bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Crystal structure of the pseudoenzyme PDX1.2 in complex with its cognate enzyme PDX1.3: a total eclipse
Authors: Robinson Graham C. , Kaufmann Markus , Roux Céline , Martinez-Font Jacobo , Hothorn Michael , Thore Stéphane , Fitzpatrick Teresa B.
Published: April 2019

Pseudoenzymes have burst into the limelight recently as they provide another dimension to regulation of cellular protein activity. In the eudicot plant lineage, the pseudoenzyme PDX1.2 and its cognate enzyme PDX1.3 interact to regulate vitamin B6 biosynthesis. This partnership is important for plant fitness during environmental stress, in particular heat stress. PDX1.2 increases the catalytic activity of PDX1.3, with an overall increase in vitamin B6 biosynthesis. However, the mechanism by which this is achieved is not known. In this study, the Arabidopsis thaliana PDX1.2–PDX1.3 complex was crystallized in the absence and presence of ligands, and attempts were made to solve the X-ray structures. Three PDX1.2–PDX1.3 complex structures are presented: the PDX1.2–PDX1.3 complex as isolated, PDX1.2–PDX1.3-intermediate (in the presence of substrates) and a catalytically inactive complex, PDX1.2–PDX1.3-K97A. Data were also collected from a crystal of a selenomethionine-substituted complex, PDX1.2–PDX1.3-SeMet. In all cases the protein complexes assemble as dodecamers, similar to the recently reported individual PDX1.3 homomer. Intriguingly, the crystals of the protein complex are statistically disordered owing to the high degree of structural similarity of the individual PDX1 proteins, such that the resulting configuration is a composite of both proteins. Despite the differential methionine content, selenomethionine substitution of the PDX1.2–PDX1.3 complex did not resolve the problem. Furthermore, a comparison of the catalytically competent complex with a noncatalytic complex did not facilitate the resolution of the individual proteins. Interestingly, another catalytic lysine in PDX1.3 (Lys165) that pivots between the two active sites in PDX1 (P1 and P2), and the corresponding glutamine (Gln169) in PDX1.2, point towards P1, which is distinctive to the initial priming for catalytic action. This state was previously only observed upon trapping PDX1.3 in a catalytically operational state, as Lys165 points towards P2 in the resting state. Overall, the study shows that the integration of PDX1.2 into a heteromeric dodecamer assembly with PDX1.3 does not cause a major structural deviation from the overall architecture of the homomeric complex. Nonetheless, the structure of the PDX1.2–PDX1.3 complex highlights enhanced flexibility in key catalytic regions for the initial steps of vitamin B6 biosynthesis. This report highlights what may be an intrinsic limitation of X-ray crystallography in the structural investigation of pseudoenzymes.
Building and rebuilding N-glycans in protein structure models
Authors: van Beusekom Bart , Wezel Natasja , Hekkelman Maarten L. , Perrakis Anastassis , Emsley Paul , Joosten Robbie P.
Published: April 2019

N-Glycosylation is one of the most common post-translational modifications and is implicated in, for example, protein folding and interaction with ligands and receptors. N-Glycosylation trees are complex structures of linked carbohydrate residues attached to asparagine residues. While carbohydrates are typically modeled in protein structures, they are often incomplete or have the wrong chemistry. Here, new tools are presented to automatically rebuild existing glycosylation trees, to extend them where possible, and to add new glycosylation trees if they are missing from the model. The method has been incorporated in the PDB-REDO pipeline and has been applied to build or rebuild 16 452 carbohydrate residues in 11 651 glycosylation trees in 4498 structure models, and is also available from the PDB-REDO web server. With better modeling of N-glycosylation, the biological function of this important modification can be better and more easily understood.
An embodied approach to consumer experiences: the Hollister brandscape
Authors: Stevens Lorna , Maclaran Pauline , Brown Stephen
Published: April 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to use embodied theory to analyze consumer experience in a retail brandscape, Hollister Co. By taking a holistic, embodied approach, this study reveals how individual consumers interact with such retail environments in corporeal, instinctive and sensual ways.

Design/methodology/approach

The primary source of data was 97 subjective personal introspective accounts undertaken with the target age group for the store. These were supplemented with in-depth interviews with consumers, managers and employees of Hollister.

Findings

The authors offer a conceptualization of consumers’ embodied experience, which they term The Immersive Somascape Experience. This identifies four key touch points that evoke the Hollister store experience – each of which reveals how the body is affected by particular relational and material specificities. These are sensory activation, brand materialities, corporeal relationality and (dis)orientation. These may lead to consumer emplacement.

