The aim of the present study was to characterize single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the pr... more The aim of the present study was to characterize single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the promoter region of the bovine paraoxonase 1 (PON1) gene and determine their relationship with PON1 serum activity. Blood samples were collected from 47 Holstein cows during the periparturient period. Serum PON1 was measured and DNA extracted for PCR and sequencing of the promoter region of the PON1 gene. Seven novel SNPs were identified and of these, five SNPs, at positions -105, -221, -392, -611 and -674, upstream of the start of the published mRNA sequence (NM_001046269.2), were found to be associated with variability in serum PON1 activity (P < 0.05). The SNPs at positions -221 and -611 were located in regions predicted to bind to transcription factors linked to the acute phase response.
Laboratory investigation; a journal of technical methods and pathology, 2012
The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) has been previously linked to glucose homeostasis. In isolated ... more The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) has been previously linked to glucose homeostasis. In isolated muscle or fat cells, acute bradykinin (BK) stimulation was shown to improve insulin action and increase glucose uptake by promoting glucose transporter 4 translocation to plasma membrane. However, the role for BK in the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes remains largely unknown. To address this, we generated genetically obese mice (ob/ob) lacking the BK B2 receptor (obB2KO). Despite similar body weight or fat accumulation, obB2KO mice showed increased fasting glycemia (162.3 ± 28.2 mg/dl vs 85.3 ± 13.3 mg/dl), hyperinsulinemia (7.71 ± 1.75 ng/ml vs 4.09 ± 0.51 ng/ml) and impaired glucose tolerance when compared with ob/ob control mice (obWT), indicating insulin resistance and impaired glucose homeostasis. This was corroborated by increased glucose production in response to a pyruvate challenge. Increased gluconeogenesis was accompanied by increased hepatic mRNA expression of ...
In this article, the innovative twostage procedure of Simar and Wilson (2007) is used to estimate... more In this article, the innovative twostage procedure of Simar and Wilson (2007) is used to estimate the efficiency determinants of Portuguese hotel groups from 1998 to 2005. In the first stage, the hotels’ technical efficiency is estimated with Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), in order to establish which hotels have the most efficient performance. These could serve as peers to help
Page 1. Bootstrapped Technical Efficiency of African Seaports Carlos Pestana Barros, Albert Assaf... more Page 1. Bootstrapped Technical Efficiency of African Seaports Carlos Pestana Barros, Albert Assaf, and Ade Ibiwoye Abstract This paper analyzes the efficiency of a representative sample of African seaports using a bootstrapped DEA Data Envelopment Analysis approach. ...
In this paper, we assess and compare the performance of French tourism destinations, using the Da... more In this paper, we assess and compare the performance of French tourism destinations, using the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) two-stage procedure, where in the first stage the efficiency score are calculated, and then followed in the second stage by a bootstrapped truncated regression model. In the context of France such analysis takes an additional importance, especially as the country is
Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, Jan 24, 2014
We compared the prognostic value of liver biopsy (LB) and FIB-4 index in patients with human imm... more We compared the prognostic value of liver biopsy (LB) and FIB-4 index in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection. We studied patients from the Grupo de Estudio del SIDA 3603 study cohort, in whom fibrosis was evaluated at baseline using both LB (Metavir score) and FIB-4 index. We assessed overall death (OD) and liver-related events (LREs), defined as decompensation or hepatocellular carcinoma, whichever occurred first. We used receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves to determine the ability of LB and FIB-4 to predict outcomes. We also assessed the association between advanced fibrosis-LB (F3 or greater) or FIB-4 (≥3.25)-and outcomes using multivariate Cox regression analysis. The study sample comprised 903 patients (328 with sustained virologic response [SVR]). Baseline fibrosis by LB was as follows: F0, n = 71; F1, n = 242; F2, n = 236; F3, n = 236; F4, n = 118. Fibrosis by FIB-4 was as follows: ≤1, n = 148; >1 to <3.25, ...
This paper compares the efficiency of cooperatives and private enterprises in the Portuguese wine... more This paper compares the efficiency of cooperatives and private enterprises in the Portuguese wine industry, employing data envelopment analysis (DEA). The use of DEA for the analysis of comparative efficiency within a sector is a key tool in evaluating organizational competitiveness. Competitiveness should be based on benchmarking the different types of organizations that comprise the viniculture sector. We conclude that Portuguese wine cooperatives, on average, are more efficient than their private counterparts. Economic implications arising from the study are discussed.
This article introduces the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) bootstrap procedure to analyze the te... more This article introduces the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) bootstrap procedure to analyze the technical efficiency of Brazilian first league football clubs. For comparison purpose the study also estimates the efficiency scores with the traditional DEA model. From the results, it is clear that there is a significant difference between the efficiency scores derived from the traditional DEA and the bootstrap
... sample of Portuguese travel agencies. They adopted which permits an observed DMU to reach the... more ... sample of Portuguese travel agencies. They adopted which permits an observed DMU to reach the pro-a model that generates efficiency scores econome-duction frontier. ... In more economic terms, this function makes it but with a linear homogeneity cost function and a ...
