Operational Capabilities: The Secret Ingredient

We develop a theoretical definition of operational capabilities, based on the strategic management and operations management literature, and differentiate this construct from the related constructs of resources and operational practices, drawing upon the resourcebased view of the firm as our foundation. We illustrate the key features of operational capabilities using the illustration of a restaurant kitchen. Because the traits of operational capabilities are distinct, they create a barrier to imitation, making them a potential source of competitive advantage. However, operational capabilities are particularly challenging to measure, because they emerge gradually and are tacit, embedded, and manifested differently across firms. In solving this measurement conundrum, we draw upon similar situations experienced by Schein (2004) and Eisenhardt and Martin (2000) in operationalizing organizational culture and dynamic capabilities. A taxonomy of six emergent operational capabilities is developed: operational improvement, operational innovation, operational customization, operational cooperation, operational responsiveness, and operational reconfiguration. A set of measurement scales is developed, in order to measure each of the operational capabilities, and validated using two different datasets. This allows replication of the psychometric properties of the multi-item scales and helps to ensure the validity of the resulting measures

The best of times and the worst of times: empirical operations and supply chain management research

We assess the current state of empirical research in operations and supply chain management (OSM), using Dickens’ contrast between the best of times and the worst of times as a frame. The best of times refers to the future that empirical OSM research is now entering, with exciting opportunities available using big data and other new data sources, new empirical approaches and analytical techniques and innovative tools for developing theory. These are well aligned with new research questions related to the digital economy, Industry 4.0, the impact of the millennial generation as consumers, social media, 3D printing, etc. However, we also explore how it is the worst of times, focusing on the challenges and problems that plague empirical OSM research. Our goal is to show how OSM researchers can learn from the worst of times, in order to be poised to take advantage of the best of times. We introduce the research diamond as a vehicle for emphasising the importance of a balanced research perspective that treats the research problem, theory, data collection and data analysis as equally important, requiring alignment between them. By learning and addressing the issues in this period of the best of times and the worst of times, we can take advantage of the opportunities facing our field to generate research that is balanced, insightful, rigorous, relevant, impactful and interesting

Increased incidence of aflatoxin B1-induced liver tumors in hepatitis virus C transgenic mice

Viral hepatitis and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) exposure are common risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The incidence of HCC in individuals co-exposed to hepatitis C (HCV) or B virus and AFB1 is greater than could be explained by the additive effect, yet the mechanisms are poorly understood due to lack of an animal model. This study investigated the outcomes and mechanisms of combined exposure to HCV and AFB1. We hypothesized that HCV transgenic (HCV-Tg; expressing core, E1, E2, and p7, nucleotides 342–2771) mice will be prone to hepatocarcinogenesis when exposed to AFB1. Neonatal (7 days old) HCV-Tg or C57BL/6J wild-type mice were exposed to AFB1 (6 μg/g bw) or tricaprylin vehicle (15 μl/g bw) and male offspring were followed for up to 12 months. No liver lesions were observed in vehicle-treated wild type or HCV-Tg mice. Tumors (adenomas or carcinomas) and preneoplastic lesions (hyperplasia or foci) were observed in 22.5% (9 of 40) of AFB1-treated wild-type mice. In HCV-Tg, the incidence of tumorous or pre-tumorous lesions was significantly elevated (50%, 18 of 36), with the difference largely due to a 2.5-fold increase in the incidence of adenomas (30.5% vs 12.5%). While oxidative stress and steato-hepatisis were observed in both AFB1-treated groups, molecular changes indicative of the enhanced inflammatory response and altered lipid metabolism were more pronounced in HCV-Tg mice. In summary, HCV proteins core, E1, E2 and p7 are sufficient to reproduce the co-carcinogenic effect of HCV and AFB1 which is a known clinical phenomenon

Inorganic Nitrate Promotes the Browning of White Adipose Tissue Through the Nitrate-Nitrite-Nitric Oxide Pathway

Inorganic nitrate was once considered an oxidation end product of nitric oxide metabolism with little biological activity. However, recent studies have demonstrated that dietary nitrate can modulate mitochondrial function in man and is effective in reversing features of the metabolic syndrome in mice. Using a combined histological, metabolomics, and transcriptional and protein analysis approach, we mechanistically defined that nitrate not only increases the expression of thermogenic genes in brown adipose tissue but also induces the expression of brown adipocyte–specific genes and proteins in white adipose tissue, substantially increasing oxygen consumption and fatty acid β-oxidation in adipocytes. Nitrate induces these phenotypic changes through a mechanism distinct from known physiological small molecule activators of browning, the recently identified nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway. The nitrate-induced browning effect was enhanced in hypoxia, a serious comorbidity affecting white adipose tissue in obese individuals, and corrected impaired brown adipocyte–specific gene expression in white adipose tissue in a murine model of obesity. Because resulting beige/brite cells exhibit antiobesity and antidiabetic effects, nitrate may be an effective means of inducing the browning response in adipose tissue to treat the metabolic syndrome

Operation management: a value-driven approach/ Melnyk

xxxv, 988 hal.: ill.; 26 cm