bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Plant production of high affinity nanobodies that block SARS-CoV-2 spike protein binding with its receptor, human angiotensin converting enzyme
Authors: Pitino Marco , Fleites Laura A. , Shrum Lauren , Heck Michelle , Shatters Robert G. 
Published: September 2022

AbstractNanobodies® (VHH antibodies), are small peptides that represent the antigen binding domain, VHH of unique single domain antibodies (heavy chain only antibodies, HcAb) derived from camelids. Here, we demonstrate production of VHH nanobodies against the SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins in the solanaceous plant Nicotiana benthamiana through transient expression and their subsequent detection verified through western blot. We demonstrate that these nanobodies competitively inhibit binding between the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein receptor binding domain and its human receptor protein, angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). We present plant production of nanobodies as an economical and scalable alternative to rapidly respond to therapeutic needs for emerging pathogens in human medicine and agriculture.
Comparative analysis of military heritage in Slovakia, Slovenia and Poland with emphasis on its use in tourism
Authors: Drobňák Martin , Turik Radoslav , Šenková Anna , Ratnayake Kaščáková Dagmara , Derco Jan 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThe paper deals with battlefield tourism and war monuments in the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Poland. The care of these monuments and their use in tourism today takes place separately and it is interesting to see how the same potential can be used in different ways. One of the aims of the paper is to draw attention to this fact and at the same time to present the possibilities of how to improve the use of this heritage by mutual cooperation.Design/methodology/approachIt is based on field research of the care of military-historical monuments. At the same time, it presents, in the form of retrospective studies, basic experiences from abroad – specifically the construction of thematic trails in Slovakia, Slovenia (The Walk of the Peace) and Poland (The First World War's Eastern Front Trail).FindingsThe paper points out aspects such as the care of battlefield tourism sites, cross-border cooperation in the creation of tourism products, the creation of a strategic conceptual framework for the protection of World War I monuments, their presentation to tourists, cooperation between the state, local government and the third sector.Originality/valueThere was no systematic research in this area in Central and Eastern Europe.
Will winning always encourage risk-taking? The effects of winning–losing perception on consumers’ risk preference
Authors: Wen Beixi , Chang En-Chung 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThis research examines the effects of winning–losing perception, generated from success and failure results, on consumers’ risk preference.Design/methodology/approachUsing different manipulations of success and failure and different measurements of risk preference tendency, the authors conducted five experiments to carry out the research.FindingsUsing different manipulations of success and failure and different measurements of risk preference tendency, five experiments were conducted to demonstrate that a clear success increases consumer’ sense of power, which in turn raises their subsequent risk preference; a clear failure, however, decreases consumers’ sense of power, which in turn reduces their subsequent risk preference. Furthermore, a close result can moderate this effect; that is, the difference between narrow-winners and narrow-losers’ risk preferences is weakened.Originality/valueThis study further enriches the research on the impact of winning–losing perception on individuals’ behavior and provides suggestions on how to use the results of online and offline competitions to carry out marketing activities.
Wrinkles in a CSR story: mismatched agendas in fast fashion service brands' CSR reputation
Authors: Mickelsson Jacob , van Haren Joep J.G.M. , Lemmink Jos G.A.M. 
Published: September 2022

