Robust Optimization of Currency Portfolios

We study a currency investment strategy, where we maximize the return on a portfolio of foreign currencies relative to any appreciation of the corresponding foreign exchange rates. Given the uncertainty in the estimation of the future currency values, we employ robust optimization techniques to maximize the return on the portfolio for the worst-case foreign exchange rate scenario. Currency portfolios differ from stock only portfolios in that a triangular relationship exists among foreign exchange rates to avoid arbitrage. Although the inclusion of such a constraint in the model would lead to a nonconvex problem, we show that by choosing appropriate uncertainty sets for the exchange and the cross exchange rates, we obtain a convex model that can be solved efficiently. Alongside robust optimization, an additional guarantee is explored by investing in currency options to cover the eventuality that foreign exchange rates materialize outside the specified uncertainty sets. We present numerical results that show the relationship between the size of the uncertainty sets and the distribution of the investment among currencies and options, and the overall performance of the model in a series of backtesting experiments.robust optimization, portfolio optimization, currency hedging, second-order cone programming

What Explains the Gender Gap in Financial Literacy? The Role of Household Decision-Making

Research has shown that financial illiteracy is widespread among women, and that many women are unfamiliar with even the most basic economic concepts needed to make saving and investment decisions. This gender gap in financial literacy may contribute to the differential levels of retirement preparedness between women and men. However, little is known about the determinants of the gender gap in financial literacy. Using data from the RAND American Life Panel, we examined potential explanations for the gender gap including the role of marriage and division of financial decision-making among couples. We found that differences in the demographic characteristics of women and men did not explain much of the financial literacy gap, whereas education, income and current and past marital status reduced the observed gap by around 25%. Oaxaca decomposition revealed the great majority of the gender gap in financial literacy is not explained by differences in covariates - characteristics of men and women - but due to coefficients, or how literacy is produced. We did not find strong support for specialization in financial decision-making within couples by gender. Instead, we found that decision-making within couples was sensitive to the relative education level of spouses for both women and men

Kinematic and clinical outcomes to evaluate the efficacy of a multidisciplinary intervention on functional mobility in Parkinson's disease

Copyright © 2021 Bouça-Machado, Branco, Fonseca, Fernandes, Abreu, Guerreiro, Ferreira and The CNS Physiotherapy Study Group. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.Introduction: Functional mobility (FM) is a concept that incorporates the capacity of a person to move independently and safely to accomplish tasks. It has been proposed as a Parkinson's disease (PD) functional and global health outcome. In this study, we aimed to identify which kinematic and clinical outcomes changes better predict FM changes when PD patients are submitted to a specialized multidisciplinary program. Methods: PD patients engaged in a pre-defined specialized multidisciplinary program were assessed at admission and discharge. Change from baseline was calculated for all kinematic and clinical outcomes, and Timed Up and Go (TUG) was defined as the primary outcome for FM. A stepwise multivariate linear regression was performed to identify which outcome measures better predict TUG changes. Results: Twenty-four patients were included in the study. The changes in TUG Cognitive test, supervised step length, and free-living (FL) step time asymmetry were identified as the best predictors of TUG changes. The supervised step length and FL step time asymmetry were able to detect a small to moderate effect of the intervention (d values ranging from -0.26 to 0.42). Conclusions: Our results support the use of kinematic outcome measures to evaluate the efficacy of multidisciplinary interventions on PD FM. The TUG Cognitive, step length, and FL step time asymmetry were identified as having the ability to predict TUG changes. More studies are needed to identify the minimal clinically important difference for step length and FL step time asymmetry in response to a multidisciplinary intervention for PD FM.The authors would like to acknowledge the support of Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) (SFRH/BD/120773/2016 to RB-M; SFRH/BD/144242/2019 to DB, UIDB/00408/2020 and UIDP/00408/2020 to LASIGE).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Beach sand and the potential for infectious disease transmission: observations and recommendations

