Rural People, Rural Places: The Hidden Costs of Hurricane Katrina

This brief shows how the characteristics of rural Gulf Coast families place them at higher risks during natural disasters and make them far less able to recover from such calamities. Although few realize it, nonmetro residents represented the majority (55%) of the population affected by Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi. They also constituted 17% of the people living in Alabama's disaster-stricken area, and about 12% of the affected population in Louisiana. These are not inconsequential numbers; they represent thousands of inhabitants living in small communities dotting the tri-state region. This Rural Realities brief draws much needed attention to nonmetro areas affected by Hurricane Katrina and outlines the key features of the rural people and places that have been impacted by this major disaster. Most important, it offers a series of policy recommendations that can assist in rebuilding the region's nonmetro counties and parishes. The hope is that these policy ideas can offer a meaningful set of strategies for lessening the future vulnerability of rural areas within and outside this region of the country. This brief is from Rural Realities; Volume 1, Issue 2. Rural Realities is published by the Rural Sociological Society. It is a peer-reviewed, web-based series that is published four times a year. Each issue is devoted to a single topic

Volterra-Stieltjes integral equations and impulsive Volterra-Stieltjes integral equations

In this paper, we prove existence and uniqueness of solutions of Volterra– Stieltjes integral equations using the Henstock–Kurzweil integral. Also, we prove that these equations encompass impulsive Volterra–Stieltjes integral equations and prove the existence and uniqueness for these equations. Finally, we present some examples to illustrate our results

85 años de vida, trabajo, transformación y trascendencia de la Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León

En el marco de la celebración de los primeros 85 años de vida, trabajo, transformación y trascendencia de la Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (UANL), es un orgullo también celebrar el trigésimo quinto aniversario de la Facultad de Ciencias Forestales (FCF), que desde su inicio se ha caracterizado por su calidad académica, investigación, cultura de la innovación y su responsabilidad social, gracias a la visión de sus fundadores, así como al legado científico, intelectual y humanista de los grandes universitarios que han hecho posible el desarrollo de esta gran escuela, y por ende, de nuestra Universidad.  Celebramos con orgullo estos 35 años porque los egresados de la FCF han sido promotores de los cambios que han consolidado a Nuevo León, como el motor económico de nuestro país y lo han puesto a la vanguardia en diversas áreas del conocimiento, la investigación, el desarrollo sustentable, la cultura y el deporte

Potentials and impacts of event tourism development: the case of Aksum Town, Tigrai National Regional State, Ethiopia

Tourism is recognized by several countries as a tool towards an integrated development. Events are a dynamic and fast-growing sector that has become a development tool in both developed and developing countries as a new tourism trend. This study examines event tourism's potentials and impacts in Aksum, Ethiopia. A mixed research approach with a descriptive design was employed through stratified random sampling technique. Questionnaire and interview were instruments used for data collection. Questionnaire respondents were selected randomly while interview participants were recruited purposefully. Descriptive statistical analysis was applied for questionnaire data using SPSS software while content analysis was adopted for interview data. Findings revealed that Aksum has potentials for the development of religious and cultural events followed by historical and business events. The impacts of event tourism to Aksum were found as both positive and negative in relation to socio-economic and environmental activities. The main positive impacts were perceived as improving destination image and boosting local businesses, on the other hand, negative impacts include problems about unfair pricing of local goods and services, trafic congestion and overcrowding. The research concludes by suggesting possible ways of maximizing the positive role of event tourism and minimizing its adverse impacts.publishe

Natural acid rock drainage in alpine catchments : a side effect of climate warming

Altres ajuts: Acord transformatiu CRUE-CSICA historical series of aerial photographs spanning more than 70 years (1945-2018) revealed that natural acid rock drainage (ARD) has experienced an intensification in the Noguera de Vallferrera alpine catchment (Central Pyrenees) due to climate change during the last decade. ARD manifests by the precipitation of whitish aluminum-compounds that strikingly cover the beds of some gullies and streams in high-mountain catchments. The total length of affected streams has increased from ca. 5 km (1945) to more than 35 km (2018). Up to 68 water samples were collected in three main areas to determine the spatial variation in acidity and concentration of dissolved metals, representative of surface and subsurface waters. Concentration of aluminum clearly correlates with acidity of waters. Aluminum precipitation occurs where acidic waters, enriched in metals due ARD related to the oxidation of sulfides, mix with non-acidic waters. In addition to aluminum, other potentially toxic trace metals are present at concentrations well above the quality standards for natural waters. Here, we show that climate warming and the severe droughts recorded in the last decade are the most plausible causes for the observed ARD intensification. This result is supported by a good correlation between the regional ascending rate of the periglacial limits (ca. 46 m-height/decade) and the rising rate of the maximum elevations at which ARD occurs (ca. 45 to 55 m-height/decade). In addition to climatic control, we also show that the local geomorphology is playing a major role. The distribution of periglacial deposits (rock glaciers, protalus ramparts, cones and talus slopes) and deep-seated gravitational slope deformations exert a strong control on the spatial patterns and hydrodynamics of ARD. A better understanding of the phenomenon and the monitoring of its evolution can provide clues on these side effects of climate warming, here and in many other alpine catchments worldwide

Aflatoxin M Determination in Infant Formulae Distributed in Monterrey, Mexico

The occurrence of aflatoxin M (AFM) in infant formulae commercialized in the metropolitan area of Monterrey (Nuevo León, Mexico) was determined by using immunoaffinity column clean-up followed by HPLC determination with fluorimetric detection. For this, 55 infant formula powders were classified in two groups, starter (49 samples) and follow-on (6 samples) formulae. Eleven of the evaluated samples (20%) presented values above the permissible limit set by the European Union for infant formulae (25 ng/L), ranging from 40 to 450 ng/L. The estimated daily intake (EDI) for AFM was determined employing the average body weight (bw) of the groups of age in the ranges of 0-6 and 6-12 months, and 1-2 years. The results evidenced high intake values, ranging from 1.56 to 14 ng/kg bw/day, depending on the group. Finally, with the EDI value, the carcinogenic risk index was determined, presenting a high risk for all the evaluated groups. Based on these results, it is a necessary extra effort by the regulatory agencies to reduce the AFM presence in infant formulae consumed in Mexico

Functional expression and intracellular signaling of UTP-sensitive P2Y receptors in theca-interstitial cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Purinergic receptors are expressed in the ovary of different species; their physiological roles remain to be elucidated. UTP-sensitive P2Y receptor activity may regulate cell proliferation. The aim of the present work was to study the functional expression of these receptors in theca/interstitial cells (TIC).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>TIC were isolated by centrifugation in a Percoll gradient. P2Y receptors and cellular markers in TIC were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot. Intracellular calcium mobilization induced by purinergic drugs was evaluated by fluorescence microscopy, phosphorylation of MAPK p44/p42 and of cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) was determined by Western blot and proliferation was quantified by [3H]-thymidine incorporation into DNA.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>RT-PCR showed expression of p2y2r and p2y6r transcripts, expression of the corresponding proteins was confirmed. UTP and UDP, agonists for P2Y2 and P2Y6 receptors, induced an intracellular calcium increase with a maximum of more than 400% and 200% of basal level, respectively. The response elicited by UTP had an EC50 of 3.5 +/- 1.01 μM, while that for UDP was 3.24 +/- 0.82 μM. To explore components of the pathway activated by these receptors, we evaluated the phosphorylation induced by UTP or UDP of MAPK p44 and p42. It was found that UTP increased MAPK phosphorylation by up to 550% with an EC50 of 3.34 +/- 0.92 and 1.41 +/- 0.67 μM, for p44 and p42, respectively; these increases were blocked by suramin. UDP also induced p44/p42 phosphorylation, but at high concentrations. Phosphorylation of p44/p42 was dependent on PKC and intracellular calcium. To explore possible roles of this pathway in cell physiology, cell proliferation and hCG-induced CREB-phosphorylation assays were performed; results showed that agonists increased cell proliferation and prevented CREB-phosphorylation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Here, it is shown that UTP-sensitive P2Y receptors are expressed in cultured TIC and that these receptors had the ability to activate mitogenic signaling pathways and to promote cell proliferation, as well as to prevent CREB-phosphorylation by hCG. Regulation of TIC proliferation and steroidogenesis is relevant in ovarian pathophysiology since theca hyperplasia is involved in polycystic ovarian syndrome. Purinergic receptors described might represent an important new set of molecular therapeutic targets.</p

Enigmazole C: A Cytotoxic Macrocyclic Lactone and Its Ring-Opened Derivatives from a New Species of Homophymia Sponge

[Abstract] A new macrolide, enigmazole C (1), and two additional analogues, enigmazoles E (2) and D (3), were obtained from a new species of the Homophymia genus as part of an ongoing discovery program at PharmaMar to study cytotoxic substances from marine sources. The structures were fully characterized by cumulative analyses of NMR, IR, and MS spectra, along with density functional theory computational calculations. All three of the new compounds feature an unusual 2,3-dihydro-4H-pyran-4-one moiety, but only enigmazoles C (1) and D (3) showed cytotoxic activity in the micromolar range against A-549 (lung), HT-29 (colon), MDA-MB-231 (breast), and PSN-1 (pancreas) tumor cells.We gratefully acknowledge the Expeditions, Collection and Cell Biology Departments of PharmaMar S.A.U. We also thank S. Bueno and Dra. M. J. Uriz (CEAB-Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes, Spain) for determining the sponge taxonomy and S. Munt for revision of the manuscript. PharmaMar also acknowledges the Udayana University of Bali, Indonesia. J.R. and C.J. acknowledge Xunta de Galicia and CESGA for the computational resource

A new common functional coding variant at the DDC gene change renal enzyme activity and modify renal dopamine function.

The intra-renal dopamine (DA) system is highly expressed in the proximal tubule and contributes to Na+ and blood pressure homeostasis, as well as to the development of nephropathy. In the kidney, the enzyme DOPA Decarboxylase (DDC) originating from the circulation. We used a twin/family study design, followed by polymorphism association analysis at DDC locus to elucidate heritable influences on renal DA production. Dense single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping across the DDC locus on chromosome 7p12 was analyzed by re-sequencing guided by trait-associated genetic markers to discover the responsible genetic variation. We also characterized kinetics of the expressed DDC mutant enzyme. Systematic polymorphism screening across the 15-Exon DDC locus revealed a single coding variant in Exon-14 that was associated with DA excretion and multiple other renal traits indicating pleiotropy. When expressed and characterized in eukaryotic cells, the 462Gln variant displayed lower Vmax (maximal rate of product formation by an enzyme) (21.3 versus 44.9 nmol/min/mg) and lower Km (substrate concentration at which half-maximal product formation is achieved by an enzyme.)(36.2 versus 46.8 μM) than the wild-type (Arg462) allele. The highly heritable DA excretion trait is substantially influenced by a previously uncharacterized common coding variant (Arg462Gln) at the DDC gene that affects multiple renal tubular and glomerular traits, and predicts accelerated functional decline in chronic kidney disease