Research limitations/implications

The authors propose that taking an “intelligible embodiment” approach to consumer experiences in retail contexts provides a deeper, more holistic understanding of the embodied processes involved. They also suggest that more anthropological, body-grounded studies are needed for the unique insights they provide. Finally, they note that there is growing consumer demand for experiences, which, they argue, points to the need for more research from an embodied experience perspective in our field.

Practical implications

The study reveals the perils and pitfalls of adopting a sensory marketing perspective. It also offers insights into how the body leads in retail brandscapes, addressing a lack in such approaches in the current retailing literature and suggesting that embodied, experiential aspects of branding are increasingly pertinent in retailing in light of the continued growth of on-line shopping.

Originality/value

Overall, the study shows how an embodied approach challenges the dominance of mind and representation over body and materiality, suggesting an “intelligible embodiment” lens offers unique insights into consumers’ embodied experiences in retail environments.
Determinants of locals’ heritage resource protection and conservation responsibility behaviors
Authors: Gursoy Dogan , Zhang Chaozhi , Chi Oscar Hengxuan
Published: April 2019

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the antecedents of local residents’ heritage resource protection and conservation responsibility behaviors that were identified based on the conceptual premises of value orientation and identity theories for the purpose of providing further insight into the impact of residents’ identity on their responsibility behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed model explores the impacts of place identity, place satisfaction and personal norms on local residents’ heritage resource protection and conservation responsibility behaviors, which was tested following a two-step structural equation modeling process using data (N= 221) collected from a very popular heritage tourism destination, Phoenix Old Town, in China.

Findings

Findings show that value orientation and identity theories provide strong conceptual frameworks for the relationships among place identity, place satisfaction and personal norms and their impacts on heritage responsibility behavior.

Practical implications

This research identifies critical factors influencing residents’ heritage responsibility behaviors in China. Improving residents’ identification and satisfaction with a place can have positive impacts on their understanding of heritage protection responsibility and their intention to take responsible actions for heritage resource protection and conservation.

Originality/value

This study addresses a research gap regarding residents’ role in the protection and conservation of heritage resources through developing and empirically testing a theoretical model that incorporates residents’ identity and responsibility perspectives.
A model on the viscoelastic behavior of sewn knitted fabrics
Authors: Shekarian Reyhaneh , Hejazi Sayyed Mahdi , Sheikhzadeh Mohammad
Published: April 2019

Purpose

Knitted fabrics have been widely used in a wide range of applications such as apparel industry. Since these fabrics are continuously subjected to the long-term tensile stresses or tensile creep in real conditions, investigation of viscoelastic behavior of sewn knitted fabrics would be important especially at the seamed area. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

A lockstitch machine was used to produce sewn samples by knitted fabric. Factors such as stitch per inch (SPI), thread tension and thread type were variables of the model. Tensile creep tests under constant load of 200 N were conducted, and creep compliance parameter D(t) of samples was obtained as a response variable. A successive residual method (SRM) was also used to characterize viscoelastic properties of sewn-seamed fabrics.

Findings

The instantaneous elastic responses of the seamed samples were less than those of the neat fabric (fabric with no seam). An increase in sewing thread strength increases the instantaneous elastic response of the sample. SPI and thread tension have an optimum value to increase E0. High tenacity polyester thread, due to its higher elastic modulus, caused a larger E0 than polyester/cotton thread in sewn knitted fabric. Characteristics of seam including sewing thread type, SPI and sewing tension have significant influence on T0. Sewn-seamed fabric by high modulus thread shows less viscous strain T0 than the neat fabric (fabric with no seam). Viscous strain T0 decreases as SPI changes from 8 to 4 and/or 12. SPI and thread tension have an optimum value to increase the viscous strain T0. E1 is the same for optimum seamed fabric and fabric sample but T1 is about two times greater for seamed fabric. Retarded time for creep recovery increases by sewing process but characteristics of seam have significant influence on E1 and T1. All sewn knitted fabric samples used in this study could be described by Burger’s model, which is a Maxwell model paralleled with a Kelvin one.

Originality/value

This paper is going to use a different method named successive residuals to model the creep behavior of seamed knitted fabric. On the whole, this paper paved a way to obtain viscoelastic constants of sewn-seamed knitted fabrics based on different sewing parameters such as the modulus of elasticity of the sewing thread, SPI and sewing thread tension.
Financial access and economic development: the moderating role of financial consumer protection
Authors: Kriese Maryam , Abor Joshua Yindenaba , Agbloyor Elikplimi
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of financial consumer protection (FCP) in the access–development nexus.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on cross-country data on 102 countries surveyed in the World Bank Global Survey on FCP and Financial Literacy (2013). The White heteroscedasticity adjusted regressions and Two-stage least squares regressions (2SLS) are used for the estimation.

Findings

Interactions between FCP regulations that foster fair treatment, disclosure, dispute resolution and recourse and financial access have positive net effects on economic development. However, there is no sufficient evidence to suggest that interactions between financial access and enforcement and compliance monitoring regulations have a significant effect on economic development.

Practical implications

First, policy makers should continue with efforts aimed at instituting FCP regimes as part of strategies aimed at broadening access to financial services for enhanced economic development. Second, instituting FCP regimes per se may not be enough. Policy makers need to consider possible intervening factors such as the provision of adequate resources and supervisory authority, for compliance monitoring and enforcement to achieve the expected positive effect on economic development.

Originality/value

This study extends evidence in the law–finance–growth literature by providing empirical evidence on the effect of legal institution specific to the protection of retail financial consumers on the access–development nexus using a nouvel data set, the World Bank Global survey on FCP and Financial Literacy (2013).
Management accounting and organizational change: alternative perspectives
Authors: Alsharari Nizar M.
Published: April 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to discuss the alternative perspectives for studying management accounting and organizational change. It provides a comprehensive basis for the research of accounting and organizational change conducted in terms of theories used, influential factors, systems applied, dynamics and aspects of change.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper applies a “theoretical framework” for studying accounting and organizational change based on obtaining an institutional perspective. By achieving this theoretic construction in the integration of a number of different works, this can summarize the common elements, contrast the differences and work in a way that extends the methodology. It is determined exclusively on a hybrid approach through the adoption of alternative perspectives and complements recent recommendations for bridge building and methodological pluralism among the different debates and perspectives concerning accounting and organizational change research.

Findings

The findings emphasize that the nature of organizational change is not static, rather, it is dynamic and varying over time. Organizational changes are occurring in both extra- and intra-organizational factors that shaped changes in accounting systems in organizations. The study concludes that accounting and organizational change literature has divided theoretical strands into two main perspectives: rational perspectives and interpretive and critical perspectives. Rational perspectives represented by the conventional mainstream of research can be classified into two approaches, normative economic models and positive economic models, which are grounded in neoclassical economic theories. On the other hand, the interpretive and critical perspectives emerged as alternatives to rational perspectives to explain accounting and organizational change within its broader social and economic context.

Research limitations/implications

The paper has significant implications for the ways in which change dynamics can emerge, diffuse and implement at multilevel of institutional analysis. It also explains the interaction between the accounting and organizational change, which identified that change is both shaped by, and shaping, wider socio-economic and political processes. This broad sensitivity to the nature of change has important implications for the ways of studying accounting and organizational change. Hence, it has important implications for the way in which successful change can be defined in accounting and organizational change literature.

Originality/value

The study contributes to both accounting and organizational change literature by providing a comprehensive review about the development of institutional theory as it examines how the organization is simultaneously subjected to a high level of efficiency and considerable institutional demands. Thereafter, the domain of accounting and organizational change research itself will be extended.
Transitions towards omni-channel retailing strategies: a business model perspective
Authors: Jocevski Milan , Arvidsson Niklas , Miragliotta Giovanni , Ghezzi Antonio , Mangiaracina Riccardo
Published: April 2019

Purpose

Digitalisation has been identified as a driving force behind retail sector transformation. The purpose of this paper is to provide a deeper understanding of how omni-channel strategies link to the digitalisation phenomenon. The study is explorative in nature and aims to expand existing knowledge by using a business model (BM) perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a qualitative approach. Data collection involved a questionnaire answered by 13 firms from three retail segments (i.e. fashion, consumer electronics and bookstores and media) and a group discussion with senior managers. The data were complemented with information from websites, applications and available online reports.

Findings

The findings present empirical insights about different strategic and BM approaches to omni-channel retailing and highlight examples of pioneering retailers from the Italian market. The proposed framework consolidates earlier studies and puts forward three dimensions for a successful transition to omni-channel retailing BMs: a seamless customer experience, an integrated analytics system and an effective supply chain and logistics.

Practical implications

Managers can employ an overview of mobile commerce usage to manage the process of integrating channels, within their BMs, alongside the customer journey. Particular attention should be paid to development and the use of data analytics tools as one of the dimensions with a significant impact on omni-channel management.

