Making the brand appealing: advertising strategies and consumers’ attitude towards UK retail bank brands

Purpose: The present state of the financial services industry suggests the need for banks to appeal to consumers’ emotions with the aim of improving their reputation; this study aims to explore how UK banks are using emotional appeals in their advertisements and how this shapes consumers’ attitudes towards their brands. Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis in a two-stage study – Study 1 analysed the content of 1,274 UK bank advertisements to understand how the banks convey emotional appeals, whereas Study 2 elicited consumers’ perceptions of these advertising appeals and how they influenced their attitudes through semi-structured interview with 33 UK retail bank customers in London and Luton. Findings: UK banks are using emotional appeals in their marketing communication strategies. The qualitative findings highlight the bi-dimensional nature of feelings towards the advertisements and how this relates to the brand. There is a lacklustre attitude towards the brands; there was no sense of pride in associating with any bank, even with though there are possibilities of switching; and consumers feel there is no better offer elsewhere as all banks are the same. Practical implications: Bank brands should present distinct values about their services to the target audience, endeavour to build relationships with existing customers and reward loyalty. Importantly, financial brands need to engage in and highlight charitable activities and any corporate social responsibility as this can help to improve consumers’ attitudes as they often consider bank brands greedy and selfish. Originality/value: Qualitative research methodology was adopted to better understand consumers’ attitudes towards UK retail bank brands

Clinical and Surgical Anatomy of the Ligament of the Head of Femur

The ligament of the head of femur (LHF), or ligamentum teres, is an intra-articular ligament of the hip joint, running between the transverse acetabular ligament (TAL) of the hip and the fovea capitis femoris (FCF) on the head of femur (HOF). The ligament is believed to provide vascular supply to the developing and juvenile HOF, and has recently received attention in clinical practice due to its potential role in the mechanical stability to the hip joint. Clinical studies examining injury to this ligament report a higher incidence of LHF injuries in females and on the right side. However, the anatomy of this ligament has only been briefly studied, and there is no evidence of structural differences of the LHF between men and women, or left and right hips. There is also no report of LHF injuries from New Zealand (NZ) population. The primary aim of this thesis was to analyse in detail the gross anatomy, biomechanics and histology of the LHF to update the existing anatomical knowledge on the ligament, and also look at the prevalence of LHF injuries in NZ. The morphology and morphometry of the FCF, the distal attachment site of the LHF, was studied on 125 dry femora. The proximal half of the foveal floor was rough indicating the attachment of the LHF, while the distal half or the receptacle zone was smooth. Multiple vascular foramina were observed only on the ligament attachment of the FCF. Following the osteology study, the morphology and morphometry of the LHF in situ, were studied on 30 dissected hip joints and the attachment sites and sub-synovial fibrous architecture of the ligament were documented. The LHF was mostly pyramidal in shape; sub-synovial fibrous bands originated from the edges of the acetabular notch, acetabular floor and the joint capsule. The ligamental fibres interlaced extensively with the TAL. All fibrous bands converged and inserted onto the proximal half of the FCF. There was no significant difference in ligament size between left or right sides, or sex. The morphology of the FCF in the dissected HOF was consistent with that of the dry bones. To quantify the mechanical properties of the LHF in situ, and to examine potential differences between sex, side, and two physiological joint positions (0 or 20 adduction), biomechanical distraction testing was performed on 25 embalmed hips. Almost all ligaments ruptured at their foveal attachment; the mean force required to rupture the LHF ranged from 3 to 186 N (mean = 57 37 N). There were no statistical differences in the mechanical properties between females and males nor left or right LHF, irrespective of joint position. To study the microscopic features, the LHF from 10 embalmed hips were sectioned at three levels: the foveal attachment, mid-length, and its base where it attaches to the TAL. The slices were stained with haematoxylin and eosin stain to study the general tissue architecture, von Willebrand factor and neurofilament to identify blood vessels and nervous tissue within the ligament, respectively. The ligament tissue comprised of three distinct layers: a synovial lining, a sub-synovial zone with loose connective tissue and the ligament proper composed of dense collagen bundles. Patent blood vessels and nerve fibres were present both in the sub-synovial zone and the ligament proper; Pacinian corpuscles and free nerve endings were found in the sub-synovial zone. The proportion of the ligament’s cross-sectional area occupied by blood vessels of the ligament proper at the fovea was significantly higher compared to its middle and basal levels; it was also higher than that of the sub-synovial layer. To study the prevalence of LHF injuries in NZ, retrospective clinical data on hip arthroscopies were obtained from a private sports clinic, that included 316 LHF injuries. More injuries were observed in females, and on the right side, but this was not statistically significant. Only one isolated LHF tear was reported; all other ligament injuries were associated with other hip pathologies. The centre-edge angle of the hip was significantly smaller in patients who suffered LHF lesions than those who underwent arthroscopy for other reasons; the angle was also smaller in females and on the right side. Findings related to the morphology of the LHF could inform appropriate choice of graft dimensions and ideal graft fixation sites during LHF reconstruction surgeries. Functionally, the LHF appears to serve a vascular role to the adult HOF. The LHF in situ in the elderly seems to provide limited mechanical support to the hip joint. However, the nerve receptors contained within the ligament could sense pain and proprioceptive stimuli during ligament stretch, and thereby contribute to joint stability. There were no sex or side differences seen in any of the anatomical, mechanical or histological features of the LHF that could explain the clinically reported sex and side difference in LHF injuries. However, a smaller centre-edge angle identified in all group of patients suffering LHF injury suggests that there are other anatomical factors at the hip joint that predispose ligament injuries. Further studies on the LHF using a larger sample size more representative of NZ population is warranted to understand the patterns of LHF injury, their clinical diagnosis and treatment options

