bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Inferring the role of microorganisms in water kefir fermentations
Authors: Martínez‐Torres Abigail , Gutiérrez‐Ambrocio Sandra , Heredia‐del‐Orbe Pamela , Villa‐Tanaca Lourdes , Hernández‐Rodríguez César
Published: November 2016

Water kefir is a slightly alcoholic, lactic and acetic beverage fermented by yeasts, lactic acid bacteria and acetic acid bacteria that are associated with the polysaccharide of the water kefir grains. In this study, the three main metabolic products of microorganisms were evaluated during a traditional 192‐h water kefir fermentation and also after inoculating the microorganisms in fresh medium or sterilised broth from different fermentation stages. The first process to occur was alcoholic fermentation, carried out in particular by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. After 24 h, lactic and acetic acid accumulation was generated by Lactobacillus hilgardii and Acetobacter tropicalis. By the end of fermentation, ethanol had been almost entirely consumed and oxidised to acetic acid, possibly by a dissimilatory route of Acetobacter species. An original hypothetical diagram is proposed for the carbon flux from sucrose, and the metabolic role of the main yeasts and bacteria is assigned for the distinct stages of water kefir fermentation.
Pulmonologist‐performed transoesophageal sampling for lung cancer staging using an endobronchial ultrasound video‐bronchoscope: an Australian experience
Authors: Wimaleswaran Hari , Farmer Michael W. , Irving Louis B. , Jennings Barton R. , Steinfort Daniel P.
Published: November 2016

Background

Transoesophageal endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) video‐bronchoscope insertion provides pulmonologists access to conduct endoscopic fine‐needle aspiration (EUS‐B‐FNA) of mediastinal lymph node (LN) lesions and also assist in lung cancer staging by sampling left adrenal gland (LAG) lesions. Limited literature has described additional diagnostic value whilst maintaining patient safety.

To elicit whether combining endoscopic transoesophageal fine‐needle aspiration using convex probe bronchoscope (EUS‐B‐FNA) and EBUS bronchoscopy enhances the diagnostic yield of mediastinal nodal staging in lung cancer, whilst maintaining safety.

Methods

All eligible patients with paraoesophageal lesions on thoracic computed tomography (CT) underwent pulmonologist‐performed EUS‐B‐FNA at two tertiary centres and were included in this prospective observational cohort study.

Results

EUS‐B‐FNA sampling was performed at 69 mediastinal LN lesion sites, including 17 sites inaccessible to bronchoscopic sampling. Four LAG lesions were sampled via EUS‐B‐FNA. There were no complications. EBUS‐TBNA was augmented by EUS‐B‐FNA because of accessibility of sampling lesions otherwise unamenable bronchoscopically, thereby increasing diagnostic utility. Diagnostic sensitivity of EUS‐B‐FNA for malignancy in mediastinal LN lesions was 88% (51 of 58). For mediastinal LN lesions not amenable to EBUS‐TBNA, the sensitivity for diagnosis of malignancy via EUS‐B‐FNA was 88% (15 of 17). Diagnostic sensitivity of EUS‐B‐FNA for malignancy in LAG lesions was 50% (2 of 4).

Conclusion

EUS‐B‐FNA is a precise and safe approach in the evaluation and staging of lung cancer when performed by a pulmonologist. It complements and increases the diagnostic utility of EBUS‐TBNA by further coverage of mediastinal LN stations and access to LAG lesions.
Clinical profile and treatment outcomes of advanced neuroendocrine tumours in rural and regional patients: a retrospective study from a regional cancer centre in North Queensland, Australia
Authors: Hafeez Umbreen , Joshi Abhishek , Bhatt Manoj , Kelly Jenny , Sabesan Sabe , Vangaveti Venkat
Published: November 2016

Background

Neuroendocrine tumours (NET) arise from neuroendocrine cells, which are widely distributed throughout the body. However, diagnosing NET is difficult due to nonspecific symptoms and the paucity of experience among health professionals. This retrospective study was carried out to improve our understanding about NET. This knowledge can be used for optimal utilisation and distribution of limited resources.

Aim

To study the clinical profile, treatment and survival outcomes for advanced NET patients in Australian regional and remote settings.

Methods

We reviewed all adult patients who were diagnosed with NET between 1994 and 2012. Patients' data were extracted from electronic databases of The Townsville Cancer Centre. Remoteness was based on postcodes, with patients stratified as regional or rural North Queensland according to Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC). Overall survival was studied using survival analysis.

Results

Data from 79 patients were included in the study. The median age at diagnosis was 60 years. A total of 48 patients (60.8%) was male and 31 (39.2%) female. The majority of the patients lived in rural areas (51, 64%) as compared to residing in regional areas (28, 36%). There were 34 deaths at the study cut‐off point. Median overall survival of NET patients in rural areas is significantly less than those living in regional areas (1613 days vs. 2935 days, respectively), P = 0.03.

