bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Unveiling the Immune Dynamics of Neisseria Persistent Oral Colonization: A Roadmap for Innovative Vaccine Strategies
Authors: Alles Mario , Gunasena Manuja , Zia Tauqir , D'Mello Adonis , Saroj Bhattarai Saroj , Mulhern Will , Terry Luke , Scherger Trenton , Wijeratne Saranga , Singh Sachleen , Wijeratne Asela , Kasturiratna Dhanuja , Tettelin Herve , Weyand Nathan John , Liyanage Namal
Published: December 2023

Commensal bacteria are crucial in maintaining host physiological homeostasis, immune system development, and protection against pathogens. Despite their significance, the factors influencing persistent bacterial colonization and their impact on the host still need to be fully understood. Animal models have served as valuable tools to investigate these interactions, but most have limitations. The bacterial genus Neisseria, which includes both commensal and pathogenic species, has been studied from a pathogenicity to humans perspective, but lacks models that study immune responses in the context of long-term persistence. Neisseria musculi, a recently described natural commensal of mice, offers a unique opportunity to study long-term host-commensal interactions. In this study, for the first time we have used this model to study the transcriptional, phenotypic, and functional dynamics of immune cell signatures in the mucosal and systemic tissue of mice in response to Neisseria musculi colonization. We found key genes and pathways vital for immune homeostasis in palate tissue, validated by flow cytometry of immune cells from lung, blood and spleen. This study offers a novel avenue for advancing our understanding of host-bacteria dynamics and may provide a platform for developing efficacious interventions against mucosal persistence by pathogenic Neisseria.
Missense mutations in CMS22 patients reveal that PREPL has both enzymatic and non-enzymatic functions
Authors: Monnens Yenthe , Theodoropoulou Anastasia , Rosier Karen , Bhalla Kritika , Mahy Alexia , Vanhoutte Roeland , Meulemans Sandra , Cavani Edoardo , Antanasijevic Aleksandar , Lemmens Irma , Lee Jennifer A. , Spellicy Catherin J. , Schroer Richard J. , Maselli Richardo A. , Laverty Chamindra G. , Agostinis Patrizia , Pagliarini David J. , Verhelst Steven , Marcaida Maria J. , Rochtus Anne , Peraro Matteo Dal , Creemers John W.M.
Published: December 2023

Congenital myasthenic syndrome-22 (CMS22) is a rare genetic disorder caused by mutations in the prolyl endopeptidase-like (PREPL) gene. Since previous reports only described patients with deletions and nonsense mutations inPREPL, nothing is known about the effect of missense mutations in the pathology of CMS22. In this study, we have characterized missense mutations inPREPLin three CMS22 patients, all with hallmark phenotypes. Biochemical evaluation revealed that these missense mutations do not impair hydrolase activity, thereby challenging the conventional diagnostic criteria. Structural analysis shows that the mutations affect regions most likely involved in intra-protein or protein-protein interactions. Indeed, binding to a selected group of known interactors was differentially reduced for the three mutants. The importance of non-hydrolytic functions of PREPL was investigated in catalytically inactive PREPL p.Ser559Ala cell lines which showed that hydrolytic activity of PREPL is needed for normal mitochondrial function but not for regulating AP1-mediated transport in the trans-Golgi network. In conclusion, these studies show that CMS22 can be caused not only by deletion and truncation of PREPL but also by missense mutations that do not necessarily result in a loss of hydrolytic activity of PREPL.

Graphical abstract
Toxoplasma gondiiF-Box Protein L2 Silences Feline-Restricted Genes Necessary for Sexual Commitment
Authors: Baptista Carlos G. , Hosking Sarah , Gas-Pascual Elisabet , Ciampossine Loic , Abel Steven , Hakimi Mohamed-Ali , Jeffers Victoria , Roch Karine Le , West Christopher M. , Blader Ira J.
Published: December 2023

Toxoplasma gondiiis a foodborne pathogen that can cause severe and life-threatening infections in fetuses and immunocompromised patients. Felids are its only definitive hosts, and a wide range of animals, including humans, serve as intermediate hosts. When the transmissible bradyzoite stage is orally ingested by felids, they transform into merozoites that expand asexually, ultimately generating millions of gametes for the parasite sexual cycle. However, bradyzoites in intermediate hosts differentiate exclusively to disease-causing tachyzoites, which rapidly disseminate throughout the host. Though tachyzoites are well-studied, the molecular mechanisms governing transitioning between developmental stages are poorly understood. Each parasite stage can be distinguished by a characteristic transcriptional signature, with one signature being repressed during the other stages. Switching between stages requires substantial changes in the proteome, which is achieved in part by ubiquitination. F-box proteins mediate protein poly-ubiquitination by recruiting substrates to SKP1, Cullin-1, F-Box protein E3 ubiquitin ligase (SCF-E3) complexes. We have identified an F-box protein namedToxoplasma gondiiF-Box Protein L2 (TgFBXL2), which localizes to distinct nuclear sites. TgFBXL2 is stably engaged in an SCF-E3 complex that is surprisingly also associated with a COP9 signalosome complex that negatively regulates SCF-E3 function. At the cellular level, TgFBXL2-depleted parasites are severely defective in centrosome replication and daughter cell development. Most remarkable, RNA seq data show that TgFBXL2 conditional depletion induces the expression of genes necessary for sexual commitment. We suggest that TgFBXL2 is a latent guardian of sexual stage development inToxoplasmaand poised to remove conflicting proteins in response to an unknown trigger of sexual development.

