bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Communicating social media policies: evaluation of current practices
Authors: Fuduric Morana , Mandelli Andreina
Published: April 2014

Purpose

– The main purpose of this paper is to explore the main characteristics of corporate social media guidelines (SMG) and determine whether companies communicate these guidelines effectively to employees.

Design/methodology/approach

– An analysis of corporate SMG is conducted using the Competing Values Framework (CVF) formerly used to assess business and ethical codes. The sample is comprised of 20 multinational companies that publish their SMG online.

Findings

– The results indicate the majority of the guidelines received average scores across the CVF framework, which implies the guidelines barely manage to stimulate change, direct action, provide facts or emphasize the importance of building trust.

Research limitations/implications

– A possible limitation of the research could be the issue of interpretability of the features of the framework. Hence, the quality of the research depends on the quality of the training raters receive prior to the guideline rating process. Additionally, the researchers were limited with the guideline availability and could analyze only the guidelines available online. This analysis can be broadened by identifying factors that may influence the characteristics of the guidelines (e.g. corporate culture or industry).

Practical implications

– Managers can use this framework to analyze their companies’ guidelines to reveal the gaps, point to opportunities for improvement or take the findings into account when developing new guidelines.

Originality/value

– The first paper that analyzes corporate SMG and their respective characteristics.
Virtue ethics, CSR and “corporate citizenship”
Authors: Mackey Steve
Published: April 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to critiques corporate public relations from the perspective of philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre.

Design/methodology/approach

– It uses an essay format.

Findings

– The essay is critical of proposed “communitarian-style” initiatives to take advantage of what are referred to by some public relations theorists as “consumer communities”.

Social implications

– The essay details a more appropriate ethical approach to public relations by corporations.

Originality/value

– This is the most extensive application of MacIntyre's ideas to public relations.
A response to Kreiger and Zhovtobryukh
Authors: L. Delbecq Andre
Published: April 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief response to Mark Kriger, Yuriy Zhovtobryukh, (2013) “Rethinking strategic leadership: stars, clans, teams and networks”, Journal of Strategy and Management, Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 411-432.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper provides a response to a previously published paper “Rethinking strategic leadership: stars, clans, teams and networks”, Journal of Strategy and Management, Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 411-432 and illustrates the implications for leadership evolution in North American health organizations.

Findings

– In Mark Kriger, Yuriy Zhovtobryukh, (2013) “Rethinking strategic leadership: stars, clans, teams and networks”, Journal of Strategy and Management, Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 411-432 the authors provide a theoretical model of contemporary leadership suggesting an evolution from “Single Actor Leadership” toward “Dynamic Leadership Networks.” This response to the paper illustrates how their conceptualization serves as a rich observational prism for understanding leadership evolution within North American healthcare organizations.Summative echoes are also observed in an international survey of leaders reported by the IBM foundation. These deductive and illustrative observations reinforce the salience of Kreiger and Zhovtobryukh model's as a timely conceptual lens for scholarly efforts seeking to explore contemporary leadership.

Originality/value

– Highlights how the aforementioned paper provides a conceptual lens through which to explore contemporary leadership in a scholarly context.
Auditor-provided non-audit services in listed and private family firms
Authors: Dobler Michael
Published: April 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to provide evidence on the extent and the consequences of the provision of non-audit services (NAS) by statutory auditors to German family firms.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study analyzes hand collected fee data of 368 listed and private family firms in Germany. It employs univariate tests, ordinary least squares and two-stage least squares regressions to investigate potential threats to perceived auditor independence and knowledge spillovers between jointly provided NAS and audit services.

Findings

– Incumbent auditors are shown to be a significant source of various types of NAS to family firms. There is weak evidence on threats to perceived auditor independence and support for reciprocal knowledge spillovers between the services. While listed and private family firms do not differ in regard to the proportion of NAS fees, comparative findings suggest that key threats and benefits of jointly provided services are more prevalent among private than among listed family firms.

Research limitations/implications

– The study suffers from limited data availability and is restricted to the initial year of mandatory audit fee disclosure of private firms in Germany. Particularities of family firms and the German setting, as well as differential results for listed and private family firms, suggest fruitful avenues for future research.

Practical implications

– The study addresses the current issues in audit regulation. Regulatory bodies should consider that key threats and benefits of auditor-provided NAS decrease with stronger exogenous restrictions. Attempts to restrict jointly provided services in the EU suggest family firms to reconsider their reliance on auditors as a trusted source of NAS.

Originality/value

– This study is the first to provide evidence on the extent and consequences of auditor-provided NAS in family firms based on fee disclosure. It is also among the few studies that investigate private firms in a code law country and complements prior evidence from Germany that is restricted to listed firms. More generally, it contributes to limited evidence at the intersection of audit and family business research.
Quantifying recovery rates and resilience of seabed habitats impacted by bottom fishing
Authors: Lambert Gwladys I. , Jennings Simon , Kaiser Michel J. , Davies Thomas W. , Hiddink Jan G.
Published: April 2014

The Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries requires that managers take account of the environmental impacts of fishing. Towed bottom‐fishing gears disturb seabed habitats and cause mortality of benthic invertebrates. Measurements of recovery rates of marine habitats after fishing disturbance can provide insight into spatial variations in resilience and may be used to assess the sustainability of these fishing impacts and inform the development of appropriate management strategies.

