bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Job sharing as a tool for flexible work systems
Authors: Thakur Mahima , Bansal Anjali , Maini Rashmi
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Women experience insurmountable work life balance challenges, which are the reasons a large percentage of women leak out of the workforce pipeline. Flexible work systems empower women to contribute in meaningful ways to their personal and professional lives. Job sharing is one such strategy of flexible work system, which is proposed as an empowering management practice. This paper aims to create a model of empowerment for housewives. Non-working housewives are the most neglected lot of society in terms of getting their dues.

Design/methodology/approach

For the purpose of this study, qualitative study was conducted and data were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Focus group discussions with 266 housewives were conducted to find out their reasons of not joining the full-time workforce, and their willingness to contribute, if they have any. In-depth interviews of nine HR managers were also conducted to assess the openness of the corporate side toward job sharing as a work design. The paper has significance for the corporate as well as for the social and government agencies.

Findings

Qualitative data collected from 266 housewives presented three core themes – the bottlenecks to employment, the available opportunities of employment and growth and their preferred status of employment. The qualitative data further revealed that though they can easily do with some more money at their disposal, they cannot join in the full-time workforce as they have family responsibilities. They were willing to put in half a day’s work. Thus, the investigators recommended job sharing for them, which would engage this talented human resource and give them back their due for selflessly giving in their most productive years to their families. The interviews of nine HR managers from three multinational companies revealed the skillsets of these housewives as the major concern for putting them back on work.

Originality/value

The paper has significance for the corporate, women as the contingent workforce and social and government agencies.
Improvement of laboratory turnaround time using lean methodology
Authors: Gupta Shradha , Kapil Sahil , Sharma Monica
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the implementation of lean methodology to reduce the turnaround time (TAT) of a clinical laboratory in a super speciality hospital. Delays in report delivery lead to delayed diagnosis increased waiting time and decreased customer satisfaction. The reduction in TAT will lead to increased patient satisfaction, quality of care, employee satisfaction and ultimately the hospital’s revenue.

Design/methodology/approach

The generic causes resulting in increasing TAT of clinical laboratories were identified using lean tools and techniques such as value stream mapping (VSM), Gemba, Pareto Analysis and Root Cause Analysis. VSM was used as a tool to analyze the current state of the process and further VSM was used to design the future state with suggestions for process improvements.

Findings

This study identified 12 major non-value added factors for the hematology laboratory and 5 major non-value added factors for the biochemistry lab which were acting as bottlenecks resulting in limiting throughput. A four-month research study by the authors together with hospital quality department and laboratory staff members led to reduction of the average TAT from 180 to 95minutes in the hematology lab and from 268 to 208 minutes in the biochemistry lab.

Practical implications

Very few improvement initiatives in Indian healthcare are based on industrial engineering tools and techniques, which might be due to a lack of interaction between healthcare and engineering. The study provides a positive outcome in terms of improving the efficiency of services in hospitals and identifies a scope for lean in the Indian healthcare sector.

Social implications

Applying lean in the Indian healthcare sector gives its own potential solution to the problem caused, due to a wide gap between lean accessibility and lean implementation. Lean helped in changing the mindset of an organization toward providing the highest quality of services with faster delivery at an optimal cost.

Originality/value

This paper is an effort to reduce the gap between healthcare and industrial engineering and enhancing the use of lean practices in Indian healthcare. The study is motivated toward implementing lean methodology successfully in services.
Data envelopment analysis for estimating efficiency of intensive care units: a case study in Iran
Authors: Bahrami Mohammad Amin , Rafiei Sima , Abedi Mahdieh , Askari Roohollah
Published: April 2018

Purpose

As hospitals are the most costly service providers in every healthcare systems, special attention should be given to their performance in terms of resource allocation and consumption. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate technical, allocative and economic efficiency in intensive care units (ICUs) of hospitals affiliated by Yazd University of Medical Sciences (YUMS) in 2015.

Design/methodology/approach

This was a descriptive, analytical study conducted in ICUs of seven training hospitals affiliated by YUMS using data envelopment analysis (DEA) in 2015. The number of physicians, nurses, active beds and equipment were regarded as input variables and bed occupancy rate, the number of discharged patients, economic information such as bed price and physicians’ fees were mentioned as output variables of the study. Available data from study variables were retrospectively gathered and analyzed through the Deap 2.1 software using the variable returns to scale methodology.

Findings

The study findings revealed the average scores of allocative, economic, technical, managerial and scale efficiency to be relatively 0.956, 0.866, 0.883, 0.89 and 0.913. Regarding to latter three types of efficiency, five hospitals had desirable performance.

Practical implications

Given that additional costs due to an extra number of manpower or unnecessary capital resources impose economic pressure on hospitals also the fact that reduction of surplus production plays a major role in reducing such expenditures in hospitals, it is suggested that departments with low efficiency reduce their input surpluses to achieve the optimal level of performance.

Originality/value

The authors applied a DEA approach to measure allocative, economic, technical, managerial and scale efficiency of under-study hospitals. This is a helpful linear programming method which acts as a powerful and understandable approach for comparative performance assessment in healthcare settings and a guidance for healthcare managers to improve their departments’ performance.
The texture of tension: complexity, uncertainty and equivocality
Authors: Burström Thommie , Wilson Timothy L.
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The premise of this paper is that tension exists among participants and parties engaged in projects. The uniqueness of development virtually assures this. The purpose of this paper is to propose that tension is a product of the precursors of complexity, uncertainty and equivocality, and an attempt is made to characterize tension as it arises in projects – its genesis and its nature.

Design/methodology/approach

An in-depth case study was conducted in a manner in which the contextually sensitive empirical researches for which Nordic studies are known. Within discussions on the strategy, decision making, intra- and inter-project interdependencies and managing across development sites associated with a flagship project, 77 statements concerning tension were identified for analysis. Through a literature review, 12 tension-driving factors were identified. These factors were used as base for analysis.

Findings

These statements were analyzed for content to produce a model associating tension with its precursors and the literature on tension. It is found that due to innovation turbulence, tension-driving factors are cascaded in and around organization(s). Tension is manifested in various ways for different stakeholders and tension management is performed through cognitive and emotional responses. The texture of tension is characterized by fluidity, multiplicity and parallelism.

Research limitations/implications

Case studies can of course not be generalized; they are valuable, however, in indicating important observations for further studies.

Practical implications

A contribution is made to management theory where knowledge about project context is seen as essential in order to understand best practices for project execution and effectiveness.

Originality/value

Although common, even virtually assured in projects, tension tends to be neglected in successful management. This study associates the genesis of tension through the underlying contributions of complexity, uncertainty and equivocality. It is believed to be the first study of its type.
Perceptions of leader transformational justice and job satisfaction in public organizations
Authors: Singhry Hassan Barau
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Transformational leadership (TL) is one among the leadership behaviors that is important in a period of uncertainty and continuous change. The behavior affects employees’ job satisfaction (JS) and performance. Nevertheless, there is an inconclusive debate over how organizational justice (OJ) can help transformational leaders to influence employees’ (JS). Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of OJ on the relationship between TL and employees’ JS.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employed a quantitative research design based on cross-sectional strategy. Structured questionnaires were distributed and data were collected from a sample of 418 middle managers of public organizations in Nigeria. Multiple regressions aided by structural equation modeling were employed to test four hypotheses.

Findings

The regression results support the mediating role of OJ, such as distributive, procedural, interpersonal and informational justice between TL and JS. Equally, the relationship between TL and JS, TL and OJ, and OJ and JS are all positive and significant. Overall, the influence of TL and OJ has a strong explanatory effect on JS.

Originality/value

This study adds to the literature of human resource management and organizational behavior by empirically validating and integrating TL theory with the four dimensions of OJ theory. The study will be beneficial to the top management and middle-level employees in public organizations.
Long-term community development within a researcher network
Authors: Hall Hazel , Cruickshank Peter , Ryan Bruce
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report the results from a study that investigated the extent to which an intervention to develop a community of library and information science (LIS) researchers – the Developing Research Excellence and Methods (DREaM) project – was successful in meeting its main objective three years after its implementation. Of particular interest are factors that support or hinder network longevity.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected by online survey/telephone and focus group. From quantitative data, a social network analysis (SNA) and network diagrams were generated. Focus group discussions were recorded and transcribed, and data from these were analysed manually.

Findings

Three years after the end of its formal funding period, DREaM endured as a loose but persistent network. Social ties were more important than work ties, and network members with the highest network centrality held roles in academic institutions. Physical proximity between members was important to the maintenance of network ties. Actor status did not appear to have a bearing on network centrality.

Research limitations/implications

Discussion is limited to consideration of community development amongst core members of the network only. The “manufactured” nature of the DREaM network and unique context in which it was formed have implications for the generalisibility of the findings reported.

Practical implications

Social infrastructure is key to the long-term health of a network initiative. Continued ad hoc support would strengthen it further.

Originality/value

The findings add to understanding of factors important to the development of scholarly and learning communities. They extend contributions of earlier work that has deployed SNA techniques in LIS research and research in other fields.
“Systemic Managerial Constraints”
Authors: Willson Rebekah
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the information behaviour of early career academics (ECAs) within humanities and social sciences (HSS) disciplines who are starting their first continuing academic position. The proposed grounded theory of Systemic Managerial Constraints (SMC) is introduced as a way to understand the influence of neoliberal universities on the information behaviour of ECAs.

