REGIONAL INNOVATION SYSTEM FAILURES AND HIGHLIGHTS

The systemic analysis of innovation conceives complex analytical frameworks, with intense socio-technological aspects of knowledge generation and encompasses a detailed analysis of system failures. These frameworks are not suitable for benchmarking a wide range of regions, due to low availability of such elaborate data sources. On the other hand, metric regional innovation micro data offer the opportunity for large-scale cross-regional benchmarking exercise illustrating mainly the market failures of the innovation systems although this type of analysis does not provide any detailed systemic envisioning. Is the combination of these two analytical approaches possible? This study presents the Interaction Intension Indicator (3I) analytical framework, analysing system failures and highlights of various regional innovation deployment patterns along with the analysis of the Romanian innovation system.Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, and Changes, Regional innovation policies, regional innovation metrics, regional innovation systems, innovation policy assessment

Retail Building Cycles: Evidence from Great Britain

This study examines the cyclical pattern of retail property development in Great Britain. It develops and estimates an econometric model of the volume of new development starts for retail buildings. Within the theoretical framework proposed, a dynamic specification based on changes in real retail rents and total consumer spending appears to adequately capture the cyclical variation in retail development. Changes in the values of these variables induce new retail construction within two years and an Almon polynomial lag scheme best describes the dynamic distribution of their lagged effects. Investment market influences on retail building development at the national level are not established in this study. There is also some indication of a changing economic relationship between new retail development and retail rents after mid-1995, but this can only be confirmed by appropriate tests when additional observations become available.

Automorphisms of Curves and Weierstrass semigroups for Harbater-Katz-Gabber covers

We study $p$-group Galois covers $X \rightarrow \mathbb{P}^1$ with only one fully ramified point. These covers are important because of the Katz-Gabber compactification of Galois actions on complete local rings. The sequence of ramification jumps is related to the Weierstrass semigroup of the global cover at the stabilized point. We determine explicitly the jumps of the ramification filtrations in terms of pole numbers. We give applications for curves with zero $p$--rank: we focus on maximal curves and curves that admit a big action. Moreover the Galois module structure of polydifferentials is studied and an application to the tangent space of the deformation functor of curves with automorphisms is given

Aptamers in oncology: a diagnostic perspective

Nucleic acid sequences can produce a wide variety of three-dimensional conformations. Some of these structural forms are able to interact with proteins and small molecules with high affinity and specificity. These sequences, comprising either double or single stranded oligonucleotides, are called 'aptamers' based on the Greek word aptus, which means 'to fit'. Using an efficient selection process, randomised oligonucleotide libraries can be rapidly screened for aptamers with the appropriate binding characteristics. This technology has spawned the development of a new class of oligonucleotide therapeutic products. However, while interest among pharmaceutical companies continues to grow with some candidates already in clinical trials and one in the market, there appears to be some reluctance to fully explore the diagnostic potential of this technology. This article will review aptamer developments in diagnostics, compare them with other oligonucleotide therapeutics and highlight both potentials and pitfalls of technological development in this area