Oxidative response of sheep to transcervical applications.

This study aimed to investigate the stress-related changes that may occur in sheep following non-surgical cervical line passage. A total of 20 sheep underwent transcervical transition, and their heart rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, and blood samples were collected at specific time points: 1 h prior to the procedure, immediately after the procedure, and at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 h post-procedure. The study found that there was a statistically significant decrease in body temperature immediately after the procedure (p < .05); however, there were no significant differences in body temperature at other time points (p > .05). Respiratory rate remained similar throughout the study, and no significant differences were observed (p > .05). On the other hand, there was a significant increase in heart rate at the 1-h mark after the procedure (p < .05), which subsequently decreased to a similar level as the control group at the 4-h mark after the procedure (p > .05). The cortisol levels increased significantly after the application (p < .05) but decreased to a level similar to the control after 1 h (p > .05). The level of nitric oxide increased significantly in the first hour (p < .05) and decreased by the 5th hour (p < .05). There was a significant increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) and total oxidant capacity (TOC) levels 2 h after the application (p < .05), but this increase ceased at the 4th and 5th hours for MDA (p > .05) and at the 3rd, 4th and 5th hours for TOC (p > .05). The total antioxidant capacity decreased after the 2nd hour of application (p < .05) but remained similar at the fourth and 5th hours (p > .05). In conclusion, based on the cortisol data, transcervical manipulations create short-term stress. Therefore, it may be necessary to use various antioxidants before such procedures to reduce the effects of oxidative stress.

Risk management activities for oil and gas producers and the impact on firm value.

This study analyses whether hedging activities of oil and gas firms have a significant effect on the performance of the companies. The performance of companies is proxied by Tobin's Q and panel regression models are built to estimate the coefficients for firm value and derivative use. The speculative use of derivatives is eliminated in models by the regulations under IFRS and GAAP. The results give critical information regarding asymmetric information and signalling effect. Since the coefficient of derivatives use is negative, it shows the critical meaning of disclosures on the financial healthiness. If companies are publishing high level of hedging activities, it might be a warning for investors to avoid investing at that company. This study also seeks for explanation behind firms' hedging decisions. To our knowledge, it is among the first studies with a wide range of region and data.