Anti C1q Antibodies and Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells

Anti C1q Antibodies and Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells The complement system is one of the major effector mechanisms of the innate immune system and it plays an important role in immune defense. The biological functions of complement are opsonization and phagocytosis, stimulation of inflammatory reactions by anaphylatoxins and complement-mediated cytolysis of microbes, especially encapsulated bacteria. The complement system is formed by an enzymatic cascade composed of plasma proteins that, once stimulated, can achieve tremendous amplification and effectively fight the invading microorganisms (Abbas et al., 2009). Under certain conditions, a pathological immune reaction may develop against complement components, which on one hand reflects an underlying autoimmune process and may lead to inflammation and tissue injury on the other (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). The first component of the classical pathway of complement activation, C1q, plays a crucial role in the clearance of immune complexes and apoptotic bodies from the organism. Autoantibodies against C1q (anti C1q) have been found in a number of autoimmune and infectious diseases. They have been best described in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, where they are thought to play a pathogenic role in lupus nephritis (LN). Their high negative predictive value for the occurrence of active proliferative LN, as well as their possible ability to indicate a renal flare as soon as 6 months in advance, have rendered anti C1q antibodies a novel non-invasive tool in the detection of active LN (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). The Complement C1q and Its Antibodies C1q is the first component of the classical pathway of complement activation. Together with the enzymatically active components C1r and C1s, C1q forms the C1 complex. Binding of C1 to immunoglobulins in the form of immune complexes leads to activation of protease function of C1r and C1s and further activation of the classical pathway of complement (Schumaker et al., 1986). C1q is a glycoprotein belonging to the collectin family with a molecular weight of about 410-462 kDa. It is a hexamer composed of globular heads attached to collagen-like triple-helix tails (Fig. 8). The globular heads of C1q specifically bind to the constant heavy (CH2) domain of IgG molecules or the CH3 domain of IgM. Each heavy chain of the immunoglobulin molecule contains only one binding site for C1q. Since C1q must bind to at least two heavy chains in order to change its conformation and activate C1r and C1s, its activation ensues only after binding to immunoglobulins in the form of immune complexes bound to multivalent antigens (Schumaker et al., 1986). Most complement proteins are synthesized in the liver by hepatocytes. However, macrophages can synthesize early complement components of both the classical and alternative pathways and can provide sufficient local tissue complement for opsonization without recruiting plasma complement (Colten et al., 1986). C1q is unusual, for a complement protein, that it is synthesized by tissue macrophages but not hepatocytes (Loos et al., 1989). In addition to being the first component of the classical pathway of complement activation, C1q has many physiological roles. C1q can directly opsonize apoptotic cells (AC) for phagocytosis. In vitro, C1q binds to surface blebs on AC but not normal host cells (Korb and Ahearn, 1997). C1q binds to calreticulin (CRT) in AC blebs and opsonizes AC for enhanced phagocytosis through C1q interaction with CD91. C1q can opsonize AC also indirectly through complement activation (Lu et al., 2008). Consistent with this, the finding that C1q-deficient mice have been shown to have an accumulation of apoptotic bodies in the kidneys (Botto et al., 1998); and macrophages of C1q-deficient mice and humans have a decreased ability to clear apoptotic bodies in vitro (Botto, 1998; Taylor et al., 2000). In this way, C1q promotes the clearance of autoantigens, preventing stimulation of the immune system and disruption of this process may lead to development of autoimmunity (Botto, 2001). C1q-opsonized AC also regulates DC production of cytokines, but data from different studies are not entirely consistent (Lu et al., 2008). Apparently, most studies report C1q inhibition of IL-12 production from DCs and that AC stimulated macrophages produce more IL-10 and less IL-12. This suggests a tolerogenic property of C1q which is consistent to the development of autoimmunity at C1q deficiency (Botto et al., 1998). C1q has also miscellaneous roles in regulation of multiple macrophage activities, in DC differentiation, activation and antigen presentation and in granulocytes, mast cells and fibroblasts regulation (Lu et al., 2008). There are several autoantibodies to complement proteins that interfere with the physiological regulation of complement activation in vivo, and each