bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An epigenetic barrier sets the timing of human neuronal maturation
Authors: Ciceri Gabriele , Cho Hyunwoo , Kshirsagar Meghana , Baggiolini Arianna , Aromolaran Kelly A , Walsh Ryan M , Goldstein Peter A , Koche Richard P. , Leslie Christina S , Studer Lorenz
Published: June 2022

The pace of human brain development is highly protracted compared to most other species. The maturation of cortical neurons is particularly slow, extending over months to years to reach adult-like functions. Remarkably, such protracted timing is retained in cortical neurons derived from human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) during in vitro differentiation or upon transplantation into the murine brain in vivo. Those findings suggest the presence of a cell intrinsic clock that sets the pace of neuronal maturation, though the molecular nature of such a clock has remained elusive.

Here, we identify an epigenetic developmental program which sets the timing of human neuronal maturation. First, we developed a human PSC-based approach to synchronize the birth of cortical neurons in vitro which allowed us to define a detailed atlas of progressive morphological, functional, and molecular maturation in human cortical neurons. Interestingly, we observed a slow, temporal unfolding of maturation programs that is limited by the retention of a specific set of epigenetic factors. Loss-of-function studies for several of those factors in cortical neurons enables precocious molecular and physiological maturation. Remarkably, transient inhibition of EZH2, EHMT1/2 or DOT1L, at the progenitor stage primes newly born neurons to rapidly acquire mature properties upon differentiation. Therefore, our findings reveal that the rate at which human neurons mature is set well before neurogenesis through the establishment of an “epigenetic barrier” in progenitor cells. Mechanistically, this barrier acts by holding transcriptional maturation programs in a poised state that gets gradually released during neuronal differentiation to ensure the prolonged timeline characteristic of human cortical neuron maturation.
TSignal: A transformer model for signal peptide prediction
Authors: Dumitrescu Alexandru , Jokinen Emmi , Kellosalo Juho , Paavilainen Ville , Lähdesmäki Harri
Published: June 2022

Signal peptides are short amino acid segments present at the N-terminus of newly synthesized proteins that facilitate protein translocation into the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum, after which they are cleaved off. Specific regions of signal peptides influence the efficiency of protein translocation, and small changes in their primary structure can abolish protein secretion altogether. The lack of conserved motifs across signal peptides, sensitivity to mutations, and variability in the length of the peptides, make signal peptide prediction a challenging task that has been extensively pursued over the years. We introduce TSignal, a deep transformer-based neural network architecture that utilizes BERT language models (LMs) and dot-product attention techniques. TSignal predicts the presence of signal peptides (SPs) and the cleavage site between the SP and the translocated mature protein. We show improved accuracy in terms of cleavage site and SP presence prediction for most of the SP types and organism groups. We further illustrate that our fully data-driven trained model identifies useful biological information on heterogeneous test sequences.
A multifaceted architectural framework of the mouse claustrum complex
Authors: Grimstvedt Joachim S. , Shelton Andrew M. , Hoerder-Suabedissen Anna , Oliver David K. , Berndtsson Christin H. , Blankvoort Stefan , Nair Rajeevkumar R. , Packer Adam M. , Witter Menno P. , Kentros Clifford G.
Published: June 2022

Accurate anatomical characterizations are necessary to investigate neural circuitry on a fine scale, but for the rodent claustrum complex (CC) this has yet to be fully accomplished. The CC is generally considered to comprise two major subdivisions, the claustrum (CL) and the dorsal endopiriform nucleus (DEn), but regional boundaries to these areas are highly debated. To address this, we conducted a multifaceted analysis of fiber- and cyto-architecture, genetic marker expression, and connectivity using mice of both sexes, to create a comprehensive guide for identifying and delineating borders to the CC. We identified four distinct subregions within the CC, subdividing both the CL and the DEn into two. Additionally, we conducted brain-wide tracing of inputs to the entire CC using a transgenic mouse line. Immunohistochemical staining against myelin basic protein (MBP), parvalbumin (PV), and calbindin (CB) revealed intricate fiber-architectural patterns enabling precise delineations of the CC and its subregions. Myelinated fibers were abundant in dorsal parts of the CL but absent in ventral parts, while parvalbumin labelled fibers occupied the entire CL. Calbindin staining revealed a central gap within the CL, which was also visible at levels anterior to the striatum. Furthermore, cells in the CL projecting to the retrosplenial-cortex were located within the myelin sparse area. By combining our own experimental data with digitally available datasets of gene expression and input connectivity, we could demonstrate that the proposed delineation scheme allows anchoring of datasets from different origins to a common reference framework.

Significance statement

Mice are a highly tractable model for studying the claustrum complex (CC). However, without a consensus on how to delineate the CC in rodents, comparing results between studies is challenging. It is therefore important to expand our anatomical knowledge of the CC, to match the level of detail needed to study its functional properties. Using multiple strategies for identifying claustral borders, we created a comprehensive guide to delineate the CC and its subregions. This anatomical framework will allow researchers to anchor future experimental data into a common reference space. We demonstrated the power of this new structural framework by combining our own experimental data with digitally available data on gene expression and input connectivity of the CC.
Deletion of CD226 in Foxp3+ T cells Reduces Diabetes Incidence in Non-Obese Diabetic Mice by Improving Regulatory T Cell Stability and Function
Authors: Thirawatananond Puchong , Brown Matthew E. , Sachs Lindsey K. , Arnoletti Juan M. , Yeh Wen-I , Posgai Amanda L. , Shapiro Melanie R. , Chen Yi-Guang , Brusko Todd M.
Published: June 2022

Co-stimulation serves as a critical checkpoint for T cell development and activation, and several genetic variants affecting co-stimulatory pathways confer risk for autoimmune diseases. A single nucleotide polymorphism in CD226 (rs763361; G307S) has been shown to increase susceptibility to type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis. CD226 competes with the co-inhibitory receptor TIGIT (T cell immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domains) to bind CD155 to amplify TCR signaling. We previously found that Cd226 knockout protected non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice from disease, but the impact of CD226 signaling on individual immune subsets remained unclear. We focused on regulatory T cells (Tregs) as a population of interest, as prior reports demonstrated that human CD226+ Tregs exhibit reduced FOXP3+Helios+ purity and suppressive function following expansion. Hence, we hypothesized that global deletion of Cd226 would increase Treg stability and accordingly, Treg-specific Cd226 deletion would inhibit diabetes in NOD mice. Indeed, crossing the NOD.Cd226-/- and NOD.Foxp3-GFP-Cre.R26-loxP-STOP-loxP-YFP Treg-fate tracking strains resulted in increased Treg induction and decreased FoxP3-deficient “ex-Tregs” in the pancreatic lymph nodes. We generated a Treg-conditional knockout (TregΔCd226) strain and found that female TregΔCd226 mice had decreased insulitis and diabetes incidence compared to TregWT mice. Additionally, we observed increased TIGIT expression on Tregs and conventional CD4+ T cells within the pancreas of TregΔCd226 versus TregWT mice. These findings demonstrate that an imbalance of CD226/TIGIT signaling may contribute to Treg destabilization in the NOD mouse and highlight the potential for therapeutic targeting of this pathway to prevent or reverse autoimmunity.
Single-hit genome edition for expression of single-chain immunoglobulins by edited B cells
Authors: Ueda Natsuko , Cahen Marine , Sirac Christophe , Galy Anne , Moreaux Jérôme , Danger Yannic , Cogné Michel
Published: June 2022

Lymphocytes have become attractive agents for adoptive immunotherapy but only the reformatting of T cells is efficiently mastered. Despite some recent breakthroughs, B cells remain challenging targets, with regard to both their long-term survival after in vitro manipulation and the rewiring of immunoglobulin (Ig) expression. Working on these two aspects, we have designed a new format of single-chain Ig (“scFull-Ig”) coding cassette, the insertion of which at a single genomic position can redirect B cells toward a new antigen specificity, while preserving all functional domains of the B cell receptor. Precise genomic edition at a single locus then provides the most efficient and safe strategy to both disrupt endogenous Ig expression while encoding a new Ig paratope. As proofs of concept, functionality of such scFull BCR was validated by checking specific binding of two different classical targets of tumor immunotherapy, HER2 and CD20. Once the strategy validated in cell lines, it was also validated in primary B cells, again showing successful engineering of BCR expression. These results contribute to pave the way for future B cell-based adoptive cell therapy.
Sensitive bacterial Vm sensors revealed the excitability of bacterial Vm and its role in antibiotic tolerance
Authors: Jin Xin , Zhang Xiaowei , Ding Xuejing , Tian Tian , Tseng Chao-Kai , Luo Xinwei , Chen Xiao , Lo Chien-Jung , Leake Mark C. , Bai Fan
Published: June 2022

As an important free energy source, the membrane voltage (Vm) regulates many essential physiological processes in bacteria. However, in comparison with eukaryotic cells, knowledge of bacterial electrophysiology is very limited. Here, we developed a set of novel genetically encoded bacterial Vm sensors which allow single-cell recording of bacterial Vm dynamics in live cells with high temporal resolution. Using these new sensors, we reveal the electrically “excitable” and “resting” states of bacterial cells dependent on their metabolic status. In the electrically excitable state, frequent hyperpolarization spikes in bacterial Vm are observed, which facilitates increased antibiotic tolerance. In the electrically resting state, bacterial Vm displays significant cell-to-cell heterogeneity and is linked to the cell fate after antibiotic treatment.
Variation in behaviour of native prey mediates the impact of an invasive species on plankton communities
Authors: Hasnain Sarah S. , Arnott Shelley E
Published: June 2022

