bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Alleviating human–wildlife conflicts: identifying the causes and mapping the risk of illegal poisoning of wild fauna
Authors: Mateo‐Tomás Patricia , Olea Pedro P. , Sánchez‐Barbudo Inés S. , Mateo Rafael 
Published: March 2012

Summary1. Illegal human behaviour such as those affecting natural resource use or resulting from human–wildlife conflicts threaten the sustainable management of ecosystems and the conservation of biodiversity worldwide. However, the frequently scarce and incomplete data owing to the sensitive nature of illegal activities pose a challenge to developing tools to properly understand and prevent those activities.2. We used species distribution models to identify factors related to a prominent illegal activity, wildlife poisoning, and to produce detailed, spatially explicit maps of the risk of occurrence in NW Spain. We alleviated the constraints of imperfect information and occurrence of absences by using presence‐only methods, that is, maximum entropy modelling (MaxEnt). To our knowledge, this is the first time that this method has been used in the context of illegal activities affecting wildlife.3. A total of 112 poisoning events involving 228 individuals of 25 different species were reported in the study area from 2000 to 2010. Most of the reported deaths (90·8%) were birds of prey (52·6%) and mammalian carnivores (38·2%), of which 95·2% were scavengers. Illegal poisoning affected eleven species classified as endangered at national and/or global level.4. Our models highlighted the perceived risk of livestock predation by wolves Canis lupus, although not by bears Ursus arctos, as a major motivation for poisoning. The existence of protected areas was positively correlated to this illegal practice, while socioeconomic factors had less influence on predicting its occurrence. Over 56% of the study area was predicted to be under risk of illegal poisoning.5. Synthesis and applications. We demonstrate a new use for presence‐only models, illustrated using MaxEnt, to assist conservation managers dealing with illegal activities. This approach allows the main causes of an illegal practice to be identified and generates spatially explicit risk maps. Managers can take advantage of this modelling approach to allocate the scarce resources available in conservation to key sectors and locations. In our study system, actions against illegal poisoning should aim to resolve the potential conflict existing between cattle‐farming and wolves, especially in protected areas.
Predator reduction results in compensatory shifts in losses of avian ground nests
Authors: Ellis‐Felege Susan N. , Conroy Michael J. , Palmer William E. , Carroll John P. 
Published: March 2012

Summary1. Nesting birds can be vulnerable to predation. Wildlife managers sometimes manipulate predator communities to enhance avian productivity and abundance. Managers need to know the predation risk from different predator species responsible for nest failures to maximize success. This issue is especially important when considering reductions in only a part of the predator community in complex ecosystems.2. We conducted a 7‐year crossover experiment at four study sites to examine the effect of mesomammalian predator control on nest success of northern bobwhite Colinus virginianus in the southeastern USA. Nests were monitored using 24‐h near‐infrared video. We hypothesized that nest failures caused by different predator guilds may not be independent and may lead to compensation by other predators as one predator guild was reduced.3. We compared levels of bobwhite nest predation by mesomammals, snakes and other predators in years with and without mesomammal control.4. Control of mesomammal predators reduced the levels of mesomammal nest predation, but predation levels by snakes and other predators increased such that total nest mortality was not reduced. Nest mortality among predator groups was best described as compensatory, and total nest mortality differed among sites.5. Synthesis and applications. Our findings suggest that reductions in predation risk from one predator guild can be compensated by an increased risk from other predators in complex ecosystems. Predator removal within one group may not translate to additive increases in overall nest success, but rather results in shifts in the identity of predators responsible for nest failures. Management efforts focused on manipulating predator communities to enhance avian reproduction are encouraged to examine cause‐specific nest fates to determine the effectiveness of predator reduction programmes.
The effect of postfire salvage logging on bird communities in Mediterranean pine forests: the benefits for declining species
Authors: Rost Josep , Clavero Miguel , Brotons Lluís , Pons Pere 
Published: March 2012

