Academic literature on the topic '579.307 2'

A protein kinase A-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation pathway in mammalian spermatozoa has been demonstrated to exist, and is unique to this cell type. As PKA is incapable of directly phosphorylating substrates on tyrosine residues, much research has focused on the identification of an intermediary tyrosine kinase which can be activated by serine/threonine phosphorylation via PKA. Inhibitory studies using genistein, tryphostin, erbstatin and herbimycin A, have demonstrated that the src family of kinases may be responsible for the tyrosine phosphorylation events seen during capacitation (1). Although one src family member, c-yes, has been implicated as the kinase responsible for these events (2), this has since been disputed (3). Another src family member, pp60c-src, can be activated by phosphorylation on Ser-17 by cAMP-dependent protein kinase and Ser-12 by calcium-phospholipid dependent protein kinase C (4), and may be the intermediary tyrosine kinase of interest. Western blot analysis demonstrated the presence of pp60c-src in rat sperm samples isolated from the caput and cauda epididymis. Furthermore, co-immunoprecipitation studies revealed a number of pp60c-src-associated proteins including outer dense fibre 2 (ODF2) and A-kinase anchoring protein 4 (AKAP4). Interestingly, both of these proteins become phosphorylated during capacitation of mouse sperm (data not shown) and AKAP4 is tyrosine phosphorylated in capacitated human sperm (5). These data implicate pp60c-src kinase activity in the phosphorylation of a number of sperm midpiece proteins, which may regulate hyperactivation during capacitation. Further research focusing on the activity of pp60c-src in non-capacitated and capacitated sperm will be conducted. (1) Yaciuk P., et al. (1989) Mol. Cell Biol. 9, 2453–2461. (2) Baker M., et al. (2003) J. Cell Sci. 117, 211–222. (3) Leclerc P., Goupil S (2002) Biol. Reprod. 67, 301–307. (4) Bajpai M., et al. (2003) Arch. Androl. 49, 229–246. (5) Ficarro S., et al. (2003) J. Biol. Chem. 278, 11�579–11�589.

Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah menjadi solusi membantu tim helpdesk dalam mengelola proses dari membuat tiket hingga penyelesaiannya. Penelitian ini menggunakan algoritma kombinasi Forward Chaining untuk mengelola SLA (Service Level Agreement) pengerjaan tiket dan Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) untuk prioritas pengerjaan tiket. Pengujian telah dilakukan sebanyak 600 data, metode forward chaining mencatat SLA pengerjaan tiket seperti urutan 1 sampai 20 berdurasi 7.9 jam indikator warna hijau, 21 sampai 40 durasi 6 jam berindikator kuning, 41 sampai 70 berdurasi 3 jam indikator hijau, 71 sampai 172 berdurasi 7 hari 19 jam indikator merah, 173 sampai 174 durasi 4 hari, 175 sampai 230 durasi 2 hari 21 jam, 231 sampai 260 berdurasi 8 jam berwarna kuning, 261 sampai 305 4 jam berwarna hijau, 306 sampai 325 berdurasi 7 hari 19 jam indikator merah, 326 sampai 345 berdurasi 12.6 jam berwarna kuning, 346 sampai 356 berdurasi 6.5 jam warna hijau, 357 sampai 469 berdurasi 7 hari 19 jam indikator merah, 470 sampai 475 berdurasi 4 hari, 476 sampai 556 berdurasi 2 hari 19 jam indikator merah, 557 sampai 576 berdurasi 23.9 jam berwarna kuning dan 577 sampai 600 berdurasi 7 jam serta berwarna hijau. Metode SAW mengurutkan prioritas pengerjaan berdasarkan bobot dan nilai awal yang telah ditentukan. Urutan 1 sampai 70 bernilai 100 diperingkat kesatu, 71 sampai 305 bernilai 55 diperingkat kedua, 306 sampai 356 dengan nilai 25 diperingkat ketiga, dan 357 sampai 600 bernilai 10 serta diperingkat keempat.

<Introduction> Delayed immune reconstitution after allogeneic transplantation increases the risk of treatment-related mortality, and chronic GVHD. Previous reports showed that absolute lymphocyte count at day 30 (ALC30) was a significant prognostic factor of transplantation, and lower numbers of total CD4+ T cells and naïve CD4+ T cells in particular were associated significantly with higher mortality. However, there is little knowledge about the factors associated with low lymphocyte recovery, especially in cord blood transplantation (CBT). The cut-off value of lymphocyte recovery for statistical significance has not been determined yet. <Methods> We retrospectively analyzed the outcome of 579 consecutive patients who underwent single cord blood transplantation (CBT) for the first time at Toranomon Hospital between January 2011 and 2018. Patients with active infection at transplantation (n=40), in poor ECOG PS (3 or more) (n=36), or lacked information about CT before CBT (n=1) were excluded from this study. <Results> Five hundred and two patients (n=317 male; n=185 female) were included in this study. The median age at transplantation was 57 years (range, 16-77), with a median HCT-CI score of 2 (0-10). Underlying diseases were AML (307), MDS (43), MPN (20), ALL (50), mature lymphoid malignancies (54), and others (28). Median spleen index (SI) before transplantation was 60.2 (16.5-319.7). Three hundred and ninety eight patients (79%) were not in remission at transplant. MAC regimens were selected in 400 (80%). TAC alone was used in 132 (26%) as GVHD prophylaxis. Median number of TNC and CD34+ cells infused were 2.62 (1.57-6.85) x 107/kg and 0.86 (0.29-3.77) x 105/kg, respectively. 194 (39%) were positive for anti-HLA antibodies, but none had donor-specific. With a median follow-up of 32 (range, 3-99) months, cumulative incidence of neutrophil engraftment (NE), the 3-year probabilities of overall survival (OS), relapse rate (RR) and non-relapse mortality (NRM) for entire population were 92.8%, 40.6%, 23.5%, and 35.3%, respectively. Underlying disease (myeloid malignancy), disease status at SCT (non-CR), poor PS (PS=2), GVHD prophylaxis (TAC+MMF), low CD34-positive cell dose (<0.8 x 105/kg), and splenomegary (SI ≥ 40) were significantly associated with inferior NE in multivariate analysis. Disease status at SCT (non-CR), poor PS (PS=2), Higher HCT-CI (PS ≥ 3), and GVHD prophylaxis (TAC+MMF) were significantly associated with higher NRM in multivariate analysis. We analyzed the relationship between ALC30 and transplantation outcome. Median number of ALC30 was 231 (3.5-1503), and the 25th percentile was 144. We divided the cohort into two groups, ALC30 low group (<150, n=123), ALC30 high group (≥150, n=346). High number of ALC30 (≥150) was associated with better survival (48.1% vs. 29.5%, p < 0.01) and lower NRM (26.9% vs. 41.9%, p < 0.01) due to reduced incidence of lethal infection (7.1% and 23.4% of total death in ALC30 high and low, respectively, p < 0.01), but was not associated with RR (25.5% vs. 25.1%, p = 0.59). High ALC30 (≥150), as well as younger age (<60), underlying disease (myeloid malignancy), better PS (0-1), and disease status at SCT (CR) showed a superior OS in multivariate analysis. We then assessed factors associated with ALC30, and higher infused dose of CD34-positive cells was the only factor associated with high ALC30, (p=0.03, t-test). Other factors, such as infused TNC dose, type of conditioning, or GVHD prophylaxis did not show significant association with ALC30. <Conclusion> This retrospective study demonstrated that low ALC30 after CBT had negative impact on survival because of higher NRM rate. High CD34-positive cell dose was the only factor associated with high ALC30. Not CD34-positive cell dose, but ALC30 had significant impact on OS in multivariate analysis, so we need to take lymphocyte recovery into account, in an attempt to improve transplantation outcome. Figure Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Highly new efficient vanadate based phosphor B2BiMg2V3O12 (B= K & Na) material incapacitated through rare-earth Dysprosium (Dy) and it was characterized by high temperature solid-state synthesis. Equipped phosphor was established by X-ray diffraction method. In Photo-luminescence measurements shows that the prepared phosphors doped by Dy is excited by near UV ultraviolet light reaching after 300 nm to 380 nm efficiently acceptable to recognize the emission in visible spectrum (in the range 400 nm –570 nm. The highly efficient prepared phosphor doped with lanthanide doped with Dy phosphor likewise showed the exact emission point at 487 nm and 571 nm at the excitation point at 325 nm. Hence, these prepared phosphors can find numerous applications as green emitting phosphor in the field of solid-state lighting area.

As lesões de furca ocorrem quando a doença periodontal atinge a área de bifurcação dos dentes multirradiculares causando a destruição óssea e perda de inserção no espaço inter-radicular. Existem diversos fatores etiológicos que influenciam no aparecimento dessas lesões e até os dias de hoje o tratamento desse tipo de injúria ainda é um desafio na clínica odontológica. O objetivo deste artigo foi listar, através de uma revisão da literatura, os fatores que influenciam na etiologia da lesão de furca, bem como o seu diagnóstico, prognóstico e tratamento. Fatores como características morfológicas do dente e raiz e deficiência no controle do biofilme, que podem contribuir para o seu aparecimento. Além de diversos tipos de procedimentos e técnicas têm sido propostas para o tratamento das lesões de furca, seja mais ou menos conservadores. Descritores: Defeitos da Furca; Diagnóstico; Doenças Periodontais. Referências Deliberador TM, Nagata MJH, Furlaneto FAC, Messora MR, Bosco AF, Garcia VG et al. Abordagem conservadora no tratamento dos defeitos de furca. RSBO. 2008;5(8):49-55. Silva GP, Sousa Neto AC, Pereira AFV, Alves CMC, Pereira ALA, Serra LLL. Classificação e tratamento das lesões de furca. Rev Ciênc Saúde. 2014;16(2):112-28. Nibali L, Zavattini A, Nagata K, Di Iorio A, Lin GH, Needleman I, et al. Tooth loss in molars with and without furcation involvement - a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Clin Periodontol. 2016;43(2):156-66. Artacho MCI, Arambulo GM. Defectos de furcación. Etiología, diagnóstico y tratamiento. Rev Estomatol Herediana. 2010;20(3):172-78. Pereira SG, Pinho MM, Almeida RF. Regeneração periodontal em lesões de furca–revisão da literatura. Rev port estomatol med dent cir maxilofac. 2012;53(2):123-32. Queiroz LA, Casarian RCV, Daddoub SM, Tatakis DN, Enilson AS, Kumar PS. Furcation Therapy with Enamel Matrix Derivative: Effects on the Subgingival Microbiome. J Periodontol. 2017;88(7):617-25. Vieira TR, Costa FO, Zenóbio EG, Soares RV. Anatomia radicular e suas implicações na terapêutica periodontal. Rev Periodontia 2009;19(1):7-13. Bower RC. Furcation morphology relative to periodontal treatment. Furcation root surface anatomy. J Periodontol. 1979;50(7):366-74. Newman M, Takei H, Klokkevold P, Carranza F. Periodontia clínica. ed. São Paulo: Elservier; 2016. Lindhe J, Karring T, Lang NP. Tratado de periodontia clínica e implantodontia oral. ed; Rio de Janeiro: Guanabara Koogan;2010. Hamp SE, Nyman S, Lindhe J. Periodontal treatment of multirroted teeth. Result after 5 years. J Clin Periodontol. 1975;2(3):126-35. Ramjford SP, Ash MM. Periodontology and Periodontics. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co; 1979. Tarnow D, Fletcher P. Classification of the vertical component of furcation involvement. J Periodontol. 1984;55(5):283-84. Walter C, Weiger R, Zitman NU. Periodontal surgery in furcation-involved maxillary molars revisited: an introduction of guidelines for comprehensive treatment. Clin Oral Investig. 2011;15(1):9-20. Sallum AW, Cicareli AJ, Querido MRM, Bastos-Neto FVR. Periodontia e implantodontia - Soluções estéticas e recursos clínicos. Rio de Janeiro: Napoleão; 2010. Graziani F, Gennai S, Karapetsa D, Rosini S, Filice N, Gabriele M, et al. Clinical performance of access flap in the treatment of class II furcation defects. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. J Clin Periodontol. 2015;42(2):169-81. Svärdström G, Wennström JL. Periodontal treatment decisions for molars: an analysis of influencing factors and long-term outcome. J Periodontol. 2000;71(4):579-85. Huynh-Ba G, Kuonen P, Hofer D, Schmid J, Lang NP, Salvi GE. The effect of periodontal therapy on the survival rate and incidence of complications of multirooted teeth with furcation involvement after an observation period of at least 5 years: a systematic review. J Clin Periodontol. 2009;36(2):164-76. Shirakata Y, Miron RJ, Nakamura T, Sena K, Shinohara Y, Horai N et al. Effects of EMD liquid (Osteogain) on periodontal healing in class III furcation defects in monkeys. J Clin Periodontol. 2017;44(3):298-307. Meyle J, Gonzales JR, Bödeker RH, Hoffmann T, Richter S, Heinz B et al. A randomized clinical trial comparing enamel matrix derivative and membrane treatment of buccal class II furcation involvement in mandibular molars. Part II: secondary outcomes. J Periodontol. 2004; 75(9):1188-95. Jenabian N, Haghanifar S, Ehsani H, Zahedi E, Haghpanah M. Guided tissue regeneration and platelet rich growth factor for the treatment of Grade II furcation defects: A randomized double-blinded clinical trial - A pilot study. Dent Res J (Isfahan). 2017;14(6):363-69. Kinaia M, Steiger J, Neely AL, Shah M, Bhola M. Treatment of class II molar furcation involvement: meta-analyses of re-entry results. J Periodontol. 2011;82(1):413-28. Correa A, Ferreira PS, Barboza R, Ribeiro EDP, Bittencourt S. Fatores que influenciam no sucesso da técnica do retalho posicionado coronalmente. Rev Bahiana Odonto; 2013;4(2):117-28. Jepsen S, Gennai S, Hirschfeld J, Kalemaj Z, Buti J, Graziani F. Regenerative surgical treatment of furcation defects: A systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. J Clin 2020;47(Suppl 22):352-74. Reddy MS, Aichelmann-Reidy ME, Avila-Ortiz G, Klokkevold PR, Murphy KG, Rosen PS, et al. Periodontal regeneration - furcation defects: a consensus report from the AAP Regeneration J Periodontol. 2015;86(2 Suppl):S131-3. Casarin RCV, Ribeiro EDP, Nociti-Jr FH, Sallum AW, Ambrosano GMB, Sallum EA, et al. Enamel matrix derivative proteins for the treatment of proximal class II furcation involvements: a prospective 24-month randomized clinical trial. J Clin Periodontol; 2010;37(12):1100-109. Hoffmann T, Richter S, Meyle J, Gonzales JR, Heinz B, Arjomand M et al. A randomized clinical multicentre trial comparing enamel matrix derivative and membrane treatment of buccal class II furcation involvement in mandibular molars. Part III: patient factors and treatment outcome. J Clin Periodontol. 2006;33(8):575-83.

Abstract Purpose: To examine cancer-related follow-up (CRFU) health care utilization associated with fertility experiences among diverse adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors. Methods: Project Milestones is an ongoing survey study evaluating life outcomes among AYAs diagnosed with cancer at age 21-39 in Los Angeles (LA) County. AYAs had an initial 5-year survival probability of ≥50% and are currently 3-10 years post-diagnosis. A registry-based recruitment strategy through the SEER-affiliated LA Cancer Surveillance Program was used. Results: Overall, 1442 AYAs responded (Table 1). Compared to AYAs who did not, AYAs who saw: (1) their treating provider for CRFU were more likely to report a fertility discussion (56.0% vs. 41.2%, p<.01); (2) another provider for CRFU were less likely to report a fertility discussion (38.1% vs. 52.0%, p<.01); (3) their treating provider for CRFU were more likely to report preserving fertility (14.7% vs. 8.4%, p<.01); (4) a primary care provider for CRFU were less likely to report preserving fertility (10.1% vs. 13.6% p<.05). Compared with AYAs who reported a CRFU visit 1+ years ago or never, AYAs with a visit <1 year ago: (1) had on average greater reproductive concerns (range 5-25, higher scores reflect greater concern, 13.8 vs. 13.4, p<.05); and were more likely to report (2) worry passing on a genetic risk for cancer to their child (55.6% vs. 47.8%, p<.01); and (3) caution about having children because they may not be around to raise them (23.6% vs. 16.6%, p<.01). Discussion: Iatrogenic infertility concerns persistent into survivorship, yielding a need to optimize oncofertility care throughout the reproductive lifespan. Receiving CRFU care from the treating provider is related to better outcomes, and higher reproductive concerns among AYAs with a recent visit may reflect greater awareness of risk due to more points of contact with a provider. Table 1: Sample characteristics - N (%) or M (SD) Total Hispanic Non-Hispanic 1442 622 (43.1) 820 (56.9) Age at survey 39.5 (5.8) 39.3 (5.8) 39.6 (5.7) Female 1007 (69.8) 429 (69.0) 578 (70.5) White 850 (62.4) 301 (55.0) 549 (67.3) Had employee-sponsored insurance 909 (63.0) 347 (55.8) 562 (68.5) Age at diagnosis 31.0 (5.2) 30.8 (5.2) 31.2 (5.1) Cancer type Leukemia/Lymphoma 396 (27.5) 173 (27.8) 223 (27.2) Reproductive 382 (26.5) 208 (33.4) 174 (21.2) Thyroid 184 (12.8) 86 (13.8) 98 (12.0) Breast 179 (12.4) 61 (9.8) 118 (14.4) Skin 130 (9.0) 21 (3.4) 109 (13.3) Colorectal 86 (6.0) 35 (5.6) 51 (6.2) Other 85 (5.9) 38 (6.1) 47 (5.7) Discussed fertility 717 (50.3) 327 (53.4) 390 (48.0) Preserved fertility 176 (12.3) 48 (7.8) 128 (15.7) Reproductive Concerns After Cancer (RCAC) score 14.1 (3.9) 14.3 (4.2) 14.0 (3.8) Last visit with a health care provider for cancer related follow-up care Within the past year 862 (60.3) 343 (56.2) 519 (63.4) 1-2 years ago 218 (15.3) 90 (14.8) 128 (15.6) More than 2 years ago 303 (21.2) 152 (24.9) 151 (18.4) Never 46 (3.2) 25 (4.1) 21 (2.6) Provider seen for cancer related follow-up care Same doctor who treated me 885 (61.4) 369 (59.3) 516 (62.9) Primary care provider 539 (37.4) 224 (36.0) 315 (38.4) Another type of provider 179 (12.4) 65 (10.5) 114 (13.9) Cancer survivorship clinic 88 (6.1) 46 (7.4) 42 (5.1) Citation Format: Julia Stal, Kimberly A. Miller, Joel E. Milam, Molly Quinn, Sue E. Kim, Rachel C. Ceasar, David R. Freyer. Cancer-related follow-up health care utilization and fertility discussion, preservation, and reproductive concerns among diverse adolescent and young adult cancer survivors: A population-based study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 2253.

Samples with the nominal composition Bi 2 Sr 2 SmCu 2 O y were prepared by solid state reaction method. From the room temperature X-ray diffraction data, it was found that the sample is similar to the Bi-2212 structure. DC electrical resistivity was done from 80 K to 573 K and the impedance measurements were performed from 80 K to 573 K at different frequencies in the range of 10 kHz to 800 kHz. The sample Bi 2 Sr 2 SmCu 2O y has exhibited semiconducting behavior in the low temperature region (80 K to 343 K), metallic behavior in the temperature range of 343 K to 443 K and again semiconducting behavior above 443 K. The sample has exhibited the phenomenon of variable rangehopping mechanism (VRH). The physical parameters related to VRH such as localization length (a), hopping distance (R) and hopping energy (W) have been evaluated and discussed. The activation energy in the high temperature region (above 300 K) decreases with increasing frequency. Tan δ increases with increase in temperature (303 K-573 K), which is attributed to increased conductivity. The dielectric constant increases with increase in temperature. For a given temperature the value of ε is found to decrease with increase in frequency.

ABSTRACT Mutations in the RNase H domain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 RT have been reported to cause resistance to zidovudine (ZDV) in vitro. However, very limited data on the in vivo relevance of these mutations in patients exist to date. This study was designed to determine the relationship between mutations in the RNase H domain and viral susceptibility to nucleoside analogues. Viruses harboring complex thymidine analogue mutation (TAM) and nucleoside analogue mutation (NAM) profiles were evaluated for their phenotypic susceptibilities to ZDV, tenofovir (TNF), and the nonapproved nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) β-2′,3′-didehydro-2′,3′-dideoxy-5-fluorocytidine (Reverset), β-d-5-fluorodioxolane-cytosine, and apricitabine. As controls, viruses from NRTI-naïve patients were also studied. The pol RT region (codons 21 to 250) of the viruses were sequenced and evaluated for mutations in the RNase H domain (codons 441 to 560) and the connection domain (codons 289 to 400). The results showed that viruses from patients failing multiple NRTI-containing regimens had distinct TAM and NAM profiles that conferred various degrees of resistance to ZDV (0.9- to >300-fold). Sequencing of the RNase H domain identified five positions (positions 460,468, 483, 512, and 519) at which extensive amino acid polymorphisms common in both wild-type viruses and viruses from treated patients were identified. No mutations were observed at positions 539 and 549, which have previously been associated with ZDV resistance. Mutations in the RNase H domain did not appear to correlate with the levels of phenotypic resistance to ZDV. Although some mutations were also observed in the connection domain, the simultaneous presence of the L74V and M184V mutations was the most significant determinant of phenotypic resistance to ZDV in patients infected with viruses with TAMs.

ABSTRACTThe carcass composition of Hereford × Friesian (HE), Friesian (FR) and Charolais × Friesian (CH) steers finished on diets of high (H) and medium (M) dietary metabolizable energy (ME) concentrations and slaughtered at low (L), normal (N) and heavy (W) carcass weights was examined in a 3 × 2 × 3 (no. = 9 per individual treatment) factorial experiment. A pre-finishing slaughter group of nine animals of each breed type was also included, giving a total 189 animals in 21 experimental groups. ME concentrations of the H and M diets which were offered ad libitum were 12·6 and 10·4 MJ/kg dry matter. Target carcass weights for L, N and W were 260, 300 and 340 kg for HE and FR and 260, 320 and 380 kg for CH.Carcass side weights (before tissue separation) of the HE, FR and CH pre-finishing slaughter groups were 90·8, 970 and 101·0 (s.e.d. 3·9) kg. Corresponding tissue proportions were 188, 199 and 200 (s.e.d. 4·3) g/kg bone, 663, 686 and 690 (s.e.d. 5·3) g/kg muscle and 135, 99 and 96 (s.e.d. 5·7) g/kg fat. Main effect side weights of the finished groups were 152·3, 151·4 and 162·2 (s.e.d. 1·4) kg for HE, FR and CH. 158·5 and 152·2 (s.e.d. 1·1) kg for H and M and 131·2, 155·2 and 179·6 (s.e.d. 1·4) kg for L, N and W, respectively. Tissue proportions in the same order were 146, 160 and 157 (s.e.d. 2·0), 149 and 159 (s.e.d. 1·6) and 163, 154 and 146 (s.e.d. 2·0) g/kg bone, 579, 601 and 635 (s.e.d. 5·5), 600 and 610 (s.e.d. 4·5) and 637, 599 and 574 (s.e.d. 5·5) g/kg muscle and 264, 228 and 195 (s.e.d. 6·4), 240 and 219 (s.e.d. 5·2) and 188, 235 and 264 (s.e.d. 6·4) g/kg fat. CH had more (P < 0·001) of their muscle in the pelvic limb and less (P < 0001) in the thorax than HE and FR. HE had more (P < 0·001) of their carcass fat in the subcutaneous depot and less (P < 0·001) in the intermuscular depot than FR and CH. The allometric regression coefficients for the main joint and tissue weights on side weight were <1·0 for both limbs, loin, bone and muscle. Coefficients were >1·0 for the thorax, ribs, flank and fat. The regression coefficients for the main muscles of the pelvic limb and loin and total thoracic limb muscle on total side muscle were <l·0, while the coefficients for the flank, ribs and thorax muscles were >1·0. Similarly the regression coefficients for the bones of the two limbs on total side bone were <10, while the coefficients for the loin, ribs and thorax bones were >10. It was calculated (for the H diet) that at a carcass weight of 300 kg, HE, FR and CH would have carcass tissue proportions of 576, 600 and 642 g/kg muscle and 261, 227 and 180 g/kg fat. The three breed types would have similar carcass fat contents at carcass weights of 264, 300 and 376 kg for HE, FR and CH, respectively.

This chapter presents an introduction and brief analysis of the resolution toolbox and accompanying powers found in the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD). Following an account of the key trends in the design of modern bank insolvency regimes the concept of resolution, as well as the key policy objectives of the BRRD are analysed. It then examines the conditions for resolution, and the general principles for resolution as set out by articles 32, 33, and 34 of the BRRD. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the four ‘resolution tools’ stated in articles 37–58 and the capital instruments described in articles 59–62.

Hayes and Williams’ Family Law, now in its sixth edition, provides critical and case-focused discussion of the key legislation and debates affecting adults and children. The volume takes a critical approach to the subject and includes ‘talking points’ and focused ‘discussion questions’ throughout each chapter which highlight areas of debate or controversy. The introductory chapter within this edition provides a discussion of the law’s understanding of ‘family’ and the extent to which this has changed over time, a detailed overview of the meaning of private and family life within Article 8 of the ECHR, and a discussion of the Family Justice Review and subsequent developments. Part 1 of this edition, supplemented by the ‘Latest Developments’ section, outlines the most up-to-date statistics on the incidence of marriage, civil partnerships and divorce, discusses recent case law on the validity of marriage such as Hayatleh v Mofdy [2017] EWCA Civ 70 and K v K (Nullity: Bigamous Marriage) [2016] EWHC 3380 (Fam), and highlights the recent Supreme Court decision (In the Matter of an Application by Denise Brewster for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland) [2017] 1 WLR 519) on the pension rights of unmarried cohabitants. It also considers the litigation concerning the prohibition of opposite-sex civil partnership registration from the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Steinfeld and Keidan v Secretary of State for Education [2017] EWCA Civ 81 to the important decision of the Supreme Court in R (on the application of Steinfeld and Keidan) (Application) v Secretary of State for International Development (in substitution for the Home Secretary and the Education Secretary) [2018] UKSC 32. This edition also provides an in-depth discussion of the recent Supreme Court decision in Owens v Owens [2018] UKSC 41 regarding the grounds for divorce and includes discussion of Thakkar v Thakkar [2016] EWHC 2488 (Fam) on the divorce procedure. Further, this edition also considers the flurry of cases in the area of financial provision on divorce such as Waggott v Waggott [2018] EWCA Civ 722; TAB v FC (Short Marriage: Needs: Stockpiling) [2016] EWHC 3285; FF v KF [2017] EWHC 1903 (Fam); BD v FD (Financial Remedies: Needs) [2016] EWHC 594 (Fam); Juffali v Juffali [2016] EWHC 1684 (Fam); AAZ v BBZ [2016] EWHC 3234 (Fam); Scatliffe v Scatliffe [2016] UKPC 36; WM v HM [2017] EWFC 25; Hart v Hart [2017] EWCA Civ 1306; Sharp v Sharp [2017] EWCA Civ 408; Work v Gray [2017] EWCA Civ 270, and Birch v Birch [2017] UKSC 53. It also considers the recent decision of the Supreme Court in Mills v Mills [2018] UKSC 38 concerning post-divorce maintenance obligations between former partners, and the Privy Council decision in Marr v Collie [2017] UKPC 17 relating to the joint name purchase by a cohabiting couple of investment property.Part 2 focuses on child law, examining the law on parenthood and parental responsibility, including the parental child support obligation. This edition includes discussion of new case law on provision of child maintenance by way of global financial orders (AB v CD (Jurisdiction: Global Maintenance Orders)[2017] EWHC 3164), new case law and legislative/policy developments on section 54 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (parental orders transferring legal parenthood in surrogacy arrangements), and new cases on removing and restricting parental responsibility (Re A and B (Children: Restrictions on Parental Responsibility: Radicalisation and Extremism) [2016] EWFC 40 and Re B and C (Change of Names: Parental Responsibility: Evidence) [2017] EWHC 3250 (Fam)). Orders regulating the exercise of parental responsibility are also examined, and this edition updates the discussion with an account of the new Practice Direction 12J (on contact and domestic abuse), and controversial case law addressing the tension between the paramountcy of the child’s welfare and the protected interests of a parent in the context of a transgender father’s application for contact with his children (Re M (Children) [2017] EWCA Civ 2164). Part 2 also examines the issue of international child abduction, including in this edition the Supreme Court’s latest decision, on the issue of repudiatory retention (Re C (Children) [2018] UKSC 8). In the public law, this edition discusses the Supreme Court’s clarification of the nature and scope of local authority accommodation under section 20 of the Children Act 1989 (Williams v London Borough of Hackney [2018] UKSC 37). In the law of adoption, several new cases involving children who have been relinquished by parents for adoption are examined (Re JL & AO (Babies Relinquished for Adoption),[2016] EWHC 440 (Fam) and see also Re M and N (Twins: Relinquished Babies: Parentage) [2017] EWFC 31, Re TJ (Relinquished Baby: Sibling Contact) [2017] EWFC 6, and Re RA (Baby Relinquished for Adoption: Final Hearing)) [2016] EWFC 47).

