36 research outputs found

    Faring Well in Offshore Wind Power Siting? Trust, Engagement and Process Fairness in the United States

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    Although visual effects may be the most defining characteristic of a wind project, implementing fair, transparent and just decision-making processes may be a significant determining factor in success. To shed light on this question, we undertook a study of perceptions of mainland coastal and island residents proximate to the Block Island project—the first offshore wind project in the United States. The study included a longitudinal survey of residents prior to and after turbine installation, and semi-structured interviews with residents and key stakeholders. We assessed the extent to which respondents were engaged in the planning process, opinions of transparency and fairness, and degree to which the planning process affected their opinion. Although interviewees who held a negative view of state government indicated that it did not cause them to oppose the project, trust in state government was the primary driver of perceptions of process fairness, which in turn was the primary driver of project support. We also found individuals to withhold final judgment of the process until the final outcome—project operation. Finally, fair process was seen as having benefits distinct from its effect on the outcome—that is, local residents valued the process itself

    A Multisite Preregistered Paradigmatic Test of the Ego-Depletion Effect

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    We conducted a preregistered multilaboratory project (k = 36; N = 3,531) to assess the size and robustness of ego-depletion effects using a novel replication method, termed the paradigmatic replication approach. Each laboratory implemented one of two procedures that was intended to manipulate self-control and tested performance on a subsequent measure of self-control. Confirmatory tests found a nonsignificant result (d = 0.06). Confirmatory Bayesian meta-analyses using an informed-prior hypothesis (ÎŽ = 0.30, SD = 0.15) found that the data were 4 times more likely under the null than the alternative hypothesis. Hence, preregistered analyses did not find evidence for a depletion effect. Exploratory analyses on the full sample (i.e., ignoring exclusion criteria) found a statistically significant effect (d = 0.08); Bayesian analyses showed that the data were about equally likely under the null and informed-prior hypotheses. Exploratory moderator tests suggested that the depletion effect was larger for participants who reported more fatigue but was not moderated by trait self-control, willpower beliefs, or action orientation.</p

    Human Practice. Digital Ecologies. Our Future. : 14. Internationale Tagung Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI 2019) : Tagungsband

