bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The use of supply chain control tower in pharmaceutical industry to create a competitive advantage
Authors: Sharabati Abdel-Aziz Ahmad , Al-Atrash Sharief Ahmad , Dalbah Iyad Yousef
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Supply chain control tower (SCCT) has emerged as a new tool for SC management. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of SCCT on the competitive advantage of the Jordanian Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (JPM) Organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

To actualize this study, the data are collected from 132 managers working at JPM Organizations by questionnaire. After confirming the normality, validity and reliability of the tool, descriptive analysis carried out, and the correlation between variables checked. Finally, the impact tested by multiple regressions.

Findings

The results show that the JPM organizations implement both SCCT elements and competitive advantage dimensions. Results show that there is a strong correlation among SCCT elements, among competitive advantage dimensions and between SCCT and competitive advantage. Finally, results indicate that SCCT has a significant positive effect on the total competitive advantage. SCCT affects quality, cost, reliability and responsiveness respectively; however, it does not have a significant effect on innovation.

Research limitations/implications

The current study conducted on JPM Organizations. Therefore, to check results generalizability, it is recommended to conduct such research on other industries and countries.

Practical implications

Managers should apply SCCT, because it provides real-time information, which is visible to all partners. Therefore, SCCT has to be included within organizations’ vision, mission, strategies and implemented in daily practices.

Social implications

SCCT helps to improve quality and reduce cost, which enhances the quality of life and society welfare.

Originality/value

This study may be considered as one of the few studies that tackle the issue of SCCT in pharmaceutical industry.
Experiencing the public sphere through the eyes of urban tourists in Tehran
Authors: Korani Zohreh , Shafiei Zahed
Published: April 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to find out how tourists in Tehran experience its public areas and pursue two main purposes. The first is to understand the characteristics of the public sphere in Tehran and the second is to discover a way in which the public sphere can play a role in facilitating urban tourism in Tehran.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology used in this study is qualitative and phenomenological. In-depth interviews with 26 participants were used to collect data. The interviews were then transcribed, and Maxqda software was used to analyze them.

Findings

The findings show that the public sphere is a useful tool to discover and explain how to talk and act in different places in Tehran. This sphere is evolving over time, from access to dialogue and finally to action. Although it is not possible to draw a clear line between the different levels of the public sphere, it seems that tourists in Tehran have now entered the literary public sphere. Although they have made efforts, they have not been able to reach the political public sphere and public action. The most important obstacles are the government and the citizens of Tehran.

Originality/value

This paper is unique about the connection between the public sphere and urban tourism. The public sphere is a manifestation of the principles of reciprocity and critical debate in the city and a space for understanding through public debate. The public sphere is also a space for equality, rationality and mutual understanding between individuals and reasoning based on speech exchange. Roles that, if given to tourists, could change tourism policy in Iran.
A synthesis of contextual safeguarding and commonly used child safeguarding theoretical models and approaches
Authors: Nyathi Nhlanganiso
Published: April 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to argue that contextual safeguarding complements existing theoretical models and approaches. Its successful integration with dominant thinking and practice in safeguarding potentially offers new insights to improve system-wide practice.

Design/methodology/approach

A theory synthesis design was used to purposively identify, summarise and compare selected safeguarding theoretical models and approaches to establish both convergence and divergence.

Findings

The arguments provided in this paper suggest that synthesising theory offers a confluence of perspectives that promise to develop a more eclectic and holistic approach to safeguarding practice. The paper demonstrates how contextual safeguarding can be integrated with existing theoretical models and approaches.

Research limitations/implications

This is a conceptual paper and therefore is not based on empirical data.

Practical implications

This paper's conceptual insights include that integrating contextual safeguarding with existing theoretical models and approaches can broaden the knowledge base to whole system-wide safeguarding practice in the UK. The paper also confirms that the methodology used is feasible, although more work is required to test its efficacy on a larger scale. The conceptual paper argues for synthesis of contextual safeguarding and commonly used child safeguarding theoretical models and approaches to deal with both intra and extra familial forms of risk of harm to children effectively.

Social implications

The neglect and abuse of children is a topical issue; hence, this paper has social implications regarding understanding of how the issue child abuse and neglect in the UK and globally should be dealt with.

Originality/value

There is a dearth of studies that have gone beyond binary comparisons of contextual safeguarding and other theoretical models and approaches, which leaves a significant knowledge gap that has prompted the purpose of this paper.
Exploring the impact of the physical work environment on service employees: an analysis of literature
Authors: Schilleci Pinalba
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The recent COVID-19 emergency has brought to light issues connected to physical work environment, particularly to offices and to its impact on service employees’ internal responses, behaviors and outcomes. As the topic is characterized by fragmented theoretical approaches as well as a lack in consolidated empirical research, this study aims at providing a clear understanding of the main – as well as the most recent – issues debated in academic literature today.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is a systematic literature review. Specifically, 124 papers, retrieved by Scopus, Web of Science and EBSCOhost research databases, are here systematically analyzed.

