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Background: Preeclampsia is one of the three leading causes of worldwide maternal mortality. Oxidative stress-mediated endothelial damage is expected to be an ultimate common mechanism in the pathophysiology of preeclampsia. The role of bioamines is also well-established in the induction of preeclampsia. This project is aimed to understand the factors which may affect the induction, progression, and aggravation of preeclampsia and oxidative stress during pregnancy. This study will explore the methylation pattern of the Catechol-O-methyltransferase gene to determine its role in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia, association of Val158Met polymorphism with a wide range of oxidative stress biomarkers, major antioxidants vitamins, and blood pressure regulating amines in preeclamptic Pakistani women. Methods and analysis: In this prospective case-control study, 85 preeclamptic and 85 normotensive pregnant women will be recruited in their third trimesters. DNA will be extracted from peripheral blood and Val158Met polymorphism in the Catechol-O-methyltransferase gene will be examined on PCR amplified product digested with Hin1II (NlaIII) restriction enzyme, further validated by Sanger sequencing. Methylation-sensitive PCR will also be performed. Oxidative stress biomarkers, antioxidant vitamins, bioamines, and catechol-O-methyltransferase levels will be measured by ELISA. The data will be used to correlate maternal and fetal outcomes in both groups. Discussion: This study will help to identify and understand the multifactorial path and cause-effect relationship of gene polymorphism, oxidative stress biomarkers, major antioxidants vitamins, and blood pressure regulating amines in the pathogenesis and aggravation of preeclampsia in the Pakistani population. The outcome of this project will be particularly helpful in reducing the incidence of preeclampsia and further improving its management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nutrient‐sensing plays a crucial role in maintaining cellular energy and metabolic homeostasis. Perturbations in sensing pathways are associated with a wide variety of pathologies, especially metabolic diseases. Very little is understood about sensing fluctuations in nutrients and how this information is integrated into physiological and metabolic adaptation that could further affect cell‐fate decisions during differentiation in Dictyostelium discoideum (henceafter, Dictyostelium). Glucose is the primary metabolic fuel among all nutrients. Carbohydrates, lipids and proteins ultimately breakdown into glucose, which is further used for providing energy. The maintenance of optimum glucose levels is important for efficient cell‐survival. Glucose is not only a nutrient, but also a signaling molecule influencing cell growth and differentiation in Dictyostelium. Modulation of endogenous glucose levels either by varying exogenous glucose levels or genetic overexpression or deletion of genes involved in glucose signaling lead to changes in endogenous metabolite levels such as ADP/ATP ratio, NAD+/NADH ratio, cAMP and ROS levels which further influence cell‐fate decisions. Here, we show that AMPKα and Sir2D are components of glucose‐signaling pathway in Dictyostelium which adjust cell metabolism interdependently in response to nutrient‐status and promote cell‐fate decisions. Significance statement: The present study investigates the effect of varying concentrations of exogenous glucose on metabolic status of the cell that further influence both growth and differentiation in Dictyostelium. It also highlights the role of AMPKα and Sir2D in the regulation of glucose metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite extensive scholarly inquiry into destructive leadership, research on leaders' self‐serving and exploitative behaviour is in its initial stages. This multi‐study investigation contributes to this body of literature. Study 1 was conducted to test the serial mediation of state suspicion (SS) and supervisor‐based cynicism between exploitative leadership and employee procrastination. It involved collecting single‐source time‐lagged data from textile industry employees in Pakistan. Study 2 replicated the findings of study 1 in the information technology (IT) industry by using multi‐source time‐lagged data. It extended the suggested model by proposing negative workplace gossip about supervisors as an outcome of exploitative leadership and employee procrastination. The results of study 1 (N = 279) and study 2 (N = 244) supported the serial mediation of SS and supervisor‐based cynicism between exploitative leadership and employee outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between employees' experience of interpersonal conflict and their engagement in knowledge hiding, according to a mediating effect of their relatedness need frustration and a moderating effect of their narcissistic rivalry. Design/methodology/approach: The tests of the hypotheses rely on three-wave, time-lagged data collected among employees in Pakistan. Findings: A critical reason that emotion-based fights stimulate people to conceal valuable knowledge from their coworkers is that these employees believe their needs for belongingness or relatedness are not being met. This mediating role of relatedness need frustration is particularly salient among employees who are self-centered and see others as rivals, with no right to fight with or give them a hard time. Practical implications: The findings indicate how organizations might mitigate the risk that negative relationship dynamics among their employees escalate into dysfunctional knowledge hiding behavior. They should work to hire and retain employees who are benevolent and encourage them to see colleagues as allies instead of rivals. Originality/value: This research unpacks the link between interpersonal conflict and knowledge hiding by explicating the unexplored roles of two critical factors (relatedness need frustration and narcissistic rivalry) in this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between employees' experience of interpersonal conflict and their engagement in knowledge hiding, according to a mediating effect of their relatedness need frustration and a moderating effect of their narcissistic rivalry. Design/methodology/approach: The tests of the hypotheses rely on three-wave, time-lagged data collected among employees in Pakistan. Findings: A critical reason that emotion-based fights stimulate people to conceal valuable knowledge from their coworkers is that these employees believe their needs for belongingness or relatedness are not being met. This mediating role of relatedness need frustration is particularly salient among employees who are self-centered and see others as rivals, with no right to fight with or give them a hard time. Practical implications: The findings indicate how organizations might mitigate the risk that negative relationship dynamics among their employees escalate into dysfunctional knowledge hiding behavior. They should work to hire and retain employees who are benevolent and encourage them to see colleagues as allies instead of rivals. Originality/value: This research unpacks the link between interpersonal conflict and knowledge hiding by explicating the unexplored roles of two critical factors (relatedness need frustration and narcissistic rivalry) in this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite promoting positive employee outcomes, servant leaders may become the victim of manipulation by followers. The current study investigates this underexplored side of servant leadership by examining the employee-related outcomes of the interaction between servant leadership and follower Machiavellianism through mediating mechanism of exploitative manipulative behavior. It is argued that employees high in Machiavellianism engage in exploitative manipulative behavior to achieve subjective career success and social power while working with a servant leader. We used PROCESS macro to analyze our mediation and moderated mediation hypotheses, respectively. We collected data in a time-lagged design (three-time lags) from 320 dyads (self and peer) responses from service sector organizations. The results fully supported our hypotheses. Limitations and future research directions are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate how employees' impression management behavior, targeted upward at organizational leaders, relates to their peer-rated organizational influence, this study considers both a mediating role of peer-rated workplace popularity and a moderating role of self-rated social dominance orientation. Multisource, three-wave data from employees and their peers in the power-distant, collectivistic country of Pakistan reveal that upward impression management behavior, despite raising some potential organizational concerns, is associated with peer-rated workplace popularity for employees, who in turn can wield greater influence over colleagues. The mediating role of peer-rated workplace popularity also is more prominent to the extent that employees accept social hierarchies, because this orientation makes their use of upward impression management tactics to advance their own and their peers' personal interests more purposeful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study tested the (a) impact of exploitative leadership on psychological distress of nurses via negative affectivity and (b) moderating role of psychological detachment from work between exploitative leadership and negative affectivity. Background: Destructive leadership, particularly exploitative leadership, has been less studied earlier in nursing research. Additionally, underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions that exist between exploitative leadership and negative employee outcomes were also missing in the nursing literature. Methods: This is a quantitative study in which temporally segregated data were collected from nurses (N = 231) working in Pakistani hospitals through questionnaires. Results: Negative affectivity mediates the relationship between exploitative leadership and psychological distress among nurses, and psychological detachment from work weakens exploitative leadership and negative affectivity relationship. Conclusions: Exploitative leadership yields negative employee outcomes in the form of negative affectivity and psychological distress; however, these negative outcomes can be reduced through psychological detachment from work. Implications for Nursing Management: It is among the pioneer studies to unveil the exploitative side of leadership and its negative consequences for nurses. Psychological distress among nurses can be reduced by discouraging leader exploitative behaviour. Nurses could utilize psychological detachment from work as a tool to reduce negative outcomes of leader exploitative behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With a basis in the transactional theory of stress and coping, this study investigates the relationship between employees' exposure to workplace ostracism and their job performance, while also considering the mediating role of acquiescence silence and the moderating role of mindfulness. Multisource, three-wave data from employees and their peers in Pakistani organizations reveal that ostracism in the workplace hinders job performance because employees passively withhold relevant ideas about their work due to feelings of