The glass ceiling in public organizations: the case of Brazil

In Brazil women are still underrepresented in upper-level positions in companies. This situation, however, is frequently not recognized by leaders. In public service, in particular, the adoption of more transparent recruitment practices and the egalitarian treatment to members of the same career may give the misleading impression that the glass ceiling phenomenon is less pronounced. This article gathers evidences that the concerns of the public sector with the adoption of more transparent recruitment practices do not prevent the persistence of hierarchical gender segregation among public employees. Female underrepresentation at the top of public organizations can be observed either in administrative and technical tasks. Discrimination practices alone do not explain the phenomenon, which is also rooted in the intersections between private and professional life.No Brasil, as mulheres ainda são raras nos altos postos de comando das organizações. A percepção desta situação por parte dos dirigentes, no entanto, nem sempre é clara. No serviço público, em particular, a atitude menos discriminatória nas contratações - já que o acesso ao emprego público depende, via de regra, de aprovação prévia em concurso -, e a garantia de igualdade de tratamento a integrantes de uma mesma carreira conduzem à impressão de que o teto de vidro seja menos pronunciado. Este artigo reúne evidências de que, a despeito de seu modo de recrutamento por concurso, as carreiras do setor público brasileiro tampouco escapam ao teto de vidro. A distribuição desigual das mulheres nas distintas instâncias hierárquicas das organizações públicas se faz notar tanto em âmbito administrativo quanto técnico. As práticas discriminatórias sozinhas não explicam o fenômeno, cujas raízes também devem ser buscadas nas intersecções entre vida doméstica e profissional.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Política, Economia e NegóciosUNIFESP, Escola Paulista de Política, Economia e NegóciosSciEL

Evolução e determinantes na escolha de trabalho entre os setores público e privado no Brasil

This study analyzes the factors that influence the decision of an employee of the service sector in Brazil between working in the private sector and becoming a government employee, comparing local, state, and central government levels. In addition to testing how the socioeconomic characteristics affect such choice, we investigated if variables related to the family background determine the allocation between sectors. Our findings showed an intergenerational effect, as an employee whose father has worked in the public sector is more likely to have a job in the government. This effect, however, is more relevant at state and local government levels and also has lost importance between 1996 and 2014.Este trabalho analisa os fatores que influenciam a decisão dos empregados em serviços no Brasil, ante a possibilidade de trabalhar no setor privado, no setor público federal, na esfera estadual ou na municipal. Além de testar o papel de um conjunto de atributos pessoais e socioeconômicos na determinação do setor de emprego, examina-se o efeito de variáveis relativas ao background familiar na alocação setorial. Os resultados mostram um efeito intergeracional, com maior probabilidade de emprego no setor público caso o pai tenha sido servidor. Esse efeito, no entanto, tem maior expressão nas esferas estadual e municipal de governo e perdeu importância, ao se compararem os dados de 1996 e de 2014

The contribution of muscle, kidney and splanchnic tissues to leucine transamination in humans

The first steps of leucine utilization are reversible deamination to \u3b1-ketoisocaproic acid (\u3b1-KIC) and irreversible oxidation. Recently the regulatory role of leucine deamination over oxidation was underlined in rodents. Our aim was to measure leucine deamination and reamination in the whole-body, in respect to previously determined rates across organs, in humans. By leucine and KIC isotope kinetics, we determined whole-body leucine deamination and reamination, and we compared these rates to those already reported across the sampled organs. As an in vivo counterpart of the "metabolon" concept, we analysed ratios between oxidation to either deamination or reamination. Leucine deamination to KIC was greater than KIC reamination to leucine in the whole-body (p=0.005), muscle (p=0.005) and the splanchnic area (p=0.025).These rates were not significantly different in the kidneys. Muscle accounted for 4860% and 4878%, the splanchnic bed for 4815% and 4815%, and the kidney for 4812% and 4818%, of whole-body leucine deamination and reamination rates, respectively. In the kidney, percent leucine oxidation over either deamination or reamination was >3-fold greater than muscle and the splanchnic bed. Skeletal muscle contributes by the largest fraction of leucine deamination, reamination and oxidation. However, in relative terms, the kidney plays a key role in leucine oxidation

Elasticidade-renda e concentração das despesas com alimentos no Brasil: uma análise dos dados das POF de 2002-2003, 2008-2009 e 2017-2018

