Sugarcane Regions Research Articles

High prevalence of hepatitis B virus genotype E in Northern Madagascar indicates a West‐African lineage

The prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) markers was investigated in 563 inhabitants aged 15-55 years from a sugar cane region, Sirama, and from a village, Mataipako, in Northern Madagascar. Serological markers of past or present infection were significantly higher in Sirama, 74% versus 45%. There was no difference in the prevalence of chronic HBsAg carriers, 8.7% versus 8.5% between the two regions. Sequencing the S gene in 45 strains revealed a predominance of genotype E, in 53%, followed by subgenotype A1 in 22%, and genotype D in 18%. Phylogenetic analyses of the genotype E strains showed homology with West African strains. All A1 isolates were similar to Malawi strains. Most genotype D strains were subgenotype D7 and related to strains from Somalia and Tunisia. One genotype D strain formed a branch between Pacific D4 and African D7 strains at neighbor-joining analysis. The pre-core stop mutant was found in 33% of the genotype D strains, 17% of E but not in any A1 strain. The high prevalence and low variability of genotype E strains in only two villages, indicates a rather recent introduction of this genotype into Madagascar from West Africa, possibly through migration or slave trade. The wider spread and genetic relationship of genotype D with East African and Austronesian strains indicate an earlier introduction of this genotype. Molecular epidemiology of HBV may thus be used to complement linguistic and genetic studies on past human migrations in Africa.

Regional Differences in Time to Pregnancy Among Fertile Women from Five Colombian Regions with Different use of Glyphosate

The objective of this study was to test whether there was an association between the use of glyphosate when applied by aerial spray for the eradication of illicit crops (cocaine and poppy) and time to pregnancy (TTP) among fertile women. A retrospective cohort study (with an ecological exposure index) of first pregnancies was undertaken in 2592 fertile Colombian women from 5 regions with different uses of glyphosate. Women were interviewed regarding potential reproductive, lifestyle, and work history predictors of TTP, which was measured in months. Fecundability odds ratios (fOR) were estimated using a discrete time analogue of Cox's proportional hazard model. There were differences in TTP between regions. In the final multivariate model, the main predictor was the region adjusted by irregular relationship with partner, maternal age at first pregnancy, and, marginally, coffee consumption and self-perception of water pollution. Boyacá, a region with traditional crops and. recently, illicit crops without glyphosate eradication spraying (manual eradication), displayed minimal risk and was the reference region. Other regions, including Sierra Nevada (control area, organic agriculture), Putumayo and Nariño (illicit crops and intensive eradication spray program), and Valle del Cauca, demonstrated greater risk of longer TTP, with the highest risk for Valle del Cauca (fOR 0.15, 95% CI 0.12, 0.18), a sugar-cane region with a history of use of glyphosate and others chemicals for more than 30 yr. The reduced fecundability in some regions was not associated with the use of glyphosate for eradication spraying. The observed ecological differences remain unexplained and may be produced by varying exposures to environmental factors, history of contraceptive programs in the region, or psychological distress. Future studies examining these or other possible causes are needed.

Calagem para a cana-de-açúcar e sua interação coma adubação potássica

Com o objetivo de estudar os efeitos da calagem e da adubação potássica na produtividade da cana-de-açúcar foram instalados seis experimentos em diversas regiões, em unidades produtoras do Estado de São Paulo. Os experimentos foram arranjados em esquema fatorial com quatro doses de calcário e três de potássio, em blocos ao acaso com quatro repetições. Foi avaliada a produtividade da cana-planta e, em dois experimentos, a das soqueiras. Em quatro locais, foi plantada a cultivar SP70-1143 e nos demais, as cultivares SP 71-6163 e SP71-1406. As análises iniciais dos solos, de todos os locais, revelaram excesso de acidez e a calagem seria uma prática de manejo recomendada. Foram observadas respostas significativas à calagem em apenas dois experimentos, com acréscimos de produtividade de cana de 8 e 13 t.ha-1 respectivamente, o que confirma a adaptação das cultivares plantadas em solos ácidos e de baixa fertilidade. Por outro lado, a resposta da cana ao potássio foi de natureza linear e significativa em sete das dez avaliações, tanto na cana-planta como em soqueiras. A interação calcário-potássio não foi significativa em nenhuma avaliação, mostrando a pouca interdependência entre essas práticas no manejo da fertilidade do solo para a cana-de-açúcar.

Atencingo Revisited: Political Class Formation and Economic Restructuring in Mexico's Sugar Industry1

Abstract Sugarcane growers have had a close relationship to the state since the 1940s when a series of decrees established a heavy state intervention in the sugar industry, which then became highly regulated. Growers became loyal to the state in exchange for low but secure incomes and other social guarantees. After the introduction of economic liberalism in Mexico during the mid‐1980s (called "neoliberalism" in Mexico), the sugar industry became largely de‐regulated, and sugar mills were reprivatized. This article explores the process of political class formation in the sugarcane region of Atencingo, in the state of Puebla. Whether cane growers posit peasant, proletarian, or peasant‐entrepreneurial demands is examined, as is the character of organizations and alliances that direct producers have established since the 1930s (oppositional, popular‐democratic, or bourgeois‐hegemonic). This paper documents the emergence of a peasant‐entrepreneurial class and presents initial results from a survey questionnaire administered in 1995. Rather than offering an economic argument based on a narrowly defined class position, this explanation emphasizes the prevailing regional cultures, the forms of state intervention, and the types of leadership‐the crucial mediating determinations that explain political outcomes in Atencingo and other regions of rural Mexico.

A Comparative Study of Two Sugarcane Regions in the Philippines (1830-1920)

A Comparative Study of Two Sugarcane Regions in the Philippines (1830-1920)

Melhoramento da cana-de-açúcar IIa: experimentos regionais com clones obtidos em 1967

Uma série de clones obtidos em programas de melhoramento iniciado em 1967, no Instituto Agronômico, foi testada em quatro experimentos conduzidos em terras das diversas regiões canavieiras paulistas. No trabalho, iniciado em 1974, usando como testemunhas as variedades comerciais 'IAC 52-150', 'IAC 52-326', 'IAC 58-480', 'CB 41-76' e 'NA 56-79', foram feitas três colheitas em cada experimento: cana-planta, soca e ressoca, sendo as análises estatísticas executadas com as médias das três. Os clones 67-112, 67-48, 67-145 e 67-122 tiveram produção de cana superior à das testemunhas; os clones 67-19, 67-6, 67-14, 67-28, 67-21 e 67-7 não diferiram da melhor testemunha, a 'IAC 58-480', nessa característica. O clone 67-139 apresentou teor de açúcar superior ao de todos os tratamentos; o 67-55 teve teor de açúcar semelhante ao das três melhores testemunhas. Em produção de açúcar por área, o clone 67-112 foi superior a todos os outros tratamentos, com exceção do 67-122. Este último, juntamente com o 67-48, 67-12, 67-47 e 67-145, não diferiu das três melhores testemunhas nessa característica. Os clones 67-12, 67-47, 67-48, 67-55, 67-112, 67-122 e 67-139 foram considerados novas variedades, recebendo o prefixo IAC.

Influence of environment on drug activity in laboratory animals

In November 2012, the Australian Pesticide and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) concluded a 12 year review of the PSII herbicide diuron. One of the primary concerns raised during the review was the potential impact on aquatic ecosystems, particularly in the catchments draining to the Great Barrier Reef. The environmental risk assessment process used by the APVMA utilised a runoff risk model developed and validated under European farming conditions. However, the farming conditions in the sugarcane regions of the Great Barrier Reef catchments have environmental parameters beyond the currently validated bounds of the model. The use of the model to assess environmental risk in these regions is therefore highly inappropriate, demonstrating the pitfalls of a one size fits all approach.