bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Minimum Wage Policy: Is There Any Impact on Low Skilled Workers in Electrical and Electronics Companies in Malaysia?
Authors: Vally Senasi  , Samihah Khalil @ Halim  , Balakrishnan Parasuraman
Published: April 2021

Wage are the greatest pushing factor for many workers to work and positively relates to employee life satisfaction. Meanwhile, fringe benefits improve the skills and knowledge of workers and enhance the organization’s reputation. Minimum wage policies around the world uphold the principle to provide a basic living wage for their workers. Nevertheless, the impact of national minimum wage policy on Malaysian employees, in particular, was the least explored since enacted into law in 2012. This study examines the minimum- wage impact on low-level skilled workers in the electrical and electronics industry in Malaysia. Minimum wage can have an effect on labor productivity and fringe benefits, particularly training, allowances, and insurance, have become important research topics. As such, this research discusses the effect of minimum wages on labor productivity and fringe benefits of employees. A semi-structured survey questionnaire was distributed to 600 employees in electrical and electronics firms in Penang and Kulim Industrial Zones. Data from 432 questionnaires were quantitatively analyzed using Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA). The findings suggest that employers should make some adjustments in administering the wage scale due to the implementation of minimum wage national policy that has impacted firms’ costs and incomes. The results also found that the minimum wage affects labor productivity and wage differences among workers. Meanwhile, the minimum wage does not adversely affect the adjustments to the fringe benefits, except for the provision of training. This study recommends more strategic plans and negotiations between stakeholders on wage and fringe benefits that would warrant continuous positive effects for both workers and employers.
Barriers to Prisoners’ Re-Entry into Formal and Informal Labour Market
Authors: Taksaorn Phuchongpravech  , Thanee Chaiwat
Published: April 2021

Aside from academics suggesting that low-physical-attractive prisoners may face difficulty reentering the labour market: permitting employers to access criminal history records aggravates the situation. The current study aims to alleviate this discrimination by generating more beauty premiums to prisoners through cosmetic surgery. The choice experiments (CEs) on hypothetical cosmetic surgery faces of 18 Thai male prisoners were conducted. In which every choice set, the respondents were required to make a tradeoff between beauty and criminal history records. The results show that cosmetic surgery generates beauty premiums to prisoners in both the formal and informal sectors with the odds ratio or increase of the utility of 1.75 and 1.754, respectively. Contrarily, the criminal history records result in discrimination to prisoners’ employments: decreasing job opportunities by 82.8% and 51% in the formal and informal sectors, respectively. The MWTP values show an additional salary to the cosmetic surgery groups for 2,600 baht approximately in both sectors. Besides contributing to the literature, the current study sheds light on the importance of physical appearance and criminal history records as one of the main barriers to prisoners’ re-entry. The findings could serve as new knowledge for policymakers to improve the success rate of prisoners’ reintegration.
The Shadow Effect of Courts: Judicial Review and the Politics of Preemptive Reform
Authors: Pavone Tommaso , Stiansen Øyvind
Published: April 2021

Political scientists often claim that courts must adjudicate disputes to influence policy. Conversely, we theorize the shadow effect of courts: Policymakers preemptively altering policies in anticipation of possible judicial review. While existing American studies tie preemptive reforms to interest-group litigation and political support for judicial policymaking, we elaborate a comparative theory accommodating more hostile contexts for courts. We argue that in less litigious settings, shadow effects can still emerge when bureaucratic conflicts threaten to trigger adjudication and policymakers seek to starve courts of the cases needed to build their caselaw. Recalcitrant policymakers allow preemptive judicial influence to resist direct judicial interference. To assess our theory, we process trace how a sudden welfare reform in Norway, a country with limited litigation and judicial review, was triggered by an administrative conflict and government resistance to an often-overlooked international court. Our findings advance research on judicial impact, resistance to courts, and bureaucratic politics.
Features of the conceptual approach of contemporary Ukrainian artists in the genre of urban landscape
Authors: Bludov Andriy
Published: April 2021

The article examines the features of the perception of the urban environment as a specific phe- nomenon. The article considers the artistic works of a group of contemporary Ukrainian artists P. Makov, A. Sai, L. Dzhuraev, A. Priduvalov in the genre of urban landscape from the point of view of a conceptual approach, which allows us to understand the general direction of development of this type of genre. The works of contemporary Ukrainian artists reflect how a modern city creates an endless combination of connections between different aspects of life and the corresponding various forms and impressions. The article analyzes the works that the authors demonstrated as their reflections on changes in the urban environment in special creative projects. The urban environment causes a creative person to strive to convey his atmosphere, images, rhythms in his own language. For centuries, artists have depicted the urban space, but it was in the twentieth century that the transformation of the urban environment into an urban one contributed to the fact that the city became a source of special inspiration for subsequent times. The theme of urbanism is specific in the work of contemporary Ukrainian artists, where the very phenomenon of the city is the basis of creative inspiration. The aim of this work is to study the conceptual and programmatic works of contemporary Ukrainian artists to reveal the theme of urbanism in painting and the main trends in displaying the city as a concept in the work of artists.
Star fate of kyiv masters of book graphics
Authors: Nesterenko Petro
Published: April 2021

