The legitimate use of company funds to promote the re-election of directors

This paper examines the issue of company financing of election campaigns of persons who are candidates in elections to the boards of companies. It critically examines the New South Wales Court of Appeal decision of the 1986 case of Advance Bank v FAI together with previous English and Australian cases, some of which conflict with the principle set out in Advance Bank v FAI. It endeavours to distil the principles which may allow for companies so financing such campaigns and the parameters which would need to be followed for legitime use of corporate funds for those purposes

Desigualdade de gênero no acesso aos direitos sociais e na percepção do meio ambiente no cotidiano de pesquisadoras brasileiras

Social and environmental inequality has historically coincided with gender inequality. Considering social justice and equity as fundamental to the debate on the relationship between gender and the environment, this study was carried out with the objective of identifying how gender influences environmental perception in women's daily lives. A qualitative study was carried out, initially consisting of a review of the literature on gender and social inequality. Later, in the dialogue with 16 researchers in the environmental area. Data analysis was done through thematic categorization. Results: the literature review demonstrated how patriarchalism prevails in gender inequality in different social contexts, particularly in traditional communities. The scarcity of research aimed at effectively confronting this reality is substantial. In the daily lives of women researchers, the concern with the excellence of results and the overload of responsibilities between public and private life is recurrent. In the environment, the participants demonstrated perceptions that relate the relationship and care as an innate and divine factor, reflecting the patriarchal construction that holds women responsible for the degradation and protection of the environment. In the perception of access to rights, the distance between normative and practice was identified, reinforcing the need to create even more specific laws to guarantee equal treatment between genders in access to social rights.A desigualdade social e ambiental coincide historicamente à desigualdade de gênero. Considerando a justiça social e equidade como fundamentais para o debate da relação gênero e meio ambiente, realizou-se o presente estudo com o objetivo de identificar como gênero influencia a percepção ambiental no cotidiano feminino. Realizou-se estudo de natureza qualitativa, inicialmente consistiu na revisão da literatura sobre gênero e desigualdade social. Posteriormente, na interlocução com 16 pesquisadoras da área ambiental. A análise dos dados se deu através de categorização temática. Resultados: a revisão da literatura demonstrou como o patriarcalismo impera na desigualdade de gênero em diferentes contextos sociais, particularmente em comunidades tradicionais. A escassez de pesquisas voltadas ao enfrentamento efetivo dessa realidade é substancial. Na cotidianidade de mulheres pesquisadoras, a preocupação com a excelência dos resultados e a sobrecarga de responsabilidades entre a vida pública e a vida privada é recorrente. Em meio ambiente, as participantes demonstraram percepções que relacionam a relação e o cuidado como fator inato e divino, reflexo da construção patriarcalista que responsabiliza as mulheres pela degradação e pela proteção do ambiente. Na percepção do acesso aos direitos identificaram-se a distância entre normativa e a prática, reforçando a necessidade da criação de leis ainda mais específicas para garantia de tratamento isonômico entre os gêneros no acesso aos direitos sociaisDados abertos - Sucupira - Teses e dissertações (2021

The effects of betamethasone on allopregnanolone concentrations and brain development in preterm fetal sheep

The risk of preterm delivery often means that the fetus will be exposed to exogenous synthetic glucocorticoids to accelerate fetal lung maturation, but effects on other organs, particularly the brain, are not understood. The neurosteroid allopregnanolone (AP) is a GABAA receptor agonist that influences fetal brain development and has neuroprotective properties. In this study we determined the impact of maternal glucocorticoid (betamethasone) administration on brain development and AP synthesis in preterm fetal sheep. Pregnant ewes underwent surgery at 105 days gestation for implantation of fetal catheters. Ewes received either betamethasone (BM; 11.4 mg; n = 10) or vehicle (saline; n = 5) by i.m injection on days five (BM1) and six (BM2) following surgery. Five fetuses of the BM treated ewes received an infusion of alfaxalone (20 mg) over 48 h commencing 30 min prior to BM1. All animals were euthanased on day 7, and the fetal brains collected to determine AP concentrations and histopathology. BM significantly reduced AP levels in the fetal brain and placental cotyledons, and also in fetal plasma without altering progesterone concentrations. There was a significant decrease in the number of myelinating cells in subcortical white matter, but no change to total oligodendrocyte number. Co-administration of the AP analogue analog alfaxalone with BM prevented this change in MBP expression. BM, given at a dose clinically prescribed to accelerate lung maturation, adversely affects neurosteroid levels in the preterm fetal brain, and affects the maturational profile of white matter development; these effects were mitigated by the co-administration of alfaxolone