Flaws in the Kyoto Protocol\u27s Pollution Permit System

The Kyoto Protocol of 1997 attempts to address the problem of global warming by establishing national greenhouse gas emissions targets and timetables. To reduce emissions, the protocol outlines a tradeable pollution permit system. The system would allow countries with high abatement costs to purchase permits from countries with low abatement costs, equalizing global marginal abatement costs. The protocol, however, is destined to fail because of the free-rider problem and the problem of trade leakage. Given the correct guidelines, a tradeable pollution permit system would provide a market-based, cost-effective way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

I Never Learnt my Mother Tongue

This thesis reflects upon questions and issues related to the Kven culture in the context of contemporary arts. How to use the field of arts as a medium to revitalize and innovate the Kven culture of today

Darkness to Dawn? Generating and Conserving Electricity in the Pacific Northwest: A Primer on the Northwest Power Act

The Pacific Northwest\u27s energy future is being shaped today by two institutions. The first is the Pacific Northwest Electric Power and Conservation Planning Council ( Planning Council ) which was created by the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation Act ( Northwest Power Act ). The other institution is the Bonneville Power Administration, ( BPA ), created forty-six years ago by Congress. Together the Planning Council and BPA are making crucial electrical energy decisions affecting the region\u27s economy and environment. This article is intended to familiarize the reader with the structure of the region\u27s electrical energy supply and demand as that structure has been altered by the Northwest Power Act. Part II of the article will discuss BPA\u27s power sales obligations, which are imposed by statute and contract. Part III will consider what basic power resources BPA already has to meet its obligations. Part IV will examine BPA\u27s options for meeting or reducing its contractual obligations

An Analysis of the Marketing Practices of North Dakota Motels

This thesis describes and analyzes the marketing practices of North Dakota motels. The data were obtained principally from a survey of selected North Dakota motels. A mail questionnaire was sent to 150 randomly chosen motel and a 43 per cent return was received. The main topics discussed in the thesis are: organization structure, size gross revenue, facilities, advertising methods, location, and room rate policy. The most common form of ownership of North Dakota motels was the single proprietorship. As this form of ownership usually limits the amount of capital available, most motels in North Dakota were relatively small. Ninety four per cent of North Dakota motels had 40 units or less. However there is a discernible trend toward larger motel complexes in the state of North Dakota. The mean advertising expenditures of North Dakota motels were 4.3 per cent of their gross receipts. Road signs and billboards were the medium upon which the most money was spent and were adjudged by respondents as the most effective medium for motels. Fifty per cent of the North Dakota motels were located on the outskirts of towns. During the period from 1956 to 1968,30 per cent of the total motel construction within the state took place on the interstate highway system. Room rates of North Dakota motels were determined after consideration of two factors: competition and operating costs. Rates charged by North Dakota motels appeared to be comparable to motel rates in the rest of the nation

Antidiabetic potential of Brachylaena discolor

Background: The traditional African herbal medicinal system has many reports of anti-diabetic food plants with no known side effects. Such plants and their products have been widely prescribed for diabetic treatment with little known mechanistic basis of their functioning. Therefore, these natural products need to be evaluated scientifically in order to confirm antidiabetic property claims.Materials and Methods: In this study, leaves of Brachylaena discolor were evaluated for potential to inhibit α-amylase and α-glucosidase. The leaves were also screened for toxicity and free radical scavenging capacity.Results: Results from the study show that the methanolic extract gave a higher α-glucosidase inhibition potential and was able to effectively scavenge free radicals better than the aqueous extract. The toxicity, cytotoxicity and mutagenicity screen also showed that both plant extracts are safe for use.Conclusion: These results therefore indicate that B. discolor has the potential for use as a potential dietary adjunct or therapy for the treatment of diabetes.Key words: Brachylaena discolor, α-amylase, α-glucosidase, DPPH, toxicit

Improving the survival of probiotic in simulated conditions and azoxymethane-induced colon tumour bearing mice using modified citrus pectin-alginate microencapsulation

Background: For a probiotic to be viable it needs to be preserved at a recommended minimum level of 6–7 log10cfu/g in the product being consumed, as suggested by the International Dairy Federation. Different biopolymer matrices have been used for encapsulation of probiotic; however, loss of viability is still a challenge.Materials and Methods: Modified citrus pectin-alginate microbeads containing Lactobacillus acidophilus ATCC 4356 was developed. Efficiency of the microbeads was evaluated in simulated conditions of the gastrointestinal tract and in Balb/c mice induced with colon tumor. Genomic identification of faecal lactobacilli samples from treated mice was also performed.Results: The Modified citrus pectin-alginate probiotic microbeads significantly enhanced the viability of Lactobacillus acidophilus ATCC 4356 compared to the control (p< 0.05) both in vitro and in vivo. Exposure of the modified citrus pectin-alginate microbeads to 3 hours of simulated gastric juice resulted in 82.7% survival of L. acidophilus ATCC 4356. Also, the number of faecal lactobacilli in the modified citrus pectin-alginate probiotic treated mice increased by 10.2% after 28 days.Conclusion: Modified citrus pectin-alginate is a novel effective means of oral delivery of bacterial cells and bioactive compounds. Modified citrus pectin-alginate can be used in probiotic therapy which may improve the prevention of colon cancer.Key words: Modified citrus pectin, alginate, probiotic, and microencapsulation

