bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Combined effects of 12-week yoga warm-up on athletic performance in male high school track and field athletes
Authors: Wei Danyang
Published: April 2022

Abstract

Background

Practicing yoga could improve balance and flexibility, but its positive significance as a long-term warm-up for formal training was uncertain. We hypothesized that practicing yoga during warm-up might positively affect balance, flexibility, and speed performance in male high school track and field athletes.

Methods

Over a 12-week period, athletes in a yoga group (YG) (n=10) practiced yoga for 15 min 4 times a week during warm-up, while athletes in a dynamic stretching group (DSG) (n=10) practiced 15 min of dynamic stretching. Except for the warm-up activities, the training content of the two groups of students was the same. we tested performance indicators immediately before and after the intervention, including lower extremity flexibility test (right hip active flexion range), lower extremity balance test [using surface electromyography (sEMG) to measure right leg tibialis anterior (TA) activation during one-leg stance (OLS) with eyes closed], and speed performance test (100-meter and 800-meter tests).

Results

We performed between-group and within-group comparisons for indicators of two groups by using SPSS (version 26.0). Within-group comparisons showed a significant improvement in flexibility (P=0.002) and balance (P=0.003) in YG, but no significant change in DSG, after the 12-week intervention. In addition, speed performance of both YG (100m, P=0.026; 800m, P=0.045) and DSG (100m, P=0.029; 800m, P=0.006) was significantly improved. Between-group comparison showed that YG had a significant advantage in 800m (P=0.045) and flexibility (P=0.031).

Conclusions

These data suggested that practicing yoga as a long-term warm-up could help male high school track and field athletes improve lower body flexibility and 800m speed. In addition, yoga had a certain positive effect on balance, but it was not significant overall.
resPAINT: Accelerating volumetric super-resolution localisation microscopy by active control of probe emission
Authors: Sanders Edward W. , Carr Alexander R. , Bruggeman Ezra , Koerbel Markus , Benaissa Sarah I. , Donat Robert F. , Santos Ana Mafalda , McColl James , O’Holleran Kevin , Klenerman David , Davis Simon J. , Lee Steven F. , Ponjavic Aleks
Published: April 2022

Points for accumulation in nanoscale topography (PAINT) allows the acquisition of practically unlimited measurements in localisation microscopy. However, PAINT is inherently limited by unwanted background fluorescence at high probe concentrations, especially in large depth-of-field volumetric imaging techniques. Here we present reservoir-PAINT (resPAINT), in which we combine PAINT with active control of probe photophysics. In resPAINT, a ‘reservoir’ of non-fluorescent activatable probes accumulate on the target, which makes it possible to drastically improve the localisation rate (by up to 50-fold) compared to conventional PAINT, without any compromise in contrast. By combining resPAINT with large depth-of-field microscopy, we demonstrate volumetric super-resolution imaging of entire cell surfaces. We then generalise the approach by implementing multiple switching strategies, including photoactivation and spontaneous blinking. We also implement alternative volumetric imaging modalities including the double-helix pointspread function, the tetrapod point-spread function and singlemolecule light field microscopy. Finally, we show that resPAINT can be used with a Fab to image membrane proteins, effectively extending the operating regime of conventional PAINT to encompass a larger range of biological interactions.
Optimal gap-affine alignment in O(s) space
Authors: Marco-Sola Santiago , Eizenga Jordan M. , Guarracino Andrea , Paten Benedict , Garrison Erik , Moreto Miquel
Published: April 2022

Motivation

Pairwise sequence alignment remains a fundamental problem in computational biology and bioinformatics. Recent advances in genomics and sequencing technologies demand faster and scalable algorithms that can cope with the ever-increasing sequence lengths. Classical pairwise alignment algorithms based on dynamic programming are strongly limited by quadratic requirements in time and memory. The recently proposed wavefront alignment algorithm (WFA) introduced an efficient algorithm to perform exact gap-affine alignment in O(ns) time, where s is the optimal score and n is the sequence length. Notwithstanding these bounds, WFA’s O(s2) memory requirements become computationally impractical for genome-scale alignments, leading to a need for further improvement.

Results

In this paper, we present the bidirectional WFA algorithm (BiWFA), the first gap-affine algorithm capable of computing optimal alignments in O(s) memory while retaining WFA’s time complexity of O(ns). As a result, this work improves the lowest known memory bound O(n) to compute gap-affine alignments. In practice, our implementation never requires more than a few hundred MBs aligning noisy Oxford Nanopore Technologies reads up to 1 Mbp long while maintaining competitive execution times.

Availability

All code is publicly available at https://github.com/smarco/BiWFA-paper

Contact

santiagomsola@gmail.com
High genetic diversity in the pelagic deep-sea fauna of the Atacama Trench revealed by environmental DNA
Authors: Ramírez-Flandes Salvador , González Carolina E. , Aldunate Montserrat , Poulain Julie , Wincker Patrick , Glud Ronnie N. , Escribano Rubén , Haond Sophie Arnaud , Ulloa Osvaldo
Published: April 2022

A current paradigm in marine biodiversity states that faunal richness decreases with depth. However, the deep-ocean ecosystem has been significantly under-sampled, hindering a complete view of its biodiversity. This situation is accentuated in ultra-deep waters, where the remote and extreme conditions unfit the traditional sampling methods. Using environmental DNA, we assessed the pelagic metazoan diversity of the Atacama Trench from the high-productive near-surface level down to ~8000 m depth. Our results show that waters deeper than 4000 m contributed up to 50% of the overall genetic diversity. These findings contrast with similar observations in the less-productive Kermadec Trench, where the diversity in deep waters was lower than in shallower waters. Moreover, both deep pelagic ecosystems exhibited some unknown phylogenetic clades within the dominant taxonomic groups: hydrozoans and copepods. The deep-ocean biota may thus contribute to global biodiversity far more than hitherto suggested, especially in zones influenced by high primary production. Our results underline the need for increased effort to study these remote ecosystems and improve our understanding of their contribution to the ecology and biogeochemistry of the deep-sea pelagic and benthic realms.
Toward Evaluation of Disseminated Effects of Medications for Opioid Use Disorder within Provider-Based Clusters Using Routinely-Collected Health Data
Authors: Buchanan Ashley L. , Sun Tianyu , Wu Jing , Aroke Hilary , Bratberg Jeffrey , Rich Josiah , Kogut Stephen , Hogan Joseph
Published: April 2022

Routinely-collected health data can be employed to emulate a target trial when randomized trial data are not available. Patients within provider-based clusters likely exert and share influence on each other’s treatment preferences and subsequent health outcomes and this is known as dissemination or spillover. Extending a framework to replicate an idealized two-stage randomized trial using routinely-collected health data, an evaluation of disseminated effects within provider-based clusters is possible. In this paper, we propose a novel application of causal inference methods for dissemination to retrospective cohort studies in administrative claims data and evaluate the impact of the normality of the random effects distribution for the cluster-level propensity score on estimation of the causal parameters. An extensive simulation study was conducted to study the robustness of the methods under different distributions of the random effects. We applied these methods to evaluate baseline prescription for medications for opioid use disorder among a cohort of patients diagnosed opioid use disorder and adjust for baseline confounders using information obtained from an administrative claims database. We discuss future research directions in this setting to better address unmeasured confounding in the presence of disseminated effects.
Cell-free Protein Crystallization for Nanocrystal Structure Determination
Authors: Abe Satoshi , Tanaka Junko , Kojima Mariko , Kanamaru Shuji , Hirata Kunio , Yamashita Keitaro , Kobayashi Ayako , Ueno Takafumi
Published: April 2022

In-cell protein crystallization (ICPC) has attracted attention as a next-generation structural biology tool because it does not require multistep purification processes and large-scale crystallization screenings. However, significant issues remain to be solved in context of obtaining various protein crystals in sufficient amounts and quality for structure determination by ICPC. Here, we report the development of cell-free protein crystallization (CFPC), a direct protein crystallization technique which uses cell-free protein synthesis. The most crucial advantages of CFPC are that the reaction scale and time can be minimized and that various reagents can be added during the reaction. We obtained high-quality nano-sized polyhedra crystals, which are produced in insect cells by infection with cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus, at a 200 μL reaction scale within 6 h. We applied this technology to structure determination of crystalline inclusion protein A (CipA) by suppressing twin crystal formation with addition of an inhibitor to the reaction solution. We succeeded in determining a 2.11 Å resolution structure from the nanocrystals of CipA. This technology, which integrates in-cell and in vitro crystallizations significantly expands the tools available for high throughput protein structure determination, particularly in context of unstable, low-yield, or substrate-binding proteins, which are difficult to analyze by conventional methods.
Impact of sequencing technologies on long non-coding RNA computational identification
Authors: Chiquitto Alisson G. , Silva Lucas Otávio L. , Oliveira Liliane Santana , Domingues Douglas S. , Paschoal Alexandre R.
Published: April 2022

The correct annotation of non-coding RNAs, especially long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), is still an important critial challenge in genome analyses. One crucial issue in lncRNA transcript annotation is the transcriptome resource that supports lncRNA loci. Long-read technologies now bring the potential to improve the quality of transcriptome annotation. Consequently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) are probably the most benefited class of transcripts that would have improved annotation using this novel technology. However, there is a gap regarding benchmarking studies that highlighted if the direct use of lncRNA predictors in long-reads makes more precise identification of these transcripts. Considering that these lncRNA tools were not trained with these reads, we want to address: how is the performance of these tools? Are they also able to efficiently identify lncRNAs? We could provide evidence of where and how to make potential better approaches for the lncRNA annotation by understanding these issues. Keywords: Non-coding RNAs, high-throughput sequencing technologies, coding, methods, benchmarking, tools, NGS, transcripts
Rye: genetic ancestry inference at biobank scale
Authors: Conley Andrew B. , Rishishwar Lavanya , Ahmad Maria , Sharma Shivam , Norris Emily T. , Jordan I. King , Mariño-Ramírez Leonardo
Published: April 2022

Biobank projects around the world are generating genomic data for many thousands and even millions of individuals. Computational methods are needed to handle these massive data sets, including tools for genetic ancestry (GA) inference. Current methods for GA inference are generally accurate, but they are slow and do not scale to biobank-size genomic datasets. Here we present Rye – a new algorithm for GA inference at biobank scale. We compare the accuracy and runtime performance of Rye to the widely used RFMix and ADMIXTURE programs, and we apply it to a dataset of 488,221 genome-wide variant samples from the UK Biobank. Rye infers GA based on principal component analysis (PCA) of genomic variant samples from ancestral reference populations and query individuals. The algorithm’s accuracy is powered by Metropolis-Hastings optimization and its speed is provided by non-negative least squares (NNLS) regression. Rye produces highly accurate GA estimates for three-way admixed populations – African, European, and Native American – compared to RFMix and ADMIXTURE (R2 = 0.998 – 1.00), and shows 50x runtime improvement compared to ADMIXTURE on the UK Biobank dataset. Rye analysis of UK Biobank samples demonstrates how it can be used to infer GA at different levels of relatedness. We discuss user consideration and options for the use of Rye; the program and its documentation are distributed on the GitHub repository: https://github.com/healthdisparities/rye.
A revised calcium-dependent model of theta-burst transcranial magnetic stimulation
Authors: Ma K. , Rothwell J. C. , Goetz S. M.
Published: April 2022

Calcium dependency is presently an essential assumption in modelling the neuromodulatory effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Among the various neuromodulatory TMS protocols, theta-burst stimulation (TBS) at present is the fastest intervention to generate strong effects. A decade ago, Y.Z. Huang et al. developed a first neuromodulation model to explain the bidirectional effects of TBS based on postsynaptic intracellular calcium concentration elevation. We discover, however, that the published computer code is not consistent with the model formulations in the corresponding paper. Further analysis confirms that the computer model with an index confusion was used for fitting the experimental results, running the simulation, and plotting the corresponding figures in the original publication. This paper intends to fix the computer code and additionally create a non-convex optimisation solution for re-calibrating the model. After re-calibration, the revised model outperforms the initial model in accuracy describing the MEP amplitudes of TBS-induced after-effects under specific situations.
Prostaglandin EP3 receptor-expressing preoptic neurons bidirectionally control body temperature via tonic GABAergic signaling
Authors: Nakamura Yoshiko , Yahiro Takaki , Kataoka Naoya , Hioki Hiroyuki , Nakamura Kazuhiro
Published: April 2022

The circuit mechanism of the thermoregulatory center in the preoptic area (POA) is unknown. Using rats, here we show prostaglandin EP3 receptor-expressing POA neurons (POAEP3R neurons) as a pivotal bidirectional controller in the central thermoregulatory mechanism. POAEP3R neurons are activated in response to elevated ambient temperature, but inhibited by prostaglandin E2, a pyrogenic mediator. Chemogenetic stimulation of POAEP3R neurons at room temperature reduces body temperature by enhancing heat dissipation, whereas inhibition of them elicits hyperthermia involving brown fat thermogenesis, mimicking fever. POAEP3R neurons innervate sympathoexcitatory neurons in the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) via tonic inhibitory signaling. Although many POAEP3R neuronal cell bodies express a glutamatergic mRNA marker, paradoxically, their axons in the DMH predominantly contain terminals with GABAergic presynaptic proteins, which are increased by chronic heat exposure. These findings indicate that tonic GABAergic inhibitory signaling from POAEP3R neurons is a fundamental determinant of body temperature for thermal homeostasis and fever.
Phylogenomic patterns of divergence and gene flow detail the evolution of reinforcement and hybrid speciation inPhloxwildflowers
Authors: Garner Austin G. , Goulet-Scott Benjamin E. , Hopkins Robin
Published: April 2022

Summary

The tree of life is riddled with reticulate evolutionary histories, and some clades, such as the eastern standingPhlox, appear to be hotspots of hybridization. In this group there are two cases of reinforcement and nine hypothesized hybrid species. Given the historical importance of this group for our understanding of plant speciation, the relationships of these taxa and the role of hybridization and gene flow in their diversification require genomic validation.

Using phylogenomic analyses, we resolve the evolutionary relationships of the eastern standingPhloxand test hypotheses about if and how hybridization and gene flow were creative forces in their diversification.

Our results provide novel resolution of the phylogenetic relationships in this group, including well-supported paraphyly across some species. We identify gene flow during one of two cases of reinforcement and find support for one of the five hypothesized homoploid hybrid speciation events. Additionally, we infer the ancestries of four allotetraploid hybrid species.

Hybridization has contributed to diverse evolutionary outcomes within thisPhloxgroup; although, not as extensively as previously hypothesized. This study demonstrates the importance of phylogenomics in confirming hypothesized histories of non-model systems and adds to the growing evidence of interspecific genetic exchange in the generation of biodiversity.
Crystal structure of the Rubella virus protease reveals a unique papain-like protease fold
Authors: Cheong Ezekiel Ze Ken , Quek Jun Ping , Xin Liu , Li Chaoqiang , Chan Jing Yi , Liew Chong Wai , Mu Yuguang , Zheng Jie , Luo Dahai
Published: April 2022

Rubella is well-controlled due to an effective vaccine, but outbreaks are still occurring without any available antiviral treatments. There is still much to learn about the rubella virus (RUBV) papain-like protease (RubPro) that could be a potential drug target. This protease is crucial to RUBV replication, cleaving the non-structural polyprotein p200 into 2 multi-functional proteins, p150 and p90. Here we report a novel crystal structure of RubPro at 1.64 Å resolution. It has a similar catalytic core structure to that of SARS-CoV-2 and foot-mouth-disease virus (FMDV) proteases. RubPro has well-conserved sequence motifs that are also found in its newly discovered Rubivirus relatives. The RubPro construct was shown to have protease activity in trans against a construct of RUBV protease-helicase and fluorogenic peptide. A protease-helicase construct was also cleaved in E. coli expression. RubPro was demonstrated to possess deubiquitylation activity, suggesting a potential role of RubPro in modulating the host’s innate immune responses. The structural and functional insights of the RubPro will advance our current understanding of its function and point to more structure-based research into the RUBV replication machinery, in hopes of developing antiviral therapeutics in the future.
Memory and Concentration Skills In A Sample of First Grade Medical Students at University of Baghdad/College of Medicine
Authors: Fadhil Zaher Mohammed , Khashea Mohammed Saad , Abdulqader Ali Fadhil , Jawad Almothaffar Ali M.
Published: April 2022

Objectives

The purpose of this study is to assess the level of memory skills and concentration skills among first year medical students in College of Medicine/University of Baghdad depending on global scale (Study Skills Inventory SSI).

Subjects and Method

A cross-sectional study to assess memory and concentration skills among first year medical students in College of Medicine/ University of Baghdad, the study was conducted using an online survey in September 2020. A sample of 103 students participated in the study by filling of an online questionnaire which was modified from the Study Skills Inventory (SSI).

Regarding memory skills a score less than 30 was considered not adequate, while regarding concentration skills a score less than 35 was considered not adequate.

Results

Percentage of males was 68% and the percentage of females was 32%. About studying hours we found that 59.2% students study less than 3 hours, 25.2% students study between 3-6 hours and 15.5% students study more than 6 hours. The mean score of the students for concentration skills was 36.45 and was 32.40 for memory skills. Regarding concentration skills 35% students had non adequate score and 65% students had adequate score, regarding memory skills 28.2% students had non adequate score and 71.8% students had adequate score. There is a statistically significant association between concentration skills and studying hours and there is statistically significant association between memory skills and studying hours. There was a statistically significant moderate positive correlation between concentration skill score and the memory skill score of the students total score (r = 0.511, p < 0.01).

Conclusion

About 75% of 1st year medical students have adequate concentration and memory skills. The students who study for 3-6 hours daily have the least mean score of both skills with 42.3% of them have adequate concentration skills score and 57.7% had adequate memory skills score. Further studies with larger sample size are needed to correlate the concentration and memory skills with student end year average total score.
Microsatellite Density Landscapes Illustrate Short Tandem Repeats Aggregation in The Complete Reference Human Genome
Authors: Xia Yun , Li Douyue , Chen Tingyi , Pan Saichao , Huang Hanrou , Zhang Wenxiang , Liang Yulin , Fu Yongzhuo , Peng Zhuli , Zhang Hongxi , Zhang Liang , Peng Shan , Shi Ruixue , He Xingxin , Zhou Siqian , Jiao Weili , Zhao Xiangyan , Wu Xiaolong , Zhou Lan , Zhou Jingyu , Ouyang Qingjian , Tian You , Jiang Xiaoping , Zhou Yi , Tang Shiying , Shen Junxiong , Ohshima Kazusato , Tan Zhongyang
Published: April 2022

Background

Microsatellites are increasingly realized to have biological significance in human genome and health in past decades, the assembled complete reference sequence of human genome T2T-CHM13 brought great help for a comprehensive study of short tandem repeats in the human genome.