AUTHOR SUMMARY

Toxoplasma gondiiis a protozoan parasite that replicates sexually in felids and asexually in nearly all other mammals with each life stage having a specific transcriptional profile. When life stage specific transcription is not properly controlled, the parasite dies and therefore it’s important to understand what inhibits expression of sexual stage genes during asexual growth and vice versa. Here we identify a ubiquitin E3 ligase complex that inhibits sexual stage gene expression during asexual growth.
Integration of Unpaired and Heterogeneous Clinical Flow Cytometry Data
Authors: Phuycharoen Mike , Kaestele Verena , Williams Thomas , Lin Lijing , Hussell Tracy , Grainger John , Rattray Magnus
Published: December 2023

We introduce the Unbiasing Variational Autoencoder (UVAE), a novel computational framework developed for the integration of unpaired biomedical data streams, with a particular focus on clinical flow cytometry. UVAE effectively addresses the challenges of batch effect correction and data alignment by training a semi-supervised model on partially labeled datasets. This approach enables the simultaneous normalisation and integration of diverse data within a shared latent space. The frame-work is implemented in Python with a descriptive interface for the specification and incorporation of multiple, partially overlapping data series. UVAE employs a probabilistic model for batch effect normalisation, with a generative capacity for unbiased data reconstruction and inference from heterogeneous samples. Its training process strategically balances class contents during various stages, ensuring accurate representation in statistical analyses. The model’s convergence is achieved through a stable, non-adversarial training mechanism, complemented by an automated selection of hyper-parameters via Bayesian optimization. We quantitatively validate the performance of UVAE’s constituent components and apply it to the problem of integrating heterogeneous clinical flow cytometry data collected from COVID-19 patients. We show that the alignment process enhances the statistical signal of cell types associated with severity and enables clustering of subpopulations without the impediment of batch effects. Finally, we demonstrate that homogeneous data generated by UVAE can be used to improve the performance of longitudinal regression for predicting peak disease severity from temporal patient samples.

Availability: Framework:https://github.com/mikephn/UVAE. Training and benchmarking code:https://github.com/mikephn/UVAE-COVID19-codebase. Data and model files will be made available upon completing peer review.
Covalent Targeting of Splicing in T Cells
Authors: Scott Kevin A. , Kojima Hiroyuki , Ropek Nathalie , Warren Charles D. , Zhang Tiffany L. , Hogg Simon J. , Webster Caroline , Zhang Xiaoyu , Rahman Jahan , Melillo Bruno , Cravatt Benjamin F. , Lyu Jiankun , Abdel-Wahab Omar , Vinogradova Ekaterina V.
Published: December 2023

Despite significant interest in therapeutic targeting of splicing, few chemical probes are available for the proteins involved in splicing. Here, we show that elaborated stereoisomeric acrylamide chemical probe EV96 and its analogues lead to a selective T cell state-dependent loss of interleukin 2-inducible T cell kinase (ITK) by targeting one of the core splicing factors SF3B1. Mechanistic investigations suggest that the state-dependency stems from a combination of differential protein turnover rates and availability of functional mRNA pools that can be depleted due to extensive alternative splicing. We further introduce a comprehensive list of proteins involved in splicing and leverage both cysteine- and protein-directed activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) data with electrophilic scout fragments to demonstrate covalent ligandability for many classes of splicing factors and splicing regulators in primary human T cells. Taken together, our findings show how chemical perturbation of splicing can lead to immune state-dependent changes in protein expression and provide evidence for the broad potential to target splicing factors with covalent chemistry.
Variability of morphology-performance relationships under acute exposure to different temperatures in three strains of zebrafish
Authors: Miller Christina L , Dugand Robert J , McGuigan Katrina
Published: December 2023

