bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Large CRISPR-Cas-induced deletions in the oxamniquine resistance locus of the human parasiteSchistosoma mansoni
Authors: Sankaranarayanan Geetha , Coghlan Avril , Driguez Patrick , Lotkowska Magda E. , Sanders Mandy , Holroyd Nancy , Tracey Alan , Berriman Matthew , Rinaldi Gabriel 
Published: May 2020

AbstractAt least 250 million people worldwide suffer from schistosomiasis, caused bySchistosomaworms. Genome sequences for severalSchistosomaspecies are available, including a high-quality annotated reference forSchistosoma mansoni. There is a pressing need to develop a reliable functional toolkit to translate these data into new biological insights and targets for intervention. CRISPR-Cas9 was recently demonstrated for the first time inS. mansoni, to produce somatic mutations in theomega-1(ω1) gene. Here, we employed CRISPR-Cas9 to introduce somatic mutations in a second gene,SULT-OR, a sulfotransferase expressed in the parasitic stages ofS. mansoni, in which mutations confer resistance to the drug oxamniquine. A 262-bp PCR product spanning the region targeted by the gRNA againstSULT-ORwas amplified, and mutations identified in it by high-throughput sequencing. We found that 0.3-2.0% of aligned reads from CRISPR-Cas9-treated adult worms showed deletions spanning the predicted Cas9 cut site, compared to 0.1-0.2% for sporocysts, while deletions were extremely rare in eggs. The most common deletion observed in adults and sporocysts was a 34 bp-deletion directly upstream of the predicted cut site, but rarer deletions reaching as far as 102 bp upstream of the cut site were also detected. The CRISPR-Cas9-induced deletions, if homozygous, are predicted to cause resistance to oxamniquine by producing frameshifts, ablatingSULT-ORtranscription, or leading to mRNA degradationviathe nonsense-mediated mRNA decay pathway. However, noSULT-ORknock down at the mRNA level was observed, presumably because the cells in which CRISPR-Cas9 did induce mutations represented a small fraction of all cells expressingSULT-OR. Further optimisation of CRISPR-Cas protocols for different developmental stages and particular cell types, including germline cells, will contribute to the generation of a homozygous knock-out in any gene of interest, and in particular theSULT-ORgene to derive an oxamniquine-resistant stable transgenic line.
Heterologous expression and cell membrane localization of dinoflagellate rhodopsins in mammalian cells
Authors: Ma Minglei , Shi Xinguo , Lin Senjie 
Published: May 2020