This paper analyses the cost efficiency of Angola-Luanda hotels using a Bayesian stochastic front... more This paper analyses the cost efficiency of Angola-Luanda hotels using a Bayesian stochastic frontier model. The results confirm that Luanda hotels have increased their cost efficiency over the period of study to reach an overall average of 67.11%. Results from the returns to scale also indicate that further improvements in efficiency are possible if Luanda hotels would increase the size
The aim of the present study was to characterize single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the pr... more The aim of the present study was to characterize single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the promoter region of the bovine paraoxonase 1 (PON1) gene and determine their relationship with PON1 serum activity. Blood samples were collected from 47 Holstein cows during the periparturient period. Serum PON1 was measured and DNA extracted for PCR and sequencing of the promoter region of the PON1 gene. Seven novel SNPs were identified and of these, five SNPs, at positions -105, -221, -392, -611 and -674, upstream of the start of the published mRNA sequence (NM_001046269.2), were found to be associated with variability in serum PON1 activity (P < 0.05). The SNPs at positions -221 and -611 were located in regions predicted to bind to transcription factors linked to the acute phase response.
Laboratory investigation; a journal of technical methods and pathology, 2012
The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) has been previously linked to glucose homeostasis. In isolated ... more The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) has been previously linked to glucose homeostasis. In isolated muscle or fat cells, acute bradykinin (BK) stimulation was shown to improve insulin action and increase glucose uptake by promoting glucose transporter 4 translocation to plasma membrane. However, the role for BK in the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes remains largely unknown. To address this, we generated genetically obese mice (ob/ob) lacking the BK B2 receptor (obB2KO). Despite similar body weight or fat accumulation, obB2KO mice showed increased fasting glycemia (162.3 ± 28.2 mg/dl vs 85.3 ± 13.3 mg/dl), hyperinsulinemia (7.71 ± 1.75 ng/ml vs 4.09 ± 0.51 ng/ml) and impaired glucose tolerance when compared with ob/ob control mice (obWT), indicating insulin resistance and impaired glucose homeostasis. This was corroborated by increased glucose production in response to a pyruvate challenge. Increased gluconeogenesis was accompanied by increased hepatic mRNA expression of ...
In this article, the innovative twostage procedure of Simar and Wilson (2007) is used to estimate... more In this article, the innovative twostage procedure of Simar and Wilson (2007) is used to estimate the efficiency determinants of Portuguese hotel groups from 1998 to 2005. In the first stage, the hotels’ technical efficiency is estimated with Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), in order to establish which hotels have the most efficient performance. These could serve as peers to help
Page 1. Bootstrapped Technical Efficiency of African Seaports Carlos Pestana Barros, Albert Assaf... more Page 1. Bootstrapped Technical Efficiency of African Seaports Carlos Pestana Barros, Albert Assaf, and Ade Ibiwoye Abstract This paper analyzes the efficiency of a representative sample of African seaports using a bootstrapped DEA Data Envelopment Analysis approach. ...
In this paper, we assess and compare the performance of French tourism destinations, using the Da... more In this paper, we assess and compare the performance of French tourism destinations, using the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) two-stage procedure, where in the first stage the efficiency score are calculated, and then followed in the second stage by a bootstrapped truncated regression model. In the context of France such analysis takes an additional importance, especially as the country is
Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, Jan 24, 2014
We compared the prognostic value of liver biopsy (LB) and FIB-4 index in patients with human imm... more We compared the prognostic value of liver biopsy (LB) and FIB-4 index in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection. We studied patients from the Grupo de Estudio del SIDA 3603 study cohort, in whom fibrosis was evaluated at baseline using both LB (Metavir score) and FIB-4 index. We assessed overall death (OD) and liver-related events (LREs), defined as decompensation or hepatocellular carcinoma, whichever occurred first. We used receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves to determine the ability of LB and FIB-4 to predict outcomes. We also assessed the association between advanced fibrosis-LB (F3 or greater) or FIB-4 (≥3.25)-and outcomes using multivariate Cox regression analysis. The study sample comprised 903 patients (328 with sustained virologic response [SVR]). Baseline fibrosis by LB was as follows: F0, n = 71; F1, n = 242; F2, n = 236; F3, n = 236; F4, n = 118. Fibrosis by FIB-4 was as follows: ≤1, n = 148; >1 to <3.25, ...
This paper compares the efficiency of cooperatives and private enterprises in the Portuguese wine... more This paper compares the efficiency of cooperatives and private enterprises in the Portuguese wine industry, employing data envelopment analysis (DEA). The use of DEA for the analysis of comparative efficiency within a sector is a key tool in evaluating organizational competitiveness. Competitiveness should be based on benchmarking the different types of organizations that comprise the viniculture sector. We conclude that Portuguese wine cooperatives, on average, are more efficient than their private counterparts. Economic implications arising from the study are discussed.
This article introduces the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) bootstrap procedure to analyze the te... more This article introduces the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) bootstrap procedure to analyze the technical efficiency of Brazilian first league football clubs. For comparison purpose the study also estimates the efficiency scores with the traditional DEA model. From the results, it is clear that there is a significant difference between the efficiency scores derived from the traditional DEA and the bootstrap
... sample of Portuguese travel agencies. They adopted which permits an observed DMU to reach the... more ... sample of Portuguese travel agencies. They adopted which permits an observed DMU to reach the pro-a model that generates efficiency scores econome-duction frontier. ... In more economic terms, this function makes it but with a linear homogeneity cost function and a ...
This paper analyses the cost efficiency of Angola-Luanda hotels using a Bayesian stochastic front... more This paper analyses the cost efficiency of Angola-Luanda hotels using a Bayesian stochastic frontier model. The results confirm that Luanda hotels have increased their cost efficiency over the period of study to reach an overall average of 67.11%. Results from the returns to scale also indicate that further improvements in efficiency are possible if Luanda hotels would increase the size
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