Climate finance and disclosure for institutional investors: why transparency is not enough

The finance sector’s response to pressures around climate change has emphasized disclosure, notably through the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). The implicit assumption—that if risks are fully revealed, finance will respond rationally and in ways aligned with the public interest—is rooted in the “efficient market hypothesis” (EMH) applied to the finance sector and its perception of climate policy. For low carbon investment, particular hopes have been placed on the role of institutional investors, given the apparent matching of their assets and liabilities with the long timescales of climate change. We both explain theoretical frameworks (grounded in the “three domains”, namely satisficing, optimizing, and transforming) and use empirical evidence (from a survey of institutional investors), to show that the EMH is unsupported by either theory or evidence: it follows that transparency alone will be an inadequate response. To some extent, transparency can address behavioural biases (first domain characteristics), and improving pricing and market efficiency (second domain); however, the strategic (third domain) limitations of EMH are more serious. We argue that whilst transparency can help, on its own it is a very long way from an adequate response to the challenges of ‘aligning institutional climate finance’

Multi-Omics and Genome Editing Studies on Plant Cell Walls to Improve Biomass Quality

Biomass is one of the most important sources of renewable energy and plays an important role in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. Efficient biomass production is essential to obtain large amounts of sustainable energy with minimal environmental cost. However, the biochemical and molecular processes behind the synthesis of the main components of biomass are still not fully understood. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the most relevant studies on cell wall biosynthesis and degradation mechanisms, focusing on the lignocellulosic component, in which the conversion process to fermentable sugars is expensive, due to its recalcitrant nature. A focus is placed on multi-omics research involving genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and phenomics, since multi-omics approaches offer a unique opportunity to investigate the biological pathways underlying the genotype traits characterizing cell wall energy crops. Furthermore, our study highlights the advances in genome editing approaches and proposes the modification of the genes that are involved in the complex cell wall structure as a feasible solution to an efficient biomass production. Several key points for future research activities based on these emerging technologies are also discussed, focusing on the combination of multi-omics and gene editing approaches, which offer potential for improved biomass valorization and the development of tangible bioproducts

Accumulation of trace metals in crayfish tissues: is Procambarus clarkii a vector of pollutants in Po Delta inland waters?

Concentrations of trace elements (Cd, Pb, As, Cu and Zn) were determined in superficial sediments and in hepatopancreas, exoskeleton, and abdominal muscle of the red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii from several canals of the Po River Delta area. Sediments of the studied canals exhibited some metal pollution. The hepatopancreas of the crayfish showed a higher concentration of trace metals in comparison to the other tissues at all sites under scrutiny. Concentrations of As and Pb, either in sediment and P. clarkii tissues, were probably related to the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Moreover, the levels of certain metals accumulated in the abdominal muscle (Pb, Cu and Zn) exceeded the threshold values considered harmful to human health. The Toxic Contamination Index, depending on the bioaccumulation data of hepatopancreas and abdominal muscle, allowed us to assess the toxicity by heavy metals of sediments measuring the stress level of the detoxification organ, and resulted in >1 only at two sampling canals. We hypothesize that P. clarkii in the Po River Delta aquatic communities can act as a vector of pollutants, as crayfish can transfer their relatively high amount of heavy metals to higher trophic levels

Genetic diversity of vaccine candidate antigens in Plasmodium falciparum isolates from the Amazon basin of Peru

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several of the intended <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>vaccine candidate antigens are highly polymorphic and could render a vaccine ineffective if their antigenic sites were not represented in the vaccine. In this study, characterization of genetic variability was performed in major B and T-cell epitopes within vaccine candidate antigens in isolates of <it>P. falciparum </it>from Peru.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>DNA sequencing analysis was completed on 139 isolates of <it>P. falciparum </it>collected from endemic areas of the Amazon basin in Loreto, Peru from years 1998 to 2006. Genetic diversity was determined in immunological important regions in circumsporozoite protein (CSP), merozoite surface protein-1 (MSP-1), apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1), liver stage antigen-1 (LSA-1) and thrombospondin-related anonymous protein (TRAP). Alleles identified by DNA sequencing were aligned with the vaccine strain 3D7 and DNA polymorphism analysis and FST study-year pairwise comparisons were done using the DnaSP software. Multilocus analysis (MLA) was performed and average of expected heterozygosity was calculated for each loci and haplotype over time.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Three different alleles for CSP, seven for MSP-1 Block 2, one for MSP-1 Block 17, three for AMA-1 and for LSA-1 each and one for TRAP were identified. There were 24 different haplotypes in 125 infections with complete locus typing for each gene.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Characterization of the genetic diversity in <it>Plasmodium </it>isolates from the Amazon Region of Peru showed that <it>P. falciparum </it>T and B cell epitopes in these antigens have polymorphisms more similar to India than to Africa. These findings are helpful in the formulation of a vaccine considering restricted repertoire populations.</p

