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The pandemic has accelerated e-commerce adoption for both consumers and sellers. This study aims to identify factors critical to the adoption of electronic markets (EM) during the pandemic, from the perspective of small sellers in non-metro cities. The research design utilizes core dimensions of the UTAUT model and selected constructs from protection motivation theory; since business closure vulnerability also triggers electronic market adoption. A questionnaire survey method was used to collect data from 150 sellers from tier-II/III cities of India. Study results identified performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence and perceived vulnerability as significant determinants of behavioural intention towards adoption of EM. The findings also explain the moderating impact of sellers' awareness of information technology and merchants' age on behavioural outcomes. Given the growing demands from such cities, the research offers insights for marketers to understand the bottlenecks and ways to motivate small sellers to get associated with EMs.

The study proposes to understand the dynamics of work stress and turnover relationship of physicians in Indian context. It also intends to understand the mediating and moderating roles of burnout and resilience on the relationship between work stress and turnover intentions. The article has taken the support of conservation of resources (COR) theory to develop the conceptual framework. The study uses the survey method for data collection which was analysed using quantitative statistical methods like confirmatory factor analysis and mediated and moderated regression. The result showed a significant moderating effect of resilience on burnout and turnover intentions relationship and a strong mediating effect of burnout on the relationship between stress and turnover intentions. Physicians who are regarded as ‘saviours’ should be treated with respect. Certain activities dealing with work–life balance, engaging in leisure activities, getting support from family and friends may help the physician in coping with the demands of stress and thereby reducing the burnout. Future research can take into account other states of India as well as other countries for generalisation of results. The demographic differences among the physicians can also be a new area of research. Although there is lot of available research on the study variables, but none of the studies have taken into context resilience as a moderator between burnout and turnover intention specially in reference to Indian context. The results can add value to the prevailing studies on stress, burnout, resilience and turnover intention.

Purpose This study aims to use empowerment theory to examine the relationship between a user's engagement type (active or passive) and psychological empowerment (intrapersonal and interactional) in the context of a social media brand community (SMBC). This study also looks at the impact of psychological empowerment on brand community commitment (CC) and brand loyalty. Design/methodology/approach Convenience and snowball sampling were used to select respondents from mobile phone brand communities in India. The conceptual model was tested using structure equation modelling. Findings According to the study findings, active user involvement in SMBC is strongly associated to both intrapersonal and interactional empowerment (IE), but passive user engagement is weakly related to IE. Furthermore, customer empowerment and CC have a strong impact on brand CC and brand loyalty. Practical implications SMBC is now a significant point of contact for building strong consumer–brand relationships. SMBC members who are actively involved in the community have greater emotional bonding, trust and commitment to the brand. Therefore, social media marketers should encourage their customers to get involved in a brand community and empower them by involving them in brand related decision, etc. This will help the community grow and thrive. Originality/value This study addresses a research gap by examining how active and passive members of an SMBC facilitate both focal points of psychological empowerment (intrapersonal and interactional), which increase the brand community's commitment and brand loyalty.

India seems to lead the shift from e-commerce to mobile commerce adoption. Apps and mobile websites are offered in various areas of health, travel, shopping, ticketing, and lifestyle, promising enormous opportunities for consumers and businesses. This study identifies the critical factors affecting m-commerce transaction decisions and explaining their relevance. The significant moderating effect of demographics and types of mobile commerce services namely: banking, ticket booking and shopping services are analyzed on users’ behavioral intention in a single framework. The data collection done through questionnaire required the respondents to describe their behavior during their most recent online transactions, in terms of UTAUT model dimensions in three specific areas m-banking, m-ticketing, and m-shopping. Structured equational modeling was employed to analyze the causal association between variables. The research implications will help in understanding the factors affecting the acceptance levels of various m-commerce services by the consumers in India.

Precise and timely detection of tuberculosis (TB) is crucial to reduce transmission. This study aims to assess the accuracy of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra on stool samples and systematically review the performance of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra with different sample types by meta-analysis. Stool samples of smear-negative pulmonary TB (PTB), cervical lymph node TB, and abdominal TB patients were tested on the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra system. Meta-analysis was performed on a set of 44 studies. Data were grouped by sample type, and the pooled sensitivity and specificity of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra were calculated. The sensitivity of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra with stool samples was 100% for smear-negative PTB, 27.27% for cervical lymph node TB, and 50% for abdominal TB patients, with 100% specificity for all included TB groups. The summary estimate for all PTB samples showed 84.2% sensitivity and 94.5% specificity, and EPTB samples showed 88.6% sensitivity and 96.4% specificity. Among all sample types included in our meta-analysis, urine showed the best performance for EPTB diagnosis. This pilot study supports the use of stool as an alternative non-invasive sample on Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra for rapid testing, suitable for both PTB and EPTB diagnosis.

PurposeUpholding congruency with self-determination theory (SDT), the study intends to analyze the impact of spiritual leadership (SL) on happiness at work (HAW) via affective commitment (AC) and prosocial behavior (PSB) in the Indian service sector.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from 324 employees belonging to the service sector of north India. The study utilized AMOS and PROCESS (Hayes, 2013) to test the hypothesized model.FindingsThe findings provided considerable support for the hypothesized relationships between SL, AC, PSB and HAW. The findings advocate the positive association between SL and HAW routing through mediators such as AC and PSB.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research studies have the potential to dwell on the topic from a leader's perspective, i.e. the benefits derived through practicing spirituality. The present work in this field is focused on quantitative tools; more studies can be conducted through qualitative analysis. Future works can attempt to compare the differences amongst cultures and sectors concerning SL and its outcomes.Practical implicationsThe paper provides some relevant inputs for the Indian service sector to comprehend the criticality of SL in building long-lasting relationships amongst peers leading to creating sustainable and happy workplaces.Originality/valueThe study explores the relationship between SL and HAW which has neither been explored theoretically nor tested empirically.

PurposeThe paper aims at examining the employability skills relevant in the unprecedented times of turbulence in businesses due to COVID-19 in the Indian context.Design/methodology/approachThe study examined the recent skills model through an extensive literature review. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is conducted to identify the employability skills perceived as important by multiple stakeholders. ANOVA was applied to examine the differences in perceived importance attached to these dimensions by the three stakeholders.FindingsThe ten-factorial solution was extracted based on the results of EFA The findings offer a fresh perspective on digital competencies perceived as most important to ensure successful long-term employability, followed by business fundamentals and behavioral skills.Research limitations/implicationsThe study has been able to map perceptions of employers, faculty and students based in Delhi-NCR regarding essential employability skills. It would be worthwhile to validate the proposed employability skills framework across different geographical sections of India and ascertain if the perceptions vary in the employment sector and employer size.Practical implicationsAlthough the study has put forth practical employability skills, there is a need for convergence between the business stakeholders and Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) to develop a broad skill-base for the fresh graduates. The study will prepare them for the volatile business environment.Originality/valueMany previous studies have lacked the employability skill framework in the Indian context from the multiple stakeholders' perspective. The HEIs can rethink their current employability, including the most prominent skills required in succeeding in a technology-enabled business environment transformed by the pandemic.

PurposeOver recent years, brand semiotics have been gaining the marketing practitioners' attention for designing their brand strategy. Hence, to address this gap, the current study investigates the effect of semiotic product packaging on brand experience dimensions, brand trust and purchase intent of reputed major brands of fast-moving consumer good (FMCG) products.Design/methodology/approachThe data for this study were collected by administering a questionnaire-based survey from 254 respondents from the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) of India, using systematic sampling. Structural equation modeling has been used to test the conceptual model and examine the hypotheses developed in the study.FindingsThe results present evidence of the growing influence of semiotic product packaging upon consumer brand trust and purchase intentions. The study suggests that brand semiotics positively influence customer brand experience, brand trust and purchase intention of FMCG products.Practical implicationsThe research findings will benefit FMCG companies to identify how to apply semiotics in packaging to improve consumers' brand experience and influence intent to purchase.Originality/valueResearch in brand semiotics on product packaging is limited, as most prior studies focus on brand semiotics in advertising, product design improvement and retail design. The present study has investigated the impact of semiotics on brand experience dimensions in product packaging, which is emerging as a critical concern for the FMCG sector particularly in the post-COVID period.

