, 2004) Mouse acute lethal infection (Weiss et al, 2004) Mouse a

, 2004) Mouse acute lethal infection (Weiss et al., 2004) Mouse arthritis (Jonsson et al., 2002, 2003; Weiss et al., 2004) Mouse kidney infection (Weiss et al., 2004) Mouse renal abscess (Cheng et al., 2009) Rat endocarditis (Weiss et al., 2004) Mouse arthritis (Palmqvist

et al., 2002) Mouse renal abscess (Cheng et al., 2009) Mouse renal selleck chemicals abscess (Cheng et al., 2009) Human nasal colonization (Wertheim et al., 2008) Twenty proteins are known to be anchored to the cell wall by sortase A in S. aureus (Roche et al., 2003). Among them, we selected 13 proteins – protein A, clumping factor A and B, fibronectin binding protein A and B, FmtB, SasC, IsdA, SasG, SasH, SasI, SdrC and SdrD – and tested whether these proteins are required for the virulence of S. aureus against silkworms. All of the spa-, clfA-, fnbA-, fmtB-, sasC, isdA-, sasG-, sasH-, sasI-

and sdrD-disrupted mutants showed virulence in silkworms similar to that of the parent strain (Table 4). In contrast, the LD50 values of the clfB-, fnbB- and sdrC-disrupted mutants were significantly higher than that of the parent strain (Table 4). These findings indicate that ClfB, FnbB and SdrC contribute to the virulence of S. aureus in silkworms. The sdrC-disrupted mutant had severely attenuated virulence in silkworms, indicating that SdrC plays a prominent role in infection by S. aureus in silkworms. http://www.selleckchem.com/products/Gefitinib.html Our previous studies indicated that injection of α-hemolysin and β-hemolysin was lethal to silkworms (Hossain et al., 2006). The findings of the present study revealed that genes encoding α- and β-hemolysin were not necessary for S. aureus to kill silkworms. In the S. aureus infectious processes in silkworms,

levels of α- and β-hemolysin oxyclozanide expression might be too low to kill silkworms. The findings of this and our previous study revealed that the agr locus, which positively regulates the expression of genes encoding hemolysins, contributes to the virulence of S. aureus in silkworms. The agr system also senses cell density and broadly regulates the expression of virulence factors (Novick, 2003). The finding that disruption of genes encoding α-hemolysin, β-hemolysin and PSM peptides did not affect virulence of S. aureus in silkworms led us to hypothesize that factors other than α-hemolysin, β-hemolysin and PSMs, which that are regulated by the agr locus, contribute to S. aureus virulence. Here, we revealed that arlS and saeS, encoding sensor proteins of the two-component systems, are required for S. aureus virulence in silkworms. The expression of arlRS is activated by high osmolarity or quinolone, an inhibitor of DNA gyrase (Fournier & Klier, 2004). The expression of saeRS is activated by hydrogen peroxide or α-defensin, an antimicrobial peptide (Kuroda et al., 2007; Geiger et al., 2008; Palazzolo-Ballance et al., 2008). These findings suggest that S. aureus requires ArlRS and SaeRS to adapt similarly to the stress induced by silkworm innate immunity.

pm) SMM (pH 72) is a minimal medium comprising 09% glucose,

p.m.). SMM (pH 7.2) is a minimal medium comprising 0.9% glucose, 0.9%l-asparagine, 0.2% (NH4)2SO4, 0.24% Tris, 0.1% NaCl, 0.05% K2SO4, 0.02% MgSO4·7H2O, 0.01% CaCl2, 1% trace element solution (Hopwood et al., 1985), and 2.5 mM KH2PO4. YMPD Selleckchem Sunitinib is a nutrient-rich medium (pH 7.2) comprising 0.2% yeast extract, 0.22% meat extract, 0.4% Bacto peptone, 0.5% NaCl, 0.2% MgSO4·7H2O, and 1% glucose. Then, 25 mL of the culture was centrifuged and the cells were harvested. Cell pellets were washed twice in SMM and resuspended in 5 mL SMM medium. Two milliliters of the resulting cell suspensions were inoculated into 1 L SMM. The culture was incubated at 30 °C with reciprocal shaking (120 r.p.m.) in a

5-L baffle flask. For observation of submerged spore, cells were cultured in DM1 medium (pH 7.2) containing 25 mM MOPS, 5 mM (NH4)2SO4, 0.5 mM MgSO4·7H2O, 0.05% casamino acids (Difco), 50 mM glucose, 10 mM potassium phosphate buffer, and 0.25% trace element solution (Ensign,

