Suchergebnisse

SummaryThe Azores archipelago (Portugal) is formed by nine islands whose relative positions define them as three geographical groups: Eastern (S. Miguel and Sta. Maria), Central (Terceira, Faial, Pico, Graciosa and S. Jorge) and Western (Flores and Corvo). Using the father's surname of 187,398 individuals living on the nine Azorean Islands, a population analysis based on inter-island relationship and hierarchical organization was conducted. The relation between islands was investigated using summary statistics, analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) as well as graphical methods. When the values of heteronymy were contrasted with values of gene diversity based on haplogroup frequencies of the Y chromosome, it was possible to verify that Graciosa and Sta. Maria appeared to have the least diverse populations, and that Flores, despite its smaller population size and geographical isolation, has considerably higher levels of diversity. As for inter-island relationships, the difficulty of directly interpreting summary statistics values was evidenced. The AMOVA revealed that only 0·77% of the variation in surnames can be attributed to among-island variation, a value that, although small, can be considered significant. Application of Malécot's model revealed that geographic distance has an important impact in the genetic structure of the archipelago. Monmonier's maximum-difference algorithm demonstrated that the most isolated island of the archipelago appears to be Graciosa, followed by the islands of the Western group and by Sta. Maria. After integrating values of summary statistics with results from AMOVA and graphical methods, a more accurate genetic profile of the Azores, highly supported by genetic data, has emerged.

RESUMOO presente estudo aplica a metodologia de Constant-Market-Share para analisar o desempenho exportador do Brasil, China, Estados Unidos, Alemanha, Rússia, Coreia do Sul e Japão, entre 2000 e 2011. Após decompor a variação das exportações foi possível constatar que o efeito-competitividade parece ser influenciado pelo padrão de especialização das economias.

<i>Objective:</i> The short-term impact of the pre-symptomatic genetic test (PT) for Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) in the Azores (Portuguese Islands) was assessed in 46 individuals at risk who completed the PT Program. <i>Methods:</i> Scores for depression and anxiety were used as indicators of the subjects' emotional status immediately before the PT and 1 year after disclosure of the results. <i>Results:</i> Global levels of participation in the Azorean PT Program for MJD were high (20.7%), particularly in Flores Island (35.8%). For the total sample, mean scores of depression and anxiety before and after the PT presented without clinical significance. No differences were found for depression and anxiety scores before and after the PT. Furthermore, when grouped by test results (carriers/non-carriers), there were no differences between pre- and post-test levels. <i>Conclusions:</i> Results indicate that the test result did not cause a decrease in the psychological well-being of the individuals tested. The high number of participants performing the PT in the small and isolated community of Flores Island, where MJD represents a source of stigma, was interpreted as an indication that in this particular population the PT offers the individuals at risk the possibility of liberating from a stigma, and, hence, from exclusion.

This paper assesses how China's rise as a global power has affected Latin America, in general, and Brazil, in particular. If the global economy will increasingly be Asian-centered and Sino-centered in the decades to come, we must ask which role will be reserved for Latin American countries. We argue that, despite the intentions of a re-orientation in its growth model, the response of the Chinese policymakers to the international financial crisis has reinforced, at least in the short and medium terms, the dependence on exports and investments. Considering the sluggish recovery in advanced economies, that strategy is likely to amplify Chinese pressures to access dynamic domestic markets in emerging countries. In this context, Latin America represents not only a source of natural resources but an increasingly important market for absorbing the Chinese manufactured products. As a consequence, countries such as Brazil, with more diversified production and international trade structures, might experience a regressive pattern of specialization, which might trigger protectionist reactions and other tensions on bilateral relations with China.

Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) is caused by an expansion of a triplet repeat with a CAG motif at the ATXN3 gene. The putative segregation ratio distortion (SRD) of alleles can play an important role in the non-Mendelian behaviour of triplet repeat loci. To study the stability and infer the segregation patterns of wild-type MJD alleles, the size of the (CAG)(n) tract was analysed in 102 normal sibships, representing 428 meioses. No mutational events were detected during the transmission of alleles. Segregation analysis showed that the smaller alleles were preferentially transmitted (56.9%). Considering maternal meioses alone, such preference was still detected (55.7%) but without statistical significance. A positive correlation was observed for the difference in length between the two alleles constituting the transmitters' genotype (D) and the frequency of transmission of the smaller alleles. The results suggest that small D values are not enough to modify the probability of allele transmission. When transmissions involving genotypes with D