bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
At differing scales: the commonalities between green leasing and urban FM from the perspectives of sustainable urban development projects
Authors: Collins Dave
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to look at what Urban Facilities Management (FM) and Green Leasing have in common and the degree to which they are ultimately reliant on one another. Whilst both are similar in terms of their placement in organizational management, Green Leasing is a building level concept whilst Urban FM is at the community level. The primary purpose of this paper is to show how the commonalities of both can strengthen one another and offer tangible possibilities to improve the sustainable credentials of urban development projects.

Design/methodology/approach

This study will be conducted with a mixed-methods approach. Firstly, a literature study will determine the commonalities between both concepts, and the degree to which they rely on one another to work effectively in projects. The second method will be a cross-sectional case study. Using existing cases that use both (either implicitly or explicitly), the study can demonstrate how these commonalities and reliabilities can offer tangible outputs to real work projects. These will then be combined in a case study to demonstrate many of these aspects in a real-world setting.

Findings

The finding demonstrates that there are commonalities between Green Leasing and Urban FM at all levels of organizational management and that the success of both requires holistic consideration of each other, as well as other aspects such as FM and citizen participation. The success and failure of projects are depending upon considering these aspects. By not considering the buildings and community levels as separation aspects, but more as different levels of the same project, multi-level considerations can contribute to the success of urban development projects.

Originality/value

The commonalities between Urban FM and Green Leasing are profound and do not just show the value of holistic thinking, but also the inclusion of other considerations such as FM to reduce project failure and long-term project viability. This can add value to the study of not just Urban FM and Green Leasing, but also FM more generally, architectural design and urban planning.
Effects of entrepreneurial orientation, marketing, and innovation capabilities, on market performance: the mediating effect of sustainable competitive advantage
Authors: Elgarhy Sayed Darwish , Abou-Shouk Mohamed
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the direct/indirect effects of sustainable competitive advantage (SCA) antecedents (entrepreneurial orientation, marketing capability, innovation capability and marketing innovation) on market performance (MP) in travel agencies.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was used for data collection randomly from 315 managers in travel agencies and structural equation modelling was used for testing research hypotheses.

Findings

The findings of this study showed that SCA is a partial mediator between SCA antecedents and MP. SCA antecedents significantly improve the prediction of travel agencies’ MP.

Practical implications

This study offers useful insights to managers, services providers and marketers of travel services who seek to achieve competitive positions and strengthen their marketing and innovation capabilities to support their survival in the travel supply chain in an accelerated technological changeable travel and tourism market.

Originality/value

The literature review lacks an integrated model that investigates the effect of SCA and its antecedents on MP. The introduced research model provides a deep insight into the mediating role of SCA in improving business performance.
Particulate matter source attribution and restaurant mitigation behavioral intentions: an application of attribution theory
Authors: Jang Eunyoo , Yoo Joanne Jung-Eun , Cho Meehee
Published: October 2022

Purpose

As commercial cooking is known as a source that generates great concentrations of particulate matter (PM) emissions first accumulating in kitchens before spreading to dining areas, this study aims to explore how to improve restaurants’ efforts to reduce PM emissions by the application of attribution theory.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were obtained from restaurant managers operating their business in South Korea, considered to be qualified to provide accurate information regarding the survey questions. A scenario-based experimental approach was used to test the hypothesized relationships. Cognitive and emotional risk judgements were assessed for its potential interaction effects on the relationships between restaurant perceptions of PM source attributions, preventions attitudes and mitigation behavioral intentions.

Findings

Results revealed that perceptions of PM main sources were attributed to internal rather than external factors, which improved mitigation behavioral intentions. Such an effect was partially mediated through PM pollution prevention attitudes. Additionally, when applying external source attributions, PM mitigation behavioral intentions were improved by cognitive risk judgements, and PM prevention attitudes were enhanced by affective risk judgements.

Research limitations/implications

Results assist restaurants to better understand their operations that may be emitting significant levels of PM, thereby encouraging them to set more ambitious and effective PM mitigation operational guidelines for their employees and diners.

Originality/value

This study provides a fundamental baseline of management perceptions regarding PM emissions related to restaurant mitigation behavioral intentions. Results are useful in designing appropriate communication strategies addressing restaurant PM pollution issues to improve internal restaurant practices regarding clean air quality.
Determining factors for U-I cooperation: a European study
Authors: Figueiredo Natalia , Fernandes Cristina , Abrantes José Luís
Published: October 2022

Purpose

Companies need to innovate to remain in the market and be competitive. Thus, success will depend on your internal resources and the external sources of knowledge used. The cooperation between univerity and industry (U–I) allows companies to access resources that, in general, they do not have, allowing them to achieve innovation, competitive advantages, and competitiveness. The purpose of this study is to understand the determinants that influence U–I cooperation in creating knowledge and innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

This study analyzes the determinants considered essential for companies to establish cooperation processes with universities. The research uses the last community innovation survey data set, data from 14 countries, and 28,743 observations. The method uses logistic regression.

Findings

The results confirm that the company's size, the innovative capacities associated with R&D, exportation and public funds are essential and significant determinants for the cooperation with universities. On the other hand, the acquisition of machinery and training programs are not a critical factor in establishing cooperation with universities that are not in the same country. The analysis considered companies cooperation with universities of the same country, from the European Union (EU) or other countries outside EU.

Originality/value

In addition to providing substantial theoretical contributions on the subject, this research also provides more information about the importance of U–I cooperation, allowing to characterize companies interested in developing U–I cooperation.
Supply chain risk factor assessment of Indian pharmaceutical industry for performance improvement
Authors: Sharma Astha , Kumar Dinesh , Arora Navneet
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The purpose of the present work is to improve the industry performance by identifying and quantifying the risks faced by the Indian pharmaceutical industry (IPI). The risk values for the prominent risks and overall industry are determined based on the four risk parameters, which would help determine the most contributive risks for mitigation.

Design/methodology/approach

An extensive literature survey was done to identify the risks, which were also validated by industry experts. The finalized risks were then evaluated using the fuzzy synthetic evaluation (FSE) method, which is the most suitable approach for the risk assessment with parameters having a set of different risk levels.

Findings

The three most contributive sub-risks are counterfeit drugs, demand fluctuations and loss of customers due to partners' poor service performance, while the main risks obtained are demand, financial and logistics. Also, the overall risk value indicates that the industry faces medium to high risk.

Practical implications

The study identifies the critical risks which need to be mitigated for an efficient industry. The industry is most vulnerable to the demand risk category. Therefore, the managers should minimize this risk by mitigating its sub-risks, like demand fluctuations, bullwhip effect, etc. Another critical sub-risk, the counterfeit risk, should be managed by adopting advanced technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence, etc.

Originality/value

There is insufficient literature focusing on risk quantification. Therefore, this work addresses this gap and obtains the industry's most critical risks. It also discusses suitable mitigation strategies for better industry performance.
The mediating and moderating effects on the intention to use navigation apps
Authors: Zeng Zhanjing , Chen Po-Ju , Xiao Xiao , Liu Peixue , Zhang Jie
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore external, mediator and moderator factors that influence tourist intention to use GPS-based navigation apps from the perspective of spatiotemporal tourist behavior (STTB).

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 636 valid questionnaires were selected from tourists visiting Lijiang Ancient Town. The partial least squares-structural equation modeling with the SmartPLS approach was adopted to estimate and validate the model.

Findings

The results of this paper showed that wayfinding efficiency, sensation-seeking behavior and spatial ability (SA) influence tourists’ intention to use (IU) navigation apps. A mediator of perceived location accuracy between SA and IU has been found. A multigroup generation moderator is verified in the model.

Practical implications

This paper provides a better understanding of the relationship between tourist spatiotemporal behavior and navigation apps, presenting practical suggestions for app developers, destination managers and vacation planners.

Originality/value

While the effects of information technology on tourist behavior have become a topic of interest among tourism industry stakeholders, this paper examines the effects of STTB on the acceptance of navigation apps in reverse, which enriches the theoretical framework.
Multicultural experience in organisations: an auto-ethnographic enquiry
Authors: Guruge Dhammika (Dave)
Published: October 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to draw attention to multicultural experience as a manager. It is an auto-ethnographic enquiry which comprises own experiences and intercultural and intra-cultural engagement of the author’s self in both mono-cultural and multicultural environments drawing from archival records of personal account of experience.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper adopted auto-ethnographic enquiry of the author’s experience in multicultural environment. The auto-ethnography as a research method is discussed along with its criticisms, validity, reliability and generalisability.

Findings

The findings include power distance, elitism in hiring practices, inclusivity of women, challenges in South Asian Muslim countries, challenges in the non-anglophone country and their implications for a practitioner.

Research limitations/implications

As the author employed an auto-ethnographic enquiry based on the author’s prior experience, this raises questions about wider generalisability and applicable contexts. Findings of the enquiry can be tested using further qualitative enquiries such as in-depth interviews with a sample of stakeholders in a multicultural environment.

Practical implications

The paper provides insights useful in managing in multicultural environments discussed. Also, it provides implications for policy makers in organisations. Practitioners can use the paper to get an insight into the markets the author already have been to and use the learning for decision-making during market development efforts.

Originality/value

Auto-ethnography in multicultural environment is scant. This auto-ethnographical enquiry provides original content of practitioner experience compared with the related theory.
Wellbeing and pedagogical role of higher education academics in the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematized review
Authors: Husbands Melissa , Prescott Julie
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study resolved to evidence worldwide studies addressing the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic on higher education (HE) academic staff. Particularly in relation to wellbeing and pedagogical role, as part of a parallel study exploring the impact of COVID-19 on academics’ pastoral role.