PurposeCorporate social responsibility (CSR) is an increasingly important issue for service brands in fast fashion retailing, as consumers' negative impressions about retailers' CSR activities influence brand experience. Consumers' impressions of CSR efforts arise based on agendas communicated through many channels from different sources. The paper unravels the ‘wrinkles’, i.e. possible mismatches in CSR communication around service brands by studying differences between the three main sources of fast fashion brand-related CSR agendas: Autonomous company communication, news media and social media postings by consumers.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use structural topic modeling (STM) to analyze a corpus of texts focusing on the CSR efforts of three major fast fashion service brands over three years. The texts included 89 items of company communication (CSR reports and press releases), 5,351 news media articles about the brands' CSR efforts and 57,377 consumer generated tweets about the brands.FindingsThe STM analysis extracted 26 different CRS-related topics from the texts. Results showed differences in how much the three sources emphasized topics. The brands' own communication puts emphasis on environmental responsibility. News media tended to report on economic issues, treatment of employees and specific CSR-related events. Twitter showed more activity in discussing incident-based and emotionally charged topics.Research limitations/implicationsThe results feed into the ongoing discussion about how companies' CSR communication relates to communication in the press and among consumers. The authors highlight themes in the individual topics that are emphasized by the three sources, and discuss how CSR themes emerge in the overall transformative agenda.Practical implicationsThe paper highlights how fast fashion service brands can identify and understand different CSR agendas arising around their brand. Insight into such agendas can be used to tailor the brands' communication strategies.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the understanding of the factors behind fashion service brands' CSR reputation, highlighting how the three main sources of CSR reputation (company reports, news and social media) emphasize different types of agendas.
Implementation and evaluation of the school's COVID-19 prevention website
Authors: Chang Jui-Hung , Wang Chi-Jane , Zhong Hua-Xu , Chen Pei-Wen , Pan Ai-Jou , Chiu Po-Sheng 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the Perceptions of coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) questionnaire and the Information System Success Questionnaire on students when using the school's COVID-19 epidemic prevention website. The study is aimed toward analyzing both questionnaires as well as evaluating an epidemic prevention website.Design/methodology/approachThe school's COVID-19 prevention website and two questionnaires (Perceptions of COVID-19 and the Information System Success Questionnaire) are examined in order to investigate 73 students' COVID-19 perceptions. An open-ended question was used as the qualitative data to support quantitative data and evaluate a university's COVID-19 epidemic prevention website from a southern university in Taiwan.FindingsThe findings indicated that most students evaluated the school's COVID-19 website positively and were satisfied. In the open-ended questions, the majority of students rated the quality of the system positively and the need to fix some defects. Students have different COVID-19 perceptions and social distance compliance based on their current situations.Practical implicationsThis study provides researchers and website developers a broader understanding of the construction of the school's COVID-19 prevention website and a better understanding of student's COVID-19 perceptions.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study examining a school's epidemic prevention website, which is measured by the Information Success Questionnaire and the Perceptions of COVID-19 Questionnaire for college students.
Profiling employee psychological responses during restructuring and downsizing in the public sector: “Flourishers”, “Recoverers” and “Ambivalents”
Authors: Edwards Martin R. , Clinton Michael 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThis study aims to examine configurations of person-centered psychological change during organizational restructuring and downsizing in a public sector setting. Drawing on a social cognitive framework of organizational change the authors explore and identify the existence of different groups of employees who demonstrate varied responses (on commitment, engagement and anxiety) to restructuring and downsizing.Design/methodology/approachSurveys were collected from employees in three longitudinal waves (Time 1 N = 253; Time 2 N = 107; Time 3 N = 93, twelve months apart) at a UK public sector organization shortly before, during and after restructuring and downsizing.FindingsThree classes of response emerged based on levels of and change in anxiety, organizational commitment and work engagement: a positive “Flourishers” profile was identified along with two relatively negative response profiles, labeled as “Recoverers” and “Ambivalents”. Higher levels of job control accounted for membership of the more positive response profile; higher structural uncertainty predicted membership of the most negative response group.Practical implicationsUsing a person-centered approach, the authors form an understanding of different types of employee responses to downsizing; along with potential factors that help explain why groups of employees may exhibit certain psychological response patterns and may need to be managed differently during change. Thus, this approach provides greater understanding to researchers and managers of the varied impact that restructuring/downsizing has on the workforce.Originality/valueTo date there has been little research exploring employee responses to organizational restructuring and downsizing that has attempted to take a person-centered approach, which assumes population heterogeneity. Unlike variable centered approaches, this unique approach helps identify different patterns of employee responses to restructuring and downsizing.
What innovations would enable the tourism and hospitality industry in Guyana to re-build?
Authors: Sinclair Donald , Ishmael Camille Allison 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide answers to the following questions: How was the tourism and hospitality industry in Guyana impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic? What recovery strategies have been designed? What are the prospects for the successful implementation of those strategies?Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based upon a qualitative analysis of the recommendations and formal proposals that were issued from a variety of sources within government, private sector and academia during the 2019–2021 period of the pandemic.FindingsThe main findings of this paper are that an industry consensus exists regarding the severity of the impact of the pandemic and the need for a collaborative strategy to be designed and innovative measures implemented in order to accelerate industry recovery. This recovery entails attracting to Destination Guyana both a new wave of health-aware travellers as well as visitors from traditional markets and the diaspora. Analysis suggests that there is a broad consensus and convergence of objectives that embrace both government and private sector.Originality/valueThe COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a significant quantity of literature and has seen a conspicuous incorporation of scientific medical data into tourism analysis. This is only to be expected in the circumstance of a global health emergency that has devastated the global tourism industry. The value of this article lies principally in its proposal of innovative methods and strategies that are critical to tourism recovery.
Climate change and tourism: a paradigm for enhancing tourism resilience in SIDS
Authors: Pedapalli Sarath Chandra Kanth , Gupta Bharti , Mahajan Prachi 
Published: September 2022

