Boundaries of firms and catching up by latecomers in global production networks : the case of a Mexican auto-parts manufacturer

For manufacturing firms in developing countries, there are high barriers to entry and to catching up with competitors in their global production networks (GPNs). This paper examines the case of a Mexican auto-parts manufacturer that succeeded in catching up in the automotive GPN. The author proposes that the door to GPNs is open thanks to frequent changes in the boundaries of firms, and also stresses the importance of the necessary conditions that generate opportunities, including institutional settings that facilitate market entry and catching up, and capability building by firms hopeful of entry.

Influencia del ejercicio físico desarrollado durante el embarazo en la respuesta cardiaca fetal = Influence of a physical activity program performed during pregnancy on fetal heart response

INTRODUCCIÓN: El riesgo de padecer enfermedades cardiovasculares y los índices de obesidad infantil han ido en aumento durante los últimos años empobreciendo la salud de la población. La Teoría de Barker relaciona el estado de salud de la madre con el desarrollo fetal, asociando a un deficiente estado físico y hábitos de vida negativos de la mujer embarazada con el aumento del riesgo de padecer cardiopatías en la infancia y adolescencia, así como predisponer al recién nacido a padecer sobrepeso y/u obesidad en su vida posterior. Por otro lado los estudios efectuados sobre ejercicio físico durante el embarazo reportan beneficios para salud materna y fetal. Uno de los parámetros más utilizados para comprobar la salud fetal es su frecuencia cardiaca, mediante la que se comprueba el buen desarrollo del sistema nervioso autónomo. Si se observa este parámetro en presencia de ejercicio materno podría encontrarse una respuesta crónica del corazón fetal al ejercicio materno como consecuencia de una adaptación y mejora en el funcionamiento del sistema nervioso autónomo del feto. De esta forma podría mejorar su salud cardiovascular intrauterina, lo que podría mantenerse en su vida posterior descendiendo el riesgo de padecer enfermedades cardiovasculares en la edad adulta. OBJETIVOS: Conocer la influencia de un programa de ejercicio físico supervisado en la frecuencia cardiaca fetal (FCF) en reposo y después del ejercicio materno en relación con gestantes sedentarias mediante la realización de un protocolo específico. Conocer la influencia de un programa de ejercicio físico en el desarrollo del sistema nervioso autónomo fetal, relacionado con el tiempo de recuperación de la FCF. MATERIAL Y MÉTODO: Se diseñó un ensayo clínico aleatorizado multicéntrico en el que participaron 81 gestantes (GC=38, GE=43). El estudio fue aprobado por el comité ético de los hospitales que participaron en el estudio. Todas las gestantes fueron informadas y firmaron un consentimiento para su participación en el estudio. Las participantes del GE recibieron una intervención basada en un programa de ejercicio físico desarrollado durante la gestación (12-36 semanas de gestación) con una frecuencia de tres veces por semana. Todas las gestantes realizaron un protocolo de medida de la FCF entre las semanas 34-36 de gestación. Dicho protocolo consistía en dos test llevados a cabo caminando a diferentes intensidades (40% y 60% de la frecuencia cardiaca de reserva). De este protocolo se obtuvieron las principales variables de estudio: FCF en reposo, FCF posejercicio al 40 y al 60% de intensidad, tiempo de recuperación de la frecuencia cardiaca fetal en ambos esfuerzos. El material utilizado para la realización del protocolo fue un monitor de frecuencia cardiaca para controlar la frecuencia cardiaca de la gestante y un monitor fetal inalámbrico (telemetría fetal) para registrar el latido fetal durante todo el protocolo. RESULTADOS: No se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la FCF en reposo entre grupos (GE=140,88 lat/min vs GC= 141,95 lat/min; p>,05). Se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en el tiempo de recuperación de la FCF entre los fetos de ambos grupos (GE=135,65 s vs GC=426,11 s esfuerzo al 40%; p<,001); (GE=180,26 