Biodiversity Consequences of Biofuel Production

The biodiversity impact of biofuels will depend on the biofuel crop and the previous land use. Biofuels can be beneficial to biodiversity when appropriate crops are grown in suitable areas. Conversion of protected areas is usually explicitly prohibited by sustainability standards, but many of these areas of high biodiversity importance fall outside of the protected area network. The paper examines research that investigates the impact on biodiversity; specifically, how the impact is measured as being dependent on the biofuel feedstocks, previous land use and agricultural practices employed and well-managed plantations. However, the paper also provides insights on the evidence that reveals that the cultivation of many of the biofuel feedstocks has a negative impact on biodiversity as a result of habitat conversion and the ‘off-farm’ impacts of pollution and soil erosion

CLINICAL EVALUATION OF ROLE OF PACHANA CHIKITSA W.S.R. TO ASRIGDARA

Various reports suggest that 30 to 50% of women in the reproductive age group suffer from excessive and irregular uterine bleeding by various causative factors. Various treatments prescribed in modern medicine like hormone therapy, antiprostaglandins and antifibrinolytic agents etc have not proved their definite efficacy inspite of high price and side effect, and lastly hysterectomy may lead to hormonal imbalance and psychological upset in young fertile women. Ayurveda considered the same as Asrigdara and Stambhana Chikitsa is the commonly prescribed management for this. But prior to Stambhana Chikitsa, Pachana Chikitsa is to be performed as without Amapachana, Stambhana Chikitsamay not show better efficacy. So a clinical trial was conducted on 30 Patients, who were divided in 2 groups, 15 patients in each. In Group A (Control group) Stambhana Chikitsa alone with Panchavalkala Kashaya was given and in Group B (Trial group) Stambhana Chikitsawith Panchavalkala Kashaya proceeded by Pachana Chikitsa with Guduchyadi Kashaya was given to patients for treatment. The present Study reveals, significant benefit in trial group to reduce symptoms of Asrigdara with a p-value of <0.001 in comparison with alone Stambhana Chikitsa

Variation in Basic Density and Tissue Proportions of Eucalyptus Tereticornis SM. Clones

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SPT0346-52: Negligible AGN Activity in a Compact, Hyper-starburst Galaxy at z = 5.7

We present Chandra ACIS-S and ATCA radio continuum observations of the strongly lensed dusty, star-forming galaxy SPT-S J034640-5204.9 (hereafter SPT0346-52) at $z$ = 5.656. This galaxy has also been observed with ALMA, HST, Spitzer, Herschel, APEX, and the VLT. Previous observations indicate that if the infrared (IR) emission is driven by star formation, then the inferred lensing-corrected star formation rate ($\sim$ 4500 M_{\sun} yr$^{-1}$) and star formation rate surface density $\Sigma_{\rm SFR}$ ($\sim$ 2000 M_{\sun} {yr^{-1}} {kpc^{-2}}) are both exceptionally high. It remained unclear from the previous data, however, whether a central active galactic nucleus (AGN) contributes appreciably to the IR luminosity. The {\it Chandra} upper limit shows that SPT0346-52 is consistent with being star-formation dominated in the X-ray, and any AGN contribution to the IR emission is negligible. The ATCA radio continuum upper limits are also consistent with the FIR-to-radio correlation for star-forming galaxies with no indication of an additional AGN contribution. The observed prodigious intrinsic IR luminosity of (3.6 $\pm$ 0.3) $\times$ 10$^{13}$ L_{\sun} originates almost solely from vigorous star formation activity. With an intrinsic source size of 0.61 $\pm$ 0.03 kpc, SPT0346-52 is confirmed to have one of the highest $\Sigma_{SFR}$ of any known galaxy. This high $\Sigma_{SFR}$, which approaches the Eddington limit for a radiation pressure supported starburst, may be explained by a combination of very high star formation efficiency and gas fraction.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Ubiquitous Molecular Outflows in z > 4 Massive, Dusty Galaxies I. Sample Overview and Clumpy Structure in Molecular Outflows on 500pc Scales

