bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The small GTPase ARF3 controls metastasis and invasion modality by regulating N-cadherin levels
Authors: Sandilands Emma , Freckmann Eva C. , Román-Fernández Alvaro , McGarry Lynn , Galbraith Laura , Mason Susan , Patel Rachana , Anand Jayanthi , Cartwright Jared , Leung Hing Y. , Blyth Karen , Bryant David M.
Published: April 2022

ARF GTPases are central regulators of membrane trafficking that act by controlling local membrane identity and remodelling to facilitate vesicle formation. Unravelling ARF GTPase function is complicated by the overlapping association of ARFs with guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs), and numerous interactors. The extent to which redundancy is a major factor in ARF function or whether individual ARF GTPases make unique contributions to cellular behaviour remains unclear. Through a functional genomic screen of 3-Dimensional (3D) prostate cancer cell behaviour we explore the contribution of all known ARF GTPases, GEFs, GAPs, and a large selection of interactors to collective morphogenesis. This revealed that the ARF3 GTPase regulates the modality of invasion, acting as a switch between leader cell-led chains of invasion or collective sheet movement. Functionally, the ability of ARF3 to control invasion modality is dependent on association and subsequent control of the junctional adhesion molecule N-cadherin. In vivo, ARF3 levels acted as a rheostat for metastasis from intraprostatic tumour transplants and ARF3:N-cadherin expression can be used to identify prostate cancer patients with metastatic, poor-outcome disease. Our analysis defines a unique function for the ARF3 GTPase in controlling how cells collectively organise during invasion and metastasis.
Fuzzy Bayesian based bow-tie risk assessment of runway overrun: a method for airline flight operations
Authors: Acarbay Caner , Kiyak Emre
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to improve risk assessment processes in airline flight operations by introducing a dynamic risk assessment method.

Design/methodology/approach

Fuzzy logic and Bayesian network are used together to form a dynamic structure in the analysis. One of the most challenging factors of the analyses in aviation is to get quantitative data. In this study, the fuzzy data quantification technique is used to perform dynamic risk assessment. Dynamic structure in the analysis is obtained by transforming the bow-tie model into a Bayesian network equivalent.

Findings

In this study, the probability of top-event from fault tree analysis is calculated as 1.51 × 10−6. Effectiveness of the model is measured by comparing the analysis with the safety performance indicator data that reflects past performance of the airlines. If two data are compared with each other, they are at the same order of value, with small difference (0.6 × 10−7).

Originality/value

This study proposes a dynamic model to be used in risk assessment processes in airline flight operations. A dynamic model for safety analysis provides real-time, autonomous and faster risk assessment. Moreover, it can help in the decision-making process and reduce airline response time to undesired states, which means that the proposed model can contribute to the efficiency of the risk management process in airline flight operations.
Reputational risk disclosure in the firms of Pacific Alliance
Authors: Porras-Gomez Hernando , Santa-Guzman Fernando , Orozco Luis Antonio
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to determine the predominant features of the corporations in four Latin American that are countries associated with the disclosure of reputational risk in the frame of explanations proposed by the organizational institutionalism theory about the isomorphism due to environmental pressures like the organisation for economic cooperation and development (OECD) membership and the belonging of Pacific Alliance (PA).

Design/methodology/approach

Using an exploratory structural equation model (SEM) with 26 variables from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) of a sample of 205 large companies from Mexico, Peru, Chile and Colombia that belong to the PA, during 2016, the research evaluates the association of firms features with the disclosure of reputational risk.

Findings

This research founds that country, industry, working conditions, financial performance and status in terms of firms listed in the stock market and in rankings of corporate reputation use to talk about reputational risk in firms' reports. The financial industry, which is ruled by Basel guidelines, and companies with lower returns tend to disclose reputational risk. The isomorphism does not depend on the time of membership in the OECD.

Practical implications

The findings revealed that belonging to the same multilateral organizations like PA or OECD is not enough to create isomorphism in improving the corporative disclosure increasing the quality of sustainability reports. Policymakers and managers need more incentive to avoid strategic silence and selective disclosure of information to promote more transparency for society and enhance the usefulness of accounting and corporate information to interpret business risks, especially reputational risk.

Originality/value

This article contributes to the emerging literature in reputational risk disclosure with evidence explained in the frame of organizational institutionalism evaluating the features that contribute to the legitimatization process, with counterintuitive evidence about the isomorphism pressured by multilateral organizations and economic blocks.
Liquid-phase assisted laser preparation of 304 stainless steel surface texture and tribological properties evaluated
Authors: Zhai Shuaijie , Feng Qiaogao , Yang Hui , Ma Lijie , Pang Minghua
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study a new liquid-phase assisted texture treatment method to improve the tribological properties of 304 stainless steel.

Design/methodology/approach

Three groups of textured type (KY, KJ and YJ) were prepared on 304 stainless steel surface using laser circular and cross scanning method in air and liquid assisted condition. The surface morphology and element content of test samples were measured with scanning electron microscope, energy spectrum. Then, the tribological test was carried out using MWF-500 reciprocating friction and wear testing machine under dry and oil lubrication condition.

Findings

The experimental results showed that the textured surface of laser processing in air was obviously blackened, and the oxygen content was increased from 16.9% to 24%. These cases did not occur on liquid-assisted laser textured surface, which induced a better wettability and surface texture processing quality. For friction test, the friction coefficient of cross-scanning textured surface prepared in assisted liquid (YJ) was the smallest. It is reduced by 55% in oil lubrication case compared to the original surface (YS). The cross-scanning textured surface prepared in air (KJ) was a little worse in friction coefficient and a little better in wear quantity than the cross-scanning textured surface prepared in assisted liquid (YJ). It is indicated that the laser processing surface with assisted liquid has obvious advantages in surface texture quality and interfacial tribological property. The main reason is that the assisted liquid plays a role in cooling and protecting action of the machined surface. The bubbles, generated at the solid–liquid interface because of the laser heat effect, scatter the laser beam and carry out the processed melt meanwhile. The lubricating medium is easier to penetrate and store in the contact interfaces because of the higher surface textured performance and wettability.

Originality/value

The main contribution of this work is in providing a new surface texture processing method that has a better surface micropits quality and interfacial tribology regulation ability.
Students' cyberslacking behaviour in e-learning environments: the role of the Big Five personality traits and situational factors
Authors: Koay Kian Yeik , Poon Wai Ching
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Online learning has become more popular than ever in higher education owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this has also intensified students' propensity to engage in cyberslacking behaviour during online classes without the physical presence of instructors to monitor their behaviour. Hence, this research aims to investigate the association of the Big Five personality traits and situational factors with students' cyberslacking behaviour during online classes.

Design/methodology/approach

A self-administered survey questionnaire was distributed to current university students undertaking online modules this semester. In all, 194 completed surveys were obtained for further analysis.

Findings

The results reveal that extraversion, conscientiousness, neuroticism and apathy towards course material have a significant association with at least one of the cyberslacking dimensions (sharing, shopping, real-time updating, accessing online content and gaming/gambling). However, agreeableness, intellect/imagination and class engagement are found to have no significant association with all the dimensions of students' cyberslacking behaviour during online classes.

Originality/value

This study fills the research gaps by empirically testing the association of the Big Five personality traits and situational factors with students' cyberslacking behaviour in e-learning environments. Several limitations and future research are also discussed.
Impact of tax reforms on revenue mobilisation in developing economies: empirical evidence from Ghana
Authors: Kamasa Kofi , Nortey David Nii , Boateng Frank , Bonuedi Isaac
Published: April 2022

Purpose

This paper assesses the impact of tax reforms on tax revenue mobilisation in Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

The autoregressive distributed lag model together with dynamic ordinary least squares and fully modified least squares techniques were employed on a time-series data spanning from 1980–2018. Exploiting data from IMFs monitoring of fund arrangements database, an index of tax reforms is constructed as a function of the number of successfully implemented tax-related reforms and policy measures per year over the study period.

Findings

Having established the presence of co-integration between tax revenue and its determinants, this paper finds strong evidence that tax-related reforms exert positive and significant impact on tax revenue generation in Ghana. Among other covariates, the results show that the tax base (real GDP), public debt and education (human capital index) significantly boosts tax revenue in the long run.

Originality/value

The success of tax reforms in boosting revenue mobilisation has been examined in light of the buoyancy and elasticity of the tax system in Ghana, albeit with little emphasis on the extent to which tax reforms contribute to tax revenue mobilisation from econometric perspective. This paper fills this gap in the literature by analysing the impact of tax reforms on tax revenue mobilisation in Ghana. As a recommendation, well-designed and implemented tax reforms and policies aimed at increasing the tax base, education and effective utilisation of funds from public debt promise to be instrumental in boosting tax revenue in Ghana.
Related party disclosures in financial reporting for Islamic banks
Authors: Rafay Abdul
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to determine the impacts of related party transactions on the performance of Islamic banks in Pakistan. In addition, this study aims to determine whether corporate governance mechanisms enhance company performance and mitigate agency problems associated with related party transactions in the Islamic banks.

Design/methodology/approach

Sample includes all Islamic banks domiciled in Pakistan from 2017 to 2021. To run the regression models, the regression assumptions about normality, heteroskedasticity, autocorrelation and multicollinearity are determined.

Findings

This study finds that institutional ownership has a significant impact on mitigating agency problems associated with tunneling. Related party borrowings indicate expropriation and conflict of interest, whereas related party revenues indicate propping and efficient transactions.

Research limitations/implications

This study uses data from all Islamic banks and specialized Islamic branches working in Pakistan. In the future, data of other institutions offering Islamic finance in Pakistan and in other emerging economies can be used to determine the role of related party transactions.

