Fostering Employees' Voluntary Green Behavior:The Role of Environmentally Specific Servant Leadership, Positive Affectivity, and Workplace Anxiety

The recent introduction of servant leadership into the research on pro-environmental behavior in organizations has stimulated interest and concern among scholars on how an environmentally specific servant leader fosters their subordinates' green behavior. Drawing from affective event theory, this study focuses on the underlying affective mechanism linking environmentally specific servant leadership and employee voluntary green behavior. Using two-wave data from 190 employees in two organizations, we found that environmentally specific servant leadership was indirectly related to employee voluntary green behavior via positive affectivity. Moreover, workplace anxiety moderated the indirect effect, such that it was only significant and positive under low levels of workplace anxiety. Overall, our study sheds light on the role the effect plays in unpacking the influence of environmentally specific servant leadership on employee voluntary green behavior

Synaptic and Intrinsic Activation of GABAergic Neurons in the Cardiorespiratory Brainstem Network

GABAergic pathways in the brainstem play an essential role in respiratory rhythmogenesis and interactions between the respiratory and cardiovascular neuronal control networks. However, little is known about the identity and function of these GABAergic inhibitory neurons and what determines their activity. In this study we have identified a population of GABAergic neurons in the ventrolateral medulla that receive increased excitatory post-synaptic potentials during inspiration, but also have spontaneous firing in the absence of synaptic input. Using transgenic mice that express GFP under the control of the Gad1 (GAD67) gene promoter, we determined that this population of GABAergic neurons is in close apposition to cardioinhibitory parasympathetic cardiac neurons in the nucleus ambiguus (NA). These neurons fire in synchronization with inspiratory activity. Although they receive excitatory glutamatergic synaptic inputs during inspiration, this excitatory neurotransmission was not altered by blocking nicotinic receptors, and many of these GABAergic neurons continue to fire after synaptic blockade. The spontaneous firing in these GABAergic neurons was not altered by the voltage-gated calcium channel blocker cadmium chloride that blocks both neurotransmission to these neurons and voltage-gated Ca2+ currents, but spontaneous firing was diminished by riluzole, demonstrating a role of persistent sodium channels in the spontaneous firing in these cardiorespiratory GABAergic neurons that possess a pacemaker phenotype. The spontaneously firing GABAergic neurons identified in this study that increase their activity during inspiration would support respiratory rhythm generation if they acted primarily to inhibit post-inspiratory neurons and thereby release inspiration neurons to increase their activity. This population of inspiratory-modulated GABAergic neurons could also play a role in inhibiting neurons that are most active during expiration and provide a framework for respiratory sinus arrhythmia as there is an increase in heart rate during inspiration that occurs via inhibition of premotor parasympathetic cardioinhibitory neurons in the NA during inspiration

IDN2 and Its Paralogs Form a Complex Required for RNA–Directed DNA Methylation

IDN2/RDM12 has been previously identified as a component of the RNA–directed DNA methylation (RdDM) machinery in Arabidopsis thaliana, but how it functions in RdDM remains unknown. By affinity purification of IDN2, we co-purified two IDN2 paralogs IDP1 and IDP2 (IDN2 PARALOG 1 and 2). The coiled-coil domain between the XS and XH domains of IDN2 is essential for IDN2 homodimerization, whereas the IDN2 C-terminal XH domain but not the coiled-coil domain is required for IDN2 interaction with IDP1 and IDP2. By introducing the wild-type IDN2 sequence and its mutated derivatives into the idn2 mutant for complementation testing, we demonstrated that the previously uncharacterized IDN2 XH domain is required for the IDN2-IDP1/IDP2 complex formation as well as for IDN2 function. IDP1 is required for de novo DNA methylation, siRNA accumulation, and transcriptional gene silencing, whereas IDP2 has partially overlapping roles with IDP1. Unlike IDN2, IDP1 and IDP2 are incapable of binding double-stranded RNA, suggesting that the roles of IDP1 and IDP2 are different from those of IDN2 in the IDN2-IDP1/IDP2 complex and that IDP1 and IDP2 are essential for the functioning of the complex in RdDM

Short hairpin RNA-mediated knockdown of protein expression in Entamoeba histolytica

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Entamoeba histolytica </it>is an intestinal protozoan parasite of humans. The genome has been sequenced, but the study of individual gene products has been hampered by the lack of the ability to generate gene knockouts. We chose to test the use of RNA interference to knock down gene expression in <it>Entamoeba histolytica</it>.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An episomal vector-based system, using the <it>E. histolytica </it>U6 promoter to drive expression of 29-basepair short hairpin RNAs, was developed to target protein-encoding genes in <it>E. histolytica</it>. The short hairpin RNAs successfully knocked down protein levels of all three unrelated genes tested with this system: Igl, the intermediate subunit of the galactose- and N-acetyl-D-galactosamine-inhibitable lectin; the transcription factor URE3-BP; and the membrane binding protein EhC2A. Igl levels were reduced by 72%, URE3-BP by 89%, and EhC2A by 97%.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Use of the U6 promoter to drive expression of 29-basepair short hairpin RNAs is effective at knocking down protein expression for unrelated genes in <it>Entamoeba histolytica</it>, providing a useful tool for the study of this parasite.</p

Tracking the Evolution of HIV/AIDS in China from 1989–2009 to Inform Future Prevention and Control Efforts

