UNIFORM OUTPUT SUBSIDIES IN AN ECONOMIC UNION WITH FIRMS HETEROGENEITY

In this paper we show the importance of cost asymmetry and demand curvature in the effect of a uniform output subsidy policy in an economic union. We consider an economic union formed by two countries each with a single firm producing a homogeneous good. We find that when firms have different cost, the optimal level of the uniform subsidy can be negative if the demand is concave enough. The low cost firm expands its market share if the demand function is sufficiently convex whereas in the case of a concave demand function it is the higher cost firm which gains market share. This implies that a uniform output subsidy policy may cause a change in production e¢ciency. Finally, we consider how a divergence between private and social costs of public funds may a¤ect the desirability of such a subsidy policy.Uniform output subsidy policy, economic union, social welfare, cost differences

Cambios en los parámetros fisiológicos por diarrea neonatal en crías de alpaca

Alpacas in the pre-weaning stage often present neonatal diarrhoea, usually of infectious type, causing high mortality. This study determined the physiological parameters and their changes in animals with diarrhoea. In total, 79 neonate alpacas less than 60 days of age from Pasco and Junín regions, Peru, were used. Of them, 60 had clinical diarrhoea lasting 1 to 3 days, and 19 were healthy (controls). Heart and respiratory rate, peripheral capillary oxygen saturation, body temperature, capillary refill time, and mucous color were determined. A significant increase in heart rate in crias with diarrhea compared to healthy ones was found (p<0.05). Besides, no differences in other physiological parameters between diseased and apparently healthy offspring was found.Las crías de alpaca en la etapa pre-destete cursan con frecuencia con cuadros diarreicos, por lo general de tipo infeccioso, causantes de alta mortalidad. El presente estudio determinó los parámetros fisiológicos y sus cambios en animales con diarrea. Se utilizaron 79 alpacas neonatas menores de 60 días de edad de las zonas de Pasco y Junín, Perú. De ellas, 60 cursaban con cuadros de diarrea entre 1 a 3 días y 19 estaban sanas (controles). Se determinó la frecuencia cardiaca y respiratoria, saturación de la sangre por la presión parcial de oxígeno, temperatura corporal, tiempo de llenado capilar y coloración de las mucosas. Se encontró un aumento significativo de la frecuencia cardiaca (p<0.05) en crías con diarrea en comparación a las sanas, no habiendo diferencias en los demás parámetros fisiológicos entre crías enfermas y aparentemente sanas

Effects of restraint stress on the daily rhythm of hydrolysis of adenine nucleotides in rat serum

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Adenosine 5-triphosphate (ATP) and its breakdown products ADP and adenosine can act as extracellular messengers in a range of biological processes. Extracellular adenine nucleotides are metabolized by a number of enzymes including NTPDases and 5'-nucleotidase, which are considered to be the major regulators of purinergic signaling in the blood. Previous work by our group demonstrated that ATPase and ADPase activities in rat serum exhibit a 24-h temporal pattern, with higher enzyme activity during the dark (activity) phase. It was found that stress can cause disruptions in biological circadian rhythms and in the cardiovascular system. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine the influence of acute stress exposure upon temporal patterns of NTPDase and 5-nucleotidase enzyme activities in rat blood serum.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Adult male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups: ZT0, ZT6, ZT12 and ZT18. Each group was subdivided in 4 groups: control, immediately, 6 h and 24 h after one hour of restraint stress. ATP, ADP and AMP hydrolysis were assayed in the serum.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>All stressed groups showed significant decreases in all enzyme activities at ZT 12 and ZT 18 when compared with control.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Acute stress provokes a decrease in nucleotidase activities dependent on the time that this stress occurs and this effect appears to persist for at least 24 hours. Stress can change levels of nucleotides, related to increased frequency of cardiovascular events during the activity phase. Altered levels of nucleotides in serum may be involved in cardiovascular events more frequent during the activity phase in mammals, and with their etiology linked to stress.</p

Cambios en el perfil bioquímico hepático de alpacas positivas a huevos de Fasciola hepática