To measure recovery on real fishing grounds at fishery‐ and management‐relevant scales, we estimated the post‐disturbance recovery rates of epifaunal marine benthic communities on coarse and hard substrata across >4000 km² of seabed where the patchy distribution of bottom fishing in space and time creates a mosaic of habitat patches at different stages of recovery.

The history of fishing events at each location was described using satellite vessel monitoring system (VMS) data. Recovery rates were extrapolated from the relationship between time since the last fishing event and abundance of epifaunal benthic invertebrates with life‐history traits that are expected to make them sensitive to fishing.

Recovery of abundance of all species and functional groups (medium to medium‐large size, medium to long life span, suspension feeding, high body flexibility and low mobility species) was estimated to take <1 to >10 years, depending on the group, with faster recovery in areas with faster tidal currents.

The recovery of large species was faster when conspecifics were abundant within a radius of 6 km, suggesting an important role for maintaining local sources of recruits to repopulate impacted areas.

Synthesis and applications. We used a new method to estimate the recovery rate of benthic communities and to describe spatial differences in sensitivity to fishing. Bottom fishing in areas that recover quickly will minimize overall impacts, while leaving unfished patches of seabed will enhance recovery rates in fished areas. We conclude that management plans which limit bottom trawls and dredge fisheries to more resilient areas and maintain unfished patches within these areas will minimize the collective impacts of a given amount of fishing effort on seabed habitats.
The dispersion and detection patterns of mtDNA‐assigned red fox Vulpes vulpes scats in Tasmania are anomalous
Authors: Marks Clive A , Obendorf David , Pereira Filipe , Edwards Ivo , Hall Graham P
Published: April 2014

Models used for resource allocation in eradication programmes must be based on replicated data of known quality and have proven predictive accuracy, or they may provide a false indication of species presence and/or distribution. In the absence of data corroborating the presence of extant foxes Vulpes vulpes in Tasmania, a habitat‐specific model based upon mtDNA data (Sarre et al. 2012. Journal Applied Ecology, 50, 459–468) implied that foxes were widespread. Overall, 61 of 9940 (0·6%) surveyed scats were assigned as mtDNA fox positive by the fox eradication programme (FEP).

We investigated the spatiotemporal distribution of the 61 mtDNA‐assigned fox scats and modelled the probability of replicating scat detection in independent surveys using detection dogs based upon empirically derived probabilities of scat detection success obtained by the FEP using imported fox scats.

In a prior mainland study, fox genotypes were recurrently detected in a consecutive four‐day pool of scats. In Tasmania, only three contemporaneously collected scat pairs of unknown genotype were detected by the FEP within an area corresponding to a conservatively large mainland fox home range (639 ha) in a decade. Nearest neighbour pairs were widely spaced (mean = 7·0 km; circular area = 153 km2) and generated after a mean of 281 days.

The majority of assigned mtDNA positive scats were found in urban and peri‐urban environments corresponding to small mainland fox home ranges (30–45 ha) that imply higher scat density and more certain replication. Using the lowest empirically determined scat detection success for dogs, the failure to replicate fox scat detection on 34 of 36 occasions in a large (639 ha) home range is highly improbable (P = 0·00001) and suggestive of Type I error.

Synthesis and applications. Type I error, which may have various sources, should be considered when scat mtDNA data are few, accumulated over many years, uncorroborated by observations of extant specimens, inadequately replicated in independent surveys within an expected spatiotemporal scale and reported in geographically isolated environments unlikely to have been colonized.
The demography of free‐roaming dog populations and applications to disease and population control
Authors: Morters Michelle K. , McKinley Trevelyan J. , Restif Olivier , Conlan Andrew J. K. , Cleaveland Sarah , Hampson Katie , Whay Helen R. , Damriyasa I. Made , Wood James L. N.
Published: April 2014

Understanding the demography of domestic dog populations is essential for effective disease control, particularly of canine‐mediated rabies. Demographic data are also needed to plan effective population management. However, no study has comprehensively evaluated the contribution of demographic processes (i.e. births, deaths and movement) to variations in dog population size or density, or determined the factors that regulate these processes, including human factors.

We report the results of a 3‐year cohort study of domestic dogs, which is the first to generate detailed data on the temporal variation of these demographic characteristics. The study was undertaken in two communities in each of Bali, Indonesia and Johannesburg, South Africa, in rabies‐endemic areas and where the majority of dogs were free‐roaming. None of the four communities had been engaged in any dog population management interventions by local authorities or animal welfare organizations. All identified dogs in the four communities were monitored individually throughout the study.

