bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A discussion on the user intention of golfers toward golf GPS navigation
Authors: Huang Jen-Min , Ho Tu-Kuang , Liu Yen-Chun , Lin Yu-Hsiang
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to examine the user’s willingness of golfers toward the use of GPS navigation based on the technology readiness and acceptance models.

Design/methodology/approach

– This study developed the research structure based on the theory of the technology acceptance and readiness model to address the relationship between technology readiness, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, user’s attitude and behavioral intention. A purposive sampling questionnaire was used in this study to investigate golf participants in Central Taiwan. In all, 245 copies of the questionnaire were issued. About 240 copies were returned and after removing the invalid copies, there were 230 valid questionnaires for a valid response rate of 95.8 per cent.

Findings

– The research results indicated that technology readiness has a significant influence on perceived usefulness, technology readiness has a significant influence on perceived ease of use, perceived ease of use has a significant influence on perceived usefulness, perceived usefulness has no significant influence on user’s attitude, perceived ease of use has a significant influence on user’s attitude, user’s attitude has no significant influence on behavioral intention and perceived usefulness has a significant influence on behavioral intention.

Originality/value

– The technology acceptance model has been widely used to examine user's acceptance and willingness toward computer technology or an information product. This study, hence, is based on this model to investigate the user's willingness of golfers toward golf GPS and shall serve as a reference for future golf sports promotion and device R&D.
i-DEMATEL method for integrated manufacturing technology selection
Authors: Jenab Kouroush , Sarfaraz Ahmad , Weinsier Philip D. , Moeini Asghar , Al-Ahmari A.M.A.
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– Computer integrated manufacturing (CIM) refers the manufacturing concept based on the use of computers to control and exchange information for the entire production process. As a result, manufacturing can be faster and less error-prone. However, managing and implementing technologies in the CIM environment are challenging processes for managements and manufacturing organizations. These processes become complex and tedious when one is dealing with many decision parameters. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– This study reports an Interval Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (i-DEMATEL) method for evaluating and selecting the CIM technologies that takes into account management objectives. This method can relieve the limitation of the relationship matrix about the assumption of the symmetrical relationship. As a result, it can solve complicated relationship structure problems.

Findings

– Based on a survey on the current technologies in manufacturing institutes, a case study is demonstrated to present the application of the model. The i-DEMATEL approach takes into account all decision parameters for evaluating and implementing CIM technologies and shows CNC/DNC technology is the most suitable for this case study.

Originality/value

– The proposed method mitigates the shortcomings of non-fuzzy and fuzzy methods in pertaining literature.
Negative online consumer reviews: effects of different responses
Authors: Ullrich Sebastian , Brunner Christian Boris
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to investigate the effects of different response options to a negative consumer review. When consumers buy online, they are often confronted with consumer reviews. A negative consumer review on an online shopping website may keep consumers from buying the product. Therefore, negative online consumer reviews are a serious problem for brands.

Design/methodology/approach

– In an online experiment of 446 participants, different response options towards a negative consumer review on an online shopping website were examined. The experimental data were analysed with linear regression models using product purchase intentions as the outcome variable.

Findings

– The results indicate that a positive customer review counteracts a negative consumer review more effectively than a positive brand response, whereas brand strength moderates this relationship. Including a reference to an independent, trusted source in a brand or a customer response is only a limited strategy for increasing the effectiveness of a response.

Research limitations/implications

– Additional research on other product categories and with subjects other than students is suggested to validate the findings. In future research, multiple degrees of the phrasing’s strength of the reference could be used.

Practical implications

– Assuming high quality products, brands should encourage their customers to write reviews. Strong brands can also reassure consumers by responding, whereas weak brands cannot.

Originality/value

– This research contributes to the online consumer reviews literature with new insights about the role of brand strength and referencing to an independent, trusted source.
Consumer engagement in online brand communities: a social media perspective
Authors: Dessart Laurence , Veloutsou Cleopatra , Morgan-Thomas Anna
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to delineate the meaning, conceptual boundaries and dimensions of consumer engagement within the context of online brand communities both in term of the engagement with the brand and the other members of the online brand communities. It also explores the relationships of consumer engagement with other concepts, suggesting antecedents of engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

– Data are collected through semi-structured interviews with 21 international online brand community members, covering a variety of brand categories and social media platforms.

Findings

– This paper suggests that individuals are engaging in online communities in social network platforms both with other individuals and with brands. The study also identifies three key engagement dimensions (cognition, affect and behaviours). Their meaning and sub-dimensions are investigated. The paper further suggests key drivers, one outcome and objects of consumer engagement in online brand communities. These findings are integrated in a conceptual framework.

Research limitations/implications

– Further research should aim at comparing consumer engagement on different social media and across brand categories, as this study takes a holistic approach and does not focus on any particular category of brands or social media. Consumers’ views should also be evaluated against and compared with marketing managers’ understanding of consumer engagement.

