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The aim of this research was to determine whether or not a change in standard cost will improve the financial standing of a sample of Nigerian food and beverage manufacturers. This goal was reached by analyzing the relationship between the price of raw materials, the price of labor, and the price of manufacturing overhead on the bottom line of Nigerian food and beverage firms. Five manufacturing firms were chosen at random for the research. Nestle Plc, Cadbury Nig Plc, P.Z. Cussons Nig. Plc, and Presco Nig. Plc are the food and beverage companies that were included in the survey. In this case, we used secondary data that we had gathered over the previous decade (2010-2020). Panel estimation methods (pooled OLS, fixed effect estimation, and random effect) and a post estimation test were used to examine the compiled data. The results showed that a firm's performance in the manufacturing sector in Nigeria was significantly correlated with its manufacturing overhead costs, but negatively correlated with its raw material costs, and positively correlated with its labor costs. The research indicated that careful consideration of raw material costs and the maintenance of effective standard costing across all labor costs were necessary to obtain the desired results. Because of the significant savings in time and money that may be achieved via the use of standard costing principles and procedures, the research concludes that all food and beverage businesses in Nigeria should do so.

This paper estimates the factors affecting Vietnamese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) listed on the Hanoi Stock Exchange and the Chi Minh City Stock Exchange between 2009 and 2019. The author adopts a quantitative method (the “Generalized Method of Moments”-GMM) to investigate six statistically significant variables positively affecting SMEs’ performance at 5%. These variables include the profitability lag, firm size, leverage ratio, revenue growth, gross domestic product growth, and the quality of national governance. One of the significant contributions of this study to the literature is to consider the leverage ratio as a tool to improve SMEs’ performance, and national governance quality is a mechanism to enhance SMEs’ efficiency.

The article discusses the ongoing green transition towards climate neutrality in 2050 with a focus on the options of green growth, zero- or de-growth. First, the key facts about the greenhouse effect and the status quo are shown with special attention to the industrialisation of emerging economies as the key contributors to greenhouse gas emissions since about 1980. Second, the features and policies for facilitating the transition are analysed. The carbon price emerges as a key global price that needs public rather than market control. Third, the core debates on the feasibility of economic growth in ecological economics are used to shed more light on the present issues at stake. Finally, the quest for moderate global green growth is confirmed in order to accomplish decarbonization of the planet and terminate extractive capitalism as far as fossil energy is concerned; however, these attempts cannot evade the finiteness of natural resources, including land and renewable resources. The green transition leads likely close to global zero-growth of GDP which would eventually terminate the age of capital accumulation, the heart of capitalism.

