External shocks and performance responses during systemic transition : the case of Ukraine

Ukraine encountered many economic problems in its first years of independence. Most serious among external shocks were the collapse of trade with the former Soviet Union and the sharp price increases for energy imports. External shocks resulted in an income loss in the current accounts equivalent to about 14 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) a year in 1992 and 1993. Ukraine did not adopt an appropriate strategy for dealing with the impact of these shocks. Its main policy response has been to continue borrowing, increase arrears, postpone adjustment, and restore administrative interventions. Not only has this policy exacerbated the economic crisis, it has led to massive capital flight and rapid expansion of the underground economy. With the limited information available, the authors try to identify the major sources of external shocks and to estimate their impact on the current account. They also evaluate Ukraine's policy response. Based on examination of the experience of other countries in addressing adverse shocks, the authors recommend the following policies: (a) full commitment to systemic reform and macroeconomic stabilization; (b) privatization, price liberalization, development of competitive market system, and reform of the legal system. For the particular situation of the Ukraine, they emphasize the importance of: (a) growth-oriented structural adjustment that reflects Ukraine's comparative advantages, including the development of nontraditional industries with high valued-added and low energy intensity; (b) greater economic (especially energy) efficiency; (c) integration into world systems of trade and finance; (d) prudent borrowing and debt management strategies, as well as policies to encourage private foreign direct investment and to make more efficient use of foreign debt.Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,TF054105-DONOR FUNDED OPERATION ADMINISTRATION FEE INCOME AND EXPENSE ACCOUNT,Trade Policy,Energy and Environment

Stage-specific proteomes from onchocerca ochengi, sister species of the human river blindness parasite, uncover adaptations to a nodular lifestyle

Despite 40 years of control efforts, onchocerciasis (river blindness) remains one of the most important neglected tropical diseases, with 17 million people affected. The etiological agent, Onchocerca volvulus, is a filarial nematode with a complex lifecycle involving several distinct stages in the definitive host and blackfly vector. The challenges of obtaining sufficient material have prevented high-throughput studies and the development of novel strategies for disease control and diagnosis. Here, we utilize the closest relative of O. volvulus, the bovine parasite Onchocerca ochengi, to compare stage-specific proteomes and host-parasite interactions within the secretome. We identified a total of 4260 unique O. ochengi proteins from adult males and females, infective larvae, intrauterine microfilariae, and fluid from intradermal nodules. In addition, 135 proteins were detected from the obligate Wolbachia symbiont. Observed protein families that were enriched in all whole body extracts relative to the complete search database included immunoglobulin-domain proteins, whereas redox and detoxification enzymes and proteins involved in intracellular transport displayed stage-specific overrepresentation. Unexpectedly, the larval stages exhibited enrichment for several mitochondrial-related protein families, including members of peptidase family M16 and proteins which mediate mitochondrial fission and fusion. Quantification of proteins across the lifecycle using the Hi-3 approach supported these qualitative analyses. In nodule fluid, we identified 94 O. ochengi secreted proteins, including homologs of transforming growth factor-β and a second member of a novel 6-ShK toxin domain family, which was originally described from a model filarial nematode (Litomosoides sigmodontis). Strikingly, the 498 bovine proteins identified in nodule fluid were strongly dominated by antimicrobial proteins, especially cathelicidins. This first high-throughput analysis of an Onchocerca spp. proteome across the lifecycle highlights its profound complexity and emphasizes the extremely close relationship between O. ochengi and O. volvulus The insights presented here provide new candidates for vaccine development, drug targeting and diagnostic biomarkers