Summary1. Postfire salvage logging is the most commonly applied forestry practice in burned forests world‐wide, mainly for economic reasons. However, it strongly affects bird communities and is generally considered to be detrimental for bird conservation. In Europe, many open‐habitat species are currently declining owing to land use changes. Wildfires, which are common disturbances in the Mediterranean Basin, can create suitable habitat for these species but the effect of postfire salvage logging on bird communities is unknown.2. We surveyed breeding birds in two burned secondary pine forests from the western Mediterranean Basin and analysed the effect of salvage logging and vegetation regeneration as determinants of individual species and community parameters. We used a pseudoexperimental before‐after‐control‐impact approach to study the changes in the bird community during the first three springs after fire.3. Most bird species were affected by salvage logging (measured by snag density), a relationship that was positive for forest birds and negative for open‐habitat species. Species linked to shrub and edge habitats were positively affected by vegetation regrowth. Bird communities in logged areas held more species of conservation concern than those in unlogged areas. Species richness and overall density tended to decrease from the first to the second year after fire and to increase from the second to the third.4. Salvage logging benefits a number of open‐habitat species, although its effect on bird conservation depends strongly on the specific threats that birds face in each region or ecosystem.5. Synthesis and applications. In the Mediterranean Basin, some postfire salvage logging of pine forests can be compatible with bird conservation. We recommend that managers retain some standing dead trees during logging operations and that logged forest is interspersed with unlogged stands. This will provide suitable habitat for the widest range of species.
Mitogenomic sequences better resolve stock structure of southern Greater Caribbean green turtle rookeries
Authors: SHAMBLIN BRIAN M. , BJORNDAL KAREN A. , BOLTEN ALAN B. , HILLIS‐STARR ZANDY M. , LUNDGREN IAN , NARO‐MACIEL EUGENIA , NAIRN CAMPBELL J. 
Published: March 2012

AbstractAnalyses of mitochondrial control region polymorphisms have supported the presence of several demographically independent green turtle (Chelonia mydas) rookeries in the Greater Caribbean region. However, extensive sharing of common haplotypes based on 490‐bp control region sequences confounds assessment of the scale of natal homing and population structure among regional rookeries. We screened the majority of the mitochondrial genomes of 20 green turtles carrying the common haplotype CM‐A5 and representing the rookeries of Buck Island, St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands (USVI); Aves Island, Venezuela; Galibi, Suriname; and Tortuguero, Costa Rica. Five single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified that subdivided CM‐A5 among regions. Mitogenomic pairwise φST values of eastern Caribbean rookery comparisons were markedly lower than the respective pairwise FST values. This discrepancy results from the presence of haplotypes representing two divergent lineages in each rookery, highlighting the importance of choosing the appropriate test statistic for addressing the study question. Haplotype frequency differentiation supports demographic independence of Aves Island and Suriname, emphasizing the need to recognize the smaller Aves rookery as a distinct management unit. Aves Island and Buck Island rookeries shared mitogenomic haplotypes; however, frequency divergence suggests that the Buck Island rookery is sufficiently demographically isolated to warrant management unit status for the USVI rookeries. Given that haplotype sharing among rookeries is common in marine turtles with cosmopolitan distributions, mitogenomic sequencing may enhance inferences of population structure and phylogeography, as well as improve the resolution of mixed stock analyses aimed at estimating natal origins of foraging turtles.
Selection and microevolution of coat pattern are cryptic in a wild population of sheep
Authors: GRATTEN J. , PILKINGTON J. G. , BROWN E. A. , CLUTTON‐BROCK T. H. , PEMBERTON J. M. , SLATE J. 
Published: March 2012

