Management Equity Incentive and Performance: Evidence from Listed Companies of Manufacturing Industry

As an important long-term incentive mode, the equity incentive promotes the managers to contribute to the interest uniformity of managers and shareholders. By using Paired-Samples T test methods and regression analysis method and choosing companies that issued the equity incentive plan in 2007 as the sample, this paper comparatively analyzes the differences in the performance of companies before and after the implementation of equity incentive, companies implementing equity incentive and ones not. Furthermore, factors which influence equity incentive effect are examined. The results show that equity incentives can promote the company\u27s performance and the incentive effect should be better in the companies of state-control holding or low ownership concentration companies

Transcriptome profiling reveals the crucial biological pathways involved in cold response in Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis).

Most bamboo species including Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) are tropical or subtropical plants that greatly contribute to human well-being. Low temperature is one of the main environmental factors restricting bamboo growth and geographic distribution. Our knowledge of the molecular changes during bamboo adaption to cold stress remains limited. Here, we provided a general overview of the cold-responsive transcriptional profiles in Moso bamboo by systematically analyzing its transcriptomic response under cold stress. Our results showed that low temperature induced strong morphological and biochemical alternations in Moso bamboo. To examine the global gene expression changes in response to cold, 12 libraries (non-treated, cold-treated 0.5, 1 and 24 h at -2 °C) were sequenced using an Illumina sequencing platform. Only a few differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified at early stage, while a large number of DEGs were identified at late stage in this study, suggesting that the majority of cold response genes in bamboo are late-responsive genes. A total of 222 transcription factors from 24 different families were differentially expressed during 24-h cold treatment, and the expressions of several well-known C-repeat/dehydration responsive element-binding factor negative regulators were significantly upregulated in response to cold, indicating the existence of special cold response networks. Our data also revealed that the expression of genes related to cell wall and the biosynthesis of fatty acids were altered in response to cold stress, indicating their potential roles in the acquisition of bamboo cold tolerance. In summary, our studies showed that both plant kingdom-conserved and species-specific cold response pathways exist in Moso bamboo, which lays the foundation for studying the regulatory mechanisms underlying bamboo cold stress response and provides useful gene resources for the construction of cold-tolerant bamboo through genetic engineering in the future

Do Extra Ingredients on the Package Lead to Extra Calorie Estimates?

Purpose: Food industry marketers proliferate their product ranges and enhance product appearance by adding extra ingredients to food bases. This work provides empirical evidence that some of these decisions lead to inconsistency in consumer calorie estimates for the new augmented packaged food products. These have substantial implications for both marketing decision-making and food policy. Design/methodology/approach: The three performed experiments and Anova analyses demonstrate an underlying psychological mechanism, explained below. Findings: Results show that the healthiness of the added food ingredient (AFI) does not matter if the food base is healthy, and consumers' calorie estimates of the augmented packaged food product are accurate. When, however, the food base is unhealthy, and the AFI is healthy, consumers underestimate the new product calories. This underestimation effect increases further when the healthy ingredients multiply. This underestimation effect endures when these ingredients are presented in visual form, but it disappears when these ingredients are presented in verbal form. Originality/value: Our work offers three major original and valuable contributions. It explains the effects of AFIs on calorie estimation and consumer healthiness perceptions in a context not studied before, namely packaged food products. Next, it advances the literature on consumer judgment error and heuristics concerning product package attributes. Since adding ingredients is integral to product line extension decisions, our results also clarify how marketing can safeguard firm social responsibility in combating obesity

