Sites of infrastructure,apprenticeship and possibilities for self: Locating Indonesia's missing women in representative politics

Women are under-represented in Indonesian legislatures, and those women who are elected are disproportionately from ‘elite’ backgrounds. This research sought to understand the conditions for women to succeed in politics in conditions of patriarchy and clientelist politics. Research in North Sumatera, Indonesia, revealed that many women did not make the conscious decision not to enter politics, but rather found that they had not established the required preconditions earlier enough in life. Patriarchal social norms and a transactional political culture frustrate women's ability to acquire these conditions, yet they are also subject to change. Interviews with women elected representatives and women who had never contested an election revealed three sites that are critical to women either acquiring the preconditions to contest elections, or frustrating that pathway: the household, the ‘community’ and religious/ethnic associations. We demonstrate how women's actions in these sites transform the conditions to make them more conducive to women's political participation.     

Ecotoxicological Assessment of Chemical Fumigants Utilising an Earthworm (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Eisenia andrei</Emphasis>) Bioassay and Soil Microbial Communities

Fumigation is an important crop protection practice employed to control soil pathogens and diseases. Metham sodium and cadusafos are two commonly used soil fumigants for this purpose. However, little information is available on their effects on non-target soil organisms. The aim of the study was to determine the ecotoxicity of these chemical fumigants on earthworms (organismal responses and DNA damage) and soil microbial communities. Changes in soil microbial community function and structure were evaluated by means of Biolog? Ecoplates and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analyses, respectively. Both fumigants had a significant (p < 0.05) negative impact on all earthworm endpoints. Earthworms did not reproduce; biomass was affected negatively and manifested significant DNA damage with metham sodium causing more pronounced effects in comparison to cadusafos. The fumigants had an inhibitory effect on microbial growth. No lasting effects were observed in the community structure but cadusafos had a pronounced effect on the microbial community functional diversity. Metham sodium and cadusafos had varying effects on earthworm and microbial endpoints. This illustrates the importance of using different bioindicators to get a better understanding of the overall effects on the soil ecosystem.     

Consequences of connectivity alteration on riverine fish assemblages: potential opportunities to overcome constraints in applying conventional monitoring designs

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Forecasting the Genetic Impacts of Net Pen Failures on Gulf of Mexico Cobia Populations Using Individual‐based Model Simulations

Offshore net pen fish farming provides a cost‐efficient means for production of marine finfish, and there is great interest in development of net pen operations in domestic waters. However, there are concerns over the possible genetic and ecological impacts that escaped fish may have on wild populations. We used individual‐based simulations, with parameter values informed by life history and genetic data, to investigate the short‐term (50 yr) impacts of net pen failures on the genetic composition of cobia, Rachycentron canadum, stocks in the Gulf of Mexico. Higher net pen failure rates resulted in greater genetic impacts on the wild population. Additionally, the use of more genetically differentiated source populations led to larger influxes of non‐native alleles and greater temporal genetic change in the population as a result of net pen failure. Our results highlight the importance of considering the appropriate source population for broodstock collection in net pen aquaculture systems and help to provide a general set of best management practices for broodstock selection and maintenance in net pen aquaculture operations. A thorough understanding of the genetic diversity, stock structure, and population demography of target species is important to determine the impact escapees can have on wild populations.     

Characterization of the bound residues of the fungicide cyprodinil formed in plant cell suspension cultures of wheat

The non-extractable residues of the fungicide cyprodinil formed in heterotrophic cell suspension cultures of wheat were studied by application of [2-pyrimidyl-14C] or [2-pyrimidyl-13C]cyprodinil. The main objective was to examine whether solid-state and liquid 13C NMR spectroscopy can be used to examine plant bound residues of pesticides. For 14C experiments, wheat suspensions grown on glucose as carbon source were treated with 10 mg litre(-1) of 14C-cyprodinil. After incubation for 12 days, 20% of applied 14C was detected as non-extractable residues. The cell debris were treated with 0.1 M HCl (reflux), 1.0 M HCl (reflux), buffer, or 2 M NaOH (50 degrees C); Bj?rkman lignin and acidolysis lignin fractions were also prepared from the debris. Radioactivity liberated and solubilized by these procedures was examined by thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. The results showed that cyprodinil and primary metabolites contributed to the fungicide's bound residues. Most of the residues (12% of applied 14C) remained associated with polar or polymeric/oligomeric endogenous cell materials in a stable manner. For the study with 13C-cyprodinil, wheat suspensions were cultivated on 13C-depleted glucose for four growth cycles, resulting in maximum 13C depletion of the natural cell components to about 0.10%. During the fourth cycle, 13C-labelled cyprodinil was applied, and cells were incubated (12 days). Cell debris was prepared and examined by solid-state 13C NMR spectroscopy. Debris was then treated as described above in the 14C experiment. Solubilized fractions were analyzed by liquid 13C NMR spectroscopy. However, none of the 13C NMR spectra recorded gave utilizable or unambiguous results, and all exhibited large inconsistencies, especially concerning the data from the conventional 14C experiment.     

Direct activation of the ATM protein kinase by the Mre11/Rad50/Nbs1 complex

The complex containing the Mre11, Rad50, and Nbs1 proteins (MRN) is essential for the cellular response to DNA double-strand breaks, integrating DNA repair with the activation of checkpoint signaling through the protein kinase ATM (ataxia telangiectasia mutated). We demonstrate that MRN stimulates the kinase activity of ATM in vitro toward its substrates p53, Chk2, and histone H2AX. MRN makes multiple contacts with ATM and appears to stimulate ATM activity by facilitating the stable binding of substrates. Phosphorylation of Nbs1 is critical for MRN stimulation of ATM activity toward Chk2, but not p53. Kinase-deficient ATM inhibits wild-type ATM phosphorylation of Chk2, consistent with the dominant-negative effect of kinase-deficient ATM in vivo.