Benedictine University

Biological entities, particularly cohorts of individuals and, as will be suggested in this paper, entities above the level of the individual and including that of civilization also exhibit characteristic survivorship. It will be demonstrated that a cohort of civilizations existing between 3000 BCE and 1000 CE exhibit Type I survivorship. Further, the consequences of that mode of survivorship will be discussed, including the potential for further survival with respect to a given civilization age. The significance of civilization half-life, the energy relationships with respect to civilization age, and the relationship between Type I survivorship and changes in urban distribution characterized by the periods of stasis and punctuation exhibited by the population of maximum urban areas will also be discussed. Some attention will be given to transitions fr om stasis to punctuation and vice versa with respect to survivorship mode.

The study provides global evidence on the effects of news-based geopolitical risk (GPR), events, and associated risks on the financial stability of banking systems. With extensive large panel data from 179 economies over the past decades, we document strong adverse effects of GPR on financial stability with the predicted decrease (increase) in the bank (non-performing loans) Z-score. Commercial banking systems are heterogeneously exposed to GPR. Possible mechanisms to mitigate the effects of GPR include multidimensional financial development, enhanced world governance, and public finance. Our findings are robust with a battery of econometric approaches controlling for time-varying macroeconomic factors and banking characteristics (e.g., capitalization, concentration, performance) across countries and regions. The impacts of GPR on global financial stability are persistent when we control for systematic banking crises, economic policy, world uncertainty, and global uncertainty spillovers. While higher capitalized banks could secure ample financial stability with substantial military expenditure, the Asia Pacific and emerging economies are sensitive to widespread GPR. The study highlights the roles of institutional quality and world governance factors through times of uncertainty. In The context of global risks, greater global and comprehensive collaborations with mitigated GPR threats are inevitable for our inclusive growth toward Sustainable Development Goals. Our findings are critical to policymakers, advisers, and economists for our global financial stability and sustainable development.

According to Forbes, 99.9% of businesses across the U.S. are small businesses. Although the nation’s largest corporations get media coverage, headlines and spotlight, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration the reality is that the vast majority of businesses in the U.S. are small businesses. In the United States, while 33.2 million small businesses exist, the majority of organizational research data is from large organizations. Using the voice of the employee specific to trust and communication, is there a difference between small companies and a big corporation? Employee survey data from three organizations explores the elements of trust and communication efforts of middle managers. Employee survey responses from one large corporation, and two smaller organizations (small organization-1 in USA, and small organization-2 in Mexico), are comparatively analyzed. Findings indicate that communication and change styles are somewhat different with respect to organizational size. As organizational change efforts, trust and communication impact the levels of employee stress, the implications of communication and stress issues for consultants are discussed. Ongoing research for consultants intersecting the elements of trust, communication and stress within different organizations are discussed.

Nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-ĸB) plays a crucial role in both innate and adaptive immune systems, significantly influencing various physiological processes such as cell proliferation, migration, differentiation, survival, and stemness. The function of NF-ĸB in cancer progression and response to chemotherapy has gained increasing attention. This review highlights the role of NF-ĸB in inflammation control, biological mechanisms, and therapeutic implications in cancer treatment. NF-ĸB is instrumental in altering the release of inflammatory factors such as TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β, which are key in the regulation of carcinogenesis. Specifically, in conditions including colitis, NF-ĸB upregulation can intensify inflammation, potentially leading to the development of colorectal cancer. Its pivotal role extends to regulating the tumor microenvironment, impacting components such as macrophages, fibroblasts, T cells, and natural killer cells. This regulation influences tumorigenesis and can dampen anti-tumor immune responses. Additionally, NF-ĸB modulates cell death mechanisms, notably by inhibiting apoptosis and ferroptosis. It also has a dual role in stimulating or suppressing autophagy in various cancers. Beyond these functions, NF-ĸB plays a role in controlling cancer stem cells, fostering angiogenesis, increasing metastatic potential through EMT induction, and reducing tumor cell sensitivity to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Given its oncogenic capabilities, research has focused on natural products and small molecule compounds that can suppress NF-ĸB, offering promising avenues for cancer therapy.

Although the efficacy and safety of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine have been established, side effects and adverse events related to the COVID-19 vaccine are still coming out. COVID-19 vaccine also has the potential to cause acute and long-term cardiovascular effects, which include myocarditis, pericarditis, myopericarditis, myocardial infarction, pulmonary embolism, thrombotic thrombocytopenia, and pulmonary hemorrhage. Although uncommon, takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM) has also been reported following COVID-19 vaccination. We report a case of TCM following the COVID-19 vaccine in a 59-year-old female who presented with intermittent chest pain and dyspnea following the COVID-19 vaccine booster dose. She had no identifiable triggers for TCM, no risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and normal cardiac enzyme levels, ruling out other causes of cardiac dysfunction. The diagnosis of TCM was supported by imaging findings and the absence of obstructive or thrombotic lesions on angiography.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a malignant tumor of the digestive system that has a bad prognosis. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is involved in a wide variety of biological activities due to the fact that it is the most common form of mRNA modification in mammals. Numerous research has accumulated evidence suggesting that a malfunction in the regulation of m6A RNA modification is associated with various illnesses, including cancers. However, its implications in PC remain poorly characterized. The methylation data, level 3 RNA sequencing data, and clinical information of PC patients were all retrieved from the TCGA datasets. Genes associated with m6A RNA methylation were compiled from the existing body of research and made available for download from the m6Avar database. The LASSO Cox regression method was used to construct a 4-gene methylation signature, which was then used to classify all PC patients included in the TCGA dataset into either a low- or high-risk group. In this study, based on the set criteria of |cor| > 0.4 and p value < 0.05. A total of 3507 gene methylation were identified to be regulated by m6A regulators. Based on the univariate Cox regression analysis and identified 3507 gene methylation, 858 gene methylation was significantly associated with the patient's prognosis. The multivariate Cox regression analysis identified four gene methylation (PCSK6, HSP90AA1, TPM3, and TTLL6) to construct a prognosis model. Survival assays indicated that the patients in the high-risk group tend to have a worse prognosis. ROC curves showed that our prognosis signature had a good prediction ability on patient survival. Immune assays suggested a different immune infiltration pattern in patients with high- and low-risk scores. Moreover, we found that two immune-related genes, CTLA4 and TIGIT, were downregulated in high-risk patients. We generated a unique methylation signature that is related to m6A regulators and is capable of accurately predicting the prognosis for patients with PC. The findings might prove useful for therapeutic customization and the process of making medical decisions.