bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Setting theory to work in history of education
Authors: Coloma Roland Sintos
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between theory and history, or more specifically the role and use of theory in the field of history of education. It will explore the following questions: What is theory, and what is it for? How do historians and, in particular, historians of education construe and use theory? And how do they respond to openly theoretical work? The author poses these questions in light of ongoing discussions in the field of history of education regarding the role, relevance, and utility of theory in historical research, analysis, and narratives.

Design/methodology/approach

The explicit use of theory in historical research is not altogether new, tracing an intellectual genealogy since the mid-1800s when disciplinary boundaries among academic fields were not so rigidly defined, developed and regulated. The paper analyzes three books that are geographically located in North America (USA), Australia, Europe (Great Britain) and Asia (India), thereby offering a transnational view of the use of theory in history of education. It also examines how historians of education respond to explicitly theoretical work by analyzing, as a case study, a 2011 special issue in History of Education Quarterly.

Findings

First, the paper delineates theory as a multidimensional concept and practice with varying and competing meanings and interpretations. Second, it examines three book-length historical studies of education that employ theoretical frameworks drawing from cultural, feminist poststructuralist and postcolonial approaches. The author’s analysis of these manuscripts reveals that historians of education who explicitly engage with theory pursue their research in reflexive, disruptive and generative modes. Lastly, it utilizes a recent scholarly exchange as a case study of how some historians of education respond to theoretically informed work. It highlights three lenses – reading with insistence, for resistance, and beyond – to understand the responses to the author’s paper on Foucault and poststructuralism.

Originality/value

Setting theory to work has a fundamentally transformative role to play in our thinking, writing and teaching as scholars, educators and students and in the productive re-imagining of history of education.
Bibles in State schools
Authors: Carden Clarissa
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the work of the Bible in State Schools League in Queensland during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, culminating in the 1910 referendum on religious education in Queensland government schools. Through examining its campaign and the statements of supporters and opponents this paper seeks to examine the role of the school in relation to morality in this early period of the Queensland history.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws upon archival material, parliamentary debates, materials published by the Bible in State Schools League and contemporaneous newspaper accounts. These data are thematically analysed.

Findings

There was widespread agreement within the early Queensland society that the school was a place for moral formation. The Bible in State Schools League highlighted the tensions in the relationship between morals and religion in relation to the school.

Research limitations/implications

This research problematises the notion that developments in education have followed a straight line from religiosity to secularisation.

Originality/value

Very little has been published to date about the Queensland Bible in State Schools League. This paper goes some way to filling this lacuna.
A breakdown of reformatory education: remembering Westbrook
Authors: Carden Clarissa
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Westbrook Farm Home for Boys in Queensland, Australia, existed in various forms for over 100 years. As such, it offers a valuable window into Australian approaches to managing and reforming boys through the twentieth century. The purpose of this paper is to examine its approach to reforming teenage boys during a period marked by a mass escape in 1961. It argues that the reformatory education initially intended was no longer tenable during this moment in history, and that this period represents a breakdown of that approach.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on material including newspaper reports, memoirs, and the report of an inquiry into an escape by inmates in 1961. These are analysed in order to construct a picture of the type of reformatory education during this period and the public and official responses to this.

Findings

Westbrook Farm Home for Boys was, during this period, an institution attempting to provide a reformatory education at a historical moment when such an education was no longer viewed as appropriate means of addressing the criminal behaviour of youths. This, combined with the leadership of a domineering figure in Superintendent Roy Golledge, led to a culture of abuse, rather than education. The uncovering of this culture was a pivotal moment in the transition of Westbrook into an institution explicitly dealing with criminal youths.

Originality/value

No academic work relating to this moment in Westbrook’s history has been previously published.
Governance conflict in Chinese family firms
Authors: Yu Fan , Wang Pingtian , Bai Yun , Li Dandan
Published: June 2018

Purpose

According to the real environment of China, the authors collect micro data about Chinese family firms (FFs) to explain why some Chinese FFs still tend to introduce external managers though they have to face governance conflict between family-based managers and external managers.

Design/methodology/approach

This study analyzes the effect of governance conflict between family-based managers and external managers on firm performance by using ordinary least square test, which is also used to test which factor has influence on governance conflict’s profit promotion effect.

Findings

This study finds that governance conflict significantly improves firm performance (profit promotion effect). The governance conflict caused by the introduction of external managers in Chinese FFs can significantly improve a firm’s performance by raising its management efficiency and capital investment.

Research limitations/implications

The governance conflict of the family business needs to be further refined in following research. Besides, this study is only based on the empirical study of cross-section data.

Originality/value

Different from the existing related research is mainly based on the sample data of listed family enterprises, the China employer-employee matched survey data includes a large number of small and medium-sized FFs, and has obtained the actual situation of how many of the middle and senior managers are external not family members.
Loan-to-value policy: evidence from Turkish dual banking system
Authors: Pirgaip Burak , Hepsen Ali
Published: June 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to answer how effective the loan-to-value (LTV) regulation has been since 2011 for conventional and Islamic (participation) banks in Turkey in terms of curbing mortgage loan growth and delinquency[1].

Design/methodology/approach

The authors first use unit root tests and tests of difference in loan and property price data in pre-LTV and post-LTV period. Second, the authors follow Chow test and ordinary least squares regression analyses to test for a structural break when sensitivity of mortgage loan and delinquency growth changes to property price changes considered.

Findings

The authors find that two periods are statistically different, while the significance level is lower for Islamic banks. Moreover, loan growth has become less responsive to property price increases; delinquency sensitivity to property price changes has significantly increased in the post-LTV period for conventional banks, while this is not the case for Islamic (participation) banks.

Originality/value

This paper not only increases empirical evidence regarding the effectiveness of LTV ratio policy but also fills the gap in the literature by providing a comparison between conventional banks and Islamic (participation) banks.
A critical analysis of the anti-corruption policy of the national judicial council of Nigeria
Authors: Esoimeme Ehi Eric
Published: June 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the new anti-corruption policy of the National Judicial Council of Nigeria to determine the level of effectiveness of its preventive measures and to provide recommendations on how the policy could be strengthened.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper relies mainly on primary and secondary data drawn from the public domain. It also relies on documentary research.

Findings

This paper determined that the anti-corruption policy of the National Judicial Council of Nigeria could achieve its desired objectives if the following recommendations are implemented: The Central Bank of Nigeria should permanently discontinue production of large denomination bank notes like the 1,000 naira notes and the 500 naira note. This policy will make it more difficult for corrupt judicial officers to smuggle significant amounts of cash out of Nigeria. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should be amended to allow ordinary citizens to participate in the criminal justice system. The jury system will speed up corruption trials, reduce bias, corrupt inducement of judges and enhance administration of justice in Nigeria. Statutes and civil procedure rules should require lawyers to certify “after reasonable enquiry” that motions have not been interposed for delay. As most courts experience high rates of adjournment because of medical illness, the adjournment policy of the National Judicial Council of Nigeria should be amended to require a doctors’ certificate and, if necessary, require the doctor to appear, with costs met by the lawyer. The National Judicial Council of Nigeria should be constitutionally mandated to provide the Attorney General of the Federation with a copy of any petition filed against a judicial officer by a member of the public.

Research limitations/implications

This paper focuses on the new anti-corruption policy of the National Judicial Council of Nigeria. It does not address the older policies.

Originality/value

This paper offers a critical analysis of the new anti-corruption policy of the National Judicial Council of Nigeria. The paper will provide recommendations on how the policy could be strengthened. This is the only paper to adopt this kind of approach.
Where does a nation’s wealth go? Evidence from a third world country
Authors: Khan Wahaj Ahmed , Jawaid Syed Tehseen , Arif Imtiaz
Published: June 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to determine the preferable destinations of money laundered from Pakistan by using the Walker’s Gravity Model and to estimate the amount of money laundered through 156 countries. The research aims to facilitate policymakers and regulators to provide more efficient guidelines to counter the problem of money laundering.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a descriptive and quantitative approach. This study uses the Walker’s Gravity Model updated by Unger et al. (2006) to measure money laundering in Pakistan; Walker’s Gravity Model was first developed by John Walker in 1994.

Findings

The results indicate that Pakistani money launderers preferred countries having large financial sectors and political stability to hide their illegal money. In addition, the study estimates the amount of money laundered and shows that Pakistan has lost bulk of funds.

Research limitations/implications

The major limitation is the non-availability of reliable data as the activity is hidden. Reliable data is either not available officially or scattered. Available data only reflect aspects that are reported. Non-availability of statistics for all years and countries resulted in the omission of some countries.

Practical implications

The study helps legislators and policymakers, including the Ministry of Finance, State Bank of Pakistan, Securities and Exchange Commission Pakistan, and other regulators, including law enforcement agencies and financial institutions, in formulating effective policies, regulations and internal control.

Originality/value

The study helps to identify the need of estimating the amount of money laundered to fight the problem effectively. Very few efforts have made to determine the size and the amount of money laundered, and this is the first study to determine the amount of money flowing out of Pakistan with the purpose of laundering.
Updates on Hong Kong’s anti-money laundering laws
Authors: Yim Foster Hong-Cheuk , Lee Ian Philip
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to discuss the latest developments of anti-money laundering (AML) laws in terms of case law and intended legislation amendments.

Design/methodology/approach

In terms of AML case law, the authors analyze three judgments from the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal. In terms of the intended legislation amendments, the authors outline salient points from the two amendment bills submitted to the Legislative Council of Hong Kong.

Findings

With the developments in AML case law and the intended legislation amendments, Hong Kong is expected to have a positive result in the Financial Action Task Force Mutual Evaluation in October/November 2018.

Originality/value

A robust AML/counter-terrorist financing regime is the bedrock of Hong Kong’s reputable status as an international financial center. This paper seeks to illicit meaningful interactions amongst all stakeholders.
FATF and money laundering in Iran
Authors: Rahmdel Mansour
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The aim of this paper is considering that obtaining illegitimate property and obtaining property illegally is morally outrageous. The law also condemns it as a crime. The act of those who launder the proceeds of crime is also condemned. This condemnation is almost universal. So, money laundering as a way of diversion of the origin of the illegal gains into legitimate currency or other assets has been criminalized in most of the countries, including in Iran. Before criminalization of money laundering, there were different laws which referred to the case without referring to the term of money laundry. According to Article 49 of the Iranian Constitution “all proceeds of illegal sources like embezzlement, bribery, gambling and other ways should be confiscated.”

Design/methodology/approach

Article 662 of the Islamic Penal Code (IPC) ratified in 1996 criminalized dealing with the proceeds of theft and Note 2 of Article 119 of the Penal Code of the Armed Forces criminalized obtaining the proceeds of embezzlement. But, in 2008, to follow the international conventions, especially Article 3 of the psychotropic substances 1988 in Vienna and also Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations on Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing, the legislator ratified the anti-money laundering code (AMLC). The methodology is an analytical one. The author using an analytical method, has analyzed the subject with consideration of Iran’s situation, as well as international documents and FATF’s recommendations.

Findings

The author has studied the issue, believing that domestic regulations of Iran comply with international regulations and FATF recommendations. The current paper considers the different aspects of the AMLCs in Iran in relation to FATF recommendations.

Originality/value

The author confirms the originality of the paper and declares that he has referred all the other materials.
Is tackling Trade Based Money Laundering (TBML) through stricter reporting regulation the most effective response?
Authors: Naheem Mohammed Ahmad
Published: June 2018

Purpose

This paper (written in August 2015) aims to discuss the regulatory approach to detecting and preventing trade-based money laundering (TBML) by using the example of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and its use of geographic targeting orders.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses both theoretical and empirical reports on TBML to explore whether increased regulation will ultimately achieve the ends it claims to offer.

Findings

The main findings from the analysis are that increased regulation has been found to have a negative impact on improving TBML detection. There is evidence that it causes an over-defensive response from banks that leads to a decrease in useful information to financial intelligence units.

Research limitations/implications

The research topic is very new and an emerging topic; therefore, analysis papers and other academic writing on this topic are limited.

Practical implications

This paper has implications for both the regulatory and the banking/financial service sectors.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper is the deeper analysis of a specific TBML case, and the focus is on both the theoretical and empirical implications of the approach being used.
AML/CFT in Myanmar: a review of recent developments
Authors: Thompson Rhys
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) developments in Myanmar in light of its recent political and economic transition from military rule to a civilian, democratic government. This paper will discuss the changes in Myanmar’s AML/CFT frameworks, as well as international blacklisting and sanctions that have targeted Myanmar since the late 1990s. It also highlights issues that are likely to challenge Myanmar’s ability to ensure compliance with international best practices, especially as the local financial sector expands and foreign investment increases.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on available literature and open source reporting.

Findings

This review is a timely update of Myanmar’s progress with its AML/CFT frameworks at a time that it is trying to encourage foreign investment and engagement and international businesses. But while Myanmar’s “opening” is seen by many as an opportunity, it still presents significant AML/CFT risks for investors because of a considerable lack of technical expertise, as well as financial and human resources to ensure compliance and enforcement occur.

Originality/value

Myanmar is a very under-researched area and has had minimal focus on its AML/CFT frameworks or the risks present in the economy. This paper will be a useful source for researchers, academics, policymakers, lawyers and private sector actors seeking to engage or invest in Myanmar’s economy.
Real estate money laundering in Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland
Authors: Johannes Teichmann Fabian Maximilian
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how criminals launder money in the real estate business in Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative content analysis of 58 semi-standardized expert interviews with both criminals and prevention experts and a quantitative survey of 184 compliance officers led to the identification of concrete techniques of money laundering in the real estate sector.

Findings

Real estate companies in German-speaking countries in Europe continue to be extraordinarily suitable for money laundering. In particular, they can be used for placement, layering and integration, combined with violations of the tax code. Most importantly, however, they are the vehicles for one of the very few profitable methods of laundering money.

Research limitations/implications

As the qualitative findings are based on semi-standardized interviews, these are limited to the 58 interviewees’ perspectives.

Practical implications

The identification of gaps in existing anti-money laundering mechanisms is meant to provide compliance officers, law enforcement agencies and legislators with valuable insights into how criminals operate.

