Policy properties and political influence in post-delegation : the case of EU agencies

The literature on EU agencies has examined the issue of political control and independence in EU agency design and in post-delegation. However, studies measuring and providing accounts for the political influence that the Commission, the member states and the European Parliament exert in decision-making across a wide sample of EU agencies are missing in the specialized literature. This article addresses this topic and poses the following questions: How influential is each of the main parent institutional actors on agency boards' decision-making? Do agency powers and policy properties affect political influence? Based on an online survey, documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews, this article combines a quantitative and a qualitative study identifying differentiated patterns of political influence by supranational and intergovernmental actors. Regulatory functions and saliency decrease the leverage of the Commission and the European Parliament, whereas complexity decreases the influence of the member states. Moreover, highly centralized and far-reaching regulatory activity affects institutional balances in post-delegation. Points for practitioners: The article is of interest to practitioners concerned with the issue of political control and the independence of EU specialized agencies. The article identifies certain conditions under which political influence by the main parent institutional actors on the boards of EU agencies is diminished. More specifically, the Commission and the European Parliament are less influential on the boards of salient and regulatory agencies, whereas the member states have reduced leverage on the boards of agencies undertaking highly complex activities. Agency policy properties affect the political influence of institutional actors unevenly depending on whether it is exercised by supranational or intergovernmental actors

Competing principals and non-vote decisions in the European Parliament

This article analyses the effects of competing principals on legislators' decisions not to vote in the European Parliament. We argue that Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are likely to decide not to vote to avoid defecting from either the national party or the European political group when both political principals disagree. Moreover, the article demonstrates that competing demands between principals interact with the expected closeness of a vote. MEPs are more likely to opt for not voting when they have few chances to influence the vote outcome and are torn between the two main principals. Based on a novel data set on individual votes in the 2009-2014 term, this article demonstrates that competing demands moderate the effect of the expected vote closeness on non-vote decisions and highlights the need to incorporate this type of legislative non-response in future research

Informal rules and institutional balances on the boards of EU agencies

Recent research has paid increasing attention to the institutional dynamics of EU agencies in post-delegation but has barely explored the conditions under which patterns of informality shifting institutional power balances are likely to emerge on agency boards. Based on documentary analysis and 60 semi-structured interviews covering 22 agencies, this article examines under what conditions boards' formal configurations in which the Member States hold a majority are informally altered to the advantage of the Commission. The article argues that functional motivations are present in the emergence of informal rules empowering the Commission, but those rationales are conditional to distributional considerations

Design of new hybrid nanomaterials with molecular gates as nanodevices for therapeutic applications

Tesis por compendioLa presente tesis doctoral, que lleva por título “Diseño de nuevos nanomateriales híbridos con puertas moleculares como nanodispositivos para aplicaciones terapéuticas” está centrada en el desarrollo de nuevos materiales funcionales híbridos orgánico-inorgánicos para aplicaciones de liberación controlada. Los dos capítulos de la presente tesis en los que se describen los resultados obtenidos (el segundo y el tercer capítulos) están directamente relacionados con el uso de las nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice como matriz inorgánica en el desarrollo de nuevos materiales híbridos orgánico-inorgánicos para aplicaciones en liberación controlada. Aun así, los resultados se han dividido en dos capítulos, dependiendo del estímulo aplicado para la liberación de la molécula encapsulada. En uno de los capítulos, los diferentes materiales desarrollados se basan en nanodispositivos controlados enzimáticamente, mientras que en el otro capítulo es un cambio de pH o de fuerza electroestática (en los dos casos debido a la presencia de un microorganismo patógeno) el que causa la consecuente liberación de la carga. En el caso de los nanodispositivos controlados enzimáticamente, los cuales se describen en el Capítulo 2, se desarrollaron tres sólidos diferentes. El primer ejemplo se basó en el diseño, síntesis y caracterización de nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice recubiertas con sales de azopiridinio, que se hidrolizan en presencia de esterasas y reductasas, las cuales se encuentran en la microflora del colon. Estas sales, que contienen un enlace azoico, se seleccionaron para una posible liberación selectiva en el colon. Los estudios de viabilidad celular e internalización se llevaron a cabo con células HeLa, así como los estudios de liberación del agente quimioterapéutico camptotecina. Un segundo ejemplo se centró en el diseño, síntesis, caracterización y aplicaciones de un nuevo nanodispositivo que responde a la presencia de proteasas para liberación controlada, empleando nanopartículas de sílice cubiertas con el polímero -poli-L-lisina. En este caso, se pretendía evaluar dos mecanismos diferentes de anclaje del polímero y los dos dieron resultados positivos, aunque presentaron diferentes perfiles de liberación en cada caso. También se realizaron estudios de viabilidad e internalización celular con este nuevo nanodispositivo, así como la liberación de camptotecina en células HeLa. Finalmente, el último nanodispositivo que responde a la acción de un enzima; incluye el diseño y aplicación de un “scaffold” 3D inteligente con puertas moleculares, el cual consiste en la combinación de nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice con puertas y biomateriales porosos clásicos. En este caso, las nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice se cubrieron con poliaminas y ATP. Estas nanopartículas se incorporaron durante la síntesis de un “scaffold” de gelatina, el cual se preparó mediante técnicas de prototipado rápido (RP). En presencia de fosfatasa ácida se induce la liberación del colorante encapsulado en los poros de las nanopartículas. La fosfatasa ácida se seleccionó como estímulo activador de este material diseñado, ya que es un enzima cuya concentración se emplea para evaluar la actividad de los osteoclastos en procesos de remodelación ósea y como marcador en metástasis de huesos. Estas propiedades abren posibilidades de uso de esta combinación en el diseño de materiales funcionales para la preparación de numerosos “scaffolds” avanzados con puertas moleculares, que puedan ayudar en aplicaciones de medicina regenerativa y terapias de cáncer de huesos. Con respecto al otro tipo de nanodispositivos, que se muestra en el Capítulo 3, se ha evaluado el posible uso de las nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice con puertas moleculares como posibles vehículos para la liberación controlada de fármacos cuando un microorganismo patógeno está presente. En este caso, el diseño y desarrollo de nuevos materiales híbridos orgánico-inorgánicos se ha basado en el uso de nanopartículas mesoporosas de sílice como matriz inorgánica, cubiertas con entidades moleculares orgánicas que podrían responder a un cambio en el pH del ambiente o a un cambio en la fuerza electroestática, debido a la presencia de un microorganismo patógeno, tales como hongos o bacterias. Uno de estos nanodispositivos desarrollados demuestra las aplicaciones y propiedades antifúngicas de un soporte cargado con tebuconazol y cubierto con moléculas que actúan de puerta molecular dirigida mediante un cambio de pH. El otro material presenta aplicaciones antibacterianas contra bacterias gram-positivas y gram-negativas, ya que se utiliza un nanodispositivo cargado con vancomicina y funcionalizado con -poli-L-lisina. En los dos casos, se ha demostrado que el uso de la nanoformulación puede mejorar la efectividad del fármaco encapsulado, mejorando y ampliando el espectro de acción del mismo, lo cual abre un gran abanico de posibilidades en aplicaciones de estos nanodispositivos en el tratamiento de infecciones. En resumen, se puede concluir que en la presente tesis se han desarrollado nuevos sólidos híbridos orgánico-inorgánicos, así como se han descrito las aplicaciones de estos nanodisposotivos como sistemas de liberación controlada. Los resultados obtenidos podrían ser útiles en futuros diseños de materiales híbridos avanzados en biotecnología, biomedicina y, concretamente, en aplicaciones terapéuticas (como terapias contra el cáncer, tratamiento de infecciones, medicina regenerativa, etc.)Mas Font, N. (2014). Design of new hybrid nanomaterials with molecular gates as nanodevices for therapeutic applications [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/48491TESISCompendi

The information phase of accountability : The role of management boards in European Union agencies

The creation of European Union agencies has prompted normative and theoretical discussions about their accountability and democratic legitimacy. This study examines the extent to which different features concerning the institutional design of agencies incentivize information provision on their performance. To do so, it measures four aspects for which their governing bodies are expected to provide information: governance decisions, policy performance, financial issues, and interactions with stakeholders. Using a new data set of informative statements included in 199 annual activity reports of 29 agencies during the period 2010-2016, this study demonstrates that formal accountability positively affects information provision on governance and policy issues, and that the establishment of scientific bodies within agencies improves information provision on governance aspects, policy performance and their interactions with stakeholders. Finally, this article finds that agencies that perform more direct regulation are subject to greater transparency demands about their governance decisions and stakeholder interactions. Points for practitioners: The study provides practitioners with an analytical tool for assessing the provision of information about the decisions and actions of management boards on governance issues, policy performance, financial aspects and their interactions with stakeholders

