bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Fabrication of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films on flexible polyimide substrates by sputtering and post-sulfurization
Authors: Xu Jiaxiong , Cao Zhongming , Yang Yuanzheng , Xie Zhiwei
Published: September 2014

Flexible Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films are more advantageous than those on rigid glass substrates. In this study, vacuum-based magnetron sputtering was utilized to fabricate CZTS thin films on flexible polyimide substrates. Zn/Sn/Cu precursors were sputtered and then sulfurized. The influences of sulfurization temperature on the structural, compositional, morphological, electrical, and optical properties of the fabricated thin films were analyzed. The experimental results show that the CZTS structures form on the polyimide substrates after sulfurization. The crystallinity of CZTS enhances and the secondary phases in the thin films decrease with increasing sulfurization temperature. Single-phase CZTS thin films are obtained for sulfurization temperatures reaching 450 °C. The compositions of the fabricated thin films are Cu-poor and Zn-rich. The fabricated CZTS thin films show p-type conductivity. The direct optical band gaps of the thin films range from 1.51 eV to 1.55 eV. The absorption coefficients of these films are larger than 1 × 104 cm−1 above the band gap edge. The experimental results reveal the feasibility of the deposition of CZTS thin films on polyimide substrates by vacuum-based methods. The fabricated thin films can suitably function as absorbers for solar cell applications.
Evidence for close side-chain packing in an early protein folding intermediate previously assumed to be a molten globule
Authors: Rosen Laura E. , Connell Katelyn B. , Marqusee Susan
Published: September 2014

Significance

Molten globules—defined as compact protein conformations with significant secondary structure but only loosely packed tertiary structure—have been hypothesized to be general folding intermediates. In this work we investigate one folding intermediate long thought to be a molten globule and find significant evidence that it likely has a well-folded region, with closely packed tertiary structure. These results suggest that the evidence for moltenness in other protein folding intermediates should be revisited and that even for fairly simple, small proteins, exclusion of water can occur before the rate-limiting step to folding.
Manlleus de l’anglès / English loanwords
Authors: Gené-Gil Maria
Published: September 2014

A very productive mechanism to create neologisms in Catalan is that of borrowing from other languages, especially from English, due to its condition of lingua franca. In this chapter we analyze the neologisms created by English loanwords, detected between 2008 and 2010 in general written media, which total 2,322. We present a diatopic study of this morphological process, focusing on the differences and similarities between the different Catalan dialectal modalities. Although there were few differences in the neologisms created from English loanwords among the different nodes of the NEOXOC network, we found some noteworthy similarities and particularities of this type of words among territories, especially regarding frequency and thematic areas. Loanwords were about 10–15% of total neologisms in each node, with the exception of Girona and Lleida, where the percentages were above 20%. Regarding repetition and frequency, most English loanwords were hapaxes, and territorial differences in this sense were scarce. More specifically, blog was the most frequent neologism created by borrowing from English, and was found in every node, as well as play-off, lobby, ska and spa, which were also between the most frequent ones in every node. It was in thematic areas where most differences between the nodes arose, which showed that denominative needs were greatly affected by the circumstances relevant to each zone. Although sports was the thematic area to which the majority of the most frequent neologisms belonged, in Andorra this area reached 80%, where most of these words were related to snow sports. ICT and music were also very productive overall. It is clear that the huge presence of the English language in these thematic areas is the reason why they were the most frequent in the case of English loanwords. Surprisingly, we found very few instances of expressive English loanwords, which may be accounted for by the fact that the publications analyzed used a standard model of language. To sum up, this preliminary study on neologisms created by English loanwords allows us to observe some tendencies that should be confirmed in future research by conducting a more profound analysis with a bigger corpus, especially by focusing on the hapaxes of each territory, since they form the majority of the data.
Language input and language learning
Authors: Pierce Lara J. , Genesee Fred
Published: September 2014

In this chapter we discuss how input during joint attention (JA) interactions between parents and children may vary in ways pertinent to language development in simultaneous bilinguals. In particular we discuss mother-father differences, exceptionally relevant in bilingual families where one parent may be the primary source of input for a given language. We illustrate the need to examine this interaction by presenting research on internationally-adopted (IA) children. While clearly not simultaneous bilinguals, IA children are relevant insofar as these children, like bilinguals, have reduced exposure to their new language. This, in turn, might affect the way parents verbally interact with their children, highlighting the importance of examining the role of input in simultaneous bilingual acquisition from an interactional perspective.
French-English bilingual children’s sensitivity to child-level and language-level input factors in morphosyntactic acquisition
Authors: Paradis Johanne , Tremblay Antoine , Crago Martha
Published: September 2014

