Venture Capital in Japan: A Financial Instrument Supporting the Innovativeness of the Japanese Economy

Two factors: First, the relatively small number of new companies as well as the number of companies subject to liquidation over the year ("firm turnover") in Japan, and second, the insignificant prestige associated with the profession of entrepreneur do not foster growth in the dynamics of this form of financing ventures. The cited indicator for Japan in among the lowest in comparison with other highly developed countries1, while the profession of entrepreneur is not the foremost dream of college graduates. They would much rather prefer realizing their professional careers as members of the government bureaucracy or employees of a major corporation2. However, this mindset is slowly changing, if for no other reason then, in spite of popular conviction, because most small companies are not established during periods of prosperity, but near the end of the downward phase of the economic cycle. That is exactly the phase Japan has been dealing with for several years now. Young, creative people, recruited from the unemployed, are seeking self-employment, using all possible opportunities embedded in the "again starting up" machinery of the economy.Dwa czynniki: pierwszy - stosunkowo mała liczba nowych firm, a także firm likwidowanych w skali roku ("firm turnover") w Japonii oraz drugi - niewielki prestiż, jakim cieszy się zawód przedsiębiorcy, nie sprzyjają dynamizacji omawianej formy finansowania przedsięwzięć. Cytowany wskaźnik, dla Japonii należy do najniższych w porównaniu z innymi krajami wysoko rozwiniętymi (Grabowiecki 2000), zaś profesja przedsiębiorcy nie jest szczytem marzeń ludzi po studiach. Znacznie bardziej chcieliby oni swoją karierę zawodową realizować jako członkowie rządowej biurokracji lub pracownicy dużej korporacji (Corver 2008, s. 2). Ta świadomość ulega jednak stopniowej zmianie, chociażby dlatego, że wbrew popularnym przekonaniom, większość niewielkich przedsiębiorstw, powstaje nie w okresie prosperity, lecz pod koniec spadkowej fazy cyklu koniunkturalnego. Z taką fazą mamy do czynienia w Japonii od paru lat. Młodzi, kreatywni ludzie, rekrutujący się z bezrobotnych, poszukują samozatrudnienia, wykorzystują wszelakie szanse, tkwiące w "ruszającej na powrót" maszynerii gospodark (Yonekura, Lynskey 2003, s. 11)

Spatial variation in determinants of agricultural land abandonment in Europe

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. Agricultural abandonment is widespread and growing in many regions worldwide, often because of agricultural intensification on productive lands, conservation policies, or the spatial decoupling of agricultural production from consumption. Abandonment has major environmental and social impacts, which differ starkly depending on the geographical context, as does its potential to serve as a land reservoir for recultivation. Understanding determinants of abandonment patterns, and especially how their influence varies across broad geographic extents, is therefore important. Using a pan-European map of agricultural abandonment derived from MODIS NDVI time series between 2001 and 2012, we quantified the importance of farm management, climatic, environmental, and socio-economic variables in explaining abandonment patterns. We chose a machine learning modelling framework that accounts for spatial variation in the relationship between abandonment and its determinants. We predicted abandonment probability as well as determinant coefficients for the entire study area and summarised them for regions under selected EU support schemes. Our results highlight that agricultural abandonment was mainly explained by climate conditions suboptimal for agriculture (i.e., low/high growing degrees days). Determinants related to farm management (smaller field size, lower yields) and socio-economic conditions (high unemployment, negative migration balance) also contributed to describing agricultural abandonment patterns in Europe. Several determinants influenced abandonment in strongly non-linear ways and we found substantial spatial non-stationarity effects, although abandonment patterns were equally well-explained by predictors specified with spatially constant and varying effects. Predicted abandonment probability was similar inside and outside EU support or conservation zones, whereas observed MODIS-based abandonment was generally higher outside these zones, suggesting that schemes such as Natura 2000 or High Nature Value Farmland likely influence abandonment patterns. Our work highlights the potential value of spatial boosting for gaining insights into land-use change processes and their outcomes, which should increase the ability of such models to inform context-specific, regionalised decision making

Long-term safety and effectiveness of canakinumab therapy in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome: results from the β-Confident Registry.

OBJECTIVE: To report the long-term safety and effectiveness of canakinumab, a fully human anti-interleukin 1β monoclonal antibody, in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS), including familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS), Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS) and neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID), in a real-world setting. METHODS: From December 2009 to December 2015, the β-Confident Registry prospectively enrolled patients with CAPS and non-CAPS conditions who received canakinumab per routine care and were prospectively followed for up to 6 years. The registry protocol did not mandate specific visits or procedures; however, all observed adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs) had to be recorded. Canakinumab effectiveness was evaluated by Physician's Global Assessment (PGA). RESULTS: Of 288 patients enrolled, 3 were excluded due to missing informed consent. Among the remaining 285 patients, 243 (85.3%) were patients with CAPS and 42 (14.7%) had atypical CAPS (6.3%) or other conditions (8.4%). The median age was 26.6 years. Based on PGA, 58 of 123 (47.2%) patients with CAPS had no disease activity at 48 months, and 65 of 123 (52.8%) experienced mild/moderate disease activity at 48 months. Among CAPS phenotypes, AE incidence rates per 100 patient-years were lowest for FCAS (73.1; 95% CI 60.3 to 87.8) compared with those with MWS (105.0; 95% CI 97.2 to 113.2) or NOMID (104.6; 95% CI 86.6 to 125.2). One hundred twenty-eight SAEs were reported in 68 patients with CAPS (incidence rate/100 patient-years, 14.0; 95% CI 11.6 to 16.6). One death (metastatic rectal adenocarcinoma in a patient with MWS) was reported. CONCLUSIONS: The response to canakinumab was sustained for up to 6 years. Canakinumab demonstrated a favourable safety profile over long-term treatment in patients with CAPS. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT01213641