The purpose of the study is to investigate factors that determine consumers' online purchase intention of buying footwear. Footwear, being a high involvement product, is difficult to sell online as people try size to fit before buying, which is more than any other product category. As per the previous studies, the need for touch is the most prominent factor inhibiting customers to buy footwear online. However, with the increasing need for convenience, superior quality digital catalogs, increasing internet density, attractive offers, and interactive features of websites, the mindset of the people is changing, and they are ready to experiment. The structural equation model technique is used to test the hypothesis. As per the results, consumers perceive website attributes and convenience as driving factors in online shopping. Online consumers interact with e-commerce sites through interactive features provided on the websites. The study can help marketers understand consumer online buying behavior, particularly towards footwear.

The way a person orders his food is the next big thing that technology aims to change. The purpose of the study is to empirically examine the factors determining the behavioral intention of customers towards online food delivery services with food delivery aggregators in India. The study has segmented the online food delivery (OFD) dimension into two domains, namely performance and experience factors. Performance factor includes technical attributes like website quality including features like ease of navigation, information quality, and interaction and control over order. Experience factor includes constructs like convenience, price value, and perceived credibility. Three hundred four questionnaires were collected to empirically test the research model using PLS path modeling and important performance matrix approach. The data was collected during pandemic period when people needed to be ensured by the service provider of the hygiene and safety protocols followed by them, ensuring credibility.

PurposeThe study examines how young working women are motivated by online shopping. The study tests the relationship between Internet self-efficacy (ISE), website aesthetics, and purchase intention through perceived benefit. An investigation of the impact of perceived risk on purchase intention is also carried out.Design/methodology/approachThe paper carried out a quantitative study based on a purposive sample of 180 working women from the Delhi-NCR region of India and used Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to test hypotheses based on the extended TAM model.FindingsPerceived benefit, website aesthetics, and ISE positively and significantly impact working women's purchase intention. The study also finds an indirect relationship between ISE and purchase intention through perceived benefit. Perceived risk has a negative and insignificant influence on working women's purchase intention for online shopping.Practical implicationsThe study finding reflects that perceived website aesthetics fill the gap between offline and online environments. ISE makes shopping easy and increases the shopper's confidence. A mobile-optimized website with ease of navigation would increase women shoppers' conversion rates on mobile devices, leading to a favourable impact on revenue generation for online retailers.Originality/valueDespite the vast literature on constructs derived from the TAM model, very few studies have researched young women consumers from an emerging economy perspective. The novelty of this research lies in identifying the factors that influence young working women's online shopping intention using smartphone through the glance of ISE and perceived aesthetics in the Indian context.

The purpose of the study is to identify the risk factors that predict online gaming addiction based on psychological factors. A sample of 150 respondents, who play online games or played in the past, were the respondents. Structured questionnaire is used to understand gaming behavior and other psychological factors. The following factors were found to be a predictor of online gaming addiction: emotional dependence, social withdrawal, detachment from other activities, and long hours spent playing games. Confirmatory factors analysis was used to identify critical factors and discriminant analysis was used to classify respondents as active and non-active online gamer based on their level of addiction and time spent in playing. The result shows a significant gap in the perception of active and non-active gamers with respect to the above-mentioned factors. The study brings valuable insights to medical practitioners and researchers in the context of defining problematic gaming behaviour.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is possibly one of the most studied psychological factors of the twenty-first century. EI is very much relevant in service industry particularly in management, academics, life sciences or psychology. The purpose of the empirical study is to test the relationship between the defined constructs of EI and job satisfaction ( JS) amongst health care professionals of Delhi NCR region of India. It further tried to understand whether gender moderates the EI and JS relationship. Structured survey was used to solicit response from 260 health care professionals comprising doctors and nurses belonging to different hospitals of Delhi NCR region. Standardised instruments were used to assess the data. Linear and moderated regression were used to test hypotheses developed. The findings suggest that EI constructs significantly impact the level of JS among health care professionals. The result of moderated regression suggested that the relationship of EI and JS is significantly moderated by gender. The construct of EI is relevant in providing high quality health care service delivery to the patients.