The aim of this study was to determine changes in the liver biochemical profile in alpacas with presence of F. hepatica eggs. We used serum and feces samples of 35 male alpaca between 2-5 years old, 18 were positives and 17 were negatives in coproparasitologic analysis for F. hepatica eggs. Differences are showed (p&lt;0.05) in the values of ALT, GGT and direct bilirubin between positives y negatives animals. We concluded that there is relationship between presence of F. hepatica eggs and high levels in the liver biochemical profile, maybe due to alterations in the hepatic parenchyma by chronic infection in alpacas.El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar cambios en el perfil bioquímico hepático en alpacas con presencia de huevos de F. hepatica en heces. Se utilizaron muestras de suero y heces de 35 alpacas machos de entre 2 y 5 años de edad, de los cuales 18 fueron positivos y 17 negativos al examen coproparasitológico (sedimentación) para identificación de huevos de F. hepática. Se observó diferencia significativa (p&lt;0.05) entre los valores de ALT, GGT y bilirrubina directa entre los animales positivos y negativos. Concluimos que la presencia de huevos de Fasciola hepatica guarda relación con la elevación de algunos parámetros del perfil hepática posiblemente por alguna alteración en el parénquima producto de una infección crónica en alpacas

Características Bioquímicas del Plasma Seminal Fresco y Congelado/Descongelado de Alpaca (Vicugna pacos)

The aim of this study was to determine and compare the biochemical characteristics of fresh and thawed seminal plasma of alpacas. Semen was collected by electroejaculation from four adult males, once a week per four weeks. Semen was centrifuged and the seminal plasma was separated. One part was analysed fresh and other stored for one month on liquid nitrogen and then thawed and analysed. Levels of glucose, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, total protein, albumin, calcium, alkaline phosphatase, ALT and -GT were determined. Only the triglycerides significantly decreased due to the process of freeze/thawed, where the values were 44.12 ± 7.38 and 27.31 ± 4.65 mg/dl in fresh and thawed respectivelyEl objetivo del estudio fue determinar y comparar las características bioquímicas del plasma seminal de alpacas en fresco y descongelado. Se recolectó semen, mediante electroeyaculación de cuatro alpacas adultas, una vez por semana por cuatro semanas. El semen se centrifugó y el plasma seminal fue separado. Una parte se analizó en fresco y la otra parte se almacenó en nitrógeno líquido por un mes. Se le hizo el análisis bioquímico a ambos juegos de muestras. Se determinaron los niveles de glucosa, colesterol total, colesterol-HDL, triglicéridos, proteínas totales, albúmina, calcio, fosfatasa alcalina, ALT y ã-GT. Solo los valores de triglicéridos descendieron significativamente por el proceso de congelación/descongelación (p&lt;0.05), siendo los valores de 44.12 ± 7.38 y27.31 ± 4.65 mg/dl en fresco y descongelado, respectivamente

Triggered qutrits for Quantum Communication protocols

A general protocol in Quantum Information and Communication relies in the ability of producing, transmitting and reconstructing, in general, qunits. In this letter we show for the first time the experimental implementation of these three basic steps on a pure state in a three dimensional space, by means of the orbital angular momentum of the photons. The reconstruction of the qutrit is performed with tomographic techniques and a Maximum-Likelihood estimation method. In this way we also demonstrate that we can perform any transformation in the three dimensional space

Development and validation of a risk model for prediction of hazardous alcohol consumption in general practice attendees : the PredictAL study

Background: Little is known about the risk of progression to hazardous alcohol use in people currently drinking at safe limits. We aimed to develop a prediction model (predictAL) for the development of hazardous drinking in safe drinkers. Methods: A prospective cohort study of adult general practice attendees in six European countries and Chile followed up over 6 months. We recruited 10,045 attendees between April 2003 to February 2005. 6193 European and 2462 Chilean attendees recorded AUDIT scores below 8 in men and 5 in women at recruitment and were used in modelling risk. 38 risk factors were measured to construct a risk model for the development of hazardous drinking using stepwise logistic regression. The model was corrected for over fitting and tested in an external population. The main outcome was hazardous drinking defined by an AUDIT score >= 8 in men and >= 5 in women. Results: 69.0% of attendees were recruited, of whom 89.5% participated again after six months. The risk factors in the final predictAL model were sex, age, country, baseline AUDIT score, panic syndrome and lifetime alcohol problem. The predictAL model's average c-index across all six European countries was 0.839 (95% CI 0.805, 0.873). The Hedge's g effect size for the difference in log odds of predicted probability between safe drinkers in Europe who subsequently developed hazardous alcohol use and those who did not was 1.38 (95% CI 1.25, 1.51). External validation of the algorithm in Chilean safe drinkers resulted in a c-index of 0.781 (95% CI 0.717, 0.846) and Hedge's g of 0.68 (95% CI 0.57, 0.78). Conclusions: The predictAL risk model for development of hazardous consumption in safe drinkers compares favourably with risk algorithms for disorders in other medical settings and can be a useful first step in prevention of alcohol misuse

