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In the last decade, fintech has emerged in the financial sector, introducing numerous innovations that have severely impacted traditional banks. To respond to fintech firms and meet the new needs of consumers, banks seek to align their offerings by integrating fintech knowledge through mergers and acquisitions (M&As) within an open innovation framework. However, it is still not clear when exactly M&As with fintech firms benefit banks. This paper examines the contingency factors that make M&As beneficial for acquirer banks by using a holistic approach that considers the type of firm, type of deal and the context in which M&As occur. We analysed the effect produced by acquirer sustainability, minority acquisitions and institutional distance between the fintech and the bank's country of incorporation by applying an event study methodology using cumulative abnormal returns to gauge effects on expected performance. We have shown which are the conditions that allow us to maximize the acquirer bank's expected performance. Our research advances the scientific understanding of M&A contingency factors, and more generally of open innovation, in the specific context of fintech and banks. Moreover, we provide managers and policymakers with initial advice on the effects fintech M&As have on traditional banks, showing that they can be beneficial under specific conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite significant academic and managerial interest in big data, there is a dearth of research on how big data impacts the long‐term firm performance. Reasons for this gap include a lack of objective indices to measure big data availability and its impact, and the tendency of studies to ignore the costs associated with collecting and analyzing big data, assuming that big data automatically delivers benefits to firms. Focusing on how firms create and capture value from big data about customers, we use the resource‐based view and three dimensions of big data (i.e., volume, variety, and veracity) to understand when the benefits outweigh the costs. Relying on the number of downloads of mobile device applications, we find that volume of big data has a negative effect on firm performance. This result suggests that the "bigness" of big data alone does not ensure value creation for a firm, and could even constitute a "dark side" of big data. Because big data variety—measured as the number of types of information taken per each application—moderates the negative effects of big data volume, simultaneous high values of volume and variety allow firms to create value that positively affects their performance. In addition, high levels of veracity (i.e., a high percentage of employees devoted to big data analysis), are linked to firms benefiting from big data via value capture. These findings shed light on the circumstances in which big data can be beneficial for firms, contributing to a better theoretical understanding of the opportunities and challenges and providing useful indications to managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to provide new theoretical insights and empirical evidence on the effect of market and technological uncertainty on the market valuation of a firm's R&D capital. A set of hypotheses is developed adopting a real options logic and tested on a panel dataset of 290 manufacturing firms traded in the UK. Consistently with our theoretical model, we show that market and technological uncertainty have distinct effects on the valuation of R&D investments. The results have several important implications for resource allocation to R&D under uncertainty, which we discuss in the concluding section. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research Question/Issue: Concentrated ownership is more the rule than the exception in weak institutional environments, and the absence of external control mechanisms, leading to ineffective legal enforcement, intensifies principal–principal agency issues. Our study examines how the structuring of the corporate board plays a vital role in informing foreign investors about the risk of being expropriated, which affects their decisions to make equity investments in firms in weak institutional regimes. Research Findings/Insights: Using a sample of large listed Indian firms in the period 2010–2014, we hypothesize that the presence of affiliate directors on the board has a negative impact on foreign investments. Likewise, the presence of controlling owners‐directors on the board together with chief executive officers' additional directorial positions has an inverted U‐shaped impact on foreign investments. Theoretical/Academic Implications: By making use of agency theory and focusing on the importance of foreign financing, our study highlighted the factors that deter foreign investors from providing capital to firms in weak institutional regimes. The use of this theoretical perspective, by emphasizing the differences in agency problems prevalent in strong versus weak institutional regimes, further suggested that examination of the structure of