bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Beyond TIFF and JPEG2000: PDF/A as an OAIS submission information package container
Authors: Han Yan
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to introduce PDF/A to replace TIFF as the preferred file format for digitization of textual documents. In addition, PDF/A can be used as an open archival information system (OAIS) submission information package (SIP) container to reduce digitization and digital preservation costs.

Design/methodology/approach

– The author first reviewed the current digitization guidelines, the OAIS model and provides on an overview of the development PDF and PDF/A as international standards. Then literature review of the uses of PDF/A is presented. The author analyzed pitfalls of TIFFs as the preferred format for digitization, and showed how to use PDF/A to code digitization SIP.

Findings

– TIFF file format has been the preferred master file format by Federal Agency Digitization Guidelines Initiative digitization guidelines for the past 20 years. However, there are drawbacks of TIFF format. Literature reviews show that PDF/A has been the preferred standard for coding born-digital documents in court, government and business sectors. PDF/A-2 and PDF/A-3 are relatively new standards released after 2010. However, few understood the standards and have utilized the full potentials in digitization. The author shows that PDF/A can be used as an OAIS SIP container.

Practical implications

– In order to delivery OAIS SIPs, current practices require a combination of files, directories and various types of metadata. The author shows that PDF/A (PDF/A-2 and/or PDF/A-3) can be a better file format for textual document digitization with coding various types of metadata in extensible metadata platform and arbitrary file/data can be coded in PDF/A-3. These features in PDF/A provide much better ways to deliver SIPs in a cost-efficient manner.

Originality/value

– PDF/A has been recognized as the preferred standard for born-digital documents, but it has not been used as the preferred file format for digitized materials. The author recommends that: PDF/A with lossless JPX compressions as the preferred file format; and PDF/A with lossless JPX compressions along with metadata/data as the preferred OAIS SIP container. As a result, the uses reduce costs in digitization and digital preservation and also increase productivity. The author recommends to update the national and international digitization practices using PDF/A.
R & D spending among Chinese SMEs: the role of business owners’ characteristics
Authors: Gao Yongqiang , Hafsi Taïeb
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– Given that organizational decisions are made by individuals and thus shaped by their subjective and objective characteristics, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of SME business owners’ characteristics on their firms’ research and development (R & D) spending in a transition economy.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors first build the arguments that, among small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), business owners’ perceived importance of R & D-related activities, their education, related experiences, and social connections, should affect their firms’ R & D spending positively. Then the authors use a Chinese nationwide survey of private SMEs to test the arguments. Tobit regression analyses are conducted by taking Stata 12.0 as the statistic tool.

Findings

– The authors find that business owners’ perceived importance of R & D-related activities is positively associated with their firms’ R & D spending. In addition, better-educated owners and owners who have technology-related working experience tend to invest more in R & D activities. Finally, owners who have social connections, especially industrial connections, tend to spend more on R & D activities.

Originality/value

– This study improves the understanding of R & D spending determinants among SMEs. Going beyond general environmental determinants, it reveals the important agency role of SME owners, and thus contributes to a better understanding of how decisions leading to SME innovations are influenced by business owners’ perceptions and demographic characteristics.
Does VRIO help managers evaluate a firm’s resources?
Authors: Knott Paul J.
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– The resource-based view and value-rarity-imitability-organisation (VRIO) method have diffused widely into courses aimed at managerial practice, but research has yet to verify whether they help managers analyse a firm’s resources. Following recent interest in the use of strategy tools, the purpose of this paper is to focus on what happens when VRIO informs strategy action.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper uses experimental method to evaluate directly users’ analysis guided by VRIO relative to analysis that is not. Systematic coding of the responses evaluates how users select resources to evaluate, in which areas they make recommendations, and what account they take of competitors, dynamic evolution, and resource disadvantages, risks and limitations.

Findings

– VRIO encouraged users to evaluate resources relative to competitors and competitive dynamics, but resource selection difficulties and failure to evaluate resource disadvantages limited its value. In addition, it drew users to the existing operations and business model.

Research limitations/implications

– The study highlights a tendency for users to evaluate antecedents and outcomes of resources, and partly supports the view that VRIO elicits inward-looking descriptions. Field-based research is needed to show how using VRIO plays out in full strategy making context.

Practical implications

– Highlighted limitations in VRIO analysis could be alleviated by better specifying resource selection and by addressing the positive-only tenor of VRIO materials.

Originality/value

– Only a small number of published studies evaluate VRIO as a method of practical strategic analysis, and this paper is the first to look directly at users’ responses.
An integrative model of IT-enabled organizational transformation
Authors: Cha Kyung Jin , Hwang Taewon , Gregor Shirley
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– Despite much research on information technology (IT)-enabled organizational transformation (OT), there are still many issues to be addressed. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by proposing an integrative model that includes specific transformation resources, capabilities, and outcomes pertaining to the success of IT-enabled OT.

Design/methodology/approach

– Using the resource-based view, organizational learning theory, and business process reengineering, the authors developed an integrative model of IT-enabled OT. To validate this model, the authors conducted in-depth case studies of five firms that reported successful IT-enabled OT and five others that reported less successful.

Findings

– This study offers three important findings. First, flexible IT and policies were found to be key transformation resources. Second, training, teamwork, leadership, and project ownership were identified as key transformation capabilities. Third, strategic outcomes such as responsiveness, customer satisfaction, and business scope were suggested as key transformation outcomes. The benefits realized by the less successful group tended to be limited to the operational level. Overall, the findings provide evidence that strategic benefits from the success of IT-enabled OT can be obtained by combining specific transformation resources and capabilities.

Originality/value

– The results of this study make three contributions to the literature on IT-enabled OT. First, the authors shed light on the underlying mechanism by which specific transformation resources and capabilities lead to the improvement of specific outcomes. Second, IT-enabled OT has been conceptualized from a variety of theoretical perspectives. Third, the authors brought together the diverse literature on IT-enabled OT, presenting an empirically validated integrative model of IT-enabled OT.
Ownership structure, product market competition and productivity
Authors: Mnasri Khadija , Ellouze Dorra
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of product market competition and ownership structure on total factor productivity and the interaction between these two governance tools.

Design/methodology/approach

– Using a sample of 90 Tunisian non-financial firms over the period 1998-2012, the authors use fixed effects and Generalized Method of Moments models to test the complementary/substitutability effect between family ownership and competition.

Findings

– The authors find that product market competition boosts productivity in that it mitigates agency problems. Moreover, the authors show that large blockholders have a positive impact on firms’ performance. When considering ownership types, it seems that families play an important role in improving productivity. However, this ownership structure is less effective when firms operate in competitive industries. Thus, the results suggest that a substitution effect exists between internal governance mechanisms (particularly family ownership) and competition.

Practical implications

– Tunisian politicians must review the investment code and remove barriers and restrictions in order to assure fair product market competition. Also, regulation must be changed to encourage foreigners’ shareholding and the creation of private equity firms. Moreover, large shareholders operating in a competitive environment should open up their capital to new shareholders in order to undertake more investments and to benefit from certain advantages.

Originality/value

– To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the effect of product market competition on the relation between corporate governance and productivity in the Tunisian context. Moreover, the complementary/substitutability effect between family ownership and competition has not been examined before in any context.
Determining factors in the effectiveness of executive coaching as a management development tool
Authors: Rekalde Izaskun , Landeta Jon , Albizu Eneka
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to provide a classified list of the factors that are most influential in the success of an executive coaching process, arranged in order of importance.

Design/methodology/approach

– Selection of factors from an exhaustive literature review, and development of a qualitative investigation, applying a Focus Group, a Nominal Group technique, and the Delphi method to a group of experts comprising coaches, coachees, and human resources managers, in order to complete and assess the factors selected.

Findings

– The most outstanding factors needed in executive coaching are confidentiality, trust, and empathy between coach and coachee; the coach’s ability to generate trust, and her/his competence in communication skills, vocation and commitment; the coachee’s need, motivation, responsibility for his/her own development and commitment to the process; and a guarantee from the organization of the confidentiality of that process.

Practical implications

– This research furnishes a quantitative criterion for the evaluation and ranking of the determining factors in coaching success, which facilitates a justified selection of factors, both for research and professional purposes.

Social implications

– This study makes it possible to better channel the allocation of resources and gearing of business decisions for the implementation of coaching programs.

Originality/value

– This paper provides a systematic review of the empirically based literature dealing with the main success factors in the effective application of executive coaching, and contributes new factors derived from the knowledge of professional experts, along with a classified and ranked list of those factors, assessed in terms of their relevance to the satisfactory outcome of a coaching process.
Care coordination for older people: an exploratory framework
Authors: Hughes Jane , Chester Helen , Sutcliffe Caroline , Xie Chengqiu , Challis David
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to present a framework for examining variation in care coordination arrangements for older people.

Design/methodology/approach

– A multi-method approach was adopted combining analysis of secondary data and primary data. There were two stages: the development of the framework and its constituent attributes and indicators; and its validation from two perspectives: a meeting with managers and focus groups with practitioners. It was informed by an existing generic framework; subsequent policy guidance; data from an English national survey; previous research; and international literature.

Findings

– The framework comprises 19 attributes each with indicators measuring performance relating to: organisational arrangements influencing service delivery; the performance of core tasks of care coordination; and differentiation within the process to distinguish between responses to different levels of need.

