bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The rate of protein synthesis in hematopoietic stem cells is limited partly by 4E-BPs
Authors: Signer Robert A.J. , Qi Le , Zhao Zhiyu , Thompson David , Sigova Alla A. , Fan Zi Peng , DeMartino George N. , Young Richard A. , Sonenberg Nahum , Morrison Sean J.
Published: August 2016

Adult stem cells must limit their rate of protein synthesis, but the underlying mechanisms remain largely unexplored. Differences in protein synthesis among hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and progenitor cells did not correlate with differences in proteasome activity, total RNA content, mRNA content, or cell division rate. However, adult HSCs had more hypophosphorylated eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) and 4E-BP2 as compared with most other hematopoietic progenitors. Deficiency for 4E-BP1 and 4E-BP2 significantly increased global protein synthesis in HSCs, but not in other hematopoietic progenitors, and impaired their reconstituting activity, identifying a mechanism that promotes HSC maintenance by attenuating protein synthesis.
Strong structuration theory and accounting information: an empirical study
Authors: Feeney Orla , Pierce Bernard
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of accounting information in new product development (NPD) using Strong Structuration Theory. NPD is a complex social action involving a wide range of different actors and clusters of actors. Strong Structuration Theory allows the authors to take a broad view of this social system in order to develop a complete picture of the clusters of actors involved, to comprehensively examine the relevant structures, both internal and external, and to understand how these are formed, reformed or modified through the actions of agents.

Design/methodology/approach

A field study of the manufacturing division of a large group was conducted which explored how managers use accounting information during NPD. Examining how these managers draw upon their conjuncturally specific structures of signification, legitimation and domination, and how these are affected by their external structural conditions and their general dispositional frames of meaning, allowed the authors to develop an in-depth understanding of the managers’ behaviour during NPD.

Findings

These findings suggest that the managers’ use of accounting information is determined as much by the subjective nature of the managers themselves as it is by the objective characteristics of the structures with which they interact. By using Stones’ composite research strategy, which encourages the authors to conceive of internal structures as always looking outwards and external structures as always looking inwards, the findings help the authors to understand the “connecting tissue” between the different elements of the quadripartite of structuration which has been lacking in previous research in the area. This understanding of the connecting tissue between structures was facilitated by the micro-analysis of six managers within a given conjuncture. Using the concept of the agent-in-focus as a tool with which to switch lenses from manager to manager acknowledged the web-like interdependencies between different processes of structuration. This allowed an exploration of the relationships between the various agents and structures.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the understanding of Stones’ Strong Structuration Theory at both an ontological and methodological level by operationalising Stones’ model in a case study setting.
Antecedents and consequences of trust: an e-tail branding perspective
Authors: Das Gopal
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the antecedents and consequences of trust in online shopping from an e-tail branding perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

– A structured questionnaire was used to collect data online from Indian e-tail shoppers (n=309). A structural equation modelling (CB-SEM approach) was used to analyse the data.

Findings

– The results found e-tailer awareness, e-tailer associations, and e-tailer perceived quality as antecedents of trust in online shopping. The results also showed online trust positively influences the behavioural intentions, namely, purchase intention, repurchase, and recommendation.

Originality/value

– This study examines the applicability and branding and brand management principles in an e-tail branding context. Theoretical and managerial implications of these results are further discussed.
Estimation of non-catastrophic weather impacts for retail industry
Authors: Arunraj Nari Sivanandam , Ahrens Diane
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– Weather is often referred as an uncontrollable factor, which influences customer’s buying decisions and causes the demand to move in any direction. Such a risk usually leads to loss to industries. However, only few research studies about weather and retail shopping are available in literature. The purpose of this paper is to develop a model and to analyze the relationship between weather and retail shopping behavior (i.e. store traffic and sales).

Design/methodology/approach

– The data set for this research study is obtained from two food retail stores and a fashion retail store located in Lower Bavaria, Germany. All these three retail stores are in same geographical location. The weather data set was provided by a German weather service agency and is from a weather station nearer to the retail stores under study. The analysis for the study was drawn using multiple linear regression with autoregressive elements (MLR-AR). The estimated coefficients of weather variables using MLR-AR model represent corresponding weather impacts on the store traffic and the sales.

Findings

– The snowfall has a significant effect on the store traffic and the sales in both food and fashion retail stores. In food retail store, the risk due to snowfall varies depending on the location of stores. There are also significant lagging effects of snowfall in the fashion retail store. However, the rainfall has a significant effect only on the store traffic in the food retail stores. In addition to these effects, the sales in the fashion retail store are highly affected by the temperature deviation.

Research limitations/implications

– Limitations in availability of data for the weather variables and other demand influencing factors (e.g. promotion, tourism, online shopping, demography of customers, etc.) may reduce efficiency of the proposed MLR-AR model. In spite of these limitations, this study can be able to quantify the effects of weather variables on the store traffic and the sales.

Originality/value

– This study contributes to the field of retail distribution by providing significant evidence of relationship between weather and retail business. Unlike previous studies, the proposed model tries to consider autocorrelation property, main and interaction effects between weather variables, temperature deviation and lagging effects of snowfall on the store traffic or the sales. The estimated weather impacts from this model can act as a reliable tool for retailers to explain the importance of different non-catastrophic weather events.
Crisis management as a critical perspective
Authors: Fischbacher-Smith Denis , Fischbacher-Smith Moira
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to draw the authors experience of teaching a crisis management module within a range of MBA programmes in the UK, EU and USA. A key characteristic of the module was its development as a means of critiquing conventional approaches to management education. The paper details that experience.

Design/methodology/approach

– It reviews the literature on management education that has been critical of prescriptive and “toolkit-based” approaches to MBA education.

Findings

– An approach to a crisis management course is shown to provide a means of challenging dominant theoretical and practical approaches to management.

Practical implications

– The paper identifies challenges and personal and academic benefits for educators and students when engaging with critical perspectives and critical pedagogies.

Originality/value

– Through introducing the notion of crisis management, the paper discusses the importance of challenging theory and practice and creating within students, an appetite to challenge the dominant paradigms of conventional teaching and business practice.
What happens if a business school disappears? The intellectual foundations of BSIS
Authors: Kalika Michel , Shenton Gordon , Dubois Pierre-Louis
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The FNEGE and then EFMD have been interested in defining a methodology that would make it possible to highlight the impact of a business school on its home territory. This has led to the development of the “Business School Impact System” (BSIS), which is introduced in this paper. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper is structured as follows. The authors first present the methodological issues of the work that led us to develop the “BSIS” (EFMD, 2014). In a second section, the authors present BSIS in more detail.

Findings

– Based on the exploratory interviews and the literature review, the authors could first identify three main categories of impact: the financial impact; the impact on the regional community; and the impact on attractiveness and image.

Originality/value

– The first benefit of BSIS is linked to the creation of an information system on impact. Second, the BSIS process increases the awareness inside the business school regarding the significance of this issue. Third, the authors observe that for numerous members of the business school the question of the impact of their activity gives them a better image of their job, of what they are doing and why they are doing it. Fourth, the BSIS report constitutes a powerful tool for communication with the stakeholders. The final benefit lies in the reviewers’ recommendations on how to improve the impact of the business school.
Competencies of women entrepreneurs utilizing information marketing businesses
Authors: Revell-Love Carrie , Revell-Love Tara
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to report the entrepreneurial competencies of women entrepreneurs who used information marketing businesses for their business-related education.

Design/methodology/approach

– A questionnaire-based survey of female entrepreneurs who engaged with one information marketing business was conducted. This study utilized Mitchelmore and Rowley’s (2013) survey instrument, Female Entrepreneurial Competencies (FEC), to analyse the four main entrepreneurial competency clusters: personal and relationship, business and management, entrepreneurial, and human relations competencies. Numeric data were collected via survey from women who engaged with a single information marketing company through e-mail and social media. Using descriptive analysis, the participants’ responses were assessed for the purpose of analysing the self-perceptions of their entrepreneurial competency abilities.

Findings

– The research found women ranked their competencies in the following order, from highest to lowest: personal and relationship, entrepreneurial, business and management, and human relations. The majority of women who engaged in this research’s information marketing business were middle-aged or slightly younger (between ages 26 and 44), highly educated, and owned a relatively new business.

Originality/value

– This study is the first to offer analysis of the entrepreneurial competencies of women entrepreneurs who utilize information marketing businesses for their business-related education. By identifying the entrepreneurial competencies of this subset of women, information marketing businesses could better focus their educational tools to meet the women’s competency needs.
Driving technology innovation through social entrepreneurship at Prezi
Authors: Mulloth Bala , Kickul Jill R. , Gundry Lisa K
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– There has been a profound neglect in most of the literature dealing with social entrepreneurship on the relationship between social entrepreneurship and technological innovation. The purpose of this paper is to provide new insights into that relationship by using the case of Prezi, a Budapest, Hungary-based mission-driven software company.

Design/methodology/approach

– The research approach used for this paper is qualitative in nature and uses the case study methodology. Evidence was based on interpretative/qualitative interviews and direct observations.

Findings

– Using the example of Prezi, the authors show that social entrepreneurial activities and projects could act as an important innovation source for technology-based industries.

Originality/value

– The authors use the case of Prezi and describe several of Prezi’s socially driven projects and show how they influence those involved with the company to continuously innovate and solve problems that have positive impact in the community as well as their core product offering.
Firms’ experience of SME-friendly policy and their participation and success in public procurement
Authors: Flynn Anthony , Davis Paul
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to test the relationship between firms’ experience of small- and medium-size enterprise (SME)-friendly policy and their participation and success in public procurement.

Design/methodology/approach

– Hypothesised relationships between SME-friendly policy and three outcome variables – frequency of tendering, success rate in public contract competitions, and commercial orientation towards the public sector – are tested using survey data from 2,755 SME respondents.

Findings

– SME-friendly policy is found to be significant in explaining success rates and commercial orientation towards the public sector marketplace. It is not significant in explaining frequency of tendering.

Research limitations/implications

– The context for the study is Ireland. However, given institutional similarities in national public procurement regimes, particularly among EU Member States, the findings have relevance beyond the Irish context. The research design is cross-sectional and so does not allow for any causal claims to be made.

Originality/value

– This study puts forward and tests an original model of SME-friendly procurement policy and its associated outcomes for firms. It develops a comprehensive 16-item instrument to measure SME-friendly procurement policy. It uses SMEs as research informants instead of public buyers.
Does university play significant role in shaping entrepreneurial intention? A cross-country comparative analysis
Authors: Trivedi Rohit
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to foster entrepreneurship among students and incubate more start-ups for economic prosperity, universities around the globe are required to play key role in developing overall conducive eco-system for student fraternity. Some previous studies have analysed student entrepreneurship and impact of entrepreneurship courses. However, role of universities as provider and enabler of entrepreneurial environment and its impact on entrepreneurial intent among students has not been studied in a cross-cultural context. Considering this, present study seeks to examine role played by universities in fostering entrepreneurial intention among post-graduate students.

Design/methodology/approach

– Researcher has taken the framework suggested by Kraaijenbrink et al. (2010) to understand university environment and theory of planned behaviour (Ajzen, 1985) to measure entrepreneurial intention and its antecedents among final year post-graduate management students of India, Malaysia and Singapore. Total sample size is 1,097. Data are analysed with help of exploratory factor analysis, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and structural equation modelling (SEM).

Findings

– Two factors emerge out of analysis in relation to university environment and support: first, targeted cognitive and non-cognitive support and second, general educational support. With help of SEM, attempt is made to find relationship between these two factors and entrepreneurial intention. It is found that university environment and support has significantly positive relationship with perceived behavioural control. With help of MANOVA, it is found that there is statistically significant difference between perceived university environment and support factors among students of India, Singapore and Malaysia. With this, for both factors highest mean score is found among students of Malaysia, followed by students of Singapore and India.

Originality/value

– Study has closely examined role played by university environment and support to foster entrepreneurship among young students. Findings of the study can be used by post-graduate educational institutes to design pedagogy, create enabling entrepreneurship support system and work towards becoming an entrepreneurial university.
Engaging public servants
Authors: De Simone Silvia , Cicotto Gianfranco , Pinna Roberta , Giustiniano Luca
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– Considering the ongoing international debate on the role of public administrations in economic systems, the interest around public service motivation (PSM) has significantly grown among practitioners and scholars in the past two decades. Following the research streams that have investigated topics of organizational behavior within the public context, the purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of PSM on public employees’ feelings of job satisfaction. The novelty of the study lies in linking some characteristics of the work context presumed to be more prevalent in public organizations with specific job characteristics, regarded as relevant antecedents of job satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study is based on two complementary studies conducted in an Italian public administration. The paper shows how PSM influences job satisfaction, job engagement, and life satisfaction.

Findings

– This paper shows how PSM influences job satisfaction, job engagement, and life satisfaction. The findings display how job engagement affects both job and life satisfaction in such contexts. Additionally, the findings display how job engagement affects both job and life satisfaction in such contexts.

Research limitations/implications

– Although based on a specific context of public administration, the analysis allows some generalizations.

Originality/value

– Based on these results, the paper contributes to two main streams of the literature. First, it enriches the existing research on PSM by analyzing how it can be managed in complex organizations. Second, it informs the literature on job satisfaction and work-related stress and relates to the intersection between organizational behavior and human resource management that informs the drawing up of HR policies. Furthermore, the paper sheds new light on how to deal with such problems and at the same time opens new avenues for investigations.
Decision rules, escalation of commitment and sensitivity to framing in group decision-making
Authors: Curseu Petru Lucian , Schruijer Sandra G. L. , Fodor Oana Catalina
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to test the influence of collaborative and consultative decision rules on groups’ sensitivity to framing effect (FE) and escalation of commitment (EOC).

Design/methodology/approach

– In an experimental study (using a sample of 233 professionals with project management experience), the authors test the effects of collaborative and consultative decision rules on groups’ sensitivity to EOC and FE. The authors use four group decision-making tasks to evaluate decision consistency across gain/loss framed decision situations and six decision tasks to evaluate EOC for money as well as time as resources previously invested in the initial decisions.

Findings

– The results show that the collaborative decision rule increases sensitivity to EOC when financial resources are involved and decreases sensitivity to EOC when time is of essence. Moreover, the authors show that the collaborative decision rule decreases sensitivity to FE in group decision making.

Research limitations/implications

– The results have important implications for group rationality as an emergent group level competence by extending the insights concerning the impact of decision rules on emergent group level cognitive competencies. Due to the experimental nature of the design, the authors can probe the causal relations between the investigated variables, yet the authors cannot generalize the results to other settings.

Practical implications

– Managers can use the insights of this study in order to optimize the functioning of decision-making groups and to reduce their sensitivity to FEs and EOC.

Originality/value

– The study extends the research on group rationality and it is one of the few experimental attempts used to understand the role of decision rules on emergent group level rationality.
An efficient resource allocation in strategic management using a novel hybrid method
Authors: Wudhikarn Ratapol
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to suggest a novel hybrid method by integrating a decision sciences approach with balanced scorecard (BSC) in order to scientifically enable the efficient strategic management of an organization under limited resources. The proposed research model endeavors to improve critical basis deficiencies of the original BSC as well as formerly improved forms of BSC by appropriately integrating three disparate methods: BSC, analytic network process (ANP), and zero-one goal programming (ZOGP).

Design/methodology/approach

– The designed approach is separated into three major parts. At first, the traditional BSC, concentrating on both financial and intellectual capital, was adopted as the strategic management framework, and then priorities as well as the importance of tactical drivers derived from BSC application were consecutively identified by the application of ANP. Finally, the study further applied the obtained results of integrated BSC and ANP to ZOGP in order to scientifically identify the optimal strategic investment under simulated constraints of the considered organization.

Findings

– An application of BSC, ANP, and ZOGP with a case study of an academic institution provided an improved strategic management approach for optimally and scientifically utilizing the limited resources of the organization. The suggested results indicated that only 11 of the 23 strategic projects should be executed. Moreover, the selected tactical tasks would efficiently use less than 36 percent of the strategic expenses of the traditional management approach.

Originality/value

– Based on the intensive literature reviews, the proposed method could be determined as a novel hybrid approach. It newly conveyed the practical management approach by innovatively including the proper decision sciences method to BSC. This improvement scientifically considered on the resource allocation process that has never been studied before in formerly improved BSC.
Crisis Leadership by Mayors: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Newspapers and Social Media on the MH17 Disaster
Authors: Jong Wouter , Dückers Michel L. A. , van der Velden Peter G.
Published: August 2016

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crashed in the Ukraine on 17 July 2014 with 193 Dutch passengers on board. The present study assessed which MH17‐related activities (or absence of certain activities) of 54 mayors from the Netherlands were mentioned in (social) media and if and how they were evaluated. Analyses of newspaper articles and social media showed that public ‘meaning making’ and ‘remembering’ by mayors can be considered as a table stake or conditio sine qua non. Mayors are expected to speak at memorials and attend community activities. Strong appreciation was however retrieved from victims’ families whenever mayors visited them with a listening ear in the privacy of their homes, demonstrating the role mayors can fulfil as mourners‐in‐chief in local communities.
Alcohol consumption, smoking, and drug use in pregnancy: Prevalence and risk factors in Southern Thailand
Authors: Assanangkornchai Sawitri , Saingam Darika , Apakupakul Nualta , Edwards J Guy
Published: August 2016

Introduction

Substance use during pregnancy contributes to the risk of adverse health outcomes in mothers and children—in utero and during later development. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of substance use and associated factors in pregnant women receiving antenatal care in public hospitals in Thailand.

Methods

Women (3578) attending 7 antenatal care clinics in Songkhla for the first time during their current pregnancy were interviewed with a structured questionnaire focusing on demographic data, obstetric history, use of alcohol, tobacco, and other substances, and the General Health Questionnaire was administered. The use of substances was confirmed with the ultrarapid version of the Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Test and urine tests, which were also administered to 1 in 5 to 10 randomly selected women whose screening results were negative.

Results

Based on self‐reports and General Health Questionnaire results, the weighted prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, or illicit substance use and that of “mental health problems” were 5.6% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.9‐6.4) and 29.2% (95% CI, 27.5‐30.9), respectively. On the basis of the ultrarapid version of the Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Test and urine tests, the prevalence of likely substance use disorder during the 3 months prior to assessment was 1.2% (95% CI, 0.8‐1.5) and 7.7% (95% CI, 4.6‐10.7), respectively. Factors associated with substance use were religion, unmarried status, unplanned pregnancy, previous abortion, and current mental health problem.

