Investigating the interaction of cellulose nanofibers derived from cotton with a sophisticated 3D human lung cell coculture

Cellulose nanofibers are an attractive component of a broad range of nanomaterials. Their intriguing mechanical properties and low cost, as well as the renewable nature of cellulose make them an appealing alternative to carbon nanotubes (CNTs), which may pose a considerable health risk when inhaled. Little is known, however, concerning the potential toxicity of aerosolized cellulose nanofibers. Using a 3D in vitro triple cell coculture model of the human epithelial airway barrier, it was observed that cellulose nanofibers isolated from cotton (CCN) elicited a significantly (p < 0.05) lower cytotoxicity and (pro-)inflammatory response than multiwalled CNTs (MWCNTs) and crocidolite asbestos fibers (CAFs). Electron tomography analysis also revealed that the intracellular localization of CCNs is different from that of both MWCNTs and CAFs, indicating fundamental differences between each different nanofibre type in their interaction with the human lung cell coculture. Thus, the data shown in the present study highlights that not only the length and stiffness determine the potential detrimental (biological) effects of any nanofiber, but that the material used can significantly affect nanofiber-cell interactions.

Impact Assessment: Organic Cotton in Jalalabad, Oblast, Kyrgyztan

The aim of the study was to examine the economic performance as well as perceived social and environmental impacts of organic cotton in Southern Kyrgyzstan on the basis of a comparative field study (44 certified organic farmers and 33 conventional farmers) carried out in 2009. It also investigated farmers’ motivation for and assessment of conversion to organic farming. Cotton yields on organic farms were found to be 10% lower whereby input costs per unit were 42% lower, which resulted in organic farmers having a 20% higher revenue from cotton. Due to lower input costs and organic and fair trade price premiums the average gross margin from organic cotton was 27%. In addition to direct economic benefits organic farmers enjoy a number of additional benefits such as easy access to credits on favourable terms, provision with uncontaminated cotton cooking oil and seed cake as animal feed, marketing support as well as extension and training, services provided by the newly established organic service provider. A big majority of organic farmers perceives an improvement of soil qualities, improved health conditions, and positively assesses their previous decision to convert to organic farming. The major disadvantage of organic farming is the high manual labour input required. In the study area, where manual farm work is mainly women’s work and male labour migration widespread, women are most affected by this negative aspect of organic farming. Altogether, the results suggest that despite the inconvenience of higher work load the advantages of organic farming outweigh the disadvantages and that conversion to organic farming can improve the livelihoods of small-scale farmers.

Potential and limitations of organic and fair trade cotton for improving livelihoods of smallholders: evidence from Central Asia

Cotton is a leading agricultural non-food commodity associated with soil degradation, water pollution and pesticide poisoning due to high levels of agrochemical inputs. Organic farming is often promoted as a means of addressing the economic, environmental and health risks of conventional cotton production, and it is slowly gaining ground in the global cotton market. Organic and fair trade cotton are widely seen as opportunities for smallholder farmers to improve their livelihoods thanks to higher returns, lower input costs and fewer risks. Despite an increasing number of studies comparing the profitability of organic and non-organic farming systems in developing and industrialized countries, little has been published on organic farming in Central Asia. The aim of this article is to describe the economic performance and perceived social and environmental impacts of organic cotton in southern Kyrgyzstan, drawing on a comparative field study conducted by the author in 2009. In addition to economic and environmental aspects, the study investigated farmers’ motivations toward and assessment of conversion to organic farming. Cotton yields on organic farms were found to be 10% lower, while input costs per unit were 42% lower; as a result, organic farmers’ cotton revenues were 20% higher. Due to lower input costs as well as organic and fair trade price premiums, the average gross margin from organic cotton was 27% higher. In addition to direct economic benefits, organic farmers enjoy other benefits, such as easy access to credit on favorable terms, provision of uncontaminated cottonseed cooking oil and cottonseed cake as animal feed, and marketing support as well as extension and training services provided by newly established organic service providers. The majority of organic farmers perceive improved soil quality, improved health conditions, and positively assess their initial decision to convert to organic farming. The major disadvantage of organic farming is the high manual labor input required. In the study area, where manual farm work is mainly women's work and male labor migration is widespread, women are most affected by this negative aspect of organic farming. Altogether, the results suggest that, despite the inconvenience of a higher workload, the advantages of organic farming outweigh its disadvantages and that conversion to organic farming improves the livelihoods of small-scale farmers.

Plant strengtheners enhance parasitoid attraction to herbivore-damaged cotton via qualitative and quantitative changes in induced volatiles

BACKGROUND Herbivore-damaged plants release a blend of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that differs from undamaged plants. These induced changes are known to attract the natural enemies of the herbivores and therefore are expected to be important determinants of the effectiveness of biological control in agriculture. One way of boosting this phenomenon is the application of plant strengtheners, which has been shown to enhance parasitoid attraction in maize. It is unclear whether this is also the case for other important crops. RESULTS The plant strengtheners BTH [benzo (1,2,3) thiadiazole-7-carbothioic acid S-methyl ester] and laminarin were applied to cotton plants, and the effects on volatile releases and the attraction of three hymenopteran parasitoids, Cotesia marginiventris, Campoletis sonorensis and Microplitis rufiventris, were studied. After treated and untreated plants were induced by real or simulated caterpillar feeding, it was found that BTH treatment increased the attraction of the parasitoids, whereas laminarin had no significant effect. BTH treatment selectively increased the release of two homoterpenes and reduced the emission of indole, the latter of which had been shown to interfere with parasitoid attraction in earlier studies. Canonical variate analyses of the data show that the parasitoid responses were dependent on the quality rather than the quantity of volatile emission in this tritrophic interaction. CONCLUSION Overall, these results strengthen the emerging paradigm that induction of plant defences with chemical elicitors such as BTH could provide a sustainable and environmentally friendly strategy for biological control of pests by enhancing the attractiveness of cultivated plants to natural enemies of insect herbivores. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry

Multimodal Imaging of Cotton Wool Spots in Branch Retinal Vein Occlusion.

PURPOSE: To describe and follow cotton wool spots (CWS) in branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) using multimodal imaging. METHODS: In this prospective cohort study including 24 patients with new-onset BRVO, CWS were described and analyzed in color fundus photography (CF), spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), infrared (IR) and fluorescein angiography (FA) every 3 months for 3 years. The CWS area on SD-OCT and CF was evaluated using OCT-Tool-Kit software: CWS were marked in each single OCT B-scan and the software calculated the area by interpolation. RESULTS: 29 central CWS lesions were found. 100% of these CWS were visible on SD-OCT, 100% on FA and 86.2% on IR imaging, but only 65.5% on CF imaging. CWS were visible for 12.4 ± 7.5 months on SD-OCT, for 4.4 ± 3 months and 4.3 ± 3.4 months on CF and on IR, respectively, and for 17.5 ± 7.1 months on FA. The evaluated CWS area on SD-OCT was larger than on CF (0.26 ± 0.17 mm(2) vs. 0.13 ± 0.1 mm(2), p < 0.0001). The CWS area on SD-OCT and surrounding pathology such as intraretinal cysts, avascular zones and intraretinal hemorrhage were predictive for how long CWS remained visible (r(2) = 0.497, p < 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: The lifetime and presentation of CWS in BRVO seem comparable to other diseases. SD-OCT shows a higher sensitivity for detecting CWS compared to CF. The duration of visibility of CWS varies among different image modalities and depends on the surrounding pathology and the CWS size.