»Sein« als absoluter Anfang? Begründungskonzeption und Begriffsbildung am Beispiel des Anfangs von Hegels Wissenschaft der Logik.

Am Beispiel des Anfangs seiner Wissenschaft der Logik ist die Begründungs-konzeption Hegels klar herauszulesen: Wahres ist nur über Unwahres zu erreichen. Der jeweilige begriffliche Anspruch auf Voraussetzungslosigkeit führt zu Aporien, die zur Einführung neuerer, reicherer Begriffe zwingen, deren Begründung die Aufhebung der anscheinend ursprünglicheren logischen Sachverhalte ausmacht. Irrtum und Inkonsequenz werden nicht als irrelevant, sondern als notwendige Stufen des Begründungsverfahrens konzipiert

Regional Differences in the Determinants of Investment Decisions of Private Firms in Brazil

This study takes on an important part or regional growth, that is, the investment decisions of private firms. The question asked is: do corporations decide on investments in the same way in different parts of the territory? The paper analyses investments of 482 large Brazilian firms in the period 1996-2004. The role of sales, cash-flow, external financing, and working capital is investigated through regression analysis, following the literature on firm investment decisions. Regional dummies used to capture differences in the role of those determinants indicate that there are significant differences across regions. This is important information for regional development policy, for different mechanisms should be used in different regions in order to foster private investments.

Regional Differences in the Determinants of Investment Decisions of Private Firms in Brazil

This study takes on an important part or regional growth, that is, the investment decisions of private firms. The question asked is: do corporations decide on investments in the same way in different parts of the territory? The paper analyses investments of 482 large Brazilian firms in the period 1996-2004. The role of sales, cash-flow, external financing, and working capital is investigated through regression analysis, following the literature on firm investment decisions. Regional dummies used to capture differences in the role of those determinants indicate that there are significant differences across regions. This is important information for regional development policy, for different mechanisms should be used in different regions in order to foster private investments

A Hybrid Preference Learning and Context Refinement Architecture

Pervasive computing envisions a world where people are surrounded by numerous communication and computing interconnected devices that are invisible and assist users in their everyday tasks in a seamless unobtrusive manner. Most pervasive computing research initiatives aim towards the realization of smart spaces, i.e. fixed spaces that provide pervasive features in a static and geographically limited environment. To bridge these isolated pervasive spaces, the EU project Persist has introduced the concept of self-improving Personal Smart Spaces (PSSs) that follow their owners wherever they go. This paper provides an overview of the context and preference learning facilities that have been designed to support the realization of PSSs and enhance their proactivity and self-improvement features

Boas Práticas de Governança Corporativa e Otimização de Portfólio: Uma Análise Comparativa

Este trabalho tem por objetivo verificar se uma carteira formada com ações de empresas que adotam práticas de governança corporativa proporciona maior retorno ao investidor que uma carteira formada por ações de empresas que não adotam esse conjunto de medidas. A realização deste estudo foi baseada na teoria de otimização linear e em dois modelos de programação linear. Um dos modelos maximiza o menor retorno de uma carteira, e o outro maximiza o retorno anual. Os resultados obtidos indicam que há uma diferença entre os retornos fornecidos por essas carteiras, o que pode significar que as empresas que implementam estas práticas fornecem um retorno maior.Governança Corporativa, Otimização de Portfólio, Novo Mercado, Modelos de Programação Linear

Draft Genome Sequences of <i>Vibrio alginolyticus</i> Strains V1 and V2, Opportunistic Marine Pathogens

We announce the draft genome sequences of Vibrio alginolyticus strains V1 and V2, isolated from juvenile Sparus aurata and Dentex dentex, respectively, during outbreaks of vibriosis. The genome sequences are 5,257,950 bp with a G+C content of 44.5% for V. alginolyticus V1 and 5,068,299 bp with a G+C content of 44.8% for strain V2. These genomes provide further insights into the putative virulence factors, prophage carriage, and evolution of this opportunistic marine pathogen

Functional rescue of REP1 following treatment with PTC124 and novel derivative PTC-414 in human choroideremia fibroblasts and the nonsense-mediated zebrafish model

