bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Bioactivity-guided isolation of rosmarinic acid as a principle bioactive compound from the butanol extract of Isodon rugosus against pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum
Authors: Khan Saira , Tizi Taning Clauvis Nji , Bonneure Elias , Mangelinckx Sven , Smagghe Guy , Ahmad Raza , Fatima Nighat , Asif Muhammad , Shah Mohammad Maroof
Published: March 2019

Aphids are agricultural pest insects that transmit viruses and cause feeding damage on a global scale. Current pest control involving the excessive use of synthetic insecticides over decades has led to multiple forms of aphid resistance to most classes of insecticides. In nature, plants produce secondary metabolites during their interaction with insects and these metabolites can act as toxicants, antifeedants, anti-oviposition agents and deterrents towards the insects. In a previous study, we demonstrated that the butanol fraction from a crude methanolic extract of an important plant species, Isodon rugosus showed strong insecticidal activity against the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum. It was however not known as which compound was responsible for such activity. To further explore this finding, current study aimed to exploit a bioactivity-guided strategy to isolate and identify the active compound in the butanol fraction of I. rugosus. As such, reversed-phase flash chromatography, acidic extraction and different spectroscopic techniques were used to isolate and identify the new compound, rosmarinic acid as the bioactive compound in I. rugosus. Insecticidal activity of rosmarinic acid was carried out using standard protocols on A. pisum. The data was analyzed using qualitative and quantitative statistical approaches. Considering that a very low concentration of this compound (LC90 = 5.4 ppm) causes significant mortality in A. pisum within 24 h, rosmarinic acid could be exploited as a potent insecticide against this important pest insect. Furthermore, I. rugosus is already used for medicinal purposes and rosmarinic acid is known to reduce genotoxic effects induced by chemicals, hence it is expected to be safer compared to the current conventional pesticides. While this study highlights the potential of I. rugosus as a possible biopesticide source against A. pisum, it also provides the basis for further exploration and development of formulations for effective field application.
Integration of pathway, cellular and genetic context reveals principles of synthetic lethality that affect reproducibility
Authors: Ku Angel A. , Kongara Sameera , Hu Hsien-Ming , Zhao Xin , Wu Di , McCormick Frank , Balmain Allan , Bandyopadhyay Sourav
Published: March 2019

Synthetic lethal screens have the potential to identify new vulnerabilities incurred by specific cancer mutations but have been hindered by lack of agreement between studies. Using KRAS as a model, we identified that published synthetic lethal screens significantly overlap at the pathway rather than gene level. Analysis of pathways encoded as protein networks identified synthetic lethal candidates that were more reproducible than those previously reported. Lack of overlap likely stems from biological rather than technical limitations as most synthetic lethal phenotypes were strongly modulated by changes in cellular conditions or genetic context, the latter determined using a pairwise genetic interaction map that identified numerous interactions that suppress synthetic lethal effects. Accounting for pathway, cellular and genetic context nominates a DNA repair dependency in KRAS-mutant cells, mediated by a network containing BRCA1. We provide evidence for why most reported synthetic lethals are not reproducible which is addressable using a multi-faceted testing framework.

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

Synthetic lethal screens have the power to identify new targets in cancer, although have thus far come up short of expectation. We use computational and experimental approaches to delineate principles for identifying robust synthetic lethal targets that could aid in the development of effective new therapeutic strategies for genetically defined cancers.
Changepoint detection versus reinforcement learning: Separable neural substrates approximate different forms of Bayesian inference
Authors: Pauli Wolfgang M. , Jones Matt
Published: March 2019

Adaptive behavior in even the simplest decision-making tasks requires predicting future events in an environment that is generally nonstationary. As an inductive problem, this prediction requires a commitment to the statistical process underlying environmental change. This challenge can be formalized in a Bayesian framework as a question of choosing a generative model for the task dynamics. Previous learning models assume, implicitly or explicitly, that nonstationarity follows either a continuous diffusion process or a discrete changepoint process. Each approach is slow to adapt when its assumptions are violated. A new mixture of Bayesian experts framework proposes separable brain systems approximating inference under different assumptions regarding the statistical structure of the environment. This model explains data from a laboratory foraging task, in which rats experienced a change in reward contingencies after pharmacological disruption of dorsolateral (DLS) or dorsomedial striatum (DMS). The data and model suggest DLS learns under a diffusion prior whereas DMS learns under a changepoint prior. The combination of these two systems offers a new explanation for how the brain handles inference in an uncertain environment.