acquiescence. The mediating role of acquiescence silence is mitigated if employees can draw from their mindfulness trait. This study accordingly identifies a key mechanism – the passive withholding of pertinent ideas, based on submission – by which workplace ostracism hampers job performance, and it reveals how this process might be contained by encouraging employees' receptive attention and awareness focused on present experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the mediating effects of defensive silence and emotional exhaustion between ostracism and interpersonal deviance, explained through transactional theory of stress and coping. Time-lagged and multi-source data was collected at two measurement points from 320 employees, working in service sector organizations of Pakistan. Employees appraise ostracism as an uncontrollable interpersonal stressor that threatens their relational and efficacy needs. They try to deal with this threat through an avoidant coping approach and resort to interpersonal deviance, via a cognitive path and an emotional route, namely defensive silence and emotional exhaustion. Our results show that workplace ostracism, defensive silence, and emotional exhaustion contribute to the prevalence of interpersonal deviance, and offer several direct as well as indirect options. One path involves actions that discourage ostracism through various human resource functions. Another step pertains to defensive silence which could be put off by a suggestion system that offers psychological safety to employees. The last measure relates to emotional exhaustion, prevented by emotional mentoring and employee assistance plans. The present study explains the underlying cognitive and emotional mechanisms between ostracism and interpersonal deviance. It extends research on defensive silence to demonstrate its theoretical as well as empirical effect on interpersonal deviance. It further explains how employees use interpersonal deviance, to reduce the negative effect of ostracism. Lastly, it describes ostracism and deviance in the context of collectivist culture of Pakistan, which underscores close interpersonal relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological advancements and development of new materials may lead to the manufacture of sustainable energy-conducting devices used in the energy sector. This research attempts to fabricate novel electroconductive and mechanically stable nanocomposites via an electroless deposition (ELD) technique using electrically insulating materials. Metallic Cu is coated onto Al2O3 by ELD, and the prepared filler is then integrated (2-14 wt %) into a matrix of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene-ran-butylene)-block-polystyrene-graft-maleic anhydride (PS-b-(PE-r-B)-b-PS-g-MA). Considerable variations in composite phases with filler inclusion exist. The Cu crystallite growth onto Al2O3 was evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) depicts a uniform Cu coating on Al2O3, while homogeneous filler dispersion is exhibited in the case of composites. The electrical behavior of composites is enhanced drastically (7.7 × 10-5 S/cm) upon incorporation of Cu-Al2O3 into an insulating polymer matrix (4.4 × 10-16 S/cm). Moreover, mechanical (Young's modulus, tensile strength and % elongation at break) and thermal (thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), derivative thermogravimetry (DTG), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)) properties of the nanocomposites also improve substantially. These composites are likely to meet the demands of modern high-strength electroconductive devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The case report of a 68-year-old man with a single-piece hydrophobic intraocular lens (IOL) implanted in the sulcus with posterior capsular rent in the right eye inducing secondary open-angle pigmentary glaucoma without individual hereditary steroid susceptibility. The clinical and diagnostic evaluations of the patient were thoroughly and specifically carried out. The unilateral pseudophakic open-angle pigmentary glaucoma developed in the long course in the context of rubbing of the haptics and optic of a hydrophobic IOL implanted in the sulcus, against the posterior surface of the iris, resulting in pigment dispersion, trabecular inflammation, and aqueous outflow obstruction. Although the clinical findings of our case were very similar to that of pigmentary glaucoma, the distinction between the two conditions was still quite easy, considering that pigmentary glaucoma is a bilateral disorder predominantly affecting young myopic men with Krukenberg's spindle and increased incidence of steroid responsiveness. It has been clearly distinguished from steroid-induced glaucoma based on the pigmented trabecular meshwork. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The silver nanoparticles (Ag-Nps) synthesized by green reduction process using the leaf extract of Acacia leucophloea exhibited the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) at 435 nm. There were several techniques like UV–visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and selected area electron diffraction patterns (SAED) used to examine the growth kinetics, surface morphology, and crystallinity aspects of Ag-Nps in the absence and the presence of cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) was used to confirm the reducing utility of leaf extract. The size of synthesized Ag-Nps varied from 10 to > 100 nm in the absence of CTAB and from 10 to 50 nm in its presence. While irregular or polytope-outlined Ag-NPs were detected in the absence of CTAB, spherical or oval shape prevailed in its prevalence. Williamson-Hall models were employed to deduce the crystallinity