bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of an organ-specific de novo transcriptome of the nematode trap-crop, Solanum sisymbriifolium
Authors: Wixom Alexander Q , Casavant N Carol , Kuhl Joseph C , Xiao Fangming , Dandurand Louise-Marie , Caplan Allan B
Published: January 2018

Solanum sisymbriifolium, also known as “Litchi Tomato” or “Sticky Nightshade,” is an undomesticated and poorly researched plant related to potato and tomato. Unlike the latter species, S. sisymbriifolium induces eggs of the cyst nematode, Globodera pallida, to hatch and migrate into its roots, but then arrests further nematode maturation. In order to provide researchers with a partial blueprint of its genetic make-up so that the mechanism of this response might be identified, we used single molecule real time (SMRT) sequencing to compile a high quality de novo transcriptome of 41,189 unigenes drawn from individually sequenced bud, root, stem, and leaf RNA populations. Functional annotation and BUSCO analysis showed that this transcriptome was surprisingly complete, even though it represented genes expressed at a single time point. By sequencing the 4 organ libraries separately, we found we could get a reliable snapshot of transcript distributions in each organ. A divergent site analysis of the merged transcriptome indicated that this species might have undergone a recent genome duplication and re-diploidization. Further analysis indicated that the plant then retained a disproportionate number of genes associated with photosynthesis and amino acid metabolism in comparison to genes with characteristics of R-proteins or involved in secondary metabolism. The former processes may have given S. sisymbriifolium a bigger competitive advantage than the latter did.
An infodemiology study on breast cancer in Iran
Authors: SeyyedHosseini Shohreh , Asemi Asefeh , Shabani Ahmad , CheshmehSohrabi Mozafar
Published: January 2018

Purpose

According to the studies conducted in Iran, the breast cancer is the most frequent type of cancer among women. This study aimed to explore the state of health information supply and demand on breast cancer among Iranian medical researchers and Iranian Web users from 2011 to 2015.

Design/methodology/approach

A mixed method research is conducted in this study. In qualitative part, a focus group interview is applied to the users to identify their selected keywords searched for breast cancer in Google. The collected data are analyzed using Open Code software. In quantitative part, data are synthesized using the R software in two parts. First, users’ internet information-seeking behavior (ISB) is analyzed using the Google Trends outputs from 2011 to 2015. Second, the scientific publication behavior of Iranian breast cancer specialists are surveyed using PubMed during the period of the study.

Findings

The results show that the search volume index of preferred keywords on breast cancer has increased from 4,119 in 2011 to 4,772 in 2015. Also, the findings reveal that Iranian scholars had 873 scientific papers on breast cancer in PubMed from 2011 to 2015. There was a significant and positive relationship between Iranian ISB in the Google Trends and SPB of Iranian scholars on breast cancer in PubMed.

Research limitations/implications

This study investigates only the state of health information supply and demand in PubMed and Google Trends and not additional databases often used for medical studies and treatment.

Originality/value

This study provides a road map for health policymakers in Iran to direct the breast cancer studies.
Analysis and optimization of PDF-to-EPUB in the digital publishing process
Authors: Pu Qian , Zhu Xiaomin , Chen Donghua , Zhang Runtong
Published: January 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to provide an optimization method of workflow for publishing houses and electronic book (e-book) studies in the field of digital publishing.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the studies of publishing houses in Beijing, the present conversion workflow is illustrated using a functional modeling methodology. Then, the workflow is analyzed using 5W1H (why, who, what, where, when, how) methodology and optimized using ECRSI (eliminate, combine, rearrange, simplify and increase) principles. To validate the optimization effect, the workflow before and after optimization are generated and implemented by the ExtendSim® simulation software.

Findings

The simulation results show that under similar circumstances, both quantity and quality of the products are improved after optimization, which indicate that the optimization method is effective.

Practical implications

Electronic PUBlication (EPUB) has significant requirements to satisfy the needs of the mobile reading market and to earn increased profits, whereas some e-books are still preserved in a portable document format (PDF). This study results in the enhanced EPUB quality and production efficiency of the PDF-to-EPUB format conversion workflow in publishing houses. Publishing houses around the world can refer to this study to make a similar optimization when handling PDF-to-EPUB.

Originality/value

This research introduces the traditional industrial engineering analytical techniques to the workflow optimization of e-book conversion. Compared with the most of other methods used to optimize workflow, this method is simpler, more efficient and more suitable for e-book format conversion.
A utilitarian re-examination of enterprise-scale information security management
Authors: Stewart Andrew
Published: January 2018

Purpose

An action is utilitarian when it is both useful and practical. This paper aims to examine a number of traditional information security management practices to ascertain their utility. That analysis is performed according to the particular set of challenges and requirements experienced by very large organizations. Examples of such organizations include multinational corporations, the governments of large nations and global investment banks.

Design/methodology/approach

The author performs a gap analysis of a number of security management practices. The examination is focused on the question of whether these practices are both useful and practical when used within very large organizations.

Findings

The author identifies a number of information security management practices that are considered to be “best practice” in the general case but that are suboptimal at the margin represented by very large organizations. A number of alternative management practices are proposed that compensate for the identified weaknesses.

Originality/value

Quoting from the conclusion of the paper: We have seen in our analysis within this paper that some best practices can experience what economists refer to as diminishing marginal utility. As the target organization drifts from the typical use-case the amount of value-added declines and can potentially enter negative territory. We have also examined the degree of innovation in the practice of security management and the extent to which the literature can support practical, real-world activities. In both the areas, we have identified a number of opportunities to perform further work.
Clinicians’ perception of the preventability of inpatient mortality
Authors: Nash Robert , Srinivasan Ramya , Kenway Bruno , Quinn James
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess whether clinicians have an accurate perception of the preventability of their patients’ mortality. Case note review estimates that approximately 5 percent of inpatient deaths are preventable.

Design/methodology/approach

The design involved in the study is a prospective audit of inpatient mortality in a single NHS hospital trust. The case study includes 979 inpatient mortalities. A number of outcome measures were recorded, including a Likert scale of the preventability of death- and NCEPOD-based grading of care quality.

Findings

Clinicians assessed only 1.4 percent of deaths as likely to be preventable. This is significantly lower than previously published values (p<0.0001). Clinicians were also more likely to rate the quality of care as “good,” and less likely to identify areas of substandard clinical or organizational management.

Research limitations/implications

The implications of objective assessment of the preventability of mortality are essential to drive quality improvement in this area.

Practical implications

There is a wide disparity between independent case note review and clinicians assessing the care of their own patients. This may be due to a “knowledge gap” between reviewers and treating clinicians, or an “objectivity gap” meaning clinicians may not recognize preventability of death of patients under their care.

Social implications

This study gives some insight into deficiencies in clinical governance processes.

Originality/value

No similar study has been performed. This has significant implications for the idea of the preventability of mortality.
Multi-disciplinary decision making in general practice
Authors: Kirby Ann , Murphy Aileen , Bradley Colin
Published: January 2018

Purpose

Internationally, healthcare systems are moving towards delivering care in an integrated manner which advocates a multi-disciplinary approach to decision making. Such an approach is formally encouraged in the management of Atrial Fibrillation patients through the European Society of Cardiology guidelines. Since the emergence of new oral anticoagulants switching between oral anticoagulants (OACs) has become prevalent. This case study considers the role of multi-disciplinary decision making, given the complex nature of the agents. The purpose of this paper is to explore Irish General Practitioners’ (GPs) experience of switching between all OACs for Arial Fibrillation (AF) patients; prevalence of multi-disciplinary decision making in OAC switching decisions and seeks to determine the GP characteristics that appear to influence the likelihood of multi-disciplinary decision making.

Design/methodology/approach

A probit model is used to determine the factors influencing multi-disciplinary decision making and a multinomial logit is used to examine the factors influencing who is involved in the multi-disciplinary decisions.

Findings

Results reveal that while some multi-disciplinary decision-making is occurring (64 per cent), it is not standard practice despite international guidelines on integrated care. Moreover, there is a lack of patient participation in the decision-making process. Female GPs and GPs who have initiated prescriptions for OACs are more likely to engage in multi-disciplinary decision-making surrounding switching OACs amongst AF patients. GPs with training practices were less likely to engage with cardiac consultants and those in urban areas were more likely to engage with other (non-cardiac) consultants.

Originality/value

For optimal decision making under uncertainty multi-disciplinary decision-making is needed to make a more informed judgement and to improve treatment decisions and reduce the opportunity cost of making the wrong decision.
An examination of ecopreneurs’ incentives through a combination between institutional and resource-based approach
Authors: Nikolaou Ioannis E. , Tsagarakis Konstantinos P. , Tasopoulou Kyriaki
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address two research questions: which are the key factors that stimulate entrepreneurs to invest in ecopreneurship, and how ecopreneurhsip contributes to environmental sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

To answer these questions, a framework has been developed to identify the incentives that lead entrepreneurs to invest in firms in the ecopreneurship through institutional and resource-based thinking.

Findings

From a survey of 91 Greek firms from the green service sector, it is shown that some specific institutional and resource-based view factors play a critical role in green entrepreneurs’ decisions, as well as some certain environmental practices that are frequently used by entrepreneurs to address environmental issues.

Research limitations/implications

First, the answer of the second research question through data collected by a questionnaire survey may be faced with skepticism by some authors, as it could be seen that entrepreneurs and managers of firms could have overstated their company's environmental activities. Second, although the sample selection of 91 firms is a representative sample (response rate 12.35 percent) of the total population of Greek green firms (761) and equal to other relative studies, a higher number of firms and a wider variety of green entrepreneurship ventures is necessary in future research.

Practical implications

The findings are useful for scholars, practitioners and policy makers since it provide information regarding the behavior of green entrepreneurs.

Originality/value

The paper analyze the types of green entrepreneurs in relation to the different features and strategies which are emerged from two theories, such as institutional and resource-based theory.
Does financial development improve environmental quality in Turkey? An application of endogenous structural breaks based cointegration approach
Authors: Dar Javaid Ahmad , Asif Mohammad
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the long-run effect of financial sector development, energy use and economic growth on carbon emissions for Turkey, in presence of possible regime shifts over a period of 1960-2013.

Design/methodology/approach

Along with the conventional unit root tests, Zivot-Andrews unit root test with structural break has been employed to check the stationarity of variables. The cointegrating relationship between variables is investigated by using the autoregressive distributed lag bounds test and Hatemi-J threshold cointegration test.

Findings

The results confirm a cointegrating relationship between the variables. The long-run relationship between the variables has gone through two endogenous structural breaks in 1976 and 1986. Development of financial sector improves environmental quality whereas energy use and economic growth degrade it. The results challenge the validity of environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis in Turkish economy.

Research limitations/implications

The study uses domestic credit to private sector as a proxy for development of financial sector. The model can be improved by constructing an index of financial development instead of using a single determinant as a proxy for financial development.

Practical implications

The study may pave the way for policy makers to capture important environmental pollutants in better way and develop effective and efficient energy and economic policies. This may make significant contribution to curbing CO2emissions while sustaining economic growth.

Originality/value

This is the only study to examine long-run impact of financial sector development on carbon emissions, using the threshold cointegration approach. Hence, the study is a gentle request to reduce the possible omitted variable econometric estimation bias and fill the gap in the existing literature.
Assessing sustainable supply chain enablers using total interpretive structural modeling approach and fuzzy-MICMAC analysis
Authors: Mohanty Mahamaya
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to model the enablers of an integrated logistics. The integration is accounted for incorporating sustainability, thereby aiming in its theory building. Existing models have focused on enablers of sustainable supply chain independently which lacks a holistic view in understanding the integrated logistics for sustainable supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

An extensive literature review, expert opinion from both industry and academia based on questionnaire survey, is conducted to find the relevant enablers. The modeling of these enablers is done using total interpretive structural modeling (TISM). Finally, TISM along with its respective fuzzy-matriced impact croises multiplication applique (fuzzy-MICMAC) analysis is depicted.

Findings

The result of the survey and TISM model with its respective fuzzy-MICMAC has been used to evolve the mutual relationships among the important enablers of integrated logistics of consumer durables. The strategic factors obtained from TISM are integration and collaboration in the supply chain, vehicle type, and capacity; reduction in average length of haul; and real-time information system. Route selection and scheduling, reduction of fuel consumption, customer relationship management, green technology, cost reduction, etc., are some of the operational factors. Sustainable environment performance is obtained as the performance factor. Fuzzy-MICMAC is more responsive than the traditional MICMAC analysis.

Research limitations/implications

The study has limitation for the development of a conceptual framework for integrated logistics in uncertain environments. So it can be extended by combining soft computing methodologies. There is a lack of mathematical quantification of the proposed model where the enablers of sustainability can be measured.

Practical implications

The study on integrated logistics for sustainable supply chain is itself a new area to be explored, as very few studies on this relevant topic exist. The research concentrates on TISM for the integrated logistics and the movement of consumer durables through different distribution channels of a supply chain. The study has implications for practitioners, academicians, and policy makers. For practitioners, it provides a list of strategic factors, operational factors, and performance factors. For academicians, this methodology can be opted to conduct an exploratory study by identifying the essential enablers. For policy makers, the regulations can be developed using the above model.

Originality/value

It is an effort to model the important enablers and establish sustainability in integrated logistics of consumer durables.
The impacts of environmental, social, and governance factors on firm performance
Authors: Atan Ruhaya , Alam Md. Mahmudul , Said Jamaliah , Zamri Mohamed
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The ESG factor, which consists of environmental, social, and governance factors, represents the non-financial performance of a company. United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment invites investors to consider ESG issues when evaluating the performance of any company. Moreover, nowadays, the contribution of corporations towards sustainable development is a major concern of investors, creditors, government, and other environmental agencies. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of ESG factors on the performance of Malaysian public-limited companies (PLC) in terms of profitability, firm value, and cost of capital.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 54 companies are selected from Bloomberg’s ESG database that has complete ESG and financial data from 2010 to 2013. This study conducted panel data regressions such as the pooled OLS, fixed effect, and random effect.