We observed either no population growth or a progressive decline in population size during the study period. There was no clear evidence that population size was regulated through environmental resource constraints. Rather, almost all of the identified dogs were owned and fed regularly by their owners, consistent with population size regulated by human demand. Finally, a substantial fraction of the dogs originated from outside the population, entirely through the translocation of dogs by people, rather than from local births. These findings demonstrate that previously reported growth of dog populations is not a general phenomenon and challenge the widely held view that free‐roaming dogs are unowned and form closed populations.

Synthesis and applications. These observations have broad implications for disease and population control. The accessibility of dogs for vaccination and evaluation through owners and the movement of dogs (some of them infected) by people will determine the viable options for disease control strategies. The impact of human factors on population dynamics will also influence the feasibility of annual vaccination campaigns to control rabies and population control through culling or sterilization. The complex relationship between dogs and people is critically important in the transmission and control of canine‐mediated rabies. For effective management, human factors must be considered in the development of disease and population control programmes.
Effects of entecavir on peripheral blood lymphocyte profiles in chronic hepatitis B patients with suboptimal responses to adefovir
Authors: Zhang Liwen , Wang Quan , Zhao Pingwei , Hu Xiaoli , Jiang Yanfang
Published: April 2014

The aim of the present study was to assess the long‐term impact of entecavir (ETV) on T, B and natural killer (NK) cell immunity in patients with suboptimal responses to adefovir (SRA) chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Thirty SRA CHB patients and 20 age‐ and gender‐matched healthy controls (HC) completed at least 6 months of ETV treatment. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA loads, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and the frequency of different subsets of T, B and NK cells in individual subjects were measured. There were smaller numbers of CD3–CD56+ and CD244+ NK cells, CD3+CD8+ T cells and cytokine‐secreting CD4+ T cells, but greater numbers of CD3+CD4+, CD4+CD25+Foxp3+, CD4+CD25+CD127low T cells and CD19+CD27+ B cells, detected in SRA patients. After switching to ETV monotherapy, the levels of HBV DNA and hepatitis B s antigen, as well as hepatitis B e antigen seropositivity, decreased gradually, accompanied by decreases in ALT and AST levels. Furthermore, the number of NK, CD8+ and cytokine‐secreting CD4+ T cells increased, whereas the number of CD4+, CD4+CD25+Foxp3+, CD4+CD25+CD127low T cells and CD19+CD27+ B cells decreased, in SRA CHB patients. The frequency of CD4+ interferon‐γ‐positive T cells was negatively associated with serum HBV DNA levels. Thus, treatment with ETV inhibits HBV replication, modulates T and NK cell immunity and improves liver function in SRA CHB patients.
The Better Sort: Nobility and Human Variety in Eighteenth‐Century Great Britain
Authors: Mc Inerney Timothy
Published: April 2014

The noble tradition of exclusive, linear bloodlines has been one of the most consistent and influential elements of race‐thinking in Western history, expressing human superiority in terms of genealogical purity, which must be perpetually protected from contamination with the blood of inferior stock. This article briefly reviews the different facets of noble blood in eighteenth‐century Britain – spiritual, political and medical – and considers how different discourses of hereditary privilege influenced the emergence of human taxonomies at this time.
Permian Fusuline Fauna from the Lower Part of the Lugu Formation in the Central Qiangtang Block and its Geological Implications
Authors: ZHANG Yichun , SHI Guangrong , SHEN Shuzhong , YUAN Dongxun
Published: April 2014

A Kubergandian (Kungurian) fusuline fauna from the lower part of the Lugu Formation in the Cuozheqiangma area, central Qiangtang Block is described. This fusuline fauna belongs to the Southern Transitional Zone in palaeobiogeography, and is characterised by the presence of the distinctive bi‐temperate genus Monodiexodina and many genera common in lower latitude Tethyan areas such as Parafusulina and Pseudodoliolina. The occurrence of Monodiexodina in the fauna confirms that the seamount‐type carbonates of the Lugu Formation did not originate from the Palaeotethys Ocean, but rather from a branch of the Neotethys Ocean after the rifting of the Qiangtang Block from the Tethys Himalaya area in the Artinskian.
Landslide Developmental Characteristics and Response to Climate Change since the Last Glacial in the Upper Reaches of the Yellow River, NE Tibetan Plateau
Authors: YIN Zhiqiang , QIN Xiaoguang , YIN Yueping , ZHAO Wuji , WEI Gang
Published: April 2014

