Unlocking Agility: Building Learning Capabilities Within A Consumer Healthcare Organization

Pharmaceutical companies are increasingly infusing the concept of agility to strive for continuous improvement. Significant exploration and research have focused on more technical-driven departments, like Information Technology and Research and Development. However, there has been little research with the focus on more process-driven functions, like Learning and Organizational Development. This action research study presents a case study of the implementation of a new training solution within a consumer healthcare organization from the lens of the project leader. Building upon the case study, this capstone includes a review of existing research and literature of agility with a focus on the healthcare sector, change management, adult learning, and organizational learning. The overall goal of this study is to explore the value of agility in building learning capacities within the pharmaceutical industry. Looking forward, the aim is to provide insights on how agility can be developed to facilitate an organization’s transformation to become a learning organization

Effect of Football Shoe Collar Type on Ankle Biomechanics and Dynamic Stability During Anterior and Lateral Single-Leg Jump Landings

In this study, we investigated the effects of football shoes with different collar heights on ankle biomechanics and dynamic postural stability. Fifteen healthy college football players performed anterior and lateral single-leg jump landings when wearing high collar, elastic collar, or low collar football shoes. The kinematics of lower limbs and ground reaction forces were collected by simultaneously using a stereo-photogrammetric system with markers (Vicon) and a force plate (Kistler). During the anterior single-leg jump landing, a high collar shoe resulted in a significantly smaller ankle dorsiflexion range of motion (ROM), compared to both elastic (p = 0.031, dz = 0.511) and low collar (p = 0.043, dz = 0.446) types, while also presenting lower total ankle sagittal ROM, compared to the low collar type (p = 0.023, dz = 0.756). Ankle joint stiffness was significantly greater for the high collar, compared to the elastic collar (p = 0.003, dz = 0.629) and low collar (p = 0.030, dz = 1.040). Medial-lateral stability was significantly improved with the high collar, compared to the low collar (p = 0.001, dz = 1.232). During the lateral single-leg jump landing, ankle inversion ROM (p = 0.028, dz = 0.615) and total ankle frontal ROM (p = 0.019, dz = 0.873) were significantly smaller for the high collar, compared to the elastic collar. The high collar also resulted in a significantly smaller total ankle sagittal ROM, compared to the low collar (p = 0.001, dz = 0.634). Therefore, the high collar shoe should be effective in decreasing the amount of ROM and increasing the dynamic stability, leading to high ankle joint stiffness due to differences in design and material characteristics of the collar types

Relationship between motor performance and cortical activity of older neurological disorder patients with dyskinesia using fNIRS: A systematic review

Background: Neurological disorders with dyskinesia would seriously affect older people’s daily activities, which is not only associated with the degeneration or injury of the musculoskeletal or the nervous system but also associated with complex linkage between them. This study aims to review the relationship between motor performance and cortical activity of typical older neurological disorder patients with dyskinesia during walking and balance tasks.Methods: Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched. Articles that described gait or balance performance and cortical activity of older Parkinson’s disease (PD), multiple sclerosis, and stroke patients using functional near-infrared spectroscopy were screened by the reviewers. A total of 23 full-text articles were included for review, following an initial yield of 377 studies.Results: Participants were mostly PD patients, the prefrontal cortex was the favorite region of interest, and walking was the most popular test motor task, interventional studies were four. Seven studies used statistical methods to interpret the relationship between motor performance and cortical activation. The motor performance and cortical activation were simultaneously affected under difficult walking and balance task conditions. The concurrent changes of motor performance and cortical activation in reviewed studies contained the same direction change and different direction change.Conclusion: Most of the reviewed studies reported poor motor performance and increased cortical activation of PD, stroke and multiple sclerosis older patients. The external motor performance such as step speed were analyzed only. The design and results were not comprehensive and profound. More than 5 weeks walking training or physiotherapy can contribute to motor function promotion as well as cortices activation of PD and stroke patients. Thus, further study is needed for more statistical analysis on the relationship between motor performance and activation of the motor-related cortex. More different type and program sports training intervention studies are needed to perform

Integrative analysis of transcriptome and miRNAome reveals molecular mechanisms regulating pericarp thickness in sweet corn during kernel development

Pericarp thickness affects the edible quality of sweet corn (Zea mays L. saccharata Sturt.). Therefore, breeding varieties with a thin pericarp is important for the quality breeding of sweet corn. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the pericarp development remain largely unclear. We performed an integrative analysis of mRNA and miRNA sequencing to elucidate the genetic mechanism regulating pericarp thickness during kernel development (at 15 days, 19 days, and 23 days after pollination) of two sweet corn inbred lines with different pericarp thicknesses (M03, with a thinner pericarp and M08, with a thicker pericarp). A total of 2,443 and 1,409 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in M03 and M08, respectively. Our results indicate that phytohormone-mediated programmed cell death (PCD) may play a critical role in determining pericarp thickness in sweet corn. Auxin (AUX), gibberellin (GA), and brassinosteroid (BR) signal transduction may indirectly mediate PCD to regulate pericarp thickness in M03 (the thin pericarp variety). In contrast, abscisic acid (ABA), cytokinin (CK), and ethylene (ETH) signaling may be the key regulators of pericarp PCD in M08 (the thick pericarp variety). Furthermore, 110 differentially expressed microRNAs (DEMIs) and 478 differentially expressed target genes were identified. miRNA164-, miRNA167-, and miRNA156-mediated miRNA–mRNA pairs may participate in regulating pericarp thickness. The expression results of DEGs were validated by quantitative real-time PCR. These findings provide insights into the molecular mechanisms regulating pericarp thickness and propose the objective of breeding sweet corn varieties with a thin pericarp

Patterns of Convergence and Divergence Between Bipolar Disorder Type I and Type II: Evidence From Integrative Genomic Analyses

Aim: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) analyses have revealed genetic evidence of bipolar disorder (BD), but little is known about the genetic structure of BD subtypes. We aimed to investigate the genetic overlap and distinction of bipolar type I (BD I) & type II (BD II) by conducting integrative post-GWAS analyses. Methods: We utilized single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-level approaches to uncover correlated and distinct genetic loci. Transcriptome-wide association analyses (TWAS) were then approached to pinpoint functional genes expressed in specific brain tissues and blood. Next, we performed cross-phenotype analysis, including exploring the potential causal associations between two BD subtypes and lithium responses and comparing the difference in genetic structures among four different psychiatric traits. Results: SNP-level evidence revealed three genomic loci, SLC25A17, ZNF184, and RPL10AP3, shared by BD I and II, and one locus (MAD1L1) and significant gene sets involved in calcium channel activity, neural and synapsed signals that distinguished two subtypes. TWAS data implicated different genes affecting BD I and II through expression in specific brain regions (nucleus accumbens for BD I). Cross-phenotype analyses indicated that BD I and II share continuous genetic structures with schizophrenia and major depressive disorder, which help fill the gaps left by the dichotomy of mental disorders. Conclusion: These combined evidences illustrate genetic convergence and divergence between BD I and II and provide an underlying biological and trans-diagnostic insight into major psychiatric disorders

π-Conjugated molecules with fused rings for organic field-effect transistors: design, synthesis and applications

π-Conjugated molecular materials with fused rings are the focus of considerable interest in the emerging area of organic electronics, since the combination of excellent charge carrier mobility and high stability may lead to their practical applications. This tutorial review discusses the synthesis, properties and applications of π-conjugated organic semiconducting materials, especially those with fused rings. The achievements to date, the remaining problems and challenges, and the key research that needs to be done in the near future are all discussed

Do Surface Slope and Posture Influence Lower Extremity Joint Kinetics during Cycling?

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of surface slope and body posture (i.e., seated and standing) on lower extremity joint kinetics during cycling. Fourteen participants cycled at 250 watts power in three cycling conditions: level seated, uphill seated and uphill standing at a 14% slope. A motion analysis system and custom instrumented pedal were used to collect the data of fifteen consecutive cycles of kinematics and pedal reaction force. One crank cycle was equally divided into four phases (90° for each phase). A two-factor repeated measures MANOVA was used to examine the effects of the slope and posture on the selected variables. Results showed that both slope and posture influenced joint moments and mechanical work in the hip, knee and ankle joints (p < 0.05). Specifically, the relative contribution of the knee joint to the total mechanical work increased when the body posture changed from a seated position to a standing position. In conclusion, both surface slope and body posture significantly influenced the lower extremity joint kinetics during cycling. Besides the hip joint, the knee joint also played the role as the power source during uphill standing cycling in the early downstroke phase. Therefore, adopting a standing posture for more power output during uphill cycling is recommended, but not for long periods, in view of the risk of knee injury

Does Chinese-style margin trading promote the high-quality development of listed companies?

Using the margin trading reform of China's stock market as a quasinatural experiment, this paper explores whether margin trading promotes the high-quality development of listed companies. The results show that total factor productivity (TFP) significantly decreases after listed companies are included in the underlying stocks of margin trading. In addition, the negative impacts are stronger for listed companies with higher financial leverage, lower cash asset holdings, lower shareholdings of financial institution investors, and less attention from securities analysts. Further research shows that the negative impacts of margin trading on TFP are closely related to the deterioration of the information environment and the tightening of financing constraints. When listed companies are included in the underlying stocks of margin trading, they use a lower proportion of their net profit for internal financing (and a higher proportion of their net profit for cash dividends) and significantly reduce external equity financing. The results of this study show that the margin trading reform in China's stock market may inhibit the high-quality development of listed companies to a certain extent