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Minimally invasive molecular delivery into the brain using optical modulation of vascular permeability
Edited by Hee-Sup Shin, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul, Republic of Korea, and approved April 26, 2011 (received for review December 15, 2010)
Systemic delivery of bioactive molecules in the CNS is hampered by the blood–brain barrier, which has bottlenecked noninvasive physiological study of the brain and the development of CNS drugs. Here we report that irradiation with an ultrashort pulsed laser to the blood vessel wall induces transient leakage of blood plasma without compromising vascular integrity. By combining this method with a systemic injection, we delivered target molecules in various tissues, including the brain cortex. This tool allows minimally invasive local delivery of chemical probes, nanoparticles, and viral vectors into the brain cortex. Furthermore, we demonstrated astrocyte-mediated vasodilation in vivo without opening the skull, using this method to load a calcium indicator in conjunction with label-free photoactivation of astrocytes.
Microvascular endothelial cells in the brain are interconnected through complex tight junctions, forming a physiological barrier against endogenous and exogenous molecules (1). Becauee of this blood–brain barrier (BBB), nearly 100% of macromolecules and more than 98% of small molecules do not cross the blood vessel wall. Thus, exogenously introduced molecular probes are widely used in vivo to study the molecular physiology of the brain. Systemic delivery through the blood circulation would be a safe, effective, and desirable method of distributing molecular probes or drugs into the brain.
Various strategies have been proposed to circumvent the BBB. A transcranial approach invasively bypasses the BBB by drilling a hole in the head and injecting probes or drugs intracerebrally or intracerebroventricularly (2). At present, intracerebral injection is the gold standard for in vivo brain experiments; however, the invasiveness of opening the skull and inserting a pipette remains controversial (3, 4). A transnasal approach can noninvasively deliver molecular probes or drugs across the nasal mucosal barrier, but is limited to lipid-soluble small molecules (5). Another approach is to chemically modify therapeutic agents so that they can traverse the BBB effectively by enhancing lipid solubility, lowering molecular weight, or taking advantage of an endogenous transporter-mediated process. Various BBB disruption methods also have been proposed, including intracarotid arterial infusion of vasoactive agents and local ultrasonic irradiation with i.v. microbubble injection (6). However, no method allows the noninvasive and spatially specific delivery of large molecules into the brain.
Near-infrared femtosecond pulsed lasers have been widely used for in vivo imaging because of their deep tissue penetration, reduced scattering, and localized nonlinear absorption. These properties also have enabled noninvasive optical modulation of live cells and tissues with subcellular resolution, including the generation of intracellular calcium, dissection of intracellular organelles, transient plasma membrane permeabilization, induction of arterial contraction, and disruption of blood flow (7–12). In the present study, we explored the use of a near-infrared ultrashort pulsed laser for minimally invasive molecular delivery into the brain.
Femtosecond Pulsed Laser Induces Local and Transient Vascular Permeability to Macromolecules with Minimal Invasiveness.
To test the feasibility of optical delivery of macromolecules, we first examined whether femtosecond laser irradiation focused on a vessel wall induces vascular permeabilization in the brain. We used i.v. 2 MDa FITC-dextran, which does not leak in normal cortical vasculature, as the plasma indicator. The nonlinear optical nature of the pulsed laser enables specific targeting of subsurface vasculature without compromising the superficial regions; thus, we used a murine thinned-skull window model to image the brain cortex with minimal invasiveness. We selected cortical veins after imaging the cortical vasculature. Arteries were excluded to avoid femtosecond laser-induced arterial contraction (12) that could potentially compromise neurovascular regulation, and capillaries were excluded because of their physical vulnerability (Fig. S1). After laser irradiation to the vessel wall, the targeted vessel wall displayed localized leakage of the blood plasma propagating to the nearby parenchyma (Fig. 1 A and B). This laser-induced extravasation exhibited an all-or-none response in a laser energy-dependent manner (Fig. S2). Blood vessels ranging from superficial pial veins to deep cortical venules were successfully targeted without perturbing superficial vasculature (Fig. S3). A regional time-series analysis demonstrated diffusion of the fluorescent probe into the surrounding region, followed by decreased fluorescence intensity at the core of the permeation, suggesting that the changes in vascular permeability might have been transient (Fig. 1C). Because red blood cells (RBCs) are not fluorescent, they appear as dark circular structures in the positively stained blood plasma. Occasionally, we observed transient clot formation in the luminal side around the irradiated region concurrent with disturbed blood flow (9 of 104 cases). However, this usually disappeared within several minutes, and blood flow recovered accordingly (Fig. S1). For a sustained period after laser irradiation, we detected no negative signals moving in the extravasated area, indicating that no significant RBCs leakage during laser-induced vascular permeability. We further validated this finding by injecting fluorescently stained RBCs before inducing extravasation (Fig. S4).
We next investigated the dependency of the laser-induced extravasation profile on vessel properties. To compare vascular parameters, we measured lumen diameter and blood flow, which were positively correlated in the brain (Fig. S5A; n = 37 in five animals). We analyzed the extravasated area and circularity of plasma extravasation at 1 min after laser irradiation. Notably, compared with large venules (lumen diameter >25 μm; n = 9), small venules (lumen diameter <25 μm; n = 28) exhibited significantly larger extravasation areas (Fig. S5B). Consistent with the positive correlation between lumen diameter and blood flow, slower blood flow tended to be correlated with larger extravasation area, albeit nonsignificantly (Fig. S5C). Venules with a smaller diameter or slower blood flow were positively correlated with higher circularity of extravasation (Fig. S5 D and E). Accordingly, the extravasation area was positively correlated with the circularity of extravasation (Fig. S5F).
We also measured the volume of plasma leakage during laser-induced extravasation. After injecting quantum dots along with 2 MDa of FITC-dextran i.v., we evoked laser-induced extravasation in cortical venules and counted the number of leaked quantum dots in the brain parenchyma. We measured the concentration of quantum dots in the blood plasma from the blood sample, to convert the number of quantum dots to plasma leakage volume. The estimated plasma leakage was 1.3 ± 0.2 pL (n = 8). Because the conventional pipette-based bulk loading method for staining the brain requires ~0.4 pL of a dye solution (13), we considered the volume of plasma leakage by our method to be adequate for use in molecular delivery into the brain.
We next examined the effect of the laser-induced extravasation on the targeted blood vessel. We monitored changes in lumen diameter, blood flow, and BBB integrity to quantitatively investigate structural and functional changes due to laser irradiation. To compare lumen diameter and blood flow, we acquired baseline data for vascular structure and RBC speed and then repeated the same measurements after 10 min of induced extravasation. We detected no noticeable change in either parameter by laser-induced extravasation (Fig. 1 D and E). To examine BBB integrity, we used the leakage of a 70-kDa dextran-conjugated dye as a marker of a disrupted BBB (14). First, we induced extravasation with 70-kDa dextran conjugated with a red-colored TRITC and waited for 10 min. Then we i.v. injected the dextran conjugated with a green-colored FITC to check for restoration of BBB integrity. Simultaneous imaging of the two dyes clearly showed that the later-introduced FITC-dextran resided only in the lumen, whereas the TRITC-dextran remained in both the lumen and extravasated region (Fig. 1F). This finding lends further support to the transiency of laser-induced vascular permeabilization. Having confirmed structural and functional integrity, we then tested the repeatability of the laser-induced extravasation. By applying laser irradiation at the same position with the same or higher power, we could induce extravasation repeatedly (Fig. 1 G and H).
