bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Anab initioinformation-theoretic approach to proteins and protein-ligand interactions
Authors: Nath Deep , Grewal Rajdeep Kaur , Mitra Devrani , Roy Soumen
Published: March 2024

Differing conformational structure of a protein, associated with two distinct signaling states or between ligand-free and ligand-bound states, leads to differing inter-residue interactions and consequently different biological function. We propose a fresh first-principles information-theoretic approach for studying such proteins and their interactions. Ade novomeasure called protein residue information (PRI), which incorporates details of interactions between all pairs of atoms within and across all residues of the protein, is introduced herein. We formulate a method to calculate the intrastate and inter-state entropy of every residue, needed to determine PRI across any two states of a protein. The intra-state entropy can be determined for every state of a protein possessing one or more states. The inter-state entropy can be calculated pairwise for proteins possessing more than one state. We analyze twenty eight distinct pairs of protein structures from ten different classes. PRI successfully identifies important residues displaying significant conformational changes bearing influence with respect to itself and all other residues. Furthermore, it also successfully identifies important residues displaying rather subtle conformational changes. The identified residues exhibit influential roles in diverse performative features of proteins like stability, allostery, signaling, etc. PRI successfully recovers known experimental results from literature and predicts important roles for many hitherto unstudied residues.
Population genetics and phylogeographic history of the insular lizardPodarcis lilfordi(Gunther, 1874) from the Balearic Islands based on genome-wide polymorphic data
Authors: Otalora Katherin , Riera Joan Lluís , Tavecchia Giacomo , Rotger Andreu , Igual José Manuel , Trotta Jean-Remi Paul , Baldo Laura
Published: March 2024

Islands provide a great system to explore the processes that maintain genetic diversity and promote local adaptation. We explored the genomic diversity of the Balearic lizardPodarcis lilfordi, an endemic species characterized by numerous small insular populations with large phenotypic diversity. Using the newly available genome for this species, we characterized more than 300,000 SNPs, merging Genotype by Sequencing (GBS) data with previously published Restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RADSeq) data, providing a dataset of 16 island populations (191 individuals) across the range of species distribution (Menorca, Mallorca, and Cabrera). Results indicate that each islet hosts a well-differentiated population (Fst=0.247±0.09), with no recent immigration/translocation events. Contrary to expectations, most populations harbor a considerable genetic diversity (mean nucleotide diversity, Pi=0.144±0.021), characterized by overall low inbreeding values (Fis<0.1). While the genetic diversity significantly decreased with decreasing islet surface, maintenance of substantial genetic diversity even in tiny islets suggests variable selection or other mechanisms that buffer genetic drift. Maximum-likelihood tree based on concatenated SNP data confirmed the existence of the two major independent lineages of Menorca and Mallorca/Cabrera. Multiple lines of evidence, including admixture and root testing, robustly placed the origin of the species in the Mallorca Island, rather than in Menorca. Outlier analysis mainly retrieved a strong signature of genome differentiation between the two major archipelagos, especially in the sexual chromosome Z. A set of proteins were target of multiple outliers and primarily associated with binding and catalytic activity, providing interesting candidates for future selection studies. This study provides the framework to explore crucial aspects of the genetic basis of phenotypic divergence and insular adaptation.
Motivational modulation of flight speed in foraging bumblebees
Authors: Willemet Romain
Published: March 2024

The set of cognitive mechanisms employed by foraging bees is the subject of intense research due to the importance of pollination as an ecological process and as a study system in comparative psychology. Yet, our understanding of how reward valuation influences flight behaviour, and, more generally, the motivational control of behavioural vigour, remains limited. Here, the flight behaviour of individual bumblebeesBombus impatienswas recorded during a series of foraging trials in which the reward intrinsic value and predictability was manipulated. The bees could access a feeder whose sugar concentration varied from trial to trial following an increase, constant peak, and decrease pattern. Neither the feeder itself nor its position changed during the experiment. Hence, potential differences between trials could be interpreted in the context of decision-making and behavioural vigour, rather than search behaviour. The average flight speed towards the feeder increased when the sugar concentration was both high and constant, and returned to baseline as it became lower. This suggests that, as in other species including humans, the behavioural vigour of foraging bees towards a potential reward reflects its expected value. This motivational modulation of flight speed offer new ways of interpreting and studying decision-making in foraging bees.
Learn!Bio- A time-limited cross-sectional study on biosciences students’ pathway to resilience during and post the Covid-19 pandemic at an UK university from 2020-2023 and insights into future teaching approaches
Authors: Andrews Katy , Stoneley Rosalie , Eckl Katja
Published: March 2024

Higher education in biosciences is significantly informed by hands-on field trips and practical laboratory skills-training. With the first Covid-19 national lock-down in England in March 2020, on-campus education at higher education institutions was swiftly moved to alternative provisions, including online only options, a mix of synchronous or asynchronous blended, or hybrid adaptions. Students enrolled on an undergraduate bioscience programme have been faced with unprecedented changes and interruptions to their education. This study aimed to evaluate bioscience students’ ability to adjust to a fast-evolving learning environment and to capture students’ journey building up resilience and graduate attributes.

