Individual Rights, Economic Transactions, and Recognition: A Legal Approach to Social Economics

Modernity brought the idea of individual property rights as a com- plex phenomenon. However, economics adopted a simplistic view of property as a fundamental institution, understating the complex interaction of different rights and obligations that frame the legal environment of economic processes with an insufficiently elaborated tool. Here, a more elaborate view of legal elements will be propose

Claudin-1, -3 and -4 proteins and mRNA expression in benign and malignant breast lesions: a research study

INTRODUCTION: We compared levels of protein and mRNA expression of three members of the claudin (CLDN) family in malignant breast tumours and benign lesions. METHODS: Altogether, 56 sections from 52 surgically resected breast specimens were analyzed for CLDN1, CLDN3 and CLDN4 expression by immunohistochemistry. mRNA was also analyzed using real-time PCR in 17 of the 52 cases. RESULTS: CLDNs were rarely observed exclusively at tight junction structures. CLDN1 was present in the membrane of normal duct cells and in some of the cell membranes from ductal carcinoma in situ, and was frequently observed in eight out of nine areas of apocrine metaplasia, whereas invasive tumours were negative for CLDN1 or it was present in a scattered distribution among such tumour cells (in 36/39 malignant tumours). CLDN3 was present in 49 of the 56 sections and CLDN4 was present in all 56 tissue sections. However, CLDN4 was highly positive in normal epithelial cells and was decreased or absent in 17 out of 21 ductal carcinoma grade 1, in special types of breast carcinoma (mucinous, papillary, tubular) and in areas of apocrine metaplasia. CLDN1 mRNA was downregulated by 12-fold in the sample (tumour) group as compared with the control group using GAPDH as the reference gene. CLDN3 and CLDN4 mRNA exhibited no difference in expression between invasive tumours and surrounding tissue. CONCLUSIONS: The significant loss of CLDN1 protein in breast cancer cells suggests that CLDN1 may play a role in invasion and metastasis. The loss of CLDN4 expression in areas of apocrine metaplasia and in the majority of grade 1 invasive carcinomas also suggests a particular role for this protein in mammary glandular cell differentiation and carcinogenesis

Cancer Biomarker Discovery: The Entropic Hallmark

Background: It is a commonly accepted belief that cancer cells modify their transcriptional state during the progression of the disease. We propose that the progression of cancer cells towards malignant phenotypes can be efficiently tracked using high-throughput technologies that follow the gradual changes observed in the gene expression profiles by employing Shannon's mathematical theory of communication. Methods based on Information Theory can then quantify the divergence of cancer cells' transcriptional profiles from those of normally appearing cells of the originating tissues. The relevance of the proposed methods can be evaluated using microarray datasets available in the public domain but the method is in principle applicable to other high-throughput methods. Methodology/Principal Findings: Using melanoma and prostate cancer datasets we illustrate how it is possible to employ Shannon Entropy and the Jensen-Shannon divergence to trace the transcriptional changes progression of the disease. We establish how the variations of these two measures correlate with established biomarkers of cancer progression. The Information Theory measures allow us to identify novel biomarkers for both progressive and relatively more sudden transcriptional changes leading to malignant phenotypes. At the same time, the methodology was able to validate a large number of genes and processes that seem to be implicated in the progression of melanoma and prostate cancer. Conclusions/Significance: We thus present a quantitative guiding rule, a new unifying hallmark of cancer: the cancer cell's transcriptome changes lead to measurable observed transitions of Normalized Shannon Entropy values (as measured by high-throughput technologies). At the same time, tumor cells increment their divergence from the normal tissue profile increasing their disorder via creation of states that we might not directly measure. This unifying hallmark allows, via the the Jensen-Shannon divergence, to identify the arrow of time of the processes from the gene expression profiles, and helps to map the phenotypical and molecular hallmarks of specific cancer subtypes. The deep mathematical basis of the approach allows us to suggest that this principle is, hopefully, of general applicability for other diseases

Hip-abductor fatigue fatigue influences sagittal plane ankle kinematics and shank muscle activity during a single-leg forward jump

Diminished hip abductor strength decreases postural control which is a parameter that is associated with an increased risk of ankle sprains. In our study we evaluated the influence of hip abductor fatigue on sagittal plane ankle kinematics and shank muscle activity during a single-leg forward jump. Sagittal ankle plane kinematics are important in ankle sprains but less studied than frontal plane kinematics. Therefore, we evaluated differences in sagittal ankle kinematics (12-camera motion capture system) and lower limb surface electromyographic muscle activity in 20 healthy, recreationally active adults (9 females, 11 males, mean age 30.3 SD 4.0 years, mean BMI 23.6 SD 2.8 kg/m2) before and after a hip abductor fatigue protocol (200-ms prior, at and in the 250-ms following initial contact (IC)). After fatigue, the maximal ankle plantar-flexion angle decreased prior to IC (median 3.8° [interquartile range 0.1, 7.2], p = 0.014), at IC (4.1° [−0.3, 5.0], p = 0.027) and post IC (4.1° [−1.3, 5.0] p = 0.036). Gastrocnemius activity onset was delayed (−28.0 ms [−44.0, 0.0], p < 0.01). Average activity of the tibialis anterior increased prior to IC (pre-fatigue 19.32% [14.89, 33.45], post-fatigue 28.95% [18.49, 34.81], p < 0.05). Hip-abductor fatigue influenced sagittal ankle kinematics and shank muscle activity during single-leg landings

Neue Quellen fuer die Gasphasenepitaxie. Teilbereich: Schichtstrukturen fuer Detektoren. Teilvorhaben: Wachstum von Schichtstrukturen fuer Detektoren und OEIC mit alternativen Gruppe-V-Quellen Schlussbericht

As part of the main point of support 'alternative precursors for the vapour phase epitaxy' we have investigated the usability of the metalorganic (MO) precursors tertiarybutylphosphine (TBP) and tertiarybutylarsine (TBAs) for the MOVPE process. The present standard precursors PH_3 and AsH_3 are highly toxic, thermally stable and have a high vapour pressure. In contrast, the metalorganics are liquids with low vapour pressures and in addition they are less toxic and less stable. So the use of these precursors can strongly reduce the risk potential of the MOVPE process. Beside, the consumption of TBP, TBAs can be reduced considerably, compared to that of the standard hydrides, due to the more effective decomposition during the growth process. This results in a reduced amount of toxic residual gases, which have to be removed in a scrubber unit. The disposal of the toxic waste is an unneglectable cost and time factor in industrial production. For the material system InP/InGaAs it was shown in typical MOVPE growth processes (selective epitaxy, overgrowth, doping, PIN detectors), that the switching from standard hydrides to the MO precursors can be done without causing trouble. Essentially it was demonstrated, that the growth mechanisms using TBP and TBAs were the same as using the hydrides. Therefore the replacement of PH_3 and AsH_3 with TBP, TBAs only result in advantages from the point of view of the growth process. For the industrial acceptance of the new precursors it will be finally nececsary, that the precursor manufacturer will be able to produce TBP and TBAs reproducible in adequate quantities and qualities. In addition extended investigations have to be done to demonstrate the usability of the MO precursors in Al containing material systems (oxygen and carbon problem). (orig.)Available from TIB Hannover: DtF QN1(60,11) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEBundesministerium fuer Bildung, Wissenschaft, Forschung und Technologie, Bonn (Germany)DEGerman

National Agricultural Resilience Framework

Globally, agriculture is the mainstay of most well planned economies because it contributes significantly to the national GDP, creates employment, provides food for human sustenance, raw materials for industry and earns foreign exchange. Nigeria is blessed with tremendous agricultural resources spanning several agro-ecological zones. Nigeria’s total land area is 92.3 million ha with cultivable area estimated at 84 million ha, which is 91% of the total area. Forests account for 13% of the land area. Most of the country’s land area is fertile and conducive for growing a wide range of crops and raising livestock. Nigeria’s 853 kilometer coastline along the Gulf of Guinea is a gateway to a vast ocean which together with ample fresh water resources provided by the Niger and Benue river systems afford tremendous potential for fisheries and aquaculture/mariculture. Nigeria took advantage of these resources to establish itself as an agricultural powerhouse in the 1960s. According to statistics from the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), by 1961 the country accounted for 42% of the global trade in groundnut oil, 27% of the world’s palm oil industry and 18% of global trade in cocoa. The country was also self-sufficient in food production before the discovery of oil in the 1960s

Ultrafast spin dynamics in spin-polarized vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser devices

Spin-polarized lasers offer new encouraging possibilities for future devices. We compare time-resolved luminescence measurements with theoretical models for spin dynamics in spin-polarized lasers and demonstrate ultrafast polarization switching during one short single-mode laser pulse. (C) 2009 Optical Society of Americ