Recent studies suggest that sand can serve as a vehicle for exposure of humans to pathogens at beach sites, resulting in increased health risks. Sampling for microorganisms in sand should therefore be considered for inclusion in regulatory programmes aimed at protecting recreational beach users from infectious disease. Here, we review the literature on pathogen levels in beach sand, and their potential for affecting human health. In an effort to provide specific recommendations for sand sampling programmes, we outline published guidelines for beach monitoring programmes, which are currently focused exclusively on measuring microbial levels in water. We also provide background on spatial distribution and temporal characteristics of microbes in sand, as these factors influence sampling programmes. First steps toward establishing a sand sampling programme include identifying appropriate beach sites and use of initial sanitary assessments to refine site selection. A tiered approach is recommended for monitoring. This approach would include the analysis of samples from many sites for faecal indicator organisms and other conventional analytes, while testing for specific pathogens and unconventional indicators is reserved for high-risk sites. Given the diversity of microbes found in sand, studies are urgently needed to identify the most significant aetiological agent of disease and to relate microbial measurements in sand to human health risk

Multiplexing detection of IgG against Plasmodium falciparum pregnancy-specific antigens

Background Pregnant women exposed to Plasmodium falciparum generate antibodies against VAR2CSA, the parasite protein that mediates adhesion of infected erythrocytes to the placenta. There is a need of high-throughput tools to determine the fine specificity of these antibodies that can be used to identify immune correlates of protection and exposure. Here we aimed at developing a multiplex-immunoassay to detect antibodies against VAR2CSA antigens. Methods and findings We constructed two multiplex-bead arrays, one composed of 3 VAR2CSA recombinant-domains (DBL3X, DBL5Ɛ and DBL6Ɛ) and another composed of 46 new peptides covering VAR2CSA conserved and semi-conserved regions. IgG reactivity was similar in multiplexed and singleplexed determinations (Pearson correlation, protein array: R2 = 0.99 and peptide array: R2 = 0.87). IgG recognition of 25 out of 46 peptides and all recombinant-domains was higher in pregnant Mozambican women (n = 106) than in Mozambican men (n = 102) and Spanish individuals (n = 101; p<0.05). Agreement of IgG levels detected in cryopreserved plasma and in elutions from dried blood spots was good after exclusion of inappropriate filter papers. Under heterogeneous levels of exposure to malaria, similar seropositivity cutoffs were obtained using finite mixture models applied to antibodies measured on pregnant Mozambican women and average of antibodies measured on pregnant Spanish women never exposed to malaria. The application of the multiplex-bead array developed here, allowed the assessment of higher IgG levels and seroprevalences against VAR2CSA-derived antigens in women pregnant during 2003–2005 than during 2010–2012, in accordance with the levels of malaria transmission reported for these years in Mozambique. Conclusions The multiplex bead-based immunoassay to detect antibodies against selected 25 VAR2CSA new-peptides and recombinant-domains was successfully implemented. Analysis of field samples showed that responses were specific among pregnant women and dependent on the level of exposure to malaria. This platform provides a high-throughput approach to investigating correlates of protection and identifying serological markers of exposure for malaria in pregnancy

Role of the satiety factor oleoylethanolamide in alcoholism

Oleoylethanolamide (OEA) is a satiety factor that controls motivational responses to dietary fat. Here we show that alcohol administration causes the release of OEA in rodents, which in turn reduces alcohol consumption by engaging peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha (PPAR-α). This effect appears to rely on peripheral signaling mechanisms as alcohol self-administration is unaltered by intracerebral PPAR-α agonist administration, and the lesion of sensory afferent fibers (by capsaicin) abrogates the effect of systemically administered OEA on alcohol intake. Additionally, OEA is shown to block cue-induced reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behavior (an animal model of relapse) and reduce the severity of somatic withdrawal symptoms in alcohol-dependent animals. Collectively, these findings demonstrate a homeostatic role for OEA signaling in the behavioral effects of alcohol exposure and highlight OEA as a novel therapeutic target for alcohol use disorders and alcoholism

