867 resultados para Principle of solidarity


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The chaperone/usher pathway assembles surface virulence organelles of Gram-negative bacteria, consisting of fibers of linearly polymerized protein subunits. Fiber subunits are connected through 'donor strand complementation': each subunit completes the immunoglobulin (Ig)-like fold of the neighboring subunit by donating the seventh β-strand in trans. Whereas the folding of Ig domains is a fast first-order process, folding of Ig modules into the fiber conformation is a slow second-order process. Periplasmic chaperones separate this process in two parts by forming transient complexes with subunits. Interactions between chaperones and subunits are also based on the principle of donor strand complementation. In this study, we have performed mutagenesis of the binding motifs of the Caf1M chaperone and Caf1 capsular subunit from Yersinia pestis and analyzed the effect of the mutations on the structure, stability, and kinetics of Caf1M-Caf1 and Caf1-Caf1 interactions. The results suggest that a large hydrophobic effect combined with extensive main-chain hydrogen bonding enables Caf1M to rapidly bind an early folding intermediate of Caf1 and direct its partial folding. The switch from the Caf1M-Caf1 contact to the less hydrophobic, but considerably tighter and less dynamic Caf1-Caf1 contact occurs via the zip-out-zip-in donor strand exchange pathway with pocket 5 acting as the initiation site. Based on these findings, Caf1M was engineered to bind Caf1 faster, tighter, or both faster and tighter. To our knowledge, this is the first successful attempt to rationally design an assembly chaperone with improved chaperone function.

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Scoring rules are an important tool for evaluating the performance of probabilistic forecasting schemes. A scoring rule is called strictly proper if its expectation is optimal if and only if the forecast probability represents the true distribution of the target. In the binary case, strictly proper scoring rules allow for a decomposition into terms related to the resolution and the reliability of a forecast. This fact is particularly well known for the Brier Score. In this article, this result is extended to forecasts for finite-valued targets. Both resolution and reliability are shown to have a positive effect on the score. It is demonstrated that resolution and reliability are directly related to forecast attributes that are desirable on grounds independent of the notion of scores. This finding can be considered an epistemological justification of measuring forecast quality by proper scoring rules. A link is provided to the original work of DeGroot and Fienberg, extending their concepts of sufficiency and refinement. The relation to the conjectured sharpness principle of Gneiting, et al., is elucidated.

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We have developed a model of the local field potential (LFP) based on the conservation of charge, the independence principle of ionic flows and the classical Hodgkin–Huxley (HH) type intracellular model of synaptic activity. Insights were gained through the simulation of the HH intracellular model on the nonlinear relationship between the balance of synaptic conductances and that of post-synaptic currents. The latter is dependent not only on the former, but also on the temporal lag between the excitatory and inhibitory conductances, as well as the strength of the afferent signal. The proposed LFP model provides a method for decomposing the LFP recordings near the soma of layer IV pyramidal neurons in the barrel cortex of anaesthetised rats into two highly correlated components with opposite polarity. The temporal dynamics and the proportional balance of the two components are comparable to the excitatory and inhibitory post-synaptic currents computed from the HH model. This suggests that the two components of the LFP reflect the underlying excitatory and inhibitory post-synaptic currents of the local neural population. We further used the model to decompose a sequence of evoked LFP responses under repetitive electrical stimulation (5 Hz) of the whisker pad. We found that as neural responses adapted, the excitatory and inhibitory components also adapted proportionately, while the temporal lag between the onsets of the two components increased during frequency adaptation. Our results demonstrated that the balance between neural excitation and inhibition can be investigated using extracellular recordings. Extension of the model to incorporate multiple compartments should allow more quantitative interpretations of surface Electroencephalography (EEG) recordings into components reflecting the excitatory, inhibitory and passive ionic current flows generated by local neural populations.

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Without the top-down effects and the external/physical forcing, a stable coexistence of two phytoplankton species under a single resource is impossible — a result well known from the principle of competitive exclusion. Here I demonstrate by analysis of a mathematical model that such a stable coexistence in a homogeneous media without any external factor would be possible, at least theoretically, provided (i) one of the two species is toxin producing thereby has an allelopathic effect on the other, and (ii) the allelopathic effect exceeds a critical level. The threshold level of allelopathy required for the coexistence has been derived analytically in terms of the parameters associated with the resource competition and the nutrient recycling. That the extra mortality of a competitor driven by allelopathy of a toxic species gives a positive feed back to the algal growth process through the recycling is explained. And that this positive feed back plays a pivotal role in reducing competition pressures and helping species succession in the two-species model is demonstrated. Based on these specific coexistence results, I introduce and explain theoretically the allelopathic effect of a toxic species as a ‘pseudo-mixotrophy’—a mechanism of ‘if you cannot beat them or eat them, just kill them by chemical weapons’. The impact of this mechanism of species succession by pseudo-mixotrophy in the form of alleopathy is discussed in the context of current understanding on straight mixotrophy and resource-species relationship among phytoplankton species.

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Sea ice contains flaws including frictional contacts. We aim to describe quantitatively the mechanics of those contacts, providing local physics for geophysical models. With a focus on the internal friction of ice, we review standard micro-mechanical models of friction. The solid's deformation under normal load may be ductile or elastic. The shear failure of the contact may be by ductile flow, brittle fracture, or melting and hydrodynamic lubrication. Combinations of these give a total of six rheological models. When the material under study is ice, several of the rheological parameters in the standard models are not constant, but depend on the temperature of the bulk, on the normal stress under which samples are pressed together, or on the sliding velocity and acceleration. This has the effect of making the shear stress required for sliding dependent on sliding velocity, acceleration, and temperature. In some cases, it also perturbs the exponent in the normal-stress dependence of that shear stress away from the value that applies to most materials. We unify the models by a principle of maximum displacement for normal deformation, and of minimum stress for shear failure, reducing the controversy over the mechanism of internal friction in ice to the choice of values of four parameters in a single model. The four parameters represent, for a typical asperity contact, the sliding distance required to expel melt-water, the sliding distance required to break contact, the normal strain in the asperity, and the thickness of any ductile shear zone.

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The use of magnetic fluids in controlling rod vibrations is investigated. A prototype of ferrofluid vibration damper is designed and experimentally set up based on the principle of anti-resonance. The efficiency of this damping system is verified in experiments and well explained with classical equations of motion. The improvement of the present system towards active control of rod vibration is also discussed.

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This chapter evaluates the potential for legal regulation of the resort to cyber warfare between states under the ‘jus ad bellum’ (the law on the use of force). Debate in the literature has largely concerned whether cyber warfare falls within the scope of Article 2(4) UNC. The first part of this chapter sets out this debate. It then goes on to argue that the ‘Article 2(4) debate’ often misses the fact that an act of cyber warfare can be considered a breach of a different legal rule: the principle of non-intervention. The chapter further considers some of the issues in applying either the prohibition of the use of force or the principle of non-intervention to cyber warfare, and then concludes by arguing that the debate should be reoriented to focus on another existing international legal obligation: the duty to prevent cyber-attacks.

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Working outward from Edward Kamau Brathwaite’s landmark 1974 essay, “The African Presence in Caribbean Literature,” this article explores the fuller history of the idea of Africa in anglophone Caribbean critical and literary works from the 1930s to the 2000s. It demonstrates that earlier, now forgotten Caribbean critics drew on imperfect and incomplete Caribbean literary imaginings of Africa to frame a counter-colonial politics of identity. The essay also brings back into view writings by Una Marson, Victor Stafford Reid, and Derek Walcott that expressed a different politics of solidarity based on the shared experience of colonial violence. Readings of recent literary works by Charlotte Williams and Nalo Hopkinson reveal the contemporary crafting of this relation around a heightened awareness of both presence and loss, history and imagination. Importantly, this gathering of sources and perspectives allows for an appreciation of the role that a reach toward Africa has played in articulations of Caribbeanness and its complex patterning of cultural co-belonging.

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The control of molecular architecture provided by the layer-by-layer (LbL) technique has led to enhanced biosensors, in which advantageous features of distinct materials can be combined. Full optimization of biosensing performance, however, is only reached if the film morphology is suitable for the principle of detection of a specific biosensor. In this paper, we report a detailed morphology analysis of LbL films made with alternating layers of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) and polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers, which were then covered with a layer of penicillinase (PEN). An optimized performance to detect penicillin G was obtained with 6-bilayer SWNT/PAMAM LbL films deposited on p-Si-SiO(2)-Ta(2)O(5) chips, used in biosensors based on a capacitive electrolyte-insulator-semiconductor (EIS) and a light-addressable potentiometric sensor (LAPS) structure, respectively. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) images indicated that the LbL films were porous, with a large surface area due to interconnection of SWNT into PAMAM layers. This morphology was instrumental for the adsorption of a larger quantity of PEN, with the resulting LbL film being highly stable. The experiments to detect penicillin were performed with constant-capacitance (Con Cap) and constant-current (CC) measurements for EIS and LAPS sensors, respectively, which revealed an enhanced detection signal and sensitivity of ca. 100 mV/decade for the field-effect sensors modified with the PAMAM/SWNT LbL film. It is concluded that controlling film morphology is essential for an enhanced performance of biosensors, not only in terms of sensitivity but also stability and response time. (C) 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

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This thesis studies the use of exhibitions by public authorities and the possibilities of making exhibits out of authority topics.

