Public and Private Production in a Mixed Delivery System: Regulation, Competition and Costs

Academics and policy makers are increasingly shifting the debate concerning the best form of public service provision beyond the traditional dilemma between pure public and pure private delivery modes, because, among other reasons, there is a growing body of evidence that casts doubt on the existence of systematic cost savings from privatization, while any competition seems to be eroded over time. In this paper we compare the relative merits of public and private delivery within a mixed delivery system. We study the role played by ownership, transaction costs, and competition on local public service delivery within the same jurisdiction. Using a stochastic cost frontier, we analyze the public-private urban bus system in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area. Our results suggest that private firms tendering the service have higher delivery costs than those incurred by the public firm, especially when transaction costs are taken into account. Tenders, therefore, do not help to reduce delivery costs. Our results suggest that under a mixed delivery scheme, which permits the co-existence of public and private production, the metropolitan government and the regulator can use private delivery to contain costs in the public firm and, at the same time, benefit from the greater flexibility of private firms for dealing with events not provided for under contract.

Validated spectrofluorometric method for determination of gemfibrozil in self nanoemulsifying drug delivery systems (SNEDDS)

A spectrofluorometric method has been developed and validated for the determination of gemfibrozil. The method is based on the excitation and emission capacities of gemfibrozil with excitation and emission wavelengths of 276 and 304 nm respectively. This method allows de determination of the drug in a self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (SNEDDS) for improve its intestinal absorption. Results obtained showed linear relationships with good correlation coefficients (r(2)>0.999) and low limits of detection and quantification (LOD of 0.075 μg mL(-1) and LOQ of 0.226 μg mL(-1)) in the range of 0.2-5 μg mL(-1), equally this method showed a good robustness and stability. Thus the amounts of gemfibrozil released from SNEDDS contained in gastro resistant hard gelatine capsules were analysed, and release studies could be performed satisfactorily.

Choosing hybrid organizations for local services delivery : An empirical analysis of partial privatization

The empirical literature about factors explaining local government delivery choices has traditionally focused the attention on the public or private production dilemma. However, hybrid organizational forms such as mixed public-private firms are increasingly used in several European countries. This paper makes use of survey data from Spanish municipalities to examine motivations of local governments for engaging in hybrid organizational forms. Data refer to two very relevant local services: water distribution and solid waste collection. The empirical analysis indicates that the use of mixed firms emerge as a type of pragmatically based ‘third way’ between pure public and pure private production. Indeed, local governments make use of mixed firms when cost considerations (scale economies, transaction costs and soon), financial constraints and private interests exert contradictory pressures. On the contrary, political and ideological factors do not play any significant role on the local government decision of engaging or not in joint ventures with private partners.

Lysine-based surfactants in nanovesicle formulations: the role of cationic charge position and hydrophobicity in in vitro cytotoxicity and intracellular delivery

Understanding nanomaterial interactions within cells is of increasing importance for assessing their toxicity and cellular transport. Here, we developed nanovesicles containing bioactive cationic lysine-based amphiphiles, and assessed whether these cationic compounds increase the likelihood of intracellular delivery and modulate toxicity. We found different cytotoxic responses among the formulations, depending on surfactant, cell line and endpoint assayed. The induction of mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress and apoptosis were the general mechanisms underlying cytotoxicity. Fluorescence microscopy analysis demonstrated that nanovesicles were internalized by HeLa cells, and evidenced that their ability to release endocytosed materials into cell cytoplasm depends on the structural parameters of amphiphiles. The cationic charge position and hydrophobicity of surfactants determine the nanovesicle interactions within the cell and, thus, the resulting toxicity and intracellular behavior after cell uptake of the nanomaterial. The insights into some toxicity mechanisms of these new nanomaterials contribute to reducing the uncertainty surrounding their potential health hazards.