of these has been associated with the development of SLE. These antibodies are C3 nephritic factor, anti-C1 inhibitor autoantibodies, and anti C1q antibodies. In each of these cases, there is a chicken and egg dispute, since it could be argued that development of the anticomplement autoantibody is itself part of the SLE process. However, in the case of C3 nephritic factor, which stabilizes the C3bBbC3 convertase enzyme of the alternative pathway, 8 cases of SLE have been described )Sheeran et al., 1995; Walport et al., 1994). In each of these, the onset of SLE occurred many years after the development of the main clinical phenotypes associated with the presence of C3 nephritic factor, supporting the idea that the C3 nephritic factor was the egg rather than the chicken. History and epidemiology of anti C1q antibodies: Binding of monomeric IgG to C1q was first described in 1971, in sera from patients with SLE with hypocomplementemia (Agnello et al., 1971), and in 1978, precipitation of C1q by monomeric IgG was documented in the hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis syndrome (HUVS) (Marder et al., 1978). In 1984, anti C1q antibodies were found in patients with SLE (Uwatoko et al., 1984). Since then, occurrence of anti C1q antibodies has been described with varying prevalence in patients with autoimmune and also some infectious diseases (Wisnieski and Jones, 1992). Anti C1q antibodies were mostly of the IgG subtype with IgG1 and IgG2 being the predominant subclasses (Siegert et al., 1990). The prevalence of anti C1q in the general population varies between 2% and 8% (Potlukova et al., 2008). As is the case with other autoantibodies, the occurrence of anti C1q increases with age (Ravelli et al., 1997; Siegert et al., 1993). The mere positivity for anti C1q antibodies in an otherwise healthy individual does not appear to bear any pathological or prognostic significance (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). Pathogenic role of anti C1q antibodies: Anti C1q antibodies have high negative predictive value for active lupus nephritis (LN) suggesting a pathogenic role in SLE patients. In addition, the elimination of anti C1q antibodies from circulation by repeated plasmapheresis or C1q immunoabsorption brought alleviation of the patients symptoms (Berner et al., 2001; Grimbert, et al., 2001). The binding of anti C1q antibodies to C1q is mediated via Fab fragments and in contrast to immune complexes, anti C1q antibodies do not bind to globular heads of the C1q molecule but to its collagen-like tail (Fig. 8). The binding is very weak in the liquid phase, but achieves high affinity in the case of a conformationally changed C1q in the bound state exposing new antigenic determinants. Thus, any possible pathogenic role of anti C1q antibodies probably remains confined to local deposits of C1q in tissues (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). Another intriguing mechanism of the pathogenicity of anti C1q antibodies might be a switch from non-inflammatory recognition of apoptotic bodies by C1q and its receptors to inflammatory recognition when C5a and other complement activation fragments are generated during enhanced complement activation due to anti C1q antibodies at sites where C1q is recognizing nuclear antigens (Holers, 2004). Fig. 8: A simplified scheme of the binding of anti C1q antibodies to the molecule of C1q. Anti C1q antibodies per se do not seem to activate complement; however, their binding to C1q may amplify complement activation by increasing the amount of the bound IgG in a vicious circle manner. Furthermore, they might attenuate the physiological functions of C1q, including the capacity to activate the classical pathway of complement and to clear immune complexes and apoptotic bodies. Taken together, several different mechanisms seem to be involved in the pathogenicity of anti C1q antibodies (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). The presence of anti C1q antibodies in lupus is typically accompanied by a number of clinical and serological features. The complement profile is similar to that seen in HUVS, with very low levels of C1q, C4, and C2, and, to a lesser extent, C3. Anti C1q antibodies tend to remain positive in SLE for prolonged periods, and there is associated prolonged hypocomplementemia. This differs from anti-double-stranded DNA antibody levels, which tend to fluctuate in concentration, together with inverse changes in complement levels (Pickering et al., 2000). Â   Â   Anti C1q antibodies in infectious diseases Anti C1q antibodies have also been found in some infectious diseases Prohaszka et al. (1999) have found an increased occurrence of anti C1q antibodies in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus: 13% of infected patients were positive when compared with 5% controls. Furthermore, the levels of anti C1q antibodies significantly decreased during a follow-up period of 65 months. Interestingly, sera with detectable anti C1q antibodies were more likely to neutralize HIV