Controlling Insider Dealing Through Criminal Enforcement in China

The enforcement of the new Securities Law (SL 2020) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in March 2020 presents a perfect opportunity to review the criminal enforcement of insider dealing cases in China’s securities market and to provide feasible suggestions for improvement for a more coherent and streamlined insider dealing regulatory framework in the PRC. Through analysing the previous literature on public interest theories and economic theories of regulation, this article examines the necessity to regulate insider dealing in China with criminal law to ensure fairness and avoid monopolies in its securities market. The article reviews the criminalising of severe insider dealing cases in China from the Nanking National Government in the 1920s to the inception of the securities market of the PRC in the 1990s to the present day. The investigation, prosecution, enforcement, and trial of criminal offences of insider dealing in China are thoroughly examined. The article finds a tendency for over reliance on the investigation and the administrative judgement of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in criminal investigation, prosecution, and trial in the PRC. The article is one of the first articles to critically and thoroughly analyse the criminal enforcement of insider dealing in China following the recent enforcement of China’s new Securities Law in March 2020

Ultrastructure of cytoplasmic fragments in human cleavage stage embryos

Purpose: The goal of this study was to evaluate the ultrastructure of cytoplasmic fragments along with the effect of cytoplasmic fragment and perivitelline space coarse granulation removal (cosmetic microsurgery) from embryos before embryo transfer on ART outcomes. Methods: One hundred and fifty intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles with male factor infertility were included in this prospective study. Patients were divided into three groups of case (n = 50), sham (n = 50), and control (n = 50). Embryos with 10–50 % fragmentation were included in this study. Cosmetic microsurgery and zona assisted hatching were only performed in case and sham groups respectively. Extracted fragments were evaluated ultrastructurally by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Rates of clinical pregnancy, live birth, miscarriage, multiple pregnancies, and congenital anomaly in the three groups were also compared. Results: Micrographs from TEM showed that mitochondria were the most abundant structures found in the fragments along with mitochondria-vesicle complexes, Golgi apparatus, primary lysosomes, and vacuoles. There were no significant differences in demographic characteristics, laboratory and clinical data, or embryo morphological features between the groups. The rate of clinical pregnancy in control, sham, and case groups had no significant differences (24, 18, and 18 %, respectively). The rates of live birth, miscarriage, multiple pregnancy, and congenital anomaly were also similar between the different groups. Conclusions: Our data demonstrated that cosmetic microsurgery on preimplantation embryos had no beneficial effect on ART outcomes in unselected groups of patients. As mitochondria are the most abundant organelles found in cytoplasmic fragments, fragment removal should be performed with more caution in embryos with moderate fragmentation

Comparison of the digestive enzyme activities in Artemia urmiana from nauplii to adult stages using different diets

Due to the importance of adult Artemia in aquaculture, information regarding the digestive enzyme activities variation with inexpensive diets has great importance in Artemia at different life stages. In this study, the effect of different inexpensive diets on digestive enzyme activities, including trypsin, amylse and lipase of Artemia urmiana was investigated in different life stages. The experiment was carried out with 5 treatments and each with 2 replicates over 15 days using 5 diets (wheat meal, common carp diet, soy meal, a mixture of soy meal and canola meal (compound diet 1) and a mixture of soy meal and wheat meal (compound diet 2) in a completely random design. Nauplii were introduced to their cultivation environments after hatching and the digestive enzyme activities were measured in days 5, 10 and 15 of the experiment. Positive and significant correlation were observed between the crude protein content of the diets and trypsin activity (0.74), the carbohydrate content of the diets and amylase activity (0.49), and crude fat content of the diets and lipase activity (0.84). The activities of all enzymes were increased with the Artemia development in this study. During the experimental period, the trypsin, activities were increased in all treatments with the exception of wheat meal treatment, amylase activities were increased in all treatments and lipase activities were increased in all treatments with the exception of common carp diet and wheat meal treatments. Digestive enzyme activities were affected by the diets and Artemia life stages. Regarding the increasing digestive enzyme activities until adult stage in Artemia urmiana, using adult Artemia urmiana decreases pressure on resources of Artemia cyst and nauplii in natural environments. In addition, this condition may result in more economic returns and better quality of adult Artemia compared to its cyst and nauplii

Reconsidering the role of the derivative claim in the United Kingdom. A comparative study with the United States and New Zealand

This thesis studies the role of derivative claims in the English legal system in the context of protecting the company as a separate legal personality, through both the shareholders and employees acting as the derivative claim applicants. In spite of the aim of the English Law Commission to change the derivative claim to a more affordable and more accessible mechanism in the UK, still the current overly restricted approach to this mechanism prevents it to play an effective role in protecting the company. The academic literature brings several factors including the availability of other mechanisms of protection for shareholders, the cost of the derivative claim and the ambiguities in the procedural requirements as the reasons for the ineffectiveness of the derivative claim. This research argues that the derivative claim is the only direct mechanism of protection for the company as a separate legal personality, and that protection of the company extends beyond the protection of its shareholders. Therefore, the hurdles in the way of efficiency of the derivative claim should be removed and it should become a more effective mechanism of protection for the company as a whole. Although the combination of other mechanisms of accountability for directors1 could discipline directors and provide an environment, in which the derivative claim is less needed, however, they have been designed to protect the personal interests of shareholders in the first instance and might not provide a potent protection for the company in all circumstances. This thesis argues that the derivative claim could work as a complementary mechanism and provide protection for the company in situations that the other mechanisms fail to do so. In order to enhance the protection of the company through the derivative claim, the thesis proposes that the scope of derivative claims’ applicants should be extended to employees. Employees have strong incentive to protect the company because they often invest in a company with their human capital, and are deeply dependent on the company well-being for their livelihoods and their pension benefits. In order to make the derivative claim a more affordable and accessible mechanism, the thesis proposes some reforms to derivative claim procedural requirements, including the shareholders ratification and the derivative claim costs. This thesis is a comparative study. The proposals for the derivative claim procedural requirements have been inspired by the derivative claim structures in the United States and New Zealand. The financial structure of the derivative claim in both countries has reduced the risk of the derivative claim for shareholders. Moreover, studying the role of the derivative claim in these jurisdictions confirms the thesis argument that although the availability of the other mechanisms of accountability could affect the need for the derivative claim, still the derivative claim has a role to play as a complementary mechanism

