Search results for: online opinion leaders

Authors: Catriona Hilliard

Abstract:

Food identity is synonymous with many national tourism destinations and perceptions in tourist source markets – stereotypes could include snails in France; beer in Britain and Germany; paella in Spain - and is an accepted element of national identity that can be incorporated into tourism experiences. Irish transatlantic food connections are culturally strong with diaspora subsequent generations in the US displaying an online interest in traditional Irish food, even with a twist. Back ‘home’, the value of the local indigenous experience was a specific element of the way The Gathering 2013 was promoted to the Irish diaspora, developing community interest and input to tourism. Over the past 20 years, Ireland has realized the value of its food industry to tourism. This has included the establishment of food development programmes for the hospitality industry; food festivals as a possible element of the tourist experience; and a programmes of food ambassadors to market Irish produce and to encourage service providers to understand; utilize and incorporate this into their offerings. Irish produce is being now actively marketed as part of the proposed tourism experience, to particular segment markets including transatlantic visitors. In addition, individual providers are becoming aware of the value of the market, and how to gain from it. Also, networks of food providers have developed collaborative structures of promoting their experiences to audiences, displaying a cluster approach of tourism development towards that sector. A power point presentation will look at how Irish produce contributes to tourism marketing and promotion of Ireland to America; how that may have assisted sustainable development of communities here; and hopes to elicit some discussion relating to longer term identification of Irish food, as part of tourism, for the potential benefit of the ‘locale’.

Keywords: Irish, USA, food, tourism

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Authors: Martina Dickson, Lilly Tennant

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The young Emirati female university students of today are the first generation of women in the UAE for whom higher education as become not only a possibility, but almost an expectation. Young women in the UAE today make up around 77% of students in higher education institutes in the country. However, the societal expectations placed upon these women in terms of early marriage, child-bearing and rearing are similar to those placed upon their mothers and grandmothers in a time where women were not expected to go to university. A large proportion of female university students in the UAE are mothers of young children, or become mothers whilst at the university. This creates a challenging situation for young student mothers, where two weeks’ maternity leave is typical across institutions. The context of this study is in one such institution in the UAE. We have employed a mixed method approach to gathering interview data from twenty mothers, and survey data from over one hundred mothers. The main findings indicate that mothers have strong desires for their institution to support them more, for example by the provision of nursery facilities and resting areas for new mothers, and giving them greater flexibility over course selections and schedules including the provision of online learning. However, the majority felt supported on a personal level by their tutors. The major challenges which they identified in returning to college after only two weeks’ leave included the inevitable health and lack of sleep issues when caring for a newborn, struggling to catch up with missed college work and handling their course load. We also explored the women's’ home support systems which were provided from a variety of extended family, spouses and paid domestic help.

Keywords: student mothers, challenges, supports, United Arab Emirates

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Authors: Armin Khaghani Boroujeni, Leila Dehghani, Parham Talebi Boroujeni, Sahar Rostamian, Ali Asilian

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Background: Hair loss is a common complaint observed in both genders. Androgenetic alopecia is known pattern for hair loss. To assess new regenerative strategies (PRP, A-SC-BT, conditioned media, exosome-based treatments) compared to conventional therapies for hair loss or hair regeneration, an updated review was undertaken. To address this issue, we carried out this systematic review to comprehensively evaluate the efficacy of cell-based therapies on hair loss. Methods: The available online databases, including ISI Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed, were searched systematically up to February 2022. The quality assessment of included studies was done using the Cochrane Collaboration's tool. Results: As a result, a total of 90 studies involving 2345 participants were included in the present study. The enrolled studies were conducted between 2010 and 2022. The subjects’ mean age ranged from 19 to 55.11 years old. Approaches using platelet rich plasma (PRP) provide a beneficial impact on hair regrowth. However, other cell-based therapies, including stem cell transplant, stem cell-derived conditioned medium, and stem cell-derived exosomes, revealed conflicting evidence. Conclusion: However, cell-based therapies for hair loss are still in their infancy, and more robust clinical studies are needed to better evaluate their mechanisms of action, efficacy, safety, benefits, and limitations. In this review, we provide the resources to the latest clinical studies and a more detailed description of the latest clinical studies concerning cell-based therapies in hair loss.

Keywords: cell-based therapy, exosome, hair restoration, systematic review

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Authors: Nourhan Elshenawi

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Net Neutrality (NN) is the principle of treating all online data the same without any prioritization of some over others. A research gap in current scholarship about “violations of NN” and the subsequent ethical concerns paves the way for the following research question: To what extent violations of NN entail ethical concerns and implications for Internet stakeholders? To answer this question, NR is examined using the two major action-based ethical theories, Kantian and Utilitarian, across the relevant Internet stakeholders. First some necessary IT background is provided that shapes how the Internet works and who the key stakeholders are. Following the IT background, the relationship between the stakeholders, users, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and content providers is discussed and illustrated. Then some violations of NN that are currently occurring is covered, without attracting any attention from the general public from an ethical perspective, as a new term Net Regularity (NR). Afterwards, the current scholarship on NN and its violations are discussed, that are mainly from an economic and sociopolitical perspectives to highlight the lack of ethical discussions on the issue. Before moving on to the ethical analysis however, websites are presented as digital entities that are affected by NR and their happiness is measured using functionalism. The analysis concludes that NR is prone to an unethical treatment of Internet stakeholders in the perspective of both theories. Finally, the current Digital Divide in the world is presented to be able to better illustrate the implications of NR. The implications present the new Internet divide that will take place between individuals within society. Through answering the research question using ethical analysis, it attempts to shed some light on the issue of NR and what kind of society it would lead to. NR would not just lead to a divided society, but divided individuals that are separated by something greater than distance, the Internet.

