217 research outputs found
Analysis of the B-CLL receptor B29 (CD79b) gene in familial chronic lymphocytic leukemia
No full textThe B-cell antigen receptor (BCR) comprises membrane Igs (mIgs) and a heterodimer of Ig alpha (CD79a) and Ig beta (CD79b) transmembrane proteins, encoded by the mb-1 and B29 genes, respectively. These accessory proteins are required for surface expression of mig and BCR signaling. B cells from chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) frequently express low to undetectable surface Ig, as well as CD79b protein. Recent work described genetic aberrations affecting B29 expression and/or function in B-CLL. Because the prevalence of CLL is increased among first degree relatives, we analyzed the B29 gene in 10 families including 2 affected members each. A few silent or replacement mutations were observed at the genomic level, which never lead to truncated CD79b protein. Both members of the same family did not harbor the same mutations. However, a single silent base change in the B29 extracellular domain, corresponding to a polymorphism, was detected on 1 allele of most patients. These results indicate that the few mutations observed in the B29 gene in these patients do not induce structural abnormalities of the CD79b protein and thus do not account for its low surface expression in B-CLL. Furthermore, genetic factors were not implicated, because identical mutations were not observed among 2 members of the same family
L'importance des incitations financières dans l'obtention d'un emploi est-elle surestimée ?
No full textIl est procédé à l'estimation par maximum de vraisemblance de 6 modèles qui font intervenir d'une manière tantôt substituable, tantôt complémentaire trois facteurs de non-emploi : le plus ou moins grand désir de travailler lié aux incitations financières, une productivité insuffisante inférieure au coût du Smic et des dysfonctionnements du marché du travail. L'étude du comportement de participation est réalisée à l'aide d'un modèle de micro-simulation basé sur l'enquête Revenus Fiscaux 1998, tandis que l'estimation de la censure au SMIC utilise les données de l'enquête Emploi 1997. Il ressort des estimations effectuées sur les personnes isolées que les modèles qui s'ajustent le mieux aux données sont ceux qui supposent une complémentarité stricte entre le risque de censure et le risque de refus d'accepter un travail. L'effet revenu existe et le loisir est un bien normal. Une augmentation de 10% du revenu disponible du Smicard sous forme de transferts se traduirait par un gain de probabilité d'emploi de l'ordre de 10%.Non-emploi;Estimation économétrique;SMIC;Incitations financières
VH gene usage by family members affected with chronic lymphocytic leukemia
No full textThe excess risk of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) in the first-degree relatives of affected patients suggests that familial CLL might constitute a useful model to study the pathogenesis of this disease, as has been demonstrated in numerous other neoplastic disorders. Previous studies have shown non-random utilization of immunoglobulin genes in CLL, some germline in sequence and others containing numerous somatic mutations. To investigate whether familial cases of CLL exhibit similarities in the composition of the B-cell receptor repertoire to the pattern expressed by CLL patients as a whole, we have studied 25 CLL patients belonging to 12 different families (four French and eight Italian), each of which contained at least two affected members.
Among familial cases, V-H gene segment utilization proved non-random and diverged from the frequencies previously reported among unrelated patients with CLL. Specifically, although the 4-34 and 5-51 gene segments were found repeatedly, the 1-69 and 4-39 gene segments were used sparingly and the 3-23 gene segment presented with increased frequency. Following the pattern detected in studies of unrelated patients, the single 1-69 expressing CLL contained an unmutated H chain sequence and included a long HCDR3 interval. In contrast, 3-23 containing H chains all used J(H)4, retained at most 93% homology with germline sequence, and included only short HCDR3 intervals. The vast majority of the CLL variable domains contained a high degree of somatic mutation and exhibited an excess of replacement mutations in the CDR intervals. These findings suggest that familial CLL cases may preferentially derive from B-cell progenitors that have responded to antigen
Optimal Intertemporal Curative Drug Expenses: The Case of Hepatitis C in France
No full textNational audienceWe study intertemporal tradeoffs that health authorities face when considering the control of an epidemic using innovative curative medical treatments. We set up a dynamically controlled susceptible–infected–recovered (SIR) model for an epidemic in which patients can be asymptomatic, and we analyze the optimality conditions of the sequence of cure expenses decided by health authorities at the onset of the drug innovation process. We show that analytical conclusions are ambiguous because of their dependence on parameter values. As an application, we focus on the case study of hepatitis C, the treatment for which underwent a major upheaval when curative drugs were introduced in 2014. We calibrate our controlled SIR model using French data and simulate optimal policies. We show that the optimal policy entails some front loading of the intertemporal budget. The analysis demonstrates how beneficial intertemporal budgeting can be compared to non-forward-looking constant budget allocation
“Expression of unmutated VH genes is a detrimental prognostic factor in chronic lymphocytic leukemia”
No full textOptimal Intertemporal Curative Drug Expenses: The Case of Hepatitis C in France
No full textWe study intertemporal trade-offs that health authorities (HAs) face when considering the control of an epidemy using innovative curative medical treatments. We set up a dynamically controlled Susceptibles-Infected-Recovered (SIR) model for an epidemy in which patients can be asymptomatic, and we analyze in a simple model, the optimality conditions of the sequence of cure expenses decided by HAs at the onset of the drug innovation. We show that analytical conclusions are ambiguous because of their dependence on parameter values. As an application, we focus on the case-study of Hepatitis C whose treatment underwent a major up-heaval when curative drugs were introduced in 2014. We calibrate our controlled SIR model using French data and simulate optimal policies. We show that the optimal policy entails some front loading of the intertemporal budget compared to fixed annual ones. The analysis demonstrates how beneficial the intertemporal budgeting can be compared to non forward looking constant budget allocation
Disability, capacity for work and the business cycle: An international perspective
No full textAn important policy issue in recent years concerns the number of people claiming disability benefits for reasons of incapacity for work. We distinguish between ‘work disability’, which may have its roots in economic and social circumstances, and ‘health disability’ which arises from clear diagnosed medical conditions. Although there is a link between work and health disability, economic conditions, and in particular the ‘business cycle’ and variations in the risk of unemployment over time and across localities, may play an important part in explaining both the stock of disability benefit claimants and inflows to and outflow from that stock. We employ a variety of cross?country and country?specific household panel data sets, as well as administrative data, to test whether disability benefit claims rise when unemployment is higher, and also to investigate the impact of unemployment rates on flows on and off the benefit rolls. We find strong evidence that local variations in unemployment have an important explanatory role for disability benefit receipt, with higher total enrolments, lower outflows from rolls and, often, higher inflows into disability rolls in regions and periods of above?average unemployment. Although general subjective measures of selfreported disability and longstanding illness are also positively associated with unemployment rates, inclusion of self?reported health measures does not eliminate the statistical relationship between unemployment rates and disability benefit receipt; indeed including general measures of health often strengthens that underlying relationship. Intriguingly, we also find some evidence from the United Kingdom and the United States that the prevalence of self?reported ‘objective’ specific indicators of disability are often pro?cyclical – that is, the incidence of specific forms of disability are pro?cyclical whereas claims for disability benefits given specific health conditions are counter?cyclical. Overall, the analysis suggests that, for a range of countries and data sets, levels of claims for disability benefits are not simply related to changes in the incidence of health disability in the population and are strongly influenced by prevailing economic conditions. We discuss the policy implications of these various findings.Disability, capacity for work, business cycle, international comparisons
Do Unemployed Workers Benefit from Enterprise Zones ? The French Experience
No full textThis paper is a statistical evaluation of the 1997 enterprise zone program in France. Weinvestigate whether the program increased the pace at which unemployed workers residing intargeted municipalities and surrounding areas ?nd employment. The work relies on a two-stage analysis of unemployment spells drawn from an exhaustive dataset over the 1993-2003period in the Paris region. We ?rst estimate a duration model strati?ed by municipalities inorder to recover semester-speci?c municipality e¤ects net of individual observed heterogene-ity. These e¤ects are estimated both before and after the implementation of the program,allowing us to construct variants of di¤erence-in-di¤erence estimators of the impact of theprogram at the municipality level. Following extensive robustness checks, we conclude thatenterprise zones have a very small but signi?cant e¤ect on the rate at which unemployedworkers ?nd a job. The e¤ect remains localized and is shown to be signi?cant only in theshort run.
Consumption Insurance against Unforeseen Epidemics:The Case of Avian Influenza in Vietnam
No full textWe examine how households protected their livelihood against an unexpected negative shock caused by the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). We also compare HPAI with other shocks such as sickness, ceremonial events, typhoons, floods, droughts, and unemployment. We apply the augmented testing framework of the canonical consumption risk-sharing hypothesis developed by Fafchamps and Lund (2003) to our unique household panel data that was collected in two Vietnamese villages exclusively for this study. While we reject the full consumption risk-sharing hypothesis strongly, our empirical results reveal that informal credit transactions played an important role for those affected by HPAI in coping with the unforeseen negative asset shock that it created. Moreover, our result suggests that the informal and/or formal insurance network against an unforeseen event has been strengthened after awhile.
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