Mexico\u27s Banks after the December 1994 Devaluation--A Chronology of the Government\u27s Response

The immediate effects of the December 1994 peso devaluation and the period of high interest rates and economic recession that followed had important repercussions for the Mexican banking and financial system. Since the onset of the crisis, the Mexican government has undertaken a number of important actions designed to assure adequate capitalization of financial institutions and continued public confidence in the banking system. The goal throughout has been to avoid a banking crisis that would exacerbate the contraction in the real economy and to set the stage for a recovery of the financial system based on sound institutions and efficient financial markets. The steps taken have included amendments to the legal framework for foreign ownership of banks, reinforcement of supervision, programs for re capitalizing troubled banks, the introduction of inflation-indexed lending and the provision of indexed funding to banks, a debtor relief program and direct intervention of those banks that proved unable to weather the crisis and its aftermath. The combination of these meas- ures has permitted most of the banks and the banking and payments system as a whole to continue to operate throughout 1995, despite a very sharp contraction in the real econom

Investigation of nasal colonization of health care workers by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus with using new generation real-time PCR assay: Discussing of risks

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a nasal infectious pathogen which is becoming of significant importance year by year. Mortality, morbidity and treatment costs of MRSA infectionshave all increased. The most effective preventative tool is rapid confirmation of MRSA existence, followed by efficient execution of the required infection control measures. This study was performedwith the aim of evaluating MRSA colonization in health care staff from intensive care units (internal and surgical intensive care units) (ICUs) and how certain risk factors affect their colonization status. The study was conducted prospectively using samples obtained from nasal swabs of health-care staffs working in different missions in the intensive care unit of Gaziantep University Training Hospital in southeast of Turkey. The nasal swab samples were processed using a real-time PCR method platformcalled GeneXpert (Cepheid). Our PCR screen revealed the presence of MRSA in 14 of 98 health-care staffs. Of these 14 health-care staffs carrying nasal MRSA, 10 were male, 8 were assistant health-care personnel and 11 have been working for over one year in the intensive care unit. Our data showed that male gender and an employment during of more than one year served as significant risk factors for nasal MRSA colonization

Strategic and operational decision-making in expanding supply chains for LNG as a fuel

The European Union aims for a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared to 1990 levels, and recognizes the opportunities of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as an alternative fuel for transportation to reach this goal. The lack of a mature supply chain for LNG as a fuel results in a need to invest in new (satellite) terminals, bunker barges and tanker trucks. This network design problem can be defined as a Two-Echelon Capacitated Location Routing Problem with Split Deliveries (2E-CLRPSP). An important feature of this problem is that direct deliveries are allowed from terminals, which makes the problem much harder to solve than the existing location routing literature suggests. In this paper, we improve the performance of a hybrid exact algorithm and apply our algorithm to a real world network design problem related to the expansion of the European supply chain for LNG as a fuel. We show that satellite terminals and bunker barges become an interesting option when demand for LNG grows and occurs further away from the import terminal. In those situations, the large investments associated with LNG satellites and bunker barges are offset by reductions in operational costs of the LNG tanker trucks

An evaluation of three DoE-guided meta-heuristic-based solution methods for a three-echelon sustainable distribution network

This article evaluates the efficiency of three meta-heuristic optimiser (viz. MOGA-II, MOPSO and NSGA-II)-based solution methods for designing a sustainable three-echelon distribution network. The distribution network employs a bi-objective location-routing model. Due to the mathematically NP-hard nature of the model a multi-disciplinary optimisation commercial platform, modeFRONTIER®, is adopted to utilise the solution methods. The proposed Design of Experiment (DoE)-guided solution methods are of two phased that solve the NP-hard model to attain minimal total costs and total CO2 emission from transportation. Convergence of the optimisers are tested and compared. Ranking of the realistic results are examined using Pareto frontiers and the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution approach, followed by determination of the optimal transportation routes. A case of an Irish dairy processing industry’s three-echelon logistics network is considered to validate the solution methods. The results obtained through the proposed methods provide information on open/closed distribution centres (DCs), vehicle routing patterns connecting plants to DCs, open DCs to retailers and retailers to retailers, and number of trucks required in each route to transport the products. It is found that the DoE-guided NSGA-II optimiser based solution is more efficient when compared with the DoE-guided MOGA-II and MOPSO optimiser based solution methods in solving the bi-objective NP-hard three-echelon sustainable model. This efficient solution method enable managers to structure the physical distribution network on the demand side of a logistics network, minimising total cost and total CO2 emission from transportation while satisfying all operational constraints

The neuroprotective effects of z-DEVD.fmk, a caspase-3 inhibitor, on traumatic spinal cord injury in rats

Background: Apoptosis is one of the most important forms of cell death seen in a variety of physiological and pathological conditions, including traumatic injuries. This type of cell death occurs via mediators known as caspases. Previous studies have investigated the roles that apoptosis and different caspases play in the pathogenesis of secondary damage after spinal cord injury (SCI). The aim of this research was to assess the neuroprotective effect of z-DEVD.frnk, a caspase-3 inhibitor, in a rat model of SCI

Investigation of the correlation between ADMA levels and carotid artery intima-media thickness in rheumatoid arthritis patients [Romatoid artritli hastalarda ADMA düzeyleri ile karotid arter intima-media kali{dotless}nli{dotless}gi{dotless} arasi{dotless}ndaki i·lişkinin saptanmasi{dotless}]

Objective: Plasma asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis, is related to increased cardiovascular risks, endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. Carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) is closely related to the risk of coronary artery disease. We aimed to investigate plasma ADMA levels and its relation to carotid IMT in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Materials and Methods: Eighteen Turkish patients with RA (16 females, mean age: 49.44±8.88 years) and 18 age- and gender-matched healthy controls (16 females, mean age: 46.28±4.97 years) were included in the study. Measurement of IMT was done by B-mode ultrasound. Plasma ADMA levels and carotid IMT of both sides were measured in all patients and healthy controls, and the means of the two groups were compared. The correlation between ADMA levels and carotid IMT was assessed in patients with RA. Results: Plasma ADMA levels were significantly higher in patients compared to healthy controls. Although the carotid IMT values were relatively higher in the patient group than in the control group, the difference was not statistically significant. There was no significant correlation between ADMA levels and carotid IMT values. Conclusion: Our findings support the notion that plasma ADMA levels are elevated in patients with RA. Despite lack of correlation between ADMA levels and IMT in our study, ADMA levels can be used to evaluate endothelial dysfunction. © Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Published by Galenos Publishing