than sera without them in in-vitro experiments. Saadoun et al. (2006) have reported an increased prevalence of anti C1q antibodies in patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV), with 26% being positive. Contrary to expectations, the occurrence of anti C1q antibodies did not differ between HCV-infected patients with and without mixed cryoglobulinemia indicating that immune complexes do not cross-react with the anti C1q assay and proving also the abundant presence of immune complexes in the circulation does not seem to be sufficient to provoke generation of anti C1q. Further studies are needed to elucidate their role and clinical relevance in other diseases. Measurement of anti C1q antibodies In the past, radioimmunoassay based on the binding of immune complexes to C1q fixed to a solid phase was mainly used to determine the concentration of immune complexes (Hay et al., 1976). Later, the solid-phase C1q binding assay was modified into an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). For this purpose, either whole C1q or the collagen-like region of C1q was employed. However, the use of individually prepared ELISA kits with differently set cut-off limits for positivity led to a rather large disparity between the results of clinical studies. Nowadays, measurement of anti C1q antibodies in serum has become easier; thanks to commercially available and standardized ELISA kits using the whole C1q molecule as antigen (Potlukova and Kralikova, 2008). The main pitfall in the measurement of anti C1q antibodies consists in a possible binding of circulating immune complexes to the solid-phase bound whole C1q. However, it has been shown that the use of high ionic strength conditions in the incubation media inhibits any similar unwelcome binding and it renders the ELISA reliable for clinical use (Kohro-Kawata et al., 2002).

Free College Admissions Essays - A Loss of Innocence :: College Admissions Essays

A Loss of Innocence The United States of America lost its innocence on September 11, 2001. No longer are the vicious attacks on democracy in some far away country; they are now in our own backyard. President Bush said it best, "freedom itself was attacked by a faceless coward..." but now we know the name of that face. For many of us, this is the first time we have experienced what others around the world live with daily. As young people, we can have a profound impact on the future. We can start at this level by supporting our country and the ideals it holds dear. We must remember that the very privilege of an education is one that those who attacked us plainly detest. In fact, it is illegal for women in that country to pursue an education at all. Every step we achieve in the learning process is in defiance to those who keep their citizens ignorant. As students and citizens, we must realize that the power of education comes with a responsibility: to help people of all backgrounds understand that if we are to make any progress as a society, we cannot tolerate terrorism anywhere in our world. However, we must be careful not to express our outrage irrationally against people who had nothing to do with that evil act. One motive for the terrorist attack on our country was contempt for the freedom that allows America to tolerate those who hold different beliefs. Our future belongs to those who stand up and fight for what they believe in. As a nation, we are now at the crossroads: we can choose to allow those with evil intentions to have the loudest voices or we can stand together with one voice. It has been said, "All that evil needs to succeed is for

Dream: Electrical Engineering and Hard Work

Some people may say that dreams are hard to follow and it's impossible to be able to achieve them. But, that's actually not true. The fact is that dreams are the most amazing things in life; we all love to dream, love to hope and love to see our dreams come true. Our dreams are in our hands. We are the ones who control them; we are the ones who can make them either come true or not. In the article â€Å"A Vision of Stars, Grounded in the Dust of Rural Indian,† Somini Sengupta talks about Anupam Kumar, an Indian boy who lives and grows up in a poor family but has a big dream. He wants to works at NASA. In the article, the author describes the road to fulfill his dream as well as the difficulties he met such as poverty, difficulty gaining acceptance to go to college, the intensity of competition, and his failure on the first exam. However, Anupam never gives up on his dream and finally achieves his dream with his own determination and hard work as well as support from his parents and his teacher. Like Anupam, I also have my own dreams. My dream is to become a computer engineer because I love technology and I believe that in the future, computers will become indispensable to human life. I will definitely reach my dream because of the support from my mother, my determination and my passion for computers. I will reach my goal thanks to the support from my mother. When I was a child, I was introverted. I hardly left the house and often spent my time in boredom, I did not have a goal and I also did not know what kind of person I would be in the future. Despite all of this, my mother is a person who changed me and helped me determine a goal of my life. My mother is the first person who realized my passion for computers. Whenever we went to my uncle’s house, I always asked him to teach me how to use his computer. At the time, I did not realize that I loved to study computers so much. I thought it was just because of my curiosity, but my mother did not. She saw through my heart and she knew what I needed. Living in Vietnam, computers were outrageously expensive, but my mother worked very hard in other to give me a chance to a new world of technology. Since I have my own computer which I got as a result of a lot of sweat and hard work by of my mother, I feel like a fish returned to the ocean. I became a new person. I studied hard and got good grades and my life became more interesting because I have more friends not only in Vietnam but also all over the world. I think that my life wouldn’t turn a new page if I did not receive my mother’s support. Therefore, I always try my best to reach my dream and deserve my mother’s faith. Determination is one of my qualities which will help me reach my goal and one of the aspects of determination is hard work. I still remember the hard time I had when I tried to use a computer the first time. It was written in English and at that time, English was one of the courses I hated the most in school. But I liked computers more than anything else, so that I decided to study seriously. Every day, I tried to remember and understand ten computer’s vocabulary words. I tried to read book in English one page or two pages a day. That really was a hard time for me. It took me hours to complete two pages with help from a dictionary and I followed it day by day. After three months, I could read more than five pages in an hour because I knew more vocabulary than before. My computer skill also got better and I really enjoyed it. Another aspect of determination is persistence. Persistent people will not give up the things they follow or they believe in even if in front of them are a lot of difficulties. I am one a persistent person. For example, when I was in college, I had a difficult time with a programming course; it was too new for me. I could not understand at all and for that result I got only three points (out of 10) on the first exam. I wasn’t the only one who did badly; almost seventy percent of the students had the same grade like me. For that reason, almost half of the students gave up on that course after two months. But I did not give up so easily. I tried to understand and remember lessons in class. After school, I read a book, practiced at home on the material which our teacher showed us, and read the next lesson for the next day so that when I had a question, I could ask my teacher immediately. I believe that I can do better if I follow the things I believe in. Finally, I passed that course with 8. 5/10 on the final exam, whereas others students had to study again for the next semester. I think that hard work and persistence will still help me in the road to fulfill my dream. Passion for computers is also one of my qualities which will help me reach my goal. Since I knew how interesting computers are. I was excited by this machine. I had so many questions about this machine. I wondered how one machine could do so many things. However, computers were very expensive in the past; it was only for rich people and my family could afford it. My dream looked like impossible at that time, but the passion for computers in me did not let me stop thinking about it and it helped me believe in the future that I will have my own computer. The hope of having my own computer followed me in two years and finally my mother helped me make it come true. Since I have gotten my own computer, I have begun studying seriously; I knew what my dream is and what I need to do to make it come true. I borrowed books from my uncle and read it when I have free time. When I had a problem with my computer, I tried to fix it, but it was useless. My mother had to hire a computer engineer to fix it, and at that time fixing computer was very expensive. Therefore, I learned how to fix the computer by watching the engineer so that I will be able to do this myself in the future. Now, I am learning computers in the U. S. where the first computer was born. I believe that if we really love something we can achieve it by passion and hope. After read the article about Anupam Kumar and the road to fulfill his dream, I have more confident, hope, and power to make my dream come true. I am deeply gratitude my mother who did everything for me so that I have more opportunity to accomplish my dream. My experience with computers has taught me to be patient and persistent and never to give up. This is a lesson I can apply throughout my life – not just for computers.