Study of genetic varibility of reproductive traits in Nellore bulls

Heritabilities, were estimated of testicular traits, semen quality and libido in Nellore bulls. Records on 438 bulls registered from 1992 to 1997 were analyzed by single trait MTDFREML methodology using the animal model. The estimates obtained of heritability unadjusted and adjusted for body weight and the respective standard errors were: for scrotal circumference (0.81 ± 0.04 and 0.71 ± 0.07); testicular consistency (0.17 ± 0.09 and 0.17 ± 0.10); right testes length (0.42 ± 0.10 and 0.31 ± 0.11); left testes length (0.38 ± 0.10 and 0.30 ± 0.10); right testes width (0.78 ± 0.05 and 0.38 ± 0.12); left testes width (0.78 ± 0.05 and 0.34 ± 0.13); testicular volume (0.50 ± 0.09 and 0.30 ± 0.10); semen volume (0.20 ± 0.10 and 0.20 ± 0.10); sperm motility (0.15 ± 0.11 and 0.15±.11); sperm vigor (0.55 ± 0.10 and 0.54 ± 0.10); gross motility (0.07 ± 0.4 and 0.06 ± 0.4); major defects (0.59 ± 0.09 and 0.51 ± 0.11); minor defects (0.21 ±0.13 and 0.13 ± 0.11); total sperm defects (0.58 ± 0.09 and 0.48 ± 0.12) and libido (0.34 ± 0.10 and 0.19 ± 0.11)

Glutaminase and MMP-9 downregulation in cortex and hippocampus of LPA1 receptor null mice correlate with altered dendritic spine plasticity

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is an extracellular lipid mediator that regulates nervous system development and functions acting through G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Here we explore the crosstalk between LPA1 receptor and glutamatergic transmission by examining expression of glutaminase (GA) isoforms in different brain areas isolated from wild-type (WT) and KOLPA1 mice. Silencing of LPA1 receptor induced a severe down-regulation of Gls-encoded long glutaminase protein variant (KGA) (glutaminase gene encoding the kidney-type isoforms, GLS) protein expression in several brain regions, particularly in brain cortex and hippocampus. Immunohistochemical assessment of protein levels for the second type of glutaminase (GA) isoform, glutaminase gene encoding the liver-type isoforms (GLS2), did not detect substantial differences with regard to WT animals. The regional mRNA levels of GLS were determined by real time RT-PCR and did not show significant variations, except for prefrontal and motor cortex values which clearly diminished in KO mice. Total GA activity was also significantly reduced in prefrontal and motor cortex, but remained essentially unchanged in the hippocampus and rest of brain regions examined, suggesting activation of genetic compensatory mechanisms and/or post-translational modifications to compensate for KGA protein deficit. Remarkably, Golgi staining of hippocampal regions showed an altered morphology of glutamatergic pyramidal cells dendritic spines towards a less mature filopodia-like phenotype, as compared with WT littermates. This structural change correlated with a strong decrease of active matrix-metalloproteinase (MMP) 9 in cerebral cortex and hippocampus of KOLPA1 mice. Taken together, these results demonstrate that LPA signaling through LPA1 influence expression of the main isoenzyme of glutamate biosynthesis with strong repercussions on dendritic spines maturation, which may partially explain the cognitive and learning defects previously reported for this colony of KOLPA1 mice

The effect of an extract from Ganoderma lucidum (reishi) on the labeling of blood constituents with technetium-99m and on the survival of Escherichia coli

This study evaluated effects of an aqueous extract of Ganoderma lucidum (reishi) on the labeling of blood constituents with technetium-99m (99mTc) and on the survival of cultures of Escherichia coli treated with stannous chloride. Blood samples from Wistar rats were treated with reishi extract, radiolabeling procedure was performed, plasma (P), blood cells (BC) and insoluble (IF) and soluble (SF) fractions of P and BC were separated. The radioactivity was counted for the determination of the percentages of radioactivity (%ATI). Cultures of Escherichia coli AB1157 were treated with stannous chloride in the presence and absence of reishi extract. Blood samples and bacterial cultures treated with NaCl 0.9% were used as controls. Data indicated that reishi extract altered significantly (p99mTc and protecting bacterial cultures against oxidative damage induced by stannous chloride