Originality/value

– Care coordination arrangements in England are characterised by diversity. This paper provides a framework for evaluating local arrangements thereby highlighting strengths and where improvements are needed. It offers a means to promote programme fidelity. As such it has utility for both service commissioners and providers.
Longitudinal effects on self-determination in the RCT “Continuum of care for frail elderly people”
Authors: Ekelund Christina , Eklund Kajsa
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– An intervention “Continuum of care for frail elderly people” was designed to create an integrated care from the hospital emergency department (ED) to home. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate longitudinal effects in terms of self-determination in daily life for community-living frail older persons.

Design/methodology/approach

– A non-blinded, controlled trial with participants randomised to the intervention group or a control group with follow-ups at three, six and 12 months. The intervention involved collaboration between a nurse with geriatric competence at the ED, the hospital wards and a multi-professional team in the community with a case manager as the hub. The intervention’s person-centred approach involved the older persons in all decisions. Inclusion criteria: 80 years and older or 65-79 years with at least one chronic disease and dependent in at least one daily activity. Analyses were made on the basis of the intention-to-treat principle and outcome measure experienced self-determination in daily life measured by Impact on Participation and Autonomy for Older persons (IPA-O). The analysis was made using Svenssons’ statistical method.

Findings

– There were significant differences in favour of the intervention at three months in self-determination concerning activities at home and at three and six months concerning social relationships.

Originality/value

– Self-determination seems to deteriorate over time in both groups, and the intervention “Continuum of care for frail elderly people” seemed to slow the rate of decline in two dimensions; activities in and around the house at three-month follow-up, and at three and six months concerning social relationship. Thus, the intervention has the means to support them in exercising self-determination and aging in place, a valuable benefit both for the individual and for society.
Transport infrastructure and sustainability: a new planning and assessment framework
Authors: Newman Peter William
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– Transport infrastructure is fundamental for economic development and for enabling cities to shift away from unsustainable automobile dependence. These agendas are coming together but the tools and processes to create less automobile-dependent cities are not well developed. The purpose of this paper is to suggest how the planning and assessment process can help to achieve this goal of integration.

Design/methodology/approach

– Understanding how cities are shaped by transport priorities through urban fabric theory creates an approach to the planning and assessment process in transport and town planning that can help achieve the purpose.

Findings

– Four tools are developed from this theory: first, a strategic framework that includes the kind of urban fabric that any project is located within; second, benefit cost ratios that include wider economic benefits, especially agglomeration economies in each fabric; third, avoidable costs that assess lost opportunities from the kind of urban development facilitated by the infrastructure chosen; and finally, value capture opportunities that can help finance the infrastructure if they are used to create walking and transit fabric.

Research limitations/implications

– Detailed application to the standard transport and town planning tools should now proceed to see how they can be adapted to each urban fabric, not just automobile city fabric.

Practical implications

– Recognising, respecting and rejuvenating each fabric can be implemented immediately.

Social implications

– Urban lifestyle choices are best understood by estimating the potential demand for each market and building to these.

Originality/value

– The urban fabric tools outlined provide the best way of integrating sustainable development goals into how cities are planned and transport projects are assessed.
A system-of-systems approach to understanding urbanization – state of the art and prospect
Authors: Kasai Sakura , Li Nan , Fang Dongping
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– City is an artificial dynamic open giant complex system, whose multifunctional and interdisciplinary characteristics leads to significant complexity. While challenges arising from individual urban functions have been the focus of urban studies, major urban challenges such as traffic congestion and inefficiency of resource usages may originate from the “interface” where different urban functions interact. Previous research has revealed the potential that regarding city as a system-of-systems (SoS) may shed light on solutions to various urban challenges. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– To examine this research potential, this paper begins with an overview of challenges in urbanization and current approaches which lack systematic solutions. The idea of applying SoS approach is then inspired by existing studies on urban metabolism where city is regarded as an entire system. This idea is followed by definition and characteristics of SoS, as well as comprehensive overview of the state of the art on SoS-based solutions to urban challenges. This paper then discusses the merits and limitations of current studies on SoS for urbanization, followed by a case study which precedes research visions.

Findings

– The paper finds that regarding city as SoS is a potentially effective approach for urban studies. This is highlighted by original research visions on how to advance this line of research. These research visions point out a few ideas for future research. It particularly highlights the role of human and information in the establishment, management and evolution of various urban functions.

Originality/value

– The originality of this paper lies in the use of the conception of “SoS” to emphasize the importance of properly modeling human and information in an urban system so as to better reveal the intra-SoS mechanism.
Literature review of green retrofit design for commercial buildings with BIM implication
Authors: Bu Shanshan , Shen Geoffrey , Anumba Chimay J. , Wong Andy K.D. , Liang Xin
Published: September 2015

Purpose

– This research paper is a literature review of the existing building retrofitting process. It proposes studying the functional, technical, and organizational issues of the green retrofit process. The purpose of this paper is to expand the domain of design framework for retrofitting existing buildings.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper provides a review of the model-based design process from enrollment to evaluation stages representing the green retrofitting process in selected publications. The paper opted to review the Green Retrofit Design (GRD) process model for achieving a systematic design model of GRD development in the future.