Ad Reinhardt, American Abstract Expressionist Painter

Ad Reinhardt, American Abstract Expressionist Painter Ad Reinhardt (December 24, 1913 - August 30, 1967) was an American abstract expressionist artist who sought to create what he called, absolute abstraction. The result was a series of works known as the Black Paintings, which consisted of geometrical shapes in subtle shades of black and near-black. Fast Facts: Ad Reinhardt Full Name: Adolph Frederick Reinhardt Occupation: PainterBorn: December 24, 1913 in Buffalo, New YorkDied: August 30, 1967 in New York, New YorkSpouse: Rita ZiprkowskiChild: Anna ReinhardtSelected Works: Untitled (1936), Study for a Painting (1938), Black Paintings (1953-1967)Notable Quote: Only a bad artist thinks he has a good idea. A good artist does not need anything. Early Life and Education Ad Reinhardt was born in Buffalo, New York, but moved to New York City with his family at a young age. He was an outstanding student and showed an interest in visual art. During high school, Reinhardt illustrated his schools newspaper. Upon applying to college, he turned down multiple scholarship offers from art schools and enrolled in the art history program at Columbia University. At Columbia, Ad Reinhardt studied under the art historian Mayer Schapiro. He also became good friends with theologian Thomas Merton and poet Robert Lax. The three all embraced approaches to simplicity in their specific disciplines. Untitled (1936). The Pace Gallery Works Progress Administration Work Shortly after graduation from Columbia, Reinhardt became one of the few abstract artists hired in the Federal Arts Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). There he met other prominent 20th-century American artists including Willem de Kooning and Arshile Gorky. His work of the period also demonstrated the impact of Stuart Davis experiments with geometric abstraction. While working for the WPA, Ad Reinhardt also became a member of the American Abstract Artists group. They were profoundly influential in the development of the avant-garde in the U.S. In 1950, Reinhardt joined the group of artists known as The Irascibles who protested that the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York was not modern enough. Jackson Pollock, Barnett Newman, Hans Hofmann, and Mark Rothko were part of the group. John Loengard / Getty Images Absolute Abstraction and the Black Paintings Ad Reinhardts work was non-representational from the beginning. However, his paintings show a distinctive progression from visual complexity to simple compositions of geometrical shapes in shades of the same color. By the 1950s, the work began approaching what Reinhardt called absolute abstraction. He believed that much of the abstract expressionism of the era was too full of emotional content and the impact of the artists ego. He aimed to create paintings with no emotion or narrative content at all. Although he was part of the movement, Reinhardts ideas often ran counter to those of his contemporaries. In the latter part of the 1950s, Ad Reinhardt began work on the Black Paintings that would define the rest of his career. He took inspiration from Russian art theorist Kazimir Malevich, who created the work Black Square in 1915, referred to as the, zero point of painting. Malevich described an art movement focused on simple geometric shapes and a limited color palette that he called suprematism. Reinhardt expanded on the ideas in his theoretical writings, saying that he was creating, the last paintings one can make. While many of Reinhardts black paintings look flat and monochrome upon first glance, they reveal multiple shades and intriguing complexity when viewed close up. Among the techniques used to create the works was the siphoning of oil from the pigments used that resulted in a delicate finish. Unfortunately, the method also made the paintings challenging to preserve and maintain without damaging the surface. Black Series #6. U.S. Department of State embassy collections Despite the purging of all references to the outside world in his paintings, Ad Reinhardt insisted that his art could impact society and bring about positive change. He saw art as an almost mystical force in the world. Legacy The paintings of Ad Reinhardt remain an essential conceptual link between abstract expressionism and the minimalist art of the 1960s and beyond. Although his fellow expressionists often criticized his work, many of the most prominent artists of the next generation saw Reinhardt as a vital leader pointing toward the future of painting. Ad Reinhardt in Museum of Modern Art exhibition of his paintings. Robert R. McElroy / Getty Images Ad Reinhardt began to teach art in 1947 at Brooklyn College. Teaching, including a stint at Yale University, was a significant part of his work for the next 20 years until his death from a massive heart attack in 1967. Source Reinhardt, Ad. Ad Reinhardt. Rizzoli International, 1991.

