bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Knowledge-primed neural networks enable biologically interpretable deep learning on single-cell sequencing data
Authors: Fortelny Nikolaus , Bock Christoph
Published: October 2019

Deep learning has emerged as a powerful methodology for predicting a variety of complex biological phenomena. However, its utility for biological discovery has so far been limited, given that generic deep neural networks provide little insight into the biological mechanisms that underlie a successful prediction. Here we demonstrate deep learning on biological networks, where every node has a molecular equivalent (such as a protein or gene) and every edge has a mechanistic interpretation (e.g., a regulatory interaction along a signaling pathway).

With knowledge-primed neural networks (KPNNs), we exploit the ability of deep learning algorithms to assign meaningful weights to multi-layered networks for interpretable deep learning. We introduce three methodological advances in the learning algorithm that enhance interpretability of the learnt KPNNs: Stabilizing node weights in the presence of redundancy, enhancing the quantitative interpretability of node weights, and controlling for the uneven connectivity inherent to biological networks. We demonstrate the power of our approach on two single-cell RNA-seq datasets, predicting T cell receptor stimulation in a standardizedin vitromodel and inferring cell type in Human Cell Atlas reference data comprising 483,084 immune cells.

In summary, we introduce KPNNs as a method that combines the predictive power of deep learning with the interpretability of biological networks. While demonstrated here on single-cell sequencing data, this method is broadly relevant to other research areas where prior domain knowledge can be represented as networks.
An artistic approach to neurofeedback for emotion regulation
Authors: Gabriel Damien , Chabin Thibault , Joucla Coralie , Bussière Thomas , Tarka Aleksandra , Galmes Nathan , Comte Alexandre , Bertrand Guillaume , Giustiniani Julie , Haffen Emmanuel
Published: October 2019

Neurofeedback has been shown to be a promising tool for learning to regulate one’s own emotions in healthy populations and in neuropsychiatric disorders. While it has been suggested that neurofeedback performance improves when sensory feedback is related to the pathology under consideration, it is still difficult to represent in real time a proper feedback representative of our emotional state. Since emotion is a central part of people’s dealings with artworks, we have initiated a collaboration between neuroscientists and artists to develop a visual representation of emotions that can be used in neurofeedback experiences. As a result of this collaboration, emotions were represented as particles, moving in a white sphere according to valence and arousal levels. In this study, several possibilities for particle control were explored: direction of particles, their concentration in a specific place, or their gravity. 107 participants evaluated these performances, either in laboratory condition or at various scientific and artistic events. At the end of the experiment, questionnaires were distributed to participants who were asked to indicate on scales ranging from 0 to 5 how artistic the different representations were and could be used as a clinical activity, whether they thought they had successfully controlled the particles during the neurofeedback exercise, and whether they had appreciated the experience. We found that influing on the direction and concentration of particles was considered the most artistic with an average score around 3/5. 47% of the participants considered the concentration of particles as artistic. In addition, although this is not the purpose of this study, we found that participants could significantly control the direction of particles during this session. These encouraging results constitute a first step before evaluating the effectiveness of our emotional neurofeedback over several sessions in healthy, then pathological populations.
Dynamics of Heat Shock Detection and Response in the Intestine ofCaenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Dahlstrom Erin K. , Levine Erel
Published: October 2019

The heat shock response is the organized molecular response to stressors which disrupt proteostasis, potentially leading to protein misfolding and aggregation. While the regulation of the heat shock response is well-studied in single cells, its coordination at the cell, tissue, and systemic levels of a multicellular organism is poorly understood. To probe the interplay between systemic and cell-autonomous responses, we studied the upregulation of HSP-16.2, a molecular chaperone induced throughout the intestine ofCaenorhabditis elegansfollowing a heat shock, by taking longitudinal measurements in a microfluidic environment. Based on the dynamics of HSP-16.2 accumulation, we showed that a combination of heat shock temperature and duration define the intensity of stress inflicted on the worm and identified two regimes of low and high intensity stress. Modeling the underlying regulatory dynamics implicated the saturation of heat shock protein mRNA production in defining these two regimes and emphasized the importance of time separation between transcription and translation in establishing these dynamics. By applying a heat shock and measuring the response in separate parts of the animals, we implicated thermosensory neurons in accelerating the response and transducing information within the animal. We discuss possible implications of the systemic and cell level aspects and how they coordinate to facilitate the organismal response.
Broadly Conserved TMEM-131 Family Proteins in Collagen Production and Secretory Cargo Trafficking
Authors: Zhang Zhe , Bai Meirong , Barbosa Guilherme Oliveira , Chen Andrew , Wei Yuehua , Luo Shuo , Wang Xin , Wang Bingying , Tsukui Tatsuya , Li Hao , Sheppard Dean , Kornberg Thomas B. , Ma Dengke K.
Published: October 2019

Collagen is the most abundant protein in animals. Its dysregulation contributes to ageing and human disorders including tissue fibrosis in major organs. How premature collagens in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) assemble and route for secretion remains molecularly undefined. From an RNAi screen, we identified an uncharacterized C. elegans gene tmem-131, deficiency of which impairs collagen production and activates ER stress response. TMEM-131 N-termini contain bacterial PapD chaperone-like (PapD-L) domains essential for collagen assembly and secretion. Human TMEM131 binds to COL1A2 and TRAPPC8 via N-terminal PapD-L and C-terminal domain, respectively, to drive collagen production. We provide evidence that previously undescribed roles of TMEM131 in collagen recruitment and secretion are evolutionarily conserved in C. elegans, Drosophila and humans.
Class I histone deacetylase HDA-3 is required for full maintenance of locomotor ability in Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Kawamura Kazuto , Maruyama Ichiro N.
Published: October 2019

Locomotor ability declines with old age. A person’s capacity to maintain locomotor ability depends on genetic and environmental factors. Currently, the specific genetic factors that work to maintain locomotor ability are not well understood. Here we report the involvement of hda-3, encoding a class I histone deacetylase, as a specific genetic factor that contributes to the maintenance of locomotor ability in C. elegans. From a forward genetic approach, we identified a missense mutation in HDA-3 as the causative mutation for progressive decline in locomotor ability in one of the isolated strains. From transcriptome analysis, we found downregulated expression of two clusters of genes on Chromosome II and IV in this strain. Genes carrying CUB-like domains and genes carrying BATH domains were found on Chromosome II and IV, respectively. Knockdown of CUB-like genes, K08D8.5 and dod-17, and BATH genes, bath-1, bath-21 and bath-24 led to a progressive decline in locomotor ability. Our study identifies specific genetic factors that work to maintain locomotor ability and reveals potential targets for delaying age-related locomotor decline.
Amyloid precursor protein-b facilitates cell adhesion during early development in zebrafish
Authors: Banote Rakesh Kumar , Chebli Jasmine , Şatır Tuğçe Munise , Varshney Gaurav K. , Camacho Rafael , Ledin Johan , Burgess Shawn M. , Abramsson Alexandra , Zetterberg Henrik
Published: October 2019

Understanding the biological function of amyloid beta (Aβ) precursor protein (APP) beyond its role in Alzheimer’s disease is emerging. Yet, its function during embryonic development is poorly understood. The zebrafish APP homologue, Appb, is strongly expressed during early development but thus far has only been studied via morpholino-mediated knockdown. Zebrafish enables analysis of cellular processes in an ontogenic context, which is limited in many other vertebrates. We characterized zebrafish carrying a homozygous mutation that introduces a premature stop in exon 2 of the appb gene. We report that appb mutants are significantly smaller until 2dpf and display perturbed enveloping layer (EVL) integrity and cell protrusions at the blastula stage.

Moreover, appb mutants surviving beyond 48 hpf exhibited no behavioral defects at 6 dpf and developed into healthy and fertile adults. The expression of the app-family members, appa and aplp2, was found to be altered in appb mutants. Taken together, we show that appb orchestrates the initial development by supporting the integrity of the EVL, likely by mediating cell adhesion properties. The loss of Appb might be compensated for by other app family members to be able to implement continued normal development.
Agent-based Modeling of Asian Corn Borer Resistance to BT Corn
Authors: Jacildo Arian J. , Rabajante Jomar F. , Alcantara Edwin P.
Published: October 2019

1.

Overview and Purpose

We present ABM-IRM, an agent-based modeling approach to insect resistance management. ABM-IRM is one of the agent-based models that we have developed to simulate the insect resistance of Asian Corn Borer (ACB) to BT corn. The model was implemented using NetLogo, an agent-based programming environment (Wilensky, 1999). We created our model using simple rules to find emergent patterns (Wilensky and Rand, 2015) based on refuge types and pyramid BT events that may aid in controlling the resistance of ACB to BT Corn. Following how the Overview, Design concepts, and Details (ODD) protocol was used in presenting a related ABM paper as guide (Anderson and Dragićević, 2015), the following sections are organized as follows: Section 2 covers the typologies of the agents, Section 3 discusses the process overview, and Section 4 highlights our results and emergent patterns.
Electroencephalographic evidence for the involvement of mirror neuron and error monitoring related processes in virtual body ownership
Authors: Raz Gal , Gurevitch Guy , Vaknin Tom , Aazamy Araz , Gefen Iddo , Grunstein Stanislaw , Azouri Gal , Goldway Noam
Published: October 2019

The illusion that an artificial or virtual object becomes part of one’s body has been demonstrated and productively investigated in the past two decades. Empirical and theoretical accounts of this phenomenon suggest that the body ownership illusion relies not on a single process, but rather on the alignment of the biological and the alternative bodies across multiple aspects. However, the portrayal of these aspects and the demarcation of their neurophysiological correlates has yet to be established.

