Interactions between proteins and their small molecule ligands are of great importance for the process of drug design. Here we report an unbiased molecular dynamics simulation of systems containing ...hevein domain (HEV32) with N-acetylglucosamine mono-, di- or trisaccharide. Carbohydrate molecules were placed outside the binding site. Three of six simulations (6 × 2 μs) led to binding of a carbohydrate ligand into the binding mode in agreement with the experimentally determined structure. Unbinding was observed in one simulation (monosaccharide). There were no remarkable intermediates of binding for mono and disaccharide. Trisaccharide binding was initiated by formation of carbohydrate-aromatic CH/π interactions. Our results indicate that binding of ligands followed the model of conformational selection because the conformation of the protein ready for ligand binding was observed before the binding. This study extends the concept of docking by dynamics on carbohydrate-protein interactions.
The ability to predict the transglycosylation activity of glycosidases by in silico analysis was investigated. The transglycosylation abilities of 7 different β-
d
-galactosidases from GH family 2 ...were tested experimentally using 7 different acceptors and
p
-nitrophenyl-β-
d
-galactopyranoside as a donor of galactosyl moiety. Similar transglycosylation abilities were confirmed for all enzymes originating from bacteria belonging to
Enterobacteriaceae
, which were able to use all tested acceptor molecules. Higher acceptor selectivity was observed for all others used bacterial strains. Structure models of all enzymes were constructed using homology modeling. Ligand-docking method was used for enzymes-transglycosylation products models construction and evaluation. Results obtained by in silico analysis were compared with results arisen out of experimental testing. The experiments confirmed that significant differences in transglycosylation abilities are caused by small differences in active sites composition of analyzed enzymes. According to obtained result, it is possible to conclude that homology modeling may serve as a quick starting point for detection or exclusion of enzymes with defined transglycosylation abilities, which can be used for subsequent synthesis of e.g., pharmaceutically interesting glycosides.
The main goal of the paper was to compare poverty rates in Croatia based on the EU poverty methodology (60% of median equivalent income) with alternative indicators of income poverty, material ...deprivation and subjective poverty. Together with poverty indicators referring to different dimensions of poverty, the cumulative approach to poverty was used, meaning that poverty was measured by combining more dimensions of poverty. The Household Budget Survey in the 2003-2008 period was used as a data source. All alternative poverty indicators, as well as cumulative poverty indicators, confirmed that the scope of poverty was significantly reduced in the 2003-2008 period (the rates of material deprivation were almost halved), being at odds with stagnant relative poverty rates (obtained according to the poverty line defined as 60% of median). There has been a lack of absolute overlap among poverty dimensions (measures), but dimensions are interrelated. Different poverty measures result in different poverty profiles. The paper has shown that it is necessary to use more poverty measures and cumulative approach in order to monitor poverty, because this way it is possible to identify much better not only the scope but also the depth of poverty. PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
INCOME INEQUALITIES AND REDISTRIBUTIVE PREFERENCES IN CROATIA AND EU COUNTRIES: MACRO ANALYSIS Department of Social Work, Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb Zagreb, Croatia The paper analyses the ...relationship between income inequalities and redistributive preferences. The objectives have been: determine to which degree income inequalities are associated with redistributive preferences, which are the correlates of redistributive preferences on the macro level and which mechanisms of redistribution have been preferred by citizens in the EU countries. Aggregated data from two special Eurobarometer surveys (2010 and 2018) were used as the data source on redistributive preferences, while macro-statistical indicators were taken from the Eurostat database. Bivariate correlational analyses, linear regression and the cluster analysis were used for data processing. A general finding is that redistributive preferences are high in almost all EU countries. It seems that an increase of income inequalities is not the key factor of high redistributive preferences, but it is the perception of income inequalities and the sensitivity of citizens towards income inequalities. Citizens in the EU countries often incorrectly perceive the level of inequalities in society and their place on the income scale. The respondents from post-socialist countries have a larger “aversion” towards income inequalities and want a stronger role of the government in the redistribution and social life. Inhabitants of the EU countries support all key mechanisms of income redistribution (taxes, education, social protection and minimum wage), but they give the largest support to the tax system and the progressive taxation of the wealthy, while there are a lot of suspicions regarding fully free education. Key words: income inequalities, redistributive preferences, European Union, redistributive mechanisms, social justice.
U radu se analizira veza između dohodovnih nejednakosti i redistributivnih preferencija. Glavni su ciljevi rada: utvrditi u kojoj su mjeri stvarne dohodovne nejednakosti povezane s redistributivnim ...preferencijama, koji su korelati redistributivnih preferencija na makrorazini te koje mehanizme redistribucije preferiraju građani u zemljama EU-a. Kao izvori podataka o redistributivnim preferencijama korišteni su agregirani podaci iz dvaju specijalnih istraživanja Eurobarometra (2010. i 2018.), dok su makrostatistički pokazatelji uzeti iz Eurostatove baze podataka. U radu su korištene bivarijatne korelacijske analize, linearna regresija i klaster analiza. Opći je nalaz da su visoke redistributivne preferencije prisutne u gotovo svim zemljama EU-a. Izgleda da rast dohodovnih nejednakosti nije ključni čimbenik visoke razine redistributivnih preferencija, već je to percepcija dohodovnih nejednakosti i osjetljivost građana na ekonomske nejednakosti. Građani u zemljama EU-a često pogrešno percipiraju razinu nejednakosti u društvu i svoje mjesto na dohodovnoj ljestvici. Ispitanici iz postsocijalističkih zemalja imaju veću »averziju« prema dohodovnim nejednakostima i žele veću ulogu države u redistribuciji i društvenom životu. Stanovnici EU-a podržavaju sve ključne mehanizme dohodovne redistribucije (porezi, obrazovanje, socijalna zaštita i minimalna plaća), ali najveću potporu daju poreznom sustavu i progresivnom oporezivanju bogatijih, dok je najviše dilema vezano za potpuno besplatno obrazovanje.
Osnovni je cilj ovoga rada bio usporediti stope siromastva u Hrvatskoj dobivene na temelju sluzbene metodologije za pracenje siromastva u EU-u s alternativnim pokazateljima dohodovnoga siromastva, ...materijalne deprivacije i subjektiv-noga siromastva. Osim analize pokazatelja siromastva prema pojedinim dimenzijama, primijenjen je i kumulativni pristup mjerenju siromastva, tj. siromastvo je mjereno prema kombinaciji vise dimenzija ili mjera siromastva. Kao izvor podataka uzeta je Anketa o potrosnji kucanstava u razdoblju od 2003. do 2008. godine. Svi alternativni pokazatelji siromastva i pokazatelji kumulativnoga siromastva potvrduju da je od 2003. do 2008. doslo do osjetnoga smanjenja opsega siromastva (stope materijalne deprivacije gotovo su prepo-lovljene), sto je u raskoraku sa stagnantnim stopama relativnoga siromastva (prema liniji siromastva EU-a). Usta-novljeno je da postoji korelacija, ali ne i potpuno preklapanje izmedu dimenzija siromastva. Razne mjere siromastva rezultiraju raznim profilima siromastva. Rad je pokazao da je prilikom pracenja siromastva nuzno primijeniti vise mjera siromastva i kumulativni pristup, jer se na taj nacin moze bolje utvrditi ne samo opseg nego i dubina siromastva. Kljucne rijeci: siromastvo, materijalna deprivacija, kumulativni pristup, Hrvatska
The conference will celebrate 30 years of social work courses at the IUC in Dubrovnik. The aim of the conference is to reassert the role of social work in societal change and to explore political, ...organisational and ethical issues through the lens of emancipation and social transformation. To do so, participants will revisit historical sources and envisage new pathways, possible roles and responsibilities of social work in order to enrich utopias with practical purpose through forms of wisdom and by reinvigorating our anti-oppressive mandate. Social work needs to establish strong alternatives that are extremely important in times of rising nationalisms, abrogation of human rights and decaying solidarity. These alternatives should use the tools and stories of social work in order to encourage and enable people to believe that another world is possible and work towards building it together. The IUC School offers a place for dialogues in praxis at an international level to explore the new challenges and roles that social work will play in addressing these issues.
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