bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Scalable and thermally robust perpendicular magnetic tunnel junctions for STT-MRAM
Authors: Gottwald M. , Kan J. J. , Lee K. , Zhu X. , Park C. , Kang S. H.
Published: January 2015

Thermal budget, stack thickness, and dipolar offset field control are crucial for seamless integration of perpendicular magnetic junctions (pMTJ) into semiconductor integrated circuits to build scalable spin-transfer-torque magnetoresistive random access memory. This paper is concerned with materials and process tuning to deliver thermally robust (400 °C, 30 min) and thin (i.e., fewer layers and integration-friendly) pMTJ utilizing Co/Pt-based bottom pinned layers. Interlayer roughness control is identified as a key enabler to achieve high thermal budgets. The dipolar offset fields of the developed film stacks at scaled dimensions are evaluated by micromagnetic simulations. This paper shows a path towards achieving sub-15 nm-thick pMTJ with tunneling magnetoresistance ratio higher than 150% after 30 min of thermal excursion at 400 °C.
Dubaization of Istanbul: Insights from the Knowledge-Based Urban Development Journey of an Emerging Local Economy
Authors: Yigitcanlar Tan , Bulu Melih
Published: January 2015

Knowledge-based urban development (KBUD) has become a popular pursuit for cities, especially from the developing countries, to fast track the catching up process with their counterparts in developed nations. Nevertheless, for these cities the KBUD progress is daunting and full of challenges. The authors aim to shed light on the major KBUD challenges of emerging local economies by undertaking an in-depth empirical investigation in one such city. They scrutinize the prospects and constraints of Istanbul in her KBUD journey through comparative performance and policy context analyses. The findings reveal invaluable insights, not only for Istanbul to reshape the policy context and align development with contemporary KBUD better, but also for other emerging local economies to learn from these experiences.
Teaching the market: fostering consent to education markets in the United States
Authors: Cohen Dan , Lizotte Chris
Published: January 2015

Marked-based reforms in education have garnered the support of politicians, philanthropists, and academics, reworking the nature of public education in the United States. In this paper we explore the methods used to produce consent for market-based reforms of primary and secondary (K-12) schooling in the United States, focusing on two case studies to interrogate how this consent is generated as well as how these reforms are resisted in place. In doing so we illustrate how market-making in public services is a contested terrain and the importance of understanding the nature of their roll-out at the local level.
Beyond Carbon, More Than Forest? REDD+ Governmentality in Indonesia
Authors: McGregor Andrew , Challies Edward , Howson Peter , Astuti Rini , Dixon Rowan , Haalboom Bethany , Gavin Michael , Tacconi Luca , Afiff Suraya
Published: January 2015

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) is an expanding global initiative oriented at slowing or reversing carbon emissions from forests in the Global South. The programme is based on the principle of payment for environmental services, where the carbon sequestration services of forests are seen to have a financial value which can be paid for through grant and market mechanisms. In this paper we explore how REDD+ is implemented, drawing upon the concept of governmentality. We focus on REDD+ practices in Indonesia, concluding with a case study focused on the Sungai Lamandau REDD+ project in Central Kalimantan. A cross-scalar approach is adopted that explores the different but overlapping strategies of actors congregating at international, national, and local scales. We detail the neoliberal strategies employed by international actors; the more disciplinary approaches evident within national planning processes; and local forms of engagement being practised by a forest community. Our findings reveal REDD+ to be comprised of a heterogeneous regime of disjointed practices that reflect the existing political ecologies and interests of differently located actors. Rather than consolidate these approaches we argue that the strength of the programme lies in its fluidity, which is creating new cross-scalar opportunities, and risks, for those pursuing forms of social and environmental justice.
Negotiating Strategic Planning's Transitional Spaces: The Case of ‘Guerrilla Governance’ in Infrastructure Planning
Authors: Legacy Crystal , van den Nouwelant Ryan
Published: January 2015

Strategic planning can begin as a deliberative and inclusive process of plan making, but then transition into a decisive and exclusive process of investment and priority setting at the stage of implementation. Citizens who once participated in the formal plan making process through government-designed engagement events fade into the background in this critical latter part of strategic planning. At this point they must invent avenues to influence investment priorities. In the context of bicycle infrastructure planning and delivery in Sydney, Australia this paper examines how strategic plans that embrace cycling as an important transport mode translate into decisions to commit to some projects over others. The paper explores four ways community groups seek traction in a highly contentious and transitional space of planning through a process we call ‘guerrilla governance’. Evoking aspects of advocacy and insurgent planning, guerrilla governance broadens how the term ‘governance’ is used within urban planning scholarship, by incorporating such ‘legitimised’ agitation from beyond government.
A Discrete Choice Approach to Modeling Food Store Access
Authors: Hillier Amy , Smith Tony , Cannuscio Carolyn C , Karpyn Allison , Glanz Karen
Published: January 2015

