Sustainable Management of Water Resources

The Dawn spacecraft arrived at dwarf planet Ceres in spring 2015 and imaged its surface from four successively lower polar orbits at ground sampling dimensions between ∼1.3 km/px and ∼35 m/px. To understand the geological history of Ceres a mapping campaign was initiated to produce a set of 15 quadrangle-based geological maps using the highest-resolution Framing Camera imagery. Here we present the geological map of the Ac-10 Rongo Quadrangle, which is located at the equator encompassing the region from 22°N to 22°S and 288° to 360°E. The total relief within the quadrangle is 11.1 km with altitudes ranging from about −7.3 km to +3.8 km. We identified nine geological units based on surface morphology and surface textural characteristics. The dominant and most widespread unit is the cratered terrain (crt) representing ancient reworked crustal material. Its consistent formation age across the quadrangle is 1.8 Ga. Two edifices (unit th), Ahuna Mons and an unnamed tholus within Begbalel Crater, are interpreted to be of (cryo)volcanic origin. The southwest portion of the quadrangle is dominated by ejecta material (Ye) emplaced during the formation of the 260-km diameter Yalode impact basin at about 580 Ma. Rayed crater ejecta material (cr) is dominant in the eastern part of the quadrangle but also occurs in isolated patches up to a distance of 455 km from the 34 km diameter source crater Haulani. The remaining five geological units also represent impact crater materials: degraded rim (crdeg), bright crater (cb), hummocky floor (cfh), talus (ta), and crater (c) materials. Widespread Yalode and Haulani ejecta materials can potentially be utilised as stratigraphic markers. Therefore, it is essential to consistently map their full areal extent and to date their formations using impact crater statistics

What lies beneath: exploring links between asylum policy and hate crime in the UK

This paper explores the link between increasing incidents of hate crime and the asylum policy of successive British governments with its central emphasis on deterrence. The constant problematisation of asylum seekers in the media and political discourse ensures that 'anti-immigrant' prejudice becomes mainstr earned as a common-sense response. The victims are not only the asylum seekers hoping for a better life but democratic society itself with its inherent values of pluralism and tolerance debased and destabilised

Violent and victimized bodies: sexual violence policy in England and Wales

This paper uses the notion of the body to frame an archaeology of sexual violence policy in England and Wales, applying and developing Pillow’s ideas. It argues that the dominant construction is of sexual violence as an individualized crime, with the solution being for a survivor to report, and with support often instrumentalized in relation to criminal justice objectives. However, criminal justice proceedings can intensify or create further trauma for sexual violence survivors. Furthermore, in addition to criminalizing the violent body and supporting the victimized one, there is a need for policy to produce alternative types of bodies through preventative interventions. Much sexual violence is situated within (hetero) sexual dynamics constructing a masculine aggressor and a feminine body which eventually yields. Prevention must therefore focus on developing embodied boundaries, and narratives at the margins of policy could underpin such efforts

The Role of TLR4 in the Paclitaxel Effects on Neuronal Growth In Vitro

Paclitaxel (Pac) is an antitumor agent that is widely used for treatment of solid cancers. While being effective as a chemotherapeutic agent, Pac in high doses is neurotoxic, specifically targeting sensory innervations. In view of these toxic effects associated with conventional chemotherapy, decreasing the dose of Pac has been recently suggested as an alternative approach, which might limit neurotoxicity and immunosuppression. However, it remains unclear if low doses of Pac retain its neurotoxic properties or might exhibit unusual effects on neuronal cells. The goal of this study was to analyze the concentration-dependent effect of Pac on isolated and cultured DRG neuronal cells from wild-type and TLR4 knockout mice. Three different morphological parameters were analyzed: the number of neurons which developed neurites, the number of neurites per cell and the total length of neurites per cell. Our data demonstrate that low concentrations of Pac (0.1 nM and 0.5 nM) do not influence the neuronal growth in cultures in both wild type and TLR4 knockout mice. Higher concentrations of Pac (1-100 nM) had a significant effect on DRG neurons from wild type mice, affecting the number of neurons which developed neurites, number of neurites per cell, and the length of neurites. In DRG from TLR4 knockout mice high concentrations of Pac showed a similar effect on the number of neurons which developed neurites and the length of neurites. At the same time, the number of neurites per cell, indicating the process of growth cone initiation, was not affected by high concentrations of Pac. Thus, our data showed that Pac in high concentrations has a significant damaging effect on axonal growth and that this effect is partially mediated through TLR4 pathways. Low doses of Pac are devoid of neuronal toxicity and thus can be safely used in a chemomodulation mode. © 2013 Ustinova et al