Design/methodology/approach

The systematized review identified eight relevant studies that shed light on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on university academics’ well-being.

Findings

The review highlights the paucity of research in this area, with no studies, at the time of the review, considering how academics responded to a broadening of their pastoral role amidst an evolving academic landscape, and how are universities supporting them.

Research limitations/implications

Firstly, only eight relevant studies were included, affecting generalisability of results owing to uneven distribution between geographic regions. Secondly, participants across the eight studies accounted for less than 0.05% of a population of 6 million university academics worldwide (Price, 2011). Thirdly, most of the studies used cross-sectional design, limiting assessment of the longer-term impact of an evolving HE landscape.

Practical implications

The findings of this systematized review can be placed in the context of illuminating research deficits within a shifting HE landscape. Specifically, no studies that the authors are aware of have investigated how academics are responding to a broadening of their pastoral role amidst an evolving academic landscape, and how are universities supporting them.

Originality/value

In providing pastoral support to students, the mental well-being of academics is frequently ignored (Urbina-Garcia, 2020). The provision of well-being support by university management for academics appears to be “limited to non-existent” (Hughes et al., 2018, p. 49). Critically, the Coronavirus pandemic appears to have both accelerated and precipitated a step-change to pastoral care within the HE teaching ecosystem. The impact of a broadening pastoral role on academics' well-being has yet to be fully realized and understood. The authors have subsequently conducted an empirical study to address this embryonic area of research.
Police culture and officers' receptivity to body-worn cameras: a panel study
Authors: Cochran Hannah , Worden Robert E.
Published: October 2022

Purpose

The objectives of this research were to examine how officer perspectives on body-worn cameras (BWCs) are patterned by broader occupational attitudes, and to analyze stability and change in officers' attitudes toward BWCs before and after the deployment of the technology.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors analyze panel survey data on individual officers in the Albany (New York) Police Department (APD).

Findings

Pre-BWC deployment, officers varied in their occupational attitudes and BWC perspectives, and the officers' BWC outlooks bore relationships to several occupational attitudes. BWC outlooks were largely stable following deployment. Individual changes in BWC perspectives were related to officers' assignments and unrelated to officers' occupational attitudes.

Originality/value

The authors use panel survey data to test hypotheses about the effect of broad occupational attitudes on officers' receptivity to BWCs and to analyze change pre-/post-BWC deployment.
Above‐ and below‐ground responses to experimental climate forcing in two forb species from montane wooded pastures in Switzerland
Authors: Vollenweider Pierre , Hildbrand Géraldine , De Masi Davide , Gavazov Konstantin , Zufferey Vivian , Buttler Alexandre , von Arx Georg
Published: October 2022

Mountain ecosystems are particularly threatened by ongoing climate change and the species composition of high elevation grasslands is already changing. An open research question is how these ecosystems will adapt to changes in their key environmental constraints.

The responses of wooded pastures to experimental climate forcing were analysed in a transplantation experiment conducted downslope, along an elevational temperature and precipitation gradient on the lee side of Jura Mountains, Switzerland (up to +4.17°C and −35% precipitation). To improve mechanistic understanding of biodiversity and biomass decreases in response to transplantation, changes in functional traits within foliage and roots of one ubiquitous (Taraxacum officinale) and one montane (Alchemilla monticola) perennial forb species were investigated.

In consequence of transplantation, the two studied species raised their temperature optimum for CO2 assimilation and net photosynthesis yield from 20 to 30°C. During cool periods, the highest rates of leaf gas exchanges were measured at the lower recipient sites. However, an opposite trend was observed during a spring drought and summer warm spell. Regarding the more integrative morpho‐anatomical traits, Alchemilla primarily acclimated to warmer temperatures at the recipient sites with increased leaf and foliage rosette size. Missing xeromorphic and/or hydraulic adjustments in foliage and roots, its susceptibility to higher vapour pressure deficits and lower soil moisture availability was thus enhanced. Taraxacum showed adjustments to both warmer temperature and lower moisture availability, including reduced leaf size, lower hydraulic diameter of xylem vessels and theoretical specific hydraulic conductivity.

The anticipated shift in the environmental conditions at high elevation, with reduced coldness limitation but increasingly constraining water economy, could thus become particularly demanding for montane species of wooded pastures. It may favour perennials with large phenotypic plasticity but leads to maladjustments and loss of the species which are more specifically adapted to montane conditions.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Temperature‐mediated transgenerational plasticity influences movement behaviour in the green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
Authors: Meier Hannah S. , Schuman Isaac J. , Layden Tamara J. , Ritz Anna , Kremer Colin T. , Fey Samuel B.
Published: October 2022

A prerequisite for the survival and reproduction of organisms is to successfully navigate thermal environmental conditions that unfold over time and space. While effective movement behaviour has been highlighted as a key mechanism by which organisms and populations may persist amidst the backdrop of directional environmental warming, it remains unclear how behavioural plasticity may mediate such effects, particularly across time‐scales that span multiple generations.

Here, we examine the capacity for transgenerational plasticity to alter the movement behaviour of the motile green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in response to changes in thermal conditions.

We first acclimated C. reinhardtii populations to thermal environments near (25°C), below (12.5°C) or above (37.5°C) the temperature range that maximizes population growth rate. Subsequently, we assayed the micro‐spatial scale movement behaviour of these populations in thermally homogeneous environments across a period of 2 weeks in each respective environment, with the goal of evaluating the influence of thermal history on movement behaviour in a novel thermal environment.

Our results indicate that thermal history can mediate the movement patterns of C. reinhardtii individuals for up to 10 generations and that the trajectory by which phenotypes converge on their acclimated values can be highly nonlinear. Subsequently, we demonstrated—using a dispersal assay in spatially variable environments—that thermal acclimation history can additionally alter movement patterns at ecologically relevant scales.

Collectively these findings indicate the possibility for transgenerational plasticity to modify behaviour across extended time‐scales and converge on acclimated states via nonlinear trajectories. Understanding the efficacy of behaviour for navigating novel thermal environments, such as environments anticipated amidst environmental warming, may thus require considering past as well as present environmental conditions.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Beetle diversity in dead wood is lower in non‐native than native tree species, especially those more distantly related to native species
Authors: Kärvemo Simon , Schroeder Martin , Ranius Thomas
Published: October 2022

Non‐native tree species are widely used in forest plantations. This may have negative consequences for biodiversity. Hitherto, most studies have compared species diversity between native and non‐native forest stands, which makes it difficult to separate the impact of tree species per se from stand characteristics. Our study, conducted in the south of Sweden, compares saproxylic beetle diversity across different nutritional groups, in dead wood of two native and four non‐native tree species in a block design after one and three seasons. Such an approach allows analysis of the impact of non‐native tree species per se.

Mean species richness (± SD) per log was lower in non‐native than in native tree species (non‐native trees: lodgepole pine: 10.7 (± 5.3); Sitka spruce: 8.5 (± 4.3), Douglas fir: 7.1 (± 4.3), Japanese larch 9.4 (± 4.6); native trees: Norway spruce: 12.0 (± 6.0), Scots pine: 12.3 (± 5.2)). Sample‐based rarefaction revealed that when only native tree species were pooled, the species richness was higher than for all tree species combined. The difference in species composition among tree species was strongly driven by bark and wood consumers in the first season, while for predators and fungivores, the differences were smaller. Species composition differed most in the first season.

Dissimilarity in beetle species composition was positively correlated with phylogenetic distances of the tree species. Species richness was lower in non‐native tree species that are only remotely related to native trees species. Of the studied non‐native tree species, lodgepole pine was more closely related to native tree species and consistently harboured higher species richness.

Synthesis and applications. Although non‐native tree species also harbour saproxylic beetle communities, the use of non‐native tree species, especially those only remotely related to native tree species, reduces local diversity of saproxylic beetles. Thus, for biodiversity conservation, an extensive use of non‐native tree species is not recommended as this increases the risk of losing forest biodiversity, especially when they are only distantly related to native tree species.
Can heavy metal pollution induce soil bacterial community resistance to antibiotics in boreal forests?
Authors: Rabow Sandra , Soares Margarida , Rousk Johannes
Published: October 2022

The emergence of microbial antibiotic resistance is a central threat to global health, food security, and development. It has been shown that heavy metal pollution can give rise to microbial resistance to antibiotics, but how wide‐spread this phenomenon is remains an open question that urgently needs filling to enable appropriate environmental risk assessments.

Here, we determined whether long‐term differences in heavy metal pollution in boreal forests had affected soil microbial communities such that they had increased microbial resistance to antibiotics. First, we assessed variation in metal concentrations in samples collected across a distance trajectory from the pollution source, and also the microbial rates and levels of bacterial community resistance to the heavy metal Cu and the antibiotics tetracycline and vancomycin in those samples. Second, we tested if the exposure to Cu or tetracycline could increase bacterial community resistance to Cu and to antibiotics in soils with high versus low background levels of metal contamination.

Metal pollution had affected microbial community structures and suppressed decomposer functioning. Importantly, bacterial community Cu resistance increased with higher metal concentrations, which coincided with an induced bacterial community resistance to tetracycline, but not to vancomycin.

Laboratory experiments revealed that bacterial community Cu resistance could be further induced in both the low and high end of the pollution gradient, but also that these short‐term inductions of community metal tolerance did not coincide with enhanced antibiotic resistance. This yielded a surprising negative correlation between long‐term and short‐term effects by metals on microbial metal and antibiotic resistances.

One mechanism that could provide protection against both metal cations and tetracycline is the small multidrug resistance (SMR) family, which is an energy demanding physiological mechanism that may take time to confer protection. This may explain the different microbial responses to long‐term gradients and metal addition experiments.

