A global synthesis reveals biodiversity-mediated benefits for crop production

Human land use threatens global biodiversity and compromises multiple ecosystem functions critical to food production. Whether crop yield-related ecosystem services can be maintained by a few dominant species or rely on high richness remains unclear. Using a global database from 89 studies (with 1475 locations), we partition the relative importance of species richness, abundance, and dominance for pollination; biological pest control; and final yields in the context of ongoing land-use change. Pollinator and enemy richness directly supported ecosystem services in addition to and independent of abundance and dominance. Up to 50% of the negative effects of landscape simplification on ecosystem services was due to richness losses of service-providing organisms, with negative consequences for crop yields. Maintaining the biodiversity of ecosystem service providers is therefore vital to sustain the flow of key agroecosystem benefits to society. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2019 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial License 4.0 (CC BY-NC).

An inter-country comparison of unofficial payments: results of a health sector social audit in the Baltic States

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cross-country comparisons of unofficial payments in the health sector are sparse. In 2002 we conducted a social audit of the health sector of the three Baltic States.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Some 10,320 household interviews from a stratified, last-stage-random, sample of 30 clusters per country, together with institutional reviews, produced preliminary results. Separate focus groups of service users, nurses and doctors interpreted these findings. Stakeholder workshops in each country discussed the survey and focus group results.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nearly one half of the respondents did not consider unofficial payments to health workers to be corruption, yet one half (Estonia 43%, Latvia 45%, Lithuania 64%) thought the level of corruption in government health services was high. Very few (Estonia 1%, Latvia 3%, Lithuania 8%) admitted to making unofficial payments in their last contact with the services. Around 14% of household members across the three countries gave gifts in their last contact with government services.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This social audit allowed comparison of perceptions, attitudes and experience regarding unofficial payments in the health services of the three Baltic States. Estonia showed least corruption. Latvia was in the middle. Lithuania evidenced the most unofficial payments, the greatest mistrust towards the system. These findings can serve as a baseline for interventions, and to compare each country's approach to health service reform in relation to unofficial payments.</p

Identification of TNF-alpha-Responsive Promoters and Enhancers in the Intestinal Epithelial Cell Model Caco-2

The Caco-2 cell line is one of the most important in vitro models for enterocytes, and is used to study drug absorption and disease, including inflammatory bowel disease and cancer. In order to use the model optimally, it is necessary to map its functional entities. In this study, we have generated genome-wide maps of active transcription start sites (TSSs), and active enhancers in Caco-2 cells with or without tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α stimulation to mimic an inflammatory state. We found 520 promoters that significantly changed their usage level upon TNF-α stimulation; of these, 52% are not annotated. A subset of these has the potential to confer change in protein function due to protein domain exclusion. Moreover, we locate 890 transcribed enhancer candidates, where ∼50% are changing in usage after TNF-α stimulation. These enhancers share motif enrichments with similarly responding gene promoters. As a case example, we characterize an enhancer regulating the laminin-5 γ2-chain (LAMC2) gene by nuclear factor (NF)-κB binding. This report is the first to present comprehensive TSS and enhancer maps over Caco-2 cells, and highlights many novel inflammation-specific promoters and enhancers

From evidence to action: applying gender mainstreaming to pay gaps in the Welsh public sector

Progress on reducing gender disparities remains painfully slow, despite efforts to identify the determinants of gender pay gaps and specify size and shape. Recent studies highlight the need for a more nuanced account of the way that public policy shapes organizational responses and insights into the types of organizational practices that diminish pay disparities. In response, this research reports on an action research intervention in three large Welsh public organizations, subject to a unique statutory equality duty. Data demonstrate how an evidence‐based gender mainstreaming approach facilitated the development of a ‘no blame’ strategy, which legitimized organizational proactivity through collaborative and empowering change management processes. The research contributes to the study of gender pay gaps by demonstrating that gender mainstreaming, with facilitative local conditions and supportive public policy, shapes action on gender segregation, with particular success in women's low‐paid employment. Conclusions highlight theoretical and policy implications arising from the research

Phase II trial of isoflavone in prostate-specific antigen recurrent prostate cancer after previous local therapy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background-</p> <p>Data exist that demonstrate isoflavones' potent antiproliferative effects on prostate cancer cells. We evaluated the efficacy of isoflavone in patients with PSA recurrent prostate cancer after prior therapy. We postulated that isoflavone therapy would slow the rate of rise of serum PSA.</p> <p>Methods-</p> <p>Twenty patients with rising PSA after prior local therapy were enrolled in this open-labeled, Phase II, nonrandomized trial (Trial registration # NCT00596895). Patients were treated with soy milk containing 47 mg of isoflavonoid per 8 oz serving three times per day for 12 months. Serum PSA, testosterone, lipids, isoflavone levels (genistein, daidzein, and equol), and quality of life (QOL) were measured at various time points from 0 to 12 months. PSA outcome was evaluated.</p> <p>Results-</p> <p>Within the mixed regression model, it was estimated that PSA had increased 56% per year before study entry and only increased 20% per year for the 12-month study period (<it>p </it>= 0.05). Specifically, the slope of PSA after study entry was significantly lower than that before study entry in 6 patients and the slope of PSA after study entry was significantly higher than before study entry in 2 patients. For the remaining 12 patients, the change in slope was statistically insignificant. Nearly two thirds of the patients were noted to have significant levels of free equol in their serum while on therapy.</p> <p>Conclusion-</p> <p>Dietary intervention with isoflavone supplementation may have biologic activity in men with biochemical recurrent prostate cancer as shown by a decline in the slope of PSA. This study may lend support to the literature that nutritional supplements have biologic activity in prostate cancer and therefore, further studies with these agents in randomized clinical trials should be encouraged.</p

Changes in everyday life after discharge from day care rehabilitation

Community-based day care that provides rehabilitation (DCR) targets elderly people with physical disabilities. The goal of these programmes is mainly to improve physical ability in order to enable participants to remain in their ordinary homes. Knowledge of the outcomes of DCR is limited as well as knowledge of what it is that makes a difference for the individual. The aim of this study was to describe what changes in everyday life elderly persons experienced after discharge from a community-based day care rehabilitation centre and to give possible explanations for these changes. Fifteen elderly people were interviewed after that they had been discharged from DCR. A narrative approach was used for analysing the interview data. Four case stories constitute the findings, each of them with unique descriptions of changes in everyday life as well as possible explanations for these changes. The first case story described resumption of daily activities that made the days more eventful and meaningful. The second described how everyday life became an arena for exercising, which create confidence for the future. The third described how an increased sense of certainty and security in the movements led to an increased appetite for life. Finally, the fourth case story described both the stay at the DCR centre and the promise of a new period there as uplifting that made the days easier. Concerning possible explanations for these changes, the findings indicate that it was a combination of several events that together contributed to the changes. Examples were physical training, counselling about how to live in an active and healthy lifestyle, and socialisation with other patients in formal as well as in informal sessions

IL13 genetic polymorphisms, smoking, and eczema in women: a case-control study in Japan

Background: Several genetic association studies have examined the relationships between single nucleotidepolymorphisms (SNPs) in the IL13 gene and eczema, and have provided contradictory results. We investigated therelationship between the IL13 SNPs rs1800925 and rs20541 and the risk of eczema in Japanese young adultwomen.Methods: Included were 188 cases who met the criteria of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies inChildhood (ISAAC) for eczema. Control subjects were 1,082 women without eczema according to the ISAACcriteria, who had not been diagnosed with atopic eczema by a doctor and who had no current asthma as definedby the European Community Respiratory Health Survey criteria. Adjustment was made for age, region of residence,number of children, smoking, and education.Results: The minor TT genotype of SNP rs1800925 was significantly associated with an increased risk of eczema inthe co-dominant model: the adjusted odds ratio was 2.19 (95% confidence interval: 1.03-4.67). SNP rs20541 was notrelated to eczema. None of the haplotypes were significantly associated with eczema. Compared with women withthe CC or CT genotype of SNP rs1800925 who had never smoked, those with the TT genotype who had eversmoked had a 2.85-fold increased risk of eczema, though the adjusted odds ratio was not statistically significant,and neither multiplicative nor additive interaction was statistically significant.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the IL13 SNP rs1800925 is significantly associated with eczema in Japaneseyoung adult women. We could not find evidence for an interaction between SNP rs1800925 and smoking withregard to eczema

Unemployment and disability pension-an 18-year follow-up study of a 40-year-old population in a Norwegian county

<p>© 2012 Støver et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.</p><p>This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.</p

Stacked Search for Gravitational Waves from the 2006 SGR 1900+14 Storm

We present the results of a LIGO search for short-duration gravitational waves (GWs) associated with the 2006 March 29 SGR 1900+14 storm. A new search method is used, "stacking'' the GW data around the times of individual soft-gamma bursts in the storm to enhance sensitivity for models in which multiple bursts are accompanied by GW emission. We assume that variation in the time difference between burst electromagnetic emission and potential burst GW emission is small relative to the GW signal duration, and we time-align GW excess power time-frequency tilings containing individual burst triggers to their corresponding electromagnetic emissions. We use two GW emission models in our search: a fluence-weighted model and a flat (unweighted) model for the most electromagnetically energetic bursts. We find no evidence of GWs associated with either model. Model-dependent GW strain, isotropic GW emission energy E_GW, and \gamma = E_GW / E_EM upper limits are estimated using a variety of assumed waveforms. The stacking method allows us to set the most stringent model-dependent limits on transient GW strain published to date. We find E_GW upper limit estimates (at a nominal distance of 10 kpc) of between 2x10^45 erg and 6x10^50 erg depending on waveform type. These limits are an order of magnitude lower than upper limits published previously for this storm and overlap with the range of electromagnetic energies emitted in SGR giant flares.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure