bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sample Preparation by Easy Extraction and Digestion (SPEED) - A Universal, Rapid, and Detergent-free Protocol for Proteomics based on Acid Extraction
Authors: Doellinger Joerg , Schneider Andy , Hoeller Marcell , Lasch Peter
Published: August 2018

Mass spectrometry is the method of choice for deep and comprehensive analysis of proteomes and has become a key technology to support the progress in life science and biomedicine. However, sample preparation in proteomics is not standardized and contributes to a lack of reproducibility. The main challenge is to extract all proteins in a manner that enables efficient digestion into peptides and is compatible with subsequent mass spectrometric analysis. Current methods are based on the idea of removing detergents or chaotropic agents during sample processing, which are essential for protein extraction but interfere with digestion and LC-MS. These multi-step preparations are prone to losses, biases and contaminations, while being time-consuming and labor-intensive.

We report a universal detergent-free method, named Sample Preparation by Easy Extraction and Digestion (SPEED), which is based on a simple three-step procedure, acidification, neutralization and digestion. SPEED is a one-pot method for peptide generation from various sources and is easily applicable even for lysis-resistant sample types as pure trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is used for highly efficient protein extraction. SPEED-based sample processing is highly reproducible, provides exceptional peptide yields and enables preparation even of tissue samples with less than 15 min hands-on time and without any special equipment. Evaluation of SPEED performance revealed, that the number of quantified proteins and the quantitative reproducibility are superior compared to the well-established sample processing protocols FASP, ISD-Urea and SP3 for various sample types, including human cells, bacteria and tissue, even at low protein starting amounts.
Putative pore-forming subunits of the mechano-electrical transduction channel, Tmc1/2b, require Tmie to localize to the site of mechanotransduction in zebrafish sensory hair cells
Authors: Pacentine Itallia V. , Nicolson Teresa
Published: August 2018

Mutations in transmembrane inner ear (TMIE) cause deafness in humans; previous studies suggest involvement in the mechano-electrical transduction (MET) complex in sensory hair cells, but TMIE’s precise role is unclear. In tmie zebrafish mutants, we observed that GFP-tagged Tmc1 and Tmc2b, which are putative subunits of the MET channel, fail to target to the hair bundle. In contrast, overexpression of Tmie strongly enhances the targeting of Tmc2b-GFP to stereocilia. To identify the motifs of Tmie underlying the regulation of the Tmcs, we systematically deleted or replaced peptide segments. We then assessed localization and functional rescue of each mutated/chimeric form of Tmie in tmie mutants. We determined that the first putative helix was dispensable and identified a novel critical region of Tmie, the extracellular region and transmembrane domain, which mediates both mechanosensitivity and Tmc2b-GFP expression in bundles. Collectively, our results suggest that Tmie’s role in sensory hair cells is to target and stabilize Tmc subunits to the site of MET.

Author summary

Hair cells mediate hearing and balance through the activity of a pore-forming channel in the cell membrane. The transmembrane inner ear (TMIE) protein is an essential component of the protein complex that gates this so-called mechanotransduction channel. While it is known that loss of TMIE results in deafness, the function of TMIE within the complex is unclear. Using zebrafish as a deafness model, Pacentine and Nicolson demonstrate that Tmie is required for the localization of other essential complex members, the transmembrane channel-like (Tmc) proteins, Tmc1/2b. They then evaluate twelve unique versions of Tmie, each containing mutations to different domains of Tmie. This analysis reveals that some mutations in Tmie cause dysfunctional gating of the channel as demonstrated through reduced hair cell activity, and that these same dysfunctional versions also display reduced Tmc expression at the normal site of the channel. These findings link hair cell activity with the levels of Tmc in the bundle, reinforcing the currently-debated notion that the Tmcs are the pore-forming subunits of the mechanotransduction channel. The authors conclude that Tmie, through distinct regions, is involved in both trafficking and stabilizing the Tmcs at the site of mechanotransduction.
No evidence for transvection in vivo by a superenhancer:promoter pair integrated into identical open chromatin at the Rosa26 locus
Authors: Tanimoto Keiji , Matsuzaki Hitomi , Okamura Eiichi , Ushiki Aki , Fukamizu Akiyoshi , Engel James Douglas
Published: August 2018

Long-range associations between enhancers and their target gene promoters have been shown to play critical roles in executing genome function. Recent variations of chromosome capture technology have revealed a conprehensive view of intra- and inter-chromosomal contacts between specific genomic sites. The locus control region of the β-globin genes (β-LCR) is a super-enhancer that is capable of activating all of the β-like globin genes within the locus in cis through physical interaction by forming DNA loops. CTCF helps to mediate loop formation between LCR-HS5 and 3’HS1 in the human β-globin locus, in this way thought to contribute to the formation of a “chromatin hub”. The β-globin locus is also in close physical proximity to other erythrocyte-specific genes located long distances away on the same chromosome. In this case, erythrocyte-specific genes gather together at a shared “transcription factory” for co-transcription. Theoretically, enhancers could also activate target gene promoters on different chromosomes in trans, a phenomenon originally described as transvection in Drosophilla. Although close physical proximity has been reported for the β-LCR and the β-like globin genes when integrated at the mouse homologous loci in trans, their structural and functional interactions were found to be rare, possibly because a lack of suitable regulatory elements that might facilitate trans interactions. Therefore, we re-evaluated presumptive transvection-like enhancer-promoter communication by introducing CTCF binding sites and erythrocyte-specific transcription units into both LCR-enhancer and β-promoter alleles, each inserted into the mouse ROSA26 locus on separate chromosomes. Following cross-mating of mice to place the two mutant loci at the identical chromosomal position and into active chromation in trans, their transcriptional output was evaluated. The results demonstrate that there was no significant functional association between the LCR and the β-globin gene in trans even in this idealized experimental context.
Regulation by HSP70/90 in the different tissues and testis development of male cattle (Cattle-yak and Yak)
Authors: Liu Penggang , Yu Sijiu , Cui Yan , He Junfeng , Zhang Qian , Liu Jun , Song Liangli , Xu Yuanfang , Wang Ting , Zou Shengnan , Li Hui
Published: August 2018

HSP70/90 play important role in testis develop and spermatozoa regulation, but the contact of HSP70/90 with infertility in cattle is unclear. Here, we focus on male cattle-yak and yak, which to investigate the expression and localization of HSP70/90 in different tissues, and explore the influence of HSP70/90 to infertility. In our study, a total of 54 cattle (24 cattle-yak and 30 yak) were examined. The HSP90 mRNA of cattle-yak was cloned first and found amino acid variation in HSP90, which led to difference at protein spatial structure compare with yak. To investigate whether the expression of HSP70/90 mRNA and protein are different in cattle-yak and yak, we used real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western blot (WB) to examine them. We found that the expression level of HSP70/90 mRNA and protein are disparity in different tissues and testis development stages, and obviously high expression was observed in testicle during juvenile and adult, Moreover, it‘s interestingly in which the HSP70 expression is significant high in yak whereas HSP90 in cattle-yak (P<0.01). On this bases, we detect the location of HSP70/90 in testis by immunohistochemical (IHC) and immunofluorescence (IF), the results demonstrate that HSP70/90 were located in the epithelial cells, spermatogenic cells and mesenchymal cells. In summary, our study proved the expression of HSP70/90 are different in tissues, and the expression of HSP90 is obviously high in testis of cattle-yak, which propose that the infertility of cattle-yak may cause from up-regulating of HSP90.
In vivo detection of optically-evoked opioid peptide release
Authors: Al-Hasanil Ream , Wong Jenny-Marie T. , Mabrouk Omar S. , McCall Jordan G. , Schmitz Gavin P. , Porter-Stransky Kirsten A. , Aragona Brandon J. , Kennedy Robert T. , Bruchas Michael R.
Published: August 2018

Though the last decade has seen accelerated advances in techniques and technologies to perturb neuronal circuitry in the brain, we are still poorly equipped to adequately dissect endogenous peptide release in vivo. To this end we developed a system that combines in vivo optogenetics with microdialysis and a highly sensitive mass spectrometry-based assay to measure opioid peptide release in freely moving rodents.
The identification of DNA binding regions of the σ54 factor using artificial neural network
Authors: Ferreira L. , Raittz R. T. , Marchaukoski J. N. , Weiss V. A. , Santos-Wiess I. C. R. , Costa P. A. B. , Voyceik R. , Rigo L. U.
Published: August 2018

Transcription of many bacterial genes is regulated by alternative RNA polymerase sigma factors as the sigma 54 (σ54). A single essential σ promotes transcription of thousands of genes and many alternative σ factors promote transcription of multiple specialized genes required for coping with stress or development. Bacterial genomes have two families of sigma factors, sigma 70 (σ70) and sigma 54 (σ54). σ54 uses a more complex mechanism with specialized enhancers-binding proteins and DNA melting and is well known for its role in regulation of nitrogen metabolism in proteobacteria. The identification of these regulatory elements is the main step to understand the metabolic networks. In this study, we propose a supervised pattern recognition model with neural network to identify Transcription Factor Binding Sites (TFBSs) for σ54. This approach is capable of detecting σ54 TFBSs with sensitivity higher than 98% in recent published data. False positives are reduced with the addition of ANN and feature extraction, which increase the specificity of the program. We also propose a free, fast and friendly tool for σ54 recognition and a σ54 related genes database, available for consult. S54Finder can analyze from short DNA sequences to complete genomes and is available online. The software was used to determine σ54 TFBSs on the complete bacterial genomes database from NCBI and the result is available for comparison. S54Finder does the identification of σ54 regulated genes for a large set of genomes allowing evolutionary and conservation studies of the regulation system between the organisms.
Proprioceptive Deficits in Inactive Older Adults are not Reflected in Discrete Reaching Performance
Authors: Kitchen Nick M. , Miall R Chris
Published: August 2018

