Government of Canada

About: Government of Canada is a government organization based out in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Monetary policy & Debt. The organization has 796 authors who have published 886 publications receiving 21366 citations. The organization is also known as: federal government of Canada & Her Majesty's Government.

Delivery of DNA vaccines using electroporation.

Abstract: Although DNA immunization remains a very attractive method to induce immunity to a variety of pathogens, the transfection efficiency is still relatively low. This is especially true in species other than mice. One way of improving this efficiency is to temporarily permeabilize the cells to allow cellular uptake of DNA plasmids. One way to permeabilize cells is by electroporation. The current report describes some of the parameters for optimizing electroporation for enhancing the level of gene expression. A clear concern is balancing the plasmid uptake with cellular or tissue damage. Techniques are described to achieve this goal.

Preliminary Assessment of the Economic Impacts of a Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement

Abstract: This document assesses the economic impacts of a free trade agreement between Canada and Korea, using the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) CGE model and version 6 of its database (base year 2001). Five alternative scenarios are simulated based on a range of assumptions concerning the supply-side responses of the two economies to expanded bilateral trade. We find that choice of closure assumptions heavily influences the scale (and even the sign) of the welfare impacts and the breakdown of the economic impacts between output and terms of trade. The default closure within the GTAP modelling framework of fixed labour and capital supply, which is equivalent to assuming zero supply elasticities for factor inputs, results in terms of trade gains dominating output gains, an outcome that in our view is unlikely for small, open economies like Canada and Korea. Our central scenario incorporates the assumptions which in our view are best suited for Canada and Korea respectively; this yields larger economic gains for both countries, with a more reasonable breakdown between output and terms of trade impacts.

Effectiveness of Capital Controls in India: Evidence from the Offshore NDF Market

Abstract: This paper examines the effectiveness of international capital controls in India over time by analyzing daily return differentials in the nondeliverable forward (NDF) markets using the self-exciting threshold autoregressive (SETAR) methodology. The paper presents a narrative on the evolution of capital controls in India and calculates a new index of capital account liberalization using cumulative monthly changes in restrictions on inflows and outflows. It employs the de jure indices of changes in restrictions on capital inflows and outflows to identify particular policy episodes, and tests the de facto effects of restrictions by calculating deviations from covered interest parity (CIP) utilizing data from the three-month offshore nondeliverable rupee forward market. The paper estimates no-arbitrage bands for each episode using SETAR where boundaries are determined by transactions costs and by the effectiveness of capital controls. It finds that Indian capital controls are asymmetric over inflows and outflows, have changed at one stage from primarily restricting outflows to effectively restricting inflows; and that arbitrage activity closes deviations from CIP when the threshold boundaries are exceeded in all subperiods. Moreover, the results indicate a significant reduction in the barriers to arbitrage since 2009, suggesting that gradual liberalization of India's capital account has played an important role in integrating onshore and offshore markets. The paper also applies the methodology to the Chinese RMB NDF market and find that capital controls are strictly limiting capital inflows with the exception of two periods of regional and international financial turbulence. The intensity of Chinese controls varies over time, indicating discretion in the application of capital control policy but, unlike India, shows no sign of gradual relaxation or liberalization.

Estimates of Human Capital in Canada: The Lifetime Income Approach

Abstract: This paper produces an estimate of market-based human capital investment and stock for Canada over the period from 1970 to 2007 based on the lifetime income approach and compares it with that of physical and natural capital investment and stock. It adopts the methodology developed by Jorgenson and Fraumeni, and estimates human capital stock as the expected future lifetime income of all individuals. Human capital investment is estimated as changes in human capital stock due to the addition of new members of the working age population arising from the rearing and education of children and the effect of immigration on human capital.The main findings are as follows: 1. The volume of aggregate human capital rose at an annual rate of 1.7% in Canada for the period 1970 to 2007, and most of the growth is due to the increase in the number of individuals in the working-age population. The rising education level of the Canadian population is also a significant contributing factor to the growth in human capital. 2. The compositional effects of aging of the Canadian population (a movement to a population that is older on average) reduced human capital growth by 0.6% per year over the period 1980 to 2007, while the rising education level increased human capital growth by 0.7% per year over the period. 3. Human capital stock on a per capita basis increased at 0.9% per year for the period 1970 to 1980, due to the rising education attainment during the period. After 1980, human capital stock per capita was virtually unchanged due to two offsetting factors: rising education level which increased human capital stock and the compositional effects of population aging, which reduced human capital stock. 4. The value of human capital investment and stock exceeds the value of physical capital investment and stock, and the ratio of human capital investment and stock to physical capital investment and stock declined over time. In 2007, human capital stock is about four times as large as physical capital stock while investment in human capital is about two times the magnitude of investment in physical capital. 5. The levels of human capital investment and stock estimates are sensitive to the assumptions made about expected future income growth and the rate used to discount the future income when calculating human capital, but the growth of the quantity and price of human capital investment and stock is not sensitive to the assumptions in these areas

Seperation of mallomonas duerrschmidtiae sp. nov. from m. crassisquama and m. pseudocoronata: implications for paleolimnological research1

Abstract: A new species, Mallomonas duerrschmidtiae, with characteristics common to both Mallomonas crassisquama (Asmund) Fott and Mallomonas pseudocoronata Prescott, is described from acidic lakes low in specific conductance and total phosphorus concentration. Characteristics of scales, bristles and spines serve to separate the three taxa. The length and area of scales of M. duerrschmidtiae are significantly larger than those of M. crassisquama but smaller than those of M. pseudocoronata. Although the anterior submarginal ribs of scales of M. duerrschmidtiae may become extended to form short wings, the scales lack the large forward projecting anterior wings characteristic of scales of M. pseudocoronata. Features of the dome and junction between the arms of the V-rib and anterior submarginal ribs also serve to distinguish between the three species. Cells of M. duerrschmidtiae also possess long, smooth and thick spines on their posterior scales and lack helmet bristles. M. duerrschmidtiae has different maxima along pH, temperature, specific conductance, total phosphorus and seasonal gradients than either M. crassisquama or M. pseudocoronata. Discriminant analysis, based on nine morphological characters, was used to successfully classify body scales of the three species. The importance of M. duerrschmidtiae as a bioindicator in future lake monitoring and paleolimnological inference studies is discussed.