corporate boards is an important way to detect and gauge the potential for expropriation in countries suffering from weaknesses in investor protection. Practitioner/Policy Implications: Our study has important implications for corporations operating in markets suffering from a legal environment that offers little investor protection. Investors are less prone to invest in these countries, as the risk of expropriation by dominant shareholders means they cannot be sure of actually getting the putative return. Our work shows how corporations can structure their boards effectively to convince investors that they face less danger of expropriation and so attract foreign capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delimitation of genera and species in Bromeliaceae is often problematic, for example in the Neoregelia bahiana complex which is distributed throughout the rocky fields of the Espinhaço Range, Brazil. Considering that the anatomical characterisation of different organs is potentially important for taxonomic and ecological interpretation of this complex, we analysed roots, stems (stolon), leaves, inflorescence axes (peduncle) and pedicels in individuals from different populations. In all the studied individuals, the roots are composed of velamen, a heterogeneous cortex, and a polyarch vascular cylinder with sclerenchymatous pith. The stolon features a parenchymatous cortex and collateral vascular bundles randomly distributed in the vascular cylinder. This organ may increase in diameter by the formation of new vascular bundles and a multi‐layered cork. The leaf blade has epidermal cells with U‐shaped thickened walls and peltate scales occur on the adaxial surface. The mesophyll consists of mechanical and water‐storage hypodermis and a heterogeneous chlorenchyma. The inflorescence axis and the pedicel have a parenchymatous cortex and vascular bundles randomly distributed in an aerenchyma. Some variable leaf characters, such as presence of air lacunae in the mesophyll, are related to the size of the individuals and were interpreted as phenotypic variations related mainly to sunlight incidence. In contrast, leaf characters such as lamina shape, distribution of the peltate scales, and number of cell layers forming the water‐storage hypodermis distinguish the populations of the Serra do Cabral and one population of the Diamantina (Minas Gerais) from the remaining studied populations, suggesting the existence of more than one taxon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quantification of spatial rainfall is critical for distributed hydrological modeling. Rainfall spatial patterns generated by similar weather conditions can be extremely diverse. This variability can have a significant impact on hydrological processes. Stochastic simulation allows generating multiple realizations of spatial rainfall or filling missing data. The simulated data can then be used as input for numerical models to study the uncertainty on hydrological forecasts. In this paper, we use the direct sampling technique to generate stochastic simulations of high-resolution (1 km) daily rainfall fields, conditioned by elevation and weather state. The technique associates historical radar estimates to variables describing the daily weather conditions, such as the rainfall type and mean intensity, and selects radar images accordingly to form a conditional training image set of each day. Rainfall fields are then generated by resampling pixels from these images. The simulation at each location is conditioned by neighbor patterns of rainfall amount and elevation. The technique is tested on the simulation of daily rainfall amount for the eastern Mediterranean. The results show that it can generate realistic rainfall fields for different weather types, preserving the temporal weather pattern, the spatial features, and the complex relation with elevation. The concept of conditional training image provides added value to multiple-point simulation techniques dealing with extremely nonstationary heterogeneities and extensive data sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manuscript Type Empirical Research Question/Issue Although non-family managers (NFMs) can be expected to influence firm performance, this issue is largely under-investigated. In this study, we examine how diversity inside the non-family component of the top management team (non-family team, or NFT) influences family firm performance. More specifically, we investigate the performance effects of three specific sources of NFT diversity (NFT size; NFT tenure diversity; and NFT dominant functional diversity). Research Findings/Insights The analysis of 584 survey responses by top managers representing 97 complete NFTs (and the related top management teams, TMTs) out of the top 500 family-controlled firms in the Italian furniture industry indicates that (1) NFT-dominant functional diversity improves firm performance; (2) a U-shaped relationship exists between NFT tenure diversity and family firm performance; (3) an inverted U-shaped relationship exists between NFT size and family firm