Originality/value

While the existing literature focuses on organizations fighting money laundering and on the improvement of anti-money laundering measures, this paper describes how money launderers operate to avoid getting caught. Both prevention and criminal perspectives are taken into account.
Choose your weapon
Authors: Cassella Stefan D.
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Civil forfeiture is an increasingly common way for governments to relieve criminal wrongdoers of the proceeds of their crimes and to restore the property to the victims of the offense. The question that is asked, however, is this: Is civil forfeiture an essential tool that is needed to fill a gap in the arsenal of weapons available to law enforcement or is it a prosecutorial shortcut that allows cases to be closed without obtaining the evidence needed to obtain a criminal conviction in cases that should be prosecuted criminally. The answer is that it is both. When properly used, civil forfeiture is an essential tool that provides a means of recovering property, but it is a tool that can also be used to save time and money even though the investment of those resources in bringing a criminal to justice would better serve the public interest. The aim of this paper is to show why this is so.

Design/methodology/approach

Analysis of the use of civil forfeiture in the USA.

Findings

Civil forfeiture is an essential law enforcement tool.

Originality/value

While undeniably an essential law enforcement tool, civil forfeiture is sometimes used as a shortcut to conserve resources.
Examining the effect of employee green involvement on perception of corporate social responsibility
Authors: Srivastava Anugamini Priya , Shree Sonal
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the extent to which green involvement (GI) can affect employee perception of corporate social responsibility (CSR), with the intervening role of green training (GT).

Design/methodology/approach

The sample for the study was collected from employees working in tourist hotels. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the fit of the hypothesized model, and hierarchical regression analysis to test the hypothesis.

Findings

The results showed that GI of employees has a positive and significant relationship with their perception of CSR. The study further revealed that when there is an increase in GT, the relationship between GI and perception of CSR gets more positive.

Originality/value

It adds value to the ongoing research in the field of environment, training and CSR. The findings will be helpful for policy makers and researchers in the field of stakeholder management.
A new insight into alumni satisfaction model for Islamic higher education institutions (IHEI)
Authors: Rafik Abdur , Priyono Anjar
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore and decompose a satisfaction model using alumni’s perspective for Islamic-based higher education institutions (IHEI) with the antecedent of perceived quality and value and the consequence of loyalty.

Design/methodology/approach

A study was used, using 44-item, a ten-point Likert-scale questionnaire administered to 360 alumni from various classes started from the 1970s till 2000s. Theoretical-based, national qualification framework of Indonesian higher education and management-based considerations were involved in developing a survey. Data were analyzed using partial least square-structural equation model and decomposed into strategic management map using importance-performance matrix analysis.

Findings

The most important determinants of alumni satisfaction and loyalty in IHEI is the IHEI’s ability to develop career capability through enriching knowledge. Moreover, the presence of good environment and Islamic value embodiment supporting learning programs on campus is the most significant trigger for the knowledge development.

Research limitations/implications

The results were generated from a specific department. Additional studies are needed to test if the results are not department (institution)-specific.

Practical implications

This study provides strategic directions for management to improve the critical aspects of the system by providing the inputs to the extent to which the service quality delivered may contribute to end-customers’ satisfaction.

Originality/value

It contributes to the literature on satisfaction and service quality issues by incorporating ideological aspect, by investigating the feasible model of customer satisfaction in the perspective of alumni for IHEI.
Changes in African large carnivore diets over the past half‐century reveal the loss of large prey
Authors: Creel Scott , Matandiko Wigganson , Schuette Paul , Rosenblatt Elias , Sanguinetti Carolyn , Banda Kambwiri , Vinks Milan , Becker Matthew
Published: June 2018

Globally, large carnivores are declining due to direct persecution, habitat loss, and prey depletion. The effects of prey depletion could be amplified by changes in the composition of the herbivore (prey) community that provoke changes in carnivore diets, but this possibility has received little attention.

We tested for changes over the past half‐century in prey selection by the large carnivore guild in Zambia's Kafue National Park (KNP).

Across 52 predator–prey dyads, 71% of the observed changes showed that large prey have become less important and small prey have become more important. Consequently, dietary niche breadth has decreased for KNP carnivores and niche overlap has increased.

We tested whether changes in the importance of prey species are related to their current abundance and uniformly found that prey that have increased in importance are now relatively common, while those that have decreased in importance are now relatively rare. We identify four potential effects of these changes for conservation (through intraguild competition, group size, the energetics of hunting, and vulnerability to snaring) that warrant investigation.