10 Quotes to Help Celebrate a 30th Birthday

10 Quotes to Help Celebrate a 30th Birthday Some like a big splash, others like a quiet affair, but most everyone likes their birthday celebrations. If you like birthdays, even the morning of your birthday seems like the best morning of the year. Even if a cloud threatens to explode in the skies, you wake up feeling happy. You quickly go through your birthday greetings that come in the form of text messages, phone calls, and social media posts. And isnt it wonderful to receive flowers or a beautiful birthday cake, with a Happy Birthday card in it? You thank everybody who remembered your birthday. You feel a sense of joy when you express gratitude to your loved ones. Why Do We Enjoy Celebrating Birthdays? Once a year, you get the chance to be special. Friends, family, and loved ones wish you happiness, good health, and prosperity. They shower you with love, attention, gifts, and goodies. They spend time with you and share your happiness. The 30th birthday is special. You are now officially a mature and responsible adult who has the necessary wisdom to make important decisions in life. The 30th birthday heralds your adult status with measured indulgence. Here are some noteworthy quotes that put matters in the right perspective, ready to share in birthday cards and on cakes, during celebratory toasts, and more. Muhammad Ali The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life. Hervey Allen The only time you really live fully is from 30 to 60. The young are slaves to dreams; the old, servants of regrets. Only the middle-aged have all their five senses in the keeping of their wits. Anonymous At the age of 20, we dont care what the world thinks of us; at 30, we worry about what it is thinking of us; at 40, we discover that it wasnt thinking of us at all. Georges Clemenceau Everything I know I learned after I was 30. Charles Caleb Colton The excess of our youth are checks written against our age, and they are payable with interest 30 years later. F. Scott Fitzgerald Thirty- the promise of a decade of loneliness, a thinning list of single men to know, a thinning briefcase of enthusiasm, thinning hair. Benjamin Franklin At 20 years of age, the will reigns; at 30, the wit; and at 40, the judgment. Robert Frost Time and tide wait for no man, but time always stands still for a woman of 30. Elbert Hubbard Ones 30th birthday and ones 60th are days that press their message home with iron hand. With his 70th milestone past, a man feels that his work is done, and dim voices call to him from across the Unseen. His work is done, and so illy, compared with what he had wished and expected! But the impressions made upon his heart by the day are no deeper than those his 30th birthday inspires. At 30, youth, with all it palliates and excuses, is gone forever. The time for mere fooling is past; the young avoid you, or else look up to you and tempt you to grow reminiscent. You are a man and must give an account of yourself. Lew Wallace A man 30 years old, I said to myself, should have his field of life all ploughed, and his planting well done; for after that it is summertime.