AbstractUnderstanding the maintenance of genetic variation in natural populations is a core aim of evolutionary genetics. Insight can be gained by quantifying selection at the level of the genotype, as opposed to the phenotype. Here, we show that in a natural population of Soay sheep which is polymorphic for coat pattern, recessive genetic variants at the causal gene, agouti signalling protein (ASIP) are associated with reduced lifetime fitness. This was due primarily to a reduction in juvenile survival of uniformly coloured (self‐type) sheep, which are homozygous recessive, and occurs despite significantly higher reproductive success in surviving self‐type adults. Consistent with their relatively low fitness, we show that the frequency of self‐type individuals has declined from 1985 to 2008. Remarkably though, the frequency of the underlying self‐allele has increased, because the frequency of heterozygous individuals (who harbour the majority of all self‐alleles) has increased. Indeed, the ratio of observed/expected heterozygous individuals has increased during the study, such that there is now a significant excess of heterozygotyes. By employing gene‐dropping simulations, we show that microevolutionary trends in the frequency and excess of ASIP heterozygotes are too pronounced to be caused by genetic drift. Studying this polymorphism at the level of phenotype rather than underlying genotype would have failed to detect cryptic fitness differences. We would also have been unable to rule out genetic drift as an evolutionary force driving genetic change. This highlights the importance of resolving the underlying genetic basis of phenotypic variation in explaining evolutionary dynamics.
Overexpression of galectin‐1 is associated with poor prognosis in human hepatocellular carcinoma following resection
Authors: Wu Han , Chen Pei , Liao Rui , Li Yi‐Wei , Yi Yong , Wang Jia‐Xing , Sun Tai‐Wei , Zhou Jian , Shi Ying‐Hong , Yang Xin‐Rong , Jin Jian‐Jun , Cheng Yun‐Feng , Fan Jia , Qiu Shuang‐Jian 
Published: March 2012

AbstractBackground and Aim:  The high expression of the galectin‐1 predicts poor patient outcome in several tumors. The aim of this study was to investigate its prognostic value in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after resection.Methods:  Galectin‐1 and tumor‐infiltrating FoxP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) were validated by tissue microarrays from HCC patients (n = 386) and statistically assessed for correlations with the clinical profiles and the prognosis of the patients.Results:  We found that galectin‐1, which was prevalently upregulated in HCC, was significantly associated with tumor invasive characteristics (such as vascular invasion, incomplete encapsulation, poor differentiation, multiple number, and large tumor size). Patients with high galectin‐1 expression had a significantly poorer tumor recurrence (P = 0.025) and overall survival (P = 0.021) than those with low galectin‐1 expression. Even in early‐stage disease, high galectin‐1 expression was also independently associated with shortened survival (P < 0.001) and increased tumor recurrence (P = 0.005). Multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis showed that galectin‐1 was an independent marker for predicting the poor prognosis of HCC. The galectin‐1 level was positively related to the number of tumor‐infiltrating FoxP3+ Tregs (r = 0.416, P < 0.001), and their combination served as a better prognosticator. The postoperative tumor recurrence and survival of HCC patients with galectin‐1high and FoxP3high were significantly poorer than the other groups (both P < 0.001).Conclusions:  Galectin‐1 might be a new prognostic factor for HCC after resection and could potentially be a high‐priority therapeutic target.
Liver collagen proportionate area predicts decompensation in patients with recurrent hepatitis C virus cirrhosis after liver transplantation
Authors: Calvaruso Vincenza , Dhillon Amar Paul , Tsochatzis Emanuel , Manousou Pinelopi , Grillo Federica , Germani Giacomo , Patch David , O'Beirne James , Burroughs Andrew Kenneth 
Published: March 2012

AbstractBackground and Aims:  Current histological scoring systems do not subclassify cirrhosis. Computer‐assisted digital image analysis (DIA) of Sirius Red‐stained sections measures fibrosis morphologically producing a fibrosis ratio (collagen proportionate area [CPA]). CPA could have prognostic value within a disease stage, such as cirrhosis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate CPA in patients with recurrent hepatitis C virus (HCV) allograft cirrhosis and assess its relationship with hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG).Methods:  In 121 consecutively‐transplanted HCV patients with HVPG, measured contemporaneously with transjugular liver biopsies, 65 had Ishak stage 5 or 6 disease (43 with HVPG measurement). Biopsies were stained with Sirius Red for DIA, and the collagen content was expressed as a CPA. In three cases, a tissue for Sirius Red staining was not obtained, and the patients were excluded.Results:  Sixty‐two patients were analyzed. The median HVPG was 8 mmHg (interquartile range [IQR]: 5–10). Portal hypertension (HVPG ≥ 6 < 10 mmHg) was present in 30 (69.8%), and HVPG ≥ 10 mmHg in 13 (30.2%). The median CPA was 16% (IQR 10.75–23.25). Median Child–Pugh score and HVPG were not significantly different between Ishak fibrosis stage 5 or 6, whereas CPA was statistically different: 13% in stage 5 (IQR 8.3–12.4) versus 23% in stage 6 (IQR 17–33.7, P < 0.001). In the multivariate analysis, CPA was the only variable significantly associated with clinically‐significant portal hypertension (HVPG ≥ 10 mmHg, odds ratio: 1.085, confidence interval: 1.004–1.172, P = 0.040). A CPA of 14% was the best cut‐off value for clinically‐significant portal hypertension (CSPH) and liver decompensation, which occurred in 24 patients. Event‐free survival was significantly shorter in patients with CSPH or with a CPA value ≥ 14%, or with a combination of both.Conclusion:  In Ishak stages 5 and 6, CPA correlated with HVPG, but had a wider range of values, suggesting a greater sensitivity for distinguishing “early” from “late” severe fibrosis/cirrhosis. CPA was a unique, independent predictor of HVPG ≥ 10 mmHg. CPA can be used to subclassify cirrhosis and for prognostic stratification.
Tertiary paediatric refugee health clinic in Western Australia: Analysis of the first 1026 children
Authors: Mutch Raewyn C , Cherian Sarah , Nemba Kuria , Geddes Janet S , Rutherford David M , Chaney Gervase M , Burgner David P 
Published: March 2012

