Ensamblando la cadena de cultivos de alto valor en el ocidente de Honduras

The international donor community has introduced value chain development as a fundamental approach to achieve rural development cost-effectively. This “market systems development” approach has been widely introduced in the Honduran agricultural sector in an effort to integrate small farmers into high-value agricultural chains, such as horticulture. In this paper, I have elaborated a critical theoretical framework to analyze the development rhetoric of using horticultural value chains as a solution for rural poverty reduction in low-income countries. I used a sociological approach based on “assemblage thinking.” The paper reveals that a value chain assemblage is relatively complex with many relations, with different interests and affects and that a top-down approach to upgrading smallholders and modernizing value chains leaves little maneuvering room for smallholders’ decision making and autonomy. The hegemony of project or expert knowledge takes precedence over all other alternatives. There is a need for reflexivity to address this dominant development strategy and devise an alternative development model where the smallholder form of production could play an important role in producing enough local food in a culturally and ecologically appropriate way.La comunidad de la corporación internacional ha introducido el desarrollo de las cadenas de valor como un enfoque fundamental para lograr el desarrollo rural de forma eficiente. Este enfoque de " desarrollo de sistemas de mercado” se ha introducido ampliamente en el sector agrícola hondureño en un esfuerzo por integrar a los pequeños agricultores en las cadenas agrícolas de alto valor, como la hortícola. En este trabajo se ha elaborado un marco teórico crítico para analizar la retórica del desarrollo, que supone el uso de las cadenas de valor agrícolas como solución para la reducción de la pobreza rural en los países de bajos ingresos; y se utilizó un enfoque sociológico basado en el "pensamiento de ensamblaje". Este documento revela que un ensamblaje de cadenas de valor es relativamente complejo, con diversas relaciones, intereses y afectos; y que el enfoque descendente para impulsar mejoras en los pequeños agricultores y modernizar las cadenas de valor, deja poco margen de maniobra para la toma de decisiones y la autonomía de dichos productores. La hegemonía del conocimiento de los proyectos o de los expertos prevalece sobre todas las demás alternativas. Es necesario reflexionar sobre esta estrategia de desarrollo dominante e idear un modelo de desarrollo alternativo en el que la forma de producción de los pequeños agricultores pueda desempeñar un papel importante en la suficiente producción de alimentos locales, de forma cultural y ecológicamente adecuada

Los posibles efectos de la liberalización comercial en los hogares rurales centroamericanos a partir de un modelo desagregado para la economía rural: Caso de Honduras

El presente estudio nació como respuesta a la necesidad de conocer los impactos que el tratado de libre comercio con los Estados Unidos (DR-CAFTA) tendría en la economía rural, en particular en sus segmentos más pobres. La metodología utilizada toma en cuenta la heterogeneidad de los hogares rurales de Honduras, las vinculaciones económicas entre ellos y sus relaciones con los mercados. Se usa un modelo microeconómico con los distintos tipos de hogares rurales como unidad de análisis. Al mismo tiempo, el modelo es de equilibrio general pues captura los efectos directos e indirectos de cambios de política en los hogares rurales. Con el modelo se determinan los posibles impactos de diferentes escenarios de reforma comercial, de políticas de transición y de cambios en las condiciones de los mercados de productos y factores que podrían darse a raíz del DR-CAFTA, sobre las decisiones de producción y de consumo y sobre el bienestar económico de cada tipo de hogar.Pobreza, Acuerdos comerciales, Desarrollo rural, PUB

Viininmaistelun alkeet -tapahtuma Maria P:ssä

Tiivistelmä Tekijät: Paananen Riina ja Korkiakoski Merika Työn nimi: Viininmaistelun alkeet -tapahtuma Maria P:ssä Tutkintonimike: Restonomi (AMK), matkailun koulutus Asiasanat: tapahtuma, viini, viininmaistelu, Chile Opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena oli suunnitella ja järjestää Viininmaistelun alkeet -tapahtuma. Tapahtuman toimeksiantajana toimi kajaanilainen yritys Viinibaari Maria P. Tapahtuma haluttiin toteuttaa baarin imagoon sopivaksi. Opinnäytetyön tavoitteena oli saada Viini-baarille lisää asiakkaita tutustuttamalla kokemattomia viininmaistajia viineihin. Työ oli toiminnallinen opinnäytetyö, jonka tuotoksena oli Viininmaistelun alkeet -tapahtuma. Opinnäytetyöhön kerättiin teoriapohjaa viininmaistelusta sekä viinin ja ruoan yhdistämisestä, Chilestä viinimaana ja tapahtuman järjestämisestä. Näitä kaikkia käytettiin lopullisen tuotoksen valmistumiseen. Toteutuksen arviointina toimi tapahtumaan osallistuneilta saatu kirjallinen palaute. Palautteen mukaan kehittämistehtävän toteutuksessa onnistuttiin hyvin, sillä opinnäytetyön ennalta määritellyt tavoitteet saavutettiin. Opinnäytetyötä voidaan käyttää apuna jatkossa vastaavien tapahtumien suunnittelussa.Abstract Authors: Paananen Riina & Korkiakoski Merika Title of the Publication: Basics of wine tasting- event Degree title: Bachelor of Hospitality Management Keywords: event, wine, tasting, Chile The purpose for this thesis was to plan and arrange Basics of wine tasting –event. The commissioner for this thsesis was a local bar in Kajaani called Viinibaari Maria P. The event was planned to suit the imago of the bar. The objective of the thesis was to gain more customers to Viinibaari Maria P by introducing various wines to novice wine tasters. This research was a functional thesis which produced the Basics wine tasting event. The theory of this thesis focused on wine tasting, combining wine and food, Chile as a wine producer, and on planning and arranging an event. The feedback for the execution consists of the feedback forms that the customers of the event were asked to fill in. In addition observation method was used for evaluation. According to the feedback the event was successful because the objective of the thesis was reached. Our conclusion is that this thesis can be used as a guide in planning similar events

Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccination and Nasopharyngeal Acquisition of Pneumococcal Serotype 19A Strains

Context The rapid increase in multiresistant serotype 19A as a cause of invasive and respiratory pneumococcal disease has been associated in time with the widespread implementation of 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination (PCV-7) in several countries. Because spontaneous fluctuations in time and antibiotic selective pressure may have induced this serotype 19A increase, controlled studies are needed to assess the role of PCV-7. Objective To examine the association of PCV-7 vaccination and nasopharyngeal acquisition of serotype 19A pneumococci, their clonal distribution, and antibiotic susceptibility. Design, Setting, and Patients Post hoc per-protocol completer's analysis as part of a randomized controlled trial of nasopharyngeal Streptococcus pneumoniae carriage enrolling 1003 healthy newborns with follow-up to the age of 24 months in the Netherlands, which has low antibiotic resistance rates. The study was conducted before widespread PCV-7 implementation in infants, between July 7, 2005, and February 14, 2008. Nasopharyngeal swabs were obtained at the age of 6 weeks and at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. Intervention Infants were randomly assigned to receive 2 doses of PCV-7 at 2 and 4 months; 2 + 1 doses of PCV-7 at 2, 4, and 11 months; or no dosage (unvaccinated control group). Main Outcome Measure Cumulative proportion of children with nasopharyngeal acquisition of a new serotype 19A strain from 6 through 24 months of age. Results Nine hundred forty-eight children completed the study. Fifty-four nasopharyngeal serotype 19A carriage isolates from 318 in the 2-dose group, 66 isolates from 327 in the 2 + 1-dose group, and 33 isolates from 303 in the unvaccinated were collected from 6 weeks through 24 months. The cumulative proportion who tested positive for new nasopharyngeal serotype 19A acquisition from 6 through 24 months of age was significantly higher in those having received the 2 + 1-dose PCV-7 schedule (16.2%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 12.6%-20.6%) vs those who were unvaccinated (9.2%; 95% CI, 6.5%-13.0%; relative risk [RR], 1.75; 95% CI, 1.14-2.70) but not after a 2-dose schedule (13.2%; 95% CI, 9.9%-17.4%; RR, 1.43; 95% CI, 0.91-2.25). There were 28 different sequence types identified, including 6 new types. The proportion of children with new 19A acquisition who had used antibiotics in the last 6 months (18.7%) did not differ among groups. Five isolates were penicillin-intermediate susceptible and another 3 were nonsusceptible to erythromycin and azithromycin, all in the vaccine groups. Conclusion A 2 + 1-dose PCV-7 schedule was associated with an increase in serotype 19A nasopharyngeal acquisition compared with unvaccinated controls

