PARTNERSHIP IN OPEN INNOVATIONS – EXPERIENCE FROM THE AGRICULTURAL MARKET: POLAND CASE STUDY

The ability to build and manage a knowledge transfer partnership is one of the most highly demanded skills. Knowledge is widely dispersed, so it should be acquired from the environment. For this purpose, partnerships should be established with different entities. Presumably, the most mature type of partnership is the innovation ecosystem. Hence empirical research was conducted among Poland’s Grupa Azoty (GA) Puławy's consortium members based on an in-depth, partially structured interview, supported by an analysis of several innovation ecosystems of chemical companies. The aim of the research was to assess the phenomenon of open innovations in the GA along with the characteristics of the selection of partners, cooperation strategies and declared resources for jointly implemented projects.

Effect of Hyaluronic Acid on the Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells into Mature Type II Pneumocytes

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is an essential component of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the healthy lung, playing an important role in the structure of the alveolar surface stabilizing the surfactant proteins. Alveolar type II (ATII) cells are the fundamental element of the alveolus, specializing in surfactant production. ATII cells represent the main target of lung external lesion and a cornerstone in the repair process of pulmonary damage. In this context, knowledge of the factors influencing mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) differentiation in ATII cells is pivotal in fulfilling therapeutic strategies based on MSCs in lung regenerative medicine. To achieve this goal, the role of HA in promoting the differentiation of MSCs in mature Type II pneumocytes capable of secreting pulmonary surfactant was evaluated. Results demonstrated that HA, at a specific molecular weight can greatly increase the expression of lung surfactant protein, indicating the ability of HA to influence MSC differentiation in ATII cells.

Clinical cases of rarely diagnosed forms of choroidal osteoma

Purpose. To analyze the 3 cases of choroidal osteomas, revealed in histological study after evisceration of eye. Material and methods. 3 patients (3 eyes) with chronic uveitis of different origin. Results. On histological examination, the bone tissue consisted of a network of bone beams of not fully mature type, with irregularly pronounced fibroreticular tissue between them. There was insignificant proliferation of endosteal cells in the fibroreticular component. There was marked interstitial edema, increased vascularization with hyperemia in the choroidal vascular plate. Conclusion. Preoperative diagnosis of choroidal osteomas is difficult because of the opacity of the eye media. Long term chronic uveitis of different origin was common to all given cases. Choroidal osteomas was an intraoperative finding and ossification process of choroid was indused by inflammatory process of the eye. Key words: choroidal osteomas, chronic uveitis.

Successful Aging Perception in Middle-Aged Korean Men: A Q Methodology Approach

The purpose of this study is to identify the types of perception of successful aging in middle-aged men and to analyze and describe the characteristics of each type of successful aging perception of middle-aged men in South Korea. This study uses an exploratory study design, applying the Q methodology, which is a subjective research method. The participants were 25 middle-aged men (40 to 60 years old) living in C, Y, and B cities, which were P-samples that were judged to best reveal the successful aging of middle-aged men. In this study, principal component analysis of the PQ method program was used. The five perception types of successful aging among middle-aged men are Type 1 for the “leisure type”, Type 2 for the “mature type”, Type 3 for the “health-oriented type”, Type 4 for the “patriarchal type”, and Type 5 for the “family-centered type”. The mature type had the highest variance among the five types, and the leisure type was the type that showed the second-highest variance. In nursing practice, nurses need to pay attention to the successful aging perceptions of middle-aged Korean men for their successful aging in the future.

А сlinical case report of mediastinal teratoma in an adolescent patient with Klinefelter syndrome

Teratoma is a germ cell tumor, which consists of derivatives of three germ layers and has various malignant potentials – from benign mature forms to immature embryonic forms with a somatic type of malignancy. Even the mature type of teratoma is biologically unpredictable providing for an ability to grow locally with invasion. Necessity for complete removal of tumors, wherever they are located, is explained by the fact that there is a risk of a possible development of growing teratoma syndrome or transformation into malignant tumors. This article describes the clinical case of growing teratoma syndrome of mediastinal localization in a teenager with Klinefelter syndrome, also as an example of the multidisciplinary approach of pediatric oncologists, surgeons, radiotherapists and pathomorphologists in decision-making for optimal treatment. The patients' parents gave their consent to the use of their child's data, including photographs, for research purposes and in publications.

