Costs and benefits of water restoration projects are not necessarily evenly spread out over the entire area affected by the project. The physical distribution of benefits is, therefore, an important ...parameter when conducting economic analyses of water restoration projects. Two particularly relevant spatial issues relate to 1) the location of the population relative to the location of the waterbody, and 2) the availability and characteristics of substitute water bodies.
Based on a contingent valuation (CV) study of the demand for restoring Odense River in Denmark a spatial demand model which accounts for travel time both to the river subject for valuation and to potential substitute sites is estimated. It is concluded that the spatial distribution of benefits is unlikely to be homogeneously determined by a one-dimensional spatial model. Moreover, the results suggest that the effect of spatial issues on preferences varies between users and non-users. For non-users the spatial impacts from potential substitutes significantly reduce demand for improvements in Odense River. This indicates that focus on estimation of distance decay effects may be an important tool in relation to ensuring proper geographical delimitation of the population in a given context.
► We estimate a spatial demand model, based on CV study of the demand for restoring Odense River. ► The model accounts for travel time to the subject of valuation and substitute site. ► Preferences are found to be spatially dependent, in the form of distant decay. ► Spatial impacts from substitutes reduce demand for improvements in the river. ► The effect of spatial issues on preferences varies between users and non-users.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
TL1A is a pro-inflammatory cytokine that is homologous to TNFα and connected with the development of several chronic inflammatory disorders. The preliminary results of this study indicated reduced ...fat accumulation in 9-month-old TL1A-deficient mice at steady state. Thus, the objective was to investigate whether TL1A-deficient mice are resistant to the development of high-fat (HF) diet-induced obesity and to investigate the impact on lymphocyte infiltration in adipose tissue.
TL1A-deficient and TL1A-sufficient male BALB/cJ littermate mice were fed a 60% HF diet or a 10% low-fat control diet for 22 weeks. Mouse body composition and weight were monitored, and tissues were processed and evaluated by flow cytometry, qPCR, and histology.
In this study, the TL1A-deficient HF-diet-fed mice had reduced whole-body weight gain, which was directly explained by a corresponding fat mass reduction (average 37.2%), compared with that of their TL1A-sufficient littermates. Despite previous data showing marked changes in the gut microbial community, TL1A-deficient GF mice also displayed reduced adiposity. Furthermore, the TL1A-deficient mice were resistant to hepatic steatosis and were shown to have improved glucose tolerance, as determined by oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and greater insulin sensitivity. In the epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT), TL1A deficiency in HF-diet-fed mice resulted in a reduced abundance of IL-18Ra
type-1 ILCs and γδT cells as well as markedly reduced expression of the mitochondria-regulating genes Ucp1, Ucp2, Ucp3, and Prdm16. Finally, to investigate the link of TL1A to obesity in humans, we identified a noncoding polymorphism (rs4979453) close to the TL1A locus that is associated with waist circumference in men (p = 0.00096, n = 60586).
These findings indicate that TL1A plays an important role in regulating adipose tissue mass and that this role is independent of the gut microbiota. Furthermore, we show that TL1A regulates adipose-resident innate lymphocytes and mitochondria-mediated oxidative stress in eWAT.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Abstract
Background
The tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα)–homologous cytokine TL1A is emerging as a major player in intestinal inflammation. From in vitro experiments on human lymphocytes, TNF-like ...molecule 1A (TL1A) is known to activate a highly inflammatory lymphoid response in synergy with interleukin (IL)-12 and IL-18. Carriers of specific genetic polymorphisms associated with IL-12, IL-18, or TL1A signaling have increased Crohn’s disease risk, and all 3 cytokines are upregulated during active disease. The study aim was to investigate whether the type 1–polarizing cytokines IL-12 and IL-18 could directly initiate intestinal pathology in mice and how TL1A would influence the resulting inflammatory response.
Methods
Conventional barrier-bred and germ-free mice were randomly allocated to different groups and injected twice with different combinations of IL-12, IL-18, and TL1A, and killed 3 days after the first injection. All treatment groups were co-housed and fed a piroxicam-supplemented chow diet.
Results
Intestinal pathology was evident in IL-12- and IL-18-treated mice and highly exacerbated by TL1A in both the colon and ileum. The cytokine-induced intestinal inflammation was characterized by epithelial damage, increased colonic levels of TNFα, IL-1β, IFN-γ, and IL-6, and various chemokines along with gut microbiota alterations exhibiting high abundance of Enterobacteriaceae. Furthermore, the inflamed ileum and colon exhibited a TL1A-specific increased infiltration of intraepithelial natural killer cells co-expressing NKG2D and IL-18Ra and a higher frequency of unconventional T cells in the colonic epithelium. Upon cytokine injection, germ-free mice exhibited similar intraepithelial lymphoid infiltration and increased colonic levels of IFNγ and TNFα.
Conclusions
This study demonstrates that TL1A aggravates IL-12- and IL-18-induced intestinal inflammation in the presence and absence of microbiota.