The article briefly analyzes the further biography and creative development of graduate students of Kyiv State Institute of Arts, whose achievements in the field of book graphics were presented in 1977 at the Retrospective Exhibition of Theses of Art Colleges of the USSR in Leningrad. Their creative work has become significant for the development of Ukrainian book graphics. In the section of book graphics, 19 artists who defended their diploma works within the period of 1954 (H. Yakutovych, illustrations and registration to Ugrium-reka («Gloomy river»), a book by V. Shishkov, through 1975 (I. Zubkovska, illustrations and etchings to Smert u Kyievi («Death in Кyiv»)a book by P. Zahrebelny). With time, many of the graduate students who participated in the 1977 exibition became academicians or corresponding members of Academmy of Sciences, People`s and Honored artists of Ukraine, and winners of various awards. Some of them received the high title of winners of Taras Shevchenko State Prize of Ukraine for their further creative work. At the retrospective exhibition here in concern, the young Ukainian artists of the generation of 1960 th and 1970 th had clearly demonstrated their significant contribution to development of book graphical art despite the constant Communist ideological pres- sure on arts in the Soviet times. Synthesis of strong academic knowledge and free creative search helped many of them to reveal their great potentialities in the future. With time, the graphic artists here in concern managed to offer the strong creative output that once again, proved the high artistic level of Kyiv graphic school.
Doa Syafaat Untuk Sodom
Authors: Kelelufna Jusuf Haries
Published: April 2021

Several statements in the book of Genesis 18:16-33 raise theological problems, including the clause 'but Abraham still stands before God' and the concept of God's justice. The author wants to re-interpret the narrative of 'Abraham's intercession for Sodom' based on the continuity of the story and the theme of God's justice in the narrative. This research is an exegesis of the biblical text carried out by reading the text research tool (Apparatus Critticus), analyzing Hebrew grammar and lexicons. The results of the analysis are then linked to the believers' current prayers as their relevance. The results of the analysis show that the phrase 'but Abraham still stands before God' should be translated as 'but God is still standing before Abraham' by placing God as the subject which means God who prays, serves, becomes the initiator and as a just judge.

Abstrak Indonesia

Beberapa pernyataan dalam kitab Kejadian 18: 16-33 mengangkat masalah teologis, termasuk klausa 'tetapi Abraham tetap berdiri di hadapan Tuhan' dan konsep keadilan Tuhan. Penulis ingin menafsirkan kembali narasi 'Abraham syafaat untuk Sodom' berdasarkan kesinambungan cerita dan tema keadilan Tuhan dalam narasinya. Penelitian ini merupakan eksegesis teks alkitabiah yang dilakukan dengan membaca alat penelitian teks (Apparatus Critticus), menganalisis tata bahasa dan leksikon Ibrani. Hasil analisis kemudian dikaitkan dengan doa-doa orang percaya saat ini sebagai relevansinya. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa kalimat 'tetapi Abraham masih berdiri dihadapan Tuhan' harus diterjemahkan sebagai 'tetapi Tuhan tetap berdiri dihadapan Abraham' dengan menempatkan Tuhan sebagai subjek yang berarti Tuhan yang berdoa,
Evolutionary Mechanism of Immunological Cross-Reactivity Between Different GII.17 Variants
Authors: Zuo Yueting , Xue Liang , Gao Junshan , Liao Yingyin , Liang Yanhui , Jiang Yueting , Cai Weicheng , Qin Zhiwei , Yang Jiale , Zhang Jumei , Wang Juan , Chen Moutong , Ding Yu , Wu Qingping
Published: April 2021

Human norovirus is regarded as the leading cause of epidemic acute gastroenteritis with GII.4 being the predominant genotype during the past decades. In the winter of 2014/2015, the GII.17 Kawasaki 2014 emerged as the predominant genotype, surpassing GII.4 in several East Asian countries. Hence, the influence of host immunity response on the continuous evolution of different GII.17 variants needs to be studied in depth. Here, we relate the inferences of evolutionary mechanisms of different GII.17 variants with the investigation of cross-reactivity and cross-protection of their respective antisera using the expression of norovirus P particles in Escherichia coli. The cross-reactivity assay showed that the antisera of previous strains (GII.17 A and GII.17 B) reacted with recent variants (GII.17 C and GII.17 D) at high OD values from 0.8 to 1.16, while recent variant antisera cross-reacting with previous strains were weak with OD values between 0.26 and 0.56. The cross-protection assay indicated that the antisera of previous strains had no inhibitory effect on recent variants. Finally, mutations at amino acids 353–363, 373–384, 394–404, and 444–454 had the greatest impact on cross-reactivity. These data indicate that the recent pandemic variants GII.17 C and GII.17 D avoided the herd immunity effect of previous GII.17 A and GII.17 B strains through antigenic variation.
Comparative Proteomics Reveals the Anaerobic Lifestyle of Meat-Spoiling Pseudomonas Species
Authors: Kolbeck Sandra , Abele Miriam , Hilgarth Maik , Vogel Rudi F.
Published: April 2021