Bioscience undergraduate students in years 1-3 at the biology department at a Northwest English university participated in this anonymous, cross-sectional, mixed-method study with open and closed questions evaluating their perception and feedback to remote and blended learning provisions during the Covid-19 pandemic and post pandemic learning capturing academic years 2019/20 to 2022/23.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the consequent restriction of personal social interaction resulted in an significant decrease in the mental wellbeing of undergraduate bioscience students in this study, cumulating in poor or very poor self-rating of wellbeing in spring 2021; while at the same time students showed evidence of advanced adaption to the new learning and social environment by acquisition of additional technical, social and professional graduate-level skills, indicative of an, albeit unconscious, transition to resilience. Post pandemic, bioscience students worry about the increased living costs and are strongly in favour of a mixture of face-to-face and blended learning approaches.

Our results show that bioscience students can experience poor mental health while developing resilience, indicating tailored support can aid students’ resilience performance. Students have adjusted with ease to digital teaching provisions and expect higher education institutions continue to offer both, face-to-face, and blended teaching, reducing the burden on students’ significantly risen living costs.
The Transformative Potential of Large Language Models in Mining Electronic Health Records Data
Authors: Zurita Amadeo Wals , del Rio Héctor Miras , de Aguirre Nerea Ugarte Ruiz , Navarro Cristina Nebrera , Jiménez María Rubio , Carmona David Muñoz , Sánchez Carlos Míguez
Published: March 2024

Introduction

In this study, we evaluate the accuracy, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of Large Language Models (LLMs) in extracting and structuring information from free-text clinical reports, particularly in identifying and classifying patient comorbidities within oncology electronic health records. We specifically compare the performance of gpt-3.5-turbo-1106 and gpt-4-1106-preview models against that of specialized human evaluators.

Methods

We implemented a script using the OpenAI API to extract structured information in JSON format from comorbidities reported in 250 personal history reports. These reports were manually reviewed in batches of 50 by five specialists in radiation oncology. We compared the results using metrics such as Sensitivity, Specificity, Precision, Accuracy, F-value, Kappa index, and the McNemar test, in addition to examining the common causes of errors in both humans and GPT models.

Results

The GPT-3.5 model exhibited slightly lower performance compared to physicians across all metrics, though the differences were not statistically significant (McNemar’s test p = 0.79). GPT-4 demonstrated clear superiority in several key metrics (McNemar’s test p < 0.001). Notably, it achieved a sensitivity of 96.8%, compared to 88.2% for GPT-3.5 and 88.8% for physicians. However, physicians marginally outperformed GPT-4 in precision (97.7% vs. 96.8%). GPT-4 showed greater consistency, replicating the exact same results in 76% of the reports across 10 repeated analyses, compared to 59% for GPT-3.5, indicating more stable and reliable performance. Physicians were more likely to miss explicit comorbidities, while the GPT models more frequently inferred non-explicit comorbidities, sometimes correctly, though this also resulted in more false positives.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates that, with well-designed prompts, the LLMs examined can match or even surpass medical specialists in extracting information from complex clinical reports. Their superior efficiency in time and costs, along with easy integration with databases, makes them a valuable tool for large-scale data mining and real-world evidence generation.
Follow-up after post-exposure prophylaxis before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
Authors: Matsuda Elaine Monteiro , de Campos Ivana Barros , Brígido Luís Fernando de Macedo
Published: March 2024

Although post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is a powerful tool to abort HIV infection within 72 hours of exposure, blocking the establishment of chronic infection, follow-up metrics of this intervention are scarce. As antiretroviral use delays diagnosis biomarkers, the moment to perform serological evaluations must be considered this to avoid missed diagnosis opportunities. We assessed the return adherence after PEP dispensation in service in the Sao Paulo metropolitan area and reviewed the literature, both showing limited adherence to current protocols and leading to difficulties in diagnosing early HIV infection. The current proposed date for the first return after PEP is associated with low adherence and may have limited capability to detect antibodies if the infection is present. Guidelines should allow a longer time after PEP discontinuation along with message reminders to encourage adherence and avoid false negative results that can be detrimental both to the patient and to the community.
Association between Time-Weighted Remnant Cholesterol and Incident Cancer: A Population-Based Chinese Cohort Study
Authors: Li Lifang , Zhang Nan , Yang Yifan , Him Pui Hugo Hok , Hei Leung Bosco Kwok , In Chou Oscar Hou , Chang Carlin , Chung Wai Abraham Ka , Lip Gregory , Tse Gary , Liu Tong , Zhou Jiandong
Published: March 2024

Background

Remnant cholesterol (RC) is becoming an increasingly well-recognized risk factor for cardiometabolic diseases. However, no study has explored the predictive role of RC in new-onset cancer. This study aimed to examine the associations between RC and time-weighted RC with incident cancer in the general population.