Originality/value

First, this paper applies a BM perspective as a novel approach for analysing a transition to omni-channel retailing. Second, it is based on empirical analysis of three retail segments, which provide new insights into omni-channel strategies in the retailing literature.
Sharing economy: seeing through the fog
Authors: Trabucchi Daniel , Muzellec Laurent , Ronteau Sébastien
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to delineate the current state of the art of sharing economy (SE) research and practice. It provides a new framework to help managers and academics to consider this field with the right managerial and theoretical lenses.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature on the SE was conducted, resulting in the analysis of 114 articles in the management literature. This was completed by the empirical investigations of business model and industry of 32 members of three national associations promoting SE: SE UK, Ireland and Denmark.

Findings

Papers dealing with SE themes focus on consumers’ motivations, impact on the society, market and policy, as well as the revenue model. SE businesses can be differentiated depending on whether their assets are new or re-used and the transaction is permanent or temporary. Based on this matrix, the study reveals four archetypes of SE businesses: “on-demand renters,” “lifecycle extenders,” “seller aggregators” and “ephemeral matchmakers.”

Research limitations/implications

The paper outlines a significant gap between what is current focus of the academic literature and the reality of SE purposes and businesses. This provides goals for future research.

Practical implications

The framework and clustering of business model archetypes may help managers and entrepreneurs dealing with SE to better understand the underlying value drivers behind those business models.

Originality/value

There are some discrepancies between the SE themes emerging from the management literature and the business model diversity of SE companies. This research aims at helping scholars and managers to position themselves in the field.
Antecedents and role of individual sociability on participation in mobile collaborative consumption
Authors: Zhang Yicheng , Phang Chee Wei , Gu Rui , Zhang Chenghong
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate what may influence participation in mobile collaborative consumption (CC). In particular, the authors investigate the effects of individual sociability and psychological antecedents including enjoyment, social connection, altruistic motivation, reputation, trust and embarrassment on the participation intention in this emerging phenomenon, as well as their relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey approach was employed to validate the research model.

Findings

Hedonic factor, i.e. enjoyment, and social-related factors including altruistic motivation, reputation and embarrassment emerge as important antecedents of participation in mobile CC. On top of these factors, individual sociability plays an important role, by acting as a direct antecedent of the dependent variable, while also influencing their perceived greater altruistic motivation and reputation from participating in the CC. Yet, sociability has no significant effect on perceived enjoyment and embarrassment associated with the activity, suggesting that addressing these factors may encourage individuals with low sociability to participate.

Originality/value

This study taps into mobile technology to support CC in daily consumption activities, and highlights the factors that influence people’s participation in such activities. More importantly, the findings suggest that while it is more likely for individuals with high sociability to participate in this emerging form of social activities, for consumers with low sociability, addressing the enjoyment aspect and embarrassment issue of the activities may nonetheless promote their participation.
Building African Agribusiness through Trust and Accountability
Authors: Franklin Kristin , Oehmke James
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the social institutions of trust, accountability and corporate shared value in creating an enabling environment for private sector investment in African agricultural and food systems.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses mixed methods. A value chain framework models interactions among stakeholders in the agriculture, agribusiness and food sectors. The social institutions of accountability and trust are introduced into the model, followed by a Rwanda premium coffee value chain case study.

Findings

The conceptual and case study results show that best practices can increase smallholder farmer, agricultural service provider, financial intermediary, and food processor investments in and benefits from the agriculture sector.

Research limitations/implications

Further research is needed on the economic foundations of development cooperation based on trust, accountability and shared values, best practices and the link with desired societal outcomes, such as the sustainable development goals.

Social implications

Mutual accountability processes, as they are maturing in Africa, are at the cutting edge of creating processes where multiple stakeholders, including agribusiness, can come together to make joint commitments to a shared development agenda, and where stakeholders hold themselves and others accountable for meeting these commitments.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to bring together cutting-edge advances in corporate shared values, trust and accountability in the context of African agricultural and agribusiness development.
Management accounting research on farms: what is known and what needs knowing?
Authors: Ndemewah Sinclear R. , Menges Kevin , Hiebl Martin R.W.
Published: April 2019

Purpose

It is difficult to develop an overall picture of the practice of management accounting (MA) in farms and farm enterprises (FEs) because little research has been published on the topic, and these studies are mostly discrete and unconnected to the others. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the available research, develop an explanatory framework for MA practices in farming entities and identify some major avenues for future research on the topic.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses systematic literature review methods. After an extensive database search and an examination of references/citations, 41 empirical journal articles published between 1964 and 2016 are identified, described and analyzed in this research paper.