Findings

Based on the regression results, there is no significant relationship between individual and combined factors of ESG and firm profitability (i.e. ROE) as well as firm value (i.e. Tobin’sQ). Moreover, individually, none of the factors of ESG is significant with the cost of capital (weighted average cost of capital, WACC), but the combined score of ESG positively and significantly influences the cost of capital (WACC) of a company.

Practical implications

As this is a new study on Malaysia, the findings of this study will be useful to investors, SRI analysts, policy makers, and other related agencies.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is among the first empirical study to examine the impact of ESG factors on the performance of Malaysian PLC in terms of profitability, firm value, and cost of capital.
Pesticide use in Indonesian vegetable farming and its determinants
Authors: Mariyono Joko , Kuntariningsih Apri , Kompas Tom
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse factors affecting the use of pesticides in intensive vegetable farming in Java, Indonesia. Evaluating such factors is expected to provide appropriate policies to reduce pesticides, and eventually, mitigates the adverse impacts of pesticides on human health and the environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were compiled from a farm survey of randomly selected 240 vegetable farmers in three regions of Java in 2014. A concept of economic threshold was employed to analyse the pesticide use determinants, which were estimated using econometric models.

Findings

Factors leading to the increase in the application of pesticides were the number of observed insect pests, prices of vegetables, use of local varieties, and use of mixed pesticides. Conversely, factors lowering the use of pesticides were the number of observed diseases, the cost of pesticides, and area planted to vegetables. The most important factor in influencing pesticide use was farmers’ perception on the correct prediction of yield losses associated with pests and diseases.

Research limitations/implications

The sample for this research is somewhat low and the analysis was based on one-year data of the quantity of pesticides in a formulation.

Practical implications

The use of pesticides can be reduced by training farmers on crop protection practices, which provide correct information on pests and diseases. Policies related to the price of pesticides would be ineffective, as farmers still highly relied on pesticides. These findings will be useful for reducing the use of pesticides in intensive vegetable farming in Indonesia, and in tropical countries in general.

Originality/value

Pesticides have two opposite properties: to increase income on the one side and to cause devastation of life on the other side. Because pesticides are generally less selectively toxic than would be desired, non-targets including humans and the environment must be protected from contamination by these agrochemicals. This study found the most important determinants for reducing pesticide exposures in Indonesian intensive farming.
Individual, group and organizational efficacies in predicting performance
Authors: Yaakobi Erez , Weisberg Jacob
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for predicting three facets of employee performance (quality, innovation and efficiency) based on the evaluation of individual (self and occupational), group (collective) and organizational (means) efficacies.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 109 managers employed mainly in high-tech industries evaluated their employees’ quality, innovation and efficiency performance. The employees’ efficacies were also evaluated on three organizational levels.

Findings

Evaluation of employees’ self-efficacy accounted for most of the explained variance for all performance facets. Evaluation of group efficacy added incremental explained variance to the general performance as well as to the innovation performance and efficiency performance. Evaluation of means efficacy (provided to employees) added incremental explained variance to the general performance as well as to the innovation performance and the efficiency of performance. Male managers differed from female managers in their predictions of employees’ performance.

Originality/value

This is the first study to examine the concurrent effects of four types of efficacies, based on three organizational levels, in predicting performance. It also examines three facets of performance instead of only a general performance measure. It presents a model of the relative importance of these efficacies in predicting facets of performance.
Do high-involvement work practices affect employee earnings in union and non-union settings in the Irish private sector?
Authors: Turner Thomas , Cross Christine
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The link between human resource practices and earnings for workers is a notable research lacuna and the purpose of this paper is to address this relationship using a matched data set covering all employees and employers in the Irish private sector.

Design/methodology/approach

The analysis is based on the National Employment Survey (NES) (2008). The survey provides measures of individual characteristics such as union membership, collective bargaining coverage, sector, occupation, age, sex and educational attainment. It also provides data on individual employee earnings including overtime and shift allowances, together with weekly hours worked. The particular benefit of the NES is that it is a large-scale matched employer-employee survey.

Findings

The results indicate that extensive use of high-involvement practices measured in this study is positively associated with higher earnings for both lower and higher earning employees. The authors also find that for employees covered by a collective agreement, the positive effects of high-involvement work practices are complementary with a union earnings premium.

Research limitations/implications

Some caution is required in the interpretation of the results given the cross-sectional nature of the data. With cross-sectional data it is difficult to establish definitive causal and directional linkages between high-involvement measures and levels of earnings and earnings inequality.

Practical implications

For trade unions and their members, the results imply that the involvement practices as measured in this study are unlikely to substitute for the earnings premium associated with collective bargaining coverage. For human resource, increasing the earnings of low-paid employees may carry relatively marginal costs but the benefits maybe considerable in the form of employee engagement, increased effort levels and productivity gains.

