bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Conserved function of ether lipids and sphingolipids in the early secretory pathway
Authors: Jiménez-Rojo Noemi , Leonetti Manuel D. , Zoni Valeria , Colom Adai , Feng Suihan , Iyengar Namrata R. , Matile Stefan , Roux Aurélien , Vanni Stefano , Weissman Jonathan S. , Riezman Howard
Published: December 2019

Sphingolipids have been shown to play important roles in physiology and cell biology, but a systematic examination of their functions is lacking. We performed a genome-wide CRISPRi screen in sphingolipid-depleted cells and identified hypersensitive mutants in genes of membrane trafficking and lipid biosynthesis, including ether lipid synthesis. Systematic lipidomic analysis showed a coordinate regulation of ether lipids with sphingolipids, where depletion of one of these lipid types resulted in increases in the other, suggesting an adaptation and functional compensation. Biophysical experiments on model membranes show common properties of these structurally diverse lipids that also share a known function as GPI anchors in different kingdoms of life. Molecular dynamics simulations show a selective enrichment of ether phosphatidylcholine around p24 proteins, which are receptors for the export of GPI-anchored proteins and have been shown to bind a specific sphingomyelin species. Our results support a model of convergent evolution of proteins and lipids, based on their physico-chemical properties, to regulate GPI-anchored protein transport and maintain homeostasis in the early secretory pathway.
A model of bidirectional interactions between complementary learning systems for memory consolidation of sequential experiences
Authors: Howard Michael D. , Skorheim Steven W. , Pilly Praveen K.
Published: December 2019

The standard theory of memory consolidation posits a dual-store memory system: a fast-learning fast-decaying hippocampus that transfers memories to slow-learning long-term cortical storage. Hippocampal lesions interrupt this transfer, so recent memories are more likely to be lost than more remote memories. Existing models of memory consolidation that simulate this temporally graded retrograde amnesia operate only on static patterns or unitary variables as memories. However, the mechanisms underlying the consolidation of episodes, which are sequential in nature and comprise multiple events, are not well understood. There is currently no computational theory for how memory replays of sequential experiences emerge dynamically during offline periods and how they are coordinated between the hippocampus and cortex to facilitate the stabilization of episodic memories. Further, there is evidence for a bi-directional interaction between the two memory systems during offline periods (Ji & Wilson, 2007), whereby the reactivation of waking neural patterns originating in the cortex triggers time-compressed sequential replays in the hippocampus, which in turn drive the consolidation of the pertinent sequence in the cortex. We have developed a computational model of memory encoding, consolidation, and recall for storing temporal sequences that explores the dynamics of this bi-directional interaction and time-compressed replays in four simulation experiments, providing novel insights into whether hippocampal learning needs to be suppressed for stable memory consolidation and into how new and old memories compete for limited replay opportunities during offline periods. The salience of experienced events, based on factors such as recency and frequency of use, is shown to have considerable impact on memory consolidation because it biases the relative probability that a particular event will be cued in the cortex during offline periods. In the presence of hippocampal learning during sleep, our model predicts that the fast-forgetting hippocampus can continually refresh the memory traces of a given episodic sequence if there are no competing experiences to be replayed.
Close range vocal interaction in the common marmoset (Callithrix Jacchus)
Authors: Landman R. , Sharma J. , Hyman J.B. , Fanucci-Kiss A. , Meisner O. , Parmar S. , Feng G. , Desimone R.
Published: December 2019

Vocal communication in animals often involves taking turns vocalizing. In humans, turn taking is a fundamental rule in conversation. Among non-human primates, the common marmoset is known to engage in antiphonal calling using phee calls and trill calls. Calls of the trill type are the most common, yet difficult to study, because they are not very loud and uttered in conditions when animals are in close proximity to one another. Here we recorded trill calls in captive pair-housed marmosets using wearable microphones, while the animals were together with their partner or separated, but within trill call range. Trills were exchanged mainly with the partner and not with other animals in the room. Animals placed outside the home cage increased their trill call rate and uttered more trills in response more to their partner. The fundamental frequency, F0, of trills increased when animals were placed outside the cage. Our results indicate that trill calls can be monitored using wearable audio equipment. Relatively minor changes in social context affect trill call interactions and spectral properties of trill calls, indicating that marmosets can communicate subtle information to their partner vocally.
Genome mining of the citrus pathogenElsinoë fawcettii; prediction and prioritisation of candidate effectors, cell wall degrading enzymes and secondary metabolite gene clusters
Authors: Jeffress Sarah , Arun-Chinnappa Kiruba , Stodart Ben , Vaghefi Niloofar , Tan Yu Pei , Ash Gavin
Published: December 2019

Elsinoë fawcettii, a necrotrophic fungal pathogen, causes citrus scab on numerous citrus varieties around the world. Known pathotypes ofE. fawcettiiare based on host range; additionally, cryptic pathotypes have been reported and more novel pathotypes are thought to exist.E. fawcettiiproduces elsinochrome, a non-host selective toxin which contributes to virulence. However, the mechanisms involved in potential pathogen-host interactions occurring prior to the production of elsinochrome are unknown, yet the host-specificity observed among pathotypes suggests a reliance upon such mechanisms. In this study we have generated a whole genome sequencing project forE. fawcettii,producing an annotated draft assembly 26.01 Mb in size, with 10,080 predicted gene models and low (0.37%) coverage of transposable elements. The assembly showed evidence of AT-rich regions, potentially indicating genomic regions with increased plasticity. Using a variety of computational tools, we mined theE. fawcettiigenome for potential virulence genes as candidates for future investigation. A total of 1,280 secreted proteins and 203 candidate effectors were predicted and compared to those of other necrotrophic (Botrytis cinerea,Parastagonospora nodorum,Pyrenophora tritici-repentis,Sclerotinia sclerotiorumandZymoseptoria tritici), hemibiotrophic (Leptosphaeria maculans,Magnaporthe oryzae,Rhynchosporium communeandVerticillium dahliae) and biotrophic (Ustilago maydis) plant pathogens. Genomic and proteomic features of known fungal effectors were analysed and used to guide the prioritisation of 77 candidate effectors ofE. fawcettii. Additionally, 378 carbohydrate-active enzymes were predicted and analysed for likely secretion and sequence similarity with known virulence genes. Furthermore, secondary metabolite prediction indicated nine additional genes potentially involved in the elsinochrome biosynthesis gene cluster than previously described. A further 21 secondary metabolite clusters were predicted, some with similarity to known toxin producing gene clusters. The candidate virulence genes predicted in this study provide a comprehensive resource for future experimental investigation into the pathogenesis ofE. fawcettii.
Modeling the efficiency of filovirus entry into cellsin vitro: Effects of SNP mutations in the receptor molecule
Authors: Kim Kwang Su , Kondoh Tatsunari , Asai Yusuke , Takada Ayato , Iwami Shingo
Published: December 2019

Interaction between filovirus glycoprotein (GP) and the Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1) protein is essential for membrane fusion during virus entry. Some single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) in two surface-exposed loops of NPC1 are known to reduce viral infectivity. However, the dependence of differences in entry efficiency on SNPs remains unclear. Using vesicular stomatitis virus pseudotyped with Ebola and Marburg virus GPs, we investigated the cell-to-cell spread of viruses in cultured cells expressing NPC1 or SNP derivatives. Eclipse and virus-producing phases were assessed byin vitroinfection experiments, and we developed a mathematical model describing spatial-temporal virus spread. This mathematical model fit the plaque radius data well from day 2 to day 6. Based on the estimated parameters, we found that SNPs causing the P424A and D508N substitutions in NPC1 most effectively reduced the entry efficiency of Ebola and Marburg viruses, respectively. Our novel approach could be broadly applied to other virus plaque assays.

Author Summary

Ebola virus belongs to the family Filoviridae, together with Marburg virus and Cueva virus. In 2015, the World Health Organization included Ebola and Marburg viruses among the infectious diseases that should be globally prioritized because these filoviruses can cause severe hemorrhagic fever in humans and nonhuman primates, and antiviral agents to these viruses are very limited. Filovirus particles bear the envelope glycoprotein (GP), which is the only viral surface protein and thus responsible for receptor binding and membrane fusion. Interaction between filovirus GP and the Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1) protein is essential for membrane fusion during virus entry. Some single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) in two surface-exposed loops of NPC1 are known to reduce viral infectivity. However, the dependence of differences in entry efficiency on SNPs remains unclear. In this study, combiningin vitroexperiments and mathematical models, we evaluated on the interaction between GP and wildtype and mutant NPC1, enabling us to estimate the cellular entry efficiency during plaque formation.
A portable, low-cost device for precise control of specimen temperature under stereomicroscopes
Authors: Testa Nicholas D. , Kaul Samiksha , Le Kim N. , Zhan Mei , Lu Hang , Paaby Annalise B.
Published: December 2019

To facilitate precise and convenient control of biological sample temperature, we developed a low-cost device that can be used independently or with any stereomicroscope. The purpose of the device is to control the thermal environment during experimental intervals in which a specimen must be manipulated outside of an incubator, e.g. for dissection or slide-mounting in preparation for imaging. Sample temperatures can be both cooled to below and heated to above room temperatures, and stably maintained at a precision of +/− 0.1°C. To demonstrate the utility of this device, we report improved characterization of the penetrance of a short-acting temperature-sensitive allele inC. elegansembryos, and identification of the upper temperature threshold for embryonic viability for sixCaenorhabditisspecies. By controlling the temperature environment even as a specimen is manipulated, this device offers consistency and flexibility, reduces environmental noise, and enables precision timing in experiments requiring temperature shifts.
A Comparative Study of the Turnover of Multiciliated Cells in the Mouse Trachea, Oviduct and Brain
Authors: Roberson Elle C. , Tran Ngan Kim , Konjikusic Mia J. , Fitch Rebecca D. , Gray Ryan S. , Wallingford John B.
Published: December 2019

In mammals, multiciliated cells (MCCs) line the lumen of the trachea, oviduct, and brain ventricles, where they drive fluid flow across the epithelium. Each MCC population experiences vastly different local environments that may dictate differences in their lifetime and turnover rates. However, with the exception of MCCs in the trachea, the turnover rates of these multiciliated epithelial populations at extended time scales are not well described. Here, using genetic lineage-labeling techniques we provide a direct comparison of turnover rates of MCCs in these three different tissues. We find that oviduct turnover is similar to that in the airway (∼6 months), while multiciliated ependymal cells turnover more slowly.
Cooling of medial septum reveals theta phase lag coordination of hippocampal cell assemblies
Authors: Petersen Peter C. , Buzsáki György
Published: December 2019

Hippocampal theta oscillations coordinate neuronal firing to support memory and spatial navigation. The medial septum (MS) is critical in theta generation by two possible mechanisms: either a unitary ‘pacemaker’ timing signal is imposed on the hippocampal system or it may assist in organizing target subcircuits within the phase space of theta oscillations. We used temperature manipulation of the MS to test these models. Cooling of the MS reduced both theta frequency and power, was associated with enhanced incidence of errors in a spatial navigation task but did not affect spatial correlates of neurons. MS cooling decreased theta frequency oscillations of place cells, reduced distance-time compression but preserved distance-phase compression of place field sequences within the theta cycle. Thus, septal computation contributes not only theta pacing but is also critical for sustaining precise theta phase-coordination of cell assemblies in the hippocampus.
Overcoming High Nanopore Basecaller Error Rates for DNA Storage Via Basecaller-Decoder Integration and Convolutional Codes
Authors: Chandak Shubham , Neu Joachim , Tatwawadi Kedar , Mardia Jay , Lau Billy , Kubit Matthew , Hulett Reyna , Griffin Peter , Wootters Mary , Weissman Tsachy , Ji Hanlee
Published: December 2019

As magnetization and semiconductor based storage technologies approach their limits, bio-molecules, such as DNA, have been identified as promising media for future storage systems, due to their high storage density (petabytes/gram) and long-term durability (thousands of years). Furthermore, nanopore DNA sequencing enables high-throughput sequencing using devices as small as a USB thumb drive and thus is ideally suited for DNA storage applications. Due to the high insertion/deletion error rates associated with basecalled nanopore reads, current approaches rely heavily on consensus among multiple reads and thus incur very high reading costs. We propose a novel approach which overcomes the high error rates in basecalled sequences by integrating a Viterbi error correction decoder with the basecaller, enabling the decoder to exploit the soft information available in the deep learning based basecaller pipeline. Using convolutional codes for error correction, we experimentally observed 3x lower reading costs than the state-of-the-art techniques at comparable writing costs.

The code, data and Supplementary Material is available at https://github.com/shubhamchandak94/nanopore_dna_storage.
Living materials with programmable functionalities grown from engineered microbial co-cultures
Authors: Gilbert Charlie , Tang Tzu-Chieh , Ott Wolfgang , Dorr Brandon A. , Shaw William M. , Sun George L. , Lu Timothy K. , Ellis Tom
Published: December 2019

Biological systems assemble tissues and structures with advanced properties in ways that cannot be achieved by man-made materials. Living materials self-assemble under mild conditions, are autonomously patterned, can self-repair and sense and respond to their environment. Inspired by this, the field of engineered living materials (ELMs) aims to use genetically-engineered organisms to generate novel materials. Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a biological material with impressive physical properties and low cost of production that is an attractive substrate for ELMs. Inspired by how plants build materials from tissues with specialist cells we here developed a system for making novel BC-based ELMs by addition of engineered yeast programmed to add functional traits to a cellulose matrix. This is achieved via a synthetic ‘symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast’ (Syn-SCOBY) approach that uses a stable co-culture ofSaccharomyces cerevisiaewith BC-producingKomagataeibacter rhaeticusbacetria. Our Syn-SCOBY approach allows inoculation of engineered cells into simple growth media, and under mild conditions materials self-assemble with genetically-programmable functional properties in days. We show that co-cultured yeast can be engineered to secrete enzymes into BC, generating autonomously grown catalytic materials and enabling DNA-encoded modification of BC bulk material properties. We further developed a method for incorporatingS. cerevisiaewithin the growing cellulose matrix, creating living materials that can sense chemical and optical inputs. This enabled growth of living sensor materials that can detect and respond to environmental pollutants, as well as living films that grow images based on projected patterns. This novel and robust Syn-SCOBY system empowers the sustainable production of BC-based ELMs.
Predicting transfer RNA gene activity from sequence and genome context
Authors: Thornlow Bryan P. , Armstrong Joel , Holmes Andrew D. , Howard Jonathan M. , Corbett-Detig Russell B. , Lowe Todd M.
Published: December 2019

Transfer RNA (tRNA) genes are among the most highly transcribed genes in the genome owing to their central role in protein synthesis. However, there is evidence for a broad range of gene expression across tRNA loci. This complexity, combined with difficulty in measuring transcript abundance and high sequence identity across transcripts, has severely limited our collective understanding of tRNA gene expression regulation and evolution. We establish sequence-based correlates to tRNA gene expression and develop a tRNA gene classification method that does not require, but benefits from, comparative genomic information and achieves accuracy comparable to molecular assays. We observe that guanine + cytosine (G + C) content and CpG density surrounding tRNA loci is exceptionally well correlated with tRNA gene activity, supporting a prominent regulatory role of the local genomic context in combination with internal sequence features. We use our tRNA gene activity predictions in conjunction with a comprehensive tRNA gene ortholog set spanning 29 placental mammals to estimate the evolutionary rate of functional changes among orthologs. Our method adds a new dimension to large-scale tRNA functional prediction and will help prioritize characterization of functional tRNA variants. Its simplicity and robustness should enable development of similar approaches for other clades, as well as exploration of functional diversification of members of large gene families.
Improved chemistry restraints for crystallographic refinement by integrating the Amber force field into Phenix
Authors: Moriarty Nigel W. , Janowski Pawel A. , Swails Jason M. , Nguyen Hai , Richardson Jane S. , Case David A. , Adams Paul D.
Published: December 2019

The refinement of biomolecular crystallographic models relies on geometric restraints to help to address the paucity of experimental data typical in these experiments. Limitations in these restraints can degrade the quality of the resulting atomic models. Here, an integration of the full all-atom Amber molecular-dynamics force field into Phenix crystallographic refinement is presented, which enables more complete modeling of biomolecular chemistry. The advantages of the force field include a carefully derived set of torsion-angle potentials, an extensive and flexible set of atom types, Lennard–Jones treatment of nonbonded interactions and a full treatment of crystalline electrostatics. The new combined method was tested against conventional geometry restraints for over 22 000 protein structures. Structures refined with the new method show substantially improved model quality. On average, Ramachandran and rotamer scores are somewhat better, clashscores and MolProbity scores are significantly improved, and the modeling of electrostatics leads to structures that exhibit more, and more correct, hydrogen bonds than those refined using traditional geometry restraints. In general it is found that model improvements are greatest at lower resolutions, prompting plans to add the Amber target function to real-space refinement for use in electron cryo-microscopy. This work opens the door to the future development of more advanced applications such as Amber-based ensemble refinement, quantum-mechanical representation of active sites and improved geometric restraints for simulated annealing.
Factors influencing estimates of coordinate error for molecular replacement
Authors: Hatti Kaushik S. , McCoy Airlie J. , Oeffner Robert D. , Sammito Massimo D. , Read Randy J.
Published: December 2019