Methods

This was a retrospective population-based study enrolling patients attending family medicine clinics in Hong Kong between 1st January 2000 and 31st December 2003 with at least three RC measurements during follow-up visits. The primary outcome was new-onset cancer. The secondary outcome was cancer-related mortality. Multivariable Cox regression was used to evaluate associations between baseline RC and time-weighted RC with outcomes.

Results

A total of 75,342 adults (39.7% males, mean age: 62.5 years old) were included. During a median follow-up of 16.8 years, 8335 (11.1%) incident cancer and 4349 (5.7%) cancer-related deaths were observed. After adjusting for potential confounders, one mmol/L increased of time-weighted RC was associated with 41% and 62% higher risk of incident cancer (HR, 1.41; 95%CI, 1.26-1.57; p<0.0001) and cancer-related mortality (HR, 1.62; 95%CI, 1.43-1.85; p<0.0001), respectively. However, no significant association between baseline RC with risk of new-onset cancer (HR, 1.04; 95%CI, 0.82-1.31; p=0.768) and cancer-related mortality (HR, 0.85; 95%CI, 0.61-1.17; p=0.315) in the adjusted model. The association between time-weighted RC and incident cancer was significant regardless of age, gender, and remained consistent amongst those with baseline use of most cardiometabolic agents, as well as those complicated with most comorbidities.

Conclusions

Higher time-weighted RC was associated with increased risk of new-onset cancer and cancer-related mortality amongst the general population.
Local patterns of genetic sharing challenge the boundaries between neuropsychiatric and insulin resistance-related conditions
Authors: Fanelli Giuseppe , Franke Barbara , Fabbri Chiara , Werme Josefin , Erdogan Izel , Witte Ward De , Poelmans Geert , Hyun Ruisch I. , Reus Lianne Maria , van Gils Veerle , Jansen Willemijn J. , Vos Stephanie J.B. , Alam Kazi Asraful , Martinez Aurora , Haavik Jan , Wimberley Theresa , Dalsgaard Søren , Fóthi Ábel , Barta Csaba , Fernandez-Aranda Fernando , Jimenez-Murcia Susana , Berkel Simone , Matura Silke , Salas-Salvadó Jordi , Arenella Martina , Serretti Alessandro , Mota Nina Roth , Bralten Janita
Published: March 2024

The co-occurrence of insulin resistance (IR)-related metabolic conditions with neuropsychiatric disorders is a complex public health challenge. Evidence of the genetic links between these phenotypes is emerging, but little is currently known about the genomic regions and biological functions that are involved. To address this, we performed Local Analysis of [co]Variant Association (LAVA) using large-scale (N=9,725-933,970) genome-wide association studies (GWASs) results for three IR-related conditions (type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, and metabolic syndrome) and nine neuropsychiatric disorders. Subsequently, positional and expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL)-based gene mapping and downstream functional genomic analyses were performed on the significant loci. Patterns of negative and positive local genetic correlations (|rg|=0.21-1, pFDR<0.05) were identified at 109 unique genomic regions across all phenotype pairs. Local correlations emerged even in the absence of global genetic correlations between IR-related conditions and Alzheimer’s disease, bipolar disorder, and Tourette’s syndrome. Genes mapped to the correlated regions showed enrichment in biological pathways integral to immune-inflammatory function, vesicle trafficking, insulin signalling, oxygen transport, and lipid metabolism. Colocalisation analyses further prioritised 10 genetically correlated regions for likely harbouring shared causal variants, displaying high deleterious or regulatory potential. These variants were found within or in close proximity to genes, such asSLC39A8andHLA-DRB1, that can be targeted by supplements and already known drugs, including omega-3/6 fatty acids, immunomodulatory, antihypertensive, and cholesterol-lowering drugs. Overall, our findings underscore the complex genetic landscape of IR-neuropsychiatric multimorbidity, advocating for an integrated disease model and offering novel insights for research and treatment strategies in this domain.

Highlights

Local genetic correlations found even in the absence of global correlations.

Both positive and negative local correlations found for IR-neuropsychiatric pairs.

Enrichment for immune, and insulin signalling pathways, among others.

Pinpointed shared likely causal variants within 10 genomic regions.