Synthesis and applications. Patterns of prey selection by the large carnivores in Kafue National Park (KNP) have changed appreciably over the past half‐century. Decreased predation on large prey, which are now relatively rare, has caused niche compression and increased overlap in carnivore diets. Predation by all KNP large carnivores now concentrates on four small prey species that remain relatively abundant (impala, puku, lechwe, and warthog). Methods to detect such changes in interactions between species are well‐established, but are rarely applied to large carnivore‐ungulate systems. To guide conservation of ecosystem function, monitoring programmes should consider whether prey depletion alters the patterns of predation or competition within the predator guild because these interactions strongly affect the distribution and abundance of both predators and prey. If the patterns seen in KNP are general, then where carnivores are limited by prey depletion, conservation efforts will be most effective if they focus on mitigating the loss of large prey. In KNP, targeted efforts to protect prey larger than 200 kg, particularly buffalo, should be a priority.
Shifting species and functional diversity due to abrupt changes in water availability in tropical dry forests
Authors: Raymundo Diego , Prado‐Junior Jamir , Alvim Carvalho Fabrício , Santiago do Vale Vagner , Oliveira Paulo Eugênio , van der Sande Masha T.
Published: June 2018

Recent insights show that tropical forests are shifting in species composition, possibly due to changing environmental conditions. However, we still poorly understand the forest response to different environmental change drivers, which limits our ability to predict the future of tropical forests. Although some studies have evaluated drought effects on tree communities, we know little about the influence of increased water availability.

Here, we evaluated how an increase in water availability caused by an artificial reservoir affected temporal changes in forest structure, species and functional diversity, and community‐weighted mean traits. Furthermore, we evaluated how demographical groups (recruits, survivors and trees that died) contributed to these temporal changes in tropical dry forests.

We present data for the dynamics of forest change over a 10‐year period for 120 permanent plots that were far from the water’s edge before reservoir construction and are now close to the water’s edge (0–60 m). Plots close to the water’s edge had an abrupt increase in water availability, while distant plots did not.

Plots close to the water’s edge showed an increase in species and functional diversity, and in the abundance of species with traits associated with low drought resistance (i.e., evergreen species with simple leaves and low wood density), whereas plots far from the water’s edge did not change. Changes in overall community metrics were mainly due to recruits rather than to survivors or dead trees. Overall stand basal area did not change because growth and recruitment were balanced by mortality.

Synthesis. Our results showed that tropical dry forests can respond quickly to abrupt changes in environmental conditions. Temporal changes in vegetation metrics due to increased water availability were mainly attributed to recruits, suggesting that these effects are lasting and may become stronger over time. The lack of increase in basal area towards the water’s edge, and the shift towards higher abundance of soft‐wooded species, could reduce the carbon stored and increase the forest’s vulnerability to extreme weather events. Further “accidental” large‐scale field experiments like ours could provide more insights into forest responses and resilience to global change.
Nebivolol ameliorated kidney damage in Zucker diabetic fatty rats by regulation of oxidative stress/NO pathway: Comparison with captopril
Authors: Wang Yan , An Wenjing , Zhang Fei , Niu Mengzhen , Liu Yu , Shi Ruizan
Published: June 2018

The aim was to evaluate the effects and mechanisms of nebivolol on renal damage in Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats, in comparison with those of atenolol and captopril. Animals were divided into: control lean Zucker rats, ZDF rats, ZDF rats orally treated with nebivolol (10 mg/kg), atenolol (100 mg/kg) or captopril (40 mg/kg) for 6 months. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), blood glucose, kidney structure and function, plasma and kidney levels of nitric oxide (NO) and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), and oxidant status were evaluated. Kidney expressions of adenosine monophosphate‐activated protein kinase (AMPK), NADPH oxidase (NOX) isoforms 2 and 4 and subunit p22phox, nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms, endothelial NOS (eNOS) uncoupling, protein arginine N‐methyltransferase (PRMT) 1, and dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH) 1 and 2 were tested. All drugs induced a similar control of SBP. Nebivolol did not affect the increased plasma glucose. Unlike atenolol, nebivolol prevented the decrease in plasma insulin, and, like captopril, it reduced plasma lipid contents. Nebivolol ameliorated, to a greater extent than captopril, damages to renal structure and function, which were associated with an improvement in interlobular artery dysfunction. Nebivolol elevated kidney phosphorylation of AMPK, attenuated NOX4 and p22phox expression and oxidative stress marker levels. Nebivolol increased plasma and renal NO, enhanced expressions of eNOS, p‐eNOS and neuronal NOS, and suppressed eNOS uncoupling and inducible NOS expression. High ADMA in plasma and kidney were decreased by nebivolol through increasing DDAH2 and decreasing protein arginine N‐methyltransferase 1. Long‐term treatment of nebivolol ameliorated diabetic nephropathy, at least in part, via regulation of renal oxidative stress/NO pathway.
An anti‐asthmatic activity of natural Toll‐like receptor‐4 antagonist in OVA‐LPS‐induced asthmatic rats
Authors: Thakur Vandana R. , Beladiya Jayesh V. , Chaudagar Kiranj K. , Mehta Anita A.
Published: June 2018

Toll‐like receptor‐4 (TLR4) is a key component of the innate immune system and activation of TLR4 signaling has a significant role in the pathogenesis of asthma. Therefore, our objective was to identify the natural TLR4 antagonist and evaluate its activity in experimentally induced asthma. Soya lecithin origin phosphatidylcholine (soya PC) was identified as a natural TLR4 antagonist by computational study. Based on the computational study, TLR4 antagonist activity of soya PC was confirmed in in vitro lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced neutrophil adhesion assay. In the in vivo study, rats were sensitized with ovalbumin (OVA) (100 μg/kg, i.p.) on the 7th, 14th and 21st days and challenged intranasally with OVA (100 μg/100 μL) and LPS (10 ng/100 μL), 4 days/wk for 3 weeks. At the end of the experiment, we performed lung function parameters (respiratory rate, tidal volume, airflow rate), inflammatory cytokines (interleukin [IL]‐4, IL‐5, IL‐13), total and differential leukocytes in blood as well as bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALf) and histological examinations. The computational study indicated that TLR4 antagonist activity of soya PC is due to linoleic acid (18:2) fatty acid chain. Soya PC significantly suppressed the LPS‐induced neutrophil adhesion in a concentration‐dependent manner to 1 μg/mL. The treatment of soya PC (5 and 10 mg/kg, 18 days, i.p.) significantly improved the lung function parameters, total and differential leukocyte counts in blood and BALf in asthmatic rats. This efficacy of soya PC was in extent similar to dexamethasone (2.5 mg/kg, 18 days, i.p.). However, soya PC was superior to dexamethasone in terms of benefits. The protective action of soya PC may be due to TLR4 antagonist activity and linoleic acid composition.
Diabetes‐induced alterations in urothelium function: Enhanced ATP release and nerve‐evoked contractions in the streptozotocin rat bladder
Authors: Lee Sophie , Rose'meyer Roselyn , McDermott Catherine , Chess‐Williams Russ , Sellers Donna J.
Published: June 2018

Up to 80% of patients with diabetes mellitus develop lower urinary tract complications, most commonly diabetic bladder dysfunction (DBD). The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of diabetes on the function of the inner bladder lining (urothelium). Bladder compliance and intraluminal release of urothelial mediators, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and acetylcholine (ACh) in response to distension were investigated in whole bladders isolated from 2‐ and 12‐week streptozotocin (STZ)‐diabetic rats. Intact and urothelium‐denuded bladder strips were used to assess the influence of the urothelium on bladder contractility. Intraluminal ATP release was significantly enhanced at 2 weeks of diabetes, although not at 12 weeks. In contrast, intraluminal ACh release was unaltered by diabetes. Bladder compliance was also significantly enhanced at both 2 and 12 weeks of diabetes, with greatly reduced intravesical pressures in response to distension. Nerve‐evoked contractions of bladder strips were significantly greater at 2 weeks of diabetes. When the urothelium was absent, nerve‐evoked contractions were reduced, but contractions remained significantly elevated at lower frequencies of stimulation (<5 Hz) in diabetics. Interestingly, although relaxations of bladder strips to isoprenaline were unaltered by diabetes, removal of the urothelium unmasked significantly enhanced relaxations in strips from 2‐ and 12‐week diabetic animals. In conclusion, diabetes alters urothelial function. Enhanced urothelial ATP release may be involved in the hypercontractility observed at early time points of diabetes. These alterations are time‐dependent and may contribute to the mechanisms at play during the development of diabetic bladder dysfunction.
Grazing was not mining: managing Victoria's goldfields commons
Authors: Davies Peter , Lawrence Susan , Twigg Karen
Published: June 2018

The great land rush of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries saw vast swathes of temperate grazing land around the world pass into private hands. Commons and common lands, however, provided a vital interim mechanism in this shift from state control to private property ownership. Commons ensured continued and widespread access to natural resources, including water, minerals, soil, grass, and timber, that was integral to the colonial settler project. The gold rush in nineteenth‐century Victoria sheds important light on this process, where almost 250,000 ha of Crown land were set aside as goldfields commons. These reserves maintained auriferous or gold‐bearing land in public hands and provided access to extensive tracts of grazing for the sheep and cattle of gold miners. In this paper, we examine how the traditional English notion of common lands was transferred to a New World environment and draw on the work of economist Elinor Ostrom to evaluate the use and function of Victoria's goldfields commons in terms of management, regulation, and sustainability.
Mediators and Moderators of a Personalized Feedback Alcohol Intervention for Nonstudent Emerging Adult Drinkers
Authors: Lau‐Barraco Cathy , Braitman Abby L. , Linden‐Carmichael Ashley , Stamates Amy L.
Published: June 2018

Background

The main objective of this study was to test proposed mediators and moderators of a personalized feedback alcohol intervention (PFI) on alcohol use. Data for the current investigation came from an earlier randomized controlled trial of a PFI targeted for nonstudent heavy drinkers between 18 and 25 years.

