Developing an organic research agenda with stakeholder involvement promotes increased relevance in research

A Swedish organic research agenda was developed by EPOK, Centre for Organic Food and Farming, in an open process together with interested parties in the food chain. The main aim of the research agenda was to provide a well-supported document which would enable decision makers and research funding bodies prioritise future research calls. The agenda took on the most important future challenges and knowledge needs of the organic food chain on the road towards increased sustainability, efficiency and environmental and social benefits. Three cross-cutting themes were identified to describe the overall challenges that face organic agriculture and the organic food chain: Robust systems, Added value for the environment and society and Competitiveness and thriving rural communities. Based of the three overarching themes five prioritised focal areas were pointed out in the research agenda: 1) High productivity with maintained sustainability, 2) Innovative production systems with many functions, 3) Closed-loop cycles and renewable resources, 4) Sustainable enterprises and market development, 5) Healthy food with added value. Involving stakeholders in forming the research agenda promoted early interactions and cooperation between actors within organic agricultural research. Furthermore the involvement of numerous stakeholders enabled a broad view of the need for new knowledge in the organic food chain, from primary production and marketing questions to the performance of organic agriculture in respect of beneficial contribution to environment and society. A dialogue with researchers and agricultural research funding bodies was an important part of the process forming the agenda. The consequence of this cooperation was that the agenda has been used as a basis of a number of research calls

Exploring the Role of Regional Parties in the Nordic Autonomies : Why Entrenched Self-Government Matters

Peer reviewe

Ekologisk produktion med minskad klimatpåverkan

Jordbruket har möjlighet att förutom att minska sina egna utsläpp även bidra till övriga samhällets omställning genom produktion av bioenergi och inlagring av kol i mark. Många av det ekologiska jordbrukets klimatutmaningar är gemensamma för alla typer av jordbruk. Men ekologisk produktion bygger på ett antal principer som tar sig uttryck i ett regelverk, vilket skapar specifika förutsättningar för det ekologiska jordbrukets möjligheter att minska sina växthusgasutsläpp. Här sammanfattas viktiga områden när det gäller klimatpåverkan från ekologiskt jordbruk

Genotyping of human cytochrome P450 2A6 (CYP2A6), a nicotine C-oxidase

AbstractCytochrome P450 2A6 (CYP2A6) is a polymorphic enzyme responsible for the oxidation of certain precarcinogens and drugs and is the major nicotine C-oxidase. The role of CYP2A6 for nicotine elimination was emphasised recently by the finding that smokers carrying defective CYP2A6 alleles consumed fewer cigarettes [Pianezza et al. (1998) Nature 393, 750]. The method used for CYP2A6 genotyping has, however, been found to give erroneous results with respect to the coumarin hydroxylase phenotype, a probe reaction for the CYP2A6 enzyme. The present study describes an allele-specific PCR genotyping method that identifies the major defective CYP2A6 allele and accurately predicts the phenotype. An allele frequency of 1–3% was observed in Finnish, Spanish, and Swedish populations, much lower than described previously

Mobilitat

[p.4] Com ens hem de moure?[p.8] Mobilitat, sostenibilitat i solidaritat[p.10] Aprenent a viure d’altra manera[p.14] Sostenibilització curricular: cosa de tots[p.18] Escola-família-barri: nou espai amic[p.20] Universitats sostenibles: utopia inabastable?[p.21] Sa i estalvi[p.40] Ciutats per a cotxes o cotxes per la ciutat?[p.43] El viatge: art i consciència[p.47] Entrevista: Educació política i mobilitat a l’Índia. Ranjit Gadgil[p.50] Explica-m’ho tu![p.54] Entrevista: Ocupació verda per a una societat decarbonitzada. Michael RennerPeer Reviewe

AMP-activated protein kinase activation and NADPH oxidase inhibition by inorganic nitrate and nitrite prevent liver steatosis

Advanced age and unhealthy dietary habits contribute to the increasing incidence of obesity and type 2 diabetes. These metabolic disorders, which are often accompanied by oxidative stress and compromised nitric oxide (NO) signaling, increase the risk of adverse cardiovascular complications and development of fatty liver disease. Here, we investigated the therapeutic effects of dietary nitrate, which is found in high levels in green leafy vegetables, on liver steatosis associated with metabolic syndrome. Dietary nitrate fuels a nitrate–nitrite–NO signaling pathway, which prevented many features of metabolic syndrome and liver steatosis that developed in mice fed a high-fat diet, with or without combination with an inhibitor of NOS (L-NAME). These favorable effects of nitrate were absent in germ-free mice, demonstrating the central importance of host microbiota in bioactivation of nitrate. In a human liver cell line (HepG2) and in a validated hepatic 3D model with primary human hepatocyte spheroids, nitrite treatment reduced the degree of metabolically induced steatosis (i.e., high glucose, insulin, and free fatty acids), as well as drug-induced steatosis (i.e., amiodarone). Mechanistically, the salutary metabolic effects of nitrate and nitrite can be ascribed to nitrite-derived formation of NO species and activation of soluble guanylyl cyclase, where xanthine oxidoreductase is proposed to mediate the reduction of nitrite. Boosting this nitrate–nitrite–NO pathway results in attenuation of NADPH oxidase-derived oxidative stress and stimulation of AMP-activated protein kinase and downstream signaling pathways regulating lipogenesis, fatty acid oxidation, and glucose homeostasis. These findings may have implications for novel nutrition-based preventive and therapeutic strategies against liver steatosis associated with metabolic dysfunction.</p

Reduced cerebellum volume and ataxia-like motoric phenotype in transgenic mouse, carrier of human CYP2C19 gene

Introduction: CYP2C19 transgenic mouse (2C19TG) is generated by the insertion of 12 copies of the human CYP2C19 gene into mouse genome. This animal model is a tool to study the neurodevelopmental role of CYP2C19 in vivo, since this enzyme is expressed in the foetal brains of 2C19TG mice and humans. Previous studies [1,2] showed anxiety and depression-like behaviour in these mice, while the aim of this study was to characterize the motoric function of the 2C19TG mouse. Methods: Whole brain dopamine concentration was measured in the brain homogenate of 23 adult mice by the HPLC-MS method. Motoric function in 50 mutant and 43 control mice of both genders was tested by the rotarod and beam walking tests. Beam walking test was repeated after treatment with dopaminergic receptor antagonists, Ecopipam (0.1 mg/kg) and Raclopride (0.25 mg/kg) as a follow-up. The sections of 10 6-month old and 8 15-months old mice were stained with anti-tyrosine hydroxylase antibody and the number of dopaminergic neurons was counted on histological slides under microscope. Next, after transcardial perfusion of 30 2C19TG and 30 control mice of both genders with contrast agent (4% Paraformaldehyde, 0.05M Gadoteridole, 0.01M Phosphate buffered saline, pH=7.4), cranium containing the whole brain was scanned overnight by the 9.4T MRI scanner. The volumes of 39 brain regions were quantified according to the mouse brain atlas [3]. Student's t-test and two-way ANOVA were used to evaluate statistical significance of between-group differences. Results: Adult 2C19TG mice are hyperdopaminergic, as they exhibit 15% increased dopamine concentration (p<0.001). They also show hyperkinetic motoric phenotype with the ataxia-like walking pattern and pathological clasping reflex. In the beam walking test 2C19TG mice had 20% longer beam crossing time (p=0.007) and 60% more paw slips (p<0.001) then the controls, and this motoric impairment could not be improved with antidopaminergic drugs. Both younger and older 2C19TG mice exhibited only a marginal reduction in the number of dopaminergic neurons of both substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area in a subset of coronal sections. This was confirmed by the gadolinium-enhanced neuroimaging that showed no change in substantia nigra volume in 2C19TG mice. On the other hand, significant differences in volume were identified in 11 regions, including cerebellum (-8.3% p<0.001) and striatum (+3.0%, p<0.001), which are the regions connected with the motoric function. The volumetric changes were detected in the hippocampus (-1.3%, p=0.027), amygdala (+2.8%, p<0.001), septum (+3.3%, p=0.014) and nucleus accumbens (+3.5, p=0.004) of 2C19TG mice. These brain regions are involved in emotional and motivational functions. Conclusion: Ataxia-like motoric phenotype in 2C19TG transgenic mice is probably caused by changes in cerebellum, while hyperdopaminergism is most likely the compensatory adaptation, whereas the changes in the hippocampus, amygdala, septum, and nucleus accumbens may be connected with the mutants’ depression-like phenotype and susceptibility to stress. Therefore, CYP2C19 transgenic mouse in potentially useful model of hyperkinetic disorders, and our findings hint at the possible impact of CYP2C19 enzyme on the development of the several brain regions involved in motor and emotional functioning.33rd ECNP Congress – Vienna 202