Discussion

Our results emphasize the need for identification of substance use and mental health problems, with the help of questionnaires and biological markers, followed by early intervention.
Mental health status following severe sulfur mustard exposure: a long‐term study of Iranian war survivors
Authors: Khateri Shahriar , Soroush Mohammadreza , Mokhber Naghmeh , Sedighimoghaddam Mohammadreza , Modirian Ehsan , Mousavi Batool , Mousavi Seyed Javad , Hosseini Maryam
Published: August 2016

Introduction

This study aimed to describe the mental health status of sulfur mustard–exposed survivors suffering from severe respiratory and ophthalmological problems.

Methods

Out of 450 invited Iran‐Iraq War survivors of sulfur mustard exposure with severe symptoms, 350 participated in this cross‐sectional study. Mental health status was assessed using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, criteria. Fisher exact test, Pearson chi‐square test, and chi‐square test were used to assess any relationship, and the independent‐sample t test was employed to compare differences between the veterans with ocular and pulmonary injuries.

Results

There were 60.9% (n = 213) survivors who suffered from mental disorders. Among them, 39.7% (n = 139) were previously untreated and required the initiation of psychiatric treatment. The prevalence of anxiety and mood disorders among all survivors was 40.6% (n = 142) and 32.0% (n = 112), respectively. The most common anxiety and mood disorders were posttraumatic stress disorder (32.9%, n = 115) and major depressive disorder (22.3%, n = 78), respectively. Psychiatric disorders were more prevalent in cases with severe pulmonary chemical injury than in subjects with severe ophthalmologic chemical injury. Significant relationships were found between the types of psychiatric disorders and age, education, and occupation (P < .05).

Conclusion

The psychiatric morbidity in the chemically injured populations was remarkable and significantly different between the populations. The prevalence of mental illness in these groups highlights the need for the appropriate provision of mental health services.
Modern pollen assemblages from surface lake sediments and their environmental implications on the southwestern Tibetan Plateau
Authors: Ma Qingfeng , Zhu Liping , Lu Xinmiao , Wang Yong , Guo Yun , Wang Junbo , Ju Jianting , Peng Ping , Tang Lingyu
Published: August 2016

The relationships amongst modern pollen assemblages, vegetation, climate and human activity are the basis for reconstructing palaeoenvironmental changes using pollen records. It is important to determine these relationships at regional scales due to the development of vegetation under different climatic conditions and human activities. In this paper, we report on an analysis of modern pollen assemblages of 31 surface lake samples from 31 lakes (one sample per lake) on the southwestern Tibetan Plateau where the knowledge of modern pollen and their relationships with vegetation, climate and human activities is insufficient. The region includes five vegetation zones: sub‐alpine shrub steppe, alpine steppe, alpine meadow and steppe ecotone, mountain desert and alpine desert. The lakes span a wide range of mean annual precipitation (50–500 mm) and mean annual temperature (−8 to 6 °C). Modern pollen assemblages from our samples mainly consist of herb taxa (Artemisia, Cyperaceae, Poaceae, Chenopodiaceae, etc.) and some tree taxa (Pinus, Fagaceae, Alnus, etc.). The results indicate that modern pollen assemblages are able to reflect the main vegetation distribution. Redundancy analysis for the main pollen types and environmental variables shows that precipitation is the leading factor that influences the pollen distribution in the study area with the first axis capturing 13.7% of the variance in the pollen data set. The Artemisia/Chenopodiaceae ratio is valid for separating the desert component (<2) from the steppe and other vegetation zones (>2) but is unable to distinguish moisture variations. The Artemisia/Cyperaceae ratio is able to identify meadows (<1) and steppes (>1) and can be used as a moisture index on the southwestern Tibetan Plateau. Our results show that an appropriate range is needed for a modern pollen data set in order to perform pollen‐based quantitative climate reconstructions in one region. It is essential to perform modern studies before using pollen ratios to reconstruct palaeovegetation and palaeoclimate at a regional scale.
A reconstruction of the North Atlantic since the earliest Jurassic
Authors: Barnett‐Moore Nicholas , Müller Dietmar R. , Williams Simon , Skogseid Jakob , Seton Maria
Published: August 2016

