Accountability and Rights in Right-based Approaches for Local Water Governance

This paper explores local rights and accountability in local water resource management. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government agencies have an important role and responsibility to create an environment in which people can assume accountability and have a greater chance to get their rights to water fulfilled. A framework of research questions is proposed within a Right-based Approaches (RBA) framework. Answers to these questions could contribute to the policy responses necessary to ensure that rights of the underprivileged groups in particular in local communities are fulfilled and that they can assume their own share of accountability for the good use of available water resources.     

Choosing cities: a behavioural economic approach

How do people and firms choose to relocate to new cities? We argue that this difficult yet consequential choice is often poorly made, or not made at all, resulting in undermobility and consequent losses in individual utility and aggregate social welfare. We propose a behavioural economic theory of why this happens and the predictable directions in which failure occurs in terms of characteristic biases and heuristics in city choice (including status quo bias, loss aversion, endowment effect, availability heuristics, present bias, social norms, anchoring, elimination heuristics, sunk cost effects, and regret aversion). We examine how cities and their regional context might mitigate this problem by improving information as inputs into choice and by redesigning the choice architecture to embed effective choice heuristics into city search and match databases.     

The extent of cage aquaculture,adherence to best practices and reflections for sustainable aquaculture on African inland waters

Cage aquaculture is expanding on African inland waters and has potential to close the fish supply deficit in the region and provide other social benefits such as employment and income. However, if not appropriately guided and regulated, cage aquaculture could become unsustainable, causing conflicts with other water uses, environmental degradation and economic losses to aquaculture enterprises. To enhance sustainability of cage aquaculture on the African inland waters, we developed an inventory of cage aquaculture installations and used it to investigate the distribution and magnitude of cage aquaculture and adherence to best practices for sustainable aquaculture. Our results show evidence of spatial expansion of cage aquaculture on the African inland waters, of varying magnitude across and within water bodies and partial adherence to best practices. Cage aquaculture was confirmed on 18 water bodies which together share 263 installations with more than 20,000 cages. Lakes Victoria, Kariba, Volta and River Volta host 82.9% of cage aquaculture installations on the African inland waters and are major areas for cage aquaculture. Contrary to best practices, evidence shows cage aquaculture installations entirely or in close proximity to protected areas, in eutrophic and hypertrophic waters, shallow water bodies and sites (≥5 m average depth) and close to the shoreline. Cage aquaculture is qualified as an additional stressor to the African inland waters and because it is expected to continue expanding, adherence to best practices should be promoted for sustainability.     

Paradigm shifts required to promote ecosystem modeling for ecosystem-based fishery management for African inland lakes

Ecosystem-based fishery management (EBFM) is the best option where other fishery management objectives have failed. This makes EBFM important for the African inland lakes and fisheries resources that are among the most threatened in the world despite existing management interventions. Ecosystem modeling provides information that guides EBFM, and, to promote EBFM for the African inland lakes and fisheries, we present strategies required to promote ecosystem modeling. The strategies are based on an examination, presented herein, of (i) publication trends in literature applying two leading aquatic ecosystem modeling platforms, Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) and Atlantis, on the African Great Lakes as representatives of African inland lakes and (ii) deficiencies in data eminent in ecosystem models existing on these lakes. The examination indicated that ecosystem modeling is inactive on the African Great Lakes, and there is limited local and regional capacity for ecosystem modeling with existing models predominantly led by foreign researchers and marred by data deficiencies. The implications of these observations for ecosystem modeling and EBFM for the African Great Lakes are discussed. The strategies required to promote ecosystem modeling include supporting short-term training workshops to equip local scientists with basic skills for ecosystem modeling, mainstreaming ecosystem modeling in fisheries training curriculum of local universities, and conducting data collection surveys to fill data deficiencies. These are envisaged to increase capacity and activate ecosystem modeling, and consequently promote EBFM.     

