The Patenting Behavior of Academic Founders

This study explores why academic entrepreneurs patent their inventions before and after creating a firm. Drawing on start-up data combined with patent data, we specifically examine the impact of five, relatively under-researched factors (scientific field, pace of technological development, technological uncertainty, entrepreneurial orientation, and patent effectiveness. The study shows that some scientific fields, technological uncertainty, and patent effectiveness are positively related to patent propensity, both before and after founding. The effects of pace of technological development and entrepreneurial orientation were timespecific. Our study suggests that patenting by academic entrepreneurs is driven by special rationales and that prior research on full-time scientists and established firms does not necessarily generalize to them. We discuss the implications of our findings both in terms of contribution to the current literature and technology transfer policies. --academic patenting

Cover Crop Productivity in Contrasting Growing Conditions and Influence on the Subsequent Crop

In arable systems, cover crops provide multiple ecosystem services involved in soil protection and fertility. They can efficiently compete against weeds, control erosion or recycle nutrients. The supply of these services is however largely dependent on cover crop growth as most of the services are related to biomass production. The choice of a cover crop adapted to the growing conditions is thus essential. Growing mixtures instead of sole crops is expected to be a way to overcome variable growing conditions and to insure high biomass production.Different field trials have been conducted from 2013 to 2016 in Nyon, Switzerland to assess cover crop biomass production and stability, and their influence on the following crop. Indian mustard, field pea, black oat and phacelia were sown as sole crops and in mixtures with different diversity levels (2, 3 and 4 species). A mixture of 11 species (50% of legumes and 50% of other species) was also tested. Biomass production was assessed about three months after seeding, just before the seeding of the next main crop, in two 0.5 m × 0.5 m quadrats. For each cover crop, a risk of failure, e.g. the probability of producing less than 3 t/ha (minimal biomass allowing to provide the services expected from cover crops), was estimated. Weed pressure was appraised by weed biomass in quadrats. The yield of the following main crop, here winter wheat, was determined after harvesting with a combine harvester, at wheat maturity, in summer. Sole crops showed very contrasting performance according to the growing conditions. Pea was the most productive in low yielding conditions with 2 t/ha while other sole crops produced only 0.5 t/ha. Pea was barely more productive in high yielding conditions, reaching only 3 t/ha when cover crop average was 6 t/ha. By contrast, mustard and oat showed high production potential in these conditions, exceeding 7 t/ha. Pea should thus be favoured when the growing conditions are clearly identified as limiting (low N availability), while oat or mustard should be chosen in favourable conditions. However, in general, conditions are hardly predictable. Our results showed that mixtures should be preferred as they were adapted to a wider range of environments than sole crops, performing well regardless of the conditions and resulting in a lower risk of failure than sole crops. The 11-specie mixture revealed that generally 4 to 5 species are sufficient to insure a good performance regardless of the conditions. Regarding cover crop effect on the following crop, we evidenced the importance of high biomass production for efficient weed control and positive influence on crop yield in no till treatments.Our results showed that cover crop mixtures rather than sole crops should be chosen as they insure high biomass production and thus a good supply of ecosystem services. In addition, cover crop cultivation, even for a short period, proved to be paramount to the maintenance of grain yield and soil fertility on the long term, especially in reduced tillage systems

Patenting rationales of academic entrepreneurs in weak and strong organizational regimes

This study explores why academic entrepreneurs seek patents for spin-off technology in weak organizational regimes (the employee owns her inventions) and strong organizational regimes (the employer, i.e. the university or research organization, owns these inventions). Specifically, we examine organizational and founding team characteristics as alternative explanations. Matched data of academic spin-offs from both contexts combined with patent data show that founding team characteristics (expert knowledge and entrepreneurial orientation) matter in weak, but not strong regimes. In contrast, organizational patenting norms are the key driver of patenting in strong, but not weak regimes. We discuss the implications of our results for the current literature and technology transfer policies

Genetic Diversity under Soil Compaction in Wheat: Root Number as a Promising Trait for Early Plant Vigor

