STRENGTHENING COOPERATION WITH THIRD COUNTRIES IN THE FIELD OF HIGHER EDUCATION. 14388/01 (Presse 437-G), 29 November 2001

BACKGROUND: In many European countries, medicines promotion is governed by voluntary codes of practice administered by the pharmaceutical industry under its own system of self-regulation. Involvement of industry organizations in policing promotion has been proposed to deter illicit conduct, but few detailed studies on self-regulation have been carried out to date. The objective of this study was to examine the evidence for promotion and self-regulation in the UK and Sweden, two countries frequently cited as examples of effective self-regulation. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We performed a qualitative content analysis of documents outlining the constitutions and procedures of these two systems. We also gathered data from self-regulatory bodies on complaints, complainants, and rulings for the period 2004-2012. The qualitative analysis revealed similarities and differences between the countries. For example, self-regulatory bodies in both countries are required to actively monitor promotional items and impose sanctions on violating companies, but the range of sanctions is greater in the UK where companies may, for instance, be audited or publicly reprimanded. In total, Swedish and UK bodies ruled that 536 and 597 cases, respectively, were in breach, equating to an average of more than one case/week for each country. In Sweden, 430 (47%) complaints resulted from active monitoring, compared with only two complaints (0.2%) in the UK. In both countries, a majority of violations concerned misleading promotion. Charges incurred on companies averaged €447,000 and €765,000 per year in Sweden and the UK, respectively, equivalent to about 0.014% and 0.0051% of annual sales revenues, respectively. One hundred cases in the UK (17% of total cases in breach) and 101 (19%) in Sweden were highlighted as particularly serious. A total of 46 companies were ruled in breach of code for a serious offence at least once in the two countries combined (n = 36 in the UK; n = 27 in Sweden); seven companies were in serious violation more than ten times each. A qualitative content analysis of serious violations pertaining to diabetes drugs (UK, n = 15; Sweden, n = 6; 10% of serious violations) and urologics (UK, n = 6; Sweden, n = 13; 9%) revealed various types of violations: misleading claims (n = 23; 58%); failure to comply with undertakings (n = 9; 23%); pre-licensing (n = 7; 18%) or off-label promotion (n = 2; 5%); and promotion of prescription drugs to the public (n = 6; 15%). Violations that go undetected or unpunished by self-regulatory bodies are the main limitation of this study, since they are likely to lead to an underestimate of industry misconduct. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence and severity of breaches testifies to a discrepancy between the ethical standard codified in industry Codes of Conduct and the actual conduct of the industry. We discuss regulatory reforms that may improve the quality of medicines information, such as pre-vetting and intensified active monitoring of promotion, along with larger fines, and giving greater publicity to rulings. But despite the importance of improving regulatory arrangements in an attempt to ensure unbiased medicines information, such efforts alone are insufficient because simply improving oversight and increasing penalties fail to address additional layers of industry bias

Monitoramento da qualidade da água da chuva em sistema de produção de suínos.

Projeto: 11.11.11.111

Diversidade da entomofauna na adubação orgânica de dejeto suínos e mineral.

Projeto/Plano de Ação: 01.09.10.102-03

Modificação das fibras de celulose provenientes do bagaço de cana-de-açúcar com hidróxido de alumínio

Neste trabalho, foi desenvolvida uma metodologia para a preparação de compósitos de matrizes celulósicas com hidróxido de alumínio. Para avaliar a morfologia das fibras e a estabilidade térmica foram utilizadas as técnicas de microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV). Os resultados obtidos revelaram a deposição do hidróxido de alumínio alterou a morfologia das fibras, bem como a estabilidade térmica

SURFACE MODIFICATION OF SUGARCANE BAGASSE CELLULOSE AND ITS EFFECT ON MECHANICAL AND WATER ABSORPTION PROPERTIES OF SUGARCANE BAGASSE CELLULOSE/ HDPE COMPOSITES

Cellulose fibres from sugarcane bagasse were bleached and modified by zirconium oxychloride in order to improve the mechanical properties of composites with high density polyethylene (HDPE). The mechanical properties of the composites prepared from chemically modified cellulose fibres were found to increase compared to those of bleached fibres. Tensile strengths of the composites showed a decreasing trend with increasing filler content. However, the values for the chemically modified cellulose fibres/HDPE composites at all mixing ratios were found to be higher than that of neat HDPE. Results of water immersion tests showed that the water absorption affected the mechanical properties. The fracture surfaces of the composites were recorded using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SEM micrographs revealed that interfacial bonding between the modified filler and the matrix was significantly improved by the fibre modification

Laboratory and field evaluation of acetic acid-based lures for male Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri.

