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Nature and occurrence of food-borne pathogens in raw and processed food products evolved greatly in the past few years due to new modes of transmission and resistance build-up against sundry micro-/macro-environmental conditions. Assurance of food health and safety thus gained immense importance, for which bio-sensing technology proved very promising in the detection and quantification of food-borne pathogens. Considering the importance, different studies have been performed, and different biosensors have been developed. This study aims to summarize the different biosensors used for the deduction of food-borne pathogens.

The present review highlights different biosensors developed apropos to food matrices, factors governing their selection, their potential and applicability. The paper discusses some related key challenges and constraints and also focuses on the needs and future research prospects in this field.

The shift in consumers’ and industries’ perceptions directed the further approach to achieve portable, user and environmental friendly biosensing techniques. Despite of these developments, it was still observed that the comparison among the different biosensors and their categories proved tedious on a single platform; since the food matrices tested, pathogen detected or diagnosed, time of detection, etc., varied greatly and very few products have been commercially launched. Conclusively, a challenge lies in front of food scientists and researchers to maintain pace and develop techniques for efficiently catering to the needs of the food industry.

Biosensors deduction limit varied with the food matrix, type of organism, material of biosensors’ surface, etc. The food matrix itself consists of complex substances, and various types of food are available in nature. Considering the diversity of food there is a need to develop a universal biosensor that can be used for all the food matrices for a pathogen. Further research is needed to develop a pathogen-specific biosensor that can be used for all the food products that may have accuracy to eliminate the traditional method of deduction.

The present paper summarized and categorized the different types of biosensors developed for food-borne pathogens.

This study aims to report the development and experimental evaluation of three innovative corrosion-resistant modified epoxy coatings, namely, nanocomposite/toughened, self-healing and hybrid epoxy coatings, for application on steel substrates.

The corrosion resistance of these coatings was evaluated in a highly corrosive environment of salt fog spray for 2,500 h of exposure. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements in sustained exposure to NaCl in a saturated Ca(OH)2 solution, rust creepage measurements at the location of scribe formed in the coatings and adhesion strength test were used to assess the performance of the innovative coatings. Commercially available marine-grade protective epoxy coatings were used as the reference coatings.

The test results showed that the modified epoxy coatings exhibited excellent corrosion resistance when exposed to an aggressive environment for extended periods. The EIS measurements, rust creepage measurements, pull-off strength and visual appearance of the aged modified–epoxy–coated specimens confirmed the enhanced corrosion resistance of the modified epoxy coatings.

Among the three types of modified coatings, the hybrid epoxy coating stands out to be the best performer.

The climate in Mendoza is significantly different from the climate in most global wine-making regions. This paper aims to explore the relationship between the quality of the Malbec wine from the Mendoza region and its weather.

This study uses a multivariate regression model with fixed effects to assess how weather variations relate to wine quality. The Wine Spectator ratings are used as a measure of wine quality and to build a longitudinal data set of Malbec wine ratings from 1995 to 2020. The weather is described with several variables based on temperature, rainfall, humidity and cloudiness data from the Mendoza region. The model controls for wineries which are treated as fixed effects.

The results of this study indicate that the weather has a modest explanatory power when it comes to the quality of Mendoza’s Malbec. Additionally, the analyses show that the wineries are more important than the weather to explain quality differences in the wines. These findings are in agreement with previous studies carried out in regions with stable weather such as California and Australia.

The quality of Mendoza’s Malbec depends more on the winery of origin than the year-to-year weather variations. Therefore, consumers should focus more on the winery and less on the vintage when making purchasing decisions. Additionally, given the relevance of the winery in relation to quality, the findings of this study indicate that future research efforts should focus on directly linking the wine ratings to quality-drivers behind the winery effects.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that explores the relationship between wine quality assessed through wine ratings and the weather in the Mendoza (Argentina) region. Most such studies have been done in connection with northern hemisphere wines.

