The Causal Relationship between Foreign Direct Investment and Current Account: An Empirical Investigation for Pakistan Economy

This paper investigates relationship between FDI and current account (CA) in Pakistan using the Johansen-Juselius cointegration technique and the Granger causality test. The study results indicate that FDI and CA are cointegrated and thus exhibit a reliable long run relationship. The Granger causality test findings indicate that the causality between FDI and CA is uni-directional. However, there is no short run causality from FDI to CA and vice versa. Therefore, as a policy implication that FDI inflows may cause to the deterioration of the balance of payments in the long run should be taken into account when policy makers decide to implement policies to attract foreign investors.Asia; Pakistan; Cointegration; Granger; causality; FDI; Current Assount; error correction

Islamic (Sukuk) vs. Conventional Financing: Analysis of Profitability

Over the last decade, Islamic Financials (Sukuk) emerged as a pioneering capital market instrument. One of the fundamental reasons for the emerging demand of Islamic Financing (Sukuk) includes its adherence to the finance in accordance to the Islamic values, avoiding Riba, which is the generation of money from money such as usury or interest. Sukuk issues have notably proliferated, which fuels the debate regarding the between the conventional and the Islamic finance. To investigate the impact of Islamic and Conventional Financials on shareholders’ wealth, this study takes the profitability ratios (including ROA, ROE, ROCE, and NPM) of 11 companies issuing Islamic Financials and 11 companies issuing Conventional Financials from the period between 2010 and 2015 and compares the profitability of both financials. The findings reveal the Islamic Financials (Sukuk) to be a significantly high source of profitability for a company along with the other clients’ catchy determinants such as religious principles, sharia-compliant instruments, and interest (Riba) free financing

The Causal Relationship between Foreign Direct Investment and Current Account: An Empirical Investigation for Pakistan Economy

This paper investigates relationship between FDI and current account (CA) in Pakistan using the Johansen-Juselius cointegration technique and the Granger causality test. The study results indicate that FDI and CA are cointegrated and thus exhibit a reliable long run relationship. The Granger causality test findings indicate that the causality between FDI and CA is uni-directional. However, there is no short run causality from FDI to CA and vice versa. Therefore, as a policy implication that FDI inflows may cause to the deterioration of the balance of payments in the long run should be taken into account when policy makers decide to implement policies to attract foreign investors

The Causal Relationship between Foreign Direct Investment and Current Account: An Empirical Investigation for Pakistan Economy

This paper investigates relationship between FDI and current account (CA) in Pakistan using the Johansen-Juselius cointegration technique and the Granger causality test. The study results indicate that FDI and CA are cointegrated and thus exhibit a reliable long run relationship. The Granger causality test findings indicate that the causality between FDI and CA is uni-directional. However, there is no short run causality from FDI to CA and vice versa. Therefore, as a policy implication that FDI inflows may cause to the deterioration of the balance of payments in the long run should be taken into account when policy makers decide to implement policies to attract foreign investors

Islamic (Sukuk) vs. Conventional Financing: Analysis of Profitability

Over the last decade, Islamic Financials (Sukuk) emerged as a pioneering capital market instrument. One of the fundamental reasons for the emerging demand of Islamic Financing (Sukuk) includes its adherence to the finance in accordance to the Islamic values, avoiding Riba, which is the generation of money from money such as usury or interest. Sukuk issues have notably proliferated, which fuels the debate regarding the between the conventional and the Islamic finance. To investigate the impact of Islamic and Conventional Financials on shareholders’ wealth, this study takes the profitability ratios (including ROA, ROE, ROCE, and NPM) of 11 companies issuing Islamic Financials and 11 companies issuing Conventional Financials from the period between 2010 and 2015 and compares the profitability of both financials. The findings reveal the Islamic Financials (Sukuk) to be a significantly high source of profitability for a company along with the other clients’ catchy determinants such as religious principles, sharia-compliant instruments, and interest (Riba) free financing

Islamic (Sukuk) vs. Conventional Financing: Analysis of Profitability

Over the last decade, Islamic Financials (Sukuk) emerged as a pioneering capital market instrument. One of the fundamental reasons for the emerging demand of Islamic Financing (Sukuk) includes its adherence to the finance in accordance to the Islamic values, avoiding Riba, which is the generation of money from money such as usury or interest. Sukuk issues have notably proliferated, which fuels the debate regarding the between the conventional and the Islamic finance. To investigate the impact of Islamic and Conventional Financials on shareholders’ wealth, this study takes the profitability ratios (including ROA, ROE, ROCE, and NPM) of 11 companies issuing Islamic Financials and 11 companies issuing Conventional Financials from the period between 2010 and 2015 and compares the profitability of both financials. The findings reveal the Islamic Financials (Sukuk) to be a significantly high source of profitability for a company along with the other clients’ catchy determinants such as religious principles, sharia-compliant instruments, and interest (Riba) free financing

Multivariate analysis of effective dose and size-specific dose estimates for thorax and abdominal computed tomography

