Small-Scale Fishing: Perceptions and Threats to Conserving a Livelihood in the Province of Phang-nga, Thailand

Limited understanding of small-scale fishing communities has hindered appropriate management initiatives in coastal communities which are threatening livelihoods. Informants, stakeholder interviews and questionnaires from local fishermen were used to gain knowledge of fishing factors, perceptions and threat to the small-scale fishing community in a coastal region in the province of Phang-nga, Thailand. Results revealed communities utilizing multi-geared, multi-species fisheries with a preference for marketable species that sell on a local scale. Whilst subsistence and local markets share equally the use of catches, there is a noticeable decline in small-scale fishers being recruited into the industry. This was considered by some to be due to urbanisation and by others to opportunities in tourism but was viewed as a socio-economic shift by government informants towards medium sized operations formed by resilient groups. Current management can be classified as open access, with virtually no management or regulations in place. This has led to fishers listing failing stocks and commercial fleets as the biggest threats to their livelihoods. Management initiatives are needed to focus on protecting and improving coastal stocks by clamping down on illegal activity large-scale from fishers and reviewing fishers access for resource protection

How effective are MPAs in conserving crab stocks? A comparison of fisheries and conservation objectives in three coastal MPAs in Thailand

Mangrove forest ecosystems support aquatic species important to tropical fishing communities, but habitat degradation and over-fishing have caused coastal fishery stocks to decline. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are widely promoted as a management option to reverse this situation. Using swimming crabs as indicator species, this paper explores the ecological effectiveness of two community-led MPAs and one co-managed MPA in Ranong and Phang-nga Provinces in southern Thailand. Comparisons were made of two fisheries objectives: catch per unit effort (CPUE); and size frequency distribution of Portunus spp. and Scylla olivacea; and one conservation objective: catch composition on benthic aquatic species, between each managed area and an associated control site to look for effects of management. Eight replicates of each survey were undertaken in each site: four in the wet season, from May to July 2011; and four in the dry season, from February to March 2012. Two of the MPAs, one a no-take zone and one a gear limitation zone, and both managed by local communities, showed a significant increase in CPUE of target species compared with their controls to the benefit of local fishers. There was little evidence of management impact on the composition of benthic aquatic species so community management is not achieving wider conservation in terms of increased biodiversity. The third MPA, a seasonal no-take zone, co-managed by local communities and local government, showed no significant effect on either CPUE of target species, or composition of benthic aquatic species when compared to its control. For size frequency distribution, a higher abundance of all size classes of Portunus pelagicus was observed in all MPAs compared to their control sites. The size distribution of animals suggests that the community-managed MPAs are supporting recruits and contributing to the fisheries by reducing the rates of growth overfishing. To conclude, the two community-led MPAs benefitted fishers but had no effect on marine biodiversity, while the co-managed MPA did not benefit fishers or marine biodiversity. However, all three MPAs showed increase crab abundance in each size class

International consensus on (ICON) anaphylaxis

ICON: Anaphylaxis provides a unique perspective on the principal evidence-based anaphylaxis guidelines developed and published independently from 2010 through 2014 by four allergy/immunology organizations. These guidelines concur with regard to the clinical features that indicate a likely diagnosis of anaphylaxis -- a life-threatening generalized or systemic allergic or hypersensitivity reaction. They also concur about prompt initial treatment with intramuscular injection of epinephrine (adrenaline) in the mid-outer thigh, positioning the patient supine (semi-reclining if dyspneic or vomiting), calling for help, and when indicated, providing supplemental oxygen, intravenous fluid resuscitation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, along with concomitant monitoring of vital signs and oxygenation. Additionally, they concur that H1-antihistamines, H2-antihistamines, and glucocorticoids are not initial medications of choice. For self-management of patients at risk of anaphylaxis in community settings, they recommend carrying epinephrine auto-injectors and personalized emergency action plans, as well as follow-up with a physician (ideally an allergy/immunology specialist) to help prevent anaphylaxis recurrences. ICON: Anaphylaxis describes unmet needs in anaphylaxis, noting that although epinephrine in 1 mg/mL ampules is available worldwide, other essentials, including supplemental oxygen, intravenous fluid resuscitation, and epinephrine auto-injectors are not universally available. ICON: Anaphylaxis proposes a comprehensive international research agenda that calls for additional prospective studies of anaphylaxis epidemiology, patient risk factors and co-factors, triggers, clinical criteria for diagnosis, randomized controlled trials of therapeutic interventions, and measures to prevent anaphylaxis recurrences. It also calls for facilitation of global collaborations in anaphylaxis research. In addition to confirming the alignment of major anaphylaxis guidelines, ICON: Anaphylaxis adds value by including summary tables and citing 130 key references. It is published as an information resource about anaphylaxis for worldwide use by healthcare professionals, academics, policy-makers, patients, caregivers, and the public