Depletion of CpG Dinucleotides in Papillomaviruses and Polyomaviruses: A Role for Divergent Evolutionary Pressures

<div><p>Background</p><p>Papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses are small ds-DNA viruses infecting a wide-range of vertebrate hosts. Evidence supporting co-evolution of the virus with the host does not fully explain the evolutionary path of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses. Studies analyzing CpG dinucleotide frequencies in virus genomes have provided interesting insights on virus evolution. CpG dinucleotide depletion has not been extensively studied among papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses. We sought to analyze the relative abundance of dinucleotides and the relative roles of evolutionary pressures in papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We studied 127 full-length sequences from papillomaviruses and 56 full-length sequences from polyomaviruses. We analyzed the relative abundance of dinucleotides, effective codon number (ENC), differences in synonymous codon usage. We examined the association, if any, between the extent of CpG dinucleotide depletion and the evolutionary lineage of the infected host. We also investigated the contribution of mutational pressure and translational selection to the evolution of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.</p><p>Results</p><p>All papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses are CpG depleted. Interestingly, the evolutionary lineage of the infected host determines the extent of CpG depletion among papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses. CpG dinucleotide depletion was more pronounced among papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses infecting human and other mammals as compared to those infecting birds. Our findings demonstrate that CpG depletion among papillomaviruses is linked to mutational pressure; while CpG depletion among polyomaviruses is linked to translational selection. We also present evidence that suggests methylation of CpG dinucleotides may explain, at least in part, the depletion of CpG dinucleotides among papillomaviruses but not polyomaviruses.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>The extent of CpG depletion among papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses is linked to the evolutionary lineage of the infected host. Our results highlight the existence of divergent evolutionary pressures leading to CpG dinucleotide depletion among small ds-DNA viruses infecting vertebrate hosts.</p></div

Translational selection is more pronounced among polyomaviruses.

<p>Correlation between ENC values and GC₃ among (a) papillomaviruses (b) polyomaviruses. The red line represents the ENC expected value (ENC*) and blue diamonds represent the ENC values. The ENC values for papillomaviruses lie on, or just below the ENC expected curve whereas, the ENC values for polyomaviruses lie well below the ENC expected curve. (c) Box plots comparing the ENC values of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses. Codon usage bias is more pronounced among polyomaviruses as compared to papillomaviruses as indicated by lower ENC values among polyomaviruses [49.74(95% CI of 48.87 to 50.61) vs 52.79 (95% CI of 52.06 to 53.54); P<0.0001]. (d) Box plots showing the differences between the expected ENC values (ENC*) and actual ENC values. The differences expected ENC values (ENC*) and actual ENC values were significantly higher among polyomaviruses as compared to papillomaviruses [7.30(95% CI of 6.86 to 7.75) vs 3.78 (95% CI of 3.54 to 4.03); P<0.0001]; this finding confirms increased codon usage bias or translational selection among polyomaviruses.</p

Role for depletion of CpG dinucleotides in the evolution of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.

<p>CpG dinucleotides are the most deviant (the difference between expected frequency and observed frequency) dinucleotides among papillomaviruses infecting (a) mammals (non-humans) (b) humans and (c) aves/reptiles. Similarly, CpG dinucleotides are the most deviant dinucleotides among polyomaviruses infecting (d) mammals (non-humans), (e) humans and (f) aves. This finding supports a major role for CpG dinucleotide depletion in the evolution of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses across different host groups. Red color represents the deviation of CpG dinucleotides from 1 across all host groups of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.</p

Role for mutational pressure in the evolution of papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.

<p>Scatter plot demonstrating a good correlation between GC content at the third codon position (GC₃) (X-axis) and GC content at first and second codon position (GC_1,2) (Y-axis) among (a) papillomaviruses and (b) polyomaviruses. This finding suggests that mutational pressure contributes to the evolution of both papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses.</p

Relative synonymous codon usage (RSCU) values of CpG-containing codons.

<p>Box plots showing the RSCU values of CpG-containing codons among (a) papillomaviruses and (b) polyomaviruses. CpG-containing codons are shown in red colour. The encoded amino acid is shown in parenthesis. Both group of viruses avoided CpG-containing synonymous codons as 100% (8 out of 8) of these codons had an RSCU value below one. (c) RSCU values of CpG-containing codons among papillomaviruses infecting different host groups: papillomaviruses infecting humans or other mammals had significantly lower RSCU values than those infecting aves/reptiles [0.47(95% CI of 0.42 to 0.52) vs 0.8(95% CI of 0.68 to 0.92); P = 0.0004; 0.55(95% CI of 0.53 to 0.58) vs 0.8(95% CI of 0.68 to 0.92); P = 0.0002]. (d) RSCU values of CpG-containing codons among polyomaviruses infecting different host groups: polyomaviruses infecting humans had significantly lower RSCU values as compared to those infecting other mammals [0.11(95% CI of 0.09 to 0.14) vs 0.17(95% CI of 0.16 to 0.19), P = 0.0007] or aves [0.11(95% CI of 0.09 to 0.14) vs 0.45(95% CI of 0.34 to 0.57); P = 0.0003].</p

CpG dinucleotide frequencies in coding DNA sequences and non-coding sequences.

<p>CpG dinucleotide frequencies in coding DNA sequences and non-coding sequences.</p