An Assessment of the Credit Risk Management Mechanisms at Berhan International Bank of Hossana Branch, Ethiopia

The main aim this study was assessing the credit risk management mechanisms at Berhan International Bank of Hossana branch. Descriptive research design with both qualitative and quantitative methods (numerical, percentage, and tabulation) form of data analysis was employed. Both questionnaire and interview were utilized as data collecting instruments. On the other hand, purposive sampling technique was employed so as to select samples of the study. The Mechanisms used by Berhan international bank so as to manage credit risk are money saving and portfolio diversification. The bank must design credit risk management by applying two approaches required to follow to ensure the safety of each loans. The credit policy of the bank is good but it should be consider its objective for customer& the credit policy should be subject to periodically depending on the change that may take place &set objective standards parameter to official who grant loans. Keywords: Risk, Credit Risk, Risk management mechanisms, Bank DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/11-7-04 Publication date: April 30th 202

Regeneration of plantlets from unpollinated ovary cultures of Ethiopian wheat (Triticum turgidum and Triticum aestivum)

An in vitro culture protocol was established for direct regeneration of plantlets from unpollinated ovary cultures of four Ethiopian wheat varieties. Unpollinated ovaries were excised from durum wheat (Yerer and Ude varieties) and bread wheat (Simba and Galama varieties). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) has shown that genotypes, types of media, concentrations of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) and kinetin (KIN) and durations of cold pretreatment at 4°C significantly (P≤0.05) affected direct formation of embryonic tissues independently. Stage II of wheat spikes, MS medium containing 1 mg/l of each of 2,4-D and KIN and 15 days of cold pretreatment were found to be the best conditions for direct formation of embryonic tissues. The highest frequency of shoots were regenerated from the cultured embryonic tissues of Yerer (41.6% ) and Simba (41.3%) on medium containing 0.1 mg/l 2,4-D. From a total of 14,524 cultured unpollinated ovaries, 1,100 embryonic tissues (7.6 %) and 75 regenerants were obtained. The average percentage of embryonic tissues and regenerants were 9.0 and 1.1% from 3,444; 9.8 and 0.55% from 4,732; 5.6 and 0.17% from 2,988; 4.7 and 0.12% from 3,360 cultured unpollinated ovaries for varieties Yerer, Simba, Ude and Galama, respectively.Keywords: Embryonic tissues, Unpollinated ovaries, regenerants, wheat varietiesAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(39), pp. 5754-576

Factors Associated with Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis among TB Patients in Selected Treatment Centers of Amhara Region: A Case-Control Study

BACKGROUND: Multi-drug Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is found to be a major public health problem both in developed and developing countries. Ethiopia is one of the 30 high MDR-TB burden countries in the world. Although several studies were done to identify the determinants of MDR-TB, the reported findings are heterogeneous across the world.METHODS: Unmatched case-control study was conducted at Debre Markose Referral Hospital, Debre Birhan Referral Hospital, and Boru Media District Hospital in Amhara Region, Northern Ethiopia, from March 01/2019- April 30/2019. Cases were all tuberculosis patients with culture or line probe assay confirmed mycobacterium tuberculosis resistant to at least both Isoniazid and Rifampicin and registered on second-line TB treatment. Controls were all patients with Bacteriological (molecular) proven drug-susceptible TB strains and whose recent smears result were turned to negative and registered as cured from January 01/2014 – December 31/2018. A pre-tested checklist was used to collect the data.RESULT: Of the total reviewed documents (393), 98 cases and 295 controls were involved in this study. And, 54(55.1%) among cases and 162(54.9%) among controls were males. sixty nine(70.4%) among cases and 163(55.3) among controls were within the age group of 26-45 years. In the multivariable logistic regression analysis, age between 26-45years old (AOR=3.35; 95% CI: 1.15, 9.77), previous history of TB treatment (AOR= 14.2;95%CI: 7.8, 25.3) and being HIV positive (AOR=4.4; 95% CI:1.8, 10.4) were significantly associated with MDR-TB.CONCLUSION: Age between 26-45 years old, previously treated cases and TB/HIV co-infection were identified as the determinants of MDR-TB. Special attention should be given to age between 26-45 years old, previous history of TB treatment and TB/HIV co-infection to prevent and control MDR-TB in the local context

Assessment of Respiratory Symptoms and Lung Function among Workers Exposed to Cotton Dust at Arba Minch Textile Factory, Arba Minch, Southern Ethiopia, 2017

Background: Textile industry is considered as a number one priority sector by the Ethiopian governmen

Glutamate indicators with improved activation kinetics and localization for imaging synaptic transmission

iGluSnFR variants with improved signal-to-noise ratios and targeting to postsynaptic sites have been developed, enabling the analysis of glutamatergic neurotransmission in vivo as illustrated in the mouse visual and somatosensory cortex. The fluorescent glutamate indicator iGluSnFR enables imaging of neurotransmission with genetic and molecular specificity. However, existing iGluSnFR variants exhibit low in vivo signal-to-noise ratios, saturating activation kinetics and exclusion from postsynaptic densities. Using a multiassay screen in bacteria, soluble protein and cultured neurons, we generated variants with improved signal-to-noise ratios and kinetics. We developed surface display constructs that improve iGluSnFR's nanoscopic localization to postsynapses. The resulting indicator iGluSnFR3 exhibits rapid nonsaturating activation kinetics and reports synaptic glutamate release with decreased saturation and increased specificity versus extrasynaptic signals in cultured neurons. Simultaneous imaging and electrophysiology at individual boutons in mouse visual cortex showed that iGluSnFR3 transients report single action potentials with high specificity. In vibrissal sensory cortex layer 4, we used iGluSnFR3 to characterize distinct patterns of touch-evoked feedforward input from thalamocortical boutons and both feedforward and recurrent input onto L4 cortical neuron dendritic spines

Ecology and genomics of an important crop wild relative as a prelude to agricultural innovation

Domesticated species are impacted in unintended ways during domestication and breeding. Changes in the nature and intensity of selection impart genetic drift, reduce diversity, and increase the frequency of deleterious alleles. Such outcomes constrain our ability to expand the cultivation of crops into environments that differ from those under which domestication occurred. We address this need in chickpea, an important pulse legume, by harnessing the diversity of wild crop relatives. We document an extreme domestication-related genetic bottleneck and decipher the genetic history of wild populations. We provide evidence of ancestral adaptations for seed coat color crypsis, estimate the impact of environment on genetic structure and trait values, and demonstrate variation between wild and cultivated accessions for agronomic properties. A resource of genotyped, association mapping progeny functionally links the wild and cultivated gene pools and is an essential resource chickpea for improvement, while our methods inform collection of other wild crop progenitor species