performance. Additionally, we show that the relation between non-family manager characteristics and firm performance is moderated by family dominance in the entire TMT, that is, the proportion of family to non-family managers. Theoretical/Academic Implications Our results call for further exploration regarding the demographic characteristics of non-family managers and their effect on the performance of family firms. In this way, they have several implications for the family business literature, contributing to the growing debate on the socio-emotional wealth (SEW) perspective of family firms' behaviors. Moreover, our results highlight the importance of better contextualizing research on strategic leadership and strategic leaders. Practitioner/Policy Implications Our study suggests that the choice of outsiders should take into account not only their 'market value' and reputation, but also the attributes of other NFMs among the company's executives, providing guidance to family owners in their decisions about professionalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Cured elastomers are commonly dispersed in thermoplastics, but the reverse morphology has received little attention. The present work examines dispersions of 0.5-2 μm PA6 droplets in ethylene-acrylic elastomer (AEM), created by melt blending. After cooling, the blends are compounded with amine curative and crosslinked. Uncrosslinked blends exhibit high bound rubber levels compared to N990 carbon black filled AEM, but similar viscosity at equal filler volume fraction. Crosslinking the blends produces strong, heat resistant vulcanizates with minimal Payne effect and good compression set resistance. These properties result from extensive AEM-PA6 grafting, absence of filler-filler contacts, and beneficial modification of the oxidation profile under diffusion limited conditions. The data show rubber-filler grafting strongly influences filler reinforcing ability, but does not directly influence the Payne effect. Relative to unfilled AEM, silica and carbon black fillers accelerate oxidative degradation in proportion to their reinforcing ability, whereas PA6 has a stabilizing effect. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43995. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adiponectin (Acrp30) is an adipocyte-secreted hormone with pleiotropic metabolic effects, whose reduced levels were related to development and progression of several malignancies. We looked at the presence of Acrp30 receptors in human glioblastomas (GBM), hypothesizing a role for Acrp30 also in this untreatable cancer. Here we demonstrate that human GBM express Acrp30 receptors (AdipoR1 and AdipoR2), which are often co-expressed in GBM samples (70% of the analyzed tumors). To investigate the effects of Acrp30 on GBM growth, we used human GBM cell lines U87-MG and U251, expressing both AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 receptors. In these cells, Acrp30 treatment inhibits DNA synthesis and cell proliferation rate, inducing arrest in G1 phase of the cell cycle. These effects were correlated to a sustained activation of ERK1/2 and Akt kinases, upon Acrp30 treatment. Our results suggest that Acrp30 may represent a novel endogenous negative regulator of GBM cell proliferation, to be evaluated for the possible development of novel pharmacological approaches. J. Cell. Physiol. 229: 1444-1454, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background During the last 10 years, the use of psychotropic medications in youth with psychiatric disorders, including eating disorders, has significantly increased, but their role in the treatment of adolescent anorexia nervosa is still controversial. Objective This paper aims to review the literature on the use of antidepressants and antipsychotics in adolescents with anorexia nervosa, comparing the efficacy and tolerability in this population with those reported in trials with patients not selected by age. Method A systematic review of the available literature published so far. Results Only few studies met the selection criteria. No strong evidence of beneficial effects was found in using antidepressants and antipsychotics neither in adults nor in adolescents. Side effects were more frequently reported in studies including adolescent population. Among psychotropic drugs, the majority of studies focused on olanzapine, which seems to have, in some studies, only positive effects on body mass index, eating disorder symptoms and functional impairment in both age groups. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sand lenses at various spatial scales are recognized to add heterogeneity to glacial sediments. They have high hydraulic conductivities relative to the surrounding till matrix and may affect the advective transport of water and contaminants in clayey till settings. Sand lenses were investigated on till outcrops producing binary images of geological cross-sections capturing the size, shape and distribution of individual features. Sand lenses occur as elongated, anisotropic geobodies that vary in size and extent. Besides, sand lenses show strong non-stationary patterns on section images that hamper subsequent simulation. Transition probability (TP) and multiple-point statistics (MPS) were employed to simulate sand lens heterogeneity. We used one cross-section to parameterize the spatial correlation and a second, parallel section as a reference: it allowed testing the quality of the simulations as a function of the amount of conditioning data under realistic conditions. The performance of the simulations was evaluated on the faithful reproduction of the specific geological structure caused by sand lenses. Multiple-point statistics offer a better reproduction of sand lens geometry. However, two-dimensional training images acquired by outcrop mapping are of limited use to generate three-dimensional realizations with MPS. One can use a technique that consists in splitting the 3D domain into a set of slices in various directions that are sequentially simulated and reassembled into a 3D block. The identification of flow paths through a network of elongated sand lenses and the impact on the equivalent permeability in tills are essential to perform solute transport modeling in the low-permeability sediments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the findings of a study on adiponectin gene and its expression in two different breeds of pigs, namely the large white (LW) and the Casertana (CE). Under the study, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), ribonucleic acid (RNA), and protein extracts from 10 LW and 10 CE pigs were analyzed using methods such as sequence analysis and western blotting. Sexual dimorphism of adiponectin were identified in both breeds. The study found that the production of adiponectin was more abundant in LW compared with CE.

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to compare the body composition and fat distribution measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DPX, Lunar) in different age decades of age-matched Danish and Italian women. The subjects comprised 133 healthy Italian women (age 20–60 years) age-matched to a representative sub-sample of healthy Danish women (n=375). Total and abdominal body fat tissue mass were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Italian women were shorter and fatter compared with age-matched Danish women, but in middle-age, had a less abdominal fat distribution. There was no difference in total body bone mineral density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does knowledge spread more quickly when firms are geographically closer? Focusing on knowledge diffusion from multinational enterprises (MNEs) subsidiaries in the context of the US semiconductor industry, our analysis suggests that the broader MNE patents are, in terms of the knowledge sources they draw on, the slower the speed of knowledge diffusion to more spatially proximate firms, compared to more distant ones. Moreover, our findings suggest that this outcome could be attributed to a greater reliance on knowledge sources that are internal to the MNE network or located geographically distant. We provide interpretative cues for these findings and provide policy recommendations in line with our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 1991 and 1993 we conducted a collaborative trial in adult acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, introducing an idarubicin (IDA)-containing regimen for induction and early consolidation, and increasing consolidation intensity with an autologous bone marrow transplantation phase (ABMT, patients aged <51 years) followed by further chemotherapy for 12 weeks and low-dose maintenance for 6 months (ABMT patients) or 18 months. 96 patients were evaluable for antileukaemic response after induction with vincristine–prednisone–l-asparaginase plus cumulative IDA 36 or 20 mg/m2 (IVAP-1 and IVAP-2), and for disease-free survival (DFS) after a minimum follow-up >3.5 years with an off-therapy interval >1.5 years. The response rate was 44% (7/16) with IVAP-1 and 90% (72/80) with IVAP-2 (P = 0.0001), due to regimen-related toxicities. Post-remission therapy was administered as planned to most cases but protocol violation was registered in some patients eligible to ABMT and post-graft chemotherapy. The 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 31%. Multivariate analysis indicated that DFS was improved in patients receiving a transplant (11 allogeneic, DFS 70%; 32 ABMT, 36%; 37 neither, 17%; P < 0.001) and was negatively affected by high-risk features such as blast cell count >25 × 109/l, T-cell or mature B-cell immunophenotype, and t(9;22)/t(4;11) (all P values <0.05). The 5-year DFS rate was 54% for 26 patients with no high-risk factor, 26% for 35 patients with any one, and 6% for 18 patients with any two (P < 0.005). IVAP-2 brought about a high complete response rate and post-remission treatment including ABMT was feasible and modestly toxic. In spite of the short post-graft chemotherapy phase, the long-term DFS rate was good in cases with no high-risk feature. However, because autografting may be redundant in the standard-risk category, its role requires further investigation for high-risk cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epidural spinal electrostimulatory system (ESES) or dorsal column stimulation (DCS) may be used for the treatment of peripheral vascular diseases of the lower extremities. ESES has been used in our metabolic and surgical department as a way to ameliorate inadequate blood supply in patients suffering from diabetic foot (seven patients), painful chronic arterial narrowing, or inoperable occlusions (25 patients). The continuous stimulation by an implantable apparatus (Medtronic model Itrel, Medtronic, Inc., Minneapolis, MN, USA) led to a reduction or disappearance of pain, an improvement in plethysmographic curves, functional performance, and trophic lesions in about 75% of the patients. The system is safe and well-tolerated by patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To identify criteria with which to select candidates for conservative nephrectomy, and to compare the results of radical and conservative nephrectomy in two homogeneous groups of patients with renal carcinoma, in a prospective study. Patients and methods Forty patients (27 men and 13 women, mean age 49.9 years, range 23-76) with renal carcinoma (T1-T2 N0M0,<4 cm in diameter) were enrolled in the study between 1988 and 1993 and followed for a maximum of 98 months (mean 70.1). The patients were divided into two groups: Group A comprised 19 patients (mean age 51.4, sd 13.7 years, mean tumour size 3.34, sd 0.64 cm) who underwent partial nephrectomy; Group B comprised 21 patients (mean age 48.7, sd 14.7 years, mean tumour size 3.21, sd 0.56 cm) who were selected for radical nephrectomy. The survival and progression of disease were assessed. Results Survival did not differ between the groups; one patient from each group died from distant metastases. There were no cases of local recurrence and multifocal neoplastic lesions were found in one patient during surgery. Conclusion This prospective study confirms the results of retrospective studies that conservative surgery is as effective as radical surgery for renal carcinoma; however, its clinical application is limited by the risk that the renal carcinoma is multifocal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pityriasis versicolor (PV) is a superficial mycosis, theoretically unusual in children. Epidemiologic and clinical data for children with PV over 11 years was collected. Some explanations are given for the conditions that favored this mycotic infection in children. This study confirms that the face is a usual sit of PV in children, in contrast to its rarity as a site in adults. Clinical features are variable and similar to adults. Both sexes are equally affected. The family history is often positive tor PV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary. We report the case of a 36-year-old man who presented large erythematous plaques involving the trunk, face and extremities, since one month. Some of these lesions had a psoriasis-like aspect, with abundant superficial scaling. Direct microscopic examination of scales removed from the plaques revealed numerous hyphae. Cultural examination lead to the identification of Trichophyton rubrum species. Our case of tinea corporis presented some peculiarities related both to the extension of the lesions and their clinical aspects. Zusammenfassung. Wir berichten über einen 36-jährigen Mann, der grösseren rotlaufartigen Ausschlag an Rumpf, Gesicht und Gliedmassen seit einem Monat aufwies. Einige dieser Läsionen sahen wie Psoriasis mit reichlichem Abschuppen aus. In der direkten mikroskopischen Kontrolle der kleinen Schuppen aus den Flecken fanden wir viele Hyphen Kulturell wurde Trichophyton rubrum nachgewiesen. Unser Fall von Tinea corporis zeigte einige Eigenheiten in Hinblick auf den Umfang und das klinische Bild. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Mycoses is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Mycoses is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We report a 10-year-old Caucasian child who had erythema and abundant scaling on the nasolabial folds, the upper lip, and on the nose. Both the abundant scaling and the localization on the central part of the face led us to suspect seborrheic dermatitis. Direct microscopic examination of some scales removed from the lesions showed septate and ramified ectothrix hyphae. Cultural examination on Sabouraud medium led to the identification of theTrichophyton mentagrophytesspecies. We described this patient to highlight the importance of considering tinea faciei in the differential diagnosis of all facial eruptions and the value of mycologic examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary. A 50-year-old Caucasian man with pityriasis versicolor that was localized almost exclusively in the inguinal folds and was characterized by lesions clinically superimposable on those of erythrasma is described. Due to these clinical characteristics, it is proposed that this variety of pityriasis versicolor is defined as ‘erythrasmoid’. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]