Abstract Skull, clavicles, vertebrae, upper limbs (ulnae, radius). Formerly London, Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. Present location unknown. E. W. A. H. Jones, J. of Anat. 66 (1932), 569-73 (achondroplasia); G. Brunton, Mostagedda and the Tasian Culture (London, 1937), 42 (‘Upper part of a male dwarf’); A. Bley er, Ann. Med. Hist. 2 (1940), 306 (achondroplasia); Ortner/Putschar, Pathological Conditions, 331.

Abstract The human type I IL-1 receptor is predicted from the cDNA sequence to be a protein of 569 amino acids (GenBank accession number M27492; mouse, M20658; rat, M95578; chicken, M81846) (Sims et al. 1989). It contains a 20-aminoacid signal peptide, an extracellular region of 317 amino acids, a single 22-amino-acid transmembrane region, and acytoplasmic portion of 210 amino acids (see Figs 1 and 2). The extracellular region is comprised entirely of three immunoglobulin-like domains. All ofthe six potential sites for N-linked glycosylation are used, giving an apparent molecular weight on SDS gels of approximately 80 000. The protein is encoded by an mRNA of approximately 5 kb which is present at a low level in a wide variety of cells.

A 57-year-old man with a 25-year history of type 2 diabetes (T2D) presented to the endocrine clinic for a second opinion about recent worsening of glycemic control despite the use of increasing doses of insulin. He had been on various oral agents during the early years of his diabetes but for the past 15 years had been on insulin. In the past, he had been on various insulin regimens consisting of glargine, lispro, and premixed insulins, with an average total daily dose (TDD) of 270–300 units. About 2 years ago, his regimen was changed from premixed 70/30 insulin to U-500 regular insulin after his control continued to get worse despite appropriate increases in insulin doses.

Abstract In his historic first extravehicular activity (EVA), Alexi Leonov faced almost every medical risk an EVA can present. Leonov left his Voskhod 2 capsule in March 1965 to begin the first spacewalk ever performed. All went well until he tried to get back into the capsule. His suit was pressurized to 5.9 psi (40.5 kPa), and he had difficulty maneuvering. He reduced the suit pressure to 3.7 psi (25.5 kPa), helping his mobility, but also greatly increasing his risk for decompression sickness. His efforts to get back inside his capsule generated more heat than his suit could remove, causing his body temperature to increase, his heart rate to rise, and his visor to fog. Even though his spacewalk lasted only 12 minutes, by the end Leonov was dehydrated and physically exhausted.

A 59-year-old woman presented to the endocrinology clinic with elevated blood glucose (HbA1c 8.9%) following a recent hospitalization requiring high-dose steroids for an allergic reaction to an anesthesia induction agent. This patient had diabetes for the past 7 years and was previously well controlled on metformin 1,000 mg twice daily (all prior HbA1c <7%). She had previously tried a sulfonylurea, but this was discontinued because of one severe hypoglycemic event. Her past medical history included hypertension, hyperlipidemia, atrial fibrillation, and obesity. During hospitalization, glucose control was maintained by insulin infusion, and she was discharged on insulin glargine 20 units daily. Metformin was continued and blood glucose levels remained as high as 300 mg/dL (16.7 mmol/L). She was instructed to titrate insulin until fasting blood glucose were <150 mg/dL (8.3 mmol/L). The patient titrated to 85 units of insulin daily with blood glucose averages remaining >190 mg/dL (10.5 mmol/L). Her steroid taper was completed 2 months before her initial endocrine visit. The patient expressed frustration with poor blood glucose control and weight gain. A plan to address her glucose control and her weight gain included discontinuation of her insulin, continuation of her metformin, and the addition of canagliflozin 100 mg daily, titrated to 300 mg daily initially with subsequent addition of a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) inhibitor, liraglutide, 0.6 mg titrated to 1.8 mg daily.

Abstract Sea level changed with CO2 over the past 500 million years in response to plate tectonic forcing (abundant mid-ocean ridges provide CO2, and raise sea level). Sea level is thus a barometer of Earth’s climate states, falling as ice sheets grow. Following Milankovitch Cycles of insolation, it fluctuated with ice volume and CO2 throughout the Pleistocene ice age. During the Anthropocene, deltas (human breadbaskets) are being flooded (1) by meltwater contributions, and (2) due to subsidence caused by the cutting off of their supply of silt by dams upstream. The rate of global sea level rise has accelerated to 4 mm/yr (c. 3/16 of an inch/yr). Rises of up to c.1.8 m (5.9 ft) are expected by 2100 as the world warms, possibly reaching 10–14 m (33–46 ft) in the 300-year time frame, as occurred in Pliocene times. Where ice is melting, sea level will fall as the land rises, relieved of its icy burden.

The problem of estimation of a coregionalization of size q using cokriging will be discussed in this chapter. Cokriging—a multivariate extension of kriging—is the usual procedure applied to multivariate regionalized problems within the framework of geostatistics. Its fundament is a distribution-free, linear, unbiased estimator with minimum estimation variance, although the absence of constraints on the estimator is an implicit assumption that the multidimensional real space is the sample space of the variables under consideration. If a multivariate normal distribution can be assumed for the vector random function, then the simple kriging estimator is identical with the conditional expectation, given a sample of size N. See Journel (1977, pp. 576-577), Journel (1980, pp. 288-290), Cressie (1991, p. 110), and Diggle, Tawn, and Moyeed (1998, p. 300) for further details. This estimator is in general the best possible linear estimator, as it is unbiased and has minimum estimation variance, but it is not very robust in the face of strong departures from normality. Therefore, for the estimation of regionalized compositions other distributions must also be taken into consideration. Recall that compositions cannot follow a multivariate normal distribution by definition, their sample space being the simplex. Consequently, regionalized compositions in general cannot be modeled under explicit or implicit assumptions of multivariate Gaussian processes. Here only the multivariate lognormal and additive logistic normal distributions will be addressed. Besides the logarithmic and additive logratio transformations, others can be applied, such as the multivariate Box-Cox transformation, as stated by Andrews et al. (1971), Rayens and Srinivasan (1991), and Barcelo-Vidal (1996). Furthermore, distributions such as the multiplicative logistic normal distribution introduced by Aitchison (1986, p. 131) or the additive logistic skew-normal distribution defined by Azzalini and Dalla Valle (1996) can be investigated in a similar fashion. References to the literature for the fundamental principles of the theory discussed in this chapter were given in Chapter 2. Among those, special attention is drawn to the work of Myers (1982), where matrix formulation of cokriging was first presented and the properties included in the first section of this chapter were stated.

<em>Abstract</em>.—We assessed potential impacts of harvest and proposed channel modifications on the paddlefish <em>Polyodon spathula </em>fishery of Ozark Lake, Arkansas River, Arkansas. Ultrasonic telemetry was used to determine commercial and recreational exploitation rates, survival, spawning locations, and habitat use of gravid female paddlefish. Monthly searches were conducted for 40 tagged fish and we recorded 862 locations in Ozark Lake from January 2004 through December 2005. Adjacent reservoirs (i.e., Pool 13 and Lake Dardanelle) were tracked periodically, but interpool movement was not detected. Commercial fishing exploitation was determined at a mandatory check station and was estimated to be 30% during a 5-d special season. Annual recreational snag-fishing exploitation estimates were 8% (2004) and 3% (2005). Survival was different between years and was much lower the year (2004) with a commercial fishing season. Kaplan-Meier staggered-design survival estimates (±95% confidence interval [CI]) for 2004, 2005, and 2004 through 2005 were 0.60 ± 0.19, 0.92 ± 0.11, and 0.55 ± 0.18, respectively. With commercial and recreational harvests omitted from the analysis, the estimated 2-year survival rate was 0.91 ± 0.13 (±95% CI), which corresponds to 5% annual natural mortality. Gravid females migrated a median distance of 33 and 32 km in the spring of 2004 and 2005 and likely spawned in the tailwater of James W. Trimble Lock and Dam from late March to early April. Successful paddlefish reproduction was verified by capture of 23 prolarvae. Paddlefish selected tributary mouth habitat in all seasons (59% of locations). Tailwater and inundated creek channel habitats were selected in spring and summer, respectively. A navigation project to deepen the channel from 2.7 to 3.7 m will impact approximately 50% of the tailwater spawning habitat. Channel modifications (i.e., dredging and dike construction) near the mouth of the Mulberry River may disturb an important tributary mouth habitat for paddlefish where 55% of all locations were recorded. Our study identified biologically important habitats that need conservation and indicates that commercial harvest was the primary source of mortality for gravid female paddlefish in Ozark Lake.

The rate coefficient for quenching NF(b1∑) by F2, IF, and I2 has been measured from 300 to 570 K in a low pressure flow system. None has a strong temperature dependence. The temperature dependence of the rate coefficient can be fitted by k = (BT1/2) exp(−E/RT) with B = 1.0 × 10−12 cm3 s−1 K−1, E = 0.39 kcal mol−1 for F2, B = 3.7 × 10−12 cm3 s−1 K−1, E = −0.16 kcal mol−1 for IF, and B = 6.4 × 10−12 cm3 s−1 K−1/2 and E = −0.07 kcal for I2. This implies that the efficiency of energy transfer from NF(b) to the potential lasing species, IF, would be 7% at 800 K. The rate coefficient at 330 K is 4.4 × 10−12 cm3 s−1, 1.0 × 10−10 cm3 s−1, and 1.6 × 10−10 cm3 s−1 for F2, IF, and I2. NF(b) was made by reaction of argon metastables with NF2 and its concentration measured by its emission near 528 nm. IF was produced by reaction of F with CF3I and measured by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) which also measured its ground state rotational distribution from which the gas temperature was determined. Because of the formation of IF n on the tube walls at elevated temperature, LIF was used to measure [IF] and calibrated at 330 K.

The possibilities of explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) in the early diagnosis of drought in plants based on hyperspectral images (HSI) are investigated. To provide the explainability and high accuracy to the result, we used the markup of HSI by superimposed Thermal IR (TIR) images of the last day of the experiment. Traditional HSI-based NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) images were also constructed. The markup of HSIs based on their clustering by the k-means method into 5 classes was also objectified: wet plants; plants in a state of drought; wet soil; dry soil; background. For HSI, on the day of the experiment started, the number of clusters was set to 2 less to reflect the absence of drought circumstances. For use in training and testing, all HSIs channels are marked up with the results of clustering. The HIS-TIR-combination made it possible to determine the temperature for each plant pixel in HSI, and as the result to determine the number of days without watering. A fully connected Double Layer Perceptron (DLP) neural network was used to solve classification and regression problems. The trained DLP-regressor showed the average accuracy of predicting the temperature of plants on the control days of the experiment RMSE = 0.52 degrees, providing an error in predicting the day of the beginning of the drought for near 2 days. The DLP-classifier was able to classify the drought of the plant in the early stages (the fifth day) with an accuracy of 97.3%. Software tools: pytorch, scikit-learn, pysptools.

A recent comprehensive investigation into residual stress distributions in narrow gap welds in pressure vessels and pipe components are presented in this paper, covering component wall thickness from 1” (25.4mm) to 10” (254mm), component radius to wall thickness ratio from 2 to 100, and linear welding heating input from low (300 J/mm) to high (18000 J/mm). By means of a residual stress decomposition technique, two key parameters that govern through-thickness residual stress distributions in terms of their membrane and bending content have been identified. One is component radius to wall thickness ratio (r/t) and the other is a characteristic heat input density (Q̂) having a unit of J/mm3. With these two parameters, a unified functional form for representing through-thickness residual stress profile in narrow gap welds is proposed for supporting fitness for service assessment, e.g., using f API 579-RP. Its validity is further confirmed by full-blown thermomechanical finite element residual stress analyses for a number of selected narrow gap weld cases.

Load tests were conducted on pretensioned concrete prisms cast with 13 different 5.32-mm-diameter prestressing wire types that are used in the manufacture of pretensioned concrete railroad ties worldwide. The tests were specifically designed to evaluate the development length and bonding performance of these different reinforcements. The prestressing wires were denoted “WA” through “WM” and indentation types included smooth, spiral, chevron, diamond, and 2-dot and 4-dot. Four wires were embedded into each concrete prism, which had a 3.5″ (88.9 mm) × 3.5″ (88.9 mm) square cross section. The wires were initially tensioned to 7000 pounds (31.14 KN) and gradually de-tensioned when the concrete compressive strength reached 4500 psi (31.03 Mpa). A consistent concrete mixture with type III cement, water-cement ratio of 0.32 and a 6-in. slump was used for all prisms. Prisms were tested in 3-point-bending at different spans to obtain estimations of the development length of each type of reinforcement. Two identical 69-in.-long (175.26 cm) prisms were load tested, at both ends, for each reinforcement type evaluated. First prisms were tested at 20-in. (50.8 cm) from one end and 13-in. (33.02 cm) from the other end, whereas the second prisms were loaded at 16.5-in. (41.9 cm) from one end and 9.5-in. (24.13 cm) from the other end. Thus, a total of 52 load tests (13 wire types × 4 tests each) were conducted in this study. During each test, a concentrate load with the rate of 300 lb/min (1334 N/min) was applied at mid-span until failure occurred, and values of load, mid-span deflection, and wire end-slip were continuously monitored and recorded. Plots of load-vs-deflection were then compared for prisms with each wire type and span, and the maximum sustained moment was also calculated for each test. The load tests revealed that there is a very large difference in the development length of the different wire types currently used in the manufacture of pretensioned concrete railroad ties. The results imply that there would also likely be large differences in the reserve capacity (beyond first cracking) for pretensioned concrete crossties fabricated with these different reinforcements.

ЦЕЛЬ: изучить коморбидность больных с сахарным диабетом 2 типа (СД2), получающих лечение по по- воду переднего острого инфаркта миокарда (ОИМ) с зубцом Q. МАТЕРИАЛЫ И МЕТОДЫ: в исследование вошли 90 пациентов с передним ОИМ с зубцом Q, получаю- щие гликлазид (n=30, 1-группа), глимепирид (n=30, 2 группа) и глибенкламид (n=30, 3 группа). Изучались липидограмма, гликированный гемоглобин (HbA1C), креатинин, альбуминурия, осматривались неврологом, окулистом, рассчитывался индекс массы тела (ИМТ). РЕЗУЛЬТАТЫ: мужчин было 43 (47,7%), а женщин 47 (52,3%). Возраст мужчин составлял 60±9 [57-62] лет, женщин 53±8 [50-55]. В 1 группе ИМТ составил 30,4±2,1[29,6-31,1] кг/м2, во 2 группе ИМТ 31,6±2,3 [30,7-32,4], а в 3 группе- 31,2±3,9 [29,8-32,6] кг/м2. При проведении анализа корреляционной взаимосвязи ИМТ от стажа СД2 была установлена высокой тесноты обратная связь (р<0,001, rxy= -0,782). При увеличении стажа СД2 на 1год следует ожидать уменьшение ИМТ на 0,402. Полученная модель объясняет 61,2% наблюдаемой дисперсии. При оценке связи ИМТ и возраста была установлена умеренной тесноты обратная связь. При увеличении возраста на 1 следует ожидать уменьшение показателя ИМТ на 0,319. При оценке связи ИМТ и дозы препарата сульфонилмочевины (ПСМ) связь отсутствовала. При увеличении дозы ПСМ на 1 следует ожидать увеличение ИМТ на 0,019. У всех пациентов регистрировалась дислипидемия: ЛПНП в 1 груп- пе 3,2±0,4[3,06-3,34], во 2 группе 3,2±0,6 [2,99 -3,41], в 3 группе 3,3±0,7 [3,05-3,55]; холестерин в 1 группе 5,7±1,0 [5,34-6,06], в 2 группе 5,9±0,9 [5,58-6,22], в 3 группе 6,1±0,9 [5,7-6,42]. У всех больных была выявлена артериальная гипертензия (АГ). Во всех группах диагностировались хроническая болезнь почек (ХБП). В 1 группе было с ХБП С2А1 5 пациентов (16,7%), 17 больных с ХБП С3а (А1-А2) (56,7%) и 8- ХБП С3б (А1-А2) (26,7%). Во 2 группе ХБП С2А1 3,3% (n=1), ХБП С3а (А1-А2) 86,7% (n=26), ХБП С3б (А1-А2) 10% (n=3). В 3 группе ХБПС2А1 40%(n=12), ХБП С3аА1-А2 36,7%(n=11), ХБП С3бА1-А2 23,3% (n=7). Из 90 пациентов со скоростью клубочковой фильтрации (СКФ) более 50мл/мин/1.73 м2 было 14, а с менее 50 мл/мин/1.73 м2-16 больных. Чем больше стаж СД2, тем меньше СКФ был. Был проведен анализ для выявления связи между СКФ и дли- тельности СД2. Исходя из полученных данных при сопоставлении показателя стажа СД более 6 лет и по- казателя СКФ менее 50 мл/мин/1.73 м2, были установлены статистически значимые различия (p = 0,004, p < 0,001). Анализ показал, шанс иметь СКФ меньше 50 при наличии СД2 более 6 лет были выше в 37,500 раз, по сравнению с СД менее 6 лет, различия шансов были статистически значимыми (95% ДИ: 3,638 – 386,513). HbA1C составил 9,3±1,2 [9,1-9,6]. Корреляционный анализ показал, что при увеличении стажа СД2 на 0,446 следует ожидать увеличение HbA1C на 1. При увеличении HbA1C на 1 следует ожидать увеличение СКФ на 1,007. При увеличении HbA1C на 1 следует ожидать уменьшение ИМТ на 0,518. При осмотре глазного дна выявились в 1 группе 80% (n=24) больных с ретинопатией, во 2 группе 80 % (n=24), в 3 группе 66,6 % (n=20). Всем больным был выставлен диагноз диабетическая полинейропатия. ВЫВОДЫ: больные с СД2 и передним ОИМ с зубцом Q имели осложнения и заболевания, которые говорили о наличии и риске значимых сердечно-сосудистых осложнений.

Background and objective: Technology is everywhere, usage of electronics turns into a wide part of the lives of young and growing children's daily routine nowadays, and children are more at risk of this suddenly developing of technology. RFs are non-ionizing radiation including wavelengths varying from 3 kHz to 300 MHz and microwaves ranging from 300 MHz to 300 GHz. The main purpose of the research was to determine the impact of electronic device use and daily screen time on physical and physiological health. Methods: In this study, a Google form for the questionnaire was used for data collection in 2021, and it was distributed to some primary schools in Erbil. The parents were asked to respond to questionnaire questions about their children. Result: According to the responses of 68 percent of parents, the highest percentage of age in this study is between 3 and 5 years (31.4 percent). The majority of participants go to bed between 11 and 11:59 p.m., and the majority of them wake up between 10 and 10:59 a.m. (24.5 percent ). 27.5 percent of children spend more than 7 hours per day on electronic devices while only 22.5 % use 1-2 hours per day. Conclusion: As a result of the survey and mixed with most of the findings showing that the negative impact of using the electronic device in the development and growth and health effects however the effect of the electronic device on children depending on the time duration watching the electronic screen per a day.

ZnSe-based quantum well (QW) heterostructures are promising for vertical cavity lasers, optical switches, modulators, high density optical memory systems, full colour display panels. The ZnSe/ZnMgSSe/ZnMgSSe separate confined heterostructures (SCH) with single and multiple quantum wells (SQW, MQW) examined in this work were grown on GaAs substrates in a low pressure MOVPE reactor at a total pressure of 400 hPa and a growth temperature of 330°C, using dimethylzinc triethylamine adduct (DMZn(TEN)), ditertiarybutylselenium (DTBSe), ditertiarybutylsulphur (DTBS) and bismethylcyclopentadienylmagnesium ((MeCp)2Mg) as precursors. Optical properties of the structures were investigated over the temperature range T=78-650 K under the pulse N2 laser excitation (λ=337.1 nm, τ=8 ns, f=l kHz). The laser action was achieved up to T=577 K (SCH-SQW) and up to T=612 K (SCH-MQ). The laser pulse energy at T=300 K was about 5 nJ. The far field pattern consisted of an oval spot with the divergence (θ/2)‖ = 14° in the sample plane and (θ/2)⊥=26° in the perpendicular plane. Fig. 1 shows the laser threshold as a function of temperature and the emission spectra near the threshold at T=500 K (inset). It was shown, using photoluminescence measurements, that the SCHs are stable up to T=500 K. Heating the samples at T=500-650 K leads to a slow (without the N2 laser beam) or to a fast (with the N2 laser beam, Iexc> 100 kW/ cm2) degradation. It has been found experimentally that irradiation of the structures with the N2 laser beam (50-150 kW/cm2) in a temperature range of 400 500 K improves the structure properties and results in a significant increase of the stimulated emission output (Fig. 2) and in a laser threshold reduction.

Thrombin (THR) is generated during ARDS, sepsis and DIC. We wondered whether it might augment PMN/endothelial cell (EC) interaction and hence amplify EC damage by inducing platelet activating factor (PAF) (JCI 76:2235-2246;1985). To examine further this premise and the mechanisms involved, we measured intracel1ular calcium (Ca1) in human EC (grown on glass cover slips), in a scanning spectrof1uorometer at 37°C after loading with FURA 2 (4μM). Resting Ca1 was 148±22 nM (Mean±SEM) which increased following THR 0.5u/ml to 458±160 nM at 30s, peaking after 1 min at 559±176 nM, and returning to 273±42 nM by 5 min. Phosphatidyl inositol (PI) turnover was assessed in 3H-myoinositol-loaded EC using water-soluble extracts separated by Dowex anion exchange chromatography. Within 30s of THR (lu/ml) stimulation, PI turnover markedly increased, with production of inositol bi- and tri-phosphates showing a >5 fold rise. Associated with these perturbations, THR-treated EC monolayers enhanced O2- generation by FMLP(10™7)-stimulated PMNs (basal levels of 5.73±0.68 O2-/15 min/106 PMN rising to 8.01±0.85 nM (p<0.05)); moreover this enhancement could be completely inhibited with a newly described PAF antagonist BN 52021. PAF production is dependent upon phosphorylation of an acetyl transferase, and Ca1 flux and PI hydrolysis are events known to be associated with protein kinase activation. THR-EC stimulation would seem, therefore, to initiate a sequence of events involving PMN/EC 'cross-talk' leading to contact activation of marginated PMNs by EC-derived PAF. This is an example of a novel paracrine response, and is consistent with our data showing the potent priming effect of PAF on PMN oxidant responses (Blood 68:88A; 1986) and provides evidence for a previously unsuspected pathway that promotes PMN oxidant-mediated EC injury during sepsis or other THR-generating disorders.

We first measured red/green equilibria of a 1o test field superimposed on either a green (540 nm) or red (660 nm) 5°, 32-troland background. The background was then modified by (1) reducing its size to 3° or (2) introducing a dark, thin concentric ring with an outer diameter of 3°. The ring was 12′ wide so, effectively, it changed the 5° background to a 2.6° background surrounded by, but not contiguous with, a 35° (inner-outer diameter) ring. The test was an admixture of 549-and 660-nm light, and was varied from 6 to 300 trolands. The observer adjusted the 549-nm component of the test until the test appeared neither reddish nor greenish. Two color-normal observers participated in the study. Reducing the size of the background from 5° to 3° caused a shift in color appearance at all illuminances of the test. The shift was toward greenness with a 540-nm background and toward redness with a 660-nm background and can be explained by a smaller change in receptoral sensitivity with the smaller background. Introducing a 12′ dark gap in the 5°, 540-nm background had a larger effect than reducing the size from 5° to 3°, implying the influence of the gap is not due simply to less background light. The same gap on a 5°, 660-nm background had an effect opposite the change in color appearance caused by reducing the size of the background: reducing the size from 5° to 3° caused the test to appear more reddish, but adding the dark gap to the 5° background caused the test to appear more greenish. Similar results were found with 320-troland backgrounds. These observations reveal that contours in a background field strongly affect color appearance, and do so in ways qualitatively different from varying the retinal area stimulated by background light. The results point to higher level processes that use edge contrast to differentiate remote from contiguous adapting light.

In this study, we examine potential temporal changes in coda Q values for two significant Canadian earthquakes in different tectonic environments: the 2017 (Mw 5.9) Barrow Strait earthquake along Canada's northern margin and the 2012 (Mw 7.8) Haida Gwaii subduction earthquake on Canada's west coast. Waveforms from 124 earthquakes (2.0 &amp;lt;/= M &amp;lt;/= 4.6) for ~30 years prior to the January 8, 2017 Barrow Strait earthquake and 66 events (mainly aftershocks of M 2.0-5.3) in about 4 years after the mainshock recorded by the closest seismic station (RES) of the Canadian National Seismograph Network (CNSN) were utilized in this study. Based on our analysis, overall average of Q0 (Q at 1 Hz) decreased from 92 (before the mainshock) to 81. The most significant decrease in the frequency range between 2 and 16 Hz is observed for areas corresponding to ellipse parameter a2 of 50, 70 and 80 mainly related to aftershock activity. Precursory Q changes could not be evaluated before the mainshock due to the lack of reported seismicity within 100 km of the recording seismic station for almost 2 years from April 2015 to January 2017. Coda Q values before and after the October 28, 2012 Haida Gwaii earthquake in British Columbia show a similar pattern. Waveforms from 249 earthquakes (2.0 &amp;lt;/= M &amp;lt;/= 4.9) in 2 years before the mainshock and 498 events (2.5 &amp;lt;/= M &amp;lt;/= 6.3) in 2 years after the mainshock recorded by the three closest seismic stations of the CNSN were utilized. Overall average of Q0 decreased from 89 (before the mainshock) to 69 (station BNB), from 90 to 79 (station DIB) and from 86 to 78 (station VIB). In general, these results are in agreement with other global studies that show a decrease in Q0 following a major earthquake, likely the result of increased fracturing and fluids in the epicentral region.

The Automatic Identification System (AIS) shares vessel position information for navigational safety purposes. AIS broadcasts are received by other ships and terrestrial stations; however, in some areas there is no, or low, terrestrial station coverage to receive broadcasts. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) developed an Online Travel Time Atlas (OTTA) to process AIS data and derive a transit count. This study examined OTTA output from 2020 and 2021 to identify areas of high or low AIS coverage along the Upper Mississippi, Illinois, and Ohio Rivers. Segments with a yearly average of two or more transit per day were classified as high coverage, those with less than a yearly average of two transits per day were classified as low coverage. Rivers were segmented using the USACE National Channel Framework reach boundaries. Results based on calculated vessel transits were as follows: Upper Mississippi River: 837.4 miles (98%) had high coverage, with 17.4 miles (2%) of low coverage; Illinois River: 190.5 miles (59%) had high AIS coverage, and 133 miles (41%) had low AIS coverage; Ohio River: 644 miles (66%) had high coverage, and 337 miles (34%) had low coverage. AIS coverage could be improved by raising antennae heights, installing repeater equipment, or adding towers.