Keywords: digital divide, digital entities, digital ontology, internet ethics, internet law, net neutrality, internet service providers, websites as beings

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Authors: Farnaz Alborzi, Angelika Schmitz, Rainer Stamminger

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Reducing water temperatures in the wash phase of a washing programme and increasing the overall cycle durations are the latest trends in decreasing energy consumption of washing programmes. Since the implementation of the new energy efficiency classes in 2010, manufacturers seem to apply the aforementioned washing strategy with lower temperatures combined with longer programme durations extensively to realise energy-savings needed to meet the requirements of the highest energy efficiency class possible. A semi-representative on-line survey in eleven European countries (Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom) was conducted by Bonn University in 2015 to shed light on consumer opinion and behaviour regarding the effects of the lower washing temperature and longer cycle duration in laundry washing on consumers’ acceptance of the programme. The risk of the long wash cycle is that consumers might not use the energy efficient Standard programmes and will think of this option as inconvenient and therefore switch to shorter, but more energy consuming programmes. Furthermore, washing in a lower temperature may lead to the problem of cross-contamination. Washing behaviour of over 5,000 households was studied in this survey to provide support and guidance for manufacturers and policy designers. Qualified households were chosen following a predefined quota: -Involvement in laundry washing: substantial, -Distribution of gender: more than 50 % female , -Selected age groups: -20–39 years, -40–59 years, -60–74 years, -Household size: 1, 2, 3, 4 and more than 4 people. Furthermore, Eurostat data for each country were used to calculate the population distribution in the respective age class and household size as quotas for the consumer survey distribution in each country. Before starting the analyses, the validity of each dataset was controlled with the aid of control questions. After excluding the outlier data, the number of the panel diminished from 5,100 to 4,843. The primary outcome of the study is European consumers are willing to save water and energy in a laundry washing but reluctant to use long programme cycles since they don’t believe that the long cycles could be energy-saving. However, the results of our survey don’t confirm that there is a relation between frequency of using Standard cotton (Eco) or Energy-saving programmes and the duration of the programmes. It might be explained by the fact that the majority of washing programmes used by consumers do not take so long, perhaps consumers just choose some additional time reduction option when selecting those programmes and this finding might be changed if the Energy-saving programmes take longer. Therefore, it may be assumed that introducing the programme duration as a new measure on a revised energy label would strongly influence the consumer at the point of sale. Furthermore, results of the survey confirm that consumers are more willing to use lower temperature programmes in order to save energy than accepting longer programme cycles and majority of them accept deviation from the nominal temperature of the programme as long as the results are good.

Keywords: duration, energy-saving, standard programmes, washing temperature

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Authors: Shih-Ching Wang, Mark Lang

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This paper examines the secondary effects and consequences of special displays on subsequent shopping behavior. Special displays are studied as a prominent form of in-store or shopper marketing activity. Two experiments are performed using special value and special quality-oriented displays in an online simulated store environment. The impact of exposure to special displays on mindsets and resulting product choices are tested in a shopping task. Impact on store image is also tested. The experiments find that special displays do trigger shopping mindsets that affect product choices and shopping basket composition and value. There are intended and unintended positive and negative effects found. Special value displays improve store price image but trigger a price sensitive shopping mindset that causes more lower-priced items to be purchased, lowering total basket dollar value. Special natural food displays improve store quality image and trigger a quality-oriented mindset that causes fewer lower-priced items to be purchased, increasing total basket dollar value. These findings extend the theories of product categorization, mind-sets, and price sensitivity found in communication research into the retail store environment. Findings also warn retailers to consider the total effects and consequences of special displays when designing and executing in-store or shopper marketing activity.

Keywords: special displays, mindset, shopping behavior, price consciousness, product categorization, store image

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Authors: Judith Enriquez-Gibson

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This paper meddles with the notion of phatic communion introduced 90 years ago by Malinowski, who was a Polish-born British anthropologist. It explores the phatic in Twitter within the contents of tweets related to moocs (massive online open courses) as a topic or trend. It is not about moocs though. It is about practices that could easily be hidden or neglected if we let big or massive topics take the lead or if we simply follow the computational or secret codes behind Twitter itself and third party software analytics. It draws from media and cultural studies. Though at first it appears data-driven as I submitted data collection and analytics into the hands of a third party software, Twitonomy, the aim is to follow how phatic communion might be practised in a social media site, such as Twitter. Lurking becomes its research method to analyse mooc-related tweets. A total of 3,000 tweets were collected on 11 October 2013 (UK timezone). The emphasis of lurking is to engage with Twitter as a system of connectivity. One interesting finding is that a click is in fact a phatic practice. A click breaks the silence. A click in one of the mooc website is actually a tweet. A tweet was posted on behalf of a user who simply chose to click without formulating the text and perhaps without knowing that it contains #mooc. Surely, this mechanism is not about reciprocity. To break the silence, users did not use words. They just clicked the ‘tweet button’ on a mooc website. A click performs and maintains connectivity – and Twitter as the medium in attendance in our everyday, available when needed to be of service. In conclusion, the phatic culture of breaking silence in Twitter does not have to submit to the power of code and analytics. It is a matter of human code.

Keywords: click, Twitter, phatic communion, social media data, mooc

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Authors: Piyanee Klainin-Yobas, Debbie Ramirez, Zenaida Fernandez, Jenneth Sarmiento, Wareerat Thanoi, Jeanette Ignacio, Ying Lau

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In many countries, university students experience various stressors that may negatively affect their psychological well-being (PWB). Hence, they are at risk for physical and mental problems. This research aimed to examine the predicting effects of mindfulness, self-efficacy, and social support on psychological well-being among undergraduate students. A non-experimental research was conducted at a university in the Philippines. All students enrolled in undergraduate programs were eligible for this study unless they had chronic medical or mental health problems. Power analysis was used to calculate an adequate sample size and a convenience sampling of 630 was recruited. Data were collected through online self-reported questionnaires from year 2013 to 2015. All self-reported scales used in this study had sound psychometric properties. Descriptive statistics, correlational analyses, and structural equation modeling were performed to analyze the research data. Results showed that the participants were mostly Filipino, female, Christian, and in Schools of Nursing. Mindfulness, self-efficacy, support from family, support from friends, and support from significant others were significant predictors of psychological well-being. Mindfulness was the strongest predictor of positive psychological well-being whereas self-efficacy was the strongest predictor of negative psychological well-being. In conclusion, findings from this study add knowledge to the existing literature regarding the predictors of psychological well-being. Psychosocial interventions, with the focus on strengthening mindfulness and self-efficacy, could be delivered to undergraduate students to help them enhance psychological well-being. More studies can be undertaken to test the interventions and multi-centered research can be conducted to enhance generalizability of research findings.

Keywords: mindfulness, self-efficacy, social support, psychological wellbeing

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Authors: Bakytzhan Bimbetov, Abay Zhangabilov, Saule Aitbaeva, Galymzhan Meirambekov

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Mare’s milk (saumal) contains in total about 40 biological components necessary for the human body. The most significant among them are amino acids, fats, carbohydrates, enzymes (lysozyme, amylase), more minerals and vitamins which are well balanced with each other. In Kazakhstan, Company "Eurasia Invest Ltd.” produces a freeze-dried saumal in form of powder by the use of modern German innovative technology by means of evaporating at low temperature (-35°C) with an appropriate pasteurization. Research of freeze-dried biomilk for the qualitative content showed that main ingredients of freshly drown milk are being preserved. We are currently studying medical and dietary properties of freeze-dried mare's milk for diseases of the digestive system, including for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and liver cirrhosis (LC) viral etiology. The studied group consisted of 14 patients with NASH, and 7 patients with LC viral etiology of Class A severity degree as per Child-Pugh. Patients took freeze-dried saumal, preliminary dissolved in boiled warm water (24 g. powder per 200 ml water) 3-4 times a day for a month in conjunction with basic therapy. The results were compared to a control group (11 patients with NASH and LC) who received only basic therapy without mare’s milk. Results of preliminary research showed an improvement of subjective and objective conditions of all patients, but more significant improvement of clinical symptoms and syndromes were observed in the treatment group compared to the control one. Patients with NASH significantly over time compared to the beginning of therapy decreased asthenic and dyspeptic syndromes (p<0,01). Hepatomegaly, identified on the basis of ultrasound prior to treatment was observed in 92,8±2,4% of patients, and after combination therapy hepatomegaly the rate decreased by 14,3%, amounting to 78,5±2,8%. Patients with LC also noted the improvement of asthenic (p<0,01) and dyspeptic (p<0,05) syndromes and hemorrhagic syndrome (nosebleeds and bleeding gums when brushing your teeth, p<0,05), and jaundice. Laboratory study also showed improvement in the research group, but more significant changes were observed in the experimental group. Group of patients with NASH showed a significant improvement of index in cytolysis in conjunction with a combination therapy (p<0,05). In the control group, these indicators were also improved, but they were not statistically reliable (p>0,05). Markers of liver failure were additionally studied during the study of laboratory parameters in patients with liver cirrhosis, in particular, bilirubin, albumin and prothrombin index (PTI). Combined therapy with the use of basic treatment and mare's milk showed a significant improvement in cytolysis and bilirubin (p<0,05). In our opinion, a very important and interesting fact is that, in conjunction with basic therapy, the use of mare's milk revealed an improvement of liver function in the form of normalized PTI and albumin in patients with liver cirrhosis viral etiology. Results of this work have shown therapeutic efficiency of the use of mare's milk in complex treatment of patients with liver disease and require further in-depth study.

Keywords: liver cirrhosis, non-alcohol steatohepatitis, saumal, mare’s milk

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Authors: Henry Gonzalo Acurio Flores, Alvaro Nicolas Corral Naveda, Juan Francisco Fonseca Palacios

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In Ecuador, subventions on fossil fuels for the road transportation sector have always been part of its economy throughout time, mainly because of demagogy and populism from political leaders. It is clearly seen that the government cannot maintain the subsidies anymore due to its commercial balance and its general state budget; subsidies are a key barrier to implementing the use of cleaner technologies. However, during the last few months, the elimination of subsidies has been done gradually with the purpose of reaching international prices. It is expected that with this measure, the population will opt for other means of transportation, and in a certain way, it will promote the use of private electric vehicles and public, e.g., taxis and buses (urban transport). Considering the three main elements of sustainable development, an analysis of the social, economic, and environmental impacts of eliminating subsidies will be generated at the country level. To achieve this, four scenarios will be developed in order to determine how the subsidies will contribute to the promotion of electro-mobility. 1) A Business as Usual BAU scenario; 2) the introduction of 10 000 electric vehicles by 2025; 3) the introduction of 100 000 electric vehicles by 2030; 4) the introduction of 750 000 electric vehicles by 2040 (for all the scenarios buses, taxis, lightweight duty vehicles, and private vehicles will be introduced, as it is established in the National Electro Mobility Strategy for Ecuador). The Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) will be used, and it will be suitable to determine the cost for the government in terms of importing derivatives for fossil fuels and the cost of electricity to power the electric fleet that can be changed. The elimination of subventions generates fiscal resources for the state that can be used to develop other kinds of projects that will benefit Ecuadorian society. It will definitely change the energy matrix, and it will provide energy security for the country; it will be an opportunity for the government to incentivize a greater introduction of renewable energies, e.g., solar, wind, and geothermal. At the same time, it will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the transportation sector, considering its mitigation potential, which as a result, will ameliorate the inhabitant quality of life by improving the quality of air, therefore reducing respiratory diseases associated with exhaust emissions, consequently, achieving sustainability, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and complying with the agreements established in the Paris Agreement COP 21 in 2015. Electro mobility in Latin America and the Caribbean can only be achieved by the implementation of the right policies at the central government, which need to be accompanied by a National Urban Mobility Policy (NUMP) and can encompass a greater vision to develop holistic, sustainable transport systems at local governments.

Keywords: electro mobility, energy, policy, sustainable transportation

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Authors: Yasser F. Hassan

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Social networking involves use of an online platform or website that enables people to communicate, usually for a social purpose, through a variety of services, most of which are web-based and offer opportunities for people to interact over the internet, e.g. via e-mail and ‘instant messaging’, by analyzing the voting behavior and ratings of judges in a popular comments in social networks. While most of the party literature omits the electorate, this paper presents a model where elites and parties are emergent consequences of the behavior and preferences of voters. The research in artificial intelligence and psychology has provided powerful illustrations of the way in which the emergence of intelligent behavior depends on the development of representational structure. As opposed to the classical voting system (one person – one decision – one vote) a new voting system is designed where agents with opposed preferences are endowed with a given number of votes to freely distribute them among some issues. The paper uses ideas from machine learning, artificial intelligence and soft computing to provide a model of the development of voting system response in a simulated agent. The modeled development process involves (simulated) processes of evolution, learning and representation development. The main value of the model is that it provides an illustration of how simple learning processes may lead to the formation of structure. We employ agent-based computer simulation to demonstrate the formation and interaction of coalitions that arise from individual voter preferences. We are interested in coordinating the local behavior of individual agents to provide an appropriate system-level behavior.