s vs GC=565,61 s esfuerzo al 60%; p<,001). Se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la FCF posejercicio al 40% (GE=139,93 lat/min vs GC=147,87 lat/min; p<,01). No se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la FCF posejercicio al 60% (GE=143,74 lat/min vs GC=148,08 lat/min; p>,05). CONLUSIÓN: El programa de ejercicio físico desarrollado durante la gestación influyó sobre el corazón fetal de los fetos de las gestantes del GE en relación con el tiempo de recuperación de la FCF. Los resultados muestran un posible mejor funcionamiento del sistema nervioso autónomo en fetos de gestantes activas durante el embarazo. ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION: The risk to suffer cardiovascular diseases and childhood obesity index has grown in the last years worsening the health around the population. Barker´s Theory related maternal health with fetal development establishing an association between a poorly physical state and an unhealthy lifestyle in the pregnant woman with the risk to suffer heart disease during childhood and adolescence, childhood overweight and/or obese is related to maternal lifestyle. By the other way researches carried out about physical exercise and pregnancy show benefits in maternal and fetal health. One of the most studied parameters to check fetal health is its heart rate, correct fetal autonomic nervous system development and work is also corroborated by fetal heart rate. Looking at this parameter during maternal exercise a chronic response of fetal heart could be found due to an adaptation and improvement in the working of the autonomic nervous system. Therefore its cardiovascular health could be enhanced during its intrauterine life and maybe it could be maintained in its posterior life descending the risk to suffer cardiovascular diseases in adult life. OBJECTIVES: To know the influence of a supervised physical activity program in the fetal heart rate (FHR) at rest, FHR after maternal exercise related to sedentary pregnant women by a FHR assessment protocol. To know the influence of a physical activity program in the development of the autonomic nervous system related to FHR recovery time. MATERIAL AND METHOD: A multicentric randomized clinical trial was design in which 81 pregnant women participated (CG=38, EG=43). The study was approved by the ethics committee of all of the hospitals participating in the study. All of the participants signed an informed consent for their participation in the study. EG participants received an intervention based on a physical activity program carried out during gestation (12-36 gestation weeks) with a three days a week frequency. All of the participants were tested between 34-36 weeks of gestation by a specific FHR assessment protocol. The mentioned protocol consisted in two test performed walking and at a two different intensities (40% and 60% of the reserve heart rate). From this protocol we obtained the main research variables: FHR at rest, FHR post-exercise at 40% and 60% intensity, and FHR recovery time at both walking test. The material used to perform the protocol were a FH monitor to check maternal HR and a wireless fetal monitor (Telemetry) to register fetal beats during the whole protocol. RESULTS: There were no statistical differences in FHR at rest between groups (EG=140,88 beats/min vs CG= 141,95 beats/min; p>,05). There were statistical differences in FHR recovery time in both walking tests between groups (EG=135,65 s vs CG=426,11 s test at 40% intensity; p<,001); (EG=180,26 s vs CG=565,61 s test at 60% intensity; p<,001). Statistical differences were found in FHR post-exercise at 40% intensity between groups (EG=139,93 beats/min vs CG=147,87 beats/min; p<,01). No statistical differences were found in FHR at rest post-exercise at 60% intensity between groups (EG=143,74 beats/min vs CG=148,08 beats/min; p>,05). CONCLUSIONS: The physical activity program performed during gestation had an influence in fetal heart of the fetus from mother in the EG related to FHR recovery time. These results show a possible enhancement on autonomic nervous system working in fetus from active mothers during gestation.

La arquitectura en la construcción del paisaje: herramientas y principios de los proyectos del Duero Internacional (1953-1964) en su relación con la Escuela de Oporto

El examen a la singular aportación de João Archer, Nunes de Almeida y Rogério Ramos a la construcción del paisaje energético a través de la arquitectura se revela hoy de gran oportunidad para el avance de nuestra disciplina. Este colectivo de arquitectos que estudian en la Escuela de Oporto en el periodo en que el maestro Carlos Ramos realiza la reforma de la enseñanza de la Arquitectura en Portugal, proyecta y construye desde el interior del oficio de proyectos de la Hidroeléctica do Douro, las tres infraestructuras hidroeléctricas y las respectivas estructuras urbanas de Picote, Miranda y Bemposta, ubicadas en el Duero Internacional. El proceso cuyos parámetros de proyecto se exponen, está comprendido entre 1953 y 1964, y representa uno de los momentos más significativos y hercúleos en términos de infraestructura, industrialización y modernización de un Portugal entonces extremamente retrasado por la política de aislamiento de la dictadura de Salazar. Esto parece ser también el primer proyecto arquitectónico de infraestructuras a la escala del territorio en el cual se reconocen trazos específicos de la Escuela de Oporto y en donde se efectúa la revisión y transición de una modernidad enmarcada por el rigor de Loos y por un racionalismo de linaje gropiano, para un regionalismo crítico apropiado a la cultura del lugar, muy vinculado a Lúcio Costa, Wright y Aalto. Así, más que los logros espaciales, técnicos o constructivos conseguidos en los edificios, se expone el proceso utilizado por sus autores, su forma de entender y hacer un paisaje industrial de dimensión social y humanista a través de una arquitectura poética y minimalista sustentada en la cultura y en el carácter del lugar, valorando los argumentos, herramientas, principios y mecanismos que pueden constituirse referencia para nuestro oficio y aportar conocimiento que oriente la arquitectura hacia la construcción del paisaje contemporáneo. ABSTRACT Examining the singular contribution of João Archer, Nunes de Almeida and Rogério Ramos to the construction of the energy landscape through architecture, presents today a great opportunity for the advancement of our discipline. This collective of architects studying at the Porto School during the period in which master Carlos Ramos reformed the education of architecture in Portugal, designed and built from the Hidroeléctrica do Douro project office itself, the three hydropower infrastructures and the respective urban structures of Picote), Miranda and Bemposta, located in the International Douro. The project parameters are set between 1953 and 1964, representing one of the most significant moments of infrastructure, industrialization and modernization in a country at the time extremely delayed by the isolation resulting from the Salazar dictatorship. This is also the first architectural project of infrastructures within the scale of territory in which specific traits of the Porto School are recognized and wherein it came into effect the revision and transition from a modernity marked by the Loos rigor and Gropius rationalism lineage to a critical regionalism appropriate to the culture of the place, connected to Lúcio Costa, Wright and Aalto. Thus, rather than space, technical or constructive achievements of the buildings, it is exposed the process used by the authors, their way of understanding and projecting an industrial landscape with a social and humanistic dimension through a poetic and minimal architecture sustained in culture and character of the place, valuing arguments, tools, principles and mechanisms that can become a reference for our profession and provide knowledge to guide architecture towards the construction of the contemporary landscape.

