bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Implications for multinational enterprises from emerging market subsidiaries’ reverse knowledge transfer
Authors: Fjellström Daniella , Chowdhury Ehsanul Huda , Ahmad Sohail , Batkhuu Bolortuya
Published: August 2023

Purpose

This study aims to understand the role of drivers, underlying challenges and, consequently, the implications of the reverse knowledge transfer (RKT) process for the multinational enterprises (MNE)s.

Design/methodology/approach

A dyadic qualitative research design was used with a cross-country design covering perspectives from both the headquarters and subsidiaries from the USA, Denmark, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. In-depth interviews were conducted with managers in multiple sectors such as information technology, telecommunications, project management and engineering.

Findings

The study reveals the constraints and drivers of the RKT process, and furthermore elaborates on the implications for MNEs. RKT can lead to the development of new processes, subsidiary independence and intra-organizational knowledge transfer. Besides, it can entail challenges such as position insecurity for subsidiaries and a blurring of the MNE market vision. The findings demonstrate several implications for the MNEs.

Practical implications

The study highlights the direct implications of RKT for the multinational enterprises. The findings serve as a practical guide for global managers seeking to improve their competitive edge.

Originality/value

The study presents a framework of the RKT process from emerging market subsidiaries to parent companies, that demonstrates the role of drivers, underlying challenges and implications of the RKT process for the MNEs.
On the consequences of electronic performance monitoring in organizations: theory and evidence
Authors: Kalischko Thomas , Riedl René
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The potential applications of information and communication technologies in the workplace are wide-ranging and, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, have increasingly found their way into the field of electronic performance monitoring (EPM) of employees. This study aims to examine the influence of EPM on individual performance considering the aspects of privacy invasion, organizational trust and individual stress within an organization. Thus, important insights are generated for academia as well as business.

Design/methodology/approach

A theoretical framework was developed which conceptualizes perceived EPM as independent variable and individual performance as dependent variable. Moreover, the framework conceptualizes three mediator variables (privacy invasion, organizational trust and individual stress). Based on a large-scale survey (N = 1,119), nine hypotheses were tested that were derived from the developed framework.

Findings

The results indicate that perception of EPM significantly increases privacy invasion, reduces organizational trust, increases individual stress and ultimately reduces individual performance. Moreover, it was found that privacy invasion reduces organizational trust and that this lowered trust increases individual stress. Altogether, these findings suggest that the use of EPM by employers may be associated with significant negative consequences.

Originality/value

This research enriches the literature on digital transformation, as well as human–machine interaction, by adopting a multidimensional theoretical and empirical perspective regarding EPM in the workplace context, in which the influence of EPM perceptions on individual performance is examined under the influence of different aspects (privacy invasion, organizational trust and individual stress) not currently considered in this combination in the literature.
Student engagement through teamwork skills: the mediating role of psychological well-being
Authors: Bhargava Sheela , Sharma Renu
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The study aims to examine the mediating effect of psychological well-being (PWB) on the relationship between teamwork skills and student engagement (SE) in higher education institutional setups.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a triangulation mixed-methods approach. Data were collected from final-year students pursuing post-graduation and graduation in private colleges in India. In the main study, quantitative data was gathered from 276 students through a survey. The relationship among the variables-teamwork skills, SE and PWB was empirically validated through path analysis; mediation was also conducted. In the auxiliary study, qualitative data was gathered through focus group sessions and was analyzed using thematic analysis.

Findings

Results depicted that teamwork skills positively predict students' engagement with their academic program. Additionally, PWB partially mediates the relationship between teamwork skills and SE.

Originality/value

The study was conducted to expand understanding of aspects related to promoting students' engagement in HEIs in Delhi and Haryana through being attentive toward teamwork skills development and through taking care of students' PWB.
Justice in the workplace: Islamic principles for wage determination
Authors: Yasmeen Kausar
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The objective of this study is to construct a theoretical framework concerning wage determination, grounded inprinciples and supplemented by conventional theories. It discusses the Islamic perspectives on minimum wage and examines contemporary challenges and intricacies in its application.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses thematic analysis to create the conceptual framework, drawing upon a review of pertinent literature such as academic papers, books and articles published up to 2023.

Findings

The framework encompasses various categories, namely, employee characteristics, job characteristics, market factors, compensation practices and Islamic principles. Each category consists of multiple variables. The resulting framework offers a holistic and ethically grounded methodology for wage determination, aligning with both Islamic and conventional perspectives. This study notes the absence of a universally agreed-upon minimum wage. Islamic economics faces challenges due to the unclear application of principles, limited awareness, legal constraints and a lack of empirical evidence on wage systems, along with complexities in their implementation.