During normal healthy ageing there is a decline in the ability to control simple movements, characterised by increased reaction times, movement durations and variability. There is also growing evidence of age-related proprioceptive loss which may contribute to these impairments. However this relationship has not been studied in detail for the upper limb. We recruited 20 younger adults (YAs) and 31 older adults (OAs) who each performed 2 tasks on a 2D robotic manipulandum. The first assessed dynamic proprioceptive acuity using active, multi-joint movements towards visually presented targets, with movement constrained by the robot to a predefined path. Participants made perceptual judgements of the lateral position of the unseen arm. The second was a rapid motor task which required fast, accurate movements to the same targets in the absence of hand position visual feedback, and without constraint by the robot. We predicted that the variable proprioceptive error (uncertainty range) from Task 1 would be increased in physically inactive OAs and would predict increased movement variability in Task 2. Instead we found that physically inactive OAs had larger systematic proprioceptive errors (bias). Neither proprioceptive acuity nor bias was related to motor performance in either age group. We suggest that previously reported estimates of proprioceptive decline with ageing may be exaggerated by task demands and that the extent of these deficits is unrelated to discrete, ballistic movement control. The relationship of dynamic proprioceptive acuity with movement control in tasks which emphasise online proprioceptive feedback for performance is still unclear and warrants further investigation.
The long-term cognitive consequences of adolescent exposure to recreational drugs of abuse
Authors: Mooney-Leber Sean M. , Gould Thomas J.
Published: August 2018

During adolescence, the brain continues to undergo vital developmental processes. In turn, complex behavioral and cognitive skills emerge. Unfortunately, neurobiological development during adolescence can be influenced by environmental factors such as drug exposure. Engaging in drug use during adolescence has been a long-standing health concern, especially how it predicts or relates to drug using behavior later in life. However, recent findings suggest that other behavioral domains, such as learning and memory, are also vulnerable to adolescent drug use. Moreover, it is becoming increasingly apparent that deficits in learning and memory following adolescent drug use endure into adulthood, well after drug exposure has subsided. Although persistent effects suggest an interaction between drug exposure and ongoing development during adolescence, the exact acute and long-term consequences of adolescent drug exposure on substrates of learning and memory are not fully understood. Thus, this review will summarize human and animal findings on the enduring cognitive deficits due to adolescent drug exposure. Moreover, due to the fact that adolescents are more likely to consume drugs of abuse legally available to adults, this review will focus on alcohol, nicotine, and marijuana. Further, given the critical role of the frontal cortex and hippocampus in various learning and memory domains, the impact adolescent use of the previous listed drugs on the neurobiology within these regions will also be discussed.
Chasing the addicted engram: identifying functional alterations in Fos-expressing neuronal ensembles that mediate drug-related learned behavior
Authors: Whitaker Leslie R. , Hope Bruce T.
Published: August 2018

Given that addiction has been characterized as a disorder of maladaptive learning and memory, one critical question is whether there are unique physical adaptations within neuronal ensembles that support addiction-related learned behavior. The search for the physical mechanisms of encoding these and other memories in the brain, often called the engram as a whole, continues despite decades of research. As we develop new technologies and tools that allow us to study cue- and behavior-activated Fos-expressing neuronal ensembles, the possibility of identifying the engrams of learning and memory is moving into the realm of reality rather than speculation. It has become clear from recent studies that there are specific functional, electrophysiological alterations unique to Fos-expressing ensemble neurons that may participate in encoding memories. The ultimate goal is to identify the addicted engram and reverse the physical changes that support this maladaptive form of learning.
Synaptic plasticity mechanisms common to learning and alcohol use disorder
Authors: Lovinger David M. , Abrahao Karina P.
Published: August 2018

Alcohol use disorders include drinking problems that span a range from binge drinking to alcohol abuse and dependence. Plastic changes in synaptic efficacy, such as long-term depression and long-term potentiation are widely recognized as mechanisms involved in learning and memory, responses to drugs of abuse, and addiction. In this review, we focus on the effects of chronic ethanol (EtOH) exposure on the induction of synaptic plasticity in different brain regions. We also review findings indicating that synaptic plasticity occurs in vivo during EtOH exposure, with a focus on ex vivo electrophysiological indices of plasticity. Evidence for effects of EtOH-induced or altered synaptic plasticity on learning and memory and EtOH-related behaviors is also reviewed. As this review indicates, there is much work needed to provide more information about the molecular, cellular, circuit, and behavioral consequences of EtOH interactions with synaptic plasticity mechanisms.
Reconsolidation blockade for the treatment of addiction: challenges, new targets, and opportunities
Authors: Exton-McGuinness Marc T.J. , Milton Amy L.
Published: August 2018

