bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Insights into Origin and Evolution of α-proteobacterial Gene Transfer Agents
Authors: Shakya Migun , Soucy Shannon M. , Zhaxybayeva Olga 
Published: September 2017

AbstractSeveral bacterial and archaeal lineages produce nanostructures that morphologically resemble small tailed viruses, but, unlike most viruses, contain apparently random pieces of the host genome. Since these elements can deliver the packaged DNA to other cells, they were dubbed Gene Transfer Agents (GTAs). Because many genes involved in GTA production have viral homologs, it has been hypothesized that the GTA ancestor was a virus. Whether GTAs represent an atypical virus, a defective virus, or a virus co-opted by the prokaryotes for some function, remains to be elucidated. To evaluate these possibilities, we examined the distribution and evolutionary histories of genes that encode a GTA in the α-proteobacteriumRhodobacter capsulatus(RcGTA). We report that although homologs of many individual RcGTA genes are abundant across bacteria and their viruses, RcGTA-like genomes are mainly found in one subclade of α-proteobacteria. When compared to the viral homologs, genes of the RcGTA-like genomes evolve significantly slower, and do not have higher %A+T nucleotides than their host chromosomes. Moreover, they appear to reside in stable regions of the bacterial chromosomes that are generally conserved across taxonomic orders. These findings argue against RcGTA being an atypical or a defective virus. Our phylogenetic analyses suggest that RcGTA ancestor likely originated in the lineage that gave rise to contemporary α-proteobacterial ordersRhizobiales, Rhodobacterales, Caulobacterales, Parvularculales, and Sphingomonadales,and since that time the RcGTA-like element has co-evolved with its host chromosomes. Such evolutionary history is compatible with maintenance of these elements by bacteria due to some selective advantage. As for many other prokaryotic traits, horizontal gene transfer played a substantial role in the evolution of RcGTA-like elements, not only in shaping its genome components within the orders, but also in occasional dissemination of RcGTA-like regions across the orders and even to different bacterial phyla.
Simulating the Idling Behavior of Escherichia Coli
Authors: Weidner Herbert 
Published: September 2017

AbstractUntil now, it is not known how the motors of E. coli reverse the direction of rotation, mostly simultaneously. If the C-ring is bistable and if the number of bound CheY-P depends on the direction of rotation, there is a strong variation in the concentration of CheY-P in the cytoplasm. Then, the synchronous changeover can be explained without further additional assumptions.
Indexing sensory plasticity: Evidence for distinct Predictive Coding and Hebbian Learning mechanisms in the cerebral cortex
Authors: Spriggs M. J. , Sumner R. L. , McMillan R. L. , Moran R. J. , Kirk I. J. , Muthukumaraswamy S. D. 
Published: September 2017

