Firm-level corruption: Unravelling sand from grease

This paper adds to the recent literature on firm-level corruption by relying on rich data including detailed information on the purpose and amounts of bribe payments among Vietnamese micro, small, and medium firms. Using industry-location averages to instrument for firm-level bribe payments in both a cross-sectional and a panel setting, we provide evidence of a large and significant positive association between corruption and firm performance. We further show that the type of bribe payment does matter: only the payments that can arguably be considered 'voluntary' (rather than extortive) drive this association

Cross-National Differences in Victimization : Disentangling the Impact of Composition and Context

Varying rates of criminal victimization across countries are assumed to be the outcome of countrylevel structural constraints that determine the supply ofmotivated o¡enders, as well as the differential composition within countries of suitable targets and capable guardianship. However, previous empirical tests of these ‘compositional’ and ‘contextual’ explanations of cross-national di¡erences have been performed upon macro-level crime data due to the unavailability of comparable individual-level data across countries. This limitation has had two important consequences for cross-national crime research. First, micro-/meso-level mechanisms underlying cross-national differences cannot be truly inferred from macro-level data. Secondly, the e¡ects of contextual measures (e.g. income inequality) on crime are uncontrolled for compositional heterogeneity. In this paper, these limitations are overcome by analysing individual-level victimization data across 18 countries from the International CrimeVictims Survey. Results from multi-level analyses on theft and violent victimization indicate that the national level of income inequality is positively related to risk, independent of compositional (i.e. micro- and meso-level) di¡erences. Furthermore, crossnational variation in victimization rates is not only shaped by di¡erences in national context, but also by varying composition. More speci¢cally, countries had higher crime rates the more they consisted of urban residents and regions with lowaverage social cohesion.

Glutathione influences c-Myc-induced apoptosis in M14 human melanoma cells

The objective of this article is to dissect the mechanisms by which the down-regulation of c-Myc induces programmed cell death in melanoma cells. In stable and doxycycline-inducible M14 melanoma cells, down-regulation of c-Myc induced apoptosis subsequent to a decrease in the intracellular reduced glutathione content and a concomitant accumulation of its oxidized form. This redox alteration was associated with a decrease of the enzyme activities of γ-glutamyl-cysteine synthetase and NADPH-dependent GSSG reductase, as well as a consequent glutathione release in the extracellular medium. Cytochrome c was released into the cytosol at very early stages of apoptosis induction, long before detectable production of reactive oxygen species and activation of caspase-9 and -3. Macroarray analysis revealed that down-regulation of c-Myc produced striking changes in gene expression in the section related to metabolism, where the expression of γ-glutamyl-cysteine synthetase and GSSG reductase was found to be significantly reduced. The addition of N-acetyl-L-cysteine or glutathione ethyl ester inhibited the apoptotic process, thus confirming the key role of glutathione in programmed cell death induced by c-Myc

Improving the palatability of colonoscopy preparations

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. The most reliable screening method of CRC is a colonoscopy which requires a 4-Liter polymer with electrolytes preparation. Two in five patients are non-compliant to their colonoscopy schedules, with many patients who abstain reporting refusal due to significant discomfort associated with this preparation. Furthermore, there are distinct gender differences in the tolerance of colonoscopy preparations in male and female populations. We hypothesize the differences in clinic are a result of toxic effects of the drug associated with poor mixing by individual patients. PEG, the drug, is approved by the FDA for use in medical devices and has been recognized for many years as a biocompatible polymer but few studies have truly studied the short-term and long-term effects of high concentrations of PEG. We studied the toxic effects of the common preparations over a time frame of 2 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours, and 48 hours and found that at higher concentrations of the drug, more cells were killed. We have developed an oral capsule that dissolves in stomach acid to control the release of PEG – accurately controlling the amount of drug that is ingested by patients and reducing adverse effects associated with the taste colonoscopy preparations. We have looked at and evaluated the capsules for chemical content and tested them with cells to confirm their safety

