By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

By Jo Stuart
of the A.M. Costa Rica staff

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services

Global decline of pollinators
said to be from complex causes


The global decline of honey bees and other pollinating insects is caused by multiple, largely human-induced effects, according to a new study.

Over the past decade, scientists have been reporting steady and mysterious declines in the populations of so-called pollinator insects.

These include the honeybees, wasps, flies, beetles, butterflies and moths that help pollinate three-quarters of the world’s food crops, services worth $200 billion annually to the global economy.

The new report is the first to pull together years of research on pollinator species decline. Forty scientists from six countries worked on the project organized by the Insect Pollinators Initiative of the United Kingdom.

While no single factor is responsible for the population decline, the analysis finds intensive land use, climate change and the spread of alien species and disease, are among the major threats to pollinating insects.

"What we are beginning to see is that it’s likely that there’s a combination of these effects that are driving the declines in these insects and in some cases they may be combining in subtle ways that exacerbate the overall negative effect,” said Adam Vanbergen, an ecologist with the Britain-based Centre for Ecology and Hydrology who served as the science coordinator on the initiative-led review.

Vanbergen says more research must be done on this complex interplay, across a vast scale, from genetics to worldwide ecosystems.

“We need to launch a whole suite of studies looking at subtle interactions between, say, land use change and its impacts on the resources that insects rely on, and how that can effect interactions with disease organisms or with exposure to pesticides that would be one example,” he said.

The ecologist says there is also a need to carefully document how climate change affects the insects’ ability to adapt to a warmer world.

“There is evidence now accumulating that impacts from these different pressures hits insects at different levels of biological organization," Vanbergen said. "So you have some pressures that will be damaging, for example, the brain function of individual insects and you have other pressures that will be perhaps affecting the ability of species to move in landscapes or indeed their range across continents.”

Learning how to protect pollinators from these environmental pressures will require a multi-disciplinary scientific effort. Farmers, policy makers, and industry will need to collaborate on programs to conserve these species.

“We need to come together really to try and set the appropriate framework to enable strategic planning at a landscape scale," said Vanbergen. "That’s going to be important if we are going to devise the appropriate habitat network to help support these insects in order to buffer them against effects such as climate change and local effects such as pesticide impacts.”

The initiative analysis also calls for re-evaluating common pesticide risks and developing new treatments for insect disease.

“All we really need to do is just try to build a more sympathetic approach to integrate practices that are able to lessen some of these impacts and to support the biodiversity that provides these important ecosystem services to human kind,” said Vanbergen.


Country music's George Jones 
inspired many performers


Music fans are mourning the loss of a true country legend. George Jones, 81, died Friday at Nashville’s Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

In 1955, Jones recorded “Why Baby Why,” his first hit for Starday Records.  Born in Saratoga, Texas, he began performing in local clubs at age 10.  In the late 1940s, he worked as a disc jockey at various radio stations in his home state, before entering the U.S. Marine Corps in 1950.  Three years later, Jones completed his military service and returned to the Texas nightclub circuit.  He was discovered by Starday’s founder, “Pappy” Dailey, who convinced Jones to record for his label.

Jones says his first studio session proved a great learning experience.

“The first time I went in to do my first recording session, for about two hours I sang like Roy Acuff, Lefty Frizzell and Hank Williams," he said. "Finally, the producer came in the studio – after he figured I’d had enough fun – and he wanted to know if I could sing like George Jones.  So I said, ‘Oh, I didn't know that.  I thought I was supposed to sing like those people.’  They were selling records.  I didn’t know the difference, you know.”

After leaving Starday Records in 1957, Jones worked with several other labels.  In 1969, he joined Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry, and the same year, married singer Tammy Wynette.  Their union lasted only six years, but during that time, they collaborated on numerous duets, including the Number One hits “We’re Gonna Hold On,” “Near You” and “Golden Ring.”

Through much of his life, George Jones battled an addiction to alcohol that nearly ruined his professional career.  He earned the nickname “No Show Jones” for missing numerous concert dates.  At one point, lawsuits against him by show promoters seeking compensation forced Jones to declare bankruptcy.  He credited his fourth wife, Nancy, whom he married in 1983, for helping him overcome his dependency to alcohol and giving his life new meaning.

Countless singers, including Garth Brooks, George Strait, Alan Jackson and Randy Travis name George Jones as a major influence.

At age 62, Jones was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.  The surprise announcement was made during the 1992 Country Music Association Awards telecast. 

New pop-oriented trends have broadened country music's boundaries in recent years, but never lessened the popularity of George Jones’ traditional sound.  Several of his peers, including Vince Gill, Patty Loveless, Clint Black, Travis Tritt and Pam Tillis, fulfilled a life-long dream, when they collaborated with Jones on the Grammy Award-winning single, “I Don’t Need Your Rockin’ Chair.”


U.S. middle class worried
about money and leadership


A new opinion poll shows middle-class Americans are deeply worried about finances, critical of political and business leaders, and frustrated by the high cost of college.

Thursday's report from the Heartland Monitor Poll says nearly half of Americans consider themselves middle class, which they define as having financial security and holding a steady job. 

But a majority of respondents say they are worried a serious medical problem or job loss could push them out of the middle class.

Speaking at a seminar on middle class concerns, the head of the Northern Virginia Community College said the key to a secure job with a middle class salary is higher education.

But Robert Templin also said millions of U.S. jobs are going unfilled at a time of high unemployment because too few people have the math, science, and computer skills employers need.

According to Templin, by 2018 more than six out of 10 jobs will require post-secondary education. He added the United States is cutting investments in higher education just as the need for it is growing.

"America is disinvesting in higher education, pushing the financial burden for college-going from taxpayers to individuals. Higher education now is not seen as a public benefit; it is seen as a private good," he said. "And we expect families to pay the bill themselves."

Reduced education aid is particularly hard on minority groups who need education to overcome the effects of poverty and language barriers, Templin said.

The poll was conducted on behalf of the National Journal magazine and the Allstate Insurance Co.  The data comes from a phone survey of 1,000 adults and has a margin of error just more than three percent.


Spanish projections said
to be worse than expected


Spain says its economy is worsening and that it will take two years longer than first thought to meet Europe's deficit target.

Madrid said Friday it expects its economy will shrink 1.3 percent this year, instead of the one-half of one percent figure it projected earlier. The government said it expects the Spanish economy will begin to grow again in 2014.

At the same time, Spain, the fourth largest economy in the euro currency bloc, said its deficit would fall this year to 6.3 percent of its national economy. That is a sharp improvement over last year, but still more than double the 3 percent target set by the European Union.

Spain said it would not meet the European target until 2016, two years later than promised in 2012.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy embarked on a year of austerity measures when he took office in late 2011, but more than a quarter of the country's workers are unemployed and the troubled Spanish banking system has had to secure an international bailout.

Economic Minister Luis de Guindos said Spain's high jobless rate is the country's key political and social problem.

"The data that affects Spaniards is the deterioration of the labor market. This is obviously the principle political and social problem," he said. "In fact, I would go so far as to say that this is the principle weakness of the Spanish economy. That Spain has an unemployment rate of 27 percent is the element that makes us most weak in the eyes of international markets."


Iraq censors television outlets
for fostering violence


Iraqi authorities have suspended the licenses of the pan-Arabic television network al-Jazeera and nine other satellite television operations, after accusing them of inciting sectarian violence.
 
The suspensions, announced Sunday and effective immediately, come as Baghdad seeks to curb rising unrest spawned by clashes at a Sunni protest camp last week. At least 170 people have been killed in the fighting since Tuesday. A statement from Qatar-based al-Jazeera said it was astonished by the suspension, saying it covers all sides of news stories in Iraq.
 
The suspension decree stops short of blocking the networks' satellite signals. But it warns of legal action from security forces if any of the networks deploy reporters inside the country.
 
A statement Sunday from the Communications and Media Commission accuses the networks of encouraging what it calls "criminal acts of revenge" against security forces deployed by the Shi'ite-led government to quell the violence.
 
Most of the channels, including local stations such as "al-Sharqiya" and "Baghdad" are pro-Sunni and frequently critical of Shi'ite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government.
 
Last year, Iraqi media regulators ordered the closure of more than 40 media outlets, including the Voice of America and the British Broadcasting Corporation.


China is not the major market
for expensive luxury vehicles


China is cementing its reputation as the most important market for the auto industry.  Chinese auto sales are up 13 percent from a year ago with sales expected to top 20 million this year.  By comparison, total sales in the United States this year are forecast at just a little more than 15 million vehicles.  The importance of the Chinese market is reflected in the size and sophistication of the Shanghai auto show, where automakers are capitalizing on China's growing demand for luxury cars and SUV's.

Bring an auto show to Shanghai, China, and people are sure to come: tens of thousands of potential car buyers from the world's largest auto market. 

Ford Motors' Dave Schoch is counting on it. "So you've got 30 million customers out there, all with different tastes and different affordability levels.  And what Ford wants to do is bring the power and leverage of our global line-up, you know from small to medium to large, into China," Schoch said.

But the competition is fierce. 

"We are increasing our local content here in this country. And next month we are opening the first engine plant with the capacity of 250,000 units outside of Germany for Mercedes engines," said Daimler AG Chairman, Dieter Zetsche.

The Chinese see cars as a potent symbol of success. Autoforesight analyst Yale Zhang says the rising demand for premium and luxury automobiles reflects China's emergence as an economic superpower.

"This market is becoming more like European or American style entry-level premium like Mercedes C-class or BMW-3 series.  This kind of entry-level premium is growing very fast," Zhang said.