This chapter presents three studies from a research program investigating how French-English bilingual children’s morphosyntactic acquisition is influenced by child-level input factors such as bilingual versus monolingual learning, and variation in home input among bilinguals, as well as language-level input factors such as the token/type frequency and distributional consistency of morphosyntactic constructions. Two existing studies from this program found sensitivity to these input factors in 4-year-olds’ acquisition of past tense morphology in both French and English (Paradis, Nicoladis, Crago, & Genesee 2011) and in 6-year-olds’ acquisition of bound and free verb morphology in English (Paradis 2010). A new study reported in this chapter examined the French morphosyntax of bilingual 6-year-olds as compared to 11-year-old bilingual children and 6-year-old monolingual French-speaking children. Children were given both elicitation and grammaticality judgement tasks probing their abilities with French direct object clitics and a control structure, definite articles. Similar to the previous studies, differences between monolinguals and bilinguals, and among bilinguals, varied according to home input factors and morphosyntactic construction; however, most differences were neutralized in the older bilingual group. The final section discusses results from all three studies that point to the combined influence of multiple sources of input variation on bilingual morphosyntactic acquisition.
Climate change, plant traits and invasion in natural and agricultural ecosystems.
Authors: Blumenthal D. M. , Kray J. A.
Published: September 2014

Invasive plant species often thrive in new and resource-rich environments and may therefore benefit from global changes that create such environments. Global change effects on invasion risk will depend both on the environment in which competition between invasive and resident plant species occurs and on the physiological and life history traits of the competing species. In agricultural environments, risks include the northward movement of many problematic invasive species, decreased biotic resistance to invasion with extreme climatic events and strong global change responses of particular invasive species. However, due to their similar rapid resource acquisition and growth strategies, invasive species and crops may respond similarly to changes that increase resources. Furthermore, management adaptations, such as planting crops or varieties suited to new climate conditions, will help to maintain biotic resistance to invasion in crops. In natural ecosystems, global changes that increase resources rapidly may favour fast-growing invasive plant species and inhibit the slower-growing native species adapted to current climate conditions. In addition, management options to help native species compete with invasive species in novel environments, such as assisted migration, are relatively limited. Thus, with the predicted increases in CO2, precipitation (in some regions) and extreme events, natural ecosystems may be particularly vulnerable to invasion.
Ragweed in Eastern Europe.
Authors: Makra L. , Matyasovszky I. , Deák Á. J.
Published: September 2014

Ambrosia artemisiifolia, common ragweed, is an invasive plant species whose introduction and spread in Eastern Europe has resulted in enormous environmental and economic losses in agriculture and public health in recent decades. The aim of this chapter is: (i) to provide an overview on the origin and distribution of Ambrosia from North America to Europe, with special focus on Eastern Europe, particularly Hungary; and (ii) to identify and quantify those human-related factors on either a regional or global basis that may act to facilitate the spread and pollen production of this plant species. The chapter shows that socio-economic changes, particularly in agriculture following the fall of the Soviet Union, may be factors in contributing to the degree of soil disturbance necessary for ragweed establishment and spread. In addition, a temporal analysis is conducted of ragweed pollen characteristics and local meteorological factors from Szeged, Hungary (located in the biogeographical region of Hungary with the highest recorded ragweed pollen counts). This analysis demonstrates that most of the A. artemisiifolia pollen is from local (<100 km) sources on non-rainy days, but that recent anthropogenic changes in surface temperatures have likely lengthened both the growing season and the time of pollen exposure for common ragweed (i.e. delay in the onset of the autumn frost) in this location. Overall, both ongoing changes in land use and anthropogenic changes in climate are likely to continue to drive the spread of this invasive species, with negative consequences, particularly for allergic rhinitis, in Eastern Europe.
Climate change and alien species in South Africa.
Authors: Irlich U. M. , Richardson D. M. , Davies S. J. , Chown S. L.
Published: September 2014

South Africa has a long history of human-mediated introductions of species from all major taxonomic groups. Close to 9000 alien terrestrial plant species have been introduced, and all of the country's biomes have already been invaded. Invasive species are threatening the country's ecosystems in numerous ways, but the effect of climate change on these invasions is predicted to be complex and cascading and remains poorly understood. The relationship between climate and invasive species biology is well established, and there is no question that climate change will influence the ecology of invasive species significantly. If left un-managed, these effects are expected to increase substantially. Besides terrestrial plants, numerous animals have also invaded the country's landscapes. South Africa's freshwater ecosystems have been invaded by both alien as well as extralimital introductions (indigenous species outside their historical extent of occurrence). The status of invasion in the marine environment remains poorly studied, and knowledge of the status of invasions and predictions regarding the impacts of climate change remain largely speculative. This chapter highlights the current status of invasions in South Africa and discusses some of the direct and indirect effects climate change is likely to have on these invasions.
Climate change and 'Alien Species in National Parks': revisited.
Authors: Stohlgren T. J. , Resnik J. R. , Plumb G. E.
Published: September 2014

Many units comprising the National Park Service system in the USA were established to protect native species and historical landscapes and scenery, and to provide public enjoyment of the same, as long as the natural area remained 'unimpaired for future generations'. However, a growing human population and a global economy have spawned a 40-fold increase in global trade and transportation since 1950. This created what may turn out to be the most significant challenge to Park Service management: the invasion of alien (i.e. exotic, non-native) plants, animals and diseases into 'protected areas'. Climate change may compound the problem by interacting with other existing ecosystem stressors to affect the distribution, abundance and impact of invasive species. Scientists' warnings have not been entirely ignored, but harmful invasions may be outpacing effective managerial responses. This chapter revisits a paper published in 1995 by D.B. Houston and E.G. Schreiner entitled 'Alien Species in National Parks: Drawing Lines in Space and Time', to demonstrate that despite efforts to contain alien plants, animals and diseases, the number and abundance of conspicuous invaders may be increasing. New and spreading alien species are directly affecting native species abundance, their genetic integrity and the management of adjacent lands, and human health. While climate change may add an additional or interacting threat to park resources, we found that at park scales and over short periods (17 years in this case), it has become increasingly difficult to achieve the primary mission of the National Park Service, for example protecting native species and ecosystems for present and future generations, due to the continuing invasions of alien organisms largely resulting from increased trade and transportation.
Adapting to invasions in a changing world: invasive species as an economic resource.
Authors: Barnes M. A. , Deines A. M. , Gentile R. M. , Grieneisen L. E.
Published: September 2014

Management and policy decisions regarding biological invasions and other aspects of global change such as the changing climate have the potential to influence one another. Recently, interest in harvest as an invasive species management strategy has surged. Researchers have speculated about the potential positive (e.g. population and impact reduction, economic losses recouped through new profits) and negative (e.g. generation of economic incentives to encourage further introductions) consequences of such management strategies, but few experimental analyses exist despite the fact that real-world 'experiments' in harvesting invasive species continue to accrue. This chapter provides the first comprehensive list of the many ways humankind has adapted to the presence of invasive species through harvest and considers trends that emerge from this list. The spectrum ranges from collection of feral invasive populations to cultivation of potential invaders as crops, and harvested invasive species serve a variety of purposes ranging from biofuels to foods. The costs of invasion and benefit from harvest can be difficult to quantify, and this difficulty is compounded by the fact that costs and benefits are often incurred by different stakeholders. Climate and other aspects of global change accompanying invasive species harvest have rarely been taken into account, and the climate effects of invasive species harvest should become an explicit consideration of harvest strategies moving forward. Ecologists, economists, environmental managers and stakeholders must work together to ensure the successful and responsible application of ongoing harvests and to inform future efforts.
Nonlethal Sex Determination of the Greater Amberjack, with Direct Application to Sex Ratio Analysis of the Gulf of Mexico Stock
Authors: Smith Geoffrey H. , Murie Debra J. , Parkyn Daryl C.
Published: September 2014

Stock assessments for the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) Greater Amberjack Seriola dumerili continue to designate the stock as overfished and undergoing overfishing, despite increasing regulatory measures. Knowledge of sex specific spatial distribution and fishing mortality may contribute to our understanding of the stock's overexploitation, especially since Greater Amberjacks may be subject to sex specific mortality resulting from minimum size regulations. Currently, the sex ratio of the stock is assumed to be 1:1. An average and range of sex ratios were estimated for the Gulf stock based on sampling of fish landed in the recreational and commercial fisheries and based on released fish that were nonlethally sexed during a tagging study of sex specific movement patterns and release mortality. The nonlethal method of sex determination was developed based on external features of the urogenital region; urogenital catheterization was used to validate the external sexing and to collect oocyte samples for determining maturity stages of females during the spawning season. Of the 238 fish (108 males and 130 females) for which sex was verified, only one smaller female was incorrectly sexed. Urogenital catheterization identified females that were spawning or that would likely spawn in the upcoming spawning season, but no differentiation could be made between immature and resting females. Analysis of published data sets suggested that the Gulf stock has an overall female skewed sex ratio, with estimates ranging from 1:1.7 to 1:2.5 (male : female), while the nonlethal sexing data from the current study suggest that the overall sex ratio is slightly male skewed (1:0.8) in some regions. All studies report a female skewed sex ratio of 1:2.3, on average, for 1,000 mm FL and larger fish in the Gulf. Sex ratios that deviate from the assumed 1:1 ratio should be incorporated into future assessments of the Gulf Greater Amberjack stock to investigate potential consequences for stock status and management.

