Public Provision of Transportation Equipment: Some Long Term Economic Impacts

Periodic shortages of rail equipment have freqnetly imposed marketing problems and costs upon the grain industry. For exumple, one study estimated the total cost due to the lack of transportation equipment was $2.36 million dollars for Iowa elevators in 1969. In spite of efforts to resolve the equipment problem through the private sector, these costs have persisted and led to attempts to seek relief through government intervention. During the 1980 legislative session, the South Dakota Governor suggested a new approach; the purchase of rail cars by the State to supplement railroad and elevator fleets. South Dakota is not alone in examining the purchase of rail cars. The Highway and Transportation Department in ilichigan has made a similar proposal. North Dakota recently concluded a feasibility study which explored the same alternative. And during October, 1979, the Province of Saskatchewan ordered 1000 covered hopper rail cars. The purchase of rail cars by a State to relieve equipment shortages is a new approach. But when past attempts to resolve a problem have rc1iled, public officials may be forced to venture into uncharted waters. This report is an attempt to assist decision makers in evaluating the probable success of this policy alternative

Alternative Marketing Strategies for Corn and Soybeans

Three questions outlined the scope of this study: 1. What marketing strategies might be used by South Dakota producers to cope with changing market conditions? 2. What marketing strategies maximized net returns for the crop years from 1972 through 1977? 3. How does basis work in marketing strategy

Dimensions and Characteristics of the Retail Market for the City of Brookings, South Dakota

This study was designed to examine the 1978 retailing environment in the City of Brookings, South Dakota. A survey of over 1,000 consuming households within the Brookings area was conducted in 1978 in establishing a data base from which this analysis proceeded. The basic purpose of this consumer survey study was to help establish the extent and trends in the Brookings retail and service market. It is the purpose of this report to provide the merchants of Brookings with infonnation which will assist them in improving their operations and to help the~ to be better able to serve and meet the needs of the residents of this immediate area. The study itself was divided up into four basic parts. The first part is devoted to a discussion of the research methodology utilized in preparing the consumer survey study. The second division is devoted to the overall retail market within the City of Brookings. This section deals with the composition and extent of the retail market, the socioeconomic characteristics making up the market, and the overall effectiveness of the media in the market area. The third section deals with each of the nine major retailing markets and their submarkets. Concerns addressed within this section include the extent of the geographic market, the relative strength of the market, the impact of media advertising on the decision making process of consumers in this market and the reasons customers choose to shop in competing regional retail markets. The final section presents the data base upon which the study is founded. This data base (found in the appendix section of this report) covers such areas as the consumer response rates as to the extent of their shopping in the Brookings retail market, the frequency response rate for reasons given for shopping outside of the Brookings retail market, and the effect of media advertising on consuming households. Caution must be expressed however in the use of this study. Since the initial collection of the data base, much has changed within the retail market area as evidenced by such trends as the development of retail malls and the rapidly changing economic forces in our economy. This constantly changing business and economic environment stresses the need for developing, maintaining, updating, and evaluating a good business/economic base information system for the merchants of Brookings. Such a system is an essential and useful tool for not only the retail merchants but for others interested in developing a better Brookings corrmunity in which to live and work

Rail Car Dilemma

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide information regarding the shortage of railcars. Factors that have an impact on the availability of railcars are addressed, and a cost analysis of rail car ownership is examined

Detection of the carbapenemase gene blaVIM-5 in members of the Pseudomonas putida group isolated from polluted Nigerian wetlands