Keywords: voting system, rough sets, multi-agent, social networks, emergence, power indices

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Authors: H. Heidari-Bafroui, B. Ribeiro, A. Charbaji, C. Anagnostopoulos, M. Faghri

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In this paper, we report the development of a portable and inexpensive infrared lightbox for improving the detection limits of paper-based phosphate devices. Commercial paper-based devices utilize the molybdenum blue protocol to detect phosphate in the environment. Although these devices are easy to use and have a long shelf life, their main deficiency is their low sensitivity based on the qualitative results obtained via a color chart. To improve the results, we constructed a compact infrared lightbox that communicates wirelessly with a smartphone. The system measures the absorbance of radiation for the molybdenum blue reaction in the infrared region of the spectrum. It consists of a lightbox illuminated by four infrared light-emitting diodes, an infrared digital camera, a Raspberry Pi microcontroller, a mini-router, and an iPhone to control the microcontroller. An iPhone application was also developed to analyze images captured by the infrared camera in order to quantify phosphate concentrations. Additionally, the app connects to an online data center to present a highly scalable worldwide system for tracking and analyzing field measurements. In this study, the detection limits for two popular commercial devices were improved by a factor of 4 for the Quantofix devices (from 1.3 ppm using visible light to 300 ppb using infrared illumination) and a factor of 6 for the Indigo units (from 9.2 ppm to 1.4 ppm) with repeatability of less than or equal to 1.2% relative standard deviation (RSD). The system also provides more granular concentration information compared to the discrete color chart used by commercial devices and it can be easily adapted for use in other applications.

Keywords: infrared lightbox, paper-based device, phosphate detection, smartphone colorimetric analyzer

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Authors: Johannes Van Der Sandt

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This paper explores and reflects on the power of music, and more specific singing as an instrument for integration, inclusion, group cohesion, collective cooperation, repairing social relationships and facilitating dialogue between groups in conflict. The General Assembly of the United Nations has declared the 21st of September as International Day of Peace. This day is dedicated to advocate and strengthen among all people, an annual day to strive for no violence and cease-fire. What role does music play in strengthening ideals of peace? The findings of this paper is a result of field and online research as well as a literature survey to identify the most important examples of institutions, instruments or initiatives where music serves as a vehicle for the transmission and promoting of peace ideals and acting to assist movements for social change. Important examples where singing and music were used as tools for peace activism are the 1987 Estonian Singing Revolution and the more recent peace engagement in the Afghan Conflict, both very good examples of the cultural capital of the local population used as catalyst for promoting peace. The author offers a concise and relevant overview of such initiatives with the aim to validate the power of music and song as tools to support the United Nation’s Declaration on the Promotion Among Youth of the Ideals of Peace, Mutual Respect and Understanding Between Peoples: Young people should be educated and made aware of the ideals of peace. They should be educated in a spirit of mutual understanding and respect for one another in order to develop an attitude of striving for equal rights for all human beings, believing in economic and social growth for all, together with a belief in disarmament and working towards the maintenance of peace and security worldwide.

Keywords: conflict, music, peace, singing

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Authors: Chapman Eze Nnadozie

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Cloud computing, a technology that is made possible through virtualization within networks represents a shift from the traditional ownership of infrastructure and other resources by distinct organization to a more scalable pattern in which computer resources are rented online to organizations on either as a pay-as-you-use basis or by subscription. In other words, cloud computing entails the renting of computing resources (such as storage space, memory, servers, applications, networks, etc.) by a third party to its clients on a pay-as-go basis. It is a new innovative technology that is globally embraced because of its renowned benefits, profound of which is its cost effectiveness on the part of organizations engaged with its services. In Nigeria, the services are provided either directly to companies mostly by the key IT players such as Microsoft, IBM, and Google; or in partnership with some other players such as Infoware, Descasio, and Sunnet. This action enables organizations to rent IT resources on a pay-as-you-go basis thereby salvaging them from wastages accruable on acquisition and maintenance of IT resources such as ownership of a separate data centre. This paper intends to appraise the challenges of cloud computing adoption in Nigeria, bearing in mind the country’s peculiarities’ in terms of infrastructural development. The methodologies used in this paper include the use of research questionnaires, formulated hypothesis, and the testing of the formulated hypothesis. The major findings of this paper include the fact that there are some addressable challenges to the adoption of cloud computing in Nigeria. Furthermore, the country will gain significantly if the challenges especially in the area of infrastructural development are well addressed. This is because the research established the fact that there are significant gains derivable by the adoption of cloud computing by organizations in Nigeria. However, these challenges can be overturned by concerted efforts in the part of government and other stakeholders.

Keywords: cloud computing, data centre, infrastructure, it resources, virtualization

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Authors: Julianne Macmullen

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Due to advances in technology and early detection and treatment of cancer, many cancer patients are surviving longer than five years post-diagnosis. Most cancer patients suffer from depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at some point during diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship. A subgroup of patients will continue to suffer from depression and PTSD and require early intervention. Support groups provide patients with the emotional and informational support they require while also giving survivors a sense of community, friendship, and purpose. This type of support is recognized by researchers to improve the quality of life while also decreasing depression and PTSD symptoms. The gaps in the literature include cultural diversity, minorities, and support groups involving cancer types other than breast cancer. Another gap in the literature includes the perceptions of cancer patients as well as longitudinal studies to determine the relationships between support groups and decreased depression and PTSD rates over time. Future research is required to fill the gaps in the literature mentioned previously. Future research is also needed to analyze the difference in age groups and different types of support groups such as professionally-led, peer-led, and online. Implications for practice involve providers assessing for the symptoms of depression and PTSD in order to offer prompt treatment and support services to those patients. In conclusion, social support by way of support groups improves the quality of life, gives survivors a sense of purpose to help others while also gaining the support they need, and reduces the rate of depressive episodes related to PTSD.

Keywords: cancer survivor, survivorship, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, support groups

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Authors: Mona Hejazi, Ali Motie Nasrabadi

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Epilepsy is a persistent neurological disorder that affects more than 50 million people worldwide. Hence, there is a necessity to introduce an efficient prediction model for making a correct diagnosis of the epileptic seizure and accurate prediction of its type. In this study we consider how the Effective Connectivity (EC) patterns obtained from intracranial Electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings reveal information about the dynamics of the epileptic brain and can be used to predict imminent seizures, as this will enable the patients (and caregivers) to take appropriate precautions. We use this definition because we believe that effective connectivity near seizures begin to change, so we can predict seizures according to this feature. Results are reported on the standard Freiburg EEG dataset which contains data from 21 patients suffering from medically intractable focal epilepsy. Six channels of EEG from each patients are considered and effective connectivity using Directed Transfer Function (DTF) and Granger Causality (GC) methods is estimated. We concentrate on effective connectivity standard deviation over time and feature changes in five brain frequency sub-bands (Alpha, Beta, Theta, Delta, and Gamma) are compared. The performance obtained for the proposed scheme in predicting seizures is: average prediction time is 50 minutes before seizure onset, the maximum sensitivity is approximate ~80% and the false positive rate is 0.33 FP/h. DTF method is more acceptable to predict epileptic seizures and generally we can observe that the greater results are in gamma and beta sub-bands. The research of this paper is significantly helpful for clinical applications, especially for the exploitation of online portable devices.