Received December 30, 2013; accepted May 8, 2014
Between cynicism and idiocy: deflationary realism and grubby fingernails in politics
Authors: Osborne Thomas
Published: September 2014

This article is intended as a deflationary contribution to the well-known debate on politics and dirty hands. Drawing on the work of Bernard Williams, the paper argues that representative and democratic kinds of politics typically impose particular kinds of ethical demands and challenges on those agents who pursue them. Rather than over-dramatising this situation, however, this political predicament might be regarded as being in some continuity with problems of strategic action and agency in general, entailing for instance various kinds of necessity to do with pressures of time, the interactive and strategic aspects of action, the demand for promises under circumstances of publicity and so on. This is not to say that there are no differences between political and other forms of agency; it is rather that, in a spirit of deflationary realism, we need to find ways of developing more realistic and workable expectations as to the conduct and efficacy of politics in a liberal representative democracy.
‘Society on its own’: the sociological promise today
Authors: Sulkunen Pekka
Published: September 2014

Several prominent sociologists believe that the concept of society has become inapplicable because of its Enlightenment roots in belief in progress and rationality. This article assesses this claim. The Enlightenment critique of Hobbes's account of order showed that social order in modern societies is possible without an external sovereign state. The legitimacy of the political order is derived from the social, not vice versa. Drawing on Koselleck and Donzelot the article discusses the totalitarian potential of democratic societies, and argues, first, that sociology has contributed essentially to politics of representation. Secondly, the article stresses the recent, state-driven but individualistic progress of modern societies towards autonomy and intimacy. Today these values are no longer ideals but taken for granted principles of legitimation of the social order including the state. These principles are contradictory and create conflicts. Political legitimacy can only be maintained respecting the autonomy and right to intimacy of citizens, but on the other hand autonomy and intimacy can only be assured with the help of the state. Understanding these contradictions is essential for understanding social order. The promise of sociology today involves an effort to contribute to this understanding, holding on to the Enlightenment idea of society on its own.
Estimating gene expression and codon specific translational efficiencies, mutation biases, and selection coefficients from genomic data alone.
Authors: Gilchrist Michael , Chen Wei-Chen , Shah Premal , Landerer Cedric L. , Zaretzki Russell
Published: September 2014

Extracting biologically meaningful information from the continuing flood of genomic data is a major challenge in the life sciences. Codon usage bias (CUB) is a general feature of most genomes and is thought to reflect the effects of both natural selection for efficient translation and mutation bias. Here we present a mechanistically interpretable, Bayesian model (ROC SEMPPR) to extract biologically meaningful information from patterns of CUB within a genome. ROC SEMPPR, is grounded in population genetics and allows us to separate the contributions of mutational biases and natural selection against translational inefficiency on a gene by gene and codon by codon basis. Until now, the primary disadvantage of similar approaches was the need for genome scale measurements of gene expression. Here we demonstrate that it is possible to both extract accurate estimates of codon specific mutation biases and translational efficiencies while simultaneously generating accurate estimates of gene expression, rather than requiring such information. We demonstrate the utility of ROC SEMPPR using theSaccharomyces cerevisiaeS288c genome. When we compare our model fits with previous approaches we observe an exceptionally high agreement between estimates of both codon specific parameters and gene expression levels (ρ > 0.99 in all cases). We also observe strong agreement between our parameter estimates and those derived from alternative datasets. For example, our estimates of mutation bias and those from mutational accumulation experiments are highly correlated (ρ=0.95). Our estimates of codon specific translational inefficiencies are tRNA copy number based estimates of ribosome pausing time (ρ = 0.64), and mRNA and ribosome profiling footprint based estimates of gene expression (ρ=0.53-0.74) are also highly correlated, thus supporting the hypothesis that selection against translational inefficiency is an important force driving the evolution of CUB. Surprisingly, we find that for particular amino acids, codon usage in highly expressed genes can still be largely driven by mutation bias and that failing to take mutation bias into account can lead to the misidentification of an amino acid's `optimal' codon. In conclusion, our method demonstrates that an enormous amount of biologically important information is encoded within genome scale patterns of codon usage, accessing this information does not require gene expression measurements, but instead carefully formulated biologically interpretable models.
Wilms tumor protein recognizes 5-carboxylcytosine within a specific DNA sequence
Authors: Hashimoto Hideharu , Olanrewaju Yusuf Olatunde , Zheng Yu , Wilson Geoffrey G. , Zhang Xing , Cheng Xiaodong
Published: September 2014