The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) is a vector of a pathogen associated with greening and thus a major problem in citriculture worldwide. Lures are much needed for improving ACP trapping systems for monitoring populations and surveillance. Previously, we have identified acetic acid as a putative sex pheromone and measured formic acid- and propionic acid-elicited robust electroantennographic responses. We have now thoroughly examined in indoor behavioral assays (4-way olfactometer) and field tests the feasibility of these three semiochemicals as potential lures for trapping ACP. Formic acid, acetic acid, and propionic acid at appropriate doses are male-specific attractants and suitable lures for ACP traps, but they do not act synergistically. An acetic acid-based homemade lure, prepared by impregnating the attractant in a polymer, was active for a day. A newly developed slow-release formulation had equal performance but lasted longer, thus leading to an important improvement in ACP trap capture at low population densities

Protótipo de composteira a partir de compósito polimérico reforçado com fibra natural

A geração de resíduos urbanos têm sido um cenário preocupante, devido à problemática do seu tratamento e sua disposição final. Em um lixão a disposição final de resíduos sólidos não passa por nenhuma preparação anterior do solo, ou seja, não há sistema de tratamento de efluentes líquidos. Então, o chorume, líquido preto resultante do lixo, contamina o solo e os lençóis freáticos que gerarão problemas de poluição das águas nos rios, matando espécies e contaminando a população que vive a base de água oriunda de poços. E dentre as soluções, a composteira é uma tecnologia sustentável, na qual a parte orgânica do lixo é transformada gerando como produto final um composto que pode ser usado na fertilização agrícola do solo e também na melhora de sua estrutura física, evitando assim a produção do chorume. A compostagem permite aproveitar os resíduos orgânicos, que constituem mais da metade do lixo domiciliar. Desta forma, o objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver uma composteira sustentável que funcione associando a digestão aeróbia da matéria orgânica do lixo à digestão anaeróbia dessa mesma matéria orgânica. A composteira foi desenvolvida com compósito de resina poliéster reforçada com fibras de coco de forma a contribuir também para o resíduo gerado do consumo da água de coco. O processo de extração das fibras proveniente do coco verde se dá pela extração do exocarpo, as quais são descartadas tornando-se um passivo ambiental. Os resultados obtidos até o momento têm evidenciado que a composteira desenvolvida tem facilitado a digestão aeróbia da matéria orgânica do lixo à digestão anaeróbia

Impacts of mixed farms on water quality of Pinhal river sub-basin, Santa Catarina, Brazil.

Brazil is one of the largest producers of food in the world. Agriculture and livestock production are concentrated in certain regions of the country. Livestock has been perceived as a constant threat to the quantity and quality of water resources. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of mixed farms on superficial water quality in Pinhal River sub-basin, which is located in Concordia, Santa Catarina State. Eight sampling sites representing different land-uses (LU1: dairy cattle; LU2: without animals; LU3: dairy + pigs + poultry + crops; LU4: pigs + poultry + crops; LU5: dairy + pigs + poultry + crops + human; LU6: dairy + pigs + crops; LU7 and LU8: dairy + pigs) were evaluated. These sampling sites were assessed longitudinally and sampled during the summer, spring, autumn, and winter of 2006 to 2009. LU1 presented the worst water quality with high concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS) and chemical oxygen demand. In this point, cows had access to the river. The highest concentration of nitrate (NO3-N) was found at the estuary of the river. There were higher concentrations of TSS, NO3-N and NO2-N in wet season. At this time, intensive fertilizer application to corn fields is common. Autumn and winter presented the worst water quality with respect to nitrogen concentration. Results showed a strong relationship between the sources of pollution (e.g., cows, pigs and poultries) and water quality. Managing the use of animal manure with optimum chemical fertilizer applications along with riparian fencing may provide important mitigation options for protecting water quality of Pinhal River

Further Reflections on the “Postmodern Turn” in the Social Sciences: A Reply to William Outhwaite

I am immensely grateful to William Outhwaite for commenting on my book The ‘Postmodern Turn’ in the Social Sciences (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015). I should stress at the outset that I agree with most of the points he makes in his commentary, which I find very insightful, thought-provoking, and constructive. Hence, any reader expecting to be entertained by a cockfight between book author and book reviewer will be disappointed. Let me take this opportunity to reflect on some of the main issues raised in Outhwaite’s inspiring review

Kinned to be Norwegian : transnational adoptees' positioning in relation to whiteness and the negotiation of nationhood

Author's accepted version (postprint).This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd in Nations and Nationalism on 13 April 2019.Available online: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nana.12525acceptedVersio