One Sentence Summary

Adaptive foraging behavior can be explained by separable brain systems approximating Bayesian inference under different assumptions about dynamics of the environment.
Effects of carbon nanotubes and derivatives of graphene oxide on soil bacterial diversity
Authors: Forstner Christian , Orton Thomas G. , Wang Peng , Kopittke Peter M. , Dennis Paul G.
Published: March 2019

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs), reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and ammonia-functionalized graphene oxide (aGO), are nanomaterials that possess varied and useful properties. However, following their use, their release into the environment is inevitable. While CNTs have been shown to influence soil bacterial diversity, albeit at very high concentration, the effects of rGO have only been examined using pure bacterial cultures, and those of aGO are unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of CNTs, rGO and aGO, at three time points (7, 14 and 30 days), and over a range of concentrations (1 ng, 1 µg and 1 mg kg dry soil-1), on soil bacterial diversity using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Graphite was included to facilitate comparisons with a similar and naturally occurring carbon material, while the inclusion of GO allowed the effects of GO modification to be isolated. Bacterial community composition, but not alpha diversity, was altered by all treatments except the low GO, low rGO and high aGO treatments on day 14 only. In all cases, the nanomaterials led to shifts in community composition that were of similar magnitude to those induced by graphite and GO, albeit with differences in the taxa affected. Our study highlights that nanocarbon materials can induce changes in soil bacterial diversity, even at doses that are environmentally realistic.
Animal evolution coincides with a novel degree of freedom in exocytic transport processes
Authors: Kollmar Martin , Welz Tobias , Straub Felix , Alzahofi Noura , Hatje Klas , Briggs Deborah A. , Samol-Wolf Annette , Burkhardt Pawel , Hume Alistair , Kerkhoff Eugen
Published: March 2019

Exocytic transport of transmembrane receptors and secreted ligands provides the basis for cellular communication in animals. The RAB8/RAB3/RAB27 trafficking regulators function in transport processes towards the cell membrane. The small G-proteins recruit a diversity of effectors that mediate transport along microtubule and actin tracks, as well as membrane tethering and fusion. SPIRE actin nucleators organise local actin networks at exocytic vesicle membranes. By complex formation with class-5 myosins, vesicle transport track generation and motor protein activation are coordinated. Our phylogenetic analysis traced the onset of SPIRE function back to the origin of the Holozoa. We have identified SPIRE in the closest unicellular relatives of animals, the choanoflagellates, and the more distantly related ichthyosporeans. The discovery of a SPIRE-like protein encoding a KIND and tandem-WH2 domains in the amoebozoanPhysarum polycephalumsuggests that the SPIRE-type actin nucleation mechanism originated even earlier. Choanoflagellate SPIRE interacts with RAB8, the sole choanoflagellate representative of the metazoan RAB8/RAB3/RAB27 family. Major interactions including MYO5, FMN-subgroup formins and vesicle membranes are conserved between the choanoflagellate and mammalian SPIRE proteins and the choanoflagellateMonosiga brevicollisSPIRE protein can rescue mouse SPIRE1/2 function in melanosome transport. Genome duplications generated two mammalianSPIREgenes (SPIRE1andSPIRE2) and allowed for the separation of SPIRE protein function in terms of tissue expression and RAB GTPase binding. SPIRE1 is highest expressed in the nervous system and interacts with RAB27 and RAB8. SPIRE2 shows high expression in the digestive tract and specifically interacts with RAB8. We propose that at the dawn of the animal kingdom a new transport mechanism came into existence, which bridges microtubule tracks, detached vesicles and the cellular actin cytoskeleton by organising actin/myosin forces directly at exocytic vesicle membranes. The new degree of freedom in transport may reflect the increased demands of the sophisticated cellular communications in animals.
Family aggregation analysis reveals a heritable background of equine grass sickness (dysautonomia)
Authors: Vincze Boglárka , Varga Márta , Gáspárdy András , Kutasi Orsolya , Zenke Petra , Szenci Ottó , Baska Ferenc , Bartels Alan , Spisák Sándor , Solymosi Norbert
Published: March 2019

Equine grass sickness (also known as dysautonomia) is a life-threatening polyneuropathic disease affecting horses with approx. 80% mortality. Since it’s first description over a hundred years ago, several factors including phenotypic, environmental, management, climate, and intestinal microbiome) have been associated with increased risk of dysautonomia. But despite the extensive research on dysautonomia, it’s causative factors have yet been identified. A retrospective pedigree and phenotype based genetic epidemiological study was performed to analyze the associations of disease occurrence and the kinship in a Hungarian large scale stud. The pedigree data set containing 1233 horses with 49 affected animals was used in the analysis. The first finding was that among the descendants of some stallions the proportion of affected animals are unexpectedly high, with a maximum of 25% of a stallions descendants affected. Animals with affected siblings have higher odds to be a case (OR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.01-1.57, p=0.033). Among males in the affected population the odds of dysautonomia is higher than in females (OR: 1.76, 95% CI: 0.95-3.29, p=0.057). Significant familial clustering was observed among the affected animals (GIF p=0.001). Further subgroups were identified with significant (p<0.001) aggregation among close relatives using kinship-based methods. Our analysis of the data and the observed higher disease frequency in males suggests that dysautonomia may have X-linked recessive inheritance as a causal factor. This is the first study providing ancestry data and suggesting a genetic contribution to the likely multifactorial causes of the disease.
Quantitative Colour Pattern Analysis (QCPA): A Comprehensive Framework for the Analysis of Colour Patterns in Nature
Authors: van den Berg Cedric P. , Troscianko Jolyon , Endler John A. , Marshall N. Justin , Cheney Karen L.
Published: March 2019

To understand the function of colour signals in nature, we require robust quantitative analytical frameworks to enable us to estimate how animal and plant colour patterns appear against their natural background as viewed by ecologically relevant species. Due to the quantitative limitations of existing methods, colour and pattern are rarely analysed in conjunction with one another, despite a large body of literature and decades of research on the importance of spatiochromatic colour pattern analyses. Furthermore, key physiological limitations of animal visual systems such as spatial acuity, spectral sensitivities, photoreceptor abundances and receptor noise levels are rarely considered together in colour pattern analyses.

Here, we present a novel analytical framework, called the ‘Quantitative Colour Pattern Analysis’ (QCPA). We have overcome many quantitative and qualitative limitations of existing colour pattern analyses by combining calibrated digital photography and visual modelling. We have integrated and updated existing spatiochromatic colour pattern analyses, including adjacency, visual contrast and boundary strength analysis, to be implemented using calibrated digital photography through the ‘Multispectral Image Analysis and Calibration’ (MICA) Toolbox.

This combination of calibrated photography and spatiochromatic colour pattern analyses is enabled by the inclusion of psychophysical colour and luminance discrimination thresholds for image segmentation, which we call ‘Receptor Noise Limited Clustering’, used here for the first time. Furthermore, QCPA provides a novel psycho-physiological approach to the modelling of spatial acuity using convolution in the spatial or frequency domains, followed by ‘Receptor Noise Limited Ranked Filtering’ to eliminate intermediate edge artefacts and recover sharp boundaries following smoothing. We also present a new type of colour pattern analysis, the ‘Local Edge Intensity Analysis’ (LEIA) as well as a range of novel psycho-physiological approaches to the visualisation of spatiochromatic data.

QCPA combines novel and existing pattern analysis frameworks into what we hope is a unified, user-friendly, free and open source toolbox and introduce a range of novel analytical and data-visualisation approaches. These analyses and tools have been seamlessly integrated into the MICA toolbox providing a dynamic and user-friendly workflow.

QCPA is a framework for the empirical investigation of key theories underlying the design, function and evolution of colour patterns in nature. We believe that it is compatible with, but more thorough than, other existing colour pattern analyses.
Does innovation capabilities affect the new service innovation success among Pakistani cellular companies?
Authors: Kiani Malkah Noor , Mustafa Syed Hussain , Ahmad Mehboob
Published: March 2019

Purpose

In today’s Pakistan, the emergence of new forms of business in collaboration with the mobile service providers is bringing a big difference, not only in every walk of life but also in digital economy of the country. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore what are the factors that determine the success rate of new innovative services in cultural context of mobile service providers of Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

Data have been collected from 397 employees of cellular firms of Pakistan by using the simple random sampling strategy. The gathered data were analyzed by using the regression-based process approach of Hayes and Preacher (2014).

Findings

The results indicated that innovation capabilities and service innovation have significant positive effect on the short-term, long-term and indirect success of the service innovation. It was also found that the service innovation mediates the relationship among the capabilities to innovate and service innovation success rate. The findings of this research work are beneficial for the practitioners of cellular firms of Pakistan.

Originality/value

The value of this research work is evident from the fact that this research work attempts to address some identified gaps of existing body of literature. This research work provides some key insights for practitioners and also discusses the new avenues for future researches.
Resistance to change in BPM implementation
Authors: Pereira Veridiana Rotondaro , Maximiano Antonio Cesar Amaru , Bido Diógenes de Souza
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate individuals’ attitudes toward organizational change, considering each phase of a business process management (BPM) implementation and some antecedents of resistance as hierarchical position, sector and trust in management.

Design/methodology/approach

The study examines employees’ attitudes toward BPM change in the Brazilian market. To measure resistance to organizational change, the research adopted the change attitude scale developed by Oreg (2006). As potential antecedents for resistance, hierarchical position, sector and trust in management were considered. Five control variables were included: gender, company size, educational background, educational level and age range. The application of the survey considered three main parties: BPM implementers, BPM end-users and developers of BPM systems. The survey data, drawn from 113 useable questionnaires, were analyzed by structural equation modeling with partial least squares estimation.

