Do reverse stock splits indicate future poor stock performance?

There has been much written on the individual topics of bankruptcy prediction, corporate performance, and forward/reverse stock splits. However, there is little research into the relationship between reverse stock splits and subsequent corporate performance and the potential for bankruptcy. Previous research suggested there is a negative drift in stock prices following reverse splits. The purpose of this study is to provide and empirically support rationales for reverse splits by classifying reverse splitting firms into two groups. The presumed rationales for engaging in reverse splits would differ between the two groups, so do the subsequent stock performance. Our results show that both neural networks and Z-scores can successfully distinguish the two groups of firms while neural networks outperforms Z-scores in finding the firms with best performing stocks.     

Intensifying efforts to reduce child malnutrition in India: an evaluation of the Dular program in Jharkhand, India

BACKGROUND: The Dular strategy is a unique nutrition initiative initiated by UNICEF India in collaboration with the states of Bihar and Jharkhand. Designed to complement the government's Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and build upon its infrastructure, one of the major goals of the Dular program is to capitalize and develop community resources at the grassroots level. The emphasis of the Dular program is on establishing a community-based tracking system of the health status of women and of children 0 to 36 months of age by neighborhood-based local resource persons (LRPs). The main objectives of the Dular program include increased prenatal attendance, improvement in breastfeeding and colostrum delivery, improved nutritional practices, and decreased malnutrition. OBJECTIVES AND METHOD: An impact evaluation of 744 women and children in Jharkhand examined antenatal and birthing practices, colostrum delivery, delivery of breastmilk as first food, reported use of iodized salt, measured iodized salt status, immunization and weight-for-age z-scores (WAZ) of children 0 to 36 months of age, controlling for various measures of socioeconomic status. RESULTS: Differences were found between Dular and non-Dular villages in all major outcomes. Particularly noteworthy is that young children in Dular areas had a 45% lower prevalence of severe malnutrition and were four times more likely to receive colostrum than those in non-Dular villages. CONCLUSIONS: Our evaluation results indicate that programmatic overlays to the ICDS program, which focus primary attention on children 0 to 36 months of age and on women, have the potential to transform into a cost-effective instrument for reducing child malnutrition in India, with implications for women and children in India.     

Nicotine pharmacokinetics and subjective effects of three potential reduced exposure products, moist snuff and nicotine lozenge

Objective

To compare nicotine pharmacokinetics and subjective effects of three new smokeless tobacco potential reduced exposure products (PREPs; Ariva, Revel and Stonewall) with moist snuff (Copenhagen) and medicinal nicotine (Commit lozenge).

Methods

10 subjects completed a randomised, within‐subject, crossover study. Subjects used one product for 30 min at each of the five laboratory sessions. Maximal nicotine concentration (C_max) was determined and area under the concentration time curve (AUC) was calculated for a 90‐min period (during use and 60 min after use). Nicotine craving, withdrawal symptoms and ratings of product effects and liking were measured during product use.

Results

Nicotine AUC and C_max were higher for Copenhagen than for any other product (p<0.002) and higher for Commit than for either Ariva or Revel (p<0.001). C_max for Commit was also higher than for Stonewall (p = 0.03). Craving was lowest during use of Copenhagen (p<0.03). Craving during use of Stonewall, Ariva and Commit was lower than during use of Revel (p<0.05). Withdrawal symptom score during use of Copenhagen was lower than during use of Revel (p = 0.009). Copenhagen scores were higher (p<0.005) than all other products in several measures of drug effects and liking (feel good effects, satisfaction, liking and desire for product, and strength of product).

