Social capital, trust, and firm performance: the value of corporate social responsibility during the financial crisis

During the 2008-2009 financial crisis, firms with high social capital, measured as corporate social responsibility (CSR) intensity, had stock returns that were four to seven percentage points higher than firms with low social capital. High-CSR firms also experienced higher profitability, growth, and sales per employee relative to low-CSR firms, and they raised more debt. This evidence suggests that the trust between the firm and both its stakeholders and investors, built through investments in social capital, pays off when the overall level of trust in corporations and markets suffers a negative shock

APOBEC-related mutagenesis and neo-peptide hydrophobicity: implications for response to immunotherapy.

Tumor-associated neo-antigens are mutated peptides that allow the immune system to recognize the affected cell as foreign. Cells carrying excessive mutation load often develop mechanisms of tolerance. PD-L1/PD-1 checkpoint immunotherapy is a highly promising approach to overcome these protective signals and induce tumor shrinkage. Yet, the nature of the neo-antigens driving those beneficial responses remains unclear. Here, we show that APOBEC-related mutagenesis - a mechanism at the crossroads between anti-viral immunity and endogenous nucleic acid editing - increases neo-peptide hydrophobicity (a feature of immunogenicity), as demonstrated by in silico computation and in the TCGA pan-cancer cohort, where APOBEC-related mutagenesis was also strongly associated with immune marker expression. Moreover, APOBEC-related mutagenesis correlated with immunotherapy response in a cohort of 99 patients with diverse cancers, and this correlation was independent of the tumor mutation burden (TMB). Combining APOBEC-related mutagenesis estimate and TMB resulted in greater predictive ability than either parameter alone. Based on these results, further investigation of APOBEC-related mutagenesis as a marker of response to anti-cancer checkpoint blockade is warranted

Trust, social capital, and the bond market benefits of ESG performance

We investigate whether a firm’s social capital and the trust that it engenders are viewed favorably by bondholders. Using firms’ environmental and social (E&S) performance to proxy for social capital, we find no relation between social capital and bond spreads over the period 2006–2019. However, during the 2008–2009 financial crisis, which represents a shock to trust and default risk, high-social-capital firms benefited from lower bond spreads. These effects are stronger for firms with higher expected agency costs of debt and firms whose E&S efforts are more salient. During the crisis, high-social-capital firms were also able to raise more debt, at lower spreads, and for longer maturities. We find no evidence that the governance element of ESG is related to bond spreads. The gap between E&S performance of firms in the bottom and top E&S terciles has narrowed since the financial crisis, especially in the year prior to accessing the bond market

Functional transcriptomic analysis of the role of MAB-5/Hox in Q neuroblast migration in Caenorhabditis elegans

This is the publisher's version, also available electronically from http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2164/14/304Background: Directed cell migration is a fundamental process in normal development and in tumor metastasis. In C. elegans the MAB-5/Hox transcription factor is a determinant of posterior migration of the Q neuroblast descendants. In this work, mab-5 transcriptional targets that control Q descendant migration are identified by comparing RNA-seq profiles in wild type and mab-5 mutant backgrounds. Results: Transcriptome profiling is a widely-used and potent tool to identify genes involved in developmental and pathological processes, and is most informative when RNA can be isolated from individual cell or tissue types. Cell-specific RNA samples can be difficult to obtain from invertebrate model organisms such as Drosophila and C. elegans. Here we test the utility of combining a whole organism RNA-seq approach with mab-5 loss and gain-of-function mutants and functional validation using RNAi to identify genes regulated by MAB-5 to control Q descendant migration. We identified 22 genes whose expression was controlled by mab-5 and that controlled Q descendant migration. Genes regulated by mab-5 were enriched for secreted and transmembrane molecules involved in basement membrane interaction and modification, and some affected Q descendant migration. Conclusions: Our results indicate that a whole-organism RNA-seq approach, when combined with mutant analysis and functional validation, can be a powerful method to identify genes involved in a specific developmental process, in this case Q descendant posterior migration. These genes could act either autonomously in the Q cells, or non-autonomously in other cells that express MAB-5. The identities of the genes regulated by MAB-5 indicate that MAB-5 acts by modifying interactions with the basement membrane, resulting in posterior versus anterior migration

Hypermedia-based tutoring: methodology for the production of hypermedia resources through face-to-face tutoring