Findings

The findings reveal that the practice of MA in farms is subject to information problems and that the empirical research on this topic largely lacks a theoretical explanation. Therefore, the explanatory framework of MA practices in farming entities reveals that these practices are subject to influencing factors such as familism, government farm policies, market competition, technological changes, the seasons and the weather/climate.

Research limitations/implications

The overall limited findings on the practice of MA in FEs indicate that caution should be taken when generalizing the current knowledge on the use of MA practices in other organizational forms to farming entities. Moreover, future research should draw on explicit theories to explain empirical results.

Originality/value

This paper is the first comprehensive literature review of studies on MA practices in farms and FEs.
The SEC brings its first enforcement action under the identity theft red flags rule
Authors: Martinez Vincente L. , Jacobson Julia B. , Iheanacho Nancy C.
Published: April 2019

Purpose

To explain the significance of the first enforcement action under the Identity Theft Red Flags Rule by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which was announced on September 26, 2018.

Design/methodology/approach

Explains how the SEC’s order not only cites violations of the Safeguards Rule under Regulation S-P (a staple of SEC cybersecurity enforcement actions against broker-dealers and investment advisers) but also is the SEC’s first enforcement action for a violation of the Identity Theft Red Flags Rule under Regulation S-ID, which requires certain SEC registrants to create and implement policies to detect, prevent and mitigate identity theft.

Findings

Cybersecurity policies and procedures must match business risks and change as business risks change.

Originality/value

Practical guidance from experienced cybersecurity and privacy lawyers.
How responsible leadership predicts organizational citizenship behavior for the environment in China
Authors: Han Zhiyong , Wang Qun , Yan Xiang
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating effect of felt obligation for constructive change on the relationship between responsible leadership and organizational citizenship behavior for the environment (OCBE) in a China corporate environment, and this paper also analyze the moderated mediating effect of supervisor-subordinate guanxi on indirect relationship between responsible leadership and OCBE via felt obligation for constructive change.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper used 380 employee samples to analyze the relationship between responsible leadership and OCBE. Hierarchical regression analyses and structural equation modeling was adopted to analyze the data.

Findings

The authors found that the felt obligation for constructive change plays a fully mediating role between responsible leadership and OCBE. The authors also found a positive interaction between responsible leadership and supervisor-subordinate guanxi on felt obligation for constructive change, and then the indirect effect of responsible leadership on OCBE via felt obligation for constructive change was stronger when employees perceived a high-level supervisor-subordinate guanxi.

Research limitations/implications

When responsible leadership stimulates employees to generate a high sense of constructive change, employees are more likely to engage in OCBE. This study provides evidence for cognitive evaluation theory. This study further demonstrated the importance of establishing high-quality supervisor-subordinate guanxi for responsible leaders and subordinates in China.

Practical implications

In the management practice of the organization, the role of responsible leadership should be strengthened in terms of leadership development and, employee training and promotion, and high-quality supervisor-subordinate guanxi help to promote the effectiveness of responsible leadership.

Originality/value

This paper discusses how and when responsible leadership influences OCBE in a China corporate environment.
Immersive spatial narratives as a framework for augmenting creativity in foresight-based learning systems
Authors: Woodgate Derek
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The ability to project oneself into a future landscape is a critical aspect for studying and practicing the science of foresight and foresight-based learning systems. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how we can construct immersive spatial narratives through multimedia-enhanced learning approaches, to increase deeper learner immersion and levels of creativity to transport the learner into a simulated 2030 landscape by reducing the distance between the projected reality and the Self.

Design/methodology/approach

The author designed a foresight-based course on the Future of Mobile Learning underpinned by a new learning system that embraced the concept of immersive spatial narratives, combining physical, virtual and cognitive learning spaces, which enable students to explore complex, undiscovered or unstructured knowledge. Practicing was carried out on 35 students who had completed the course during the preceding three years through a questionnaire and interviews to establish increased levels of creativity in a simulated future landscape.

Findings

The paper established that the addition of multimedia learning environments and tools to foresight-based learning creates immersive spatial narratives that increase creativity and learner ability to project him/herself into a simulated future landscape. In all, 75 per cent of the respondents stated that having to think about the future and place themselves in a practicing landscape increased their creative skills.

Originality/value

A new, foresight-based learning system driven by the concept of immersive spatial narratives, enhanced with student-created multimedia learning tools. The system demonstrated how this approach helps to increase learner creativity and the ability to transition from their Present Self to their Future Self.
Antecedents of stakeholder management in public private partnership projects in Uganda
Authors: Mwesigwa Rogers , Bagire Vincent , Ntayi Joseph Mpeera , Munene John C.
Published: April 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess stakeholder management antecedents in public private partnership (PPP) projects in Uganda.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is cross sectional and quantitative in nature. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire survey from a sample of 94 PPP projects in Uganda. Stratified random sampling was used in selecting projects for this study. Smart PLS–SEM was used for analysis.