Unsupervised labelling of sequential data for location identification in indoor environments

In this paper we present indoor positioning within unknown environments as an unsupervised labelling task on sequential data. We explore a probabilistic framework relying on wireless network radio signals and contextual information, which is increasingly available in large environments. Thus, we form an informative spatial classifier without resorting to a pre-determined map, and show the potential of the approach using both simulated and real data sets. Results demonstrate the ability of the procedure to segregate structures of radio signal observations and form clustered regions in association to areas of interest to the user; thus, we show it is possible to differentiate location between closely spaced zones of variable size and shape

Mitigating Intersection Attacks in Anonymous Microblogging

Anonymous microblogging systems are known to be vulnerable to intersection attacks due to network churn. An adversary that monitors all communications can leverage the churn to learn who is publishing what with increasing confidence over time. In this paper, we propose a protocol for mitigating intersection attacks in anonymous microblogging systems by grouping users into anonymity sets based on similarities in their publishing behavior. The protocol provides a configurable communication schedule for users in each set to manage the inevitable trade-off between latency and bandwidth overhead. In our evaluation, we use real-world datasets from two popular microblogging platforms, Twitter and Reddit, to simulate user publishing behavior. The results demonstrate that the protocol can protect users against intersection attacks at low bandwidth overhead when the users adhere to communication schedules. In addition, the protocol can sustain a slow degradation in the size of the anonymity set over time under various churn rates

Global, regional, and national burden of chronic kidney disease, 1990–2017 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017

Background Health system planning requires careful assessment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) epidemiology, but data for morbidity and mortality of this disease are scarce or non-existent in many countries. We estimated the global, regional, and national burden of CKD, as well as the burden of cardiovascular disease and gout attributable to impaired kidney function, for the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2017. We use the term CKD to refer to the morbidity and mortality that can be directly attributed to all stages of CKD, and we use the term impaired kidney function to refer to the additional risk of CKD from cardiovascular disease and gout. Methods The main data sources we used were published literature, vital registration systems, end-stage kidney disease registries, and household surveys. Estimates of CKD burden were produced using a Cause of Death Ensemble model and a Bayesian meta-regression analytical tool, and included incidence, prevalence, years lived with disability, mortality, years of life lost, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs). A comparative risk assessment approach was used to estimate the proportion of cardiovascular diseases and gout burden attributable to impaired kidney function. Findings Globally, in 2017, 1·2 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 1·2 to 1·3) people died from CKD. The global all-age mortality rate from CKD increased 41·5% (95% UI 35·2 to 46·5) between 1990 and 2017, although there was no significant change in the age-standardised mortality rate (2·8%, −1·5 to 6·3). In 2017, 697·5 million (95% UI 649·2 to 752·0) cases of all-stage CKD were recorded, for a global prevalence of 9·1% (8·5 to 9·8). The global all-age prevalence of CKD increased 29·3% (95% UI 26·4 to 32·6) since 1990, whereas the age-standardised prevalence remained stable (1·2%, −1·1 to 3·5). CKD resulted in 35·8 million (95% UI 33·7 to 38·0) DALYs in 2017, with diabetic nephropathy accounting for almost a third of DALYs. Most of the burden of CKD was concentrated in the three lowest quintiles of Socio-demographic Index (SDI). In several regions, particularly Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America, the burden of CKD was much higher than expected for the level of development, whereas the disease burden in western, eastern, and central sub-Saharan Africa, east Asia, south Asia, central and eastern Europe, Australasia, and western Europe was lower than expected. 1·4 million (95% UI 1·2 to 1·6) cardiovascular disease-related deaths and 25·3 million (22·2 to 28·9) cardiovascular disease DALYs were attributable to impaired kidney function. Interpretation Kidney disease has a major effect on global health, both as a direct cause of global morbidity and mortality and as an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. CKD is largely preventable and treatable and deserves greater attention in global health policy decision making, particularly in locations with low and middle SDI

Global, regional, and national burden of tuberculosis, 1990–2016: results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors 2016 Study

