University of Lausanne

About: University of Lausanne is a education organization based out in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 20508 authors who have published 46458 publications receiving 1996655 citations. The organization is also known as: Université de Lausanne & UNIL.

Rat PPARs: quantitative analysis in adult rat tissues and regulation in fasting and refeeding.

Abstract: PPARs are members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily and are primarily involved in lipid metabolism. The expression patterns of all 3 PPAR isotypes in 22 adult rat organs were analyzed by a quantitative ribonuclease protection assay. The data obtained allowed comparison of the expression of each isotype to the others and provided new insight into the less studied PPAR beta (NR1C2) expression and function. This isotype shows a ubiquitous expression pattern and is the most abundant of the three PPARs in all analyzed tissues except adipose tissue. Its expression is especially high in the digestive tract, in addition to kidney, heart, diaphragm, and esophagus. After an overnight fast, PPAR beta mRNA levels are dramatically down-regulated in liver and kidney by up to 80% and are rapidly restored to control levels upon refeeding. This tight nutritional regulation is independent of the circulating glucocorticoid levels and the presence of PPAR alpha, whose activity is markedly up-regulated in the liver and small intestine during fasting. Finally, PPAR gamma 2 mRNA levels are decreased by 50% during fasting in both white and brown adipose tissue. In conclusion, fasting can strongly influence PPAR expression, but in only a few selected tissues.

Digitalization: Opportunity and Challenge for the Business and Information Systems Engineering Community

Abstract: The convergence of the so-called SMAC technologies – social, mobile, analytics, and cloud computing – has led to an unprecedented wave of digitalization that is currently fueling innovation in business and society. As digitalization is embracing all aspects of our private and professional lives, it is becoming a priority for managers and policymakers, and has made it into the headlines of newspapers, magazines, and practitioner conferences. This wave of digitalization is creating opportunities for the BISE community to engage in innovative research activities and to increase the discipline’s visibility. However, since BISE researchers have investigated the increasing exploitation and integration of digital technologies over several decades, they also naturally react with ambivalence when others claim that going digital is a new phenomenon.

International Union of Pharmacology. XXXV. The Glucagon Receptor Family

Abstract: Peptide hormones within the secretin-glucagon family are expressed in endocrine cells of the pancreas and gastrointestinal epithelium and in specialized neurons in the brain, and subserve multiple biological functions, including regulation of growth, nutrient intake, and transit within the gut, and digestion, energy absorption, and energy assimilation. Glucagon, glucagon-like peptide-1, glucagon-like peptide-2, glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide, growth hormone-releasing hormone and secretin are structurally related peptides that exert their actions through unique members of a structurally related G protein-coupled receptor class 2 family. This review discusses advances in our understanding of how these peptides exert their biological activities, with a focus on the biological actions and structural features of the cognate receptors. The receptors have been named after their parent and only physiologically relevant ligand, in line with the recommendations of the International Union of Pharmacology Committee on Receptor Nomenclature and Drug Classification (NC-IUPHAR).

Assessing global exposure and vulnerability towards natural hazards: the Disaster Risk Index

Abstract: . This paper presents a model of factors influencing levels of human losses from natural hazards at the global scale, for the period 1980–2000. This model was designed for the United Nations Development Programme as a building stone of the Disaster Risk Index (DRI), which aims at monitoring the evolution of risk. Assessing what countries are most at risk requires considering various types of hazards, such as droughts, floods, cyclones and earthquakes. Before assessing risk, these four hazards were modelled using GIS and overlaid with a model of population distribution in order to extract human exposure. Human vulnerability was measured by crossing exposure with selected socio-economic parameters. The model evaluates to what extent observed past losses are related to population exposure and vulnerability. Results reveal that human vulnerability is mostly linked with country development level and environmental quality. A classification of countries is provided, as well as recommendations on data improvement for future use of the model.

Optimal Portfolio Allocation under Higher Moments

Abstract: We evaluate how departure from normality may affect the allocation of assets. A Taylor series expansion of the expected utility allows to focus on certain moments and to compute the optimal portfolio allocation numerically. A decisive advantage of this approach is that it remains operational even for a large number of assets. While the mean-variance criterion provides a good approximation of the expected utility maximisation under moderate non-normality, it may be ineffective under large departure from normality. In such cases, the three-moment or four-moment optimisation strategies may provide a good approximation of the expected utility.