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Book part
Publication date: 6 December 2018

Mihalis Kritikos

The chapter analyses the re-emergence of gene editing as an object of policy attention at the European Union (EU) level. Editing the genome of plants and/or animals has been a…

Abstract

The chapter analyses the re-emergence of gene editing as an object of policy attention at the European Union (EU) level. Editing the genome of plants and/or animals has been a rather controversial component of all EU policies on agricultural biotechnology since the late 1980s. The chapter examines in detail the various initiatives that have been assumed for the regulation of gene editing at the EU level. Since the first political and legislative attempts, the field has been revolutionized with the development of the CRISPR-Cas9 system, which is comparatively much easier to design, produce, and use. Beyond the pure, safety-driven scientific questions, gene editing, in its contemporary form, raises a series of ethical and regulatory questions that are discussed in the context of the legal options and competences of the EU legislators. Special attention is paid to questions about the legal status of gene editing in Europe and the adequacy of the current GMO framework to deal with all the challenges associated with the latest scientific developments in the field of gene editing with a special focus on gene drive. Given the ongoing discussions regarding the ethical tenets of gene editing, the chapter investigates the question on whether there is a need to shape an EU-wide “intervention” that will address the complex and dynamic socio-ethical challenges of gene editing and puts forward a series of proposals for the framing of an inclusive framework that will be based on the need to re-enforce public trust in the EU governance of emerging technologies.

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Ethics and Integrity in Health and Life Sciences Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-572-8

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2005

Susan Miles, Suzanne Bolhaar, Eloina González‐Mancebo, Christine Hafner, Karin Hoffmann‐Sommergruber, Montserrat Fernández‐Rivas and André Knulst

The aim was to look at food‐allergic consumers’ preferences concerning the development of low‐allergen food.

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim was to look at food‐allergic consumers’ preferences concerning the development of low‐allergen food.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire was designed to measure attitudes towards low‐allergen food. Data were collected from 20 food‐allergic consumers in Austria, Spain and The Netherlands respectively between April and May 2002 using interviewer‐assisted questionnaire methodology.

Findings

The results suggested that food‐allergic consumers are interested in having low‐allergen food available, with 70‐95 per cent wanting it produced. A total of 89 per cent identified a number of benefits to themselves, including being able to resume eating the food to which they were allergic, and being able to eat all food with no worries, no symptoms and no need to check labels. Fewer disadvantages were mentioned, with 53 per cent identifying no disadvantages. Factors that would encourage or discourage purchase of low‐allergen food were also identified with price, quality (particularly taste) and safety being important. Whilst acceptance of low‐allergen food produced using genetic modification was reasonably high (55‐85 per cent), in general participants would prefer this food to be produced through conventional means.

Research limitations/implications

Further research is required with a larger sample, where cross‐cultural statistical comparisons can be made. Originality/value This study provides new information about acceptability of low‐allergen food which is of use for the food industry when developing such food, benefiting both the industry and food‐allergic consumers.

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Nutrition & Food Science, vol. 35 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

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Case study
Publication date: 20 January 2017

Daniel Diermeier and Shobita Parthasarathy

Describes Myriad Genetics and its struggle to develop a genetic testing service while facing challenges from competitors and activist organizations. After Myriad's discovery of…

Abstract

Describes Myriad Genetics and its struggle to develop a genetic testing service while facing challenges from competitors and activist organizations. After Myriad's discovery of the BRCA gene, capable of genetic testing for breast cancer in women, Myriad needed to choose a strategy to provide this service to the public. With several major competitors offering similar services, intense media scrutiny, and a charged activist and political climate, a poor Myriad decision could have major repercussions.

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Kellogg School of Management Cases, vol. no.
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2474-6568
Published by: Kellogg School of Management

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1989

Eleanor S. Block

The emphasis of this survey is on motion picture reference material that has been published since 1982. This update does not, for the most part, include titles covered in a prior…

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Abstract

The emphasis of this survey is on motion picture reference material that has been published since 1982. This update does not, for the most part, include titles covered in a prior RSR article (1:4; 1983), written by myself, or in an even earlier article by Leslie Kane (7:1; 1979). In those few instances where titles that have appeared in the earlier RSR film surveys are discussed, it is because they now have a new subject emphasis.

