Job satisfaction and work–family policies through work-family enrichment

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of a bundle of work–family policies on employee’s job satisfaction and (affective) organizational commitment, by using work–family enrichment and conflict as explanatory. Design/methodology/approach: Empirical study is conducted with a sample of 322 employees from 30 Spanish firms that have been granted with the “Flexible Firm Award” or have been certified as “Family Responsible Firms.” Structural equation modeling is used to test hypotheses. Findings: The results show that the higher the use of work–family policies the more positive effects on work–family enrichment and conflict, and that job satisfaction is positively related to (effective) organizational commitment. Research limitations/implications: This is a cross-sectional study which may limit the establishment of causal relationships. Practical implications: Work–family policies may constitute a relevant management tool to balance work and family life by making employees more interested in their jobs, enhancing their well-being and reducing the conflicts between work and family domains. The positive role of work–family enrichment contributes to enhance employees’ job satisfaction and, at the same time, to increase their organizational commitment. Managers should pay attention at how work–family policies are justified because they may influence differently on their outcomes on satisfaction and commitment. Originality/value: There are two main original contributions of the paper. First, the authors study the joint effect of work–family policies on different dimensions of enrichment and conflict. Second, the authors analyze the relationship between different dimensions of enrichment and conflict on job satisfaction and organizational commitment

Expression of adrenomedullin and proadrenomedullin N-terminal 20 peptide in human and rat prostate

Adrenomedullin (AM) and proadrenomedullin N-terminal 20 peptide (PAMP) are two recently discovered hypotensive peptides translated from the same message transcript (preproAM mRNA). In this article we report the presence of AM, PAMP, and their mRNA in human and rat prostate and of AM receptor mRNA in rat prostate. PreproAM mRNA was found in the epithelium of normal human and rat prostate glands by in situ hybridization. In humans, it was mainly expressed in the basal cells. In rat, its expression was higher in the ducts than in the acini of all the prostate lobes. Immunocytochemistry identified a similar distribution pattern for AM compared with its mRNA but showed different locations for AM and PAMP immunoreactivity. The former was widespread in the epithelia, whereas the latter was almost exclusively found in neuroendocrine cells. In rat, Western blot analysis confirmed the presence of high levels of AM peptide in the ventral lobe and of its precursor in the ventral and dorsolateral lobes. Immunoreactivity for serotonin, chromogranin A, PAMP, and AM defined four subpopulations of prostate neuroendocrine-like cells in rat, a cell type that has not been previously described

Human Pleural Fluid Elicits Pyruvate and Phenylalanine Metabolism in Acinetobacter baumannii to Enhance Cytotoxicity and Immune Evasion

The CCAAT box-harboring proteins represent a family of heterotrimeric transcription factors which is highly conserved in eukaryotes. In fungi, one of the particularly important homologs of this family is the Hap complex that separates the DNA-binding domain from the activation domain and imposes essential impacts on regulation of a wide range of cellular functions. So far, a comprehensive summary of this complex has been described in filamentous fungi but not in the yeast. In this review, we summarize a number of studies related to the structure and assembly mode of the Hap complex in a list of representative yeasts. Furthermore, we emphasize recent advances in understanding the regulatory functions of this complex, with a special focus on its role in regulating respiration, production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and iron homeostasis.Fil: Nyah, Rodman. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Martinez, Jasmine. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Fung, Sammie. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Nakanouchi, Jun. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Myers, Amber L.. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Harris, Caitlin M.. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Dang, Emily. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Fernandez, Jennifer. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Liu, Christine. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Mendoza, Anthony M.. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Jimenez, Verónica. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Nikolaidis, Nikolas. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Brennan, Catherine A.. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Bonomo, Robert A.. Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Cente; Estados Unidos. Center for Antimicrobial Resistance and Epidemiology; Estados Unidos. Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Sieira, Rodrigo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Ramirez, Maria Soledad. California State University; Estados Unido

Impact of the biological control agent Tetramesa romana (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae) on Arundo donax (Poaceae: Arundinoideae) along the Rio Grande River in Texas

Five years post-release of the arundo gall wasp, Tetramesa romana, into the riparian habitats of the lower Rio Grande River, changes in the health of the invasive weed, Arundo donax, or giant reed, have been documented. These changes in plant attributes are fairly consistent along the study area of 558 river miles between Del Rio and Brownsville, TX, and support the hypothesis that the arundo wasp has had a significant impact as a biological control agent. Plant attributes were measured prior to release in 10 quadrats at each of 10 field sites in 2007, and measured again at the same undisturbed sites, 5 years after the release of T. romana, in 2014. Above ground biomass of A. donax decreased on average by 22% across the 10 sites. This decline in biomass was negatively correlated to increased total numbers of T. romana exit holes in main and lateral shoots per site in 2014 compared to 2007. Changes in biomass, live shoot density and shoot lengths, especially the positive effect of galling on main and lateral shoot mortality, appear to be leading to a consistent decline of A. donax. Economically, this reduction in A. donax biomass is estimated to be saving 4.4 million dollars per year in agricultural water. Additional impacts are expected as populations of the wasp increase and as other biological control agents such as the arundo scale, Rhizaspidiotus donacis, become more widespread

Bmf upregulation through the AMP-activated protein kinase pathway may protect the brain from seizure-induced cell death.

Prolonged seizures (status epilepticus, SE) can cause neuronal death within brain regions such as the hippocampus. This may contribute to impairments in cognitive functioning and trigger or exacerbate epilepsy. Seizure-induced neuronal death is mediated, at least in part, by apoptosis-associated signaling pathways. Indeed, mice lacking certain members of the potently proapoptotic BH3-only subfamily of Bcl-2 proteins are protected against hippocampal damage caused by status epilepticus. The recently identified BH3-only protein Bcl-2-modifying factor (Bmf) normally interacts with the cytoskeleton, but upon certain cellular stresses, such as loss of extracellular matrix adhesion or energy crisis, Bmf relocalizes to mitochondria, where it can promote Bax activation and mitochondrial dysfunction. Although Bmf has been widely reported in the hematopoietic system to exert a proapoptotic effect, no studies have been undertaken in models of neurological disorders. To examine whether Bmf is important for seizure-induced neuronal death, we studied Bmf induction after prolonged seizures induced by intra-amygdala kainic acid (KA) in mice, and examined the effect of Bmf-deficiency on seizures and damage caused by SE. Seizures triggered an early (1-8 h) transcriptional activation and accumulation of Bax in the cell death-susceptible hippocampal CA3 subfield. Bmf mRNA was biphasically upregulated beginning at 1 h after SE and returning to normal by 8 h, while again being found elevated in the hippocampus of epileptic mice. Bmf upregulation was prevented by Compound C, an inhibitor of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, indicating Bmf expression may be induced in response to bioenergetic stress. Bmf-deficient mice showed normal sensitivity to the convulsant effects of KA, but, surprisingly, displayed significantly more neuronal death in the hippocampal CA1 and CA3 subfields after SE. These are the first studies investigating Bmf in a model of neurologic injury, and suggest that Bmf may protect neurons against seizure-induced neuronal death in vivo

Estudio de las lesiones neoplásicas metacrónicas en el carcinoma colorrectal

Fundamento. Analizar la frecuencia y las características de las lesiones neoplásicas metacrónicas, carcinomas y adenomas, tras la resección de un cáncer colo-rectal (CCR). Pacientes y métodos. Revisamos 382 CCR operados y seguidos mediante colonoscopias completas en dos hospitales de nuestra comunidad. Analizamos las lesiones metacrónicas registradas valorando su localización, momento del diagnóstico, histología, número y tamaño. Estudiamos la frecuencia de adenomas de aparición precoz (12 meses), comparando su tamaño con respecto al resto de lesiones. Resultados. La mediana de seguimiento fue de 48 meses (12-112), con 2,74±1,47 colonoscopias/caso. Diagnosticamos 7 cánceres metacrónicos (1,8%), 4 de ellos en estadio I. La mediana de tiempo hasta su diagnóstico fue de 24 meses (13-54). Registramos adenomas metacrónicos en 162 casos (42,4%), sin diferencias entre los dos hospitales: 42,1% vs. 43,8% (p=0,88). Un 6,3% de los pacientes presentaron adenomas avanzados. En 164 casos en que el primer control se efectuó a los 12 meses, la incidencia de adenomas fue del 24%. Los adenomas fueron mayoritariamente únicos (60,8%) y menores de 5 mm (68,5%). En un 55,5% de los casos con pólipos, alguno tenía una localización proximal. El diagnóstico se realizó en la 1ª exploración (56,2%), 2ª (27,8%) ó 3ª (9%). La mediana de tiempo hasta el diagnóstico fue de 21 meses (12-112) para el adenoma simple y de 35 (12-112) para el avanzado. Conclusiones. Nuestro seguimiento permitió aplicar un tratamiento teóricamente curativo en la mayoría de los carcinomas metacrónicos diagnosticados. La alta incidencia de adenomas y su frecuente localización proximal hacen necesario un seguimiento con colonoscopias completas, que debería iniciarse al año de la operación y podría pasar a ser menos estricto tras tres exploraciones consecutivas sin pólipos