Originality/value

– This paper contributes to the fast-growing and fragmented consumer engagement literature by refining the understanding of its dimensions and situating it in a network of conceptual relationships. It focusses on online brand communities in rich social media contexts to tap into the core social and interactive characteristics of engagement.
Positive and negative supervisor developmental feedback and task-performance
Authors: Zheng Xingshan , Diaz Ismael , Jing Yin , Chiaburu Dan S.
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize, understand, and measure positive and negative aspects of supervisor developmental feedback (SDF) and investigate their relationships with task performance.

Design/methodology/approach

– In Study 1, common themes in SDF were identified and a set of SDF items were developed to capture the positive and negative SDF domain. Study 2 entailed the administration of the items to respondents to examine the dimensionality of the items through exploratory factor analysis. In Study 3, using confirmatory factor analysis we further examined the extent to which positive and negative developmental feedback (PSDF and NSDF) were conceptually distinct from each other and different from an existing general measure of supervisor feedback.

Findings

– Study 1 and Study 2 yielded evidence that positive and negative SDF are distinct yet related constructs. Positive SDF predicted employee task performance. The positive SDF by negative SDF interaction predicted task performance.

Research limitations/implications

– The authors provide criterion-related validity evidence by examining the predictive validity of positive and negative SDF on subordinate task performance (reported by supervisors). Future research should examine the role of positive and negative SDF in predicting job performance in other samples and cultural contexts and for other outcomes, including organizational citizenship.

Originality/value

– This research refines the SDF domain by identifying positive and negative domains of the SDF construct. The authors propose and test the joint influence of positive and negative SDF. The novel findings point to the importance of supervisors providing both positive and negative feedback to enhance performance.
E-government in the making: an actor network perspective
Authors: Cordella Antonio , Hesse Jakob
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to introduce a new approach to the framing of e-government projects. It discusses e-government as a continuing process of interaction and change. The paper uses general concepts borrowed from actor–network theory (ANT) to highlight the on-going negotiation that is an endogenous characteristic of every e-government projects.

Design/methodology/approach

– The research builds on the findings of a case study. The case of the Akshaya e-government project in Kerala, India, is presented to offer an instance of the negotiation that occurs among the different actors involved and the consequent changes the project itself experiences.

Findings

– The paper shows that e-government initiatives are unstable and change over time, as they are cast in the dynamic interaction that occurs between the actors involved in the e-government project. It also suggests that the ANT is a valuable framework to study these dynamics.

Research limitations/implications

– Main contribution of the paper is the evidence that e-government projects should be studied in their making and not as a result of planned action and sequential evolutionary phases.

Practical implications

– The paper offers new insights for the planning, design and most importantly management of e-government projects.

Originality/value

– The paper contributes to the literature by shedding light on the importance of the dynamic interactions that shape the impact of information and communication technologies (ICTs) on government policies. The proposed framework is a basis for further theorisation with regards to the complexity underpinning the deployment of ICTs in the public sector.
The story of the sixth myth of open data and open government
Authors: Hellberg Ann-Sofie , Hedström Karin
Published: March 2015

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to describe a local government effort to realise an open government agenda. This is done using a storytelling approach.

Design/methodology/approach

– The empirical data are based on a case study. The authors participated in, as well as followed, the process of realising an open government agenda on a local level, where citizens were invited to use open public data as the basis for developing apps and external Web solutions. Based on an interpretative tradition, they chose storytelling as a way to scrutinise the competition process. In this paper, they present a story about the competition process using the story elements put forward by Kendall and Kendall (2012).

Findings

– The research builds on existing research by proposing the myth that the “public” wants to make use of open data. The authors provide empirical insights into the challenge of gaining benefits from open public data. In particular, they illustrate the difficulties in getting citizens interested in using open public data. Their case shows that people seem to like the idea of open public data, but do not necessarily participate actively in the data reuse process.

Research limitations/implications

– The results are based on one empirical study. Further research is, therefore, needed. The authors would especially welcome more studies that focus on citizens’ interest and willingness to reuse open public data.

Practical implications

– This study illustrates the difficulties of promoting the reuse of open public data. Public organisations that want to pursue an open government agenda can use these findings as empirical insights.

Originality/value

– This paper answers the call for more empirical studies on public open data. Furthermore, it problematises the “myth” of public interest in the reuse of open public data.
The sociologist and the state. An assessment of Pierre Bourdieu's sociology
Authors: Schinkel Willem
Published: March 2015