Policy implications. We show that metal pollution in boreal forests will promote soil bacterial antibiotic resistance, revealing a so far unrecognized reservoir of microbial antibiotic resistance. We recommend that environmental risk assessments for any activity giving rise to increased soil metal concentrations need to also consider the induction of microbial antibiotic resistance.
Sequestration and efflux largely account for cadmium and copper resistance in the deep‐sea Nitratiruptor sp. SB155‐2 (phylum Campylobacterota)
Authors: Ares Ángela , Sakai Sanae , Sasaki Toshio , Shimamura Shigeru , Mitarai Satoshi , Nunoura Takuro
Published: October 2022

In deep‐sea hydrothermal vent environments, metal‐enriched fluids and sediments abound, making these habitats ideal to study metal resistance in prokaryotes. In this investigation, we employed transcriptomics and shotgun proteomics with scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive x‐ray spectroscopy (STEM‐EDX) to better understand mechanisms of tolerance for cadmium (Cd) and copper (Cu) at stress‐inducing concentrations in Nitratiruptor sp. SB155‐2 (phylum Campylobacterota). Transcriptomic profiles were remarkably different in the presence of these two metals, displaying 385 (19%) and 629 (31%) differentially transcribed genes (DTG) in the presence of Cd(II) and Cu(II), respectively, while only 7% of differentially transcribed (DT) genes were shared, with genes for non‐specific metal transporters and genes involved in oxidative stress‐response predominating. Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses confirmed that metal‐specific DT pathways under Cu(II) stress, including those involving sulfur, cysteine, and methionine, are likely required for high‐affinity efflux systems, while flagella formation and chemotaxis were over‐represented under Cd(II) stress. Consistent with these differences, STEM‐EDX analysis revealed that polyphosphate‐like granules (pPLG), the formation of CdS particles, and the periplasmic space are crucial for Cd(II) sequestration. Overall, this study provides new insights regarding metal‐specific adaptations of Campylobacterota to deep‐sea hydrothermal vent environments.
Colesworthy Grant's Portraits of Colonial Society in India: Lithography, Liberalism, and the Global Making of Middle‐Class Culture, c. 1833–57
Authors: Young Tom
Published: October 2022

This essay explores how lithographic printing connected colonial society in India to global developments in the making of middle‐class culture. It focuses on two print portrait series that the artist Colesworthy Grant (1813–80) released in illustrated periodicals: Lithographic Sketches of the Public Characters of Calcutta; and A Series of Miscellaneous Rough Sketches of Oriental Heads. The former defined white society in Bengal according to a masculine, agentic image of the public individual, whereas the latter engaged ambiguously with ideas about the colonial literary sphere and the nature of civic participation in order to distinguish so‐called Anglicized individuals from a taxonomic ordering of South Asian society. The article contextualizes these portraits in relation to the liberal social reforms that reshaped the East India Company's rule in the period 1833–57, arguing that lithographic periodical illustration worked to reconfigure the character and racial boundaries of the Company's increasingly middle‐class regime.
Protein regulation mechanism of cold tolerance in Haemaphysalis longicornis
Authors: Wang Ningmei , Ji Aimeng , Masoudi Abolfazl , Li Shuang , Hu Yuhong , Zhang Yefei , Yu Zhijun , Wang Han , Wang Hui , Liu Jingze
Published: October 2022

Ticks are external parasitic arthropods that can transmit a variety of pathogens by sucking blood. Low‐temperature tolerance is essential for ticks to survive during the cold winter. Exploring the protein regulation mechanism of low‐temperature tolerance of Haemaphysalis longicornis could help to explain how ticks survive in winter. In this study, the quantitative proteomics of several tissues of H. longicornis exposed to low temperature were studied by data independent acquisition technology. Totals of 3 699, 3 422, and 1 958 proteins were identified in the salivary gland, midgut, and ovary, respectively. The proteins involved in energy metabolism, cell signal transduction, protein synthesis and repair, and cytoskeleton synthesis changed under low‐temperature stress. The comprehensive analysis of the protein regulation of multiple tissues of female ticks exposed to low temperature showed that maintaining cell homeostasis, maintaining cell viability, and enhancing cell tolerance were the most important means for ticks to maintain vital signs under low temperature. The expression of proteins involved in and regulating the above cell activities was the key to the survival of ticks under low temperatures. Through the analysis of a large amount of data, we found that the expression levels of arylamine N‐acetyltransferase, inositol polyphosphate multikinase, and dual‐specificity phosphatase were up‐regulated under low temperature. We speculated that they might have important significance in low‐temperature tolerance. Then, we performed RNA interference on the mRNA of these 3 proteins, and the results showed that the ability of female ticks to tolerate low temperatures decreased significantly.
Food safety risk‐assessment systems utilized by China, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, and the United States
Authors: Ng Sieh , Shao Shuyan , Ling Nan
Published: October 2022

