citation gap. I also consider how the gender citation gap may perpetuate the unequal pay between genders in science. My analysis of two different datasets, one including paper and citation information for over 130,000 highly cited scholars during the 1996–2020 period and another including citation and salary information for nearly 2,000 Canadian scholars over the 2014–2019 period, shows several important findings. First, papers written by women on average receive more citations than those written by men. Second, the gender citation gap grows larger with time as men and women progress in their careers, but the opposite pattern holds when research productivity and collaborative networks are considered. Third, higher citations lead to higher pay, and gender differences in citations explain a significant share of the gender wage gap. Findings demonstrate the critical need for more attention toward gender differences in career progression when investigating the causes and solutions for gender disparities in science.
Seen and not heard: A comparative case study of women on boards and process loss beyond critical mass
Authors: Tilbury Louise , Sealy Ruth
Published: March 2023

Research Question/Issue

Building on a classic model of socio‐cognitive board processes, we consider the behaviors of men and women directors in boardrooms. We question whether having a critical mass of women on boards, defined as three or more women, removes barriers to women's participation in the boardroom, asking “How does gender influence board processes in boards with three or more women?”

Research Findings/Insights

Using a comparative case study of three boards through board observation and qualitative interviews, we question the assumption that a critical mass of women delivers effective board processes. We reinterpret the need for women to collaborate supportively as process loss, defined as interaction difficulties preventing groups reaching full potential, revealing potential barriers for women non‐executive directors to contribute across the whole agenda, particularly during critical debates.

Theoretical/Academic Implications

Critical mass theory ignores important interactions between gender and other job‐related characteristics to underestimate social complexity in the boardroom. Building on an existing typology of diversity, we suggest that gender in the boardroom can operate as status diversity (disparity), as well as information‐based diversity (variety) and value‐based diversity (separation).

Practitioner/Policy Implications

Chairs and board evaluators who observe board meetings should be vigilant for patterns of participation and collaboration that indicate that women directors are experiencing restricted access to discussion, in particular if women are interrupted. Board leadership decisions should be reviewed regularly to ensure they are supporting board effectiveness, maintaining focus on the task rather than navigating complex social dynamics.
Haemophilia B, severe childhood obesity and other extra‐haematological features associated with similar 4Mb‐deletions on Xq27: Clinical findings, molecular insights and literature update
Authors: Radic Claudia P. , Abelleyro Miguel M. , Ziegler Betiana , Marchione Vanina D. , Nevado Julián , Lapunzina Pablo , Sciuccati Gabriela , Neme Daniela , Rossetti Liliana C. , Bonduel Mariana , De Brasi Carlos D.
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Haemophilia B (HB) is associated with pathogenic variants in F9. Hemizygous deletions encompassing the entire F9 and proximate genes may express extra‐haematological clinical phenotypes.

Aim

To analyse the genotype/phenotype correlations in two unrelated boys with severe early childhood obesity (SCO), global developmental delay (GDD) and similar bleeding phenotype associated with comparable Xq27 deletions spanning the entire F9 and proximate genes, and characterise the pathogenic events estimating the most likely mutational mechanism involved.

Methods

Entire F9‐deletions were detected in three hemizygous unrelated probands with HB: two cases, C#1/C#2, presented SCO and GDD and a control patient (Co), who only had severe bleeding symptoms. Dense SNP‐array and case‐specific STS walking scan allowed characterisation of the deletion breakpoints. Extensive use of bioinformatics, statistics and clinical databases allowed the investigation of genotype‐phenotype associations.

Results

Patients C#1/C#2 and Co resulted in a complete F9 and additional gene deletions of variable extensions on Xq26.3‐Xq27.2 (C#1/C#2/Co: 4.3Mb/3.9Mb/160Kb). C#1/C#2 common deleted gene SOX3 is directly associated with SCO, GDD and pituitary hypothyroidism (PH) whilst C#2 extra‐deleted gene MAGEC2 indirectly relates to anal atresia (AA). Breakpoint analysis revealed the involvement of the mechanisms of Alu/Alu recombination for the first time in HB and non‐homologous or alternative end‐joining.

