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

Telomerase prevents accelerated senescence in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD)-deficient human fibroblasts

Fibroblasts derived from glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD)-deficient patients display retarded growth and accelerated cellular senescence that is attributable to increased accumulation of oxidative DNA damage and increased sensitivity to oxidant-induced senescence, but not to accelerated telomere attrition. Here, we show that ectopic expression of hTERT stimulates telomerase activity and prevents accelerated senescence in G6PD-deficient cells. Stable clones derived from hTERT-expressing normal and G6PD-deficient fibroblasts have normal karyotypes, and display no sign of senescence beyond 145 and 105 passages, respectively. Activation of telomerase, however, does not prevent telomere attrition in earlier-passage cells, but does stabilize telomere lengths at later passages. In addition, we provide evidence that ectopic expression of hTERT attenuates the increased sensitivity of G6PD-deficient fibroblasts to oxidant-induced senescence. These results suggest that ectopic expression of hTERT, in addition to acting in telomere length maintenance by activating telomerase, also functions in regulating senescence induction

Cephalosporin and Ciprofloxacin Resistance in Salmonella, Taiwan

We report the prevalence and characteristics of Salmonella strains resistant to ciprofloxacin and extended-spectrum cephalosporins in Taiwan from January to May 2004. All isolates resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins carried blaCMY-2, and all ciprofloxacin-resistant Salmonella enterica serotype Choleraesuis isolates were genetically related

Comparative efficacy of Chinese herbal medicines for dialysis patients with uremic pruritus: A systematic review and network meta-analysis

Introduction: Uremic pruritus is common in dialysis patients and reduces their quality of life. Chinese herbal medicine has been effective in patients with this condition.Methods: We conducted a random-effects network meta-analysis to compare the efficacies of different Chinese herbal medicine treatments for uremic pruritus. Outcome measures including the overall effective rates, visual analog scale scores, C-reactive protein levels, and adverse drug reactions were analyzed.Results: The network meta-analysis retrieved 25 randomized controlled trials. Compared with conventional treatments alone, combination treatments with Xiao-Yang-Ke-Li was the most effective intervention in decreasing visual analog scale scores (mean difference −2.98, 95% mean difference −5.05 to −0.91) and levels of C-reactive protein (mean difference −5.01, 95% mean difference −7.27 to −2.75). Conventional treatment combined with Si-Wu Tang was superior to other therapeutic combinations when overall effective rates were determined. The best visual analog scale scores and overall effective rates were achieved by adjunctive treatment with the Touxie-Jiedu-Zhiyang decoction followed by uremic clearance granules; these treatments were the most beneficial for uremic pruritis.Conclusion: Our network meta-analysis provided the relative efficacies of different adjunctive Chinese herbal formulas. Adjunctive treatment with the Touxie-Jiedu-Zhiyang decoction was the best treatment for improving overall effective rates and reducing visual analog scores of uremic pruritus in dialysis patients.Systematic Review Registration:https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=357656; Identifier: CRD42022357656

Estrogen Augments Shear Stress–Induced Signaling and Gene Expression in Osteoblast-like Cells via Estrogen Receptor–Mediated Expression of β1-Integrin

Estrogen and mechanical forces are positive regulators for osteoblast proliferation and bone formation. We investigated the synergistic effect of estrogen and flow-induced shear stress on signal transduction and gene expression in human osetoblast-like MG63 cells and primary osteoblasts (HOBs) using activations of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and expressions of c-fos and cyclooxygenase-2 (I) as readouts. Estrogen (17β-estradiol, 10 nM) and shear stress (12 dyn/cm2) alone induced transient phosphorylations of ERK and p38 MAPK in MG63 cells. Pretreating MG63 cells with 17β-estradiol for 6 hours before shearing augmented these shear-induced MAPK phosphorylations. Western blot and flow cytometric analyses showed that treating MG63 cells with 17β-estradiol for 6 hrs induced their β1-integrin expression. This estrogen-induction of β1-integrin was inhibited by pretreating the cells with a specific antagonist of estrogen receptor ICI 182,780. Both 17β-estradiol and shear stress alone induced c-fos and Cox-2 gene expressions in MG63 cells. Pretreating MG63 cells with 17β-estradiol for 6 hrs augmented the shear-induced c-fos and Cox-2 expressions. The augmented effects of 17β-estradiol on shear-induced MAPK phosphorylations and c-fos and Cox-2 expressions were inhibited by pretreating the cells with ICI 182,780 or transfecting the cells with β1-specific small interfering RNA. Similar results on the augmented effect of estrogen on shear-induced signaling and gene expression were obtained with HOBs. Our findings provide insights into the mechanism by which estrogen augments shear stress responsiveness of signal transduction and gene expression in bone cells via estrogen receptor–mediated increases in β1-integrin expression. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research

Socioeconomic impacts of innovative dairy supply chain practices. The case of the Laiterie du Berger in the Senegalese Sahel

This study analyzes the Laiterie Du Berger (LDB)'s milk supply chain and its contribution to strengthening the food security and socioeconomic resources of Senegalese Sahelian pastoral households. Porter's value chain model is used to characterize the innovations introduced by the LDB dairy in its milk inbound logistics and supplier relationships. A socioeconomic food security index and qualitative data are used to assess the dairy's supply chain's contribution to strengthen smallholder households' livelihoods. Data for this research were obtained through individual surveys, focus groups and in-depth interviews of LDB managers and milk suppliers. Results show that milk income contributes significantly to household food security. Suppliers who stabilize their dairy income between rainy and dry seasons, diversify income sources and have larger herds are more likely to remain food secure. The LDB innovations contribute by helping herders access biophysical and economic resources, leading to better livestock feed and household food security. (Résumé d'auteur

Application of Multiple Sensors in Monitoring Land Subsidence in Central Taiwan

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchive

Progesterone Increases Apoptosis and Inversely Decreases Autophagy in Human Hepatoma HA22T/VGH Cells Treated with Epirubicin

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Epirubicin can induce intracellular reactive oxygen species and is widely used to treat unresectable HCC. Progesterone has been found to inhibit the proliferation of hepatoma cells. This study was designed to test the combined effects of epirubicin and progesterone on human hepatoma cell line, HA22T/VGH. These cells were treated with different concentrations of epirubicin with or without the coaddition of 30 μM progesterone and then analyzed for apoptosis, autophagy, and expressions of apoptotic-related proteins and multidrug-resistant gene. Epirubicin treatment dose-dependently inhibited the growth of HA22T/VGH cells. Addition of 30 μM progesterone, which was inactive alone, augmented the effect of epirubicin on the inhibition of growth of HA22T/VGH cells. Cotreatment with progesterone enhanced epirubicin-induced apoptosis, as evidenced by greater increase in caspase-3 activity and in the ratio of the apoptosis-regulating protein, Bax/Bcl-XL. The combination also caused a decrease in autophagy and in the expression of multidrug resistance-related protein 1 mRNA compared to epirubicin alone. This study shows the epirubicin/progesterone combination was more effective in increasing apoptosis and inversely decreasing autophagy on HA22T/VGH cells treated with epirubicin alone, suggesting that this combination can potentially be used to treat HCC