The Use of Lasers in Esophageal Cancer Treatment

Esophageal cancer is a rare form of cancer, but its numbers are on the rise around the world (Staff, Mayo Clinic 1). This disease occurs when malignant or cancerous cells form in the tissues of the esophageal lining of the body’s gastrointestinal tract. The esophagus is responsible for moving swallowed food and liquids from the mouth into the stomach for digestion. It consists of several tissue layers, including the mucous membrane, muscle, and connective tissues.When cancer forms in the esophagus, it begins in the innermost layer of the tissue (the mucous membrane) and moves outward (towards the connective tissue layer) as it spreads (see Figure 1). It often goes undetected for many years, and in its later stages, this cancer is not easily treatable. Among those who develop esophageal cancer, their long-term survival rate is low, as it is estimated that only 12. 5% of patients live five years beyond the date of diagnosis (Triesschejin, Martijn 5).The standard treatment option used to combat esophageal cancer is called an esophagectomy, in which the cancerous area of the esophagus is removed via surgery, however this procedure is very invasive, complicated, and is often times fatal. However, with today’s technological advancements, safer, less-invasive methods are beginning to replace this option and are proving to be successful in helping to extend the lives of those patients with severe esophageal cancer and aid in improving their quality of life.One up-and-coming treatment option that is far more safe and practical than esophagectomy is the integration of lasers in photodynamic therapy, or PDT. Although it is still an experimental treatment, is ideal because it has no long-term side effects, is minimally invasive, can be done quickly with little recovery time, has the ability to precisely target the areas of the body where the cancer cells are present, and can be safely repeated multiple times until the desired results are achieved.Post-treatme nt, it has been known to cause sensitivity to light, particularly pertaining to the patient’s eyes and skin, however this has not been shown to be a significant issue among those treated with PDT. Photodynamic therapy uses special drugs, known as photosensitizing agents, along with laser light to kill cancer cells closer to the surface of the skin. The agents are injected into the body via and ‘switched on’ with light of the appropriate wavelength depending on the drug utilized. Chemical and molecular reactions within the ody from the drugs then destroy the cancer cells and work to rid the body of the esophageal disease. Although several sources of light are possibilities when performing photodynamic therapy, lasers are the most preferred. They are the most effective in emitting monochromatic light, or light that is of a single wavelength and color, corresponding to all of the different absorption maxima of photosensitizers’ compounds, and can be relativel y easily coupled to optical fibers from 200 to 600 microns’ core sizes.Specifically, the type of laser that is optimal for the treatment of esophageal cancer is a diode laser. These lasers are the most recent to be used in cancer treatment, and were developed just within the last fifteen years. Thus, they have higher quality beams, expanded ranges of wavelengths, and can be used on higher powers if desired. Diode lasers are ideal because they are simple to use, easy to transport, and do not require difficult installation like the gas (argon) and dye lasers used before them (Boucher 74).The diode laser currently approved by the FDA is manufactured by Angiodynamics, and has been successfully used, along with the correct application of photosensitizers, in esophageal cancer treatments. â€Å"A good photosensitizer is preferably a pure compound with a constant composition† (Nyman 3). And in esophageal cancer treatment via PDT, the best-proven photosensitizer is called porf imer sodium, also commercially known as Photofrin ®.In fact, the United States’ Food and Drug Administration has only approved the use of this photosensitizer in the treatment of esophageal cancer via PDT (â€Å"Photodynamic Therapy† 2). Porfimer sodium is injected intravenously, where it is then absorbed by all of the body’s cells, but only those cells that are normal and not cancerous are able to get rid of it. To allow for the body’s normal cells to rid themselves of the drug, two to three days are given between the drug’s administration and the activation of the drug by laser light.After being passed down the throat through a small flexible tube called an endoscope, a thin fiber optic glass strand is used to direct the laser light at the affected area. The optical fiber is made of fused silica, and uses a balloon catheter to distribute a defined, controlled amount of light to the treated esophagus organ. If the beam were not diffuse, a direct beam (even at a low power) could be damaging to the esophageal tissue. The light is operated at weaker power of around 2 Watts to ensure that it does not burn any tissue, and it is relatively pain-free.The treatment it is applied for no longer than an hour at a time and can often be done in an outpatient setting (reference all sources listed). Normally, the most common wavelength used is red light, as its specific wavelength of 630 nanometers has been shown to work best when attempting to create the most effective and potent malignant cancer cell-killing method possible. Atomically speaking, following its activation by laser light, â€Å"†¦the photosensitizer is elevated from a ground state to a long lasting excited triplet state†¦. and it] can then react with cell membranes to form radical ions [intermediates] which interact further with oxygen to produce cytotoxic oxygenated molecules† (Gray 1). More simply put, the excited photosensitizer activated by the laser light transfers its energy to other molecules before returning to its ground state, which generates a reactive oxygen species (intermediate) that is able to directly kill and destroy the esophageal tumor via oxidation, and later, indirectly, via inflammation.Research has shown a huge increase in the survival rate of PDT patients receiving this treatment. Treated patients’ survival rates improved 25% over a span of five years compared to those who never received any type of treatment (Li 2). And although doctors have seen great success with the use of photodynamic therapy and diode laser treatments, there is still much more to be researched and improved upon. Currently, new drugs, such as Photochlor ®, and others are being clinically tested to see if they can be used as photosensitizers in the treatment of esophageal cancer.This photosensitizer looks promising, as it has already been shown to last a much shorter time and is more easily removed from the body than Photofrin ® is. Also, scientists are looking at the possibility of using ointments containing ferrous or colbalt ions and hydrogen peroxide on the treated cancerous area to improve PDT outcomes along with laser light. And with the further advancement of technology, hopefully newer treatments will be able to not only improve the outcomes of patients with severe esophageal cancer, but be able to cure them of it once and for all.

Religion and Grand Zoroastrian Nation Essay

It fills my heart with joy unspeakable to rise in response to the warm and cordial welcome which you have given us. I thank you in the name of the most ancient order of monks in the world; I thank you in the name of the mother of religions; and I thank you in the name of the millions and millions of Hindu people of all classes and sects. My thanks, also to some of the speakers on this platform who, referring to the delegates from the Orient, have told you that these men from far-off nations may well claim the honour of bearing to different lands the idea of toleration. I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true. I am proud to belong to a nation, which has sheltered the persecuted, and the refugees of all religion and all nations of the earth. I am proud to tell you that we have gathered in our bosom the purest remnant of the Israelites, who came to southern India and took refuge with us in the very year in which their holy temple was shattered to pieces by Roman tyranny. I am proud to belong to the religion, which has sheltered and is still fostering the remnant of the grand Zoroastrian nation. I will quote to you, brethren, a few lines from a hymn which I remember to have repeated from my earliest boyhood, which is every day repeated by millions of human beings: ‘As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different tendencies various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee’. Quoted from Siva Mahimnah Stotram 7. The present convention, which is one of the most august assemblies ever held, is in itself a vindication a declaration to the world of the wonderful doctrine preached in the Gita: ‘Whosoever comes to Me, through whatsoever form I reach him; all men are struggling through paths which in the end lead to Me’. Quoted from Geeta 4:11. Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization, and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced  than it is now. But their time is come; and I fervently hope that the bell that tolled this morning in honour of this convention may be the death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wend ing their way to the same goal.

Cbt Case Study

CBT – Case Study Identifying Information For the purposes of the case study the client will be called Jane. Jane is a 22 year old single white British female who lives with her parents in a house outside the city. She is heterosexual and has had a boyfriend for seven years. She feels unable to discuss her issues with her boyfriend. Her parents both have mental health issues and Jane does not feel able to talk to her mother about her problems. She has an older brother she has a good relationship who lives with his girlfriend, a four hour drive away.Jane is educated to degree level, having studied Criminology and is currently working part-time for her father managing his client accounts for a business he runs from home. A typical day involves organising all receipts and creating spreadsheets for each client’s accounts. Jane states she would like to get a full time job and be normal like her friends. Jane has a small circle of friends from university who she states have al l gone onto full time employment. Jane also has a puppy she spends time looking after and taking for regular walks.Assessment Jane was referred following a health check at her GP surgery. She had been prescribed Citalopram 20mg by her GP for anxiety symptoms and panic attacks she had been having for two years. Jane has no previous contact with mental health services. Jane’s father had a diagnosis of Bi-Polar Disorder, her brother has Depression and her boyfriend has a diagnosis of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder which he is continuing treatment for. Jane’s anxiety/panic has increased over the past two years.She had read about Cognitive Behavioural Therapy on the Internet and was willing to see if it was help ease her anxiety symptoms. Jane stated that the problem started due to family issues in 2007. Her brother and father were estranged due to a financial disagreement and this resulted in Jane’s brother leaving the country with his girlfriend, causing Jane to bec ome very distressed. Also during this time she was taking her final exams at University, Jane states this was when she experienced her first panic attack.She had spent the evening before her brother left the country, drinking alcohol with friends, she remembers feeling ‘hung-over’ the next day. While travelling in the car to the airport, with her brother and his girlfriend, Jane states she started to feel unwell, she found it difficult to breathe, felt hot, trapped and felt like she was going to faint. Jane stated she felt â€Å"embarrassed† and â€Å"stupid† and had since experienced other panic attacks and increased anxiety, anticipating panic attacks in social situations.Jane had reduced where she went to, finding herself unable to go anywhere she may have to meet new people. Her last panic attack happened when Jane visited her GP for a health check and fainted during the appointment, Jane has blood phobia and she stated she had not eaten since the day before and was extremely anxious about the any medical interventions. Jane believes it was a panic attack that caused her to faint.The GP prescribed her 20mg of Citalopram, a few weeks prior to her initial assessment with the therapist. When Jane and the therapist met for the initial session Jane described herself as feeling inadequate and as if she was trapped in a cycle of panic. Although Jane felt unhappy she had no suicidal ideation and she presented no risk to others. Jane stated she had become more anxious and that she had panic attacks at least twice a week. Prior to and during therapy, Jane was assessed using various measures.These enabled the therapist to formulate a hypothesis regarding the severity of the problem, also acting as a baseline, enabling the therapist and Jane to monitor progress throughout treatment. (Wells, 1997). The measures utilised in the initial assessment were a daily panic diary, Wells (1997) and a diary of obsessive- compulsive rituals, Wells (1997) a self rating scale completed by the client Jane. Other measures used were, The Panic Rating Scale (PRS) Wells (1997), the Social Phobia Scale, Wells (1997), used by the therapist to clarify which specific disorder was the main problem for Jane.Having collated information from the initial measures, a problem list was created so the therapist and Jane could decide what to focus on first. This list was based on Jane’s account of the worst problems which were given priority over those problems which were less distressing. Problem List 1. Anxiety/Panic attacks 2. Obsessive hand washing. 3. My relationship with my family. 4. Not having a full time job. 5. My relationship with my boyfriend Having collaboratively decided on the problem list, the therapist helped Jane reframe the problems into goals.As the problem list highlighted what was wrong, changing them into goals enabled Jane to approach her problems in a more focused way (Wells, 1997), the therapist discussed goals with Jane and she decided what she wanted to get from therapy. It was important for the therapist to ensure that any goals were realistic and achievable in the timeframe and this was conveyed to Jane (Padesky & Greenberger, 1995). Jane wanted to reduce her anxiety and expressed these goals:- 1. To understand why I have panic attacks. 2. To have an anxiety free day. 3. To reduce the amount of time worrying . To reduce obsessive hand washing at home. Case Formulation Jane stated that for about a year she had been repeating certain behaviours, which she believed prevented her from having panic attacks. This involved Jane washing her hands and any surrounding objects at least twice. Jane had a fear of consuming alcohol/drugs/caffeine/artificial sweeteners, she stated she had had her first panic attack the day after drinking alcohol and had read that all these substances could increase her anxiety. Jane had not drunk alcohol for 18 months as she felt this caused her anxiety and made her nable to control the panic attacks. Jane stated she feared that if any of these substances got on her hands and then into her mouth she would have a panic attack and faint. These beliefs increased Jane’s anxiety when Jane was exposed to any environment where these substances were present. This unfortunately was most of the time, Jane stated that every time she saw any of these substances consumed or even placed near her, she became anxious and had to wash her hands and any surrounding items which she may come into contact with again.These safety behaviours maintained the cycle of panic, Jane would always continue the routines that she believed prevented a panic attack. The worst case scenario for Jane was â€Å"the panic would never stop and I will go mad, causing my boyfriend to leave me†. Jane felt this would make everyone realise what she already knew, that she was worthless. Her last panic attack happened when Jane had visited her GP; this caused Jane feelings of shame. â⠂¬Å"There’s all these people achieving, doing great things and I can’t do the most basic things†The therapist used the Cognitive Model of Panic (Clark, 1986), initially developing the three key elements of the model to help socialise Jane to the thoughts, feelings and behaviour cycle (see diagram below) Cognitive Model of Panic Bodily sensations Emotional response Thought about sensation Clark (1986) Using a panic diary and a diary of obsessive-compulsive rituals, Jane was asked to keep a record of situations during the week where she felt anxious, and this was discussed in the next session.Jane stated she had not had any panic during the week, when discussing previous panic attacks during the session, Jane became anxious and the therapist used this incident to develop the following formulation. Heart beating fast/increase in body temperature Fear/dread I feel hot, I can’t control it Clark (1986) Jane stated she felt like she was sweating, she had diffic ulty breathing; felt faint, had feelings of not being here and felt like she was going crazy.All these symptoms suggested that Jane was experiencing a panic attack and Jane met the criteria for Panic Disorder, defined in the DSM IV and states that â€Å"panic attacks be recurrent and unexpected, at least one of the attacks be followed by at least one month of persistent concern about having additional attacks, worry about the implications or consequence of the attack, or a significant change in behaviour related to the attacks† (APA, 1994). During the sessions the therapist continued to socialise Jane to the model of panic (Clark, 1986); together Jane and the therapist looked at what kept the cycle going.The therapist continued to use the model formulation, with the addition of Jane’s catastrophic interpretation of bodily symptoms, to illustrate the connection between negative thoughts, emotion, physical symptoms. Social situation I will be unable to stay here Everyone will notice I am not coping I’m going to faint Sweating/breathing fast/dizzy Clark’s (1986) Cognitive Model of Panic.Progress of Treatment The therapist hypothesised that Jane’s symptoms continued due to Jane not understanding the physiological effects of anxiety. The results were a misinterpretation of what would happen to her while being anxious, and this maintained the panic cycle. Although Jane tried to avoid any anxiety by using safety behaviours, she eventually increased the anxiety she experienced. Session 1 After the initial assessment sessions, the therapist and Jane agreed to 8 sessions, with a review after 6 sessions.Jane and the therapist discussed that there may only be a small amount of progress or change during the sessions due to the complexity of Jane’s diagnosis and agreed to focus on understanding the cycle of panic (Clark, 1986) From the information gained from the formulation process, the therapist tried psycho education. The therap ist was attempting to illicit a shift in Jane’s belief about what, how and why these symptoms were happening. The therapist discussed with Jane what she knew about anxiety and from this the therapist discovered that Jane was unsure of what anxiety was and the effects on the body.For the first few appointments the therapist knew it could be beneficial to concentrate on relaying information about anxiety, (Clark et al, 1989) focusing on Jane’s specific beliefs anxiety, the therapist wanted to try to reduce the problem by helping Jane recognise the connection between her symptoms. As Jane believed, â€Å"she was going mad†, the therapist was trying to help Jane understand the CBT model of anxiety and to alter Jane’s misunderstanding of the symptoms. The therapist and Jane discussed Jane’s belief that she would faint if she panicked, Jane had fixed beliefs about why she fainted.The therapist attempted to enable Jane to describe how her anxiety affected her during a ‘usual panic’. Instead Jane began to describe symptoms of social anxiety, this suggested to the therapist that the main problems could be a combination of /social phobia and obsessive behaviours; the following dialogue may help to illustrate this. T. When you begin to become anxious, what goes through your head? J. I need a backup plan; I need to know how to get out of there. Especially if it’s in an office, or a small room. T. What would happen if you did not get out? J. I would panic, and then pass outT. What would the reasons be for you to pass out? J. Because I was panicking. T. Have you passed out before when you have panicked? J. I have felt like it. T. So what sensations do you have when you’re panicking? J. The feeling rises up, I feel hot and I can’t see straight. I get red flashes in front of my eyes, like a warning. My vision goes hazy. I think everyone is looking at me. T. Do you think other people can see this? J. Yes. T. What do you think they see? J. That I’m struggling and I cannot cope or, I try to get out of the situation by pretending I feel ill before they notice. T.What would they notice, what would be different about you? J. I stick out like a beacon, I’m sweating, loads of sweat and my face is bright red. T. How red would your face be, as red as that â€Å"No Smoking† sign on the wall? J. Yes! I’m dripping with sweat and my eyes are really staring, feels like they stick out like in a cartoon, it’s ridiculous. T. How long before you would leave the situation? J. Sometimes the feeling goes, like I can control it. But I could not leave. There would be a stigma and then I could not go back, the anxiety would increase in that environment or somewhere similar.The therapist persisted with this example and tried to use guided discovery to help Jane get a more balanced view of the situation. (Padesky and Greenberger, 1995) T. So you would not go back? J. I would if I felt safe, like with my boyfriend or I could leave whenever I wanted to. It’s the last straw if I have to go. It makes it even harder. T. You say that sometimes it goes away. What’s different about then and times when you have to leave? J. It’s like I just know I have to leave. T. What do you think may happen if you stay with the feelings? J. That I will pass out. T. hat would that mean if you passed out? J. It would be the ultimate. It would mean that I could not cope with the situation. T. If you could not cope what would that mean? J. I can’t function, I can’t do anything. I‘m just no use. T. How much do you believe that? Can you rate it out of 100%? J. Now. About 60% if I did faint it would be about 100% T. Have you ever fainted due to the sensations you have described to me? J. No. I have fainted because I’m squeamish. I don’t like blood. Or having any kind of tests at the GP. T. So do I understand you? You have never fa inted due to the panic sensations?J. No. I’ve felt like it. T. So you’ve never passed out due to the symptoms? What do you make that? J. I don’t know, that would mean that what I believe is stupid. It’s hard to get my head around it. Session 2-3 The therapist used a social phobia/panic rating scale measures to ascertain the main problem; this was increasingly difficult as throughout each session the patient expanded on her symptoms. The therapist managed to understand that the patient avoided most social situations due to her beliefs about certain substances; this caused the obsessive hand-washing.This then had an impact on Jane’s ability to go anywhere in case she could not wash herself or objects around her. Jane also believed fainting from blood phobia had the same physical effects as panic, and she would faint if she panicked. It was complicated and the therapist attempted to draw out a formulation. I SEE A PERSON DRINKING ALCOHOL IT’S G OING TO GET ON MY HANDS AND INTO MY MOUTH I FEEL SICK, I’M GOING TO FAINT I FEEL DREAD, I FEEL ANXIOUS, SWEATING I MUST WASH MY HANDS TO STOP THE PANIC GETTING WORSE.Session 4 The formulation shows the extent of Jane’s panic and how her safety behaviours were impacting on all aspects of her life. The therapist attempted again to use information about the causes of anxiety and its effects on the body. The therapist explained what happens when you faint due to blood phobia, this was an attempt to supply Jane with counter evidence for her catastrophic interpretations of her panic. The therapist also used evidence to contrast the effects on the body when fainting and when panicking.After two sessions, the therapist continued to provide and attempted to relay the facts about the nature of anxiety/panic/fainting with the inclusion of behavioural experiments. Educational procedures are a valid part of overall cognitive restructuring strategies, incorporated with questioning e vidence for misinterpretations and behavioural experiments (Wells, 1997) The therapist asked Jane to explain to the therapist the function/effects of adrenalin, to see if Jane was beginning to understand and if there had been any shift in her beliefs about panic.The following dialogue may help to illustrate the difficulties the therapist encountered; T. Over the last few sessions, we have been discussing anxiety and the function of adrenalin. Do you understand the physical changes we have looked at? Does it make sense to you? J. Yes. Something has clicked inside my head. I feel less insane now, I understand more about what’s going on. It makes things a little bit easier, but it takes time for it to sink in. T. Do you think you could explain to me what you understand about anxiety/adrenalin? J.As I interpret it is, I like to think of it as, â€Å"I’m not anxious it’s just my adrenalin, It’s just the effects of adrenalin effecting my body† but itâ₠¬â„¢s hard to get from there, to accepting the adrenalin is not going to harm me. I know logically it’s not. But it’s still hard. T. That’s great you’re beginning to question what you have believed and are thinking there may be other explanations for your symptoms. J. Yes. But I still think it’s to do with luck. I have good or bad luck each day and that predicts whether I have a panic or not. I think I’ll be unlucky soon.Session 5-6 The therapist continued to try use behavioural experiments during the sessions to provide further evidence to try to alter Jane’s beliefs about anxiety. The therapist agreed with Jane that they would imitate all the symptoms of panic. Making the room hot, exercising to increase heart rate and body temperature, hyperventilation (ten minutes) Focusing on breathing/swallowing. This continued for most of session 5. As neither the therapist nor Jane fainted, they discussed this and Jane stated it was different in the session than when she with other people.Jane also stated she felt safe and trusted the therapist, she did not believe she could be strong enough to try the experiments alone, as it was â€Å"too scary† The therapist asked Jane to draw a picture of how she felt and put them on the diagram of a person, this then was used to compare with anxiety symptoms, while talking through them with the therapist. The therapist and Jane created a survey about fainting and Jane took this away as homework to gain further evidence. The survey included 6 different questions about fainting e. g. – What people knew about fainting/how they would feel about seeing someone faint, etc. Treatment Outcome The treatment with Jane continues. The next session will be the 6th and there will be a review of progress and any improvements. There has been no improvement in measures as noted yet. The therapist intends to use a panic rating scale (PRS) Wells, (1997) during the next session. The thera pist will continue to see Jane for two more sessions, looking at what Jane has found helpful/unhelpful. Discussion Overall the therapist found the therapy unsuccessful.Although Jane stated she found it helpful, it was difficult for the therapist to see the progress due to the many layers of complexity of Jane’s diagnosis. The therapist has grown more confident in the CBT process and understands that as a trainee, the therapist tried to incorporate all the new skills within each session. The therapist was disappointed that they were unable to guide Jane through the therapy process with a better result. The therapist would have like to have been able to fully establish an understanding of Jane’s complex symptoms earlier on in the therapy.The therapist believes that Jane’s symptoms were very complex and the therapist may have been more successful with a client with a less complicated diagnosis. The therapist would then be able to gain more information via the appro priate measures to enable the formulations in a concise manner. This has been a huge learning curve for the therapist and has encouraged them to seek out continuing CBT supervision within the therapist’s workplace. This is essential to continue the development of the therapist’s skills.The therapist feels that although this has not had the outcome that the therapist would have wanted, it has been a positive experience for Jane. There appeared to be a successful therapeutic relationship, Jane appeared comfortable and able to communicate what her problems were to the therapist from the beginning of therapy. The therapist hopes this will encourage Jane to engage with further CBT therapy in the future and the therapist over the final session hopes to be able to support Jane in creating a therapy blueprint, reviewing what Jane has found helpful.Certificate in CBT September – December 2009 CBT Case Study Panic/Social Phobia/OCD WORD COUNT 3,400 References APA (1994). Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Revised, 4th edn. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association Padesky, C. A & Greenberger, D. (1995). Clinicians Guide to Mind Over Mood. New York: Guilford Padesky, C. A & Greenberger, D. (1995). Mind Over Mood. New York: Guilford Wells, A (1997). Cognitive Therapy of Anxiety Disorders. Chichester, UK: Wiley