The study aimed to compute the effective dose (E) and size-specific dose estimate (SSDE) of routine adult patients undergoing thorax and abdominal computed tomography (CT) imaging and to present their multivariate analysis. All adult thorax and abdominal CT examinations conducted from March 2022 to June 2022 were prospectively included in this study. The Water Equivalent Diameter (Dw) and SSDE of all the examinations were computed from CT dose index volume (CTDIvol) and Dose length product (DLP) displayed on the dose report in the CT console. The multivariate statistical analysis was performed to investigate the correlation of SSDE and E on CTDIvol, Dw area of the region of interest (ROI) (AreaROI), body mass index (BMI), conversion factor (fsize) and hounsfield (HUmean) number in the ROI at 95% level of significance (P < 0.05). The linear regression analysis was performed to investigate the dependence of SSDE and E on other parameters for both abdominal and thorax patients. A total number of 135 (Abdomen = 61 and Thorax = 74) measurements were performed. The mean value of effective dose for abdomen and thorax patients was found to be 7.17 ± 3.94 and 4.89 ± 2.16 mSv, respectively. The SSDE was observed to be 13.24 ± 3.61 and 13.04 ± 3.61 mGy for thorax and abdomen respectively. The multivariate analysis suggests that SSDE for abdominal CT is found significantly dependent on CTDIvol, Dw and fsize with P < 0.05 and E is found to be significantly dependent on DLP, AreaROI, Dw and fsize at 95% level of confidence for abdominal CT imaging. SSDE for thorax CT was found significantly dependent on BMI, CTDIvol, HUmean, Dw and fsize at 95% level of confidence. Furthermore, E was observed dependent on DLP at P < 0.05. The linear regression analysis also shows that E is strongly correlated with DLP (r = 1.0) for both thorax and abdominal CT, further the SSDE was observed strongly correlated with CTDIvol with r = 0.79 and r = 0.86 for abdomen and thorax CT respectively. A strong correlation was observed between BMI and for Dw abdominal CT imaging (r = 0.68). The mean value of SSDE for thorax is slightly greater than abdomen. The average value of effective dose for abdomen and thorax measurements was found to be 7.17 ± 3.94 and 4.89 ± 2.16 mSv and , correspondingly. SSDE for both abdomen and thorax CT is significantly dependent on CTDIvol, Dw and fsize at 95% level of confidence. The strong correlation was also observed E on DLP and SSDE on CTDIvol for both Abdomen and Thorax CT. The strong dependence of Dw on BMI (r = 0.68) is due to the excessive fat concentration around the stomach and abdomen

Computational Study of Natural Compounds for the Clearance of Amyloid-Βeta: A Potential Therapeutic Management Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer&rsquo;s disease (AD) is a widespread dynamic neurodegenerative malady. Its etiology is still not clear. One of the foremost pathological features is the extracellular deposits of Amyloid-beta (A&beta;) peptides in senile plaques. The interaction of A&beta; and the receptor for advanced glycation end products at the blood-brain barrier is also observed in AD, which not only causes the neurovascular anxiety and articulation of proinflammatory cytokines, but also directs reduction of cerebral bloodstream by upgrading the emission of endothelin-1 to induce vasoconstriction. In this process, RAGE is deemed responsible for the influx of A&beta; into the brain through BBB. In the current study, we predicted the interaction potential of the natural compounds vincamine, ajmalicine and emetine with the A&beta; peptide concerned in the treatment of AD against the standard control, curcumin, to validate the A&beta; peptide&ndash;compounds results. Protein-protein interaction studies have also been carried out to see their potential to inhibit the binding process of A&beta; and RAGE. Moreover, the current study verifies that ligands are more capable inhibitors of a selected target compared to positive control with reference to &Delta;G values. The inhibition of A&beta; and its interaction with RAGE may be valuable in proposing the next round of lead compounds for effective Alzheimer&rsquo;s disease treatment

Nobiletin as a Neuroprotectant against NMDA Receptors: An In Silico Approach

Excitotoxicity is a type of neurodegenerative disorder. It caused by excessive glutamate receptor activation, which leads to neuronal malfunction and fatality. The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are found in glutamatergic neurons, and their excessive activation is primarily responsible for excitotoxicity. They are activated by both glutamate binding and postsynaptic depolarization, facilitating Ca2+ entry upon activation. Therefore, they are now widely acknowledged as being essential targets for excitotoxicity issues. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation analyses have demonstrated that nobiletin efficiently targets the binding pocket of the NMDA receptor protein and exhibits stable dynamic behavior at the binding site. In this study, five potential neuroprotectants, nobiletin, silibinin, ononin, ginkgolide B, and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), were screened against the glutamate NMDA receptors in humans via computational methods. An in silico ADMET study was also performed, to predict the pharmacokinetics and toxicity profile for the expression of good drug-like behavior and a non-toxic nature. It was revealed that nobiletin fulfills the criteria for all of the drug-likeness rules (Veber, Lipinski, Ghose, Muegge, and Egan) and has neither PAINS nor structural alerts (Brenks). In conclusion, nobiletin demonstrated a possible promising neuroprotectant activities compared to other selected phytochemicals. Further, it can be evaluated in the laboratory for promising therapeutic approaches for in vitro and in vivo studies