Choroideremia (CHM) is an X-linked chorioretinal dystrophy that is caused by mutations within a single gene, CHM Currently no effective treatment exists for these patients. Since over 30% of patients harbour nonsense mutations in CHM, nonsense suppression therapy using translational readthrough inducing drugs may provide functional rescue of REP1, thus attenuating progressive sight loss. Here, we employed two CHM model systems to systematically test the efficacy and safety of ataluren (PTC124) and its novel analog PTC-414: (1) the chm(ru848) zebrafish, the only nonsense mutation animal model of CHM harbouring a TAA nonsense mutation, and (2) a primary human fibroblast cell line from a CHM patient harbouring a TAG nonsense mutation. PTC124 or PTC-414 treatment of chm(ru848) embryos led to a ∼2.0-fold increase in survival, prevented the onset of retinal degeneration with reduced oxidative stress and apoptosis, increased rep1 protein by 23.1% (PTC124) and 17.2% (PTC-414) and restored biochemical function as confirmed through in vitro prenylation assays (98 ± 2% [PTC124] and 68 ± 5% [PTC-414]). In CHM(Y42X/y) fibroblasts, there was a recovery of prenylation activity following treatment with either PTC124 (42 ± 5%) or PTC-414 (36 ± 11%), although an increase in REP1 protein was not detected in these cells, in contrast to the zebrafish model. This comprehensive study on the use of PTC124 and PTC-414 as successful nonsense suppression agents for the treatment of CHM highlights the translational potential of these drugs for inherited retinal disease

Comparative functional genomic analysis of two <i>Vibrio </i>phages reveals complex metabolic interactions with the host cell

Sequencing and annotation was performed for two giant double stranded DNA bacteriophages, φGrn1 and φSt2 of the Myoviridae family, considered to be of great interest for phage therapy against Vibrios in aquaculture live feeds. In addition, phage-host metabolic interactions and exploitation was studied by transcript profiling of selected viral and host genes. Comparative genomic analysis with other giant Vibrio phages was also performed to establish the presence and location of homing endonucleases highlighting distinct features for both phages. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that they belong to the schizoT4like clade. Although many reports of newly sequenced viruses have provided a large set of information, basic research related to the shift of the bacterial metabolism during infection remains stagnant. The function of many viral protein products in the process of infection is still unknown. Genome annotation identified the presence of several viral ORFs participating in metabolism, including a Sir2/cobB (sirtuin) protein and a number of genes involved in auxiliary NAD+ and nucleotide biosynthesis, necessary for phage DNA replication. Key genes were subsequently selected for detail study of their expression levels during infection. This work suggests a complex metabolic interaction and exploitation of the host metabolic pathways and biochemical processes, including a possible post-translational protein modification, by the virus during infection

Exploring the Effect of Phage Therapy in Preventing <i>Vibrio anguillarum</i> Infections in Cod and Turbot Larvae

The aquaculture industry is suffering from losses associated with bacterial infections by opportunistic pathogens. Vibrio anguillarum is one of the most important pathogens, causing vibriosis in fish and shellfish cultures leading to high mortalities and economic losses. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics and inefficient vaccination at the larval stage of fish emphasizes the need for novel approaches, and phage therapy for controlling Vibrio pathogens has gained interest in the past few years. In this study, we examined the potential of the broad-host-range phage KVP40 to control four different V. anguillarum strains in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua L.) and turbot (Scophthalmus maximus L.) larvae. We examined larval mortality and abundance of bacteria and phages. Phage KVP40 was able to reduce and/or delay the mortality of the cod and turbot larvae challenged with V. anguillarum. However, growth of other pathogenic bacteria naturally occurring on the fish eggs prior to our experiment caused mortality of the larvae in the unchallenged control groups. Interestingly, the broad-spectrum phage KVP40 was able to reduce mortality in these groups, compared to the nonchallenge control groups not treated with phage KVP40, demonstrating that the phage could also reduce mortality imposed by the background population of pathogens. Overall, phage-mediated reduction in mortality of cod and turbot larvae in experimental challenge assays with V. anguillarum pathogens suggested that application of broad-host-range phages can reduce Vibrio-induced mortality in turbot and cod larvae, emphasizing that phage therapy is a promising alternative to traditional treatment of vibriosis in marine aquaculture