International collaboration in freshwater ecology

1. International collaboration in freshwater ecology was examined using authorship affiliations of articles published in thirty-three specialized journals. Most are published in Europe. 2. Researchers from four to thirty-seven different countries were represented in the 100 articles examined for each journal. Only 29% of articles were single-authored; multicountry authors' addresses (indicating international collaboration) were found for 9% (range 0–23% per journal) of articles examined. 3. Five of the eighty-nine countries listed in the addresses of the 3300 articles together contributed >50% of total articles: United States (24.9%), Canada (8.6%), Germany (7.6%), Commonwealth of Independent States (7.0%) and Poland (5.9%). Of the fifteen countries that each produced >2.5% of total articles, the percentage representing international collaboration was highest for France (34.9%) and Canada (24.0%). The seventy-four countries that each contributed <2.5% of total articles generally had higher rates of international collaboration. 4. Researchers in the United States and Canada collaborate internationally almost twice as often in freshwater ecology than in all science. Much of France's extensive international collaboration is with countries that produce few articles in freshwater ecology, and their international collaboration is often exclusively with France. 5. Three journals publishing both marine and freshwater ecology articles contain more articles on the former topic, but more countries are represented in the publication of freshwater than marine research. 6. The percentage of articles that represent international collaboration is higher in freshwater ecology than in medicine, biology, chemistry and engineering, and approximates that in physics.     

International stem cell collaboration: how disparate policies between the United States and the United Kingdom impact research

As the scientific community globalizes, it is increasingly important to understand the effects of international collaboration on the quality and quantity of research produced. While it is generally assumed that international collaboration enhances the quality of research, this phenomenon is not well examined. Stem cell research is unique in that it is both politically charged and a research area that often generates international collaborations, making it an ideal case through which to examine international collaborations. Furthermore, with promising medical applications, the research area is dynamic and responsive to a globalizing science environment. Thus, studying international collaborations in stem cell research elucidates the role of existing international networks in promoting quality research, as well as the effects that disparate national policies might have on research. This study examined the impact of collaboration on publication significance in the United States and the United Kingdom, world leaders in stem cell research with disparate policies. We reviewed publications by US and UK authors from 2008, along with their citation rates and the political factors that may have contributed to the number of international collaborations. The data demonstrated that international collaborations significantly increased an article's impact for UK and US investigators. While this applied to UK authors whether they were corresponding or secondary, this effect was most significant for US authors who were corresponding authors. While the UK exhibited a higher proportion of international publications than the US, this difference was consistent with overall trends in international scientific collaboration. The findings suggested that national stem cell policy differences and regulatory mechanisms driving international stem cell research in the US and UK did not affect the frequency of international collaborations, or even the countries with which the US and UK most often collaborated. Geographical and traditional collaborative relationships were the predominate considerations in establishing international collaborations.     

Collaboration in scientific research: a critical need for freshwater ecology

1. Collaboration means actively working together to achieve things which could not be done alone. This article attempts to provide an overall, unified, guiding framework for collaboration in freshwater ecology by discussing aspects of collaboration at individual and organizational levels, and addressing international linkages.
2. The essential elements of collaboration are communication and trust, and effective project management. Barriers to effective collaboration include competition, organizational cultures and organizational instabilities.
3. The success of collaboration can be measured by tangible benefits such as increased numbers of peer-reviewed publications, the production of working models and a number of intangible benefits.
4. Interactions between individuals lie at the heart of an effective collaboration; organizational arrangements should facilitate this interaction. Some governments are encouraging collaboration to increase cost efficiency and allocate accountability. This trend should continue on an international level.
5. Collaboration is a key to future research in freshwater ecology.     

Rice Mutant Resources for Gene Discovery

With the completion of genomic sequencing of rice, rice has been firmly established as a model organism for both basic and applied research. The next challenge is to uncover the functions of genes predicted by sequence analysis. Considering the amount of effort and the diversity of disciplines required for functional analyses, extensive international collaboration is needed for this next goal. The aims of this review are to summarize the current status of rice mutant resources, key tools for functional analysis of genes, and our perspectives on how to accelerate rice gene discovery through collaboration.     

Health biotechnology innovation on a global stage

With increasing globalization, infectious diseases are spreading faster than ever before, creating an urgent need for international collaboration. The rise of emerging economies has changed the traditional collaborative landscape and provided opportunities for more diverse models of collaboration involving developing countries, including North-South, South-South and North-South-South partnerships. Here, we discuss how developing countries can partner with other nations to address their shared health problems and to promote innovation. We look specifically at what drives collaborations and at the challenges that exist for them, and we propose actions that can strengthen these partnerships.     

Benefit Sharing in a Global Context: Working Towards Solutions for Implementation

Due to the state of globalized clinical research, questions have been raised as to what, if any, benefits those who contribute to research should receive. One model for compensating research participants is “benefit sharing,” and the basic premise is that, as a matter of justice, those who contribute to scientific research should share in its benefits. While incorporated into several international documents for over two decades, benefit sharing has only been sparsely implemented. This analysis begins by addressing the concept of benefit sharing, its historical development, and how it has been applied in the context of virus sharing for influenza research. The second portion of this analysis presents recommendations for ensuring benefit sharing. These recommendations are threefold: 1) an emphasis on social pressure, 2) the revision of international documents as means to ensure benefit sharing, and 3) greater collaboration between sponsor IRB and host country IRB. Because clinical research is a globalized industry, a global model will be proposed in the second that focuses on collaboration between the sponsor and host country. This collaboration is vital in order to ensure that proper forms of benefit sharing are accomplished as a matter of justice.     

A human rights approach to an international code of conduct for genomic and clinical data sharing

Fostering data sharing is a scientific and ethical imperative. Health gains can be achieved more comprehensively and quickly by combining large, information-rich datasets from across conventionally siloed disciplines and geographic areas. While collaboration for data sharing is increasingly embraced by policymakers and the international biomedical community, we lack a common ethical and legal framework to connect regulators, funders, consortia, and research projects so as to facilitate genomic and clinical data linkage, global science collaboration, and responsible research conduct. Governance tools can be used to responsibly steer the sharing of data for proper stewardship of research discovery, genomics research resources, and their clinical applications. In this article, we propose that an international code of conduct be designed to enable global genomic and clinical data sharing for biomedical research. To give this proposed code universal application and accountability, however, we propose to position it within a human rights framework. This proposition is not without precedent: international treaties have long recognized that everyone has a right to the benefits of scientific progress and its applications, and a right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from scientific productions. It is time to apply these twin rights to internationally collaborative genomic and clinical data sharing.     

Standardization of cellular therapy terminology,coding and labeling: a review

The 1990s saw rapid growth in international activity in hematopoietic cell transplantation. As national donor registries were established and international collaboration increased, a need to transfer cellular therapy products across national borders emerged. A lack of international standards for identification, terminology and labeling resulted in significant challenges for import and export. Twenty years of effort by a large group of experts supported by professional societies and accreditation bodies has today achieved a high degree of standardization. This review highlights the main landmarks in this journey and serves as a reminder of the importance of taking the “long view” when working toward international standardization. It demonstrates the need for continual maintenance and enhancement of standards to meet the changing needs of the cell therapy industry and highlights recent developments in ISBT 128.     

Challenges faced by research ethics committees in El Salvador: results from a focus group study

Objective:  To identify perceived barriers to capacity building for local research ethics oversight in El Salvador, and to set an agenda for international collaborative capacity building.
Methods:  Focus groups were formed in El Salvador which included 17 local clinical investigators and members of newly formed research ethics committees. Information about the proposed research was presented to participants during an international bioethics colloquium sponsored and organized by the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in collaboration with the National Ethics Committee of El Salvador and the University of El Salvador. Interviews with the focus group participants were qualitatively analyzed.
Results:  Participants expressed the need to tailor the informed consent process and documentation to the local culture; for example, allowing family members to participate in decision-making, and employing shorter consent forms. Participants indicated that economic barriers often impede efforts in local capacity building. Participants valued international collaboration for mutual capacity building in research ethics oversight.
Conclusions:  Research ethics committees in El Salvador possess a basic knowledge of locally relevant ethical principles, though they need more training to optimize the application of bioethical principles and models to their particular contexts. Challenges increase the value of collaborative exchanges with ethics committee members in the United States. Further research on facilitating communication between host country and sponsor country ethics committees can maximize local research ethics expertise, and thus raise the standard of protecting human participants involved in international research.     

Janaki Ammal,C. D. Darlington and J. B. S. Haldane: scientific encounters at the end of empire

Right from the beginning, genetics has been an international venture, with international networks involving the collaboration of scientists across continents. Janaki Ammal’s career illustrates this. This paper traces her scientific path by situating it in the context of her relationships with J. B. S. Haldane and C. D. Darlington.     

The coastal upwelling ecosystems analysis program as an experience in international cooperation

Abstract

The Coastal Upwelling Ecosystems Analysis CUEA) Project, the major effort in the Living Resources part of the United States Program for the International Decade of Ocean Exploration (IDOE), included a variety of approaches to international involvement. Escalating cost, expanded geographical scope, and increasing insistence on coastal state participation in research projects off foreign shores heighten the likelihood that similar large‐scale, long‐term research efforts will require particular attention to international cooperation and collaboration. A look at the international aspects of CUEA is timely and instructive. This discussion reviews the background to the upwelling project, the nature of international involvement, and closes with some observations about the requirements for similar projects in the future.     

