Development and Evaluation of Remote Sensing Techniques for Assessing Winter Wheat Growth and Yield

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production can be enhanced through the development of improved cultivars with wider genetic background, capable of producing higher yield under various agro-climatic conditions, biotic and abiotic stresses. Early growth stages in wheat can be influenced by many factors, such as planting date, type of cultivar, and water management, among others. It is essential to monitor the crop performance early by taking accurate measurements of crop growth parameters. Monitoring wheat performance during the growing season will provide information on productivity and prospects for realizing yield potential. However, monitoring conventional methods are time-consuming, labor-intensive and can cause large sampling errors. Remote sensing tools have provided easy and quick measurements of ground cover and aboveground biomass, without destructive sampling. The central objective of this research is to evaluate the performance of wheat genotypes using remote sensors on a ground-based plant sensing system, Greenseeker® , and manned aircraft system, under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Field experiments were conducted in the Texas A&M AgriLife Research Experiment Station at Bushland, Texas, in 2011-2012, 2012-2013, 2014- 2015 and 2015-2016 winter wheat growing seasons. Yield as the major desirable trait for plant breeders was associated with biomass at anthesis and maturity, harvest index, spikes m⁻², seeds m⁻², seeds spike⁻¹ and TKW. Spectral data from the remote sensors were taken during tillering, jointing, and heading stage, and used to compute eleven spectral vegetation indices. Results showed that significant variation exists among the genotypes using the indices at different growth stages. Field data included aboveground biomass, percent ground cover (%GC), and yield. The field data and vegetation indices had a significant relationship (R² = 0.30- 0.99, P˂0.05) with the %GC, aboveground biomass, and yield. %GC had the best estimation among the field data with a single index (R² = 0.84; training and R² = 0.94; validation, P˂.0001). Results indicate that the indices could be used as an indirect selection tool for screening a large number of early-generation lines and advanced wheat genotypes. Overall, this study illustrated the potential use of remote sensing techniques by wheat breeders for highthroughput phenotyping to screen for drought tolerant and high-yielding genotypes

Seasonal variations of heavy metals concentrations and pollution assessment of major dumpsites in Ilisan-Remo, Nigeria

Background: Globally, natural and anthropogenic activities have led to soil pollution resulting in physiological and health challenges on environment, plants, animals, and humans. The present study was conducted to determine the total levels of heavy metals including cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), and nickel (Ni), in two major dumpsites in Ilisan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria. Methods: Sixteen composite soil samples were collected from both dumpsites (Cargo and Ilisan) at depths of 0-15 cm. Samples were collected in the wet and dry seasons. After collecting samples, they were air-dried and sieved, and the concentrations of metals were evaluated using flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). The obtained data were used to determine the pollution indices including contamination factor (CF), geo-accumulation index (Igeo), and ecological risk index. Results: The concentrations of heavy metals in Cargo dumpsite followed this order: Cr > Pb > Cu > Ni > Cd, during wet and dry seasons. Conversely, the concentrations of heavy metals in Ilisan dumpsite followed this order: Pb > Cr > Cu > Cd > Ni, over both seasons. The measured CF levels for both Cargo and Ilisan dumpsites were low to very high for Cd over both seasons. The Igeo revealed that both dumpsites were moderately to heavily polluted by Cd and Ilisan dumpsite was moderately polluted by Pb. A low to considerable ecological risk was observed for both dumpsites. Conclusion: The pollution indices suggest that both dumpsites were heavily polluted by Cd due to anthropogenic activities. Appropriate measures should be implemented to manage these dumpsites. Keywords: Anthropogenic activities, Dumpsite soils, Heavy metals, Pollution inde

A Mixed-Methods Study of Secondary Student and Teacher Attitudes to Mobile Education Apps in Lagos, Nigeria

With the advent of smartphones, laptops, and other various portable devices, the ability to incorporate technology into the classroom has increased dramatically in the last few decades. This study evaluates the perceptions and attitudes of both students and teachers in relation to mobile apps that assist in classroom learning. The research used a mixed-methods approach that collected demographic information and conducted qualitative interviews to determine the perceptions of mobile apps to students and teachers. Cross-sectional data was collected from participants and analyzed for associations. 43 students and 6 teachers were recruited and interviewed. The participants were asked about their thoughts on mobile educational apps, and their interviews were audio recorded and transcribed. Inductive thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. For students, themes were centered on barriers to educational app adoption, barriers to continued use of education apps, tracking progress, credibility, and goal setting/reminders. For teachers, themes identified that influenced mobile app use, and criteria used for mobile app selection was identified. Future research should aim to assess quantitative improvements in mobile educational app use within the classroom

Antibody attributes that predict the neutralization and effector function of polyclonal responses to SARS-CoV-2

BACKGROUND: While antibodies can provide significant protection from SARS-CoV-2 infection and disease sequelae, the specific attributes of the humoral response that contribute to immunity are incompletely defined. METHODS: We employ machine learning to relate characteristics of the polyclonal antibody response raised by natural infection to diverse antibody effector functions and neutralization potency with the goal of generating both accurate predictions of each activity based on antibody response profiles as well as insights into antibody mechanisms of action. RESULTS: To this end, antibody-mediated phagocytosis, cytotoxicity, complement deposition, and neutralization were accurately predicted from biophysical antibody profiles in both discovery and validation cohorts. These models identified SARS-CoV-2-specific IgM as a key predictor of neutralization activity whose mechanistic relevance was supported experimentally by depletion. CONCLUSIONS: Validated models of how different aspects of the humoral response relate to antiviral antibody activities suggest desirable attributes to recapitulate by vaccination or other antibody-based interventions

Designing Adverse Event Forms for Real-World Reporting: Participatory Research in Uganda

The wide-scale roll-out of artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) for the treatment of malaria should be accompanied by continued surveillance of their safety. Post-marketing pharmacovigilance (PV) relies on adverse event (AE) reporting by clinicians, but as a large proportion of treatments are provided by non-clinicians in low-resource settings, the effectiveness of such PV systems is limited. To facilitate reporting, AE forms should be easily completed; however, most are challenging for lower-level health workers and non-clinicians to complete. Through participatory research, we sought to develop user-friendly AE report forms to capture information on events associated with ACTs

Adherence to Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy for the Treatment of Malaria: A Systematic Review of the Evidence.

Increasing access to and targeting of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) is a key component of malaria control programmes. To maximize efficacy of ACT and ensure adequate treatment outcomes, patient and caregiver adherence to treatment guidelines is essential. This review summarizes the current evidence base on ACT adherence, including definitions, measurement methods, and associated factors. A systematic search of the published literature was undertaken in November 2012 and updated in April 2013. Bibliographies of manuscripts were also searched and additional references identified. Studies were included if they involved at least one form of ACT and reported an adherence measurement. The search yielded 1,412 records, 37 of which were found to measure adherence to ACT. Methods to measure adherence focused on self-report, pill counts and bioassays with varying definitions for adherence. Most studies only reported whether medication regimens were completed, but did not assess how the treatment was taken by the patient (i.e. timing, frequency and dose). Adherence data were available for four different ACT formulations: artemether-lumefantrine (AL) (range 39-100%), amodiaquine plus artesunate (AQ + AS) (range 48-94%), artesunate plus sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (AS + SP) (range 39-75%) and artesunate plus mefloquine (AS + MQ) (range 77-95%). Association between demographic factors, such as age, gender, education and socio-economic status and adherence to ACT regimens was not consistent. Some evidence of positive association between adherence and patient age, caregiver education levels, drug preferences, health worker instructions, patient/caregiver knowledge and drug packaging were also observed. This review highlights the weak evidence base on ACT adherence. Results suggest that ACT adherence levels varied substantially between study populations, but comparison between studies was challenging due to differences in study design, definitions, and methods used to measure adherence. Standardising methodologies for both self-report and bioassays used for evaluating adherence of different formulations across diverse contexts would improve the evidence base on ACT adherence and effectiveness; namely, specific and measurable definitions for adherence are needed for both methodologies. Additionally, further studies of the individual factors and barriers associated with non-adherence to ACT are needed in order to make informed policy choices and to improve the delivery of effective malaria treatment

The Impact of Retail-Sector Delivery of Artemether–Lumefantrine on Malaria Treatment of Children under Five in Kenya: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

In a cluster randomized trial, Beth Kangwana and colleagues find that provision of subsidized packs of the malaria therapy artemether-lumefantrine to shops more than doubled the proportion of children with fever who received drugs promptly