Identified therapeutic targets, e.g., SLC39A8 and HLA-DRB1, for drug repurposing.
Leucine Rich Repeat Kinase 2 is not required for lysozyme expression in intestinal Paneth cells
Authors: Tasegian Anna , Dikovskaya Dina , Scott Molly , Helps Tom , Meus Tosca , McLean Mairi H. , Swamy Mahima
Published: March 2024

Genetic variants in Leucine-rich Repeat Kinase 2 (LRRK2)gene have been linked to Parkinson’s disease (PD) and are also associated with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), specifically Crohn’s disease (CD), a transmural inflammation that can affect the entire length of the gastrointestinal tract and is commonly seen in the ileum1. In ileal CD, defects in specialized intestinal epithelial cells known as Paneth cells are believed to drive disease pathogenesis2,3. Paneth cells contribute to mucosal defense by secreting antimicrobial peptides including lysozyme and to the maintenance of intestinal stem cells by secreting growth factors. A previous article published by Zhanget al4inNature Immunologyidentified a key role for LRRK2 in selective sorting and secretion of lysozyme in Paneth cells. However, after extended analyses, we find that LRRK2 is not required for lysozyme expression in the murine gut and is not expressed in either murine or human Paneth cells.
Nucleotidyltransferase toxin MenT targets and extends the aminoacyl acceptor ends of serine tRNAs in vivo to control Mycobacterium tuberculosis growth
Authors: XU Xibing , BARRIOT Roland , VOISIN Bertille , ARROWSMITH Tom J. , USHER Ben , GUTIERREZ Claude , HAN Xue , REDDER Peter , BLOWER Tim R. , NEYROLLES Olivier , GENEVAUX Pierre
Published: March 2024

Toxins of toxin-antitoxin systems use diverse mechanisms to control bacterial growth and represent attractive therapeutic targets to fight pathogens. In this study, we characterized the translation inhibitor toxin MenT3 of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for human tuberculosis in humans. We show that MenT3 is a robust cytidine specific tRNA nucleotidyltransferase in vitro, capable of modifying the aminoacyl acceptor ends of most tRNA but with a marked preference for tRNASer, to which long stretches of cytidines were added. Furthermore, transcriptomic-wide analysis of MenT3 targets in M. tuberculosis identified tRNASer as the sole target of MenT3 in vivo and revealed significant detoxification attempts by ribonuclease PH in response to MenT3 overexpression. Finally, under physiological conditions, only in the presence the native menAT3 operon, we found the unexpected presence of an active pool of endogenous MenT3 targeting tRNASer in M. tuberculosis, likely reflecting the importance of MenT3 during infection.
Dense, Continuous Membrane Labeling and Expansion Microscopy Visualization of Ultrastructure in Tissues
Authors: Shin Tay Won , Wang Hao , Zhang Chi , An Bobae , Lu Yangning , Zhang Elizabeth , Lu Xiaotang , Karagiannis Emmanouil D. , Kang Jeong Seuk , Emenari Amauche , Symvoulidis Panagiotis , Asano Shoh , Lin Leanne , Costa Emma K. ,   IMAXT Grand Challenge Consortium, Marblestone Adam H. , Kasthuri Narayanan , Tsai Li-Huei , Boyden Edward S.
Published: March 2024

Lipid membranes are key to the nanoscale compartmentalization of biological systems, but fluorescent visualization of them in intact tissues, with nanoscale precision, is challenging to do with high labeling density. Here, we report ultrastructural membrane expansion microscopy (umExM), which combines a novel membrane label and optimized expansion microscopy protocol, to support dense labeling of membranes in tissues for nanoscale visualization. We validated the high signal-to-background ratio, and uniformity and continuity, of umExM membrane labeling in brain slices, which supported the imaging of membranes and proteins at a resolution of ∼60 nm on a confocal microscope. We demonstrated the utility of umExM for the segmentation and tracing of neuronal processes, such as axons, in mouse brain tissue. Combining umExM with optical fluctuation imaging, or iterating the expansion process, yielded ∼35 nm resolution imaging, pointing towards the potential for electron microscopy resolution visualization of brain membranes on ordinary light microscopes.
GelBox: Open-source software to improve rigor and reproducibility when analyzing gels and immunoblots
Authors: Gulbulak Utku , Wellette-Hunsucker Austin G. , Campbell Kenneth S.
Published: March 2024

GelBox is open-source software that was developed with the goal of enhancing rigor, reproducibility, and transparency when analyzing gels and immunoblots. It combines image adjustments (cropping, rotation, brightness, and contrast), background correction, and band-fitting in a single application. Users can also associate each lane in an image with metadata (for example, sample type). GelBox data files integrate the raw data, supplied metadata, image adjustments, and band-level analyses in a single file to improve traceability. GelBox has a user-friendly interface and was developed using MATLAB. The software, installation instructions, and tutorials, are available athttps://campbell-muscle-lab.github.io/GelBox/.
k-Means NANI: an improved clustering algorithm for Molecular Dynamics simulations
Authors: Chen Lexin , Roe Daniel R. , Kochert Matthew , Simmerling Carlos , Miranda-Quintana Ramón Alain
Published: March 2024