Entrepreneurship is a driver of economic development, but also it is essential to consider the conditions which endorse remarkable changes in society. Therefore, the present study covers the literature gap by exploring the enhancing factors on entrepreneurship performance. Accordingly, to understand this matter, we aim to test the relationship between economic, social, governmental and innovative conditions and entrepreneurship performance, opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship. The research considers a sample of 21 European Union (EU) countries over the period 2003- 2018. For the methodology followed, a descriptive and quantitative analysis was conducted, which collected from the literature review and statistical databases, such as GEM, The World Bank, and Eurostat. Thus, we have applied the following statistical analysis: descriptive, ANOVA, correlation and multiple linear regression analyses. The results obtained have demonstrated an increase and significant relationship of entrepreneurial performance after the 2008 crisis. Additionally, economic, social, governmental and innovative conditions have generally had a negative impact on TEA, compared to a positive on necessity and opportunity entrepreneurship. There is a negative and significant effect between financial environment, population, governmental expenditures, innovation and entrepreneurship performance. A positive and significant relationship was identified between GDP, unemployment, macroeconomic environment, financial environment, age, population and necessity entrepreneurship. Likewise, there was a positive and significant impact between GDP, age and opportunity entrepreneurship. To sum up, this study completes the literature through the analysis of the influencing factors on entrepreneurship performance and both motivations on a sample of 21 EU countries, during a period of sixteen years. O empreendedorismo é um impulsionador de desenvolvimento económico. Assim, é de igual importância considerarem-se as condições que estimulam a sociedade. Desta forma, o estudo apresentado preenche a lacuna da literatura, com a investigação dos fatores influentes no desempenho do empreendedorismo. Pretende-se assim testar a relação existente entre condições económicas, sociais, governamentais, inovadoras e o desempenho do empreendedorismo, empreendedorismo por oportunidade e necessidade. A presente pesquisa considera uma amostra de 21 países da União Europeia (UE) no período de 2003-2018. A metodologia comtemplou uma análise descritiva e quantitativa, baseada na coleta de dados, pela revisão de literatura e por bases de dados estatísticos, como GEM, Banco Mundial e Eurostat. Posteriormente, foram realizadas as seguintes análises estatísticas: descritiva, ANOVA, correlação e regressão linear múltipla. Os resultados obtidos demonstraram um aumento significativo no desempenho do empreendedorismo após a crise de 2008. Complementarmente, as condições económicas, sociais, governamentais e inovadoras obtiveram maioritariamente um impacto negativo no TEA, comparativamente a um efeito positivo e significativo no empreendedorismo por necessidade e oportunidade. Há um efeito negativo e significativo entre ambiente financeiro, população, gastos governamentais, inovação e o desempenho do empreendedorismo. Identificaram-se relações positivas e significativas entre PIB, desemprego, ambiente macroeconómico, ambiente financeiro, idade, população e empreendedorismo por necessidade. Ademais, há um impacto positivo e significativo entre PIB, idade e empreendedorismo por oportunidade. Em suma, este estudo complementa a literatura através da análise dos fatores que influenciam o desempenho do empreendedorismo e as suas motivações numa amostra de 21 países da UE, num período de dezasseis anos.

An effective vaccine to reduce malaria transmission is central to control and ultimately achieve disease eradication. Recently, we demonstrated that antibodies targeting the Plasmodium falciparum surface protein P47 (Pfs47) reduce parasite transmission to Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. Here, Plasmodium berghei (Pb) was used as a model to assess the in vivo efficacy of a P47-targeted transmission blocking vaccine (Pbs47). Mice were immunized following a prime/boost regimen and infected with P. berghei. The effect of immunization on infectivity to mosquitoes was evaluated by direct feeding on P. berghei-infected mice. The key region in Pbs47 where antibody binding confers protection was mapped, and the immunogenicity of this protective antigen was enhanced by conjugation to a virus-like particle. Passive immunization with 100 and 50 μg/mL of anti-Pbs47 IgG reduced oocyst density by 77 and 67%, respectively. Furthermore, affinity purified Pbs47-specific IgG significantly reduced oocyst density by 88 and 77%, respectively at doses as low as 10 and 1 μg/mL. These studies suggest that P47 is a promising transmission blocking target and show that antibodies to the same specific region in Pfs47 and Pbs47 confer protection.

