Internal Absorption and Foreign Direct Investment Inflows: A new approach towards Market Size

Abstract. In continuation of the efforts to understand the dynamics of internal market, this study proposes Internal Absorption as an instrument for measuring market size for economies which confront large trade deficit over a longer period of time. The study empirically examines the impacts of Internal Absorption along with trade openness and gross private investment on FDI inflows in Pakistan. The ARDL approach to co-integration and ECM based on ARDL is used to test the existence of long run relationships among variables for the period 1976-2009. The result establishes strong positive relationship between Internal Absorption and FDI inflows in short as well as in the long run.Keywords. Foreign direct investment, Internal absorption, Trade openness, Private investment.JEL. F18, F21, F23, O47

Detection of BCR-ABL kinase domain mutations in CD34+ cells from newly diagnosed chronic phase CML patients and their association with imatinib resistance

BCR-ABL kinase domain (KD) mutations, the most common cause of imatinib resistance, are infrequently detected in newly diagnosed chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML) patients. Recent studies indicate pre-existing mutations (PEMs) can be detected in a higher percentage of CML patients using CD34+ stem/progenitor cells, and these mutations may correlate with imatinib resistance. We investigated KD mutations in CD34+ stem cells from 100 CP-CML patients by multiplex ASO-PCR and sequencing ASO-PCR products at the time of diagnosis. PEMs were detected in 32/100 patients and included F311L, M351T, and T315I. After a median follow-up of 30 months (range 8-48), all patients with PEMs exhibited imatinib resistance. Of 68 patients without PEMs, 24 developed imatinib resistance. Mutations were detected in 21 of these patients by ASO-PCR and KD sequencing. All 32 patients with PEMs had the same mutations. In imatinib-resistant patients without PEMs, we detected F311L, M351T, Y253F, and T315I mutations. All imatinib-resistant patients without T315I and Y253F mutations responded to imatinib dose escalation. In conclusion, BCR-ABL PEMs can be detected in a substantial number of CP-CML patients when investigated using CD34+ stem/progenitor cells. These mutations are associated with imatinib resistance, and mutation testing using CD34+ cells may facilitate improved, patient-tailored treatment

Foreign Direct Investment, Aggregate Demand Conditions and Exchange Rate Nexus: A Panel Data Analysis of BRICS Economies

In this study, we attempt to provide underlying theoretical and empirical explanations for exchange rate appreciation due to foreign capital influx and aggregate demand conditions in the BRICS economies. The empirical analysis is based on a panel dataset of BRICS countries over the time period 1992–2013 to substantiate our theoretical findings. For panel co-integration, Pedroni and Johansen-Fisher panel co-integration tests are conducted to compare co-integration among panel countries. We also analyze the results from Dumitrescu-Hurlin panel causality test among variables and use Granger Causality to test for the causal patterns in each of the individual countries. Our findings showed that the exchange rate volatility is directly affected by the flows of FDI, GDP per capita, Capital formulation and House hold consumption. The results have profound implications in terms of exchange rate stability in the BRICS countries and associated risks

Small Paraquat Resistance Proteins Modulate Paraquat and ABA Responses and Confer Drought Tolerance to Overexpressing Arabidopsis Plants

Adaptation of higher plants to extreme environmental conditions is under complex regulation. Several small peptides have recently been described to modulate responses to stress conditions. The Small Paraquat resistance protein (SPQ) of Lepidium crassifolium has previously been identified due to its capacity to confer paraquat resistance to overexpressing transgenic Arabidopsis plants. Here, we show that overexpression of the closely related Arabidopsis SPQ can also enhance resistance to paraquat, while the Arabidopsis spq1 mutant is slightly hypersensitive to this herbicide. Besides being implicated in paraquat response, overexpression of SPQs enhanced sensitivity to abscisic acid (ABA), and the knockout spq1 mutant was less sensitive to ABA. Both Lepidium‐ and Arabidopsis‐derived SPQs could improve drought tolerance by reducing water loss, stabilizing photosynthetic electron transport and enhancing plant viability and survival in a water‐limited environment. Enhanced drought tolerance of SPQ‐overexpressing plants could be confirmed by characterizing various parameters of growth, morphology and photosynthesis using an automatic plant phenotyping platform with RGB and chlorophyll fluorescence imaging. Our results suggest that SPQs can be regulatory small proteins connecting ROS and ABA regulation and through that influence responses to certain stresses

Chemical composition and biological activity of the essential oil of Perovskia atriplicifolia from Pakistan

The current study describes the phytochemical profile, antimicrobial, mutagenic, and antimutagenic activity of Perovskia atriplicifolia Benth. essential oil, collected in Pakistan. The sample of essential oil was obtained from aerial parts of the plant by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry. From the 18 compounds identified, the major compounds were camphor (28.91%), limonene (16.72%), alpha-globulol (10.21%), trans-caryophyliene (9.30%), and alpha-humulene (9.25%). Antimicrobial activity of the oil was evaluated using agar diffusion method and agar dilution method. The antimicrobial test results showed that the oil had a significant potential antimicrobial activity against 10 bacteria and 5 fungal strains. Furthermore, the mutagenic and antimutagenic activity of the oil was investigated through the Salmonella/microsome test system, with and without S9 metabolic fraction in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100. None of the tested concentrations of oil was found mutagenic. However, all tested concentrations did show an increase in antimutagenic activity with or without S9 fraction against 2-aminofluorene and daunomicina, but not sodium azide. Results presented here suggest that the essential oil of P. atriplicifolia possesses antimicrobial properties and is therefore a potential source of antimicrobial ingredients for the food and pharmaceutical industry. In addition, that it also has antimutagenic activity raises the importance of this essential oil in this area