Understanding the relevance of national culture in international business research: a quantitative analysis

This review is a comprehensive quantitative analysis of the International Business literature whose focus is on national culture. The analysis relies on a broad range of bibliometric techniques as productivity rankings, citation analysis (individual and cumulative), study of collaborative research patterns, and analysis of the knowledge base. It provides insights on (I) faculty and institutional research productivity and performance; (II) articles, institutions, and scholars’ influence in the contents of the field and its research agenda; and (III) national and international collaborative research trends. The study also explores the body of literature that has exerted the greatest impact on the researched set of selected articles.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assessing the morphological variability of unio delphinus spengler, 1783 (Bivalvia: Unionidae) using geometric morphometry

The morphological variability of freshwater bivalve species, observed between and within river basins, may hamper their correct identification, even by experienced researchers. Classic morphometric measurements, i.e. shell length, height and thickness, or their ratios, are generally insufficient to distinguish populations and/or species. These issues may be overcome using a geometric morphometric method, which allows analysis of the overall shape of the individual, independently of its size. Thus, we aimed to test the usefulness of two geometric morphometric tools, landmarks and sliding semilandmarks, to evaluate the morphological variability of Unio delphinus Spengler, 1783 in three habitats of the Guadiana Basin (SW Iberian Peninsula, Europe): estuary, river and stream. We used 13 landmarks located on the shell interior (at the teeth, muscle scars and pallial line) and 35 sliding semilandmarks for the shell contour. These morphometric analyses showed that the shell shape of U. delphinus differs significantly among different habitats. Estuarine and stream shells are the most disparate (James index = 649.114, permutation P-value <0.001) and variability is not related to variations in shell size. The main differences in shell morphology are the following: (1) estuarine shells are more elongate, while riverine shells are more subovate; (2) the anterior curvature at the umbo is steeper in estuarine and riverine shells; (3) estuarine shells have an arched curvature at the ventral part of the shell, which is absent in specimens from the other habitats. Our data suggest that the morphology of U. delphinus shells might be influenced by the water flow characteristics of each habitat, since shells exhibited characteristics that are typically observed in freshwater mussels from lotic and lentic habitats.Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia [SFRH/BPD/40832/2007]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Chondrogenic differentiation induced by extracellular vesicles bound to a nanofibrous substrate

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are being increasingly studied owing to its regenerative potential, namely EVs derived from human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs). Those can be used for controlling inflammation, repairing injury, and enhancing tissue regeneration. Differently, the potential of EVs derived from human articular chondrocytes (hACs) to promote cartilage regeneration has not been thoroughly investigated. This work aims to develop an EVs immobilization system capable of selectively bind EVs present in conditioned medium obtained from cultures of hACs or hBM-MSC. For that, an anti-CD63 antibody was immobilized at the surface of an activated and functionalized electrospun nanofibrous mesh. The chondrogenic potential of bound EVs was further assessed by culturing hBM-MSCs during 28 days under basal conditions. EVs derived from hACs cultured under differentiation medium or from chondrogenically committed hBM-MSCs induced a chondrogenic phenotype characterized by marked induction of SOX9, COMP, Aggrecan and Collagen type II, and matrix glycosaminoglycans synthesis. Indeed, both EVs immobilization systems outperformed the currently used chondroinductive strategies. These data show that naturally secreted EVs can guide the chondrogenic commitment of hBM-MSCs in the absence of any other chemical or genetic chondrogenic inductors based in medium supplementation.The authors would like to acknowledge the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) for the PhD grant to M.R.C. (PD/BD/113797/2015) financed by the Doctoral Program on Advanced Therapies for Health (PATH) (FSE/POCH/PD/169/2013) and the project Cells4_IDs (PTDC/BTM-SAL/28882/2017). This work was also financed by the Portuguese Mass Spectrometry Network, integrated in the National Roadmap of Research Infrastructures of Strategic Relevance (ROTEIRO/0028/2013; LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-022125)

Impact of biological agents and tissue engineering approaches on the treatment of rheumatic diseases

The treatment of rheumatic diseases has been the focus of many clinical studies aiming to achieve the best combination of drugs for symptom reduction. Although improved understanding of the pathophysiology of rheumatic diseases has led to the identification of effective therapeutic strategies, its cure remains unknown. Biological agents are a breakthrough in the treatment of these diseases. They proved to be more effective than the other conventional therapies in refractory inflammatory rheumatic diseases. Among them, tumor necrosis factor inhibitors are widely used, namely Etanercept, Infliximab, or Adalimumab, alone or in combination with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. Nevertheless, severe adverse effects have been detected in patients with history of recurrent infections, including cardiac failure or malignancy. Currently, most of the available therapies for rheumatic diseases do not have sufficient tissue specificity. Consequently, high drug doses must be administrated systemically, leading to adverse side effects associated with its possible toxicity. Drug delivery systems, by its targeted nature, are excellent solutions to overcome this problem. In this review, we will describe the state-of-the-art in clinical studies on the treatment of rheumatic diseases, emphasizing the use of biological agents and target drug delivery systems. Some alternative novel strategies of regenerative medicine and its implications for rheumatic diseases will also be discussed.The authors state that there is no conflict of interests, including financial, relationships, or affiliations relevant for the subject. M. Alves da Silva and A. Martins acknowledge the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology for their Ph.D. grants and European NoE EXPERTISSUES (NMP3-CT-2004-500283)