Grains and grain boundaries in highly crystalline monolayer molybdenum disulfide

Recent progress in large-area synthesis of monolayer molybdenum disulfide, a new two-dimensional direct-bandgap semiconductor, is paving the way for applications in atomically thin electronics. Little is known, however, about the microstructure of this material. Here we have refined chemical vapor deposition synthesis to grow highly crystalline islands of monolayer molybdenum disulfide up to 120 um in size with optical and electrical properties comparable or superior to exfoliated samples. Using transmission electron microscopy, we correlate lattice orientation, edge morphology, and crystallinity with island shape to demonstrate that triangular islands are single crystals. The crystals merge to form faceted tilt and mirror boundaries that are stitched together by lines of 8- and 4- membered rings. Density functional theory reveals localized mid-gap states arising from these 8-4 defects. We find that mirror boundaries cause strong photoluminescence quenching while tilt boundaries cause strong enhancement. In contrast, the boundaries only slightly increase the measured in-plane electrical conductivity

Higher cost of finance exacerbates a climate investment trap in developing economies

Finance is vital for the green energy transition, but access to low cost finance is uneven as the cost of capital differs substantially between regions. This study shows how modelled decarbonisation pathways for developing economies are disproportionately impacted by different weighted average cost of capital (WACC) assumptions. For example, representing regionally-specific WACC values indicates 35% lower green electricity production in Africa for a cost-optimal 2 °C pathway than when regional considerations are ignored. Moreover, policy interventions lowering WACC values for low-carbon and high-carbon technologies by 2050 would allow Africa to reach net-zero emissions approximately 10 years earlier than when the cost of capital reduction is not considered. A climate investment trap arises for developing economies when climate-related investments remain chronically insufficient. Current finance frameworks present barriers to these finance flows and radical changes are needed so that capital is more equitably distributed

Genetic diversity and population structure of genes encoding vaccine candidate antigens of Plasmodium vivax

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A major concern in malaria vaccine development is genetic polymorphisms typically observed among <it>Plasmodium </it>isolates in different geographical areas across the world. Highly polymorphic regions have been observed in <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>and <it>Plasmodium vivax </it>antigenic surface proteins such as Circumsporozoite protein (CSP), Duffy-binding protein (DBP), Merozoite surface protein-1 (MSP-1), Apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1) and Thrombospondin related anonymous protein (TRAP).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Genetic variability was assessed in important polymorphic regions of various vaccine candidate antigens in <it>P. vivax </it>among 106 isolates from the Amazon Region of Loreto, Peru. In addition, genetic diversity determined in Peruvian isolates was compared to population studies from various geographical locations worldwide.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The structured diversity found in <it>P. vivax </it>populations did not show a geographic pattern and haplotypes from all gene candidates were distributed worldwide. In addition, evidence of balancing selection was found in polymorphic regions of the <it>trap, dbp </it>and <it>ama-1 </it>genes.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>It is important to have a good representation of the haplotypes circulating worldwide when implementing a vaccine, regardless of the geographic region of deployment since selective pressure plays an important role in structuring antigen diversity.</p

Current Developments of Analytical Methodologies for Aflatoxins’ Determination in Food during the Last Decade (2013–2022), with a Particular Focus on Nuts and Nut Products

This review aims to provide a clear overview of the most important analytical development in aflatoxins analysis during the last decade (2013-2022) with a particular focus on nuts and nuts-related products. Aflatoxins (AFs), a group of mycotoxins produced mainly by certain strains of the genus Aspergillus fungi, are known to impose a serious threat to human health. Indeed, AFs are considered carcinogenic to humans, group 1, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Since these toxins can be found in different food commodities, food control organizations worldwide impose maximum levels of AFs for commodities affected by this threat. Thus, they represent a cumbersome issue in terms of quality control, analytical result reliability, and economical losses. It is, therefore, mandatory for food industries to perform analysis on potentially contaminated commodities before the trade. A full perspective of the whole analytical workflow, considering each crucial step during AFs investigation, namely sampling, sample preparation, separation, and detection, will be presented to the reader, focusing on the main challenges related to the topic. A discussion will be primarily held regarding sample preparation methodologies such as partitioning, solid phase extraction (SPE), and immunoaffinity (IA) related methods. This will be followed by an overview of the leading analytical techniques for the detection of aflatoxins, in particular liquid chromatography (LC) coupled to a fluorescence detector (FLD) and/or mass spectrometry (MS). Moreover, the focus on the analytical procedure will not be specific only to traditional methodologies, such as LC, but also to new direct approaches based on imaging and the ability to detect AFs, reducing the need for sample preparation and separative techniques