Conclusion

Remoteness has an adverse impact on overall survival of NET patients. This outcome may be because of varied access to health services and/or lack of access to specialised scans and medical and surgical expertise.
Association of methamphetamine use and restrictive interventions in an acute adult inpatient mental health unit: A retrospective cohort study
Authors: McKenna Brian , McEvedy Samantha , Kelly Kathleen , Long Bec , Anderson Jess , Dalzell Elaine , Maguire Tessa , Tacey Mark , Furness Trentham
Published: November 2016

The aim of the present study was to describe incidences of restrictive interventions and the association of methamphetamine use at an acute adult inpatient mental health unit in metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. A total of 232 consecutive consumer admissions to the inpatient unit across a 3‐month period were described for illicit substance use and the use of restrictive interventions (seclusion, mechanical restraint, and physical restraint) prior to and during admission. Of all admissions, 25 (10.8%) involved consumers subjected to a restrictive intervention. Methamphetamine use was either self‐reported or detected by saliva test for 71 (30.6%) consumers. Following multivariate analyses, methamphetamine use (odds ratio (OR): 7.83, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.33–26.31) and restrictive intervention in the emergency department prior to admission (OR: 8.85, 95% CI: 2.83–27.70) were significant independent predictors of the use of restrictive interventions after inpatient admission. Anecdotal observations provided by clinical mental health staff that consumers intoxicated with methamphetamine appear to require restrictive intervention more frequently than other consumers was confirmed with the results of the current study. As the state of Victoria in Australia is on a pathway to the elimination of the use of restrictive interventions in mental health services, clinicians need to develop management strategies that provide specialist mental health care using the least‐restrictive interventions. Although 26.8% of methamphetamine users were secluded after admission, restrictive interventions should not be the default management strategy for consumers who present with self‐report or positive screen for methamphetamine use.
Risk Management Strategies in Transportation Capacity Decisions: An Analytical Approach
Authors: Yoon Jiho , Yildiz Hakan , Talluri Srinivas (Sri)
Published: November 2016

In recent years, access to freight transportation capacity has become a constant issue in the minds of logistics managers due to capacity shortages. In a buyer–seller relationship, reliable, timely, and cost‐effective access to transportation is critical to the success of such partnerships. Given this, guaranteed capacity contracts with third‐party logistics providers (3PLs) may be appealing to shippers to increase their access to capacity and respond effectively to customer requirements. With this new opportunity, 3PLs must focus on approaches that can assist them in analyzing their options as they promise guaranteed capacity to shippers when faced with uncertain demand and related risks in transportation. In this paper, we analytically analyze three capacity‐based risk mitigation strategies and the mixed use of these individual strategies using industry‐based data to provide insights on which strategy is preferable to the 3PL and under what conditions. We posit that the selection of a strategy is contingent on several conditions faced by both the shipper and the carrier. Although our approach is analytical in nature, it has a high degree of practical utility in that a 3PL can utilize our decision models to effectively analyze and visualize the trade‐offs between the different strategies by considering appropriate cost and demand data.
Reduced angiogenic gene expression in morbillivirus‐triggered oncolysis in a translational model for histiocytic sarcoma
Authors: Pfankuche Vanessa Maria , Spitzbarth Ingo , Lapp Stefanie , Ulrich Reiner , Deschl Ulrich , Kalkuhl Arno , Baumgärtner Wolfgang , Puff Christina
Published: November 2016

Histiocytic sarcoma represents a rare malignant tumour with a short survival time, indicating the need of novel treatment strategies including oncolytic virotherapy. The underlying molecular mechanisms of viral oncolysis are largely unknown. As cancer in companion animals shares striking similarities with human counterparts, we chose a permanent canine histiocytic sarcoma cell line (DH82 cells) to identify global transcriptome changes following infection with canine distemper virus (CDV), a paramyxovirus closely related to human measles virus. Microarray analysis identified 3054 differentially expressed probe sets (DEPs), encoding for 892 up‐ and 869 down‐regulated unique canine genes, respectively, in DH82 cells persistently infected with the vaccine strain Onderstepoort of CDV (DH82‐Ond‐pi), compared to non‐infected DH82 cells. Up‐regulated genes were predominantly related to immune processes, as demonstrated by functional enrichment analysis. Moreover, there was substantial enrichment of genes characteristic for classically activated M1 and alternatively activated M2 macrophages in DH82‐Ond‐pi; however, significant polarization into either of both categories was lacking. ‘Angiogenesis’ was the dominant enriched functional term for the down‐regulated genes, highlighting decreased blood vessel generation as a potential mechanism of paramyxovirus‐induced oncolysis in DH82 cells. The anti‐angiogenic effect of infection was verified by immunohistochemistry, which revealed a lower blood vessel density in an in vivo mouse model, xenotransplanted with DH82‐Ond‐pi, compared to mice transplanted with non‐infected DH82 cells. Reduction in angiogenesis appears to be an important oncolytic mechanism of CDV in DH82 cells, suggesting that similar mechanisms might account for human histiocytic sarcoma and maybe other tumours in conjunction with measles virus.
Medical Malpractice Litigation and the Market for Plaintiff‐Side Representation: Evidence from Illinois
Authors: Hyman David A. , Rahmati Mohammad , Black Bernard S. , Silver Charles
Published: November 2016