The upper reaches of the Yellow River in northeastern Tibetan Plateau are geohazards areas. The evolution of the Yellow River, chronology of some landslides, and spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of super large scale and giant landslides within the region are summarized using paleoclimate evidence, and the relationship between the intensive landslide period and climatic changes since the Last Glacial period is analyzed. It is concluded that (1) Super large scale and giant landslides are distributed widely within the region, particularly in the Qunke‐Jianzha basin. (2) The chronological sequence of landslides is established by dating the slip zones of landslides and analyzing the relations between landslides and their overlying or underlying loess formations. Five landslide development periods are determined: 53–49 ka BP, 33–24 ka BP, 10–8 ka BP, 5–3.5 ka BP, and the present. (3) These correspond closely to warm and wet periods during the last 100,000 years, i.e., two weak paleosol development stages of Malan loess deposited during the last Glacial period in the Chinese loess Plateau, L1–4 and L1–2 that belong to the marine oxygen isotope stage 3, the last deglacial period, the Holocene Optimum, and the modern global warming period. (4) Landslide triggers may be closely linked to warm and wet periods related to rapid climatic transitions.
On the Geodynamic Mechanism of Episodic Uplift of the Tibetan Plateau during the Cenozoic Era
Authors: WANG Guocan , CAO Kai , WANG An , SHEN Tianyi , ZHANG Kexin , WANG Liquan
Published: April 2014

Multi‐stage uplift of the Tibetan Plateau during the Cenozoic implies a complex geodynamic process. In this paper, we review main geodynamic models for the uplift of the plateau, and, in particular, analyze the spatio‐temporal framework of the Cenozoic deformation structures, which are closely related to the deep geodynamic mechanism for the plateau uplift. From this perspective, significant change of the deformation regime over the Tibetan Plateau occurred by the middle‐late Miocene, while thrust and thrust‐folding system under NS compression was succeded by extension or stress‐relaxation. Meanwhile, a series of large‐scale strike‐slip faults commenced or was kinemtically reversed. Based on a systematic synthesis of the structure deformation, magmatism, geomorphological process and geophysical exploration, we propose a periodical model of alternating crustal compression and extension for episodic uplift of the Tibetan Plateau.
Significant reductions in mortality of threatened seabirds in a South African trawl fishery
Authors: Maree B. A. , Wanless R. M. , Fairweather T. P. , Sullivan B. J. , Yates O.
Published: April 2014

Globally, many thousands of seabirds are killed accidentally in demersal trawl fisheries through cable interactions and net entanglements. However, multi‐year datasets for estimating seabird–trawl interactions robustly are scarce. In 2004/2005, an estimated 15 500 (7000–26 000) seabirds were killed annually through cable strikes in the South African deep‐water hake trawl fishery; the majority were albatrosses. We reanalysed those data using fishing effort from vessel logbooks (previously unavailable). The new estimates are ∼40% lower across all taxa: ∼9300 birds in 2004, of which ∼7200 were albatrosses. We compare these figures to data from 2006 to 2010, when vessels used a single measure (bird‐scaring lines) to reduce seabird mortality. From 64 trips and 690 hours of observation, 41 seabirds were confirmed killed due to cable strikes, of which 22% were albatrosses. Fatal cable interactions occurred overwhelmingly when vessels discarded offal, with the highest rates (birds killed per hour of observation) in winter and during setting. Comparing rates shows that bird‐scaring lines alone resulted in 73–95% lower mortality in the winter/discard strata (all seabirds: 0.56 birds per hour before, 0.15 birds per hour after, P < 0.001; albatrosses: 0.44 birds per hour before, 0.02 birds per hour after, P < 0.001). Estimated total mortality [mean and 95% confidence intervals (CIs)] in this fishery in 2010 was 990 (556–1633) seabirds, including 83 (38–166) albatrosses, a reduction in mean albatross deaths of > 95%, reflecting both bird‐scaring line effectiveness (accounting for > 90%) and annual fishing effort reduced by 50% from 2004–2005 to 2010. Bird‐scaring lines cost < US$200 each in South Africa, a trivial expense per vessel for a measure that reduces fatal interactions with threatened seabirds so effectively. Our results provide a strong case for the mandatory adoption of bird‐scaring lines in trawl fisheries with high densities of scavenging seabirds.
The impact of alcohol on clinical outcomes in established psychosis: a longitudinal study
Authors: Barrowclough Christine , Eisner Emily , Bucci Sandra , Emsley Richard , Wykes Til
Published: April 2014

Background and Aims

Alcohol use disorders are common among people with psychosis and are associated with poorer prognoses. In psychosis patients, there are inconsistent findings regarding the link between alcohol disorders and clinical symptomatic outcomes. This study examined the relationships between alcohol consumption and specific clinical outcomes, including affective symptoms, in psychosis.

Methods

Participants were recruited from secondary care services in the United Kingdom. Two hundred and ten participants whose substance use met inclusion for an alcohol disorder were compared with other substance users (n = 117) on baseline demographic, clinical and substance use variables. The alcohol subgroup was assessed at three time‐points, with repeated measures of psychopathology and alcohol use over a 2‐year period. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) models were used to examine whether change in alcohol use was associated with change in clinical outcomes. We controlled for a wide range of potential confounds, including other substance use.

Results

A small but specific effect was evident for change in the quantity of alcohol consumed on change in depression (adjusted coefficient for 10 total units over 90 days: 0.0015, P = 0.047). Alcohol consumption was not associated with subsequent severity of psychotic symptoms (adjusted coefficient for Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale general for 10 average daily units 0.2492, P = 0.420) or severity of anxiety symptoms (adjusted coefficient for 10 average daily units 0.0534, P = 0.473).