Demand has been especially high for larger, sport utility vehicles (SUV's).  Karsten Engel, who heads BMW's China Group, says the roomy interiors appeal to China's newly rich -- even though some will probably never drive them.

"The ultimate driving machine, you probably experience a lot from the rear seat with your driver, so you need more space, you want more space.  You want to have the possibility to work in the car," Engel said.

That's something luxury automaker Bugatti's marketing director Stefan Brungs understands. "This is what the Chinese have learned and perceived as luxury -- to sit in the back and be chauffeured," Brungs said.

Despite the high demand for larger automobiles, environmental issues and fuel consumption concerns are contributing to the heightened interest in green, fuel efficient vehicles. 

"Four years ago, when we introduced the concept of the electric car, most of our colleagues in the industry thought that we had lost our minds.  Now it doesn't look so stupid, you know?," said Nissan's Asia Vice President Andy Palmer.

But for now, analysts say new hybrid and electric technology is likely to take a back seat in China.  Despite higher government taxes on larger gasoline combustion engines, new data show sales of SUV's are up nearly 50 percent from a year ago and likely to double by 2015.


Parkinson missing link
explains damage to cells


Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have described a missing link in understanding how damage to the body’s cellular power plants leads to Parkinson’s disease and, perhaps surprisingly, to some forms of heart failure.

These cellular power plants are called mitochondria. They manufacture the energy the cell requires to perform its many duties. And while heart and brain tissue may seem entirely different in form and function, one vital characteristic they share is a massive need for fuel.

Working in mouse and fruit fly hearts, the researchers found that a protein known as mitofusin 2 is the long-sought missing link in the chain of events that control mitochondrial quality.

The findings were reported last week in the journal Science.

The new discovery in heart cells provides some explanation for the long-known link between Parkinson’s disease and heart failure.

“If you have Parkinson’s disease, you have a more than two-fold increased risk of developing heart failure and a 50 percent higher risk of dying from heart failure,” said senior author Gerald W. Dorn II, a professor of medicine. “This suggested they are somehow related, and now we have identified a fundamental mechanism that links the two.”

Heart muscle cells and neurons in the brain have huge numbers of mitochondria that must be tightly monitored. If bad mitochondria are allowed to build up, not only do they stop making fuel, they begin consuming it and produce molecules that damage the cell. This damage eventually can lead to Parkinson’s or heart failure, depending on the organ affected. Most of the time, quality-control systems in a healthy cell make sure damaged or dysfunctional mitochondria are identified and removed.

Over the past 15 years, scientists have described much of this quality-control system. Both the beginning and end of the chain of events are well understood. And since 2006, scientists have been working to identify the mysterious middle section of the chain — the part that allows the internal environment of sick mitochondria to communicate to the rest of the cell that it needs to be destroyed.

“This was a big question,” Dorn said. “Scientists would draw the middle part of the chain as a black box. How do these self-destruct signals inside the mitochondria communicate with proteins far away in the surrounding cell that orchestrate the actual destruction?”

“To my knowledge, no one has connected an Mfn2 mutation to Parkinson’s disease,” Dorn said. “And until recently, I don’t think anybody would have looked. This isn’t what Mfn2 is supposed to do.” He used jargon for  mitofusin 2.

Mitofusin 2 is known for its role in fusing mitochondria together, so they might exchange mitochondrial DNA in a primitive form of sexual reproduction.

“Mitofusins look like little Velcro loops,” Dorn said. “They help fuse together the outer membranes of mitochondria. Mitofusins 1 and 2 do pretty much the same thing in terms of mitochondrial fusion. What we have done is describe an entirely new function for Mfn2.”

The mitochondrial quality-control system begins with what Dorn calls a “dead man’s switch.”

“If the mitochondria are alive, they have to do work to keep the switch depressed to prevent their own self-destruction,” Dorn said.

Specifically, mitochondria work to import a molecule called PINK. Then they work to destroy it. When mitochondria get sick, they can’t destroy PINK and its levels begin to rise. Then comes the missing link that Dorn and his colleague Yun Chen, senior scientist, identified. Once PINK levels get high enough, they make a chemical change to Mfn2, which sits on the surface of mitochondria. This chemical change is called phosphorylation. Phosphorylated Mfn2 on the surface of the mitochondria can then bind with a molecule called Parkin that floats around in the surrounding cell.

Once Parkin binds to Mfn2 on sick mitochondria, Parkin labels the mitochondria for destruction. The labels then attract special compartments in the cell that destroy the sick mitochondria. As long as all links in the quality-control system work properly, the cells’ damaged power plants are removed, clearing the way for healthy ones.

“But if you have a mutation in PINK, you get Parkinson’s disease,” Dorn said. “About 10 percent of Parkinson’s disease is attributed to these or other mutations that have been identified.”

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services