bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the molecular diversity of Brazilian strains of the B.1.1 variant of SARS-CoV-2 used in vaccines
Authors: do Nascimento Iasmin Auta , da Silva Lidiane Santos , da Silva Santos Ana Clara , Felix Pierre Teodósio 
Published: December 2022

AbstractIn this work, 28 sequences with 57,570 sites of the B.1.1 variant of SARS-CoV-2, from Brazilian states, were used. All sequences (publicly available on the National Center for Biotechnology Information platform (NCBI)) were aligned with Mega X software and all gaps, ambiguous sites and lost data were extracted, resulting in a region in a segment with 8,799 polymorphic (15.2% of the total) that were analyzed for their molecular diversity, FST, demographic and spatial expansion. Phylogenetic relationships of ancestry revealed the absence of genetically distinct subgroups, which was corroborated by the low value of FSTfound (15.38%). The low degree of polymorphism found among these samples, corroborated by the almost non-existent genetic distance, helped or established the absence of a genetic structuring pattern, demonstrating a satisfactory pattern of response to vaccines, since all the sequences analyzed were part of the Brazilian strains of variant B.1.1 of SARS-CoV-2 used in vaccines.
Generation of anti-tumor chimeric antigen receptors incorporating T cell signaling motifs
Authors: Balagopalan Lakshmi , Moreno Taylor , Qin Haiying , Yi Jason , McIntire Katherine M. , Alvinez Neriah , Pallikkuth Sandeep , Lee Mariah E. , Yamane Hidehiro , Tran Andy D. , Youkharibache Philippe , Cachau Raul E. , Taylor Naomi , Samelson Lawrence E. 
Published: December 2022

AbstractChimeric antigen receptors (CAR) T cells have been successfully used to treat lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma, but adverse effects due to cytokine secretion, CAR-T cell exhaustion, and loss of target antigen have limited their potential. Furthermore, while CARs have been designed to harness T Cell Receptor (TCR) signaling, they are significantly less sensitive than TCRs, resulting in suboptimal signaling. We have developed novel Chimeric Adapter Proteins (CAPs) that are designed to trigger signaling downstream of the TCRζ chain. CAPs are chimeric molecules that contain adapter domains in tandem with the kinase domain of ZAP70, fused to an extracellular targeting domain. We hypothesized that CAPs would be more potent than CARs because kinetic proofreading steps that define the signaling threshold and the inhibitory regulation of upstream molecules are bypassed. Indeed, second generation CAPs exhibited high anti-tumor efficacy, and significantly enhanced long-termin vivotumor clearance in leukemia-bearing NSG mice as compared with conventional CD19-28ζ CAR-T. Mechanistically, CAPs were activated in an Lck-independent manner and displayed slower phosphorylation kinetics and a longer duration of signaling compared with 28ζ-CAR. The unique signaling properties of CAPs may therefore be harnessed to improve thein vivoefficacy of T cells engineered to express an anti-tumor chimeric receptor.
Korea4K: whole genome sequences of 4,157 Koreans with 107 phenotypes derived from extensive health check-ups
Authors: Jeon Sungwon , Choi Hansol , Jeon Yeonsu , Choi Whan-Hyuk , Choi Hyunjoo , An Kyungwhan , Ryu Hyojung , Bhak Jihun , Lee Hyeonjae , Kwon Yoonsung , Ha Sukyeon , Kim Yeo Jin , Blazyte Asta , Kim Changjae , Kim Yeonkyung , Kang Younghui , Woo Yeong Ju , Lee Chanyoung , Seo Jeongwoo , Bolser Dan , Biro Orsolya , Shin Eun-Seok , Kim Byung Chul , Kim Seon-Young , Park Ji-Hwan , Jeon Jongbum , Jung Dooyoung , Lee Semin , Bhak Jong 
Published: December 2022

AbstractWe present 4,157 whole-genome sequences (Korea4K) coupled with 107 health check-up parameters as the largest whole genomic resource of Koreans. Korea4K provides 45,537,252 variants and encompasses most of the common and rare variants in Koreans. We identified 1,356 new geno-phenotype associations which were not found by the previous Korea1K dataset. Phenomics analyses revealed 24 genetic correlations, 1,131 pleiotropic variants, and 127 causal relationships from Mendelian randomization. Moreover, the Korea4K imputation reference panel showed a superior imputation performance to Korea1K. Collectively, Korea4K provides the most extensive genomic and phenomic data resources for discovering clinically relevant novel genome-phenome associations in Koreans.
The moulding of intra-specific trait variation by selection under ecological inheritance
Authors: Prigent Iris , Mullon Charles 
Published: December 2022