In mammalian DNA, cytosine occurs in several chemical forms, including unmodified cytosine (C), 5-methylcytosine (5mC), 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), 5-formylcytosine (5fC), and 5-carboxylcytosine (5caC). 5mC is a major epigenetic signal that acts to regulate gene expression. 5hmC, 5fC, and 5caC are oxidized derivatives that might also act as distinct epigenetic signals. We investigated the response of the zinc finger DNA-binding domains of transcription factors early growth response protein 1 (Egr1) and Wilms tumor protein 1 (WT1) to different forms of modified cytosine within their recognition sequence, 5′-GCG(T/G)GGGCG-3′. Both displayed high affinity for the sequence when C or 5mC was present and much reduced affinity when 5hmC or 5fC was present, indicating that they differentiate primarily oxidized C from unoxidized C, rather than methylated C from unmethylated C. 5caC affected the two proteins differently, abolishing binding by Egr1 but not by WT1. We ascribe this difference to electrostatic interactions in the binding sites. In Egr1, a negatively charged glutamate conflicts with the negatively charged carboxylate of 5caC, whereas the corresponding glutamine of WT1 interacts with this group favorably. Our analyses shows that zinc finger proteins (and their splice variants) can respond in modulated ways to alternative modifications within their binding sequence.
Metrics for comparison of crystallographic maps
Authors: Urzhumtsev Alexandre , Afonine Pavel V. , Lunin Vladimir Y. , Terwilliger Thomas C. , Adams Paul D.
Published: September 2014

Numerical comparison of crystallographic contour maps is used extensively in structure solution and model refinement, analysis and validation. However, traditional metrics such as the map correlation coefficient (map CC, real-space CC or RSCC) sometimes contradict the results of visual assessment of the corresponding maps. This article explains such apparent contradictions and suggests new metrics and tools to compare crystallographic contour maps. The key to the new methods is rank scaling of the Fourier syntheses. The new metrics are complementary to the usual map CC and can be more helpful in map comparison, in particular when only some of their aspects, such as regions of high density, are of interest.
Structural analysis of arabinose-5-phosphate isomerase fromBacteroides fragilisand functional implications
Authors: Chiu Hsiu-Ju , Grant Joanna C. , Farr Carol L. , Jaroszewski Lukasz , Knuth Mark W. , Miller Mitchell D. , Elsliger Marc-André , Deacon Ashley M. , Godzik Adam , Lesley Scott A. , Wilson Ian A.
Published: September 2014

The crystal structure of arabinose-5-phosphate isomerase (API) fromBacteroides fragilis(bfAPI) was determined at 1.7 Å resolution and was found to be a tetramer of a single-domain sugar isomerase (SIS) with an endogenous ligand, CMP-Kdo (cytidine 5′-monophosphate-3-deoxy-D-manno-oct-2-ulosonate), bound at the active site. API catalyzes the reversible isomerization of D-ribulose 5-phosphate to D-arabinose 5-phosphate in the first step of the Kdo biosynthetic pathway. Interestingly, the bound CMP-Kdo is neither the substrate nor the product of the reaction catalyzed by API, but corresponds to the end product in the Kdo biosynthetic pathway and presumably acts as a feedback inhibitor for bfAPI. The active site of each monomer is located in a surface cleft at the tetramer interface between three monomers and consists of His79 and His186 from two different adjacent monomers and a Ser/Thr-rich region, all of which are highly conserved across APIs. Structure and sequence analyses indicate that His79 and His186 may play important catalytic roles in the isomerization reaction. CMP-Kdo mimetics could therefore serve as potent and specific inhibitors of API and provide broad protection against many different bacterial infections.
Structures of human constitutive nitric oxide synthases
Authors: Li Huiying , Jamal Joumana , Plaza Carla , Pineda Stephanie Hai , Chreifi Georges , Jing Qing , Cinelli Maris A. , Silverman Richard B. , Poulos Thomas L.
Published: September 2014

Mammals produce three isoforms of nitric oxide synthase (NOS): neuronal NOS (nNOS), inducible NOS (iNOS) and endothelial NOS (eNOS). The overproduction of NO by nNOS is associated with a number of neurodegenerative disorders; therefore, a desirable therapeutic goal is the design of drugs that target nNOS but not the other isoforms. Crystallography, coupled with computational approaches and medicinal chemistry, has played a critical role in developing highly selective nNOS inhibitors that exhibit exceptional neuroprotective properties. For historic reasons, crystallography has focused on rat nNOS and bovine eNOS because these were available in high quality; thus, their structures have been used in structure–activity–relationship studies. Although these constitutive NOSs share more than 90% sequence identity across mammalian species for each NOS isoform, inhibitor-binding studies revealed that subtle differences near the heme active site in the same NOS isoform across species still impact enzyme–inhibitor interactions. Therefore, structures of the human constitutive NOSs are indispensible. Here, the first structure of human neuronal NOS at 2.03 Å resolution is reported and a different crystal form of human endothelial NOS is reported at 1.73 Å resolution.
A case study on the treatment of protein SIRAS data
Authors: Yao Deqiang , Zhang Tao , He Yao , Han Pu , Cherney Maia , Gu Yuanxin , Cygler Miroslaw , Fan Haifu
Published: September 2014

