Scholars often assume that reference groups are industry-wide, homogeneous, and stable. We examine this assumption and suggest hypotheses based on managers’ motivations such as self-enhancement and self-improvement, social identity, and affiliation-based impression management. We test hypotheses on failure-induced changes in reference groups and their direction in terms of upward and downward comparisons. An empirical examination of changes in reference groups for firms listed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index between 1993 and 2008 shows that performance below social aspirations induces changes in reference groups and toward upward comparisons. The results indicate that managers can choose to change the reference group – a cognition-centered response – as an alternative to such action-centered responses as organizational search and risk-taking in response to poor performance from social aspirations and that upward comparisons may be the result of social performance shortfalls to give a better impression and to improve firm performance.

Vertically aligned BaTiO3 nanowire (NW) arrays on a Ti substrate were adopted for use in piezoelectric energy harvesting device that scavenges electricity from mechanical energy. BaTiO3 NWs were simultaneously grown at the top and bottom surfaces of a Ti substrate by two-step hydrothermal process. To characterized the piezoelectric output performance of the individual NW, we transferred a BaTiO3 single NW that was selected from well-aligned NW arrays onto a flexible substrate and measured the electric signals during the bending/unbending motions. For fabricating a piezoelectric energy harvester (PEH), both NW arrays were sandwiched between two transparent indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic films and then packaged with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer. A lead-free BaTiO3 NW array-based PEH produced an output voltage of about 90 V and a maximum current of 1.2 μA under periodically bending motions.

The development of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) from large animal species has become an important model for therapeutic cloning using ESCs derived by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). However, poor embryo quality and blastocyst formation have been major limitations for derivation of cloned ESCs (ntESCs). In this study, we have tried to overcome these problems by treating these cells with histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) and aggregating porcine embryos. First, cloned embryos were treated with Scriptaid to confirm the effect of HDACi on cloned embryo quality. The Scriptaid-treated blastocysts showed significantly higher total cell numbers (29.50 ± 2.10) than non-treated blastocysts (22.29 ± 1.50, P < 0.05). Next, cloned embryo quality and blastocyst formation were analyzed in aggregates. Three zona-free, reconstructed, four-cell-stage SCNT embryos were injected into the empty zona of hatched parthenogenetic (PA) blastocysts. Blastocyst formation and total cell number of cloned blastocysts increased significantly for all aggregates (76.4% and 83.18 ± 8.33) compared with non-aggregates (25.5% and 27.11 ± 1.67, P < 0.05). Finally, aggregated blastocysts were cultured on a feeder layer to examine the efficiency of porcine ES-like cell derivation. Aggregated blastocysts showed a higher primary colony formation rate than non-aggregated cloned blastocysts (17.6 ± 12.3% vs. 2.2 ± 1.35%, respectively, P < 0.05). In addition, derived ES-like cells showed typical characters of ESCs. In conclusion, the aggregation of porcine SCNT embryos at the four-cell stage could be a useful technique for improving the development rate and quality of porcine-cloned blastocysts and the derivation efficiency of porcine ntESCs.

To date, many studies surveying the bacterial communities in lichen thalli from diverse geographical areas have shown that Alphaproteobacteria is the predominant bacterial class in most lichens. In this study, bacterial communities in several Antarctic lichens with different growth form and substrates were analysed. The bacterial community composition in fruticose and foliose lichens, Cladonia, Umbilicaria and Usnea, and crustose lichens, Buelia granulosa, Amandinea coniops and Ochrolechia parella, from King George Island was analysed by pyrosequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. Results showed that Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes were predominant phyla. The predominant bacterial class in most of the samples was Alphaproteobacteria. Acetobacteriaceae of the order Rhodospiralles in Alphaproteobacteria was the most abundant bacterial family in Antarctic lichens. The LAR1 lineage of the order Rhizobiales, a putative N-fixer which has been frequently observed in lichens from temperate areas, was detected only from a few samples at low frequency. It is expected that other bacterial taxa are working as N-fixers in Antarctic lichens. From the PCoA analysis of the Fast UniFrac distance matrix, it was proposed that the microbial community structures in Antarctic lichens were affected by host species, growth form and substrates.

Instabilities in the flow past a rounded square cylinder have been numerically studied in order to clarify the effects of rounding the sharp edges of a square cylinder on the primary and secondary instabilities associated with the flow. Rounding the edges was done by inscribing a quarter circle of radius $r$ in each edge of a square cylinder of height $d$ . Nine cases of rounding were considered, ranging from a square cylinder ( $r/d=0$ ) to a circular cylinder ( $r/d=0.5$ ) with an increment of 0.0625. Each cross-section was numerically implemented in a Cartesian grid system by using an immersed boundary method. The key parameters are the Reynolds number (Re) and the edge-radius ratio ( $r/d$ ). For low Re, the flow is steady and symmetric with respect to the centreline. Over the first critical Reynolds number ( $Re_{c1}$ ), the flow undergoes a Hopf bifurcation to a time-periodic flow, termed the primary instability. As Re further increases, the onset of the secondary instability of three-dimensional (3D) nature is detected beyond the second critical Reynolds number ( $Re_{c2}$ ). Rounding the sharp edges of a square cylinder significantly affects the flow topology, leading to noticeable changes in both instabilities. By employing the Stuart–Landau equation, we investigated the criticality of the primary instability depending upon $r/d$ . The onset of the 3D secondary instability was detected by using Floquet stability analysis. The temporal and spatial characteristics of the dominant modes (A, B, QP) were described. The neutral stability curves of each mode were computed depending upon  $r/d$ .

Background: Dysphagia is a common symptom and an important prognostic factor in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Although cognitive and motor dysfunctions may contribute to dysphagia in patients with PD, any specific association between such problems and swallowing functions is unclear. Here, we examined the potential relationship between cognitive/motor components and swallowing functions in PD. We evaluated the contributions of cognition and motor function to the components of swallowing via video fluoroscopic swallowing (VFS) experiments. Methods: We prospectively enrolled 56 patients without dementia having PD. Parkinson’s disease severity was assessed by the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). All participants received neuropsychological tests covering general mental status, visuospatial function, attention, language, learning and memory, and frontal executive function. The well-validated “modified barium swallow impairment profile” scoring system was applied during VFS studies to quantify swallowing impairments. Finally, correlations between neuropsychological or motor functions and impairment in swallowing components were calculated. Results: The most significant correlations were found between the frontal/executive or learning/memory domains and the oral phase of swallowing, though a minor component of the pharyngeal phase correlated with frontal function as well. Bradykinesia and the UPDRS total score were associated with both the pharyngeal and oral phases. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that cognitive dysfunctions are associated with the oral phase of swallowing in patients with early stage PD while the severity of motor symptoms may be associated with overall swallowing function.

A total of 27 accessions from ten Vicia species were investigated for flavonoid contents, total polyphenol contents, and DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and ABTS [2,2′-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline 6-sulfonic acid)] free radical-scavenging activities. The results revealed that NAC17 (V. monantha) and NAC14 (V. hyrcanica) had the highest total flavonoid content (1.42 ± 0.09 mg/g) and total polyphenol content [124.2 ± 0.5 μg/gallic acid equivalents (GAE) mg], respectively. Among four flavonoids, naringenin was detected at high concentrations in Vicia species. The DPPH and ABTS assays showed values in the range of 57.2 (IC50) (NAC13, V. faba) to 6530.0 (IC50) (NAC24, V. sativa subsp. nigra) and 19.1 μg/Trolox mg (NAC7, V. cracca) to 253.4 μg/Trolox mg (NAC13, V. faba), respectively. Among ten Vicia species, V. monantha and V. hyrcanica had the highest flavonoid content (1.31 ± 0.09 mg/g) and total polyphenol content (116.5 ± 2.0 μg/GAE mg), respectively. The highest antioxidant activity was detected in V. faba. These results will expand the flavonoid database and provide valuable information on Vicia species for the development of functional foods or feed-additive resources.

During the past decade, carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) has emerged and spread across the world. 1 The major carbapenemase enzymes currently being reported are KPC, NDM-1, VIM, IMP, and OXA. 2 Because carbapenemase can be effectively transmitted via mobile genetic elements, and current therapeutic options for CPE infections are extremely limited, CPE may be one of the most serious contemporary threats to public health. However, very little is known about the characteristics of CPE carriage during hospitalization. The aims of this study were to investigate the clearance rate of CPE carriage and determine the number of consecutive negative cultures required to confirm CPE clearance. We also examined CPE transmission among hospitalized patients.

Infect. Control Hosp. Epidemiol. 2015;36(11):1361–1362

A quantitative analysis of In concentration in InGaN/GaN multiquantum wells in light-emitting diodes was carried out using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and high-angle annual dark-field scanning TEM (HAADF-STEM). The In composition in InGaN was evaluated by the precise measurement of c-lattice parameters in the HRTEM micrographs, which increase with increasing In composition. The reliability of the results was confirmed by high-resolution x-ray diffraction measurements and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry. Quantitative In compositions can, therefore, be determined using HRTEM. We tried to determine the quantitative In compositions in InGaN by analyzing the intensity profiles of the HAADF-STEM images. However, several problems were encountered, such as differences in the thickness of the region observed, carbon contamination, and ion beam damage during specimen preparation. Therefore, relative differences in composition were observed in the HAADF-STEM images.