Assessments of access to healthful food frequently use GIS to measure the distance and concentration of food outlets relative to where residents live. These descriptive approaches do not account for food shopping behavior, which may vary based on the attributes of food shoppers and their activity space—places where they live, work, access resources, and socialize. Building on transportation research about accessibility, we reframe the issue of food access and equity from one about ‘what is nearby?’ to ‘where do people shop?’. We use a conditional logit model to analyze disaggregate data from a door-to-door survey of food shopping choice and food store surveys conducted in a predominantly non-Hispanic Black and middle-income and low-income section of Philadelphia. Our results highlight the importance of distance from home to food stores, overall, but they also emphasize the influence on food store choice of the race and sex of food shoppers, travel mode, and where they spend time other than at home, as well as food prices and the availability of healthful foods. This approach to understanding food access holds promise for future research that can link store choice to specific food purchases and health outcomes as well as for refining place-based strategies for improving access to healthful foods.
Securitizing instability: the US military and full spectrum operations
Authors: Morrissey John
Published: January 2015

This paper examines the recent broadening of the US military’s overseas mission into what it calls ‘full spectrum operations’ and critiques how it is being enabled by what I term ‘full spectrum law’. The paper explores the important doctrinal shifts that took place in the US military from 2005, when it declared for the first time a commitment to ‘stability operations’ as a military responsibility equal in status to offense and deterrence. This, I argue, has reinforced an already dominant US national security discourse in which military and economic security interests are firmly bound. In particular, it has given the US military a broader role in the ‘correction’ of underdevelopment and the securitization of the legal and economic modalities necessary for a functioning neoliberal global economy. The paper reflects on the US military’s blending of security and development concerns and reveals how its legal framing of stability operations draws upon a ‘notional legal spectrum’ that allows for the securitization of the most broadly understood ‘instability’ and sanctions the interminable use of the US military in global interventions in an era ubiquitously cited as one of ‘persistent conflict’.
Corrigendum to: 18 COMPARISON BETWEEN THE EFFICIENCY OF 30-MG FLUROGESTONE ACETATE INTRAVAGINAL SPONGE (FGA-30) AND CONTROLLED INTERNAL DRUG RELEASE (CIDR) TO SYNCHRONIZE OESTRUS IN EWES
Authors: Swelum A. , Al-Owaimer A. , Abouheif M.
Published: January 2015

The aim of the present study was comparing between the efficiency of FGA-30 (intravaginal polyurethane sponges impregnated with 30 mg of flurogestone acetate; Synchropart®, Ceva Sante, Animale, France) and EAZI-Breed™ CIDR® (an inert silicone elastomer impregnated with 0.3 g of natural progesterone; Pfizer Animal Health, Hamilton, New Zealand) to synchronize oestrus in ewes. Three hundred twenty multiparous ewes of 2 native breeds (Naimi and Najdi) were equally and randomly allotted into 2 groups: Group A (FGA-30, n = 160) and Group B (CIDR®, n = 160). Both methods were inserted intravaginally for 14 days with intramuscular administration of 600 IU of eCG (Synchropart® Ceva Sante, Animale, France) at withdrawal time. Retention, vaginal discharge, and drawstring breakage rates were calculated at withdrawal time. The standing oestrous was detected using a vasectomized ram starting 24 h after progestagen withdrawal and repeated every 12 h (24 h, 36 h, 48 h, 60 h, and 72 h). The blood samples were collected at the time of progestagen withdrawal, after 24 h, and after 48 h (at time of AI). Follicular stimulating hormone, LH, oestradiol (E2), and progesterone (P4) serum concentrations were measured using commercial ELISA kits and micro-titrimetric plates. Laparoscopic insemination was performed 48 h after progestagen withdrawal. Pregnancy was diagnosed by ultrasonography at day 23 after insemination and confirmed at Day 35 and 60. Number of fetuses was recorded and confirmed at lambing. Pregnancy rate, fecundity percentage (litter size percentage), and prolificacy percentage (lambing rate) were calculated. The SAS programme was used for all analyses. Data were expressed in percentages except hormone levels, which were expressed as the mean ± standard error. Comparisons among groups were evaluated using Chi Square in all measured parameters except hormone levels, which were evaluated using an analysis of variance (ANOVA) test. A difference was considered significant at P < 0.05. The results revealed that retention rate was insignificantly different between the two groups. Drawstring breakage was observed only in FGA-30 and was absent in CIDR (9.33% v. 0). Moreover, vaginal discharge rate was significantly higher in FGA-30. Oestrus response was significantly higher in CIDR at 24 h and 48 h after progestagen withdrawal. Oestradiol and progesterone serum levels were significantly higher in CIDR, whereas LH and FSH serum levels showed insignificant differences. Pregnancy rate, twining rate, prolificacy, and fecundity were significantly higher in CIDR (75.71%, 33.96%, 1.34 and 1.01, respectively). These results show that although FGA and CIDR devices are efficient in synchronizing oestrus in ewes, CIDR provides higher oestrus response rate, pregnancy rate, twining rate, prolificacy, and fecundity. Consequently, the use of CIDR is recommended.
Corrigendum to: 198 AGE EFFECT ON RELATIVE GENE EXPRESSION OF BOVINE SPERMATOGONIA
Authors: Giassetti M. I. , Moreira P. V. , Goissis M. D. , Oliveira de Barros F. R. , Delgado J. C. , Mendes C. M. , Assis P. M. , Assumpoção M. E. O. d'Á , Visintin J. A.
Published: January 2015

Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) have important applications in treatments for infertility and animal transgenesis. However, the isolation of bovine SSCs is less efficient than for other species and it is lower for adult bulls. The goal of this study was to verify whether the relative gene expression of spermatogonia is affected by age after the laminin differential plating. Ten grams of parenchyma of testicles from pre-pubertal animals (5 months of age, n = 5) and bulls (3–4 years of age, n = 5) were minced and digested: colagenase (1 mg mL–1) for 30 min at 37°C and trypsin (2.5 mg mL–1) for 5 min at 37°C. Cells were plated (3 × 106 viable cells) in 60-mm culture dish covered with laminin (20 ng mL–1) and they were cultured for 15 min in high-humidity atmosphere with 5% of CO2 at 37°C. The adherent cells were recovered by enzymatic digestion with 0.1% trypsin for 1 min at 37°C. Viable cells were selected by the Trypan exclusion method, RNA was extracted from ~200.000 viable cells (Ilustra RNAspin Mini RNA, GE Healthcare, Waukesha, WI, USA) and cDNA synthesis was performed (SuperScript® VILO™, Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA). ITGA6 (integrin, α 6), SELP (Selectin P) and ICAM (Intercellular Adhesion Molecule 1) relative gene expression were determined by real-time RT-PCR (Mastercycler ep Realplex, Eppendorf International, Hamburg, Germany); GAPDH (Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase) and ACTB (actin β) were used as housekeeping genes. The statistical analysis was performed by QPCR_MIXED (SAS®, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). An α level at 0.05 was always adopted. ITGA6 and ICAM1 relative expression weren't effected by age; respectively, P = 0.2367 and P = 0.3583. However, SELP was highly expressed in adult bulls (P = 0.0022). Previously, ICAM1 and SELP have also been shown to mark aging haematopoietic stem cells and were more highly expressed in spermatogonia from adult mice than younger. However, SELP is expressed in more differentiated spermatogenic cells such as human sperm. The expression levels of ITGA6 did not seem to be significantly altered by age, indicating that age affects only certain SSC properties.
Financial support was provided by FAPESP (CEUA/FMVZ/USP 2509/2011).
Conformal grafting and convergence of Fenchel-Nielsen twist coordinates
Authors: Bourque Maxime
Published: January 2015

We cut a hyperbolic surface of finite area along some analytic simple closed curves, and glue in cylinders of varying moduli. We prove that as the moduli of the glued cylinders go to infinity, the Fenchel-Nielsen twist coordinates for the resulting surface around those cylinders converge.
Gaussian process test for high-throughput sequencing time series: application to experimental evolution
Authors: Topa Hande , Jónás Ágnes , Kofler Robert , Kosiol Carolin , Honkela Antti
Published: January 2015

Motivation: Recent advances in high-throughput sequencing (HTS) have made it possible to monitor genomes in great detail. New experiments not only use HTS to measure genomic features at one time point but also monitor them changing over time with the aim of identifying significant changes in their abundance. In population genetics, for example, allele frequencies are monitored over time to detect significant frequency changes that indicate selection pressures. Previous attempts at analyzing data from HTS experiments have been limited as they could not simultaneously include data at intermediate time points, replicate experiments and sources of uncertainty specific to HTS such as sequencing depth.

Results: We present the beta-binomial Gaussian process model for ranking features with significant non-random variation in abundance over time. The features are assumed to represent proportions, such as proportion of an alternative allele in a population. We use the beta-binomial model to capture the uncertainty arising from finite sequencing depth and combine it with a Gaussian process model over the time series. In simulations that mimic the features of experimental evolution data, the proposed method clearly outperforms classical testing in average precision of finding selected alleles. We also present simulations exploring different experimental design choices and results on real data from Drosophila experimental evolution experiment in temperature adaptation.

Availability and implementation: R software implementing the test is available at https://github.com/handetopa/BBGP .

