Southwest Border Violence: Issues in Identifying and Measuring Spillover Violence

[Excerpt] There has been a recent increase in the level of drug trafficking-related violence within and between the drug trafficking organizations in Mexico. This violence has generated concern among U.S. policy makers that the violence in Mexico might spill over into the United States. Currently, U.S. federal officials deny that the recent increase in drug trafficking-related violence in Mexico has resulted in a spillover into the United States, but they acknowledge that the prospect is a serious concern. Currently, no comprehensive, publicly available data exist that can definitively answer the question of whether there has been a significant spillover of drug trafficking-related violence into the United States. Although anecdotal reports have been mixed, U.S. government officials maintain that there has not yet been a significant spillover. In an examination of data that could provide insight into whether there has been a significant spillover in drug trafficking-related violence from Mexico into the United States, CRS analyzed violent crime data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Report program. The data, however, do not allow analysts to determine what proportion of the violent crime rate is related to drug trafficking or, even more specifically, what proportion of drug trafficking-related violent crimes can be attributed to spillover violence. In conclusion, because the trends in the overall violent crime rate may not be indicative of trends in drug trafficking-related violent crimes, CRS is unable to draw definitive claims about trends in drug trafficking-related violence spilling over from Mexico into the United States. This report will be updated as circumstances warrant

Ecological impact and cost-effectiveness of wildlife crossings in a highly fragmented landscape:A multi-method approach

Context: Road infrastructure construction is integral to economic development, but negatively affects biodiversity. To mitigate the negative impacts of infrastructure, various types of wildlife crossings are realized worldwide, but little is known about their effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness. Objective: The paper contributes to the methodological and empirical discussion on the effectiveness of wildlife crossings for enhancing the quality of surrounding nature and its cost-effectiveness by analyzing a large-scale wildlife-crossings program in the Netherlands. Method: A multi-criteria cost–benefit analysis is applied, comprised of monetary and non-monetary measures, and a mixed-method approach is used to determine ecological effects. Ecological effects are expressed in the standardized weighted hectare measurement of threat-weighted ecological quality area (1 T-EQA = 1 ha of 100% ecological quality, averagely threatened). Cost-effectiveness is calculated comparing the monetary costs of intervention with ecological benefits (Euro costs/T-EQA), for different types of wildlife crossings and for two other nature policies. Results: The Dutch habitat defragmentation program has induced an increase in nature value of 1734 T-EQA at a cost of Euro 283 million. Ecological gains per hierarchically ordered groups of measures differ strongly: The most effective are ecoducts (wildlife crossing bridges) followed by shared-use viaducts and large fauna tunnels. Ecoducts generated the largest gain in nature value, but were also the most costly measures. In terms of cost-effectiveness, both large fauna tunnels and shared-use viaducts for traffic and animals outperformed ecoducts. Conclusions: Ecoducts deliver ecologically, but their cost-effectiveness appears modest. Purchasing agricultural land for restoration of nature appears more cost-effective than building wildlife crossings. Yet, reducing environmental pressures or their effects on existing nature areas is likely to be most cost-effective.</p

Southwest Border Violence: Issues in Identifying and Measuring Spillover Violence

This report focuses on how policy makers would identify any spillover of drug trafficking-related violence into the United States. It provides an overview of Mexican drug trafficking organization structures, how they conduct business, and the relationship between the drug trafficking organizations in Mexico and their partnerships operating here in the United States; a discussion of the illicit drug trade between Mexico and the United States; and other related issues

Roles of the TRAF6 and Pellino E3 ligases in MyD88 and RANKL signaling

It is widely accepted that the essential role of TRAF6 in vivo is to generate the Lys63-linked ubiquitin (K63-Ub) chains needed to activate the "master" protein kinase TAK1. Here, we report that TRAF6 E3 ligase activity contributes to but is not essential for the IL-1-dependent formation of K63-Ub chains, TAK1 activation, or IL-8 production in human cells, because Pellino1 and Pellino2 generate the K63-Ub chains required for signaling in cells expressing E3 ligase-inactive TRAF6 mutants. The IL-1-induced formation of K63-Ub chains and ubiquitylation of IRAK1, IRAK4, and MyD88 was abolished in TRAF6/Pellino1/Pellino2 triple-knockout (KO) cells, but not in TRAF6 KO or Pellino1/2 double-KO cells. The reexpression of E3 ligase-inactive TRAF6 mutants partially restored IL-1 signaling in TRAF6 KO cells, but not in TRAF6/Pellino1/Pellino2 triple-KO cells. Pellino1-generated K63-Ub chains activated the TAK1 complex in vitro with similar efficiently to TRAF6-generated K63-Ub chains. The early phase of TLR signaling and the TLR-dependent secretion of IL-10 (controlled by IRAKs 1 and 2) was only reduced modestly in primary macrophages from knockin mice expressing the E3 ligase-inactive TRAF6[L74H] mutant, but the late-phase production of IL-6, IL-12, and TNFα (controlled only by the pseudokinase IRAK2) was abolished. RANKL-induced signaling in macrophages and the differentiation of bone marrow to osteoclasts was similar in TRAF6[L74H] and wild-type cells, explaining why the bone structure and teeth of the TRAF6[L74H] mice was normal, unlike TRAF6 KO mice. We identify two essential roles of TRAF6 that are independent of its E3 ligase activity