The Indiana Dunes (comprised of 15 geographic units (see Figure 1) which include Indiana Dunes National Park, Dunes State Park, and adjacent Shirley Heinze Land Trust properties) are remarkable in the Midwest and Great Lakes region for the vascular plant diversity, with an astounding 1,212 native plant species in an area of approximately 16,000 acres! This high plant diversity is the result of the interactions among postglacial migrations, the variety of soil substrates, moisture conditions, topography, successional gradients, ?re regimes, proximity to Lake Michigan, and light levels. This richness is all the more signi?cant given the past human alterations of the landscape resulting from logging; conversion to agriculture; construction of transportation corridors, industrial sites, and residential communities; ?re suppression; land abandonment; and exotic species invasions. Despite these impacts, multiple natural areas supporting native vegetation persist. Thus, each of the 15 units of the Indiana Dunes presents up to eight subunits varying in human disturbance and consequently in ?oristic richness. Of the most signi?cant units of the park in terms of number of native species, Cowles Dunes and the Dunes State Park stand out from all the other units, with 786 and 686 native species, respectively. The next highest ranked units for numbers of native species include Keiser (630), Furnessville (574), Miller Woods (551), and Hoosier Prairie (542). The unit with lowest plant richness is Heron Rookery (220), with increasing richness in progression from Calumet Prairie (320), Hobart Prairie Grove (368), to Pinhook Bog (380). Signi?cant natural areas, retaining native vegetation composition and structure, include Cowles Bog (Cowles Dunes Unit), Howes Prairie (Cowles Dunes), Dunes Nature Preserve (Dunes State Park), Dunes Prairie Nature Preserve (Dunes State Park), Pinhook Bog, Furnessville Woods (Furnessville), Miller Woods, Inland Marsh, and Mnoke Prairie (Bailly). Wilhelm (1990) recorded a total of 1,131 native plant species for the ?ora of the Indiana Dunes. This was similar to the 1,132 species recorded by the National Park Service (2014) for the Indiana Dunes. Based on the nomenclature of Swink and Wilhelm (1994), Indiana Dunes National Park has 1,206 native plant species. If we include native varieties and hybrids, the total increases to 1,244 taxa. Based on the nomenclature used for this report?the Flora of North America (FNA 2022), and the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS 2022)?Indiana Dunes National Park houses 1,206 native vascular plant species. As of this writing (2020), the Indiana Dunes is home to 37% of the species of conservation concern in Indiana (241 out of 624 Indiana-listed species): state extirpated = 10 species, state endangered = 75, and state threatened = 100. Thus, 4% of the state-listed species in the Indiana Dunes are extirpated, 31% endangered, and 41% threatened. Watch list and rare categories have been eliminated. Twenty-nine species once documented from the Indiana Dunes may be extirpated because they have not been seen since 2001. Eleven have not been seen since 1930 and 15 since 1978. If we exclude these species, then there would be a total of 1,183 species native to the Indiana Dunes. Many of these are cryptic in their life history or diminutive, and thus are di?cult to ?nd. Looking at the growth form of native plants, <1% (nine species) are clubmosses, 3% (37) are ferns, 8% (297) are grasses and sedges, 56% (682) are forbs or herbs, 1% (16) are herbaceous vines, <1% (7) are subshrubs (woody plants of herbaceous stature), 5% (60) are shrubs, 1% (11) are lianas (woody vines), and 8% (93) are trees. Of the 332 exotic species (species introduced from outside North America), 65% (219 species) are forbs such as garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), 15% (50 species) are graminoids such as phragmites (Phragmites australis ssp. australis), 2% (seven species) are vines such as ?eld bindweed (Convulvulus arvensis), <1% (two species) are subshrubs such as Japanese pachysandra (Pachysandra terminalis), 8% (28 species) are shrubs such as Asian bush honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.), 1% (three species) are lianas such as oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus), and 8% (23 species) are trees such as tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissimus). Of the 85 adventive species, native species that have invaded from elsewhere in North America, 14% (11 species) are graminoids such as broom sedge (Andropogon virginicus), 57% (48 species) are forbs such as fall phlox (Phlox paniculata), 5% (six species) are shrubs such as Carolina allspice (Calycanthus floridus), 3% (two species) are subshrubs such as holly leaved barberry (Berberis repens), 1% (one species) is a liana (trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans), 3% two species) are herbaceous vines such as tall morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea), and 17% (15 species) are trees such as American holly (Ilex opaca). A total of 436 species were found to be ?special? based on political rankings (federal and state-listed threatened and endangered species), species with charismatic ?owers, and those that are locally rare.

Colombia es uno de los países de América Latina que ha demostrado un mayor dinamismo en materia de desarrollos normativos para la gestión del riesgo de desastres, algunos de los cuales han sido reconocidos como pioneros y referentes tanto para la región como a nivel internacional. Los resultados de la aplicación del iGOPP en Colombia (2013) demuestran un nivel general de avance del 58.10%, considerado dentro del rango apreciable en la clasificación propuesta por este índice. El componente de la GRD con el puntaje más alto en Colombia es el marco general de la gobernabilidad con el 88% de cumplimiento, lo cual lo ubica en el rango notable siendo el resultado directo de la modernización del marco normativo representado en la Ley 1523 de 2012. Por su parte, en el rango apreciable se encuentran 5 de los 6 componentes del iGOPP: reducción del riesgo (69%), preparativos para la respuesta (61%), identificación y conocimiento del riesgo (48%) y planificación de la recuperación post-desastre (46%); esto indica un relativo equilibrio en cuanto a la existencia de normatividad de soporte para los distintos procesos de la GRD en el país, con un relativo mayor énfasis en normatividad para la reducción del riesgo y para la preparación de la respuesta y un poco menor para los procesos de identificación del riesgo y de planificación de la recuperación post-desastre. En el caso de la planificación de la recuperación este proceso de la GRD es el más reciente en materia de desarrollos normativos, de hecho constituye una de las innovaciones integradas en la política pública colombiana a partir de la Ley 1523 de 2012, ya que la normatividad anterior (Decreto 919 de 1989), prácticamente no abordaba la fase de recuperación post-desastre. El único componente de la GRD con un nivel incipiente es el de protección financiera, con sólo el 36% de cumplimiento. Por otro lado, el análisis general desde la dimensión de las fases de la política pública (Gráfico 2) muestra avances notables para la fase de definición de responsabilidades territoriales (74%); en el rango apreciable se ubican las fases control, rendición de cuentas y participación (57%), definición de responsabilidades sectoriales (60%) y coordinación y articulación central de la política (70%). Finalmente, la fase de evidencias de progreso en la implementación (30%); la cual presenta la fase de política con el menor número de condiciones positivas, ubicándose en el rango incipiente. El iGOPP permite concluir que en Colombia las fases de coordinación central y de definición de responsabilidades tanto territoriales como sectoriales presentan un nivel de avance relativamente mayor que la fase de la aplicación; esto podría indicar que el país presenta desafíos importantes para garantizar la aplicación de su propia normatividad en GRD.

Sedan år 2007 utförs standardiserade provfisken med nordiska översiktsnät (SS-EN 14757) i knappt hälften av de så kallade trendsjöarna inom nationell miljöövervakning. 15 sjöar provfiskas varje år och 30 vart 6-e år, med 8-48 bottennät och 0-10 pelagiska nät, beroende på sjöns area och djup. Vi utredde om det går att upptäcka skillnader mellan år med färre nät och trender över tid med glesare än årlig frekvens. I så fall ryms fler sjöar inom oförändrad budget, och nuvarande sjöar kan behållas om budgeten minskar. Dessutom ska svenska myndigheter ska sträva efter att minska onödigt lidande och dödande i förhållande till nyttan vid användningen av försöksdjur, i enlighet med principen 3R (reduce, refine, replace). I denna rapport fokuserade vi på konsekvenser för kvaliteten på insamlade data genom; 1. ett minskat antal lagda nät vid ett givet provfiske, 2. en minskad frekvens till vart annat år för sjöar som idag provfiskas varje år. Dessutom indikerade vi hur kostnader (antal fältdagar) kan påverkas av förändrad nätläggning i tid och rum. Med begränsad tid till punkt 1 analyserades data från en sjö (Stensjön), som grund till senare analyser för andra sjöar. Vi använde en beräkningsmetod ifrån tidigare optimering av kustfiskövervakningen, modifierad för beräkning av artspecifik fångst per ansträngning (antal och biomassa) och de indikatorer som ingår i tre multimetriska fiskindex som används i bedömning av ekologisk status enligt ramdirektivet för vatten. Via bootstrap gjordes 10000 slumpmässiga urval av åtta nät vardera i tre djupstrata (standard för en sjö av Stensjöns storlek), för varje år under 1994- 2021. Därefter upprepades proceduren med sju, sex, fem och fyra nät per djupstratum och år. Med nuvarande nätansträngning uppfylldes målet att särskilja skillnader på 100% mellan år i ansträngning mellan år för de vanligaste fiskarterna i sjön och för alla indikatorer i bedömningsgrunderna. I just denna sjö skulle vi ha upptäckt skillnader mellan år med de lägsta och de högsta observerade värdena även om vi bara hade lagt sex eller fler nät per djupstratum. För punkt 2 analyserades befintliga dataserier från 15 sjöar som nu provfiskas varje år. Ickeparametriska trendtester visade att med provfisken vart annat år var sannolikheten lägre att vi skulle ha upptäckt ökningar eller minskningar över tid jämfört med provfisken varje år. Några åldersbaserade indikatorer kunde dock beräknas för alla år, även på urval av prover tagna vart annat år. Med provtagning vart annat år kunde en ökande trend i abborrens storlek upptäckas för 61% av signifikanta trender med provtagning varje år. För de vanligaste arterna abborre och mört kunde vi i 74 respektive 68 % av jämförelserna upptäcka samma starka eller svaga årsklasser med prover från vartannat som med prover från alla år. Hypotetiska beräkningar indikerade att flest fältdagar (195) skulle frigöras per sexårsperiod om 15 sjöar med årligt provfiske istället provfiskas vart annat år. Det skulle kunna motsvara provfiske en gång vart sjätte år i många av de trendsjöar som idag saknar provfiske. 57 fältdagar skulle frigöras om frekvensen halverades i de fyra sjöar som bara har årliga provfisken sedan 2007. Minskning med en fältdag per provfiske i sjöar med en ansträngning på minst 24 nät motsvarar 68 frigjorda fältdagar. Alla reduktioner av antal lagda nät skulle leda till färre dödade fiskar per sjö och sexårsperiod, i linje med 3R-strategin. Sjöar med årligt provfiske ger viktig information om mellanårsvariation, som behövs för att tolka resultat från sjöar med glesare provfiskefrekvens, i den nationella miljöövervakningen och i program som drivs av andra aktörer. Ur detta perspektiv är det klokast att försöka minska antal nät per provfiske, om det kan göras med godtagbar kvalitetssänkning. En sådan bedömning behöver göras för varje sjö, t.ex. med den metod som i detta projekt anpassades till data från Stensjön.

Objectives. To update the evidence on benefits and harms of cannabinoids and similar plant-based compounds to treat chronic pain using a living systematic review approach. Data sources. Ovid® MEDLINE®, PsycINFO®, Embase®, the Cochrane Library, and SCOPUS® databases; reference lists of included studies; and submissions received after Federal Register request were searched to April 4, 2022. Review methods. Using dual review, we screened search results for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies of patients with chronic pain evaluating cannabis, kratom, and similar compounds with any comparison group and at least 1 month of treatment or followup. Dual review was used to abstract study data, assess study-level risk of bias, and rate the strength of evidence (SOE). Prioritized outcomes included pain, overall function, and adverse events. We grouped studies that assessed tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and/or cannabidiol (CBD) based on their THC to CBD ratio and categorized them as comparable THC to CBD ratio, high-THC to CBD ratio, and low-THC to CBD ratio. We also grouped studies by whether the product was a whole-plant product (cannabis), cannabinoids extracted or purified from a whole plant, or a synthetic product. We conducted meta-analyses using the profile likelihood random effects model and assessed between-study heterogeneity using Cochran’s Q statistic chi square test and the I2 statistic. Magnitude of benefit was categorized as no effect or small, moderate, and large effects. Results. From 3,283 abstracts, 21 RCTs (N=1,905) and 8 observational studies (N=13,769) assessing different cannabinoids were included; none evaluated kratom. Studies were primarily short term, and 59 percent enrolled patients with neuropathic pain. Comparators were primarily placebo or usual care. The SOE was low unless otherwise noted. Compared with placebo, comparable THC to CBD ratio oral spray was associated with a small benefit in change in pain severity (7 RCTs, N=632, 0 to10 scale, mean difference [MD] −0.54, 95% confidence interval [CI] −0.95 to −0.19, I2=39%; SOE: moderate) and overall function (6 RCTs, N=616, 0 to 10 scale, MD −0.42, 95% CI −0.73 to −0.16, I2=32%). There was no effect on study withdrawals due to adverse events. There was a large increased risk of dizziness and sedation, and a moderate increased risk of nausea (dizziness: 6 RCTs, N=866, 31.0% vs. 8.0%, relative risk [RR] 3.57, 95% CI 2.42 to 5.60, I2=0%; sedation: 6 RCTs, N=866, 8.0% vs. 1.2%, RR 5.04, 95% CI 2.10 to 11.89, I2=0%; and nausea: 6 RCTs, N=866, 13% vs. 7.5%, RR 1.79, 95% CI 1.19 to 2.77, I2=0%). Synthetic products with high-THC to CBD ratios were associated with a moderate improvement in pain severity, a moderate increase in sedation, and a large increase in nausea (pain: 6 RCTs, N=390, 0 to 10 scale, MD −1.15, 95% CI −1.99 to −0.54, I2=48%; sedation: 3 RCTs, N=335, 19% vs. 10%, RR 1.73, 95% CI 1.03 to 4.63, I2=28%; nausea: 2 RCTs, N=302, 12.3% vs. 6.1%, RR 2.19, 95% CI 0.77 to 5.39; I²=0%). We also found moderate SOE for a large increased risk of dizziness (2 RCTs, 32% vs. 11%, RR 2.74, 95% CI 1.47 to 6.86, I2=40%). Extracted whole-plant products with high-THC to CBD ratios (oral) were associated with a large increased risk of study withdrawal due to adverse events (1 RCT, 13.9% vs. 5.7%, RR 3.12, 95% CI 1.54 to 6.33) and dizziness (1 RCT, 62.2% vs. 7.5%, RR 8.34, 95% CI 4.53 to 15.34); outcomes assessing benefit were not reported or insufficient. We observed a moderate improvement in pain severity when combining all studies of high-THC to CBD ratio (8 RCTs, N=684, MD −1.25, 95% CI −2.09 to −0.71, I2=58%; SOE: moderate). Evidence (including observational studies) on whole-plant cannabis, topical or oral CBD, low-THC to CBD, other cannabinoids, comparisons with active products or between cannabis-related products, and impact on use of opioids was insufficient to draw conclusions. Other important harms (psychosis, cannabis use disorder, and cognitive effects) were not reported. Conclusions. Low to moderate strength evidence suggests small to moderate improvements in pain (mostly neuropathic), and moderate to large increases in common adverse events (dizziness, sedation, nausea) with high- and comparable THC to CBD ratio extracted cannabinoids and synthetic products during short-term treatment (1 to 6 months); high-THC to CBD ratio products were also associated with increased risk of withdrawal due to adverse events. Evidence for whole-plant cannabis and other comparisons, outcomes, and plant-based compounds was unavailable or insufficient to draw conclusions. Small sample sizes, lack of evidence for moderate and long-term use and other key outcomes, such as other adverse events and impact on use of opioids during treatment, indicate that more research is needed.

The Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS) vegetation inventory project classified and mapped vegetation on park-owned lands within the administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project began in June 2016. National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory Program provided technical guidance. The overall process included initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation/classification, accuracy assessment (AA), and report writing and database development. Initial planning and scoping meetings took place during May, 2016 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi where representatives gathered from GUIS, the NPS Gulf Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network, and Colorado State University. Primary imagery used for interpretation was 4-band (RGB and CIR) orthoimages from 2014 and 2016 with resolutions of 15 centimeters (cm) (Florida only) and 30 cm. Supplemental imagery with varying coverage across the study area included National Aerial Imagery Program 50 cm imagery for Mississippi (2016) and Florida (2017), 15 and 30 cm true color Digital Earth Model imagery for Mississippi (2016 and 2017), and current and historical true-color Google Earth and Bing Map imagery. National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration National Geodetic Survey 30 cm true color imagery from 2017 (post Hurricane Nate) supported remapping the Mississippi barrier islands after Hurricane Nate. The preliminary vegetation classification included 59 United States National Vegetation Classification (USNVC) associations. Existing vegetation and mapping data combined with vegetation plot data contributed to the final vegetation classification. Quantitative classification using hierarchical clustering and professional expertise was supported by vegetation data collected from 250 plots in 2016 and 29 plots in 2017 and 2018, as well as other observational data. The final vegetation classification includes 39 USNVC associations and 5 park special types; 18 forest and woodland, 7 shrubland, 17 herbaceous, and 2 sparse vegetation types were identified. The final GUIS map consists of 38 map classes. Land cover classes include four types: non-vegetated barren land / borrow pit, developed open space, developed low – high intensity, and water/ocean. Of the 34 vegetation map classes, 26 represent a single USNVC association/park special, six map classes contain two USNVC associations/park specials, and two map classes contain three USNVC associations/park specials. Forest and woodland associations had an abundance of sand pine (Pinus clausa), slash pine (Pinus elliottii), sand live oak (Quercus geminata), yaupon (Ilex vomitoria), wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), and saw palmetto (Serenoa repens). Shrubland associations supported dominant species such as eastern baccharis (Baccharis halimifolia), yaupon (Ilex vomitoria), wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), and sand live oak (Quercus geminata). Herbaceous associations commonly included camphorweed (Heterotheca subaxillaris), needlegrass rush (Juncus roemerianus), bitter seabeach grass (Panicum amarum var. amarum), gulf bluestem (Schizachyrium maritimum), saltmeadow cordgrass (Spartina patens), and sea oats (Uniola paniculata). The final GUIS vegetation map consists of 1,268 polygons totaling 35,769.0 hectares (ha) or 88,387.2 acres (ac). Mean polygon size excluding water is 3.6 ha (8.9 ac). The most abundant land cover class is open water/ocean which accounts for approximately 31,437.7 ha (77,684.2 ac) or 87.9% of the total mapped area. Natural and ruderal vegetation consists of 4,176.8 ha (10,321.1 ac) or 11.6% of the total area. Within the natural and ruderal vegetation types, herbaceous types are the most extensive with 1945.1 ha (4,806.4 ac) or 46.5%, followed by forest and woodland types with 804.9 ha (1,989.0 ac) or 19.3%, sparse vegetation types with 726.9 ha (1,796.1 ac) or 17.4%, and shrubland types with 699.9 ha (1,729.5 ac) or 16.8%. Developed open space, which can include a matrix of roads, parking lots, park-like areas and campgrounds account for 153.8 ha (380.0 ac) or 0.43% of the total mapped area. Artificially non-vegetated barren land is rare and only accounts for 0.74 ha (1.82 ac) or 0.002% of the total area. We collected 701 AA samples to evaluate the thematic accuracy of the vegetation map. Final thematic accuracy, as a simple proportion of correct versus incorrect field calls, is 93.0%. Overall weighted map class accuracy is 93.6%, where the area of each map class was weighted in proportion to the percentage of total park area. This method provides more weight to larger map classes in the park. Each map class had an individual thematic accuracy goal of at least 80%. The hurricane impact area map class was the only class that fell below this target with an accuracy of 73.5%. The vegetation communities impacted by the hurricane are highly dynamic and regenerated quickly following the disturbance event, contributing to map class disagreement during the accuracy assessment phase. No other map classes fell below the 80% accuracy threshold. In addition to the vegetation polygon database and map, several products to support park resource management are provided including the vegetation classification, field key to the associations, local association descriptions, photographic database, project geodatabase, ArcGIS .mxd files for map posters, and aerial imagery acquired for the project. The project geodatabase links the spatial vegetation data layer to vegetation classification, plot photos, project boundary extent, AA points, and the PLOTS database. The geodatabase includes USNVC hierarchy tables allowing for spatial queries of data associated with a vegetation polygon or sample point. All geospatial products are projected using North American Datum 1983 (NAD83) in Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 16 N. The final report includes methods and results, contingency tables showing AA results, field forms, species list, and a guide to imagery interpretation. These products provide useful information to assist with management of park resources and inform future management decisions. Use of standard national vegetation classification and mapping protocols facilitates effective resource stewardship by ensuring the compatibility and widespread use throughout the NPS as well as other federal and state agencies. Products support a wide variety of resource assessments, park management and planning needs. Associated information provides a structure for framing and answering critical scientific questions about vegetation communities and their relationship to environmental processes across the landscape.

As a student undertaking a Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LIC)1 based in a GP practice in a rural community in the North of Scotland, I have been lucky to be given responsibility and my own clinic lists. Every day I conduct consultations that change my practice: the challenge of clinically applying the theory I have studied, controlling a consultation and efficiently exploring a patient's problems, empathising with and empowering them to play a part in their own care2 – and most difficult I feel – dealing with the vast amount of uncertainty that medicine, and particularly primary care, presents to both clinician and patient. I initially consulted with a lady in her 60s who attended with her husband, complaining of severe lower back pain who was very difficult to assess due to her pain level. Her husband was understandably concerned about the degree of pain she was in. After assessment and discussion with one of the GPs, we agreed some pain relief and a physio assessment in the next few days would be a practical plan. The patient had one red flag, some leg weakness and numbness, which was her ‘normal’ on account of her multiple sclerosis. At the physio assessment a few days later, the physio felt things were worse and some urgent bloods were ordered, unfortunately finding raised cancer and inflammatory markers. A CT scan of the lung found widespread cancer, a later CT of the head after some developing some acute confusion found brain metastases, and a week and a half after presenting to me, the patient sadly died in hospital. While that was all impactful enough on me, it was the follow-up appointment with the husband who attended on the last triage slot of the evening two weeks later that I found completely altered my understanding of grief and the mourning of a loved one. The husband had asked to speak to a Andrew MacFarlane Year 3 ScotGEM Medical Student 2 doctor just to talk about what had happened to his wife. The GP decided that it would be better if he came into the practice - strictly he probably should have been consulted with over the phone due to coronavirus restrictions - but he was asked what he would prefer and he opted to come in. I sat in on the consultation, I had been helping with any examinations the triage doctor needed and I recognised that this was the husband of the lady I had seen a few weeks earlier. He came in and sat down, head lowered, hands fiddling with the zip on his jacket, trying to find what to say. The GP sat, turned so that they were opposite each other with no desk between them - I was seated off to the side, an onlooker, but acknowledged by the patient with a kind nod when he entered the room. The GP asked gently, “How are you doing?” and roughly 30 seconds passed (a long time in a conversation) before the patient spoke. “I just really miss her…” he whispered with great effort, “I don’t understand how this all happened.” Over the next 45 minutes, he spoke about his wife, how much pain she had been in, the rapid deterioration he witnessed, the cancer being found, and cruelly how she had passed away after he had gone home to get some rest after being by her bedside all day in the hospital. He talked about how they had met, how much he missed her, how empty the house felt without her, and asking himself and us how he was meant to move forward with his life. He had a lot of questions for us, and for himself. Had we missed anything – had he missed anything? The GP really just listened for almost the whole consultation, speaking to him gently, reassuring him that this wasn’t his or anyone’s fault. She stated that this was an awful time for him and that what he was feeling was entirely normal and something we will all universally go through. She emphasised that while it wasn’t helpful at the moment, that things would get better over time.3 He was really glad I was there – having shared a consultation with his wife and I – he thanked me emphatically even though I felt like I hadn’t really helped at all. After some tears, frequent moments of silence and a lot of questions, he left having gotten a lot off his chest. “You just have to listen to people, be there for them as they go through things, and answer their questions as best you can” urged my GP as we discussed the case when the patient left. Almost all family caregivers contact their GP with regards to grief and this consultation really made me realise how important an aspect of my practice it will be in the future.4 It has also made me reflect on the emphasis on undergraduate teaching around ‘breaking bad news’ to patients, but nothing taught about when patients are in the process of grieving further down the line.5 The skill Andrew MacFarlane Year 3 ScotGEM Medical Student 3 required to manage a grieving patient is not one limited to general practice. Patients may grieve the loss of function from acute trauma through to chronic illness in all specialties of medicine - in addition to ‘traditional’ grief from loss of family or friends.6 There wasn’t anything ‘medical’ in the consultation, but I came away from it with a real sense of purpose as to why this career is such a privilege. We look after patients so they can spend as much quality time as they are given with their loved ones, and their loved ones are the ones we care for after they are gone. We as doctors are the constant, and we have to meet patients with compassion at their most difficult times – because it is as much a part of the job as the knowledge and the science – and it is the part of us that patients will remember long after they leave our clinic room. Word Count: 993 words References 1. ScotGEM MBChB - Subjects - University of St Andrews [Internet]. [cited 2021 Mar 27]. Available from: https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/subjects/medicine/scotgem-mbchb/ 2. Shared decision making in realistic medicine: what works - gov.scot [Internet]. [cited 2021 Mar 27]. Available from: https://www.gov.scot/publications/works-support-promote-shared-decisionmaking-synthesis-recent-evidence/pages/1/ 3. Ghesquiere AR, Patel SR, Kaplan DB, Bruce ML. Primary care providers’ bereavement care practices: Recommendations for research directions. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2014 Dec;29(12):1221–9. 4. Nielsen MK, Christensen K, Neergaard MA, Bidstrup PE, Guldin M-B. Grief symptoms and primary care use: a prospective study of family caregivers. BJGP Open [Internet]. 2020 Aug 1 [cited 2021 Mar 27];4(3). Available from: https://bjgpopen.org/content/4/3/bjgpopen20X101063 5. O’Connor M, Breen LJ. General Practitioners’ experiences of bereavement care and their educational support needs: a qualitative study. BMC Medical Education. 2014 Mar 27;14(1):59. 6. Sikstrom L, Saikaly R, Ferguson G, Mosher PJ, Bonato S, Soklaridis S. Being there: A scoping review of grief support training in medical education. PLOS ONE. 2019 Nov 27;14(11):e0224325.

