This study examines the impact of structured internal innovation project management (IPM) practices and external innovation ecosystem (IE) characteristics on sustainable and responsible innovation (SRI) in EU widening countries. Using a two-stage Delphi-informed survey of 100 firms across Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Albania, and Serbia, the research applies moderated multiple regression analysis to examine the interplay between internal processes and external ecosystem maturity. Results show that both structured innovation phases and tools have a positive impact on SRI. However, while innovation phases consistently enhance SRI regardless of ecosystem conditions, the effect of innovation tools weakens in stronger ecosystems, suggesting a resource substitution dynamic. These findings challenge the assumption that greater ecosystem support uniformly improves innovation outcomes. The study contributes to the theoretical integration of the Resource-Based View and Innovation Ecosystem Theory, highlighting context-specific conditions in transitional economies. Practical implications are offered for managers and policymakers; firms in weaker ecosystems should prioritize building internal innovation capabilities, while those in mature ecosystems may gain more from leveraging external collaborations. The research advances debates on sustainable innovation strategies by showing how the effectiveness of internal management practices depends on ecosystem maturity, offering insights for both policy interventions and strategic innovation management in developing economies.

The African hinged terrapin genus Pelusios currently contains 17 recognized species. We describe an additional new species with two subspecies from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania. According to phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial DNA, the new species is closely related to P. subniger, whereas three nuclear loci (C-mos, RAG2, R35) suggest a closer relationship to P. bechuanicus and P. upembae. Morphologically, the new species resembles in plastral shape P. subniger, but differs in plastral coloration in having a diffuse dark plastral pattern instead of the blotched pattern of P. subniger. The two subspecies of the new species are characterized by distinct mitochondrial clades and private alleles in the nuclear RAG2 and R35 loci. According to an examination of museum specimens and photographic records, the new species occurs largely west of the Rift Valley, while P. subniger is distributed east of the Rift Valley. Museum specimens and iNaturalist records suggest that the two species could occur sympatrically in central Tanzania. Furthermore, we found no evidence for any genetic distinctness of P. subniger from the Seychelles, supporting that the subspecies from there is invalid.

Enzymes derived from extremophiles, or extremozymes, possess unique properties that enable them to function under extreme environmental conditions. Microbial communities in subterranean ecosystems have evolved specialized metabolic pathways to survive, leading to the discovery of bioactive molecules with diverse biotechnological and industrial applications as well as the development of sustainable methods for habitat restoration. This study aimed to identify cultivable microorganisms producing industrially relevant enzymes, such as laccases, proteases, and urethanases, from extremophiles in the Dinaric Karst subterranean ecosystems, which are known as biodiversity hotspot. A total of 40 samples were collected from six caves and an abandoned railway tunnel, now a key roost for a large Myotis myotis maternity colony. Cave samples were taken from the entrance, twilight, and dark zones, including soil, sediments, moonmilk, mineral deposits, bedrock deposits, insect remains, entomophagous fungi, wall biofilm, and guano from various bat species. Following microbial cultivation, 207 colonies were screened for enzymatic activity using substrate‐specific assays. Functional analysis identified one microorganism exhibiting strong laccase activity, seven capable of degrading polyurethane, and numerous protease‐producing colonies. Notably, this study constitutes the inaugural report on discovering polyurethane‐degrading microorganisms in karst caves. Molecular identification revealed microbial genera, including Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Serratia, Paenibacillus, and Priestia. These findings underscore the biotechnological potential of subterranean extremophiles and highlight the importance of conserving these ecosystems. Further characterization of these enzymes may drive advancements in environmental remediation, waste recycling, and sustainable industrial processes.

The inheritance of family businesses is a problem that many entrepreneurs face at the end of their successful activity. The goal of this article is to analyze some preconditions for the successful inheritance of family companies from one generation to another on the basis of two factors: the positive intra-family attitude towards the inheritance of family businesses and the existence of national regulatory frameworks to regulate the inheritance. The objectives are: (1) to present basic legal documents from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania and Uzbekistan regulating the inheritance of family businesses, and (2) to present a comparative study on student responses from these countries as regards their intentions of having joint businesses with their relatives. The data has been collected by each co-author for the related country within the international academic network of INTERGEN in 2021 and 2023. The target groups were students and alumni from universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania and Uzbekistan; the number of respondents is 2496.