Practical implications

A thorough understanding of related party interrelationships in the Islamic banking system is essential, as these transactions can result in either the creation of wealth or the destruction of wealth. It is also necessary to determine the type of transactions that ultimately benefit Islamic investors.

Originality/value

The impacts of different related party transactions (in terms of cash inflows and outflows) of Islamic banks are investigated. Prior studies generally look at the impact of related party transactions on firm performance in totality.
Afterword: Audit Society 2.0?
Authors: Power Michael
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to briefly reflect on the continuing relevance of the arguments of “The Audit Society” thesis after 25 years and to consider whether they need to be adapted in the face of advances in digitization.

Design/Methodology/approach

This essay develops a series of critical reflections on the main arguments in “The Audit Society” (Oxford University Press, 1997).

Findings

There is a need for critical accounting and management research to explore how audit society themes require adjustment in the face of “surveillance capitalism” and how the boundaries between accounting, security and surveillance are becoming blurred.

Originality/value

This essay is a personal and self-critical account of the genesis of The Audit Society thesis which looks forward to how this thesis can develop. It also offers a defence of the value of books in enabling the travelling of ideas across fields.
Contributions of action research and use of active methodological approaches for the construction of a discipline in management
Authors: Bispo Lívia Veiga de Oliveira , Lodi Marluce Dantas de Freitas
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The study aims to investigate how the action research contributes to the collective construction of a discipline in management. This issue was the motivation for the present study, which was developed from the experience of master's degree students attending the post-graduate program in management of an institution in the State of Bahia, Brazil.

Design/methodology/approach

The overall objective of this study is to understand the method's effectiveness for this aim, whereas the specific objectives are to identify the commitment of the subjects in the activities proposed and to assess the effectiveness of the use of active methods in the discipline construction. The theoretical background is regarding digital education transformation, active teaching methods and action research. As for the qualitative perspective, the methodological approach of choice was that of participant observation (for data collection) and content analysis.

Findings

It was possible to highlight the awakening of critical sense and the effectiveness of action research in enhancing the protagonism of the master's degree students in the construction of their own knowledge.

Originality/value

This study not only contributes to the field of applied social sciences but also opens a precedent for the experience of collective construction of a discipline in another area of knowledge by means of action research. Another factor demonstrating the relevance of this study is the production of essays and articles by master's degree students in which active methodologies were related to themes of interest.
Multiparameter vector‐acoustic least‐squares reverse time migration
Authors: Farias Fernanda , Souza Alan , Pestana Reynam C.
Published: April 2022

The use of dual‐sensor acquisitions enabled different studies using the so‐called vector‐acoustic equations, which admit particle velocity (displacement or acceleration) information instead of solely the pressure wavefield. With cost far from elastic formulations but comparable with the usually used second‐order acoustic equation, previous works involving the use of vector‐acoustic equations along with multicomponent data have been applied to conventional reverse time migration and full‐waveform inversion, always emphasizing the benefits of using wavefields containing directivity information, which make the receiver ghosts interact constructively with the backpropagated reflected wavefield. Thus, generated results are superior to those of conventional single‐component data imaging techniques, particularly with spatial subsampling of marine seismic data. To assess whether the effects of applying the vector‐acoustic equations persist in a linearized inversion, we developed a multiparameter vector‐acoustic least‐squares reverse time migration, inverting reflectivities associated with velocity and density. To demonstrate the method's performance, we apply it to two‐dimensional numerical examples and compare the results with those obtained by the conventional acoustic least‐squares reverse time migration. The results obtained by the vector‐acoustic least‐squares reverse time migration method are accurate for all inverted parameters and also deliver better convergence when compared with the conventional least‐squares reverse time migration.
Molecular reactivity profiling upon immunotherapy with a 300 IR sublingual house dust mite tablet reveals marked humoral changes towards major allergens
Authors: Potapova Ekaterina , Bordas‐Le Floch Véronique , Schlederer Thomas , Vrtala Susanne , Huang Huey‐Jy , Canonica Giorgio W. , Valenta Rudolf , Matricardi Paolo M. , Mascarell Laurent
Published: April 2022

Background

Molecular antibody reactivity profiles have not yet been studied in depth in patients treated by sublingual house dust mite (HDM) tablet immunotherapy. Humoral immune responses to a large panel of HDM mite allergens were studied using allergen microarray technology in a subset of clinically defined high and low responder patients from a double‐blind placebo‐controlled allergen‐specific immunotherapy (AIT) trial using sublingual 300 IR HDM tablets.

Methods

Serum levels of IgE, IgG and IgG4 to 13 Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus molecules were measured at baseline and after 1‐year AIT, using allergen microarrays in 100 subjects exhibiting high or low clinical benefit.

