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Caraiani P, Dima AM, Păun C, Stamule T, Vargas MV. Production networks and resilience: How dense production networks shield economies in financial crisis. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0302012. [PMID: 38630741 PMCID: PMC11023220 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0302012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
The research delves into the underexplored area of how production network structures influence the severity of economic downturns, particularly during the last financial crisis. Utilizing the RSTAN database from the OECD, we meticulously derived critical measures from the input-output matrices for 61 economies. Our methodology entailed a panel analysis spanning from 2008 to 2010, which is a period marked by significant recessionary pressures. This analysis aimed to correlate economic performance with various production network metrics, taking into account control factors such as interest rates and the prevalence of service sectors. The findings reveal a noteworthy positive correlation between the density of production networks and economic resilience during the crisis, which remained consistent across multiple model specifications. Conversely, as anticipated, higher interest rates were linked to poorer economic performance, highlighting the critical interplay between monetary policy and economic outcomes during periods of financial instability. Given these insights, we propose a policy recommendation emphasizing the strategic enhancement of production network density as a potential buffer against economic downturns. This approach suggests that policymakers should consider the structural aspects of production networks in designing economic stability and growth strategies, thus potentially mitigating the impacts of future financial crises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petre Caraiani
- Departament of Business Administration in foreign languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania
- Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Alina Mihaela Dima
- Departament of Business Administration in foreign languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania
- Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Cristian Păun
- Department of International Relations, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Tănase Stamule
- Departament of Business Administration in foreign languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania
- Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Madalina Vanesa Vargas
- Departament of Business Administration in foreign languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania
- Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
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Dobre AF, Hanganu A, Nicolau I, Popescu CC, Paun A, Mădălan AM, Tablet C, Mirea AG, Matache M. A Synthetic Approach for Oxadiazole-Decorated Azobenzene Photoswitches. Chempluschem 2024; 89:e202300504. [PMID: 37882979 DOI: 10.1002/cplu.202300504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 10/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
This work reports the design and synthesis of novel oxadiazole-decorated azobenzenes, structural analysis of the resulting compounds and behavior under light irradiation. The synthetic strategy involved constructing amino functionalized heterocyclic key intermediates which were used either to yield electrophilic diazonium salts able to react with phenol moieties or as nucleophilic partners in Bayer-Mills reaction with nitroso-substituted derivatives. The amino-derived oxadiazole intermediates were investigated by absorption and emission spectroscopy providing blue and green emitted light. The target oxadiazole-decorated azobenzenes were structurally characterized, including solid-state structures, and subsequently used in irradiation experiments in order to take advantage of the azo group known to provide photoswitching abilities. We noticed quenching of the emissive properties in presence of the azo group; however, all compounds were very stable to repeated cycles of light irradiation. In addition, according to structural diversification we could obtain half-lives of the meta stable isomers within hours to hundreds of hours range. The experimental results were very well correlated with DFT calculations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adela F Dobre
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Anamaria Hanganu
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- "C. D. Nenitzescu" Institute of Organic and Supramolecular Chemistry of the Romanian Academy, 202B Spl. Independenţei, 060023, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Ioana Nicolau
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Codruta C Popescu
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Anca Paun
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Augustin M Mădălan