Addiction is a chronic, relapsing disorder. The progression to pathological drug-seeking is thought to be driven by maladaptive learning processes which store and maintain associative memory, linking drug highs with cues and actions in the environment. These memories can encode Pavlovian associations which link predictive stimuli (e.g., people, places, and paraphernalia) with a hedonic drug high, as well as instrumental learning about the actions required to obtain drug-associated incentives. Learned memories are not permanent however, and much recent interest has been generated in exploiting the process of reconsolidation to erase or significantly weaken maladaptive memories to treat several mental health disorders, including addictions. Normally reconsolidation serves to update and maintain the adaptive relevance of memories, however administration of amnestic agents within the critical “reconsolidation window” can weaken or even erase maladaptive memories. Here we discuss recent advances in the field, including ongoing efforts to translate preclinical reconsolidation research in animal models into clinical practice.
Chemogenetic activation of the perirhinal cortex reverses methamphetamine-induced memory deficits and reduces relapse
Authors: Peters Jamie , Scofield Michael D. , Reichel Carmela M.
Published: August 2018

Prolonged use of methamphetamine (meth) has been associated with episodic memory deficits in humans, and preclinical rat models of meth self-administration indicate the memory deficits are a consequence of meth use. Others have suggested that the meth-induced memory deficits may promote a cyclical pattern of drug use, abstinence, and relapse, although preclinical evidence for this relationship is somewhat lacking. The memory deficits in preclinical models manifest as a loss of novel object recognition (NOR) memory. These deficits occur one to two weeks after cessation of meth use and involve the perirhinal cortex, a parahippocampal region essential to NOR memory. We hypothesized that a loss of perirhinal cortex function contributes to both the NOR memory deficits and increased vulnerability to relapse in a novel-cue reinstatement model. To test this, we attempted to restore NOR memory in meth rats using an excitatory Gq-DREADD in perirhinal neurons. Activation of these neurons not only reversed the meth-induced deficit in NOR memory, but also restored novelty salience in a novel-cue reinstatement model. Thus, perirhinal cortex functionality contributes to both memory deficits in relapse in a long-access model of meth self-administration in rats, and chemogenetic restoration of perirhinal function restores memory and reduces relapse.
Isomorphous diethyl 1-(4-chlorobenzyl)-4-(4-chlorophenyl)-2,2-dioxo-3,4,6,7,8,8a-hexahydro-1H-pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]thiazine-1,3-dicarboxylate and its 1-(4-methylbenzyl)-4-(4-methylphenyl)-substituted analogue obeying the chloro–methyl exchange rule
Authors: Sribala R. , Srinivasan N. , Indumathi S. , Krishnakumar R. V.
Published: August 2018

Accurate studies on the effect of substituents on the crystal packing are essential for understanding the intermolecular interactions and thus paving the way to crystal structure prediction. The crystal structures of diethyl 1-(4-chlorobenzyl)-4-(4-chlorophenyl)-2,2-dioxo-3,4,6,7,8,8a-hexahydro-1H-pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]thiazine-1,3-dicarboxylate, C26H29Cl2NO6S, (I), and its isomorphous pair diethyl 1-(4-methylbenzyl)-4-(4-methylphenyl)-2,2-dioxo-3,4,6,7,8,8a-hexahydro-1H-pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]thiazine-1,3-dicarboxylate, C28H35NO6S, (II), are described. The molecular aggregation patterns appear to be strikingly similar despite changes in the substituents, with a Cl atom in (I) being replaced by a methyl group in (II). Inspite of the chemical modifications, the structures of (I) and (I) are isomorphous, isostructural and found to obey the chlorine–methyl exchange rule. Both the structures feature C—H...O hydrogen bonding. However, a distinguishing feature between (I) and (II) is observed in the conformation of the pyrrole rings where the twist occurs on different C—N bonds. Hirshfeld analysis of both structures is presented and discussed.
Multiple substance use among patients attending treatment for substance-related problems in Switzerland
Authors: Maffli Etienne , Astudillo Mariana
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the share of multiple substance disorders among clients entering treatment for substance-related problems, to identify the most frequent combinations of the substances involved and to investigate the profiles of the clients involved.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were taken from the Swiss treatment monitoring system act-info applied among inpatient and outpatient facilities (reporting years 2013–2015). All cases with information on multiple substance disorders, according to a definition close to the diagnosis F19 from the ICD-10 classification of disease were included. The measurements comprised designated primary substance, existing multiple substance use disorder, substances involved and basic socio-demographics.

Findings

From 10,009 clients included in the study, 1,653 (16.5 per cent) were reported as having multiple substance use disorders. A great variety of substance combinations was identified and alcohol was found in the majority of them.

