Estimating Crypto-Related Risk: Market-Based Evidence from FTX’s Failure and Its Contagion on U.S. Banks

We use historical covariance between stock returns of U.S. banks and bitcoin returns to estimate a sensitivity measure that captures crypto-related risk in financial institutions. The measure effectively explains cross-sectional stock returns of 219 U.S. based financial institutions in response to the failure of FTX on November 11, 2022. Overall we document negative contagion effects on the market valuation of U.S. banks. We further show that this risk measure is unrelated to variables that have been used to explain operational risk in previous literature, i.e., corporate governance and business complexity. However, we document a significant relation with bank liquidity as measured by the Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio. We conclude that, on average, it is the banks with sufficient liquidity reserves that venture into the crypto sphere. Our approach offers individual investors and customers the opportunity to leverage market efficiency to evaluate the idiosyncratic level of crypto-related risk in a financial institution

Vertical Influence or Horizontal Coordination? The Purpose of Intergovernmental Councils in Switzerland

In 1993, the Swiss cantons established the conference of cantonal governments (KdK). While the literature on Swiss federalism generally acknowledges the important role of the KdK, little is known about its specific purpose, in particular compared to other, older intergovernmental councils operating in Switzerland. We therefore investigate the purpose of the KdK and contrast it with two other intercantonal conferences with nationwide scope, namely those on education and finance. To do so, we trace two of the most important federal reform processes of the last decade: the latest renewal of fiscal equalization and educational harmonization. We find a division of labour between the KdK and policy-specific councils. While the former aims at vertical political influence, the latter primarily engage in genuine horizontal policy coordination. This flexible and smooth interplay of the two types of councils has contributed to further strengthening the political role of the cantons in the Swiss federation

Population genetic analysis of the Plasmodium falciparum 6-cys protein Pf38 in Papua New Guinea reveals domain-specific balancing selection

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>merozoite surface protein Pf38 is targeted by antibodies of malaria immune adults and has been shown to be under balancing (immune) selection in a Gambian parasite population, indicating potential as a malaria vaccine candidate. This study explores the population genetics of <it>Pf</it>38 in Papua New Guinea, to determine the extent and geographic distribution of diversity and to measure selective pressure along the length of the gene.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using samples collected during community-based cross-sectional surveys in the Mugil and Wosera regions, the <it>Pf38 </it>genes of 59 <it>P. falciparum </it>isolates were amplified and sequenced. These sequences, along with previously sequenced Gambian and laboratory isolates, were then subjected to an array of population genetic analyses, examining polymorphisms, haplotype diversity and balancing selection. In addition to whole-gene analysis, the two 6-cys domains were considered separately, to investigate domain specific polymorphism and selection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nineteen polymorphic sites were identified in the <it>Pf </it>38 gene. Of these, 13 were found in the Gambia, 10 in Mugil and 8 in Wosera. Notably, the majority of common polymorphisms were confined to domain I. Although only moderate levels of nucleotide diversity were observed, the haplotype diversity was high in all populations, suggesting extensive recombination. Analyses of the full-length sequence provided only modest evidence for balancing selection. However, there was a strong contrast between domain I, which showed strong evidence for positive balancing selection, and domain II which was neutral. Analyses of the geographic distribution of Pf38 haplotypes showed that four haplotypes accounted for the majority of sequences found world-wide, but there were many more haplotypes unique to the African than the PNG populations.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study confirmed previous findings that <it>Pf38 </it>is a polymorphic gene under balancing selection. However, analysing polymorphism and selection across the length of the gene painted a considerably different picture. Domain I is highly polymorphic and the target of significant balancing selection. In contrast, domain II is relatively conserved and does not show evidence of immune selective pressure. The findings have implications for future population genetic studies on vaccine candidates, showing that the biological context must also be considered as a framework for analysis.</p