Findings

The main findings are connected to the prevalence of studies investigating employees’ satisfaction and productivity as main outcomes, the increasing attention by academics to new workplace designs, characterized by peculiar attributes such as flexibility and nonterritoriality, and finally, the lower interest in nonoffice working environments.

Originality/value

The review sheds light on the current knowledge of the relation between physical work environment and service employees to identify the main issues debated in academic literature and make suggestions for further research. First, the need to explore aspects of the physical work environment and employees’ outcomes that have not been adequately studied. Second, the relevance to investigate the above relation in public sector. Moreover, the importance of careful planning of the physical and virtual work environment in the context of the COVID-19 emergency.
Supply chain integration and halal frozen meat product returns
Authors: Fernando Yudi , Ahmad Jasmi Muhamad Fairuz , Wahyuni-TD Ika Sari , Mergeresa Fineke , Khamis Kamarul Azman , Fakhrorazi A. , Omar Rusdi
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Halal frozen meat product returns are major challenges in the halal frozen meat supply chain because of the sheer volume and processing costs of returns. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of integrated halal supply chain (IHSC) strategies on effective product returns with halal logistics (HL) as an interceding variable.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper used the cross-sectional technique to select samples from a population that revolved around the halal food industry in Malaysia. Data collected from halal service providers who handle halal frozen meat product returns provided insightful findings.

Findings

The findings of this paper indicate that the IHSC dimensions, such as interactive fairness, procedural fairness and service coverage, are positively associated with effective product returns. It also shows that HL plays a mediating role between the IHSC and effective product returns.

Practical implications

From a practical viewpoint, this paper suggests that an effective return service system can be designed to emphasise the category of interactive and flexible justice services through refunds or product replacement, depending on customer's demand.

Originality/value

The result of this paper provides insights into how logistics service provider managers effectively and efficiently handle the halal supply chain network when involving product returns.
Characterization of Bolivian chili peppers; antioxidant capacity, total phenolic compounds, capsaicin and β-carotene concentration
Authors: Tejeda Leslie , Vasquez Iriarte Pamela Elizabeth , Ortiz Jimena Valeria , Aliaga-Rossel Enzo , Mollinedo Patricia , Peñarrieta J. Mauricio
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Chili pepper pods are a worldwide used and cultivated spice with a high economic and cultural importance. Bolivia is a center of origin and diversification of important crops including wild pepper varieties, but little is known about the chemical composition, antioxidant activity and the Scoville and bioactive compounds of these chili peppers. The purpose of this study was to contribute with new data about the chemical composition and the Scoville scale of Bolivian Chili peppers.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 26 samples of Bolivian Chili peppers were extracted using distilled water and methanol. Total antioxidant capacity was determined by the ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and by the 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) methods. The total phenolic content was determined by Folin and Ciocalteu. Carotene, protein and ashes were determined by Bolivian analytical norms. Capsaicin was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. All determinations were expressed as mean values± standard deviation of six replicates measured over three days of one extract. All values were less than 5% of coefficient of variation. Principal component analysis was applied to reveal patterns in the data. PC1 and PC2 together explained 78% of the total variance.

Findings

The protein content (3.8–6.3 g/100 g of dw) and the antioxidant activity (88.2 to 374 by FRAP and 87.0 to 172 evaluated by ABTS) studied in these species revealed that the values were above the average reported in the literature. The amount of pungency or capsaicin content expressed as Scoville Heat Units were reported moderately highly and very highly pungent (5,696–148,800 g dw) in several of the Bolivian peppers which demonstrates a good potential for capsaicin extraction and different applications for industry and as food ingredients.

Originality/value

This manuscript presents an important and novel contribution to the knowledge of the chili peppers in the region.
Impacts of IoT adoption on NPD processes: optimization and control
Authors: Bastos dos Reis Felipe , Gomes Leonardo Augusto de Vasconcelos , Nascimento PauloTromboni de Souza
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The Internet of Things (IoT) real-time data collection can help to more efficiently optimize and control companies' internal processes. Prior research analyzed IoT benefits and potential applications. Nevertheless, there is little empirical evidence and theoretical understanding of how IoT impacts new product development (NPD). This article aims at narrowing this gap.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 54 case studies were selected from an IoT database – IoT ONE. IoT ONE has a section on NPD. NPD was divided into three phases: discovery, development and commercialization. The adopted IoT technology maturity level was also analyzed. A content analysis was carried out to identify the impacts of IoT in NPD.

Findings

This study’s findings capture the emerging patterns of IoT adoption and its impact on NPD. Of the total, 33 IoT adoption cases in the sample were in the machinery and equipment sector. Adopted technologies were at least two years old in 85% of the sample. Only 15% adopted cutting edge technologies (less than 2 years old). Key actors (e.g. vendors) facilitate IoT adoption. By a small margin, the larger impacts of IoT were in the commercialization phase, where it was primarily applied to improve and optimize production processes, to better execute and synchronize new products launching, and to increase the factories' productive capacity. In the discovery phase, IoT was mainly used to identify new opportunities in the market and to collect customer data, to generate a better customer experience. In the development phase, IoT allows greater integration across departments, increasing internal collaboration and allowing more flexible NPD.

Originality/value

Many articles studied the impact of information technologies in NPD. Few address the impact of IoT in NPD. IT tells about the impact of better communications with relevant people. IoT tells about machine acquired information and knowledge. This is new, much broader and deals with quite different impacts on NPD.
Dimensions of mobile service adoption – a systematic literature review
Authors: Kulshrestha Vishal , Jain Kokil , Dhingra Tarun
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The goal of this paper is to identify the main factors influencing mobile service adoption and define a universally applicable holistic concept capable of explaining all types of mobile service adoption that will be useful to all stakeholders.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic method was used to identify and select relevant articles for appraisal and analysis of their data, as well as to summarize existing research in mobile service adoption studies.

Findings

After reviewing and analyzing the articles, 25 major variables were identified. According to the article analysis, usefulness and experience were identified as the primary motivators for adoption, and that negative barriers to adoption must be controlled in order to improve adoption. Demographics play a role in adoption and technology acceptance model (TAM) emerged as the most suitable model to study the variables affecting mobile service adoption.

Research limitations/implications

The generic concept of mobile services adoption will help industry stakeholders and researchers to use a more focused approach to study and encourage adoption and use of mobile services. Empirical testing of the proposed concept is a limitation which can also be a future scope of the study.

Originality/value

The review provides a holistic mobile services adoption process which is able to define adoption for all kinds of mobile services and is universally applicable as well. The study presents potential implications and relevant insights in mobile services adoption and contributes to a better understanding of mobile service adoption process.
Climate change financial disclosure and firm performance: empirical evidence from Indian energy sector based on TCFD recommendations
Authors: Maji Santi Gopal , Kalita Niva
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The paper aims to examine the climate change-related disclosure patterns of listed Indian firms and its impact on firm performance. Specifically, it strives to analyse the conformance of the selected firms with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) established by the Financial Stability Board of G20 nations.

Design/methodology/approach

The study conducts content analysis of the annual reports and/or sustainability reports of 22 selected firms from the energy sector for the period spanning 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 based on the four-fold recommendations of TCFD, namely, governance, strategy, risk management and target and metrics, to compute the overall and respective climate-change disclosure scores. Further, a panel data regression model is used to appraise the impact of such disclosure on the performance of the firms.

Findings

The findings of the study indicate that the disclosure level of Indian firms in the energy sector is moderate. The regression results establish a positive relation between climate change-related financial disclosure and firm performance indicating that firms can witness improved financial performance by disclosing more information on climate change.

Originality/value

This is the first study in the Indian context to evaluate the climate change-related disclosure practices of the selected firms based on the TCFD’s recommendations and to trace its association with the performance of the firms. The results of the study shall hence be of relevance for the policymakers and diverse stakeholders.
Decent work in care homes: lessons and implications of the pandemic experience from Scotland
Authors: Gibb Stephen , Pautz Hartwig
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify lessons and implications on the theme of decent work in social care. This has long been highlighted as integral to improving social care for the elderly. The COVID-19 pandemic experience reveals lessons and implications about the systemic absence of decent work in one place, Scotland, in care homes. The main lesson and implication is a need for change beyond the focus on levels of pay and systemic advocacy of decent work as it is conventionally understood.

Design/methodology/approach

Data was collected using qualitative, semi-structured interviews with 20 care workers in care homes.[AQ4] A range of care system institutional stakeholders was also interviewed. A range of care system institutional stakeholders was also interviewed.

Findings

Decent work in social care may only be progressed to the extent that a culture change is achieved, transcending the institutional stasis about who owns and engages with progressing decent work.

Research limitations/implications

This is a study in one place, Scotland, with a small sample of frontline care workers in care homes and representatives from a range of institutions.

Practical implications

Effective culture change for decent work in care homes needs to be a higher research priority. More explicit culture policies can be a mechanism by which overall decent work and system change may be catalysed and sustainably secured together. Explicit culture change is here set out with respect to operational, institutional and national domains.