Methods

Participants were 164 (65.9% men) drinkers recruited from the community. They were randomly assigned to either a single‐session PFI or an assessment‐only (AO) control group. Follow‐up assessments at 1 and 3 months were included for analysis.

Results

Perceived drinking norms mediated the intervention effect on quantity, frequency, and peak drinking; 2 dimensions of protective behavioral strategies (PBS) mediated the intervention effect on peak drinking; and drinking to cope motives did not mediate any drinking outcomes. Of the moderating factors examined (i.e., norms, PBS, drink to cope motives, age, gender), only PBS related to serious harm reduction moderated intervention impact. Specifically, for those high in serious harm reduction PBS at baseline, postintervention reductions in drinking were stronger for the PFI group compared to AO.

Conclusions

Overall, findings highlight the importance of correcting misperceived drinking norms and addressing the use of specific PBS in brief interventions. The knowledge gained from this study represents an important step toward minimizing drinking‐related harms that are disproportionately experienced by those with lower educational attainment.
Combined Face–Brain Morphology and Associated Neurocognitive Correlates in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Suttie Michael , Wozniak Jeffrey R. , Parnell Scott E. , Wetherill Leah , Mattson Sarah N. , Sowell Elizabeth R. , Kan Eric , Riley Edward P. , Jones Kenneth L. , Coles Claire , Foroud Tatiana , Hammond Peter ,   the CIFASD
Published: June 2018

Background

Since the 1970s, a range of facial, neurostructural, and neurocognitive adverse effects have been shown to be associated with prenatal alcohol exposure. Typically, these effects are studied individually and not in combination. Our objective is to improve the understanding of the teratogenic effects of prenatal alcohol exposure by simultaneously considering face–brain morphology and neurocognitive measures.

Methods

Participants were categorized as control (n = 47), fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS, n = 22), or heavily exposed (HE) prenatally, but not eligible for a FAS diagnosis (HE, n = 50). Structural brain MRI images and high‐resolution 3D facial images were analyzed using dense surface models of features of the face and surface shape of the corpus callosum (CC) and caudate nucleus (CN). Asymmetry of the CN was evaluated for correlations with neurocognitive measures.

Results

(i) Facial growth delineations for FAS, HE, and controls are replicated for the CN and the CC. (ii) Concordance of clinical diagnosis and face‐based control–FAS discrimination improves when the latter is combined with specific brain regions. In particular, midline facial regions discriminate better when combined with a midsagittal profile of the CC. (iii) A subset of HE individuals was identified with FAS‐like CN dysmorphism. The average of this HE subset was FAS‐like in its facial dysmorphism. (iv) Right–left asymmetry found in the CNs of controls is not apparent for FAS, is diminished for HE, and correlates with neurocognitive measures in the combined FAS and HE population.

Conclusions

Shape analysis which combines facial regions with the CN, and with the CC, better identify those with FAS. CN asymmetry was reduced for FAS compared to controls and is strongly associated with general cognitive ability, verbal learning, and recall in those with prenatal alcohol exposure. This study further extends the brain–behavior relationships known to be vulnerable to alcohol teratogenesis.
Distributions of birds and plants in ecoregions: Implications for the conservation of a neotropical biodiversity hotspot
Authors: dos Anjos Luiz , Volpato Graziele H. , Lopes Edson V. , Willrich Guilherme , Bochio Gabriela M. , Arakaki Lindsey Barbara R. , Simões Nadson R. , Mendonça Luciana B. , Boçon Roberto , Carvalho Joema , Lima Marcos R.
Published: June 2018

The delineation of unique areas in biodiversity is crucial for conservation planning. However, identification of distinct biotas is a challenging task. In this study, we use an objective analytical process to test if bird and plant species composition of three different forest formation in the Atlantic forest Biome is sufficiently distinct to merit the recognition of ecoregions. We also evaluated how current climatic and spatial factors shape the distribution of plants and birds. Sampling localities were selected in three forest types of southern Brazil: mixed rain forest (MF), seasonal semi‐deciduous forest (SF) and dense rain forest (DF). The point‐centred quarter method and point counts were used to sample plants and birds respectively. Multivariate analyses were used to evaluate species composition, while the Rank Occupancy Abundance Profile was used to determine the association of bird species with each forest type. We used variation partitioning to determine which factors, that is climatic, spatial or tree species abundance (in the case of birds) better explained the distribution of plants and birds. A total of 176 tree species and 270 bird species were recorded. The bird species composition was sufficiently distinct among the three forest types, but the plant species composition was only distinct between DF and MF. Moreover, 61% of bird species were associated with only one forest type. This high association and the different species composition suggest that these forest types are sufficiently distinct to merit the recognition of ecoregions. Plant distribution was mainly affected by climatic variables, while bird distribution was mainly influenced by forest type and less so by climatic variables. Our data suggest that all three forest types should be conserved, but conservation strategies are urgent in MF where only 0.39% of its original cover is under protection.
Does maternity care decision‐making conform to shared decision‐ making standards for repeat cesarean and labor induction after suspected macrosomia?
Authors: Declercq Eugene R. , Cheng Erika R. , Sakala Carol
Published: June 2018

