Determinants Affecting Profitability of Firms: A Study of Oil and Gas Industry in Vietnam

Men Thi BUI,Hieu Minh NGUYEN 한국유통과학회 2021 The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Busine Vol.8 No.1

The oil and gas industry is widely known as a vital engine of Vietnam development, stimulating researchers to examine the association of various factors with this industry. The aim of this study is to identify the relationship between different variables affecting profitability of the firms in the oil and gas sector in Vietnam. The total of 203 samples were collected from 29 companies listed on Vietnam Stock Market during a 6-year period from 2012 to 2018. Informed by prior research, this investigation employs financial leverage (FL), government ownership (GOV), dividend payout (DIV), fixed assets to total assets (FA) and exchange rate (EXR) as independent variables, while the profit is described by return-on-assets (ROA). The study results show that there are four factors that have an impact on ROA, namely, leverage, government ownership, dividend, and exchange rate. Whereas leverage and exchange rate have negative influence on ROA, government ownership and dividend payment have a positive effect. The findings of this study suggest that high debt ratio in capital structure and the negative effect of exchange rate on their companies’ efficiency can adversely affect the profit of enterprises. Also, plausible extent of government ownership and dividend payment could also be considered to optimize corporate performance.

Factors Affecting Electronic Tax Compliance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Vietnam

Huyen Thi Dieu LE,Men Thi BUI,Giang Thi Cam NGUYEN 한국유통과학회 2021 The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Busine Vol.8 No.1

In Vietnam, tax compliance has become an important goal in the tax reform strategy. In the context of technology 4.0, the application of the electronic tax system is of great significance to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The paper explores factors influencing electronic tax compliance of SMEs in Vietnam. Data from 402 SMEs, who are business taxpayers, was selected through a researcherdesigned questionnaire survey method. The results indicate that four groups of factors have significant effects on electronic tax compliance among Vietnamese SMEs. These groups include Taxpayer Awareness (TA), Perceived Ease of use (PTE), Vietnamese tax administration (VTA,) and Efficiency of Vietnamese tax policy (VTP). The factor analysis was adopted; Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were calculated, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used. The findings found that among these four groups, the most influencing factor is taxpayer awareness. It is suggested that the Vietnamese government should pay attention to promote and support SMEs to raise full awareness of tax obligations. This could be done through various methods such as conducting workshops for updating tax policies and short courses to business taxpayers of electronic tax compliance. The study is expected to provide some important implications for policy-makers and practitioners in tax policy reform in Vietnam.

Ultra-broadband and flexible metamaterial absorber based on MoS2 cuboids with Mie resonances

Ha Duong Thi,Nam Man Hoai,Tung Bui Son,Khuyen Bui Xuan,Lam Vu Dinh,Le-Van Quynh 한국물리학회 2023 THE JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Vol.82 No.11

In this work, we present a type of fexible and broadband metamaterial absorber operating in the GHz range. The proposed structure consists of three layers: a periodic square-shaped array made of molybdenum disulfde (MoS2) on the top, a continuous polyimide layer in the middle and a continuous copper layer at the bottom. For fat model, the proposed absorber exhibits a broadband absorption in the frequency range of 10.1–17.6 GHz with an absorption of more than 90% under normal incidence. Due to the symmetry of structure, the absorption feature is polarization-insensitive. The absorption remains above 80% in the frequency range of 11.1–15.6 GHz when the incident angle is up to 60° for TE-polarized wave, while the absorption is higher than 90% in the frequency range of 13.5–18 GHz for incident angles up to 60° for TM-polarized wave. For bending model, the absorption is signifcantly expanded when the bending radius decreases to under 100 mm. The physical mechanism of the absorption properties is explained in detail by the electric feld distribution, the magnetic feld distribution following the Mie resonance theory and infuence of the loss of MoS2. Obtained results in the work might contribute to the development of potential applications based on metamaterials in the microwave region such as imaging, protecting and light emitting devices.

Development of Surgical Robot System for Total Knee Arthroplasty Surgery

Yoon Hyuk Kim(김윤혁),Bui Thi Thanh Phuong(현레밍),Won-man Park(박원만) 대한기계학회 2009 대한기계학회 춘추학술대회 Vol.2009 No.11

Total Knee Arthroplasty is an important surgical option to treat joint diseases related to knee. In this approach, the accuracy and safety are crucial because the surgeons have to cut bone and insert implant into knee. The accuracy of manual cutting depends on skills of surgeons, and surgical robot system has been recognized to be helpful to obtain the accurate bone cutting. In this paper, we present a new robot system for TKA surgery with some advantages compared with those previous developed commercial surgical robot systems.

Efonidipine Inhibits JNK and NF-κB Pathway to Attenuate Inflammation and Cell Migration Induced by Lipopolysaccharide in Microglial Cells

Nguyen Ngoc Minh,Duong Men Thi Hoai,Nguyen Phuong Linh,Bui Bich Phuong,Ahn Hee-Chul,Cho Jungsook 한국응용약물학회 2022 Biomolecules & Therapeutics(구 응용약물학회지) Vol.30 No.5

Efonidipine, a calcium channel blocker, is widely used for the treatment of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. In our preliminary study using structure-based virtual screening, efonidipine was identified as a potential inhibitor of c-Jun N-terminal kinase 3 (JNK3). Although its antihypertensive effect is widely known, the role of efonidipine in the central nervous system has remained elusive. The present study investigated the effects of efonidipine on the inflammation and cell migration induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) using murine BV2 and human HMC3 microglial cell lines and elucidated signaling molecules mediating its effects. We found that the phosphorylations of JNK and its downstream molecule c-Jun in LPS-treated BV2 cells were declined by efonidipine, confirming the finding from virtual screening. In addition, efonidipine inhibited the LPS-induced production of pro-inflammatory factors, including interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and nitric oxide. Similarly, the IL-1β production in LPS-treated HMC3 cells was also inhibited by efonidipine. Efonidipine markedly impeded cell migration stimulated by LPS in both cells. Furthermore, it inhibited the phosphorylation of inhibitor kappa B, thereby suppressing nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) in LPS-treated BV2 cells. Taken together, efonidipine exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-migratory effects in LPS-treated microglial cells through inhibition of the JNK/NF-κB pathway. These findings imply that efonidipine may be a potential candidate for drug repositioning, with beneficial impacts on brain disorders associated with neuroinflammation.

Thread-embedding acupuncture may improve symptom resolution in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease: A randomized controlled trial

Trinh Dieu-Thuong Thi,Tran An Hoa,Bui Minh-Man Pham,Vuong Nguyen Lam 한국한의학연구원 2023 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.12 No.3

Background: Various traditional medicine treatments have been investigated to treat GERD. Among those, thread-embedding acupuncture (TEA) has the advantage that patients need to undergo the procedure infrequently; however, its efficacy is unclear. This study evaluated the efficacy of TEA in treating GERD. Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 66 participants with GERD: 33 received two sessions of TEA + standard therapy (proton-pump inhibitor [PPI]) (TEA+PPI group) and 33 received PPI alone (PPI group). Primary outcomes included GerdQ score and heartburn and regurgitation resolution. Secondary outcomes were antacids requirement, the Frequency Scale for Symptoms of GERD (FSSG) score, and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease-Health Related Quality of Life (GERD-HRQL) score. The safety outcome was adverse events (AEs). Results: After four weeks of treatment, the TEA+PPI group significantly reduced the GerdQ score (mean difference [MD] and 95% confidence interval [CI]: -1.8 [-2.4, -1.1]) and increased the rate of heartburn and regurgitation resolution compared to PPI (54.5% versus 9.1%, respectively) compared to PPI. The TEA+PPI group also significantly reduced the number of antacid packs used (MD [95%-CI]: -9.4 [-12.1, -6.7]), FSSG score (MD [95%-CI]: -9.4 [-11.0, -7.8]), and GERD-HRQL score (MD [95%-CI]: -5.6 [-7.7, -3.5]) compared to PPI. Five patients experienced AEs, which were mild local complications at the acupoints. Conclusion: TEA combined with PPI is more effective than PPI alone in treating GERD. Further studies with longer follow-ups are required to confirm these findings.