Povezanost med inovativno usmerjenimi dejavnostmi trajnostnega razvoja ter učinkovitostjo in uspešnostjo organizacije

Background and Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to empirically analyse the effects of sustainability-oriented innovation practices on the overall organizational performance. Further, this paper also aims to advance understanding of the measurement of corporate sustainability practices with the focus on innovation dimensions. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study uses data obtained from a survey of 116 organizations encompassing both the manufacturing and service industries in Slovenia. Descriptive statistics were used in order to determine the level of sustainability-oriented innovation practices deployment. Exploratory factor analysis was applied to extract the underlying factors and to provide a basis for assessing their reliability and validity. In addition, regression analysis was used to quantify the effect of sustainability practices on the organizational performance. Results: Data analysis result showed that sustainability-oriented innovation practices are significantly associated with organizational performance. Therefore, empirical evidence from this research confirmed the premise that building innovation competencies and integrating innovation activities in organization’s processes lead to performance benefits. This contributes to the debate about the potential for organizations to be sustainable and competitive. Conclusion: The presented research on corporate sustainability provides important theoretical and practical insights on which the deployment of sustainability-oriented innovation practices are conducive to fostering a broader set of performance benefits. As such, managers should increase organizations’ capacity for innovation which can be beneficial in terms of performance implications and achieving sustainability goalsOzadje in namen: Poglavitni namen članka je predstaviti empirično raziskavo o vplivu dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja, ki so osredotočene na inovativnost, na celokupno učinkovitost in uspešnost organizacije. Namen članka je prav tako izboljšati razumevanje operacionalizacije spremenljivk dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja, s poudarkom na dimenzijahinovativnosti. Zasnova in metodologija: Pričujoči članek temelji na anketni raziskavi, na osnovi katere smo pridobili 116 uporabnih odgovorov s strani slovenskih proizvodnih in storitvenih organizacij. S pomočjo faktorske analize smo preverili konvergentno veljavnost merjenega konstrukta in s tem oblikovali posamezne dimenzije na inventivnost osredotočenih dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja organizacije. Vplive na inventivnost osredotočenih dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja na celokupno učinkovitost in uspešnost organizacije smo proučevali s pomočjo regresijske analize. Rezultati: – Rezultati raziskave so pokazali, da na inventivnost osredotočene dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja pozitivno in statistično značilno vplivajo na celokupno učinkovitost in uspešnost organizacije. Rezultati raziskave so torej potrdili predpostavko, da razvoj kompetenc na področju inovativnosti in vključitev le-teh v procese organizacije, prinese številne koristi za organizacijo. Na ta način članek prispeva k razpravi o priložnostih in možnostih organizacije, da razvijakonkurenčne prednosti in hkrati prispeva k trajnostnemu razvoju. Zaključek: Raziskava doprinaša pomembne teoretične in praktične vpoglede na področju trajnostnega razvojaorganizacije in prikazuje pomembnost izvajanja na inventivnost osredotočenih dejavnosti trajnostnega razvoja z vidika doseganja učinkovitosti in uspešnosti organizacije. Izsledki raziskave poudarjajo vlogo vodstva, ki mora spodbujati povečevanje sposobnosti organizacije na področju inovativnosti, saj organizacije lahko posledično izboljšujejo različne segmente učinkovitosti in uspešnosti ter hkrati dosegajo cilje trajnostnega razvoja

Sex-Dependent Motor Deficit and Increased Anxiety-Like States in Mice Lacking Autism-Associated Gene Slit3

Altered neuronal connectivity has been implicated in the pathophysiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). SLIT/ROBO signaling plays an important role in developmental processes of neuronal connectivity, including axon guidance, neuronal migration, and axonal and dendritic branching. Genetic evidence supports that SLIT3, one of the genes encoding SLITs, is associated with ASD. Yet the causal link between SLIT3 mutation and autism symptoms has not been examined. Here we assessed ASD-associated behaviors in Slit3 knockout (KO) mice. Our data showed that Slit3-KO mice exhibited reduced marble burying behaviors but normal social behaviors. In addition, Slit3-KO mice displayed hypolocomotion in the open field test and impaired motor coordination in the rotarod test. Anxiety-like behaviors were mainly observed in female KO mice assessed by three types of behavioral tests, namely, the open field test, elevated plus maze test, and light/dark box test. No differences were observed between KO and wildtype mice in recognition memory in the novel object recognition test or depression-like behavior in the tail suspension test. Taken together, loss of Slit3 may result in disrupted neural circuits related to motor function and increased anxiety-like states, which are co-occurring symptoms in ASD