This paper provides an assessment of Pierre Bourdieu's sociology based on a reading of his posthumously published lectures on the state in Sur l'État. It argues that the state was a foundational element in Bourdieu's rendition of the symbolic order of everyday life. As such, the state becomes equally pivotal in Bourdieu's sociology, the applicability of which rests on the existence of the state, which stabilizes the social fields and their symbolic action that constitute the object of sociology. The state, which Bourdieu considers a ‘meta'‐ordering principle in social life, ensures that sociology has a well‐ordered object of study, vis‐à‐vis which it can posit itself as ‘meta‐meta’. The state thus functions as an epistemic guarantee in Bourdieu's sociology. A critical analysis of Bourdieu's sociology of the state offers the chance of a more fundamental overall assessment of Bourdieu's conception of sociology that has relevance for any critical sociological perspective that rests on the assumption of a meta‐social entity, such as the state in Bourdieu's work, as a final ordering instance.
Thermo‐stable semihard Gouda‐type cheese by combining homogenisation and microfiltration of cheese milk
Authors: Schenkel Philipp , Hinrichs Jörg
Published: March 2015

Semihard Gouda‐type cheeses were manufactured at pilot scale using either homogenised milk or homogenised microfiltration retentate. For comparison, cheeses were produced from untreated milk as a Control. Thermo‐physical properties (flowability, stretchability, oiling‐off and browning) were analysed after 4 weeks of ripening. Homogenisation significantly altered the cheese properties, whereas the additional influence of milk pre‐concentration by MF was minor. Compared to the Control, homogenisation led to a significant reduction in flowability, stretchability, oiling‐off and browning. The homogenised fat globules act as active fillers, take part in the protein network and increase the network stability by enhancing protein–protein interactions.
On the Hospital Volume and Outcome Relationship: Does Specialization Matter More Than Volume?
Authors: Lee Kris C. L. , Sethuraman Kannan , Yong Jongsay
Published: March 2015

Objective

To evaluate the relationship between hospital volume and outcome by focusing on alternative measures of volume that capture specialization and overall throughput of hospitals.

Data Sources/Study Setting

Hospital administrative data from the state of Victoria, Australia; data contain 1,798,474 admitted episodes reported by 135 public and private acute‐care hospitals.

Study Design

This study contrasts the volume–outcome relationship using regression models with different measures of volume; two‐step and single‐step risk‐adjustment methods are used.

Data Collection/Extraction Methods

The sample is restricted to ischemic heart disease (IHD) patients (ICD‐10 codes: I20–I25) admitted during 2001/02 to 2004/05.

Principal Findings

Overall hospital throughput and degree of specialization display more substantive implications for the volume–outcome relationship than conventional caseload volume measure. Two‐step estimation when corrected for heteroscedasticity produces comparable results to single‐step methods.

Conclusions

Different measures of volume could lead to vastly different conclusions about the volume–outcome relationship. Hospital specialization and throughput should both be included as measures of volume to capture the notion of size, focus, and possible congestion effects.
Molecular characterization and diversity analysis of bacterial communities associated with Dialeurolonga malleswaramensis (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) adults using 16S rDNA amplicon pyrosequencing and FISH
Authors: Pandey Neeti , Rajagopal Raman
Published: March 2015

Dialeurolonga malleswaramensis Sundararaj (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is a phytophagous sap sucking insect. It infests Polyalthia longifolia, an important avenue tree of India, effective in alleviating noise pollution and having immense medicinal importance. Samples of this insect were collected from Polyalthia longifolia. The cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene (mtCO1) helped in the molecular characterization of the insect. This study reports the bacterial diversity in D. malleswaramensis adults by high throughput 16S rDNA amplicon pyrosequencing. The major genera identified were Portiera and Arsenophonus. Other bacterial genera detected were uncultured alpha proteobacterium, Sphingopyxis and Methylobacterium. We also employed fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in whole mount samples to confirm the presence of dominant endosymbionts Portiera and Arsenophonus to the bacteriocyte of D. malleswaramensis. This study concludes that combining techniques like 16S rDNA amplicon pyrosequencing and FISH reveal both dominant and rare bacteria. The data also predict the evolutionary position of this pest with respect to other whitefly species using a mitochondrial marker.
Feasibility of Extended‐interval Follow‐up for Patients Receiving Warfarin
Authors: Carris Nicholas W. , Spinelli Alisa , Pierini Danielle , Taylor James R. , Anderson Katherine Vogel , Sando Karen , Powell Jason , Rosenberg Eric I. , Zumberg Marc S. , Smith Steven M. , Gums John G. , Dietrich Eric
Published: March 2015

Aims

The 2012 American College of Chest Physician Evidence‐Based Management of Anticoagulant Therapy guidelines suggest an international normalized ratio (INR) testing interval of up to 12 weeks, rather than every 4 weeks, for patients with consistently stable INRs while taking vitamin K antagonists. We aimed to examine the feasibility of extended‐interval follow‐up in a real‐world setting.

Methods

Patients receiving stable warfarin therapy for ≥12 weeks at baseline began extended‐interval follow‐up with visits occurring at 6 weeks, 14 weeks, and every 12 weeks thereafter to a maximum of 68 weeks or until they were no longer suitable for extended‐interval follow‐up. A single INR excursion >0.3 from goal was permitted if a reversible precipitating factor was identified and the INR was expected to return to goal without dose adjustment. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients completing all study follow‐up visits.

