Ecosystem services and disservices in small-scale tropical agriculture

Small-scale farmlands are dynamic systems crucial to the food-security and livelihoods of more than two billion people and there is political pressure in many developing nations to consolidate and expand small farms into larger units of management. This could have consequences for agro-ecosystem processes and the ecosystem services and disservices that regulate crop production. This thesis aims to highlight and address these issues in smallholder farming landscapes, which are poorly studied and represent significant knowledge gaps. Research on pollination and biological control is biased towards large-scale systems, and biological control research shows a strong geographic bias to temperate developed nations, whilst pollination research is geographically more balanced. To have more impact on global issues of poverty and food-security, agricultural ecosystem service research needs to have a greater focus on small-scale farmed landscapes. In a low-input, small-scale farmed area of Kenya, the response to land-use intensification of insect groups important to ecosystem services and disservices for crop production was examined. Small ecotone pollinators responded negatively to intensification, but larger bees did not. Natural enemies did not show a strong negative response to land-use intensification, which suggested that low pesticide application rates allowed cultural species to persist in croplands. The functional richness of Hymenoptera and Coleoptera was highest in the most intensified land-use context, which provides support for the intermediate landscape complexity hypothesis. Functional evenness and trait-environment associations showed that phytophagous traits increased with land-use intensification and could be linked to increased ecosystem disservice if crops are consumed. Smallholder interviews showed that ecosystem disservices due to crop-raiding animals were a major problem and that attitudes to wildlife, elephants and protected areas became more negative with increasing proximity to large areas of wilderness. However, increasing the proportion of natural habitat in the vicinity of smallholdings moderated the negative effect of proximity to wilderness on attitudes towards protected areas. Thus, perceived ecosystem disservices may vary with land-sparing at different spatial scales (i.e., conserved habitat). Whilst this thesis demonstrates that land-use intensification of early stage small-scale farming landscapes affects human perceptions and attitudes towards nature and the taxonomic and functional composition of cropland insect communities, direct quantification of the crop yield and economic consequences of this is sorely needed. Assessment of actual vs. perceived ecosystem disservices would also aid the conservation measures needed to make land-sparing work

Calcium channel α2δ1 proteins mediate trigeminal neuropathic pain states associated with aberrant excitatory synaptogenesis.

To investigate a potential mechanism underlying trigeminal nerve injury-induced orofacial hypersensitivity, we used a rat model of chronic constriction injury to the infraorbital nerve (CCI-ION) to study whether CCI-ION caused calcium channel α2δ1 (Cavα2δ1) protein dysregulation in trigeminal ganglia and associated spinal subnucleus caudalis and C1/C2 cervical dorsal spinal cord (Vc/C2). Furthermore, we studied whether this neuroplasticity contributed to spinal neuron sensitization and neuropathic pain states. CCI-ION caused orofacial hypersensitivity that correlated with Cavα2δ1 up-regulation in trigeminal ganglion neurons and Vc/C2. Blocking Cavα2δ1 with gabapentin, a ligand for the Cavα2δ1 proteins, or Cavα2δ1 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides led to a reversal of orofacial hypersensitivity, supporting an important role of Cavα2δ1 in orofacial pain processing. Importantly, increased Cavα2δ1 in Vc/C2 superficial dorsal horn was associated with increased excitatory synaptogenesis and increased frequency, but not the amplitude, of miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents in dorsal horn neurons that could be blocked by gabapentin. Thus, CCI-ION-induced Cavα2δ1 up-regulation may contribute to orofacial neuropathic pain states through abnormal excitatory synapse formation and enhanced presynaptic excitatory neurotransmitter release in Vc/C2

Impuesto temporal a los activos netos y su relación con el pago de tributos en las empresas comerciales del distrito de Breña, año 2017

La presente tesis de investigación, tiene como objeto de estudio analizar como el Impuesto Temporal a los Activos Netos se relaciona con el pago de tributos en las empresas Comerciales del distrito de Breña año 2017. La justificación de su estudio se basa en demostrar porque un grupo específico de contribuyentes según la norma tributaria deben presentar cada año su declaración de pago de dicho Impuesto, específicamente quienes generan renta de tercera categoría siendo un requisito indispensable que estos superen el millón de soles en patrimonio pese a que en el año no haya generado ganancias para la Empresa, la cual para la presente investigación se presentó el 31 de diciembre del 2016. Asimismo, las empresas comerciales del distrito de Breña que superan el millón de soles y que al generar esta cantidad de activos tienen que deducir en el Impuesto a la Renta, siempre que hayan iniciado operaciones antes del 1 de enero del 2017, están obligados al pago de este Impuesto Temporal sobre sus activos e ingresos obtenidos durante el año. La investigación ha emplear en la presente tesis es correlacional, utilizaremos un diseño no experimental, en una muestra conformada por 17 empresas, empleados del área contable en 2 mediana y grandes empresas la muestra está compuesta por 45 personas. La técnica que se usó es la encuesta y el instrumento de recolección de datos, fue el cuestionario el mismo que fue aplicado a la mediana y grandes empresas del Distrito de Breña que tienen un patrimonio que superen el millón de soles. Una investigación para que tenga el valor científico tenemos que validar los instrumentos que se utilizó, el mismo que es reforzado con las recomendaciones y juicio de expertos, siendo respaldado por el uso del Alfa de Cronbach; la comprobación de las hipótesis realizó la prueba Chi cuadrado. Según el desarrollo de la tesis de investigación se llegó a la conclusión que el Impuesto Temporal a los Activos Netos tiene relación con el Pago de tributos en el distrito de breña año 2017

Bundles of Joy? Using the ERA database to explore the outcomes of CSA practice interactions

Farmers rarely apply CSA technologies in isolation and there is a strong demand for evidence about which bundles of practices work together to enhance outcome performance. The ERA database brings together thousands of African CSA studies giving us unprecedented power to explore trade-offs when bundling a diverse suite of practices together across a diverse range of outcome indicators. We have developed a range of analytical algorithms and plotting functions to assess performance of technology bundles to be integrated as apps on the ERA website

Predicting the Performance of CSA Technologies under current and future conditions

Predicting the Performance of CSA Technologies under current and future conditions. Presentation at the Global Science Conference for Climate-Smart Agriculture 8-11 October 2019. Bali, Indonesia

Co-production and Uptake of Weather and Climate Services: Evidence of Welfare Impacts Among Farmers in Senegal Using A Dynamic Panel Data Approach

The present study aims to assess the impact of weather and climate information on the agricultural productivity and household income of smallholder farmers in Senegal. More specifically, authors assess the effectiveness of the Multidisciplinary Working Group (MWG) model that co-produces tailored weather and climate information in influencing management responses by farmers, ultimately leading to improved livelihoods in the form of higher crop yields and incomes

Does climate-smart agriculture make economic sense to farmers? Yes, and there's more evidence than you think

Initial and sustained use of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) often hinges on the economic costs, benefits and risks of the new management practice, as well as farmer’s socio-economic endowments. However, data showing the economic performance of CSA is rarely presented. Incomplete or missing information limits the interest of investors at all levels—donors, governments, private sector, and farmers.Initial and sustained use of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) often hinges on the economic costs, benefits and risks of the new management practice, as well as farmer’s socio-economic endowments. However, data showing the economic performance of CSA is rarely presented. Incomplete or missing information limits the interest of investors at all levels—donors, governments, private sector, and farmers

Mutations in GATA2 cause primary lymphedema associated with a predisposition to acute myeloid leukemia (Emberger syndrome).

We report an allelic series of eight mutations in GATA2 underlying Emberger syndrome, an autosomal dominant primary lymphedema associated with a predisposition to acute myeloid leukemia. GATA2 is a transcription factor that plays an essential role in gene regulation during vascular development and hematopoietic differentiation. Our findings indicate that haploinsufficiency of GATA2 underlies primary lymphedema and predisposes to acute myeloid leukemia in this syndrome