Indexes of Regional Economic Growth in Post-Accession Romania

The European Cohesion Policy is designed to yield concrete results, furthering economic and social cohesion and reducing gaps between development levels in the various regions. Considering the context of the early post-accession period, posing significant challenges to regional development in Romania, we have investigated, based on three indexes that we advance in the methodological section, the pace of development, comparatively, in the eight development regions of Romania. The results of the study, further presented, can serve as a basis for more detailed empirical investigation of the phenomena theoretically approached in this paper.cohesion, regional development, integration, intellectual capital

Models Of The Intra-Regional Trade Influence On Economic Sustainable Development In Romania

This paper estimates the impact of trade between Romania and EU (export and imports) on sustainable development (defined through the following ratios: GDP growth and employment level) using dynamic forecasting and vector auto-regression (VAR) methods. Logistic regression forecasts the evolution of the GDP based on the evolution of exports and imports in the light of the Lisbon agenda, and the time horizon of 2010. Using data regarding intra-regional trade, the model may predict the GDP evolution, and, consequently, the economic sustainable development in Romania, as a new member of European Union.sustainable development intra-regional trade, economic integration, regression, model

Exploring NMR ensembles of calcium binding proteins: Perspectives to design inhibitors of protein-protein interactions

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Disrupting protein-protein interactions by small organic molecules is nowadays a promising strategy employed to block protein targets involved in different pathologies. However, structural changes occurring at the binding interfaces make difficult drug discovery processes using structure-based drug design/virtual screening approaches. Here we focused on two homologous calcium binding proteins, calmodulin and human centrin 2, involved in different cellular functions via protein-protein interactions, and known to undergo important conformational changes upon ligand binding.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In order to find suitable protein conformations of calmodulin and centrin for further structure-based drug design/virtual screening, we performed <it>in silico </it>structural/energetic analysis and molecular docking of terphenyl (a mimicking alpha-helical molecule known to inhibit protein-protein interactions of calmodulin) into X-ray and NMR ensembles of calmodulin and centrin. We employed several scoring methods in order to find the best protein conformations. Our results show that docking on NMR structures of calmodulin and centrin can be very helpful to take into account conformational changes occurring at protein-protein interfaces.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>NMR structures of protein-protein complexes nowadays available could efficiently be exploited for further structure-based drug design/virtual screening processes employed to design small molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions.</p

Prevalence of parasitical infestations in sheep from the Didactic Station of the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Iaşi, during 2003-2005

The parasitical cases were monitored in sheep from the Experimental Didactic Station of the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Iaşi, during 2003-2005. Cestode (Thysaniezia giardi), trematodes (Dicrocoelium lanceatum), nematode (Trichostrongyloidea/Trichostrongylidae family, Dictyocaulida family; Metastrongyloidea/Protostrongylidae family) and arthropods from Arachnida classes (Acari subclass) and Insecta caused the parasitoses diagnosed in that period. Every year, psoroptic scabies has affected sheep during stable period, when the lowest temperatures of the season were reached. Grazing after the prophylactic autumn disinfection developed a trichostrongili population in the body of hosts, which was sufficient to pollute grassland and perpetuate parasitosis. The interruption of biological cycle by adult or one of the intermediary host systematic destroying has resulted in the diminution of dicroceliosis incidenc

Epidemiological risk of toxocarosis in humans and animals in Iași County

The increasing number of dogs is a determining factor in the occurrence of toxocarosis in humans, as they are the source of environmental contamination with Toxocara sp. eggs. During a single year, 2018-2019, the number of stray dogs increased from 0.068 to 0.0709 per capita. Contamination of dogs with Toxocara canis in the conditions of our country has increased in recent years from 21.4% to 50.2% and is identified as the most common parasitosis in these animals. For the study of Tococara spp. infection in dogs, the period 2017-2020 was considered, representing cases present at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Iasi. Thus, more than 75% of infections are recorded in young dogs under one year old, while 89% of them are males. The study on the prevalence of Toxocara canis cases at the Animal shelters in Tomești showed a prevalence of Toxocara sp. of 60% of the total samples analysed; the study on toxocarosis in humans was carried out during 2020, the information being provided by the Praxis medical tests laboratory. Result on the presence of specific IgG antibodies to Toxocara canis/cati. It included a group of 95 cases during one year, of which 3, namely 3.25% were under 3 years old and 14.8% were over 35 years old. Of the total samples, only 2 were positive in the male gender, which represents 2.1% of the total samples. Fifteen cases were positive in females, representing 15.8% of all samples analysed. Considering that we are talking about a parasite specific to dogs, the presence of such a large number of cases during a single year reveals a very high load of Toxocara eggs in the environment, which raises an alarm about the distribution of this parasite in nature and the high risk of human contamination

Interface Analysis of the Complex between ERK2 and PTP-SL

The activity of ERK2, an essential component of MAP-kinase pathway, is under the strict control of various effector proteins. Despite numerous efforts, no crystal structure of ERK2 complexed with such partners has been obtained so far. PTP-SL is a major regulator of ERK2 activity. To investigate the ERK2–PTP-SL complex we used a combined method based on cross-linking, MALDI-TOF analysis, isothermal titration calorimetry, molecular modeling and docking. Hence, new insights into the stoichiometry, thermodynamics and interacting regions of the complex are obtained and a structural model of ERK2-PTP-SL complex in a state consistent with PTP-SL phosphatase activity is developed incorporating all the experimental constraints available at hand to date. According to this model, part of the N-terminal region of PTP-SL has propensity for intrinsic disorder and becomes structured within the complex with ERK2. The proposed model accounts for the structural basis of several experimental findings such as the complex-dissociating effect of ATP, or PTP-SL blocking effect on the ERK2 export to the nucleus. A general observation emerging from this model is that regions involved in substrate binding in PTP-SL and ERK2, respectively are interacting within the interface of the complex