The stretched continental margins of the North Atlantic region record a plate kinematic history dominated by major episodes of extension since the Late Palaeozoic. Accounting for the restoration of this stretched continental crust across the region, and the subsequent derivation of plausible full‐fit configurations between these continents, prior to extension, still remains unresolved. Previous plate reconstructions have highlighted difficulties such as determining the amount of extension to be distributed across the multiple episodes of rifting, or defining the distribution of extension across intraplate deformation occurring adjacent to the rifting of two major continents. Here, we implement a new approach to derive a set of total reconstruction poles based on a full‐fit, palinspastic restoration of the conjugate margins that considers the rifting evolution of the North Atlantic in a regional plate kinematic context since the Earliest Jurassic. Gravity inversion forms the basis of our regional crustal thickness estimates, and aids in the identification of thinned continental crust. Our crustal restoration estimates are computed in multiple phases along margin segments in accordance with the timing of their major rifting episodes. Our model predicts a full‐fit, prerift, palaeogeographic position of all the major continents across the North Atlantic; and predicts a time‐dependent evolution of multiple phases of extension including regional divergence directions, consistent with previous observations. Our plate model represents a new approach to plate kinematic reconstructions incorporating the application of a multiphase restoration methodology applied in a major regional context, constrained by the synthesis of several different geological and geophysical data sets.
Clinical application of whole‐genome low‐coverage next‐generation sequencing to detect and characterize balanced chromosomal translocations
Authors: Liang D. , Wang Y. , Ji X. , Hu H. , Zhang J. , Meng L. , Lin Y. , Ma D. , Jiang T. , Jiang H. , Asan  , Song L. , Guo J. , Hu P. , Xu Z.
Published: August 2016

Individuals carrying balanced translocations have a high risk of birth defects, recurrent spontaneous abortions and infertility. Thus, the detection and characterization of balanced translocations is important to reveal the genetic background of the carriers and to provide proper genetic counseling. Next‐generation sequencing (NGS), which has great advantages over other methods such as karyotyping and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), has been used to detect disease‐associated breakpoints. Herein, to evaluate the application of this technology to detect balanced translocations in the clinic, we performed a parental study for prenatal cases with unbalanced translocations. Eight candidate families with potential balanced translocations were investigated using two strategies in parallel, low‐coverage whole‐genome sequencing (WGS) followed‐up by Sanger sequencing and G‐banding karyotype coupled with FISH. G‐banding analysis revealed three balanced translocations, and FISH detected two cryptic submicroscopic balanced translocations. Consistently, WGS detected five balanced translocations and mapped all the breakpoints by Sanger sequencing. Analysis of the breakpoints revealed that six genes were disrupted in the four apparently healthy carriers. In summary, our result suggested low‐coverage WGS can detect balanced translocations reliably and can map breakpoints precisely compared with conventional procedures. WGS may replace cytogenetic methods in the diagnosis of balanced translocation carriers in the clinic.
INCOME INEQUALITY, MEDIA FRAGMENTATION, AND INCREASED POLITICAL POLARIZATION
Authors: Duca John V. , Saving Jason L.
Published: August 2016

The increasing polarization of congressional voting has been linked to legislators' inability to reach consensus on many pressing economic issues. We examine two potential factors driving polarization: greater income inequality and the increasingly fragmented state of American media. Using cointegration techniques, we find evidence indicating that media fragmentation has played a more important role than inequality. Periods of rising media fragmentation are followed by increased polarization. If recent patterns of media structure and income inequality persist, a polarized policymaking environment will likely continue to impede efforts to address major challenges, such as the long‐run fiscal imbalances facing the United States. (JEL D72, D31)
Vonoprazan is superior to proton pump inhibitors in healing artificial ulcers of the stomach post‐endoscopic submucosal dissection: A propensity score‐matching analysis
Authors: Maruoka Daisuke , Arai Makoto , Kasamatsu Shingo , Ishigami Hideaki , Taida Takashi , Okimoto Kenichiro , Saito Keiko , Matsumura Tomoaki , Nakagawa Tomoo , Katsuno Tatsuro , Yokosuka Osamu
Published: August 2016

Background and Aim

Proton pump inhibitors (PPI) are effective at healing artificial ulcers after endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for gastric neoplasms; however, the efficacy of vonoprazan is not completely understood. The aim of the present study was to determine the healing effect of vonoprazan on artificial ulcers post‐gastric ESD relative to PPI.

Methods

Thirty‐five patients who underwent gastric ESD between April and November 2015 were treated with vonoprazan 20 mg/day for 4 weeks and subsequently underwent endoscopy for evaluation of ulcer size (V group). Ulcer contraction rate was determined by the following formula: ([ESD specimen size] – [ulcer size at 4 weeks after ESD])/(ESD specimen size) × 100%. We compared the results with those of a historical control group treated with esomeprazole 20 mg/day for 4 weeks after gastric ESD and subsequently measured their ulcer size (33 patients, E group) by propensity score‐matching methods.

Results

Sixty‐two subjects were enrolled after propensity score‐matching. Ulcer contraction rate at 4 weeks after ESD in the V group was significantly higher than that of the E group (97.7 ± 3.2% vs 94.5 ± 6.7%, respectively, P = 0.025). Number of subjects with a scar‐stage ulcer (100% contraction rate) tended to be higher in the V group relative to the E group (32% [10 of 31] vs 13% [4 of 31], respectively, P = 0.070, McNemar's chi‐squared test).

Conclusion

Vonoprazan has a faster post‐gastric ESD artificial ulcer contraction rate than esomeprazole. Vonoprazan may supersede PPI in treating post‐ESD artificial ulcers of the stomach.
A pediatric institutional acute stroke protocol improves timely access to stroke treatment
Authors: Shack Melissa , Andrade Andrea , Shah‐Basak Priyanka P , Shroff Manohar , Moharir Mahendranath , Yau Ivanna , Askalan Rand , MacGregor Daune , Rafay Mubeen F , deVeber Gabrielle A ,   Acute Stroke Protocol study group
Published: August 2016

Aim

We aimed to evaluate whether an institutional acute stroke protocol (ASP) could accelerate the diagnosis and secondary treatment of pediatric stroke.

Method

We initiated an ASP in 2005. We compared 209 children (125 males, 84 females; median age 4.8y, interquartile range [IQR] 1.2–9.3y, range 0.09–17.7y) diagnosed with arterial ischemic stroke ‘pre‐protocol’ (1992–2004) to 112 children (60 males, 52 females; median age 5.8y, IQR 1.0–11.4y, range 0.08–17.7y) diagnosed ‘post‐protocol’ (2005–2012) for time‐to‐diagnosis, mode of diagnostic imaging, and time‐to‐treatment with antithrombotic medication (aspirin or anticoagulants).

Results

Overall, the interval from symptom onset to diagnosis was similar post‐protocol compared to pre‐protocol (20.3 vs 22.7h; p=0.109), although mild strokes (Pediatric National Institute of Health Stroke Scale [PedNIHSS] 0–4), were diagnosed faster post‐protocol (12.1 vs 36.3h; p=0.003). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was the initial diagnostic modality more often post‐protocol (25% vs 1.4%; p<0.001). Initial MRI was more accurate for diagnosing stroke than initial CT (100% vs 47%; p<0.001) with similar time‐to‐diagnosis. The proportion of children receiving antithrombotic medication within 24 hours doubled in the post‐protocol period (83% vs 36%; p<0.001).

Interpretation

A pediatric ASP accelerated time‐to‐treatment, time‐to‐diagnosis in children with subtle strokes, and increased MRI as initial imaging, reducing the need for computed tomography. Implementing optimized ASPs can facilitate more timely access to diagnosis and management of children with acute stroke.
Family Firm Challenges in Intergenerational Wealth Transfer
Authors: Carr Jon C. , Chrisman James J. , Chua Jess H. , Steier Lloyd P.
Published: August 2016

Family firm owners accumulate economic and noneconomic wealth that they may wish to transfer to the next generation. Their challenges in doing so include: what, to whom, when, and how to transfer this wealth. The decisions made and actions taken will impact behavior and performance as well as the type and amount of wealth eventually transferred. The articles and commentaries in this special issue address some of these challenges, specifically the what of family firm legacy, the who of willing intra–family successors, and the how of both family and business destabilization and re–stabilization after a major strategic move as illustrated by internationalization.
A cold plasma jet accelerates wound healing in a murine model of full‐thickness skin wounds
Authors: Schmidt Anke , Bekeschus Sander , Wende Kristian , Vollmar Brigitte , von Woedtke Thomas
Published: August 2016

Cold plasma has been successfully applied in several fields of medicine that require, for example, pathogen inactivation, implant functionalization or alteration of cellular activity. Previous studies have provided evidence that plasma supports the healing of wounds owing to its beneficial mixtures of reactive species and modulation of inflammation in cells and tissues. To investigate the wound healing activity of an atmospheric pressure plasma jet in vivo, we examined the cold plasma's efficacy on dermal regeneration in a murine model of dermal full‐thickness ear wound. Over 14 days, female mice received daily plasma treatment. Quantitative analysis by transmitted light microscopy demonstrated a significantly accelerated wound re‐epithelialization at days 3–9 in comparison with untreated controls. In vitro, cold plasma altered keratinocyte and fibroblast migration, while both cell types showed significant stimulation resulting in accelerated closure of gaps in scratch assays. This plasma effect correlated with the downregulation of the gap junctional protein connexin 43 which is thought to be important in the regulation of wound healing. In addition, plasma induced profound changes in adherence junctions and cytoskeletal dynamics as shown by downregulation of E‐cadherin and several integrins as well as actin reorganization. Our results theorize cold plasma to be a beneficial treatment option supplementing existing wound therapies.
Summer profundal hypoxia determines the coupling of methanotrophic production and the pelagic food web in a subtropical reservoir
Authors: Ho Pei‐Chi , Okuda Noboru , Miki Takeshi , Itoh Masayuki , Shiah Fuh‐Kwo , Chang Chun‐Wei , Hsiao Silver Sung‐Yun , Kao Shuh‐Ji , Fujibayashi Megumu , Hsieh Chih‐Hao
Published: August 2016

We investigated how profundal redox conditions determine the inter‐annual variation in methane oxidising bacteria (MOB) contribution to zooplankton production in a deep subtropical reservoir. Two hydrological regimes which affect MOB activity are considered: (i) reduced MOB activity resulting from high profundal oxygen saturation promoted by water column disturbance during the period of summer stratification; and (ii) increased MOB activity due to high profundal oxygen saturation during winter mixing.

Four years of field stable‐isotope analyses revealed that oxygen saturation of profundal waters during summer stratification was negatively correlated with winter MOB contribution. This relationship is consistent with our theoretical ecosystem modelling.

Although the ecosystem model simulation predicted positive effects of profundal oxygen supply during winter mixing on MOB contribution, the stable isotope mixing model indicated that the effects were secondary. Winter oxygen supply did not enhance MOB activity when methane accumulation during the preceding summer was low.

Our findings suggest that summer profundal hypoxia plays the primary role in determining methanotrophic food‐web activity and methane‐derived carbon cycling in deep lakes.
Postpartum education and lifestyle changes for preventing type 2 diabetes in Turkish women with previous gestational diabetes: A retrospective study
Authors: Aluş Tokat Merlinda , Sancı Muzafer , Girgeç Semra , Kulhan Nur Gözde , Özcan Çiler Yeygel
Published: August 2016

Background

Women with previous gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have at least sevenfold increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes compared with non‐GDM mothers. The risk can be decreased by self‐care measures.

Aim

The aim of this study was to explore the postpartum education and lifestyle changes of Turkish women with previous GDM.

Method

This was a retrospective descriptive epidemiological study. A total of 111 women who had given birth within the previous 3–4 years were interviewed by telephone between December 2013 and April 2014.

Results

The 83.8% of the women with GDM had not received education related to exercise, while 40.5% received no education regarding the importance of diet. More importantly, while 68.5% had been informed about testing blood glucose levels postpartum, a large majority, 69.3%, did not know for how long they would have had to continue testing their glucose levels. However, 31.3% of those who monitored their glucose levels had glucose intolerance. In terms of lifestyle changes, less than half of the women, 48.6%, had made changes in their diet and the majority, 51.4%, were inactive.

Conclusion

Women need access to sustained education and supportive counselling both to motivate and to minimize the risk of type 2 diabetes after GDM.
International briefing 34: training and development in Spain
Authors: Rigby Mike , Ponce Sanz Yolanda
Published: August 2016

This article locates training and development in Spain within the country's socio‐economic context. It maps the major changes which have been introduced into the training and development system since the briefing by Escardíbul and Llinas‐Audet published in this journal in 2010. It relates those changes to the ongoing economic crisis which began in 2009 and the growing emphasis on employers’ demands in the design of the training system. Finally, it identifies the challenges presented to Spanish policy‐makers by a number of weaknesses in the current system. The Spanish experience is particularly relevant for countries in which social partner involvement and a significant small and medium‐sized enterprise (SME) presence are important issues in the development of their training system. It is also particularly useful for those countries in Latin America whose training systems have been influenced by the Spanish model.
An Exploratory Study Investigating How Adults with Intellectual Disabilities Perform on the Visual Association Test (VAT)
Authors: McPaul Ann , Walker Brigid , Law Jim , McKenzie Karen
Published: August 2016

Background

Neuropsychological tests of memory are believed to offer the greatest sensitivity at identifying people at the risk of developing dementia. There is a paucity of standardized and appropriate neuropsychological assessments of memory for adults with an intellectual disability. This study examines how adults with an intellectual disability perform on the Visual Association Test (VAT).

Methods

Forty participants (18–45 years) with intellectual disability, without a diagnosis of dementia, completed the VAT and subtests of the CAMCOG‐DS. Correlational analysis of the test variables was carried out.

Results

All participants performed well on the VAT irrespective of age, gender or IQ. No significant correlations were found between the VAT and the subtests of the CAMCOG‐DS.

Conclusions

The VAT was found to be an easy and quick test to use with people with intellectual disability and all participants scored above ‘floor’ level.