Originality/value

This study extends the literature on the outcomes of high-involvement practices for employees and firms by addressing their association with employee earnings particularly at the lower end of the wage hierarchy.
Psychosocial safety climate as resource passageways to alleviate work-family conflict
Authors: Mansour Sari , Tremblay Diane-Gabrielle
Published: January 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine a multidimensional mediating model of psychosocial safety climate (PSC) and work-family interference. More precisely, it tests the direct and indirect effects of PSC on work-family conflict (WFC)/family-work conflict (FWC)-time and WFC/FWC-strain via family-supportive supervisor behavior (FSSB).

Design/methodology/approach

The structural equation method was used to test the direct effect of PSC on WFC/FWC time and strain. As for the mediation effects, they were tested by the method of indirect effects based on a bootstrap analysis (Preacher and Hayes, 2004) based on 3,000 replications with a 95% confidence interval. The statistical treatments were carried out with the AMOS software V.22.

Findings

The results show that PSC is negatively and directly related to WFC-time, FWC-time, WFC-strain and FWC-strain. In addition, the bootstrap analyses indicate that PSC is related indirectly to WFC-time, FWC-time, WFC-strain and FWC-strain via FSSB.

Practical implications

WFC is a workplace issue that warrants intervention in order to reduce organizational costs and increase worker well-being and PSC should be considered as an appropriate target for intervention (Dollardet al., 2012). However, although this management tool can be useful to reduce FWC, it is more appropriate to decrease WFC. Employers and HR managers not only should understand from the findings the importance of PSC, but also that all employees do not have the same problems, depending on the level of responsibilities at home, for example. Hence, they should offer the appropriate resources according to the need of workers. Indeed, the implementation of a unique work-family measure may not be appropriate for all workers, and it is important that employers and HR managers understand the details of WFC and FWC, as well as the possible effects of a series of different variables, in order to design the best work-family programs.

Originality/value

This research examined the effects of two new and specific resources at work, which are PSC and FSSB on WFC and FWC (time and strain), as recommended by Kosseket al.(2011). In addition, this study tested a new multidimensional mediating model which examined the mediation role of FSSB between PSC and time- and strain-based WFC and FWC. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine these relations. Moreover, the test of the concepts of PSC in this study provides a support for the theory of conservation of resources and proposes an extension of this theory.
The Penal Voluntary Sector in England and Wales: Adaptation to Unsettlement and Austerity
Authors: Corcoran Mary S. , Williams Katharine , Prince Kelly , Maguire Mike
Published: January 2018

This article draws on some findings from research which investigated penal voluntary sector adaptation to the mixed market in criminal justice services. The article firstly reprises the main trends for aligning state relationships with the voluntary sector from the 1980s to the present. We then outline some findings about adaptive experiences, situations and practices of the voluntary sector in criminal justice resettlement in the light of considerable upheaval. The research found that service providing voluntary sector organisations (VSOs) either outwardly comply with, or, in a minority of cases, actively embrace, competitive marketised models of service delivery. Secondly, the sector has normalised commercial approaches to organisational efficiency as well as aligned with bureaucratic practices common to the statutory sector. Despite charges that they are effectively co‐opted by both state and market interests, many have reported conflicts between prioritising long‐term financial viability with their founding ‘ethos and values’. We conclude that while many VSOs have successfully adjusted to market and bureaucratic norms, aspects of that repositioning have been at a cost to their traditions of relative autonomy, localism and distinctiveness, to the possible detriment of a vigorous civil society.
Categorizing Neighborhoods: The Invention of ‘Sensitive Areas’ in France and ‘Historic Districts’ in the United States
Authors: Tissot Sylvie
Published: January 2018

This essay offers a reflexive return to two research projects to demonstrate the value of Bourdieu's emphasis on the symbolic for the analysis of contemporary urban transformation. Bourdieu's insistence that we track the social genesis and diffusion of spatial categories of thought and action directs us to the empirical study of the struggles between agents and organizations that promote and/or oppose these categories, as well as the political, economic and other interests animating the agents. A retracing of the parallel invention of the ‘at‐risk neighborhood’ (quartier sensible) coined for and targeted by French urban policy since the late 1980s and the emergence of ‘historic’ or ‘diverse’ neighborhoods touted by gentrifying residents, cultural organizations and real estate agents in the United States since the 1960s challenges misleading oppositions between materiality and representations that often underpin and cramp urban research.
Case of Ian Paterson: Reflection and perspective on clinical governance
Authors: Lee Danny W.H. , Lai Paul B.S.
Published: January 2018

