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Summary Ownership of assets is important for poverty reduction, and women’s control of assets is associated with positive development outcomes at the household and individual levels. This research was undertaken to provide guidance for agricultural development programs on how to incorporate gender and assets in the design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions. This paper synthesizes the findings of eight mixed-method evaluations of the impacts of agricultural development projects on individual and household assets in seven countries in Africa and South Asia. The results show that assets both affect and are affected by projects, indicating that it is both feasible and important to consider assets in the design, implementation, and evaluation of projects. All projects were associated with increases in asset levels and other benefits at the household level; however, only four projects documented significant, positive impacts on women’s ownership or control of some types of assets relative to a control group, and of those only one project provided evidence of a reduction in the gender asset gap. The quantitative and qualitative findings suggest ways that greater attention to gender and assets by researchers and development implementers could improve outcomes for women in future projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Biofortification is increasingly seen as an additional tool to combat micronutrient malnutrition. This paper estimates the costs and potential benefits of biofortification of globally important staple food crops with provitamin A, iron, and zinc for twelve countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Using a modification of the Disability-Adjusted Life Years framework we conclude that overall, the intervention can make a significant impact on the burden of micronutrient deficiencies in the developing world in a highly cost-effective manner. Results differ by crop, micronutrient, and country; and major reasons underlying these differences are identified to inform policy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper assesses the economic value of improving local watershed services for residents of a micro-watershed in the hillsides of Nicaragua. The valuation of environmental services at the local level has been relatively understudied in the literature on environmental services. According to residents, water availability has been declining over time in the zone as a result of watershed degradation. Since the primary use of water is for domestic consumption, the contingent valuation methodology (CVM) is used to estimate the value of improving water supplies in the micro-watershed. The results suggest that the economic value that local residents place on improving the quality of natural water sources is relatively modest, approximately US$10,000 per year. The costs and benefits of several possible land management interventions for improving the water situation are discussed. Intervention is difficult to justify solely on the value of expected improvements in water quality or availability, however, further analysis of mitigation options reveals that they may be justifiable from other perspectives as part of an integrated community resource management strategy. The conclusion is that a participatory, multi-sector approach is best for identifying complementarities that can simplify management of complex systems like watersheds. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Persistent poverty and environmental degradation demand a constant effort to improve the effectiveness and impact of agricultural and natural resource management research. Participatory research methods have developed as a way to help researchers better target their work towards the needs and constraints of specific stakeholder groups. Participatory research may also strengthen the capacity of participants to initiate a continuous process of innovation. The capacity of farmers and other end users of technologies to innovate may be particularly important in poor, marginal environments where conditions are highly variable. This paper assesses the impact of using participatory methods in three agricultural research projects which have a natural resource management focus. Mixed methods are used to assess technological, economic, human, and social impacts and the cost implications of incorporating beneficiaries into the research process. User participation was found to influence priorities and practices within and beyond the specific projects studied. Participation led to more relevant technologies and greater economic impacts, especially when participation was early in the research process. Impacts on farmer capacity were high when farmers worked intensively with researchers over a period of time. Use of participatory methods changes research costs. When farmers took over tasks that were previously done by researchers, some of the research costs were transferred to farmers. When participatory methods were combined with conventional on-farm research, there were also start-up costs, because researchers and farmers needed to learn new research methods. However these additional one-time costs were not significant in terms of total research costs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Presents case studies of five `industrialized ' agricultural operations in developing countries since World War II. Private capitalist projects; Historical context; Theoretical context; Obstacles in farming; Land, labor and capital.