Results

Of 48 patients enrolled, 47 had evaluable data. The most common indication for anticoagulation was atrial fibrillation/flutter (53.2%). At baseline, mean prior warfarin treatment duration was 6.7 ± 6 years and median number of weeks on a stable regimen was 24 weeks (IQR, 19–37.5). Eleven patients (23%) completed all study follow‐up visits, whereas 17 (36%) did not maintain a stable INR past the 14‐week follow‐up.

Conclusion

A large proportion of patients with previously stable (≥3 months) INRs were not able to maintain stable INRs during extended‐interval follow‐up. More research is needed to identify patient characteristics predictive of success with extended‐interval follow‐up prior to broad implementation.
Renal Denervation—Hypes and Hopes
Authors: Lewek Joanna , Kaczmarek Krzysztof , Pokushalov Evgeniy , Romanov Alexandr , Cygankiewicz Iwona , Ptaszynski Pawel
Published: March 2015

Catheter‐based renal denervation (RDN) is a novel invasive approach in the treatment of resistant hypertension. It is considered a minimally invasive and safe procedure which, as shown by initial experimental and clinical trials, is able not only to reduce blood pressure but also to modify its risk factors by modulation of autonomic nervous system. Recently published results of a randomized Symplicity HTN‐3 trial, which failed to demonstrate RDN‐induced reduction of blood pressure at six months, decreased the initial enthusiasm regarding RDN and raised a question about real efficacy of this procedure. Nevertheless, still there are some other conditions characterized by increased sympathetic tone such as heart failure, atrial fibrillation, or ventricular arrhythmias that may benefit from RDN. Furthermore, novel therapeutical approach toward RDN using adapted electrophysiological or new specially designed electrodes may improve effectiveness of RDN procedure.
Professionalism in Iranian Nursing: Concept Analysis
Authors: Dehghani Ali , Salsali Mahvash , Cheraghi Mohammad Ali
Published: March 2015

Purpose

The present study was conducted with the aim of clarifying and reducing the semantic ambiguities around the concept of professionalism.

Methods

The concept analysis method of Walker and Avant was used.

Findings

The analysis demonstrated that professionalism in nursing consists of three main pillars: principles of care, communication, and ethics.

Conclusions

Given that the process of professionalism in nursing may have positive outcomes for the nurse, the nursing profession, and the health system of the community, these items have been attended to.

Implications for Nursing Practice

The present concept analysis can open the way to conducting more extensive research and devising tools to identify the barriers, facilitators, and administrative arrangements by clarifying the concept.
Statistical Inference for Curved Fibrous Objects in 3D – Based on Multiple Short Observations of Multivariate Autoregressive Processes
Authors: Gaiselmann Gerd , Kulik Rafal , Schmidt Volker
Published: March 2015

This paper deals with statistical inference on the parameters of a stochastic model, describing curved fibrous objects in three dimensions, that is based on multivariate autoregressive processes. The model is fitted to experimental data consisting of a large number of short independently sampled trajectories of multivariate autoregressive processes. We discuss relevant statistical properties (e.g. asymptotic behaviour as the number of trajectories tends to infinity) of the maximum likelihood (ML) estimators for such processes. Numerical studies are also performed to analyse some of the more intractable properties of the ML estimators. Finally the whole methodology, i.e., the fibre model and its statistical inference, is applied to appropriately describe the tracking of fibres in real materials.
Levels of angiogenesis‐related vascular endothelial growth factor family in neovascular glaucoma eyes
Authors: Chen Shida , Zhou Minwen , Wang Wei , Wu Huimin , Yu Xiling , Huang Wenbin , Gao Xinbo , Wang Jiawei , Li Xingyi , Du Shaolin , Ding Xiaoyan , Zhang Xiulan
Published: March 2015

Purpose

This study aimed to evaluate the angiogenesis‐related factors of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family in the aqueous humour of patients with neovascular glaucoma (NVG).

Methods

This study involved 22 eyes of 22 patients with advanced NVG requiring antiglaucomatous surgery and 20 control subjects with cataracts. The NVG eyes received an intravitreal injection of ranibizumab (IVR) treatment before antiglaucomatous surgery. Aqueous humour and blood were collected at the time of IVR and cataract surgery. Protein concentration of VEGF‐A, VEGF‐B and placenta growth factor (PlGF) in aqueous humour and plasma was determined by ELISA tests.