MANDRÁGORAS: MITOS E ASPECTOS DA CULTURA DE ISRAEL A PARTIR DE GÊNESIS 25 A 36

A sexualidade de Lea e Raquel, o útero, as mandrágoras e o corpo de Jacó são fatores que definem o alicerce do nosso texto como espaços de diálogo, mediação e estrutura do cenário. O destaque principal está sob o capítulo 30.14-16 que retrata a memória das mandrágoras. Como plantas místicas elas dominam o campo religioso e como plantas medicinais elas são utilizadas para solucionar problemas biológicos. As instituições e sociedades detentoras de uma ideologia e de leis que regulamentam uma existência apresentam na narrativa, duas irmãs, mas também esposas de um mesmo homem que, manipuladas por essa instituição que minimiza e oprime a mulher, principalmente a estéril, confina-as como simples objeto de sexualidade e mantenedoras da descendência por meio da maternidade. A memória das mandrágoras é sinal de que a prática existente circundava uma religião não monoteísta. Ela existia sociologicamente por meio de sincretismos, força e poderes sócio-culturais e religiosos. Era constituída das memórias de mulheres que manipulavam e dominavam o poder sagrado para controle de suas necessidades. O discurso dessas mulheres, em nossa unidade, prova que o discurso dessa narrativa não se encontra somente no plano individual, mas também se estende a nível comunitário, espaço que as define e lhes concede importância por meio do casamento e dádivas da maternidade como continuidade da descendência. São mulheres que dominaram um espaço na história com suas lutas e vitórias, com atos de amor e de sofrimento, de crenças e poderes numa experiência religiosa dominada pelo masculino que vai além do nosso conhecimento atual. As lutas firmadas na fé e na ideologia dessas mulheres definiram e acentuaram seu papel de protagonistas nas narrativas 9 bíblicas que estudamos no Gênesis. A conservação dessas narrativas, e do espaço teológico da época, definiu espaços, vidas, gerações e tribos que determinaram as gerações prometidas e fecharam um ciclo: o da promessa de Iahweh quanto à descendência desde Abraão. Os mitos e as crenças foram extintos para dar espaço a uma fé monoteísta, mas a experiência religiosa

p21WAF1 is required for butyrate-mediated growth inhibition of human colon cancer cells

A diet high in fiber is associated with a decreased incidence and growth of colon cancers. Butyrate, a four-carbon short-chain fatty acid product of fiber fermentation within the colon, appears to mediate these salutary effects. We sought to determine the molecular mechanism by which butyrate mediates growth inhibition of colonic cancer cells and thereby to elucidate the molecular link between a high-fiber diet and the arrest of colon carcinogenesis. We show that concomitant with growth arrest, butyrate induces p21 mRNA expression in an immediate-early fashion, through transactivation of a promoter cis-element(s) located within 1.4 kb of the transcriptional start site, independent of p53 binding. Studies using the specific histone hyperacetylating agent, trichostatin A, and histone deacetylase 1 indicate that growth arrest and p21 induction occur through a mechanism involving histone hyperacetylation. We show the critical importance of p21 in butyrate-mediated growth arrest by first confirming that stable overexpression of the p21 gene is able to cause growth arrest in the human colon carcinoma cell line, HT-29. Furthermore, using p21-deleted HCT116 human colon carcinoma cells, we provide convincing evidence that p21 is required for growth arrest to occur in response to histone hyperacetylation, but not for serum starvation nor postconfluent growth. Thus, p21 appears to be a critical effector of butyrate-induced growth arrest in colonic cancer cells, and may be an important molecular link between a high-fiber diet and the prevention of colon carcinogenesis.

Impact of Spatial Soil and Climate Input Data Aggregation on Regional Yield Simulations

This work was financially supported by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) through the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE), (2851ERA01J). FT and RPR were supported by FACCE MACSUR (3200009600) through the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MMM). EC, HE and EL were supported by The Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (220-2007-1218) and by the strategic funding ‘Soil-Water-Landscape’ from the faculty of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences (Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences) and thank professor P-E Jansson (Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm) for support. JC, HR and DW thank the INRA ACCAF metaprogramm for funding and Eric Casellas from UR MIAT INRA for support. CB was funded by the Helmholtz project “REKLIM—Regional Climate Change”. CK was funded by the HGF Alliance “Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics” (EDA). FH was funded by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) under the Grant FOR1695. FE and SS acknowledge support by the German Science Foundation (project EW 119/5-1). HH, GZ, SS, TG and FE thank Andreas Enders and Gunther Krauss (INRES, University of Bonn) for support. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Ex vivo propagation of infectious sheep scrapie agent in heterologous epithelial cells expressing ovine prion protein