Findings

Results from the study show that the key antecedents of stakeholder management include; communication, engagement, commitment and trust. Communication was found to be the strongest antecedent of stakeholder management. Results also show that trust and commitment are insignificantly associated with stakeholder management in PPP projects.

Research limitations/implications

This paper is limited to the antecedents of stakeholder management in PPP projects in Uganda. Further studies should be conducted in the public and private sectors where there are also multiple stakeholders.

Practical implications

The paper has documented the antecedents of stakeholder management in PPP projects in Uganda. The results will help project managers and policy makers appreciate the different antecedents of stakeholder management and how they are important in managing interests and expectations of different stakeholders.

Originality/value

This research focused on the key antecedents of stakeholder management in PPP projects within the Ugandan context.
Which trees die during drought? The key role of insect host‐tree selection
Authors: Stephenson Nathan L. , Das Adrian J. , Ampersee Nicholas J. , Bulaon Beverly M. , Yee Julie L.
Published: April 2019

During drought, the tree subpopulations (such as size or vigour classes) that suffer disproportionate mortality can be conceptually arrayed along a continuum defined by the actions of biotic agents, particularly insects. At one extreme, stress dominates: insects are absent or simply kill the most physiologically stressed trees. At the opposite extreme, host selection dominates: outbreaking insects kill trees independently of their stress, instead selecting trees based on size or other traits. Intermediate responses are also possible. Yet for mixed‐species forests, we lack a broad understanding of the relative importance of insects in determining exactly which subpopulations of trees suffer disproportionate mortality during drought, and whether these subpopulations differ among co‐occurring tree species.

During an extreme drought, we documented the roles of native bark beetles in the mortality of five tree species in California’s Sierra Nevada. We analysed the patterns and agents of tree mortality in 12 permanent plots and the patterns of mortality in 89 temporary plots.

Most tree mortality was associated with bark beetles. However, the growth rates (an indicator of chronic stress) and sizes of trees that suffered greatest bark beetle‐related mortality differed sharply among tree taxa, variously conforming with domination by stress (Abies concolor), domination by host selection (Pinus lambertiana and P. ponderosa) or a mix of the two (Calocedrus decurrens). Quercus kelloggii mortality remained relatively low. Thus, even during extreme drought substantial proportions of stressed trees survived because they were of sizes that mostly avoided fatal insect attack. Conversely, substantial proportions of comparatively unstressed trees died because they were of sizes that were selectively killed by outbreaking insects.

Synthesis. Native bark beetles were primarily responsible for determining which subpopulations of trees suffered greatest mortality during drought. However, idiosyncratic host‐tree selection by the different bark beetle taxa meant that the tree subpopulations suffering greatest mortality differed strikingly among tree taxa—for example, high mortality of small trees of one species, but of large trees of another. If idiosyncratic host‐tree selection by biotic mortality agents proves to be a generally common phenomenon, it could help explain weak broadscale correlations between tree traits and tree mortality during drought.
The effect of drought and season on root life span in temperate arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal tree species
Authors: Liese Rebecca , Leuschner Christoph , Meier Ina C.
Published: April 2019

Fine roots play a key role in carbon (C) and nutrient cycling, since fine root life span drives soil organic C input and, thus, nitrogen (N) availability. The two main fungal symbioses found in temperate forest trees, ectomycorrhizae (ECM) and arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM), induce different root morphological changes upon infection, but the consequences for root life span are not clear.

We explored differences in fine root life span between four AM and four ECM tree species using mini‐rhizotrons in a factorial drought experiment in large mesocosms.

Median root life span of young AM and ECM trees differed fundamentally in its response to soil moisture and season of root birth; ECM root life span was reduced from 176 to 81 days in dry soil compared to moist soil, independent of season. By contrast, AM root life span was less responsive to drought, but decreased from 185 to 127 days when comparing roots produced early in the growing season versus mid‐season. In both mycorrhizal types, root life span was positively related to root diameter and negatively to the portion of lower order roots.

Synthesis. While our results indicate morphological and architectural traits that predict root life span across tree species, they also indicate fundamental differences in the environmental response of root life span in young AM and ECM trees. This knowledge helps to improve global predictions of root life span.
The endophyte Serendipita indica reduces the sodium content of Arabidopsis plants exposed to salt stress: fungal ENA ATPases are expressed and regulated at high pH and during plant co‐cultivation in salinity
Authors: Lanza Mónica , Haro Rosario , Conchillo Lorena B. , Benito Begoña
Published: April 2019

Serendipita indica (formerly Piriformospora indica) is an endophytic fungus that colonizes plant roots producing a beneficial effect on plant growth and development under optimal and suboptimal conditions provoked by any biotic or abiotic stress, such as salt stress. Salinity induces osmotic and ionic imbalances in plants, mainly by altering the Na+ and K+ contents. However, the mechanism by which Serendipita improves plant growth has yet to be elucidated. Previous works suggest that this fungus improves the plant osmotic state but not much is known about whether it participates in readjustment of the ionic imbalance in plants. Here, we report that co‐cultivation with Serendipita reduces the Na+ content of Arabidopsis plants under saline conditions. Additionally, we describe the functional characterization of the two Serendipita ENA ATPases, which are homologous to the main proteins involved in the salt tolerance of other fungi. Their heterologous expression in salt‐sensitive yeast mutants shows that SiENA1 is involved in Na+ and K+ efflux, while SiENA5 seems to only be involved in Na+ detoxification. Both are induced and might have a relevant function at alkaline pH, condition in which there are few chlamydospores in the mycelium, as well as during co‐cultivation with plants exposed to saline conditions.
Uncertainty and the Governance of Street Vending: A Critical Comparison Across the North/South Divide
Authors: Tucker Jennifer Lee , Devlin Ryan Thomas
Published: April 2019

Through a critical comparison of the spatial management of street vending in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay and New York City, USA, we show how uncertainty enables the management of vending and urban space. By uncertainty, we mean a condition characterized by legal complexity and negotiable enforcement of laws and regulations. Putting New York and Ciudad del Este in dialogue, we demonstrate that these negotiated legalities are not limited to Southern urbanisms, nor are they remnants of unmodern social forms. We find similarities in how vendors experience and negotiate uncertainty, even as divergent mechanisms link uncertainty and inequality. By claiming streets as sites of work, vendors challenge dominant notions of global urbanism which conceive of sidewalks as sites of circulation, rather than livelihood. Especially in Ciudad del Este, vendors know the biases of law, and ground their claims to livelihood in ethics rather than legal compliance. Yet vendors’ claims can also reinscribe hierarchical relationships with frontline enforcers and reinforce exclusionary notions of rights based in productive citizenship. Understanding how uncertainty works as a logic of governing helps expose these unavoidable tensions and therefore to imagine and construct pathways toward more just urban economies.
Red Chicory (Cichorium intybus) Extract Rich in Anthocyanins: Chemical Stability, Antioxidant Activity, and Antiproliferative Activity In Vitro
Authors: Migliorini Aline Alves , Piroski Camila Sztoltz , Daniel Taiana Gomes , Cruz Thiago Mendanha , Escher Graziela Bragueto , Vieira do Carmo Mariana Araújo , Azevedo Luciana , Marques Mariza Boscacci , Granato Daniel , Rosso Neiva Deliberali
Published: April 2019

Red chicory leaves are appreciated sensorially and their constituents contain bioactive properties. The objectives of this study were as follows: to use an experimental design to extract anthocyanins from red chicory in aqueous solution at pH 2.5; to determine the stability of the extracts in relation to temperature and pH; and to evaluate the antioxidant activity and in vitro cytotoxic effect of the lyophilized and purified extracts. The best extraction conditions for the bioactive compounds from red chicory were a temperature of 64.2 °C for 25 min; the anthocyanin content was 73.53 ± 0.13 mg per 100 g fresh weight basis sample. The EC50 (Half maximal effective concentration) value for the antioxidant activity assay in relation to DPPH (2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl) with optimized extract was 0.363, which corresponds to a concentration of 39.171 µmol/L of anthocyanins. The activation energy for the degradation reaction of the anthocyanins from the red chicory extract was 84.88 kJ/mol. The optimized extract, which was rich in anthocyanins, showed chemical and biological antioxidant activity (protection against erythrocyte hemolysis) and inhibited lipid peroxidation in vitro. The Cichorium intybus L. extracts interfered on the levels of reactive oxygen species generation and the crude extract did not present procarcinogenic effect.