Results

The mean concentration (standard deviation) of VEGF‐A and PlGF in the aqueous humour of patients with NVG were 3037 (2387) pg/ml and 1078 (712) pg/ml, respectively; both were significantly higher than the control group (both p < 0.001). However, levels of VEGF‐A and PlGF in the serum of NVG and control subjects remained low. High concentrations of VEGF‐A were closely correlated with high levels of PlGF in patients with NVG (r = 0.593, p = 0.004). Concentrations of VEGF‐B in aqueous humour and serum remained unchanged (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

There were high concentrations of angiogenesis factors of the VEGF family, with the exception of VEGF‐B, in the aqueous humour of patients with NVG, and there was a positive correlation between VEGF‐A and PlGF. High PlGF levels in patients with NVG may provide another potential target for treatment of NVG.
Bayesian function‐on‐function regression for multilevel functional data
Authors: Meyer Mark J. , Coull Brent A. , Versace Francesco , Cinciripini Paul , Morris Jeffrey S.
Published: March 2015

Medical and public health research increasingly involves the collection of complex and high dimensional data. In particular, functional data—where the unit of observation is a curve or set of curves that are finely sampled over a grid—is frequently obtained. Moreover, researchers often sample multiple curves per person resulting in repeated functional measures. A common question is how to analyze the relationship between two functional variables. We propose a general function‐on‐function regression model for repeatedly sampled functional data on a fine grid, presenting a simple model as well as a more extensive mixed model framework, and introducing various functional Bayesian inferential procedures that account for multiple testing. We examine these models via simulation and a data analysis with data from a study that used event‐related potentials to examine how the brain processes various types of images.
Editorial: Learning design, teacher inquiry into student learning and learning analytics: A call for action
Authors: Mor Yishay , Ferguson Rebecca , Wasson Barbara
Published: March 2015

This special issue deals with three areas. Learning design is the practice of devising effective learning experiences aimed at achieving defined educational objectives in a given context. Teacher inquiry is an approach to professional development and capacity building in education in which teachers study their own and their peers' practice. Learning analytics use data about learners and their contexts to understand and optimise learning and the environments in which it takes place. Typically, these three—design, inquiry and analytics—are seen as separate areas of practice and research. In this issue, we show that the three can work together to form a virtuous circle. Within this circle, learning analytics offers a powerful set of tools for teacher inquiry, feeding back into improved learning design. Learning design provides a semantic structure for analytics, whereas teacher inquiry defines meaningful questions to analyse.
Late Cretaceous to Cenozoic geodynamic evolution of the Atlantic margin offshore Essaouira (Morocco)
Authors: Neumaier Martin , Back Stefan , Littke Ralf , Kukla Peter A. , Schnabel Michael , Reichert Christian
Published: March 2015

After Mesozoic rifting, the Atlantic margin of Morocco has recorded the consequences of the continental collision between Africa and Europe and the relative northward motion of the African plate over the Canary Island hotspot during Cenozoic times. Interpretation of recently acquired 2D seismic reflection data (MIRROR 2011 experiment) presents new insights into the Late Cretaceous to recent geodynamic evolution of this margin. Crustal uplift presumably started during the Late Cretaceous and triggered regional tilting in the deep‐water margin west of Essaouira and the formation of the Base Tertiary Unconformity (BTU). An associated hiatus in sedimentation is interpreted to have started earlier in the north (presumably in the Cenomanian at well location DSDP 416) and propagated to the south (presumably in the Coniacian at well location DSDP 415). The difference in the total duration of this hiatus is postulated to have controlled the extrusion of Late Triassic to Early Jurassic salt during the Late Cretaceous to Early Palaeocene non‐depositional period, resulting in regional differences in the preservation of salt structures: the Agadir Basin in the south of the study area is dominated by salt diapirs, whereas massive canopies characterised the Ras Tafelnay Plateau farther north and salt‐poor canopies and weld structures the northernmost offshore Essaouira and Safi Basins. Accompanied by volcanic intrusions, a presumably Early Palaeogene reactivation of previously existing basement faults is interpreted to have formed a series of deep‐water anticlines with associated gravity deformation of shallow‐seated sediments. The orientation of the fold axes is roughly perpendicular to the present day coast and the extensional fault direction; therefore, not a coast‐line parallel pattern of extensional faults, related to the rifting and break‐up of the margin, but rather a coast‐line perpendicular oceanic fracture zone might have caused the basement faults associated with the deep‐water folds. Both the volcanic intrusions and the formation of the deep‐water anticlines show a comparable age trend which gets progressively younger towards the south. A potential tempo‐spatial relationship of the BTU and the reactivation of basement faults can be explained by the relative northward motion of the African plate over the Canary Island hotspot. Regional uplift producing the BTU could have been the precursor of the approaching hotspot during the Late Cretaceous, followed during the Early Palaeogene by a locally more pronounced uplift above the hotspot centre.
Circulating mitochondrial DNA in serum of patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis
Authors: Surmiak M P , Hubalewska-Mazgaj M , Wawrzycka-Adamczyk K , Szczeklik W , Musiał J , Sanak M
Published: March 2015