1988). The following antibiotics were added as necessary: apramycin (50 μg mL−1), bialaphos (20 μg mL−1), and thiostrepton (50 μg mL−1). DNA was manipulated in Streptomyces spp. (Hopwood et al., 1985) Y-27632 solubility dmso and E. coli (Maniatis et al., 1982; Ausubel et al., 1987) as described previously. The primers used in this study are listed in Supporting Information, Table S1. Total RNA was isolated from WT cells, grown for 24 h in SMM, using an RNAqueous-Midi kit (Ambion). cDNA was then synthesized using the ThermoScript RT-PCR system (Invitrogen) and random hexamers according to the manufacturer’s instructions, and was PCR amplified using the primers listed in Table S1 (10 pmol each) under the following thermal conditions: 96 °C for 45 s, 60 °C for 1 min, and 72 °C for 30 s (30 cycles). The ΔbldKB-g mutant was constructed by deleting the entire 1614-bp bldKB-g-coding Celastrol sequence (except for its start and stop codons). Chromosomal DNA was used as a template in the PCR amplification described below. A 1.7-kb fragment upstream of the bldKB-g-coding sequence was amplified by PCR using

the primers bldKBUF (which contains an XbaI site) and bldKBUR (which contains a KpnI site), and then digested with XbaI and KpnI. Separately, a 1.7-kb sequence downstream of the bldKB-g-coding sequence was amplified by PCR using the primers bldKBDF (which contains a KpnI site) and bldKBDR (which contains a HindIII site), and then digested with KpnI and HindIII. The two resulting fragments were together inserted between the XbaI and the HindIII sites of pUC19. Then, an apramycin-resistance gene (aac(3)IV) was inserted into the EcoRI site of the pUC19-derived plasmid. The resulting pUC-ΔbldKB-Apr plasmid was introduced to S. griseus IFO13350 through protoplast transformation. A transformant with the plasmid integrated into its chromosome as a result of a single crossover event was selected from the apramycin-resistance colonies.

Our observation of a decline in the incidence of hepatotoxic even

Our observation of a decline in the incidence of hepatotoxic events over the years suggests that a cumulative

toxic effect is unlikely. The representativeness of our study population for all NNRTI-using patients might be a point of discussion. After all, patients who develop (severe) toxicity in the first 3 years of therapy are less likely to continue using NNRTIs. selleck inhibitor However, our short-term outcomes did not differ significantly from those reported by Brück et al. [2] and Palmon et al. [3]. In those cohorts of all patients starting an NNRTI-based regimen, severe toxicity rates of 1.7% and 1.1%, respectively, were observed, compared with 1.4% in the first year in our cohort. Regarding moderate hepatotoxicity, the incidence in our group was actually slightly higher than the incidence reported by Brück et al. (4.9% vs. 3.1%, respectively). Because of the retrospective design of the study, we were not always able to obtain complete biochemical data and information regarding the use of other potentially hepatotoxic medication (e.g. prescribed by

www.selleckchem.com/products/ipilimumab.html the patient’s general practitioner or over-the-counter drugs) and excessive alcohol use. We also cannot exclude the possibility that some of the LEEs were side effects of the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) backbone. The number of patients with an HBV or HCV coinfection was low; this raises the question of whether our results would have been the same if this group had been larger. In summary, long-term NNRTI use was not associated

with a higher risk of clinically significant liver toxicity in our group of patients who had not discontinued their therapy within the first 3 years of treatment. There does not seem to be a long-term cumulative hepatotoxic effect of these antiretrovirals. “
“Objectives The aim of the study was to evaluate the possible effect of hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection on the viroimmunological outcomes of HIV-1 infection. Methods A cross-sectional study of 805 patients with active HCV infection receiving or not receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) was carried out. Results A number of parameters were significantly associated with undetectable HIV-1 viral load in univariate analyses, Glycogen branching enzyme such as age, toxic habits, CD4 cell count, liver test results, HCV viral load and ART. However, only current ART (P<0.0001), CD4 cell count (P<0.0001), age (P=0.004) and current injecting drug use (P=0.02) were independently associated with undetectable viral load in multivariate analysis. None of the many HCV- and liver fibrosis-related parameters analysed showed a significant association with HIV-1 viral load or CD4 cell count in multivariate analyses, with the exception of the annual fibrosis progression index which almost reached statistical significance in the subgroup of ART-untreated patients (P=0.06) and was inversely predictive of CD4 cell count in the whole group (P=0.007).