Findings

The results of this research showed some interesting insights. First, hierarchical position has no significant effect on the reduction of resistance to process improvement changes. Contrary to what was expected, results showed that being in the manufacturing sector has no significant effect on the reduction of resistance. Finally, only trust in management has a significant effect on employees’ attitudes toward BPM implementation, and as phases go by this effect increases.

Practical implications

The paper could support BPM decision makers by providing a better understanding of employees’ attitudes toward BPM change. In this sense, the study could also provide real-life application, by facilitating the task of allocating priorities and supporting process-related decisions.

Originality/value

The research could incentivize a closer relationship between BPM implementers and BPM end-users, promoting opportunities, respect and mutual trust.
The board of directors and firm performance: empirical evidence from listed companies
Authors: Merendino Alessandro , Melville Rob
Published: March 2019

Purpose

This study aims to reconcile some of the conflicting results in prior studies of the board structure–firm performance relationship and to evaluate the effectiveness and applicability of agency theory in the specific context of Italian corporate governance practice.

Design/methodology/approach

This research applies a dynamic generalised method of moments on a sample of Italian listed companies over the period 2003-2015. Proxies for corporate governance mechanisms are the board size, the level of board independence, ownership structure, shareholder agreements and CEO–chairman leadership.

Findings

While directors elected by minority shareholders are not able to impact performance, independent directors do have a non-linear effect on performance. Board size has a positive effect on firm performance for lower levels of board size. Ownership structure per se and shareholder agreements do not affect firm performance.

Research limitations/implications

This paper contributes to the literature on agency theory by reconciling some of the conflicting results inherent in the board structure–performance relationship. Firm performance is not necessarily improved by having a high number of independent directors on the board. Ownership structure and composition do not affect firm performance; therefore, greater monitoring provided by concentrated ownership does not necessarily lead to stronger firm performance.

Practical implications

This paper suggests that Italian corporate governance law should improve the rules and effectiveness of minority directors by analysing whether they are able to impede the main shareholders to expropriate private benefits on the expenses of the minority. The legislator should not impose any restrictive regulations with regard to CEO duality, as the influence of CEO duality on performance may vary with respect to the unique characteristics of each company.

Originality/value

The results enrich the understanding of the applicability of agency theory in listed companies, especially in Italy. Additionally, this paper provides a comprehensive synthesis of research evidence of agency theory studies.
Through the pyramid: implications of interconnectedness in Africa
Authors: Chipp Kerry , Carter Marcus , Chiba Manoj
Published: March 2019

Purpose

Many markets are conceptualized as a stratified low- and middle-income “pyramid” of consumers. Emerging markets are sites of rapid consumer mobility, and thus the middle class there is connected to, and often supports, low-income relatives and employees. Therefore, this paper aims to establish that African income groups are not insular, but rather interrelated and have strong social ties reinforced with longstanding communal values, such as ubuntu.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a between-subjects experimental vignette design, the propensity of the middle class to cover low-income individuals on an insurance product was assessed.

Findings

Income strata are interrelated and can inform value propositions, which is demonstrated in this paper with insurance, where the middle class are willing to include others, depending on their social proximity, on their insurance cover.

Research limitations/implications

The context for this study was personal home insurance; hence, the generalisability of the results is circumscribed. Other more tangible forms of cover, such as medical, funeral or educational insurance, may engender far stronger effects.

Practical implications

Marketers tend to view low- and middle-income consumers as independent. A view of their interrelation will change the design of many products and services, such as a service catered to the poor but targeted at their support networks. An example of such a service is insurance, which is traditionally hard to sell to the poor. A less atomistic approach to income strata could have implications for vicarious consumption, as well as a reconsideration of the disposable income of both groups.

Originality/value

The pyramid is an interconnected network of social and economic ties.
Turning on the township: financial inclusion in South Africa
Authors: Whittaker Louise , Kruger Graunt
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore practitioner and academic conceptualisations about what drives individuals (who are the target of financial inclusion efforts) to adopt and use financial services. It compares this with individual’s personal subjectivities to understand how the similarities and differences might contribute to problems in financial inclusion efforts.

Design/methodology/approach

To uncover such conceptualisations, a Foucauldian discourse analysis of three texts is conducted.

Findings

The analysis uncovers the ways in which financial subjects are produced. Important points of discontinuity are evident between texts, pointing to potential failures within financial inclusion constructs. Distilling aspects of continuity between texts shows up three kinds of subjects produced predicated on the site of economic engagement as owners of bodies, tangible property and intangible property. These subjects are shown to all share concerns with income and expense management. The analysis shows that subject positions and strategic actions (including the use of financial service providers) are mutually reinforcing, and that therefore financial subjects will engage only to the extent that the product or service enacts their subject position. With the financial subject as the starting point, it is possible to understand the use or rejection of particular financial products and services.

Research limitations/implications

Asset building is proposed as a field of activity not currently considered part of mainstream financial inclusion, questioning the terms on which individuals are to be financially “included”.

Originality/value

Approximately 2 billion people globally, and 66 per cent of adults in sub-Saharan Africa, are excluded from the formal financial system. While financial inclusion is considered beneficial, many projects face significant challenges. This suggests insufficient understanding of what drives individuals to adopt and use financial services. This paper makes a contribution by exploring the gap between academics, practitioners and individuals using a method that has not previously been applied in this field, and uncovering differences in understanding that have not previously been explored. The insights into financial inclusion in provided in this paper are original in the literature.
Examining the business education curricula in South Africa
Authors: Waghid Zayd
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the business education curricula in South Africa in relation to social entrepreneurship and to ascertain pre-service teachers’ perspectives of the reasons for social entrepreneurship not being included in these curricula as observed in classroom teaching practices.

Design/methodology/approach

Through interpretivist inquiry, third-year pre-service teachers’ (n=92) comments on online group blogs were analysed to clarify a range of meanings and understandings of their responses.

Findings

Social entrepreneurship as a concept and as an ideal as well as certain fundamental concept is not adequately integrated in the business education curricula in secondary schools in South Africa. Furthermore, the schools where the pre-service teachers conducted their teaching practice were failing to integrate activities associated with social entrepreneurship in their business education curricula.

Research limitations/implications

The study was limited to a single tertiary institution. Similar studies in both developing and developed contexts in schools could be initiated as a means of teaching social entrepreneurship for social justice as a subject efficaciously.

Practical implications

The study recommends that social entrepreneurship should be implemented earlier in the secondary education system as a means of enhancing the social entrepreneurial capacities of school learners.

Originality/value

This is the first study examining the secondary education curricula in a developing economy, such as South Africa, in relation to the absence of the emerging concept of social entrepreneurship.
Transnational migrant entrepreneur characteristics and the transnational business nexus
Authors: Santamaria-Alvarez Sandra Milena , Sarmiento-González Maria Angélica , Arango-Vieira Luis Carlos
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the characteristics of Colombian migrants’ transnational businesses (TBs) and their operations. To this end, the characteristics of the entrepreneurs, their businesses and the patterns of their international operations are discussed and compared.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper analyses 14 cases developed from data from in-depth interviews with the same number of Colombian entrepreneurs who migrated to the USA. Similarly, the analysis includes secondary data sources.

Findings

TBs created by Colombian transnational entrepreneurs (TEs) aim to be successful through the best use of the resources of each market, allowing them to produce with lower costs and better quality in their country of origin while selling in more developed countries, such as the USA (their country of destination). The operations of those businesses are limited by their financial resources, small and fragmented networks, and their organic growth. The personal characteristics of the TE and their business comprise a nexus that helps to overcome business shortcomings.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to entrepreneurship, migration and international business literature by illuminating the nexus between the personal characteristics of the TE and the unique characteristics of their business, including the analysis of their international operations. Likewise, considering the characteristics of the context under study, the paper presents findings that are interesting for countries with similar social and economic difficulties.
The effectiveness of management accounting systems: evidence from financial organizations in Iran
Authors: Ghasemi Reza , Habibi Hamid Reza , Ghasemlo Masomeh , Karami Meisam
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper, as an empirical investigation of a contingency theory, is to examine the relationship between technology (as a contingent variable) and management accounting system (MAS) characteristics on managerial performance. The main focus of this study is on the four information characteristics of MAS – scope, integration, aggregation and timeliness.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the MAS characteristics defined by Chenhall and Morris, a contingency-based “intervening” model is proposed in which MAS plays a significant intervening role between technology (TECH) and managerial performance. Using survey data from managers in Iranian financial organizations and PLS–structural equation model analysis, the MAS characteristics are collectively analyzed in relation to technology and managerial performance.

Findings

The study uncovered the existence of direct relationships between technology and MAS, and between MAS and managerial performance. The study also confirmed that the relationship between technology and managerial performance is mediated by MAS. The findings provide valuable insight to guide managers in financial organizations to improve their performance through suitable MAS by applying new technologies and considering internal and environmental factors. Recommendations on how to improve MAS and managerial performance are provided accordingly.

