Managing the Tensions at the Intersection of the Triple Bottom Line: A Paradox Theory Approach to Sustainability Management

Corporate sustainability management encompasses multiple dimensions: environmental, social, and economic. Companies are increasingly evaluated within the public sphere, and within their own organizations, according to the degree to which they are perceived to simultaneously promote this nexus of virtues. This article seeks to explore the tensions frequently faced by organizations that strive to manage these dimensions and the role of public policy in that pursuit. A multiple–case study approach is utilized in which the authors selected case organizations according to whether they were attempting to manage the three dimensions of sustainability. The authors utilize paradox theory and a typology provided by previous research to understand the nature of the tensions that emerge in the selected case study organizations. They extend this previous work by examining the role of public policy in providing the situational conditions to make these paradoxical tensions salient, and they examine organizational responses to these conditions. Directions for firms, policy makers, and future researchers are provided on the basis of this study’s findings

Managing the Tensions at the Intersection of the Triple Bottom Line: A Paradox Theory Approach to Sustainability Management

Corporate sustainability management encompasses multiple dimensions: environmental, social, and economic. Companies are increasingly evaluated within the public sphere, and within their own organizations, according to the degree to which they are perceived to simultaneously promote this nexus of virtues. This article seeks to explore the tensions frequently faced by organizations that strive to manage these dimensions and the role of public policy in that pursuit. A multiple–case study approach is utilized in which the authors selected case organizations according to whether they were attempting to manage the three dimensions of sustainability. The authors utilize paradox theory and a typology provided by previous research to understand the nature of the tensions that emerge in the selected case study organizations. They extend this previous work by examining the role of public policy in providing the situational conditions to make these paradoxical tensions salient, and they examine organizational responses to these conditions. Directions for firms, policy makers, and future researchers are provided on the basis of this study’s findings

Cell Cycle-Dependent Localization of Voltage-Dependent Calcium Channels and the Mitotic Apparatus in a Neuroendocrine Cell Line(AtT-20)

Changes in intracellular calcium are necessary for the successful progression of mitosis in many cells. Both elevation and reduction in intracellular calcium can disrupt mitosis by mechanisms that remain ill defined. In this study we explore the role of transmembrane voltage-gated calcium channels (CaV channels) as regulators of mitosis in the mouse corticotroph cell line (AtT-20). We report that the nifedipine-sensitive isoform CaV1.2 is localized to the “poleward side” of kinetechores during metaphase and at the midbody during cytokinesis. A second nifedipine-sensitive isoform, CaV1.3, is present at the mid-spindle zone in telophase, but is also seen at the midbody. Nifedipine reduces the rate of cell proliferation, and, utilizing time-lapse microscopy, we show that this is due to a block at the prometaphase stage of the cell cycle. Using Fluo-4 we detect calcium fluxes at sites corresponding to the mid-spindle zone and the midbody region. Another calcium dye, Fura PE3/AM, causes an inhibition of mitosis prior to anaphase that we attribute to a chelation of intracellular calcium. Our results demonstrate a novel, isoform-specific localization of CaV1 channels during cell division and suggest a possible role for these channels in the calcium-dependent events underlying mitotic progression in pituitary corticotrophs

A clinically relevant polymorphism in the Na+/taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) occurs at a rheostat position

Conventionally, most amino acid substitutions at “important” protein positions are expected to abolish function. However, in several soluble-globular proteins, we identified a class of nonconserved positions for which various substitutions produced progressive functional changes; we consider these evolutionary “rheostats”. Here, we report a strong rheostat position in the integral membrane protein, Na+/taurocholate (TCA) cotransporting polypeptide, at the site of a pharmacologically relevant polymorphism (S267F). Functional studies were performed for all 20 substitutions (S267X) with three substrates (TCA, estrone-3-sulfate, and rosuvastatin). The S267X set showed strong rheostatic effects on overall transport, and individual substitutions showed varied effects on transport kinetics (Km and Vmax) and substrate specificity. To assess protein stability, we measured surface expression and used the Rosetta software (https://www.rosettacommons.org) suite to model structure and stability changes of S267X. Although buried near the substrate-binding site, S267X substitutions were easily accommodated in the Na+/TCA cotransporting polypeptide structure model. Across the modest range of changes, calculated stabilities correlated with surface-expression differences, but neither parameter correlated with altered transport. Thus, substitutions at rheostat position 267 had wide-ranging effects on the phenotype of this integral membrane protein. We further propose that polymorphic positions in other proteins might be locations of rheostat positions

