GOVERNANCE UNDER UNCERTAINTY: TASK ASSIGNMENT IN PRODUCER CONTROLLED RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS

In Canada, Australia, United States, and a number of other countries there are considerable number of producer controlled research organizations (PCROs) in the agricultural sector, charged with the task of investing hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development (R&D) projects. Given the impact of PCROs on productivity of agricultural sector and food security, the primary objective of this study is to improve the governance of PCROs by providing knowledge of the decision-making process and governance structure of these producer-led entities. The information related to the current governance structures and decision-making processes of PCROs is attained through analyzing a series of interviews with managers and directors of key PCROs in Australia, the U.S. and Canada. A great deal of similarity was observed across PCROs both in terms of the decision-making process and governance structure. In particular, PCROs do not tend to separate management and oversight tasks. The producers elected directors of these organizations are involved in management decisions. This observed practice is in contrast with most of the theories and empirical studies focusing on the governance structure of non-profit (NP) and for-profit (FP) organizations (Brown & Guo, 2010; Fama & Jensen, 1983; LeRoux & Langer, 2016; Miller-Millesen, 2003). Based on information gained from the interviews, observable characteristics of PCROs explained in the literature, and agency theory this dissertation develops a theoretical model to describe the unusual task assignment in the PCROs. The theoretical model suggests that because of the long investment horizons in the PCROs, the compensation of management teams based on their contributions to return on investments is not feasible. Therefore, the PCROs have to reward their executives on the basis of a measure of efforts exerted. Hence, the directors’ involvement reduces the volatility of managers’ compensation. Motivated by the theoretical model, a survey whose participants are the directors of Saskatchewan’s PCROs was conducted to examine the consistency of theoretical model’s implications and the task assignment practices of PCROs in the real world. The examination of the survey results suggests the presence of consistencies between the theoretical model’s implications and observed outcomes

Case Report Peripheral Edema Occurring during Treatment with Risperidone Combined with Citalopram

An 80-year-old female presented with symptoms of depression, worthlessness, hopelessness, loss of energy, insomnia, impatience, and forgetfulness associated with persecutory delusion that had begun about one year before her visit. She was diagnosed with major depression with psychotic signs and began treatment with risperidone (2 mg/night) and citalopram (20 mg/day). After 20 days, she returned and reported partial improvement in her symptoms, although she had developed severe swelling of the hands and feet. The results of liver and renal function tests and rheumatologic tests were found to be within normal limits. Risperidone was discontinued for a week, and the swelling resolved completely. Risperidone was then administered again, and the swelling returned so that the patient had to discontinue taking the drug. The reappearance of edema on rechallenge is strong evidence implicating risperidone as the cause of the swelling

Levels of anxiety and depression as predictors of mortality following myocardial infarction: A 5-year follow-up

Background: Post-myocardial infarction (MI) depression is a highly prevalent disorder, affec­ting nearly 18% of all MI patients, and it is a major predictor of disability in the year post-MI. We sought to expand this analysis by: comparing case-level anxiety, depression, and comorbid anxiety and depression as predictors of long term mortality during a 5-year follow-up period after MI; and investigating the role of potential modifying and confounding factors. Methods: A total of 285 patients were screened on average 6 days after their MI and a 5-year survival rate was ascertained. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) were completed by patients hospitalized for MI. In addition we tested the BDI × STAI interaction effect. Results: During the 5 years of follow-up, cardiac mortality was assessed in 274 of 285 eligible patients. Of the 274 patients whose survival data were available, 91 (33.2%) died. At entry, BDI score of 192 (67.4%) patients was ≥ 10 and 145 (50.9%) patients had STAI score ≥ 40. Anxiety was not associated with mortality, whereas depression significantly predicted death, but this association was attenuated to non-significance with full adjustment with disease severity and confounders. Conclusions: Depression following MI does not predict longer-term survival with full adjustment.

Comparison of soil seed banks of habitats distributed along an altitudinal gradient in northern Iran

International audienceIn this study we investigated the variations in soil seed banks along an altitudinal gradient in the Alborz mountains, Iran, covering three habitats from lower to upper altitudes: forest, forest-subalpine grassland ecotone and subalpine meadow. In each habitat from 1850 to 2400 m, 20 quadrats were established along four transects, and the above-ground vegetation and the germinable seed banks were determined. Results show that the similarity between seed bank and vegetation was lowest in the ecotone located at intermediate altitudes. Together with the contrasting highest density and species diversity of seeds at these altitudes, the ecotonal role of this habitat was confirmed. We found evidence that lower altitudes could act as storage for seeds of some species growing at higher altitudes; the role of the ecotone was more prominent as a reserve for the meadow plant seeds than the role of the forest as a reserve for seeds of the meadow and ecotone habitats. Soil seed banks, particularly from the ecotone, can be used for restoring vegetation in some degraded sites

Comparing the effectiveness of music therapy and alpha-theta neuro-feedback training on anxiety and depression among patients with chronic irritable bowel syndrome

BACKGROUND: Non-pharmaceutical interventions are a promising area of research in psychiatry. Traditional treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) lacked notable efficacy. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of music therapy (MT) and alpha-theta neurofeedback training (NFT) on anxiety and depression symptoms among patients with IBS.METHODS: Patients with IBS, based on ROME III criteria, and high level of anxiety or depression symptoms were randomly assigned into three groups: (A) music, (B) alpha-theta training, and (C) control. In intervention groups, participants received ten 30-minute sessions of either music or alpha-theta NFT. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was administered for all patients before and after the training period. Thirty-three patients completed the study. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to compare changes in HADS scores among the three study groups.RESULTS: There was a significant main effect of HADS scores (F1,18 = 17.79, P < 0.001) in the responses of MT group. Significant decreases were observed in HADS scores from pre-intervention to post-intervention tests in MT group comparing to control group. The MT accounted for 49 percent of variance in HADS scores. There was also a significant main effect of HADS scores (F1,20 = 17.79, P < 0.010) in the responses of NFT group. HADS scores from pre-intervention to post-intervention tests in alpha-theta NFT group comparing to control group showed significant decreases, too. In addition, MT and alpha-theta NFT did not show any significant difference in somatic symptoms scores between pretest and posttest among patients with IBS.CONCLUSION: This study showed that MT and alpha-theta NFT significantly alleviated anxiety and depression level among patients with IBS

Profile of Cigarette and Drug Use Status in Population of Tabari Cohort Study

Background: The study of the smoking and drug use profile of the Tabari cohort enrolment phase, the outcomes of which will be evaluated in the coming years, has proper comprehensiveness. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine the cigarette and drug use status in the population of the Tabari cohort study (TCS).Methods: In this study, the profile of cigarette and drug use in the TCS was evaluated. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 24 using percentage, mean, and standard deviation, chi-square, and independent t test.Findings: The frequency of daily smoking in the entire population was 9.1%, and the frequencies in men and women were 21.5% and 0.6%, respectively (P<0.001). The frequency of exposure to smoking in the home, at present or in the past, in the entire population was 30.5%, and in the populations living in urban and mountainous areas were 35.4% and 19.8%, respectively (P<0.001). The mean age at first use of cigarettes in the entire population was 20.50±7.61, whereas the mean age of regular smoking was 23.19±8.02. Furthermore, the frequency of experiencing drug abuse in the total population was 6.1%, and the frequencies in men and women were 14.1% and 0.7%, respectively.Conclusion: According to the results of this study, cigarette smoking and drug use are significant in men, and overall exposure of the Tabari cohort population to tobacco and drugs in the home is high. If effective prevention is not on the agenda, a significant proportion of the future outcomes in this population may be attributable to these risk factors

Suppression of Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms after Head Trauma

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) encompasses a spectrum of clinical symptoms characterized by unwanted thoughts coupled with an intense compulsion to act and to repeat behavior fragments in a ritualistic and stereotyped sequence. Obsessive-compulsive symptom due to brain lesions is not rare, but suppression of these symptoms after head trauma is very rare and we found only 3 cases in review of literatures from 1966 to 2001. The case of a patient suffering with severe OCD is described of note; her symptoms disappeared following right temporo-parietofrontal lesion