Results

Microsatellites density landscapes of all 24 chromosomes were built here for the first complete reference sequence of human genome T2T-CHM13. These landscapes showed that short tandem repeats (STRs) are prone to aggregate characteristically to form a large number of STRs density peaks. We classified 8,823 High Microsatellites Density Peaks (HMDPs), 35,257 Middle Microsatellites Density Peaks (MMDPs) and 199, 649 Low Microsatellites Density Peaks (LMDPs) on the 24 chromosomes; and also classified the motif types of every microsatellites density peak. These STRs density aggregation peaks are mainly composing of a single motif, and AT is the most dominant motif, followed by AATGG and CCATT motifs. And 514 genomic regions were characterized by microsatellite density feature in the full T2T-CHM13 genome.

Conclusions

These landscape maps exhibited that microsatellites aggregate in many genomic positions to form a large number of microsatellite density peaks with composing of mainly single motif type in the complete reference genome, indicating that the local microsatellites density varies enormously along the every chromosome of T2T-CHM13.
Chronically radiation-exposed survivor glioblastoma cells display poor response to Chk1 inhibition
Authors: Degirmenci Nareg Pinarbasi , Sur-Erdem Ilknur , Akcay Vuslat , Bolukbasi Yasemin , Selek Ugur , Solaroglu Ihsan , Bagci-Onder Tugba
Published: April 2022

Glioblastoma is the most common type of primary brain tumor with an aggressive clinical course, and one of the cornerstones in its treatment regimen is radiotherapy. However, tumor cells surviving after radiation is an indicator of treatment failure; therefore, better understanding of the molecular mechanisms regulating radiotherapy response is of utmost importance. In this study, we generated multiple clinically relevant irradiation exposed models, where we applied fractionated radiotherapy over a long period of time and selected irradiation-survivor (IR-Surv) glioblastoma cell populations. In these cells, we examined the transcriptomic alterations, cell cycle and growth rate changes as well as responses to secondary radiotherapy and DNA damage response (DDR) modulators. Accordingly, IR-Surv cells exhibited slower growth and partly retained their ability to resist secondary irradiation. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that IR-Surv cells upregulated the expression of DDR-related genes, such as CHK1, ATM, ATR, MGMT, and had better DNA repair capacity as an adaptive mechanism. Separately, we report IR-Surv cells to display downregulation of hypoxic signature and the lower induction of hypoxia target genes and not exhibiting the same level of hypoxia-induced changes with naïve glioblastoma cells, as gauged by exposing cells to different hypoxia conditions. We also showed that Chk1 inhibition alone or in combination with irradiation significantly reduces cell viability in both naïve and IR-Surv cells. However, IR-Surv cells were markedly less sensitive to Chk1 inhibition under hypoxic conditions. In conclusion, consistent with previous reports, we demonstrate the utility of combining DDR inhibitors and irradiation as a successful approach for both naïve and IR-Surv glioblastoma cells as long as cells are refrained from hypoxic conditions. Thus, our findings with clinically relevant radiation survivor models will have future translational implications and benefit the optimization of combination therapies for glioblastoma patients.
Higher basal tumor immune activity coupled with a systemic immune response improves liver cancer outcomes
Authors: Talesh Ghazal Alipour , Vitale Daniele , Langfelder Peter , Azardaryany Mahmoud Karimi , Berry Michael , Belgard T. Grant , Choo Jocelyn , Rogers Geraint , Ho Vikki , Ramezani-Moghadam Mehdi , Dervish Suat , Lai Joey , Gloss Brian S. , Worth Catherine L. , McLeod Duncan , Eslam Mohammed , Liddle Christopher , Qiao Liang , George Jacob , Esmaili Saeed
Published: April 2022

A holistic understanding of anti-tumor immunity requires examination of systemic immunity beyond the tumor microenvironment. This link between systemic and tumor immune activity is underexplored. We demonstrate that a stronger Type I interferon response in human liver tumors predicts better survival and correlates with the immune response in the adjacent non-tumor liver. Further, in patients with liver cancer, clonal hematopoiesis (CH) (a marker of systemic immune activation) is associated with a trend towards improved survival. In a mouse model of liver cancer, basal liver immune responses correlate with the degree of bone marrow hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell responses. A higher systemic and liver immune response, marked by innate myeloid cell infiltration reduces tumor burden, while sub-optimal systemic and liver immunity corresponded with a higher tumor burden. Our findings indicate that the state of bone marrow hematopoiesis impacts liver tumor outcomes, offering both therapeutic and prognostic opportunities.
Single acoustic closed loop stimulation in mice to modulate hippocampo-thalamo-cortical activity and performance
Authors: Aksamaz Sonat , Mölle Matthias , Olubukola Akinola Esther , Bazhenov Maxim , Marshall Lisa
Published: April 2022