This provides a mechanism how the right number and probably also

This provides a mechanism how the right number and probably also the right quality of neurons are chosen to innervate

given target tissues. Many aspects of the neurotrophic theory have been molecularly proven, such as identification of further target and paracrine-derived survival factors and their corresponding receptors on developing neurons [4], but how exactly optimal neurons are identified is less clear. In Drosophila, a process known as cell competition [ 5] eliminates cells with heterozygous mutations in ribosomal protein genes (Minute cells) through a mechanism that has been proposed to involve competition for extracellular factors and apoptosis [ 6]. Various genetic studies in Drosophila have established, that apart from Minute Epigenetic inhibitor molecular weight mutations ( Figure 1a), also reduced growth factor signaling, lowered anabolic capacity or altered apico-basal polarity represent triggers for competitive interactions, which have been recently reviewed elsewhere [ 7, 8 and 9]. In some situations, it has been shown that mutant cells can become ‘supercompetitors’ and behave as winners by outcompeting wild-type cells, which now turn into losers. For example, clones with elevated levels of Drosophila myc (dmyc), the homolog of the human c-Myc protooncogene, can convert into such supercompetitors. Supercompetitor cells expand in developing fly epithelia by inducing apoptosis

in surrounding wild-type cells based on short range cell–cell interactions [ 10 and 11]. The ‘enrichment’ in supercompetitor (winner) clones is morphologically silent [ 10] because it is balanced by the concomitant loss of wild-type cells. Although cell competition normally occurs in proliferating tissues, a recent study Doramapimod ic50 by Tamori and Deng has revealed that competitive interactions can also play a role in the postmitotic Drosophila follicular epithelium [ 12•• and 13]. The authors showed that follicular cells with heterozygous mutations in ribosomal protein genes (Minutes) or reduced levels of mahjong

(mahj), a regulator of apico-basal polarity [ 14], are selectively lost by apoptosis from follicular epithelia, whereas no cell death was triggered in tissues made entirely of Minute or mahj−/− cells. In contrast, other factors known to trigger competition in mitotic epithelia (dMyc, activated growth factor signaling or apico-basal tumor suppressor genes) do selleck not play a role in this type of competition. As a further difference, the eliminated cells due to competition are not replaced by cell proliferation. Instead, remaining winner cells increase in size by accelerating their endocycles in a process named compensatory cellular hypertrophy [ 12••]. To summarize, the outcome of both classical cell competition and supercompetition is a Darwinian-like selection, leading to long-term survival of certain cells over others. Until recently, work on cell competition was mainly carried out in Drosophila and relied heavily on the analysis of two experimentally induced populations (e.g. wild-type vs.

1) ( Kalapothakis et al , 2002), L laeta (SMase I, GenBank: AAM2

1) ( Kalapothakis et al., 2002), L. laeta (SMase I, GenBank: AAM21154.1) ( Fernandes Pedrosa et al., 2002), and L. gaucho (A1H – LoxGa, GenBank: AAY42401.1) were prepared using the Spot technique ( Frank, 1992) according to the protocol described by Laune et al. (2002). In this study, however, a ResPep SL Automatic Spot synthesizer was used (Intavis AG, Bioanalytical

Instruments, Germany). Briefly, peptides were assembled using Fmoc chemistry on a cellulose membrane containing an aminopolyethyleneglycol moiety. The C-terminal residue of each peptide was coupled to the moiety. After Fmoc deprotection, the Bortezomib other amino acids were sequentially added as in conventional solid-phase peptide synthesis. Finally the side chain protecting groups were removed by trifluoroacetic acid treatment in the presence of appropriate scavengers, while the linkage of the

peptides to the membrane was maintained. In the second series of experiments, three peptide sequences reactive to each species were selected and synthesized using the same conditions. For antibody binding studies, cellulose membranes were washed in 25 mM Tris-buffered saline containing 150 mM sodium chloride at pH 7,2 (TBS) and blocked overnight with 3% BSA in TBS and 0.1% Tween 20. The cellulose-bound peptides were subsequently washed and incubated at 37 °C with hyperimmune sera diluted in incubation buffer (1% BSA in TBS and 0.1% Tween 20) for 90 min. The diluted sera (1:5000 and 1:20 000) selleck screening library were tested and the antibody binding was detected by adding peroxidase-conjugated anti-horse IgG antibody (Sigma; 1:30 000 dilution) for 60 min at room temperature. Following three 10-min washes in TBS (room temperature), spots were stained using a chemiluminescence detection ECL kit (GE Healthcare).

The membranes were used several times with sera of different neutralizing potencies previously determined on in vivo tests. Membranes were treated with a solution containing 8 M urea, 1% SDS and 0.1% β-mercaptoethanol for the removal of molecular complexes bound to the peptides. For the removal of urea, the membranes were washed with 50% ethanol and 10% acetic acid. To minimize peptide hydration, membranes were washed with methanol and subsequently dried and stored at −20 °C. These procedures allowed the re-use of the membranes without compromising their reactivity with antibodies. Based on the results obtained with ELISA-SPOT Ergoloid containing cellulose-bound peptides, the DNRRPIWNLAHMVNA-AGC peptide (Pep 1) and the DFSGPYLPSLPTLDA-AGC peptide (Pep 3) corresponding to residues 2–16 and 164–178, respectively, of the SMase I protein (L. laeta) were synthesized by Fmoc chemistry. Additionally, the EFVNLGANSIETDVS-AGC peptide (Pep 2), corresponding to residues 22–36 of the A1H-LoxGa (L. gaucho) and LiD1 (L. intermedia) proteins were also synthesized by Fmoc chemistry ( Laune et al., 2002). For the Fmoc chemistry, the ResPep SL Automatic Spot Synthesizer (Intavis AG, Bioanalytical Instruments, Germany) was used.

This method is also faster, being more applicable to breeding pro

This method is also faster, being more applicable to breeding programs, which have to analyze

a large number of samples routinely. Finally, data results also demonstrated that grains with similar hardness could present distinct cooking characteristics, being strongly affected by the conditions of the methods employed, especially the rate of heat transference, pressure and cooking time. Therefore, although it was possible to classify the beans cooked by different methods according selleck products to their cooking quality, it is still necessary to find hardness ranges that match those cooking quality classifications. The results of the present study demonstrate that the cooking procedure is critical for cooking quality of

bean grains. The hardness of cooked grains is highly affected by cooking time and the way heat transfer occurs, thus, CB-839 mw a same hardness value can correspond to different bean cooking characteristics. Among the methods evaluated, the better procedures to prepare bean for instrumental texture analysis are the hotplate at 45 or 60 min and the autoclave at 110 °C/15 min, which promote the softening of bean grains, maintaining their cooked or slightly cooked characteristic. Furthermore, those methods are faster and demonstrated to be able to discriminate fresh and aged grain, being useful to the bean breeding programs. The authors would like to acknowledge Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento nearly de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) and Embrapa Rice and Beans for the scholarship and financial support. “
“Most food packaging

material is manufactured using petroleum-based non-biodegradable polymers, and their disposal is becoming a serious environmental issue. The partial replacement of these materials with biodegradable polymers from renewable sources (i.e., biopolymers) can reduce the impact that packaging materials have on the environment. Among the biopolymers, starch is considered a promising raw material due to its price, availability and ability as a thermoplastic starch (TPS) to produce biodegradable films. However, pure TPS films are hydrophilic and have poor mechanical properties. Thus, TPS blended with biodegradable synthetic polymers such as poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) are being studied to improve the mechanical performance, and reduce the hydrophilicity of the blends (Brandelero, Grossmann & Yamashita, 2011, 2012; Müller, Laurindo & Yamashita, 2012; Olivato, Grossmann, Bilck & Yamashita, 2012; Olivato, Grossmann, Yamashita, Eiras & Pessan, 2012; Raquéz et al., 2008; Reddy & Yang, 2010). Antimicrobial agents that migrate from the active packaging material to the food product are very attractive because of their potential to control microorganism growth, and thus extend the shelf-life of the product (Han, 2000).

