Anthropological perspectives on corruption

The primary concern of this paper is to present anthropological perspectives on corruption. The emphasis is on how anthropological methods and approaches can contribute to a broader understanding of corruption. International debates on how to approach the phenomenon are ongoing, but corruption is generally defined as the abuse of public office for private gain. It is argued that this conventional definition is too narrow and excessively concerned with the illegality of practices. Explorations of how the actors themselves evaluate social practices are seen as essential. Variations in social experiences and cultural values may explain why corruption remains ambiguous

Corruption. A review of Contemporary Research

During the last decade corruption has become a topical issue in the international development policy debate. Research on corruption has also expanded rapidly, taking many different directions both within and across disciplines. This report provides an overview of contemporary research on corruption. The academic focus is on economic approaches, but perspectives from political science and social anthropology are also included. The presentation is mostly non-technical, although a few expositions of more analytically demanding matters are included. Relevance for development policy is the underlying guide for the selection of topics that are included in the study. The report should be useful for development practitioners and foreign aid officials, as well as for students and journalists interested in development issues

Intracellular trafficking of fatty acids in the fish intestinal epithelial cell line RTgutGC

The shift towards higher inclusion of vegetable oils (VOs) in aquafeeds has resulted in major changes in dietary fatty acid composition, especially increased amounts of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and decreased polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and saturated fatty acids (SFAs). However, little is known about how this change in fatty acid (FA) profile affects the intracellular fate of these fatty acids in the intestinal cells. To investigate this topic, we used the rainbow trout intestinal epithelial cell line (RTgutGC) as an in vitro model. The cells were incubated with either palmitic acid (16:0, PA), oleic acid (18:1n-9, OA), or arachidonic acid (20:4n-6, ARA), to represent the SFA, MUFA, and PUFA, respectively. In all experiments, the RTgutGC were incubated with either non-labeled or radiolabeled FA (PA, OA, or ARA) for 16 h at 190C. The cells were then analyzed for the occurrence of cytosolic lipid droplets (CLD) with confocal microscopy, transcriptomic analysis (non-labeled FA experiments) and lipid class composition in the cells and serosal media from the basolateral side of the cells (radiolabeled FA experiments). CLD accumulation was higher in RTgutGC exposed to OA compared to cells given PA or ARA. This was coupled with increased volume, diameter, and surface area of CLDs in OA treated cells than with other FAs (PA, ARA). The results from radiolabeled FAs performed on permeable transwell inserts showed that OA increased the triacylglycerides (TAG) synthesis and was primarily stored in the cells in CLDs; whereas a significant amount of ARA was transported as TAG to the basolateral compartment. A significant proportion of free FAs was found to be excreted to the serosal basolateral side by the cells, which was significantly higher for PA and OA than ARA. Although there were clear clusters in differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for each treatment group, results from transcriptomics did not correlate to lipid transport and CLD analysis. Overall, the accumulation of TAG in CLDs was higher for oleic acid (OA) compared to arachidonic acid (ARA) and palmitic acid (PA). To conclude, carbon chain length and saturation level of FA differently regulate their intracellular fate during fatty acid absorption.publishedVersio

Impact of dietary level and ratio of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids on disease progression and mRNA expression of immune and inflammatory markers in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) challenged with Paramoeba perurans

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of dietary level and ratio of n-6/n-3 fatty acids (FA) on growth, disease progression and expression of immune and inflammatory markers in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) following challenge with Paramoeba perurans. Fish (80 g) were fed four different diets with different ratios of n-6/n-3 FA; at 1.3, 2.4 and 6.0 and one diet with ratio of 1.3 combined with a higher level of n-3 FA and n-6 FA. The diet with the n-6/n-3 FA ratio of 6.0 was included to ensure potential n-6 FA effects were revealed, while the three other diets were more commercially relevant n-6/n-3 FA ratios and levels. After a pre-feeding period of 3 months, fish from each diet regime were challenged with a standardized laboratory challenge using a clonal culture of P. perurans at the concentration of 1,000 cells L−1. The subsequent development of the disease was monitored (by gross gill score), and sampling conducted before challenge and at weekly sampling points for 5 weeks post-challenge. Challenge with P. perurans did not have a significant impact on the growth of the fish during the challenge period, but fish given the feed with the highest n-6/n-3 FA ratio had reduced growth compared to the other groups. Total gill score for all surfaces showed a significant increase with time, reaching a maximum at 21 days post-challenge and declined thereafter, irrespective of diet groups. Challenge with P. perurans influenced the mRNA expression of examined genes involved in immune and inflammatory response (TNF-α, iNOS, IL4-13b, GATA-3, IL-1β, p53, COX2 and PGE2-EP4), but diet did not influence the gene expression. In conclusion, an increase in dietary n-6/n-3 FA ratio influenced the growth of Atlantic salmon challenged with P. perurans; however, it did not alter the mRNA expression of immune genes or progression of the disease.publishedVersio

Increasing the dietary n-6/n-3 ratio alters the hepatic eicosanoid production after acute stress in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

Earlier studies have indicated that a high inclusion of n-6 fatty acids (FA) in feeds for Atlantic salmon can affect the stress response. To test this hypothesis, Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) were fed diets containing varying dietary n-6/n-3 FA ratios and different absolute levels of n-6 and n-3 FAs. The fish were divided into two different stress challenge groups, where one group was exposed to three weekly hypoxia challenges for 4 weeks (repeated stress), while one group was left undisturbed. At the end of the experiment, both groups were exposed to an acute stressor (lowering of water level). Thus, effects of the diets on acute stress, repeated stress and the combined effect of these could be investigated. In general, there were few effects of the repeated stress, while fish in all diet groups responded strongly to the acute stress based on several stress markers. Dietary n-6/n-3 ratio did not affect growth, all fish appeared phenotypically healthy, and all groups were able to mount an acute stress response. However, there was an interaction between diet and repeated stress on cortisol response after acute stress, possibly indicating altered hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis reactivity in fish fed high n-6/n-3 FA ratio. Hepatic levels of prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) and leukotriene B4 responded differently to acute stress depending on the dietary n-6/n3 FA ratio, indicating an altered acute stress response. Additionally, increasing the dietary n-6/n-3 FA content led to higher levels of PGD2 and PGE2 as well as higher liver triacylglycerol. In summary, the results suggest that increasing the dietary n-6/n-3 FA ratio in salmon feeds can affect the way they respond to stressors in an aquaculture setting, possibly affecting the fish robustness.publishedVersio

Modeling Demand for Fishmeal Using a Heterogeneous Estimor for Panel Data

Increased livestock and aquaculture production can put pressure on the fishmeal market, and thus industrial fisheries stocks, since both of these sectors use fishmeal in their feeds. Data indicate that fishmeal supply has reached a production limit due to limited marine resources. Meanwhile there has been an explosive growth in global aquaculture production in the last couple of decades while traditional livestock production continues to grow at a steady rate. This paper examines the impact this may have on the global fishmeal market and industrial fisheries using a derived demand analysis of fishmeal. Inelastic demand for fishmeal implies that prices are bound to increase strongly, which, furthermore, can limit growth of global aquaculture. We estimate a panel data model of fishmeal demand using a shrinkage estimator that allows heterogeneous estimators for individual countries. This is important for assessing the impact these two sectors will have on the fishmeal market. Our results show that the precision of predictions is substantially higher for a shrinkage estimator than for the OLS estimator and standard panel data estimators. Furthermore, econometric models estimated by OLS produce implausible elasticities for some countries. According to the empirical results from the shrinkage model total fishmeal demand is generally inelastic in own price. However, the own price elasticity has increased in absolute terms as salmon aquaculture production has increased relative to pig and poultry production. This implies that there is scope for reduced fishmeal consumption in the salmon industry when prices increase.Keywords: aquaculture, Fisheries Economics, demand, Fishmeal, International Seafood Trade: Rules Based Reform, shrinkage estimato

Long-term feeding of Atlantic salmon with varying levels of dietary EPA+DHA alters the mineral status, but does not affect the stress responses after mechanical delousing stress

publishedVersio

Intracellular trafficking of fatty acids in the fish intestinal epithelial cell line RTgutGC

The shift towards higher inclusion of vegetable oils (VOs) in aquafeeds has resulted in major changes in dietary fatty acid composition, especially increased amounts of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and decreased polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and saturated fatty acids (SFAs). However, little is known about how this change in fatty acid (FA) profile affects the intracellular fate of these fatty acids in the intestinal cells. To investigate this topic, we used the rainbow trout intestinal epithelial cell line (RTgutGC) as an in vitro model. The cells were incubated with either palmitic acid (16:0, PA), oleic acid (18:1n-9, OA), or arachidonic acid (20:4n-6, ARA), to represent the SFA, MUFA, and PUFA, respectively. In all experiments, the RTgutGC were incubated with either non-labeled or radiolabeled FA (PA, OA, or ARA) for 16 h at 190C. The cells were then analyzed for the occurrence of cytosolic lipid droplets (CLD) with confocal microscopy, transcriptomic analysis (non-labeled FA experiments) and lipid class composition in the cells and serosal media from the basolateral side of the cells (radiolabeled FA experiments). CLD accumulation was higher in RTgutGC exposed to OA compared to cells given PA or ARA. This was coupled with increased volume, diameter, and surface area of CLDs in OA treated cells than with other FAs (PA, ARA). The results from radiolabeled FAs performed on permeable transwell inserts showed that OA increased the triacylglycerides (TAG) synthesis and was primarily stored in the cells in CLDs; whereas a significant amount of ARA was transported as TAG to the basolateral compartment. A significant proportion of free FAs was found to be excreted to the serosal basolateral side by the cells, which was significantly higher for PA and OA than ARA. Although there were clear clusters in differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for each treatment group, results from transcriptomics did not correlate to lipid transport and CLD analysis. Overall, the accumulation of TAG in CLDs was higher for oleic acid (OA) compared to arachidonic acid (ARA) and palmitic acid (PA). To conclude, carbon chain length and saturation level of FA differently regulate their intracellular fate during fatty acid absorption