Effects of the Interaction Between Reaction Component of Personal Need for Structure and Role Perceptions on Employee Attitudes in Long-Term Care for Elderly People

This study examined the interaction of reaction component of personal need for structure (reaction to lack of structure, RLS) and role perceptions in predicting job satisfaction, job involvement, affective commitment, and occupational identity among employees working in long-term care for elderly people. High-RLS employees experienced more role conflict, had less job satisfaction, and experienced lower levels of occupational identity than did low-RLS employees. We found individual differences in how problems in roles affected employees' job attitudes. High-RLS employees experienced lower levels of job satisfaction, job involvement, and affective commitment, irrespective of role-conflict levels. Low-RLS employees experienced detrimental job attitudes only if role-conflict levels were high. Our results suggest that high-RLS people benefit less from low levels of experienced role conflicts.

Influence of molten-state annealing on the phase structure and crystallization behaviour of high impact polypropylene copolymer

The phase structure evolution of high impact polypropylene copolymer (IPC) during molten-state annealing and its influence on crystallization behaviour were studied. An entirely different architecture of the IPC melt was observed after being annealed, and this architecture resulted in variations of the crystallization behaviour. In addition, it was found that the core-shell structure of the dispersed phase was completely destroyed and the sizes of the dispersed domains increased sharply after being annealed at 200 degrees C for 200 min. Through examination of the coarseness of the phase morphology using phase contrast microscopy (PCM), it was found that a co-continuous structure and an abnormal 'sea-island' structure generally appeared with an increase in annealing time. The original matrix PP component appeared as a dispersed phase, whereas the copolymer components formed a continuous 'sea-island' structure. This change is ascribed to the large tension induced by solidification at the phase interface and the great content difference between the components. When the temperature was reduced the structure reverted to its original form. With increasing annealing time, the spherulite profiles became more defined and the spherulite birefringence changed from vague to clear. Overall crystallization rates and nucleation densities decreased, but the spherulite radial growth rates remained almost constant, indicating that molten-state annealing mainly affects the nucleation ability of IPC, due to a coarsened microstructure and decreased interface area. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Parasitic peptides! The structure and function of neuropeptides in parasitic worms

Parasitic worms come from two very different phyla-Platyhelminthes (flatworms) and Nematoda (roundworms). Although both phyla possess nervous systems with highly developed peptidergic components. there are key differences in the structure and action of native neuropeptides in the two groups. For example, the most abundant neuropeptide known in platyhelminths is the pancreatic polypeptide-like neuropeptide F, whereas the most prevalent neuropeptides in nematodes an FMRFamide-related peptides (FaRPs), which are also present in platyhelminths. With respect to neuropeptide diversity, platyhelminth species possess only one or two distinct FaRPs, whereas nematodes have upwards of 50 unique FaRPs. FaRP bioactivity in platyhelminths appears to be restricted to myoexcitation, whereas both excitatory and inhibitory effects have been reported in nematodes. Recently interest has focused on the peptidergic signaling systems of both phyla because elucidation of these systems will do much to clarify the basic biology of the worms and because the peptidergic systems hold the promise of yielding novel targets for a new generation of antiparasitic drugs. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

APEASPFIRFamide, a novel FMRFamide-related decapeptide from Caenorhabditis elegans: Structure and myoactivity

To date, 9 FMRF amide-related peptides (FaRPs) have been identified in Caenorhabditis elegans. Eight of these peptides are encoded on the flp-1 gene. However, AF2 (KHEYLRF amide) which was not co-encoded was the most abundant FaRP identified in ethanolic extracts. Further radioimmunometrical screening of acidified ethanol extracts of C. elegans has revealed the presence of other novel FaRPs, which are not encoded on the flp-l gene. One of these peptides has been isolated by sequential rpHPLC and subjected to Edman degradation analysis and gas-phase sequencing and the unequivocal primary structure of the decapeptide Ala-Pro-Glu-Ala-Ser-Pro-Phe-Ile-Arg-Phe-NH2 was determined following a single gas-phase sequencing run. The molecular mass of the peptide was found to be 1133.7 Ha, determined using a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. Synthetic replicates of this peptide were found to induce a profound relaxation of both dorsal and ventral somatic muscle-strip preparations of Ascaris suum with a threshold for activity of 10 nM. The inhibitory response was not dependent on the presence of nerve cords, indicating a post-synaptic site-of-action. The relaxation was Ca++- and Cl--independent but was abolished in high-KI medium and could be distinguished from those of other inhibitory nematode FaRPs, including PF1 (SDPNFLRFamide)and PF1 (KPNFIRF amide). (C) 1997 Academic Press.

Evolution of Organisational Structure and Capabilities in Internationalising Banks: The CEE Operations of UniCredit's Vienna Office

Cross-border integration is the central management issue for banks that expand internationally, and this is especially true in Central and Eastern Europe, where the pace of internationalisation through mergers and acquisitions has been rapid. A critical challenge in cross-border integration is aligning a multinational company's formal organizational structure with the distribution of capabilities across its subsidiary units, and this issue is explored by tracking the co-evolution of organizational structure and capabilities during the internationalisation of a large banking network into this region. Our focus is the Vienna head office of Bank Austria Creditanstalt, which was acquired first by HypoVereinsbank (Germany) and then UniCredit (Italy). Despite its formal role being downgraded during these changes, the unit continued to develop its distinctive capabilities. The key insight our article offers is that managing cross-border integration is not simply about recognizing the value of the distinctive capabilities of individual units and designing formal structures that successfully align with them. It is also about understanding the need for dynamic interaction between formal corporate structure and individual units' desires to retain power and influence, which have significant implications for the development of their organizational capabilities.

Impacts of sewage outfalls on rocky shores: incorporating scale, biotic assemblage structure and variability into monitoring tools.

Coastal systems, such as rocky shores, are among the most heavily anthropogenically-impacted marine ecosystems and are also among the most productive in terms of ecosystem functioning. One of the greatest impacts on coastal ecosystems is nutrient enrichment from human activities such as agricultural run-off and discharge of sewage. The aim of this study was to identify and characterise potential effects of sewage discharges on the biotic diversity of rocky shores and to test current tools for assessing the ecological status of rocky shores in line with the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD). A sampling strategy was designed to test for effects of sewage outfalls on rocky shore assemblages on the east coast of Ireland and to identify the scale of the putative impact. In addition, a separate sampling programme based on the Reduced algal Species List (RSL), the current WFD monitoring tool for rocky shores in Ireland and the UK, was also completed by identifying algae and measuring percent cover in replicate samples on rocky shores during Summer. There was no detectable effect of sewage outfalls on benthic taxon diversity or assemblage structure. However, spatial variability of assemblages was greater at sites proximal or adjacent to sewage outfalls compared to shores without sewage outfalls present. Results based on the RSL, show that algal assemblages were not affected by the presence of sewage outfalls, except when classed into functional groups when variability was greater at the sites with sewage outfalls. A key finding of both surveys, was the prevalence of spatial and temporal variation of assemblages. It is recommended that future metrics of ecological status are based on quantified sampling designs, incorporate changes in variability of assemblages (indicative of community stability), consider shifts in assemblage structure and include both benthic fauna and flora to assess the status of rocky shores.

Structure and function of sedoheptulose-7-phosphate isomerase, a critical enzyme for lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and a target for antibiotic adjuvants

The barrier imposed by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria presents a significant challenge in treatment of these organisms with otherwise effective hydrophobic antibiotics. The absence of L-glycero-D-manno-heptose in the LPS molecule is associated with a dramatically increased bacterial susceptibility to hydrophobic antibiotics and thus enzymes in the ADP-heptose biosynthesis pathway are of significant interest. GmhA catalyzes the isomerization of D-sedoheptulose 7-phosphate into D-glycero-D-manno-heptose 7-phosphate, the first committed step in the formation of ADP-heptose. Here we report structures of GmhA from Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in apo, substrate, and product-bound forms, which together suggest that GmhA adopts two distinct conformations during isomerization through reorganization of quaternary structure. Biochemical characterization of GmhA mutants, combined with in vivo analysis of LPS biosynthesis and novobiocin susceptibility, identifies key catalytic residues. We postulate GmhA acts through an enediol-intermediate isomerase mechanism.

Molecular cloning, expression, and regulation in Escherichia coli K-12 of a chromosome-mediated aerobactin iron transport system from a human invasive isolate of E. coli K1

We have cloned chromosomal genes determining the aerobactin iron transport system from the Escherichia coli K1 strain VW187. Mapping and hybridization experiments showed that the VW187 aerobactin region was identical to that of the plasmid ColV-K30. However, in the E. coli K-12 background, the biosynthesis of both siderophore and ferric aerobactin receptor encoded by the VW187-derived recombinant plasmids was not repressed by iron to the same extent found when a recombinant plasmid derived from pColV-K30 was used. RNA-DNA dot-blot hybridization experiments demonstrated that the aerobactin-specific mRNA synthesized by the VW187-derived clones was not iron regulated in E. coli K-12. In contrast, the synthesis of aerobactin and its receptor in strain VW187 was completely repressed by iron regardless of whether the recombinant plasmids originated from VW187 or pColV-K30. Similar results were obtained with gene fusions in which a promoterless lac operon was placed under the control of aerobactin promoter regions of either chromosome- or plasmid-mediated aerobactin systems. DNA sequencing of the chromosomal aerobactin promoter region showed changes in bases located immediately upstream to the -35 region compared with the corresponding region in pColV-K30, which is known to be part of the binding site for the Fur repressor protein.

Unraveling the Structure and Function of G Protein-Coupled Receptors Through NMR Spectroscopy

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are a large superfamily of signaling proteins expressed on the plasma membrane. They are involved in a wide range of physiological processes and, therefore, are exploited as drug targets in a multitude of therapeutic areas. In this extent, knowledge of structural and functional properties of GPCRs may greatly facilitate rational design of modulator compounds. Solution and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy represents a powerful method to gather atomistic insights into protein structure and dynamics. In spite of the difficulties inherent the solution of the structure of membrane proteins through NMR, these methods have been successfully applied, sometimes in combination with molecular modeling, to the determination of the structure of GPCR fragments, the mapping of receptor-ligand interactions, and the study of the conformational changes associated with the activation of the receptors. In this review, we provide a summary of the NMR contributions to the study of the structure and function of GPCRs, also in light of the published crystal structures.