Contact:  hande.topa@aalto.fi , agnes.jonas@vetmeduni.ac.at , carolin.kosiol@vetmeduni.ac.at , antti.honkela@hiit.fi

Supplementary information:  Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Detection of Dirofilaria immitis (Nematoda: Filarioidea) by Polymerase Chain Reaction in Aedes albopictus, Anopheles punctipennis, and Anopheles crucians (Diptera: Culicidae) From Georgia, USA
Authors: Licitra Beth , Chambers Eric W. , Kelly Rosmarie , Burkot Thomas R.
Published: January 2015

Potential mosquito vectors of Dirofilaria immitis (Leidy) (Nematoda: Filarioidea), the causative agent of dog heartworm in the southeastern region of the United States, were collected with CDC light traps and gravid traps in seven counties in the state of Georgia, USA. The presence of D. immitis in these mosquitoes was detected by polymerase chain reaction using species-specific primers for the D. immitis surface or cuticular antigen. Overall, 1,574 mosquitoes of 13 species in seven genera were collected; 92% of the specimens were Aedes albopictus (Skuse), Aedes vexans (Meigen), or Anopheles punctipennis (Say). Ae. albopictus, An. punctipennis, and Anopheles crucians Wiedemann were positive for D. immitis DNA. Ae. albopictus had the highest maximum likelihood rate of infection (2.30%; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15–4.00%) followed by An. crucians (1.38%: 95% CI = 0.04–6.93%), and An. punctipennis (0.85%: 95% CI 0.03–4.29%). The detection of D. immitis DNA in the heads and thoraxes of Ae. albopictus (0.40%; 95% CI = 0.12–2.02%) indicates that these mosquitoes can support the development of D. immitis to the infective stage 3 larvae.
Breeding of Ornidia obesa (Diptera: Syrphidae: Eristalinae) on Pig Carcasses in Brazil
Authors: Martins E. , Neves J. A. , Moretti T. C. , Godoy W.A.C. , Thyssen P. J.
Published: January 2015

Ornidia obesa F. (Diptera: Syrphidae) is usually neglected in forensic entomology, although adults are rather frequent on vertebrate carrion. In this study, conducted in southeastern Brazil in 2008, we used two pig carcasses, one killed by cocaine overdose and the other by shooting, to evaluate mainly the possible influences of the type of death on the larval development of O. obesa in the pig remains. We recorded the breeding of 218 adult specimens of this syrphid fly from the carcass killed by shooting, and none from the carcass killed by cocaine. These observations may open a new perspective for the use of O. obesa in forensic studies, considering its breeding preferences and its complete development on vertebrate carrion.
Investigation of force-freeness of a solar emerging magnetic field via application of the virial theorem to magnetohydrodynamic simulations
Authors: Kang Jihye , Magara Tetsuya
Published: January 2015

Force-freeness of a solar magnetic field is a key to reconstructing the invisible coronal magnetic structure of an emerging flux region on the Sun where active phenomena such as flares and coronal mass ejections frequently occur. We have performed magnetohydrodynamic simulations which are adjusted to investigate force-freeness of an emerging magnetic field by using the virial theorem. Our focus is on how the force-free range of an emerging flux region develops and how it depends on the twist of a pre-emerged magnetic field. As an emerging flux region evolves, the upper limit of the force-free range continuously increases while the lower limit is asymptotically reduced to the order of a photospheric pressure scale height above the solar surface. As the twist becomes small the lower limit increases and then seems to be saturated. We also discuss the applicability of the virial theorem to an evolving magnetic structure on the Sun.
Bat and pig IFN-induced transmembrane protein 3 restrict cell entry by influenza virus and lyssaviruses
Authors: Benfield Camilla T. O. , Smith Sarah E. , Wright Edward , Wash Rachael S. , Ferrara Francesca , Temperton Nigel J. , Kellam Paul
Published: January 2015

IFN-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) is a restriction factor that blocks cytosolic entry of numerous viruses that utilize acidic endosomal entry pathways. In humans and mice, IFITM3 limits influenza-induced morbidity and mortality. Although many IFITM3-sensitive viruses are zoonotic, whether IFITMs function as antiviral restriction factors in mammalian species other than humans and mice is unknown. Here, IFITM3 orthologues in the microbat (Myotis myotis) and pig (Sus scrofa domesticus) were identified using rapid amplification of cDNA ends. Amino acid residues known to be important for IFITM3 function were conserved in the pig and microbat orthologues. Ectopically expressed pig and microbat IFITM3 co-localized with transferrin (early endosomes) and CD63 (late endosomes/multivesicular bodies). Pig and microbat IFITM3 restricted cell entry mediated by multiple influenza haemagglutinin subtypes and lyssavirus glycoproteins. Expression of pig or microbat IFITM3 in A549 cells reduced influenza virus yields and nucleoprotein expression. Conversely, small interfering RNA knockdown of IFITM3 in pig NPTr cells and primary microbat cells enhanced virus replication, demonstrating that these genes are functional in their species of origin at endogenous levels. In summary, we showed that IFITMs function as potent broad-spectrum antiviral effectors in two mammals – pigs and bats – identified as major reservoirs for emerging viruses.
Ancestry-specific association mapping in admixed populations
Authors: Skotte Line , Jørsboe Emil , Korneliussen Thorfinn Sand , Moltke Ida , Albrechtsen Anders
Published: January 2015