AbstractOrganisms continuously modify their environment, often impacting the fitness of future conspecifics due to ecological inheritance. When this inheritance is biased towards kin, selection favours modifications that increase the fitness of downstream individuals. How such selection shapes trait variation within populations remains poorly understood. Using mathematical modelling, we investigate the coevolution of multiple traits in a group-structured population when these traits affect the group environment, which is then bequeathed to future generations. We examine when such coevolution favours polymorphism as well as the resulting associations among traits. We find in particular that two traits become associated when one trait affects the environment while the other influences the likelihood that future kin experience this environment. To illustrate this, we model the coevolution of (a) the attack rate on a local renewable resource, which deteriorates environmental conditions, with (b) dispersal between groups, which reduces the likelihood that kin suffers from such deterioration. We show this often leads to the emergence of two highly-differentiated morphs: one that readily disperses and depletes local resources; and another that maintains these resources and tends to remain philopatric. More broadly, we suggest that ecological inheritance can contribute to phenotypic diversity and lead to complex polymorphism.
betAS: intuitive analysis and visualisation of differential alternative splicing using beta distributions
Authors: Ascensão-Ferreira Mariana , Martins-Silva Rita , Saraiva-Agostinho Nuno , Barbosa-Morais Nuno L. 
Published: December 2022

ABSTRACTNext generation RNA sequencing allows alternative splicing (AS) quantification with unprecedented resolution, with the relative inclusion of an alternative sequence in transcripts being commonly quantified by the proportion of reads supporting it as percent spliced-in (PSI). However, PSI values do not incorporate information about precision, proportional to the respective AS events’ read coverage. Beta distributions are suitable to quantify inclusion levels of alternative sequences, using reads supporting their inclusion and exclusion as surrogates for the two distribution shape parameters. Each such beta distribution has the PSI as its mean value and is narrower when the read coverage is higher, facilitating the interpretability of its precision when plotted. We herein introduce a computational pipeline, based on beta distributions accurately modelling PSI values and their precision, to quantitatively and visually compare AS between groups of samples. Our methodology includes a differential splicing significance metric that compromises the magnitude of inter-group differences, the estimation uncertainty in individual samples, and the intra-group variability, being therefore suitable to multiple-group comparisons. To make our approach accessible and clear to both non-computational and computational biologists, we developedbetAS, an interactive web app and user-friendly R package for visual and intuitive differential splicing analysis from read count data.
Molecular characterization of Left-Right symmetry breaking in the mouse embryo
Authors: Tyser Richard C.V. , Ibarra-Soria Ximena , Pedroza Monique , Miranda Antonio M.A. , van den Brand Teun A.H. , Scialdone Antonio , Marioni John C. , Srinivas Shankar 
Published: December 2022

ABSTRACTThe asymmetric morphology of the mammalian heart is essential to its function as the organ of pulmonary and systemic double circulation. Left-right asymmetry is established by a leftward flow in the node that results in the asymmetric expression ofNodal. This triggers a cascade of asymmetric expression of downstream genes, such asPitx2c, in the lateral plate mesoderm that gives rise to the first morphologically recognizable primordial heart structure, the cardiac crescent. Relatively little is known about gene expression asymmetries in the cardiac crescent that might underpin asymmetric cardiac morphogenesis. To systematically identify asymmetrically expressed genes, we performed a single-cell transcriptional analysis of manually dissected left and right halves of the cardiac crescent at stages spanning symmetry breaking. This revealed both left and right-sided genes that have not previously been implicated in left-right symmetry breaking. Some of these were expressed in multiple cell types but showed asymmetric expression in only a sub-set of cell types. We validated these findings using multiplexedin situHybridization Chain Reaction (HCR) and high-resolution volume imaging to characterize the expression patterns of select genes. UsingDnahiv/ivmutant embryos that show randomized situs, we established that all the genes tested tracked the asymmetric expression ofPitx2c, indicating their asymmetric expression also arose from the early asymmetries at the node. This study provides a high-fidelity molecular characterization of left-right symmetry breaking during cardiac crescent formation, providing a basis for future mechanistic studies on asymmetric cardiac morphogenesis.
Virological characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2 XBB variant derived from recombination of two Omicron subvariants
Authors: Tamura Tomokazu , Ito Jumpei , Uriu Keiya , Zahradnik Jiri , Kida Izumi , Nasser Hesham , Shofa Maya , Oda Yoshitaka , Lytras Spyros , Nao Naganori , Itakura Yukari , Deguchi Sayaka , Suzuki Rigel , Wang Lei , Begum MST Monira , Tsuda Masumi , Kosugi Yusuke , Fujita Shigeru , Yoshimatsu Kumiko , Suzuki Saori , Asakura Hiroyuki , Nagashima Mami , Sadamasu Kenji , Yoshimura Kazuhisa , Yamamoto Yuki , Nagamoto Tetsuharu , Schreiber Gideon ,   The Genotype to Phenotype Japan (G2P-Japan) Consortium, Ikeda Terumasa , Fukuhara Takasuke , Saito Akatsuki , Tanaka Shinya , Matsuno Keita , Takayama Kazuo , Sato Kei 
Published: December 2022

