Productivity Growth and Convergence in Crop, Ruminant and Non-Ruminant Production: Measurement and Forecasts

There is considerable interest in projections of future productivity growth in agriculture. Whether one is interested in the outlook for global commodity markets, future patterns of international trade, or the interactions between land use, deforestation and ecological diversity, the rate of productivity growth in agriculture is an essential input. Yet solid projections for this variable have proven elusive particularly on a global basis. This is due, in no small part, to the difficulty in measuring historical productivity growth. The purpose of this paper is to report the latest time series evidence on total factor productivity growth for crops, ruminants and non-ruminant livestock, on a global basis. We then follow with tests for convergence amongst regions, providing forecasts for farm productivity growth to the year 2040. The results suggest that most regions in the sample are likely to experience larger productivity gains in livestock than in crops. Within livestock, the non-ruminant sector is expected to continue to be more dynamic than the ruminant sector. Given the rapid rates of productivity growth observed recently, non-ruminant and crop productivity in developing countries may be converging to the productivity levels of developed countries. For ruminants, the results show that productivity levels may be diverging between developed and developing countries.Malmquist index, productivity, convergence, projections, crops, livestock, Productivity Analysis, D24, O13, O47, Q10,

An Investigation of School Socioeconomic Staus on adolescent Athletes\u27 Baseline and Post-Injury Concussion Assessments

Please enjoy Volume 5, Issue 1 of the JSMAHS. In this issue you will find Professional and under graduate research abstracts, case reports, and critically appraised topics. Thank you for viewing this 5th Annual OATA Special Editio

Genes of the GadX-GadW Regulon in Escherichia coli

Acid in the stomach is thought to be a barrier to bacterial colonization of the intestine. Escherichia coli, however, has three systems for acid resistance, which overcome this barrier. The most effective of these systems is dependent on transport and decarboxylation of glutamate. GadX regulates two genes that encode isoforms of glutamate decarboxylase critical to this system, but additional genes associated with the glutamate-dependent acid resistance system remained to be identified. The gadX gene and a second downstream araC-like transcription factor gene, gadW, were mutated separately and in combination, and the gene expression profiles of the mutants were compared to those of the wild-type strain grown in neutral and acidified media under conditions favoring induction of glutamate-dependent acid resistance. Cluster and principal-component analyses identified 15 GadX-regulated, acid-inducible genes. Reverse transcriptase mapping demonstrated that these genes are organized in 10 operons. Analysis of the strain lacking GadX but possessing GadW confirmed that GadX is a transcriptional activator under acidic growth conditions. Analysis of the strain lacking GadW but possessing GadX indicated that GadW exerts negative control over three GadX target genes. The strain lacking both GadX and GadW was defective in acid induction of most but not all GadX target genes, consistent with the roles of GadW as an inhibitor of GadX-dependent activation of some genes and an activator of other genes. Resistance to acid was decreased under certain conditions in a gadX mutant and even more so by combined mutation of gadX and gadW. However, there was no defect in colonization of the streptomycin-treated mouse model by the gadX mutant in competition with the wild type, and the gadX gadW mutant was a better colonizer than the wild type. Thus, E. coli colonization of the mouse does not appear to require glutamate-dependent acid resistance

Nef functions in BLT mice to enhance HIV-1 replication and deplete CD4+CD8+ thymocytes