During the last decade genome–wide association studies have proven to be a powerful approach to identifying disease-causing variants. However, for admixed populations, most current methods for association testing are based on the assumption that the effect of a genetic variant is the same regardless of its ancestry. This is a reasonable assumption for a causal variant, but may not hold for the genetic variants that are tested in genome–wide association studies, which are usually not causal. The effects of non-causal genetic variants depend on how strongly their presence correlate with the presence of the causal variant, which may vary between ancestral populations because of different linkage disequilibrium patterns and allele frequencies.

Motivated by this, we here introduce a new statistical method for association testing in recently admixed populations, where the effect size is allowed to depend on the ancestry of a given allele. Our method does not rely on accurate inference of local ancestry, yet using simulations we show that in some scenarios it gives a dramatic increase in statistical power to detect associations. In addition, the method allows for testing for difference in effect size between ancestral populations, which can be used to help determine if a SNP is causal. We demonstrate the usefulness of the method on data from the Greenlandic population.
Integrating crop growth models with whole genome prediction through approximate Bayesian computation
Authors: Technow Frank , Messina Carlos D. , Totir L. Radu , Cooper Mark
Published: January 2015

Genomic selection, enabled by whole genome prediction (WGP) methods, is revolutionizing plant breeding. Existing WGP methods have been shown to deliver accurate predictions in the most common settings, such as prediction of across environment performance for traits with additive gene effects. However, prediction of traits with non-additive gene effects and prediction of genotype by environment interaction (G×E), continues to be challenging. Previous attempts to increase prediction accuracy for these particularly difficult tasks employed prediction methods that are purely statistical in nature. Augmenting the statistical methods with biological knowledge has been largely overlooked thus far. Crop growth models (CGMs) attempt to represent the impact of functional relationships between plant physiology and the environment in the formation of yield and similar output traits of interest. Thus, they can explain the impact of G×E and certain types of non-additive gene effects on the expressed phenotype.Approximate Bayesian computation(ABC), a novel and powerful computational procedure, allows the incorporation of CGMs directly into the estimation of whole genome marker effects in WGP. Here we provide a proof of concept study for this novel approach and demonstrate its use with synthetic data sets. We show that this novel approach can be considerably more accurate than the benchmark WGP method GBLUP in predicting performance in environments represented in the estimation set as well as in previously unobserved environments for traits determined by non-additive gene effects. We conclude that this proof of concept demonstrates that using ABC for incorporating biological knowledge in the form of CGMs into WGP is a very promising and novel approach to improving prediction accuracy for some of the most challenging scenarios in plant breeding and applied genetics.
Building the Ferretome
Authors: Sukhinin Dmitrii I. , Engel Andreas K. , Manger Paul , Hilgetag Claus C
Published: January 2015

Databases of structural connections of the mammalian brain, such as CoCoMac (cocomac.g-node.org) or BAMS (brancusi.usc.edu), are valuable resources for the analysis of brain connectivity and the modeling of brain dynamics in species such as the non-human primate or the rodent, and have also contributed to the computational modeling of the human brain. Another model species that is widely used in electrophysiological or developmental studies is the ferret; however, no systematic compilation of brain connectivity is currently available for this species. Thus, we have started developing a database of anatomical connections and architectonic features of the ferret brain (the Ferretome,www.ferretome.org). The main goals of this database project are: (1) to assemble structural information on the ferret brain that is currently widely distributed in the literature or in different in-house laboratory databases into a single resource which is open to the scientific community; (2) to try and build an extendable community resource that is beneficial to researchers in neuroinformatics and computational neuroscience, as well as to neuroanatomists, by adding value to their data through algorithms for efficient data representation, analysis and visualization; (3) to create techniques for the representation of quantitative and raw data; and (4) to expand existing database ontologies in order to accommodate further neuroarchitectural information for identifying essential relations between brain structure and connections.

The Ferretome database has adapted essential features of the CoCoMac methodology and legacy. In particular, its data model is derived from CoCoMac. It also uses a semantic parcellation of ferret brain regions as well as a logical brain maps transformation algorithm (objective relational transformation, ORT). The database is being developed in MySQL and has been populated with literature reports on tract tracing observations in the ferret brain using a custom-designed web interface that allows efficient and validated simultaneous input and proofreading by multiple curators. The database is also equipped with a web interface for generating output data that was designed with non-computer science specialist users in mind. This interface can be extended to produce connectivity matrices in several formats including a graphical representation superimposed on established ferret brain maps. An important feature of the Ferretome database is the possibility to trace back entries in connectivity matrices to the original studies archived in the system.