Conclusion

The new smokeless tobacco PREPs result in lower nicotine concentrations and equivalent or lower reductions in subjective measures compared with medicinal nicotine. Since health effects of PREPs are largely unknown, medicinal nicotine should be preferentially encouraged for smokers or smokeless tobacco users wishing to switch to lower‐risk products.Over the past several years, a number of new tobacco products have been introduced, some of which are being marketed, either implicitly or explicitly, as having reduced toxicant exposure or decreased health risks. To assist in evaluating these potential reduced exposure products (PREPs), the United States Food and Drug Administration in 1999 asked the Institute of Medicine to formulate methods and standards by which PREPs could be assessed.¹ More recently, an expert panel was convened to develop guidelines for the evaluation of PREPs on both individual and population levels. Among the topics addressed was human clinical testing, which included recommendations on methods and biomarkers to assess PREPs.^2,3 The recommended evaluation of PREPs included conducting studies on the pharmacokinetic properties of the products and assessing misuse liability by measuring subjective responses to the products and ability of the products to suppress withdrawal.³The use of smokeless tobacco products, in lieu of cigarettes, has been suggested as a promising method by which to reduce tobacco‐related health consequences.⁴ Currently, tobacco companies including major cigarette‐manufacturing companies are test marketing smokeless and spitless tobacco products (eg, Camel Snus by Reynolds American, Taboka by Philip Morris) as a substitute for smoking. Although overall morbidity and mortality associated with the use of moist snuff or chewing tobacco is lower than the risks associated with cigarette smoking, health consequences such as increased rates of oral and pancreatic cancers remain.^5,6 Furthermore, health effects of all forms of smokeless tobacco are not equivalent. For example, an evaluation of the content of tobacco‐specific nitrosamines found large differences between the various forms and brands of smokeless tobacco.⁷ In a human study, a significant decrease in the uptake of tobacco carcinogens has been observed when users of conventional brands of smokeless tobacco switch to Swedish snus.⁸ A comparison of several brands of moist snuff products found significant differences between brands in the amount of unionised (free) nicotine^9,10,11 and in exposure to nicotine and heart rate response after use of a single dose of each product.¹² To accurately assess the potential health effects of a product and the factors associated with consumer use, it is therefore necessary to test each smokeless tobacco product individually, including evaluating the nicotine pharmacokinetics.The purposes of this study were to assess the pharmacokinetics and subjective responses of smokeless tobacco users when using three new PREPs and to compare them with a commonly used brand of moist snuff (Copenhagen) and the medicinal nicotine lozenge (4 mg Commit). The new smokeless tobacco products studied were (1) Ariva, a compressed powdered tobacco lozenge manufactured to contain low tobacco‐specific nitrosamines by Star Scientific marketed for use by smokers when they cannot or choose not to smoke; (2) Stonewall, another compressed powdered low tobacco‐specific nitrosamine tobacco lozenge from Star Scientific marketed as a spit‐free alternative for users of traditional moist snuff smokeless tobacco products; and (3) Revel, a spit‐free smokeless tobacco packet marketed by US Smokeless Tobacco for smokers seeking a discrete alternative to smoking.     

Hydration abnormalities in Nigerian patients on chronic hemodialysis

The state of hydration affects the outcomes of chronic dialysis. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) provides estimates of body water (V), extracellular volume (ECFV), and fat-free mass (FFM) that allow characterization of hydration. We compared single-frequency BIA measurements before and after 14 hemodialysis sessions in 10 Nigerian patients (6 men, 4 women; 44+/-7 years old) with clinical evaluation (weight removed during dialysis, presence of edema) and with estimates of body water obtained by the Watson, Chertow, and Chumlea anthropometric formulas. Predialysis and postdialysis values of body water did not differ between BIA and anthropometric estimates. However, only the BIA estimate of the change in body water during dialysis (-0.8+/-2.9 L) did not differ from the corresponding change in body weight (-1.3+/-3.0 kg), while anthropometric estimates of the change in body water were significantly lower, approximately one-third of the change in weight. Bioelectrical impedance analysis correctly detected the intradialytic change in body water content (the ratio V/Weight) in 79% of the cases, while anthropometric formula estimates of the same change were erroneous in each case. Compared with patients with clinical postdialysis euvolemia (n=7), those with postdialysis edema (n=5) had higher values of postdialysis BIA ratios V/FFM (0.77+/-0.01 vs. 0.72+/-0.03, p<0.01) and ECFV/V (0.53+/-0.02 vs. 0.47+/-0.06, p<0.05), respectively. Bioelectrical impedance analysis appeared to underestimate body water and extracellular volume in a patient with massive ascites and bilateral pleural effusions. Anthropometric formulas are not appropriate for evaluating the state of hydration in patients on chronic hemodialysis. In contrast, BIA provides estimates of hydration agreeing with clinical estimates in the same patients, although it tends to underestimate body water and extracellular volume in patients with large collections of fluid in central body cavities.     

Functional characterization and atomic force microscopy of a DNA repair protein conjugated to a quantum dot

Quantum dots (QDs) possess highly desirable optical properties that make them ideal fluorescent labels for studying the dynamic behavior of proteins. However, a lack of characterization methods for reliably determining protein-quantum dot conjugate stoichiometry and functionality has impeded their widespread use in single-molecule studies. We used atomic force microscopic (AFM) imaging to demonstrate the 1:1 formation of UvrB-QD conjugates based on an antibody-sandwich method. We show that an agarose gel-based electrophoresis mobility shift assay and AFM can be used to evaluate the DNA binding function of UvrB-QD conjugates. Importantly, we demonstrate that quantum dots can serve as a molecular marker to unambiguously identify the presence of a labeled protein in AFM images.     

Quantification of 8-oxoG in Plant Telomeres

Chemical modifications in DNA impact gene regulation and chromatin structure. DNA oxidation, for example, alters gene expression, DNA synthesis and cell cycle progression. Modification of telomeric DNA by oxidation is emerging as a marker of genotoxic damage and is associated with reduced genome integrity and changes in telomere length and telomerase activity. 8-oxoguanine (8-oxoG) is the most studied and common outcome of oxidative damage in DNA. The G-rich nature of telomeric DNA is proposed to make it a hotspot for oxidation, but because telomeres make up only a tiny fraction of the genome, it has been difficult to directly test this hypothesis by studying dynamic DNA modifications specific to this region in vivo. Here, we present a new, robust method to differentially enrich telomeric DNA in solution, coupled with downstream methods for determination of chemical modification. Specifically, we measure 8-oxoG in Arabidopsis thaliana telomeres under normal and oxidative stress conditions. We show that telomere length is unchanged in response to oxidative stress in three different wild-type accessions. Furthermore, we report that while telomeric DNA comprises only 0.02–0.07% of the total genome, telomeres contribute between 0.2 and 15% of the total 8-oxoG. That is, plant telomeres accumulate 8-oxoG at levels approximately 100-fold higher than the rest of the genome under standard growth conditions. Moreover, they are the primary targets of further damage upon oxidative stress. Interestingly, the accumulation of 8-oxoG in the chromosome body seems to be inversely proportional to telomere length. These findings support the hypothesis that telomeres are hotspots of 8-oxoG and may function as sentinels of oxidative stress in plants.     

Sex-related strategies for coping with interpersonal conflict in children aged five and seven.

Explored differences in conflict situation coping strategies in 2 groups of 6 5-yr-olds and 2 groups of 6 7-yr-olds who were videotaped in 12 1-hr long playgroups. Both direct persuasion attempts and conflict mitigation attempts were coded from the videotapes. Results show that boys were involved in conflict more often than girls. Once within a conflict situation, boys tended to use threat and physical force significantly more often, whereas girls tended to attempt to mitigate the conflict significantly more often, especially when interacting with other girls. However, there was considerable overlap in the behavior of the boys and the girls. It is concluded that the bulk of all the Ss' responses to conflict could be described as moderate persuasion. It is suggested that the gender differences described may involve a difference in emphasis rather than a qualitative discontinuity. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rethinking water policy in India with the scope of metering towards sustainable water future

Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy - The water sector in India has undergone several institutional and structural reforms through different policies and legislation changes over the past...     

Effects of incorporation of sugarcane fibre on the physicochemical and sensory properties of chicken sausage

Improving functional and eating qualities of processed meat products through incorporation of plant fibre is of interest to both consumers and food industry. This project investigated the physicochemical and sensory properties of chicken sausages with incorporation of up to 3% sugarcane fibre, a by-product of sugarcane processing. Compared with no sugarcane fibre sample, the cooking yield of chicken sausage with 3% of fibre and 10% of water addition was increased from 94.20% to 97.52%, total phenolic content from 25.43 to 57.09 mg GAE/100 g and radical scavenging activity from 28.11% to 60.72%, whereas lipid oxidation of Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances value was decreased from 0.535 to 0.428 malondialdehyde mg kg⁻¹. Moreover, consumer overall liking of chicken sausages was not affected by the incorporation of sugarcane fibre. This research suggested that incorporation of sugarcane fibre could improve eating quality and health benefits of the chicken sausage product, and add value to both the food and sugarcane industry.