Política regional y cohesión europea: perspectivas 2014-2020

La parsimonia de la política regional europea desde su creación sufrió un impulso muy notable con la reforma de 1988 y con el inicio del proceso de integración monetaria, para posteriormente detenerse, primero, con las dificultades presupuestarias ligadas al cumplimiento de los criterios de Maastricht que llevó a una congelación de los recursos financieros destinados a la misma; y, posteriormente con su vinculación a los objetivos de la denominada Estrategia de Lisboa, que han desdibujado y complicado su funcionamiento y sus resultados. En el actual contexto de crisis económica, el devenir de la política regional para el futuro inmediato (2014-2020) se prevé –a la vista de los planteamientos conocidos de la Comisión Europea– complejo y con más sombras que luces, máxime si tenemos en cuenta que de nuevo se le liga a la denominada Estrategia 2020. Así se aleja en buena medida de lo que debiera constituir su objetivo primordial: la cohesión económica y social en el seno de una Unión ampliada a 27 países, prestando una especial atención a la reducción de las desigualdades regionales.The slow pace of European Regional Policy since its creation knew a remarkable impulse thanks to the reform of 1988 and the beginning of the process of monetary integration. Later, it stopped abruptly, first, with budgetary constraints derived to the Maastricht criteria which led to a freeze of financial resources to it, and then with its links to the objectives of the socalled Lisbon Strategy, which have blurred and complicated its implementation and results. The future of regional policy for the next programming period (2014-2020), taking into account the known approaches of the European Commission, seems not only very complex but plenty of shadows too. The main reason of this perspective is connected with the link of the new regional policy to the objectives of the so-called Strategy 2020 largely away from what should be its primary objective: economic and social cohesion within an enlarged European Union of 27 countries, paying particular attention to reducing regional inequalities

The Streptomyces coelicolor small ORF trpM stimulates growth and morphological development and exerts opposite effects on actinorhodin and calcium-dependent antibiotic production

In actinomycetes, antibiotic production is often associated with a morpho-physiological differentiation program that is regulated by complex molecular and metabolic networks. Many aspects of these regulatory circuits have been already elucidated and many others still deserve further investigations. In this regard, the possible role of many small open reading frames (smORFs) in actinomycete morpho-physiological differentiation is still elusive. In Streptomyces coelicolor, inactivation of the smORF trpM (SCO2038) – whose product modulates L-tryptophan biosynthesis – impairs production of antibiotics and morphological differentiation. Indeed, it was demonstrated that TrpM is able to interact with PepA (SCO2179), a putative cytosol aminopeptidase playing a key role in antibiotic production and sporulation. In this work, a S. coelicolor trpM knock-in (Sco-trpMKI) mutant strain was generated by cloning trpM into overexpressing vector to further investigate the role of trpM in actinomycete growth and morpho-physiological differentiation. Results highlighted that trpM: (i) stimulates growth and actinorhodin (ACT) production; (ii) decreases calcium-dependent antibiotic (CDA) production; (iii) has no effect on undecylprodigiosin production. Metabolic pathways influenced by trpM knock- in were investigated by combining two-difference in gel electrophoresis/nanoliquid chromatography coupled to electrospray linear ion trap tandem mass spectrometry (2D- DIGE/nanoLC-ESI-LIT-MS/MS) and by LC-ESI-MS/MS procedures, respectively. These analyses demonstrated that over-expression of trpM causes an over-representation of factors involved in protein synthesis and nucleotide metabolism as well as a down-representation of proteins involved in central carbon and amino acid metabolism. At the metabolic level, this corresponded to a differential accumulation pattern of different amino acids – including aromatic ones but tryptophan – and central carbon intermediates. PepA was also down-represented in Sco-trpMKI. The latter was produced as recombinant His-tagged protein and was originally proven having the predicted aminopeptidase activity. Altogether, these results highlight the stimulatory effect of trpM in S. coelicolor growth and ACT biosynthesis, which are elicited through the modulation of various metabolic pathways and PepA representation, further confirming the complexity of regulatory networks that control antibiotic production in actinomycetes

Considerazioni sulla conferenza delle nazioni unite sullo sviluppo sostenibile con particolare riferimento all’apporto delle istituzioni europee

The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development Rio +20 (Rio de Janeiro, June 2012) is a World Summit which addresses global issues such as green economy and sustainable development governance. At the end of the Conference was delivered a non-binding document, which poses strong problems in order to defining its status and the future implementation of its measures by the international community. In this context, the EU plays a central role, in the preparatory phase of the Summit and in the current follow-up. Not all the proposals related to the first step were incorporated in the final text of Rio+20. However, at the current stage, European Union is working hard to enlarge the Conference follow-up

The relationship between capacities and entrepreneurial intention in secondary school students

Education in entrepreneurship is a key factor in intentions to create companies. Given that adolescence is an ideal stage to acquire knowledge, secondary schools and universities are tasked with the challenge of offering educational programs. This study identifies potential entrepreneurs from among 897 secondary school’s students and analyzes their entrepreneurial skills in motivation, risk, dedication, empathetic and communication. Results indicate that there is a high percentage of potential entrepreneurs among secondary school and that entrepreneurship is not limited to a specific field, but rather it is recognized as a future employment option regardless of the studies students want to pursue

As especificidades da orientação profissional em clientes com perturbações do espetro do autismo/síndrome de Asperger

Tese de mestrado, Psicologia (Secção de Psicologia da Educação e da Orientação), Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Psicologia, 2013Este projeto de investigação tem como objetivo procurar identificar estratégias facilitadoras para uma Orientação Profissional com sucesso, em clientes com Perturbações do Espetro do Autismo (PEA) ou Síndrome de Asperger (SA). Indivíduos com PEA/SA têm determinadas particularidades que comprometem a sua eficácia em todas as áreas da vida quotidiana, inclusivamente no que refere às escolhas vocacionais e planeamento da carreira. Assim, consideramos que, para que um processo de Orientação Profissional seja eficaz, é necessário um conhecimento acerca da forma de funcionamento dos indivíduos com esta perturbação, analisando as suas particularidades específicas, procurando identificar estratégias capazes de os auxiliar a aceitar as suas limitações, e, ao mesmo tempo, tentando identificar mecanismos de defesa que possam funcionar como elementos facilitadores da sua integração social e laboral. O estudo realizado incidiu sobre três clientes diagnosticados com PEA ou SA, e partiu do pressuposto de que qualquer trabalho a desenvolver com clientes com estas caraterísticas deve envolver os familiares, que funcionam, geralmente, como elementos facilitadores de todo o processo . Para realização do estudo foram utilizados os seguintes instrumentos: “Análise das Expetativas dos Clientes” e “Análise das Expetativas Parentais”, “Questionário de Autoeficácia”, “Perfil de Competências do Cliente –método KIRA” e “Perfil de Competências em Contexto de Trabalho de Helga Rowe”. Estes instrumentos foram utilizados para melhorar o autoconhecimento dos clientes em termos do seu Perfil de Competências e identificar, também, as suas expetativas (bem como as expetativas parentais) com o objetivo de as tornar o mais realistas possível. Foram realizadas reuniões mensais com os clientes e encarregados de educação para análise dos resultados obtidos a partir dos instrumentos utilizados. Os resultados do estudo são indicativos que o objetivo previsto foi atingido; para além disso, o método KIRA revelou-se uma mais valia em todo este processo, permitindo identificar estratégias facilitadores de integração no mundo do trabalho e contribuindo para a elaboração, no final do estudo, de uma proposta de encaminhamento para cada cliente.The aim of this study is to identify strategies to enhance a successful Professional Guidance in clients with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or Asperger Syndrom. (AS). A person with ASD or AS has some characteristics that do compromise his/her success in every area of daily life, including in what refers to vocational choices and career planning. Considering this fact, we think that a successful process of Professional Guidance must include a profound knowledge of their way of functioning, by identifying their specific characteristics and specific strategies that may be capable of helping them to accept their limitations while identifying defense mechanisms in order to help a successful social and labor integration. This study included three clients diagnosed with ASD or AS, and had as a basis the knowledge that every work to be developed with those clients must include family, as family is the element that generally helps to facilitate all the process. To develop this study were used the following instruments: “Clients Expectations Analysis”, “Parents Expectations Analysis”, “ Auto efficiency Questionnaire”, “ Client Competences Profile – KIRA Method”; “Competences Profile in Place of Work – Helga Rowe”. These instruments were used to improve clients self knowledge in what refers to their Profile and to identify their expectations (as well as parents expectations) in order to turn them into realistic ones. Clients and their parents attended to monthly meetings in order to analyze the results obtained through the referred instruments. The results of the study indicate that the aim was attained. Also KIRA method appear to be worthwhile in all this process as it allowed to identify facilitating strategies to a successful integration in labor market and also to present, at the end of the study, a guidance proposal for each one of the three clients