Discovery of Novel Insulin Sensitizers: Promising Approaches and Targets

Insulin resistance is the undisputed root cause of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). There is currently an unmet demand for safe and effective insulin sensitizers, owing to the restricted prescription or removal from market of certain approved insulin sensitizers, such as thiazolidinediones (TZDs), because of safety concerns. Effective insulin sensitizers without TZD-like side effects will therefore be invaluable to diabetic patients. The specific focus on peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ- (PPARγ-) based agents in the past decades may have impeded the search for novel and safer insulin sensitizers. This review discusses possible directions and promising strategies for future research and development of novel insulin sensitizers and describes the potential targets of these agents. Direct PPARγ agonists, selective PPARγ modulators (sPPARγMs), PPARγ-sparing compounds (including ligands of the mitochondrial target of TZDs), agents that target the downstream effectors of PPARγ, along with agents, such as heat shock protein (HSP) inducers, 5′-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activators, 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) selective inhibitors, biguanides, and chloroquines, which may be safer than traditional TZDs, have been described. This minireview thus aims to provide fresh perspectives for the development of a new generation of safe insulin sensitizers

An immersed boundary method based on the lattice Boltzmann approach in three dimensions, with application

The immersed boundary (IB) method originated by Peskin has been popular in modeling and simulating problems involving the interaction of a flexible structure and a viscous incompressible fluid. The Navier–Stokes (N–S) equations in the IB method are usually solved using numerical methods such as FFT and projection methods. Here in our work, the N–S equations are solved by an alternative approach, the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). Compared to many conventional N–S solvers, the LBM can be easier to implement and more convenient for modeling additional physics in a problem. This alternative approach adds extra versatility to the immersed boundary method. In this paper we discuss the use of a 3D lattice Boltzmann model (D3Q19) within the IB method. We use this hybrid approach to simulate a viscous flow past a flexible sheet tethered at its middle line in a 3D channel and determine a drag scaling law for the sheet. Our main conclusions are: (1) the hybrid method is convergent with first-order accuracy which is consistent with the immersed boundary method in general; (2) the drag of the flexible sheet appears to scale with the inflow speed which is in sharp contrast with the square law for a rigid body in a viscous flow

Optimization of natural gas transport pipeline network layout: a new methodology based on dominance degree model

At the phase of 13-th five-year plan in China, natural gas will play an important role in energy revolution. With the growth of consumption, natural gas infrastructures will become hot spots of future investment and pipeline network construction will also usher in a period of rapid development. Therefore, it is of great theoretical and practical significance to study layout methods of transport pipeline network. This paper takes natural gas transport pipeline network as a research object, introduces dominance degree to analyse benefits of pipeline projects. Then, this paper proposes Dominance Degree Model (DDM) of transport pipeline projects based on Potential Model (PM) and Economic Potential Theory (EPT). According to DDM of gas transport pipeline projects, layout methods of pipeline network are put forward, which is simple and easy to obtain the overall optimal solution and ensure maximum comprehensive benefits. What’s more, construction sequences of gas transport pipeline projects can be also determined. Finally, the model is applied to a real case of natural gas transport pipeline projects in Zhejiang Province, China. The calculation results suggest that the model should deal with the transport pipeline network layout problem well, which have important implications for other potential pipeline networks not only in the Zhejiang Province but also throughout China and beyond

Downregulation of SPARC expression decreases gastric cancer cellular invasion and survival

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) plays a key role in the development of many tissues and organ types. Aberrant SPARC expression was found in a wide variety of human cancers, contributes to tumor development. Because SPARC was found to be overexpressed in human gastric cancer tissue, we therefore to explore the expression of SPARC in gastric cancer lines and the carcinogenic mechanisms.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>SPARC expression was evaluated in a panel of human gastric cancer cell lines. MGC803 and HGC 27 gastric cancer cell lines expressing high level of SPARC were transiently transfected with SPARC-specific small interfering RNAs and subsequently evaluated for effects on invasion and proliferation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Small interfering RNA-mediated knockdown of SPARC in MGC803 and HGC 27 gastric cancer cells dramatically decreased their invasion. Knockdown of SPARC was also observed to significantly increase the apoptosis of MGC803 and HGC 27 gastric cancer cells compared with control transfected group.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our data showed that downregulating of SPARC inhibits invasion and growth of human gastric cancer cells. Thus, targeting of SPARC could be an effective therapeutic approach against gastric cancer.</p