bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
RNA polymerase clamp movement aids dissociation from DNA but is not required for RNA release at intrinsic terminators
Authors: Bellecourt Michael J , Ray-Soni Ananya , Harwig Alex , Mooney Rachel Anne , Landick Robert 
Published: October 2018

ABSTRACTIn bacteria, disassembly of elongating transcription complexes (ECs) can occur at intrinsic terminators in a 2-3 nucleotide window after transcription of multiple kilobase pairs of DNA. Intrinsic terminators trigger pausing on weak RNA-DNA hybrids followed by formation of a strong, GC-rich stem-loop in the RNA exit channel of RNA polymerase (RNAP), inactivating nucleotide addition and inducing dissociation of RNA and RNAP from DNA. Although the movements of RNA and DNA during intrinsic termination have been studied extensively leading to multiple models, the effects of RNAP conformational changes remain less well-defined. RNAP contains a clamp domain that closes around the nucleic-acid scaffold during transcription initiation and can be displaced by either swiveling or opening motions. Clamp opening is proposed to promote termination by releasing RNAP-nucleic acid contacts. We developed a cysteine-crosslinking assay to constrain clamp movements and study effects on intrinsic termination. We found that biasing the clamp into different conformations perturbed termination efficiency, but that perturbations were due primarily to changes in elongation rate, not the competing rate at which ECs commit to termination. After commitment, however, inhibiting clamp movements slowed release of DNA but not of RNA from the EC. We also found that restricting trigger-loop movements with the RNAP inhibitor microcin J25 prior to commitment inhibits termination, in agreement with a recently proposed multistate-multipath model of intrinsic termination. Together our results support views that termination commitment and DNA release are separate steps and that RNAP may remain associated with DNA after termination.HighlightsDisulfide bond crosslinks probe the role of the RNAP clamp domain in terminationRNA but not DNA can release at terminators when the RNAP clamp is closedRestricting RNAP clamp movement affects elongation rate more than termination rateInhibiting TL conformational flexibility impairs both RNA and DNA release
Inductive determination of allele frequency spectrum probabilities in structured populations
Authors: Uyenoyama Marcy K. , Takebayashi Naoki , Kumagai Seiji 
Published: October 2018

ABSTRACTWe present a method for inductively determining exact allele frequency spectrum (AFS) probabilities for samples derived from a population comprising two demes under the infinite-allele model of mutation. This method builds on a labeled coalescent argument to extend the Ewens sampling formula (ESF) to structured populations. A key departure from the panmictic case is that the AFS conditioned on the number of alleles in the sample is no longer independent of the scaled mutation rate (θ). In particular, biallelic site frequency spectra, widely-used in explorations of genome-wide patterns of variation, depend on the mutation rate in structured populations. Variation in the rate of substitution across loci and through time may contribute to apparent distortions of site frequency spectra exhibited by samples derived from structured populations.
Climate drives spatial variation in Zika epidemics in Latin America
Authors: Harris Mallory , Caldwell Jamie M. , Mordecai Erin A. 
Published: October 2018

AbstractBetween 2015 and 2017, Zika virus spread rapidly through populations in the Americas with no prior exposure to the disease. Although climate is a known determinant of many Aedes-transmitted diseases, it is currently unclear whether climate was a major driver the of Zika epidemic and how climate might have differentially impacted outbreak intensity across locations within Latin America. Here, we estimated force of infection for Zika over time and across provinces in Latin America using a time-varying Susceptible Infectious Recovered model. Climate factors explained less than 5% of the variation in weekly transmission intensity in a spatiotemporal model of force of infection by province over time, suggesting that week to week transmission within provinces may be too stochastic to predict. By contrast, climate and population factors were highly predictive of spatial variation in the presence and intensity of Zika transmission among provinces, with pseudo R2 values between 0.33 and 0.60. Temperature, temperature range, rainfall, and population size were the most important predictors of where Zika transmission occurred, while rainfall, relative humidity, and a nonlinear effect of temperature were the best predictors of Zika intensity and burden. Surprisingly, force of infection was greatest in locations with temperatures near 24°C, much lower than previous estimates from mechanistic models, potentially suggesting that existing vector control programs and/or prior exposure to other mosquito-borne diseases may have limited transmission in locations most suitable for Aedes aegypti, the main vector of Zika, dengue, and chikungunya viruses in Latin America.
Sex allocation conflict and sexual selection throughout the lifespan of eusocial colonies
Authors: Avila Piret , Fromhage Lutz , Lehmann Laurent 
Published: October 2018

AbstractModels of sex allocation conflict are central to evolutionary biology but have mostly assumed static decisions, where resource allocation strategies are constant over colony lifespan. Here, we develop a model to study how the evolution of dynamic resource allocation strategies is affected by the queen-worker conflict in annual eusocial insects. We demonstrate that the time of dispersal of sexuals affects the sex allocation ratio through sexual selection on males. Furthermore, our model provides three predictions that depart from established results of classic static allocation models. First, we find that the queen wins the sex allocation conflict, while the workers determine the maximum colony size and colony productivity. Second, male-biased sex allocation and protandry evolve if sexuals disperse directly after eclosion. Third, when workers are more related to new queens, then the proportional investment into queens is expected to be lower, which results from the interacting effect of sexual selection (selecting for protandry) and sex allocation conflict (selecting for earlier switch to producing sexuals). Overall, we find that colony ontogeny crucially affects the outcome of sex-allocation conflict because of the evolution of distinct colony growth phases, which decouples how queens and workers affect allocation decisions and can result in asymmetric control.
Bacteriophages dynamically modulate the gut microbiota and metabolome
Authors: Hsu Bryan B. , Gibson Travis E. , Yeliseyev Vladimir , Liu Qing , Bry Lynn , Silver Pamela A. , Gerber Georg K. 
Published: October 2018

AbstractThe human gut microbiome is comprised of densely colonizing micro-organisms in dynamic interaction with each other and the host. While the bacterial component of the microbiome is under intense investigation, far less is known about how bacteriophages impact bacterial communities in the gut. We investigated the dynamic effects of phages on a model microbiome using gnotobiotic mice colonized by commensal bacteria that colonize the human infant gut, and found that phage predation not only directly impacts susceptible bacteria but also leads to cascading effects on other bacterial speciesviainter-bacterial interactions. Using metabolomic profiling, we also found that the shifts in the microbiome caused by phage predation have a direct consequence on the gut metabolome. Our work provides insight into the ecological importance of phages as modulators of bacterial colonization, and additionally suggests the potential impact of gut phages on the host with implications for the use of phages as therapeutic tools to rationally and precisely modulate the microbiome.
Safety management systems: an opportunity and a challenge for military aviation organisations
Authors: Chatzi Anna V. 
Published: October 2018

Purpose
Most military aviation organisations today have not evolved their safety management approach towards harmonising with civil aviation. Safety culture is the base for any civil aviation organisation, enabling employees to communicate effectively and be fully aware and extrovert on safety. Just culture and reporting culture both are related to safety culture. Both are parts of the awareness process, enhancing safety promotion. These distinct elements and the safety management systems (SMS) can serve well the military aviation. This paper aims to present and discuss the SMS philosophy, structure and elements as a solution for military aviation organisations.

Design/methodology/approach
The feature of civil aviation SMSs are presented and discussed, with reference to the applicable frameworks and regulations governing the SMS operation. A discussion on the challenges faced within the military aviation organisations, with a brief examination of a European Union military aviation organisation, is presented.

Findings
The European Military Airworthiness Requirements, which are based on the European Aviation Safety Agency set of rules, can act the basis for establishing military aviation SMSs. A civil-based approach, blended, as necessary, with military culture is workable, as this is the case for many defence forces that have adopted such aviation safety systems.

Originality/value
This viewpoint paper discusses the opportunities and challenges associated with the adoption of SMS by military aviation organisations. This is the first time that this issue is openly discussed and presented to the wider aviation community, outside military aviation.
The health and social care of people with disabilities in Germany
Authors: Elstner Samuel , Theil Michael-Mark 
Published: October 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present information on the health care system in Germany with the focus on mental health care in people with intellectual disabilities (ID).

Design/methodology/approach
The paper is descriptive providing an overview of the general structure of the German health care system with historical and economic background. The paper also provides further information on the general social and health care in Germany for people with ID and medical education in the field of ID is used.

Findings
There is a highly developed health care infrastructure in Germany but health care for people with ID is not co-ordinated or universal. Mental health care for people with ID is predominantly in in-patient services. Only in recent years, out-patient services for people with ID have been developed. There is a little emphasis in medical education on the health care needs of people with ID.

