When Auditors’ Skeptical Judgments do not lead to Skeptical Actions

Auditors are required to maintain professional skepticism through the course of an audit engagement. Professional skepticism is maintained through both skeptical judgment and observable skeptical behavior (skeptical action). However, auditors who exhibit professional skepticism in judgment do not always exhibit professional skepticism in action. The present study examines whether social presence alters the likelihood of auditors acting on skeptical judgments by utilizing an experimental setting where participants interact with a hypothetical client using four different communication mediums varying in social presence. Results suggest that auditor-client interactions high in perceived social presence inhibit auditors from acting on skeptical judgments compared to auditor-client interactions that are low in perceived social presence. Results extend literature on auditor-client interactions, professional skepticism, and communication medium while also informing regulator concern over inappropriately applied, or even absent, professional skepticism

The Drosophila Caspase DRONC Cleaves following Glutamate or Aspartate and Is Regulated by DIAP1, HID, and GRIM

The caspase family of cysteine proteases plays important roles in bringing about apoptotic cell death. All caspases studied to date cleave substrates COOH-terminal to an aspartate. Here we show that the Drosophila caspase DRONC cleaves COOH-terminal to glutamate as well as aspartate. DRONC autoprocesses itself following a glutamate residue, but processes a second caspase, drICE, following an aspartate. DRONC prefers tetrapeptide substrates in which aliphatic amino acids are present at the P2 position, and the P1 residue can be either aspartate or glutamate. Expression of a dominant negative form of DRONC blocks cell death induced by the Drosophila cell death activators reaper, hid, and grim, and DRONC overexpression in flies promotes cell death. Furthermore, the Drosophila cell death inhibitor DIAP1 inhibits DRONC activity in yeast, and DIAP1's ability to inhibit DRONC-dependent yeast cell death is suppressed by HID and GRIM. These observations suggest that DRONC acts to promote cell death. However, DRONC activity is not suppressed by the caspase inhibitor and cell death suppressor baculovirus p35. We discuss possible models for DRONC function as a cell death inhibitor

Language Problems and ADHD Symptoms: How Specific Are the Links?

Symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity frequently co-occur with language difficulties in both clinical and community samples. We explore the specificity and strength of these associations in a heterogeneous sample of 254 children aged 5 to 15 years identified by education and health professionals as having problems with attention, learning and/or memory. Parents/carers rated pragmatic and structural communication skills and behaviour, and children completed standardised assessments of reading, spelling, vocabulary, and phonological awareness. A single dimension of behavioural difficulties including both hyperactivity and inattention captured behaviour problems. This was strongly and negatively associated with pragmatic communication skills. There was less evidence for a relationship between behaviour and language structure: behaviour ratings were more weakly associated with the use of structural language in communication, and there were no links with direct measures of literacy. These behaviour problems and pragmatic communication difficulties co-occur in this sample, but impairments in the more formal use of language that impact on literacy and structural communication skills are tied less strongly to behavioural difficulties. One interpretation is that impairments in executive function give rise to both behavioural and social communication problems, and additional or alternative deficits in other cognitive abilities impact on the development of structural language skills

Functional network dynamics in a neurodevelopmental disorder of known genetic origin.

Dynamic connectivity in functional brain networks is a fundamental aspect of cognitive development, but we have little understanding of the mechanisms driving variability in these networks. Genes are likely to influence the emergence of fast network connectivity via their regulation of neuronal processes, but novel methods to capture these rapid dynamics have rarely been used in genetic populations. The current study redressed this by investigating brain network dynamics in a neurodevelopmental disorder of known genetic origin, by comparing individuals with a ZDHHC9-associated intellectual disability to individuals with no known impairment. We characterised transient network dynamics using a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) on magnetoencephalography (MEG) data, at rest and during auditory oddball stimulation. The HMM is a data-driven method that captures rapid patterns of coordinated brain activity recurring over time. Resting-state network dynamics distinguished the groups, with ZDHHC9 participants showing longer state activation and, crucially, ZDHHC9 gene expression levels predicted the group differences in dynamic connectivity across networks. In contrast, network dynamics during auditory oddball stimulation did not show this association. We demonstrate a link between regional gene expression and brain network dynamics, and present the new application of a powerful method for understanding the neural mechanisms linking genetic variation to cognitive difficulties

Refinement of risk stratification for childhood rhabdomyosarcoma using FOXO1 fusion status in addition to established clinical outcome predictors: A report from the Children's Oncology Group

Background: Previous studies of the prognostic importance of FOXO1 fusion status in patients with rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) have had conflicting results. We re�examined risk stratification by adding FOXO1 status to traditional clinical prognostic factors in children with localized or metastatic RMS. Methods: Data from six COG clinical trials (D9602, D9802, D9803, ARST0331, ARTS0431, ARST0531; two studies each for low�, intermediate� and high�risk patients) accruing previously untreated patients with RMS from 1997 to 2013 yielded 1727 evaluable patients. Survival tree regression for event�free survival (EFS) was conducted to recursively select prognostic factors for branching and split. Factors included were age, FOXO1, clinical group, histology, nodal status, number of metastatic sites, primary site, sex, tumor size, and presence of metastases in bone/bone marrow, soft tissue, effusions, lung, distant lymph nodes, and other sites. Definition and outcome of the proposed risk groups were compared to existing systems and cross�validated results. Results: The 5�year EFS and overall survival (OS) for evaluable patients were 69% and 79%, respectively. Extent of disease (localized versus metastatic) was the first split (EFS 73% vs 30%; OS 84% vs. 42%). FOXO1 status (positive vs negative) was significant in the second split both for localized (EFS 52% vs 78%; OS 65% vs 88%) and metastatic disease (EFS 6% vs 46%; OS 19% vs 58%). Conclusions: After metastatic status, FOXO1 status is the most important prognostic factor in patients with RMS and improves risk stratification of patients with localized RMS. Our findings support incorporation of FOXO1 status in risk stratified clinical trials