Banking sector competition in Russia

The Russian banking sector includes approximately 1,000 banks, but is it competitive? This paper analyzes bank competition in Russia during 2002-2008. The authors examine indicators of concentration and contestability, and compute non-structural measures of competition. They compare competition in Russia to that in Brazil, China, and India, and contrast competition across different groups of banks within Russia. Contestability in Russia is obstructed by uneven supervisory practices and an unclear exit process. Non-structural measures reveal that banks in Russia are less competitive than those in Brazil. Within Russia, large banks and state-owned banks exert more market power than the smaller and privately-owned institutions. Finally, business-oriented banks are more competitive than those concentrating on lending to individuals.Banks&Banking Reform,Access to Finance,Financial Intermediation,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Emerging Markets

El papel del derecho internacional en la prevención y reepuesta de las catástrofes naturales

El Derecho Internacional es el paraguas legal bajo el que se fundamentan las acciones llevadas a cabo por los Estados, la ONU y las ONG. Un marco necesario en el que actuar ante los acontecimientos cuya magnitud a menudo sobrepasa la capacidad de reacción de los paises que los sufren

War and Economics: Spanish Civil War Finances Revisited

This paper reviews how the Spanish civil war was financed. We present new evidence to show that the two combatant parties, the Republican government and the Franco administration followed similar financial strategies. In both cases money creation, rather than new taxes or the issue of debt, was the main mechanism used to cover the expenses of the war. We argue, contrary to the established knowledge, that both sides consumed a similar amount of domestic and foreign resources. We also argue that the Spanish Republic did not lose the war because of a lack of means. International factors, such as the Non-Intervention agreement promoted by France and Great Britain, and the military setbacks of the Republican army during the first year of the war, were decisive for Franco’s victory in 1939.Spain, civil war, financial resources

The ATPase cycle of PcrA helicase and its coupling to translocation on DNA.

The superfamily 1 bacterial helicase PcrA has a role in the replication of certain plasmids, acting with the initiator protein (RepD) that binds to and nicks the double-stranded origin of replication. PcrA also translocates single-stranded DNA with discrete steps of one base per ATP hydrolyzed. Individual rate constants have been determined for the DNA helicase PcrA ATPase cycle when bound to either single-stranded DNA or a double-stranded DNA junction that also has RepD bound. The fluorescent ATP analogue 2'(3')-O-(N-methylanthraniloyl)ATP was used throughout all experiments to provide a complete ATPase cycle for a single nucleotide species. Fluorescence intensity and anisotropy stopped-flow measurements were used to determine rate constants for binding and release. Quenched-flow measurements provided the kinetics of the hydrolytic cleavage step. The fluorescent phosphate sensor MDCC-PBP was used to measure phosphate release kinetics. The chemical cleavage step is the rate-limiting step in the cycle and is essentially irreversible and would result in the bound ATP complex being a major component at steady state. This cleavage step is greatly accelerated by bound DNA, producing the high activation of this protein compared to the protein alone. The data suggest the possibility that ADP is released in two steps, which would result in bound ADP also being a major intermediate, with bound ADP.P(i) being a very small component. It therefore seems likely that the major transition in structure occurs during the cleavage step, rather than P(i) release. ATP rebinding could then cause reversal of this structural transition. The kinetic mechanism of the PcrA ATPase cycle is very little changed by potential binding to RepD, supporting the idea that RepD increases the processivity of PcrA by increasing affinity to DNA rather than affecting the enzymatic properties per se

Early innate immune response triggered by the human respiratory syncytial virus and its regulation by ubiquitination/deubiquitination processes

The human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) causes severe lower respiratory tract infections in infants and the elderly. An exuberant inadequate immune response is behind most of the pathology caused by the HRSV. The main targets of HRSV infection are the epithelial cells of the respiratory tract, where the immune response against the virus begins. This early innate immune response consists of the expression of hundreds of pro-inflammatory and anti-viral genes that stimulates subsequent innate and adaptive immunity. The early innate response in infected cells is mediated by intracellular signaling pathways composed of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), adapters, kinases, and transcriptions factors. These pathways are tightly regulated by complex networks of post-translational modifications, including ubiquitination. Numerous ubiquitinases and deubiquitinases make these modifications reversible and highly dynamic. The intricate nature of the signaling pathways and their regulation offers the opportunity for fine-tuning the innate immune response against HRSV to control virus replication and immunopathology.This study was supported by grants from Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII; grant numbers PI17CIII/00003 to SR and PI19CIII/00009 to IM). The study was also funded by the Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (CIBER) en Enfermedades Infecciosas (CB21/13/00044).S

Modélisation géomatique rétrospective des paysages par évaluation multicritères et multiobjectifs

