Reaping what others have sown: Measuring the Impact of the global financial crisis on Spanish agriculture

Este estudio utiliza un modelo de equilibrio general computable recursivo y dinámico de España para caracterizar el impacto de la crisis financiera sobre la agricultura, centrándose en particular en los impactos divergentes sobre actividades agrarias específicas. Los resultados tienen implicaciones para los países mediterráneos vecinos de la UE, dadas las similitudes en la dimensión relativa y la estructura del sector agrario y las dificultades macroeconómicas a las que se enfrentan. Se estima que la crisis acarrea una contracción acumulativa del 8 por ciento en la actividad agraria española para 2015, con la consiguiente reducción en la renta real de los agricultores del 9%. Sin embargo, de acuerdo con la bibliografía anterior y con las expectativas a priori, esta contracción es considerablemente menor que en los sectores no alimentarios. Cuando se hacen comparaciones entre actividades agrarias, la respuesta de la oferta ante la crisis varía notablemente debido a la distinta intensidad con la que se utilizaban los inputs y los destinos de las ventas. Los sectores con mayor elasticidad de oferta son aquellos caracterizados por una mayor intensidad de capital o de mano de obra no cualificada, o aquellos sectores más expuestos a mercados con un comercio competitivo; mientras que los sectores que hacen un uso intensivo del suelo son más resistentes a la recesión económica. Finalmente, se observa que existen mayores desigualdades de rentas entre los hogares españoles, con una caída de la utilidad del consumo de productos alimentarios del 10% en el segmento más pobre, en comparación con sólo el 1% en el más rico.characterise the impact of the financial crisis on agriculture, with particular focus on the divergent impacts on specific agricultural activities. The results have broad implications for neighbouring Mediterranean EU economies given similarities in the relative size and structure of primary agriculture, and in the macroeconomic difficulties they face. Comparing with a baseline scenario, it is estimated that the crisis induces a cumulative contraction of 8 per cent in Spanish agricultural activity by 2015, with concomitant reductions in real farming incomes of 9 per cent. Notwithstanding, in accordance with previous literature and a priori expectations, this contraction is notably smaller than in non-food sectors. Comparing between agricultural activities, the supply response to the crisis varies considerably owing to differing input intensities and sales destinations. The highest supply responsiveness occurs in relatively capital or unskilled labour intensive sectors, or export orientated sectors; whilst land intensive sectors are more resistant to the economic downturn. Finally, we find greater income inequality across Spanish households, with utility from food consumption falling 10% in the poorest segment, compared with only 1% in the wealthiest.agriculturaequilibrio general computableagricultureComputable General EquilibriumPublishe

Reaping What Others Have Sown: Measuring the Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Spanish Agriculture

Employing a dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) model of the Spanish economy, this study explicitly aims to characterise in detail the impact of the crisis on Spanish agrofood activities. In particular, we focus on the extent to which primary agricultural sectors are insulated from the broader macroeconomic effects of the crisis and consequently the limit of the agrofood sectors’ stabilising role within the wider economy. The results have broad implications for neighbouring Mediterranean EU economies given similarities in the relative size and structure of primary agriculture, and in the macroeconomic difficulties they face. Comparing with a status quo (i.e., no crisis) baseline, we estimate that the conditions of the crisis lead to a cumulative contraction of 10 per cent in Spanish agricultural activity by 2015, with concomitant reductions in real farming incomes of 17%. Notwithstanding, in accordance with previous studies and a priori expectations, this contraction is notably smaller than in non-food sectors. Comparing between agricultural activities, those with smaller land cost shares exhibit greater supply responsiveness, particularly rice, raw sugar and intensive livestock sectors. Finally, the crisis induces greater income inequality across Spanish households, with utility from food consumption falling 11% in the poorest segment, compared with only 1% in the wealthiest

El control de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero en España: costes para los sectores agrarios

