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Selected AbstractsEstrogenicity in bile of juvenile rainbow trout as measure of exposure and potential effects of endocrine disruptorsENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 5 2004Ann-Sofie Allard Abstract Estrogenicity in the bile of juvenile rainbow trout exposed to effluents from municipal sewage treatment plants and various industries was assayed by using a recombinant yeast strain containing the human estrogen receptor , gene. Estrogenicity in bile also was measured after deconjugation of steroids to provide an estimate of the exposure and as an endpoint for potential effects on the organism. In unexposed fish or fish exposed for three weeks at control localities, 0.5 to 9 ng of estradiol equivalents (EEq) were found per gram of bile (ng EEq/g bile). Fish exposed for three weeks in cages placed in the receiving waters near outlets of municipal effluent had an average activity of 26 ng EEq/g bile. Fish exposed to undiluted sewage water in aquaria had a bile estrogenicity of 51 to 87,000 ng EEq/g bile. Unconjugated estrogens contributed only 8% or less to the estrogenicity in bile of fish exposed to municipal effluents. Municipal sewage effluents were more estrogenic than the industrial effluents that were investigated. Estrogenicity in bile was compared to that in extracts of wastewater by using the same receptor assay, and to vitellogenin induction in the plasma of the same fish. Bile estrogenicity proved to be a useful and sensitive (internal) measure of exposure and indicated its potential for the display of biological effects as a complement or replacement of more laborious assays. [source] Duality Theory and Long,Period Price SystemsMETROECONOMICA, Issue 4 2002Arrigo Opocher This paper concerns duality between long,period price systems in Sraffian models of production and the technologies of the various industries. We present a ,principle of duality between prices and technique' referred to a system of production, due to Bidard and Salvadori, and compare it with the usual textbook duality between cost and production functions, referred to firms/industries. We argue that the principle of duality for the system of production can be obtained, industry by industry, on the basis of the usual duality theory and that, in so doing, both ,dualities' are given a formulation more appropriate to firms/industries in long,period equilibrium. [source] THE IMPACT OF ELECTRONIC DATA INTERCHANGE ON DELIVERY PERFORMANCEPRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2001SOHEL AHMAD After several years of use of electronic data interchange (EDI) in various industries, the literature is still inconclusive regarding the benefits gained from its usage. We investigated contextual factors of two types: non-managerial (product diversity, product customization, production instability, and organizational size) and managerial (just-in-time and quality management), that might have confounded past results. Our results indicate that the extent of EDI use is significantly related to delivery performance after controlling for the above-mentioned factors. Furthermore, the data set supported the moderating effect of production instability on the relationship between the extent of EDI use and delivery performance achieved, but failed to support the moderating effect of organizational size. [source] The Politics of Financial Development: Evidence from Trade LiberalizationTHE JOURNAL OF FINANCE, Issue 3 2008MATIAS BRAUN ABSTRACT Incumbents in various industries have different incentives to promote or oppose financial development. Changes in the relative strength of promoter and opponent industries thus result in changes in the political equilibrium level of financial development. We conduct an event study using a sample of 41 countries that liberalized trade during 1970 to 2000, and show that the strengthening of promoter relative to opponent industries resulting from liberalization is a good predictor of subsequent financial development. The benefits of developing the financial system are insufficient for financial development, and rents in particular hands appear to be necessary to achieve it. [source] Exploring Correlates of Product Launch in Collaborative Ventures: An Empirical Investigation of Pharmaceutical AlliancesTHE JOURNAL OF PRODUCT INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2009M. Berk Talay This paper examines collaborative ventures leading toward the launch of new products in the pharmaceutical industry. These collaborative ventures are one of the most underresearched areas in the new product literature, yet the preponderance of these collaborative ventures makes it an area of great importance for scholars and practitioners alike. As such, the purpose of the study is to examine why some collaborative projects produce a favorable outcome (the launch of a product) whereas others do not. That is, what characteristics of partner firms in the collaborative ventures and what characteristics of the partnership lead to a successful launch of a new product in the pharmaceutical industry? Secondary data from the pharmaceutical industry are employed in a multinomial logit model. Data from 128 collaborative ventures from 1980 to 2004 are used in the analysis. The partner firms in the collaborative ventures are from various industries ranging from malt beverages to pharmaceutical preparations to electronic and other equipment among others. Of the 128 collaborative ventures, 66 were successful in leading to a new product launch, whereas 62 did not result in the launch of a new product. The results from the multinomial logit analysis suggest that combined marketing resources of parent companies, combined technological intensity of parent companies, and combined asset bases of parent companies contribute to the likelihood of an eventual product launch in a collaborative venture. However, the results of the analysis show that contrary to expectations, technological complementarity of partners in the collaborative venture is not a significant predictor of successful new product launch. The results of the study suggest certain aspects for managers to consider when establishing collaborative ventures. To maximize the possibilities of the collaborative venture leading to the successful launching of a new product, managers should be concerned with the resources potentially available to partners in the collaborative venture from parent firms. These resources