Full access

Full access selleck kinase inhibitor to relevant data would require the strict compliance with nomenclature standards in the paper; data integration and comparison of data from different labs and methods is only possible if experimental standards are used and experimental meta-data are fully documented in publications. With the

current state of science the task of data integration and systematic experimental documentation can only be accomplished by databases. This article illuminates a number of principles and shortcomings in the current state of standardisation. Since enzymology has a long history many enzyme names are not unique. In many cases the same enzymes became known by several different names, while conversely the same name was sometimes given to different enzymes. Many names conveyed little or no information on the enzymatic function, and similar names were sometimes given to enzymes of quite different types. Recently the unfortunate habit of using gene names for enzymes has become common practice in some areas of molecular biology. In 1956 the International Commission SCH772984 on Enzymes was created by the International Union of Biochemistry. Since then an elaborated enzyme classification system providing hierarchical EC numbers as well as systematic names and recommended names has been established (see also Cornish-Bowden on current

IUBMB recommendations, 2014). In the EC number

system an enzyme is not defined by its name but by the reaction it catalyses. In some cases where this is not sufficient, additional criteria are employed such as cofactor specificity or stereospecificity of the reaction. The EC number classifies the enzyme according to the type of reaction it catalyses. Six main classes have been established: (1) oxidoreductases; tuclazepam (2) transferases; (3) hydrolases; (4) lyases; (5) isomerases and (6) ligases. Each main class is attributed with sub- and sub-sub-classes further defining reaction partners, cofactors and type of substrate. Since the start of the project the list of classified enzymes has grown steadily and meanwhile comprises about 5300 (January 2014) valid EC classes plus several hundred deleted and transferred classes (McDonald et al., 2009). Detailed rules for naming an enzyme have been developed and are published on the website of the IUBMB enzyme database. Each classified enzyme receives two names: This name shows the action of the enzymes as clearly as possible. Thus it often includes the name of the substrate and the type of modification which it undergoes in the course of the reaction. Very often it also includes the cofactor and the product of the reaction. Systematic names unambiguously describe an enzyme׳s activity. However very often they are not suitable for everyday use.

All other chemicals (e g , acetic acid, sodium sulfate anhydrous,

All other chemicals (e.g., acetic acid, sodium sulfate anhydrous, tetracycline,

cycloheximide, glucose and xylose) were of analytical grade and purchased from Sigma–Aldrich (USA). The Cellic CTec 2 cellulose enzyme was obtained from Novozyme (Canada). Experiments were conducted with a Leistritz co-rotating twin screw extruder (American Leistritz Extruder Corp, USA). The extruder was composed of twelve modular barrels that were each 200 mm long. The barrels were electrically heated using thermal induction and cooled by water circulation. Barrel temperature, water flow rate, feed flow rate and pressure were monitored from a control panel. The material was fed into the extruder inlet port (Barrel 0, Fig.

1) at 4 kg/h by a gravimetric feeder (Brabender Y-27632 cell line Technology, Canada). Water was injected into Barrel 8 by a positive displacement pump (Milton Roy USA). A solid/liquid separator was positioned in Barrel 9 to collect the filtrate mainly containing dissolved xylose. Two pressure sensors were positioned in Barrels 8 and 10, respectively, to detect the pressure on both sides of the filter. Two screw configuration profiles (Fig. 1A and B) were used to produce the extruded corncobs with 7% and 80% xylose removals, respectively. These two screw configuration profiles were built by placing conveying, kneading and reverse screw elements at different positions and intervals. The conveying screw elements were used for material selleck inhibitor transportation and their smaller pitch could Reverse transcriptase compress the products and achieve a high degree of filling within each barrel. Kneading screw elements oriented at different angles were used to break down large solids and to mix biomass and water to achieve a homogeneous distribution. In addition, reverse screw

elements carrying the materials in the opposite direction were placed immediately before and after the filter to increase forward and backward pressure. The only differences between these two screw configuration profiles concerned their backward pressure development zones, situated in zone 11. The backward pressure development zone was composed of two reverse screw elements for Profile A, but only one for Profile B, which caused lower backward pressure, resulting in less xylose removal. All experiments were conducted at a barrel temperature of 100 °C, screw speed of 100 rpm, and a L/S ratio of 1.2. The concentration of glucose was quantified by an Agilent 1260 Infinity high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using a MetaCarb H Plus Column 300 × 7.8 mm (Agilent Technologies, USA), equipped with a refractive index detector. Before analysis, hydrolyzed liquid samples were subjected to 50× dilutions and filtered through a 0.2 μm cellulose acetate membrane (VWR International, USA). The column temperature was maintained at 60 °C and the flow rate was 0.7 ml/min (5 mM H2SO4).

In general however, it is argued that

In general however, it is argued that EPZ5676 purchase we know very little about new arrivals to SSF in the West African region, compared with our understanding

of those cultures historically engaged in fisheries-related occupations [17], [57] and [72]. To some, any growth in SSF effort is ultimately detrimental to fisheries resources and only ‘wealth’ based management approaches, prioritising constant catch-levels, stocks for future-use and area-closures with restricted fishing, can address these concerns [48], [58], [79], [69], [35] and [59]. To others, access to SSF is seen as critical and the provision of food, employment and income-generation an essential-pillar upon which the unemployed and unfortunate depend [8], [65], [64], [17], [71] and [15]. ‘Welfare’ advocates therefore view access to fishing as key and the successful development of fisheries governance as dependent upon social inclusion [[63], [65], [20] and [36],[62], [17], [15], [19], [13], [77] and [18]. By investigating livelihood pathways of entry into SSF

this study aims to inform our understanding of an appropriate governance trajectory for this http://www.selleckchem.com/products/Trichostatin-A.html study-region. The resulting qualitative analysis therefore focusses upon the question of why individuals do fish and aims to present a holistic overview of commercial SSF participants. Findings are presented from a single case-study where researcher involvement was constant for twenty-four months and the advantages of such longer-term

Ribonucleotide reductase fieldwork acknowledged [50]. Cabuno beach (Uno Island Fig. 1) has been permanently occupied, as a SSF camp settlement by regional West-African in-migrant workers since 2003. The national SSF sector of Guinea-Bissau (located between Senegal to the north and west and Guinea-Conakry to the south and east) lacks coherent data and Cabuno camp was therefore purposively chosen, on account of transport, to bridge this knowledge-gap [53], [91] and [2]. To contrast, the 34,000 indigenous Bijagós Islanders (including approximately 3000 on Uno) focus upon subsistence rice cultivation, grounded by the unique religious and cultural institutions of their age- structured society and a struggling staple dietary production system [87], [55] and [10]. The investigation here presented is but one component of a wider cross-cultural livelihood investigation [44]. Case-studies facilitate in-depth understanding of phenomena as they occur within a relatively natural setting [24]. Taking part enables knowledge accumulation not only through informants׳ verbal statements but through all aspects of day-to-day lives as they naturally unfold [21]. Semi-structured life-history interviews were used in Cabuno; to examine how individual beliefs, needs, aspirations and circumstances have influenced individual entry into commercial SSF [76], [54] and [83]. This biographical approach offers a means of studying wider topics [82].

VietG A P , in contrast, is an example of first-party

VietG.A.P., in contrast, is an example of first-party KU-60019 certification because the government developed the standard and also manages the certification process through its national certification body QUACERT. Vietnamese authorities perform

both functions as a way to increase revenue and strengthen their own authority [43]. Two of the standards focus specifically on shrimp (ShAD, BAP), whereas the other two standards focus on farmed species more generally. There are 16 shrimp farms certified vis-à-vis the BAP standard in Vietnam. The GAA website lists out each facility, certification validity period and species. While some facilities have a web link, this is for self-promotion (not all web links are active). It is difficult to get a sense of farm size, type of shrimp species certified, or other details relating to certification. The three GLOBALG.A.P. certified shrimp farms cover whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), selleckchem and while basic

information can be found on the web in terms of an online certificate validation tool, the certificate lacks in a number of details such as farm size, use of seed or feed, and number of labourers. What is listed is the producer: in this case two corporations and one joint stock company [41]. Although no certified shrimp farms are listed under ASC since this standard was just released in 2014, Vietnam boasts the first shrimp farm 4 to enter into ASC assessment. Moreover, ASC׳s online accessibility pertaining to its׳ pangasius certification provides greater detail about its producers and it seems likely that the ShAD will follow suit once it becomes fully implemented. A greater question in

reference to the ShAD is its applicability to Vietnam׳s small shrimp producers. Unlike the Pangasius Aquaculture Dialogues (PAD) where Vietnamese stakeholders had significant input, Vietnamese officials, scientists and producers had relatively little involvement in the development of the ShAD standard, in part because dominant shrimp species are produced across 35 countries [9]. Florfenicol Meanwhile, Vietnam is working towards VietG.A.P. certification for black tiger shrimp, white leg shrimp, and pangasius catfish. Perhaps this national standard can better account for local conditions than its international counterparts; however, this remains to be seen as VietG.A.P. is in its infancy. A closer look at three of these certification schemes5 suggests that while covering similar criteria each vary in their approach to certain aspects of sustainability. Table 2 highlights key social, environmental, economic and management criteria covered by GLOBALG.A.P. [44], ASC [45], and VietG.A.P. [46], and evaluates the coverage each scheme places on a particular criteria relative to each other.