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The thesis focuses on, and tries to evaluate, the role that the African Union (AU) plays in protecting the peace and security on the African continent. The thesis takes an interdisciplinary approach to the topic by both utilizing international relations and international law theories. The two disciplines are combined in an attempt to understand the evolution of the AU’s commitment to the pragmatist doctrine: responsibility to protect (R2P). The AU charter is considered to be the first international law document to cover R2P as it allows the AU to interfere in the internal affairs of its member states. The R2P doctrine was evolved around the notion of a need to arrive at a consensus in regard to the right to intervene in the face of humanitarian emergencies. A part of the post-Cold War shift in UN behaviour has been to support local solutions to local problems. Hereby the UN acts in collaboration with regional organizations, such as the AU, to achieve the shared aspirations to maintain international peace and security without getting directly involved on the ground. The R2P takes a more holistic and long-term approach to interventions by including an awareness of the need to address the root causes of the crisis in order to prevent future resurrections of conflicts. The doctrine also acknowledges the responsibility of the international community and the intervening parties to actively participate in the rebuilding of the post-conflict state. This requires sustained and well planned support to ensure the development of a stable society.While the AU is committed to implementing R2P, many of the AU’s members are struggling, both ideologically and practically, to uphold the foundations on which legitimate intervention rests, such as the protection of human rights and good governance. The fact that many members are also among the poorest countries in the world adds to the challenges facing the AU. A lack of human and material resources leads to a situation where few countries are willing, or able, to support a long-term commitment to humanitarian interventions. Bad planning and unclear mandates also limit the effectiveness of the interventions. This leaves the AU strongly dependent on regional powerbrokers such as Nigeria and South Africa, which in itself creates new problems in regard to the motivations behind interventions. The current AU charter does not provide sufficient checks and balances to ensure that national interests are not furthered through humanitarian interventions. The lack of resources within the AU also generates worries over what pressure foreign nations and other international actors apply through donor funding. It is impossible for the principle of “local solutions for local problems? to gain ground while this donor conditionality exists.The future of the AU peace and security regime is not established since it still is a work in progress. The direction that these developments will take depends on a wide verity of factors, many of which are beyond the immediate control of the AU.

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Este estudo busca investigar as lógicas da ação em cooperativas de produção e associações de catadores de lixo no bojo de processos de reestruturação econômica que não somente precarizam as condições de emprego, mas também implicam em processos de desassalariamento da força de trabalho. Tomando como perspectiva analítica a sociologia da experiência de François Dubet, decompomos as lógicas da ação de trabalhadores com inserção social distinta, ou seja, um primeiro grupo caracterizado por uma cultura operária e sindical e um segundo grupo caracterizado por um processo de dissociação em relação ao mundo do trabalho formal. Neste sentido, procurou-se investigar: a) as formas de inserção e integração sociais configuradas pelas relações de solidariedade, b) a dimensão da racionalidade estratégica de cada grupo traduzida nas lutas por reconhecimento, e, c) os processos de subjetivação expressos na afirmação identitária de cada coletivo de trabalhadores. Ou seja, quais as condições de possibilidade da ruptura com as hierarquias que organizam e estruturam o universo de coletivos de trabalhadores com origens sociais tão diversas quando confrontados com o princípio meta-social da igualdade? Noutras palavras, quando compelidos com a necessidade de organizar uma cooperativa ou associação, enquanto alternativa palpável de subsistência, os trabalhadores se deparam com um contexto bem diverso da situação de assalariamento. Com efeito, a experiência associativa irá implicar que a adesão à cooperativa ou associação deve ser livre e voluntária e que a gestão e os processos de deliberação devem ser democráticos. A partir da pesquisa de campo verificou-se um processo de subjetivação marcado por estratégias distintas nas cooperativas e associações: enquanto nas cooperativas a adesão dos trabalhadores era caracterizada por uma certa ambivalência entre o compromisso com o projeto de construção da cooperativa e uma postura pautada por um certo pragmatismo tipificado por um campo de possíveis restrito no tocante as alternativas de inserção social, nas associações de catadores de lixo verificou-se um processo de ruptura com os padrões de sociabilidade primária acentuadamente hierarquizados a partir da participação das mulheres nas associações, bem como um efetivo compromisso com o projeto associativo. Na esfera da ação coletiva, a constituição de cooperativas a partir de empresas em situação falimentar revelou uma nova estratégia sindical marcada por uma ação defensiva ante os processos de reestruturação econômica que eliminam postos de trabalho. Já, na ação coletiva das associações constatou-se um movimento de luta pelo reconhecimento de direitos e recuperação da cidadania. Tal movimento é caracterizado por uma lógica do respeito possuindo uma dupla inflexão, ou seja, por um lado busca romper no âmbito da esfera privada com a dominação masculina expressa num código de honra, cuja conseqüência mais dramática se traduz na violência doméstica, e por outro lado se constata um movimento em direção à esfera pública a partir da articulação de uma associação com um movimento social traduzindo desta maneira a reivindicação pelo reconhecimento da dignidade de indivíduos sujeitos a todo tipo de reconhecimento recusado.