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    Erschienen bei: universi - UniversitĂ€tsverlag Siegen. - ISBN: 978-3-96182-063-4Aus dem Inhalt: Track 1: Produktion & Cyber-Physische Systeme Requirements and a Meta Model for Exchanging Additive Manufacturing Capacities Service Systems, Smart Service Systems and Cyber- Physical Systems—What’s the difference? Towards a Unified Terminology Developing an Industrial IoT Platform – Trade-off between Horizontal and Vertical Approaches Machine Learning und Complex Event Processing: Effiziente Echtzeitauswertung am Beispiel Smart Factory Sensor retrofit for a coffee machine as condition monitoring and predictive maintenance use case Stakeholder-Analyse zum Einsatz IIoT-basierter Frischeinformationen in der Lebensmittelindustrie Towards a Framework for Predictive Maintenance Strategies in Mechanical Engineering - A Method-Oriented Literature Analysis Development of a matching platform for the requirement-oriented selection of cyber physical systems for SMEs Track 2: Logistic Analytics An Empirical Study of Customers’ Behavioral Intention to Use Ridepooling Services – An Extension of the Technology Acceptance Model Modeling Delay Propagation and Transmission in Railway Networks What is the impact of company specific adjustments on the acceptance and diffusion of logistic standards? Robust Route Planning in Intermodal Urban Traffic Track 3: Unternehmensmodellierung & Informationssystemgestaltung (Enterprise Modelling & Information Systems Design) Work System Modeling Method with Different Levels of Specificity and Rigor for Different Stakeholder Purposes Resolving Inconsistencies in Declarative Process Models based on Culpability Measurement Strategic Analysis in the Realm of Enterprise Modeling – On the Example of Blockchain-Based Initiatives for the Electricity Sector Zwischenbetriebliche Integration in der Möbelbranche: Konfigurationen und Einflussfaktoren Novices’ Quality Perceptions and the Acceptance of Process Modeling Grammars Entwicklung einer Definition fĂŒr Social Business Objects (SBO) zur Modellierung von Unternehmensinformationen Designing a Reference Model for Digital Product Configurators Terminology for Evolving Design Artifacts Business Role-Object Specification: A Language for Behavior-aware Structural Modeling of Business Objects Generating Smart Glasses-based Information Systems with BPMN4SGA: A BPMN Extension for Smart Glasses Applications Using Blockchain in Peer-to-Peer Carsharing to Build Trust in the Sharing Economy Testing in Big Data: An Architecture Pattern for a Development Environment for Innovative, Integrated and Robust Applications Track 4: Lern- und Wissensmanagement (e-Learning and Knowledge Management) eGovernment Competences revisited – A Literature Review on necessary Competences in a Digitalized Public Sector Say Hello to Your New Automated Tutor – A Structured Literature Review on Pedagogical Conversational Agents Teaching the Digital Transformation of Business Processes: Design of a Simulation Game for Information Systems Education Conceptualizing Immersion for Individual Learning in Virtual Reality Designing a Flipped Classroom Course – a Process Model The Influence of Risk-Taking on Knowledge Exchange and Combination Gamified Feedback durch Avatare im Mobile Learning Alexa, Can You Help Me Solve That Problem? - Understanding the Value of Smart Personal Assistants as Tutors for Complex Problem Tasks Track 5: Data Science & Business Analytics Matching with Bundle Preferences: Tradeoff between Fairness and Truthfulness Applied image recognition: guidelines for using deep learning models in practice Yield Prognosis for the Agrarian Management of Vineyards using Deep Learning for Object Counting Reading Between the Lines of Qualitative Data – How to Detect Hidden Structure Based on Codes Online Auctions with Dual-Threshold Algorithms: An Experimental Study and Practical Evaluation Design Features of Non-Financial Reward Programs for Online Reviews: Evaluation based on Google Maps Data Topic Embeddings – A New Approach to Classify Very Short Documents Based on Predefined Topics Leveraging Unstructured Image Data for Product Quality Improvement Decision Support for Real Estate Investors: Improving Real Estate Valuation with 3D City Models and Points of Interest Knowledge Discovery from CVs: A Topic Modeling Procedure Online Product Descriptions – Boost for your Sales? EntscheidungsunterstĂŒtzung durch historienbasierte Dienstreihenfolgeplanung mit Pattern A Semi-Automated Approach for Generating Online Review Templates Machine Learning goes Measure Management: Leveraging Anomaly Detection and Parts Search to Improve Product-Cost Optimization Bedeutung von Predictive Analytics fĂŒr den theoretischen Erkenntnisgewinn in der IS-Forschung Track 6: Digitale Transformation und Dienstleistungen Heuristic Theorizing in Software Development: Deriving Design Principles for Smart Glasses-based Systems Mirroring E-service for Brick and Mortar Retail: An Assessment and Survey Taxonomy of Digital Platforms: A Platform Architecture Perspective Value of Star Players in the Digital Age Local Shopping Platforms – Harnessing Locational Advantages for the Digital Transformation of Local Retail Outlets: A Content Analysis A Socio-Technical Approach to Manage Analytics-as-a-Service – Results of an Action Design Research Project Characterizing Approaches to Digital Transformation: Development of a Taxonomy of Digital Units Expectations vs. Reality – Benefits of Smart Services in the Field of Tension between Industry and Science Innovation Networks and Digital Innovation: How Organizations Use Innovation Networks in a