La piratería de Nigeria como una amenaza a la seguridad marítima del Golfo de Guinea (2007-2012). Una aproximación desde el crimen organizado

Desde finales de los 70 la piratería se convirtió en un problema para Nigeria. Con el tiempo adquirió características del crimen organizado y en 2010 se transformó en un problema transnacional, afectando a Estados del golfo de Guinea. Así, a través de una base conceptual, el estudio de caso concluyó que los factores internos –como la pobreza, debilidad estatal y marginalización- y externos –siendo ellos la falta de políticas internas destinadas a las aguas y la ausencia de estrategias marítimas en la región- de la piratería, crearon una dinámica para que dicha actividad se convirtiera en una amenaza a la seguridad marítima del golfo de Guinea, tomando como referencia a Benín y Togo. Siguiendo la línea argumentativa, se demuestra que la búsqueda de una solución a la delincuencia marítima ha generado interacciones de seguridad que sugieren las primeras fases de un posible complejo de seguridad regional.

Incidencia y factores asociados a infección en el primer año postrasplante cardiaco

Objetivo: Determinar la incidencia de las infecciones en el primer año postrasplante cardiaco y los factores asociados a las infecciones en este periodo. Materiales y métodos: Estudio analítico de casos y controles anidados en una cohorte, con los pacientes trasplantados cardiacos en la Fundación Cardioinfantil – Instituto de cardiología desde el año 2005 hasta el 2015. Se realizaron análisis univariados, análisis bivariado entre las variables del estudio y el desenlace para la selección de las variables para el modelo de regresión logística. Resultados: Se presentó una mediana de 54 años de edad en la cohorte, con mayor proporción de hombres (75,8%) y con predominio de la cardiopatía dilatada como indicación de trasplante. La incidencia de infecciones en el primer año postrasplante fue de 45% (30/66). Se encontró mayor riesgo de infección en los primeros tres meses, del 36.3% (IC 95% 23 – 55), mostrando mayor frecuencia de infecciones pulmonares y en piel. Dentro de los organismos aislados más importantes en los primeros tres meses, se encontraron bacilos gram negativos y Aspergillus spp. En el primer año postrasplante la cardiopatía dilatada con un OR 4.7 IC95% (1.3 – 17) y la enfermedad renal crónica con un OR 6.7 IC 95% (1.4 - 32) se asociaron a la presencia de infecciones. Conclusiones: La frecuencia de infecciones en los pacientes trasplantados cardiacos en la Fundación Cardioinfantil IC es similar a la observada en la literatura. La aparición de infecciones en el primer año postrasplante, se asocia a la presencia de cardiopatía dilatada y enfermedad renal crónica.

Análise micológica e quantificação de zearalenona e deoxinivalenol em alimentos compostos para suínos

As análises micológica e micotoxicológica representam uma parte importante da monitorização da qualidade e segurança dos alimentos compostos para animais. O objectivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o nível de contaminação fúngica em amostras de alimentos compostos para suínos, identificar as espécies fúngicas presentes e quantificar os níveis de zearalenona (ZEA) e deoxinivalenol (DON). Para tal, foram analisadas 55 amostras, encontrando-se 52 (94.5%) contaminadas com fungos, apresentando teores médios de 1.7×104 UFC/g. Os fungos mais predominantes foram o Fusarium spp (81.8%), o Aspergillus flavus (69.0%), as leveduras (60.0%) e o Aspergillus candidus (56.3%). A análise micotoxicológica foi efectuada por Cromatografia Líquida de Alta Performance (HPLC), com purificação por colunas IAC (Colunas de imunoafinidade), e revelou 18 amostras positivas para ZEA e 13 positivas para DON, com níveis de ZEA variando entre 6.1 e 5.4×101 μg/kg, e de DON variando de 1.0×102 e 9.0×102 μg/kg. Foi observada co-ocorrência em 3 amostras (5.5%). Todos os resultados encontrados estavam abaixo dos limites máximos permitidos pela União Europeia (UE). As taxas de recuperação para amostras contaminadas com ZEA, a concentrações de 0.005; 0.010 e 0.10 μg/kg foram de 93.0; 95.0 e 95.0%, respectivamente e as de DON foram de 98.0; 85.0 e 88.0%, para soluções contaminadas com 100.0; 250.0 e 500.0 μg/kg, respectivamente.

