Using a model of vertical product differentiation, we show under what institutional circumstances welfare gains will be maximized as economies integrate and harmonize labeling and certification policies for credence goods. Specifically, we show that harmonized mandatory, exclusive discrete labeling will not maximize the gains from economic integration, i.e., the choice of labeling regime can ha...

Diclofenac is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug that is prescribed for treatment of rheumatic diseases and as an analgesic. Although the information about these side effects has been widely reported, little is know about the effect of diclofenac on the neural cells. In this study, we investigated the effects of diclofenac on the proliferation and differentiation of PC12 cells. The cell pro...

The addition of 1 percent (w/v) bovine serum albumin (BSA) to the F12 medium utilized for the growth of the B16 melanoma cells significantly stimulated the growth of this cell line. The synthesis of mucopolysaccharides and sialoglycopeptides in this medium is identical with that in Eagle's minimal essential medium with Earle's balanced salt solution supplemented with 2 mM L-glutamine, twice the...

The atypical Nef protein (NefF12) from human immunodeficiency virus type 1 strain F12 (HIV-1(F12)) interferes with virion production and infectivity via a mysterious mechanism. The correlation of these effects with the unusual perinuclear subcellular localization of NefF12 suggested that the wild-type Nef protein could bind to assembly intermediates in late stages of viral replication. To test ...

Several mutations in factor XII have been reported in patients with factor XII deficiency. Here, we described three mutations in the F12 gene (c. 6635G more than A (p. G259E), c. 6658G more than C (p. R267G) and c. 8489G more than A (p. E521K)) of five patients with congenital FXII deficiency. Among these, two were heterozygous mutations. All five patients had prolonged activated partial thromb...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of rat Schwann cell secretion on the proliferation and differentiation of human embryonic neural stem cells (NSCs). METHODS The samples were divided into three groups. In Group One, NSCs were cultured in DMED/F12 in which Schwann cells had grown for one day. In Group Two, NSCs and Schwann cells were co-cultured. In Group Three, NSCs were cultured in DMEM/F1...

The depth of insertion of an antimicrobial peptide, protegrin-1 (PG-1), in lipid bilayers is investigated using solid-state NMR. Paramagnetic Mn(2+) ions bind to the surface of lipid bilayers and induce distance-dependent dipolar relaxation of nuclear spins. By comparing the signal dephasing of the peptide with that of the lipids, whose segmental depths of insertion are known, we determined the...

The reaction between vibrationally excited H2 and F2 had previously been suggested to be a critical chain-branching step in the combustion of mixtures containing H2 and F2. In the present study, the vibrational state specific dynamics and kinetics for the reaction H2 + F2 → H + HF + F were investigated by quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) and quantum mechanical (QM) reactive scattering calculatio...