bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A Spatial Analysis of Physiological Changes Associated with Infection of Cotyledons of Marrow Plants with Cucumber Mosaic Virus
Authors: Tecsi L. I. , Smith A. M. , Maule A. J. , Leegood R. C. 
Published: August 2016

Abstract
Changes in host primary metabolism associated with the compatible interaction between cucumber mosaic virus and cotyledons of the marrow plant (Cucurbita pepo L.) have been localized, first by measuring activities of key enzymes in infected and uninfected regions of the cotyledon, and second by histochemical techniques applied to tissue prints of the infected region. A series of progressive metabolic changes occurs within the expanding infected lesion. Virus replication and the synthesis of viral protein at the periphery creates a strong sink demand associated with increased activities of anaplerotic enzymes, increased photosynthesis, and starch accumulation. Inside the lesion, when the synthesis of virus has declined, photosynthesis is reduced, starch is mobilized, and the emphasis of metabolism is shifted toward glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration. These changes are associated spatially with the onset of chlorosis. A decrease in total protein synthesis in this inner zone could be instrumental in some or all of these changes, leading to symptoms of viral infection.
Usability evaluation with tasks characterized by the information search process
Authors: Ma Cuichang , Cao Shujin , Gu Tinghua 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to present an approach to evaluating the usability of digital libraries in terms of knowledge states within the information search process (ISP) by investigating the connections among components with which users interact, perceived usability and task stages. The China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), the most popular digital library in China, was chosen to be studied.

Design/methodology/approach
With the research framework, measurements were generated for perceived usability in task stages for efficiency, effectiveness and satisfaction. Two usability experiments and usability tests were administered to 22 subjects in two groups. Three information retrieval tasks were designed according to the characteristics of knowledge states within the ISP for each experiment. The transaction logs were captured and the experimental results were recorded. The users completed a pre-search questionnaire and post-search questionnaire, and interviews were conducted.

Findings
The study showed that both interactions on components of the digital library and usability scores differed with sequential tasks characterized by knowledge states within the ISP; new usability problems relating to the CNKI were found based on the empirical results.

Originality/value
Many studies on the usability evaluation of digital libraries focused on the outcome rather than on the ISP. This study proposed an effective approach to usability evaluation based on users’ knowledge states within the ISP.
The AMSE Lean Six Sigma governance model
Authors: Arcidiacono Gabriele , Costantino Nico , Yang Kai 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
The sustainability of the Lean Six Sigma (LSS) program represents the most challenging aspect for most of the organizations dealing with this methodology. In this scenario, the purpose of this paper is the description of the AMSE (which stands for Assessment, Monitoring, Sustainability, Expansion) Model, that represents a leading-edge approach to implement an effective LSS deployment on a permanent basis, by means of a structured roadmap.

Design/methodology/approach
The AMSE roadmap is made of four operating phases – Assessment, Monitoring, Sustainability, Expansion – it is a Model to govern the LSS deployment and to maximize both operative and economical results on a long-term basis.

Findings
One of the main problems of LSS programs is their sustainability (sustainability of projects and the overall program) over time; the AMSE Model allows the deployment of an LSS Governance Structure with a clear definition of tasks; this model can be effectively applied both to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and global companies, regardless of the sector.

Practical implications
Both SMEs and global corporations could benefit from applying the AMSE in terms of operational efficiency, culture improvement and people engagement.

Originality/value
The AMSE Model represents an innovative approach for sustaining a continuous improvement culture in the organizations over time, by defining four steps (Assessment, Monitoring, Sustainability, Expansion), divided into detailed tasks, each of which is characterized by its own specific tools.
E-tail brand experience’s influence on e-brand trust and e-brand loyalty
Authors: Khan Imran , Rahman Zillur 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of e-tail brand experience on e-brand trust and e-brand loyalty. The study also tests whether gender moderates this influence.

Design/methodology/approach
– In all, 429 responses were collected using both offline and online survey methods. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling techniques were performed to test the measurement and structural models using SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 20.0 statistical software.

Findings
– Empirical results confirm the impact of e-tail brand experience on e-brand trust and e-brand loyalty. Gender was found to moderate the relationships. It was further found that e-tail brand experience developed almost same levels of e-brand trust in both males and females. However, males became more loyal to e-tail brands when they received positive e-tail brand experiences.

Practical implications
– E-tail brand managers should focus on the design and delivery of unique e-tail brand experiences to develop e-brand trust and e-brand loyalty in customers. The direct influence of e-tail brand experience on e-brand loyalty was found to be weaker in females, which suggests that managers could take steps to specifically deliver experiences that please female customers which might result in increased e-brand loyalty of this segment.

Originality/value
– Examining the phenomenon of brand experience in context of online retail while considering gender as moderator highlights the originality and contribution of the present study to existing retail and brand experience literature.
Human capital development for SMEs in Pakistan: is the “one-size-fits-all” policy adequate?
Authors: Mubarik Muhammad Shujaat , Govindaraju Chandran , Devadason Evelyn S. 
Published: August 2016

Purpose– Pakistan adopted “one-size-fits-all” policy for human capital (HC) development with the assumption that the level of HC is equal across industry and firm size. The purpose of this paper is to test this major assumption on which this policy is based, by comparing the differences in the levels of HC, overall and by dimensions of HC, by industry and firm size.Design/methodology/approach– The study is based on new data set of a sample of 750 manufacturing SME firms in Pakistan, compiled through a survey. Applying the independent samplet-test, one way analysis of variance and multivariate analysis of variance, the hypotheses of differences in levels of overall and dimensions of HC were tested.Findings– The results indicate significant differences in the levels of HC by industry and firm size. The levels of HC were found to be higher in textiles, food, metal and leather industries, and for medium-sized firms.Practical implications– The findings provide supporting evidence on the inadequacy of the current human capital development (HCD) policy in Pakistan. The study therefore recommends customized HCD policies, accounting for differences across industry and firm size.Originality/value– By taking the data on nine major dimensions of HC from 750 manufacturing sector SMEs, the study tests the level of overall HC and its nine dimensions by industry and size. The study also challenges the “one-size-fits-all” policy of the government of Pakistan for developing HC in SMEs.
Socioeconomic determinants of profitability of fresh fish marketing in Ogun State, Nigeria
Authors: Obayelu Abiodun  Elijah , Arowolo Aisha O. , Ibrahim Shakirat Bolatito , Oderinde Caroline Oluwakemi 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to examine the socioeconomic determinants of profitability of fresh fish marketing in Ogun State, Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach
– The study was a cross-sectional survey of 120 fresh fish marketers selected randomly from four major fish markets in Ado-Odo Local Government area of Ogun State, Nigeria. Data were collected using structured questionnaire which was designed to solicit information on the marketers’ socioeconomic and marketing characteristics, operating costs and returns, and problems associated with fish marketing in the study area. A combination of descriptive statistics, marketing margin, budgetary and ordinary least square regression analyses were employed to analyze the study data.

Findings
– The study showed that female (85.8 percent) dominated fresh fish marketing. The percent marketing margin of fresh fish was 34.55 percent. The percent marketing investment of 20,906.03, 20,453 per month and 1.43 were realized, respectively. The result of the regression analysis revealed that profit from fresh fish was significantly determined by education, proportion of household members involved in fresh fish marketing, marketers experience, capital, number of sales outlet and purchase price.

Research limitations/implications
– The findings was based on information supplied by the fresh fish marketers in the study area based on the authors memory recall since most of the respondents do not have diary where records of activities were kept before the survey.

Practical implications
– This study contributes to the existing literature in fish marketing and will provide empirical information to policy makers in the formulation of appropriate policies. It will also serve as a guide to practicing and prospective fresh fish marketers and to researchers who may investigate further into the subject matter.

Social implications
– The social implications from the findings on the return on investment of 1.43 implies that for every one naira invested by fresh fish marketers, a return of 1.43 and a profit of 0.43 were obtained. The study concludes that fresh fish marketing is an economically rewarding and profitable venture in the study area. It also recommends the need to provide credit facilities to finance storage facilities of this group of marketers.

Originality/value
– The study is original in nature and revealed the economic status of fresh fish marketing in Ogun State, Nigeria.
Assessing the CSR information needs of Microfinance institutions’ (MFIs) customers
Authors: Okoe Abednego Feehi , Boateng Henry 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
This paper aims to seek to ascertain the corporate social responsibility (CSR) information needs of customers of microfinance institutions (MFIs). It also ascertains their media preferences for CSR disclosure.

Design/methodology/approach
The study adapted Wilson’s (1981) concept of information needs as the conceptual basis of this study. Case study research design was used. The respondents consisted of customers of MFIs in Ghana. Semi-structured interview was used to collect the data. Data were analysed using thematic analysis technique.

Findings
The study found that the CSR information needs of MFIs’ customers relate to moral disclosure, business survival disclosure, financial and business terms and conditions disclosure, donations disclosure and capacity building and training disclosure. The study also found that family and friends are the most reliable sources of CSR information for MFIs’ customers.

Originality/value
There is a great deal of literature available on CSR disclosure. However, limited studies have investigated the information needs of customers regarding CSR disclosure. Again, CSR disclosure in the Microfinance sector has received limited attention in the existing literature. This study expanded the existing literature by investigating the CSR information needs of MFIs’ customers.
There’s something in your eye: ethical implications of augmented visual field devices
Authors: Wolf Marty J. , Grodzinsky Frances S. , Miller Keith W. 
Published: August 2016

Purpose
This paper aims to explore the ethical and social impact of augmented visual field devices (AVFDs), identifying issues that AVFDs share with existing devices and suggesting new ethical and social issues that arise with the adoption of AVFDs.

Design/methodology/approach
This essay incorporates both a philosophical and an ethical analysis approach. It is based on Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, philosophical notions of transparency and presence and human values including psychological well-being, physical well-being, privacy, deception, informed consent, ownership and property and trust.

Findings
The paper concludes that the interactions among developers, users and non-users via AVFDs have implications for autonomy. It also identifies issues of ownership that arise because of the blending of physical and virtual space and important ways that these devices impact, identity and trust.

Practical implications
Developers ought to take time to design and implement an easy-to-use informed consent system with these devices. There is a strong need for consent protocols among developers, users and non-users of AVFDs.

Social implications
There is a social benefit to users sharing what is visible on their devices with those who are in close physical proximity, but this introduces tension between notions of personal privacy and the establishment and maintenance of social norms.

Originality/value
There is new analysis of how AVFDs impact individual identity and the attendant ties to notions of ownership of the space between an object and someone’s eyes and control over perception.
The conditional impact of winner/loser status and ideological proximity on citizen participation
Authors: CURINI LUIGI , JOU WILLY 
Published: August 2016

AbstractMany scholars have investigated the relationship between ideological orientations and mass participation, and there is also a growing number of studies comparing political attitudes and behaviour between electoral winners and losers. This article seeks to bring together these two strands of literature with respect to political participation, focusing on the interaction between citizens’ winner/loser status and ideological distance from their government. Analysis of data from 34 countries highlights the importance of this interactive effect: while previous works suggest that losers have a greater propensity to take part in political activities, it is shown here that this relationship holds true only when losers occupy a position along the left‐right spectrum distant from the government. Furthermore, while the hypothesised interactive effect is empirically confirmed for turnout, the magnitude of its impact is much greater for more costly modes of participation such as contacting, campaigning and protesting
The Differential Impact of User‐Fee Exemption Compared to Conditional Cash Transfers on Safe Deliveries in Nepal
Authors: Pradhan Elina , Fan Victoria Y. 
Published: August 2016

ObjectiveTo assess the differential impact of a copayment exemption compared to a cash incentive on increasing skilled birth attendance (i.e., birth attended by a skilled health worker) in Nepal.Data Sources/Study SettingThis study used data on 8,785 children born between July 2005 and December 2008, obtained from the nationally representative Demographic and Health Surveys, 2006 and 2011.Study DesignTwenty‐five districts received both the policy interventions, and the remaining 50 control districts received only the cash incentive. We employed a difference‐in‐differences model to compare children born in districts with both interventions to those in districts with conditional cash transfers only. Average marginal effects of the difference‐in‐difference coefficient on skilled birth attendance measures are estimated.Principal FindingsSkilled birth attendance in districts with both interventions was no higher on average than in districts with only the cash incentive. In areas with adequate road networks, however, significantly higher skilled birth attendance was observed in districts with both interventions compared to those with only the cash incentive.ConclusionsThe added incentive of the user‐fee exemption did not significantly increase skilled birth attendance relative to the presence of the cash incentive. User‐fee exemptions may not be effective in areas with inadequate road infrastructure.
Detection of Acetaminophen–Protein Adducts in Decedents with Suspected Opioid–Acetaminophen Combination Product Overdose
Authors: Thomas Karen C. , Wilkins Diana G. , Curry Steven C. , Grey Todd C. , Andrenyak David M. , McGill Lawrence D. , Rollins Douglas E. 
Published: August 2016

AbstractAcetaminophen overdose is a leading cause of drug‐induced liver failure in the United States. Acetaminophen–protein adducts have been suggested as a biomarker of hepatotoxicity. The purpose of this study was to determine whether protein‐derived acetaminophen–protein adducts are quantifiable in postmortem samples. Heart blood, femoral blood, and liver tissue were collected at autopsy from 22 decedents suspected of opioid–acetaminophen overdose. Samples were assayed for protein‐derived acetaminophen–protein adducts, acetaminophen, and selected opioids found in combination products containing acetaminophen. Protein‐derived APAP‐CYS was detected in 17 of 22 decedents and was measurable in blood that was not degraded or hemolyzed. Heart blood concentrations ranged from 11 ng/mL (0.1 μM) to 7817 ng/mL (28.9 μM). Protein‐derived acetaminophen–protein adducts were detectable in liver tissue for 20 of 22 decedents. Liver histology was also performed for all decedents, and no evidence of centrilobular hepatic necrosis was observed.
Circulating long non‐coding HOX transcript antisense intergenic ribonucleic acid in plasma as a potential biomarker for diagnosis of breast cancer
Authors: Zhang Yi , Zhang Kaijiong , Luo Zhenglian , Liu Lian , Wu Lichun , Liu Jinbo 
Published: August 2016

BackgroundIt is well known that HOX transcript antisense intergenic ribonucleic acid (HOTAIR) plays an important role in breast cancer (BC). However, whether circulating HOTAIR in plasma could be used for BC diagnosis and dynamic monitoring are unclear.MethodsWe tested the expression levels of HOTAIR in 30 pairs of tissue samples and 148 plasma samples from BC patients by quantitative real time‐polymerase chain reaction, and the correlation between plasma HOTAIR levels and clinical features were analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to assess the diagnostic power of plasma HOTAIR for BC. Furthermore, we explored the monitoring values of plasma HOTAIR for BC and analyzed the correlation of HOTAIR levels between plasma and corresponding tissues of the same patients.ResultsThe expression levels of HOTAIR were significantly higher in BC tissues and plasma than in the control (
P
< 0.05). The expression levels of plasma HOTAIR were correlated with lymph node metastasis (
P
= 0.018), estrogen receptor (ER) (
P
= 0.012), c‐erbB‐2 (P = 0.006) and triple positive (
P
= 0.015). The area under the ROC curve of plasma HOTAIR was 0.80 (sensitivity 69.2%; specificity 93.3%), which was higher than the carcinoembryonic antigen and carbohydrate antigen 15‐3 values obtained. Moreover, plasma HOTAIR expression levels in postoperative patients were lower than those in preoperative patients (
P
= 0.029) and were moderately correlated with the corresponding tissue levels of the same patients (r = 0.68,
P
< 0.0001).ConclusionThese results indicated that HOTAIR may be a potential biomarker for the diagnosis of BC.
Inhibition of T‐cell activation attenuates hypertension,TNFα,IL‐17, and blood–brain barrier permeability in pregnant rats with angiogenic imbalance
Authors: Bean Cynthia , Spencer Shauna‐Kay , Bowles Teylor , Kyle Patrick B. , Williams Jan M. , Gibbens Jacob , Wallace Kedra 
Published: August 2016

ProblemAngiogenic imbalance during pregnancy is associated with immune activation, hypertension, increased T cell infiltration, and neurological insults.Method of StudyOn gestational day (GD) 12, timed‐pregnant rats were infused with anti‐angiogenic factorssFlt‐1 andsEndoglin (4.7 and 7 μg/kg) to createHELLPsyndrome via mini‐osmotic pumps for 8 days, with a subset of these rats having Orencia (2 mg/kg) infused onGD13. OnGD19, blood–brain barrier (BBB) permeability was evaluated via Evan's Blue infusion, blood was collected for T‐cell measurements, inflammatory cytokine secretion. Brain tissues were also collected to examine inflammatory cytokine infiltration.ResultsT‐cell attenuation with Orencia decreased circulatingCD4+andCD8+T cells, circulating tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) andIL‐17,BBBpermeability and significantly decreased biochemical evidence ofHELLPcompared to untreatedHELLPrats.ConclusionsThese data support the hypothesis that T cells have a critical role in contributing to the pathophysiology that is seen in angiogenic imbalance during pregnancy.
Effect of heat stress on age at first calving of Japanese Black cows in Okinawa
Authors: Oikawa Takuro 
Published: August 2016

AbstractCalving records from birth certificates of cows were analyzed to investigate the effect of heat stress on age at first calving (AFC) of Japanese Black cows. The data set covered 20 years (1990–2009) of calving records. Total number of records was 9279. Daily weather information from weather stations in the vicinity of the farms was used. Temperature‐humidity index (THI) fitted to a linear model covered 30 days pre‐insemination to 61 days post‐insemination. Statistical analysis was conducted with procedures of SAS/STAT. Preliminary analysis showed that THI of the lowest temperature and humidity was most conducive to AFC. Covariance analysis, including main effect of sire, farm and year of insemination and covariates of THI on days showed that regression coefficients of THI on day ‐7, day ‐2 and day +31 were statistically significant. The estimated piecewise regression line showed different responses of AFC to THI on days: roof‐shasped downward trend on day ‐7, hockey‐stick shaped upward trend on day ‐2 and day +31. The difference among the estimated regression lines may be caused by direct and indirect factors on reproduction: indirect effect of reduced feed intake, failure of conception at previous insemination, direct effect of heat stress on oocyte and embryo development.