Nas últimas décadas, as despesas com alimentação têm sofrido alterações consideráveis no Brasil, em virtude de mudanças demográficas, econômicas e comportamentais, que afetam as decisões e preferências das famílias sobre o que consumir e onde consumir. A divulgação, no final de 2019, de uma nova edição da Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares (POF/IBGE) torna imprescindível a investigação das modificações mais recentes no padrão de dispêndio com alimentos no País. Este artigo tem como objetivo estimar a despesa média mensal familiar e a elasticidade-renda de uma grande variedade de alimentos, comparando-as com os valores obtidos com dados das edições anteriores das POFs. Além disso, são obtidas as razões e curvas de concentração das despesas com alimentos em relação à renda, averiguando-se para quais itens o gasto é mais concentrado nos relativamente ricos do que a própria renda. Os resultados mostram que os gastos médios com alimentação no domicílio continuaram caindo em 2017-2018, ao passo que o gasto com alimentação fora do domicílio interrompeu sua trajetória ascendente, como resultado da crise econômica que atingiu o País a partir de meados de 2014. Houve reversão na tendência de aumento dos gastos com carnes, vísceras e pescados e queda nos gastos com todas as categorias de produtos light/diet. As despesas alimentares mais concentradas em favor dos relativamente ricos estão associadas a uma dieta mais criteriosa e sofisticada

Efeitos da migração na infância sobre a mobilidade intergeracional de educação

Conhecer a influência do background familiar na acumulação de capital humano é essencial para que se possa desenhar políticas públicas voltadas à elevação do nível de escolaridade da população. Este trabalho analisa a mobilidade intergeracional de educação no Brasil segundo a condição de migração. Verificam-se as mudanças no status educacional dos indivíduos que migraram na infância ou início da adolescência do Nordeste para o Sudeste entre as décadas de 1950 e 1980, tendo em vista a importância desse fluxo migratório na história recente do país. Os dados utilizados são provenientes da Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios (PNAD/IBGE) de 2014, que contou com um suplemento de mobilidade sócio-ocupacional. A metodologia do estudo compreende a estimação do grau de persistência intergeracional de educação, mediante um modelo de regressão linear, e o ajuste de um modelo logit ordenado para os níveis de escolaridade alcançados pelos indivíduos. Os resultados contrastam com os obtidos na maior parte da literatura internacional e mostram que o migrante na infância ou primeiros anos da adolescência NE-SE entre as décadas de 1950 e 1980 possuía menor mobilidade intergeracional de educação, quando comparado ao nativo tanto região de origem como de destino

Signal regulatory protein alpha initiates cachexia through muscle to adipose tissue crosstalk

BACKGROUND: Muscle wasting from chronic kidney disease (CKD) or from defective insulin signalling results in morbidity and, ultimately, mortality. We have identified an endogenous mediator of insulin resistance, signal regulatory protein alpha (SIRPα), which leads to cachexia in mice and is associated with cachexia in patients with CKD. METHODS: We assessed insulin signalling and mechanisms causing muscle atrophy plus white adipose tissue (WAT) metabolism in mouse models of CKD or acute diabetes (streptozotocin treatment). We then examined these factors in mice with global knockout (KO) of SIRPα and sought mediators of metabolic responses in muscle and adipose tissues of mice with either muscle-specific or adipose tissue-specific KO of SIRPα. Metabolic responses were confirmed in primary cultures of adipose cells. RESULTS: In mice with CKD, SIRPα expression was increased in WAT (three-fold, P \u3c 0.05), and this was associated with precursors of cachexia: \u27pathologic browning\u27, thermogenesis, and a two-fold activation of protein kinase A (P \u3c 0.05 vs. control mice) plus loss of adipose tissue mass. In contrast, mice with SIRPα global KO and CKD or acute diabetes experienced improved insulin signalling and activation of pAkt plus \u27physiologic browning\u27 of WAT. These mice avoided losses of muscle and adipose tissues and experienced a 31% improvement in survival (P \u3c 0.05) than did wild-type mice with CKD. In muscle-specific SIRPα KO mice with CKD, we uncovered that serum SIRPα levels (P \u3c 0.05) were suppressed and were associated with improved insulin signalling both in skeletal muscles and in WAT. These changes were accompanied by physiologic WAT browning. However, in adipose-specific SIRPα KO mice with CKD, levels of serum SIRPα were increased over two-fold (P \u3c 0.05), while muscle losses were minimally inhibited. Clinical implications of SIRPα signalling are suggested by our findings that include increased SIRPα expression in muscle and adipose tissues (P \u3c 0.05 vs. healthy controls) plus higher SIRPα levels in the serum of patients with CKD (2.4-fold, P=0.000017 vs. healthy controls). CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that SIRPα plays an important role as an anti-insulin mediator regulating pathways to cachexia. In muscle-specific SIRPα KO, changes in SIRPα serum levels seem to improve insulin signalling in muscle and WAT, suggesting crosstalk between muscle and adipose tissue. Therefore, targeting SIRPα may prevent cachexia in patients with CKD or acute diabetes

