Capital Flows, Institutions, and Financial Fragility

This dissertation studies the mechanism through which international capital flows are transmitted from the banking sector to the real sector in a bank-based open economy when moral hazard problems are present. It also examines the role of the quality of institutions and domestic policies in reducing moral hazard problems and in determining the net benefit of international capital flows to a country. A general equilibrium model, incorporating moral hazard problems at the bank, corporate and international levels, is developed to explain this mechanism. In this unifying model, the three layers of moral hazard problems and international capital flows reinforce one another to amplify the boom-bust cycle of an economy, as seen in several crisis countries. The model predicts that an economy will never reach a steady state when banks can accumulate losses and finance those losses through foreign borrowing. This prediction underlines the role of international capital flows and the moral hazard problems at the bank and international levels in destabilizing an economy. The results from the parameter estimation and the hypothesis testing using Thailand data suggest that there have been structural changes in the quality of institutions and domestic policies after the Asian financial crisis and these changes help alleviate the moral hazard problems at all levels in Thailand. Based on the simulation exercises, the improvement in banking supervision and foreign investors' risk estimation helps substantially reduce the bailout costs and the output losses during the recession. In contrast, the reduction in government subsidies or tax incentives hurts, rather than helps, the economy since the cost from the overall output decline outweighs the benefit from the lower bailout costs

Antibody-Binding Motif of Mimetic Peptides to V. cholerae O139 Lipopolysaccharide

ABSTRACT This study explores deduced amino acid sequences of mimetic peptides of Vibrio cholerae O139 epitopes in order to design specific antigens for use in diagnostic method. Mimetic peptides expressed on E. coli flagella were selected from a FliTrx random peptide library via the interaction with purified monoclonal antibody to V. cholerae O139. Inserted nucleotides encoding bound peptides were determined by PCR. Peptides from clones giving positive results were confirmed by Western blot analysis. Sixty-two positive E. coli colonies were obtained and nucleotide-sequenced. Inserted nucleotides were translated into amino acids. Fifty-six patterns of deduced amino acid sequences were obtained without a consensus sequence. Most sequences of mimetic peptides have amino acid motif as RXXR with approximate molecular weight of 1,700 to 2,000. Arginine and glycine occupy the highest percentage of amino acid composition

Ciclo vital del pulpo marmóreo, Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae) criado en laboratorio

Reproducing small eggs and planktonic hatchlings is a reproductive strategy of many species of benthic octopods although it is considered a pleisiomorphic state. The young in the planktonic and settling phases have a high energy consumption and require live food of specific size range characteristics, causing difficulties in obtaining appropriate food organisms for rearing experiments through the entire life cycle. This study obtained information on details of life cycle characteristics of Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) by resolving these difficulties. The aspects of life cycle of A. aegina were similar to those of other benthic octopus with a similar reproductive strategy. Growth was allometric, consisting of 3 phases in terms of body weight, including a transitional phase for the early settling stage. Feeding and conversion efficiency peaked over a 2-month period prior to reproduction, representing the period of energy storage. Growth from hatching to spawning took approximately 74% of the entire life span and the reproductive phase itself took 34%. Such longevities are similar to those of other benthic cephalopods with planktonic hatchlings. Overall similarities in these cephalopod taxa attest to the fitness of a life-history strategy involving production of planktonic offspring from benthic adults. A. aegina is the second benthic octopus species with planktonic hatchlings for which the life cycle has been completed through rearing in the laboratory.El desove de pequeños huevos que darán origen a plancton constituye la estrategia de reproducción de numerosos octópodos bénticos, aunque se asocia a un estado plesiomórfico. Las nuevas criaturas en fase planctónica y de asentamiento requieren un gran consumo energético y nutrientes vivos con características y dimensiones específicas, lo que dificulta la obtención de organismos que les sirvan de alimento a lo largo de todo el ciclo vital. A partir de este estudio se han obtenido datos sobre las características del ciclo vital del Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) mediante la resolución de estas dificultades. Muchos aspectos del ciclo vital del A. aegina resultaron muy similares a los de otros pulpos bénticos con una estrategia de reproducción parecida. Se produjo un crecimiento alométrico en tres fases, según el peso corporal, que incluía una fase de transición en el periodo de asentamiento inicial. La eficacia en la alimentación y la conversión alcanzó su punto máximo en los 2 meses previos a la reproducción, que representan un periodo de almacenamiento energético. El crecimiento desde la eclosión hasta el desove fue aproximadamente el 74% del ciclo vital completo, y la fase reproductiva en sí supuso un 34%. Tal longevidad es compartida por otros cefalópodos bénticos con desoves planctónicos. Las similitudes generales entre estas categorías taxonómicas de cefalópodos confirman el éxito de esta estrategia de ciclos vitales en la producción de crías planctónicas por parte de adultos bénticos. A. aegina es la segunda especie de pulpo béntico con desove planctónico cuyo ciclo vital ha logrado completarse mediante la cría en laboratorio

Antimutagenicity and Anti-HSV-2 Activity of Mulberry Tea (Morus rotunbiloba Koidz)

ABSTRACT Hot water extract from mulberry leaves, Morus rotunbiloba Koidz was extracted with diethyl ether, and its components were analyzed using high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC). Polyphenolic compounds constituted the major component (79.8%), consisting of mainly tannic acid (37.9%), epigallocatechin-3-gallate (21.1%) and caffeic acid (11.2%). The genotoxicity of the extract was evaluated by the Ames mutagenicity test, using Salmonella typhimurium strain TA 98 induced by a mutagen Trp-P-1. It was found that the number of revertant colonies was significantly decreased with an IC 50 value of 4.5 mg/mL. The extract of Morus rotunbiloba Koidz also exhibited marked antiviral activity against herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) with an IC 50 of 0.52 µg/mL. The results suggested the benefit of consumption of mulberry tea for prevention of cancer and HSV-2 infection

Evaluating the Expression and Prognostic Value of Genes Encoding Microtubule-Associated Proteins in Lung Cancer

Microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) play essential roles in cancer development. This study aimed to identify transcriptomic biomarkers among MAP genes for the diagnosis and prognosis of lung cancer by analyzing differential gene expressions and correlations with tumor progression. Gene expression data of patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were used to identify differentially expressed MAP genes (DEMGs). Their prognostic value was evaluated by Kaplan–Meier and Cox regression analysis. Moreover, the relationships between alterations in lung cancer hallmark genes and the expression levels of DEMGs were investigated. The candidate biomarker genes were validated using three independent datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) on clinical samples. A total of 88 DEMGs were identified from TCGA data. The 20 that showed the highest differential expression were subjected to association analysis with hallmark genes. Genetic alterations in TP53, EGFR, PTEN, NTRK1, and PIK3CA correlated with the expression of most of these DEMGs. Of these, six candidates—NUF2, KIF4A, KIF18B, DLGAP5, NEK2, and LRRK2—were significantly differentially expressed and correlated with the overall survival (OS) of the patients. The mRNA expression profiles of these candidates were consistently verified using three GEO datasets and qRT-PCR on patient lung tissues. The expression levels of NUF2, KIF4A, KIF18B, DLGAP5, NEK2, and LRRK2 can serve as diagnostic biomarkers for LUAD and LUSC. Moreover, the first five can serve as prognostic biomarkers for LUAD, while LRRK2 can be a prognostic biomarker for LUSC. Our research describes the novel role and potential application of MAP-encoding genes in clinical practice