Les déterminants de la performance financière des banques au Maroc : Analyse empirique

The banking sector plays a major role in the economy, through the allocation of savings to investment.  Today, this sector is facing real globalization challenges in a financial system that is constantly changing, hence the interest in the notion of performance and its determinants.  This article has a double objective: on the one hand, to identify the internal determinants that act on the banking and financial performance in the Moroccan context. The second objective is to measure the impact of these determinants on the financial performance of banks in Morocco in order to provide managers with the best levers for action and competitiveness. To do this we will conduct an analysis based on an econometric modeling of the Moroccan banking sector, over a period that extends from 2011 to 2021. We have chosen the hypothetical-deductive methodology which relies on the formulation of certain hypotheses which are then tested through a multiple regression analysis in order to affirm or deny them. The results will allow the establishment of a statement on the performance and financial resilience of the Moroccan banking sector.   Keywords: performance, banking sector, internal determinants, competitiveness, globalization. Classification JEL: L1, L25, G21, F60 Paper type: Empirical researchLe secteur bancaire joue un rôle prépondérant dans l’économie, à travers l’attribution de l’épargne vers l’investissement.  Aujourd’hui, ce secteur se retrouve face à de vrais enjeux de mondialisation dans un système financier en perpétuelle mutation, d’où l’intérêt porté sur la notion de performance et ses déterminants.  Cet article a un double objectif : d’une part, identifier les déterminants internes qui agissent sur la performance financière bancaire dans le contexte marocain. Le second objectif est de mesurer l’impact de ces déterminants sur la performance financière des banques au Maroc, et ce afin de mettre à la disposition des managers les meilleurs leviers d’actions et de compétitivité. Pour ce faire nous allons réaliser une analyse sur la base d’une modélisation économétrique du paysage bancaire marocain, sur une période qui s’étale de l’année 2011 à 2021. Nous avons choisi la méthodologie hypothético-déductive qui repose sur la formulation de certaines hypothèses qui sont par la suite testées à travers une analyse de régression multiple en vue de les affirmer ou les infirmer. Les résultats permettront l’établissement d’un constat de la performance et de la résilience financières du secteur bancaire marocain. Cependant notre étude présente des insuffisances qui résident dans le fait que nous n’avons pas pu intégrer tous les facteurs internes a causé d’une pénurie de données disponibles sur le terrain.   Mot clés : Performance, secteur bancaire, déterminants internes, compétitivité, mondialisation. Classification JEL : L1, L25, G21, F60 Type de l’article : recherche empiriqu

Surfactant protein D inhibits HIV-1 infection of target cells via interference with gp120-CD4 interaction and modulates pro-inflammatory cytokine production

© 2014 Pandit et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Surfactant Protein SP-D, a member of the collectin family, is a pattern recognition protein, secreted by mucosal epithelial cells and has an important role in innate immunity against various pathogens. In this study, we confirm that native human SP-D and a recombinant fragment of human SP-D (rhSP-D) bind to gp120 of HIV-1 and significantly inhibit viral replication in vitro in a calcium and dose-dependent manner. We show, for the first time, that SP-D and rhSP-D act as potent inhibitors of HIV-1 entry in to target cells and block the interaction between CD4 and gp120 in a dose-dependent manner. The rhSP-D-mediated inhibition of viral replication was examined using three clinical isolates of HIV-1 and three target cells: Jurkat T cells, U937 monocytic cells and PBMCs. HIV-1 induced cytokine storm in the three target cells was significantly suppressed by rhSP-D. Phosphorylation of key kinases p38, Erk1/2 and AKT, which contribute to HIV-1 induced immune activation, was significantly reduced in vitro in the presence of rhSP-D. Notably, anti-HIV-1 activity of rhSP-D was retained in the presence of biological fluids such as cervico-vaginal lavage and seminal plasma. Our study illustrates the multi-faceted role of human SPD against HIV-1 and potential of rhSP-D for immunotherapy to inhibit viral entry and immune activation in acute HIV infection. © 2014 Pandit et al.The work (Project no. 2011-16850) was supported by Medical Innovation Fund of Indian Council of Medical Research, New Delhi, India (www.icmr.nic.in/)

Inhibition of Lassa Virus Glycoprotein Cleavage and Multicycle Replication by Site 1 Protease-Adapted α1-Antitrypsin Variants

The virus family Arenaviridae includes several hemorrhagic fever causing agents such as Lassa, Guanarito, Junin, Machupo, and Sabia virus that pose a major public health concern to the human population in West African and South American countries. Current treatment options to control fatal outcome of disease are limited to the ribonucleoside analogue ribavirin, although its use has some significant limitations. The lack of effective treatment alternatives emphasizes the need for novel antiviral therapeutics to counteract these life-threatening infections. Maturation cleavage of the viral envelope glycoprotein by the host cell proprotein convertase site 1 protease (S1P) is critical for infectious virion production of several pathogenic arenaviruses. This finding makes this protease an attractive target for the development of novel anti-arenaviral therapeutics. We demonstrate here that highly selective S1P-adapted α1-antitrypsins have the potential to efficiently inhibit glycoprotein processing, which resulted in reduced Lassa virus replication. Our findings suggest that S1P should be considered as an antiviral target and that further optimization of modified α1-antitrypsins could lead to potent and specific S1P inhibitors with the potential for treatment of certain viral hemorrhagic fevers

