Risques de décès associés à différents états nutritionnels chez l'enfant d'âge préscolaire

Cette étude à pour but de déterminer le risque de décès associé à différents états nutritionnels chez l'enfant d'âge préscolaire (0-5 ans), au Sénégal, plus précisemment dans la région de Niakhar. Les principales données de l'étude, ainsi que les détails de la méthodologie du travail sur le terrain, sont ainsi rendus disponibles pour l'usage des chercheurs et des responsables de santé publique. (VRL

Soil-based screening for iron toxicity tolerance in rice using pots

The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of pot-based screening method for iron (Fe) toxicity tolerance in rice using soils from hot spots. Five lowland rice varieties with known reaction to Fe toxicity were grown in pots in a screen house for three seasons. Fe-toxic soils from two hot spot fields – Edozighi, Nigeria and Niaouli, Benin were used and soil from Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) experimental farm, Cotonou, Benin was included as control. Leaf bronzing score (LBS) was determined at different stages, and grain yield was determined at maturity. Heritability was estimated using data across the three seasons. High heritability was recorded for LBS and grain yield. Grain yield reduction in stress treatment relative to control varied from 15 to 56% depending on the variety and soil. Bao Thai, Suakoko 8, and WITA 4 had better performance under Fe toxicity in terms of LBS, yield and relative yield reduction, whereas Bouake 189 and IR64 had poorer performance. Grain yield and LBS were significantly correlated but negatively at 60 days after sowing (DAS). Overall, the results found in this experiment were consistent with previous field studies. Therefore, pot screening using soils from hot spots can be used by rice breeding programs to reliably assess Fe toxicity tolerance ex situ

Genotypic variation in grain P loading across diverse rice growing environments and implications for field P balances

More than 60% of phosphorus (P) taken up by rice (Oryza spp) is accumulated in the grains at harvest and hence exported from fields, leading to a continuous removal of P. If P removed from fields is not replaced by P inputs then soil P stocks decline, with consequences for subsequent crops. Breeding rice genotypes with a low concentration of P in the grains could be a strategy to reduce maintenance fertilizer needs and slow soil P depletion in low input systems. This study aimed to assess variation in grain P concentrations among rice genotypes across diverse environments and evaluate the implications for field P balances at various grain yield levels. Multi-location screening experiments were conducted at different sites across Africa and Asia and yield components and grain P concentrations were determined at harvest. Genotypic variation in grain P concentration was evaluated while considering differences in P supply and grain yield using cluster analysis to group environments and boundary line analysis to determine minimum grain P concentrations at various yield levels. Average grain P concentrations across genotypes varied almost 3-fold among environments, from 1.4 to 3.9 mg g-1. Minimum grain P concentrations associated with grain yields of 150, 300 and 500 g m-2 varied between 1.2 and 1.7, 1.3 and 1.8 and 1.7 and 2.2 mg g-1 among genotypes respectively. Two genotypes, Santhi Sufaid and DJ123, were identified as potential donors for low grain P concentration. Improvements in P balances that could be achieved by exploiting this genotypic variation are in the range of less than 0.10 g P m-2 (1 kg P ha-1) in low yielding systems, and 0.15 to 0.50 g P m-2 (1.5-5.0 kg P ha-1) in higher yielding systems. Improved crop management and alternative breeding approaches may be required to achieve larger reductions in grain P concentrations in rice