HETEROGENEITY IN FIRM PERFORMANCE DURING ECONOMIC CRISIS

What happens to firms during periods of deep economic crisis? Did different types of firms perform differently under the economic crisis? With the aid of a rich database and focusing on the literature regarding the growth of firms, this paper investigates the relative profitability performance of Italian firms during the current economic crisis, exploring those factors, which help certain firms to do relatively better even in the slowdown period. Some preliminary results show that the Italian firms that are relatively young in age, with relatively better current liquidity and more focused on domestic market have performed better than other firms. Furthermore, firms operating in high-tech and in highly concentrated sectors have enjoyed a better performance in this period

Voltaire, Candido, a cura di Sergio Cremaschi e Filippo Bruni

This is one more edition of Voltaire's "Candide", meant to highlight the wealth of philosophical and theological discussions hidden behind the apparently innocent veil of the most renowned fable of modernity. The rather extended apparatus accordingly consists of a series of short chapters by Filippo Bruni on the Enlightenment and Metaphysics, and in more detail, on theology, Free choice, the problem of evil, and happiness in an imperfect world and another by Sergio Cremaschi on the Enlightenment and morality, and in more detail on moral universalism, on religion without metaphysics, toleration, and pacifism. Table of contents I. Before the text A trick for priests A scandalous book Garden with view II. Text Candide or optimism III. Context Biography 1. The seven years war 2. Calvinists and Socinians 3. Jiansenists and Gesuits 4. Marranos and inquisitors 5. Conquistadores and slave-traders 6. Paraguay under the Jesuits IV. Co-text 1. Enlightenment and Metaphysics 1.1. Theology 1.2. Free choice 1.3. The problem of evil 1.4. Being happy in an imperfect world 2. Enlightenment and morality 2.1. Universal morality 2.2. Religion without Metaphysics 2.3. Toleration 2.4. Pacifism 3. Enlightenment and the images of other places 3.1. The image of Eldorado 3.2. The image of Paraguay 3.3 The image of the Islamic world 3.4. The image of the Jew 4. The conte philosophique Bibliography Lexicon Index of names and concepts V. Reader’s guid

Albendazole Solid Dispersions: Influence of Dissolution Medium Composition on In Vitro Drug Release

The rate-limiting step to drug absorption is often dissolution from the dosage form, especially for poorly soluble com-pounds. Two possibilities for improving the dissolution of these drugs are to increase the available surface area and to im-prove their apparent solubilities under physiologically relevant conditions with surfactants as wetting agents. Albendazole (ABZ), one of the most effective broad-spectrum antihelminthic agents, has a very low aqueous solubility, which leads to an erratic availability. Solid dispersions (SD) with different amounts of carriers (P188 and PEG6000) were formulated to improve the ABZ dissolution rate. When the dissolution test is used to infer biopharmaceutical properties of the dosage form, it is es-sential that the method simulates the gastrointestinal conditions. The objective of this study was to examine the applicabil-ity of different dissolution media to the evaluation of ABZ and ABZ-SD dissolution rates. Dissolution profiles were performed by the official method (0.1 N HCl) and Simulated Gastric Fluid modified with a surfactant. Wetting was evaluated through the determination of surface tension and contact angle of the solutions. The dissolution rate of ABZ was clearly affected by the variables assessed in this study. These results have implications in the design of physiologically based dissolution media.Fil: González Vidal, Noelia Luján. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Cátedra de Control de Calidad de Medicamentos; ArgentinaFil: Castro, Silvina Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez Bruni, Sergio Fabian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; ArgentinaFil: Allemandi, Daniel Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; ArgentinaFil: Palma, Santiago Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; Argentin