Conclusions

For people with psychosis, the most detrimental effect of alcohol consumption appears to be its effect on mood. Some of this effect seems to be reversible, with drinking reduction associated with subsequent mood improvement.
Knowledge of contraceptive methods and services among tertiary students in far North Queensland
Authors: Leung Joyce , Pirovich Renee , Woods Cindy , de Costa Caroline
Published: April 2014

Despite the availability of a wide range of contraceptive options in Australia, rates of unintended pregnancy remain high. A survey of tertiary students in Far North Queensland in regard to their knowledge of contraceptive methods and services revealed significant deficiencies, suggesting that existing sex education and contraceptive advice services need improving if unplanned pregnancy rates are to be reduced in this population.
Peanut allergens are rapidly transferred in human breast milk and can prevent sensitization in mice
Authors: Bernard H. , Ah‐Leung S. , Drumare M.‐F. , Feraudet‐Tarisse C. , Verhasselt V. , Wal J.‐M. , Créminon C. , Adel‐Patient K.
Published: April 2014

Background

Food allergens have been evidenced in breast milk under physiological conditions, but the kinetic and the role of this passage in food allergies are still unclear. We then aimed to analyze the passage of peanut allergens in human breast milk and their allergenicity/immunomodulatory properties.

Methods

Human breast milk was collected from two non‐atopic peanut‐tolerant mothers before and at different time points after ingestion of 30 g of commercial roasted peanut. Ara h 6, Ara h 6 immune complexes, and the IgE binding capacity of breast milk samples were measured using specific immunoassays. Their allergenic functionality was then assessed using cell‐based assay. Finally, human breast milk obtained before or after peanut ingestion was administered intragastrically to BALB/c mice at different ages, and mice were further experimentally sensitized to peanut using cholera toxin.

Results

Ara h 6 is detected as soon as 10 min after peanut ingestion, with peak values observed within the first hour after ingestion. The transfer is long‐lasting, small quantities of peanut allergens being detected over a 24‐h period. IgG–Ara h 6 and IgA–Ara h 6 immune complexes are evidenced, following a different kinetic of excretion than free allergens. Peanut allergens transferred in milk are IgE reactive and can induce an allergic reaction in vitro. However, administration of human breast milk to young mice, notably before weaning, does not lead to sensitization, but instead to partial oral tolerance.

Conclusion

The low quantities of immunologically active allergens transferred through breast milk may prevent instead of priming allergic sensitization to peanut.
Diagnosis and treatment of bronchiolitis in Finnish and Swedish children's hospitals
Authors: Mecklin Minna , Hesselmar Bill , Qvist Erik , Wennergren Göran , Korppi Matti
Published: April 2014

Aim

There is no widely accepted consensus on the diagnosis and treatment of bronchiolitis. This study describes current practices in Finnish and Swedish hospitals.

Methods

A questionnaire on the diagnosis and treatment of bronchiolitis in children below 2 years of age was sent to all Finnish and Swedish hospitals providing inpatient care for children. All 22 Finnish hospitals answered, covering 100% of the <12‐month‐old population and 21 of the 37 Swedish hospitals responded, covering 74%.

Results

The mean upper age limit for bronchiolitis was 12.7 months in Finnish hospitals and 12.5 months in Swedish hospitals. In both, laboured breathing, chest retractions and fine crackles were highlighted as the main clinical findings, followed by prolonged expiration. The mean value for the lowest acceptable saturation in room air was 94% in Finnish hospitals and 93% in Swedish hospitals. The most important factors influencing hospitalisation were young age, desaturation and inability to take oral fluids. Finnish doctors preferred intravenous routes, and Swedish doctors preferred nasogastric tubes for supplementary feeding. The first‐line drug therapy was inhaled racemic adrenaline in Finland and inhaled levo‐adrenaline in Sweden.

Conclusion

The diagnosis and treatment of bronchiolitis is fairly similar in Finnish and Swedish hospitals.
4 The Bones of the Ancestors as Inalienable Possessions: A Bioarchaeologial Persepctive
Authors: Novotny Anna C.
Published: April 2014

Ancient Maya mortuary practices provide crucial insight into how communities created and reproduced social memory and identity. In this chapter, I critically evaluate the concept of inalienable possessions in relationship to tomb contents, with particular focus on the body of the deceased and burial location. The concept of inalienability is evaluated using ethnographic and ethnohistoric accounts of Maya worldview and archaeological data from the Chan site, an ancient Maya farming community in west central Belize. The concept of inalienable possessions is a potentially useful heuristic for understanding the mechanisms by which social memory was created through materials placed in tombs.
7 The Inalienability of Jades in Mesoamerica
Authors: Kovacevich Brigitte
Published: April 2014

