Perceptual Factors Affecting the Tendency to Collaboration in SMEs: Perceived Importance of Collaboration Modes and Partners

This research aims to explore key factors of SMEs’ external collaboration and identifies the perceived factors affecting propensity for collaboration. Particularly, we focus on two factors – internal strategic activities geared towards open innovation and external collaboration partners, both of which are essential to establishing an external collaboration. We conducted a survey of Korean SMEs regarding their collaboration project experiences, and used logistic regression analysis to analyze the survey data. The research findings are expected to help understanding the complex open innovation mechanism in SMEs and to have meaningful implications for the development of their collaboration model

Current status of the predicted satellite imagery generation in NMSC/KMA

Póster presentado en: 3rd European Nowcasting Conference, celebrada en la sede central de AEMET en Madrid del 24 al 26 de abril de 2019

What factors of early-stage innovative projects are likely to drive projects’ success? A longitudinal analysis of Korean entrepreneurial firms

Previous studies have identified the factors affecting successful technology commercialization as outcomes of R&D projects. However, most of them have used cross‐sectional data, whereas there is a dearth of literature using longitudinal data analysis. Longitudinal analysis is essential for investigating the characteristics of early‐stage innovative projects due to the inherent time lag between project evaluation and commercialization. Therefore, this study examines the early‐stage project characteristics that can be used as meaningful evaluation criteria for predicting success, particularly in technology commercialization. We collected data on the ex‐ante evaluation results and ex‐post commercialization results of R&D projects pursued by entrepreneurial firms. We then conducted a logistic regression analysis and identified three market‐related factors as significant in driving technology commercialization success in the early stages of technology development: market potential, commercialization plan, and market condition

Donepezil Regulates LPS and Aβ-Stimulated Neuroinflammation through MAPK/NLRP3 Inflammasome/STAT3 Signaling

The acetylcholinesterase inhibitors donepezil and rivastigmine have been used as therapeutic drugs for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but their effects on LPS-and Aβ-induced neuroinflam-matory responses and the underlying molecular pathways have not been studied in detail in vitro and in vivo. In the present study, we found that 10 or 50 μM donepezil significantly decreased the LPS-induced increases in the mRNA levels of a number of proinflammatory cytokines in BV2 mi-croglial cells, whereas 50 μM rivastigmine significantly diminished only LPS-stimulated IL-6 mRNA levels. In subsequent experiments in primary astrocytes, donepezil suppressed only LPS-stimulated iNOS mRNA levels. To identify the molecular mechanisms by which donepezil regulates LPS-induced neuroinflammation, we examined whether donepezil alters LPS-stimulated proin-flammatory responses by modulating LPS-induced downstream signaling and the NLRP3 inflam-masome. Importantly, we found that donepezil suppressed LPS-induced AKT/MAPK signaling, the NLRP3 inflammasome, and transcription factor NF-kB/STAT3 phosphorylation to reduce neuroin-flammatory responses. In LPS-treated wild-type mice, a model of neuroinflammatory disease, donepezil significantly attenuated LPS-induced microglial activation, microglial density/morphol-ogy, and proinflammatory cytokine COX-2 and IL-6 levels. In a mouse model of AD (5xFAD mice), donepezil significantly reduced Aβ-induced microglial and astrocytic activation, density, and mor-phology. Taken together, our findings indicate that donepezil significantly downregulates LPS-and Aβ-evoked neuroinflammatory responses in vitro and in vivo and may be a therapeutic agent for neuroinflammation-associated diseases such as AD. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.1

Where technology transfer research originated and where it is going: a quantitative analysis of literature published between 1980 and 2015

Abstract This study aims to identify both where technology transfer research originated and whereitisgoing.Aquantitativeapproachwas adoptedinthis studytoobservethetrendsfrom an objective perspective. To do this, longitudinal bibliographic data of journal papers describing technology transfer from 1980 to 2015 are collected. Topic modeling and co-authorship network analyses are then applied to classify topics and identify an evolution of research groups. First, the principaltransferagentischangedfromgovernmentalorganizationstouniversities,astechnology donors,whileindustryplaystheroleoftechnologyrecipients.Second,majortechnology?eldsthat researchershavefocusedonfollowsociallyattractiveinterests.Third,thescopeoffocusgradually moves from national level research or international transfers to organizational level research. In addition,technologytransferresearchseemstochangefromatechnologytransferapplicationtoa dynamictechnologytransferprocess.Inaddition,sixtopicsareidenti?edandfurtherdiscussedto understand future research directions. The research ?ndings are expected to help us understand research trends in technology transfer and, thus, are expected to provide valuable insights to researchers in this ?eld and policy makers who are in charge of developing policies to support technology transfer.Keywords Technology transfer Research trends Topic modeling Co-authorship network Emerging topic