Aqueous extracts of fish roe as a source of several bioactive compounds

Regular consumption of seafood and, in particular, fish has been associated with important health benefits. A fish product that has been increasingly included in the human nutrition is roe. Despite its nutritional value has been established (fatty acid profile and protein content), the knowledge of the composition of its aqueous extracts is still limited. This work describes the bioactive compounds profile in the roe-derived aqueous extracts of three different marine species (sardine, horse mackerel and sea bass) using a method based on liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry with an electrospray ionisation source (LC-ESI/HRMS). The presence of substances with well-known nutritional and functional properties (e.g., antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties) was demonstrated, namely essential amino acids (e.g., taurine), peptides (e.g., anserine and carnosine), B-group vitamins (e.g., nicotinamide) and gadusol. Therefore, roe-derived aqueous extracts are excellent sources of bioactive compounds and may be used as a font of functional components for several medical and veterinary applications.This research was funded by FCT/MCTES and FSE/POCH, grant numbers PD/169/2013, PD/BD/113795/2015, PTDC/CTM-BIO/4388/2014, and the NORTE 2020 Structured Project within the R&D&I Structured Project, co-funded by Norte2020—Programa Operacional Regional do Norte, grant number NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000021 and national funds by FCT through the projects UIDB/04423/2020 and UIDP/04423/2020 (Group of Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry— CIIMAR) and ERDF, through the COMPETE-POFC program in the framework of the program PT2020

The biomimetic surface topography of Rubus fruticosus leaves stimulate the induction of osteogenic differentiation of rBMSCs

The interaction between cells and biomaterials is essential for the success of biomedical applications in which the implantation of biomaterials in the human body is necessary. It has been demonstrated that material's chemical, mechanical, and structural properties can influence cell behaviour. The surface topography of biomaterials is a physical property that can have a major role in mediating cellâ material interactions. This interaction can lead to different cell responses regarding cell motility, proliferation, migration, and even differentiation. The combination of biomaterials with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for bone regeneration is a promising strategy to avoid the need for autologous transplant of bone. Surface topography was also associated with the capacity to control MSCs differentiation. Most of the topographies studied so far involve machine-generated surface topographies. Herein, our strategy differentiates from the above mentioned since we selected natural surface topographies that can modulate cell functions for regenerative medicine strategies. Rubus fruticosus leaf was the selected topography to be replicated in polycaprolactone (PCL) membranes through polydimethylsiloxane moulding and using soft lithography. Afterwards, rat bone marrow stem cells (rBMSCs) were seeded at the surface of the imprinted PCL membranes to characterize the bioactive potential of our biomimetic surface topography to drive rBMSCs differentiation into the osteogenic lineage. The selected surface topography in combination with the osteogenic inductive medium reveals having a synergistic effect promoting osteogenic differentiation.This work is a result of the project FROnTHERA (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000023), supported by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the doctoral programme in Tissue Engineering, Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cells (PD/59/2013), (PD/BD/128087/2016) (COVID/BD/151599/2020) and by the project Cells4_IDs (PTDC/BTM-SAL/28882/2017)

Analysis of EGFR Overexpression, EGFR gene amplification and the EGFRvIII Mutation in portuguese high-grade gliomas

Background: Patients with malignant gliomas do not respond to any current therapy. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) controls several oncogenic processes, being frequently up-regulated in gliomas due to overexpression, gene amplification and gene mutation. EGFR inhibitors are being tried in gliomas, yet the molecular determinants of therapeutic response are unclear. Materials and Methods: EGFR overexpression, EGFRvIII mutation and EGFR amplification were determined by immunohistochemistry and chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH) in 27 primary glioblastomas (GBM), 24 anaplastic oligodendrogliomas (AO) and four anaplastic oligoastrocytomas (AOA). Results: EGFR overexpression was associated with EGFR amplification, being found in 48% and 53% GBM, 33% and 40% AO and 75% and 67% AOA, respectively. EGFRvIII was found in 22% GBM, 8% AO and was absent in AOA. No association was observed between EGFR alterations and patient survival. Conclusion: We characterized, for the first time, EGFR molecular alterations in Portuguese patients with malignant glioma and identified a subpopulation of patients presenting putative biomarkers for EGFR-based therapies

Chondroitin sulfate immobilization at the surface of electrospun nanofiber meshes for cartilage regeneration

Aiming at improving the biocompatibility of biomaterial scaffolds, surface modification presents a way to preserve their mechanical properties and to improve the surface bioactivity. In this work, chondroitin sulfate (CS) was immobilized at the surface of electrospun poly(caprolactone) nanofiber meshes (PCL NFMs). The immobilization was performed with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide (EDC)/N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS). Contact Angle, SEM, Optical Profilometry, FTIR, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy techniques confirmed the CS-immobilization in PCL NFMs. Furthermore, CS-immobilized PCL NFMs showed lower roughness and higher hydrophilicity than the samples without CS. Human articular chondrocytes (HACs) were cultured on electrospun PCL NFMs with or without CS immobilization. It was observed that HACs proliferated through the entire time course of the experiment in both types of scaffolds. SEM observations revealed that HACs maintained their typical morphology and produced extracellular matrix. Glycosaminoglycans quantification showed increased values over time. Quantitative-PCR of cartilage-related genes revealed over-expression of Aggrecan, Collagen type II, COMP and Sox9 on both types of NFMs tested, with higher values for PCL. In conclusion, CS immobilization in PCL NFM was achieved successfully and provides a valid platform enabling further surface functionalization methods in scaffolds to be developed for cartilage tissue engineering