bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Quantitative investigation of factors relevant to the T cell spot test for tuberculosis infection in active tuberculosis
Authors: Li Kui , Yang Caiyong , Jiang Zicheng , Liu Shengxi , Liu Jun , Fan Chuanqi , Li Tao , Dong Xuemin
Published: February 2019

Background

Previous qualitative studies suggested that the false negative rate of T cell spot test for tuberculosis infection (T-SPOT.TB) is associated with many risk factors in tuberculosis patients; However, more precise quantitative studies are not well known.

Objective

To investigate the factors affecting quantified T-SPOT.TB in patients with active tuberculosis.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed the data of 360 patients who met the inclusion criteria. Using the levels of early secreted antigenic target 6 kDa (ESAT-6) and culture filtrate protein 10 kDa (CFP-10) as dependent variables, variables with statistical significance in the univariate analysis were subjected to optimal scaling regression analysis.

Results

The results showed that the ESAT-6 regression model had statistical significance (P-trend < 0.001) and that previously treated cases, CD4+ and platelet count were its independent risk factors (all P-trend < 0.05); their importance levels were 0.095, 0.596 and 0.100, respectively, with a total of 0.791. The CFP-10 regression model also had statistical significance (P-trend < 0.001); platelet distribution width and alpha-2 globulin were its independent risk factors (all P-trend < 0.05), their importance levels were 0.287 and 0.247, respectively, with a total of 0.534. The quantification graph showed that quantified T-SPOT.TB levels had a linear correlation with risk factors.

Conclusion

The test results of T-SPOT.TB should be given more precise explanations, especially in patients with low levels of CD4+, platelet, alpha-2 globulin and high platelet distribution width.
Transcriptional gene silencing requires dedicated interaction between HP1 protein Chp2 and chromatin remodeler Mit1
Authors: Leopold Karoline , Stirpe Alessandro , Schalch Thomas
Published: February 2019

Heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) proteins are key factors of eukaryotic heterochromatin that coordinate chromatin compaction and transcriptional gene silencing. Through their multivalency they act as adaptors between histone H3 Lys9 di/trimethyl marks in chromatin and effector complexes that bind to the HP1 chromoshadow domain. Most organisms encode for multiple HP1 isoforms and the molecular mechanisms that underpin their diverse functions in genome regulation remain poorly understood. In fission yeast, the two HP1 proteins Chp2 and Swi6 assume distinct roles and Chp2 is tightly associated with the nucleosome remodeling and deacetylation complex SHREC. Here we show that Chp2 directly engages the SHREC nucleosome remodeler subunit Mit1. The crystal structure of the interaction interface reveals an extraordinarily extensive and specific interaction between the chromoshadow domain of Chp2 and the N terminus of Mit1. The integrity of this interface is critical for high affinity binding and for heterochromatin formation. Comparison with Swi6 shows that the Chp2–Mit1 interface is highly selective and thereby provides the molecular basis for the functional specialization of an HP1 isoform.
DNA polymerase θ accomplishes translesion synthesis opposite 1,N6-ethenodeoxyadenosine with a remarkably high fidelity in human cells
Authors: Yoon Jung-Hoon , Johnson Robert E. , Prakash Louise , Prakash Satya
Published: February 2019

Here we show that translesion synthesis (TLS) opposite 1,N6-ethenodeoxyadenosine (εdA), which disrupts Watson–Crick base pairing, occurs via Polι/Polζ-, Rev1-, and Polθ-dependent pathways. The requirement of Polι/Polζ is consistent with the ability of Polι to incorporate nucleotide opposite εdA by Hoogsteen base pairing and of Polζ to extend synthesis. Rev1 polymerase and Polθ conduct TLS opposite εdA via alternative error-prone pathways. Strikingly, in contrast to extremely error-prone TLS opposite εdA by purified Polθ, it performs predominantly error-free TLS in human cells. Reconfiguration of the active site opposite εdA would provide Polθ the proficiency for error-free TLS in human cells.
Maternal-biased H3K27me3 correlates with paternal-specific gene expression in the human morula
Authors: Zhang Wenhao , Chen Zhiyuan , Yin Qiangzong , Zhang Dan , Racowsky Catherine , Zhang Yi
Published: February 2019

Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic mechanism by which genes are expressed in a parental origin–dependent manner. We recently discovered that, like DNA methylation, oocyte-inherited H3K27me3 can also serve as an imprinting mark in mouse preimplantation embryos. In this study, we found H3K27me3 is strongly biased toward the maternal allele with some associated with DNA methylation–independent paternally expressed genes (PEGs) in human morulae. The H3K27me3 domains largely overlap with DNA partially methylated domains (PMDs) and occupy developmental gene promoters. Thus, our study not only reveals the H3K27me3 landscape but also establishes a correlation between maternal-biased H3K27me3 and PEGs in human morulae.
Orientation-aware plasma cell-free DNA fragmentation analysis in open chromatin regions informs tissue of origin
Authors: Sun Kun , Jiang Peiyong , Cheng Suk Hang , Cheng Timothy H.T. , Wong John , Wong Vincent W.S. , Ng Simon S.M. , Ma Brigette B.Y. , Leung Tak Y. , Chan Stephen L. , Mok Tony S.K. , Lai Paul B.S. , Chan Henry L.Y. , Sun Hao , Chan K.C. Allen , Chiu Rossa W.K. , Lo Y.M. Dennis
Published: February 2019

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in human plasma is a class of biomarkers with many current and potential future diagnostic applications. Recent studies have shown that cfDNA molecules are not randomly fragmented and possess information related to their tissues of origin. Pathologies causing death of cells from particular tissues result in perturbations in the relative distribution of DNA from the affected tissues. Such tissue-of-origin analysis is particularly useful in the development of liquid biopsies for cancer. It is therefore of value to accurately determine the relative contributions of the tissues to the plasma DNA pool in a simultaneous manner. In this work, we report that in open chromatin regions, cfDNA molecules show characteristic fragmentation patterns reflected by sequencing coverage imbalance and differentially phased fragment end signals. The latter refers to differences in the read densities of sequences corresponding to the orientation of the upstream and downstream ends of cfDNA molecules in relation to the reference genome. Such cfDNA fragmentation patterns preferentially occur in tissue-specific open chromatin regions where the corresponding tissues contributed DNA into the plasma. Quantitative analyses of such signals allow measurement of the relative contributions of various tissues toward the plasma DNA pool. These findings were validated by plasma DNA sequencing data obtained from pregnant women, organ transplantation recipients, and cancer patients. Orientation-aware plasma DNA fragmentation analysis therefore has potential diagnostic applications in noninvasive prenatal testing, organ transplantation monitoring, and cancer liquid biopsy.
An electrochemical cell for operando bench-top X-ray diffraction
Authors: Sottmann Jonas , Pralong Valérie , Barrier Nicolas , Martin Christine
Published: February 2019

An X-ray transparent electrochemical cell for operando bench-top X-ray diffraction in reflection geometry is presented. Dense glassy carbon (Sigradur-G) is used as an X-ray transparent window. The cell and dedicated sample holder are easy to handle and cost efficient thanks to their simple designs. To demonstrate the performance of this new Swagelok-type operando cell, diffractograms were collected during cycling of the cathode material Li
x
Mn2O4 (x ≤ 1) in a lithium-ion battery. During charging/delithiation, three spinel phases with evolving lattice parameters were found. This observation confirms the expected mixed two-phase and solid-solution behaviour and thereby validates our experimental setup. The presented low-cost setup may enable further battery research units to access operando X-ray diffraction data for characterization of structural phenomena during battery cycling and degradation mechanisms during prolonged cycling, which will lead to improvement of the battery technology.
A direct approach to estimate the anisotropy of protein structures from small-angle X-ray scattering
Authors: Roig-Solvas Biel , Brooks Dana , Makowski Lee
Published: February 2019

In the field of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), the task of estimating the size of particles in solution is usually synonymous with the Guinier plot. The approximation behind this plot, developed by Guinier in 1939, provides a simple yet accurate characterization of the scattering behavior of particles at low scattering angle or momentum transfer q, together with a computationally efficient way of inferring their radii of gyration R
G. Moreover, this approximation is valid beyond spherical scatterers, making its use ubiquitous in the SAXS world. However, when it is important to estimate further particle characteristics, such as the anisotropy of the scatterer's shape, no similar or extended approximations are available. Existing tools to characterize the shape of scatterers rely either on prior knowledge of the scatterers' geometry or on iterative procedures to infer the particle shape ab initio. In this work, a low-angle approximation of the scattering intensity I(q) for ellipsoids of revolution is developed and it is shown how the size and anisotropy information can be extracted from the parameters of that approximation. The goal of the approximation is not to estimate a particle's full structure in detail, and thus this approach will be less accurate than well known iterative and ab initio reconstruction tools available in the literature. However, it can be considered as an extension of the Guinier approximation and used to generate initial estimates for the aforementioned iterative techniques, which usually rely on R
G and D
max for initialization. This formulation also demonstrates that nonlinearity in the Guinier plot can arise from anisotropy in the scattering particles. Beyond ideal ellipsoids of revolution, it is shown that this approximation can be used to estimate the size and shape of molecules in solution, in both computational and experimental scenarios. The limits of the approach are discussed and the impact of a particle's anisotropy in the Guinier estimate of R
G is assessed.
RBF-based mesh morphing approach to perform icing simulations in the aviation sector
Authors: Groth Corrado , Costa Emiliano , Biancolini Marco Evangelos
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Numerical simulation of icing has become a standard. Once the iced shape is known, however, the analyst needs to update the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) grid. This paper aims to propose a method to update the numerical mesh with ice profiles.