Banco de la República is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023. This is a very significant anniversary and one that provides an opportunity to highlight the contribution the Bank has made to the country’s development. Its track record as guarantor of monetary stability has established it as the one independent state institution that generates the greatest confidence among Colombians due to its transparency, management capabilities, and effective compliance with the central banking and cultural responsibilities entrusted to it by the Constitution and the Law. On a date as important as this, the Board of Directors of Banco de la República (BDBR) pays tribute to the generations of governors and officers whose commitment and dedication have contributed to the growth of this institution.1 Banco de la República’s mandate was confirmed in the National Constitutional Assembly of 1991 where the citizens had the opportunity to elect the seventy people who would have the task of drafting a new constitution. The leaders of the three political movements with the most votes were elected as chairs to the Assembly, and this tripartite presidency reflected the plurality and the need for consensus among the different political groups to move the reform forward. Among the issues considered, the National Constitutional Assembly gave special importance to monetary stability. That is why they decided to include central banking and to provide Banco de la República with the necessary autonomy to use the instruments for which they are responsible without interference from other authorities. The constituent members understood that ensuring price stability is a state duty and that the entity responsible for this task must be enshrined in the Constitution and have the technical capability and institutional autonomy necessary to adopt the decisions they deem appropriate to achieve this fundamental objective in coordination with the general economic policy. In particular, Article 373 established that “the State, through Banco de la República, shall ensure the maintenance of the purchasing power of the currency,” a provision that coincided with the central banking system adopted by countries that have been successful in controlling inflation. In 1999, in Ruling 481, the Constitutional Court stated that “the duty to maintain the purchasing power of the currency applies to not only the monetary, credit, and exchange authority, i.e., the Board of Banco de la República, but also those who have responsibilities in the formulation and implementation of the general economic policy of the country” and that “the basic constitutional purpose of Banco de la República is the protection of a sound currency. However, this authority must take the other economic objectives of state intervention such as full employment into consideration in their decisions since these functions must be coordinated with the general economic policy.” The reforms to Banco de la República agreed upon in the Constitutional Assembly of 1991 and in Act 31/1992 can be summarized in the following aspects: i) the Bank was assigned a specific mandate: to maintain the purchasing power of the currency in coordination with the general economic policy; ii) the BDBR was designatedas the monetary, foreign exchange, and credit authority; iii) the Bank and its Board of Directors were granted a significant degree of independence from the government; iv) the Bank was prohibited from granting credit to the private sector except in the case of the financial sector; v) established that in order to grant credit to the government, the unanimous vote of its Board of Directors was required except in the case of open market transactions; vi) determined that the legislature may, in no case, order credit quotas in favor of the State or individuals; vii) Congress was appointed, on behalf of society, as the main addressee of the Bank’s reporting exercise; and viii) the responsibility for inspection, surveillance, and control over Banco de la República was delegated to the President of the Republic. The members of the National Constitutional Assembly clearly understood that the benefits of low and stable inflation extend to the whole of society and contribute mto the smooth functioning of the economic system. Among the most important of these is that low inflation promotes the efficient use of productive resources by allowing relative prices to better guide the allocation of resources since this promotes economic growth and increases the welfare of the population. Likewise, low inflation reduces uncertainty about the expected return on investment and future asset prices. This increases the confidence of economic agents, facilitates long-term financing, and stimulates investment. Since the low-income population is unable to protect itself from inflation by diversifying its assets, and a high proportion of its income is concentrated in the purchase of food and other basic goods that are generally the most affected by inflationary shocks, low inflation avoids arbitrary redistribution of income and wealth.2 Moreover, low inflation facilitates wage negotiations, creates a good labor climate, and reduces the volatility of employment levels. Finally, low inflation helps to make the tax system more transparent and equitable by avoiding the distortions that inflation introduces into the value of assets and income that make up the tax base. From the monetary authority’s point of view, one of the most relevant benefits of low inflation is the credibility that economic agents acquire in inflation targeting, which turns it into an effective nominal anchor on price levels. Upon receiving its mandate, and using its autonomy, Banco de la República began to announce specific annual inflation targets as of 1992. Although the proposed inflation targets were not met precisely during this first stage, a downward trend in inflation was achieved that took it from 32.4% in 1990 to 16.7% in 1998. At that time, the exchange rate was kept within a band. This limited the effectiveness of monetary policy, which simultaneously sought to meet an inflation target and an exchange rate target. The Asian crisis spread to emerging economies and significantly affected the Colombian economy. The exchange rate came under strong pressure to depreciate as access to foreign financing was cut off under conditions of a high foreign imbalance. This, together with the lack of exchange rate flexibility, prevented a countercyclical monetary policy and led to a 4.2% contraction in GDP that year. In this context of economic slowdown, annual inflation fell to 9.2% at the end of 1999, thus falling below the 15% target set for that year. This episode fully revealed how costly it could be, in terms of economic activity, to have inflation and exchange rate targets simultaneously. Towards the end of 1999, Banco de la República announced the adoption of a new monetary policy regime called the Inflation Targeting Plan. This regime, known internationally as ‘Inflation Targeting,’ has been gaining increasing acceptance in developed countries, having been adopted in 1991 by New Zealand, Canada, and England, among others, and has achieved significant advances in the management of inflation without incurring costs in terms of economic activity. In Latin America, Brazil and Chile also adopted it in 1999. In the case of Colombia, the last remaining requirement to be fulfilled in order to adopt said policy was exchange rate flexibility. This was realized around September 1999, when the BDBR decided to abandon the exchange-rate bands to allow the exchange rate to be freely determined in the market.Consistent with the constitutional mandate, the fundamental objective of this new policy approach was “the achievement of an inflation target that contributes to maintaining output growth around its potential.”3 This potential capacity was understood as the GDP growth that the economy can obtain if it fully utilizes its productive resources. To meet this objective, monetary policy must of necessity play a countercyclical role in the economy. This is because when economic activity is below its potential and there are idle resources, the monetary authority can reduce the interest rate in the absence of inflationary pressure to stimulate the economy and, when output exceeds its potential capacity, raise it. This policy principle, which is immersed in the models for guiding the monetary policy stance, makes the following two objectives fully compatible in the medium term: meeting the inflation target and achieving a level of economic activity that is consistent with its productive capacity. To achieve this purpose, the inflation targeting system uses the money market interest rate (at which the central bank supplies primary liquidity to commercial banks) as the primary policy instrument. This replaced the quantity of money as an intermediate monetary policy target that Banco de la República, like several other central banks, had used for a long time. In the case of Colombia, the objective of the new monetary policy approach implied, in practical terms, that the recovery of the economy after the 1999 contraction should be achieved while complying with the decreasing inflation targets established by the BDBR. The accomplishment of this purpose was remarkable. In the first half of the first decade of the 2000s, economic activity recovered significantly and reached a growth rate of 6.8% in 2006. Meanwhile, inflation gradually declined in line with inflation targets. That was how the inflation rate went from 9.2% in 1999 to 4.5% in 2006, thus meeting the inflation target established for that year while GDP reached its potential level. After this balance was achieved in 2006, inflation rebounded to 5.7% in 2007, above the 4.0% target for that year due to the fact that the 7.5% GDP growth exceeded the potential capacity of the economy.4 After proving the effectiveness of the inflation targeting system in its first years of operation, this policy regime continued to consolidate as the BDBR and the technical staff gained experience in its management and state-of-the-art economic models were incorporated to diagnose the present and future state of the economy and to assess the persistence of inflation deviations and expectations with respect to the inflation target. Beginning in 2010, the BDBR established the long-term 3.0% annual inflation target, which remains in effect today. Lower inflation has contributed to making the macroeconomic environment more stable, and this has favored sustained economic growth, financial stability, capital market development, and the functioning of payment systems. As a result, reductions in the inflationary risk premia and lower TES and credit interest rates were achieved. At the same time, the duration of public domestic debt increased significantly going from 2.27 years in December 2002 to 5.86 years in December 2022, and financial deepening, measured as the level of the portfolio as a percentage of GDP, went from around 20% in the mid-1990s to values above 45% in recent years in a healthy context for credit institutions.Having been granted autonomy by the Constitution to fulfill the mandate of preserving the purchasing power of the currency, the tangible achievements made by Banco de la República in managing inflation together with the significant benefits derived from the process of bringing inflation to its long-term target, make the BDBR’s current challenge to return inflation to the 3.0% target even more demanding and pressing. As is well known, starting in 2021, and especially in 2022, inflation in Colombia once again became a serious economic problem with high welfare costs. The inflationary phenomenon has not been exclusive to Colombia and many other developed and emerging countries have seen their inflation rates move away from the targets proposed by their central banks.5 The reasons for this phenomenon have been analyzed in recent Reports to Congress, and this new edition delves deeper into the subject with updated information. The solid institutional and technical base that supports the inflation targeting approach under which the monetary policy strategy operates gives the BDBR the necessary elements to face this difficult challenge with confidence. In this regard, the BDBR reiterated its commitment to the 3.0% inflation target in its November 25 communiqué and expects it to be reached by the end of 2024.6 Monetary policy will continue to focus on meeting this objective while ensuring the sustainability of economic activity, as mandated by the Constitution. Analyst surveys done in March showed a significant increase (from 32.3% in January to 48.5% in March) in the percentage of responses placing inflation expectations two years or more ahead in a range between 3.0% and 4.0%. This is a clear indication of the recovery of credibility in the medium-term inflation target and is consistent with the BDBR’s announcement made in November 2022. The moderation of the upward trend in inflation seen in January, and especially in February, will help to reinforce this revision of inflation expectations and will help to meet the proposed targets. After reaching 5.6% at the end of 2021, inflation maintained an upward trend throughout 2022 due to inflationary pressures from both external sources, associated with the aftermath of the pandemic and the consequences of the war in Ukraine, and domestic sources, resulting from: strengthening of local demand; price indexation processes stimulated by the increase in inflation expectations; the impact on food production caused by the mid-2021 strike; and the pass-through of depreciation to prices. The 10% increase in the minimum wage in 2021 and the 16% increase in 2022, both of which exceeded the actual inflation and the increase in productivity, accentuated the indexation processes by establishing a high nominal adjustment benchmark. Thus, total inflation went to 13.1% by the end of 2022. The annual change in food prices, which went from 17.2% to 27.8% between those two years, was the most influential factor in the surge in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Another segment that contributed significantly to price increases was regulated products, which saw the annual change go from 7.1% in December 2021 to 11.8% by the end of 2022. The measure of core inflation excluding food and regulated items, in turn, went from 2.5% to 9.5% between the end of 2021 and the end of 2022. The substantial increase in core inflation shows that inflationary pressure has spread to most of the items in the household basket, which is characteristic of inflationary processes with generalized price indexation as is the case in Colombia. Monetary policy began to react early to this inflationary pressure. Thus, starting with its September 2021 session, the BDBR began a progressive change in the monetary policy stance moving away from the historical low of a 1.75% policy rate that had intended to stimulate the recovery of the economy. This adjustment process continued without interruption throughout 2022 and into the beginning of 2023 when the monetary policy rate reached 12.75% last January, thus accumulating an increase of 11 percentage points (pp). The public and the markets have been surprised that inflation continued to rise despite significant interest rate increases. However, as the BDBR has explained in its various communiqués, monetary policy works with a lag. Just as in 2022 economic activity recovered to a level above the pre-pandemic level, driven, along with other factors, by the monetary stimulus granted during the pandemic period and subsequent months, so too the effects of the current restrictive monetary policy will gradually take effect. This will allow us to expect the inflation rate to converge to 3.0% by the end of 2024 as is the BDBR’s purpose.Inflation results for January and February of this year showed declining marginal increases (13 bp and 3 bp respectively) compared to the change seen in December (59 bp). This suggests that a turning point in the inflation trend is approaching. In other Latin American countries such as Chile, Brazil, Perú, and Mexico, inflation has peaked and has begun to decline slowly, albeit with some ups and downs. It is to be expected that a similar process will take place in Colombia in the coming months. The expected decline in inflation in 2023 will be due, along with other factors, to lower cost pressure from abroad as a result of the gradual normalization of supply chains, the overcoming of supply shocks caused by the weather, and road blockades in previous years. This will be reflected in lower adjustments in food prices, as has already been seen in the first two months of the year and, of course, the lagged effect of monetary policy. The process of inflation convergence to the target will be gradual and will extend beyond 2023. This process will be facilitated if devaluation pressure is reversed. To this end, it is essential to continue consolidating fiscal sustainability and avoid messages on different public policy fronts that generate uncertainty and distrust. 1 This Report to Congress includes Box 1, which summarizes the trajectory of Banco de la República over the past 100 years. In addition, under the Bank’s auspices, several books that delve into various aspects of the history of this institution have been published in recent years. See, for example: Historia del Banco de la República 1923-2015; Tres banqueros centrales; Junta Directiva del Banco de la República: grandes episodios en 30 años de historia; Banco de la República: 90 años de la banca central en Colombia. 2 This is why lower inflation has been reflected in a reduction of income inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient that went from 58.7 in 1998 to 51.3 in the year prior to the pandemic. 3 See Gómez Javier, Uribe José Darío, Vargas Hernando (2002). “The Implementation of Inflation Targeting in Colombia”. Borradores de Economía, No. 202, March, available at: https://repositorio.banrep.gov.co/handle/20.500.12134/5220 4 See López-Enciso Enrique A.; Vargas-Herrera Hernando and Rodríguez-Niño Norberto (2016). “The inflation targeting strategy in Colombia. An historical view.” Borradores de Economía, No. 952. https://repositorio.banrep.gov.co/handle/20.500.12134/6263 5 According to the IMF, the percentage change in consumer prices between 2021 and 2022 went from 3.1% to 7.3% for advanced economies, and from 5.9% to 9.9% for emerging market and developing economies. 6 https://www.banrep.gov.co/es/noticias/junta-directiva-banco-republica-reitera-meta-inflacion-3