Findings

– Functional and maintenance issues are mainly for new buildings, also in the field for renovation and demolishing. Publications also show that environmental, social, and technical issues are often examined separately in the decision process of GRD. Papers in the facility management scale would concentrate more on organization/legal issues. Publications with questionnaire design are devoted to the usage on life-cycle assessment on existing building, but not yet on the stakeholder management and design process and related issues.

Social implications

– The achievement of the study is to provide a new framework of design approach that is significant to the theoretical research, education, communication, and practical works in terms of GRD development.

Originality/value

– The paper not only achieves a specific sequence of practical approaches, including awareness of problems, conceptual development, and design embodiment, to meet design objectives, but also conforms to academic practice-based research of creative design taking on GRD practice.
What Drives Foreign Direct Investments into West Africa? An Empirical Investigation
Authors: Anyanwu John C. , Yameogo Nadege D.
Published: September 2015

This paper analyzed drivers of foreign direct investments (FDI) to West Africa using a panel dataset from 1970 to 2010. OLS and GMM techniques are used for the estimations. The main results indicate that there is a U‐shaped relationship between economic development and FDI inflows to West Africa. In summary: (i) The quadratic element of real per capita GDP, domestic investment, trade openness, first year lag of FDI, natural resources (oil and metals) endowment and exports, and monetary integration have positive and significant effect on FDI inflows to West Africa; and (ii) there is a negative relationship between FDI inflows to the sub‐region and loan component of ODA, economic growth, level of economic development (real GDP per capita), life expectancy, and domestic credit to the private sector.
Monetary Policy under Uncertainty in WAEMU: Parsimonious Model and Central Bank Preferences
Authors: Nantob N'Yilimon
Published: September 2015

This paper looks at the implications of monetary policy uncertainty in the WAEMU area over the period 1975Q1–2010Q2. Under uncertainty on the transmission mechanisms, the monetary policy must be cautious according to the Brainard conservatism principle. Using the linear quadratic stochastic control approach by introduction the variance covariance matrix of the estimated parameters in the optimal control theory the results through the optimal monetary policy rule yield that the policy‐makers are always very cautious when they have an inflation and output gap stabilization objective. However, when they are concerned to smooth interest rate, their behavior becomes distinctly more aggressive.
Enhancing North Africa's Infrastructure for Improved Competitiveness
Authors: Yogo Urbain Thierry , Verdier‐Chouchane Audrey
Published: September 2015

This paper aims at assessing the relationship between infrastructure development and competitiveness in North Africa. Based on the World Bank data, we analyze the infrastructure indicators of four North African countries over the period 1996–2012 and estimate the elasticity of competitiveness with respect to infrastructure development. We first argue that competitiveness could be improved by investing more on infrastructure. Although comparison with sub‐Saharan Africa reveals that important progress has been made in North Africa in terms of quantity, countries need to improve the infrastructure quality by investing in green energy, in maintenance, in public private partnerships and in regional infrastructure. Econometric analysis confirms that a 1 percent increase in infrastructure quality raises competitiveness by 0.64 percent. Country specific elasticity is respectively 0.22 in Algeria, 1.42 in Egypt, 0.36 in Tunisia and 0.56 in Morocco. Based on these results, appropriate policy recommendations are discussed.
Assessing Indicators of Currency Crisis in Ethiopia: Signals Approach
Authors: Megersa Kelbesa , Cassimon Danny
Published: September 2015

Currency crises, generally defined as rapid depreciations of a local currency or loss of foreign exchange reserves, are common incidents in modern monetary systems. Due to their repeated occurrence and severity, they have earned wide coverage by both theoretical and empirical literature. However, unlike advanced and emerging economies, currency crises in low‐income countries have not received due attention. This paper uses the signals approach developed by Kaminskyet al. () and assesses currency crisis in Ethiopia over the time frame January 1970 to December 2008. Using the Exchange Market Pressure Index (EMPI), we identify three currency crisis episodes that coincide with the liberalization following the fall of Ethiopian socialism, the Ethio‐Eritrean border conflict, and the zenith of the global financial crisis. The timing shows the importance of both local and international dynamics. More macroeconomic indicators picked up the first crisis in a 24‐month signalling window, compared to the latter two. Three categories of indicators were used: current account, capital account and domestic financial sector. None of the capital account indicators were significant based on the noise‐to‐signal ratio rule. One possible explanation for this might be the weak integration of the Ethiopian economy with global capital markets.
Did Affordable Housing Legislation Contribute to the Subprime Securities Boom?
Authors: Ghent Andra C. , Hernández‐Murillo Rubén , Owyang Michael T.
Published: September 2015

We use a regression discontinuity approach and present new institutional evidence to investigate whether affordable housing policies influenced the market for securitized subprime mortgages. We use merged loan‐level data on nonprime mortgages with individual‐ and neighborhood‐level data for California and Florida. We find no evidence that lenders increased subprime originations or altered loan pricing around the discrete eligibility cutoffs for the Government‐Sponsored Enterprises' (GSEs) affordable housing goals or the Community Reinvestment Act. Although we find evidence that the GSEs bought significant quantities of subprime securities, our results indicate that these purchases were not directly related to affordable housing mandates.
The Impact of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct on Appraisal and Mortgage Outcomes
Authors: Ding Lei , Nakamura Leonard
Published: September 2015

The accuracy of appraisals came into scrutiny during the housing crisis, and a set of policies and regulations was adopted to address the conflict‐of‐interest issues in the appraisal practices. In response to an investigation by the New York State Attorney General's office, the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) was agreed to by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Using unique data sets that contain both approved and nonapproved mortgage applications, this study provides an empirical examination of the impact of the HVCC on appraisal and mortgage outcomes. The results suggest that the HVCC has led to a reduction in the probability of inflated valuations, although valuations remained on average inflated, and induced a significant increase in the incidence of low appraisals. The well‐intentioned HVCC rule made it more difficult to obtain mortgages to purchase homes during the housing price crash, possibly exacerbating the fall in prices.
Comparing the Strength of Auditing and Reporting Standards and Investigating their Predictors in Europe and Asia
Authors: Boolaky Pran Krishansing , Cooper Barry J.
Published: September 2015

The World Economic Forum conducted an opinion survey to determine the strength of auditing and reporting standards (SARS) in 133 countries. It then assigned a score for SARS to each country as one of its global competitive indices. This is a unique dataset on SARS at country level. Using this dataset, this paper compares SARS scores for 72 countries (41 European and 31 Asian). A multi‐phase regression analysis is employed to empirically investigate the predictors of SARS using five sub‐models. Findings from the study support existing theory and add new findings to the auditing and reporting literature at a regional level. It suggests that there are nine predictors of SARS which are similar for both Europe and Asia but with different magnitude. In Asia the efficiency of the legal framework and the size of the foreign export market are also significant predictors of SARS compared to Europe.
Chief Financial Officers’ Short‐ and Long‐term Incentive‐based Compensation and Earnings Management
Authors: Hossain Sarowar , Monroe Gary S.
Published: September 2015

This study examines the association between chief financial officers’ (CFOs) short‐ and long‐term compensation and discretionary current and non‐current accruals. The CFO's cash bonus is used as a measure of short‐term incentives and shares plus options is used as a measure of long‐term incentives. The results show a significant and positive association between CFOs’ short‐term compensation and the absolute value of discretionary current accruals. The results also show a significant and positive association between CFOs’ long‐term compensation and the absolute value of discretionary non‐current accruals. STUDY provides evidence that the earnings management behaviour of CFOs is associated with type of CFO compensation.
Cost Stickiness in Australia: Characteristics and Determinants
Authors: Bugeja Martin , Lu Meiting , Shan Yaowen
Published: September 2015

This study presents empirical evidence on cost stickiness using a large sample of Australian listed firms from 1990–2010. We find cost behaviour in Australian firms is sticky on average, with a lower degree of stickiness than in United States firms. Costs increase by 0.885% with a 1% increase in sales revenues, but decrease by only 0.797% for a 1% decrease in sales. The degree of cost stickiness demonstrates a ‘U’ shape over the period and increases after the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards. Sticky cost behaviour, however, is not evidenced in the resources, construction and retail industries. We document evidence consistent with the argument of adjustment costs of employed resources, managerial incentives and agency costs. The degree of cost stickiness in Australia increases with a firm's asset and employee intensity, and when managers have strong incentives to avoid decreases in earnings or losses, but is less pronounced when revenues decline in the preceding period and in firms with strong governance mechanisms. Our results provide important implications for external stakeholders’ understanding of firm performance.
Prostaglandin E2 and the EP receptors in malignancy: possible therapeutic targets?
Authors: O'Callaghan G , Houston A
Published: September 2015

Elevated expression of COX‐2 and increased levels of PGE2 are found in numerous cancers and are associated with tumour development and progression. Although epidemiological, clinical and preclinical studies have shown that the inhibition of PGE2 synthesis through the use of either non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or specific COX‐2 inhibitors (COXibs) has the potential to prevent and treat malignant disease, toxicities due to inhibition of COX‐2 have limited their use. Thus, there is an urgent need for the development of strategies whereby COX‐2 activity may be reduced without inducing any side effects. The biological effects of PGE2 are mediated by signalling through four distinct E‐type prostanoid (EP) receptors – EP1, EP2, EP3 and EP4. In recent years, extensive effort has gone into elucidating the function of PGE2 and the EP receptors in health and disease, with the goal of creating selective inhibitors as a means of therapy. In this review, we focus on PGE2, and in particular on the role of the individual EP receptors and their signalling pathways in neoplastic disease. As knowledge concerning the role of the EP receptors in cancer grows, so does the potential for exploiting the EP receptors as therapeutic targets for the treatment of cancer and metastatic disease.
Contractile function assessment by intraventricular balloon alters the ability of regional ischaemia to evoke ventricular fibrillation
Authors: Wilder Catherine D E , Masoud Radwa , Yazar Duygu , O'Brien Brett A , Eykyn Thomas R , Curtis Michael J
Published: September 2015

Background and purpose

In drug research using the rat Langendorff heart preparation, it is possible to study left ventricular (LV)contractilityusing an intraventricular balloon (IVB), andarrhythmogenesisduring coronary ligation‐induced regional ischaemia. Assessingboth concurrentlywould halve animal requirements. We aimed to test the validity of this approach.

Experimental approach

The electrocardiogram (ECG) and LV function (IVB) were recorded during regional ischaemia of different extents in a randomized and blinded study.

Key results

IVB‐induced proarrhythmia was anticipated, but in hearts with an ischaemic zone (IZ) made deliberately small, an inflated IVB reduced ischaemia‐induced ventricular fibrillation (VF) incidence as a trend. Repeating studies in hearts with large IZs revealed the effect to be significant. There were no changes in QT interval or other variables that might explain the effect. Insertion of an IVB that was minimally inflated had no effect on any variable compared with ‘no IVB’ controls. The antiarrhythmic effect of verapamil (a positive control drug) was unaffected by IVB inflation. Removal of an inflated (but not a non‐inflated) IVB caused a release of lactate commensurate with reperfusion of an endocardial/subendocardial layer of IVB‐induced ischaemia. This was confirmed by intracellular31phosphorus (31P) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.

Conclusions and implications

IVB inflation does not inhibit VF suppression by a standard drug, but it has profound antiarrhythmic effects of its own, likely to be due to inflation‐induced localized ischaemia. This means rhythm and contractility cannot be assessed concurrently by this approach, with implications for drug discovery and safety assessment.
Parallelism in thermal growth response in otoliths and scales of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) from alpine lakes independent of genetic background
Authors: Thaulow Jens , Haugen Thrond O. , Borgstrøm Reidar
Published: September 2015

Low density in natural populations of salmonids has predominantly been managed by stocking of non‐native conspecifics. Due partly to domestication, introduced non‐native fish may be maladapted under natural conditions. Interbreeding between introduced and wild individuals may therefore impair local adaptation and potentially population viability. Brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) from three headwaters (with stocked fish) and three interconnected lakes (with native fish) on the Hardangervidda mountain plateau, southern Norway, were tested for differences in thermal effects on scale and otolith growth. Otolith and scale annuli widths from immature brown trout showed positive correlation with mean annual summer temperature for all six sampled populations. In mature individuals, a similar positive thermal correlation was evident for the otoliths only. Interannuli width measurements from scales indicate a halt in somatic growth for brown trout in this alpine environment when reaching ages between 7 and 9 winters, coinciding with age at maturity. Our study indicates that otolith growth follows summer temperature even when individuals do not respond with somatic growth in these populations and that introduced brown trout and introgressed populations have similar thermal growth responses. Due to the continued otolith growth after stagnation in somatic growth and the impact of fluctuations in summer temperature, the utilisation of otolith annuli widths for back calculation of length at age should be treated with caution.
Evaluation of the bristle end‐rounding patterns of children's toothbrushes using scanning electron microscopy and stereomicroscopy
Authors: Lee H‐S , Jung H‐I , Kang S‐M , Kim H‐E , Kim B‐I
Published: September 2015

Objectives

The aim of this study was to evaluate the proportions of end‐rounded bristles via observations of the end patterns of various children's toothbrushes with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and stereomicroscopy.

Methods

Ten different brands of children's toothbrushes were chosen, and tufts from each toothbrush were used. The prepared bristle specimens were observed on SEM and stereomicroscopic images and classified as acceptable (A1–A3) and non‐acceptable (N1–N5) according to the modified classification. Then, the proportions of end‐rounded bristles were calculated.

