Manchester Metropolitan University

About: Manchester Metropolitan University is a education organization based out in Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 5435 authors who have published 16202 publications receiving 442561 citations. The organization is also known as: Manchester Polytechnic & MMU.

Towards a multidisciplinary definition of innovation

Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to undertake a content analysis of extant definitions of “innovation” as a basis for proposing an integrative definition of organizational “innovation”.Design/methodology/approach – A literature review was used to generate a representative pool of definitions of organizational innovation, including definitions from the different disciplinary literatures of economics, innovation and entrepreneurship, business and management, and technology, science and engineering. A content analysis of these definitions was conducted in order to surface the key attributes mentioned in the definitions, and to profile the descriptors used in relation to each attribute.Findings – The key attributes in the paper present in definitions were identified as: nature of innovation; type of innovation; stages of innovation, social context; means of innovation; and aim of innovation. These attributes are defined, descriptors assigned to them, and both a diagrammatic definition and a textual definition of org...

The status of the world's land and marine mammals: diversity, threat, and knowledge

Abstract: Knowledge of mammalian diversity is still surprisingly disparate, both regionally and taxonomically. Here, we present a comprehensive assessment of the conservation status and distribution of the world's mammals. Data, compiled by 1700+ experts, cover all 5487 species, including marine mammals. Global macroecological patterns are very different for land and marine species but suggest common mechanisms driving diversity and endemism across systems. Compared with land species, threat levels are higher among marine mammals, driven by different processes (accidental mortality and pollution, rather than habitat loss), and are spatially distinct (peaking in northern oceans, rather than in Southeast Asia). Marine mammals are also disproportionately poorly known. These data are made freely available to support further scientific developments and conservation action.

Role of C-Reactive Protein at Sites of Inflammation and Infection

Abstract: C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acute inflammatory protein that increases up to 1000-fold at sites of infection or inflammation. CRP is produced as a homo-pentameric protein, termed native CRP (nCRP), which can irreversibly dissociate at sites of inflammation and infection into five separate monomers, termed monomeric CRP (mCRP). CRP is synthesised primarily in liver hepatocytes but also by smooth muscle cells, macrophages, endothelial cells, lymphocytes and adipocytes. Evidence suggests estrogen in the form of hormone replacement therapy influences CRP levels in the elderly. Having been traditionally utilised as a marker of infection and cardiovascular events, there is now growing evidence that CRP plays important roles in inflammatory processes and host responses to infection including the complement pathway, apoptosis, phagocytosis, nitric oxide (NO) release and the production of cytokines, particularly interleukin-6 and tumour necrosis factor-alpha. Unlike more recent publications, the findings of early work on CRP can seem somewhat unclear and at times conflicting since it was often not specified which particular CRP isoform was measured or utilised in experiments and whether responses attributed to nCRP were in fact possibly due to dissociation into mCRP or lipopolysaccharide contamination. In addition, since antibodies for mCRP are not commercially available, few laboratories are able to conduct studies investigating the mCRP isoform. Despite these issues and the fact most CRP research to date has focussed on vascular disorders, there is mounting evidence that CRP isoforms have distinct biological properties, with nCRP often exhibiting more anti-inflammatory activities compared to mCRP. The nCRP isoform activates the classical complement pathway, induces phagocytosis and promotes apoptosis. On the other hand, mCRP promotes the chemotaxis and recruitment of circulating leukocytes to areas of inflammation and can delay apoptosis. The nCRP and mCRP isoforms work in opposing directions to inhibit and induce NO production respectively. In terms of pro-inflammatory cytokine production, mCRP increases interleukin-8 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 production whereas nCRP has no detectable effect on their levels. Further studies are needed to expand on these emerging findings and fully characterise the differential roles each CRP isoform at sites of local inflammation and infection.

The Impact of Conservation on the Status of the World’s Vertebrates

Abstract: Using data for 25,780 species categorized on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, we present an assessment of the status of the world's vertebrates. One-fifth of species are classified as Threatened, and we show that this figure is increasing: On average, 52 species of mammals, birds, and amphibians move one category closer to extinction each year. However, this overall pattern conceals the impact of conservation successes, and we show that the rate of deterioration would have been at least one-fifth again as much in the absence of these. Nonetheless, current conservation efforts remain insufficient to offset the main drivers of biodiversity loss in these groups: agricultural expansion, logging, overexploitation, and invasive alien species.