bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An empirical analysis on household financial vulnerability in India: exploring the role of financial knowledge, impulsivity and money management skills
Authors: Singh Kamakhya Nr , Malik Shruti
Published: March 2022

Purpose

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the financial-economic vulnerability of the public and threatened the household financial stability, especially of the low-income group population, in developing economies such as India. The assessment of household financial vulnerability has gained considerable attention these days, especially in poor and developing countries. This article seeks to assess the level of household financial vulnerability in India, based on a household survey conducted across India.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper has proposed a financial vulnerability index (FVI) based on three self-reported parameters: (1) making end meet, (2) perception of income shock and (3) perception of expenditure shock. Subsequently, the impact of various behavioural and socioeconomic factors on the proposed financial vulnerability index has been assessed using fractional probit regression.

Findings

The research findings indicate that higher financial knowledge, better money management skills and lower impulsivity in financial behaviour can reduce financial vulnerability. It is suggested that suitable financial literacy programmes be implemented for vulnerable sections of society to enhance their financial knowledge, improve money management skills and manage impulsivity, thereby helping them make informed financial decisions leading to their financial well-being.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, none of the past studies have developed and assessed the financial vulnerability index in India. This study provides relevant recommendations for various financial sector regulators and government institutions in India.
Board co-option and employee welfare
Authors: Nishikawa Yuka , Hashemi Joo Mohammad , Okafor Collins E.
Published: March 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between corporate board co-option and employee welfare practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors employ several analysis techniques including univariate analysis, OLS regressions, Poisson regressions, and propensity score matching methodology. The sample consists of US public firms for the period of 1996–2017. The variables of interest are the employee welfare index (EWI) proposed by Ghalyet al.(2015) and the co-option ratio proposed by Coleset al.(2014).

Findings

The authors find that firms with a higher fraction of co-opted directors on their boards are less committed to the firms' employee well-being. The empirical results support the argument that the interests of co-opted directors are more closely aligned with the interests of the CEO who had an influence on selecting them to the board, which compromises their monitoring role.

Originality/value

This paper contributes in several ways to the literature on corporate governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR) by linking board co-option to employee welfare. By focusing on board co-option to explain the degree of firms' involvement in employee welfare, which is one of the crucial components of CSR performance, the authors provide pinpointed and detailed findings on a timely issue of CSR.
Perceived power and smile intensity in service encounters
Authors: Yao Qi , Wan Qiuyan , Li Shihao , Zhou Wenkai , Yang Zhilin
Published: March 2022

Purpose

Smiles displayed at varying intensities by service providers may result in different social judgments by customers, affecting decision-making. This study investigates the joint effect of customers' sense of power (low vs. high) and service providers' smile intensity (slight vs. broad) on their warmth and competence perceptions in service encounters.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted four experiments based on the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) of social judgments and the agentic-communal model of power, and assessed the impact of perceived power and smile intensity in different service encounter contexts.

Findings

The interaction effect of customers' sense of power (low vs. high) and service providers' smile intensity (slight vs. broad) influences customers' social judgments (warmth perceptions vs. competence perceptions). A service provider who displays a broad smile is more likely to be perceived as warmer by customers with a low sense of power, but less competent by those with a high sense of power. Furthermore, mediation analysis revealed that the combined effect of customers' sense of power and service providers' smile intensity on customers' subjective well-being and purchase intentions might be attributed to their social judgments.

Originality/value

This study reveals the intrinsic mechanism behind the interaction effect between smile intensity and sense of power affecting customers' purchase intentions and subjective well-being, namely, warmth/competence perceptions.
Investigating the effects of leaders’ stewardship behavior on radical innovation: a mediating role of knowledge management dynamic capability and moderating role of environmental uncertainty
Authors: Nabi Md. Nurun , Liu Zhiqiang , Hasan Najmul
Published: March 2022

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the effects of leaders’ stewardship behavior (LSB) on followers’ radical innovation (RI). Followers’ knowledge management dynamic capability (KMDC) has been a mediating role, while environmental uncertainty (EU) acted as a moderating factor in the context of the textile and apparel industry in the developing country.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional quantitative study has been designed to evaluate the conceptual framework. Data were collected from the relevant stakeholders with a structured survey questionnaire – a total of 304 responses considered from industry–university collaborative leaders and followers. A partial least square-based structural equation modeling technique was applied to test the hypothesis using Smart-PLS 3.8 package program.

Findings

The result reveals that the KMDC has a significant mediating impact between LSB and RI. Similarly, the EU significantly moderates the relationship between KMDC and RI, especially as the intensity of environmental instability increases–decreases, LSB and adherents of KMDC is likely to enhance RI performances.

Research limitations/implications

This study contributes to the current literature extending the scope of steward leadership behavior and the theory of knowledge-based view incorporating EU factors.

Practical implications

While industries have invested a lot of money and resources to improve the followers’ radical creative thinking, skills and abilities, this study provides specific implications for the textile industry managers, leaders, policymakers and practitioners to comprehend and implement the strategy of RI.

Originality/value

Overall, the current research contributes to the LSB literature by highlighting significant complementarities between KMDC and RI under the EU.
National culture and attitudes' impact on diffusion of sustainable new technology-based products
Authors: Jaiswal Mayank , Zane Lee
Published: March 2022

Purpose

Sustainability is increasingly becoming an essential aspect of technological innovations. In addition, the diffusion of sustainable new technology-based products appears to be uneven across the globe. The authors examine the effect of three country-level Hofstede measures of culture and two national-level innovation characteristics on the diffusion of Sustainable New Technology-based Products (SNTP).

Design/methodology/approach

Regression and Necessary Conditions Analysis were used to analyze a panel dataset of electric and hybrid vehicles sales from 2008 to 2017 across 89 countries.

Findings

Results suggest Long-Term Orientation (LTO) was correlated with SNTP diffusion, Indulgence (IVR) was partially correlated with SNTP diffusion and was also a necessary condition. Surprisingly, Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI) was not correlated with SNTP diffusion. In addition, a national proclivity for developing innovations and a history of utilizing prior generic innovations were both correlated and necessary for SNTP diffusion.

Originality/value

This paper measures the impact of several macro-level variables (culture and other innovation related characteristics of countries) on SNTP diffusion. In addition to regression analyses to measure the average effect size, the authors conduct Necessary Conditions Analysis, which assesses the necessity of a variable for the outcome. These insights may help multinational companies better strategize entry decisions for international markets and aid governments in formulating more effective policies by recognizing and accommodating the influences of national culture and innovation attitudes.
An active compliant docking method for large gear components based on distributed force sensor
Authors: Chu Wenmin , Huang Xiang
Published: March 2022

Purpose

Large gear components widely exist in the transmission system of helicopters, ships, etc. Due to the small assembly clearance of large gear components, using an automatic docking system based on position control will lead to forced assembly. The purpose of this paper is to reduce the assembly stress of large gear components by an active compliant docking technology based on distributed force sensors.

Design/methodology/approach

Firstly, aiming at the noise interference in three-dimensional force sensor (TDFS), Kalman filter and Savitzky–Golay filter are used to process the sensor’s output signal. Secondly, the active compliant docking control model is constructed according to the principle of impedance control. Thirdly, the contact force is calculated based on the Euler equation, and the impedance control parameters are tuned by the particle swarm optimization algorithm. Finally, an active compliant docking system of a large gear structure based on distributed force sensor is built in the laboratory to verify the proposed method.

Findings

The experimental results show that the contact force and contact torque gradually decrease in all directions and are always in the safe range during the docking process. The feasibility of this method in practical application is preliminarily demonstrated.

Originality/value

The distributed TDFSs are used to replace the traditional six-dimensional force sensor in the active compliant docking system of gear components, which solves the problem of the small bearing capacity of the conventional active compliant docking system. This method can also be used for the docking of other large components.
More than just meat: Carcass decomposition shapes trophic identities in a terrestrial vertebrate
Authors: Barceló Gonzalo , Perrig Paula L. , Dharampal Prarthana , Donadio Emiliano , Steffan Shawn A. , Pauli Jonathan N.
Published: March 2022

Most food web models fail to account for the full complexity of interactions within a community, particularly where microbes are involved. Carcasses are microbe‐rich resources and may represent a common nexus for the macrobiome and microbiome, effectively uniting autotrophs, consumers, predators and microbiota.

We evaluated the role of carcasses as multitrophic resources and explored dietary partitioning for a sexually dimorphic obligate scavenger known for its hierarchical social system. This study was set in a well‐studied community of camelids Vicugna, Lama guanicoe, pumas Puma concolor and Andean condors Vultur gryphus in the Andes. We hypothesized that condors, by feeding on trophically distinct dietary substrates within any given carcass, would have highly variable trophic position (TP) values. Furthermore, we expected that the microbial consumers within the carcass would inflate TP values in both, the carrion and the condors. Thus, we expected that the trophic heterogeneity within a carcass could facilitate sex‐based dietary partitioning in condors.

We used a multifaceted approach to assess the foraging of Andean condors, using regurgitated pellet and bulk isotopic analyses, and also quantified the TP of the entire community of graminoids, camelids, camelid carrion, pumas, and female and male condors employing compound‐specific stable isotopes analysis of amino acids.

Our analysis of condor pellets and bulk isotopes revealed non‐trivial plant consumption, close to 10% of condor diet. Isotope analysis of amino acids revealed that condors had highly variable TPs (2.9 ± 0.3) compared to pumas (3.0 ± 0.0) and camelids (2.0 ± 0.1), likely representing ‘trophic omnivory’, wherein the condors consume plants (TP = 1.0 ± 0.1) and microbe‐colonized carrion (2.3 ± 0.1). Female condors exhibited a TP (2.8 ± 0.2) lower than strict carnivory, suggesting that they consume more plant biomass in a carcass, while males (TP = 3.1 ± 0.3) are likely consuming more of the microbe‐rich animal tissue.

Our study highlights that carcasses represent a trophically heterogeneous resource and that vertebrate scavengers can feed across trophic groups within the carcass, from autotrophs to secondary consumers, and from both the macrobiome and microbiome. Thus, integration of microbes in macroecological contexts can help to resolve trophic identity, and better characterize the importance of microbes in detritivorous and omnivorous species.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Riparian reserves protect butterfly communities in selectively logged tropical forest
Authors: Montejo‐Kovacevich Gabriela , Marsh Charles J. , Smith Sophie H. , Peres Carlos A. , Edwards David P.
Published: March 2022

Selective logging is the most widespread habitat disturbance in tropical forests. Primary forest set‐asides along riparian zones are mandated in many countries and a key question is whether these riparian reserves provide biodiversity conservation benefits.

We characterise butterfly communities in fixed‐width riparian reserves of 30 m on each bank along narrow streams (<10 m) paired with interior logged forest transects, and in primary forests within a selective logging concession in the south‐western Brazilian Amazon.

We found that primary forest species richness was more similar to riparian reserves than to paired interior logged forest points, whereas abundance remained higher in both riparian reserves and interior logged points, likely due to the intrusion of canopy‐dwelling species in disturbed habitats, as previously reported in the literature. Butterfly assemblages within riparian reserves were more similar to unlogged primary forests than interior logged points, and canopy height in riparian reserves was associated with increased assemblage similarity to primary forest points.

Changes in abundance relative to primary forest were of a larger magnitude in interior logged points than in riparian reserves within logged forests, highlighting the role of riparian reserves in maintaining primary forest‐like communities. We found no particular primary forest butterfly clades to be more sensitive to changes in abundance than other clades.

Synthesis and applications. Mandatory conservation set‐asides around streams or rivers (riparian buffers) have an important role in protecting the abundance and composition of primary forest butterfly assemblages within selective logging concessions in tropical rainforests. This study highlights the need to assess the conservation value of protecting unlogged riparian forest strips in other taxa to inform policy.
RR‐1 cuticular protein TcCPR69 is required for growth and metamorphosis in Tribolium castaneum
Authors: Xie Jia , Peng Guifang , Wang Miao , Zhong Qisheng , Song Xiaowen , Bi Jingxiu , Tang Jing , Feng Fan , Gao Han , Li Bin
Published: March 2022

Cuticle is not only critical for protecting insects from noxious stimuli but is also involved in a variety of metabolic activities. Cuticular proteins (CPs) affect cuticle structure and mechanical properties during insect growth, reproduction, and environmental adaptation. Here, we describe the identification and characterization of a member of the RR‐1 subfamily of CPs with an R&R consensus (CPR) in Tribolium castaneum (TcCPR69). Although it was previously reported to be highly expressed in the wings, we found that knocking down TcCPR69 by RNA interference (RNAi) did not cause obvious wing abnormalities but markedly disrupted the growth and metamorphosis of beetles with 100% cumulative mortality; additionally, the chitin content of the pharate adult was decreased and the new abdominal cuticle was significantly thinner before molting. TcCPR69 showed chitin‐binding ability and the expression levels of key genes involved in chitin metabolism (trehalase [TcTRE], chitin synthase [TcCHSA and TcCHSB], and chitinase [TcCHT5 and TcCHT10]) were also decreased by TcCPR69 knockdown. TcCPR69 gene expression peaked shortly after molting and was increased 2.61 fold at 12 h after 20‐hydroxyecdysone (20E) injection. This was reversed by RNAi of the ecdysone‐related genes ecdysone receptor (TcECR) and fushi tarazu transcription factor 1 (TcFTZ‐F1). These results indicate that TcCPR69 is positively regulated by 20E signaling to contribute to cuticle formation and maintain chitin accumulation during the growth and metamorphosis of beetles.
Safety of daprodustat in patients with anemia of chronic kidney disease: A pooled analysis of phase 3 studies in Japan
Authors: Nangaku Masaomi , Akizawa Tadao , Nagakubo Takashi , Yonekawa Taeko , Kimura Toshifumi , Endo Yukihiro , Cobitz Alexander
Published: March 2022

Introduction

Daprodustat is an approved treatment for anemia of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Japan.

Methods

This post hoc analysis evaluated pooled safety data for daprodustat from 3 phase 3 Japanese studies in dialysis‐dependent and nondialysis patients with anemia of CKD.

Results

Median drug exposure duration was 365 days for both daprodustat (N = 369) and injectable erythropoiesis‐stimulating agent (ESA, N = 285). The incidence per 100 patient‐years of on‐therapy adverse events (AEs) was 363.1 and 306.4 in the daprodustat and ESA groups, respectively. The incidence per 100 patient‐years of thromboembolic and retinal events were 5.55 and 6.91 (daprodustat) and 6.28 and 7.46 (ESA), respectively. Cardiovascular and malignancy events were similar between groups, although analysis of these were limited by sample size and study duration.

Conclusion

The safety of daprodustat was comparable to ESA in this pooled analysis, although further large‐scale research is needed to evaluate long‐term risks including cardiovascular and malignancy events.
Effect of roasting temperature and time on volatile compounds, total tocopherols, and fatty acids of flaxseed oil
Authors: Sun Xuelian , Zhang Bo , Han Jiajia , Wei Changqing , Liu Wenyu
Published: March 2022

Roasting affects the physicochemical and nutritional qualities of flaxseed oil (FSO). The FSO samples were extracted from the roasting flaxseeds at 10‐, 20‐, and 30‐min points and at different temperatures (140°C, 160°C, and 180°C). A total of 61 volatile compounds were identified, and the quantity of the volatile compounds increased significantly (p < 0.05) after roasting. The maximum aldehyde (25.83%) and heterocyclic content (29.26%) was obtained from the samples roasted at 200°C for 20 and 30 min, respectively. The predominant fatty acid in FSO samples was linolenic acid (46.01%–49.35%), which changed dynamically during roasting. The loss of α‐, γ‐, and δ‐tocopherol after roasting was 28.73, 109.78, and 6.67 mg/100 g, respectively. The principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis results showed good discrimination of the different FSO samples into three groups, which were mainly related to the roasting time. Therefore, it can be concluded that roasting time has a stronger effect on the volatile composition of FSO than the temperature during the roasting process. This work provides a basis for improving the aroma of FSO.

Practical Application

The roasting process is used to extract flaxseed oil (FSO) from flaxseeds. Studying the physicochemical properties and quality characteristics of FSO under diverse roasting conditions is an important step in producing FSO in the food industry, which can give precise instructions to produce flaxseed oil in factories. The results of this study document the volatile constituents generated in FSO samples extracted from flaxseeds during roasting, which may help manufacturers, who are trying to develop natural and artificial FSO flavors.
Risks and Controls in a Changing Business Environment: Global Transportation Facility and Concerns About Missing Revenues*
Authors: Messer Ron
Published: March 2022

This case examines the effects of privatization in the aviation industry, specifically as it concerns an airport referred to as the Global Transportation Facility (GTF). In a deregulated environment, it is important for airports to ensure that all revenues earned from aircraft landings and passenger use of its terminal buildings are identified, billed, and collected. This will be a concern to users of financial information, including those holding corporate debt and government authorities, as well as the airport's senior management, board of directors and other stakeholders. Your role as the head of internal audit at GTF is to determine whether aviation‐related billings are complete and accurate. You are also concerned about the consequences of errors in reported revenues, including how to identify these and assess their impact.
Single‐fit bootstrapping: A simple alternative to the delta method
Authors: Fletcher David , Jowett Tim
Published: March 2022

In many environmental and ecological settings, the analysis of data involves calculation of a confidence interval for a nonlinear function of the model parameters. In the frequentist approach, this is often achieved by using a Wald interval in which the standard error of the estimate of the function is obtained using the delta method.

The purpose of this paper is to promote a simple alternative to the delta method that will provide better coverage properties when the estimates of the model parameters have a distribution that is approximately multivariate normal, as will be the case asymptotically for maximum likelihood estimates in regular models. We propose a simple diagnostic tool that can be used to assess the reliability of this assumption.

The method we promote can be thought of as a computationally efficient version of parametric bootstrapping, as it mimics such bootstrapping without a need to refit the model.

We provide two examples to illustrate use of the new method and present simulation results which show that its coverage properties are superior to those for a Wald interval based on the delta method when the assumption of normality for the estimates of the model parameters is reliable. We also compare its coverage properties and computational effort with those of parametric bootstrapping.
Antibacterial activity of the CAP18 peptide against Xanthomonas citri ssp. citri, the causative agent of citrus canker, as evaluated by in vitro and in silico studies
Authors: Habibollahi Faezeh , Hosseinipour Akbar , Lohrasbi‐Nejad Azadeh
Published: March 2022

The bacterium Xanthomonas citri ssp. citri (Xcc), causing citrus canker disease, poses a severe threat to citrus production worldwide. New approaches for managing the disease are required because of the limited number of bactericides available, reported pathogen resistance to copper pesticides, and the side effects of such compounds on citrus trees and the environment. In this study, the bacterium was isolated from a Mexican lime tree showing typical disease symptoms and identified as Xcc using conventional biochemical tests and specific PCR. The antibacterial activity of the recombinant peptide CAP18 (rCAP18) against the Xcc bacterium was assessed. Measuring the MIC parameter showed that purified rCAP18 caused bacterial growth inhibition by 90% at a concentration of 4.5 μM. Furthermore, a heterogeneous membrane system consisting of POPE:POPG:TOCL (5:1:3) was created using molecular dynamics simulation. The interaction effect of the oligomeric structure of rCAP18 (rCAP18OLIGO) on the components of a lipid bilayer membrane was determined by measuring the membrane thickness, the order parameter of the acyl chains and the area of each phospholipid. The results obtained from simulation and measurement of order parameters showed that, among the three phospholipids, rCAP18OLIGO more affected the orientation of carbon atoms in POPG. Fluctuations of average area per lipid for each phospholipid showed that rCAP18OLIGO had more interactions with POPG > TOCL > POPE, respectively, in the outer half of the membrane. The results obtained from in silico studies confirmed that the penetration of rCAP18OLIGO into the lipid bilayer membrane reduced the membrane thickness and caused its deformation during the simulation time. This mechanism is possibly the leading factor of Xcc growth inhibition by rCAP18 in vitro. Therefore, the rCAP18 peptide as an antibacterial agent can provide a way to develop a new approach to control the citrus canker disease.
Patient‐ and provider‐level factors that underlie alcohol use disorder treatment offer and acceptance in veterans with cirrhosis
Authors: Chaudhari Rahul B. , Duong Nikki , Shrestha Shreesh , Badal Bryan , Dharia Neerav , Robalino Gonzaga Ernesto , Spoutz Patrick , Chia Linda , Wade James B. , Rogal Shari , Bajaj Jasmohan S.
Published: March 2022

Background

Untreated alcohol use disorder (AUD) is associated with poor cirrhosis outcomes. We evaluated factors associated with AUD treatment discussions and initiation in the Veterans Health Administration.

Methods

Chart reviews were conducted for veterans with International Classification of Diseases codes for both cirrhosis and AUD who were receiving care at one of three large medical centers in 2020. Factors associated with a 1‐year offer of AUD treatment and its acceptance were assessed using regression models, which included as covariates demographic characteristics, comorbidities, and depression, as measured by the patient health questionnaire (PHQ‐2) from the electronic health record.

Results

The cohort included 654 veterans, 68 of whom were engaged in AUD treatment at baseline and 174 who were documented as being in AUD remission. Treatment was offered to 264 (64%) of the 412 veterans with opportunities to initiate it. AUD treatment discussions were most often documented by practitioners in primary care (n = 162), hepatology (n = 45), or both (n = 41). Multivariable logistic regression modeling revealed that treatment was significantly more likely to be offered to patients with co‐occurring bipolar disorder (OR 2.94, p = 0.03) or depression (1.50, p = 0.05) or who were younger (0.97, p = 0.01). Of the 264 patients offered AUD treatment, 107 (40%) agreed to initiate it. Acceptance of an offer of treatment was significantly associated with hospitalization in the prior year (OR 1.74, p = 0.05), prior AUD treatment (9.92, p < 0.0001), and a higher PHQ‐2 depression score (2.85, p = 0.004).

Conclusions

We identified factors associated with an offer of AUD treatment and its initiation among veterans with cirrhosis. Application of these findings could increase the likelihood that veterans with alcoholic cirrhosis initiate AUD treatment.
Impact of adolescent intermittent ethanol exposure on interneurons and their surrounding perineuronal nets in adulthood
Authors: Dannenhoffer Carol A. , Gómez‐A Alexander , Macht Victoria A. , Jawad Rayyanoor , Sutherland Elizabeth Blake , Vetreno Ryan P. , Crews Fulton T. , Boettiger Charlotte A. , Robinson Donita L.
Published: March 2022

Background

Binge alcohol exposure during adolescence results in long‐lasting alterations in the brain and behavior. For example, adolescent intermittent ethanol (AIE) exposure in rodents results in long‐term loss of functional connectivity among prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatal regions as well as a variety of neurochemical, molecular, and epigenetic alterations. Interneurons in the PFC and striatum play critical roles in behavioral flexibility and functional connectivity. For example, parvalbumin (PV) interneurons are known to contribute to neural synchrony and cholinergic interneurons contribute to strategy selection. Furthermore, extracellular perineuronal nets (PNNs) that surround some interneurons, particularly PV+ interneurons, further regulate cellular plasticity. The effect of AIE exposure on the expression of these markers within the PFC is not well understood.

Methods

The present study tested the hypothesis that AIE exposure reduces the expression of PV+ and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT)+ interneurons in the adult PFC and striatum and increases the related expression of PNNs (marked by binding of Wisteria floribunda agglutinin lectin) in adulthood. Male rats were exposed to AIE (5 g/kg/day, 2‐days‐on/2‐days‐off, i.e., P25 to P54) or water (CON), and brain tissue was harvested in adulthood (>P80). Immunohistochemistry and co‐immunofluorescence were used to assess the expression of ChAT, PV, and PNNs within the adult PFC and striatum following AIE exposure.

Results

ChAT and PV interneuron densities in the striatum and PFC were unchanged after AIE exposure. However, PNN density in the PFC of AIE‐exposed rats was greater than in CON rats. Moreover, significantly more PV neurons were surrounded by PNNs in AIE‐exposed subjects than controls in both PFC subregions assessed: orbitofrontal cortex (CON = 34%; AIE = 40%) and medial PFC (CON = 10%; AIE = 14%).

Conclusions

These findings indicate that, following AIE exposure, PV interneuron expression in the adult PFC and striatum is unaltered, while PNNs surrounding these neurons are increased. This increase in PNNs may restrict the plasticity of the ensheathed neurons, thereby contributing to impaired microcircuitry in frontostriatal connectivity and related behavioral impairments.
An analysis of skin thickness in the Dezhou donkey population and identification of candidate genes by RNA‐seq
Authors: Wang Min , Li Haijing , Zhang Xinhao , Yang Li , Liu Yu , Liu Shuqin , Sun Yujiang , Zhao Chunjiang
Published: March 2022

The aim of the present study was to analyze the main factors that have a significant impact on skin thickness, and to further identify the genes and signaling pathways regulating skin growth by RNA‐seq in Dezhou donkeys. Skin samples from different body regions of 15 slaughtered donkeys were obtained to study variations in skin thickness over the bodies. Skin thickness data for another 514 donkeys was obtained by minimally invasive skin sampling from the back, and measurements of the donkeys’ body size traits and pedigree data were also collected. These data were used to analyze changes in skin thickness and estimate genetic parameters. In addition, transcriptomic analysis was conducted on the skin tissues of individuals from two groups with significant differences in skin thickness. Our results showed that skin thickness over the bodies ranged from 1.08 to 4.36 mm. The skin from the back was the thickest and had the highest correlation with that of other regions of the body. The skin thickness decreased from the back to the side of the ventral abdomen, and the skin thickness on the limbs increased from the proximal end to the distal end. The results also showed that the skin from the same body regions of jacks was thicker than that of jennies in the same age group. The skin thickness of jennies increased from birth to the age of 2 and then clearly decreased after 2 years of age. The estimated heritability of skin thickness was 0.15, and the genetic correlations between skin thickness and body size traits were negligible. Transcriptome analysis showed that the thick‐skin group had 65 up‐regulated genes and 38 down‐regulated genes compared with the thin‐skin group. The differentially expressed genes were highly enriched in epidermal development and cell adhesion molecule signaling pathways. We identified the candidate genes responsible for variations in skin thickness in the Dezhou donkey, including KRT10, KRT1, CLDN9, MHCII and MMP28. These results contribute to a better understanding of the growth and development of donkey skin, reveal the molecular mechanism responsible for donkey skin thickness and suggest directions for genetic selection in the Dezhou donkey population.
Volunteering for a better future: A pilot Sustainability Ambassadors Training Program
Authors: Solly Kane , Smyer Michael A. , Nichols Kim , Steffens Niklas K. , Kastelle Timothy H. , Pachana Nancy A.
Published: March 2022

Objective

Older adults are an untapped resource for leading sustainability change. This study assessed a pilot study of a Sustainability Ambassadors Training Program for older adults.

Methods

The pilot training program was conducted with a sample of 14 older adults over a single day, with some follow‐up activities for participants at home. Activities included completing a sustainable action card‐sorting activity measuring an individual's ability to make sustainable changes within their lives. A brief researcher‐devised empowerment scale was administered pre‐ and postworkshop.

Results

Quantitative data revealed that sustainability empowerment increased from pre‐ to post‐training sessions and was related to the number of sustainability actions participants thought were achievable.

Conclusions

The data suggest that such a brief training workshop can both yield personal change and potentially provide opportunities for a peer network to facilitate change within communities.
Longitudinal changes in serum immune markers during normal pregnancy in a North‐Indian population
Authors: Kaushal Khushboo , Ayushi  , Sharma Nikhil , Wadhwa Nitya , Misra Sumit , Bhatnagar Shinjini , Desiraju Bapu Koundinya , Thiruvengadam Ramachandran , Sopory Shailaja ,   GARBH‐Ini study group
Published: March 2022

Problem

The objective of this study was to examine levels of cytokines across normal term pregnancy in an Indian population. Additionally we have also explored for possible associations between inflammatory markers and fetal growth parameters.

Method of Study

A multiplex panel of 24 analytes was used to examine levels of inflammatory markers in maternal serum at three time points during pregnancy and in cord blood from women with no reported comorbidities who delivered a singleton live baby at term (N = 23), enrolled in the GARBH‐Ini pregnancy cohort. Linear mixed models were applied to construct longitudinal cytokine trajectories with gestational age. Pearson correlation was used to calculate intra‐visit correlation between cytokines. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to examine cytokine combinations prevalent across pregnancy, and their association with fetal growth parameters was determined by multivariable regression.

Results

Significant increase in sFLT‐1, Flt3L, PLGF, IL‐4, and IL‐18 and a decrease in VCAM‐1 concentrations was seen across pregnancy. The cytokine concentrations in cord blood differed substantially as compared to maternal levels across gestation. Some cytokines were closely correlated with each other in distinct patterns across pregnancy. Gestational age specific combination of cytokines were seen to be associated with different fetal growth parameters.

Conclusions

This study for the first time provides reference concentrations for the longitudinal expression of immune markers across pregnancy in an Indian population providing a much needed baseline to compare with pregnancies leading to adverse outcomes. Growth factors showed maximum longitudinal variation with gestational age and strong correlations were identified between various cytokines at all time points across pregnancy.
A randomised controlled feasibility trial of a clinical protocol to manage hypotension during major non‐cardiac surgery
Authors: Wijeysundera D. N. , Duncan D. , Moreno Garijo J. , Jerath A. , Meineri M. , Parotto M. , Wąsowicz M. , McCluskey S. A. ,   AMIGO‐1 Study Investigators
Published: March 2022

Intra‐operative hypotension is a risk factor for postoperative morbidity and mortality. Minimally invasive monitors that derive other haemodynamic parameters, such as stroke volume, may better inform the management of hypotension. As a prelude to a multicentre randomised controlled trial, we conducted a single‐centre feasibility trial of a protocol to treat hypotension as informed by minimally invasive haemodynamic monitoring during non‐cardiac surgery. We recruited adults aged ≥40 years with cardiovascular risk factors who underwent non‐cardiac surgery requiring invasive arterial pressure monitoring. Participants were randomly allocated to usual care, or a clinical protocol informed by an arterial waveform contour analysis monitor. Participants, outcome assessors, clinicians outside operating theatres and analysts were blinded to treatment allocation. Feasibility was evaluated based on: consent rate; recruitment rate; structured feedback from anaesthesia providers; and between‐group differences in blood pressure, processes‐of‐care and outcomes. The consent rate among eligible patients was 33%, with 30 participants randomly allocated to the protocol and 30 to usual care. Anaesthesia providers rated the protocol to be feasible and acceptable. The protocol was associated with reduced fluid balance and hypotension exposure in the peri‐operative setting. Postoperative complications included: acute myocardial injury in 18 (30%); acute kidney injury in 17 (28%); and surgical site infection in 7 (12%). The severity of complications was rated as moderate or severe in 25 (42%) participants. In summary, this single‐centre study confirmed the feasibility of a multicentre trial to assess the efficacy and safety of a physiologically guided treatment protocol for intra‐operative hypotension based on minimally invasive haemodynamic monitors.
Social comparison for concern and action on climate change, racial injustice, and COVID‐19
Authors: Ulichney Virginia , Jarcho Johanna M. , Shipley Thomas F. , Ham Joy , Helion Chelsea
Published: March 2022

Preventing the negative impacts of major, intersectional social issues hinges on personal concern and willingness to take action. This research examines social comparison in the context of climate change, racial injustice, and COVID‐19 during Fall 2020. Participants in a U.S. university sample (n = 288), reported personal levels of concern and action and estimated peers' concern and action regarding these three issues. Participants estimated that they were more concerned than peers for all three issues and took more action than peers regarding COVID‐19 and climate change. Participants who reported higher levels of personal concern also estimated that they took greater action than peers (relative to participants who reported lower levels of concern). Exploratory analyses found that perceived personal control over social issues were associated with greater concern and action for racial injustice and climate change but not for COVID‐19. This indicates that issue‐specific features, including perceived controllability, may drive people to differently assess their experiences of distinct social issues.
Learning disability history: A guide to method for the prospective researcher
Authors: Goodey C. F.
Published: March 2022

Background

Here, I examine the status of ‘learning disability’ as a basic concept. This kind of questioning may be thought a task for philosophy, or at least for ‘theory’ or ‘disability studies’.

Materials and methods

I identify history instead as a discipline well placed to reveal the category errors that surround the concept.

Results

These begin with the word ‘disability’ itself, which subliminally identifies learning disability as a natural impairment like physical and sensory impairment, rather than as the creation (unlike these latter) of human beings ourselves over the long historical term. The error of dealing with learning disability as if it were a natural kind is reinforced, in conventional histories, by trying to diagnose it retrospectively. I illustrate these points by taking certain major items of the psychologist's vocabulary—‘the mind’, logical reasoning, abstraction, development, normal intelligence and autism—and show briefly how such things do not exist in nature but, in both a conceptual and a material sense, have emerged from the long course of historical contingencies.