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how the changing pattern of climatic conditions is likely to impact tourism in Small island developing states (SIDS). Further, the study suggests appropriate management practices that could help in tackling the consequences of climate change on the tourism sector in SIDS.Design/methodology/approachRecently published articles and reports are analysed in relation to the effects of climate change on the tourism sector, and approaches to improve the resilience of tourism in SIDS.FindingsThe study has discovered the likely effects of climate change on the tourism business and found a high possibility of a decline in the tourism-based economy as an outcome. Furthermore, the study found that the absence of institutional alliances, government backing, resilient policy and advanced technological mechanisms are driving the associated risks of climate change in tourism.Practical implicationsThe framework presented can assist tourism stakeholders to plan, prepare, mitigate and build resilience against the effects of climate variability on the tourism business in SIDS.Originality/valueThis study presents some practical measures for tourism stakeholders to enable them to reduce the effects of climate change on tourism activities in Small island developing states (SIDS).
Hydrothermal conditions determine soil potential net N mineralization rates in arid and semi‐arid grasslands
Authors: Hu Shuya , Wang Changhui , Risch Anita C. , Liu Yuan , Li Yang , Li Lei , Xu Xiaohui , He Nianpeng , Han Xingguo , Huang Jianhui 
Published: September 2022

Abstract

Soil net nitrogen (N) mineralization is a key biogeochemical process influencing plant available N and net primary productivity in terrestrial ecosystems. However, the spatial variations and controlling factors of soil net N mineralization (RPNM) in arid and semi‐arid grasslands are less studied and unclear.

In this study, we investigated the soil RPNM by performing a laboratory incubation experiment. Soil samples were collected from 30 sites in three east–west transects on the Inner Mongolia Plateau (MP), Loess Plateau (LP) and Tibetan Plateau (TP) along a 3200 km arid and semi‐arid grassland gradient, with each transect containing three different grassland types (meadow steppe [MS], typical steppe [TS] and desert steppe [DS], respectively).

Results showed that the average RPNM values ranged from −0.37 to 1.29 mg N kg−1 day−1, with a significantly lower RPNM found in the DS (0.08 ± 0.01 mg N kg−1 day−1) compared with those in the MS (0.30 ± 0.03 mg N kg−1 day−1) and in the TS (0.33 ± 0.03 mg N kg−1 day−1) in the MP and LP transects (p < 0.05). This difference could be explained by variations in climatic and soil factors, such as hydrothermal index (HT), the soil pH, soil organic matter (SOM) and precipitation. However, no significant differences in RPNM were found among different grassland types in the TP transect, possibly due to the similarly low microbial activity, as indicated by the microbial biomass carbon values. Across all three grassland transects, HT, SOM and microbial variables were the major factors controlling RPNM, which together explained 20.7% of the variation in RPNM. Further structural equation model analysis indicated HT was an integral predictor of RPNM, directly or indirectly via SOM, under different conditions of precipitation and temperature.

Our findings provide field evidence and parameters for biogeochemical cycling to better predict future N transformation processes under changing precipitation and temperature regimes across a wide range of arid and semi‐arid grassland ecosystems.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Niche differences, not fitness differences, explain predicted coexistence across ecological groups
Authors: Buche Lisa , Spaak Jurg W. , Jarillo Javier , De Laender Frederik 
Published: September 2022

Abstract

Understanding the drivers of species coexistence is essential in ecology. Niche and fitness differences (i.e. how species limit themselves compared to others and species' differences in competitive ability, respectively) permit studying the consequences of species interactions. Yet, the multitude of methods to compute niche and fitness differences hampers cross‐community comparisons. Such shortcoming leaves a gap in our understanding of the natural drivers of species coexistence and whether niche or/and fitness differences capture them.

Here, we standardised niche and fitness differences across 953 species pairs to investigate species coexistence across ecological groups and methodological settings (experimental setup, natural co‐occurrence, population model used and growth method). Using data gathered from 29 empirical papers, we asked whether large niche differences, small fitness differences or both explain predicted coexistence. Moreover, we performed an automated clustering algorithm to understand whether different underlying mechanisms drive species interactions. Finally, we tested whether any ecological or/and methodological settings drive these clusters.

Species pairs predicted to coexist have larger niche differences but not smaller fitness differences than species pairs predicted not to coexist. Also, species pairs group into two clear clusters along the niche difference axis: those predicted to coexist and those that are not. Surprisingly, ecological or methodological settings do not drive these clusters.