Social implications

There needs to be social policy and political support for situating decent work to be part of a broader culture change around care work with the elderly. A culture-oriented change plan as well as new resourcing and structures can together ensure that the nadir of the pandemic experience was a historical turning point towards transformation rather than being just another low point in a recurring cycle.

Originality/value

The situating of systemic decent work progress within a broader culture change, and modelling that culture change, are original contributions.
A pūrākau analysis of institutional barriers facing Māori occupational therapy students
Authors: Davis Georgina , Came Heather
Published: April 2022

Introduction

Across Aotearoa (New Zealand), there are chronic shortages of qualified Māori (Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa) health practitioners and systemic ethnic health inequities. This study, focussing on the discipline of occupational therapy, explores Māori graduates' recollections of the institutional barriers that impacted on their study in this field over a 25‐year period.

Methods

This qualitative study interviewed seven Māori occupational therapy graduates using pūrākau—an innovative Māori narrative inquiry method. Pūrākau (stories) were collected in 2018 via kanohi ki te kanohi (face to face) semi‐structured interviews. They were analysed using the kaupapa Māori (Māori philosophical) framework of Pū‐Rā‐Ka‐Ū which draws on traditional Māori mātauranga (knowledge).

Findings

The institutional barriers identified were (1) cultural dissonance, (2) cultural (in)competency and (3) the limitations of (Western) pastoral care.

Conclusion

This study highlighted how racism is embedded within the Western tertiary education system. To create a safe learning environment for Māori students, tertiary education institutions require a planned approach to address racism within policy, procedures, the curriculum, teaching and professional staff.
Placenta accreta spectrum – variations in clinical practice and maternal morbidity between the UK and France: a population‐based comparative study
Authors: McCall Stephen J. , Deneux‐Tharaux Catherine , Sentilhes Loïc , Ramakrishnan Rema , Collins Sally L. , Seco Aurélien , Kurinczuk Jennifer J. , Knight Marian , Kayem Gilles
Published: April 2022

Objective

To compare the management and outcomes of women with placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) in France and the UK.

Design

Two population‐based cohorts.

Setting

All obstetrician‐led hospitals in the UK and maternity hospitals in eight French regions.

Population

A cohort of 219 women with PAS in France and a cohort of 154 women with PAS in the UK.

Methods

The management and outcomes of women with PAS were compared between the UK and France.

Main outcome measures

Median blood loss, severe postpartum haemorrhage (≥3 l), postpartum infection and damage to surrounding organs.

Results

The management of PAS differed between the two countries: a larger proportion of women with PAS in the UK had a caesarean hysterectomy compared with France (43% vs 26%, p < 0.001), whereas in France a larger proportion of women with PAS received a uterus‐preserving approach compared with the UK (36% vs 19%, p < 0.001). The total median blood loss in the UK was 3 l (IQR 1.7–6.5 l), compared with 1 l (IQR 0.5–2.5 l) in France; more women with PAS had a severe postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) in the UK compared with women with PAS in France (58% vs 21%, p < 0.001) [Correction added on 06 May 2022, after first online publication: ‘24 hour’ has been changed to ‘total’ in the preceding sentence]. There was no difference between the UK and French populations for postpartum infection or organ damage.

Conclusions

The UK and France have very different approaches to managing PAS, with more women in France receiving a uterine‐conserving approach and more women in the UK undergoing caesarean hysterectomy. A life‐threatening haemorrhage was more common in the UK than in France, which may be the result of differential management and/or the organisation of the healthcare systems.

In women with placenta accreta spectrum, severe haemorrhage was more common in the UK than in France.

Tweetable abstract

In women with placenta accreta spectrum, severe haemorrhage was more common in the UK than in France.
The Netherlands: Political Developments and Data in 2021
Authors: OTJES SIMON , VOERMAN GERRIT
Published: April 2022

The political year 2021 represented the most tumultuous period in the Netherlands in nearly two decades. After a relatively uneventful general election, the traditional culture of consensual elite cooperation broke down temporarily. This could be seen in a censure motion adopted against the Prime Minister, which he ignored, and the extremely lengthy coalition formation process, which was paralleled by the gradual decomposition of the caretaker Cabinet. By the end of the year, no new Cabinet had been installed, although the same four parties that had formed the existing government reached a new coalition agreement.
The 24‐hour rhythm in alcohol craving and individual differences in sleep characteristics and alcohol use frequency
Authors: Hisler Garrett C. , Pedersen Sarah L. , Hasler Brant P.
Published: April 2022

Background

Evidence implicates sleep/circadian factors in alcohol use, suggesting the existence of a 24‐h rhythm in alcohol craving, which may vary by individual differences in sleep factors and alcohol use frequency. This study sought to (1) replicate prior findings of a 24‐h rhythm in alcohol craving, and (2) examine whether individual differences in sleep timing, sleep duration, or alcohol use frequency are related to differences in the timing of the peak of the craving rhythm (i.e., the acrophase) or magnitude of fluctuation of the rhythm (i.e., amplitude). Finally, whether such associations varied by sex or racial identity was explored.

Methods

Two‐hundred fifteen adult drinkers (21 to 35 years of age, 72% male, 66% self‐identified as White) completed a baseline assessment of alcohol use frequency and then smartphone reports of alcohol craving intensity six times a day across 10 days. Sleep timing was also recorded each morning of the 10‐day period. Multilevel cosinor analysis was used to test the presence of a 24‐h rhythm and to estimate acrophase and amplitude.

Results

Multilevel cosinor analysis revealed a 24‐h rhythm in alcohol craving. Individual differences in sleep timing or sleep duration did not predict rhythm acrophase or amplitude. However, alcohol use frequency moderated this rhythm wherein individuals who used alcohol more frequently in the 30 days prior to beginning the study had higher mean levels of craving and greater rhythm amplitudes (i.e., greater rhythmic fluctuations). Associations did not vary by sex or racial identity.

Conclusions

Results show that alcohol craving exhibits a systematic rhythm over the course of the 24 h and that the frequency of alcohol use may be relevant to the shape of this rhythm. Consideration of daily rhythms in alcohol craving may further our understanding of the mechanisms that drive alcohol use.
Assessment of the validity of the beta‐lactam antibiotic allergy assessment tool for use in the rural context, QLD
Authors: English Karin R. , Knight Kay , Radke Alexandra , Sammells Bethany , Walter Claire , Halliday Daniel
Published: April 2022

Objective(s)

The objective of the study was to validate a clinical aid to guide the assessment and management of a patient's listed beta‐lactam antibiotic allergy for use in rural areas of Australia.

Design

Rural generalists, pharmacists and junior doctors completed an online assessment of eight patient case studies using the tool.

Setting

The study was conducted in the Southern Downs, QLD.

Participants

Twenty‐seven rural generalists, nine pharmacists and eight junior doctors.

Main outcome measures

The sensitivity of the selected allergy phenotype and management option for each case study was calculated by profession and overall. Hazardous responses were reported by management category and profession.

Results

The sensitivity overall for phenotype selection was 82.4% (95% CI, 78.0–86.2) and for management 88.1% (95% CI, 84.2–91.2). The sensitivity for phenotype selection was lower for junior doctors than other professions 73.4% (95% CI, 60.9–83.7), but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.08). A total of 10/308 responses for management recommended the least restrictive option of direct delabelling or oral challenge, where the correct answer was skin prick testing or referral to an allergist.

Conclusion(s)

With further education the tool could be a key component of increased antimicrobial stewardship in rural areas in Australia.
A Brief Hystery of the Phantasm
Authors: Santiago Christopher
Published: April 2022

This article traces the radical devaluation of the phantasm throughout Western civilization. With the help of Nietzsche’s critical perspective, I develop a notion ofhysteryas the series of collective traumas repeated in each individual’s growth, whereby the phantasm changes value from psychosomatic interface, to evil incarnate, to disease of learning. Beginning with the Classical episteme represented by Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics, then moving up through the Christian era, I focus primarily on Enlightenment thinkers such as Hobbes and Bacon, who represent the last nail in the imagination’s coffin. The next section examines Nietzsche’s rediscovery of the phantasm and the theoretical contributions of post‐structuralism that follow in Nietzsche’s wake. Juxtaposing Bataille and Deleuze, I look at Deleuze’s early enthusiasm and ultimate betrayal of the phantasm, and I posit Bataille’s emphasis on the affective force of the mythological phantasm as an insurrection to reclaim our experience and life along with it. The article ends with speculation, offering Bruno’s art of memory as an ontic and epistemic alternative to dominant Western hystery, other pasts opening to other possible futures, an ungrounding that paradoxically leads to a restoration of the human house in a re‐enchanted cosmos.
Mutational spectrum of ATRX aberrations in neuroblastoma and associated patient and tumor characteristics
Authors: van Gerven Michael R. , Bozsaky Eva , Matser Yvette A. H. , Vosseberg Julian , Taschner‐Mandl Sabine , Koster Jan , Tytgat Godelieve A. M. , Molenaar Jan J. , van den Boogaard Marlinde
Published: April 2022

Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial solid tumor in children. The chromatin remodeler ATRX is frequently mutated in high‐risk patients with a poor prognosis. Although many studies have reported ATRX aberrations and the associated clinical characteristics in neuroblastoma, a comprehensive overview is currently lacking. In this study, we extensively characterize the mutational spectrum of ATRX aberrations in neuroblastoma tumors reported in previous studies and present an overview of patient and tumor characteristics. We collected the data of a total of 127 neuroblastoma patients and three cell lines with ATRX aberrations originating from 20 papers. We subdivide the ATRX aberrations into nonsense, missense, and multiexon deletions (MEDs) and show that 68% of them are MEDs. Of these MEDs, 75% are predicted to be in‐frame. Furthermore, we identify a missense mutational hotspot region in the helicase domain. We also confirm that all three ATRX mutation types are more often identified in patients diagnosed at an older age, but still approximately 40% of the patients are aged 5 years or younger at diagnosis. Surprisingly, we found that 11q deletions are enriched in neuroblastomas with ATRX deletions compared to a reference cohort, but not in neuroblastomas with ATRX point mutations. Taken together, our data emphasizes a distinct ATRX mutation spectrum in neuroblastoma, which should be considered when studying molecular phenotypes and therapeutic strategies.
Discovery of two novel ALKBH5 selective inhibitors that exhibit uncompetitive or competitive type and suppress the growth activity of glioblastoma multiforme
Authors: Takahashi Hikaru , Hase Hiroaki , Yoshida Takuya , Tashiro Junki , Hirade Yoshihiro , Kitae Kaori , Tsujikawa Kazutake
Published: April 2022

A group of RNA methylation enzymes is currently of interest as a new target for cancer therapy. Alpha‐ketoglutarate‐dependent dioxygenase B (AlkB) homolog 5 (ALKBH5) is an N6‑methyladenosine (m6A) demethylation enzyme, and by high‐throughput screening from pure small molecule compounds, we identified two novel inhibitors, Ena15 and Ena21, against it. Each compound showed either uncompetitive or competitive inhibition for 2‐oxoglutarate (2OG). In addition, Ena21 had little inhibitory activity for fat mass and obesity‐associated protein (FTO), which is another N6‑methyladenosine demethylation enzyme, while Ena15 enhanced the demethylase activity of FTO. The predicted binding poses of both compounds with the crystal structure of ALKBH5 (PDB ID: 4NRO) were comparable with these observations pertaining to the interaction of the 2OG catalytic site in this enzyme kinetics. Furthermore, either knockdown of ALKBH5 or inhibition with Ena15 or Ena21 inhibited cell proliferation of glioblastoma multiforme‐derived cell lines, decreased cell population in the synthesis phase of the cell cycle, increased m6A RNA level, and stabilized FOXM1 mRNA. Based on these results, Ena15 and Ena21 were found to be potential candidates that might help in further research into the biological function of ALKBH5.
How children revise their beliefs in light of reasons
Authors: Schleihauf Hanna , Herrmann Esther , Fischer Julia , Engelmann Jan M.
Published: April 2022

We investigate how the ability to respond appropriately to reasons provided in discourse develops in young children. In Study 1 (N = 58, Germany, 26 girls), 4‐ and 5‐, but not 3‐year‐old children, differentiated good from bad reasons. In Study 2 (N = 131, Germany, 64 girls), 4‐ and 5‐year‐old children considered both the strength of evidence for their initial belief and the quality of socially provided reasons for an alternative view when deciding whether to change their minds. Study 3 (N = 80, the United States, 42 girls, preregistered) shows that 4‐ and 5‐year‐old children also consider meta‐reasons (reasons about reasons) in their belief revision. These results suggest that by age 4, children possess key critical thinking capacities for participating in public discourse.
Association between moderate to severe atopic dermatitis and lifestyle factors in the Dutch general population
Authors: Zhang Junfen , Loman Laura , Oldhoff Marja , Schuttelaar Marie L. A.
Published: April 2022

Background

Studies on the association between severity of atopic dermatitis (AD) and lifestyle factors in adults have not been conducted in the Netherlands to date.

Aim

To explore the association between moderate to severe AD and lifestyle factors in adults in the Dutch general population.

Methods

We conducted this cross-sectional study within the Lifelines Cohort Study by sending a digital AD questionnaire to 135 950 adults in 2020. We extracted data on lifestyle factors from baseline, collected between 2006 and 2013. We analysed the association between lifestyle factors and presence of AD of any severity and of moderate to severe AD, using binary logistic regression and linear regression models.

Results

We enrolled 56 896 participants (mean age 55.8 years, 39.7% males). The lifetime prevalence of self-reported physician-diagnosed AD was 9.1%, and the point prevalence of any AD and of moderate to severe AD was 3.3% and 2.3%, respectively. We found that moderate to severe AD was associated with smoking habit of > 15 pack-years, alcohol consumption of > 2 drinks per day, chronic stress, Class I obesity, and both shorter and longer sleep duration. Moreover, we found dose–response associations with increases in smoking pack-years and level of chronic stress. We observed no associations with abdominal obesity, physical activity, diet quality or a vegetarian/vegan diet.

Conclusion

We found associations between moderate to severe AD and some modifiable lifestyle factors. Our findings indicate that more screening and counselling for lifestyle factors, particularly smoking, alcohol use, stress, obesity and sleep disturbances, appears warranted in patients with moderate to severe AD. Further longitudinal studies are required to better characterize the direction of these associations and to develop strategies for prevention.
Restored oyster reefs match multiple functions of natural reefs within a decade
Authors: Smith Rachel S. , Lusk Bo , Castorani Max C. N.
Published: April 2022

Global declines of foundation species have reduced ecological function at population, community, and ecosystem levels. Restoration of foundation species promises to counter such losses, despite unknown recovery timelines, undefined benchmarks, and uncertainty about whether restored ecosystems approximate natural ones. Here, we demonstrate through a 15‐year large‐scale experiment in coastal Virginia, USA, that restored oyster reefs can quickly recover multiple ecological functions and match natural reefs. Specifically, abundances of oysters and a key crab mesopredator on restored reefs equaled reference reefs in approximately 6 years, indicating that restoration can initiate rapid, sustained recovery of foundation species and associated consumers. As reefs matured and accrued biomass, they became more temporally stable, suggesting that restoration can increase resilience and may stabilize those ecosystem processes that scale with foundation species biomass. Together, these results demonstrate that restoration can catalyze rapid recovery of imperiled coastal foundation species, reclaim lost community interactions, and help reverse decades of degradation.
The role of the skin microbiome in atopic dermatitis – correlations and consequences
Authors: Fölster‐Holst Regina
Published: April 2022

The physical barrier function of the skin is significantly supported by the (epi‐)dermal immune system and the skin’s own microbiome. Atopic dermatitis is characterized by an imbalance of all these three factors. The skin microbiome establishes itself immediately after birth and plays an important role in the development and maintenance of immune homeostasis. The clinical picture of atopic dermatitis shows, among other things, changes in the skin microbiome. Particularly during an acute phase, a strongly reduced bacterial diversity as well as the dominance of a single pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus, is observed. Staphylococcus aureus exacerbates the inflammatory process; furthermore, the bacteria produce proteases and toxins that further weaken the already severely compromised barrier function of the skin of patients with atopic dermatitis. However, knowledge of dermal dysbiosis also yields new treatment options for the therapy of the disease. In particular, the application of active bacteria represents a direct influence on the skin microbiome. Results of initial clinical studies on various approaches demonstrate promising results; this article provides an overview of work in this area.
Effects of irradiation, restoration and crown fracture type on the maximum load to fracture traumatized incisors: An ex vivo study
Authors: Celik Dursun Pelin , Sengul Fatih , Yilmaz Yucel , Sezen Orhan
Published: April 2022

Background/Aims

Radiotherapy makes teeth prone to tooth fractures. However, the relationship between radiotherapy and maximum load to fracture teeth that suffered a crown fracture is not fully understood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of fracture type, radiation dose, fracture time, and their interactions on maximum load to fracture irradiated teeth.

Material and Methods

A total of 140 permanent incisors were divided into two fracture type groups (uncomplicated and complicated) each of which included seven radiation dose subgroups (0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60). The test groups were exposed to high‐energy X‐ray at 2 Gy/day, 5 days/week for a total dose of 10–60 Gy. Control groups were not irradiated. The load where the specimen started to break was obtained two different times. The 1st fracture was performed after radiation therapy, and the 2nd fracture was performed after the restoration of these samples.

Results

Fracture type had no effect on the maximum load to fracture. In contrast, the maximum load to fracture teeth decreased with increasing radiation doses. Maximum load to fracture the restored teeth was lower than the 1st fracture results. The general linear model procedure revealed a significant interaction between radiation dose and fracture time. Similarly, there was a significant interaction between the fracture type, radiotherapy dose, and fracture time. Maximum load values of teeth with complicated crown fractures restored with fiber posts and composite were not affected by radiation.

Conclusion

Teeth that have been subjected to radiotherapy have an increased risk of fracture during dental trauma. However, restoration of the irradiated teeth with fiber posts and composite resin did not affect the maximum load required to fracture them.
Rethinking Agency: Addressing the Complexity of Gun Violence and Education
Authors: Deane Samantha
Published: April 2022

Addressing the problem of rampage school gun violence, this article aims to problematize how we think about agency, in this case when we assign agency to individual shooters but not to networks or objects. In it, Samantha Deane, working within the new materialist and critical vein of pragmatism, situates agency as both limited and widely distributed. She also draws on Bruno Latour to explore new materialist agency and to explain what it would mean to say things are “agentic.” Then, connecting the work of Michel Foucault and Donna Haraway, she examines how we might account for the productive power of social gender norms in the actor network. Finally, Deane returns to the implications of shared agency by looking at how teachers are trained to carry a gun. She claims that the aim of civic education ought to be the development of a capacity to act within and on our shared and limited agency, in sum, to share responsibility.
Solidarity and mutual aid: Women organizing the “visible hand” urban commons
Authors: Łapniewska Zofia
Published: April 2022

The involvement of women in the organization and functioning of voluntary self‐help groups and their activity in the forums of these groups on social media during the COVID‐19 pandemic is surprisingly high. In Poland, the share of women involved in the “visible hand” groups was 80 percent. This article is based on the theoretical considerations of solidarity and mutual aid and points to the nexus of women and urban commons. It also presents the results of empirical research, based on mixed methods, devoted to the motivations of members to join affinity groups of this kind in the era of the pandemic as well as their expectations and the perceived benefits and dangers/threats. The obtained results contradict the stereotypical assumption that the high level of participation of women in self‐help groups is related to the reproductive work they perform and the most important motivation for them is community building. There is also a finding related to women's agency, namely that all contemporary social movements mobilize a greater percentage of women. The members of the affinity groups surveyed see numerous benefits from their actions, both for others and for themselves (especially in psychological and social dimensions), and the most frequently indicated danger is dishonesty. The results of this research are an important contribution to both the theories of urban commons and informal organization of care. At the same time, the presented analysis of groups and their emotions, needs and calls for action may serve as an inspiration for both international comparative research and the very communities that are stuck up in crises (both current and those yet to come).
Has the COVID‐19 pandemic changed gender‐ and parental‐status‐specific differences in working from home? Panel evidence from Germany
Authors: Abendroth Anja‐Kristin , Lott Yvonne , Hipp Lena , Müller Dana , Sauermann Armin , Carstensen Tanja
Published: April 2022

Has COVID‐19 changed gender‐ and parental‐status‐specific differences in working from home? To answer this question, we used data from the Institute for Employment Research High‐Frequency Online Personal Panel collected in Germany in the early stages of the pandemic (May–August 2020). Regression analyses revealed changes in pre‐pandemic gender‐ and parental‐status‐specific differences in remote working—not only when strict social distancing measures were in place, but also after they were lifted: Fathers were no longer more likely than childless men and women to work remotely, and women were no longer more likely than men to work more hours from home when using this arrangement. Further, the results suggest that cultural barriers in organizations to working from home—which were especially prevalent for mothers before the pandemic—have decreased.
‘He or she maybe doesn't know there is such a thing as a review’: A qualitative investigation exploring barriers and facilitators to accessing medication reviews from the perspective of people from ethnic minority communities
Authors: Robinson Anna , Sile Laura , Govind Thorrun , Guraya Harpreet Kaur , O'Brien Nicola , Harris Vicki , Pilkington Guy , Todd Adam , Husband Andy
Published: April 2022

Introduction

Regular reviews of medications, including prescription reviews and adherence reviews, are vital to support pharmacological effectiveness and optimize health outcomes for patients. Despite being more likely to report a long‐term illness that requires medication when compared to their white counterparts, individuals from ethnic minority communities are less likely to engage with regular medication reviews, with inequalities negatively affecting their access. It is important to understand what barriers may exist that impact the access of those from ethnic minority communities and to identify measures that may act to facilitate improved service accessibility for these groups.

Methods

Semi‐structured interviews were conducted between June and August 2021 using the following formats as permitted by governmental COVID‐19 restrictions: in person, over the telephone or via video call. Perspectives on service accessibility and any associated barriers and facilitators were discussed. Interviews were audio‐recorded and transcribed verbatim. Reflexive thematic analysis enabled the development of themes. QSR NVivo (Version 12) facilitated data management. Ethical approval was obtained from the Health Research Authority (ref: 21/HRA/1426).

Results

In total 20 participants from ethnic minority communities were interviewed; these participants included 16 UK citizens, 2 refugees and 2 asylum seekers, and represented a total of 5 different ethnic groups. Three themes were developed from the data regarding the perceived barriers and facilitators affecting access to medication reviews and identified approaches to improve the accessibility of such services for ethnic minority patients. These centred on (1) building knowledge and understanding about medication reviews; (2) delivering medication review services; and (3) appreciating the lived experience of patients.

Conclusion

The results of this study have important implications for addressing inequalities that affect ethnic minority communities. Involving patients and practitioners to work collaboratively in coproduction approaches could enable better design, implementation and delivery of accessible medication review services that are culturally competent.

Patient or Public Contribution

The National Institute for Health Research Applied Research Collaboration and Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement group at Newcastle University supported the study design and conceptualization. Seven patient champions inputted to ensure that the research was conducted, and the findings were reported, with cultural sensitivity.