bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Option repricing and executive retention – revisited
Authors: Callaghan Sandra Renfro , Subramaniam Chandra , Youngblood Stuart
Published: November 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to directly test the assertion by proponents of executive stock option repricing that repricing leads to increased management retention. Previous studies find either no effect or decreased retention following stock price repricing. This paper uses a more precise research design to re-examine the relationship between stock option retention and management retention.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use an empirical methodology and construct a sample of 158 firms and 201 repricing events, and a control sample of 201 non-repricing firms. They then examine executive turnover in the four years following the stock option repricing event.

Findings

It was found that, consistent with agency theory, stock option repricing actually results in greater executive retention. Specifically, CEO retention is significantly greater for repricing firms relative to non-repricing firms for up to three years following the repricing date, and non-CEO executive retention is significantly greater for two years.

Research limitations/implications

Firms continue to restructure management through stock option repricing. However, recent option repricing has been undertaken during a period when the economy is in decline, making it is difficult to disentangle effects of option repricing on management retention. Hence, this paper uses repricing data from an earlier period, from 1992-1997, when the economy was good.

Originality/value

Many firms argue that when stock options are out-of-the-money and managerial talent is in demand, repricing executive stock options is necessary to retain managers. Previous studies find contradictory or no support for this view. Using a much more precise methodology, this paper shows that firms do retain managers when they reprice their options compared to when they do not.
Low-leverage policy dynamics: an empirical analysis
Authors: Ferrão Joaquim , Curto José Dias , Gama Ana Paula
Published: November 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide new insights into the low-leverage phenomenon by analyzing the dynamics of firms’ financing policies. The authors explore three theoretical explanations of firms’ motivations to switch among different levels of debt aversion: financial constraints, financial flexibility and financial distress.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors apply a multilevel mixed-effects model to a panel data sample of 9,005 US listed firms during 1987-2014. To use a multinomial ordered logit model, the authors break down the low-leverage firms into several levels of debt aversion.

Findings

The empirical analysis provides four main findings. First, there is a dynamic behavior regarding leverage policy: after five years, 39.4 per cent of initial zero debt firms remain all-equity firms, 14.2 per cent are leveraged firms and approximately 19.7 per cent still adopt a low-leverage policy. Second, greater asset volatility increases the expected likelihood that firms will be debt averse. Third, when firms grow bigger and older, they show a greater likelihood of moving toward a higher leverage level. Fourth, results derived from the investment variables of research and development, acquisitions, and capital expenditure provide strong evidence in favor of the financial flexibility hypothesis.

Practical implications

These findings suggest that conservative debt policy is integrated with corporate investment decisions.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to extant literature by emphasizing the dynamic process associated with a low-leverage policy, unlike prior studies that focus on the determinants and characteristics of low-leverage firms. It also applies an econometric methodology that is new to the field: multilevel models.
Evaluating the value proposition of developing a vacation ownership resort: the case of Florida and Hawaii
Authors: Barreda Albert , Murphy Kevin , Gregory Amy , Singh Dipendra
Published: November 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the value proposition of developing a vacation ownership project in Florida and Hawaii by analyzing actual company data.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on a net present value model approach that was used for analysis of the company financial data.

Findings

Results suggest that the vacation ownership alternative produces better financial performance than traditional hotel development.

Research limitations/implications

Research is limited to the case of a company in two main destinations.

Practical implications

The paper helps practitioners by presenting a current approach to consider in their understanding and perception of vacation ownership.

Social implications

Research is limited to the case of a company in two main destinations.

Originality/value

This study is one of the few investigations about applying real company data and comparing the main timeshare markets.
Leisure boat tourism: residents’ attitudes towards nautical tourism development
Authors: Gon Marika , Osti Linda , Pechlaner Harald
Published: November 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to analyse how leisure boat tourism impacts are perceived by local communities in coastal areas. For this purpose, a review of the literature on nautical and leisure boat tourism, together with residents’ attitudes, is presented. On that basis, authors consider economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts, together with general development and future policies of nautical tourism, and cluster the coastal community according to their attitudes towards leisure boat tourism.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data are collected among residents of coastal municipalities in the north part of the Adriatic Sea. Within the theoretical framework of social representation, a cluster analysis is performed on 233 valid questionnaires, collected during winter 2013.

Findings

Interviewed residents believe that leisure boating has a long tradition and has offered improvements to the municipalities as tourism destinations. They consider leisure boat tourism as a catalyst for tourism development and international tourists’ attraction. The cluster analysis reveals the existence of three homogeneous groups of residents labelled as supporters (51 per cent), cautious (29 per cent) and sceptics (20 per cent).

Practical implications

Practical implications are derived for destination managers and destination management organizations (DMOs) in addressing internal marketing and larger advertisement of the positive impacts leisure boat tourism has over the local community.