The primary aim of this study was to identify the modifiable risk factors for acquiring ventilator associated events (VAE). Secondary aims were to investigate the intensive care unit (ICU) course and impact of VAE on patient outcome.This prospective, observational single center cohort study included 247 patients on mechanical ventilation for 4 calendar days at a 20-bed ICU between January 2018-June 2019.VAE occurred in 59 episodes (rate 11.3 per 1000 ventilator-days). The Ventilator Utilization Ratio (VUR) was 0.57. The median time to onset of VAE was 6 days. Sepsis was the most common reason for initiating patients on invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Cumulative fluid balance ≥2 l (Odds Ratio 30.92; 95% CI 9.82-97.37) and greater number of days with vasopressor support (Odds Ratio 1.92; 95% CI 1.57-2.36) within 7 days of initiating IMV were significant risk factors for acquiring VAE (p 0.001). VAE cases were ventilated for significantly more days (20 vs 14 days, p = 0.001, had longer days of ICU stay (29 vs 18 days; p = 0.002) and higher hospital mortality (p = 0.02). Klebsiella pneumoniae was the most common isolate (N = 28) and 32.1% were colistin resistant.Prospective intervention studies are needed to determine if targeting these risk factors can lower VAE rates in our setting.

With technological advancements, the availability of low-cost smartphones and internet connectivity, the online retail industry has gained traction. A pandemic-related lockdown has fuelled the fire. Consequently, it becomes important to identify the factors defining online retail service quality (ORSQ), which affect customer satisfaction and customer engagement behaviour. First, a qualitative study was conducted to identify ORSQ factors and reliability, ease of use, customer-friendly policies, problem handling and security were found to be the most vital ones for Indian consumers. Further, a quantitative study was attempted to determine the impact of ORSQ factors on consumer satisfaction and customer engagement behaviour. While testing these relationships, website familiarity was considered as a moderating variable between ORSQ factors and customer satisfaction. The findings of the study suggest that the identified ORSQ factors influence customer satisfaction and customer engagement behaviour in turn. The moderating effect of website familiarity was also established on customer satisfaction. For the analysis, Smart PLS 3.0 was used.

Diagnostic yield of an automated molecular test, Gene Xpert Mycobacterium tuberculosis/rifampicin (MTB/RIF), was evaluated in this study to simultaneously detect the MTB gene and resistance to rifampicin (RIF) on cytology samples acquired via endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)–guided fine-needle aspiration (FNAC) in suspected tubercular lymphadenitis. Microscopy, cytology, Gene Xpert MTB/RIF assay data on Acid-fast bacillus (AFB), and traditional culture of lymph nodes were retrospectively analyzed. Thirty-one patients (median age 33.5 years, inter-quartile range [IQR] 21–66, 18, 58% female) presented with fever (28, 90%), dysphagia (2, 7%), and recurrent subacute intestinal obstruction (1, 3%). Gene Xpert showed higher sensitivity (30, 97%) compared to the other tests: cytology (23, 77%; odds ratio [OR] 8.8, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.0–76.9; p = 0.05), AFB smears (12, 39%; OR 50, 95% CI 5.9–420.4; p = 0.00001), and conventional culture (4, 13%; OR 188.5, 95% CI 19.7–1796.3; p = 0.0000). We conclude that Gene Xpert MTB/RIF test on EUS-guided FNAC samples is very useful to diagnose tubercular lymphadenitis.

As per United Nations Development Program's Human Development Report 2016, India ranks 131 out of 188 countries on the gender inequality index, which positions it in the medium category. Women need intervention at various levels and the role of decision making at different spheres is a critical part of it. A major facet of empowerment is equal contribution of women in decision making, irrespective of any constraint of relatives or societal norms. This study measures the status of women's decision-making power in different areas like household, economic freedom, children, society, and awareness of their rights. It includes a survey of 278 women from the lower economic stratum in urban India. It further involves construction of empowerment indices on different decision-making indicators and hypothesis testing using statistical tests like independent sample t-test, ANOVA test. The findings in the Indian context are compared with other parts of the world. The survey results reported are of high social and policy importance for Indian women.

Post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation, nitrosylation, and pupylation modulate multiple cellular processes in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. While protein methylation at lysine and arginine residues is widespread in eukaryotes, to date only two methylated proteins in Mtb have been identified. Here, we report the identification of methylation at lysine and/or arginine residues in nine mycobacterial proteins. Among the proteins identified, we chose MtrA, an essential response regulator of a two-component signaling system, which gets methylated on multiple lysine and arginine residues to examine the functional consequences of methylation. While methylation of K207 confers a marginal decrease in the DNA-binding ability of MtrA, methylation of R122 or K204 significantly reduces the interaction with the DNA. Overexpression of S-adenosyl homocysteine hydrolase (SahH), an enzyme that modulates the levels of S-adenosyl methionine in mycobacteria decreases the extent of MtrA methylation. Most importantly, we show that decreased MtrA methylation results in transcriptional activation of mtrA and sahH promoters. Collectively, we identify novel methylated proteins, expand the list of modifications in mycobacteria by adding arginine methylation, and show that methylation regulates MtrA activity. We propose that protein methylation could be a more prevalent modification in mycobacterial proteins.

With the growing awareness of lifestyle diseases and risk related to chemical-based products, there has been an increasing interest in green/natural products. The purpose of this study is to analyze the recent surge in the growth rate of Ayurved Market and to explore factors that are driving or inhibiting the said pattern. The study will use descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis to understand the factor influencing the consumer perception of Ayurvedic products. The study will also investigate the relation between the demographic factors and preference for Ayurvedic products. The study identifies the factors which influence the brand preferences and to know how these factors are further influenced by demographics. The result of the study indicates that the factors of trust and satisfaction have positive and significant impact on the brand preferences, whereas price has negative but insignificant influence on brand preferences. This study is an attempt to understand the role of Ayurved in food science as well as medical science.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand consumers in the emerging wine market of India to ensure the best services. To this end, factors were identified to describe Indian wine consumer behavior and further segments for consumers were created based on the factors identified. Design/methodology/approach The research design is descriptive in nature and based on primary data. Data was collected by a structured questionnaire from 232 respondents in five major cities of India (Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad). The scale was mainly adopted from wine-related lifestyle approaches. Findings The principal component factor analysis resulted in six factors, namely, drinking ritual, consumption reason (social), consumption reason (mood, enjoyment and relaxation), consumption practice, consumption planning and quality. Cluster analysis resulted in a three-cluster solution. These clusters were named as cautious social drinker, loner regular drinker and highly engaged drinker based on the attributes possessed. Originality/value The segmentation of urban Indian wine consumers will be helpful for marketers to identity and describe the differences in attributes and behaviors, to create customized promotions to match the needs.

The purpose of the study is to identify the risk factors that predict online gaming addiction based on psychological factors. A sample of 150 respondents, who play online games or played in the past, were the respondents. Structured questionnaire is used to understand gaming behavior and other psychological factors. The following factors were found to be a predictor of online gaming addiction: emotional dependence, social withdrawal, detachment from other activities, and long hours spent playing games. Confirmatory factors analysis was used to identify critical factors and discriminant analysis was used to classify respondents as active and non-active online gamer based on their level of addiction and time spent in playing. The result shows a significant gap in the perception of active and non-active gamers with respect to the above-mentioned factors. The study brings valuable insights to medical practitioners and researchers in the context of defining problematic gaming behaviour.

Introduction: Laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) for complicated appendicitis appears to be controversial due to the difficulty in dissection and clearing off the peritoneal contamination, prolonged operating times, higher incidence of post-operative abdominal abscess, and wound infections. Objectives: The objective of the study was to compare laparoscopic and open appendectomy (OA) and evaluate the outcome of LA in children with complicated appendicitis. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of 182 patients’ records with complicated appendicitis was done. Data collected included demographics, operative time, resumption of oral intake, and infectious complications such as wound infection and intra-abdominal abscess, need for redo surgery, length of hospitalization, and duration of antibiotic use. Patients were followed up for 6 months in the post-operative period to assess delayed complications. Results: LA was performed in 102 patients and 80 patients underwent an OA. The two groups did not differ significantly in mean age, duration of antibiotic use, resumption of oral intake, and length of the hospital stay. The duration of surgery was significantly longer for LA (p

With the growing awareness of lifestyle diseases and risk related to chemical-based products, there has been an increasing interest in green/natural products. The purpose of this study is to analyze the recent surge in the growth rate of Ayurved Market and to explore factors that are driving or inhibiting the said pattern. The study will use descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis to understand the factor influencing the consumer perception of Ayurvedic products. The study will also investigate the relation between the demographic factors and preference for Ayurvedic products. The study identifies the factors which influence the brand preferences and to know how these factors are further influenced by demographics. The result of the study indicates that the factors of trust and satisfaction have positive and significant impact on the brand preferences, whereas price has negative but insignificant influence on brand preferences. This study is an attempt to understand the role of Ayurved in food science as well as medical science.

Antibiotics, the primary drugs used to cure bacterial diseases, are increasingly becoming ineffective due to the emergence of multiple drug resistance (MDR) leading to recurrence of previously sensitive pathogens. Human gut microbiome (GM), known to play an important role in various physiological processes, consists of pool of diverse microbes. Indiscriminate use of antibiotics during the life span of an individual may lead to development of resistant microbes e.g. Vibrio, Acinetobacter, Escherichia, Klebsiella, Clostridia, etc. in the human GM. Transmission of antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) between pathogenic and commensal bacteria occurs more frequently in microbiome communities wherein bacteria communicate and exchange cellular constituents both among themselves and with the host. Additionally, co-factors like 'early vs. late' exposure, type of antibiotics and duration of treatment modulate the adverse effects of antibiotics on GM maturation. Furthermore, factors like mode of birth, ethnicity, malnutrition, demography, diet, lifestyle, etc., which influence GM composition, can also indirectly alter the host response to antibiotics. Currently, advanced 'omics' and culturomics approaches are revealing novel avenues to study the interplay between antibiotics and the microbiome and to identify resistant genes in these bacterial communities. Here, we discuss the recent developments that have given insights into the effects of antibiotics on the homeostatic balance of the gut microbiome and thus on human health.

Women Empowerment has been on national agenda of every government. In developing nation women comprises fifty percent of the population so empowering them is crucial for development and nation building. Various Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) extends microcredit/loan via group model (Self Help Groups and Joint Liability Groups) to the marginalised segment particularly women groups and minorities primarily residing in rural areas with an aim to empower them and foster their socio-economic development. Previous studies have shown that microcredit has positive impact, but providing credit alone does not guarantee empowerment of the member beneficiaries. From past studies it can be concluded that empowerment demand an integrated approach from all the participating bodies/institutions involved, only then can be the objective of socio-economic development be accomplished. Since today very limited literature is available on microcredit and its impact. The current research examines the impact of microcredit on women empowerment indicators (decision making, awareness and psychological factors) of member beneficiaries in Haridwar district of Uttarakand. Women are organized into groups (Joint Liability Groups) and provided microcredit /loan. Non Probability sampling (Convenience Sampling) technique is adopted in sample selection where access to microcredit serves as independent variable and women empowerment indicators serves as dependent variables. The study consists of sample size of 362 member beneficiaries. Hypothesis testing is applied to find the significant association between the dependent and independent variables. Inferential statistics i.e Chi sq test is used to find the association/relationship between access to microcredit and empowerment indicators. Results indicate that there is no association between access to microcredit and women empowerment indicators. The results indicate that microcredit vial JLGs makes no impact on the empowerment indicators, making no improvement in the lives of its beneficiaries. There is need of regular and continuous impact assessment by credit institutions, participation from states and local bodies, must be analysis of socio-cultural factors and formation of women self administered system are some of the recommendations of the study. The results can be used by various stakeholders in designing better approach and as it provides them information on the areas which needs improvement so that microcredit can bring positive difference in the lives of beneficiaries. Also, it opens doors for further research in order to explore the socio-cultural factors which influence women empowerment.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the mediating role of demonetisation in the usage of IT-enabled banking services (ITeBS). The study extends the theory of technology readiness (TR) (Parasuraman and Colby, 2015) by incorporating the behavioural intention and actual usage of ITeBS. Design/methodology/approach Based on the theory of TR and encompassing the impact of demonetisation, the study examines the functional relationship of TR, behavioural intention and actual usage. Structural equation modelling and mediation analysis are applied on a data set of 474 usable responses. Findings The study confirms that TR is a significant factor in customer’s intention to use ITeBS. The demonetisation variable fully mediates the relationship model, which implies a significant finding in the consumer acceptance literature. Practical implications The result of this study proposes three major implications. Primarily, the banks should focus on providing simple and user-friendly ITeBS interface and its uninterrupted access. It is necessary to educate the customers by giving them a trial of the service. Furthermore, social media platforms may be utilised as an effective and efficient tool to resolve customer complaints. Originality/value This study is first of the attempts to investigate government’s digital push in the technology adoption literature. The results indicate significant influence of demonetisation on the usage of ITeBS.

The purpose of this study is to explore the mediating role of Quality of Work Life on Job Burnout and Job Satisfaction relationship. The present research constituted of 240 doctors belonging to 4 different states of India who were working in either in medical colleges, private hospitals or had their own private clinics. The data was assessed through statistical techniques like correlation, reliability and mediator regression analysis. The study results revealed that there is a significant and negative association between job burnout and job satisfaction, a significant and positive association between QWL and Job Satisfaction and a significant and negative relationship between Job Burnout and QWL. Doctors devote their lives to the practice of medicine, work sincerely in their pursuit to provide best care for patients. Hospital administration needs to encounter various imperative job demands that predict burnout by designing diverse interventions as all job demands cannot be condensed, also burnout can’t be entirely eradicated from the work place of doctors.

Extensive usage of antibiotics has created an unprecedented scenario of the rapid emergence of many drug-resistant bacteria, which has become an alarming public health concern around the globe. Search for better alternatives that are as efficacious as antibiotics led to the discovery of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). These small cationic amphiphilic peptides have emerged as a promising option as antimicrobial agents, owing to their multifaceted implications against varied pathogens. Recent years have witnessed tremendous growth in research on AMPs resulting in them being tested in clinical trials of which six got approved for topical application. The relatively less successful outcome has been attributed to the poor cell selectivity shown by most of the naturally occurring AMPs. This drawback needs to be circumvented by identifying strategies to design safe and effective peptides. In the present review, we have emphasized the importance of heptad repeat sequence (leucine and/or phenylalanine zipper motif) as a tool that has shown great promise in remodeling the toxic AMPs to safe antimicrobial agents.

ObjectivesWe aim to define the burden of rifampicin monoresistant tuberculosis (TB) at a tertiary care centre in northern India as well as determine the second-line drug susceptibilities (SL-DST) in a subset of patients.MethodsA total of 3045 pulmonary (n=1883) and extrapulmonary (n=1162) samples from likely patients with TB were subjected to microscopy, culture and the Xpert MTB/RIF assay from March 2017 to June 2019. SL-DST testing by line probe assay version 2 for fluoroquinolones (FQs) and second-line injectable drugs were performed on 62 samples.ResultsOut of 3045 samples processed in our laboratory during the study period, 36.1% (1101/3045) were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) and 21.6% were rifampicin monoresistant (223/1032). The rate of rifampicin resistance in pulmonary samples was 23.5% (166/706) and in extrapulmonary cases, it was 17.4% (57/326). Out of 62 cases included for second-line testing, 48 were resistant to FQs (77.4%) while 11 were extensively drug resistant.ConclusionsIndia urgently needs to arrest an emerging multidrug-resistant TB epidemic with associated resistance to FQs. A robust surveillance system is needed to execute the National Strategic Plan for 2017–2025.