Background Although a preventable and treatable disease, tuberculosis causes more than a million deaths each year. As countries work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target to end the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030, robust assessments of the levels and trends of the burden of tuberculosis are crucial to inform policy and programme decision making. We assessed the levels and trends in the fatal and non-fatal burden of tuberculosis by drug resistance and HIV status for 195 countries and territories from 1990 to 2016. Methods We analysed 15 943 site-years of vital registration data, 1710 site-years of verbal autopsy data, 764 site-years of sample-based vital registration data, and 361 site-years of mortality surveillance data to estimate mortality due to tuberculosis using the Cause of Death Ensemble model. We analysed all available data sources, including annual case notifications, prevalence surveys, population-based tuberculin surveys, and estimated tuberculosis cause-specific mortality to generate internally consistent estimates of incidence, prevalence, and mortality using DisMod-MR 2.1, a Bayesian meta-regression tool. We assessed how the burden of tuberculosis differed from the burden predicted by the Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a composite indicator of income per capita, average years of schooling, and total fertility rate. Findings Globally in 2016, among HIV-negative individuals, the number of incident cases of tuberculosis was 9·02 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 8·05–10·16) and the number of tuberculosis deaths was 1·21 million (1·16–1·27). Among HIV-positive individuals, the number of incident cases was 1·40 million (1·01–1·89) and the number of tuberculosis deaths was 0·24 million (0·16–0·31). Globally, among HIV-negative individuals the age-standardised incidence of tuberculosis decreased annually at a slower rate (–1·3% [–1·5 to −1·2]) than mortality did (–4·5% [–5·0 to −4·1]) from 2006 to 2016. Among HIV-positive individuals during the same period, the rate of change in annualised age-standardised incidence was −4·0% (–4·5 to −3·7) and mortality was −8·9% (–9·5 to −8·4). Several regions had higher rates of age-standardised incidence and mortality than expected on the basis of their SDI levels in 2016. For drug-susceptible tuberculosis, the highest observed-to-expected ratios were in southern sub-Saharan Africa (13·7 for incidence and 14·9 for mortality), and the lowest ratios were in high-income North America (0·4 for incidence) and Oceania (0·3 for mortality). For multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, eastern Europe had the highest observed-to-expected ratios (67·3 for incidence and 73·0 for mortality), and high-income North America had the lowest ratios (0·4 for incidence and 0·5 for mortality). Interpretation If current trends in tuberculosis incidence continue, few countries are likely to meet the SDG target to end the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030. Progress needs to be accelerated by improving the quality of and access to tuberculosis diagnosis and care, by developing new tools, scaling up interventions to prevent risk factors for tuberculosis, and integrating control programmes for tuberculosis and HIV

Variations in Rainfall Structure of Western North Pacific Landfalling Tropical Cyclones in the Warming Climates

Observations and climate projections suggest a larger increase in tropical cyclone (TC)-induced rainfall than that can be explained by the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship of 7% increase in vapor content for each 1°C degree rise in temperature. However, these studies using diverse data sources and methods over various periods show inconsistencies regarding the location of this increase - whether in the TC inner core or outer regions - and offer differing explanations for the reported trends. This study uses the Pseudo-global warming methodology on simulations of 117 western North Pacific TCs making landfall in Southeast Asia to investigate changes in TC rainfall structure by the end of the century under the SSP2-4.5 and SSP3-7.0 scenarios. Specifically, it tests the sensitivity of changing trends to various analysis methods used in previous studies and identifies the underlying physical mechanisms driving these changes. The findings indicate an amplified increase in rainfall in the TC inner core across all future scenarios, along with potentially decreased rainfall in the outer region under certain future climate conditions. Among TC categories, Supertyphoons exhibit the most significant increased rainfall across future states. Changes in TC primary and secondary circulations, TC structure, and the convergence of heat and moisture are the main factors shaping future rainfall patterns, outweighing the effects of changes in atmospheric and convective stability.publishedVersio