Reproductive cycle of an HIV virus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reproductive cycle of an HIV virus - Essay Example The second stage is the fusion phase. After attaching to the CD4 glycoprotein, the membrane of the virus fuses with the cell membrane. The fusion of the two membranes gives way for the virus to enter the host immune cell. Reverse transcription is the third stage. When the virus enters the cell, it releases an enzyme attributable to HIV called reverse transcriptase. The enzyme alters the genetic structure of CD4 thus changing the structure from HIV RNA to HIV DNA. This change produces an alteration that allows the virus to enter into the nucleus of the CD4 cell. The entry of the virus into the nucleus is precedes its combination with the cell DNA. Replication marks the fifth stage of the reproduction of the HIV virus. Immediately after integration, the HIV in the CD4 cell uses the cell’s mechanism to replicate itself by making long chains of HIV proteins. The long chains form a basis for the evolution of more HIV (Duzgunes 4). The sixth stage is assembly. After the formation of the HIV proteins, the HIV RNA and the proteins move to the superficial parts of the host cell. Once at the surface of the cell, the two assemble into mild form of the HIV virus. Lastly, the HIV virus enters the budding stage. This stage is characterized by the movement of the mild form of the virus out of the CD4 cell. The recently assembled virus then releases enzyme protease. The enzyme breaks up the long protein chains that constitute the mils and immature virus. The smaller pieces of the chain’s proteins combine and result into the formation of a mature and highly infectious HIV

Part 1 3000 word lit review part 2 2000 word research proposal Essay

Part 1 3000 word lit review part 2 2000 word research proposal - Essay Example These falls have led to serious injuries in the elderly such as fractures of the hip and other skeletal parts (Daley & Spinks, 2000; Tinetti, et al., 1997). Falls have also led to lowered confidence and a fear of falling that has caused persons to remain sedentary, putting them at risk for other illnesses (Fortinsky et al., 2004). Studies have sought to ascertain the factors that contribute to falls in the elderly, and of these, most have been connected with strength and balance (Lord, Ward & Williams, 1999; Gardner, Robertson & Campbell, 2000). Problems with strength and balance have been shown to be the major contributors to the instability of the elderly (Rubenstein, 2004; Gardner, Robertson & Campbell, 2000). Strength and power reduction are characteristics of ageing that lead to a loss of functional balance and confidence (Hunter et al., 2004). In fact, balance depends on an intricate interaction of several of the body's systems: musculo-skeletal, nervous, vestibular, and visual (Gauchard et al., 1999; Lemmer et al., 1999; Carter et al., 2002). Both strength and balance can be thought of as having a bearing on the body's the ability to maintain posture, and posture can be defined as the proper positioning of each body part in relation to another (Pajala et al., 2004; Lord, Ward, & Williams, 1996). The somatosensory system is responsible for providing the central nervous system with information about the body's position through proprioceptors contained inside the muscles (Anderson, 2002; Islam, 2004; Lord, et al., 1996) . Yet the functioning of these balance components is shown to decline with age (Lord et al., 1994; Thelen et al., 1996; Judge, 2003). Exercise interventions of the form of proprioceptive and strength-training exercises have been cited as having the ability to reverse or slow many of these effects of ageing. In fact, it has been strongly suggested by research that older persons who are physically active display better sensori-motor and balance skills than their inactive counterparts (Toulotte et al., 2003; Lemmer et al., 2000; Hunter et al., 2004). Though many researchers have studied the combined impact of these exercises on functional balance, much needs to be researched on the impact each has individually on functional ability. Further than that, what studies have had to say on confidence levels of the elderly following intervention is also of importance and has often been overlooked. Veteran researchers such as Lord et al. (1996) and Brown et al. (2002) have demonstrated the benefit of these exercises, yet without separating them to isolate the effects of each. Other research done by Gauchard et al. (1999) has performed this separation, yet without the use of clinically tested interventions. Still others have employed good interventions and measures, but implemented exercises for far too short a period to achieve truly significant results (Carter et al., 2001). It is the purpose of this study to further critique the literature explored on both types of therapy for the prevention of falling in the elderly. It will consider exercise interventions that employ both resistance and proprioceptive activities in an attempt to locate areas in which definite conclusions have been achieved, as well as to locate areas in which improvements can be made to achieve better results. It will then use the information gained to design, implement and evaluate the outcome of a specifi c lower limb proprioception exercise programme and

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Object and Data Modelling - Assignment Example The participants accessing the system, who can be either the diver or the customer, are both required to register on the system or sign up with their personal information. Personal information comprises of the names, sex, the users year of birth, mobile number, and email addresses of the system end users. The system is divided into a driver and client subsystem that categorically showcase the attributes and features required by the system. The registration details for sign up process are mandatory in order to allow automatic validation of the end user. The end users are expected to input additional information to support the subsequent data required for completing the sub-functions of the system. The sub-functions of the system simply include and extend other higher functions or authority within the system (SHOVAL 2007). For example getting registered on the system extends to being validated by the system. Including other use cases helps to reduce duplication of system functionalities for each user, therefore, describing other detailed parts of the system in the use case makes it easy to understand the hierarchy of actors (system end users) in the car sharing system as well. An activity diagram relatively represents the flow of information within the system showing and illustrating the sequence of activities. The conditions for the information for each activity can also be described within an activity diagram. In the case of the Car sharing system, the activity diagrams that are presented include that of the Registration and Payment process. The activity diagram shows the start and stop process for each particular activity. Designing an activity diagram requires the coordination of execution of sub-functions using a control and data flow model. The activity diagram developed and created in this particular case invokes other activities via a level of hierarchy that executes and resolves particular functions (GEORGE 2007). For

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS - Essay Example In such instances, intervention of trade unions is vital in that it encourages procedures to be put in place so as to create necessary and balanced relationship; thus promoting mutual understanding between the parties. A win-win situation is built between the parties thereby enabling them to have mutual understanding and better progress. A trade union is comprised of employees who need to have their interests organized and represented not only in the workplace but also in the society. The union ensures proper regulation of the employment relationship through collective bargaining with the management. Here, employers and employees share powers in conducting employment relationship. The process of collective bargaining opens the room for negotiation between employers’ representatives and the union comprising of employees, in the aim of regulating employment where they reach an agreement which is, therefore, applied to employees equitably. This tool is mostly used by unions in pr otecting or improving their members’ interests. Therefore, involvement of collective bargaining and power sharing between the two parties has a considerable impact in that it improves the employment relationship and fosters organizational performance (Daniels, 2006: 43). The Trade Union and Labour Relations Act governs both permanent and casual workers who have a common interest in regulating their relationship with the employers. Functions of trade union are broad in terms of job regulation, power, social change, economic regulation, self fulfilment and member services. At times, some trade unions have affiliated with some representative bodies, for instance, the UK Trade Union Congress which depicts itself as the voice of all workers in Britain. It helps members to lobby the government concerning various issues, which include, union, economic and employment Unions have the mandate to challenge managerial rights by restricting employees from supplying labour to their employe rs through the organisation of industrial action (Stephen, 2007: 45). Unions have not only a face of monopolising labour supply to the management, but also a voice for their members. In their operation as a collective voice, they spot employees’ concerns and efficiently convey them to the employer. This enables the management to better treat the employees without having to incur transaction costs. It also impacts an individual employee by overcoming the incentive problem that would cost them by conveying their grievances to management in the absence of the union particularly when the benefit accrues to all workers, for example, public goods like safety and health. In such cases, the employees do not tackle the problems facing them; instead they let them foster and find it more convenient to quit their jobs and go in search for another one elsewhere (Rose, 2008: 38). Unions, therefore, are considered to offer a valuable service to both the management and the employees by colle cting all employees’ concerns and passing them on to the employer. This, in most cases, leads to faster and better decision making by the management, which solves employees’ requirements better than in the absence of the union. Effectiveness of a union is gauged by its capability of achieving set goals in serving members through workplace representation and

The product development process Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The product development process - Article Example Such demands go in details from quality, affordability, reliability, durability and likeability amongst others. The product development process is such that it is inclusive of all the possible features a potential customer in any part of the world may desire. This paper shall analyze how to develop a product at the Apple Inc. The chosen product is phone line for various models of iPhone. Product development process is a critical area in manufacturing that determines the extent to which a firm may be competitive in its target market. Apple’s products go through the normal development process that many businesses also go through. Before the company launches a product, the product passes through pre-development, development, and post-development. At the predevelopment stages, the company has to go through strategic development, marketing analysis and business plan. To begin with, strategic planning revolves around product project plan. For instance, Apple’s strategic product planning takes into consideration what other competitors are offering. It compares its features against those of other manufacturers in a bid to come up with a new product that meets the market demand. Taking a case study of iPhone 6, it is observable that the pre-development stage maintained some features of the previous version as it improved on some features. All that reflects customers’ desire. For instance, the desire for a slimmer device has not changed. Internal memory is another issue that Apple considers. One of the most important features that Apple considerers is the IOS used in the device. The choice of the IOS enables the product to support features that give it a competitive advantage over its competitors. Whereas it is a common practice for companies to design their new products to conform to the budgetary allocations in the manufacturing and the financial departments, Apple’s

Evaluate the strengths and limitations of Employee Voice Practices for Essay

Evaluate the strengths and limitations of Employee Voice Practices for employees - Essay Example voice practices benefit employees by turning them into equal participants of the major organizational processes, letting them express their views and impact firms’ profitability and, eventually, turning them into essential drivers of organizational growth. However, the most important limitations of employee voice practices should not be disregarded. If not delivered properly, employee voice may lead to serious shifts in status quo which may not benefit employees. Many employees have the fear of such changes and, consequently, try to avoid the use of their legitimate voice in business practices. Therefore, one of the basic tasks faced by managers in organizations is to develop and run employee voice processes in ways that do not inhibit the employee’s right for self-expression and influence on organizational performance and, simultaneously, do not turn employee voice practices into a punishment for the things employees usually want to say. In order to understand how employee voice practices benefit or damage employee positions in companies, the exact meaning of employee voice needs to be understood. This is not an easy endeavor since the meanings and implications of employee voice are numerous, and different companies handle employee voice approaches in entirely different ways (Dyne, Ang & Botero 2003). However, across these numerous meanings, employee voice is generally assumed to be a motivation and willingness of employees to express their information, ideas and opinions regarding workplace improvements (Dyne, Ang & Botero 2003). Yet, it should be noted that if the worker does not express any opinions or does not try to impact workplace-related processes, that does not mean that this employee exists in the atmosphere of silence. In many instances, employees who withhold from expressing their opinions and thoughts openly simply use their voice in a different manner. Employee voice practices may be of a different nature and may also promote different forms of