Our study examines electroencephalographic (EEG) markers of two extensively studied systems in the context of virtual body ownership illusion: the mirror neuron system (MNS) and the error monitoring system (EMS). We designed an experimental manipulation of brief involuntary virtual hand bounces, which triggers both systems, and examined how the response of EEG markers of these systems to this manipulation is modulated by three aspects of body ownership: agency, visuotactile synchronicity, and semantic congruence between the participant’s hands and its virtual representation.

We found evidence for enhanced MNS-related suppression of power at the Mu band in the synchronous and semantic congruence conditions. On the other hand, the EMS-related Pe/P300 wave was reduced by semantic congruence. This Pe/P300 effect was stronger among participants who exhibited higher acceptance of the spatial illusion and increased tendency for affective empathy. Mu power and Pe/P300 were not correlated, suggesting a dissociation between the distinct aspects of body ownership they probe. The findings suggest that synchronicity and semantic congruence induce sensorimotor sensitivity to the alternative body, whereas the latter parameter also buffers minor erroneous virtual motions. These neurophysiological markers may be added to the arsenal of body ownership probes, and integrated in VR rehabilitation protocols.
Running rabid: modelling of European bat lyssavirus (EBLV) pathways in a bat population
Authors: Breeze Carys , Aegerter James , Smith Graham C
Published: October 2019

Worldwide the 16 species of lyssaviruses all exhibit a similar pathology in most mammals, including man; with successful infections usually ending with death. Recently it has been demonstrated that European bat lyssaviruses (EBLV) are not invariably fatal in their wild reservoir host bat species, however the mechanisms and epidemiological consequences of this resistance are interesting and unexplored and the fundamental pathology in bats is still unclear. Here we modelled alternative pathological pathways to explore which appear most plausible, with respect to our limited knowledge of bat-rabies epidemiology and also host population dynamics. Two models were created, one based on a standard progression of disease (classic SEIR model) and the other modified to allow for animals to become either rabid or immune (flexible model). Of these our flexible model was found to be more plausible, demonstrating a much lower sensitivity to epidemiological parameters and by inference the more likely to represent the real-life process occurring in wild European bat populations, with a comparative state space ratio of 1:47. This result implies that it is highly probable survival and post-infection immunity is a widespread epidemiological phenomenon rather than an infrequent consequence of an aborted infection in few individuals. These results can be used to inform laboratory studies on bat immunology and future bat modelling work.
Three-dimensional super-resolution fluorescence imaging of DNA
Authors: Yardimci Sevim , Burnham Daniel R. , Terry Samantha Y. A. , Yardimci Hasan
Published: October 2019

Recent advances in fluorescence super-resolution microscopy are providing important insights into details of cellular structures. To acquire three dimensional (3D) super-resolution images of DNA, we combined binding activated localization microscopy (BALM) using fluorescent double-stranded DNA intercalators and optical astigmatism. We quantitatively establish the advantage of mono-over bis-intercalators before demonstrating the approach by visualizing single DNA molecules stretched between microspheres at various heights. Finally, the approach is applied to the more complex environment of intact and damaged metaphase chromosomes, unravelling their structural features.
Persistent Prolate Polymersomes for Enhanced Co-Delivery of Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Drugs
Authors: L’Amoreaux Nicholas , Ali Aon , Iqbal Shoaib , Larsen Jessica
Published: October 2019

Self-assembled polymersomes encapsulate, protect, and deliver hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs. Though spherical polymersomes are effective, early studies suggest that non-spherical structures may enhance specificity of delivery and uptake due to similarity to endogenous uptake targets. Here we describe a method to obtain persistent non-spherical shapes, prolates, via osmotic pressure and the effect of prolates on uptake behavior. Polyethylene glycol-b-poly(lactic acid) polymersomes change in diameter from 175 ± 5nm to 200 ± 5nm and increase in polydispersity from 0.06 ± 0.02 to 0.122 ± 0.01 nm after addition of 50 mM salt. Transmission and scanning electron microscopy confirm changes from spheres to prolates. Prolate-like polymersomes maintain their shape in 50 mM NaCl for seven days. Nile Red and bovine serum albumin(BSA)-Fluorescein dyes are taken up in greater amounts by SH-SY5Y neural cells when encapsulated in polymersomes. Prolate polymersomes may be taken up more efficiently in neural cells than spherical polymersomes.
Human CardioChimeras: Creation of a Novel ‘Next Generation’ Cardiac Cell
Authors: Firouzi Fareheh , Choudhury Sarmistha Sinha , Broughton Kathleen , Salazar Adriana , Sussman Mark A
Published: October 2019

Background

CardioChimeras (CCs) produced by fusion of murine c-kit+ cardiac interstitial cells (cCIC) with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) promote superior structural and functional recovery in a mouse model of myocardial infarction (MI) compared to either precursor cell alone or in combination. Creation of human CardioChimeras (hCC) represents the next step in translational development of this novel cell type, but new challenges arise when working with cCICs isolated and expanded from human heart tissue samples. The objective of the study was to establish a reliable cell fusion protocol for consistent optimized creation of hCCs and characterize fundamental hCC properties.

Methods and Results

Cell fusion was induced by incubating human cCICs and MSCs at a 2:1 ratio with inactivated Sendai virus. Hybrid cells were sorted into 96-well microplates for clonal expansion to derive unique cloned hCCs, which were then characterized for various cellular and molecular properties. hCCs exhibited enhanced survival relative to the parent cells and promoted cardiomyocyte survival in response to serum deprivation in vitro.

Conclusions

The generation of hCC is demonstrated and validated in this study, representing the next step toward implementation of a novel cell product for therapeutic development. Feasibility of creating human hybrid cells prompts consideration of multiple possibilities to create novel chimeric cells derived from cells with desirable traits to promote healing in pathologically damaged myocardium.

Clinical Perspective

“Next generation” cell therapeutics will build upon initial findings that demonstrate enhanced reparative action of combining distinct cell types for treatment of cardiomyopathic injury.

Differential biological properties of various cell types are challenging for optimization of delivery, engraftment, persistence, and synergistic action when used in combination.

Creation of a novel hybrid cell called a CardioChimera overcomes limitations inherent to use of multiple cell types.

CardioChimeras exhibit unique properties relative to either parental cell anticipated to be advantageous in cellular therapeutic applications.

CardioChimeras have now been created and characterized using cells derived from human heart tissue, advancing initial proof of concept previously demonstrated with mice.

CardioChimeras represent an engineered solution that can be implemented as a path forward for improving the outcome of myocardial cell therapy.
Corporate sustainability management under market uncertainty
Authors: Liu Honglei , Kim Sang Jin , Wang Huanzhang , Kim Kyung Hoon
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand how market uncertainty affects sustainability management for long-term survival and growth.

Design/methodology/approach

Structural equation modeling is applied to evaluate the research model using data from a survey of 210 firms in China.

Findings

Empirical findings show that market uncertainty encourages entrepreneurship, which is an impetus for sustainability management. Economic and environmental responsibility positively affects balanced scorecard, but social responsibility does not.

Research limitations/implications

The study results show that economic and environmental responsibility is essential for success, but social responsibility appears to lack effect. Therefore, future research might further explore why social responsibility fails to enhance corporate performance.

Practical implications

When firms consider sustainability management for long-term survival and growth, they should not only strive to grow regional economic benefits but also adhere to environmental regulations and protect the local ecosystem.

Originality/value

This study observes how market uncertainty, entrepreneurship and corporate sustainability (economic, environmental and social responsibility) affect the overall performance of firms in China.
Overcoming fears: a pathway to publishing for early career researchers
Authors: Drosou Nafsika , Del Pinto Monia , Al-Shuwaili Mohammed A. , Goodall Susie , Marlow Elisabeth
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present reflections of five early career researchers on the challenges of journal publishing and how to tackle them.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors attended a participatory workshop on demystifying academic publications. Working individually and in groups the authors shared, discussed, analysed, visualised and ranked perceived challenges and opportunities concerning academic publishing. The authors then delved into the existing literature on the subject. Following their enhanced understanding of the area, the authors reflected on the experience and learnings.

Findings

Personal confidence relating to the development of a scholarly identity was found to be a critical factor in the attitude towards journal publishing. Supervisory and peer support, accessibility to journal editors, as well as opportunities to reflect on the writing, publishing and peer review processes through participatory workshops and writing groups, were deemed more effective than formal and conventional guidance schemes.

Research limitations/implications

This work adds to the available literature regarding the issue of academic publishing for PhD students and early career researchers.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to a deeper understanding of issues surrounding publishing apprehension, by laying out thoughts that are seldom expressed.
The language of teacher agency in an eighth grade ELA classroom
Authors: Loretto Adam
Published: October 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to apply ecological models of agency to understand factors influencing how an eighth grade English language arts (ELA) teacher enacted agency in four moments in the classroom. It focuses on how his language in relation to his instructional choices reflected messaging to his students regarding the learning he intended from his ELA instruction.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper applies an existing framework (Biestaet al., 2015, 2017), adding Bakhtin (1981) understandings of language, to classroom discourse supplemented by teacher interviews and other data sources. In looking across these data sources, the paper traces the influence of past factors (i.e. the teacher’s personal and professional history) and future orientations (i.e. goals established in standards and the teacher’s goals for his students) on present instructional decisions. The teacher’s language in the classroom becomes a primary focus for this study, as it reveals the ways in which he drew on specific resources in the messages in his instruction.

Findings

In each moment, the teacher’s language could be shown to have motivation in a variety of factors. While influenced by external factors such as the common core standards and standardized assessments, the teacher often enacted agency out of his personal beliefs about making learning personally meaningful for students as grounded in his personal and professional history. Exceptions to this pattern, especially regarding preparing students for writing tests on state assessments, less frequently relied on the language of finding meaning in the learning.

