LCA applied to perennial cropping systems: a review focused on the farm stage

International audienc

Stakeholder collaboration in climate-smart agricultural production innovations: insights from the Cocoa industry in Ghana

Although collaboration is vital in addressing global environmental sustainability challenges, research understanding on stakeholder engagement in climate-smart production innovation adoption and implementation, remains limited. In this paper, we advance knowledge about stakeholder collaboration by examining the roles played by stakeholders in scaling up ecological sustainability innovations. Using the illustrative context and case of green cocoa industry in Ghana, the analysis identified three distinctive phases of stakeholder engagement in ecological sustainability innovations implemented from 1960-2017. We highlight defining periods of ecological challenges encompassing the production recovery sustainability initiative phase solely driven by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD)–a governmental body responsible for production, processing and marketing of cocoa, coffee and sheanut. During the period, major initiatives were driven by non-governmental organisations in collaboration with COCOBOD to implement the Climate-Smart agriculture scheme in the cocoa sector. The findings have implications for cocoa production research and stakeholder collaboration in environmental innovations adoption

Recurrence of primary disease following lung transplantation

Lung transplant has become definitive treatment for patients with several end-stage lung diseases. Since the first attempted lung transplantation in 1963, survival has significantly improved due to advancement in immunosuppression, organ procurement, ex vivo lung perfusion, surgical techniques, prevention of chronic lung allograft dysfunction and bridging to transplant using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Despite a steady increase in number of lung transplantations each year, there is still a huge gap between demand and supply of organs available, and work continues to select recipients with potential for best outcomes. According to review of the literature, there are some rare primary diseases that may recur following transplantation. As the number of lung transplants increase, we continue to identify disease processes at highest risk for recurrence, thus shaping our future approaches. While the aim of lung transplantation is improving survival and quality of life, choosing the best recipients is crucial due to a shortage of donated organs. Here we discuss the common disease processes that recur and highlight its impact on overall outcome following lung transplantation

Histone H3K36M mutation and trimethylation patterns in chondroblastoma.

AIMS:Histones are essential components of chromatin, and mutations in histones lead to alterations in methylation and acetylation, which play an important role in tumorigenesis. Most of the chondroblastomas harbour the H3K36M mutation. With the availability of a mutation-specific antibody, we sought to assess the sensitivity of this antibody and the alterations of histone methylation in a series of chondroblastoma cases. METHODS AND RESULTS:Immunohistochemical staining with antibodies against H3K36M, trimethylated histones (H3K27me3 and H3K36me3) and an osteoblastic marker (SATB2) was performed on 27 chondroblastomas from 27 patients. The clinical and radiological characteristics of each patient were reviewed. All 27 tumours showed typical radiological and histological features of chondroblastoma, with a subset of cases showing secondary aneurysmal bone cyst changes (11/27), giant-cell-rich foci (4/27), and matrix-rich areas mimicking chondromyxoid fibroma (1/27). All except one case (26/27, 96%) showed positive H3K36M immunostaining (nuclear). In the majority of cases, there was a diffuse staining pattern. Immunohistochemical staining for H3K27me3 and H3K36me3 showed a heterogeneous staining pattern in all cases, regardless of mutation status. None of the cases showed loss of positivity or diffuse positivity. Focal or diffuse SATB2 expression was seen in 21 of 26 tumours (81%). CONCLUSION:Our results demonstrate that the vast majority of chondroblastomas are positive for H3K36M by immunohistochemical analysis, confirming its diagnostic value. H3K27me3 expression and H3K36me3 expression are heterogeneous in these tumours