Глобальна конкуренція зростає не лише на рівні продуктів/фірм, а й серед країн. Конкурентоспроможність країн визначається багатьма факторами та оцінюється за різними підходами та методами. Одними із найвідоміших є методології Інституту розвитку менеджменту (IMD) та Всесвітнього економічного форуму (WEF). Індекс глобальної конкурентоспроможності ВЕФ ґрунтується на 12 групах із понад 100 показників. Остання версія (GCI 4.0) охоплює: 1. Сприятливе середовище (інституції; інфраструктура; прийняття ІКТ; макроекономічна стабільність). 2. Людський капітал (здоров’я; навички). 3. Ринки (товарний ринок; ринок праці; фінансова система; розмір ринку). 4. Інноваційна екосистема (динамічність бізнесу; інноваційні можливості). За даними GCI 2019, Україна на 85-му місці із 141 країни. Конкурентоспроможність України погіршується вже третій рік поспіль. Основний регрес відбувся у сферах: фінансової системи, охорони здоров’я, упровадження ІКТ, макроекономічної стабільності та інноваційних можливостей. На основі цих 12 компонентів розроблено багатофакторну регресійну модель їх впливу на конкурентоспроможність України на основі агрегованих і стандартизованих показників GCI 2009–2019 рр. Для оцінювання параметрів моделі використано метод найменших квадратів і додаток “Аналіз даних” програми MS EXCELL. Отриману модель протестовано. У результаті моделювання виявлено, що на конкурентоспроможність України найбільше вплинули показники інституцій та розвитку фінансового ринку. Отже, вони повинні стати пріоритетними напрямами розвитку та політики держави. Global competition is growing not only on a products/firms level, but also among countries. There are many approaches to interpretation of a concept of the “country competitiveness”, which in particular means “the state of the country in the global market due to the international division of labor, national conditions and factors of production and its ability to compete effectively in world markets”. The competitiveness of countries is determined by many factors and is assessed by different approaches and methods. Some of the best known are the methodologies of the Institute for Management Development (IMD) and the World Economic Forum (WEF). Potential investors are guided by them when making decisions about investing in the economy, financial institutions – when evaluating countries as recipients of capital, etc. The WEF’s Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is based on 12 groups of over 100 indicators and is regularly adjusted to meet current challenges facing national economies. The latest version – GCI 4.0 – includes: 1. Enabling Environment (1.1. Institutions. 1.2. Infrastructure. 1.3. ICT adoption. 1.4. Macroeconomic stability). 2. Human Capital (2.1. Health. 2.2. Skills). 3. Markets (3.1. Product market. 3.2. Labour market. 3.3. Financial system. 3.4. Market size). 4. Innovation Ecosystem (4.1. Business dynamism. 4.2. Innovation capability). According to GCI 2019, the top five are: Singapore, the United States, Hong Kong, Netherlands and Switzerland, while Ukraine – in the 85th place out of 141 countries. The competitiveness of Ukraine has been deteriorating for the third year in a row. The main regression is in the spheres of: financial systems, healthcare, ICT implementation, macroeconomic stability and innovation opportunities. Considering those 12 components, the multifactorial regression model for Ukraine competitiveness was designed based on aggregated and standardized GCI indicators of 2009–2017 and 2018–2019. To estimate the parameters of the multifactor regression model, the least squares method and the application “Data Analysis” of the program MS EXCELL were used. The obtained model has been tested. As a result of modeling, it can be seen that – institutions indicator and – indicator of financial market development had the greatest influence on the competitiveness of Ukraine. Thus, they should become the priority areas of the state development and policy

Before Hugo Chavez burst into the political scene in Venezuela, Argentina's Juan Peron (1895- 1974) was considered the quintessential Latin American populist leader. He ruled Argentina from mid 1943 until September 1955 and between 1973 and 1974 and his political party has been in power two thirds of the time since the reestablishment of democracy in 1983. Perón's economic policies between 1946 and 1949 are also considered archetypical. The Peronist economic policy paradigm (PEPP) emphasized income redistribution and a fiscally induced expansion of aggregate demand at the expense of productivity and allocative efficiency. Although the ideological roots of Peronism can be directly traced back to Fascism, when it came to his economic policies, Perón claimed to have been inspired by FDR's New Deal and Keynes's General Theory. However, in mosts respects, in their early stage, Peronist economic policies resemble more those proposed by Sir Oswald Mosley (1896-1980) in 1930. This paper describes the PEPP, its implementation and results and evaluates several hypothesis regarding its intellectual roots.

After being dormant for several decades, populism has resurfaced in Europe and North America. Since the beginning of the 21st century Europe's populist parties have tripled their vote and were able to put their leaders into government posts in eleven countries, which has increased thirteen fold the population living under populist regimes. The virus has even contaminated Anglo-Saxon countries, which were considered immune. This new strain of populism seems different from the one that infected Latin America for most of the second half of the 20th century. Instead of fostering class struggle it appeals to racism, xenophobia and anti-globalization. In this regard, it has a closer resemblance to early 20th century European populist strains. Although much has been written about populism, a widely accepted definition remains elusive. Before Hugo Chavez burst into the political scene in Venezuela, Argentina's Juan Perón (1895-1974) was considered the quintessential Latin American populist leader. Perón was undoubtedly one of the most successful politicians of the 20th century. Although he entered politics in 1943 Peronism still dominates Argentine politics. Even though it may seem harder to define than populism, its study offers valuable clues about populism's nature and meaning that are relevant today in modern advanced democracies.