Results

Analyses of the 10 toothbrushes revealed that the proportions of acceptable end‐rounded bristles ranged from 1.4% to 20.2% on SEM and from 0.0% to 18.0% on stereomicroscopic examinations. Additionally, some toothbrushes had labels that indicated bristle end‐rounding, but the proportions of end‐rounded bristles were low.

Conclusions

The types and percentages of bristle ends of children's toothbrushes marketed in Korea were various, but the amount of acceptable end‐rounded bristles was low. The result, that even toothbrushes labelled as end‐rounded had potential to harm oral tissue, demonstrates that quality control for rounding bristle ends as well as the labelling for end‐rounded bristles is needed.
Safety and Feasibility of Open Chest Epicardial Mapping and Ablation of Ventricular Tachycardia During the Period of Left Ventricular Assist Device Implantation
Authors: PATEL MEHUL , ROJAS FRANCIA , SHABARI FARSHAD RAISSI , SIMPSON LEO , COHN WILLIAM , FRAZIER O.H. , MALLIDI HARI , CHENG JIE , MATHURIA NILESH
Published: September 2015

Epicardial VT Ablation During LVAD Implantation

Introduction

Patients undergoing catheter ablation for ventricular tachycardia (VT) may require epicardial mapping. In patients with end‐stage heart failure, hybrid surgical epicardial mapping and ablation during the period of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation may be considered in select patients to reduce post‐LVAD ventricular tachycardia.

Methods and Results

From March 2009 to October 2012, 5 patients (4 men and 1 woman, age range 52–73 years) underwent open chest electrophysiology study and epicardial mapping for recurrent ventricular tachycardia while the heart was exposed during the period of LVAD implantation. Epicardial mapping was considered if patients had recurrent VT despite failed prior endocardial ablation and/or electrocardiogram (EKG) features of an epicardial exit. Activation and/or a substrate mapping approach were employed during all procedures. Three of 5 patients (60%) had acute procedural success. In all patients, VT was either eliminated or significantly reduced with epicardial ablation. One patient had mediastinal bleeding delaying sternal closure. During a follow‐up period of 363 ± 368 days, 4 patients died due to nonarrhythmic causes.

Conclusions

Open‐chest hybrid epicardial mapping and ablation for recurrent VT is feasible and can be considered in select patients during the period of LVAD implantation.
Why and how immunohistochemistry should now be used to screen for the BRAFV600E status in metastatic melanoma? The experience of a single institution (LCEP, Nice, France)
Authors: Long E. , Ilie M. , Lassalle S. , Butori C. , Poissonnet G. , Washetine K. , Mouroux J. , Lespinet V. , Lacour J.P. , Taly V. , Laurent‐Puig P. , Bahadoran P. , Hofman V. , Hofman P.
Published: September 2015

Background

Knowledge of the BRAFV600E status is mandatory in metastatic melanoma patients (MMP). Molecular biology is currently the gold standard method for status assessment.

Objectives

We assessed and compared the specificity, sensibility, cost‐effectiveness and turnaround time (TAT) of immunohistochemistry (IHC) and molecular biology for detection of the BRAFV600E mutation in 188 MMP.

Methods

IHC, with the VE1 antibody, and pyrosequencing analysis were performed with formalin fixed paraffin embedded tumour samples.

Results

The BRAFV600E mutation was detected by pyrosequencing in 91/188 (48%) patients. IHC was strongly positive (3+) in all of these 91 cases. IHC was strongly positive in 9/188 (5%) cases in which the molecular testing failed due to non‐amplifiable DNA. Weak or moderate staining was noted in 10/188 (5%) cases in which the molecular biology identified BRAF wild‐type tumours. The ratio of the global cost for IHC/molecular biology testing was 1 : 2.2. The average TAT was 48 h vs. 96 h, for IHC vs. molecular biology testing, respectively.

Conclusions

This study showed that VE1 IHC should be a substitute for molecular biology in the initial assessment of the BRAFV600E status in MPP. This methodology needs to be set up in pathology laboratories in accordance with quality control/quality assurance accreditation procedures. Under these strict conditions the question is to know if BRAFV600E‐IHC can serve not only as a prescreening tool, but also as a stand‐alone test (at least in cases displaying an unequivocally staining pattern) as well as an alternative predictive test for samples for which the molecular biology failed.
Evolution of the premaxillary fraenum and substratum in snubnose darters and allies (Percidae: Etheostoma)
Authors: Ciccotto P. J. , Mendelson T. C.
Published: September 2015