Ensuring the chemical, physical, and microbial safety of food and ingredients underpins the international trade of food items and is integral to building consumer confidence. Achieving this requires effective systems to support the safety of food across the supply chain. Differing risk‐assessment approaches are utilized globally for establishing food safety systems, and bench marking these approaches against international food safety standards can assist in the development of country‐specific systems. This China–Australia collaborative review examined similarities and differences in the food safety risk‐assessment systems of China, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, and the United States, with the view to identify areas that could support improvements to the Chinese system. Key differences include the level of cohesiveness among stakeholders and the level to which each country promotes the international harmonization of standards. The evidence highlights a need for greater capacity‐building in risk assessment in China that may support greater stakeholders’ cohesion, improve hazard identification, and allow regulators to more readily keep abreast of changes to international standards. This review may help the Chinese food industry to replicate the same level of food safety risk assessment currently applied by other key countries, and reflects the determination, government prioritization, and active strengthening of China's National Centre for Food Safety Risk Assessment currently underway.
Differences in receipt of recommended eye examinations by comorbidity status and healthcare utilization among nonelderly adults with diabetes
Authors: Cai Cindy X. , Kim Minchul , Lundeen Elizabeth A. , Benoit Stephen R.
Published: October 2022

Background

To evaluate the effect of diabetes comorbidities by baseline healthcare utilization on receipt of recommended eye examinations.

Methods

Retrospective analysis of 310 691 nonelderly adults with type 2 diabetes in the IBM MarketScan Commercial Database from 2016 to 2019. Patients were grouped based on diabetes‐concordant (related) or ‐discordant (unrelated) comorbidities. Logistic regression was used to estimate the prevalence ratio (PR) for eye examinations by comorbidity status, healthcare utilization, and an interaction between comorbidities and utilization, controlling for age, sex, region, and major eye disease.

Results

Prevalence of biennial eye examinations varied by the four comorbidity groups: 43.5% (diabetes only), 52.7% (concordant + discordant comorbidities), 48.0% (concordant comorbidities only), and 45.3% (discordant comorbidities only). In the lowest healthcare utilization tertile, the concordant‐only and concordant + discordant groups had lower prevalence of examinations compared to diabetes only (PR 0.95 [95% CI 0.92–0.98] and PR 0.91 [95% CI 0.88–0.95], respectively). In the medium utilization tertile, the discordant‐only and concordant + discordant groups had lower prevalence of examinations (PR 0.89 [0.83–0.95] and PR 0.94 [0.90–0.98], respectively). In the highest utilization tertile, the concordant‐only and concordant + discordant groups had higher prevalence of examinations.

Conclusions

Among patients with low healthcare utilization, having comorbid conditions is associated with lower prevalence of eye examinations. Among those with medium healthcare utilization, patients with diabetes‐discordant comorbidities are particularly vulnerable. This study highlights populations of diabetes patients who would benefit from increased assistance in receiving vision‐preserving eye examinations.
Foreign Holding Companies and the US Taxation of Foreign Earnings: Evidence from the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005*
Authors: Murphy Frank
Published: October 2022

I analyze US multinationals' (MNCs) use of foreign holding companies in their organizational structures and the impact of holding companies on internal capital markets. The look‐thru rule in the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005 (TIPRA) reduces the after‐tax cost of foreign intercompany financing transactions. I use TIPRA as a natural experimental setting to test whether a shift in US tax policy that reduces the cost of moving foreign capital increased firms' reliance on foreign holding company subsidiaries. I find that MNCs responded to TIPRA by creating more foreign holding companies. Furthermore, consistent with the policy objectives of TIPRA, I document that MNCs that rely on holding companies gained tax efficiencies in their post‐TIPRA foreign internal capital markets, reducing domestic taxation on foreign earnings and easing financial constraints. Overall, my results expand our understanding of foreign organizational structure decisions and their internal financing benefits. I contribute to the tax literature by documenting a response to TIPRA that sheds light on the growing complexity of foreign subsidiary ownership structures.
Emplacing capital
Authors: LU VIVIAN CHENXUE
Published: October 2022

Since the 1990s, commercial sites across Asia and the Middle East have seen an uptick in visits from Nigerian importers, tens of thousands of whom are now passing through every year. In this context, in which circulatory South–South migration has intensified and transnational commercial links have strengthened, Nigerian mass commercial markets have remained strikingly resistant to monopolies. This is largely shaped by traders’ associations, which defend against corporate and non‐Black foreign actors. This article situates these defensive market practices in longer histories of decolonial “indigenization” efforts, postcolonial anxieties of the petrostate economy, and ethnoregional mobilizations undertaken by Igbo people in Nigeria's post–civil war era. Transnational importers mobilize a distinct politics of “emplacement” in Nigeria, where market actors explicitly attempt to create and control the conditions of exchange. They do so by making political claims to profit and by using the rhetoric of citizenship. [capitalism, emplacement, citizenship, transnational, commerce, Lagos, Nigeria, Africa, Global South]
Remaking the value of work
Authors: FENGJIANG JIAZHI
Published: October 2022

In recent decades China has seen a rise in grassroots “philanthropy” (gongyi), or charity and volunteerism that is not directed by the state. Much of the discussion on this phenomenon suggests that it is a response to a perceived “moral crisis.” But the emergence of grassroots philanthropy is also—and perhaps more centrally—a response to people's changing valuation of work in a time of economic restructuring, especially among people who find their labor at risk of becoming surplus. This development profoundly challenges their sense of self‐worth. As a result, many ordinary people—primarily men with a relatively low social standing—are engaging in philanthropy as a form of “work,” even though this work is frequently in tension with their familial obligations. In doing so, they cocreate alternative social arenas in which the value of their work may be realized. Nonetheless, the question whether doing philanthropy is proper work remains open, ambiguous, and subject to continual negotiation. [grassroots philanthropy,volunteerism,work,value,ethics,China]
Percutaneous needle aspiration versus catheter drainage in the management of liver abscess: an updated systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Al‐Sayaghi Khaled Mohammed , Alhujaily Muhanad , Zaky Mohamed Khaled , Alhasan Ayman S. , Babikir Tamir Bashir , Alnehmi Fawwaz Saleh , Abdalrahman Hager Hassan , Abdelmalik Mohammed Abdelkrim Adam , Ali Adel Mohamed , Fadlalmola Hammad Ali , Swamy D. S. Veerabhadra
Published: October 2022

Background

Liver abscesses differ in their aetiology, location, and number. Image‐guided percutaneous drainage techniques are the currently used management for liver abscesses. We conducted our study to compare the clinical safety and efficacy of percutaneous needle aspiration (PNA) to percutaneous catheter drainage (PCD).

Methods

A systematic review of major reference databases was undertaken in February 2022 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compare PNA to PCD in treating liver abscess patients. The quality of the included trials was assessed using the Cochrane tool. Statistical meta‐analysis was conducted using RevMan and open meta‐analyst software.

Results

Fifteen RCTs were included in this review, with 1676 patients enrolled. The overall quality of the included trials was moderate, with most domains of unclear risk. PCD was superior to PNA in the success rate (RR = 1.23; 95% CI [1.12, 1.36], P < 0.00001), time for achieving 50% reduction of cavity size (MD = −2.32; 95% CI [−3.07, −1.57], P < 0.00001), and time for clinical improvement (MD = −1.92; 95% CI [−2.55, −1.28], P < 0.00001). The two modalities did not differ in the days of hospital stay, duration of IV antibiotics, and time needed for total or subtotal reduction of cavity size (P = 0.36, P = 0.06 and P = 0.40, respectively). High heterogeneity levels were detected. Regarding major complications, the two modalities were equally safe (P = 0.39).

Conclusion

PCD has a higher success rate and results in a faster 50% reduction in the abscess cavity size and clinical improvement. The two modalities are equally safe.
Generation of glucose sensitive insulin‐secreting cells from human induced pluripotent stem cells on optimized polyethersulfone hybrid nanofibrous scaffold
Authors: Ahmadi Seyedeh Fatemeh , Mansour Reyhaneh Nassiri , Hassannia Hadi , Enderami Seyed Ehsan , Abediankenari Saeid , Hosseini‐khah Zahra
Published: October 2022

Background

In the realm of diabetes treatment, various strategies have been tried, including islet transplantation and common drug therapies, but the limitations of these procedures and lack of responsive to the high number of patients have prompted researchers to develop a new method. In recent decades, the use of stem cells and three‐dimonsional (3D) scaffold to produce insulin‐secreting cells is one of the most promising new approaches. Meanwhile, human‐induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) propose due to advantages such as autologousness and high pluripotency in cell therapy. This study aimed to evaluate the differentiation of iPSCs into pancreatic islet insuli‐producing cells (IPCs) on Silk/PES (polyethersulfone) nanofibers as a 3D scaffold and compare it with a two‐dimonsional (2D) cultured group.

Methods

Investigating the functional, morphological, molecular, and cellular characteristics of differentiated iPSCs on control cultures (without differentiation medium), 2D and 3D were measured by various methods such as electron microscopy, Q‐PCR, immunofluorescence, western blot, and ELISA.

Results

This investigation revealed that differentiated cells on the 3D Silk/PES scaffold expressed pancreatic specific‐markers such as insulin and pdx1 at higher levels than the control and 2D groups, with a significant difference between the two groups. All results of Q‐PCR, immunocytochemistry, and western blot showed that IPCs in the silk/PES 3D group was more efficient than in the 2D group. In the face of these cases, the release of insulin and C‐peptide in response to several concentrations of glucose in the 3D group was significantly higher than in the 2D culture.

