Own-price, cross-price, and expenditure elasticities on sugar-sweetened beverages in Guatemala

BACKGROUND:The obesity epidemic is spreading rapidly in Guatemala, a low/middle income country still struggling with undernutrition. Sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) consumption is strongly associated with overweight, obesity, and non-communicable diseases. In Guatemala, SSBs are readily available and consumption is high, particularly among adolescents. SSB taxes have been proposed as a cost-effective way to reduce consumption and generate revenues for public health, as has been demonstrated in several countries around the world. OBJECTIVE:To estimate the price, expenditure, quality, and cross-price elasticity of beverage demand using household survey data. METHOD:We conducted a secondary analysis on the 2014 Guatemala Living Conditions National Survey that includes national representative household data on expenditure. Own price, expenditure, quality, and cross-price elasticities of milk, soft drinks, packaged juices, and bottled water were estimated using Deaton's Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS), controlling for goods' quality. Household characteristics and beverage expenditure are summarized for urban and rural locations using descriptive statistics. RESULTS:Positive expenditure on soft drinks was highest (50.9% of households). Positive expenditure on bottled water was next for urban households (43.8%) and lowest for rural households (10.8%). Own-price elasticities for all beverages are negative and statistically significant. Own-price elasticity of soft drinks is -1.39, suggesting that with a 10% increase in price, consumption would decrease by 13.9%. Expenditure elasticity for soft drinks (0.99) suggests that a 10% household expenditure increase would result in a 9.9% increase in demand. Milk (0.07) and soft drinks (0.07) have positive quality elasticity implying that, as household total expenditure increases, the quality of these beverages, measured by their unit values, also increases. CONCLUSION:Soft drink demand is highly sensitive to changes in prices, suggesting that SSB taxes could significantly reduce consumption, which, in turn, could contribute to curbing the overweight/obesity epidemic

The Africa Center for Biostatistical Excellence: a proposal for enhancing biostatistics capacity for sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa has a shortage of well-trained biomedical research methodologists, in particular, biostatisticians. In July 2014, a group of biostatisticians and researchers from the region attended a brainstorming workshop to identify ways in which to reduce the deficit in this critical skill. The workshop recognized that recommendations from previous workshops on building biostatistics capacity in sub-Saharan Africa had not been implemented. The discussions culminated with a proposal to setup an Africa Center for Biostatistical Excellence, a collaborative effort across academic and researcher institutions within the region, as a vehicle for promoting biostatistics capacity building through specialized academic masters programs as well as regular workshops targeting researchers

Desde la bala mágica a la nanotecnología: nanoantimicrobianos para combatir microorganismos multirresistentes

A century ago, Paul Ehrlich, a Nobel laureate in 1907, definedthe concept of ‘‘magic bullet’’ to propose selectivedrug targeting, aiming to deliver drugs to the right place, atthe correct concentration, and for an appropriate duration,without harming the host organism. The global emergenceand spread of multidrug-resistant (MDR), extensively drugresistant(XDR), and pandrug-resistant (PDR) bacteria havebecome a critical global healthcare concern, which is currentlyconsidered one of the principal threats by different globalhealth organizations due to the limited efficacy of antimicrobial(ATM) agents1. MDR to first-line drugs increase healthcarecosts and generate the need for effective and safe alternativetreatments. However, the number of newly developedand approved ATM drugs has decreased over the past decades.The availability of few effective antimicrobials and the necessityto develop novel strategies and innovative antimicrobialsemphasize the need for novel approaches and different safeand effective alternatives2.Fil: Paraje, María Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentin

Relevance of biofilms in the pathogenesis of Shiga-toxin-producing Escherichia coli infection

The present study was designed to determine the relationships among biofilm formation, cellular stress and release of Shiga toxin (Stx) by three different clinical Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains. The biofilm formation was determined using crystal violet stain in tryptic soy broth or thioglycollate medium with the addition of sugars (glucose or mannose) or hydrogen peroxide. The reactive oxygen species (ROSs) were detected by the reduction of nitro blue tetrazolium and reactive nitrogen intermediates (RNI) determined by the Griess assay. In addition, the activities of two antioxidant enzymes, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), were studied. For the cytotoxicity studies, Vero cells were cultured with Stx released of STEC biofilms. The addition of sugars in both culture mediums resulted in an increase in biofilm biomass, with a decrease in ROS and RNI production, low levels of SOD and CAT activity, and minimal cytotoxic effects. However, under stressful conditions, an important increase in the antioxidant enzyme activity and high level of Stx production were observed. The disturbance in the prooxidantantioxidant balance and its effect on the production and release of Stx evaluated under different conditions of biofilm formation may contribute to a better understanding of the relevance of biofilms in the pathogenesis of STEC infection.Fil: Angel Villegas, Natalia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal (p); Argentina;Fil: Baronetti, Jose Luis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas.Centro Científico Tecnológico - CONICET - Cordoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología; Argentina;Fil: Albesa, Inés. Universidad Nacional de Cordoba. Facultad de Cs.Quimicas; Argentina;Fil: Polifroni, Rosana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagonico; Argentina;Fil: Parma, Alberto Ernesto. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Bs.as.. Facultad de Cs.veterinarias. Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva. Laboratorio de Inmunoquimica y Biotecnologia; Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina;Fil: Etcheverría, Analía Inés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - CONICET - Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; Argentina;Fil: Becerra, María Cecilia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal (p); Argentina;Fil: Padola, Nora Lía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - CONICET - Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; Argentina;Fil: Paraje, Maria Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal (p); Argentina

Fighting antimicrobial resistant microorganisms: Current status and emerging strategies using nanomaterials

The high prevalence of pathogens resistant to antimicrobials poses a huge threat to the treatment of a wide range of serious infections. Emerging strategies using nanoparticles to treat these infections is promissory, thus, the current research emphasizes the development of promising new antimicrobial drugs in the near future. Nanotechnology offers the opportunity to exploit the biological properties of these materials by manipulating their size to dimensions on the nanometer scale. The importance of the eradication of bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses resistant to multiples antimicrobials in the first moments of colonization justify the need to find new therapeutic alternatives associated with the eradication and control of infections. The main objective of antimicrobial treatment is to minimize the microbial inoculum, which implies the need to use biocidal drugs, which do not allow the selection of resistance mechanisms.The few effective antimicrobials against resistant microorganisms emphasize the need for new approaches through the development of different therapeutic strategies. Due to their small size and large surface area, nanomaterials possess excellent electrical, optical, magnetic, structural, and chemical properties. Optimizing the interface between biomolecules and/or ligands with nanostructured materials is currently a promising path for research of new antimicrobial therapies. The fact that nanoparticles are similar in size to intra- and extra-cellular biological components allows them to specifically interact with molecular and sub-cellular processes and manipulate biological states, structures, and functions in a radically new way, making them extremely attractive for new biomedical applications. The combination of materials science and nanomedicine has given rise to a new alternative field that involves the functionalization of nanostructures with different biologically active materials. The potential microbiological impact of nanoparticles is not only determined by their physicochemical properties, but also by the interactions of these with the immediate surrounding biological environments.Fil: Paraje, María Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Páez, Paulina Laura. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Farmacia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología Farmacéutica; Argentin

An agenda for action - transitioning to a healthy sustainable food system in Latin America

The project global objective was “to develop an integrated evidence-based agenda for action for healthy and sustainable food systems in Latin America that will prioritize healthy affordable diets, while keeping GHGs emissions within sustainable limits.” This objective was split into two sub-objectives: 1) to review the evidence on how to accelerate the transition to food systems that prioritize access to healthy affordable diets, while keeping GHGs emissions within sustainable limits; and 2) to analyze the underlying political economy that may prevent or enable rapid action. Though the scope of the project is Chile, there was a permanent coordination and dialogue with teams in Argentina (CEDES) and Brazil (IDEC). Problems were analyzed with a national focus but keeping in mind that there are common factors, challenges and actors that are present in the three countries (and probably in the region)

Evolución de la desnutrición crónica infantil y su distribución socioeconómica en siete países de América Latina y el Caribe

Incluye BibliografíaNumerosas causas pueden explicar el nivel de la desnutrición crónica infantil en un país y, por lo general, poseen un complejo entramado de relaciones entre ellas. En países como los latinoamericanos donde la desigualdad en la concentración en la distribución socioeconómica de esta variable es alta, la disminución de la desnutrición crónica infantil puede lograrse de manera más efectiva disminuyendo dicha desigualdad, la que, como se muestra en este estudio, tiene fuertes condicionantes socioeconómicos. El ingreso/riqueza de los hogares o, más generalmente, su situación socioeconómica no sólo es determinante del nivel de la desnutrición sino que es un importante determinante de la distribución de dicha desnutrición: cuanto más concentrada esté la riqueza, más concentrada está la desnutrición crónica infantil entre hogares pobres. El nivel educacional de los padres, especialmente de la madre, es otra variable que influye decisivamente en el nivel y la distribución de la desnutrición crónica. Para que las mejoras en la educación tengan un efecto pleno sobre la desnutrición deben beneficiar principalmente a los hogares más pobres y deben concentrarse primeramente en el nivel básico. Factores geográficos, culturales, étnicos e idiosincráticos juegan un rol explicativo, algunos de ellos han sido medidos aquí directamente y otros de manera indirecta, pero aparentemente lo hacen a partir de su relación con la distribución de variables socioeconómicas tales como la "riqueza" del hogar y la educación de la madre. De allí su importancia a la hora de diseñar políticas sectoriales. En la medida en que dichos grupos posean sistemáticamente menores recursos económicos, un menor acceso a la educación o peor acceso a agua potable y saneamiento, éstos deben ser el núcleo de programas destinados a acortar la brecha entre ellos y el resto de la población