U.S. Beer Flows & the Impact of NAFTA

After World War II and up until the 1980’s, the liberalization of trade was realized on a multilateral basis. World trade grew at twice the pace of GDP growth (Krueger, 1999). However, starting in the mid 1980’s, preferential trading arrangements (PTAs) increased in numbers. Perhaps the most influential PTA ever to be signed could be the North America Free Trade Agreement, or simply NAFTA, which came into effect January 1, 1994. The agreement established a free-trade area between its member countries- US, Canada and Mexico- in which all tariffs would be phased out between them, but each country would maintain its separate national barriers against the rest of the world. A lot of attention has been paid to the impact of NAFTA on the welfare of its member countries and on the rest of the world. This paper will focus on the impact of the agreement on the US’s beer trade flows by analyzing annual import and export data using several methods. To our knowledge there is no precedent for such research. Section II provides a brief review of the conclusions and methodology of existing works on NAFTA trade issues, as well as some important aspects of the agreement. Section III provides an overview of the world beer industry, and the NAFTA member countries beer markets. Section IV provides in great detail the methodology that we will employ. The focus of Section V is to explain the results obtained. Section VI provides conclusions and implications for further research on this subject. References and other sources can be found in Section VII.beer trade on US market, NAFTA

Cognitive-behaviour therapy for psychosis : individual accounts of the therapeutic process in successful and less successful outcomes

Despite a historical pessimism about the possibility of helping people with schizophrenia using psychological therapies, a great deal of progress has been made recently using cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) approaches. These treatments have been developed from changing understandings of schizophrenia, and focus on reducing the distress of psychotic symptoms through coping strategies and altering distressing beliefs. There is increasing evidence that suggests CBT may be helpful for a significant portion of people with psychosis. Limited information on the factors implicated in differing outcomes is available. The present study investigated factors differentiating individuals with good and poor outcomes on the basis of accounts of CBT for psychosis from eight therapist/client dyads. Four therapists and eight of their clients (two associated with each therapist) were interviewed about their experiences of CBT. Topics covered included, effect of the therapy, elements felt to be helpful and the therapeutic relationship. Interview data was analysed using a qualitative, "grounded theory", methodology. The analysis produced a number of major categories which differentiated clients who progressed and did not progress in CBT. These included ability to let go of distressing beliefs, logical thought, holding therapy, and presence of a shared goal. Overall, clients who progressed were better able to understand, hold and engage with ideas put forward by the therapist. Additionally, clients' views of CBT were positive and therapists and clients felt that non-specific benefits accrued from the therapy even when CBT specific progress did not occur. The results were consistent with previous studies suggesting that ability to consider disengaging from distressing beliefs are important in therapeutic progression. However further research is required to clarify the role of logical thought, holding therapy and therapeutic alliance in progress and in predicting outcome. Reasons considered for the inability to progress include, emotional investment in psychotic beliefs and information processing factors

U.S. BEER FLOWS & THE IMPACT OF NAFTA

After World War II and up until the 1980’s, the liberalization of trade was realized on a multilateral basis. World trade grew at twice the pace of GDP growth (Krueger, 1999). However, starting in the mid 1980’s, preferential trading arrangements (PTAs) increased in numbers. Perhaps the most influential PTA ever to be signed could be the North America Free Trade Agreement, or simply NAFTA, which came into effect January 1, 1994. The agreement established a free-trade area between its member countries- US, Canada and Mexico- in which all tariffs would be phased out between them, but each country would maintain its separate national barriers against the rest of the world. A lot of attention has been paid to the impact of NAFTA on the welfare of its member countries and on the rest of the world. This paper will focus on the impact of the agreement on the US’s beer trade flows by analyzing annual import and export data using several methods. To our knowledge there is no precedent for such research. Section II provides a brief review of the conclusions and methodology of existing works on NAFTA trade issues, as well as some important aspects of the agreement. Section III provides an overview of the world beer industry, and the NAFTA member countries beer markets. Section IV provides in great detail the methodology that we will employ. The focus of Section V is to explain the results obtained. Section VI provides conclusions and implications for further research on this subject. References and other sources can be found in Section VII

Rhomboid family member 2 regulates cytoskeletal stress-associated Keratin 16.

Keratin 16 (K16) is a cytoskeletal scaffolding protein highly expressed at pressure-bearing sites of the mammalian footpad. It can be induced in hyperproliferative states such as wound healing, inflammation and cancer. Here we show that the inactive rhomboid protease RHBDF2 (iRHOM2) regulates thickening of the footpad epidermis through its interaction with K16. K16 expression is absent in the thinned footpads of irhom2-/- mice compared with irhom2+/+mice, due to reduced keratinocyte proliferation. Gain-of-function mutations in iRHOM2 underlie Tylosis with oesophageal cancer (TOC), characterized by palmoplantar thickening, upregulate K16 with robust downregulation of its type II keratin binding partner, K6. By orchestrating the remodelling and turnover of K16, and uncoupling it from K6, iRHOM2 regulates the epithelial response to physical stress. These findings contribute to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying hyperproliferation of the palmoplantar epidermis in both physiological and disease states, and how this 'stress' keratin is regulated

A doubled down invasion of the northeast Pacific by the Asian mud shrimp, Upogebia major and its coevolved bopyrid isopod parasite, Orthione griffenis

Dramatic declines of the native northeast Pacific mud shrimp, Upogebia pugettensis over the last three decades have occurred in response to intense infestations by the Asian bopyrid isopod parasite, Orthione griffenis, that was introduced in the 1980s. We report herein the arrival of the Asian mud shrimp, Upogebia major, in San Francisco Bay no later than 2006. Complications of identifying juvenile U. major and inefficiencies of collecting mature and readily identified specimens recovered by conventional sampling devices are likely to have delayed its identification and discovery. U. major is less vulnerable to O. griffenis and is displacing or replacing U. pugettensis in its present 200 km range to the north and south of San Francisco Bay. Upogebia major, as a coevolved alternative host, assures persistence of O. griffenis in this region even where native species extinctions occur and can potentially expand to all habitats that are presently invaded by O. griffenis (Alaska to Baja California Norte). The individual and combined O. griffenis and U. major invasions thus threaten U. pugettensis in particular and all other native Upogebia species occurring north of Mexico. Our review of Upogebia taxonomy for a key to species revealed a previously reported 1912 invasion of San Francisco Bay by Upogebia affinis that was in error; hence, the introduction of U. major is the first confirmed gebiid invasion in the world. Greater resolution of U. major natural history and timing of its invasion is needed to test whether it evaded present vector management efforts. Intervention is warranted to limit the doubled down U. major and O. griffenis invasion and to conserve U. pugettensis and other native Upogebia species from ecological or absolute extinction in the coming decades.</p

Fingerprinting the Substrate Specificity of M1 and M17 Aminopeptidases of Human Malaria, Plasmodium falciparum

Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of human malaria, expresses two aminopeptidases, PfM1AAP and PfM17LAP, critical to generating a free amino acid pool used by the intraerythrocytic stage of the parasite for proteins synthesis, growth and development. These exopeptidases are potential targets for the development of a new class of anti-malaria drugs.To define the substrate specificity of recombinant forms of these two malaria aminopeptidases we used a new library consisting of 61 fluorogenic substrates derived both from natural and unnatural amino acids. We obtained a detailed substrate fingerprint for recombinant forms of the enzymes revealing that PfM1AAP exhibits a very broad substrate tolerance, capable of efficiently hydrolyzing neutral and basic amino acids, while PfM17LAP has narrower substrate specificity and preferentially cleaves bulky, hydrophobic amino acids. The substrate library was also exploited to profile the activity of the native aminopeptidases in soluble cell lysates of P. falciparum malaria.This data showed that PfM1AAP and PfM17LAP are responsible for majority of the aminopeptidase activity in these extracts. These studies provide specific substrate and mechanistic information important for understanding the function of these aminopeptidases and could be exploited in the design of new inhibitors to specifically target these for anti-malaria treatment

A doubled down invasion of the northeast Pacific by the Asian mud shrimp, Upogebia major and its coevolved bopyrid isopod parasite, Orthione griffenis

Dramatic declines of the native northeast Pacific mud shrimp, Upogebia pugettensis over the last three decades have occurred in response to intense infestations by the Asian bopyrid isopod parasite, Orthione griffenis, that was introduced in the 1980s. We report herein the arrival of the Asian mud shrimp, Upogebia major, in San Francisco Bay no later than 2006. Complications of identifying juvenile U. major and inefficiencies of collecting mature and readily identified specimens recovered by conventional sampling devices are likely to have delayed its identification and discovery. U. major is less vulnerable to O. griffenis and is displacing or replacing U. pugettensis in its present 200 km range to the north and south of San Francisco Bay. Upogebia major, as a coevolved alternative host, assures persistence of O. griffenis in this region even where native species extinctions occur and can potentially expand to all habitats that are presently invaded by O. griffenis (Alaska to Baja California Norte). The individual and combined O. griffenis and U. major invasions thus threaten U. pugettensis in particular and all other native Upogebia species occurring north of Mexico. Our review of Upogebia taxonomy for a key to species revealed a previously reported 1912 invasion of San Francisco Bay by Upogebia affinis that was in error; hence, the introduction of U. major is the first confirmed gebiid invasion in the world. Greater resolution of U. major natural history and timing of its invasion is needed to test whether it evaded present vector management efforts. Intervention is warranted to limit the doubled down U. major and O. griffenis invasion and to conserve U. pugettensis and other native Upogebia species from ecological or absolute extinction in the coming decades.Key words: California, vectors, Decapoda, estuary, taxonomy, conservation, extinctio