Proyecto de tesis previo a la obtención del título de Ingeniero en Administración de empresas y Negocios.

En la ciudad de Quito existen muchas agencias y operadoras de turismo que brindan paquetes turísticos a muchos destinos del país, pero no hay aquellas especializadas o dirigidas al grupo LGBT siendo este un mercado desatendido por lo cual se ve la oportunidad de ofrecer paquetes turísticos exclusivos para este grupo de la sociedad quiteña, en el que se permita la convivencia entre personas que pertenecen a este segmento, es por eso que se ha realizado el estudio para la creación de una empresa que diseñe y comercialice paquetes turísticos para el grupo LGBT de la ciudad de Quito. La fuente de ingreso será la comercialización de paquetes como: City tour en la ciudad de Quito, Paquete a la Región Costa-Atacames y paquete a la Región Oriente-Puyo, se brindará el servicio de alimentación, transporte, hospedaje, guianza, actividades de esparcimiento que les permita disfrutar de los atractivos turísticos que posee Ecuador y sobre todo brindar la seguridad, confort y libertad de expresar su sentir sin tener que reprimir sus emociones. La recuperación de la inversión se la obtendrá al cuarto año de puesta en marcha del negocio, siendo un negocio que presenta una rentabilidad del 31% anual. Se contará con un grupo humano especializado en turismo y manejo de personas, sin prejuicios al momento de tratar con el cliente. El negocio tendrá éxito, ya que estos paquetes están dirigidos a un grupo de la sociedad que les gusta la diversión, la convivencia entre su círculo social, con un estrato social medio alto y sobre todo por tendrán libertad de disfrutar sin que se los limite, es por eso que durante la investigación se ha realizado acercamiento con las organizaciones que forman parte de este gremio

Campylobacter jejuni fatal sepsis in a patient with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma: Case report and literature review of a difficult diagnosis

Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) bacteremia is difficult to diagnose in individuals with hematological disorders undergoing chemotherapy. The cause can be attributed to the rarity of this infection, to the variable clinical presentation, and to the partial overlapping symptoms underlying the disease. Here, we report a case of a fatal sepsis caused by C. jejuni in a 76-year-old Caucasian man with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. After chemotherapeutic treatment, the patient experienced fever associated with severe neutropenia and thrombocytopenia without hemodynamic instability, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. The slow growth of C. jejuni in the blood culture systems and the difficulty in identifying it with conventional biochemical phenotyping methods contributed to the delay of administering a targeted antimicrobial treatment, leading to a fatal outcome. Early recognition and timely intervention are critical for the successful management of C. jejuni infection. Symptoms may be difficult to recognize in immunocompromised patients undergoing chemotherapy. Thus, it is important to increase physician awareness regarding the clinical manifestations of C. jejuni to improve therapeutic efficacy. Moreover, the use of more aggressive empirical antimicrobial treatments with aminoglycosides and/or carbapenems should be considered in immunosuppressed patients, in comparison to those currently indicated in the guidelines for cancer-related infections supporting the use of cephalosporins as monotherapy

The Emerging Role of Microbial Biofilm in Lyme Neuroborreliosis

Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most common tick-borne disease caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi in North America and Borrelia afzelii or Borrelia garinii in Europe and Asia, respectively. The infection affects multiple organ systems, including the skin, joints, and the nervous system. Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB) is the most dangerous manifestation of Lyme disease, occurring in 10-15% of infected individuals. During the course of the infection, bacteria migrate through the host tissues altering the coagulation and fibrinolysis pathways and the immune response, reaching the central nervous system (CNS) within 2 weeks after the bite of an infected tick. The early treatment with oral antimicrobials is effective in the majority of patients with LNB. Nevertheless, persistent forms of LNB are relatively common, despite targeted antibiotic therapy. It has been observed that the antibiotic resistance and the reoccurrence of Lyme disease are associated with biofilm-like aggregates in B. burgdorferi, B. afzelii, and B. garinii, both in vitro and in vivo, allowing Borrelia spp. to resist to adverse environmental conditions. Indeed, the increased tolerance to antibiotics described in the persisting forms of Borrelia spp., is strongly reminiscent of biofilm growing bacteria, suggesting a possible role of biofilm aggregates in the development of the different manifestations of Lyme disease including LNB

Interaction of immune complexes with glomerular heparan sulfate–proteoglycans

Interaction of immune complexes with glomerular heparan sulfate–proteoglycans. The binding characteristics of cationic and more neutral immune complexes with heparan sulfate–proteoglycan enriched anionic sites of glomerular basement membrane and mesangial matrix were studied. Rat kidneys were treated either with buffers alone or buffers containing heparitinase or chondroitinase-ABC followed by perfusion with cationic or native immune complexes. Tissues were processed for immunofluorescence and transmission electron microscopy after fixation with glutaraldehyde or tannic acid glutaraldehyde. Kidneys perfused with radioiodinated immune complexes were processed for light and electron microscopic autoradiography. In addition, glomeruli from kidneys perfused with radioiodinated immune complexes were isolated and counted for radioactivity. By immunofluorescence the cationic immune complexes deposited linearly along the glomerular basement membrane. By electron microscopy, the cationic complexes localized mainly in the inner and outer layers of the glomerular basement membrane and to a certain extent in the mesangial matrix in a distribution that corresponded to previously documented anionic sites. Whereas heparitinase treatment abrogated the binding of cationic immune complexes in both glomerular basement membrane and mesangial matrix, chondroitinase-ABC treatment did not cause any decrease in binding. In contrast, more neutral immune complexes appeared to be nonspecifically trapped in the mesangium, and their distribution was unaffected by both enzymatic treatments. Light and electron microscopic autoradiography and counts of isolated glomeruli confirmed these findings. The results overall indicate that cationic immune complexes bind electrostatically to the heparan sulfate–proteoglycan enriched anionic sites of the glomerular basement membrane and mesangial matrix, while more neutral immune complexes are nonspecifically trapped in the mesangium of the renal glomerulus

Unravelling the DNA sequences carried by Streptomyces coelicolor membrane vesicles

Membrane vesicles (MVs) are spherical particles with nanoscale dimensions and characterized by the presence of diverse cargos, such as nucleic acids, proteins, lipids, and cellular metabolites. Many examples of (micro)organisms producing MVs are reported in literature. Among them, bacterial MVs are of particular interest because they are now considered as the fourth mechanism of horizontal gene transfer. Streptomyces bacteria are well-known for their ecological roles and ability to synthesize bioactive compounds, with Streptomyces coelicolor being the model organism. It was previously demonstrated that it can produce distinct populations of MVs characterized by different protein and metabolite cargos. In this work we demonstrated for the first time that MVs of S. coelicolor carry both DNA and RNA and that their DNA content represents the entire chromosome of the bacterium. These findings suggest that MV DNA could have a role in the evolution of Streptomyces genomes and that MVs could be exploited in new strain engineering strategies