|
| ||
|
|
||
Certain Stage (certain + stage)
Selected AbstractsOperational Risk Measurement in Banking Institutions and Investment Firms: New European EvidencesFINANCIAL MARKETS, INSTITUTIONS & INSTRUMENTS, Issue 4 2008Enrique Bonsón The banking/investment sector must deal with a new variable, Operational Risk, for explaining various recent crises and bankruptcies. Operational Risk, which can be defined briefly as the risk generated by possible failures of a entity's Information Systems (IS), must be measured, covered, mitigated and managed by applying a series of methodologies, each of which assumes that the IS of the bank operates at a certain Stage of Sophistication. The present study proposes a scheme of evolution that details the stages of enhancement in the sophistication of their IS that banking entities may implement, so as to be capable of capturing, mitigating and managing Operational Risk. Using econometric methods, we create a proxy variable to capture the IS Sophistication of each entity. Then, the factor of entity size has been analyzed, and the country effect is explored. Additionally, the importance of intangible assets is weighted, among others entity aspects. The entity size has been revealed as the variable with most influence on the plans formulated in this respect by European entities, against other variables also considered in the present study, such as the country effect or the importance of intangible assets. The work shows how IS decisions referring to Operational Risk management are very influenced by size. It could introduce competition differences in the European banking system. [source] Glucose inhibits the formation of gas vesicles in Haloferax volcanii transformantsENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 1 2008Torsten Hechler Summary The effect of glucose on the formation of gas vesicles was investigated in Haloferax mediterranei and Hfx.volcanii transformants containing the mc- gvp gene cluster of Hfx. mediterranei (mc-vac transformants). Increasing amounts of glucose in the medium resulted in a successive decrease in the amount of gas vesicles in both species, with a complete inhibition of their formation at glucose concentrations of > 70 mM in mc-vac transformants, and 100 mM in Hfx. mediterranei. Maltose and sucrose imposed a similar inhibitory effect, whereas xylose, arabinose, lactose, pyruvate and 2-deoxy-glucose had no influence on the gas vesicle formation in mc-vac transformants. The activities of the two mc-vac promoters were strongly reduced in mc-vac transformants grown in the presence of > 50 mM glucose. The gas vesicle overproducing ,D transformant (lacking the repressing protein GvpD) also showed a glucose-induced lack of gas vesicles, indicating that GvpD is not involved in the repression. The addition of glucose was useful to block gas vesicle formation at a certain stage during growth, and vice versa, gas vesicle synthesis could be induced when a glucose-grown culture was shifted to medium lacking glucose. Both procedures will enable the investigation of defined stages during gas vesicle formation. [source] Enhanced Osteoclastogenesis in 4-1BB,Deficient Mice Caused by Reduced Interleukin-10,JOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 12 2006Hyun-Hee Shin PhD Abstract Enhanced osteoclastogenesis was observed in bone marrow,derived macrophage cells from 4-1BB,deficient mice than in those from wildtype mice. 4-1BB and 4-1BB ligand interaction may play a role at a certain stage of osteoclast formation through increased level of IL-10, a negative regulator of osteoclastogenesis. Introduction: 4-1BB is an inducible T-cell costimulatory molecule and a member of the TNF receptor family. The expression pattern of 4-1BB and 4-1BB ligand (4-1BBL) has suggested that 4-1BB plays a role not only in various responses related to innate immunity but also in bone metabolism. Materials and Methods: Osteoclast formation was evaluated in bone marrow,derived macrophage cells (BMMs) from wildtype and 4-1BB,deficient (4-1BB,/,) mice. Expression of interleukin-10 (IL-10) during osteoclast formation was analyzed at the mRNA and protein levels. Results: Expression of IL-10 was higher in RANKL-stimulated wildtype BMMs than 4-1BB,/, BMMs. When 4-1BBL was stimulated with 4-1BB,Fc fusion protein, the expression of IL-10 in BMMs increased. Neutralization of IL-10 was not as effective in preventing inhibition by IL-10 of osteoclast differentiation in 4-1BB,/, BMMs as in wildtype BMMs. When IL-10 was added to the culture medium, osteoclast formation was inhibited more efficiently in the 4-1BB,/, BMMs than in the wildtype BMMs. Conclusions: Interaction of 4-1BB and 4-1BBL stimulates IL-10 production through 4-1BBL signaling. 