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Reference Services Review, vol. 17 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0090-7324

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 2002

Harry A. Harmon, Gene Brown, Robert E. Widing and Kevin L. Hammond

Observes that previous research on the value and effect of supervisory feedback has focused on the recipient of the feedback (the salesperson). The research reported in this…

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Abstract

Observes that previous research on the value and effect of supervisory feedback has focused on the recipient of the feedback (the salesperson). The research reported in this article examines the feedback construct from the provider’s perspective (the sales manager). Explores the relationship between Sujan’s failed sales effort attribution model and the feedback provided typology developed by Jaworski and Kohli. The results confirm a direct relationship between failed sales effort attributed to poor strategy and positive feedback directed to salesperson behavior. A direct relationship is reported between the failed sales effort attributed to lack of effort (or intensity) and negative feedback provided by the sales manager that is directed to the salesperson’s output.

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Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 17 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

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Article
Publication date: 1 October 2005

Kenneth W. Green, R. Anthony Inman, Gene Brown and T. Hillman Willis

Organizational structure dimensions have been theorized as antecedents to and organizational performance as a consequence of market orientation. Multiple studies have investigated…

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Abstract

Purpose

Organizational structure dimensions have been theorized as antecedents to and organizational performance as a consequence of market orientation. Multiple studies have investigated the theorized relationships and returned inconsistent results. The purpose of this study is to identify and resolve the inconsistencies.

Design/methodology/approach

Results from prior studies were summarized and a structural equation modeling approach was used to analyze new data collected from 173 manufacturing organizations.

Findings

Of the structure dimensions (formalization, specialization, decentralization, integration) tested, only formalization was found to be a positive predictor of market orientation. Market orientation was found to be a positive predictor of both financial and marketing performance.

Research limitations/implications

The body of evidence assembled does not support the proposition that organizational structure impacts market orientation. It does, however, support the proposition that a market orientation positively impacts organizational performance.

Practical implications

It is not necessary for practicing managers to adopt a particular structural combination in preparation for implementation of a marketing orientation. Managers can, however, expect improved financial and marketing performance following the adoption of a market orientation.

Originality/value

Past inconsistencies related to the antecedent impact of organizational structure on a market orientation and a market orientation on performance are resolved. The evidence indicates that structure does not have the impact originally proposed.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 20 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

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Book part
Publication date: 13 March 2023

Sami Dakhlia, Boubacar Diallo, Shahriar M. Saadullah and Akrem Temimi

National differences in the demand for voluntary external audits have been linked to multiple factors, such as differences in a country's rate of growth, access to external…

Abstract

National differences in the demand for voluntary external audits have been linked to multiple factors, such as differences in a country's rate of growth, access to external credit, and institutional quality. Audits, however, also have a psychological cost, whose intensity is genetically and culturally hereditary. Using a sample of 3,072 private firms across 34 industries in seven countries, including five countries or regions from the former Soviet Comecon, we find that a country's share of firms choosing to undergo external audits is negatively related to the prevalence of carriers of the G allele in the mu-opioid receptor gene's A118G polymorphism, also known as the “social sensitivity” gene. Furthermore, the relationship between the prevalence of the social sensitivity gene and audits is fully mediated by a national culture's degree of collectivism. The results are statistically and economically highly significant and remain robust to the introduction of a set of confounding factors at the firm and country levels. Our results have practical relevance in recognizing psychological diversity when conducting audits and, more generally, preventing burnout in the workplace.