Synthesis. Overall, our results show that species coexistence is mainly influenced by mechanisms acting on niche differences, highlighting the importance of sustaining mechanisms that promote niche differences to maintain species coexistence. In addition, our results provide evidence that communities predicted to coexist differ from those that are not in ways that transcend their ecological grouping.
Treatment planning computed tomography radiomics for predicting treatment outcomes and haematological toxicities in locally advanced cervical cancer treated with radiotherapy: A retrospective cohort study
Authors: Ren Kang , Shen Lin , Qiu Jianfeng , Sun Kui , Chen Tingyin , Xuan Long , Yang Minwu , She Hao‐Yuan , Shen Liangfang , Zhu Hong , Deng Lan , Jing Di , Shi Liting 
Published: September 2022

AbstractObjectiveWe evaluated whether radiomic features extracted from planning computed tomography (CT) scans predict clinical end points in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) undergoing intensity‐modulated radiation therapy and brachytherapy.DesignA retrospective cohort study.SettingXiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China.PopulationTwo hundred and fifty‐seven LACC patients who were treated with intensity‐modulated radiotherapy from 2014 to 2017.MethodsPatients were allocated into the training/validation sets (3:1 ratio) using proportional random sampling, resulting in the same proportion of groups in the two sets. We extracted 254 radiomic features from each of the gross target volume, pelvis and sacral vertebrae. The sequentially backward elimination support vector machine algorithm was used for feature selection and end point prediction.Main outcomes and measuresClinical end points include tumour complete response (CR), 5‐year overall survival (OS), anaemia, and leucopenia.ResultsA combination of ten clinicopathological parameters and 34 radiomic features performed best for predicting CR (validation balanced accuracy: 80.8%). The validation balanced accuracy of 54 radiomic features was 85.8% for OS, and their scores can stratify patients into the low‐risk and high‐risk groups (5‐year OS: 95.5% versus 36.4%, p < 0.001). The clinical and radiomic models were also predictive of anaemia and leucopenia (validation balanced accuracies: 71.0% and 69.9%).ConclusionThis study demonstrated that combining clinicopathological parameters with CT‐based radiomics may have value for predicting clinical end points in LACC. If validated, this model may guide therapeutic strategy to optimise the effectiveness and minimise toxicity or treatment for LACC.
Multiple endocrine factors regulate nutrient mobilization and storage inAedes aegyptiduring a gonadotrophic cycle
Authors: Dou Xiaoyi , Chen Kangkang , Brown Mark R. , Strand Michael R. 
Published: September 2022

AbstractAnautogenous mosquitoes must blood feed on a vertebrate host to produce eggs. Each gonadotrophic cycle is subdivided into a sugar‐feeding previtellogenic phase that produces primary follicles and a blood meal‐activated vitellogenic phase in which large numbers of eggs synchronously mature and are laid. Multiple endocrine factors including juvenile hormone (JH), insulin‐like peptides (ILPs), ovary ecdysteroidogenic hormone (OEH), and 20‐hydroxyecdysone (20E) coordinate each gonadotrophic cycle. Egg formation also requires nutrients from feeding that are stored in the fat body. Regulation of egg formation is best understood inAedes aegyptibut the role different endocrine factors play in regulating nutrient mobilization and storage remains unclear. In this study, we report that adult femaleAe. aegyptimaintained triacylglycerol (TAG) stores during the previtellogenic phase of the first gonadotrophic cycle while glycogen stores declined. In contrast, TAG and glycogen stores were rapidly mobilized during the vitellogenic phase and then replenishment. Several genes encoding enzymes with functions in TAG and glycogen metabolism were differentially expressed in the fat body, which suggested regulation was mediated in part at the transcriptional level. Gain of function assays indicated that stored nutrients were primarily mobilized by adipokinetic hormone (AKH) while juvenoids and OEH regulated replenishment. ILP3 further showed evidence of negatively regulating certain lipolytic enzymes. Loss of function assays indicated AKH depends on the AKH receptor (AKHR) for function. Altogether, our results indicate that the opposing activities of different hormones regulate nutrient stores during a gonadotrophic cycle inAe. aegypti.
A novel odor stimulation system in freely moving, behaving animals
Authors: GUO Xinsong , LI Shan , YU Xuejie , WU Tingting , LIU Penglai , SHAO Yufeng , LI Anan 
Published: September 2022

AbstractPrecise and reliable presentation of odorants to animals is crucial for olfactory studies. Although odor stimulation systems in anesthetized or awake, head‐fixed animals are well established, temporally precise odor presentation in awake, freely moving animals remains a challenge. Here, we describe a new odor stimulation system which presents odors directly to the nostrils of freely moving mice. The system comprises 3 modules: an odor‐delivery module, an odor‐generation module, and a control module. The new system is precise and temporally reliable, and odor stimulation can be triggered by specific sniffing phases or other events. Moreover, the system can be combined with neural recordings, such as electrophysiology, and olfactory behavioral tests to investigate how neurons in the brain represent odor information during individual olfactory behaviors. This innovative odor stimulation system may replace traditional stimulation systems: It will enable precise odor presentation in a wide range of olfactory studies in freely moving animals.