HighlightsERP and DCM study of two sensory plasticity paradigms: roving MMN and visual LTPFirst demonstration of multiple learning mechanisms under different task demandsEvidence for both Predictive Coding and Hebbian learning mechanismsThe BDNF Val66Met polymorphism modulates ERPs for both paradigmsHowever, the polymorphism only modulates MMN network connectivityThe Roving Mismatch Negativity (MMN), and Visual LTP paradigms are widely used as independent measures of sensory plasticity. However, the paradigms are built upon fundamentally different (and seemingly opposing) models of perceptual learning; namely, Predictive Coding (MMN) and Hebbian plasticity (LTP). The aims of the current study were to 1) compare the generative mechanisms of the MMN and visual LTP, therefore assessing whether Predictive Coding and Hebbian mechanisms co-occur in the brain, and 2) assess whether the paradigms identify similar group differences in plasticity. Forty participants were split into two groups based on theBDNFVal66Met polymorphism and were presented with both paradigms. Consistent with Predictive Coding and Hebbian predictions, Dynamic Causal Modelling revealed that the generation of the MMN modulates forward and backward connections in the underlying network, while visual LTP only modulates forward connections. Genetic differences were identified in the ERPs for both paradigms, but were only apparent in backward connections of the MMN network. These results suggest that both Predictive Coding and Hebbian mechanisms are utilized by the brain under different task demands. Additionally, both tasks provide unique insight into plasticity mechanisms, which has important implications for future studies of aberrant plasticity in clinical populations.
On the mechanisms of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): How brain state and baseline performance level determine behavioral effects of TMS
Authors: Silvanto Juha , Bona Silvia , Marelli Marco , Cattaneo Zaira 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThe behavioral effects of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) can change qualitatively when stimulation is preceded by initial state manipulations such as priming or adaptation. In addition, baseline performance level of the participant has been shown to play a role in modulating the impact of TMS. Here we examined the link between these two. This was done using data from a previous study using a TMS-priming paradigm, in which, at group level, TMS selectively facilitated targets incongruent with the prime while having no statistically significant effects on other prime-target congruencies. Correlation and linear mixed-effects analyses indicated that, for all prime-target congruencies, a significant linear relationship between baseline performance and the magnitude of the induced TMS effect was present: low levels of baseline performance were associated with TMS-induced facilitations and high baseline performance with impairments. Thus as performance level increased, TMS effects turned from facilitation to impairment. The key finding was that priming shifted the transition from facilitatory to disruptive effects for targets incongruent with the prime, such that TMS-induced facilitations were obtained until a higher level of performance than for other prime-target congruencies. Given that brain state manipulations such as priming operate via modulations of neural excitability, this result is consistent with the view that neural excitability, coupled with nonlinear neural effects, underlie behavioral effects of TMS.
Farm credit access, credit constraint and productivity in Ghana
Authors: Sekyi Samuel , Abu Benjamin Musah , Nkegbe Paul Kwame 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine farmers’ access to credit, credit constraint, and productivity in the Northern Savannah ecological zone of Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach
Secondary data from the Ghana Feed the Future baseline survey involving a total sample of 2,968 farm households were used. The conditional mixed process (CMP) framework was applied to estimate access to credit, credit constraint, and productivity simultaneously. As a system estimator the CMP corrects for possible heterogeneity and sample selection bias.

Findings
The results from the estimations revealed that age, literacy, farm non-mechanized equipment, and group membership were the variables influencing farmers’ access to credit. Credit constraint conditions were determined by household size, locality, group membership, and household durable assets. Finally, the results showed that productivity of farmers was dependent on marital status, household size, locality, farm size, commercialization, farm mechanized equipment, group membership, and household durable assets.

Originality/value
This paper is the first, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, to use the CMP framework to jointly estimate access to credit, credit constraint, and productivity. The results indicate that estimating credit access and constraint models separately would have yielded biased estimates. Thus, this paper informs future research on farmers’ credit access, credit constraint, and productivity for informed policymaking.
Rural demographic change, rising wages and the restructuring of Chinese agriculture
Authors: Li Tianxiang , Yu Wusheng , Baležentis Tomas , Zhu Jing , Ji Yueqing 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify the effects of recent demographic transition and rising labor costs on agricultural production structure and pattern in China during 1998-2012.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors, first, theoretically discuss the effects of changing relative input prices due to rising labor cost on producers’ decisions regarding input mix (substitution effect), output level, and product quality (output effect). A logarithmic mean Divisia index decomposition method is then applied to empirically identify these effects at aggregated levels, followed by an analysis based on the visualization of land use indicators on changing cropping patterns across Chinese provinces.

Findings
The authors find that tightened effective agricultural labor supply and rises in rural labor costs are associated with divergent changes in input mixes and output choices across products. Producers of land-intensive products focusing more on input mix adjustment, while those of labor-intensive products seem to more likely to adjust output choices. Producers’ adaption strategies also varied across Chinese provinces due to natural conditions, leading to shifts and concentrations in the regional distribution of agricultural products, with lower-value bulk products concentrating in the plain areas, whereas higher-value horticulture products increasingly prevailing in sloped areas.

Originality/value
This paper illustrates how adjustments in input mixes and output choice in Chinese agriculture counteracted disadvantages caused by rising labor costs and how such adjustments are product and region specific. Based on these observations, implications regarding further innovations in production technology and institutional arrangements needed within China’s agricultural sector are highlighted in the paper.
Crop price insurance in China: pricing and hedging using futures market
Authors: Ye Minghua , Wang Rongming , Tuo Guozhu , Wang Tongjiang 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how crop price insurance premium can be calculated using an option pricing model and how insurers can transfer underwriting risks in the futures market.

Design/methodology/approach
Based on data from spot and futures market in China, this paper develops an improved B-S model for the calculation of crop price insurance premium and tests the possibility of hedging underwriting risks by insurance firms in the futures market.

Findings
The authors find that spot price of crops in China can be estimated with agricultural commodity futures prices, and can be taken as the insured price for crop price insurance. The authors also find that improved B-S model yields better estimation of crop price insurance premium than traditional B-S model when spot price does not follow geometric Brownian motion. Finally, the authors find that hedging can be one good alternative for insurance firms to manage underwriting risks.

Originality/value
This paper develops an improved B-S model that is data-driven in nature. Insured price of the crop price insurance, or the exercise price used in the B-S model, is estimated from a co-integration model built on spot and futures market price series. Meanwhile, distributional patterns of spot price series, one important factor determining the applicability of B-S model, is factored into the improved B-S model so that the latter is more robust and friendly to data with varied distributions. This paper also verifies the possibility of hedging of underwriting risks by insurance firms in the futures market.
Exploring market orientation among Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises
Authors: Zhang Long , Kara Ali , Spillan John E. , Mintu-Wimsatt Alma 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The role of marketing as a business function is rapidly changing in China. Consequently, their views on marketing orientation – whether it is accepted, rejected, modified or reframed – have been seriously impacted. This paper aims to report on the results of a survey among Chinese small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) managers and their perceptions of the market-orientation philosophy. In particular, emphasis was placed on three dimensions of market orientation: intelligence generation, intelligence dissemination and responsiveness. The effect of market orientation on business performance was also examined.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors collected data from 214 managers from SMEs. These businesses were located in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. The commonly used market orientation (MARKOR) measure was used to test the hypotheses.

Findings
Consistent with the extant literature, the findings provided empirical support for the three dimensions of market orientation among Chinese SME. The authors also found that a positive relationship existed between Chinese SME market orientation and firm performance.

Research limitations/implications
This study provides major insights into the market orientation measurement and practices of SME in China. From a measurement perspective, the empirical support for MARKOR across a non-Western context is noteworthy. From a practitioner perspective, the implications relating to understanding Chinese SME and how these companies can best market their products and services to their respective markets are critical. Some of the limitations of our study relates to the sample size, convenience sampling and geographic concentration of the respondents.

Originality/value
This study addresses the gaps in the literature by exploring market orientation in non-large scale businesses as well as the adaptation of the concept in a non-Western cultural setting. The findings extend the conceptualization and application of market orientation to Chinese SME.
Using hierarchical linear modeling to test the effect of overall strategic fit on firm performance in different industry
Authors: Dang Van Thac , Lin Chin-Shien 
Published: September 2017

PurposeThis study aims at investigating the effect of an overall fit among strategy, environmental factors and organizational resources on firm performance, and the moderating role of industry on this relationship.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses hierarchical linear modeling to analyze the nested data structure from the financial and electronics companies in Taiwan’s stock market from 2011 to 2012.FindingsThe empirical results indicate that overall strategic fit is positively related to firm performance, and this relationship varies across financial industry and electronics industry.Originality/valueThis study provides important implications for both academic researchers and practitioners. From a theoretical aspect, this study integrates two research streams of strategic fit (external fit and internal fit) into an overall model of strategic fit, and has explored the moderating role of industry on the relationship between strategic fit and firm performance. In addition, this study has also used hierarchical linear modeling method to test the hypotheses, which has not been used in the previous strategic fit literature. From a practical aspect, the empirical results have derived implications for managers as to understand the effects of overall strategic fit on performance in different industry, which may be helpful for making decisions in specific industry context.
The roles of CEO transformational leadership and organizational factors on product innovation performance
Authors: Sattayaraksa Tharnpas , Boon-itt Sakun 
Published: September 2017

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the direct and indirect effects of CEO transformational leadership on product innovation performance. This research investigates the mechanism between CEO transformational leadership and product innovation performance, to understand the process through which transformational CEOs exert their influence.Design/methodology/approachThis study is a quantitative research. Data were collected from 269 manufacturing firms in Thailand through a mail survey. This research applied a two-step structural equation modeling process.FindingsThe results indicate that CEO transformational leadership indirectly affects product innovation performance through an innovation culture, organizational learning, and the new product development (NPD) process. CEO transformational leadership has a strong effect on innovation culture and organizational learning. Organizational learning is strongly associated with the NPD process, which significantly leads to product innovation performance. By integrating the knowledge of leadership and operations management fields, this study helps extend the understanding of how leaders at the top of an organization influence the NPD process and product innovation outcomes.Practical implicationsFor practical implications to be more effective, CEOs focusing on product innovation should develop their skills and behaviors of transformational leadership to foster innovation culture and organizational learning, which in turn will affect product innovation performance.Originality/valueThis study makes a contribution to the literature by filling the research gaps proposed by several prior studies and offering a theoretical framework of the relationship between CEO transformational leadership and product innovation performance.
The relationship between board of directors’ structure and company ownership with corporate social responsibility disclosure
Authors: Salehi Mahdi , Tarighi Hossein , Rezanezhad Malihe 
Published: September 2017