Abstract: This paper examines a composite damage constitutive model, MAT58, in LS-DYNA and its application for use in braided composite tube axial crush simulations. The constitutive response of MAT58 was investigated using single element simulations. It was found that MAT58 reproduced the softening behavior of the braided composite under monotonic compressive loading, but failed in subsequent unloading and tensile loading cycles. A deficiency in the damage law in MAT58 was identified. Unloading and reloading a volume of material that had suffered some degree of damage was a part of the process with the progressing of crush zone during the axial crush of composite tubes. Consequently, this deficiency hinders the success of MAT58 in such applications. In tri-axial braided composite tube axial crush simulations, although the predicted initial peak forces were within 20% of the experimental values, the predictions for the specific energy absorption (SEA) values were consistently low, particularly for tubes without a plug as crush initiator. These discrepancies are attributable to the deficiency in the damage law in MAT58. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Sensing the osmolarity of the environment is a critical response for all organisms. Whereas bacteria will migrate away from high osmotic conditions, most eukaryotic cells are not motile and use adaptive metabolic responses for survival. The p38 MAPK pathway is a crucial mediator of survival during cellular stress. We have discovered a novel scaffold protein that binds to actin, the GTPase Rac, and the upstream kinases MEKK3 and MKK3 in the p38 MAPK phospho-relay module. RNA interference (RNAi) demonstrates that MEKK3 and the scaffold protein are required for p38 activation in response to sorbitol-induced hyperosmolarity. FRET identifies a cytoplasmic complex of the MEKK3 scaffold protein that is recruited to dynamic actin structures in response to sorbitol treatment. Through its ability to bind actin, relocalize to Rac-containing membrane ruffles and its obligate requirement for p38 activation in response to sorbitol, we have termed this protein osmosensing scaffold for MEKK3 (OSM). The Rac-OSM-MEKK3-MKK3 complex is the mammalian counterpart of the CDC42-STE50-STE11-Pbs2 complex in Saccharomyces cerevisiae that is required for the regulation of p38 activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Kinase inhibitors have limited success in cancer treatment because tumors circumvent their action. Using a quantitative proteomics approach, we assessed kinome activity in response to MEK inhibition in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells and genetically engineered mice (GEMMs). MEK inhibition caused acute ERK activity loss, resulting in rapid c-Myc degradation that induced expression and activation of several receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). RNAi knockdown of ERK or c-Myc mimicked RTK induction by MEK inhibitors, and prevention of proteasomal c-Myc degradation blocked kinome reprogramming. MEK inhibitor-induced RTK stimulation overcame MEK2 inhibition, but not MEK1 inhibition, reactivating ERK and producing drug resistance. The C3Tag GEMM for TNBC similarly induced RTKs in response to MEK inhibition. The inhibitor-induced RTK profile suggested a kinase inhibitor combination therapy that produced GEMM tumor apoptosis and regression where single agents were ineffective. This approach defines mechanisms of drug resistance, allowing rational design of combination therapies for cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Skeletal disorders and neural tube closure defects represent clinically significant human malformations. The signaling networks regulating normal skeletal patterning and neurulation are largely unknown. Targeted mutation of the active site lysine of MEK kinase 4 (MEKK4) produces a kinase-inactive MEKK4 protein (MEKK4K1361R). Embryos homozygous for this mutation die at birth as a result of skeletal malformations and neural tube defects. Hindbrains of exencephalic MEKKK1361R embryos show a striking increase in neuroepithelial cell apoptosis and a dramatic loss of phosphorylation of MKK3 and -6, mitogen-activated protein kinase kinases (MKKs) regulated by MEKK4 in the p38 pathway. Phosphorylation of MAPK-activated protein kinase 2, a p38 substrate, is also inhibited, demonstrating a loss of p38 activity in MEKK4K1361R embryos. In contrast, the MEK1/2-extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 (ERK1)/ERK2 and MKK4-Jun N-terminal protein kinase pathways were unaffected. The p38 pathway has been shown to regulate the phosphorylation and expression of the small heat shock protein HSP27. Compared to the wild type, MEKK4K1361R fibroblasts showed significantly reduced phosphorylation of p38 and HSP27, with a corresponding heat shock-induced instability of the actin cytoskeleton. Together, these data demonstrate MEKK4 regulation of p38 and that substrates downstream of p38 control cellular homeostasis. The findings are the first demonstration that MEKK4-regulated p38 activity is critical for neurulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MEKK2, MEK5, and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 5 (ERK5) are members of a three-kinase cascade for the activation of ERK5. MEK5 is the only MAP2K to express a PB1 domain, and we have shown that it heterodimerizes with the PB1 domain of MEKK2. Here we demonstrate the MEK5 PB1 domain is a scaffold that also binds ERK5, functionally forming a MEKK2-MEK5-ERK5 complex. Reconstitution assays and CFP/YFP imaging (fluorescence resonance energy transfer [FRET]) measuring YFP-MEKK2/CFP-MEK5 and CFP-MEK5/YFP-ERK5 interactions define distinct MEK5 PB1 domain binding sites for MEKK2 and ERK5, with a C-terminal extension of the PB1 domain contributing to ERK5 binding. Stimulus-dependent CFP/YFP FRET in combination with mutational analysis was used to define MEK5 PB1 domain residues critical for the interaction of MEKK2/MEK5 and MEK5/ERK5 required for activation of the ERK5 pathway in living cells. Fusion of the MEK5 PB1 domain to the N terminus of MEK1 confers ERK5 regulation by a MAP2K normally regulating only ERK1/2. The MEK5 PB1 domain confers stringent MAP3K regulation of ERK5 relative to more promiscuous MAP3K control of ERK1/2, JNK, and p38. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As automobile use expands in population-dense cities across the world, there is a growing need for new approaches to mitigate the consequences to pedestrians of pedestrian/automotive collisions. This is especially challenging for passive approaches since there is an increasing internal space demand that reduces the crush zone between the relatively compliant hood and rigid underhood components. One unique approach is an active hood lift which raises the hood upon detection of a collision with a pedestrian to increase the crush zone. This approach is technically challenging due to the fast and accurate timing which is sensitive to extrinsic factors (including pedestrian height and weight and the need for reusable/automatically resettable functionality. This paper presents a novel hood lift concept: the shape memory alloy ReseTtable (SMArt) dual chamber lift device which is reusable, automatically resettable, and has tunable performance both off-line, and on-line to adjust to extrinsic factors. This device is situated under the rear corners of the hood and stores energy in the form of compressed air in opposing sides of a dual chamber pneumatic cylinder and a high-speed shape memory alloy exhaust valve (SEV) vents the upper chamber within milliseconds to allow the lower chamber to deploy the hood. A general multistage sequential design process is outlined that enables lift timing performance to be tailored by parametric design off-line and by varying operating parameters on-line. A proof-of-concept prototype was built and experimentally characterized for a midsize sedan case study confirming the timing, load capability and stroke of the device on the benchtop and the complete operational cycle in a full-scale automobile hood bay. The impact of additional mass on the lift timing was measured and two on-line adjustable operating parameters (pressure and valve timing) were investigated for their ability to compensate for the mass and other extrinsic effects. While this was a limited study of this new active technological approach to pedestrian safety, it does indicate promise to meet the strict demands of an active lift and a tailorable, resettable/reusable device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seals are integral to many industries such as aerospace, marine, oilfield, and automotive. A key performance metric for seal quality is quantified by the normal force between the seal and contact surface. Many applications have conflicting requirements on the normal force depending on the operational state. For example, in panel closures, to ease engagement of the seal the normal force (closing force) should be small; whereas, to maintain a high-quality seal the normal force (sealing force) should be large. While there is an abundance of seal technologies, there still exists a need for adaptable seals that can better accommodate the conflicting demands of multiple operational states and variations in application platforms. This paper introduces an active seal which controls normal force through modification of the structure of a rubber arch seal. While there are several options for actuation, this new technology is modeled, fabricated, and experimentally validated utilizing a shape memory alloy web actuation scheme. Finite element models provide a basis for a parametric study from which design guidelines are derived. The technology and supporting models/processes are demonstrated for an automotive panel closure successfully reducing the closing force by almost 50, while simultaneously increasing the sealing force by over 30. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]