Guayule and Russian dandelion as alternative sources of natural rubber.

Natural rubber, obtained almost exclusively from the Para rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis), is a unique biopolymer of strategic importance that, in many of its most significant applications, cannot be replaced by synthetic rubber alternatives. Several pressing motives lead to the search for alternative sources of natural rubber. These include increased evidence of allergenic reactions to Hevea rubber, the danger that the fungal pathogen Microcyclus ulei, causative agent of South American Leaf Blight (SALB), might spread to Southeast Asia, which would severely disrupt rubber production, potential shortages of supply due to increasing demand and changes in land use, and a general trend towards the replacement of petroleum-derived chemicals with renewables. Two plant species have received considerable attention as potential alternative sources of natural rubber: the Mexican shrub Guayule (Parthenium argentatum Gray) and the Russian dandelion (Taraxacum koksaghyz). This review will summarize the current production methods and applications of natural rubber (dry rubber and latex), the threats to the production of natural rubber from the rubber tree, and describe the current knowledge of the production of natural rubber from guayule and Russian dandelion.

A Multi-Center Phase II Study (SAKK 36/06) of Single Agent Everolimus (RAD001) In Patients with Relapsed or Refractory Mantle Cell Lymphoma

Introduction: Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) accounts for 6% of all B-cell lymphomas and remains incurable for most patients. Those who relapse after first line therapy or hematopoietic stem cell transplantation have a dismal prognosis with short response duration after salvage therapy. On a molecular level, MCL is characterised by the translocation t[11;14] leading to Cyclin D1 overexpression. Cyclin D1 is downstream of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) kinase and can be effectively blocked by mTOR inhibitors such as temsirolimus. We set out to define the single agent activity of the orally available mTOR inhibitor everolimus (RAD001) in a prospective, multi-centre trial in patients with relapsed or refractory MCL (NCT00516412). The study was performed in collaboration with the EU-MCL network. Methods: Eligible patients with histologically/cytologically confirmed relapsed (not more than 3 prior lines of systemic treatment) or refractory MCL received everolimus 10 mg orally daily on day 1 - 28 of each cycle (4 weeks) for 6 cycles or until disease progression. The primary endpoint was the best objective response with adverse reactions, time to progression (TTP), time to treatment failure, response duration and molecular response as secondary endpoints. A response rate of ≤ 10% was considered uninteresting and, conversely, promising if ≥ 30%. The required sample size was 35 pts using the Simon's optimal two-stage design with 90% power and 5% significance. Results: A total of 36 patients with 35 evaluable patients from 19 centers were enrolled between August 2007 and January 2010. The median age was 69.4 years (range 40.1 to 84.9 years), with 22 males and 13 females. Thirty patients presented with relapsed and 5 with refractory MCL with a median of two prior therapies. Treatment was generally well tolerated with anemia (11%), thrombocytopenia (11%), neutropenia (8%), diarrhea (3%) and fatigue (3%) being the most frequent complications of CTC grade III or higher. Eighteen patients received 6 or more cycles of everolimus treatment. The objective response rate was 20% (95% CI: 8-37%) with 2 CR, 5 PR, 17 SD, and 11 PD. At a median follow-up of 6 months, TTP was 5.45 months (95% CI: 2.8-8.2 months) for the entire population and 10.6 months for the 18 patients receiving 6 or more cycles of treatment. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that single agent everolimus 10 mg once daily orally is well tolerated. The null hypothesis of inactivity could be rejected indicating a moderate anti-lymphoma activity in relapsed/refractory MCL. Further studies of either everolimus in combination with chemotherapy or as single agent for maintenance treatment are warranted in MCL.

Sources of comparative advantage in polluting industries (with appendix)

We study the determinants of comparative advantage in polluting industries. We combine dataon environmental policy at the country level with data on pollution intensity at the industry levelto show that countries with laxer environmental regulation have a comparative advantage in polluting industries. Further, we address the potential problem of reverse causality. We propose aninstrument for environmental regulation based on meteorological determinants of pollution dispersion identified by the atmospheric pollution literature. We find that the effect of environmentalregulation on the pattern of trade is causal and comparable in magnitude to the effect of physicaland human capital.