Research limitations/implications

The paper’s limited scope focuses solely on the Islamic perspective on wage determination, without comparing it to the conventional viewpoint. This may have implications for future research.

Practical implications

The insights on Islamic principles and wage determination guide scholars and policymakers interested in promoting just and equitable wages.

Originality/value

This study is distinct in its integration of various factors to propose an all-encompassing framework for wage determination, rooted in the Quran andprinciples, while also reinforcing the framework with conventional theories. Additionally, it adds to the growing body of literature by investigating the Quran’s stance andprinciples on minimum wage, as well as discusses the challenges involved in implementing an Islamic approach to wage determination, which has received limited attention in Islamic literature.
Antecedents of women’s social entrepreneurship: values development and the perceived desirability and feasibility of social venture creation
Authors: de Magdalene Persephone
Published: August 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to identify the values antecedents of women’s social entrepreneurship. It explores where and how these values emerge and how they underpin the perceived desirability and feasibility of social venture creation.

Design/methodology/approach

Values development across the life-course is interrogated through retrospective sense-making by thirty UK-based women social entrepreneurs.

Findings

The findings express values related to empathy, social justice and action-taking, developed, consolidated and challenged in a variety of experiential domains over time. The cumulative effects of these processes result in the perceived desirability and feasibility of social entrepreneurial venture creation as a means of effecting social change and achieving coherence between personal values and paid work, prompting social entrepreneurial action-taking.

Originality/value

This paper offers novel, contextualised insights into the role that personal values play as antecedents to social entrepreneurship. It contributes to the sparse literature focussed on both women’s experiences of social entrepreneurship generally, and on their personal values specifically.
Communication via quad/hexa-copters during disasters
Authors: Vohra D.S. , Garg Pradeep Kumar , Ghosh Sanjay
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The purpose is to derive the most effective place in the air for an aerial robot, viz., drone to use as an alternative communication system during disasters.

Design/methodology/approach

In this technology-driven era, various concepts are becoming the area of interest for multiple researchers. Drone technology is also one of them. The researchers, with interest in drones, are therefore trying to understand the various uses of employing drones in diverse applications which are mind-boggling, starting from civil applications (viz., an inspection of power lines, counting wildlife, delivering medical supplies to inaccessible regions, forest fire detection, and landslide measurement) to military applications (viz., real-time monitoring, surveillance, patrolling, and demining). However, one area where its usage is still to be exploited in many countries is using drones as a relay when communication lines are disrupted due to natural calamities. This will be particularly helpful in rescuing the affected people as the aerial node will enable them to communicate to the rescue team using mobiles/ordinary landline telephones even when regular communication towers are destroyed due to disastrous natural calamities, for example, tsunamis, earthquakes, and floods. Various algorithms, namely, water filling algorithm, advanced water filling algorithm, equal power distribution algorithm, and particle swarm optimization, were therefore studied and analyzed using simulation in addition to various path loss models to realize the desired place for an aerial robot, viz., drone in the air, which will eventually be used as an alternative communication system for badly hit ground users due to any disaster.

Findings

It was found that the effective combination of the water filling algorithm and particle swarm optimization algorithm may be done to place the drone in the air to increase the overall throughput of the affected ground users.

Originality/value

The research is original. None of the parts of this research paper has been published anywhere.
Examining whether religion is a positive factor in access to self-employment for youths: evidences from Congolese data
Authors: Ngassa Ted Cléophane
Published: August 2023

Purpose

High levels of youth unemployment in Africa, the difficulty of accessing salaried jobs, and the weakness of public institutions in charge of employment issues push youths towards informal channels that can help them find jobs. Among these informal channels, religion has been playing an increasingly important role. Thus, this study aimed to analyse the effects of religion on youths' access to self-employment.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used data from the survey on the improvement of youth employment policies in Francophone Africa—conducted in 2018 by the Laboratory for Economic and Social Research and Studies (LARES) of Marien Ngouabi University—to estimate the effects of religion on access to self-employment. The econometric model employed is a two-stage model. Conditional mixed process developed by Roodman (2011) was used to verify the model's robustness.

Findings

The results indicate that religion exhibits a positive and significant effect on access to self-employment. This effect is stronger for youths from Muslim communities than for those from other religious communities, compared to youths who do not engage in religious communities.

Social implications

Based on the current dynamics observed in numerous African countries with respect to employment access, these results imply that religious denominations should be considered when developing policies and programs related to employment, particularly for youths.

Originality/value

The approach followed in this study contributes to the literature predominantly by demonstrating how the network theory approach helps explain, to some extent, the link between religion and access to employment in general and access to self-employment, particularly in developing economies—mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, where the recourse to informal channels of access to self-employment constitutes a significant solution approach for youths.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-02-2023-0097
Economic agency of women in Islamic economic philosophy: going beyond Economic Man and Islamic Man
Authors: Khawar Mariam
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a gender-sensitive analysis of economic agency in Islamic economic philosophy.

Design/methodology/approach

A critical review of classical ethics literature and the concept of khilafah is undertaken and discussed in conjunction with the current understanding of homo Islamicus.

Findings

Building on the principles of khilafah, the concept of homo Islamicus is a pious stand-in for the flawed homo economicus. Among its flaws is the complete absence of a discussion of women as economic agents. To remedy this the discipline must acknowledge explicitly the denial of women and gender from the discussion of moral agency and include gender as a category of analysis for economic agency. This is only possible by: (1) introducing a non-patriarchal reading of khilafah as the model of agency and (2) by operationalising taqwa as the cardinal virtue of the economic agent instead of neoliberal rationality.

Research limitations/implications

If Islamic economic philosophy is to contend as an alternative mode of economics, it must consider gender and class dimensions in its micro-foundation discussion, economic agency is one of them.

Originality/value

This study reveals the patriarchal readings that are part of the foundation of the concept of the economic agent in Islamic economics, problematising it and providing a gender-sensitive concept of economic agency.
Empirical investigation of Islamic legal framework, crowd humanitarian funds and poverty reduction in selected Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)
Authors: Jelili Amuda Yusuff , Hassan Shafiqul
Published: August 2023

Purpose

This study reports the results of the empirical investigation of the Shari'ah legal framework which serves as a basis of the crowd humanitarian fund and poverty reduction among members of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for improving living conditions of less privileged people in the society.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative design was employed in this study and the population comprised middle and high-skilled workers among members of the OIC.

Findings

The results demonstrated that the majority of middle- and high-skilled workers were from the middle east and others were from Saudi Arabia, Asia and Africa respectively.

Research limitations/implications

Most studies on crowd humanitarian funds were theoretical in nature, this study has empirically investigated.

Practical implications

By making crowd humanitarian funds to be grounded within the framework of Shari'ah, it will enable majority of people in predominant Muslim countries to partake in mutual or crowd funding in order to help the less-privileged individuals among OIC members in the society.

Social implications

It is an important contribution for financial inclusion and economic growth for improving social and living conditions of the less privileged people in the society.

Originality/value

Most studies on crowd humanitarian funds were theoretical in nature; this study has empirically provided a substantial direction for activating the mindset of the empirical investigation of different financial concepts.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-12-2022-0773.
How do auditor attributes affect bank earnings management? Evidence from Africa
Authors: Mnif Yosra , Slimi Imen
Published: August 2023

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the impact of the auditor's characteristics on bank's earnings management (EM) through loan loss provisions (LLP) for African banks.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is based on 360 bank-year observations from 14 African countries for the period 2011–2016, discretionary LLP is used as proxy for EM. Panel regressions have been conducted.

Findings

The authors' findings reveal that auditor's industry specialization and tenure exert a negative and significant influence on the extent of LLP-based EM. The results also show that total fees paid to the banks' auditors are positively related to the extent of EM. In a further analysis, the authors find that industry specialist auditors are more effective in reducing the incoming-increasing. Similarly, the positive relationship previously found between EM and total fees still holds only for income-increasing. Moreover, auditor tenure negatively impacts both income-increasing and income-decreasing EM. As for auditor change, results reveal differential effect on EM.

Originality/value

The current research extends prior literature and provides an understanding of an important external monitoring mechanism, the external audit, within African banks. To the best of the authors' knowledge, there is a paucity of cross-country studies that has addressed the influence of auditors' attributes on banks' EM in Africa.
Ecological underpinnings of niche identity and diversity within the profession
Authors: Suryani Ani Wilujeng , Helliar Christine , Carter Amanda
Published: August 2023

Purpose

Diversity and inclusion is a key focus of the profession. This paper investigates the ecological inherited niche of Indonesia and which employers accounting students choose and whether this will result in a diverse and inclusive profession. The authors conceptualise diversity as the demand-from the profession encompassing professional accounting firms, and inclusion as the supply of individuals wishing to enter the profession.

Design/methodology/approach

The 1377 responses to a questionnaire survey of students deciding on their career paths were analysed using a multinomial logistic regression and path model.

