Bank Lending with Imperfect Competition and Spillover Effects

We examine bank lending decisions in an economy with spillover effects in the creation of new investment opportunities and asymmetric information in credit markets. We examine pricesetting equilibria with horizontally differentiated banks. If bank lending takes place under a weak corporate governance mechanism and is fraught with agency problems and ineffective bank monitoring, then an equilibrium emerges in which loan supply is strategically restricted. In this equilibrium, the loan restriction, the “under-lending?strategy, provides an advantage to one bank by increasing its market share and sustaining monopoly interest rates. The bank’s incentives for doing so increase under conditions of increased volatility of lending capacities of banks, more severe borrower-side moral hazard, and lower returns on the investment projects. Although this equilibrium is not always unique, with poor bank monitoring and corporate governance, a more intense banking competition renders the bad equilibrium the unique outcome.Bank lending, threshold effects, underlending equilibria, interest rate competition.

Multiplexed nanoplasmonic biosensor for one-step simultaneous detection of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae in urine.

Development of rapid and multiplexed diagnostic tools is a top priority to address the current epidemic problem of sexually transmitted diseases. Here we introduce a novel nanoplasmonic biosensor for simultaneous detection of the two most common bacterial infections: Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Our plasmonic microarray is composed of gold nanohole sensor arrays that exhibit the extraordinary optical transmission (EOT), providing highly sensitive analysis in a label-free configuration. The integration in a microfluidic system and the precise immobilization of specific antibodies on the individual sensor arrays allow for selective detection and quantification of the bacteria in real-time. We achieved outstanding sensitivities for direct immunoassay of urine samples, with a limit of detection of 300 colony forming units (CFU)/mL for C. trachomatis and 1500CFU/mL for N. gonorrhoeae. The multiplexing capability of our biosensor was demonstrated by analyzing different urine samples spiked with either C. trachomatis or N. gonorrhoeae, and also containing both bacteria. We could successfully detect, identify and quantify the levels of the two bacteria in a one-step assay, without the need for DNA extraction or amplification techniques. This work opens up new possibilities for the implementation of point-of-care biosensors that enable fast, simple and efficient diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections

Animal Models for Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency: A Critical Narrative Literature Review

\ua9 2024, The Author(s). This literature review will provide a critical narrative overview of the highlights and potential pitfalls of the reported animal models for limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD) and will identify the neglected aspects of this research area. There exists significant heterogeneity in the literature regarding the methodology used to create the model and the predefined duration after the insult when the model is supposedly fully fit for evaluations and/or for testing various therapeutic interventions. The literature is also replete with examples wherein the implementation of a specific model varies significantly across different studies. For example, the concentration of the chemical, as well as its duration and technique of exposure in a chemically induced LSCD model, has a great impact not only on the validity of the model but also on the severity of the complications. Furthermore, while some models induce a full-blown clinical picture of total LSCD, some are hindered by their ability to yield only partial LSCD. Another aspect to consider is the nature of the damage induced by a specific method. As thermal methods cause more stromal scarring, they may be better suited for assessing the anti-fibrotic properties of a particular treatment. On the other hand, since chemical burns cause more neovascularisation, they provide the opportunity to tap into the potential treatments for anti-neovascularisation. The animal species (i.e., rats, mice, rabbits, etc.) is also a crucial factor in the validity of the model and its potential for clinical translation, with each animal having its unique set of advantages and disadvantages. This review will also elaborate on other overlooked aspects, such as the anaesthetic(s) used during experiments, the gender of the animals, care after LSCD induction, and model validation. The review will conclude by providing future perspectives and suggestions for further developments in this rather important area of research

The Forward-Backward Asymmetry in the B→πℓ+ℓ−B \to \pi\ell^+\ell^- Decay

Using the most general effective Hamiltonian comprising scalar,vector and tensor type interactions, we have written the branching ratio, the forward-backward (FB) asymmetry and the normalized FB asymmetry as functions of the new Wilson coefficients. It is found that the branching ratio depends on all new coefficients,but the dependence of asymmetries on coefficients could be analyzed only for one Wilson coefficient.Comment: 14 pp, 7 figure

Demonstration of coherent emission from high-β\beta photonic crystal nanolasers at room temperature

We report on lasing at room temperature and at telecommunications wavelength from photonic crystal nanocavities based on InAsP/InP quantum dots. Such laser cavities with a small modal volume and high quality factor display a high spontaneous emission coupling factor beta. Lasing is confirmed by measuring the second order autocorrelation function. A smooth transition from chaotic to coherent emission is observed, and coherent emission is obtained at 8 times the threshold power

(E)-Methyl 2-({2-eth­oxy-6-[(E)-(hy­droxy­imino)­meth­yl]phen­oxy}meth­yl)-3-phenyl­acrylate

In the title compound, C20H21NO5, the dihedral angle between the mean planes through the two rings is 47.1 (8)°. The enoate group assumes an extended conformation. The hy­droxy­ethanimine group is essentially coplanar with the benzene ring, the largest deviation from the mean plane being 0.061 (1) Å for the O atom. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into cyclic centrosymmetric dimers with an R 2 2(6) motif via pairs of O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds. Inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds form a C(8) chain along the b axis. The crystal packing is further stabilized by C—H⋯π inter­actions

Q-ball formation in the wake of Hubble-induced radiative corrections

We discuss some interesting aspects of the $\rm Q$-ball formation during the early oscillations of the flat directions. These oscillations are triggered by the running of soft $({\rm mass})^2$ stemming from the nonzero energy density of the Universe. However, this is quite different from the standard $\rm Q$-ball formation. The running in presence of gauge and Yukawa couplings becomes strong if $m_{1/2}/m_0$ is sufficiently large. Moreover, the $\rm Q$-balls which are formed during the early oscillations constantly evolve, due to the redshift of the Hubble-induced soft mass, until the low-energy supersymmtery breaking becomes dominant. For smaller $m_{1/2}/m_0$, $\rm Q$-balls are not formed during early oscillations because of the shrinking of the instability band due to the Hubble expansion. In this case the $\rm Q$-balls are formed only at the weak scale, but typically carry smaller charges, as a result of their amplitude redshift. Therefore, the Hubble-induced corrections to the flat directions give rise to a successful $\rm Q$-ball cosmology.Comment: 7 revtex pages, few references corrected and added, final version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Lasing oscillation in a three-dimensional photonic crystal nanocavity with a complete bandgap

We demonstrate lasing oscillation in a three-dimensional photonic crystal nanocavity. The laser is realized by coupling a cavity mode, which is localized in a complete photonic bandgap and exhibits the highest quality factor of ~38,500, with high-quality semiconductor quantum dots. We show a systematic change in the laser characteristics, including the threshold and the spontaneous emission coupling factor by controlling the crystal size, which consequently changes the strength of photon confinement in the third dimension. This opens up many interesting possibilities for realizing future ultimate light sources and three-dimensional integrated photonic circuits and for more fundamental studies of physics in the field of cavity quantum electrodynamics.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure