eGovernment development at the local level

Session 5: Knowledge societ

E-democracy: exploring the current stage of e-government

Governments around the world have been pressured to implement e-Government programs in order to improve the government-citizen dialogue. The authors of this article review prior literature on such efforts to find if they lead to increased democratic participation ("e-Democracy") for the affected citizens, with a focus on the key concepts of transparency, openness, and engagement. The authors find that such efforts are a starting point toward e-Democracy, but the journey is far from complete

Diffusie van interbestuurlijke egovernmentprojecten bij Vlaamse lokale besturen: een analyse van adoptiefactoren

De uitwisseling van gegevens tussen centrale en lokale overheden houdt potentiële voordelen in zich voor het realiseren van een efficiëntere lokale dienstverlening. In dit artikel bespreken we de adoptie van de Kruispuntbank van Ondernemingen (KBO) en de Vlaamse Verrijkte Kruispuntbank voor Ondernemeningen (VKBO) door lokale besturen. Vlaamse lokale besturen kunnen de data uit deze authentieke gegevensbronnen in hun processen aanwenden door een aantal ICT-ontsluitingstoepassingen te adopteren. Op basis van het conceptueel model van Korteland en Bekkers (2007) onderzoeken we welke factoren de adoptie van de KBO- en VKBO-ontsluitingstoepassingen beïnvloeden. We bestuderen de adoptie van KBO en VKBO vanuit een functionele, een institutionele en een politieke benadering. Vervolgens bespreken we drie groepen van beïnvloedende factoren: organisatorische kenmerken, kenmerken van de diffusiestrategie en netwerkkenmerken

A systematic comparison of all mutations in hereditary sensory neuropathy type I (HSAN I) reveals that the G387A mutation is not disease associated

Hereditary sensory neuropathy type 1 (HSAN I) is an autosomal dominant inherited neurodegenerative disorder of the peripheral nervous system associated with mutations in the SPTLC1 subunit of the serine palmitoyltransferase (SPT). Four missense mutations (C133W, C133Y, V144D and G387A) in SPTLC1 were reported to cause HSAN I. SPT catalyses the condensation of Serine and Palmitoyl-CoA, which is the first and rate-limiting step in the de novo synthesis of ceramides. Earlier studies showed that C133W and C133Y mutants have a reduced activity, whereas the impact of the V144D and G387A mutations on the human enzyme was not tested yet. In this paper, we show that none of the HSAN I mutations interferes with SPT complex formation. We demonstrate that also V144D has a reduced SPT activity, however to a lower extent than C133W and C133Y. In contrast, the G387A mutation showed no influence on SPT activity. Furthermore, the growth phenotype of LY-B cells—a SPTLC1 deficient CHO cell line—could be reversed by expressing either the wild-type SPTLC1 or the G387A mutant, but not the C133W mutant. This indicates that the G387A mutation is most likely not directly associated with HSAN I. These findings were genetically confirmed by the identification of a nuclear HSAN family which showed segregation of the G387A variant as a non-synonymous SN

Effects of temperature and humidity on the dielectric properties of thermally sprayed ceramic coatings

Electrical insulation is indispensable in electrical equipment. Thermally sprayed ceramic coatings are promising materials, offering insulating capabilities in areas where other materials do not fulfil the requirements. For instance their chemical stability, a high wear resistance and an ability to withstand high temperatures are significant advantages. This thesis is a part of the HICC project (Highly Insulating Ceramic Coatings), in which a new class of thermally sprayed ceramic coatings, with significantly improved dielectric properties, will be developed. It contributes to that project in two ways. First by the development of a measurement program to measure the relative permittivity and the loss index in thermally sprayed coatings. Secondly by the analysis of the dielectric properties of three Al2O3 coatings, coated by respectively ethylene high velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) spraying, atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) and flexicord spraying. In the theoretical part of this thesis, a thorough literature study regarding general insulator behaviour and thermally sprayed ceramic coatings is performed. In the empirical part, the dielectric properties of the coatings were studied using dielectric spectroscopy measurements. It was found that at temperatures below 100°C the permittivity and the losses are strongly dependent on the frequency, the temperature and the humidity. Regarding permittivity and dielectric losses, the flexicord sprayed sample showed the most promising results. On the other hand, the plasma sprayed sample showed the highest values for those quantities. These variations are found to be related to differences in microstructure and phase composition, due to the distinctions between the various spraying techniques. At temperatures above 100°C, an unexpected permanent decrease in relative permittivity and loss index was observed during heat treatments. The outcome of this thesis provides a good base for the continuation of the HICC-project. More recommendations for further research and the advice to use stainless steel substrates for future samples, are provided as well

Structural, mechanistic and regulatory studies of serine palmitoyltransferase

SLs (sphingolipids) are composed of fatty acids and a polar head group derived from l-serine. SLs are essential components of all eukaryotic and many prokaryotic membranes but S1P (sphingosine 1-phosphate) is also a potent signalling molecule. Recent efforts have sought to inventory the large and chemically complex family of SLs (LIPID MAPS Consortium). Detailed understanding of SL metabolism may lead to therapeutic agents specifically directed at SL targets. We have studied the enzymes involved in SL biosynthesis; later stages are species-specific, but all core SLs are synthesized from the condensation of l-serine and a fatty acid thioester such as palmitoyl-CoA that is catalysed by SPT (serine palmitoyltransferase). SPT is a PLP (pyridoxal 5'-phosphate)-dependent enzyme that forms 3-KDS (3-ketodihydrosphingosine) through a decarboxylative Claisen-like condensation reaction. Eukaryotic SPTs are membrane-bound multi-subunit enzymes, whereas bacterial enzymes are cytoplasmic homodimers. We use bacterial SPTs (e. g. from Sphingomonas) to probe their structure and mechanism. Mutations in human SPT cause a neuropathy [HSAN1 (hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy type 1)], a rare SL metabolic disease. How these mutations perturb SPT activity is subtle and bacterial SPT mimics of HSAN1 mutants affect the enzyme activity and structure of the SPT dimer. We have also explored SPT inhibition using various inhibitors (e. g. cycloserine). A number of new subunits and regulatory proteins that have a direct impact on the activity of eukaryotic SPTs have recently been discovered. Knowledge gained from bacterial SPTs sheds some light on the more complex mammalian systems. In the present paper, we review historical aspects of the area and highlight recent key developments.</p