Development of social enterprises in rural island tourism in China = 中国海岛乡村旅游的社会企业发展

This paper discussed the major development stages of social enterprises (SEs) in rural island tourism in China. The authors established a conceptual framework with which to analyze the key factors affecting development under the context of Chinese social and economic institution. Informed by the SE life cycle model, the study adopted a case study approach with the Boxue Eco Village on Hainan Island as the case. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group interviews, and observations. Institutional characteristics at every stage, including entrepreneurial, collectivity, standardization, and refinement, were analyzed. Based on the specificity of SE of rural tourism in this case, the authors summarized the influencing factors that shaped the development process of the enterprises. First-hand data were collected through interviews with entrepreneurs, management staff, villagers, and other stakeholders. The model was modified according to the research results, and provides a more integrated model suitable for SEs in Chinese islands. This study established a conceptual framework with which to analyze the development process of SEs in rural tourism within the institutional context of China. This framework could be applied to understand the substantial development of emerging SEs in China. = 本文讨论了中国海岛的乡村旅游中，社会企业发展的主要阶段。作者构建了一个概念模型，分析在中国社会经济制度条件下，影响社会企业的发展因素。结合社会企业生命周期模型，本研究以海南岛博学生态村为案例，通过深度访谈，焦点小组访和实地观察采集数据，展开分析。分析了包括创业、集体、标准化、精细化每个阶段的制度性特征。根据案例中的乡村旅游社会企业的特殊性，作者归纳了影响社会企业发展进程的影响因素。本研究通过对企业家、管理者、村民和其他利益相关者的访谈采集了一手数据。根据研究结果调整了理论模型并且提出了更加适合中国海岛乡村旅游社会企业的整合模型。本项研究为中国制度环境下的乡村旅游中，社会企业的发展建立了一个概念框架。该框架可以帮助人们理解新兴的中国社会企业的发展本质

Cloning, Purification, and Partial Characterization of the Halobacterium sp. NRC-1 Minichromosome Maintenance (MCM) Helicase

The MCM gene from the archaeon Halobacterium, with and without its intein, was cloned into an Escherichia coli expression vector, overexpressed and the protein was purified and antibodies were generated. The antibodies were used to demonstrate that in vivo only the processed enzyme, without the intein, could be detected

Scheduling and Airport Taxiway Path Planning Under Uncertainty

Congestion and uncertainty on the airport surface are major constraints to the available capacity of the air transport system. This project is to study the problem of planning and scheduling airport surface movement at large airports. Specifically, we focus on the departure time scheduling and taxiway path planning of multiple aircraft under uncertainty. We also developed a simulation tool that is capable of simulating aircraft movement along the taxiway and possible uncertainty during the movement

Sustained Release of IGF-1 by 3D Mesoporous Scaffolds Promoting Cardiac Stem Cell Migration and Proliferation

Background/Aims: C-kit-positive cardiac stem cells (CSCs) may have potential as a treatment for cardiovascular disease. However, the low survival rates of c-kit-positive CSCs present a major challenge during the transplantation process. Methods: The hierarchical structure of the 3D cell scaffold was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms. Analyses of the proliferation and migration performances of the IGF-1 scaffold on c-kit-positive CSCs were conducted by experiments including QuantiT PicoGreen dsDNA and transwell assays. Results: In this study, we synthesized for the first time a novel hierarchical macro-mesoporous silica material (denoted MS15-c) in a one-pot procedure for the release of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and a three-dimensional (3D) cell scaffold. Both macropores and mesopores were visible in MS15-c and enabled the sustained release of IGF-1, extending its half-life and enhancing CSC proliferation and migration. Proliferation and migration were detected by QuantiT PicoGreen dsDNA and transwell assays, respectively. Moreover, an in vivo experiment was conducted to detect heart function with the addition of MS15-c. The new strategy proposed in this paper may extend the bio-applications of 3D cell scaffolds, thus permitting the sustained release of growth factors and efficient promotion of cell proliferation. Conclusion: This work successfully demonstrated an effective strategy for the construction of MS15-c cell scaffolds with hierarchical macro-mesoporous structures. The macro-mesoporous structures gave cell scaffolds the ability to release a growth factor to facilitate cell growth, while the scaffold structure promoted cell proliferation

Coupling of DNA binding and helicase activity is mediated by a conserved loop in the MCM protein

Minichromosome maintenance (MCM) helicases are the presumptive replicative helicases, thought to separate the two strands of chromosomal DNA during replication. In archaea, the catalytic activity resides within the C-terminal region of the MCM protein. In Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus the N-terminal portion of the protein was shown to be involved in protein multimerization and binding to single and double stranded DNA. MCM homologues from many archaeal species have highly conserved predicted amino acid similarity in a loop located between β7 and β8 in the N-terminal part of the molecule. This high degree of conservation suggests a functional role for the loop. Mutational analysis and biochemical characterization of the conserved residues suggest that the loop participates in communication between the N-terminal portion of the helicase and the C-terminal catalytic domain. Since similar residues are also conserved in the eukaryotic MCM proteins, the data presented here suggest a similar coupling between the N-terminal and catalytic domain of the eukaryotic enzyme

Expectations for Manuscripts in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering: Scope Summary and Call for Creativity

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The Evolution of ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering

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