4-1BBL plays a role at a certain stage of osteoclast formation, and IL-10 may mediate this effect. The elevated level of osteoclastogenesis in 4-1BB,/, BMMs may thus be caused, in part, by a lower level of IL-10. [source] Developing audience awareness in writingJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN READING, Issue 3 2002José Brandâo Carvalho Beginning writers need to consider their audience; but this is only possible when the writer has reached a certain stage of cognitive development, as it is necessary to consider an absent reality (e.g. an audience reading the piece at a later point). Adapting the text to the audience is only possible when the physical task of writing becomes automatic and the writer is no longer absorbed by it. Then the writer is free to pay attention to other aspects of the task without overloading cognitive processes. Procedural facilitation involves the use of external aids to support a simplified version of the processes used by expert writers. It may function as a way of enabling beginning writers to adapt what they write for their audiences. At the same time, as this task becomes automatic, it may be seen as a way of promoting writing development. A quasi,experimental study is described in which a procedural facilitation strategy is used to promote writing skills, in particular, the skill of suiting the text to the communicative context. The study was with fifth and ninth grade Portuguese students. The results of the post,test show significant progress for the experimental groups in contrast to the control groups. [source] Solubility islands for polymer blends , a new option to homogenize incompatible polymers?MACROMOLECULAR SYMPOSIA, Issue 1 2003Attila R. Imre Abstract Experimental results of liquid-liquid phase equilibrium in a polydisperse blend of two polyalkylsiloxane are presented here. The UCST has an unusual pressure dependence: pressure induced miscibility at moderate pressures and pressure induced immiscibility at higher pressures, above a double critical point. The cloud point curve has two maxima in (concentration, temperature) as well as in (concentration, pressure) space. Approaching the double critical point, the high and low pressure branches of the cloud point curve merge and in a certain stage of this merging, they form a miscibility island located inside the two-phase region. Islands of this kind can give us a new tool to mix virtually immiscible blends. [source] Stanniocalcin 2 overexpression in castration-resistant prostate cancer and aggressive prostate cancerCANCER SCIENCE, Issue 5 2009Kenji Tamura Prostate cancer is usually androgen-dependent and responds well to androgen ablation therapy based on castration. However, at a certain stage some prostate cancers eventually acquire a castration-resistant phenotype where they progress aggressively and show very poor response to any anticancer therapies. To characterize the molecular features of these clinical castration-resistant prostate cancers, we previously analyzed gene expression profiles by genome-wide cDNA microarrays combined with microdissection and found dozens of trans -activated genes in clinical castration-resistant prostate cancers. Among them, we report the identification of a new biomarker, stanniocalcin 2, as an overexpressed gene in castration-resistant prostate cancer cells. Real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical analysis confirmed overexpression of stanniocalcin 2, a 302-amino-acid glycoprotein hormone, specifically in castration-resistant prostate cancer cells and aggressive castration-naïve prostate cancers with high Gleason scores (8,10). The gene was not expressed in normal prostate, nor in most indolent castration-naïve prostate cancers. Knockdown of stanniocalcin 2 expression by short interfering RNA in a prostate cancer cell line resulted in drastic attenuation of prostate cancer cell growth. Concordantly, stanniocalcin 2 overexpression in a prostate cancer cell line promoted prostate cancer cell growth, indicating its oncogenic property. These findings suggest that stanniocalcin 2 could be involved in aggressive phenotyping of prostate cancers, including castration-resistant prostate cancers, and that it should be a potential molecular target for development of new therapeutics and a diagnostic biomarker for aggressive prostate cancers. (Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 914,919) [source] Expression survey of genes critical for tooth development in the human embryonic tooth germDEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS, Issue 5 2007Dahe Lin Abstract In the developing murine tooth, the expression patterns of numerous regulatory genes have been examined and their roles have begun to be revealed. To unveil the molecular mechanisms that regulate human tooth morphogenesis, we examined the expression patterns of several regulatory genes, including BMP4, FGF8, MSX1, PAX9, PITX2, and SHOX2, and compared them with that found in mice. All of these genes are known to play critical roles in murine tooth development. Our results show that these genes exhibit basically similar expression patterns in the human tooth germ compared with that in the mouse. However, slightly different expression patterns were also observed for some of the genes at certain stages. For example, MSX1 expression was detected in the inner enamel epithelium in addition to the dental mesenchyme at the bell stage of the human tooth. Moreover, FGF8 expression remained in the dental epithelium at the cap stage, while PAX9 and SHOX2 expression was detected in both dental epithelium and mesenchyme of the human tooth germ. Our results indicate that, although slight differences exist in the gene expression patterns, the human and mouse teeth not only share considerable homology in odontogenesis but also use similar underlying molecular networks. Developmental Dynamics 236:1307,1312, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Charge-induced modulation of magnetic interactions in a [2 × 2] metal-organic grid complex,INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF QUANTUM CHEMISTRY, Issue 4 2006C. Romeike Abstract We investigate the magnetic state of a recently synthesized [2 × 2]-metal-organic grid complex as a function of its redox state. Our analysis of a phenomenological model for the relevant molecular orbitals reveals that additional electrons on the ligands can couple their spins via the bridging metal sites. We find that at certain stages of the reduction of the complex cation, a maximal total spin ground state of the complex (S = 3/2) can be stabilized by the Nagaoka mechanism. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006 [source] Population dynamics of the pipistrelle bat: effects of sex, age and winter weather on seasonal survivalJOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2003Thomas Sendor Summary 1Life-history theory assumes increased mortality at certain stages such as hibernation. However, seasonal variation of survival rates of hibernating mammals has rarely been estimated. In this study, apparent survival of pipistrelle bats (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) hibernating and performing summer swarming at a large hibernaculum (Marburg Castle, Hesse, Germany), was modelled using seasonal (summer/winter) capture,recapture data for the years 1996,2000. The spring survival interval includes the period of arousal at the end of hibernation and therefore validly measures survival associated with hibernation. 2In five summers and four winters, 15 839 bats were captured and released (13 082 individuals) and 3403 recaptures recorded. Analysis was complicated by transience and trap-dependence. Recapture rates varied seasonally and by group. The autumnal survival estimates were negatively biased due to transience effects that could not be taken into account. 3Survival could be modelled using two age-classes, with reduced first-year juvenile survival. The age effect persisted over the first autumn and spring. There was virtually no evidence for sex-specific survival rates; male and female survival were found to be almost equal. In the best-fitting models, survival rates varied over time and differed among sexes and age-classes by a constant amount. Between years, there was only a small variation in spring survival, which could not be explained by winter severity. 4Adult spring survival was surprisingly high, averaging 0·892 (= 0·028). No evidence for increased mortality during hibernation could be found. This contradicted the expectation of reduced over-winter survival due to depleted fat reserves at the end of hibernation. Thus, hibernation does apparently not entail a survival cost for the pipistrelle bat. Rough estimates of annual adult survival averaged 0·799 ( = 0·051), which considerably exceeds previous estimates; annual juvenile survival was estimated at 0·527 ( = 0·095). Hence, previous studies have substantially underestimated pipistrelle bat survival. Possible consequences of these findings for various aspects of life histories are discussed. [source] Implications of a simple mathematical model to cancer cell population dynamicsCELL PROLIFERATION, Issue 1 2006A. L. Garner Many potential treatments preferentially interact with cells at certain stages of the cell cycle by either selective killing or halting the cell cycle, such as intense, nanosecond-duration pulsed electric fields (nsPEFs). Simple mathematical models of unfed cancer cell populations at the plateau of their growth characteristics may estimate the long-term consequences of these treatments on proliferating and quiescent cell populations. Applying such a model with no transition from the quiescent to proliferating state shows that it is possible for the proliferating cell population to fall below 1 if the quiescent cell population obtains a sufficient competitive advantage with respect to nutrient consumption and/or survival rate. Introducing small, realistic transition rates did not appreciably alter short-term or long-term population behaviour, indicating that the predicted small cell population behaviour (< 1 cell) is not an artefact of the simpler model. Experimental observations of nsPEF-induced effects on the cell cycle suggest that such a model may serve as a first step in assessing the viability of a given cancer treatment in vitro prior to clinical application. [source] 4345: Confusion and controversies in diagnosis and treatment of myastheniaACTA OPHTHALMOLOGICA, Issue 2010E EGGENBERGER Myasthenia gravis is an afferent ocular motor mimic. The disease may appear with any pattern of pupil-sparing, painless ocular misalignment with or without ptosis; accordingly, common mistaken diagnoses included CN3 palsy or internuclear ophthalmoplegia. Variability adds to diagnostic confusion, as patients may be asymptomatic and have a normal exam at certain stages in the disease. Clinical context remains the first diagnostic key, however, lab and electrophysiology are very helpful. Acetylcholine receptor antibodies are present in approximately 50% of ocular MG, but are highly specific. Single fiber EMG is perhaps the most sensitive test, being abnormal in approximately 90% of cases. Treatment is symptom dependent; pyridostigmine is often used as initial therapy and quite effective for ptosis and dysphagia, while additional immunosuppressives are often required for diplopia. We often initiate therapy with low dose every other day prednisone, and have a low threshold to add mycophenolate mofetil. [source] | |||||||||||||