Employing a recursive dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) model of the Spanish economy, this study explicitly aims to characterise the potential impact of Kyoto and European Union environmental policy targets on specific agricultural activities up to 2020. The model code is modified to characterise the emissions trading scheme (ETS), emissions quotas and carbon taxes, whilst emissions reductions are applied to all six registered greenhouse gases (GHGs). Compared to a ‘business-as-usual’ baseline scenario, by 2020, GDP and employment fall 2.1% and 2.4%, respectively, whilst the retail price index rises 3.4%. In agriculture, the indices of output (4.3% fall), and supply price (7.7% rise) perform relatively worse, whilst there is a concomitant cumulative fall in aggregate farm incomes of €1,510 million by 2020. The more notable impact in agriculture is attributed to its relatively higher emissions intensity. Consequently, we record an agricultural marginal abatement cost estimate of €86 ton–1 of CO2 equivalent by 2020, which is consistent with other estimates in the literature. In addition, we find that the optimal mix of emissions reductions across specific agricultural sectors is a function of the degree of substitutability of their emitting activities. In light of estimated income losses within the strategically important farm sector, a final simulation contemplates an ‘agricultural cost-neutral’ emissions reduction policy akin to a cross compliance payment between 2013 and 2020. This is found to reduce food price rises, whilst altering the optimum mix of agricultural emissions reductions across specific agricultural activities.Empleando un modelo dinámico recursivo de equilibrio general computable (EGC) de la economía española, este estudio analiza el impacto de las políticas medioambientales de Kioto y de la Unión Europea (el acuerdo ‘20/20/20’), sobre distintas actividades agrarias hasta 2020. En comparación con el escenario de referencia, se pronostican caídas en el PIB y el empleo de un 2,1% y 2,4%, respectivamente, en 2020, mientras que el índice de precios al consumo sube un 3,4%. En agricultura, el índice de producción (que cae un 4,3%) y el de precios (aumenta un 7,7%), empeoran y además los ingresos acumulados de los agricultores bajan 1.510 millones de euros en 2020. El impacto más acusado en el sector agrario se atribuye a la mayor intensidad de sus emisiones donde se estima un coste marginal de reducción de 86 € t–1 de CO2 equivalente para 2020, lo cual es consistente con las estimaciones existentes en la bibliografía. Además se observa que la combinación óptima de reducción de emisiones en los diferentes sectores agrarios depende del grado de sustitución de las actividades emisoras. A la vista de las pérdidas de ingresos observadas en el sector agrario, se contempla un escenario de mitigación de coste-cero para los agricultores, semejante a un pago de condicionalidad, entre 2013 y 2020. Los resultados señalan una mitigación en el incremento de los precios de los alimentos y una redistribución en la combinación óptima de las emisiones en los sectores agrarios

The TATA Binding Protein in the Sea Urchin Embryo Is Maternally Derived

AbstractThe cDNA encoding the TATA binding protein was isolated from 8- to 16-cell and morula-stage embryonic libraries of two distantly related species of sea urchin,Strongylocentrotus purpuratusandLytechinus variegatus,respectively. The two proteins are 96% identical over both the N- and C-terminal domains, suggesting a conservation of transcriptional processes between the two species. The prevalence of SpTBP transcripts at several developmental time points was determined using the tracer excess titration method, and the corresponding number of TBP protein molecules was determined by quantitative Western blot analysis. Our results indicate that the amount of TBP mRNA and protein per embryo remains relatively constant throughout development. An initial large pool of TBP protein (>109) molecules in the egg becomes diluted as a consequence of cell division and decreases to about 2 × 106molecules per cell by the gastrula stage. We found byin situRNA hybridization that the oocyte contains a large amount of TBP mRNA which is depleted late in oogenesis so that the eggs and early embryos have extremely low levels of TBP mRNA. We conclude that the oocyte manufactures nearly all of the TBP protein necessary for embryogenesis

Altered drug susceptibility during host adaptation of a <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i> strain in a non-human primate model

Infections with Plasmodium falciparum, the most pathogenic of the Plasmodium species affecting man, have been reduced in part due to artemisinin-based combination therapies. However, artemisinin resistant parasites have recently emerged in South-East Asia. Novel intervention strategies are therefore urgently needed to maintain the current momentum for control and elimination of this disease. In the present study we characterize the phenotypic and genetic properties of the multi drug resistant (MDR) P. falciparum Thai C2A parasite strain in the non-human Aotus primate model, and across multiple passages. Aotus infections with C2A failed to clear upon oral artesunate and mefloquine treatment alone or in combination, and ex vivo drug assays demonstrated reduction in drug susceptibility profiles in later Aotus passages. Further analysis revealed mutations in the pfcrt and pfdhfr loci and increased parasite multiplication rate (PMR) across passages, despite elevated pfmdr1 copy number. Altogether our experiments suggest alterations in parasite population structure and increased fitness during Aotus adaptation. We also present data of early treatment failures with an oral artemisinin combination therapy in a pre-artemisinin resistant P. falciparum Thai isolate in this animal model