Good prior estimates of the effective root-mean-square deviation (r.m.s.d.) between the atomic coordinates of the model and the target optimize the signal in molecular replacement, thereby increasing the success rate in difficult cases. Previous studies using protein structures solved by X-ray crystallography as models showed that optimal error estimates (refined after structure solution) were correlated with the sequence identity between the model and target, and with the number of residues in the model. Here, this work has been extended to find additional correlations between parameters of the model and the target and hence improved prior estimates of the coordinate error. Using a graph database, a curated set of 6030 molecular-replacement calculations using models that had been solved by X-ray crystallography was analysed to consider about 120 model and target parameters. Improved estimates were achieved by replacing the sequence identity with the Gonnet score for sequence similarity, as well as by considering the resolution of the target structure and the MolProbity score of the model. This approach was extended by analysing 12 610 additional molecular-replacement calculations where the model was determined by NMR. The median r.m.s.d. between pairs of models in an ensemble was found to be correlated with the estimated r.m.s.d. to the target. For models solved by NMR, the overall coordinate error estimates were larger than for structures determined by X-ray crystallography, and were more highly correlated with the number of residues.
A deep learning based automatic surface segmentation algorithm for painting large-size aircraft with 6-DOF robot
Authors: Wang Guolei , Hua Xiaotong , Xu Jing , Song Libin , Chen Ken
Published: December 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to achieve automatically surface segmentation for painting different kinds of aircraft efficiently considering the demands of painting robot.

Design/methodology/approach

This project creatively proposed one method that accepts point cloud, outputs several blocks, each of which can be handled by ABB IRB 5500 in one station. Parallel PointNet (PPN) is proposed in this paper for better handling six dimensional aircraft data including every point normal. Through semantic segmentation of PPN, each surface has its own identity information indicating which part this surface belongs to. Then clustering considering constraints is applied to complete surface segmentation with identity information. To guarantee segmentation paintable and improve painting efficiency, different dexterous workspaces of IRB 5500 corresponding to different postures have been analyzed carefully.

Findings

The experiments confirm the effectiveness of the proposed surface segmentation method for painting different types of aircraft by IRB 5500. For semantic segmentation on aircraft data with point normal, PPN has higher precision than PointNet. In addition, the whole algorithm can efficiently segment one complex aircraft into qualified blocks, each of which has its own identity information, can be painted by IRB 5500 in one station and has fewer edges with other blocks.

Research limitations/implications

As the provided experiments indicate, the proposed method can segment one aircraft into qualified blocks automatically, which highly improves the efficiency in aircraft painting compared with traditional approaches. Moreover, the proposed method is able to provide identity information of each block, which is necessary for application of different paint parameters and different paint materials. In addition, final segmentation results by the proposed method behaves better than k-means cluster on variance of normal vector distance.

Originality/value

Inspired by semantic segmentation of 3 D point cloud, some improvements based on PointNet have been proposed for better handling segmentation of 6 D point cloud. By introducing normal vectors, semantic segmentation could be accomplished precisely for close points with opposite normal, such as wing upper and lower surfaces. Combining deep learning skills with traditional methods, the proposed method is proved to behave much better for surface segmentation task in aircraft painting.
Modeling of rotation accuracy of multi-support rotating machinery considering geometric errors and part deformation
Authors: Sun Yanhui , Guo Junkang , Hong Jun , Liu Guanghui
Published: December 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to develop a theoretical method to analyze the rotation accuracy of rotating machinery with multi-support structures. The method effectively considers the geometric errors and assembly deformation of parts.

Design/methodology/approach

A method composed of matrix and FEA methods is proposed to do the analysis. The deviation propagation analysis results and external loads are set as boundary conditions of the model which is built with Timoshenko beam elements to calculate the spatial pose of the rotor. The calculation is performed repeatedly as the rotation angle increased to get the rotation trajectories of concerned nodes, and further evaluation is done to get the rotation accuracy. Additionally, to get more reliable results, the bearing motion errors and stiffness are analyzed by a static model considering manufacturing errors of parts.

Findings

The feasibility of the proposed method is verified through a case study of a high-precision spindle. The method reasonably predicts the rotation accuracy of the spindle.

Originality/value

For rotating machinery with multi-support structures, the paper proposes a modeling method to predict the rotation accuracy, simultaneously considering geometric errors and assembly deformation of parts. This would improve the accuracy of tolerance analysis.
Image-based visual servoing using a set for multiple pin-in-hole assembly
Authors: Liu Chicheng , Song Libin , Chen Ken , Xu Jing
Published: December 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to present an image-based visual servoing algorithm for a multiple pin-in-hole assembly. This paper also aims to avoid the matching and tracking of image features and the remaining robust against image defects.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors derive a novel model in the set space and design three image errors to control the 3 degrees of freedom (DOF) of a single-lug workpiece in the alignment task. Analytic computations of the interaction matrix that link the time variations of the image errors to the single-lug workpiece motions are performed. The authors introduce two approximate hypotheses so that the interaction matrix has a decoupled form, and an auto-adaptive algorithm is designed to estimate the interaction matrix.

Findings

Image-based visual servoing in the set space avoids the matching and tracking of image features, and these methods are not sensitive to image effects. The control law using the auto-adaptive algorithm is more efficient than that using a static interaction matrix. Simulations and real-world experiments are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Originality/value

This paper proposes a new visual servoing method to achieve pin-in-hole assembly tasks. The main advantage of this new approach is that it does not require tracking or matching of the image features, and its supplementary advantage is that it is not sensitive to image defects.
Intellectual virtue and virtue epistemology: Leveraging knowledge for sustainable results
Authors: Bohl Kenneth
Published: December 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce virtue epistemology as a complementary approach to how we learn and make wise decisions within organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on a philosophic history of intellectual virtue and recent research into virtue epistemology, this article presents an applied theoretical approach for practitioners to use in developing a more robust learning environment.

Findings

With robust market and operational databases of information, organizations continue to face the difficult decision of what this data means and what they can do with it. This article suggests intellectual virtue as a tool to develop appropriate knowledge, informed practical actions and sustainable outcomes.

Practical implications

Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity have led to increasing rates of change in organizations. Organizations rely increasingly on their ability to observe, analyze, interpret and ultimately make decisions and act in ways that ensure sustainable results. This article provides an alternative perspective to complement traditional problem solving and decision-making processes.

Originality/value

There is currently limited research into the applicability of intellectual virtue or virtue epistemology to the field of organizational development and learning.
How do safety engineers improve their job performance? The roles of influence tactics, expert power, and management support
Authors: Bunner Johanna , Prem Roman , Korunka Christian
Published: December 2019

Purpose

Non-technical skills are of increasing importance for safety engineers to perform their job. In their position as expert consultants, they work closely with managers. Thus, gaining management support is oftentimes crucial for safety engineers to successfully improve occupational health and safety. Drawing on organizational support theory (OST), this study investigates how safety engineers’ non-technical skills in communication and persuasion (i.e. rational and hard influence tactics) are related with their management support, and how management support is related with their individual task proficiency (ITP). The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of safety engineers’ expert power in this context.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an online questionnaire, survey data were collected from 251 safety engineers working in Austria.

Findings

Rational influence tactics are positively related to ITP via management support, whereas hard influence tactics are not. Safety engineers’ expert power moderates the relationship between influence tactics and management support and, consequently ITP. High (vs low) expert status strengthens the positive relationship of rational influence tactics on ITP via management support. For hard influence tactics, high (vs low) expert power buffered the negative relationship of upward appeal and pressure on ITP via management support.

Practical implications

Safety engineers should rely on rational persuasion when cooperating with management to obtain support and improve their own performance.

Originality/value

This study connects the effect of influence tactics in the context of safety engineers’ work performance with OST. It demonstrates that safety engineers’ influence tactics are related to work role performance through management support and that these relationships are moderated by expert power.
Family friendly policies and the Omani Labour Law
Authors: Belwal Shweta , Belwal Rakesh , Al-Hashemi Suhaila Ebrahim
Published: December 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to take cognisance of the work–life balance (WLB) challenges facing working women in Oman, make a review of the family-friendly policies (FFPs), related provisions in labour laws of various nations, and identify and suggest some FFP-based solutions for attracting women to private sector jobs.

Design/methodology/approach

Initially, desk research was used to review the labour laws of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and some pioneering countries known for their workplace policies using the major electronic databases and official websites. An exploratory approach was used to understand the lived experience of participants using 46 in-depth interviews. The data were analysed and the findings were explained and contextualised in terms of the Arab culture, wider social processes and consequences related to WLB.

Findings

The interviews revealed that the majority of women in the private sector are not fully aware of the labour laws and FFPs, and are not satisfied with the existing policies, as they do not provide the right WLB. Women in the private sector demand flexible working hours, privacy at work, reduced work hours and certain other benefits akin to the government sector. Omani Labour Law needs a review of FFPs in line with the best global practices and Oman’s diversification initiatives. The provision, awareness and implementation of FFPs in the workplace are necessary to attract Omani women to private sector jobs.

Research limitations/implications

This research focusses on Oman in particular and GCC countries in general in its coverage of Omani women workers. The outcomes would be important for the specific segment but would have limited potential to generalise.

Practical implications

The study of WLB and FFPs is of interest for both academia and industry globally. In its strategic vision 2040, Oman aims to encourage, support and develop the private sector to drive the national economy. To retain and boost the socio-economic development in the post-oil economy, the success of the private sector will depend on the participation of the Omani workforce. The role of working Omani women will be pivotal, for they form a substantial part of the skilled human resources inventory.

Social implications

Women working in Oman are influenced by labour laws, organisational culture, traditional attitudes and societal values and influences. The voices of women working in the private sector indicate a great need to create awareness of existing policies, ensure their compliance and devise additional workplace policies to enable women to contribute to the labour market.

Originality/value

There is a dearth of studies examining work policies and employment of women in the context of Oman in particular and the GCC Countries in general. Even in the extant literature, the sectoral imbalance between the government and private sector has not been explored from the perspective of WLB and FFPs. This study presents a unique approach and findings in this regard.
Brand equity in Caribbean financial services: the moderating role of service providers
Authors: Rambocas Meena , Arjoon Surendra
Published: December 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrated model to represent how service experience (core, employee and service scale), customer satisfaction (transaction-specific and cumulative) and brand affinity influence brand equity in financial services, taking into account the moderating influence of financial service providers.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from 751 customers in three types of financial service providers (banks, insurance companies and credit unions), and analyzed with structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis.

Findings

The findings confirm the significant and positive influence of service experience, customer satisfaction and brand affinity on brand equity. Employee service experience has the strongest influence, but its impact is mediated by customer satisfaction. Brand affinity has the lowest influence on brand equity. The type of financial service provider moderates the influence of customer satisfaction on brand equity; transactional satisfaction is more important for credit unions and insurance companies, but cumulative satisfaction is higher for banks.

Practical implications

The study is significant for three reasons. First, it reconciles branding strategies across different types of financial service providers. Second, it will help financial managers to develop and implement a more integrated approach toward building brand equity for financial service brands. Finally, it will identify specific service-related areas financial providers can target to increase customers’ preferential value.

Originality/value

The paper addresses previous concerns within brand equity studies by examining the drivers of brand equity formation in multiple financial institutions. It shows how different aspects of service experience and customer satisfaction affect brand affinity and preferential attitudes toward financial brands.
The impact of financial and economic crisis on leverage: the case of Icelandic private firms
Authors: Khalfan Twahir , Wendt Stefan
Published: December 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical insight into the impact of a financial crisis on capital structure of private firms. Specifically, the authors use the example of the systemic Icelandic financial crisis from 2008 to 2010 and analyze the influence of internally generated funds on leverage during the financial crisis compared to the non-crisis period.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use a fixed-effects dynamic model to examine the impact of internally generated funds – measured as cash flow – with a data set that includes non-listed Icelandic firms. In addition, generalized method of moments is used to address potential endogeneity issues.

Findings

The authors find that internally generated funds have a different effect on capital structure during the financial crisis compared to the non-crisis period. While cash flow has an overall negative association with leverage, a positive relationship appears to exist during the crisis. However, when analyzing changes in cash flow from one year to the other, the sample firms appear to rely more on internally generated funds to adjust leverage during the financial crisis than in the non-crisis period.

Originality/value

Analyzing the extreme case of the Icelandic financial crisis allows us to shed light on capital structure effects in situations when both debt financing and internal financing opportunities are heavily curtailed.
Work: covenant, social support and their impacts on multiple performance outcomes
Authors: Hutahayan Benny
Published: December 2019

Purpose

Applying social exchange and job demands resources theories, this study aims to proposes a research model in which work engagement (WE) mediates the influence of work social support on job satisfaction (JS), in-role performance (IRP) and creative performance (CP).

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from cabin attendants via three surveys two weeks apart and their pursers. The aforesaid relationships were assessed through structural equation modeling.

Findings

In general, there is support for the preponderance of hypotheses. Specifically, WE completely mediate the impact of coworker support on JS and IRP, whereas the impact of supervisor support on CP is completely mediated by WE. WE partly mediate the effect of coworker support on CP. Further, the effect of supervisor support on JS and IRP is partly mediated by WE.

Originality/value

The study extends and contributes to the current service research by assessing the impact of WE simultaneously on three performance outcomes. And it adds to current knowledge by investigating the mediating mechanism linking work social support to the attitudinal and behavioral outcomes. It also controls the threat of common method variance with at least two procedural remedies, which have been rarely used in the current service research.
Factors of high performance in Portugal
Authors: Santos Paulo , de Waal André
Published: December 2019

Purpose

Ever since Portugal joined the European Union, Portuguese organisations have been struggling with both the challenges of new competitors flooding in from other European countries and taking advantage of the opportunities the new enlarged integrated market offered them. This is because Portuguese companies have in general low average rates of productivity growth while they lack techniques to improve not only these rates but also overall organisational performance. The purpose of this paper is to discuss whether the high-performance organisation (HPO) framework, a holistic improvement technique developed on the basis of worldwide data, is valid for the Portuguese context and therefore can support Portuguese organisations in their efforts to achieve better performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Managers in Portuguese organisations, which were found in the Spain balance sheet analysis system database, were approached to fill in the HPO questionnaire on their company. In total, data was received from 163 organisations. This data was subsequently statistically analysed using a confirmatory factor analysis.

Findings

The study shows that the 35 items of the HPO framework are valid for the participating Portuguese organisations and as such form a reliable HPO framework for these organisations. Thus, the HPO framework can be reliably applied at Portuguese organisations to evaluate their current level of organisational performance and to propose recommendations to improve performance.

Originality/value

This research study fills the gap of the currently rather limited literature on the application of holistic and effective improvement techniques in Portugal, and as such future researchers can use the framework to conduct a more in-depth study of performance gains in the Portuguese context. Portuguese managers now have at their disposal a holistic improvement technique validated for their context, so they can use the HPO framework with confidence to start improving their own organisations.
Resilience and spirituality: a mixed methods exploration of executive stress
Authors: Shelton Charlotte D. , Hein Sascha , Phipps Kelly A.
Published: December 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this mixed methods research study was to explore the relationships between spirituality, leader resiliency and life satisfaction/well-being.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an explanatory sequential design, the authors tested three research hypotheses to explore the relationships between the participants’ spiritual practices and level of resiliency, life satisfaction and sense of well-being. Data were collected from 101 executive MBA alumni of a US-based university. Following the quantitative analysis of the survey results, interviews were conducted with 25 executives who scored high in the frequency of spiritual practice to further explore how they applied their spirituality in stressful work situations.

Findings

The results found positive relationships between spirituality, resilience and overall life satisfaction. Participants who engaged in meditative practices had a significantly higher overall resilience score than non-meditators.

Research limitations/implications

Key limitations are sample size and the risk of common method variance. Though numerous procedural steps were taken to control for these issues, future research with a larger and more diverse sample is needed.

Practical implications

Organizational stress is pervasive and executive burnout is a risk factor for leaders and their organizations. This research offers practical suggestions for ways that human resource managers and organization development practitioners can provide prevention resources to their executives.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the literature by providing support for mindfulness/meditation training for executives. It also demonstrates the value of mixed methods research for a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of the participants.
Competition in the sparkling wine market in the Czech Republic
Authors: Kostovčík Tibor , Šrédl Karel , Hommerová Dita
Published: December 2019

Purpose

Vine growing for the production of wine constitutes one of the major areas of agriculture of the Czech Republic, and in recent years, it has been qualitatively improved. The purpose of this paper is to find out whether oligopolistic market structures have come into being on the sparkling wine market in the Czech Republic, and whether some wine firms have a dominant position on the sparkling wine market.

Design/methodology/approach

The purpose of this study is to find, compare and carry out a statistical analysis of data on the production and sale of sparkling wines in the Czech Republic, in particular the indicators of the sales and profits of the dominant producer, Bohemia Sekt. In retail chains in the Czech Republic, the price of domestic and foreign sparkling wines was then compared with a comparative analysis.

Findings

The dominant seller of sparkling wine on the Czech market is Bohemia Sekt, which is also the largest domestic non-sparkling and sparkling wine producer. Bohemia Sekt sold 11 m bottles of sparkling wine on the Czech market in 2015 and maintained a 67 per cent share of the domestic market. Traditionally, Christmas time and the end of the year is the main season for selling sparkling wines in the Czech Republic, as more than one-third of the annual production of all wineries is sold at this time.

Originality/value

The paper presents a finding about the consistency of the prices of sparkling wines offered in retail chains in the Czech Republic. This confirms the validity of using the model of oligopolistic competition with a dominant company on the sparkling wine market in the Czech Republic. The dominance of Bohemia Sekt in the given market is mainly due to the loyalty of Czech consumers to this brand.