International audienceParmi les fonctions SIG pour la modélisation spatio-temporelle et l'aide à la décision, l'évaluation multicritères et multiobjectifs s'avèrent être particulièrement utile en ce qui concerne la reproductibilité des résultats et le paramétrage de scénarii en termes de prise de risque et de compensation. Ce travail illustre la méthodologie et les résultats obtenus pour la reconstitution probabiliste du paysage historique de la Alta Alpujarra Granadina (Sierra Nevada, Espagne) du 16ème, 18ème et 19ème siècle. L'évaluation multicritères génère des cartes de potentialité - ou d'aptitude - pour chaque usage (objectif), en l'occurrence les différentes catégories d'occupation du sol. Elle se base sur l'hypothèse qu'il existe, pour une date donnée, une série de critères spatialisés pouvant expliquer la variabilité des états de la variable (catégories d'occupation du sol), autrement dit l'aptitude pour un usage. L'évaluation multiobjectifs consiste, en tenant compte des superficies réellement occupées, à intégrer les objectifs concurrents (cartes d'aptitude monothématiques) afin de construire les cartes probabilistes d'occupation du sol historiques pour 1572, 1752 et 1855/61. Les résultats expriment la probabilité de présence d'une occupation du sol à un endroit donné selon les critères inclus dans l'analyse. Leur interprétation permet de se prononcer sur les apports et limites de la méthodologie mise en oeuvre sans pour autant autoriser une validation faute de documents historiques de comparaiso

Variabilidad del ADN cloroplástico y su contribución al conocimiento del estado de conservación de Ulmus glabra en el Sistema Central

En el presente trabajo se ha analizado la diversidad existente en el ADN cloroplástico (ADNcp) de 16 poblaciones distribuidas a lo largo del Sistema Central. Para ello, se ha empleado la técnica de PCR-RFLP (amplificación de fragmentos específicos y posterior digestión con enzimas de restricción) sobre 38 regiones del ADNcp (Grivet et al., 2001)

Probing the catalytic activity of sulfate-derived Pristine and post-treated porous TiO2(101) anatase mesocrystals by the oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophenes

Mesocrystals (basically nanostructures showing alignment of nanocrystals well beyond crystal size) are attracting considerable attention for modeling and optimization of functionalities. However, for surface-driven applications (heterogeneous catalysis), only those mesocrystals with excellent textural properties are expected to fulfill their potential. This is especially true for oxidative desulfuration of dibenzothiophenes (hard to desulfurize organosulfur compounds found in fossil fuels). Here, we probe the catalytic activity of anatases for the oxidative desulfuration of dibenzothiophenes under atmospheric pressure and mild temperatures. Specifically, for this study, we have taken advantage of the high stability of the (101) anatase surface to obtain a variety of uniform colloidal mesocrystals (approximately 50 nm) with adequate orientational order and good textural properties (pores around 3-4 nm and surface areas around 200 m2/g). Ultimately, this stability has allowed us to compare the catalytic activity of anatases that expose a high number of aligned single crystal-like surfaces while differing in controllable surface characteristics. Thus, we have established that the type of tetrahedral coordination observed in these anatase mesocrystals is not essential for oxidative desulfuration and that both elimination of sulfates and good textural properties significantly improve the catalytic activity. Furthermore, the most active mesocrystals have been used to model the catalytic reaction in three-(oil-solvent-catalyst) and two-phase (solvent-catalyst) systems. Thus, we have been able to observe that the transfer of DBT from the oil to the solvent phase partially limits the oxidative process and to estimate an apparent activation energy for the oxidative desulfuration reaction of approximately 40 kJ/mol in the two-phase system to avoid mass transfer limitations. Our results clearly establish that (101) anatase mesocrystals with excellent textural properties show adequate stability to withstand several post-treatments without losing their initial mesocrystalline character and therefore could serve as models for catalytic processes different from the one studied here.Fil: Rivoira, Lorena Paola. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Química. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Córdoba. Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Química; ArgentinaFil: Martinez, Maria Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Córdoba. Centro de Investigación en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología; ArgentinaFil: Falcon, Horacio. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Córdoba. Centro de Investigación en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Beltramone, Andrea Raquel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Córdoba. Centro de Investigación en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología; ArgentinaFil: Campos-Martin, Jose M.. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas; EspañaFil: García Fierro, José Luis. Instituto de Catalisis y Petroleoquimica-csic; EspañaFil: Tartaj, Pedro. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Catálisis y Petroleoquímica; Españ

Electrolysis of indium oxide in LiCl-KCl based molten salts with a liquid cathode

In this work, the feasibility of extracting of metallic indium from In2O3 and ITO through the direct electrochemical reduction at 450°C in molten salt LiCl-KCl was studied. Cyclic voltammetry was carried out to study the behaviour of indium oxide by the liquid metal indium used as the working electrode. The reduction peak was observed in the cathodic scan for In2O3. The direct de-oxidation of indium oxide and ITO were investigated by using liquid tin cathode. Constant voltage electrolysis was performed at 1.7 V for 2h. The reduction reaction occurred at the interface of the oxide pellets and the cathode. Sn-In alloy was detected after electrolysis. Liquid zinc cathode was also used as cathode taking into account the low melting points of indium and tin. Potentiostatic electrolysis was conducted for the ITO with a liquid zinc cathode. The result showed that indium could be produced at different liquid cathodes.publishedVersio