Population-level differences in predator trait expression influence predator impacts on prey species, altering ecological interactions and trophic dynamics. However, the effect of inter-population differences in prey traits on the impacts of predation on ecological communities remains poorly understood, especially for introduced predators where differences in prey traits could influence the outcome of biological invasions. We examined if differences inDaphniavertical position influenced the impacts of the invasive predatorBythotrephes cederströmiion major zooplankton and algal groups. Our results show differences inDaphniavertical position influencedBythotrephesimpacts on small cladocerans. Larger reductions in density were observed in mesocosms with greater proportion of hypolimneticDaphnia. Larger increases in algal biomass were also observed in invaded mesocosms with greater proportion of hypolimneticDaphnia. These results suggest that differences inDaphniavertical position influence the magnitude and type ofBythotrephesimpacts on zooplankton communities.
Advances in non-invasive tracking of wave-type electric fish in natural and laboratory settings
Authors: Raab Till , Madhav Manu S. , Jayakumar Ravikrishnan P. , Henninger Jörg , Cowan Noah J. , Benda Jan
Published: June 2022

Recent technological advances greatly improved the possibility to study freely behaving animals in natural conditions. However, many systems still rely on animal-mounted devices, which can already bias behavioral observations. Alternatively, animal behaviors can be detected and tracked in recordings of stationary sensors, e.g. video cameras. While these approaches circumvent the influence of animal-mounted devices, identification of individuals is much more challenging. We take advantage of the individual-specific electric fields electric fish generate by discharging their electric organ (EOD) to record and track their movement and communication behaviors without interfering with the animals themselves. EODs of complete groups of fish can be recorded with electrode arrays submerged in the water and then be tracked for individual fish. Here, we present an improved algorithm for tracking electric signals of wave-type electric fish with unprecedented accuracy. Our algorithm benefits from combining and refining previous approaches of tracking individual specific EOD frequencies (EODf) and spatial electric field properties. In this process, the similarity of signal pairs in extended data windows determines their tracking order, making the algorithm more robust against detection losses and intersections. We quantify the performance of the algorithm and show its application for a data set recorded with a 64-electrode array in a stream in the Llanos, Colombia, where we managed, for the first time, to track Apteronotus leptorhynchus over many days. These technological advances make electric fish a unique model system for a detailed analysis of social and communication behaviors, with strong implications for our research on sensory coding.
Dkk1 inhibition normalizes limb phenotypes in a mouse model ofFzd2associated omodysplasia Robinow syndromes
Authors: Liegel Ryan P. , Michalski Megan N. , Vaidya Sanika , Bittermann Elizabeth , Finnerty Erin , Menke Chelsea A. , Diegel Cassandra R. , Zhong Zhendong A. , Williams Bart O. , Stottmann Rolf W.
Published: June 2022

FRIZZLED-2 (FZD2) is a transmembrane Wnt ligand receptor. We previously identified a pathogenic humanFZD2variant, encoding for a protein with a premature stop and loss of 17 amino acids. This includes a portion of the consensus DISHEVELLED binding sequence required for Wnt signal transduction. Patients with this variant exhibited FZD2-associated autosomal dominant Robinow Syndrome. To model this variant, we utilized zygote microinjection andi-GONAD-based CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing to generate an allelic series in the mouse. Embryos mosaic for humanizedFzd2W553*knock-in exhibited cleft palate and shortened limbs, consistent withFZD2W548*patient phenotypes. We also generated two germline mouse alleles with small deletions,Fzd2D3andFzd2D4. Homozygotes for each allele survive embryonic development at normal ratios but exhibit a highly penetrant cleft palate phenotype, shortened limbs compared to wild-type and perinatal lethality.Fzd2D4craniofacial tissues indicated decreased canonical WNT signaling.In uterotreatment with IIIC3a (DKK inhibitor) normalized the limb lengths inFzd2D4homozygotes. Thein vivoreplication represents an approach to further investigate the mechanism of FZD2 phenotypes and validates the utility of CRISPR knock-in mice as a tool for demonstrating pathogenicity of human genetic variants. We also present evidence for a potential therapeutic intervention.
Activation of trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1) transiently reduces alcohol drinking in socially housed mice
Authors: Frycz Bartosz Adam , Nowicka Klaudia , Konopka Anna , Hoener Marius Christian , Bulska Ewa , Kaczmarek Leszek , Stefaniuk Marzena
Published: June 2022

