31 research outputs found
The Natuzzi Group and the Bari-Matera (Italy) upholstered furniture district. A case study of internationalisation in a traditional industry
No full textThe case-study focuses on the strategies adopted by the Natuzzi Group, world leader of the upholstered furniture sector, located in the Bari-Matera district (Southern Italy), to face increasing global competition and on their effects. In particular we consider the modes and determinants of productive internationalisation, carried out since 2000 by Natuzzi in China, Brazil and Romania to produce middle-low end products. By improving the competitiveness of the price-sensitive segment, the strategy contributed to the successful expansion of the Group until 2002. However, high range products, manufactured in Italy, record decreasing sales especially on the US market, despite the companys efforts in R&D and marketing and its investments in information technology. Moreover, due to Natuzzi's considerable weight in the district, the Groups performance impacts on the network of subcontracting firms, where a restructuring process is underway, raising questions about the evolution of the district.Internationalisation, Industrial District, Subcontracting
The Natuzzi group and the Bari-Matera (Italy) upholstered furniture district : a case study of internationalisation in a traditional industry
No full textThe case-study focuses on the strategies adopted by the Natuzzi Group, world leader of the upholstered furniture sector, located in the Bari-Matera district (Southern Italy), to face increasing global competition and on their effects. In particular we consider the modes and determinants of productive internationalisation, carried out since 2000 by Natuzzi in China, Brazil and Romania to produce middle-low end products. By improving the competitiveness of the price-sensitive segment, the strategy contributed to the successful expansion of the Group until 2002. However, high range products, manufactured in Italy, record decreasing sales especially on the US market, despite the company’s efforts in R&D and marketing and its investments in information technology. Moreover, due to Natuzzi’s considerable weight in the district, the Group’s performance impacts on the network of subcontracting firms, where a restructuring process is underway, raising questions about the evolution of the distric
L'attività del S.A.P./B.S.R. nell'ambito della prevenzione dei comportamenti sessuali a rischio. Indagine sui comportamenti sessuali a rischio in un campione di studenti dell'Università di Padova.
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Evaluation of the antimyotonic activity of mexiletine and some new analogs on sodium currents of single muscle fibers and on the abnormal excitability of the myotonic ADR mouse
No full textDeLuca A, Pierno S, Natuzzi F, et al. Evaluation of the antimyotonic activity of mexiletine and some new analogs on sodium currents of single muscle fibers and on the abnormal excitability of the myotonic ADR mouse. JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY AND EXPERIMENTAL THERAPEUTICS. 1997;282(1):93-100.To search for use-dependent sodium channel blockers to selectively solve skeletal muscle hyperexcitability in hereditary myotonias, mexiletine (MEX; compound I) and its newly synthetized analogs, 2-(4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)-benzenethanamine (compound II) and (-)-S-3-(2,6-dimethylphenoxy)-2-methylpropanamine (compound III), were tested on intercostal muscle fibers from the myotonic ADR mouse through use of the standard current-clamp microelectrode technique. in parallel, the effects of these compounds on the sodium channels were measured on frog muscle fibers under voltage-clamp conditions. The tonic and use-dependent blocks of peak sodium currents (I-Namax) produced by each compound were evaluated by using a single depolarizing pulse and a pulse train at 10 Hz frequency, respectively. At 10 and 50 mu M, MEX decreased the occurrence of spontaneous excitability in myotonic muscle fibers; 100 mu M was required to decrease the amplitude of the action potential and the stimulus-induced firing of the membrane as well as to increase the threshold for generation of action potential. At 300 mu M, MEX decreased the latency of the action potential and increased the threshold current to elicit a single action potential. MEX produced a tonic block of I-Namax with an half-maximal concentration (IC50) of 83 mu M, but the IC50 value for use-dependent block was 3-fold lower. Compound III, which differs from MEX in that it has a longer alkyl chain, similarly blocked first the spontaneous and then the stimulus-evoked excitability of myotonic muscle fibers but at 2-fold lower concentrations than MEX. Compound III was less potent than MEX in producing a tonic block of I-Namax (IC50 = 108 mu M) but was a strong use-dependent blocker with an IC50 close to 15 mu M. The more lipophylic compound II irreversibly blocked both spontaneous and stimulus-evoked membrane excitability at concentrations as low as 10 mu M and shortened the latency of the action potential in a concentration-dependent fashion. Compound II produced a potent tonic block of I-Namax (IC50 = 30 mu M), and its potency increased 2-fold during high-frequency stimulation. Both of the new analogs (compound II in particular), but not MEX, were less effective on the excitability parameters of striated fibers of healthy vs. ADR mice, a characteristic that increases their interest as potential antimyotonic agents
Histochemical assessment of immunoreactivity of thyroid peroxidase and its correlation with biochemical activity [Valutazione istochimica della immunoreattività della perossidasi tiroidea e sua correlazione con l'attività biochimica.]
No full textEffect of chronic treatment with pravastatin and simvastatin on excitation-contraction coupling of rat skeletal muscle fibers
No full textSubcutaneous emphysema. Complication of pnuemoperitoneum following laparoscopic cholecystectomy [Enfisema sottocutaneo. Complicanza legata al pneumoperitoneo in corso di videolaparocolecistectomia]
No full textBody mass index and adipokines/cytokines dysregulation in systemic sclerosis
No full textBody fat has regulatory functions through producing cytokines and adipokines whose role in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc) is currently emerging. Changes in body mass, either over- or underweight, entail a dysregulation of the cytokine/adipokine network that may impact upon SSc disease activity. We evaluated serum levels of adipokines and cytokines in SSc patients and correlated them to clinical features and body mass index (BMI) categories. The study included 89 SSc patients and 26 healthy donors (HD). Serum levels of adiponectin, leptin, resistin, visfatin, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, interleukin (IL)-2, IL-10 and IL-17A were measured by multiplex immunoassay and correlated to BMI and disease-specific features. Student’s t-test or analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used for comparisons between groups. Spearman’s or Pearson’s tests were used for correlation analysis. Serum levels of TNF-α, IL-2, leptin and resistin were significantly higher in SSc than in HD. Leptin levels were significantly higher in interstitial lung disease (ILD)- and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)-SSc subgroups. The highest levels of IL-17A, IL-2, IL-10, leptin and visfatin were detected in SSc patients with obesity (p < 0.01). Conversely, underweight SSc patients showed the highest TNF-α levels (p < 0.05). Adipokines, IL-2, IL-10 and IL-17A were found to be increased in SSc patients with obesity, but whether or not they play a role in the pathogenesis of the disease remains to be investigated. Intriguingly, underweight patients had the highest TNF-α levels, suggesting a potential role of TNF-α in inducing the cachexia observed in long-lasting disease
Histochemical assessment of immunoreactivity of thyroid peroxidase and its correlation with biochemical activity
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