Design/methodology/approach

This qualitative research used constructivist grounded theory methodology. Participants were 20 Australian and Canadian ECAs from HSS. Their information practices and information behaviour were examined for a period of five to seven months using two interviews and multiple “check-ins”. Data were analysed through two rounds of coding, where codes were iteratively compared and contrasted.

Findings

SMC emerged from the analysis and is proposed as a grounded theory to help better understand the context of higher education and its influence on ECAs’ information behaviour. SMC presents university managerialism, resulting from neoliberalism, as pervasive and constraining both the work ECAs do and how they perform that work. SMC helps to explain ECAs’ uncertainty and precarity in higher education and changing information needs as a result of altered work role, which, in turn, leads ECAs to seek and share information with their colleagues and use information to wield their personal agency to respond to SMC.

Originality/value

The findings from this paper provide a lens through which to view universities as information environments and the influence these environments can have on ECAs’ information practices and information behaviour.
“How’d you sleep?” measuring business travelers’ sleep quality and satisfaction in hotels
Authors: Chen Hsiangting Shatina , Severt Kimberly , Shin Yeon Ho , Knowlden Adam , Hilliard Tyra W.
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore business travelers’ sleep experience in hotels by measuring sleep quality and determining the extent to which hotel attributes, demographic characteristics, and hotel quality level influence their sleep quality while staying in hotels.

Design/methodology/approach

This study utilized a self-reported survey to obtain data from business travelers who have stayed in a hotel at least two nights for a business trip in the past 30 days. A total of 304 business travelers were surveyed in this study.

Findings

The results indicated that there was a difference in the factors that influenced business travelers’ overall satisfaction with sleep in mid-scale (2.5-3.5 stars) vs upscale hotels (4+stars). The findings showed that business travelers generally had lower sleep quality at hotels and they were more likely affected by noise both outside and inside the guestroom, as well as material elements inside the room.

Originality/value

This study represents a pioneering attempt at exploring business travelers’ sleep quality and satisfaction with sleep in hotels. Furthermore, this study contributes to the limited research addressing sleep quality as a fundamental function of hotel services. Also, this is the first study to measure business travelers’ sleep quality in hotels by using the sleep quality scale.
Leaders’ resources and newcomer socialization: the importance of delegation
Authors: Jokisaari Markku , Vuori Jukka
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Organizational socialization refers to the process by which newcomers learn to perform in their role and adjust to work after organizational entry. Unfortunately, there is little knowledge regarding organizational socialization from the supervisors’ perspectives, although the importance of supervisors in newcomer socialization is one of the most robust findings in the field. The purpose of this paper is to examine how supervisors’ perceived organizational support (supervisor POS) and the quality of their working relationships with newcomers (supervisor leader-member exchange (LMX)) relate to the delegation of authority to newcomers and how delegation in turn relates to newcomers’ work adjustment.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of new employees completed questionnaires that included delegation and socialization outcome measures. Supervisors evaluated their POS and the quality of their working relationships with newcomers (LMX).

Findings

The results showed that supervisor POS moderated the relationship between supervisor LMX and delegation. Specifically, supervisors with high POS showed delegation to newcomers irrespective of their LMX. Conversely, when supervisors’ POS was low, a high LMX was related to delegation. The results further showed that delegation was positively related to newcomers’ role clarity, organizational knowledge, and job satisfaction. Finally, the results showed indirect effects of supervisor LMX on newcomers’ role clarity and job satisfaction through delegation contingent on supervisor POS.

Originality/value

This study showed that a supervisor’s social exchange relations both with the organization and with a new employee are important in the delegation of authority and responsibility to a newcomer and that this delegation in turn relates to newcomers’ work adjustment.
Confrontation between techniques of time measurement
Authors: Assef Fernanda , Scarpin Cassius Tadeu , Steiner Maria Teresinha
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a precise comparison between a pre-determined time rules and the evaluation performed with the help of a manual chronometer using data from a line assembly in an automotive industry besieged in the state of Paraná, Brazil. Nowadays, it is possible to verify several tools of measurement of task times, some taking less time and causing less wear of the evaluator than others, but not being in accordance with the real conditions of the workers of a certain industry.

Design/methodology/approach

The developed paper has its methodology based on two methods of time analysis, one of them being an adaptation of the MODular Arrangement of Predeterminated Time Standard (MODAPTS) method – called MODAPTS 2. This method is used by the industry in analyzed in this work and the other through the use of simple manual timing, through the digital timer, of the stages developed in a workstation.

Findings

The study shows that for each operation analyzed, thus presenting a situation of minimum waste, it becomes possible to judge which reasons exist for the operator during manual timekeeping not to reach the optimum times generated by the system of pre-determined times and movements (PMTSs) questioned.

Research limitations/implications

This study is conducted on an automotive enterprise in a period of confidentiality, which means that only a single workstation is able to be studied. This means that the comparison obtained between the time measurements methods used, and the evaluation of the MODAPTS is carried out with the best possible movements and gestures, disregarding then that the wastes can still be postulated to the whole assembly line.

Originality/value

With the automation in industry, where assemble tasks are usually developed manually, it is believed possible to discard the option of measuring task times in its classic and manual form, using a timer, yet during this process, there will be variables that may not be considered by pre-determined measurements methodologies. The work developed by this paper presents different variables that are not examined by the methods of PMTS, not frequently seen in the literature, as well as the difference that occurs between the measurement of times with stopwatch and the use of PMTS, which, in its original form, disregards the wastes that the operator has in their movements.
Student information system satisfaction in higher education: the role of visual aesthetics
Authors: Ramírez-Correa Patricio Esteban , Rondán-Cataluña Francisco Javier , Arenas-Gaitán Jorge
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the role of visual aesthetics as a key in generating satisfaction in student information system (SIS) users and to discover relationships to other antecedents. This work has also studied how gender discriminates those relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

DeLone and McLean’s model of information systems success, visual aesthetic and gender socialisation theory are used as a theoretical framework for the study. An explanatory model was proposed based on the previous literature, and then this model was validated using a sample of undergraduate students. Partial Least Squares was chosen as the approach to conduct the statistical analysis.

Findings

First, the findings show that the variance explained by the proposed model in user satisfaction of SIS is 67 per cent. Second, visual aesthetics has a significant direct effect on user satisfaction of SIS, but the indirect effect is much higher, through its relationship to system quality and information quality. Third, the results indicate that there are significant differences between men and women in the direct relationship between visual aesthetics and user satisfaction of SIS, and this relationship being much more intense in the case of women.

Originality/value

The study highlights the role of visual aesthetics as a variable that explains user satisfaction in information systems; this fact emphasises on the importance of taking into account aesthetics when designing information systems. In addition, the findings support the existence of a novel relationship between visual aesthetics and information quality. Finally, new evidence on gender differences concerning user satisfaction in information systems is presented; this result indicates in the opposite direction to recent studies that imply a certain homogenisation of gender in relation to the perceptions associated with the technologies of the information.
Reconstructing accountability of the cash waqf (endowment) institution in Indonesia
Authors: Siswantoro Dodik , Rosdiana Haula , Fathurahman Heri
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reconstruct the accountability of the cash waqf institution in Indonesia, including the logic which may refer to the accountability objective.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper employs the qualitative method with a constructivist paradigm. Four different characteristics of cash waqf institutions in Indonesia serve as the object of this research with other related respondents, such as the government and Islamic banks. These multiple case studies may represent the characteristics of cash waqf institutions.

Findings

The result shows that the cash waqf institution in Indonesia has unique and different logical characteristics, which is neither unitary nor pluralist.

Originality/value

This may be the first research which discusses the accountability-based logic for cash waqf institutions in Indonesia. These institutions apply Islamic teaching (Shariah) and must generate big income for social activities. Conditions in other countries may be similar since as waqf institutions have common concepts in general.
Corruption and firm-level productivity: greasing or sanding effect?
Authors: Bbaale Edward , Okumu Ibrahim Mike
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Corruption was ranked among the top five biggest obstacles affecting the operation of enterprises in Africa and was rated as a severe obstacle by close to 40 percent of firms in the sample. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between corruption and firm level productivity.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses the Enterprise Survey Data Set of the World Bank and employs an instrumental variable (IV) approach to deal with the potential endogeneity of corruption in a productivity equation. The authors use industry-country averages of the bribe tax and time tax as well as a dummy of female ownership as IVs.

Findings

Using three different measures of corruption, the authors find evidence that corruption “sands the wheels of commerce” and hence dampens firm-level productivity even when the endogeneity of corruption is controlled for. The authors find no evidence to support the trade-off between bribe payments and the red tape suggesting that government officials deliberately use bureaucracy as a mechanism of trapping the most productive firms that can afford to pay higher bribes. Hence this study lends no support to the “greasing” hypothesis.

Practical implications

The results thus suggest that in the second best choice environment firms are still not better off paying bribes rather mitigating corruption could be ideal. Therefore alongside existing regulatory corruption mitigants in the respective African countries, the paper suggests that government through public information dissemination ought to enlighten firms that corruption is not productivity enhancing. Thus firms are better-off evading corruption tendencies than propagating them.

