scholarly journals Opening the Gap: Rare Lichens With Rare Cyanobionts – Unexpected Cyanobiont Diversity in Cyanobacterial Lichens of the Order Lichinales

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Jung ◽  
Katharina Brust ◽  
Matthias Schultz ◽  
Burkhard Büdel ◽  
Antje Donner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Nitrogen Fixation ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
The Novel ◽  
New Genera ◽  
Its Gene ◽  
Staining Techniques ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Cyanobacterial Lichens

The last decades of research led to a change in understanding of lichens that are now seen as self-sustaining micro-ecosystems, harboring diverse microbial organisms in tight but yet not fully understood relationships. Among the diverse interdependencies, the relationship between the myco- and photobiont is the most crucial, determining the shape, and ecophysiological properties of the symbiotic consortium. Roughly 10% of lichens associate with cyanobacteria as their primary photobiont, termed cyanolichens. Up to now, the diversity of cyanobionts of bipartite lichens resolved by modern phylogenetic approaches is restricted to the filamentous and heterocytous genera of the order Nostocales. Unicellular photobionts were placed in the orders Chroococcales, Pleurocapsales, and Chroococcidiopsidales. However, especially the phylogeny and taxonomy of the Chroococcidiopsidales genera remained rather unclear. Here we present new data on the identity and phylogeny of photobionts from cyanolichens of the genera Gonohymenia, Lichinella, Peccania, and Peltula from a broad geographical range. A polyphasic approach was used, combining morphological and cultivation-depending characteristics (microscopy, staining techniques, life cycle observation, baeocyte motility, and nitrogen fixation test) with phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA and 16S–23S ITS gene region. We found an unexpectedly high cyanobiont diversity in the cyanobacterial lichens of the order Lichinales, including two new genera and seven new species, all of which were not previously perceived as lichen symbionts. As a result, we describe the novel unicellular Chroococcidiopsidales genera Pseudocyanosarcina gen. nov. with the species Pseudocyanosarcina phycocyania sp. nov. (from Peltula clavata, Australia) and Compactococcus gen. nov. with the species Compactococcus sarcinoides sp. nov. (from Gonohymenia sp., Australia) and the new Chroococcidiopsidales species Aliterella compacta sp. nov. (from Peltula clavata, Australia), Aliterella gigantea sp. nov. (from Peltula capensis; South Africa), Sinocapsa ellipsoidea sp. nov. (from Peccania cerebriformis, Austria), as well as the two new Nostocales species Komarekiella gloeocapsoidea sp. nov. (from Gonohymenia sp., Czechia) and Komarekiella globosa sp. nov. (from Lichinella cribellifera, Canary Islands, Spain). Our study highlights the role of cyanolichens acting as a key in untangling cyanobacterial taxonomy and diversity. With this study, we hope to stimulate further research on photobionts, especially of rare cyanolichens.

The role and relationship of mindreading and social attunement in HRI – position statements of interdisciplinary researchers. Workshop HRI'20

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Wykowska ◽  
Jairo Pérez-Osorio ◽  
Stefan Kopp
Keyword(s):  
Mental States ◽  
Human Robot Interaction ◽  
Human Interaction ◽  
Artificial Agents ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Robot Interaction ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

This booklet is a collection of the position statements accepted for the HRI’20 conference workshop “Social Cognition for HRI: Exploring the relationship between mindreading and social attunement in human-robot interaction” (Wykowska, Perez-Osorio & Kopp, 2020). Unfortunately, due to the rapid unfolding of the novel coronavirus at the beginning of the present year, the conference and consequently our workshop, were canceled. On the light of these events, we decided to put together the positions statements accepted for the workshop. The contributions collected in these pages highlight the role of attribution of mental states to artificial agents in human-robot interaction, and precisely the quality and presence of social attunement mechanisms that are known to make human interaction smooth, efficient, and robust. These papers also accentuate the importance of the multidisciplinary approach to advance the understanding of the factors and the consequences of social interactions with artificial agents.

scholarly journals Non-bank financial institutions and economic growth: Evidence from Africa’s three largest economies

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald Rateiwa ◽  
Meshach J. Aziakpono
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Time Series Data ◽  
Bank Lending ◽  
Series Data ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Long Run ◽  
The Relationship

