Performance within a recession: The converging trajectories of retail centres in the UK

Using retail-centre aggregated microeconomic data for over 65,000 retail and service units in the UK, we explore the differential influence of the 2007/8 economic recession on the performance of retail centres. For the first time in the context on town centre/high street analyses of performance, we employ growth and convergence models to examine whether centres with different vacancy rates in the pre-recession period converged in the recession period that followed. The results indicate that the recession had higher negative influence on those centres that experienced lower retail vacancy rates in the pre-recession period, leading to convergence in retail vacancy rates. Despite the negative effect of recession in the UK retail market, the results show that there were some retail centres which were resilient to the effects of recession. Finally, there is evidence that the location and the size of retail centres moderate the convergence path. © 2018 The Author(s). Regional Science Policy and Practice © 2018 RSA

Continuous microcarrier-based cell culture in a benchtop microfluidic bioreactor

International audienceMicrofluidic bioreactors are expected to impact cell therapy and biopharmaceutical production due to their ability to control cellular microenvironments. This work presents a novel approach for continuous cell culture in a microfluidic system. Microcarriers (i.e., microbeads) are used as growth support for anchorage-dependent mammalian cells. This approach eases the manipulation of cells within the system and enables harmless extraction of cells. Moreover, the microbioreactor uses a perfusion function based on the biocompatible integration of a porous membrane to continuously feed the cells. The perfusion rate is optimized through simulations to provide a stable biochemical environment. Thermal management is also addressed to ensure a homogeneous bioreactor temperature. Eventually, incubator-free cell cultures of Drosophila S2 and PC3 cells are achieved over the course of a week using this bioreactor. In future applications, a more efficient alternative to harvesting cells from microcarriers is also anticipated as suggested by our positive results from the microcarrier digestion experiments

Video lensfree microscopy of 2D and 3D culture of cells

International audienc