Bacterial antagonist mediated protein molecules

Bacterial antagonism mediated by ribosomally synthesised peptides has gained considerable attention in recent years because of its potential applications in the control of undesirable microbiota. These peptides, generally referred to as bacteriocins, are defined as a heterogeneous group of ribosomally synthesised, proteinaceous substances (with or without further modifications) extracellularly secreted by many Gram-positive and some Gram-negative bacteria. Their mode of activity is primarily bactericidal and directed against closely related strains and species. These peptides are nearly all cationic and very often amphyphilic, which is reflected in the fact that many of these peptides kill their target cells by accumulation in the membrane causing increasing permeability and loss of barrier functions . Bacteriocins have been explored primarily as natural food preservatives, but there is much interest in exploring the application of these therapeutic peptides as antimicrobial agents since many of them exhibit antimicrobial activity against various important human pathogens.The suitability of bacteriocins such as pharmaceuticals is explored through measures of cytotoxicity, effects on the natural microbiota, and in vivo efficacy in mouse models. Bacteriocins are promising therapeutic agents.Fil: Urbizu, Lucia Paola. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Sparo, Mónica Delfina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez Bruni, Sergio Fabian. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; Argentin

Enrofloxacin-based therapeutic strategy for the prevention of endometritis in susceptible mares

Enrofloxacin (EFX) is often used empirically to prevent uterine infections in mares in order to improve efficiency on Commercial Embryo Transfer Farms. This study investigated the uterine distribution of EFX and its metabolite ciprofloxacin (CFX) in mares and assessed the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of EFX against various common pathogens as a basis for establishing a rational dosing schedule. Plasma and uterine pharmacokinetic (PK) studies were performed in two groups (n = 5) of healthy mares following intravenous (i.v.) administration of EFX at either 2.5 and at 5 mg/kg bodyweight. Plasma and endometrial tissue samples, taken before for up to 48 h after treatment were analysed by Reverse Phase HPLC. MIC values for wild strains of Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive bacteria (β-haemolytic streptococci) ranged from 0.25-2 and 1.5-3.0 μg/mL respectively. In terms of tissue distribution, the sum of the endometrial concentrations of the parent drug (EFX) and its active metabolite (CFX) (in terms of AUC), exceeded those in plasma by 249% and 941% following administration of EFX at 2.5 and 5 mg/kg respectively. After i.v. treatment with EFX at 5 mg/kg, endometrial concentrations of EFX and CFX above the MIC value were detected for 36-48 and 22-43 h posttreatment for Gram-negative and -positive isolates respectively. Concentrations above MIC were maintained for much shorter periods at the lower (2.5 mg/kg) treatment dose. Based on these results, a conventional dose (5 mg/kg) of EFX given prebreeding followed by two further doses at 36-48 h postbreeding are proposed as a rational strategy for using of EFX as a preventative therapy against a variety of common bacterial strains associated with equine endometritis.Fil: González, C. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; ArgentinaFil: Moreno, L.. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatología. Laboratorio de Farmacología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Fumuso, E..Fil: García, J..Fil: Rivulgo, M..Fil: Confalonieri, A..Fil: Sparo, M..Fil: Sánchez Bruni, S.

Efficacy of the probiotic strain Enterococcus faecalis CECT7121 in diarrhoea prevention in newborn foals

