A survey of the costs of world sugar policies

This paper provides a framework for assessing the prospects for trade reform in the sugar market. It begins by explaining the main features of the policy formation processes affecting the sugar market. The discussion draws heavily on a recent model of the world market developed by Wong, Sturgiss and Borrell (1989), and some parts of this paper summarize that work directly. Some of the key features of existing policies are discussed and the findings of a number of empiricalstudies are highlighted to draw attention to the economic costs and welfare effects of such policies. The paper concludes with an assessment of the prospects for reform.Access to Markets,Economic Theory&Research,Agribusiness&Markets,Environmental Economics&Policies,Markets and Market Access

Calidad de los diagnósticos en urgencias de las lesiones por causas externas que requieren ingreso hospitalario

SummaryObjectiveTo establish the quality of emergency department diagnoses for those patients whose injuries required hospital admission.MethodsEmergency and hospital discharge diagnostics were retrieved for 339 injured patients. Severity scores (ISS) were calculated using an automatic conversion procedure (ICDMAP). Emergency diagnoses for each patient (grouped into categories) were compared with the hospital discharge ones. Quality was analyzed based on accuracy (Percy groups) and reliability (percentage of concordance) measurements. Severity scores were evaluated using reliability measures (percentage of concordance and intraclass correlation coefficient -ICC-).ResultsMean diagnoses per patient were 1.1 at the emergency department and 1.4 at hospital discharge. In the latter, there were diagnoses in each category except for those more unspecific, where there was a reduction. Overall,emergency information showed under notification. Severity scores were higher with hospital discharge data. There was a 63% percentage of concordance. When grouped into categories, severity scores had an ICC of 0.61 (moderate-good).ConclusionEmergency departments are a potential good source of information about injury severity even for those patients who require hospital admission. Emergency department injury surveillance can be very useful in assessing the magnitude and distribution of injury severity at the population level. Nevertheless for individual severity assessment, use of hospital discharge information is recommended

Promoting the achievement of looked after children and young people in South Tyneside

As of March 2016, there were 70,440 children and young people in care in England. The number of looked after children has continued to increase steadily over the last eight years. Sixty per cent of these children are in care because of abuse or neglect and three-quarters are placed in foster care arrangements. Children and young people who are in or have experienced care remain one of the lowest performing groups in terms of educational outcomes. Last year, 14% of looked after children achieved five or more A*–C GCSEs or equivalent, including English and mathematics. As a consequence, they also experience poorer employment and health outcomes after leaving school compared to their peers. They are over-represented amongst the offender population and those who experience homelessness. However, research is emerging to show that children and young people in care can have very positive experiences of school and are supported effectively to reach their full potential academically and socially. The purpose of this report is to share practice in selected South Tyneside schools that is contributing to improved outcomes and school experiences for children and young people in care. In July 2015, the South Tyneside Virtual School (VS) collaborated with UCL Institute of Education to run their Promoting the Achievement of Looked After Children (PALAC) programme with seven schools in the local authority (LA). This report presents an account of the programme, including the activities undertaken by the participants and the outcomes of the programme to date for students in care and staff in the participating school

Elucidating the mystery of the tripartite symbiosis plant – mycorrhizal fungi – dark septate endophytes

Non-Peer ReviewedThis study provides information on the tripartite symbiotic relationships formed by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and dark septate endophytes (DSE) in crops growing in the semiarid region of the Canadian Prairie. We found the symbiotic root systems of wheat, pea, chickpea and lentil to be morphologically distinct. The relationship between DSE and AMF abundance in roots ranged from negative in lentil to positive in wheat

Análisis del infrarregistro de la mortalidad perinatal y sus factores asociados en una región sanitaria de Cataluña

ResumenObjetivosEvaluar la magnitud del infrarregistro de las muertes perinatales de la Región Sanitaria «Centre» (RSC) (Cataluña). Estimar las tasas de mortalidad reales y analizar los factores asociados al infrarregistro.MétodosEstudio observacional retrospectivo del infrarregistro de la mortalidad perinatal durante el período 1991–1992 en la RSC. Mediante una recogida activa se han identificado las muertes perinatales de peso igual o superior a 500 gr o de 22 semanas o más, ocurridas en los hospitales del RSC, comparándolas, mediante un apareamiento informático, con las muertes perinatales del registro oficial de mortalidad. Las variables de apareamiento utilizadas han sido: nombre y apellidos del recién nacido, sexo, municipio y fecha de la defunción. Se ha aplicado el análisis de regresión logística para detectar los factores asociados al infrarregistro.ResultadosLa mortalidad perinatal en la RSC en el período 1991–92 se ha infraestimado en un 34% (IC 95%: 26%–42%). La mayor parte de las muertes no declaradas corresponde a muertes fetales y/o recién nacidos de muy bajo peso o de gran prematuridad que mueren a las pocas horas de vida. Durante el fin de semana el infrarregistro es unas cuatro veces mayor. Una vez recogida, la tasa de mortalidad perinatal en la RSC para los años 1991–1992 pasa de 6,3 por 1.000 nacimientos a 9,6 por 1.000 nacimientos.ConclusionesPara disponer de una información precisa de las necesidades de salud de las mujeres en edad fértil y de los recién nacidos de la RSC, y de cada uno de sus sectores, debe mejorarse la declaración de las muertes perinatales.SummaryObjectivesTo assess the degree of undereporting of perinatal deaths in the «Centre» Region (CR) during 1991 and 1992.MethodsObservational retrospective study of the undereporting of perinatal deaths in the CR during 1991 and 1992. Perinatal deaths above 499 grams or 21 weeks of gestation which occurred in the hospitals of the CR were identified by reviewing hospital records, and then compared through linkage with perinatal deaths recorded in vital statistics. The following variables were used for the matching: name and surname, sex, county and date of death. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with undereporting.ResultsThe degree of undereporting of perinatal deaths in the CR during 1991–1992 was 34% [95% CI: (26%–42%)]. Most undereported perinatal deaths corresponded to fetal deaths, or very low birthweight or preterm livebirths that died shortly after birth. Over the weekend, undereporting increases by four-fold. The official perinatal mortality rate for the CR, 6.3 per 1,000 births, increased to 9.6 per 1,000 births, after taking into account undereporting.ConclusionsIn order to have valid information of the health needs of mothers and newborns reporting of perinatal deaths must be improved

Socioeconomic Inequalities in Mortality Rates in Old Age in the World Health Organization Europe Region

Socioeconomic adversity is among the foremost fundamental causes of human suffering, and this is no less true in old age. Recent reports on socioeconomic inequalities in mortality rate in old age suggest that a low socioeconomic position continues to increase the risk of death even among the oldest old. We aimed to examine the evidence for socioeconomic mortality rate inequalities in old age, including information about associations with various indicators of socioeconomic position and for various geographic locations within the World Health Organization Region for Europe. The articles included in this review leave no doubt that inequalities in mortality rate by socioeconomic position persist into the oldest ages for both men and women in all countries for which information is available, although the relative risk measures observed were rarely higher than 2.00. Still, the available evidence base is heavily biased geographically, inasmuch as it is based largely on national studies from Nordic and Western European countries and local studies from urban areas in Southern Europe. This bias will hamper the design of European-wide policies to reduce inequalities in mortality rate. We call for a continuous update of the empiric evidence on socioeconomic inequalities in mortality rate

Physiological and biochemical basis for stay-green trait in sorghum

Drought is a major cause of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] yield losses in rain-fed agriculture, especially in the semi-arid and arid agro-ecological zones of Africa and Asia. Stay-green sorghum genotypes are able to maintain grain filling under drought conditions. The trait has been employed in the selection and breeding for post-flowering drought resistance, even though the genes regulating the trait are still being identified. The objective of this study was to assess how leaf area and chlorophyll are maintained in various sources of stay-green; and to determine whether the integrity of the photosynthetic apparatus and enzymes involved in the maintenance of photosynthesis during post-flowering drought stress are regulated differently. A glasshouse experiment was conducted using three stay-green sorghum lines (B35, KS19 and E36-1) and a senescent control, R16, under well-watered (WW) and water-limited (WL) conditions. The size of the canopy at anthesis varied significantly between genotypes, and this profoundly impacted leaf senescence patterns. For example, green leaf area (GLA) at anthesis was highly correlated with the decline in GLA during the first 21 days of grain filling, under both WW (r = 0.92) and WL (r = 0.86) conditions. These differences in senescence patterns were further exacerbated by the small pot size in this study (10 L). E36-1 is normally designated as a stay-green genotype, but the growth of this ‘high leaf area’, genotype in a small pot resulted in a senescent phenotype. Green leaf area retention was higher in B35 and KS19, and the loss of GLA started 14 days earlier in the WL E36-1 and R16 plants, compared to B35, with little change in KS19. Chlorophyll levels were higher in B35 and KS19 compared with R16 and E36-1 under WL conditions. FPSII, CO2 assimilation rate, leaf conductance, transpiration rate and leaf water use efficiency were higher in the stay-green genotypes under WL conditions compared to R16. Enzymes involved in leaf nitrogen metabolism and chlorophyll biosynthesis, and photosynthesis were retained at higher levels in the stay-green lines than in R16. Therefore, the stay-green mechanism resulted in reduced destruction of the photosynthetic apparatus, better nitrogen metabolism and chlorophyll turnover, and maintenance of active enzymes involved in photosynthesis

Promoting the achievement of looked after children and young people in South Tyneside

As of March 2017, there were 72, 670 children and young people in care in England. The number of looked after children has continued to increase steadily over the last eight years. Sixty per cent of these children are in care because of abuse or neglect and three-quarters are placed in foster care arrangements. Children and young people who are in or have experienced care remain one of the lowest performing groups in terms of educational outcomes. The average Attainment 8 score for children in care is 19.3 compared to 44.5 for non-looked after children and 19.3 for children in need. In 2017 there was an increase in the percentage of children in care achieving a pass in English and mathematics from 17.4% to 17.5% and also in entering EBacc. Care leavers can experience poorer employment and health outcomes after leaving school compared to their peers. They are over-represented amongst the offender population and those who experience homelessness. However, research is emerging to show that children and young people in care can have very positive experiences of school if they are supported effectively to reach their full potential academically and socially. The purpose of this report is to share practice in selected South Tyneside schools that is contributing to improved outcomes and school experiences for children and young people in care. In 2017, South Tyneside Virtual School (VS) collaborated with UCL Institute of Education to deliver a second programme of Promoting the Achievement of Looked after Children (PALAC) with five schools in the local authority (LA). This report presents an account of the programme, including the activities undertaken by the participants and the outcomes of the programme to date for pupils in care and staff in the participating schools