Design/methodology/approach

The present paper concerns a novel and fast radial basis functions (RBF) mesh morphing technique to efficiently and accurately perform ice accretion simulations on industrial models in the aviation sector. This method can be linked to CFD analyses to dynamically reproduce the ice growth.

Findings

To verify the consistency of the proposed approach, one of the most challenging ice profile selected in the LEWICE manual was replicated and simulated through CFD. To showcase the effectiveness of this technique, predefined ice profiles were automatically applied on two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cases using both commercial and open-source CFD solvers.

Practical implications

If ice accreted shapes are available, the meshless characteristic of the proposed approach enables its coupling with the CFD solvers currently supported by the RBF4AERO platform including OpenFOAM, SU2 and ANSYS Fluent. The advantages provided by the use of RBF are the high performance and reliability, due to the fast application of mesh smoothing and the accuracy in controlling surface mesh nodes.

Originality/value

As far as authors’ knowledge is concerned, this is the first time in scientific literature that RBF are proposed to handle icing simulations. Due to the meshless characteristic of the RBF mesh morphing, the proposed approach is cross solver and can be used for both 2D and 3D geometries.
Benchmarking energy use of iron and steel industry: a data envelopment analysis
Authors: Haider Salman , Mishra Prajna Paramita
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to benchmark the energy use of Indian iron and steel industry. For this purpose, the authors have estimated a production frontier to know the best performing states. Further, the energy-saving targets are estimated to lie below the benchmark level for those states. Panel data for this purpose are extracted from the Annual Survey of Industry (an official database from the government of India) for 19 major steel-producing states over the period from 2004–2005 to 2013–2014.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors employed a radial and non-radial (slack-based measure) variant of the data envelopment analysis (DEA) to estimate the production frontier. Particularly, slack-based measures (SBMs) developed by Tone (2001) are used to get a more comprehensive measure of energy efficiency along with technical efficiency. Variable returns to scale technology is specified to accommodate market imperfection and heterogeneity across states. Four inputs (capital, labour, energy and material) and a single output are conceptualised for the production process to accommodate input substitution. The relative position of each state in terms of the level of energy efficiency is then identified.

Findings

The authors started by examining energy-output ratio. The average level of energy intensity shows declining trends over the period of time. States like Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat and Uttarakhand remain stagnant in the energy intensity level. SBM of energy efficiency shows an overall average energy saving potential of 8 per cent without reducing average output level. Considerable heterogeneity exists among states in terms of the energy efficiency scores. Further, the authors calculated scale efficiency (SE) which shows the overall average level of SE is 0.91; hence, the scale of operation is not optimal and needs to adjusted to enhance energy efficiency.

Originality/value

The authors demonstrate the empirical application of DEA with SBM to energy use performance. This is the first study that benchmarks Indian states in terms of the consumption of energy input to produce iron and steel by applying DEA.
Examining the mediating effect of trust and psychological well-being on transformational leadership and organizational commitment
Authors: Jain Priyanka , Duggal Taranjeet , Ansari Amirul Hasan
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to extend the under-researched work on employees’ organizational commitment by examining transformational leadership (TL) adopted by the leader and the level of trust subordinates have in such a leader.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected using convenience sampling and self-administered survey methods from professionals employed in Indian public sector banks (n=236).

Findings

Findings reveal that the subordinates’ level of trust and psychological well-being partially mediates the relationship between TL and employees’ organizational commitment.

Practical implications

TL shares a positive relationship with organizational commitment through trust and psychological well-being.

Originality/value

Even though previous studies on organizational commitment have produced a significant piece of work, this study is among the first to propose and analyze a comprehensive and theoretically grounded structure of TL, organizational commitment, level of trust and employees’ psychological well-being.
Implementation model for cellular manufacturing system using AHP and ANP approach
Authors: Sharma Vikrant , Gidwani B.D. , Sharma Vikram , Meena M.L.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to visualize the prioritization among essential factors of cellular manufacturing system (CMS) implementation using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and analytic network process (ANP) methods.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on literature review, 4 enabler dimensions and 17 CM factors were identified which were validated by experts from academia and industry. Then, AHP and ANP models are proposed in evaluating CMS implementation dimensions and factors. The results are validated using sensitivity analysis.

Findings

These models give firms a straightforward and simple to utilize way to deal with CMS efficiently. The two strategies were appeared to be powerful in choosing a strategy for CMS implementation. The two strategies brought about nearly similar outcomes. Both methods consider the particular necessities of the organization through its own accessible ability.

Practical implications

The techniques exhibited in this paper can be utilized by a wide range of organizations for adopting CMS that have a higher impact on performance and thus overall productivity. The two techniques are explained in a step-by-step approach for easier adoption by practitioners.

Originality/value

The strength of the present study is that it is one of the first few to be conducted in perspective for CM implementation factors analysis.
ADVANCE Scholar Program: enhancing minoritized scholars’ professional visibility
Authors: Carter-Sowell Adrienne R. , Vaid Jyotsna , Stanley Christine A. , Petitt Becky , Battle Jericka S.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe a mentoring program developed at a large predominantly white research university that was aimed at retaining and advancing women faculty of color. The ADVANCE Scholar Program pairs each scholar for two years with a senior faculty member at the university who serves as an internal advocate, and with an eminent scholar outside the university who helps the scholar gain prominence in their discipline.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper offers a case study of the ADVANCE Scholar Program. The authors describe the intersectional approach to organizational change in this conceptual framework and provide a brief overview of the institution and precursors to the development of the Scholar program. The authors describe the program itself, its rationale, structure and participants in the program.

Findings

Overall, the program generated a positive reception and outcomes, and the authors suggest that such a program has the potential to make a positive difference in making the university a more supportive place for a diverse professoriate and recommend it as a model for adoption at other predominantly white research universities.

Practical implications

By publishing the operations and the outcomes of this faculty mentoring program, we expect to contribute broadly to a more supportive campus climate for a diverse professoriate. We have developed, implemented, and continue to study this successful model to retain minoritized faculty scholars in the professoriate.

Social implications

Women faculty of color are often assigned to serve on committees to meet diversity objectives of the institution and are sought after by students of color from across the university, but this service is not considered. This program, the ADVANCE Scholar Program, pairs each scholar with a senior faculty member who serves as an internal advocate, and an external eminent scholar who guides the scholar in gaining national prominence. These efforts to retain and promote minoritized faculty scholars, altogether, have important implications on the pervasive issues affecting many members of academic communities at the individual, interpersonal and the institutional levels.

Originality/value

This case study provides an innovative strategy to tackle the lack of role models and the experiences of social isolation that occurs for women faculty of color with multiply marginalized status. Hence, women faculty of color benefit from a valuable, institutionally supported, university-wide mentoring program designed to increase diversity of minoritized faculty in the professoriate ranks.
Constructions of inclusion at two senior nursing home units in Sweden: immigrants’ perspectives
Authors: Hamrin Solange Barros de Alcantara
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This study is an inductive exploration of factors that are relevant to the inclusion and integration of immigrant workers in a Swedish workplace. The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of immigrant employees with other organisational actors at two senior nursing units in Sweden.

Design/methodology/approach

Results are drawn from the analyses of interviews with six female and three male immigrant nursing assistants living permanently in Sweden.

Findings

Trustful relationships with other organisational actors, during both formal and informal interactions, are considered essential facilitating inclusion of these immigrant workers. Immigrant workers experienced inclusion when they achieved language competence (or felt supported in their attempts to do so) and bridged cultural differences. The results also highlight conditions for interactions and leadership as factors influencing inclusion. In addition, inclusion implied acculturation or awareness of the values of native-born citizens.

Research limitations/implications

The study suggests that immigrants’ relational dynamics with their colleagues are essential to inclusion, despite types of studies that focus mainly on the competences of leaders to manage diversity.

Practical implications

The results have implications for organisations’ development of a more democratic workplace with more inclusiveness and with satisfied employees.

Originality/value

The study gives voice to immigrant workers, which is rare in Swedish and international organisations that deal with the issue of immigrant integration in the workplace.
Internal branding and employees’ brand outcomes: do generational differences and organizational tenure matter?
Authors: Dechawatanapaisal Decha
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating effect of brand identification between internal branding and brand citizenship behavior as well as brand loyalty, and the roles of working generation and organizational tenure as moderators of the relationship between internal branding and brand identification.

Design/methodology/approach

This research used a survey method and a structured questionnaire to collect data from salespeople working in the cement and construction materials industry. The hypothesized relationships were tested and analyzed by means of a confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling, hierarchical regression and a bootstrapping procedure.

Findings

Brand identification partially mediates the link between internal branding and brand citizenship behavior and fully mediates that between internal branding and brand loyalty. Also, the influences of internal branding on brand identification are varied among generational cohorts and employees with different tenure.