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, or prion diseases, are fatal degenerative disorders of the central nervous system that affect humans and animals. Prions are nonconventional infectious agents whose replication depends on the host prion protein (PrP). Transmission of prions to cultured cells has proved to be a particularly difficult task, and with a few exceptions, their experimental propagation relies on inoculation to laboratory animals. Here, we report on the development of a permanent cell line supporting propagation of natural sheep scrapie. This model was obtained by stable expression of a tetracycline-regulatable ovine PrP gene in a rabbit epithelial cell line. After exposure to scrapie agent, cultures were repeatedly found to accumulate high levels of abnormal PrP (PrPres). Cell extracts induced a scrapie-like disease in transgenic mice overexpressing ovine PrP. These cultures remained healthy and stably infected upon subpassaging. Such data show that (i) cultivated cells from a nonneuronal origin can efficiently replicate prions; and (ii) species barrier can be crossed ex vivo through the expression of a relevant PrP gene. This approach led to the ex vivo propagation of a natural transmissible spongiform encephalopathy agent (i.e., without previous experimental adaptation to rodents) and might be applied to human or bovine prions.

Subcutaneous vaccination with irradiated, cytokine-producing tumor cells stimulates CD8+ cell-mediated immunity against tumors located in the "immunologically privileged" central nervous system.

Vaccination with cytokine-producing tumor cells generates potent immune responses against tumors outside the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS, however, is a barrier to allograft and xenograft rejection, and established tumors within the CNS have failed to respond to other forms of systemic immunotherapy. To determine what barriers the "immunologically privileged" CNS would pose to cytokine-assisted tumor vaccines and what cytokines would be most efficacious against tumors within the CNS, we irradiated B16 murine melanoma cells producing murine interleukin 2 (IL-2), IL-3, IL-4, IL-6, gamma-interferon, or granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and used these cells as subcutaneous vaccines against tumors within the brain. Under conditions where untransfected B16 cells had no effect, cells producing IL-3, IL-6, or GM-CSF increased the survival of mice challenged with viable B16 cells in the brain. Vaccination with B16 cells producing IL-4 or gamma-interferon had no effect, and vaccination with B16 cells producing IL-2 decreased survival time. GM-CSF-producing vaccines were also able to increase survival in mice with pre-established tumors. The response elicited by GM-CSF-producing vaccines was found to be specific to tumor type and to be abrogated by depletion of CD8+ cells. Unlike the immunity generated against subcutaneous tumors by GM-CSF, however, the effector responses generated against tumors in the CNS were not dependent on CD4+ cells. These data suggest that cytokine-producing tumor cells are very potent stimulators of immunity against tumors within the CNS, but effector responses in the CNS may be different from those obtained against subcutaneous tumors.

A structure-based catalytic mechanism for the xanthine oxidase family of molybdenum enzymes.

The crystal structure of the xanthine oxidase-related molybdenum-iron protein aldehyde oxido-reductase from the sulfate reducing anaerobic Gram-negative bacterium Desulfovibrio gigas (Mop) was analyzed in its desulfo-, sulfo-, oxidized, reduced, and alcohol-bound forms at 1.8-A resolution. In the sulfo-form the molybdenum molybdopterin cytosine dinucleotide cofactor has a dithiolene-bound fac-[Mo, = O, = S, ---(OH2)] substructure. Bound inhibitory isopropanol in the inner compartment of the substrate binding tunnel is a model for the Michaelis complex of the reaction with aldehydes (H-C = O,-R). The reaction is proposed to proceed by transfer of the molybdenum-bound water molecule as OH- after proton transfer to Glu-869 to the carbonyl carbon of the substrate in concert with hydride transfer to the sulfido group to generate [MoIV, = O, -SH, ---(O-C = O, -R)). Dissociation of the carboxylic acid product may be facilitated by transient binding of Glu-869 to the molybdenum. The metal-bound water is replenished from a chain of internal water molecules. A second alcohol binding site in the spacious outer compartment may cause the strong substrate inhibition observed. This compartment is the putative binding site of large inhibitors of xanthine oxidase.

kappa opioid receptors in human microglia downregulate human immunodeficiency virus 1 expression.

Microglial cells, the resident macrophages of the brain, play an important role in the neuropathogenesis of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), and recent studies suggest that opioid peptides regulate the function of macrophages from somatic tissues. We report herein the presence of kappa opioid receptors (KORs) in human fetal microglia and inhibition of HIV-1 expression in acutely infected microglial cell cultures treated with KOR ligands. Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and sequencing analyses, we found that mRNA for the KOR was constitutively expressed in microglia and determined that the nucleotide sequence of the open reading frame was identical to that of the human brain KOR gene. The expression of KOR in microglial cells was confirmed by membrane binding of [3H]U69,593, a kappa-selective ligand, and by indirect immunofluorescence. Treatment of microglial cell cultures with U50,488 or U69,593 resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of expression of the monocytotropic HIV-1 SF162 strain. This antiviral effect of the kappa ligands was blocked by the specific KOR antagonist, nor-binaltrophimine. These findings suggest that kappa opioid agonists have immunomodulatory activity in the brain, and that these compounds could have potential in the treatment of HIV-1-associated encephalopathy.

Oxygen causes fetal pulmonary vasodilation through activation of a calcium-dependent potassium channel.

At birth, pulmonary vasodilation occurs as air-breathing life begins. The mechanism of O2-induced pulmonary vasodilation is unknown. We proposed that O2 causes fetal pulmonary vasodilation through activation of a calcium-dependent potassium channel (KCa) via a cyclic nucleotide-dependent kinase. We tested this hypothesis in hemodynamic studies in acutely prepared fetal lambs and in patch-clamp studies on resistance fetal pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. Fetal O2 tension (PaO2) was increased by ventilating the ewe with 100% O2, causing fetal total pulmonary resistance to decrease from 1.18 +/- 0.14 to 0.41 +/- 0.03 mmHg per ml per min. Tetraethylammonium and iberiotoxin, preferential KCa-channel inhibitors, attenuated O2-induced fetal pulmonary vasodilation, while glibenclamide, an ATP-sensitive K+-channel antagonist, had no effect. Treatment with either a guanylate cyclase antagonist (LY83583) or cyclic nucleotide-dependent kinase inhibitors (H-89 and KT 5823) significantly attenuated O2-induced fetal pulmonary vasodilation. Under hypoxic conditions (PaO2 = 25 mmHg), whole-cell K+-channel currents (Ik) were small and were inhibited by 1 mM tetraethylammonium or 100 nM charybdotoxin (CTX; a specific KCa-channel blocker). Normoxia (PaO2 = 120 mmHg) increased Ik by more than 300%, and this was reversed by 100 nM CTX. Nitric oxide also increased Ik. Resting membrane potential was -37.2 +/- 1.9 mV and cells depolarized on exposure to CTX, while hyperpolarizing in normoxia. We conclude that O2 causes fetal pulmonary vasodilation by stimulating a cyclic nucleotide-dependent kinase, resulting in KCa-channel activation, membrane hyperpolarization, and vasodilation.

Beijos, abraços e viagem a Paris

Sarney e FH se reconciliam durante jantar. Foto de: Josemar Gonçalves.

Sarney promete agir com pulso forte

Foto: Sarney (ao lado de Archer) promete conduzir o processo político sem aceitar vetos. Foto de: Sérgio Borges.

Sarney: PMDB não deve brigar com os fatos e dar apio à reeleição de Fernando Henrique

Ex-presidente vai propor a FH nomeação de senador do PMDB para o Ministério.

Oposição diz que Sarney falhou ao não explicar a origem do dinheiro

Petistas aplaudiram, porém, o tom das críticas ao governo FH e a Serra.