Originality/value

The paper enriches the discussion on residents’ perceptions on nautical tourism and specifically on leisure boat tourism in coastal areas. Limitations are linked to the exploratory nature of the research paper, the sample and the geographical connotation of the study area. Further research will enlarge the data collection to a wider number of coastal communities and integrate results with qualitative analysis.
STAT3 down‐regulation induces mitochondria‐dependent G2/M cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in oesophageal carcinoma cells
Authors: Shao Dan , Ma Jie , Zhou Chao , Zhao Jia‐Nan , Li Lu‐Lu , Zhao Tong‐Jian , Ai Xi‐Lei , Jiao Ping
Published: November 2016

STAT3 is persistently activated in a wide variety of human tumours, and aberrant STAT3 activity promotes tumour growth, invasion and metastasis. To explore STAT3 down‐regulation in human oesophageal cancer cells, cell proliferation, apoptosis and mitochondrial mechanisms were explored in oesophageal carcinoma TE1 cell cultures. We demonstrate for the first time that STAT3 down‐regulation by RNAi is sufficient to inhibit oesophageal cancer cell proliferation inducing cell apoptosis. Further, we demonstrate that mitochondrial transmembrane potential is impaired thereby leading to collapsed mitochondrial membrane potential, abnormal mitochondrial membrane depolarization, nuclear DNA fragmentation and cell cycle G2/M arrest under the conditions of STAT3 down‐regulation. Thus, our results suggest that STAT3 inhibition is a valid approach to induce oesophageal carcinoma cell mitochondrial‐dependent apoptosis in therapeutic strategies against oesophageal cancers.
Influence of adjunct cultures on angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE)‐inhibitory activity, organic acid content and peptide profile of kefir
Authors: Şanli Tuba , Akal Havva Ceren , Yetişemiyen Atila , Hayaloglu Ali Adnan
Published: November 2016

The angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE)‐inhibitory activities, peptide profiles and organic acid contents in kefir produced by kefir grains plus lactic acid bacteria as adjunct cultures were determined. All the kefir samples showed almost similar peptide profiles as detected by RP‐HPLC, but quantitative differences were observed during storage. The ACE‐inhibitory activities of different lactic cultures did not exhibit a linear tendency during storage period. After 7 days of storage, there was a significant increase in ACE‐inhibitory activity of the sample fermented with Lactobacillus helveticus. However, a kefir sample containing Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis exhibited a higher ACE‐inhibitory activity (92.23%) compared to the other samples.
Changes in Physician Practice Patterns after Implementation of a Communication‐and‐Resolution Program
Authors: Helmchen Lorens A. , Lambert Bruce L. , McDonald Timothy B.
Published: November 2016

Objective

To test if a 2006 communication‐and‐resolution program to address unexpected adverse outcomes was associated with changes in cost and use trajectories.

Data Source

Records of patients discharged with a principal diagnosis of chest pain from 44 nonfederal general hospitals in Cook County, Illinois, between January 2002 and December 2009.

Study Design

Propensity‐score matched discharges from the intervention and comparison hospitals before computing difference‐in‐differences estimates of quarterly growth rates.

Data Collection Methods

We used discharge records submitted to a central statewide repository.

Principal Findings

Relative to the comparison hospitals and to pre‐implementation trends, and consistent with reduced testing at presentation, the intervention hospital recorded an increase in the number of patients with a principal diagnosis of chest pain. Among admitted patients, quarterly growth rates of clinical laboratory and radiology charges at the intervention hospital declined by 3.8 and 6.9 percentage points.

Conclusions

Among patients with chest pain, the implementation of a comprehensive communication‐and‐resolution program was associated with substantially reduced growth rates in the use of diagnostic testing and imaging services. Further research is needed to establish to what extent these changes were attributable to the program and clinically appropriate.
Progress at the Intersection of Patient Safety and Medical Liability: Insights from the AHRQ Patient Safety and Medical Liability Demonstration Program
Authors: Ridgely M. Susan , Greenberg Michael D. , Pillen Michelle B. , Bell James
Published: November 2016

Objective

To identify lessons learned from the experience of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Patient Safety and Medical Liability (PSML) Demonstration Program.

Data Sources/Study Setting

On September 9, 2009, President Obama directed the Secretary of Health and Human Services to authorize demonstration projects that put “patient safety first” with the intent of reducing preventable adverse outcomes and stemming liability costs. Seven demonstration projects received 3 years of funding from AHRQ in the summer of 2010, and the program formally came to a close in June 2015.

Study Design

The seven grantees implemented complex, broad‐ranging innovations addressing both patient safety and medical liability in “real‐world” contexts. Some projects featured novel approaches, while others implemented adaptations of existing models. Each project was funded by AHRQ to collect data on the impact of its interventions. In addition, AHRQ funded a cross‐cutting qualitative evaluation focused on lessons learned in implementing PSML interventions.

Data Collection/Extraction Methods

Site visits and follow‐up interviews supplemented with material abstracted from formal project reports to AHRQ.

Principal Findings

The PSML demonstration projects focused on three broad approaches: (1) improving communication around adverse events through disclosure and resolution programs; (2) preventing harm through implementation of clinical “best practices”; and (3) exploring alternative methods of settling claims. Although the demonstration contributed to accumulating evidence that these kinds of interventions can positively affect outcomes, there is also evidence to suggest that these interventions can be difficult to scale.

Conclusions

In addition to producing at least preliminary positive outcomes, the demonstration also lends credence to the idea that targeted interventions that improve some aspect of patient safety or malpractice performance may also contribute more broadly to institutional culture and the alignment of all parties around reducing risk and preventing harm. However, more empirical work needs to be carried out to quantify the effect of such interventions.
Subcellular clustering of a putative c‐di‐GMP‐dependent exopolysaccharide machinery affecting macro colony architecture in Bacillus subtilis
Authors: Bedrunka Patricia , Graumann Peter L.
Published: November 2016

The structure of bacterial biofilms is predominantly established through the secretion of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). They show that Bacillus subtilis contains an operon (ydaJ‐N) whose induction leads to increased Congo Red staining of biofilms and strongly altered biofilm architecture, suggesting that it mediates the production of an unknown exopolysaccharide. Supporting this idea, overproduction of YdaJKLMN leads to cell clumping during exponential growth in liquid culture, and also causes colony morphology alterations in wild type cells, as well as in a mutant background lacking the major exopolysaccharide of B. subtilis. The first gene product of the operon, YdaJ, appears to modify the overproduction effects, but is not essential for cell clumping or altered colony morphology, while the presence of the c‐di‐GMP receptor YdaK is required, suggesting an involvement of second messenger c‐di‐GMP. YdaM, YdaN and YdaK colocalize to clusters predominantly at the cell poles and are statically positioned at this subcellular site, similar to other exopolysaccharide machinery components in other bacteria. Their analysis reveals that B. subtilis contains a static subcellular assembly of an EPS machinery that affects cell aggregation and biofilm formation.
Biospeckle activity in coffee seeds is associated non‐destructively with seedling quality
Authors: Vivas P.G. , Resende L.S. , Braga R.A. , Guimarães R.M. , Azevedo R. , da Silva E.A.A. , Toorop P.E.
Published: November 2016

Seeds age during storage, resulting in a decline in germination and seedling quality. Seed quality tests are important to monitor this decline. However, such tests are usually destructive and require large seed numbers and long time. For coffee seeds the standard germination test and assessment of seedling quality takes 30 days. Biospeckle has been used previously as a non‐destructive optical tool to monitor biological activity in a range of tissues. Biospeckle was applied 3–6 days after imbibition (DAI) to investigate an association with coffee seedling quality after 30 days. Two distinct areas of biospeckle activity were demonstrated, concurring with the locations of the embryonic axis and the cotyledons in the apical and central seed parts, respectively. Moisture content analysis revealed that embryos of imbibed seeds contained more water than endosperm. Different areas within the endosperm did not differ in moisture content, while the moisture content of the axis was higher than that of the cotyledons, and this did not change from 4 DAI. Therefore, it was concluded that high biospeckle activity was not the result of increased water content in any seed part, but more likely of growth and metabolism in the axis and cotyledons, which had been described previously. A threshold biospeckle ratio apical : central of 1.02 after 6 days distinguished between seeds that produced dead and viable seedlings after 30 days and provided similar results as a tetrazolium test, a widely acknowledged but destructive test for seed quality. Thus, biospeckle data provided a non‐destructive early parameter for seedling quality, based on embryo growth during germination.
Social implications of a colony collapse in a highly structured vertebrate species (long‐tailed bat, Chalinolobus tuberculatus)
Authors: Monks J. M. , O'Donnell C. F. J.
Published: November 2016

Strong social structuring within a population can confer fitness advantages to group members, but may also affect the ability of a population to recover from local extinctions. Opportunities to evaluate the dynamics of the collapse of a sub‐population on a vertebrate population in the wild are rare, requiring a crash during a long‐term study of marked individuals. Endangered long‐tailed bats Chalinolobus tuberculatus, which are members of the widespread family Vespertilionidae, live in closed social groups as evidenced by non‐random associations of individuals and a low degree of mixing among colonies. During a 19‐year mark‐recapture study of long‐tailed bats in the Eglinton Valley, New Zealand, one colony of bats collapsed over a 2‐year period in which numbers of introduced predators were high. We investigated individual‐ and colony‐level implications of this local extinction event. Survivors (11 known) were assimilated into the neighbouring colony during and immediately after the collapse, but retained higher association rates with individuals from their former colony. The neighbouring colony gradually extended its roosting range into habitat formerly occupied by the extinct colony. Acceptance of individuals into other colonies demonstrates resilience of highly structured vertebrate populations to local crashes.
Testing bidirectional associations among emotion regulation strategies and substance use: a daily diary study
Authors: Weiss Nicole H. , Bold Krysten W. , Sullivan Tami P. , Armeli Stephen , Tennen Howard
Published: November 2016

Background and aims

Alcohol and marijuana are widely used among college students. Emotion regulation strategies have been linked to alcohol and marijuana use, but little attention has been devoted to modeling the directionality of these associations. The aims of the current study were to test whether (a) daytime use of emotion regulation strategies influences the likelihood of evening substance use and (b) evening substance use influences the likelihood of next‐day use of emotion regulation strategies.

Design

Longitudinal daily diary data were collected for 30 days via on‐line surveys.

Setting

Northeastern United States.

Participants

A total of 1640 college students (mean age = 19.2 years, 54% female, 80% European American) were recruited each semester between Spring 2008 and Spring 2012.

Measurements

Daily diaries assessed emotion regulation strategies (distraction, reappraisal, problem‐solving, avoidance) and substance use (any drinking, heavy drinking, marijuana use, co‐use of any drinking/heavy drinking and marijuana). Covariates included gender, age, race/ethnicity, fraternity/sorority involvement and baseline depression.

Findings

Daytime distraction [odds ratio (OR) = 0.95], reappraisal (OR = 0.95) and problem‐solving (OR = 0.94) predicted lower odds of evening marijuana use (P‐values < 0.02). Evening heavy drinking (OR = 0.90) and marijuana use (OR = 0.89) predicted lower odds of next‐day problem‐solving, with heavy drinking also predicting higher odds (OR = 1.08) of next‐day avoidance and marijuana use also predicting higher odds (OR = 1.08) of next‐day reappraisal (P‐values < 0.03).

Conclusions

There appear to be reciprocal relations among emotion regulation strategies and substance use: greater daytime use of distraction, reappraisal, and problem solving predicts lower evening substance use, while higher evening substance use predicts higher next‐day avoidance and reappraisal but lower next‐day problem‐solving.
The nutrition transition and agricultural transformation: a Preston curve approach
Authors: Masters William A. , Hall Anaya , Martinez Elena M. , Shi Peilin , Singh Gitanjali , Webb Patrick , Mozaffarian Dariush
Published: November 2016

The nutrition transition in diets and health is closely tied to other aspects of economic development, including agricultural transformation and urbanization as well as demographic change and epidemiological transition from infectious to noncommunicable disease. Over time, dietary patterns typically shift from widespread inadequacy of many foods and nutrients, especially for children and mothers, into surplus energy intake and rising obesity with continued inadequacy of healthier foods. Diet‐related diseases remain the largest single cause of premature death and disability in all regions. This article combines food availability and dietary intake data from more than 100 countries over 30 years with a wide range of other evidence to characterize the nutrition transition and its association with changes in agricultural production and the food environment, asking how future dietary patterns might be steered toward healthier outcomes as national incomes grow.
Institutional innovation and policy support to facilitate small‐scale farming transformation in China
Authors: Huang Jikun , Ding Jiping
Published: November 2016

While the Asian food economy has been experiencing significant transitions, it is widely believed that little transformation has occurred in farm land operation. However, the recent rapid emergence of middle and large‐size farms in many regions of China is striking, as is the increase in size of operational units. The overall goal of this article is to understand small‐scale farm transformation in China based on a unique dataset surveyed in Northeast and North China. The results show that the institutional innovation through establishing land transfer service centers to promote land rental markets and reduce transaction costs, policy support to speed up land consolidation, and farm mechanization services are major driving forces in the recent evolution of China's farm operations. The article concludes with policy implications on small‐scale farming transformation in China and the rest of world and identifies research issues for further study.
Human behavior and the use of experiments to understand the agricultural, resource, and environmental challenges of the XXI century
Authors: Cárdenas Juan Camilo
Published: November 2016

The use of laboratory1 experiments in economics, and their later deployment in the field as a tool for exploring how actual decision‐makers respond to information, incentives or institutions has brought a revolution to how we model economic systems, and design policies for them. This new century will bring challenges for the study of agriculture, natural resources and the environment, where it will be necessary to have a better understanding of human behavior, in a world where climate on the one hand, and land, labor and food markets are ever more unstable. This article reviews the intellectual history of a rich dialogue between theory and experiments with a particular focus on its relevance for agricultural, resource and environmental issues. Special attention will be given to the case of common‐pool resources where this dialogue between models, field work and laboratory experiments continues to provide a rich cross‐fertilization for the advance in the understanding of the economic systems that governs these resources. I will close by arguing that agricultural, environmental and resource economists will have to take part of this behavioral revolution by embracing experiments in their teaching, their research and their policy design.
The feasibility of micro‐ultrasound as a tool to image peripheral nerves
Authors: Chandra A. , Eisma R. , Felts P. , Munirama S. , Corner G. A. , Demore C. E. M. , McLeod G.
Published: November 2016