We performed postmortem and functional analyses to further evaluate the potential damage to surrounding parenchyma. First, we performed Nissl staining at 3 h after inducing extravasation to assess the acute effect on cell death. The Nissl staining demonstrated no significant neuronal damage by skull thinning or mild laser irradiation targeted to a venule, which induced transient extravasation of a 2-MDa dextran-conjugated dye (Fig. 1I). To assess the delayed effect on cell death and immune response, we performed Nissl staining and immunohistochemistry on the astrocyte and microglial activation markers GFAP and Iba-1 at 2 d after inducing extravasation (3). We found no noticeable cell death or immune response in the region (Fig. S6). Finally, we monitored spontaneous glial calcium activity during laser-induced extravasation to evaluate any potential modification to cellular functional activity by leaked plasma. After plasma leakage, astrocytes showed a transient activation in the spontaneous calcium signal, but those cells restored baseline activity within 10 min (Fig. S7). Collectively, these data suggest that although laser-induced vascular permeabilization can transiently perturb the functional activity of nearby cells, these effects are reversible and do not involve cell death or immune response.
Minimally Invasive Molecular Delivery of Bioactive Macromolecules to the Brain Parenchyma.
Given the ubiquitous presence of blood vessels, we hypothesized that laser-induced vascular permeabilization with i.v. administration of target molecules could be applied for molecular delivery. To test this hypothesis, we first used Hoechst 33342 nuclear staining dye. Because of its limited penetration into cell layers, i.v. administered Hoechst is confined to the lumen or vascular wall without affecting parenchymal tissues where the BBB remains intact (15). In a thinned-skull window model, we i.v. injected 2 MDa of FITC-dextran and Hoechst simultaneously. In the brain, both dyes were confined to the lumen of the cortical vasculature. After laser irradiation to the vessel wall, the dyes propagated to surrounding parenchymal tissue with different diffusion kinetics (Fig. 2 A and C). At approximately 5 min after irradiation, the accumulation of the Hoechst signal was visible as ring-shaped structures, which became solid circles with brighter fluorescence, indicating progressive nuclear binding (Fig. 2 A and B). By subtracting the FITC-dextran image from the Hoechst image, we could selectively visualize the nuclei stained with Hoechst (Fig. 2D).
We then used sulforhodamine 101 (SR101), which specifically stains astrocytes. SR101 is also used for angiography, suggesting that it does not leak in healthy vasculature (16). Extravasation was induced after i.v. injection of 2 MDa of FITC-dextran as a plasma marker and SR101 (Fig. 2E). After 2 h, we observed stained astrocytes, as well as the vasculature around the irradiated region. By subtracting the FITC-dextran image from the SR101 image, we could selectively visualize the stained astrocytes (Fig. 2F). A region in the other hemisphere showed no noticeable staining with SR101, suggesting that the astrocyte staining was actively mediated by the laser-induced extravasation. Furthermore, we confirmed that laser-induced extravasation is feasible using quantum dots (Q21021MP; Invitrogen) and tetramethylrhodamine (TAMRA)-conjugated magnetic oxide nanoparticles (MiONs), suggesting wide applicability of this technique (Fig. S8).
Next, we used adenovirus vectors encoding GFP to test the feasibility of laser-induced extravasation as a gene-delivery tool in the brain. The adenovirus has a hydrodynamic size of ~100 nm and does not cross the BBB, limiting its use in CNS gene delivery (17). After the skull-thinning surgery, we injected the plasma indicator rhodamine-dextran to identify the target venules. Considering its short plasma half-life of ~2 min, adenovirus was injected via an i.v. catheter about 5–10 s before induction of extravasation. The time interval of 5–10 s was determined experimentally by measuring the mean arrival time to the brain after injection of the dextran-conjugated FITC. To further increase the delivery efficiency, we induced multiple sequences of extravasations (two or three) by irradiating the same spot repeatedly. After 1 d, the same region was navigated by the vasculature pattern and imaged for vessel structure and GFP expression. The vasculature showed no noticeable change in structure or blood flow. Strong green fluorescence was detected in multiple cells only around the targeted region, indicating successful infection by the GFP-adenovirus (Fig. 2 G–I).
We next used a functional calcium indicator, Oregon Green BAPTA1-AM (OGB-1:00 AM), to test the applicability of laser-induced extravasation to the functional study of neurons and astrocytes. Because calcium indicators do not cross the BBB, transcranial delivery of a calcium indicator is the current standard for studying the functional dynamics of neuronal and glial networks in the brain. Counterstaining of astrocytes with SR101 is widely used, because calcium indicators stain both astrocytes and neurons (18). Because SR101 is highly stable in the blood, we used i.v.-injected SR101 to guide the vascular wall and stain astrocytes when extravasated. Due to a high level of esterases in the blood, acetoxymethyl (AM)-conjugated dyes have a relatively short plasma half-life (19). To increase the efficacy of molecular delivery, OGB-1:00 AM was injected via an intravascular catheter, and extravasation was induced 5–10 s after bolus injection. After 2 h, cellular staining of the calcium dye and astrocyte indicator was clearly visible around the irradiated region (Fig. 3A). The SR101 stained a larger area (300–400 μm diameter) compared with the calcium dye (150–200 μm diameter), presumably due to better diffusion kinetics. Consistent with previous studies using the conventional transcranial loading method, the calcium indicator stained both neurons and astrocytes (20). Neurons could be readily distinguished in the merged image by selecting cells stained only by the calcium dye after astrocyte counterstaining. We could detect spontaneous calcium activity in the stained neurons and astrocytes. In agreement with previous studies using the transcranial loading method, astrocytes demonstrated slow calcium dynamics on the minute time scale, and neurons exhibited infrequent, short-duration calcium transients (20) (Fig. 3B).
Tight spatial and temporal coupling of brain activity with local blood flow, so-called "neurovascular coupling," is a hallmark of brain function and is widely used for functional brain imaging (21). The pivotal role of astrocyte activity in neurovascular coupling is well known but has been demonstrated only in highly invasive preparations, such as ex vivo tissue cultures and an open-skull window model. We attempted to demonstrate the in vivo role of astrocytes in regulating neurovascular coupling with minimal invasiveness using the thinned-skull window model. After the skull thinning surgery, we injected rhodamine-dextran to select a target region in which an arteriole and venule were in close proximity. The calcium dye was injected via an i.v. catheter, and extravasation was induced at the surface venule (Fig. 4A). At 1 h after the laser-induced extravasation, we observed cells around the irradiated venule strongly stained by calcium dye (Fig. 4B). We observed stained cells at a cortical depth of 0–50 μm, where neurons are absent (18). These cells demonstrated typical astrocytic morphology and consistent baseline calcium signals, suggesting that intact cells were functionally stained.
To further validate functional loading of the calcium indicator, we selectively stimulated positively stained cells using a recently developed protocol with a label-free nonlinear optical technique (12). We selected a target astrocyte based on high baseline Ca2+ fluorescence, astrocyte-like morphology, and slow spontaneous Ca2+ dynamics. After laser stimulation, the targeted cell and surrounding cells showed synchronous increases in Ca2+ signals. Astrocytic endfeet sheathing the nearby arteriole also exhibited synchronous calcium activation, followed by vasodilation (Fig. 4 C–F).
Laser-Induced Extravasation Is Ubiquitously Applicable.
We evaluated the feasibility of femtosecond laser-induced vascular permeabilization on tissues outside the CNS. We tested various optically accessible tissues, including the meninges, skull, striated muscle, and ear. The meningeal vasculature was visualized using a thinned-skull window, and the skull was imaged after the scalp wqas removed. A dorsal skinfold chamber model was used for striated muscle. For all types of tissues studied, femtosecond laser irradiation onto the vessel wall induced localized and transient leakage of 2 MDa of FITC-dextran, suggesting the versatility of laser-induced vascular permeabilization in a variety of tissues (Fig. 5).
We have demonstrated that femtosecond pulsed laser irradiation induces transient and reversible permeabilization of the targeted blood vessel wall, causing extravasation of plasma along with bioactive macromolecules. By combining this method with systemic injection, we could locally deliver molecular probes, nanoparticles, and adenovirus into the brain cortex. We confirmed the feasibility of this method in various other tissues, including the meninges, ear, striated muscle, and bone. To demonstrate the feasibility of laser-induced extravasation for molecular delivery, we successfully stained the cortex with Hoechst, SR101, and a Ca2+ indicator. By combining optical delivery of a Ca2+ dye with label-free photoactivation of astrocytes, we examined the functional connectivity between perivascular astrocytes and cortical arterioles with intact skull and meninges.
The use of laser-induced vascular permeabilization as a molecular delivery tool has both benefits and drawbacks. The delivery site can be selected with subcellular resolution, and delivery is localized, allowing site-specific molecular delivery. The procedure is minimally invasive and repeatable, allowing increased efficiency of delivery by repeating extravasations or targeting multiple nearby blood vessels (Fig. S3C). Large molecules can be delivered into the brain where systemic delivery has been prevented by the BBB, thereby permitting the use of large chemical drugs, monoclonal antibodies, recombinant proteins, or gene therapies in the brain. The use of a femtosecond pulsed laser enabled intrinsic subsurface targeting; thus, we could stain the brain without opening the skull, which is necessary in conventional brain staining for insertion of an injection pipette. Because skull opening causes microglial activation and intracranial pressure changes, and pipette insertion might further compromise tissue integrity, we propose the wide use of laser-induced extravasation for bulk loading of functional dyes in the brain (4). Drew et al. (22) demonstrated that a reinforced thinned-skull window is stable for months without causing brain inflammation. However, transcranial delivery is not possible using this model, because the skull is not opened. We expect that the use of the laser-induced molecular delivery method in this window model will facilitate minimally invasive chronic studies in the brain. However, the systemic injection procedure requires a large amount of target molecule due to dilution by blood plasma, and it is costly. Systemic injections of high dye or drug doses might carry potential risks of unwanted side effects. Moreover, the complex pharmacokinetics of a target molecule, such as accumulation in the liver, kidneys, or other tissues, could hinder precise estimation of molecular concentration in blood plasma. In addition, the current laser's tissue penetration depth is ~1 mm, which limits target accessibility (23). Although we observed a correlation between vessel diameter and extravasation area, precise control of injection volume poses a challenge. Also, extravasated plasma may impair the integrity of the surrounding tissue (24). Although we observed no histopathological changes or irreversible functional disturbances by femtosecond pulsed laser irradiation in our study, caution must be taken to minimize laser-induced tissue damage.
Nishimura et al. (11) demonstrated that delivery of amplified low- repetition-rate (1 KHz) femtosecond laser pulses induces a targeted insult to individual subsurface cortical blood vessels, such as hemorrhage, intravascular clot formation, or extravasation. These authors reported irreversible blood clot formation in the target vasculature at 3 h after induction of extravasation. In the present study, we used an unamplified 80-MHz femtosecond laser, which is used widely for in vivo imaging. The use of an unamplified, high-repetition-rate pulsed laser could avoid the irreversible vascular damage or damage to surrounding tissue. Unlike amplified low-repetition-rate lasers, which depend primarily on photo-physical phenomena, the unamplified high-repetition-rate laser forms localized low-density plasma in the biological tissue (25). This generates photochemical effects with minimal thermal damage, such as the poration of plasma membranes (26) or generation of intracellular calcium waves, which presumably alter local vascular permeability. Although the exact in vivo mechanism for this is unclear, we suggest that the different mechanism of action resulted in minimally invasive modulation of vascular permeability, which can be used as a molecular delivery tool in the CNS.
The development of new probes or drugs delivered by laser-induced vascular permeabilization should meet several criteria used to select dyes. First, a dye should not be leaky in the healthy vasculature of the brain. Second, the dye should be stable in the plasma and extravascular space. Vascular permeabilization should be performed quickly after i.v. administration for dyes with a short plasma half-life, such as adenoviruses or acetoxymethyl-conjugated dyes (19). Increasing plasma stability by chemical modification (e.g., adenovirus pegylation) also might be helpful (27). Finally, once extravasated, the dye must diffuse and reach the target, such as a nucleus or intracellular space.
The major obstacle to the use of laser-induced extravasation as a drug delivery system in the clinic is limited tissue accessibility. This problem can be ameliorated by introducing an endoscope near the target tissue; however, this might compromise the minimal invasiveness of the technique. Thus, the most promising candidate for clinical application of this technique is the retina, which is optically accessible. However, systemic drug delivery to the retina has proven problematic because of the blood–retinal barrier, which is similar to the BBB. A multiphoton fundus imaging system is currently under development (28), and we expect that clinical translation of this technique for retinal drug delivery will permit the use of large molecular drugs and provide a minimally invasive and spatially precise therapeutic modality.
Materials and Methods
Animal Model.
The animal care and experimental procedures described herein were performed with approval from the Korea Advanced Institute for Science and Technology's Animal Care Committee. All experiments used 7- to 10-wk-old male ICR mice (Charles River Japan). An i.p. injection of ketamine-xylazine was used for anesthesia. Thinned-skull preparation was performed as described previously (4). After anesthesia, the scalp was removed and the skull was glued to a custom-designed metal plate (Namil Optical Components) using dental cement. Using a high-speed microdrill, a circular area of skull ~1–3 mm in diameter over the region of interest was thinned under a dissection microscope until a thin, smooth preparation was achieved. For the in vivo skull imaging experiments, the same procedures were used without the skull thinning. For the dorsal skinfold chamber model, we used a small dorsal skinfold chamber kit (SM100; APJ Trading) as described previously (29). In brief, mice were anesthetized, the dorsal skin was extended, and two mirror-image titanium frames were mounted. One layer of skin was excised, leaving the striated muscle of the opposite side intact, and then replaced with a glass coverslip mounted onto a frame. For in vivo ear imaging, mice were anesthetized, and the ear was glued to a glass slide and placed on a custom-designed mount.
Two-Photon Laser Scanning Microscopy.
We performed two-photon laser scanning microscopy (LSM510; Carl Zeiss) with a femtosecond pulsed laser (Chameleon; Coherent) tuned to 800 nm and a water-immersion objective lens (20× with a 1.0 numerical aperture). The pulse width of the laser output was ~140 fs. For animal imaging after the skull-thinning surgery, a dye solution was injected i.v., and the mice were placed on a customized frame designed to minimize movement artifacts (Namil Optical Components). The average laser power used for imaging was <90 mW.
Laser Stimulation.
The optical path and laser source for optical intervention were the same as those used for two-photon fluorescence imaging. For the laser-induced vascular permeabilization experiments, we selected target venules with a lumen diameter of 10–50 μm and a subsurface depth of up to 100 μm in a thinned-skull window model (Fig. S9). Vascular type was confirmed by measuring the direction of blood flow in the branching vessels. To target the vessel wall, a region outside the visualized luminal surface was selected for irradiation for a fixed duration of 1.6 ms. The average laser power was initially set at 300 mW and then increased up to 2000 mW until extravasation was observed. For the label-free photoactivation experiments, the cell body of the target astrocyte was irradiated for 160 μs. The average laser power was set initially at 300 mW and then increased up to 900 mW until the calcium signal wave was observed.
Image Processing.
ImageJ and MATLAB were used for image processing and data quantification, respectively. The TurboReg or StackReg function was used to eliminate movement artifacts. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM.
Statistical Analysis.
Statistical analyses were performed using Graph Pad Prism software. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM. Statistical differences were analyzed using the t test, where indicated. A P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
We thank Prof. Dal-Hee Min for providing the TAMRA-conjugated MiONs and Prof. Chan Park for advice on the histological analyses. This research was supported by Grant 2009K001282 from the Brain Research Center of the 21st Century Frontier Research Program funded by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, Republic of Korea.
- ↵1To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: cchoi{at}kaist.ac.kr.
Author contributions: M.C. and C.C. designed research; M.C., T.K., K.C., and J.Y. performed research; M.C., T.K., K.C., J.Y., and C.C. analyzed data; and M.C. and C.C. wrote the paper.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.
This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1018790108/-/DCSupplemental.
Freely available online through the PNAS open access option.
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text:
|Who sent this jihadist to chop up a british soldier on a busy street in London? Which mosque did he attend? Which radical preacher did he learn from?
Rather than wait for the suicide bombers to come to Israel, Israel in operation 'Defensive Shield' went to Jenin and Ramallah and cleared out the terrorists' nests. When those training and sending the suicide bombers on their missions could not be arrested, they were killed. The Security Fence was also built to stop easy access to Israel for the suicide bombers, and the checkpoints were built. Under the intense pressure of Obama's administration most checkpoints have been removed so now there are only 12 of them. And Israelis are once again being killed on the roads of Judea and Samaria.
In winning the war against the terrorists in 2002, Israel gave a lesson those 'specialists' in the west who said that you can not win a terror war among an enemy population without bribing them, without 'nation building' them. Well we see where 'nation building' has got Nato in Afghanistan. Absolutely nowhere. The secret of Israel's success was excellent intelligence, and a will to act. Britain took longer, but similarly defeated IRA terror by infiltrating its organisation. Winning the war against the terrorists did not mean that Israel acts indiscriminately, just the opposite. Israel's operations were targeted only against those involved in terror. Arabs in Israel have always known that if they don't get involved in terror, the state doesn't get involved with them, it tries its best to spare their lives. Even Israeli smart weapons were created to spare arab civilians, such as the bomb that can be shifted to another target in mid-air if civilians are spotted near a terror target.
Israel's 'dummy bomb', an inert bomb was not so successful as when warned, civilians would then crowd the target with human shields knowing Israel would not launch an attack.
So now to the Woolwich terror attack. Britain has been lucky until now with the horror of terror on its streets being mostly prevented by its security forces.Britain has never faced the full wrath of jihad on its streets. This is partly because jihad does not always need to be violent. Demographic jihad also has its place, and with 10% of babies born in the UK now being muslim and with the commonest name for children now being 'Muhammad', Britain is well on its way to becoming another muslim country. If that's what the British people want then all well and good. But British people who are generally very tolerant should know that all muslim countries are intolerant of minorities, and many have islam written into their constitutions. Christianity is barely tolerated in most muslim countries and in them it is often very dangerous to be a christian. Is that what British people want, to be slowly forced to adopt other cultures and the muslim religion?
Whatever British people want, they should see that muslims in Britain are themselves protected from the extremism of the wahabite Saudi radical preachers. If integration rather than 'multi-culturalism' was promoted then there would be little to complain about. When jews came to the UK they assimilated culturally whilst keeping their religion in the home. But islam is a supremacist ideology, and if the host culture is not careful then shariah law, its intolerance and its punishments will follow once muslims become a majority. Already intolerance stalks London's streets with 'muslim patrols' enforcing sharia zones near mosques, where women are told how to dress and where alcohol may not be carried in the street, where muslim women are stripped of their rights in 'voluntary' shariah courts.
Shariah intolerance and islamic supremacism is what the Woolwich terror attack was about, of two violent men who instead of having their limited intelligence and their strength being channeled into something positive such as gardening or stacking shelves in Wallmart (Asda in the UK) or Tesco's, were taught in their saudi financed mosque to hate the society which paid them their benefits, where they learned that a good muslim should "strike the neck of the infidel" (47:4), and strike they did.
As usual the British liberal media jumped to cover up the islamic nature of such an awful crime. The BBC buried the fact that the terrorist chanted 'Allah Akbar' many paragraphs down in its report of the attack. The BBC 'analysis' was predictable, that Britain is to blame, " basic principle that they (jihadists) oppose a Western presence in the Islamic world". Maybe the BBC would like to explain the gruesome bombings of shia against sunni and vice versa in Iraq? The lust for blood can be sated for all manner of reasons, all manner of invented grievances. But of course British journalists swallow these grievances hook line and sinker, as long as they are directed against Israel or western 'imperialism'. Islamic supremacism and imperialism is never mentioned. That might offend, and once offended certain people get violence. The liberal British version of the 'cycle of violence.'
Even the terrorist wearing black shouting Allah Akbar and talking about 'good Ayas' in favor of jihad at the beginning of the video was given a voice over to disguise the islamic nature of his rantings. Only when the terrorist began spouting off about the British army invading other countries was he allowed to be heard, because this is part of the British liberal credo.
But then Israel gets this sort of distortion as part of the normal treatment by the mass media. I looked all over youtube for the video of the terrorist dressed in black ranting without the voiceover, but only jihadwatch had it.
Here's what he said:The yahoo account neglected to mention the bit about, "We swear by Almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you."
We swear by Almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you. The only reasons we have done this is because Muslims are dying every day. This British soldier is an eye for an eye a tooth for tooth. We apologise that women had to see this today but in our lands our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government. They don't care about you.
"They apparently encouraged passers-by to video them. One of the alleged attackers was filmed wielding a bloodied meat cleaver, saying: "We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.The first mention in the yahoo account of islam was in paragraph eight, to allow a denial by the group one of the terrorists belonged to:
I apologise that women have had to witness this today, but in our land our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government, they don't care about you," he said.
Anjem Choudary, the former leader of banned Islamic group al Muhajiroun, said he knew one of the alleged attackers but had not seen him for about two years.Yahoo mentions the islamic side only in paragraph twelve:
Two suspected Muslim fanatics attacked the man in the street a short distance from the Royal Artillery Barracks after apparently knocking him down with their car.So the evidence of the islamic motive was in part selected out, voiced over, and buried deep in an article about. And of course the perpetrators are allowed full reign to distort their hateful crimed, to state their own victimhood status, that this poor soldier 'had it coming', that the 'sins' of the British are responsible for pushing poor muslims into doing such terrible acts.
Exactly the sort of treatment the media gives habitually to Israel. At least there is until now no 'Pallywood' involvement, whereby news is invented.
It's interesting that the media will mention if a christian or jew act unsocially. The media loves to repeat versions of the mantra of 'right wing jewish extremist'. Usually those 'extremists' are caught defending themselves from arab rock throwers, but of course the arab rock throwing will be edited out in the versions for youtube. Thankfully the IDF and jews of Judea and Samaria are slowly learning to take their own videos of confrontations. Not nearly enough are made or posted to youtube.
So Britain after its security forces frustrated many hundreds of islam inspired terror attacks in the last few years has had another one. Sadly the lesson will not be learned.
The only way to defeat these jihadist terrorists is to go to the source, to close down radical mosques, madrassas and schools, and deport radical islamic preachers, usually emanating from Saudi Arabia or Pakistan back to their countries of origin.
Britain (along with other west european countries and the USA) won't do this, and that is why a large and growing proportion of Britain's muslim communities are being radicalized. We can only wait for the next islamic inspired terror attack to happen on Britain's streets, because happen it will.
Will the British people ever learn? It's hard to say with such biased media, indoctrinated in their universities to a particular world view of the West being forever at fault. Polls in Britain and europe consistently show Israel as being seen as akin to Iran, at the very bottom of the league, when it comes to human rights. The perversion of the truth is almost total, but after many years of spoonfeeding of arab propaganda, rehashed and 'soundbited' by western media, it's understandable.
So the media message is Britain is to blame. How predictable.

subset: commoncrawl


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text: Baker Tilly's forensic services include financial investigations, special analytical procedures, communication enquiries e.g. email correspondence, comparative market studies, data mining, accounting documents testing and various other practical tools to uncover the facts and help the clients deal with the actual or perceived irregularities. Dealing with the corporate fallouts and effective prevention of the past incidents from occurring in the future are two overriding purposes of the forensic work. While the blame element of the incidents investigated is a material consideration in some forensic projects, it is the forward-looking nature of the work that tends to be of greatest interest to the clients.While taking on the forensic projects on behalf of the clients, we take a panoramic view of the big picture – often stretching across several jurisdictions and many companies involved. We probe the existing corporate structure for the signs of hidden related-party improprieties, as well as analyse the contractual base and its commercial implications. In our experience, the outcomes of the forensic projects are directly proportional in value to the wholehearted recognition, by the management of the companies investigated, of the necessity to put things straight without too much adversarial tension inside the company involved. With the exception of the outright fraud, pursued via the criminal justice route, our work helps reduce the internal corporate strain and preserve corporate integrity moving forward.


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A Blog post in today's New York Times which discusses which Christmas songs should be put out to pasture got me to thinking about which traditional songs, shows, etc. could be considered the most annoying – from my own point of view, of course. Please feel free to comment freely and often – let's get this debate party started!
First of all, there should be a moratorium placed on the playing of any festive music before the 15th of November – even if some of it is good, by the time xmas rolls around we are so psychologically damaged by the repetitive playing of good tidings that we would probably welcome the relative solitude of Guananamo Bay. Brainwashing us to be happy is still brainwashing.
When I was young, my family had a simple tradition: light the tree, start a nice, roaring fire and turn the winnebago-sized console stereo to our local radio station to enjoy some nice xmas music. I'd sit with my hot chocolate, waiting for the NORAD Santa tracking reports, ready to dash for my bed at the slightest hint of sleigh bells. Inevitably, something horrible would intrude on ths most peaceful and pleasant night of family togetherness: a little spoken word recording of something called The Littlest Angel, or something like that. The single most depressing collection of words ever, read by a deep-voiced narrator who seemed on the verge of tears, it was a recording that nearly every year drove my family to the brink of mass suicide – would you like a little arsenic in that hot chocolate? Yes, please. I don't even remember what it's about, other than a dead child and a box full of his possessions that got sent to the wrong destination or something – yes, even in heaven, there is lost luggage. If this is still being played somewhere, it's no wonder more people are reputed to kill themselves during the holidays.
Frosty the Snowman – there's no better cartoon to motivate me to turn up the heat in my home. While the Grinch and Charlie Brown (except for the Linus speech) remain treasured memories that make me want to watch them every year, Frosty is just saccharine enough, with just enough uncomfortable subtext, to render it unwatchable for me. For starters, none of these children apparently have parents – Karen's trip north with Frosty seems to be nobody's problem in particular. Sure, no issue at all – someone's daughter has just illegally jumped on board a train with an inhuman snow homonculus – what's to worry about? That, combined with the fact that every adult in the cartoon is incompetent or borderline retarded, makes this utterly unwatchable. Don't even get me started on the 'sequel'. It's a sad tribute to the talent of Jonathan Winters that this is ever repeated. Oh, and while I'm at it: was there anyone ever who actually thought Jimmy Durante could sing? He would have been right at home with Rod Stewart and Kim Carnes in Laryngitis Theatre.
The following list of songs will be those banned immediately upon the inauguration of my administration:
- Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree: Is it just me, or does Brenda Lee sound like her sinuses have fallen into her neck? Completely cringe-worthy, in my opinion;
- Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer: c'mon, this one is self-explanatory. Somewhere, there's one guy who likes this – let's give him a copy and spare the rest of us the agony;
- Santa Baby: By all means, let's reinforce the association of Charistmas and naked, unfettered greed! Ho, ho, ho.. and I do mean 'ho';
- Any song with "Christmas" in the title that has nothing to do with Christmas, e.g.: Last Christmas by Wham! The need for a two-syllable word does not justify the inclusion of the name of the holiday in your lyrics;
- Baby it's Cold Outside: while not technically a Christmas song, it was pointed out by a commenter in the NYT as being a great date rape song – so, it's out;
- The Twelve Days of Christmas, and no, sorry, not even the Bob and Doug version will be saved. Ok, you can play that one once on a designated day at a designated hour, then it goes back in the sleeve – this will be known as the "Take off and take it off" rule;
- Silent Night: seriously, is there anyone who isn't sick of this? The new jazzed-up version on the commercial will be shot and burned, along with whatever his name is, De'Angelo or whatever. Just don't tell him we're responsible, as I think he may be a good fella, if you know what I mean;
- Blue Christmas: Elvis is dead. Accept it, and stop pissing on his corpse by playing this over and over;
- Anything, and I mean anything by Boney M;
- Jingle Bell Rock: No it isn't, and no, it doesn't;
- I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus: Let's not celebrate children witnessing extramarital affairs, that just seems wrong. It strikes me as odd that the kid seems ok with it. Come to think of it, is this the kid who shortly thereafter requires the replacement of two front teeth? Dysfunctional families are not festive. Plus, They Might Be Giants did it better with Santa's Beard;
- Snoopy's Christmas (Snoopy vs. the Red Baron): If I may, I'd like to (ahem) shoot this one down for good;
- Any "All-Star" songs, like those performed by Band-Aid or Northern Lights have long since stopped serving any useful purpose. The sole redeeming moment is in the televised documentary for Northern Lights, after legend Neil Young sings his line, and the engineer (or whoever) says from the booth that it was a little flat. Neil Replies: "That's my style, man." Yes it is, Neil, yes it is;
- Whatever that atrocity is that describes the heroic deeds of "Ding-A-Ling the Christmas Bell". All copies, and Ding-A-Ling himself, will be melted down and the resulting ingot dropped on the composer;
- Springsteen's version of Santa Claus is Comin' to Town: no, just…no. The band sounds like it is laying in wait for Santa with knives;
- Do You Hear What I Hear: If so, you are obviously not drinking enough;
- Feliz Navidad: I heard this recently and realized just how annoying this was. Ok, I appreciate other cultures and other languages, but come on! This is the same phrase repeated 300 times – that's not a lyric, that's a vocal compulsion;
- I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas: trust me kid, no you don't. Those things are vicious;
- The Little Drummer Boy: even as a child, my family were primarily using this as a basis for obscene versions (the fact that 'drum' rhymes with 'bum' being the height of comedy styling when I was eight), so let's just play this one off for good;
- That idiotic Christmas song by the Beach Boys, Little Saint Nick or some such. I am particularly annoyed by the refrain "Christmas comes this time each year". Thank you, Brian Wilson, for your insight, but I have a calendar, and it was working properly when last I looked.
We now know the reason Santa can travel the world so quickly: caffeine and sugar
Now, there's some stuff that needs to stick around, for example, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, which may strike some readers as an odd choice, given my atheist leanings, but it is a beautiful tune (and is thus responsible for my capitalizing the 'G' in god, which I generally refuse to do). Plus, it hasn't been done to death – the version in Mr. Bean's Christmas special shows how well it still works. The animated Robbie the Reindeer specials are hilarious and should be classics – and shall be designated so once my regime takes office. Also, there was one on a week ago about Santa's elves who were responsible for securing the scene before Santa's arrival, that was a hilarious pastiche of Christmas cheer and Mission: Impossible-style antics. If anyone remembers the name of this, I'd appreciate it.
Anyway, this is a partial list at best, and I invite everyone to vent their anger and put in two cents' worth of cheer or venom, whatever works for you.
Oh, and what do I want for xmas? The opportunity to write for publication. A column, a commentary, whatever – I'd just appreciate the opportunity. I'm hoping one or more of our readers could help me out with that. Pointers, names, or just a straight up chance to establish myself, that's all I need. Blatant plug complete, thank you for your patience.
Happy Holidays to my esteemed colleagues, and particularly to our readers, without whom we would just be talking to ourselves.


text: Services and places in aged care This page has been updated with the latest data available at 30 June 2017. You can download data directly from the visualisations by clicking in the graph area and using the 'download' menu. Australian aged care services offer care in different settings. Home support and home care services provide care in the community for people living at home. Residential aged care services provide care in residential facilities, both for permanent and short-term respite stays. Flexible care services deliver care in a range of settings. Across Australia on 30 June 2017, there were 902 organisations providing residential aged care through 2,672 services. There were 702 organisations providing home care services. 1,523 organisations were funded to provide home support over 2016–17 through 3,308 services. Residential aged care is delivered across Australia through an allocation of places. The number of places has increased from approximately 182,000 on 30 June 2011 to 201,000 on 30 June 2017. Not-for-profit organisations manage more than half of the places in residential aged care (56%). From February 2017, government funding for home care is no longer attached to a place in a particular service. This affects some of the time series data in this topic. Where are aged care services based? The map below shows where Australia's aged care services are located. Each dot represents an aged care service, and the colour reflects the type of care it offers (see the next section for a description of these types of care). Generally: Residential care services are concentrated in more densely populated urban areas, with around 3 in 5 (62%) of facilities located in Major cities. Transition care services tend to be located near hospitals, so they too are based mainly in cities (64%). Other flexible care services that target particular communities are often located in rural areas—for example, fewer than 1 in 5 (19%) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program services are located in cities. The location of the service is a base from which care is delivered, so services for home care and home support can deliver care some distance away from the physical location of the service marked on the map (please note: home support services on this map are shown if they were active during the financial year 2016–17, while all other services are as at 30 June 2017). A map of Australia shows where different types of aged care services are located. The map shows that the majority of residential care services were located in densely populated urban areas, and were much less concentrated in rural parts of Australia. Community-based care services such as home care and home support services were much more common in rural areas. What types of care are available? Government-funded programs offer different types of aged care. Mainstream types of care are: Residential care, which offers long- or short-term stays in an aged care facility Home care (Home Care Packages Program), which provides different levels of aged care services for people in their own homes Home support (Commonwealth Home Support Programme), which provides entry-level support at home. Flexible care consists of: Transition care, which provides short-term care to restore independent living after a hospital stay Short-term restorative care, which expands on transition care to include anyone whose capacity to live independently is at risk Multi-purpose services, which offer aged care alongside health services in regional and remote areas Innovative Pool, which pilots new approaches to providing aged care The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Care Program, which provides culturally-appropriate aged care at home and in the community. How is aged care delivered? Aged care services are managed by not-for-profit organisations, government organisations, or private companies. In most cases, the Australian Government contributes towards the costs of care—you can read more about this in the Spending section. Each organisation can operate a number of different services, sometimes across different aged care programs. There were 902 organisations that operated 2,672 services in residential aged care, with an average occupancy rate of 92% across 2017. 702 organisations provided home care services at 30 June 2017. In 2016–17, 1,523 organisations were funded to provide home support services. Funding was also provided to 372 organisations in Victoria to transition from Home and Community Care (HACC) services to home support, and a further 98 organisations delivered HACC services in Western Australia. A table shows the number of aged care organisations, services and places for each type of aged care services. The largest number of aged care organisations was for home support, with 1,523 organisations. Residential care had the second largest number of service organisations, 902, and had the largest number of places of any type of aged care service. Where are aged care places located? Some aged care programs are allocated a set number of government-funded places. An allocated place becomes operational when it is made available for someone to take it up. There were almost 201,000 places in residential care at 30 June 2017. The 3 largest states—New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland—collectively accounted for about four-fifths of these places. Short-term restorative care was introduced in 2017 with 400 places, alongside the existing transition care program which offered 4,019 places. The 3 largest states accounted about four fifths of these places. Multi-purpose services delivered care through 3,636 places and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program through 820 places. More than 2 in 5 places in this program were operational in Northern Territory (43%). A stacked bar graph shows the number of available places for each aged care program type by state and territory. The majority of aged care places were in residential care, and the larger states had more places than smaller states and territories. In the next section you can explore more about places in residential aged care and flexible care, such as their geographical distribution.


text:
Jinan Gongming Machine Equipment Co., Ltd.
Company Address:
Qijia Industrial Park, Licheng District, Jinan City,Shandong Province, China.
Marketing Department:
Mr Lewis Song
Tel :+86-13793199690
Tel :+86-531-88271579 / 88272156
Whatsapp: +86-13793199690
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com; email@example.com
Company news / NEWS CENTER
Engraving Machine Video
Time:2016/08/29Heavy stone engraving machine, professional tombstone carving, marble, granite and so on, can also woodworking, advertising, and other relief, bed belongs to heavy lathe bed, good stability, speed, torque force big.
Light stone engraving machine is mainly small stone carving, such as Taishan shigandang, small markers, small stone crafts, heavy stone engraving machine:
1, the use of imported linear guide rail, double four slider, loading capacity, smooth operation, high precision, long service life, the knife accurate.
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Sorry for the delay in posting!! July was a busy month. Here's a summary of my travels:
Places visited:
Jakarta --> Tokyo --> Denver --> South Dakota --> Massachusetts --> NYC --> Frankfurt --> Singapore --> Jakarta --> Jogja --> Ubud --> Amed --> Jakarta
Modes of transportation taken:
Taxi, Dreamliner, Prius, buffalo (just kidding, but I wish), SMRT, bus, river taxi, bajaj, train, becak, motorbike, jukung...
Things eaten:
Buffalo burger, White Hut, sambal stingray, kaya toast and runny eggs, fish head curry, urap pakis, bubur hitam, beef rendang, babi guling and many more...
Activities undertaken:
Beer drinking, road tripping, hiking, wedding attending, dancing, buffalo siting, baby holding, hawker food eating, batik making (and buying!!), temple looking, snorkeling, goofy picture taking, rice paddy admiring...
More deets coming soon!!


text:
Instructions to replace the rolls of the paper feeder
accepted HP LaserJet 1 Answer
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Changes Afoot
In July 2015, the former Chancellor George Osborne announced a series of measures that he proposed would rebalance the housing scales in favour of first-time buyers and away from landlords, much to their chagrin. The measures announced, which started being phased in from April of this year through to 2020, included the introduction of a 3% surcharge on stamp duty payable on the purchase of buy-to-let properties and second homes, the scrapping of landlords' wear and tear allowance and the phased reduction of tax relief on buy-to-let mortgage interest. Prior to this, landlords had the right to claim full tax relief on their mortgage costs (being taxed on their profit as existing mortgage payments could be deducted from rental income before that income is declared) and could deduct all of their finance costs from their property income. The impact of these changes will push up costs for buy-to-let landlords significantly. However, there are some ways in which these additional costs might be mitigated.
Buy-to-let lending
Let's start by looking at the mechanics of buy-to-let mortgages. As with any mortgage, a provider will lend the landlord money to buy a property over a set term, the loan being secured by the property. Apart from the property not being the landlord's place of residence, there are some other key differences:
- Most buy-to-let mortgages are interest-only which keeps the cost of repayments down. However, at the end of the mortgage term, the landlord will need to re-mortgage, sell or have another way to pay off the mortgage
- Rather than reviewing the landlord's salary or wages, lenders will typically look at potential rental income to decide whether they can afford the loan. If it's a landlord's first buy-to-let mortgage they may look at income from their job as well
- Typically landlord's need a larger deposit than for a residential mortgage – typically at least 25%, due to buy-to-let mortgages being riskier for lenders. 1
Tax implications
As buy-to-let tax breaks start to end, the market is seeing a profound shift in how buy-to-let properties are purchased, and by whom. This shift is due to widespread changes in the way buy-to-let investments are treated by the taxman. The 3 per cent stamp duty surcharge incurred as of April this year and the prospect of losing tax relief on mortgage interest as of April 2018 has led many landlords to hike up rents and move their buy-to-lets into limited companies. 2
Prior to the changes, landlords were being taxed on their profit because existing mortgage payments could be deducted from rental income before that income is declared. This meant that a higher rate taxpayer paying 40 per cent income tax could deduct their mortgage costs (remember buy-to-let loans tend to be interest-only) and pay only income tax on their rental income above that. But as of April 2018, this tax relief – currently available up to 45 per cent for top tier taxpayers – will be reduced over four years down to 20 per cent.
Alongside this, the tax relief is being replaced with a tax credit, which must be claimed back. This means that 100% of landlords' rental income is taxable, but they are in line for a credit payment of 20% back.
Conservative industry estimates predict that the changes will put half a million landlords into a higher tax band, hitting their profits hard. 3
Mitigating the tax increases
So what can be done to mitigate the looming tax increase and implications? Many landlords with London buy-to-let properties are selling them and buying two or three properties via specifically set up limited companies in other places in the country. This is despite the risk of them being liable for large capital gains tax bills. For top-rate taxpayers, this is a potentially costly route to take, however, it can offer some protection so is seen as a sensible option.
For buy-to-let landlords with smaller portfolios or those who will not be so badly affected by the new taxes, focusing on costs is a more sensible option. Options available include getting a lower mortgage rate. For example, a buy-to-let offset mortgage would help to cut costs if savings or rental income was put into the offset account, thereby reducing the monthly interest bill. However, in order for this to work, the landlord would need to be able to meet the criteria for buy-to-let offset mortgages, which being income dependent is not guaranteed.
Reducing the mortgage amount or raising rents to cover increased taxation are also options to be considered, though the latter will almost certainly be unpopular with tenants. 4
Does moving into a limited company structure make a difference? The pros and cons
As limited companies are not affected by changes, moving buy-to-lets into limited companies works well in some scenarios as it allows landlords to claim back expenses including the mortgage cost and pay a lower rate of corporation tax, currently 20 per cent but falling to 17 per cent by 2020. That being said, it also incurs a hefty stamp duty charge – as with everything, there are pros and cons to consider. 5 Let's have a look at these in more detail:
There are a number of potential tax pitfalls that could erase any short-term savings:
- Capital Gains Tax. If you transfer a property to a company, then this will be treated as if you've sold the property to the company. If the property value has increased since its purchase then you are liable to pay up to 28% capital gains tax on the difference, subject to any tax reliefs and allowances
- Stamp Duty Land Tax. If the property is transferred from you to the company, then the company could become liable to pay stamp duty land tax. So while you may reduce your income tax liability, you may end up paying the same amount or more in stamp duty land tax
- Once transferred, the company, not you, owns the property. Should something happen to the company then all its assets including the property will be exposed
- If your company needs a mortgage to buy the property from you, in most cases the interest rate is higher for commercial or company mortgages than it is for individuals. This would mean that you end up paying a lot more over the full term of the mortgage
- If you sell the property then the company will pay Corporation Tax on the profits and the balance of the money from the sale will remain in the company. To gain access to the funds you'd need to take it out of the company either as salary or dividends or other means. You'd then pay additional tax on that income.
When the above is considered it may seem that transferring buy-to-let properties into a limited company is not the best move. 2 However, there are some situations where transferring mitigates or removes some of the above and provides tangible benefits:
- If buying a new property then a limited company could be a good idea as this wouldn't trigger the tax implications that transferring would
- If the buy-to-let is run through a partnership, then transferring into a limited company could reduce some of the tax burdens outlined above
- Landlords who want to leave their buy-to-let properties to their children could consider the pros and cons of a Family Investment Company as an alternative to a Trust.
As with everything, options need to be carefully considered. For the majority of small-scale property investors, higher interest rates mean that they remain better off operating on a direct or individual basis. However, there is a point when it will be cheaper to run as a company. According to Private Finance, that tipping point is four buy-to-let properties. A landlord renting out that number of properties at the UK average will then make £274 more than an individual counterpart. 5
Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet available to mitigate the tax increases that are being phased in. Caution, due diligence and sound advice to a particular situation currently seem to be the best route to take.
1 http://home.bt.com/lifestyle/money/mortgages-bills/buy-to-let-mortgages-what-are-they-how-do-they-work-and-what-do-they-cost-11364192557574
2 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/buy-to-let/buy-to-let-many-properties-do-need-set-company/
3 http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/buytolet/article-3844788/Buy-let-mortgage-tax-change-push-440-000-landlords-40-tax.html
4 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/buy-to-let/new-buy-to-let-tax-works-andhow-beat/
5 https://www.finance-monthly.com/2017/06/is-a-limited-company-the-way-forward-for-your-business/
Always seek independent advice. This blog has not been approved as a financial promotion by Cogress Limited. We are not responsible for the content of external websites. Potential investors must rely on their own due diligence prior to investing.


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Register Today for the Annual Gateway Sertoma Golf Event benefiting Tabitha Meals on Wheels
Published: Tue, February 06, 2018
Tabitha Foundation
Grab some friends and join us for the 16th year of the annual Gateway Sertoma golf tournament. This four-person golf scramble features games, hole prizes, food and drink. Sponsorships and teams will benefit Tabitha Meals on Wheels, Lincoln's first and only at-home meal program for seniors. Seventy percent of Tabitha Meals on Wheels clients are unable to afford the full $6.25 cost of a warm, nutritious meal. Because of donors, Tabitha is able to say "yes" to those in need, helping 500+ individuals each day remain independent in their homes. Register your team today at Tabitha.org/golf.


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Well, this post has been a long time coming. Any of my friends will know that I don't just like jumpsuits; I have a full-blown, slightly unhealthy obsession with them, and am building quite a ridiculous collection. I vaguely remember shopping with my mum just before Christmas 2013, telling her absolutely not to buy me anymore jumpsuits, because they'd probably go out of fashion pretty soon. I guess I called that one wrong. Now I have 10/11 and counting, and am trying to add a few more to my collection before I go on holiday to Greece in June – but more on that very soon.
What makes my perfect jumpsuit, you may ask? I tend to go for two types – the really tailored, structured look that's perfect for a job interview, or a smart occasion; or something more relaxed, probably made from a softer material, with nice floaty legs, a ruched or wrapped top half and a really flattering waistline that cinches me right in.
These 9 pretty much fit into category number two and there seems to be a theme going on, in that they ALL come from ASOS, Mango or Miss Selfridge, but the rest of the high street was a little lacking when it came to pretty, summery looking jumpsuits. I've inadvertently gone for a collection of prints, florals, and an absolutely gorgeous white wrap jumpsuit that I probably will only wear in my dreams. I've also included one culotte jumpsuit as I'm determined to make this look work for me, even if I'm not really cool enough for that kinda thing.
So, before I bore you all to tears, it's time to take a look at my pick of the high street when it comes to summer jumpsuits. Which is your favourite?
PS – I have a confession to make. I *might* already have invested in one of these, namely number 8. It was already on my list of absolute must-haves for my holidays, but mum beat me to the punch and brought it back from her trip to Tenerife, so thats one less to lust over.
1. Mango Bead Printed Jumpsuit, £49.99; 2. Miss Selfridge Tyre Print Utility Jumpsuit, £45.00; 3. ASOS Grid Print Cutout Jumpsuit, £50.00; 4. Mango Tropical Jumpsuit, 75.99; 5. ASOS Floral Print Jumpsuit, £55.00; 6. Miss Selfridge Floral Cutout Jumpsuit, £45.00; 7. ASOS Mixed Print Jumpsuit, £45.00; 8. Mango Floral Cutout Jumpsuit, £59.99; 9. Mango White Wrap Jumpsuit, £49.99


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Acar donation can help the children of North Carolina build a brighter tomorrow! The Outreach Center strives to connect underprivileged children with supportive services in their communities. The money raised from an auto donation can improve upon various efforts such as education, healthcare, foster programs and much more. We honor all forms of donations including cars, trucks, boats, planes, RVs, trailers, SUVs and real estate property. We accept all makes and models, regardless of the auto's condition. Here at the Outreach Center, we strive to keep the car donation process quick and hassle-free!
Call our toll-free hotline to donate a car today. Shortly thereafter, a tow truck will arrive to your home or office to pick-up your vehicle donation. Our towing services are absolutely free regardless of your location in the "Tar Heel State". Give us a call to see if our towing services are available in your area. In addition to our fast and free towing, all donors will receive a tax deduction for their auto donation. All car donations made to the Outreach Center are IRS recognized and can be claimed on your yearly taxes. As an added benefit, we will handle all of the necessary paperwork.
Simply call us at 800-515-6789 or fill out an online donation form to make a vehicle donation. An Outreach representative will begin processing your information the same day. We have representatives standing by ready to answer your questions and to assist you in any way they can. With so many options out there, give to a charity that you can trust. Our combined efforts can work miracles! The Outreach Center - making a difference in children's lives.
If you are interested in making a car donation or may want to give to cars for kids or just looking for car charities, we can help.
Your car donation is dedicated to addressing the needs of children and their families, including their education, emotional, material and spiritual needs. Although we are a Jewish organization and most of the donations go to help Jewish children, we also contribute to non-Jewish charities. If you would like the proceeds of your donation to go to a specific charity of any denomination, please ask one of our representatives
Copyright 2011 © Outreach Center. All rights reserved.
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Copyright 2011 © Outreach Center. All rights reserved.


text:
Succeeding in Academic Essay Writing
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EXNESS mengakhiri dukungan untuk MT4 droidTrader dan WebTrader. Karena bila tidak demikian, analytical and willing to learn from your mistakes and the mistakes of others.
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- Research. First up, you need to research your topic and make yourself an expert. There are a lot of resources you can refer to, including the internet, the library, and the academic databases. You need to immerse yourself in the great words while taking notes.
- Analysis. Since you have got a good knowledge about your topic, now it's time to analyze the arguments in the essay you are going to write. Define your claims but don't forget to list the reasons and evidence. Look for both weakness and strengths of the logic.
- Thesis. Brainstorm yourself and think of your insights for the essay. Now you need to pick one idea as your best, and it will be the main point. Make sure you sum it up in a concise sentence, so the readers will know the direction you are going.
- Outline. Make a sketch of your essay before you write it out straight away. Use brief words to describe each paragraph and use bullet points for what you are about to put in each paragraph. Play with the structure of the essay and the orders of the contents.
- Introduction, paragraphs, and conclusion. Now you sit down and write the academic essay. You need to grab readers' attention in the introduction. You also want to set up the issue and lead your readers into your thesis. Each paragraph needs to focus on a single idea supporting your thesis. You should begin a paragraph with a topic sentence and support the assertions with evidence. Use the most sensible and clearest way you can to expound your ideas. At the end, make a graceful exit by using a wrap-up sentence and some memorable thoughts. Maybe use an interesting twist of logic, or a quotation to leave your readers in deep thoughts.
- Formatting and proofreading. Format your academic assay following the correct citation. MLA style is what's commonly used. After formatting the essay, it's time for you to polish your language and correct any mistakes.


text:
How to get more of your first free lesson.
If you found this lesson easy to understand and useful, I would suggest taking the Wonder Wardrobe course for a range of reasons:
You can finally solve the problem of having nothing to wear in hours.
You streamline your budgets and shopping sessions.
You discover your existing wardrobe is still full of wonders.
You do good to our planet. Buying smart is the first step.
You re-discover your personal style, flattering colours, proportion corrections etc.
You can learn on the go, all classes are mobile ready.


text:
Nestled hillside among the greenery of the Vaiusu hills is a three-storey building overseeing the lush Samoan land and deep blue ocean view from a distance.
Enne's Lodge is a private and peaceful accommodation located in Vaiusu-Uta along Vaiusu Road atop a hill with its open plan design.
It has been owned and operated by Aopāpā and Iosefa Maiava since 2011.
Enne's Lodge is a new concept of accommodation that is widely known in neighboring Pacific Islands, but is now beginning to catch on in Samoa.
As a "home-stay" type of accommodation, Enne's Lodge gives guests that homely feel as they have access to all amenities within the compound such as their grand kitchen, laundry room, living area and pool.
There are 9 spacious rooms, with a balcony included for guests to step out and wake up to the breath taking and natural beauty Samoa has to offer.
Choices are from master and standard bedrooms in which seven rooms are en suite and three are with a shared bathroom.
The accommodation is popular amongst large groups for family reunions, retreats, or work getaways.
By fully booking the entire accommodation, guests are given an exclusive use of the place.
It is close enough to town with just a 5 min drive, but far enough from the busy streets and heavy traffic that occupies most of Apia.
The Sports Complex, popular tourist destination Papase'ea Sliding Rocks, and local supermarkets are all in reach.
Rates vary from $120 for two people in a standard room with shared bathroom to a group rate of $1500 for a maximum of 20 people.
For more information contact Enne's Lodge on 760-5596 or E-Mail: email@example.com


text:
Mercedes GP's duo Schumacher and Rosberg determined for Malaysian F1
Formula 1 Mercedes GP drivers Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg are all set to give each other a tough time at the next Sepang race. After a rather poor performance at Australian Grand Prix, both drivers told the media that they intend to do better in
Malaysia and are looking forward to the supportive points for the team.
Mercedes team took part in the Melbourne race with high expectations but due to some technical quirks faced by them both drivers were retired from the race. No doubt they had a very discreet qualifying session but due to these issues they have ended their
race without any supportive points for the team.
Determined for a fine team performance, Schumacher said, "We clearly see that as a challenge and it is much too early to write us off. Everybody in the team remains positive and is in a fighting mood. So I expect a better weekend for us to come; a weekend
we can build on."
Before the start of Melbourne race, seven-time world champion updated the media that he is fully confident for 2011 season with his successful test sessions. He also mentioned that he is hopeful for the season races, having learnt the advanced features such
as KERS, adjustable rear wing and RFA of MGP-W02 car.
Schumacher highly appreciated the team's good work and admitted that the weather conditions seemed very feasible though nothing could be said of the tracks. He felt proud to be a part of Formula 1 sport and admitted that in this position, he had a responsibility
of putting up a good show and striving best to score achievements.
On the other hand, Nico Rosberg also said that he is looking forward to a fine weekend on the Sepang circuit. He further added that Mercedes fans will be in for a big surprise through the race, "Melbourne is a unique circuit and we know that we will have
a much better understanding of our level of performance after the next races. I think we can surprise people next Sunday. We know that the car is fast from the last test in Barcelona, so now we have to work on proving that potential."
He admitted that the team had a very tough Melbourne race and despite the setback, they had worked hard and now well understood the reliability of their car. He said he is confident that the machine will be running reliable in Sepang race.
Before the Australian Grand Prix Nico declared that MGP-W02 is not the fastest car of F1 but its handling is better and that it has more grip. Rosberg believed that he has a good platform so he can set the best place of the team.
The Malaysian Grand Prix is to begin in a few days. And all F1 teams are reaching the venue and preparing for the race.


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Do you take scripture memorization seriously?
Many professing Christians do not. While they will indeed memorize a favorite "life verse" from the Bible and perhaps a few other de-contextualized snippets of evangelical sloganeering, it seems that very few devote themselves to a regular and rigorous program of scripture memorization.
If more Christians did take scripture memorization seriously, they would not be so easily deceived by heretics and they would not be so quickly defeated by the devil and drawn into sin when he takes aim at their hearts and lets his fiery arrows fly.
God calls you to take scripture memorization seriously:
For the man of God says, "Thy word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against thee…" and of this man it is written, "The law of his God is in his heart; therefore none of his steps shall slide." (Psalms 119:11 and 37:31)