Service Alliance in Competition: A Game Theory Perspective

This research focuses on services based on alliance and devises a novel concept called service alliance. Service alliance uses service as the unit that companies can exchange, furnish, and share services in the alliance. Service alliance emphasizes on the representation and exchange for value of single service from an individual company. This research utilizes game theory to discuss the best action of service alliance in competition. We use airline industry as the example and expect to contribute to any service industry. The results show that four strategies are similar to the process from competition to cooperation. The best case is that the members in the alliance co-fund a new service team to serve all members. We hope the proposed concept can be applied to all service industry and create a new operation model for alliance

Entrepreneurship Education for the Next Generation of Higher Education in Taiwan

2019/2020 The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) analyzes the status of early entrepreneurship in various countries. Taiwan is higher than other countries’ averages in the national entrepreneurial environment index, such as cultural and social norms, physical infrastructure, market entry control, and internal market vitality, business and legal infrastructure, transformation of research and development results, school-leaving entrepreneurship education and training, on-campus entrepreneurship education and training, government entrepreneurship plans, taxation and administrative systems, government policies and entrepreneurial financing, etc. Starting from 2020, the Ministry of Education has divided the innovation and entrepreneurship courses into two models, namely fundraising practical learning and training course modules and entrepreneurial management and action learning course modules. The themes and implementations of the courses include “Concepts and Practices in Entrepreneurship and Practice Simulation Learning Platform”, “Concept Development and Practice-Business Operation-Company Establishment-Company Closure” and “Concept Proposal-Maker Practice-Business Model Briefing” and other aspects. This article will discuss, in the context of the development and current situation of entrepreneurship education in Taiwan, trends in entrepreneurship education for the next generation of Taiwan, and use examples from Taiwan’s higher education system to promote entrepreneurship education to serve as a reference by education circles in other countries

Kappa-Opioid Receptors in the Caudal Nucleus Tractus Solitarius Mediate 100 Hz Electroacupuncture-Induced Sleep Activities in Rats

Previous results demonstrated that 10 Hz electroacupuncture (EA) of Anmian acupoints in rats during the dark period enhances slow wave sleep (SWS), which involves the induction of cholinergic activity in the caudal nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) and subsequent activation of opioidergic neurons and μ-receptors. Studies have shown that different kinds of endogenous opiate peptides and receptors may mediate the consequences of EA with different frequencies. Herein, we further elucidated that high-frequency (100 Hz)-EA of Anmian enhanced SWS during the dark period but exhibited no direct effect on rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. High-frequency EA-induced SWS enhancement was dose-dependently blocked by microinjection of naloxone or κ-receptor antagonist (nor-binaltorphimine) into the caudal NTS, but was affected neither by μ- (naloxonazine) nor δ-receptor antagonists (natatrindole), suggesting the role of NTS κ-receptors in the high-frequency EA-induced SWS enhancement. Current and previous results depict the opioid mechanisms of EA-induced sleep

Increased ATP generation in the host cell is required for efficient vaccinia virus production

To search for cellular genes up-regulated by vaccinia virus (VV) infection, differential display-reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (ddRT-PCR) assays were used to examine the expression of mRNAs from mock-infected and VV-infected HeLa cells. Two mitochondrial genes for proteins that are part of the electron transport chain that generates ATP, ND4 and CO II, were up-regulated after VV infection. Up-regulation of ND4 level by VV infection was confirmed by Western blotting analysis. Up-regulation of ND4 was reduced by the MAPK inhibitor, apigenin, which has been demonstrated elsewhere to inhibit VV replication. The induction of ND4 expression occurred after viral DNA replication since ara C, an inhibitor of poxviral DNA replication, could block this induction. ATP production was increased in the host cells after VV infection. Moreover, 4.5 μM oligomycin, an inhibitor of ATP production, reduced the ATP level 13 hr after virus infection to that of mock-infected cells and inhibited viral protein expression and virus production, suggesting that increased ATP production is required for efficient VV production. Our results further suggest that induction of ND4 expression is through a Bcl-2 independent pathway

Endogenous Opiates in the Nucleus Tractus Solitarius Mediate Electroacupuncture-Induced Sleep Activities in Rats

Electroacupuncture (EA) possesses various therapeutic effects, including alleviation of pain, reduction of inflammation and improvement of sleep disturbance. The mechanisms of EA on sleep improvement, however, remain to be determined. It has been stated in ancient Chinese literature that the Anmian (EX17) acupoint is one of the trigger points that alleviates insomnia. We previously demonstrated that EA stimulation of Anmian acupoints in rats during the dark period enhances non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, which involves the induction of cholinergic activity in the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS). In addition to cholinergic activation of the NTS, activation of the endogenous opioidergic system may also be a mechanism by which acupuncture affects sleep. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the involvement of the NTS opioidergic system in EA-induced alterations in sleep. Our present results indicate that EA of Anmian acupoints increased NREM sleep, but not rapid eye movement sleep, during the dark period in rats. This enhancement in NREM sleep was dose-dependently blocked by microinjection of opioid receptor antagonist, naloxone, and the μ-opioid receptor antagonist, naloxonazine, into the NTS; administrations of δ-receptor antagonist, natrindole, and the κ-receptor antagonist, nor-binaltrophimine, however, did not affect EA-induced alterations in sleep. Furthermore, β-endorphin was significantly increased in both the brainstem and hippocampus after the EA stimuli, an effect blocked by administration of the muscarinic antagonist scopolamine into the NTS. Our findings suggest that mechanisms of EA-induced NREM sleep enhancement may be mediated, in part, by cholinergic activation, stimulation of the opiodergic neurons to increase the concentrations of β-endorphin and the involvement of the μ-opioid receptors