Digitized Environment Characterising Social Reading Platforms— A Taxonomy-Based Approach to Structure the Field Less Complex than Expected – What Really Drives IT Consulting Value Modularity Canvas – A Framework for Visualizing Potentials of Service Modularity Towards a Conceptualization of Capabilities for Innovating Business Models in the Industrial Internet of Things A Taxonomy of Barriers to Digital Transformation Ambidexterity in Service Innovation Research: A Systematic Literature Review Design and success factors of an online solution for cross-pillar pension information Track 7: IT-Management und -Strategie A Frugal Support Structure for New Software Implementations in SMEs How to Structure a Company-wide Adoption of Big Data Analytics The Changing Roles of Innovation Actors and Organizational Antecedents in the Digital Age Bewertung des Kundennutzens von Chatbots fĂŒr den Einsatz im Servicedesk Understanding the Benefits of Agile Software Development in Regulated Environments Are Employees Following the Rules? On the Effectiveness of IT Consumerization Policies Agile and Attached: The Impact of Agile Practices on Agile Team Members’ Affective Organisational Commitment The Complexity Trap – Limits of IT Flexibility for Supporting Organizational Agility in Decentralized Organizations Platform Openness: A Systematic Literature Review and Avenues for Future Research Competence, Fashion and the Case of Blockchain The Digital Platform Otto.de: A Case Study of Growth, Complexity, and Generativity Track 8: eHealth & alternde Gesellschaft Security and Privacy of Personal Health Records in Cloud Computing Environments – An Experimental Exploration of the Impact of Storage Solutions and Data Breaches Patientenintegration durch Pfadsysteme Digitalisierung in der StressprĂ€vention – eine qualitative Interviewstudie zu Nutzenpotenzialen User Dynamics in Mental Health Forums – A Sentiment Analysis Perspective Intent and the Use of Wearables in the Workplace – A Model Development Understanding Patient Pathways in the Context of Integrated Health Care Services - Implications from a Scoping Review Understanding the Habitual Use of Wearable Activity Trackers On the Fit in Fitness Apps: Studying the Interaction of Motivational Affordances and Users’ Goal Orientations in Affecting the Benefits Gained Gamification in Health Behavior Change Support Systems - A Synthesis of Unintended Side Effects Investigating the Influence of Information Incongruity on Trust-Relations within Trilateral Healthcare Settings Track 9: Krisen- und KontinuitĂ€tsmanagement Potentiale von IKT beim Ausfall kritischer Infrastrukturen: Erwartungen, Informationsgewinnung und Mediennutzung der Zivilbevölkerung in Deutschland Fake News Perception in Germany: A Representative Study of People’s Attitudes and Approaches to Counteract Disinformation Analyzing the Potential of Graphical Building Information for Fire Emergency Responses: Findings from a Controlled Experiment Track 10: Human-Computer Interaction Towards a Taxonomy of Platforms for Conversational Agent Design Measuring Service Encounter Satisfaction with Customer Service Chatbots using Sentiment Analysis Self-Tracking and Gamification: Analyzing the Interplay of Motivations, Usage and Motivation Fulfillment Erfolgsfaktoren von Augmented-Reality-Applikationen: Analyse von Nutzerrezensionen mit dem Review-Mining-Verfahren Designing Dynamic Decision Support for Electronic Requirements Negotiations Who is Stressed by Using ICTs? A Qualitative Comparison Analysis with the Big Five Personality Traits to Understand Technostress Walking the Middle Path: How Medium Trade-Off Exposure Leads to Higher Consumer Satisfaction in Recommender Agents Theory-Based Affordances of Utilitarian, Hedonic and Dual-Purposed Technologies: A Literature Review Eliciting Customer Preferences for Shopping Companion Apps: A Service Quality Approach The Role of Early User Participation in Discovering Software – A Case Study from the Context of Smart Glasses The Fluidity of the Self-Concept as a Framework to Explain the Motivation to Play Video Games Heart over Heels? An Empirical Analysis of the Relationship between Emotions and Review Helpfulness for Experience and Credence Goods Track 11: Information Security and Information Privacy Unfolding Concerns about Augmented Reality Technologies: A Qualitative Analysis of User Perceptions To (Psychologically) Own Data is to Protect Data: How Psychological Ownership Determines Protective Behavior in a Work and Private Context Understanding Data Protection Regulations from a Data Management Perspective: A Capability-Based Approach to EU-GDPR On the Difficulties of Incentivizing Online Privacy through Transparency: A Qualitative Survey of the German Health Insurance Market What is Your Selfie Worth? A Field Study on Individuals’ Valuation of Personal Data Justification of Mass Surveillance: A Quantitative Study An Exploratory Study of Risk Perception for Data Disclosure to a Network of Firms Track 12: Umweltinformatik und nachhaltiges Wirtschaften KommunikationsfĂ€den im Nadelöhr – Fachliche Prozessmodellierung der Nachhaltigkeitskommunikation am Kapitalmarkt Potentiale und Herausforderungen der Materialflusskostenrechnung Computing Incentives for User-Based Relocation in Carsharing Sustainability’s Coming Home: Preliminary Design Principles for the Sustainable Smart District Substitution of hazardous chemical substances using Deep Learning and t-SNE A Hierarchy of DSMLs in Support of Product Life-Cycle Assessment A Survey of Smart Energy Services for Private Households Door-to-Door Mobility Integrators as Keystone Organizations of Smart Ecosystems: Resources and Value Co-Creation – A Literature Review Ein EntscheidungsunterstĂŒtzungssystem zur ökonomischen Bewertung von Mieterstrom auf Basis der Clusteranalyse Discovering Blockchain for Sustainable Product-Service Systems to enhance the Circular Economy Digitale RĂŒckverfolgbarkeit von Lebensmitteln: Eine verbraucherinformatische Studie Umweltbewusstsein durch audiovisuelles Content Marketing? Eine experimentelle Untersuchung zur Konsumentenbewertung nachhaltiger Smartphones Towards Predictive Energy Management in Information Systems: A Research Proposal A Web Browser-Based Application for Processing and Analyzing Material Flow Models using the MFCA Methodology Track 13: Digital Work - Social, mobile, smart On Conversational Agents in Information Systems Research: Analyzing the Past to Guide Future Work The Potential of Augmented Reality for Improving Occupational First Aid Prevent a Vicious Circle! The Role of Organizational IT-Capability in Attracting IT-affine Applicants Good, Bad, or Both? Conceptualization and Measurement of Ambivalent User Attitudes Towards AI A Case Study on Cross-Hierarchical Communication in Digital Work Environments ‘Show Me Your People Skills’ - Employing CEO Branding for Corporate Reputation Management in Social Media A Multiorganisational Study of the Drivers and Barriers of Enterprise Collaboration Systems-Enabled Change The More the Merrier? The Effect of Size of Core Team Subgroups on Success of Open Source Projects The Impact of Anthropomorphic and Functional Chatbot Design Features in Enterprise Collaboration Systems on User Acceptance Digital Feedback for Digital Work? Affordances and Constraints of a Feedback App at InsurCorp The Effect of Marker-less Augmented Reality on Task and Learning Performance Antecedents for Cyberloafing – A Literature Review Internal Crowd Work as a Source of Empowerment - An Empirical Analysis of the Perception of Employees in a Crowdtesting Project Track 14: GeschĂ€ftsmodelle und digitales Unternehmertum Dividing the ICO Jungle: Extracting and Evaluating Design Archetypes Capturing Value from Data: Exploring Factors Influencing Revenue Model Design for Data-Driven Services Understanding the Role of Data for Innovating Business Models: A System Dynamics Perspective Business Model Innovation and Stakeholder: Exploring Mechanisms and Outcomes of Value Creation and Destruction Business Models for Internet of Things Platforms: Empirical Development of a Taxonomy and Archetypes Revitalizing established Industrial Companies: State of the Art and Success Principles of Digital Corporate Incubators When 1+1 is Greater than 2: Concurrence of Additional Digital and Established Business Models within Companies Special Track 1: Student Track Investigating Personalized Price Discrimination of Textile-, Electronics- and General Stores in German Online Retail From Facets to a Universal Definition – An Analysis of IoT Usage in Retail Is the Technostress Creators Inventory Still an Up-To-Date Measurement Instrument? Results of a Large-Scale Interview Study Application of Media Synchronicity Theory to Creative Tasks in Virtual Teams Using the Example of Design Thinking TrustyTweet: An Indicator-based Browser-Plugin to Assist Users in Dealing with Fake News on Twitter Application of Process Mining Techniques to Support Maintenance-Related Objectives How Voice Can Change Customer Satisfaction: A Comparative Analysis between E-Commerce and Voice Commerce Business Process Compliance and Blockchain: How Does the Ethereum Blockchain Address Challenges of Business Process Compliance? Improving Business Model Configuration through a Question-based Approach The Influence of Situational Factors and Gamification on Intrinsic Motivation and Learning Evaluation von ITSM-Tools fĂŒr Integration und Management von Cloud-Diensten am Beispiel von ServiceNow How Software Promotes the Integration of Sustainability in Business Process Management Criteria Catalog for Industrial IoT Platforms from the Perspective of the Machine Tool Industry Special Track 3: Demos & Prototyping Privacy-friendly User Location Tracking with Smart Devices: The BeaT Prototype Application-oriented robotics in nursing homes Augmented Reality for Set-up Processe Mixed Reality for supporting Remote-Meetings Gamification zur Motivationssteigerung von Werkern bei der Betriebsdatenerfassung Automatically Extracting and Analyzing Customer Needs from Twitter: A “Needmining” Prototype GaNEsHA: Opportunities for Sustainable Transportation in Smart Cities TUCANA: A platform for using local processing power of edge devices for building data-driven services Demonstrator zur Beschreibung und Visualisierung einer kritischen Infrastruktur Entwicklung einer alltagsnahen persuasiven App zur Bewegungsmotivation fĂŒr Ă€ltere Nutzerinnen und Nutzer A browser-based modeling tool for studying the learning of conceptual modeling based on a multi-modal data collection approach Exergames & Dementia: An interactive System for People with Dementia and their Care-Network Workshops Workshop Ethics and Morality in Business Informatics (Workshop Ethik und Moral in der Wirtschaftsinformatik – EMoWI’19) Model-Based Compliance in Information Systems - Foundations, Case Description and Data Set of the MobIS-Challenge for Students and Doctoral Candidates Report of the Workshop on Concepts and Methods of Identifying Digital Potentials in Information Management Control of Systemic Risks in Global Networks - A Grand Challenge to Information Systems Research Die Mitarbeiter von morgen - Kompetenzen kĂŒnftiger Mitarbeiter im Bereich Business Analytics Digitaler Konsum: Herausforderungen und Chancen der Verbraucherinformati

