Micro-blog marketing of luxury consumption: the role of envy in purchase intention

Micro-blogs, or short blogs, are a social media channel commonly used by fashion brands, and luxury brands are no exception. Luxury firms are utilizing micro-blogs and bloggers to promote their products and connect with their customers. This new trend has led to increasing interest in studying how micro-blogs can be utilized effectively within luxury marketing. In this study, the emotions consumers experience as a result of micro-blogs were regarded as key for effective management for luxury fashion brands. In particular, envy, an emotion often associated with interpersonal comparisons, was examined because it relates to both luxury consumption and social media. To understand consumer behaviors triggered by luxury brand micro-blogs, three main questions were examined in two experimental studies: 1) Why and how do micro-blogs encourage consumer purchases? 2) Does envy mediate between micro-blog contents and purchase intention, specifically for luxury brands? 3) What specific characteristics of micro-blogs are related to consumer envy and purchase intention? To address these questions, study 1 investigated the influence of blog presentations on envy and purchase intention, and study 2 examined the impact of congruence to blogger race and featured brand image. A total of 16 hypotheses were developed for studies 1 and 2 based on social identity theory, signaling theory, self-congruity theory, and social comparison theory, among other relevant concepts. In study 1, social identity theory (Sirgy, 1982) suggested that people tend to identify with a group of people and compare themselves with others who are similar to themselves, which may lead to envy. Thus, in micro-blog posts, people should feel more envious when they see a group of people as opposed to a single person (H1). Spence’s (1973) signaling theory suggests that people are more likely to be influenced by lifestyle centric micro-blog posts rather than product centric posts because it signals a luxurious lifestyle, evoking greater envy among blog audiences (H2). Further, the combination of a group of people with a lifestyle centric background in micro-blogs should elicit the most envy because it combines the elements to present to the audience a complete story (H3). In study 2, self-congruity theory (Sirgy, 1982) and social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954) suggest that envy would be elicited to a greater extent when the blog audience’s race is highly congruent with that of the blogger’s because people tend to identify with a product or an image that is similar to their own. When individuals recognize their similarities with others, they may be inclined to compare themselves with the other group and consequently feel envious due to upward comparison (H6). Similarly, when audiences view a product on a micro-blog post, they should feel more envious when the featured brand image is highly congruent to their own self-image (H7). Further, the combination effect of both race and brand image congruencies was hypothesized to elicit the most envy as it combines both factors (H8). In both studies 1 and 2, envy was hypothesized to positively influence purchase intention (H4a, H4b, and H4c for Study 1 and H9a, H9b, and H9c for Study 2) and mediate all manipulation variables (excluding combination content) and purchase intention (H5a and H5b for Study 1 and H10a and H10b for Study 3). Responses from a total of 592 female ages 18 years and older were collected through MTurk, and approximately 300 of these responses were assigned to each study. All images contained a Louis Vuitton handbag and were in the format of an Instagram post because both are broadly known by social media audiences. An ANOVA was used to test the differences in envy elicited from the manipulated variables. A series of regression analyses were used to test for mediating effects. Findings of study 1 revealed that micro-blogs featuring groups and combination content (group of people and lifestyle centric background) elicited envy the way we anticipated (H1 and H3). In people content, envy had a partial mediating effect leading to purchase intention (H5a). In study 2, a high level of racial congruence between respondents and bloggers elicited envy (H6) and envy served as a partial mediator for congruence levels in blogger race (H10a). Regardless of sources of envy, all elicited envy in studies 1 and 2 positively influenced purchase intention (H4a, H4b, H4c, H9a, H9b, and H9c). These findings suggest that micro-blog presentations and blogger characteristics are important factors influencing envy and purchase intention. Envy was indeed shown to be an important factor in micro-blog marketing strategies. However, envy did not appear to be the only influencer of purchase intention. The study also revealed that micro-blog content was a crucial factor in determining purchase intention. Furthermore, congruence in blogger race had a more significant effect than congruence in brand image. Future studies should further explore blogger characteristics in micro-blogs. Collectively, luxury brands should be creative in designing their micro-blog posts to cater to their target market. To do so, this study suggests the following: conduct a story-based way of communicating in micro-blog posts, hire bloggers who are racially similar to the target market, explore other blogger characteristics, and investigate other blog presentation elements. This study addresses the gap in research regarding the role of emotions in relation to luxury brand micro-blogs. Using experimental data, this paper discusses the theoretical contributions, real-world implications, and study limitations and further suggests possibilities for future studies

Metabolomics demonstrates divergent responses of two Eucalyptus species to water stress

Past studies of water stress in Eucalyptus spp. generally highlighted the role of fewer than five “important” metabolites, whereas recent metabolomic studies on other genera have shown tens of compounds are affected. There are currently no metabolite profiling data for responses of stress-tolerant species to water stress. We used GC–MS metabolite profiling to examine the response of leaf metabolites to a long (2 month) and severe (Ψpredawn < −2 MPa) water stress in two species of the perennial tree genus Eucalyptus (the mesic Eucalyptus pauciflora and the semi-arid Eucalyptus dumosa). Polar metabolites in leaves were analysed by GC–MS and inorganic ions by capillary electrophoresis. Pressure–volume curves and metabolite measurements showed that water stress led to more negative osmotic potential and increased total osmotically active solutes in leaves of both species. Water stress affected around 30–40% of measured metabolites in E. dumosa and 10–15% in E. pauciflora. There were many metabolites that were affected in E. dumosa but not E. pauciflora, and some that had opposite responses in the two species. For example, in E. dumosa there were increases in five acyclic sugar alcohols and four low-abundance carbohydrates that were unaffected by water stress in E. pauciflora. Re-watering increased osmotic potential and decreased total osmotically active solutes in E. pauciflora, whereas in E. dumosa re-watering led to further decreases in osmotic potential and increases in total osmotically active solutes. This experiment has added several extra dimensions to previous targeted analyses of water stress responses in Eucalyptus, and highlights that even species that are closely related (e.g. congeners) may respond differently to water stress and re-waterin

Marking Embryonic Stem Cells with a 2A Self-Cleaving Peptide: A NKX2-5 Emerald GFP BAC Reporter

Fluorescent reporters are useful for assaying gene expression in living cells and for identifying and isolating pure cell populations from heterogeneous cultures, including embryonic stem (ES) cells. Multiple fluorophores and genetic selection markers exist; however, a system for creating reporter constructs that preserve the regulatory sequences near a gene's native ATG start site has not been widely available.Here, we describe a series of modular marker plasmids containing independent reporter, bacterial selection, and eukaryotic selection components, compatible with both Gateway recombination and lambda prophage bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) recombineering techniques. A 2A self-cleaving peptide links the reporter to the native open reading frame. We use an emerald GFP marker cassette to create a human BAC reporter and ES cell reporter line for the early cardiac marker NKX2-5. NKX2-5 expression was detected in differentiating mouse ES cells and ES cell-derived mice.Our results describe a NKX2-5 ES cell reporter line for studying early events in cardiomyocyte formation. The results also demonstrate that our modular marker plasmids could be used for generating reporters from unmodified BACs, potentially as part of an ES cell reporter library

A historically controlled, single-arm, multi-centre, prospective trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of MonoMax® suture material for abdominal wall closure after primary midline laparotomy. ISSAAC-Trial [NCT005725079]

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several randomized controlled trials have compared different suture materials and techniques for abdominal wall closure with respect to the incidence of incisional hernias after midline laparotomy and shown that it remains, irrespective of the methods used, considerably high, ranging from 9% to 20%. The development of improved suture materials which would reduce postoperative complications may help to lower its frequency.</p> <p>Design</p> <p>This is a historically controlled, single-arm, multi-centre, prospective trial to evaluate the safety of MonoMax^®suture material for abdominal wall closure in 150 patients with primary elective midline incisions. INSECT patients who underwent abdominal closure using Monoplus^®and PDS^®will serve as historical control group. The incidences of wound infections and of burst abdomen are defined as composite primary endpoints. Secondary endpoints are the frequency of incisional hernias within one year after operation and safety. To ensure adequate comparability in surgical performance and recruitment, the 4 largest centres of the INSECT-Trial will participate. After hospital discharge, the investigators will examine the enrolled patients again at 30 days and at 12 ± 1 months after surgery.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This historically controlled, single-arm, multi-centre, prospective ISSAAC trial aims to assess whether the use of an ultra-long-lasting absorbable monofilament suture material is safe and efficient.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>NCT005725079</p

RAPD and Internal Transcribed Spacer Sequence Analyses Reveal Zea nicaraguensis as a Section Luxuriantes Species Close to Zea luxurians

Genetic relationship of a newly discovered teosinte from Nicaragua, Zea nicaraguensis with waterlogging tolerance, was determined based on randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA using 14 accessions from Zea species. RAPD analysis showed that a total of 5,303 fragments were produced by 136 random decamer primers, of which 84.86% bands were polymorphic. RAPD-based UPGMA analysis demonstrated that the genus Zea can be divided into section Luxuriantes including Zea diploperennis, Zea luxurians, Zea perennis and Zea nicaraguensis, and section Zea including Zea mays ssp. mexicana, Zea mays ssp. parviglumis, Zea mays ssp. huehuetenangensis and Zea mays ssp. mays. ITS sequence analysis showed the lengths of the entire ITS region of the 14 taxa in Zea varied from 597 to 605 bp. The average GC content was 67.8%. In addition to the insertion/deletions, 78 variable sites were recorded in the total ITS region with 47 in ITS1, 5 in 5.8S, and 26 in ITS2. Sequences of these taxa were analyzed with neighbor-joining (NJ) and maximum parsimony (MP) methods to construct the phylogenetic trees, selecting Tripsacum dactyloides L. as the outgroup. The phylogenetic relationships of Zea species inferred from the ITS sequences are highly concordant with the RAPD evidence that resolved two major subgenus clades. Both RAPD and ITS sequence analyses indicate that Zea nicaraguensis is more closely related to Zea luxurians than the other teosintes and cultivated maize, which should be regarded as a section Luxuriantes species

Growth Differentiation Factor 15 Is Induced by Hepatitis C Virus Infection and Regulates Hepatocellular Carcinoma-Related Genes

Liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are commonly induced by chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. We aimed to identify and characterize the involvement of previously screened cytokine GDF15 in HCV pathogenesis. We examined the GDF15 expression after HCV infection both in vitro and in vivo. Cultured JFH-1 HCV was used to determine the GDF15 function on virus propagation. GDF15 overexpression and RNA interference were employed to profile the GDF15-regulated genes, signaling pathways and cell biology phenotypes. The mRNA expression and protein secretion of GDF15 was dramatically increased in HCV-infected hepatoma cells, which maybe a host response to viral proteins or infection-induced cell stress. Patients infected with HCV had an average 15-fold higher blood GDF15 level than that of healthy volunteers. Three HCC individuals in the HCV cohort showed extremely high GDF15 concentrations. Transfection or exogenously supplied GDF15 enhanced HCV propagation, whereas knockdown of endogenous GDF15 resulted in inhibition of virus replication. Overexpressed GDF15 led to Akt activation and the phosphorylation of Akt downstream targeted GSK-3β and Raf. Several HCC-related molecules, such as E-cadherin, β-catenin, Cyclin A2/B1/D1, were up-regulated by GDF15 stimulation in vitro. Overexpression of GDF15 in hepatoma cells resulted in increased DNA synthesis, promoted cell proliferation, and importantly enhanced invasiveness of the cells. In conclusion, these results suggest that an elevated serum GDF15 level is a potential diagnostic marker for viral hepatitis, and GDF15 may contribute to HCV pathogenesis by altering the signaling and growth of host cells

Signs of positive selection of somatic mutations in human cancers detected by EST sequence analysis

BACKGROUND: Carcinogenesis typically involves multiple somatic mutations in caretaker (DNA repair) and gatekeeper (tumor suppressors and oncogenes) genes. Analysis of mutation spectra of the tumor suppressor that is most commonly mutated in human cancers, p53, unexpectedly suggested that somatic evolution of the p53 gene during tumorigenesis is dominated by positive selection for gain of function. This conclusion is supported by accumulating experimental evidence of evolution of new functions of p53 in tumors. These findings prompted a genome-wide analysis of possible positive selection during tumor evolution. METHODS: A comprehensive analysis of probable somatic mutations in the sequences of Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) from malignant tumors and normal tissues was performed in order to access the prevalence of positive selection in cancer evolution. For each EST, the numbers of synonymous and non-synonymous substitutions were calculated. In order to identify genes with a signature of positive selection in cancers, these numbers were compared to: i) expected numbers and ii) the numbers for the respective genes in the ESTs from normal tissues. RESULTS: We identified 112 genes with a signature of positive selection in cancers, i.e., a significantly elevated ratio of non-synonymous to synonymous substitutions, in tumors as compared to 37 such genes in an approximately equal-sized EST collection from normal tissues. A substantial fraction of the tumor-specific positive-selection candidates have experimentally demonstrated or strongly predicted links to cancer. CONCLUSION: The results of EST analysis should be interpreted with extreme caution given the noise introduced by sequencing errors and undetected polymorphisms. Furthermore, an inherent limitation of EST analysis is that multiple mutations amenable to statistical analysis can be detected only in relatively highly expressed genes. Nevertheless, the present results suggest that positive selection might affect a substantial number of genes during tumorigenic somatic evolution

Expression Profiling of Autism Candidate Genes during Human Brain Development Implicates Central Immune Signaling Pathways

The Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) represent a clinically heterogeneous set of conditions with strong hereditary components. Despite substantial efforts to uncover the genetic basis of ASD, the genomic etiology appears complex and a clear understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying Autism remains elusive. We hypothesized that focusing gene interaction networks on ASD-implicated genes that are highly expressed in the developing brain may reveal core mechanisms that are otherwise obscured by the genomic heterogeneity of the disorder. Here we report an in silico study of the gene expression profile from ASD-implicated genes in the unaffected developing human brain. By implementing a biologically relevant approach, we identified a subset of highly expressed ASD-candidate genes from which interactome networks were derived. Strikingly, immune signaling through NFκB, Tnf, and Jnk was central to ASD networks at multiple levels of our analysis, and cell-type specific expression suggested glia—in addition to neurons—deserve consideration. This work provides integrated genomic evidence that ASD-implicated genes may converge on central cytokine signaling pathways