Soil compaction of arable land, caused by heavy machinery constitutes a major threat to agricultural soils in industrialized countries. The degradation of soil structure due to compaction leads to decreased (macro-) porosity resulting in increased mechanical impedance, which adversely affects root growth and crop productivity. New crop cultivars, with root systems that are adapted to conditions of increased soil strength, are needed to overcome the limiting effects of soil compaction on plant growth. This study aimed (i) to quantify the genetic diversity of early root system development in wheat and to relate this to shoot development under different soil bulk densities and (ii) to test whether root numbers are suitable traits to assess the genotypic tolerance to soil compaction. Fourteen wheat genotypes were grown for 3 weeks in a growth chamber under low (1.3 g cm-3), moderate (1.45 g cm-3), and high soil bulk density (1.6 g cm-3). Using X-ray computed tomography root system development was quantified in weekly intervals, which was complemented by weekly measurements of plant height. The development of the root system, quantified via the number of axial and lateral roots was strongly correlated (0.78 < r < 0.88, p < 0.01) to the development of plant height. Furthermore, significant effects (p < 0.01) of the genotype on root system development and plant vigor traits were observed. Under moderate soil strength final axial and lateral root numbers were significantly correlated (0.57 < r < 0.84, p < 0.05) to shoot dry weight. Furthermore, broad-sense heritability of axial and lateral root number was higher than 50% and comparable to values calculated for shoot traits. Our results showed that there is genetic diversity in wheat with respect to root system responses to increased soil strength and that root numbers are suitable indicators to explain the responses and the tolerance to such conditions. Since root numbers are heritable and can be assessed at high throughput rates under laboratory and field conditions, root number is considered a promising trait for screening toward compaction tolerant varieties.ISSN:1664-462

Advanced phenotyping offers opportunities for improved breeding of forage and turf species

Background and Aims Advanced phenotyping, i.e. the application of automated, high-throughput methods to characterize plant architecture and performance, has the potential to accelerate breeding progress but is far from being routinely used in current breeding approaches. In forage and turf improvement programmes, in particular, where breeding populations and cultivars are characterized by high genetic diversity and substantial genotype × environment interactions, precise and efficient phenotyping is essential to meet future challenges imposed by climate change, growing demand and declining resources. Scope This review highlights recent achievements in the establishment of phenotyping tools and platforms. Some of these tools have originally been established in remote sensing, some in precision agriculture, while others are laboratory-based imaging procedures. They quantify plant colour, spectral reflection, chlorophyll-fluorescence, temperature and other properties, from which traits such as biomass, architecture, photosynthetic efficiency, stomatal aperture or stress resistance can be derived. Applications of these methods in the context of forage and turf breeding are discussed. Conclusions Progress in cutting-edge molecular breeding tools is beginning to be matched by progress in automated non-destructive imaging methods. Joint application of precise phenotyping machinery and molecular tools in optimized breeding schemes will improve forage and turf breeding in the near future and will thereby contribute to amended performance of managed grassland agroecosystem

Advanced phenotyping offers opportunities for improved breeding of forage and turf species

ISSN:1095-8290ISSN:0305-736

Räumliche und zeitliche Wachstumsmuster in Wurzeln und Blättern dikotyler Pflanzen

