The carryover of previously amplified sequences (amplicons) into new PCR reactions is a serious problem. Recently Furrer et al. reported a 'pre-PCR' sterilization technique using DNase I or restriction enzymes for contamination control (1). Unfortunately, these methods require the reaction tube to be re-opened to add target DNA and Taq polymerase following the enzymatic treatment (providing an ...

This paper will investigate the strategic design decision-making of an in-house designer in a company with a large product portfolio, with respect to how designers plan for future visual alterations of the product. In-house designers have to think strategically about the creation of recognition and differentiation through design because they influence the company's overall strategies. Therefore...

BACKGROUND Treatment for chronic hepatitis B aims to suppress virus replication and virus sequestration in hepatocytes. Covalently closed circular (ccc) DNA is the template for transcription of viral genes and is responsible for viral persistence. However, limited data are available for quantification of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in Korea. METHODS We evaluated the Elecsys HBsAg II q...

The supply chain coordinating role of revenue-sharing has, to date, been examined only in static models. With downstream competition, the central conclusion in these models is negative: revenue-sharing cannot, except in degenerate form, achieve coordination. Incorporating dynamics, by allowing inventory carryover in discrete time, this paper establishes a foundation for revenue-sharing contract...

In crossover design experiments, the proportional model, where the carryover effects are proportional to their direct treatment effects, has draw attentions in recent years. We discover that the universally optimal design under the traditional model is E-optimal design under the proportional model. Moreover, we establish equivalence theorems of Kiefer-Wolfowitz’s type for four popular optimalit...

We study an extension of a two-period inventory management problem with positively correlated demands in which the manager’s compensation is partially based on an external, market-based assessment of the firm’s value. As typically the “real” demand is only observed internally in the firm, the manager may ship more than the real demand to downstream customers and report higher than real sales re...