Commercialization of agriculture under population pressure: effects on production, and nutrition in Rwanda

Agricultural policy Rwanda., Produce trade Government policy Rwanda., Exports Rwanda., Nutrition policy Rwanda., Food supply Rwanda., Rwanda Population.,

Genome-wide association analysis of insomnia complaints identifies risk genes and genetic overlap with psychiatric and metabolic traits.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked FilesPersistent insomnia is among the most frequent complaints in general practice. To identify genetic factors for insomnia complaints, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and a genome-wide gene-based association study (GWGAS) in 113,006 individuals. We identify three loci and seven genes associated with insomnia complaints, with the associations for one locus and five genes supported by joint analysis with an independent sample (n = 7,565). Our top association (MEIS1, P < 5 × 10-8) has previously been implicated in restless legs syndrome (RLS). Additional analyses favor the hypothesis that MEIS1 exhibits pleiotropy for insomnia and RLS and show that the observed association with insomnia complaints cannot be explained only by the presence of an RLS subgroup within the cases. Sex-specific analyses suggest that there are different genetic architectures between the sexes in addition to shared genetic factors. We show substantial positive genetic correlation of insomnia complaints with internalizing personality traits and metabolic traits and negative correlation with subjective well-being and educational attainment. These findings provide new insight into the genetic architecture of insomnia.Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research NWO Brain & Cognition 433-09-228 European Research Council ERC-ADG-2014-671084 INSOMNIA Netherlands Scientific Organization (NWO) VU University (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) Dutch Brain Foundation Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen - German Federal Ministry of Education and Research state of Bavaria German Migraine & Headache Society (DMKG) Almirall AstraZeneca Berlin Chemie Boehringer Boots Health Care GlaxoSmithKline Janssen Cilag McNeil Pharma MSD Sharp Dohme Pfizer Institute of Epidemiology and Social Medicine at the University of Munster German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) German Restless Legs Patient Organisation (RLS Deutsche Restless Legs Vereinigung) Swiss RLS Patient Association (Schweizerische Restless Legs Selbsthilfegruppe

The triple role of potatoes as a source of cash, food, and employment: effects on nutritional improvement in Rwanda

Non-PRIFPRI4; nobi

Commercialization of Agriculture Under Population Pressure: Effects on Production, Consumption, and Nutrition in Rwanda

Rapid population growth in agroecologies that are already under high population pressure poses a major challenge for development policy. It becomes an even greater challenge in complex agroecologies where little new technology for rapid agricultural expansion is available. The mountain zones of the Zaire-Nile Divide in Central Africa present an example of such a challenging environment where agriculture has encroached onto marginal zones, that is, water catchment areas and the last tropical forests of the area. This study by von Braun, de Haen, and Blanken highlights the potentials of agricultural development for the employment, income, and consumption of the poor, but also stresses that nonagricultural rural growth and employment expansion are key to improved food security and nutrition in this setting. The authors show that the delivery of public goods—health services, sanitation, and education—has to move ahead in order to maintain and improve the human capital foundation in this stressed environment. The study is based on detailed primary household data utilized in innovative ways to assess the household's and farmer's (and her husband's) behavior in the subsistence economy vis-a-vis options for specialization. A number of interesting policy findings emerge, such as the poor being too poor to capture the gains from efficient specialization because they need to take care of subsistence-based insurance against hunger. While generally favorable effects of commercialization of agriculture for nutrition are manifested by this study and preceding IFPRI studies on this topic, the present study also draws attention to the need for concern about land tenure when the stimulus for agricultural commercialization is given in a land-scarce environment

Effectiveness of secondary prevention and treatment interventions for crack-cocaine abuse: A comprehensive narrative overview of English-language studies

There are an estimated several million crack-cocaine users globally; use is highest in the Americas. Most crack users are socio-economically marginalized (e.g., homeless), and feature elevated risks for morbidity (e.g., blood-borne viruses), mortality and crime/violence involvement, resulting in extensive burdens. No comprehensive reviews of evidence-based prevention and/or treatment interventions specifically for crack use exist. We conducted a comprehensive narrative overview of English-language studies on the efficacy of secondary prevention and treatment interventions for crack (cocaine) abuse/dependence. Literature searches (1990-2014) using pertinent keywords were conducted in main scientific databases. Titles/abstracts were reviewed for relevance, and full studies were included in the review if involving a primary prevention/treatment intervention study comprising a substantive crack user sample. Intervention outcomes considered included drug use, health risks/status (e.g., HIV or sexual risks) and select social outcome indicators. Targeted (e.g., behavioral/community-based) prevention measures show mixed and short-term effects on crack use/HIV risk outcomes. Material (e.g., safer crack use kit distribution) interventions also document modest efficacy in risk reduction; empirical assessments of environmental (e.g., drug consumption facilities) for crack smokers are not available. Diverse psychosocial treatment (including contingency management) interventions for crack abuse/dependence show some positive but also limited/short-term efficacy, yet likely constitute best currently available treatment options. Ancillary treatments show little effects but are understudied. Despite ample studies, pharmacotherapeutic/immunotherapy treatment agents have not produced convincing evidence; select agents may hold potential combined with personalized approaches and/or psycho-social strategies. No comprehensively effective 'gold-standard' prevention/treatment interventions for crack abuse exist; concerted research towards improved interventions is urgently needed. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.CIHR/PHAC Chair in Applied Public HealthAssociation of Universities and Colleges of Canada's (AUCC) LACREG programCtr Addict & Mental Hlth, Social & Epidemiol Res Dept, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, CanadaSimon Fraser Univ, Fac Hlth Sci, Ctr Appl Res Mental Hlth & Addict, Vancouver, BC V6B 5K3, CanadaUniv Toronto, Dept Psychiat, Toronto, ON M5T 1R8, CanadaParnassia Addict Res Ctr, NL-2505 AA the Hague, NetherlandsUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Psychiat, BR-04565000 São Paulo, BrazilFed Univ Brasilia, Fac Ceilandia, BR-72220900 Brasilia, DF, BrazilUniv Toronto, Dalla Lana Sch Publ Hlth, Toronto, ON M5T 3M7, CanadaBritish Columbia Ctr Dis Control, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4R4, CanadaUniv British Columbia, Dept Med, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9, CanadaBC Ctr Excellence HIV AIDS, Urban Hlth Res Initiat, Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6, CanadaUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Psychiat, BR-04565000 São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc