Machine Learning and Deep Learning based Stock Market Prediction considering Covid-19 as a Feature

India's capital markets are witnessing intense uncertainty due to global market failures. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, risk asset prices have plummeted sharply. Risk assets declined half or more compared to the losses in 2008 and 2009. The high volatility is likely to continue in the short term;as a result, the Indian markets have declined sharply. In this paper, we have used different algorithms such as Gated Recurrent Unit, Long Short-Term Memory, Support Vector Regressor, Decision Tree, Random Forest, Lasso Regression, Ridge Regression, Bayesian Ridge Regression, Gradient Boost, and Stochastic Gradient Descent Algorithm to predict financial markets based on historical data available along with economic and financial features during this pandemic. According to our findings, deep learning models can accurately estimate financial indexes by utilizing non-linear transaction data. We found that the Gated Recurrent Unit performs better than the existing model. © 2023 IEEE.

A Blinded Investigation: Accentuated NK Lymphocyte CD335 (NKp46) Expression Predicts Pregnancy Failures.

AIM: NKp46 is an NK cell receptor uniquely expressed by NK cells and a small subset of innate lymphoid cells. In our previous studies, we suggested a tight connection between the activity of NK cells and the expression of NKp46 and supported the clinical significance of NKp46 expression in NK cells in women with reproductive failures. In this study, we investigated the expression of NKp46 in NK cells in the peripheral blood of women in early pregnancy and analyzed its association with pregnancy loss. METHODS: In a blinded study, we examined blood samples and analyzed the subsequent pregnancy outcomes from 98 early pregnant women (5th-7th week of gestation-w.g.) and 66 women in the 11th-13th week of pregnancy who served as controls. We studied the expression of NKp46 and the levels of anti-cardiolipin antibodies (aCL). The results of aCL were shared with the clinic, while the expression of NKp46 was blinded and not analyzed until the end of the study. RESULTS: A misbalance in the NKp46+NK cells subpopulations was associated with an unfavorable ongoing pregnancy. A decreased level of NKp46high cells (<14%) was strongly associated with miscarriage. A decreased level of the double-bright subpopulation (NKp46hightCD56++) also was a negative prognostic factor for the pregnancy course, but its increased level (>4%) was strongly associated with a successful pregnancy course. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that accentuated levels of NKp46+NK cells lead to a negative prognosis for early pregnancy courses in women.

Trump and the Coronavirus: The Triumph of Incompetence

The coronavirus pandemic was the most severe crisis of the Trump administration, and the worst health care crisis in a century. The focus of this chapter is how and why the United States, a country blessed with enormous wealth and scientific expertise, failed so spectacularly and was crippled by the outbreak. It focuses on the incompetence and mistakes of the Trump administration, its delayed response, and the culture of denial and dismissal of science and expertise that abetted the virus's spread. At every turn, Trump and his staff missed opportunities, blamed others, spread false and contradictory information, and failed to take necessary steps to contain its spread. The result was a catastrophic rise in infections that has left half a million Americans dead and 30 million infected. The crisis led to a severe economic downturn and Trump's loss in the 2020 election. The conclusion summarizes the policy failures and what might have been done differently. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

Dynamics and Regional Features of Labour Market Recovery During COVID-19

The imbalance between labour supply and demand, both by types of economic activity and by professional groups, differs in Russian regional labour markets, causing long-term unemployment and impoverishment of the population. The article examines the transformation of the labour market, regional characteristics of market failures and its recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on sample surveys of the labour force conducted by the Federal State Statistics Service, we determined monthly unemployment dynamics and, subsequently, the vulnerability and instability of regional labour markets. It is hypothesised that the stronger the contraction of employment and the greater the unemployment, the longer the process of labour market recovery during the pandemic;regions recover from the crisis at different speeds. Indicators of the intensity of labour market failures and its recovery are proposed. Since the pandemic is a peculiar phenomenon that affected the economy and society, human behaviour in the labour market, the concept of excessive unemployment was used (the difference between actual unemployment and its pre-pandemic level). We performed a correlation analysis of the relations between labour market failures and its recovery in four groups of regions characterised by different labour market fluctuations. The calculated Spearman's coefficients showed a positive relationship between the indicators. The depth of labour market failures and its recovery rate in regions with developed infrastructure, attracting labour migrants, are revealed. A positive relationship was established between the unemployment dynamics and the increase in vacancy rate reported by employers to employment agencies, increase in the average monthly salary. This article presents the results of the first research stage. Further studies will expand the time series of employment and unemployment in order to identify long-term trends and build a forecasting model. © 2023 Institute of Economics, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 and Urban Futures: Impacts on Business Closures in Miami-Dade County

The COVID-19 pandemic altered the local economic geographies of many U.S. cities, and it remains unclear how long these changes will persist. This study analyzed the sociospatial dynamics of business closures in Miami-Dade County, Florida, from August 2020 to August 2021 with an explicit focus on reconciling the pandemic's effects in the context of location theory. We found that traditional urban centers and transit-concentrated areas experienced disproportionately higher rates of business closures during the study period, suggesting a potential wave of commercial suburbanization in Miami. Middle-class and working-class Hispanic neighborhoods suffered the most business closures. The results of correlation analysis and spatial regression models suggested a positive association between the incidence of COVID-19 cases and business closures at both zip code and individual business levels. These results also beckon a revaluation of the role of certain urban externalities in traditional location theory. The importance of automobile accessibility and agglomeration effects are poised to persist beyond the pandemic, but the benefits of proximity to the public transport system might decline. The trends observed in Miami suggest that the pandemic could generate more automobile-reliant employment subcenters in U.S. cities and amplify problems of intraurban inequality and urban sprawl. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR] La pandemia del COVID-19 alteró las geografías económicas locales de muchas ciudades de los Estados Unidos, y aún no hay claridad por cuánto tiempo más persistirán estos cambios. Este estudio analizó la dinámica socioespacial del cierre de negocios en el Condado de Miami-Dade, Florida, de agosto del 2020 hasta agosto del 2021, centrándose explícitamente en reconciliar los efectos de la pandemia dentro del contexto de la teoría locacional. Descubrimos que los centros urbanos tradicionales y las áreas de tránsito concentrado experimentaron tasas desproporcionadamente más altas de cierres de negocios durante el período del estudio, lo cual sugiere una ola potencial de suburbanización comercial en Miami. Los vecindarios hispánicos de clase media y de la clase trabajadora sufrieron al máximo de cierres de negocios. Los resultados del análisis de los modelos de correlación y regresión espacial sugirieron una asociación positiva entre la incidencia de los casos de COVID-19 y los cierres de negocios, tanto al nivel de los códigos zip como de los negocios individuales. Estos resultados también invitan a la revaluación del papel de ciertas externalidades urbanas en la teoría locacional tradicional. La importancia de la accesibilidad al automóvil y los efectos de la aglomeración muestran disposición a persistir más allá de la pandemia, opero los beneficios de la proximidad del sistema de transporte público podría declinar. La tendencia observada en Miami sugiere que la pandemia podría generar más subcentros de empleo dependientes del automóvil en las ciudades americanas y ampliar los problemas de desigualdad intraurbana y la dispersión urbana. (Spanish) [ FROM AUTHOR] COVID-19疫情改变了美国许多城市的地方经济地理。目前, 尚不清楚这些变化会持续多久。本研究分析了2020年8月至2021年8月期间佛罗里达州迈阿密-戴德县商业倒闭的社会空间变化, 根据区位理论探讨了对疫情影响的缓解。我们发现, 在此期间, 传统的城市中心和交通密集地区经历了不成比例的更高的商业倒闭率, 这表明迈阿密可能会出现商业郊区化浪潮。西班牙裔中产阶级和工人阶级社区出现了最多的商业倒闭。相关性分析和空间回归模型结果表明, 在邮政编码尺度和个体尺度, COVID-19发病率与商业倒闭都存在着正相关性。这些结果也呼吁, 需要重新评估某些城市外部特性在传统区位理论中的作用。汽车可及性和聚集效应的重要性将会一直持续到疫情之后, 但公共交通系统的临近优势可能会下降。迈阿密的趋势表明, COVID-19可能会在美国城市产生更多依赖于汽车的就业分中心, 加剧城市内部不平等、城市扩张等问题。 (Chinese) [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Annals of the American Association of Geographers is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd 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 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 . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Do the macro and global economic factors drive the nonperforming loans in GCC economies?

PurposeThe current study aims to investigate the determinants of nonperforming loans (NPLs) in the GCC economies during the period spanning 2000 to 2018. It also examines whether the worldwide financial crisis of 2007–2008, which brought the issue of non–performing loans to the greater attention of academics and policymakers, had a substantial impact on NPLs in this region.Design/methodology/approachThe sample consists of 53 conventional banks from GCC countries, and the basic data for the study is obtained from various sources such as Bankscope, IMF World Economic Outlook, World Bank and Chicago Board of Options Exchange Market Volatility Index. The estimations were done by dynamic panel data regression modeling using system generalized methods of moments.FindingsThe findings reveal that both, the non-oil real GDP growth rate and inflation have favorable effects on NPLs. On the other hand, domestic credit to the private sector and the volatility index have an adverse effect on NPLs. Furthermore, the period-wise analysis shows that the relevance and significance of the determinants of NPLs vary between the precrisis and postcrisis periods. It is also reflected through the intercept dummy, which is found to be significant, indicating that the financial crisis, as a global economic factor, had a significant impact on NPLs. A number of robustness tests are applied, which indicate that the results are mostly robust and consistent in terms of the significance of the explanatory variables and the direction of their relationship with the dependent variable.Practical implicationsPolicymakers and bank authorities must strive to maintain a healthy economy and implement macroprudential policies to improve the financial stability of banks and reduce credit risk.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is likely the first study that empirically investigates the influence of the financial crisis on NPLs in the context of GCC economies. In addition, the research spans 19 years to produce more conclusive results.

Market and State Failures in the Healthcare Model under the Covid-19 Pandemic

The health care market has special features associated with the production of both private and public goods, it has a special structure of competition and transactions. The business models of medical organizations are based on a two-level value proposition - organizations in the analyzed field work for their clients (the population of a territory) and simultaneously for the state, which plays a role of a customer of the public good. This leads to the mixture of the healthcare and insurance markets and, as a result, the development of specific monetization scheme in the field of medical services. The article focuses on market and institutional coordination mechanisms in the Russian healthcare market transformation in the context of the 2020-2022 pandemic. The research methodology is based on neo-institutional economics, theories of industrial markets and the public sector theory. The paper assesses the market failures of the healthcare system and institutional instruments that are designed to neutralize these failures. We also describe the general institutional context of the health care in Russia. The methods of the empirical part of the study are a survey and a narrative analysis. Our results are based on 584 interviews. The respondents assessed changes in the conditions for the provision of medical services in 2020-2022. It was found that the effectiveness of institutional coordination mechanisms in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic were reduced, this resulted in new failures of the state. We prove that a new model in the Russian Federation healthcare market has been created as a result of the pandemic. This model is characterized by a simultaneous strengthening of the role of the state in some market segments and private players in other segments, as well as a decrease in the efficiency of productionof both private and public goods.

Systemic risks in supply chains: a need for system-level governance

PurposeGlobal and interconnected supply chains are increasingly exposed to systemic risks, whereby individual failures propagate across firms, sectors and borders. Systemic risks have emerged from the decisions of individual firms, e.g., outsourcing and buffer reduction, and are now beyond their control. This paper aims to identify appropriate approaches to mitigating those risks.Design/methodology/approachSystemic risks require analyzing supply chains beyond a dyadic perspective. This study approaches the problem through the lenses of complex systems and network theories. Drawing on the lessons learned from other systemic-risk-prone systems, e.g. energy and financial networks, both in research and practice, this study analyzes the adequate level of governance to monitor and manage systemic risks in supply chains.FindingsThe authors argue that governance institutions should be mandated to overview and reduce systemic risks in supply chains from the top down, as central bankers do for the financial system. Using firm-level data and tools from network analysis and system dynamics, they could quantify systemic risks, identify risk-prone interconnections in supply chains and design mitigating measures. This top-down approach would complement the bottom-up supply chain management approach and could help insurers design policies for contingent business interruptions.Originality/valueInstead of looking at supply chains purely from the firms' angle, the perspective of insurers and governments is brought in to reflect on the governance of risks.

AI-Based mHealth App for Covid-19 or Cardiac Diseases Diagnosis and Prognosis

Covid-19 has rapidly spread and affected millions of people worldwide. For that reason, the public healthcare system was overwhelmed and underprepared to deal with this pandemic. Covid-19 also interfered with the delivery of standard medical care, causing patients with chronic diseases to receive subpar care. As chronic heart failure becomes more common, new management strategies need to be developed. Mobile health technology can be utilized to monitor patients with chronic conditions, such as chronic heart failure, and detect early signs of Covid-19, for diagnosis and prognosis. Recent breakthroughs in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, have increased the capacity of data analytics, which may now be utilized to remotely conduct a variety of tasks that previously required the physical presence of a medical professional. In this work, we analyze the literature in this domain and propose an AI-based mHealth application, designed to collect clinical data and provide diagnosis and prognosis of diseases such as Covid-19 or chronic cardiac diseases. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

A Hybrid Approach for the Assessment of Risk Spillover to ESG Investment in Financial Networks

In this paper, we present a framework for evaluating risk contagion by merging financial networks with machine learning techniques. The framework begins with building a financial network model based on the inter-institutional correlation network, followed by analyzing the structure and overall value changes of the financial network under the stress of a liquidation shock. We then examine the network's evolution over time. We also use three machine learning techniques to assess the abnormal volatility of important financial institutions in the financial network. Finally, we evaluate the spillover effects of risk volatility in financial networks on ESG investments. The findings suggest that the financial network becomes more robust as the connections among financial institutions become more intricate. This leads to an improvement in the ability of the financial network to withstand systemic risk events. Overall, our study provides evidence of the negative impact of risk spillovers in financial networks on ESG investments, highlighting the need for a more sustainable and resilient financial system. This innovative framework combining financial network modeling and machine learning prediction provides a deeper understanding of the evolution of financial networks and a more accurate evaluation of abnormal volatility in financial networks.

Mental Workload and Cognitive Failures Assessment of Nurses During the Period of the Covid-19 outbreak and Its Relationship with the Occurrence of Unsafe Behaviors in Public Hospitals of Guilan Province in 2019-2020

Introduction: Nurses are under the influence of stressful factors and high work pressure, which increases nursing errors. One factor affecting nurses' behavior and performance is the mental workload and cognitive failures. This research has investigated the mental workload and cognitive failures in two groups of nurses with and without unsafe behaviors during the outbreak of Covid-19. Material and Methods: This case-control study was conducted on 312 nurses during the severe period of the Covid-19 outbreak through the public hospitals in Guilan province. Sampling was performed by selecting 104 nurses in the case group (with unsafe behavior) and 208 nurses in the control group (with safe behavior) using the full count method. The data collection tool is a three-part questionnaire including demographic information, the mental workload (NASA-TLX) questionnaire, and the occupational cognitive failures questionnaire. The incidence of needle stick as a consequence of unsafe behavior was used as a criterion. Results: The results have shown that the workload in this research was 63.96±18.26, and the total score of cognitive failures was 59.1±13.9. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups of nurses with and without unsafe behaviors (P>0.05). Still, there was a significant correlation between the total mental workload score in all areas and the total score of cognitive failures in the group of nurses with and without unsafe behaviors (p=0.001, r=0.225). Conclusion: According to the results, the perceived mental workload is high for the nursing job. Despite of positive correlation between mental workload and cognitive failures, it can be mentioned that there are two-way interactions through their dimensions. Therefore, the nursing job requires adopting optimal engineering and management strategies to reduce the workload. © 2023 The Authors.

Science communication and public trust in science

There are many ways that trust plays a crucial role in science, both between researchers and between researchers and various communities impacted by their research. Scientific practices can operate in ways that either facilitate, or undermine, trust in science. This contribution will examine the role of science communication in facilitating (or undermining) public trust in science and science-based policy recommendations. This will be done by looking at some potential failures in the public communication of science during the COVID-19 pandemic that have the potential to undermine trust in scientists. Finally, I draw out lessons that this case has for how we might improve science communication practices. © 2022 Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining Published by Taylor & Francis on behalf of the Institute.

Could Failures in Peer to Peer Accommodation Be a Threat to Public Health and Safety? An Analysis of Users Experiences after the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Peer to Peer (P2P) accommodation has effected a disruptive change in cities and traditional tourist destinations, with considerable growth in the number of customers and hosts offering services worldwide. This growth is not without the problems that arise from service quality failures. Previous research has largely concentrated on positive consumer responses to P2P accommodation, while failures in service have been neglected. Research regarding the impacts of failures on health and safety issues is particularly scarce, especially after the pandemic. Therefore, this research is exploratory in nature and drew on the real experiences of 91 guests worldwide since the beginning the pandemic until 2022. It analyses failures in public health and safety regarding P2P accommodation, classifying them and expanding the categories in order to design recovery strategies to mitigate the negative impacts. The findings provide novel insights that help understand failures in P2P accommodation from a guest's perspective. Moreover, this research suggests recommendations to platforms and hosts that will help improve the levels of service quality and trustfulness for this type of accommodation.

Examining the Relationship Between Coronavirus Anxiety and Cognitive Failures

Objective: Throughout the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, it is critical to look at the impact of high levels of worry and stress on people's cognitive health. This study examines the relationship between anxi-ety, despair, and perception of threat as coronavirus disease 2019 distress and cognitive failures. Method(s): The sample of the study consisted of 818 people aged between 18 and 81 years. Structural equation modeling was carried out to reveal the existing relationships. In addition, demographic variables that predict cognitive failures during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic period are expressed in the simple linear regression analysis. Finally, an independent samples t-test was applied according to gender for anxiety, despair, perception of threat, cognitive failures, perception, attention, forgetting, and motor functioning. Result(s): The results obtained from the structural equation modeling show that the coronavirus disease 2019 distress latent variables (anxiety, despair, and perception of threat) predict perception, attention, forgetting, and motor functioning during the pandemic period. It was found that cognitive failures were predicted by age, gender, educational status, media exposure, having a chronic disease, and compliance with hygiene rules. Conclusion(s): In cognitive failures total score, perception, forgetting, attention, and motor functioning men exhibit more cognitive failures than women during the pandemic period. Women have higher anxiety and perception of threat scores than men. Copyright © Author(s).

Is Economic Planning Our Future?

The article is devoted to the topic of economic planning at the state level. The historical excursus shows the origins of the planned economy elements on the example of three countries: Japan, India and France, as well as the evolution of its planned policy in the 20th century. The article provides a rationale for the relevance of planning, including as a tool to overcome market failures. The ESG agenda, in particular the issue of reducing the negative anthropological impact on the environment, is seen as one of the drivers for strengthening the role of planning.

Development of a Slider Type Mechanical Ventilator System Using Ambu Bag for Emergency Breathing Assistance

In this paper, a slider type mechanical ventilator system using Ambu bag for emergency breathing assistance device was proposed and evaluated. A new type coronavirus infection occurred in early December 2019, and the infection has spread worldwide. When it became severe, respiratory failure often occurs, and there is concern about a shortage of ventilators. Meanwhile, MIT has released a blueprint for a mechanical type ventilator using an Ambu bag. In this study, we started the development based on the MIT ventilator. In our method, we proposed to reduce the load on the motor compared to the MIT type by using a horizontally moving slider to push in the pads. Using a test lung connected to Ambu bag device, we confirmed the mechanical stability between the MIT type and our proposed device. Next, we confirmed the three pads device manufacturing methods for device failure characteristics when driven for a long time (max two weeks). At last, we introduced the simple proportional type controller, and confirmed the pressure stability. The proposed a slider type mechanical Ambu bag ventilator system could realize that the Ambu bag did not move for at least one week and showed stable driving characteristics. Comparing the three types of pads manufacturing methods, the highest-performance pads used duralumin for the columns, and surface of the pad used ABS resin. Simple P controller real time pressure control experiment shows that it was necessary to device a pressure control method after carefully considering the characteristics of the check valve that responds to non-linear pressure inside the Ambu bag. © 2022 IEEE.

Failure Prediction, Testing, and Retrofit of Open Web Steel Joists in an Undergraduate Curriculum

This paper provides an overview of how failure prediction of critical members in an open web steel joist is used in multiple courses in a structural engineering curriculum. The forensic example is used in an introductory engineering mechanics course to demonstrate how the method of sections and joints can be used to analyze a truss system widely used in practice. Combining the concepts of steel yielding, column buckling, and factor of safety allows the students are tasked to predict the critical members in the joist. Immediately, following the analytical exercise, students experimentally verify their predictions. Later in the curriculum, students revisit their analysis in a steel design course. The students are posed with a retrofit competition where groups compete to increase the load carrying capacity of the joist and changing the failure mode of the joist. The group that completes this task for the least costs (material and labor) is crowned class champion. Students often conduct an analysis to determine forces in members;however, rarely do they predict critical member and failure mode in an assembly and then verify their results in real time. Even more rarely does this experience carry through multiple courses. The format of the lectures, laboratory exercises, laboratory execution, assignments, and competition are presented. Additionally, the paper includes discussion on how the experience was altered due to COVID considerations. Assessment data, student feedback, and recommendations for additional expanded assignments are presented. © Forensic Engineering 2022: Elevating Forensic Engineering - Selected Papers from the 9th Congress on Forensic Engineering.All rights reserved.

Expressions of ageism and human rights abuses of elderly people during the Covid-19 pandemic - insights from the first and second waves

Background: The Covid-19 pandemic has severely affected the health of the elderly both worldwide and in Israel. In addition to the health hazards that prey on the elderly during the coronavirus period, the harm to their mental well-being and their basic rights cannot be ignored. Ageism and human rights abuses of elderly people are negative social phenomena which have been exacerbated by Covid-19. This article is based on a report (October 2020) by the Israel Institute of Equality and Human Rights (The Zulat Institute) on the human rights issue of the elderly during the coronavirus pandemic whose authors are among its signatories. Aim: To describe the manifestations of ageism in relation to the elderly during the first and second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, based on a human rights approach. Method: This was a qualitative study, based on consultation with a multidisciplinary group of independent experts in a joint process – a modified Delphi process – of a structured discussion around an open questionnaire on the treatment of the elderly in Israel during the first and second coronavirus waves. During the discussion, the group focused on three major human rights relevant to the elderly at this time: the right to respect, the right to participate in decision making and the right to health. Findings: Government policy regarding the elderly in the first months of the outbreak of the pandemic was characterized by paternalistic overprotectiveness, ageism and violation of the human rights of elderly people to dignity, participation and health. In both geriatric and protected housing institutions, human rights violations of the residents were due to physical isolation and prolonged social distancing from their relatives. Even within the community, where 94% of the elderly live in Israel, many cases of severe bodily and mental health harm were observed resulting from isolation and exclusion. These vulnerabilities are the result, inter alia, of structural failures in the public system to support the elderly in Israel, including decentralization of governmental responsibility, chronic shortage of geriatric-nursing personnel, and privatization of community services for the elderly. In addition, patronizing and ageist attitudes to the elderly were discussed, as were their needs and what to do about them. Conclusions and recommendations: Policies that will lead to the eradication of ageism and the prohibition of age discrimination through legislation should be promoted, and the rights of the elderly to dignity, participation and health should be maintained. In addition, the social standing of the elderly should be strengthened, as should responses to the needs of the elderly in the community and geriatric institutions. Information suited to digital capabilities and language and cultural groups should be made accessible to encourage open and respectful dialogue with the elderly and their families about their wishes regarding the medical care they receive and where it will be provided. In this way health and social services for the old in the community can be strengthened. [ FROM AUTHOR]

