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Under the mean-variance efficiency framework, we investigate the role of timberland asset in a mixed-asset portfolio in the United States. Starting from a single period (quarterly) view, we first reveal the crucial role of serial correlation in defining an asset's financial performance. Accordingly, we modify return, volatility, and correlation for multiyear horizons to account for the nature of long-term investments. Our results show that, although timberland is persistent in all portfolios, private-equity timberland can be substituted by other liquid assets, including public-equity timberland, as the lengthening holding period substantially reduces their volatilities. We conclude that private-equity timberland is a risk diversifier regardless of the length of the investment horizon, whereas public-equity timberland becomes a suitable diversifier only for long-term investors with high risk tolerance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatic ischemia–reperfusion (IR) injury is a critical issue during liver transplantation (LT). Recent studies have demonstrated that IL‐17a contributes to IR injury and steatohepatitis. However, the underlying mechanism is not understood. This study aimed to examine the role of IL‐17a on hepatic IR injury in fatty liver and to investigate the underlying mechanisms. The correlation between serum IL‐17a levels and liver function was analyzed in LT patients receiving fatty (n = 42) and normal grafts (n = 44). Rat LT model was applied to validate the clinical findings. IL‐17a knockout (KO) and wild‐type mice were fed with high‐fat diets to induce fatty liver and subjected to hepatic IR injury with major hepatectomy. Frequency of circulating neutrophils and IL‐17a expression on PBMCs were analyzed by flow cytometry. Mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP) was examined by a living intravital image system. Serum IL‐17a was elevated after human LT, especially with fatty grafts. The aspartate aminotransferase and alanine transaminase levels were increased in recipients with fatty grafts compared with normal grafts. In rat LT model, the intragraft IL‐17a expression was significantly higher in fatty grafts than normal ones post‐LT. KO of IL‐17a in mice notably attenuated liver damage after IR injury in fatty liver, characterized by better‐preserved liver architecture, improved liver function, and reduced neutrophil infiltration. MOMP triggered cell death after hepatic IR injury in a caspase‐independent way via IL‐17a/NF‐κB signaling pathway. KO of IL‐17a protected the fatty liver against IR injury through the suppression of neutrophil infiltration and mitochondria‐driven apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a compact almost complex 4-manifold (M, J), we study the subgroups H±J of H2(M, ℝ) consisting of cohomology classes representable by J-invariant, respectively, J-anti-invariant real 2-forms. If b+=1, we show that, for generic almost complex structures on M, the subgroup H−J is trivial. Computations of the subgroups and their dimensions h±J are obtained for almost complex structures related to integrable ones. We also prove semi-continuity properties for h±J. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple trials failed to express significant amounts of olfactory receptors in heterologous cells as they are typically retained in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Evidence is accumulating that cell-type–specific accessory proteins regulate the folding of olfactory receptors, their exit from the ER, and the trafficking to the plasma membrane of the olfactory cilia where the receptors gain access to odorants. We found Hsc70t, a testis-enriched variant of the Hsp70 family of heat shock proteins which is specifically expressed in post-meiotic germ cells, in the olfactory epithelium of mouse and human. Cotransfected HEK293 cells with Hsc70t and different green fluorescent protein–tagged odorant receptors (ORs) from mouse and man showed a significantly enhanced OR expression. Hsc70t expression also changed the amount of cells functionally expressing olfactory receptors at the cell surface as the number of cells responding to odorants in Ca2+-imaging experiments significantly increased. Our results show that Hsc70t helps expression of ORs in heterologous cell systems and helped the characterization of an “orphan” human olfactory receptor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]