One of the key challenges ofk-means clustering is the seed selection or the initial centroid estimation since the clustering result depends heavily on this choice. Alternatives such ask-means++ have mitigated this limitation by estimating the centroids using an empirical probability distribution. However, with high-dimensional and complex datasets such as those obtained from molecular simulation,k-means++ fails to partition the data in an optimal manner. Furthermore, stochastic elements in all flavors ofk-means++ will lead to a lack of reproducibility.K-meansN-Ary Natural Initiation (NANI) is presented as an alternative to tackle this challenge by using efficientn-ary comparisons to both identify high-density regions in the data and select a diverse set of initial conformations. Centroids generated from NANI are not only representative of the data and different from one another, helpingk-means to partition the data accurately, but also deterministic, providing consistent cluster populations across replicates. From peptide and protein folding molecular simulations, NANI was able to create compact and well-separated clusters as well as accurately find the metastable states that agree with the literature. NANI can cluster diverse datasets and be used as a standalone tool or as part of our MDANCE clustering package.
Color-gradient-based phase-field equation for multiphase flow
Authors: Haghani Reza , Erfani Hamidreza , McClure James E. , Flekkøy Eirik Grude , Berg Carl Fredrik
Published: March 2024

In this paper, the underlying problem with the color-gradient (CG) method in handling density-contrast fluids is explored. It is shown that the CG method is not fluid invariant. Based on nondimensionalizing the CG method, a phase-field interface-capturing model is proposed which tackles the difficulty of handling density-contrast fluids. The proposed formulation is developed for incompressible, immiscible two-fluid flows without phase-change phenomena, and a solver based on the lattice Boltzmann method is proposed. Coupled with an available robust hydrodynamic solver, a binary fluid flow package that handles fluid flows with high density and viscosity contrasts is presented. The macroscopic and lattice Boltzmann equivalents of the formulation, which make the physical interpretation of it easier, are presented. In contrast to existing color-gradient models where the interface-capturing equations are coupled with the hydrodynamic ones and include the surface tension forces, the proposed formulation is in the same spirit as the other phase-field models such as the Cahn-Hilliard and the Allen-Cahn equations and is solely employed to capture the interface advected due to a flow velocity. As such, similarly to other phase-field models, a so-called mobility parameter comes into play. In contrast, the mobility is not related to the density field but a constant coefficient. This leads to a formulation that avoids individual speed of sound for the different fluids. On the lattice Boltzmann solver side, two separate distribution functions are adopted to solve the formulation, and another one is employed to solve the Navier-Stokes equations, yielding a total of three equations. Two series of numerical tests are conducted to validate the accuracy and stability of the model, where we compare simulated results with available analytical and numerical solutions, and good agreement is observed. In the first set the interfacial evolution equations are assessed, while in the second set the hydrodynamic effects are taken into account.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Giant Rectification in Strongly Interacting Driven Tilted Systems
Authors: Mendoza-Arenas Juan José , Clark Stephen R.
Published: March 2024

Correlated quantum systems feature a wide range of nontrivial effects emerging from interactions between their constituent particles. In nonequilibrium scenarios, these manifest in phenomena such as many-body insulating states and anomalous scaling laws of currents of conserved quantities, crucial for applications in quantum circuit technologies. In this work, we propose a giant-rectification scheme based on the asymmetric interplay between strong particle interactions and a tilted potential, each of which induces an insulating state on its own. While for reverse bias both cooperate and induce a strengthened insulator with an exponentially suppressed current, for forward bias they compete, generating conduction resonances; this leads to a rectification coefficient of many orders of magnitude. We uncover the mechanism underlying these resonances as enhanced coherences between energy eigenstates occurring at avoided crossings in the bulk energy spectrum of the system. Furthermore, we demonstrate the complexity of the many-body nonequilibrium conducting state through the emergence of enhanced density-matrix impurity and operator-space entanglement entropy close to the resonances. Our proposal paves the way for implementing a perfect diode in currently available electronic and quantum simulation platforms.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Effectiveness of pictorial warnings on food fat content: consumers’ perception and neurological responses
Authors: Piper Luigi , de Cosmo Lucrezia Maria , Prete M. Irene , Mileti Antonio , Guido Gianluigi
Published: March 2024

Purpose

This paper delves into evaluating the effectiveness of warning messages as a deterrent against excessive fat consumption. It examines how consumers perceive the fat content of food products when presented with two distinct label types: (1) a textual warning, providing succinct information about the fat content, and (2) a pictorial warning, offering a visual representation that immediately signifies the fat content.

Design/methodology/approach

Two quantitative studies were carried out. Study 1 employed a questionnaire to evaluate the efficacy of textual and pictorial warning messages on high- and low-fat food products. Similarly, Study 2 replicated this comparison while incorporating a neuromarketing instrument to gauge participants’ cerebral reactions.

Findings

Results indicate that pictorial warnings on high-fat foods significantly deter consumers’ purchasing intentions. Notably, these pictorial warnings stimulate the left prefrontal area of the cerebral cortex, inducing negative emotions in consumers and driving them away from high-fat food items.

Originality/value

While the influence of images over text in shaping consumer decisions is well understood in marketing, this study accentuates the underlying mechanism of such an impact through the elicitation of negative emotions. By understanding this emotional pathway, the paper presents fresh academic and managerial perspectives, underscoring the potency of pictorial warnings in guiding consumers towards healthier food choices.