AbstractIn late 2022, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants have highly diversified, and XBB is spreading rapidly around the world. Our phylogenetic analyses suggested that XBB emerged by recombination of two co-circulating BA.2 lineages, BJ.1 and BM.1.1.1 (a progeny of BA.2.75), during the summer of 2022 around India.In vitroexperiments revealed that XBB is the most profoundly resistant variant to BA.2/5 breakthrough infection sera ever and is more fusogenic than BA.2.75. Notably, the recombination breakpoint is located in the receptor-binding domain of spike, and each region of recombined spike conferred immune evasion and augmented fusogenicity to the XBB spike. Finally, the intrinsic pathogenicity of XBB in hamsters is comparable to or even lower than that of BA.2.75. Our multiscale investigation provided evidence suggesting that XBB is the first documented SARS-CoV-2 variant increasing its fitness through recombination rather than single mutations.
Structural equation model (SEM) for evaluating interrelationships among risks inherent in Ghanaian public–private partnership (PPP) power projects
Authors: Kukah Augustine Senanu Komla , Owusu-Manu De-Graft , Badu Edward , Asamoah Eric 
Published: December 2022

PurposeThe demand for power has surged in recent times and continues to increase yearly. In comparison to developed countries, the power industry’s risks, especially in piblic–private partnership (PPP) projects, are more complex and essential in developing countries. Appreciating the inter relationship among these risk factors is crucial. However, there exist no studies developing quantitative models to explain how various PPP power risk factors influence each other, especially in developing countries like Ghana. This study aims to investigate and model the relationship, the probability of occurrence and severity of impact of PPP power risk factors in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through ranking type questionnaire in a two-round Delphi survey with 48 respondents using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used for analysis of data.FindingsA model was developed to investigate the influence the risk factors inherent in PPP power projects have on each other. Validity of the model was tested based on the data collected. PLS-SEM results indicated the various relationships and interdependencies the risk factors had on each other considering their probability and severity. Both significant and insignificant levels of relationships were found among the various risk factors.Practical implicationsThe SEM that was developed to assess the relationships among the risk factors has great value for policy makers in the energy sector, industry practitioners, researchers and industry practitioners. Strategies can be mapped out to mitigate and effectively allocate the risks with the high interdependencies.Originality/valueRegarding the quantitative impact of the interrelationship among risk factors in PPP power projects, the findings of this research are arguably the first to be presented for the construction sector and contribute to knowledge on PPP practice and further has implications toward achieving power sector risk mitigation.
Voicing perceptions of local job seekers and employees toward workforce nationalization and employment
Authors: Elsharnouby Tamer H. , Younis Heba , Elbanna Said , Mauji Nasrina 
Published: December 2022

PurposeThis study explores local Qatari job seekers' and employees' perceptions of the workforce nationalization strategy to address an inadequacy in the workforce nationalization literature in Gulf Cooperation Council countries. It also unpacks the factors that attract or discourage local job seekers and employees when considering a new job.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through in-depth interviews with 28 local job seekers who were either currently unemployed or employed and seeking another job at the time of the interviews.FindingsThe data revealed that nationals perceive Qatarization as a means to replace expatriate employees with nationals, particularly in the public sector and leadership positions. This misinterpretation of the strategy leads to complications, such as the waithood phenomenon and a sense of entitlement for guaranteed employment. The findings also provide insights into nationals' attitudes toward employment, including job attraction and discouraging factors.Research limitations/implicationsThe results provide policymakers with insights into the misinterpretation surrounding nationals' perceptions of workforce nationalization and remedies for better implementation of the strategy.Originality/valueThe study addresses two clear gaps in the workforce nationalization literature: (1) examining how nationals perceive the workforce nationalization strategy and (2) unpacking the factors that make employment attractive or unfavorable for nationals.
Making the ethical case for effective domestic abuse policy and practice: the role of trade unions
Authors: Bennett Tony , Wibberley Gemma 
Published: December 2022