We present a methodology for creating hypermedia materials derived from face-to-face tutoring sessions between a tutor and graduate students. To create the hypermedia materials, the tutor and the student used a smart pen which allowed to record the conversation and digitalize the notes being taken. The production of hypermedia material is based on the use of visual representations and text to help students go from concrete to abstract thinking and vice versa. We point out that hypermedia materials are audio-visual narratives (i.e., dynamic graphics, diagrams) that facilitate the representation of co-constructed shared knowledge and let participants navigate between oral and textual information. This methodology allows the production of individualized material without investing additional time in editing and designing. The hypermedia based tutoring (HBT) model is highly valued by students since it helps them to go over the discussions with the tutor and review the thinking process that both constructed during the session. HBT becomes a creative form of communicating and representing information that challenges the tutor and student to develop new skills and ways of thinking. The model that we propose here requires to change traditional tutor and student roles and to create learning experiences that do not overlook students’ needsThe eMadrid Excellence Network is funded by Madrid Regional Government (Comunidad de Madrid) grant no. P2013/ICE-2715. The FOMIX grant No. MOR-2013-C01-225102 is funded by Fondo Mixto-CONACYT (Morelos State Government and the Federal Agency CONACYT, Mexico

Entropy Production of Brownian Macromolecules with Inertia

We investigate the nonequilibrium steady-state thermodynamics of single Brownian macromolecules with inertia under feedback control in isothermal ambient fluid. With the control being represented by a velocity-dependent external force, we find such open systems can have a negative entropy production rate and we develop a mesoscopic theory consistent with the second law. We propose an equilibrium condition and define a class of external forces, which includes a transverse Lorentz force, leading to equilibrium.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figur

Functional transcriptomic analysis of the role of MAB-5/Hox in Q neuroblast migration in Caenorhabditis elegans

Background: Directed cell migration is a fundamental process in normal development and in tumor metastasis. In C. elegans the MAB-5/Hox transcription factor is a determinant of posterior migration of the Q neuroblast descendants. In this work, mab-5 transcriptional targets that control Q descendant migration are identified by comparing RNA-seq profiles in wild type and mab-5 mutant backgrounds. Results: Transcriptome profiling is a widely-used and potent tool to identify genes involved in developmental and pathological processes, and is most informative when RNA can be isolated from individual cell or tissue types. Cell-specific RNA samples can be difficult to obtain from invertebrate model organisms such as Drosophila and C. elegans. Here we test the utility of combining a whole organism RNA-seq approach with mab-5 loss and gain-of-function mutants and functional validation using RNAi to identify genes regulated by MAB-5 to control Q descendant migration. We identified 22 genes whose expression was controlled by mab-5 and that controlled Q descendant migration. Genes regulated by mab-5 were enriched for secreted and transmembrane molecules involved in basement membrane interaction and modification, and some affected Q descendant migration. Conclusions: Our results indicate that a whole-organism RNA-seq approach, when combined with mutant analysis and functional validation, can be a powerful method to identify genes involved in a specific developmental process, in this case Q descendant posterior migration. These genes could act either autonomously in the Q cells, or non-autonomously in other cells that express MAB-5. The identities of the genes regulated by MAB-5 indicate that MAB-5 acts by modifying interactions with the basement membrane, resulting in posterior versus anterior migration

A Circular Economy of Electrochemical Energy Storage Systems: Critical Review of SOH/RUL Estimation Methods for Second-Life Batteries

Humanity is facing a gloomy scenario due to global warming, which is increasing at unprecedented rates. Energy generation with renewable sources and electric mobility (EM) are considered two of the main strategies to cut down emissions of greenhouse gasses. These paradigm shifts will only be possible with efficient energy storage systems such as Li-ion batteries (LIBs). However, among other factors, some raw materials used on LIB production, such as cobalt and lithium, have geopolitical and environmental issues. Thus, in a context of a circular economy, the reuse of LIBs from EM for other applications (i.e., second-life batteries, SLBs) could be a way to overcome this problem, considering that they reach their end of life (EoL) when they get to a state of health (SOH) of 70–80% and still have energy storage capabilities that could last several years. The aim of this chapter is to make a review of the estimation methods employed in the diagnosis of LIB, such as SOH and remaining useful life (RUL). The correct characterization of these variables is crucial for the reassembly of SLBs and to extend the LIBs operational lifetime