A case study has been made on the treatment of the SIRAS (single isomorphous replacement with anomalous scattering) data of the originally unknown protein LegC3N. An alternative treatment has been proposed which led to improved results in this particular test case. The treatment involves iterative direct-method SAD (single-wavelength anomalous diffraction) phasing and direct-method-aided model completion, both of which are implanted in theIPCAS(Iterative Protein Crystal-structure Automatic Solution) pipeline. Apart from the experimental data, a simulated SIRAS data set for LegC3N with the derivative data truncated to 5.0 Å resolution has also been tested. SAD phasing and phase/model extension inPHENIXwithout direct methods failed to solve the structure using these simulated SIRAS data. However, the procedure proposed here involving direct methods in both SAD phasing and phase/model extension led to a nearly complete structure model. This shows the potential ability of treating SIRAS data with a derivative diffracting to lower resolution.
Use of massively multiple merged data for low-resolution S-SAD phasing and refinement of flavivirus NS1
Authors: Akey David L. , Brown W. Clay , Konwerski Jamie R. , Ogata Craig M. , Smith Janet L.
Published: September 2014

An emergent challenge in macromolecular crystallography is the identification of the substructure from native anomalous scatterers in crystals that diffract to low to moderate resolution. Increasing the multiplicity of data sets has been shown to make previously intractable phasing problems solvable and to increase the useful resolution in model refinement. For theWest Nile virusnonstructural protein 1 (NS1), a protein of novel fold, the utility of exceptionally high multiplicity data is demonstrated both in solving the crystal structure from the anomalous scattering of the native S atoms and in extending the useful limits of resolution during refinement. A high-multiplicity data set from 18 crystals had sufficient anomalous signal to identify sulfur sites using data to 5.2 Å resolution. Phases calculated to 4.5 Å resolution and extended to 3.0 Å resolution were of sufficient quality for automated building of three-quarters of the final structure. Crystallographic refinement to 2.9 Å resolution proceeded smoothly, justifying the increase in resolution that was made possible by combining multiple data sets. The identification and exclusion of data from outlier crystals is shown to result in more robust substructure determination.
Insights into the binding of PARP inhibitors to the catalytic domain of human tankyrase-2
Authors: Qiu Wei , Lam Robert , Voytyuk Oleksandr , Romanov Vladimir , Gordon Roni , Gebremeskel Simon , Vodsedalek Jakub , Thompson Christine , Beletskaya Irina , Battaile Kevin P. , Pai Emil F. , Rottapel Robert , Chirgadze Nickolay Y.
Published: September 2014

The poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) family represents a new class of therapeutic targets with diverse potential disease indications. PARP1 and PARP2 inhibitors have been developed for breast and ovarian tumors manifesting double-stranded DNA-repair defects, whereas tankyrase 1 and 2 (TNKS1 and TNKS2, also known as PARP5a and PARP5b, respectively) inhibitors have been developed for tumors with elevated β-catenin activity. As the clinical relevance of PARP inhibitors continues to be actively explored, there is heightened interest in the design of selective inhibitors based on the detailed structural features of how small-molecule inhibitors bind to each of the PARP family members. Here, the high-resolution crystal structures of the human TNKS2 PARP domain in complex with 16 various PARP inhibitors are reported, including the compounds BSI-201, AZD-2281 and ABT-888, which are currently in Phase 2 or 3 clinical trials. These structures provide insight into the inhibitor-binding modes for the tankyrase PARP domain and valuable information to guide the rational design of future tankyrase-specific inhibitors.
The role of control systems in partner selection/evaluation processes in established distribution channels
Authors: Manuel Sanchez Vazquez Jose , Cuevas Rodriguez Gloria , Kekale Tauno
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the partner selection/evaluation processes in established distribution channels (DCs) and the role played by control systems (CS) over major changes in the internal complexity and the external uncertainty of the distribution network.

Design/methodology/approach

– The research is based on a longitudinal case study of a manufacturing firm and its outsourced DC.

Findings

– Over time, the manufacturer's market-focused strategy provoked the adoption through CS of more objective and formal selection processes. It was very clear in this case that while the growth of internal complexity indeed required changes towards formalisation, only the rapidly increasing environmental uncertainty in the 1990s required significantly more elaborate CS to evaluate partners.

Research limitations/implications

– Original longitudinal case – limitations typical for such design of study, e.g. not possible to expand the findings out of company type and historical periods.

Practical implications

– The process of selecting partners, because it is ongoing, requires a formal and active involvement from CS; no CS are indefinitely stable but must be developed whenever significant internal or environmental changes occur. The changes to counter internal complexity seem less elaborate than the changes required by external uncertainty.

Originality/value

– Original longitudinal case illustrates the screening and signalling mechanisms used by both parties to provide information to each other in three different internal complexity/environmental uncertainty scenarios.
An international learning typology: strategies and outcomes for internationalizing firms
Authors: Åkerman Niklas
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of heterogeneous strategies for new knowledge development in the internationalization processes of firms.

Design/methodology/approach

– A typology of international learning strategies is developed. The typology is supported by a case study of seven Swedish international firms that show heterogeneous strategies. The case study suggests links between learning strategies and international growth.

Findings

– The results suggest an international learning-strategy typology derived from extant theory on knowledge acquisition in internationalization, constituted by four types: Passive Learners, Endogenous Learners, Exogenous Learners, and Diversified Learners. The results further suggest that the typology is empirically relevant and, moreover, suggest a potential heterogeneity in outcomes for these strategies. The study suggests that there is a link between learning strategy and outcomes in terms of growth and international sales distribution.

Research limitations/implications

– The strategy for how firms learn when internationalizing has implications for the firm's international growth. The case-study design has limitations for generalizability and future quantitative validation is called for.

Practical implications

– Managers need to be aware of the consequences of their learning strategy for the internationalization performance. This study informs strategic decision making for how to learn from international markets.

Originality/value

– The results suggest a typology based on heterogeneity of international learning strategies and their consequences for internationalization.
The challenges facing international HRM in an increasingly globalised environment
Authors: J. Hurn Brian
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper to examine the responses that international HRM needs to make to the challenges it faces with increasing responsibilities in the globalised environment. It covers the key areas of recruitment, selection, training and retention and uses examples from the author's involvement in working with a major multinational in the recruitment of potential international managers.

Design/methodology/approach

– Analysis of the concerns expressed about an international career and the coping strategies offered by employers.

Findings

– The paper highlights the paramount aim of international companies to reduce failure on assignment overseas and maintain retention on return to the home country.

Research limitations/implications

– Analysis and review of current trends to meet challenges facing international HRM.

Practical implications

– The increased competition to recruit potential high quality international managers, to prepare them for overseas assignments to ensure successful appointments and to plan their repatriation and retention.

Originality/value

– Emphasises with real-life examples the key challenges and analyses what is being done to meet them.
Proactive learning culture
Authors: Gnizy Itzhak , E. Baker William , Grinstein Amir
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– Although small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) account for a significant portion of international trade, little is known about the role of strategic orientation culture in improving their foreign launch success. Three orientations – market, entrepreneurial, and learning are all related to organizational learning priorities and reflect a higher order dynamic capability (DC), proactive learning culture (PLC). The authors assert that PLC is particularly important to SMEs whose lack of market power and resources render them vulnerable in risky foreign market launch. Marketing program adaptation and local integration are examined as behavioral mediators of the impact of PLC on foreign market launch success. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– The DC framework guides the study. The authors employ a model with a higher order PLC, two mediating behaviors, and firm foreign market launch success to report on an empirical study of US SMEs that operate in foreign markets. The authors used hierarchical regression analysis and extensivepost hocanalyses/robustness checks.

Findings

– Consistent with the DC framework, SMEs’ foreign launch success is driven by higher and lower order behaviors. The impact of the higher order PLC construct was mediated by two lower order behaviors, marketing program adaptation and local integration. Notably, PLC's influence is stronger than the influence of any subset of its one/two/three first order components.

Practical implications

– SMEs need to pay attention to an array of organizational learning processes that combine to engender a PLC, which help optimize the deployment of more tangible, lower order behaviors required for foreign launch success.

Originality/value

– Introducing PLC as a DC that enables firms to proactively develop market-oriented, innovative capabilities using a knowledge-based approach. The elements of PLC reflect a more complete view of the role of learning in driving the assembly of lower order behaviors in foreign market launch, which requires both a market-oriented approach and the ability to innovate under conditions of uncertainty. While each element of PLC is valuable, the higher level impact of all three facilitates a more effective culture for those firms, which choose to enter new markets.
The effects of transformational leadership and ERP system self-efficacy on ERP system usage
Authors: Elkhani Naeimeh , Soltani Sheida , Nazir Ahmad Mohammad
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– During the past decade, there has been vast investment in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system packages, in addition to a significant increase in the importance of acceptance by users of the ERP system regarding the success or failure of ERP implementation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the external factors which influence ERP system acceptance. The work is motivated by the realization that transformational leadership (TL) and ERP system self-efficacy are critical external factors that can affect ERP system acceptance.

Design/methodology/approach

– A framework has been developed from a study of literature in the field of TL, ERP system self-efficacy and the technology acceptance model (TAM). A survey utilizing a questionnaire was used to collect data and a total of 151 usable responses were analyzed by using the partial least squares method.