Neural brain rhythms of sleep reflect neuronal activity underlying sleep-associated memory consolidation. The modulation of brain rhythms, for instance the sleep slow oscillation (SO) is used both to investigate neurophysiological mechanisms as well as to measure the impact on presumed functional correlates. In humans, auditory closed-loop stimulation targeted to the SO Up-state successfully enhanced the slow oscillation rhythm and phase-dependent spindle activity, although effects on memory retention have varied. Here, we aim to disclose relations between stimulation induced hippocampo-thalamo-cortical activity and retention performance on a hippocampus dependent task in mice. Closed-loop acoustic stimuli applied during four SO phases always acutely increased sharp wave ripple (SPWR) activity without disrupting non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Stimulation achieved an above chance preference index for stimuli delivered across a 3 h retention interval of sleep at the SO Up-state and at the Down-to-Up-state, but not at the Down-state nor late Up-state/Up-to Down-state. Results support the use of closed-loop acoustic stimulation in mice to investigate the inter-regional mechanisms underlying memory consolidation.
Quantifying the impact of ISO 9001 standard on the project and engineering management and success factors; A case of construction industry
Authors: Khatatbeh Ahmed Ali
Published: April 2022

Purpose

This study evaluates the implementation of ISO 9001 using total quality management on the engineering, procurement and construction phases in the Jordanian construction sector.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative design has been employed with a total of 132 project team members selected from 5 construction organizations working in Jordan. A close-ended questionnaire was used to gather data which was later evaluated using descriptive and inferential statistics.

Findings

The results show a significant role in project performance, customer satisfaction, project quality, cost-effectiveness, time effectiveness, shared cooperation and motivation of employees. It emphasizes the role of engineering in achieving the ISO 9001 standard. Quality standards in the construction project were also endorsed by 46.2% of participants, while 33.3% responded neutrally. The time effectiveness aspects of ISO 9001 endorsed by 38.5% participants 33.3% participants disagreed. Majority of the managers (61.5%) agreed that poor planning is a major barrier in the engineering phase (p-value, 0.011), followed by the incomplete design (56.4%) as the prime impeding factors linked to the decline of the quality in the construction sector.

Originality/value

With the integration of the ISO 9001 quality standard, project managers can improve the project quality and make it cost-effective. The successful adaptation of the ISO 9001 certification allows the company to not only market its product/service but also internally audit itself for the possible deficits in its work capacity.
The values and barriers of BIM implementation combination evaluation based on stakeholder theory: a study in China
Authors: Chen Yansheng , Cai Xiaotong , Li Jie , Lin Peng , Song Huitong , Liu Guoqing , Cao Dongming , Ma Xiaohui
Published: April 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to the perspective of stakeholders, from external variables of the Building Information Modeling (BIM) system, users, task flow, the nature of the development of the execution process, organizational structure and policy impacts, that established a relationship among the internal concepts and intentions for the BIM application, individual or organizational differences, controlling interference factors and environmental constraints, discussed the combination of the values and barriers of BIM implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

Through the co-occurrence statistics and genre analysis based on co-citation context analysis and constructs the common information that impacts the combination of values and barriers of BIM implementation. Then, the paper chose the expert database of the green construction and intelligent building branch of the China construction association, and obtained 104 sample data through modified snowball sampling, using exploratory factor analysis with factor load linear functions, combined factor variance contribution rate weights.actor variance contribution rate weights.

Findings

The results show that eight aspects can be defined as the values of BIM implementation (VI), and the barriers of BIM implementation (BI) mainly come from five aspects caused by insufficient cognition and two aspects of an uncertain value in China.

Originality/value

This research reflects a combined evaluation of the values of BIM implementation and barriers of BIM and highlights the significance of the sustainable development of BIM technology and the value of building future informatization applications.
Mobile learning and communication: educational change?; a systematic review
Authors: Mauri Medrano Marta , Lafarga Ostáriz Pablo , Del Barrio Aranda Luis , Soler Costa Rebeca
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The authors of this research present a study on Mmobile learning (ML) and the communication processes that are generated in different educational and professional contexts through a systematic review.

Design/methodology/approach

This is descriptive research that analyzes a total of 201 results present in Web of Science and SCOPUS, with the criteria established by the PRISMA protocol, giving special relevance to the following categories: country of origin, date of publication, main objectives, methodological design, variables analyzed and considered, size and details of the samples; and their respective scientific contributions in relation to their area of research.

Findings

The results show significant methodological discrepancies with respect to the established criteria. Five blocks of action are apparent: technical issues, influence on learning, impact on satisfaction and motivation, impact on communicative processes and new forms of interaction.

Originality/value

The value of this research lies on offering a critical view based on an in-depth analysis of the existing scientific production between ML and communication in education.
The effects of ethnicity, gender and parental financial socialisation on financial knowledge among Gen Z: the case of Sarawak, Malaysia
Authors: Wee Lynn Ling Min , Goy Siew Ching
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between financial socialisation experiences, socio-economic factors, demographic characteristics and the financial knowledge of first year undergraduate students.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a questionnaire, data were collected from a sample of 450 first year university students from both private and public universities. A multivariate regression method was adopted to examine the influence of financial socialisation among respondents of different ethnic groups and their social backgrounds on the individual's financial knowledge.