Locomotion is thermally sensitive in ectotherms and therefore it is typically expressed differently among thermally heterogenous environments. Locomotion is a complex function, and while physiological and behavioural traits that influence locomotor performance may respond to thermal variation throughout life, other contributing traits, like body shape, may have more restricted responses. How morphology affects locomotor performance under variable temperature conditions is unknown. Here, we investigated three genetically distinct strains of zebrafish (AB, WIK, and Tu) with a shared multi-generational history at 28°C. After rearing fish at a constant 28°C, we measured prolonged swimming speed (Ucrit) at each of six temperatures (between 16°C and 34°C). Speed was strongly positively correlated among temperatures, resulting in most among-individual variation being temperature-independent (i.e., fish were relatively fast or slow across all temperatures). However, we also detected significant variation along two axes reflecting temperature-dependent variation, including one reflecting differences among individuals consistent with a hotter-colder tradeoff (i.e., individuals that were relatively fast at cooler temperatures were relatively slow at hotter temperatures and vice versa). Although strains differed in mean swimming performance, within strain (among-individual) patterns of speed variation were markedly consistent. Body shape and size explained significant variation among individuals in both temperature-independent and temperature-dependent axes of swimming speed variation. Notably, morphological traits that were most strongly associated with temperature-independent performance variation (i.e., faster-slower) differed from those associated with temperature-dependent (i.e., hotter-colder) variation. Further, there were significant differences among strains in both the direction and strength of association for specific morphological traits. Our results suggest that thermally heterogenous environments could have complex effects on the evolution of traits that contribute to whole organism performance traits.
Hijacking the transcriptional activation potential of the BAF complex via Induced Proximity
Authors: Chia Lionel , Mayhew David , Sherbanee Brenna , Lahr David L. , Taherbhoy Asad M.
Published: December 2023

The BAF (Brg/Brahma-associated factors) complex, also referred to as the mammalian Switch/Sucrose-Nonfermentable (mSWI/SNF) chromatin remodeling complex, plays a pivotal role in epigenetically regulating diverse transcriptional programs. BAF’s chromatin remodeling activity, which enhances accessibility to transcriptional machinery, is critical for gene regulation. Recent studies have demonstrated that redirecting BAF complexes to bivalent promoters can alter the local epigenetic landscape, creating a permissive environment for transcription. As such, we hypothesize that redirecting BAF to “turn on” therapeutically relevant genes offers a potential approach for disease treatment.

Using rapamycin as a chemical inducer of proximity (CIP) via CRISPR/Cas9 and FKBP/FRB dimerization, we redirected BAF complexes to the promoter of fetal hemoglobin (HBG), a therapeutic target for beta-globinopathies like sickle cell anemia and beta-thalassemia. This resulted in changes to the local chromatin and epigenetic landscapes, and increasedHBG1expression. Having confirmed BAF’s ability to activate gene expression, we then performed a genome-wide CRISPR activation drop-out screen to identify genes that when activated by BAF, suppress cellular proliferation. In addition to known tumor suppressors, our screen identified a number of genes with the ability to inhibit cell proliferation when activated by BAF. Collectively, our findings highlight the potential for harnessing the BAF’s intrinsic transcriptional activation capabilities for therapeutic purposes and lays the foundation for the potential development of therapeutics that function via induced proximity.
Isolectin B4 (IB4)-conjugated streptavidin for the selective knockdown of proteins in IB4-positive (+) nociceptors
Authors: Bogen O , Araldi D , Sucher A , Kober K , Ohara PT , Levine JD
Published: December 2023

In vivoanalysis of protein function in nociceptor subpopulations using antisense oligonucleotides and short interfering RNAs is limited by their non-selective cellular uptake. To address the need for selective transfection methods, we covalently linked isolectin B4 (IB4) to streptavidin and analyzed whether it could be used to study protein function in IB4(+)-nociceptors. Rats treated intrathecally with IB4-conjugated streptavidin complexed with biotinylated antisense oligonucleotides for protein kinase C epsilon (PKCε) mRNA were found to have: a) less PKCε in dorsal root ganglia (DRG), b) reduced PKCε expression in IB4(+) but not IB4(–) DRG neurons, and c) fewer transcripts of the PKCε gene in the DRG. This knockdown in PKCε expression in IB4(+) DRG neurons is sufficient to reverse hyperalgesic priming, a rodent model of chronic pain that is dependent on PKCε in IB4(+)-nociceptors. These results establish that IB4-streptavidin can be used to study protein function in a defined subpopulation of nociceptive C-fiber afferents.
Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell based Hepatic-Modeling of Lipid metabolism associated TM6SF2 E167K variant
Authors: Faccioli Lanuza AP , Sun Yiyue , Motomura Takashi , Liu Zhenghao , Kurihara Takeshi , Hu Zhiping , Cetin Zeliha , Franks Jonathan , Stolz Donna , Ostrowska Alina , Florentino Rodrigo M , Fox Ira J , Soto-Gutierrez Alejandro
Published: December 2023

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

TM6SF2 rs58542926 (E167K) is associated with an increase in the prevalence of Metabolic Disfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD). Despite all the investigation related to the role of this variant in lipid metabolism, conflicting results in mouse studies underscore the importance of creating a human model for understanding the TM6SF2 mechanism. Therefore, the aim of this study is to generate a reliable human in vitro model that mimic the effects of the TM6SF2 E167K mutation and can be used for future mechanism studies.