Features Of The Childhood Cognitive Development Assignment

Features Of The Childhood Cognitive Development - Assignment Example Constructivists gain knowledge by operating gadgets to discover their properties. The organization is an inborn tendency to combine and integrate available schemes into coherent systems or bodies of knowledge. Intelligence in Piaget’s theory is a basic life function that enables an organism to adapt to its environment. Assimilation is the process of interpreting new experiences by incorporating them into existing schemes. Schemes are organized patterns of thoughts or actions that one constructs to interpret some aspects of one’s experience (Shaffer and Kipp 215). According to Piaget, adaptation is the condition in which an individual interacts with, embraces and live by his or her socio-physical and cognitive environment. An individual gets used to his or her environmental aspects regardless of their nature. Assimilation and accommodation concepts complement each other. While assimilation allows for embracement of one’s environment, accommodation requires an individual to accept and appreciate whatever the environment brings forth, including other humans and animals (Shaffer and Kipp 224). Piaget defined intelligence as a basic function of life that enables any organism or human to adapt and fit into his or its immediate environment. Most people would refer to the term as humans’ ability to perceive and comprehend information for use in cognitive development; and manage daily lives of a socio-physical environment. Sensorimotor stage is the first major period in Piaget’s stage theory, lasting approximately 2 years from birth. According to Piaget, during this stage children are not yet able to comprehend their world and must entirely rely on others especially their mothers to think on their behalf. Piaget asserts that imitation is the purest example of assimilation.

Growth and Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Growth and Development - Essay Example Thus, it is a period when young people are out of their adolescence but are yet to attain the adult title. The age span for emerging adulthood ranges from 18 to 25 though this may be extended up to the age of 29. During this period, most young people are always struggling to put various components of their lives in order so that they can achieve the status of being referred to as adults. This paper will be a discussion of various issues as pertains to emerging adulthood. According to Arnett, 2004, â€Å"during Emerging Adulthood, young people are in the process of developing the capacities, skills and qualities of character deemed by their cultures as necessary for completing the transition to adulthood†. As such, it is an important period of life since most people going through it have the same aspirations. As a result, all of them have the same characteristics. Insatiability is one common characteristic that people in the emerging adulthood phase of life have. This is showca sed with the tendency of changing life plans. People between the ages of 18 to 29 can be observed to constantly change partners, jobs and even residences. This is because they often feel that they have to do much more than they have already achieved. This in turn gives them an aspect of insatiability. Identity exploration is another characteristic that most people in the Emerging Adulthood stage of life have. ... Along the same line, emerging adults will always delay responsibilities so that they can focus on themselves. Most of them tend to avoid marriage and parenting so that they can have all their time and resources to themselves. Self focus is what seems to be the most important thing to them at during this time (Arnett, 2004). Feeling caught up in between is another characteristic common with emerging adults. This is due to the fact that most of them feel that they are more independent and mature than when they were adolescents t at t same time feel that they are not fully accomplished to be referred to as adults. Lastly, most people in the above age bracket always have a very optimistic view of the future with the belief that they will accomplish all that they have set out to do and eventually become what they would want to be (Arnett, 2004). These are the characteristics that most people in this phase of life irrespective of culture and financial capability have. Generally, the period of emerging adulthood is different from the adolescent and early adulthood phase due to the fact that the reality of emerging responsibility finally begins to dawn on these individuals. During adolescence, people are not responsible of their actions but simply do what will be acceptable in the eyes of their peers. They do not fear rebellion and do not listen to what their parents say. Their decisions are dependent on how their peers will judge them and the aspect of being financially independent does not bother them. They are minors and still live at their parent’s home and are experiencing the physical changes of puberty but people in the emerging adulthood phase have already reached full reproduction maturity. On the other hand, adulthood is characterized by

Sin Tax Bill (For the Government) Essay Example for Free

Sin Tax Bill (For the Government) Essay According to James Sadowsky, author of The Economics of Sin Taxes, taxes imposed on products seen as vices such as alcoholic liquors and tobaccos are called sin tax. Aside from the commodities being objects of disapproval, even their consumers accept such taxes because they seem to hit two birds in one stone. First, they raise revenues and second, they made vices expensive. House Bill 5727 or also known as the Sin Tax Bill aims to reform the imposed tax on the sin products (Official Gazette, 2002). We support this bill for three reasons. First, the government can collect more revenues. Second, it promotes health by dissuading the consumption of the vices. And lastly, the poor sector benefits from it. Sin tax is a form of an excise tax. It is a tax levied on some commodities but not all commodities unlike sales tax. This is how the government generates more revenues (Sadowsky). However, the opposition claims that this bill will backfire on its goals. Since the price of the price of the commodities will rise, the demand will decrease. Thus, there will be no revenues to generate which contrast one of the goals of the bill since industries such as tobacco will die. However, the products under sin tax are vices. Some people are already addicted to them. Even if the price of these products will rise, people will still buy though some price conscious such as the poor sector and students will cut their consumption (Fonbuena qtd. Monsod, 2012 ). Plus, even the demand for the sin products will decrease; the increased tax will make up for the loss demand. Thus, the industries will not die. The opposition also said that the rate of smuggling will worsen. However, according to economist and former Economic Planning Secretary Solita Monsod, there is no connection between the rise of the levied tax and smuggling. Countries such as Japan and Singapore who levied tax the highest on sin products even have the lowest rate of smuggling. Moreover, aside from being a revenue bill, Philippine College of Physicians, New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP), and other health advocates claim that the bill is importantly a health bill. According to Emerson Rojas, New Vois President, should the sin tax bill be passed, more adult smokers would be encouraged to quit smoking, and also discourage the start of young smokers. Many people can be prevented from having diseases gained from these vices. Moreover, a big portion of the revenue will go to public health while the smaller will go to affected tobacco workers (Reyes qtd. Drilon, 2012). According to Health Undersecretary Ted Herbosa, money collected from the industry will be used to enroll millions of poor families into socialized healthcare and for the improvement of the whole healthcare service delivery. Thus aside from improving public health, the poor sector will benefit more from the bill. However, the opposition claimed that there is inequality in the bill. The poor are the ones to burden the raised tax. But then according to Solita Monsod, the poor are the ones who are supposed to lessen their expense on these vices since they are the ones who can barely afford to pay medical needs if they acquire diseases from these vices. Sources Belo, Walden. The Sin tax Promoting the Nation’s Health. Inquirer. May 12, 2012. Web. Fonbuena, Carmela. 5 False Economic Claims on Sin Tax According to Solita Monsod. Rappler. October 18, 2012. Web. Investopedia. Sin Tax. Web. Official Gazette. Sin Taxes. September 19, 2012. Web. Reyes, Karl John. Sin Tax Passage to Affect Ph Trade, Finance and Social Services – Drilon. Interaksyon. September 28, 2012. Web. Tan, Kimberly. Liqour, Tobacco Companies reminded of Sin Products Social Impact. Gma News. August 23, 2012. Web The Wages of the sin Taxes. May 15, 2012. Web. Sin Tax Bill: Both Revenue And Health Measure. Manila Bulletin. October 2012. Web. INTRODUCTION: Sin Tax A state-sponsored tax that is added to products or services that are seen as vices, such as alcohol, tobacco and gambling. These type of taxes are levied by governments to discourage individuals from partaking in such activities without making the use of the products illegal. These taxes also provide a source of government revenue. Explanation: Sin taxes are typically added to liquor, cigarettes and other non-luxury items. State governments favor sin taxes because they generate an enormous amount of revenue and are usually easily accepted by the general public because they are indirect taxes that only affect those who use the products. When individual states run deficits, the sin tax is typically one of the first taxes recommended by lawmakers to help fill the budget gap. Source: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sin_tax.asp#ixzz2HTDslR4A Why are we supporting it? 1. To promote health by discouraging vice. 2. To collect more revenue for healthcare. Health: According to the Department of Health (DOH), the Philippines has an estimated 17.3 million tobacco consumers, the most number of smokers in Southeast Asia. Filipinos on average consume 1, 073 cigarette sticks annually, while the smokers in the region consume less than a thousand sticks yearly. This high consumption rate is seen as a result, among others, of the very low cigarette prices in our country. Smoking is responsible for 71 percent of lung cancer deaths in the world. Consequently, lung cancer is the leading form of cancer in the Philippines. DOH statistics reveal that 10 Filipinos die every hour because of smoking. According to the DOH, a 10 percent increase in tobacco taxes will reduce the number of smokers by two million by 2016. A significant decline in the number of smokers will likewise reduce the number of smoking-related deaths. Meanwhile, drinking alcohol, though effects are relatively less severe health-wise than smoking, has posed a number of costs on the individual and society. Revenue: The sin tax proposes the following reforms: * Maintain the specific form of excise taxation (e.g., per piece, per pack, per proof liter) to discourage consumption, have more revenues that are predictable and easier to administer, and devoid of incentives for manufacturers and importers with under-invoice products; * A shift from a multi-tiered tax structure to a single tax structure: (1) For cigarettes, a two-rate structure of P14 and P30 per pack for the 1st two years, and a uniform rate of P30 per pack of cigarettes on the third year. (2) For fermented liquor, immediate implementation of unified rate of P25/liter. (3) For distilled spirits, a two-year transition period to a unified rate of P150 per proof liter on the third year. * Adopt an automatic annual adjustment of tax rates using relevant NSO-established tobacco and alcohol indexes after the third year. * A shift from a raw-material criterion to an alcohol-content criterion in taxing distilled spirits. * Revenues from sin taxes are to augment the funds of the Aquino ad ministration’s universal health care program. * The continued sharing with tobacco farmers of the incremental revenues. STATEMENTS FROM HIGH-RANKING OFFICIALS ABOUT SIN TAX BILL: Sin Tax Bill: Both Revenue And Health Measure Manila Bulletin – Wed, Oct 3, 2012 The Philippine College of Physicians, New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP), and other health advocates on Tuesday urged legislators to view Senate Bill 3249, otherwise known as the Sin Tax Bill, not only as a revenue bill, but more importantly as a health bill. , Its time to take action and pass the true sin tax bill, and not a token sin tax bill in favor of our tobacco manufacturers said former Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral. She is asking lawmakers to pass the bill in order to lower tobacco consumption in the country. New Vois President Emerson Rojas shared the harmful effects of tobacco. Rojas was a heavy smoker who eventually suffered from Stage 4 laryngal cancer. He is now unable to talk, save for a device he is now using which is an electrolarynx. The Philippines has the cheapest prices of cigarettes in the Western Pacific Region, he lamented. Should the sin tax bill be passed, more adult smokers would be encouraged to quit smoking, and also discourage the start of young smokers. Let us be on guard against the watering down of SB3249, urged Rojas. On the other hand, Department of Health Consultant on Non-Communicative Diseases Dr. Tony Leachon and Framework Convention on Tobacco Control of the Philippines representative Dr. Maricar Limpin are pushing for the passage of the sin tax bill so that the government would have more money to build better hospitals and provide premium health care for the poor. With the sin tax, there would be better revenue for health, noted Leachon. DOH: Sin Tax is Pro-Poor This thought is backed up by the DOH, which believes that the sin tax is not only anti-cancer, but pro-poor as well. As the tobacco industry targets the poor in marketing their products, it will also be the poor who will benefit from the sin tax as money collected from the industry will be used to enroll millions of poor families into socialized healthcare and for the improvement of the whole healthcare service delivery, said Health Undersecretary Ted Herbosa. According to the 2012 survey of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, the prevalence of smoking in the country is higher among the poorest of the poor with 40 percent belonging to the lowest quintile while 36 percent come from the second lowest quintile. The figures are the opposite among the rich, where 25 percent of smokers are considered affluent. This means that of the 17.3 million adult smokers in the country, 76 percent of them are poor. This also reinforces previous studies that the poor spend more on cigarettes than on education and health, said Herbosa. Citing results of the 2009 Family Income and Expenditure Survey, the health undersecretary said the countrys poorest spend as much as 67 percent of their income on food and that two-thirds of them do not see a doctor or do not seek a health facility when they get sick. Herbosa said as the poor are likely to be less informed of the harmful effects of smoking, they serve as a major market for the tobacco industry. They also suffer most from all diseases and economic burden attributed to smoking. According to Prof. Tony Dans of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine, half of the annual 300,000 deaths from non-communicable diseases in the country are attributed to smoking. A total of P188 billion is also being lost every year from the top four killers of Filipinos (lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart attack, and stroke) which are all smoking-related. We have to turn the tide and make the tobacco industry pay for the health and economic burdens that smoking brings. By taxing tobacco we will be able to enroll a total of 10.9 million poor families into the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) and increase catastrophic benefits from 10 percent to 30 percent of the total cost, said Herbosa. The DOH also plans to use revenues from the sin tax to hire an additional 10,000 doctors, 50,000 nurses and midwives, and 100,000 community health teams to fill in gaps in health personnel. In addition, a total of 2,243 rural health units, 403 district hospitals, and 37 DOH-retained hospitals will also be enhanced as a result of sin tax revenues while about 700,000 rotavirus and pneumococcal vaccines will be purchased for poor infants. By taxing the tobacco industry we will not only improve our countrys healthcare service delivery but we will also prevent diseases and premature deaths because of smoking, Herbosa explained. The DOH estimates that around 170,000 deaths would be prevented during the first year of implementation of the sin tax. Meanwhile, around two million smokers are expected to quit from consuming tobacco by 2016 as a result of a higher tobacco levy. We will be able to save the lives of the poor and prevent our children from taking up smoking when we increase the tax for tobacco products. At the same time we will be able to improve our healthcare service delivery to cater to the poorest of our population, Herbosa said. †¦. http://ph.news.yahoo.com/sin-tax-bill-both-revenue-health-measure-213324211.html POSSIBLE ARGUMENTS FROM THE OPPOSING SIDE: FALSE CLAIMS’ Here are the top 5 false claims that the industry is supposedly spreading: †¨1. Tax increase will intensify smuggling Presenting statistics in various Asian countries, Monsod showed that there’s no relation between increase in excise tax on cigarettes and illicit trade. Countries where cigarettes are most expensive — Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, and Australia — have the lowest incidence of illicit smuggling. â€Å"There’s no relationship,† said Monsod. †¨2. Sin tax is inequitable Critics of the Sin Tax measure argue that it’s the poor that will bear the most proportion of the tax. Implenting a unitary sin tax, based on the original version of the legislative proposal, means the same tax will be imposed cheap and high-end cigarette brands. In the Philippines, the biggest proportion of smokers also come from the poor. Monsod said it’s not an issue. â€Å"We are not taxing a good. We are taxing a bad. The proportion of smokers is higher among the poor. Who buys the most? The poor. And they are the ones suffering [health-wise]. Do not use problem of inequity because precisely we want to stop the poor from smoking. They’re spending so much buying cigarettes. They cannot afford the cost of medication,† said Monsod. †¨3. Farmers, retailers to lose livelihood Monsod questioned the statistics of the Philippine Tobacco Institute (PTI) a total of 840,146 people are employed in tobacco farming. With 32,325 hectares of farmland, that would mean there are 26 tobacco farmers and helpers per hectare. â€Å"Does that sound right to you? And yet, this was accepted without demur by our legislators. Nonsense. There are 52,000 farmers based on National Tobacco Administration data,† said Monsod. If the annual income per hectare is P80,000, it means that the annual income of a tobacco farmer is P3,269, Monsod data. â€Å"I am only using their data to show that their numbers are ridiculous†¦ How can anybody survive with P3,000 a year,† Monsod added. Another argument against the Sin Tax measure claims retailers will suffer from loss of sales from cigarettes. Monsod said retailers will likely keep their profits from cigarette sales because the demand for the product is elastic. And even if they lose sales from cigarettes, Monsod said it shouldn’t be a problem. â€Å"If people stop buying cigarettes, you think they’re not going to buy anything else? Cigarettes loss will be milk’s gain or rice’s gain,† she said. †¨4. Tobacco industry will die and gov’t will lose money All studies show the contrary, Monsod said. Price increase, she said, will not decrease sales because demand for cigarettes is elastic. Price increase will not deter smokers, said Monsod, because smokers are already â€Å"addicted.† They will continue to buy cigarettes, she said. â€Å"If you have diabetes and insulin increased by 300%, you are still going to buy insulin,† she explained. †¨5. Negative net economic benefits Based on Monsod’s presentation, the annual gross revenue from cigarette sales is P103 billion but its cost to health is P188 billion. Monsod said that is a net cost of P85 billion. ‘Even if the revenues were there, you will still say ‘Remove Tobacco,’ she added. It’s important that Congress passes a unitary sin tax, Monsod added. â€Å"A unitary tax is absolutely imperative. If it is not unitary, what you are essentially doing is, you are throwing the poor to the dogs. Let them die. You are allowing them to kill themselves cheaper,† Monsod said. Most, if not all, countries like the U.S. and Great Britain have adopted a unitary tax, she added. The House of Representatives in June passed on third and final reading a two-tier excise tax structure for tobacco products and 3-tier for alcohol. The diluted measure reduces projected revenues from P60 billion a year to P30 billion a year.

Effect of Azadirachtin on Insects

Effect of Azadirachtin on Insects INTRODUCTION Humans have always been in direct competition with a myriad of insects, pests from our ancestral beginning. This competition for food with insects intensified when humans began to cultivate plants converting the natural ecosystem to an agroecosystem. Also insects serve as vectors of various diseases caused by bacterial, filarial nematode, protozoans and viruses. Therefore control of insects posed a major concern for the development of the economy. In 1939, the discovery of insecticidal properties of DDT (Dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane) by Paul H. Mueller changed the scenario of pest management. During World War 2 DDT was extensively used to prevent epidemics of several insect vectored diseases such as yellow fever, typhus elephantiasis and malaria. This drew attention to the possibilities of more synthetic insecticides and as a result the use of pesticides in various arenas soared from 1940-60, complete reliance on pesticides intensive pest management was leading agriculture on a à ¢â‚¬Å"pesticide treadmill†. The overreliance on synthetic pesticides from late 1940s to mid-1960 was referred to as â€Å"Dark Ages† of pest control. The cheapness and effectiveness of synthetic insecticides threw natural compounds into shade. But very soon other shades also began to appear. In 1962, the appearance of book â€Å"Silent Spring† (by Rachel Carison) showed that pesticide residues were building up in ecosystem with detrimental effects on wildlife and beneficial insects. Due to extensive and intensive use, misuse and abuse of insecticides the following problems were becoming prominent and intolerable (ecological backlashes): Development of insecticide resistance- many insects started developing resistance against pesticides which increased the cost of management. Due to killing of natural controlling agents, the phenomenon of pest resurgence became more evident. Also minor pest were achieving the status of major pest i. e. secondary pest outbreak due to significant decline in its natural enemy (predators and parasites). Ecological imbalance due to poisoning of all the realms of environment. Increase in the concentration of hydrochlorinated insecticide in food chain. Intolerable residues on the food made the food obtained after such treatment uneconomical as it became unfit for consumption and unfit for exports due to high toxic residues. Killing and harmful effects on Non target organisms became more prominent (like birds, fishes and other wildlife). Overviewing these effects, there was an utmost need for the development of environmentally sound management practices. This lead to the idea of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) . A panel of experts put the concept of IPM in 1968. IPM as defined by FAO is a system which in consideration with the present environment and pest population dynamics, integrates all the sustainable techniques of pest management as compatible a manner as possible and maintain the population of pest below the level which can cause economic damage (i. e. below economic injury level). The approach is to minimize the dependence on insecticides and maximize the use of ecofriendly methods so as to cause minimum damage to the environment. Botanical pesticides, thus is an very important component of IPM as They are easily degradable. Dont affect non target organisms, natural controlling agents such as predator, parasites. Dont form residues And has no harmful effect on humans as they are very specific in action. Botanical pesticides refer to the use of chemical or organic compound produced by plants, plant products, which have harmful effects on the growth, development and survival of insect pests. Plants are a rich source of such organic compounds. HISTORY The practice of utilizing the derivatives of plant i. e. botanical pesticides in agriculture dates at least two millennia back in ancient China, Egypt, Greece and India. Even in North America and Europe, the documented use of botanicals extend back more than 150 years before the discovery of major class of synthetic chemical insecticides (OP, carbamates and pyretheroids) in mid 1930s to 1950. It is very clear from the recent history that the chemical insecticides have essentially relegated the botanical pesticides from an important role in agriculture to a trivial position in the market among various crop protection strategies. The total number of 20 phylochemicals is estimated to be 500000, so far only 10000 of these have been isolated. At present four major types of botanicals are being used for the control of insects. These include: Pyrethrum Neem (Azadirachtin). Rotenons. Essential oils. Others are in limited use like Ryania, Nicotine, Sabdella. Whereas Nicotine, Rotenene, Natural Pyrethrins constitute the outstanding example of older botanicals, extracts and compounds from the Neem tree (A. indica) have emerged as the most prominent phytochemical pesticides in recent years. Among the various biologically active compounds that can be extracted from the Neem tree like- triterpenoid, phenolic compounds, carotenoids, steroids, ketones; the tetranortriterpenoid azadirachtin has been the most extensively studied pesticide as 1) it is relatively abundant in Neem kernels. 2) has biological activity on a wide range of insects. PLANT SECONDARY METABOLITES Plants produce a large, diverse array of organic compounds that appears to have no function in growth and development. These substances are known as SECONDARY METABOLITES or secondary products or natural products. Secondary metabolites differ from Primary metabolites (amino acids, nucleotides, sugars, acyl lipids) as: They have no direct roles in photosynthesis, respiration, protein synthesis etc They have restricted distribution in plant kingdom. In a seminal paper Fraenkel stressed the role of secondary metabolites as defense system against insects, pests and other natural enemies. Though they play no role in growth and metabolism they play important ecological role in plants: They protect plants against being eaten by herbivore and being infected by microbial pathogen. They serve as attractants for pollinators and seed dispersing animals and as agents of plant-plant competition. Because of their ecological role, plant secondary metabolites are classified as ALLELOCHEMICALS, a term coined by WHITTAKER. An allelochmical is defined as a non nutritional chemical produced by an individual of one species that affects growth, health, behavior, population ecology of another species. Plants produce an astonishing array of Secondary metabolites. Even a single plant species may produce an extensive pharmacopeia of recondite chemicals. Periwinkle for example contains about more than 100 monoterpenoid indole alkaloids. It has been estimated that plant kingdom synthesizes hundreds of thousands of different secondary metabolites. The no of identified compounds now exceeds 10000. Secondary metabolites as plant defense is result of co evolution between plants and herbivores Plant secondary metabolites can be divided into three chemically distinct groups: TERPENES PHENOLICS NITROGEN CONTAINING COMPOUND TERPENES The terpenes constitute the largest class of secondary products . the diverse substances of this class are generally insoluble in water. They are biosynthesized from acetyl coA. Terpenes are classified by no of five carbon units they contain as: Monoterpenes: Contain 2 five carbon skeleton Sesquiterpenes: Contain 3 five carbon skeleton Diterpenes: Contain 4 five carbon skeleton Triterpenes: 30 carbons Tetraterpenes: 40 carbons Polyterpenoids: (C5)n,where n>8 Some terpenes have role in growth and development Terpenes defend against herbivore in many plants. Terpenes are toxins and feeding deterrentsto many plant feeding insects, thus they appear to play important defensive role in plant kingdom and protection of agricultural crops. Examples of important Terpenes: PYRETHROIDS: These are monoterpenoid that occurs in leaves and flowers of Chrysanthemum species show very striking insecticidal activity. Both natural and synthetic pyrethroids are popular ingredients in commercial insecticide because of their low persistence in the environment. Pyrethrum is the predominant botanical in use accounting for 80% of global botanical insecticide. ESSENTIAL OILS: These are the mixture of monoterpene and sesquiterpene that lends a characteristics odor to the foliage . e. g Menttholin Peppermint oil and Limonenein lemon oil are monoterpenes. Essential oils have well known insect repellent properties. They are frequently found in glandular hairs and serve to advertize the toxicity of plant repelling potential. Phytophagus insects even they take a trial bite. VOLATILE TERPENES: In corn wild tobacco certain monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes are produced and emitted only after insect feeding has already begun. These substances prevent oviposition and kill plant feeding insects and so help in controlling further damage. These also attract natural enemies of plant feeding insects so promise a sound means of pest control. LIMNOIDS: These are a group of nonvolatile Triterpene. Among these the most powerful deterrent to insects feeding known is Azadirachtin. It is a complex limnoid from Neem tree which is feeding deterrent to some insects at as low as 50ppm and it exerts a variety of toxic effect. It has considerable potential as a commercial insect control because of its low toxicity to mammals. PHENOLICS Plants produce a variety of secondary products that contain a phenol group, these are called phenolic compounds. Plants phenolics are a chemically heterogeneous group of nearly 10000 compounds . many of these serve as defense compounds against herbivores. The release of phenolics into soil limits the growth of other plants. LIGNIN a highly branched polymer of phenylpropanoid group has significant protective function in plants. Its physical toughness deters feeding by insects and chemical durability makes it relatively indigestible. The flavoids are one of the largest classes of plants phenolics e. g. anthocyanins, flavones etc. Anthocyanins are colored flavonoids that attract insects to flower and fruits by providing visual and olfactory signal. Flavonoids protect against damage by UV light. Tannins deter feeding by herbivores and it also act as feeding repellents to a great diversity of insects NITROGEN CONTAINING COMPOUND A large variety of plant secondary metabolites have nitrogen in their structure. This category includes well known defense against phytophagus insects as alkaloids and cyanogenic glycosides,glucosinolates. ALKALOIDS: These are a large family of more than 15000 nitrogen containing secondary metabolites with a heterocyclic ring. Several different types including nicotine and its relative are derived from ornithine . Most alkaloids now function as defenseagainst their predators because of their toxicity and deterrence capability. Alkaloids increase in response to initial damage fortifying against further damage e. g. wild tobacco produces higher level of nicotinefollowing damage by tobacco caterpillars. CYANOGENIC GLYCOSIDES: These are not toxic themselves but are readily broken down to give off volatile poisons; well known poisonous gas Hydrogen cyanide. When the leaf is damaged due to insects feeding on it, the cell content of different tissue mix and HCN is formed. HCN is a fast acting toxin that inhibits metalloprotiens such as iron containing cytochrome oxidase; a key enzyme of mitochondrial respiration, thus affecting physiology of insects. Thus presence of cyanogenic glycosides deters feeding by insects. GLUCOSINOLATES: A Class of plant glycosides that break down to release volatile defensive substances, also called Mustard oil glycosides. Found principally in the Brassicaceae and related plant families, where glucosinolates give off compounds responsible for smell and taste of vegetables like cabbage, cauliflower, mustards etc. These compounds function in DEFENCE as toxin and feeding repellent. But certain insects are adapted for feeding on glucosinolate containing plants without ill effects. For example glucosinolates serve as stimulant for Cabbage butterfly for feeding and egg laying and isothiocyanates serve as volatile attractants. PLANT PROTIENS: Certain plant protein also interfere with insect digestion, for example plants produce LECTINS,defensive proteins that bind to epithelial cell lining digestive tract and interfere with nutrient absorption. The best known anti digestive proteins in plants are protein inhibitors found in legumes, tomatoes, and other plants. After entering herbivores digestive tract they interfere with protein digestion, as a result insects suffer reduced rates of growth and development. THE NEEM TREE, PROPERTIES AND DISTRIBUTION The Neem tree also known by names like Indian Lilac, Margosa tree is an evergreen fastgrowing tree belonging to the order â€Å"Rutales† and family â€Å"Meliaceae†. The genus Azadirachta indica was described by A. juss in 1830. DISRIBUTION Neem tree is indigenous to Indian Subcontinent from where is has spread to many Asian and African countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Mynamar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Iran, Yemen, Australia, New Guinea, Nigeria, Fizi, Tanzania, Madagascar, USA, Latin America, Germany, France, Portugal, Spain and UK. It is now grown in most tropical and sub-tropical parts of the worls. The origin of A. indica is not very clear. Some say that is has originated from Burma whereas others point it to south India. It is considered that it has originated from south-eastern and southern Asia. In Indonesia Neem exists in low lying Northern and Eastern parts of java. In Philippines it was introduced from India, Africa. Ketkar (1967) reported about 14 million trees in India. There are more than 20 million trees available in entire India. In Africa Neem was introduced from India and is concentrated in a belt stretching across the African continent from Somalia to Mauretania. In America Neem trees are prominent in Haiti, Surinam and propagation has started in Brazil, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Nicaragua. Neem trees also grow in our neighbouring countries, Middle East, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. HABITAT Neem tree is a fast growing sclerophyllous tree. It grows well in humid to semi-humid climate. It thrives well at altitudes upto 700-800m above the sea level. Neem trees are hardy and are able to grow in severe drought condition also. They thrive well in regions with less than 500 mm annual rainfall and upto 2500 mm annual rainfall. Neem tree exist in poor, shallow, sandy and stony soil. It also grows in black cotton soil in India. Neem tree can flourish in warm to very hot climates. It grows well between 21-320c temperatures but it can tolerate upto 500c during summer. Ph value between 6. 