Originality/value

This paper builds on studies of ELA teacher agency through the development of methodology related to an ecological model of agency and Bakhtinian concepts of language focused on the discourse of the classroom. It contributes to understanding the factors at study in an ELA teacher’s instructional agency, which can help teachers and researchers further develop frameworks for describing and assessing the practice of agency in the profession.
The role of tie strength in bank credit card referral reward programs with scarcity messages
Authors: Song Chanho , Wang Tuo , Brown Haakon T. , Hu Michael Y.
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how referral reward programs (RRPs) utilizing scarcity messages influence bank credit holders’ referrals to and adoptions by close or distant friends.

Design/methodology/approach

A 2×2 experiment is implemented with 760 consumers solicited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk worker panel. Logit transformation and general linear models are used to test the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

Results showed that offering RRPs with limited available referrals (quantity scarcity) increases the overall number of referrals to and adoptions by close and distant friends. The percent of strong ties also increases with RRPs. As quantity scarcity is relaxed, the percentages of referrals to and adoptions by close friends decrease.

Originality/value

The inclusion of tie strength with scarcity framing greatly enhances our understanding of the effectiveness of RRPs for bank credit cards. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research attempt on this topic.
What is the core essence of small city boutique hotels?
Authors: Loureiro Sandra Maria Correira , Rita Paulo , Sarmento Eduardo Moraes
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to contribute with new insights into the nature, dimensionality and measurement of the core essence of the small city boutique hotel (SCBH), something which has been limited in the literature to date. It further explores the conceptual relationships of SCBH with other constructs, providing greater understanding of the nature of these specific conceptual associations and showing that the SCBH scale exhibits construct validity.

Design/methodology/approach

This study followed the Churchill’s paradigm to methodologically design the study and develop the scale. Based on an exploratory qualitative inquiry (one focus group and ten interviews) and quantitative assessment (two surveys), support was found for a three-dimensional scale.

Findings

Results support the proposed measures of the scale (dream, hospitality and style) in terms of construct, convergent, discriminate, nomological and predictive validity. The findings also suggest that while authenticity acts as a SCBH antecedent, pleasant arousal and preference represent SCBH consequences.

Originality/value

By developing and validating a SCBH scale for city destination, this study addresses an identified literature gap. Specifically, it conceptualizes SCBH as guests’ perception about core characteristics of SCBHs located in the city.
The role of online leadership in open collaborative innovation
Authors: Mu Wen , Bian Yiyang , Zhao J. Leon
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the roles of online leadership in open collaborative innovation success by extending functional leadership theory in the context of open source projects.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses negative binomial regression models to empirically test the proposed hypotheses with samples of blockchain open source projects on GitHub.

Findings

The results indicate that task-oriented leadership behaviors in forms of technical contributions have little influence on open collaborative innovation success; relation-oriented leadership behaviors embedded in internal social capital and external social capital contribute to open collaborative innovation success prominently. Furthermore, the joint effects of technical contributions, internal social capital and community commitment with openness orientation are positively significant on open collaborative innovation success, respectively.

Practical implications

For leaders and participants of open collaborative innovation projects, they should attach importance to both leadership behaviors and the joint effects with openness orientation so as to make informed decisions.

Originality/value

This study offers a new fine-grained framework of open collaborative innovation success by investigating specific dimensions of task-oriented and relation-orientated leadership behaviors, as well as their joint effects with openness orientation.
Risk management in perishable food distribution operations
Authors: Wang Yingchao , Yang Chen , Hou Hanpo
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to predict or even control the food safety risks during the distribution of perishable foods. Considering the food safety risks, the distribution route of perishable foods is reasonably arranged to further improve the efficiency of cold chain distribution and reduce distribution costs.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses the microbial growth model to identify a food safety risk coefficient to describe the characteristics of food safety risks that increase over time. On this basis, with the goal of minimizing distribution costs, the authors establish a vehicle routing problem with a food safety Risk coefficient and a Time Window (VRPRTW) for perishable foods. Then, the Weight-Parameter Whale Optimization Algorithm (WPWOA) which introduces inertia weight and dynamic parameter into the native whale optimization algorithm is designed for solving this model. Moreover, benchmark functions and numerical simulation are used to test the performance of the WPWOA.

Findings

Based on numerical simulation, the authors obtained the distribution path of perishable foods under the restriction of food safety risks. Moreover, the WPWOA can significantly outperform other algorithms on most of the benchmark functions, and it is faster and more robust than the native WOA and avoids premature convergence.

Originality/value

This study indicates that the established model and the algorithm are effective to control the risk of perishable food in distribution process. Besides, it extends the existing literature and can provide a theoretical basis and practical guidance for the vehicle routing problem of perishable foods.
Evaluating the impact of hedonism on investment choices in India
Authors: Singla Harish Kumar , Hiray Amit
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to find the effect of the hedonism value on the investment preference in India.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the literature review, a measurement model is developed to measure hedonism. Further, the effect of hedonism on investment choices of an individual and the impact of age, gender and income level on investment choices and on hedonism are also measured through a structural equation model (SEM).

