Business Success and Businesses' Beauty Capital

We examine whether a difference in pay for beauty is supported by different productivity of people according to looks. Using a sample of advertising firms, we find that those firms with better-looking executives have higher revenues and faster growth than do otherwise identical firms whose executives are not so good-looking. The impact on revenue far exceeds the likely effect of beauty on the executives' wages. This suggests that their beauty creates firm-specific investments, in the form of improved relationships within work groups, the returns to which are shared by the firm and the executive.

Giraffe translocation population viability analysis

Most populations of giraffes have declined in recent decades, leading to the recent IUCN decision to upgrade the species to Vulnerable status, and some subspecies to Endangered. Translocations have been used as a conservation tool to re-introduce giraffes to previously occupied areas or establish new populations, but guidelines for founding populations are lacking. To provide general guidelines for translocation projects regarding feasibility, we simulated various scenarios of translocated giraffe populations to identify viable age and sex distributions of founding populations using population viability analysis (PVA) implemented in Vortex software. We explored the parameter space for demography and the genetic load, examining how variation in founding numbers and sex ratios affected 100 yr probability of population extinction and genetic diversity. We found that even very small numbers of founders (N ≤ 10 females) can appear to be successful in the first decades due to transient positive population growth, but with moderate population growth rate and moderate genetic load, long-term population viability (probability of extinction 95% genetic diversity of the source population in an isolated population, 50 females and 5 males are recommended to compose the founding population. Sensitivity analyses revealed first-year survival and reproductive rate were the simulation parameters with the greatest proportional influence on probability of extinction and genetic diversity. These simulations highlight important considerations for translocation success and data gaps including true genetic load in wild giraffe populations

The analysis of longitudinal quality of life measures with informative drop-out: a pattern mixture approach

The analysis of longitudinal health-related quality of life measures (HRQOL) can be seriously hampered due to informative drop-out. Random effects models assume Missing At Random and do not take into account informative drop-out. We therefore aim to correct the bias due to informative drop-out. Analyses of data from a trial comparing standard-dose and high-dose chemotherapy for patients with breast cancer with respect to long-term impact on HRQOL will serve as illustration. The subscale Physical Function (PF) of the SF36 will be used. A pattern mixture approach is proposed to account for informative drop-out. Patterns are defined based on events related to HRQOL, such as death and relapse. The results of this pattern mixture approach are compared to the results of the commonly used random effects model. The findings of the pattern mixture approach are well interpretable, and different courses over time in different patterns are distinguished. In terms of estimated differences between standard dose and high dose, the results of both approaches are slightly different, but have no consequences for the clinical evaluation of both doses. Under the assumption that drop-out is at random within the patterns, the pattern mixture approach adjusts the estimates to a certain degree. This approach accounts in a relatively simple way for informative drop-out

Seasonal and herbivore-induced dynamics of foliar glucosinolates in wild cabbage (Brassica oleracea)

Levels of plant secondary metabolites are not static and often change in relation to plant ontogeny. They also respond to abiotic and biotic changes in the environment, e.g., they often increase in response to biotic stress, such as herbivory. In contrast with short-lived annual plant species, especially those with growing periods of less than 2–3 months, investment in defensive compounds of vegetative tissues in biennial and perennial species may also vary over the course of an entire growing season. In garden experiments, we investigated the dynamics of secondary metabolites, i.e. glucosinolates (GSLs) in the perennial wild cabbage (Brassica oleracea), which was grown from seeds originating from three populations that differ in GSL chemistry. We compared temporal long-term dynamics of GSLs over the course of two growing seasons and short-term dynamics in response to herbivory by Pieris rapae caterpillars in a more controlled greenhouse experiment. Long-term dynamics differed for aliphatic GSLs (gradual increase from May to December) and indole GSLs (rapid increase until mid-summer after which concentrations decreased or stabilized). In spring, GSL levels in new shoots were similar to those found in the previous year. Short-term dynamics in response to herbivory primarily affected indole GSLs, which increased during the 2-week feeding period by P. rapae. Herbivore-induced changes in the concentrations of aliphatic GSLs were population-specific and their concentrations were found to increase in primarily one population only. We discuss our results considering the biology and ecology of wild cabbage

Far-Infrared and Sub-Millimeter Observations and Physical Models of the Reflection Nebula Ced 201