Alcohol dependence is characterized by the abnormal release of dopamine in the brain reward-related areas. Trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1) is a G Protein-Coupled Receptor that negatively regulates dopamine neurotransmission and thus is a promising target in the treatment of drug addiction. However, the role of TAAR1 in the regulation of alcohol abuse remains understudied. Here, we assessed the effect of TAAR1 activation on alcohol-drinking behaviors of C57Bl/6J female mice housed in IntelliCages. The animals were administered with either vehicle or TAAR1 full selective agonist, RO5256390, and tested for alcohol consumption, alcohol preference, and motivation for alcohol seeking. We found that mice with the highest preference for alcohol (high drinkers) in the RO5256390 group consumed less alcohol and had lower alcohol preference in comparison to high drinkers in the vehicle group, during 20 h of free alcohol access (FAA). We also found decreased alcohol consumption and alcohol preference comparing all animals in the RO5256390 to all animals in the vehicle group, during 20 h of FAA performed after the abstinence. These effects of RO5256390 lasted for the first 24 hours after administration that roughly corresponded to the compound level in the brain, measured by mass spectrometry. Finally, we found that administration of RO5256390 may attenuate motivation for alcohol seeking. Taken together, our findings reveal that activation of TAAR1 may transiently reduce alcohol drinking; thus, TAAR1 is a promising target for the treatment of alcohol abuse and relapse.
The Nucleocapsid Protein Of SARS-CoV-2, Combined With ODN-39M, Is A Potential Component For An Intranasal Bivalent Pancorona Vaccine
Authors: Lobaina Yadira , Chen Rong , Suzarte Edith , Ai Panchao , Huerta Vivian , Musacchio Alexis , Silva Ricardo , Tan Changyuan , Martin Alejandro , Lazo Laura , Guillén Gerardo , Yang Ke , Perera Yasser , Hermida Lisset
Published: June 2022

Despite the rapid development of vaccines and their reported efficacy for controlling the COVID-19 waves, two key challenges remain: the scope of the immunity against upcoming variants and zoonosis events, and the induction of mucosal immunity able to clear the virus in the upper respiratory tract for halting the transmission. The present study is aiming at assessing a potential component for a new generation of vaccines so as to overcome such limitations. The recombinant nucleocapsid (N) protein from SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant was combined with a phosphodiester backbone CpG ODN (ODN-39M), forming high molecular weight aggregates. The evaluation of its immunogenicity in Balb/C mice revealed that only administration by intranasal route induced a systemic cross-reactive Cell-Mediated-Immunity (CMI). In turn, this combination was able to induce anti-N IgA in lungs, which along with the specific IgG in sera and CMI in spleen, resulted cross-reactive against the nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-1. Furthermore, the nasal administration of the N+ODN-39M preparation combined with the RBD Delta protein, as inductor of neutralizing Abs, enhanced the local and systemic immune response against RBD with a modulation toward a Th1 pattern. Taken together, these results make the N+ODN-39M preparation a suitable component for a future intranasal pancorona vaccine against Sarbecoviruses. Particularly, the bivalent vaccine formulation N+ODN-39M+RBD could be used as an effective nasal booster in previously vaccinated population.
Control of SIV infection in prophylactically vaccinated, ART-naïve macaques is required for the most efficacious CD8 T cell response during treatment with the IL-15 superagonist N-803
Authors: Ellis-Connell Amy L. , Balgeman Alexis J. , Harwood Olivia E. , Moriarty Ryan V. , Safrit Jeffrey T. , Weiler Andrea M. , Friedrich Thomas C. , O’Connor Shelby L.
Published: June 2022

The IL-15 superagonist N-803 has been shown to enhance the function of CD8 T cells and NK cells. We previously found that in a subset of vaccinated, ART-naïve, SIV+ rhesus macaques, N-803 treatment led to a rapid but transient decline in plasma viremia that positively correlated with an increase in the frequency of CD8 T cells. Here we tested the hypothesis that prophylactic vaccination was required for N-803 mediated suppression of SIV plasma viremia. We vaccinated rhesus macaques with a DNA prime/Ad5 boost regimen using vectors expressing SIVmac239 gag, with or without a plasmid expressing IL-12, or left them unvaccinated. Animals were then intravenously infected with SIVmac239M. Six months after infection, animals were treated with N-803. We found no differences in control of plasma viremia during N-803 treatment between vaccinated and unvaccinated macaques. Furthermore, the SIV-specific CD8 T cells displayed no differences in frequency or ability to traffic to the lymph nodes. Interestingly, when we divided the SIV+ animals based on plasma viral load set-point prior to N-803 treatment, N-803 increased the frequency of SIV-specific T cells expressing ki-67+ and granzyme B+ in animals with low plasma viremia (<104 copies/mL; SIV controllers) compared to animals with high plasma viremia (>104 copies/mL;SIV non-controllers). In addition, Gag-specific CD8 T cells from the SIV+ controllers had a greater increase in CD107a+CD8+ T cells when compared to SIV+ non-controllers. Overall, our results indicate that N-803 is most effective in SIV+ animals with a pre-existing immunological ability to control SIV replication.
Metabolite annotation from knowns to unknowns through knowledge-guided multi-layer metabolic network
Authors: Zhou Zhiwei , Luo Mingdu , Zhang Haosong , Yin Yandong , Cai Yuping , Zhu Zheng-Jiang
Published: June 2022

Liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry (LC-MS) based untargeted metabolomics allows to measure both known and unknown metabolites in the metabolome. However, unknown metabolite annotation is a grand challenge in untargeted metabolomics. Here, we developed an approach, namely, knowledge-guided multi-layer network (KGMN), to enable global metabolite annotation from knowns to unknowns in untargeted metabolomics. The KGMN approach integrated three-layer networks, including knowledge-based metabolic reaction network, knowledge-guided MS/MS similarity network, and global peak correlation network. To demonstrate the principle, we applied KGMN in an in-vitro enzymatic reaction system and different biological samples, with ∼100-300 putative unknowns annotated in each data set. Among them, >80% unknown metabolites were validated with in-silico MS/MS tools. Finally, we successfully validated 5 unknown metabolites through the repository-mining and the syntheses of chemical standards. Together, the KGMN approach enables efficient unknown annotations, and substantially advances the discovery of recurrent unknown metabolites towards deciphering dark matters in untargeted metabolomics.
Community interactions drive the evolution of antibiotic tolerance in bacteria
Authors: Mizrahi Sivan Pearl , Goyal Akshit , Gore Jeff
Published: June 2022

The emergence of antibiotic tolerance (prolonged survival against exposure) in natural bacterial populations is a major concern. Since it has been studied primarily in isogenic populations, we do not yet understand how ecological interactions in a diverse community impact the evolution of tolerance. To address this, we studied the evolutionary dynamics of a synthetic bacterial community composed of two interacting strains. In this community, an antibiotic-resistant strain protected the other, susceptible strain by degrading the antibiotic ampicillin in the medium. Surprisingly, we found that in the presence of antibiotics, the susceptible strain evolved tolerance. Tolerance was typified by an increase in survival as well as an accompanying decrease in growth rate, highlighting a trade-off between the two. A simple mathematical model explained that the observed decrease in death rate, even when coupled with a decreased growth rate, is beneficial in a community with weak protective interactions. In the presence of strong interactions, the model predicted that the trade-off would instead be detrimental and tolerance would not emerge, which we experimentally verified. By whole genome sequencing the evolved tolerant isolates, we identified three genetic hotspots which accumulated mutations in parallel lines, suggesting their association with tolerance. Our work highlights that ecological interactions can promote antibiotic tolerance in bacterial communities, which has remained understudied.

Significance

Bacteria evolve to evade antibiotic pressure, leading to adverse infection outcomes. Understanding the evolutionary dynamics which lead to different antibiotic responses has thus far focused on single-strain bacterial populations, with limited attention to multi-strain communities which are more common in nature. Here, we experimentally evolved a simple two-strain community, comprising an antibiotic-resistant strain protecting a susceptible one, and found that susceptible populations evolve tolerance, helping them better survive long antibiotic exposure. Using the interplay between community interactions, antibiotic dynamics, and resource availability, we explain this finding with a simple mathematical model, and predict and experimentally verify that an increased resistant strain carrying capacity would render tolerance detrimental. Our results highlight that community interactions can alter bacterial evolutionary responses to antibiotics.
Genome-Wide Large-Scale Multi-Trait Analysis Characterizes Global Patterns of Pleiotropy and Unique Trait-Specific Variants
Authors: Qi Guanghao , Chhetri Surya B. , Ray Debashree , Dutta Diptavo , Battle Alexis , Bhattacharjee Samsiddhi , Chatterjee Nilanjan
Published: June 2022

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have found widespread evidence of pleiotropy, but characterization of global patterns of pleiotropy remain highly incomplete due to insufficient power of current approaches. We develop fastASSET, an extension of the method ASSET, to allow computationally efficient detection of variant-level pleiotropic association across a large number of traits. We analyze GWAS summary statistics of 116 complex traits of diverse types collected from the NIH GRASP repository and a number of other large GWAS consortia. We identify a total of 2,293 independent loci at the genome-wide significance level and found that the lead variants in nearly all of these loci (∼99%) to be associated with to two or more (median = 6) traits. Further, the estimated degree of pleiotropy for the detected variants strongly predicted their degree of pleiotropy across a much larger number of traits (K=4,114) in the UK Biobank Study. Follow-up analyses of 21 unique trait-specific variants suggest that they are often linked to the expression in trait-related tissues for a small number of genes, some of which are well known to be involved in relevant biological processes. Our findings provide deeper insight into the nature of complex trait pleiotropy and leads to, for the first time, identification of highly unique trait-specific susceptibility variants.
Website analytics for government user behavior during COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Cheng Yu-Jung , Chen Kuang-Hua
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The present study aims to clarify the following two research objectives: (1) the user behavior of government websites during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) period and (2) how the government improved government's website design during the COVID-19 period.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors used website analytics to examine usage patterns and behaviors of the government website via personal computer (PC) and mobile devices during the COVID-19 pandemic. In-depth interviews were conducted to understand the user experience of government website users and to gather users' opinions about how government websites should be redesigned.