Recent Results from Epitaxial Growth on Step Free 4H-SiC Mesas

This paper updates recent progress made in growth, characterization, and understanding of high quality homoepitaxial and heteroepitaxial films grown on step-free 4H-SiC mesas. First, we report initial achievement of step-free 4H-SiC surfaces with carbon-face surface polarity. Next, we will describe further observations of how step-free 4H-SiC thin lateral cantilever evolution is significantly impacted by crystal faceting behavior that imposes non-uniform film thickness on cantilever undersides. Finally, recent investigations of in-plane lattice constant mismatch strain relief mechanisms observed for heteroepitaxial growth of 3C-SiC as well as 2H-AlN/GaN heterofilms on step-free 4H-SiC mesas will be reviewed. In both cases, the complete elimination of atomic heterointerface steps on the mesa structure enables uniquely well-ordered misfit dislocation arrays to form near the heterointerfaces with remarkable lack of dislocations threading vertically into the heteroepilayers. In the case of 3C-SiC heterofilms, it has been proposed that dislocation half-loops nucleate at mesa edges and glide laterally along the step-free 3C/4H interfaces. In contrast, 3C-SiC and 2H-AlN/GaN heterofilms grown on 4H-SiC mesas with steps exhibit highly disordered interface misfit dislocation structure coupled with 100X greater density of dislocations threading through the thickness of the heteroepilayers. These results indicate that the presence of steps at the heteroepitaxial interface (i.e., on the initial heteroepitaxial nucleation surface) plays a highly important role in the defect structure, quality, and relaxation mechanisms of single-crystal heteroepitaxial films

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on utilisation of healthcare services: a systematic review

Objectives To determine the extent and nature of changes in utilisation of healthcare services during COVID-19 pandemic.Design Systematic review.Eligibility Eligible studies compared utilisation of services during COVID-19 pandemic to at least one comparable period in prior years. Services included visits, admissions, diagnostics and therapeutics. Studies were excluded if from single centres or studied only patients with COVID-19.Data sources PubMed, Embase, Cochrane COVID-19 Study Register and preprints were searched, without language restrictions, until 10 August, using detailed searches with key concepts including COVID-19, health services and impact.Data analysis Risk of bias was assessed by adapting the Risk of Bias in Non-randomised Studies of Interventions tool, and a Cochrane Effective Practice and Organization of Care tool. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics, graphical figures and narrative synthesis.Outcome measures Primary outcome was change in service utilisation between prepandemic and pandemic periods. Secondary outcome was the change in proportions of users of healthcare services with milder or more severe illness (eg, triage scores).Results 3097 unique references were identified, and 81 studies across 20 countries included, reporting on &gt;11 million services prepandemic and 6.9 million during pandemic. For the primary outcome, there were 143 estimates of changes, with a median 37% reduction in services overall (IQR −51% to −20%), comprising median reductions for visits of 42% (−53% to −32%), admissions 28% (−40% to −17%), diagnostics 31% (−53% to −24%) and for therapeutics 30% (−57% to −19%). Among 35 studies reporting secondary outcomes, there were 60 estimates, with 27 (45%) reporting larger reductions in utilisation among people with a milder spectrum of illness, and 33 (55%) reporting no difference.Conclusions Healthcare utilisation decreased by about a third during the pandemic, with considerable variation, and with greater reductions among people with less severe illness. While addressing unmet need remains a priority, studies of health impacts of reductions may help health systems reduce unnecessary care in the postpandemic recovery.PROSPERO registration number CRD42020203729

Addressing US Youth Violence and Central American Migration through Fortifying Children, Families, and Educators in Central America: A Collaborative Approach to the Development and Testing of a Youth Violence Preventive Intervention

Youth violence is a pressing problem in the United States (US) with multiple contributors. Some violence involving US youth can be linked to a larger global epidemic of youth violence in Latin America and in Central America, specifically. Hemispheric histories of violence fueled by a century of US resource extraction and intervention, and other factors such as internal economic and political strain, contribute to present-day migration from Central America to the US. Addressing the intricate problems of US youth violence and migration requires multi-systemic prevention programs to address youth violence in families, schools, and communities in Central America. One such example is Miles de Manos (MdM; “Thousands of Hands”). MdM is intended to target risk and protective factors related to migration from Central America to the US. It is a multi-modal, culturally-specified and community-based violence prevention intervention for elementary-school aged children, their families, and children’s teachers and school staff. Data collected during pilot trials indicate promise in terms of MdM increasing positive teacher and parent behaviors that promote prosocial behaviors and reduce problem behaviors in youth. Outcomes due to MdM for youth, parents and other caregivers, and teachers are currently being examined in a randomized controlled trial in Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Addressing US Youth Violence and Central American Migration through Fortifying Children, Families, and Educators in Central America: A Collaborative Approach to the Development and Testing of a Youth Violence Preventive Intervention

15 pagesYouth violence is a pressing problem in the United States (US) with multiple contributors. Some violence involving US youth can be linked to a larger global epidemic of youth violence in Latin America and in Central America, specifically. Hemispheric histories of violence fueled by a century of US resource extraction and intervention, and other factors such as internal economic and political strain, contribute to present-day migration from Central America to the US. Addressing the intricate problems of US youth violence and migration requires multi-systemic prevention programs to address youth violence in families, schools, and communities in Central America. One such example is Miles de Manos (MdM; “Thousands of Hands”). MdM is intended to target risk and protective factors related to migration from Central America to the US. It is a multi-modal, culturally-specified and community- based violence prevention intervention for elementary-school aged children, their families, and children’s teachers and school staff. Data collected during pilot trials indicate promise in terms of MdM increasing positive teacher and parent behaviors that promote prosocial behaviors and reduce problem behaviors in youth. Outcomes due to MdM for youth, parents and other caregivers, and teachers are currently being examined in a randomized controlled trial in Tegucigalpa, Honduras