Background: In order for the post-2015 world development agenda – termed the sustainable development goals (SDGs) – to succeed, there is a pronounced need to ensure that available resources are used more effectively and additional financing is accessed from the private sector. Given that traditional bank lending has slowed down, the development of non-bank financing has become imperative. To this end, this article intends to empirically test the role of non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) in stimulating economic growth.Aim: The aim of this article is to empirically test the existence of a long-run equilibrium relationship between economic growth and the development of NBFIs, and the causality thereof.Setting: The empirical assessment uses time-series data from Africa’s three largest economies, namely, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa, over the period 1971–2013.Methods: This article uses the Johansen cointegration and vector error correction model within a country-specific setting.Results: The results showed that the long-run relationship between NBFI development and economic growth is relatively stronger in Egypt and South Africa, than in Nigeria. Evidence in respect of Nigeria shows that such a relationship is weak. The nature of the relationship between NBFI development and economic growth in Egypt is positive and significant, and predominantly bidirectional. This suggests that a virtuous relationship between NBFIs and economic growth exists in Egypt. In South Africa, the relationship is positive and significant and predominantly runs from NBFI development to economic growth, implying a supply-leading phenomenon. In Nigeria, the results are weak and mixed.Conclusion: The study concludes that in countries with more developed financial systems, the role of NBFIs and their importance to the economic growth process are more pronounced. Thus, there is need for developing policies targeted at developing the NBFI sector, given their potential to contribute to economic growth.

The Relationship Between Attachment Orientations and University Adjustment Among Freshmen: Mediating Role of Perceived Stress

2020 ◽  
pp. 152102512096201
Author(s):  
Ayşe I. Kural ◽  
Berrin Özyurt
Keyword(s):  
Perceived Stress ◽  
Attachment Security ◽  
Attachment Anxiety ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Management Skills ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Attachment Orientations ◽  
University Adjustment ◽  
The Relationship

In the current study, we examine the novel hypothesis that perceived stress is a mechanism through which the relationship between attachment orientations and university adjustment can be explained. Present study explored both attachment orientations and perceived stress regarding adjustment; and perceived stress as mediator for the relationship between attachment orientations and adjustment among in 277 university freshmen. Attachment anxiety and avoidance positively correlated with perceived stress whereas resulted in poor university adjustment. Perceived stress partially mediated the relationship between attachment anxiety and poor university adjustment. The findings suggest that enhancing attachment security and stress management skills among insecurely attached students may lead to greater university adjustment.

scholarly journals Complex interactions in legume/cereal intercropping system: role of root exudates in root-to-root communication

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yinshan Jiao ◽  
Entao Wang ◽  
Wenfeng Chen ◽  
Donald L. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Fixation ◽  
Root Exudates ◽  
Faba Bean ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Corn Root ◽  
Complex Interactions ◽  
Root Interactions ◽  
Ecological Principles

Dear Editor,Legume/cereal intercropping systems have been regarded as the practical application of basic ecological principles such as diversity, competition and facilitation. In a recent PNAS paper, Li et al. (1) describe the novel finding that maize exudates promote faba bean nodulation and nitrogen fixation by upregulating genes involved in (iso)flavonoids synthesis (chalcone–flavanone isomerase) within faba bean, resulting in production of more genistein, a legume-to-rhizobia signal during establishment of the faba bean N2–fixing symbiosis. Although we salute the authors’ methodological efforts, there is another mechanism that could be responsible for the effect of corn root exudates on faba been nitrogen fixation observed in this article (1). The authors may misunderstand their data and the signalling role of maize exudates, thus got a defective model for the root interactions between faba bean and maize.

Introduction: Religion and the Novel

2019 ◽  
pp. 3-33
Author(s):  
Christina Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Postcolonial Studies ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Postcolonial Literature ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Religion And Literature ◽  
Religious Other ◽  
Role Of Religion ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter introduces the topic of religion and literature, theorises the novel as a secular genre, and develops a concept of religion as the other in the Arabic novel. It begins with a discussion of the relationship between religion and literature, identifying imagination, metaphorical language and mythos as areas of overlap, before turning to the question of religion and the Arabic novel as a modern form which eschews faith and dogma but is nevertheless packed with religious themes, images, characters, language and intertextuality. This is accounted for by the form’s secularism, which is theorised in terms of Charles Taylor’s conditions of belief. Literary secularism is not static and stable however, thus religion emerges as the other in the Egyptian novel, with all the ambivalence which alterity characteristically entails. This religious other calls into question postcolonial studies’ over-valorisation of the East/West binary insofar as it has obscured the critical role of religion in Arab postcolonial literature and identity.

scholarly journals Winery website loyalty: the role of sales promotion and service attributes

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 138-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Eric Pelet ◽  
Benoît Lecat ◽  
Jashim Khan ◽  
Sharyn Rundle-Thiele ◽  
Linda W. Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
International Perspective ◽  
Sales Promotion ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Probability Criterion ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Purposive Sample

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between feelings toward buying wine on mobile phones and m-commerce website loyalty by examining the mediating role of sales promotion and the moderating role of service attributes of the m-commerce websites in influencing the mediation. Design/methodology/approach A total of 3,318 completed surveys were collected. Drawing on a large non-probability criterion-based purposive sample across six countries (France, Germany, Greece, South Africa, USA and Canada), mediation analysis was performed to examine the hypothesized relationships. Findings Results show that sales promotion mediates the relationship between feelings toward buying wine on mobile phones and m-commerce website loyalty. Moderated mediation reveals that the indirect pathways (sales promotion) through which feelings toward buying wine over mobile exert its effect on m-commerce website loyalty are dependent on the value of service (wine delivery) attributes of the website. The results demonstrate that sales promotion and service are of paramount importance to wineries and wine marketers. Research limitations/implications Wine producers and retailers should consider the use of sales promotion to enhance sales and loyalty to m-commerce websites. Practical implications Wine producers and retailers should consider use sales promotion (such as SMS or push notifications) to enhance sales and influence consumer feelings and hence their loyalty. Originality/value Wine m-commerce studies are limited, especially with an international perspective comparing six different countries: three from the old world (France, Germany and Greece) and three from the new world (North America with USA and Canada; and South Africa). Altogether, these six countries represent around 40 per cent of the world’s wine consumption.

Death obsession’s potential mediational role in the relation between pregnancy-related anxiety and prenatal obsessive-compulsive disorder

2020 ◽  
pp. 008124632096153
Author(s):  
Sadi Cordelia Bambo ◽  
Solomon Mashegoane
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Obsessive Compulsive ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Mediator Role ◽  
Mediational Role ◽  
Composite Scores ◽  
The Relationship

The study investigated the mediator role of death obsession in the relationship between pregnancy-related anxiety and prenatal obsessive-compulsive disorder among pregnant women in the Capricorn district, South Africa. Two hundred and six conveniently selected respondents completed questionnaires individually. Statistically significant associations were found between pregnancy-related anxiety and death obsession, death obsession and prenatal obsessive-compulsive disorder, and pregnancy-related anxiety and prenatal obsessive-compulsive disorder ( ps ⩽ .05). Analysis further showed that death obsession mediates the relationship between pregnancy-related anxiety and both composite scores of a prenatal obsessive-compulsive disorder measure (Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory–Revised) and most of its components. The findings suggest that death obsession is a likely mediator that has to be studied further.

Relationship between competitive strategy and construction organisation performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 54 (9) ◽  
pp. 2340-2366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luqman Oyekunle Oyewobi ◽  
Abimbola Olukemi Windapo ◽  
James Olabode Bamidele Rotimi ◽  
Richard Ajayi Jimoh
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Strategic Management ◽  
Competitive Strategy ◽  
Management Style ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Organisational Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the possible moderating role of organisational characteristics (organisational structure, management style and decision-making style) in the relationship between strategy and organisational performance among large construction organisations in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a quantitative research approach using a questionnaire survey to obtain data from 72 large construction organisations in South Africa. Using hierarchical multiple regression, the paper examines the relationship between the constructs discussed in the study. Findings The internal characteristics of the organisation form the vital basis for achieving optimal performance. The results obtained from the analysis revealed that decision-making style directly influences the measure of organisational effectiveness, while it could also be inferred that organisational characteristics partly moderate the relationship between competitive strategy and organisational performance. The findings indicate that internal characteristics is one of the means through which organisational strategic factors and contextual aspects are organised to achieve greater organisational performance levels. Originality/value The findings have theoretical implications for strategic management literature in construction as it extends the scope of research on strategic management from assessing a set of individual management practices to evaluating a complex mechanism that connects internal characteristics and competitive advantage. It is believed that this study will contribute positively to the role of organisational characteristics in the competitive strategy-performance relationships in large construction organisations in South Africa and to the ongoing discussion on emerging strategic management issues in construction.

scholarly journals The Representation of Cyprus’s Trauma in Andrea Busfield’s Aphrodite’s War: Conflict or Dialogue?