Robot guided 'pen skill' training in children with motor difficulties

Motor deficits are linked to a range of negative physical, social and academic consequences. Haptic robotic interventions, based on the principles of sensorimotor learning, have been shown previously to help children with motor problems learn new movements. We therefore examined whether the training benefits of a robotic system would generalise to a standardised test of 'pen-skills', assessed using objective kinematic measures [via the Clinical Kinematic Assessment Tool, CKAT]. A counterbalanced, cross-over design was used in a group of 51 children (37 male, aged 5-11 years) with manual control difficulties. Improved performance on a novel task using the robotic device could be attributed to the intervention but there was no evidence of generalisation to any of the CKAT tasks. The robotic system appears to have the potential to support motor learning, with the technology affording numerous advantages. However, the training regime may need to target particular manual skills (e.g. letter formation) in order to obtain clinically significant improvements in specific skills such as handwriting.</p

Molecular restoration of archived transcriptional profiles by complementary-template reverse-transcription (CT-RT)

Gene expression profiling of formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) specimens, banked from completed clinical trials and routine clinical care, has the potential to yield valuable information implicating and linking genes with clinical parameters. In order to prepare high-quality cDNA from highly fragmented FFPE-RNA, previously precluded from high-throughput analyses, we have designed a novel strategy based on the nucleic acid restoration of incomplete cDNA sequences prior to T7 in vitro transcription (IVT) amplification. We describe this strategy as complementary-template reverse-transcription (CT-RT) because short single-stranded T7-oligo-dT24-VN-DNA sequences, obtained from FFPE-RNA, are used as primers for the RT of complementary RNA templates contained in a sense-RNA library. We validated our assay by determining the correlation between expression profiles of a matched 10-year-old frozen and FFPE breast cancer sample. We show that T7 IVT-amplification of cDNA transcripts restored by CT-RT is a specific and reliable process that allows recovery of transcriptional features undetectable by direct T7 IVT-amplification of FFPE-RNA. Furthermore, CT-RT restored 35–41% of the transcripts from archived breast and cervical specimens when compared to matched frozen tissue; and profiles included tissue-specific transcripts. Our results indicate that CT-RT allows microarray profiling of severely degraded RNA that could not be analyzed by previous methods

Measuring Controlled-NOT and two-qubit gate operation

Accurate characterisation of two-qubit gates will be critical for any realisation of quantum computation. We discuss a range of measurements aimed at characterising a two-qubit gate, specifically the CNOT gate. These measurements are architecture-independent, and range from simple truth table measurements, to single figure measures such as the fringe visibility, parity, fidelity, and entanglement witnesses, through to whole-state and whole-gate measures achieved respectively via quantum state and process tomography. In doing so, we examine critical differences between classical and quantum gate operation.Comment: 10 pages (two-column). 1 figur

Nonpromoter methylation of the CDKN2A gene with active transcription is associated with improved locoregional control in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

We previously reported a novel association between CDKN2A nonpromoter methylation and transcription (ARF/INK4a) in human papillomavirus associated oropharyngeal tumors. In this study we assessed whether nonpromoter CDKN2A methylation in laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas (LXSCC) conferred a similar association with transcription that predicted patient outcome. We compared DNA methylation and ARF/INK4a RNA expression levels for the CDKN2A locus using the Illumina HumanMethylation27 beadchip and RT-PCR in 43 LXSCC tumor samples collected from a prospective study of head and neck cancer patients treated at Montefiore Medical Center (MMC). Validation was performed using RNAseq data on 111 LXSCC tumor samples from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). The clinical relevance of combined nonpromoter CDKN2A methylation and transcription was assessed by multivariate Cox regression for locoregional recurrence on a subset of 69 LXSCC patients with complete clinicopathologic data from the MMC and TCGA cohorts. We found evidence of CDKN2A nonpromoter hypermethylation in a third of LXSCC from our MMC cohort, which was significantly associated with increased ARF and INK4a RNA expression (Wilcoxon rank-sum, P = 0.007 and 0.003, respectively). A similar association was confirmed in TCGA samples (Wilcoxon rank-sum test P < 0.0001 for ARF and INK4a). Patients with CDKN2A hypermethylation or high ARF/INK4a expression were significantly less likely to develop a locoregional recurrence compared to those with neither of the features, independent of other clinicopatholgic risk factors (adjusted hazard ratio=0.21, 95% confidence interval:0.05-0.81). These results support the conclusion that CDKN2A nonpromoter methylation is associated with increased ARF and INK4a RNA expression, and improved locoregional control in LXSCC