bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Quantitative mapping of triacylglycerol chain length and saturation using broadband CARS microscopy
Authors: Paul A. , Wang Y.J. , Brännmark C. , Kumar S. , Bonn M. , Parekh S. H. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractLipid droplets (LDs) are highly dynamic organelles that store neutral lipids, primarily triacylglycerols (TAGs), and are found in many cell types. While their primary function is to store excess energy, LDs are also modified in different disease states and during developmental processes. In many cases, not only the presence, but also the composition, of LDs can be equally important. In humans, LD composition has been linked to diseases such as type 2 diabetes; in plants and yeast, LD composition is relevant for engineering these organisms into biological factories in,e.g., algal bioenergy or food oil production. Therefore, lipid analysis of biological LDs with high speed and accuracyin situis a very active area of research. Here we present an approach forin situ, quantitative TAG analysis using label-free, coherent Raman microscopy to decipher LD TAG composition in different biochemically complex samples. Our method allows direct visualization of inter-LD compositional heterogeneity of physiological quantities – TAG chain length and number of C=C bonds – with sub-micrometer spatial resolution within 5-100 milliseconds. Combined with virtually no sample preparation, this approach should enable rapid and accurate TAG LD analysis for a variety of applications.
Macrophage Released Pyrimidines Inhibit Gemcitabine Therapy in Pancreatic Cancer
Authors: Halbrook Christopher J. , Pontious Corbin , Lee Ho-Joon , Kovalenko Ilya , Zhang Yaqing , Lapienyte Laura , Dreyer Stephan , Kremer Daniel M. , Sajjakulnukit Peter , Zhang Li , Nelson Barbara , Hong Hanna S. , Kemp Samantha , Chang David , Biankin Andrew , Crawford Howard C. , Morton Jennifer P. , di Magliano Marina Pasca , Lyssiotis Costas A. 
Published: November 2018

SummaryPancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDA) is characterized by abundant infiltration of tumor associated macrophages (TAMs). TAMs have been reported to drive resistance to gemcitabine, the front-line chemotherapy in PDA, though the mechanism of this resistance remains unclear. Profiling metabolite exchange, we demonstrate macrophages programmed by PDA cells release a spectrum of pyrimidine species. These include deoxycytidine, which inhibits gemcitabine through molecular competition at the level of drug uptake and metabolism. Accordingly, genetic or pharmacological depletion of TAMs in murine models of PDA sensitizes these tumors to gemcitabine. Consistent with this, patients with low macrophage burden demonstrate superior response to gemcitabine treatment. Additionally, we report pyrimidine release is a general function of anti-inflammatory myeloid cells, suggesting an unknown physiological role of pyrimidine exchange by immune cells.
Drift and directional selection are the evolutionary forces driving gene expression divergence in eye and brain tissue ofHeliconiusbutterflies
Authors: Catalán Ana , Briscoe Adriana , Höhna Sebastian 
Published: November 2018

AbstractInvestigating gene expression evolution over micro- and macroevolutionary timescales will expand our understanding of the role of gene expression in adaptation and speciation. In this study, we characterized which evolutionary forces are acting on gene expression levels in eye and brain tissue of fiveHeliconiusbutterflies with divergence times of ~5-12 MYA. We developed and applied Brownian motion and Ornstein-Uhlenbeck models to identify genes whose expression levels are evolving through drift, stabilizing selection, or a lineage-specific shift. We find that 81% of the genes evolve under genetic drift. When testing for branch-specific shifts in gene expression, we detected 368 (16%) shift events. Genes showing a shift towards up-regulation have significantly lower gene expression variance than those genes showing a shift leading towards down-regulation. We hypothesize that directional selection is acting in shifts causing up-regulation, since transcription is costly. We further uncover through simulations that parameter estimation of Ornstein-Uhlenbeck models is biased when using small phylogenies and only becomes reliable with phylogenies having at least 50 taxa. Therefore, we developed a new statistical test based on Brownian motion to identify highly conserved genes (i.e., evolving under strong stabilizing selection), which comprised 3% of the orthoclusters. In conclusion, we found that drift is the dominant evolutionary force driving gene expression evolution in eye and brain tissue inHeliconius. Nevertheless, the higher proportion of genes evolving under directional than under stabilizing selection might reflect species-specific selective pressures on vision and brain necessary to fulfill species-specific requirements.
Drug prescription pattern in European neonatal units
Authors: Mesek Inge , Nellis Georgi , Lass Jana , Metsvaht Tuuli , Varendi Heili , Visk Helle , Turner Mark A. , Nunn Anthony J. , Duncan Jennifer , Lutsar Irja 
Published: November 2018