Practical implications

Treatment strategies targeting accurately substance-related disorders as a whole complex should be promoted. In particular the alcohol-related aspect of the disorder should not be neglected when the focus is on illegal drugs.

Originality/value

Multiple substance use was until recently not sufficiently documented in treatment monitoring systems. A recent version of the European treatment demand indicator (TDI) has introduced the notion of “polydrug use problem” as complementary information to the primary substance, which remains the key variable for reporting treatment demand. This study represents a first attempt to explore systematically this new data.
The impact of the core company’s strategy on the dimensions of supply chain integration
Authors: Feyissa Tesfaye Tolu , Sharma R. Raghavendra Kumar , Lai Kuei-Kuei
Published: August 2018

Purpose

Nowadays, supply chain integration (SCI) is considered as an enabler of competitive firm performance. It has three important dimensions: internal, supplier and customer integration. Understanding the interaction between these dimensions and organisational strategy would pave the way for effective implementation of SCI. The famous Mileset al. (1978) strategy typology classifies firms into four strategy types: defenders, prospectors, analysers and reactors. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of the core company’s product-market innovation strategy on the dimensions of SCI, and to investigate the comparative strength of each dimension of SCI in defenders and prospectors.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data were collected through an online survey of 112 firms in 24 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. Direct and mediated relationships were assessed by conducting structural equation modelling on the dimensions of SCI and product-market innovation strategy variables. Cluster analysis was conducted on organisational strategy variables to group the firms into different strategy types. Next, a one-way analysis of variance was applied to assess the impact of organisational strategy on each dimension of the SCI. Finally, apost hocanalysis was conducted to compare the strength of each dimension of the SCI against the different strategy types.

Findings

The results indicate that internal integration (II) mediates the positive effects of the core company’s product-market innovation strategy on supplier and customer integration. Furthermore, the results indicate that prospectors have stronger internal, supplier and customer integration as compared to defenders.

Research limitations/implications

This study had two main limitations. One limitation is the lack of consideration of possible differences in the strengths of the investigated relationships across different geographical locations and cultures. The second limitation is the inability of the cross-sectional research design to capture the dynamics in the process of adopting SCI and organisational strategy.

Practical implications

The present study highlights to executives the need for understanding the implications of specific strategies on the SC linkages and relationships that are required to implement those strategies. Thus, it could serve as a preliminary clue in decision-making for establishing integrated SC that is compatible with the organisational strategy. Furthermore, it could serve as a guidance to managers in steering their firms in the organisational adaptive cycle, by indicating that the implementation of product-market innovation strategy requires adopting strong SCI, and by highlighting the importance of adopting II prior to external integration.

Originality/value

This paper tests relationships that explain how the core company’s strategy influences each dimension of SCI.
Opera costumes and the value of object biographies
Authors: Waller Helen J. , Waller David S.
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to observe the nature of documentation and the description used in object biographies by an auction house catalogue and an online museum collection database in relation opera costumes. This research aims to discuss the issues of cultural and economic value in relation to objects in the art world, and examine examples of object biographies for opera costumes that are sold at an auction and exhibited in a museum.

Design/methodology/approach

The object biographies are compared from an auction house catalogue and the online museum collection database, based on two factors: costumes worn by a famous singer and costumes designed by a famous designer.

Findings

This study identified the valuation methods of auction houses and museums, including accounting for the market value and fair value, as well as social and cultural values. The nature of the documentation also clearly shows the different purpose of the object biographies. For auction houses the biography needs to be short and specific as it provides sufficient information and is read out at the auction, while art catalogues can also be used by experts as part of the conversation to understanding heritage value, and will also be viewed and used by researchers, investors, other auction house specialists and art world professionals.

Research limitations/implications

By comparing two institutions, auction houses and museums, this study has shown that the information that is documented and how it is presented in object biographies is determined by the goals of the institutions. These goals may vary or overlap in providing information, demonstrating cultural importance, to be spoken allowed to an audience and make sales, or to educate, conserve and preserve.

Practical implications

This study shows that to some extent museum online databases display their collection removed from cultural context, with an isolated image of the item, and in an organised, digitally accessible manner. A potential implication is that museums should not only digitally catalogue an item, but also provide discussion and the cultural background and significance of the item.

Social implications

Auction catalogues are written for a specific event (the auction), while the online museum collection database is meant to be a permanent record, which aims to digitally preserve objects and provide access to images and information to a general audience, and further could be edited with amendments or new information when future research or events lead to potential updates.