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Book part
Publication date: 16 July 2015

Callie H. Burt

Heritability studies attempt to estimate the contribution of genes (vs. environments) to variation in phenotypes (or outcomes of interest) in a given population at a given time…

Abstract

Purpose

Heritability studies attempt to estimate the contribution of genes (vs. environments) to variation in phenotypes (or outcomes of interest) in a given population at a given time. This chapter scrutinizes heritability studies of adverse health phenotypes, emphasizing flaws that have become more glaring in light of recent advances in the life sciences and manifest most visibly in epigenetics.

Methodology/approach

Drawing on a diverse body of research and critical scholarship, this chapter examines the veracity of methodological and conceptual assumptions of heritability studies.

Findings

The chapter argues that heritability studies are futile for two reasons: (1) heritability studies suffer from serious methodological flaws with the overall effect of making estimates inaccurate and likely biased toward inflated heritability, and, more importantly (2) the conceptual (biological) model on which heritability studies depend – that of identifiably separate effects of genes versus the environment on phenotype variance – is unsound. As discussed, contemporary bioscientific work indicates that genes and environments are enmeshed in a complex (bidirectional, interactional), dynamic relationship that defies any attempt to demarcate separate contributions to phenotype variance. Thus, heritability studies attempt the biologically impossible. The emerging research on the importance of microbiota is also discussed, including how the commensal relationship between microbial and human cells further stymies heritability studies.

Originality/value

Understandably, few sociologists have the time or interest to be informed about the methodological and theoretical underpinnings of heritability studies or to keep pace with the incredible advances in genetics and epigenetics over the last several years. The present chapter aims to provide interested scholars with information about heritability and heritability estimates of adverse health outcomes in light of recent advances in the biosciences.

Details

Genetics, Health and Society
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78350-581-4

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Article
Publication date: 4 August 2021

Jamie Stephen Walton

This paper aims to provide a brief and accessible introduction to genetics and epigenetics for forensic practitioners. It provides two primers which define key genetic concepts…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a brief and accessible introduction to genetics and epigenetics for forensic practitioners. It provides two primers which define key genetic concepts and explain what epigenetic mechanisms actually are. The primers are provided alongside sections that focus on genetic research relevant to forensic practice, with a range of key messages that support the call to contextualise harmful behaviour and build better awareness of gene-environment relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

This is an opinion paper.

Findings

Select and seminal studies from the genetic literature that have forensic practice relevance are cited. These include studies from candidate gene research and epigenetic research. They highlight a number of key themes, including the way neurodevelopment and behaviour are contextually adjusted to fit certain environments, with epigenetic changes being an underpinning biological mechanism that facilitates this.

Research limitations/implications

This article aims to introduce forensic practitioners to basic concepts in genetics and epigenetics so that they are able to engage with the relevant literature and understand the far-reaching implications for forensic practice.

Practical implications

It is becoming increasingly useful for forensic practitioners to appreciate how life experiences are encoded into biology through epigenetics. This paper highlights the potential of genetic and epigenetic research to provide major contributions to real-world practice in the coming years. It provides a modern biopsychosocial perspective on harmful behaviour and helps deepen the understanding of our efforts to support behaviour change. It offers ways to think of social and rehabilitative initiatives in biological terms.

Originality/value

This paper is one of few modern texts that focusses on the relevance of genetic and epigenetic research in applied forensic practice. It aims to introduce relevant concepts in an accessible manor. It intends to introduce biologically informed ways of understanding harmful behaviour within context and with attention to its function. It contributes to a de-pathologising narrative.

Details

The Journal of Forensic Practice, vol. 23 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-8794

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2002

William R. Rowley

This paper describes the field of biotechnology and likely advances in health care, agricultural and other applications in industry, environmental science and energy over the next…

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Abstract

This paper describes the field of biotechnology and likely advances in health care, agricultural and other applications in industry, environmental science and energy over the next 15 years. The intent is to give those without a background in the life sciences a perspective of the broad scope of biotechnology. The forecasts at the end of each section illustrate some advances as well as some of the benefits and risks to society that might occur during the next 15 years.

Details

Foresight, vol. 4 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6689

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