Research limitations/implications

The current research took place among customer-interface employees, which can be extended to back-end or supporting workers, in order to better reflect the overall effect of internal branding efforts.

Practical implications

Organizations need to undertake internal branding to induce a shared understanding among employees about brand insights, and to foster their perception of belongingness in order to motivate desired brand behaviors. Furthermore, managers may improve internal branding mechanisms by taking generational differences and duration of employment into consideration, since these factors impinge on the effects of internal branding.

Originality/value

This study contributes to internal branding research by addressing the contingent influences of employees’ differences on the success of internal branding efforts.
User experiences in live video streaming: a netnography analysis
Authors: Wang Yi-Sheng
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to conduct an in-depth exploration of the special context and user experiences of live video streaming and to provide insights regarding an interpretation of the contextualization experiences model.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used netnography, online interviews and the physical travel of researchers to the field for field participation and observations. The combination of netnography and online interviews combined online and offline studies to achieve greater consistency in the data collection, analysis and other processes.

Findings

The findings of the study can be classified into a three-stage situational context approach, which is presented in the form of propositions. Finally, the insights of the contextualization experiences model are presented.

Originality/value

This study resulted in the development of a substantive theory that provides insight into interpreting the contextualization experiences model. The theory was developed based on raw data to enable it to explain the phenomena in the context of similar instances of live video streaming.
Understanding relationship quality in hospitality services
Authors: Sanchez-Franco Manuel J. , Cepeda-Carrion Gabriel , Roldán José L.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the occurrence of terms to identify the relevant topics and then to investigate the area (based on topics) of hospitality services that is highly associated with relationship quality. This research represents an opportunity to fill the gap in the current literature, and clarify the understanding of guests’ affective states by evaluating all aspects of their relationship with a hotel.

Design/methodology/approach

This research focuses on natural opinions upon which machine-learning algorithms can be executed: text summarization, sentiment analysis and latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA). Our data set contains 47,172 reviews of 33 hotels located in Las Vegas, and registered with Yelp. A component-based structural equation modeling (partial least squares (PLS)) is applied, with a dual – exploratory and predictive – purpose.

Findings

To maintain a truly loyal relationship and to achieve competitive success, hospitality managers must take into account both tangible and intangible features when allocating their marketing efforts to satisfaction-, trust- and commitment-based cues. On the other hand, the application of the PLS predict algorithm demonstrates the predictive performance (out-of-sample prediction) of our model that supports its ability to predict new and accurate values for individual cases when further samples are added.

Originality/value

LDA and PLS produce relevant informative summaries of corpora, and confirm and address more specifically the results of the previous literature concerning relationship quality. Our results are more reliable and accurate (providing insights not indicated in guests’ ratings into how hotels can improve their services) than prior statistical results based on limited sample data and on numerical satisfaction ratings alone.
Leaving Lake Wobegon: firearm-related education and training for medical and mental health professionals is an essential competence
Authors: Pirelli Gianni , Gold Liza
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Firearm-involved violence and suicide in the USA, often collectively referred to as “gun violence,” has been labeled a public health problem and an epidemic, and even an endemic by some. Many lawmakers, community groups, mainstream media outlets and professional organizations regularly address gun-related issues and frequently associate firearm violence with mental health. As a result, these groups often set forth positions, engage in discussions and promote policies that are at least partially based on the widely held but incorrect assumption that medical and mental health professionals are either inherently equipped or professionally trained to intervene with their patients and reduce gun deaths. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

Furthermore, notable proportions of medical and mental health professionals self-report a level of comfort engaging in firearm-specific interventions that is often disproportionate to their actual education and training in the area. This type of overconfidence bias has been referred to as the Lake Wobegon Effect, illusory superiority, the above average effect, the better-than average effect or the false uniqueness bias. While medical and mental health professionals need to serve on the front line of firearm-involved violence and suicide prevention initiatives, the vast majority have not actually received systematic, formal training on firearm-specific issues.

Findings

Therefore, many lack the professional and cultural competence to meet current and potential future in regard to addressing gun violence. In this paper, the authors discuss empirical studies that illustrate this reality and a novel model (i.e. the Know, Ask, Do framework) that medical and mental health professionals can use when firearm-related issues arise. In addition, the authors set forth considerations for clinicians to develop and maintain their professional and cultural competence related to firearms and firearm-related subcultures.

Originality/value

This paper provides empirical and conceptual support for medical and mental health programs to develop formal education and training related to guns, gun safety and gun culture. A framework is provided that can also assist medical and mental health professionals to develop and maintain their own professional and cultural competence.
The relativity of theory: applying theories of social psychology to illuminate the causes of the abuse of older people in care homes
Authors: Moore Steve
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Through the lens afforded by two theories drawn from the discipline of social psychology, the purpose of this paper is to explain the evident continuing abuse of adults at risk living in care homes by the staff who should be looking after them.

Design/methodology/approach

By considering existing theories and research into the reasons why vulnerable adults are abused the paper proposes the relevance of other extant theories on the degradation of moral restraint and dehumanisation of victims, and on the social psychology of intergroup relations, to the perpetration of abuse.

Findings

The paper demonstrates how theories that explain the psychology of human behaviour in certain circumstances may be usefully applied to the inveterate social problem of the abuse of vulnerable adults living in care homes.

Practical implications

The paper offers the opportunity for the reader to consider how these theories of social psychology may be applied to explain and guide remedies to the persistent levels of abuse in English care homes, abuse that continues despite government oversight of care provided to adults who may be at risk by virtue of the activities of the statutory regulator and health and social care commissioners, and the interventions of safeguarding personnel.

Originality/value

This is a conceptual paper from which future research and theorising may arise to better understand the most fundamental causes of the abuse of older people in care homes in order to develop feasible and effective measures to overcome it.
Matching-up celebrities’ brands with products and social causes
Authors: Santos Ana Luisa , Barros Filipa , Azevedo António
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Beyond traditional brand endorsement, many celebrities have in recent years decided to launch their own product lines, which may be used to promote their own celebrity brand. Which product categories or social causes match a celebrity’s brand personality? This study aims to investigate the antecedents of celebrity–product degree of fit and willingness to pay (WTP)/make a donation in different scenarios. The manipulation of the scenarios aims to capture the role of celebrity attributes, perceived personality profiles, product involvement and acceptance of social causes.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 335 respondents answered an online questionnaire with a factorial plan corresponding to 20 different matching scenarios: five celebrities/perceived personalities (Emma Watson, Jennifer Lawrence, Kim Kardashian, Natalie Portman and Scarlet Johansson) × four types of branding scenarios (a lipstick for low involvement; a watch for high involvement; an eco-foundation for “high social acceptance” and vodka for “low social acceptance/controversial”).

Findings

Scarlett Johansson obtained the highest degree of fit, both for launching her own brand of lipstick or a watch. Kim Kardashian had the best degree of fit for launching her own vodka brand, while Emma Watson’s attributes confirmed that she would be seen as the ideal founder of an eco-foundation. Significant predictors of WTP/make a donation were assessed by multiple linear regression for each type of product.

Practical implications

The paper provides recommendations that may help guide celebrity brand managers through the celebrity–product matching process.

Social implications

Celebrity branding in relation to social causes is also discussed in this paper.

Originality/value

This study explores a gap found in the literature as it explores the product match-up hypotheses within a celebrity branding context and moreover extends this investigation to social causes and products with different degrees of involvement and social acceptance.
A network view of entrepreneurial cognition in corporate entrepreneurship contexts
Authors: Thomas Nobin , Randolph Angela , Marin Alejandra
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Research in entrepreneurial cognition has called for a better understanding of interactions between contextual variables and cognitive processes. Based on previous work done on organizational learning and social networks, the purpose of this paper is to propose a formal model in which information acquisition, distribution and interpretation are tested as a function of cognition-based trust, perceived expertise and tie strength between organizational members in two different corporate entrepreneurship (CE) types.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conduct a quantitative analysis based on network data in two companies located in India. Special procedures known as quadratic assignment procedure and multiple regression quadratic assignment procedure were used to run the correlations and multiple regressions, respectively. The authors complement this analysis with interviews and qualitative information to build a rich description in each of these cases.

Findings

The results indicate moderate support for the model. The evidence suggests that between both types of CE types, domain redefinition requires higher levels of tie strength, trust and perceived expertise. Sustained regeneration shows moderate significant results in tie strength, and cognition-based trust.

Originality/value

The authors combined insights on social network and organizational cognitive processes to analyze interactions between context and cognition. The authors were also able to compare two different companies. The authors found consistent results regarding tie strength, but the authors also found differences between both companies, which suggest that different CE types tend to require different dynamics between context and cognitive processes.
Financial indicators, informational environment of emerging markets and stock returns
Authors: Takamatsu Renata Turola , Lopes Fávero Luiz Paulo
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the influence of the informational environment on the relevance of accounting information in companies traded in stock exchanges of emerging markets.

Design/methodology/approach

For this purpose, the authors calculated indicators based on figures derived from the financial statements and variables that sought to capture the influence of the economic and institutional environment. The sample consisted of publicly traded companies from 20 countries classified as emerging by Standard & Poors. Macroeconomic information was obtained through the International Country Risk Guide database. The analysis period ranged from 2004 to 2013, excluding missing data, variables considered as outliers, besides the exclusion of data from companies that presented negative equity.

Findings

It was observed that the financial variables presented signs consistent with the literature, except for the price-to-book variable and the asset change variable. The inclusion of variables related to the accounting informational environment offered evidence that the more opaque the accounting environment in the country, the lesser the ability of the profits to portray the variations of stock returns. The variable that captured the adoption of international standards was consistent with expectations, i.e. the adoption of international standards would increase the quality of accounting information, showing a positive signal. Moreover, the variable aggressiveness of the earnings was statistically significant and negative, consistent with the literature.

Research limitations/implications

The variables earnings smoothing and aversion to losses did not show the expected behaviour though, highlighting the possible limitations of these proxies used to capture the opacity of the earnings.

Originality/value

When institutional moderators were included, it was observed that the adoption of the IFRS standards positively affected the relationship, which is more relevant when the accounting figures were under its aegis. Recently, countless nations’ transition to international accounting standards has been justified by the need to use high-quality reporting standards. The research sought to contribute to strengthen this dimension, presenting evidence that the dummy variable included to capture the adoption of international standards had a positive effect on the relationship.
Shiunko and Chuoko, topical Kampo medicines, inhibit the expression of gehA encoding the extracellular lipase in Cutibacterium acnes
Authors: Nakase Keisuke , Tashiro Ayaka , Yamada Tetsuya , Ikoshi Hideaki , Noguchi Norihisa
Published: February 2019

Antimicrobial agents have been used for eradication of Cutibacterium (formerly Propionibacterium) acnes that is an exacerbation factor of the skin disease acne vulgaris. However, the use of antibiotics is associated with an increased risk of promoting the emergence of resistant bacteria and leading to skin dysbiosis. Traditional Japanese Kampo medicines, such as Keigairengyoto, are used to treat acne. However, there is incomplete understanding regarding their functional mechanism in treatment of acne. In this study, we examined the antimicrobial and anti‐lipase activity of the Kampo medicines used empirically for acne treatment. Three oral medicines, Keigairengyoto, Seijoboufuto and Jumihaidokuto, were found to inhibit the growth of C. acnes and decrease the lipase activity. Especially, Keigairengyoto caused remarkable decrease of bacterial lipase activity. Furthermore, topical medicines such as Shiunko and Chuoko significantly decreased the lipase activity in a dose‐dependent manner, without inhibiting C. acnes growth. The topical medicines were found to inhibit the expression of gehA, which codes for extracellular lipase. Our results indicate that Shiunko and Chuoko have potential as effective acne therapeutic agents, especially because they do not promote the emergence of antimicrobial‐resistant bacteria and skin dysbiosis.
Fish culling reduces tapeworm burden in Arctic charr by increasing parasite mortality rather than by reducing density‐dependent transmission
Authors: Henriksen Eirik H. , Frainer André , Knudsen Rune , Kristoffersen Roar , Kuris Armand M. , Lafferty Kevin D. , Amundsen Per‐Arne
Published: February 2019

Two common Dibothriocephalus (formerly Diphyllobothrium) tapeworm species were significantly reduced by experimental culling of their fish host Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in a subarctic lake.

Between 1984 and 1991, funnel traps were used to cull ~35 metric tons of Arctic charr, reducing charr density by ~80%. As charr densities decreased, tapeworm prevalence and then intensity also declined over the following three decades, with D. dendriticus (formerly dendriticum) responding faster than D. ditremus (formerly ditremum). The two main hypotheses for how culling a host can decrease parasitism are reductions in parasite transmission due to reduced host density and reductions in parasite survival through increases in host mortality rates.

We found little evidence that charr density was the main driver for reduced parasite transmission. Instead, decreased survivorship in charr, initially, through fishing‐induced changes in charr age structure, and later through increased predation rates by brown trout, led to increased parasite mortality. Although brown trout, which increased significantly after fish culling, are also hosts, they are often too big for the final host birds to eat, thus becoming parasite sinks.

Synthesis and applications. Fish populations with heavy parasite burdens constitute a management problem. Our results show how fish culling can indirectly reduce transmitted parasites through increased parasite mortality. Managing overcrowded fish populations by culling can produce two desirable outcomes: an increase in fish growth rates and reduced parasite burdens.
Children’s attitudes towards peers with learning disabilities – the role of perceived parental behaviour, contact experiences and self‐efficacy beliefs
Authors: Hellmich Frank , Loeper Marwin Felix
Published: February 2019

Children with special educational needs often feel lonely in classrooms, are less accepted by their classmates and have fewer friendships. Their classmates’ positive attitudes towards them are important for their social participation in inclusive classrooms. According to the theory of social referencing, children’s attitudes towards peers with special educational needs are influenced by the role model behaviour of their parents. Therefore, we examined the relevance of children’s perceptions of parental behaviour in terms of their attitudes towards peers with learning disabilities. This was done by investigating N = 753 children’s attitudes, depending on their perceptions of parental behaviour towards peers with special educational needs, their contact experiences and their self‐efficacy beliefs concerning their interpersonal skills. The results indicate that their attitudes are predicted by their perceptions of parental behaviour, their contact experiences and their self‐efficacy beliefs. The effect of perceived parental behaviour on children’s attitudes is mediated by their self‐efficacy beliefs.
Attitudes on the Size of Unemployment Benefits: Ideology and Numbers
Authors: Pedersen Rasmus T.
Published: February 2019

The divide separating the political left from right is often expressed in specific numbers. The proper size of unemployment benefits is a key example of such a disagreement, with the left generally favoring higher levels of benefits than the right. However, little is currently known about how voters make up their mind on such policy relevant numbers. Using two survey experiments, this article shows that while Danish voters’ attitudes on unemployment benefits are correlated with their ideological position, they may also be strongly affected by the ways in which politically relevant numbers are presented and elicited. Specifically, when making up their minds on such numbers, voters are highly susceptible to anchoring effects and a unit effect. Furthermore, voters are affected more by precise numbers than by round numbers. Together, these results suggest that political actors may in some cases move public opinion closer to specific policy positions simply by presenting the relevant numbers in certain ways.
The UK Domestic Gas Electricity (Tariff Cap) Act: Re‐regulating the Retail Energy Market
Authors: Ioannidou Maria , Mantzari Despoina
Published: February 2019

The UK retail energy market has witnessed multiple regulatory interventions since its liberalisation almost two decades ago. Such interventions reached their peak with the enactment of the UK Domestic Gas Electricity (Tariff Cap) Act in July 2018. The Act puts in place a requirement on the independent regulator, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), to set an absolute price cap on poor value tariffs. As such, it signals a repudiation of the overarching paradigm of consumer empowerment that has informed regulatory remedies to date. Rather than advocating for a different paradigm, this article highlights the difficulties inherent in reconciling price caps – both practically and conceptually – with the competitive process and consumer empowerment. It also discussses other instruments, not necessarily exhausted in retail price regulation, that can render affordable energy prices, without sacrificing consumer empowerment.
A case‐comparison study of pregnant women with mitochondrial disease – what to expect?
Authors: Feeney CL , Lim AZ , Fagan E , Blain A , Bright A , Maddison J , Devine H , Stewart J , Taylor RW , Gorman GS , Turnbull DM , Nesbitt V , McFarland R
Published: February 2019

Objective

Mitochondrial disease is a disorder of energy metabolism that affects 1 in 4300 adults in the UK. Pregnancy is associated with physiological demands that have implications for energy metabolism. We were interested to know how pregnancy was affected in women with mitochondrial disease, particularly those with the most common pathogenic mutation m.3243A>G.

Design

Retrospective case‐comparison study.

Population/Setting

Sixty‐seven women with genetically confirmed mitochondrial disease from the UK Mitochondrial Diseases Cohort and 69 unaffected women participated.

Methods

Participants answered questionnaires regarding each of their pregnancies. Patients were divided into two groups according to genetic mutation, with those harbouring m.3243A>G comprising a single group.

Main outcome measures

Pregnancy‐related complications, mode of delivery, gestational age and birthweight of newborns.

Results

Of 139 live births in the comparison group, 62 were in the m.3243A>G group and 87 were in the ‘all other mutations’ group. Pregnancies of women with the m.3243A>G mutation had significantly more gestational diabetes (odds ratio [OR] = 8.2, 95% CI 1.3–50.1), breathing difficulties (OR = 7.8, 95% CI 1.0–59.1) and hypertension (OR = 8.2, 95% CI 3.1–21.5) than the comparison group. Only half of the pregnancies in the m.3243A>G group had normal vaginal delivery, with emergency caesarean section accounting for 24.2% of deliveries. Babies were born significantly earlier to mothers harbouring m.3243A>G with 53.3% of them preterm (<37 weeks). These babies were also more likely to require resuscitation and admission.

Conclusion

Women who carried the m.3243A>G mutation appeared to be at higher risk of complications during pregnancies, caesarean section and preterm delivery than the unaffected women or those with other forms of mitochondrial disease.

Tweetable abstract

Pregnant women with mitochondrial disease – m.3243A>G mutation – are at greatly increased risk of complications and preterm delivery.