Originality/value

This study adds to the discourse on approaches to the understanding of costumes as an art object of significance and their potential cultural, economic and heritage value, particularly as represented in the documentation of object biographies.
Abstraction framework to support students in learning creative conceptual design
Authors: Fiorineschi Lorenzo
Published: August 2018

Purpose

Learning systematic conceptual design approaches could be difficult for students who are asked to adapt their intuitive design rationale to more abstract and divergent thinking styles. The purpose of this study is to propose a conceptual design approach with a well-defined reference framework and procedure to help students to gradually move toward concreteness and to explore the design space.

Design/methodology/approach

The so-called problem–solution network approach has been taken as a reference and upgraded with a specific framework to manage abstraction levels. A first didactical application of the proposal is described, and specific feedbacks from students have been collected by means of an anonymous survey.

Findings

Despite the limited course time allotted for the argument, students’ feedbacks revealed that the proposed abstraction framework is useful to learn systematic conceptual design and to support the understanding of creative design thinking.

Research limitations/implications

The proposal has been applied on a single class of MS engineering students in a course where only a part of the available time was allotted to conceptual design activities. However, the received positive feedbacks are encouraging and allow pushing toward more comprehensive applications and investigations.

Originality/value

The proposal shown in this paper uses acknowledged concepts of abstraction and function to propose a new integrated framework to manage abstraction levels in problem solving activities. The framework has been implemented in a very recent conceptual design approach based on problem–solution co-evolution, which has been proposed to overcome the flaws ascribed to classical function-based methods.
Exploring innovation creation across rural and urban firms
Authors: Aryal Giri , Mann John , Loveridge Scott , Joshi Satish
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The innovation creation literature primarily focuses on urban firms/regions or relies heavily on these data; less studied are rural firms and areas in this regard. The purpose of this paper is to employ a new firm-level data set, national in scale, and analyze characteristics that potentially influence innovation creation across rural and urban firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use the 2014 National Survey of Business Competitiveness (NSBC) covering multiple firm-level variables related to innovation creation combined with secondary data reflecting the regional business and innovative environments where these firms operate. The number of patent applications filed by these firms measures their innovation creation, and the paper employs a negative binomial regression estimation for analysis.

Findings

After controlling for industry, county and state factors, rural and urban firms differ in their innovation creation characteristics and behaviors, suggesting that urban firms capitalize on their resources better than rural firms. Other major findings of the paper provide evidence that: first, for rural firms, the influence of university R&D is relevant to innovation creation, but their perception of university-provided information is not significant; and second, rural firms that are willing to try, but fail, in terms of innovation creation have a slight advantage over other rural firms less willing to take on the risk.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first to analyze the 2014 NSBC, a firm-level national survey covering a wide range of innovation-related variables. The authors combine it with other regional secondary data, and use appropriate analytical modeling to provide empirical evidence of influencing factors on innovation creation across rural and urban firms.
Participants’ perception of training programmes in the tourism industry
Authors: Abbasian Saeid
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to deal mainly with the participants’ perception of their attendance in publicly funded training programmes in the tourism industry.

Design/methodology/approach

The investigation is based on e-mail interviews with 12 employees in the Swedish tourism industry who have actively participated in such courses as well as some courses offered by private organisations.

Findings

The results show that the interviewees have a positive perception of their participation and they believe that their attendance has had an overall positive impact on them or on their businesses. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether their participation has had an extraordinarily positive impact on business outcomes in terms of subsequent increased turnover, greater productivity or sales, or an expanded customer base. Lack of time and money and the prevalence of unsuitable courses prevent business owners and their employees from attending such courses.

Originality/value

This research is the first Swedish qualitative investigation on the issue.
Initial evaluation of a university dementia awareness initiative
Authors: Parveen Sahdia , Haunch Kirsty , Kerry Fionnuala , Oyebode Janet
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe a study which explored the knowledge and attitudes of university students towards people living with dementia, and developed and tested a dementia awareness workshop, dementia detectives: university edition, designed to improve knowledge and foster positive attitudes to dementia in students.

Design/methodology/approach

Dementia detectives: university edition was launched during dementia awareness week and five workshops were delivered to university students. In total, 42 participants attended and completed a knowledge and attitude measure before and after the workshop, as well as rating the workshop with regards to satisfaction, relevance, understanding and whether they would recommend the workshop to friends.

Findings

Students perceived living with dementia to be a negative and stigmatised experience. The workshop scored highly in terms of satisfaction, relevance and understanding and all students stated that they would recommend the workshop to others. Paired t-tests found significant improvements in self-assessed dementia knowledge.

Research limitations/implications

This was a pilot evaluation and further testing with larger samples is required.

Practical implications

The workshop meets the requirements for tier 1 dementia education and training as outlined in the Dementia Core Skills and Knowledge Framework published by the Department of Health.

Social implications

The workshop has the potential to increase knowledge, change attitudes, improve empathy and contribute to the development of a dementia aware workforce through undergraduate education.