Findings

The study finds that the measurement model is reliable, and all five items, that is an exciting life, happiness, pleasure, social recognition and a comfortable life, are an appropriate measure of hedonism. The study finds that hedonists prefer to invest in stock market-related instruments and real estate. The study also ascertains that age and income affect the hedonism value negatively. The findings also indicate that women prefer to invest in fixed income instruments and men prefer to invest in stock market-related instruments. As people grow in age, they prefer to invest in fixed-income instruments and gold as a hedge, thus avoiding risky investments.

Research limitations/implications

The study does not include education and financial literacy of individuals in the model, rather controls these factors by selecting a sample where the minimum educational qualification of the respondent is graduation.

Practical implications

It is assumed that the values that drive an individual have the potential to influence his/her investment choices. Therefore, the study advises the firms offering investment services to their clients to ensure that apart from studying the demographic and risk profile of individuals, they also assess their value system. This can help them target their customers more precisely and serve them better.

Originality/value

The study is perhaps the first attempt to find the effect of personal values (specifically hedonism) on investment choices made by individuals, through the development of an SEM.
Commentary on “Afraid to leave the house: issues leading to social exclusion and loneliness for people with a learning disability”
Authors: Harrison Rachel A.
Published: October 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a commentary on, “Afraid to leave the house: issues leading to social exclusion and loneliness for people with a learning disability”.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper considers the impacts of cuts to services, support and care that people with learning disabilities experience and the effects these cuts can have on social inclusion and positive social networks. Ways in which these impacts can be overcome are considered.

Findings

Listening to the voices of people with learning disabilities can provide opportunities for positive change which meet the needs of people with learning disability and society more widely.

Originality/value

The commentary uses evidence to consider the effects of cuts to services on the lives of people with learning disability and to provide possible solutions.
Perceived needs and difficulties in meal preparation of people living with traumatic brain injury in a chronic phase: Supporting long‐term services and interventions
Authors: Dubuc Érika , Gagnon‐Roy Mireille , Couture Mélanie , Bier Nathalie , Giroux Sylvain , Bottari Carolina
Published: October 2019

Introduction

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a chronic medical condition with life‐long consequences. Meal preparation is one of the most significant activities impacted by TBI even after more than 10 years post‐trauma. However, substantial gaps exist in our understanding of how exactly it is affected. This study examines the perceived needs and difficulties regarding meal preparation in individuals with severe TBI living in the community. This is done in an effort to justify long‐term community‐based interventions offered to the TBI population with regard to a task involving many safety issues.

Methods

The study used a descriptive qualitative design where five adults (28–50 years old) living with a severe TBI (9–37 years post‐injury) were interviewed. Data analysis was completed using an inductive method.

Results

Participants living alone were all involved in meal preparation to diverse levels. Only two participants lived with a family member. Six categories of perceived needs were identified, of which two emerged as priorities: (i) Need for recipes to be compatible with cognitive abilities, knowledge and energy level to optimise motivation and (ii) Need to adapt complexity of grocery shopping to cognitive abilities and knowledge. The main difficulty expressed by participants was to manage their motivation to cook when tired, as it tends to diminish and fade when the person is exhausted.

Conclusion

Many situations were considered difficult for our participants, which calls for adaptation of the tasks and of their environment. Considering these unmet needs in the interventions offered will help individualise follow‐up and ultimately optimise the social integration of individuals living with severe TBI.
LncRNA PTCSC3 inhibits the proliferation, invasion and migration of cervical cancer cells via sponging miR‐574‐5p
Authors: Tong Rui , Zhang Jingru , Wang Chunyan , Li Xuemei , Yu Tingting , Wang Ling
Published: October 2019

Dysregulation of long non‐coding RNA papillary thyroid carcinoma susceptibility candidate 3 (lncRNA PTCSC3) has been found to correlate with various types of cancers. Quantitative RT‐PCR showed a down‐regulation of PTCSC3 in cervical cancer tissues compared with normal cervical tissues. The present study aimed to investigate the role of lncRNA PTCSC3 in cervical cancer and the underlying mechanisms. PTCSC3 was overexpressed in cervical cancer cell lines C‐33A and Hela by transfection with pcDNA3.1‐lncRNA PTCSC3 expressing plasmid. Overexpression of lncRNA PTCSC3 inhibited cell proliferation, induced cell cycle arrest, and suppressed cell invasion and migration using CCK8 assay, flow cytometry, Transwell assay and wound healing examination, respectively. Western blotting analysis showed that PTCSC3 overexpression decreased the expression of cyclinD1, matrix metalloproteinases 9 (MMP9), N‐cadherin and β‐catenin and increased E‐cadherin expression. Further, PTCSC3 negatively regulated miR‐574‐5p expression and dual‐luciferase assay verified the binding activity between miR‐574‐5p and lncRNA PTCSC3. Enforced up‐regulation of miR‐574‐5p abolished the inhibitory effect of lncRNA PTCSC3 on cervical cancer cell proliferation, invasiveness and mobility. Taken together, lncRNA PTCSC3 inhibited cell growth and metastasis via sponging miR‐574‐5p in cervical cancer. Therefore, we demonstrate the tumour‐suppressive function of lncRNA PTCSC3 in cervical cancer and suggest that PTCSC3 is a potential therapeutic target for cervical cancer.
Sauchinone inhibits angiotensin II‐induced proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells
Authors: Wang Ying , Li Xiaoming , Huang Xuying , Ma Sirui , Xing Yue , Geng Xiaoying , He Xu
Published: October 2019