The aim of this work was to assess the effectiveness of the probiotic strain Enterococcus faecalis CECT7121 for the prevention of neonatal diarrhea in one to three day-old foals. Fecal samples from twenty foals divided randomly in experimental and control groups were studied. The experimental group (n=10) received E. faecalis CECT7121 (1 x 1010 CFU/ml) orally in the first day of life and for a 6 days period. The control group (n=10) received distilled water for the same period. In 4/10 of the foals from the control group diarrhea was observed, conversely diarrhea cases were not observed in any of the foals belonging to the experimental group. The differences between groups were statistically significant (p<0.001). E. faecalis CECT7121 was isolated in faeces from the second day of treatment until six days after the end of the probiotic administration. Therefore, E. faecalis CECT 7121 may be considered as a biological tool for the prevention of neonatal diarrhea in foals. Any adverse effects, at least under the conditions of this assay, but more efficacy studies should be performed to evaluate this organism in the prevention or treatment of diseases in foals.El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar la eficacia del probiótico Enterococcus faecalis CECT7121 en la prevención de la diarrea neonatal en potrillos de uno a tres días de edad. Se estudiaron muestras de materia fecal de veinte potrillos divididas al azar en grupos experimental y control. Los animales del grupo experimental (n=10) recibieron E. faecalis CECT7121 (1 x 1010 UFC/ml) por vía oral en el primer día de vida y por un período de 6 días. El grupo control (n=10) recibió agua destilada por el mismo período. Se observó que el 40% de los potrillos del grupo control presentaron diarrea, mientras que no se observaron casos de diarrea en ninguno de los potrillos pertenecientes al grupo experimental. Las diferencias entre los grupos fueron estadísticamente significativas (p<0,001). E. faecalis CECT7121 se aisló en heces desde el segundo día de tratamiento hasta seis días después del final de la administración del probiótico. Por lo tanto este hallazgo indicaría que E. faecalis CECT7121 podría ser considerado como una herramienta biológica para la prevención de la diarrea neonatal en potrillos sin ningún efecto adverso, al menos bajo las condiciones del presente ensayo, aunque más estudios de eficacia se deberían realizar para evaluar este organismo en la prevención o el tratamiento de enfermedades de los potrillos en los haras

Aspectos fármaco-epidemiológicos de la enfermedad respiratoria bovina bacteriana en feedlots.: una problemática a resolver

La enfermedad respiratoria bovina (ERB) es un proceso infeccioso multifactorial, causado principalmente por virus, bacterias y parásitos. Generalmente afecta a los bovinos menores de dos años de edad en crianza a feedlot, siendo una de las principales causas de morbi-mortalidad en esta categoría. Su tratamiento farmacológico llega a representar un 8% del total de los costos de producción, con alto porcentaje de fracasos terapéuticos. Las tasas de mortalidad debida a ERB son de aproximadamente 50%, presentándose la mayor parte en los primeros 45 días de ingresados los animales al feedlot. Tales fallas terapéuticas se deben a la ausencia de un diagnóstico basado en la evidencia y a la falta de protocolos de terapéutica racional, lo cual impide la correcta identificación de las cepas actuantes, conduciendo al tratamiento empírico de los animales y al desarrollo de resistencia bacteriana. Debido a que Argentina adolece de una falta de información sobre cepas resistentes en animales bajo condiciones de cría en feedlot, consideramos necesario difundir estrategias para optimizar una terapia antimicrobiana basada en evidencia científica, con rotación química de principios activos en animales naturalmente afectados. Se estima que ello incidirá en la reversión del uso indiscriminado de antibióticos y en la aparición de cepas bacterianas resistentes.Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is a multifactorial infectious disease mostly caused by viruses, bacterias and parasites. It usually affects cattle less than 2 years-old in feedlots and is one of the leading causes of morbility and mortality in this category. The pharmacological treatment of BRD involves the 8% of the total production costs, with high failure rates. Approximately 50% of total mortality takes place during the first 45 days within a feeding period. The lack of evidence-based diagnosis and no identification of bacterial strains together with the empirical pharmacological treatment, probably contributes to the development of bacterial resistance. Due to the lack of information on resistant strains in feedlot animals in Argentina, it was considered necessary to optimize antimicrobial therapy based on scientific evidence with chemical rotation of active pharmaceutical ingredients in naturally affected animals. It is expected that this will promote the reversion of the indiscriminate use of antibiotics and the appearance of resistant bacterial strains

Risk of hematological malignancies associated with magnetic fields exposure from power lines: a case-control study in two municipalities of northern Italy

