THE INTERACTION BETWEEN UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE AND HUMAN CAPITAL POLICIES

In the presence of an optimally designed unemployment bene.t system we show that it is optimal for the government to encourage human capital acquisition. The driving force of this result is the complementarity between human capital and labor-market- oriented behavior. If policy includes inter-temporal transfers, the optimal level of investment in human capital is given at the point where, at the margin, expected return to human capital is identical to the risk free rate even though there is no full insurance at the optimum.

Visualising 2-simplex formation in metabolic reactions

Understanding in silico the dynamics of metabolic reactions made by a large number of molecules has led to the development of different tools for visualising molecular interactions. However, most of them are mainly focused on quantitative aspects. We investigate the potentiality of the topological interpretation of the interaction-as-perception at the basis of a multiagent system, to tackle the complexity of visualising the emerging behaviour of a complex system. We model and simulate the glycolysis process as a multiagent system, and we perform topological data analysis of the molecular perceptions graphs, gained during the formation of the enzymatic complexes, to visualise the set of emerging patterns. Identifying expected patterns in terms of simplicial structures allows us to characterise metabolic reactions from a qualitative point of view and conceivably reveal the simulation reactivity trend

Marine bioactive peptides - an overview of generation, structure and application with a focus on food sources

The biggest obstacles in the application of marine peptides are two-fold, as in the case of non-marine plant and animal-derived bioactive peptides: elucidating correlation between the peptide structure and its effect and demonstrating its stability in vivo. The structures of marine bioactive peptides are highly variable and complex and dependent on the sources from which they are isolated. They can be cyclical, in the form of depsipeptides, and often contain secondary structures. Because of steric factors, marine-derived peptides can be resistant to proteolysis by gastrointestinal proteases, which presents an advantage over other peptide sources. Because of heterogeneity, amino acid sequences as well as preferred mechanisms of peptides showing specific bioactivities differ compared to their animal-derived counterparts. This review offers insights on the extreme diversity of bioactivities, effects, and structural features, analyzing 253 peptides, mainly from marine food sources. Similar to peptides in food of non-marine animal origin, a significant percentage (52.7%) of the examined sequences contain one or more proline residues, implying that proline might play a significant role in the stability of bioactive peptides. Additional problems with analyzing marine-derived bioactive peptides include their accessibility, extraction, and purification; this review considers the challenges and proposes possible solutions

Immunomodulatory peptides—A promising source for novel functional food production and drug discovery

Immunomodulatory peptides are a complex class of bioactive peptides that encompasses substances with different mechanisms of action. Immunomodulatory peptides could also be used in vaccines as adjuvants which would be extremely desirable, especially in response to pandemics. Thus, immunomodulatory peptides in food of plant origin could be regarded both as valuable suplements of novel functional food preparation and/or as precursors or possible active ingredients for drugs design for treatment variety of conditions arising from impaired function of immune system. Given variety of mechanisms, different tests are required to assess effects of immunomodulatory peptides. Some of those effects show good correlation with in vivo results but others, less so. Certain plant peptides, such as defensins, show both immunomodulatory and antimicrobial effect, which makes them interesting candidates for preparation of functional food and feed, as well as templates for design of synthetic peptides

Interação de genótipos de Pinus taeda L. com locais no sul-sudeste do Brasil.

A importância da resposta relativa diferenciada de progênies e de árvores por locais em Pinus taeda L. na perda de potencial genético pela seleção foi estudada no caráter volume de madeira total do tronco, em 46 progênies de meio-irmãos, em quatro locais no sul-sudeste do Brasil. As progê-nies foram dispostas em nove parcelas lineares, com seis plantas espaçadas em 3 m x 2 m. As análises de variância foram realizadas por local, em conjunto e por locais, dois a dois. As componentes de vari-ância foram estimadas a partir dessas análises e por máxima verossimilhança restrita (REML). Nesse método, foram ajustados modelos estatísticos mistos para a interação das progênies x locais e preditos os valores genéticos aditivos (VG's) pela “melhor predição linear não viciada” (BLUP). A interação foi significativa nas análises de variância conjunta e por locais, dois a dois. O ajuste de modelos mis-tos também foi significativo pelo teste da razão de verossimilhança. A perda do potencial genético na seleção de progênies com base nas estimativas por REML foi de 3,2%. Na seleção de genitores, a per-da na resposta média, pela seleção por VG’s médios, em vez de VG’s por locais, foi de 2,3%. Na sele-ção de árvores para pomares de sementes por mudas não ocorreu redução na resposta média. Para po-mar clonal de dez árvores, a interação superestimou a resposta média esperada em 2%. Nessa ação de melhoramento, a seleção pelo VG médio incrementou a resposta média em 3%. Esse valor foi conside-rado, como a perda de potencial genético, pela não seleção pelo VG médio, quando a interação progê-nies x locais e/ou, o ajuste de modelos são significativos. Sugere-se, o uso do valor genético médio na seleção individual, para maximizar a resposta média esperada

Intelligenza artificiale e ragionamento giudiziale. Il caso del giusto processo

Gli effetti della quarta rivoluzione industriale sul diritto possono essere sintetizzati rammentando una frase coniata nel 1999 da Lawrence Lessig che recita: code is law. Antoine Garapon nel suo ultimo libro La giustizia digitale (Il Mulino, 2021) scrive che nella formula code is law tutto o quasi era già contenuto: se il diritto è nel codice allora è proprio in questa rivoluzione grafica che occorre andarlo a cercare. Il code, ossia il software e l’hardware che strutturano lo spazio digitale, impone un assetto normativo sui comportamenti individuali e collettivi presenti sulla rete. Il code interviene a vicariare la totale insufficienza dell’enforcement giuridico nel cyberspazio: è una fonte concorrente al diritto convenzionale e consiste in un insieme di regole tecniche selfexecuting che garantisce effettività normativa alle aspettative comportamentali imposte dal sistema informatico. Con le applicazioni dell’IA al ragionamento giuridico, in particolare al ragionamento giudiziale siamo arrivati al cuore della questione: il ragionamento è il momento costitutivo della scienza giuridica. Nella scienza giuridica ciò che connota la decisione giudiziaria è il ragionamento, cioè l’insieme delle inferenze interpretative, ricostruttive, argomentative e applicative con cui il giudice rende ragione della propria decisione. L’IA giudiziale o legal Artificial Intelligence raggiunge il cuore del sistema giudiziario: il processo di codicizzazione computazionale del diritto produce i suoi effetti anche sulla giustizia

Brexit: Modes of Uncertainty and Futures in an Impasse

Alongside the emergence of various populisms, Brexit and other contemporary geopolitical events have been presented as symptomatic of a generalizing and intensifying sense of uncertainty in the midst of a crisis of (neo)liberalism. In this paper we describe what kind of event Brexit is becoming in the impasse between the UK’s EU referendum in 2016 and its anticipated exit from the EU in 2019. Based on 108 interviews with people in the North‐East of England, we trace how Brexit is variously enacted and felt as an end, advent, a harbinger of worse to come, non‐event, disaster, and betrayed promise. By following how these incommensurate versions of Brexit take form and co‐exist we supplement explanatory and predictive approaches to the geographies of Brexit and exemplify an approach that traces what such geopolitical events become. Specifically, we use the concept of ‘modes of uncertainty’ as a way of discerning patterns in how present uncertainties are lived. A ‘mode of uncertainty’ is a shared set of practices animated by a distinctive mood through which futures are made present and felt. Rather than treat uncertainty as a static, explanatory context, we thus follow how different versions of Brexit are constituted through specific ‘modes of (un)certainty’ – negative hope, national optimisms, apprehensive hopefulness and fantasies of action ‐ that differentiate within a seemingly singular, shared sense of uncertainty

Migraine and cluster headache show impaired neurosteroids patterns

Background: Perturbation of neuronal excitability contributes to migraine. Neurosteroids modulate the activity of γ-aminobutyric acid A and N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors, and might be involved in the pathogenesis of migraine. Here, we measured plasma levels of four neurosteroids, i.e., allopregnanolone, epiallopregnanolone, dehydroepiandrosterone and deydroepiandrosterone sulfate, in patients affected by episodic migraine, chronic migraine, or cluster headache. Methods: Nineteen female patients affected by episodic migraine, 51 female patients affected by chronic migraine, and 18 male patients affected by cluster headache were recruited to the study. Sex- and age-matched healthy control subjects (31 females and 16 males) were also recruited. Patients were clinically characterized by using validated questionnaires. Plasma neurosteroid levels were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Results: We found disease-specific changes in neurosteroid levels in our study groups. For example, allopregnanolone levels were significantly increased in episodic migraine and chronic migraine patients than in control subjects, whereas they were reduced in patients affected by cluster headache. Dehydroepiandrosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels were reduced in patients affected by chronic migraine, but did not change in patients affected by cluster headache. Conclusion: We have shown for the first time that large and disease-specific changes in circulating neurosteroid levels are associated with chronic headache disorders, raising the interesting possibility that fluctuations of neurosteroids at their site of action might shape the natural course of migraine and cluster headache. Whether the observed changes in neurosteroids are genetically determined or rather result from exposure to environmental or intrinsic stressors is unknown. This might also be matter for further investigation because stress is a known triggering factor for headache attacks in both migraineurs and cluster headache patients

Total orthotopic small bowel transplantation in swine under FK 506

Previous experimental studies in rodents and in dogs have established the efficacy of FK 506 in controlling the immunologic events following small bowel or multivisceral transplantation.1–5 To complete the assessment of FK 506 in experimental small bowel transplantation, we present here our experience with the frequently used swine model