    Challenging cases of follicular lymphoma diagnosed by core needle biopsy incorporating proliferation index and cytogenetics

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    Follicular lymphoma (FL) of B cell type is a common mature B cell neoplasm of germinal center origin that effaces the nodal architecture usually by back to back follicles. These are usually composed of an admixed population of small centrocytes with cleaved and angulated nuclei and centroblasts which are larger cells with dispersed chromatin and variably prominent peripheral nucleoli. While the proliferation index using Ki-67 (MIB1) is not used to grade follicular lymphomas, studies have shown that FL with a higher proliferation index may behave differently and more aggressively than FL with lower proliferation index. In addition, it has been repeatedly recognized that additional chromosomal aberrations affect the biologic and clinical behavior of FL. In this manuscript, we report four different cases of FL diagnosed from small core needle biopsies and discuss the challenges faced interpreting limited biopsies, significance of incorporating the proliferation fraction, and additional chromosomal or gene aberrations from concurrent cytogenetic studies

    Salmonella, de la plante au tube digestif : des recherches pour élaborer des stratégies de lutte

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    Colloque « Pour des aliments sains : savoir maĂźtriser les risques en alimentation » Ă  Toulouse le 28 novembre 2012.National audienceSalmonella are the bacterial pathogens responsible for typhoid diseases and gastroenteritis which are of public health concern worldwide. Contaminated water is the main source of contamination in developing countries while raw or undercooked foods, especially those of avian origin, are mainly incriminated in industrialized countries. Recently, contaminated plants have also been involved. Thanks to scientific advances in the understanding of the bacterial/host interactions, in particular the interaction of Salmonella with the animal intestine or with plants, methods can be proposed to fight Salmonella infections. These bacterial/host interactions are complex, involving both bacterial and host factors. Studies that have been performed in poultry have helped to establish prophylactic methods based on hygiene measures, the development of vaccine or competitive flora, or the selection of lines resistant to Salmonella infection or carrier state. All of these approaches contribute to the reduction of the colonisation of poultry by Salmonella in order to reduce human contamination.Les salmonelles sont des bactĂ©ries pathogĂšnes responsables des fiĂšvres typhoĂŻde et paratyphoĂŻde et de gastroentĂ©rites qui constituent un problĂšme trĂšs important en santĂ© publique dans le monde. Alors que dans les pays en voie de dĂ©veloppement, l’eau est la principale source de contamination, dans les pays industrialisĂ©s, les aliments consommĂ©s crus ou peu cuits, en particulier les produits d’origine aviaire, constituent la source majeure de contamination humaine. RĂ©cemment, des vĂ©gĂ©taux ont Ă©galement Ă©tĂ© incriminĂ©s. C’est grĂące aux avancĂ©es rĂ©alisĂ©es sur la comprĂ©hension des mĂ©canismes d’interaction entre les bactĂ©ries et leurs hĂŽtes, notamment l’interaction des salmonelles avec les vĂ©gĂ©taux ou avec l’intestin des animaux que des mĂ©thodes peuvent ĂȘtre proposĂ©es pour lutter contre les infections Ă  salmonelles. Ces interactions sont complexes et impliquent Ă  la fois des facteurs de la bactĂ©rie et des facteurs de l’hĂŽte. Les recherches menĂ©es chez les volailles permettent de proposer des mĂ©thodes de prophylaxie qui reposent sur la dĂ©finition de mesures d'hygiĂšne, le dĂ©veloppement de vaccins ou de flores intestinales compĂ©titives, mais aussi sur la sĂ©lection de lignĂ©es de volailles rĂ©sistantes Ă  l'infection ou au portage des salmonelles. Toutes ces approches visent Ă  rĂ©duire la contamination des volailles afin de diminuer la contamination humaine

