The use of e-textbooks has become popular in certain countries, yet there is debate in the literature about whether it is advantageous to adopt e-textbooks and if they positively influence students’ learning and performance. Prior studies on the acceptance of e-textbooks were mainly based on one theoretical perspective, and did not differentiate samples between experienced and inexperienced users. From a social- and task-related view, this study aims to identify the critical factors that stimulate acceptance intentions of e-textbooks among tertiary students, particularly between experienced and inexperienced users. Based on 912 questionnaires, this study found that performance expectancy, perceived enjoyment, and perceived task-technology fit are the factors affecting students’ behavioral intention for acceptance in both sampling groups. However, social impact only has significant influence on acceptance intention of inexperienced users. Also, gender has a moderating effect on the relationship of performance expectancy and behavioral intention of inexperienced users only. This study provides useful implications for marketing e-textbooks, and fills the literature gap.

In this study, intravital multiphoton microscopy was used to quantitatively investigate hepatobiliary metabolism in chronic pathologies of the liver. Specifically, through the use of the probe molecule 6-carboxyfluorescein diacetate, the effects of liver fibrosis, fatty liver, and hepatocellular carcinoma on the metabolic capabilities of mouse liver were investigated. After the acquisition of time-lapse images, a first order kinetic model was used to calculate rate constant resolved images of various pathologies. It was found that the ability of the liver to metabolically process the probe molecules varies among different pathologies, with liver fibrosis and fatty liver disease negatively impacted the uptake, processing, and excretion of molecules. The approach demonstrated in this work allows the study of the response of hepatic functions to different pathologies in real time and is useful for studying processes such as pharmacokinetics through direct optical imaging.

In vivo multiphoton imaging was used to map changes in hepatobiliary metabolism in liver fibrosis (left column) and hepatocellular carcinoma (right column). The top row shows the maps of kinetic rate constant of the uptake and esterase processing while the bottom row shows that of bile canalicular excretion of xenobiotics. Further details can be found in the article by Chih‐Ju Lin, Sheng‐Lin Lee, Wei‐Hsiang Wang, et al. (https://doi.org/10.1002/jbio.201700338).

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