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USA-Europe Data Analysis Training School (USEDAT) is a Multi-center Trans-Atlantic initiative offering hands-on training focused in both Introduction to Experimental Data Recording (NMR, MS, IR, 2DGE, EEG, etc.) and/or posterior Computational Data Analysis (Machine Learning, Complex Networks, etc.). We made emphasis on applications in for Cheminformatics, Bioinformatics, Medicinal Chemistry, Nanotechnology, Systems Biology, Biomedical Engineering, etc. The school also promotes training and knowledge of ethical and legal regulatory issues (GDPR, REACH, OECD, FDA, etc.) about data use and data protection in chemistry and biomedical research. The school is directed to researchers and students worldwide.

Following to the 2006 climate summit, the European Union formally set the goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. But even today, climate change is already affecting people and ecosystems. Examples are melting glaciers and polar ice, reports about thawing permafrost areas, dying coral reefs, rising sea levels, changing ecosystems and fatal heat periods. Within the last 150 years, CO2 levels rose from 280 ppm to currently over 400 ppm. If we continue on our present course, CO2 equivalent levels could approach 600 ppm by 2035. However, if CO2 levels are not stabilized at the 450-550 ppm level, the consequences could be quite severe. Hence, if we do not act now, the opportunity to stabilise at even 550 ppm is likely to slip away. Long-term stabilisation will require that CO2 emissions ultimately be reduced to more than 80% below current levels. This will require major changes in how we operate.Reducing greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels seems to be the most promising approach to counterbalance the dramatic climate changes we would face in the near future. It is clear since the Kyoto protocol that the availability of fossil carbon resources will not match our future requirements. Furthermore, the distribution of fossil carbon sources around the globe makes them an even less reliable source in the future. We propose to screen crop and non-crop species for high biomass production and good survival on marginal soils as well as to produce mutants from the same species by chemical mutagenesis or related methods. These plants, when grown in adequate crop rotation, will provide local farming communities with biomass for the fermentation in decentralized biogas reactors, and the resulting nitrogen rich manure can be distributed on the fields to improve the soil.Such an approach will open new economic perspectives to small farmers, and provide a clever way to self sufficient and sustainable rural development. Together with the present economic reality, where energy and raw material prices have drastically increased over the last decade, they necessitate the development and the establishment of alternative concepts.Biotechnology is available to apply fast breeding to promising energy plant species. It is important that our valuable arable land is preserved for agriculture. The opportunity to switch from low-income agriculture to biogas production may convince small farmers to adhere to their business and by that preserve the identity of rural communities.Overall, biogas is a promising alternative for the future, because its resource base is widely available, and single farms or small local cooperatives might start biogas plant operation.

AbstractlncRNAs are at the core of many regulatory processes and have also been recognized to be involved in various complex diseases. They affect gene regulation through direct interactions with RNA, DNA or proteins. Accordingly, lncRNAs structure is likely to be essential for their regulatory function. Point mutations, which manifest as SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) in genome screens, can substantially alter their function and, subsequently, the expression of their down-stream regulated genes. To test the effect of SNPs on structure, we investigated lncRNAs associated with dilated cardiomyopathy. Among 322 human candidate lncRNAs we demonstrate first the significant association of a SNP located in lncRNA H19 using data from 1084 diseased and 751 control patients. H19 is generally highly expressed in the heart, with a complex expression pattern during heart development. Next, we used MFE (minimum free energy) folding to demonstrate a significant refolding in the secondary structure of this 861 nt long lncRNA. Since MFE folding may overlook the importance of sub-optimal structures, we showed that this refolding also manifests in the overall Boltzmann structure ensemble. There, the composition of structures is tremendously affected in their thermodynamic probabilities through the genetic variant. Finally, we confirmed these results experimentally, using SHAPE-Seq, corroborating that SNPs affecting such structures may explain hidden genetic variance not accounted for through genome wide association studies. Our results suggest that structural changes in lncRNAs, and lncRNA H19 in particular, affect regulatory processes and represent optimal targets for further in-depth studies probing their molecular interactions.

Despite the increase in forest areas and villages under the participatory program over the last two decades in Tanzania, there is little insight into the communities’ views regarding their participation. This study aimed to explore communities’ participation in the participatory forest program in Tanzania. The survey involved 159 households, randomly sampled from four villages bordering state and community-managed forests, in West Usambara Mountains. The factor analysis summarised three components of participation. Economic, decision-making, and protection activities are used to formulate the participation intensity index. The study observed significantly higher levels and intensity of participation in the villages around the state compared to those around the community forest. Training attendance, trust on institutions, and location were significant predictors of participation intensity of the households. In conclusion, the perceived performance of the participatory programs in achieving the participation aims has been moderate with better results in the state forest jointly managed with the community. Raising awareness and improving communication with villagers, fulfilling promises for the communities, and provision of more forest-linked interventions are recommended to improve the situation in West Usambara.

