bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Arabidopsis Copper Transport Protein COPT2 Participates in the Cross Talk between Iron Deficiency Responses and Low-Phosphate Signaling
Authors: Perea-García Ana , Garcia-Molina Antoni , Andrés-Colás Nuria , Vera-Sirera Francisco , Pérez-Amador Miguel A. , Puig Sergi , Peñarrubia Lola 
Published: March 2013

Abstract
Copper and iron are essential micronutrients for most living organisms because they participate as cofactors in biological processes, including respiration, photosynthesis, and oxidative stress protection. In many eukaryotic organisms, including yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and mammals, copper and iron homeostases are highly interconnected; yet, such interdependence is not well established in higher plants. Here, we propose that COPT2, a high-affinity copper transport protein, functions under copper and iron deficiencies in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). COPT2 is a plasma membrane protein that functions in copper acquisition and distribution. Characterization of the COPT2 expression pattern indicates a synergic response to copper and iron limitation in roots. We characterized a knockout of COPT2, copt2-1, that leads to increased resistance to simultaneous copper and iron deficiencies, measured as reduced leaf chlorosis and improved maintenance of the photosynthetic apparatus. We propose that COPT2 could play a dual role under iron deficiency. First, COPT2 participates in the attenuation of copper deficiency responses driven by iron limitation, possibly to minimize further iron consumption. Second, global expression analyses of copt2-1 versus wild-type Arabidopsis plants indicate that low-phosphate responses increase in the mutant. These results open up new biotechnological approaches to fight iron deficiency in crops.
Personal blogs as online presences on the internet
Authors: Bronstein Jenny 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe aim of this study is to investigate the creation of a virtual presence in personal blogs through self‐presentation and self‐disclosure. Five elements of self‐presentation and self‐disclosure were examined: the way bloggers present themselves in their blogs; the degree and frequency of disclosure of personal information in the blogs; the feelings or reactions bloggers have when posting or receiving a comment; the significance blogs have in the bloggers' lives; and the subjects bloggers write about in their blogs.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was designed for the study and 90 bloggers from six Latin American countries who maintain a personal blog participated in the study. In the first phase a statistical analysis yielded quantifiable demographic data about the participants, the personal information they disclose in their blogs, and statistical data on feelings involved in blogging. In the second phase a content analysis examined the bloggers' textual answers using open coding.FindingsFindings show that bloggers created a virtual presence in their blogs perceived as a “protected space”. Bloggers reported feeling satisfied and drained when posting a new comment in their blog. Bloggers in this study described their blogs as being a part of their selves, a communication tool, a writing tool and their favourite hobby.Originality/valueThis study is relevant to the field of information behaviour because it provides an example of the fulfillment of different information needs through the creation of a virtual presence on a blog and examines the dichotomy present in blogging between the private and the public spheres.
The export competitiveness of the tuna industry in Thailand
Authors: Supongpan Kuldilok Kulapa , Dawson P.J. , Lingard John 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThailand dominates world exports of canned tuna with a market share of around 40 percent which is at least four times higher than any other exporter. The aim of this paper is to examine the export competitiveness of the canned tuna export industry in Thailand for 1996‐2006.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a revealed comparative advantage (RCA) approach and calculates RCA indices for both major exporters in the world market and competitors in individual export markets.FindingsThailand has comparative advantages in all major export markets; these have remained stable in the USA, the Middle East, Japan and Canada but have fallen substantially in Australia.Practical implicationsFirst, Thailand urgently needs to consider tuna farming. Second, smaller processing and fishing companies should merge to increase profit margins and market share. Third, Thailand should engage in effective trade negotiations with importers. Fourth, stock management and conservation could be used to support the industry. It is unlikely that current levels of comparative advantage can be maintained because of import tariffs, rules of origin, labour shortages and increasing unskilled labour costs.Social implicationsTuna management and conservation in Thailand could be used to support the sustainability of the industry.Originality/valueBy contrast to Kijboonchoo and Kalayanakupt who find that Thailand's market share declined between 1987‐1998 and revealed comparative advantage fell, these results show that this declining trend has since been arrested.
The prospective impact of a multi‐period pricing strategy on consumer perceptions for perishable foods
Authors: Chung Jaekwon , Li Dong 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to compare the impact of multi‐period pricing, as an example of more dynamic pricing and discounting strategy with that of a present less dynamic alternative on customer satisfaction and consumers' willingness to make trade‐offs between price and remaining shelf‐life.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted interviews with three food retail managers in South Korea to gather practical information about the management of perishable foods, which informed the design of a survey in which consumers in South Korea were questioned about their perceptions of the two strategies, with respect to nine perishable food products in three categories. The data collected were analysed by one‐way ANOVA and the t‐test.FindingsThe findings of this research present an improved understanding of the impact of a multi‐period pricing strategy on consumer satisfaction and customer behaviour for perishable foods. The conclusions have the potential to significantly assist food retailers to understand the consumers' perspective on the benefits of a more dynamic pricing strategy.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that food retailers can enhance customer satisfaction by offering an earlier but lower discount, and increasing it as perishable food items approach their expiry date, rather than a higher discount when the expiry date is imminent.Originality/valueThe findings in this study are significant since they serve as the first step in measuring the value of dynamic pricing approaches that provide better trade‐off options between price and remaining shelf‐life from consumers' perspectives.
Designing an all‐apple‐pomace‐based functional dessert formulation
Authors: Haghighi Maryam , Rezaei Karamatollah 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe aim of the paper is to present a preliminary study for the design of a new functional food by the incorporation of a collection of ingredients which are all based on an inexpensive by‐product of the food industries: apple pomace. The new product design was considered as a novel gelled dessert formulation which is functional, and totally nature‐based. In fact, the article reviews various raw materials obtainable from the source of apple pomace and gradually supports the hypothesis of such product design.Design/methodology/approachThe current study was designed on the structural basis of paying attention to apple pomace as a byproduct and idea generation for product design, reviewing several ingredients based on apple pomace (available data from the literature) and discussing the suitability of such ingredients for a new functional product. Exclusive attention was made for the development of an apple‐pomace‐based gelled dessert targeting consumers on restricted diets such as diabetics and obese individuals. In these kinds of diets consumption of caloric sweeteners should be abandoned or decreased while increasing the amounts of dietary fibers and polyphenolic compounds can be health‐beneficial.FindingsAs an appropriate preliminary formula, amidated low methylester pectins were selected as gelling agents. High methylester pectins, phloridzin and quercetin were used as functional ingredients. Arabinose and fructose were considered as sweetening agents. Also, POPj (phloridzin oxidation product), which is a recently developed natural pigment, was offered as a colouring agent and citric acid for adjusting the pH. Apple specific flavours were also suggested to improve the consumer acceptance of the product. In each case, the evidences of functionalities considered for the target consumers (diabetics and obese individuals) were also discussed.Originality/valueThis fresh formula is novel and can attract both food industry and the consumers because of its natural and functional properties.
Mechanisms for assessing food safety risk
Authors: Manning L. , Soon J.M. 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the methods for assessing food safety risk within a food safety plan.Design/methodology/approachThe research involved analysis of both qualitative and quantitative methods of risk assessment.FindingsRisk assessment is a key element of the HACCP approach to food safety. It requires food business operators and those on HACCP teams to determine both the acceptable level of contamination and the risk for the food business, and ultimately the consumer. The choice of food safety risk assessment model is crucial to an organisation. The mechanisms to determine what is acceptable can be a combination of scientific based and value based criteria and utilise qualitative or semi‐quantitative approaches. Whilst fuzzy logic has a place in making risk assessment more quantitative; specific software tools are required to enable quantitative risk assessment especially where what is acceptable at one point could, subject to other factors later in the supply chain, change to an unacceptable level of risk to the consumer. Quantitative mechanisms are required to make these decisions at organisational, or indeed at policy level, fully transparent.Originality/valueThis research is of academic value and of value to policy makers and practitioners in the food supply chain.
Attributions and requirements of Islamic leadership
Authors: Sari Marbun Dahlena 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to look into the relationship between attribution and requirements of Islamic leadership.Design/methodology/approachThis paper describes concepts of attribution and requirements of leadership and links them to related Islamic concepts.FindingsA correlation is found to exist between attribution and requirements of “conventional” and Islamic leadership.Research limitations/implicationsBeing a practical endeavor, attribution and requirements of “conventional” leadership converge with Islamic leadership.Practical implicationsIt is hoped that leaders and managers would not hesitate to apply Islamic leadership style.Originality/valueThis paper will add to the literature on Islamic leadership, especially for Indonesia.
An evaluation of corporate governance practices of Islamic banks versus Islamic bank windows of conventional banks
Authors: Shahzad Bukhari Khuram , Awan Hayat M. , Ahmed Faareha 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the perceived importance of management about various corporate governance dimensions being practiced in the Pakistani Islamic banking context.Design/methodology/approachAHP is applied to analyze the corporate governance indexes and its dimension of five Islamic banks and 12 conventional banks which are providing Islamic banking facilities (Islamic bank window) throughout Pakistan. These dimensions included board of directors (BOD), Shari'ah supervisory board (SSB), audit, investment account holders (IAH), and information disclosure & transparency.FindingsThe study reveals that the most significant dimensions which affect the corporate governance in Islamic banks are BOD and SSB, while the significant factors for Islamic banking windows are almost all dimensions of corporate governance. The correlation, regression, and ANOVA tests are applied to check the contributions of various factors of corporate governance mechanisms. These results indicate that there is a significant difference between Islamic banks and Islamic banking windows regarding the BOD and SSB. On the other hand, no significant difference is seen for the rest of the factors. The dissatisfaction level of customers reduces with the increase in the audit and BOD governance and all other factors have no impact in the case of Islamic banking windows; whereas in Islamic banks, in addition to audit and the SSB, information disclosure also significantly reduces the dissatisfaction level of customers. The concern of customers decreases significantly with the increasing level of IAH in the case of Islamic banking windows whereas in the case of Islamic banks a significant impact is seen for BOD, information disclosure, audit and IAH, but improvement in the governance of these rather increases the concern of customers toward compliance of Shari'ah and SSB has no contribution towards the concern of customers.Originality/valueThis study has practical significance for conventional and Islamic banking policy makers for understanding the requirements of their stakeholders and aligning them with the fundamentals of Shari'ah compliance according to the guidelines provided by the code of corporate governance so as to get better insight into the relationship between customers' motives behind using Islamic banking products.
Audio sensing and modeling of arc dynamic characteristic during pulsed Al alloy GTAW process
Authors: Lv Na , Xu Yanling , Zhang Zhifen , Wang Jifeng , Chen Bo , Chen Shanben 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the relationship between arc sound signal and arc height through arc sound features of GTAW welding, which is aimed at laying foundation work for monitoring the welding penetration and quality by using the arc sound signal in the future.Design/methodology/approachThe experiment system is based on GTAW welding with acoustic sensor and signal conditioner on it. The arc sound signal was first processed by wavelet analysis and wavelet packet analysis designed in this research. Then the features of arc sound signal were extracted in time domain, frequency domain, for example, short‐term energy, AMDF, mean strength, log energy, dynamic variation intensity, short‐term zero rate and the frequency features of DCT coefficient, also the wavelet packet coefficient. Finally, a ANN (artificial neural networks) prediction model was built up to recognize different arc height through arc sound signal.FindingsThe statistic features and DCT coefficient can be absolutely used in arc sound signal processing; and these features of arc sound signal can accurately react the modification of arc height during the GTAW welding process.Originality/valueThis paper tries to make a foundation work to achieve monitoring arc length through arc sound signal. A new way to remove high frequency noise of arc sound signal is produced. It proposes some effective statistic features and a new way of frequency analysis to build the prediction model.
78th IFLA General Conference and Assembly (IFLA‐2012)
Authors: Alemu Getaneh 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a brief overview of the proceedings of IFLA's 78th General Conference and Assembly, held in Helsinki, Finland from August 11‐17, 2012. It highlights the major themes addressed at the conference, taking note of the growing prestige of the meeting as internationally acknowledged fora, not only for librarians and information science specialists but also for publishers, journalists and media professionals.Design/methodology/approachThe author had the good fortune of attending IFLA‐2012 and took advantage of the opportunity to purposefully take down extensive notes, collect copies of the presentations and papers rendered and gather information from colleagues on issues dealt with at simultaneously held sessions which he could not attend, with a view to grasping the overall theme of the specific presentations. The conference website has also been consulted to obtain factual information in support of this article.FindingsThis year's IFLA General Conference and Assembly, as usual, attracted thousands of library and information science professionals, an irrefutable proof that IFLA has proved itself as a prestigious international institution dedicated to the promotion and development of the discipline. In addition, the conference also served as a venue for professionals and businesses in publishing, journalism, the film industry and public media to participate in and showcase their novel products and services.Practical implicationsEmerging themes in librarianship and information services, including open access, Linked Data, inclusiveness, the future of library design, outreaching to local communities, and contemporary library challenges in view of changing times were raised and extensively deliberated upon. It is expected that delegates would apply the lessons thus learnt and apply best practices in their day‐to‐day activities in their specific areas of expertise. It is also hoped that the networking of professionals at such an international event would foster viable future collaborations.Originality/valueThe theme chosen for IFLA‐2012 “libraries: inspiring, surprising and empowering” reflects the importance, for library and information professionals, of envisioning a more dynamic, interactive, attuned and even enjoyable role for libraries of the twenty‐first century and beyond.
Public‐private partnership: Coca‐Cola and the University of Belgrade
Authors: Stankovic Emilija 
Published: March 2013

PurposeAnalyzing the memorandum of cooperation conducted between Coca‐Cola HBC Serbia AD Zemun and the Faculty of Organizational Sciences (FOS), University of Belgrade, the purpose of this paper is to demonstrate which multinational companies invest in education. The importance of cooperation is emphasized, since cooperation has indirect effects on corporate social responsibility and the external positioning of the Faculty of Organizational Sciences and Coca‐Cola, promoting direct cooperation between institutions and education.Design/methodology/approachThe analyses are based primarily on analysis of a memorandum of cooperation signed between Coca‐Cola Hellenic and the FOS in the presence of Serbian government representatives. Other Serbian legislative acts are discussed that allow the operation of multinational companies in Serbia, providing cooperation process transparency related to higher education.FindingsThis article points out which forms of cooperation exist between Coca‐Cola and educational institutions in Serbia, the effects of such cooperation, and the benefits to local staff development, especially community development.Originality/valueThe article is based on a special memorandum on cooperation that enables familiarity development with concrete investments by multinational companies in education in Serbia. Positive outcomes of such an investment are discussed.
Sri Lanka textile industry's public private partnership project: a case study
Authors: Bruce Raymond R. 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this organization research project was to focus on finding effective methods for the stakeholder group of private firms in the apparel and textile industry in Sri Lanka to work together as partners with government and academic institution stakeholder groups to raise the level of human resource development in education, training and technology innovation resources in the apparel and textile industry.Design/methodology/approachOrganization development, action research and training methods were used to help the various groups examine their needs and issues, and the consultant's gap analysis was used to identify any dysfunctional barriers along three levels of realm, scale, and transform that formed a wicked problem situation that kept the stakeholder groups from organizing themselves to work together on the common cause.FindingsThe three stakeholder groups were able to make use of a variation of the public private partnership model in developing a virtual college of apparel and textiles.Practical implicationsThe three stakeholder groups were able to use formal and creative informal forms of a partnership of partnerships approach by cross sharing of board members. Sri Lanka's apparel and textile industry was able to successfully upgrade its human resource development efforts to retain its strong position in the following years of global market change.Originality/valueUsing organization development's wicked problem resolution methods can be useful in any country that needs to bring large diverse groups of public and private organizations together to work on common interests while assuring that their differing missions can be pursued effectively.
Reducing imaging waiting times: enhanced roles and service‐redesign
Authors: Greaves Claire , Gilmore Judy , Bernhardt Lizelle , Ross Lisa 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to explain how University Hospitals of Leicester's Nuclear Medicine service managers needed to reduce waiting times to comply with internal clinical requirements and with external local primary care trust (PCT) and national Department of Health targets.Design/methodology/approachThe team undertook a comprehensive service review to identify problem areas and potential improvements, including: process mapping; data gathering (activity and demand, equipment and staff availability/utilisation); external practice reviews, searching evidence bases; and financial implications. This case study describes how an inter‐disciplinary team redesigned the service and used new working methods to reduce waiting times. Their aim was to discuss a service's practical elements and show how innovation leading to sustainable change can be implemented effectively.FindingsThe review highlighted service delivery bottlenecks for myocardial perfusion imaging, which were linked to medical staff shortages, staff use and equipment between hospital sites, and a silo approach to referrals rather than a coordinated organisation‐wide approach.Practical implicationsIntroducing enhanced roles allowed nurses, radiographers and technologists to undertake work previously performed by medical staff thus removing a key service bottleneck. Modifications to service delivery and a cultural change in nuclear medicine resulted in a service that was more efficient, flexible and able to cope with increased demand.Originality/valueThese changes meant that minimum waiting‐time targets were achieved, in particular waiting for myocardial perfusion imaging (reduced from 42 weeks in 2005 to two weeks by 2009). Changes allowed service managers to maintain short waiting times in the current, challenging healthcare climate.