ABSTRACTBackgroundHospitalized neonates receive the highest number of drugs compared to all other age groups, but consumption rates vary between studies depending on patient characteristics and local practices. There are no large scale international studies on drug use in neonatal units. We aimed to describe drug use in European neonatal units and characterize its associations with geographic region and gestational age (GA).MethodsA one-day point prevalence study (PPS) was performed as part of the European Study of Neonatal Exposure to Excipients (ESNEE) from January to June 2012. All neonatal prescriptions and demographic data were registered in a web-based database. The impact of GA and region on prescription rate were analyzed with logistic regression.ResultsIn total, 21 European countries with 89 neonatal units participated. Altogether 2173 prescriptions given to 726 neonates were registered. The 10 drugs with the highest prescription rate were multivitamins, vitamin D, caffeine, gentamicin, amino acids for parenteral nutrition, phytomenadione, ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, fat emulsion for parenteral nutrition and probiotics. The six most commonly prescribed ATC groups (alimentary tract and metabolism, blood and blood-forming organs, systemic anti-infectives, nervous, respiratory and cardiovascular system) covered 98% of prescriptions. GA significantly affected the use of all commonly used drug groups. Geographic region influenced the use of alimentary tract and metabolism, blood and blood-forming organs, systemic anti-infectives, nervous and respiratory system drugs.ConclusionsWhile GA-dependent differences in neonatal drug use were expected, regional variations (except for systemic anti-infectives) indicate a need for cooperation in developing harmonized evidence-based guidelines and suggest priorities for collaborative work.
An empirical study of oil and gas value chain agility in the UAE
Authors: Shqairat Ala , Sundarakani Balan 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the agility of oil and gas value chains in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and to understand the impact of implementing supply disruption (SD) strategies, outsourcing strategies (OS) and management strategies (MS) on oil and gas value chain agility (VCA). The results can support the oil and gas industry across the UAE to build resilience in the value chain.

Design/methodology/approach
The research design consists of a comprehensive literature review, followed by questionnaire-based survey responses of 106 participants and comprehensive statistical analysis, thus validate the developed theoretical framework and contribute to both practical and methodological approaches.

Findings
The findings indicate that oil and gas value chain in the UAE has moderate a significant degree of SD, when OS in place that are synchronized with the overall MS. Among the hypotheses developed, two were accepted thus warranting both SD strategies (r=+0.432) and MS (r= +0.457) found to have a positive moderate effect on VCA. The third hypothesis was rejected by revealing OS (r=+0.387) found to have a positive moderate relationship with VCA. Therefore, implementation of all three strategies has a positive moderate effect on the agility of the value chain and, therefore, supports to sustain competitive position.

Research limitations/implications
Some of the limitations of this research include the geographic coverage of the study region and other methodological limitation.

Practical implications
The research provides guidance for oil and gas supply chain managers to better understand the critical factors that impact and determine VCA. The paper also describes relevant strategies that should be taken into consideration by these managers in order to build their agile value chains.

Social implications
The research contributes to the social dimensions of supply chain sustainability of how resilient is the oil and gas value chain during uncertain conditions, so that it can respond to uncertain changes in order to contribute to corporate social responsibility.