aspects of the procured Ag-Nps. Furthermore, the Ag-Nps effected in the presence of CTAB exhibited more antibacterial efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With a basis in conservation of resources theory, this study investigates the relationship between employees' exposure to perceived contract breaches and their job performance, while also considering the mediating role of knowledge hiding and the moderating role of positive affectivity. Multisource, three-wave data from employees and their peers in Pakistani organizations reveal that breaches in the psychological contract hinder job performance, because employees respond with an unwillingness to contribute valuable knowledge to execute their job tasks. This mediating role of knowledge hiding is mitigated if employees can draw from their own positive affectivity trait. This study accordingly identifies a key factor, intentional attempts to conceal knowledge requested by other members, that can backfire and make employees suffer doubly: from unfulfilled organizational promises and from lower performance. It also reveals how this risk might be contained, that is, by encouraging employees' positive affect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a meditational model that explains why and how leaders' humility manifests into followers' empathy, gratitude, and ethical behaviors. Building on social information-processing theory (SIP), we hypothesize that, when a leader has a high level of humility, his or her followers receive signals that increase perceptions of workplace spirituality, which fosters an environment of ethical behavior, empathy, and gratitude. We collected time-lagged survey data (three time intervals, each a month apart) from employees and their colleagues (n = 286) in nine organizations in Pakistan's telecom, education, and industrial sectors. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we show that a leader's humility predicts his or her employees' ethical behaviors, empathy, and gratitude. Moreover, perceptions of workplace spirituality mediated the time-lagged effects of a leader's humility on his or her followers' ethical behaviors, empathy, and gratitude. Our findings largely support our theoretical foundations that indicate that a leader's humility has important implications for his or her followers' positive emotions and behaviors through a unique process involving workplace spirituality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The symptoms of Parkinsonism and oral dyskinesia have been showing to be induced by neuroleptics that significantly affect its clinical use. In this study, we investigate whether Nigella sativa-oil (NS) (black cumin seeds)-a traditional medicine used for the seizure treatment in eastern country-may reduce the haloperidol (HAL)-induced extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS)-like behavior in rats. After combine treatment with HAL (1 mg/kg) on NS (0.2 ml/rat), rats displayed a significant decreased EPS-like behavior including movement disorders and oral dyskinesia as compared to controls. Immunohistochemical analysis indicates that NS reduced astrogliosis in caudate and accumbens nuclei. These results suggest that NS may consider as an adjunct to antipsychotics to reduce the EPS-like side effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to clarify whether and how various configurations of three cognitive style dimensions (creating, knowing, and planning) emerge among graduate business students, with differential impacts on their learning approaches. With a person-centered, latent transition analysis of cognitive styles, the authors identify several distinct cognitive style profiles: a moderate cognitive style profile, a dominant creating and knowing style profile, a dominant creating and low planning style profile, and a dominant planning and low creating style profile. The analysis also offers evidence of the trait-like character of these cognitive style profiles, by demonstrating their temporal stability. Furthermore, significant differences arise across profiles in terms of how they relate to different learning approaches (strategic, deep, and surface learning). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The levels of oxidative stress markers are an important indicator of the physiological state of the parasite and its host. In the present study levels of lipid peroxidation, glutathione S transferase, glutathione, superoxide dismutase and catalase were determined in the Clinostomum complanatum progenetic metacercaria, obtained from the fish peritoneum (a hypoxic habitat). The in vivo transformed ovigerous adult worms were obtained from the aerobic environment of the buccopharyngeal region of experimentally infected chickens. Levels of antioxidant molecules were also determined in the blood of experimentally infected chickens. An increase in the levels of lipid peroxidation, and a significant decrease in the levels of glutathione S transferase, glutathione, superoxide dismutase and catalase was observed in the infected host as compared to the controls. In the ovigerous worms, the levels of lipid peroxidation, glutathione S transferase, glutathione, superoxide dismutase were found to be significantly less than the levels observed in the progenetic metacercaria. Since the establishment of worm in the buccal cavity of the avian host would lead to its exposure to oxygen and the haematophagous nature of the parasite also exposes it to the free radicals in the host blood, the progenetic metacercaria has evolved to produce excess free radical scavenging molecules reserved to combat the oxidative stress encountered within the microhabitat of the definitive host. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]