The experiences of 33 national COVID-19 dashboard teams during the first year of the pandemic in the World Health Organization European Region: A qualitative study

Background: Governments across the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region have prioritised dashboards for reporting COVID-19 data. The ubiquitous use of dashboards for public reporting is a novel phenomenon. Objective: This study explores the development of COVID-19 dashboards during the first year of the pandemic and identifies common barriers, enablers and lessons from the experiences of teams responsible for their development. Methods: We applied multiple methods to identify and recruit COVID-19 dashboard teams, using a purposive, quota sampling approach. Semi-structured group interviews were conducted from April to June 2021. Using elaborative coding and thematic analysis, we derived descriptive and explanatory themes from the interview data. A validation workshop was held with study participants in June 2021. Results: Eighty informants participated, representing 33 national COVID-19 dashboard teams across the WHO European Region. Most dashboards were launched swiftly during the first months of the pandemic, February to May 2020. The urgency, intense workload, limited human resources, data and privacy constraints and public scrutiny were common challenges in the initial development stage. Themes related to barriers or enablers were identified, pertaining to the pre-pandemic context, pandemic itself, people and processes and software, data and users. Lessons emerged around the themes of simplicity, trust, partnership, software and data and change. Conclusions: COVID-19 dashboards were developed in a learning-by-doing approach. The experiences of teams reveal that initial underpreparedness was offset by high-level political endorsement, the professionalism of teams, accelerated data improvements and immediate support with commercial software solutions. To leverage the full potential of dashboards for health data reporting, investments are needed at the team, national and pan-European levels

Cambios en la Bioquímica Sérica en Crías de Alpaca con Diarrea

El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar las alteraciones que ocurren en los parámetros bioquímicos sanguíneos en crías de alpaca que cursan con diarrea infecciosa. Se utilizaron 80 animales de las regiones Pasco y Junín, Perú. Los animales fueron distribuidos de acuerdo a su edad: menores de 1 mes de edad (10 controles y 40 enfermos) y 1-2 meses de edad (10 controles y 20 enfermos). La diarrea clínica tenía 2-3 días de presentación en el momento de la toma de muestras. Se hicieron determinaciones de glucosa, triglicéridos, colesterol, proteína total, albúmina, calcio, bilirrubina total, bilirrubina directa y fosfatasa alcalina. Los parámetros bioquímicos, excepto glucosa, cambiaron significativamente en los animales enfermos con respecto a los controles. En los animales enfermos los niveles de proteína total, albúmina y calcio disminuyeron significativamente (p&lt;0.05), mientras que los niveles de fosfatasa alcalina, bilirrubina, colesterol y triglicéridos se incrementaron significativamente (p&lt;0.05)

Relationship between cognition and age at onset of first-episode psychosis: comparative study between adolescents, young adults, and adults

Psychotic disorders typically manifest from late adolescence to early adulthood, and an earlier onset might be associated with greater symptom severity and a worse long-term prognosis. This study aimed to compare the cognitive characteristics of patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP) by their age at onset. We included 298 patients diagnosed with FEP and classified them as having an early onset (EOS), youth onset (YOS), or adult onset (AOS) based on age limits of = 25 years (N = 116), respectively. Socio-demographic and clinical variables included age at baseline, gender, socio-economic status, antipsychotic medication, DSM-IV diagnoses assessed by clinical semi-structured interview, psychotic symptom severity, and age at onset. Neuropsychological assessment included six cognitive domains: premorbid intelligence, working memory, processing speed, verbal memory, sustained attention, and executive functioning. The EOS group had lower scores than the YOS or AOS groups in global cognition, executive functioning, and sustained attention. Although the scores in the YOS group were intermediate to those in the EOS and AOS groups for most cognitive factors, no statistically significant differences were detected between the YOS and AOS groups. Age at onset results in specific patterns of cognitive interference. Of note, impairment appears to be greater with EOS samples than with either YOS or AOS samples. A longitudinal study with a larger sample size is needed to confirm our findings