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effect of the structure of board of directors and company ownership on social responsibility disclosure of listed companies on the Tehran Stock Exchange.Design/methodology/approachThe variables of the study included independent board of directors, institutional ownership, managerial ownership, family ownership and family-managerial ownership. The study population consisted of 125 listed companies on the Tehran Stock Exchange during the years 2009-2014. Content analysis used to measure social responsibility disclosure level and test hypothesis was performed using multiple regression analysis.FindingsThe results demonstrated that there was no significant relationship between any of the independent variables and the level of social responsibility disclosure. This study empirically shows managers, investors and other stakeholders that if business owners are made of different groups, namely, institutional ownership, managerial and family ownership, it will not affect the social responsibility disclosure in annual reports.Originality/valueThe outcomes of the current study may bridge the gap between social responsibility disclosure and ownership structure in a developing country like Iran.
Acceptance of Islamic banking as innovation: a case of Pakistan
Authors: Ali Muhammad , Puah Chin-Hong 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
This study aims to investigate the factors that determine the customer adoption of Islamic banking in Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper aims to use a sample of 540 Islamic bank customers located in the biggest city of Pakistan (Karachi). This study is based on the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory and analyzed the role of five attributes (compatibility, relative advantage, complexity, observability and trialability) along with the consumer awareness about the customer adoption of Islamic banking. Additionally, the present research also considers Islamic banking as a new idea (innovation) in Pakistan under the framework of DOI theoretical assumptions. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses are applied to the sample data. The theoretical framework is then tested using structural equation modeling.

Findings
The findings of the study revealed that all five attributes of the DOI theory are positively and significantly related to the customer adoption of Islamic banking. The customer awareness also proved its importance in the hypothesized model by representing a positive and significant relationship.

Originality/value
The present study provides a useful guideline for the Islamic bank managers and the academicians to better understand the customer adoption of Islamic banking.
Higher apprenticeships and the new apprenticeship standards
Authors: Saraswat Arti 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The UK government is actively promoting higher apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships and this agenda has been gaining momentum amongst the various providers of apprenticeships. The purpose of this paper is to draw on an exploratory study on English further education (FE) colleges and highlight some of the key drivers of delivery, and possible challenges that can be faced by the providers in any expansion of this provision. Staff perceptions on the new apprenticeship standards are also presented in the paper.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws on a qualitative exploratory study with ten FE colleges in England. As part of the study, 19 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with college staff and managers.

Findings
Higher apprenticeships have the potential to offer work-focussed alternatives to the conventional full-time degree models of higher education, however, the paper sheds light on a number of factors can limit the uptake of higher and degree apprenticeships.

Practical implications
The paper presents some practical challenges in developing higher apprenticeships and outlines some successful instances of higher apprenticeships which will be useful for those involved in the design and delivery of apprenticeships at FE colleges as well as at other providers.

Originality/value
This paper draws on research with FE colleges and will be of particular significance to FE colleges and universities that may consider delivering higher apprenticeships. The paper presents insights into institutional experiences and decision-making associated with higher and degree apprenticeships and, in doing so, the paper offers valuable contributions to the body of knowledge in this under-researched area.
The role of personality traits in investors trading behaviour: empirical evidence from Greek
Authors: Kourtidis Dimitrios , Chatzoglou Prodromos , Sevic Zeljko 
Published: September 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine whether, and to what extent, specific personality traits drive investors’ trading behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach
This study investigates these assumptions in an innovative way by employing an integrated model and using structural equation modelling analysis to examine them simultaneously as they would occur in the complex real world environment.

Findings
The results provide strong evidence that these personality traits influence investors’ trading behaviour and stock trading performance. The most powerful relationships are found to be those between over-confidence and stock trading volume, frequency and performance.

Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge there is no any similar study. This paper is the authors’ original unpublished work and it has not been submitted to any other journal for reviews.