Neutrophil is a key cell in pathophysiology of granulomatosis with polyangiitis. Recently, neutrophil extracellular traps were described in this disease. Mitochondrial DNA is also released during traps formation. We measured circulating cell-free mitochondrial and genomic DNA in serum of patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis. Subjects with the disease (14 active and 11 in remission stage) and 10 healthy controls were enrolled. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to measure 79 base pairs (bp) and 230 bp mtDNA fragments. Alu repeats were quantified to evaluate abundance of nuclear DNA in serum at the presence of plasmid control. Both fragments of mtDNA (79 bp and 230 bp) and genomic DNA were elevated significantly in granulomatosis with polyangiitis compared to controls. Only the shorter 79bp mtDNA correlated with active stage of granulomatosis with polyangiitis and clinical symptoms. A mechanism of extracellular release of mitochondrial DNA accompanies the active stage of the disease. Circulating mtDNA is extremely high in untreated patients. This suggests that biomarker properties of mtDNA are useful for monitoring of treatment.
Informed Consent with Children and Young People in Social Research: Is There Scope for Innovation?
Authors: Parsons Sarah , Sherwood Gina , Abbott Chris
Published: March 2015

Over 20 years of research has enhanced our understanding about the methodological and ethical benefits and challenges of involving children and young people in research. Concurrently, the increasing bureaucratisation of research ethics governance within UK universities has reified expectations about the methods used to gain informed consent for research participation. This paper explores how social researchers in the UK are navigating this tension and whether there is any scope for innovation through the use of technologies in how children and young people provide informed consent to take part in research. We conclude there is a need for the co‐creation of research information with children and young people and greater transparency by sharing creative solutions.
Effect of body mass index on maternal morbidity following peripartum hysterectomy
Authors: Wortman A. C. , Hernandez J. S. , Holcomb D. S. , Wilson K. L. , McIntire D. D. , Sheffield J. S.
Published: March 2015

The objective of this study was to estimate the impact of maternal body mass index (BMI) on maternal morbidity following unscheduled peripartum hysterectomy. A retrospective cohort study of consecutive peripartum hysterectomies at our institution from 1988 through 2012; scheduled hysterectomies were excluded. Medical records were reviewed and maternal, foetal and surgical data collected for each subject. Maternal BMI was categorized by the National Institute of Health classifications for overweight and obese. Statistical analyses included evaluation for trend. A total of 360 774 women delivered at Parkland Hospital during the study period with 665 (1.8 per 1000 deliveries) unscheduled peripartum hysterectomies performed. BMI was available for 635 women. Gestational diabetes, chronic hypertension and pregnancy‐related hypertension were significantly higher in all three obesity categories, P = < 0.01. Post‐partum complications, such as venous thrombosis and composite surgical morbidity did not differ among BMI groups. Estimated blood loss and units transfused did not differ across the BMI categories, P = 0.42 and P = 0.38, respectively. Increasing BMI was associated with longer surgical times and more wound infections, P = 0.01. These complications should be considered when approaching a peripartum hysterectomy in patients with obesity.
Failure to Obtain Reinstatement of an Olfactory Representation
Authors: Mahmut Mehmet K. , Stevenson Richard J.
Published: March 2015

It has long been suspected that attentional processes differ between olfaction and the other senses. Here, we test whether voluntary dishabituation, seen, for example, when we re‐attend to the ticking of a clock, can occur in olfaction. Participants were seated in an odorized room, where at various intervals they had to evaluate what they could smell. An experimental group had one nostril open and the other closed, except during the evaluations, so that the closed side was subject to centrally driven habituation, but not peripheral adaptation. A control group had both nostrils closed except during evaluations. Following exposure, the experimental group could not report the room's odor in either the centrally habituated nostril (i.e., that remained closed) or the nostril that remained open, while the control group could. This effect could result from a number of causes, including olfaction's unique neuroanatomy, functional constraints imposed by detecting volatile chemicals, and as a consequence of limited cortical resources, with implications for the functional value of consciousness.
Alcohol use among immigrants in Ontario, Canada
Authors: Agic Branka , Mann Robert E. , Tuck Andrew , Ialomiteanu Anca , Bondy Susan , Simich Laura , Ilie Gabriela
Published: March 2015

Introduction and Aims

This study examined prevalence of alcohol consumption among immigrants and the Canadian‐born populations of Ontario by ethnic origin, and the association between ethnicity, country of birth, age at arrival, length of residence in Canada and drinking measures.

Design and Methods

Data were derived from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Monitor, a cross‐sectional survey of Ontario adults, conducted between January 2005 and December 2010 (n = 13 557).

Results

The prevalence of alcohol consumption and risk drinking was generally lower among foreign‐born than Canadian‐born respondents, but significant variations across ethnic groups were found. In general, foreign‐born respondents of European descent reported higher rates of alcohol use and risk drinking than foreign‐born respondents from other ethnic groups. We also observed that ethnicity effects varied by whether or not respondents were born in Canada, and by the age at which they arrived in Canada.

Discussion and Conclusions

While previous studies generally found an increase in immigrants' alcohol consumption with years in Canada, our data suggest that longer duration of residence may have either positive or negative effects on immigrants' alcohol use, depending on the country of origin/traditional drinking pattern. More research is needed to explore determinants of alcohol use and risk drinking among immigrants and to identify those groups at highest risk. [Agic B, Mann RE, Tuck A, Ialomiteanu A, Bondy S, Simich L, Ilie G. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:196–205]
Affective matching of odors and facial expressions in infants: shifting patterns between 3 and 7 months
Authors: Godard Ornella , Baudouin Jean‐Yves , Schaal Benoist , Durand Karine
Published: March 2015

Recognition of emotional facial expressions is a crucial skill for adaptive behavior. Past research suggests that at 5 to 7 months of age, infants look longer to an unfamiliar dynamic angry/happy face which emotionally matches a vocal expression. This suggests that they can match stimulations of distinct modalities on their emotional content. In the present study, olfaction–vision matching abilities were assessed across different age groups (3, 5 and 7 months) using dynamic expressive faces (happy vs. disgusted) and distinct hedonic odor contexts (pleasant, unpleasant and control) in a visual‐preference paradigm. At all ages the infants were biased toward the disgust faces. This visual bias reversed into a bias for smiling faces in the context of the pleasant odor context in the 3‐month‐old infants. In infants aged 5 and 7 months, no effect of the odor context appeared in the present conditions. This study highlights the role of the olfactory context in the modulation of visual behavior toward expressive faces in infants. The influence of olfaction took the form of a contingency effect in 3‐month‐old infants, but later evolved to vanish or to take another form that could not be evidenced in the present study.
Electrophysiological measures of resting state functional connectivity and their relationship with working memory capacity in childhood
Authors: Barnes Jessica J. , Woolrich Mark W. , Baker Kate , Colclough Giles L. , Astle Duncan E.
Published: March 2015

Functional connectivity is the statistical association of neuronal activity time courses across distinct brain regions, supporting specific cognitive processes. This coordination of activity is likely to be highly important for complex aspects of cognition, such as the communication of fluctuating task goals from higher‐order control regions to lower‐order, functionally specific regions. Some of these functional connections are identifiable even when relevant cognitive tasks are not being performed (i.e. at rest). We used magnetoencephalographic recordings projected into source space to demonstrate that resting state networks in childhood have electrophysiological underpinnings that are evident in the spontaneous fluctuations of oscillatory brain activity. Using the temporal structure of these oscillatory patterns we were able to identify a number of functional resting state networks analogous to those reported in the adult literature. In a second analysis we fused this dynamic temporal information with the spatial information from a functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis of functional connectivity, to demonstrate that inter‐subject variability in these electrophysiological measures of functional connectivity is correlated with individual differences in cognitive ability: the strength of connectivity between a fronto‐parietal network and lower‐level processing areas in inferior temporal cortex was associated with spatial working memory capacity, as measured outside the scanner with educationally relevant standardized assessments. This study represents the first exploration of the electrophysiological mechanisms underpinning resting state functional connectivity in source space in childhood, and the extent to which the strength of particular connections is associated with cognitive ability.
Sex differences and effects of prenatal exposure to excess testosterone on ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons in adult sheep
Authors: Brown Erinna C. Z. , Steadman Casey J. , Lee Theresa M. , Padmanabhan Vasantha , Lehman Michael N. , Coolen Lique M.
Published: March 2015

Prenatal testosterone (T) excess in sheep results in a wide array of reproductive neuroendocrine deficits and alterations in motivated behavior. The ventral tegmental area (VTA) plays a critical role in reward and motivated behaviors and is hypothesised to be targeted by prenatal T. Here we report a sex difference in the number VTA dopamine cells in the adult sheep, with higher numbers of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)‐immunoreactive (‐ir) cells in males than females. Moreover, prenatal exposure to excess T during either gestational days 30–90 or 60–90 resulted in increased numbers of VTA TH‐ir cells in adult ewes compared to control females. Stereological analysis confirmed significantly greater numbers of neurons in the VTA of males and prenatal T‐treated ewes, which was primarily accounted for by greater numbers of TH‐ir cells. In addition, immunoreactivity for TH in the cells was denser in males and prenatal T‐treated females, suggesting that sex differences and prenatal exposure to excess T affects both numbers of cells expressing TH and the protein levels within dopamine cells. Sex differences were also noted in numbers of TH‐ir cells in the substantia nigra, with more cells in males than females. However, prenatal exposure to excess T did not affect numbers of TH‐ir cells in the substantia nigra, suggesting that this sex difference is organised independently of prenatal actions of T. Together, these results demonstrate sex differences in the sheep VTA dopamine system which are mimicked by prenatal treatment with excess T.
The Effectiveness of the Within Our Reach Relationship Education Program for Couples: Findings from a Federal Randomized Trial
Authors: Rhoades Galena K.
Published: March 2015