How concentrated is the market for medical malpractice (med mal) legal representation? Do successful plaintiffs’ lawyers start off with better cases to begin with, do they add more value to the cases they handle, or both? How do top plaintiffs’ lawyers market their services, and where did they go to school? How large are the “wages of risk”—the compensation to plaintiffs’ lawyers for working on contingency? How often do plaintiffs proceed pro se, and with what results? We address these questions using a data set of every insured med mal case closed in Illinois during 2000–2010. We show that most plaintiffs have a lawyer. We quantify the market share, case mix, and amounts recovered by the 1,317 law firms that handled med mal cases in our sample, stratify the firms into four tiers, and assess differences across tiers. We find that the market for plaintiff‐side med mal representation is both unconcentrated and highly stratified. At all firms, a small number of cases account for a heavily disproportionate share of total recoveries. We use the extensive covariates in our data to (imperfectly) address sample selection, and to estimate the effect of having a lawyer and law firm tier on outcomes. Controlling for observable claim characteristics, having a lawyer predicts a large increase in the probability of prevailing and the estimated recovery. Higher‐tier firms have only modestly higher success rates, but substantially higher estimated recoveries. However, the differences shrink and are statistically insignificant when we compare first‐tier to second‐tier firms. This suggests that there are substantial benefits to having a lawyer—and a higher‐tier lawyer—but diminishing marginal returns at the top of the market. Assuming that there is some unobserved case selection, our findings provide a plausible upper bound on the “value added” by different tiers of plaintiffs’ lawyers.
Differential Access to Capital from Financial Institutions by Minority Entrepreneurs
Authors: Palia Darius
Published: November 2016

This article examines whether minority small business borrowers have the same access to loans from financial institutions as similar white borrowers. Using matching methods, I find that African‐American borrowers are rejected at an approximately 30 percent higher probability than similar white borrowers. I also find that the impact of unobservable variables has to be greater than 85 percent the impact of observable variables to show no discrimination. This bound seems to be a high number given that I have controlled for a large number of borrower, firm, and lender characteristics. No such differential effect is found for Asian and other minority borrowers. I also find equal expected default losses between African‐American and white borrowers. These results are consistent with the information‐based, laissez faire, and group hoarding theories of discrimination, and against the taste‐based theory of discrimination.
Identification and Functional Ascertainment of the Pneumocystis jirovecii Potential Drug Targets Gsc1 and Kre6 Involved in Glucan Synthesis
Authors: Luraschi Amanda , Cissé Ousmane H. , Pagni Marco , Hauser Philippe M.
Published: November 2016

The most efficient drug against the human pathogenic fungus Pneumocystis jirovecii is cotrimoxazole targeting the folate biosynthesis. However, resistance toward it is emerging and adverse effects occur in some patients. Studies in rodent models suggested that echinocandins could be useful to treat Pneumocystis pneumonia. Echinocandins inhibit the catalytic subunit Gsc1 of the enzymatic complex ensuring the synthesis of 1,3‐β glucan, an essential constituent of cell walls of most fungi. Besides, inhibitors of the enzyme Kre6 involved in the synthesis of 1,6‐β glucan, another essential component of fungal walls, were recently described. We identified and functionally characterized these two potential drug targets in the human pathogen P. jirovecii by rescue of the null allele of the orthologous gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The P. jirovecii proteins Gsc1 and Kre6 identified using those of the relative Pneumocystis carinii as the query sequence showed high sequence identity to the putative fungal orthologs (53–97% in conserved functional domains). The expression of their encoding genes on plasmid rescued the increased sensitivity to, respectively, caspofungin or calcofluor white of the corresponding S. cerevisiae null allele. The uniqueness and likely essentiality of these proteins suggest that they are potential good drug targets.
6‐methylmercaptopurine‐induced leukocytopenia during thiopurine therapy in inflammatory bowel disease patients
Authors: Meijer Berrie , Kreijne Joany E , van Moorsel Sofia A W , Derijks Luc J J , Bouma Gerd , Mulder Chris J J , Wong Dennis R , van der Woude C Janneke , van Bodegraven Adriaan A , de Boer Nanne K H
Published: November 2016

Background and Aim

Thiopurines have a favorable benefit–risk ratio in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. A feared adverse event of thiopurine therapy is myelotoxicity, mostly occurring due to toxic concentrations of the pharmacologically active metabolites 6‐thioguaninenucleotides. In oncology, myelosuppression has also been associated with elevated 6‐methylmercaptopurine (6‐MMP). In this case series, we provide a detailed overview of 6‐MMP‐induced myelotoxicity in inflammatory bowel disease patients.

Methods

We retrospectively scrutinized pharmacological laboratory databases of five participating centers over a 5‐year period. Patients with leukocytopenia at time of elevated 6‐MMP levels (>5700 pmol/8 × 108 red blood cells) were included for detailed chart review.