Atlas-Based Interpretable Age Prediction

Age prediction is an important part of medical assessments and research. It can aid in detecting diseases as well as abnormal ageing by highlighting the discrepancy between chronological and biological age. To gain a comprehensive understanding of age-related changes observed in various body parts, we investigate them on a larger scale by using whole-body images. We utilise the Grad-CAM interpretability method to determine the body areas most predictive of a person's age. We expand our analysis beyond individual subjects by employing registration techniques to generate population-wide interpretability maps. Furthermore, we set state-of-the-art whole-body age prediction with a model that achieves a mean absolute error of 2.76 years. Our findings reveal three primary areas of interest: the spine, the autochthonous back muscles, and the cardiac region, which exhibits the highest importance

Variable domain N-linked glycosylation and negative surface charge are key features of monoclonal ACPA: implications for B-cell selection

Autoreactive B cells have a central role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and recent findings have proposed that anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies (ACPA) may be directly pathogenic. Herein, we demonstrate the frequency of variable-region glycosylation in single-cell cloned mAbs. A total of 14 ACPA mAbs were evaluated for predicted N-linked glycosylation motifs in silico and compared to 452 highly-mutated mAbs from RA patients and controls. Variable region N-linked motifs (N-X-S/T) were strikingly prevalent within ACPA (100%) compared to somatically hypermutated (SHM) RA bone marrow plasma cells (21%), and synovial plasma cells from seropositive (39%) and seronegative RA (7%). When normalized for SHM, ACPA still had significantly higher frequency of N-linked motifs compared to all studied mAbs including highly-mutated HIV broadly-neutralizing and malaria-associated mAbs. The Fab glycans of ACPA-mAbs were highly sialylated, contributed to altered charge, but did not influence antigen binding. The analysis revealed evidence of unusual B-cell selection pressure and SHM-mediated decreased in surface charge and isoelectric point in ACPA. It is still unknown how these distinct features of anti-citrulline immunity may have an impact on pathogenesis. However, it is evident that they offer selective advantages for ACPA+ B cells, possibly also through non-antigen driven mechanisms

Anthracycline-Induced Cardiotoxicity: Cardiac Monitoring by Continuous Wave-Doppler Ultrasound Cardiac Output Monitoring and Correlation to Echocardiography

Background: Anthracyclines are agents with a well-known cardiotoxicity. The study sought to evaluate the hemodynamic response to an anthracycline using real-time continuous-wave (CW)-Doppler ultrasound cardiac output monitoring (USCOM) and echocardiography in combination with serum biomarkers. Methods: 50 patients (26 male, 24 female, median age 59 years) suffering from various types of cancer received an anthracycline-based regimen. Patients' responses were measured at different time points (T0 prior to infusion, T1 6 h post infusion, T2 after 1 day, T3 after 7 days, and T4 after 3 months) with CW-Doppler ultrasound (T0-T4) and echocardiography (T1, T4) for hemodynamic parameters such as stroke volume (SV; SVUSCOM ml) and ejection fraction (EF; EFechocardiography%) and with NT-pro-BNP and hs-Troponin T (T0-T4). Results: During the 3-month observation period, the relative decrease in the EF determined by echocardiography was -2.1% (Delta T0-T4, T0 71 +/- 7.8%, T4 69.5 +/- 7%, p = 0.04), whereas the decrease in SV observed using CW-Doppler was -6.5% (Delta T0-T4, T0 54 +/- 19.2 ml, T4 50.5 +/- 20.6 ml, p = 0.14). The kinetics for serum biomarkers were inversely correlated. Conclusions: Combining real-time CW-Doppler USCOM and serum biomarkers is feasible for monitoring the immediate and chronic hemodynamic changes during an anthracycline-based regimen; the results obtained were comparable to those from echocardiography

Development of amplicon deep sequencing markers and data analysis pipeline for genotyping multi-clonal malaria infections