Findings

– The results of the study indicate that TL can either directly or indirectly influence perceived usefulness via the assimilation of self-efficacy in a positive manner. Also, TL has been found to have a positive influence on perceived ease of use both directly and indirectly via application of self-efficacy measures.

Research limitations/implications

– The findings were drawn from two Iranian companies, hence the results are not necessarily generalizable to other nations and other cultures.

Practical implications

– Management should provide TL development programs for their ERP leaders and encourage them to implement transformation in a manner that could increase assimilation and application of self-efficacy when using the ERP system.

Originality/value

– The study can provide ERP managers with a better understanding of how they can use TL behavior and skills in motivating and enhancing employees’ self-efficacy in order to achieve ERP system usage success.
Expatriate adjustment: considerations for selection and training
Authors: Feitosa Jennifer , Kreutzer Christine , Kramperth Angela , S. Kramer William , Salas Eduardo
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to first, synthesize employee characteristics that have been shown to help expatriate adjustment into best practices that can aid in expatriate selection. Second, the authors aim to identify training design variables that can be implemented to not only increase learning and expatriate adjustment, but also to maximize the benefits of employee characteristics. Finally, the authors point out environmental factors that are often overlooked, but yet important influencing forces of expatriate adjustment.

Design/methodology/approach

– PsychINFO was searched using variations of the following terms: expatriate selection and expatriate training. For the selection criteria, the authors selected articles in which cross-cultural adjustment, expatriate performance, or learning was the dependent variable. Reference sections of these articles were then cross-referenced for additional support. Authors then double-coded every article independently to record variables, study methodology, and research results.

Findings

– The authors have identified cultural intelligence, learning orientation, technical KSAO's, and language skills to be the most significant antecedents of expatriate adjustment. Furthermore, the authors have found environmental factors (i.e. organizational, family, and interpersonal support) to play a crucial role in the adjustment process. The authors have also identified training factors (i.e. content, process, and elements) to be crucial, and the authors propose how these design variables further facilitate learning and adjustment.

Originality/value

– This manuscript contributes to the extant expatriate adjustment literature by providing a new, integrative framework. While the individual variables explored within the paper have been examined in past research, this manuscript is the first to offer a framework which integrates them to shape future research.
Examining the brand name – mark relationship in emerging markets
Authors: Klink Richard R , Athaide Gerard A.
Published: September 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this research is to investigate whether the brand name–mark sound symbolism relationship extends beyond US marketplaces to emerging markets. Sound symbolism research indicates that consistent brand name meaning can be conveyed across international marketplaces. Yet, prior work has not investigated whether visual branding elements provide consistent meaning across such contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

– To contrast effects across international contexts, we replicate both studies of Klink (2003) with bilingual subjects in Mumbai, India. Study 1 examined whether the sound symbolic relationship between brand name and brand mark holds in this emerging market. Study 2 investigated whether both the brand name and brand mark together can enhance brand meaning in this context.

Findings

– Study 1 finds support for the relationship between higher-frequency brand names and brand marks that are angular and smaller in size, with limited support regarding color. Study 2 finds a significant effect for brand marks and a marginally significant effect for brand names on conveying intended meaning.

Originality/value

– The authors confirm the relationship between the brand mark and brand name; however, color meaning may be less universal than prior theory and research indicates. In addition, the effect of the brand name on conveying sound symbolism meaning may be less important than visual branding elements in emerging markets. Hence, future research may wish to include additional branding elements in experimental stimuli when testing sound symbolism theory.
Disaggregating Activities of Daily Living Limitations for Predicting Nursing Home Admission
Authors: Fong Joelle H. , Mitchell Olivia S. , Koh Benedict S. K.
Published: September 2014

Objective

To examine whether disaggregated activities of daily living (ADL) limitations better predict the risk of nursing home admission compared to conventionally used ADL disability counts.

Data Sources

We used panel data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) for years 1998–2010. The HRS is a nationally representative survey of adults older than 50 years (n = 18,801).

Study Design

We fitted Cox regressions in a continuous time survival model with age at first nursing home admission as the outcome. Time‐varying ADL disability types were the key explanatory variables.

Principal Findings

Of the six ADL limitations, bathing difficulty emerged as the strongest predictor of subsequent nursing home placement across cohorts. Eating and dressing limitations were also influential in driving admissions among more recent cohorts. Using simple ADL counts for analysis yielded similar adjusted R2s; however, the amount of explained variance doubled when we allowed the ADL disability measures to time‐vary rather than remain static.

Conclusions

Looking beyond simple ADL counts can provide health professionals insights into which specific disability types trigger long‐term nursing home use. Functional disabilities measured closer in time carry more prognostic power than static measures.