Originality/value

Previous research studies show that there is no unique and universal MAS for all organizations, since this depends on internal firm characteristics and environmental features. However, there has been a lack of empirical evidence on MAS research studies in the service organizations.
Friend and foe? Self-deception in organisations
Authors: Kuntz Joana , Dehlin Erlend
Published: March 2019

Purpose

Self-deception is generally deemed an adaptive psychological mechanism that ensures well-being, a sense of identity and social advancement. However, self-deception becomes maladaptive in organised environments that undermine the critical thinking essential to development and change. The purpose of this paper is to advance a theoretical model of self-deception, specifying and contextualising its intrapersonal and relational components in organisations. Further, it provides guidelines for practitioners to identify self-deception tactics, and minimise maladaptive self-deception.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on affective coping, system justification and self-categorisation theories, the paper illustrates how the interplay of intrapersonal and relational factors with organisational practices explain self-deception.

Findings

Maladaptive self-deception is pervasive in organisations that deter critical reflection, and intensify motivated biases to self-enhance and self-protect.

Originality/value

This paper proposes a socially and organisationally embedded model of self-deception, specifies how self-deception develops and manifests in organisations, and suggests ways of identifying and managing self-deception towards positive organisational development and change.
Inclusive/exclusive talent management, responsible leadership and organizational downsizing
Authors: Mousa Mohamed , Ayoubi Rami M.
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on three Egyptian public business schools in an attempt to explore the effect of inclusive/exclusive talent management on the organizational downsizing of academics and the mediating role of responsible leadership.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 330 academics were contacted and given a set of questionnaires. After three follow-ups, a total of 240 responses were collected with a response rate of 72.73 percent. Multiple regressions were employed to show how much variation in organizational downsizing can be explained by inclusive/exclusive talent management and responsible leadership.

Findings

The findings highlighted a very weak statistical association between academics’ inclusive talent management and organizational downsizing, whereas a strong statistical association has been discovered between exclusive talent management and organizational downsizing. Statistical analysis showed that responsible leadership has no role in mediating the relationship between inclusive/exclusive talent management of academics and their downsizing.

Research limitations/implications

The authors have focused on only three Egyptian public business schools, the matter that may limit opportunities to generalize the results of this study to private business schools and other faculties in Egypt. Future research could use a double source method.

Practical implications

By preparing a set of academic competences, business schools will be able to classify their academic staff into talented and non-talented, and accordingly they can initiate their tailored downsizing strategies. Furthermore, undertaking a responsible strategy of downsizing, which includes and is not limited to justifying the need to decrease academic staff numbers to guarantee post-redundancy care practices for laid-off academics may alleviate many of the negative psychological, societal and economic consequences of downsizing.

Originality/value

This paper contributes by filling a gap in HR management and higher education literature, in which empirical studies on the relationship between talent management and academics’ organizational downsizing have been limited until now. This may create better research opportunities for cross-disciplinary papers that should be done by HR, higher education and leadership scholars.
The growing anisotropy of the multinational corporation in the “new normal”
Authors: Gurkov Igor
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new research construct to depict more accurately organisational structure and the direction of organisational changes in large multinational corporations (MNCs).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents an overview of the existing literature on the phenomenon of anisotropy in natural sciences and the organisation of large corporations, and transforms an identified phenomenon into a research construct of organisational theory.

Findings

This paper demonstrates that anisotropy, that is, the differences in the speed and conductivity of the movement of capital (money), products (goods and services), ideas (knowledge) and talent (people) in different directions within the corporation (from the centre to the subsidiaries, from the subsidiaries to the corporate centre and between subsidiaries) is the normal state of the internal space of the MNC. Anisotropy is increasing with the on-going restructuring of the global economic order. This leads to the divergence of business units in MNCs into the core and the periphery.

Research limitations/implications

The paper outlines a series of promising research avenues in organisational studies.

Originality/value

The paper provides a novel treatment of the composition of MNCs.
On the determinability of all of the self‐ and mutual resistances in a grounded electrode array
Authors: Butler S.L.
Published: March 2019

In the geophysical electrical resistivity method, arrays of electrodes are commonly deployed on the Earth's surface. In electrical power engineering applications, arrays of electrodes are often connected in parallel in order to reduce the total resistance to ground. The electrical characteristics of an array of N electrodes can be fully described by N self‐resistances and mutual resistances for a total of independent parameters which represent the coefficients of an N by N symmetric matrix. Typically, certain linear combinations of the mutual resistances are measured during a geophysical electrical resistivity survey while protocols of specific measurements are used to determine self‐resistances. In this contribution, I investigate whether it is possible to determine all of the self‐ and mutual resistances for an array and hence capture all possible information. I assume that measurements of potential and current can be made at each electrode and that any combination of series and parallel current injections between the electrodes can be made. I show that all resistances can only be determined uniquely if current and voltage reference electrodes that are external to the array are used. If only an external current electrode or only an external voltage reference is used then only independent measurements can be made and the system is underdetermined. If only electrodes within the array itself are available only, independent measurements can be made and the system is strongly underdetermined. The procedure outlined here also gives a general prescription for calculating the completeness and redundancy of any given array.
In pursuit of happiness: Life satisfaction drives political support
Authors: ESAIASSON PETER , DAHLBERG STEFAN , KOKKONEN ANDREJ
Published: March 2019

It is argued in this article that citizens in democracies use their subjective well‐being (SWB) as an evaluative criterion when deciding how willing they are to support and comply with government dictates (political system support). When life is satisfactory, government authorities are rewarded with support, when it is not, citizens punish authorities by withholding their support. To make sense of the relationship, it is suggested that citizens act as if they have signed a happiness contract with ‘those in power’. In support of this argument, comparative survey data shows that SWB predicts attitudes on political system support across country contexts and under strong control conditions. Establishing that the relationship is causal, panel data documents that attitudes on political system support can be undermined following the termination of a close personal relationship, and that the causal effect is mediated via changes in SWB. Finally, as predicted, the happiness‐support relationship is weaker among individuals who are high on spirituality/religiousness and attribute blame for external events to both worldly and non‐worldly powers.
Homeless status documentation at a metropolitan hospital emergency department
Authors: Lee Stuart J , Thomas Phillipa , Newnham Harvey , Freidin Julian , Smith Cathie , Lowthian Judy , Borghmans Felice , Gocentas Robert A , De Silva Devereaux , Stafrace Simon
Published: March 2019

Objective

This study compared the prevalence of homelessness in consecutive patients presenting to a metropolitan hospital ED measured via a prospective housing screen with the prevalence of homelessness determined via retrospective audit of hospital data. Factors that altered the odds of patients being homeless and service outcomes that differed were examined for screened patients.

Methods

All patients presenting to the ED during a 7 day period in 2017 were invited to complete a housing screen. A retrospective audit of all ED presentations during the same period also occurred. Demographic (e.g. age, gender), clinical (e.g. reason for presentation, ED presentation history) and arrival mode (e.g. time, how arrived) predictors of homeless status were examined alongside care outcomes (e.g. ED length of stay, admission and 28 day re‐presentation).

Results

Of 1208 presenting patients, 504 were prospectively screened and 7.9% were homeless. This compared with 0.8% of ED presentations coded as homeless in the Victorian Emergency Minimum Dataset and 2.3% of the 704 non‐screened patients identified as homeless using Victorian Emergency Minimum Dataset Usual Accommodation alongside primary diagnosis and registration address. Within the screened sample, homeless patients were more likely to be male, arrive by emergency ambulance/with police, have a psychosocial diagnosis, and be frequent presenters. Re‐presentation within 28 days occurred for 43% of homeless and 15% of not‐homeless patients.

Conclusions

Hospital ED administrative data substantially under‐recognises the prevalence of homelessness in presenting patients. Standardised use of brief housing screens could improve identification of and provision of support to this often highly vulnerable population.
One Team or Two? Investigating Relationship Quality between Auditors and IT Specialists: Implications for Audit Team Identity and the Audit Process
Authors: Bauer Tim D. , Estep Cassandra , Malsch Bertrand
Published: March 2019

While prior research focuses on the audit team made up of auditors, we focus on the collective audit team made up of auditors and specialists—in our context, information technology (IT) specialists. Complex systems in today's audits and researcher and regulator concerns regarding ineffective coordination and communication between the two specializations motivate better understanding of this collective audit team. We investigate how auditors and IT specialists perceive their relationship and how the audit process unfolds when these relationships are good and when they are difficult. Results of interviews conducted with Big 4 audit and IT practitioners provide evidence that they perceive their relationship quality to depend on the level of mutual value and respect. Auditors assert a one‐team view of the collective audit team that includes IT specialists, but IT specialists feel auditors see them as a separate team and a “necessary evil.” The audit process vastly differs between relationships perceived as difficult and good. In difficult relationships, the two specializations often struggle for status, with limited communication or effort to understand how their work fits together. Our findings imply difficult relationships are at risk for poor integration and unsupported reliance on IT functions, shedding light on recurring threats to audit quality identified by PCAOB inspections. In good relationships, auditors and IT specialists appear motivated to engage in frequent and open communication to help understand, coordinate, and complete the audit. Inferences gleaned from good relationships let us highlight prescriptions for audit firms to improve effectiveness of collective audit teams.
Accounting Standards Harmonization and Financial Integration
Authors: Dhaliwal Dan , He Wen , Li Yan , Pereira Raynolde
Published: March 2019