Abstract There are increasing concerns about possible dissemination of clinically relevant antibiotic resistance genes, including genes encoding for carbapenemases in the environment. However, little is known about environmental distribution of antibiotic resistance in Africa. In this study, four polluted urban wetlands in Nigeria were investigated as potential reservoirs of carbapenem-resistant bacteria (CRB). CRB were isolated from the wetlands, characterized by Blue-Carba test, MIC determinations and whole genome sequencing (WGS). Nine of 65 bacterial isolates identified as members of the Pseudomonas putida group (P. plecoglossicida and P. guariconensis, respectively) harboured the metallo-beta-lactamase gene bla VIM-5. WGS revealed the bla VIM-5 in three novel Tn402-like class 1 integron structures containing the cassette arrays aadB|bla VIM-5|bla PSE-1, aadB|bla VIM-5|aadB|bla PSE-1, and bla VIM-5|aadB|tnpA|bla PSE-1|smr2|tnpA, respectively. Strains carrying the aadB|bla VIM-5|bla PSE-1 cassette also carried an identical integron without bla VIM-5. In addition, the strains harboured another Tn402-like class 1 integron carrying bcr2, several multidrug resistance efflux pumps, and at least one of ampC, aph(3”)-lb, aph(6)-ld, tetB, tetC, tetG, floR, and macAB. This is the first report of a carbapenemase gene in bacteria from environmental sources in Nigeria and the first report of bla VIM-5 in environmental bacteria isolates. This result underscores the role of the Nigerian environment as reservoir of bacteria carrying clinically relevant antibiotic resistance genes

A survey of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in urban wetlands in southwestern Nigeria as a step towards generating prevalence maps of antimicrobial resistance

In many countries, emission of insufficiently treated wastewater into water bodies appears to be an important factor in spreading clinically relevant antimicrobial resistant bacteria. In this study, we looked for the presence of Enterobacteriaceae strains with resistance to 3rd generation cephalosporin antibiotics in four urban wetlands in southwestern Nigeria by isolation, whole genome sequencing and qPCR enumeration of marker genes. Genome analysis of multi-drug resistant and potentially pathogenic Escherichia coli isolates (members of the widely distributed ST10 complex) revealed the presence of the extended spectrum beta-lactamase gene blaCTX-M-15 on self-transmissible IncF plasmids. The gene was also present together with a blaTEM-1B gene on self-transmissible IncH plasmids in multi-drug resistant Enterobacter cloacae isolates. A Citrobacter freundii isolate carried blaTEM-1B on an IncR-type plasmid without discernable conjugation apparatus. All strains were isolated from a wetland for which previous qPCR enumeration of marker genes, in particular the ratio of intI1 to 16S rRNA gene copy numbers, had indicated a strong anthropogenic impact. Consistent with the isolation origin, qPCR analysis in this study showed that the blaCTX-M gene was present at an abundance of 1x10-4 relative to bacterial 16S rRNA gene copy numbers. The results indicate that contamination of these urban aquatic ecosystems with clinically relevant antibiotic resistant bacteria is substantial in some areas. Measures should therefore be put in place to mitigate the propagation of clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance within the Nigerian aquatic ecosystems

Horizontal Transmission and Recombination Maintain forever Young Bacterial Symbiont Genomes

Bacterial symbionts bring a wealth of functions to the associations they participate in, but by doing so, they endanger the genes and genomes underlying these abilities. When bacterial symbionts become obligately associated with their hosts, their genomes are thought to decay towards an organelle-like fate due to decreased homologous recombination and inef- ficient selection. However, numerous associations exist that counter these expectations, especially in marine environments, possibly due to ongoing horizontal gene flow. Despite extensive theoretical treatment, no empirical study thus far has connected these underlying population genetic processes with long-term evolutionary outcomes. By sampling marine chemosynthetic bacterial-bivalve endosymbioses that range from primarily vertical to strictly horizontal transmission, we tested this canonical theory. We found that transmission mode strongly predicts homologous recombination rates, and that exceedingly low recombination rates are associated with moderate genome degradation in the marine symbionts with nearly strict vertical transmission. Nonetheless, even the most degraded marine endosym- biont genomes are occasionally horizontally transmitted and are much larger than their ter- restrial insect symbiont counterparts. Therefore, horizontal transmission and recombination enable efficient natural selection to maintain intermediate symbiont genome sizes and sub- stantial functional genetic variation