THE CHOICE OF A TEMPORAL FRAMEWORK TO STUDY THE INTERNATIONALIZATION SPEED OF THE FIRM

Although most researchers define the internationalization of the firm as a process that unfolds over time, there are substantial gaps in the conceptualization and the measurement of its speed. Addressing one of these gaps – the length of the period examined, this paper explores and highlights the need to consider the intrinsic relationship between the constructs of time and change when choosing a temporal framework to study the internationalization speed of the firm

The Impact Of Global Trends And Covid-19 On International New Ventures

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated existing trends in the global business environment thus changing the conditions for performing international entrepreneurial activity. Four such trends of a key role in international business are the digitalization and active use of communication technologies, the restructuring of global supply chains, the erosion of trust in international organizations, and finally yet importantly, the integrity of international business networks and knowledge transfer. The paper explores the impact of the acceleration of these trends on the creation and the success of international new ventures

Methodological Aspects Of Teaching Circular Economy

Circular economy is a new area of academic knowledge, which requires the development of both new learning content and elaboration of the methodology used in teaching the subject matter. This paper supports the view that the educational process comprises several key components that work together to facilitate effective teaching and learning. These components may vary depending on the broader context and the specific objectives and approaches used. Thus, when planning the circular economy teaching process, it is essential to formulate what we want to achieve (learning objectives) in the specific context of the subject taught. On this basis, the paper aims to present in a discussion plan the main components of the methodology for academic teaching on the problems of the circular economy

Contribution of sulfurous mineral waters to dietary sulfur intake and metabolism

Sulfur is a non-metal macroelement with critical importance for the human body integrity and homeostasis. Sulfur-containing biomolecules exert important functions in redox balance maintenance, enzyme functionality, DNA methylation and repair, modification of extracellular matrix components, and xenobiotic metabolism.Many studies related to the sulfur utilization and metabolism are focused on foods rich in organosulfur compounds that are associated with health benefits. It is believed that sulfur-containing mineral water also could have beneficial effects on the human health, but this knowledge is currently based on empirical data.It could be suggested that the intake of sulfurous mineral waters as a part of the everyday diet would have measurable effects on the human metabolism

Case Report: Changes in Spatial Summation for Chromatic Stimuli in a Patient with Hypothyroidism Due to Autoimmune Thyroiditis Before and After Treatment with Levothyroxine.

Introduction: Acquired hypothyroidism is associated with a wide range of deficits including visual effects. Investigating colour vision mediated by S-cones has shown potential to detect diseases such as glaucoma or diabetes, however, studies of colour vision in hypothyroidism are scarce. Case presentation: In the present study we report spatial summation data of a patient with hypothyroidism due to autoimmune thyroiditis tested with S-cone specific stimuli. The area of complete spatial summation (Ricco’s area) is believed to reflect neural convergence and has been widely used to study structural changes to compensate for cell loss. We measured Ricco’s area before and after treatment with levothyroxine. Colour contrast thresholds were measured as a function of stimulus area in the retinal periphery, under S-cone isolating conditions. Ricco’s area was determined from the Threshold vs Area curve for either blue (S-cone increments) or yellow (S-cone decrements) stimuli. The patient’s data before treatment showed enlarged Ricco’s area (3 to 10 times larger) only for yellow stimuli compared to participants without hypothyroidism. After a treatment with levothyroxine and having reached euthyroidism, Ricco’s area decreased significantly (p < 0.05) for yellow stimuli, but remained unchanged for blue stimuli (p = 0.177). A second subject without hypothyroidism, who participated in both experiments did not show any significant differences for either blue (p = 0.081) or yellow stimuli (p = 0.78). Conclusion: The observed increase in Ricco’s area in hypothyroidism may be related to increased convergence to compensate for ganglion cell dysfunction. The results suggest that this process can be reversible after treatment. Examination of the S-cone system provides the potential to monitor this condition

INTERESTS AND BEHAVIOURAL CONSISTENCY IN THE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

В поведението си отделната личност се ръководи от личния интерес. В лицето на субекта на управление последният е разширен с редица функционални и групови интереси. Въпреки частичното несъответствие между личен и организационен интерес, при избор на алтернатива на управленско решение субектът често проявява поведенческа устойчивост под въздействие на вътрешни психологически фактори. Субектът на управление често се характеризира и с множественост, поради което поведението му се базира на съответствието между интересите му на субект и обект на управлението, както и на баланс на интересите на редица външни, заинтересовани страни. Individual behaviour is guided by self-interest. The self-interest of the subject of management is extended to a number of functional and group interests. Despite the partial discrepancy between the interest of an individual and the interest of the organization they belong to, when choosing an alternative of management decision the subject of management often shows behavioural consistency under the influence of internal psychological factors. The subject of management is also often characterized by plurality, which is why their behavior is based on the congruence between the interests of a subject and an object of management and on the balance of the interests of a number of external stakeholders

КОНЦЕПТУАЛНИ ПРОБЛЕМИ ПРИ ДЕФИНИРАНЕТО НА ГЛОБАЛНО СЪЗДАДЕНИТЕ ФИРМИ

Глобално създадените фирми са предмет на научно изследване вече трето десетилетие, а все още не разполагаме нито с единна дефиниция, нито с общоприета методика за тяхното идентифициране. Като разглежда еквивалентността на обема и съдържанието на понятията „глобално създадени фирми“ и „международни нови предприятия“, настоящата студия концептуализира глобално създадените фирми като: млади малки и средни предприятия, които се създават с цел извършване на международна дейност и извличат значителна част от своите приходи от международни продажби. На базата на обзор на съществуващата литература по отношение на критериите степен на интернационализация, пазарен обхват и скорост на интернационализация, тя подкрепя тезата за необходимост от прилагане на строго ограничителни критерии, които да отсеят онези фирми, които действително отговарят на формулираната теоретична рамка. We have already overstepped the threshold of the third decade of research on born globals, but we still dispose of neither a uniform definition, nor unambiguous methods for their identification. The present paper analyses the equivalence of the scope and the content of the concepts „born global firms” and „international new ventures“, thus conceptualizing the born global firms as: young small or medium-sized companies, established with the purpose to perform international activity and which derive a significant portion of their revenue from international sales. Based on a review of the extant literature on the criteria degree of internationalization, market scope and speed of internationalization, it argues for the need to implement strict demarcation criteria to screen out those companies that actually fulfill the theoretical framework

Papain Hydrolysates of Lupin Proteins with Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, and Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitory Activities

Dietary proteins are no longer just nutritional ingredients in our food. During hydrolysis, some of the released peptides may possess properties that favor the health of the human body. In our study enzymatic hydrolysis of lupin proteins was performed using papain. Three enzyme-to-substrate ratios were set for three different duration times. The SDS-PAGE of the samples was performed. Each hydrolysate was studied for the degree of hydrolysis (DH), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitory, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activities (AOA, according to four spectrophotometric methods). The DH varied from 9.06 ± 0.20 to 27.97 ± 0.37%. According to the results, the best AOA was measured by the ABTS method (from 0.76 ± 0.03 to 1.15 ± 0.46 M TE/100 g protein). All the hydrolysates displayed AChE inhibitory activity (IC50), which varied between 155.58 ± 1.87 and 199.63 ± 0.41 mg/g protein. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of lupin protein hydrolysates. In conclusion, lupin proteins prove to have a high potential to serve as a source of bioactive peptides

Impact of In Vitro Gastrointestinal Digestion on the Bioaccessibility of Phytochemical Compounds from Eight Fruit Juices

Fruits contain a number of useful substances including antioxidants. Their bio-accessibility after passing through the digestive tract is of primary importance when considering their benefits. In this respect, we investigated the effect of in vitro digestion on the phytochemicals of eight fruit juices. Freshly prepared juices from pomegranate, orange and grapefruit were used as well as commercially available juices from cherry, black grapes and aloe vera, blackberry and chokeberry, and two types of chokeberry and raspberries. Spectrophotometric and HPLC methods were used in order to analyse the sugar content, the total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid contents (TFC), anthocyanins, phenolic acids and antioxidant activity. Principle component analysis was used to explain the differentiation among the types of fruit juice. Sugar recovery variation was between 4%\u201341%. The bio-accessibility of TPC ranged from 13.52%\u201326.49% and of flavonoids between 24.25%-67.00%. The pomegranate juice and the juice of black grapes and aloe vera kept 58.12 and 50.36% of their initial anthocyanins content, while for the other samples less than 1.10% was established. As a result, \u430 maximum of 30% remaining antioxidant activity was measured for some of the samples, but for most this was less than 10%. In conclusion, fruit juices are a rich source of biologically active substances, but a more detailed analysis of food transformation during digestion is neede