Bunchy top disease of bananas

Short publication describing symptoms and control of banana bunchy top disease

Será o ambiente internacional de negócios o contexto efetivo para a pesquisa em negócios internacionais?

The International Business Environment (IBE) has been argued to be the essential context for international business (IB) studies and the distinguishing factor from other management studies and studies of large enterprises. Two content analysis show that many papers published in top tier IB journals either lack reference to any dimension of the IBE or tend to be uni-or bi-dimensional when addressing the IBE; it is not a surprise that the cultural dimension is the most often used. We suggest that: (a) there is need to developed more uni and multi-dimensional environmental constructs; (b) a more holistic view of the IBE provides richer insights on the actual complexity underlying IB research. Future studies that provide more comprehensive models of the IBE that overcome the usual broad classifications of the international environment as undefined and uncontrollable factors are warranted to advance conceptual and empirical research.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Quantum Yield Calculations for Strongly Absorbing Chromophores

This article demonstrates that a commonly-made assumption in quantum yield calculations may produce errors of up to 25% in extreme cases and can be corrected by a simple modification to the analysis.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures. Accepted by Journal of Fluorescenc

Establishment of introduced reptiles increases with the presence and richness of native congeners

Darwin proposed two contradictory hypotheses to explain the influence of congeners on the outcomes of invasion: the naturalization hypothesis, which predicts a negative relationship between the presence of congeners and invasion success, and the pre-adaptation hypothesis, which predicts a positive relationship between the presence of congeners and invasion success. Studies testing these hypotheses have shown mixed support. We tested these hypotheses using the establishment success of non-native reptiles and congener presence/absence and richness across the globe. Our results demonstrated support for the pre-adaptation hypothesis. We found that globally, both on islands and continents, establishment success was higher in the presence than in the absence of congeners and that establishment success increased with increasing congener richness. At the life form level, establishment success was higher for lizards, marginally higher for snakes, and not different for turtles in the presence of congeners; data were insufficient to test the hypotheses for crocodiles. There was no relationship between establishment success and congener richness for any life form. We suggest that we found support for the pre-adaptation hypothesis because, at the scale of our analysis, native congeners represent environmental conditions appropriate for the species rather than competition for niche space. Our results imply that areas to target for early detection of non-native reptiles are those that host closely related species

Intervenção comportamental em nipo-brasileiros com alto risco cardiometabólico

OBJETIVO: Evaluar el efecto de programa de promoción de salud en el perfil de riesgo cardiometabólico de nipón-brasileños. MÉTODOS: Un total de 466 participantes en estudio de prevalencia de diabetes en Bauru, Sudeste de Brasil, en el año 2000 completaron un programa de intervención de un año (2005-2006) basado en consejos sobre dieta saludable y práctica de actividad física. Alteraciones en presión arterial y parámetros metabólicos entre 2005 y 2006 se compararon con alteraciones anuales en esas mismas variables entre 2000 y 2005. RESULTADOS: Durante la intervención, se observaron mayores reducciones anuales promedio (dp) en la circunferencia de la cintura [-0,5(3,8) vs. 1,2(1,2) cm/año, pOBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of a health promotion program on cardiometabolic risk profile in Japanese-Brazilians. METHODS: A total of 466 subjects from a study on diabetes prevalence conducted in the city of Bauru, southeastern Brazil, in 2000 completed a 1-year intervention program (2005-2006) based on healthy diet counseling and physical activity. Changes in blood pressure and metabolic parameters in the 2005-2006 period were compared with annual changes in these same variables in the 2000-2005 period. RESULTS: During the intervention, there were greater annual reductions in mean (SD) waist circumference [-0.5(3.8) vs. 1.2(1.2) cm per year, pOBJETIVO: Avaliar o efeito do programa de promoção de saúde no perfil de risco cardiometabólico de nipobrasileiros. MÉTODOS: Um total de 466 participantes de estudo de prevalência de diabetes em Bauru, SP, no ano de 2000 completou um programa de intervenção de um ano (2005-2006) baseado em aconselhamento sobre dieta saudável e prática de atividade física. Alterações em pressão arterial e parâmetros metabólicos entre 2005 e 2006 foram comparados com alterações anuais nessas mesmas variáveis entre 2000 e 2005. RESULTADOS: Durante a intervenção, foram observadas maiores reduções anuais médias (dp) na circunferência da cintura [-0,5(3,8) vs. 1,2(1,2) cm/ano, p < 0,001], pressão arterial sistólica [-4,6(17,9) vs. 1,8(4,3) mmHg/ano, p < 0,001], glicemia 2h pós-sobrecarga de glicose [-1,2(2,1) vs. -0,2(0,6) mmol/L/ano, p < 0,001], LDL-c [-0,3(0,9) vs. -0,1(0,2) mmol/L/ano, p < 0,001] e escore de Framingham [-0,25(3,03) vs. 0,11(0,66)/por ano, p = 0,02], mas não em triglicérides [0,2(1,6) vs. 0,1(0,42) mmol/L/ano, p < 0,001] e insulinemia de jejum [1,2(5,8) vs. -0,7(2,2) UI/mL/ano, p < 0,001], comparado com o período pré-intervenção. Ocorreram reduções significativas na prevalência de glicemia de jejum alterada e tolerância à glicose diminuída após um ano de intervenção (de 58,4% para 35,4%, p < 0,001; e de 30,1% para 21,7%, p = 0,004, respectivamente). CONCLUSÕES: O programa de intervenção de um ano em hábitos de vida traz benefícios ao perfil de risco cardiometabólico em indivíduos nipobrasileiros de alto risco

Au - Ge Alloys for Wide-Range Low-Temperature On-Chip Thermometry

We present results for a Au - Ge alloy that is useful as a resistance-based thermometer from room temperature down to at least 0.2 K. Over a wide range, the electrical resistivity of the alloy shows a logarithmic temperature dependence, which simultaneously retains the sensitivity required for practical thermometry while also maintaining a relatively modest and easily measurable value of resistivity. We characterize the sensitivity of the alloy as a possible thermometer and show that it compares favorably with commercially available temperature sensors. We experimentally identify that the characteristic logarithmic temperature dependence of the alloy stems from Kondo-like behavior induced by the specific heat treatment it undergoes.J.R.A.D., P.C.V., G.J.C., and V.N. acknowledge funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, United Kingdom. G.J.C. and S.E.R. acknowledge funding from the Royal Society, United Kingdom. J.F.O. thanks the Brazilian Agency CNPq. A.D. and S.K-N. acknowledge financial support through a European Research Council Starting Grant (Grant No. ERC-2014- STG-639526, NANOGEN)

A Genome-Wide Assessment of the Ancestral Neural Crest Gene Regulatory Network

The neural crest (NC) is an embryonic cell population that contributes to key vertebrate-specific features including the craniofacial skeleton and peripheral nervous system. Here we examine the transcriptional and epigenomic profiles of NC cells in the sea lamprey, in order to gain insight into the ancestral state of the NC gene regulatory network (GRN). Transcriptome analyses identify clusters of co-regulated genes during NC specification and migration that show high conservation across vertebrates but also identify transcription factors (TFs) and cell-adhesion molecules not previously implicated in NC migration. ATAC-seq analysis uncovers an ensemble of cis-regulatory elements, including enhancers of Tfap2B, SoxE1 and Hox-α2 validated in the embryo. Cross-species deployment of lamprey elements identifies the deep conservation of lamprey SoxE1 enhancer activity, mediating homologous expression in jawed vertebrates. Our data provide insight into the core GRN elements conserved to the base of the vertebrates and expose others that are unique to lampreys