TARAMAWOS WOS:000588386800037 TARAMAPUBMED TARAMASCOPUS Background: Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is characterized by defective microbial killing due to mutations affecting subunits of thenicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase complex. Definitive genetic identificationof disease subtypes may be delayed or notreadily available. Objective: We sought to investigate the role of intracellular staining of NADPH oxidase enzyme subunits in predicting the respective genetic defectsin CGD patients and carriers. Methods: Thirty-fourgenetically inherited CGD patients, including twelve patients with X-linked CGD (gp91phoxdeficiency due to CYBB mutations) and 22 patients with autosomal recessive CGD (p22phox, p47phox and p67phoxdeficiency due toCYBA, NCF1 and NCF2mutations, respectively)were recruited from different immunology centers and followed up prospectively.Dihydrorhodamine (DHR) testingand NADPH oxidase subunit expression in white blood cells were determined by flow cytometry. Results:gp91phoxand p22phoxdefects, which result in simultaneous loss of both proteins due to their complex formation, were only differentiated by comparative analysis ofpatients’and mothers’ intracellular staining. p47phox and p67phox protein expression was almost undetectable in patients compared to carrier mothers and healthy controls. The expression values of the respective subunits were found to be significantly higherin all controlsas compared to carrier mothers, which in turn were higher than those of patients. Conclusion: Analysis of NADPH oxidase enzyme subunits byflow cytometry in patients and carriers is useful in the rapid predictionof the genetic defect of patients with CGD,thus guiding targeted sequencing and aiding in their early diagnosis.

This article presents a summary of the main theoretical arguments and policy recommendations of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) and traces back its intellectual origins to the writings on money of Georg F. Knapp and on fiscal policy of Abba P. Lerner. It also presents evidence on two countries that followed MMT like policies: Germany between 1939 and 1945 and Argentina with brief interruptions since 1946. The main conclusion of the article is that any country that consistently follows the policy prescriptions of MMT will inevitably experience high inflation and lower (and even negative) economic growth.

The tumor suppressor protein p53 orchestrates cellular responses to a vast number of stresses, with DNA damage and oncogenic activation being some of the best described. The capacity of p53 to control cellular events such as cell cycle progression, DNA repair, and apoptosis, to mention some, has been mostly linked to its role as a transcription factor. However, how p53 integrates different signaling cascades to promote a particular pathway remains an open question. One way to broaden its capacity to respond to different stimuli is by the expression of isoforms that can modulate the activities of the full-length protein. One of these isoforms is p47 (p53/47, Δ40p53, p53ΔN40), an alternative translation initiation variant whose expression is specifically induced by the PERK kinase during the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) following Endoplasmic Reticulum stress. Despite the increasing knowledge on the p53 pathway, its activity when the translation machinery is globally suppressed during the UPR remains poorly understood. Here, we focus on the expression of p47 and we propose that the alternative initiation of p53 mRNA translation offers a unique condition-dependent mechanism to differentiate p53 activity to control cell homeostasis during the UPR. We also discuss how the manipulation of these processes may influence cancer cell physiology in light of therapeutic approaches.

After being dormant for decades, in the last two decades, right-wing populism resurfaced strongly in Europe and the US channeling a reaction against globalization. This resurgence has prompted economists to pay increasing attention to populist economics. Current versions of right wing populism share many elements with early fascism, particularly the type that developed by the British Union of Fascists (BUF) in the UK under the leadership of Sir Oswald Mosley. Less aggressive and racist than its continental counterparts, one of its pillars was isolationism, which figures prominently in the platforms of modern populist parties in Europe and North America. Although more sophisticated in his economic thinking than Hitler and Mussolini, Mosley's was less successful politically. His stubborn obnoxiousness and inability to acknowledge his mistakes cemented his status as a political pariah and contributed to the academic neglect of his 1930 program of radical economic reform which he later incorporated into the BUF's platform. The study of Mosleynomics also has historical value. Mosley's proposals not only contributed to the interwar policy debate but also anticipated many key elements of the economic policies of fascist and non-fascist regimes on both sides of the Atlantic, not only in the US, Germany and Italy in the 1930s but also in the UK under the Labor Party and Argentina under Perón in the immediate postwar. This essay seeks to contribute to fill a gap in the literature, by tracing the intellectual roots and evolution of Mosley's economic policy proposals.

Africa most populous black nations remain underdeveloped, mainly due to shambolic industrial sector performance. Rising problems of insecurity, corrupt practices, consumerism structure have made gains from capital inflows minimal. Little empirical credence has been leaned to the capital inflow-industrial output growth relationship in Nigeria. This anomaly has resulted in shortsighted policy formulation and attendant consequences.This paper examined international capital flows and industrial performance in Nigeria. The paper employed the two-step Engle and Granger estimation procedure and the Granger Causality to estimate parameters of the indices of industrial output growth and capital inflows to Nigeria. Findings revealed that labour participation, gross fixed capital formation, foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investment have a significant positive relationship with industrial performance in Nigeria. Findings also revealed unidirectional causality from labour participation, gross fixed capital formation, foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investmentto industrial performance in Nigeria. Based on the findings, the Nigerian government should create an enabling environment to attract more capital inflow that could augment domestic resources with the sole aim of growing the industrial sector.

This paper argues that the traditional social contract that underlies the free market economy has run its course and needs to be replaced by a new contract, based on a new conception of the “empowering economy.” Whereas different social contracts are relevant to different societies, all these contracts have some features in common, addressing some basic human needs that are common to all. These are needs that every thriving society must satisfy. In the presence of current global problems – such as climate change and financial crises – satisfying these needs can also generate the popular approval for multilateral agreements to tackle these problems. The paper identifies three inconvenient truths for the existing social contract: (i) economic performance involves more than material prosperity, (ii) free markets naturally generate inequality, and (iii) human progress rests primarily on cooperation. In response, the paper proposes a new social contract that can be promoted through three policy approaches: (1) policy that focuses not just on material prosperity, but also on personal empowerment and social solidarity, (2) automatic stabilizers that reduce inequalities of economic power and (3) policy that develops the human capabilities of cooperation.

Botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs) are causative agents of the life-threatening disease botulism. They are naturally produced by species of the bacteria Clostridium botulinum as stable and non-covalent complexes, in which the BoNT molecule is assembled with several auxiliary non-toxic proteins. Some BoNT serotypes, represented by the well-studied BoNT serotype A (BoNT/A), are produced by Clostridium strains that carry the ha gene cluster, which encodes four neurotoxin-associated proteins (NTNHA, HA17, HA33, and HA70) that play an important role to deliver and protect BoNTs in the gastrointestinal tract during oral intoxication. In contrast, BoNT/E- and BoNT/F-producing strains carry a distinct gene cluster that encodes five proteins (NTNHA, P47, OrfX1, OrfX2, and OrfX3, termed the orfX cluster). The structures and functions of these proteins remain largely unknown. Here, we report the crystal structure of P47 resolved at 2.8Å resolution. Surprisingly, P47 displays a structural topology that is similar to bactericidal/permeability-increasing (BPI) like proteins, which were previously identified only in eukaryotes. The similarity of a hydrophobic cleft of P47 with the phospholipid-binding groove of BPI suggests that P47 might be involved in lipid association to exert its function. Consistently, P47 associates and induces aggregation of asolectin-containing liposomes in a protein- and lipid-concentration dependent manner. These findings laid the foundation for future structural and functional studies of the potential roles of P47 and OrfX proteins in facilitating oral intoxication of BoNTs.

Valosin-containing protein (VCP) was found to play a vital protective role against cardiac stresses. Genetic mutations of VCP are associated with human dilated cardiomyopathy. However, the essential role of VCP in the heart during the physiological condition remains unknown since the VCP knockout in mice is embryonically lethal. We generated a cardiac-specific dominant-negative VCP transgenic (DN-VCP TG) mouse to determine the effects of impaired VCP activity on the heart. Using echocardiography, we showed that cardiac-specific overexpression of DN-VCP induced a remarkable cardiac dilation and progressively declined cardiac function during the aging transition. Mechanistically, DN-VCP did not affect the endogenous VCP (EN-VCP) expression but significantly reduced cardiac ATPase activity in the DN-VCP TG mouse hearts, indicating a functional inhibition. DN-VCP significantly impaired the aging-related cytoplasmic/nuclear shuffling of EN-VCP and its co-factors in the heart tissues and interrupted the balance of the VCP-cofactors interaction between the activating co-factors, ubiquitin fusion degradation protein 1 (UFD-1)/nuclear protein localization protein 4 (NPL-4) complex, and its inhibiting co-factor P47, leading to the binding preference with the inhibitory co-factor, resulting in functional repression of VCP. This DN-VCP TG mouse provides a unique functional-inactivation model for investigating VCP in the heart in physiological and pathological conditions.

The recent financial crisis (2008) seriously affected the credibility of European and Italian institutions. It was also characterized by a general pessimism and low expectations of economic operators, especially firms. In literature, relationships between the quality of institutions and economic activities have been widely investigated. They show how the judicial system, the regulatory authorities and governance are important aspects for the quality of institutions.The main conclusion of existing literature, or the necessity of a reform of judicial system, is the basis of this work. Thus, here there is an attempt to investigate the performances of the judicial system, considering the low and poor level of its effects on firms’ performances. In particular, in this work, there is a simple empirical analysis (data paucity is the big limit) in order to investigate the consequences of an efficient, long-time justice on resilient firms’ confidence and perspective. Those resilient firms, able to overcome the financial crisis, show their ability in surviving, even if justice doesn’t help them.

International journal of molecular sciences 22(15), 8103 (1-19) (2021). doi:10.3390/ijms22158103, The scaffold protein Tks4 is a member of the p47$^{phox}$-related organizer superfamily. It plays a key role in cell motility by being essential for the formation of podosomes and invadopodia. In addition, Tks4 is involved in the epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling pathway, in which EGF induces the translocation of Tks4 from the cytoplasm to the plasma membrane. The evolutionarily-related protein p47$^{phox}$ and Tks4 share many similarities in their N-terminal region: a phosphoinositide-binding PX domain is followed by two SH3 domains (so called ���tandem SH3���) and a proline-rich region (PRR). In p47$^{phox}$, the PRR is followed by a relatively short, disordered C-terminal tail region containing multiple phosphorylation sites. These play a key role in the regulation of the protein. In Tks4, the PRR is followed by a third and a fourth SH3 domain connected by a long (~420 residues) unstructured region. In p47$^{phox}$, the tandem SH3 domain binds the PRR while the first SH3 domain interacts with the PX domain, thereby preventing its binding to the membrane. Based on the conserved structural features of p47phox and Tks4 and the fact that an intramolecular interaction between the third SH3 and the PX domains of Tks4 has already been reported, we hypothesized that Tks4 is similarly regulated by autoinhibition. In this study, we showed, via fluorescence-based titrations, MST, ITC, and SAXS measurements, that the tandem SH3 domain of Tks4 binds the PRR and that the PX domain interacts with the third SH3 domain. We also investigated a phosphomimicking Thr-to-Glu point mutation in the PRR as a possible regulator of intramolecular interactions. Phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PtdIns(3)P) was identified as the main binding partner of the PX domain via lipid-binding assays. In truncated Tks4 fragments, the presence of the tandem SH3, together with the PRR, reduced PtdIns(3)P binding, while the presence of the third SH3 domain led to complete inhibition., Published by Molecular Diversity Preservation International, Basel