Keywords: effective connectivity, Granger causality, directed transfer function, epilepsy seizure prediction, EEG

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Authors: Badr Alharbi

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There is significant debate on the evolution of retail marketing as an economy matures. In penetrating new markets, global brands are efficient in establishing a presence and replacing less effective competitors by engaging in superior advertising, pricing and sometimes quality. However, national brands adapt over time and may either partner with global brands in distribution and services or directly compete more efficiently in the new, open market. This explorative study investigates brand preferences in Saudi Arabia. As a conservative society, which is nevertheless highly commercialised, Saudi Arabia markets could be fragmenting with consumer preferences and rejections based on country of origin, globalisation, or perhaps regionalisation. To investigate this, an online survey was distributed to Saudis in Jeddah to gather data on their preferences for travel, technology, clothes and accessories, eating out, vehicles, and influential brands. The results from 710 valid responses were that there are distinct regional and national brand preferences among the young Saudi men who contributed to the survey. Apart from a preference for Saudi food providers, airline preferences were the United Emirates, holiday preferences were Europe, study and work preferences were the United States, hotel preferences were United States-based, car preferences were Japanese, and clothing preferences were United States-based. The results were broadly in line with international research findings; however, the study participants varied from Arab research findings by describing themselves as innovative in their purchase selections, rarely loyal (exception of Apple products) and continually seeking new brand experiences. This survey contributes to an understanding of evolving Saudi consumer preferences.

Keywords: Saudi marketing, globalisation, country of origin, brand preferences

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Authors: Lian Kösters, Wendy Smits, Raymond Montizaan

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The number of solo self-employed in the Netherlands has been increasing for years. The relative increase is among the largest in the EU. To explain this increase, most studies have focused on the supply side, workers who offer themselves as solo self-employed. The number of studies that focus on the demand side, the employer who hires the solo self-employed, is still scarce. Studies into employer behaviour conducted until now show that employers mainly choose self-employed workers when they have a temporary need for specialist knowledge, but also during projects or production peaks. These studies do not provide insight into the employers’ considerations for different contract types. In this study, interviews with employers were conducted, and available literature was consulted to provide an overview of the several factors employers use to compare different contract types. That input was used to set up a vignette study. This was carried out at the end of 2021 among almost 1000 business owners, HR managers, and business leaders of Dutch companies. Each respondent was given two sets of five fictitious candidates for two possible positions in their organization. They were asked to rank these candidates. The positions varied with regard to the type of tasks (core tasks or support tasks) and the time it took to train new people for the position. The respondents were asked additional questions about the positions, such as the required level of education, the duration, and the degree of predictability of tasks. The fictitious candidates varied, among other things, in the type of contract on which they would come to work for the organization. The results were analyzed using a rank-ordered logit analysis. This vignette setup makes it possible to see which factors are most important for employers when choosing to hire a solo self-employed person compared to other contracts. The results show that there are no indications that employers would want to hire solo self-employed workers en masse. They prefer regular employee contracts. The probability of being chosen with a solo self-employed contract over someone who comes to work as a temporary employee is 32 percent. This probability is even lower than for on-call and temporary agency workers. For a permanent contract, this probability is 46 percent. The results provide indications that employers consider knowledge and skills more important than the solo self-employed contract and that this can compensate. A solo self-employed candidate with 10 years of work experience has a 63 percent probability of being found attractive by an employer compared to a temporary employee without work experience. This suggests that employers are willing to give someone a less attractive contract for the employer if the worker so wishes. The results also show that the probability that a solo self-employed person is preferred over a candidate with a temporary employee contract is somewhat higher in business economics, administrative and technical professions. No significant results were found for factors where it was expected that solo self-employed workers are preferred more often, such as for unpredictable or temporary work.

Keywords: employer behaviour, rank-ordered logit analysis, solo self-employment, temporary contract, vignette study

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Authors: Eglė Žurauskaitė, Eglė Gudavičienė

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The goal of this paper is to reveal how polarization is constructed through the use of impoliteness strategies. In general, media helps to spread various ideas very fast, and it means that processes of polarization are best revealed in computer-mediated communication (CMC) contexts. For this reason, data for the research was collected from online texts about a current, very diverse topic in Lithuania - Lithuanian language policy and regulations, because this topic is causing a lot of tension in Lithuanian society. Computer-mediated communication allows users to edit their message before they send it. It means that addressees carefully select verbal expressions to convey their message. In other words, each impoliteness strategy and its verbal expression were created intentionally. Impoliteness strategies in this research are understood as various ways to reach a communicative goal: belittle the other. To reach the goal, the public opinions of various Lithuanian public figures (e. g., cultural people, politicians, officials) were collected from new portals in 2019–2023 and analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. First, problematic aspects of the language policy, for which public figures complain, were identified. Then instances when public figures take a defensive position were analyzed: how they express this position and what it reveals about Lithuanian culture. Findings of this research demonstrate how concepts of impoliteness theory can be applied in analyzing the process of polarization in Lithuanian society on issues related to the State language policy. Also, to reveal how polarization is constructed, these tasks were set: a) determine which impoliteness strategies are used throughout the process of creating polarization, b) analyze how they were expressed verbally (e. g., as an advice, offer, etc.).