Background To gain insight into the role and relevance of inflammatory and immunological markers in the comprehensive assessment of a patient's immune response to surgical procedures. This study focused on investigating preoperative and postoperative serum levels dynamics of SAA, CRP and proportion of HLA-DR CD14 monocytes, CD14 monocytes, and pro-inflammatory monocytes CD16 T CD14 T in patients who underwent heart surgery using extracorporeal circulation (on-pump). Methods An observational, prospective study was conducted at the Heart Center of the Clinical Center of the University of Sarajevo on 53 patients divided into 3 age groups: 50-59, 60-69, and 70-80. The serum levels of CRP and SAA were quantitatively determined by immunonephelometry. At the same time, flow cytometry technology was applied to measure the proportion of CD14 monocytes, HLA-DR CD14 monocytes, and pro-inflammatory CD16 CD14 monocytes. Results Measured values of CRP; SAA, proportion of monocytes CD14, and proportion of pro-inflammatory monocytes CD16 CD14 are significantly increased postoperatively compared to the preoperative values (p < 0.05). The proportion of HLA-DR CD14 monocytes is lower postoperatively compared to preoperative values (p < 0.001). Furthermore, there are no significant gender differences in the preoperative or postoperative parameters (p > 0.05), with the notable exception of the preoperative proportion of CD14 monocytes (p < 0.05). The analysis of age-related differences indicates no significant changes in the observed preoperative and postoperative parameters among the defined age groups (p >0.05). Conclusions Early monitoring of inflammatory and immunological markers in the postoperative phase could be valuable for healthcare professionals to implement prompt interventions to mitigate negative outcomes.

The development of tourism in Neum , Bosnia and Herzegovina’s only coastal town, represents a complex process that began during Yugoslavia’s socialist era, marked by various social, architectural, and ecological challenges. During the 1960’s, alongside accelerated urbanization, transportati on infrastructure, and secondary housing, Neum experienced a transformation from a local community to a remarkable tourist destination. Architecture of that period, marked by modernist principles, was not just functional, but reflected a wide socialist ide ology - promoting collective welfare, harmony with natural surroundings, and inclusivity. However, the expansion of tourism in Neum also brought problems, such as illegal construction, the destruction of landscape, and spatial segregation . The aim of this research is to analyze how the elements of socialist modernist architecture can be used as a base for the further development of hotel complexes in Neum. Modernist architecture from the socialist period provides various important lessons for today’s u rban p lanning. It’s basic principles - simplicity, functionality, and the adaptation to the natural terrain, offer a relevant frame for the contemporary development of tourism. In this context, this research focuses on the integration of those principles into con temporary architecture, with the aim of creating sustainable, functional, and aesthetically pleasing hotels that satisfy the needs of t ourists, while keeping the local identity. With the use of primary and secondary sources, the analysis includes the study of current hotels in Neum, their architectural characteristics, and urban organization. Special attention is paid to challenges, such as unplanned const ruction, degradation of the coast, and the unequal development of different parts of the municipality. Through this analysis, concrete models for the further development of hotels are suggested, which include the incorporation of modernist principles, but with a comb ination of new approaches.

This research explores how architectural education can be made more practical and relevant to real - world challenges, by identifying strategies that can equip future architects with the skills needed to address pressing social, economic, technological, and environmental issues. It argues that architectural pedagogy should move beyond the idealized, theoretical environment of the studio and engage with the real world and its stakeholders from an early stage in the educational process. The paper examines the introduction and implementation of various practical education models across seven architecture schools within a research pro ject consortium, including higher education institutions in Italy, Norway, Croatia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The res earch focuses on how practical education is defined in different cultural contexts and what insights can be gained from diverse approaches — varying in scale, complexity, professional engagement, and time spent outside the studio. Using a comparative methodology that includes workshops, site observations, surveys, and interviews, the paper analyses the outcomes of these edu cational practices. The research also presents a "Practice Typology Matrix" as a framework for assessing various models of practice involvement in architectural education, highlighting the most effective approaches for different contexts. Through this analy sis, the paper identifies best practices and strategies for integrating real - world experience into architectural training .

Many cyberattacks succeed because they exploit flaws at the human level. To address this problem, organizations rely on security awareness programs, which aim to make employees more resilient against social engineering. While some works have, implicitly or explicitly, suggested that such programs should account for contextual relevance, the common praxis in research is to adopt a "general" viewpoint. For instance, instead of focusing on department-specific issues, prior user studies sought to provide organization-wide conclusions by treating all participants equally. Such a protocol may lead to overlooking vulnerabilities that affect only specific subsets of an organization, and which can be (or are) exploited by real-world attackers.In this paper, we tackle such an oversight. First, through a systematic literature review encompassing over 1k papers, we provide factual evidence that prior literature poorly accounted for department-specific needs. Then, building on this (worrying) finding, we carry out a multi-company and mixed-methods study focusing on two pivotal departments of modern organizations: human resources (HR) and accounting. We explore three dimensions: what specific threats are faced by these departments; what topics should be covered in the security-awareness campaigns delivered to these departments; and which delivery methods would maximize the effectiveness of such campaigns for these departments. We begin by interviewing 16 employees of a multinational enterprise, and then use these results as a scaffold to design a structured survey through which we collect the responses of over 90 HR/accounting members of 9 organizations of varying size. We find that HR and accounting departments face distinct threats: HR is targeted through job applications containing mal-ware and executive impersonation, while accounting is exposed to invoice fraud, credential theft, and ransomware. Current training is often viewed as too generic, with employees preferring shorter, scenario-based formats like videos and simulations. These preferences contradict the common industry practice of lengthy, annual sessions. Based on these insights, we propose practical recommendations for designing awareness programs tailored to departmental needs and workflows.

Plasma proteomics technologies are advancing rapidly, offering new opportunities for biomarker discovery and precision medicine. Direct comparisons of available technologies are needed to understand how platform selection affects downstream findings. We compared the performance of a peptide fractionation-based mass spectrometry method (HiRIEF LC-MS/MS) and the Olink Explore 3072 proximity extension assays on 88 plasma samples, analyzing 1129 proteins with both methods. The platforms exhibited complementary proteome coverage, high precision, and concordance in estimating sex differences in protein levels. Quantitative agreement between platforms was moderate (median correlation 0.59, interquartile range 0.33-0.75), mainly influenced by technical factors. Finally, we present a publicly available tool for peptide-level analysis of platform agreement and demonstrate its utility in clarifying cross-platform discrepancies in protein and proteoform measurements. Our findings provide insights for platform selection and study design, and highlight the value of combining mass spectrometry and affinity-based approaches for more comprehensive and reliable plasma proteome profiling. Advancements in plasma proteomics have opened new avenues for biomarker discovery, necessitating a clear understanding of technological capabilities. Here, the authors compare HiRIEF LC-MS/MS and Olink Explore 3072, revealing complementary strengths and moderate quantitative agreement, and introduce PeptAffinity, a resource facilitating detailed peptide-level exploration of differences in protein quantification between platforms.

The aviation industry operates as a complex, dynamic system generating vast volumes of data from aircraft sensors, flight schedules, and external sources. Managing this data is critical for mitigating disruptive and costly events such as mechanical failures and flight delays. This paper presents a comprehensive application of predictive analytics and machine learning to enhance aviation safety and operational efficiency. We address two core challenges: predictive maintenance of aircraft engines and forecasting flight delays. For maintenance, we utilise NASA’s C-MAPSS simulation dataset to develop and compare models, including one-dimensional convolutional neural networks (1D CNNs) and long short-term memory networks (LSTMs), for classifying engine health status and predicting the Remaining Useful Life (RUL), achieving classification accuracy up to 97%. For operational efficiency, we analyse historical flight data to build regression models for predicting departure delays, identifying key contributing factors such as airline, origin airport, and scheduled time. Our methodology highlights the critical role of Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA), feature selection, and data preprocessing in managing high-volume, heterogeneous data sources. The results demonstrate the significant potential of integrating these predictive models into aviation Business Intelligence (BI) systems to transition from reactive to proactive decision-making. The study concludes by discussing the integration challenges within existing data architectures and the future potential of these approaches for optimising complex, networked transportation systems.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are prevalent chronic conditions characterized by immune dysregulation and metabolic disturbances. The global incidence of both diseases is increasing, with mounting evidence highlighting the critical role of intestinal barrier dysfunction and inflammation in their pathogenesis. Although genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have implicated the orosomucoid-like protein 3 (ORMDL3), also known as ORMDL sphingolipid biosynthesis regulator 3, in susceptibility to both IBD and DM, its precise role in diabetes-associated intestinal alterations remains poorly defined. In this study, we examined intestinal changes in a Sprague Dawley rat model of experimentally induced diabetes, focusing on ORMDL3 expression and its relationship with endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and autophagy. Diabetic rats exhibited pronounced histopathological alterations, including villous atrophy, goblet cell depletion, inflammatory cell infiltration, and lipofuscin accumulation, indicative of compromised intestinal barrier integrity and chronic low-grade inflammation. ORMDL3 expression was significantly elevated at both the transcript and protein levels. A strong positive correlation between ORMDL3 and ATF6 suggests the activation of ER stress pathways within the diabetic intestine. Additionally, increased expression of autophagy-related genes, including NOD2, ULK1, and ATG4, was particularly evident in female diabetic rats, indicating a sex-specific modulation of autophagic responses to hyperglycemic stress. The observed molecular and histological changes reflect key mechanisms implicated in IBD, potentially indicating shared pathways driving both diabetic and inflammatory intestinal disorders. Collectively, our findings underscore a complex interplay between hyperglycemia-induced ER stress and autophagy in the diabetic intestine, positioning ORMDL3 as an orchestrator in the underlying pathogenesis and a potential therapeutic target for IBDs.

Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer in women, worldwide. Infection with humanpapillomavirus (HPV) has been accepted as the primary cause for the development of invasive cervicalcancer and its precursor lesions. Despite HPV infection has been proposed as an indispensable factor forcervical cancer development, only a subset of neoplastic lesions with HPV infection persist and progress toinvasive cancer. This suggests us that other molecular events are also involved in cancer progression. Aimof this study was to extract mRNA from cytobrush-collected healthy and HPV infected cervical epithelialcells and investigate various RNA extraction and purification protocols for assessment of RNA yield andquality. Taking into consideration that cervical cancer screening is based on the cytology basedPapanicolaou test (Pap test), main challenge is to investigate whether the samples obtained by regular Paptesting can be used for gene expression analysis. For this purpose, a total of 68 cervical specimens werepreviously tested for HPV infection. Following HPV testing, samples were submitted to RNA extractionand compared to the products after additional purification step involving DNase I. Products obtained afterdifferent RNA extraction and purification methods were visualized using 2% agarose gel electrophoresis.In conclusion, DNase I based RNA purification represents a necessary step for the assurance of a high-quality extracted RNA used for gene expression analysis studies. Reliance on commercial kits for RNAextraction only, without performing additional purification step can lead to errors in drawing finalconclusions and/or to false negative gene expression profiling, affecting the overall diagnostic procedure.According to obtained results, the type of sampling used in this study was not suitable for the subsequentgene expression analysis.

