Do grain reserves necessarily contribute to prices stability and food security in Sudan? An assessment

AbstractMost governments in Africa implement policies aiming to stabilize the prices of staple foods, which often include building up grain reserves, besides other trade measures insulating their domestic market from the world market. The mechanism should ideally work as follows, grains should be bought and stored from areas, during the surplus seasons (after harvest) so as to assure fair prices to producers and should be distributed during deficit seasons, in deficit areas besides in cases of emergencies. However, ideal approaches are not necessarily followed in many developing countries due to different constraints and situations. The Strategic Reserve Corporation (SRC) is an institution that is established ten years ago to play such a role in Sudan. This paper tries to assess the performance of the SRC against the overall goals and to study the related obstacles if any. We use a sample of 112 respondents from the SRC staff, related and grain farmers as our data source. Results of the research revealed numerous financial and administrative constraints that obstruct SRC from playing the intended role, which need to be considered so as to contribute to price stability and food security in Sudan

End-Stage Renal Disease Patients on Haemodialysis in Gezira State Central Sudan; Aetiology and Iron Status

Background: This cross sectional study was conducted to determine the possible causes of chronic renal failure (CRF) and to monitor the iron status in order to reduce the mortality and morbidity in dialysis patients. Resluts: Sixty eight CRF patients (36 men and 32 women) on regular haemodialysis were included in this study. Their mean age was 45.4 ± 17.8 years. Diabetes nephropathy (29%) was the commonest cause of CRF, followed by hypertension (21%), Glomerulonephritis (15%), Severe malaria (13%) and the least common one was polycystic kidney (3%). The mean serum iron was 57.7 ± 27.9 ng/ml, mean serum ferritin was 221.0 ± 170.1 ng/ml, and transferrin saturation (TSAT) was 22.8 ± 24.3%. Using TSAT, 15 (22.1%) patients had adequate (or normal) iron status (25.9 ± 4.4; 284.6 ± 111.0), 53 (77.9%) patients had iron deficiency (13.8 ± 2.6; 88.8 ± 37.7) and none had iron overload. Conclusion: Our study suggests that, diabetes and hypertension are the conditions requiring strategies for prevention and treatment, and iron status of most cases is poor

Detection of serum prostate specific antigen in lactating, pregnant, and advanced breast cancer Sudanese Women.

Introduction: Although prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the most valuable tumor marker for the diagnosis and management of prostate carcinoma, it is widely accepted that PSA is not prostate specific.Objectives: The aim of this study is to address the possibility of using the PSA as marker for the sex assignment in different categories and relevance of this test in women problems.Method: We have evaluated the measurement of serum total PSA for differentiation between Sudanese women with advanced breast cancer (n= 10), and those are lactating (n=10), pregnant (n=10) compared with 20 healthy women as control group. Serum total PSA (TPSA) was measured using immuno-radiometric assay (IRMA).Results: In this study the mean age was significantly higher advanced breast cancer groups compared with lactating group (

Coping strategies and impact of disease among people living with HIV/AIDS: A qualitative study

Objective: The current study was undertaken to qualitatively investigate the coping strategies and impact of disease in HIV/AIDS patients. Methodology: The study was conducted at the Divisional Headquarters Teaching Hospital, Mirpur, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The hospital is a divisional hospital for three districts namely Mirpur, Kotli, and Bhimber catering to a population of approximately 1.5 million. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with twenty HIV/AIDS patients. For the analysis, the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis technique was used. The major domain of the impact of HIV/AIDS was further divided into nine major themes. The other major domain was coping with HIV/AIDS which included themes of spiritual coping, problem-focused coping, and avoidance coping. Results: Findings highlighted depression among people living with HIV/AIDS. The first sub-theme was the positive aspect which explains the family attitude towards illness as now they have become more caring and supportive towards the participant. The impact of disease is multifaceted including social, emotional, financial, and occupational. The participants were more inclined towards spiritual coping and problem-focused coping as compared to the avoidance coping. Conclusion: The findings of the study highlighted the need of the assessment and management of the participants through a psychologist. HIV/AIDS patients need counseling and awareness on the disease and the things to consider while on treatment to cope with the stress. They must be provided the updated information on HIV/AIDS. The management of HIV/AIDS patients requires that issues of psychological stresses be coped with professionalism