Continued loss of temperate old-growth forests in the Romanian Carpathians despite an increasing protected area network

This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.Old-growth forests around the world are vanishing rapidly and have been lost almost completely from the European temperate forest region. Poor management practices, often triggered by socioeconomic and institutional change, are the main causes of loss. Recent trends in old-growth forest cover in Romania, where some of the last remaining tracts of these forests within Europe are located, are revealed by satellite image analysis. Forest cover declined by 1.3 % from 2000 to 2010. Romania's protected area network has been expanded substantially since the country's accession to the European Union in 2007, and most of the remaining old-growth forests now are located within protected areas. Surprisingly though, 72% of the old-growth forest disturbances are found within protected areas, highlighting the threats still facing these forests. It appears that logging in old-growth forests is, at least in part, related to institutional reforms, insufficient protection and ownership changes since the collapse of communism in 1989. The majority of harvesting activities in old-growth forest areas are in accordance with the law. Without improvements to their governance, the future of Romania's old-growth forests and the important ecosystem services they provide remains uncertain.Peer Reviewe

International Retrospective Chart Review of Treatment Patterns in Severe Familial Mediterranean Fever, Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor–Associated Periodic Syndrome, and Mevalonate Kinase Deficiency/Hyperimmunoglobulinemia D Syndrome

Objective: Periodic fever syndrome (PFS) conditions are characterized by recurrent attacks of fever and localized inflammation. This study examined the diagnostic pathway and treatments at tertiary centers for familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), tumor necrosis factor receptor–associated periodic syndrome (TRAPS), and mevalonate kinase deficiency (MKD)/hyperimmunoglobulinemia D syndrome (HIDS). Methods: PFS specialists at medical centers in the US, the European Union, and the eastern Mediterranean participated in a retrospective chart review, providing de‐identified data in an electronic case report form. Patients were treated between 2008 and 2012, with at least 1 year of followup; all had clinical and/or genetically proven disease and were on/eligible for biologic treatment. Results: A total of 134 patients were analyzed: FMF (n = 49), TRAPS (n = 47), and MKD/HIDS (n = 38). Fever was commonly reported as severe across all indications. Other frequently reported severe symptoms were serositis for FMF patients and elevated acute‐phase reactants and gastrointestinal upset for TRAPS and MKD/HIDS. A long delay from disease onset to diagnosis was seen within TRAPS and MKD/HIDS (5.8 and 7.1 years, respectively) compared to a 1.8‐year delay in FMF patients. An equal proportion of TRAPS patients first received anti–interleukin‐1 (anti‐IL‐1) and anti–tumor necrosis factor (anti‐TNF) biologic agents, whereas IL‐1 blockade was the main choice for FMF patients resistant to colchicine and MKD/HIDS patients. For TRAPS patients, treatment with anakinra versus anti‐TNF treatments as first biologic agent resulted in significantly higher clinical and biochemical responses (P = 0.03 and P < 0.01, respectively). No significant differences in responses were observed between biologic agents among other cohorts. Conclusion: Referral patterns and diagnostic delays highlight the need for greater awareness and improved diagnostics for PFS. This real‐world treatment assessment supports the need for further refinement of treatment practices

Sustained remission of symptoms and improved health-related quality of life in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome treated with canakinumab: results of a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized withdrawal study

Abstract Introduction To assess the effect of canakinumab, a fully human anti-interleukin-1β antibody, on symptoms and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS). Methods In this 48-week, phase 3 study, patients with CAPS received canakinumab 150 mg subcutaneously at 8-week intervals. All patients (n = 35) received canakinumab during weeks 1 through 8; weeks 9 through 24 constituted a double-blind placebo-controlled withdrawal phase, and weeks 24 through 48 constituted an open-label phase in which all patients received canakinumab. Patient and physician assessments of symptoms, levels of inflammatory markers, and HRQoL were performed. Results Rapid symptom remission was achieved, with 89% of patients having no or minimal disease activity on day 8. Responses were sustained in patients receiving 8-weekly canakinumab. Responses were lost during the placebo-controlled phase in the placebo group and were regained on resuming canakinumab therapy in the open-label phase. Clinical responses were accompanied by decreases in serum levels of C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A protein, and interleukin-6. HRQoL scores at baseline were considerably below those of the general population. Improvements in all 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) domain scores were evident by day 8. Scores approached or exceeded those of the general U.S. population by week 8 and remained stable during canakinumab therapy. Improvements in bodily pain and role-physical were particularly marked, increasing by more than 25 points from baseline to week 8. Therapy was generally well tolerated. Conclusions Canakinumab, 150 mg, 8-weekly, induced rapid and sustained remission of symptoms in patients with CAPS, accompanied by substantial improvements in HRQoL. Trial registration Clintrials.gov NCT0046598