Managers make comprehensive strategic decisions to cope with environmental challenges. Questions remain regarding how different types of leadership styles influence top management team (TMT) strategic decision comprehensiveness (SDC) and firm performance. This study explores the impact of two different CEO leadership styles on TMT SDC and subsequent firm performance, considering the moderating role of TMT cognitive conflict. Based on data from 357 questionnaires of 126 firms in China, we found that 1) CEO empowering leadership positively affects SDC; 2) CEO directive leadership generates an inverted U-shaped effect on SDC; 3) the effect of SDC on firm performance is positive; and 4) TMT cognitive conflict weakens the relationship between CEO empowering leadership and SDC. This study takes a systematic approach by integrating CEO-TMT dynamics into SDC, which in turn affects firm performance, and thus offers a holistic view of how upper echelons influence firm performance.

Pursuing ambidextrous foreign direct investment (FDI) has been suggested as a desirable strategic choice of emerging economy (EE) firms in their internationalization. Yet, reconciling explorative and exploitative activities overseas is complicated due to their conflicting and tensional nature. This study explores why some EE firms can achieve high levels of ambidextrous FDI while others cannot. Drawing on upper echelons theory, we propose a micro-foundation perspective of ambidextrous FDI by studying top management teams’ (TMTs) attributes. Applying a configurational approach to a sample of 294 EE firms’ FDI observations (of which 43 are ambidextrous FDI in nature) from 2011 to 2015, we not only confirm the equal importance of both TMT incentive and cognitive factors as causal conditions to achieve a high degree of ambidextrous FDI, but also provide original evidence on the interactive configurations of those factors that lead to ambidextrous FDI.

The present study aimed to investigate whether arginine (Arg) promotes porcine type I muscle fibres formation via improving mitochondrial biogenesis. In the in vivo study, a total of sixty Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire weaning piglets with an average body weight of 6·55 (sd 0·36) kg were randomly divided into four treatments and fed with a basal diet or a basal diet supplemented with 0·5, 1·0 and 1·5 % l-Arg, respectively, in a 4-week trial. Results showed that dietary supplementation of 1·0 % Arg significantly enhanced the activity of succinate dehydrogenase, up-regulated the protein expression of myosin heavy chain I (MyHC I) and increased the mRNA levels of MyHC I, troponin I1, C1 and T1 (Tnni1, Tnnc1 and Tnnt1) in longissimus dorsi muscle compared with the control group. In addition, ATPase staining analysis indicated that 1·0 % Arg supplementation significantly increased the number of type I muscle fibres and significantly decreased the number of type II muscle fibres. Furthermore, 1·0 % Arg supplementation significantly up-regulated PPAR-γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α), sirtuin 1 and cytochrome c (Cytc) protein expressions, increased PGC-1α, nuclear respiratory factor 1 (NRF1), mitochondria transcription factor B1 (TFB1M), Cytc and ATP synthase subunit C1 (ATP5G) mRNA levels and increased mitochondrial DNA content. In the in vitro study, mitochondrial complex I inhibitor rotenone (Rot) was used. We found that Rot annulled Arg-induced type I muscle fibres formation. Together, our results provide for the first time the evidence that Arg promotes porcine type I muscle fibres formation through improvement of mitochondrial biogenesis.

The second home-made single stage accelerator mass spectrometer (SSAMS) system dedicated to radiocarbon (14C) measurements was built after the first SSAMS system was moved to Guangxi Normal University. With some improvements to the second SSAMS system, the performance has been improved. With the conditions of total ion energy of 200KeV, ions charge states of 1+ and helium as stripper gas, 14C measurements with precision of 0.5% and a background level of 0.5 pMC were achieved. Details of the system and the experimental performance are given here.

In this research communication we used digital gene expression (DGE) analysis to identify differences in gene expression in the mammary glands of dairy cows between early lactation and the mid-dry period. A total of 741 genes were identified as being differentially expressed by DGE analysis. Compared with their expression in dry cows, 214 genes were up-regulated and 527 genes were down-regulated in lactating cow mammary glands. Gene Ontology analysis showed that lactation was supported by increased gene expression related to metabolic processes and nutrient transport and was associated with decreased gene expression related to cell proliferation. Pathway mapping using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes showed that 579 differentially expressed genes had pathway annotations related to 204 pathways. Metabolic pathway-related genes were the most significantly enriched. Genes and pathways identified by the present study provide insights into molecular events that occur in the mammary gland between early lactation and mid-dry period, which can be used to facilitate further investigation of the mechanisms underlying lactation and mammary tissue remodeling in dairy cows.

Associations between ferritin and insulin sensitivity have been described in recent studies. The possible association showed conflicting results by sex and menopausal status. We aimed to investigate the cross-sectional association of ferritin levels with insulin resistance and β-cell function. A total of 2518 participants (1033 men, 235 pre-menopausal women and 1250 post-menopausal women) were enrolled from the Changfeng Study. A standard interview was conducted, as well as anthropometric measurements and laboratory analyses, for each participant. The serum ferritin level was measured using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Insulin resistance and β-cell function indices were derived from a homeostasis model assessment. The results showed that the serum ferritin levels were 250·4 (sd 165·2), 94·6 (sd 82·0) and 179·8 (sd 126·6) ng/ml in the men, pre-menopausal and post-menopausal women, respectively. In fully adjusted models (adjusting for age, current smoking, BMI, waist:hip ratio, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, TAG, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, log urine albumin:creatinine ratio, leucocytes, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase), serum ferritin concentrations are significantly associated with insulin resistance in men and post-menopausal females, and the null association was observed in pre-menopausal females. Interestingly, an increased β-cell function associated with higher ferritin was observed in post-menopausal participants, but not in male participants. In conclusion, these results suggested that elevated serum ferritin levels were associated with surrogate measures of insulin resistance among the middle-aged and elderly male and post-menopausal women, but not in pre-menopausal women.