Despite widespread use of ultrasound imaging to guide needle placement, the incidence of transient and permanent nerve damage as a complication of regional anaesthesia has not changed over the last decade. In view of the controversy surrounding intraneural injection there is a need to understand the structural changes caused by subepineural and subperineural needle penetration. Clinical ultrasound machines do not provide adequate anatomical resolution, and anaesthetists have difficulty judging the precise location of the needle tip relative to the epineurium. We studied the suitability of micro‐ultrasound imaging (which offers anatomical resolution better than 100 μm) as a tool for viewing neural anatomy and deformation caused by needle insertion. The primary objective was to assess micro‐ultrasound imaging as a method to view fascicles within nerves resected from fresh and soft‐embalmed cadavers. Secondary objectives were to observe any disruption of the neural anatomy caused by anaesthetic needle penetration, and to assess the integrity of fresh and Thiel method soft‐embalmed nerves, after handling and during needle insertion using ultrasound images and histology. We imaged nine nerves from the left and right sides of fresh and soft‐embalmed cadavers. A regional block needle was inserted into three median nerves. We identified fascicles > 0.4 mm in width using micro‐ultrasound. Subepineural needle placement was associated with denting, rotation and elastic deformation of fascicles, whereas subperineural needle insertion split fascicles permanently.
Patients with the worst outcomes after paracetamol (acetaminophen)‐induced liver failure have an early monocytopenia
Authors: Moore J. K. , MacKinnon A. C. , Man T. Y. , Manning J. R. , Forbes S. J. , Simpson K. J.
Published: November 2016

Background

Acute liver failure (ALF) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Studies have implicated the immune response, especially monocyte/macrophages as being important in dictating outcome.

Aim

To investigate changes in the circulating monocytes and other immune cells serially in patients with ALF, relate these with cytokine concentrations, monocyte gene expression and patient outcome.

Methods

In a prospective case–control study in the Scottish Liver Transplant Unit, Royal Infirmary Edinburgh, 35 consecutive patients admitted with paracetamol‐induced liver failure (POD‐ALF), 10 patients with non‐paracetamol causes of ALF and 16 controls were recruited. The peripheral blood monocyte phenotype was analysed by flow cytometry, circulating cytokines quantified by protein array and monocyte gene expression array performed and related to outcome.

Results

On admission, patients with worst outcomes after POD‐ALF had a significant monocytopenia, characterised by reduced classical and expanded intermediate monocyte population. This was associated with reduced circulating lymphocytes and natural killer cells, peripheral cytokine patterns suggestive of a ‘cytokine storm’ and increased concentrations of cytokines associated with monocyte egress from the bone marrow. Gene expression array did not differentiate patient outcome. At day 4, there was no significant difference in monocyte, lymphocyte or natural killer cells between survivors and the patients with adverse outcomes.

Conclusions

Severe paracetamol liver failure is associated with profound changes in the peripheral blood compartment, particularly in monocytes, related with worse outcomes. This is not seen in patients with non‐paracetamol‐induced liver failure. Significant monocytopenia on admission may allow earlier clarification of prognosis, and it highlights a potential target for therapeutic intervention.
Recent advances in T‐cell immunotherapy for haematological malignancies
Authors: Rouce Rayne H. , Sharma Sandhya , Huynh Mai , Heslop Helen E.
Published: November 2016

In vitro discoveries have paved the way for bench‐to‐bedside translation in adoptive T cell immunotherapy, resulting in remarkable clinical responses in a variety of haematological malignancies. Adoptively transferred T cells genetically modified to express CD19 CARs have shown great promise, although many unanswered questions regarding how to optimize T‐cell therapies for both safety and efficacy remain. Similarly, T cells that recognize viral or tumour antigens though their native receptors have produced encouraging clinical responses. Honing manufacturing processes will increase the availability of T‐cell products, while combining T‐cell therapies has the ability to increase complete response rates. Lastly, innovative mechanisms to control these therapies may improve safety profiles while genome editing offers the prospect of modulating T‐cell function. This review will focus on recent advances in T‐cell immunotherapy, highlighting both clinical and pre‐clinical advances, as well as exploring what the future holds.
Heterogeneous patterns of abundance of epigeic arthropod taxa along a major elevation gradient
Authors: Röder Juliane , Detsch Florian , Otte Insa , Appelhans Tim , Nauss Thomas , Peters Marcell K. , Brandl Roland
Published: November 2016