Highlights

 

Textual warnings do not seem to discourage high-fat product consumption.

A pictorial warning represents the fat content of an equivalent product.

Pictorial warnings decrease the intention to purchase a high-fat product.

Pictorial warnings determine an increase in negative emotions.
Time management profiles of college students and its relationship to sociodemographic and psychological factors
Authors: Faure-Carvallo Adrien , Nieto-Fernández Sergio , Calderon Caterina , Gustems Josep
Published: March 2024

Purpose

The objectives of this research are to analyze the sociodemographic and personality profiles most related to good academic time management among 845 students from different faculties at the University de Barcelona (UB) and to identify the explanatory factors of effective academic time management.

Design/methodology/approach

Poor time management is a common behavior among university students and an explanatory factor for academic failure. A sociodemographic questionnaire, the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Student (PASS), the Academic Time Management (ATM), the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-18) and the Big Five Inventory-10 (BFI-10) were administered.

Findings

The results reveal that female students, education majors and those with high academic performance show better time management than the rest of the student body. Additionally, students who have better academic time management are also more neurotic, more open to experience, more responsible and less prone to procrastination. The factors established as explanatory of good academic time management are neuroticism, openness to experience and low procrastination.

Originality/value

The implications of the results for promoting academic time management in university studies through specific actions are discussed.
A multidimensional lens of environmental consciousness: towards an environmentally conscious theory of planned behavior
Authors: Laheri Vishal Kumar , Lim Weng Marc , Arya Purushottam Kumar , Kumar Sanjeev
Published: March 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the purchase behavior of consumers towards green products by adapting and extending the theory of planned behavior with the inclusion of three pertinent environmental factors posited to reflect environmental consciousness in the form of environmental concern, environmental knowledge and environmental values.

Design/methodology/approach

The data was collected from 410 consumers at shopping malls with retail stores selling green and non-green products in a developing country using cluster sampling and analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling.

Findings

The findings of this study indicate that environmental factors reflecting environmental consciousness positively influence consumers’ attitude towards purchasing green products, wherein consumers’ environmental values have a stronger influence than their environmental concern and environmental knowledge. The findings also reveal that subjective norm, attitude and perceived behavioral control toward purchasing green products positively shape green purchase intention. The same positive effect is also witnessed between green purchase intention and behavior. However, perceived behavioral control towards purchasing green products had no significant influence on green purchase behavior.

Practical implications

This study suggests that green marketers should promote environmental consciousness among consumers to influence and shape their planned behavior towards green purchases. This could be done by prioritizing efforts and investments in inculcating environmental values, followed by enhancing environmental knowledge and finally inducing environmental concern among consumers. Green marketers can also leverage subjective norm and perceptions of behavioral control toward purchasing green products to reinforce green purchase intention, which, in turn, strengthens green purchase behavior. This green marketing strategy should also be useful to address the intention–behavior gap as seen through the null effect of perceived behavioral control on purchase behavior toward green products when this strategy is present.

Originality/value

This study contributes to theoretical generalizability by reaffirming the continued relevance of the theory of planned behavior in settings concerning the environment (e.g. green purchases), and theoretical extension by augmenting environmental concern, environmental knowledge and environmental values with the theory of planned behavior, resulting in an environmentally conscious theory of planned behavior. The latter is significant and noteworthy, as this study broadens the conceptualization and operationalization of environmental consciousness from a unidimensional to a multidimensional construct.
Risk avoidance in strategic technology adoption
Authors: Mendes J. Pedro , Marques Miguel , Guedes Soares Carlos
Published: March 2024

Purpose

Organizational technologies can be classified according to the roles they play as either commodity or strategic. Commodity technologies support common operations, while strategic technologies address perceived threats to competitiveness, often identified by strategic foresight. These must go through an adoption process before playing an effective role in strategy execution. The adoption process includes known activities, ranging from sourcing (itself from in-house development to turn-key acquisition) to operational integration. This paper aims to reveal strategic technology adoption risks that arise during strategy execution.

Design/methodology/approach

A gradually developed causal loop diagram model, supported by general literature, introduces three general classes of technology adoption risks: mismatched requirements, supplier dependence and unmanaged life cycles.

Findings

Rather than managed, these risks are incurred or avoided depending on decisions made during the adoption process.

Research limitations/implications

Despite the scarce literature coverage for the approach, examples revealing the presence of adoption risks are nevertheless available in the well-documented history of enterprise resource planning (ERP).

Practical implications

Although ERP is presented as a general-purpose strategic technology, the unique business features of maritime container terminals pose serious challenges to its adoption, which provides additional support to the discussion and reinforces the conclusions.