T cells at the site of autoimmune inflammation show increased potential for trogocytosis

CD4+ T cells acquire membrane fragments from antigen-presenting-cells via a process termed trogocytosis. Identifying which CD4+ T cells undergo trogocytosis in co-culture with Ag-loaded APC can enrich for antigen-reactive T cells without knowledge of their fine specificity or cytokine-production profiles. We sought to assess the suitability of this method to identify disease relevant effector and regulatory T cells during autoimmune inflammation. Trogocytosis efficiently identified MBP-reactive T cells in vitro and ex-vivo following immunization. However, Foxp3+ regulatory T cells constitutively displayed a higher rate of trogocytosis than their Foxp3- counterparts which limits the potential of trogocytosis to identify antigen-reactive Treg cells. During inflammation a locally elevated rate of trogocytosis (seen in both effector and regulatory T cells isolated from the inflamed CNS) precludes the use of trogocytosis as a measure of antigenic reactivity among cells taken from inflammatory sites. Our results indicate trogocytosis detection can enrich for Ag-reactive conventional T cells in the periphery but is limited in its ability to identify Ag-reactive Treg or T effector cells at sites of inflammation. Increased trogocytosis potential at inflammatory sites also draws into the question the biological significance of this phenomenon during inflammation, in Treg mediated suppression and for the maintenance of tolerance in health and disease

Banker's conflicts of interest

Le conflit d’intérêts du banquier, terminologie galvaudée à force d’être invoquée à chaque nouvelle crise, sans pour autant que le droit puisse pleinement s’en saisir, est une notion particulière, autonome et originale qui aspire pourtant instamment à une existence juridique.Il est d'abord le résultat d’une incompatibilité d’un pouvoir et d’un devoir se trouvant concomitamment entre les mains du banquier. Autrement dit, c’est l’état de fait où le banquier détient le pouvoir d’affecter un intérêt, prédéfini comme supérieur, qu’il est tenu de protéger par devoir. S'il se trouve ainsi au cœur du droit de la représentation, qui régit une partie considérable des rapports clients-banquier, il ne s'y cantonne pas et peut aussi bien s’épanouir hors du cadre contractuel.Il suppose, pour exister, un préalable : une relation de confiance, dont le maintien semble avoir justifié des règles aussi nombreuses que disparates. Or, après en avoir effectué une revue critique, il apparaît que, principalement héritées de réglementations spécifiques aux services d’investissement, elles ne parviennent pas à pleinement l'appréhender au sein de ce domaine, et a fortiori pas dans sa sphère d’expression, qui s’étend bien au-delà. Une meilleure gestion juridique de cet objet d'étude nécessite alors que soient recherchées des critères de simplification et d'efficacité.Dans une approche prospective, l’analyse de l’interprétation des concepts de droit auxquels il est fait recours pour contrôler les conflits d’intérêts contractuels du banquier s'impose et révèle que l’obligation de gestion du conflit d’intérêts présente des traits communs à l’obligation traditionnelle de garantie du fait personnel. Une approche comparative des droits anglo-américains confirme la nature particulière de cette obligation du banquier face au conflit d’intérêts. Une telle obligation appelant nécessairement un régime spécifique, dont une ébauche de régime a finalement été proposée.Banker’s conflict of interests is a hackneyed concept being invoked with each new crisis without being fully seized by the law. Special, autonomous and original, this concept longs earnestly to legal existence. Conflict of interest is the result of an incompatibility of a power and a duty being simultaneously in the hands of the banker. It is the situation where the banker has the power to affect an interest, pre-defined as superior, that he has the duty to protect. The concept stands at the heart of the fiduciary and agency law governing a considerable part of banker-client relationship, but is not restricted to this area and can both flourish outside the contractual context. Banker’s conflict of interests assumes the existence of a prior : a relationship of trust, which it maintenance appears to have justified many and disparate rules. Mainly inherited from regulations specific to investment services, it appears, after a critical review, that they fail to fully understand the conflict of interest in this area, let alone within its sphere of expression, which extends far beyond. A better legal management of the studied object then imposes a search for simplification and efficiency. In a prospective approach, analyzing the interpretation of legal concepts to which recourse is made to control the contractual Banker’s conflict of interests reveals that the obligation to manage the conflict of interest has common features with the traditional guarantee obligation. A comparative approach of the Anglo-American law confirms the unique nature of the banker's obligation facing the conflict of interest. Such an obligation necessarily require specific rules and a draft is being proposed in the thesis

Vitamin B12 induced acneiform eruption

A 47-year-old, north african, male patient, has recently been diagnosed with pernicious anemia, treated with weekly intramuscular hydroxocobalamin. 6 weeks after its initiation, the patient presented a sudden, extensive and monomorphic eruption of inflammatory papulo-pustules and nodules, affecting the face, and the trunk. The eruption was pruritic, and comedones were also present, on the chest. The patient was diagnosed with vitamin B12-induced acneiform eruption. Levels of vitamin B12 were normalized. Hydroxocobalamin was therefore stopped and lymecycline was started, allowing a complete resolution of the lesions within 3 months. Drug intake, sudden and uncommon age of onset, pruritus, a monomorphic pattern and an involvement of extra-seborrheic areas are features that distinguish acneiform eruptions from acne vulgaris