Determining the Socio-Economic Importance of Saffron as an Alternative Product to Opium Production in Afghanistan

The objective of this work is to determine the socio-economic importance of saffron production as an alternative to opium production in Afghanistan, and to determine if saffron production could influence farmers’ incomes. The primary data for the survey was obtained via direct interviews with farmers of 4 saffron leader districts in Herat, where 95% Saffron production was noted during 2016-2017. Factor analysis was used to determine the factors that influence saffron producers. Cluster analysis was used further, to separate farmer income groups. According to the first cluster, the most important factors affecting agricultural production were: negative climatic conditions while market instability was the second factor. Saffron producers’ annual average yield is 6.6 kg/ha in results that showed that if opium production is permitted, saffron farmers would produce opium due to the high revenue associated with opium production in Afghanistan

Determining the Factors Affecting Farmers’ Decision on Organic Livestock

In this study, the objective was to determine the factors affecting farmers’ decisions on organic livestock. Within this scope, the Gümüşhane province, in which one of the major organic livestock projects has been carried out, was taken into the focus of attention for this study. The data of the study was obtained from 134 surveys based on census and focusing on farmers doing conventional animal breeding and possessing 25 or more cattle. The data obtained were used in predicting the Logit Model. In the model, it was determined that the inclination to transition to organic animal breeding in institutions where the rate of benefiting from animal breeding supports and the rate of meeting forage requirements from their own are high and besides where the rate of using industrial feed is low. As a result, it was recommended that the government support for forage crops, which are already within the current support policies, should be increased on yearly basis. This will have a positive effect on the decision of the farmers to choose organic livestock. This support is also important in terms of carrying out livestock activities in more profitable and technical way

Acute effect of phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor on serum oxidative status and prolidase activities in men with erectile dysfunction

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the acute effect of phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor on erectile dysfunction by evaluating serum oxidative status and prolidase activity. METHODS: Serum samples of 36 patients with erectile dysfunction and 30 control cases were analyzed for total antioxidant status, total oxidant status, and prolidase activity, before and after the administration of tadalafil citrate. RESULTS: Before and after tadalafil citrate administration, serum total antioxidant status, total oxidant status, and prolidase were 1.1+0.0 vs. 1.6 + 0.0 umol H2O2 Eq/L, 10.3+1.1 vs. 6.9 + 1.2 umol H2O2 Eq/L, and 236.4+19.5 vs. 228.2 + 19.2 U/L, respectively (

Doğu Akdeniz Bölgesi’nde Örtü Altı Organik Domates Üretiminde Hastalık, Zararlı ve Yabancı Otların Mücadelesinin Yönetimi

Bu çalışma, 2004-2007 yılları arasında Alata Bahçe Kültürleri Araştırma Enstitüsü’ne ait organik-topraklı, topraksız kültür (organik-inorganik yetiştirme ortamları) ve kontrol seralarında yürütülmüş olup, örtü altı organik domates yetiştiriciliğinde karşılaşılan hastalık, zararlı ve yabancı otlara karşı organik tarıma uygun mücadele yöntemlerinin uygulanabilirliği, en uygun sulama programı araştırılmıştır. Organik-topraklı sera ve organik-inorganik kökenli dört farklı yetiştirme ortamlarından oluşan topraksız kültür seralarında her türlü girdiler ve yapılacak işlemler Tarım Bakanlığınca yayımlanan organik tarım yönetmeliğe uygun olarak seçilmiştir. Organik-topraklı seradan elde edilen ürüne ‘organik ürün’ sertifikası alımına yönelik gerekli denetlemeler danışman kuruluş tarafından yapılarak ürün sertifikalandırılmıştır. Örtü altı organik domates yetiştiriciliğinde kültürel önlemlerden solarizasyonun yanı sıra yararlı mikrorganizmalardan da yararlanılması ile hastalık, zararlı ve yabancı ot kontrollerinde mücadele sayısının azaltıldığı ve verimde geleneksel yetiştiriciliğe oranla ekonomik anlamda bir azalma görülmediği sonucuna varılmıştır. Organik topraklı, kontrol serası ve farklı yetiştirme ortamlarında organik domates yetiştiriciliğinde su kullanım etkinliği değerleri her üç deneme yılında da artan sulama suyuna bağlı olarak azalma göstermiştir. Organik-inorganik kökenli farklı yetiştirme ortamlarından oluşan topraksız kültür yetiştiriciliğinin ise gerek topraktan kaynaklanan hastalık, nematod ve yabancı ot çıkışının olmaması gerekse erkenci olması açısından dolayı özellikle toprağın bulaşık olduğu alanlarda organik-topraklı tarıma alternatif bir yetiştiricilik olabileceği kanısına varılmıştır

Endoscopic Management of the Difficult Bile Duct Stones: A Single Tertiary Center Experience

Background. Most common bile duct (CBD) stones can be removed with standard techniques using endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), but in some cases additional methods are needed. In this study we aimed to investigate the management of patients with difficult stones and the factors that affect the outcome of patients that have undergone periodic endobiliary stenting. Materials and Methods. Data of 1529 patients with naive papilla who had undergone ERCP with an indication of CBD stones was evaluated retrospectively. Stones that could not be removed with standard techniques were defined as “difficult stones.” Cholangiograms of patients who had difficult stones were revised prospectively. Results. Two hundred and eight patients (13.6%) had difficult stones; 150 of these patients were followed up with periodic endobiliary stenting and successful biliary clearance was achieved in 85.3% of them. Both CBD (p<0.001) and largest stone size (p<0.001) were observed to be significantly reduced between the first and the last procedure. This difference was even more significant in successfully treated patients. Conclusions. Periodic endobiliary stenting can be used as an effective treatment for patients with difficult stones. Sizes of the CBD and of the largest stone are independent risk factors that affect the success rate

