Exploring combinatorial microRNA therapy for chronic wound healing

Wound healing is a highly orchestrated process involving the coordinated action of many cell types, growth factors, cytokines and small regulatory RNAs, such as microRNAs (miRNAs). These small RNA molecules become expressed in a spatiotemporal pattern to fine-tune signalling pathways coordinating tissue repair. Recently, miRNA dysregulation has been linked to impaired healing, including the formation and progression of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs), a type of chronic wound associated with diabetes. While most of the interest has gone into the role of individual miRNAs in DFUs, research into the combinatorial role of dysregulated miRNAs remains limited. Complicating factors, such as dosage-dependent effects of miRNAs and current stochastic delivery methods, can make it challenging to study combinatorial miRNA effects. This project addressed some of these understudied limiting elements to explore how combinatorial miRNA dysregulation can contribute to impaired healing in DFUs. First, a set of differentially expressed miRNAs between DFU-derived fibroblasts and healthy fibroblasts was identified and, using bioinformatics, the biological impact of their dysregulation was explored in delaying wound healing. Next, three miRNAs were chosen from this dataset and their individual and combinatorial effects was investigated in primary skin cells isolated from amputated human limbs. Lastly, a novel in vitro engineering-based approach for miRNA delivery was used for studying incremental dosage effects of specific differentially expressed miRNAs. Altogether, these findings opened opportunities for investigating dose-dependent effects of miRNA combinations for the treatment of DFUs, yet not addressed by current research.Open Acces

MARKETING RESEARCH REGARDING FACULTY-CHOISE CRITERIA AND INFORMATION SOURCES UTILISED

Today, marketing is essential to any educational institution of higher education, so much as it is imperative that the needs of potential candidates to be identified and satisfied in a manner which will generate long-term effects (post-graduation), may paeducational marketing, institution of higher education, marketing research.

Competitividade internacional da indústria leiteira romena : recomendações estratégicas setoriais

Mestrado Bolonha em Gestão e Estratégia IndustrialNo início do século XXI, a economia mundial encontra-se regida por duas forças principais: o fenómeno da globalização e o desenvolvimento tecnológico, ambos com impacto significativo nas empresas, nos consumidores, e nas economias. O processo de expansão do mercado acelerou-se significativamente, o principal objetivo de qualquer economia passa por ser: “manter e expandir a competitividade”. Assim, a palavra de ordem que orienta na contemporaneidade as políticas levadas a cabo em todos os países do mundo é a competitividade. O mesmo acontece nas indústrias particulares, como no caso da leiteira. A indústria agroalimentar é vital para as economias contemporâneas. Assegurar a independência alimentar de uma nação é atualmente de igual importância que garantir a autonomia energética. Ao mesmo tempo, a indústria alimentar e, por consequente, a do leite, possui potencial estratégico para a dinamização das economias nacionais, nomeadamente por via do comércio externo. Neste sentido, no presente trabalho encontra-se elaborado o Diamante de Porter da indústria do leite da Roménia, um modelo original de análise da competitividade deste setor de atividade. A sua execução permitiu compreender as razões da atual posição competitiva da indústria do leite e lacticínios romenos no panorama internacional, a sua atratividade e as suas vantagens competitivas únicas. A execução do Diamante de Porter, através da leitura de múltiplos rankings de competitividade internacional e de outros dados estatísticos, assim como as entrevistas realizadas a profissionais do setor leiteiro romeno fizeram parte da abordagem seguida para o estudo descritivo-exploratório de cariz dedutivo, que resultaram na identificação dos principais elementos determinantes da atual competitividade global da indústria leiteira romena. De uma forma geral, constatou-se que existe ainda caminho a percorrer internamente para tornar o setor eficiente, produtivo e rentável, e poder ingressar no mercado internacional com competitividade. As conclusões retiradas com o estudo identificaram os aspetos a melhorar e/ou a considerar para que a indústria leiteira da Roménia possa melhorar a sua competitividade.At the beginning of the 21st century, the world economy is governed by two main forces: the phenomenon of globalization and the technological development, both with significant impact on businesses, consumers, and economies. The process of market expansion has significantly accelerated, the main objective of any economy is to “maintain and expand competitiveness”. Thus, what guides the policies carried out in all countries in contemporary times is competitiveness. The same happens in private industries, as in the case of dairy. The agri-food industry is vital for today's economies. Ensuring a nation's food independence is currently of equal importance to assure energy autonomy. At the same time, the food industry and, consequently, the dairy industry, has a strategic potential for boosting national economies, namely through foreign trade. In this sense, in the present work, the Porter Diamond of the Romanian milk industry is elaborated, an original model for analyzing the competitiveness of this sector of activity. Its execution made it possible to understand the reasons for the current competitive position of the Romanian milk and dairy industry on the international scene, its attractiveness, and its unique competitive advantages. The execution of the Porter Diamond, through the reading of multiple rankings of international competitiveness and other statistical data, as well as the interviews carried out with professionals in the dairy sector, were part of the approach followed for the descriptive-exploratory study of a deductive nature, which resulted in the identification of the main determinants of the current global competitiveness of the Romanian dairy industry. In general, it was found that there is still a way to go internally to make the sector efficient, productive and profitable, and to be able to enter the international market with competitiveness. The conclusions drawn from the study identified aspects to be improved and/or considered so that the dairy industry in Romania can improve its competitiveness.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

