Energy prices and competitiveness in Latin American emerging economies

This paper presents an evaluation of the impact of international oil prices on the competitiveness of three emergent economies in Latin America. We use the methodology of input-output tables for: Peru, Chile and Colombia. Recent outstanding macroeconomic performance of these three emergent countries caused an increase in their demand for energy, which deepened their trade deficit of oil. The effects of high petroleum prices are divided into (a) the impact on costs of new energy prices and (b) the impact on competitiveness. The main conclusion is that energy inputs today constitute the most important cost for industries in Peru, Chile, and Colombia. We recommend some policies for energy efficiency that are consistent with the competitiveness of these three emerging market economies

Short-term trajectories of workplace bullying and its impact on strain: A latent class growth modeling approach

The aim of this weekly diary study was (a) to identify trajectories of workplace bullying over time and (b) to examine the association of each cluster with strain indicators (i.e., insomnia and anxiety/depression). A sample of 286 employees during 4 weeks of data was used (N occasions = 1,144). Results of latent class growth modeling showed that 3 trajectories could be identified: a nonbullying trajectory, which comprised 90.9% of the sample; an inverted U trajectory; and a delayed increase bullying trajectory; the latter two each had 4.2% of the participants. We found a significant interaction between time and trajectories when predicting insomnia and anxiety/depression, with each strain showing a differential pattern with each trajectory. It seems that the negative effects on insomnia are long-lasting and remain after bullying has already decreased. In the case of anxiety and depression, when bullying decreases strain indicators also decrease. In this study, by examining trajectories of bullying at work over time and their associations with strain, we provide new insights into the temporal dynamics of workplace bullying

Combining social network analysis and agent-based model for enabling nature-based solution implementation: The case of Medina del Campo (Spain).

Abstract Several barriers still hamper the effective implementation of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). Among the others, this work focuses on collaboration barriers. NBS implementation claims for effective collaboration among different decision-agents. However, ambiguity in problem framings, which is ineradicable in multi-agents' decision environments, could create collaboration barriers. This work aims to demonstrate that collaboration barriers to NBS implementation can be overcome by enhancing the network of interactions among the decision-agents. An innovative method based on the integration between Social Network Analysis and hybrid Agent-Based Model/System Dynamic Model was adopted to this aim. The analysis results were used for designing networking interventions, i.e. efforts using social network characteristics that could enhance interactions mechanisms among decision-agents. The developed method was implemented in the Medina del Campo (Spain) case study. This area is characterised by one of the most critical groundwater bodies of the Duero River Basin. This work aims at supporting the implementation of suitable NBS to stop the degradation of the groundwater status and associated ecosystem services. The activities carried out within the framework of the NAIAD project showed that, by enhancing the interaction mechanisms, ambiguity in problem frames can still yield collective actions for NBS implementation

The bacterial DNA binding protein matp involved in linking the nucleoid terminal domain to the divisome at midcell interacts with lipid membranes

© 2019 Monterroso et al. Division ring formation at midcell is controlled by various mechanisms in Escherichia coli, one of them being the linkage between the chromosomal Ter macrodomain and the Z-ring mediated by MatP, a DNA binding protein that organizes this macrodomain and contributes to the prevention of premature chromosome segregation. Here we show that, during cell division, just before splitting the daughter cells, MatP seems to localize close to the cytoplasmic membrane, suggesting that this protein might interact with lipids. To test this hypothesis, we investigated MatP interaction with lipids in vitro. We found that, when encapsulated inside vesicles and microdroplets generated by microfluidics, MatP accumulates at phospholipid bilayers and monolayers matching the lipid composition in the E. coli inner membrane. MatP binding to lipids was independently confirmed using lipid-coated microbeads and biolayer interferometry assays, which suggested that the recognition is mainly hydrophobic. Interaction of MatP with the lipid membranes also occurs in the presence of the DNA sequences specifically targeted by the protein, but there is no evidence of ternary membrane/protein/DNA complexes. We propose that the association of MatP with lipids may modulate its spatiotemporal localization and its recognition of other ligands. IMPORTANCE The division of an E. coli cell into two daughter cells with equal genomic information and similar size requires duplication and segregation of the chromosome and subsequent scission of the envelope by a protein ring, the Z-ring. MatP is a DNA binding protein that contributes both to the positioning of the Z-ring at midcell and the temporal control of nucleoid segregation. Our integrated in vivo and in vitro analysis provides evidence that MatP can interact with lipid membranes reproducing the phospholipid mixture in the E. coli inner membrane, without concomitant recruitment of the short DNA sequences specifically targeted by MatP. This observation strongly suggests that the membrane may play a role in the regulation of the function and localization of MatP, which could be relevant for the coordination of the two fundamental processes in which this protein participates, nucleoid segregation and cell division

The proinflammatory cytokine interleukin 18 regulates feeding by acting on the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis

The proinflammatory cytokine IL-18 has central anorexigenic effects and was proposed to contribute to loss of appetite observed during sickness. Here we tested in the mouse the hypothesis that IL-18 can decrease food intake by acting on neurons of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST), a component of extended amygdala recently shown to influence feeding via its projections to the lateral hypothalamus (LH). We found that both subunits of the heterodimeric IL-18 receptor are highly expressed in the BST and that local injection of recombinant IL-18 (50 ng/ml) significantly reduced c-fos activation and food intake for at least 6 h. Electrophysiological experiments performed in BST brain slices demonstrated that IL-18 strongly reduces the excitatory input on BST neurons through a presynaptic mechanism. The effects of IL-18 are cell-specific and were observed in Type III but not in Type I/II neurons. Interestingly, IL-18-sensitve Type III neurons were recorded in the juxtacapsular BST, a region that contains BST-LH projecting neurons. Reducing the excitatory input on Type III GABAergic neurons, IL-18 can increase the firing of glutamatergic LH neurons through a disinhibitory mechanism. Imbalance between excitatory and inhibitory activity in the LH can induce changes in food intake. Effects of IL-18 were mediated by the IL-18R because they were absent in neurons from animals null for IL-18Rα (Il18ra-/-), which lack functional IL-18 receptors. In conclusion, our data show that IL-18 may inhibit feeding by inhibiting the activity of BST Type III GABAergic neurons

Utilizing Tissue Microarrays for Medium-Throughput Validation of Antibodies Against Immune Markers

https://openworks.mdanderson.org/sumexp21/1201/thumbnail.jp