关于加强我国生物安全工作若干问题的思考

随着现代化生物技术,特别是基因工程技术的兴起和迅速发展,生物安全问题农渐成为全球社会普遍关注的热点,它既是一个科学问题,又是一个管理问题,需要从健全法律法规体系,理顺管理机构体系,支持鼓励科学研究,重视科学宣传普及,加强相关国际合作等方面,大力加强我国的生物安全工作,达到保障安全,促进发展的目标。     

New developments in the antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida

Antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida spp has been standardized and refined and now may play an important role in managing Candida infections. Important new developments include standardizing methods for testing echinocandins, fluconazole, and voriconazole and establishing interpretive breakpoints for these agents. Refinements in broth microdilution technology include the ability to read results after 24-hour incubation for several agents, addition of new azoles and echinocandins to commercially available microdilution trays, and automation of the entire testing process. Cross-resistance studies have identified important relationships among the triazole antifungals, and international collaboration offers the promise of harmonization and the development of an international standard for the testing of yeasts.     

The role of academic health sciences centres in international health.

For many years, Canadian academic health science centres have been active in international health. This brief review describes the activities of the Canadian Society for International Health, the Canadian University Consortium for Health in Development, and McGill, McMaster and Ottawa universities. Three principles are derived from these examples. Health must be placed in the broader context of development, and international health initiatives must be intersectoral. Canadian universities can make a distinctive and important contribution to health and development internationally, but this requires a clear commitment to scientific excellence and social responsibility. Finally, Canadian institutions, as representatives of the North, have much to learn through collaboration and partnerships with institutions in the South.     

From Mexico to Michigan and back: An international collaboration investigating primate behavior,ecology, and evolution from multiple perspectives

Evolutionary research benefits form the integration of laboratory and field components to determine factors and processes that affect the evolutionary trajectories of species. Our shared interest in understanding hybridization with genetic admixture as a process that may impact social, behavioral, and ecological features of primates, brought us together in a collaborative project aimed at addressing how vocal variation in two species of howler monkeys in Mexico affects and is affected by hybridization. To achieve this goal, we joined our academic expertise in studying primate genetics, ecology, and behavior under different natural and experimental conditions. We took advantage of decades of experience studying and handing wild howler monkeys for translocation projects to safely sample and study wild populations for this project. Here, we describe the history of our collaboration highlighting how our different perspectives, academic realities, and individual strengths built the foundation for our successful collaboration. We also share our perspectives on how this collaboration opened up new academic venues, broadened our individual perspectives on the integration of different research approaches to address a complex topic, and allowed us to recognize the strength of international collaboration.     

The international response to the outbreak of SARS in 2003

The sudden arrival of an internationally spreading outbreak of a newly identified infectious disease in early 2003, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), provided an opportunity for a coordinated international response based on information and evidence obtained in real time through standard and electronic communications. Its containment represents a new way of working internationally, and demonstrates how intense collaboration in virology, clinical medicine and epidemiology can rapidly provide the information necessary to create and implement evidence-based control measures. The SARS outbreak serves as a reminder of the need for a strong national surveillance and response to infectious diseases, evidence-based international travel recommendations, and a global alert and response network to serve as a safety net when national surveillance fails.     

Fighting against hematological malignancy in China: from unique system to global impact

During recent decades, substantial progress has been made in clinical strategies for treating hematological malignancies. Not only did China benefit from the global progression in the management of acute promyelocytic leukemia, risk-stratification-directed strategies for acute or chronic leukemia and haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, the unique system developed by Chinese doctors has also become inspiration for refining global clinical practice. The multicenter trials and collaborations adhering to international standards might further strengthen the global impact and lead the way in specific fields of research worldwide.     

全基因组关联研究的深度分析策略

2005年至今,全基因组关联研究(Genome-wide association study,GWAS)发现了大量复杂疾病/性状相关变异。近来,科学家们关注的焦点又集中在了如何利用GWAS数据进行深入分析,期待发现更多复杂疾病/性状的易感基因。一些新的策略和方法已经被尝试应用到复杂疾病/性状GWAS的后续研究中,例如深入分析GWAS数据;鉴定新的复杂疾病/性状易感基因/位点;国际合作和Meta分析;易感区域精细定位及测序;多种疾病共同易感基因研究;以及基因型填补,基于通路的关联分析,基因-基因、基因-环境交互作用和上位研究等。这些策略和方法的应用弥补了经典GWAS的一些不足之处,进一步推动了人类对复杂疾病/性状遗传机制的认识。文章对上述研究的策略、方法以及所面临的问题和挑战进行了综述,为读者描绘了GWAS后期工作的一个简要框架。     

The Nordic Vegetation Survey - concepts and perspectives

Abstract. The background of the Nordic Vegetation Survey is outlined and the concepts for this international collaboration project are reviewed. The project includes, so far, institutions in Denmark, Faeroes, Finland, Norway and Sweden. We are setting up a common basis for a vegetation database, with a Nordic species list, exchange of data and joint revisions of important Nordic vegetation types. Progress in the Nordic Vegetation Survey is described and the future perspectives indicated.     

'Infectious web'

Exhaustive information on the Epstein-Barr virus, a member of the herpes family, is described at the International Herpes Management Forum web-site. Cervical cancer associations, AIDS treatment projects, and the Los Alamos National Laboratories provide useful information on papillomavirus infections, as well as hyperlinks to recent international papillomavirus conferences. A private pharmaceutical company, in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, has launched a lively web-site covering different aspects of microbial infections for the general public.