Geochemistry and stable isotope composition of fresh alkaline porphyry copper tailings: Implications on sources and mobility of elements during transport and early stages of deposition

Prevention of acid mine drainage (AMD) in sulfide-containing tailings requires the identification of the geochemical processes and element pathways in the early stages of tailing deposition. However, analyses of recently deposited tailings in active tailings impoundments are scarce because mineralogical changes occur near the detection limits of many assays. This study shows that a detailed geochemical study which includes stable isotopes of water (delta H-2, delta O-18), dissolved sulfates (delta S-34, delta O-18) and hydrochernical parameter (pH, Eh, DOC, major and trace elements) from tailings samples taken at different depths in rainy and dry seasons allows the understanding of weathering (oxidation, dissolution, sorption, and desorption), water and element pathways, and mixing processes in active tailings impoundments. Fresh alkaline tailings (pH 9.2-10.2) from the Cu-Mo porphyry deposit in El Teniente, Chile had low carbonate (0.8-1.1 Wt-% CaCO3 equivalent) and sulfide concentrations (0.8-1.3 wt.%, mainly as pyrite). In the alkaline tailings water, Mo and Cu (up to 3.9 mg/L Mo and 0.016 mg/L Cu) were mobile as MoO42- and Cu (OH)(2)(0). During the flotation, tailings water reached equilibrium with gypsum (up to 738 mg/L Ca and 1765 mg/ L SO4). The delta S-34 VS. delta O-18 covariations of dissolved sulfate (2.3 to 4.5% delta S-34 and 4.1 to 6.0 % delta O-18) revealed the sulfate sources: the dissolution of primary sulfates (12.0 to 13.2%. delta S-34, 7.4 to 10.9%.delta O-18) and oxidation of primary sulfides (-6.7 to 1.7%. delta S-34). Sedimented tailings in the tailings impoundment can be divided into three layers with different water sources, element pathways, and geochemical processes. The deeper sediments (> 1 m depth) were infiltrated by catchment water, which partly replaced the original tailings water, especially during the winter season. This may have resulted in the change from alkaline to near-neutral pH and towards lower concentrations of most dissolved elements. The neutral pH and high DOC (up to 99.4 mg/L C) of the catchment water mobilized Cu (up to 0.25 mg/L) due to formation of organic Cu complexes; and Zn (up to 130 mg/L) due to dissolution of Zn oxides and desorption). At I m depth, tailings pore water obtained during the winter season was chemically and isotopically similar to fresh tailings water (pH 9.8-10.6, 26.7-35.5 mg/L Cl, 2.3-6.0 mg/L Mo). During the summer, a vadose zone evolved locally and temporarily up to 1.2 m depth. resulting in a higher concentration of dissolved solids in the pore water due to evaporation. During periodical new deposition of fresh tailings, the geochemistry of the surface layer was geochemically similar to fresh tailings. In periods without deposition, sulfide oxidation was suggested by decreasing pH (7.7-9.5), enrichment of MoO42- and SO42-, and changes in the isotopic composition of dissolved sulfates. Further enrichment for Na, K, Cl, SO4, Mg, Cu, and Mo (up to 23.8 mg/L Mo) resulted from capillary transport towards the surface followed by evaporation and the precipitation of highly soluble efflorescent salts (e.g., mirabilite, syngenite) at the tailing surface during summer. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Consumer Advisory Bulletin, More Sources on Students and Credit Card Debt, October 2007

The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division receives hundreds of calls and consumer complaints every year. Follow these tips to avoid unexpected expense and disappointments. This record is about: More Sources on Students and Credit Card Debt Suggested by the Office of Attorney General Tom Miller

Contrasting magma types and timing of intrusion in the Permian layered mafic complex of Mont Collon (Western Alps, Valais, Switzerland): evidence from U/Pb zircon and 40Ar/39Ar amphibole dating

We have selected and dated three contrasting rock-types representative of the magmatic activity within the Permian layered mafic complex of Mont Collon, Austroalpine Dent Blanche nappe, Western Alps. A pegmatitic gabbro associated to the main cumulus sequence yields a concordant U/Pb zircon age of 284.2 +/- 0.6 Ma, whereas a pegmatitic granite dike crosscutting the latter yields a concordant age of 282.9 +/- 0.6 Ma. A Fe-Ti-rich ultrabasic lamprophyre, crosscutting all other lithologies of the complex, yields an 40Ar/39Ar plateau age of 260.2 +/- 0.7 Ma on a kaersutite concentrate. All ages are interpreted as magmatic. Sub-contemporaneous felsic dikes within the Mont Collon complex are ascribed to anatectic back-veining from the country-rock, related to the emplacement of the main gabbroic body in the continental crust, which is in accordance with new isotopic data. The lamprophyres have isotopic compositions typical of a depleted mantle, in contrast to those of the cumulate gabbros, close to values of the Bulk Silicate Earth. This indicates either contrasting sources for the two magma pulses - the subcontinental lithospheric mantle for the gabbros and the underlying asthenosphere for the lamprophyres - or a single depleted lithospheric source with variable degrees of crustal contamination of the gabbroic melts during their emplacement in the continental crust. The Mont Collon complex belongs to a series of Early Permian mafic massifs, which emplaced in a short time span about 285-280 Ma ago, in a limited sector of the post-Variscan continental crust now corresponding to the Austroalpine/ Southern Alpine domains and Corsica. This magmatic activity was controlled in space and time by crustal-scale transtensional shear zones.