Originality/value

Dementia detectives: university edition is a novel interactive method of dementia education and training.
Disruptive potential of real estate crowdfunding in the real estate project finance industry
Authors: Montgomery Nicolle , Squires Graham , Syed Iqbal
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on the Disruptive Innovation Theory and on the disruptive potential of real estate crowdfunding (RECF) in the real estate finance industry, assessing whether RECF constitutes a potentially disruptive innovation to the real estate finance industry. Based on a review and synthesis of the literature, the paper advances an initial conceptual framework of core characteristics of disruptive innovations. This framework is used to examine the disruptive potential of RECF in the real estate finance industry.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is a systematic literature review that synthesizes and analyzes relevant extant research articles retrieved from online databases.

Findings

Findings suggest that according to the theory of disruptive innovations, and the core characteristics of disruptive innovations, RECF is a potentially disruptive innovation to the real estate finance industry. RECF seems to generally align with the classic characteristics of disruptive innovations. A more comprehensive and systematic analysis, supported by empirical data, is necessary to evaluate whether and to what extent RECF constitutes a disruptive innovation to the real estate finance industry.

Research limitations/implications

This study has only captured and reviewed articles published and available in database searches. RECF is a nascent field that has recently begun receiving academic attention.

Practical implications

Real estate plays an integral part in the economy, and the way it is financed has become an increasingly important issue following the Global Financial Crisis. This paper provides useful insights for assessing whether and to what extent RECF may be disruptive to the real estate finance industry.

Social implications

RECF may potentially improve accessibility and affordability of real estate finance, thereby helping to address the problem of shortage of real estate project finance.

Originality/value

While RECF is portrayed in the academic and gray literature as a disruptive innovation, its disruptive potential is yet to be determined. This paper advances an initial conceptual framework of defining characteristics of disruptive innovations. This framework is used to evaluate RECF as a potentially disruptive innovation in the real estate project finance industry. This study forms a basis for future empirical examination of the disruptive potential of RECF in the real estate finance industry.
Architectural differences associated with functional traits among 45 coexisting tree species in Central Africa
Authors: Loubota Panzou Grace Jopaul , Ligot Gauthier , Gourlet‐Fleury Sylvie , Doucet Jean‐Louis , Forni Eric , Loumeto Jean‐Joël , Fayolle Adeline
Published: August 2018

Architectural traits that determine the light captured in a given environment are an important aspect of the life‐history strategies of tropical tree species. In this study, we examined how interspecific variation in architectural traits is related to the functional traits of 45 coexisting tree species in Central Africa.

At the tree level, we measured tree diameter, total height and crown dimensions for an average of 30 trees per species (range: 14–72, total 968 trees) distributed over a large range of diameters (up to 162 cm). Using log–log models, we fitted species‐specific allometric relationships between tree diameter, height and crown dimensions. At the species level, we derived architectural traits (height and crown dimensions) at 15 cm and maximum diameters from species‐specific allometries. The architectural traits were then related to functional traits, including light requirements, wood density, leaf habit and dispersal mode.

Among the 45 coexisting tree species, we identified strong variations in height and crown allometries, along with architectural traits derived from these species‐specific allometries. There was a positive correlation among architectural traits, suggesting that large‐statured canopy species were taller and had larger and deeper crowns than small‐statured understorey species at all ontogenic stages. The relationships between architectural and functional traits highlighted a continuum of species between the large‐statured canopy species and the small‐statured understorey species. In this moist and seasonal forest, large‐statured canopy species tended to be light‐demanding, wind‐dispersed, deciduous and large contributors to forest biomass (high basal area), while small‐statured understorey species tended to be shade‐tolerant, animal‐dispersed, evergreen and most abundant in terms of stem density.

Our results highlighted strong architectural differences among coexisting tropical tree species in Central Africa. The relationships between architectural and functional traits provided insights into the life‐history strategy of tropical tree species.

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Biogeographical constraints in Glomeromycotinan distribution across forest habitats in China
Authors: Veresoglou Stavros D. , Liu Lei , Xu Tianle , Rillig Matthias C. , Wang Meie , Wang Juntao , Chen Yongliang , Hu Yajun , Hao Zhipeng , Chen Baodong
Published: August 2018

Glomeromycotinan fungi associate with plant roots in a ubiquitous mutualism, the arbuscular mycorrhiza. Vegetation type, spatial distance, and environmental variability represent the three main factors shaping the structure of Glomeromycotinan communities.

We present here one of the most comprehensive reports on Glomeromycotinan community structure in forest ecosystems, covering five ecosystem types. We explored the extent to which the latitudinal gradient in Glomeromycotinan diversity is confounded by the respective latitudinal gradient of host plants and how Glomeromycotinan communities diverge with spatial distance and environmental variability.