Results

Der p 1, Der p 2 and Der p 23 were the most frequently recognized allergens in the study population. Patients with HDM‐related asthma had significantly higher allergen‐specific IgE levels to Der p 1 and Der p 23. No significant difference in the distribution of allergen sensitization pattern was observed between high and low responders. An increase in serum allergen‐specific IgG and IgG4 occurred upon AIT, in particular to allergens Der p 1, Der p 2 and Der p 23 (p < 0.0001).

Conclusions

We confirm for our study population that Der p 1‐ and Der p 23‐specific IgE levels are associated with asthma. IgE reactivity profiles were not predicitive of sublingual AIT outcomes, with 300 IR tablets as efficacious in pauci‐ and multi‐sensitized subjects. Our study is the first to demonstrate the induction of IgG and IgG4 specific for the HDM allergens Der p 1, Der p 2 and Der p 23 by sublingual AIT.
Listening to love
Authors: WOOLNER CHRISTINA J.
Published: April 2022

Both music and love are conspicuously absent from the public soundscapes of Hargeysa, Somaliland. But behind closed doors, people listen to love songs. In doing so, these lonely love sufferers and love hopefuls make sense of various challenges. Using accounts from a cross section of Somalilanders, I show that these solitary listening practices open into uniquely intimate and transformative opportunities for dareen‐wadaag (feeling sharing). These opportunities critically depend both on listeners’ attention and intention, and on the culturally elaborated affective affordances of love songs’ “voice”—a voice that is conceived as “love incarnate” and that models intimacy. In short, listeners do not just listen to love songs; they listen to love. Their listening practices call for anthropological models that more fully account for the relationship between culturally situated ears and voices, as well as for the complex interrelation of sound, affect, and subjectivity. [listening, aurality, love and intimacy, voice, iconicity, sound and affect, music, Somaliland]
Real‐world multicentre observational study including population pharmacokinetic modelling to evaluate the exposure–response relationship of vedolizumab in inflammatory bowel disease: ERELATE Study
Authors: Vande Casteele Niels , Sandborn William J. , Feagan Brian G. , Vermeire Séverine , Dulai Parambir S. , Yarur Andres , Roblin Xavier , Ben‐Horin Shomron , Dotan Iris , Osterman Mark T. , Rosario Maria , Osborn Teresa McRorie , Panes Julian , Lindner Dirk , Agboton Christian
Published: April 2022

Background

ERELATE was a phase 4, multinational, retrospective, observational study.

Aim

To evaluate the relationship between intravenous vedolizumab exposure and treatment outcomes over 52 weeks in adults with ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn’s disease (CD).

Methods

Real‐world data from patients with UC or CD treated with intravenous vedolizumab in nine centres in six countries were collected retrospectively. Treatment outcomes were collected at Weeks 14, 26 and 52. An established population pharmacokinetic model (incorporating observed vedolizumab concentrations based on a Bayesian approach) was used to predict individual vedolizumab exposure. Vedolizumab exposure–response relationship was evaluated overall, by indication and based on baseline characteristics.

Results

The study population (n = 695; UC, n = 304; CD, n = 391) had a median age of 39 years; 47.9% were male and 86.9% had prior tumour necrosis factor antagonist exposure. By Week 14, clinical, endoscopic, deep (clinical plus endoscopic) and biologic remission was achieved by 47.3%, 59.6%, 30.7% and 19.0% of patients respectively. Higher vedolizumab trough concentration early in treatment was consistently associated with clinical remission at later time points. Clinical remission at Week 14 and Week 52 was associated with Week 6 trough concentrations of ≥31.0 and ≥32.0 μg/ml respectively. Importantly, multivariable analysis identified baseline clearance as the only exposure measure predictive of clinical and deep remission at Week 52.

Conclusions

In this real‐world study, a positive exposure–response relationship was observed for vedolizumab. Vedolizumab concentration during induction may be an important predictor of short‐ and long‐term outcomes, and similarly, vedolizumab baseline clearance may be an important predictor of remission.
A Bayesian Model with Application for Adaptive Platform Trials Having Temporal Changes
Authors: Wang Chenguang , Lin Min , Rosner Gary L. , Soon Guoxing
Published: April 2022

Temporal changes exist in clinical trials. Over time, shifts in patients' characteristics, trial conduct, and other features of a clinical trial may occur. In typical randomized clinical trials, temporal effects, that is, the impact of temporal changes on clinical outcomes and study analysis, are largely mitigated by randomization and usually need not be explicitly addressed. However, temporal effects can be a serious obstacle for conducting clinical trials with complex designs, including the adaptive platform trials that are gaining popularity in recent medical product development. In this paper, we introduce a Bayesian robust prior for mitigating temporal effects based on a hidden Markov model, and propose a particle filtering algorithm for computation. We conduct simulation studies to evaluate the performance of the proposed method and provide illustration examples based on trials of Ebola virus disease therapeutics and hemostat in vascular surgery.
Interrupted subcuticular suture spacing during linear wound closures and the effect on wound cosmesis: a randomized evaluator-blinded split-wound comparative effectiveness trial
Authors: Eshagh Karin , Sklar Lindsay R. , Pourang Aunna , Armstrong April W. , Dhaliwal Harshaan , Eisen Daniel B.
Published: April 2022

Background

Surgical reconstructions following Mohs micrographic surgery and standard surgical excisions are often closed with two layers of sutures: a deep subcuticular layer and a superficial cuticular layer. Some surgeons feel the need to place many deep sutures in order to reduce tension on cuticular sutures, as they believe this may decrease incidence of track marks and dehiscence, and lead to better cosmetic outcomes. However, others feel that a higher number of subcuticular sutures increases the risk of a suture reaction, which leads to patient anxiety and poorer wound cosmesis. To our knowledge, there are no studies published on the effect of subcuticular suture spacing on wound cosmesis.

Objectives

To determine whether suturing with 1-cm interval subcuticular sutures results in better cosmetic outcomes than suturing with 2-cm interval subcuticular sutures.

Methods

Fifty patients were enrolled in a randomized clinical trial using a split-wound model, where half of the wound was repaired with sutures spaced 2 cm apart and the other half was repaired with sutures spaced 1 cm apart (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03327922). Both the evaluators and patients were blinded as to which side received which treatment. The scar was evaluated 3 months post-surgery by two blinded observers and the patients themselves using the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS), a validated scar assessment instrument.

Results

The total mean POSAS score for observers for the sides that received 1-cm interval subcuticular sutures and the sides that received 2-cm interval subcuticular sutures did not differ significantly at 3 months (P = 0·34). There was also no significant difference in the patient assessment scale score between the two sides at 3 months (P = 0·084).

Conclusions

We found that 1-cm suture spacing was not significantly associated with improved overall cosmetic outcome compared with 2-cm suture spacing when evaluated by blinded observers or the patients themselves. Our results support the use of either interval.

What is already known about this topic? Surgeons have differing opinions on the ideal frequency of subcuticular sutures for optimizing cosmetic outcomes and minimizing suture reactions. The effect of subcuticular suture spacing on wound cosmesis has not been previously explored in the literature.

What does this study add? There was no significant difference in cosmetic outcome between 1-cm suture spacing and 2-cm suture spacing when evaluated by blinded observers and patients. Dermatology surgeons can use 2-cm suture spacing for increased efficiency, without significantly different cosmetic outcomes, detected by blinded observers and patients.
Unveiling the relationships among intellectual property strategies, protection mechanisms and outbound open innovation
Authors: Greco Marco , Cricelli Livio , Grimaldi Michele , Strazzullo Serena , Ferruzzi Gabriella
Published: April 2022

Many articles in the open innovation literature studied the link between intellectual property protection mechanisms and openness, obtaining contrasting results. This paper bridges the literature on protection mechanisms and the one on intellectual property strategy. It leverages three high‐level intellectual property strategies—defensive, collaborative and impromptu—recently defined in the literature to identify how they entail different intellectual property protection mechanisms and approaches to outbound open innovation. The article advances that defensive, collaborative and impromptu are characterizing factors of intellectual property strategies. An exploratory analysis of 73 manufacturing firms allowed identifying five intellectual property strategies: defensive, purposely defensive, collaborative, developing impromptu and impromptu. The article describes their differences in intellectual property protection mechanisms and outbound open innovation. Furthermore, a fuzzy‐set qualitative comparative analysis identifies the optimal combination of formal, semiformal and informal intellectual property protection mechanisms to nurture outbound open innovation. The results are discussed in view of the extant literature, and implications for scholars and practitioners are presented.
Does histologic subtype impact overall survival in observed T1a kidney cancers compared with competing risks? Implications for biopsy as a risk stratification tool
Authors: Michael Jamie , Velazquez Nermarie , Renson Audrey , Tan Hung‐Jui , Rose Tracy L , Osterman Chelsea K , Milowsky Matthew , Kang Stella K , Huang William C , Bjurlin Marc A
Published: April 2022

Objectives

We sought to assess if adding a biopsy proven histologic subtype to a model that predicts overall survival that includes variables representing competing risks in observed, biopsy proven, T1a renal cell carcinomas, enhances the model's performance.

Methods

The National Cancer Database was assessed (years 2004–2015) for patients with observed T1a renal cell carcinoma who had undergone renal mass biopsy. Kaplan–Meier curves were utilized to estimate overall survival stratified by histologic subtype. We utilized C‐index from a Cox proportional hazards model to evaluate the impact of adding histologic subtypes to a model to predict overall survival for each stage.

Results

Of 132 958 T1a renal masses identified, 1614 had biopsy proven histology and were managed non‐operatively. Of those, 61% were clear cell, 33% papillary, and 6% chromophobe. Adjusted Kaplan–Meier curves demonstrated a difference in overall survival between histologic subtypes (P = 0.010) with greater median overall survival for patients with chromophobe (85.1 months, hazard rate 0.45, P = 0.005) compared to clear cell (64.8 months, reference group). Adding histology to a model with competing risks alone did not substantially improve model performance (C‐index 0.65 vs 0.64 respectively).