The ability of certainPseudomonas(P.) species to grow or persist in anoxic habitats by either denitrification, acetate fermentation, or arginine fermentation has been described in several studies as a special property. Previously, we had isolated strains belonging to the speciesP. lundensis,P. weihenstephanensis, andP. fragifrom anoxic modified atmosphere packaged (MAP) minced beef and further proved their anaerobic growthin vitroon agar plates. This follow-up study investigated the anaerobic growth of two strains per respective speciesin situon inoculated chicken breast filet under 100% N2modified atmosphere. We were able to prove anaerobic growth of all six strains on chicken breast filet with cell division rates of 0.2–0.8/day. Furthermore, we characterized the anaerobic metabolic lifestyle of thesePseudomonasstrains by comparative proteomics, upon their cultivation in meat simulation media, which were constantly gassed with either air or 100% N2atmospheres. From these proteomic predictions, and respective complementation by physiological experiments, we conclude that thePseudomonasstrainsP. fragi,P. weihenstephanensis,P. lundensisexhibit a similar anaerobic lifestyle and employ arginine fermentation via the arginine deiminase (ADI) pathway to grow anaerobically also on MAP meats. Furthermore, glucose fermentation to ethanol via the ED-pathway is predicted to enable long term survival but no true growth, while respiratory growth with nitrate as alternative electron acceptor or glucose fermentation to acetate could be excluded due to absence of essential genes. The citric acid cycle is partially bypassed by the glyoxylate shunt, functioning as the gluconeogenetic route without production of NADH2under carbon limiting conditions as e.g., in packaged meats. Triggered by an altered redox balance, we also detected upregulation of enzymes involved in protein folding as well as disulfide bonds isomerization under anoxic conditions as a counteracting mechanism to reduce protein misfolding. Hence, this study reveals the mechanisms enabling anaerobic grow and persistence of common meat-spoilingPseudomonasspecies, and further complements the hitherto limited knowledge of the anaerobic lifestyle ofPseudomonasspecies in general.
Midlife Cardiovascular Fitness Is Reflected in the Brain's White Matter
Authors: d'Arbeloff Tracy , Elliott Maxwell L. , Knodt Annchen R. , Sison Maria , Melzer Tracy R. , Ireland David , Ramrakha Sandhya , Poulton Richie , Caspi Avshalom , Moffitt Terrie E. , Hariri Ahmad R.
Published: April 2021

Disappointing results from clinical trials designed to delay structural brain decline and the accompanying increase in risk for dementia in older adults have precipitated a shift in testing promising interventions from late in life toward midlife before irreversible damage has accumulated. This shift, however, requires targeting midlife biomarkers that are associated with clinical changes manifesting only in late life. Here we explored possible links between one putative biomarker, distributed integrity of brain white matter, and two intervention targets, cardiovascular fitness and healthy lifestyle behaviors, in midlife. At age 45, fractional anisotropy (FA) derived from diffusion weighted MRI was used to estimate the microstructural integrity of distributed white matter tracts in a population-representative birth cohort. Age-45 cardiovascular fitness (VO2Max; N = 801) was estimated from heart rates obtained during submaximal exercise tests; age-45 healthy lifestyle behaviors were estimated using the Nyberg Health Index (N = 854). Ten-fold cross-validated elastic net predictive modeling revealed that estimated VO2Max was modestly associated with distributed FA. In contrast, there was no significant association between Nyberg Health Index scores and FA. Our findings suggest that cardiovascular fitness levels, but not healthy lifestyle behaviors, are associated with the distributed integrity of white matter in the brain in midlife. These patterns could help inform future clinical intervention research targeting ADRDs.
Impact of Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation on Hyposmia in Patients With Parkinson's Disease Is Influenced by Constipation and Dysbiosis of Microbiota
Authors: Li Chao , Hou Ying , Wang Xu , Li Yue-xuan , Li Feng , Zhang Chao , Li Wei-guo
Published: April 2021

Background: Non-motor symptoms in PD usually arise at very early stage and vary during the whole disease progression. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is considered as a highly efficient treatment option for PD's motor function. However, the effect of DBS on NMS, especially hyposmia, has not been fully understood and the deep connection between different NMS such as hyposmia and constipation is still unknown.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic effect of DBS on hyposmia in PD patients with or without constipation and find potential factors which might influence the efficacy.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 65 PD patients accepted STN-DBS operation in Qilu Hospital during 2019–2020 were conducted to evaluate the exact therapeutic effect of DBS on hyposmia in PD. Sub-group analyses about the relationship between hyposmia and constipation were carried out. Analysis of flora in nasal mucosa was also conducted to evaluate the abundance and variety in different PD groups.

Results: Our study showed that DBS had clearly improved olfactory function in Parkinson patients (P = 0.012) and subgroup analysis found that PD patients with constipation have lower olfactory function scores (25.27 ± 3.44 vs. 33.90 ± 6.633, p = 0.014) and worse improvement after DBS operation (ΔTDI 12.11 ± 3.2 vs. 8.78 ± 2.91, p = 0.0072). Analysis of flora indicated the obvious discrepancy on olfactory function scores and degree of improvement might be related to the abundance and dysbiosis of microbiota.

Conclusion: In summary, this article presents a study on PD with hyposmia and constipation after DBS operation, explored the relationship between different NMS and offer a potential explanation on why PD patients with constipation usually have worse olfactory function for the less abundance and variety of microbiota.
GAMER-MRI in Multiple Sclerosis Identifies the Diffusion-Based Microstructural Measures That Are Most Sensitive to Focal Damage: A Deep-Learning-Based Analysis and Clinico-Biological Validation
Authors: Lu Po-Jui , Barakovic Muhamed , Weigel Matthias , Rahmanzadeh Reza , Galbusera Riccardo , Schiavi Simona , Daducci Alessandro , La Rosa Francesco , Bach Cuadra Meritxell , Sandkühler Robin , Kuhle Jens , Kappos Ludwig , Cattin Philippe , Granziera Cristina
Published: April 2021

Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients provides measures of focal brain damage and activity, which are fundamental for disease diagnosis, prognosis, and the evaluation of response to therapy. However, cMRI is insensitive to the damage to the microenvironment of the brain tissue and the heterogeneity of MS lesions. In contrast, the damaged tissue can be characterized by mathematical models on multishell diffusion imaging data, which measure different compartmental water diffusion. In this work, we obtained 12 diffusion measures from eight diffusion models, and we applied a deep-learning attention-based convolutional neural network (CNN) (GAMER-MRI) to select the most discriminating measures in the classification of MS lesions and the perilesional tissue by attention weights. Furthermore, we provided clinical and biological validation of the chosen metrics—and of their most discriminative combinations—by correlating their respective mean values in MS patients with the corresponding Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and the serum level of neurofilament light chain (sNfL), which are measures of disability and neuroaxonal damage. Our results show that the neurite density index from neurite orientation and dispersion density imaging (NODDI), the measures of the intra-axonal and isotropic compartments from microstructural Bayesian approach, and the measure of the intra-axonal compartment from the spherical mean technique NODDI were the most discriminating (respective attention weights were 0.12, 0.12, 0.15, and 0.13). In addition, the combination of the neurite density index from NODDI and the measures for the intra-axonal and isotropic compartments from the microstructural Bayesian approach exhibited a stronger correlation with EDSS and sNfL than the individual measures. This work demonstrates that the proposed method might be useful to select the microstructural measures that are most discriminative of focal tissue damage and that may also be combined to a unique contrast to achieve stronger correlations to clinical disability and neuroaxonal damage.
Analysis of Serum Paraoxonase 1 Using Mass Spectrometry and Lectin Immunoassay in Patients With Alpha-Fetoprotein Negative Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Cao Xinyi , Cao Zhao , Shao Yuyin , Liu Chao , Yan Guoquan , Meng Xinmin , Zhang Lei , Chen Chen , Huang Guiyue , Shu Hong , Lu Haojie
Published: April 2021

The diagnosis of AFP (alpha-fetoprotein)-negative HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma) mostly relies on imaging and pathological examinations, and it lacks valuable and practical markers. Protein N-glycosylation is a crucial post-translation modifying process related to many biological functions in an organism. Alteration of N-glycosylation correlates with inflammatory diseases and infectious diseases including hepatocellular carcinoma. Here, serum N-linked intact glycopeptides with molecular weight (MW) of 40–55 kDa were analyzed in a discovery set (n = 40) including AFP-negative HCC and liver cirrhosis (LC) patients using label-free quantification methodology. Quantitative lens culinaris agglutin (LCA) ELISA was further used to confirm the difference of glycosylation on serum PON1 in liver diseases (n = 56). Then, the alteration of site-specific intact N-glycopeptides of PON1 was comprehensively assessed by using Immunoprecipitation (IP) and mass spectrometry based 16O/18O C-terminal labeling quantification method to distinguish AFP-negative HCC from LC patients in a validation set (n = 64). Totally 195 glycopeptides were identified using a dedicated search engine pGlyco. Among them, glycopeptides from APOH, HPT/HPTR, and PON1 were significantly changed in AFP-negative HCC as compared to LC. In addition, the reactivity of PON1 with LCA in HCC patients with negative AFP was significantly elevated than that in cirrhosis patients. The two glycopeptides HAN253WTLTPLK (H5N4S2) and (H5N4S1) corresponding to PON1 were significantly increased in AFP-negative HCC patients, as compared with LC patients. Variations in PON1 glycosylation may be associated with AFP-negative HCC and might be helpful to serve as potential glycomic-based biomarkers to distinguish AFP-negative HCC from cirrhosis.
Nutritional Intervention Strategies Using Dietary Antioxidants and Organic Trace Minerals to Reduce the Incidence of Wooden Breast and Other Carcass Quality Defects in Broiler Birds
Authors: Kuttappan Vivek A. , Manangi Megharaja , Bekker Matthew , Chen Juxing , Vazquez-Anon Mercedes
Published: April 2021

Wooden breast (WB) is a degenerative myopathy seen in modern broiler birds resulting in quality downgrade of breast fillets. Affected filets show increased toughness both before as well as after cooking and have decreased water holding capacity and marinade pick up compared to normal fillets. Although the exact etiology is unknown, the circulatory insufficiency and increased oxidative stress in the breast muscles of modern broiler birds could be resulting in damage and degeneration of muscle fibers leading to myopathies. Three independent experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of various dietary interventions on the incidence of WB when birds are exposed to oxidative stress associated with feeding oxidized fat and mild heat stress. Feed additives such as dietary antioxidant [Ethoxyquin (ETX)], mineral methionine hydroxy analog chelate (MMHAC) of Zn, Cu, and Mn, and organic selenium (Org Se) were tested at recommended levels. In experiment 1, ETX reduced (P < 0.05) the incidence of severe WB induced by oxidized fat diet. The magnitude of improvement in percentage of normal (no WB) filets and reduction in muscle lipid peroxidation was greater (P < 0.05) when ETX and MMHAC were fed together as shown by experiment 2. In birds exposed to mild heat stress (Experiment 3), feeding MMHAC by itself reduced (P < 0.05) tissue damage by reducing incidence of tibial head lesions, skin scratches, breast blisters, in addition to increasing the incidence of normal (no WB) fillets. When MMHAC was combined with ETX and Org Se, further improvement (P < 0.05) in normal (no WB) filets was observed. In summary, under different oxidative stress conditions, dietary intervention programs that contain ETX, MMHA-Zn, -Cu, and -Mn and Org Se can improve performance and increase carcass integrity, reducing problems, such as WB, either independently or with additive effect. This effect is most likely attained by simultaneously improving the exogenous and endogenous antioxidant status, reducing oxidative stress, and improving tissue healing process of the bird.
Dissection of Functional Modules of AT-HOOK MOTIF NUCLEAR LOCALIZED PROTEIN 4 in the Development of the Root Xylem
Authors: Seo Minji , Lee Ji-Young
Published: April 2021

Xylem development in theArabidopsisroot apical meristem requires a complex cross talk between plant hormone signaling and transcriptional factors (TFs). The key processes involve fine-tuning between neighboring cells, mediatedviathe intercellular movement of signaling molecules. As an example, we previously reported that AT-HOOK MOTIF NUCLEAR LOCALIZED PROTEIN (AHL) 4 (AHL4), a member of the 29 AT-hook family TFs inArabidopsis, moves into xylem precursors from their neighbors to determine xylem differentiation. As part of the effort to understand the molecular functions of AHL4, we performed domain swapping analyses using AHL1 as a counterpart, finding that AHL4 has three functionally distinctive protein modules. The plant and prokaryotes conserved (PPC) domain of AHL4 acts as a mediator of protein–protein interactions with AHL members. The N-terminus of AHL4 is required for the regulation of xylem development likelyviaits unique DNA-binding activity. The C-terminus of AHL4 confers intercellular mobility. Our characterization of modules in the AHL4 protein will augment our understanding of the complexity of regulation and the evolution of intercellular mobility in AHL4 and its relatives.
Threat Upon Entry: Effect of Coworker Ostracism on Newcomers’ Proactive Behaviors During Organizational Socialization
Authors: Liu Pan , Zhang Yihua , Ji Yan , Wu Shaoxue
Published: April 2021

Extant literature has underlined the importance of newcomer proactive socialization to the organization. However, the effect of coworker ostracism on newcomers’ proactive behaviors has not been noticed. Drawing on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, we proposed a model exploring how coworker ostracism impacted newcomers’ proactive behaviors via the mediation of psychological availability. Through an empirical study with a sample of 263 newcomers and three waves of longitudinal data, we found that coworker ostracism had a negative effect on newcomers’ information seeking and guanxi developing. In addition, emotional intelligence enhanced the negative effect of coworker ostracism on newcomers’ psychological availability and the indirect influence of coworker ostracism on newcomers’ proactive behaviors via psychological availability. Important theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Prolonged COVID 19 Outbreak and Psychological Response of Nurses in Italian Healthcare System: Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Ranieri Jessica , Guerra Federica , Perilli E. , Passafiume Domenico , Maccarone D. , Ferri C. , Di Giacomo Dina
Published: April 2021

Aim of the study was to analyze the posttraumatic stress disorder risk nurses, detecting the relationship between distress experience and personality dimensions in Italian COVID-19 outbreak. A cross-sectional study was conducted based on 2 data detection (March 2020 and September 2020). Mental evaluation was carried out in Laboratory of Clinical Psychology on n.69 nurses in range age 22–64 years old (mean age 37.3; sd ± 10.3; 55% working in nursing care with confirmed COVID-19 patients (named frontline; secondline nurses have been identified by nursing care working with infectious patients but no confirmed COVID-19). Measurement was focused on symptoms anxiety, personality traits, peritraumatic dissociation and post-traumatic stress for all participants. No online screening was applied. Comparisons (ANOVA test) within the various demographic characteristics demonstrated few significant differences between groups on DASS-21, PDEQ, and ISE-R scores. Correlation analysis (Spearman test) was performed among PDEQ, DASS-21, BFI-10 and IES-R and confirmed between anxiety (DASS-21) and peritraumatic dissociation and post-traumatic stress; then anxiety is positively correlated to agreeableness variable of BFI-10 test. The emotional distress was protracted overtime (after 6 months) but in long-term personality traits resulted mediator facing subjective stress. Our finding drew details for protective and predictive risk factors as well as mental health issues of nurses dealing with pandemic: healthcare workers faced the protracted challenge caring COVID-19 patients over and over again: in short time the impact was relevant, and the prolonged exposition to the stressor was tackled by personal resources such as personality traits.
Regulation of Emotions to Optimize Classical Music Performance: A Quasi-Experimental Study of a Cellist-Researcher
Authors: López-Íñiguez Guadalupe , McPherson Gary E.
Published: April 2021

The situational context within which an activity takes place, as well as the personality characteristics of individuals shape the types of strategies people choose in order to regulate their emotions, especially when confronted with challenging or undesirable situations. Taking self-regulation as the framework to study emotions in relation to learning and performing chamber music canon repertoire, this quasi-experimental and intra-individual study focused on the self-rated emotional states of a professional classical cellist during long-term sustained practice across 100-weeks. This helped to develop greater awareness of different emotions and how they vary over artistic events (9 profiled concerts and 1 commercially recorded album). Data analysis included traditional psychometric measurements to test the internal consistency of the time series data as well as the relationship between variables (artistic events). The study mapped the cellist’s flexible regulation of 17 different positive and negative emotions empirically linked to learning and achievement while practicing within the social context of performing music publicly at a high level. Findings arising from the study help with understandings of how to support musicians to maximize their artistic potential by reducing emotion dysregulation and strengthening the types of adaptive methods that enable them to manage their own emotions.
Culturally Grounded Scapegoating in Response to Illness and the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Yang Qian , Young Isaac F. , Wan Jialin , Sullivan Daniel
Published: April 2021

For years, violence against doctors and healthcare workers has been a growing social issue in China. In a recent series of studies, we provided evidence for a motivated scapegoating account of this violence. Specifically, individuals who feel that the course of their (or their family member's) illness is a threat to their sense of control are more likely to express motivation to aggress against healthcare providers. Drawing on existential theory, we propose that blaming and aggressing against a single individual represents a culturally afforded scapegoating mechanism in China. However, in an era of healthcare crisis (i.e., the global COVID-19 pandemic), it is essential to understand cultural variation in scapegoating in the context of healthcare. We therefore undertook two cross-cultural studies examining how people in the United States and China use different scapegoating responses to re-assert a sense of control during medical uncertainty. One study was conducted prior to the pandemic and allowed us to make an initial validating and exploratory investigation of the constructs of interest. The second study, conducted during the pandemic, was confirmatory and investigated mediation path models. Across the two studies, consistent evidence emerged that, both in response to COVID-related and non-COVID-related illness scenarios, Chinese (relative to U.S.) individuals are more likely to respond by aggressing against an individual doctor, while U.S. (relative to Chinese) individuals are more likely to respond by scapegoating the medical industry/system. Further, Study 2 suggests these culture effects are mediated by differential patterns of primary and secondary control-seeking.
The Psychometric Properties of Translating Self-Efficacy Belief: Perspectives From Chinese Learners of Translation
Authors: Yang Yanxia , Cao Xinyu , Huo Xing
Published: April 2021

Understanding learners’ translating self-efficacy belief helps predict their ability to cope and translation performance during their career. Despite this connection, the assessment of self-efficacy during learning has been largely overlooked in translation research. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate an instrument to examine belief in self-efficacy in a sample of Chinese translation learners. Scale items were collected and refined based on an expert-panel consensus opinion. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis across two independent samples (Sample I = 193 and Sample II = 247) revealed and validated a three-dimensional structure: efficacy in internal competence, efficacy in psycho-physical competence, and efficacy in external competence. These findings provide supporting evidence for scale applications in educating translators.
Creativity and Leadership in the Creative Industry: A Study From the Perspective of Social Norms
Authors: Du Xiaomin , Zhang Hong , Zhang Shiying , Zhang Ao , Chen Beibei
Published: April 2021

Individual creativity has been the focus of long-term research in creative industries. However, few studies have explored the impact on individual creativity from social factors. At the same time, the influence of individual creativity on the existence of subsequent factors in the creative industry is also worthy of further investigation. From a social standpoint, this research aims to explore how social norms affect individual creativity, and how individual creativity affects subsequent leadership. The present research takes creative entrepreneurs in creative enterprises as the research objects, and the structural equation model is used to analyze the data obtained from 202 valid questionnaires. Besides, the mediating effect of individual creativity between social norms and individual leadership is verified. The results show that social norms can effectively promote the generation of individual creativity that has a positive impact on both transactional or transformational leadership. It is revealed that social norms are effective tools for enhancing creativity, answering the question of how creative ideas are transformed into creative work and leadership. Individual creativity plays a mediating role between social norms and individual leadership.
Markers of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Correlate With Online Sexual Compulsivity and Erectile Function in Young Men
Authors: Buchholz Verena N. , Mühle Christiane ,   Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors, Kornhuber Johannes , Lenz Bernd
Published: April 2021

Pornography addiction and sexual dysfunction are increasingly prevalent in young men. Previous studies suggest that prenatal androgen exposure plays a role in addiction and sexual functionality. Here, we tested whether lower second-to-fourth finger length ratio (2D:4D) and later age at spermarche, both putative indicators of higher androgen levels in utero, correlate with online sexual compulsivity (OSC scale of ISST), erectile function (IIEF-5), and ejaculatory control (PEPA) in 4,370 young men (age IQR: 25–26 years) of the Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors. Statistical analyses revealed that lower 2D:4D correlated with higher scores on the OSC scale. Moreover, higher age at spermarche correlated with higher OSC scores and decreased erectile function. Interestingly, OSC severity, but not the frequency of pornography use, correlated negatively with erectile function and ejaculatory control. This is the first study to associate two independent proxies of prenatal testosterone level with OSC. These findings provide novel insight into intrauterine predisposition of sexual behavior and related sexual function in adulthood.
Inter-Individual Variability and Non-linear Dose-Response Relationship in Assessing Human Health Impact From Chemicals in LCA: Addressing Uncertainties in Exposure and Toxicological Susceptibility
Authors: Li Li , Li Dingsheng
Published: April 2021

Current life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) practices use a characterization factor to linearly scale chemical emission to human health impact assuming a homogeneous exposure and toxicological susceptibility for the entire population. However, both exposure and toxicological susceptibility may vary within the population, making the same emission elicit disproportionate impacts. Here we explore how inter-individual variabilities in human exposure and toxicological susceptibility interact to affect the estimated overall health impacts on the population level. For exemplification, we use the PROTEX model to simulate the exposure of the general American population to dieldrin and heptachlor, two organochlorine pesticides that tend to accumulate in food items. Using a Monte-Carlo analysis, we characterize inter-individual variabilities in exposure by considering variations in anthropometrics and dietary patterns between ages, sexes, and racial groups. We assess the overall health impact on the population level in five scenarios with different combinations of assumptions in exposure (homogeneous/heterogeneous) and the dose-response relationship (linear/non-linear, homogeneous/heterogeneous susceptibility). Our results indicate human exposure can vary by a factor of six among the different demographic groups. Combined with a non-linear dose-response relationship with heterogeneous susceptibility, the estimated overall health impact is substantially higher than the results using homogeneous susceptibility. However, the current LCIA practice of using a linear dose-response relationship produces even higher results that may overestimate the health impacts.
Mayan Traditional Knowledge on Weather Forecasting: Who Contributes to Whom in Coping With Climate Change?
Authors: Camacho-Villa Tania Carolina , Martinez-Cruz Tania Eulalia , Ramírez-López Alejandro , Hoil-Tzuc Matias , Terán-Contreras Silvia
Published: April 2021

Despite international commitments to integrate indigenous peoples and their Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in actions combating climate change, their inclusion remains limited. Integrating TEK with scientific knowledge has become particularly important in sectors such as agriculture, which both contributes to and is affected by climate change. While there is a general recognition that integrating TEK will contribute to climate change adaptation, agricultural interventions have made little progress in achieving this due to the assumption of a clear divide between TEK and scientific knowledge. This paper considers that knowledge integration is already occurring, but in contexts of economic, sociocultural, and political inequalities. We elaborate on the case of traditional weather forecasting methods used by Mayan indigenous farmers in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula to propose a social justice perspective for knowledge integration in climate change interventions. Using information from three studies conducted between 2016 and 2019, we first explain the importance of weather and traditional weather forecast methods for indigenous Mayan farmers. Later we describe in detail both these methods and their links with Mayan cosmology. Findings show how weather phenomena such as drought and hurricanes are main concerns for milpa farming. They illustrate the diversity of traditional short, medium, and long-term weather forecast methods based on observations from nature and the sky. Farmers also perform rituals that are related to their Mayan gods and goddess. As TEK not only defines agricultural calendars but also reproduces Mayan culture, we discuss what is needed for its integration into actions combating climate change. We use a rights-based approach that considers the economic, cultural, and political scales of justice to equally allocate resources and benefits for traditional knowledge systems, recognize indigenous values and worldviews avoiding cultural harms, and accomplish indigenous self-determination through equal representation. As a result, we hope to incentivize development actors engaged in agricultural interventions on climate change to critically reflect and examine power dynamics and relations when working with indigenous communities.
Investigating the Effect of the Tractor Drive System Type on Soil Behavior under Tractor Tires
Authors: Moinfar Abdolmajid , Shahgholi Gholamhossein , Abbaspour-Gilandeh Yousef , Herrera-Miranda Israel , Hernández-Hernández José Luis , Herrera-Miranda Miguel Apolonio
Published: April 2021

To determine the effect of the tractor driving system type on the soil compaction and soil behavior a series of tests was conducted using Goldoni 240 tractor with a power rate of 30.8 kW and included four similar tires at three different driving systems (4WD, rear-wheel drive (RWD) and front-wheel drive (FWD)). To evaluate these systems’ effects on soil compaction, tests were conducted at three soil moisture contents (10, 15 and 20% d.b.), three tire inflation pressures (170, 200 and 230 kPa), and three tractor speeds (1.26, 3.96 and 6.78 km/h). Soil bulk density was measured at three average depths of 20, 30 and 40 cm. To evaluate soil compaction, cylindrical cores were used and to assess soil behavior during this process, the soil displacement in a three coordinate system was measured using three displacement transducers. It was found that the 4WD system created the least bulk density of 1155 kg/m3, while the FWD system led to the highest density of 1241 kg/m3. Maximum vertical soil compression of 55 mm occurred for the FWD system and it declined to 43 and 36 mm in RWD and 4WD systems, respectively. Soil displacement in the horizontal and lateral directions was larger for the FWD system in comparison to the other systems. With increment of speed and depth soil compaction decreased. Minimum bulk density of 1109 kg/m3 was occurred at velocity of 6.78 Km/h using the 4WD system, also with this system at the depth 40 cm density was 1127 kg/m3. While at velocity of 1.26 Km/h and depth of 20 cm soil density was 1190 kg/m3.
Strong Antimicrobial Effects of Xanthohumol and Beta-Acids from Hops against Clostridioides difficile Infection In Vivo
Authors: Sleha Radek , Radochova Vera , Mikyska Alexander , Houska Milan , Bolehovska Radka , Janovska Sylva , Pejchal Jaroslav , Muckova Lubica , Cermak Pavel , Bostik Pavel
Published: April 2021