The European Parliament oversight of EU agencies through written questions

The reinforcement of the legislative and oversight powers of the European Parliament by virtue of successive treaty reforms over the last two decades has been in parallel with an expanding process of agency creation at the European Union (EU) level. While these two institutional developments entail major transformations of legislative-executive relations in the EU, the European Parliament oversight of EU agencies remains an underexplored topic of research. Based on an original dataset on parliamentary written questions overseeing EU agencies asked during the 2009-14 Legislature, the article analyses members of the European Parliament (MEPs) questioning activity overseeing EU agencies. The article argues that legislative oversight of agencies through written questions is driven by MEPs national party opposition status as well as by agency salience and size

Varieties of inclusionary populism? SYRIZA, Podemos and the Five Star Movement

Over the past years, parties often described as populist, such as SYRIZA in Greece, the Five Star Movement (FSM) in Italy and Podemos in Spain have made significant electoral breakthroughs, unsettling well-established party systems. In the literature, inclusionary populism has primarily been applied to Latin America whereas the three Southern European parties have been examined individually, but not in comparative perspective. The purpose of this article is to provide a comparative analysis, based on an original electoral manifestos content analysis, aimed at unveiling the ‘inclusionary populism’ features of the ‘new’ political parties that have emerged in Southern Europe. By focusing on the 2012–16 period, the article shows that the inclusionary category can be fruitfully applied also to European political parties; it finds different degrees of inclusionary populism (namely between SYRIZA and Podemos); and it proves that the FSM falls between the two exclusionary vs. inclusionary poles

Control presináptico por receptores acoplados a proteínas G, GPCRs, en un ratón modelo del síndrome del X frágil

El síndrome del X frágil (FXS) es la enfermedad mental de carácter hereditario más importante y se asocia con alteraciones como déficits cognitivos, hiperactividad, ansiedad y problemas de interacción social. En el FXS se produce un silenciamiento del gen Fmr1 que codifica para la proteína FMRP, que regula la expresión génica mediante su interacción con ARNm. Cuando FMRP está ausente, se produce una alteración en la expresión de gran cantidad de proteínas postsinápticas así como en formas de plasticidad a largo plazo. Además, FMRP se localiza en axones y en el terminal presináptico donde también regula la expresión de múltiples proteínas presinápticas..

Kinetics of tetrabromobisphenol A pyrolysis. Comparison between correlation and mechanistic models

Brominated flame retardants are well recognized as being highly effective flame retardants. 4-4′-Isopropylidenebis(2,6-dibromophenol), commonly known as tetrabromobisphenol A, is the brominated flame retardant with the largest production volume and is used to improve fire safety, mainly of laminates in electrical and electronic equipment. A kinetic study of the pyrolysis of TBBA has been carried out to obtain decomposition parameters under different operating conditions and taking into account that TBBA is a compound with a high boiling point and that vaporization occurs simultaneously to decomposition. Dynamic runs and dynamic + isothermal run at different heating rates and using different masses of sample were correlated simultaneously. All TG runs were fitted with a unique set of kinetic parameters that is able to explain all the experiments. Moreover, a simplified detailed kinetic model has been developed and the kinetic parameters obtained satisfactorily reproduce the thermal decomposition of TBBA.Support for this work was provided by PROMETEO/2009/043/FEDER and ACOMP2011/224 of Generalitat Valenciana (Spain) and CTQ2008-05520 (Spanish MCI/research)

Analysis of the vaporization process in TG apparatus and its incidence in pyrolysis

An analysis of the evaporation process of n-hexadecane in a thermogravimetric apparatus was carried out. n-Hexadecane represents a typical example of a high boiling point compound and its study is interesting for understanding those processes where vaporization takes place in parallel with pyrolysis during thermal treatment. The process has been studied under different operating conditions: nitrogen and air atmospheres, and isothermal and dynamic runs with three different heating rates from 5 K/min to 20 K/min. The experimental data were satisfactorily correlated to a n-order model with zero process order and the same apparent activation energy for all runs, but the exponential factors of the different runs depended on the initial mass and the heating rate. The experimental results were compared with those predicted considering the diffusion process inside the crucible, taking into account the vapor pressure and the diffusion coefficient of n-hexadecane. A parameter, product of these two variables, can be estimated from a single TG run, so the vaporization process in other equipment and/or operating conditions can also be estimated.Support for this work was provided by PROMETEO/2009/043/FEDER and ACOMP2010/075 of Generalitat Valenciana (Spain) and CTQ2008-05520 (Spanish MCI/research)