COCOPS Executive Survey on Public Sector Reform in Europe.

Background and aims of the survey The COCOPS project aims to assess the impact of New Public Management-style (NPM) reforms on public administrations in Europe, as well as, more particularly, on public services attending to citizens’ service needs and on social cohesion. The research explores trends and development of future public sector reform strategies, especially given the context of the financial crisis, by drawing lessons from past experience, exploring trends and studying emerging public sector coordination practices. The research is comparative and evidence-based, drawing on both existing data and innovative new quantitative and qualitative data collection, at both national and policy sector levels. As one of the largest comparative public management research projects in Europe, the project therefore intends to provide a comprehensive picture of the challenges facing the European public sector of the future. The consortium implementing the research consists of a group of leading public administration scholars from eleven universities in ten countries. The project is funded through the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme as a Small or Medium-Scale Focused Research Project, and runs from January 2011 to June 2014. More information on the project is available at www.cocops.eu. The third phase of COCOPS (or its ‘Work package 3’) is a cornerstone of the project, as it produces an original, large-scale survey exploring the opinions and perceptions of public sector managers in ten Europe countries with regards to NPM reforms. The work package thus provides novel quantitative data regarding NPM reforms and their impacts in Europe, coming from the actors involved at close range in the conception and especially in the implementation of reforms: public sector executives across Europe active in the areas of (as delineated in the project’s reference points) general government, employment and health. Moreover, the data resulting from the survey constitutes a building block for other project phases which, based on an analysis of trends and opinions identified by the civil servants surveyed, try to establish innovative practices in tackling unintended consequences of NPM reforms, effects of the financial crisis and also possible scenarios for the future of the public sector

Enhanced oligomerization of full-length RAGE by synergy of the interaction of its domains.

The pattern recognition receptor RAGE (receptor for advanced glycation end-products) transmits proinflammatory signals in several inflammation-related pathological states, including vascular diseases, cancer, neurodegeneration and diabetes. Its oligomerization is believed to be important in signal transduction, but RAGE oligomeric structures and stoichiometries remain unclear. Different oligomerization modes have been proposed in studies involving different truncated versions of the extracellular parts of RAGE. Here, we provide basic characterization of the oligomerization patterns of full-length RAGE (including the transmembrane (TM) and cytosolic regions) and compare the results with oligomerization modes of its four truncated fragments. For this purpose, we used native mass spectrometry, analytical ultracentrifugation, and size-exclusion chromatography coupled with multi-angle light scattering. Our results confirm known oligomerization tendencies of separate domains and highlight the enhanced oligomerization properties of full-length RAGE. Mutational analyses within the GxxxG motif of the TM region show sensitivity of oligomeric distributions to the TM sequence. Using hydrogen-deuterium exchange, we mapped regions involved in TM-dependent RAGE oligomerization. Our data provide experimental evidence for the major role of the C2 and TM domains in oligomerization, underscoring synergy among different oligomerization contact regions along the RAGE sequence. These results also explain the variability of obtained oligomerization modes in RAGE fragments

Performance evaluation of an ORC unit integrated to a waste heat recovery system in a steel mill

Waste heat revalorization creates interesting opportunities to energy intensive industries. In the present project, a large-scale ORC pilot plant along with a waste heat recovery unit (WHRU) in a steel mill has been designed, commissioned and operated. The plant is part of the European Commission funded PITAGORAS project and it has been installed at ORI MARTIN in Brescia (Italy). Waste heat is recovered from the fumes of the Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) to produce saturated steam which is then delivered to a district heating (DH) network during heating season and to the ORC for electricity generation during the rest of the year. The main challenge was the integration of these systems in a single plant since the heat source is highly unstable and steady heat load is preferable for the DH and ORC for their safe operation. A steam accumulator of 150m3 volume was implemented between the WHRU and the ORC/DH systems to maintain a steady discharge pressure, to reduce the fast transients and to extend the supply over longer periods. The ORC has a nominal power output of 1,8MW and the preliminary results of the first weeks of operation of the ORC unit resulted in a net efficiency of 21.7%. Currently the plant is undergoing monitoring campaign which will provide additional data to further evaluate and optimize the system.The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme FP7/2007-2013 under grant agreement n° ENER / FP7EN / 314596 / PITAGORAS

Formation of Trans-Activation Competent HIV-1 Rev:RRE Complexes Requires the Recruitment of Multiple Protein Activation Domains

The HIV-1 Rev trans-activator is a nucleocytoplasmic shuttle protein that is essential for virus replication. Rev directly binds to unspliced and incompletely spliced viral RNA via the cis-acting Rev Response Element (RRE) sequence. Subsequently, Rev oligomerizes cooperatively and interacts with the cellular nuclear export receptor CRM1. In addition to mediating nuclear RNA export, Rev also affects the stability, translation and packaging of Rev-bound viral transcripts. Although it is established that Rev function requires the multimeric assembly of Rev molecules on the RRE, relatively little is known about how many Rev monomers are sufficient to form a trans-activation competent Rev:RRE complex, or which specific activity of Rev is affected by its oligomerization. We here analyzed by functional studies how homooligomer formation of Rev affects the trans-activation capacity of this essential HIV-1 regulatory protein. In a gain-of-function approach, we fused various heterologous dimerization domains to an otherwise oligomerization-defective Rev mutant and were able to demonstrate that oligomerization of Rev is not required per se for the nuclear export of this viral trans-activator. In contrast, however, the formation of Rev oligomers on the RRE is a precondition to trans-activation by directly affecting the nuclear export of Rev-regulated mRNA. Moreover, experimental evidence is provided showing that at least two protein activation domains are required for the formation of trans-activation competent Rev:RRE complexes. The presented data further refine the model of Rev trans-activation by directly demonstrating that Rev oligomerization on the RRE, thereby recruiting at least two protein activation domains, is required for nuclear export of unspliced and incompletely spliced viral RNA

Executive Programs for the Public Sector: Taking Stock and Future Perspectives

The politics and administration of institutional chang