In the UK, Dr Ian Paterson was charged of performing unnecessary and negligent breast operations on his patients, and he was criminally convicted and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. Both the NHS Trust and private hospitals where Paterson was working had commissioned independent reviews on the clinical governance structure of the involved hospitals. Based on the reports, this article submitted the reflection and perspective on the clinical governance of our local surgical practice in Hong Kong with emphasis on the following areas: the granting of practice privileges in private hospitals, the incorporation of patient‐centred governance programmes, the cultivation of ‘speaking up’ organization culture, and the enhancement of individual and corporate accountability. It is envisaged that the design of future governance system must incorporate patients' values and perspectives, and that the management must execute the system fairly and robustly.
A Fast and Reliable Real‐Time PCR Method for Detection of Ten Animal Species in Meat Products
Authors: Dalsecco Lissandra Sousa , Palhares Rafael Melo , Oliveira Pollyana Carvalho , Teixeira Lilian Viana , Drummond Marcela Gonçalves , de Oliveira Denise Aparecida Andrade
Published: January 2018

Species substitution in meat products is a common problem reported worldwide. This type of food fraud is, typically, an intentional act for economic gain, using sources of low‐priced meats in high‐value meat products. Consequences include economic, health, and religious concerns. Highly sensitive and efficient techniques are thus required to detect meat species. This paper describes a method based on real‐time PCR to detect 10 animal species (Bos taurus, Sus scrofa, Ovis aries, Capra hircus, Gallus gallus, Meleagris gallopavo, Bubalus bubalis, Equus caballus, Felis catus, and Canis familiaris) in meat product. The method combines species‐specific and universal (used here as internal positive control) primers, and applies melt curve analysis for amplicon checking. Method accuracy was evaluated on 46 experimental meat mixtures and all species were correctly identified in all cases, at 1% test sensitivity. Analysis of 14 commercial meat products revealed that 6 of 14 samples had nondeclared bovine and/or chicken material. We performed an interlaboratory comparison using the reference meat mixtures and commercial samples, achieving 100% of reproducibility. The developed test proved to be effective and reliable for routine analysis of meat products.

Practical Application

This paper describes a fast and reliable method for species detection in meat products based on real‐time PCR. It can be applied for analysis of in natura or processed meat. The method proposed here can play an important role in controlling the origin of meat products, ensuring their quality and safety for the entire food industry—producers to consumers.
Analysis of anti‐melanoma differentiation‐associated gene 5 antibody in Hong Kong Chinese patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: diagnostic utility and clinical correlations
Authors: SO Ho , IP Ricky W.‐K. , WONG Victor T.‐L. , YIP Ronald M.‐L.
Published: January 2018

Aim

To compare the prevalence of the anti‐melanoma differentiation‐associated gene 5 antibody (anti‐MDA5 Ab) in Hong Kong Chinese patients with dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM); in addition, to examine the association of anti‐MDA5 Ab and the clinical characteristics of these patients.

Methods

Twenty consecutive existing patients with DM being followed up at the Rheumatology Clinic of Kwong Wah Hospital, Hong Kong were recruited. Twenty patients with PM were recruited from the same clinic as the controls. A commercial line blot immunoassay was used to detect the anti‐MDA5 Ab in all the participants. The frequencies of anti‐MDA‐5 Ab in the two groups were compared. The clinical characteristics of the patients with and without the antibody were analyzed.

Results

Anti‐MDA5 Ab was found in 30% of patients with DM but not in patients with PM. All patients with the antibody exhibited the clinically amyopathic DM (CADM) phenotype. These patients were predominantly male, younger and with shorter disease duration. Anti‐MDA5 Ab was significantly associated with rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (RP‐ILD) and digital ulcers. No statistically significant association was found between other disease or treatment variables and the antibody.

Conclusion

Anti‐MDA5 Ab is found exclusively in DM patients of the CADM subtype and is associated with RP‐ILD and digital ulcers, suggesting that examination of this antibody is clinically useful in Hong Kong Chinese patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies. However, further studies are required to assess its prognostic significance, and to explore the difference of its presentations in various populations.
An evaluation of routine antenatal depression screening and psychosocial assessment in a regional private maternity setting in Australia
Authors: Kalra Harish , Reilly Nicole , Austin Marie‐Paule
Published: January 2018

Background

There is limited information relating to routine depression screening and psychosocial assessment programs in private maternity settings in Australia.

Aims

To describe the psychosocial profile of a sample of private maternity patients who participated in a depression screening and psychosocial risk assessment program as part of routine antenatal care, and to explore women's experience of receiving this component of pregnancy care.

Materials and methods

We conducted a retrospective medical records audit of 455 consecutive women having a routine psychosocial assessment and referral. Assessment was undertaken using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Antenatal Risk Questionnaire (ANRQ) for psychosocial risk; 101 women completed a feedback survey about their experience of receiving routine psychosocial care.