Indoxyl Sulfate Induces Renal Fibroblast Activation through a Targetable Heat Shock Protein 90-Dependent Pathway

Indoxyl sulfate (IS) accumulation occurs early during chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression and contributes to renal dysfunction by inducing fibrosis, inflammation, oxidative stress, and tissue remodeling. Renal toxicity of high IS concentrations (250\u2009\u3bcM) has been widely explored, particularly in resident tubular and glomerular cells, while the effect of a moderate IS increase on kidneys is still mostly unknown. To define the effects of IS accumulation on renal fibroblasts, we first analyzed kidneys of C57BL/6 mice receiving IS (0.1%) in drinking water for 12 weeks. As a next step, we treated renal fibroblasts (NRK-49F) with IS (20\u2009\u3bcM) with or without the HSP90 inhibitor 17-AAG (1\u2009\u3bcM). In mouse kidneys, IS increased the collagen deposition and HSP90 and \u3b1-SMA expression (immunohistochemistry) in interstitial fibroblasts and caused tubular necrosis (histological H&E and picrosirius red staining). In NRK-49F cells, IS induced MCP1, TGF-\u3b2, collagen I, \u3b1-SMA, and HSP90 gene/protein expression and Smad2/3 pathway activation. IS had no effects on fibroblast proliferation and ROS production. 17-AAG counteracted IS-induced MCP1, TGF-\u3b2, collagen I, and \u3b1-SMA expression and Smad2/3 phosphorylation. Our study demonstrates that the IS increase promotes renal fibroblast activation by a HSP90-dependent pathway and indicates HSP90 inhibition as a potential strategy to restrain IS-induced kidney inflammation and fibrosis in CKD

The control of muscle protein turnover in patients on peritoneal dialys

Wasting is observed in a large percentage of patients receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD) and it is associated with functional impairment and worse outcome. In this article, we review the current state of our knowledge regarding the effects of PD on protein metabolism and their possible interactions with the uremia-induced and comorbidity-induced alterations in protein metabolism. Available evidence shows that glucose-based PD induces a new state in muscle protein dynamics, which is characterized by decreased turnover rates and a reduced efficiency of protein turnover, a condition which may be harmful in stress conditions, when nutrient intake is diminished or during superimposed catabolic illnesses. The effects of PD on protein turnover may overlap with the effects of aging and comorbidities to promote net catabolism. There is a need to develop more effective treatments to enhance the nutritional and functional status of PD patients. New approaches include the use of icodextrins to maintain extracellular volume, amino acids/keto acids-containing supplements combined with physical exercise, vitamin D, myostatin antagonism, and ghrelin agonism for malnourished patients refractory to standard nutritional therapy

The Organ Handling of Soluble Klotho in Humans

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) reduces both Klotho expression and its shedding into circulation, an effect that accelerates progression and cardiovascular complications. However, the mechanisms that regulate Klotho release by the human kidney are still unknown. Methods: We measured plasma Klotho across the kidney, splanchnic organs and lung in 22 patients (71 \ub1 2 years, estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] 60 \ub1 5.4 mL/min 1.73 m2) during elective diagnostic cardiac catheterizations. Results: Although the Klotho average renal vein concentrations were remarkably higher (by ~9%) than arterial values, the kidney removed Klotho (or was at zero balance) in 7 subjects, indicating that the kidney contribution to systemic Klotho is not constant. Klotho fractional enrichment across the kidney was inversely related to plasma sodium (r = 0.43, p = 0.045) and acid uric acid levels (r = 0.38, p = 0.084) and directly, to renal oxygen extraction (r = 0.56, p = 0.006). In multivariate analysis, renal oxygen extraction was the only predictor of the enrichment of Klotho across the kidney, suggesting the dependence of renal Klotho release on tubular hypoxia or oxidative metabolism. Klotho balance was neutral across the lung. In patients with eGFR <60 mL/min, Klotho was also removed by splanchnic organs (single pass fractional extraction ~11%). Conclusions: The present study identifies kidney oxygen uptake as a predictor of Klotho release, and splanchnic organs as a site for Klotho removal. This study provides new understanding of kidney Klotho release and suggests that modulating kidney oxygen metabolism could increase Klotho delivery, as an option to slow disease progression and blunt organ damage