Findings

With the rising of the COIVID-19 pandemic, most studies expect that the use of government websites through a mobile device will grow astonishingly. The authors uncovered that the COVID-19 pandemic did not increase the use of government websites. Instead, severe declines in website usage were observed for all device users with the declines being more pronounced in mobile device users than in PC users. This is an admonitory caveat that reveals public health and pandemic prevention information announced on government websites cannot be effectively transmitted to the general public through official online platforms.

Originality/value

The study highlights the gap in information behavior and usage patterns between PC and mobile device users when visiting government websites. Although mobile devices brought many new visitors, mobile devices are ineffective in retaining visitors and continuous long-term use. The results of localize experience is helpful in the improvement of government website evaluation worldwide.
Sustainability competencies and its link to innovation capabilities
Authors: Nair Asha K.S. , Bhattacharyya Som Sekhar
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study individual sustainability competencies and its linkage toward building innovation capabilities. This study explores the interrelations between individual-level competencies with organizational-level capabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

Thematic content analysis is used to analyze the qualitative interview data from 22 experts working in the sustainability departments of large corporations in India. The respondents were chief sustainability officers, sustainability managers or general managers responsible for driving sustainability in their organizations.

Findings

This study identifies individual sustainability competencies into two sets. First being cognitive competencies and the second being emotional competencies. The cognitive competencies identified are systems thinking, future orientation and perspective-taking (cognitive empathy). The affective or emotional competencies identified are connectedness to nature, sense of transcendence of time and empathic concern. The competencies enhanced innovation through the development of stakeholder capabilities and organizational learning capabilities.

Research limitations/implications

This study provides new insight regarding the link between both cognitive and emotional competencies and organizational capabilities for innovation.

Practical implications

This study appraises the role of individual sustainability competencies on innovation. This study indicates the importance of developing sustainability competencies at the individual level to drive innovation.

Originality/value

This paper provides novel insights on sustainability competencies and its link with innovation. The conceptualization of competencies was made as cognitive and emotional skills. Furthermore, its relationship with innovation capabilities advance the understanding of the individual contribution to innovation.
The COVID-19 crisis and factors driving international tourists’ preferences for contactless dining services
Authors: Yasami Mehri , Rabiul Md. Karim , Promsivapallop Pornpisanu , Zhu Hongrui
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to integrate the theory of planned behavior and the protection motivation theory to propose a theoretical framework for examining the influence of attitude, perceived behavioral control and subjective norms on international tourists’ intentions to select restaurants with contactless dining services (CDSs) as a protective behavior against COVID-19. This study further tested the moderation effects of subjective norms on attitude and perceived behavioral control links with intention.

Design/methodology/approach

In all, 344 international tourists completed questionnaires via QR-coded Google forms in Phuket Old Town and Patong Beach in Thailand. Data analysis was conducted by SPSS and Smart-PLS (partial least square).

Findings

Intention to select a restaurant with CDSs was influenced by attitude, perceived behavioral control and subjective norms. Subjective norms had a significant negative moderating effect on attitude and intention links. However, the moderation effect of tourists’ subjective norms on the connection between their perceived behavioral control and intention toward restaurant dining was not proved.

Practical implications

Providing CDSs could be a quick solution to decrease the devastating effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the restaurant industry.

Originality/value

This study incorporated CDSs to expand the application of the integrated model of theory of planned behavior and protection motivation theory as a theoretical basis in the restaurant industry to explain how international tourists’ behavioral choices may change during the pandemic in Thailand. This study also contributes to the travel risk literature by highlighting the influence of attitude anchored on risk and efficacy beliefs (perceived vulnerability, severity and response efficacy) in predicting protective behavioral intention.
Exclusive impacts of lifestyles on preference for interior public space of high-rise building apartment
Authors: Nguyen Hung Vu , Do Long Thanh , Hoang Cuong Van , Nguyen Phuong Thi Tung
Published: June 2022

Purpose

While interior public space can be one of the most important criteria in designing high-rise residential buildings in urban environments in practitioners’ opinion, this study aims at investigating the importance of this criterion from consumers’ lifestyle standpoint. In particular, this study aims to examine the effects of different lifestyle orientations on consumers’ preference for this housing feature. Three relevant lifestyles are investigated including independence, family-orientation and homebody.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data were collected from 331 owners of high-rise apartments in three residential buildings in urban areas.

Findings

The research results revealed significant and positive effects of independence and homebody lifestyle orientations on consumers’ preference for interior public spaces. Interestingly, a family-oriented lifestyle was found to negatively moderate the effect of a homebody lifestyle on the preference, providing evidence for possible exclusive impacts of different lifestyle orientations on the preference.

Originality/value

This study emphasizes the exclusive impacts of different lifestyles on consumers’ preference for housing features that need to be considered by developers and marketers when designing consumer positions and marketing strategies.
Competitor orientation and SME performance in competitive environments: the moderating effect of marketing ethics
Authors: Al-Hakimi Mohammed A. , Saleh Moad Hamod , Borade Dileep B. , Hasan Murad Baqis , Sharma Dhanraj
Published: June 2022

Purpose

Although competitor orientation (CO) has been given great attention, its link to firm performance (FP) is still unclear. The reason behind this may be attributed to the fact that the CO–FP relationship depends on several contingencies. The purpose of this paper is to simultaneously explore the separate and combined moderating effects of marketing ethics (ME) and competitive intensity (CI) in the CO–FP relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

The participants in this study were managers or owners from 289 manufacturing SMEs located in two regions in Yemen (i.e. Sana’a and Taiz). Hierarchical regression analysis using PROCESS Macro V. 3.5 in SPSS was performed to analyze the data collected.

Findings

The obtained results reveal that ME in fact positively moderates the CO–FP relationship and, importantly, this effect is not influenced by CI.

Practical implications

The findings of this paper provide advantageous insights for managers and decision-makers for SMEs as it is expected that they demonstrate a greater commitment to the practice of ME in their firms. This has implications that with the practice of ME, it is expected that SMEs will be able to use the full potential of CO to improve their performance at a low level of CI.

Originality/value

This study contributes to widening the studies on CO, ME, CI and SMEs in a different context. In addition, it adds to the knowledge by exploring the combined moderating influence of internal (e.g. ME) and external factors (e.g. CI) when examining the CO–FP relationship.
Equity market integration in emerging economies: a network visualization approach
Authors: Mishra Aswini Kumar , Theertha Anand , Amoncar Isha Mahesh , R L Manogna
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The authors examine network features such as connectivity, centrality, adjacency matrices, closeness and betweenness measures through a variety of indicators. The results of the study indicate that over time there is a tendency for markets to integrate and segment due to various factors such as pandemics, financial crises, global trade relations and international investments.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper employs a visualized network technique to study the dynamics of integration and comovements in global equity markets of emerging economies. Daily closing prices of stock market indices of 24 countries from January 2013 to July 2020 are used to construct a minimum spanning tree network (MSTN) and graph network (GN).

Findings

The authors identify India and China as global power hubs and clusters among the emerging economies. India and Bangladesh serve as bridging countries connecting to various other clusters. Bosnia serves as a center in the European region owing to Bosnia's trade relations with neighboring countries. Although Brazil has witnessed the worst recession in the early years of the decade, Brazil has risen to be a central cluster among the Latin American countries. Finally, the authors find that African countries tend to form links with the rest of the world rather than with economies within the Africa continent.

Originality/value

This is the pioneering study that uses network models such as MSTN and GN supplemented with measures of centrality and connectivity to study financial market integration in emerging countries. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to work on a network visualization strategy to examine global stock market integration. The authors also try to use graphs and the spanning trees instead of the correlation models to understand the association between the markets, avoiding the downsides of the existing models. The authors' approach tries to visualize the network integration to examine the interconnectedness in the global stock market.
Theory and evidence of the impacts of Shariah debt screening on firm behaviour
Authors: Sukor Mohd Edil Abd , Abdul Halim Asyraf
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The paper aims to construct a theoretical framework to investigate whether the Shariah debt ratio screening in contemporary Shariah stock screening methodologies results in a bias towards a certain set of corporate financial behaviour for Shariah-compliant firms in the USA where access to a liquid Islamic debt market is non-existent.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper extends the earnings valuation approach of Modigliani and Miller (1963) to theoretically asses the impacts of the 33% conventional debt limit on Shariah-compliant firms’ corporate financial behaviour. Then, supporting evidence is shown via empirical stylised facts of samples of Shariah-compliant firms in the USA.

Findings

A theoretical floor limit to investment cut-off rates is found for US Shariah-compliant firms so that lesser projects pass their internal rate of return versus conventional firms. Subsequently, such firms consistently show the following corporate financial characteristics: above-average size, larger marginal change in size and profitability in response to a given marginal change in investments, low book-to-market ratio and lower investment rates.

Research limitations/implications

The findings of this paper may not hold where access to a liquid Islamic capital market is present.

Practical implications

Caveat emptor. These findings may be inconsistent to the investor’s risk preferences.

Social implications

The findings suggests that Shariah-compliant firms are more conservative compared to their conventional counterparts.

Originality/value

The paper is the first to introduce a theoretical framework to address consistent biasness in corporate financial behaviour due to the Shariah debt screening. It may prove useful for future academic studies as well as investment managers.
Soft organizational memory: a new insight using resource-based theory
Authors: Al-edenat Malek
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This research aims to bridge the gap in the literature by developing a model to investigate individual work performance (IWP) within small and medium enterprises (SMEs) using soft organizational memory (OM) and additionally aims to test the role of learning and growth (LG) as a mediator in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire survey was developed and adopted from previous studies and distributed to a sample of 320 employees from middle and bottom management levels in Jordanian SMEs. Data were collected and analyzed to test the proposed model employing structural equation modeling (SEM) through AMOS23.

Findings

The study finds that soft-OM positively and directly impacts IWP and LG. Besides, the results show that LG directly affect IWP. Surprisingly, LG mediate the relationship between soft-OM and IWP within SMEs.

Practical implications

Establishing a store for internal knowledge in such a progressively active environment is probably inadequate; however, knowledge needs to go beyond that among the firm and external structures such as clients, business allies and education and research organizations. This, in turn, will allow building streams of knowledge, consequently attaining an adequate level of performance.

Originality/value

The originality of the current study departs from the fact that stock and flow of knowledge are different. The knowledge stock is the collection of human capital that an organization's employees retain, such as employees' knowledge, capabilities and skills. In contrast, the flow of knowledge expresses the practices that allow the transfer of competence and experience across time, geography and organizations. The current research findings propose that the decomposed approach helps understand the multifaceted associations represented in the knowledge management (KM)–performance linkage that cannot be speculated utilizing a complex model.
Are you listening? – an observational wake word privacy study
Authors: Combs Marcia , Hazelwood Casey , Joyce Randall
Published: June 2022

Purpose

Digital voice assistants use wake word engines (WWEs) to monitor surrounding audio for detection of the voice assistant's name. There are two failed conditions for a WWE, false negative and false positive. Wake word false positives threaten a loss of personal privacy because, upon activation, the digital assistant records audio to the voice cloud service for processing.

Design/methodology/approach

This observational study attempted to identify which Amazon Alexa wake word and Amazon Echo smart speaker resulted in the fewest number of human voice false positives. During an eight-week period, false-positive data were collected from four different Amazon Echo smart speakers located in a small apartment with three female roommates.

Findings

Results from this study suggest the number of human voice false positives are related to wake word selection and Amazon Echo hardware. Results from this observational study determined that the wake word Alexa resulted in the fewest number of false positives.

Originality/value

This study suggests Amazon Alexa users can better protect their privacy by selecting Alexa as their wake word and selecting smart speakers with the highest number of microphones in the far-field array with 360-degree geometry.
A constructivist grounded study on children's perception of loneliness after parental divorce
Authors: Ramezanzadeh Soraya , Etemadi Ozra , Asanjarani Faramarz
Published: June 2022

Purpose

Divorce has negative effects on children, although emotions that children experience after parental divorce are open to different interpretations. Accordingly, this study was conducted to explore loneliness in children of divorce.

Design/methodology/approach

A constructivist grounded theory study was carried out through the lens of definitive guidelines provided by Charmaz (2006). The participants were 15 female children aged 11–12 years, who were purposively selected. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and memos. To analyze data, the authors used four coding techniques, including initial, focused, axial, and theoretical coding. Also, to examine the links between the identified themes, the authors focused on three factors: conditions, actions/interactions, and consequences.

Findings

The analysis of the obtained data through the above-mentioned stages led to the identification of three main themes, including parental unavailability, rejection, and mistrust, which shaped children's experience of loneliness through lack of physical access, lack of emotional access, low levels of parental expectations, lack of supervision, absence of belongingness, being ignored, pessimistic views, and insecure relationships.

Originality/value

As was suggested by attachment theory, children of divorce lost their attachment bonds with their parents that intensified their perception of loneliness and negatively affected their social and academic performance. It was revealed that, effects of divorce went beyond the loss of the attachment bonds in families because our participants talked about their relationships with peers and their position in a society, where divorce carries the social stigma and children of divorced mother are marginalized.
Bitcoin, uncertainty and internet searches
Authors: Keramiyan Matin , Gokmenoglu Korhan K.
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the predictive power of the volume of Economic Uncertainty Related Queries and the Macroeconomic Uncertainty Index on the Bitcoin returns.

Design/methodology/approach

Data consists of 118 monthly observations from September 2010 to June 2020. Due to the departure of series from Gaussian distribution and the existence of outliers, the authors use the quantile analysis framework to investigate the persistency of the shocks, the long-run relationships and Granger causality among the variables.

Findings

This research provides several important findings. First, the substantial differences between conventional and quantile test results stress the importance of the method selection. Second, throughout the conditional distribution of the series, stochastic properties of the variables, long-run and the causal relationships between the variables might be significantly different. Third, rich information provided by the quantile framework might help the investors design better investment strategies.

Originality/value

This study differs from the previous research in terms of variable selection and econometric methodology. Therefore, it presents a more comprehensive framework that suggests implications for empirical researchers and Bitcoin investors.