Le coton biologique au Paraguay. 1. Construction de la filière et contraintes économiques

Organic cotton production in Paraguay. 1. Some economic limitations for a novel industry. Paraguay, whose small farmers are traditionally cotton growers, has begun to crop and process organic cotton since 2003. An exploratory study was carried out in order to have a better knowledge of the way the organic cotton production has developed and to detect eventual economic limitations. The study was achieved in 2008 during the cotton harvest period by interviewing the actors from the farm to the industrial level. The organic cotton industry was built by a single company in a favorable national (20 years of organic production for a diversity of crops) and international (an increasing demand for organic products, including cotton) context. This single company applied a strategy of creating alliances with NGOs, public authorities and other private operators, in order to increase farm production – by adding new farmers – and textile manufacture and trade worldwide. We detected three kinds of economic limitations. Firstly, organic cotton production still remained largely dependent on the conventional cotton industry for the supply of seed. Secondly, the cumbersome certification process at farm level and its cost associated with increased logistic problems derived from the increase in geographical dispersion of small producers appeared to seriously limit the possibilities for expansion. Thirdly, although the price paid for organic cotton was 12-14% higher in 2008, the obligation for the farmers to sell drier cotton and a longer buying process resulting in delayed cash payments led many farmers to sale a large part of their organic cotton to conventional buyers. We recommend in-depth studies on these three topics to acquire a better knowledge of their extent in terms of intensities and variations, and to propose measures to mitigate them

Control and tuning of a suspended Fabry-Perot cavity using digitally-enhanced heterodyne interferometry

We present the first demonstration of real-time closed-loop control and deterministic tuning of an independently suspended Fabry-Perot optical cavity using digitally-enhanced heterodyne interferometry, realising a peak sensitivity of $\sim$10 pm$/\sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ over the 10-1000 Hz frequency band. The methods presented are readily extensible to multiple coupled cavities. As such, we anticipate that refinements of this technique may find application in future interferometric gravitational-wave detectors

Regulating Abortion: Impact on Patients and Providers in Texas

The state of Texas began enforcement of the Woman’s Right to Know (WRTK) Act on January 1, 2004. The law requires that all abortions at 16 weeks gestation or later be performed in an ambulatory surgical center (ASC). In the month the law went into effect, not one of Texas’s 54 non-hospital abortion providers met the requirements of a surgical center. The effect was immediate and dramatic. The number of abortions performed in Texas at 16 weeks gestation or later dropped 88 %, from 3642 in 2003 to 446 in 2004, while the number of residents who left the state for a late abortion almost quadrupled. By 2006, an ASC had opened in 4 major cities down from 9 in 2003 but the abortion rate 16 weeks or more gestation remained 50 percent below its pre-Act level. Regulations of abortion providers that require new facilities or costly renovations could have profound effects on the market for second trimester abortions.

Direct work with sexually exploited or at risk children and young people : a rapid evidence assessment

This review is intended to provide Barnardo’s with an overview of what ‘direct work’ with young people entails in the context of CSE. Part one explores the nature, types and contexts of direct work and gives an overview of the range of risks and vulnerabilities that direct work typically addresses. Part two focuses on the journey of direct work with young people in greater detail and outlines six core elements of direct interventions: 1. Engagement and relationship building 2. Support and stability 3. Providing advocacy 4. Reducing risks and building resilience 5. Addressing underlying issues 6. Enabling growth and moving on The discussion of each component is informed by what we know from research evidence to work in direct interventions with young people. We also give some practice examples to illustrate effective models of direct work. Part three provides a brief summary of the key features that underpin effective direct work with young people

Outreach work : child sexual exploitation : a rapid evidence assessment

This briefing is based on a rapid review of the available literature on outreach work with children and young people. It is intended to provide the ReachOut project with an overview of different approaches to outreach; what it generally aims to achieve; what distinguishes it from centre--‐based work and how it is applicable to children and young people involved in, or at risk of, child sexual exploitation. We highlight what is known about ‘detached’ and other approaches that aim to reach vulnerable populations who are not accessing mainstream services. We hope it will be useful in informing ReachOut’s thinking about the role and value of its own outreach activities

Being heard: promoting children and young people’s involvement in participatory research on sexual violence: findings from an international scoping review

This report shares findings from an international scoping review conducted on the engagement of children and young people in participatory research on sexual violence. The report discusses a range of ethical and practical challenges of involving vulnerable children and young people in participatory research on sensitive issues and draws out key considerations for research practice

Flutuação populacional das pragas do algodoeiro no sistema de plantio convencional versus sistema de plantio adensado.

No sistema de plantio adensado do algodoeiro as entrelinhas se fecham mais rápido o que pode levar a modificações no microclima e na relação artrópode-planta. Este trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar se a dinâmica populacional dos insetos-praga do algodoeiro no sistema de plantio convencional e adensado. O ensaio foi instalado Campo Experimental do Instituto Mato-grossense do Algodão (IMA) em Primavera do Leste (MT), na safra 2008/09. A cultivar utilizada foi a COODETEC 408, plantada em 21 de fevereiro de 2009. O delineamento experimental foi o inteiramente casualizado com dois tratamentos (plantio convencional e plantio adensado) e 10 repetições. Cada repetição tinha 70 x 70m (0,49 ha); o espaçamento entre linhas foi de 0,9m para o plantio convencional e 0,45m para o plantio adensado. As amostragens das pragas foram semanais e em 10 plantas/repetição, utilizando-se o caminhamento em zigue-zague. Os dados foram submetidos à Análise de Variância (ANAVA) e nas condições estudadas não se verificou diferença significativa na dinâmica populacional do pulgão Aphis gossypii, Alabama argillacea, Spodoptera eridania, Pseudoplusia includens e Heliothis virescens entre os sistemas de plantio adensado e convencional. (Résumé d'auteur

Widespread distribution and a new recombinant species of Brazilian virus associated with cotton blue disease

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cotton blue disease (CBD), an important global cotton crop pathology responsible for major economic losses, is prevalent in the major cotton-producing states of Brazil. Typical CBD symptoms include stunting due to internodal shortening, leaf rolling, intense green foliage, and yellowing veins. Atypical CBD symptoms, including reddish and withered leaves, were also observed in Brazilian cotton fields in 2007. Recently, a <it>Polerovirus </it>named Cotton leafroll dwarf virus (CLRDV) was shown to be associated with CBD.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To understand the distribution and genetic diversity of CLRDV in Brazil, we analyzed 23 CBD-symptomatic plants from susceptible cotton varieties originating from five of the six most important cotton-growing states, from 2004–2007. Here, we report on CLRDV diversity in plants with typical or atypical CBD symptoms by comparing viral coat protein, RNA polymerase (RdRp), and intergenic region genomic sequences.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The virus had a widespread distribution with a low genetic diversity; however, three divergent isolates were associated with atypical CBD symptoms. These divergent isolates had a CLRDV-related coat protein but a distinct RdRp sequence, and probably arose from recombination events. Based on the taxonomic rules for the family <it>Luteoviridae</it>, we propose that these three isolates represent isolates of a new species in the genus <it>Polerovirus</it>.</p

Sequestration of cholesterol within the host late endocytic pathway restricts liver-stage Plasmodium development

While lysosomes are degradative compartments and one of the defenses against invading pathogens, they are also hubs of metabolic activity. Late endocytic compartments accumulate around Plasmodium berghei liver-stage parasites during development, and whether this is a host defense strategy or active recruitment by the parasites is unknown. In support of the latter hypothesis, we observed that the recruitment of host late endosomes (LEs) and lysosomes is reduced in uis4(−) parasites, which lack a parasitophorous vacuole membrane protein and arrest during liver-stage development. Analysis of parasite development in host cells deficient for late endosomal or lysosomal proteins revealed that the Niemann–Pick type C (NPC) proteins, which are involved in cholesterol export from LEs, and the lysosome-associated membrane proteins (LAMP) 1 and 2 are important for robust liver-stage P. berghei growth. Using the compound U18666A, which leads to cholesterol sequestration in LEs similar to that seen in NPC- and LAMP-deficient cells, we show that the restriction of parasite growth depends on cholesterol sequestration and that targeting this process can reduce parasite burden in vivo. Taken together, these data reveal that proper LE and lysosome function positively contributes to liver-stage Plasmodium development