Conclusion

Our results represent the first report of unrelated patients with HB, SCO and GDD. This study and the literature update expand the spectrum of clinical findings and molecular insights observed in patients with HB caused by complete F9 and nearby SOX3 and MAGEC2 gene deletions, which may configure a contiguous gene syndrome.
‘A real fine balancing act’: A secondary qualitative analysis of power imbalance in comorbid cancer and dementia in an outpatient treatment setting
Authors: Farrington Naomi , Richardson Alison , Bridges Jackie
Published: March 2023

Aims

Studies of health services reveal a focus on provision of scheduled care at the expense of patient need, placing the health service in a position of power and the patient as passive recipient. This secondary qualitative analysis of a focused ethnography draws on the Foucauldian concept of power as pervasive and relational, to examine how an imbalance of power is manifested in situations where people with both cancer and dementia are being treated for cancer.

Design

Secondary qualitative analysis of a focused ethnographic study.

Data Sources

In the original study, qualitative data were gathered from observation and interviews with people with cancer and dementia (n = 2), caregivers (n = 7) and staff (n = 20). The study was conducted in the outpatient departments of two teaching hospitals in England between January 2019 and July 2021. Data from all sources were analysed for this secondary analysis using constant comparison.

Results

The principal theme was balance, encapsulating the competing priorities involved in delivering cancer treatment. There was tension between maintaining safety and ensuring an individual's right to treatment, and difficulty reconciling the needs of the system with the needs of individuals.

Conclusion

The pervasive nature of power can be harnessed to enhance the agency of people with cancer and dementia by incorporating principles of shared decision making.

Implications for the Profession and/or Patient Care

We recommend incorporating the principles of personalized care to achieve more equitable power relations, reduce health inequalities and ensure that cancer treatment offered to people with dementia is safe and appropriate.

Reporting Method

EQUATOR (COREQ) guidelines have been used for reporting.

Patient or Public Contribution

Patients and the public were involved in designing the original research questions and the study protocol including documentation such as interview topic guides and participant information sheets.
Disentangling the effects of environmental and geographic distances on lizard assemblages in Amazonian forests
Authors: Peixoto Gabriela Marques , de Fraga Rafael , Magnusson William Ernest , Leitão Pedro Henrique , Kaefer Igor Luis , Lima Albertina Pimentel
Published: March 2023

Aim

Distinguishing ecological and evolutionary processes that structure assemblages can provide a comprehensive vision of the variation in species turnover in heterogeneous regions. However, the causes of spatial variation in organism assemblies in most of the Amazon still require further studies. In view of this, our objective was to determine the relative roles of species interactions, categorical and continuous environmental filters and isolation by distance in the taxonomic and functional composition of lizard assemblages.

Location

Amazonian rainforest.

Taxon

Lacertilia.

Methods

We sampled 14 sites along 880 km in the Madeira‐Purus interfluvial region, central‐south‐western Amazonia. We used multiple linear models applied to distance matrices, spatial correlograms and partitioned variance to distinguish the effects of geographical distances from environmental distances on lizard assemblages. Additionally, to better understand the effects of environmental gradients and forest type on species traits, we used a combination of RLQ and fourth‐corner analysis.

Results

Variance in taxonomic distance was mainly explained by a continuous environmental gradient that selects different species. Although we found no evidence of overdispersion or clustering of traits, functional distance was mainly explained by forest type and precipitation. The weak effect of geographical distance on lizard assemblages suggests that different environmental conditions have selected distinct subsets of species and functional traits.

Main Conclusions

We showed that the structural heterogeneity along an environmental gradient in Amazonia has a significant impact on the taxonomic and functional composition of lizard assemblages. Environmental filtering along the interfluvial region has caused species turnover and determined differences in the functional characteristics found between assemblages in dense and open forests. These results are relevant for conservation since local species or trait subsets change across the landscape and are therefore irreplaceable in the case of local extinction.
Evolutionary history and patterns of divergence in three tropical east Asian squirrels across the Isthmus of Kra
Authors: Hinckley Arlo , Hawkins Melissa T. R. , Maldonado Jesús E. , Leonard Jennifer A.
Published: March 2023

Aim

Understanding the biotic and abiotic mechanisms underlying the generation and maintenance of biogeographic transitions represent long‐standing topics in evolutionary biology. The Isthmus of Kra (IOK) divides Sundaland and Indochina and constitutes a poorly characterized terrestrial biogeographic transition. Here we looked at population genetic structure of three species that are distributed across the IOK to gain insights into the drivers that have shaped this transition and regional diversification patterns.

Location

Tropical east Asia: Sundaland and Indochina.

Taxa

Callosciurus caniceps, Tamiops mcclellandii, and Dremomys rufigenis‐ornatus species complex (Mammalia: Rodentia: Sciuridae).

