Complete mitochondrial genome of the hybrid loach of Paramisgurnus dabryanus ssp. (female) and Misgurnus bipartitus (male)

The hybrid loach of Paramisgurnus dabryanus ssp. (female) and Macropharyngodon bipartitus (male) have the desirable trait of growth performance. There is no report of the complete genome of this hybrid. In this study, the complete mitochondrial genome of this hybrid loach was obtained, and the genome is 16,569 bp in length, including 2 ribosomal RNA genes. 13 proteins-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, and a non-coding control region, the gene composition and order of which was similar to most reported from other vertebrates. Sequence analysis showed that the overall base composition is 29.4% for A, 27.5% for T, 26.4% for C, and 16.7% for G. The sequence is a slight A + T bias of 56.9%. The phylogenetic tree showed the hybrid loach to be one of the Paramisgurnus. Also, the mitochondrial genome sequence of loach were aligned by BLAST, when compared with Cobitinae the sequence similarity could reach >90%, and the similarity to Paramisgurnus was >99%. Mitogenome information from this study could be a useful basis for conservation and phylogenetics of this hybrid loach

NR4A1 is Involved in Fibrogenesis in Ovarian Endometriosis

Background/Aims: Excess fibrosis may lead to chronic pain, scarring, and infertility as endometriosis develops and progresses. The pathogenesis of endometriosis has been linked to transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), the most potent promoter of fibrosis. Methods: Levels of NR4A1 and P-NR4A1 protein in human endometrial and endometriotic tissue were assessed by western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The expression levels of fibrotic markers in stromal cells were evaluated by real-time PCR. The degree of fibrosis in mouse endometriotic lesions was detected by Masson trichrome and Sirius red staining. Results: The level of phosphorylated-NR4A1 was higher in ovarian endometriotic tissue than in normal endometrium, and long-term TGF-β1 stimulation phosphorylated NR4A1 in an AKT-dependent manner and then promoted the expression of fibrotic markers. Furthermore, inhibition of NR4A1 in stromal cells increased the TGF-β1-dependent elevated expression of fibrotic markers, and loss of NR4A1 stimulated fibrogenesis in mice with endometriosis. Additionally, Cytosporone B (Csn-B), an NR4A1 agonist, effectively decreased the TGF-β1-dependent elevated expression of fibrotic markers in vitro and significantly inhibited fibrogenesis in vivo. Conclusion: NR4A1 can regulate fibrosis in endometriosis and may serve as a new target for the treatment of endometriosis

Toward a stakeholder model of corporate governance: evidence from U.S. media companies

It has been widely recognized that corporate governance can play a key role in improving corporate performance. When implementing various governance mechanisms, however, corporations must address a fundamental question: should corporate governance focus on protecting the interests of only shareholders or should corporate governance expand its focus and consider the interests of other groups? While agency theory asserts that the exclusive focus of corporate governance is to ensure the interests of shareholders, stakeholder theory proposes that corporations should serve all groups or individuals who have a stake in the corporation. Like that of other industries, corporate governance of media industries has generally followed the agency model of maximizing shareholder wealth. But the weakness and failure of such a model in recent years suggest that it may be meaningful to approach the issue from an alternative, stakeholder perspective. Focusing on 75 publicly traded media companies continuously filed with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission between 2004 and 2007, this dissertation examined the effects of ownership structure, board structure, compensation structure, and takeover control on corporate performance. It found that stakeholder-oriented governance mechanisms, including reduced institutional ownership, increased insider ownership, enlarged board representativeness, increased board interlocks, fixed compensation for CEO and directors, and certain takeover controls like dual class shares and poison pills, were positively associated with media firms' performance. This dissertation thus suggested that corporate governance of media companies go beyond the pure shareholder-maximization goal and consider the interests of such stakeholders as employees, audience, and local communities because the stakeholder approach was not only socially desirable but also economically efficient. This dissertation theoretically contributed: (1) to the media management literatures through offering a systematic examination on the governance mechanisms of media companies; (2) to the stakeholder perspective through opening up a new and empirical line of inquiry; and (3) to the corporate governance research through challenging its traditional shareholder-maximizing paradigm. Moreover, this dissertation had important implications for media practitioners and regulators since it proposed and verified a number of better governance mechanisms that can be put into practice. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries

CO₂ Stimuli-Responsive, Injectable Block Copolymer Hydrogels Cross-Linked by Discrete Organoplatinum(II) Metallacycles via Stepwise Post-Assembly Polymerization

Supramolecular polymeric gels cross-linked by well-defined, discrete metal–organic macrocycles (MOMs) or metal–organic cages have become a prevailing topic within the field of supramolecular self-assembly. However, the realization of supramolecular polymeric hydrogels cross-linked by discrete organometallic architectures with good biocompatibility is still a great challenge. Herein, we present the successful preparation of CO₂ stimuli-responsive, injectable block copolymer hydrogels cross-linked by discrete organoplatinum­(II) metallacycles. Through the combination of coordination-driven self-assembly and <i>stepwise</i> post-assembly polymerization, star block copolymers (SBCPs) containing well-defined hexagonal metallacycles as cores were successfully prepared, which featured CO₂ stimuli-responsive properties including CO₂-triggered morphology transition and CO₂-induced thermoresponsive behavior. Interestingly, the resultant SBCPs were capable of forming supramolecular hydrogels with MOMs as junctions near physiological temperature, which allowed the realization of a reversible gel-to-sol transformation through the removal and addition of CO₂. More importantly, the resultant supramolecular hydrogels presented good cytocompatibility in vitro. Therefore, this study provides a new strategy for the construction of new “smart” supramolecular hydrogels with promising applications as biological materials

CO₂ Stimuli-Responsive, Injectable Block Copolymer Hydrogels Cross-Linked by Discrete Organoplatinum(II) Metallacycles via Stepwise Post-Assembly Polymerization

Supramolecular polymeric gels cross-linked by well-defined, discrete metal–organic macrocycles (MOMs) or metal–organic cages have become a prevailing topic within the field of supramolecular self-assembly. However, the realization of supramolecular polymeric hydrogels cross-linked by discrete organometallic architectures with good biocompatibility is still a great challenge. Herein, we present the successful preparation of CO₂ stimuli-responsive, injectable block copolymer hydrogels cross-linked by discrete organoplatinum­(II) metallacycles. Through the combination of coordination-driven self-assembly and <i>stepwise</i> post-assembly polymerization, star block copolymers (SBCPs) containing well-defined hexagonal metallacycles as cores were successfully prepared, which featured CO₂ stimuli-responsive properties including CO₂-triggered morphology transition and CO₂-induced thermoresponsive behavior. Interestingly, the resultant SBCPs were capable of forming supramolecular hydrogels with MOMs as junctions near physiological temperature, which allowed the realization of a reversible gel-to-sol transformation through the removal and addition of CO₂. More importantly, the resultant supramolecular hydrogels presented good cytocompatibility in vitro. Therefore, this study provides a new strategy for the construction of new “smart” supramolecular hydrogels with promising applications as biological materials