APPROACH AND RESULTS

We performed gene editing on human-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) derived from a healthy individual to obtain the cells carrying the TM6SF2 E167K mutation. After hepatic differentiation, a decrease in TM6SF2 protein expression was observed in the mutated-induced hepatocyte. An increase in intracellular lipid droplets and a decrease in the efflux of cholesterol and ApoB100 were also observed. Transcriptomics analysis showed up-regulation of genes related to the transport, flux, and oxidation of lipids, fatty acids, and cholesterol in TM6SF2 E167K cells. Additionally, signs of cellular stress were observed in the ER and mitochondria.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate that induced hepatocytes generated from iPSC carrying the TM6SF2 E167K recapitulate the effects observed in human hepatocytes from individuals with the TM6SF2 mutation. This study characterizes an in vitro model that can be used as a platform to help in the identification of potential clinical targets and therapies and to understand the mechanism by which the TM6SF2 E167K variant leads to vulnerability to MASLD.
Temporal recording of mammalian development and precancer
Authors: Islam Mirazul , Yang Yilin , Simmons Alan J. , Shah Vishal M. , Pavan Musale Krushna , Xu Yanwen , Tasneem Naila , Chen Zhengyi , Trinh Linh T. , Molina Paola , Ramirez-Solano Marisol A. , Sadien Iannish , Dou Jinzhuang , Chen Ken , Magnuson Mark A. , Rathmell Jeffrey C. , Macara Ian G. , Winton Douglas , Liu Qi , Zafar Hamim , Kalhor Reza , Church George M. , Shrubsole Martha J. , Coffey Robert J. , Lau Ken S.
Published: December 2023

Key to understanding many biological phenomena is knowing the temporal ordering of cellular events, which often require continuous direct observations [1, 2]. An alternative solution involves the utilization of irreversible genetic changes, such as naturally occurring mutations, to create indelible markers that enables retrospective temporal ordering [3-8]. Using NSC-seq, a newly designed and validated multi-purpose single-cell CRISPR platform, we developed a molecular clock approach to record the timing of cellular events and clonalityin vivo, while incorporating assigned cell state and lineage information. Using this approach, we uncovered precise timing of tissue-specific cell expansion during murine embryonic development and identified new intestinal epithelial progenitor states by their unique genetic histories. NSC-seq analysis of murine adenomas and single-cell multi-omic profiling of human precancers as part of the Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN), including 116 scRNA-seq datasets and clonal analysis of 418 human polyps, demonstrated the occurrence of polyancestral initiation in 15-30% of colonic precancers, revealing their origins from multiple normal founders. Thus, our multimodal framework augments existing single-cell analyses and lays the foundation forin vivomultimodal recording, enabling the tracking of lineage and temporal events during development and tumorigenesis.
Eco-anxiety among Children and Young People: Systematic Review of Social, Political, and Geographical determinants
Authors: Kankawale Shamal M , Niedzwiedz Claire L
Published: December 2023

Background

Eco-anxiety, the experience of challenging emotions relating to environmental issues, such as climate change, and the threats they present, is of increasing global public health concern. Although responses to eco-anxiety can be positive and motivational, experienced to a severe extent, they may contribute to depressive and anxiety disorders, exacerbate existing mental health conditions and negatively impact general wellbeing. Children and young people may be more susceptible to higher levels eco-anxiety, but the factors which contribute to eco-anxiety are not well-understood. This systematic review explored the social, political and geographical factors influencing eco-anxiety among children and young people.

Methods

A comprehensive search of articles published between 2017-2023 was conducted on using EBSCOhost for APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo, Child Development & Adolescent Studies, CINAHL, EconLit, GreenFILE, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, MEDLINE, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and SocINDEX, with additional individual searches conducted on PubMed, Google Scholar, MedRxiv and PsyArxiv. The quality of included articles was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Checklist. The findings were summarised using a narrative synthesis approach.

Results

Eighteen studies were included in the synthesis after screening 2,588 articles. Determinants in three major categories were identified: social (including age, gender, socioeconomic position, education, news and social media), political (climate activism, government inaction and sense of betrayal), and geographical factors (direct exposure to climate change-related events and country/region). Nine studies were cross-sectional, five were qualitative, three were mixed methods and one was longitudinal. Most studies were from high-income countries, particularly Australia, New Zealand and Norway. Studies were of variable methodological quality, using different measurement approaches to eco-anxiety and most surveys were conducted online using non-representative samples.