AbstractRhodopsins are now found in all domains of life, and are classified into two large groups: type II, found in animals and type I found in microbes including Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya. While type II rhodopsin functions in many photodependent signaling processes including vision, type I among others contains rhodopsins that function as a light-driven proton pump to convert light into ATP as in proteobacteria (named proteorhodopsin). Proteorhodopsin homologs have been documented in dinoflagellates, but their subcellular localizations and functions are still poorly understood. Even though sequence analyses suggest that it is a membrane protein, experimental evidence that dinoflagellate rhodopsins are localized on the plasma membrane or endomembranes is still lacking. As no robust dinoflagellate gene transformation tool is available, we used HEK 293T cells to construct a mammalian expression system for two dinoflagellate rhodopsin genes. The success of expressing these genes in the system shows that this mammalian cell type is suitable for expressing dinoflagellate genes. Immunofluorescence of the expressed protein locates these dinoflagellate rhodopsins on the cell membrane. This result indicates that the protein codons and membrane targeting signal of the dinoflagellate genes are compatible with the mammalian cells, and the proteins’ subcellular localization is consistent with proton pump rhodopsins.
What you see depends on where you look: performance measurement of Australian accounting academics
Authors: Martin-Sardesai Ann , Guthrie James , Tucker Basil P. 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThis paper explores the impact of contemporary calculative practices, termed “accountingisation”, on Australian accounting academics' values. Also, it seeks to understand the rationale underlying the development of various university performance measurement systems (PMSs), and their implementation and evaluation.Design/methodology/approachA case study approach uses accounting academics' responses to an online survey and also semi-structured interviews with senior research-related leaders in a group of Australian universities. This is supplemented by document analysis. A narrative story-telling approach explores and presents the combined data observations, over the period 2010–2018, of two characters: a “typical” accounting academic and a “typical” vice-chancellor.FindingsThe study contributes to the literature on PMSs in understanding “accountingisation”, the rationale behind the development, implementation and evaluation of performance metrics by senior management and its impact on accounting academics. It juxtaposes and unpacks the complexities and nuances of PMSs and provides empirical evidence by highlighting the perceptions of both the Australian accounting academics and senior university management. The findings demonstrate a level of discontent among accounting academics in reconciling the expectations of increased “accountingisation” within university PMSs. These are juxtaposed against the views of senior university leaders who are influential in determining PMSs.Originality/valueThis paper is novel in considering the implications of “accountingisation” in a contemporary setting, focusing on accounting academics, values and individual PMSs within business schools.
Soundbeam imitation intervention: Training children with autism to imitate meaningless body gestures through music
Authors: Forti Sara , Colombo Barbara , Clark John , Bonfanti Arianna , Molteni Stefania , Crippa Alessandro , Antonietti Alessandro , Molteni Massimo 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThis paper aims to present the application and critical reflection on the effects of a intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD): the Soundbeam Imitation Intervention (SII). The intervention is based on the imitation of meaningless body gestures supported by a musical feedback. The rationale underlying SII is that mirror neurons deficit may represent the cause for the incomplete development of social and motor functioning in children with ASD. Following this assumption, it is possible to hypothesise that a systematic activation of this a system through the simultaneous observation-execution of meaningless body gestures may affect functional changes of mirror-related functions.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 14 children, who were between 5 and 9 years of age, with a diagnosis of ASD were involved in a six weeks’ SII programme. The programme is designed as a three-step progression, where each step includes exercises that focus on an activity: synchronous/one arm imitation, synchronous/two arms imitation and delayed imitation. Exercises are based on repeated movements-melodies associations of increasing difficulty. Motor imitation and social attention were assessed using a synchronous video-modelling task pre and post intervention.FindingsData highlight significant improvements in imitation accuracy and duration of social sustained attention were achieved.Originality/valueData reported in this paper provide preliminary and promising evidence that imitation and social attention skills acquired through SII can be generalised to a video-modelling imitation setting. The SII ordinal execution has included meaningless gestures, usually excluded from previous interventions, and this adds further validity to the training.
Internal remittances and employment choices in rural Ghana
Authors: Dary Stanley Kojo , Ustarz Yazidu 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThe paper examines the effect of internal remittances on the employment choices of household heads in rural Ghana.Design/methodology/approachThe paper employs data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 6) of the Ghana Statistical Service. Due to issues of endogeneity of remittances in relation to labor supply, the paper adopts an instrumental variable approach in the analysis. First, employment choices are categorized into three: (1) wage/salary employment, (2) self-employment and (3) domestic/family employment. The relationship is then modeled as instrumental variable multinomial probit (IV-MNP). Secondly, employment choices are recategorized into two: farm employment and otherwise and modeled as instrumental variable probit (IV-PROBIT). The models are estimated via the conditional mixed process (CMP) estimation technique.FindingsThe results indicate that remittances have a negative effect on self-employment and a positive effect on domestic/family employment. Thus, remittances reduce participation in self-employment but increase participation in domestic/family employment. Furthermore, remittances have a negative effect on participation in farm employment. The results are robust to different measures of remittances: receipt of remittances (dummy) and remittance income.Practical implicationsThe results suggest that remittances are used for consumption rather than investing in earning activities. In general, engaging in earning type of employment, whether farm and nonfarm employment will decline with receipt of remittances in rural Ghana. There is a need for policy attention with the increasing migration of people out of rural areas.Originality/valuePrior to this study, little was known on the effect of internal remittances on labor supply decisions of remittance recipients in Ghana, particularly rural Ghana. This paper contributes significantly to filling this knowledge gap.
Social media exploration for understanding food product attributes perception: the case of coffee and health with Twitter data
Authors: Samoggia Antonella , Riedel Bettina , Ruggeri Arianna 
Published: May 2020

PurposeFood companies and consumers are increasingly interested in healthy food and beverages. Coffee is one of the most commonly consumed beverages worldwide. There is increasing consensus that coffee consumption can have beneficial effects on human body. This paper aims at exploring Twitter messages' content and sentiment towards health attributes of coffee.Design/methodology/approachThe research adopted a utilitarian and hedonic consumer behaviour perspective to analyse online community messages. A sample of 13,000 tweets, from around 4,800 users, that mentions keywords coffee and health was collected on a daily basis for a month in mid-2017. The tweets were categorized with a term frequency analysis, keyword-in-context analysis and sentiment analysis.FindingsResults showed that the majority of tweets are neutral or slightly positive towards coffee’s effects on health. Media and consumers are dynamic Twitter users. Findings support that coffee consumption brings favourable emotions, wellness, energy, positive state of mind and an enjoyable and trendy lifestyle. Many tweets have a positive perception of coffee health benefits, especially relating to mental and physical well-being.Research limitations/implicationsThe high number of users and tweets analysed compensates the limited amount of time of data collection, Twitter messages' restricted number of characters and quantitative software analysis limitations.Practical implicationsThe research provides valuable suggestions for food and beverage industry managers.Originality/valueThis work adds value to the literature by expanding scholars' research on food product attributes perception analysis by using social media as a source of information. Moreover, it provides valuable information on marketable coffee attributes.
Readiness for lean procurement in construction projects
Authors: Suresh M. , Arun Ram Nathan R.B. 
Published: May 2020