Keywords: impoliteness, Lithuanian language policy, polarization, impoliteness strategies

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Authors: Dembele Dembele, Philippe

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Several Second Language Acquisition (SLA) studies have stressed the benefits of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) and shown how CLIL students outperformed their non-CLIL counterparts in many L2 skills. However, numerous experimental CLIL programs seem to have mainly targeted above-average and rather highly motivated language learners. The need to understand the impact of the student’s language proficiency on code-switching in CLIL instruction motivated this study. Therefore, determining the implications of the students’ low-language proficiency for CLIL methodology, as well as the frequency with which CLIL teachers use the main pedagogical functions of code-switching, seemed crucial for a Spanish CLIL instruction on a large scale. In the mixed-method approach adopted, ten face-to-face interviews were conducted in nine Valencian public secondary education schools, while over 30 CLIL teachers also contributed with their experience in two online survey questionnaires. The results showed the crucial role language proficiency plays in the Valencian CLIL/Plurilingual selection criteria. The presence of a substantial number of low-language proficient students in CLIL groups, which in turn implied important methodological consequences, was another finding of the study. Indeed, though the pedagogical use of L1 was confirmed as an extended practice among CLIL teachers, more than half of the participants perceived that code-switching impaired attaining their CLIL lesson objectives. Therein, the dissertation highlights the need for more extensive empirical research on how code-switching could prove beneficial in CLIL instruction involving low-language proficient students while maintaining the maximum possible exposure to the target language.

Keywords: CLIL methodology, low language proficiency, code switching, selection criteria, code-switching functions

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Authors: Nada Mohammad Eljeshi

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In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), preschoolers can enroll in kindergarten after completing four years old by August 31 of their admission year. This study aims to better understand how Sharjah-based parents’ engagement with preschoolers contributes to their phonological awareness, literacy development, and print knowledge before their kindergarten admission considering cognitive development is addressed in the UAE national child care standards. More specifically, it will discuss the importance of cognitive development activities to preschoolers, the rationale behind defining the admission age to kindergarten and compare and benchmark the policy to other countries. To achieve this study's objectives, an online survey was conducted and distributed. Respondents were asked 13 dichotomous questions related to activities that promote the preschooler’s linguistics literacy and cognitive development. The results suggested parents’ emphasis on phonological awareness, followed by developing their print knowledge. However, the majority of the surveyed parents did not engage in literacy development with their preschoolers. On this basis, it is clear parents’ awareness should occur by introducing various activities such as book reading, that there is a need to introduce and encourage parents to various activities such as reading a printed book and drawings to keep up with their children's cognitive development. The survey results suggested an emphasis on phonological awareness, followed by developing their print knowledge. However, the majority of the surveyed parents did not engage in literacy development with their preschoolers. On this basis, parental awareness of the importance of preschoolers' cognitive development should be developed and engage the parents in understanding their preschooler’s cognitive development before entering kindergarten.

Keywords: preschoolers, cognitive development, parental engagement, Sharjah-based case study

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Authors: Alena Radina

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On the global stage, national image is shaped by historical memory of wars and alliances, government ideology and particularly media stereotypes which represent countries in positive or negative ways. News magazine covers are a key site for national representation. The object of analysis in this paper is the portrayals of the US, Germany, China, and Russia in the front pages and cover stories of “Time”, “Der Spiegel”, “Beijing Review”, and “Expert”. Political comedy helps people learn about current affairs even if politics is not their area of interest, and thus satire indirectly sets the public agenda. Coupled with satirical messages, cover images and the linguistic messages embedded in the covers become persuasive visual and verbal factors, known to drive about 80% of magazine sales. Preliminary analysis identified satirical elements in magazine covers, which are known to influence and frame understandings and attract younger audiences. Multimodal and transnational comparative framing analyses lay the groundwork to investigate why journalists, editors and designers deploy certain frames rather than others. This research investigates to what degree frames used in covers correlate with frames within the cover stories and what these framings can tell us about media professionals’ representations of their own and other nations. The study sample includes 32 covers consisting of two covers representing each of the four chosen countries from the four magazines. The sampling framework considers two time periods to compare countries’ representation with two different presidents, and between men and women when present. The countries selected for analysis represent each category of the international news flows model: the core nations are the US and Germany; China is a semi-peripheral country; and Russia is peripheral. Examining textual and visual design elements on the covers and images in the cover stories reveals not only what editors believe visually attracts the reader’s attention to the magazine but also how the magazines frame and construct national images and national leaders. The cover is the most powerful editorial and design page in a magazine because images incorporate less intrusive framing tools. Thus, covers require less cognitive effort of audiences who may therefore be more likely to accept the visual frame without question. Analysis of design and linguistic elements in magazine covers helps to understand how media outlets shape their audience’s perceptions and how magazines frame global issues. While previous multimodal research of covers has focused mostly on lifestyle magazines or newspapers, this paper examines the power of current affairs magazines’ covers to shape audience perception of national image.

Keywords: framing analysis, magazine covers, multimodality, national image, satire

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Authors: Ayça Çavdar

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In this study, the ‘Kadınlar Camilerde (Women in Mosques)’ movement in Turkey will be investigated. Specifically, this paper focuses on the identity struggle of young Muslim women in Turkey in a spatial context. Kadınlar Camilerde is composed of a group of Muslim women who constantly use mosques, come together in mosques, communicate via social media, talk about the situation of women in mosques, and seek solutions for the conditions they find "unequal". This paper’s objective is to understand the relationship between women’s participation in the public sphere (work-education) and their spatial demands, the relationship between the support they receive from their close and distant environment and their ability to take unconventional actions, the relationship between religiosity and the ability to engage in unconventional actions, and also to understand how the social and cultural meanings of mosque spaces differ for women. To find answers to the research questions, an online survey will be conducted. Participants of this survey will be Muslim women who are supporters and non-supporters of ‘Kadınlar Camilerde.’ Although the aim is to investigate supporters of Kadınlar Camilerde, there will be a need for the participants to the non-supporters to see their revealed differences in thoughts and behaviors. In addition to the aforementioned research questions, the paper will seek to find out how supporters and non-supporters Muslim women differ. It is expected to find out that younger women tend to participate in Kadınlar Camilerde. It is also hypothesized that the more women get involved in the public sphere, the more space they demand from society. The paper hypothesizes that the women encouraged by their family, husband, and friends are eager to participate in unconventional actions. It is finally hypothesized that there is no relation between religiosity and the choice of unconventional actions.

Keywords: women, mosques, resistance, türkiye

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Authors: Ayomi Indika Irugalbandara

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Reproductive Health (RE) education among Sri Lankan Adolescents (comprising one fifth inner population) remains unsatisfactory despite 91.8% of them completing primary education & 56.2 % receiving post secondary level education. The main reason for this large population not receiving satisfactory RH education is traditional values and longstanding taboos surrounding sexuality. The current study was undertaken with there objectives. The relevance of achieving them being to formulate RH educational policies and programs that address a sizable and sensitive chunk of the population thereby achieving the goal of mental and social well being and not merely the absence of reproductive disease or infirmity. This research was a descriptive study, using random sampling technique, sample of the study consisting of 160 adolescent in the age group of 16-19, studying in government schools in Sri Lanka. Questionnaire was the main instrument of data collection, qualitative and quantitative techniques were used in data analysis. According to the data it was revealed that a majority has some idea about RH education. While this awareness had been provided by the school, the source of information had been Health and Physical Education. The entire sample mentioned that more RH information, than was provided, should be given and everybody wanted further knowledge regarding sexuality, and in depth information on it was essential. About 96 adolescents were of the opinion that their behavior was respectful to elders and 64 felt embarrassed while communicating with elders regarding RH issues. About their preferred sources of information, both genders named health providers as their first choice, followed by family members and friends. The internet was cited by a few boys; less than 5 percent cited religious figures. More than 50% of respondents had no knowledge about abortion and they were unaware of dangerous abortion. The practice of abortion was reported among zero percent. Although every member of the sample did not possess knowledge of the scientific process involved in abortion, all of them totally rejected the idea of destroying a foetus. Adolescence is a critical period in the life of girls and boys and sexuality education empowers young people to protect their health and well-being. Schools have the proper staff, and environment for learning. It might be stated that the greater segment of individuals entering adolescents and going through their adolescence are still in the school. This becomes the reason why it is mandatory that the school should be geared to handle this critical stage of the students. Adolescents or those approaching adolescence are best educated by the relevant parents, but this being quite a sensitive issue in the socio cultural context, it is somewhat doubtful whether all parents are prepared to handle this candidly, due either to lack of knowledge or absence of the appropriate state of mind. As such it is best that seminars/workshops be conducted to enlighten parents on handling HR issues related to their adolescent children. Apart from the awareness on HR provided through the school curriculum a greater impact can be brought about through street dramas, exhibitions etc. specific to HR. Finally the researcher would like to suggest that Sunday schools be harnessed for the provision of HR education linked with cultural values, ethics, and social well-being.

Keywords: reproductive health, awareness, perception, school curriculum

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Authors: Hannah M. Russell

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‘The Attach Project’ (TAP), is an educational intervention aimed at improving educational and socio-emotional outcomes for children who are looked after. TAP is underpinned by Attachment Theory and is adapted from Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), which is a treatment for children and young people impacted by complex trauma and disorders of attachment. TAP has been implemented in primary schools in Northern Ireland throughout the 2018/19 academic year. During this time, a design and implementation study has been conducted to assess the promise of effectiveness for the future dissemination and ‘scaling-up’ of the programme for a larger, randomised control trial. TAP has been designed specifically for implementation in a school setting and is comprised of a whole school element and a more individualised Key Adult-Key Child pairing. This design and implementation study utilises a mixed-methods research design consisting of quantitative, qualitative, and observational measures with stakeholder input and involvement being considered an integral component. The use of quantitative measures, such as self-report questionnaires prior to and eight months following the implementation of TAP, enabled the analysis of the strengths and direction of relations between the various components of the programme, as well as the influence of implementation factors. The use of qualitative measures, incorporating semi-structured interviews and focus groups, enabled the assessment of implementation factors, identification of implementation barriers, and potential methods of addressing these issues. Observational measures facilitated the continual development and improvement of ‘TAP training’ for school staff. Preliminary findings have provided evidence of promise for the effectiveness of TAP and indicate the potential benefits of introducing this type of attachment-based intervention across other educational settings. This type of intervention could benefit not only children who are looked after but all children who may be impacted by complex trauma or disorders of attachment. Furthermore, findings from this study demonstrate that it is possible for children to form a secondary attachment relationship with a significant adult in school. However, various implementation factors which should be addressed were identified throughout the study, such as the necessity of protected time being introduced to facilitate the development of a positive Key Adult- Key Child relationship. Furthermore, additional ‘re-cap’ training is required in future dissemination of the programme, to maximise ‘attachment friendly practice’ in the whole staff team. Qualitative findings have also indicated that there is a general opinion across school staff that this type of Key Adult- Key Child pairing could be more effective if it was introduced as soon as children begin primary school. This research has provided ample evidence for the need to introduce relationally based interventions in schools, to help to ensure that children who are looked after, or who are impacted by complex trauma or disorders of attachment, can thrive in the school environment. In addition, this research has facilitated the identification of important implementation factors and barriers to implementation, which can be addressed prior to the ‘scaling-up’ of TAP for a robust, randomised controlled trial.

Keywords: attachment, complex trauma, educational interventions, implementation

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Authors: Al Huuskonen, Clio Lake, K. M. Naude, Polina Petlitsyna, Sorsha Henning, Julia Wimmers-Klick

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This project presents the outcomes of a community-based participatory action initiative aimed at advocating for equitable healthcare and human rights for trans, two-spirit, and gender-diverse individuals, building upon the University of British Columbia (UBC) Trans Coalition's ongoing efforts. Participatory Action Research (PAR) was chosen as the research method with the goal of improving trans rights on the UBC campus, particularly regarding equitable access to healthcare. PAR involves active community contribution throughout the research process, which in this case was done by way of liaising with student resource groups and advocacy leaders. The goals of this project were as follows: a) identify gaps in gender-affirming healthcare for UBC students by consulting the community and collaborating with UBC services, b) develop an information package outlining provincial and university-based health insurance for gender-affirming care (including hormone therapy and surgeries), FAQs, and resources for UBC's trans students, c) make this package available to UBC students and other national transgender advocacy organizations. The initiative successfully expanded the UBC AMS Student Health and Dental Plan to include gender-affirming procedural coverage, developed a care access guide for students, and advocated for improved health records inclusivity, mechanisms for trans students to report negative care experiences, and increased access to gender-affirming primary care through the on-campus health clinic. Collaboration with other universities' pride organizations and Trans Care BC yielded positive outcomes through broader coalition building and resource sharing. Ongoing efforts are underway to update provincial policies, particularly through expanding coverage under fair pharma care and addressing the compounding effects of the primary care crisis for trans individuals. The project's tangible results include improved trans rights on campus, especially in terms of healthcare access. Expanding healthcare coverage through student care benefits thousands of students, making the ability to undergo important affirming procedures more affordable. Providing students with information on extended coverage options and communication with their doctors further removes barriers to care and positively impacts student wellbeing. This initiative demonstrates the effectiveness of community-based participatory action in advancing equitable healthcare for trans and gender-diverse individuals and serves as a model for other institutions and organizations striving to promote inclusivity and advocate for marginalized populations' rights.

