Non-convexities in the Adjustment of Different Capital Inputs: A Firm-level Investigation

Recent developments in investment research have highlighted the importance of non-convexities and irreversibilities in the firms’ adjustment of quasi-fixed inputs. However, aggregation across capital goods may smooth out the discontinuities associated with the adjustment of individual assets. The lack of suitable data is one of the reasons why empirical work has strongly relied on the assumption of capital homogeneity. In this paper we exploit a new data set of 1539 Italian firms which allows us to disaggregate capital and consider separately purchases and sales of assets. We disaggregate between equipment and structures and construct measures of fundamental Q to capture investment opportunities associated with each asset. To uncover the pattern of dynamic adjustment we use non-parametric techniques to relate each individual investment to own fundamental Q.Investment, heterogenous capital, non-convexities, fundamental Q, panel data

Investment and Time to Plan: A Comparison of Structures vs. Equipment in a Panel of Italian Firms

“Time to build” models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and modern theories of the business cycle, especially for explaining the dynamic propagation of shocks. We estimate the structural parameters of a time-to-build model using firm-level investment data on equipment and structures. For equipment expenditures, we find no evidence of time-to-build effects beyond one period. For structures, by contrast, there is clear evidence of time to build in the range of 2-3 years. The contrast between equipment and structures is intuitively reasonable and consistent with previous results. The estimates for structures also indicate that initial-period expenditures are low, and increase as projects near completion. These results provide empirical support for including “time to plan” effects for investment in structures. More generally, these results suggest a potential source of specification error for Q models of investment and production-based asset pricing models that ignore the time required to plan, build and install new capital.Investment expenditures, Panel data, Italian firms, Time to build

La collezione Calderara Pino

La collezione Calderara Pin

Removal of acetaldehyde from saliva by mucoadhesive formulations containing cysteine and chlorhexidine diacetate: a possible approach to the prevention of oral cavity alcohol-related cancer

The aim of our work has been to develop buccoadhesive formulations (tablets) containing both L-cysteine and chlorhexidine diacetate and to verify their ability to reduce oral acetaldehyde produced after alcoholic drinks consumption

Chromogranin A: From Laboratory to Clinical Aspects of Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors

Background. Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are characterized by having behavior and prognosis that depend upon tumor histology, primary site, staging, and proliferative index. The symptoms associated with carcinoid syndrome and vasoactive intestinal peptide tumors are treated with octreotide acetate. The PROMID trial assesses the effect of octreotide LAR on the tumor growth in patients with well-differentiated metastatic midgut NETs. The CLARINET trial evaluates the effects of lanreotide in patients with nonfunctional, well-, or moderately differentiated metastatic enteropancreatic NETs. Everolimus has been approved for the treatment of advanced pancreatic NETs (pNETs) based on positive PFS effects, obtained in the treated group. Sunitinib is approved for the treatment of patients with progressive gastrointestinal stromal tumor or intolerance to imatinib, because a randomized study demonstrated that it improves PFS and overall survival in patients with advanced well-differentiated pNETs. In a phase II trial, pasireotide shows efficacy and tolerability in the treatment of patients with advanced NETs, whose symptoms of carcinoid syndrome were resistant to octreotide LAR. An open-label, phase II trial assesses the clinical activity of long-acting repeatable pasireotide in treatment-naive patients with metastatic grade 1 or 2 NETs. Even if the growth of the neoplasm was significantly inhibited, it is still unclear whether its antiproliferative action is greater than that of octreotide and lanreotide. Because new therapeutic options are needed to counter the natural behavior of neuroendocrine tumors, it would also be useful to have a biochemical marker that can be addressed better in the management of these patients. Chromogranin A is currently the most useful biomarker to establish diagnosis and has some utility in predicting disease recurrence, outcome, and efficacy of therapy

Factors affecting recipients' pregnancy, pregnancy loss, and foaling rates in a commercial equine embryo transfer program

During 11 breeding seasons, 351 7- to 10-day-old horse embryos were nonsurgically transferred into recipients that ovulated between 3 and 10 days earlier. Pregnancy rates at 14 and 40 days and foaling rates were 77.8% (273/351), 69.2% (243/351), and 64.4% (226/351), respectively. Pregnancy loss between 14 and 40 days was 11% and between 40 days and delivery was 7%. The transfer of quality grade 3 to 4 embryos resulted in a significantly lower pregnancy rate at 14 days compared with the transfer of grade 1 to 2 embryos (46.2% vs. 79%; P < .05). Eight-day-old embryos resulted in significantly lower pregnancy losses than day 9 or 10 embryos, as occurred for embryos between 400 and 1200 μm compared with embryos <400 μm. Embryos recovered from mares >20 years resulted in a significantly higher pregnancy loss rate than those recovered from younger mares. The same happened for embryos coming from mares affected by reproductive pathologies compared with healthy mares performing sport activity. None of the evaluated parameters influenced recipients' foaling rate significantly

Retrospective study of factors affecting multiple ovulations, embryo recovery, quality, and diameter in a commercial equine embryo transfer program

In this study, 198 donor mares of different breeds, ages, and reproductive category were inseminated with fresh, cooled and frozen or frozen and cooled semen at the embryo transfer station or in private artificial insemination centers during 10 breeding seasons. The results of this activity were retrospectively analyzed by Pearson Chi-square test and logistic regression to evaluate factors affecting multiple ovulations, embryo recovery, embryo quality, and embryo diameter. Out of the 661 cycles, 937 ovulations were recorded (mean ovulations/cycle: 1.42 ± 0.58). Ovulation rate and incidence of multiple ovulations were significantly affected by age, breed, and reproductive category. Uterine flushings for embryo recovery were performed between 7 and 10 days after ovulation and resulted in the recovery of 338 embryos (51.1% embryos/cycle and 36.1% embryos/ovulation, respectively). At least one embryo was recovered in 298 flushings (45.1%). The factors affecting embryo recovery were age, breed, reproductive category, type of semen, number of ovulations, and location of artificial insemination. Flushing protocol and day of flushing had no effect on embryo recovery. Age, type of semen, number of ovulations, and day of flushing had a significant influence on embryo diameter (N = 215). None of the factors included in the model had an effect on embryo quality distribution

Iatrogenic Hypoglycemia Induced by Valproic Acid in an Adult Patient

Literature on antiepileptic induced iatrogenic hypoglycemia is scanty. Due to its broad spectrum of activity and mechanisms of action, valproic acid (VPA), a fatty acid, is the most widely prescribed epilepsy treatment worldwide.Herein, we describe an adult epileptic patient, where persistent, otherwise unexplained hypoglycemia, was most likely induced by VPA, as suggested by the VPA time course and glucose blood levels. Indeed, no further hypoglycemic episodes occurred after VPA discontinuation and the diagnostic work-up ruled out other possible causes of hypoglycemia.This case supports the hypothesis that VPA may induce hypoglycemia, due to still not well-defined metabolic mechanisms of action. Moreover, it emphasizes the fact that an iatrogenic pathogenesis should be considered if an apparently unexplained hypoglycemia occurs in a patient on chronic therapy with antiepileptics, even at a therapeutical dosage