Physical and nutritional properties of edamame seeds as influenced by stage of development

Changes in physical, chemical and anti-nutritional characteristics of two vegetable soybean varieties (‘Asmara’ and ‘Mooncake’) during seed development were investigated. Pods were sampled weekly for 6 weeks starting from developmental stage 5 (R5) to 8 (R8). Changes over time in measured attributes were similar but the rate of change differed among the two varieties. In both varieties seed moisture content and intensity of green color decreased as seed developed with the most significant decline observed in the last 2 weeks of sampling. Seed weight peaked at R6 then gradually decreased thereafter, while seed hardness increased throughout the sampling period with ‘Asmara’ recording significantly higher seed hardness at R8. For both varieties, protein accumulation occurred mostly in the later stages, while significant lipid accumulation was observed in the early stages of development. Among the sugars, fructose content decreased with seed development, sucrose content increased to R6 before decreasing, and there was rapid accumulation of raffinose and stachyose in the last 2 weeks of sampling. Total phenolic content decreased between R5 and R6 but increased with further seed development. Tannin and phytate content in seed increased throughout the sampling period. Changes in trypsin inhibitory activity varied with variety reaching a maximum at R6 for ‘Asmara, and closer to maturation for “Mooncake’. Our data provide physical, chemical and anti-nutritional basis for harvesting vegetable soybean at R6 namely: peak seed weight and sucrose content, lower oligosaccharide and anti-nutrients values and intense green color.     

Immunologic tolerance to myelin basic protein decreases stroke size after transient focal cerebral ischemia

Immune mechanisms contribute to cerebral ischemic injury. Therapeutic immunosuppressive options are limited due to systemic side effects. We attempted to achieve immunosuppression in the brain through oral tolerance to myelin basic protein (MBP). Lewis rats were fed low-dose bovine MBP or ovalbumin (1 mg, five times) before 3 h of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). A third group of animals was sensitized to MBP but did not survive the post-stroke period. Infarct size at 24 and 96 h after ischemia was significantly less in tolerized animals. Tolerance to MBP was confirmed in vivo by a decrease in delayed-type hypersensitivity to MBP. Systemic immune responses, characterized in vitro by spleen cell proliferation to Con A, lipopolysaccharide, and MBP, again confirmed antigen-specific immunologic tolerance. Immunohistochemistry revealed transforming growth factor beta1 production by T cells in the brains of tolerized but not control animals. Systemic transforming growth factor beta1 levels were equivalent in both groups. Corticosterone levels 24 h after surgery were elevated in all sham-operated animals and ischemic control animals but not in ischemic tolerized animals. These results demonstrate that antigen-specific modulation of the immune response decreases infarct size after focal cerebral ischemia and that sensitization to the same antigen may actually worsen outcome.     

Mapping the catechol binding site in dopamine D₁ receptors: synthesis and evaluation of two parallel series of bicyclic dopamine analogues

A novel class of isochroman dopamine analogues, originally reported by Abbott Laboratories, have >100‐fold selectivity for D₁‐like over D₂‐like receptors. We synthesized a parallel series of chroman compounds and showed that repositioning the oxygen atom in the heterocyclic ring decreases potency and confers D₂‐like receptor selectivity to these compounds. In silico modeling supports the hypothesis that the altered pharmacology for the chroman series is due to potential intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the oxygen in the chroman ring and the meta‐hydroxy group of the catechol moiety. This interaction realigns the catechol hydroxy groups and disrupts key interactions between these ligands and critical serine residues in TM5 of the D₁‐like receptors. This hypothesis was tested by the synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of a parallel series of carbocyclic compounds. Our results suggest that if the potential for intramolecular hydrogen bonding is removed, D₁‐like receptor potency and selectivity are restored.     

Characterization and Differentiation of the Tumor Microenvironment (TME) of Orthotopic and Subcutaneously Grown Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) in Immunocompetent Mice

For the development and evaluation of new head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) therapeutics, suitable, well-characterized animal models are needed. Thus, by analyzing orthotopic versus subcutaneous models of HNSCC in immunocompetent mice, we evaluated the existence of adenosine-related immunosuppressive B- and T lymphocyte populations within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Applying the SCC VII model for the induction of HNSCC in immunocompetent C3H/HeN mice, the cellular TME was characterized after tumor initiation over time by flow cytometry. The TME in orthotopic grown tumors revealed a larger population of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) with more B cells and CD4⁺ T cells than the subcutaneously grown tumors. Immune cell populations in the blood and bone marrow showed a rather distinct reaction toward tumor induction and tumor location compared to the spleen, lymph nodes, or thymus. In addition, large numbers of immunosuppressive B- and T cells were identified within the TME but also in secondary lymphoid organs, independently of the tumor initiation site. The altered immunogenic TME may influence the response to any treatment attempt. Moreover, when analyzing the TME and other lymphoid organs of tumor-bearing mice, we observed conditions reflecting largely those of patients suffering from HNSCC suggesting the C3H/HeN mouse model as a suitable tool for studies aiming to target immunosuppression to improve anti-cancer therapies.