Conclusions

Incorporation of histologic subtype into a risk stratification model to determine prognostic overall survival did not improve modeling of overall survival compared with variables representing competing risks in patients with T1a renal cell carcinoma managed with observation. These results suggest that performing renal mass biopsy in order to obtain tumor histology may have limited utility. Future studies should further investigate the overall utility of renal mass biopsy for observed T1a kidney cancers.
‘It really is quite a different ballgame’. A qualitative study into the work experiences of remote support professionals
Authors: Zaagsma Miriam , Koning Mark H. M. , Volkers Karin M. , Schippers Alice P. , van Hove Geert
Published: April 2022

Background

Professional support for people with intellectual disabilities is increasingly provided remotely. This study explores what support staff of the Dutch remote support service DigiContact experience as distinctive aspects of their job as a remote support professional.

Method

Semi‐structured interviews were held with 10 DigiContact support workers. The transcripts were analysed through a qualitative content analysis process.

Results

Six themes were identified that reflect distinct aspects of the participants' work within the DigiContact remote support context: being encouraged to adopt a solution‐oriented coaching support style; being limited in one's support options; facing considerable diversity; providing support as one team; dealing with unpredictability; and navigating the dynamic within work shifts.

Conclusions

The way support is organised and delivered can have substantial implications for support professionals. Working at a service like DigiContact seems to call for specific skills, knowledge, affinities and experience, and for appropriate support and facilitation from organisations.
Gene expression and allergenic potential of Pseudoterranova bulbosa L3 from different infection sites in North Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua)
Authors: Alt Katharina G. , Feldmeyer Barbara , Kochmann Judith , Klimpel Sven
Published: April 2022

The recent advances in molecular methods and data processing have facilitated research on anisakid nematodes. While most research efforts were made regarding the genus Anisakis, since this genus is held responsible for the majority of reported clinical signs, there is still a demand for data on the genus Pseudoterranova. Several case studies of severe invasive anisakidosis affecting various organs caused by species of the P. decipiens complex have been described. To better understand the way these parasites might infest their fish host, we examined whether parasite location within the fish host affects gene expression. A de novo assembly of the transcriptome of Pseudoterranova bulbosa, isolated from North Atlantic cod, was analysed for patterns of differential gene expression between samples taken from liver and viscera. We additionally searched for homologs to known nematode allergens, to give a first estimate of the potential allergenicity of P. bulbosa. There was a subtle difference in the gene expression of samples taken from liver and viscera. Seventy genes were differentially expressed, 32 genes were upregulated in parasites isolated from liver and 38 genes were upregulated in parasites from viscera. Homologs of five nematode allergens were identified among the genes expressed by P. bulbosa. Our transcriptome of P. bulbosa will be a valuable resource for further meta‐analyses and resequencing projects.
A survey of specialty choice among obstetrics and gynecology residents in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan
Authors: Lin Ping‐Lun , Huang Jian‐Pei , Fujii Tatsuya , Cho Eun H. , Huang Ming‐Chao
Published: April 2022

Aim

The percentage of medicine graduates opting for residency in obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) has been decreasing in developed countries, including in Taiwan, Japan, and Korea. This multicountry study surveyed the OB/GYN residents affiliated with the Taiwan Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology (TAOG), the Japanese Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology (JSOG), and the Korean Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology (KSOG) to evaluate the factors affecting the choice of pursing OB/GYN.

Methods

A 17‐item questionnaire surveying the factors influencing the choice of pursuing a major medical specialty was translated into Japanese, Korean, and Chinese and administered to postgraduate OB/GYN residents between July 1, 2020, and August 31, 2020. Data on the participants' sex, age, and level of residency were collected. Responses were compared between countries and sexes.

Results

Residents of all three countries chose OB/GYN based on personal interest, and a sense of accomplishment in saving people's life. Other positive factors include improved quality of life; higher salaries; and more opportunity for new techniques, research, and promotion. The negative factors included medical litigations, longer work hours, and unsafe working environments. Korean residents had lower ratings in several items, including “support from family,” “safety of working environment,” and “effectiveness of the alternative dispute resolution system,” which, unlike Japan and Taiwan, is not a no‐fault compensation system for childbirth accidents.

Conclusions

The study findings can guide strategy making, such as decreasing workload and yet maintain training quality, to increase the number of medical students pursuing OB/GYN residency.
Weaning of invasive ventilation in the neonatal intensive care: Towards standardising practice: A narrative review
Authors: Sur Amitava , Paria Anshuman
Published: April 2022

To present a physiological algorithmic approach to weaning of invasive ventilation in the neonatal intensive care, focusing mainly on the preterm infant. Review of literature, consensus guidelines, expert commentaries and practice guidelines from individual units. Weaning of ventilation for extubation in the neonatal population must follow certain criteria but needs individualising based on disease process, timeline and physiology. Algorithms based on scenarios and modes of ventilation used might aid the clinician on the floor for decision‐making process.
‘It's like they're learning what it is for the very first time’: Clinician's accounts of self‐compassion in clients whose parents experience mental illness
Authors: Dunkley‐Smith Addy J. , Reupert Andrea E. , Sheen Jade A.
Published: April 2022

Objectives

Individuals who have a parent with mental illness are more likely to experience mental illness than their contemporaries. As such, it is valuable to examine potential psychological resources, which might assist these individuals to experience good mental health throughout their lifespan. We aimed to learn how clinicians perceive self‐compassion, and how it can be incorporated into therapy with clients who have parents with mental illness.

Design

A qualitative interview design was employed to explore clinicians' perspectives and experiences.

Methods

Eight mental health clinicians experienced in working with clients who have parents with mental illness were interviewed. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to establish themes representing the clinicians' perspectives and experiences of incorporating self‐compassion into their work.

Results

This study found that clinicians were generally positive about incorporating self‐compassion into interventions with clients who are children of parents with mental illness. The participants noted barriers to self‐compassion for these clients, namely a poor sense of self and divided loyalty between self and family. Participants recommended taking time and care, building rapport and involving others when cultivating self‐compassion with those who have parents with mental illness.

Conclusions

This group of clinicians viewed self‐compassion as relevant to clients whose parents have mental illness and believe it can be introduced therapeutically in various ways. Suggestions are made for tailoring self‐compassion training to the needs and experiences of this group.
Ventricular assist device support for children with chemotherapy‐induced cardiomyopathy and advanced heart failure: Perspectives gained from a single‐center experience
Authors: Puri Kriti , Denfield Susan W. , Adachi Iki , Dreyer William J. , Price Jack F. , Spinner Joseph A. , Choudhry Swati , Brackett Julienne , Santucci Gina , Rainusso Nino C. , Tunuguntla Hari P.
Published: April 2022

Background

Guidance and data on ventricular assist device (VAD) support for children with chemotherapy‐induced cardiomyopathy, particularly within the first 2 years after chemotherapy, are limited.

Methods

We performed a single‐center retrospective case series, reviewing medical records of children <18 years of age with chemotherapy‐induced cardiomyopathy and advanced heart failure (HF) who received durable VAD support.

Results

Six patients met inclusion criteria—5 HeartWare™ HVAD, 1 Berlin Heart EXCOR®. Median age at cancer diagnosis was 6 years (IQR 4.5–10 years). Median dose of anthracycline received was 540 mg/m2 (IQR 450–630 mg/m2). All patients developed HF within 1 year after initiation of cancer treatment (median 8 months, IQR 6–11.5 months) and were initiated on durable VAD support at a median of 8 months after completion of cancer treatment (IQR 3.3–43.5 months). Four patients had significant right ventricular dysfunction needing oral pulmonary vasodilator therapy, one patient had a major bleeding complication, and two patients had thromboembolic strokes while on VAD support. Median duration of VAD support was 7.5 months (IQR 3–11.3 months). Two patients underwent VAD explant due to recovery of LV function, one died due to cancer progression, and three underwent heart transplantation.

Conclusions

Durable VAD support should be considered as a therapeutic option for children who have advanced HF due to chemotherapy‐induced cardiomyopathy, even within 2 years of completing cancer treatment. A multi‐disciplinary approach is essential for appropriate patient selection prior to implant and to ensure comprehensive care throughout the duration of VAD support.
New Villages for Old: Collective Action and Conditional Futures after India's Forest Rights Act
Authors: Vaidya Anand
Published: April 2022

In 2011 some two hundred villagers in North India set upon lower‐caste neighbors who had hoped to escape landlessness and caste‐based exclusion by claiming nearby lands available to them under India's landmark 2006 Forest Rights Act. After their homes were destroyed and their fields razed, the low‐caste villagers—who had once hoped for change—traded their new lives for old ones, and contemplated futures of indefinite violence. This article tracks a national attempt to resolve forest landlessness by looking at the events surrounding the Forest Rights Act's implementation in one village, and the array of collective action and connected conditional futures the law inspired there. I argue that such forms of collective action must be understood as operating both in their moment of occurrence and in possible actions to come, and that these possible actions establish threats that continue to shape life beyond the moment of collective action itself. Such an approach brings into view the capacity of collective action to reshape the terms of social life: as the villagers sought land rights, their mobilization both emerged from and transformed relations of caste and gender. A political economy premised on dispossession was similarly both the grounds for struggle and was transformed by new possible futures brought about by collective action.
Galactolipid composition of Gertia stigmatica (Dinophyceae), an atypical member of the Kareniaceae with a peridinin‐containing, non‐haptophyte‐derived plastid
Authors: Leblond Jeffrey D. , Sabir Kyra , Graeff Jori E.
Published: April 2022

