Drug Testing in the U.S. Trucking Industry: Hair vs. Urine Samples and the Implications for Policy and the Industry

Virtually everything we own was transported by truck at some point. Around 3.5 million truck drivers haul almost 71% of U.S. freight. To ensure the safety of our roadways, the U.S. government requires all drivers to pass urinalysis drug screens. However, urinalysis drug screens are easily thwarted and some trucking companies use hair drug screens, a more stringent test. This research examines trucking industry data and finds about 300,000 truck drivers would be removed from their positions if forced to pass a hair drug test. Hair testing opponents argue that the test is biased against ethnic minority groups. Comparing urine and hair pass/fail rates for various ethnic groups, our results indicate ethnic groups are significantly different irrespective of testing procedure. Factors other than testing method seem to underlie ethnic group pass/fail rate differences

The effects of interdepartmental customer orientation on distribution center performance

Firms have begun to look internally for ways to increase external service quality. ANOVA is used to examine the effect of interdepartmental customer orientation on time, inventory, and customer service-based performance variables in distribution centers. Findings indicate that high interdepartmental customer orientation positively affects distribution center performance in terms of time-based performance measures and customer satisfaction. Interdepartmental customer orientation was found to have only a marginal affect on inventory performance. Implications of the current research for distribution centers and transportation managers are discussed along with limitations and opportunities for future research

Discovering the power of emotional intelligence and organizational identification in creating internal market-oriented supervision

Employees are better equipped to provide exceptional service when they are appropriately provided for and understand the company’s value proposition (Berry and Parasuraman, 1991). Internal market- orientation (IMO) pertains to a specific workplace environment that fosters employees who are trained and believe in the value offered by the company. Such support and development translates into higher quality service employees interacting with customers and their products (Lings, 2004). Linkages between IMO, emotional intelligence (EI) and organizational identification (OI) are evaluated within a supply chain and logistics context. Results indicate the direct influence of OI on IMO, and a supervisor’s ability to help employees manage emotions mediates the relationship between the ability of a supervisor to self-manage emotions and his or her propensity to create an internal market-orientation. An internal market-orientation is beneficial to the customer experience, and ultimately benefits the firm

An extensive bloom of the N₂-fixing cyanobacterium Trichodesmium erythraeum in the central Arabian Sea

We encountered an extensive surface bloom of the N, fixing cyanobactenum Trichodesrniurn erythraeum in the central basin of the Arabian Sea during the spring inter-monsooon of 1995. The bloom, which occurred dunng a period of calm winds and relatively high atmospheric iron content, was metabollcally active. Carbon fixation by the bloom represented about one-quarter of water column primary productivity while input by N₂ flxation could account for a major fraction of the estimated 'new' N demand of primary production. Isotopic measurements of the N in surface suspended material confirmed a direct contribution of N₂ fixation to the organic nltrogen pools of the upper water column. Retrospective analysis of NOAA-12 AVHRR imagery indicated that blooms covered up to 2 X 10⁶ km², or 20% of the Arabian Sea surface, during the period from 22 to 27 May 1995. In addition to their biogeochemical impact, surface blooms of this extent may have secondary effects on sea surface albedo and light penetration as well as heat and gas exchange across the air-sea interface. A preliminary extrapolation based on our observed, non-bloom rates of N₂ fixation from our limited sampling in the spring intermonsoon including a conservative estimate of the input by blooms, suggest N₂ fixation may account for an input of about 1 Tg N yr⁻¹. This is substantial, but relatively minor compared to current estimates of the removal of N through denitrification in the basin. However, N₂ fixation may also occur in the central basin through the mild winter monsoon, be considerably greater during the fall intermonsoon than we observed during the spring intermonsoon, and may also occur at higher levels in the chronically oligotrophic southern basin. Ongoing satellite observations will help to determine more accurately the distribution and density of Trichodesmium in this and other tropical oceanic basins, as well as resolving the actual frequency and duration of bloom occurrence

Epitope-specific antibody responses differentiate COVID-19 outcomes and variants of concern

BACKGROUND. The role of humoral immunity in COVID-19 is not fully understood, owing, in large part, to the complexity of antibodies produced in response to the SARS-CoV-2 infection. There is a pressing need for serology tests to assess patient-specific antibody response and predict clinical outcome. METHODS. Using SARS-CoV-2 proteome and peptide microarrays, we screened 146 COVID-19 patients’ plasma samples to identify antigens and epitopes. This enabled us to develop a master epitope array and an epitope-specific agglutination assay to gauge antibody responses systematically and with high resolution. RESULTS. We identified linear epitopes from the spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) proteins and showed that the epitopes enabled higher resolution antibody profiling than the S or N protein antigen. Specifically, we found that antibody responses to the S-811–825, S-881–895, and N-156–170 epitopes negatively or positively correlated with clinical severity or patient survival. Moreover, we found that the P681H and S235F mutations associated with the coronavirus variant of concern B.1.1.7 altered the specificity of the corresponding epitopes. CONCLUSION. Epitope-resolved antibody testing not only affords a high-resolution alternative to conventional immunoassays to delineate the complex humoral immunity to SARS-CoV-2 and differentiate between neutralizing and non-neutralizing antibodies, but it also may potentially be used to predict clinical outcome. The epitope peptides can be readily modified to detect antibodies against variants of concern in both the peptide array and latex agglutination formats. FUNDING. Ontario Research Fund (ORF) COVID-19 Rapid Research Fund, Toronto COVID-19 Action Fund, Western University, Lawson Health Research Institute, London Health Sciences Foundation, and Academic Medical Organization of Southwestern Ontario (AMOSO) Innovation Fund

What characterizes leading companies within business excellence models? An analysis of “EFQM recognized for excellence” recipients in Spain

This paper investigates whether there is a specific approach to the adoption of best management practices embedded in the EFQM Excellence Model, which characterizes leading “Recognized for Excellence” organizations in Spain. In addition, it studies which practices within EFQM’s enablers predict high performance. In contrast to most previous research that used surveys of managers’ perceptions, this study uses the actual criteria and sub-criteria scores attained by organizations in their assessment for EFQM recognition. Scores of a population of 216 organizations, which were assessed in the period from March 2011 to March 2013, are analyzed via ANOVA, factor and regression analyses. The findings show that Spanish organizations adopt the best practices encompassing the EFQM model in a similar fashion: organizations on average follow parallel trends in the scores received per criterion, and there are no significant differences in the importance attributed to enablers. Either role models are being followed, or most organizations know what is expected by the assessors and try to fulfil these expectations. Consequently, an imitative process disseminates and legitimizes the EFQM model in Spain. In addition, it is found that the People criterion makes a difference in attaining high performance, thus emphasizing the relative importance of the softer dimension in Quality Management. This study contributes to the management literature on best practices, by highlighting a consistent trend in the use of the EFQM model, and also provides insights to managers on how to better allocate resources within Business Excellence Models

Consensus on a conversation aid for shared decision making with people with intellectual disabilities in the palliative phase

Background: Little is known about how to involve people with intellectual disabilities in making decisions about treatment and care in their palliative phase. We aimed to reach a consensus about a shared decision-making (SDM) conversation aid for people with intellectual disabilities, relatives, and healthcare professionals. Methods: In a Delphi process, an expert panel of 11 people with intellectual disabilities, 14 relatives, and 65 healthcare profe

Identification of Mammalian Protein Quality Control Factors by High-Throughput Cellular Imaging

Protein Quality Control (PQC) pathways are essential to maintain the equilibrium between protein folding and the clearance of misfolded proteins. In order to discover novel human PQC factors, we developed a high-content, high-throughput cell-based assay to assess PQC activity. The assay is based on a fluorescently tagged, temperature sensitive PQC substrate and measures its degradation relative to a temperature insensitive internal control. In a targeted screen of 1591 siRNA genes involved in the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS) we identified 25 of the 33 genes encoding for 26S proteasome subunits and discovered several novel PQC factors. An unbiased genome-wide siRNA screen revealed the protein translation machinery, and in particular the EIF3 translation initiation complex, as a novel key modulator of misfolded protein stability. These results represent a comprehensive unbiased survey of human PQC components and establish an experimental tool for the discovery of genes that are required for the degradation of misfolded proteins under conditions of proteotoxic stress

Immune mechanisms in malaria: new insights in vaccine development.

Early data emerging from the first phase 3 trial of a malaria vaccine are raising hopes that a licensed vaccine will soon be available for use in endemic countries, but given the relatively low efficacy of the vaccine, this needs to be seen as a major step forward on the road to a malaria vaccine rather than as arrival at the final destination. The focus for vaccine developers now moves to the next generation of malaria vaccines, but it is not yet clear what characteristics these new vaccines should have or how they can be evaluated. Here we briefly review the epidemiological and immunological requirements for malaria vaccines and the recent history of malaria vaccine development and then put forward a manifesto for future research in this area. We argue that rational design of more effective malaria vaccines will be accelerated by a better understanding of the immune effector mechanisms involved in parasite regulation, control and elimination

Dispersion as an Important Step in the Candida albicans Biofilm Developmental Cycle

Biofilms are dynamic microbial communities in which transitions between planktonic and sessile modes of growth occur interchangeably in response to different environmental cues. In the last decade, early events associated with C. albicans biofilm formation have received considerable attention. However, very little is known about C. albicans biofilm dispersion or the mechanisms and signals that trigger it. This is important because it is precisely C. albicans cells dispersed from biofilms that are the main culprits associated with candidemia and establishment of disseminated invasive disease, two of the gravest forms of candidiasis. Using a simple flow biofilm model recently developed by our group, we have performed initial investigations into the phenomenon of C. albicans biofilm dispersion, as well as the phenotypic characteristics associated with dispersed cells. Our results indicate that C. albicans biofilm dispersion is dependent on growing conditions, including carbon source and pH of the media used for biofilm development. C. albicans dispersed cells are mostly in the yeast form and display distinct phenotypic properties compared to their planktonic counterparts, including enhanced adherence, filamentation, biofilm formation and, perhaps most importantly, increased pathogenicity in a murine model of hematogenously disseminated candidiasis, thus indicating that dispersed cells are armed with a complete arsenal of “virulence factors” important for seeding and establishing new foci of infection. In addition, utilizing genetically engineered strains of C. albicans (tetO-UME6 and tetO-PES1) we demonstrate that C. albicans biofilm dispersion can be regulated by manipulating levels of expression of these key genes, further supporting the evidence for a strong link between biofilms and morphogenetic conversions at different stages of the C. albicans biofilm developmental cycle. Overall, our results offer novel and important insight into the phenomenon of C. albicans biofilm dispersion, a key part of the biofilm developmental cycle, and provide the basis for its more detailed analysis