Selection of Determinants in Corporate Financial Distress

This paper investigates the capability of forecasting models for bankruptcy prediction referring to annual balance sheet information of Italian firms in the limited liability sector. The performance of default risk models in terms of forecast accuracy is mainly related to the selection of the set of best predictors. Therefore our main research question refer to the identifications of the determinants of corporate financial distress, comparing the performance of innovative selection techniques. Furthermore, several issues involved in default risk analysis are considered, such as the structure of the data-base and the sampling procedure The predictive performance of the proposed default risk model has been assessed by means of different accuracy measures. The results of the analysis, carried out on a data-set of financial ratios expressly created from a sample of industrial firms annual reports, give evidence in favour of the proposed model over traditional ones. Keywords: Default Risk, Bankruptcy, Variable Selection, Lasso

Biofabrication of Electrospun Scaffolds for the Regeneration of Tendons and Ligaments

Tendon and ligament tissue regeneration and replacement are complex since scaffolds need to guarantee an adequate hierarchical structured morphology, and non-linear mechanical properties. Moreover, to guide the cells\u2019 proliferation and tissue re-growth, scaffolds must provide a fibrous texture mimicking the typical of the arrangement of the collagen in the extracellular matrix of these tissues. Among the different techniques to produce scaffolds, electrospinning is one of the most promising, thanks to its ability to produce fibers of nanometric size. This manuscript aims to provide an overview to researchers approaching the field of repair and regeneration of tendons and ligaments. To clarify the general requirements of electrospun scaffolds, the first part of this manuscript presents a general overview concerning tendons\u2019 and ligaments\u2019 structure and mechanical properties. The different types of polymers, blends and particles most frequently used for tendon and ligament tissue engineering are summarized. Furthermore, the focus of the review is on describing the different possible electrospinning setups and processes to obtain different nanofibrous structures, such as mats, bundles, yarns and more complex hierarchical assemblies. Finally, an overview concerning how these technologies are exploited to produce electrospun scaffolds for tendon and ligament tissue applications is reported together with the main findings and outcomes

The Usage of Credit Cards: An Empirical Analysis on Italian Households Panel Data

Credit cards, both as mean of payment and borrowing, rise many economic issues. The credit card services can be viewed as a two-sided network platform affected by indirect network externalities. The distribution of prices faced by the two sides influences market participation and the overall volume of demand. Consumers may hold or use credit cards from multiple networks leads to a ‘multi-homing’ effect that is of great importance in determining the outcome of the industry. Moreover, some studies show that the multiple credit cards can be seen as a device to access to more financing, making family bankruptcy more likely. In this paper we model the number of credit cards held by a panel of Italian household over the period 1991-2010 using demographic, socio-economic and geographical variables as potential predictors and panel data techniques for count data. The reached results can be of interest for implementing market strategies in credit card industry and, in particular, to investigate peculiar effect such as “multihoming” and “co-holding”. Keywords: Credit cards, Panel data, Count-data model

Corporate Governance, Investment, Profitability and Insolvency Risk: Evidence from Italy

The research aims to study the structural and functional characteristics of food and beverage companies, focusing on corporate governance, investment and financing decisions, innovation, profitability, and risk of insolvency. The analysis is based on a mixed type investigation method carried out on a random stratified sample of 274 firms. The empirical findings reveal that a large prevalence of companies is owned by a single person or by a limited number of partners (often of the same family). Owners and their families centralize decision-making power. The prevalence of companies made investment in innovation. The investments are mainly financed (78%) by the self-financing or by shareholders' capital. The investigation of the causal relationships that link corporate risk, profitability, and the propensity to invest and innovate with the other explanatory variables of business management highlighted further significant aspects

Governance, Innovation, Profitability, and Credit Risk: Evidence from Italian manufacturing firms

