Strengthening the WHO in the pandemic era by removing a persistent structural defect in financing

Background The WHO’s success in its vital role is constrained by inadequate financial support from member states and overreliance on earmarked voluntary contributions, which erodes autonomy. The agency’s broad functions, including coordination among 194 members, cannot be performed by any other entity. However, despite experts’ well-articulated concerns that the agency’s legitimacy and authority in global health matters have been undermined, a decades-long freeze on member assessments means that WHO priorities are disproportionately influenced by a few powerful donors. A structural defect To overcome inertia in addressing well-known limitations, it may be helpful to consider the weaknesses in WHO’s financing mechanism as a persistent structural defect. This perspective strengthens the focus on corrections needed to remove the defect. In our view, the main features of the structural defect are the self-imposed constraints that foster the perception—if not the reality—that the agency’s legitimacy is compromised. These constraints include WHO’s inadequate level of financing; lack of direct control over 80% of its funds; and unbalanced participation, such that over 60% of financing originates from only 9 donors. With renewed commitment, however, member countries can remove these constraints. Removing the structural defect To meaningfully strengthen structural integrity of the financing mechanism, restore WHO’s autonomy, and minimize concerns about wealthy-donor supremacy, it will be necessary to define specific requirements and implement restrictions on financial contributions. We make five recommendations, including tripling total financing; ensuring that 70% or more of financial support derives from member assessments; limiting contributions from individual members to a maximum of 4% of total WHO financing; and limiting donations from individual partners to a maximum of 3% of total WHO financing (1% for earmarked donations). Although some might consider these measures impractical, they are justified by the magnitude of the crises the world faces, by member states’ increased economic strength in recent decades, and by the importance of shielding the WHO’s financing structure from perceived neocolonialism. This necessary step calls for an adjustment of priorities: the higher level of assessed contribution—from nearly all members regardless of wealth—required to reach the proposed targets would still represent only a small fraction of most members’ annual military expenditures. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic, with its devastating toll on human life and global economic stability, presents an opportunity for reflection and refocusing. Realigning WHO’s financial structure to its founders’ vision, as proposed here, would likely safeguard both the agency’s autonomy and member states’ trust, while alleviating concerns about undue influence from powerful donors. Removing the persistent structural defect in financing would empower WHO to lead and coordinate global response to meet the inevitable challenges of the coming decades.

Golgi structural defect impairs glycosaminoglycan synthesis, sulfation, and secretion

Synthesis of glycosaminoglycans such as heparan sulfate (HS) and chondroitin sulfate (CS) occurs in the lumen of the Golgi but the relationship between Golgi structural integrity and glycosaminoglycan synthesis is not clear. In this study, we disrupted the Golgi structure by knocking out GRASP55 and GRASP65 and determined its effect on the synthesis, sulfation, and secretion of HS and CS. We found that GRASP depletion increased HS synthesis while decreasing CS synthesis in cells, altered HS and CS sulfation, and reduced both HS and CS secretion. Using proteomics, RNA-seq and biochemical approaches, we identified EXTL3, a key enzyme in the HS synthesis pathway, whose level is upregulated in GRASP knockout cells; while GalNacT1, an essential CS synthesis enzyme, is robustly reduced. In addition, we found that GRASP depletion decreased HS sulfation via the reduction of PAPSS2, a bifunctional enzyme in HS sulfation. Our study provides the first evidence that Golgi structural defect may significantly alter the synthesis and secretion of glycosaminoglycans.

Drain Structural Defect Detection and Mapping Using AI-Enabled Reconfigurable Robot Raptor and IoRT Framework

Human visual inspection of drains is laborious, time-consuming, and prone to accidents. This work presents an AI-enabled robot-assisted remote drain inspection and mapping framework using our in-house developed reconfigurable robot Raptor. The four-layer IoRT serves as a bridge between the users and the robots, through which seamless information sharing takes place. The Faster RCNN ResNet50, Faster RCNN ResNet101, and Faster RCNN Inception-ResNet-v2 deep learning frameworks were trained using a transfer learning scheme with six typical concrete defect classes and deployed in an IoRT framework remote defect detection task. The efficiency of the trained CNN algorithm and drain inspection robot Raptor was evaluated through various real-time drain inspection field trials using the SLAM technique. The experimental results indicate that robot’s maneuverability was stable, and its mapping and localization were also accurate in different drain types. Finally, for effective drain maintenance, the SLAM-based defect map was generated by fusing defect detection results in the lidar-SLAM map.

Polaritonic crystal formed of a tunnel-coupled microcavity array and an ensemble of quantum dots

Propagation of polariton excitations in a defect-containing one-dimensional lattice of microcavities with embedded ultracold atomic nanoclusters (quantum dots) is being considered. The virtual crystal approximation is used to study the properties of electromagnetic excitation spectrum resulting from random variations of the atomic subsystem composition and positions of micropores, as well as from a homogeneous elastic deformation of the considered one-dimensional structure. The group velocity dependence of polariton excitations on structural defect concentration and on deformation parameter is being numerically modeled.

Golgi structural defect impairs glycosaminoglycan synthesis, sulfation, and secretion

Synthesis of glycosaminoglycans such as heparan sulfate (HS) and chondroitin sulfate (CS) occurs in the lumen of the Golgi but the relationship between Golgi structural integrity and glycosaminoglycan synthesis is not clear. In this study, we disrupted the Golgi structure by knocking out GRASP55 and GRASP65 and determined its effect on the synthesis, sulfation, and secretion of HS and CS. We found that GRASP depletion increased HS synthesis while decreasing CS synthesis in cells, altered HS and CS sulfation, and reduced both HS and CS secretion. Using proteomics, RNA-seq and biochemical approaches, we identified EXTL3, a key enzyme in the HS synthesis pathway, whose level is upregulated in GRASP knockout cells; while GalNacT1, an essential CS synthesis enzyme, is robustly reduced. In addition, we found that GRASP depletion decreased HS sulfation via the reduction of PAPSS2, a bifunctional enzyme in HS sulfation. Our study provides the first evidence that Golgi structural defect may significantly alter the synthesis and secretion of glycosaminoglycans.

The false promise of global IR: exposing the paradox of dependent development

Concerned about the continued dominance of Western International Relations (IR) theories, the global IR community has proposed various measures to address disciplinary hierarchies through encouraging dialogue and pluralism. By investigating the pedagogical preferences of instructors from 45 countries, this paper questions the global IR initiative's emancipatory potential, arguing that disciplinary practices in IR resemble those of dependent development. The study develops a new typology of IR theoretical (IRT) scholarship and examines the readings assigned in 151 IRT syllabi worldwide for evidence of similarity, replication, and assimilation. The findings show that mainstream core IRTs dominate syllabi globally, regardless of region, language of instruction, or instructors' educational/linguistic backgrounds. This domination extends to periphery scholars not using their own local products. Even when they do seek alternative approaches, they prefer to import core alternatives, that is, critical traditions, rather than homegrown IRTs. Finally, the results show that even in syllabi taught in local languages the readings remain dominated by core IRT works. These findings expose a structural defect in the current cry for global IR, by revealing the system's dependent development paradox. The paper concludes with suggestions for creating a symmetric interdependent structure, in the aim of achieving a genuine globalization of IR.