Amplicon deep sequencing permits sensitive detection of minority clones and improves discriminatory power for genotyping multi-clone Plasmodium falciparum infections. New amplicon sequencing and data analysis protocols are needed for genotyping in epidemiological studies and drug efficacy trials of P. falciparum.; Targeted sequencing of molecular marker csp and novel marker cpmp was conducted in duplicate on mixtures of parasite culture strains and 37 field samples. A protocol allowing to multiplex up to 384 samples in a single sequencing run was applied. Software "HaplotypR" was developed for data analysis.; Cpmp was highly diverse (He = 0.96) in contrast to csp (He = 0.57). Minority clones were robustly detected if their frequency was &gt;1%. False haplotype calls owing to sequencing errors were observed below that threshold.; To reliably detect haplotypes at very low frequencies, experiments are best performed in duplicate and should aim for coverage of &gt;10'000 reads/amplicon. When compared to length polymorphic marker msp2, highly multiplexed amplicon sequencing displayed greater sensitivity in detecting minority clones

Origin of the surface-orientation dependence of the reduction kinetics of ultrathin ceria

Performance of catalytic redox reactions depends crucially on the oxygen storage and release capability of the catalyst and with that the catalyst’s defect chemistry. Here, we show that the surface defect chemistry of cerium oxide, a prototypical reducible oxide, differs markedly between two surface terminations. The results are in good agreement with density functional theory calculations and provide important guiding factors for rational design of industrially relevant catalysts. The study is conducted by preparing (100) and (111) terminated nanoislands of cerium oxide next to each other on Cu(111). Leveraging the benefits of full-field imaging capability of photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM), we follow the structural and chemical properties of the nanoislands under reducing hydrogen atmosphere simultaneously and in situ. The results, summarized in Figure 1, directly reveal different overall reducibility that can be traced to equilibrium oxygen vacancy concentrations via a kinetic model. The density functional theory calculations provide further details regarding the equilibrium co-ordination of oxygen vacancies for both surface planes. Conjoining the two, the unique simultaneous nature of the PEEM-facilitated structure–activity relationship study allows us to separate the thermodynamics of reduction from the kinetics of oxygen exchange, revealing the fact that the difference in reducibility of the two surfaces of ceria is not determined by the kinetic rate constants of the reduction reaction, but rather by the equilibrium concentration of oxygen vacancies, an information that has not been provided by the isolated model system approach to date. Surprisingly, the reason for the different reducibilities is a purely geometric one: the creation of nearest neighbor oxygen vacancies. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Local mechanical stimuli correlate with tissue growth in axolotl salamander joint morphogenesis

Movement-induced forces are critical to correct joint formation, but it is unclear how cells sense and respond to these mechanical cues. To study the role of mechanical stimuli in the shaping of the joint, we combined experiments on regenerating axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) forelimbs with a poroelastic model of bone rudiment growth. Animals either regrew forelimbs normally (control) or were injected with a transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) agonist during joint morphogenesis. We quantified growth and shape in regrown humeri from whole-mount light sheet fluorescence images of the regenerated limbs. Results revealed significant differences in morphology and cell proliferation between groups, indicating that TRPV4 desensitization has an effect on joint shape. To link TRPV4 desensitization with impaired mechanosensitivity, we developed a finite element model of a regenerating humerus. Local tissue growth was the sum of a biological contribution proportional to chondrocyte density, which was constant, and a mechanical contribution proportional to fluid pressure. Computational predictions of growth agreed with experimental outcomes of joint shape, suggesting that interstitial pressure driven from cyclic mechanical stimuli promotes local tissue growth. Predictive computational models informed by experimental findings allow us to explore potential physical mechanisms involved in tissue growth to advance our understanding of the mechanobiology of joint morphogenesis.This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement no. 841047 and the National Science Foundation under grant no. 1727518. J.J.M. has been also funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation under grant no. DPI2016-74929-R, and by the local government Generalitat de Catalunya under grant no. 2017 SGR 1278. K.L. was supported by a Northeastern University Undergraduate Research and Fellowships PEAK Experiences Award.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version