Effects of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine 2 Years after Its Introduction, the Netherlands

Vaccine-serotype disease decreased, but non–vaccine-serotype disease increased

Immediate impact of COVID-19 pandemic on farming systems in Central America and Mexico

In this article we present a first attempt to understand the immediate impact of COVID-19 and the sanitary measures taken by governments on farming systems in Central America and Mexico (CAM). Through a review of information generated in these initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic (webinars, blogs, electronic publications, media) and 44 interviews with key informants across the region, we have identified the main impacts felt by different types of farming systems in the region. The results presented focus only in the immediate effect of COVID-19 pandemic and the mechanisms implemented by farmers in the first months. Whether these impacts and response mechanisms will result in a transformation of the farming systems towards greater resilience and sustainability is still an open question

Sensitive Spectroscopic Detection of Large and Denatured Protein Aggregates in Solution by Use of the Fluorescent Dye Nile Red

The fluorescent dye Nile red was used as a probe for the sensitive detection of large, denatured aggregates of the model protein β-galactosidase (E. coli) in solution. Aggregates were formed by irreversible heat denaturation of β-galactosidase below and above the protein’s unfolding temperature of 57.4°C, and the presence of aggregates in heated solutions was confirmed by static light scattering. Interaction of Nile red with β-galactosidase aggregates led to a shift of the emission maximum (λmax) from 660 to 611 nm, and to an increase of fluorescence intensity. Time-resolved fluorescence and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) measurements showed that Nile red detected large aggregates with hydrodynamic radii around 130 nm. By steady-state fluorescence measurements, it was possible to detect 1 nM of denatured and aggregated β-galactosidase in solution. The comparison with size exclusion chromatography (SEC) showed that native β-galactosidase and small aggregates thereof had no substantial effect on the fluorescence of Nile red. Large aggregates were not detected by SEC, because they were excluded from the column. The results with β-galactosidase demonstrate the potential of Nile red for developing complementary analytical methods that overcome the size limitations of SEC, and can detect the formation of large protein aggregates at early stages

Elevated Expression of Phospholipid Transfer Protein in Bone Marrow Derived Cells Causes Atherosclerosis

Background: Phospholipid transfer protein (PLTP) is expressed by various cell types. In plasma, it is associated with high density lipoproteins (HDL). Elevated levels of PLTP in transgenic mice result in decreased HDL and increased atherosclerosis. PLTP is present in human atherosclerosis lesions, where it seems to be macrophage derived. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the atherogenic potential of macrophage derived PLTP. Methods and Findings: Here we show that macrophages from human PLTP transgenic mice secrete active PLTP. Subsequently, we performed bone marrow transplantations using either wild type mice (PLTPwt/wt), hemizygous PLTP transgenic mice (huPLTPtg/wt) or homozygous PLTP transgenic mice (huPLTPtg/tg) as donors and low density lipoprotein receptor deficient mice (LDLR-/-) as acceptors, in order to establish the role of PLTP expressed by bone marrow derived cells in diet-induced atherogenesis. Atherosclerosis was increased in the huPLTPtg/wt → LDLR-/ - mice (2.3-fold) and even further in the huPLTPtg/tg→LDLR-/ - mice (4.5-fold) compared with the control PLTPwt/wt→LDLR-/- mice (both P<0.001). Plasma PLTP activity levels and non-HDL cholesterol were increased and HDL cholesterol decreased compared with controls (all P<0.01). PLTP was present in atherosclerotic plaques in the mice as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry and appears to co-localize with macrophages. Isolated macrophages from PLTP transgenic mice do not show differences in cholesterol efflux or in cytokine production. Lipopolysaccharide activation of macrophages results in increased production of PLTP. This effect was strongly amplified in PLTP transgenic macrophages. Conclusions: We conclude that PLTP expression by bone marrow derived cells results in atherogenic effects on plasma lipids, increased PLTP activity, high local PLTP protein levels in the atherosclerotic lesions and increased atherosclerotic lesion size