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This dissertation deals with the social function of the contract, based on constitutional principles, especially those relating to fundamental rights. The social function of the contract (general clause) is described in the Civil Code so intentionally generic, no precise criteria to define it. Because of the fluidity of this principle, it is justified its closer study, seeking to assess its various meanings and looking away from the legal uncertainty that an unlimited conceptual vagueness can cause. The social function of the contract arises from a transformation experienced in private law from the inflows received from the Constitutional Law, the result of an evolutionary process by which it became the state structure, leaving the foundations of the classical liberal state and moving toward a vision guided by existential human values that give the keynote of the Welfare State. Arose, then the concern about the effectiveness of fundamental rights in relations between individuals, which is studied from the inapplicability of fundamental rights in private relations (U.S. doctrine of State action), passing to the analysis of the Theory of indirect horizontal effect of fundamental rights (of German creation and majority acceptance), reaching the right horizontal efficacy Theory of fundamental rights, prevailing Brazilian doctrine and jurisprudence. It has also been investigated the foundations of the social contract, pointing out that, apart from the provisions of the constitutional legislation, that base the principle on screen, there have also been noticed foundations in the Federal Constitution, in devices like the art. 1, III, the dignity of the human person is the north of the relationship between contractors. Also art. 3rd, I CF/88 bases the vision of social covenants, equipping it for the implementation of social solidarity, as one of the fundamental objectives of the Republic. Still on art. 170 of the Constitution it is seen as a locus of reasoning in the social function of the contract, the maintenance of the economic order. It is also studied the internal and external aspects of the social function of the contract, being the first part the one that considers the requirement of respect for contractual loyalty, through the objective good faith, as a result of the dignity of the hirer may not be offended by the other through the contract. On the other hand, the external facet of the social function of the contract, in line with the constitutional mandate of solidarity, indicates the need for contractors to respect the rights of society, namely the diffuse, collective and individual third party. In this external appearance, it is also pointed the notion of external credit protection, addressing the duty of society to respect the contract. There has been shown some notions of the social contract in comparative law. Then, there has been investigated the content of principle study, through their interrelationships with other provisions of private and constitutional law, namely equality, objective good faith, private autonomy and dignity of the human person. We study the application of the social contract in contractual networks as well as the guidance of conservation of contracts, especially those denominated long-term captive contracts, considering the theory of substantive due performance, concluding with an analysis of the social contract in code of Consumer Protection

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The modern approach to the development of new chemical entities against complex diseases, especially the neglected endemic diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria, is based on the use of defined molecular targets. Among the advantages, this approach allows (i) the search and identification of lead compounds with defined molecular mechanisms against a defined target (e.g. enzymes from defined pathways), (ii) the analysis of a great number of compounds with a favorable cost/benefit ratio, (iii) the development even in the initial stages of compounds with selective toxicity (the fundamental principle of chemotherapy), (iv) the evaluation of plant extracts as well as of pure substances. The current use of such technology, unfortunately, is concentrated in developed countries, especially in the big pharma. This fact contributes in a significant way to hamper the development of innovative new compounds to treat neglected diseases. The large biodiversity within the territory of Brazil puts the country in a strategic position to develop the rational and sustained exploration of new metabolites of therapeutic value. The extension of the country covers a wide range of climates, soil types, and altitudes, providing a unique set of selective pressures for the adaptation of plant life in these scenarios. Chemical diversity is also driven by these forces, in an attempt to best fit the plant communities to the particular abiotic stresses, fauna, and microbes that co-exist with them. Certain areas of vegetation (Amazonian Forest, Atlantic Forest, Araucaria Forest, Cerrado-Brazilian Savanna, and Caatinga) are rich in species and types of environments to be used to search for natural compounds active against tuberculosis, malaria, and chronic-degenerative diseases. The present review describes some strategies to search for natural compounds, whose choice can be based on ethnobotanical and chemotaxonomical studies, and screen for their ability to bind to immobilized drug targets and to inhibit their activities. Molecular cloning, gene knockout, protein expression and purification, N-terminal sequencing, and mass spectrometry are the methods of choice to provide homogeneous drug targets for immobilization by optimized chemical reactions. Plant extract preparations, fractionation of promising plant extracts, propagation protocols and definition of in planta studies to maximize product yield of plant species producing active compounds have to be performed to provide a continuing supply of bioactive materials. Chemical characterization of natural compounds, determination of mode of action by kinetics and other spectroscopic methods (MS, X-ray, NMR), as well as in vitro and in vivo biological assays, chemical derivatization, and structure-activity relationships have to be carried out to provide a thorough knowledge on which to base the search for natural compounds or their derivatives with biological activity.