2-7 seems to the best for the growth of Neem tree. CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES It is a fast-growing tree, reaching a height of 4-7 m during the first 3 years and 5-11m during the following 5 years. It begins to bear fruit within 3-5 years and becomes fully productive in the 10th year, when it may yield up to 50 kg fruit per tree per year. The Neem tree produces its fruits, which are the main source for its production of pesticides, on drooping panicles, usually about once a year, although two fruiting periods per year occur in certain areas (e. g. West Africa). A mature Neem tree produces annually 30-50 kg of fruit, but this may depend upon rainfall and soil conditions. More conservative estimates range around 20 kg per tree; 40 kg of fresh fruit yield about 24 kg of dry fruit. Neem has the reputation of possessing a large number of biological activities which include insecticidal, nematicidal, bactericidal, and anti-fungal. It has attracted world-wide attention due to its wide ranging capacity as a biocide. PESTICIDAL CONSTITUENT OF NEEM Neem tree is the only tree in which every part of tree produces biologically active products which has various properties such as antifeedant, deterrent, growth regulation, oviposition alteration, insecticidal properties, fungicidal properties,etc. Though bark, heartwood, leaves, fruits of it produce these substances in various concentrations but it is the fruits specifically seeds which are of major importance. Neem seed kernels contain the highest amount of the active compound. 40-50 kg of fruit can yield about 5 kg of kernels (10% of fruit). Each seed contains about 1-3 kernels. Till date more than 140 active principles have been identified in different parts of the tree. Insecticidal properties of Neem is due to the presence of a class of Limnoids which include compounds like Azadirachtin, Melantriol, Salanin, Mimbines, Salannol and various sulfur containing compounds. Among these Azadirachtin is the most active and predominant insecticidal compound concentrated mainly in the seed kernels. The Azadirachtin occurs in seeds at the concentration of about 0. 1-0. 9%. It is estimated that 20-30 kg of Neem seeds are required per hectare if 2g of Azadirachtin per kg of sed is obtained. The highest yield of Azadirachtin obtained till date was about 10g/kg of seed. AZADIRACHTINAND ITS STRUCTURE Azadirachtin is a highly oxidized limnoid chemically being a tetranortriterpenoid and is the main component responsible for both anti-feedant and toxic effects in Azadirachtin. Butterworth and Morgan were the first to isolate Azadirachtin in 1968 from Neem seed. Morgan established correct molecular formula of Azadirachitn (C55H44O16). In 1971 they developed a simplified method to isolate azadirachitn by doing solvent partitioning followed by column and preparative thin layer chromatography. However its structure was determined in 1975 by Nakanishis team through the application of new NMR methods. There were some inaccuracies in the given model. Then again renewed efforts were made by the group of Ley, Kraus, Nakanishi and they gave the correct structure by using X-ray crystallography. A. indica produces a plethora of triterpenoids, the biosynthesis of which culminates in azadirachtin. The biosynthesis of azadirachtin starts with a steroid precursor tetracyclic triterpene â€Å"tirucallol†. Opening of C-ring followed by processing via two main levels of structural complexity i. e. furan ring formation leads to Azadirachtin. VARIOUS PESTICIDAL FORMULATIONS Neem insecticides which are obtained from Neem seeds contain various arelated triterpenoids in addition to the Azadirachtin. However their efficacy is related directly to the content of Azadirachtin. These compounds do possess biological activity and they add to its effects. Pure Azadirachtin was shown to be effective in the fields (Mordue et al, 1997) but the natural mixtures of azadirachtin in Neem insecticides may usefully mitigate against the development of resistance compared to azadirachtin alone (Feng and Isman, 1995). The complex nature of azadirachtin and other sophisticated Neem constituents prevent their mass production by synthesis in the foreseeable future. The pesticidal Neem products used in practice include dried leaves, whole seed, decorticated seed, seed kernels, Neem oil, and Neem cake, remaining after extraction or extrusion of the oil from the seeds. Several Indian companies or institutions produce commercially Neem-based insecticidal formulations, such as RD-9 Repelin and Wellgro, for spraying against cutworms and other insect pests in tobacco growing areas; Nimbosol and Biosol for control of whiteflies; and the products Neemrich and Neemark, the latter also as an azadirachtin-enriched granular Neem formulation. In the U. S. A. , the EPA hasgranted registration to Margosan-O, an azadirachtin-enriched, concentrated Neem seed kernel extract formulation, for use on non food crops and ornamentals. Margosan-0 was developed by R. Larson of Vikwood Botanicals Inc. at Sheboygan, WI, in colla boration with the USDA Agricultural Research Center at Beltsville, MD. The rights to this product, which contains 0. 3% azadirachtin and 14%Neem oil (the 0 in the name of the product stands for oil), and has an oral toxicity in excess of 5,000 mg/kg in rats. Margosan-0 has been evaluated successfully against an extensive series of insects in the U. S. A. and Canada, Lyriornizu leafminers on ornamentals and tomatoes, cotton bugs, cockroaches and mosquitoes. Margosan-0 demonstrated highest activity against Ostriniu nubilalis , and against leafhoppers, against two species of local cotton pests, Enrias insulana and Spodoptera littoralis. Recently in the U. S. A. a further Neem formulation, developed. under the auspices of the Natural Products Institute, Salt Lake City, UT is †Azatin†(Agridyne Technologies, Salt Lake City, UT). Also, Safer Ltd. , a Canadian manufacturer specializing in environmentally safe pest control formulations, developed insecticides based on Neem. Safer , however, has been acquired recently by Ringer Corp. , Minneapolis, MN, which distributes Margosan-0 in the home garden market under the tradenames of â€Å"Bioneem† and â€Å"Neemesis†. Contrary to registration practices in use until now, no precise chemical descriptions of all the ingredients of Margosan-0 were required, but rather, demonstration of the biological activity and innocuousness of the whole mixture to no target organisms was used in the registration process. Hopefully such specially tailored toxicity studies will be used to judge and register Neem and similar natural products in the future. A recent report claims that the EPA has approved a Neem-based biological pesticide developed by an Indian company for use on a wide range of food crops. MODES OF ACTION Major modes of action of azadirachtin are: Powerful IGR. Feeding Deterrant. Oviposition Deterrant. These are the three modes of action of azadirachtin which make azadirachtin much sought after biopesticide in todays agriculture industry. IGR: Azadirachtin acts as a powerful growth regulator for insects and this IGR effect is the most pronounced mode of action of Azadirachtin. Normally IGR effect the hormonal system of insects, preventing the insects from developing into normal mature insects. This IGR property of Azadirachtin doesnot leads to immediate death of insects, pests. Azadirachtin as an IGR: The IGR property of Azadirachtin arise due to the fact that: Azadirachtin is structurally analogous to natural hormone Ecdysone. As Ecdysone regulates the development of insect, any disruption in its balance leads to improper development. Also Azadirachtin interferes with the production and reception of Ecdysone at the time of insects growth and moulting. Thus Azadirachtin in this manner block the moulting cycle resulting in the death of the insect, pest. The main action of Azadirachtin appears to be at the release site of PTTH. The mode of action of Azadirachtin as IGR is thus an Indirect Physiological Effect. It is exerted via the endocrine system. The copora cardiaca is supposed to be the target for the Azadirachtin as is affects the PTTH, Eclosin Hormone, Bursicin Hormone release. PTTH release is inhibited rather than Ecdysine from Prothorasic gland. Thus the Azadirachtin affects the neurosecretory cells of Brain. Various experiments show that Azadirachtin doesnt directly act on Prothorasic Glands. In the in vitro culture of Prothorasic (H. virescens) gland showed that the PTTH induced release of the Ecdysine was medium (Bidmon et al, 1987, Barnby and Klocke, 1990). Also it was not blocked in PTTH simulated cultured glands from M. sexta pupa penetrated with Azadirachtin in last larval instar (Pener et al, 1988). However receptivity of Prothorasic gland to PTTH was affected in H. virescens. Neurosecretory proteins stained with paraldehyde in L. migratolia females when was compared with similar aged azadirachtin treated females there was an accumaulation of stainable material in corpora cardiaca of brain neurosecretory system in treated insects. Thus is appears that azadirachtin blocks release of neurosecretory material from corpora cardiac. It can thus be concluded that Azadirachtin does block the release of peptide hormones from brain neurosecretory cell corpora cardiac complex. Azadirachtin also exhibit IGR effect by altering the titre of Juvenile Hormone (JH). Azadirachtin affects the release of allotropins into corpora dillata hence block the synthesis and release of the Juvenile Hormone. This block leads to a rapid decrease in whole body JH titres, which is maintained for several days. Experiments prove that in M. sexta larvae, azadirachtin infection on day 0 (1. 0-10  µg/ larva) results in induction of supernumerary moults (Sch et al, 1985; Beckage et al, 1988) presumably due to an inhibition and subsequent delay in JH titre. In adult female L. migratolia also azadirachtin treatment causes a rapid decrease in juvenile hormone titres with associated disturbances in oogenesis (Rembold, 1984; Rembold et al, 1987). Thus, on a conclusionary note, the effect of azadirachtin is both dose and time dependent. It prevents both apolysis and ecdysis and thus can cause death before the moults, during the moults or delays of moult to form permanent larvae. Feeding Deterrance: Feeding behavior is both dependent on chemical senses stimulated due to contact chemoreceptors on trasi, mouthparts and oral activity and integration of the sensory code with the CNS. Azadirachtin acts as feeding deterrant. Inhibition of the feeding behavior occurs: There are receptors present on and around mouthparts of insects which normally respond to Phagostimulants. So azadirachtin may act by blocking the input from these receptors. Also there are present specific â€Å"deterrent cells† in insects which prevent insect from feeding. Azadirachtin acts to stimulate these â€Å"deterrent cells† leading to feeding deterrence. Many experiments were done in this regard. Using different concentration of sucrose and azadirachtin, either singly or together, the neurophysiological responses from  ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­medial and lateral sensillia styloconica of maxillae showed different group of receptors are receptive to sucrose (sugar cells) or azadirachtin (deterrent cell) in S. exempta and M. brassicae in most of the cases, the rate of firing of sugar sensitive cells were reduced in presence of both chemicals (Simmonds and Blaney, 1984). Such an interaction was also found in P. brassicae. This leads to a reduced or complete inhibition of feeding. Direct mode of action: Incorporation of azadirachtin results in direct toxic effect after ingestion. Azadirachtin prevents the secretion of Proteolytic enzymes and thus significantly impair ability of insects to digest and absorb nitrogenous food. When azadirachtin is ingested it can result in the disfunctioning of gut, as a result of which midgut epithelial cells become round. Swelling of cells and organells occur with some vacuolization and cell burst resulting in necrosis (as observed in S. gregarea and L. migratolia Naseruddin and Mordue (Luntz), 1993a; Cottee, 1984). There is also reduction in the regenerative cells and increase in the connective tissue layer with some invading heomocytes. This would lead to disruption of enzyme secretion and nutrient absorption. Also the antifeedant effect can be attributed to the action of azadirachtin on the peristaltic movement of gut wall. The gut of treated insects lack tone, midgut to hindgut junction becomes flaccid and co-ordinated peristalsis is lacking which leads to antifeeding behavior. EFFECT OF AZADIRACHTIN ON INSECTS Effects on Feeding Azadirachtin is a classical example of a natural plant defence chemical affecting feeding. Antifeedancy is the major insecticidal effect of Azadirachtin. Antifeedant effect in insect pest on application of Azadirachtin is divided into two main categories: Primary Antifeedancy: It refers to the deterrence of feeding in insects. Primary Antifeedancy is also called Gustatory antifeedancy. It can be defined as the inability to ingest resulting from the perception of antifeedant at a sensory level (Schmutterer 1985). Insects fail to eat treated crops and as starvation ensued results in the death of insects. Secondary Antifeedant effect: It refers to the non-feeding after the ingestion of treated plant. Secondary antifeedancy is also called Non-Gustatory antifeedancy. It can be defined as the reduction in food consumption and digestive efficiency subsequent to and as a consequence of ingestion, application or injection of antifeedant (Schmutterer, 1985). Experiments conducted in the past in this regard by various persons: The first detailed experiment was conducted in S. gregaria (desert locusts) in India. Insects from different orders show marked difference in their response to azadirachtin. (Table 1) Lepidopteras showed extreme sensitivity to azadirachtin and depending upon species, effective anti-feedance was observed from less than 1 to 50 ppm. Hemiptera (Homoptera), Coleoptera are less sensitive to azadirachtin with 100 % antifeedancy observed at 100-600 ppm. However, in Orthoptera wide range of sensitivity has been observed. Reed and Pierce in 1981 tested the repellant effect of Neem extract to striped cucumber beetle (A. vittateim), by cutting leaves and dipping them in extract solution and placing them in a dish with untreated leaf pieces. When 5 fasting beetles were placed in a dish, 0. 1 % azadirachtin gave protection for atleast three days. The intake of food by various homopteran insects Nilaparvata lugens, Nephotettix virescens was significantly reduced on rice plants sprayed with 1-50% emulsion of Neem oil. ( ). In green rice leafhopper, N. virescens feeding on the phloem of neem oil treated plants (1. 25-10%) was significantly less than of solvent treated control plants, whereas xylem feeding increased. Hemipteran insects feeding on tobacco seedlings which had been systemically treated with 500 ppm azadirachtin, were shown initially to feed normally but, after termination of the initial feed, the interval prior to the next subsequent feed was significantly increased and feeding activity thereafter was suppressed (Nisbetet al. 1993). When azadirachtun was impregnated on discs at a concentration of 0. 1-10 ppm, S. littoralis(African cotton leafworm),Spodoptera frugiperda(J. E. Smith) (fall armyworm),Heliothis virescens(F. ) (Tobacco budworm) andHelicoverpa armigera(Hà ¼b. ) (Old world bollworm) showed significant beh avior response and are prevented from feeding on the discs dependent on species (Blaney et al. 1990, Simmonds et al. 1990, Mordue (Luntz) et al. 1998) Insects from different Orders differ markedly in their behavior responses to azadirachtin (Table 1). Lepidoptera are extremely sensitive to azadirachtin and show effective antifeedancies from