The rarity of jade as well as its hardness, durability, and sacred color gave it a value incomparable to other materials in Mesoamerica. The labor investment of the crafter, the esoteric knowledge used to create the objects, and the identity of the possessor(s) all contributed to the legacy of jades as inalienable possessions. Jades were gifted, displayed, interred, and even destroyed in honor of the history, memory, prestige, and identity of the object and of the possessor, which were mutually constituted. Jades that were once thought to simply legitimate the elite prestige may have had nested social meanings, and the concept of inalienable possessions can help us to understand that complexity.
Zebrafish as model organisms for studying drug‐induced liver injury
Authors: Vliegenthart A. D. Bastiaan , Tucker Carl S. , Del Pozo Jorge , Dear James W.
Published: April 2014

Drug‐induced liver injury (DILI) is a major challenge in clinical medicine and drug development. New models are needed for predicting which potential therapeutic compounds will cause DILI in humans, and new markers and mediators of DILI still need to be identified. This review highlights the strengths and weaknesses of using zebrafish as a high‐throughput in vivo model for studying DILI. Although the zebrafish liver architecture is different from that of the mammalian liver, the main physiological processes remain similar. Zebrafish metabolize drugs using similar pathways to those in humans; they possess a wide range of cytochrome P450 enzymes that enable metabolic reactions including hydroxylation, conjugation, oxidation, demethylation and de‐ethylation. Following exposure to a range of hepatotoxic drugs, the zebrafish liver develops histological patterns of injury comparable to those of mammalian liver, and biomarkers for liver injury can be quantified in the zebrafish circulation. The zebrafish immune system is similar to that of mammals, but the zebrafish inflammatory response to DILI is not yet defined. In order to quantify DILI in zebrafish, a wide variety of methods can be used, including visual assessment, quantification of serum enzymes and experimental serum biomarkers and scoring of histopathology. With further development, the zebrafish may be a model that complements rodents and may have value for the discovery of new disease pathways and translational biomarkers.
Warped functional analysis of variance
Authors: Gervini Daniel , Carter Patrick A.
Published: April 2014

This article presents an Analysis of Variance model for functional data that explicitly incorporates phase variability through a time‐warping component, allowing for a unified approach to estimation and inference in presence of amplitude and time variability. The focus is on single‐random‐factor models but the approach can be easily generalized to more complex ANOVA models. The behavior of the estimators is studied by simulation, and an application to the analysis of growth curves of flour beetles is presented. Although the model assumes a smooth latent process behind the observed trajectories, smootheness of the observed data is not required; the method can be applied to irregular time grids, which are common in longitudinal studies.
Estimating peer effects in longitudinal dyadic data using instrumental variables
Authors: O'Malley A. James , Elwert Felix , Rosenquist J. Niels , Zaslavsky Alan M. , Christakis Nicholas A.
Published: April 2014

The identification of causal peer effects (also known as social contagion or induction) from observational data in social networks is challenged by two distinct sources of bias: latent homophily and unobserved confounding. In this paper, we investigate how causal peer effects of traits and behaviors can be identified using genes (or other structurally isomorphic variables) as instrumental variables (IV) in a large set of data generating models with homophily and confounding. We use directed acyclic graphs to represent these models and employ multiple IV strategies and report three main identification results. First, using a single fixed gene (or allele) as an IV will generally fail to identify peer effects if the gene affects past values of the treatment. Second, multiple fixed genes/alleles, or, more promisingly, time‐varying gene expression, can identify peer effects if we instrument exclusion violations as well as the focal treatment. Third, we show that IV identification of peer effects remains possible even under multiple complications often regarded as lethal for IV identification of intra‐individual effects, such as pleiotropy on observables and unobservables, homophily on past phenotype, past and ongoing homophily on genotype, inter‐phenotype peer effects, population stratification, gene expression that is endogenous to past phenotype and past gene expression, and others. We apply our identification results to estimating peer effects of body mass index (BMI) among friends and spouses in the Framingham Heart Study. Results suggest a positive causal peer effect of BMI between friends.
Probability‐enhanced sufficient dimension reduction for binary classification
Authors: Shin Seung Jun , Wu Yichao , Zhang Hao Helen , Liu Yufeng
Published: April 2014

In high‐dimensional data analysis, it is of primary interest to reduce the data dimensionality without loss of information. Sufficient dimension reduction (SDR) arises in this context, and many successful SDR methods have been developed since the introduction of sliced inverse regression (SIR) [Li (1991)Journal of the American Statistical Association86, 316–327]. Despite their fast progress, though, most existing methods target on regression problems with a continuous response. For binary classification problems, SIR suffers the limitation of estimating at most one direction since only two slices are available. In this article, we develop a new and flexible probability‐enhanced SDR method for binary classification problems by using the weighted support vector machine (WSVM). The key idea is to slice the data based on conditional class probabilities of observations rather than their binary responses. We first show that the central subspace based on the conditional class probability is the same as that based on the binary response. This important result justifies the proposed slicing scheme from a theoretical perspective and assures no information loss. In practice, the true conditional class probability is generally not available, and the problem of probability estimation can be challenging for data with large‐dimensional inputs. We observe that, in order to implement the new slicing scheme, one does not need exact probability values and the only required information is the relative order of probability values. Motivated by this fact, our new SDR procedure bypasses the probability estimation step and employs the WSVM to directly estimate the order of probability values, based on which the slicing is performed. The performance of the proposed probability‐enhanced SDR scheme is evaluated by both simulated and real data examples.
Giving the early fossil record of sponges a squeeze
Authors: Antcliffe Jonathan B. , Callow Richard H. T. , Brasier Martin D.
Published: April 2014