Results

Of the 87.7% of women who completed both EPDS and ANRQ, 4.3% scored 13 or more on the EPDS. On the ANRQ, 25.3% of women endorsed one risk factor, 11.6% two risk factors and 10.5% three or more risk factors. Elevated EPDS scores were associated with major stresses in the last 12 months, high trait anxiety and significant past mental health issue/s. Acceptability of depression screening and psychosocial risk assessment was high.

Conclusions

This study highlights the need for, and acceptability of, depression and psychosocial assessment in the private maternity sector. These findings are particularly timely given the provision of new Medicare Benefits Scheme items for obstetricians to undertake psychosocial assessment (both antenatally and postnally) in line with recommended clinical best practice.
Prenatal diagnosis and socioeconomic status in the non‐invasive prenatal testing era: A population‐based study
Authors: Hui Lisa , Barclay Jenna , Poulton Alice , Hutchinson Briohny , Halliday Jane L.
Published: January 2018

Background

Advances in technology can bring great benefits to human health, but their implementation may be influenced by socioeconomic factors, particularly in the field of prenatal screening for Down syndrome.

Aim

To analyse screening test indications for, and diagnostic yield of, invasive prenatal diagnostic testing (PNDx) according to socioeconomic status.

Methods

Retrospective analysis of population‐based data on PNDx and karyotype results for 2014–2015 in the Australian state of Victoria. Women having PNDx < 25 weeks due to combined first trimester screening (CFTS), second trimester serum screening (STSS), or noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT) results were included. PNDx data were analysed by indication and maternal Index of Relative Socio‐economic Advantage and Disadvantage (IRSAD), the latter determined by postcode.

Results

There were 145 206 births in 2014–2015; 1906 women underwent PNDx for the indication of CFTS (70.1%), NIPT (17.8%) or STSS (12.0%). Covariates positively associated with NIPT‐indicated PNDx, compared with CFTS‐indicated testing, were residence in a region of socioeconomic advantage, metropolitan status and maternal age. Women from the most advantaged regions had higher adjusted odds ratios (aOR) of NIPT‐indicated testing compared with women from disadvantaged regions (aOR 5.72, 95% CI: 2.95–11.09). The diagnostic yield of PNDx increased with socioeconomic region, from 14% in the lowest IRSAD quintile to 31.2% in the highest (P < 0.0001).

Conclusion

Population‐based data reveal significant disparities in screening indications for PNDx and hence, in diagnostic yield, according to socioeconomic region. This finding may have ethical and policy implications for prenatal screening in Australia.
Political Stability in the Open Society
Authors: Thrasher John , Vallier Kevin
Published: January 2018

We argue that the Rawlsian description of a just liberal society, the well‐ordered society, fails to accommodate deep disagreement and is insufficiently dynamic. In response, we formulate an alternative model that we call the open society, organized around a new account of dynamic stability. In the open society, constitutional rules must be stable enough to preserve social conditions that foster experimentation, while leaving room in legal and institutional rules for innovation and change. Systemic robustness and dynamic stability become important for the open society in a way that they are not in the well‐ordered society. This model of the open society and the corresponding model of stability have interesting implications for thinking about the goals, norms, and institutions of liberal political systems.
Symptomatic arrhythmia in the form of multiple premature ventricular extrasystoles as the first symptom of polymyositis
Authors: Peregud‐Pogorzelska Małgorzata , Zielska Małgorzata , Kaźmierczak Jarosław
Published: January 2018

Polymyositis (PM) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the involvement of multiple internal organs, including the cardiovascular system. The involvement of heart is observed in up to 75% of patients with PM. Conduction and rhythm disorders are one of the most common cardiological abnormalities in these patients. The presented clinical case is the patient where ventricular arrhythmia (in the form of multiple premature ventricular extrasystoles) was the first symptom of polymyositis.
Content analysis of consumer information about knee arthroscopy in Australia
Authors: Buchbinder Rachelle , Bourne Allison
Published: January 2018

Background

Despite the availability of consistent guidelines recommending against arthroscopic treatment for people with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis, Australian data indicate continued use of this treatment modality. A paucity of easy to understand and reliable consumer information about knee arthroscopy may be one explanatory factor. The aim of this study was to determine whether consumer information about knee arthroscopy available in Australia is adequate to inform evidence‐based decision‐making for people with symptomatic osteoarthritis.

Methods

We performed a content analysis of consumer information about knee arthroscopy for symptomatic osteoarthritis. Information sources were identified from the Australian Commission on Quality and Safety in Health Care and Internet searches conducted 20–28 May 2015. Search terms were ‘knee arthroscopy’, ‘knee pain’, ‘osteoarthritis knee’ and ‘meniscal tear’, and ‘orthopaedic surgeon’ linked to each Australian capital city. Two independent reviewers selected documents for inclusion and extracted data. Main outcomes were specific advice regarding use of arthroscopic treatment for people with knee osteoarthritis, mention of guidelines, and/or supporting evidence.

Results

Ninety‐three documents were analyzed (44 were a paragraph or less). Only eight made a clear recommendation against use of arthroscopy for all/most people with knee osteoarthritis. None included an explicit statement attributed to a guideline, while only six provided any research evidence to support their advice. Wikipedia provided the most valid information but it may be incomprehensible to the average reader.

Conclusion

Currently available consumer information about knee arthroscopy in Australia may be inadequate to help people with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis make informed decisions about this treatment.
Ticagrelor attenuates myocardial ischaemia–reperfusion injury possibly through downregulating galectin‐3 expression in the infarct area of rats
Authors: Liu Xiaogang , Gu Ye , Liu Yufeng , Zhang Mingjing , Wang Yuting , Hu Liqun
Published: January 2018

Aims

The full benefits of myocardial revascularization strategies applied to acute myocardial infarction patients might be reduced by myocardial ischaemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury. It is known that inflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of I/R injury and galectin‐3, a known inflammatory factor, is actively involved in ischaemia‐induced inflammation and fibrosis of various organs. Previous studies demonstrated that anti‐platelets therapy with ticagrelor, a new P2Y12 receptor antagonist, could effectively attenuate myocardial I/R injury and I/R injury‐related inflammatory responses. It remains unknown whether the cardioprotective effects of ticagrelor are also mediated by modulating myocardial galectin‐3 expression.

Methods

We determined the ratio of infarct area (IA)/area at risk (AAR), expression of galectin‐3, TNF‐α and IL‐6 in infarct area of rats treated with placebo (equal volume saline per gastric gavage immediately after LAD ligation, then once daily till study end) or ticagrelor (150 mg kg−1 dissolved in saline per gastric gavage immediately after LAD ligation, then once daily till study end) at 24 h, 3 and 7 days post I (45 min)/R injury. Sham‐operated rats served as control.

Results

Our results showed that ticagrelor treatment significantly reduced IA/AAR ratio at 3 and 7 days post I/R, downregulated mRNA and protein expression of galectin‐3, as well as mRNA expression of TNF‐α and IL‐6 in infarct area at 24 h, 3 and 7 days post I/R.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that the cardioprotective effects of ticagrelor might partly be mediated by downregulating galectin‐3 expression in infarct area in this rat model of myocardial I/R injury.
The Sphingosine 1‐Phosphate Analogue FTY720 Alleviates Seizure‐induced Overexpression of P‐Glycoprotein in Rat Hippocampus
Authors: Gao Fei , Gao Ying , Meng Fangling , Yang Chunmei , Fu Jiangfeng , Li Yajun
Published: January 2018

Overexpression of P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp) in the brain is an important factor leading to drug‐resistant epilepsy. Clinical use of P‐gp inhibitors is limited by their systemic toxicity. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that FTY720, a sphingosine 1‐phosphate (S1P) analogue used for treating multiple sclerosis, modulates the up‐regulation of P‐gp and improves brain delivery of phenytoin (PHT) through S1P receptor 1 in the hippocampus of a pilocarpine‐induced rat model of status epilepticus (SE). We administered vehicle, FTY720 or FTY720+ W146 (an S1P receptor 1 antagonist) to SE rats. Forty‐eight hours after SE, we dissected the hippocampus and measured P‐gp expression, NF‐κB activity and levels of inflammatory mediators (TNF‐α and COX‐2) by Western blotting and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. We also measured hippocampal and plasma concentrations of PHT 30, 60, 90, 120 and 180 min. after an intraperitoneal injection of PHT (50 mg/kg) 48 hr after SE, using microdialysis and high‐performance liquid chromatography. FTY720 alleviated the overexpression of hippocampal P‐gp in SE rats and reduced NF‐κB activity and TNF‐α and COX‐2 expression, and W146 blocked the effects of FTY720. Furthermore, SE rats that received FTY720 showed significantly greater hippocampal extracellular PHT concentrations than those that received vehicle, and W146 abolished this effect. Our results suggest that FTY720 alleviates seizure‐induced overexpression of P‐gp by inhibiting S1P receptor 1‐mediated inflammation in rat hippocampus and improves PHT delivery to brain. FTY720 shows potential as an adjuvant therapy for drug‐resistant epilepsy.
Novel SYNGAP1 variant in a patient with intellectual disability and distinctive dysmorphisms
Authors: Kimura Yuichi , Akahira‐Azuma Moe , Harada Noriaki , Enomoto Yumi , Tsurusaki Yoshinori , Kurosawa Kenji
Published: January 2018

We describe a novel de novo heterozygous variant in SYNGAP1 (c.1741C>T, p.R581W), identified through targeted resequencing in an 8‐year‐old boy with intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder, distinctive dysmorphic features, and no seizures. Our data strongly suggest that the SYNGAP1 variant is causative of intellectual disability in this patient.