The Hierarchy Myopia of Organizational Learning

Previous studies have been interested in how to maximize both the efficiency and the effectiveness of organizational learning. On the flipside, some studies have investigated the critical barriers to learning. We suggest organizational hierarchy as another cause and theoretically explore how it can deter learning performance. Specifically, we argue that the configuration of structure determines a prevalent form of learning method in an organization to consequently affect its learning performance. Using simulation modeling, we show that non-hierarchical organizations may be a better learning environment than hierarchical organizations. We also show that the contextual factors, such as problem complexity and member regrouping, may affect the base-line result. This study subsequently calls for further attention be paid to the key issues concerning the hierarchy and organization learning performance

Efficacy of smartphone application-based multi-domain cognitive training in older adults without dementia

BackgroundAs the population ages and the prevalence of dementia increases, there is a growing emphasis on the importance of cognitive training to prevent dementia. A smartphone application-based cognitive training software program, BeauBrain Trainer (BBT), has been developed to provide better access to cognitive training for older adults. Numerous studies have revealed the effectiveness of cognitive training using a cognitive assessment tool. However, relatively few studies have evaluated brain activation using brain imaging as a result of improved cognitive function.MethodsAll participants were required to download the BBT, an Android-based application for cognitive training, onto their own smartphone or tablet computer and to engage in cognitive training at home. Older adults without dementia were enrolled in this study, including 51 participants in the intervention group and 50 participants in the control group. The BBT comprised a set of 12 cognitive tasks, including two tasks in each of the following six cognitive domains: attention, language, calculation, visuospatial function, memory, and frontal/executive function. Each cognitive task was divided into four blocks based on its level of difficulty. A 16-week cognitive training was designed to carry out cognitive tasks using a total of 48 blocks (12 tasks × 4 levels) for at least 1.5 h per day, 5 days per week. All participants in the intervention group were given BBT tasks that gradually increased in difficulty level, which they submitted through a smartphone application daily for 16 weeks. The researchers monitored the participants’ task performance records on the website and encouraged participants to engage in cognitive training through regular contact. This study was conducted to investigate the improvement in cognitive function and the activation pattern of the frontal cortex in older adults participating in smartphone application-based cognitive training. The cognitive assessment tool was the BeauBrain cognitive screening test (CST), a tablet-based computerized cognitive screening test. The activation pattern of the frontal cortex was measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Additionally, this study aimed to determine the positive effects of cognitive training on everyday functioning and psychological states using a questionnaire.ResultsOf 101 participants, 85 older adults without dementia (84.1%) who completed the study protocol were included in the statistical analysis. There were 41 participants (80.3%) in the intervention group and 44 participants (88.0%) in the control group. A two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the cognitive scores over a 16-week period between the intervention and control groups. According to the CST results, the intervention group exhibited a statistically significant increase in the language subtest scores, specifically the phonemic word fluency test, compared to those of the control group. The fNIRS results revealed greater activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during the STROOP incongruent task in the intervention group than did the control group. However, the effectiveness of cognitive training was not observed across a variety of rating scales, including everyday functioning, depression, self-efficacy, attention, and subjective memory complaints.ConclusionThis study revealed that a smartphone-based cognitive training application led to improvements in phonemic generative naming ability and activation of the prefrontal cortex in older adults without dementia. This study is meaningful because it confirmed that cognitive training is partially effective in enhancing frontal lobe function. It also provided information on the brain mechanisms related to the effects of cognitive training using fNIRS

An Angiotensin I Converting Enzyme Polymorphism Is Associated with Clinical Phenotype When Using Differentiation-Syndrome to Categorize Korean Bronchial Asthma Patients

In this study, genetic analysis was conducted to investigate the association of angiotensin I converting enzyme (ACE) gene polymorphism with clinical phenotype based on differentiation-syndrome of bronchial asthma patients. Differentiation-syndrome is a traditional Korean medicine (TKM) theory in which patients are classified into a Deficiency Syndrome Group (DSG) and an Excess Syndrome Group (ESG) according to their symptomatic classification. For this study, 110 participants were evaluated by pulmonary function test. Among them, 39 patients were excluded because they refused genotyping. Of the remaining patients, 52 with DSG of asthma (DSGA) and 29 with ESG of asthma (ESGA), as determined by the differentiation-syndrome techniques were assessed by genetic analysis. ACE insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism analysis was conducted using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Student's t, chi-square, Fisher and Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium tests were used to compare groups. No significant differences in pulmonary function were observed between DSGA and ESGA. The genotypic frequency of ACE I/D polymorphism was found to differ slightly between DSGA and ESGA (P = .0495). However, there were no significant differences in allelic frequency observed between DSGA and ESGA (P = .7006, OR = 1.1223). Interestingly, the allelic (P = .0043, OR = 3.4545) and genotypic (P = .0126) frequencies of the ACE I/D polymorphism in female patients differed significantly between DSGA and ESGA. Taken together, the results presented here indicate that the symptomatic classification of DSGA and ESGA by differentiation-syndrome in Korean asthma patients could be useful in evaluation of the pathogenesis of bronchial asthma

c-Jun N-terminal kinase activation has a prognostic implication and is negatively associated with FOXO1 activation in gastric cancer

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.Abstract Background Since the biological function of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in gastric cancer remains unclear, we investigated the clinical significance of JNK activation and its association with FOXO1 activation. Methods Immunohistochemical tissue array analysis of 483 human gastric cancer specimens was performed, and the results of the immunostaining were quantified. The correlation between JNK activation (nuclear staining for pJNK) and clinicopathological features, the proliferation index, prognosis or FOXO1 inactivation (cytoplasmic staining for pFOXO1) was analyzed. The SNU-638 gastric cancer cell line was used for in vitro analysis. Results Nuclear staining of pJNK was found in 38 % of the gastric carcinomas and was higher in the early stages of pTNM (P < 0.001). pJNK staining negatively correlated with lymphatic invasion (P = 0.034) and positively correlated with intestinal type by Laurens classification (P = 0.037), Ki-67-labeling index (P < 0.001), cyclin D1 (P = 0.045), cyclin E (P < 0.001) and pFOXO1 (P < 0.001). JNK activation correlated with a longer patients survival (P =0.008) and patients with a JNK-active and FOXO1-inactive tumor had a higher survival rate than the remainder of the population (P = 0.004). In vitro analysis showed that JNK inhibition by SP600125 in SNU-638 cells decreased cyclin D1 protein expression and increased FOXO1 activation. Further, JNK inhibition markedly suppressed colony formation, which was partially restored by FOXO1 shRNA expression. Conclusions Our results indicate that JNK activation may serve as a valuable prognostic factor in gastric cancer, and that it is implicated in gastric tumorigenesis, at least in part, through FOXO1 inhibition

KCHO-1, a Novel Antineuroinflammatory Agent, Inhibits Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Neuroinflammatory Responses through Nrf2-Mediated Heme Oxygenase-1 Expression in Mouse BV2 Microglia Cells

The brain is vulnerable to oxidative stress and inflammation that can occur as a result of aging or neurodegenerative diseases. Our work has sought to identify natural products that regulate heme oxygenase (HO)-1 and to determine their mechanism of action in neurodegenerative diseases. KCHO-1 is a novel herbal therapeutic containing 30% ethanol (EtOH) extracts from nine plants. In this study, we investigated the antineuroinflammatory effects of KCHO-1 in lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) treated mouse BV2 microglia. KCHO-1 inhibited the protein expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), iNOS-derived nitric oxide (NO), cyclooxygenase- (COX-) 2, and COX-2-derived prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in LPS-stimulated BV2 microglia. It also reduced tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and IL-6 production. This effect was correlated with the suppression of inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa B-α (IκB-α) phosphorylation and degradation and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) translocation and DNA binding. Additionally, KCHO-1 upregulated HO-1 expression by promoting nuclear translocation of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) in mouse BV2 microglia. Tin protoporphyrin (SnPP), an HO activity inhibitor, was used to verify the inhibitory effects of KCHO-1 on proinflammatory mediators and proteins associated with HO-1 expression. Our data suggest that KCHO-1 has therapeutic potential in neurodegenerative diseases caused by neuroinflammation

Electrical characteristics of amyloid beta peptides in vertical junctions

© 2021 Springer Nature Limited. Assembled amyloid beta (A beta) peptides have been considered pathological assemblies involved in human brain diseases, and the electron transfer or electron transport characteristics of A beta are important for the formation of structured assemblies. Here, we report the electrical characteristics of surface-assembled A beta peptides similar to those observed in Alzheimer&apos;s patients. These characteristics correlate to their electron transfer characteristics. Electrical current-voltage plots of A beta vertical junction devices show the A beta sequence dependence of the current densities at both A beta monomers (mono-A beta s) and A beta oligomers (oli-A beta s), while A beta sequence dependence is not clearly observed in the electrical characteristics of A beta planar field effect transistors (FETs). In particular, surface oligomerization of A beta peptides drastically decreases the activity of electron transfer, which presents a change in the electron transport pathway in the A beta vertical junctions. Electron transport at oli-A beta junctions is symmetric (tunneling/tunneling) due to the weak and voltage-independent coupling of the less redox-reactive oli-A beta to the contacts, while that at mono-A beta junctions is asymmetric (hopping/tunneling) due to redox levels of mono-A beta voltage-dependently coupled with contact electrodes. Consequently, through vertical junctions, the sequence- and conformation-dependent electrical characteristics of A beta s can reveal their electron transfer activities.11Nsciescopu