Ingeniería de tejidos: estudio de hemograma de conejos New Zealand con lesion femoral post-implante de matriz de tercera generaci{on con potencialidad osteoregenerativa

La alta tasa de fracturas a nivel mundial, ha promovido el desarrollo de matrices con la intención de ser aplicados como implantes frente a lesiones óseas, intentado promover la regeneración tisular de novo. En el laboratorio se han comenzado a desarrollar investigaciones tendientes a considerar como potenciales matrices a los recombinámeros de tipo elastina, matrices de tercera generación obtenidas por estrategias de biología molecular (ELRs de las palabras en ingles elastin-like recombinamers, que significan recombinàmeros del tipo elastina).. La propia composición de los ELRs, basada en la repetición de la elastina natural, le dota al material de una serie de propiedades que son difícilmente encontrables en otras familias de polímeros: autoensamblado y adecuadas propiedades mecánicas de sus hidrogeles, asì como la sencilla manipulación frente a su implante, ya que son líquidos en estado refrigerado y gelifican a Ta ambiente o mayor, es decir son de gelificación inversa. Hemos desarrollado previamente un modelo de lesión ósea en fémur de conejo,. Este proyecto pretende frente a este modelo y el implante de ELRs, investigar si se ven afectados o no los hemogramas de los conejos implantados, aportando resultados de lo que ocurre in vivo, contribuyendo a la caracterización de esta estrategia de ingeniería de tejidos. Modelo experimental: Conejos hembras de la línea New Zealand de tres meses de edad, .se dividieron en tres grupos I, II y III ( n= 5 c/u) . Los grupos I y II recibieron bajo anestesia lesión distal-medial del fémur de 6 mm diámetro todo bajo estrictas normas de anestesia y tratamiento del dolor, Sin embargo los animales del grupo I recibieron a su vez a posteriori de este proceso el implante de Elrs, mientras que los animales del grupo II no lo recibieron; III fue grupo control. En tiempos preimplante y a los tres meses, previo al sacrificio de los animales para la realización de otros estudios en paralelo, se extrajeron muestras de sangre en tubos heparinizados para la realización de hemogramas, previa homogenización de las muestras. Se realizaron recuento de Glóbulos rojos (GR), Glóbulos blancos (GB), Hemoglobina (Hb), Hematocrito (Hto), Volumen corpuscular medio(MCV), plaquetas. No se observaron diferencias significativas para las variables mencionadas al realizar los estudios estadísticos mediante programa computadorizado infostat UNC, tanto a nivel intergrupal (test de Kruskall wallis), ni al comparar los estados iniciales y finales del experimento para cada grupo (test de Wicolxon). Dado lo novedoso de este tipo de matrices, consideramos que este tipo de estudios aportan datos imprescindibles para realizar caracterizaciones de los procesos in vivo post-implante, y sumados a otras caracterizaciones bioquímicas, clínicas y anatomopatológicas que estamos realizando, permitirán quizás a futuro considerar potenciales estudios pre-clínicos.Fil: Garbino, Federico. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; ArgentinaFil: Coletta, Dante Jesus. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; ArgentinaFil: Ibañez Fonseca, Arturo. No especifíca;Fil: Radice, Maria Beatriz. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; ArgentinaFil: Aimone, Maria Angeles. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; ArgentinaFil: Missana, Liliana Raquel. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Odontología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; ArgentinaFil: Alonso, Matilde. Universidad de Valladolid; EspañaFil: Rodriguez Cabello, J. C.. Universidad de Valladolid; EspañaFil: Feldman, Sara. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Laboratorio de Biología Osteoarticular, Ingeniería Tisular y Terapias Emergentes; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaXVIII Congreso y XXXVI Reunión Anual de la Sociedad de Biología de RosarioRosarioArgentinaSociedad de Biología de RosarioUniversidad Nacional de Rosari