Findings

The findings show that a lack of diversity in the profession is caused by the ecological background, constructing a local niche, that prevents diversity. This is manifest in ethnicity, gender and education, whereby the local niche consists of Chinese males recruited from B-rated private universities. To bring diversity and inclusivity into the workplace, the profession needs to entice people from multi-faceted groups and match ecological niche underpinnings to expectations of the professional landscape. Non-Chinese females are needed to become role models and trail blazers to establish a diverse profession. The public interest will then be better served.

Originality/value

This study uses niche construction as the theoretical framing and demonstrates that the profession needs to take action to become truly diverse and inclusive.
Impact of China's belt and road initiative on logistics management in Africa: a bibliometric analysis
Authors: Luke Rose , Mageto Joash
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The belt and road initiative (BRI) emanates from China and seeks to connect Europe, Asia and Africa through transport and telecommunications infrastructure. Despite the importance of Africa in the BRI network, very little research has been done on the BRI in Africa, and even less of this emanates from Africa itself. In particular, considering that the BRI investments in Africa are largely transport related, there is almost no research covering the area of logistics, which should be greatly affected by the infrastructure investments. This paper sought to establish the current state of logistics research related to the BRI in Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

A bibliometric analysis was conducted on documents extracted from the SCOPUS database.

Findings

The findings indicate that there is a lack of research in critical areas such as environmental, social and economic impact of BRI transport investments, governance, logistics performance and international cooperation. In particular, there is a massive gap in local knowledge regarding the BRI.

Research limitations/implications

The study is limited to published research indexed in the SCOPUS database. Future research directions include empirical studies into BRI project initiation investigation, economic and environmental impacts, governance structures and policy intervention requirements and macro-level logistics impacts.

Practical implications

The study emphasises the importance publishing all the relevant information regarding BRI related projects in Africa to create transparency.

Originality/value

The study investigates the current research on the effect of China's BRI on transport and logistics in Africa through a bibliometric analysis. The investigation reveals that while there are huge investments in infrastructure, the actual effect on logistics of participating countries in Africa has not been interrogated.
All that glitters is not gold: a study of tourists' visit intention by watching deepfake destination videos
Authors: Sivathanu Brijesh , Pillai Rajasshrie , Mahtta Mahek , Gunasekaran Angappa
Published: August 2023

Purpose

This study aims to examine the tourists' visit intention by watching deepfake destination videos, using Information Manipulation and Media Richness Theory.

Design/methodology/approach

This study conducted a primary survey utilizing a structured questionnaire. In total, 1,360 tourists were surveyed, and quantitative data analysis was done using PLS-SEM.

Findings

The results indicate that the factors that affect the tourists' visit intention after watching deepfake videos include information manipulation tactics, trust and media richness. This study also found that perceived deception and cognitive load do not influence the tourists' visit intention.

Originality/value

The originality/salience of this study lies in the fact that this is possibly among the first to combine the Media Richness Theory and Information Manipulation for understanding tourists' visit intention and post-viewing deepfake destination videos.
The pricing strategy of group buying under a dual-channel supply chain with price discounts and waiting time
Authors: Shi Jingyi , Huang Yanting
Published: August 2023

Purpose

As an important form of the e-commerce industry, online group buying is under the spotlight from with two sides: cheaper price but longer waiting time. The purpose of this paper is to adequately investigate the interaction between saving and waiting time of group buying comprehensively.

Design/methodology/approach

To fill the research gap, the authors elaborate a dual-channel supply chain (SC) with regular retail (individual buying) and group-buying channel, and formulate the demand based on the consumer utility with the positive effect of saving money and the negative effect of wasting time.

Findings

The authors find that power structure only changes the optimal prices, instead of the waiting time. The selling price mainly influences consumer demands, instead of the price discount of group buying. The SC profits are only positive to the channel preference, and it is the decisive parameter of consumers' choice. The price sensitivity lays a more remarkable impact on the SC compared to the time sensitivity. Above all, the price is the main factor of group buying, instead of time.

Originality/value

These results underscore the improvement for the dual-channel SC of group buying, providing managerial insights for the group-buying industry.
Expanding on the Revised Essential 7: shared governance structures
Authors: Coler Cynthia , Cosenza Michael , Polly Drew , Stoicovy Donnan , Zenkov Kristien , Burns Rebecca West , Badiali Bernard , Goree Krystal
Published: August 2023

Purpose

The study aims to review the Nine Essentials.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors worked with groups from different conferences to gather data.

Findings

A PDS (Professional Development School) is built upon shared, sustainable governance structures that promote collaboration, foster reflection and honor and value all participants’ voices.

Originality/value

Nine Essentials are foundational to PDS work.
Blockchain in supply chain management: a feature-function framework for future research
Authors: Brau James C. , Gardner John , DeCampos Hugo A. , Gardner Krista
Published: August 2023

Purpose

Blockchain technology offers numerous venues for supply chain applications and research. However, the connections between specific blockchain features and future applications have been unclear to date in its evolution. The purpose of this study is to fill this void.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors advance the understanding of blockchain in supply chain management by providing a new research framework built on unique blockchain features as applied across core supply chain functions.

Findings

This study’s framework is a feature-function matrix that integrates four overarching supply chain functions (i.e. supplier management, logistics, production processes and customer management) with nine blockchain features (i.e. traceability/provenance, accessibility, visibility, immutability, distributed/shared ledger, validity, peer-to-peer transacting, pseudonymity and programmability). This study’s feature-function framework is supported by a structured, systematic review of reviews using PRISMA methods. The authors use the framework to present a future blockchain research agenda in supply chain management.

Originality/value

The authors provide a new blockchain feature/supply chain function framework and provide a structured path for future research.
Gravity inversion by second order approximation applied to the Styrian Basin (Austria)
Authors: Granser Harald
Published: August 2023

An approximative second order gravity inversion scheme by a truncated power series expansion is applied to derive the thickness of the Neogene, mostly clastic, sedimentary section of the Styrian Basins in South–East Austria, which are sub‐basins of the Pannonian Basin System. These sub‐basins with a derived thickness of up to 4 km are of interest for geothermal exploitation because of the increased geothermal gradient and heat flow observed in the Pannonian Basin in general and a geothermal gradient of 4°–5°/100 m measured in some wells in the Styrian Basin. The Styrian Basin also has been an area for hydrocarbon exploration in the past 50 years, with oil and gas show encountered in several exploration wells and one sub‐commercial gas discovery. The Miocene and Plio–Pleistocene volcanism in the Styrian Basin caused by Miocene crustal thinning is discussed in terms of the influence to the gravity inversion taking the aeromagnetic field into account. The volcanism is of relevance for the geothermal prospectivity but poses problems for the single layer‐based gravity inversion scheme. Results are discussed from a computational side comparing observed and calculated gravity fields but also the match with well data is discussed. In terms of gravity inversion methodology, the presented can be viewed as an approximative fast‐track approach.
HOUSING INFORMALITY IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH: Insights from a Policy Comparison between Accra and Buenos Aires
Authors: Wang Hsi‐Chuan , Bazán Agustina María
Published: August 2023

Informal settlement growth in various countries has led to distinctive actions that enhance low‐income populations’ accessibility to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services. This trend indicates the need for comparative studies between countries and cities to understand the factors that lead to policy learning opportunities. We conducted an experimental comparison between Accra, Ghana, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, to understand, first, how policies on informal settlements have been formed, and secondly, what inquiries should be made to address housing informality in the global South. A comparison shows that these cities/countries have shared moments of neoliberalization and that their poor residents have experienced similar struggles regarding housing availability and the pursuit of extensive governmental interventions. Therefore, their experiences are worth examining. Our comparison indicates that first, Buenos Aires/Argentina has adopted more inclusive policies regarding informal dwellers than Accra/Ghana, and secondly, that diversifying housing solutions are an inevitable dynamic in cities/countries experiencing a surge in housing pressure across classes, races and geographies. In this article we articulate how the governments of these countries have dealt with these challenges and conceptualize the coproduction needs of housing informality in developing countries. We encourage policymakers facing informality in the South to respond to the questions we raise about facilitating policy learning.
Exposure to endocrine disruptors promotes biofilm formation and contributes to increased virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Thiroux Audrey , Labanowski Jérôme , Venisse Nicolas , Crapart Stéphanie , Boisgrollier Chloé , Linares Carlos , Berjeaud Jean‐Marc , Villéger Romain , Crépin Alexandre
Published: August 2023

Anthropogenic activities contribute to the spread of chemicals considered as endocrine disruptors (ED) in freshwater ecosystems. While several studies have reported interactions of EDs with organisms in those ecosystems, very few have assessed the effect of these compounds on pathogenic bacteria. Here we have evaluated the impact of five EDs found in aquatic resources on the virulence of human pathogen P. aeruginosa. ED concentrations in French aquatic resources of bisphenol A (BPA), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), ethylparaben (EP), methylparaben (MP) and triclosan (TCS) at mean molar concentration were 1.13, 3.58, 0.53, 0.69, and 0.81 nM respectively. No impact on bacterial growth was observed at EDs highest tested concentration. Swimming motility of P. aeruginosa decreased to 28.4% when exposed to EP at 100 μM. Swarming motility increased, with MP at 1 nM, 10 and 100 μM (1.5‐fold); conversely, a decrease of 78.5%, with DBP at 100 μM was observed. Furthermore, exposure to 1 nM BPA, DBP and EP increased biofilm formation. P. aeruginosa adhesion to lung cells was two‐fold higher upon exposure to 1 nM EP. We demonstrate that ED exposure may simultaneously decrease mobility and increase cell adhesion and biofilm formation, which may promote colonisation and establishment of the pathogen.
A novel heterozygous truncating variant in the AGO1 gene in an Iranian family with schizophrenia as an unreported symptom
Authors: Mir Atefeh , Khorram Erfan , Song Yongjun , Lee Hane , Tabatabaiefar Mohammad Amin
Published: August 2023

Intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are the most common developmental disorders in humans. Combined, they affect between 3% and 5% of the population. Although high‐throughput genomic methods are rapidly increasing the pool of ASD genes, many cases remain idiopathic. AGO1 is one of the less‐known genes related to ID/ASD. This gene encodes a core member protein of the RNA‐induced silencing complex, which suppresses mRNA expression through cleavage, degradation, and/or translational repression. Generally, patients with defects in the AGO1 gene manifest varying degrees of ID, speech delay, and autistic behaviors. Herein, we used whole‐exome sequencing (WES) to investigate an Iranian family with two affected members one of whom manifested ID and autism and the other showed borderline ID and schizophrenia. WES analysis identified a novel heterozygous truncating variant (NM_012199.5:c.1298G > A, p.Trp433Ter) in the AGO1 gene that co‐segregated with the phenotypes using Sanger sequencing. Moreover, the structural analysis showed that due to this variant, two critical domains (Mid and PIWI) of the AGO1 protein have been lost, which has a detrimental effect on the protein's function and structure. To the best of our knowledge, schizophrenia has not been reported in patients with AGO1 deficiency, which is a novel phenotypic finding that expands the AGO1‐related behavioral disorders. Moreover, this study's findings determined that patients with the same variant in the AGO1 gene may show heterogeneity in manifested phenotypes.
Impact of mechanical shrub removal on encroached mountain rangelands in Lesotho, southern Africa
Authors: Lerotholi Nkuebe , Seleteng‐Kose Lerato , Odenya William , Chatanga Peter , Mapeshoane Botle , Marake Makoala V.
Published: August 2023

Although rangelands are among the most socio‐economically valuable ecosystems, their degradation remains a world‐wide problem, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa. Lesotho montane rangelands are no exception and are characterised by shrub encroachment and deterioration. As a result, the Lesotho Government has invested heavily on a programme of uprooting the shrubs across the country. Although the programme has been implemented for more than a decade, no scientific studies have assessed the ecological benefits of this approach. Therefore, the current study evaluated the impact of mechanical shrub removal on plant diversity and composition in Lesotho. Stratified random sampling was employed using the Metric Belt Transect‐Quadrat Method to assess the effect of uprooting shrubs on encroached rangeland by comparing herbaceous species diversity and standing biomass across areas that had previously been subjected to shrub removal in three sequential years and rested from grazing. The results reveal that even though mechanical shrub removal enhances herbaceous species diversity and standing biomass, the improvement declines with time post shrub removal. Therefore, the process has a short‐lived benefit and needs to be repeated at least every 2 years to maximise its impact. It is evident that the manual removal of shrubs improves rangeland condition by enhancing growth of herbaceous plants, including forbs and grasses. Therefore, this technique has a potential to be used as a rangeland management tool.
The interaction of placental micro‐EVs with immune cells in vivo and in vitro
Authors: Paek Song , Brooks Anna , Graham Scott E , Chamley Lawrence Willam
Published: August 2023

Problem

Considerable evidence suggests that placental extracellular vesicles (EVs) interact with most types of leukocytes in vitro but in vivo biodistribution studies question whether these interactions are reflective of the situation in vivo.

Method of Study

CellTracker Red CMTPX stained human placental micro‐EVs were isolated from first trimester placental explant cultures. Equivalent amounts of micro‐EVs were cultured with murine leukocytes in vitro or injected into pregnant or non‐pregnant mice. After intravenous injection, on day 12.5 of gestation, major organs and blood samples were harvested 30 min or 24 h post injection.

Results

We screened cryosections of the organs and confirmed that human placental EVs were specifically localised to the spleen, liver and the lungs 30 min or 24 h after injection. Immunohistochemistry showed that most of the EVs interacted with macrophages in those three organs and some of them also associated with T and B lymphocytes in the spleen or endothelial cells in the lungs and liver. Flow cytometry demonstrated that there was very little interaction between circulating leukocytes and EVs in vivo. While minimal, significantly more EVs interacted with leukocytes in pregnant than nonpregnant mice.

Conclusion

The major interaction between human placental micro‐EVs and maternal leukocytes appear to be with macrophages predominantly in the splenic marginal zone, liver and lungs with little interaction between EVs and circulating leukocytes. Since marginal zone macrophages induce tolerance after phagocytosing apoptotic bodies it is likely that phagocytosis of placental EVs by marginal zone macrophages may also contribute to maternal immune tolerance.
Milking Welfare: Bovis Sacer and the Inclusive Thanatopolitics of the Dairy Farm
Authors: Klasky Evan , Butt Bilal
Published: August 2023

Agricultural technologies in dairy farming facilitate increased animal productivity while simultaneously supporting appeals to animal welfare. Dairy producers operationalise these technologies to shape cows’ subjectivities to be compatible with industrial production and consumer preferences. Through this subject formation, cows are incorporated into human society as political subjects, a shift that signifies a reorientation of bovine discipline and exploitation on the farm. This emergent political subjectivity is conceptualised here in the archetype of the “bovis sacer”, an inversion of the “homo sacer” concept that describes an unkillable but sacrificial subject. We examine, primarily in Europe and North America, how welfare certification, labelling schemes, and agricultural technology in the dairy industry facilitate material and discursive changes in producer and consumer relations before exploring how these industrial transformations bring about this shift in bovine subjectivity.
Age and postoperative opioid use in women undergoing pelvic organ prolapse surgery
Authors: Cummings Shannon , Scime Natalie V. , Brennand Erin A.
Published: August 2023

Introduction

Our objective was to explore the relation between patient age and postoperative opioid use up to 24 hours following pelvic organ prolapse (POP) surgery.

Material and methods

We conducted a prospective cohort study following 335 women ranging in age from 26 to 82 years who underwent surgery for multi‐compartment POP at a tertiary center in Alberta, Canada. Patient characteristics were measured using baseline questionnaires. Perioperative data were collected from medical chart review during and up to 24 hours following surgery. We used logistic regression to analyze the odds of being opioid‐free and linear regression to analyze mean differences in opioid dose, measured as total morphine equivalent daily dose, exploring for a potential non‐linear effect of age. Adjusted models controlled for preoperative pain, surgical characteristics and patient health factors.

Results

Overall, age was positively associated with greater odds of being opioid‐free in the first 24 hours after surgery (adjusted odds ratio per increasing year of age = 1.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04–1.09, n = 332 women). Among opioid users, age was inversely associated with total opioid dose (adjusted mean difference per increasing year of age = 0.71 mg morphine equivalent daily dose, 95% CI −0.99 to −0.44, n = 204 women). There was no evidence of a non‐linear relation between age and postoperative opioid use or dose.

Conclusions

In the context of POP surgery, we found that younger women were more likely to use opioids after surgery and to use a higher dose in the first 24 hours when compared with older women. These findings support physicians to consider age when counseling POP patients regarding pain management after surgery, and to direct resources aimed at opioid‐free pain control towards younger patients.
How to Analyze Continuous and Discrete Repeated Measures in Small-Sample Cross-Over Trials?
Authors: Verbeeck Johan , Geroldinger Martin , Thiel Konstantin , Hooker Andrew Craig , Ueckert Sebastian , Karlsson Mats , Bathke Arne Cornelius , Bauer Johann Wolfgang , Molenberghs Geert , Zimmermann Georg
Published: August 2023

To optimize the use of data from a small number of subjects in rare disease trials, an at first sight advantageous design is the repeated measures cross-over design. However, it is unclear how these within-treatment period and within-subject clustered data are best analyzed in small-sample trials. In a real-data simulation study based upon a recent epidermolysis bullosa simplex trial using this design, we compare non-parametric marginal models, generalized pairwise comparison models, GEE-type models and parametric model averaging for both repeated binary and count data. The recommendation of which methodology to use in rare disease trials with a repeated measures cross-over design depends on the type of outcome and the number of time points the treatment has an effect on. The non-parametric marginal model testing the treatment–time-interaction effect is suitable for detecting between group differences in the shapes of the longitudinal profiles. For binary outcomes with the treatment effect on a single time point, the parametric model averaging method is recommended, while in the other cases the unmatched generalized pairwise comparison methodology is recommended. Both provide an easily interpretable effect size measure, and do not require exclusion of periods or subjects due to incompleteness.
A British Society for Haematology Guideline: Diagnosis and management of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and thrombotic microangiopathies
Authors: Scully M. , Rayment R. , Clark A. , Westwood J. P. , Cranfield T. , Gooding R. , Bagot C. N. , Taylor A. , Sankar V. , Gale D. , Dutt T. , McIntyre J. , Lester W. ,   the BSH Committee
Published: August 2023

The objective of this guideline is to provide healthcare professionals with clear, up‐to‐date and practical guidance on the management of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) and related thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs), including complement‐mediated haemolytic uraemic syndrome (CM HUS); these are defined by thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic haemolytic anaemia (MAHA) and small vessel thrombosis. Within England, all TTP cases should be managed within designated regional centres as per NHSE commissioning for highly specialised services.
Object labeling and disambiguation in 4‐month‐old infants
Authors: Saksida Amanda , Langus Alan
Published: August 2023

The account that word learning starts in earnest during the second year of life, when infants have mastered the disambiguation skills, has recently been challenged by evidence that infants during the first year already know many common words. The preliminary ability to rapidly map and disambiguate linguistic labels was tested in Italian‐speaking infants (N = 96, 47 boys; age = 4 and 6 months, eye tracking). Infants can rapidly map linguistic labels to objects and movements, and disambiguate the intended referents to novel words, but they fail with sinewave analogs. In hearing infants, mapping and disambiguation emerge early in development, and are flexible as to which visual referents infants are willing to map to linguistic labels, but may be constrained to linguistic sounds.
Mālama i ke kai: Exploring psychosocial factors associated with personal and community coral reef conservation behavior on Maui, Hawai‘i
Authors: Santana Francisca N. , Yurkanin Alana , Stark Tiara E. , Lindsey Ekolu , Ardoin Nicole M. , Wong‐Parodi Gabrielle
Published: August 2023

Local and community conservation efforts can increase coral reefs' capacity to adapt to climate change. In this community‐engaged study, we examine affective dimensions and other psychosocial factors associated with coastal user conservation intentions and behaviors on Maui, Hawai‘i. In October and November 2019, we surveyed coastal users (n = 299). We found natural place attachment, sense of responsibility, and concern for coral reef ecosystems were positively associated with personal conservation intentions; civic place attachment was positively associated with community conservation intentions; and natural place attachment was positively associated with signing the Pono Pledge, a voluntary conservation commitment. We found personal and community response efficacy were positively associated with corresponding levels of conservation intentions. Our results provide insights into psychosocial factors that may underpin coral reef conservation behavior and inform partner communications and outreach.
Advancing and retreating fronts in a changing climate: a percolation model of range shifts
Authors: Oborny Beáta , Zimmermann Dániel
Published: August 2023

Climate change causes considerable shifts in the geographic distribution of species worldwide. Most data on range movements, however, derive from relatively short periods, within which it is difficult to distinguish directional shifts from random fluctuations. For detecting a shift, it is indispensable to delineate the range precisely. We propose a new method for the delineation based on percolation theory. We suggest marking the boundary between the connected and fragmented occurrence of the species (the hull). We demonstrate the advantages of this connectivity‐based method on simulated examples in which a metapopulation is advancing vs retreating along an environmental gradient with different velocities. The simulations show that the hull is a fractal and has the same dimension (7/4) even when the front is advancing or retreating relatively fast, compared to the generation time. It is particularly robust in the retreating (trailing) edge. Accordingly, we propose marking the range edge at the mean position of the hull, the 'connectivity limit' of the species. Theoretical considerations suggest that the position of the connectivity limit is statistically more reliable than those limits that are delineated according to the outermost occurrences, and the connectivity‐based method is broadly applicable to real‐life data.
How environmental drivers of spatial synchrony interact
Authors: Reuman Daniel C. , Castorani Max C. N. , Cavanaugh Kyle C. , Sheppard Lawrence W. , Walter Jonathan A. , Bell Tom W.
Published: August 2023

Spatial synchrony, the tendency for populations across space to show correlated fluctuations, is a fundamental feature of population dynamics, linked to central topics of ecology such as population cycling, extinction risk, and ecosystem stability. A common mechanism of spatial synchrony is the Moran effect, whereby spatially synchronized environmental signals drive population dynamics and hence induce population synchrony. After reviewing recent progress in understanding Moran effects, we here elaborate a general theory of how Moran effects of different environmental drivers acting on the same populations can interact, either synergistically or destructively, to produce either substantially more or markedly less population synchrony than would otherwise occur. We provide intuition for how this newly recognized mechanism works through theoretical case studies and application of our theory to California populations of giant kelp. We argue that Moran interactions should be common. Our theory and analysis explain an important new aspect of a fundamental feature of spatiotemporal population dynamics.