Hypertension is a common type of cardiovascular disease that remains a major cause of death in the world. Vascular remodelling is an important complication of hypertension, and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) play a major role in vascular remodelling. Sauchinone is one of the active lignins which has been found to possess vascular protective effects. However, the functional role of sauchinone in hypertension has not been investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of sauchinone in the angiotensin II (Ang II)‐induced vascular remodelling model in VSMCs. The results showed that treatment of sauchinone inhibited Ang II‐induced VSMCs proliferation and migration in VSMCs. Sauchinone treatment suppressed the reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and NADPH oxidase (NOX) activity in Ang II‐induced VSMCs. The inhibitory effects of Ang II on expressions of VSMCs phenotype markers including α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA), calponin, osteopontin were mitigated by sauchinone treatment. Furthermore, sauchinone inhibited Ang II‐induced over‐activation of TGF‐β1/Smad3 signalling pathway in VSMCs. Taken together, this study identified sauchinone as a potential agent for preventing vascular remodelling in hypertension.
Stroke‐prone spontaneously hypertensive rats have reduced hydroxysteroid 17‐β dehydrogenase 7 levels for low cholesterol biosynthesis
Authors: Matsuoka Hiroshi , Uchino Yuka , Choshi Mayuko , Nakamura Tetsuya , Michihara Akihiro
Published: October 2019

Reduced serum cholesterol content was recently reported to be one of the factors responsible for cerebral haemorrhage. Stroke‐prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP) are known to have lower serum cholesterol content than normotensive Wistar‐Kyoto rats (WKY). We previously reported that lower levels of mevalonate pyrophosphate decarboxylase (MPD) and squalene epoxidase (SQE), which are associated with cholesterol biosynthesis in the liver, are involved in the low serum cholesterol content in SHRSP. Here, we investigate the levels of sterol 14‐demethylase (CYP51), methylsterol monooxygenase (SC4MOL), and hydroxysteroid 17‐β dehydrogenase 7 (HSD17B7), which contribute to the cholesterol synthesis pathway in the conversion of lanosterol to zymosterol, in SHRSP and WKY. The HSD17B7 mRNA levels in the liver of SHRSP were markedly lower than those in WKY, whereas no significant differences were observed in CYP51 and SC4MOL levels in the two types of rats. The relative levels of protein, heteronuclear RNA, and mRNA of HSD17B7 were also significantly lower in SHRSP than in WKY. The degradation rates of HSD17B7 were the same in SHRSP and WKY. The protein levels of HSD17B7 were not significantly reduced in tissues other than the liver, including the brain, lung, heart, spleen, kidney, and testis, in SHRSP. Moreover, HSD17B7 activity was significantly lower in SHRSP than in WKY. Thus, our results indicated that low protein levels and activity of HSD17B7 are responsible for the reduced cholesterol content in SHRSP, indicating that HSD17B7, along with MPD and SQE, is involved in the decreased cholesterol synthesis in the liver of SHRSP.
Collaboration in students’ learning: the student experience
Authors: Gratton Rob
Published: October 2019

Recognising that traditional approaches to education, and in turn a teaching and learning pedagogy which focus on the triumvirate of predefined knowledge, situationally applied understanding and domain specific skills were no longer appropriate, in 2009 I embarked upon an exploration of the myriad effects of an engagement with a pedagogy designed to facilitate Collaborative Group Learning (CGL) within a History classroom in a North London Secondary School. Following an identification of the recorded benefits of collaborative learning, I sought to isolate the principles of collaborative group learning, apply these principles to classroom practices of both the educator and learner and over a period of twenty‐four weeks capture and narrate the benefits of actively engaging in CGL. Central to the narrative were the experiences and perceptions of the thirty Year 8 boys (aged 12‐13 years) who experienced CGL over a period of twenty‐four weeks. The study identified a range of benefits of engaging in and with this form of inclusive pedagogy including, effective self‐directed and autonomous learning, interdependence, enhanced verbal communication skills and social‐cohesion. An unintended outcome has also been academic success measured through progress and attainment.
The Sense That Suppletion Makes: Towards a Semantic Typology on Diachronic Principles
Authors: Juge Matthew L.
Published: October 2019

