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In this paper the adjustments to the economic impact assessment section of the EPPO Decision-support scheme for pest risk analysis undertaken by the PRATIQUE EU project are described. The improvements aim to improve accuracy, consistency and transparency and include the following aspects. The wording of the questions and notes has been adjusted to enhance clarity and provide additional assistance, especially for assessing indirect impacts. Furthermore a new question has been added about the impact of the pest when all current crop protection measures are applied, and some questions have been merged. Indicators, used to measure impacts, have been added to the notes. Guidance has also been given to assist the risk assessor when selecting one of five risk ratings in order to help ensure consistency between risk assessors. Finally, a matrix model has been developed, primarily to assist with summarizing results. Wherever possible, examples have been provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessments based on the taxonomic composition and relative abundance of taxa provide valuable information about the effects of anthropogenic activities on benthic systems. However, international agreements also require active conservation of ecosystem functioning as well as biological assemblages. We must therefore learn more about how ecosystems function and why changes occur within them in order to fully understand the implications of human activities. Biological traits analysis allows systems to be described in terms of the characteristics of member taxa, describing functional diversity whilst retaining information on taxa distributions. This study used biological traits analysis to investigate the long-term effects of fishing on benthic infaunal communities. Infaunal abundance was recorded over three decades at two stations, one within and one outside a fishing ground in the central western North Sea. Each taxon present was categorised for the degree to which it exhibited certain biological traits. The distribution of these traits within a sample produced a picture of functional diversity. Multivariate analyses were used to compare trait composition at the stations over time, thus depicting how community functioning responded to physical disturbance. The assemblages at the two stations were functionally distinct at the onset of the study; with differences in size, feeding type and reproductive method. The functional structure changed over time at the station within the fishing ground as the level of exploitation varied. Large animals, predators, scavengers and those eating invertebrates or carrion dominated years of light effort in the fishing ground but were less represented when effort increased. No such changes occurred at the station outside the fishing ground. Fishing seems to have some effect on benthic functional biodiversity and this effect is most obvious when moving from low to moderate levels. The differences between stations at the start of the timeseries may reflect variations in the physical environment or may result from effects of fishing that predate the timeseries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The authors examined the risk that family disruption and Iow socioeconomic status in early childhood confer on the onset of major depression in adulthood. Method: Participants were 1,104 offspring of mothers enrolled during pregnancy in the Providence, R.I., site of the National Collaborative Perinatal Project. Measures of childhood family disruption and socioeconomic status were obtained before birth and at age 7. Structured diagnostic interviews were used to assess respondents' lifetime history of major depressive episode between the ages of 18 and 39. Survival analysis was used to identify childhood risks for depression onset. Results: Parental divorce in early childhood was associated with a higher lifetime risk of depression among subjects whose mothers did not remarry as well as among subjects whose mothers remarried. These effects were more pronounced when accompanied by high levels of parental conflict. Independent of the respondents' adult socioeconomic status, Iow socioeconomic status in childhood predicted an elevated risk of depression. Conclusions: Family disruption and Iow socioeconomic status in early childhood increase the long-term risk for major depression. Reducing childhood disadvantages may be one avenue for prevention of depression. Identification of modifiable pathways linking aspects of the early childhood environment to adult mental health is needed to mitigate the long-term consequences of childhood disadvantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determines the measurement of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and somatostatin in patients with chronic combat-related post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). High CRF and somatostatin concentrations in patients with PTSD; Possible role played by higher CRF concentrations in disturbances of arousal in patients with PTSD.

Examines the effect of enhanced noradrenergic activity on memory consolidation in humans. Improvement of the memory processes; Administration of intravenous yohimbine after learning; Implication of enhanced memory for survival.

This paper measures the economic impact of reductions in the exposure of agricultural crops to mixtures of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfurdioxide (SO2) in the Netherlands. This provides an indication of the benefits of policy measures directed to reducing nitrogen and sulfur emissions. A reduction in air pollution raises crop yield and supply. The prices of some crops are regulated by the EU. An increase in the supply of these crops affects farmer income through the effect on the quantity sold. The price of non-regulated crops, however, decreases with a rise in supply. For these crops, farmer income is affected both by the effects on quantity and price. Consumer surplus is positively affected by price decreases. A reduction in NOx and SO2 of 20% and 60% respectively is estimated to increase producer income with 96 million guilders annuallyand consumer surplus with 90 million guilders. These increases sum to 1% of crop turnover and 6% of total income from crop production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]