Conclusion

Eco-anxiety is influenced by a range of social, political, and geographical factors. Governments and the mass media could play an important role in preventing eco-anxiety becoming of clinical concern. Given the lack of high-quality studies in this area, further research is essential to better understand the determinants of eco-anxiety across cultures to help minimize its impact on mental health and wellbeing and ensure it is channeled positively.
The actin-spectrin submembrane scaffold restricts endocytosis along proximal axons
Authors: Wernert Florian , Moparthi Satish , Lainé Jeanne , Moulay Gilles , Boroni-Rueda Fanny , Pelletier Florence , Jullien Nicolas , Benkhelifa-Ziyat Sofia , Papandréou Marie-Jeanne , Leterrier Christophe , Vassilopoulos Stéphane
Published: December 2023

Neuronal clathrin-mediated endocytosis has unique features in compartments such as dendrites and presynaptic boutons, but how membrane and extracellular components are internalized along the axon shaft remains poorly known. Here we focused on clathrin-coated structures and endocytosis along the axon initial segment (AIS), and their relationship to the periodic actin-spectrin scaffold that lines the axonal plasma membrane. Super-resolution optical microscopy, platinum replica electron microscopy, and their correlative combination on cultured hippocampal neurons reveal that in the AIS, clathrin-coated pits form on bare membrane patches, ∼300 nm circular areas devoid of spectrin mesh and lined by actin filaments we termed “clearings”. In fibroblasts and the proximal axon of neurons, spectrin depletion and drug-induced scaffold disorganization increase clathrin-coated pit formation. However, the presence of clathrin-coated pits at the AIS is not directly linked to actual endocytosis: using cargo uptake and live-cell imaging experiments, we find that most AIS clathrin-coated pits are long-lived and immobile within the spectrin mesh clearings. Direct perturbation of the spectrin scaffold as well as elevated neuronal activity could induce endocytosis downstream of clathrin pit formation, showing that spectrin clearings are structures responsible for regulated endocytosis at the AIS.
A review of circular economy models and success factors on public-private partnership infrastructure development
Authors: Akomea-Frimpong Isaac , Jin Xiaohua , Osei Kyei Robert , Tetteh Portia Atswei , Tumpa Roksana Jahan , Ofori Joshua Nsiah Addo , Pariafsai Fatemeh
Published: December 2023

Purpose

The application of circular economy (CE) has received wide coverage in the built environment, including public-private partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects, in recent times. However, current studies and practical implementation of CE are largely associated with construction demolition, waste and recycling management. Few studies exist on circular models and success factors of public infrastructures developed within the PPP contracts. Thus, the main objective of this article is to identify the models and key success factors associated with CE implementation in PPP infrastructure projects.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic review of the literature was undertaken in this study using forty-two (42) peer-reviewed journal articles from Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar and PubMed.

Findings

The results show that environmental factors, sustainable economic growth, effective stakeholder management, sufficient funding, utilization of low-carbon materials, effective supply chain and procurement strategies facilitate the implementation of CE in PPP infrastructure projects. Key CE business models are centered around the extension of project life cycle value, circular inputs and recycling and reuse of projects.

Research limitations/implications

Although the study presents relevant findings and gaps for further investigations, it has a limited sample size of 42 papers, which is expected to increase as CE gain more prominence in PPP infrastructure management in future.

Practical implications

The findings are relevant for decision-making by PPP practitioners to attain the social, economic and environmental benefits of transitioning to circular infrastructure management.

Originality/value

This study contributes to articulating the key models and measures toward sustainable CE in public infrastructure development.
Joint effect of entrepreneurship and dynamic capabilities on firm performance: an empirical investigation among ICT-SMEs
Authors: Nguyen Hoa Thi Nhu , Han Jung Woo , Pham Hiep Cong
Published: December 2023

Purpose

With the focus on the context of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), this study aims to investigate the joint effects of entrepreneurial leadership, entrepreneurial orientation and dynamic capabilities and the mechanisms of how these factors influence firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey from 319 managers in information and communications technology SMEs in Vietnam was conducted, and structural equation modeling was adopted to analyze the collected data.

Findings

The results confirm that dynamic capabilities directly influence firm performance and serve as a mediator that connects entrepreneurial leadership and entrepreneurial orientation with firm performance. Additionally, entrepreneurial leadership was found to have a significant positive impact on entrepreneurial orientation.

Originality/value

This research augments the understanding of entrepreneurship and dynamic capabilities literature by examining the joint effects and mechanisms of how entrepreneurial leadership, entrepreneurial orientation and dynamic capabilities interact to enhance SMEs' performance. Furthermore, this study provides empirical evidence of the strategies that SMEs should pursue to attain favorable performance outcomes.
Comparative life cycle assessment of flooring options for sustainable buildings
Authors: Choudhary Kailash , Sangwa Narpat Ram , Sangwan Kuldip Singh
Published: December 2023

Purpose

This study aims to quantify and compare the environmental impacts of Marble-stone and Kota-stone flooring options widely used for buildings in India. The study discusses the possibility of carbon sequestration through Bamboo cultivation in India.

Design/methodology/approach

The study has followed a standard life cycle assessment (LCA) framework based on ISO 14040 guidelines. Three distinct phases have been compared on midpoint and endpoint assessment categories – raw material, polishing and disposal. Primary data has been collected from the construction site in India, and secondary data has been collected from the Ecoinvent 3.0 database. Previous studies have been referred to discuss and calculate the area of bamboo cultivation required to sequestrate the generated carbon from the flooring.