This paper examines the semantic factors involved in three crucial questions about suppletion in verbs: what verbs develop suppletion, what verbs contribute to suppletive paradigms, and how roots are distributed in suppletive paradigms. My analysis shows that the development of suppletion is more orderly than commonly believed. Specifically, semantic distance and other semantic factors facilitate explanations of suppletive patterns that earlier studies focusing on typological and morphological considerations could not account for. I apply semantic maps to well‐known cases of suppletion in addition to underreported and previously unreported patterns, including Hungarian data displaying a previously unknown type of suppletion—non‐aligned overlapping suppletion—where forms shared by separate lexemes belong to distinct parts of their paradigms. I contextualize semantic factors in the relationships between synchronic types and diachronic sources. My analysis refines our understanding of suppletion types and shows the logic behind suppletive distributions.
Association between ideal cardiovascular health and depression incidence: a longitudinal analysis of ELSA‐Brasil
Authors: Brunoni A. R. , Szlejf C. , Suemoto C. K. , Santos I. S. , Goulart A. C. , Viana M. C. , Koyanagi A. , Barreto S. M. , Moreno A. B. , Carvalho A. F. , Lange S. , Griep R. H. , Lotufo P. A. , Benseñor I.M.
Published: October 2019

Objective

We investigated whether ideal cardiovascular health (ICH), a metric proposed by the American Heart Association, predicts depression development.

Methods

Cohort analysis from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA‐Brasil). Adults with no current depression and other common mental disorders, cardiovascular diseases, and antidepressant drug use at baseline had their ICH (composite score of smoking, dietary habits, body mass index, blood pressure, fasting glucose, cholesterol, and physical activity) assessed and classified into poor, intermediate, and optimal. Depression was assessed using the Clinical Interview Schedule‐Revised (CIS‐R). Poisson regression models, adjusted for sociodemographic factors and alcohol consumption, were employed. Stratified analyses were performed for age and sex.

Results

We included 9214 participants (mean age 52 ± 9 years, 48.6% women). Overall depression incidence at 3.8‐year follow‐up was 1.5%. Intermediate and poor ICH significantly increased the risk rate (RR) of developing depression (2.48 [95%CI 1.06–5.78] and 3 [1.28–7.03], respectively) at a 3.8‐year follow‐up. Higher ICH scores decreased the rate of depression development (RR = 0.84 [0.73–0.96] per metric). Stratified analyses were significant for women and adults < 55 years old.

Conclusions

Poor cardiovascular health tripled depression risk at follow‐up in otherwise healthy adults. Ameliorating cardiovascular health might decrease depression risk development.
Recent developments and highlights in immune monitoring of allergen immunotherapy
Authors: van Zelm Menno C. , McKenzie Craig I. , Varese Nirupama , Rolland Jennifer M. , O'Hehir Robyn E.
Published: October 2019

Allergic diseases are the most common chronic immune‐mediated disorders and can manifest with an enormous diversity in clinical severity and symptoms. Underlying mechanisms for the adverse immune response to allergens and its downregulation by treatment are still being revealed. As a result, there have been, and still are, major challenges in diagnosis, prediction of disease progression/evolution and treatment. Currently, the only corrective treatment available is allergen immunotherapy (AIT). AIT modifies the immune response through long‐term repeated exposure to defined doses of allergen. However, as the treatment usually needs to be continued for several years to be effective, and can be accompanied by adverse reactions, many patients face difficulties completing their schedule. Long‐term therapy also potentially incurs high costs. Therefore, there is a great need for objective markers to predict or to monitor individual patient's beneficial changes in immune response during therapy so that efficacy can be identified as early as possible. In this review, we specifically address recent technical developments that have generated new insights into allergic disease pathogenesis, and how these could potentially be translated into routine laboratory assays for disease monitoring during AIT that are relatively inexpensive, robust and scalable.
Challenges and Resilience: Managers’ Perceptions of Firm Performance Following M&As
Authors: Croucher Richard , Glaister Keith W. , Rizov Marian , Rofcanin Yasin , Wood Geoffrey
Published: October 2019

We study mergers and acquisitions (M&As), resilience and performance, identifying links between managers’ perceptions of performance and resilience, using trans‐national organisational‐level survey evidence (N = 3,613) and follow up semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with managers involved in M&As and demerger. Drawing on the resilience and M&A literature, we identify reasons why employees in acquired firms may be less resilient in coping with the resultant changes than those of the acquirer and why this will negatively impact perceptions of performance. We explore the causes and consequences of variations in resilience and performance within firms that acquire others, and in those that have been demerged. As anticipated, we find that although managers in acquired firms tended to report worse performance than those in acquiring firms, both tended to be more positive than firms that had not taken part in an M&A at all. We draw out implications for theory and practice.
Editorial: potassium‐competitive acid blockers for acid‐related diseases—tegoprazan, a new kid on the block
Authors: Scarpignato Carmelo , Hunt Richard H.
Published: October 2019

LINKED CONTENT

This article is linked to Han et al paper. To view this article, visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15438.