The few panel data tests for predictability of returns that exist are based on the prerequisite that both the number of time series observations, $T$, and the number of cross-section units, $N$, are large. As a result, these tests are impossible for stock markets where lengthy time series data are scarce. In response to this, the current paper develops a new test for predictability in panels where

To describe wild-type distributions of the MIC of fluoroquinolones for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in relation to current critical concentrations used for drug susceptibility testing and pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) data. A 96-stick replicator on Middlebrook 7H10 medium was used to define the MICs of ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, moxifloxacin and levofloxacin for 90 consecutive clinical stra

We revisit diffractive and exclusive (WX)-X-+/- production at hadron colliders in different models for soft color exchanges. The process pp -> p[(WX)-X-+/-]p, and in particular a W-+/- charge asymmetry, has been suggested as a way to discriminate diffractive processes as being due to pomeron exchange in Regge phenomenology or QCD-based color reconnection models. Our detailed analysis of the latter

Fathers often want to be involved in labour and birth.

Muscle weakness in the lower limbs and impeded gait performance are common in persons with late effects of polio.

OBJECTIVE: To determine which factors increase the risk of large caesarean scar defects as assessed by transvaginal ultrasound. DESIGN: Observational cross-sectional study. SETTING: University Hospital. POPULATION: One hundred and eight women who had undergone one caesarean section. METHODS: Transvaginal ultrasound examination of the scar in the uterus 6-9 months after the caesarean. Published ult

Ytterbium (Yb3+)-sensitized upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) are excited at 975 nm causing relatively high absorption in tissue. A new type of UCNPs with neodymium (Nd3+) and Yb3+ codoping is excitable at a 808-nm wavelength. At this wavelength, the tissue absorption is lower. Here we quantify, both experimentally and theoretically, to what extent Nd3+-doped UCNPs will provide an increased signa

Altered protein handling is thought to play a key role in the etiopathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), as the disorder is characterized neuropathologically by the accumulation of intraneuronal protein aggregates (Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites). Attention has particularly focused on the alpha-synuclein protein, as it is the principal component of Lewy pathology. Moreover, point mutations in th

Summary *Here, species composition and biomass production of actively growing ectomycorrhizal (EM) mycelia were studied over the rotation period of managed Norway spruce (Picea abies) stands in south-western Sweden. *The EM mycelia were collected using ingrowth mesh bags incubated in the forest soil during one growing season. Fungal biomass was estimated by ergosterol analysis and the EM species w

Induction of membrane pores has been suggested as the common molecular action by which a variety of amphipathic membrane-active peptides cause damage to cells. In this study, we have performed coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to establish two clear molecular processes that seem critical for the activity of amphipathic peptides. They are (i) the recognition and (ii) the stabilization o

Detection of fusion genes for diagnostic purposes and as a guide to treatment is well-established in hematological malignancies, and the prevalence of fusion genes in epithelial cancers is also increasingly appreciated. To study whether established fusion genes are present within additional cancer types, we have used an updated version of our fusion gene microarray in a systematic survey of report

Optical properties of five donor acceptor polymers of interest for light-harvesting in organic photovoltaic devices have been studied experimentally and computationally. Experimentally recorded absorption spectra in solution of the five polymers are shown to be significantly temperature-dependent. The polymers were subjected to a first-principles computational treatment using density functional th

We investigated the activity of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (SXT) against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The MIC distribution of SXT was 0.125/2.4-2/38 mg/L for the 100 isolates tested, including multi- and extensively drug-resistant isolates (MDR/XDR-TB), whereas the intracellular MIC90 of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) for H37Rv was 76 mg/L. In an exploratory analysis using fAUC0-24h/MIC ≥25 as a potenti

We have developed a new approach to create microsatellite primer sets that have high utility across a wide range of species. The success of this method was demonstrated using birds. We selected 35 avian EST microsatellite loci that had a high degree of sequence homology between the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata and the chicken Gallus gallus and designed primer sets in which the primer bind sites

This paper presents three claims concerning boundaries, dependence and parthood. The claims are intuitively plausible, but cannot, at face value, all be true on pain of contradiction. Each of the three claims is shown to be more plausible than its converse and some solutions to the puzzle are presented.

Perturbations in levels of amino acids (AA) and their derivatives are observed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Yet, it is unclear whether these alterations precede or are a consequence of the disease, nor whether they pertain to anatomically related cancers of the intrahepatic bile duct (IHBC), and gallbladder and extrahepatic biliary tract (GBTC). Circulating standard AA, biogenic amines and h