Factors Impacting COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Resistance Among College Students in Northwest Ohio

Background: Vaccination is a critical strategy for controlling the transmission of COVID-19 and for returning to normalcy on college campuses; however, vaccine hesitancy and resistance persist as a significant barrier. This study utilized the integrated behavior model (IBM) and the precaution adoption process model (PAPM) to identify factors predictive of COVID-19 vaccine willingness (receptive, hesitant, and resistant) among college students. Methods: A sample of 1248 students at 2 universities in northwest Ohio were surveyed online in 2021. Stata/SE, version 17 (StataCorp) software was used to conduct stepwise logistic regression to investigate the association of theoretical constructs with vaccine willingness, after controlling for COVID-19 related factors and sociodemographic factors. Results: Most students (82.5%) were vaccine receptive, 6.9% were vaccine hesitant, and 10.6% were vaccine resistant. Vaccine hesitancy was higher among students aged 18 to 22 years (9.3%), undergraduates (16.5%), and students who identified as Black (13%) or Middle Eastern (14.3%). Lower vaccine hesitance was significantly predicted by IBM constructs of positive attitudes, high self-efficacy, and high salience. Not getting an influenza vaccine in the past 3 years and viewing vaccination as a personal choice were significantly associated with higher vaccine hesitancy. Lower odds of vaccine resistance were predicted by higher subjective norms. Descriptive norms, not getting an influenza vaccine in the past 3 years, agreeing with conspiracies, and viewing vaccination as a personal choice were strongly predictive of higher vaccine resistance. Conclusion: Identifying the factors that predict vaccine hesitancy and resistance among college students is critical for college administrators, and for those who are designing health communication campaigns, to increase vaccination among this priority population

Discovery and assessment of conserved Pax6 target genes and enhancers

The characterization of transcriptional networks (TNs) is essential for understanding complex biological phenomena such as development, disease, and evolution. In this study, we have designed and implemented a procedure that combines in silico target screens with zebrafish and mouse validation, in order to identify cis-elements and genes directly regulated by Pax6. We chose Pax6 as the paradigm because of its crucial roles in organogenesis and human disease. We identified over 600 putative Pax6 binding sites and more than 200 predicted direct target genes, conserved in evolution from zebrafish to human and to mouse. This was accomplished using hidden Markov models (HMMs) generated from experimentally validated Pax6 binding sites. A small sample of genes, expressed in the neural lineage, was chosen from the predictions for RNA in situ validation using zebrafish and mouse models. Validation of DNA binding to some predicted cis-elements was also carried out using chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and zebrafish reporter transgenic studies. The results show that this combined procedure is a highly efficient tool to investigate the architecture of TNs and constitutes a useful complementary resource to ChIP and expression data sets because of its inherent spatiotemporal independence. We have identified several novel direct targets, including some putative disease genes, among them Foxp2; these will allow further dissection of Pax6 function in development and disease

Magnetic Conjugacy of Pc1 Waves and Isolated Proton Precipitation at Subauroral Latitudes: Importance of Ionosphere as Intensity Modulation Region

Pc1 geomagnetic pulsations, equivalent to electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves in the magnetosphere, display a specific amplitude modulation, though the region of the modulation remains an open issue. To classify whether the amplitude modulation has a magnetospheric or ionospheric origin, an isolated proton aurora (IPA), which is a proxy of Pc1 wave-particle interactions, is compared with the associated Pc1 waves for a geomagnetic conjugate pair, Halley Research Base in Antarctica and Nain in Canada. The temporal variation of an IPA shows a higher correlation coefficient (0.88) with Pc1 waves in the same hemisphere than that in the opposite hemisphere. This conjugate observation reveals that the classic cyclotron resonance is insufficient to determine the amplitude modulation. We suggest that direct wave radiation from the ionospheric current by IPA should also contribute to the amplitude modulation