Bitter gourd, Momordica charantia L., breeding lines differ in secondary metabolite content according to market type

Bitter gourd, Momordica charantia L., is an important commercial cucurbitaceous vegetable of enormous medicinal value in Asia because of its secondary metabolite content. We report here the characterization and evaluation of open-pollinated (OP) edible South Asian and Southeast Asian types of bitter gourd breeding lines, developed at the World Vegetable Center, for horticultural traits (11 OP) and secondary metabolites (10 OP) and their comparisons with commercial OP and F1 hybrid cultivars. Marketable yields of South Asian and Southeast Asian type breeding lines were comparable to the OP ‘BARI Karella 1’ and the hybrid ‘Benteng’, respectively.The bitter gourd cultivars and breeding lines included in this study exhibited specific patterns for five secondary metabolites (saponins, carotenoids, chlorophyll a and b, and vitamin C): in general the two cultivars and South Asian type breeding lines contained higher levels of secondary metabolites, e.g. carotenoids, than the Southeast Asian bitter gourd breeding lines.Some of these bitter gourd lines will be released to Asian home and school gardeners after conducting multi-location trials across Asia to improve vegetable consumption as a main task of bitter gourd breeding

Entering new markets and diversifying business: The role of Amazon's acquisitions in international growth and development

E-commerce has grown considerably in recent decades and has had a disruptive impact on the retail industry. In this context, Amazon, one of the major players in (online) retailing and beyond, has been able to expand its business activities continuously in many countries. The present case study sheds light on the internationalization of Amazon, with a particular focus on the company's acquisitions. The study illustrates that Amazon's acquisitions over the last decades had two major objectives. First, acquisitions helped Amazon enter new markets and strengthen its presence in specific regions. Second, taking over other companies allowed Amazon to broaden its activities, for instance, by expanding the product portfolio, improving customer service, gaining additional knowledge and expertise or by opening up new business areas

Attracting talent through diversity at the top:The impact of TMT diversity and firms' efforts to promote diversity on employer attractiveness

At a time where firms encounter a “race for talent”, it is crucial for many MNCs to present themselves as attractive employers. Failing to position themselves in the international labor market can reduce firms' ability to acquire valuable international human capital, thereby generating disadvantageous organizational effects. Against this backdrop, drawing on signaling theory and employer branding literature, our paper aims to shed light on the association between nationality diversity in the executive suite and MNCs' employer attractiveness. Our lines of argument build on the notion that top management team composition can affect MNCs' efforts to promote diversity among their employees. This focus on diversity, in turn, can affect MNCs' employer attractiveness. Examining firms from various European countries, we find that top management team nationality diversity is positively associated with firms' employer attractiveness for foreign job seekers. We also show that a firm's efforts to promote diversity mediate the relationship between TMT nationality diversity and employer attractiveness. We therefore advance the academic debate on diversity as an employer branding tool and a means to enhance employer attractiveness. In practical terms, we also provide valuable insights for firms wishing to transform into (more) diverse entities.</p