Keywords: equitable healthcare, trans and gender-diverse individuals, inclusivity, participatory action research project

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Authors: John Lloyd Angolluan, Jennile Caday, Crystal Mae Estrella, Reike Alliyah Taladua, Zion Michael Ysulat

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One of the requirements of having the ability to communicate in English is by having adequate vocabulary. Nowadays, people are more engaged in watching movie streams on which they can watch movies in a very portable way, such as Netflix. Wherein Netflix became global demand for online media has taken off in recent years. This research aims to know whether the use of bimodal subtitles on Netflix English movies can enhance vocabulary. This study is quantitative and utilizes a descriptive method, and this study aims to explore the use of bimodal subtitles on Netflix English movies to enhance the vocabulary of students. The respondents of the study were the selected Second-year English majors of Rizal Technological University Pasig and Boni Campus using the purposive sampling technique. The researcher conducted a survey questionnaire through the use of Google Forms. In this study, the weighted mean was used to evaluate the student's responses to the statement of the problems of the study of the use of bimodal subtitles on Netflix English movies. The findings of this study revealed that the bimodal subtitle on Netflix English movies enhanced students’ vocabulary learning acquisition by providing learners with access to large amounts of real and comprehensible language input, whether accidentally or intentionally, and it turns out that bimodal subtitles on Netflix English movies help students recognize vocabulary, which has a positive impact on their vocabulary building. Therefore, the researchers advocate that watching English Netflix movies enhances students' vocabulary by using bimodal subtitled movie material during their language learning process, which may increase their motivation and the usage of bimodal subtitles in learning new vocabulary. Bimodal subtitles need to be incorporated into educational film activities to provide students with a vast amount of input to expand their vocabulary.

Keywords: bimodal subtitles, Netflix, English movies, vocabulary, subtitle, language, media

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Authors: Sasalanka Chamara Karunanayaka Pathirannehelage, Sarah Connelly

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Background: Knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) toward the preventive aspect of COVID-19 are crucial for effective control and prevention of the disease. Sociodemographic factors can associate with KAP. This study aims to investigate KAP towards the preventive aspect of COVID-19 and associate sociodemographic factors among university nursing students at the University of Sunderland, 2021, United Kingdom. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 63 university nursing students between the 1st of July and the 13th of August 2021. A previously used, validated, self-administered questionnaire was applied to assess nursing students' KAP levels. Cross tabulation and chi-square were used to identify the associated sociodemographic factors with KAP. Results: Good knowledge was shown by 98.4% of respondents. 84.1 % of respondents reported positive attitudes, while 90.5% of respondents reported good practices toward the preventive aspect of COVID-19. The knowledge score of the students was significantly associated (p = 0.03) with the ethnicity of the respondents. Students' attitudes were significantly associated (p<0.05) with students' sex, student status (home student, international student), and course type (undergraduate student, postgraduate student). Student's age, student status, and course type were significantly associated (p < 0.05) with practices toward the preventive aspect of COVID-19. Conclusion: The finding of the study suggested that the university nursing student at the University of Sunderland demonstrate good knowledge, positive attitude, and good practice level towards the preventive aspect of COVID-19. Associated factors like age, sex, student status, and course type should be considered for effective strategies against COVID-19 as well as for future outbreaks.

Keywords: knowledge, attitudes, practices, nursing students

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Authors: Christine Redmond

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This paper contributes to research on gendered, digital identities by exploring how selfies offer scope for disrupting and moving through gendered and racial ideals of feminine beauty. The selfie involves self-presentation, filters, captions, hashtags, online publishing, likes and more, constituting the relationship between subjectivity, practice and social use of selfies a complex process. Employing qualitative research methods on youth selfies in the UK, the author investigates interdisciplinary entangling between studies of social media and fields within gender, media and cultural studies, providing a material discursive treatment of the selfie as an embodied practice. Drawing on data collected from focus groups with teenage girls in East London, the study explores how girls experience and relate to selfies and snaps in their everyday lives. The author’s Deleuzean feminist approach suggests that bodies and selfies are not individual, disembodied entities between which there is a mediating inter-action. Instead, bodies and selfies are positioned as entangled to a point where it becomes unclear as to where a selfie ends and a body begins. Recognising selfies not just as images but as material and social assemblages opens up possibilities for unpacking the selfie in ways that move beyond the representational model in some studies of socially mediated digital images. The study reveals how the selfie functions to enable moments of empowerment within limiting, dominant ideologies of Euro-centrism, patriarchy and heteronormativity.

Keywords: affect theory, femininity, gender, heteronormativity, photography, selfie, snapchat

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Authors: Anyaphat Srithanasuwan, Noppason Pangprasit, Montira Intanon, Phongsakorn Chuammitri, Witaya Suriyasathaporn, Ynte H. Schukken

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Streptococcus uberis is one of the most common mastitis-causing pathogens, with a wide range of intramammary infection (IMI) durations and pathogenicity. This study aimed to compare shared or unique virulence factor gene clusters distinguishing persistent and transient strains of S. uberis. A total of 139 S. uberis strains were isolated from three small-holder dairy herds with a high prevalence of S. uberis mastitis. The duration of IMI was used to categorize bacteria into two groups: transient and persistent strains with an IMI duration of less than 1 month and longer than 2 months, respectively. Six representative S. uberis strains, three from each group (transience and persistence) were selected for analysis. All transient strains exhibited multi-locus sequence types (MLST), indicating a highly diverse population of transient S. uberis. In contrast, MLST of persistent strains was available in an online database (pubMLST). Identification of virulence genes was performed using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data. Differences in genomic size and number of virulent genes were found. For example, the BCA gene or alpha-c protein and the gene associated with capsule formation (hasAB), found in persistent strains, are important for attachment and invasion, as well as the evasion of the antimicrobial mechanisms and survival persistence, respectively. These findings suggest a genetic-level difference between the two strain types. Consequently, a comprehensive study of 139 S. uberis isolates will be conducted to perform an in-depth genetic assessment through WGS analysis on an Illumina platform.

Keywords: Streptococcus Uberis, mastitis, whole genome sequence, intramammary infection, persistent S. Uberis, transient s. Uberis

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