Species diversity is the variable most commonly studied in recent ecological research. Ecological processes, however, are driven by individuals and affected by their abundances. Understanding the variation in animal abundances along climatic gradients is important for predicting changes in ecosystem processes under global warming. High abundances make arthropods, despite their small body sizes, important actors in food webs, yet abundance distributions of major arthropod taxa along climatic gradients remain poorly documented. We sampled arthropod assemblages in disturbed and undisturbed vegetation types along an elevational gradient of 860–4550 m asl on the southern slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. In our analysis, we focused on 13 taxa of arthropods that represented three major functional groups: predators, herbivores, and decomposers. Abundance patterns were unimodal for most of the taxa and functional groups, including decomposer arthropods, and most of them peaked at low elevations in lower montane forest. When we assigned beetles to functional groups, however, decomposer beetle abundances declined almost linearly, and abundances of predator beetles (ca. 2400 m asl) and herbivore beetles (ca. 3000 m asl, undisturbed vegetation) peaked at higher elevations and exhibited unimodal patterns. Temperature, not primary productivity, was the best predictor of abundance for most of the taxa and groups. Disturbance was only of minor importance. Our results revealed different trends in the response of arthropod abundance along the elevational gradient that depended on the level of taxonomic and functional resolution. This highlights the need for more comparisons of different taxa along the same climatic gradients.
(Z)‐2‐(3‐Chlorobenzylidene)‐3,4‐dihydro‐N‐(2‐methoxyethyl)‐3‐oxo‐2H‐benzo[b][1,4]oxazine‐6‐carboxamide as GSK‐3β inhibitor: Identification by virtual screening and its validation in enzyme‐ and cell‐based assay
Authors: Joshi Prashant , Gupta Mehak , Vishwakarma Ram A. , Kumar Ajay , Bharate Sandip B.
Published: November 2016

Glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK‐3β) is a widely investigated molecular target for numerous diseases including Alzheimer's disease, cancer, and diabetes mellitus. The present study was aimed to discover new scaffolds for GSK‐3β inhibition, through protein structure‐guided virtual screening approach. With the availability of large number of GSK‐3β crystal structures with varying degree of RMSD in protein backbone and RMSF in side chain geometry, herein appropriate crystal structures were selected based on the characteristic ROC curve and percentage enrichment of actives. The validated docking protocol was employed to screen a library of 50,000 small molecules using molecular docking and binding affinity calculations. Based on the GLIDE docking score, Prime MMGB/SA binding affinity, and interaction pattern analysis, the top 50 ligands were selected for GSK‐3β inhibition. (Z)‐2‐(3‐chlorobenzylidene)‐3,4‐dihydro‐N‐(2‐methoxyethyl)‐3‐oxo‐2H‐benzo[b][1,4]oxazine‐6‐carboxamide (F389‐0663, 7) was identified as a potent inhibitor of GSK‐3β with an IC50 value of 1.6 μm. Further, GSK‐3β inhibition activity was then investigated in cell‐based assay. The treatment of neuroblastoma N2a cells with 12.5 μm of F389‐0663 resulted in the significant increase in GSK‐3β Ser9 levels, which is indicative of the GSK‐3β inhibitory activity of a compound. The molecular dynamic simulations were carried out to understand the interactions of F389‐0663 with GSK‐3β protein.
Design, synthesis and in vitro antiplasmodial activity of some bisquinolines against chloroquine‐resistant strain
Authors: Kondaparla Srinivasarao , Agarwal Pooja , Srivastava Kumkum , Puri Sunil K. , Katti Seturam B.
Published: November 2016

A series of novel bisquinoline compounds comprising N1‐(7‐chloroquinolin‐4‐yl) ethane‐1,2‐diamine and 7‐chloro‐N‐(2‐(piperazin‐1‐yl)ethyl)quinolin‐4‐amine connected with 7‐chloro‐4‐aminoquinoline containing various amino acids is described. We have bio‐evaluated the compounds against both chloroquine‐sensitive (3D7) and chloroquine‐resistant (K1) strains of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro. Among the series, compounds 4 and 7 exhibited 1.8‐ and 10.6‐fold superior activity as compared to chloroquine (CQ; IC50 = 0.255 ± 0.049 μm) against the K1 strain with IC50 values 0.137 ± 0.014 and 0.026 ± 0.007 μm, respectively. Furthermore, compound 7 also displayed promising activity against the 3D7 strain (IC50 = 0.024 ± 0.003 μm) of P. falciparum when compared to CQ. All the compounds in the series displayed resistance factor between 0.57 and 4.71 as against 51 for CQ. These results suggest that bisquinolines can be explored for further development as new antimalarial agents active against chloroquine‐resistant P. falciparum.
Children with medical complexity: a scoping review of interventions to support caregiver stress
Authors: Edelstein H. , Schippke J. , Sheffe S. , Kingsnorth S.
Published: November 2016

Background

Caring for children with chronic and complex medical needs places extraordinary stress on parents and other family members. A scoping review was undertaken to identify and describe the full range of current interventions for reducing caregiver stress.