Conclusions

My examples demonstrate the need for and validity of a historical method specific to learning disability, which can radically expand the horizons for researchers and busy practitioners, and contribute to the liberation of people carrying learning disability labels.
Ginsenoside Rg1 improves Alzheimer's disease by regulating oxidative stress, apoptosis, and neuroinflammation through Wnt/GSK‐3β/β‐catenin signaling pathway
Authors: Yang Yi , Wang Limei , Zhang Caijun , Guo Yuqian , Li Jintao , Wu Chao , Jiao Jianlin , Zheng Hong
Published: March 2022

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder that can cause cognitive impairment. Ginsenoside Rg1 (Rg1) has a significant neuroprotective effect on animals with memory impairment. However, the mechanism of how Rg1 mediates the Wnt signaling pathway and improves cognitive function by regulating oxidative stress, apoptosis, and neuroinflammation is still unclear. In this study, the spatial memory ability of tree shrews was tested by Morris water maze, the expression levels of amyloid protein (Aβ1‐42), ionized calcium‐binding adapter molecule 1 (iba‐1), nitrotyrosine (NT), and 8‐hydroxyguanine (8‐OHG) were detected by immunohistochemistry. Subsequently, the activity of catalase (CAT) and the glutathione peroxidase (GSH‐Px) was, respectively, measured by the ammonium molybdate method and the 5,5′‐dithiobis (2‐nitrobenzoic acid). Furthermore, the malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration was determined by the thiobarbituric acid test. Finally, the expression levels of Beta‐secretase (BACE1), superoxide dismutase (SOD), BCL2‐Associated X (Bax), B‐cell lymphoma‐2 (Bcl‐2), caspase‐anti‐apoptotic factor Cleaved‐caspase‐3 (Caspase‐3), microtubule‐associated proteins 2 (MAP2), Neuronal nuclear antigen (NeuN), as well as the phosphorylation of GSK‐3β and β‐catenin were detected by Western blot. This study implied that Rg1 reduced the phosphorylation of Tau protein, the deposition of Aβ1‐42, and the expression of BACE1. It also showed that Rg1 increased the antioxidant activity of SOD, CAT, GPx, and instead reduced the oxidation products of NT, 8‐OHG, and MDA, as wells as the inflammatory factor interleukin‐1 and iba‐1. It further showed that Rg1 increased the ratio of Bcl‐2 to Bax and expression of neuronal markers MAP2 and NeuN, but instead reduced the expression of Caspase‐3, GSK‐3β, and β‐catenin. In conclusion, by regulating the Wnt/GSK‐3β/β‐catenin signaling pathway, Rg1 of moderate and high dose could alleviate oxidative stress damage, improve neuroinflammation, protect neurons, finally improve the cognitive impairment of the AD tree shrew. This study provides theoretical basis for the Rg1 clinical application in AD.
Infant color perception: Insight into perceptual development
Authors: Skelton Alice E. , Maule John , Franklin Anna
Published: March 2022

A remarkable amount of perceptual development occurs in the first year after birth. In this article, we spotlight the case of color perception. We outline how within just 6 months, infants go from very limited detection of color as newborns to a more sophisticated perception of color that enables them to make sense of objects and the world around them. We summarize the evidence that by 6 months, infants can perceive the dimensions of color and categorize it, and have at least rudimentary mechanisms to keep color perceptually constant despite variation in illumination. In addition, infants’ sensitivity to color relates to statistical regularities of color in natural scenes. We illustrate the contribution of these findings to understanding the development of perceptual skills such as discrimination, categorization, and constancy. We also discuss the relevance of the findings for broader questions about perceptual development and identify directions for research.
Increasing support group attendance for metabolic and bariatric surgery patients with online groups
Authors: Vosburg Ralph Wesley , Seitz Cristine
Published: March 2022

Support group attendance for patients undergoing metabolic and bariatric surgery has been shown to improve outcomes. Finding meaningful ways to engage as many patients as possible with these group sessions is important. Attendance records of 120 in‐person and 48 virtual support groups that took place over 6‐years were reviewed and compared from a metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) program in the USA. No significant difference in attendance for in‐person groups or the first year of virtual support groups was found. The second consecutive year of virtual support groups were found to have a significant increase in patient attendance when compared to in‐person groups and also the first year of virtual groups. Support groups for MBS patients are valuable experiences. Offering these virtually can help increase the number of patients that attend groups after the first year.
Remote family dispute resolution services for COVID and post‐COVID times: Client and practitioner perspectives
Authors: Heard Genevieve , Bickerdike Andrew , Opoku Sandra
Published: March 2022

In 2020, residents in the state of Victoria, Australia endured months of government restrictions aimed at curbing multiple outbreaks of COVID‐19. Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) services continued to assist separating couples to sort out their parenting and property matters, necessitating a rapid and wholesale shift to remote delivery via telephone and video conferencing. This paper reports on interviews during and subsequent to ‘lockdown’ with clients of FDR services offered by a large, community‐sector provider. The data collected provide insights into the ways in which the pandemic affected the immediate needs and concerns of families as they navigated separation and shared parenting during the pandemic. Of importance to service development, the data include client responses to different methods of FDR service delivery and their reflections on how well these evolving methods were suited to their needs. Practitioner views were also sought on service delivery methods to provide a comprehensive picture of the advantages and challenges of remote delivery, and the ways in which it helped or hindered in catering to the needs of clients with safety concerns. Collectively the results of these analyses indicate that COVID has produced new risks and opportunities for the provision of FDR services, in both COVID and post‐COVID worlds. The evolving FDR service model will likely continue to feature multiple delivery options, regardless of the trajectory of the pandemic.