Originality/value
The value of this paper is its description of health care in Germany and services for people with ID.
Determinants of operational efficiency in the oil and gas sector
Authors: Al-Qubaisi Salama S. , Ajmal Mian 
Published: October 2018

PurposeThere is limited research that indicates the relation between knowledge management practices (KMPs), organizational culture (OC) and operational efficiency performance (OE) by using Balanced scorecards (BSC) specifically in oil and gas sector. This relationship is not yet acknowledged through empirical tests. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by providing a better understanding of that relationship and its importance with regard to business outcomes.Design/methodology/approachIn order to examine the relationship between OC and OE, this research takes a BSC perspective with the mediating impact of KMPs. Three hypotheses were developed using literature review and tested through the application of confirmatory factor analysis in structural equation modeling. Altogether, 568 valid responses were collected from one of the biggest oil and gas companies in the UAE.FindingsAll KMPs were found to have significant relationship with OE and OC. Also, KMPs mediate the relationship between OC and OE. In addition, the results show that the standardized coefficients of these paths and the loadings of the indicators on their factors are significant. Pearson’s correlations indicate strong evidences of the joint impact of OC and KM practices on OE, with a possible mediator impact of KM practices on OE.Research limitations/implicationsOne of research limitations is the type of organization. Future research may include other industries such as manufacturing and construction. Only the operational variable is evaluated and there is no consideration of other dimensions such as leadership type, organizational structure and technology.Originality/valueThis paper is the first in the UAE and the region to examine the relationship between OC and KMPs by considering OE from a BSC perspective with the mediating impact of KMPs.
Kit preparation for mixed-model assembly: efficiency impact of confirmation methods
Authors: Fager Patrik 
Published: October 2018

PurposeConfirmations are applied in kit preparation for mixed-model assembly to promote quality, but research that explains the impact on time efficiency has been lacking. The purpose of this paper is to determine the extent to which the type of confirmation method relates to time-efficient kit preparation when order batching is applied.Design/methodology/approachAn industrially relevant laboratory experiment is applied, simulating kit preparation with order batching for mixed-model assembly. The time efficiency is studied as associated with four confirmation methods – barcode ring scanner, button presses, voice commands and RFID-reading wristbands – when applied as pick-from and place-to confirmation. Furthermore, the paper also considers the quality outcome.FindingsEfficiency is promoted by methods that minimise interrupting the picker’s motions when performing pick-from confirmations and with methods that allow each hand to place components and perform place-to confirmations simultaneously – here represented by button presses and RFID-reading wristbands. Moreover, combining various methods for the tasks of pick-from or place-to confirmation can benefit efficiency.Research limitations/implicationsPickers at an early stage of the learning curve (one shift of training) were considered.Practical implicationsThe findings promote the customised applications of picking information systems in industry.Social implicationsCombining various methods for the tasks of pick-from and place-to confirmation can provide more fitting applications that better align with the picker’s preferences.Originality/valueCombinations of various methods when applied as either pick-from or place-to confirmation, or both, are studied.
Doctor-patient communication: a review and a rationale for using an assessment framework
Authors: Belasen Ariel , Belasen Alan T. 
Published: October 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which improving doctor–patient communication (DPC) can address and alleviate many healthcare delivery inefficiencies.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors survey causes and costs of miscommunication including perceptual gaps between how physicians believe they perform their communicative duties vs how patients feel and highlight thresholds such as the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) used by hospitals to identify health outcomes and improve DPC.

Findings
The authors find that DPC correlates with better and more accurate care as well as with more satisfied patients. The authors utilize an assessment framework, doctor–patient communication assessment (DPCA), empirically measuring the effectiveness of DPC. While patient care is sometimes viewed as purely technical, there is evidence that DPC strongly predicts clinical outcomes as well as patients’ overall ratings of hospitals.

Research limitations/implications
More research is needed to extend our understanding of the impact of the DPC on the overall HCAHPS ratings of hospitals. The authors think that researchers should adopt a qualitative method (e.g. content analysis) for analyzing DPC discourse.

Practical implications
When a sufficient amount of DPCA training is initiated, a norming procedure could be developed and a database may be employed to demonstrate training program’s efficacy, a critical factor in establishing the credibility of the measurement program and nurturing support for its use.

Originality/value
The authors highlight clinical and operational issues as well as costs associated with miscommunication and the need to use metrics such as HCAHPS that allow consumers to see how hospitals differ on specific characteristics.
Impression management for corporate brands over mobile media
Authors: Schniederjans Dara G. , Atlas Stephen A. , Starkey Christopher M. 
Published: October 2018

PurposeAs organizations increasingly engage with consumers over mobile devices, there is a growing need to understand how consumers react to impression management over platforms with limited textual content. The purpose of this paper is to empirically assess how different impression management tactics can be used in mobile media to enhance consumer perception-attitude-intentions toward a corporate brand.Design/methodology/approachWe surveyed 670 consumers and estimate structural equation models and repeated-measures ANOVAs to determine how short passages employing alternate impression management tactics influence consumers’ perceptions, attitudes and purchase intentions.FindingsResults reveal that each impressions management tactic (i.e. ingratiation, intimidation, organizational promotion, supplication and exemplification) influences consumer perceptions, attitudes and intentions. The authors compare differences in how the impressions management tactics influence each stage of the perception-attitude-intentions model and find evidence that initial differences in perceptions favoring ingratiation and exemplification appeals become magnified for purchase intentions.Research limitations/implicationsRecent calls for research focus on an understanding of how consumers process information on reduced-content platforms of small-screened mobile devices. These results provide empirical evidence of the use of impression management and the difference between five impression management tactics on enhancing consumer perception-attitude-intentions model.Practical implicationsThe results of this study will provide marketers with insights to optimize communications and corporate brands with consumers over mobile media.Originality/valueThis paper adds to the nascent yet vital literature on mobile marketing by focusing on how impression management tactics influence perceptions, attitudes and intentions through the short message characteristic of mobile platforms. The authors develop a framework for how corporate brand management can strategically use impressions management tactics in this novel domain.
Inflammatory gene expression analysis after prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation in experimental nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Authors: Carreira dos Santos Angelica , Ribeiro Daniel Araki , Ferreira Jessica Almeida da Cruz , Aguiar Odair , Waitzberg Dan Linetzky , Alves Claudia Cristina 
Published: October 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation on liver histopathology and TLR-4, NFκB and TNF-α gene expression involved in the inflammatory cascade and pathogenesis of experimental nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Design/methodology/approach
Wistar male adult rats (n = 40) were submitted to hypercholesterolemic conditions (60 days). On Day 30 of hypercholesterolemic conditions, rats were subdivided in five groups: negative control (NC), positive control (PC), prebiotic (PRE), probiotic (PRO) and synbiotic (SYN). All rats were sacrificed on Day 60. Liver tissue was used to verify histopathological changes and gene expression. Gene expression of TLR-4, TNF-α and NFκB was evaluated in liver tissue using RT-qPCR.

Findings
Histopathological analysis: PC showed more changes than NC, and PRE and SYN showed fewer alterations than PC. Gene expression analysis: PRE showed higher TLR-4, and NFκB and TNF-α compared to PC. Also, PRE showed higher TLR-4 when compared to PRO and SYN. SYN group revealed higher TLR-4 and NFκB expressions compared to PC. PRO group also showed higher NFκB expression compared to PC.

Originality/value
NAFLD is a significant health concern, and it found that prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation could have positive effects as a nonpharmacological approach to control this disease.
Anti-hypertensive, anti-diabetic, hypocholesterolemic and antioxidant properties of prickly pear nopalitos in type 2 diabetic rats fed a high-fat diet
Authors: Harrat Nour el Imane , Louala Sabrine , Bensalah Fatima , Affane Fouad , Chekkal Hadjera , Lamri-Senhadji Myriem 
Published: October 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prickly pear (Opuntia ficus indica(OFI)) nopalitos on body weight, food consumption, arterial blood pressure, glucidic homeostasis, cholesterol metabolic pathway and tissues redox status in type 2 diabetic (T2D) rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD).Design/methodology/approachRats were fed by a HFD containing 30 per cent sheep fat for 10 weeks, after which they were rendered diabetic by an injection of a low dose of streptozotocin (STZ) (35 mg/kg). The diabetic rats were then divided into two groups. The first group consumed the HFD supplemented with 5 per cent (g/100 g diet) of freeze-driedOFInopalitos (HFD-OFI), and the second group received the HFD without supplementation (HFD).FindingsOFInopalitos treatment decreased significantly arterial diastolic (−20%;p= 0.0001) and systolic (−16%;p= 0.0001) pressures, glycemia (−14%;p= 0.03), insulinemia (−50%;p= 0.04), glycated hemoglobin (−49%;p= 0.003), homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (−67%;p= 0.03), cholesterolemia (−31%;p= 0.003), very-low and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (−38%;p= 0.002 and −63%p= 0.0002, respectively); thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and lipid hydroperoxide contents, respectively, in liver (−26%p= 0.02, −20%p= 0.02), adipose tissue (−30%p= 0.002, −25%p= 0.001), muscle (−29%p= 0.003, −25%p= 0.008) and kidney (lipid hydroperoxides only (−28%;p= 0.001) but increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL2) cholesteryl esters (+61%;p= 0.0001), serum lecithin: cholesterol acyltransferase activity (+21%;p= 0.006) and antioxidant enzymes activities (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase) of some tissues (liver, adipose tissue, muscle and kidney).Originality/valueFreeze-driedOFInopalitos improves arterial blood pressure, glycemic control, metabolic pathway of cholesterol and redox status in T2D rats.