International genome-wide meta-analysis identifies new primary biliary cirrhosis risk loci and targetable pathogenic pathways.

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a classical autoimmune liver disease for which effective immunomodulatory therapy is lacking. Here we perform meta-analyses of discovery data sets from genome-wide association studies of European subjects (n=2,764 cases and 10,475 controls) followed by validation genotyping in an independent cohort (n=3,716 cases and 4,261 controls). We discover and validate six previously unknown risk loci for PBC (Pcombined<5 × 10(-8)) and used pathway analysis to identify JAK-STAT/IL12/IL27 signalling and cytokine-cytokine pathways, for which relevant therapies exist

Are fisheries-dependent communities in Scotland really maritime-dependent communities?

It is often said that fishing is not a job, but a way of life. The traditions, culture and structure of fishing in coastal communities have been built over the centuries, supporting their development and sustaining their existence (OECD, 2007). Scotland has one of Europe's largest fishing fleets with 2,046 working vessels; around 4,800 fishers; 132 active fishing ports; and landings which totalled £466 million in 2012. However, during the last ten years, the number of vessels, people employed and active ports have all decreased and are now at the lowest levels ever recorded (though the value of landings in 2011 was at its highest since 2000 (£501 million) (Marine Scotland, 2012)). This contraction (or 'consolidation') of fishing activity has been driven by fleet efficiency and policies targeting stock recovery - targets which are now showing some success, though, arguably this has been at the expense of some 'fisheries dependent communities' (FDC). This paper looks at community well-being and the links with changes in fishing activity to ask the questions: has a decrease in fishing opportunity had a negative effect on community well-being in Scottish coastal communities?; and if so, has that effect been greater or less in rural compared to urban areas? Community well-being has been measured using the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) to compare fishing communities' well-being in relation to other Scottish towns. Our main conclusions are that the decrease in fishing activity has had relatively little effect on so-called FDCs, especially those in rural areas, and that we should expand the concept of fisheries-dependent communities into the concept of marine-dependent communities (MDCs) to encapsulate the impacts the range of marine industries have on coastal communities. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

Heat stress induces ferroptosis-like cell death in plants

In plants, regulated cell death (RCD) plays critical roles during development and is essential for plant-specifi responses to abiotic and biotic stresses. Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent, oxidative, nonapoptotic form of cell death recently described in animal cells. In animal cells, this process can be triggered by depletion of glutathione (GSH) and accumulation of lipid reactive oxygen species (ROS). We investigated whether a similar process could be relevant to cell death in plants. Remarkably, heat shock (HS)-induced RCD, but not reproductive or vascular development, was found to involve a ferroptosis-like cell death process. In root cells, HS triggered an iron-dependent cell death pathway that was characterized by depletion of GSH and ascorbic acid and accumulation of cytosolic and lipid ROS. These results suggest a physiological role for this lethal pathway in response to heat stress in Arabidopsis thaliana. The similarity of ferroptosis in animal cells and ferroptosis-like death in plants suggests that oxidative, iron-dependent cell death programs may be evolutionarily ancient.Fil: Distefano, Ayelen Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Martin, María Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Cordoba, Juan Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Bellido, Andres. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: D'ippólito, Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Colman, Silvana Lorena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Soto, Débora. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Roldán, Juan Alfredo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Bartoli, Carlos Guillermo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Fisiología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Instituto de Fisiología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Zabaleta, Eduardo Julian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Fiol, Diego Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Stockwell, Brent. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Dixon, Scott. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Pagnussat, Gabriela Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas; Argentin