Conclusion

Finally, our findings displayed that optimized Silk/PES 3D scaffolds can enhance the differentiation of IPCs from iPSCs compared to the 2D culture group.
Incidence of heart failure following exposure to a protein kinase inhibitor, a French population‐based study
Authors: Zelmat Yoann , Conte Cécile , Noize Pernelle , Vabre Clémentine , Pajiep Marie , Lafaurie Margaux , Lapeyre‐Mestre Maryse , Despas Fabien
Published: October 2022

Aims

Pharmacovigilance signals of heart failure (HF) following exposure to protein kinase inhibitors (PKIs) have been detected in recent years. Our aim was to identify the PKIs most frequently associated with the development of HF.

Methods

Using the French National Healthcare Database, all patients newly exposed to a PKI between January 2011 and June 2014 were followed up for 18 months. Specific hospitalization diagnosis and long‐term HF‐related disease codes were used to identify HF patients. HF incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were measured and adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) were estimated using a Cox model. Sensitivity analyses were performed to limit the potential indication and competitive risk bias.

Results

Thirteen PKIs were studied. Among the 49 714 new PKI users registered during the study period, the mean IRR of HF was 3.38 per 100 person‐years, with a median time to onset of 155 days. We found a significant increase in the incidence of HF for six medicinal products: pazopanib (aHR = 2.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.67‐3.52), dasatinib (aHR = 2.22, 95% CI 1.42‐3.44), ruxolitinib (aHR = 2.11, 95% CI 1.69‐2.64), crizotinib (aHR = 1.71, 95% CI 1.07‐2.72), everolimus (aHR = 1.45, 95% CI 1.26‐1.67) and vemurafenib (aHR = 1.37, 95% CI 1.01‐1.86). Sensitivity analyses were consistent with our primary analysis.

Conclusions

The current study provides knowledge on HF following exposure to a PKI. Additional studies could confirm these results for dasatinib, everolimus, pazopanib and ruxolitinib, and particularly for the two medicinal products with results slightly above the significance threshold, namely, crizotinib and vemurafenib, in our sensitivity analyses.
Breech specialist midwives and clinics in the OptiBreech Trial feasibility study: An implementation process evaluation
Authors: Dasgupta Tisha , Hunter Sarah , Reid Sharna , Sandall Jane , Shennan Andrew , Davies Siân M. , Walker Shawn
Published: October 2022

Background

Attendance of skilled and experienced professionals at breech births has been associated with a reduction in adverse perinatal outcomes. We aimed to determine whether United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) sites could reliably provide attendants with OptiBreech training and/or advanced proficiency (intervention feasibility) and consistent care (fidelity) that meets women's needs (acceptability), with low neonatal admission rates (safety) and recruitment adequate to support a clinical trial (trial feasibility).

Methods

Mixed methods implementation evaluation was used. Settings were 13 services in England and Wales. Participants were 82 women requesting support for a vaginal breech birth (VBB) at term. Outcomes were descriptively analyzed. Twenty‐one women were interviewed, and transcripts were analyzed using the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability. Iterative analysis informed subsequent interviews and the ongoing process of implementation across sites.

Results

Although we initially suggested multidisciplinary teams, actively recruiting Trusts yielded services where VBB care was provided through a dedicated clinic, organized and delivered primarily by a lead midwife who functioned as a specialist. This model achieved 87.5% fidelity with the intervention's goal of ensuring the attendance of OptiBreech‐trained professionals. Neonatal outcomes remained stable, with an admission rate of 5.5%. Women reported care from specialist midwives as highly acceptable, but the model is vulnerable without a strategic effort to develop additional proficient team members.

Conclusions

Dedicated clinics coordinated by specialist midwives appear to be an acceptable and feasible implementation strategy to test the safety and effectiveness of proficient team care for VBB in a clinical trial. Back‐up arrangements should be maintained while additional members of the team develop proficiency.
Large lending and banks performance. Is there any relationship? Empirical evidence from US banks
Authors: Andriakopoulos Konstantinos , Kounetas Konstantinos
Published: October 2022

Large lending in the banking industry has sparked concerns about banks’ efficiency performance, particularly, if it is related to their credit risk, as trade credit, provided by large, creditworthy firms. We provide evidence of a rather neglected issue regarding the impact of large lending on banks’ efficiency using cost and profit stochastic functions. A unique dataset was constructed concerning all US banks collected from the Statistics on Depository Institutions report compiled by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Our sample contains US banks tracked yearly for the period 2010–2017, creating an unbalanced panel of year observations. An econometric framework based on nested non‐neutral frontiers was developed to estimate the influence and the decomposition of large lending on the three banks’ performance aspects. Moreover, different types of frontiers aiming at the cost and profit sides have been investigated, and the associated elasticities have been calculated. We notice that large lending plays a crucial role in banks’ technical efficiency. Variations among different frontier models, type of bank and size, banks’ ownership structure, and macroeconomic conditions appear to be present. By considering all capital adequacy asset quality management earnings liquidity parameters, we notice that banks’ financial strength affects banks’ efficiency.