Comparing the effectiveness of music therapy and alpha-theta neuro-feedback training on anxiety and depression among patients with chronic irritable bowel syndrome

BACKGROUND: Non-pharmaceutical interventions are a promising area of research in psychiatry. Traditional treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) lacked notable efficacy. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of music therapy (MT) and alpha-theta neurofeedback training (NFT) on anxiety and depression symptoms among patients with IBS. METHODS: Patients with IBS, based on ROME III criteria, and high level of anxiety or depression symptoms were randomly assigned into three groups: (A) music, (B) alpha-theta training, and (C) control. In intervention groups, participants received ten 30-minute sessions of either music or alpha-theta NFT. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was administered for all patients before and after the training period. Thirty-three patients completed the study. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to compare changes in HADS scores among the three study groups. RESULTS: There was a significant main effect of HADS scores (F1,18 = 17.79, P < 0.001) in the responses of MT group. Significant decreases were observed in HADS scores from pre-intervention to post-intervention tests in MT group comparing to control group. The MT accounted for 49 percent of variance in HADS scores. There was also a significant main effect of HADS scores (F1,20 = 17.79, P < 0.010) in the responses of NFT group. HADS scores from pre-intervention to post-intervention tests in alpha-theta NFT group comparing to control group showed significant decreases, too. In addition, MT and alpha-theta NFT did not show any significant difference in somatic symptoms scores between pretest and posttest among patients with IBS. CONCLUSION: This study showed that MT and alpha-theta NFT significantly alleviated anxiety and depression level among patients with IBS

modeling potential habitats for pergularia tomentosa using maximum entropy model and effect of environmental variables on its quantitative characteristics in arid rangelands southeastern iran

Predicting the potential habitat of plants in arid regions, especially for medicinal ones, is very important. Although Pergularia tomentosa is a key species for medicinal purposes, it appears in very low density in the arid rangelands of Iran, needing an urgent ecological attention. In this study, we modeled and predicted the potential habitat of P. tomentosa using maximum entropy, and the effects of environmental factors (geology, geomorphology, altitude, and soil properties) on some characteristics of the species were determined. The results showed that P. tomentosa was absent in igneous formation while it appeared in conglomerate formation. In addition, among geomorphological units, the best quantitative characteristics of P. tomentosa was belonged to the conglomerate formation-small hill area (plant aerial parts = 57.63 and root length = 30.68 cm) with the highest electrical conductivity, silt, and CaCO3 content. Conversely, the species was not found in the mountainous area with igneous formation. Moreover, plant density, length of roots, and aerial parts of the species were negatively correlated with soil sand, while positive correlation was observed with CaCO3, EC, potassium, and silt content. The maximum entropy was found to be a reliable method (ROC = 0.91) for predicting suitable habitats for P. tomentosa. These results suggest that in evaluating the plant's habitat suitability in arid regions, contrary to the importance of the topography, some environmental variables such as geomorphology and geology can play the main role in rangeland plants' habitat suitability

Comparison of Religious Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Citalopram on Depression and Anxiety among Women with Breast Cancer: A Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

There has been evidence supporting the reduction of depression and anxiety by religious psychotherapy in cancer patients,however, there have been scarce randomized controlled trials. Therefore, there is a need for replication in a well-designedstudy to investigate the efficacy of these interventions among depressed women with breast cancer. A randomizedcontrolled trial is designed to be conducted on 160 women with breast cancer. Participants will be screened for anxietyand depression diagnosed by clinical interview based on the DSM-IV criteria and the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale.Golriz and Baraheni’s Religious Attitude Questionnaire will be used to assess the religious attitude. Individuals meetingthe prerequisites will be randomly allocated to four groups, each containing 40 participants, including three interventiongroups (RCBT, CBT, and citalopram) and one control group (usual breast cancer treatment). An instrument by theEORTCQLQ-C30 and BR-23 will be used to measure the quality of life. Blood tests will be taken to assess biomarkers withthe (ELISA) method. The results will determine whether RCBT is more effective than other treatments. If so, the outcomesof the study will have implications not only for the management of similar problems in cancer patients but also for themanagement of other chronic diseases