Originality/value
This research is the first of its kind in the UAE region to assess the link between dimensions of agile value chain, OS, SD strategies and MS primarily from the Emirates of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Achieving economic and social sustainability through hyperconnectivity
Authors: Apaydin Marina , Bayraktar Erkan , Hossary Mohammad 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify cross-country differences in socio-economic sustainability, which are operationalized as relative efficiency of economic and social impacts of hyperconnectivity (usage intensity of information and communication technologies (ICT) devices). The authors have a particular interest in the emerging economies because they enjoy outstanding growth rates and prospects for market expansion, and have undertaken significant economic reforms and, thus, should be expected to lead other two groups in the efficiency of transforming hyperconnectivity into sustainable growth.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use canonical correlation analysis (CCA) to confirm the existence of a strong and significant relationship between hyperconnectivity drivers and socio-economic outcomes on a country level. The authors test the difference in efficiency of transforming hyperconnectivity into socio-economic sustainability among three groups of countries: advanced, emerging and developing nations using data envelopment analysis (DEA).FindingsThe findings indicate that indeed emerging economies were the most effective ones to use infrastructure and digital content followed by developing and advanced countries, respectively. However, relatively better affordability of technologies in the emerging countries did not produce as much socio-economic impact as compared with developing nations. Favorable legislative conditions and high individual ICT usage in advanced economies did not contribute much to socio-economic sustainability either.Research limitations/implicationsOne of the limitations of this study stems from the classification of the countries. World Economy Forum and International Monetary Fund resources are utilized for the economy categories, but their basis for classification of counties is rather subjective. Lack of existing comparative efficiency studies on a country level prevents effective benchmarking of the results.Practical implicationsSince the key vehicles of transforming technology into socio-economic impact are organizations, they should design and implement an appropriate organizational architecture which would facilitate this transformation in the emerging markets more effectively.Social implicationsIn a climate of increasing public accountability, governments have been increasingly urged to introduce good administrative practices and performance standards to enable efficient utilization of their resources and enhance social implications within and across countries.Originality/valueAlthough the impact of ICT on macro-economic development has been previously studied, the efficiency of this impact was not. Using CCA as a complementary tool for DEA approach in this study constitutes a methodological contribution to existing DEA research, mostly done in the area of operations management. Using DEA on a country level is a novel approach which contributes to the realm of application of this methodology.
Benchmarking Indian ceramic enterprises based on green supply chain management pressures, practices and performance
Authors: Choudhary Kailash , Sangwan Kuldip Singh 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze the impact of green supply chain management (GSCM) pressures, implementation level of GSCM practices and improvement in performance of the Indian ceramic enterprises. The paper also aims at benchmarking the Indian ceramic enterprises based on enterprise size and market orientation (export activity).Design/methodology/approachThe research is based on the empirical study of Indian ceramic industry. Propositions are developed to study: the impact of GSCM pressures, implementation level of GSCM practices, improvement in GSCM performance, and the effect of GSCM pressures on implementation of practices, and impact of GSCM practices on GSCM performance. Data are collected from Indian ceramic enterprises of different sizes. Exploratory factor analysis is performed to segregate the pressures, practices and performance variables into constructs. Two-step algorithm, with log-likelihood measures of distance and Bayesian information criterion, is used to decide the optimal number of clusters. These clusters are compared and benchmarked according to the enterprise size and export activity.FindingsThis study finds that the implementation level of GSCM practices is higher in large- and medium-size enterprises as compared to small-size enterprises. Large- and medium-size enterprises have high impact of mimetic and informative pressures and small enterprises have high impact of coercive pressure (CP). Although the CP is high on small enterprises but due to the limited resources, these enterprises cannot afford to implement GSCM practices. The implementation of GSCM practices results into the improvement of environmental and operational performance but decrease in economic performance.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study will suggest the policy maker to encourage the diffusion mechanism through a collaborative partnership with larger enterprises to enhance the implementation level of GSCM practices in small-size enterprises.Originality/valueThe novelty of the paper are: it analyzes and benchmarks GSCM pressures, practice and performance for Indian ceramic enterprises by considering enterprises size and export activities as control variables, and it finds the effect of GSCM pressures on the implementation level of GSCM practices and improvement in enterprise performance for Indian ceramic enterprises.
Scale purification: state-of-the-art review and guidelines
Authors: Wieland Andreas , Kock Florian , Josiassen Alexander 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
This paper aims to identify scale purification criteria for both uni- and multidimensional reflective scales and apply these criteria to an evaluation of the methodological status quo of the hospitality literature.

Design/methodology/approach
Based on a literature review, the authors develop a taxonomy of statistical and judgmental criteria across scale levels, from which best practices are derived. Recent publications in leading hospitality journals are then evaluated based on these scale purification steps.

Findings
The authors uncover a lack of transparency when reporting scale purification practices. Moreover, methodological steps are often entirely omitted or insufficiently followed, especially when it comes to judgmental scale purification practices.

Research limitations/implications
The authors focus on reflective scales in the hospitality discipline. Methodological traditions in other fields might lead to different results if the chosen approach was to be repeated there.

Practical implications
The authors provide a set of suggestions that will help researchers in hospitality and adjacent disciplines to greater consensus and consistency of application regarding the methodological steps when carrying out scale purification in reflective scales.

Originality/value
Application of scale purification in hospitality research has been scarce. The authors extend existing research and provide the most comprehensive study so far of present and best scale purification practices, using both statistical and judgmental criteria.
Attitudes towards accounting and intention to major in accounting: a logistic regression analysis
Authors: Bekoe Rita Amoah , Owusu Godfred Matthew Yaw , Ofori Charles Gyamfi , Essel-Anderson Anthony , Welbeck Edem Emerald 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the attitude of business students towards the accounting profession and investigate the relationship between students’ attitude and their intention to pursue a degree in accounting.