Practical Application

Red chicory is basically consumed as a part of traditional dishes worldwide. Here, we developed a process to extract and purify the anthocyanins from Cichorium intybus leaves and test the extracts in terms of the chemical composition, thermal stability, antioxidant activity, and antiproliferative effects. The anthocyanin‐rich extract presented antioxidant activity in chemical and biological assays and low cytotoxicity and cytoprotective effects in relation to HepG2, HCT8, and Caco‐2 cell lines. Additionally, the red chicory extract protected human erythrocytes against hemolysis. This extract may be used as a natural colorant/antioxidant in foods.
Effectiveness of regional medical schools in attracting and retaining students for early‐career practice in the local area: The James Cook University experience
Authors: Woolley Torres , Ray Robin Adelle
Published: April 2019

Objective

The regionally based James Cook University medical school in northern Australia has focused its selection processes and curriculum on recruiting, training and graduating doctors to address local workforce needs. This study investigates if James Cook University's regionally based medical school model promotes graduates undertaking internship in local regional hospitals.

Design, setting & participants

Cross‐sectional survey of final year James Cook University Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery graduates towards the end of the 2016 and 2017 academic years (n = 207; response rate = 58%).

Main outcome measure

Multivariate (binary outcomes) logistic regression analysis identified the personal and curriculum factors predicting students' choice to do their internship in northern Australia supported by content analysis of free text responses to expand on quantitative associations.

Results

Students applied to medicine at James Cook University because there was: “an undergraduate program” (62%); “reputation for a good course/quality graduates” (59%); and “interest in rural medicine or Indigenous health” (39%). Internship in northern Australian hospitals was predicted by: “familiarity with the hospital in Years 5 and 6”; “having a northern Australia hometown at time of application to medical school”; “an interest in rural medicine or Indigenous health”; and “interns have better learning experiences in regional teaching hospitals”.

Conclusion

The findings suggest regionally based medical schools can promote early‐career rural practice by incorporating purposive selection, a rurally focused curriculum supported by quality clinical training experiences in local hospitals and a sufficient number of locally available intern places. However, it is likely regionally based medical schools also require locally available specialty training pathways to support rural practice in the longer term.
Mechanical Performance of Historical Wrought Iron Rods
Authors: Matteis P. , Scavino G.
Published: April 2019

Historical masonry buildings are often reinforced with ferrous tie rods. Before the late 18th century, such rods were hot formed by using wrought iron deriving from either the bloomery or the finery process; thereafter, the puddling process was introduced and gradually became prevalent. Several such tie rods are still in service in cultural‐heritage buildings; their analysis can shed light on historical production processes and building techniques, and knowledge of their mechanical performance can be valuable for architectural conservation purposes. Four steel tie rods, which were retrieved from a 17th century masonry building in Turin, Italy, and are dated to the late 17th and early 19th centuries, are examined here, by means of chemical and microstructural analyses, tensile tests and fractographic examinations, and both the material fabrication procedure and its mechanical performance are discussed.
Disaster preparedness among households in the Badakhshan Province in Afghanistan: A baseline evaluation study
Authors: Augustine Johny , Kokkammadathil Vivek C. , Manikoth Rajeev M.
Published: April 2019

This paper presents a critical analysis of the level of disaster preparedness among households in the Badakhshan Province in Afghanistan. Based on an analysis of baseline data collected as part of a project aimed at strengthening the disaster response in this province, this paper emphasizes the complexities of disaster preparedness among Afghan households, including a critical gap in knowledge, a lack of resources, and limitations in existing community responses to disasters. The findings reveal that less economic security, less knowledge of emergencies and emergency plans, being a female head of household, and having prior disaster experience tended to predict lower levels of preparedness among households. Disaster‐preparedness interventions targeted at improving the knowledge of hazards and hazard plans, as well as enhancing the livelihood and income security of affected households, could minimize the negative impact of disasters. Because most households relied on social networks and indigenous preparedness measures, future research should examine the nature of such measures and their effectiveness in mitigating the impact of disasters on this population.
Face averages and multiple images in a live matching task
Authors: Ritchie Kay L. , Mireku Michael O. , Kramer Robin S. S.
Published: April 2019

We know from previous research that unfamiliar face matching (determining whether two simultaneously presented images show the same person or not) is very error‐prone. A small number of studies in laboratory settings have shown that the use of multiple images or a face average, rather than a single image, can improve face matching performance. Here, we tested 1,999 participants using four‐image arrays and face averages in two separate live matching tasks. Matching a single image to a live person resulted in numerous errors (79.9% accuracy across both experiments), and neither multiple images (82.4% accuracy) nor face averages (76.9% accuracy) improved performance. These results are important when considering possible alterations which could be made to photo‐ID. Although multiple images and face averages have produced measurable improvements in performance in recent laboratory studies, they do not produce benefits in a real‐world live face matching context.