Findings

The study has found that endpoint category damage to resources, and midpoint categories of climate change, metal depletion and agricultural land use are highly impacted in building floorings. The study has also found that the Marble-stone floor generates higher environmental impacts than the Kota-stone floor in most of the midpoint and endpoint impact categories. This difference is significant in the raw material phase due to the different compositions of stones. The study also found that Bamboo has excellent potential to act as a carbon sink and mitigate the generated carbon.

Research limitations/implications

This study excludes human labour, cutting and distribution of floor tiles made of Marble-stone and Kota-stone. The researcher can use the study to evaluate, compare and benchmark the various building flooring options from the environmental perspective. The study aids to the body of knowledge available on the various building flooring options by presenting the LCA or the environmental impacts generated by two flooring options. It is expected that the architects and builders can use these results to develop carbon-neutral buildings. This study provides a methodology for governments, constructors, builders and individuals to evaluate, compare and benchmark the various construction materials from the environmental perspective by computing the environmental impacts throughout the life cycle of the materials.

Originality/value

This study compares two widely used building flooring options using the LCA methodology and evaluates the potential of bamboo cultivation near the buildings for carbon sinks. The study is unique because it shows the environmental impacts of two flooring options and the carbon sequestration method to mitigate/absorb the generated environmental impacts in or around the building itself through bamboo cultivation. This study may set the foundation for carbon-neutral buildings.
Situated between headquarters and local environment: local managers’ scope for action in training activities
Authors: Fuchs Martina , Westermeyer Johannes
Published: December 2023

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the scope for action of local human resource managers, who are employed in foreign subsidiaries of multinational companies (MNCs), for implementing training activities. These managers are situated in relationships to headquarters and the local environment. Related to this is the question whether MNCs contribute to the local skill base by implementing training activities or whether they exploit the existing skill formation system.

Design/methodology/approach

This study focusses on German subsidiaries of MNCs with headquarters in the USA and the UK, France, China and Japan. The study is based on 107 expert interviews with subsidiary managers and representatives of local stakeholder organisations, such as educational organisations, chambers, economic promotion agencies and governmental bodies in Germany.

Findings

The study reveals that headquarters introduce general schemes for training. In addition to these MNC-internal trainings, local managers use their information advantage over headquarters to implement dual training activities.

Research limitations/implications

The training activities of subsidiaries are dependent on the institutional settings of the host country.

Practical implications

Albeit dual training activities are laborious and tie the local managers down for the medium and long term, the future need of the subsidiary for adequately skilled workforce prompts local managers’ engagement in implementing dual training activities.

Social implications

Subsidiaries contribute to the local skill base and do not act in a free-rider position, at least in the German variety of capitalism.

Originality/value

The study deepens insights on distanced relations within and how subsidiaries generate scope for action by using this kind of relationships.
Content analysis and sentiment analysis of pro- and anti-vaccine conversations on YouTube in India: intentions and causes
Authors: Kumar Vinit , Ji Gopal , Deori Maya , Verma Manoj Kumar
Published: December 2023

Purpose

Vaccine hesitancy is a long-standing issue among both the general population and health communicators. This study aims to ascertain the inclination and the reasons for vaccine hesitancy by conducting content analysis and sentiment analysis of the perspectives expressed in comments on videos related to vaccine hesitancy uploaded from India on YouTube.

Design/methodology/approach

The assessment of the sentiments of the vaccine-hesitant population is done using Valence Aware Dictionary and sEntiment Reasoner sentiment analysis module implemented with Python’s NLTK library to automatically determine the sentiments of the comments. Manual content analysis was performed on 60.09% viewer comments randomly selected from the total comments in 238 videos on vaccine hesitancy originated from India and labelled each comment with labels “Anti”, “Pro”, “Confused”, “Not Applicable” and “Unrelated” labels.

Findings

The study found “Mistrust-Government policies”, “Fear-health related consequences”, “Mistrust-Scientific research”, “Vaccine effectiveness and efficacy” and “Misinformation/myths” as the top five determinants for vaccine hesitancy, whereas “Religious beliefs”, “Fear-Economic consequences”, “Side Effects- short-term” and “Fear-mode of administration” found to be the lesser cited reasons for vaccine hesitancy. However, the study also investigates changes in the inclination of Indian commenters towards vaccine hesitancy and revolving issues over time.

Social implications

Public health policymakers and health communicators may find the study useful in determining vaccine hesitancy factors in India.

Originality/value

The originality of this study lies in its approach. To date, no sentiment analysis has been conducted on the content released on YouTube by Indian content creators regarding pro- and anti-vaccination videos. This inquiry seeks to fill this research gap.
Innovative strategies to tackle seasonality issue in hospitality and tourism industry
Authors: Dalir Sara
Published: December 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to deepen the current knowledge of seasonality by investigating visitors’ intentional and behavioural patterns during peak and off-peak seasons. It compares the variation in several key behavioural factors, namely, duration of stay, party size, revisit intention, spending and breakdown of spending in different sectors in hospitality and tourism including entertainment, restaurant, accommodation and transportation. Moreover, this research expands the understanding by examining the effectiveness of two innovative strategies of offering a digital app and organising a unique event to tackle seasonal imbalances through stimulating visitors’ intention to change their timing of visit from peak to off-peak periods.

Design/methodology/approach

The author initially used a Delphi approach to gather experts’ opinion on the two scenario settings: event organisation and a trip planner app. The scenarios aimed to potentially encourage visitors to change their visit time to off-peak seasons. Then, using a quantitative survey, the travel habits and spending behaviours of 310 participants were captured. Furthermore, the survey assessed their intention to travel during off-peak seasons in response to the implementation of the two innovative strategies.

Findings

The results revealed that although the number of visitors who travel in off-peak seasons may be lower, their daily spending is higher than peak season visitors. In addition to total spending per day, the duration of stay, part size, quality of accommodation and re-visit intention of visitors indicated significant variation between peak and off-peak seasons. According to the statistical analysis’ results, organising events (including festivals) proves more effective in encouraging visitors to travel during off-peak seasons compared to digital innovation (i.e. a trip planner app). This finding is in line with the tenets of the Jobs-to-be-Done Theory of innovation.

Originality/value

This study contributes by conceptualising the mechanism of seasonality and its impacts on subsectors of tourism and hospitality. To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is one of the few empirical research that compares the behavioural patterns of visitors including their average spending per day between peak and off-peak seasons. Previous studies focused on specific regions or sectors, whereas this research investigates visitors’ behaviour on a broader scale to provide more comprehensive view. Furthermore, this study is novel due to practising an outside-in approach through investigating the effectiveness of the two innovative strategies aimed at addressing seasonality in the hospitality and tourism industry from visitors’ point of view.
Effect of textured parameters on tribological properties of hydrodynamic journal bearing
Authors: Mao Yazhou , Li Daqing , Li Lilin , Zheng Jingyang
Published: December 2023

Purpose

This study aims to improve the tribological properties of hydrodynamic journal bearing via surface texture, as well as the wear and antifriction mechanisms of textured bearing were represented. It provides a design direction for solving the tribological problem of rotor-bearing system.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, the variation of surface texture parameters (e.g. texture diameter, d; area density, sp; and depth, hp) were analyzed based on finite difference method. The optimal surface texture parameters were obtained by designing orthogonal experiments, and the relationship between friction and wear properties and microstructure was studied via combining electron probe microanalyzer, scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffractometer and friction and wear testing machine.

Findings

Dimensionless film pressure P increased as the d increased, whereas P first increased and then decreased as the sp and hp increased, and the maximum P was got as sp = 15% and hp = 25 µm, respectively. The friction coefficient of textured surface with suitable parameters was effectively reduced and the textured surface with the best antifriction effect was 5#. Orthogonal experimental design analysis showed that the influence order of factors on friction coefficient was as follows: sp > sp × d > d > d × hp > hp > sp × hp and the friction coefficient first decreased and then increased as the sp, d and hp increased. In addition, the friction and wear mechanism of textured bearing were three body friction and abrasive wear as the matrix structure and hard phase were a single β phase and Mn5Si3, respectively. While the antifriction mechanism of textured surface was able to store abrasive particles and secondary hydrodynamic lubrication was formed.

Originality/value

The sample with reasonable texture parameter design can effectively reduce friction and wear of hydrodynamic journal bearing without reducing the service life, which can provide a reference for improving the lubrication performance and mechanical efficiency of rotor-bearing system.
Does training provision matter? Unravelling the impact of digital transformation on environmental sustainability
Authors: Yu Wantao , Liu Qi , Chavez Roberto , Zheng Linchang
Published: December 2023

Purpose

Many firms are now pursuing large-scale change initiatives to accelerate their digital transformation (DT) and sustainable development. However, the success rate of DT projects is still low, and the extent to which DT enables firms to improve environmental sustainability (ES) remains unclear. Recently, researchers have argued that DT is more about people transformation rather than technology. Based on the contingent resource-based view, this study investigates how DT influences ES and examines the moderating role of training provision (TP).

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data gathered from manufacturers in China were analysed to test the proposed theoretical framework.

Findings

The results indicate that DT has a positive impact on ES, and that this effect is positively moderated by TP.

Practical implications

The empirical findings provide insights for managers to understand the success of digital sustainability transformation requires necessary digital knowledge and skills derived from TP.