In Denmark, eutrophication of coastal areas is one of the major challenges in meeting the requirements from the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). This eutrophication is mainly a cause of ...excessive nitrogen loads from agricultural production, which can be reduced by implementing abatement measures. The cost-effectiveness of a land use policy may vary depending on the abatement measures used and where they are implemented. Taking account of the spatial heterogeneity of costs and effects in the choice of abatement measures significantly reduces the cost of meeting WFD targets. Targeting of regulation to identify least cost options to reduce nitrogen has for many years focused on agricultural abatement measures. However, the marginal costs of reductions in agriculture have now increased to an extent, where it has become relevant also to reconsider other sectors. We set out to compare nitrogen abatement measures across agriculture and waste water treatment at a national level, acknowledging heterogeneity in marginal costs across spatial location as well as differences in reduction requirements across catchments. In the analysis, we combine data on costs and effects of abatement measures at a fine spatial scale to estimate marginal costs within the two sectors at a national level for Denmark. The model minimizes the costs of meeting the specific required nitrogen load reduction targets for all catchments and finds the composition and spatial location of the optimal abatement effort. We find that waste water treatment abatement measures are only relevant in two coastal catchments, where they mainly serve as a supplement due to insufficient potential for agricultural land in rotation to provide all the N load reductions. Furthermore, we find that the pressure on agricultural land to reduce nutrient loads is very high in some catchments, implying that abatement measures such as land retirement where abatement costs are high enters the optimal solution due to their high level of effectiveness. Recommendations and average costs vary across catchments, indicating that results are not easily translated to generic national-level policy design.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
This paper explores whether agricultural advisors employed by chemical companies or agricultural companies selling pesticides (supplier-affiliated advisors) are more likely to recommend more ...intensive use of pesticides than advisors employed by companies without an economic interest in selling pesticides (independent advisors). We further test whether potential differences in advice are caused by differences in advisors’ perceived demands for advice from farmers, different environmental risk perceptions about pesticide use or different weighing of the purposes of pesticide use. The analysis is based on a survey administered to the whole population of 540 advisors in Denmark; we received 227 valid responses. The main finding is that pesticide advice differs across company type. We find that supplier-affiliated advisors are less likely to recommend lower doses – scoring on average 3.9 on a scale from 1 (never) to 5 (always). Independent advisors employed at Danish Agricultural Advisory Services score an average of 4.3. The difference is statistically significant. The analysis does not offer strong support for the different causal mediators we examined. Advisors across company type tend to weigh different objectives equally; tend to agree on environmental risk perception of using pesticides; and differ only slightly on perceived farmer demand. One possible conclusion, therefore, is that explanation is as simply that differences in economic incentives produce different recommendations between advisory companies. Policy implications of the findings are that the European Union should consider addressing this difference more directly when regulating the use of pesticides in European agriculture through e.g. the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive (Directive, 2009/128/EC). More differentiation in the approaches for informing different types of advisors might be needed. Moreover, our results point towards the need for knowledge about whether advisors in other countries than Denmark tend to believe that approved pesticides are innocuous to the environment because such perceptions might hamper initiatives to reduce the doses of approved pesticides.
•Supplier-affiliated advisors less likely to recommend lower doses than independent.•Advisors' perceived farmer demand can explain some difference across company type.•Advisors generally agree that approved pesticides are harmless to the environment.•EU should consider differentiation in the approach to different types of advisors.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Costs and benefits of water restoration projects are not necessarily evenly spread out over the entire area affected by the project. The physical distribution of benefits is, therefore, an important ...parameter when conducting economic analyses of water restoration projects. Two particularly relevant spatial issues relate to 1) the location of the population relative to the location of the waterbody, and 2) the availability and characteristics of substitute water bodies.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
This paper addresses the question, whether attribute values derived from a CE study of one nature restoration and preservation project depend on the overall scale of nature preservation activities in ...which it is embedded. A split-sample CE study was undertaken in which a particular nature preservation project was evaluated in three plausible and strictly different embedding contexts. Respondents' attention was drawn to a varying number of forthcoming substitute preservation projects to be implemented prior to the one in question. Results show that while WTP for the project in focus is sensitive to the presentation of substitute projects as such, there does not seem to be any clear and unidirectional relationship between WTP and the number of substitute projects. Furthermore, effects vary across the project's attributes.
► Embedding test in a split-sample choice experiment. ► Valuing a nature preservation project of wet moorland. ► Differences in WTP embedding sensitivity among attributes. ►WTP was sensitive to the presence of substitutes but less to the number of substitutes.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
This paper presents the results of an internationally coordinated contingent valuation study on the benefits of reducing marine eutrophication in the Baltic Sea according to current policy targets. ...With over 10,500 respondents from the nine coastal states around the sea, we examine public willingness to pay (WTP) for reduced eutrophication and its determinants. There are considerable differences in mean WTP between countries, with Swedes being willing to pay the most and Latvians the least. The aggregate annual WTP is approximately €3600 million. In addition, we find that countries are heterogeneous in terms of the effects of income, attitudes and familiarity on WTP. Income elasticities of WTP are below 1 for all countries, ranging between 0.1 and 0.5. Attitudes and personal experience of eutrophication are important determinants of WTP, but the specific effects differ between countries. The findings can be used in economic analyses for the European Union (EU) Marine Strategy Framework Directive and to justify additional eutrophication reduction measures in the Baltic Sea.
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BFBNIB, GIS, IJS, KISLJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM, UPUK
