Immune factors and fatty acid composition in human milk from river/lake, coastal and inland regions of China

Breast milk fatty acid composition may be affected by maternal diet during gestation and lactation. The influence of dietary and breast milk fatty acids on breast milk immune factors is poorly defined. We determined the fatty acid composition and immune factor concentrations of breast milk from women residing in river & lake, coastal, and inland regions of China, which differ in their consumption of lean fish and oily fish. Breast milk samples were collected on days 3 to 5 (colostrum), 14 and 28 post-partum and analysed for soluble CD14 (sCD14), transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, TGF-β2, secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) and fatty acids. The fatty acid composition of breast milk differed between regions and with time post-partum. The concentrations of all four immune factors in breast milk decreased over time, with sCD14, sIgA and TGF-β1 being highest in colostrum in the river & lake region. Breast milk DHA and arachidonic acid (AA) were positively associated, and γ-linolenic acid and EPA negatively associated, with the concentrations of each of the four immune factors. In conclusion, breast milk fatty acids and immune factors differ between regions in China characterised by different patterns of fish consumption and change during the course of lactation. A higher breast milk DHA and AA concentration is associated with higher concentrations of immune factors in breast milk, suggesting a role for these fatty acids in promoting gastrointestinal and immune maturation of the infant.

Inheritance, access to resources and poverty in Serer families in Senegal

This research explores the relationship between inheritance, access to resources and the intergenerational transmission of poverty among the Serer ethnic group in rural and urban environments in Senegal. In many Sub-Saharan African countries, customary law excludes women from owning and inheriting assets, such as land and property. Yet, assets controlled by women often result in increased investments in the next generation's health, nutrition and schooling and reduce the intergenerational transmission of poverty. Qualitative research with 60 participants in Senegal reveals the important role that land, housing and financial assets may play in building resilience to household shocks and interrupting the intergenerational transmission of poverty. However, the protection afforded by these assets was often dependent on other factors, including human, social and environmental capital. The death of a spouse or parent had major emotional and material impacts on many Serer families. The inheritance and control of assets and resources was strongly differentiated among family members along lines of gender, age and generation. Younger widows and their children were particularly vulnerable to chronic poverty. Although inheritance disputes were rare, the research suggests they are more likely between co-wives in polygamous unions and their children, particularly in urban areas. In addition to experiencing economic and health-related shocks, many interviewees were exposed to a range of climate-related risks and environmental pressures which increased their vulnerability. Family members coped with these shocks and risks by diversifying livelihoods, migrating to urban areas and other regions for work, participating in women's co-operatives and associations and developing supportive social networks with extended family and community members. Policies and practices that may help to alleviate poverty, safeguard women's and young people's inheritance and build resilience to financial, health-related and environmental shocks and risks include: - Social protection measures targeted towards poor widows and orphaned children, such as social and cash transfers to pay for basic needs including food, healthcare and children's schooling. - Micro-finance initiatives and credit and savings schemes, alongside training and capacity-building targeted to women and young people to develop income-generation activities and skills. - Free legal advice, support and advocacy for women and young people to pursue inheritance claims through the legal system. - Raising awareness about women's and children's legal rights and working with government and community and religious leaders to tackle discriminatory inheritance practices and contradictions caused by legal pluralism. - Increasing women's control of land and access to inputs, enhancing their business, organisational, and leadership skills and promoting civic participation in local, regional and national decision-making processes. - Improving access to basic services in rural areas, particularly healthcare, building the quality of education and promoting girls' access to education - Enhancing agricultural production and providing more employment opportunities, apprenticeships and vocational training for young people, particularly in rural areas.

The monitoring of ecological quality and the classification of standing waters in temperate regions: a review and proposal based on a worked scheme for British waters

This paper reviews the ways that quality can be assessed in standing waters, a subject that has hitherto attracted little attention but which is now a legal requirement in Europe. It describes a scheme for the assessment and monitoring of water and ecological quality in standing waters greater than about I ha in area in England & Wales although it is generally relevant to North-west Europe. Thirteen hydrological, chemical and biological variables are used to characterise the standing water body in any current sampling. These are lake volume, maximum depth, onductivity, Secchi disc transparency, pH, total alkalinity, calcium ion concentration, total N concentration,winter total oxidised inorganic nitrogen (effectively nitrate) concentration, total P concentration, potential maximum chlorophyll a concentration, a score based on the nature of the submerged and emergent plant community, and the presence or absence of a fish community. Inter alia these variables are key indicators of the state of eutrophication, acidification, salinisation and infilling of a water body.