2017 ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Ingrida Eglė Žindžiuvienė
Keyword(s):  
Collective Memory ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Collective Trauma ◽  
Narrative Strategies ◽  
Transgenerational Trauma ◽  
Trauma Narrative ◽  
National Trauma ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Trauma Fiction

The aim of this article is to examine the representation of the events in Cyprus in the middle and second half of the twentieth century as depicted in Andrea Busfield’s novel Aphrodite’s War (2010). The article discusses the methods and narrative strategies of disclosing collective trauma and considers the fact-fiction dimension, arguing the presence of it in a trauma narrative. Narrative strategies in trauma fiction are discussed and the author’s approach to the restatement of the national trauma is analysed. It is debated whether the novel can be described as a post-trauma testimony and whether the narrative is constructed on unified memory concepts. Postmemory is viewed within the framework of transgenerational trauma and the role of collective memory in the transmission of trauma is emphasised. Based on the ethical charge of the narrative, the reader’s status in the relationship with a trauma novel is questioned.

scholarly journals La microbiota del tracto digestivo de camarones peneidos: una perspectiva histórica y estado del arte//The gut microbiota of penaeid shrimp: a historical perspective and state of the art

Biotecnia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-16
Author(s):  
Estefanía Garibay-Valdez ◽  
Marcel Martínez-Porchas ◽  
Kadiya Calderón ◽  
Teresa Gollas-Galván ◽  
Luis R. Martínez- Córdova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Digestive Tract ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Total Population ◽  
New Records ◽  
Penaeid Shrimp ◽  
Molecular Techniques ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Relevant Role ◽  
The Relationship

La microbiota del tracto digestivo es diversa y provee grandes beneficios al hospedero; participando en múltiples funciones relacionadas con su estado de salud, nutrición y crecimiento. Recientemente ha cobrado relevancia el estudio del papel de la microbiota en organismos de importancia acuícola, incluyendo a camarones peneidos. Los estudios pioneros en conocer la relación de los microorganismos en el desarrollo de camarones peneidos utilizaron técnicas dependientes de cultivo. A pesar de los novedosos hallazgos, esto representó solo una pequeña fracción del total de la población; sin embargo, estas primeras aproximaciones permitieron vislumbrar el rol relevante de la microbiota en la biología de estos crustáceos. Más tarde, el desarrollo de métodos basados en técnicas moleculares extendió el panorama con nuevos registros de bacterias no cultivables en estos ambientes, elucidando el efecto de diversos factores incluyendo dieta, antibióticos, probióticos, prebióticos y enfermedades sobre la modulación de la microbiota del tracto digestivo. Sin embargo, el desarrollo de técnicas de secuenciación masiva de alto rendimiento, comenzó a proporcionar bases de datos más robustas, permitiendo conocer no solo qué microorganismos están presentes en un organismo dado, sino también conocer sus funciones y roles potenciales. Hasta el momento se cuenta con descripciones de la composición de la microbiota del tracto digestivo de camarones peneidos y del como el manejo de estos microorganimos tiene beneficios en la respuesta productiva y estado de salud; sin embargo, es necesario continuar comprendiendo la relación microbiotahospedero. La presente revisión analiza la situación actual y plantea las perspectivas futuras para el estudio de la microbiota de camarones peneidos.ABSTRACTThe digestive tract microbiota is diverse and can provide great benefits to the host, participating in multiple functions related to its health, nutrition and growth. Recently, the microbiota study of important aquaculture species including penaeid shrimp has gained relevance. The first research efforts in the knowledge of the relationship between microorganisms and penaeid shrimp development used culture-dependent techniques. In spite of the novel findings, this represented only a small fraction of the total population; however, these first approaches allowed knowing the relevant role of microbiota in the biology of these crustaceans. Later, the development of methods based on molecular techniques, increased the panorama with new records of nonculturable bacteria in these environments, elucidating the effect of diverse factors including diet, antibiotics, probiotics, prebiotics, and disease on the digestive tract microbiota modulation. However, the rise of high throughput sequencing, began providing robust datasets, allowing to know not only which microbes are present in a given organism, but reveal their functions and potential roles. So far, descriptions of the microbiota composition of the digestive tract of penaeid shrimp are available, as well as on how the management of these microorganisms benefits the productive response and health status; however, it is necessary to continue comprehending the microbiota-host relationship. The present review analyzes the current situation and future perspectives in the study of penaeid shrimp microbiota

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