ECONOMETRIC MODELLING FOR SIMULATING THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF STRUCTURAL REFORMS IN ROMANIA: A PILOT PROJECT

The aim of this research to set up a system which helps to estimate the impact of public funding from projects. The impact depends on all factors affecting demand for the good or service provided under the structural intervention at stake. Thus, the present research provides a pilot econometric model for simulating the main mechanisms that lead to public investment impact from the perspective of 42 counties for the year 2006. The importance of this time span is due to the fact that it represents the end of the second programming period for European Union funds and it reveals the impact of economic structural measures at microeconomic level. Data observed to estimate the linear regression model contain at least 50 observations and the t test, the F test and the coefficients of determination are used to analyse the worthiness of the model after prior estimation of the parameters. Findings showed that the independent element of the model is unbiased, whilst the regression coefficient is biased.econometric modeling, public spending, evaluation, monitoring, pilot project, micoreconomics

Extractability of polyphenols from black currant, red currant and gooseberry and their antioxidant activity

In this study, we analyzed extracts of Ribes (black currant, red currant and gooseberry) fruits obtained with methanol, methanol 50% and water. For each extract total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content and total anthocyanin content was assessed. The antioxidant activity of extracts was evaluated by 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging capacity and by the photo-chemiluminescence (PCL) method. Identification and quantification of individual phenolic compounds was performed by means of high performance liquid chromatograph coupled with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD) analyses. From each fruit, best extraction of polyphenols was obtained with methanol 50%. In case of red currants and gooseberry there was no significant difference in flavonoids and anthocyanins extraction rate by the different extraction solvents. For black currants the methanol and methanol 50% extract presented the highest antioxidant activity. For red currants extracts with methanol 50% showed stronger antioxidant activity (IC50 = 5.71 mg/ml for DPPH, IC50 = 1.17 mg/ml for ABTS) than those with methanol or water. In case of gooseberry by the DPPH test the water extract proved to be the most active (IC50 = 5.9 mg/ml). In the PCL test black currants methanol 50% extract was over 6 times more powerful as the ones from red currants. In case of gooseberries, water extract presented the highest antioxidant activity (41.84 μmol AAE/g). In black currant cyanidin-3-glucoside was the major compound. Quercetin 3-O-glucoside was identified in each sample. From cinnamic acid derivatives neochlorogenic acid was present in black currants in the highest amount (356.33 μg/g)

Antibacterial and antitumor activity of the species Prunella vulgaris L.

Background: Prunella vulgaris L., known as self-healing herb, is a widely spread species in the spontaneous flora with beneficial effects on human health, a fact proven in particular by Asian researchers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antitumor activity and the antibacterial effect on different bacterial strains, including multidrug-resistant ones, depending on the type of solvent used (aqueous, hydroalcoholic), the plant product taken into consideration (spike inflorescence, leaf), its quantity and the concentration of active principles