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify, analyse and categorize the major factors affecting lean procurement (LP) in a construction project of a company in India using total interpretive structural modelling (TISM) approach. The readiness factors identified help the managers to recognize the areas that lack, i.e. purchase, stocks and receipts, and provide importance to the successful implementation of LP in those areas. This study further intends to examine the hierarchical interrelationships among the factors identified using dependence and driving power.

Design/methodology/approach
Ten factors were identified from literature review, and expert opinions were collected from the organization which is in construction phase in India. Scheduled interviews were conducted based on questionnaire survey in the organizations to identify the relevance of the relations among the factors. Matrix impact cross-multiplication applied to classification analysis uses dependence and driving power to understand the hierarchical relationship among the factors identified.

Findings
Results indicate that supplier selection is the key readiness factor for LP. The manager needs to concentrate more on readiness factors to formulate execution process of LP for the betterment of the construction project undergoing organization in India. The readiness factors help the manager to identify the target area for LP execution.

Practical implications
This study would be useful for researchers and practitioners to understand the readiness factors before starting the implementation process of LP in construction projects. The managers of companies undergoing construction project can use the outcome of the present study to implement LP in a competent way. Basing the priorities of attention on the ten readiness LP factors in the appropriate order of importance, as suggested by this study, can give project managers a more scientific basis in which to specify the level of attention required for each of the factors to implement readiness in LP.

Originality/value
The present study identifies the readiness factors related to LP, especially for construction project. None of the researchers have studied readiness factors of LP for organizations undergoing construction projects. This is the first attempt made to analyze the relationship between LP readiness factors and TISM approach in construction project organization.
Nexus of financial inclusion, competition, concentration and financial stability
Authors: Saha Mallika , Dutta Kumar Debasis 
Published: May 2020

Purpose
Since the strike of the 2007-2008 global financial crises, financial stability has been discussed with immense interest in academic and policy circles. Following this essence, this paper aims to investigate the nexus of financial inclusion, competition concentration and financial stability.

Design/methodology/approach
To analyze this relationship, this study uses different inclusion indices constructed by principle component analysis, Boon indicator, different concentration measures and Z-score, for a sample of 92 countries and subsamples based on income and economic grouping of those countries as well as for pre- and post-crisis episodes over the period of 2004-2014. This study also investigates the variation in inclusion–stability relationships in the presence of competition and concentration. This study uses two-step system-generalized method of moments (GMM) and two-stage least square to address the endogeneity.

Findings
The study finds that competition contributes to stability; however, there is evidence of fragility in the presence of concentration in the banking industry. Moreover, this study finds a U-shaped inclusion–stability relationship. The overall results of this study support the competition–stability view and a trade-off between inclusion and stability, which are consistent and robust to alternative econometric tests.

Research limitations/implications
Financial inclusion should be endorsed with caution in low-income, middle-income and emerging countries, and prudent policies should be taken to govern the market concentration to maintain financial stability.

Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to explain the impact of financial inclusion on financial stability in the presence of market heterogeneity.
CRM, service quality and organizational performance in the banking industry: a comparative study of conventional and Islamic banks
Authors: Lebdaoui Hind , Chetioui Youssef 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThis paper aims to examine a model that uses customer service quality as an intervening mechanism in the relationship between customer relationship management (CRM) practices and organizational performance in two different banking structures: conventional and Islamic. The study focuses on organizational and technological practices of CRM, as both have been demonstrated to be critical to CRM success.Design/methodology/approachThe analysis is based on responses from 247 managers from conventional banks and 141 managers from Islamic banks operating in Morocco using a self-administered questionnaire. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique is employed for data analysis.FindingsFindings demonstrate that customer service quality plays a mediating role between CRM practices (organizational and technological) and organizational performance in both conventional and Islamic banks. Our results confirm the positive impact of CRM practices on organizational performance in the two banking structures.Practical implicationsThis study enhances our understanding of how CRM practices contribute to improving customer service quality and organizational performance in both conventional and Islamic banks. Bank managers, who aim to deliver superior service quality and achieve customer satisfaction and retention, should capitalize on the benefits of implementing CRM organizational and technological practices.Originality/valueThe present paper bridges a gap pertaining to key practices and factors that impact CRM success in the banking industry. It is the first of its kind to investigate the effect of CRM practices on organizational performance with customer service quality as a mediating variable. The study also contributes to the field of CRM literature, as CRM has rarely been addressed in an Islamic banking context.
Computational modelling methods for sports bra–body interactions
Authors: Ruixin Liang , Yip Joanne , Yu Winnie , Chen Lihua , Lau Newman 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThe breasts are mainly fatty and connective tissues with no muscles that directly support them, so wearing sports bras is one of the most effective means of alleviating the discomfort of breast movement and potential injury during vigorous physical exercise. However, the design and development processes of traditional sports bras are time-consuming and costly. Hence, a novel method of simulating the static contact pressure between a sports bra and women’s body based on the finite element (FE) and artificial neural network (ANN) models is developed in this study to contribute to the design considerations of sports bras.Design/methodology/approachThree-dimensional FE models of a female subject and sports bras with different fabric properties are developed to determine the amount of contact pressure exerted onto the body. The FE results are then verified by measuring the amount of pressure exerted by the sports bra on the skin with pressure sensors. The Taguchi technique is used to effectively reduce the number of trials from 625 to only 25 cases. These 25 results obtained through FE modelling are then used to provide the training set for the ANNs. Finally, a comparison between the FE and ANN results is carried out.FindingsA novel model of the static contact pressure between a sports bra and human subject based on the FE and ANN methods is presented in this paper. The root mean square error values show that there is only a small difference between the FE and ANN results.Originality/valueThe ANN function established in this study can be used to predict the mechanical behaviours of breasts and has a fundamental impact on the computer-aided design of functional garments in general.
Are we working less? An examination of changing UK labour supply decisions since the 1990s
Authors: Jones Paul S. , Nasir Muhammad Ali 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThis purpose of the study is to examine the labour supply decisions with respect to earnings and considers whether we are willing or indeed able to work less. The authors specifically focus on the three points of time, i.e. beginning of the sample, pre and post Global Financial Crisis.Design/methodology/approachThe study regression analysis by utilises microdata from the UK Labour Force Survey (LFS) regarding individual hours worked in three separate survey periods: 1994q2, 2007q2 and 2015q2FindingsThe results suggest that we are far from income-satiated. The elasticity of hours worked with respect to earnings is stubbornly inelastic and for some demographic cohorts positive, implying the desire to work more. The authors find that job flexibility matters in facilitating reduced hours of work, but that jobs are not becoming more flexible. The authors also do see a secular reduction in hours worked, accompanied by a shift to working later in life, but these appear to be down to factors other than higher wages.Research limitations/implicationsThe study has important research implications in terms of understanding the dynamics of the labour market on the whole and in the pre and post global financial crisis periods.Practical implicationsThe research has profound policy implication in terms of labour and employment policy.Social implicationsThere are important social implications, particularly in terms of household labour supply decisions and substitution between work and leisure.Originality/valueThe study has significant element of originality in terms of understanding the changing dynamics of labour market. This is the first study which has investigated the labour market in the light of empirical evidence and in the various time periods.
Co-production or DIY: an analytical model of consumer choice and social preferences
Authors: Dargahi Rambod , Namin Aidin , Ketron Seth 
Published: May 2020

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how consumers choose among three different options offered by a firm in a monopolistic setting, namely, to buy a standard product with a non-customizable design, to ask the firm to customize a product using the consumer’s ideal design or to do the entire design task by themselves. The authors also investigate how social preference intensity and the possibility of reselling a product influence a consumer’s decision.Design/methodology/approachThe authors develop an analytical (game theoretical) consumer choice framework and incorporate a psychological factor into the model. The authors also empirically validate the analytical findings using simulations.FindingsThe authors find that as social preference intensity increases, the number of co-producers can either decrease or increase. The authors offer a closed-form solution and interval graphs showing that when the setup price is large (small), the proportion of the market that chooses to do-it-yourself (DIY) is large (small) and an increase in social preference intensity leads to a decrease (increase) in co-production.Originality/valueThis is the first paper to incorporate a social factor into an economic model in a consumer behavior setting. It is also the first paper to explain how customers’ preferences among possible options, such as DIY (without the firm’s help), co-production (with the firm’s help) and a standard product might change while considering other people’s preferences, as well as given associated costs.