Tell me your age and I tell you what you trust: the moderating effect of generations

Purpose: The proliferation of social commerce websites has allowed consumers to share and exchange information, experiences, advice and opinions. Recently, information provided by users has been considered more trustworthy than the information shared by companies. However, the way in which users interact with technology can vary with age, and generational cohorts show different shopping behaviors, interests and attitudes. Hence, the way users process information (user-generated vs company-generated) can affect trust differently. Drawing on the trust transfer theory and the generational cohort theory, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects on user- and company-generated information in boosting trust of three different cohorts (Generation X, Y and Z). Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected through an online survey. The sample comprised 715 users of social commerce websites, aged between 16 and 55 years old. The study was analyzed using partial least squares with the statistical software Smart PLS 3. Findings: The empirical results show that generational cohorts show different patterns. Generation X transfers trust to social commerce websites mainly from trust in information generated by companies, while Generation Z transfers trust mainly from information generated by users. Finally, Generation Y, in contrast to previous findings about millennials, develops trust based on company-generated information to an even greater extent than does Generation X. Originality/value: The originality of this study lies in its analysis of generational differences when it comes to trusting one type of information over another. This study contributes to the idea that users cannot be considered as a whole but must be segmented into generational cohorts

Social commerce users'' optimal experience: stimuli, response and culture

Social commerce users' experience is generated during socio-commercial interactions. Therein, users receive utilitarian and hedonic stimuli that form their experience and influence their responses. However, research is needed to understand how this experience is generated. Based on the stimulus-organism-response framework and flow theory, this study analyzes how hedonic stimulus (here called sPassion) and utilitarian stimulus (usability) affect users' flow experience (organism) to positively impact emotional and behavioral loyalty (users' responses). Furthermore, as social commerce users are culturally diverse, the moderating effect of cultural background is studied, drawing on Hofstede's cultural dimensions. Findings show that hedonic stimulus more strongly impacts social commerce users' flow experience versus utilitarian stimulus. Once users reach the state of optimal experience, their positive responses are reflected in their increased intention to spread social word of mouth, to return to the website and to repurchase on it. Additionally, optimal user experience in social commerce is generated mainly through hedonic stimuli and, while social commerce environments can be culturally diverse, cultural background does not imply changes in users' behavioral patterns. This study theoretically advances research on social commerce users' experience. Likewise, the findings guide online retailers in optimizing user experience via hedonic stimuli to enhance loyalty

From sPassion to sWOM: The role of flow

Purpose - Social commerce websites entail a completely new scenario for sharing experiences and opinions due to its richness in terms of social interactions. Nowadays, users can interact with the company and with other users; hence, it seems important to study how social stimuli affect users. Drawing on the stimulus-organism-response framework and flow theory, the purpose of this paper is to propose that the social stimulus (named social passion (sPassion)) has a positive effect on the organism (state of flow), which leads to a users' positive response (via social word of mouth (sWOM)). Design/methodology/approach - The data were collected through an online survey in 2015. The sample consists of 771 users of social commerce websites, of which 51 percent are male and 49 percent female, aged between 16 and 80 years old. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data with the statistical software SPSS version 22 and EQS 6. Findings - The empirical results confirm that passionate users are prone to experience a state of flow and, as a consequence, share positive sWOM. Originality/value - This study contributes to the literature on customers' online participation, and the findings are hoped to help companies in developing social commerce websites that boost users' exchange of information

Squalene Extraction: Biological Sources and Extraction Methods

Squalene is a terpenoid with great importance in cosmetic, food and pharmaceutical industry; it was originally isolated from shark liver oil but is easily found in animals, vegetables and microorganisms. Nowadaysis shark fishing is prohibited in some countries, that is the main reason to use renewable sources forsqualene extraction to protect marine life, since last decade, squalene is extracted from different sources and methods to achieve best yields at lower possible cost. Traditional extraction methods usually involve organic solvents as hexane which left residues on the extracted matrix, that can limit material use for human consumptionafter extraction. Separation and purification stages after extraction can elevate operations cost, one of the most interesting technology to obtain squalene from biological matrix is supercritical fluid extraction with CO2as solvent because of economic, safe and easy removal characteristics

Staged developmental mapping and X chromosome transcriptional dynamics during mouse spermatogenesis.

Male gametes are generated through a specialised differentiation pathway involving a series of developmental transitions that are poorly characterised at the molecular level. Here, we use droplet-based single-cell RNA-Sequencing to profile spermatogenesis in adult animals and at multiple stages during juvenile development. By exploiting the first wave of spermatogenesis, we both precisely stage germ cell development and enrich for rare somatic cell-types and spermatogonia. To capture the full complexity of spermatogenesis including cells that have low transcriptional activity, we apply a statistical tool that identifies previously uncharacterised populations of leptotene and zygotene spermatocytes. Focusing on post-meiotic events, we characterise the temporal dynamics of X chromosome re-activation and profile the associated chromatin state using CUT&RUN. This identifies a set of genes strongly repressed by H3K9me3 in spermatocytes, which then undergo extensive chromatin remodelling post-meiosis, thus acquiring an active chromatin state and spermatid-specific expression

Fundamentals of Molecular Allergy: From Bench to Bedside

This chapter describes the fundamentals of molecular allergy diagnosis and raises the concept of allergens, allergenic components, and recombinant allergens. In addition, the authors review quality aspects related to the laboratory methodology. In the last part of the chapter, the different singleplex and multiplex platforms currently used for molecular diagnosis are compared. Finally, the diagnostic systems’ challenges, strengths, and pitfalls are discussed to understand their clinical impact. Undoubtedly, this chapter will be handy for the background knowledge for health personnel, allergists/immunologists, and clinical laboratory personnel to guide the selection of diagnostic tests for allergy as well as their interpretation and therapeutic approach

Bmf upregulation through the AMP-activated protein kinase pathway may protect the brain from seizure-induced cell death.

Prolonged seizures (status epilepticus, SE) can cause neuronal death within brain regions such as the hippocampus. This may contribute to impairments in cognitive functioning and trigger or exacerbate epilepsy. Seizure-induced neuronal death is mediated, at least in part, by apoptosis-associated signaling pathways. Indeed, mice lacking certain members of the potently proapoptotic BH3-only subfamily of Bcl-2 proteins are protected against hippocampal damage caused by status epilepticus. The recently identified BH3-only protein Bcl-2-modifying factor (Bmf) normally interacts with the cytoskeleton, but upon certain cellular stresses, such as loss of extracellular matrix adhesion or energy crisis, Bmf relocalizes to mitochondria, where it can promote Bax activation and mitochondrial dysfunction. Although Bmf has been widely reported in the hematopoietic system to exert a proapoptotic effect, no studies have been undertaken in models of neurological disorders. To examine whether Bmf is important for seizure-induced neuronal death, we studied Bmf induction after prolonged seizures induced by intra-amygdala kainic acid (KA) in mice, and examined the effect of Bmf-deficiency on seizures and damage caused by SE. Seizures triggered an early (1-8 h) transcriptional activation and accumulation of Bax in the cell death-susceptible hippocampal CA3 subfield. Bmf mRNA was biphasically upregulated beginning at 1 h after SE and returning to normal by 8 h, while again being found elevated in the hippocampus of epileptic mice. Bmf upregulation was prevented by Compound C, an inhibitor of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, indicating Bmf expression may be induced in response to bioenergetic stress. Bmf-deficient mice showed normal sensitivity to the convulsant effects of KA, but, surprisingly, displayed significantly more neuronal death in the hippocampal CA1 and CA3 subfields after SE. These are the first studies investigating Bmf in a model of neurologic injury, and suggest that Bmf may protect neurons against seizure-induced neuronal death in vivo

Application of lca methodology to the production of strawberry on substrates with peat and sediments from ports

The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology was applied to identify the potential environmental impact of dredged sediments used as growing media for food crops. The dredged sediments used came from Livorno port and were previously phytoremediated. For the assay, strawberry plants (Fragaria x ananassa Duch vr. ‘San Andreas’) were used. The plants were cultivated on three different substrates (100% peat, 100% dredged sediment and 50% mix peat/sediment) to identify the real impact of the culture media on the growing process. LCA was calculated and analyzed according to ISO 14040:2006 by SimaPro software. ReCipe Midpoint (E) V1.13/Europe Recipe E method was applied. One kilogram of produced strawberry, for each crop media tested, was defined as the functional unit. Eighteen impact categories were selected where Marine Eutrophication (ME), Human Toxicity (HT) and Freshwater Ecotoxicity (FET) were identified as relevant impact categories. The LCA results showed an increase in the environmental impact of strawberry cultivation using 100% sediment against 100% peat, due to the decrease in fruit production caused by the sediment. Nevertheless, the decrease in the environmental impact and the fruit production increase identified when the sediment is used mixed (<50%) with other substrates. The appropriate use of these substrates would be justified within the context of the circular economy