Currently, the Ferretome contains 50 reports on connections comprising 20 injection reports with more than 150 labeled source and target areas, the majority reflecting connectivity of subcortical nuclei. We hope that the Ferretome database will become a useful resource for neuroinformatics and neural modeling, and will support studies of the ferret brain as well as facilitate advances in comparative studies of mesoscopic brain connectivity.
Structure of the GH76 α-mannanase homolog, BT2949, from the gut symbiontBacteroides thetaiotaomicron
Authors: Thompson Andrew J. , Cuskin Fiona , Spears Richard J. , Dabin Jerome , Turkenburg Johan P. , Gilbert Harry J. , Davies Gideon J.
Published: January 2015

The large bowel microbiota, a complex ecosystem resident within the gastrointestinal tract of all human beings and large mammals, functions as an essential, nonsomatic metabolic organ, hydrolysing complex dietary polysaccharides and modulating the host immune system to adequately tolerate ingested antigens. A significant member of this community,Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, has evolved a complex system for sensing and processing a wide variety of natural glycoproducts in such a way as to provide maximum benefit to itself, the wider microbial community and the host. The immense ability ofB. thetaiotaomicronas a `glycan specialist' resides in its enormous array of carbohydrate-active enzymes, many of which are arranged into polysaccharide-utilization loci (PULs) that are able to degrade sugar polymers that are often inaccessible to other gut residents, notably α-mannan. TheB. thetaiotaomicrongenome encodes ten putative α-mannanases spread across various PULs; however, little is known about the activity of these enzymes or the wider implications of α-mannan metabolism for the health of both the microbiota and the host. In this study, SAD phasing of a selenomethionine derivative has been used to investigate the structure of one suchB. thetaiotaomicronenzyme, BT2949, which belongs to the GH76 family of α-mannanases. BT2949 presents a classical (α/α)6-barrel structure comprising a large extended surface cleft common to other GH76 family members. Analysis of the structure in conjunction with sequence alignments reveals the likely location of the catalytic active site of this noncanonical GH76.
Moderation of Doing and Mastery orientations in relationships among justice, commitment, and trust
Authors: Jiang Zhou , Gollan Paul J. , Brooks Gordon
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine whether and how two individual value orientations – Doing (the tendency to commit to goals and hold a strong work ethic) and Mastery (an orientation toward seeking control over outside forces) – moderate: the relationship between organizational justice and affective organizational commitment, and the mediation role of organizational trust in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors collected data from 706 employees working in 65 universities across China, South Korea, and Australia. Multi-group confirmatory factor analyses were employed to examine the cross-cultural equivalence of the measures. Hierarchical regressions were performed to test moderating effects of the two cultural value orientations.

Findings

– Results from the full sample showed that Doing and Mastery moderated the distributive justice-commitment relationship and the procedural justice-trust relationship. Comparisons between countries demonstrated limited cross-cultural differences.

Practical implications

– The present study adds to the understanding of the impact of individual and cultural differences on the relationship between justice and commitment, helping managers understand how employees’ reactions to justice are influenced by cultural value orientations.

Originality/value

– This study is a pioneer in empirically integrating the value orientation framework (e.g. Doing and Mastery orientations) and justice research in a cross-cultural context based in the Asia Pacific region. It also advances cross-cultural justice research through using a mediation-moderation combination.
Cultural distance and entry modes: implications for global expansion strategy
Authors: Gollnhofer Johanna Franziska , Turkina Ekaterina
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to take a strategic perspective on how MNEs in the retail sector decide to enter a new market. Drawing on transaction cost theory, the contingency approach and resource-based theory, the implications of the interplay between global strategy, cultural distance and entry mode strategies are examined by means of an analysis of Carrefour’s global expansion.

Design/methodology/approach

– To account for the shortcomings of prior research, a hypothesis in the relationship between entry modes and cultural distance is tested empirically using a sample of 44 foreign market entries by Carrefour over the 40 last years. The paper uses a quantitative approach, i.e., logistic regressions. To measure cultural distance, the authors rely on the GLOBE dimensions and the Kogut-Singh Index.

Findings

– The findings suggest a positive relationship between a resource commitment, entry mode strategy and cultural distance for Carrefour. However, these findings are contrary to the mainstream argument that high cultural distance is related to entry strategies based on relatively low resource commitment. The authors explain these findings by integrating a cultural distance perspective with Carrefour’s overall global expansion strategy.

Research limitations/implications

– Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack generalizability.