Originality/value

The approach to identifying risks in strategic technology adoption departs from the current risk paradigm in two significant ways. First, it emphasizes policy decision-making rather than external events. Second, it views risks as systemic rather than occurring independently.
More sharing, more engagement? The impact of free knowledge sharing on customer engagement in online health communities
Authors: Xu Zhen , Hao Ruohong , Lyu Xuanxuan , Jiang Jiang
Published: March 2024

Purpose

Knowledge sharing in online health communities (OHCs) disrupts consumers' health information-seeking behavior patterns such as seeking health information and consulting. Based on social exchange theory, this study explores how the two dimensions of experts' free knowledge sharing (general and specific) affect customer transactional and nontransactional engagement behavior and how the quality of experts' free knowledge sharing moderates the above relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

We adopted negative binomial regression models using homepage data of 2,982 experts crawled from Haodf.com using Python.

Findings

The results show that experts' free general knowledge sharing and free specific knowledge sharing positively facilitate both transactional and nontransactional engagement of consumers. The results also demonstrate that experts' efforts in knowledge-sharing quality weaken the positive effect of their knowledge-sharing quantity on customer engagement.

Originality/value

This study provides new insights into the importance of experts' free knowledge sharing in OHCs. This study also revealed a “trade-off” between experts' knowledge-sharing quality and quantity. These findings could help OHCs managers optimize knowledge-sharing recommendation mechanisms to encourage experts to share more health knowledge voluntarily and improve the efficiency of healthcare information dissemination to promote customer engagement.
Living with the impact agenda – humanities academics negotiating and resisting the impact agenda as researchers and doctoral supervisors
Authors: Skov Signe , Bengtsen Søren Smedegaard
Published: March 2024

Purpose

In Denmark, there has been, over decades, an intensified political focus on how humanities research and doctoral education contribute to society. In this vein, the notion of impact has become a central part of the academic language, often associated with terms like use, effects and outputs, stemming from neoliberal ideologies. The purpose of this paper is to explore how humanities academics are living with the impact agenda, as both experienced researchers and as doctoral supervisors educating the next generation of researchers in this post-pandemic era. Specifically, the authors are interested in the supervisor-researcher relationship, that is, the relationship between how the supervisors navigate the impact agenda as researchers and then the way they tell their doctoral students to do likewise.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors have studied how the impact agenda is accommodated by humanities academics through a series of qualitative interviews with humanities researchers and humanities PhD supervisors, encompassing questions of how they are living with the expectation of impact and how it is embedded in their university and departmental context.

Findings

The study shows that there is no link between how the supervisors navigate the impact agenda in relation to their own research work and then the way they tell their doctoral students to approach it. Within the space of their own research, the supervisors engage in resistance practices towards the impact agenda in terms of minimal compliance, rejection or resignation, whereas in the space of supervision, the impact agenda is re-inscribed to embody other understandings. The supervisors want to protect their students from this agenda, especially in the knowledge that many of them are not going to stay in academia due to limited researcher career possibilities. Furthermore, the paper reveals a new understanding of the impact agenda as having a relational quality, and in two ways. One is through a positional struggle, the reshaping of power relations, between universities (or academics) and society (or the state and the market); the other is as a phenomenon very much lived among academics themselves, including between supervisors and their doctoral students within the institutional context.

Originality/value

This study opens up the impact agenda, showing what it means to be a humanities academic living with the effects of the impact agenda and trying to navigate this. The study is mapping and tracking out the many different meanings and variations of impact in all its volatility for academics concerned about it. In current, post-pandemic times, when manifold expectations are directed towards research and doctoral education, it is important to know more about how these expectations affect and are dealt with by those who are expected to commit to them.
Innovation in technology: A game changer for renewable energy in the European Union?
Authors: Xinyu Wang , Haoran Liu , Khan Khalid
Published: March 2024

As environmental solutions emerge, technological innovations are driving the global transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. These innovations are game changers in transforming the energy sector and are driving the rapid expansion of renewable energy. Hence, we analyze the nexus between technological innovations and renewable energy in the European Union. The results reveal that technology has a meaningful impact on renewable energy in one‐third of countries. This influence is driven by advancements in energy generation, storage, infrastructure, supportive policies, and incentives, which are crucial in promoting technology innovation and adoption, accelerating the growth of renewable energy. On the other hand, renewable energy is causing technological innovation in one‐third of countries due to the development of renewable energy, which promotes targeted technological innovation to exploit resources, enhance integration, and increase efficiency. A balanced approach works for countries lacking a strong link between the two factors.
Nonparametric analysis of the relationship between income inequality and energy consumption in African countries
Authors: Beldi Lamia , Ghazouani Tarek
Published: March 2024