Wachstum - die irreversible Volumenzunahme eines Organs oder Gewebes - ist ein raum-zeitlich höchst dynamischer Prozess, der für Pflanzen von vielgestaltiger Bedeutung ist. Wachstumsmuster der untersuchten Wurzeln und Blätter konnten mit hoher Genauigkeit auf einer Zeitskala von Minuten bzw. einer Ortsskala von unter 1 mm automatisiert gewonnen und interpretiert werden. Dies gelang durch den Einsatz einer innovativen Bildverarbeitungsmethode, die im Verlauf dieser Arbeit in den botanischen Praxisbetrieb überführt wurde. Die Messungen führten auf verschiedenen regulatorischen Ebenen zu grundlegend neuen Erkenntnissen. Bei Wurzeln von Mais konnte ein zweigipfliges Maximum der Wachstumsverteilung detektiert werden, dessen Entstehung möglicherweise auf die Staffelung der raum-zeitlichen Differenzierung von Geweben zurückzuführen ist. Ein konstanter diurnaler Verlauf des Wachstums zeigte sich für die Aktivität der integrierten Wachstumszone. Circumnutatorische Wachstumsbewegungen wurden registriert, deren Periodenlängen ebenso von der externen Nährstoff-Verfügbarkeit abhingen wie die Wachstumsverteilung und die Inhaltsstoff-Zusammensetzung der Wurzelwachstumszone. Bei Blättern von Tabak und Rizinus konnte im Gegensatz zu den Wurzeln ein Tagesgang der Wachstumsaktivität mit einem Maximum am Nacht-Tag-Übergang nachgewiesen werden. Dieses Wachstumsmuster stellt wahrscheinlich einen circadianen Rhythmus dar, der selbst in isolierten Blattscheiben im Dauerlicht weiterläuft. Das Maximum des Tagesganges kann durch differentielle Temperierung von Spross und Wurzel verlagert werden. Eng mit der zeitlichen Aktivitätsverteilung des Wachstums war die Expression eines Expansin-Gens (NtExp1) korreliert. Im Gegensatz zur Wurzel zeigten hier auch viele Inhaltsstoff-Konzentrationen einen deutlichen Tagesgang. Nutatorische und nyctinastische Bewegungen des Blattes konnten als Ausdruck räumlich differentieller, biomechanisch regulierter Wachstumsaktivität charakterisiert werden

Ein Forschungsüberblick zu Einflussgrößen der Entwicklung technologieorientierter Spin-off-Unternehmen

Technologiebasierte Spin-offs aus öffentlichen Forschungseinrichtungen und privatwirtschaftlichen Unternehmen stellen wichtige Untergruppen junger, innovationsorientierter Unternehmen dar. In diesem Beitrag wird der aktuelle Stand empirischer Forschungsarbeiten bezüglich Einflussfaktoren der Unternehmensentwicklung systematisch dargelegt und diskutiert. Besonderes Augenmerk wird dabei auch auf das methodische Vorgehen und die Messung der untersuchten Einflussfaktoren gelegt. Auf Basis der Literaturanalyse werden übergeordnete Faktoren identifiziert, die für beide Unternehmenstypen einen Einfluss auf deren Entwicklung nehmen. Darüber hinaus werden Lücken der jeweiligen Forschungsbereiche aufgedeckt und zukünftige Forschungsfelder aufgezeigt. Es werden methodische Einschränkungen bestehender Studien diskutiert, aus denen Implikationen für zukünftige Studien zu akademischen und privatwirtschaftlichen Spin-offs abgeleitet werden. Abschließend werden Schwerpunktaufgaben für das Management von Spin-offs herausgestellt. --Spin-offs

Diel patterns of leaf and root growth: endogenous rhythmicity or environmental response?

Plants are sessile organisms forced to adjust to their surrounding environment. In a single plant the photoautotrophic shoot is exposed to pronounced environmental variations recurring in a day-night 24 h (diel) cycle, whereas the heterotrophic root grows in a temporally less fluctuating environment. The contrasting habitats of shoots and roots are reflected in different diel growth patterns and their responsiveness to environmental stimuli. Differences between diel leaf growth patterns of mono- and dicotyledonous plants correspond to their different organization and placement of growth zones. In monocots, heterotrophic growth zones are organized linearly and protected from the environment by sheaths of older leaves. In contrast, photosynthetically active growth zones of dicot leaves are exposed directly to the environment and show characteristic, species-specific diel growth patterns. It is hypothesized that the different exposure to environmental constraints and simultaneously the sink/source status of the growing organs may have induced distinct endogenous control of diel growth patterns in roots and leaves of monocot and dicot plants. Confronted by strong temporal fluctuations in environment, the circadian clock may facilitate robust intrinsic control of leaf growth in dicot plant