Postmenopausal women are at increased risk of CVD: the increased serum ferritin level may be involved in the pathogenesis. The aim of the present study is to investigate the relationship of ferritin and carotid atherosclerosis in postmenopausal women. A total of 1178 postmenopausal women (mean age, 60·8 years) were enrolled from the Changfeng Study. A standard interview, anthropometric measurements and laboratory analyses were performed for each participant. Bilateral CIMT (carotid intima–media thickness) were measured using ultrasonography, and the presence of carotid plaques was assessed. Serum ferritin was measured using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. The results showed that serum ferritin was 181·9 (sd 65·8) ng/ml in the postmenopausal women. Multivariate, linear, stepwise regression analysis demonstrated that age (standardised β = 0·233, P< 0·001), alanine transaminase (standardised β = 0·194, P< 0·001), log homeostasis model assessment index for insulin resistance (standardised β = 0·181, P< 0·001), TAG (standardised β = 0·083, P= 0·003), Hb (standardised β = 0·080, P= 0·004) and PPG (2-h glucose levels following a 75-g oral glucose challenge) (standardised β = 0·079, P= 0·004) were independently associated with serum ferritin. Compared with the ferritin level of subjects in the first quartile, that in the fourth quartile had greater CIMT, and higher prevalence of carotid plaque. After adjusting for conventional CVD risk factors, Hb, leucocytes, log urine albumin:creatinine ratio and liver function, the ferritin level of postmenopausal women in the fourth quartile had a 1·587-fold increased risk of carotid plaques relative to those in the lowest quartile. In conclusion, these results suggest that serum ferritin is independently and positively associated with carotid atherosclerosis in postmenopausal women and that ferritin may be implicated in atherosclerosis.

This article is to discuss the bilinear and linear immersed finite element (IFE) solutions generated from the algebraic multigrid solver for both stationary and moving interface problems. For the numerical methods based on finite difference formulation and a structured mesh independent of the interface, the stiffness matrix of the linear system is usually not symmetric positive-definite, which demands extra efforts to design efficient multigrid methods. On the other hand, the stiffness matrix arising from the IFE methods are naturally symmetric positive-definite. Hence the IFE-AMG algorithm is proposed to solve the linear systems of the bilinear and linear IFE methods for both stationary and moving interface problems. The numerical examples demonstrate the features of the proposed algorithms, including the optimal convergence in both L2 and semi-H1 norms of the IFE-AMG solutions, the high efficiency with proper choice of the components and parameters of AMG, the influence of the tolerance and the smoother type of AMG on the convergence of the IFE solutions for the interface problems, and the relationship between the cost and the moving interface location.

Let Ω ⊂ ℝN be a bounded domain such that 0 ∈ Ω, N ≥ 3, 2*(s) = 2(N − s)/(N − 2), 0 ≤ s < 2, . We obtain the existence of infinitely many solutions for the singular critical problem with Dirichlet boundary condition for suitable positive number λ.

Diamondlike carbon-nitrogen films on silicon (111) wafer and tungsten carbide plates have been prepared by using dual ion beam sputtering deposition and simultaneous bombardment by N+ with energies of 100-800 eV at room temperature. These films retain their diamondlike characteristics. However, as the nitrogen content increases from 10% at to 20% at., the Auger electron spectroscopy spectra of films change obviously in fine structure and the main Cls peak of carbon atoms in the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra shifts to 285.65 eV. The maximum hardness of these films on tungsten carbide plates is about 5260 kg/mm2. The films have an amorphous structure and smooth surface. The state of nitrogen in films and its influence on the structure and properties of films are discussed.

Patterned epitaxial GaAs films have been formed on Si substrates by either growth over patterned substrate (selective -area epitaxy) or chemical etching of patterns after growth. The optical properties of these samples are studied by 77K photoluminescence (PL) and the defect structures are investigated by transmission electron microscope (TEM). The patterned substrate consisted of bare Si stripes with width ranging from 10 µm to 100 µm surrounded by Si3N4 films on both sides and a reference area of bare Si. For 1.5 µmiann d 3 µm thick films, PL intensities from the films inside the 10 µm stripe shows 140% and 75% increase over unpatterned areas while the residual tensile stress in the patterned films is very similar to that of the unpatterned area. The increase in the photoluminescence intensity is ascribed to the reduction of crystalline defects inside the the window area. In the chemically etched sample, the pattern consisted of 4 µm by 4 µm squares and 1 mm long stripes with widths ranging from 100 µm to 4 plm. From the shift of PL peaks, a monotonic decrease in the tensile stress versus stripe width is observed. In particular, when the width of the stripe is less than 7 µm. tensile stress becomes essentially uniaxial in agreement with the results obtained by Yacobi et al [16] on a GaAs on InP sample. The polarization of the luminescence spectra parallel and perpendicular to the uniaxial stress of a 4 µm wide stripe agrees well with theoretical prediction. It is also observed that tensile stress is almost completely relieved in the 4 µm by 4 muentc hed squares.