Analyzing the Impact of Leverage and Adjustment Costs on Various Measures of Corporate Performance: Insights from Listed Firms of Pakistan

This paper is a first attempt to look into the issue of the effect of leverage and adjustment costs on various measures of corporate performance for 374 non-financial firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange of Pakistan. The Arellano and Bond dynamic panel data estimation technique (a variant of GMM) is used to capture the role of adjustment costs and the dynamic behavior of corporate performance. A panel data set spanning 1988 to 2008 is used for the purpose. The results, thus obtained, are essentially mixed. The coefficients of the adjustment variable (lagged corporate performance) are positive for ROCE (Return on capital employed) and EPS (Earnings per Share) but ironically negative for ROE (Return on Equity). Similarly the effect of leverage on ROCE is negative but insignificant and positive significant when EPS is used as a measure of corporate performance. Whereas the relationship between leverage and ROE (another measure used in the paper for corporate performance) is negative and significant which implies that high leverage force the managers to perform optimally due to higher interest burden and agency cost. The positive effect of the size of firm on performance is confirmed for all the three measures of corporate performance. Furthermore, the positive and statistically significant impact of short term liabilities implies that high short term liabilities exert pressure on corporate managers to perform efficiently in the competitive market.Corporate Performance, leverage, adjustment costs, panel data, Pakistan

Convergence Model of Governance: A Case Study of the Local Government System of Pakistan

The future of devolution plan in Pakistan may be analysed in view of our Convergence model. This model views stability of the local Govt. system drawn on Devolution Plan 2001. It claims that as there would be more volatile and non-committed (floating) number of agents in the political market and governance system, there is more probability of divergence; i.e. the system will remain unstable. Contrary to that more is the systematic trend in political market and governance system more is the probability that the convergence in the system occurs and that in turn leads to stability of the over all system. In this ‘Convergence’ Model different types of agents have been highlighted on the basis of their political ffiliation and being in competition as ruling elite and/or their allies and non-ruling elite and/or their allies. The agents have interactive relationship horizontally and vertically with other agents i.e. either they are ally or otherwise. The composition of this structure of the agents and clients is based on the principle of bottom top pproach i.e. Union council’s members, Nazim and their political competitors, Tehsil council and Nazim, District Nazim and his allied district assembly members and their political competitors, Member provincial Assembly and their political rivals, Member National Assembly/Senator, and their political rival and the ruling political elites, Provincial Government and their political rivals, and Political elites ruling Federal Government and their political rivals.

Encapsulated stem cells for cancer therapy

Stem cells have inherent tumor‑trophic migratory properties and can serve as vehicles for delivering effective, targeted therapy to isolated tumors and metastatic disease, making them promising anti‑cancer agents. Encapsulation of therapeutically engineered stem cells in hydrogels has been utilized to provide a physical barrier to protect the cells from hostile extrinsic factors and significantly improve the therapeutic efficacy of transplanted stem cells in different models of cancer. This review aims to discuss the potential of different stem cell types for cancer therapy, various engineered stem cell based therapies for cancer, stem cell encapsulation process and provide an in depth overview of current applications of therapeutic stem cell encapsulation in the highly malignant brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), as well as the prospects for their clinical translation

B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) in multiple myeloma: rationale for targeting and current therapeutic approaches.

Despite considerable advances in the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM) in the last decade, a substantial proportion of patients do not respond to current therapies or have a short duration of response. Furthermore, these treatments can have notable morbidity and are not uniformly tolerated in all patients. As there is no cure for MM, patients eventually become resistant to therapies, leading to development of relapsed/refractory MM. Therefore, an unmet need exists for MM treatments with novel mechanisms of action that can provide durable responses, evade resistance to prior therapies, and/or are better tolerated. B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) is preferentially expressed by mature B lymphocytes, and its overexpression and activation are associated with MM in preclinical models and humans, supporting its potential utility as a therapeutic target for MM. Moreover, the use of BCMA as a biomarker for MM is supported by its prognostic value, correlation with clinical status, and its ability to be used in traditionally difficult-to-monitor patient populations. Here, we review three common treatment modalities used to target BCMA in the treatment of MM: bispecific antibody constructs, antibody-drug conjugates, and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T-cell therapy. We provide an overview of preliminary clinical data from trials using these therapies, including the BiTE® (bispecific T-cell engager) immuno-oncology therapy AMG 420, the antibody-drug conjugate GSK2857916, and several CAR T-cell therapeutic agents including bb2121, NIH CAR-BCMA, and LCAR-B38M. Notable antimyeloma activity and high minimal residual disease negativity rates have been observed with several of these treatments. These clinical data outline the potential for BCMA-targeted therapies to improve the treatment landscape for MM. Importantly, clinical results to date suggest that these therapies may hold promise for deep and durable responses and support further investigation in earlier lines of treatment, including newly diagnosed MM

Targeting c-Met Receptor Overcomes TRAIL-Resistance in Brain Tumors

Tumor necrosis factor related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) induced apoptosis specifically in tumor cells. However, with approximately half of all known tumor lines being resistant to TRAIL, the identification of TRAIL sensitizers and their mechanism of action become critical to broadly use TRAIL as a therapeutic agent. In this study, we explored whether c-Met protein contributes to TRAIL sensitivity. We found a direct correlation between the c-Met expression level and TRAIL resistance. We show that the knock down c-Met protein, but not inhibition, sensitized brain tumor cells to TRAIL-mediated apoptosis by interrupting the interaction between c-Met and TRAIL cognate death receptor (DR) 5. This interruption greatly induces the formation of death-inducing signaling complex (DISC) and subsequent downstream apoptosis signaling. Using intracranially implanted brain tumor cells and stem cell (SC) lines engineered with different combinations of fluorescent and bioluminescent proteins, we show that SC expressing a potent and secretable TRAIL (S-TRAIL) have a significant anti-tumor effect in mice bearing c-Met knock down of TRAIL-resistant brain tumors. To our best knowledge, this is the first study that demonstrates c-Met contributes to TRAIL sensitivity of brain tumor cells and has implications for developing effective therapies for brain tumor patients

Energy analysis for replacing fossil fuel energy source of electricity wtih solar cells in the UK and Kurdistan, Iraq

Energy is a vital resource required for the operation of any business. Currently, the vast majority of businesses use electricity derived for non-renewable fossil fuels, which are expected to run out at its current rate of expenditure and causing substantial environmental damage threatening the future generations. In the UK if the current energy source used by small and medium enterprises (SME’s) could be replaced by solar energy then damage to the environment can be prevented and reduce costs as solar cells become more efficient. Solar cells involve harnessing the energy from the sun to generate electricity. In this study a methodology has been developed to compare a model micro-business in Manchester, UK and Kurdistan, Iraq. The comparison shows quantatively that even though Kurdistan, Iraq is abundant in oil and gas its climatic conditions favour the implementation of solar cells. Therefore, it is more feasible to replace the existing non-renewable fossil fuel sources with solar cells in Iraq due to greater solar radiation striking the earth’s surface. Our research suggests that solar cells can replace a reasonable amount of the energy requirements even in Manchester, UK and a much higher proportion in Kurdistan, Iraq. Using existing 20% efficient silicon solar cells we can replace 28% and 88% of the energy requirements of the micro business in UK and Kurdistan, Iraq respectively

Measuring Push, Pull And Personal Factors Affecting Turnover Intention: A Case Of University Teachers In Pakistan

It has been observed that professional and qualified teacher’s retention become a challenge for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Pakistan as the turnover rate has been significantly increased in recent years. The main objective of this paper is to access personal, push and pull factors and to find out that which factors contribute more to turnover intention. Primary data were collected from 100 teachers of 5 HEIs using questionnaire methods. The results indicate that all factors (personal, pull and push) have contributed in the employees’ turnover intentions. However, some facets of personal factor have significantly contributed in turnover intentions.Turnover, Higher Education Institution, Job Quit, Personal Factors, Push Factors, Pull Factors