Originality/value

This study provides an initial examination of digital sustainability, which is a new stream of literature for the digital age, and further extends existing knowledge by demonstrating the importance of people (i.e. TP) in strengthening the effectiveness of DT on ES.
Social media influencers: literature review, trends and research agenda
Authors: Tanwar Anshika Singh , Chaudhry Harish , Srivastava Manish Kumar
Published: December 2023

Purpose

This study aims to provide a holistic review of social media influencers (SMIs) research based on a unique approach of bibliometric analysis and content analysis between 2011 and 2020. The review examines the main influential aspects, themes and research streams to identify research directions for the future.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample selection and data collection were done from the Scopus database. The sample dataset was refined based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria to determine the final dataset of 183 articles. The dataset was exported in the BibTeX format and then imported into the BiblioShiny app for bibliometric analysis. The content analysis was done following the theory-context-methodology framework.

Findings

The several findings of this study include (1) Co-word analysis of most used keywords; (2) Longitudinal thematic evolution; (3) The focus of the research papers as per the theory-context-methodology review protocol are persuasion knowledge model, fashion and beauty industries, Instagram and content analysis, respectively; and (4) The network analysis of the research studies is known as the co-citation analysis and depicts the intellectual structure in the domain. This analysis resulted in four clusters of the research streams from the literature and two emergent themes (Chenet al.,2010)

Originality/value

In general, the previous reviews in the area are either domain, method or theory-based. Thus, this study aims to complement and extend the existing literature by presenting the overall picture of the SMI research with the help of a unique combined approach and further highlighting the trends and future research directions based on the findings of this study.
Public procurement initiatives during the Covid-19 pandemic and lessons learned: the case study of Greece
Authors: Koligiannis Georgios , Drakaki Maria , Tzionas Panagiotis
Published: December 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to highlight how the Greek State tried to improve public procurement processes during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and propose measures that could be implemented in a future force majeure event where the global supply chain will not operate efficiently.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors investigated the existing scientific literature. Afterwards, they designed a questionnaire to gather primary data and add value to the current literature.

Findings

The research paper results highlight that in future force majeure events, the best way for effective public procurement is to implement central procurement, framework agreements with more than one economic operator and use the newly established Public Buyers Community in the European Union. The questionnaire interviews also highlighted that payment terms could be adjusted to the needs of the suppliers to improve their financial flows, which are disrupted in case of a force majeure event.

Research limitations/implications

One of the limitations of the present case study is that apart from the Greek procurement Laws and policy documents related to the COVID-19 pandemic, only scientific articles written in English were used by the authors in the literature review section.

Practical implications

The findings could benefit public contracting authorities and central procurement bodies when designing their processes in case of a force majeure event like the COVID-19 pandemic. As the public contracting authorities and the procurement officers are more informed about potential ways to improve the public procurement processes, they might apply measures that could facilitate the flexibility of the procurement processes.

Social implications

The research paper can provide lessons learned to policy makers, when they have to cope with similar challenges in the future.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, no previous scientific article has examined how the Greek State has tried to respond to the supply shortages created during the pandemic. Furthermore, this is the first study in Greece that gathers primary data from public procurement practitioners.
Navigating the digital landscape: examining the interdependencies of digital transformation and big data in driving SMEs' innovation performance
Authors: Hongyun Tian , Sohu Jan Muhammad , Khan Asad Ullah , Junejo Ikramuddin , Shaikh Sonia Najam , Akhtar Sadaf , Bilal Muhammad
Published: December 2023

Purpose

In this digital age, the rapid technological innovation and adoption, with the increasing use of big data analytics, has raised concerns about the ability of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to sustain the competition and innovation performance (IP). To narrow the research gap, this paper investigates the role of big data analytics capability (BDAC) in moderating the relationship between digital innovation (DI) and SME innovation performance.

Design/methodology/approach

This research has been carried forward through a detailed theory and literature analysis. Data were analyzed through confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation models using a two-stage approach in smartPLS-4.

Findings

Results highlight that digital service capability (DSC) significantly mediates the relationship between DI and IP. Additionally, value co-creation (VCC) directly affects digital transformation (DT), while DI has a stronger effect on DSC than IP. Furthermore, BDAC significantly moderates the relation between DSC → IP and DT → IP, whereas it has a detrimental effect on the relation between DI and IP. In addition to that, VCC, DSC, DT, DI and BDAC have a direct, significant and positive effect on IP.

Practical implications

This research was motivated by the practical relevance of supporting SMEs in adopting DT and the resource-based view (RBV) and technology acceptance model (TAM). This study shows that all direct and indirect measures significantly affect innovation performance, including BDAC as moderator. These findings refresh the perspective on what DT, DI, VCC, DSC and BDAC can bring to a firm's innovation performance.

Originality/value

This paper has contributed to DT by empirically validating a theoretical argument that suggests the acceptance and adoption of new technology. This paper aims to fill theoretical gaps in understanding BDAC and DT by incorporating the RBV and TAM theories on BDAC and DT.