Binding properties and adhesion-mediating regions of the major sheath protein of Treponema denticola ATCC 35405

There is growing evidence that a number of oral Treponema species, in particular Treponema denticola, are associated with the progression of human periodontal disease. The major sheath (or surface) protein (Msp) of T. denticola is implicated in adhesion of bacteria to host cells and tissue proteins and is likely to be an important virulence factor. However, the binding regions of the Msp are not known. We have purified from Escherichia coli recombinant Msp (rMsp) polypeptides corresponding to the following: full-length Msp (rMsp) minus 13 N-terminal amino acid (aa) residues, an amino-terminal fragment (rN-Msp, 189 aa residues), a 57-aa residue segment from the central region (rV-Msp), and a C-terminal fragment (rC-Msp, 272 aa residues). rMsp (530 aa residues) bound to immobilized fibronectin, keratin, laminin, collagen type 1, fibrinogen, hyaluronic acid, and heparin. The N- and V-region polypeptides, but not rC-Msp, also bound to these substrates. Binding of rMsp to fibronectin was targeted to the N-terminal heparin I/fibrin I domain. Antibodies to the N-region or V-region polypeptides, but not antibodies to the rC-Msp fragment, blocked adhesion of T. denticola ATCC 35405 cells to a range of host protein molecules. These results suggest that the N-terminal half of Msp carries epitopes that are surface exposed and that are involved in mediating adhesion. Binding of rMsp onto the cell surface of low-level fibronectin-binding Treponema isolates conferred a 10-fold increase in fibronectin binding. This confirms that Msp functions autonomously as an adhesin and raises the possibility that phenotypic complementation of virulence functions might occur within mixed populations of Treponema species.

The influence of ozone precursor emissions from four world regions on tropospheric composition and radiative climate forcing

Ozone (O3) precursor emissions influence regional and global climate and air quality through changes in tropospheric O3 and oxidants, which also influence methane (CH4) and sulfate aerosols (SO42−). We examine changes in the tropospheric composition of O3, CH4, SO42− and global net radiative forcing (RF) for 20% reductions in global CH4 burden and in anthropogenic O3 precursor emissions (NOx, NMVOC, and CO) from four regions (East Asia, Europe and Northern Africa, North America, and South Asia) using the Task Force on Hemispheric Transport of Air Pollution Source-Receptor global chemical transport model (CTM) simulations, assessing uncertainty (mean ± 1 standard deviation) across multiple CTMs. We evaluate steady state O3 responses, including long-term feedbacks via CH4. With a radiative transfer model that includes greenhouse gases and the aerosol direct effect, we find that regional NOx reductions produce global, annually averaged positive net RFs (0.2 ± 0.6 to 1.7 ± 2 mWm−2/Tg N yr−1), with some variation among models. Negative net RFs result from reductions in global CH4 (−162.6 ± 2 mWm−2 for a change from 1760 to 1408 ppbv CH4) and regional NMVOC (−0.4 ± 0.2 to −0.7 ± 0.2 mWm−2/Tg C yr−1) and CO emissions (−0.13 ± 0.02 to −0.15 ± 0.02 mWm−2/Tg CO yr−1). Including the effect of O3 on CO2 uptake by vegetation likely makes these net RFs more negative by −1.9 to −5.2 mWm−2/Tg N yr−1, −0.2 to −0.7 mWm−2/Tg C yr−1, and −0.02 to −0.05 mWm−2/Tg CO yr−1. Net RF impacts reflect the distribution of concentration changes, where RF is affected locally by changes in SO42−, regionally to hemispherically by O3, and globally by CH4. Global annual average SO42− responses to oxidant changes range from 0.4 ± 2.6 to −1.9 ± 1.3 Gg for NOx reductions, 0.1 ± 1.2 to −0.9 ± 0.8 Gg for NMVOC reductions, and −0.09 ± 0.5 to −0.9 ± 0.8 Gg for CO reductions, suggesting additional research is needed. The 100-year global warming potentials (GWP100) are calculated for the global CH4 reduction (20.9 ± 3.7 without stratospheric O3 or water vapor, 24.2 ± 4.2 including those components), and for the regional NOx, NMVOC, and CO reductions (−18.7 ± 25.9 to −1.9 ± 8.7 for NOx, 4.8 ± 1.7 to 8.3 ± 1.9 for NMVOC, and 1.5 ± 0.4 to 1.7 ± 0.5 for CO). Variation in GWP100 for NOx, NMVOC, and CO suggests that regionally specific GWPs may be necessary and could support the inclusion of O3 precursors in future policies that address air quality and climate change simultaneously. Both global net RF and GWP100 are more sensitive to NOx and NMVOC reductions from South Asia than the other three regions.

Synthesis, crystal structure, and magnetic properties of a very rare double μ-1,1-azido- and a μ-1,1-(OMe)-bridged FeIII dimer containing a N,N,O-donor tridentate Schiff base ligand

Two new Fe-III complexes, [Fe2L2(mu-OMe)(2)(NCS)(2)] (1) and [Fe2L2(mu-N-3)(2)(N-3)(2)] (2), have been synthesized using a N,N,O-donor tridentate Schiff base ligand HL {2-[(2-dimethylaminoethylimino)methyl]phenol}, the condensation product of salicylaldehyde and N,N-dimethyl-1,2-diaminoethane. The complexes were characterized by X-ray structural analyses and variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements. Both crystal structures are centrosymmetric dimers containing two Fe-III atoms, which are bridged in compound 1 by two methoxy anions and in compound 2 by two mu-1,1-azides. The chelating tridentate Schiff base and a terminal thiocyanato (for 1) or azido (for 2) group complete the hexacoordination of the distorted octahedral environment of each iron center. The magnetic properties of compound 1 show the presence of antiferromagnetic exchange interactions mediated by double methoxy bridges (J = -29.45 cm(-1)). Compound 2 shows the presence of very weak ferromagnetic exchange interactions mediated by double mu-1,1-N-3 bridges (J = 1.08 cm(-1)).

A rare case of solution and solid state inter-conversion of two copper(II) dimers and a copper(II) chain

Three Cu(II)-azido complexes of formula [Cu2L2(N-3)(2)] (1), [Cu2L2(N-3)(2)]center dot H2O (2) and [CuL(N-3)](n) (3) have been synthesized using the same tridentate Schiff base ligand HL (2-[(3-methylaminopropylimino)-methyl]-phenol), the condensation product of N-methyl-1,3-propanediamine and salicyldehyde). Compounds 1 and 2 are basal-apical mu-1,1 double azido bridged dimers. The dimeric structure of 1 is centro-symmetric but that of 2 is non-centrommetric. Compound 3 is a mu-1,1 single azido bridged 1D chain. The three complexes interconvert in solution and can be obtained in pure form by carefully controlling the synthetic conditions. Compound 2 undergoes an irreversible transformation to 1 upon dehydration in the solid state. The magnetic properties of compounds 1 and 2 show the presence of weak antiferromagnetic exchange interactions mediated by the double 1,1-N-3 azido bridges (J = -2.59(4) and -0.10(1) cm-(1), respectively). The single 1,1-N-3 bridge in compound 3 mediates a negligible exchange interaction.

A very rare self-assembled ribbon of fused cyclic water pentamers encapsulated in a Cu-II based metal-organic framework

A metal organic framework of Cu-II, tartarate (tar) and 2,2'-bipyridyl (2,2'-bipy)], {[Cu(tar)(2,2'-bipy)]center dot 5H(2)O}(n)} (1) has been synthesized at the mild ambient condition and characterized by single crystal X-ray crystallography. In the compound, the Cu(2,2'-bipy) entities are bridged by tartarate ions which are coordinated to Cu-II by both hydroxyl and monodentate carboxylate oxygen to form a one-dimensional chain. The non-coordinated water molecules form ID water chains by edge-sharing cyclic water pentamers along with dangling water dimers. It shows reversible water expulsion upon heating. The water chains join the ID coordination polymeric chains to a 31) network through hydrogen-bond interactions.

The "Fair trade nation": market-oriented development in devolved European regions

Scholars have largely ignored the roles played by government and public sector institutions in the fair trade movement. This article addresses the knowledge gap through examining government involvement in fair trade networks in the context of European devolution and the localization of international development action. Proposing a relational view of fair trade networks, and considering the Fair Trade Nation as a social category for development, it highlights how power sources outside the centralized nation-state permit a political community to associate itself with fair trade. Research from Wales demonstrates that government acts in a leadership role rather than as regulator, conferring political voice and finance while enhancing its international credentials and contributing to the politics of nation-building. Our conclusion is cautious; campaigners celebrate political commitment to fair trade embodied within the category of the Fair Trade Nation, but evidence suggests that government reliance on the market as a vehicle for decentralized development action is limited by how the Fair Trade Nation is currently executed.