Projet de realization d' un eco-musee (Kassai-Goria) de Wanzerbe

Le Niger est un pays sahélien situé au sud du Sahara en Afrique de l’ouest. Il couvre une superficie de 1267 000 km2 dont les 2 / 3 sont désertiques, il est limité au Nord par l’Algérie et la Libye, au Sud par le Nigeria et le Bénin, à l’Est par le Tchad et à l’Ouest par le Mali et le Burkina faso. Le climat est caractérisé par trois saisons : saison froide (novembre – février), saison chaude (mars – mai) et une saison pluvieuse (juin –septembre.) Les précipitations varient du Nord au Sud avec un isomètre évoluant respectivement de 5O mm à 800 mm sur une période de un à trois mois. Cette irrégularité des précipitations influe grandement sur la production agricole dans un pays essentiellement à vocation agro-pastorale. Sa population est estimée à 12 000 000 d’habitants environ selon le Recensement Administratif 2004 est composée de 9 ethnies réparties dans les huit régions du pays.

The EU’s re-engagement as a security actor: Fresh start or still sleepwalking. CEPS Commentary, 12 July 2012

By the end of the summer, the EU will launch new crisis management missions in the Horn of Africa, Niger and South Sudan. In this CEPS Commentary, Giovanni Faleg and Steven Blockmans question whether the new deployments will revive the EU’s persona as a global security actor. The authors point out that, without the backing of a comprehensive security strategy rationale, the EU’s re-engagement as a crisis manager that opts for small-scale operations will be seen as a continuation of its sleepwalking through a changing geostrategic landscape.

Modeled and observed atmospheric radiation balance during the West African dry season: role of mineral dust, biomass burning aerosol, and surface albedo

The global radiation balance of the atmosphere is still poorly observed, particularly at the surface. We investigate the observed radiation balance at (1) the surface using the ARM Mobile Facility in Niamey, Niger, and (2) the top of the atmosphere (TOA) over West Africa using data from the Geostationary Earth Radiation Budget (GERB) instrument on board Meteosat-8. Observed radiative fluxes are compared with predictions from the global numerical weather prediction (NWP) version of the Met Office Unified Model (MetUM). The evaluation points to major shortcomings in the NWP model's radiative fluxes during the dry season (December 2005 to April 2006) arising from (1) a lack of absorbing aerosol in the model (mineral dust and biomass burning aerosol) and (2) a poor specification of the surface albedo. A case study of the major Saharan dust outbreak of 6–12 March 2006 is used to evaluate a parameterization of mineral dust for use in the NWP models. The model shows good predictability of the large-scale flow out to 4–5 days with the dust parameterization providing reasonable dust uplift, spatial distribution, and temporal evolution for this strongly forced dust event. The direct radiative impact of the dust reduces net downward shortwave (SW) flux at the surface (TOA) by a maximum of 200 W m−2 (150 W m−2), with a SW heating of the atmospheric column. The impacts of dust on terrestrial radiation are smaller. Comparisons of TOA (surface) radiation balance with GERB (ARM) show the “dusty” forecasts reduce biases in the radiative fluxes and improve surface temperatures and vertical thermodynamic structure.

Potential for clean yam minisett production by resource-poor farmers in the middle-belt of Nigeria

Yarn minisett technique (YMT) has been promoted throughout West Africa since the 1980s as a sustainable means of producing clean yarn planting material, but adoption of the technique is Often reported as being patchy at best. While there has been much research Oil the factors that influence adoption of the technique, there have been no attempts to assess its economic viability under 'farmer-managed' as distinct from 'on station' conditions. The present paper describes the results of farmer-managed trials employing the YMT (white yarn: Dioscorea rotundata) at two villages in Igalaland, Kogi State, Nigeria. One of the villages (Edeke) is on the banks of the River Niger and represents it specialist yarn environment, whereas the other village (Ekwuloko) is inland, where farmers employ a more general cropping system. Four farmers were selected in each of the two villages and asked to plant a trial comprising two varieties of yam, their popular local variety its well its another variety grown in other parts of Igalaland, and to treat yarn setts (80-100 g) with either woodash or insecticide/nematicide + fungicide mix (chemical treatment). Results suggest that while chemical sett treatment increased yield and hence gross margin compared with woodash, if household labour is costed then YMT is not economically viable. However, the specialist yarn growers of Edeke were far more positive about the use of YMT as they tended to keep the yarn seed tubers for planting rather than sell them. Thus, great care needs to be taken with planning adoption surveys on the assumption that all farmers should adopt a technology.

Avoidance responses of an aphidophagous ladybird, Adalia bipunctata, to aphid-tending ants

1. Insect predators often aggregrate to patches of high prey density and use prey chemicals as cues for oviposition. If prey have mutualistic guardians such as ants, however, then these patches may be less suitable for predators. 2. Ants often tend aphids and defend them against predators such as ladybirds. Here, we show that ants can reduce ladybird performance by destroying eggs and physically attacking larvae and adults. 3. Unless ladybirds are able to defend against ant attacks they are likely to have adaptations to avoid ants. We show that Adalia bipunctata ladybirds not only move away from patches with Lasius niger ants, but also avoid laying eggs in these patches. Furthermore, ladybirds not only respond to ant presence, but also detect ant semiochemicals and alter oviposition strategy accordingly. 4. Ant semiochemicals may signal the extent of ant territories allowing aphid predators to effectively navigate a mosaic landscape of sub-optimal patches in search of less well-defended prey. Such avoidance probably benefits both ants and ladybirds, and the semiochemicals could be regarded as a means of cooperative communication between enemies. 5. Overall, ladybirds respond to a wide range of positive and negative oviposition cues that may trade-off with each other and internal motivation to determine the overall oviposition strategy.

Savory peptides present in Moromi obtained from soy sauce fermentation of yellow soybean

The presence of savory peptides in moromi has been investigated. Moromi was prepared by fermenting yellow soybean using Aspergillus oryzae as the starter at the first step (mold fermentation) and 20% brine solution at the next step (brine fermentation). The moromi was then ultrafiltered stepwise using membranes with MW cut-offs of 10,000, 3,000, and 500 Da, respectively. The fraction with MW < 500 Da was chromatographed using Sephadex G-25 SF to yield four fractions, 1-4. Analysis of soluble peptides, NaCl content, alpha-amino nitrogen, amino acid composition, peptide profile using CE coupled with DAD, taste profile and free glutamic acid content, were performed for each fraction. Fraction 2 contained a relatively high total glutamic acid content, but a relatively low free glutamic acid content and had the highest umami taste. This fraction also had more peptides containing non-aromatic amino acids than the other fractions. The peptides present in fraction 2 may play a role, at least in part, in its intense umami taste.

Monatin and its stereoisomers: chemoenzymatic synthesis and taste properties

The sweet natural compound monatin 1 has two stereogenic centres and the (2S,4S) absolute configuration has been attributed to the natural isomer. We obtained all four stereoisomers as pure compounds by a six-step synthetic sequence. The stereogenic centre at C-4 was introduced stereoselectively by a regio- and enantiospecific enzymatic hydrolysis of the racemic ethyl dicarboxylate 4 using a protease from Aspergillus oryzae. The absolute configuration of the intermediate products was assigned by X-ray diffraction of chiral derivatives. The stereogenic centre at C-2 was introduced non-specifically, and the resulting diastereomeric mixtures were separated by RP-HPLC. The absolute configurations of the final products were established by comparing retention times on a chiral HPLC column with those of known samples. The four stereoisomers were submitted to tasting trials and three of them, particularly the (2R,4R) isomer, were found to be intensely sweet. A sample of natural monatin analysed under the same conditions is shown to contain all the four stereoisomers. The relative stereoisomeric content in the plant, as well as the possible isomerisation of the chiral centres during extraction and manipulation of monatin samples, are important points that need to be clarified by extensive analysis of the natural extracts. ((c) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2005).

Localisation studies of cell-wall degrading enzymes in soybean

Postembedding immunoelectron microscopy has been used to investigate the diffusibility of an endo-beta-1,4-glucanase and a xylanase from A. niger in soybean. The results showed more specific localisation of the enzymes into the protein and lipid bodies of soybean cells. This was against our hypothesis that suggested that the enzymes should be localised in the cell wall.

Effect of dietary phytate and microbial phytase on mineral and trace element bioavailability- a literature review

Phytic acid (PA) is the main phosphorus storage compound in cereals, legumes and oil seeds. In human populations where phytate-rich cereals such as wheat, maize and rice are a staple food, phytate may lead to mineral and trace element deficiency. Zinc appears to be the trace element whose bioavailability is most influenced by PA. Furthermore, several studies in humans as well as in monogastric animals clearly indicate an inhibition of non-haem iron absorption at marginal iron supply due to phytic acid. In fact PA seems to be, at least partly, responsible for the low absorption efficiency and high incidence of iron deficiency anaemia evident in most developing countries, where largely vegetarian diets are consumed Microbial phytases have provided a realistic means of improving mineral availability from traditionally high-phytate diets. In fact it has been consistently shown that Aspergillus phytases significantly enhance the absorption of calcium, magnesium and zinc in pigs and rats. Furthermore there are a few studies in humans indicating an improvement of iron bioavailability due to microbial phytase.