The research focuses attention on companies in the chemical-plastic sector, investigating corporate governance, investment and financing decisions, innovation, profitability, and credit risk. The investigation method used is mixed. The data and information were extracted from official databases and from a structured questionnaire. The stratified random method was used for sampling. 178 firms are included in the sample. The results show a prevalence of companies owned by a single person or a limited number of shareholders (in some cases of the same family), where the owners centralize decision-making power. Companies have a strong propensity to invest in innovation. Investments are mainly financed by self-financing or equity capital. The analysis of the causal relationships highlights further significant aspects relating to credit risk, profitability and innovation

Editorial: Electrospinning of Bioinspired Materials and Structures for Bioengineering and Advanced Biomedical Applications

The Research Topic “Electrospinning of Bioinspired Materials and Structures for Bioengineering and Advanced Biomedical Applications” includes submissions that relate to the “Biomaterials” and “Bionics and Biomimetics” sections of Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. The collection aims to provide an overview of how electrospinning, inspired by nature, can reproduce the hierarchical structure and biomechanical properties of biological tissues, ranging from the nanoscale to the macroscale. The development of such innovative nanofibrous structures requires the improvement of both functionalization and biofabrication strategies, to enhance the scaffold bioactivity and to drive cells in the regeneration of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the target tissues of interest. Recent technological advances have given rise to the availability of intelligent and smart biomaterials for the regeneration of innovative procedures for manufacturing nanometric structures, and methods for assembling multiscale hierarchical structures. Furthermore, imaging has improved considerably in the last few years, allowing multimodal imaging with nanometric resolution

Variable selection in forecasting models for corporate bankruptcy

In this paper we develop statistical models for bankruptcy prediction of Italian firms in the limited liability sector, using annual balance sheet information. Several issues involved in default risk analysis are investigated, such as the structure of the data-base, the sampling procedure and the influence of predictors. In particular we focus on the variable selection problem, comparing innovative techniques based on shrinkage with traditional stepwise methods. The predictive performance of the proposed default risk model has been evaluated by means of different accuracy measures. The results of the analysis, carried out on a data-set of financial ratios expressly created from a sample of industrial firms annual reports, give evidence in favor of the proposed model over traditional ones

MORPHOLOGICALLY BIO-INSPIRED HIERARCHICAL NYLON 6,6 ELECTROSPUN STRUCTURES FOR SOFT-ROBOTICS APPLICATIONS

The last decades have seen an increasing attention on a new, ground-breaking field, soft-robotics [1]. Soft-robotics tries to overcome the limits of classical rigid robots, developing bioinspired structures with compliant and soft materials. Skeletal muscle is a biological, hierarchically arranged fibrous structure (Fig A), suitable to inspire innovative soft actuators. The possibility to mimic muscles and soft tissues has been demonstrated through the use of the electrospinning technique [2]. The aim of the present study was to develop and characterize innovative muscle-inspired, hierarchically arranged electrospun structures made of Nylon 6,6 for soft-robotics applications. In order to mimic skeletal muscle myofibrils [3], mats of aligned Nylon 6,6 nanofibers were electrospun on a rotating drum collector. To reproduce skeletal muscle fibers and fascicles morphology [3], the mats were cut in stripes and wrapped up on the drum, producing bundles of axially aligned nanofibers. The bundles were then pulled out from the drum, obtaining ring-shaped bundles. To mimic a whole skeletal muscle with its epimysium membrane [3], 2-levels hierarchical structure was developed (Fig B). Several bundles were aligned and packed together using a nanofibrous sheath produced through an innovative electrospinning setup [4]. Finally, in order to mimic also the skeletal muscle fascicles and perimysium [3], a 3-levels hierarchical structure was obtained by grouping together three 2-levels hierarchical structures, produced as previously described, with an additional electrospun sheath (Fig C). A morphological investigation of the different electrospun structures was carried out with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high-resolution x-ray tomography (XCT). The alignment of the nanofibers of the electrospun sheaths and the internal bundles, was quantified with a previously validated methodology [5]. The bundles and the 2-levels hierarchical structures were also mechanically characterized with a monotonic tensile test. The level of alignment of the nanofibers in the sheaths has proved to be tuneable by modifying the electrospinning parameters. The electrospun sheaths are also capable to tighten the structures wrapped inside, reducing their cross-sectional area and improving the apparent mechanical strength and stiffness. The high-resolution imaging confirmed that the mean diameters of the different hierarchical structures were comparable to the corresponding structures of biological skeletal muscle [3]. The directionality analysis on both bundles and sheaths nanofibers showed comparable levels of alignment with corresponding skeletal muscles fibrous tissues [3]. The mechanical test on the structures revealed a non-linear behaviour typical of soft tissue. The 2- levels hierarchical structures showed mechanical properties roughly proportional to the number of single bundles incorporated (with a possible underestimation of the ultimate strength, due to a stress concentration at the grips). In conclusion, this innovative electrospinning approach to produce hierarchically-arranged structures will be suitable to develop muscle-inspired assemblies. We will explore the possibility of incorporating adequate contracting ability so as to build soft actuators