BACKGROUND: To determine policy implications, this analysis tracks the evolution of HIV/AIDS infection across China to understand current trends and potential risk factors. METHODS AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A retrospective study with spatial analytical model and multilevel spatial models was conducted among 326,157 HIV/AIDS cases reported from 1989-2009. The results indicate that the distribution of HIV/AIDS was clustered at the county level with different directional distributions across China from 2003 to 2009. Compared to 2003, by 2009 there was a 122% increase in HIV cases among rural residents, 294% increase among urban residents, 211% increase among migrants, and 237% increase among permanent residents. The overall proportion of HIV by different routes of transmission showed dramatic changes with a 504% increase in sexual transmission of HIV, 90% decrease in blood/plasma transmission, and 35% decrease in injecting drug user transmission. Sexual transmission was the major transmission route among women (44%) and the elderly (59% in men, 44% in women) as well as among permanent (36%) and urban residents (33%). Among those <65 years old, women increased more than men, but among those ≥ 65 years, men increased more than women. Migrants contributed to the variance of HIV infection between counties but not within counties. The length of highway and urbanization combined with illiteracy were risk factors for HIV/AIDS. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Rates of HIV/AIDS among permanent urban residents, particularly women and elderly men, have increased significantly in recent years. To prevent HIV from spreading further among the general population, additional attention should be paid to these populations as well as to migrants

Lost in Translation? Accountability and Governance of Clinical Stem Cell Research in China

Despite China’s regulatory initiatives to promote its research accountability, it still needs to prove itself as a trusted player in life science research. In addition, in contrast to its huge investment, China is losing the race in delivering quality application of stem cells. The trial implementation of the 2015 ministerial regulations seemed to offer hope in ending this dual ‘lost-in-translation’. Yet skepticism remains. By examining China’s regulatory trajectory in the last 15 years, this paper illustrates that it is a post-hoc pragmatic policy rationale and a soft centralisation regulatory approach that have hampered China’s governance. To improve China’s governance of accountability, policy-makers need to get beyond an ‘act-in-response’ regulatory ethos and engage with diverse stakeholders

Hematology oncology practice in the Asia-Pacific APHCON survey results from the 6th international hematologic malignancies conference: bridging the gap 2015, Beijing, China

This report serves as a snapshot of the state-of-knowledge in the Asia Pacific (APAC) Hematology Oncology community, and establishes a baseline for longitudinal investigations to follow changes in best practices over time. The objective of this study was to understand the approach to hematologic diseases, common standards of care and best practices, issues that remain controversial or debated, and educational or resource gaps that warrant attention. We used mobile application to disseminate and distribute questionnaires to delegates during the 6th international hematologic malignancies conference hosted by the APAC Hematology Consortium at Beijing, China. User responses were collected in an anonymous fashion. We report survey results in two ways: the overall responses, and responses as stratified between Chinese physicians and 'Other' represented nationalities. Overall geographical concordance in survey responses was positive and strong. Perhaps more interesting than instances of absolute agreement, these data provide a unique opportunity to identify topics in which physician knowledge or opinions diverge. We assigned questions from all modules to broad categories of: patient information; diagnosis; treatment preference; transplantation; and general knowledge/opinion. On average, we observed a geographic difference of 15% for any particular answer choice, and this was fairly constant across survey modules. These results reveal utility and need for widespread and ongoing initiatives to assess knowledge and provide evidence-based education in real time. The data will be made more valuable by longitudinal participation, such that we can monitor changes in the state of the art over time.published_or_final_versio

Fine Mapping of the Psoriasis Susceptibility Locus PSORS1 Supports HLA-C as the Susceptibility Gene in the Han Chinese Population

PSORS1 (psoriasis susceptibility gene 1) is a major susceptibility locus for psoriasis. Several fine-mapping studies have highlighted a 300-kb candidate region of PSORS1 where multiple biologically plausible candidate genes were suggested. The most recent study has indicated HLA-Cw6 as the primary PSORS1 risk allele within the candidate region in a Caucasian population. In this study, a family-based association analysis of the PSORS1 locus was performed by analyzing 10 polymorphic microsatellite markers from the PSORS1 region as well as HLA-B, HLA-C and CDSN loci in 163 Chinese families of psoriasis. Five marker loci show strong evidence (P<10−3), and one marker locus shows weak evidence (P = 0.04) for association. The haplotype cluster analysis showed that all the risk haplotypes are Cw6 positive and share a 369-kb region of homologous marker alleles which carries all the risk alleles, including HLA-Cw6 and CDSN*TTC, identified in this study. The recombinant haplotype analysis of the HLA-Cw6 and CDSN*TTC alleles in 228 Chinese families showed that the HLA-Cw6−/CDSN*TTC+ recombinant haplotype is clearly not associated with risk for psoriasis (T∶NT = 29:57, p = 0.0025) in a Chinese population, suggesting that the CDSN*TTC allele itself does not confer risk without the presence of the HLA-Cw6 allele. The further exclusion analysis of the non-risk HLA-Cw6−/CDSN*TTC+ recombinant haplotypes with common recombination breakpoints has allowed us to refine the location of PSORS1 to a small candidate region. Finally, we performed a conditional linkage analysis and showed that the HLA-Cw6 is a major risk allele but does not explain the full linkage evidence of the PSORS1 locus in a Chinese population. By performing a series of family-based association analyses of haplotypes as well as an exclusion analysis of recombinant haplotypes, we were able to refine the PSORS1 gene to a small critical region where HLA-C is a strong candidate to be the PSORS1 susceptibility gene