Clostridioides (C.) difficile is an important causative pathogen of nosocomial gastrointestinal infections in humans with an increasing incidence, morbidity, and mortality. The available treatment options against this pathogen are limited. The standard antibiotics are expensive, can promote emerging resistance, and the recurrence rate of the infection is high. Therefore, there is an urgent need for new approaches to meet these challenges. One of the possible treatment alternatives is to use compounds available in commonly used plants. In this study, purified extracts isolated from hops—alpha and beta acids and xanthohumol—were tested in vivo for their inhibitory effect against C. difficile. A rat model of the peroral intestinal infection by C. difficile has been developed. The results show that both xanthohumol and beta acids from hops exert a notable antimicrobial effect in the C. difficile infection. The xanthohumol application showed the most pronounced antimicrobial effect together with an improvement of local inflammatory signs in the large intestine. Thus, the hops compounds represent promising antimicrobial agents for the treatment of intestinal infections caused by C. difficile.
Biofilm and Spore Formation of Clostridium perfringens and Its Resistance to Disinfectant and Oxidative Stress
Authors: Hu Wen Si , Woo Dong U , Kang Yang Jae , Koo Ok Kyung
Published: April 2021

Clostridium perfringens is a major human pathogen that causes gastroenteritis via enterotoxin production and has the ability to form spores and biofilms for environmental persistence and disease transmission. This study aimed to compare the disinfectant and environmental resistance properties of C. perfringens vegetative cells and spores in planktonic and sessile conditions, and to examine the nucleotide polymorphisms and transcription under sessile conditions in C. perfringens strains isolated from meat. The sporulation rate of sessile C. perfringens TYJAM-D-66 (cpe+) was approximately 19% at day 5, while those of CMM-C-80 (cpe−) and SDE-B-202 (cpe+) were only 0.26% and 0.67%, respectively, at day 7. When exposed to aerobic conditions for 36 h, TYJAM-D-66, CMM-C-80, and SDE-B-202 vegetative cells showed 1.70 log, 5.36 log, and 5.67 log reductions, respectively. After treatment with sodium hypochlorite, the survival rates of TYJAM-D-66 vegetative cells (53.6%) and spores (82.3%) in biofilms were higher than those of planktonic cells (9.23%). Biofilm- and spore-related genes showed different expression within TYJAM-D-66 (–4.66~113.5), CMM-C-80 (–3.02~2.49), and SDE-B-202 (–5.07~2.73). Our results indicate the resistance of sessile cells and spores of C. perfringens upon exposure to stress conditions after biofilm formation.
Special Issue: Application of Extracellular Matrix in Regenerative Medicine
Authors: Turner Neill J.
Published: April 2021

The present Special Issue comprises a collection of articles addressing the many ways in which extracellular matrix (ECM), or its components parts, can be used in regenerative medicine applications. ECM is a dynamic structure, composed of a three-dimensional architecture of fibrous proteins, proteoglycans, and glycosaminoglycans, synthesized by the resident cells. Consequently, ECM can be considered as nature’s ideal biologic scaffold material. The articles in this Special Issue cover a range of topics from the use of ECM components to manufacture scaffold materials, understanding how changes in ECM composition can lead to the development of disease, and how decellularization techniques can be used to develop tissue-derived ECM scaffolds for whole organ regeneration and wound repair. This editorial briefly summarizes the most interesting aspects of these articles.
Study on Design of Non-Circular Gears for Speed Control of the Squid Belly Opening and Gutting Machine (SBOGM)
Authors: Jang Hyo-Seong , Lee Chang-Hyun , Park Gun-Young , Kim Chul
Published: April 2021

Non-circular gears can maintain rotational motions of general gears and implement all varying rotational motions of the cam. They adjust the angular velocity of driven gear according to operating conditions and make precise changes in angular motion. The design of non-circular gears has not been sufficiently studied because of their particularity and complex design methods unlike spur gears. In the gutting section of the Squid Belly Opening and Gutting Machine (SBOGM), spur gears generate rotational impact due to constant angular velocities, causing noise and equipment damage; so, efficiency should be improved by varying sectional angular velocity. Therefore, we derived pitch curves by selecting angular velocity ratio considering operating environments, and the tooth profile was designed by calculating module for each section according to radius through theorical analysis for precise expression of angular velocity ratio. To confirm reliability of design, angular velocity ratio and structural safety of designed non-circular gears were verified using, commercial software, ‘DAFUL 2020 R1′.