Results

In this case series, we describe demographic, clinical, and pharmacological aspects of 24 cases of 6‐MMP‐induced myelotoxicity on weight‐based thiopurine therapy with a median steady‐state 6‐MMP level of 14 500 pmol/8 × 108 red blood cells (range 6600–48 000). All patients developed leukocytopenia (white blood cell count 2.7 ± 0.9 × 109/L) after a median period of 11 weeks after initiation of thiopurine therapy (interquartile range 6–46 weeks). Eighteen patients (75%) developed concurrent anemia (median hemoglobin concentration 6.9 × 109/L), and four patients developed concurrent thrombocytopenia (median platelet count 104 × 109/L). Leukocytopenia resolved in 20 patients (83%) within 4 weeks upon altered thiopurine treatment regimen, and white blood cell count was increasing, but not yet normalized, in the remaining four patients.

Conclusion

We observed that thiopurine‐induced myelotoxicity also occurs because of (extremely) high 6‐MMP concentrations in patients with a skewed thiopurine metabolism. Continued treatment with adapted thiopurine therapy was successful in almost all patients.
Neighborhood Disadvantage and Life‐Space Mobility Are Associated with Incident Falls in Community‐Dwelling Older Adults
Authors: Lo Alexander X. , Rundle Andrew G. , Buys David , Kennedy Richard E. , Sawyer Patricia , Allman Richard M. , Brown Cynthia J.
Published: November 2016

Objectives

To determine the relationship between neighborhood‐level socioeconomic characteristics, life‐space mobility, and incident falls in community‐dwelling older adults.

Design

Prospective, observational cohort study with a baseline in‐home assessment and 6‐month telephone follow‐up.

Setting

Central Alabama.

Participants

Community‐dwelling adults aged 65 and older recruited from a random sample of Medicare beneficiaries (N = 1,000).

Measurements

Neighborhood disadvantage was measured using a composite index derived from baseline neighborhood‐level residential census tract socioeconomic variables. Data on individual‐level socioeconomic characteristics, clinical variables, and life‐space collected at baseline were included as covariates in a multivariate model using generalized estimating equations to assess the association with incident falls in the 6 months after baseline.

Results

Of the 940 participants who completed baseline and follow‐up assessments, 126 (13%) reported one or more new falls in the 6 months after baseline. There was an independent nonlinear association between neighborhood disadvantage (according to increasing quartiles of disadvantage) and incident falls after adjusting for confounders: The lowest quartile served as reference; 2nd quartile odds ratio (OR) = 2.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.2–4.6; 3rd quartile OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.0–3.7; 4th quartile OR = 3.2, 95% CI = 1.7–6.0. Each 10‐point decrement in life‐space (OR = 1.2, 95% CI = 1.0–1.3) was associated with a higher risk of falls.

Conclusion

Greater neighborhood disadvantage was associated with greater risk of falls. Life‐space also contributes separately to fall risk. Community‐dwelling older adults in disadvantaged neighborhoods, particularly those with limited mobility, may benefit from a more‐rigorous assessment of their fall risk by healthcare providers. Neighborhood level socioeconomic characteristics should also be an important consideration when identifying vulnerable populations that may benefit the most from fall prevention programs.
7thISN special neurochemistry conference ‘Synaptic function and dysfunction in brain diseases’
Authors: Duarte Carlos B. , Carvalho Ana Luisa
Published: November 2016

image

This article is part of a mini review series: “Synaptic Function and Dysfunction in Brain Diseases”.
Forebrain‐Specific Transgene Rescue of 11β‐HSD1 Associates with Impaired Spatial Memory and Reduced Hippocampal Brain‐Derived Neurotrophic Factor mRNA Levels in Aged 11β‐HSD1 Deficient Mice
Authors: Caughey S. , Harris A. P. , Seckl J. R. , Holmes M. C. , Yau J. L. W.
Published: November 2016

Mice lacking the intracellular glucocorticoid‐regenerating enzyme 11β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β‐HSD1) are protected from age‐related spatial memory deficits. 11β‐HSD1 is expressed predominantly in the brain, liver and adipose tissue. Reduced glucocorticoid levels in the brain in the absence of 11β‐HSD1 may underlie the improved memory in aged 11β‐HSD1 deficient mice. However, the improved glucose tolerance, insulin sensitisation and cardioprotective lipid profile associated with reduced peripheral glucocorticoid regeneration may potentially contribute to the cognitive phenotype of aged 11β‐HSD1 deficient mice. In the present study, transgenic mice with forebrain‐specific overexpression of 11β‐HSD1 (Tg) were intercrossed with global 11β‐HSD1 knockout mice (HSD1KO) to examine the influence of forebrain and peripheral 11β‐HSD1 activity on spatial memory in aged mice. Transgene‐mediated delivery of 11β‐HSD1 to the hippocampus and cortex of aged HSD1KO mice reversed the improved spatial memory retention in the Y‐maze but not spatial learning in the watermaze. Brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA levels in the hippocampus of aged HSD1KO mice were increased compared to aged wild‐type mice. Rescue of forebrain 11β‐HSD1 reduced BDNF mRNA in aged HSD1KO mice to levels comparable to aged wild‐type mice. These findings indicate that 11β‐HSD1 regenerated glucocorticoids in the forebrain and decreased levels of BDNF mRNA in the hippocampus play a role in spatial memory deficits in aged wild‐type mice, although 11β‐HSD1 activity in peripheral tissues may also contribute to spatial learning impairments in aged mice.
Forgetting of the recollection and familiarity components of recognition in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment
Authors: Lombardi Maria Giovanna , Perri Roberta , Fadda Lucia , Caltagirone Carlo , Carlesimo Giovanni Augusto
Published: November 2016

Introduction

Patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (a‐MCI) are deficient in storing memory traces relative to recollective forms of declarative memory. Controversial data have, instead, been reported concerning the storage of new memory traces relative to familiarity, with some studies reporting impairment and others sparing of the storage of this form of memory. No data have been reported concerning the consolidation of recollection and familiarity memory traces subsequent to their storage.