The Diagnostic Value of Brush Cytology Alone and in Combination with Tumor Markers in Pancreaticobiliary Strictures

Aim. Differentiation of malignant and benign strictures constitutes a problem despite the increasing experience of the endoscopists, radiologists, and pathologists. The aim of our study is to determine the factors that affect the efficacy of the ERCP guided brush cytology in PBS and to evaluate its diagnostic success when used alone and together with tumor markers. Method. The data from brush cytologies of 301 PBS patients were collected retrospectively and analyzed. The final diagnosis was approved based on the histological examination of the tissue taken surgically or by other methods. In the absence of a histological diagnosis, the final diagnosis was based on radiological studies or the results of a 12-month clinical follow up. Results. A total of 28 patients were excluded from the study. From the remaining 273 patients 299 samples were analyzed. The sensitivity and the specificity of brush cytology in diagnosing malignancy are 62.4% and 97.7, respectively. The sensitivity of brush cytology increased to 94.1% when combined with CA-19.9 and CA-125. Conclusion. Brush cytology is a useful method in diagnosing pancreaticobiliary strictures. Advanced age, stricture dilatation before sampling, the presence of a mass identified by radiological studies, high levels of CA-19.9, ALT, and total bilirubin increase the sensitivity of brush cytology

The comparison of pistachio production costs in the plain and the mountain villages of Gaziantep province

Çalışmada antepfıstığı yetiştiriciliği yapan dağ ve ova köylerinde bulunan tarım işletmelerinin üretim maliyetlerinin birbirleriyle karşılaştırılması amaçlanmıştır. Gaziantep’in Nizip ve Karkamış İlçelerinde toplam 14 köyde basit tesadüfi örnekleme yöntemi uygulanmıştır. Bu yönteme göre 136 tarım işletmesi ile görüşmeler yapılarak gerekli veriler anket formaları ile elde edilmiştir. Anket formları, 2006-2007 ve 2007-2008 üretim dönemi dikkate alınarak 2 yıllık rakamların ortalamasına göre doldurulmuştur. Çalışmada antepfıstığının kilogram maliyeti, dağ köylerinde 5.01 TL, ova köylerinde 7.56 TL ve genel ortalama 6.40 TL olarak hesaplanmıştır. Dağ köylerinde antepfıstığı maliyetinin ova köylerine nazaran düşük olmasının ana nedeni, antepfıstığı yetiştiriciliğinin geleneksel ve oldukça az miktarda girdi kullanımı ile gerçekleşmesinden kaynaklanmaktadır. Dağ köyleri ova köylerine nazaran düşük verime sahiptir. Fakat ova köylerinde dağ köylerinin 3 katı girdi kullanılmasına karşın 2 kat fazla verim elde edilmektedir. Bunun da başlıca sebebi, her ne kadar ova köylerinde gübre, ilaç vb girdi unsurları kullanılıyor olsa bile sulama yapılmaması ve kullanılan bu girdi unsurlarının kullanım miktarlarının kontrollü olarak uygulanamamasından ileri gelmektedir. Türkiye’nin antepfıstığı maliyetlerini düşürmesi üretimindeki potansiyelini koruyabilmesi ve dünya pazarlarında rekabet edebilmesi açısından önemlidir. Bunu gerçekleştirebilmesi için maliyete etkili unsurlar içerisinde yer alan verim artırıcı girdilerin kontrollü bir şekilde ve teknik uzmanların önerileri ile kullanmaları faydalı olacaktır. Diğer yandan çiftçilere tarımsal yayım hizmetleri çerçevesinde düzenli olarak teknik bilgi sağlanmalıdır.In this study, the aim has been to compare the mountain and plain villages in terms of the production cost of pistachio in Gaziantep Province. The Simple Sampling Method was used to collect data in 14 Villages of Karkamiş and Nizip Districts of Gaziantep. According to this method, 136 questionnaires were conducted by meeting face to face with the farmers growing pistachio and required data were collected. Questionnaires were filled out with two-year average values in production periods of 2006-2007 and 2007-2008. In mountain villages, plain villages and avarage production costs of pistachio per kilogram were calculated as 5.01 TL, 7.56 TL and 6.40 TL, respectively. The main cause of lower production cost in mountain villages than that of Plain villages, stems from the usage of traditional production methods with low input in mountain villages. Pistachio yield in the plain villages is not as high as expected. Because, in plain villages, it has obtained twice more production than that of mountain villages. Despite the fact that, in plain villages three times more inputs are used in pistachio production than in mountain villages, the yield is only twice as high in plain villages than in mountain villages. Main reason of this is that, even though the farmers in plain villages use inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides etc. they do not apply these inputs in required quantities and under controlled conditions, On the other hand, the level of irrigation in plain villages is almost non existent which hinders the yield of the product. It is important that Turkey decrease pistachio cost so that it can compete with other pistachio growing nations in global markets and protect its production potential. In order to accomplish this objective, it will be usefull to use the inputs that are effective in increasing the production under controlled conditions and in accordance with the reccomendations of the technical experts. On the other hand, the farmers should be provided with technical information continiously within the framework of the Agricultural Extension Service

New Travelling Wave Solutions of Conformable Cahn-Hilliard Equation

In this article, two methods are proposed to solve the fractional Cahn-Hilliard equation. This model describes the process of phase separation with nonlocal memory effects. Cahn-Hilliard equations have numerous applications in real-world scenarios, e.g., material sciences, cell biology, and image processing. Different types of solutions have been obtained. For this, the fractional complex transformation has been used to convert fractional differential equation to ordinary differential equation of integer order. As a result, these solutions are new solutions that do not exist in the literature