Exploring the potential of agroforestry integration in arable and dairy farms in the Netherlands - an ex-ante assessment at field and farm level

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The NS3 protein of rice hoja blanca virus suppresses RNA silencing in mammalian cells

The NS3 protein of the tenuivirus rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV) has previously been shown to represent the viral RNA interference (RNAi) suppressor and is active in both plant and insect cells by binding short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) in vitro. Using a firefly luciferase-based silencing assay it is described here that NS3 is also active in mammalian cells. This activity is independent of the inducer molecule used. Using either synthetic siRNAs or a short hairpin RNA construct, NS3 was able to significantly suppress the RNAi-mediated silencing of luciferase expression in both monkey (Vero) and human (HEK293) cells. These results support the proposed mode of action of NS3 to act by sequestering siRNAs, the key molecules of the RNAi pathway conserved in all eukaryotes. The possible applications of this protein in modulating RNAi and investigating the proposed antiviral RNAi response in mammalian cell systems are discussed

Thermal behavior of Quantum Cellular Automaton wires

We investigate the effect of a finite temperature on the behavior of logic circuits based on the principle of Quantum Cellular Automata (QCA) and of ground state computation. In particular, we focus on the error probability for a wire of QCA cells that propagates a logic state. A numerical model and an analytical, more approximate, model are presented for the evaluation of the partition function of such a system and, consequently, of the desired probabilities. We compare the results of the two models, assessing the limits of validity of the analytical approach, and provide estimates for the maximum operating temperature.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures, uses revte

Binding of small interfering RNA molecules is crucial for RNA interference suppressor activity of rice hoja blanca virus NS3 in plants

The NS3 protein of rice hoja blanca tenuivirus represents a viral suppressor of RNAi that sequesters small interfering (si)RNAs in vitro. To determine whether this siRNA binding property is the critical determinant for the suppressor activity of NS3, an alanine point mutational analysis was performed and the resulting mutant proteins were tested for both siRNA binding ability and RNAi suppressor activity in plants. Alanine substitutions of lysine residues at position 173-175 resulted in mutant proteins that lost both their affinity for siRNAs and their RNAi suppressor activity in planta. This indicates that siRNA binding of NS3 is indeed essential for the suppressor function of NS3 and that residues at position 173-175 are involved in the siRNA binding and suppressor activit

Witte lupine voor kalkrijke bodems: Onderzoek over twee jaar naar perspectiefvolle lijnen.

Lupine (Lupinus spp) kan interessant zijn voor zowel biologische als gangbare akkerbouwers die zoeken naar een vlinderbloemig gewas om hun vruchtwisseling te verruimen, niet alleen als veevoer maar ook voor humane voeding. Het doel van dit project was een brede evaluatie van lijnen van witte lupine op hun geschiktheid voor teelt op kalkrijke kleigrond om te beoordelen of er perspectief is voor verdere veredeling voor zowel gangbare als biologische teelt.In dit rapport worden de meest perspectief lijkende lijnen vergeleken over 2012 en 2013 over vier locaties

Brood van natuurakkers: Maatwerk maakt het telen van broodtarwe op natuurakkers mogelijk.

Er is veel gaande op het gebied van natuurbeheer in Nederland. Bezuinigende natuurterrein-beheerorganisaties (TBO’s) zoeken naar nieuwe verdienmodellen. Dit creëert kansen voor bioboeren. Maar er zijn ook vragen over het vinden van de balans tussen natuurdoelen en productie. In het praktijknetwerk “Natuurgrond, Graan en Onkruid” is vooral gekeken naar de mogelijkheden voor de teelt van baktarwe op natuurakkers

Using a multi-actor approach to getting lupins ‘back on the menu’ in The Netherlands: involving breeders, farmers, food and feed industry and consumers.

The first initiatives aimed at increased lupin production in The Netherlands came from two high(er) value chains: the organic sector striving for regional feed production and the food industry looking for alternatives for soy-based products. As regional production is an added value for both market chains, an additional price could be afforded to compensate for the yield gap that developed over the years. Although this proved to be a good starting point for turning the downward spiral for lupins into an upward spiral, the barriers for a successful development turned out to come from many additional angles: a lack of knowledge on successful production among farmers, the absence of agro-chemicals allowed in the cultivation of lupins, the lack of infrastructure for collecting, drying and cleaning the lupins, the fear of food-producers to introduce a new and unknown allergenic ingredient to the production sites and the lack of knowledge among consumers were some of these additional barriers that needed to be addressed. To overcome these barriers, The Louis Bolk Institute started to cooperate with a great number of actors involved. In cooperation with food technologists and foodproducers new lupin based products were developed broadening the market for lupins grown for human consumption. Cooperation with a farmer union ensured that the allowance for necessary agro-chemicals was initiated and political support was organized at a regional and national level. Finally social organizations aimed at stimulating the public and political debate on protein transition were involved to get lupins better known among consumers and politicians as a new and healthy protein source. As a result of the involvement of all these different actors we are slowly seeing a rise in acreage and consumption of lupins in The Netherlands

[Review of] Stewart Culin. Games of North America Indians

About a dozen years ago, I had the opportunity to buy Stewart Culin\u27s classic work, Garnes of tile North American Indians, published in the 1902-1903 annual report of the Bureau of American Ethnology (BAE), Smithsonian Institution. The original edition numbered 9,682 copies, of which almost half went to the United States Congress. Beautifully illustrated with more than one thousand figures (mainly drawings of recreative artifacts, plus 21 photographic plates), the heavy and gold-embossed volume was offered for $175 by an antique dealer in Maine. Because I knew the fellow, he was willing to shave$50 from the price. Although this was still a fortune for me at the time, I made the purchase, and the book continues to serve me as a reference. Today, this original edition is difficult to get and, no doubt, even more expensive. Because of its ongoing significance as a rich source of detailed information about traditional native entertainment, I welcome its republication by the University of Nebraska Press. The moderate price of this new edition puts Culin\u27s treasure within financial reach of many

Local strategies for glocal challenges. Comparing policing agendas in Amsterdam and Rotterdam

In this chapter we analyze the politics of policing, with a specific focus on policing agendas in the two largest cities in The Netherlands: Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Both metropolises are considered metropolises facing ‘glocal’ challenges related to multicultural populations in urban areas, social inequalities in terms of household income, international harbors, crime and disorder. The term ‘glocal’ refers to the interlinkages between global challenges and local communities. In order to get an understanding of the tendencies towards divergence and convergence in urban policing in the metropolises under study we start with a summary of general trends in policing in the Netherlands in the second section. In the third section national, regional and local governmental constitutional arrangements, discretionary powers and public police management are presented. The remainder of the chapter compares and contrasts policing agendas in Amsterdam and Rotterdam and concludes with an overview of their regimes and possible explanations for convergence and divergence in the politics of policing in these metropolises. The search for the regimes in the background of policing agendas in these two embedded case studies reveals both convergence and divergence towards the national agenda and between the agendas in both metropolises. Possible explanations for these trends could be found in the political ‘circuits of power’ (Devroe, Edwards, Ponsaers, this volume) of the municipal ruling coalition and in wider institutional arrangements in place