Methods

To investigate consolidation deficits resulting in accelerated forgetting of the memory trace, we submitted 16 patients with a‐MCI and 19 age‐matched normal controls (NC) to a verbal version of the experimental paradigm devised by Huppert and Piercy (1977, Neuropsychologia, 15, 643; 1978, Nature, 275, 317), which we modified to obtain a subjective judgement of the memory process (i.e., recollection or familiarity) for each remembered word that had prompted the ‘old’ response. The y/n recognition tests with a remember/know paradigm were given 10 min, 1 hr, and 24 hr after the study phase.

Results

Data demonstrated that patients with a‐MCI forgot the memory traces relative to both the recollection and the familiarity components of recognition at the same rate as NC.

Conclusions

Evidence was particularly strong for the familiarity component (where a‐MCI patients scored the same as NC at all three delay intervals), but was less robust for the recollection data (where an equivalent forgetting rate across the three delay intervals could be demonstrated only for subgroups of a‐MCI patients and NC who obtained comparable scores on the 10‐min test).
Measurement Reactivity in a Randomized Clinical Trial Using Self‐Reported Data
Authors: Capellan Jahaira , Wilde Mary H. , Zhang Feng
Published: November 2016

Purpose

The objective of this article is to describe how self‐monitoring contributed to measurement reactivity in a randomized clinical trial (RCT). The implications of measurement reactivity on self‐monitoring and suggestions for minimizing its effect will be discussed.

Design

The study involved a secondary data analysis of responses from 145 participants who completed a 12‐month long RCT. The original sample consisted of 202 community‐living adults with long‐term indwelling urinary catheters.

Methods

The data analyzed were from the participants’ brief responses to the final study question concerning their perceived study participation value. The data were discussed and coded iteratively until three researchers reached consensus. At the end, each item was recoded into eight categories and minor codes.

Findings

Our belief that the calendar was the probable cause of reactivity was not fully supported as the control group also learned about paying attention to urinary catheter problems by the questions asked through the seven bimonthly interviews.

Conclusions

The calendar and interview questions were reactive by increasing participants’ self‐monitoring of catheter problems. Specifically, the frequent interviews exposed participants to catheter‐related concerns and provided them with ideas as to how to better manage them.

Clinical Relevance

This article provides insight related to the internal validity threat of measurement reactivity in RCTs and gives suggestions to reduce its effects.
Whom Should We Talk to? Investigating the Varying Roles of Internal and External Relationship Quality on Radical and Incremental Innovation Performance
Authors: Obal Michael , Kannan‐Narasimhan Rangapriya , Ko Guihan
Published: November 2016

Research suggests that close relationships with internal and external partners are likely to have a significant impact on new product development (NPD). What is unclear is how the effects of internal and external relationships influence development paths for different types of innovations. Prior literature indicates that the pathways for developing incremental innovations differ considerably from those for radical innovations. Thus it is plausible that the effects of external versus internal relationships vary across these two innovation types. This paper uses the 2012 Comparative Performance Assessment Study (CPAS) data set to investigate the roles of internal and external relationship quality on the development of both incremental and radical innovations. The results find that internal and not external relationship quality is beneficial for the development of incremental innovations. When driven by internal relationships, a flexible NPD process is advantageous for the financial performance of incremental innovations. Meanwhile external and not internal relationship quality is valuable for developing radical innovations. External relationship quality results in process flexibility, leading to project execution success and subsequent financial performance for radical innovations. As expected, project execution success consistently leads to increased financial performance. These findings indicate the critical differences in types of relationship quality required when developing new products based on radical versus incremental innovations.
Ambidextrous Idea Generation—Antecedents and Outcomes*
Authors: Gurtner Sebastian , Reinhardt Ronny
Published: November 2016

Ambidexterity, defined as the capability to develop both incremental and radical innovations, is an important driver of firm success. Idea generation is an essential starting point for both types of innovation. Therefore, this study investigates whether ambidextrous idea generation, defined as the capability to actively generate both incremental and radical ideas, affects new product development (NPD) success. Analyses on the Comparative Performance Assessment Study (CPAS) data, which includes data from 453 companies distributed over 24 countries, demonstrate that ambidextrous idea generation does indeed affect NPD program success. Consequently, this study also investigates which antecedents foster ambidextrous idea generation. The innovation paradox concept predicts that achieving ambidexterity requires overcoming paradoxical antecedents. Therefore, we tested whether combinations of financial and breakthrough orientations (the paradox of strategic emphasis), a formal innovation process and an innovation culture (the paradox of innovation drivers), tight and loose customer coupling (the paradox of customer orientation), and internal development and external collaboration (the paradox of openness) affects ambidextrous idea generation. The results show that only customer orientation and openness have the expected inverted u‐shaped effect. These finding are in line with construal level theory, which predicts that the organizational characteristics that influence idea‐generation activity must be at the same construal level to have the desired effect. The contribution of this study is twofold. First, the analyses indicate that ambidextrous idea generation has significant repercussions for the entire NPD program. Second, the results show that resolving innovation paradoxes only has an effect if the construal level of the paradox and the activity match. This finding indicates an important boundary condition for the innovation paradox concept.
Influence of experimental periodontitis on cardiac oxidative stress in rats: a biochemical and histomorphometric study
Authors: Köse O. , Arabacı T. , Yemenoglu H. , Ozkanlar S. , Kurt N. , Gumussoy I. , Gedikli S. , Kara A.
Published: November 2016

Background and Objective

The role of oxidative stress in the process of cardiac remodeling, hypertrophy and heart failure is a current topic. The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the influences of periodontitis on levels of cardiac oxidative stress.

Material and Methods

Twenty rats were separated into two groups: control and experimental periodontitis (EP). Periodontitis was induced by placing a 3.0 silk suture in the cervix of the left and right mandibular first molar teeth for 5 wk. At the end of the experiment, the animals were killed and blood samples and mandibular and ventricular cardiac tissue samples were collected. Levels of alveolar bone loss were determined using measurements performed on histological slices and radiographies. Left ventricular tissue 8‐hydroxy‐2′‐deoxyguanosine, malonylaldehyde, glutathione peroxidase, total oxidant status, total antioxidant status (TAS) levels and serum paraoxonase‐1 activity were evaluated biochemically.

Results

Measurements performed on the histological slices and radiographies demonstrated that applying the ligature caused obvious alveolar bone loss. Oxidative damage markers (malonylaldehyde, 8‐hydroxy‐2′‐deoxyguanosine, oxidative stress index: total oxidant status/TAS) were significantly higher, and antioxidant markers (glutathione peroxidase, TAS) were statistically insignificantly higher, in the hearts of rats with EP when compared to the controls. In addition, reduced serum paraoxonase‐1 activity was also detected in the EP group.

Conclusion

The pronounced increase in cardiac oxidative stress caused by periodontitis was due to an excessive increase in the production of reactive oxygen species, rather than due to decreased antioxidant capacity. The results indicate that periodontitis‐related cardiac oxidative stress might be one of the mechanisms that contribute to the pathological process that leads to heart failure.
Diet assessment of the Atlantic Sea Nettle Chrysaora quinquecirrha in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, using next‐generation sequencing
Authors: Meredith Robert W. , Gaynor John J. , Bologna Paul A. X.
Published: November 2016

Next‐generation sequencing (NGS) methodologies have proven useful in deciphering the food items of generalist predators, but have yet to be applied to gelatinous animal gut and tentacle content. NGS can potentially supplement traditional methods of visual identification. Chrysaora quinquecirrha (Atlantic sea nettle) has progressively become more abundant in Mid‐Atlantic United States’ estuaries including Barnegat Bay (New Jersey), potentially having detrimental effects on both marine organisms and human enterprises. Full characterization of this predator's diet is essential for a comprehensive understanding of its impact on the food web and its management. Here, we tested the efficacy of NGS for prey item determination in the Atlantic sea nettle. We implemented a NGS ‘shotgun’ approach to randomly sequence DNA fragments isolated from gut lavages and gastric pouch/tentacle picks of eight and 84 sea nettles, respectively. These results were verified by visual identification and co‐occurring plankton tows. Over 550 000 contigs were assembled from ~110 million paired‐end reads. Of these, 100 contigs were confidently assigned to 23 different taxa, including soft‐bodied organisms previously undocumented as prey species, including copepods, fish, ctenophores, anemones, amphipods, barnacles, shrimp, polychaete worms, flukes, flatworms, echinoderms, gastropods, bivalves and hemichordates. Our results not only indicate that a ‘shotgun’ NGS approach can supplement visual identification methods, but targeted enrichment of a specific amplicon/gene is not a prerequisite for identifying Atlantic sea nettle prey items.
Genocide, Diversity, and John Dewey's Progressive Education
Authors: Papastephanou Marianna
Published: November 2016

This article discusses how John Dewey's “Report and Recommendation upon Turkish Education” (published in 1924) and some of Dewey's related travel narratives reflect “civilizing mission” imperatives and involve multiple utopian operations that have not yet attracted political‐philosophical attention. Such critical attention would reveal Dewey's misjudgments concerning issues of diversity, geopolitics, and global justice. Based on an ethicopolitical reading of the relevant sources, the aim here is to expose developmentalist and colonial vestiges, to raise searching questions, and to obtain a heightened view on the stakes of Dewey's utopianism and progressive pragmatism. The article concludes that the acknowledgment of the Armenian genocide constitutes a major challenge to Dewey scholarship.
Timmermann, Forschler, and The Attempt to Bridge the Kantian‐Consequentialist Gap
Authors: Wall Edmund
Published: November 2016

Scott Forschler defends R. M. Hare's rationalist‐universalizing‐utilitarian moral approach against Jens Timmermann's critique of it. He argues that Timmermann fails to see that Kant's ethical rationalism might be consistent with utilitarianism, and argues that Timmermann merely assumes that Kant's deontology follows logically from his ethical rationalism. In Forschler's estimation, it has not been established that either Kant's or Hare's ethical rationalism is inconsistent with utilitarianism. This article, however, argues that, in his response to Timmermann on behalf of Hare's rationalist‐universalizing‐utilitarian approach, Forschler has overlooked something very significant at the foundational level of Hare's moral approach, and that this oversight undercuts his response to Timmermann. The analysis also invites a metaethical investigation of preference satisfaction as it is found in Hare's moral approach. The article uncovers some fundamental metaethical presuppositions in Hare's normative approach, presuppositions overlooked by Forschler.
Perpetrators and Social Death: A Cautionary Tale
Authors: Tirrell Lynne
Published: November 2016

Understanding evil requires both addressing the grave wrongs done to the victim and addressing the perpetrator who does these wrongs. Claudia Card's concept of social vitality was developed to explain what génocidaires destroy in their victims. This essay brings that concept into conversation with perpetrator testimony, arguing that the génocidaires’ desire for their own social vitality, achieved through their destruction of the social world of their targets, in fact boomerangs to corrode the vitality of their own lives. This is true whether they succeed or fail in their genocidal project. Card's recent analysis of “being a badass” is brought to bear on the cultivation of evil, and the essay suggests four strategies for meeting Card's “moral challenge of avoiding evil responses to evil.”
Stationarity‐Based Approach for the Selection of Lag Length in Cointegration Analysis Used for Structural Damage Detection
Authors: Dao Phong B. , Staszewski Wieslaw J. , Klepka Andrzej
Published: November 2016

Cointegration has been recently brought to structural health monitoring (SHM) as a new methodology for dealing with the problem of environmental and/or operational variability in monitored structures. However, it is well known that the choice of lag length in cointegration analysis has a strong influence on damage detection results. The article presents a new approach for optimal lag length selection in cointegration analysis used for structural damage detection. This new method is based on stationarity analysis of data representing undamaged condition. The proposed method is validated using Lamb wave data under the effects of temperature variations and vibroacoustic data obtained from nonlinear vibroacoustic modulation experiments with different low‐frequency vibration (or modal) excitations. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the method for structural damage detection based on SHM data heavily affected by environmental or operational conditions.
Prevalence and impact of anxiety and depression in Chinese peritoneal dialysis patients: A single centre study
Authors: Chan Koon Ming , Cheung Chi Yuen , Chan Yiu Han , Chan Hoi Wong , Chak Wai Leung , Chau Ka Foon
Published: November 2016

Aim

Anxiety and depression are prevalent among patients with end stage renal failure. However, data concerning their role in the subsequent peritonitis and hospitalization was scarce. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of psychological problems in our Chinese peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients and its association with subsequent clinical outcome.

Methods

This was a single‐centre prospective cohort study. All patients newly started on PD between 1 September 2012 and 31 December 2014 were recruited. Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale was used to categorize the patients into high score group (HSG) and low score group (LSG). Higher score reflects higher emotional distress.

Results

A total of 132 patients were recruited. Seventy‐five patients (55%) were categorized as HSG. Higher overall peritonitis rate and Gram‐positive organism associated peritonitis rate were observed in HSG (P = 0.012 and P = 0.016, respectively). The hospitalization rates in HSG and LSG were 1.20 episodes per patient‐year and 1.05 episodes per patient‐year respectively. Both high CCI (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.10–1.62, P < 0.01) and HSG (OR 3.17, 95% CI 1.27–7.93, P = 0.01) were independent risk factors for PD peritonitis.

Conclusion

Anxiety and depression were also common among Chinese PD patients. Those in HSG were more likely to develop PD peritonitis. These psychological symptoms deserved early detection. Further studies are needed to investigate whether intervention can improve the clinical outcome of these patients.
The caring concept, its behaviours and obstacles: perceptions from a qualitative study of undergraduate nursing students
Authors: Dobrowolska Beata , Palese Alvisa
Published: November 2016

Developing caring competences is considered to be one of the most important aims of undergraduate nursing education and the role of clinical placement is recognised as special in this regard. Students' reflection on caring, their experience and obstacles in being caring is recommended as a key strategy in the process of teaching and studying the nursing discipline. Therefore, the aim of this study was to describe the concept of caring, its manifestations and possible obstacles while caring, as perceived by first‐year nursing students before and after their first clinical placement. Qualitative content analysis of 15 Polish students' narratives written before and after their clinical experience in the form of text‐diaries was undertaken. The findings revealed that students entered their nursing education with a deep humanistic vision of caring both on theoretical and practical levels and the first clinical placement has enriched this vision. Expressive caring was more appreciated by students than the instrumental one and their concept of caring was coherent with the caring behaviours as described in their narratives. Several internal and external obstacles for caring have been reported by students, indicating a specific tension between their ideal of caring and their practical experience of caring in the clinical reality.
Time‐use and well‐being impacts of travel‐to‐work and travel‐for‐work
Authors: Wheatley Daniel , Bickerton Craig
Published: November 2016