Design and Implementation of Improved SARS-CoV-2 Diagnostic Assays To Mitigate the Impact of Genomic Mutations on Target Failure: the Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2 Experience.

In 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enabled manufacturers to request emergency use authorization (EUA) to facilitate the rapid authorization of in vitro diagnostic (IVD) platforms for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Uncommon SARS-CoV-2 point mutations could cause nucleocapsid (N) gene target failure (NGTF) when using first-generation Xpert Xpress assays, so improvements were designed and implemented. In response to NGTF reports and with consideration of viral genomic information in public databases, the Xpress assays were redesigned to mitigate the impact of SARS-CoV-2 mutations on qualitative assay performance. The second-generation assays include a third gene target (RNA-dependent RNA polymerase [RdRp]) and redundant oligonucleotide probes for the N2 target. First- and second-generation assay performances were evaluated using a challenge set of samples. A second-generation assay with updated oligonucleotide chemistry received FDA EUA in September 2021. A prototype assay with oligonucleotide chemistry similar to that of the second-generation assay with FDA EUA successfully detected all three gene targets (N2, envelope [E], and RdRp) in all challenge samples (100%; 50/50), including variants with N gene mutations (g.29197C>T or g.29200C>T), which caused NGTF in the first-generation assays. Investigation and reporting of IVD target failures, public sharing of viral genomic sequence data, and the FDA EUA pathway were essential components in facilitating a short cycle time from the identification of mutations that impact the performance of an IVD assay to the design and implementation of an improved IVD assay. IMPORTANCE The SARS-CoV-2 genome has mutated during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Some of these mutations have impacted the performance of nucleic acid amplification tests like PCR, which are commonly used as diagnostic tools to detect an infection. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use authorization (EUA) process enables the rapid reformulation and regulatory authorization of improved PCRs. In our experience, the identification of SARS-CoV-2 mutations that impact PCR performance, the subsequent development of improved PCR chemistry, and the use of the FDA EUA regulatory pathway led to improved diagnostic performance during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic that is able to keep pace with the rapidly evolving genome of SARS-CoV-2.

Bank-specific performance indicators, macroeconomic variables and capital adequacy of Nigerian banking industry

[...]we canvass those Nigerian banks should reduce dividend payouts and increase retained profits as a buffer against exposed risks. To ensure the healthiness of banks in the banking industry as well as facilitate international transaction, the central bank of ten countries (Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and the US) formed the committee of banking supervision in 1988 (the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision). Since the formation of this committee, it has undergone at least three stages called the Basel I, Basel II and Basel III. Premised on shock to the economy brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, with economic growth in 2020 expected to contract by as much as 4.4 percent to 8.94 percent, a drop in oil receipt and a devalued Naira in the range of 380-450 to US dollar, the capital adequacy of banks could be severely threatened, (Egba, 2020). [...]scholars have extensively shown that bank specific performance indicators and macroeconomic factors affected capital adequacy ratio. [...]this paper examined the effect of banks specific-performance indicators and macroeconomic factors on bank financing which is the minimum funds required for their short-term obligation or capital adequacy ratio.