Comparative genomic analysis of prokaryotes has led to a better understanding of the biology of several pathogenic microorganisms. One such clinically important pathogen is M. tuberculosis, the leading cause of bacterial infection worldwide., Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated (Cas) genes are conserved genetic elements in many prokaryotes, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis. Although knowledge of CRISPR locus variability has been utilized in M. tuberculosis strain genotyping, its evolutionary path in Mycobacteriaceae is not well understood. In this study, we have performed a comparative analysis of 141 mycobacterial genomes and identified the exclusive presence of the CRISPR-Cas type III-A system in M. tuberculosis complex (MTBC). Our global phylogenetic analysis of CRISPR repeats and Cas10 proteins offers evidence of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) of the CRISPR-Cas module in the last common ancestor of MTBC and Mycobacterium canettii from a Streptococcus-like environmental bacterium. Additionally, our results show that the variation of CRISPR-Cas organization in M. tuberculosis lineages, especially in the Beijing sublineage of lineage 2, is due to the transposition of insertion sequence IS6110. The direct repeat (DR) region of the CRISPR-Cas locus acts as a hot spot for IS6110 insertion. We show in M. tuberculosis H37Rv that the repeat at the 5′ end of CRISPR1 of the forward strand is an atypical repeat made up partly of IS-terminal inverted repeat and partly CRISPR DR. By tracing an undetectable spacer sequence in the DR region, the two CRISPR loci could theoretically be joined to reconstruct the ancestral single CRISPR-Cas locus organization, as seen in M. canettii. This study retracing the evolutionary events of HGT and IS6110-driven genomic deletions helps us to better understand the strain-specific variations in M. tuberculosis lineages. IMPORTANCE Comparative genomic analysis of prokaryotes has led to a better understanding of the biology of several pathogenic microorganisms. One such clinically important pathogen is M. tuberculosis, the leading cause of bacterial infection worldwide. Recent evidence on the functionality of the CRISPR-Cas system in M. tuberculosis has brought back focus on these conserved genetic elements, present in many prokaryotes. Our study advances understanding of mycobacterial CRISPR-Cas origin and its diversity among the different species. We provide phylogenetic evidence of acquisition of CRISPR-Cas type III-A in the last common ancestor shared between MTBC and M. canettii, by HGT-mediated events. The most likely source of HGT was an environmental Firmicutes bacterium. Genomic mapping of the CRISPR loci showed the IS6110 transposition-driven variations in M. tuberculosis strains. Thus, this study offers insights into events related to the evolution of CRISPR-Cas in M. tuberculosis lineages.

The advent of fourth industrial revolution has come at a cost; our planet earth is enduring concurrent changes in population, increase in urban infrastructure, depleting natural resources, depleting forest covers, increase in pollution etc., and its cumulative ill effects on global climate. These changes coupled with advancements in technology viz. Sensors and Data Mining techniques have led to a growth in study of Climate Data as a method to thwart Climate Change. Climate change study is a data intensive subject which has seen numerous innovations in the data collection methods, and study of that data using Big Data Analytics. There has been a considerable shift from traditional study methods like random sampling of climate data to data intensive methods where complete datasets are analyzed by means of Big Data Analytics. The study of climate change and its effects has been one of the top priorities in Big Climate Data Analytics implementations and detailed research has been done covering a plethora of topics. However, the study of climate data by recent methods has revealed several challenges previously unrecorded in data mining literature, unless these challenges are addressed, big data analytics will not have the same meaningful impact that it has on other fields. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of use of Big Data in Climate Change research and the opportunities and challenges pertaining to it, by studying and summarizing the current state of applications of Big Data in Climate Science.

Background: The clinical presentation of Scrub typhus mimics other acute undifferentiated febrile illnesses (AUFI) thus making it difficult to diagnose clinically. Methods: Patients hospitalized with acute febrile illness (2-21 days) along with clinical suspicion for scrub typhus were evaluated for specific IgM antibodies against O. tsutsugamushi by ELISA and details of demographic, clinical, laboratory and clinical complication/outcomes related parameters collected for statistical analysis. Results: Scrub typhus IgM antibodies by ELISA were detected in 88 (18.1%) patients out of 486 patients hospitalized with acute febrile illness and clinically suspected for Scrub typhus between September 2015 and January 2017. The majority sero-positive cases were found in July-December (p=0.02). Out of 88, twenty nine sero-positive Scrub typhus patients had serological evidence of co-infections. Eschar was observed in 11 (12.5%) sero-positive patients. Of 88, 23 sero-positive Scrub typhus patients died. A low platelet count (RR: 0.99; 95% CI:0.98-1.00, p=0.02), requirement of intensive care (RR: 2.26; 95% CI: 0.19-26.5, p = 0.01), need for mechanical ventilation (RR: 3.8, 95% CI: 1.35-10.86, p =0.003) and metabolic acidosis (RR: 3.47; 95% CI: 0.9-13.4, p = 0.03) were associated with mortality among sero-positive Scrub typhus patients. An appropriate antibiotic administration (n=46/88) was associated with clinical recovery/discharge (n=42/46; p=0.002). Conclusion: Our results emphasize early diagnosis and administration of appropriate antibiotic for the management of scrub typhus in view of multiple etiologies in the initial diagnostic workup of patients presenting with AUFI. Thrombocytopenia, metabolic acidosis, need for mechanical ventilation and intensive care were associated with adverse clinical outcome among patients with Scrub typhus.