Do smallholder farmer-led seed systems have the capacity to supply good-quality, fungal-free sorghum seed?

Local seed systems that are developed, managed and maintained by farmers are a fundamental practice in smallholder crop production, supporting more than 80% of farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and feeding more than 70% of its population. The resilience of such systems is under threat from poverty, climate change, drought, increased pests and diseases, over-promotion of modern crop varieties, change of lifestyles and restrictive seed policies. The system continues to be maligned as having inferior quality, yet few studies support this assertion. This study aims to fll this research gap by evaluating 60 sorghum seed samples collected from smallholder farmers in Uzumba-MarambaPfungwe and Chimanimani districts of Zimbabwe. We investigated the efect of farmer-led seed management practices (e.g. seed acquisition and seed storage practices) on farm-derived sorghum seed quality (moisture, germination and fungal incidences). We found farmers using diverse seed sources and seed storage practices. Seeds were typically of good quality in that their storage moisture content was low, their germination was high, and fungal incidences were low. Seed sourced from local markets, non-governmental organizations and other farmers had germination and moisture standards that met the sorghum certifcation standards in Zimbabwe. However, few samples obtained from the relatives and government failed to meet the germination and/or moisture certifcation standards. We detected low incidences of fungi (Aspergillus favus, Aspergillus niger, Curvularia lunata, Fusarium sp. and Penicillium sp.) in sorghum seed samples tested and in particular Fusarium sp., which is the most economic important fungus in sorghum production. We conclude that farmer-led seed systems have the capacity to supply seeds of good quality and recommend that such systems should be recognized and promoted to meet the ever-evolving needs of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa

Control transition workshop: Handover and takeover procedures in highly automated driving

This workshop focuses on the problem of designing effective control transition interfaces in highly automated vehicles. This includes the handover of control from the driver to the autonomous vehicle, as well as takeover procedures from the vehicle to the driver. The workshop aims at consolidating existing knowledge and identifying remaining issues together with paths towards resolving these issues. Concrete focus points concern tasks and actors involved, presentation modalities, gradual versus sudden transition requests, situation and driving mode awareness, the temporal dimension, and engagement in driving and non-driving tasks

Risk of venous thromboembolism among different anti-osteoporosis drugs: a population-based cohort analysis including over 200,000 participants from Spain and the UK

Summary:The venous thromboembolism risk among anti-osteoporotics is unknown. In this primary care study, the risk with other bisphosphonates [1.05 (0.94–1.18) and 0.96 (0.78–1.18)], strontium [0.90 (0.61–1.34) and 1.19 (0.82–1.74)], in the UK and Spain respectively, and denosumab [1.77 (0.25–12.66)] and teriparatide [1.27 (0.59–2.71)] in Spain, did not differ versus alendronate.Introduction:Most of the known adverse drug reactions described for anti-osteoporosis medication (AOM) have been described in studies comparing AOM users to non-users. We aimed to compare the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) among incident users of different AOM compared to alendronate (first line therapy).Methods:Two cohort studies were performed using data from the UK (CPRD) and Spain (BIFAP) primary care records separately. All patients aged ≥ 50 years with at least 1 year of data available and a new prescription or dispensation of AOM (date for therapy initiation) during 2000–2014 (CPRD) or 2001–2013 (BIFAP) were included. Users of raloxifene/bazedoxifene were excluded from both databases. Five exposure cohorts were identified according to first treatment: (1) alendronate, (2) other bisphosphonates, (3) strontium ranelate, (4) denosumab, and (5) teriparatide. Participants were followed from the day after therapy initiation to the earliest of a treated VTE (cases), end of AOM treatment (defined by a refill gap of 180 days), switching to an alternative AOM, drop-out, death, or end of study period. Incidence rates of VTE were estimated by cohort. Adjusted hazard ratios (HR 95%CI) were estimated according to drug used.Results:Overall, 2035/159,209 (1.28%) in CPRD and 401/83,334 (0.48%) in BIFAP had VTE. Compared to alendronate, adjusted HR of VTE were 1.05 (0.94–1.18) and 0.96 (0.78–1.18) for other bisphosphonates, and 0.90 (0.61–1.34) and 1.19 (0.82–1.74) for strontium in CPRD and BIFAP, respectively; 1.77 (0.25–12.66) for denosumab and 1.27 (0.59–2.71) for teriparatide in BIFAP.Conclusions:VTE risk during AO therapy did not differ by AOM drug use. Our data does not support an increased risk of VTE associated with strontium ranelate use in the community

Optimization of pyrazole-containing 1,2,4-triazolo-[3,4-b]thiadiazines, a new class of STAT3 pathway inhibitors

Structure-activity relationship studies of a 1,2,4-triazolo-[3,4-b]thiadiazine scaffold, identified in an HTS campaign for selective STAT3 pathway inhibitors, determined that a pyrazole group and specific aryl substitution on the thiadiazine were necessary for activity. Improvements in potency and metabolic stability were accomplished by the introduction of an α-methyl group on the thiadiazine. Optimized compounds exhibited anti-proliferative activity, reduction of phosphorylated STAT3 levels and effects on STAT3 target genes. These compounds represent a starting point for further drug discovery efforts targeting the STAT3 pathway