Risperidone oral disintegrating mini-tablets: A robust-product for pediatrics

This study was aimed at developing risperidone oral disintegrating mini-tablets (OD-mini-tablets) as age-appropriate formulations and to assess their suitability for infants and pediatric use. An experimental Box-Behnken design was applied to assure high quality of the OD-mini-tablets and reduce product variability. The design was employed to understand the influence of the critical excipient combinations on the production of OD-mini-tablets and thus guarantee the feasibility of obtaining products with dosage form uniformity. The variables selected were mannitol percent in Avicel (X1), swelling pressure of the superdisintegrant (X2), and the surface area of Aerosil as a glidant (X3). Risperidone-excipient compatibilities were investigated using FTIR and the spectra did not display any interaction. Fifteen formulations were prepared and evaluated for pre- and post-compression characteristics. The prepared OD-mini-tablet batches were also assessed for disintegration in simulated salivary fluid (SSF, pH 6.2) and in reconstituted skimmed milk. The optimized formula fulfilled the requirements for crushing strength of 5 kN with minimal friability, disintegration times of 8.4 and 53.7 s in SSF and skimmed milk, respectively. This study therefore proposes risperidone OD-mini-tablet formula having robust mechanical properties, uniform and precise dosing of medication with short disintegration time suitable for pediatric use

Plant Genome Engineering for Targeted Improvement of Crop Traits

To improve food security, plant biology research aims to improve crop yield and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress, as well as increasing the nutrient contents of food. Conventional breeding systems have allowed breeders to produce improved varieties of many crops; for example, hybrid grain crops show dramatic improvements in yield. However, many challenges remain and emerging technologies have the potential to address many of these challenges. For example, site-specific nucleases such as TALENs and CRISPR/Cas systems, which enable high-efficiency genome engineering across eukaryotic species, have revolutionized biological research and its applications in crop plants. These nucleases have been used in diverse plant species to generate a wide variety of site-specific genome modifications through strategies that include targeted mutagenesis and editing for various agricultural biotechnology applications. Moreover, CRISPR/Cas genome-wide screens make it possible to discover novel traits, expand the range of traits, and accelerate trait development in target crops that are key for food security. Here, we discuss the development and use of various site-specific nuclease systems for different plant genome-engineering applications. We highlight the existing opportunities to harness these technologies for targeted improvement of traits to enhance crop productivity and resilience to climate change. These cutting-edge genome-editing technologies are thus poised to reshape the future of agriculture and food security

A Neutrosophic Binomial Factorial Theorem with their Refrains

The Neutrosophic Precalculus and the Neutrosophic Calculus can be developed in many ways, depending on the types of indeterminacy one has and on the method used to deal with such indeterminacy. This article is innovative since the form of neutrosophic binomial factorial theorem was constructed in addition to its refrains. Two other important theorems were proven with their corollaries, and numerical examples as well. As a conjecture, we use ten (indeterminate) forms in neutrosophic calculus taking an important role in limits. To serve article's aim, some important questions had been answered

A Neutrosophic Binomial Factorial Theorem with their Refrains

The Neutrosophic Precalculus and the Neutrosophic Calculus can be developed in many ways, depending on the types of indeterminacy one has and on the method used to deal with such indeterminacy. This article is innovative since the form of neutrosophic binomial factorial theorem was constructed in addition to its refrains. Two other important theorems were proven with their corollaries, and numerical examples as well. As a conjecture, we use ten (indeterminate) forms in neutrosophic calculus taking an important role in limits. To serve article's aim, some important questions had been answered

Hypoxic modulation of exogenous nitrite-induced vasodilation in humans

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