We empirically examine whether adopting a uniform set of accounting standards mitigates information frictions in financial markets and facilitates market integration. Using a difference‐in‐difference design, we find that after the mandatory adoption of IFRS local stock returns incorporate more global information and at a faster speed. The effect of IFRS adoption is stronger in countries where there are larger improvements in accounting comparability and for firms with a larger increase in foreign ownership. Overall, our results suggest that accounting standards harmonization facilitates financial market integration.
Sex‐specific clinical outcomes after cardiac resynchronization therapy in left bundle branch block‐associated idiopathic nonischemic cardiomyopathy: A NEOLITH II substudy
Authors: Wang Norman C. , Mezu‐Chukwu Ure , Adelstein Evan C. , Althouse Andrew D. , Sharbaugh Michael S. , Jain Sandeep K. , Shalaby Alaa A. , Voigt Andrew H. , Saba Samir
Published: March 2019

Background

Sex differences in clinical outcomes for left bundle branch block (LBBB)‐associated idiopathic nonischemic cardiomyopathy (NICM) after cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) are not well described.

Methods

A retrospective cohort study at an academic medical center included subjects with LBBB‐associated idiopathic NICM who received CRT. Cox regression analyses estimated the hazard ratios (HRs) between sex and clinical outcomes.

Results

In 123 total subjects (mean age 62 years, mean initial left ventricular ejection fraction 22.8%, 76% New York Heart Association class III, and 98% CRT‐defibrillators), 55 (45%) were men and 68 (55%) were women. The median follow‐up time after CRT was 72.4 months. Similar risk for adverse clinical events (heart failure hospitalization, appropriate implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator shock, appropriate antitachycardia pacing therapy, ventricular assist device implantation, heart transplantation, and death) was observed between men and women (HR, 1.20; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.57–2.51; p = 0.63). This persisted in multivariable analyses. Men and women had similar risk for all‐cause mortality in univariable analysis, but men had higher risk in the final multivariable model that adjusted for age at diagnosis, QRS duration, and left ventricular end‐diastolic dimension index (HR, 4.55; 95% CI, 1.26–16.39; p = 0.02). The estimated 5‐year mortality was 9.5% for men and 6.9% for women.

Conclusions

In LBBB‐associated idiopathic NICM, men have higher risk for all‐cause mortality after CRT when compared to women.
Letter: distinct hepatitis B virus relapse rates after discontinuing tenofovir and entecavir therapy in chronic hepatitis B patients
Authors: Huang Rui , Yao Renling , Wu Weihua , Wang Jian , Wu Chao
Published: March 2019

Linked Content

This article is linked to Kuo et al and Chen papers. To view these
articles, visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15053 and https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15183.
Letter: low FODMAP diet—directions for future research
Authors: O’Brien Leigh , Brown Stephanie , Gearry Richard B. , Day Andrew S.
Published: March 2019

Linked Content

This article is linked to Mitchell et al papers. To view these articles,
visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15079 and https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15199.
Editorial: metabolomic biomarkers for colorectal adenocarcinoma and in the differentiation between irritable bowel syndrome and ulcerative colitis in clinical remission — confounded by the gut microbiome? Authors' reply
Authors: Bond Ashley , Probert Chris
Published: March 2019

Linked Content

This article is linked to Keshteli et al and Leong et al papers. To view
these articles, visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15140, and https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.15171.
Causes of mortality and severe morbidity requiring euthanasia in captive Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) in Tasmania
Authors: Peck SJ , Michael SA , Knowles G , Davis A , Pemberton D
Published: March 2019

Background

Devil facial tumour disease (DFTD) is a contagious cancer causing marked population declines in wild Tasmanian devils. In response to this threat, a captive insurance population has been established. This study investigated causes of death in captive Tasmanian devils.

Methods

Clinical and laboratory records of captive Tasmanian devils held in seven Tasmanian captive facilities were analysed for cause of death or severe morbidity requiring euthanasia.

Results

Neoplasia was found to be the most common cause of mortality/severe morbidity, accounting for 27/63 of deaths. Cutaneous lymphoma was the most frequently observed tumour (10/27), at a higher incidence than previously reported. The most common cause of severe morbidity, following neoplasia, was leucoencephalomyelopathy, which caused severe, progressive hindlimb paresis and ataxia.

Conclusion

Neoplasia, specifically cutaneous lymphoma, and degenerative neurological conditions are the most frequent causes of death in captive Tasmanian devils in Tasmania. Further work to determine the aetiologies of these conditions, as well as effective treatments, would be valuable.