Darters (Percidae: Etheostomatinae), a species‐rich group of North American freshwater fishes, vary in the presence of a premaxillary fraenum, a strip of skin that connects the premaxillary bones to the snout, and it is hypothesized that this trait is a trophic adaptation to particular substrata. Ancestral state reconstructions and analyses of phylogenetic associations between presence of the premaxillary fraenum and preferred stream substratum were conducted in a clade of closely related darters (snubnose darters and allies) that vary in morphology and habitat preferences. The most recent common ancestor of this clade was inferred to possess a fraenum and to inhabit rocky substrata, consistent with previous hypotheses, but a significant correlation between fraenum presence and substratum type across the phylogeny was not found.
Temperature seasonality during fry out‐migration influences the survival of hatchery‐reared chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta
Authors: Morita K. , Nakashima A.
Published: September 2015

Among years, fry‐to‐adult survival of hatchery‐reared chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta was positively correlated with the length (in days) of the fry out‐migration period with temperatures suitable for migration. Furthermore, survival decreased with increasing difference in mean temperature between May and June. Thus, prolonged out‐migration periods increased the probability of survival from fry to adult, lending support to the hypothesis that long migration periods decrease the risk of mortality (bet‐hedging), and increase the probability of migration when environmental conditions in fresh water and the ocean are suitable (match–mismatch).
Effects of density dependence, zooplankton and temperature on blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou growth
Authors: Trenkel V. M. , Lorance P. , Fässler S. M. M. , Høines Å. S.
Published: September 2015

Blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou mean total length at age in the north‐east Atlantic Ocean was found to vary by around ±6% during the period 2004–2011 and mean mass at age by ±22% during the years 1981–2013. Linear modelling provided strong evidence that these phenotypic growth variations can be explained by trophic conditions, mainly negative density dependence and also food availability, and a negative long‐term temperature effect on asymptotic size.
An eDNA assay for Irish Petromyzon marinus and Salmo trutta and field validation in running water
Authors: Gustavson M. S. , Collins P. C. , Finarelli J. A. , Egan D. , Conchúir R. Ó. , Wightman G. D. , King J. J. , Gauthier D. T. , Whelan K. , Carlsson J. E. L. , Carlsson J.
Published: September 2015

This pilot study presents an environmental DNA (eDNA) assay for sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus and brown trout Salmo trutta, two species of economic and conservation importance in the Republic of Ireland. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of eDNA for assessing presence of low‐abundance taxa (here, P. marinus) for environmental managers, and they highlight the potential for assessing relative abundance of rare or invasive freshwater species.
Can't Buy Me Green? A Review of Consumer Perceptions of and Behavior Toward the Price of Organic Food
Authors: Aschemann‐Witzel Jessica , Zielke Stephan
Published: September 2015

Support for organic farming is a promising policy for improving sustainability in the food sector. Further consumer demand, however, is hindered by high prices. We review research from 2000 to 2014 on the role of perceived price, income, price knowledge, willingness to pay, and reactions to price changes on organic food. We find that price is the major perceived barrier to purchase. Income is only a partial explanatory factor and is superseded by psychographic variables. Willingness to pay a premium is around 30% (ranging from 0% to 105%) and depends on consumer segments and product category. Price knowledge is vague, and organic consumers' price sensitivity is relatively lower than that of occasional or nonorganic consumers. The results suggest that further market differentiation in terms of organic consumer segments and food categories is necessary. Furthermore, we discuss detailed implications for public policy and practice and present a future research agenda.
Licarin A is a candidate compound for the treatment of immediate hypersensitivity via inhibition of rat mast cell line RBL-2H3 cells
Authors: Matsui Takuya , Ito Chihiro , Masubuchi Satoru , Itoigawa Masataka
Published: September 2015

Objectives

We previously demonstrated that some phenylpropanoids are capable of inhibiting activated mast cells. This study evaluated the anti-allergic effects of licarin A, a neolignan isolated from various plants, on antigen-stimulated rat mast cell line.

Methods

The inhibitory effects of licarin A on histamine release, tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) production, and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression in dinitrophenyl-human serum albumin (DNP-HSA) rat basophilic leukemia cells (DNP-HSA-stimulated RBL-2H3 cells), were investigated by spectrofluorometry, ELISA and immunoblotting.

Key findings

Licarin A significantly and dose-dependently reduced TNF-α production (IC50 12.6 ± 0.3 μm) in DNP-HSA-stimulated RBL-2H3 cells. Furthermore, the levels of PGD2 secretion in DNP-HSA-stimulated cells pretreated with licarin A were lower than those stimulated with DNP-HSA alone (positive control). Treatment with licarin A at 20 μm produced slight suppression of DNP-HSA-induced increases in COX-2 mRNA and protein levels. We identified several signalling pathways that mediated these pharmacological effects. Licarin A treatment tended to reduce phosphorylated protein kinase C alpha/beta II (PKCα/βII) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) protein levels.

Conclusions

Our results demonstrate that licarin A reduces TNF-α and PGD2 secretion via the inhibition of PKCα/βII and p38 MAPK pathways; this compound may be useful for attenuating immediate hypersensitivity.