Twenty candidate fossils with claim to be the oldest representative of thePhylumPorifera have been re‐analysed. Three criteria are used to assess each candidate: (i) the diagnostic criteria needed to categorize sponges in the fossil record; (ii) the presence, or absence, of such diagnostic features in the putative poriferan fossils; and (iii) the age constraints for the candidate fossils. All three criteria are critical to the correct interpretation of any fossil and its placement within an evolutionary context. Our analysis shows that noPrecambrian fossil candidate yet satisfies all three of these criteria to be a reliable sponge fossil. The oldest widely accepted candidate,Mongolian silica hexacts fromc. 545 million years ago (Ma), are here shown to be cruciform arsenopyrite crystals. The oldest reliable sponge remains are siliceous spicules from the basalCambrian (Protohertzina anabaricaZone)SoltaniehFormation,Iran, which are described and analysed here in detail for the first time. Extensive archaeocyathan sponge reefs emerge and radiate as late as the middle of theFortunianStage of theCambrian and demonstrate a gradual assembly of their skeletal structure through this time coincident with the evolution of other metazoan groups. Since thePorifera are basal in theMetazoa, their presence within the lateProterozoic has been widely anticipated. Molecular clock calibration for the earliestPorifera andMetazoa should now be based on theIranian hexactinellid material dated toc. 535 Ma. The earliest convincing fossil sponge remains appeared at around the time of thePrecambrian‐Cambrian boundary, associated with the great radiation events of that interval.
chem‐path‐tracker: An Automated Tool to Analyze Chemical Motifs in Molecular Structures
Authors: Ribeiro João V. , Cerqueira N. M. F. S. A. , Fernandes Pedro A. , Ramos Maria J.
Published: April 2014

In this article, we propose a method for locating functionally relevant chemical motifs in protein structures. The chemical motifs can be a small group of residues or structure protein fragments with highly conserved properties that have important biological functions. However, the detection of chemical motifs is rather difficult because they often consist of a set of amino acid residues separated by long, variable regions, and they only come together to form a functional group when the protein is folded into its three‐dimensional structure. Furthermore, the assemblage of these residues is often dependent on non‐covalent interactions among the constituent amino acids that are difficult to detect or visualize. To simplify the analysis of these chemical motifs and give access to a generalized use for all users, we developed chem‐path‐tracker. This software is a VMD plug‐in that allows the user to highlight and reveal potential chemical motifs requiring only a few selections. The analysis is based on atoms/residues pair distances applying a modified version of Dijkstra's algorithm, and it makes possible to monitor the distances of a large pathway, even during a molecular dynamics simulation. This tool turned out to be very useful, fast, and user‐friendly in the performed tests. The chem‐path‐tracker package is distributed as an independent platform and can be found at http://www.fc.up.pt/PortoBioComp/database/doku.php?id=chem-path-tracker.
“Helping” Versus “Being a Helper”: Invoking the Self to Increase Helping in Young Children
Authors: Bryan Christopher J. , Master Allison , Walton Gregory M.
Published: April 2014

Can a subtle linguistic cue that invokes the self motivate children to help? In two experiments, 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children (N = 149) were exposed to the idea of “being a helper” (noun condition) or “helping” (verb condition). Noun wording fosters the perception that a behavior reflects an identity—the kind of person one is. Both when children interacted with an adult who referenced “being a helper” or “helping” () and with a new adult (), children in the noun condition helped significantly more across four tasks than children in the verb condition or a baseline control condition. The results demonstrate that children are motivated to pursue a positive identity. Moreover, this motivation can be leveraged to encourage prosocial behavior.
Early Communicative Gestures Prospectively Predict Language Development and Executive Function in Early Childhood
Authors: Kuhn Laura J. , Willoughby Michael T. , Wilbourn Makeba Parramore , Vernon‐Feagans Lynne , Blair Clancy B. ,   The Family Life Project Key Investigators
Published: April 2014

Using an epidemiological sample (N = 1,117) and a prospective longitudinal design, this study tested the direct and indirect effects of preverbal and verbal communication (15 months to 3 years) on executive function (EF) at age 4 years. Results indicated that whereas gestures (15 months), as well as language (2 and 3 years), were correlated with later EF (φs ≥ .44), the effect was entirely mediated through later language. In contrast, language had significant direct and indirect effects on later EF. Exploratory analyses indicated that the pattern of results was comparable for low‐ and not‐low‐income families. The results were consistent with theoretical accounts of language as a precursor of EF ability, and highlighted gesture as an early indicator of EF.
The gut microbiota and its role in the development of allergic disease: a wider perspective
Authors: West C. E. , Jenmalm M. C. , Prescott S. L.
Published: April 2014