Background

In a national United States survey, we investigated whether crucial shared decision‐making standards were met for 2 common maternity care decisions.

Methods

Secondary analysis of Listening to Mothers III. A sequence of validated questions concerning shared decision‐making was adapted to 2 maternity care decisions: to induce labor or wait for spontaneous onset of labor among women who were told their baby may be “getting quite large” (N = 349); and for women with 1 or 2 prior cesareans (N = 393), the decision to have a repeat cesarean.

Results

Almost half (N = 163; 47%) of women who were told their baby might be large reported engaging in a discussion concerning possible labor induction vs waiting for labor, while a large majority (N = 321; 82%) of women with a prior cesarean discussed the option of a repeat cesarean or a planned vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC). Women who engaged in discussions received disproportionate information about having the interventions and were more likely to experience the interventions (68% induction, 87% repeat cesarean) than women who did not. After adjustment, women who reported that their provider recommended scheduling a repeat cesarean were 14 times more likely to give birth via cesarean compared with those whose providers recommended planning VBAC (AOR 14.2; 95% CI: 3.2, 63.0).

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that, for the decisions in question, established standards of shared decision‐making are not being reliably implemented in maternity care despite opportunities to do so. Provider recommendations and the disproportionate conveyance of reasons for an intervention appear to be related to higher levels of intervention.
Hot and Cool Self‐Regulation, Academic Competence, and Maladjustment: Mediating and Differential Relations
Authors: Backer‐Grøndahl Agathe , Nærde Ane , Idsoe Thormod
Published: June 2018

This study examined differential and mediating relations between hot and cool self‐regulation (Mage = 48.2 months; N = 1,155, 48% girls), first‐grade (Mage = 77.5 months) maladjustment (externalizing [EXT] and internalizing [INT] behavior), and first‐ and second‐grade (Mage = 89.5 months) academic competence (AC). Using teacher reported EXT, INT, and AC, partial support for the differential perspective was found in that only hot self‐regulation was significantly related to EXT, whereas both hot and cool self‐regulation was significantly related to AC. Moreover, hot self‐regulation indirectly predicted second‐grade AC through first‐grade EXT, lending some support for the mediating perspective also. The findings contribute to an understanding of how self‐regulation is related to academic and behavioral school adjustment.
Oestradiol level, oestrogen receptors, and mortality in elderly men: The three‐city cohort study
Authors: Laouali Nasser , Brailly‐Tabard Sylvie , Helmer Catherine , Ancelin Marie‐Laure , Tzourio Christophe , Elbaz Alexis , Guiochon‐Mantel Anne , Canonico Marianne
Published: June 2018

Context

Although endogenous oestradiol, generally considered as the female hormone, has been little investigated in men, it could play a role in men's health, mortality in particular. The influence of oestrogen receptors (ER) genetic polymorphisms on this relationship has never been studied.

Design and Participants

The Three‐City cohort study included (1999‐2001) 3650 men ≥65 years who were followed for mortality over 12 years. At baseline, total oestradiol (tE2) was measured and ER genotyped in a random subsample of 472 men without hormonal treatment. Free oestradiol (fE2) was estimated using Vermeulen and Södergard algorithms.

Main Outcome

Mortality data were obtained from death certificates. We used inverse probability weighted Cox models to examine the association of oestradiol with all‐cause and cause‐specific mortality and its interaction with ER genetic polymorphisms.

Results

A total of 183 men died over the follow‐up (cardiovascular disease (CVD), n = 44; cancer, n = 57; other causes, n = 82). After adjustment, there was a quadratic relationship of all‐cause mortality with tE2 and fE2 (P‐quadratic = 0.04 and 0.05, respectively), with higher mortality for the top and bottom tertiles compared to the middle one. These associations were stronger for CVD mortality (P‐quadratic = 0.01 and 0.02 for tE2 and fE2, respectively) and disappeared for cancer mortality. There was no evidence of an interaction of oestradiol with any ER polymorphisms on all‐cause mortality.

Conclusion

In elderly men, we showed a nonlinear association of tE2 and fE2 with all‐cause mortality. These quadratic relationships were stronger for CVD mortality and did not exist for cancer mortality. ER genetic polymorphisms did not modify this association.