Licensing to vertically related markets

We analyse the problem of a non-producing patentee who licenses an essential process innovation to a vertical Cournot oligopoly. The vertical oligopoly is composed of an upstream and a downstream sector which may differ in their efficiency or, in other words, in the benefit they derive from the innovation. In this framework we characterise the optimal licensing contract in terms of the licensing revenue maximising policy (fixed-fee or per-unit royalty) and sector (upstream and/or downstream sector). First, it is shown that under a fixed-fee contract licensing to the less efficient industry sector may be the patentee’s licensing revenue maximising strategy. Here, licensing to a less efficient downstream market is all the time optimal in terms of consumer surplus and aggregate economic welfare. Conversely, licensing to a less or equally efficient upstream industry is potentially inefficient. Second, our findings reveal that the optimal licensing policy is sector dependent. A per-unit royalty contract may dominate a fixed-fee policy on the downstream market in terms of licensing revenues, while offering a per-unit royalty contract to the upstream industry is never optimal. As a third and final point we address the case of licensing to both industry sectors. Here we also identify conditions under which two-sector licensing of both sectors is less profitable than one-sector licensing of a single industry (and vice versa)

Genome-wide multi-parametric analysis of H2AX or γH2AX distributions during ionizing radiation-induced DNA damage response

Background: After induction of DNA double strand breaks (DSBs), the DNA damage response (DDR) is activated. One of the earliest events in DDR is the phosphorylation of serine 139 on the histone variant H2AX (gH2AX) catalyzed by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinases-related kinases. Despite being extensively studied, H2AX distribution[1] across the genome and gH2AX spreading around DSBs sites[2] in the context of different chromatin compaction states or transcription are yet to be fully elucidated. Materials and methods: gH2AX was induced in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) by exposure to 10 Gy X-rays (250 kV, 16 mA). Samples were incubated 0.5, 3 or 24 hours post irradiation to investigate early, intermediate and late stages of DDR, respectively. Chromatin immunoprecipitation was performed to select H2AX, H3 and gH2AX-enriched chromatin fractions. Chromatin-associated DNA was then sequenced by Illumina ChIP-Seq platform. HepG2 gene expression and histone modification (H3K36me3, H3K9me3) ChIP-Seq profiles were retrieved from Gene Expression Omnibus (accession numbers GSE30240 and GSE26386, respectively). Results: First, we combined G/C usage, gene content, gene expression or histone modification profiles (H3K36me3, H3K9me3) to define genomic compartments characterized by different chromatin compaction states or transcriptional activity. Next, we investigated H3, H2AX and gH2AX distributions in such defined compartments before and after exposure to ionizing radiation (IR) to study DNA repair kinetics during DDR. Our sequencing results indicate that H2AX distribution followed H3 occupancy and, thus, the nucleosome pattern. The highest H2AX and H3 enrichment was observed in transcriptionally active compartments (euchromatin) while the lowest was found in low G/C and gene-poor compartments (heterochromatin). Under physiological conditions, the body of highly and moderately transcribed genes was devoid of gH2AX, despite presenting high H2AX levels. gH2AX accumulation was observed in 5’ or 3’ flanking regions, instead. The same genes showed a prompt gH2AX accumulation during the early stage of DDR which then decreased over time as DDR proceeded. Finally, during the late stage of DDR the residual gH2AX signal was entirely retained in heterochromatic compartments. At this stage, euchromatic compartments were completely devoid of gH2AX despite presenting high levels of non-phosphorylated H2AX. Conclusions: We show that gH2AX distribution ultimately depends on H2AX occupancy, the latter following H3 occupancy and, thus, nucleosome pattern. Both H2AX and H3 levels were higher in actively transcribed compartments. However, gH2AX levels were remarkably low over the body of actively transcribed genes suggesting that transcription levels antagonize gH2AX spreading. Moreover, repair processes did not take place uniformly across the genome; rather, DNA repair was affected by genomic location and transcriptional activity. We propose that higher H2AX density in euchromaticcompartments results in high relative gH2AXconcentration soon after the activation of DDR, thus favoring the recruitment of the DNA repair machinery to those compartments. When the damage is repaired and gH2AX is removed, its residual fraction is retained in the heterochromatic compartments which are then targeted and repaired at later times

Cropping School: Wir lernen gemeinsam mit und voneinander - eine kooperative Zusammenarbeit zwischen Landwirten, Wissenschaftlern und Beratern

Im Nordosten von Brandenburg (Deutschland) wird erstmalig das neue Konzept einer "Cropping School" erprobt, welches auf den Ansätzen der "Farmer Field Schools" und der "Stable Schools" basiert. Die Hauptziele der Cropping School bestehen darin i) Landwirte in die Lage zu versetzen, Maßnahmen zur Verbesserung ihrer Anbausysteme selbst durchzuführen sowie ii) eine praxisnahe Alternative zu existierenden Beratungsangeboten entwickeln zu können

Chlorodefluorination of Fluoromethanes and Fluoroolefins at a Lewis Acidic Aluminum Fluoride

Chlorodefluorination reactions of fluoromethanes and fluoroolefins catalysed by the highly Lewis acidic nanoscopic aluminum chlorofluoride (ACF, AlClxF3−x, x≈0.05–0.3) in the presence of ClSiEt3 were studied. Both fluoromethanes and fluoroolefins convert under mild reaction conditions by fluorine-chlorine exchange steps into chlorinated fluoro derivatives. MAS NMR studies provided information on the interaction of silanes and hexafluoropropene with the ACF surface.CRC 1349Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), German Research FoundationDeutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659Chinese Scholarship CouncilPeer Reviewe

Remodeling of algal photosystem I through phosphorylation

Photosystem I (PSI) with its associated light-harvesting system is the most important generator of reducing power in photosynthesis. The PSI core complex is highly conserved, whereas peripheral subunits as well as light-harvesting proteins (LHCI) reveal a dynamic plasticity. Moreover, in green alga, PSI-LHCI complexes are found as monomers, dimers, and state transition complexes, where two LHCII trimers are associated. Herein, we show light-dependent phosphorylation of PSI subunits PsaG and PsaH as well as Lhca6. Potential consequences of the dynamic phosphorylation of PsaG and PsaH are structurally analyzed and discussed in regard to the formation of the monomeric, dimeric, and LHCII-associated PSI-LHCI complexes

Self-Similarity of Friction Laws

The change of the friction law from a mesoscopic level to a macroscopic level is studied in the spring-block models introduced by Burridge-Knopoff. We find that the Coulomb law is always scale invariant. Other proposed scaling laws are only invariant under certain conditions.}Comment: Plain TEX. Figures not include

Single sample preparation for the simultaneous extraction of drugs, pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids and endogenous steroids in hair

A combined sample preparation for the simultaneous extraction of drugs, pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids and endogenous steroids was developed based on three independent fully validated analytical methods. Recently, we published a multi-analyte method for the simultaneous analysis of 116 drugs and pharmaceuticals including different substance groups like opioids, stimulants, benzodiazepines, z-drugs, antidepressants and neuroleptics based on a single sample workup followed by a single analytical measurement with LC-MS/MS. However, in some cases, additional analysis of further substance groups, such as cannabinoids and endogenous steroids, is required, which are analyzed in our laboratory using separate sample preparation and separate analytical methods. The goal of this study was to use the knowledge from the different sample preparations and combine them into a single sample preparation and extraction workflow for the simultaneous extraction of drugs, pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids, and endogenous steroids to be analyzed with the appropriate analytical methods. A partial validation of selected parameters such as selectivity, linearity, limit of quantification (LOQ), accuracy, precision and robustness for the different analytical methods was carried out and revalidated. In addition, comparative measurements of quality controls and authentic pools were performed and statistically evaluated using the unpaired t-test or the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test. The results using the newly established sample preparation and extraction were in good agreement with the original data. In conclusion, the newly established sample preparation is suitable for the combined extraction of drugs, pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids and endogenous steroids, and gives reliable results for quantification of various substances