Energy usage and disparities in income have emerged as the major threats that hinder the achievement of sustainable development goals in Africa. This study aims to assess the time‐varying impact of income inequality on both renewable and nonrenewable energy consumption, utilizing both parametric and nonparametric models across a panel of 18 African countries from 1990 to 2015. We find that, according to the parametric model, income inequality does not affect energy consumption. However, the nonparametric estimates point the presence of both positive and negative relationship between the two variables at different time period. The time varying impacts reveal that unfair income distribution affects renewable energy consumption via the dominance of some channels at specific times. Accordingly, the findings of this study emphasize that policymakers in African countries need to give particular heed to the role played by the income inequality in designing cleaner and greener energy transition policies.
Unlocking the potentials of Ustilago trichophora for up‐cycling polyurethane‐derived monomer 1,4‐butanediol
Authors: Phan An N. T. , Prigolovkin Lisa , Blank Lars M.
Published: March 2024

Plastic usage by microbes as a carbon source is a promising strategy to increase the recycling quota. 1,4‐butanediol (BDO) is a common monomer derived from polyesters and polyurethanes. In this study, Ustilago trichophora was found to be an efficient cell‐factory to valorize BDO. To investigate product formation by U. trichophora, we refined the traditional ion exclusion liquid chromatography method by examining eluent, eluent concentrations, oven temperatures, and organic modifiers to make the chromatography compatible with mass spectrometry. An LC‐UV/RI‐MS2 method is presented here to identify and quantify extracellular metabolites in the cell cultures. With this method, we successfully identified that U. trichophora secreted malic acid, succinic acid, erythritol, and mannitol into the culture medium. Adaptive laboratory evolution followed by medium optimization significantly improved U. trichophora growth on BDO and especially malic acid production. Overall, the carbon yield on the BDO substrate was approximately 33% malic acid. This study marks the first report of a Ustilaginaceae fungus capable of converting BDO into versatile chemical building blocks. Since U. trichophora is not genetically engineered, it is a promising microbial host to produce malic acid from BDO, thereby contributing to the development of the envisaged sustainable bioeconomy.
Conzinc Riotinto of Australia — Foreign Ownership and Control
Authors: Porter Robert
Published: March 2024

Conzinc Riotinto of Australia Limited (CRA) was the largest mining group in Australia after BHP. It had a major influence upon the post‐Second World War mining sector and Australian economy. It was responsible for some of the country's largest resource developments, establishing an integrated aluminium industry, playing the principal role in the development of Australia's iron ore export industry, and developing a major copper deposit on the Island of Bougainville. CRA was established in 1962 as the Australian arm of the British mining group, Rio Tinto Zinc Corporation Limited (RTZ), formed through the merger of The Rio Tinto Company Limited with The Consolidated Zinc Limited. Consolidated Zinc was also London‐listed, although with a deep Australian heritage based on its involvement in lead and zinc mining at Broken Hill. CRA's status as a foreign‐owned and controlled company had a major influence upon its corporate priorities for the two decades following its formation. The company's foreign majority ownership restricted its business opportunities, particularly during the 1970s. However, as early as the mid‐1960s, anti‐CRA sentiment was evident from politicians, public servants, Australian mining competitors and, to some extent, the public. CRA's standing as “un‐Australian” was viewed by company management as an impediment to attracting and retaining quality employees. These factors led CRA to engage with successive Commonwealth Governments to attempt to secure arrangements more accommodating to its business interests. This involved considerations as diverse as the takeover of the London parent company — to facilitate greater Australian shareholding in the Australian entity — through to the restructuring of CRA's interests in a new majority‐owned Australian company. Ultimately, CRA was instrumental in changing foreign investment legislation, providing a pathway for it as a foreign‐owned company to move to an Australianised or majority Australian‐owned status. With this, CRA had an ability to participate in resource investments on terms similar to those for Australian companies. CRA gained naturalising status in 1979 and, in 1986, that of a naturalised or Australianised company. Differences in perspectives relating to strategic direction and financial management between the parent company in London and CRA in Melbourne, brought to the fore issues of control. The situation became so serious that it resulted in the departure of the chairman and chief executive on the eve of CRA achieving Australian majority‐owned status. The events had a later influence on the formation of a dual‐listed company structure in 1996. Through this structure, RTZ regained majority share ownership of the assets previously held in the Australian company. CRA lost its naturalised status and its identity as Australia's then second largest Australian mining company.
“Realignment”, “Dealignment”, or “Deviation”? Classifying the 2022 Australian Federal Election
Authors: Williams Paul D.
Published: March 2024

The 2022 Australian federal election saw a record high vote for minor parties and independent candidates and record‐low levels of voter identification with the major parties. Scholars have since described the 2022 election as both a “dealigning” and a “realigning” event. Such descriptions are useful commencement points but not definitive. In determining a more accurate classification, this article offers three arguments: first, that younger and female voters swung heavily against the Coalition indeed suggests a “dealigning” election, albeit merely the most recent in a long process of “dealignment”; second, that the election hinged disproportionately on the short‐term factor of Prime Minister Scott Morrison's unpopular leadership suggests the poll was also a “deviating” event; and, third, it is impossible to classify the 2022 election as genuinely “realigning” until subsequent elections confirm the propensity of former Labor and Liberal Party voters to re‐elect Greens and “Teal” candidates.