BackgroundSome epidemiologic studies have suggested an association between electromagnetic field exposure induced by high voltage power lines and childhood leukemia, but null results have also been yielded and the possibility of bias due to unmeasured confounders has been suggested.MethodsWe studied this relation in the Modena and Reggio Emilia municipalities of northern Italy, identifying the corridors along high voltage power lines with calculated magnetic field intensity in the 0.1-<0.2, 0.2-<0.4, and ≥ 0.4 microTesla ranges. We identified 64 cases of newly-diagnosed hematological malignancies in children aged <14 within these municipalities from 1986 to 2007, and we sampled four matched controls for each case, collecting information on historical residence and parental socioeconomic status of these subjects.ResultsRelative risk of leukemia associated with antecedent residence in the area with exposure ≥ 0.1 microTesla was 3.2 (6.7 adjusting for socioeconomic status), but this estimate was statistically very unstable, its 95% confidence interval being 0.4-23.4, and no indication of a dose-response relation emerged. Relative risk for acute lymphoblastic leukemia was 5.3 (95% confidence interval 0.7-43.5), while there was no increased risk for the other hematological malignancies.ConclusionsThough the number of exposed children in this study was too low to allow firm conclusions, results were more suggestive of an excess risk of leukemia among exposed children than of a null relation

Albendazole-lipid nanocapsules: Optimization, characterization and chemoprophylactic efficacy in mice infected with Echinococcus granulosus

Cystic echinococcosis (CE), which is caused during the metacestode larval stage of Echinococcus granulosus, is a life-threatening disease and is very difficult to treat. At present, the FDA-approved antihelmintic drugs are mebendazole (MBZ), albendazole (ABZ) and its principal metabolite ABZ sulfoxide (ABZSO), but as these have a therapeutic efficacy over 50%, underlining the need for new drug delivery systems. The aim of this work was the optimization and characterization of previously developed ABZ lipid nanocapsules (ABZ-LNCs) and evaluate their efficacy in mice infected with E. granulosus. LNCs were prepared by the phase inversion technique and characterized in terms of size, surface charge, drug loading, and in vitro stability followed by an in vivo proof-of-concept using a murine model infected with E. granulosus. Stable particle dispersions with a narrow size distribution and high efficiency of encapsulation (≥90%) were obtained. ABZ-LNCs showed a greater chemoprophylactic efficacy than ABZ suspension administered by the oral route as 4 out of the 10 ABZ-LNCs treated mice did not develop any cysts, whereas the infection progressed in all mice from the ABZ suspension group. Regarding the ultrastructural studies of cysts, mice treated with ABZ-LNCs or ABZ suspension revealed changes in the germinal layer. However, the extent of the damage appeared to be greater after ABZ-LNC administration compared to the suspension treatment. These results suggest that ABZ-LNCs could be a promising novel candidate for ABZ delivery to treat CE.Fil: Ullio Gamboa, Gabriela Veronica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; ArgentinaFil: Pensel, Patricia Eugenia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Elissondo, María Celina. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez Bruni, Sergio Fabian. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comision de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Benoit, Jean-Pierre. Micro Et Nanomédecines Biomimétiques; FranciaFil: Palma, Santiago Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; ArgentinaFil: Allemandi, Daniel Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; Argentin

Prevalencia de agentes bacterianos involucrados en casos de neumonías en <i>feedlot</i>

La enfermedad respiratoria bovina (ERB) es causante de pérdidas económicas en animales de engorde a corral. Las principales bacterias involucradas en su patogenia son Histophilus somni, Mannheimia haemolytica y Pasteurella multocida, y en menor medida Mycoplasma bovis y Trueperella pyogenes. En nuestro país son escasos los datos sobre la prevalencia de aislamientos bacterianos en pulmones de bovinos muertos por ERB. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar la prevalencia de aislamientos bacterianos en bovinos muertos naturalmente por ERB en engordes a corral en la región del sudeste de la provincia de Buenos Aires (Argentina). Se realizó la necropsia de 70 animales provenientes de 6 establecimientos de engorde a corral con síntomas respiratorios que fueron refractarios a tratamientos con antibióticos y que presentaron lesiones compatibles con neumonías bacterianas.Trabajo publicado en Cagliada, Maria del Pilar Lilia y Galosi, Cecilia Mónica (comps.). I Congreso de Microbiología Veterinaria. Libro de resúmenes. La Plata: Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, 2021.Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria