Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in medicinal plants from Syria

The levels of 16 US Environmental Protection Agency polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (EPA PAHs) in 10 medicinal plants in different used parts of plant (leaves and flowers) have been determined. The analytical method consists of sample preparation by ultrasonic extraction with dichloromethane followed by silica gel clean-up. Subsequently, the analysis was carried out by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to both ultraviolet and fluorescence detections in series to insure the detection of all 16 EPA PAHs. It was observed that the sum of the 16 PAHs (ΣPAHs) in the investigated medicinal plants ranged from 47 to 890 μg kg^–1 where the highest ΣPAHs was found in Sage plant sample. Light PAHs were dominants in all studied medicinal plants. The sum of eight genotoxic PAHs (ΣPAH8) have shown a better indicator of the degree of contamination with carcinogenic PAHs compared to benzo[a]pyrene in these products.     

Using plants for health: Indigenous knowledge in health care in a tribal region of Bihar,India

While the potential of indigenous knowledge for health care is fully recognised in the literature and by many health professionals, the practices of so many indigenous peoples go unrecorded and untested. Indigenous knowledge remains essentially untapped, an unwritten resource involving information, language and skills in many groups, languages, cultures and environments. An attempt is made in this paper to identify selected indigenous health technologies in a tribal area of Bihar State, India; to describe the treatments, their application and preparation; and to link the traditional practice with the relevant scientific information to test or determine the validity of the practices. These practices were found to be effective in the treatment of a variety of health problems, and most were also scientifically confirmed. The paper argues, however, that other plant uses practised by tribal people still need to be explored: in order to popularise more widely the authenticated practices; to preserve indigenous knowledge; to integrate or blend it with scientific knowledge so that health professionals and healthcare users may benefit from a wider range of healthcare strategies which are environmentally unthreatening.     

The Spanish building crisis and its effect in the gypsum quarry production (1998–2012)

Gypsum is one of the most important mined mineral commodities of the world. As an industrial rock, it is primarily used by the construction industry. Therefore, the economics of the gypsum market can be correlated with parameters that have controlled the origin and development of the Spanish building bubble between years 1998 and 2006. The burst of this building bubble has been interpreted as the main triggering factor for Spain's current crisis.     

黄山市珍稀濒危药用植物资源及保护策略

归纳<国家珍稀濒危保护植物名录>、<国家重点保护野生植物名录(第一批)>和<国家重点保护野生药材物种名录>,黄山市拥有珍稀濒危药用植物42种,通过对其种类、分布,药用部位、功能主治的介绍,以期为制定黄山市珍稀濒危药用植物的保护措施和合理开发利用提供参考.     

重庆华蓥山山脉药用植物资源调查研究

通过野外考察、标本采集、资料查阅整理及标本鉴定,对重庆华蓥山山山脉药用植物资源进行了调查.结果表明,重庆华蓥山共有药用植物240科1017属2251种(含变种和亚种),其中地衣植物5科8属11种、苔藓植物23科30属36种、蕨类植物40科82属190种、裸子植物9科17属25种、被子植物163科880属1989种.对其种类组成、分布、药用部位、疗效等进行了统计分析,对民间习用药物做了简要介绍,并对其开发利用提出了建议.     

全球化变革下的中国对外自然资源流动及其关键研究问题

应对全球化变革及其不确定性,认识中国对外自然资源流动的特征与问题,是保障国家资源安全的基础,对实现高质量、可持续发展有重要意义。对应国际劳动分工从产业间贸易、产业内贸易到全球价值链的不同阶段,理解中国对外自然资源流动有不同的理论视角。现有研究主要关注自然资源以原始形态和制成品中的隐含形态在国家之间的流动,讨论了中国对外自然资源流动在供给与需求、利用强度与效率、资源禀赋与流向,以及全局与局部影响之间的矛盾。未来研究仍面临理论和现实的挑战。在理论方面,适应全球价值链分工发展,引入全球生产网络理论探讨企业间互动关系如何塑造自然资源流动路径,能更好地适应中国从“引进来”向“走出去”的转变,以及当下自然资源综合治理的研究需求。在现实方面,应对日益增强的不确定性,亟需深化对自然资源流动网络韧性,以及“双循环”互促关系的认识。     

中国农产品贸易虚拟水转移及其影响因素研究

挑选与中国农产品贸易额较大且具有代表性的10个国家,构建包含资源环境要素的虚拟水投入产出模型,计算农产品贸易隐含虚拟水的转移情况.进而以国际贸易理论为基础构建了以虚拟水净进口量为被解释变量的贸易引力模型,重点探究了包括自由贸易协定和关税在内的各因素对虚拟水转移的影响.结果表明,中国的农业用水效率虽然在逐年提高,但与农业发达国家相比仍有较大差距;中国通过农产品国际贸易实现了对大部分国家虚拟水的贸易逆差;土地资源、劳动力数量、农业生产效率等方面的比较优势以及是否签订自由贸易协定、关税水平等变量是农产品贸易虚拟水流动的显著影响因素.中国通过进一步发展和壮大农产品国际贸易可以有效缓解国内水资源压力,因此应当在提高自身农业比较优势的同时,加快发展对外贸易关系,并充分发挥自由贸易协定在农产品国际贸易中的关键作用.     

建立和完善环保信托业模型的研究

根据我国环保资本市场建立和环保市场化发展的需求,论述了在环保产业中引入信托机制的重要性和必要性,并结合信托市场运营的特点和规律,从理论和实践的结合上,建立了具有可操作性的包括环保投资、融资、租赁、合营、交易、转让在内的六大环保信托模型,旨在建立和完善环保信托市场中发挥指导作用。     

完达山地区药用植物资源调查与开发利用

通过对完达山地区进行长期调查发展,该地区共有药用植物资源80科224种,并以植物分类学进行了统计,提出了合理开发利用药用植物的建议,为研究和合理利用完达山地区药用植物资源提供了基础材料。     

Are the Precautionary Principle and the International Trade of Genetically Modified Organisms Reconcilable?

This paper seeks to find possibilities forreconciliation of the implementation of theprecautionary principle and the promotion ofinternational trade of genetically modified organisms,based on the assumption that a sustainabledevelopment is a right objective to strive for. Itstarts with an explanation of the background and therole of the precautionary principle, and describes inwhat way measures based on the precautionary principlecan easily lead to the creation of trade barriers. Thearticle then examines to what extent the WTO (WorldTrade Organisation) Agreements allow theimplementation of the precautionary principle. Inaddition, structural conflicts between the perceptionof the precautionary principle and the concept oftrade liberalisation will be evoked. The last sectionof the paper analyses to what extent the WTO rulesprovide possibilities to avoid or solve theseconflicts in order to attempt to answer the mainquestion: are the precautionary principle and theinternational trade of genetically modified organismsreconcilable?