Practical implications

– The paper provides insights into why prior research on cultural distance and entry modes has yielded mixed results. From a strategic viewpoint, the paper stresses the particularities of the retail sector and how retailers try to account for cultural distance in their entry mode decisions.

Originality/value

– By focussing on a single company instead of a meta-analysis, the analysis demonstrates how the search for strategic consistency and the particularities of the retail sector reverse a well-investigated theoretical assumption. The main originality of the paper is that it shows the implications of the interplay between cultural distance and entry mode as being part of the retail firm’s overall global expansion strategy.
Managing organisational culture and identity in a dual sector college
Authors: Saraswat Arti
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– This paper is drawn from a doctoral study that was funded as part of Higher Education Funding Council for England’s Leadership, Governance and Management project. The college referred to as City College in this paper, was an higher education (HE) College and was formally part of the HE Sector. The college was one of the institutions that was studied as part of the research that aimed to identify issues in managing across the interface of further education (FE) and HE. Multiple sources of evidence, such as, interviews with staff and managers, documents such as, institutional strategic plan, reports on quality assessment and monitoring, and other institutional data have informed the findings of this paper. The college had roots in FE and had gradually evolved to become an HE institution. The institutional background in FE had vitally shaped the perceptions of the institutional managers on combining FE and HE within an institutional framework. Two sets of beliefs had emerged at the college, one that related to retaining the FE ethos of the college and another that supported a progressive diffusion of aspects of HE culture within the college. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper presents a case study of an English dual sector college that delivered substantial levels of FE and HE.

Findings

– The paper presents the challenges associated with managing the college’s culture and identity as it continued to consolidate its position as an HE institution while remaining optimistic that it was not “drifting away” from its FE roots. The teachers and managers at the college had prior experiences of FE and their approach to work was influenced by FE practices. College was described to be “non-academic” and arguments were made to facilitate more “university-like” practices and arrangements for HE lecturers to help develop research and scholarly activity at the college.

Practical implications

– The paper also highlights issues and considerations related to enhancing internal progression of students from FE to HE, pressures for separate and distinctive buildings and spaces for HE to help raise student aspirations, and the perceptions of internal and external stakeholders that related to a “confused” institutional identity of the college. Whilst the college had aimed to maintain a strong presence in the FE markets, it had simultaneously “concealed” its FE identity in order to appeal more strongly to the HE students.

Originality/value

– In presenting the analysis of evolution of the college from an FEC to an HEI, this paper will be of interest to institutions that are considering or aspiring to strengthen their positioning as HE providers without compromising on their identity as FE colleges.
Foundations of subjective well-being in turbulent times
Authors: Kouvo Antti , Räsänen Pekka
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the individual and aggregate level foundations of subjective well-being (SWB). In particular, the authors focus on the institutional differences between the welfare states as possible explanatory sources of SWB.

Design/methodology/approach

– The data come from the Finnish, British, German and Greek sections of the European Social Survey Round 5, 2010 (n=10,046). The methods consist of multilevel and linear regression models.

Findings

– The results indicate that the effects of many background variables are somewhat constant in the selected countries, even though the countries are different from each other in terms of their institutional characteristics. SWB can be explained relatively well by individuals’ social networks, health and socio-demographic factors. However, the detected cross-country differences also point to the fact that the institutional differences among the countries have significance in this instance.

Research limitations/implications

– The research approach was built on cross-sectional data on Finland, Germany, the UK, and Greece only. While these countries represent different types of European societies it is not possible to make broader conclusions on the variation caused by societal or cultural factors in the global sense.

Social implications

– The findings are significant regarding the current economic situation in many European countries.

Originality/value

– Previous studies have addressed the direct effects of the background factors in contemporary Europe. Beyond these determinants also lies the possible impact of institutional and cultural factors.
Active labour market policy and its outcomes
Authors: Tisch Anita , Wolff Joachim
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of workfare programme participation on self-efficacy, because many studies suggest that sufficient self-efficacy is essential for successful job search in modern labour markets.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper analyses an exemplary German workfare programme’ the so-called “One-Euro-Jobs” programme and examines whether participation in this programme improved the self-efficacy of participants. The analyses are based on survey data (Panel Study Labour Market and Social Security) that were combined with administrative records of the Statistics Department of the German Federal Employment Agency to obtain more reliable information on programme participation. To detect causal effects of participation, the authors apply propensity score matching.

Findings

– The findings show that participants’ self-efficacy, on average, was not improved by programme participation. Also, no well-determined positive effects of programme participation were found when controlling for the individual baseline level of self-efficacy.

Practical implications

– The findings suggest that workfare programme participation did not fulfil several of the psychological functions of work necessary to enhance participants’ self-efficacy. The authors suggest a two-step approach to enhancing individuals’ self-efficacy and their job-search abilities: in the first step, workfare participation aims to improve employability; in the second step, participants can learn the extent to which they have become ready to work in a regular subsidised job.