Quantum Optical Induced-Coherence Tomography by a Hybrid Interferometer

Quantum interferometry based on induced-coherence phenomena has demonstrated the possibility of undetected-photon measurements. Perturbation in the optical path of probe photons can be detected by interference signals generated by quantum mechanically correlated twin photons propagating through a different path, possibly at a different wavelength. To the best of our knowledge, this work demonstrates for the first time a hybrid-type induced-coherence interferometer that incorporates a Mach-Zehnder-type interferometer for visible photons and a Michelson-type interferometer for infrared photons, based on double-pass pumped spontaneous parametric down-conversion. This configuration enables infrared optical measurements via the detection of near-visible photons and provides methods for characterizing the quality of measurements by identifying photon pairs of different origins. The results verify that the induced-coherence interference visibility is approximately the same as the heralding efficiencies between twin photons along the relevant spatial modes. Applications to both time-domain and frequency-domain quantum-optical induced-coherence tomography for three-dimensional test structures are demonstrated. The results prove the feasibility of practical undetected-photon sensing and imaging techniques based on the presented structure

Elimination of Chrysanthemum stunt viroid (CSVd) from an Viroid infected Chrysanthemum through Shoot Tip Culture

As the increase of chrysanthemum demand on chrysanthemum increases in Korea, the production of high quality chrysanthemum is needed. Chrysanthemum stunt viroid (CSVd) is one of the important viroid, which infects chrysanthemum and induces diseases that affects the decrease of quality and yield. To solve this problem, we used different size of meristem of chrysanthemum ‘Ency’ for shoot tip culture and also that of combined with heat treatment at 37οC. The efficiency of CSVd elimination was influenced by the size of shoot tip. The small-sized of meristems with 1 or 2 leaf primodia were regenerated into the highest number of CSVd-free plantlets. By RT-PCR, the 214-bp band corresponding to CSVd was not detected in 22.2% of the total number of tested regenerants from shoot tips with 2 leaf primordia. While, shoot tip culture combined with heat treatment of one-month-old in vitro shoots was not effective for CSVd-elimination. The CSVd-free plants grew more vigorously than CSVd-infected plants in the greenhouse

Inactivated vaccine with glycyrrhizic acid adjuvant elicits potent innate and adaptive immune responses against foot-and-mouth disease

BackgroundFoot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an extremely contagious viral disease that is fatal to young animals and is a major threat to the agricultural economy by reducing production and limiting the movement of livestock. The currently commercially-available FMD vaccine is prepared using an inactivated viral antigen in an oil emulsion, with aluminum hydroxide [Al(OH)3] as an adjuvant. However, oil emulsion-based options possess limitations including slow increases in antibody titers (up to levels adequate for defense against viral infection) and risks of local reactions at the vaccination site. Further, Al(OH)3 only induces a T helper 2 (Th2) cell response. Therefore, novel adjuvants that can address these limitations are urgently needed. Glycyrrhizic acid (extracted from licorice roots) is a triterpenoid saponin and has great advantages in terms of price and availability.MethodsTo address the limitations of the currently used commercial FMD vaccine, we added glycyrrhizic acid as an adjuvant (immunostimulant) to the FMD bivalent (O PA2 + A YC) vaccine. We then evaluated its efficacy in promoting both innate and adaptive (cellular and humoral) immune reactions in vitro [using murine peritoneal exudate cells (PECs) and porcine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs)] and in vivo (using mice and pigs).ResultsGlycyrrhizic acid has been revealed to induce an innate immune response and enhance early, mid-, and long-term immunity. The studied bivalent vaccine with glycyrrhizic acid increased the expression of immunoregulatory genes such as pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs), cytokines, transcription factors, and co-stimulatory molecules.ConclusionCollectively, glycyrrhizic acid could have utility as a novel vaccine adjuvant that can address the limitations of commercialized FMD vaccines by inducing potent innate and adaptive immune responses