Methods

We generated complete mitogenomes and sequences of 11 nuclear intron fragments from 61 and 67 museum specimen samples, respectively. We assessed population structure by constructing Maximum Likelihood mitogenome phylogenies (IQTREE2), and nuclear marker haplowebs and conspecificity matrices (HaplowebMaker and CoMa). We estimated divergence dates through Bayesian phylogenetic inference (BEAST2) and put these results in the context of climatic and geological history.

Results

High levels of mitochondrial and nuclear divergence were identified across the IOK in all three squirrels. Lineage turnover was consistent with the two major mammal species distribution transitions near the Kangar‐Pattani Line and at the juncture between the Thai‐Malay peninsula and the mainland. Divergence of mitochondrial lineages across Kra was estimated in the late Pliocene/ early Pleistocene for all three taxa. Older Miocene/Pliocene divergences were estimated within Indochina in D. rufigenis‐ornatus and T. mcclellandii, which were paraphyletic.

Main Conclusions

Sundaic and Indochinese populations have possibly diverged in allopatric habitat refugia in or around mountains during periods of increased aridity and evergreen forest contraction. Ecological differences and/or topography might have influenced genetic differentiation during periods of rainforest expansion. Alternative hypotheses remain to be tested with more informative nuclear markers and additional geographic sampling.
Environmental abundances of the non‐native round gobyNeogobius melanostomusinfluence feeding of native fish predators
Authors: Herlevi Heidi , Wallin Kihlberg Isa , Aarnio Katri , Bonsdorff Erik , Florin Ann‐Britt , Ljung Andreas , Lundström Karl , Mattila Johanna , Östman Örjan
Published: March 2023

The authors assessed the importance of the round gobyNeogobius melanostomusas prey for three native predatory fish species, Atlantic codGadus morhua, European perchPerca fluviatilisand northern pikeEsox lucius, in a northern and southern area of the Baltic Proper, using a combination of visual analysis and DNA metabarcoding of predator stomach contents. To explore the influence of environmental abundances ofN. melanostomuson predation, they related the occurrence ofN. melanostomusin predator diets to its abundance in survey fishing.Gadus morhuaandE. luciusin the southern area showed the highest tendency to feed onN. melanostomuswhen it was abundant, asN. melanostomusoccurred in up to 100% of stomachs and constituted up to 88% of the total diet volume proportion. The diet contribution ofN. melanostomuswas associated withN. melanostomusabundances forG. morhuaandE. lucius, and whenN. melanostomuswas abundant, these predators exhibited lower prey richness and a higher degree of piscivory.G. morhuaandP. fluviatilisalso fed less on crustacean prey whenN. melanostomuswas abundant. The high importance ofN. melanostomusin diets of native fish predators may modify indirect interactions betweenN. melanostomusand native prey species in invaded coastal communities.
The Indian Child Welfare Act during the Brackeen years
Authors: Fort Kathryn E. , Smith Adrian T.
Published: March 2023

From 2017 through 2022, while the Indian Child Welfare Act (“ICWA”) was under direct constitutional attack from Texas, state courts around the country continued hearing appeals on ICWA with virtually no regard for the decision‐making happening in Haaland v. Brackeen in the federal courts. For practitioners following or working on both sets of cases, this duality felt surreal, as they practiced their daily work under an existential threat. The data in this article draw from the authors' previous publications providing annual updates on ICWA appeals, and now include cases through 2021. It provides a description of appellate data trends across this time period, as well as for each year, while also highlighting key appellate decisions from jurisdictions across the country. Perhaps what this article demonstrates more than any single thing is the amount that ICWA is a part of child welfare practitioners' daily lives now, in a way that will be difficult to upend, regardless of the Supreme Court's ultimate decision.
Looking for a system with its head and heart in balance: Using institutional analysis to assess Indian child welfare act implementation in Saint Louis County, Minnesota
Authors: Bussey Bree , Erickson Mark , Gatowski Sophia , Woods Maren , Eng Denise , Watson Amanda
Published: March 2023

Since the passage of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), state and county human service systems have struggled to implement its provisions in a manner that incorporates the spirit and the letter of the law. This article provides a descriptive overview of a jurisdictionally specific tribal‐state partnership team's adaptation of Institutional Analysis, a needs assessment methodology developed by Praxis International, as an alternative methodology to compliance measurement and to identify needs in ICWA implementation. We share a description of our process and experience, our theory of change for human services systems seeking to improve their treatment of American Indian families, and provide some lessons from our experience.
Breathlessness in older adults: What we know and what we still need to know
Authors: Hegendörfer Eralda , Degryse Jean‐Marie
Published: March 2023

Breathlessness is common among older adults, but it is often hidden as “normal aging “or considered narrowly as a symptom of cardio‐respiratory diseases. Studies on breathlessness in older adults are mostly focused on specific diseases, whereas older adults are characterized by multimorbidity and multi‐system age‐related impairments. This article aims to provide an overview of what is known so far on breathlessness in the general population of older adults and identify areas for further research. Research shows that breathlessness in older adults is a multifactorial geriatric condition, crossing the borders of system‐based impairments and diseases, and a valuable independent prognostic indicator for adverse outcomes. Further research needs to investigate (1) the multi‐factorial mechanisms of breathlessness in community‐dwelling older adults including the role of respiratory sarcopenia; (2) the influence of affective and cognitive changes of older age on the perception and report of breathlessness; (3) the best way to assess and use breathlessness for risk prediction of adverse outcomes in general geriatric assessments; and (4) the most appropriate multi‐modal rehabilitation interventions and their outcomes. Clinicians need to shift their approach to dyspnea from a disease symptom to a multifactorial geriatric condition that should be proactively searched for, as it identifies higher risk for adverse outcomes, and can be addressed with evidence‐based interventions that can improve the quality of life and may reduce the risk of adverse outcomes in older adults.
Impact of Wellness Policy Review, Wellness Council Activity, and Student Health Objectives on Overall School Wellness Climate
Authors: Hoke Alicia M. , Keller Chelsea M. , Grimm Caroline L. , Lehman Erik B. , Sekhar Deepa L.
Published: March 2023

Background

The whole school, whole community, whole child (WSCC) model suggests wellness councils, ongoing review of wellness policy, and a plan for evaluating set objectives are some of the key features needed to support school wellness infrastructure. This study explored the relationship between implementation of these infrastructure features and overall school wellness environment assessment scores among a sampling of Pennsylvania schools.

Methods

The Healthy Champions program provides Pennsylvania schools an opportunity to self‐assess their wellness environments across several school wellness topics. Staff enrolled their school in the program by completing a self‐report electronic assessment. Enrollment data from the 2020/2021 program year were analyzed using the Kruskal‐Wallis test and linear fixed model to identify the impact of varied implementation levels across 3 wellness infrastructure activities. Interactions between these variables and overall assessment score were also analyzed.

Results

Of the 645 Pennsylvania schools enrolled and analyzed, we observed higher mean wellness environment assessment scores (∆ 0.74 95% CI 0.40‐1.07; p < 0.001) among schools that reported some frequency of all 3 wellness infrastructure activities, compared to schools that reported no frequency for the activities.

Implications

Schools with existing policies and practices related to the 3 wellness infrastructure activities should consider the degree of implementation to best support overall wellness in their school setting. Additional research to explore implementation barriers and supports is needed.

Conclusions

Analyses indicated that overall wellness environment assessment scores are impacted by implementation thresholds for wellness council meeting frequency, revision of wellness policy, and review of student health promotion objectives.
Development and preliminary validation of the Sleep Screening for Children and Adolescents with Complex Chronic Conditions (SCAC)
Authors: Kubek Larissa Alice , Claus Benedikt , Rostasy Kevin , Bertolini Annikki , Schimmel Mareike , Frühwald Michael C. , Classen Georg , Zernikow Boris , Wager Julia
Published: March 2023

Children and adolescents with complex chronic conditions, including those with life‐threatening or life‐limiting conditions, are a heterogeneous population. Many individuals exhibit sleep abnormalities that are measurable by proxy questionnaires. No suitable instrument to assess the wide range of different complex chronic conditions is currently available. The aim of the present study was to develop a screening tool—the Sleep Screening for Children and Adolescents with Complex Chronic Conditions—to effectively obtain sleep behaviour information in this population. Following a mixed‐method design, potential items for the Sleep Screening for Children and Adolescents with Complex Chronic Conditions questionnaire were defined through literature research and expert meetings. In a pre‐test with N = 60 family and professional caregivers, the items' relevance and comprehensibility as well as the instrument's overall design were assessed. For the main test, N = 315 participants were recruited in three tertiary paediatric hospitals. A principal components analysis detected the questionnaire's scales. Item analysis focused on mean values, range, difficulty and discriminatory power. Convergent validation of the Sleep Screening for Children and Adolescents with Complex Chronic Conditions was assessed via correlations between scale items. Most patients had neurological or neuromuscular diseases. Four scales (“Falling and staying asleep”, “Sleep‐associated respiration and arousal”, “Daytime sleepiness” and “Sleep‐associated movements”) emerged. The item analysis showed satisfactory discriminative power. In the preliminary validation, all scales correlated positively with a child's care level and with various sleep circumstances items. Three scales additionally correlated with the number of complex chronic condition diagnoses. This newly developed questionnaire can provide clinicians with first indications of possible sleep problems in a growing paediatric population.
Genetic fine‐mapping reveals single nucleotide polymorphism mutations in the MC1R regulatory region associated with duck melanism
Authors: Liu Hehe , Xi Yang , Tang Qian , Qi Jingjing , Zhou Zhengkui , Guo Zhanbao , Fan Wenlei , Hu Jian , Xu Yaxi , Liang Suyun , Xie Ming , Tang Jing , Zhang Yunsheng , Hou Shuisheng
Published: March 2023

Birds are among the most colourful terrestrial vertebrates, with various plumage colours and patterns. We conducted a genome‐wide association study (GWAS) on an intercross F2 population of Pekin ducks and mallards (n = 722) and identified a 1.57‐Mb genetic region (Chr11: 20,176,480–21,750,101 bp) related to duck melanism. Fine mapping by linkage disequilibrium (LD) and FST analysis narrowed the final candidate region to a region of 22,500 bp (Chr11: 20,677,500–20,700,000 bp) including three coding genes, TCF25, MC1R and TUBB3. Combined with transcriptome and qRT‐PCR analysis, MC1R was identified as the unique genetic locus responsible for black plumage in ducks, and it was significantly more highly expressed in the feather bulbs of black ducks. We also identified 52G > A (Chr11: 20,696,354G > A) and 376G > A (Chr11: 20,696,678G > A) mutations in the MC1R coding region that have been widely studied in ducks. In addition, structural variations (SVs) were screened by nanopore sequencing, and no significant SV was found to be associated with the duck black plumage trait. However, we identified four novel single nucleotide polymorphisms in the MC1R regulator region (Chr11: 20,678,412G > A, Chr11: 20,679,236G > A, Chr11: 20,692,496 A > G and Chr11: 20,692,791 A > G) that had a strong association with the black plumage phenotype of ducks and combined with potential changes in transcription binding affinities. The luciferase reporter gene assay demonstrated that Chr11: 20,678,412G > A and Chr11: 20,679,236G > A led to significant promoter activity changes. Our research emphasizes the importance of MC1R regulatory region mutation in determining the duck black plumage phenotype, and these results expand our understanding of the genetic mechanism underlying duck plumage colour.
Overweight, obesity and risk of multimorbidity: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of longitudinal studies
Authors: Delpino Felipe Mendes , dos Santos Rodrigues Ana Paula , Petarli Glenda Blaser , Machado Karla Pereira , Flores Thaynã Ramos , Batista Sandro Rodrigues , Nunes Bruno Pereira
Published: March 2023

This study aimed to review and quantify the association between overweight and obesity in the risk of multimorbidity among the general population. We conducted a systematic review and meta‐analysis in the databases of Pubmed, Lilacs, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase. We included cohort studies that assessed the association between overweight and/or obesity with the risk of multimorbidity. The Newcastle‐Ottawa assessed the studies' individual quality. A random‐effect model meta‐analysis was performed to evaluate the association between overweight and obesity with the relative risk (RR) of multimorbidity; the I2test evaluated heterogeneity. After excluding duplicates, we found 1.655 manuscripts, of which eight met the inclusion criteria. Of these, seven (87.5%) evidenced an increased risk of multimorbidity among subjects with overweight and/or obesity. Overall, we observed an increased risk of multimorbidity among subjects with overweight (RR: 1.26; CI95%: 1.12; 1.40, I2 = 98%) and obesity (RR: 1.99; CI95%: 1.45;2.72, I2 = 99%) compared to normal weight. According to the I2test, the heterogeneities of the meta‐analyses were high. The Newcastle‐Ottawa scale showed that all studies were classified as high quality. Further longitudinal studies are needed, including different populations and stratifications by sex, age, and other variables.