Originality/value

– Various studies examine the effect of workfare programme participation on employment prospects, well-being, health or social participation. Within the discourse on active labour market policy, this paper is the first to study the effect of workfare programme participation on self-efficacy.
A contextual analysis of the impact of strategic sourcing and E-procurement on performance
Authors: Kim Minkyun , Suresh Nallan C , Kocabasoglu-Hillmer Canan
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships among strategic sourcing, e-procurement and firm performance, along with the moderating effects of business characteristics and environmental factors on these relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

– This empirical investigation relies on structured survey responses from 137 managers of US manufacturing firms. The partial least squares-based structural equation modeling approach is used for data analysis.

Findings

– The research results confirm that both strategic sourcing and e-procurement have a positive effect on firm performance. In addition, e-procurement is also found to have a positive impact on strategic sourcing. In addition, the research results suggest that business characteristics and the environment, especially the degree of competition, market turbulence, firm size and stage in product life cycle moderate these relationships significantly. The positive effects of strategic sourcing and e-procurement on firm performance are particularly enhanced under the right conditions.

Originality/value

– This research is the first, to the best of our knowledge, to provide insights into the joint effects of strategic sourcing and e-procurement, and how business characteristics and the environment affect their roles on firm performance. In addition, firm performance is evaluated as a multi-dimensional construct involving financial, operational and supply chain aspects, with the measurements consisting of several second-order constructs. The study makes both theoretical and practical contributions.
Account manager turnover and the influence of context: an exploratory study
Authors: Vafeas Mario
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to investigate the contextual factors that influence the impact of account manager turnover on the client–agency relationship, an under-researched area of relationship management literature.

Design/methodology/approach

– A case study approach and one-to-one interviews are used to conduct the exploratory study, analysing client–agency relationships within the UK design industry. A conceptual framework covering individual and organisational characteristics is used to examine the contextual factors impacting account manager turnover.

Findings

– The findings identify both organisational and individual contextual factors that influence the outcome of turnover. Categorized into three core contexts (client-specific knowledge, multiple relationship ties and turnover process management), factors such as agency structure and culture, agency knowledge management policies and client experience were all found to impact on account manager turnover.

Research limitations/implications

– This small, qualitative, exploratory study suggests the need for further research to investigate the transferability of the findings to a broader range of organisational types and industries and to highlight additional contextual factors that influence the impact of turnover.

Practical implications

– Account manager turnover does not necessarily mean the end of the client–service firm relationship. Agencies can create contexts that mitigate the potential negative effects. Small firms appear to have advantages inherent in their size, but larger firms can take steps to emulate some of the conditions found in micro firms.

Originality/value

– This paper adds to the limited number of studies into account manager turnover, making a theoretical and practical contribution, enabling marketing managers to take steps to ensure staff turnover does not result in client switching.
Adoption of IFRS in Japan: challenges and consequences
Authors: Tsunogaya Noriyuki , Hellmann Andreas , Scagnelli Simone Domenico
Published: January 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to provide a rigorous and holistic analysis of the main features of the Japanese accounting environment. It also raises issues related to the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Japan.

Design/methodology/approach

– For the purpose of investigating the Japanese accounting system, this study applies the accounting ecology framework developed by Gernon and Wallace (1995) and provides a content analysis of relevant meetings of the Business Accounting Council of Japan.

Findings

– The findings of this study provide evidence that it would be problematic to require the adoption of IFRS for all listed companies in Japan. The main reason for this is that the Japanese policymakers and standard-setting bodies follow two objectives: enhancing the international comparability of financial reporting and maintaining institutional complementarity between financial reporting and other infrastructures such as accounting-related laws.

Research limitations/implications

– This study is relevant for accounting researchers and professionals with an interest in Japanese accounting practices. It is also useful for the International Accounting Standards Board and representatives of countries planning to adopt IFRS in the future.

Originality/value

– The findings of this study show that contextual issues such as social, organizational and professional environments cannot be ignored in the adoption of IFRS in Japan.
From Tyrant to Unfit Monarch: MarchamontNedham's Representation ofCharlesStuart andRoyalists during the Interregnum
Authors: Woodford Benjamin
Published: January 2015

MarchamontNedham was one of the most significantEnglish journalists of the seventeenth century. During the Interregnum, his newspaperMercuriusPoliticusroutinely printed stories of exiled royalists and their leaderCharlesStuart. Although the topic of royalists was consistent throughout the 1650s, the royal image inPoliticuswas not. In the early 1650s,Nedham describedCharlesStuart as a tyrant and enemy of freedom, while after 1651, the exiled king appeared as a failed monarch.Nedham's reporting of royalists was independent of government influence, and he himself elected to change his representation of royalists. It was the shifting political situation that convinced him to alter his descriptions ofCharlesStuart and his followers.