Eyes, ears and technology : an evaluation of the use of video-conferencing in BPR workshops

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of video-conferencing as a suitable technology for business process reengineering (BPR) training of 12 health sector participants located in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Design/methodology/approach: An action research was adopted. The participants received training from a remote BPR consultant located in Northern Ireland (UK), with the assistance of local moderators. The focus of the study is concerned with the quality of the learning experience and the important role played by local moderators. Findings: Overall, the use of video-conferencing technology provided a valuable learning experience. It was also cost effective and an efficient use of both the consultants' and the participants' time. A key part of the success of the exercise was the role of one of the local moderators who acted as the eyes and ears of the consultant. Originality/value: A general contribution to knowledge is the positioning of the argument developed within the technology diffusion literature. The paper offers important insights into the effective use of video-conferencing technology for BPR training purposes; and Knipe and Lee's evaluation of a video-conferencing experiment in terms of the relationship between the human actors at the remote and local sites is discussed and extended

Involvement of a G Protein Regulatory Circuit in Alternative Oxidase Production in Neurospora crassa

The Neurospora crassa nuclear aod-1 gene encodes an alternative oxidase that functions in mitochondria. The enzyme provides a branch from the standard electron transport chain by transferring electrons directly from ubiquinol to oxygen. In standard laboratory strains, aod-1 is transcribed at very low levels under normal growth conditions. However, if the standard electron transport chain is disrupted, aod-1 mRNA expression is induced and the AOD1 protein is produced. We previously identified a strain of N. crassa, that produces high levels of aod-1 transcript under non-inducing conditions. Here we have crossed this strain to a standard lab strain and determined the genomic sequences of the parents and several progeny. Analysis of the sequence data and the levels of aod-1 mRNA in uninduced cultures revealed that a frameshift mutation in the flbA gene results in the high uninduced expression of aod-1. The flbA gene encodes a regulator of G protein signaling that decreases the activity of the Gα subunit of heterotrimeric G proteins. Our data suggest that strains with a functional flbA gene prevent uninduced expression of aod-1 by inactivating a G protein signaling pathway, and that this pathway is activated in cells grown under conditions that induce aod-1. Induced cells with a deletion of the gene encoding the Gα protein still have a partial increase in aod-1 mRNA levels, suggesting a second pathway for inducing transcription of the gene in N. crassa. We also present evidence that a translational control mechanism prevents production of AOD1 protein in uninduced cultures