On the sources of business cycles in the G-7

This paper examines sources of cyclical movements in output, inflation and the term structure of interest rates. It employs a novel identification approach which uses the sign of the cross correlation function in response to shocks to catalog orthogonal disturbances. We find that demand shocks are the dominant source output, inflation and term structure fluctuations in six of the G-7 countries. Within the class of demand disturbances, nominal shocks are dominant, but their importance declined after 1982. Furthermore, there are no significant differences in the proportion of term structure variability explained by different structural sources at different horizons.

Sources and propagation of international cycles: Common shocks or transmission?

This paper studies the generation and transmission of international cycles in a multi-country model with production and consumption interdependencies. Two sources of disturbance are considered and three channels of propagation are compared. In the short run the contemporaneous correlation of disturbances determines the main features of the transmission. In the medium run production interdependencies account for the transmission of technology shocks and consumption interdependencies account for the transmission of government shocks. Technology disturbances, which are mildly correlated across countries, are more successful than government expenditure disturbances in reproducing actual data. The model also accounts for the low cross country consumption correlations observed in the data.

Drivers and sources of supply flexibility: An exploratory study

Purpose - There has been much research on manufacturing flexibility, but supply chain flexibility is still an under-investigated area. This paper focuses on supply flexibility, the aspects of flexibility related to the upstream supply chain. Our purpose is to investigate why and how firms increase supply flexibility.Methodology/Approach An exploratory multiple case study was conducted. We analyzed seven Spanish manufacturers from different sectors (automotive, apparel, electronics and electrical equipment).Findings - The results show that there are some major reasons why firms need supply flexibility (manufacturing schedule fluctuations, JIT purchasing, manufacturing slack capacity, low level of parts commonality, demand volatility, demand seasonality and forecast accuracy), and that companies increase this type of flexibility by implementing two main strategies: to increase suppliers responsiveness capability and flexible sourcing . The results also suggest that the supply flexibility strategy selected depends on two factors: the supplier searching and switching costs and the type of uncertainty (mix, volume or delivery).Research limitations - This paper has some limitations common to all case studies, such as the subjectivity of the analysis, and the questionable generalizability of results (since the sample of firms is not statistically significant).Implications - Our study contributes to the existing literature by empirically investigating which are the main reasons for companies needing to increase supply flexibility, how they increase this flexibility, and suggesting some factors that could influence the selection of a particular supply flexibility strategy.

Notes on oil sources for the bee genus Caenonomada(Hymenoptera, Apidae, Tapinotaspidini)

It is reported for the first time oil collecting by bees of the genus Caenonomada on flowers of Plantaginaceae. Females of Caenonomada unicalcarata were observed collecting oil on flowers of Angelonia cornigera, and males and females of Caenonomada bruneri and C. aff. unicalcarata were observed on flowers of Angelonia and Monopera (Plantaginaceae). The record of Caenonomada on Plantaginaceae suggests the use of trichomatic oil glands as a primitive condition in the tribe Tapinotaspidini.

Les conceptions du dialogue et leurs sources chez Lev Jakubinskij et Valentin Volochinov

Le texte «De la parole dialogale» écrit par Lev Jakubinskij est considéré par un certain nombre de chercheurs comme la source principale de la conception du dialogue chez Valentin Volochinov. Cet article remet en question la légitimité de cette thèse. L'analyse détaillée des notions de dialogue élaborées par Jakubinskij et Volochinov montre que leurs bases théoriques ne coïncident pas. Si Jakubinskij s'appuie sur la psychologie dite objective (la réflexologie), Volochinov élabore sa conception du dialogue sur une base sociologique. Les travaux des sociologues marxistes et non marxistes constituent la source principale de sa notion de dialogue