Findings

The findings indicate that: firstly, financial knowledge is low among first-year university students in Sarawak. Secondly, male respondents outperform female counterparts in terms of financial knowledge. Thirdly, parental financial socialisation remains the main source of financial knowledge among the students. Fourthly, there are significant differences in financial knowledge across ethnic groups.

Research limitations/implications

It is paramount to implement financial education programmes to elevate the financial literacy for both youth and parents since parents remain the primary source of financial socialisation for young adults.

Practical implications

The study suggests that financial knowledge varies according to gender and ethnicity. Hence, financial education programmes should be designed to accommodate the differences between groups based on ethnicity and gender to achieve the best outcome.

Originality/value

This is the first study that draws a representative sample of university students in Sarawak that examines the effects of ethnicity, gender and parental financial socialisation on financial knowledge among first year university students.
Information matters: attitude towards organ donation in a general university population web-survey in Italy
Authors: Terraneo Marco , Caserini Alessandra
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Transplantation extends and improves lives, but the shortage of organs is one of the main factors limiting the number of transplants in Italy, as well as in other countries. This study investigated the awareness about organ donation and the socio-demographic factors associated with donation will in a general population.

Design/methodology/approach

In 2019, a survey was carried out by computer-assisted web interviewing. A questionnaire was sent via e-mail to 39,360 individuals (i.e. students, administrative and teaching staff of the University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy). The response rate was 10.6% and 4,191 weighted cases were used in the analysis.

Findings

This study showed a strong, positive attitude towards donation: over 96% of respondents stated to be keen on organ donation. Of the respondents, 40.8% considered themselves informed on medical procedures involving organ donation, and only 15.8% thought to have sufficient legal information. Overall, only 17.7% of respondents thought that the information available was sufficient to make informed decisions. According to the respondents, ethical and religious implications were the main reasons (30% of answers) that limited the level of information. Just 57.9% of respondents had already recorded their willingness to donate. Among them, renewal of the identity card was the most common motivation (55.8%) and the main motivation reported for lack of expression of donation will was the lack of opportunity or time (61.5%).

Originality/value

A positive attitude towards donation demands a wide public education programme and opportunities to declare one's will to donate to increase the population of potential organ donors.
System dynamics model for intra-city multimodal transportation considering behavioral indicators and demand under uncertainty conditions
Authors: Tavakkolimoghaddam Saeed , Hadji Molana Seyyed Mohammad , Javadi Mehrdad , Azizi Amir
Published: April 2022

Purpose

By designing a system dynamics model in the form of a multimodal transportation system, this study for the first time seeks to reduce costs and time, and increase customer satisfaction by considering uncertainties in the intra city transit system, especially demand uncertainty and provide a prototype system to prove the capability of the dynamical system.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper tried to model the factors affecting the intra city multimodal transportation system by defining different scenarios in the cause-and-effect model. The maps and results developed according to system dynamics modeling principles are discussed.

Findings

Four scenarios were considered given the factors affecting the urban transportation system to implement the transportation information system for reducing the material and non-material costs of wrong planning of the intra city transit system. After implementing the scenarios, scenario two was selected under the following conditions: advertising for cultural development, support of authorities by efforts such as street widening to reduce traffic, optimize infrastructure, increase and optimize public transport and etc.

Originality/value

The value of this paper is considering uncertainty in traffic optimization; taking into account behavioral and demand indicators such as cultural promotion, official support, early childhood learning, traffic hours and the impact of traveler social status; investigating the factors affecting the system under investigation and the reciprocal effects of these factors and real-world simulation by considering the factors and effects between them.
Determinants of working poverty in Indonesia
Authors: Faharuddin Faharuddin , Endrawati Darma
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The study’s first aim is to estimate the scale of working poverty using a nationwide household survey. The second aim is to answer the following research questions: is working enough to escape poverty, and what are the determinants of working poverty?

Design/methodology/approach

The focus is on working people in Indonesia who have per capita household expenditure below the provincial poverty line. The determinant analysis used logistic regression on the first quarter of 2013 Susenas microdata.

Findings

The study found that the scale of the working poverty problem is equivalent to the scale of the poverty, although the in-work poverty rate is lower than the poverty rate in all provinces. The logistic regression results conclude that the three factors, namely individual-level, employment-related and household-level variables, have significant contributions to the incidence of the working poor in Indonesia.

Practical implications

Some practical implications for reducing the incidence of working poverty are increasing labor earnings through productivity growth and improving workers' skills, encouraging the labor participation of the poor and reducing precarious work. This study also suggests the need to continue assisting the working poor, particularly by increasing access to financial credit.

Originality/value

Research aimed at studying working poverty in Indonesia in the peer-reviewed literature is rare until now based on the authors' search. This study will fill the gap and provoke further research on working poverty in Indonesia.
A sociological study of patterns and determinants of farmer suicide in India
Authors: Kumar Sumant , Sahoo Barsa Priyadarsinee , Patel Avanish Bhai
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Farmer suicide as a social issue has existed in India since past three decades. Though many studies have been conducted from different perspectives to understand the causes and consequences of farmer suicide, very few studies have looked at the issue from a multidimensional perspective. By using the Durkheimian view of suicide, this paper aims to analyse the subjective meaning behind the social fact of suicide. It accesses the nature and pattern of suicide and examines the determinants of suicide from a socio-ecological paradigm.

Design/methodology/approach

The present study mostly relies on National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data on “accidental deaths and suicide in India” for the year 2018, 2019 and 2020 for the analysis of pattern and determinants of farmer suicide in India. The analysis of the data has been done in Excel, and descriptive statistics have been presented through simple contingency table.

Findings

The study found that in the past ten years, there has been a steady decline in the number of farmer suicide in India; however, some states such as Maharashtra and Karnataka continue to report high incidence of farmer suicide. Using a socio-ecological paradigm, the paper found that the farmer’s social system which is constituted of individual characteristics and societal characteristics has a direct impact on the tendency of a farmer to commit suicide. It was observed that the stronger the relationship between an individual and its microsystem, there is less chance of a person to commit suicide.

Originality/value

This is an original paper based on NCRB data for the year 2018, 2019 and 2020. The data for the farmer suicide has been calculated including the suicide of the agricultural labourers and the farmers/the cultivators.
Long‐term monitoring program reveals a mismatch between spatial distribution and reproductive success in an endangered raptor species in the Mediterranean area
Authors: Martínez‐Miranzo Beatriz , I. Banda Eva , Gardiazábal Andrea , Ferreiro Ernesto , Seoane Javier , Aguirre José I.
Published: April 2022

Unmasking the ecological processes responsible for the dynamics of a population is a necessary step toward understanding its threats and viability. We examined a fitness proxy (reproductive success) of an endangered raptor in relation to its ecological niche and spatial distribution to provide insights into the dynamics and potential threats to the population. We first studied how biotic and abiotic conditions drive both the spatial distribution of Bonelli's eagle (Aquila fasciata) and its long‐term reproductive success in a large area of northwestern Spain. We focused on the relationship between these two characteristics of the population. Our results showed that biotic factors (occurrence of competitors such as the golden eagle or prey availability) were more associated with the spatial distribution of the species than with its reproductive success. In contrast, abiotic factors describing climate were linked to reproductive success. Most interestingly, we found a mismatch between spatial suitability and reproductive success because reproduction was compromised in the areas that were more suitable for the occurrence of the species. The results suggest that productivity (less than one chick per year), measured as long‐term reproductive success, may compromise the population viability and suggest the presence of an underlying mechanism in the population. Our results highlight the benefits of simultaneously considering both large‐scale spatial distribution patterns and measures of fitness, which often require larger investments of time, for endangered species conservation programs.
Seed ecophysiology of Elephant Apple (Dillenia indica)—An important tree species of the Indomalayan realm
Authors: Dasanayaka Bhagya Indeevari , Jinadasa Rasika Niranjana , Jayasuriya Kariyawam Marthinna Gamage Gehan , Phartyal Shyam Singh
Published: April 2022

Dillenia indica produces mucilaginous seeds embedded in hard, fibrous, megafaunal fruits, and little is known about the ecological function of mucilage in its regeneration. Using standard laboratory protocols, we investigated the role of mucilage on seed dispersal (buoyancy), chemical defense (antibiotic, antifungal, antioxidant, and allelopathic activities), and seed germination. Further, we characterized seed germination, dormancy, and storage physiology of D. indica. Results revealed that mucilage associated with seed‐coat assists seeds in floating on water for a longer duration, acts as an antimicrobial agent without hampering the overall seed germination. It was noticed that fresh mature seeds possess an underdeveloped embryo that grows within the seed before radicle emergence (a sign of morphological dormancy; MD), and seeds took ~70 days to achieve 95% germination (a sign of physiological dormancy; PD). However, the rate of germination increased when seeds were treated with gibberellin or subjected to 1‐month dry‐storage (confirmation of PD). Seeds disperse with ~12% moisture and retain high viability even after ultra‐drying over silica gel, indicating an orthodox seed storage physiology. Study concludes that mucilage plays a crucial ecophysiological function in dispersal‐defense mechanism of D. indica seeds, by enhancing seed buoyancy, helping seeds to disperse long‐distance, and protecting the seeds from soil pathogens through antimicrobial activity. Our study confirmed that seeds of D. indica possess morphophysiological dormancy (MPD), unlike the MD reported in an earlier study from North India. Possible ecophysiological function of mucilage on seed dispersal‐defense mechanism and production of morphophysiological dormant and orthodox seeds in D. indica are discussed.
Assessing trustworthiness and data integrity in systematic reviews
Authors: Pels Anouk , Ganzevoort Wessel
Published: April 2022

Linked article: This is a mini commentary on Turner et al., pp. 1817–1831 in this issue. To view this article visit https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.17163