We show that latitudinal differences in Glomeromycotinan α‐ and β‐diversity are largely shaped by the zonation patterns of ecosystem types and that differences among Glomeromycotinan communities occurring in different ecosystems are considerably larger than those occurring within the same ecosystem type. In contrast, we could observe little to no differences in phylogenetic community structure across samples, irrespective of their origin. In conclusion, several community assembly rules for Glomeromycotina in the woody systems, such as phylogenetic relationships, differed from those in grassland systems.

Synthesis. We provide strong evidence that the latitudinal gradient in Glomeromycotinan diversity in woody systems is mainly driven by latitudinal differences in forest habitat types. Further exploring the causes of these differences across habitat types would probably reveal underexplored facets of the ecology of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.
Do Skilled Nursing Facilities Selected to Participate in Preferred Provider Networks Have Higher Quality and Lower Costs?
Authors: Huckfeldt Peter J. , Weissblum Lianna , Escarce José J. , Karaca‐Mandic Pinar , Sood Neeraj
Published: August 2018

Objective

To determine whether skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) chosen by health systems to participate in preferred provider networks exhibited differences in quality, costs, and patient outcomes relative to other SNFs after accounting for differences in case mix.

Data Sources

Medicare provider and claims data, 2012 and 2013.

Study Design

We compared SNFs included in preferred networks relative to other SNFs in the same market, prior to the establishment of preferred provider networks.

Data Extraction Methods

We linked the SNFs in our sample to facility characteristics and quality data. We identified SNF admissions and hospitalizations in claims data and limited the analysis to patients discharged from the hospitals in our sample. We obtained patient characteristics from Medicare summary files and the preceding hospital stay.

Principal Findings

Preferred SNFs exhibited better performance across publicly reported quality measures. Patients admitted to preferred SNFs exhibited shorter stays, lower Medicare payments, and lower probability of SNF readmission relative to nonpreferred SNFs.

Conclusions

Our results imply that health systems selected SNFs with lower resource use and better performance on quality measures. Thus, the trend toward preferred provider networks could have implications for Medicare spending and patient health.
Metaphyseal burst sign: A secondary sign on MRI of subchondral insufficiency fracture of the knee
Authors: Vidoni Alessandro , Shah Rachit , Mak Davina , Beale David , Beale Sioned , James Steven , Botchu Rajesh
Published: August 2018

Introduction

To describe a novel secondary sign of subchondral insufficiency fracture of the knee, metaphyseal burst sign (soft tissue oedema in the meta‐epiphyseal region of the affected condyle).

Methods

An electronic database research of 7926 knee MRI examinations was performed. Forty‐eight scans were included in the study. The diagnosis of subchondral insufficiency fracture (SIF) was confirmed in a consensus review by one fellowship trained musculoskeletal (MSK) radiologist and one radiology fellow. The presence of metaphyseal burst sign was evaluated in the cohort.

Results

Forty‐one patients were included in the study (21 males, 20 females). The mean age was 61.5 years (range 41–80 years). The anatomical location was medial femoral condyle (n = 28), the lateral femoral condyle (n = 5) and medial tibial condyle (n = 8).

The metaphyseal burst sign was present in 45 of the 48 scans reviewed. The average craniocaudal length of the soft tissue oedema defined as metaphyseal burst sign was 7 cm (range 10.5 to 4.5).

Conclusion

The metaphyseal burst sign is an early, indirect sign of SIF.
NLMR and landscapetools: An integrated environment for simulating and modifying neutral landscape models in R
Authors: Sciaini Marco , Fritsch Matthias , Scherer Cédric , Simpkins Craig Eric
Published: August 2018

Neutral landscape models (NLMs) simulate landscape patterns based on theoretical distributions and can be used to systematically study the effect of landscape structure on ecological processes. NLMs are commonly used in landscape ecology to enhance the findings of field studies as well as in simulation studies to provide an underlying landscape. However, their creation so far has been limited to software that is platform dependent, does not allow a reproducible workflow or is not embedded in R, the prevailing programming language used by ecologists.

Here, we present two complementary R packages NLMR and landscapetools, that allow users to generate and manipulate NLMs in a single environment. They grant the simulation of the widest collection of NLMs found in any single piece of software thus far while allowing for easy manipulation in a self‐contained and reproducible workflow. The combination of both packages should stimulate a wider usage of NLMs in ecology. NLMR is a comprehensive collection of algorithms with which to simulate NLMs. landscapetools provides a utility toolbox which facilitates an easy workflow with simulated neutral landscapes and other raster data.

We show two example applications that illustrate potential use cases for NLMR and landscapetools: First, an agent‐based simulation study in which the effect of spatial structure on disease persistence was studied. The second example shows how increases in spatial scaling can introduce biases in calculated landscape metrics.

Simplifying the workflow around generating and handling NLMs should encourage an uptake in the usage of NLMs. NLMR and landscapetools are both generic frameworks that can be used in a variety of applications and are a further step to having a unified simulation environment in R for answering spatial research questions.