Biofabrication of bundles of poly(lactic acid)-collagen blends mimicking the fascicles of the human Achille tendon

Electrospinning is a promising technique for the production of scaffolds aimed at the regeneration of soft tissues. The aim of this work was to develop electrospun bundles mimicking the architecture and mechanical properties of the fascicles of the human Achille tendon. Two different blends of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) and collagen (Coll) were tested, PLLA/Coll-75/25 and PLLA/Coll-50/50, and compared with bundles of pure PLLA. First, a complete physico-chemical characterization was performed on non-woven mats made of randomly arranged fibers. The presence of collagen in the fibers was assessed by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry and water contact angle measurements. The collagen release in phosphate buffer solution (PBS) was evaluated for 14 days: results showed that collagen loss was about 50% for PLLA/Coll-75/25 and 70% for PLLA/Coll-50/50. In the bundles, the individual fibers had a diameter of 0.48 ±0.14 μm (PLLA), 0.31 ±0.09 μm (PLLA/Coll-75/25), 0.33 ±0.08 μm (PLLA/Coll-50/50), whereas bundle diameter was in the range 300-500 μm for all samples. Monotonic tensile tests were performed to measure the mechanical properties of PLLA bundles (as-spun) and of PLLA/Coll-75/25 and PLLA/Coll-50/50 bundles (as-spun, and after 48 h, 7 days and 14 days in PBS). The most promising material was the PLLA/Coll-75/25 blend with a Young modulus of 98.6 ±12.4 MPa (as-spun) and 205.1 ±73.0 MPa (after 14 days in PBS). Its failure stress was 14.2 ±0.7 MPa (as-spun) and 6.8 ±0.6 MPa (after 14 days in PBS). Pure PLLA withstood slightly lower stress than the PLLA/Coll-75/25 while PLLA/Coll-50/50 had a brittle behavior. Human-derived tenocytes were used for cellular tests. A good cell adhesion and viability after 14 day culture was observed. This study has therefore demonstrated the feasibility of fabricating electrospun bundles with multiscale structure and mechanical properties similar to the human tendon

Advancing the understanding of allergic contact dermatitis: from pathophysiology to novel therapeutic approaches

Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a common inflammatory skin disease that, especially when the condition becomes chronic, has a high impact on the quality of life and represents a significant disease burden. ACD represents a type IV delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction that is triggered by contact with an allergen in previously sensitized individuals through the activation of allergen-specific T cells. In the acute phase, it is characterized by eczematous dermatitis, which presents with erythema, edema, vesicles, scaling, and intense itch. Non-eczematous clinical forms are also described (lichenoid, bullous, and lymphomatosis). Lichenification is the most common clinical picture in the chronic phase if the culprit allergen is not found or eliminated. ACD can be associated with both occupational and non-occupational exposure to allergens, representing approximately 90% of occupational skin disorders along with irritant contact dermatitis. Patch testing with suspected allergens is required for a diagnosis. Metals, especially nickel, fragrance mix, isothiazolinones, and para-phenylenediamine, are the most commonly positive allergens in patients patch tested for suspected ACD. The treatment goal is to avoid contact with the culprit agent and use topical and/or systemic corticosteroid therapy