Originality/value

The contribution to empirical literature is that much of the empirical studies have overly concentrated on Europe and Asia and with very limited evidence available for African countries. Therefore in terms of extending the work of McAuthar and Teal (2002) and Fisman and Svensson (2007), the authors argue that by using a new data set stretching from 2006 to as recent as 2017 the paper is rightly placed to make an empirical contribution about the relationship between corruption and firm-level productivity.
An Automated Two‐dimensional Pairwise form Registration Method for Pair‐matching of Fragmented Skeletal Remains
Authors: Lynch Jeffrey James
Published: April 2018

This study introduces an automated pairwise method for osteological pair‐matching of fragmented skeletal remains using two‐dimensional fragmented outlines extracted from photographs. The form data are used in pairwise iterative closest point registrations with rigid transformations. A modified version of the average Hausdorff distance is calculated to remove any coordinate correspondences with outline fracture margins, which allow the distance analysis of fragmented outlines. A dilation modification to the Hausdorff distance is proposed creating a greater separation between true‐ and false‐pairs. The sample consists of 122 calcanei (61 pairs) from the UI‐Stanford collection. Performance statistics are provided for simulated fragmented and complete assemblages. Results indicate up to 98% accuracy for fragmented and complete assemblages. The dilated Hausdorff distance performed similarly across assemblages, but showed a slight decrease in performance for the complete assemblage. This approach provides a useful short listing tool to reduce the number of visual comparisons required in large commingled assemblages.
From Exploration to Instruction: Children Learn From Exploration and Tailor Their Demonstrations to Observers’ Goals and Competence
Authors: Gweon Hyowon , Schulz Laura
Published: April 2018

This study investigated whether children learn from exploration and act as effective informants by providing informative demonstrations tailored to observers’ goals and competence. Children (4.0–6.9 years, N = 98) explored a causally ambiguous toy to discover its causal structure and then demonstrated the toy to a naive observer. Children provided more costly and informative evidence when the observer wanted to learn about the toy than observe its effects (Experiment 1) and when the observer was ordinary than exceptionally intelligent (Experiment 2). Relative to the evidence they generated during exploration, children produced fewer, less costly actions when the observer wanted or needed less evidence. Children understand the difference between acting‐to‐learn and acting‐to‐inform; after learning from exploration, they consider others’ goals and competence to provide “uninstructed instruction”.
Deposition of inhaled nanoparticles is reduced in subjects with COPD and correlates with the extent of emphysema: proof of concept for a novel diagnostic technique
Authors: Aaltonen H. L. , Jakobsson J. K. , Diaz S. , Zackrisson S. , Piitulainen E. , Löndahl J. , Wollmer P.
Published: April 2018

Background

The diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often based on spirometry, which is not sensitive to early emphysema. We have recently described a method for assessing distal airspace dimensions by measuring recovery of nanoparticles in exhaled air after a single‐breath inhalation followed by breath‐hold. Recovery refers to the non‐deposited particle fraction. The aim of this study was to explore differences in the recovery of exhaled nanoparticles in subjects with COPD and never‐smoking controls. A secondary aim was to determine whether recovery correlates with the extent of emphysema.

Method

A total of 19 patients with COPD and 19 controls underwent three repeats of single‐breath nanoparticle inhalation followed by breath‐hold. Particle concentrations in the inhaled aerosol, and in an alveolar sample exhaled after breath‐hold, were measured to obtain recovery.

Findings

The patients with COPD had a significantly higher mean recovery than controls, 0·128 ± 0·063 versus 0·074 ± 0·058; P = 0·010. Also, recovery correlated significantly with computed tomography (CT) densitometry variables (P<0·01) and diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DL,CO; P = 0·002).

Interpretation

Higher recovery for emphysema patients, relative to controls, is explained by larger diffusion distances in enlarged distal airspaces. The nanoparticle inhalation method shows potential to be developed towards a tool to diagnose emphysema.
Nonconvulsive status epilepticus in rats leads to brain pathology
Authors: Avdic Una , Ahl Matilda , Chugh Deepti , Ali Idrish , Chary Karthik , Sierra Alejandra , Ekdahl Christine T.
Published: April 2018

Objective

Status epilepticus (SE) is an abnormally prolonged epileptic seizure that if associated with convulsive motor symptoms is potentially life threatening for a patient. However, 20%‐40% of patients withSElack convulsive events and instead present with more subtle semiology such as altered consciousness and less motor activity. Today, there is no general consensus regarding to what extent nonconvulsiveSE(NCSE) is harmful to the brain, which adds uncertainty to stringent treatment regimes.

Methods

Here, we evaluated brain pathology in an experimental rat and mouse model of complex partialNCSEoriginating in the temporal lobes with Western blot analysis, immunohistochemistry, and ex vivo diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). TheNCSEwas induced by electrical stimulation with intrahippocampal electrodes and terminated with pentobarbital anesthesia. Video‐electroencephalographic recordings were performed throughout the experiment.