This article contributes to our understanding of the complex patterns of travel‐to‐work and travel‐for‐work which increasingly characterise highly skilled employment, using 2015 data from a UK Midlands study comprising an online survey and follow‐up interviews. Travel‐to‐work essentially lengthens the working day, and is difficult to use productively, especially when commuting by car. Travel‐for‐work, by contrast, results in intense schedules especially when requiring overnight stays. Ownership of travel‐for‐work is ambiguous: it is employer driven, and travel time is often spent productively using mobile technologies, but is rarely rewarded with TOIL. While general dissatisfaction is reported with the commute, negative effects of travel‐for‐work (family, health, reduced leisure time) are mediated by positive impacts including experience of new working cultures, and infrequency of travel. Four factors appear central to the differing well‐being impacts: (1) frequency of travel; (2) ability to plan travel; (3) productive use of travel time, and; (4) reciprocal benefits of travel.
Ferns, mosses and liverworts as model systems for light‐mediated chloroplast movements
Authors: Suetsugu Noriyuki , Higa Takeshi , Wada Masamitsu
Published: November 2016

Light‐induced chloroplast movement is found in most plant species, including algae and land plants. In land plants with multiple small chloroplasts, under weak light conditions, the chloroplasts move towards the light and accumulate on the periclinal cell walls to efficiently perceive light for photosynthesis (the accumulation response). Under strong light conditions, chloroplasts escape from light to avoid photodamage (the avoidance response). In most plant species, blue light induces chloroplast movement, and phototropin receptor kinases are the blue light receptors. Molecular mechanisms for photoreceptors, signal transduction and chloroplast motility systems are being studied using the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. However, to further understand the molecular mechanisms and evolutionary history of chloroplast movement in green plants, analyses using other plant systems are required. Here, we review recent works on chloroplast movement in green algae, liverwort, mosses and ferns that provide new insights on chloroplast movement.
Fusarium mangiferae localization in planta during initiation and development of mango malformation disease
Authors: Cohen Y. , Belausov E. , Maymon M. , Elazar M. , Shulman I. , Saada D. , Shtienberg D. , Freeman S.
Published: November 2016

Mango malformation disease (MMD), caused by Fusarium mangiferae, is a major constraint to mango production, causing significant yield reduction resulting in severe economic impact. The present study characterizes fungal localization in planta during initiation and development of vegetative and floral malformation. Young mango trees were artificially inoculated with a green fluorescent protein (GFP)‐expressing strain of F. mangiferae. Shoots and buds were sampled periodically over a period of more than a year and localization of the GFP‐expressing fungi was determined using confocal microscopy. Fungal localization appears to be epiphytic: mycelia remained in close contact with the plant surface but did not penetrate the tissue. In vegetative malformation and in young inflorescences, the fungus was confined to protected regions between scales, young leaf bases and buds. Fungal colonization was only very rarely detected on open leaves or on exposed shoot sections. In developed flowers, mycelia were localized mainly to protected regions at the base of the flower organs. Upon development of the inner flower organs, specific mycelial growth occurred around the anthers and the style. Mycelial penetration through the stylar tract into aborting carpels was observed. For several months, mycelia were confined to the surface of the organs and were not detected within plant tissues. Only at later stages, transient saprophytic growth of the fungus was detected causing the malformed inflorescences to senesce and collapse, concurrent with dispersion of conidia. Implications of the present study on MMD in natural field infections are discussed.
Can Poverty be Alleviated in China?
Authors: Qin Cong , Chong Terence Tai Leung
Published: November 2016

The 2000s witnessed the third poverty alleviation wave in China. Compared with its predecessors, the third wave distinguished itself by new interventions and redefined standards for the National Poor Counties. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of the new program using a data set consisting of 1,411 of China's western and central counties from 2000 to 2010. It combines the propensity score matching method with the difference‐in‐differences approach, which helps to avoid selection bias and track the policy impact on variables of interest at each time point. It is found that the non‐western local governments tended to manipulate data on income and output growth to maintain the special transfer payments disbursed exclusively to the National Poor Counties. It is also shown that the program failed to improve the infrastructure and sanitary conditions in general.
Movers and Stayers in The Farming Sector: Accounting for Unobserved Heterogeneity in Structural Change
Authors: Saint-Cyr Legrand D. F. , Piet Laurent
Published: November 2016

The paper investigates whether accounting for unobserved heterogeneity in farms' size transition processes improves the representation of structural change in agriculture. Considering a mixture of two types of farm, the mover–stayer model is applied for the first time in an agricultural economics context. The maximum likelihood method and the expectation–maximization algorithm are used to estimate the model's parameters. An empirical application to a panel of French farms from 2000 to 2013 shows that the mover–stayer model outperforms the homogeneous Markov chain model in recovering the transition process and predicting the future distribution of farm sizes.