Methods

Applying a broad definition of caregiver stress, a systematic search of three scientific databases (CINAHL, Embase and Ovid Medline), a general internet search and hand searching of key peer‐reviewed articles were conducted. Inclusion criteria were as follows: (i) published in English between 2004–2016; (ii) focused on familial caregivers, defined as parents, siblings or extended family; (iii) targeted children/youth with medical complexity between the ages of 1–24 years; and (iv) described an intervention and impact on caregiver stress. Data on type of intervention, study design and methods, measures and overall findings were extracted.

Results

Forty‐nine studies were included from a list of 22 339 unique titles. Six domains of interventions were found: care coordination models (n = 23); respite care (n = 8); telemedicine (n = 5); peer and emotional support (n = 6); insurance and employment benefits (n = 4); and health and related supports (n = 3). Across studies, there was a wide variety of designs, outcomes and measures used.

Conclusions

Positive findings of reductions in caregiver stress were noted within an emerging body of evidence on effective interventions for families of children with medical complexity. A commonality across domains was a significant focus on streamlining services and reducing the burden of care related to varied pressures experienced, including time, finances, care needs and service access, among others. There was non‐conclusive evidence however around which of the six identified intervention domains or combination thereof are most effective for reducing stress. These promising findings demonstrate that stress reduction is possible with the right support and that multiple interventions may be effective in reducing burdens of care experienced by families of children with medical complexity.
Completeness and correctness of cerebral palsy diagnoses in two health registers: implications for estimating prevalence
Authors: Hollung Sandra Julsen , Vik Torstein , Wiik Robert , Bakken Inger Johanne , Andersen Guro L
Published: November 2016

Aim

To assess completeness and correctness of cerebral palsy (CP) diagnoses in the Cerebral Palsy Register of Norway (CPRN) and the Norwegian Patient Register (NPR), and to estimate CP prevalence.

Method

Among 747 883 Norwegian residents born from 1996 to 2007, 2231 had a diagnosis of CP in the NPR while 1441 were registered in the CPRN. Children registered in the CPRN were considered to have a valid CP diagnosis. For those with a diagnosis of CP only in the NPR, two paediatricians reviewed the hospital records. The prevalence rate of CP with 95% confidence intervals (CI) was calculated on the basis of the combined data sets.

Results

One thousand three hundred and ninety‐eight children were registered with a diagnosis of CP in both registers, 43 children were only registered in the CPRN, and 824 only in the NPR. The review of hospital records revealed that 464 (59.5%) had CP. Thus, the NPR was 98% complete, and for 86% the diagnosis was correct. The completeness of the CPRN was 76%, while the diagnosis was considered correct for all children (100%). The resulting prevalence of CP was 2.5 (95% CI 2.4–2.7) per 1000.

Interpretation

To gain accurate estimates of prevalence rates of CP, it is essential to combine data sources and to validate register data.
Speech and language interventions for infants aged 0 to 2 years at high risk for cerebral palsy: a systematic review
Authors: Chorna Olena , Hamm Ellyn , Cummings Caitlin , Fetters Ashley , Maitre Nathalie L
Published: November 2016

Aim

We evaluated the level of evidence of speech, language, and communication interventions for infants at high‐risk for, or with a diagnosis of, cerebral palsy (CP) from 0 to 2 years old.

Method

We performed a systematic review of relevant terms. Articles were evaluated based on the level of methodological quality and evidence according to A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) guidelines.

Results

The search terms provided 17 publications consisting of speech or language interventions. There were no interventions in the high level of evidence category. The overall level of evidence was very low. Promising interventions included Responsivity and Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching and other parent–infant transaction frameworks.

Interpretation

There are few evidence‐based interventions addressing speech, language, and communication needs of infants and toddlers at high risk for CP, and none for infants diagnosed with CP. Recommendation guidelines include parent–infant transaction programs.
COLLEGE ADVISING AND GENDER
Authors: Thompson Shane
Published: November 2016

This paper uses a field experiment to identify college advising gender biases. Five hundred and thirty surveys are randomized over a national sample of practicing advisors such that student gender is the “treatment” of the experiment. I find that advisors discount the ability of female students relative to males by statistically significant magnitudes in both mathematics and English. Additionally, male advisors recommend mathematics with much greater likelihood than do female advisors. (JEL I2, J16)
Defending the Weak: Parental Defense Peaks When Chick Vulnerability is Greatest in the Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
Authors: Crisologo Taylor L. , Bonter David N.
Published: November 2016