ISO [C II] 158 micron, [O I] 63 micron, and H_2 9 and 17 micron observations are presented of the reflection nebula Ced 201, which is a photon-dominated region illuminated by a B9.5 star with a color temperature of 10,000 K (a cool PDR). In combination with ground based [C I] 609 micron, CO, 13CO, CS and HCO+ data, the carbon budget and physical structure of the reflection nebula are constrained. The obtained data set is the first one to contain all important cooling lines of a cool PDR, and allows a comparison to be made with classical PDRs. To this effect one- and three-dimensional PDR models are presented which incorporate the physical characteristics of the source, and are aimed at understanding the dominant heating processes of the cloud. The contribution of very small grains to the photo-electric heating rate is estimated from these models and used to constrain the total abundance of PAHs and small grains. Observations of the pure rotational H_2 lines with ISO, in particular the S(3) line, indicate the presence of a small amount of very warm, approximately 330 K, molecular gas. This gas cannot be accommodated by the presented models.Comment: 32 pages, 7 figures, in LaTeX. To be published in Ap

Systemic lupus erythematosus is associated with an increased frequency of spontaneous preterm births:systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective: Preterm birth is one of the most frequent complications of pregnancy in women with systemic lupus erythematosus. The high indicated preterm birth proportion due to hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and/or fetal growth restriction is well known, and preventive measures and screening for early detection are performed. The risk of spontaneous preterm birth is less well recognized. This study aimed to determine the proportions of spontaneous and indicated preterm birth in pregnancies of women with systemic lupus erythematosus. Data Sources: A systematic literature search using Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar was performed in June 2021. Study Eligibility Criteria: Studies in pregnant women with systemic lupus erythematosus reporting spontaneous and indicated preterm birth rates were selected. Original research articles published from 1995 to June 2021 were included. Methods: Quality and risk of bias of the included studies were assessed using the Newcastle–Ottawa quality assessment scale. To estimate the pooled event rates and 95% confidence intervals, meta-analysis of single proportions with a random-effects model was performed. Results: We included 21 articles, containing data of 8157 pregnancies in women with systemic lupus erythematosus. On average, 31% (95% prediction interval, 0.14–0.50) of the pregnancies resulted in preterm birth, including 14% (95% prediction interval, 0.04–0.27) spontaneous and 16% (95% prediction interval, 0.03–0.35) indicated preterm birth. Conclusion: In pregnant women with systemic lupus erythematosus, spontaneous and indicated preterm birth proportions are high. This information should be applied in (prepregnancy) counseling and management in pregnancy. The knowledge obtained by this meta-analysis paves the way for further research of associated risk factors and development of interventions to reduce spontaneous preterm birth in systemic lupus erythematosus pregnancies.</p

Adapted dandelions increase seed dispersal potential when they are attacked by root herbivores

Plants allow their offspring to escape unfavourable local conditions through seed dispersal. Whether plants use this strategy to escape herbivores is not well understood. Here, we explore how different Taraxacum officinale populations modify seed dispersal in response to root herbivore attack by Melolontha melolontha in the field. Root herbivore attack increases seed dispersal potential through a reduction in seed weight in populations that have evolved under high root herbivore pressure, but not in populations that have evolved under low pressure. This increase in dispersal potential is associated with reduced germination, suggesting that adapted plants trade dispersal for establishment. Analysis of vegetative growth parameters suggests that increased dispersal is not the result of stress flowering. These results suggest that root herbivory selects for genotypes that increase their dispersal ability in response to herbivore attack

Effect of diindolylmethane supplementation on low-grade cervical cytological abnormalities: double-blind, randomised, controlled trial

This work was supported by a Cancer Research UK project grant (C8162/A4609 project costs) and a programme grant (C8162/A10406)

Simultaneous Determination of Various Isothiocyanates by RP-LC Following Precolumn Derivatization with Mercaptoethanol

Numerous isothiocyanates (ITCs) are poorly soluble in water which causes their precipitation in aqueous mobile phases used in reversed phase liquid chromatography (RP-LC), thus impacting the accuracy of the quantification. By comparing the amounts of ITCs injected and released from the column, losses could be estimated at 5–32% depending on polarities and concentrations. Results could be dramatically improved in terms of separation and quantification using RP-LC with a mercaptoethanol precolumn derivatization aimed at avoiding ITCs precipitation. The cancer chemoprotective allyl-ITC and sulforaphane were found in cabbage extracts at 1.2 and 2.7 μg g−1 fresh weight, respectively