Background: The outcome of untreated HIV-1 infection is progression to AIDS and death in nearly all cases. Some important exceptions are the small number of patients infected with HIV-1 deleted for the accessory gene, nef. With these infections, disease progression is entirely suppressed or greatly delayed. Whether Nef is critical for high levels of replication or is directly cytotoxic remains controversial. The major problem in determining the role of Nef in HIV/AIDS has been the lack of tractable in vivo models where Nef’s complex pathogenic phenotype can be recapitulated. Results: Intravenous inoculation (3000 to 600,000 TCIU) of BLT humanized mice with HIV-1LAI reproducibly establishes a systemic infection. HIV-1LAI (LAI) replicates to high levels (peak viral load in blood 8,200,000 ± 1,800,000 copies of viral RNA/ml, range 3,600,000 to 20,400,000; n = 9) and exhaustively depletes CD4+ T cells in blood and tissues. CD4+CD8+ thymocytes were also efficiently depleted but CD4+CD8- thymocytes were partially resistant to cell killing by LAI. Infection with a nef-deleted LAI (LAINefdd) gave lower peak viral loads (1,220,000 ± 330,000, range 27,000 to 4,240,000; n = 17). For fourteen of seventeen LAINefdd-infected mice, there was little to no loss of either CD4+ T cells or thymocytes. Both LAIand LAINefdd-infected mice had about 8% of total peripheral blood CD8+ T cells that were CD38+HLA-DR+ compared \u3c1% for uninfected mice. Three exceptional LAINefdd-infected mice that lost CD4+ T cells received 600,000 TCIU. All three exhibited peak viral loads over 3,000,000 copies of LAINefdd RNA/ml. Over an extended time course, substantial systemic CD4+ T cell loss was observed for the three mice, but there was no loss of CD4+CD8+ or CD4+CD8- thymocytes. Conclusion: We conclude Nef is necessary for elevated viral replication and as a result indirectly contributes to CD4+ T cell killing. Further, Nef was not necessary for the activation of peripheral blood CD8+ T cells following infection. However, CD4+CD8+ thymocyte killing was dependent on Nef even in cases of elevated LAINefdd replication and T cell loss. This depletion of thymic T cell precursors may be a significant factor in the elevated pathogenicity of CXCR4 trophic HIV-1

Nematode-Bacterium Symbioses—Cooperation and Conflict Revealed in the “Omics” Age

Nematodes are ubiquitous organisms that have a significant global impact on ecosystems, economies, agriculture, and human health. The applied importance of nematodes and the experimental tractability of many species have promoted their use as models in various research areas, including developmental biology, evolutionary biology, ecology, and animal-bacterium interactions. Nematodes are particularly well suited for the investigation of host associations with bacteria because all nematodes have interacted with bacteria during their evolutionary history and engage in a variety of association types. Interactions between nematodes and bacteria can be positive (mutualistic) or negative (pathogenic/parasitic) and may be transient or stably maintained (symbiotic). Furthermore, since many mechanistic aspects of nematode-bacterium interactions are conserved, their study can provide broader insights into other types of associations, including those relevant to human diseases. Recently, genome-scale studies have been applied to diverse nematode-bacterial interactions and have helped reveal mechanisms of communication and exchange between the associated partners. In addition to providing specific information about the system under investigation, these studies also have helped inform our understanding of genome evolution, mutualism, and innate immunity. In this review we discuss the importance and diversity of nematodes, “omics”' studies in nematode-bacterial systems, and the wider implications of the findings

Draft genome sequences of two Bulgarian Bacillus anthracis strains

Bacillus anthracis strains previously isolated from Bulgaria form a unique subcluster within the A1.a cluster that is typical for isolates from southeastern Europe. Here, we report the draft genome sequences of two Bulgarian B. anthracis strains belonging to the A branch (A.Br.) 008/009 canonical single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) group of the major A branch

Theory of ac electrokinetic behavior of spheroidal cell suspensions with an intrinsic dispersion

The dielectric dispersion, dielectrophoretic (DEP) and electrorotational (ER) spectra of spheroidal biological cell suspensions with an intrinsic dispersion in the constituent dielectric constants are investigated. By means of the spectral representation method, we express analytically the characteristic frequencies and dispersion strengths both for the effective dielectric constant and the Clausius-Mossotti factor (CMF). We identify four and six characteristic frequencies for the effective dielectric spectra and CMF respectively, all of them being dependent on the depolarization factor (or the cell shape). The analytical results allow us to examine the effects of the cell shape, the dispersion strength and the intrinsic frequency on the dielectric dispersion, DEP and ER spectra. Furthermore, we include the local-field effects due to the mutual interactions between cells in a dense suspension, and study the dependence of co-field or anti-field dispersion peaks on the volume fractions.Comment: accepted by Phys. Rev.

Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians: a systematic review and meta-analysis

TOPIC: This systematic review and meta-analysis summarises evidence relating to the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) among Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Indigenous Australians suffer disproportionately from diabetes-related complications. Exploring ethnic variation in disease is important for equitable distribution of resources and may lead to identification of ethnic-specific modifiable risk factors. Existing DR prevalence studies comparing Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians have shown conflicting results. METHODS: This study was conducted following Joanna Briggs Institute guidance on systematic reviews of prevalence studies (PROSPERO ID: CRD42022259048). We performed searches of Medline (Ovid), EMBASE, and Web of Science until October 2021, using a strategy designed by an information specialist. We included studies reporting DR prevalence among diabetic patients in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian populations. Two independent reviewers performed quality assessments using a 9-item appraisal tool. Meta-analysis and meta-regression were performed using double arcsine transformation and a random-effects model comparing Indigenous and non-Indigenous subgroups. RESULTS: Fifteen studies with 8219 participants met criteria for inclusion. The Indigenous subgroup scored lower on the appraisal tool compared to the non-Indigenous subgroup (mean score 50% vs 72%, p=0.04). In the unadjusted meta-analysis, DR prevalence in the Indigenous subgroup (30.2% [95%CI: 24.9-25.7]) did not differ significantly (p=0.17) from the non-Indigenous subgroup (23.7% (95%CI: 16.8-31.4]). After adjusting for age and for quality, DR prevalence was higher in the Indigenous subgroup (p-values<0.01), with prevalence ratio point estimates ranging between 1.72-2.58, depending on the meta-regression model. For the secondary outcomes, prevalence estimates were higher in the Indigenous subgroup for diabetic macular oedema (8.7% vs 2.7%, p=0.02) and vision-threatening DR (8.6% vs 3.0%, p=0.03), but not for proliferative DR (2.5% vs 0.8%, p=0.07). CONCLUSION: Indigenous studies scored lower for methodological quality, raising the possibility that systematic differences in research practices may be leading to underestimation of disease burden. After adjusting for age and for quality, we found a higher DR prevalence in the Indigenous subgroup. This contrasts with a previous review which reported the opposite finding of lower DR prevalence using unadjusted pooled estimates. Future epidemiological work exploring DR burden in Indigenous communities should aim to address methodological weaknesses identified by this review

Particle-in-cell Simulations of Ion Dynamics in a Pinched-beam Diode

article-in-cell simulations of a 1.6 MV, 800 kA, and 50 ns pinched-beam diode have been completed with emphasis placed on the quality of the ion beams produced. Simulations show the formation of multiple regions in the electron beam flow characterized by locally high charge and current density (“hot spots”). As ions flow through the electron-space-charge cloud, these hot spots electrostatically attract ions to produce a non-uniform ion current distribution. The length of the cavity extending beyond the anode-to-cathode gap (i.e., behind the cathode tip) influences both the number and amplitude of hot spots. A longer cavity length increases the number of hot spots yet significantly reduces the amplitude producing a smoother, more uniform ion beam than for shorter cavities. The net current and the ion bending angles are also significantly smaller with long cavities

Externally Fed Accretion onto Protostars

The asymmetric molecular emission lines from dense cores reveal slow, inward motion in the clouds' outer regions. This motion is present both before and after the formation of a central star. Motivated by these observations, we revisit the classic problem of steady, spherical accretion of gas onto a gravitating point mass, but now include self-gravity of the gas and impose a finite, subsonic velocity as the outer boundary condition. We find that the accretion rate onto the protostar is lower than values obtained for isolated, collapsing clouds, by a factor that is the Mach number of the outer flow. Moreover, the region of infall surrounding the protostar spreads out more slowly, at a speed close to the subsonic, incoming velocity. Our calculation, while highly idealized, provides insight into two longstanding problems -- the surprisingly low accretion luminosities of even the most deeply embedded stellar sources, and the failure so far to detect spatially extended, supersonic infall within their parent dense cores. Indeed, the observed subsonic contraction in the outer regions of dense cores following star formation appears to rule out a purely hydrodynamic origin for these clouds.Comment: accepted by MNRA