Structural and magnetic studies of Schiff base complexes of nickel(ii) nitrite: change in crystalline state, ligand rearrangement and a very rare μ-nitrito-1κO:2κN:3κO′ bridging mode

Four new nickel(II) complexes, [Ni2L2(NO2)2]·CH2Cl2·C2H5OH, 2H2O (1), [Ni2L2(DMF)2(m-NO2)]ClO4·DMF (2a), [Ni2L2(DMF)2(m-NO2)]ClO4 (2b) and [Ni3L¢2(m3-NO2)2(CH2Cl2)]n·1.5H2O (3) where HL = 2-[(3-amino-propylimino)-methyl]-phenol, H2L¢ = 2-({3-[(2-hydroxy-benzylidene)-amino]-propylimino}-methyl)-phenol and DMF = N,N-dimethylformamide, have been synthesized starting with the precursor complex [NiL2]·2H2O, nickel(II) perchlorate and sodium nitrite and characterized structurally and magnetically. The structural analyses reveal that in all the complexes, NiII ions possess a distorted octahedral geometry. Complex 1 is a dinuclear di-m2-phenoxo bridged species in which nitrite ion acts as chelating co-ligand. Complexes 2a and 2b also consist of dinuclear entities, but in these two compounds a cis-(m-nitrito-1kO:2kN) bridge is present in addition to the di-m2-phenoxo bridge. The molecular structures of 2a and 2b are equivalent; they differ only in that 2a contains an additional solvated DMF molecule. Complex 3 is formed by ligand rearrangement and is a one-dimensional polymer in which double phenoxo as well as m-nitrito-1kO:2kN bridged trinuclear units are linked through a very rare m3-nitrito-1kO:2kN:3kO¢ bridge. Analysis of variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility data indicates that there is a global weak antiferromagnetic interaction between the nickel(II) ions in four complexes, with exchange parameters J of -5.26, -11.45, -10.66 and -5.99 cm-1 for 1, 2a, 2b and 3, respectively

Does infrastructure investment stimulate building supply? The case of the English regions

Does infrastructure investment stimulate building supply? The case of the English regions, Regional Studies. Policies to improve infrastructure to stimulate regional growth remain common. This paper investigates whether increases in infrastructure investment in the English regions lead to subsequent rises in new commercial and residential property, using time-series modelling. Both physical (roads and harbours) and social infrastructure (education and health) impacts are investigated. Hardly any infrastructure effects with respect to commercial property investment were found, which raises doubts about whether extra infrastructure creates employment, though some impact was related to residential building. Overall, these results raise doubts about the supposed direct effects of infrastructure policies on regional jobs and growth.

The changing energy balance of the polar regions in a warmer climate

Energy fluxes for polar regions are examined for two 30-year periods, representing the end of the 20th and 21st centuries, using data from high resolution simulations with the ECHAM5 climate model. The net radiation to space for the present climate agrees well with data from the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) over the northern polar region but shows an underestimation in planetary albedo for the southern polar region. This suggests there are systematic errors in the atmospheric circulation or in the net surface energy fluxes in the southern polar region. The simulation of the future climate is based on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) A1B scenario. The total energy transport is broadly the same for the two 30 year periods, but there is an increase in the moist energy transport of the order of 6 W m−2 and a corresponding reduction in the dry static energy. For the southern polar region the proportion of moist energy transport is larger and the dry static energy correspondingly smaller for both periods. The results suggest a possible mechanism for the warming of the Arctic that is discussed. Changes between the 20th and 21st centuries in the northern polar region show the net ocean surface radiation flux in summer increases ~18W m−2 (24%). For the southern polar region the response is different as there is a decrease in surface solar radiation. We suggest that this is caused by changes in cloudiness associated with the poleward migration of the storm tracks.

Simultaneous lidar and EOS MLS measurements, and modeling, of a rare polar ozone filament event over Mauna Loa Observatory, Hawaii

In mid-March 2005, a rare lower stratospheric polar vortex filamentation event was observed simultaneously by the JPL lidar at Mauna Loa Observatory, Hawaii, and by the EOS MLS instrument onboard the Aura satellite. The event coincided with the beginning of the spring 2005 final warming. On 16 March, the filament was observed by lidar around 0600 UT between 415 K and 455 K, and by MLS six hours earlier. It was seen on both the lidar and MLS profiles as a layer of enhanced ozone, peaking at 1.7 ppmv in a region where the climatological values are usually around or below 1 ppmv. Ozone profiles measured by lidar and MLS were compared to profiles from the Chemical Transport Model MIMOSA-CHIM. The agreement between lidar, MLS, and the model is excellent considering the difference in the sampling techniques. MLS was also able to identify the filament at another location north of Hawaii.