MARKETING RESEARCH REGARDING FACULTY-CHOISE CRITERIA AND INFORMATION SOURCES UTILISED

Today, marketing is essential to any educational institution of higher education, so much as it is imperative that the needs of potential candidates to be identified and satisfied in a manner which will generate long-term effects (post-graduation), may p

Morphometric Analysis of the 18th Century Vitis sp. Seeds from Apulum Archaeological Site

The present study examines Vitis sp. seeds discovered during the excavations in 2017 on an archaeological site in Apulum, the current city of Alba Iulia, Romania. The archaeological context was dated as belonging to the 18th century. The grape seeds were measured in order to determine whether they are cultivated or wild. Using mathematical formulas and keys given for interpretation, all the seeds were determined as being cultivated. The results obtained complete the archaeological information regarding Vitis sp. use in human diet during Modern era in Transylvania

Role of kinesiotherapy in the recovery of patients with primary coxarthrosis

Primary coxarthrosis is a disorder of the hip that may lead to a decrease in the quality of life due to the presence of pain, vicious positions, joint stiffness, and decrease in the joint range of motion. In this article, the role and importance of kinesiotherapeutic treatment along with drug therapy in the recovery of patients with primary coxarthrosis was studied. Kinesiotherapy administered to patients in the study group (medication and kinesiotherapy) contributed to the increase of the joint angle values at the level of the coxofemoral joint and muscle strength. The Womac test performed at the end of treatment (day 12) in the study group shows a decrease in pain intensity and a reduction of joint stiffness compared to day 1, before the initiation of treatment. The Lequesne functional index applied at the end of the 12 days of treatment from statistical analysis shows that patients can easily walk longer distances and can perform daily activities more easily, which results in an increase in their quality of life

STUDY REGARDING THE EVOLUTION OF QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE PARAMETERS IN VINIFERA VARIETIES FROM TÂRNAVE VINEYARD

In the present study, three varieties of grapes, Fetească regală (FR), Muscat Ottonel (MO) and Sauvignon Blanc (SB) were analysis. For a complete characterization of the grapes at harvest, the main analytical characteristics must be known: their sugar content (g /l), the total acidity (g/l H2SO4) and the mass of 100 grains. The study of the production behavior of the varieties was carried out over a period of three years (2017-2019). The results showed, the Muscat Ottonel cultivar is very well adapted in the three years of study, recording the highest values of this character (203.91g). The highest content in total acidity, in all three years, was registered by the Feteasca Regala variety (6.7 g /l H2SO4), recommended otherwise for the production of base wines in order to obtain sparkling wines

Significant Phonon Drag Enables High Power Factor in the AlGaN/GaN Two-Dimensional Electron Gas

In typical thermoelectric energy harvesters and sensors, the Seebeck effect is caused by diffusion of electrons or holes in a temperature gradient. However, the Seebeck effect can also have a phonon drag component, due to momentum exchange between charge carriers and lattice phonons, which is more difficult to quantify. Here, we present the first study of phonon drag in the AlGaN/GaN two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG). We find that phonon drag does not contribute significantly to the thermoelectric behavior of devices with ~100 nm GaN thickness, which suppress the phonon mean free path. However, when the thickness is increased to ~1.2 $\mu$m, up to 32% (88%) of the Seebeck coefficient at 300 K (50 K) can be attributed to the drag component. In turn, the phonon drag enables state-of-the-art thermoelectric power factor in the thicker GaN film, up to ~40 mW m$^{-1}$ K$^{-2}$ at 50 K. By measuring the thermal conductivity of these AlGaN/GaN films, we show that the magnitude of the phonon drag can increase even when the thermal conductivity decreases. Decoupling of thermal conductivity and Seebeck coefficient could enable important advancements in thermoelectric power conversion with devices based on 2DEGs