State guarantees to counteract the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on industrial supply chains

As the recent COVID-19 pandemic has clearly demonstrated, appropriate state support policies are crucial for supporting industrial supply chains during crises to prevent viable businesses from defaulting. In this context, this study proposes a hybrid credit risk model to appropriately size public interventions for viable (worthy) businesses through systematic risk assessment during a period of turmoil. This study discusses the effects of the credit crunch-based economic downturn and proposes a methodology to assist policymakers in managing limited public resources to effectively support industrial supply chains. The proposed approach initially focuses on the dynamics of credit risk during economic recession periods, identifying the conditions that may justify a public intervention strategy based on public guarantees. Subsequently, a hybrid credit risk model is developed to appropriately size public interventions by quantifying systematic risk. Finally, a numerical application is presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach

The Anticonvulsant Activity of a Flavonoid-Rich Extract from Orange Juice Involves both NMDA and GABA-Benzodiazepine Receptor Complexes

The usage of dietary supplements and other natural products to treat neurological diseases has been growing over time, and accumulating evidence suggests that flavonoids possess anticonvulsant properties. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of a flavonoid-rich extract from orange juice (OJe) in some rodent models of epilepsy and to explore its possible mechanism of action. The genetically audiogenic seizures (AGS)-susceptible DBA/2 mouse, the pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced seizures in ICR-CD1 mice and the WAG/Rij rat as a genetic model of absence epilepsy with comorbidity of depression were used. Our results demonstrate that OJe was able to exert anticonvulsant effects on AGS-sensible DBA/2 mice and to inhibit PTZ-induced tonic seizures, increasing their latency. Conversely, it did not have anti-absence effects on WAG/Rij rats. Our experimental findings suggest that the anti-convulsant effects of OJe are likely mediated by both an inhibition of NMDA receptors at the glycine-binding site and an agonistic activity on benzodiazepine-binding site at GABAA receptors. This study provides evidences for the antiepileptic activity of OJe, and its results could be used as scientific basis for further researches aimed to develop novel complementary therapy for the treatment of epilepsy in a context of a multitarget pharmacological strategy

Different impact of sex on baseline characteristics and major periprocedural outcomes of transcatheter and surgical aortic valve interventions: results of the multicenter Italian OBSERVANT Registry

Background: Despite the widespread use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), the role of sex on outcome after TAVI or surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR) has been poorly investigated. We investigated the impact of sex on outcome after TAVI or AVR. Methods: There were 2108 patients undergoing TAVI or AVR who were enrolled in the Italian Observational Multicenter Registry (OBSERVANT). Thirty-day mortality, major periprocedural morbidity, and transprosthetic gradients were stratified by sex according to interventions. Results: Female AVR patients showed a worse risk profile compared with male AVR patients, given the higher mean age, prevalence of frailty score of 2 or higher, New York Heart Association class of 3 or higher, lower body weight, and preoperative hemoglobin level (P ≤.02). Similarly, female TAVI patients had a different risk profile than male TAVI patients, given a higher age and a lower body weight and preoperative hemoglobin level (P ≤.005), but with a similar New York Heart Association class, frailty score, EuroSCORE (P = NS), a better left ventricular ejection fraction and a lower prevalence of left ventricular ejection fraction less than 30%, porcelain aorta, renal dysfunction, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, arteriopathy, and previous cardiovascular surgery or percutaneous coronary intervention (P ≤.01). Women showed a smaller aortic annulus than men in both populations (P <.001). Female sex was an independent predictor in the AVR population for risk-Adjusted 30-day mortality (odds ratio [OR], 2.34; P =.043) and transfusions (OR, 1.47; P =.003), but not for risk-Adjusted acute myocardial infarction, stroke, vascular complications, permanent atrioventricular block (P = NS). Female sex was an independent predictor in the TAVI population for risk-Adjusted major vascular complications (OR, 2.92; P =.018) and transfusions (OR, 1.93; P =.003), but proved protective against moderate to severe postprocedural aortic insufficiency (P =.018). Conclusions: Female sex is a risk factor for mortality after aortic valve replacement, for major vascular complications after TAVI, and for transfusions after both approaches. Copyright © 2014 by The American Association for Thoracic Surgery