How Can Deep Geothermal Projects Provide Information on the Temperature Distribution in the Upper Rhine Graben? The Example of the Soultz-Sous-Forêts-Enhanced Geothermal System

The Upper Rhine Graben (URG) hosts thermal anomalies that account for the development of oil fields. Recently, a geothermal power plant has been installed in this area. Data obtained in this framework provide an insight into the temperature distribution in the URG. The present thermal gradient at Soultz-sous-Forêts is not linear: nearly 90 °C/km down to 1400 m depth, then about 12 °C/km from that depth down to 5000 m. The combination of temperature conditions and natural fluid circulation in fracture networks has led to the hydrothermal alteration of the granite into mineral assemblages such as those including illite, quartz and calcite. Illite is locally impregnated with organic matter of two kinds: a mature type derived from oil source rocks and a less mature type derived from surficial sedimentary layers indicating the km-scale of transfer. Newly formed crystals of quartz and calcite from around 2000 m depth record a fluid temperature range of 130 to 170 °C, consistent with modelling and the temperatures measured at present in the drill-holes at this depth. In such hydrothermally altered zones, local variations of temperature are encountered indicating current fluid flows that are being sought for geothermal purposes.

Bovine and equine biomaterials in mandibular alveolar dog model: Split-mouth study

<p>A predictable rehabilitation of severely atrophied alveolar ridge defects still remains a matter of concern in implant dentistry. <strong>Objective:</strong> The aim of this study was to compare histologically biomaterials of bovine (Genox®) and equine (Bio-Gen®) origin associated or not to platelet-rich plasma (PRP), analyzing bone maturity, amount of mature (type I) and immature (type III) collagen present at sixty and ninety days in post-extraction alveolus.<strong> Materials and Methods: </strong>Four Beagle dogs were used from which the six mandibular premolars were extracted. The alveolus contained respectively: right side, Bio-Gen ® (group B), preserved the clot (group C), Genox ® (group G); left side, Bio-Gen ® + PRP group (BP), Clot + PRP (group CP) and Genox ® + PRP (group GP). After sixty and ninety days, two dogs were sacrificed at each date and the pieces were histologically processed and stained with picrosirius red, a specific stain for analysis of different types of collagen. <strong>Results:</strong> Comparisons of the averages of mature collagen at 60 days indicated significant differences between Group G when compared to Groups C and B. The biomaterial of bovine origin demonstrated higher amounts of mature collagen in 90 days while the biomaterial of equine origin had a higher average of immature collagen in 90 days. <strong>Conclusion: </strong>Groups associated to PRP were effective in the production of mature and immature collagen. Genox® associated with PRP demonstrated a more advanced stage of bone regeneration presenting as an alternative to fill post-extraction alveolus.</p>

Impaired firing properties of dentate granule neurons in an Alzheimer's disease animal model are rescued by PPARγ agonism

Early cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease (AD) correlates with medial temporal lobe dysfunction, including two areas essential for memory formation: the entorhinal cortex and dentate gyrus (DG). In the Tg2576 animal model for AD amyloidosis, activation of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ) with rosiglitazone (RSG) ameliorates hippocampus-dependent cognitive impairment and restores aberrant synaptic activity at the entorhinal cortex to DG granule neuron inputs. It is unknown, however, whether intrinsic firing properties of DG granule neurons in these animals are affected by amyloid-β pathology and if they are sensitive to RSG treatment. Here, we report that granule neurons from 9-mo-old wild-type and Tg2576 animals can be segregated into two cell types with distinct firing properties and input resistance that correlate with less mature type I and more mature type II neurons. The DG type I cell population was greater than type II in wild-type littermates. In the Tg2576 animals, the type I and type II cell populations were nearly equal but could be restored to wild-type levels through cognitive enhancement with RSG. Furthermore, Tg2576 cell firing frequency and spike after depolarization were decreased in type I and increased in type II cells, both of which could also be restored to wild-type levels upon RSG treatment. That these parameters were restored by PPARγ activation emphasizes the therapeutic value of RSG against early AD cognitive impairment.