This study examined the effectiveness of a couple‐based relationship education program, Within Our Reach. Secondary data (n = 3,609) were analyzed from the federal Supporting Healthy Marriage project. Couples were randomly assigned to receive Within Our Reach and associated services or to a no‐treatment (treatment‐as‐usual) control group. Those assigned to Within Our Reach reported better couple and individual outcomes on 8 of 12 outcomes measured (M ES = .15) at the 12‐month follow‐up and 6 of 10 outcomes measured at the 30‐month follow‐up (M ES = .14), including higher relationship happiness, more warmth and support, more positive communication, less negative behavior and emotion, less psychological abuse, less physical assault (for men), lower psychological distress (for women), and less infidelity. They were also less likely to report that their marriage was in trouble. These effects were generally small in size and many were replicated across the two follow‐ups. There were no significant differences between those assigned to Within Our Reach versus control on cooperative parenting, severe psychological assault, or percent married. Implications for future research, programming, and policy are discussed.
The impact of hypoxia on bacterial infection
Authors: Schaffer Kirsten , Taylor Cormac T.
Published: March 2015

Tissue hypoxia is a common microenvironmental feature during inflammation associated with bacterial infection. Hypoxia has recently been shown to play an important role in both innate and adaptive host immunity through the regulation of transcription factors, including hypoxia‐inducible factor and nuclear factor‐κB, in both infiltrating immunocytes and inflamed resident cells. Recent studies have suggested that, by regulating these important immune effector pathways in host tissues, hypoxia can significantly alter the process of bacterial infection and subsequent disease progression. Although hypoxia is often beneficial in terms of reducing the development of infection, its net effect depends on a number of factors, including the nature of the pathogen and the characteristics of the infection encountered. In this minireview, we will discuss the impact of local tissue hypoxia and the resulting activation of hypoxia‐sensitive pathways on bacterial infection by a range of pathogens. Furthermore, we will review how this knowledge may be used to develop new approaches to anti‐infective therapeutics.
GM130 is a parallel tetramer with a flexible rod‐like structure and N–terminally open (Y‐shaped) and closed (I‐shaped) conformations
Authors: Ishida Ryuichi , Yamamoto Akitsugu , Nakayama Kazuhisa , Sohda Miwa , Misumi Yoshio , Yasunaga Takuo , Nakamura Nobuhiro
Published: March 2015

GM130 is a cytoplasmic peripheral membrane protein localized on the cis side of the Golgi apparatus. GM130 is proposed to function as a membrane skeleton, maintaining the structure of the Golgi apparatus, and as a vesicle tether that facilitates vesicle fusion to the Golgi membrane. More than 60% of the GM130 molecule is believed to exist as coiled‐coil structures with a probability above 90%, based on its primary amino acid sequence. The predicted coiled‐coil region was similar to that of yeast Uso1p and its mammalian homolog, p115, both of which form coiled‐coil homodimers. Therefore, GM130 has long been thought to form a homodimer with a rod‐like shape. However, our biochemical and electron microscopical analyses revealed that GM130 is a parallel homotetramer with a flexible rod‐like structure with I‐ and Y‐shaped conformations. The structure of the N‐terminal region may interchange between an open conformation (branched or Y‐shaped) and a closed conformation (non‐branched or I‐shaped), possibly with the help of interacting molecules. This conformational change may alter the oligomeric state of the GM130 molecules and the function of GM130 in the vesicle tethering and the maintenance of the Golgi structure.
Winter warming as an important co‐driver for Betula nana growth in western Greenland during the past century
Authors: Hollesen Jørgen , Buchwal Agata , Rachlewicz Grzegorz , Hansen Birger U. , Hansen Marc O. , Stecher Ole , Elberling Bo
Published: March 2015

Growing season conditions are widely recognized as the main driver for tundra shrub radial growth, but the effects of winter warming and snow remain an open question. Here, we present a more than 100 years long Betula nana ring‐width chronology from Disko Island in western Greenland that demonstrates a highly significant and positive growth response to both summer and winter air temperatures during the past century. The importance of winter temperatures for Betula nana growth is especially pronounced during the periods from 1910–1930 to 1990–2011 that were dominated by significant winter warming. To explain the strong winter importance on growth, we assessed the importance of different environmental factors using site‐specific measurements from 1991 to 2011 of soil temperatures, sea ice coverage, precipitation and snow depths. The results show a strong positive growth response to the amount of thawing and growing degree‐days as well as to winter and spring soil temperatures. In addition to these direct effects, a strong negative growth response to sea ice extent was identified, indicating a possible link between local sea ice conditions, local climate variations and Betula nana growth rates. Data also reveal a clear shift within the last 20 years from a period with thick snow depths (1991–1996) and a positive effect on Betula nana radial growth, to a period (1997–2011) with generally very shallow snow depths and no significant growth response towards snow. During this period, winter and spring soil temperatures have increased significantly suggesting that the most recent increase in Betula nana radial growth is primarily triggered by warmer winter and spring air temperatures causing earlier snowmelt that allows the soils to drain and warm quicker. The presented results may help to explain the recently observed ‘greening of the Arctic’ which may further accelerate in future years due to both direct and indirect effects of winter warming.