Public perceptions of policing

Public perceptions of policing This paper will critically examine the effect media representations of the police can have on public perceptions of policing. In doing so it will argue that the media has a considerable influence on public perceptions of policing, highlighting that positive representations of the police are a necessity in reducing crime and creating social cohesion as a whole. This paper will conclude that negative representations should be reduced, through the media and through police accountability. In order to critically examine the effect of media representations on public perceptions, the role of the police must be discussed. Traditionally, the police role was based on the role of the night watchmen. In the late 17th Century, from every evening until sunrise, night watchmen would patrol the streets with a task to examine all suspicious characters (Emsley et al. 2012). Their main responsibility was to arrest offenders of minor crime and to deter offenders of more serious crimes (Emsley et al. 2012). To clarify, part of their role was to detect and prevent crime which generally adds to the maintaining of public order in society. This is considered to be a traditional role of the police, but, in present times this role has become much more complex. The role of the police can now be considered as split into two; to punish or to support. To explain, civil policing has a minimal distance between the police and the community, with concerns to conflict resolution and peace keeping. H owever, as a coercive and repressive force, military policing distances the service and the community by concentrating on punishment rather than community involvement. For instance, military policing has been used as an attempt to tackle the war on terror, despite the debates surrounding its considered effectiveness (Murray, 2005:347). Despite this, in recent years greater emphasis has been placed on designing policing services around public need (Myhill, 2011:273). Not only can the overall role be considered torn into antithesis, the duties within the role are numerous. McLaughlin (2007) describes police work as multifaceted in that the duties of the police include officers on the beat, stopping crimes in progress, investigating serious crimes and the arresting of offenders. In addition, the police have to focus on the deterrence of criminals as well as the reassurance of the public. On this view, police activity is in fact difficult to define and, for the most part, unrelated to law enforcement and criminal detection (Mclaughlin, 2007:52). With a police role that is in itself hard to define, it is important to discuss what the public perception of the role of the police is. The public can be considered to perceive the police as symbols of moral authority (Jackson et al. 2009:104). Therefore, the role of the police is to resolve immoral acts, and set the standard of morality. To illustrate, if the police are found to be corrupt then they are arguably damaging the moral symbol, which reduces the confidence the public have in the symbol. Perhaps due to this focus on morality, the public demand that offenders (the wrong-doers) are caught and crime is prevented (Manning cited in McLaughlin, 2007:53). Public views on policing are considered as important as administrative assessments (Myhill, 2011:273-274), this can help to ensure that their duties are executed in a satisfactory manner. Overall, public perceptions of policing are influential in their own right. In regards to this, it is important to address the perceptions of the efficiency of the police and the confidence the public have in the police. Bradford (2009) discusses four distinct groups in regards to confidence and perceptions of police effectiveness; these groups being identified through research undertaken in London. Firstly, there are the supporters who are confident about policing and the improvements in policing but have little direct experience of the police, for example, they are unlikely to have been a victim. Secondly, the contents are satisfied with policing but have indifferent feelings towards policing, similarly, they have little contact with the police. Thirdly, the needy have negative views towards the improvement of policing and do not appear to be satisfied with policing; they have high levels of police contact and victimisation. Lastly, there are the demanding who have high levels of police contact but less of this contact is caused by victimisation. They are not completely satisfied with policing but are more likely to feel informed about neighbourhood policing (Bradford, 2009:144). From this, it seems that public perceptions of the police vary due to personal experience, but the amount of contact one has with the police doesnt entirely determine whether one has a positive or negative view of policing. For example, the contents and the supporters have similar contact with the police but have differing perceptions and confidence in policing. Arguably this could be due to vicarious experience (Bradford, 2009:42), for example, stories about the police which one hears from others or through the media. This type of experience could influence ones views on policing. Concerning the split role of the police, it has been established that a more service-oriented style of policing can improve public confidence, for example neighbour policing (Myhill,2011:276). Public confidence in policing is important as it aids police-public relations, and can help to deal with the reassurance gap (Bradford, 2011:179). To clarify, crime is falling but it appears to have had little impact on public confidence in policing (Jackson et al. 2009:101). Due to this, the police are having to deal with the fear of crime in addition to attempting to control crime. The police service is trying to reduce the fear by dealing with broader concerns, for example, social disorder, as well as increasing police visibility and police-public relations (Jackson et al. 2009:101). In recent years, the media can be considered to play on this fear of crime. Ditton et al. explains that although the dominant current attitude towards the relationship between the media and crime is of the formers causing fear of the latter, it wasnt always soà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦most research attention in the field was oriented to connecting the media to viewers aggression (i.e. as potential offenders) rather than to their anxieties (i.e. as potential victims) (Ditton et al. 2011:443). On this view, if the media was to concentrate on the aggression instead of the victimisation, the fear of crime would be reduced. If this fear was reduced it would increase public confidence in policing as they would believe that crime has fallen, as opposed to the public lacking confidence in the falling rate of crime. In addition, if policing does not have to tackle the fear of crime, it leaves more time to tackle actual crime, which in turn may make police-public relations stronger. Moreover, trends in public perceptions of national and local crime rates in England and Wales of 2003/2004, found that the more people thought crime was increasing, the more they lacked confidence in the police (Myhill, 2011:275). Overall, one can argue that the media influences the public into fearing increasing crime, this lowers their confidence in the police and so infringes on the strength of police-public relations. As media representations are available for general consumption, they are one of the few means whereby the public can make sense of crime and justice (Schlesinger et al. 2010 :255). In fact, the media can be considered as something that is no longer something separable from society (McRobbieThornton, 2010:488). Furthermore, the media can emphasise what they desire to cover, and neglect others (Schlesinger et al. 2010 :260). For example, a problem with policing which can be easily sensationalised in order to sell more newspapers may be reported on, whereas a successful policing crime-prevention technique lacking dramatic value may not be. Predominantly, one may view the representations of policing in the media as negative. To illustrate, the death of Ian Tomlison was heavily reported in the media. Between Tomlisons death and the Crown Prosecution Services decision not to prosecute, there was a shift in news media attention-from police violence to the wider problem of systemic institutional failure' (Greer,2011:275). To explain, the media acknowledged the misconduct of a particular police officer, but in time forwarded alleged problems of policing itself. As the public use the media to access knowledge of crime and justice, it can be considered that the public would have followed this story from the start, and so would have gained negative perceptions of policing by the end of this string of media representations. As well as producing hyperbole in the news, the media can be guilty of misrepresentations . To illustrate, McLaughlin (2007) argues that the boundaries of the real have become heavily blurred and, to some extent, erased, in that the many fictional police based programmes give a incorrect impression of policing, and produce false perceptions of policing. The media has put the once sacred icon of national security and social order at risk (McLaughlin, 2007:114) On the other hand, the media can produce positive representations of the police, which in effect may increase positivity among the public perception of policing. For instance, Neighbourhood Blues (BBC1, 2012) represents the police in a positive light, demonstrating how they integrate with the public, for example, liaising with the homeless, giving advice, showing care and compassion as well as enforcing the law. Therefore it seems that the televised representations of policing can have its strengths and weaknesses in regards to public perceptions of policing. To clarify, on-screen media can take away the reality of policing and create false representations, however it can also be a means to demonstrate the real work that the police actually undergo. In regards to media as news reports, it appears that the more sellable the story the more likely it will be printed, and so the more scandalous stories, such as police misconduct, will be presented on a larger scale than other less sensational stories. As previously acknowledged, the effects of media representations on public perceptions of policing also affects the trust the public have in the police. Greer Castells explain, When public officials and institutions are repeatedly and sensationally named and shamed as incompetent or corrupt, and failing to adhere to the norms and values they are supposed to uphold and encourage in others, public trust is undermined (Greer McLaughlin,2012:289) An example of such, is the media reaction to the MacPherson Report, in relation to the murder of Stephen Lawrence in 1993. Allegedly, collusion and corruption on the polices behalf occurred during the Stephen Lawrence enquiry which affected the time-scale of the case achieving justice. There were also claims of unprofessional treatment of the Lawrence family during the enquiry (MacPherson, 1999). The media was immediately receptive to the enquiry (Neal, 2003:65), taking a hold of the misconduct within the police, and transforming representations to focus on institutional racism and the need for policy intervention, with four major newspapers reporting about this on their front pages (Neal, 2003:65). These newspapers heavily criticised the police in a way which was considerably unmanageable for the police (Neal, 2003:63). It is thought that higher levels of trust are linked to positive outcomes in terms of co-operation, deference and even compliance with the law ( Tyler cited in Bradf ord 2011:179 ). In this sense, one could argue that this excess of negative representations from the media hindered this trust by encouraging public perceptions that were damaging to policing. However, on the opposite view the media can be considered to have had positive effects on public perceptions, arguably it was the sole reason for the Lawrence case eventually coming to justice. If it was not for the media initially reporting on the case, the MacPherson report might never had emerged, and the issue of institutional racism may never had been acknowledged. Taking this into account, the media helped to increase the professionalism of the police. This may not have provided a positive perception of policing , but ultimately by tackling corruption, policing will improve, and in turn this could limit the negative publicity of the police. Arguably, if the police had held themselves accountable for the misconduct in dealing with the Lawrence case, then the media would not have had to expose the corruption in the police on behalf of the community. Thereby, the police need to safeguard their trust from the public and maintain a positive representation of policing by being accoun table and professional. As well as maximising audiences as much as possible, on behalf of the public the media also challenges state institutions (Mawby, 2002, 30), therefore it is in the police services interest to have positive media relations and be more proactive in order to control the police image. There exist certain strategies as a result of this interest, the main objective being the generating of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦positive publicity, thereby influencing public opinion in favour of force objectives (Mawby,2002:317). By promoting a positive light on police work, making use of all opportunities to obtain positive publicity, ensuring a professional image, and using the media to promote policing in a positive way, the public can gain a better understanding of policing and policing objectives(Mawby,2002:317). To clarify, if the police were to be continually accountable for their acts and professional in undertaking tasks and dealing with the public, they would begin to tackle the negative image of policing that the media represents so often. This is due to the fact that the media would have less need to expose the police on behalf of the community, as the police would have deem themselves responsible prior to any media report. Moreover, the police can only do a limited amount in the realms of policing in producing a positive image to the public as it is the media that has the influence on the police-public perception. Ultimately, policing must focus on improving media relations and taking a pro-active role in promoting themselves in a positive light. This would reduce the negativity that the media can present to the public, ultimately improving the publics perception of policing. In summary, this paper has argued that media representations of the police do influence the publics perception of policing. With the police role being a debatable, complex concept, public perceptions of policing are important. As was illustrated through Bradfords distinct groups, ones perception of policing is not solely dependent on personal experience. Due to the medias need to sensationalise and their duty to speak for community, the media generally represents a negative view of the police. Furthermore, the media can be considered to play on the fear of crime which has had a massive effect on public perceptions of crime, and is counter productive in the tackling of crime and in improving the trust the public have in the police. However, the media can present policing in a positive light in informative programmes for example. This paper has argued in favour of the importance of a positive police-public relation, as this positive relationship can not only help to reduce the fear of crime but can tackle crime itself. With emphasis on the importance and the benefits of a positive relationship, it is paramount that the media limits its negative representations of policing in order to improve the public perception of the police and so the police-public relationship. However, this paper has acknowledged that the media is not always incorrect when negative perceptions of policing are represented, in fact the media can be a necessary tool in holding the police to account in certain cases. Ultimately, this can add to the professionalism of the police service, and so can improve community satisfaction. Even so, the police need to control their own image and take charge in presenting themselves positively, regardless of the media. Overall, the representation of the police in the media needs to be positive, this could be achieved through the police service itself improving its professionalism by showing accountability, alongside the necessity of the media changing throug h acknowledgment of the disadvantages they can bring by negatively representing the police. To conclude, this paper has critically examined the effect that media representations of the police can have on public perceptions of policing, and has argued that these representations do have a considerably negative effect on public perceptions, of which needs to change.