The purpose of this paper is to develop insight into the scholarly communications trends in hospitality and tourism management by looking at the practice of publishing Special Issues (SIs) in top-ranked hospitality and tourism management (HTM) academic journals: examining the relationship of SIs to journal impact as a measurement of quality, identifying some principal topics of SI and the trend of publishing SI as monographs.

This paper consists of an analysis of 22 top-ranked HTM journals from 1995 to 2020, in-depth case studies reviewing studies in two top-ranked HTM journals and an examination of which publishers supplement their revenue by selling their special issues as monographs. This paper includes a substantial review of literature regarding special issue publishing within business academic journals.

There was growth in the publication of HTM SI from 1995 to 2020, both in numbers and as a percentage of total issues. There is no evidence that SI are reducing impact within HTM journals; impact has grown exponentially since the mid-1990s. In one case, there was a significant increase in SI publication as well as in impact. The number of Regular Issues (RI) published increased during the same period but at a marginally lower rate. There is no evidence that SI are negatively affecting RI. The in-depth analysis of the two journals concurred with the above findings and suggested that SI studies discuss topics of the highest impact. SI increased the revenue of the publisher through monograph publishing. This practice also furthered the field by making SI available to be purchased as a monograph by nonsubscribers.

This study provides a deeper understanding of scholarly publishing in top-ranking HTM journals and provides a foundation for future research on HTM publishing practices. Its practical implications extend to practitioners who rely on HTM scholarship for dissemination of vital research that can guide or drive decision-making. This study also informs the critical question as to whether such research is compromised by publishing practices. Other practical implications include providing reassuring information to editors who publish SI that these issues do not appear to contribute to lower journal impact. For researchers who are considering submitting manuscripts to SIs, this study similarly implies that their paper should not be considered of lower value and that there is no indication that its impact will be lessened. Furthermore, the authors hope that this study encourages would-be guest editors to publish SI if they have held back because of quality/impact concerns. Finally, this paper may provide evidence to journal editors who do not regularly publish SI because of quality and impact concerns that they may reconsider this choice. Implications for HTM journal editors and guest editors include adding or increasing SI in their publishing practice will not decrease the journal’s quality, while SI publishing also could contribute to the goals of their publication and increase revenues for the publishers. Researchers who may have been reluctant to publish in SI should be more inclined to submit to them or endeavor to become guest editors to explore avenues of developing their field.

SI publication and impact within the field of hospitality and tourism scholarly communications are rarely discussed. Literature reviews on SI publication in business are also limited. Investigation into publication practices of focused/special issues can help inform researchers, publishers and editors and provide a state of the industry.

This study aims to investigate the implications, risks and challenges of data privacy due to the use of immersive technology in the hospitality industry.

The authors adopt a mixed-method approach. Study 1 is a focus group. The authors then provide external and ecological validity with a field experiment conducted with 139 hotel clients at a three-star continental European hotel.

Collecting biometric data results in unbalanced privacy compared to biographic data, as it diminishes individuals’ control over their data and grants organizations absolute power. This unbalanced privacy directly influences consumers’ willingness to disclose information, affecting their choice of hotels and access to services.

Hotels should redesign their strategies to accommodate heightened privacy risks with biometric data. This can be obtained by introducing systems that foster customer confidence in data usage and facilitate customers’ willingness to disclose biometrics through immersive technology or biographic data.

This study introduces unbalanced privacy as a unique state due to sharing biometric data. The authors propose a novel doctrine, the uncontrollable privacy paradox, which is a shift from the privacy paradox. The uncontrollable privacy paradox addresses the unbalanced privacy envisaged through consumer powerlessness in data management. This research addresses the literature gap on the privacy paradox by offering a broader perspective, including business, industry and mixed reality considerations.

Digital technologies create myriad innovation opportunities and have inspired the establishment of many new start-ups in recent years. Despite the growing knowledge on digital entrepreneurship, few studies explore how start-ups exploit these opportunities to achieve entrepreneurial success. The purpose of this paper is to explore start-ups’ capabilities for successful delivery of digital artefacts in a cloud computing infrastructure.

Empirical data were collected during a qualitative case study of an established start-up in the Chinese market by interviewing 41 interviewees. Informed by the notion of dynamic capabilities and using the Gioia methodology, the case firm's life cycle was analysed in detail.

The study identifies start-ups’ ordinary and dynamic capabilities for successful development and delivery of digital services. The findings provide insights into a portfolio of start-ups’ capabilities, namely adaptation, networking, reengineering and refinement.

The study suggests that start-ups’ capabilities and underlying entrepreneurial actions determine the degree to which adoption of digital technologies create and transfer value to customers. The study offers specific insights into how start-ups successfully develop and deliver digital artefacts in a cloud infrastructure based on entrepreneurs' prior expertise, vision and accumulated experience.

This paper aims to test the hedging ability of housing investment against inflation in Japan and the USA during the period 2000–2020.

This study applies the deep learning method and The exponential general autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity in mean (1, 1) model with breaks.

Within the asymmetric framework, it is found that housing returns (HR) can hedge against inflation in both these markets, which mentions that when investing in the housing market in Japan and the USA, investors are compensated for bearing from inflation. This result is consistent with Fisher’s hypothesis. Especially, the empirical results show that the risk-return tradeoff is available in Japan’s housing market and not available in the US housing market. Any signal of a high inflation rate – referred to as “bad news” – may cause a drop in HR in Japan and a raise in the USA.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is one of the first studies using the deep learning method (long short-term memory model) to estimate the expected/unexpected inflation rates.

The increased importance of sports and athlete brands highlights the need for athletes to pay attention to branding as it has positive impacts. As athletes, Muslim women have not succeeded in building their brands. This study aims to understand the branding challenges facing Muslim female athletes and how to overcome them.

These branding obstacles and guidelines were explored using qualitative methods – specifically semi-structured interviews with Muslim female athletes and focus groups with experts. Data were analysed using open and axial coding to identify the codes.

The study identifies three major obstacles to branding by Muslim female athletes. Self-related obstacles, such as knowledge of brand building, social media, personal pressure and a lack of role models, impact the brand-building decision. Social-related (family and society) and sport-related obstacles (participation as women and as Muslims) further complicate this task. Experts provide additional insights regarding these obstacles, suggesting strategies to overcome them.

The research focuses on athletes from one geographical area and has limitations associated with using qualitative methods.

The study suggests how self-, social- and sport-related obstacles are faced by athletes. It provides suggestions for federations, sports codes and other stakeholders to support athletes to overcome these barriers.

This study expands the understanding of the struggles Muslim women face in building their brands as part of an under-represented group.

Networks linking tourist attractions or organizations are a major focus of tourism research. Despite extensive research on tourism networks, academic research on the spatial structure and formation of wine tourism networks is limited. This study aims to investigate the spatial structure and factors influencing the development of a network among Ningxia wineries, an emerging wine tourism destination in China.

This study uses social network analysis to uncover “what” the spatial structure of wine tourism networks looks like. Sixteen in-depth interviews were conducted among key stakeholders to explain the “why” of such structural characteristics.

The results show that in an emerging wine tourism destination, popular tourist attractions enjoy high centrality and hold key positions in the wine tourism network. Small wineries exhibit high closeness centrality, and only one winery serves as a network broker. According to the stakeholders, the importance of network actors will increase as their economic and political importance increase, while small wineries that lack differentiation in the network may perish.

Local governments can implement the suggested measures for improving network connections, and wineries are advised to find suitable positions to improve the experiences of tourists.

This study pioneers the identification of the distinct structure and factors influencing the network of an emerging wine tourism destination, thus enriching the understanding of the interplay and roles of different actors.