PurposeThis paper focusses on the role of trade unions in policy and practice designed to address the workplace impact of domestic abuse. The paper aims to examine this union remit through the lens of corporate social responsibility (CSR).Design/methodology/approachIn-depth interviews were conducted with 39 union representatives in a region of England to capture their views on and experiences of supporting members experiencing domestic abuse.FindingsThere is a clear ethical model by which the unions might articulate the key moral, legal and business drivers in determining effective domestic abuse policy and practice. Furthermore, the degree of “proximity”, in terms of union deliberation with employers and particularly joint action following disclosure, suggests that unions could play a key part in achieving “substantive” domestic abuse policy and practice within organisations.Originality/valueDespite unions' capacity to offer significant support to employers and employees, the role of unions in addressing the workplace impact of domestic abuse is under-researched. With reference to the concept of CSR, the article adds to the knowledge of how to address the workplace impact of domestic abuse.
The development and validation of the student's employability competences questionnaire (SECQ)
Authors: Scoupe Rémi , Römgens Inge , Beausaert Simon 
Published: December 2022

PurposeThis paper aims to measure the extent to which students possess the necessary competences of an employable graduate, the authors explored the development and validation of a questionnaire that measures employability competences of students in higher education through combining insights from higher education and workplace learning literature.Design/methodology/approachThe paper aims to develop and validate the questionnaire a systematic literature review and factor analyses were conducted. The authors applied the questionnaire to two different groups of students. First, to undergraduate students in an applied sciences program in Belgium (N = 935). The dataset was randomly divided into two subsets to conduct an exploratory and a confirmatory factor analysis. Next, another confirmatory factor analysis was done to cross-validate the factor structure found. For this, the questionnaire was offered to a group of undergraduate and graduate students at a university in The Netherlands (N = 995).FindingsThe results support a model of employability based on combined insights from higher education and workplace learning literature. The model consists of the following seven factors: social competences, e-literacy, efficacy beliefs, flexibility, healthy work–life balance, lifelong learning and oral and written communication.Originality/valueThe questionnaire can be utilized to screen students' employability profiles and examine the relationship between teaching practices and students’ employability competences.
A network perspective of cognitive and geographical proximity of sustainable tourism organizations: evidence from Italy
Authors: Blasi Silvia , Fano Shira , Sedita Silvia Rita , Toschi Gianluca 
Published: December 2022

Purpose
This research aims to contribute to the literature on sustainable hospitality and tourism by applying social network analysis to identify sustainable tourism business networks and untangle the role of cognitive and geographical proximity in their formation.

Design/methodology/approach
Data mining and machine learning techniques were applied to data collected from the websites of tourism companies located in northeastern Italy, namely, the Veneto region. Specifically, the authors used Web scraping to extract relevant information from the internet.

Findings
The results support the existence of geographical clusters of tourist accommodation providers that are linked by strong cognitive proximity based on sustainability principles that are well communicated via their websites. This does not appear to be greenwashing because companies that have agreed on sustainability principles have also implemented concrete actions and tend to signal these actions through a variety of sustainability certifications.

Practical implications
The results may guide tourism managers and policymakers in developing tourism initiatives directed at the creation of fruitful collaborations between similarly oriented organizations and methods to support clusters of sustainable tourism accommodation. Identifying sustainable tourism networks may assist in the identification of potential actors of change, fueling a widespread transition toward sustainability.

Originality/value
In this study, the authors adopted an innovative methodology to detect sustainability-oriented tourism business networks. Additionally, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the first to simultaneously explore the cognitive and geographical connections between tourism businesses.
Smart HRM 4.0 for achieving organizational performance: a dynamic capability view perspective
Authors: Pillai Rajasshrie , Srivastava Kailash B.L. 
Published: December 2022

PurposeThe research examines the role of Smart HRM 4.0 in developing dynamic capabilities and its impact on human resources and organizational performance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a grounded theory approach and conducted interviews of 39 senior HR managers from IT, ITeS, consulting, services and E-commerce companies through a semi-structured questionnaire. The authors analyzed the interview data with NVivo 8.0 to identify the themes related to the dynamic capabilities to Smart 4.0 HR practices.FindingsThe study provides a conceptual framework for organizational performance using dynamic capabilities built due to Smart HRM 4.0 practices. Organizations use Smart HRM 4.0 to develop dynamic capabilities: building learning and knowledge sharing capability and integration, reconfiguration capabilities. Further, the dynamic capabilities contribute to HR and organizational performance.Originality/valueThis study divulges the role of Smart HRM 4.0 practices in developing dynamic capabilities in Indian firms. The study provides an appealing insight into the structural link between Smart HRM 4.0 and dynamic capabilities, which are yet to be explored. This study extends the Smart HRM 4.0 and dynamic capabilities concepts for senior HR professionals and contributes to human resource management and organizational performance literature.