Gertia stigmatica is an atypical member of the Kareniaceae that has a peridinin‐containing plastid rather than a tertiary, (acyloxy)fucoxanthin‐containing, haptophyte‐derived plastid, as is found in the canonical genera Karenia, Karlodinium, and Takayama. While the origin of G. stigmatica's plastid is uncertain per its original published description, with alternative hypotheses stating that it could have originated before or after the acquisition of a haptophyte‐derived plastid, the description of the species indicates that it does possess ultrastructural and genetic features that firmly place it within the Kareniaceae. As a photosynthetic, plastid‐containing organism, G. stigmatica, like other algae, possesses two galactolipids, mono‐ and digalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG and DGDG, respectively), that form the basis of its plastid‐associated photosynthetic membranes. MGDG and DGDG have been extensively characterized in peridinin‐containing dinoflagellates, where it has been observed that these dinoflagellates can be segregated into two clusters. One cluster is characterized by MGDG and DGDG possessing the polyunsaturated C18/C18 fatty acids (sn‐1/sn‐2 regiochemistry) octadecapentaenoic acid (18:5(n‐3)) and octadecatetraenoic acid (18:4(n‐3)), while the second cluster possesses eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5(n‐3)) in the sn‐1 position while retaining a polyunsaturated C18 fatty acid in the sn‐2 position. By contrast, Karenia brevis and Karenia mikimotoi have been observed to be enriched in species of MGDG and DGDG, such as 18:5(n‐3)/14:0 MGDG and DGDG, uncommon to peridinin‐containing dinoflagellates. Our objective was to characterize the galactolipids of G. stigmatica to compare it to both peridinin‐containing dinoflagellates and other members of the Kareniaceae to search for insight, such as (a) remnant 14:0 fatty acid‐containing galactolipid(s), into the evolution of its plastid. Our results show that G. stigmatica possesses 20:5(n‐3)/18:5(n‐3) MGDG and DGDG as the primary galactolipids, with little evidence of those galactolipid species enriched in K. brevis and K. mikimotoi. The implications of this for the evolution of the G. stigmatica plastid are discussed.
Assaying techniques to improve dry season plantings in eastern Madagascar
Authors: Logan Chris M. , Hill D. Matthew , Solofoniaina Fidy Jean F. , Robertho Jean C. , Reid J. Leighton
Published: April 2022

Rampant deforestation in eastern Madagascar highlights the urgency of protecting and restoring its unique rainforests. This experiment addresses a restoration bottleneck: the precipitous drop in seedling survival during dry season plantings. We assayed nine soil, water, and shade treatments that were codeveloped with local farmers to improve survival and growth of 17 native tree species planted on a denuded hillside during one dry season. Most treatments had no effect; however, rustic shade structures decreased transplant shock mortality (i.e. mortality within the first 2 months after planting) by 75%. This improvement is broadly accessible; it can be accomplished with materials freely and easily accessed in most farmlands in eastern Madagascar. Also, survival varied among species and seedling size, suggesting that carefully selecting species that are resistant to the harsh dry periods, improving shade availability, and planting larger seedlings of each species could lead to further gains in native tree performance in dry season plantings. Short‐lived dry season resistant species (e.g. Uapaca sp., Trema orientalis, Psiadia sp., Macaranga sp., and Pittosporum ochrosiifolium) could also provide shade as nurse trees for less resistant canopy trees, which have the potential to be established through enrichment plantings in years following the initial planting.
Reply: Hearing the voices of Australian frontline healthcare workers during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Smallwood Natasha , Maple Jaimie‐Lee , Willis Karen
Published: April 2022

See related Letter
A dynamic Bayesian network‐based emergency decision‐making framework highlighting emergency propagations: Illustrated using the Fukushima nuclear accidents and the Covid‐19 pandemic
Authors: Cai Yinan , Golay Michael W.
Published: April 2022

When facing public emergencies, human societies need to make decisions rapidly in order to mitigate the problems. However, this process can be difficult due to complexity of the emergency scenarios and lack of systematic methods for analyzing them. In the work reported here, we develop a framework based upon dynamic Bayesian networks in order to simulate emergency scenarios and support corresponding decisions. In this framework, we highlight the importance of emergency propagation, which is a critical factor often ignored by decisionmakers. We illustrate that failure of considering emergency propagation can lead to suboptimal mitigation strategies. By incorporating this critical factor, our framework enables decisionmakers to identify optimal response strategies minimizing emergency impacts. Scenarios developed from two public emergencies: the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant accidents and the Covid‐19 pandemic, are utilized to illustrate the framework in this paper. Capabilities of the framework in supporting decision making in both events illustrate its generality and adaptability when dealing with complex real‐world situations. Our analysis results reveal many similarities between these two seemingly distinct events. This indicates that seemingly unrelated emergencies can share many common features beyond their idiosyncratic characteristics. Valuable mitigation insights can be obtained by analyzing a broad range of past emergencies systematically.