Country Program Evaluation: Ecuador (2007-2011)

This evaluation reviews the relevance, efficiency and effectiveness of the IDB's Program with Ecuador for 2007-2011. The period was characterized by an important political and institutional shift in Ecuador, embodied in the new Constitution of September 2008. Working within the framework provided by the Plan Nacional para el Buen Vivir, the IDB program was in alignment with the country's agenda. IDB's efficiency has been mixed. Despite improvements in timeliness and cost, the institutional capacity of agencies responsible for the execution of IDB projects has been varied. Available outcome indicators show progress in Ecuador's development path; however, it is difficult to establish to what extent IDB's interventions contributed to those improvements. In light of the findings, the IDB is advised, as one of the country's main lenders, to engage more actively in policy dialogue; prioritize sectors that can address problems of competitiveness, inequality and social exclusion; strengthen Ecuador's planning, evaluation, and monitoring capacity; and promote the establishment of training programs for national and subnational executing agencies.

Oral Self-Administration of EtOH: Sex-Dependent Modulation by Running Wheel Access in C57BL/6J Mice

Background: The effects of stress, including neuroendocrine and behavioral sequelae aimed at maintaining homeostasis, are associated with increased alcohol consumption. Because both stress and drinking are multifactorial, the mechanisms underlying the relationship are difficult to elucidate. We therefore employed an animal model investigating the influence of blocked access to a running wheel on drinking in C57BL/6J (B6) mice. Methods: In the first experiment, naive, adult male and female subjects were individually housed for 2 weeks with 24-hour access to a running wheel and 12% ethanol (EtOH) in a 2-bottle, free choice paradigm. After determining baseline consumption and preference, experimental subjects had the running wheel placed in a locked position for 6 hours, and the EtOH bottle was removed during the first half of this period. Two subsequent experiments, again in adult, naive B6 mice, examined the influence of locked running wheels on self-administration of 20% EtOH in a limited access paradigm, and blood EtOH concentrations (BECs) were determined on the final day of this protocol. Results: In all 3 studies, using both between-and within-subject analyses, females showed transient yet reliable increases in alcohol drinking during blocked access to a rotating activity, while drinking in male mice was largely insensitive to this manipulation, although both sexes showed appreciable BECs (\u3e130 mg/dl in females and 80 mg/dl in males) following a 2-hour EtOH access period. Conclusions: These data add to a burgeoning literature suggesting that the factors contributing to excessive alcohol use differ between males and females and that females may be especially sensitive to the influence of wheel manipulation. Elucidating the sex-dependent mechanisms mediating differences in alcohol sensitivity and response is critical to understanding the causes of alcoholism and in developing effective treatments and interventions