Results

DTIof mice 7 weeks post‐NCSEshowed no robust long‐lasting changes in fractional anisotropy within the hippocampal epileptic focus. Instead, we found pathophysiological changes developing over time when measuring protein levels and cell counts in extracted brain tissue. At 6 and 24 hours post‐NCSEin rats, few changes were observed within the hippocampus and cortical or subcortical structures in Western blot analyses of key components of the cellular immune response and synaptic protein expression, while neurodegeneration had started. However, 1 week post‐NCSE, both excitatory and inhibitory synaptic protein levels were decreased in hippocampus, concomitant with an excessive microglial and astrocytic activation. At 4 weeks, a continuous immune response in the hippocampus was accompanied with neuronal loss. Levels of the excitatory synaptic adhesion molecule N‐cadherin were decreased specifically in rats that developed unprovoked spontaneous seizures (epileptogenesis) within 1 month followingNCSE, compared to rats only exhibiting acute symptomatic seizures within 1 week post‐NCSE.

Significance

These findings provide evidence for a significant brain pathology followingNCSEin an experimental rodent model.
Reduction in ultraviolet B light–induced erythema by oxymetazoline and brimonidine is mediated by different α‐adrenoceptors
Authors: Hsia Edward , Tian Mingting , Gil Daniel
Published: April 2018

When applied topically, oxymetazoline and brimonidine reduce the persistent facial erythema of rosacea; this effect is mediated by cutaneous vasoconstriction induced by postsynaptic activation of α‐adrenoceptors. We investigated the α‐adrenergic pharmacology of oxymetazoline and brimonidine. Functional activity on α‐adrenoceptors was evaluated in vitro in HEK293 cells stably expressing single receptor subtypes using a fluorometric imaging plate reader Ca2+ influx assay. Oxymetazoline was an α1‐adrenoceptor agonist with partial α2‐adrenoceptor activity, whereas brimonidine was a highly selective full α2‐adrenoceptor agonist. In vivo pharmacology was investigated in a mouse model of ultraviolet B light (UVB)‐induced skin erythema. To selectively inhibit α‐adrenoceptor subtypes, mice were injected with prazosin (an α1‐selective antagonist) or rauwolscine (an α2‐selective antagonist) following UVB exposure. Oxymetazoline cream 1.0%, brimonidine gel 0.33% or vehicle control was applied topically, and erythema was measured using a chromameter. Oxymetazoline and brimonidine reduced UVB–induced erythema compared with vehicle control (P < .01). The effect of oxymetazoline was impaired in prazosin‐pretreated but not rauwolscine‐pretreated mice. Conversely, the effect of brimonidine was impaired in rauwolscine‐pretreated but not prazosin‐pretreated mice. These data suggest that while oxymetazoline and brimonidine produce cutaneous vasoconstriction, they do so through different α‐adrenergic mechanisms, with oxymetazoline primarily acting via α1‐adrenoceptors and brimonidine acting via α2‐adrenoceptors.
Spatio‐temporal pattern and gender disparity of HIV/AIDS prevalence in Nigeria
Authors: Akinyemi Yingigba Chioma
Published: April 2018

This study examines the spatio‐temporal pattern and gender disparity in HIV/AIDS prevalence in Nigeria using data from 2007 and 2012 National HIV/AIDS and Reproductive Health Surveys. Spatial statistical techniques, correlation and multiple regression analyses and chi square were utilised. The spatio‐temporal variation and spatial dependency of HIV prevalence across the 36 states were not significant. Nasarawa, Cross River, Federal Capital Territory and Akwa Ibom States were significant hot spots. Spatial distribution of HIV prevalence was related to unemployment, population aged 15‒49 years, and population living in rural areas. Compared to men, women had a significantly higher prevalence in four states, especially women with a low educational level, separated/divorced, widowed and younger women. Intervention strategies should emphasise HIV prevention messages especially among women in hot spot areas.
Narcissism and the pursuit of status
Authors: Zeigler‐Hill Virgil , Vrabel Jennifer K. , McCabe Gillian A. , Cosby Cheryl A. , Traeder Caitlin K. , Hobbs Kelsey A. , Southard Ashton C.
Published: April 2018

Objective

The purpose of the present studies was to examine the connections that narcissistic admiration and narcissistic rivalry had with various aspects of status.

Method

Study 1 examined the associations that narcissism had with the motivation to seek status in a sample of 1,219 community members. Study 2 examined whether narcissism interacted with the status‐seeking motive to predict how individuals pursued status in a sample of 760 community members and college students. Study 3 used a daily diary approach to examine whether narcissism moderated the associations that daily perceptions of status and affiliation had with state self‐esteem in 356 college students.

Results

Our results revealed that narcissistic admiration and narcissistic rivalry were somewhat similar in their desire for status but had divergent associations with other aspects of status (e.g., strategies employed to attain status, perceptions of status, reactions to perceived status).

Conclusions

The results of the present studies suggest that narcissistic admiration is associated with an agentic orientation to the pursuit of status, whereas narcissistic rivalry is associated with an antagonistic orientation to the pursuit of status. Discussion focuses on the implications of these results for our understanding of the connections between narcissism and status.
Prejudicial Attitudes and Labor Market Outcomes
Authors: Rode Ashwin , Shukla Anand J.
Published: April 2018

We explore whether and to what extent differences in prejudicial attitudes can be associated with the variation in Black–White labor market gaps across US metropolitan areas. Prejudicial attitudes are quantified using novel data on racially charged Internet searches. We find that prejudicial attitudes matter for labor market outcomes, but only for workers who are not college graduates. For this group, a racially charged search rate that is one standard deviation higher is associated with a 17 per cent higher unexplained Black–White gap in annual income and 21 per cent higher unexplained hourly wage gap.
Specific issues concerning the management of patients on the waiting list and after liver transplantation
Authors: Burra Patrizia , Giannini Edoardo G. , Caraceni Paolo , Ginanni Corradini Stefano , Rendina Maria , Volpes Riccardo , Toniutto Pierluigi
Published: April 2018

The present document is a second contribution collecting the recommendations of an expert panel of transplant hepatologists appointed by the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver (AISF) concerning the management of certain aspects of liver transplantation, including: the issue of prompt referral; the management of difficult candidates; malnutrition; living related liver transplants; hepatocellular carcinoma; and the role of direct acting antiviral agents before and after transplantation. The statements on each topic were approved by participants at the AISF Transplant Hepatology Expert Meeting organized by the Permanent Liver Transplant Commission in Mondello on 12‐13 May 2017. They are graded according to the GRADE grading system.
High‐density genetic map using whole‐genome resequencing for fine mapping and candidate gene discovery for disease resistance in peanut
Authors: Agarwal Gaurav , Clevenger Josh , Pandey Manish K. , Wang Hui , Shasidhar Yaduru , Chu Ye , Fountain Jake C. , Choudhary Divya , Culbreath Albert K. , Liu Xin , Huang Guodong , Wang Xingjun , Deshmukh Rupesh , Holbrook C. Corley , Bertioli David J. , Ozias‐Akins Peggy , Jackson Scott A. , Varshney Rajeev K. , Guo Baozhu
Published: April 2018

Whole‐genome resequencing (WGRS) of mapping populations has facilitated development of high‐density genetic maps essential for fine mapping and candidate gene discovery for traits of interest in crop species. Leaf spots, including early leaf spot (ELS) and late leaf spot (LLS), and Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) are devastating diseases in peanut causing significant yield loss. We generated WGRS data on a recombinant inbred line population, developed a SNP‐based high‐density genetic map, and conducted fine mapping, candidate gene discovery and marker validation for ELS, LLS and TSWV. The first sequence‐based high‐density map was constructed with 8869 SNPs assigned to 20 linkage groups, representing 20 chromosomes, for the ‘T’ population (Tifrunner × GT‐C20) with a map length of 3120 cM and an average distance of 1.45 cM. The quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis using high‐density genetic map and multiple season phenotyping data identified 35 main‐effect QTLs with phenotypic variation explained (PVE) from 6.32% to 47.63%. Among major‐effect QTLs mapped, there were two QTLs for ELS on B05 with 47.42% PVE and B03 with 47.38% PVE, two QTLs for LLS on A05 with 47.63% and B03 with 34.03% PVE and one QTL for TSWV on B09 with 40.71% PVE. The epistasis and environment interaction analyses identified significant environmental effects on these traits. The identified QTL regions had disease resistance genes including R‐genes and transcription factors. KASP markers were developed for major QTLs and validated in the population and are ready for further deployment in genomics‐assisted breeding in peanut.
Chimeric 3’ flanking regions strongly enhance gene expression in plants
Authors: Diamos Andrew G. , Mason Hugh S.
Published: April 2018

Plants represent a promising platform for the highly scalable production of recombinant proteins. Previously, we identified the tobacco extensin terminator lacking its intron as an element that reduced transcript read‐through and improved recombinant protein production in a plant‐based system. In this study, we systematically compared nonreplicating plant expression vectors containing over 20 commonly used or newly identified terminators from diverse sources. We found that eight gene terminators enhance reporter gene expression significantly more than the commonly used 35S and NOS terminators. The intronless extensin terminator provided a 13.6‐fold increase compared with the NOS terminator. Combining terminators in tandem produced large synergistic effects, with many combinations providing a >25‐fold increase in expression. Addition of the tobacco Rb7 or TM6 matrix attachment region (MAR) strongly enhanced protein production when added to most terminators, with the Rb7 MAR providing the greatest enhancement. Using deletion analysis, the full activity of the 1193 bp Rb7 MAR was found to require only a 463‐bp region at its 3’ end. Combined terminators and MAR together provided a >60‐fold increase compared with the NOS terminator alone. These combinations were then placed in a replicating geminiviral vector, providing a total of >150‐fold enhancement over the original NOS vector, corresponding to an estimated yield of 3–5 g recombinant protein per kg leaf fresh weight or around 50% of the leaf total soluble protein. These results demonstrate the importance of 3’ flanking regions in optimizing gene expression and show great potential for 3’ flanking regions to improve DNA‐based recombinant protein production systems.
Breaking the cycle of functional decline in older dialysis patients
Authors: Hall Rasheeda K. , McAdams‐DeMarco Mara A.
Published: April 2018