Introducción En 2023 el Banco de la República celebra 100 años de su fundación. Este es un aniversario de gran significado, el cual ofrece la oportunidad de resaltar el aporte que el Banco ha hecho al desarrollo del país. Su trayectoria como garante de la estabilidad monetaria lo ha consolidado como la institución estatal independiente que genera mayor confianza entre los colombianos por su transparencia, capacidad de gestión y el cumplimiento efectivo de las funciones de banca central y culturales encomendadas en la Constitución y la Ley. En una fecha tan importante como esta, la Junta Directiva del Banco de la República (JDBR) hace un reconocimiento a las generaciones de directivos y funcionarios que con su compromiso y dedicación contribuyeron a engrandecer esta institución1. El mandato del Banco de la República se consolidó en la Asamblea Nacional Constituyente de 1991, para cuya integración los ciudadanos tuvieron la oportunidad de elegir a las setenta personas que tendrían como tarea redactar una nueva constitución. Los dirigentes de los tres movimientos políticos más votados fueron elegidos presidentes de la Asamblea, y esta presidencia tripartita reflejó la pluralidad y la necesidad de consenso entre las diferentes fuerzas políticas para sacar adelante la reforma. Entre los asuntos considerados, la Asamblea Nacional Constituyente le otorgó especial importancia a la estabilidad monetaria. Por esta razón decidió incluir el tema de banca central y dotar al Banco de la República de la autonomía necesaria para utilizar los instrumentos a su cargo sin injerencia de otras autoridades. El constituyente entendió que velar por la estabilidad de precios es un deber del Estado y que la entidad responsable de este cometido debe estar consagrada en la Constitución y contar con la capacidad técnica y autonomía institucional necesaria para adoptar las decisiones que considere pertinentes para alcanzar este objetivo fundamental, en coordinación con la política económica general. En particular, el artículo 373 estableció que “el Estado, por intermedio del Banco de la República, velará por el mantenimiento de la capacidad adquisitiva de la moneda”, disposición que coincidía con el esquema de banca central adoptado por países exitosos en el control de la inflación. En 1999, mediante sentencia 481, la Corte Constitucional indicó que “el deber de mantener la capacidad adquisitiva de la moneda no solo se predica de la autoridad monetaria, crediticia y cambiaria, esto es de la Junta del Banco de la República, sino también de quienes tienen responsabilidades en la formulación y ejecución de la política económica general del país” y que “la finalidad constitucional básica del Banco de la República es la protección de la moneda sana, pero esa autoridad debe tomar en consideración en sus decisiones los otros objetivos económicos de la intervención del Estado, como el pleno empleo, pues sus funciones deben coordinarse con la política económica general.” La reforma al Banco de la República concertada en la Constituyente de 1991 y en la Ley 31 de 1992 se puede resumir en los siguientes aspectos: i) asignó al Banco un mandato específico: mantener la capacidad adquisitiva de la moneda, en coordinación con la política económica general; ii) designó a la JDBR como autoridad monetaria, cambiaria y crediticia; iii) otorgó al Banco y a su Junta Directiva un importante grado de independencia frente al Gobierno; iv) prohibió al Banco otorgar crédito al sector privado distinto del financiero; v) estableció que para otorgar crédito al Gobierno se requería del voto unánime de su Junta Directiva, a menos que se trate de operaciones de mercado abierto; vi) determinó que el legislador, en ningún caso, podrá ordenar cupos de crédito a favor del Estado o de los particulares; vii) designó al Congreso, en representación de la sociedad, como principal destinatario del ejercicio de rendición de informes del Banco; y viii) delegó en el presidente de la República la función de inspección, vigilancia y control sobre el Banco de la República. Los miembros de la Asamblea Nacional Constituyente entendieron claramente que los beneficios de una inflación baja y estable se extienden a toda la sociedad y contribuyen al buen funcionamiento del sistema económico. Entre los más importantes cabe mencionar que una inflación baja promueve el uso eficiente de los recursos productivos, al permitir que los precios relativos guíen de mejor forma la asignación de recursos, lo cual promueve el crecimiento económico y aumenta el bienestar de la población. Igualmente, una inflación baja reduce la incertidumbre sobre la rentabilidad esperada de la inversión y sobre el precio futuro de los activos, lo que aumenta la confianza de los agentes económicos, facilita la financiación de largo plazo y estimula la inversión. Una inflación baja evita redistribuciones arbitrarias del ingreso y la riqueza, debido a que los estratos de ingresos bajos de la población no pueden protegerse de la inflación mediante la diversificación de sus activos, y concentran una elevada proporción de su ingreso en la compra de alimentos y otros bienes básicos, ítems que generalmente son los más afectados por los choques inflacionarios2. Por otra parte, una baja inflación facilita las negociaciones salariales, lo cual crea un buen clima laboral y reduce la volatilidad del nivel de empleo. Finalmente, una inflación baja contribuye a que el sistema de impuestos sea más transparente y equitativo, al evitar las distorsiones que la inflación introduce sobre el valor de los activos y de los ingresos que componen la base tributaria. Desde el punto de vista de la autoridad monetaria, uno de los beneficios más relevantes de una inflación baja es la credibilidad que los agentes económicos adquieren en la meta de inflación, lo que la convierte en un ancla nominal efectiva sobre el nivel de precios. Al recibir su mandato, y en uso de su autonomía, el Banco de la República empezó a anunciar metas puntuales de inflación anual a partir de 1992. Si bien en esta primera etapa las metas de inflación propuestas no se lograron cumplir de forma precisa, sí se consiguió imprimirle a la inflación una tendencia descendente, que la llevó desde un nivel del 32,4% en 1990 al 16,7% en 1998. Para aquella época la tasa de cambio se mantenía dentro de una banda, lo cual limitaba la efectividad de la política monetaria, que buscaba cumplir simultáneamente una meta de inflación y un objetivo de tasa de cambio. La crisis asiática se contagió a las economías emergentes y afectó de manera importante a la economía colombiana. La tasa de cambio presentó una fuerte presión a la depreciación al cerrarse el acceso al financiamiento externo en condiciones de un elevado desequilibrio externo. Lo anterior, junto con la falta de flexibilidad cambiaria, impidió hacer una política monetaria contracíclica, lo que condujo a una contracción del PIB del 4,2% en dicho año. En este contexto de desaceleración económica, la inflación anual se redujo al 9,2% a finales de 1999, situándose por debajo de la meta del 15% que se había fijado para ese año. Este episodio reveló plenamente lo costoso que podría ser, en términos de actividad económica, el tener simultáneamente metas para la inflación y para la tasa de cambio. Hacia finales de 1999 el Banco de la República anunció la adopción de un nuevo régimen de política monetaria que denominó Esquema de Inflación Objetivo. Este régimen, conocido internacionalmente como ‘Inflation Targeting,’ venía ganando creciente aceptación en países desarrollados, al haber sido adoptado a partir de 1991 por Nueva Zelanda, Canadá e Inglaterra, entre otros, logrando importantes avances en el manejo de la inflación, sin incurrir en costos en términos de actividad económica. En América Latina, Brasil y Chile también lo acogieron en 1999. En el caso colombiano, el último requisito pendiente por cumplir para adoptar dicho esquema de política era la flexibilidad de la tasa de cambio, la cual se materializó hacia septiembre de 1999, cuando la JDBR decidió abandonar las bandas cambiarias para permitir que la tasa de cambio se determinara libremente en el mercado. De forma coherente con el mandato constitucional, el objetivo fundamental de este nuevo esquema de política consistía en “el cumplimiento de una meta de inflación que contribuya a mantener un crecimiento del producto alrededor de su capacidad potencial”3. Dicha capacidad potencial se entendía como aquel crecimiento del PIB que la economía puede obtener si utiliza plenamente sus recursos productivos. Para cumplir este objetivo la política monetaria debe cumplir necesariamente un papel contracíclico en la economía. Ello porque cuando la actividad económica está por debajo de su potencial y existen recursos ociosos, la autoridad monetaria puede reducir la tasa de interés ante la ausencia de presiones inflacionarias para estimular por esa vía la economía y, de manera inversa, cuando el producto supera su capacidad potencial. Este principio de política, que está inmerso en los modelos para guiar la postura de política monetaria, hace que, en el mediano plazo, sean totalmente compatibles los objetivos del cumplimiento de la meta de inflación y de un nivel de actividad económica compatible con su capacidad productiva. Para alcanzar este propósito, en el esquema de inflación objetivo se utiliza la tasa de interés del mercado monetario (a la cual el banco central suministra liquidez primaria a los bancos comerciales), como el instrumento primordial de política. Con ello se sustituyó la cantidad de dinero como meta intermedia de política monetaria, que el Banco de la República, al igual que varios otros bancos centrales, utilizaron por mucho tiempo. En el caso colombiano, el objetivo del nuevo esquema de política monetaria implicaba, en términos prácticos, que la recuperación de la economía, luego de la contracción ocurrida en 1999, debía lograrse al tiempo que se cumplían las metas decrecientes de inflación establecidas por la JDBR. De manera notable este propósito se cumplió. En la primera mitad de la década del 2000 la actividad económica logró una recuperación importante, hasta alcanzar un crecimiento del 6,8% en 2006. Entretanto, la inflación fue descendiendo gradualmente, en línea con las metas de inflación. Fue así como la tasa de inflación se redujo desde el 9,2% en 1999 al 4,5% en 2006, cumpliendo con la meta de inflación establecida para ese año, mientras que el PIB alcanzó su nivel potencial. Después de lograrse este equilibrio en 2006, la inflación repuntó al 5,7% en 2007, por encima de la meta del 4% fijada para ese año, debido a que el crecimiento del PIB del 7,5% superó su capacidad potencial4. Luego de comprobarse la eficacia del esquema de inflación objetivo en sus primeros años de operación, este régimen de política continuó consolidándose a medida que la JDBR y el equipo técnico ganaron experiencia en su manejo y se incorporaron modelos económicos de última tecnología para diagnosticar el estado presente y futuro de la economía, y evaluar la persistencia de los desvíos de la inflación y sus expectativas con respecto a la meta de inflación. A partir de 2010 la JDBR estableció la meta de inflación anual de largo plazo del 3%, que continúa vigente en la actualidad. La menor inflación ha contribuido a crear un entorno macroeconómico más estable, que ha favorecido el crecimiento económico sostenido, la estabilidad financiera, el desarrollo del mercado de capitales y el funcionamiento de los sistemas de pagos. Gracias a ello se lograron reducciones en la prima por riesgo inflacionario y menores tasas de interés de los TES y de crédito. A su vez, la duración de la deuda interna pública aumentó de forma importante pasando de 2,27 años en diciembre de 2002 a 5,86 años en diciembre de 2022 y la profundización financiera, medida como el nivel de la cartera como porcentaje del PIB, pasó de cerca del 20% a mediados de la década de los noventa a valores superiores al 45% en años recientes, en un contexto saludable de los establecimientos de crédito. Los logros tangibles alcanzados por el Banco de la República en el manejo de la inflación al haber contado con la autonomía que le otorgó la Constitución para cumplir con el mandato de preservar el poder adquisitivo de la moneda, junto con los importantes beneficios que se derivaron del proceso de llevar la inflación a su meta de largo plazo, hacen que el reto que actualmente enfrenta la JDBR de retornar la inflación a la meta del 3% sea aún más exigente y apremiante. Como es bien conocido, a partir de 2021, y especialmente en 2022, la inflación en Colombia volvió a convertirse en un serio problema económico, con elevados costos de bienestar. El fenómeno inflacionario no ha sido exclusivo de Colombia y es así como muchos otros países desarrollados y emergentes han visto alejarse sus tasas de inflación de las metas propuestas por sus bancos centrales5. Las razones de este fenómeno se han analizado en los recientes Informes al Congreso, y en esta nueva entrega se profundiza al respecto con información actualizada. La sólida base institucional y técnica que soporta el esquema de inflación objetivo bajo el cual opera la estrategia de política monetaria le da a la JDBR los elementos necesarios para enfrentar con confianza este difícil reto. Al respecto, en su comunicado del 25 de noviembre la JDBR reiteró su compromiso con la meta de inflación del 3,0%, la cual prevé alcanzar hacia finales de 20246. La política monetaria continuará enfocada en cumplir este objetivo, al tiempo que velará por la sostenibilidad de la actividad económica, tal y como lo ordena la Constitución. Las encuestas a analistas llevadas a cabo en marzo mostraron un incremento importante (del 32,3% en enero al 48,5% en marzo) en el porcentaje de respuestas que sitúan las expectativas de inflación a dos años o más en un rango entre el 3% y 4%. Este es un indicativo claro de recuperación de credibilidad en la meta de inflación a mediano plazo, lo cual guarda coherencia con el anuncio de la JDBR de noviembre pasado. La moderación de la tendencia alcista de la inflación que se observó en enero, y especialmente en febrero, contribuirá a reforzar esta revisión de expectativas de inflación, y ayudará a cumplir los objetivos propuestos. Luego de registrarse una inflación del 5,6% a finales de 2021, la inflación mantuvo una tendencia alcista a lo largo de 2022 debido a las presiones inflacionarias tanto de origen externo, asociadas con las secuelas de la pandemia y las consecuencias del conflicto bélico en Ucrania, como de origen interno, resultantes de: el fortalecimiento de la demanda local; los procesos de indexación de precios estimulados por el aumento de las expectativas de inflación; las afectaciones a la producción de alimentos provocadas por el paro de mediados de 2021, y el traspaso de la depreciación a los precios. Los aumentos del salario mínimo del 10% en 2021 y del 16% en 2022, que en ambos casos superaron la inflación observada y el incremento de la productividad, acentuaron los procesos de indexación al haber establecido un elevado referente de ajuste nominal. De esta forma, la inflación total aumentó al 13,1% a finales 2022. La variación anual de alimentos, que subió del 17,2% al 27,8% entre esos dos años, fue el factor que más influyó en la aceleración del Índice de Precios al Consumidor (IPC). Otro rubro que contribuyó de manera importante a las alzas de precios fue el de regulados, cuya variación anual aumentó del 7,1% en diciembre de 2021 al 11,8% a finales de 2022. Por su parte, la medida de inflación básica sin alimentos ni regulados subió del 2,5% al 9,5% entre finales de 2021 y finales de 2022. El aumento sustancial de la inflación básica muestra que la presión inflacionaria se extendió a la mayoría de los rubros de la canasta familiar, lo cual es característico de procesos inflacionarios con una indexación de precios generalizada, como ocurre en Colombia. La política monetaria empezó a reaccionar tempranamente a estas presiones inflacionarias. Fue así como a partir de su sesión de septiembre de 2021 la JDBR inició un cambio progresivo de la postura de la política monetaria a partir del mínimo histórico del 1,75% de la tasa de interés de política al cual se había llegado para estimular la recuperación de la economía. Este proceso de ajuste prosiguió sin interrupción a lo largo de 2022 y hasta inicios de 2023, cuando la tasa de política monetaria alcanzó el 12,75% en enero pasado, con lo cual acumuló un incremento de 11 puntos porcentuales (pp). El público y los mercados se han mostrado sorprendidos de que la inflación continuara aumentando, a pesar de los significativos incrementos de la tasa de interés. Pero como lo ha explicado la JDBR en sus diversas comunicaciones, la política monetaria actúa con rezago. Así como en 2022 la actividad económica se recuperó hasta alcanzar un nivel superior al de prepandemia, impulsada, entre otros factores, por el estímulo monetario otorgado durante el período de pandemia y de los meses subsiguientes, así también los efectos de la actual política monetaria restrictiva se irán dando paulatinamente, lo que permite esperar que hacia finales de 2024 la tasa de inflación converja hacia el 3%, como es el propósito de la JDBR. Los resultados de la inflación en enero y febrero de este año mostraron incrementos marginales decrecientes (13 pb y 3 pb respectivamente), en comparación con la variación observada en diciembre (59 pb). Esto sugiere que se aproxima un punto de inflexión en la tendencia de la inflación. En otros países de América Latina, como Chile, Brasil, Perú y México, la inflación llegó a su techo y ha empezado a descender lentamente, aunque con algunos altibajos. Es previsible que en Colombia ocurra un proceso similar durante los próximos meses. El descenso previsto de la inflación en 2023 obedecerá, entre otros factores, a las menores presiones de costos externos por cuenta de la progresiva normalización de las cadenas de suministro, a la superación de los choques de oferta por razones de clima y por los bloqueos viales de años anteriores, lo que se reflejará en menores ajustes en los precios de los alimentos, como ya se observó en los primeros dos meses del año y, por supuesto, al efecto rezagado de la política monetaria. El proceso de convergencia de la inflación a la meta será gradual y se extenderá más allá de 2023. Dicho proceso se facilitará si se revierten las presiones a la devaluación, para lo cual resulta esencial que se continúe consolidando la sostenibilidad fiscal y se eviten mensajes en diferentes frentes de la política pública que generan incertidumbre y desconfianza. _______________________________________ 1 Este Informe al Congreso contiene el recuadro 1 que resume la trayectoria del Banco de la República en estos 100 años. Adicionalmente, con auspicio del Banco, varios libros que profundizan diversos aspectos de la historia de esta institución fueron publicados en años recientes. Véase, por ejemplo: Historia del Banco de la República 1923-2015; Tres banqueros centrales; Junta Directiva del Banco de la República: grandes episodios en 30 años de historia; Banco de la República : 90 años de la banca central en Colombia. 2 Es por ello que una menor inflación se ha reflejado en la reducción de la desigualdad del ingreso medida a través del coeficiente de Gini al pasar de 58,7 en 1998 a 51,3 en el año previo a la pandemia. 3 Véase Gómez Javier, Uribe José Darío, Vargas Hernando (2002). “The Implementation of Inflation Targeting in Colombia”. Borrador de Economía, núm. 202, marzo, disponible en: https://repositorio.banrep.gov.co/handle/20.500.12134/5220 4 Véase López-Enciso Enrique A.; Vargas-Herrera Hernando y Rodríguez-Niño Norberto (2016). “La estrategia de inflación objetivo en Colombia. Una visión histórica”, Borrador de Economía, núm. 952. https://repositorio.banrep.gov.co/handle/20.500.12134/6263 5 Según el FMI, la variación porcentual de los precios al consumidor entre 2021 y 2022 pasó del 3,1 % al 7,3 % para las economías avanzadas, y del 5,9 % al 9,9 % para las economías de mercados emergentes y en vías de desarrollo. 6 https://www.banrep.gov.co/es/noticias/junta-directiva-banco-republica-reitera-meta-inflacion-3