Design/methodology/approach
A self-administered survey was used to collect data from students from the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS). A total of 457 questionnaires were used in the empirical analysis. A binary logistic regression analysis technique was employed to analyse the data.

Findings
The logistic regression analysis demonstrates that intrinsic interest in the accounting discipline, prior exposure to accounting at the senior high level and the desire to pursue professional accounting qualification in future are good predictors of students’ intention to major in accounting. The results also indicate family members, course instructors and other referent group play a crucial role in influencing students’ intention to pursue a career in accounting.

Practical implications
The findings of this study have important implications for the professional accountancy body and business educators interested in addressing the skill shortage in the accounting profession.

Originality/value
This study does not only examine students’ attitude towards the accounting discipline but also investigates how such attitudes influence intentions to major in accounting.
Accrual management and expected stock returns in India
Authors: Dayanandan Ajit , Sra Jaspreet Kaur 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the stock market in India is efficient in the semi-strong form.

Design/methodology/approach
The study uses financial and stock market data of 1,135 listed Indian companies (non-financial) during 2003–2011 collected from Capital IQ to estimate discretionary accruals (DA) using modified Jones model (1995). The study also examines using the widely used Mishkin (1983) test to whether equity market prices accruals in India. The study is conducted for profit/loss-making firms separately as well as for a hedge portfolio of firms based on the lowest to highest accruals.

Findings
The empirical study of DA of 1,135 listed Indian companies (non-financial) during 2003–2011 shows that the estimated average DA of the corporate sector in India comes to 1 percent of the total assets of these firms. An empirical analysis whether equity market prices DA in India finds no evidence of investors/market pricing DA. Empirical evidence also finds that the results are invariant for profit/loss-making firms as well as portfolio of firms based on the lowest to highest accruals in the Indian context. The empirical evidence shows that the Indian equity market is inefficient with regard to the incorporation of accruals in expected returns of stocks.

Research limitations/implications
This study builds on the previous literature on accrual pricing in the context of the USA and developed markets. The study extends the empirics to the one of the largest emerging market economy – India. This issue is important not only to investors, but also to policy makers and researchers because the mispricing of accruals could potentially lead to misallocation of capital. The study has implications for stock/firm valuations and cost of equity/capital.

Originality/value
This is the first study for the pricing of accruals and test of semi-strong efficiency of the Indian stock market.
Allocation of internally generated corporate cash flow in Africa
Authors: Agyei-Boapeah Henry , Machokoto Michael 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how managers of African firms, operating in environments characterised by less developed capital markets and weak institutional structures, make use of their internally generated cash flows.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors use a panel data methodology which regresses a particular use of cash flow (e.g. capital expenditure) on the internally generated operating cash flow of a firm and a set of control variables. The estimation of the regression model is done by ordinary least squares regressions. For robustness, the authors also estimate the models using system generalised method of moments to control for endogeneity and measurement error problems.

Findings
The authors find that managers of African firms hold most of their internally generated cash flows, and when they decide to spend, they allocate a higher proportion towards dividend payments; followed by debt adjustments; then to investments; and lastly, to equity repurchases.

Research limitations/implications
The findings are consistent with the existence of a significant financial constraint in African markets, and the use of dividends to signal credit quality in relatively underdeveloped capital markets.

Originality/value
The authors provide a more extensive analysis of how a firm spends a unit of the incremental cash flow it generates. In particular, the analysis shows that beyond investments in capital expenditure, other cash flow uses (i.e. cash holdings, dividend payments, and adjustments in debt and equity capital) which have been largely overlooked in the literature are important to understanding the effects of financial constraints on corporate decisions. Also, the early empirical evidence on the cash flow allocations of African firms could be a step in the right direction in informing theory development in this area.
An evaluation of German active labour market policies: a review of the empirical evidence
Authors: Zoellner Moritz , Fritsch Michael , Wyrwich Michael 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the results of studies that investigate the most important active labour market policy (ALMP) measures in Germany. A focus is also on programmes devoted to foster entrepreneurship which can make important contributions to a country’s growth and social welfare.Design/methodology/approachThe study relies on quantitative and qualitative assessments and a comparison of results of previous studies on ALMPs.FindingsThe available evidence suggests that most ALMP measures increase labour market prospects of the participants. In particular, evaluations of the entrepreneurship promotion activities show high success rates as well as high cost efficiency. The bulk share of participants of entrepreneurship measures is still self-employed after several years and nearly one-third of these businesses had at least one employee. The authors mention problems regarding the evaluation of previous programmes and highlight future challenges of German ALMP.Originality/valueThis is the first study on ALMP that has an extensive and explicit focus on entrepreneurship-promoting programs.