are not only of financial nature but also of technological nature. The existence of these resources does not ensure provision of resources to the collaborative venture; however, without the possibility of these resources it appears that successful launch of a product is less likely. [source] Complementing Mass Customization Toolkits with User Communities: How Peer Input Improves Customer Self-Design,THE JOURNAL OF PRODUCT INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 6 2008Nikolaus Franke In this paper, the authors propose that the canonical customer,toolkit dyad in mass customization (MC) should be complemented with user communities. Many companies in various industries have begun to offer their customers the opportunity to design their own products online. The companies provide Web-based MC toolkits that allow customers who prefer individualized products to tailor items such as sneakers, personal computers (PCs), cars, kitchens, cereals, or skis to their specific preferences. Most existing MC toolkits are based on the underlying concept of an isolated, dyadic interaction process between the individual customer and the MC toolkit. Information from external sources is not provided. As a result, most academic research on MC toolkits has focused on this dyadic perspective. The main premise of this paper is that novice MC toolkit users in particular might largely benefit from information given by other customers. Pioneering research shows that customers in the computer gaming and digital music instruments industries are willing to support each other for the sake of efficient toolkit use (e.g., how certain toolkit functions work). Expanding on their work, the present paper provides evidence that peer assistance appears also extremely useful in the two other major phases of the customer's individual self-design process, namely, the development of an initial idea and the evaluation of a preliminary design solution. Two controlled experiments were conducted in which 191 subjects used an MC toolkit to design their own individual skis. The authors found that during the phase of developing an initial idea, having access to other users' designs as potential starting points stimulates the integration of existing solution chunks into the problem-solving process, which indicates more systematic problem-solving behavior. Peer customer input also turned out to have positive effects on the evaluation of preliminary design solutions. Providing other customers' opinions on interim design solutions stimulated favorable problem-solving behavior, namely, the integration of external feedback. The use of these two problem-solving heuristics in turn leads to an improved process outcome,that is, self-designed products that meet the preferences of the customers more effectively (measured in terms of perceived preference fit, purchase intention, and willingness to pay). These findings have important theoretical and managerial implications. [source] Using the Bell Labs security framework to enhance the ISO 17799/27001 information security management systemBELL LABS TECHNICAL JOURNAL, Issue 3 2007Andrew R. McGee The global information technology (IT) industry recognizes the need for standards to improve the quality and consistency of security for IT products and services. As such, the International Organization for Standardization/ International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) 27000 series is focusing on the requirements, security controls, and implementation guidance for an organization's information security management system (ISMS). This guidance establishes general principles that can be used in various industries and government; however, standardized techniques are also needed to identify, implement, and operate security controls as part of the ISMS life cycle. The Bell Labs Security Framework identifies both the minimal and differentiating security controls by decomposing an IT product or service into a layered hierarchy of equipment and facilities groupings and examining the types of activities that occur at each layer in a standardized manner. Furthermore, the Bell Labs Security Framework security dimensions provide the necessary mechanisms to implement and operate the selected controls. The Bell Labs Security Framework enhances the ISO/IEC 27000 series by providing a comprehensive end-to-end approach to implementing IT security. © 2007 Alcatel-Lucent. [source] A novel Method for the selective recovery and purification of ,-polyglutamic acid from Bacillus licheniformis fermentation brothBIOTECHNOLOGY PROGRESS, Issue 3 2010Bhavik Manocha Abstract Microbially produced gamma-polyglutamic acid (,-PGA) is a commercially important biopolymer with many applications in biopharmaceutical, food, cosmetic and waste-water treatment industries. Owing to its increasing demand in various industries, production of ,-PGA is well documented in the literature, however very few methods have been reported for its recovery. In this paper, we report a novel method for the selective recovery and purification of ,-PGA from cell-free fermentation broth of Bacillus licheniformis. The cell-free fermentation broth was treated with divalent copper ions, resulting in the precipitation of ,-PGA, which was collected as a pellet by centrifugation. The pellet was resolubilized and dialyzed against de-ionized water to obtain the purified ,-PGA biopolymer. The efficiency and selectivity of ,-PGA recovery was compared with ethanol precipitation method. We found that 85% of the original ,-PGA content in the broth was recovered by copper sulfate-induced precipitation, compared to 82% recovery by ethanol precipitation method. Since ethanol is a commonly used solvent for protein precipitation, the purity of ,-PGA precipitate was analyzed by measuring proteins that co-precipitated with ,-PGA. Of the total proteins present in the broth, 48% proteins were found to be co-precipitated with ,-PGA by ethanol precipitation, whereas in copper sulfate-induced precipitation, only 3% of proteins were detected in the final purified ,-PGA, suggesting that copper sulfate-induced precipitation offers better selectivity than ethanol precipitation method. Total metal content analysis of the purified ,-PGA revealed the undetectable amount of copper ions, whereas other metal ions detected were in low concentration range. The purified ,-PGA was characterized using infrared spectroscopy. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2010 [source] |