Massive galaxy-scale outflows of gas are one of the most commonly-invoked mechanisms to regulate the growth and evolution of galaxies throughout the universe. While the gas in outflows spans a large range of temperatures and densities, the cold molecular phase is of particular interest because molecular outflows may be capable of suppressing star formation in galaxies by removing the star-forming gas. We have conducted the first survey of molecular outflows at z > 4, targeting 11 strongly-lensed dusty, star-forming galaxies (DSFGs) with high-resolution Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) observations of OH 119um absorption as an outflow tracer. In this first paper, we give an overview of the survey, focusing on the detection rate and structure of molecular outflows. We find unambiguous evidence for outflows in 8/11 (73%) galaxies, more than tripling the number known at z > 4. This implies that molecular winds in z > 4 DSFGs must have both a near-unity occurrence rate and large opening angles to be detectable in absorption. Lensing reconstructions reveal that 500pc-scale clumpy structures in the outflows are common. The individual clumps are not directly resolved, but from optical depth arguments we expect that future observations will require 50-200pc spatial resolution to do so. We do not detect high-velocity [CII] wings in any of the sources with clear OH outflows, indicating that [CII] is not a reliable tracer of molecular outflows. Our results represent a first step toward characterizing molecular outflows at z > 4 at the population level, demonstrating that large-scale outflows are ubiquitous among early massive, dusty galaxies.Comment: ApJ accepted. 28 pages, 12 figures + appendix. Data and tables from Papers I and II available at https://github.com/spt-smg/publicdat

EZH2 modifies sunitinib resistance in renal cell carcinoma by kinome reprogramming

Acquired and intrinsic resistance to receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (RTKi) represent a major hurdle in improving the management of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Recent reports suggest that drug resistance is driven by tumor adaptation via epigenetic mechanisms that activate alternative survival pathways. The histone methyl transferase EZH2 is frequently altered in many cancers including ccRCC. To evaluate its role in ccRCC resistance to RTKi, we established and characterized a spontaneously metastatic, patient-derived xenograft (PDX) model that is intrinsically resistant to the RTKI sunitinib but not to the VEGF therapeutic antibody bevacizumab. Sunitinib maintained its anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic activity but lost its direct anti-tumor effects due to kinome reprogramming, which resulted in suppression of pro- apoptotic and cell cycle regulatory target genes. Modulating EZH2 expression or activity suppressed phosphorylation of certain RTK, restoring the anti-tumor effects of sunitnib in models of acquired or intrinsically resistant ccRCC. Overall, our results highlight EZH2 as a rational target for therapeutic intervention in sunitinib-resistant ccRCC as well as a predictive marker for RTKi response in this disease.This research was funded by Roswell Park Cancer Institute’s Cancer Center Support Grant from National Cancer Institute, NIH P30CA016056 (RP) and a generous donation by Richard and Deidre Turner (RP). This investigation was conducted in-part in a facility constructed with support from Research Facilities Improvement Program Grant Number C06 RR020128-01 from the National Center for Research Resources, National Institutes of Health

Aggressive behavior and its associated factors among persons with mental illness: An observational study

BACKGROUND: Aggressive behavior of psychiatric inpatients causes severe complications during treatment; nursing staff needs to understand the factors associated with aggression in inpatient units to prevent aggression. AIM: This study aimed to examine the level of aggression and its associated factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive observational design was conducted among aggressive patients. An aggressive behavior event was observed during the aggression episode. Data were collected from 55 patients with aggressive behavior using the Staff Observation Aggression Scale-Revised (SOAS-R) and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Patient-, staff-, and ward-related factors were assessed using a structured questionnaire. RESULTS: About 69% of patients had a severe level of aggressive behavior. There was a significant association between gender, the severity of symptoms, staff-to-patient ratio, ward milieu, and the number of caregivers with levels of aggression. CONCLUSION: The majority of the persons with mental illness exhibited severe aggression in a psychiatric setting. Being male, the presence of psychotic symptoms, ward milieu, staff-to-patient ratio, and availability of caregivers were significantly associated with aggression. This study adds to the existing literature by focusing on managing ward-related factors (avoiding noise and overcrowding) to prevent aggressive behavior among mentally ill patients