ABSTRACT Background Trajectories of patients receiving kidney replacement therapy (KRT), including transitions between hemodialysis (HD), peritoneal dialysis (PD) and kidney transplantation (KTx), may vary across patient subgroups and have not yet been investigated in Europe. This study aimed to: (i) describe the number of shifts across KRT modalities; and (ii) characterize the most frequent patient trajectories, including the direction of shifts across KRT modalities, the duration spent on each modality, and patient events, including death. Methods Data of adult patients (≥20 years) who initiated KRT between 2004 and 2013 were extracted from the European Renal Association (ERA) Registry database and patients were followed for 10 years from the moment of KRT initiation. Results were stratified by age, sex, primary renal disease (PRD), country and initial KRT modality. Results Among 289 323 patients, more than two-thirds (69.6%) remained on their initial KRT modality until death or the end of 10 years follow-up, but younger patients and patients who initiated with PD had more shifts across KRT modalities than others. Overall, the most frequent patient trajectories were HD followed by death (53.4%), HD to KTx (10.2%), remaining on HD for 10 years (5.6%), PD followed by death (4.4%) and PD to KTx (2.9%). The most frequent patient trajectories differed between age and PRD groups, and across European countries, but not between women and men. Conclusion The number and direction of shifts across KRT modalities varied by age, PRD, country and initial KRT modality, but not by sex. Future research should further investigate trajectories of patient subgroups that stood out, including young HD patients who died on their initial KRT modality and those who remained on HD for 10 years without undergoing KTx.

High welfare standards for animals used in research is as much an ethical issue as it is a cornerstone of high-quality science. Researchers can improve both animal welfare and data reliability by implementing strategies that reduce stress in experimental animals. One modern and effective approach is to monitor animals within their familiar home-cage environment. Home-cage monitoring (HCM) systems integrate multiple approaches to automatically, continuously, and non-invasively monitor the physiology and behaviour of laboratory animals within their home environments. HCM favours the animals’ natural rhythms and behaviours while reducing stress from various sources and the need for human intervention. In this article, we explore how HCM contributes to the 3Rs framework introduced by Russell and Burch and focus particularly on how to select the most appropriate HCM system for specific research needs. We discuss available resources and practical limitations for system choice, and provide a brief outlook on the evolving role of artificial intelligence to analyse HCM data. We also discuss the opportunities and barriers to HCM adoption, particularly in relation to countries with developing research structure and limited funding in Europe. Our central message is clear: use of HCM technologies supports 3Rs and promotes both better science and better animal welfare. Pametne kletke, večja dobrobit: Podpora načelom 3R v raziskavah na živalih s spremljanjem v domači kletki in ustrezno izbiro sistema Izvleček: Visoki standardi dobrobiti živali v raziskavah niso zgolj etična obveznost, temveč tudi temelj visokokakovostne znanosti. Raziskovalci lahko izboljšajo tako dobrobit živali kot tudi zanesljivost podatkov z uvedbo strategij, ki zmanjšujejo stres pri poskusnih živalih. Eden izmed sodobnih in učinkovitih pristopov je spremljanje živali v njihovem domačem okolju. Sistemi za spremljanje v domači kletki (HCM, angl. home-cage monitoring) združujejo več pristopov za samodejno, neprekinjeno in neinvazivno spremljanje fiziologije in vedenja laboratorijskih živali v njihovem domačem okolju. HCM podpira naravne ritme in vedenja živali ter zmanjšuje stres iz različnih virov in potrebo po posegih človeka. V članku opisujemo, kako HCM prispeva k načelom 3R, ki sta ga uvedla Russell in Burch, s posebnim poudarkom na izbiri najprimernejšega sistema HCM za specifične raziskovalne potrebe. Obravnavamo razpoložljive vire in praktične omejitve pri izviri sistema ter podajamo kratek pogled na razvijajočo se vlogo umetne inteligence pri analizi podatkov HCM. Prispevek obravnava tudi priložnosti in ovire pri uvajanju HCM, zlasti v povezavi z državami z manj razvito raziskovalno infrastrukturo in omejenimi sredstvi v Evropi. Naše osrednje sporočilo je jasno: uporaba tehnologij HCM podpira načela 3R ter spodbuja boljšo dobrobit živali in boljšo znanost. Ključne besede: laboratorijske živali; avtomatsko spremljanje vedenja; izboljšave; kontinuirno zbiranje podatkov; stres