The whole story: treatment outcomes with Symbicort®

AbstractAsthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways that has a considerable socioeconomic impact. Asthma management guidelines have been introduced to help provide better long-term control of asthma. Although recommended guidelines may increase the direct medication costs, the overall direct costs of asthma may be reduced due to fewer exacerbations. In addition, indirect costs due to lost productivity and mortality are reduced and patients have an improved quality of life. Inhaled corticosteroids are first-line therapy in the treatment of persistent asthma. Against this background, we have assessed the cost-effectiveness of Symbicort® (budesonide and formoterol in a single inhaler), atreatmentthat provides better control of asthma compared with budesonide alone.While the prescribing costs of Symbicort® were found to be higher than for budesonide alone, these were partially offset by reduced costs due to fewer asthma exacerbations and a reduced need for other medications. Combined long-term therapy with budesonide and formoterol also improves patient quality of life compared with budesonide alone. Two other factors associated with asthma treatment success and cost-effectiveness are patient/physician education and good patient adherence to prescribed therapy. The introduction of a single inhaler that is easy to use in simple treatment regimens may improve patient adherence to prescribed medication, thus resulting in improved asthma control and fewer exacerbations.Treatment with Symbicort® is more cost-effective than treatment with budesonide alone

Pseudoephenamine: A Practical Chiral Auxiliary for Asymmetric Synthesis

Pseudoephenamine is shown to be a versatile chiral auxiliary for asymmetric synthesis. It is free from regulatory restrictions and exhibits remarkable stereocontrol in alkylation reactions, especially those that form quaternary carbon centers. Amides derived from pseudoephenamine exhibit a high propensity to be crystalline substances and provide sharp, well-defined peaks in NMR spectra.Chemistry and Chemical Biolog

Studie av glukokortikoidreseptoren (GR) og transkripsjonsfaktoren PAX6 i linseceller under oksidativt stress

PAX6 er en transkripsjonsfaktor som er viktig for den normale utviklingen og funksjonen til øyet. Mutasjoner i PAX6 eller langvarig bruk av glukokortikoider er assosiert med patologiske tilstander i øyet, noe som indikerer at begge faktorene er viktig for øyets normalfunksjon. Øyet utsettes for oksidativt stress, og det er tidligere rapportert at både PAX6 og glukokortikoidreseptoren (GR) i andre vev vil kunne påvirkes av oksidativt stress. En linse-epitelcellelinje ble brukt som modellsystem, og CRISPR-Cas9 modifikasjoner er tidligere utført for å slå ut PAX6 og/eller GR. PAX6 er bekreftet slått ut. Gjennom Western blot (WB) ble det vist at GRα (97 kDa) var slått ut fra GR KO cellelinjene. GR KO cellelinjene så ut til å fortsatt inneholde en kortere isoform av GR som i en viss grad var responsiv for Dexametason (Dex). Det er studert hvilken konsekvens mangel på PAX6 og/eller GR vil ha for normale funksjoner som vekst og overlevelse. Celleproliferasjonen ble studert gjennom proliferasjons-assay, og forandring av genuttrykk ble undersøkt ved bruk av WB og qPCR. Hydrogenperoksid (H2O2)-indusert oksidativt stress ble påført cellene, for å undersøke hvordan oksidativt stress påvirker vekst og overlevelse, og om tilstedeværelsen eller fraværet av PAX6 og GR har noe å si for cellelinjenes respons. Funksjonen til PAX6 og GR som transkripsjonsfaktorer under oksidativt stress ble studert ved bruk av reportergen-assay der promotoraktiviteten ble studert. Aktivert GR (ved stimulering med Dex), og tilstedeværelse av PAX6 viste seg å spille en rolle i vekst, ved å øke celleproliferasjonen i linse-epitelcellene. Når cellene ble utsatt for H2O2-indusert oksidativt stress, viste responsen i vekst seg å være doseavhengig. Cellelinjene hvor PAX6 var fjernet var mer motstandsdyktige for oksidativt stress, sammenlignet med celler hvor PAX6 var til stede. Dette viste seg å gjelde både i en lengre tidsperiode og ved en høyere dose, før negative konsekvenser i form av lav transkripsjonsaktivitet og degradering av proteiner/celledød ble sett. Aktivering av GR viste seg og ikke ha betydelig påvirkning på celleproliferasjon under oksidativt stress

On the Development of Pseudoephenamine and Its Applications in Asymmetric Synthesis

Pseudoephedrine is well established as a chiral auxiliary in the alkylation of amide enolates to form tertiary and quaternary carbon stereocenters. However, due to its facile transformation into the illegal narcotic methamphetamine, pseudoephedrine is either illegal or highly regulated in many countries, which limits its use in academic and industrial settings. To address this issue, pseudoephenamine has been developed as a replacement for pseudoephedrine in organic synthesis. This new auxiliary suffers no regulatory issues and exhibits several practical advantages over pseudoephedrine, including the high diastereoselectivities observed in alkylation reactions forming quaternary carbon stereocenters, the propensity for pseudoephenamine amides to be free-flowing crystalline solids, and the sharp, well-defined peaks that typically compose the 1H NMR spectra of these amides.Chemistry and Chemical Biolog