Does Network Matter in International Expansion? Evidence from Italian SMEs

In order to face the new competitive scenario, Apulian textile firms are involved in a process of change and are trying to adopt a networking approach in analysing the international propensity of SMEs. The case of the textile network in Apulia has been analysed using a semi-structured questionnaire submitted to a sample of family businesses in order to verify the influence of network on their internationalisation process. The contribution that the network can give to the single firm in its internationalisation process depends also on the level of cooperation in the network. In fact, relationships – at least dual vertical relationships – are the key to overcoming size limit and providing value to all the partners involved. The research attempted to offer a better academic understanding of the role of network in international competitive advantage. Future research should be based on cross countries analysis, in order to determine whether or not the set of internal determinants of internationalisation pensity remain stable from one country to another. The findings should also be useful to local governance for a better understanding of the network phenomenon in order to develop appropriate programmes for training and supporting SMEs in the global market. This paper provides a wide analysis of the network role in the internationalisation process in a low technology sector.Internationalisation Strategies, Network Approach

Local Networks to Compete in the Global Era. The Italian SMEs Experience

This study is concerned with the factors that influence the cooperation among cluster-based firms. Theorists have consistently demonstrated the role and importance of economic externalities, such as knowledge spillovers, within industrial clusters. Less attention has been paid to the investigation of social based externalities, though it has been suggested that these may also accrue from geographical agglomeration. This study explores the development of cooperation between firms operating in a single industry sector and in close proximity. The results suggest that social networking has a greater influence than geographic proximity in facilitating inter-firm co-operation. A semi-structured questionnaire has been developed and the answers were analysed with a stepwise regression model.Networks, Inter-Firm Cooperation, SMEs

strategic alliances between japanese western companies a win win or win lose relationship the case of the automobile industry

Inter-firm cooperative arrangements involving flows and linkages that use resources and/or governance structures from autonomous firms based in different countries help in accomplishing both the individual objectives and the collective ones. Through collaboration with foreign partners, firms are able to exploit new market opportunities, minimise investment risks, set up more efficient and effective distribution channels or create products, product features, brands or services and, above all, absorb key capabilities and technologies from the partner. Literature on strategic alliances raised the issue on an alleged appropriation of benefits by Japanese firms when participating in strategic alliances. Japanese companies have experienced higher shareholders' returns in strategic alliances with Western partners, both in the short term and in the medium one. The choice of Japanese and Western companies calls for a deeper understanding of the drivers of the alliances and the determinants of value creation without misleading influences deriving from different business environments.This paper analyzes the wealth distribution taking into account the reaction of the market to the alliance as an indicator of a successful strategy. It explores the case of the automobile industry, which is characterised by a high use of inter-firm cooperation, such as strategic alliances and mergers & acquisitions, to effectively compete in the global market and face the global crisis

DWSB in heterotic flux compactifications

We address the construction of non-supersymmetric vacua in heterotic compactifications with intrinsic torsion and background fluxes. In particular, we implement the approach of domain-wall supersymmetry breaking (DWSB) previously developed in the context of type II flux compactifications. This approach is based on considering backgrounds where probe NS5-branes wrapping internal three-cycles and showing up as four-dimensional domain-walls do not develop a BPS bound, while all the other BPS bounds characterizing the N=1 supersymmetric compactifications are preserved at tree-level. Via a scalar potential analysis we provide the conditions for these backgrounds to solve the ten-dimensional equations of motion including order \alpha' corrections. We also consider backgrounds where some of the NS5-domain-walls develop a BPS bound, show their relation to no-scale SUSY-breaking vacua and construct explicit examples via elliptic fibrations. Finally, we consider backgrounds with a non-trivial gaugino condensate and discuss their relation to supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric vacua in the present context.Comment: 56 pages, 1 figur

Melorheostosis and Osteopoikilosis Clinical and Molecular Description of an Italian Case Series

Melorheostosis (MEL) is an uncommon, sclerosing disease, characterised by hyperostosis of long bones, resembling the flowing of candle wax. The disease is sporadic and the pathogenesis is still poorly understood. Occasionally, the same family can include individuals with MEL and Osteopoikilosis (OPK), a disease characterised by multiple round foci of increased bone density. LEMD3 gene mutations are related to OPK and Buschke–Ollendorff Syndrome, a genetic condition in which an association between MEL, OPK and skin lesions is observed. In rare cases, LEMD3 mutations and recently mosaic MAP2K1 gene mutations have been correlated to MEL suggesting that somatic mosaicism could be causative of the disease. In this study, we described the clinical, radiological and molecular findings of 19 individuals with MEL and 8 with OPK and compared the results to the medical literature. The molecular analyses of this case series corroborate the available data in the medical literature, indicating that LEMD3 germline mutations are not a major cause of isolated MEL and reporting five further cases of OPK caused by LEMD3 germline mutations

Assessing the impacts and feasibility of emissions reduction scenarios in the Po Valley

This study is focused on a pivotal objective: enhancing air quality and attaining pollutant concentrations in accordance with WHO guidelines. The study extensively evaluates the feasibility of reducing emissions, specifically targeting an 80% decrease in SOX, NOX, PM, NH3, and NMVOC emissions within a limited timeframe. Despite notable emission curtailments of 50% and 80%, the research reveals that recommended pollutant levels are unlikely to be met across most areas of the Po Valley region. Even when implementing the finest available technologies across various sectors, particularly within the Lombardia region, this goal remains unattainable without simultaneous reductions in activity levels. This involves diminishing factors like vehicle miles traveled, energy consumption for heating, and industrial, agricultural, and livestock production. Overall, achieving improved conforming to the new AQG limits is a multifaceted endeavor involving numerous stakeholders and diverse strategies. Successful adherence to Air Quality limits mandates the implementation of Source-Specific emissions standards at the EU level, alignment of the National Emission Reduction Directive with limits specified in the Air Quality Directive, and the formulation of comprehensive Air Quality Plans at national, regional, and local tiers

DNA Methylation in the Diagnosis of Monogenic Diseases.

DNA methylation in the human genome is largely programmed and shaped by transcription factor binding and interaction between DNA methyltransferases and histone marks during gamete and embryo development. Normal methylation profiles can be modified at single or multiple loci, more frequently as consequences of genetic variants acting in cis or in trans, or in some cases stochastically or through interaction with environmental factors. For many developmental disorders, specific methylation patterns or signatures can be detected in blood DNA. The recent use of high-throughput assays investigating the whole genome has largely increased the number of diseases for which DNA methylation analysis provides information for their diagnosis. Here, we review the methylation abnormalities that have been associated with mono/oligogenic diseases, their relationship with genotype and phenotype and relevance for diagnosis, as well as the limitations in their use and interpretation of results

Next Generation Molecular Diagnosis of Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias: An Italian Cross-Sectional Study

Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) refers to a group of genetically heterogeneous neurodegenerative motor neuron disorders characterized by progressive age-dependent loss of corticospinal motor tract function, lower limb spasticity, and weakness. Recent clinical use of next generation sequencing (NGS) methodologies suggests that they facilitate the diagnostic approach to HSP, but the power of NGS as a first-tier diagnostic procedure is unclear. The larger-than-expected genetic heterogeneity-there are over 80 potential disease-associated genes-and frequent overlap with other clinical conditions affecting the motor system make a molecular diagnosis in HSP cumbersome and time consuming. In a single-center, cross-sectional study, spanning 4 years, 239 subjects with a clinical diagnosis of HSP underwent molecular screening of a large set of genes, using two different customized NGS panels. The latest version of our targeted sequencing panel (SpastiSure3.0) comprises 118 genes known to be associated with HSP. Using an in-house validated bioinformatics pipeline and several in silico tools to predict mutation pathogenicity, we obtained a positive diagnostic yield of 29% (70/239), whereas variants of unknown significance (VUS) were found in 86 patients (36%), and 83 cases remained unsolved. This study is among the largest screenings of consecutive HSP index cases enrolled in real-life clinical-diagnostic settings. Its results corroborate NGS as a modern, first-step procedure for molecular diagnosis of HSP. It also disclosed a significant number of new mutations in ultra-rare genes, expanding the clinical spectrum, and genetic landscape of HSP, at least in Italy

Clinical characteristics and risk factors associated with COVID-19 severity in patients with haematological malignancies in Italy: a retrospective, multicentre, cohort study

Several small studies on patients with COVID-19 and haematological malignancies are available showing a high mortality in this population. The Italian Hematology Alliance on COVID-19 aimed to collect data from adult patients with haematological malignancies who required hospitalisation for COVID-19