    Impact of Elevated Donor Troponin I as Predictor of Adverse Outcome in Adult Heart Transplantation: A Single-center Experience

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    Background Due to globally increasing donor organ shortage, investigation of previously described risk factors for utilizing marginal donor hearts is needed. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of elevated donor serum troponin I (TnI) levels on outcome after heart transplantation (HTx). Methods Between January 1996 and August 2013, 161 patients were reviewed for donor TnI serum levels (>0.3 ng/mL was considered elevated), postoperative outcome parameters, 30-day mortality, and 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival. Results TnI levels were elevated in 45 (28.0%) donors. Recipients of hearts with elevated TnI had higher incidence of postoperative systolic dysfunction, prolonged inotropic support, prolonged mechanical ventilation, and longer intensive care unit (ICU) stay ( p <0.001). This group had higher 30-day mortality (22.2% vs 8.6%, p =0.03) and lower 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival (56%, 53%, and 50% versus 82%, 76%, and 69%, p =0.032). Elevated TnI was the only independent risk factor for 30-day mortality (odds ratio [OR] 3.63, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.28-10.27, p =0.015). Conclusions Elevated donor TnI serum concentration seems to be a marker for adverse outcome and increased short- and long-term mortality after HTx. Nevertheless, many other perioperative variables and parameters can be associated with outcome

    Impact of dynamic changes of elevated bilirubin on survival in patients on veno-arterial extracorporeal life support for acute circulatory failure

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    Aims Veno-arterial extracorporeal life support (ECLS) is an established method to stabilize acute circulatory failure. Parameters and data on when to ideally wean circulatory support are limited. Bilirubin is a marker of end-organ damage. Therefore, the purpose of this large study was to evaluate the impact of dynamic changes of elevated bilirubin levels on survival in patients on ECLS. Methods and results We reviewed 502 consecutive cases of ECLS from 2007 to 2015. Bilirubin levels were recorded before implantation and until six days after explantation. Dynamic bilirubin changes, and hemodynamic and laboratory outcome parameters were compared in survivors and nonsurvivors. Reason for ECLS implantation was cardiac arrest with ongoing resuscitation in 230 (45.8%), low cardiac output in 174 (34.7%) and inability to wean off cardiopulmonary bypass in 98 (19.5%) patients. 307 (61.2%) patients were weaned off ECLS, however, 206 (41.0%) survived. Mean duration of ECLS was 3 (2-6) days, and survivors received significantly longer ECLS (5 vs 3 days, p < 0.001). Survivors had significantly lower baseline bilirubin levels (p = 0.003). Bilirubin started to rise from day 2 in all patients. In survivors, bilirubin levels had trended down on the day of ECLS explantation and stayed at an acceptable level. However, in weaned patients who did not survive and patients who died on ECLS bilirubin levels continued to rise during the recorded period. Conclusion ECLS support improves survival in patients with acute circulatory failure. Down trending bilirubin levels on veno-arterial ECLS indicate improved chances of successful weaning and survival in hemodynamically stable patients

    SIMKK, a Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) Kinase, Is a Specific Activator of the Salt Stress–Induced MAPK, SIMK

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    In eukaryotes, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) play key roles in the transmission of external signals, such as mitogens, hormones, and different stresses. MAPKs are activated by MAPK kinases through phosphorylation of MAPKs at both the threonine and tyrosine residues of the conserved TXY activation motif. In plants, several MAPKs are involved in signaling of hormones, stresses, cell cycle, and developmental cues. Recently, we showed that salt stress–induced MAPK (SIMK) is activated when alfalfa cells are exposed to hyperosmotic conditions. Here, we report the isolation and characterization of the alfalfa MAPK kinase SIMKK (SIMK kinase). SIMKK encodes an active protein kinase that interacts specifically with SIMK, but not with three other MAPKs, in the yeast two-hybrid system. Recombinant SIMKK specifically activates SIMK by phosphorylating both the threonine and tyrosine residues in the activation loop of SIMK. SIMKK contains a putative MAPK docking site at the N terminus that is conserved in mammalian MAPK kinases, transcription factors, and phosphatases. Removal of the MAPK docking site of SIMKK partially compromises but does not completely abolish interaction with SIMK, suggesting that other domains of SIMKK also are involved in MAPK binding. In transient expression assays, SIMKK specifically activates SIMK but not two other MAPKs. Moreover, SIMKK enhances the salt-induced activation of SIMK. These data suggest that the salt-induced activation of SIMK is mediated by the dual-specificity protein kinase SIMKK
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