International financial services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International financial services - Essay Example Intex is a third-party cash-flow projection technique that can provide accurate data on existing collateral investments and compute cash flow projection faster and easily. This enables the stock exchange to get the information they need faster and accurately for better decision making. Second reason is high frequency transactions in secondary market. This is because of two reasons. As the transaction frequency increases, the stock exchange has less time and fewer resources devoted to the primary markets. Secondly, high frequency transactions generate higher income to stock exchanges. Therefore, they will naturally put resources in areas that give them more money. Impact to the United Kingdom companies The first impact to the UK companies is reduction in their capital base. As the stock exchange concentrates in the secondary market, the primary markets experience shortage of skilled personnel who advises them on best ways of raising maximum capital for their companies. As a result, mo st companies may opt for other sources of capital because it is extremely hard to raise capital where there is no adequate help. Secondly, most companies take longer time to raise their capital from primary markets. This is because as the stock exchange gets busy with the secondary markets, they will be long queues of companies seeking help. As a result, there will be delays in getting assistance. 2. A company has the following capital structure, and all securities issued have the same nominal price of ?4.00. 400,000 5% Debenture Stock @ ?4.00 600,000 2? Preference Stock @ ?4.00 1,000,000 Ordinary Shares @ ?4.00 (a) the value of the gearing ratio and the significance of this ratio to potential investors Stock Quantity Price /unit in ? Amount capital in ? Debenture 400,000 4 1600000 Preference 600,000 4 2400000 Ordinary Shares 1,000,000 4 4000000 Total Fixed Capital 8000000 Gearing ratio indicates the proportion of debts used to finance assets in the company. The higher the gearing r atio, the riskier is the company. This is because most of the money used is borrowed from other sources other than ordinary shares. (b) When Directors decided to distribute only forty percent of the profit (?800,000), the dividend declared on ordinary shares is given below. =?320,000  The return on investment   (c) a. The price/earnings ratio  (c) b. The concept of price/earnings ratio and the significance to future Price/earning ratio measure the value of the stock. This is because it establishes the relationship between the stock price and the company’s earnings. When price/earning ratio is high in a given stock, the forecast earning growth is also high. It is a valuable ratio because investors can use to compare values of stock of different companies. Investors normally prefer stocks with higher price/earning ratio because it indicates higher returns. 3. The concept of Right Issues as well as advantages and disadvantages to the stockholders Rights issue refers to a n alternative means of raising capital whereby, a company issues additional shares or stocks to already existing shareholders in proportion to their shareholding in exchange for cash (Banerjee, 1990). For example, a company may offer rights issue on the basis of one rights issue for every six held by the shareholders. A company does this via seasoned equity offering or primary offering market at a premium or discount. The procedure for rights issue is easy. Once the issues

Role of land use planning in judicious distribution of population, Essay

Role of land use planning in judicious distribution of population, housing, and infrastructure and orderly development of the built environment - Essay Example nd efficient development of the built environment, as well as resolving adverse consequences of development such as; urban traffic congestion, quality of life, housing, protection of environment and security among others. It assesses the structure of cities, towns and rural landscapes and how land use planning influences them. It also highlights differences in;  built form, mix of land uses, density, and size of property / land parcels, street layout and neighborhood pattern, treatment of the public realm as well as public and private transportation.   Land-use planning can be defined as the organized evaluation of geographical, social and economic aspects with the aim of supporting and empowering land users in identifying sustainable alternatives that enhance their output and also facilitate accomplishment of societal needs (FAO, 1993). The idea of land use planning should not only be conceptualized in terms of production. Rather, many other aspects such as land utility for example protected areas, leisure neighborhoods, transport, water catchments and dumping sites among others. Berke & Godschalk (2006) observed that land use planning is practiced in all societies although some do not apply the phrase. Failure in land use planning leads to degradation and depletion of land resources as well as conflicts in the use of common resources. In rural landscapes, lack of land use planning leads to poor productivity of land. The built-up area significantly affects the functioning of cities. This is the area that comprises human activities except the open areas that extend to more than four hectares, land that is under cultivation, forest land, water bodies and other parcels of land that are under no productive use. Airfields and highways that are not adjoining the urban used land are not classified among the built-up land (Honachefsky, 1999). There are differences in the built form of different cities, towns and rural landscapes. Most cities’ built form is