A phase I and pharmacokinetic study of NK105, a paclitaxel-incorporating micellar nanoparticle formulation

This phase I study was designed to examine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD), the dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs), the recommended dose (RD) for phase II, and the pharmacokinetics of NK105, a new polymeric micelle carrier system for paclitaxel (PTX). NK105 was administered as a 1-h intravenous infusion every 3 weeks, without antiallergic premedication. The starting dose was 10 mg m−2, and the dose was escalated according to the accelerated titration method. Nineteen patients were recruited. The tumour types treated included pancreatic (n=11), bile duct (n=5), gastric (n=2), and colonic (n=1) cancers. Neutropenia was the most common haematological toxicity. A grade 3 fever developed in one patient given 180 mg m−2. No other grades 3 or 4 nonhaematological toxicities, including neuropathy, was observed during the entire study period. DLTs occurred in two patients given 180 mg m−2 (grade 4 neutropenia lasting for more than 5 days). Thus, this dose was designated as the MTD. Grade 2 hypersensitivity reactions developed in only one patient given 180 mg m−2. A partial response was observed in one patient with pancreatic cancer. The maximum concentration (Cmax) and area under the concentration (AUC) of NK105 were dose dependent. The plasma AUC of NK105 at 150 mg m−2 was approximately 15-fold higher than that of the conventional PTX formulation. NK105 was well tolerated, and the RD for the phase II study was determined to be 150 mg m−2 every 3 weeks. The results of this phase I study warrant further clinical evaluation

Block sequential adriamycin CMF – optimal non-myeloablative chemotherapy for high risk adjuvant breast cancer?

After the publication of the 10-year survival data from Milan on the adjuvant use of the block sequential regimen consisting of four cycles of adriamycin followed by eight cycles of intravenous CMF, many centres adopted this as standard of care for high risk, multiple node-positive breast cancer. For this reason it was identified as the standard arm for the Anglo-Celtic adjuvant high-dose chemotherapy trial. This study reports on the experience of this regimen in 329 women with early breast cancer involving at least four axillary nodes, who were treated outside any adjuvant chemotherapy trial. At a median follow-up of 3 years, the overall 5-year disease-free survival is 61%, and the overall survival is 70%. These data confirm the efficacy of this regimen in non-trial patients, and, for the same high risk subgroup, indicate that this approach offers an outcome at least as good as that seen in the CALGB 9344 AC-Taxol arm, and the NCIC days 1 and 8 CEF

Multiple Smaller Missions as a Direct Pathway to Mars Sample Return

Recent discoveries by the Mars Exploration Rovers, Mars Express, Mars Odyssey, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft include multiple, tantalizing astrobiological targets representing both past and present environments on Mars. The most desirable path to Mars Sample Return (MSR) would be to collect and return samples from that site which provides the clearest examples of the variety of rock types considered a high priority for sample return (pristine igneous, sedimentary, and hydrothermal). Here we propose an MSR architecture in which the next steps (potentially launched in 2018) would entail a series of smaller missions, including caching, to multiple landing sites to verify the presence of high priority sample return targets through in situ analyses. This alternative architecture to one flagship-class sample caching mission to a single site would preserve a direct path to MSR as stipulated by the Planetary Decadal Survey, while permitting investigation of diverse deposit types and providing comparison of the site of returned samples to other aqueous environments on early Mar