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Cristina Tablet
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Titu Maiorescu University, Gh. Sincai Bd. 16, 040317, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Anca G Mirea
- National Institute of Material Physics, 405 A Atomistilor Street, 077125, Magurele, Romania
| | - Mihaela Matache
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
- Research Centre of Applied Organic Chemistry, University of Bucharest, 90 Panduri Street, 050663, Bucharest, Romania
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Manirakiza F, Yamada H, Iwashita Y, Ishino K, Ishikawa R, Kovacs Z, Osvath E, Nzitakera A, Gurzu S, Sugimura H. TP53 mutations in Romanian patients with colorectal cancer. Genes Environ 2023; 45:20. [PMID: 37391803 DOI: 10.1186/s41021-023-00277-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Colorectal cancer (CRC) has been ranked as the second most deadly cancer and the third most diagnosed cancer cases for the year 2020. Specifically for Romania, the number of CRC-related deaths in 2019 was estimated at 6307 people, with a standardized mortality rate of 33.8 per 100,000 inhabitants. Although the tumor protein 53 (TP53) gene is intensively studied, there are few data on TP53 mutations in Romanian CRC. Furthermore, since genetic alterations may show geographical differences, our study aimed to analyze the clinical status and TP53 somatic variation in Romanian CRC patients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS DNA from 40 randomly selected cases of CRC was extracted from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues and sequenced using direct Sanger sequencing techniques, and variants were annotated according to the recommendations of the Human Genome Variation Society. Novel variants were analyzed using MutationTaster2021 to predict their effects. RESULTS The mean age was 63.6 years (range 33-85 years) with a male to female ratio of 2.3. More than 45% (18/40) had an advanced cancer stage (≥ stage III). Mutations were found in 21/40 cases (52.5%), with one case having two mutations, giving a total of twenty-two mutations in the TP53 coding DNA. These mutations include 3 (13.6%) insertion-deletion mutations, two of which are novel frameshift mutations: c.165delT (in exon 4) and c.928_935dup (in exon 9), both of which are predicted to lead to nonsense-mediated mRNA decay and are classified as deleterious. The remaining 19 (86.36%) were substitution mutations: 1 nonsense and 18 (81.8%) missense mutations, with G > A (n = 7/19; 36.8%) and C > T (n = 6/19; 31.5%) transitions being the most common. The G > T transversion was found in 21.05% (4/19) of the substitution mutations. CONCLUSION We have described two novel frameshift mutations in TP53. The discovery of novel mutations following the efforts of The Cancer Genome Atlas and other large-scale cancer genome sequencing projects may be further evidence of the heterogeneous nature of mutations in cancer and may indicate that the identification of carcinogenic mutations is not yet saturated. Further sequencing is therefore needed, especially in less studied populations. Importantly, consideration of their geographical environment will shed light on population-specific carcinogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Manirakiza
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
- Department of Pathology, School of Medicine and Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box 3286, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Hidetaka Yamada
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
| | - Yuji Iwashita
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
| | - Keiko Ishino
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
| | - Rei Ishikawa
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
| | - Zsolt Kovacs
- Research Center of Oncopathology and Translational Research (CCOMT), George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, Targu-Mures, 540139, Romania
| | - Eva Osvath
- Department of Pathology, George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, Targu-Mures, 540139, Romania
| | - Augustin Nzitakera
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan
- Department of Biomedical Laboratory Sciences, School of Health Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box 3286, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Simona Gurzu
- Research Center of Oncopathology and Translational Research (CCOMT), George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, Targu-Mures, 540139, Romania
- Department of Pathology, George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, Targu-Mures, 540139, Romania
| | - Haruhiko Sugimura
- Department of Tumor Pathology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-Ku, Shizuoka, 431-3192, Japan.
- Sasaki Institute, Sasaki Foundation, 2-2, Kanda Surugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 101-0062, Japan.
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Astuti PK, Gavojdian D, Ilie DE, Wanjala G, Monori I, Bagi Z, Kusza S. Genetic polymorphism in European and African sheep breeds reared in Hungary based on 48 SNPs associated with resistance to gastrointestinal parasite infection using KASP-PCR technique. Trop Anim Health Prod 2023; 55:197. [PMID: 37160635 PMCID: PMC10169887 DOI: 10.1007/s11250-023-03609-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
This pilot study used an alternative and economically efficient technique, the Kompetitive Allele-Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (KASP-PCR) to examine 48 SNPs from 11 parasite-resistance genes found on 8 chromosomes in 110 animals from five sheep breeds reared in Hungary; Hungarian Tsigai, White Dorper, Dorper, Ile de France, and Hungarian Merino. Allele and genotype frequencies, fixation index, observed heterozygosity, expected heterozygosity, F statistic, and their relationship with the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (WHE) and the polymorphic information content (PIC) were determined, followed by principal component analysis (PCA). As much as 32 SNPs out of the 48 initially studied were successfully genotyped. A total of 9 SNPs, 4 SNPs in TLR5, 1 SNP in TLR8, and 4 SNPs in TLR2 genes, were polymorphic. The variable genotype and allele frequency of the TLRs gene indicated genetic variability among the studied sheep breeds, with the Hungarian Merino exhibiting the most polymorphisms, while Dorper was the population with the most SNPs departing from the HWE. According to the PIC value, the rs430457884-TLR2, rs55631273-TLR2, and rs416833129-TLR5 were found to be informative in detecting polymorphisms among individuals within the populations, whereas the rs429546187-TLR5 and rs424975389-TLR5 were found to have a significant influence in clustering the population studied. This study reported a moderate level of genetic variability and that a low to moderate within-breed diversity was maintained in the studied populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Putri Kusuma Astuti
- Centre for Agricultural Genomics and Biotechnology, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary
- Doctoral School of Animal Science, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary
- Department of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, Faculty of Animal Science, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, 55281, Indonesia
| | - Dinu Gavojdian
- Research and Development Institute for Bovine Balotesti, 77015, Balotesti, Ilfov, Romania
| | | | - George Wanjala
- Centre for Agricultural Genomics and Biotechnology, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary
- Doctoral School of Animal Science, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary
| | | | - Zoltán Bagi
- Centre for Agricultural Genomics and Biotechnology, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary
| | - Szilvia Kusza
- Centre for Agricultural Genomics and Biotechnology, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary.
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Xu Y, Zheng H, Nilcham P, Bucur O, Vogt F, Slabu I, Liehn EA, Rusu M. Vitamin C Regulates the Profibrotic Activity of Fibroblasts in In Vitro Replica Settings of Myocardial Infarction. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24098379. [PMID: 37176085 PMCID: PMC10179686 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24098379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Extracellular collagen remodeling is one of the central mechanisms responsible for the structural and compositional coherence of myocardium in patients undergoing myocardial infarction (MI). Activated primary cardiac fibroblasts following myocardial infarction are extensively investigated to establish anti-fibrotic therapies to improve left ventricular remodeling. To systematically assess vitamin C functions as a potential modulator involved in collagen fibrillogenesis in an in vitro model mimicking heart tissue healing after MI. Mouse primary cardiac fibroblasts were isolated from wild-type C57BL/6 mice and cultured under normal and profibrotic (hypoxic + transforming growth factor beta 1) conditions on freshly prepared coatings mimicking extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling during healing after an MI. At 10 μg/mL, vitamin C reprogramed the respiratory mitochondrial metabolism, which is effectively associated with a more increased accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (iROS) than the number of those generated by mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS). The mRNA/protein expression of subtypes I, III collagen, and fibroblasts differentiations markers were upregulated over time, particularly in the presence of vitamin C. The collagen substrate potentiated the modulator role of vitamin C in reinforcing the structure of types I and III collagen synthesis by reducing collagen V expression in a timely manner, which is important in the initiation of fibrillogenesis. Altogether, our study evidenced the synergistic function of vitamin C at an optimum dose on maintaining the equilibrium functionality of radical scavenger and gene transcription, which are important in the initial phases after healing after an MI, while modulating the synthesis of de novo collagen fibrils, which is important in the final stage of tissue healing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yichen Xu
- Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, Pauwelsstr. 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense, Denmark
| | - Huabo Zheng
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense, Denmark
| | - Pakhwan Nilcham
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Octavian Bucur
- "Victor Babes" National Institute of Pathology, Splaiul Independentei nr. 99-101, Sector 5, 050096 Bucharest, Romania
- Viron Molecular Medicine Institute, 1 Boston Place, Ste 2600, Boston, MA 02108, USA
| | - Felix Vogt
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Ioana Slabu
- Institute of Applied Medical Engineering, Helmholtz Institute, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Elisa Anamaria Liehn
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense, Denmark
- "Victor Babes" National Institute of Pathology, Splaiul Independentei nr. 99-101, Sector 5, 050096 Bucharest, Romania
- National Heart Center Singapore, 5 Hospital Dr., Singapore 169609, Singapore
| | - Mihaela Rusu
- Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- Institute of Applied Medical Engineering, Helmholtz Institute, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany
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