Successful reproduction often depends upon parents providing offspring with resources and protection. In birds, reproductive success can often be enhanced by parents engaging in antipredator behaviors, but these behaviors can be costly. Theoretically, individuals should temporally modify the intensity of nest defense behavior to balance the costs and benefits of current and future reproductive success. More specifically, nest defense should vary throughout a nesting attempt to maximize fitness of the adults. Here, we consider the relationship between nest defense behavior and chick vulnerability in the herring gull (Larus argentatus), where chicks are under high predation risk. We estimated chick vulnerability by quantifying survival probabilities at different periods of the nestling stage. Simultaneously, we quantified changes in parental aggression throughout the nesting cycle by simulating predation attempts using a human predator model. We found that chick survival probabilities were lowest (i.e., vulnerability was highest) and parental aggression in nest defense was greatest during the first 10 days after hatching. Thus, we show that parents are most defensive when chicks are most vulnerable and that adults optimize nest defense behaviors in a way that maximizes their fitness.
Fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth rate properties in wire + arc additive manufactured Ti‐6Al‐4V
Authors: Zhang X , Martina F , Ding J , Wang X , Williams SW
Published: November 2016

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the fracture and fatigue crack growth properties of Ti‐6Al‐4V produced by the Wire + Arc Additive Manufacture (WAAM®) process. First, fracture toughness was measured for two different orientations with respect to the build direction; the effect of wire oxygen content and build strategy were also evaluated in the light of microstructure examination. Second, fatigue crack growth rates were measured for fully additive manufactured samples, as well as for samples containing an interface between WAAM® and wrought materials. The latter category covers five different scenarios of crack location and orientation with respect to the interface. Fatigue crack growth rates are compared with that of the wrought or WAAM® alone conditions. Crack growth trajectory of these tests is discussed in relation to the microstructure characteristics.
The influence of sediment mobility and channel geomorphology on periphyton abundance
Authors: Hoyle Joanna T. , Kilroy Cathy , Hicks D. Murray , Brown Logan
Published: November 2016

River managers currently have difficulty predicting the combined effects of changes in flow regime and nutrients on periphyton biomass. Biomass accumulation is known to be promoted by increasing nutrients, light and temperature, and its loss has been related to invertebrate grazing and hydrological disturbance. However, biomass predictors that are reliable across a range of rivers have proven elusive. One possible contributing reason is that disturbance thresholds used in predictive models are typically linked to flow metrics, whereas the mechanisms for periphyton removal (current drag, abrasion and molar action by mobile sediment) relate more directly to hydraulic and geomorphic conditions.

We explored this possibility by relating periphyton removal events to hydraulic thresholds for sediment entrainment in 18 gravel‐ to boulder‐bed river reaches at which periphyton cover and nutrient concentrations had been regularly monitored. We converted observed threshold discharges for periphyton removal into shear stress thresholds using hydraulic models.

Our results demonstrate that: (i) abrasion by finer fractions of the bed material (2–16 mm) was the dominant physical mechanism removing periphyton; (ii) the frequency of mobility of this fine bed material was the dominant control on periphyton abundance and (iii) growth‐promoting variables, such as nutrient concentrations, tended to only become important to periphyton abundance when the frequency of sediment movement was low.

These findings highlight the importance of geomorphic differences between sites and explain why a single flow metric may be a poor predictor of periphyton abundance across geomorphically different rivers. Our analysis suggests that partitioning sites based on frequency of sediment mobility (either sand or the D50) could improve predictability of sites at which there is potential for nuisance levels of periphyton to develop.
The impact of CACNA1C gene, and its epistasis with ZNF804A, on white matter microstructure in health, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder1
Authors: Mallas E. , Carletti F. , Chaddock C. A. , Shergill S. , Woolley J. , Picchioni M. M. , McDonald C. , Toulopoulou T. , Kravariti E. , Kalidindi S. , Bramon E. , Murray R. , Barker G. J. , Prata D. P.
Published: November 2016

Genome‐wide studies have identified allele A (adenine) of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1006737 of the calcium‐channel
CACNA1C
gene as a risk factor for both schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD) as well as allele A for rs1344706 in the
ZNF804A
gene. These illnesses have also been associated with white matter abnormalities, reflected by reductions in fractional anisotropy (FA), measured using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). We assessed the impact of the
CACNA1C
psychosis risk variant on FA in SZ, BD and health. 230 individuals (with existing
ZNF804A
rs1344706 genotype data) were genotyped for
CACNA1C
rs1006737 and underwent DTI. FA data was analysed with tract‐based spatial statistics and threshold‐free cluster enhancement significance correction (P < 0.05) to detect effects of
CACNA1C
genotype on FA, and its potential interaction with
ZNF804A
genotype and with diagnosis, on FA. There was no significant main effect of the
CACNA1C
genotype on FA, nor diagnosis by genotype(s) interactions. Nevertheless, when inspecting SZ in particular, risk allele carriers had significantly lower FA than the protective genotype individuals, in portions of the left middle occipital and parahippocampal gyri, right cerebellum, left optic radiation and left inferior and superior temporal gyri. Our data suggests a minor involvement of
CACNA1C
rs1006737 in psychosis via conferring susceptibility to white matter microstructural abnormalities in SZ. Put in perspective,
ZNF804A
rs1344706, not only had a significant main effect, but its SZ‐specific effects were two orders of magnitude more widespread than that of
CACNA1C
rs1006737.