Engineering Properties and Economic Feasibility Evaluation of Eco-Friendly Rainwater Detention System with Red Clay Water-Permeable Block Body

An integrated rainwater management system is necessary due to the frequent occurrence of localized torrential rainfall and heat waves caused by an abnormal climate. It is necessary to develop a rainwater detention system that can implement rainwater infiltration and detention simultaneously. In this study, the safety, durability, and eco-friendliness of an eco-friendly rainwater detention system developed using an eco-friendly inorganic binder, which involves red clay, were evaluated and its economic feasibility was compared with that of the existing detention system. After 14 days, analysis of the maximum compression load and computational finite element analysis confirmed that the strength standard was satisfied and the structure was safe. No heavy metals or organic compounds were detected in the leaching test. Thus, the eco-friendly rainwater detention system is structurally safe and eco-friendly with no impact on the soil and groundwater environment, and is economically feasible because the construction cost and life cycle cost are approximately 30% and 58% lower, respectively, than those of the existing polyethylene infiltration detention tank system. These results indicate that improved safety, eco-friendliness, and economic feasibility can be achieved, compared to those of the existing system, if the eco-friendly rainwater detention system is applied in the field

Donepezil ameliorates Aβ pathology but not tau pathology in 5xFAD mice

Abstract The cholinesterase inhibitor donepezil is used to improve Aβ pathology and cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, the impact of donepezil on tau pathology is unclear. Thus, we examined the effects of donepezil on Aβ and tau pathology in 5xFAD mice (a model of AD) in this study. We found that intraperitoneal injection of donepezil (1 mg/kg, i.p.) exhibited significant reductions in Aβ plaque number in the cortex and hippocampal DG region. In addition, donepezil treatment (1 mg/kg, i.p.) reduced Aβ-mediated microglial and, to a lesser extent, astrocytic activation in 5xFAD mice. However, neither intraperitoneal/oral injection of donepezil nor oral injection of rivastigmine altered tau phosphorylation at Thr212/Ser214 (AT100), Thr396, and Thr231 in 5xFAD mice. Surprisingly, we observed that intraperitoneal/oral injection of donepezil treatment significantly increased tau phosphorylation at Thr212 in 5xFAD mice. Taken together, these data suggest that intraperitoneal injection of donepezil suppresses Aβ pathology but not tau pathology in 5xFAD mice

Analysis of Chain Branch of Polyolefins by a New Proton NMR Approach

The crystallinity of polyethylene, which significantly affects the properties of the polymer, is quite sensitive to the concentration of its branches. Thus, it is necessary to estimate branch concentration with reasonable accuracy. Currently, ¹³C NMR and gel permeation chromatography–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy are widely-used analysis methods for the analysis of branch concentration. Despite several advantages, these methods sometimes have limitations. For instance, the preparation of samples for ¹³C- NMR is tedious because high-concentration samples are required and the time for analysis is greater than 12 h. To more efficiently estimate the branch concentration of polyethylene, we developed a new high-field ¹H NMR method with an improved peak resolution by employing (1) homonuclear decoupling and (2) 2D heteronuclear correlation. The new method was observed to significantly reduce the experimental time to ∼30 min; furthermore, sample preparation was relatively simple because the method did not require high-concentration samples

A short-term (accelerated release) approach to evaluate peptide release from PLGA depot formulations

An accelerated method to evaluate peptide release from poly(dl-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) depot formulations in short time is described. Peptide-loaded microspheres were made from hydrophilic 50∶50 PLGA by a dispersionsolyent extraction technique, and peptide release was studied at 37°C and at higher temperatures in various media. For all accelerated conditions, release was faster at temperatures above the glass transition, Tg, of the host polymer. Complete release of peptide from 8600 MW PLGA was achieved in 35 hours at 50°C in buffered and nonbuffered media containing 0.5% polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Type of release media and concentration of PVA influenced the release profiles. A PVA concentration of 0.1 to 0.5% was found to prevent aggregation of microspheres at higher temperatures, with an increase in release at the higher PVA concentration. Peptide release was associated with a reduction of pH of the releasing media and increased mass loss. Complete peptide release at pH 4 from 8.6 kd and 28 kd PLGA at 50 and 60°C occurred within 30–40 hours and correlated well with the real-time release at 37°C and pH 7.0. At the higher molecular weight, a slightly longer accelerated release time and higher temperature were required to correlate with the real-time release. The data suggest that by optimization of release conditions such as temperature, surfactant concentration, buffer component, and pH, an accelerated study could be employed to evaluate depot formulations for a given polymer type