The gut microbiota are critical in the homoeostasis of multiple interconnected host metabolic and immune networks. If early microbial colonization is delayed, the gut‐associated lymphoid tissues (GALT) fail to develop, leading to persistent immune dysregulation in mice. Microbial colonization has also been proposed as a major driver for the normal age‐related maturation of both Th1 and T regulatory (Treg) pathways that appear important in suppressing early propensity for Th2 allergic responses. There is emerging evidence that resident symbionts induce tolerogenic gut‐associated Treg cells and dendritic cells that ensure the preferential growth of symbionts; keeping pathogenic strains in check and constraining proinflammatory Th1, Th2, and Th17 clones. Some effects of symbionts are mediated by short‐chain fatty acids, which play a critical role in mucosal integrity and local and systemic metabolic function and stimulate the regulatory immune responses. The homoeostatic IL‐10/TGF‐β dominated tolerogenic response within the GALT also signals the production of secretory IgA, which have a regulating role in mucosal integrity. Contrary to the ‘sterile womb’ paradigm, recent studies suggest that maternal microbial transfer to the offspring begins during pregnancy, providing a pioneer microbiome. It is likely that appropriate microbial stimulation both pre‐ and postnatally is required for optimal Th1 and Treg development to avoid the pathophysiological processes leading to allergy. Disturbed gut colonization patterns have been associated with allergic disease, but whether microbial variation is the cause or effect of these diseases is still under investigation. We are far from understanding what constitutes a ‘healthy gut microbiome’ that promotes tolerance. This remains a major limitation and might explain some of the inconsistency in human intervention studies with prebiotics and probiotics. Multidisciplinary integrative approaches with researchers working in networks, using harmonized outcomes and methodologies, are needed to advance our understanding in this field.
Preferences for results from genomic microarrays: comparing parents and health care providers
Authors: Turbitt E. , Halliday J.L. , Amor D.J. , Metcalfe S.A.
Published: April 2014

Chromosomal microarray (CMA) testing is now performed frequently in paediatric care. Although CMAs improve diagnostic yields, they increase detection of variants of unknown and uncertain clinical significance (VUS). Understanding parents', paediatricians' and genetic health professionals' (GHPs) views regarding variant disclosure may reduce the potential for communication of unwanted information. A questionnaire was designed to compare disclosure preferences of these three groups in Australia. One hundred and forty‐seven parents, 159 paediatricians and 69 GHPs hold similar views with at least 89% of respondents certainly or probably favouring disclosure of all categories of variants. However, some differences were observed between health care providers (HCPs: paediatricians and GHPs) and parents, who were less sure of their disclosure preferences. There was consensus among respondent groups that knowledge of a variant of certain clinical significance would provide more practical and emotional utility compared to VUS. Compared to HCPs, parents placed more emphasis on using knowledge of a VUS when considering future pregnancies (p < 0.001). This study may help HCPs anticipate parents' preferences for genomic testing. As whole exome/genome sequencing is integrated into clinical practice, the potential for differing views of parents and HCPs should be considered when developing guidelines for result disclosure.
Two Hundred Years of Local Avian Extinctions in Eastern Amazonia
Authors: MOURA NÁRGILA G. , LEES ALEXANDER C. , ALEIXO ALEXANDRE , BARLOW JOS , DANTAS SIDNEI M. , FERREIRA JOICE , LIMA MARIA DE FÁTIMA C. , GARDNER TOBY A.
Published: April 2014

Local, regional, and global extinctions caused by habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation have been widely reported for the tropics. The patterns and drivers of this loss of species are now increasingly well known in Amazonia, but there remains a significant gap in understanding of long‐term trends in species persistence and extinction in anthropogenic landscapes. Such a historical perspective is critical for understanding the status and trends of extant biodiversity as well as for identifying priorities to halt further losses. Using extensive historical data sets of specimen records and results of contemporary surveys, we searched for evidence of local extinctions of a terra firma rainforest avifauna over 200 years in a 2500 km2 eastern Amazonian region around the Brazilian city of Belém. This region has the longest history of ornithological fieldwork in the entire Amazon basin and lies in the highly threatened Belém Centre of Endemism. We also compared our historically inferred extinction events with extensive data on species occurrences in a sample of catchments in a nearby municipality (Paragominas) that encompass a gradient of past forest loss. We found evidence for the possible extinction of 47 species (14% of the regional species pool) that were unreported from 1980 to 2013 (80% last recorded between 1900 and 1980). Seventeen species appear on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, and many of these are large‐bodied. The species lost from the region immediately around Belém are similar to those which are currently restricted to well‐forested catchments in Paragominas. Although we anticipate the future rediscovery or recolonization of some species inferred to be extinct by our calculations, we also expect that there are likely to be additional local extinctions, not reported here, given the ongoing loss and degradation of remaining areas of native vegetation across eastern Amazonia.

Doscientos Años de Extinciones Locales de Aves en la Amazonia Oriental