Are there any good digraph width measures?

Several different measures for digraph width have appeared in the last few years. However, none of them shares all the "nice" properties of treewidth: First, being \emph{algorithmically useful} i.e. admitting polynomial-time algorithms for all \MS1-definable problems on digraphs of bounded width. And, second, having nice \emph{structural properties} i.e. being monotone under taking subdigraphs and some form of arc contractions. As for the former, (undirected) \MS1 seems to be the least common denominator of all reasonably expressive logical languages on digraphs that can speak about the edge/arc relation on the vertex set.The latter property is a necessary condition for a width measure to be characterizable by some version of the cops-and-robber game characterizing the ordinary treewidth. Our main result is that \emph{any reasonable} algorithmically useful and structurally nice digraph measure cannot be substantially different from the treewidth of the underlying undirected graph. Moreover, we introduce \emph{directed topological minors} and argue that they are the weakest useful notion of minors for digraphs

Comparisons of competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and one step RT-PCR tests for the detection of Bluetongue virus in south west of Iran

Bluetongue is a noncontagious, arthropod-borne viral disease of both domestic and wild ruminants. Bluetongue virus (BTV) is the type of species of the genus Orbivirus within the family Reoviridae. BTV is endemic in some areas with cattle and wild ruminants serving as reservoirs for the virus. Clinical symptoms are often seen in sheep. There are several methods for the detection of Bluetongue virus, among them the molecular technique like RT-PCR is considered as the most sensitive and reliable one. The aim of this study was to comprise competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (C-ELISA) with one step RT-PCR test for the detection of BTV in sheep. A total of 770 blood samples were obtained from sheep (265 serum positive samples and 505 serum negative samples in C-ELISA). According to our data, out of the 265 serum positive samples in ELISA test, 234 were positive in RT-PCR assay whereas all serum negative samples were negative in RT-PCR experiment. According to the results, the PCR assay was more sensitive and reliable than ELISA technique for the diagnosis of Bluetongue virus.Key words: Bluetongue virus, C-ELISA, RT- PCR, Sheep, Iran

Prediction of preeclampsia based on blood lead levels in early pregnancy

زمینه و هدف: پره اکلامپسی شایع ترین عارضه بالینی دوران بارداری است. با توجه به اهمیت پره اکلامپسی در بارداری و عدم وجود عوامل قطعی موثر بر آن، این پژوهش با هدف پیشگویی وقوع پره اکلامپسی بر اساس سطح سرب خون مادران باردار در نیمه اول بارداری انجام شد. روش بررسی: این مطالعه توصیفی - تحلیلی بر روی 1033 مادر باردار در درمانگاه های پره ناتال شهر تهران انجام شد. در بدو ورود به مطالعه نمونه خون جهت سنجش سرب اخذ و پرسشنامه دموگرافیک تکمیل گردید. مادران باردار از زمان ورود به مطالعه تا زمان زایمان تحت مراقبت و پیگیری قرار گرفتند. در صورت وجود فشار خون مساوی یا بیش از 140 بر 90 میلی‌متر جیوه و پروتئین‌اوری پس از هفته 20 بارداری تشخیص پره اکلامپسی برای مادر داده می شد. برای تجزیه و تحلیل داده ها از آزمون های آماری من ویتنی و رگرسیون لجستیک در نرم افزارSPSS استفاده شد. یافته ها: از 1033 مادر باردار 20 نفر (9/1) مبتلا به پره اکلامپسی بودند. میانگین سطح سرب خون مادران µg/dl9/4 ± 7/4 بود. ارتباط میان سرب خون مادر و پره اکلامپسی مستقیم و معنادار بود (001/0>(P. سطح موثر سرب خون (نقطه ی برش) در پره اکلامپسی دارای حساسیت 85، ویژگی 5/70، ارزش اخباری منفی 6/99 و ارزش اخباری مثبت 4/5، µg/dl 5 بدست آمد. نتیجه گیری: نتایج این مطالعه نشان داد که سطح سرب µg/dl 5 و بالاتر در نیمه اول بارداری می تواند با حساسیت نسبتاً بالا با وقوع پره اکلامپسی همراه باشد؛ لذا انجام این آزمایش به عنوان روشی در اوایل بارداری، برای پیشگویی وقوع پره اکلامپسی در مادران باردار فاقد عوامل خطرزای مهم پره اکلامپسی، پیشنهاد می گردد