The relative importance of Term Spread, Policy Inertia and Persistent Monetary Policy Shocks in Monetary Policy Rules

This paper estimates a standard version of the New Keynesian Monetary Model (NKM) augmented with the term structure in order to analyze two types of issue. First we analyse the relative importance of policy inertia, persistent policy shocks and the term spread in the estimated US monetary policy rule. Second, we study the ability of the model to reproduce some stylized facts such as high persistent dynamics and the weak comovement between economic activity and inflation observed in actual US data. The estimation procedure implemented is a classical structural method based on the indirect inference principle. The empirical results show that (i) policy intertia, persistent policy shocks and the term spread are all significant determinants in the estimated US monetary policy rule, (ii) the Fed responds to the information content of the spread about future inflation and real activity, but the Fed does not seem to respond independently to the spread; and (iii) the model augmented with term structure reproduces the weak comovement between economic activity and inflation as well as the strong comovement at medium and long-term forecast horizons between the Fed rate and the 1-yar rate observed in the US datNKM model, term structure, monetary policy rule

Term structure and the estimated monetary policy rule in the Eurozone

In this paper we estimate a standard version of the New Keynesian Monetary (NKM) model augmented with term structure in order to analyze two issues. First, we analyze the effect of introducing an explicit term structure channel in the NKM model on the estimated parameter values of the model, with special emphasis on the interest rate smoothing parameter using data for the Eurozone. Second, we study the ability of the model to reproduce some stylized facts such as highly persistent dynamics, the weak comovement between economic activity and inflation, and the positive, strong comovement between interest rates observed in actual Eurozone data. The estimation procedure implemented is a classical structural method based on the indirect inference principl

RedLabRA; a Spanish Network of Microbiology Laboratories for the Surveillance of Antibiotic Resistant Microorganisms

Factor de impacto: 1,553 Q4There is an urgent need to control the clinical and public health impact that antibiotic resistance (AR) causes worldwide. Any measure for its control must be based on an up-to-date and comprehensive knowledge of the situation. However, it is difficult to determine the current dimension of AR because a large part of the available information is based on heterogeneous, insufficiently unified and retrospective data. The integration of genomic information in the surveillance of AR is another important factor for improvement. The Spanish Network of Laboratories for the Surveillance of Resistant Microorganisms (RedLabRA) is a structured network of interconnected microbiology laboratories developed within the Spanish National Plan against Antibiotic Resistance. Its main objective is to support the diagnosis of resistance to antibiotics, integrating molecular characterization in the surveillance.S

A thermogravimetric study of oxygen diffusion in YBa2Cu3O7-d

YBa2Cu3O7-d (YBCO) was one of the first high temperature superconductors discovered, and its superconducting properties are strongly dependent on oxygen stoichiometry. A large amount of work has been done on the variation of stoichiometry and its effect on the superconducting properties of the material. However, in spite of all the work done, the results published in the literature are very scattered. This thesis presents a thermogravimetric study of oxygen diffusion in YBCO under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions and tries to reconcile the data available based on the results obtained and taking into account the factors that may have affected the data presented by other groups, such as the effects of the microstructure and the different diffusion coefficients measured with the techniques used. An Arrhenius expression for the chemical diffusion of oxygen has been calculated from the analysis of isothermal oxygenation data, and it has been corroborated by a study of the nonisothermal experiments carried out. This work includes the development of a macroscopic model for oxygen diffusion in YBCO based on the diffusion coefficient calculated from experimental data. The model is used to simulate for the first time oxygenations under both isothermal and non-isothermal conditions. The study of non-isothermal oxygenations has led directly to the design of novel cooling procedures that can be introduced at the end of the processing stage of YBCO samples, producing highly oxygenated specimens in shorter times than for conventional isothermal and ramped oxygenation procedures. The final section of this dissertation presents a study of the Direct Current Zoning effect. The generation of a mobile hot zone in a polycrystalline YBCO bar when passing a current across it is directly linked to the diffusion of oxygen ions in the material. A mechanism for the motion of the zone along the sample has been suggested. A computer model has been developed to reproduce this process taking into account the motion of ions due to chemical diffusion and the potential difference established. The results from this model have corroborated the mechanism suggested and give for the first time the opportunity to study this phenomenon in more detail

Organizational Capacity of Oregon Latino Nonprofits and its Role in Immigrant Integration

This essay provides an assessment of the human, social and financial resources that Oregon Latino immigrant-serving nonprofits have available to achieve their mission of promoting Latino immigrant integration and civic engagement practices. Under the framework of immigrant integration, this study examines the strategies Latino nonprofits rely upon to achieve their goals of improving living conditions of the Latino immigrant population in the state of Oregon. Using surveys and interviews of nonprofit directors, the results of this study indicate that Oregon Latino immigrant-serving nonprofits are mainly dedicated to advocating for access to health services, economic growth, cultural activities and provision of services in general. It is highlighted that nonprofits that work with the Latino community rely heavily on volunteerism and that collaboration with other organizations in a coalition is an important mechanism to achieve their goals. The success of these Latino nonprofits is determined by capacities such as management and leadership, financial resources, and the skills and dedication of their staff. Solid core capacities mean positive relationships with city departments and agencies, public officials, other organizations and the community in general, which translates into social changes and progressive policies for the benefit of the economic and social integration of the Latino immigrants and their families. Regardless of citizenship status, these nonprofits facilitate the incorporation of Latino immigrants into the mainstream culture by providing a place to interact and receive needed assistance, education in how to navigate life in the adopted country, and gain economic and social stability with the ultimate goal to empower Latino immigrants to work for their place in American society

Genetic factors that provide adult plant resistance against Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici to wheat cultivar 'Stephens' in a multilocation analysis.

Stripe rust (Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici) has been receiving increased attention in the USA since the appearance of more virulent races detected in the past decade. These races caused yield losses even in areas where the disease previously was rarely detected. Host plant resistance is the most cost effective and environmentally friendly means of controlling stripe rust. Deployment of single, major genes for resistance has been compromised due to the genetic variability of the pathogen, emphasizing the need to breed for durable resistance. 'Stephens' wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has been grown commercially in the Pacific Northwest region of the USA for 30 years and shows resistance to P. striiformis f. sp. tritici "old" and "new" races. The durable resistance of Stephens to stripe rust is believed to be due to a combination of seedling and adult plant resistance genes. Multilocation field trials and molecular genotyping were used to study the genetics of the resistance response in 'Stephens'. Disease severity, based on the percentage of leaf area infected in field plots, was recorded in eight locations: five in 2008 and three in 2009. Locations could be divided into two mega-environments based on time of appearance of disease and QTL identified. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis identified 11 chromosomal regions associated with resistance to stripe rust in the resistant parent ('Stephens') and two regions derived from the susceptible parent ('Platte'). Many QTL locations coincided to those of previous reports. Furthermore, this study suggests that a combination of additive resistance genes acting at different plant stages is responsible for the durable resistance of 'Stephens'. Significant QTL x environment interactions were found, suggesting that specificity to plant stage, race, and/or temperature are responsible for different disease responses

Multi-location analysis for the identification of quantitative trait loci underlying disease resistance against Cephalosporium gramineum and Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici by linkage mapping in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the major crops produced in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, a region known for its wheat production for international export. Wheat production in the region is threatened by diseases such as Cephalosporium stripe and stripe rust. Cephalosporium stripe is a vascular wilt disease of wheat caused by the persistent soil-borne fungus and suspected necrotrophic pathogen Cephalosporium gramineum Nisikado & Ikata, and is a recurring disease in many localities when susceptible cultivars are grown. Stripe rust, a foliar disease of wheat caused by the air-borne biotrophic fungus Puccinia striformis f. sp. tritici is a disease present in every region around the world where commercial wheat is grown. Attaining durable resistance to stripe rust would greatly benefit wheat producers in the region. Combining stripe rust resistance with resistance to other diseases, such as Cephalosporium stripe, is challenging. Wheat cultivars with high levels of resistance to several diseases are favorable candidates for genetic studies to determine the inheritance of resistance and facilitate the development of a method to genotypically select for disease resistance. Two populations of recombinant inbred lines were developed from 'Tubbs'/'NSA-98-0995' (TxN) and 'Einstein'/'Tubbs' (ExT) with population sizes of 271 and 259 F[subscript (5:6)], respectively. Tubbs is susceptible to stripe rust and Cephalosporium stripe while Einstein and NSA-98-0995 demonstrate moderate to high resistance to both diseases. Both populations were assessed across seven environments (combinations of locations and years) for stripe rust resistance under natural infection and four environments for Cephalosporium stripe resistance under artificial inoculation. The populations were mapped using diversity array technology (DArT) and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis. Results for Cephalosporium stripe resistance was quantitatively inherited with several QTL detected (>5), including some QTL in the same chromosome location in both populations. For stripe rust resistance, seven QTL were identified in the TxN population, suggesting quantitative resistance contributed by several minor genes. In the ExT population two QTL with major effects and with epistatic interactions between them were identified. One of them, a major QTL from Tubbs on chromosome 2AS that may be Yr17, was not expressed in the TxN population or in Tubbs, perhaps owing to suppressor(s). Expression of the 2AS QTL in the ExT population may be due to interaction with the QTL on chromosome 6AL from the resistant parent Einstein or to any other gene in the background of the population. QTL on chromosomes 2AS, 5AL, and 6BS were associated with resistance to both Cephalosporium stripe and stripe rust. These results highlight a complex set of interactions among major genes, minor genes, the presence of different stripe rust races, epistasis, genetic background, and possibly a suppressor of resistance. Results from this study are expected to assist in selecting molecular markers to genotypically select for resistance to these diseases, improving the chances of developing wheat cultivars with durable resistance to both diseases in the future

Molecular epidemiology of Kaposi sarcoma virus in Spain

Background: Since human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) infection may be underestimated and HHV-8 subtype circulation in Spain remains unknown, a molecular epidemiologic study is highly desirable. Objectives: This study aimed to analyse HHV-8 subtype diversity and their distribution in Spain. Study design: The study included 142 HHV-8 infected patients. A nested PCR was developed in order to permit Sanger sequencing of HHV-8 K1 ORF directly from clinical samples received at the CNM from 2013 to 2021. Phylogenetic characterization was performed. Results: Genotypes A and C comprised 55.6% and 42.3% of strains. Regarding subtypes, 25.4% of strains were C3, 19.7% were A3, 14.1% were A5, and C2, A1, A4, C1, A2, C7 were 11.3%, 11.3%, 8.5%, 4.2%, 2.1% and 1.4%, respectively. Subtype E1, E2 and B1 were found in only one patient each (0.7%). The Madrid region accounted for 52.1% of patients and showed a significantly different subtype distribution compared to the others (P = 0.018). Subtypes B1, E1, and E2 were observed to appear sporadically, although overall genotypes A and subtype C3 remained the most frequent and unwavering. Subtype A3 presented the highest diversity as displayed by the highest number of clusters in phylogenetic analysis. Non-significant differences in viral loads between genotypes were found, but significantly higher viral loads in subtype C2 compared to subtype C3 was found, while no significant subtype differences were observed between subtypes within genotype A. Infections with HHV-8 were detected in 94 (66.2%) patients without KS and compared to patients with KS non-significant differences in subtype distribution were found. Conclusions: Subtype prevalence and regional distribution followed a similar pattern compared to other western European countries. Our study is the first to report HHV-8 subtypes E1 and E2 circulating in Europe that might be reflective of migration of population from Caribbean countries. Our study suggests that infection by HHV-8 is underestimated, and wider screening should be recommended for risk groups.This work was supported by funds and a grant from Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Project code MPY 1372/2012 and MPY 434/2021. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.S

Otra visión de la formación del alumno universitario: factores de riesgo de Diabetes Mellitus

La formación universitaria debe tener un enfoque de atención integral, no solo académico, por lo que surge la importancia de identificar factores de riesgo de Diabetes Mellitus, situación que afectaría su aprovechamiento académico por ser patología principal de problemas de salud pública en México. Esto permitirá atender a los alumnos en un estilo de vida y prácticas de salud, que promoverán en su vida profesional y en la sociedad. Se presenta un estudio investigativo con enfoque cuantitativo de tipo descriptivo y transversal, donde participaron 50 alumnos entre 20 a 23 años; 20% de los alumnos tienen un bajo riesgo de padecer Diabetes Mellitus 2, 42 % poco riesgo, 22% riesgo moderado, 12% alto riesgo, muy alto riesgo 4%. Se requiere una intervención para disminuir riesgos del 40% a través de programas de salud

Dynamics of long-term colonization of respiratory tract by Haemophilus influenzae in cystic fibrosis patients shows a marked increase in hypermutable strains

The persistence and variability of 188 Haemophilus influenzae isolates in respiratory tract of 30 cystic fibrosis (CF) patients over the course of 7 years was studied. Antibiotic susceptibility testing, DNA fingerprinting, and analysis of outer membrane protein profiles were performed on all isolates. A total of 115 distinct pulsed-field gel electrophoresis profiles were identified. Ninety percent of patients were cocolonized with two or more clones over the studied period. A third of the patients were cross-colonized with one or two H. influenzae strains; 11% of the clones persisted for 3 or more months. Biotype, outer membrane protein profiles, and resistance profiles showed variation along the studied period, even in persisting clones. Four isolates (2.1%) recovered from 3 patients were type f capsulate, with three of them belonging to the same clone. beta-Lactamase production was detected in 23.9% of isolates while 7% of the beta-lactamase-negative isolates presented diminished susceptibility to ampicillin (beta-lactamase-negative ampicillin resistance phenotype). Remarkably, 21.3% of the H. influenzae isolates presented decreased susceptibility to ciprofloxacin, which was mainly observed in persisting clones. Of the H. influenzae isolates from CF patients, 18 (14.5%) were found to be hypermutable in comparison with 1 (1.4%) from non-CF patients (P < 0.0001). Ten patients (33.3%) were colonized by hypermutable strains over the study period. A multiresistance phenotype and long-term clonal persistence were significantly associated in some cases for up to 7 years. These results suggest that H. influenzae bronchial colonization in CF patients is a dynamic process, but better-adapted clones can persist for long periods of time.This work was supported by a research grant from the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Madrid, Spain (95-98/0364). We are grateful to E. Moguel for his technical assistance and to C. García (Hospital Lozano Blesa, Zaragoza) and J. C. Alados (Hospital Virgen de las Nieves, Granada) for their cooperation