Promoting Innovation in Hospitality Companies through Human Resource Management Practices

In this study, we investigate how hospitality companies can promote incremental and radical innovation through human resource management practices (i.e., selection and training). Data from 196 independent hotels and restaurants operating in the People’s Republic of China show that hiring multi-skilled core customer-contact employees and training core customer-contact employees for multiple skills both have a significant and positive effect on incremental and radical innovation among hotel and restaurant companies. The two human resource management practices are also found to have a negative joint impact on incremental but not radical innovation. The implications for promoting innovation in hospitality companies are discussed

Study of the cytological features of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells from patients with neuromyelitis optica.

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is a refractory autoimmune inflammatory disease of the central nervous system without an effective cure. Autologous bone marrow‑derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM‑MSCs) are considered to be promising therapeutic agents for this disease due to their potential regenerative, immune regulatory and neurotrophic effects. However, little is known about the cytological features of BM‑MSCs from patients with NMO, which may influence any therapeutic effects. The present study aimed to compare the proliferation, differentiation and senescence of BM‑MSCs from patients with NMO with that of age‑ and sex‑matched healthy subjects. It was revealed that there were no significant differences in terms of cell morphology or differentiation capacities in the BM‑MSCs from the patients with NMO. However, in comparison with healthy controls, BM‑MSCs derived from the Patients with NMO exhibited a decreased proliferation rate, in addition to a decreased expression of several cell cycle‑promoting and proliferation‑associated genes. Furthermore, the cell death rate increased in BM‑MSCs from patients under normal culture conditions and an assessment of the gene expression profile further confirmed that the BM‑MSCs from patients with NMO were more vulnerable to senescence. Platelet‑derived growth factor (PDGF), as a major mitotic stimulatory factor for MSCs and a potent therapeutic cytokine in demyelinating disease, was able to overcome the decreased proliferation rate and increased senescence defects in BM‑MSCs from the patients with NMO. Taken together, the results from the present study have enabled the proposition of the possibility of combining the application of autologous BM‑MSCs and PDGF for refractory and severe patients with NMO in order to elicit improved therapeutic effects, or, at the least, to include PDGF as a necessary and standard growth factor in the current in vitro formula for the culture of NMO patient‑derived BM‑MSCs

Bacoside-A exerts protective effect against Parkinson’s disease-induced functional damage in mice via inhibition of apoptosis and oxidative response

Purpose: To determine the effect of bacoside-A on Parkinson's disease (PD) in a rat model, and elucidate its mechanism of action.Methods: A rat model of PD was established by administration of 5 µL of 6-hydroxydopamine in ascorbic acid (0.1 %). Measurement of serum levels of inflammatory factors was carried out using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Western blotting was used to assay Bax, cytochrome c and Bcl-2 in rat hippocampus.Results: Bacoside-A treatment significantly reduced PD-induced high turning values in rats (p < 0.05). Treatment with bacoside-A reversed PD-mediated suppression of serum activities of CAT and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). In bacoside-A-treated PD rats, dose-dependent suppression of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) activities were observed (p < 0.05). Bacoside-A-treated PD rats significantly (p < 0.018) reduced interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6 levels. Treatment of PD rats with bacoside-A effectively reduced levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, NF-κB p65, (COX)-2 and p53 protein, and also reversed up-regulations of Bax, cytochrome C, caspase-3 and caspase-9.Conclusion: Bacoside-A exhibits a protective effect against Parkinson disease-induced oxidative damage and neuronal degeneration in rats through downregulation of iNOS, AChE, inflammatory cytokines and pro-apoptotic proteins. Therefore, bacoside-A has potentials for use in the management of Parkinson disease. Keywords: Parkinson disease, Neuroprotective, Pro-apoptotic, Cytokines, Neurotoxicit

Rb and p130 control cell cycle gene silencing to maintain the postmitotic phenotype in cardiac myocytes

Both Rb and p130 are required for the recruitment of heterochromatin proteins that mediate silencing of proliferation genes in adult cardiac myocytes

Electronic nicotine delivery systems and/or electronic non-nicotine delivery systems for tobacco smoking cessation or reduction: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective A systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the impact of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and/or electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENNDS) versus no smoking cessation aid, or alternative smoking cessation aids, in cigarette smokers on long-term tobacco use. Data sources Searches of MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycInfo, CINAHL, CENTRAL and Web of Science up to December 2015. Study selection Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and prospective cohort studies. Data extraction Three pairs of reviewers independently screened potentially eligible articles, extracted data from included studies on populations, interventions and outcomes and assessed their risk of bias. We used the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach to rate overall certainty of the evidence by outcome. Data synthesis Three randomised trials including 1007 participants and nine cohorts including 13?115 participants proved eligible. Results provided by only two RCTs suggest a possible increase in tobacco smoking cessation with ENDS in comparison with ENNDS (RR 2.03, 95% CI 0.94 to 4.38; p=0.07; I2=0%, risk difference (RD) 64/1000 over 6 to 12?months, low-certainty evidence). Results from cohort studies suggested a possible reduction in quit rates with use of ENDS compared with no use of ENDS (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.55 to 1.00; p=0.051; I2=56%, very low certainty). Conclusions There is very limited evidence regarding the impact of ENDS or ENNDS on tobacco smoking cessation, reduction or adverse effects: data from RCTs are of low certainty and observational studies of very low certainty. The limitations of the cohort studies led us to a rating of very low-certainty evidence from which no credible inferences can be drawn. Lack of usefulness with regard to address the question of e-cigarettes\u27 efficacy on smoking reduction and cessation was largely due to poor reporting. This review underlines the need to conduct well-designed trials measuring biochemically validated outcomes and adverse effects

The correlation between tic disorders and allergic conditions in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies

AimTo evaluate the correlation between tic disorders and allergies and to inform strategies for the treatment and prevention of tic disorders.MethodsWe conducted online searches of the MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane, CNKI, CBM, WanFang, and VIP Information databases. Case-control studies and cohort studies related to tic disorders and allergic conditions were searched. Two researchers screened the literature, extracted data, and evaluated quality in strict accordance with the predetermined retrieval strategy and inclusion criteria. Finally, RevMan 5.4 software was used to conduct a meta-analysis. We used the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE) approach to rating the certainty of evidence about each allergy outcome as high, moderate, low, or very low.ResultsWe obtained seven eligible studies involving eight allergic conditions. The following allergic conditions were significantly associated with the presence of a tic disorder: asthma (OR = 1.90, 95% CI = 1.57–2.30, P < 0.001), allergic rhinitis (OR = 2.61, 95% CI = 1.90–3.57, P < 0.001), allergic conjunctivitis (OR = 3.65, 95% CI = 1.53–8,67, P = 0.003), eczema (OR = 3.87, 95% CI = 2.24–6.67, P < 0.001) and food allergy (OR = 2.79, 95% CI = 1.56–4.99, P < 0.001). There was no significant correlation between atopic dermatitis, urticaria, drug allergy, and tic disorder.ConclusionThe occurrence of tic disorders may be associated with the presence of certain allergic disorders. However, whether allergy is one of the causes of tic disorders remains unclear.Systematic review registrationThe registration number for this systematic review is PROSPERO: CRD42021231658

Multiplex immunofluorescence to measure dynamic changes in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and PD-L1 in early-stage breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: The H&E stromal tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (sTIL) score and programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) SP142 immunohistochemistry assay are prognostic and predictive in early-stage breast cancer, but are operator-dependent and may have insufficient precision to characterize dynamic changes in sTILs/PD-L1 in the context of clinical research. We illustrate how multiplex immunofluorescence (mIF) combined with statistical modeling can be used to precisely estimate dynamic changes in sTIL score, PD-L1 expression, and other immune variables from a single paraffin-embedded slide, thus enabling comprehensive characterization of activity of novel immunotherapy agents. METHODS: Serial tissue was obtained from a recent clinical trial evaluating loco-regional cytokine delivery as a strategy to promote immune cell infiltration and activation in breast tumors. Pre-treatment biopsies and post-treatment tumor resections were analyzed by mIF (PerkinElmer Vectra) using an antibody panel that characterized tumor cells (cytokeratin-positive), immune cells (CD3, CD8, CD163, FoxP3), and PD-L1 expression. mIF estimates of sTIL score and PD-L1 expression were compared to the H&E/SP142 clinical assays. Hierarchical linear modeling was utilized to compare pre- and post-treatment immune cell expression, account for correlation of time-dependent measurement, variation across high-powered magnification views within each subject, and variation between subjects. Simulation methods (Monte Carlo, bootstrapping) were used to evaluate the impact of model and tissue sample size on statistical power. RESULTS: mIF estimates of sTIL and PD-L1 expression were strongly correlated with their respective clinical assays (p \u3c .001). Hierarchical linear modeling resulted in more precise estimates of treatment-related increases in sTIL, PD-L1, and other metrics such as CD8+ tumor nest infiltration. Statistical precision was dependent on adequate tissue sampling, with at least 15 high-powered fields recommended per specimen. Compared to conventional t-testing of means, hierarchical linear modeling was associated with substantial reductions in enrollment size required (n = 25➔n = 13) to detect the observed increases in sTIL/PD-L1. CONCLUSION: mIF is useful for quantifying treatment-related dynamic changes in sTILs/PD-L1 and is concordant with clinical assays, but with greater precision. Hierarchical linear modeling can mitigate the effects of intratumoral heterogeneity on immune cell count estimations, allowing for more efficient detection of treatment-related pharmocodynamic effects in the context of clinical trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02950259

TAO Conceptual Design Report: A Precision Measurement of the Reactor Antineutrino Spectrum with Sub-percent Energy Resolution

The Taishan Antineutrino Observatory (TAO, also known as JUNO-TAO) is a satellite experiment of the Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO). A ton-level liquid scintillator detector will be placed at about 30 m from a core of the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant. The reactor antineutrino spectrum will be measured with sub-percent energy resolution, to provide a reference spectrum for future reactor neutrino experiments, and to provide a benchmark measurement to test nuclear databases. A spherical acrylic vessel containing 2.8 ton gadolinium-doped liquid scintillator will be viewed by 10 m^2 Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) of >50% photon detection efficiency with almost full coverage. The photoelectron yield is about 4500 per MeV, an order higher than any existing large-scale liquid scintillator detectors. The detector operates at -50 degree C to lower the dark noise of SiPMs to an acceptable level. The detector will measure about 2000 reactor antineutrinos per day, and is designed to be well shielded from cosmogenic backgrounds and ambient radioactivities to have about 10% background-to-signal ratio. The experiment is expected to start operation in 2022