AbstractNumerous preclinical studies have focused on the identification of biological and environmental factors that modulate stress and alcohol interactions. Although there is a good qualitative description of the determinants of alcohol consumption in rodents, the magnitude of the variables influencing stress‐induced ethanol intake and its dynamics are still poorly understood. We therefore carried out a clustered meta‐analysis on stress‐induced alcohol consumption in 1520 rats. Two‐step clustering of the literature‐derived dataset suggests a strong dependency of the experimental outcome on the method used to measure alcohol intake. Free‐choice home cage drinking versus operant self‐administration is the most critical determinant of stress‐induced increases in alcohol consumption in rats. Stress does not typically result in enhanced alcohol consumption in operant self‐administration paradigms, whereas it leads to increased home cage drinking. Stress‐induced alcohol consumption is age dependent, with adults being more sensitive than adolescents. In addition, foot shock and forced swim stress enhance alcohol intake, while restraint stress does not. In contrast, a meta‐analysis of 327 rats on stress‐induced reinstatement of alcohol‐seeking behavior shows less influence of those modulating factors, and usually foot shock or yohimbine leads to a reinstatement of approximately 300 percent of extinction level responding. Via accurate characterization of the significant factors in the interplay of alcohol consumption, relapse and stress, our quantitative description not only improves the understanding of underlying mechanisms, but also provides an appropriate framework for the optimal experimental design of preclinical studies that more accurately translates to the human condition.

We build on institutional theory to examine the impact of countries’ environmental policies on MNEs’ foreign subsidiary investments. We extend prior IB research that finds both positive and negative associations between environmental policies and MNE investments by showing that the relationship between environmental policy and MNE subsidiary investments is mediated by the effectiveness with which host countries enforce these policies. Specifically, we posit that environmental policies are effective when countries align them with tangible institutional outcomes such as actual reductions in emissions or increases in renewable energy production. This reduces uncertainty by providing a reliable and efficient framework for economic transactions. We test our arguments on a sample of 882 public US firms and their subsidiaries in 102 countries from 2000 to 2015, in conjunction with the Kyoto Protocol. We find that ratifying the Kyoto Protocol is associated with reductions in countries’ emission levels and increased reliance on renewables. Further, increased reliance on renewables positively mediates the relationship between the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol and MNEs foreign subsidiary investments. For host countries, this relationship is stronger when there are greater improvements in institutions’ quality. For MNEs, this relation is weaker for those MNEs associated with higher pollution. We find no such relationships for greenhouse gas emissions. Our findings contribute to the growing IB literature on environmental sustainability by highlighting the importance of effective institutions and their interaction with country- and firm-level heterogeneities.

A quantitative assessment is made of the collective cancer risk for the population in Sverdlovsk oblast due to exposure to radiation during the 30-yr period of normal operation of the No. 4 unit in the Beloyarsk nuclear power plant with a BN-800 reactor and for possible accidents. The estimates are made using the linear zero-threshold concept based on ICRP Publication No. 60. The values obtained are compared with the different forms of cancer risk characteristic for Sverdlovsk oblast (due to radiation and chemical contamination of atmospheric air and drinking water) and the morbidity and mortality risk predominantly due to socioeconomic factors. It is shown that the socioeconomic risk factors determine most cases of death from unnatural causes. Against this background, the health risk due to contamination of the environment by natural radionuclides and chemical carcinogens is negligibly small. The desirability of introducing into domestic practice the health risk assessment methodology developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency is discussed in light of the results obtained.

At present, the issues of overcoming the negative structural shift in Russian economy, accelerating economic growth, reducing technological and social- and-economic gap between Russia and the developed countries are strategically important. Modern structure of Russian economy which had been developed as a part of market model does not generate the innovative type of development. In this situation, mining regions, the structure of which was formed in the early 20th century and is represented by the extractive industries, are undergoing the greatest problems of innovative development. Therefore, despite high urbanization and industrial development level the economy of Kuzbass (Western Siberia, Russia) is characterized by significant structural problems. They are associated with primary extractive nature of the regional industry, in which coal and iron ore, metallurgical and chemical industries dominate. They highly depend on Russian and global market of raw materials, widely use low-productive technologies, and they are characterized by high level of fixed capital depreciation and insufficient pace of innovative infrastructure development. The solution of the structural problems of economic development of mining region is connected with technological modernization of extractive industries and use of modern materials for the production of high-tech products.