An integrated policy framework and plan of action to prevent and control plant invasions in India

Background and Objectives. Cataract is the leading cause of blindness worldwide. Although surgery is now considered the most successful cure, the development of alternative treatments is needed due to postsurgical complications. Oxidative stress in the lens is considered to be the most crucial factor in the formation of cataracts. Therefore, the effects of the hydroalcoholic extract of Asparagus officinalis L, a traditional antioxidative plant, on cataract formation of sodium selenite were evaluated. Materials and Methods. Neonatal rats received a single dose of sodium selenite as an intraperitoneal injection (30 μmol/kg) on day 10 postnatal to induce cataract. Animals were then posttreated with various oral solutions of A. officinalis extract at 200 mg/kg or 400 mg/kg once daily on days 10–16 postnatal. Cataract was evaluated by slit-lamp, and lens opacification was analyzed in each group 24 hours after the last treatment at day seven postadministration of the extracts or vehicle. The total protein concentration of lenses, glutathione reductase activity as the glutathione antioxidant capacity, and malondialdehyde content as a marker of lipid peroxidation were further assessed in removed rat lenses on day 30 postnatal. Results. All lenses in the healthy and control plant groups were clear. Sodium selenite significantly increased cataract grade (2.8 ± 0.2) when compared to the healthy group p = 0.001 . However, cataract grades were decreased considerably as 1.9 ± 0.72 and 1.5 ± 0.85 in groups that received 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg oral extract of A. officinalis, respectively. A. officinalis extract also restored all abnormalities of biochemical markers induced by sodium selenite. Conclusion. Our data suggest that A. officinalis could be a promising candidate as a safe alternative treatment in cataracts upon further clinical trials. This effect is probably associated with the antioxidant activity of A. officinalis.

Download Full-text

Hiking trails as conduits for the spread of non-native species in mountain areas

Biological Invasions ◽

10.1007/s10530-019-02165-9 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 22 (3) ◽

pp. 1121-1134 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Rebecca Liedtke ◽

Agustina Barros ◽

Franz Essl ◽

Jonas J. Lembrechts ◽

Ronja E. M. Wedegärtner ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Native Species ◽

Control Plant ◽

Plant Invasions ◽

Native Plant ◽

Mountain Areas ◽

Central Chile ◽

Hiking Trails ◽

Local Plant ◽

Southern Central ◽

Recreational Use

AbstractRoadsides are major pathways of plant invasions in mountain regions. However, the increasing importance of tourism may also turn hiking trails into conduits of non-native plant spread to remote mountain landscapes. Here, we evaluated the importance of such trails for plant invasion in five protected mountain areas of southern central Chile. We therefore sampled native and non-native species along 17 trails and in the adjacent undisturbed vegetation. We analyzed whether the number and cover of non-native species in local plant assemblages is related to distance to trail and a number of additional variables that characterize the abiotic and biotic environment as well as the usage of the trail. We found that non-native species at higher elevations are a subset of the lowland source pool and that their number and cover decreases with increasing elevation and with distance to trails, although this latter variable only explained 4–8% of the variation in the data. In addition, non-native richness and cover were positively correlated with signs of livestock presence but negatively with the presence of intact forest vegetation. These results suggest that, at least in the region studied, hiking trails have indeed fostered non-native species spread to higher elevations, although less efficiently than roadsides. As a corollary, appropriate planning and management of trails could become increasingly important to control plant invasions into mountains in a world which is warming and where visitation and recreational use of mountainous areas is expected to increase.

Download Full-text

Carbon nanocarriers deliver siRNA to intact plant cells for efficient gene knockdown

Science Advances ◽

10.1126/sciadv.aaz0495 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 6 (26) ◽

pp. eaaz0495 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Gozde S. Demirer ◽

Huan Zhang ◽

Natalie S. Goh ◽

Rebecca L. Pinals ◽

Roger Chang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sirna Delivery ◽

Control Plant ◽

Plant Cells ◽

Plant Biotechnology ◽

Intact Plant ◽

Intact Cells ◽

Efficient Gene ◽

Dna Vectors ◽

And Control ◽

Interfering Rna

Posttranscriptional gene silencing (PTGS) is a powerful tool to understand and control plant metabolic pathways, which is central to plant biotechnology. PTGS is commonly accomplished through delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) into cells. Standard plant siRNA delivery methods (Agrobacterium and viruses) involve coding siRNA into DNA vectors and are only tractable for certain plant species. Here, we develop a nanotube-based platform for direct delivery of siRNA and show high silencing efficiency in intact plant cells. We demonstrate that nanotubes successfully deliver siRNA and silence endogenous genes, owing to effective intracellular delivery and nanotube-induced protection of siRNA from nuclease degradation. This study establishes that nanotubes could enable a myriad of plant biotechnology applications that rely on RNA delivery to intact cells.

Download Full-text

Plant invasions in New Zealand: global lessons in prevention, eradication and control

Biological Invasions ◽

10.1007/s10530-020-02224-6 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (5) ◽

pp. 1539-1562 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Philip E. Hulme

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Plant Invasions ◽

And Control

Download Full-text

A Quantitative Model for the Integrated Policy Framework

IMF Working Papers ◽

10.5089/9781513549668.001 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (122) ◽

Author(s):

Tobias Adrian ◽

Christopher Erceg ◽

Jesper Lindé ◽

Pawel Zabczyk ◽

Jianping Zhou

Keyword(s):

Foreign Currency ◽

Balance Sheet ◽

Quantitative Model ◽

New Keynesian ◽

Policy Framework ◽

Inflation Expectations ◽

Policy Tools ◽

Management Tools ◽

Foreign Exchange Intervention ◽

Integrated Policy

Many central banks have relied on a range of policy tools, including foreign exchange intervention (FXI) and capital flow management tools (CFMs), to mitigate the effects of volatile capital flows on their economies. We develop an empirically-oriented New Keynesian model to evaluate and quantify how using multiple policy tools can potentially improve monetary policy tradeoffs. Our model embeds nonlinear balance sheet channels and includes a range of empirically-relevant frictions. We show that FXI and CFMs may improve policy tradeoffs under certain conditions, especially for economies with less well-anchored inflation expectations, substantial foreign currency mismatch, and that are more vulnerable to shocks likely to induce capital outflows and exchange rate pressures.

Download Full-text

Comparison of Cabbage Seedling Growth in Four Transplant Production Systems

HortTechnology ◽

10.21273/horttech.9.1.133a ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 133a

Author(s):

Jonathan M. Frantz ◽

Gregory E. Welbaum ◽

Zhengxing Shen ◽

Ron Morse

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Leaf Area ◽

Water Availability ◽

Production Systems ◽

Root Zone ◽

Control Plant ◽

Seedling Mortality ◽

Hydroponic System ◽

Black Plastic ◽

And Control

“Float-bed” (FB) is a simple hydroponic system used by the tobacco industry for transplant production. “Ebb-and-flood” (EF) is a modified FB system with periodic draining of the bed to limit water availability and control plant growth. Field-bed cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. gp. Capitata) transplant production was compared with FB, EF, and overhead-irrigated plug-tray greenhouse systems. Plants were produced in May and June and transplanted in a field near Blacksburg, Va., in June and July of 1994 and 1995, respectively. Beds for FB and EF production consisted of galvanized metal troughs (3.3 × 0.8 × 0.3 m) lined with a double layer of 0.075-mm-thick black plastic film. In 1994, both EF and FB seedlings were not hardened before transplanting, were severely stressed after transplanting, and had higher seedling mortality compared with plants from other systems. Plug-tray transplants showed the greatest increase in leaf area following transplanting and matured earlier than seedlings produced in other systems. In 1995, EF- and FB-grown cabbage plants were hardened by withholding water before transplanting, and seedlings had greater fresh mass and leaf area than plug-tray or field-bed seedlings 3.5 weeks after transplanting. Less succulent cabbage transplants were grown in EF and FB systems containing 66 mg·L-1 N (40% by nitrate) and 83 mg·L-1 K. Compared with the FB system, the EF system allowed control of water availability, which slowed plant growth, and increased oxygen concentration in the root zone. Both EF and FB systems are suitable for cabbage transplant production.

Download Full-text

Toward an Integrated Policy Framework

Policy Papers ◽

10.5089/9781513558769.007 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (46) ◽

Author(s):

Keyword(s):

Capital Flows ◽

Structural Characteristics ◽

Optimal Path ◽

Careful Consideration ◽

Policy Framework ◽

Fiscal Policies ◽

Inappropriate Use ◽

Integrated Policy ◽

External Stabilization ◽

Institutional View

Policymakers often face difficult tradeoffs in pursuing domestic and external stabilization objectives. The paper reflects staff’s work to advance the understanding of the policy options and tradeoffs available to policymakers in a systematic and analytical way. The paper recognizes that the optimal path of the IPF tools depends on structural characteristics and fiscal policies. The operational implications of IPF findings require careful consideration. Developing safeguards to minimize the risk of inappropriate use of IPF policies will be essential. Staff remains guided by the Fund’s Institutional View (IV) on the Liberalization and Management of Capital Flows.

Download Full-text

Resilient companies in the time of Covid-19 pandemic: a case study approach

Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy ◽

10.1108/jepp-03-2021-0021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Chiara Acciarini ◽

Paolo Boccardelli ◽

Mario Vitale

Keyword(s):

Policy Framework ◽

Organizational Resilience ◽

Case Study Approach ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Strategic Responses ◽

Unexpected Events ◽

Content Type ◽

Study Approach ◽

Integrated Policy

PurposeThe Covid-19 pandemic represents an extraordinary and unpredictable event influencing the whole economy and society. Using a case study approach, the authors explored how big companies operating in Italy were able to respond to the crisis to ensure business continuity. Therefore, the authors discussed different business disruptions caused by Covid-19; in addition, they developed an integrated policy framework in which they proposed specific strategic responses for increasing the level of organizational resilience. The aim of the paper is to discuss and reflect on the ability of specific companies to increase their level of organizational resilience when unexpected events happen.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted semi-structured interviews with target CEOs of four major companies operating in Italy in different industries. Especially, the authors focused on multiutilities, media and communications, investment banking and mobile telecommunications. The interviews were based on questions dealing with Covid-19 implications and strategic responses to navigate this complex scenario.FindingsBased on the CEOs' contributions, the authors presented short-term actions and long-term strategies planned and implemented by each Italian company. In particular, the authors emphasized similarities and dissimilarities in terms of strategic responses and future business development.Originality/valueThe analysis of practical cases was helpful for increasing their knowledge on organizational resilience and for providing the managerial community with a policy framework to navigate unexpected events like the Covid-19 pandemic.

Download Full-text