Currently, older adults comprise nearly one‐third of prevalent US dialysis patients, and this proportion will increase as the population ages. Older dialysis patients experience greater morbidity and mortality than nondialysis patients of the same age, and in part, it is related to progressive functional decline. Progressive functional decline, characterized by need for assistance with more than 2 activities of daily living, contributes to risk of hospitalization, further functional decline, and subsequent nursing home placement when a patient no longer functions independently at home. Progressive functional decline may appear to be unavoidable for older dialysis patients; however, comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) may alleviate the prevalence and severity of functional decline. This editorial summarizes common risk factors of functional decline and introduces CGA as a potentially transformative approach to breaking the cycle of functional decline in older dialysis patients.
A spatial analysis of non‐English Twitter activity in Houston, TX
Authors: Haffner Matthew
Published: April 2018

The use of social media data in geographic studies has become common, yet the question of social media's validity in such contexts is often overlooked. Social media data suffers from a variety of biases and limitations; nevertheless, with a proper understanding of the drawbacks, these data can be powerful. As cities seek to become “smarter,” they can potentially use social media data to creatively address the needs of their most vulnerable groups, such as ethnic minorities. However, questions remain unanswered regarding who uses these social networking platforms, how people use these platforms, and how representative social media data is of users' everyday lives. Using several forms of regression, I explore the relationships between a conventional data source (the U.S. Census) and a subset of Twitter data potentially representative of minority groups: tweets created by users with an account language other than English. A considerable amount of non‐stationarity is uncovered, which should serve as a warning against sweeping statements regarding the demographics of users and where people prefer to post. Further, I find that precisely located Twitter data informs us more about the digital status of places and less about users' day‐to‐day travel patterns.
A time‐driven, activity‐based costing methodology for determining the costs of red blood cell transfusion in patients with beta thalassaemia major
Authors: Burns K. E. , Haysom H. E. , Higgins A. M. , Waters N. , Tahiri R. , Rushford K. , Dunstan T. , Saxby K. , Kaplan Z. , Chunilal S. , McQuilten Z. K. , Wood E. M.
Published: April 2018

Objectives

To describe the methodology to estimate the total cost of administration of a single unit of red blood cells (RBC) in adults with beta thalassaemia major in an Australian specialist haemoglobinopathy centre.

Background

Beta thalassaemia major is a genetic disorder of haemoglobin associated with multiple end‐organ complications and typically requiring lifelong RBC transfusion therapy. New therapeutic agents are becoming available based on advances in understanding of the disorder and its consequences. Assessment of the true total cost of transfusion, incorporating both product and activity costs, is required in order to evaluate the benefits and costs of these new therapies.

Methods

We describe the bottom‐up, time‐driven, activity‐based costing methodology used to develop process maps to provide a step‐by‐step outline of the entire transfusion pathway. Detailed flowcharts for each process are described. Direct observations and timing of the process maps document all activities, resources, staff, equipment and consumables in detail. The analysis will include costs associated with performing these processes, including resources and consumables. Sensitivity analyses will be performed to determine the impact of different staffing levels, timings and probabilities associated with performing different tasks.

Results

Thirty‐one process maps have been developed, with over 600 individual activities requiring multiple timings. These will be used for future detailed cost analyses.

Conclusions

Detailed process maps using bottom‐up, time‐driven, activity‐based costing for determining the cost of RBC transfusion in thalassaemia major have been developed. These could be adapted for wider use to understand and compare the costs and complexities of transfusion in other settings.
Fossil scales illuminate the early evolution of lepidopterans and structural colors
Authors: Zhang Qingqing , Mey Wolfram , Ansorge Jörg , Starkey Timothy A. , McDonald Luke T. , McNamara Maria E. , Jarzembowski Edmund A. , Wichard Wilfried , Thomson Ulysses , Ren Xiaoyin , Chen Jun , Zhang Haichun , Wang Bo
Published: April 2018

Mesozoic lepidopteran wing scales shed light on the early evolution of moths and structural colors.
Systematic reconstruction of autism biology from massive genetic mutation profiles
Authors: Luo Weijun , Zhang Chaolin , Jiang Yong-hui , Brouwer Cory R.
Published: April 2018

Researchers shed new light on the complex biological puzzle behind thousands of genetic mutations in autism.
Evo-devo models of tooth development and the origin of hominoid molar diversity
Authors: Ortiz Alejandra , Bailey Shara E. , Schwartz Gary T. , Hublin Jean-Jacques , Skinner Matthew M.
Published: April 2018

We provided a developmental explanation for the patterns of molar crown configuration present during hominoid evolution.