Aim:  Children account for approximately half of the humanitarian refugees currently resettled in Australia. A multidisciplinary refugee health clinic (RHC) was established at the tertiary paediatric hospital in Western Australia to address burgeoning referrals of refugee children following voluntary post‐resettlement health assessment. The aim of this study is to describe the epidemiology of common conditions in resettled paediatric refugees attending a tertiary multidisciplinary RHC.Methods:  Standardised clinical and demographic data were routinely collected during first visit clinical assessment at the RHC. Descriptive analyses of the first 1026 children are presented.Results:  One thousand twenty‐six refugee children from 475 families and over 30 different ethnicities were described. Nine hundred twenty‐seven (90.4%) children were referred following post‐resettlement health assessment. Median age was 7.8 years. Common reasons for referral were: vitamin D deficiency (400, 39%), iron deficiency (226, 22%), positive Helicobacter pylori serology (206, 21%), poor appetite (175, 17.1%), and schistosomiasis (170, 16.6%). Comorbidities identified by the RHC included tinea capitis and corporis (297, 28.9%), and dental disease (228, 22.2%). Two‐thirds of children (680, 66.3%) had at least one abnormal finding on clinical examination that identified pathologies that were not evident from the history. Three hundred eighty children (37%) were referred to sub‐specialty services.Conclusions:  A multidisciplinary paediatric RHC facilitated and strengthened the management of refugee children with multiple and complex health needs. Evidenced–based culturally appropriate methods to identify developmental delay, psychological morbidity and quantify social needs of this vulnerable population remain uncertain. These findings are relevant to the continuing evolution of paediatric refugee health care in Australia and other high income countries.
Random and cyclical deletion of large DNA segments in the genome of Pseudomonas putida
Authors: Leprince Audrey , de Lorenzo Víctor , Völler Petra , van Passel Mark W. J. , Martins dos Santos Vitor A. P. 
Published: March 2012

SummaryCumulative site‐directed mutagenesis is of limited suitability for the global analysis of the gene functions in the microbe's cellular network. In order to simplify and stabilize the genome of the soil bacterium Pseudomonas putida, we developed a recyclable three‐step excision method based on the combination of customized mini‐transposons and the FLP‐FRT site‐specific recombination system. To demonstrate the powerful potential of these tools, we first established insertion mutant libraries that allow users to study gene functions with respect either to phenotypic characteristics (single insertions) or to their involvement in predicted networks (double insertions). Based on these libraries, we generated as a proof‐of‐principle, single‐deletion mutants lacking ∼ 4.1% of the genome (∼ 3.7% of the gene repertoire). A cyclical application of the method generated four double‐deletion mutants of which a maximum of ∼ 7.4% of the chromosome (∼ 6.9% of the gene count) was excised. This procedure demonstrates a new strategy for rapid genome streamlining and gain of new insights into the molecular interactions and regulations.
Context and Action in the Transformation of the Firm: A Reprise
Authors: Pettigrew Andrew M. 
Published: March 2012

abstractThis article returns to address the strengths and limitations of Pettigrew 1985 and 1987. It then responds to two of the main deficiencies of those publications. These are the failure to link context to process to outcome in those studies and in process scholarship more generally and the limited treatment of the method of process analysis offered by Pettigrew in 1985 and 1987. The article then compares and contrasts the methods of five additional process scholars – Mintzberg, Burgelman, Langley, Van de Ven, and Eisenhardt – to highlight developments in the conduct of process research since the mid and late 1980s, and to identify a set of pointers for the conduct of future process research.
Dyadic Parent‐Child Interaction During Early Childhood: Contributions of Parental and Child Personality Traits
Authors: Wilson Sylia , Durbin C. Emily 
Published: March 2012

AbstractIndividual differences in personality play a major role for functioning in a multitude of important life domains, including one's interpersonal relationships. The present study examined the effects of parental personality and child temperament traits on dyadic parent‐child interaction during early childhood. Participants were a community sample of 145 mothers, 145 fathers, and their 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children. Child traits were assessed using standardized laboratory paradigms, parents reported on their own traits, and parent‐child interaction was assessed observationally. Parental positive emotionality, negative emotionality, and constraint subtraits were related to parental responsiveness; the number and type of parental bids and the quality of parental responsiveness were also a function of child positive emotionality and effortful control subtraits and, for mothers, child negative emotionality subtraits. Child traits were related to their own interaction behaviors; children higher on positive emotionality subtraits made more social bids, and children higher on effortful control subtraits made more influence attempts and fewer negative bids; child positive emotionality and effortful control subtraits were associated with higher quality child responsiveness. Findings speak to coherence in personality constructs across the life span, with comparable traits measured in adults and early childhood–aged children demonstrating remarkably consistent effects on dyadic interaction behavior.
The Status‐Signaling Property of Self‐Esteem: The Role of Self‐Reported Self‐Esteem and Perceived Self‐Esteem in Personality Judgments
Authors: Zeigler‐Hill Virgil , Besser Avi , Myers Erin M. , Southard Ashton C. , Malkin Mallory L. 
Published: March 2012

AbstractObjectiveThe provision of information appears to be an important feature of self‐esteem. The present studies examined whether self‐esteem possesses a status‐signaling property such that an individual's level of self‐esteem is associated with how the individual is perceived by others.MethodIn Study 1, trained judges watched brief videos of 157 participants and rated targets as having higher levels of self‐esteem when the targets were believed to possess more positive personality characteristics. Study 2 found that participants (357 targets) were rated as having higher levels of self‐esteem when they were given more positive personality evaluations by their friends and family members (1,615 perceivers).ResultsConsistent with the proposed status‐signaling model, high levels of self‐esteem were generally associated with the perception of positive personality characteristics.ConclusionsThese findings are discussed in the context of an extended informational model of self‐esteem consisting of both the status‐tracking and status‐signaling properties of self‐esteem.
THE IMPACT OF MANUFACTURING FIRMS’ USE OF ACADEMIC WORKERS ON THEIR PRODUCTIVITY LEVEL
Authors: Børing Pål 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTWe examine how firms’ productivity level, measured by the total factor productivity (TFP), is affected by their use of academic workers. A panel dataset of Norwegian manufacturing firms is used. Firms’ production level is shown to be negatively affected by their share of academic workers, but we find no clear relationship between this share and the TFP. If we account for the fact that there is an interaction between the share of academic workers and the capital stock, we find that this share has a non‐significant effect on the production level.
WHY DO LARGE FIRMS TEND TO INTEGRATE VERTICALLY?
Authors: Matsushima Noriaki , Mizuno Tomomichi 
Published: March 2012

ABSTRACTWe provide a theoretical framework to discuss the relation between firm size and vertical structures. The framework is based on a Hotelling model with three downstream and three upstream firms. We show that vertical integration enhances the degree of product differentiation and show the strategic complementarity of product positioning. We also show that the downstream firm that has the largest market share is more likely to integrate vertically. Enhancing the degree of product differentiation is more beneficial for the large firm than for the rest of the downstream firms because the large firm supplies a large amount of product.